THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Partly sunny, hi 72, lo 57

Saturday: Rain, hi 66, lo 54

Sunday: Overcast, hi 71, lo 54

>>> FRIDAY, JULY 15: Revengers

It's been six months since the Revengers stepped to the stage. Far too long. We may see guitarist Mason Hargrove driving around in that cute, old yellow car of his all the time, but we haven't gotten enough of the Revengers' haunting, hybrid sound and well-chosen lyricism. That all changes Friday, when the Revengers return in a revamped incarnation - one  we hope will pack as much punch as the original.

• The New Frontier, with Prayers for Atheists, Panama Gold, NighTrain, 9 p.m., $5, 301 E. 25th St., Tacoma, 253.572.4020 

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 16: The Missionary Position

Jeff Angell of the Missionary Position is like some sort of rock n' roll prophet. Or yoda. Or yoda with hip bones. Or something. Dude's just really wise when it comes to the rock, music and what it's all about. "The truth is, I love stories and in three verses a song can say as much as a novel with what it leaves to the imagination. I didn't choose music it chose me and as miserable as I have made life on myself at times, I wouldn't have it any other way," he told the Volcano in May. Saturday, catch Angell's Missionary Position in what's rumored to possibly be the last Saturday music booking at Doyle's Public House in a while. Whie that's a rumor we've been unable to succesfully confirm or deny, Angell's rock n roll swager can't be denied. 

• Doyle's Public House, 9:30 p.m., NC, 208 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.7468

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 16: WAKE UP 253 Anniversary

WAKE UP 253, a local music, art and business zine that's just one of the many quirky and vibrant things that makes T-Town so fucking rad celebrates one year Saturday at the New Frontier. Musically, Osama Bin Rockin', South 11th, Not From Brooklyn, Dead Peasants and Milky White will provide the action, while constant kick-ass raffles (yeah, they've got pipes and cupcakes according to Facebook)and pinata swings will make sure things stay lively.

• The New Frontier, 8 p.m., $5, 301 E 25th St., Tacoma

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 16: The Jungle Book (as performed by kids)

The Broadway Center Conservatory's Summer Musical Theatre Camp is all about teaching kids about life, about the boards, and about life on the boards. Saturday, as part of a celebration of the skills the kids have learned all season long, the Summer Musical Theatre Camp will perform The Jungle Book at Broadway Center's Theatre on the Square. Session II of the Broadway Center Conservatory's Summer Musical Theatre Camp will do the same on July 30.

• Broadway Center Theatre on the Square, 4 p.m., $18, 901 Broadway, Tacoma 

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 16: SUNDAY, JULY 17: British Colonial Picnic, Tea and Potluck Curry in Wright Park

The hype on FeedTacoma surrouding the annual British Colonial Summer Picnic (which, in case you didn't realize, is co-hosted by von Mausheim's Society of Dastardly Exiles and Tacoma's Steam Town) provides proper instruction: "dust off your pith helmets, press your khakis, don your safari jackets, and fuel up the Land-Rover for a day of friendly assosciation in the park." Hunkering down next to Seymour Botanical Conservatory in Wright Park, this yearly festivity of creative recreation is pretty damn awesome. The action promises, a "'special rules' Croquet match (Kashmiri War Croquet), a competitive strolling event, and a tea cup relay, as well as other games and amusements for attendees." Here's a link.

• Wright Park - next to the Seymour Botanical Observatory, 1-6 p.m., Sixth Ave. and G St., Tacoma

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

REV. ADAM MCKINNEY: Music and Film Writer
The same thing I do every weekend: try to take over the world! (Can this be accomplished exclusively via the consumption of Potter's whiskey? Because otherwise I've been doing it wrong.)

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
This weekend will mostly be a whole lot of nothin' other than watching the baby grow. On Sunday, we are going to the Terra Organics farm for some family fun and then to a friend's going away party. 

ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic

The wife and I are heading out to Puyallup for a dinner theater presentation of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" at All Saints Theatrical Repertoire Association.

BRETT CIHON Meat Market Correspondent
The Zipper, a Demo Burger and amazing people watching. In other words: Lakefair. All weekend. I'm hyped.

