JOSE S. GUTIERREZ JR.: WHAT IS A DJ? >>>

Having been a DJ since I was 6 years old has been a blessing and a challenge. I grew up spinning (actually “scratching”) on my mother’s Technic turntable â€" yeah, just one! So, recently I have been asked by cats interested in the art and culture of the DJ, “What is a DJ?” There are many answers to that question, but here is what I suggested a novice do to earn an authentic answer.

I felt rather than just having the novice follow me, I would recommend that he/she visit a successful night at a club where a dope and accomplished DJ could be studied. I recommended that the novice visit The Royal Lounge in Olympia on Re:Fresh Fridays where, The 25360 DJ of The Year, DJ Drastik would be. There were many DJs I could have recommended … I chose to forward the novice to visit Drastik because he is a rarity in that he has excellent programming (music selection), he is a personality (he interacts with the crowd/audience), he is enthusiastic (he has a good time doing his thang-thang on the 1s and 2s) and he is an original, genuine party rocker! This is rare … most so-called DJs I have encountered are content to be followers and biters of other DJs, and few are focused on pushing the art and culture into new creative realms. Drastik does this with his attitude alone.

Read what happens at The Royal Lounge on Friday at the Weekly Volcano Web site.

MICHAEL SWAN: 16 AND OLDER DANCE SPOT TO OPEN >>>

Teresa Mullins has been dreaming of her own dance club for nearly three years while she volunteered at Club Friday at Brick City.

Friday, Feb. 20, her dream will come true.

Mullins will open Shorty's at Brick City every other Friday beginning Feb. 20, alternating with Club Friday, the 16 and older hip-hop club. Shorty's, also a 16 and older club, will open with Alex Young from New York City, as well as a slew of DJs.

For more information, visit the club's MySpace.

BRAD ALLEN: FLASHING LIGHTS >>>

While the club music scene in Tacoma is still riding the roller-coaster- The Loft and Pacific Lounge closed; Cheers West reorganized; Jazzbones added DJ nights; Masa and Juno still pack them in on the weekends- hip-hop and R&B is alive and well and spinning tonight at the 6th Avenue Bar & Grill (formerly Bella Vita).

DJ Kun Luv will be in the house tonight bathed in neon.  The club titled tonight "Flashing Lights" featuring tons of neon, glow sticks, backlight corners and body painting.

The Sixth Avenue joint will also offer $2 wells and beers all night.

The cover is $7 with neon apparel, $10 without.

Go glow.

[Sixth Avenue Bar & Grill, 6106 Sixth Ave., Tacoma]

LINK: This week in hip-hop

SUZY STUMP: SUNDAY NIGHT CRUNK >>>

Here is the poster The Loft nightclub has posted on their MySpace page advertising their weekly Sunday night dance party in downtown Tacoma.

Here is the line in front of The Loft at 10:30 p.m. last night.

How was it last night?

LINK: Live music and DJs tonight

BRAD ALLEN: FUTURE THINGS ARE COMING >>>

During the past 16 years as an international DJ, Lakewood-grown Donald Glaude has been responsible for seeding vibrant musical landscapes for audiences up and down the West Coast. Born in Tacoma, he grew up listening to Parliament, Funkadelic and R&B radio. After falling in love with the precise, hypnotic, bass-heavy sound, Glaude amassed a huge record collection before he ever got his hands on a mixer.

Welcome Glaude back to town Wednesday, Aug. 13 when he brings his high-energy show to The Swiss.

LINK: Music and DJs tonight

DANIEL BLUE: MEET ELI HANSEN >>>

Eli Hansen is a roper.  Newly famous in cities such as Orlando and Seattle, his collaborative work with his brother Oscar was recently shown at the Seattle Art Museum. Initially inspired by glass blowing, Eli's work has grown to encompass metal sculpture and domestic artifice.

