DINING NEWS, NIBBLES AND BITS >>>

Opening This Week: The Harmon Tap Room's outdoor beer garden will open tomorrow ... as long as the liquor board gives them the thumbs up. Once approved, the beer garden will be open everyday that the weather cooperates. There will be some table service. And managing partner Pat Nagle says they might even put a kegorator out there, too. Singer/songwriter Hannah Mendenhall will perform tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. in celebration of the beer garden and Tina Turnbull's 40^th birthday.

This Month: Pour at Four wine bar in Tacoma's Proctor neighborhood will be sharing a three-year vertical of Pinot Noirs from Winter's Hill winery as their featured flight for July. Climb on it.

Speaking Of Wine: The Wine Bank in University Place kicks off its "Big Summer Wine Sale" today. They will reduce every regular bottle 8 to 18 percent.

Future Things Are Coming: The 3rd Annual Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salon features artisan, gourmet and premium chocolates and confections Sunday, July 11 at Bell Harbor International Conference Center in Seattle.

Food Matters: "Candwiches" swaddle your PB&J or BBQ chicken on white bread in a cozy layer of aluminum.

LINK: South Sound happy hours

LINK: Restaurant coupons

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

MOONLIGHT RHAPSODY >>>

Pacific Lutheran University, home to the stellar jazz and NPR station KPLU, takes the rhythms to the outside hosting Jazz Under The Stars - an outdoor concert series in the Mary Baker Russell Music Center Amphitheater. The shows are free, and so is the Pura Vida Forza coffee.

The fun starts tonight with New York and Seattle saxophonist/vocalist Brooks Giles. The rest of the series, always on Thursday evenings, features Seattle trumpeter/vocalist Jake Bergevin July 15, Seattle jazz pianist Randy Halberstadt July 22, Seattle jazz guitarist Scott Lindenmuth July 29, Tacoma jazz pianist/vocalist David Deacon-Joyner Aug. 6, and Seattle vocalist Gail Pettis Aug. 12.

Added bonus: W.M. Keck Observatory will provide complimentary star charts at the July 29, Aug. 5 and 12 performances On these dates, a tour of the W.M. Keck Observatory will follow, depending on weather conditions. Check out the PLU Physics Department Web site to learn more about the W.M. Keck Observatory

Jazz Under the Stars

7-9 p.m., Thursday nights through Aug. 12, no cover,
Mary Baker Russell Music Center Amphitheater, Pacific Lutheran University, 124th and 10th avenues, Parkland
253.535.7787

LINK: More live music tonight in the South Sound

THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Sunny and clear, hi 88, lo 58

Saturday: Sunny and clear, hi 79, lo 56

Sunday: Party cloudy, hi 76, lo 58

>>> FRIDAY, JULY 9-SUNDAY, JULY 11: PUGET SOUND BEAD FESTIVAL

As a small tiki, Bobble Tiki was fascinated by rocks and beads and all things small and shiny. As a large tiki, Bobble Tiki has outgrown his old habit of filling his pockets with found stones (and tadpoles!) every time he goes for a walk, but Bobble Tiki still finds handmade artisan beads enchanting. If you, too, delight in glass beadwork's minute details, you'll be dazzled by the Puget Sound Bead Festival this weekend inside the Hotel Murano Bicentennial Pavilion, where beads, jewelry and sculpted beadwork will take center stage. Daily demonstrations and more than 70 lectures and workshops are on the docket. 

• Hotel Murano Bicentennial Pavilion, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, $7 good for all three days, 1500 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.572.5529

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 10: BON ODORI JAPANESE FOLK DANCE FESTIVAL

If you like your dance with a trace of the exotic, head for the Tacoma Buddhist Temple, where traditional Bon Odori dancing and taiko drum performances take over Fawcett Street as part of the Bon Odori Japanese Folk Dance Festival Saturday. The highlight is always when paper lanterns are strung across Fawcett for the bon odori, a traditional summer street dance honoring the dead. Hundreds are expected to attend, decked out in elaborate kimonos and hapi coats to dance to traditional Japanese folk songs. Think Japanese line dancing where the older people teach the younger generation the moves. Japanese food will be served inside the Temple.

