Ivan the Gorilla.



If you’re old enough, and from around here, you remember him. Whether you saw him in person — at his B&I “sanctuary” — or simply on television and in the paper, unless you’ve smoked even more herbal jazz cigarettes than I have over the last decade, you remember the silverback who once called South Tacoma Way home.



How could you forget? Ivan the Gorilla is a local icon.



Get this: Ivan left for the Atlanta Zoo in 1994, meaning it’s been 13 years. 



Feeling old?



Still, he’s loved around these parts and always will be. I think we all know he’s better off at the zoo, but deep down, I think most of us miss the big guy.



On Friday, Feb. 9, the Divorce, Thee Emergency, Iceage Cobra, and (drum roll please) Sons of Ivan will play Hell’s Kitchen. 



While the obvious move would be to focus on the Divorce, who headline, or even Thee Emergency — because they’re established and kick ass — I couldn’t resist the chance to look into Sons of Ivan and find out what the deal is with this band that, almost magically, has started appearing on the best bills around town.



It didn’t take long to realize why a band I had just started hearing about has been able to work their way to near the top of Tacoma’s musical food chain in such a short period of time. Sons of Ivan is a quasi Tacoma supergroup, made up of Lino and Reylan Fernandez (the Degrees), Mike Kruska (Mono in VCF), Jason Falk (Mono in VCF), Rachel Sampson, and Jesse Bynum (Montgomery).   While I’m not sure how they sound, as I have yet to hear them play and there’s only one measly song posted on MySpace (a number called “My Anchor” that sounds like Lou Reed, with a little something running through his veins, fronting the Shins — in a good way), any band boasting a lineup like that has my attention.



That’s how Sons of Ivan got mine, for a hot, all band e-mail swap that went down earlier this week:



WEEKLY VOLCANO: Explain a little of the (brief) history.



REYLAN FERNANDEZ: Mike had some solo project stuff on MySpace, and Lino said let’s start a band.  Since the Degrees were winding things up, we needed to refocus, and the opportunity was perfect. We enlisted Jason and old friends and things came together ... .



VOLCANO: Why’d you start Sons of Ivan?



REYLAN: We were mutual fans of each other’s bands and wanted to play music together.  We liked the chemistry and went with it.



VOLCANO: Would you classify yourselves as a Tacoma supergroup? Like Cream?



MIKE KRUSKA: No, that’s “superfriends,” like the Justice League of America.



VOLCANO: Why did Tacoma need Sons of Ivan?



RACHEL SAMPSON: As far as I know there aren’t really any Tacoma bands that sound like us.  We have a unique mix of influences between the six of us, and none of us have big rock star egos.  I think we have a bit more mature sound than most of Tacoma’s bands.  We aren’t about getting a number one hit; we just want to play music that we love.  We hope you love it too!  



VOLCANO: What are you here to do?



KRUSKA: Get in people’s hearts and minds, and perhaps save a few kids from “modern” rock.



VOLCANO: Explain the creative process with you guys. How do you work together? What do people bring to the table, and how do you complement each other?



KRUSKA: We all contribute by being open and supportive of each other’s ideas and working together for the common good of the band and the band’s developing sound.



VOLCANO: Are you stoked about the bill — the Divorce, Thee Emergency, Iceage Cobra?



LINO FERNANDEZ: We’re way stoked to be opening for some really great bands. This bill is really good because none of the bands sound the same.



VOLCANO: “Seattle bands invading Tacoma?! Not on our watch.” You said this in an e-mail you sent me about the show at Hell’s Kitchen. Why? What did you mean?



LINO: That was meant as a joke. I wish more Seattle bands would come to Tacoma and play, at least to see that there’s a pretty good scene going on down here.



VOLCANO: Record plans? Tour plans?



KRUSKA:  Working on demos currently and an EP will follow.  We will only tour when we get a gold plated jumbo jet maintained by Oompa Loompas courtesy of a corporate label. 



VOLCANO: Who wins in a cage match — you or Thee Emergency?



LINO: By numbers alone, we’d be able to outpower them. But one-on-one, Dita Vox could probably kick any of our asses.



VOLCANO: How exactly were you fathered by Ivan the Gorilla?



KRUSKA: It was quite a painful and intoxicating experience.



LINO: We wanted a band name that gave a nod to Tacoma and tons of bands were already using “Ivan.” So, we thought adding “Sons of” would take care of that and also open the door to lots of imagery for posters and such.



Sons of Ivan along with the Divorce, Thee Emergency and Iceage Cobra will play Hell’s Kitchen on Friday, Feb. 9. I don’t have an answer for why Iceage Cobra chooses to spell “Iceage” as one word, but I do have an answer for why Sons of Ivan have hit the scene running.



Because they’re legit.

Ivan the Gorilla

Because I was thinking about the former resident of Tacoma’s B&I Shopping Center, and perhaps you are too, here’s what the Atlanta Zoo has to say about Ivan’s new life:

“Ivan enjoys going outside; you can usually find him relaxing in the sun. Ivan dislikes the cold weather. Ivan spends most of his day eating, sleeping and socializing with the other gorillas. Ivan paints pictures, and he really seems to enjoy this pastime with the keepers. His favorite vegetable is zucchini. Ivan loves burlap bags and will often bring them outside to walk on so he can avoid the wet ground. He also likes to bang on doors with his hand to get keepers’ attention.”

By the zoo’s estimate, Ivan will turn 45 this year. For more Ivan the gorilla info, check out atlanta.org">www.zoo atlanta.org.

Sons of Ivan

With: The Divorce, Iceage Cobra, Thee Emergency



When: Friday, Feb. 9, 9 p.m., 21+



Where: Hell’s Kitchen, 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003



Cost: $5



Don’t hold me to it via e-mail.