WEDNESDAY, OCT. 14 2014 >>>
1. What the hell is a Hamell on Trial? Hamell on Trial is the nom de la musique of Ed Hamell, solo punk poet extraordinaire, beloved among cognoscenti at the Venn-diagram intersection of folk, punk and observational standup comedy. His current album, The Happiest Man in the World, was inspired by a recent divorce, but don't let his aggro delivery scare you: this guy can sing a joke. He'll remind you of Bill Hicks. Even better, he can play the rockin' hell out of a '37 Gibson guitar. We were especially won over by his YouTube video for a jaunty number called "I Hate Your Kid." Catch him with Tacoma garage rock band Radio On at 8:30 p.m. in The Swiss Restaurant and Pub.
2. Musically, Woman Who Left Behind is lushly spare, and Tess Seipp's tremulous, silky voice wraps around the four tracks like a nice hemp sandal. Growing up 62 miles from the Mexican border in the Chihuahuan Desert city of Marfa, Texas (known for its Minimalist art and the 2006 filmings of both No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood) and coming of age selling vinyl in Pacific Northwest record stores, Seipp, who is also known as Molybden, tells tales of the homeland and ponders the world around her, pulling together influences from Elliott Smith and Patti Smith to Charlie Feathersand Rosanne Cash, as well as paying homage to poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. Need another reason to catch her show at Rainy Day Records at 8 p.m. She performs with Eleanor Murray and Mona Reels.
3. Doyle's Public House's version of a pub quiz is fun to play and the prizes are always tasty. Nick Walsh is off for the night so Nicole Karen Olson will be reprising her role as the Quiztress. Same format as usual with 50 percent brainteaser riddle and 50 percent current event questions. Two sessions will go down - 8 and 9 p.m.
4. Harlequin Productions presents The Nightmare Before Improv with their improv comedy troupe at 8 p.m. in The Historic State Theater. Those brave enough to attend can expect frighteningly funny Halloween-themed improv comedy, a costume contest and an evening of ghostly delights.
5. Indigenous Robot cram the stomping menace of Black Sabbath and the masculine poetry of the Doors into something resembling Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Psychedelia still works, as shown in Indigenous Robots' in-and-out brevity, which allows them to pack a considerable amount of punch into three minutes or less. See the band with Glass Elevator at 10 p.m. in Le Voyeur.
LINK: Wednesday, Oct. 15 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area