• Tacoma Buddhist Temple, 5-9 p.m., free admission, 1717 Fawcett, Tacoma, 253.627.1417

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 10: OUT IN THE PARK 2010

Has it already been a year since the last Out in the Park? It seems like only yesterday I nestled down in the grass of sunny Wright Park to watch the performances of several stunning drag queens and kings at Tacoma's annual gay pride event.

This year promises to maintain that fabulousness, followed by after-parties at places like The Mix, Club Silverstone and the Tempest.

I spoke with Marcus Gronzo, interim manager of Rainbow Center and board member of Out in Tacoma, about what we could expect from the festivities this year. Read the full story here.

• Wright Park, noon to 7 p.m., Division and I Street, Tacoma, rainbowcntr.org

>>> SUNDAY, JULY 11: ART ON THE AVE

The Sixth Avenue bonanza known as the Art on the Ave festival returns to Tacoma Sunday, bringing all the corn on a stick, face painting and Solar Richard sightings that come with it. Yes, Sixth Avenue traffic will have to find an alternate route Sunday afternoon as the good times will be rolling all day. Of special note is the Jazzbones outdoor stage, which will host Ben Union and the always-entertaining Vicci Martinez, among other notables. Also, look out for the Save our Sonics guy.

• Sixth Avenue between Cedar and Trafton streets, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., free, Tacoma, artontheave.org]

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

MATT DRISCOLL Editor and member of the Official John Elway Fan Club
We're packing up the family and heading to Portland tomorrow to see firsthand the Food Cart Mecca of the Known World. It's supposed to be even hotter in Portland than Tacoma this weekend, meaning the fair-skinned Driscolls will be a pink, sweaty mess, alternating between eating delicious foods served out of trucks and crowding around air-conditioning units and cursing global warming.

JOE IZENMAN Music/Theater Critic
If I can find a ride who wants this free ticket? Catching the reunion show of Seattle indie birthing ground Carissa's Wierd. Otherwise it's just 40 miles of bike riding, 10 hours of StarCraft and maybe even my first rehearsal with a certain well-loved Tacoma rock band.

NIKKI TALOTTA Feature Writer
Friday I will be mixing refreshing elixirs. Saturday I will be drinking them. We will be celebrating July birthdays, including my own. Both days I hope everyone will be wearing as little as possible.

STEPH DEROSA Columnist
Hell, I'm still reveling in my most awesome Fourth of July weekend and I'm not sure if anything can top that doozy. Although, there's a huge chance Out in the Park and Art on the Ave can provide solid outdoor social entertainment this weekend. In the rare case that those events prove to be uninspiring, I will probably be at home sewing the Lycra part into the crotch of my superhero outfit.

THE REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Feature Writer
I still haven't made it out to the beach, this year. Thinking about putting on some treacherously short shorts, working my way across the sandy dunes with a carafe of whiskey sours, and spending some good quality time with Owen.

KRIS BLONDIN Food/Wine Writer
After heading down to Tumwater on Saturday for an in-law family picnic, I will come to the realization that my home has suffered greatly from neglect. The past few weekends have been filled with too much fun! Walking over to Art of the Ave Sunday, then clean the house, weed the yard and maybe, just maybe, you'll catch me lounging on my back patio with a book in one hand and a Duvel in the other.

ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic
I'll be searching for art in Olympia (free tours of public art every Saturday morning; call 360.709.2678).

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
As "a little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" – and by me – I'm seeing Capital Playhouse's "Kids Play" production of Willy Wonka.

LOOKING FOR MORE IDEAS? CHECK OUT THE WEEKLY VOLCANO'S LISTINGS FOR:

Events

Concerts

Restaurants

Movies

FRIDAY, JULY 9, 2010 >>>

1. Yeah, we're going to be all snobby and use the film's original name, Hausu, instead of the probably better known but still underground House, a 1977 Japanese should-be cult classic premiering at 8 p.m. inside The Grand Cinema. We're those kind of people. Described as a psychedelic ghost tale, a stream-of-consciousness bedtime story, and "an episode of Scooby Doo as directed by Dario Argento," if you're into bizarre cinema and subtitles, House's one-week run at The Grand should not be missed.

