VIDEO: Krist Novoselić brings his new music-and-politics mix to Easy Street Records’ stage

| West Seattle news | West Seattle politics | WS culture/arts

30 years post-Nirvana, one of the superstar grunge band’s surviving members has a new band and a new cause. Krist Novoselić brought his new Bona Fide Band to Easy Street Records in The Junction tonight. Most bands who take the Easy Street stage are there to sell records; Novoselić was there to sell his new political party to a full house on a hot night.

Outside, signatures were solicited to support establishment of Novoselić’s new Cascade Party of Washington. He talked about it briefly after taking the stage – urging people to “raise hell” – but then quickly moved on to the music.

His bandmates include Mark Pickerel from Screaming Trees, singers Jillian Weiss and Jennifer Johnson from 3rd Secret (another Novoselić collaboration), and Kathy Moore (from Brad). The Easy Street show started a tour that also includes appearances in Aberdeen, Ellensburg, Bremerton, and Tacoma, over the next month.

Keith June 20, 2024 (11:16 pm)

Plus Kathy Moore (from Brad) on lead guitar. She was amazing!

WSB June 20, 2024 (11:22 pm)

Thanks, updating!
- Keith June 20, 2024 (11:30 pm)
  
  I picked up the “Brad” reference from the Easy Street Instagram post to promote this show but she also has another trio that I can’t wait to check out!

Derek June 21, 2024 (8:30 am)

Love Nirvana but he’s gone off the deep end with this political party. Have you actually read what he thinks? Yikes.

Lindsey June 21, 2024 (9:21 am)

From Cascade Party’s website: “We support institutional care for individuals experiencing chronic addiction and debilitating mental illness on our streets. Fund law enforcement, require sobriety for access to public services, drug court.”That is so opposite of what we know helps people who are struggling with addiction. The party website seems to be just a blog of this guy’s rants.

R June 21, 2024 (9:38 am)

Nah, he’s onto something. We’ve spent the last 10 years with the soft approach and things have become unbearable. Not everyone is savable, and those of us at the bottom that follow the rules are tired of our city’s resources going to those that don’t. We lowered the threshold for accountability and it has backfired. It needs to be brought back up. Life was never fair, and no law, system, nor amount of money can make it so.
- K June 21, 2024 (12:20 pm)
  
  We tried the hard line, lock em all up thing in the 90s and all it lead to was exploding prison populations at an immense cost to taxpayers. It didn’t solve crime, homelessness, or drug use.
Jeff June 21, 2024 (10:55 am)

There is a lot I’m willing to try out if status quo is the other option. You can only scold the public into accepting what we see for so long. Eventually we just want clean streets and less theft.
WSDUDEMAN June 21, 2024 (11:18 am)

Sounds great. Enabling addiction and leaving people to ‘compassionately’ die in squalor in our streets doesn’t seem to be the right approach. Anyway, the band was fantastic last night.
- Jeff P June 21, 2024 (1:59 pm)
  
  This is gross. We are not casting off poor and homeless to an island like some kind of concentration camp. Stop being nasty to the poor.
Person June 21, 2024 (12:09 pm)

Just this morning I was followed around the junction while waiting for the bus by a man obviously suffering from mental illness. I was ready with a cup of hot coffee in his face if needed. His behavior leaves him very vulnerable. It is absolutely inhumane that we cannot institutionalize people like him against his will.I’ll be reading more about the Cascade Party for sure!
- K June 21, 2024 (1:25 pm)
  
  There aren’t enough beds for the people who are willing to be institutionalized and want mental health care. Please make sure to ask what the Cascade Party’s tax plan is to pay for all of these new mental health facilities. Goals without a plan to make it happen are just wishes.
Dave June 21, 2024 (1:40 pm)

I will reference the website, have not done so yet. Shouldn’t accountability (without shame) be part of addiction recovery services?

Shaunbob June 21, 2024 (11:47 am)

So all the things that we know actually work for addicts will be thrown out the window, we will take a giant step backwards to where most cities are now, which is will be illegal to be homeless, forcing the homeless to camp out way out on the train tracks. That way those who are lucky enough to afford a place can pretend that homeless population doesn’t exist. Even worse, they can feel like they solved the problem through “tough love”. Sounds great if you’re a neo Nazi, or a Christian nationalist or something. For those of us who attempt to maintain a sense of compassion for humans and other life, it’s very obvious that this is horrible. Housing first works best. Better yet, it should be considered a basic human right to consume whatever chemical you want. Legalize and regular hard drugs, plus Medicare for all, that is the closest thing to a solution you’ll ever have, unless people dying on the street is ok with you.

Scarlett June 21, 2024 (2:53 pm)

Mr. Novoselic, do you know what “institutional” care for those with debilitating mentall illness consists of? It’s usually a heavy cocktail of anti-psychotics, a chemical lobotomy, that turns individuals into compliant, slobbering zombies who sleep for most of the day. The vulnerable mentally ill cannot be on the streets fending for themselves, but whether the care they receive in institutions can be regarded as “treatment” is very debatable.

F June 21, 2024 (3:49 pm)

Can’t help but think of Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle

In her false witnessI hope you’re still with usTo see if they float or drownOur favorite patientDisplay of patienceDisease-covered Puget SoundShe’ll come back as fireTo burn all the liarsLeave a blanket of ash on the ground
Oerthehillz June 21, 2024 (7:13 pm)

The care was much like you say, in the past. Including shock therapy in much too high doses. But, it doesn’t mean they’re all like the Jack Nicholson movie. I think we have more knowledge now and could create a better way to rehabilitation.
- Scarlett June 22, 2024 (11:06 am)
  
  Wish that were true but that is not case. The DSM gets thicker and thicker with mental illness “diagnoses’ but they are simply a basket of symptoms given a “science-cy” sounding name. These drugs simply mask a set of symptoms, they don’t treat an actual disease mechanism, as one might for diabetes. Mental illness is a maladaption to the world as evidenced that most mental illness arises in late adolescence, a difficult time for many for many different reasons. Variation in the species, if you will. I think when we recognize this, and give families the support they need, then we can learn to live with it rather than shunting those who have trouble coping with life, off to institutions.

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