Some of the top live Seattle music venues include Dimitriou's Jazz Alley. This Seattle music venue is also a restaurant and features top jazz artists every night. Nectar lounge is located in the heart of Seattle's Fremont District. This Seattle music venue features live music and events all through the week. Nectar lounge is known for its unique two-level interior space, private booths, covered outdoor patio, and three full bars. This Seattle music venue boasts of being the place for hip-hop, indie rock, reggae, dance, folk, electronic, funk, soul and punk. Serafina is a popular Seattle music venue located along Eastlake, north of downtown Seattle. Live Seattle music runs every Friday, Saturday, Sunday and on the first Wednesday of every month.

The entire music industry descends on Austin, Texas each March for the South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Conference and Festival, running from March 15 to 20 this year. The Seattle music scene will be well-represented in Austin as dozens of bands from the city are making the trip. They will be playing more shows drinking more beers than can be counted.

The musicians modes of transportation to the festival are quite interesting. For example, Christopher Mansfield of Fences plans to drive to Austin in a Ford Econoline van, while Damien Jurado is hooking up with another band (Viva Voce) to make the trip down as a tour stop. Eric Elbogen of Say Hi said that the festival is happening right in the middle of a tour, so they are not sure they will be able to make it to SXSW at all this year. Kyle Musselwhite of the Globes is still not sure about driving, as the band's tour vehicle is pushing 300,000 miles on the odometer.

A highlight of live music in Seattle this month is Max Tundra, performing live as the opener for Greg Gillis' dance party on March 16 in the SoDo district of Seattle. This British musician, who's real name is Ben Jacobs, has a keen ear for pop hooks and a hyperactive, cut-up style. He assembles his originals while leaping form keyboard to synthesizer to microphone to guitar and back, rather than just assembling the best bits of other people's songs via laptop as is common today.

The resulting songs have a quirky vibe that is deliriously fractured and renders them true pop gems. With Max Tundra, you can expect the unexpected and that's what makes him such an exciting live music artist. He is also known for putting on a good show with his wicked and goofy dance moves.