Something seems so right about the marriage between punk rock and the washboard. Skidding your hand along the grooves of a washboard elicits nothing more than a visceral rattle - a crude affront to the idea of percussion and what it means to be a member of a band. Punk rock similarly shatters the idea of a rock 'n' roll band. It seems only natural to combine the worlds of bluegrass and punk, and the Rusty Cleavers do so magnificently, with all manner of mandolin, banjo and backyard clatter coming together in a cacophony of spirited group-singing and hoops and hollers. It's awfully lively stuff, and the Rusty Cleavers will be delivering it in invigorating fashion Wednesday for the benefit of Food Not Bombs - a very worthy cause. 

[Hell's Kitchen, with Fang Chia, Miasthma, cover and time TBA, 928 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003]