My hopes are admittedly high for Monday night Rockaraoke at Jazzbones. A chance to sing onstage with a live band, cheap Miller High Life and a valid excuse to drink on a Monday (!) night? Yes, yes and, oh God, yes.

But fantasies of wooing a thoughtful Jazzbones crowd are quickly dashed upon entering the club. Instead of the large two-story space being pleasantly crowded with intellectual rockers and local karaoke crooners ready to eat up my inspired rendition of "Beast of Burden," Jazzbones is packed to the brim with college kids. And not the kind of college kids that could rightly appreciate a spot-on tenor like myself, either. Party types. The type that wear tight shirts and trucker hats. Throngs of Chad Fratguys and Sarah Sororitysisters swarm the bar, line up for the bathroom and dance to the Rockaraoke.

My kind of crowd or not, I still manage to have a great evening. A full house on a Monday night is exciting. The Rockaraoke band is skilled, too. On more than one occasion the band manages to salvage some off-key and drunken vocals; eager dancers at the foot of the stage miss nary a step. The songs of Sublime, Gwen Stefani and other dorm room-type bands are crowd pleasers. 

Of course, the real entertainment isn't the Rockaraoke, it's the people-watching. Since most of the patrons are just a touch this side of 21, a look around the club is akin watching a "how to hookup" instructional video. Every technique is employed. There's the "touch the babe's lower back and whisper into her ear" maneuver. The "gaze into the stud's eyes and laugh incessantly" angle - a favorite of young ladies. And of course, the always popular "buy them $3 shots of Jager until inhibitions are sufficiently lowered" trick. Band nothing, the hookup attempts are the real show.

By 11 p.m., there's a long line to get into Jazzbones. A line on a Monday.

Young people, live music, hookups and a line out the door. Not exactly the evening I had envisioned, but I've certainly had slower.        

Rockaraoke

Mondays, 9 p.m., 21+, $3 dudes, chicks no cover
Jazzbones Restaurant and Nightclub
2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma
253.396.9169