MONDAY, NOV. 24 2014 >>>

1. Hip Hatchet is the project of alt-country singer-songwriter Philippe Bronchtein, who has a uniquely gifted sense of setting a melancholy mood. His songs are drenched in loneliness, without ever quite dipping too deeply into the well of sadness. On record, accompanied by a small group of supporting musicians, Bronchtein music swells and rises with a winsome energy. Seen solo, Hip Hatchet becomes about one man nimbly exploring his guitar, his oaken tenor guiding the audience through more than just dusty trails and mangy dogs. Hailing from Portland, Hip Hatchet's brand of folk has a distinctively Pacific Northwestern feel. Joining Hip Hatchet for a 10 p.m. performance in the intimate Le Voyeur is Christopher Paul Stelling, a New Yorker who brings a fiery, frantic strum that should balance out Hip Hatchet's bucolic fingerpicking quite well.

2. Jackie Fender, Weekly Volcano cohort and one of the Gritty City's art scene and literary superstars, is about to step things up a notch. She and fellow Volcano scribe Joshua Swainston are releasing the first print collection of stories and poems from their online literary destination, CreativeColloquy.com. Creative Colloquy Volume One is a super-rad collection of stories crafted by South Sound authors, a really diverse collection of shorts and poems and essays. The launch party is at 7 p.m. at B Sharp Coffee House.

3. The Greta Jane Quartet plays the Rhythm and Rye club at 8 p.m. In your world, jazz is the Pandora station your boss makes you listen to at work. Well, prepare to get schooled. In the Quartet's nimble hands, jazz was powerfully sexy, just the thing to settle a body down after another manic Monday. Imagine a snifter of Maker's Mark and pretty ladies in cocktail gloves. That's right, cocktail gloves! It's our fantasy, damnit! Anywho, happy days are here again - at least for tonight.

4. Blues County Sheriff is about the blues ... old school, real and meant to be shared with friends and aficionados by players who have dedicated their lives to the music - a celebration of the greatness of post-war bluesmen. Each song comes from the heart with penetrating vocal, unique interpretation, and dynamic performance.  The band performs original blues and covers - all in old-school style.  Catch the band at 8 p.m. in The Swiss.

5. Rockaraoke at Jazzbones will either be your novel opportunity to act as frontman, or be completely intimidating. Perpetually packed with people, Rockaraoke boasts a unique twist for karaoke in Tacoma: instead of a backing track, you get a three-piece band playing behind you. Check it out at 9 p.m.

LINK: Monday, Nov. 24 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area