Those familiar with Jazzbones in Tacoma are no doubt familiar with Sean Culver (or Pretty Boy Sean) — the club’s main man manning the phones and the dude behind the jazz-named joint’s eclectic lineup. He books. He drinks. He falls down. He readies for the communist revolution. He answers the phone like a young girl in the throes of puberty.

What’s not to like?



Taking a look at this weekend’s schedule at the Boneyard, one can’t help but notice Saturday’s show with A Room Called Remember, Destruction Island and Jessica Maughan. While that’s a killer lineup — no doubt about it — the show has a billing that goes beyond the bands listed.



“Pretty Boy Sean’s Indie Rock Showcase,” is what it’s called, and there’s reason to believe this won’t be the last showcase at Jazzbones Culver puts his grubby, longhaired print on.



“It feels pretty darn cool. I always wanted to do a series of showcase nights, and you know that I’m so uber-indie that doing the indie rock showcase is rad,” offers Culver. “It’s going to be a killer show. We start off the night with an acoustic set by the sultry chant-house of Jazzbones, Jessica Maughan. Not only is she an incredible singer, but she’s also a server at Jazzbones. It’s super cool to be able to exploit her for her musical talents as opposed to her waitressing skills. Then we have Destruction Island, a kick-ass indie rock band. They will melt your face off in a really cool fashion. Then we have A Room Called Remember. Best. Band. Name. Ever. Great band and a really good group of guys. And hey, they have a cello in the band! I mean, cello — you’ve got to come to this show!



“There will be a Pretty Boy Sean showcase every couple months, but it will not always be indie rock. I’m working on a show for probably April called Pretty Boy Sean’s Power Pop Extravaganza showcase,” continues Culver. “It’s going to be rad.”



While “rad” is obviously a word Culver uses without hesitation (not to mention over and over and over again), it’s certainly an apt description of this Saturday’s showcase at Jazzbones. While I don’t know much about Maughan, Destruction Island is one of the more promising indie rock bands (with an emphasis on the rock) that I’ve run across in some time; and A Room Called Remember is — not only moving and urgent — but diverse, unusual and even a bit challenging. The band’s sound is like a punk-spawned angel with classical training, an ear for hooks and the drive to be more than just another schmuck with wings and a halo.



“The good thing is, I’ve known these guys my whole life,” says singer and guitarist John Nichols, who along with keyboardist Bill Anderson, cellist Caleb Hegg, drummer Steven Kuriatnyk and bassist Vander Corley round out A Room Called Remember — a band named after a Frederick Buechner essay by the same name. “It translates musically really well. We’re all from Tacoma. We were all riding our bikes around Tacoma when we were young. We’ve all been friends, made tree forts and gotten in fights together.

“The goal is always just to have fun,” continues Nichols. “And to do something confidently that’s energizing and refreshing.”



Energizing and refreshing are only a few of the adjectives one might use to describe the well-crated tunes A Room Called Remember pumps out.



Another might be “rad.”



A Room Called Remember, Destruction Island and Jessica Maughan will play Jazzbones this Saturday night, as part of “Pretty Boy Sean’s Indie Rock Showcase.” Unless one of your New Year’s resolutions is to avoid good, local rock shows — this one’s hard to bet against.



[Jazzbones, A Room Called Remember, Destruction Island, Jessica Maughan, Saturday, Jan. 3, 8:30 p.m., $5, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]