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Songwriters, Poets, Painters: The Tacoma Round is back in its 10th installment, featuring The Head & the Heart, Ritchie Young and Shenandoah Davis along with painters Dan Martin and Glory Cancro, poet Danny Sherrard, and dancer Joel Myers. If you're unfamiliar, picture three musicians and songwriters sharing the spotlight, swapping tunes and stories while creation of all kinds swirls around them. It's an awesome spectacle. Friday, May 28, 8 p.m., all ages, $8, The Pantages Rehearsal Hall, 901 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.591.5890 - Michael Swan
Hardcore: One of the Viaduct's crowning achievements has been the annual Rain Fest, a massive hardcore music festival spanning three days. Since its inception in 2007, Rain Fest has served as a magnet for big names in the hardcore scene from the past and present. This year, Rain Fest has seven bands flying in, for a grand total of 50 bands over three days. Big hitters on the stage include Terror, The Ghost Inside, Disembodied, Indecision, Trapped Under Ice and Stick to Your Guns. In addition to other well-known acts, this year's show will also be showcasing 19 Northwest bands, including Tacoma locals Crooks to Kings, Sojourner and old-school northwest players Left With Nothing, who briefly reformed last fall to do a benefit show for the family of celebrated and tragically deceased Tacoma icon Brian Redman, the band's former bass player. 3 p.m. Friday, May 28, 6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, all ages, single day $20-$25, three day pass $60, The Viaduct, 5412 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma, viaductvenue.com - Justin Miller
Rock: Under Sin is a hardworking band carving out a niche among the many faces of local rock. The band recently returned from SXSW and is putting the finishing touches on a debut album. These guys are always up for a gig and having a good time - the way rock ‘n' roll is supposed to be. Under Sin has two great shows lined up this weekend - the first of which is tomorrow at the Vault in Olympia with Atomic Outlaws headlining. Then, if you find yourself looking for some entertainment this Sunday, the band will plug in at Jazzbones with Dreams Jaded, Beyond the Grove, and Nineless. A bikini contest is also slated for the evening. Seems about right. With Atomic Outlaws, Friday, May 28, 7:30 p.m., The Vault, 425 Franklin Sr. SE, Olympia, 360.357.4721 - Potter
Electro Pop: For In Evening Air, Baltimore band Future Islands turned to Chester Gwazda, their longtime collaborator and the expert producer whose right-brain inventiveness has helped characterize Dan Deacon's mind-melting oeuvre. Their collaboration has yielded an album that skillfully juxtaposes snarling rawness with melodically-rich pop leanings. Lead singer Sam Herring vamps and growls his way through a series of synth-heavy ditties that evoke ‘80s pop and contemporary indie in equal measure. For an album that also finds room for ambient interludes and glimmers of gain-saturated texture, In Evening Air feels unexpectedly consistent, and you can expect that kind of reliability from Future Islands' live set, as well. How refreshing: now that LOST is finally over, we can use words like "reliable," "future," and "island" in the same sentence with utter sincerity. With Lower Dens, Long Mornings, Friday, May 28, 8 p.m., all ages, Northern, 321 Fourth Ave., Olympia, northernolympia.org - Jason Baxter