Everyone seems to want what this man has, and that my friends is pure Hansen magic.  Like the band of the same name, young women coo and flock to adore our gruff south Tacoma-based artist, but few find him to be the man they imagined. 

Uncle Eli, as I was introduced to him as a DJ at The Monsoon Room a few years ago, is a scoundrel.  Wild piercing eyes slay your heart from behind his mane of primal huntsman hair.   

"YEAHAW!" he screams as he rides away from the grocery with a child buggy full of "rescued" vegetables.   

"HOOT! WHOOT!" he proclaims, beer held high above his head as a muscular dog violently bites clean through branches it has just ripped from the tree in his front yard.   

Intelligent as a badger, Eli is sure to become a legend in this town.

DANIEL BLUE: MEET OLIVER DORISS >>>

The Artist formerly known as the glassblower Oliver Doriss is currently known as the Viceroy of Hilltop for a reason (somewhere in the background several voices are whispering the word "timeless").

"I was born in Davenport, Iowa, but I'm from Massachusetts," says the local gallery tycoon who purchased a building on 13th and MLK Jr. Way last September, renovated it himself (with the help of some choice friends) and opened the Fulcrum Gallery by December. Doriss has been blowing glass, teaching glassblowing, and rocking the hot shop for longer than I've been doing anything. His work has been featured, praised and sold on both coasts, and despite the gallery he still blows two or three times a week and teaches at the M-Space hot shop downtown.

When he's not wearing the hat of a gallery director or glassblower, you can catch him under the needle as DJ Broam, usually accompanied by a dance floor full of wild sweaty abandon. This innovative artist/businessman hybrid says when he grows up, "I want to get paid to be exactly who I am."

When I grow up, I want to be Oliver Doriss.

STEPH DEROSA: DROP THE HIGH SCHOOL GUARD >>>

KAke and I ventured into Club Silverstone last week with hopes of beer-lubricating ourselves into a joyous buzz. We wished to relish in the anonymity, and for once have a drink without running into someone we knew. Not only did we achieve our goal, but also we had a downright amazing time on the way.

The random tunes blaring from the walls had us up and dancing to songs we hadn't heard in such a long time. The stuff that made you gasp and say,I remember this song! The huge dance floor in the back room invited us to cut a rug like only KAke and Steph can do. The night was grand, and we made every minute of it worthwhile.

Of course, eventually the inevitable happened: I had to go pee. I walked behind a wall to search for the ladies room, yet what I found was a small predicament and a difficult choice. There were two bathroom doors to enter, but neither one had a gender specific sign anywhere near them. It took me a few seconds to feel good about making a decision, but the feeling of freedom overshadowed any bit of anxiety that might've entered my head. I loved it! I suppose the separation of the men's and women's restrooms in a gay bar is pretty much pointless.

While enjoying the simple, yet revolutionary, non-sexist Silverstone restroom" I began to ponder something that KAke had mentioned right before my pee break: Her 20th year high school reunion was this summer. (Damn, she's old.)

I began to wonder how many people had changed in 20 years, and what they had changed into, or out of. You remember the cliques, right? Do you feel as though everyone fit into a specific group? If you could put yourself into one stereotypical high school genus, what would you classify yourself as? Geek? Jock? Partier? Dopehead?

What if there came a time, that just like Club Silverstone bathrooms, you didn't have types  of people? What if for once, we were an all-accepting society? And it didn't matter what we dressed like, what bar we frequented, or who our friends were¬" we only looked at people for who they were inside.

I brought this up to KAke upon returning to my butt-print in the barstool, and she confessed that she was just wondering the same exact thing. We tried to reverse the contemplation and began thinking of people we knew here locally¬" guessing what they were like in high school.

We used one of our mutual acquaintances, a girl known to be very un-approving of strangers. She snubs her nose at anyone new to her scene and acts as though it is in your highest duty to befriend her. (Au, contraire, attitudes like this make KAke and me shudder with disgust.)