Jennifer Johnson Food and Lifestyles Writer
Getting my first-ever henna (big chest and back piece) by the talented Dagmar Peterson for my gig as DD to Zoobilee Friday. Saturday plant starts (please don't die little guys, mama didn't forget you). Attend birthday party at the Balcony Gallery Saturday night. Teach church scripture lesson Sunday afternoon and then chill.

Steve Dunkelberger Photographer
I actually have a whole lot of nothing going on this weekend other than the Tacoma Youth Chorus concert.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

THE BEST ARTS COVERAGE IN THE SOUTH SOUND >>>

With the publication of the Volcano's annual Best of Tacoma issue a mere two weeks away, much of my time lately has been spent wading through the best of the best in art of the last year. It never ceases to amaze me just how much amazing stuff happens right here in our neck of the woods.

This week is no different, out on the street, and in the pages of the Weekly Volcano.

Here's a look at the arts coverage waiting for you in print and online.

VISUAL EDGE: TACOMA PHOTOGRAPHY LEGEND VIRNA HAFFER 

("Franz Brasz, the Artist." A Virna Haffer photo from 1937. Collection of the Washington State Historical Society/Gift of the Virna Haffer Estate)

The exhibition of photos by Virna Haffer at Tacoma Art Museum is a marvel. I had no idea what to expect heading into the gallery to see these works by an artist I had never heard of, and it was like wandering into a studio shared by the greatest photographers of the early modern period, including Alfred Stieglitz, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Diane Arbus and Man Ray. Haffer, a self-taught artist from Tacoma whose career began in the 1920s, gained international prominence and then was lost to history. The TAM curatorial team of Margaret Bullock, Christina Henderson and David Martin searched through more than 30,000 of Haffer's negatives, prints and woodblocks to put together this astonishing exhibition. - Alec Clayton

FEATURE: OLY LOVES PLANNED PARENTHOOD

(Photo by Ruby Re-Usable)

When I think of political protest, I don't usually think cute or sweet or quirky. I also don't usually think of art. But Oly Loves Planned Parenthood, a loosely organized network with a high percentage of working artists and art lovers, has made its protests all of those things. Since February, they've carried letter-pressed and hand-painted signs, often decorated with hearts. They've held bake sales. Organizer Sarah Adams, a filmmaker and performance artist, did a comedy piece about the protests as part of Michelle Tea's "Sister Spit" show in Olympia in March. And Friday, July 15, the group is holding an art show and party with music by the Olympia Free Choir, a DJ, pizza and cupcakes (probably the cutest and possibly sweetest of baked goods).  - Molly Gilmore

THEATER REVIEW: CATS

Tacoma Musical Playhouse saved its most visually stunning production to close out the season. Cats opened to a packed house and earned a standing ovation from the majority of the patrons, despite some sound difficulties. - Joann Varnell

THEATER REVIEW: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

(Photo by Seraphim Fire Photography)

This production is adorable. Not every joke's a corker, mind you, but remember that the definition of "comedy" in the early 1600s was that someone gets married at the end. A Shakespearean romp doesn't have to be joke-setup-joke like an episode of How I Met Your Mother. The plot, about mortals and Amazons besotted by magical flowers, is both dorky and disarming, and you can't beat the scenery. Having established due care and dedication, Animal Fire attracts professional-grade actors to its ranks. Jeff Painter, a memorable Lucentio in Harlequin's Taming of the Shrew, is likable here as Demetrius. Brian Hatcher, a fellow Harlequin alumnus, is charming, literally, as Puck (though his delivery of iambic pentameter is often singsong). Jay Minton, a veteran of Animal Fire's Idaho origin, won me over as a stage-struck Nick Bottom. Steven Wells stretches neatly into the role of Lysander, and local comic Morgan Picton is terrific in two roles. ... -- Christian Carvajal

FILM: TACOMA FILM FESTIVAL SNEAK PEEK

In a way the Tacoma Film Festival party never stops at The Grand Cinema. As TFF's founder and continuing planner, the theater's staff and volunteers work throughout the year on each new festival. And in 2011 they've figured out a way to share even more of the festival with us. TFF doesn't officially commence until Oct. 6, but who says we can't have fun now? Not the Grand; its first-ever Tacoma Film Festival Sneak Peek happens at the theater this Friday, July 15. Let's pre-party! - Christopher Wood

PLUS: The South Sound Arts, Entertainment & Events Calendar to end all South Sound Arts, Entertainment & Events Calendars

PLUS: Tap Dancing Hamsters

MUSICAL GOODNESS IN PRINT & ONLINE >>>

Wow. Big week for us here at the Weekly Volcano music section. It feels like it's been "No Sleep ‘Till Brooklyn" since Monday just making this thing happen. In print and online, the Volcano is literally bursting at the musical seems this week. Let's dig in.

