THE RIDE CONTINUES >>>

If you haven't at least heard of Daniel Blue at this point, all we can say is you haven't been paying attention.

Blue - a man who shared his many talents in the 253 and the Volcano - set aside the fashion design and art projects to concentrate on music, specifically his band, Motopony.

So far it seems to be paying off, as Motopony has secured a national label deal, released a CD and embarked on a national tour.

Today, culture site PopMatters interviewed Blue. Take a gander here.

ONLINE CHATTER >>>

Today's comment comes from Timothy in response to our preview of Friday's show at Le Voyeur in Olympia featuring Happy Noose, Morgan and the Organ Donors, the Maxines and the Mouthbreathers.

Timothy writes,

PHOTOGRAPHER: INTERN MADELINE SCHNEIDER >>>

THURSDAY, AUG. 25, 2011 >>>

1. We've long held the notion that going out on the weekends just ain't what it used to be. All of your favorite bars are packed with people you don't know/like/understand; RV traffic is infuriating, and on and on.  Whatever.  It's "Anything Goes" every Thursday night at Chopstix on Sixth Avenue. Dueling piano players perform before lovely chiquitas grinding to Whitesnake, Sinatra, Beyonce and others while tossing back $4 specials, beginning at 9 p.m. What's going on Friday morning and afternoon that's so important, anyway? 

2. When your car starts looking like it's been crapped on by a big brown bear, you take it to Brown Bear Car Wash to get it all cleaned up. Today, in celebration of its 54th anniversary, the Seattle-based company will wash your ride for free.

3. From the tandem-riding Doublemint girls of the '60s to the insufferable Olsens, identical twins twins have always been fun. Another set of identical twins are making the scene, or rather scenery. Identical twins Don and Ron Snowden have their unidentical art on display through Sept. 30 at the Gig Harbor Civic Center. Don does watercolors, pen and ink and even instant coffee. Ron does watercolors too, concentrating on scenery. A reception for the TwinArt show runs from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Center. Get in on the drawing to win a painting from Don and Ron, or Ron or Don.  

4. Do drunken debauchery, sexual innuendo and '80s game shows describe your ideal Thursday night? Yup, us too. Beginning at 8 p.m. the Northern Pacific Coffee Co. will shove comedians Pat Stayblack and Vanna Fight in front of a wheel for a night of Real Misfortune. 

5. The Swiss in downtown Tacoma host a Maurice The Fish Records Showcase beginning at 9 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music tonight in the South Sound

WHAT WE HAVE FOUND TODAY >>>

School Bullying: Tacoma School District and the union shove each other. (News Tribune)

Could This Save The Cliff House Restaurant?: Hylebos Waterway drawbridge is getting close to opening. (News Tribune)

Buffet Boost: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway announced it is investing $5 billion in Bank of America. (NPR)

On The Job: 11 pivotal in Steve Jobs' career. (TechFlash)

Don't Blow Away Your Immune System: The DEA has announced that three-quarters of cocaine in the U.S. can sometimes fatally lower a person's white blood cell count. (Scientific American)

Dying: Walmart and Groupon. (Ad Age and Gawker)

Reunited And It Feels So Good: The Royal Tenenbaums. (Gothamist)

Video: Princess Leia loss 50 pounds. (Hollywood Reporter)

Two Words: R2-D2 helmet. (walyou)

HOW YOU VOTED >>>

Tuesday the Weekly Volcano asked readers what is the most respected brand in Tacoma.

The Rock Wood Fired Pizza?

Nope.

Simpson Tacoma Kraft?

Nope.

Nalley's Fine Foods?

Nope.

Readers picked Windermere Professional Partners as Tacoma's respected brand, followed by Brown & Haley and Tacoma Screw.

Congratulations WPP. Maybe the Tacoma Regional Convention & Visitor Bureau should add WPP to its tours.

We suspect this person had something to do with the voting results.

MUSICAL GOODNESS IN PRINT & ONLINE >>>

Sure, the world's going to hell in a proverbial hand basket. Disillusionment is rampant. Partisan bullshit is at an all time high. Humanity seems dumber than ever.

But that didn't stop us from pumping out a brand spankin' new issue of the Volcano, complete with a brand spankin' new music section. You need it now more than ever.

Here's a peek at the musical goodness in store in print and online ...

