THE BAD THINGS

In 2002. The Bad Things were formed out of the ashes of A Midnite Choir, a cult favorite in the, then burdgeoning, Seattle underground cabaret scene. Upon the demise of the Choir, members Jimmy the Pickpocket (accordion, vocals) and Mad Wilcox (upright bass, musical saw) began playing new songs on the wet, Seattle sidewalks under the “Bad Things” moniker (a name taken from the Midnite Choir’s ode to alcohol DT’s “Physical Withdrawals”), eventually growing into the 6-piece ensemble that you see today. They recorded their first CD with the legendary local producer Kearney Barton (The Sonics, The Ventures, The Kingsmen, etc.) which was released on their own label Silent City Records. The Bad Things quickly gained a reputation for “drunken debauchery” and “feverish dancing” at their live shows, and their theatrical aesthetic sealed their reputation as Seattle’s premier “Junkyard Cabaret” band. The group has built up a large and ridiculously devoted cult following through their reputation, three successful West Coast tours, and hundreds of local shows – including shows with national bands like DeVotchKa, Balkan Beat Box, Firewater, Woven Hand, Slim Cessnas Autoclub, Stephin Merrit and the Gothic Archies, Johnny Dowd, Jason Webley, Baby Gramps, Circus Contraption, Calvin Johnson, Man Man, World/Inferno Friendship Society, Faun Fables, Morris Teper, and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum. They’ve also been featured in popular festivals like the Nortwest Folklife Festival, Bumbershoot, The Georgetown Music Festival, The Seattle International Cabaret Festival, Seattle Weekly’s REVERB Festival, and their annual Halloween showcase of the hottest acts in the cabaret underground: Cabaret Macabre. The Bad Things have been highly active in the rich Seattle cabaret scene providing soundtracks to dozens of theatrical, burlesque, aerial, and cabaret shows at popular local cabaret venues like The Triple Door, The Can Can, Showbox At the Market, The Moore Theater, and the Columbia City Theater including “The Breaking” – a live theatrical production based entirely on The Bad Things’ music performed by The Can Can’s Castaways and directed by Armitage Shanks of Circus Contraption. They recently provided the soundtrack for a documentary about the Seattle burlesque scene as part of MTV.com’s $5 Cover web series. They also recently released a collaboration with the co-founder of UK anarcho-pop legends Chumbawamba, Danbert Nobacon called “Woebegone” which was released in the Fall of 2010 on Nobacon’s Verbal Burlesque Records.