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Well, hidee, thar, younguns! This here's yer ole Pappi Copperhill. You know how ever' year 'bout this time the Tacoma Art Museum put theyselves up a big ole ice skatin' rink over to Tollefson Plaza? I'm tellin' you it's finer'n a can o' snuff, with all them little
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We honor some of the things Tacoma has lost over the last 12 months: The Luzon Building With a tree growing out of its side, a sag in its wall and a sad, dusty whimper that was sprayed down by guys in construction hats with hoses to keep the dust out of
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Brian Redman We’re going to make a number of jokes in the Best of Tacoma 2010’s In Memoriam section, but Tacoma has been dealt some seriously crushing blows over the last 12 months, blows that still sting every day and weigh heavy in the air — perhaps none of which reverberated
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Dennis Flannigan is what some of my friends on the East Coast would call a mensch. He would probably disagree with me. That, in part, is why he’s a mensch. Mensch is Yiddish, and it means a kind of stand-up guy. It also means about 50 other things. All of them are
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>>> Best Impressive BookingsThe DenAdmittedly, no venue over the last year has been cursed and applauded more than The Den, the hipper-than-thou all-ages spot tucked inside of urbanXchange. Of course, this cursing and applauding usually comes separately; for instance, we’ll do cartwheels when The Den brings in a band like
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Recognition in the universe of hip-hop rarely comes easily, if at all — but following their 25360 Award for Best Video (“’90s Shit” directed by Erik Soderquist), the duo known as EvergreenOne and Todd Sykes have been christened once more by the South Sound hip-hop community as Tacoma’s Best Hip-Hop
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The culture of heavy metal is one I may never fully understand. Metalheads are tough guys, but also nerds; they worship Satan, but also desperately long to ride a dragon. Heavy metal has been dissected and scattered into a million subgenres. My brother gives me a dirty look if I
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Thank you to all who took the time to vote in our Best of Tacoma 2010 Readers' Poll. You are the Best. Best Metal Band: MahnhammerBest Local Hip-hop Artist Or Group: EvergreenOne and Todd SykesBest Singer: Vicci MartinezBest Guitarist: Evan PurcellBest Bassist: Mitch Vandenburg from Matt Coughlin and the GrowlersBest Drummer:
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ACOUSTIC/FOLK/CELTIC Sax Restaurant and Lounge Tacoma - Sixth Avenue. Olivia De La Cruz. The guitarist, singer/songwriter performs during dinner. All Ages. 7-9 pm. Free. Hannah's Bar & Grille Olympia - Downtown. Open Mic. 9 pm. NC. Mandolin Cafe Tacoma - Central. Savannah. All Ages. 7 pm. NC. Raymond Hayden & The Dark Drive
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>>> Best Place To Buy Star Wars Figures And Other Cool ShitTricky’s Pop Culture Emporium Everybody needs an ALF lunchbox at some point. Or a Wonder Woman toothbrush. Or a Jimmy Hendrix bath towel. Or a Skeletor tie. Or Gary Coleman (R.I.P. Arnold) ankle socks. Or an ABBA test press.
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Oh, what a strange and beguiling place, the record shop. Somehow, the assemblage of vinyl adds up to more than the sum of its parts. The advent of CDs and MP3s failed to relegate vinyl to the status of the 8-track or Betamax. There’s a beauty and simplicity in records
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It’s hard to find a good aromatherapy and herbal/tobacco accessories supply store these days. I mean one that really distinguishes itself. You can walk into any strip mall smoke shop and find an array of strangely-shaped glass smoking accessories. It’s overwhelming, really, the array of options for people who indulge
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Thank you to all who took the time to vote in our Best of Tacoma 2010 Readers' Poll. You are the Best. Best Pipe/Tobacco Store: The Green RoomBest Independent Record Store: Buzzard'sBest Place To Buy Shoes: NordstromBest Vintage Clothing Store: urbanXchange, Vanity (tie)Best Thrift Store: GoodwillBest Eco-Friendly Store: Marlene’s Market &
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ACOUSTIC/FOLK/CELTIC Borders Books and Music Tacoma Tacoma - Central. Heidi Vladyka. All Ages. 3 pm. Free. O'Blarney's Irish Pub Olympia - Eastside. Irish Sessions. Live traditional Irish music. 7:30 pm. NC. Tugboat Annies Olympia - Westside. Open Mic Night. 9 pm. NC. The Loft on Cherry Olympia - Downtown. Open Mic Night. All Ages.
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Travel and transition. Weary miles on the road and brief stops of respite, enjoying truck stop beauty or the way taking three steps back from a chugging city can reveal a majesty normally reserved for nature. Country. Folk. Pop. And especially melodies. Cotton Jones, naturally on tour and headed to
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A while back, I wrote about a band called Mr. Frederick that combined disparate genres like rap-metal, folk and chamber pop. The Speed of Sound in Seawater is similarly confusing, but in a more insidious way. Listening to their second album, Red Version, their weirdness sneaks up on you. For
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Seattle and Tacoma band Colonies (who we like to think of as more of a T-Town act, because that's how we roll), has some definite fans here at Weekly Volcano World Headquarters - and it's not just because they're at least half from Grit City. No, rather, the band's smart
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As far as reunions go, I'm not sure where the return (kind of) of Dick Rossetti's Twink the Wonder Kid ranks. Somewhere behind the first time the Pixies did it, surely, but probably well ahead of the 87th time the Pixies did it. Either way, Tacoma can bask in the
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Spirits of the Red City make chamber-folk that leans toward the melancholy, though the wall of sound created by the wave of instruments has an uncanny ability to feel spirited even while the voices suggest otherwise. Also on the bill are Dovekins and Paper Bird, two bands that have been getting
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>>> Best Art ExhibitThe Neddy Fellowship, Tacoma Art Museum This one features some of the best artists in Washington over the past 15 years, starting with the great Michael Spafford, the first Neddy Fellowship winner and including works by Randy Hayes, Juan Alonso, collaborative glass art by Sabrina Knowles and