FEATURE: GRIT CITY FEST

Music festivals have been on a tear lately in Tacoma. You've got the 253Heart Festival, Squeak and Squawk, NXNW Metal Fest and the Urban Arts Festival - among others. The more these events start happening, the more necessary it becomes for each to have its own compelling voice and vision. It's no longer enough to assemble a big lineup of bands that we see year-round anyway. There needs to be some kind of larger idea at work to make the festival worthwhile.

Coming into its second year, Grit City Fest seems closer to refining that idea.

"This is the year of growth, the year of the learning curve, as I'm calling it," says Quincy "Q-Dot" Henry, the music director and co-founder of the festival. - Rev. Adam McKinney

HIP-HOP: NEW RELEASES FROM HOLLYWOOD KILL KREW AND NEVER SLEEP

This summer a lyrical tidal wave splashed over the entire South Sound, with the aftermath leaving the streets of Olympia scattered with new hip-hop.  There were probably more mixtapes, EPs and full-length hip-hop albums released in the past three months than there were over the previous two years. I say to myself, "Something must've been in the air or the water or the whiskey." Or maybe Olympia's hip-hop scene is just finally growing up, going from its adolescent days of freestyling on the sidewalks to releasing quality music on a professional level. 

With Olympia infested with so much new hip-hop, it was tough to choose a certain release to talk about, which is why you will read about both Hollywood Kill Krew's album Smoke Monster and Never Sleep's self-titled EP this week. - Nic Leonard

HIP-HOP: SONNY BONOHO

If it was up to me, Bonoho would be on the cover of this paper and more people would be proud of him. The best thing about Bonoho is not his personality or his flavor (which are both real cool); it's his music - which is what this is all about. Bonoho makes extremely unique hip-hop music ... probably like nothing ya'll have ever heard. When a Sonny song is on, ya know its Sonny. There's no father to his style. I embrace Bonoho's originality and I encourage ya'll to do the same.  - Josh Rizeberg

PUNK & METAL: THE DAMAGE REPORT with Jason McKibbin

So I'm turning 40 years old next week, and as I sit back and reflect on the Tacoma music scene over the last 20 or so years I notice one thing - it has always been cooler than most other cities! I attribute this mostly to one thing: heart. No, not the band  -- the blood-pumping muscle behind this blue-collar town. There are more no-BS bands of all genres right here in the South Sound than just about anywhere I've seen - and I get around. ... - Jason McKibbin

PUNK: THE MEAT SLUTS

Let's start with a truism. Bacon and gettin' it on are two of the best things ever invented. There shall be no more debate on this matter. 

So thank Zeus one band had the vision to combine a passion for both all-American pastimes into one undeniably awesome concept: The Meat Sluts. 

The Bay Area quartet - singer-guitarist B.B. Rumproast, singer-guitarist Filet O'Nettie, bassist Carmela Mignon and drummer Scarlet Spamchop - will unleash campy, carnivorous punk anthems on Tacoma's New Frontier Lounge Saturday.

Rumproast (a.k.a. Beth Allen) breaks it down for us. 

Sound: "I like to think of us as bubblegum punk rock. I would say we were influenced by things like the Ramones, old Dictators and Groovie Ghoulies; old Runaways, for sure." - Ernest A. Jasmin

PLUS: Better Living Through Music - Happy Noose, Arpeggiator, Marcy Playground

PLUS: Concert Alert

PLUS: Wacky stuff like this

ARTS COVERAGE TO END ALL ARTS COVERAGE >>>

At this point it goes without saying. If you're looking for coverage of local arts in Tacoma, Olympia, and all points in between, the Weekly Volcano is THE place to find it. Our goal is to consistently provide the best local arts coverage possible to our fantastic readers -- always be on the lookout for ways to shine a light on all the awesome creativity we see around us.

Here's a look at the Volcano arts coverage waiting for you this week in print and online.

VISUAL EDGE: Parenthetically Speaking: It's Only a Figure of Speech

(Punctuation. Mildred Howard knows it’s important. Photo by Duncan Price/courtesy Museum of Glass)

The problem with conceptual art is that it usually expresses a single idea, and once you get the idea there's not much left to look at. That is almost but not quite what happens with Parenthetically Speaking: It's Only a Figure of Speech, the new Museum of Glass exhibition of work by San Francisco-based artist Mildred Howard. ... -- Alec Clayton

THEATER: Mauritius

Mauritius is the story of a young woman's quest to sell a collection of rare stamps for an astronomical price, and how shady characters band together to keep that from happening. The young woman, Jackie, may not actually own those precious stamps; I'm no probate lawyer, but I rather think she doesn't. Either way, not just millions of dollars but Jackie's sense of self-worth-perhaps even her life-depend on the outcome of that sale. The naked desperation of all these characters makes for high comedy. Mauritius is a thriller, but it's also deeply funny. ... -- Christian Carvajal

FEATURE: Tacoma Murals Project

(Bergerson Terrace/Orchard Street Mural: For the community, by the community. Photo courtesy Jeremy Gregory)

The Tacoma Murals Project returned in full force this summer. The result? Two new cool murals fighting blight one paintbrush stroke at a time.

