Months and months of rain. Bad traffic. A high suicide rate. The not-so-subtle odor of pulp hanging in the air. 

With all of this, is it much of a surprise that Tacoma spawns some damn fine blues?

"Some of the best blues artists in the country come from the Pacific Northwest," says Gary Grape, the president of the South Sound Blues Association. "We hope to show some of them to the people of Tacoma."

Show they shall. Saturday, April 9, the fourth annual Gray Sky Blues Music Festival once again graces downtown Tacoma.  The festival features over a dozen different acts playing at multiple venues.  Attendees can grab a beer at one club and eat a sandwich another, all while listening to some of the best blues in the around.

"The festival is great music in good local clubs," says Grape. "It's a win-win."

The GSBMF kicks off in the morning with The Harmon Brewery Second Annual Rod and Custom Car Show. After the car show, the music takes center stage. The Swiss Pub, The Harmon Brewery and Cutter's Point Coffee all host blues acts throughout the day. Pacific Northwest bands like the Randy Oxford Band and Maia Santell and House Blend play mid-day. National recording artists Bob Corritore and Dave Riley will headline the event. For those looking for a cool down, there is also After Festival Party at the South Tacoma's Stonegate.

The GSFMF follows the Tacoma Daffodil Festival's Grand Floral Parade. Grape says people from downtown watching the parade drift in afterwards to watch the blues. Like that, they go from happy daffodils to soulful tunes.

"You have a 1000 people downtown at the (Grand Floral) parade already," says Grape. "We hope to get them into the clubs to listen to music."  

The GSBMF usually draws a large crowd. Grape says it's not rare to see a couple hundred people crowded into one venue. And despite the blues being, you know, the blues, Grape says the festival is a happy affair. In the past the weather has been good, and people would stick around for hours. Grape says it may be the blues, but there's nothing much depressing about spending a Saturday at the festival. 

"Eating, drinking, listening to music and dancing," says Grape. "That's what the festival is all about."

[Downtown Tacoma: The Swiss, Harmon Brewery, Cutters Pointe Coffee, afterparty at Stonegate Pizza, noon to 7:30 p.m. downtown, 8 p.m. to midnight at Stonegate, prices vary, full schedule at southsoundblues.com]