A longtime Sounders supporter, Jason Finn and his band the Presidents of the United States of America are hoping for some magic at the Seattle's Western Conference Championship match on Sunday. They will also join the festivities at the March to the Match and at halftime at CenturyLink Field.

By Matt Gaschk

Back in the days of the Kingdome, Jason Finn sat with his father near the corner flag watching the Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League.

He was there supporting the teams that won the West in 1980 and 1982 and, like many other fans, was crushed when the league folded in 1983.

He has since turned much of his focus to music and gained fame as the drummer for the Presidents of the United States of America, but never lost his passion for Seattle sports.  And this week, as they have so often in the past for the 45-year-old Seattle native, the two will marry when Finn and the Presidents play at halftime of the Sounders FC Western Conference Championship clash with the LA Galaxy at CenturyLink Field.

They will also appear as part of the festivities in Occidental Park prior to the March to the Match, making a busy day for the band.

“It will be a long day for you if you really like the Sounders, but don’t really care for the Presidents of the United States of America,” Finn said.  “We’re going to be in your grill … all day.”

Presidents of the United States of America gained fame with 1995’s acclaimed single “Lump.”  That success later drove them to a connection to future Sounders FC owner Drew Carey, who sought them to play “Cleveland Rocks,” the theme song to his sitcom, “The Drew Carey Show.”

Years later, Finn is no stranger to the Rave Green, either.

His father remains a season ticket member, with a view startlingly similar to the seats he sat in at the Kingdome so many years ago.  And while he frequents matches with his father, he isn’t nearly as included in the matchday experience for his dad as he originally thought.

“I sort of thought when he got them, that they would be OUR tickets.  It turns out, they’re HIS tickets,” he laughed in his guttural voice.  “The best I can do any particular season is half of the games.  He’s tenacious with them, as it turns out.”

Finn can chat for hours about Seattle sports.  He is an avid supporter of UW football and basketball, particularly head basketball coach Lorenzo Romar.  The band has played post-game concerts after Mariners games in the Kingdome and at Husky Stadium during University of Washington football games.  They also famously recorded songs commemorating the Sonics. 

“We do not have a Sounders song yet,” Finn said. “But by next season, who knows?”

While his furthest-back sports memories are of the Sounders in the Kingdome, he also remains emotionally invested in the MLS squad.  Last year, he and his brother went to Vancouver and watched the Sounders raise the Cascadia Cup for the first time at the MLS level, sitting in seats adjacent to the Seattle supporter section, a sporting highlight for Finn, but one he hopes to match this weekend as the Sounders look to bounce back from a 3-0 deficit in the second leg of the Western Conference Championship series.

“I have not beaten that in terms of pure drama, but I hope it happens this weekend,” Finn said.  “It would be unprecedented and that will just make it all the more historic.”