Here's a peek at the musical goodness in store in print and online.

Vicci Martinez

"(The Voice) contacted my manager, Beth Tallman, and asked her to convince me to do it, because they knew I didn't want to do anything like American Idol," says Martinez. "I liked the concept, especially the blind audition idea. I thought, ‘That's cool. It'd be totally based on my voice, if they like me.' ... Even my girlfriend said it, one morning. She said, ‘It's like a big commercial. You get to be on NBC and have a big commercial about you. What's wrong with that?'" - Rev Adam McKinney

Waves and Radiation

It's been two years and one month since instrumental rock band Waves and Radiation played its farewell show at Bob's Java Jive. On Saturday, the band will reunite for a special one-off return performance at the same coffee-pot-shaped venue where they called it a day back in 2009. Fans of Waves and Radiation will be pleased to hear that as far as guitarist Tristan McNabb is concerned, it's as if they'd never stopped playing together at all. - Jason Baxter

Revengers   

                              ... the crew that resurfaces Friday night at The New Frontier Lounge - Revengers' first show in six months - will look and sound noticeably different from what fans have grown accustomed to. That's thanks to the "come to Jesus moment" that followed Quinn's departure to Michigan in January after getting accepted to law school.  "Eric is my musical soul mate," says Coleman, who had also been Quinn's band mate in defunct local hip-hop group Biznautics. "Not having him around was really tough for me," he says during last week's Art on the Ave festival, recalling his band's near breakup. "For a while, I really had to have a moment and think about whether I wanted to do it without him."  -- Ernest A. Jasmin

Gillian Welch

Listening to Gillian Welch - in particular her new album, The Harrow & The Harvest - there's a palpable yearning that lurks in and around her music. Welch's adherence to classicism in the areas of folk, bluegrass and country has about it the mournful pang of nostalgia for a time she never experienced. - Rev. AM

TODD SYKES

Lots of local albums have dropped this year - perhaps more than any other year I can remember. It's obvious some people are really getting on their craft. One of the artists having a particularly productive year is Todd Sykes, one half of CityHall. Sykes is the full-time producer of all CityHall tracks and he also shares 50 percent of the rhymes. He also has a tendency to sing a lot of the hooks on the project, so if ya like CityHall, ya like Todd Sykes, whether ya know it or not. Def' take some time to download Sykes's newest solo album, Background Music, available on CityHall's Bandcamp page. - Josh Rizeberg

The Damage Report with Jason McKibbin (NEW PUNK & METAL COLUMN!!)

Hello from the City of Destiny! Some of you may know me as your loveable bearded doorman at Hell's Kitchen, or as the manic frontman for Tacoma's infamous punksters I Defy. But did you know that before I was a singer or a bouncer I was a music journalist!?! True Story! Now, I've once again answered the call, and just like way back when, I'm all about the scene. "What scene?" you ask. Well, the local punk, metal and extreme indie scene, to be exact. - Jason McKibbin

WHERE ARE THEY NOW: HOSTALION

Once upon a time in the early 2000's there was a backpacking/skateboard/delinquent hip-hop crew in Olympia called Hostalion that reigned supreme in the South Sound.  For many years they were untouchable, whether it was battling poor fools that had no idea what they were getting themselves into or consistently releasing some of the freshest up-to-date hip-hop Olympia had ever seen.  Your average fan that only saw Hostalion play a show or two may wonder, "What ever happened to those guys?"  Loyal fans and those who followed close know that although the name Hostalion isn't repped like it use to be, about half the members are still active and putting music out right under our nose here in Olympia.  - Nic Leonard

PLUS: Better Living Through Music - Earth, The Hague, Liturgy, Sam Vicari

PLUS: Concert Alert

PLUS: Live Local Music Listings for the South Sound

PLUS: Unbelievable Crap Like This

YEARLY COMMUNITY ARTS FEST HAS ARRIVED >>>
Music, laughter, loud conversations: if I close my eyes, the way a Grateful Dead show parking lot sounded comes to mind.

