LIVE MUSIC TONIGHT IN THE SOUTH SOUND >>>

4th Ave Ale House Olympia - Downtown. No Living Witness, Lenore, Jean Grey, Evangelist, Super Happy Story Time Land. 9 pm.

Bob's Java Jive Tacoma - Central. Dymstar Entertainment. 9 pm.

The Den at urbanXchange Tacoma - Downtown. Caleb Fahey EP Release Party with Stetson Curtis. All Ages. 7 pm. Donations.

Doyle's Public House Tacoma - Stadium District. Aaron Daniel: One Man Banned. 8 pm. NC.

• We've seen plenty of one-man bands in our day. Great ones like Phillip Roebuck come to mind. And plenty of not-so-great ones also come to mind. But when it comes to wow factor mixed with groove, few have the skills that Aaron Daniel has. Building intricate jams with beatbox and acoustic guitar backbones - utilizing foot controlled loop pedals - Daniel comes to the stage as only a single dude, but typically leaves seen more as a phenomena. Guitar solos, stomping beats, holy-crap vocals - Daniel has all of it in his bag of tricks. Saturday at Doyle's Public House, Daniel will almost certainly put it all on display. If you have yet to see him do his thing you're missing out. - Matt Driscoll

Firwood Rock Lounge Tacoma - Downtown. Show Devil "Enigma," Bedside Manner, Tsalve. 8 pm. $12 pre-sale, $15 day of show.

Hell's Kitchen Tacoma - Downtown. Sin, Open Rebuke, Deathbed Confessions, Osama Bin Rockin, Psycho 78, Devils Of Loudon. 9 pm. NC.

Jazzbones Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. Heartless. 9 pm. $7.

Le Voyeur Café and Lounge Olympia - Downtown. Paul Mauer. 9 pm.Mandolin Cafe Tacoma - Central. GraySkiesBlue. All Ages. 8:30 pm. $5.

The New Frontier Lounge Tacoma - Dome District. Bodybox CD Release Show, with James Coates & The Lost Souls, The Dave Hannon Band. 9 pm. $5.

Northern Olympia - Downtown. Gumar & His Magical Midi Band, Brownbear, Citymouth, DJAO, Ghost Feet. All Ages. 8 pm.

• Gumar and His Magical Midi Band (spelled on their MySpace page with exclamation points in place of i's) are about as wacky as their name suggests. The instrumentation on songs like "Alien Groove Thang" is pretty exuberantly earnest (i.e. these musical pranksters are serious musicians, in the vein of, say, Electric Six). Their support on this Northern bill are less self-aware but no less talented, and most are conveniently found sharing space on Bandcamp comps like Dropping Gems. Cumulatively, they span the breadth of electronic music's figurative cosmos - from the atmospheric, Cuisinart-ed sounds of Citymouth, to Brownbear's subterranean dubstep, to the bifurcated beatsmith-ery of DJAO's high-end/low-end contrasts. Oly duo Ghost Feet, who are also playing, might just make the most ebullient and colorful music of this whole estimable lineup. - Jason Baxter

O'Malley's Irish Pub Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. The Whiskey Swillers. 9 pm.

Pastiche Wine Bar Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. Aqua Velva plays the Grand Opening Party. 8 pm.

The Peabody Waldorf Boutique and Gallery Tacoma - Downtown. Apricot & the Beginners, Check Please and Battersea. All Ages. 8:30 pm. $5.

Rocket Records Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. Electric Falcons, Mopper. All ages. 3-5 pm. NC.

• Let's do a little rock 'n' roll math, shall we? If we were to take members of Bacchus and Kill Cupid and put them together in a band, what would likely be the result? Keep in mind that Bacchus and Kill Cupid are both utterly ridiculous for very different reasons: Bacchus make monolithic heavy metal and chose a name that is this close to just calling themselves "Satan"; Kill Cupid are a Motorhead-ish pastiche of everything that leather pants and hairspray conjure up in your mind. They're two great tastes that taste great together. Members of these bands have joined forces as Electric Falcons - a name that couldn't be more perfect if it tried. I don't know what it'll sound like, but if ever there were a place to experience Electric Falcons, it'd have to be in a record store. Mind the head-banging. - Rev. Adam McKinney
  

The Spar Tacoma - Old Town. Wickerman. 8 pm. NC.