2. If you delight in glass beadwork's minute details, you'll be dazzled by the Puget Sound Bead Festival this weekend inside the Hotel Murano Bicentennial Pavilion, where beads, jewelry and sculpted beadwork will take center stage. Daily demonstrations and more than 70 lectures and workshops are on the docket. Get small today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

3. One of our fave parts about summer is the Friday Frost Park Chalk Off: so beautiful, so ephemeral, so much funnier when atheists sponsor it - as in today's challenge, which goes down from noon to 1 p.m. in the downtown Tacoma park.

4. Open mics offer the most effective means of social control since the demise of public hanging or (at least) since the advent of satellite TV. The Distinguished Writer Series Open Mic, open to all poets, begins at 7 p.m. inside King's Books in Tacoma. And remember, whoever walks a mile full of false sympathy walks to the funeral of the whole human race, or something.

5. Hey kids, do you like the punk rock? Broken Oars, My Life In Black & White, South 11th, C.F.A., and Artimus Maximus invades Hell's Kitchen beginning at 9 p.m.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concert go on sale today

LIVE MUSIC TONIGHT IN THE SOUTH SOUND >>>

JAM BAND: Quick, name three sure ways to spot a Northwest jam band before having heard them play. ... If you said a) their band photo was shot in the woods; b) Tommy Chong is their number one friend on MySpace; or c) the bass player often wears an oversized Seahawks jersey - you're right, and you just described Tacoma's DirtyChangeUp. With University of Puget Sound roots, and having shaken booties everywhere from Teva approved stages to dives like Bob's Java Jive - here is a band with a head of steam and lungs full of weed smoke, which is just about all you can ask from a jam band. DirtyChangeUp delivers, even if the oneword name leaves something to be desired, and Tatupu actually probably hates the Grateful Dead. With Vile Red Falcons, Friday, July 9, 9 p.m., The New Frontier Lounge, 301 E. 25th St., Tacoma, 253.572.4020 - Matt Driscoll

INDIE POP: Portland indie band The Harvey Girls aren't girls at all - they're actually married couple Hiram Lucke and Melissa Rodenbeek. While it might not be the most accurate moniker in the world, their name does serve a distinct purpose (beyond the general band-name imperative of "sounding cool"): in its syntactic construction, it recalls familial groups of yore such as The Everly Brothers - a band that, incidentally, is a favorite of Lucke and Rodenbeek's. Read the full story here. Friday, July 9, 7 p.m., all ages, cover TBA, The Den @ urbanXchange, 1932 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.2280 - Jason Baxter

LINK: More live music today in the South Sound

BUST OUT SOME EARPLUGS >>>

As we reported in early June, the Melvins were rumored to perform Monday, Sept. 27 at Hell's Kitchen – set to pierce your five senses with droning metal riffs, gut-wrenching drums and bass, and some very strange sounds.

And then we waited for the official word. And waited. And drank a little. And waited some more.

Well, holy Buzzo! The word out of the Hell's Kitchen camp is that the show is on. Tickets are $16, and available at Ticketweb. It's for the 21 and older crowd only. And Totimoshi will be along for the ride, too.

And, to the joy of those who like their ears destroyed only on Hump Day, the Melvins and Totimoshi will perform an all-ages show Wednesday, Sept. 29 inside the Capitol Theater. Those tickets are $15 to $20 at Brown Paper Tickets.

WHAT WE HAVE FOUND TODAY >>>

Courtney Love is 46 today.

>>> SOUTH SOUND SPECIFIC

Lacey was originally called Woodland after settlers Isaac and Catherine Wood, who claimed land there in 1853. The small settlements of Woodland and Chambers Creek consolidated into Lacey in the 1950s. Renamed for attorney and developer O.C. Lacey, the city of Lacey was officially incorporated on December 5, 1966.