On any given day, a constant mix of noises from bars, businesses and foot traffic floats in my windows. I live directly on Sixth Avenue; hearing my neighborhood live and breathe isn't new. But yesterday was special. The 13th annual Art on the Ave festival meant the noise of cars was replaced by bicycle riders thumbing bells. Kids chasing each other let out squeals of laughter as I stepped outside and joined them on the sidewalk - quickly melting into the throngs of people in front of Dirty Oscar's Annex. DOA's Jake Barth and bartender Teresa Star worked the beer garden, selling moonshine lemonade and Rainier tall boys to an already thirsty crowd at 1 p.m.

(Photo Credit: Pappi Swarner)

Skateboards whipped up and down a ramp next to O'Malley's and bands played on an outdoor music stage. While getting a quick hug from hip-hop promoter Michael Pierce, he broke the news that the CityHall (Todd Sykes, EvergreenOne, DJ Hanibal) set time had been pushed back from 2:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Nearby, at the intersection of Steele and Sixth, a chalk artist created a vividly-colored picture on the sidewalk of an orange tabby cat looking hungrily at a goldfish swimming in its bowl.

Standing in front of Jewell Day Spa (where she works), Dawn Elizabeth handed out information about the spa. "Can't think of a better way to spend the day if I've got to be working," she tells me.

Mike Hempel, sous-chef at award-winning restaurant Pacific Grill, took this year's Art on the Ave as an opportunity to check out booths of paintings, art and punk pins. "It's a great event for the Ave," he says. "The businesses get so much exposure."

Tempted by foot-long skewers of teriyaki chicken at one booth, my senses were on overload from the rich curry scent coming from Gateway to India's outdoor cooking set-up. I paused to observe henna artist Dagmar Peterson creating gorgeous swirls in mere seconds on the wrist of a smiling woman before moving on to Ryan Loiselle's clothing booth. His newest irreverent and humorous offerings include boy-short panties and hip-hugger sweat pants with "Tacoma Aroma" emblazed on them. Loiselle is very tongue-in-check pro-Tacoma.

(Photo Credit: Steve Dunkelberger)

Streets were closed to vehicle traffic from State Street to Cedar Street for the free, family-friendly event. Despite what festival organizers say was record-breaking attendance, it was still easy to move up and down Sixth Ave for most of the day. That is, until the 3 o'clock hour neared and the entire block from the Jazzbones mainstage down to Oakes Street swam with fans of hometown-girl-done-good Vicci Martinez. Spilling onto side streets and the Tapco Credit Union parking lot, fans jostled for position to see the reality TV show star and music phemon take the stage. And I do mean "take." Though Martinez performed only a handful of songs, she owned it. The sea of people made the community event feel like much more of an outdoor concert than it ever has in the past. As Sixth Avenue business owner Chiara Wood says of Martinez, "She's so 253." Strong, passionate, humble.

Ray Hubberd, retired civic planner, walked in sync with me as I headed for the mellower end of the Ave. "A real sense of community has emerged. It's good to see so many people here," he shares. He knows what he's talking about. Hubberd has lived in the Sixth Avenue area for more than a few decades. He's watched it grow and change much like downtown Tacoma.

As the afternoon inched closer to evening I stopped to see the fellas putting on the first-ever Art on the Ave film festival, held in the Sixth Avenue Baptist Church building. Randy Sparks and John D. Markert were the forces behind the cinematic endeavor. "We've had people come see the films, it's been a good experience though hard to compete with all that's going on out here," says Sparks, gesturing to the crowded street and sunny day.

Anchoring the west end of Art on the Ave, the Maurice the Fish live music stage saw performers all day - though I doubt any surpassed the visual entertainment provided by Ben Union. A shirtless Union played guitar over his head and behind his back for a solid 45 seconds while fans cheered and clapped.

At 6 p.m., with Art on the Ave officially over, I grabbed some chill time with Jaime Kay Jones (owner of Top of Tacoma and soon-to-open Sixth Ave restaurant Marrow) in DOA's alley beer garden (unofficially dubbed "The Glory Hole"). Rockers, foodies, tattoo artists and piercers, musicians, singers, cooks and chefs alike gathered as though seeking refuge from the masses. Referring to the day's festivities, Jones comments, "It's a fully fledged thing now, not just a little neighborhood street fair. There's so much support for Tacoma. I wish we could do this more than once a year."  