The Tacoma Murals Project began in 2010 as part of Tacoma's Safe and Clean effort. The project is designed to fight vandalism, working with community groups to select the mural location and design. However, this nifty project also benefits artists who want to learn how to complete an outdoor mural. Teaching artists work with selected students (who are already experienced artists) in a series of classroom sessions before the teams are paired with the community groups.

This year, there were five lead artists. Chris Sharp and Kelda Martensen teamed up on the 43^rd Street mural, which features leaves, seed pods, birds and other elements echoing the gulch near the site. Rachael Dotson, Joni Joachims and Jeremy Gregory headed up the Bergerson Terrace/Orchard Street mural, which integrates ideas from the community-music, diversity, family, play, nature and community. - Kristin Kendle

LOCAL FILM: Without

Writer/director/editor Mark Jackson, though based in Brooklyn, shot Without in a place we Northwest folk instantly recognize: Whidbey Island. Within a festival about faces, the first shot appropriately gives us a close-up of a pretty girl named Joslyn (actor Joslyn Jensen) staring somewhat sadly below frame. The cut to her profile reveals more of the surroundings - the interior of a ferry, steadily whisking its seemingly sole traveler to her destination. ... -- Christopher Wood

LION SUBMISSION: Making it Reign

(Photo credit: Kevin Quimosing)

Recently I sat down with Brian Franada, the founder of Reign, a nonprofit organization that hosts concerts and events in Seattle and works with up-and-coming artists to bring awareness and support to underserved youth around the world. This month marks Reign's first full year as a nonprofit, and it's still growing daily.

Franada has found inspiration from many places in his life. He works with a group of alumni from Manila Science High School, one of the top ten schools in the Philippines, to identify and coordinate support efforts brought together by Reign. This is a cause close to Franada because of his own mother's experience - who's originally from the Philippines. Franada realized that if it hadn't been for someone stepping up to support his mom, his family wouldn't be where it is today. -- Ha-vy Le

PLUS: More local theater coverage than you can shake a stick at

PLUS: Comprehensive South Sound Arts and Entertainment Calendar

PLUS: Bunnies

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

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Sunny, hi 83, lo 56

Saturday: Sunny, hi 76, lo 53

Sunday: Iphone says still sunny, hi 79, lo 55

>>> FRIDAY, AUG. 26: TACOMA FOOD CO-OP OPENS

Tacoma will get a little food-friendlier on Friday. Since 2006, a group of dedicated locals has worked to establish a place where fresh, local, non-chemically raped food can be found. Better yet, they've been working to establish a place for the community to come together, connect and grow. It's called a food co-op, and the years of active recruitment and planning will pay off when the Tacoma Food Co-op opens its doors this week. A grand opening celebration is also planned for Sept. 10.

• Tacoma Food Co-op, 3002 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, tacomafoodcoop.com

>>> SATURDAY, AUG. 27: ROCK AT THE DOCK III

Few places are better for the rock than a dock. Just trust us. Of course, this is just one of the many reasons why Saturday's Rock at the Dock III Hot Rod Car Show & All City Dance at Johnny's Dock Restaurant in Tacoma will kick major ass. There'll be more classic cars than you'll know what to do with, not to mention plenty of other free, live entertainment ... and a beer garden! The event's evening musical treat promises Dan Whyms and Rock Island Line.

• Johnny's Dock Restaurant, 10 a.m. - 11 p.m., 1900 East D St., Tacoma, rockatthedock.net

>>> SATURDAY, AUG. 27: 34th ANNUAL LeMAY CAR SHOW

Lasting over three decades is an accomplishment for anything and anyone. Ask Volcano editor Matt Driscoll, who made it to 30 by sheer luck. The annual LeMay Car Show hasn't just lasted three decades, it's working toward a fourth. Saturday, the 34th Annual LeMay Car Show will offer its usual "amazing assortment" of vintage vehicles, matched with additional collections of all sorts of other fun collectible memorabilia. Money raised goes to benefit the LeMay Family Collection Foundation.

