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

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Partly cloudy, hi 47, lo 32

Saturday: Mostly cloudy, hi 50, lo 33

Sunday: Sunny, hi 57, lo 37

>>> SATURDAY, MARCH 23: UPS FLEA MARKET

You spend hours wandering around consignment stores, yard sales, and nothing. Break the cycle. Rethink your thought process. Antiques - The older they are the better. And, unlike the average retail giant's merchandise, you can sometimes get a deal. So come check out the annual University of Puget Sound Flea Market and peruse 60 vendor booths of previously owned and "family friendly" (oh, thank heavens) antiques and collectibles. It's the University of Puget Sound Women's League's 45th flea market to fund student scholarships. A silent auction runs throughout the day. Not so silent? You ... when you happen across an art nouveau nail buffer, seven-piece marble fruit set, American legion auto badge, Chinese rice basket, duck decoy with glass eye, Hungerford Schroeder doll, homemade phaser made out of a staple gun and 20 D batteries, Taylor Swift's single "I Have Never Ever Done Anything Wrong in a Relationship" and a SKU: 500-DB-Lighted, aka the Batphone! - Weekly Volcano

• University of Puget Sound Flea Market, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., $3, North 11th and Union, Tacoma, Facebook

>>> SATURDAY, MARCH 23: OLYMPIA YOUTH CHORUS A CHORAL TAPESTRY

According to the Olympia Youth Chorus website, the organization's mission is to, "nurture the appreciation of choral art and the shared experience of creating fine choral music for young singers in South Puget Sound." The Youth Chorus does this, at least in part, with help from presentations like Saturday's A Choral Tapestry, which according to billing will feature "folk music, light-hearted fare by our littlest singers, to energetic gospel tunes, and beautiful lilting melodies by our older singers."  The Olympia Youth Chorus will be joined by Olympia's Sweet Adelines, a harmony that will only add to the awesomeness. - Weekly Volcano

• Washington Center, 7 p.m., $5-$27, 512 Washington Street SE, Olympia, 360.753.8585

>>> SATURDAY, MARCH 23: EDGAR MARTINEZ

For most of us, the name Edger Martinez is nostalgia-inducing. The former major league baseball player spent his entire 18-year career with Seattle's Mariners and was most know for his double play that sent the team to the 1995 American League Championships. This Saturday, T-Brothers Liquor Lodge in Olympia will host a meet and greet with the retired superstar, who will be promoting and signing purchased bottles of his premium, organically grown Mezcal, Zac Mezcal. Lick, slam, suck and sign. — Nikki McCoy

• T-brothers Liquor Lodge, 4-6 p.m., 417 Plum St., Olympia, 360.539.7978

>>> SATURDAY, MARCH 23: HYNOTIST RON STUBBS

You are getting sleepy, v-e-r-y sleepy. Now, go see the hypnotist show at The Royal Lounge this Saturday. Whether a skeptic or believer, the show will be sure to entertain with its comedy, rock and roll and outrageous hypnosis, like people sneezing and having orgasms (!) when Ron Stubbs, the man behind the magic utters the word "pepper." Hype on his webpage reads, "If you're looking for an old fashioned, out dated, boring show, well my friends, this isn't it. But if you are looking for a modern, fast paced, laugh a minute, mind bending, hell bent for leather excursion through the inner mind, then you have found the right place... So buckle up Sparky, it can be one wild ride!" - NM

• The Royal Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $12/advance, 311 Capitol Way N., Olympia, 360.705.0760

>>> SATURDAY, MARCH 23: JOBE HIMSELF

Oh yeah, I almost forgot about The Loch's. You know the place - the old Hell's Kitchen in downtown Tacoma. Well, here's a good reminder that this venue is still cranking out shows. This Saturday, enjoy some quality, melt your face punk rock with a Jobe Himself demo release show with Poorsport, Omega Moo and DJ Reign. - NM

• The Loch's, 9 pm. $5, 928 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.221.1587

