In his junior year at Tacoma School of the Arts, Jasper Spicero dropped out and moved to Kansas, where he finished his schooling. He’s since returned, but not for long; he’ll be moving to Portland this month. He, like many others, has squeezed all he could out of Tacoma and finds it necessary to leave for the brighter future. But, like all those who leave for Portland, he may run, but not too far. It’s with a sense of slightly melancholic resignation that Spicero has decided to make the move. He loves Tacoma, and wants it to do well, but has done all he can.



It’s in this spirit that he makes an uncommonly astute observation: “I think Tacoma is a really desperate, terrible place, but I think it just breeds really good art and music that no one’s ever gonna’ hear about. That,” he says, “is what’s beautiful about Tacoma.”



Spicero is one of many fine artists to have been fostered by this confused town, and though I made a vow never to be shocked by the talent of youth, he has a soft-spoken clarity of vision well beyond his 18 years. Performing and recording under the name Emperor Moth, he creates compositions that flip lo-fi’s meekness on its ear.



“My friend’s dad died, and a long time ago he gave her this keyboard,” says Spicero. “She left it at my house when she moved to Boston, and I started playing it.”



Spicero’s songs do feature mostly keyboard, but they’re not light affairs. It’s exciting to listen to layers of beats and sounds get folded into the mix, creating as close to a cacophony as the hissy trappings can manage. He’s playing only one more show before leaving, and it would be a shame if he left without Tacoma letting Spicero know that it loves him back.



[The Den @ urbanXchange, Saturday, Aug. 22, Emperor Moth with Lucretia Bourgeois, Christmas, Panda Teeth, Farms, 6 p.m., $5, 934 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.2280]