FRIDAY, DEC. 27 2013 >>>

1. Longtime rhythm and blues sensation Randy Oxford Band hits the infamous Midwest Blues Highway to kick off 2014 with one really important stop along the way. The band will represent Tacoma at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis this January. It's the largest gathering of blues bands in the world and a big deal: bands had to compete locally and regionally to get the honor. Expecting more than 300 acts from around the world, IBC is five days of bluesy goodness. Add in the launch of the band's highly lauded and buzzworthy new CD, ... it feels good, and it's extra bluesy special. Before hitting the road, the band will perform at its annual Night After Christmas show at 8 p.m. in Jazzbones. Read Kim Thompson's interview with Randy Oxford in the Music & Culture section.

2. Because electronica is a style that functions effectively removed from the traditional guitar-drum-bass mold, enabling the creation and exploration of a whole new range of sounds, it becomes helpful to find distinctions: is it aggressive like drum 'n' bass and jungle, cartoonish like chiptunes and glitch, cerebral like IDM and trip-hop, or mellow like dream-pop and chillwave (which, ugh, not a fan of that word, either). Lobsana falls more on the latter end. Anna Moore is the artist behind Lobsana, a project that began back in 2011 as more or less a lark. Catch Lobsana with Field Trip and Hana and the Goose at 8 p.m. in Metronome Coffee. Read Rev. Adam McKinney's full feature on Lobsana in the Music & Culture section.

3. The Tacoma Comedy Club hosts Nigel Larson at 8:30 p.m. The club would like you to put that pair of holiday footie jammies back where they belong: way waaaay back in the closet, get out of the house and laugh it up with this comedian who at one time was a single, unemployed college dropout living in his parents' basement in Rochester. Wanting to make more of himself, Larson left the safety and security of that basement for the safety and security of his grandparents' basement in Tacoma. His act is largely autobiographical, turning a lifetime of failure into consistent on-stage success with honest stories and sophisticated material.

4. You have been digging the Monday night jazz jams at The New Frontier Lounge with Nate Dybevik on keys, Cameron Arneson on bass and Peter Tietjen on drums as the core group. At 9 p.m., the trio takes it to the next level in what they like to call the Friday Night Jazz Super Jam. You will Marvel at the talent.

5. The Spider Ferns are a duo that aim to hypnotize. Made up largely of just electric guitar and bass, with no drums, there is very little to prevent you from getting lulled into their bubbling tones. Without percussion, the sounds tend to just wash over you, lively though they may sometimes get. The band performs with Elbow Coulee and Dionvox at 9:30 p.m. in Le Voyeur.

LINK: Friday, Dec. 27 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area