Stonegate Pizza Tacoma - South. New Jack City. 9 pm. NC.

Uncle Sam's American Bar & Grill Spanaway. Rod Cook. 8 pm.

LINK: More live music tonight in the South Sound

PETTY QUESTIONS HAS MOVED >>>

Due to several inquiries promising to create a reality show out of Owen Bates' Petty Questions column, we've moved the weekly Saturday posting to our main site, specifically in the Mudroom section.

Bates answered two questions today in his column, includeing the one below:

QUESTION: Dear PQ guy, I was walking along Schuster Parkway, and noticed what appeared to be a former walking path between there and Stadium High School. Now there aren't a lot of wild walking paths in this urban jungle so to see it fenced off and "Do Not Enter" signs on it was disheartening. What gives? — T In Tacoma

Read his answer here.

LINK: Petty Questions RSS feed

SUNDAY, JAN. 23, 2011 >>>

1. A car accident, a coming-out, and a lifetime of cons, jail-breaking, and death-faking. By the end of the film I Love You Phillip Morris, you totally forget about its opening claim: "This really happened." Ace Ventura plays outrageous con man Steven Russell, who impersonated doctors, lawyers, FBI agents and corporate executives. Young Obi-Wan plays his cellmate Phillip Morris, whom Steven falls in love with. His life consists of trying to get Russell out of jail, or trying to escape to be with him. The upbeat film's dark humor and gay themes surpass typical art-house trappings. Catch it at 12:05, 2:30, 5, 7:20 and 9:35 p.m. inside The Grand Cinema.

2. The Lakewood Playhouse stages Ring Round the Moon, a quick-paced, witty, and tangy satire of upper-class pretension and lower-class ambition, at 2 p.m.

3. Meet Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction expert and author Lorrie Jones and learn about her new book and program, 21 Days of Eating Mindfully - Your Guide to a Healthy Relationship with Yourself and Food, from 2-4 p.m. inside Samdhana-Karana Yoga: A Healing Arts Center on Sixth Avenue.

4. The annual Sounds of Brass Concert presented by Brass Unlimited goes down at 3 p.m. inside St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows. With musical selections including Borodin's "Polovestian Dances," Danny Elfman's "A Brass Thing," and Gliere's "French Horn Concerto," the show - conducted by TCC Music Dept. Chairman John Falskow - this Sounds of Brass Concert will definitely live up to expectations. It's no surprise this event has been going strong for 13 years now.

5. Mykel Spatz, aka Michael Spotts, played the Hammond B-3 keys for what seemed like hundreds of R&B, funk and rock bands in the Pacific Northwest, including Leroy Bell, Ed Taylor, Jerry Miller, Bill Brown and the King Bees, Little Bill, and Jay Mabin. Spatz died last year from a terminal illness. At 3 p.m. inside The Swiss a memorial concert will be held for the beloved keyboardist that will include an open jam.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LIVE MUSIC ON A SUNDAY IN THE SOUTH SOUND >>>

Dawson's Bar and Grill Tacoma - South. Blues Jam, hosted by Tim Hall. 8 pm.

Immanuel Presbyterian Church Tacoma - Northend. An Evening with Chad & Jeremy Benefit Concert. All Ages. 7 pm. NC.

Northern Olympia - Downtown. The Thermals, White Fan, Broken Water. All Ages. 8 pm.

• Indie pop-punk heroes the Thermals began in 2002, with Hutch Harris and Kathy Foster who, after several lineup changes, have remained the band's only constants. The Thermals built a following through their high-energy performances, both live and on record, and their emotionally charged and frankly political lyrics. Even when the subject matter gets almost overwhelmingly angry and heavy (as it most notably did on their third album, The Body, The Blood, The Machine), the bright levity of the music never allows an album to get bogged down in bitterness. Hutch Harris may sometimes sound like a punk-rock preacher, but the Thermals never quite sound preachy, if you get my drift. Read my full story on the band here. - Rev. adam McKinney
  

The Spar Tacoma - Old Town. Cris Stevens & The Surf Monkeys. 7 pm. NC.

