OWEN TAYLOR: TONIGHT AT THE NEW FRONTIER >>>

The first time I saw Eliot Lipp play we were about halfway through our first Word Life hip-hop series at the China Clipper when DJ Brown, aka Equestrian, (see: killing it in Portland) told me she had a friend in town from Tacoma who was just passing through and wanted to see if he could get maybe 20 minutes to play some beats. We had a full bill, but told him he could go on, but it would be first, and the earlier he played the more he could play. I showed up around 7:30 to set up, and here’s this very handsome young gentleman drinking red wine and smoking a cigarette, already on stage doing a sound check. He had an array of drum machines, samplers, and synthesizers all synced and playing some of the illest beats I had heard at the time. After running through a few, he got up and actually started performing, switching drum loops on his dual 202s while playing the synths and chain-smoking. An extremely rare show for an electronic musician. After he was done he passed out a bunch of promos for his debut LP, which was picked up by the very aware Scott Herren (see: Prefuse 73) and put out on his stellar label Eastern Development.

Tonight, Eliot Lipp returns to his hometown Tacoma to a hero’s welcome.

[New Frontier Lounge, with Michna, E-Team, 9 p.m., $10, 301 E. 25th St., Tacoma, 253.572.4020]

LAUREN NAPIER: PUNK SHOW TONIGHT AT HELL'S KITCHEN >>>

This band’s MySpace page boasts that they are “tuffer than a $2 steak” â€" and from the tracks one can stream from that very same page, the truth of this statement is debatable. Hailing from the underground-music drenched town of Bremerton, Neutralboy provides their own brand of punk. With two albums to sell, Everybody Dies and Weapons of Mass Seduction, a 7-inch split, and a revolving door of band members, you’re never quite sure what Neutralboy is up to next. Lyrics in songs such as “Your Friends Suck” are repetitive, but listeners will be placated by the standard punk melodies. There’s a change in tempo, though, when it comes to tunes such as “Dead Guys Sing Sad Songs” â€" which packs an electric intro but a toned down acoustic follow-up. It would be an interesting spectacle to watch such musical transitions live.

[Hell’s Kitchen, with Serious Black, Dragstrip Riot, Walk the Plank, the Valkyries, 9 p.m., $5, 3829 Sixth Ave, Tacoma, 253.759.6003]

MATT DRISCOLL: NEW DRUMMER, SAME BAND >>>

Of all the bands I’ve seen take to the awkward stage inside Bob’s Java Jive, Waves and Radiation have looked most at home. Maybe it’s the fact the moody, drawn-out and brooding rock band isn’t weighed down by a cog piece frontman strung out on his own ego. Nope. Fuck that noise. Waves and Radiation doesn’t have time for it. On stage, they look like the group of guys you were just drinking PBR with outside, smoking cigarettes and trading stories about s***ty jobs.

Because they probably were.

Tonight at Bob's Java Jive, Waves and Radiation will debut a new drummer. To read my entire article on the show, click here.

MATT DRISCOLL: TITLOW, LOCKE, SMOKING, DRUNK MOMS >>>

Ah, the weekend. There’s really nothing better. After slaving away for five days straight, that two day respite is all some people have to live for.

While I happen to have a wonderful wife and kid, an illustrious fantasy football career and the satisfaction of knowing all my savings is safe in one investment â€" my John Elway rookie card â€" some aren't so lucky. Some drive forklifts. I’ve been there.

With the dawning of the weekend also comes another edition of the Weekly Volcano’s “Week in Review.” Basically, I sit in my robe and drink coffee while popping off about some of the important shit that went down over the last five days.

Dig in.

Monday, Feb. 23

Monday is always the most difficult day of the week to do justice in these Week in Reviews. After putting a paper together and putting up with the rest of the Weekly Volcano staff for a full week, Mondays always seem like such distant history.

One thing I do recall happening on Monday was The Titlow Decision â€" as it will be forever be known in books dedicated to trivial moments in the scheme of Tacoma history.

Basically, The Tacoma Metro Parks board voted unanimously to extend a life support line to Titlow Pool â€" at least for one more season. The Metro Parks board agreed to: fund repairs to keep Titlow Pool open one more season, start the process of planning for a replacement, but exclusively recreational, pool at Kandle Park in Tacoma’s west end, and create a task force that will look into where to build a 50M competition pool somewhere in the South Sound.

So, for one more season at least, Tacoma will have Titlow Pool.

Do you care?

I mean, seriously, I like disgusting bathroom feet situations like the next casual swimmer, but really, do you care if Tacoma has a public pool? Or a competition pool? Or a public hot tub that you can rent for special occasions through Rob McNair-Huff?