>>> TODAY'S WORD

beshrew (bi-'shroo) verb transitive - beshrewed, beshrewing, beshrews. Archaic. [Middle English bishrewen : bi-, be- + shrew, wicked person]

To invoke evil upon; curse.

Usage example: "Glenn Beck cannot be disturbed until he has completed his morning blood-letting rituals, Bill O'Reilly-fantasy lucid-dreaming practice, and his daily beshrewing of women."

Read more...

GORILLA PRODUCTIONS VS. GIRL TROUBLE UPDATE >>>

As we have been since the very beginning, the Weekly Volcano is continuing to follow the ongoing court battle between Ohio-based Gorilla Productions and local rock heroes Girl Trouble. If you've been following along with us, you already know Girl Trouble, and most specifically drummer Bon Von Wheelie, has been sued for damages in excess of $25,000 because of a Web site she owns and maintains, neverpaytoplay.com.

It's a very interesting case, even if you're not a longtime fan of Tacoma's most quintessential band of the last 25 years. At its base, it revolves around what a person can post on the Internet, what an aging garage band from Tacoma can say about a production company like Gorilla, and what's free speech.

Turns out, if Gorilla's assessment of the law is correct, you may not be able to say as much as you think - at least if its critical of the way the company does business.

For background information, check out the Volcano's original story on the lawsuit here. For links to all of our coverage, scroll to the bottom of this post.

After catching up with Girl Trouble's lawyer, Wade Neal of Seaweed fame, late last week, today I caught up with Von Wheelie to get her take on the lawsuit - which has been extremely stressful for her, not to mention financially costly. However, in the end it has only seemed to strengthen her resolve about what things in life are worth fighting for.

Read more...

THE NOSH PIT >>>

The Nosh League's first gathering was a wine and cheese tasting last night inside Cork! A Wine Bar on Sixth Avenue. Besides the sweltering heat and a cranky bicyclist who threated a lawsuit over our sandwich board on the sidewalk, it was quite a lovely evening.

Cork! opened its arms to the League, accommodating us in every way - including some tasty classic rock licks under Tivoli lights.

Weekly Volcano Grocery Stories columnist Kris Blondin - a veteran in the local wine and restaurant scene - lead us through five wine and cheese pairings. We tasted a very dry Codorniu Cava, Root 1 Sauvignon Blanc, Yealands Pinot Noir, Hahn Meritage and Ficklin Port. I learned: gamey goat cheese pairs well with the natural sugars of Root 1, the smokiness of the Yealands and the smokiness of the gouda didn't smoke out my taste buds, and Nicky Hahn of California's central coast Hahn Estates owns massive acreage in Kenya and didn't kick out the natives who were living there before he bought it.

Throughout Blondin's presentation, the Nosh League members threw many questions at her, which she had an answer for every one. It was obvious that mosts NL members had a solid wine knowledge base due to the complex nature of their questions.

The highlight for me was the Hahn Meritage, a blend of the five grapes form the Bordeaux region. Blondin took us through its history, shared her experience meeting with Nicky Hahn, elaborated on the Kenya situation, including Hahn's generosity with handicapped Kenyan children, and its amazing value, around $14 - while I stole extra pieces of the pairing Manchego cheese.

At the end of the evening, my wife, Kate, her mother Chiara Wood, and Steph and Damon DeRosa dined under the Tivoli lights on more Hahn Meritage, a load of Manchego and Cork!'s delicious flatbreads.

Our next Nosh league gathering will be an educational tour of various beers on Aug. 12. We don't have the final go ahead from the venue. Stay tuned.

LINK: More photos from last night's Nosh League gathering

LINK: Join the Nosh League

THIS IS A GOOD THING >>>

As we reported in yesterday's Short Order post, the Harmon Tap Room's outdoor beer garden would open today if The Man gave the thumbs up. According to owner Pat Nagle's Facebook post, the garden will indeed open today – at 3 p.m. for happy hour. Drink up at 204 St. Helens Ave. in Tacoma.

LINK: South Sound happy hours