GOODNESS COMING AT YOU IN PRINT & ONLINE >>>
What's more exciting: the start of the Tarvaris Jackson Era tonight for the Seattle Seahawks or this week's Volcano Music Section?
If you answered Tarvaris, well, you're just the kind of optimist the Volcano appreciates.
That said, the second option is a far safer bet.
Here's a look at the music goodness coming your way this week in print and online ...
WHAT'S THE WORD: AKA, J.BRE & MORE
One of the major local releases to drop this summer is AKA's debut album, Resurgence. AKA celebrated the release a few weeks ago with a jumping party at the Surreal Ultra Lounge. AKA stays pretty busy doing shows and promoting his music. He keeps his nose to his own grind and doesn't get into the politics and bullshit of the local scene. I appreciate this about him. It's refreshing to see an artist doing it for the right reasons, and not worried about the local bogus pecking order of hip-hop. - Josh Rizeberg
On John Craig & the Weekend's forthcoming full-length, Numbers, all 13 songs listed on the inside cover feature a parenthesized time stamp. Take, for instance, the disc's second track, "Wear Are Whatever (friday night!)," or the 12th tune, "Morning Birds (sunday morning ...)." It's all part of a much grander conceptualized package from Craig, who released a debut solo effort in 2009, and has since found a band to backup his electro-pop meanderings. - Matt Driscoll
It's very rare these days to find a dance studio dedicated to only hip-hop. Fortunately for Tacoma, such a studio exists. Koncrete Studios relocated to Tacoma from Olympia about a month ago. Dancers from around Tacoma come to Koncrete not only to practice but to train. Owners Jason Wickett and Cierra Lauren believe all dancers have a chance to improve and grow, no matter how skilled they are.
The studio is meant to embody hip-hop, expressing and supporting all of the foundational elements of the culture. ... -- Kimberly Lanh
BETTER LIVING THROUGH MUSIC: $krilla's B-Day Bash, Fucking Eagles, Phasers on Kill