>>> SUNDAY, MARCH 24: PIANIST RICH RIDENOUR AND THE TSO

Rich Ridenour, a 54-year-old Michigan native, has been playing the piano most of his life. He wasn't old enough to drive when he joined his first rock band. He met his future wife, Stacy, who is in the front office at the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, when both were students at the University of Michigan. She went into musical administration, he went on to a master's from Juilliard and a career as a pianist that has taken him from piano bars to the nation's finest concert halls, such as the Pantages Theater Sunday when he join the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra in concert. Expect the greatest hits of Elton John, Billy Joel, George Gershwin, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven and more with a pinch of Victor Borge humor, a grand Steinway and the full Tacoma Symphony Orchestra. - WV

• Pantages Theater, 2:30 p.m., $24-$77, 901 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.591.5894
  

WHAT SOME OF OUR STAFF MEMBERS ARE UP TO

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
It's load-in and the start of tech week for a show my wife and I are in, The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood for Olympia Family Theater. I'm also hoping to beat this cold into submission.

REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Music Writer
This weekend is my birthday. Not sure what I'm gonna do, besides maybe check out Stoker at the Grand. I love that director's other movie, Oldboy. Other than that, I dunno, birthdays don't mean all that much to me anymore. #SadSack

ALEC CLAYTON Arts Critic
I'm no party animal. I'll probably just hang around the house. Maybe watch a little TV.

NIKKI MCCOY Feature Writer
Friday: drinks, food and friends. Saturday: rinse well and repeat. Sunday: helping my mom move. She's now part of the tiny house movement. She even has a tiny china hutch and tiny dishwasher. I'll have to try hard to resist buying her every tiny knick-knack I see. ...

JOSH RIZEBERG Music Columnist
This weekend starts for me on Saturday. I'll be teaching my class at D.A.S.H. At night, Beanz & Rize has a show in Seattle. Sunday night I'll be having a little Sedar at My Mom's house for Passover.

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
This weekend I will be taking my adorable son to Olympia to review The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood at Olympia Family Theater where we get to watch fellow theater critic Christian Carvajal show off his acting skills. Also hoping to take my son to see some of my students perform in Tacoma Youth Theatre's production of A Midsummer's Night Dream. Long live theater!

TIMOTHY GRISHAM Music Writer
Three words: Richard Hell, Portland. The legendary punk will be signing his new tomb at Powells. Then off to Slabtown to catch btpnlsl.

ADRIENNE KUEHL Food Writer
On Saturday, I'm excited to be a judge at the Museum of Glass Slider Cook-Off. If you see me in a slider-induced haze on Sunday, chalk it up to that. If the weather is decent, I'll be heading to Chambers Bay at some point to walk it out with my dogs.

MOLLY GILMORE Feature Writer
Friday, I'm going to see Harlequin Productions' The Philadelphia Story. Saturday, I am going to the first meeting of a detox program — which involves giving up sugar, dairy, coffee and alcohol for three weeks. Sunday morning is dance, as usual!

NIC LEANOARD Music Writer
I will be spending most of the weekend at my house sipping bottom shelf whiskey while watching March Madness. Sunday afternoon, I will finally leave my house, though. I have go out to Evergreen to flyer for Wednesday's Darktime Sunshine show at The Olympia Ballroom.

STEVE DUNKELBRGER Nightlife Correspondent
Going to the Slider Challenge and just hanging around T-town - like going to see Midsummer Night's Dream at Tacoma Youth Theatre.

ROCKFORD ROWLEY All-ages Music Columnist
I'll be sitting in front of my turntable, familiarizing myself with the partially-local BOAT's newly released album, Pretend to Be Brave. Similar to Pavement but occupying the more melodic, poppy side of things, music is always better coming from a multi-colored vinyl disc that looks like a Willy Wonka product when it rotates.

