Many years ago I wrote a cover story for the Weekly Volcano on Hotrod-A-Rama, the yearly hardcore classic car enthusiast throwdown at The Swiss that's been getting bigger and more well-known almost since the moment of its inception, and which also features a massive amount of top-shelf live local music - appropriately leaning toward garage rock, rockabilly and punk. From Hotrod-A-Rama's creation in August of 2002, it has carved a niche in the summer festival psyche of Tacoma and surrounding areas. For this blue-collar, dirt-under-the-fingernails region, Hotrod-A-Rama is an event that seems to speak to us.

Anyway, way back when (probably in ‘03 or ‘04, by my addled memory) I wrote the Volcano's cover story on Hotrod-A-Rama. As a music lover, but not at all a car guy, I tried to point out the fact that even though Hotrod-A-Rama is, perhaps, one of the finest collections of pre-1965 traditional and custom rides you're likely to seen anywhere - it's also an event that can be enjoyed by those green to the world of magnesium Halibrand wheels and split wishbones. The two-day festival's music and mingling possibilities are enough to carry it, and there's something for everyone - or so went my intended point, which I believe I made by referencing the fact I drove an ‘80s model Honda and wouldn't know a hard rubber pie crust slick if one slapped me in the face.

Long story short, the dudes involved with Hotrod-A-Rama were less than thrilled. They're serious car guys, you see.  And Hotrod-A-Rama, despite the all-encompassing appeals it possesses (which I still contend exist), is a serious event. It's to be enjoyed, but not taken lightly.

Luckily, these hard feelings eventually faded. Time has a way of healing all wounds, even those brought on by young hack writers who have yet to realize the simple fact that it's rarely a good car story if it's based on how little the writer actually knows about cars. 

With Friday and Saturday marking the 8th Annual Hotrod-A-Rama, once again set to engulf The Swiss with enough sweet-ass pre-1965 traditional and custom hotrods to make Boyd Coddington blush, plus a stellar lineup of music including performance by The Fucking Eagles, Girl Trouble, Si Si Si, Basemint, Red Hex and the Scuzztones (among others), the time was right for this (now older) hack writer to once again delve into Hotrod-A-Rama.

Ambiguously billed as "The Last One Ever Again," this year's Hotrod-A-Rama will really get going Friday night, when The Fucking Eagles, Si Si Si and Girl Trouble take the stage starting at 9 p.m.

Is it really "the last one ever again"? And what does that even mean?

Well get to that in a minute.

James Bender, who's been with Hotrod-A-Rama since the beginning, and (along with Shawn Wheelock) helped creator Dale Seaholm get Hotrod-A-Rama off the ground, organized this year's music with Michael "Zombo" Devine. Bender says though Seaholm moved to Tucson two years after the creation of Hotrod-A-Rama, the capable leadership of new "managing director" Steve Glucoft has left Hotrod-A-Rama in good shape. He also credits the extensive help of the Mischief Makers Car Club, a revved-up posse of "fine far flung individuals" who - like Bender - have been with Hotrod-A-Rama since the beginning.

"With the advent of this year's show we decided to showcase more of the fine music Tacoma has coursing through its veins," says Bender. "We were able to put together what I feel is a lineup of Tacoma's finest bands both new and established. Additionally the lineup is salted with a handful of mind-blowing acts from other strange and distant places."

"What we have lined up for the Hotrod-A-Rama is a tight set of garage rock meets surf meets psychedelia with a big screen of visuals folks might find interesting or nauseating," says Scuzztone's drummer Jimmy Sparkles. "When James Bender asked us to do it I thought we'd be great. We practice in a garage and do songs about cars!  The fact that this is the last one to be held at The Swiss made us want to do it even more."

Ah ha! Is that last part a clue to the big, ambiguous billing: "The Last One Ever Again"?

"I believe Hotrod-A-Rama owes its success to a combination of the fantastic location, a tremendous showing of cars and characters, fine music, interesting vendors and good old-fashioned luck," says Bender. "The future of Hotrod-A-Rama is a mystery. We'll just hope for a successful show and good times this year."

Based on the history, that seems like a safe bet. There's a reason Hotrod-A-Rama has lasted this long and become this well known.

It's because (as I've said it before, and I'll risk saying again) there's something for everyone at Hotrod-A-Rama.

Hotrod-A-Rama

with Girl Trouble, Si Si Si, The Fucking Eagles, the Scuzztones, Red Hex, Basemint, '63 Burnout, Marshall Scott Warner, The Kings, Johnny Cheeseburger, Bentz Brothers and Stafford, Marti Brom
Aug. 6-7, music starts at 9 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday
The Swiss, 1904 Jefferson Ave., Tacoma
253.572.2821