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Better than bein' nobody

Music

Better than bein' nobody

Some artists are so inextricably associated with where they come from that it's nearly impossible to not mention them and their hometown in the same sentence. Once this connection gets formed in your mind, there's no getting rid of it. I could ask 100 random people the first thing they

Not spooky but plenty ooky

Stage

Not spooky but plenty ooky

I'm absolutely certain that there's a way to make a musical version of The Addams Family that lives up to the source material's macabre inscrutability and iconic style, but I've unfortunately yet to see one. The Addams Family musical - with a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elise, and

Tacoma Film Festival

South Sound Cinema

Tacoma Film Festival

At the best of times, being a lover of film provides an unending journey of discovery, sifting through the hundreds of films released each year in search of gems. This feedback loop of sorting and viewing and discarding and embracing new sights and voices has been reinforced in recent years

Unvarnished honesty

Music

Unvarnished honesty

Fame can have a drastic effect on anyone that approaches its proximity. Some people slam up against brick walls trying to capture fame, and some retreat into the shadows in an effort to avoid it. There are artists that languish in fame's thick sludge for decades, their limbs atrophying, growing

The Underpants

Stage

The Underpants

In Dusseldorf, Germany, the year 1910, a young married woman experiences a wardrobe malfunction while watching a royal procession pass by. So begins The Underpants, a Steve Martin-penned adaptation of a century-old Carl Sternheim play being put up by Tacoma Little Theatre. As the play opens, the inciting incident is

Swollen hearts, obsessive minds

Music

Swollen hearts, obsessive minds

Early on in my exploration of eccentric musicians, I encountered They Might Be Giants. Here was a band, my dad derisively noted, that would write a song about any old nonsense, whether it be a sentient night-light that just wants to do its best ("Birdhouse in Your Soul"), two lovers

Tacoma Arts Month

Arts

Tacoma Arts Month

Over the past couple decades, Tacoma has done a fine job of building itself up and turning more and more to local artists to engender what has become a fairly vibrant arts scene. And, October marks the 15th year of Tacoma Arts Month, designed to draw attention to the sort

What's in a name?

Music

What's in a name?

Before we get to this week's subject, a quick word about band names: Music, in general, is one of the most visceral arts out there; you can intellectualize it all you want, and maybe an artist can grow on you, but it's generally true that you know immediately whether or

Fare well

Music

Fare well

Certain artists emerge and make a big impression. In places like Tacoma and Olympia - smaller places where talent is a precious commodity, unlike bigger cities - these people have an opportunity to shine and really grind their feet into the dirt of the music scene. Of course, as an

GREENFIELD can't stop

Music

GREENFIELD can't stop

Some artists are utterly restless, not quite feeling fulfilled unless they are nearly constantly creating. For some of these artists, creating feels compulsive; their releases dressed up in fervor, monuments to an uncontrollable urge. Robert Pollard springs to mind as such a musician, littering now multiple decades with albums either

Top 5 karaoke spots

Music

Top 5 karaoke spots

Karaoke can be a divisive thing: it's implicitly designed to let the singer let off a little bit of steam, to picture themselves fronting a band, to get their moment in the spotlight without anyone judging them. Karaoke is a place for amateurs to imagine being professionals, and I believe

Coming together

Music

Coming together

Even in a town as small as Tacoma sometimes feels, it's still fairly easy to lose touch with those around you, to retreat underground for long periods at a time, only to emerge, squinting at the sun and seeing your friends once again. This is not even taking into consideration

Far-flung and local

South Sound Cinema

Far-flung and local

If there is a good and decent force in this universe, the hot months of 2016 should be on their way out. While my desire for fall to get here already is mostly a selfish one, there are perks for the lot of you, as well; chiefly, we are approaching

Without a free hand

Music

Without a free hand

What is it that drives an artist to start a one-person band? Frequently, the prevailing wisdom is that a one-person band is born out of a musician not wanting to compromise his vision by collaborating with others, but that might be a little simplistic. Some musicians like to impose limits

Summerplay 2016

Stage

Summerplay 2016

Established theater companies aren't always interested in taking risks when it comes to selecting plays to produce. Thankfully, playhouses in the South Sound have been taking steps over the past few years to change this, to step out of their comfort zones and put new and exciting works on their

Influence raid

Music

Influence raid

I admit to having some knee-jerk biases when it comes to finding bands to write about in this here rag. A lot of things that immediately turn me off are ways in which bands choose to describe themselves: whether it's a lack of enthusiasm in one's own music, or a

What dreams may come

Music

What dreams may come

A funny thing happens when people watch dogs sleep. Sometimes, when a dog is truly, deeply asleep, their paws will twitch uncontrollably, in a more frantic version of the little tremors that roll over our bodies when we're similarly sunken into a REM state. What's odd is the amount that

Best of Tacoma 2016: Puget Sound Pizza

Music

Best of Tacoma 2016: Puget Sound Pizza

Puget Sound Pizza and The Mix are intertwined in more ways than just the fact that they share a building: the popular pizza place and the celebrated queer bar have long been fighting each other for the Weekly Volcano's readers' favor when it comes to deciding who has the best

Best of Tacoma 2016: The Little Donuts

Music

Best of Tacoma 2016: The Little Donuts

Since the Weekly Volcano began our annual Best of Tacoma issue in 2009, one thing has always been a given: Kry will win Best Cover Band. It's always been a foregone conclusion that the longtime cover band staple would take the honors. Consider it the biggest upset of the Best

Oh the horror!

Music

Oh the horror!

My dad sat me down and showed me The Rocky Horror Picture Show on an old VHS tape when I was 12 years old. This is a fact that I love to throw in his face every time he questions any odd behavior. Still, as much as I lovingly tease

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