LINK: Even more local events that we recommend

LINK: Comprehensive South Sound Arts & Entertainment Calendar

FRIDAY, MARCH 2, 2013 >>>

1. Tommy Castro is Delbert McClinton's more talented kid brother. We have been waiting for this San Francisco rockin' blues guitarist to put another one in the ditches. Finally, this past November the blistering "Greedy" / "That's All I Got" (Alligator Records) arrived. Nobody plays roadhouse like this anymore: the rock snarl and the soul heart. His songs don't make us want to sing along; they make us want to scream along. Tommy Castro and the Painkillers will play Jazzbones at 8 p.m.

2. The Bayview School of Cooking in Olympia will pour cider and meads with complementary cheeses from 5-7:30 p.m. The cost is $12 per person. No RSVP is required.

3. Tacoma's first artisan children's clothing shop, Dandelion Wishes, will hold an opening reception from 6-9 p.m. before the store officially opens March 23 at 10 a.m. in the old Corina Bakery space at 510 Sixth Ave. Appropriately, Corina Bakery will provide snacks.

4. Have you visited the Science Dome? At 7 p.m. the South Sound's only planetarium will host an interactive tour of our current night sky, exploring the stars, planets, constellations and other celestial objects followed by a 20-35 minute full dome show.  A question and answer period will follow.

5. As if Horace Pickett's awesome name wasn't enough, the band actually does well at evoking the cheesy party vibe of "Monster Mash." Though the band claims that it often gets comparisons to the Kinks, They Might Be Giants and Beck, to us it couldn't be more perfectly channeling Devo. Stiffly voiced robot-funk, surging electro-pop, concerning topics such as the Milky Way and the weirdness of having a body - and all that entails. Check the band out with The Whorewoods at 10 p.m. inside Le Voyeur.

LINK: Friday, March 22 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

THURSDAY, MARCH 21 2013 >>>

1. Behead the Prophet No Lord Shall Live has returned, at least for the time being. The Olympia hardcore punk band, often considered at the forefront of the noise queercore movement, toured the country multiple times in the mid-1990s, while releasing material on Outpunk, Sound Pollution and K Records. Since the demise of the band some 13 years ago, some its members went on to other bands - Tight Bros, Lords of Lightseed, Yogoman Burning Band and Nudity, to name a few - while others became a touring vegan chef, budding lawyer, reggae jam band god and producer to many of Olympia's latest crop of bands. Sadly, the band also lost founding member and noise-violin player, Michael Griffen. The return of Behead the Prophet is not a reunion, but a happening - allowing the collective members to have closure. The band brings its happening to Olympia's Northern at 8 p.m. The show, which will be packed to the gills, also features The Need, Thrones and Hysterics. Read Timothy Grisham's full feature on Behead the Prophet No Lord Shall Live in the Weekly Volcano's Music section.

It's the third Thursday of the month, which means the Tacoma Art Mingle goes down tonight from 5-8 p.m. The monthly art walk now has a passport game. Simply grab a passport at one of the participating venues, have each venue stamp your passport, then turn it in each quarter to win raffle prizes. Catch Pam Ingalls show at the Brick House Gallery and have owner Peter stamp you. Drop in on Katie Hagens show at 253 Collective Gallery and have her stamp you. Pop into the Throwing Mud Gallery in Old Town for a looksy at contemporary handcrafts, have owner Eileen Hudak stamp you. Check out Jill Neal's paintings and sip some wine at B2 Fine Art Gallery, and have owner Gary stamp you.

Want to learn more about Point Defiance Park? Who doesn't? At 5:30 p.m. inside Metro Parks Tacoma Headquarters the "3rd Thursday Community Dialogues" session will concentrate on near-term and long-range plans for the Tacoma park.

