Tacoma's Ben Union owns Jazzbones.

Though I write such a sentence with a Tacoma wink and a smirk, as "owning" Jazzbones isn't exactly the sort of thing that gets you a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame - the statement is nonetheless true. Over the course of Union's short, locally brewed career - all two years of it - he's risen from general anonymity to the sort of name recognition that comes from having packed Jazzbones on a number of occasions, killed it at Art on the Ave, and received the positive press locally that comes from a nice, little, local DIY buzz.

In the beginning, Union had two goals: the successful meshing of alt, funk and rock into one cohesive sound, and success in a venue he deemed perfect for his still emerging, unique approach to music.

"The original dream was to own Jazzbones," says Union. "I was poor. I didn't know what to do. I had no outlet."

So, although he didn't realize it at the time, Union started work on The Light, an album he'll officially release - not surprisingly - with a show Saturday at Jazzbones.

At first, though, The Light was just some songs. And at first Ben Union was just some upstart guy I'd never heard of playing shows at Jazzbones.

Soon enough, however, people started talking about the sheen of Union's live show and the fire behind his blues-inspired guitar licks. The buzz was born - albeit a Tacoma buzz, meaning I didn't need to worry about Union being whisked off to L.A. in the coming weeks, but I'd be well-advised to get my butt out and see him in action. So I did, and it was impressive. Before long Union established a following, and it became obvious the material was in place for a more-than-solid debut record.

Which, in a roundabout way, brings us to The Light, 11 songs recorded over eight months at Pacific Studios - a period of time that Union says, "sounds a lot longer than it actually was."

"At first, when I was writing, it wasn't with the album specifically in mind. I was just writing songs," says Union.

"There wasn't any big emotional conflict that triggered anything, I just like to write music," explains Union when asked where material on The Light came from. "More than anything, I was trying to streamline the style of music. I really wanted to do a funk rock thing.

"The record was written more for style than theme."

It's an approach that makes sense. While some songwriters may woo listeners with well-woven lyrics that slice straight to the heart and plumb the emotional depths, Union is not that songwriter. His funk and rock hybrid is not a reinvention of the wheel, but it is a sight to hear, behold and just maybe get down to - as well as something that no one else in town is even approaching.

That, in a nutshell, is the appeal of Ben Union: He takes things you already know and love, and serves them back at you with passion, spark and just enough originality to make it all stick.

A product of Tacoma, Union grew up with a strong admiration for local music hero Steve Stefanowicz - and the two guitarists now share a friendship. At some point during Union's progression, he called Stefanowicz to ask for advice, or as Union puts it, "ask how he eats (as a working musician)."

Stefanowicz, ever the sage-like veteran, gave Union some sad but true wisdom. Luckily, Union was wise enough to see the true meaning in it.

"Steve told me people want to hear covers," says Union. "At first, I was like, ‘What!"

"At the end of the day, though, people want to hear good music. It doesn't matter whether it's a cover or not."

Luckily, that's just what Union has. The Light - if it's anything like his live show - will prove it.

[Jazzbones, Ben Union CD Release Party, with Colonies, Benjamin Doerr, Saturday, April 3, 8 p.m., $5, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]