Party starts at new clubs

Ernest A. Jasmin, for the Northwest Guardian

A new year brings three nightclubs to Tacoma. Get the lowdown on the music, atmosphere and clientele at the Junkyard, the Garage and JD’s Wild West Saloon. Last year saw the addition of Syren and the Factory to Tacoma’s club scene. And recently three more potential hot spots opened in time for ’07.

So as a public service, we scoped them out and let you know about the good, the bad and the ugly.

The Junkyard

Type: All-ages rock club

Address: 6402 South Tacoma Way

Phone: 253-226-1820

Web site: www.myspace.com/thejunkyardvenue

Hours: Shows start at 6 p.m. and are scheduled intermittently on Thursdays through Sundays.

Cover charge: $5 for most shows

Vibe: “Sanford & Son” goes punk

Lowdown: As the name implies, you’ll weave your way past a few banged-up hoopties on your way to the music. That’s because the Junkyard is located in a rented stall at Campos Auto Repair. But as ghetto as that may sound to many, all the mangled metal and the beginnings of a graffiti mural inside only add to this place’s D.I.Y. (“do it yourself,” the main mantra of punk) charm.

Since the Junkyard opened on Jan. 4, a tightly knit scene of teen and twentysomething hard-core fans has turned out for shows. And chilly conditions have given those kids a practical reason for getting their mosh on – avoiding hypothermia. Not that patrons will be able to see their breath for too much longer. “On February 1, we will have a bunch of heaters in there,” promised Josh Brumley, who books the Junkyard’s bands. Hey, what’d you expect from a grass-roots punk club? Plush couches and a roped off VIP area? We don’t think so.

Recent bands: I Declare War, Open Fire, Never Looking Back (metal core, hard core)

This weekend: The Americas, Stationary Legs, Patient Patient, Post Harbor, His Name Shall Breathe (6 p.m. Saturday)

JD’s Wild West Saloon

Type: Top 40 dance club

Address: 8402 S. Hosmer St.

Phone: 253-535-0088

Web site: www.myspace.com/jdswildwestsaloon

Hours: 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; 3 p.m. to 4 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays

Cover charge: $5

Vibe: Cowgirls gone wild

Lowdown: This club opened late last month in the space formerly occupied by Silver Dollar Casino. And JD’s main attractions will inspire feelings of déjà vu in anyone who has set foot in Spanaway’s Lady Luck’s Cowgirl Up or Seattle’s Cowgirls Inc.

That would be the go-go dancers, a crew of sassy and scantily clad hotties that serve up $3 well drinks and flirt with male clientele when they’re not up on a raised catwalk gyrating to the sounds of DJ Omar. For a sketchy investment of 10 bucks, you can join one of those chicas for a lusty ride on the mechanical bull that lives on one end of the dance floor.

The bull, however, was about the only thing that screamed “Wild West” last Saturday when a handful of guys who had showed up sporting Stetsons and boots initially looked confused and then a little out of place among the T-shirts, “hoodies” and tennis shoes favored by other patrons.

And what? No Skynyrd on the playlist? Freeeeeeeeeeebird!

Recent playlist: 50 Cent’s “In da Club,” Sublime’s “Santeria,” the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams,” Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” and a mash-up of the Beatles’ “Come Together” and Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer.”

This weekend: DJ Omar and the Seattle Go-Gos (9 tonight); college night and an erotic bull-riding contest (9 p.m. Saturday)

The Garage

Type: Dance and rock club, with steaks on the way

Address: 933 S. Market St.

Phone: 253-305-0069

Web site: Not available

Hours: 4:30 to 10 p.m. Wednesdays, 4:30 p.m. to midnight Thursdays, 4:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays

Cover charge: Free this month

Vibe: Cavernous and, so far, pretty quiet.

Lowdown: Build it, and they will come. Then again, that may just be wishful thinking.

Downtown Tacoma’s newest nightclub is quite roomy at 9,000 square feet, which since the club opened a month ago has mostly served to highlight dismal turnouts. The lack of a pronounced identity doesn’t help. It’s a big, plain room with little that catches the eye, aside from the sheer size and a giant ceiling fan that looks like it came off an Apache chopper. And it’s not exactly clear which way organizers want to go with the entertainment.

The Garage has tried a DJ, who, like other hip-hop-phobic clubs in these parts, skewed toward rock and pop – to the chagrin of several patrons during our first visit. And bands – which will play on Fridays and Saturdays, according to general manager Mai-Lee Bowyer – have ranged from original hard rock to the type of cover bands you can already see at the Swiss or Cheers West.

The stage design could have been more thought out, with sight lines partially blocked by a column in the front and an oversized DJ booth stage left.

Alas, the Garage is a work in progress. They just serve bar food now and are working on becoming a fully functional steakhouse. And hopefully they’ll have most of the kinks worked out in time for their grand opening.

Recent bands: Soultronic, Psycho 78

This weekend: Old School Dropout (9 p.m. today and Saturday)