We then had a sudden revelation that this girl was probably the inept, anti-social, nerd¬" if you will, of her high school class. She's never had the opportunity to develop social skills, and has no idea what it's like to simply be accepted.Unfortunately, she still has her metaphoric, defensive, high school guard up, and in her adult life is unable to accept people wanting to be her friend.

Call it catty, or call it brilliant, but I think we're pretty much dead-on. The truth is: It's about time we all let go of high school. Who gives a fuck what you were, or what you thought you'd be? Live in the here and now¬" and enjoy every moment, and every new friend life has to offer. I know I do.

LINK: High school forum on the Volcano's Web site.

PAUL SCHRAG: INTERNATIONAL DJ SPINS AT JAZZBONES >>>

During the past 16 years as an international DJ, Lakewood-grown Donald Glaude has been responsible for seeding vibrant musical landscapes for audiences up and down the West Coast. Born in Tacoma, he grew up listening to Parliament, Funkadelic and R&B radio. After falling in love with the precise, hypnotic, bass-heavy sound, Glaude amassed a huge record collection before he ever got his hands on a mixer.

Then in a Tacoma club scene vacuum, Glaude taught himself to wreck records with a pair of mismatched turntables and a Radio Shack mixer. He began to DJ anywhere he could in the Seattle and Tacoma area, working the same clubs as another up-and-coming DJ by the name of Dan. In short order the pair managed to spark a rave scene in Seattle and developed masses of underground fans.

Before Glaude, few DJs had attempted to spin using house records. Glaude, now living in San Diego, pioneered this technique, and his ability and mechanics set new standards and gave birth to a new style.

Welcome Glaude back to town Friday with DJ dAb and Omar at Jazzbones.

[Jazzbones, Friday, Feb. 29, 9 p.m., $12, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]

THE PARTY
First Night
It’s been two years since teetotaler Tacomans had something to do on New Year’s Eve. Well, this year, dry or sauced, there will be more than enough for everybody thanks to the return of First Night, which is back full force to celebrate the arrival of 2008. If you’re into rock ‘n’ roll, First Night has it. If you’re into polka, it has that too. Canadian folk fans are covered as are dancehall and reggae devotees. Event organizers have even packed in some hip-hop, performing pigs and a New Year’s fashion blowout at Junior Bizarre. Not at the same time, unfortunately.
What: First Night is Tacoma’s New Year’s Eve celebration. It’s a family-friendly, alcohol-free celebration. This year’s theme is “The Year of the Pirate.”

• When: Monday, Dec. 31, 5 p.m. until past midnight.
• Where: Downtown Tacoma
• Cost: $7 before the event at www.brownpapertickets.com, Museum of Glass, Leroy Jewelers, Glenna’s Clothing and Sanford & Son. Buttons are $8 day of event at the Broadway Center. Children 7 and younger are free.

For the full story, check it here. â€" Paul Schrag

FIRST NIGHT MUSIC: Matt Driscoll's picks.

THE PARTY
Broho’s ’80s bash
If you’re in Olympia tonight, let me recommend the Brotherhood’s New Years Eve Party with DJ DeadAir. If you’re a seasoned Oly vet, you likely recognize DJ DeadAir from past parties at the Broho, not to mention many storied performances at Thekla back in the day. DJ DeadAir’s mastery at spinning and mixing ’80s hits is unmatched. Period. There’s no way his New Years Eve performance at the Broho will be topped anywhere in the Capitol City.

Even better, it’s cheap and for a good cause. Just two bucks at the door will get you in, and half of all proceeds will go to Safeplace. There’ll be party favors for the first 100 folks in the door, and Absolut drink specials will keep Oly’s finest groovin’ all night long â€" or at least into the wee hours of ’08. â€" Matt Driscoll

[The Brotherhood Lounge, 9 p.m. to 2 a.m., $2, 119 Capitol Way N. Olympia, 360.352.4153]

MORE PARTIES: In the clubs tonight.