You might not think about it on a day-to-day basis, but there is a lot of "un" in Tacoma. Local photographer Gordy Lee has thought about it, though, and seeks to bring some attention to Tacoma's underused, unrecognized and other un-ness through his photos, which offer a colorful and perhaps unappreciated view of T-town. Lee's photos — on display at Tully's in downtown Tacoma — have a surreal look, created by use of three key elements - a tripod, a great camera, and hours of post-production computer work. Each photo takes 10 to 12 hours to create and sometimes consist of up to 20 individual images all at different exposure levels layered on top of one another. Photos are all shot in Tacoma. Unless you have other plans for tonight, do the UN-thinkable and meet the UN-Tacoma creator for a UN prolonged visit from 7-8 at Tully's.

Maurice the Fish Records presents an Evening of Keys IX, highlighting six great keyboard artists - including Brooke Lizotte, keyboardist for Dreamwreck and Dan Reed Network, as well as Doug Skoog (Blues Redemption and The Crazy Texas Gypsies), Mark Bittler (Bump Kitchen), Anthony Ciarochi (Tin Man, The Aury Moore Band and Stone Age Thriller), Raymond Hayden (Raymond Hayden and the Monsters in the Dark) and Derek Whitaker (Heartless, and occasionally, Heart to Heart and Heart. The show kicks off at 8 p.m. at Louie G's Pizzeria in Fife. Read Nikki McCoy's full feature on Evening of Keys IX in the Weekly Volcano's Music section.

LINK: Thursday, March 21 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20 2013 >>>

1. British prog-rockers Wishbone Ash's harmony-laden dual-guitar attack predated Thin Lizzy, the group often credited with inventing it. Of course, Wishbone Ash also perfected the slow beginning/fast ending rock anthem. Only guitarist Andy Powell remains from the group's '70s heyday, but despite an ungodly number of lineup changes, he's managed to keep Ash on the road and recording. The band's current lineup is Finland's guitar wizard Muddy Manninen, long-time bassist Bob Skeat and drummer Joe Crabtree. While Wishbone Ash's Elegant Stealth Tour brings the band to Tacoma's Jazzbones at 8 p.m., the band will concentrate on its third album Augus - considered to be its greatest release - and includes such hits as "The King Will Come" and "Blowin' Free."

2. Award-winning poet Bruce Beasley will read from his latest poetry collection, Theophobia, at 4 p.m. in the Benedictine Reading Room of O’Grady Library on Saint Martin’s Lacey campus. The event is free and open to the public.

3. The Puget Sound Revels hosts its annual Spring Sing at 7 p.m. inside King's Books. Bring your voice, fiddle and penny whistle for an evening of rounds, springs songs, sea songs, drinking songs and others. Expect song sheets and snacks.

4. Hailing from Glasgow, Scotland and recently wrapping up a UK tour, the Golden Grrrls trio will play its air-tight set of indie pop punk laced with impeccable harmony at 7 p.m. inside Le Voyeur in Olympia. "What began as bedroom guitar experimentation soon bloomed into a fully-formed pop language inspired by the '80s New Zealand and Australian indie pop scenes, DIY punk and Glasgow's own rich pop history (think The Vaselines, The Pastels)," according to Grrrl's hype.

The Weekly Volcano staff has been injecting Survival Knife between its toes for weeks now. Nikki McCoy profiled the band, as well as mentioned its tour with Modest Mouse. Timothy Grisham reviewed the band's debut single. Even young Rockford Rowley gave nod to the show in his all-ages column. It's justified. The quartet is taking the local and global music scene by storm. At 8 p.m., the show finally hits Olympia. It will be your last chance to get your brains and ears brutalized before Survival Knife hits the road. The band will play with Deathfix (ex-Fugazi, Chain & The Gang) and Lois at Olympia's all-ages venue, Northern. 

LINK: Wednesday, March 20 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

OLSEN BROTHERS > OLSEN TWINS >>>

For weeks, I've been trying to shake the images of Ich Hunger from my brain. Made by local filmmaker Isaac Olsen, Ich Hunger is a German expressionist freakout concerning a "creature boy" who lives in the forests of Germany and eats people. Saturday, as if Ich Hunger wasn't visually and aurally stimulating enough, the film will be screened along with musical accompaniment by the onslaught of local garage-rockers Red Hex (featuring Isaac's brother, Sam Olsen), as well as original electronic music. Afterward, the melted brains of the audience will be invited to disco dance. It'll be an experiment in (slightly) ordered chaos. How far can your ears and eyes be stretched, and when that breaking point is reached, will you ever really be the same? Wear a helmet to this one, dear reader.