LINK: More Art on the Ave photos

EQUALITY IN TACOMA >>>

As I signed a card supporting equal rights at yesterday's Out in the Park event in downtown Tacoma, the young man soliciting my signature tried desperately to convince me it was the right thing to do. He said his quest for signatures was not a gimmick.  He may or may not have been drunk.

I had not questioned him in the least, and as a matter of fact, quickly agreed to sign whatever I needed to sign to make gay marriage legal, put progressive people in political chairs, and allow "colored folk" to drink out of public water fountains.  (It all seems as archaic as the other, right?  It's 2011 for fuck's sake.)

(Photo Credit: Jen Cook-Asaro)

Moving this year's festivities to Ninth and Broadway, Out in the Park booths lined Broadway Tacoma Farmer's Market style with helpful information and rainbow-themed wares.  Free hugs were handed out along with lots and lots of friendly smiles. Everyone was strong; pride was made public; and hopes of equality wafted through Pierce Transit Park alongside the sounds of talented musicians on stage. 

(Photo Credit: Jen Cook-Asaro)

Beginning at 2 p.m. was when the real party began, and where the gay pride flag flew its highest... down the street at The Mix's Tacoma Pride Block Party.  With the street blocked to all traffic, dance music was spun by local DJs while scantily clad men and women propositioned you with Jell-O shots and flirtatious banter. (At The Mix's Block Party is where I learned that ultimately, no matter how gay or how straight a man might be, all men love breasts.  And I do mean ALL men.) 

(Photo Credit: Jen Cook-Asaro)

All part of the block party action, drag queens graced the stage with hypnotizing movements, STINK donned a special menu, Pacific Grill was on hand serving up fiery shrimp cocktails and The Office produced grubbin' sliders for all who had munchies.  Steve Naccarato stood by offering 253 paraphernalia to anyone interested in flaunting not only their gay pride, but their local pride as well.

(Photos of the Mix Pride Block Party crowd and Miss Gay Tacoma by Steph DeRosa)

I could go on and on and on about the great time Liesl Diesl, the Swarners and I had alongside Jacob Rose and his cohorts at The Mix, but the cheap ass Volcano has me on a tight budget and refuses to reward my excessive triple-drabble. So instead I'll show you a video of Katrina Duall who usually performs at The Airport Tavern. 

More photos from Jen Cook-Asaro of yesterday's Out in the Park action

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011 >>>

1. The annual Art on the Ave festival takes over Tacoma's Sixth Avenue today - offering arts of all kinds to people of kinds. EXTRA SPECIAL: Vicci Martinez will take to the Jazzbones stage at around 3 p.m. And catch City Hall on the O'Malley's stage.

2. In Puyallup, drop in on Sexy Sundays with DJ El Guapo at O'Henry's Sports Bar.

3. Sunday means Movie Night at the Brotherhood in Olympia. It's an institution.

4. "Cats" opened this week at the Tacoma Musical Playhouse. See it now and compare your take with Volcano theater critic Joann Varnell, who's writing her review as you read this.

5.The Orcapod Book Club meets on the second Sunday of every month at Orca Books in Olympia. It's literally literary aweseomness.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music tonight in the South Sound

SATURDAY, JULY 9, 2011 >>>

1. It's a yearly tradition. Check out the Tacoma Old Town Blues Festival today. The BluesBerry Pancake breakfast kicks things off in mere moments.

2. Get Out in the Park, part of Tacoma's epic ten days of Pride events. Find info here.

3. DB & the Struggle and Si Si Si will be all up in O'Malley's today.

4.Holy moly! There's an all-male stripper revue tonight at Uncle Sam's Bar & Grill in Spanaway. That's hot!

5. Go old school at Tiffany's Skate Inn in Puyallup for Retro Skate Night.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music tonight in the South Sound

FRIDAY, JULY 8, 2011 >>>

1. The music of You Are Plural is so immediately, vibrantly engaging that it can be almost jarring. Tonight, the band plays Northern in Olympia, in what should be  a fine display of all-ages musical action.