Stonegate Pizza Tacoma - South. Dinner Jazz Show. 5-8 pm. NC.

The Swiss Tacoma - Downtown. Mykel Spatz Memorial Open Jam. 3 pm. $10.

Uncle Sam's American Bar & Grill Spanaway. Sunday Blues Jam Night. Hosted by Shelly Ely. 7-10 pm.

LINK: More live music tonight in the South Sound

PERSONAL POWERFUL NIGHT >>>

You may find yourself ... staring at six televisions mesmerized by video feedback patterns. You may find yourself ... packed in a giant shower with a guitarist looping noises. You may find yourself ... hypnotized by one of the best live performances you've ever experienced. You may find yourself ... sitting on a couch surrounded by candles taking all of this in.

And you may ask yourself ... how did I get here? This is not the city next to the industrial hodge-podge that I have come to know and love.

Just when you thought that the latest round of new chill coffee houses was the coolest thing to migrate to the Gritty City, along comes Personal Power Company, an art space thankfully born out of the Spaceworks Tacoma project.

Friday night, Kate and I dropped in on Personal Power Company's first live music show since opening late last year. We mixed in with a young crowd of unfamiliar faces, and many creative type friends who we've hung out with for years. The Rev. Adam McKinney, who also attended the show, did justice to the space in this week's Volcano.

We caught the last three acts of the night. We walked in halfway through Margy Pepper's set. The young female trio, who met at The Evergreen State College, transported me back 10 years to several basement house parties I attended in Olympia. With the crowd on top of them, Margy Pepper mixed melody and chaotic jams to perfection. Battle Stations, a five-piece out of Seattle, including a sci-fi keyboardist and female stand-up drummer, elicited some sort of weird groovy dance in me, when I wasn't chuckling over the 6-foot-five singer thrashing next to the 4-foot-11 bassist. It was one of the best intimate live performances I've seen in a while, and they have a million dollar song in their pocket – catchy as hell. Last, guitarist Kenneth M. Piekarski, a tech multimedia wizard that goes by Slashed Tires, looped tunes and noises in a large shower down the hall, around the corner and through a small kitchen. Around 15 of us squeeze into the shower for his tensewave show, which while fascinating, went 12 minutes longer than I would have liked.

Keep an eye, and ear, on this Spaceworks Tacoma space.

MONDAY, JAN. 24, 2011 >>>

1. Blues Night at the Swiss is back! Join Maia Santell and House Blend tonight from 8 - 10:30 p.m. There will be room to get your groove on, good drinks, and no cover at all.

2. Drop in on Freeset Fest today at the University of Puget Sound's Wheelock Student Center Murray Boardroom. Freeset Fest is a day long festival "with all proceeds being donated to Freeset, an organic fair trade business which uses business to free women trapped in Calcutta's infamous sex trade," according to the U.P.S. website. Expect lots of music, and lots of art. You can learn more about Freeset here.

3. Leanne Trevalyan & Barbara Blue play the Harmon Brewery tonight. Trevalyan, of course, is part of the Junkyard Jane punch. She's also featured in the Bar-Bar-Barbizon glamour shot on today's full music calendar. Trust us, she's awesome. There's a reason she's a local favorite.

4. It's Euro Night at Surreal Ultra Lounge in downtown Tacoma. Head on down ... but lose the baggy clothes and baseball hats (club rules).

5. Get your uke on tonight at Yenney Music in Olympia on the Westside. Kate Power and Steve Einhorn lead some all-ages "Uke & Song."

ACT FAST >>>

What a long, long trip it's been from the days of the straw-clad fiascos of Chianti.

Tom Kelly of Small Vineyards Italian Imports will drop by Primo Grill at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 27 with a crate full of Tuscan wines for Chef Charlie McManus' five-course "Winter Cuisine of Tuscany" dinner. Expect a menu of hearty Tuscan dishes, and a history lesson on the Tuscany region.

The cost is $80 per person, including tax and gratuity. Jump on this at 253.383.7000.

ALERT: Farrelli's Wood Fire Pizza on Sixth Avenue in Tacoma has a few spots left for its five-course wine pairing dinner tonight. It's $30. Give them a buzz at 253.759.1999.

