TACOMA, APRIL 9, 2011 >>>

Can you hear it?

Chicka now chicka gna gnow.

Wait, that sounds like porn star opening scene.

Boom bap boom bap ...

Seeing live bands like the ones this post – in all their abstract beauty or brutal frankness – helped reintroduce me to why I dug music so much to begin with. For so many musicians (and some fans) music can be exhausting, all-consuming. But I've discovered music as a vital part of the larger equation, the equation of life, art, love, sex, death, and fancy footwear. Even if a lot of it is just rock 'n' roll, it's all part of something bigger. It depends, I suppose, on how you live your life. It depends on how you listen.

Big Wheel Stunt Show at The New Frontier Lounge

Dudley Taft at Jazzbones

Jeff Ferrel at O'Malley's Irish Pub

The Shivering Denizens at O'Malley's Irish Pub

The Plastards at The Acme Grub Cage

Twink The Wonder Kid at The Acme Grub Cage

LINK: Jump in the game

WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT THE UNICORN SPORTS BAR >>>

Bartenders can make or break a bar. The Unicorn Sports Bar sits in the former category. The folks who hang at the Ruston watering hole do so because of bartender Darrell. He seems to know all of his customers and what they drink. He is Johnny Hustle with those bottles and taps. Added to that, the DJ music, mixed age and race crowd and the way-too-good for-bar-food eats on the menu make this a hole in the wall worth navigating the neighborhood to find it.

[Unicorn Sports Bar, 5302 N. 49th St., Ruston, 253.752.5939]

Tahee Reece

Freddie Ravenell and Jimmy Oquist

DJ Tim Wallen

LINK: More photos of the night

WE SCENE IT >>>

By 1 a.m. last night, the rowdies and chit-chatters in Tacoma had begun to thin. My night began at before Martyr Machine inside Hell's Kitchen, then progressed to the Gruv Lounge for DJ1, AC/DC tribute band Soul Stripper at the Backstage Bar & Grill and ending with Kry at The Swiss. I came up short on the phone numbers, although I met a charming lass at the Backstage - until her roommate yanked her away for last call down the street. Oh well, enjoy the photos I snapped during my journey.

Martyr Machine at Hell's Kitchen
Gruv Lounge

Soul Stripper at Backstage Bar & Grill

Backstage Bar & Grill

Kry at The Swiss

LINK: More photos from last night

TUESDAY NIGHT TEAM TRIVIA >>>

At a typical trivia night one sits around drinking beer, occasionally feeling really smart, and mostly feeling pretty stupid. It's like your average night of drinking, but you can blame the game instead of your social skills. Every Tuesday night, Farrelli's Wood Fire Pizza on Tacoma's Sixth Avenue draws a mixed crowd to its trivia night, although the crowd generally has the same interests as Farrelli's posts the night's trivia topic on its Facebook. Last Tuesday's movie trivia session was hot with the younger set.

The cool thing about Farrelli's trivia night is they design it to be interactive and social with a team concept rather than a bury your head into a ballot sort of thing.

Trivia Night

9 p.m. Tuesdays, gift certificate awards
Farrelli's Wood Fire Pizza
3518 Sixth Ave., Tacoma
253.759.1999

LINK: More photos in the Photo Hot Spot

WE SCENE IT >>>

Weekly Volcano photographer Steve Dunkelberger grabbed some great pictures at Friday's wacky Artifakt show at Hell's Kitchen. Some of the pics are posted on this page. The rest are in our Photo Hot Spot here.

While there was a good mix of dudes and dudettes, we couldn't help but notice most of the guys stayed in the music room ... where the live body painting was going down. Sip, sip, sip off the Pabst can, quick glace toward the nudity, sip, sip, nod the head toward the band, sip, sip, glance at the nudity - it was almost an aerobic activity.

Ignoring the long gaps between acts, and the long line at the booze counter due to the body painting blocking the upper level bar, it was a fun, wacky night.

Body painting in the upper level

Stoned Evergreen Traveler

Friends

Elbow Coulee

Gritty City Sirens

Pioneers West

Cheers!

LINK: Photo Hot Spot for more pics