• Marymount Event Center, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., $5-$10, free for members, active military and kids under 5, 325 152nd St. E, Tacoma, 253.272.2336

>>> SATURDAY & SUNDAY, AUG. 27-28: MARITIME FESTIVAL

The Volcano gears up for the annual Maritime Festival like the Super Bowl. We just can't get enough of celebrating Commencement Bay, and the "Working Waterfront" as it's known. This year marks the 19th annual Maritime Fest - and it might be the best ever.  Expect harbor tours and train rides, paddle board racing, music, boat building, clowns and a beer garden. The action runs Saturday and Sunday. That's why they call it a "Working Waterfront" - weekends off are for pussies.

• Thea's Park/Foss Waterway Seaport, Aug. 27-28, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., free, Dock Street, Tacoma, maritimefest.org

>>> SUNDAY, AUG. 28: CELEBRATE L.I.F.E.

We've raved about the Fab-5 and the L.I.F.E. Program plenty. For those not in the know, Fab-5 created the L.I.F.E. Program (Living In Free Expression) in 2005 as a means of providing "relevant creative outlets" for our area's young people. The L.I.F.E. Program is described as, "an intensive series of urban arts workshops designed to allow youth to develop and explore their unique voices through a variety of different mediums," like DJ-ing, breakdancing, visual arts and creative writing. Fab-5, in conjunction with Spaceworks Tacoma, also recently birthed Fabitat, a physical location for Fab-5 headquarters where weekly classes, gallery exhibitions, live events and studio space flourish. On Sunday, join L.I.F.E. and Fab-5 at Fabitat (1316 Martin Luther King Way, Tacoma) to celebrate the culmination of this year's L.I.F.E. Program, an event featuring a preview of the breakdancing routine Fab-5 will deliver during next week's Art Appreciation Night at Cheney Stadium, plus much more.

• Fabitat, 4-8 p.m., free, 1316 Martin Luther King Way, Tacoma, fab5org.wordpress.com

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

NIKKI TALOTTA Features Writer
It's wedding season, and Saturday will be filled with hugs and champagne toasts. Sunday calls for a BBQ and apple picking, followed by an attempt to not butcher Grandma Talotta's pie crust recipe. Hopefully sweet apple pies ensue. Ah, I'm loving August!

REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Music and Film Writer
The tentative plan is to head up to Seattle with some friends to see the Night Beats at the Crocodile. That is all!

BRETT CHIHON Meat Market Correspondent/Features Writer
I'm going to a wedding reception. Free booze!

.

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL: Theater Critic
My wife and I raved so much about Seabrook that now her whole family wants to go. Ergo, about two dozen of our clan will converge on one poor beach house this weekend. Text me. I could use the distraction, as I'm almost out of Angry Bird levels.

JOE IZENMAN: Theater Critic
Grit City Music Fest. Parkway Tavern IPA Fest. Playing Dungeons & Dragons In A Basement Fest. (Hint: one of these three items is not a real Fest. But that sure won't stop me.) The real trick will be how to drink little enough at IPA Fest (starting at 2 p.m.) that my fingers still function to play keyboards at Grit City Fest by 8:15 p.m.

JENNIFER JOHNSON Food and Lifestyles Writer
Dancing, riding bikes, yoga, beach, hiking and church.

.

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
Bah! It's my last weekend before school starts so I'll be spending as much time with my little son in the hopes that I won't have a complete melt down on the 30th.

STEVE DUNKELBERGER Photographer
All things Grit City Fest and Maritime Fest.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

SPECIAL IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT >>>

The glass cooler display cases overflowing with decadent desserts of all shapes, types and sizes stops you after swinging open the door at Affairs Café & Bakery. The goodies front and center isn't a shock since this small spot in University Place has been championing all things sweet for close to 20 years. And even though your goal might be breakfast or lunch - as Affairs has "Café" in its name - a slice of cake with a side of truffles for lunch is hard to resist.

But resist I did today - a wise decision.

The top of Affairs Special board for the next two days sits a beautiful blackened chicken taco salad ($13). The robust salad - with a massive pile of spring leafs, corn salsa (with cilantro lime juice!), cheddar, olives, tomato - sports spicy blackened chicken stripes and the perfect dollop of ranch pushed against a giant baked taco shell as if the thick statue upchucked the pile of goodness. The medium spice and creamy ranch create a wonderful dressing.

It's too tasty to be mistaken for health food.

[Affairs Café & Bakery, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, 2811 Bridgeport Way W., University Place, 253.565.8604]

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide