Throughout their 17-year run, Seattle alt rock group Harvey Danger never pulled any punches or cut any corners with their music. Their debut, Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone?, was a pummeling rock record that somehow failed to turn a lot of heads like it should have; however, it did feature their one hit single, "Flagpole Sitta". Then, instead of selling out and trying to repeat the success of that track, they came back a few years later with King James Version, which showed them relaxing a bit from the high-octane approach of Merrymakers, and this album was even less successful financially, despite critical acclaim. This album was when their clever lyrics and lack of concern for financial success really began to show. Then, in 2005, they did what at the time was unthinkable - they released their third album, Little by Little..., entirely for free on their website. And you thought Radiohead was the first to play that game. One critic wrote of the album, "If Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? is a rebellious kid kicking over trashcans in his neighborhood, then Little by Little... seems to be that kid all grown up, taking out the trash, putting the lid on tightly, getting in his Jetta, and driving to work."
Harvey Danger never got the attention they deserved, and this year they decided to call it quits, departing with a collection of demos and unreleased tracks called Dead Sea Scrolls. It's too late to help this band stay together, but their music is still waiting to be heard by so many people, so I've uploaded their entire discography, including a bootleg of their final song both written and performed, "The Show Must Not Go On." Give this band a listen; I think you're going to like what you hear.
LPs
