Ballard's Backstage Is A Blast And A Half

MAKING MUSIC UNDER MARKET STREET: It may be the most eclectic live music venue in the greater Seattle area. It's definitely one of the most securely entrenched. Ten years old and a floor below the sidewalk, The Backstage in Ballard is a musical institution.

"There's a million stories in Seattle, and we're one story under it," explains house soundman P.J. Newman.

"But we try really hard to be as accessible as possible," says Cindy Payne, promotions. "To the customers and the musicians. Really."

Current owner Ed Beeson took over the spot four years ago. Like most of the people he now works with, he never thought he'd be running a music venue. "Yeah, it was some sort of fate," interjects Payne. "I never thought I'd be doing promotions in a club in a basement in Ballard.

"It's always a struggle," continues Beeson, whose magniloquence is matched only by his stature (he's 6 feet 4), "but it's also always rewarding."

And it's always different. The simple, unadorned, funkified Backstage, your basic box with a dance floor, a stage plunked on one wall and a bar on another, holds around 450 and brings in just about everybody and everything. Folk, rock, folk rock, country, country rock, jazz, jazz rock, alternative rock, doo-wop, blues, even heavy metal - they've all rolled, crawled, scampered and lurched across the Backstage stage.

And it's a fine watching and listening room. The line-of-sight is pretty much uniformly good (except for a couple of obstructive pillars), the sound is right, and you can dance most of the time.

UP 'N' COMIN': The Backstage has always worked with not only national acts but promising local artists as well. Two exemplary cases are The Picketts and their "Austin or Bust"' show tomorrow night, and Monday night's concert with singer/songwriter Lara Lavi and special guests.

The Picketts, one of the city's favorite and finest rock and country ensembles, has been chosen to perform at South by Southwest, Austin's annual music festival and an industry coup. They were one of only 350 bands invited from a field of 2,500 demo tapes submitted. The only other Seattle group so honored is Ranch Romance.

When contacted, lead vocalist Christy McWilson had plenty to say about the honor.

"Hold on," she said, "I've been scraping tile grout with this, ah, whaddaya call it? A screwdriver! Yeah! OK. Well, we're really excited about going, really! We've never been more than a day's drive out of Seattle, y' know. But I'm trying to be real cool and rebellious and don't-give-a-damn about it. I'm telling everyone I play Austin all the time. But I never have. I have to get back to the grout now. Anything else?"

But travelin' to Texas ain't cheap, hence the "Austin or Bust" show. Six bucks at the door will get you not only the globe-trottin' Picketts, but Portland's punchy, progressive country band No Way Home, and from San Diego by way of Mojo Nixon, the Forbidden Pigs for some three-way rockabilly. Starts at 9:30 p.m.

STARTING THE WEEK OUT RIGHT: Monday night at the Backstage, Lara Lavi and her band will be joined by Charles Neville (yes, of the Neville Brothers), Morgan Fichter (violinist for Jane's Addiction) and Arlie Neskahi with the White Eagle Singers for a live performance of an original work in progress. All of the performers have recorded product, but over the weekend this eclectic group - folk, rock, alternative, jazz, R&B and traditional inner-tribal musicians - will be recording new material together. "This is the birth of a new music," Lavi says, laughing both at the gravity of her statement and from the fun she's been having. "You gotta see this. It's amazing."

Showtime is 8:30. Tickets are $10.