2. Catch Rare Groove tonight at the Tempest Lounge on Hilltop - an evening of "intelligent soul, funk, jazz and (fittingly) rare grooves."

3. Amocat Cafe's live music night -- "Amocat Live!" -- goes down on the second Friday of every month. And, lo and behold - that's this week! Tonight catch Gabe Rhee, Sam Bogle, Steve Cairns, Karen Miller, Volkert Volkersz, Morgan Alexander & Kevin Freitas and Amocat Live! house band Les Collaborateurs.

4. Tonight would be the perfect time to drop in on the Open Contemporary Dance Class led by choreographer and all-around-talent Joel Myers, this evening from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Urban Grace Church in downtown Tacoma.

5. The Nuge. Or the Backstreet Boys and NKOTB. Or even the Monkees.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music tonight in the South Sound

THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Mostly sunny, hi 68, lo 49

Saturday: Partly sunny, hi 72, lo 52

Sunday: Partly sunny, hi 74, lo 55

>>> FRIDAY, JULY 8: Amocat Live!

Amocat Cafe's live music night -- the appropriately titled "Amocat Live!" -- goes down on the second Friday of every month. And, lo and behold - that's this week! As of this writing the list of scheduled performers includes: Gabe Rhee, Sam Bogle, Steve Cairns, Karen Miller, Volkert Volkersz, Morgan Alexander & Kevin Freitas and Amocat Live! house band Les Collaborateurs.

• Amocat Cafe, 7-9 p.m., NC, 625 St Helens Ave., Tacoma, 

>>> JULY 8-9: The Nuge

There comes a time in every great performer's career when they stare the Emerald Queen Casino square in the eyes. Ted Nugent has arrived. A shredder of '70s testosterone-driven hits like "Cat Scratch Fever"; the man behind some of the best bow-hunting-based television ever produced; and right wing gun-advocate many consider to be a prolific racist, Ted Nugent will be in T-town for a two-night stand starting Friday. Both shows are basically sold out. Quick! Think of something that rhymes with poontang!

• Emerald Queen Casino, 8:30 p.m., 2024 E. 29th St., Tacoma, 253.594.7777

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 9: South Sound BBQ Festival

Who doesn't like meat off the grill? Well, vegetarians we suppose, but still. BBQ is pretty damn popular. This Saturday the Lacey Chamber of Commerce looks to jump all over this fact with the South Sound BBQ Festival, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the parking lot of Cabella's. It's free, and yes - there will be a chicken wing eating contest.

• Cabela's, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m., 1600 Gateway Blvd NE, Lacey, 360.252.3500

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 9: Out In The Park

Tacoma's annual, awesome LGBTQA Pride celebration, Out In The Park, goes down this Saturday. Not only does the yearly event have a new locale this year -- taking over Ninth and Broadway -- it's also part of ten full days of Pride events this year in T-Town. It's literally fabulous. Find our full article on Tacoma's Pride festival here, and look for pictures and words coming on SPEW shortly after Saturday's big-ass party.

• Out In The Park, noon-6 p.m., Ninth and Broadway, all ages, free, Tacoma, outintacoma.com 

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 9: Tacoma Old Town Blues Festival

Tacoma is a blues town. For every sparsely attended indie show or spotty DJ night there's a hopping blues jam packed by a familiar set of middle-aged South Sound blues hounds. The yearly Old Town Blues Festival draws these faces out en masse. Saturday, catch 15 bands - names like Little Bill and the Bluenotes, Cold Shot and the High Rollers - and more than 15 hours of entertainment throughout Old Town. Check out the full schedule here, including the 9 a.m. BluesBerry pancake breakfast.

• Old Town Tacoma - Slavonian Hall, The Spar, The Mountaineers, Old Town Park, 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., tacomaoldtownbluesfest.net

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

NIKKI TALOTTA Features Writer
Got the Subaru loaded with beach pails, diapers, extra pillows and a cooler full of Capri Suns and PBRs. Yep, the Talotta - McCoy clan is packing it up for a weekend at the beach. Beautiful grey-blue waters, kids splashing through the waves , and late night games of dominoes with the hubby. Damn I'm a lucky girl.

