JIMMY THACKERY

Friday, Oct. 30
What exactly is Jazzbones these days? It’s the million-dollar question. Is it a DJ spot? A rowdy karaoke bar? A sushi joint? A poor man’s Masa? The next stop on the Girls Gone Wild world tour? Or an actual live music venue, you know — like it used to be? Every once in a while a show comes along that reminds us all of the foundation Jazzbones was built on — and, oddly enough for a club called Jazzbones, that’s the blues. On Friday, Jimmy Thackery, who honed his blues-rock chops learning from greats like Muddy Waters and as a member of The Nighthawks, will plug in at Jazzbones in Tacoma and give us all just such a reminder. If those who show up for the DJ scheduled to perform after Thackery could please refrain from vomiting, fist fighting or taking body shots until after Thackery finishes, I’m sure it would be greatly appreciated. — Matt Driscoll
[Jazzbones, 8 p.m., $12, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]  

CHURCH OF HATE

Saturday, Oct. 31
You know how a lot of “experts” claim TV and movies desensitize us? They say that the constant slide show of explosions and shootings and ninja-rolls and machine gun fire makes us almost numb to the make-believe carnage that fills our entertainment lives. Well, they may be on to something — and Tacoma’s Church of Hate just might be proving it to me. When I first started covering music in Tacoma, the Church’s blood soaked mix of raw knuckles metal and gore literally scared me — at least a little. Now, years later, it just seems cute. Watching the band perform I’m left thinking things like, “There they go with the blood again,” and “Ho-hum. I think I first saw them stick a crucifix in that orifice in 2001.” Now, that’s what I’d call desensitized — and it’s probably exactly what the Church of Hate was going for. Good work, gents. Enjoy your Halloween.  — MD
[Hell’s Kitchen, with At:1, Mephitis, A.W.C., Headshot, 8 p.m., $5, 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003]

TAIST OF IRON

Saturday, Oct. 31
Honestly, there’s nothing scarier than an ‘80s metal band from Tacoma. Witness this weekend the arrival of the five-headed beast known as Taist of Iron. You will know this beast by its sound, and little more. Gone are the mega-manes. Gone are the lavishly printed suits of sorrow. The band no longer inhabits an 18-foot box van. There is only the metal now. And a female lead singer with a voice that will chip the concrete. Her name is whispered in the dark — Lorraine … accompanied by Mark G, Jeff, Steve, and Mark B. Taist of Iron has come a long way since headlining the Battle of the Bands at Midland Hall. Biding its time, waiting in the dark, the beast is reborn. With shorter hair. — Paul Schrag
[The New Frontier Lounge, with Mico De Noche, Triosis, 7 p.m., cover TBA, 301 E. 25th St., Tacoma, 253.651.1513]

JEREMY JAY

Sunday, Nov. 1
For me, what’s more distressing than the knowledge that punk is dead is the knowledge that New Wave never really existed. New Wave never had the unifying sound of punk, being that it was not really a genre, but a movement. It was a group of bands that saw rock’s garish bloat and decided it was time to start over. And for however much we might say they sounded alike, the fact is that synthesizers do not make a genre. Unfortunately, all that bloat still exists today. But the spirit of New Wave lives on in new artists who continue to keep rock in check. Jeremy Jay belongs to this new New Wave: he’s reverent of rock and pop, while simultaneously turning both genres on their ears. — Rev. Adam McKinney
[Northern, with Sea Lions, 8 p.m., $5, 321 Fourth Ave., Olympia, olympiaallages.org]