THURSDAY, JULY 31 2014 >>>

1. You know who looks great for her age? Washington. Yeah, I said it: Washington. For 125; are you kidding me? This state doesn't look a day over 80! At 6 p.m., three experts in what it means to be a Washingtonian musician will come together for a brisk, metaphorical slide show at the State Capital Museum Coach House. Lois Maffeo is an Olympia musician and writer who's been a theater manager for the Olympia Film Society and served on the Olympia Arts Council. She'll be joined by Calvin Johnson, who moved on from adolescent volunteer work at KAOS-FM to founding media outlet K Records in 1982, and by Sub Pop co-founder Bruce Pavitt. Read Christian Carvajal's full feature on the 25 Years of Music in Washington lecture in the Music and Culture section.

2. Three beer-tasting events in the South Sound tonight. The pFriem Family Brewers out of Hood River, Ore., celebrate their first anniversary with kegs of Rye Lager, Dunkel and their IPA at Pint Defiance from 5-7 p.m. Per Pint Defiance, expect a bitchin' raffle. The Topside Bar & Grill in Steilacoom hosts Alaskan Brewing Co. beginning at 6 p.m. Expect four Alaskan beers on tap including Icy Bay IPA, a food pairing, giveaways and prizes until 9 p.m. The Puyallup River Alehouse is going old school, pouring Rainier, Olympia and Pabst Blue Ribbon for $2.50 each. The downtown Puyallup's gathering spot will host its first Cornhole competition during the Throwback Thursday from 6-9 p.m. 

The Garden-Raided Bounty farm, or GRuB, hosts a carnival from 6-9 p.m. featuring games, vaudeville entertainers, raffles, min-auction, food vendors, local artisans dunk tank and more.

3. Lakewold Gardens, the 10-acre estate with its carefully maintained plantings, will host the some of the Northwest's finest classical musicians when the Second City Chamber Series presents "Berlin and Brazil in Tacoma" (Lakewood?), featuring pianist Jairo Geronymo performing works from his native Brazil and new home Germany with violinist Svend Ronning and cellist Richard Treat at 7:30 p.m.

8. Barleywine Revue is just awesome. The band writes and performs contemporary, relevant bluegrass and Americana music while paying homage to the traditions that have come in generations before ... think Bill Monroe meets Bill Withers. Oh man, that's fresh! Catch the band at 8 p.m. in The Swiss Restaurant & Pub.

LINK: Thursday, July 31 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area