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL: Theater Critic
I play half of the characters in David Mamet's incendiary Oleanna, a thriller of intellectual combat, which opens this week at Olympia Little Theater. I'm also catching A Midsummer Night's Dream in Priest Point Park and, at some unknown point, sleeping.

JOE IZENMAN: Theater Critic
Umm... getting married. I think that pretty much covers it. OK, so really it's two days of mad scramble to get everything ready, one day of getting married and partying, one day of opening presents, and one day of chilling in Tacoma and going to the Red Hot and Parkway for Tap Night Tacoma. But I figure that was mostly implied in "getting married."

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
This weekend I will be busy reviewing Cats at Tacoma Musical Playhouse, celebrating my son's 11-month anniversary of being alive, and playing music at church on Sunday.

ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic
'm going to see "Oleanna" at Olympia Little Theatre and "Cats," America's most overrated musical, at Tacoma Musical Playhouse, and an art exhibit called "Three old guys and one old lady" at Art House Designs in Oly, which I plan to write about for Spew, and a PFLAG meeting Sunday.

BRETT CIHON Meat Market Correspondent
I'm heading to a Meat Market on Friday night. Then maybe a hike on Saturday? Not that I'm much of a hiker, I just like to balance out the debauchery.

Jennifer Johnson Food and Lifestyles Writer
Girlfriend's birthday party in Puyallup Friday. Saturday, Motorcycle Rally ride and benefit show at Jersey's in Federal Way followed by a stop at the FedWay farmers market; Putt-Putt golf that night. Sunday after church it's all about AoA...that's Sixth Avenue's Art on the Ave for the peeps that don't know.

Steve Dunkelberger Photographer
I'll be going to the new Pooh movie, then seeing Cats at TMP before heading to Art on the Ave

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

MUSICAL GOODNESS IN PRINT & ONLINE >>>

Sure, there were plenty of distractions this week. There was the Fourth of July holiday, which made Monday and a good chunk of Tuesday a wash when it comes to productivity. There was the construction crew redoing the roof at Weekly Volcano world headquarters, pounding away, and forcing editor Matt Driscoll to relocate his desk to the break room. And there was the complete lack of air-conditioning throughout the building thanks to said roof construction. It's been hell.

Yes, the odds were stacked against us. But- unsurprisingly - the Weekly Volcano once again delivered in the clutch with a music section jam packed with goodness.

Here's a sneak peek at the sonic awesomeness in store.

LUTHIERS GONE WILD

Lutherie, for the uninitiated, is the craft of guitar-building, as well as the making of other stringed instruments such as violins and lutes. One who takes part in lutherie is known as a luthier. The Guild of American Luthiers holds a convention at Pacific Lutheran University every three years - and if you think I'm not going to get confused typing all of those "luth-" words, you've got another thing coming.

What began as a kind of a lark in 1972 - at the prompting of a classified ad - has grown into the largest community of luthiers in the world, at an astonishing 3,600 members across 40 countries. - Rev. Adam McKinney

FRED DIEZEL & MORE SOUTH SOUND HIP-HOP

Another artist to look out for is Fred Diezil, making national noise thanks to winning a songwriting contest for the coveted national Coast 2 Coast Mixtape series. Ya can check out his winning song, titled "Winter's My Summer," on iTunes or Amazon. Remember Skee-Lo, the "I wish I was a little bit taller" guy? Well, Diezil's opening for him July 17 at The Backstage Bar and Grill in Tacoma. - Josh Rizeberg

JIMMI DAVIES TALKS RESIDENT KINGS

When he's not pounding copper into functional art, vacationing on secret Mexican getaways or blaring sax on stage with local legends the Dirty Birds, Jimmi Davies is working it out with his latest band, Resident Kings. Lucky for us, he had some time to talk about this brand-spanking-new Olympia supergroup. - Nikki Talotta

VIII DAYS CLEAN

Besides the obvious rock, which jives nicely with the KISW set, Tacoma's VIII Days Clean sells itself on its members' troubled past - vocalist guitarist Ron Walvatne, drummer Jeff Welch, bassist Cody Johnson and guitarist Gary Cooper have all battled drug addiction in their lives, and have built this band - at least in part - to wage a sonic war of sorts against their former way of life. Friday, VIII Days Clean celebrates the release of Parasite, the band's fourth album, with an all-ages throwdown at Louie G's in Fife. - Matt Driscoll

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