THE NEW FRONTIER LOUNGE, W/ RED HEX, ACE TONE FUZZMASTER, 9 P.M., COVER TBA, 301 E. 25TH ST., TACOMA, 253.572.4020

TUESDAY, MARCH 19 2013 >>>

1. Jewish actor/comedian Stephen Fry explores the dubious associations between Richard Wagner, one of his favorite classical composers, and Adolf Hitler, the 20th century dictator who cited Wagner's music as a motivating factor in waging genocide against the Jews during World War II in the film Wagner & Me screening at 2:30 and 6:35 p.m. at The Grand Cinema. Read a full feature on the film in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

2. Go Local Tacoma presents the Local Food Network Night to connect local food producers, markets, businesses and consumers. The two-hour evening will be all networking, all the time, in hopes to tighten up community resources and awareness. The event is open to all. If you're interested in local food, you are invited from 6-8 p.m. at the William Factory Incubator.

3. Alice Stuart brings her country blues crowd to the Red Wind Casino for a 6:30 p.m. show. Gamblers will be drawn to her finger picking guitar style and genuine voice that will touch their hearts.

4. The Palestinian-raised, New York City-based violin and oud player Simon Shaheen has played Arabic classical music, blended Middle Eastern, Latin and jazz sounds, and directed a string section at the Grammys for a duet between Sting and Cheb Mami. Tonight, Shaheen plays the Slavonian Hall in Old Town Tacoma at 7 p.m. It's free. Shaheen's kind of a big deal. Afterward, head to The Spar and discuss the melancholy, orchestral grace as well as frenzied high-pitched excitement you experienced during the show.

5. Seattle band Enemy Combatants is heading down to Tacoma at 8 p.m. to bring an onslaught of hardcore punk to The Red Room. Double knot your shoelaces and put on your moshing pants, for they will exercise no mercy in putting on a high-energy performance.

LINK: Tuesday, March 19 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SURVIVAL KNIFE HUG CONTINUES >>>

Between Timothy Grisham and I, the Weekly Volcano has given Olympia new band Survival Knife a lot of love. It's justified. The quartet is taking the local and global music scene by storm. 

While at the time of my last interview with Survival Knife, the band didn't mention an awesome tour. It has just been recently announced Survival Knife the band - featuring two former members of Unwound - will be touring with Seattle's alt-pop Modest Mouse. 

"We know some of the folks in Modest Mouse from years ago around Olympia and Seattle and we have mutual friends that run some of the business aspects of their operation, so I guess it just stemmed from that," says Justin Trosper, vocalist and guitarist for Survival Knife and founding member of Unwound. "Modest Mouse opened up for/played with Unwound years before they got to be big."

The tour kicks off April 10 in Oakland, Calif., with sold-out shows throughout California and Arizona.

Trosper says he's stoked to hit the road once again and looking forward to "hurting people's ears and brains."

Wednesday, March 20 will be your last chance to get your brains and ears brutalized before Survival Knife hits the road. The band will play with Deathfix (ex-Fugazi, Chain & The Gang) and Lois at Olympia's all-ages venue, Northern. 

NORTHERN, W/LOIS, DEATHFIX, 8 P.M., ALL AGES, $7, 414 1/2 LEGION WAY, OLYMPIA

LINK: Review of Survival Knife's debut single

LINK: Survival Knife profile

MONDAY, MARCH 18 2013 >>>

The Artesian Rumble Arkestra - the large orchestra of musicians specializing in jazz, Balkan brass, Brazilian samba and Bollywood film music - will perform at 8 p.m. inside The Royal Lounge.