Can’t you swim on Wii?

Tuesday, Feb 24

Dude can give a speech. Am I right, or what?

President Obama delivered what Time.com called a “Tonal Masterpiece” in his Tuesday night budget speech to a joint session of congress. And even though it’s not surprise to see Time give Obama the journalistic equivalent of a loose-wristed reach-around, unless you’re a Republican fucktard, it was hard not to rally behind the man. Of course, these days the far right is basically just frothing at the pearly white mouth, decrying Obama as a crook and thief, and hoping against hope that our whole country falls into destitution and eats itself so they can say “I told you so.”

As a proponent of sanity and common fucking decency, I find it sickening.

Here are a couple of my favorite quotes from the “Mudline” on Doonesbury.com:

Alan Keyes on Obama: “A radical communist … He is going to destroy this country.”

Rush Limbaugh on Obama: “He’s Big Brotheresque. He’s Orwellian.”

Yeah, and you’re fat and on the losing side of history, Rush. Any legitimacy you had has long since disappeared. This explains your infatuation with flapping your pie hole in between handfuls of oxycontin, spewing the most outlandish shit possible in the hope your ever fading star name will show up places like the Doonesbury Mudline ticker.

Look in the mirror, you sorry sap. Accept reality. Focus the webcam.

Your shtick is tired.
 

Wednesday, Feb 25

Former Governor of Washington Gary Locke, who I know mostly for being married to Mona, was nominated to head the Commerce Department by Barack Obama on Wednesday.

He’s a nice enough guy, and should have no trouble betting confirmed â€" assuming he’s paid his taxes.

Anyway, here’s a video featuring a cameo from Locke from much simpler times.

Thursday, Feb 26

As I first read Jason Hagey write about on Friday in the News Tribune, Metro Parks is trying to talk the city of Tacoma into outlawing smoking in public parks. On Thursday they made their pitch â€" which consisted of the typical smoking is bad, second hand smoke is bad, kids smoking is bad arguments.

And based on the council’s reaction, at least on the outset, it seems like it’ll happen. Rick Talbert was apparently flexing his pecks like Hulk Hogan in No Holds Barred, intimidating other members of the council, and chanting “We must do this. We must do this.”

Most of them seemed on board.

As a smoker, I’m getting a little tired of writing the angry response to horseshit like this. I don’t think I’m going to bite â€" at least not here and now.

I don’t want anyone to die. I don’t want anyone to breath smoke that doesn’t want to. I can respect the fact that not everyone seems as cool with the prospect of oxygen tanks as I am, and I support realistic and fair legislation to ensure people stay healthy.

But fuck we smokers pay for a lot of shit! I mean a lot. Through the ridiculous taxes we pay. And it’s only going to go up, and keep going up â€" because there are more non smokers than smokers â€" and the money is easy.

It seems more than a little fucked up to me to continually treat smokers like second class citizens considering the alarmingly large amount of shit we pay for everyone.

Fuck off and let us smoke in the park. It's all some of us have.

Friday, Feb 27

I’m not a legal expert, but something tells me this is going to hurt Pierce County Superior Court Judge Michael Hecht’s career.

And it makes Judge Armijo of the lip wax seem a lot saner.

With that, it’s time crazy ass pictures from the internet. This week’s theme: Mom’s drunk.

MICHAEL SWAN: SIPPIN' OUT >>>

Oregon Boutique Wines Dinner, 6:30 p.m., $75, Affairs Café & Bakery, 2811 Bridgeport Way W., University Place, 253.565.8604.

Wine tasting, noon to 5 p.m., Tacoma Wine Merchants, 21 N. Tacoma Ave., Tacoma, 253.779.8258.

Wine tasting, 1-4 p.m., $5-$7, Swing Wine Bar, 825 Columbia St. S.E., Olympia, 360.357.9464.

Wine tasting, 2-5 p.m., Wine Bank, 7017 27th St. W., University Place, 253.564.1101.

Wine tasting, 1-6 p.m., Wildside Wine, 608A S. Oxford St., Tacoma, 253.565. 0811.

Wine tastings, noon to 4 p.m., free, Madsen family Cellars, 2825 Marvin Road N.E., Olympia, 360.438.1286.

Wine tastings, 1-5 p.m., $5, Medicine Creek Winery, 947 Old Pacific Highway S.E., Olympia, 360.701.6284.

MICHAEL SWAN: PRINT, CLIP, SAVE! >>>

Oh, and there is a killer reggae show after the comedy show for $10.