LINK: Happy hours!

BRAINS, BODIES AND MUSIC ON POINT >>>

You know how sometimes, when you're at a show, you can listen to an entire set and realize you haven't heard a word or caught a riff? The band was so mediocre you hadn't absorbed a lick of it?

I imagine that kind of buzzkill never happens when the Thermals play a show. During last night's performance at Northern in Olympia, the crowd was fully engaged, brain and body on point, comprehending the creative intention of every lyric, beat and strum. The poignant relationship between band and audience was evident. It could have been because it was the band's first show in Olympia, after eight years of being an essential part of the Northwest Sub Pop, Kill Rock Stars culture ... but I think it's just the magic of the Thermals.

Where in Portland, or other larger cities, hundreds of people would come to a venue - Olympia's Northern was maxed out around 90.

And these 90 or so people took advantage of the intimate space, pumping fists, clapping along and shouting lyrics. The band's powerful presence and sometimes moody, sometimes punk/poppy music moved the masses.  Dreadlocks swung from side to side, cuffed pant legs tapped in time, and sweater clad nerds banged their heads.

On stage, the trio was illuminated in alternating colors, fast lighting, and shadow play. The trippy effects just added to the mood. At one point a grid like pattern flashed across the band's faces - mixing with Kathy Foster's striped shirt, making her look something like a chameleon in a matrix.

As for the evening as a whole, I'll let longtime fan Ryan McReynolds sum it up.

 "I'm always happy when music artists come through Olympia and (don't) leave empty handed, they get a good show and people enjoy their music," says McReynolds. "And there was a proper encore, that was good. A real rock band played tonight."

A TLT PATRON PASSES JUDGEMENT >>>

As you've probably seen me mention a few squillion times, I'm playing Bob Zelnick in Tacoma Little Theatre's production of Frost/Nixon. As is commonplace for TLT and many other troupes, the producers served champagne(ish) and cake for those patrons who were able to attend opening night. The cast and crew shook hands with and fielded questions from our valued guests, but mostly we just hovered near the cake.

I've been to dozens of these affairs over the years, and while it's certainly fulfilling to celebrate one's accomplishments with people who just paid cash money to see them, the inevitably oddball questions can get a bit wearying. By far the most frequent question asked is, "How did you learn all those lines?" Memorization of lines is the first step in most actors' processes, so this is rather like summoning your chef after a delicious meal and inquiring how she located the fridge.

Anyway, God bless TLT patrons, and I'm honestly pleased they enjoyed the show. We enjoyed, and continue to enjoy, showing it, and most of their questions were sharp, insightful, and relevant--rather more so, you understand now, than I've come to expect. Until...

She was tall and elegant. I don't know her name, and I obviously wouldn't tell you what it was if I did--but she approached with a sweet smile, taking both my hands in hers. "Oh, that was just marvelous," she sighed. "We really enjoyed that." I thanked her profusely. "And that gentleman playing Richard Nixon," she continued. Steve Tarry, I agreed. He's amazing. "We've seen him in other things before, but this was so tremendous. And some of the others actors were just..." She caught her breath. "Exceptional!"

This was going quite well, don't you think? My hands were still nestled gently in hers.

"And you," she concluded, tilting her head and gazing at me with the soothing air of a woman charged with bearing truly awful news, "have you done much acting before?"

THUD.

"A little," I managed weakly, then trudged away to seek the more reassuring company of ex-President Nixon and his partners in crime. 

SWING LOW, WRINKLED BAGS>>>

Last week two Houston adult entertainment clubs agreed to settle a federal age discrimination case with a 56- year-old former stripper who was fired due to her advanced age. Get this - male managers had the audacity to call her too "old" for the business. The insensitive management clearly forgot the number one rule in sexuality: there's something for everyone.

In fact, I am positive that there are at least three men in this country who at this very moment are fantasizing over the image of a wrinkled woman getting a sponge bath by a geriatrics nurse. I'm just glad we have a judicial system that gets that. Based on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 56-year-old Mary Bassi was awarded $60,000. U.S.A! All the Way!