MUSIC IN THE SOUTH SOUND TONIGHT >>>

INDIE ROCK: Tacoma's Allan Boothe has been called a minimalist, and the term fits him. Crafting economical, folksy, T-town indie rock for some time now, Boothe has become a small stage staple in this underdog city we call home. He seems comfortable. And we've become comfortable admiring him. Check him out with his band Humble Club tonight at The New Frontier Lounge with Goldwing and Bayonet. Show starts at 9 p.m.

METAL: After a 10-year hiatus, Rorschach Test officially reunited last October, and is set to throwdown in T-town tonight with Charlie Drown, Desillusion and Third Law of Motion at Hell's Kitchen. Weekly Volcano editor Matt Driscoll has the full scoop in the Music section.

ROCK: Olympia's own tribute to The Runaways - Queens of Noise - join the all-female AC/DC tribute band Hell's Belles at 9 p.m. inside Olympia's Capitol Theater.

SUNDAY, JAN. 17, 2010 >>>

1. Beale Street Kick-off Party & Fundraiser featuring Mia Vermillion and Orville Johnson, Fingertips, The Chester Dennis Jones Band, Blues Redemption, and The Randy Oxford Band from 5-11 p.m. at Imperial Dragon in Tacoma.

2. Over the River and Through the Woods hits the Tacoma Little Theatre stage at 2 p.m.

3. Jake's on 4th in Olympia hosts "Baby, It's Cold Outside!" - a drag variety show featuring Ms. Ginger S. Natch, Luminous Pariah, Princess Lucky Buttons, Mercury Troy, Snow Queen, Raqs Steady Eddie, Lula Staccata, Lowa de BoomBoom, hosted by the incomparable Hattie Hotpants, plus a raffle - at 6 and 8 p.m.

4. The Battle For SXSW featuring Resdeus, Under Sin, Cold December, Only The Strong, Atomic Outlaws begins at 7 p.m. inside Station 56.

5. Mystic Roots Band, The Northwest Sons, and The Puget Sound System perform at 8 p.m. inside Hell's Kitchen.

LOCAL BLOG ROUNDUP >>>

Another week, another six days of cruising the local blogosphere for decent reading.

Exit133 is many things Tacoma - civic involvement, politics, and urban development. It is also a watchdog for awards and trends associated with the City of Destiny. 

Thursday morning Derek Young announced that the year 2010 will be a bitchin' year for Tacoma's real estate market. 

The folks at Moody's have once again put Tacoma on one of their lists. Last year we made the Best Real Estate Market and the Most Likely to Rebound lists. Now, at the beginning of 2010, we are predicted to be the top performing real estate market in the country this year.

The five areas that Moody's foresees home prices performing best in 2010 are: Tacoma, Wash., (an increase of 2.44%); Memphis, Tenn., (up 0.99%); Pittsburgh (up 0.89%); Charleston, S.C. (up 0.18%); and Seattle (decline of 0.50%).

WAH-WAHHH: Young also points out that the Tacoma data most likely included some Seattle data, too.

The Trib's GO Arts blog announced that Tacoma Opera conductor Sara Jobin - Faust (2009) and The Barber of Seville (2008) - has been nominated for up for a Grammy music award for "Best Opera Recording."

WAH-WAHHH: Rosemary Ponnekanti points out the nomination wasn't associated with Tacoma Opera, but rather Jobin's conducting performance from Volpone by John Musto with Wolf Trap Opera. Still, way to go Jobin.

City Arts Tacoma's blog the CAB highlighted the work of Tacoma artist Jeremy Gregory - specifically Gregory's "alternative" comic "True Grit," which appears monthly in the Seattle-based magazine.

But, like the pages of City Arts themselves, True Grit is not in the same place today as it was in the beginning. The comic has seen quite an evolution in the past eighteen months - due in part to change in editorial staff and vision, but mostly to Gregory's creativity, flexibility and developing talents. So, in the spirit of our "Resolution Issues," Gregory has graciously assembled a slideshow just for you that shows all of the past episodes of his comic, in chronological order leading up to the most recent - plus some sketches that give insight into his process.

See the evolution here.

WAH-WAHHH: Gregory's artistic talents graced the Weekly Volcano every week in the form of mug shots for our columnists. Unfortunately, we no longer have the space to run the art with the columns. Some day we'll fire those back up.

MONDAY, JAN. 18, 2010 >>>

1. Tacoma is known for hosting one of the largest annual indoor MLK celebrations in the country, and this year will be no different. With a "Unity in the Community" theme, the 2010 MLK celebration will start at 10:30 a.m. at the Tacoma Dome Exhibition Hall - with a keynote address delivered by Dr. Terrence Roberts, one of the "Little Rock Nine."

2. Celebrate MLK Day with performance tributes to Dr. King, a film about Tacoma's civil rights activists, and an exhibit about African American musicians who helped forge a lasting jazz movement, plus a live performance by the Kim Archer Band and more from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. inside the Washington State History Museum.

3. The Ozzie Fuhrmann Orchestra perfoms at 7 p.m. in front of the fireplace at the Mandolin Café.

4. Blues Redemption hits The Swiss' stage at 8 pm.

5. Rockaraoke live band karaoke hits Jazzbones' stage at 9 p.m.

FIRST BITE OF THE DAY >>>

I'll start with the best part of my day so far: the scone. I had ordered it at Corina Bakery & Bistro with an Americano to go.