Lynne Iglitzin tells the story of Margaret Bourke-White, noted LIFE magazine photographer, whose remarkable work documented many of the extraordinary events of the 20th century at noon inside the State Capital Coach House.

3. The day after St. Patrick's Day is typically a black hole for nightlife, especially on a Monday. Sure, if you run a sports bar, you'll do well during the World Series or football season, but for most eating and drinking establishments, it's just dead, dead, dead. There's a darn good reason why so many bars are empty on Mondays. So how do those that remain open find ways to fill barstools on this, the most dreadful evening of the workweek? The folks at The Swiss seem to have found a solution and, oddly enough, it's one that has been the bane of many other venues: live music. Since the beginning of time, The Swiss has hosted live blues every Monday at 8 p.m. Tonight, The Matison Avenue Band will be in the house.

4. Hey! Guess what? Rafael Tranquilino hosts an experimental jam at Stonegate Pizza every Monday night! Get in on the rockin' action tonight.

5. Beginning at 9 p.m. every Monday Jazzbones is packed to the brim with college kids. Party types. The type that wear tight shirts and trucker hats. Throngs of Chad Fratguys and Sarah Sororitysisters swarm the bar, line up for the bathroom and dance to the Rockaraoke - live band karaoke. The Rockaraoke band is skilled, too. Expect $2 PBR drafts, $3 Sinfire shots and $4 Smirnoff flavor vodka bombs.

LINK: Monday, March 18 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2013 >>>

1. There are better ways to spend St. Patrick's Day than sitting at home in front of a big-ass bowl of Lucky Charms. Plan your ultimate Irish wake with the Weekly Volcano's St. Patrick's Day Command Center.

2. Part high-tech-heaven, part creative design and old-world style, FabLab has been offering workshops - from laser cutting and robotics, to leather and woodworking - to the community since November. From 2-4 p.m. the public is invited to an afternoon FabLab Member Social & Open House. This will be a chance for members to share and the publuc to see recent projects and hear updates.

3. You might remember the title from movie previews in 1993. You might have read the book ... or rather your mom read it. Even if you've done neither, you've likely heard of The Joy Luck Club, the modern classic by Amy Tan about four young Chinese-American women, their traditional, Chinese mothers and the hijinks that ensue as they try to understand each other. TAcoma Little Theatre stages the play at 2 p.m. Read Kristin Kendle's full feature on The joy Luck Club in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

4. The Northwest Sinfonietta bills itself as, "an orchestra to be reckoned with," not to mention an orchestra of, "passion, vision, thrill, and creation." Anyone who has seen the Northwest Sinfonietta in action would have trouble arguing with these statements, as the musical body routinely wows audiences in Tacoma, Puyallup and Seattle. Saturday the Northwest Sinfonietta will perform the original score to Charlie Chaplin's flick, The Gold Rush at 2 p.m. inside Puyallup's Liberty Theater. In the film, the Little Fellow is cast as "the Lone Prospector," one of the hopeful hordes of prospectors during the Alaskan gold rush of 1898. Chaplin drew his creative muse from grim history, specifically the tragic saga of the Donner Party, an ill-fated expedition of westward travelers who got caught in a bitter winter storm in the Sierras, resorting to cannibalism to survive.

5. There are better ways to get your Irish on than at a Vicci martinez show. That said, there are not many better shows than a Martinez performance, which will happen at 9 p.m. inside her home away from home, Jazzbones. Tacoma's Martinez became a household when she competed on NBC-TV's The Voice. 

LINK: Sunday, March 17 arts and entertainmetn events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

LIVE MUSIC TONIGHT IN THE SOUTH SOUND >>>

Ben Moore's Olympia - Downtown. Sour Owl. 9 pm. NC.

