So, is that whole Club Impact Brick City controversy still going on? You know the one with the unruly kids, the parking difficulties, and the disgruntled neighboring businesses? The one that inspired News Tribune articles and town forums? It’s been a month or so, and Bobble Tiki hasn’t heard anything. Then again, Bobble Tiki spends his time gambling for investment purposes and watching Showtime. Something may very well have developed and Bobble Tiki may very well not have heard about it.

Either way, Bobble Tiki is focusing his attention this week on Return of the Bison and their show at Club Impact Brick City on Saturday, December 22. To be honest, Bobble Tiki just had the urge to throw a curveball this week, and it’d been forever and a day since he covered a show at Club Impact. Bobble Tiki figured this week was as good a week as any.

There’s at least a decent chance you’ve never heard of Return of the Bison. You should have, but perhaps you haven’t. This is where Bobble Tiki and the Weekly Volcano come in.

Return of the Bison, despite the peculiar name, is a band capable of sonic devastation. Think Jesus Lizard kicking it with At the Drive-In on their way to a party at Fugazi’s house. Then add a little young Puyallup flavor and you’ve got the picture. Return of the Bison is made up of singer Kennedy Carda, bassist Drew Buck, guitarist Dakota Clark, and drummer Mark DePaul. Bobble Tiki caught up with Buck this week, to get his thoughts on the band’s upcoming show at Club Impact, as well as all things Return of the Bison related.

Bobble Tiki: Run through the brief history of Return of the Bison.

Drew Buck: Our first show was Pistol for a Paycheck’s last. We started practicing regularly in January of this year, but we first played together the summer of 2006 and then nothing happened for a while.

Tiki: Where did you come from and how did you meet?

Buck: I met Kennedy in junior high, while Mark and Dakota have been BFFs since ...gee, I think since they were in elementary school. Kennedy and Mark met at Tacoma’s school of the arts.

Tiki: Why do you guys work well together?

Buck: We don’t, or at least we didn’t for the longest time.

Tiki: Do you have any record plans?

Buck: We just finished recording our debut EP, entitled Cesarean Conception, with James Resch of Death First, who’s also recording Destruction Island’s new album. We are releasing the CD February 2nd at Hell’s Kitchen with the two aforementioned bands as well as The Centre Cannot Hold.

Tiki: How do songs come together within Return of the Bison? Is there a main songwriter or do you all contribute?

Buck: Most often it starts with an idea Dakota or I might have. Once we’ve broken and beat that idea down to something we all like, everything else is filled in and we move on.

Tiki: Do you have a sound goal in mind when you write?

Buck: We started this band with a mutual love for These Arms Are Snakes and At the Drive-In, and we’ve been told it’s obvious. We just try to keep hard rock interesting, you know, like Jesus, not John Lennon. Think about it. (You don’t have to use that last part)

Tiki: How has the reaction to your band been?

Buck: Everyone loves our performance. Hands down, that’s the one thing we can guarantee you — an incredibly intense live show. Scenesters have voiced their distaste, but no one cares what they think.

Tiki: It’s obvious you guys are trying to do something different with your music. Why is that important to you?

Buck: Personally, I feel that we do this as a response to the state of the local scene. These days, it seems a band’s only influence comes from their mainstream contemporaries. We’re just trying to challenge your perception of “underground” music.

Tiki: What are you expecting from the show at Impact? Have you had good experiences at Impact in the past?

Buck: A great show with a bunch of decent bands. We’ve played there more than we have at any other venue and they keep booking us, so they must like us ...a little.

Tiki: Why should people come out?

Buck: We’ve recently rewritten a lot of our material, and the songs are better than ever. And, like I said, our performance may make you uncomfortable ...in a good way.

While Bobble Tiki knows what he’s doing this holiday season, and it involves a bottle of Black Velvet and a refill of his Prozac prescription, Bobble Tiki doesn’t give a damn what you decide to do. For all Bobble Tiki cares, you could stay home and watch “America’s Next Top Model” for 12 hours straight. You’ve done it before. All Bobble Tiki knows is it’s Christmas time, and that means 10 pounds of eggnog weight by the time things are said and done, and at least one awkward moment with the in-laws. Good times.