There’s a pretty good chance, at least generally speaking, that this week’s Weekly Volcano music section will look similar to the music sections in the soulless major corporate papers of Tacoma and Olympia. While usually our fine music coverage avoids the lame trappings that typically grace the pages of these often uninspiring dailies — like Alan Jackson concert reviews, breaking news on Sir-Mix-A-Lot appearances and American Idol updates — this week there’s just no choice. It doesn’t take a pop culture expert at a major daily to realize this week two events (one in Olympia and one in Tacoma) should dominate coverage, whether in an alternative press rag like the Weekly Volcano or elsewhere.



In Olympia, the 14th Annual Experimental Music Festival is set to go down over four nights — from Thursday to Sunday. Check out Bobble Tiki’s column for the complete scoop.



In Tacoma, one show and one show only is what everyone will be talking about — and it’s a doozy. Flipper, with Krist Novoselic on bass, will play Hell’s Kitchen Saturday, June 28. It simply doesn’t get much bigger.



When Steve DePace, Bruce Loose and Ted Falconi — better known as three-fourths of Flipper — recently flew up from California to join former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic at his Washington home, it was with two intentions: do a little recording, and play a couple of shows. For those who haven’t heard, after reuniting in 2005 for two CBGB benefit gigs and eventually recruiting Novoselic on bass in ’06 for the All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival in England, Flipper has been back in action — with a bassist of giant stature and a newfound vigor. In addition to their show in Tacoma this weekend and one in Seattle, the band is preparing for the release of a Jack Endino-engineered record of brand new material sometime later this year. Along with the planned re-release of much of Flipper’s old catalog — which you can expect to be seeing soon — with the help of Novoselic, Flipper is set to both return to form and embark on new territory.



“We’re 99 percent done. We’re just putting the final touches on now,” says DePace of the new Flipper record. “The new songs turned out great. For us, the writing process has remained pretty constant. It’s one of those magical processes. You start making noise and pretty soon you’ve got a song.”



“When you get down to it, there’s some stuff I like and some stuff I don’t,” adds a more critical Loose.



Typical Flipper.



“He does his thing, and it’s of phenomenal quality,” says DePace of working with Endino, who Novoselic suggested for the job based on their tight relationship formed during the early years of Nirvana. “The guy can literally mix blind. He’s very good.”



As constant as the song writing and collaborating process seems to have remained for Flipper, the addition of Novoselic has to have caused certain shifts within the band — and certainly their writing process. There’d be no point in adding a figure like Novoselic if he wasn’t going to contribute. Besides a few tastes available at Flipper’s Myspace page (www.myspace.com/flipper), including live recording from Seattle’s Funhouse and Dante’s in Portland, Flipper fans can only wait with heavy anticipation to hear what the Novoselic-enriched version of their favorite influential punk band will sound like.



Luckily, Saturday at Hell’s Kitchen is right around the corner.



“We enjoy ourselves. There’s a certain amount of work, but if you’re not having fun it’s going to fall apart fast,” says DePace. “In my opinion, it seems as though Krist was the perfect fit. It was really a no-brainer. He’s a fan, and a purest, so he approached (the old material) just as we recorded it.”     



“The band is writing more as a whole now,” adds Loose. “It’s just getting used to a different formula. The roles have changed a little, but it’s just worked out.”



Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Flipper will play Hell’s Kitchen this Saturday. You’ll be hearing plenty about it this week, and if you’ve got any sense at all you’ll be seeing it, too. Flipper, with Krist Novoselic on bass, should be one for the ages at Hell’s Kitchen.



[Hell’s Kitchen, with Helms Alee, Mico De Noche, Silver, Saturday, June 28, 9 p.m., $10, 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003]