It's a Family Affair

Boasting a drummer in his early teens and the unusual name he dreamed up, Seattle five-piece Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band has enough quirks to reference most of indie rock. The band does sweeping hugeness, yelped vocals, a few nonsense refrains (“Albatross, Albatross, Albatross”), restless instrumentation, and nautical themes. Frontman Benjamin Verdoes is the older brother of drummer Marshall Verdoes and the husband of percussionist and keyboardist Traci Eggleston: The whole thing came together after a promise to Marshall that if he learned to play the drums well, his brother would found a band with him. With a solid batch of tunes and a seasoned co-producer, Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band recorded an ambitious self-titled debut and landed on indie label Dead Oceans. Much time on the road followed, culminating in the band becoming the first ever to perform a show on the volcanic peak that is partly its namesake.

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More About

• Traci Eggleston
• Marshall
• Mount St. Helens
• Indie Rock and Indie Pop
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media

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The Growlers and My First Earthquake open.
Wed., Dec. 2, 8 p.m., 2009