I was handed the scone when I placed my order, and I promised myself I wouldn't nibble on it while I waited for my Valhalla Coffee espresso.

I love scones. I'd call them my favorite pastry. This one was the Puyallup Fair recipe. It's much larger than the scones at the Fair. It was not a plump oval. It was more triangular but not a fussy isosceles or equilateral triangle. This was a scalene triangle, nearly as big as my hand, and its odd angles created varying thickness and textures.

I pinched off a piece in the bag and took a bite. The flavors shocked me. There was the crisp, sugary texture and taste of the exterior, followed immediately by the sweet strawberry jam. I was back at the Puyallup Fair of my childhood.

I took the scone out of the bag and went to work.

[Corina Bakery & Bistro, $2 scones, 510 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.627.5070]

SNEAK A HIT >>>

Through the magic of Twitter and the ever-presence of SOCIAL NETWORKING - I stumbled across some props for Tacoma, and specifically Todd Sykes and EvergeenOne, on The Stranger's LineOut music blog this morning. Snug, and much deserved. The post includes Sykes and EvergreenOne's new video for the song "90's Shit."

By the way, @evergreeonOne is one of the most entertaining people I follow on Twitter.

Anyway, check out the Stranger's take on Tacoma and "90's Shit" here:

And, in case you're no fan of mouse clicking, we've included the video below. (Although, you'll probably need to click on it to get it started.)

WELL THIS SUCKS FOR US >>>

The very popular MoonRise Cafe in Lakewood has reduced its hours to Monday through Friday only, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., in order to balance work with health. It's an unusual move since their weekend breakfasts are packed.

The ownership believes life isn't about working around the clock. Health is important.

Can't argue that.

MoonRise did recently bump up its pastry and muffin selection.

[MoonRise Cafe, 6020 Main St. SW, in the Lakewood Towne Center, Lakewood, 253.983.9999]

MUSICALLY SPEAKING >>>

Ah, Monday. So we meet again, my nemesis. Ripping me off the couch and out of my weekend "leisure attire," you rudely thrust me back out into the world, shouting things like, "Make something of your goddamn life!" and "Stop being so worthless!"

I hate you, Monday.

But you're unavoidable. So I carry on.

Musically speaking, here's a look at what the Weekly Volcano has on tap this week and where to find it.

APACHE CHIEF: They're young. They rock. And they'll be at this year's EMP Sound Off! competition in February. The Weekly Volcano met up with the band in a rain soaked alley in Tacoma for this week's cover story, discovering what it's like to be an upstart band in Tacoma's vibrant, young music scene. Then, we got some perspective from Makeup Monsters, a band familiar with the hype Apache Chief will garner from Sound Off! Should make for a fun read, and it'll hit streets on Thursday.

DREW GROW AND PASTORS' WIVES: Coming straight from Portland with plenty of T-town history, Drew Grow and Pastors' Wives will impregnate the Warehouse this weekend with Grow's poignantly hopeful songsmanship. You don't have to be a hipster to show up, but you'll be a lot hipper for the experience if you do. The Weekly Volcano chatted with Grow last week in preparation for his Warehouse performance on Saturday, and that interview will post in two parts here on Spew. The first interview segment will hit the web Wednesday, and a second installment will follow Friday. Look out for both.

FIRESIGN THEATRE: The Weekly Volcano's Rev. Adam McKinney jumped for joy upon learning the aging comedy troupe will be stopping in Tacoma this week for two shows on Sunday at the Theatre on the Square. He was so giddy, in fact, that we let him interview the Firesign jokesters for Thursday's paper. Remember to check it out later this week.

THE VARIETY HOUR: The band has a new CD, and they're talking to us. Get the lowdown on the band's CD release show Friday at The New Frontier Lounge in Thursday's edition of the Weekly Volcano.

LINK: Music tonight in the South Sound

I HAVE STOPPED BLEEDING >>>

No, I have not died - even though my atrocious lack of blogging might suggest just that. Last Wednesday at the crack of dawn I had the unpleasant experience of getting my wisdom teeth removed. Those who have experienced what I'm talking about can feel free to cringe in horror. I was under the false impression that I'd be able to swing right back in to work in a matter of hours.

Oh, contraire. It was in fact five days before I could function properly so as to stand up to the Weekly Volcano's work expectations.

However, I'm heavily medicated and doing swimmingly now - so back to the busy I went today. I'm just happy to be useful again. The cruel irony is that I will be making a copious amount of phone calls to local bars. Here I was thinking I'd be working with my hands rather than my injured mouth.

Well, as any adult will tell you, "It'll help ya build character!" 

Can one overdose on character? We shall see.

TUESDAY, JAN. 19, 2010 >>>

1. Leonard Mynx will weave tales of desperation, death and heartbreak over slow heartbeat tempos at 7 p.m. inside the Mandolin Café.

2. Jeannet Iskandar's ethereal constructions of suspended light and line meet in a confluence of rhythm and repetition from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Traver Gallery.

3. The Banned Book Club discusses The Beet Fields by Gary Paulsen at 7 p.m. inside the Tempest Lounge.

4. Owen Miller, ND, presents the free lecture "Let Go of the Past and Embrace a Healthier Future" at 7 p.m. inside Marlene's Market & Deli in Tacoma.

5. Ralph Porter hosts Ha Ha Tuesday featuring opening MC D Lamont Hall, and guest comics Joe Fontenot, Ron Funches, and Will Woodruff at 8 p.m. inside Jazzbones.