• Ooh! Another free show! This time at Ben Moore's in Olympia - a few-and-far-between music venue that's known more for its Best $3.75 Fish and Chips than hosting a show. But, Saturday, you can enjoy a live set from Sour Owl in celebration of St. Patrick's Day. Rock, pop, jazz, fusion, whatever you want to call Sour Owl's sound, just know that it's sweet. - Nikki McCoy
  

C.I. Shenanigans Tacoma - Northend. KC Brakes presents pop folk rock night. All Ages. 7-10 pm. NC.

Doyle's Public House Tacoma - Stadium District. The Flat 5. 9:30 pm.

Harmon Tap Room Tacoma - Stadium District. St. Patrick's Day In A Tent: James Coates and Fleur Jack. 8:30 pm. $5. Inside: Halcion Halo, High Noon Horizon, Lund Bros., Blacstahl. 8 pm. $5.

Jazzbones Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. The Family Affair Tour, with E. Pruit Band, Klyntel, Brandon Willis. 8 pm. $10.

Le Voyeur Olympia - downtown. The Saturday Giant, Bent, Unnatural Balance. 10 pm. NC.

• There's a spot in my musical life that has been left dormant since the days of Bright Eyes and Death Cab For Cutie - these sensitive indie bands that constructed perfectly poppy songs that somehow managed to sum up how I felt as a lost, confused young man. I didn't know what girls were all about. I didn't know what it meant to be crushed by a day-to-day job. These artists did their part to tell me. At some point, though, I passed them by. I didn't need someone to tell me how hard relationships were, or what dicks bosses could be. I knew all that. Listening to The Saturday Giant - a one-man project of Philip Cogley - I'm brought back to those confusing days of heart-felt indie rock. Come to think of it, girls are still a little confounding. - Rev. Adam McKinney
  

Little Creek Casino Shelton. 2nd Annual Spring Fest, with Clint & The Eastwoods, Humptulips, Ready Or Not. 6 pm. $5-$25.

Louie G's Pizzeria Fife. Leona X, American Wrecking Company, Mechanism, Step Daddy. All Ages. 8 pm.

McCoy's Tavern Olympia - Downtown. AKA & The Heart Hurt Goods, The Funk Agency. 9 pm. $3.

• If you've seen AKA and The Heart Hurt Goods perform, you've seen how much the band loves its art. You can see it in the band member's fist pumps and facial expressions; in their hip shakes and smiles and in the way they administer their music, be it through a microphone, keyboard, guitar or turn table. Catch the group before it rakes its new album on tour at 9 p.m. inside McCoy's in downtown Olympia. - NM
  

The New Frontier Lounge Tacoma - Dome District. Wheelies. 8 pm.

Northern Olympia - Downtown. Dear Rabbit, Mythologies, Generifus, Pilots. All Ages. 8 pm. $5.

• Look, I'm going to level with you: Live performances are where it's at. This is the thing that I'm trying to persuade you to do. To see live shows. What sounds more fun to you: some chillwave band that will allow you to contact the douchiest and most reposed part of your subconscious, or this carnival freakshow that will bring you out of your dumb, useless shell and make you drink quantities of liquor of which you are unfamiliar and dance your dumb brains out? The answer must be obvious, but I'll tell you anyway that Dear Rabbit has the sleazy accordion and weirdo swaying energy to make your Saturday self finally open up and be somebody for once in your dance-less life. It's the least you can do to make yourself a complete and freaky person. - Rev. AM
  

Oakhouse Restaurant & Bar Lakewood. Dine & Dance with Renaissance Jazz. 7 pm. $10.

Rock the Dock Pub & Grill Tacoma - Downtown. Zero Down Blues. 9 pm.

The Spar Tacoma - Old Town. Too Many Cooks, featuring Steve Stefanowicz. 9 pm.

Traditions Cafe and World Folk Art Olympia - Downtown. Pearl Django. All Ages. 8 pm. $10-$15.

Uncle Sam's American Bar & Grill Spanaway. Hot & Bothered, Bleed Together, Seventh Silence. 9 pm.

LINK: More live music tonight in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area