Timing is everything, as they say. I’m not really sure who “they” are, but I’ve heard it time and time again. This week it certainly seems appropriate.



For as long as I could remember, it had been gross outside. Windy. Rainy. Gloomy. S***y. Every day I would awake, and every day it was the same scene.



Then last weekend came. Like a gift from the gods, the clouds parted and the sun shined through. Suddenly my white skin turned red thanks to the searing rays from up above. And I liked it. Suddenly shorts emerged from my closet, reacquainting themselves with my pasty lower limbs, and doing wonders for the ball sweat that I quickly found myself battling. It was as if overnight Tacoma’s climate had changed, and I got to thinking maybe rain was a thing of the past — at least until September.



But like the nagging bitch it is, the rain came back on Tuesday. Surprise, surprise. I forgot about my visions of a rain reprieve, and remembered (painfully) just exactly where it is that I live.



But perhaps the return of rain was appropriate. Though forecasters may be calling for more sun this weekend, there’s a good chance they’ll be wrong. They typically are. Either way, this forecaster predicts three days of Rainfest this weekend, and it’s a call you can bank on.

That’s because Rainfest has absolutely nothing to do with high pressure zones or humidity.



Rainfest is a three-day, all-ages festival scheduled to invade Tacoma’s Viaduct this weekend. Think 50 hardcore bands from Friday through Sunday. Think loud and sweaty — whether it’s sunny or not. If you’re a fan of hardcore, think about getting your ass to the Viaduct.



As for who all is playing Rainfest, the list is long. Really long. Too long, in fact, to mention everyone here in the Weekly Volcano. Highlights include Seattle’s much talked about and adored, Akimbo, along with Himsa, Whiskey Rebels, President Kennedy is Assassinated, Ringworm, Sojourner, Insubordinate, Killing the Dream, Owen Hart and Paint it Black. That’s just the start. For a full lineup as well as a three-day schedule and ticket information, check out www.myspace.com/rainfest.   



Suffice to say, Rainfest is big. Fifty-some bands over three days. It leaves a hack like me wondering where to start.



So I did what seemed natural. I went to the top of the list. There, like a beacon, sat Akimbo — thanks mainly to the fact that the list was alphabetical. I didn’t let this deter me. According to MySpace, Akimbo “eats beer” and “s***s riffs.” That’s always been good enough for me.



Akimbo kicks ass like it’s going out of style, and they’re heavy as hell, Jello Biafra-approved chugging metal guitar licks and tortured masculine vocal wails have always struck a chord with me. There’s a reason Biafra signed Akimbo to his Alternative Tentacles label back in the day, and there’s a reason Akimbo will rock the hell out of the Capitol Hill Block Party this summer — one of our region’s hippest music gatherings.



It’s because this band is f***ing rad. If you don’t believe me see for yourself at Rainfest, when Akimbo plays on Friday, May 23.



“We were approached (about playing Rainfest) on MySpace. Now that I think about it I’m not really sure why I was interested,” says bassist and vocalist Jon Weisnewski. “Over the last nine years our Tacoma shows have been pretty consistently ill attended and severely lacking in any kind of tangible enthusiasm from our audiences. I guess it’s the whole ‘forcing someone to acclimate through repetition’ idea. We’re kind of like that guy who says ‘Whoa! You don’t like Star Wars?!?! You need to watch it again!!”



“I guess at this point all we can hope for from the show is for enough people who would rather sit through our set so they don’t lose their spot rather than go to the bar and get a drink.”

It should help that Rainfest is an all-ages event and there’ll be no bar at the Viaduct. I didn’t mention this to Weisnewski, hoping rather that he and Akimbo will be pleasantly surprised. Akimbo’s rock is so thick and grinding, the fact the band has been shunned by Tacoma in the past befuddles me. I’d like to think I know Tacoma, and there’s absolutely no reason this band shouldn’t pack the house every time they play the 253. Hopefully a new trend will be started during Rainfest.



Fans of hardcore records will be happy to hear that Akimbo is preparing to release a follow-up to last year’s Navigating the Bronze — by far one of the heaviest and most played records in my limited hardcore collection. While Navigating was released on Alternative Tentacle, the new record, Jersey Shores, will be released in September on Neurot. Initial reports suggest the record is a concept album revolving around sharks and their ability to f*** you up (though Weisnewski considers that a “modern caveman interpretation”).



“(Jersey Shores) is all based on historical events that happened in America during the early 1900s, the reaction the events caused and looking into the primal weight that the events carry,” says Weisnewski. “I’m being vague on purpose because I don’t want to divulge too much this far out from the release, but it’s definitely one of those rare ‘truth is stranger than fiction’ type situations.”



Akimbo will kick off the first night of Rainfest at the Viaduct with what should be a full-throttle performance. Akimbo drummer Nat Damm says last time the band played Tacoma “it snowed and nobody showed up.” Those who love hardcore should make sure the same thing doesn’t happen Friday. I’ll handle the snow. You just handle showing up.



[The Viaduct, Rainfest, Friday, May 23-Sunday, May 25, 1 p.m. start, 5412 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma, www.myspace.com/viaductvenue]