For years, now, Colonies have been upholding the indie rock and shoegaze flag in Tacoma. While our city has its fair share of punk, garage, metal and psychedelic rock, indie music has not typically flourished. The success of Colonies (who have now been booked at Seattle's colossal who's who festival, the Capitol Hill Block Party, by the way) lies in their tightly constructed continuation of the legacy of trailblazing and literate indie bands like Death Cab For Cutie, Minus the Bear, and the Shins. The band's sound is expansive and large, without sacrificing flourishes of intimate emotions. As their name might suggest, Colonies also have a special interest in issues global and political. This is triumphant indie rock of an order that you don't normally find in Tacoma.

HARMON TAP ROOM UNDERGROUND, WITH SLOWWAVE, OCEANS ON FIRE, 9 P.M., $5, 204 ST. HELENS AVE, TACOMA, 253.212.2725