On each of the band's albums, the Bismarck credits the vocals to a "team effort," which, upon listening, couldn't sound more accurate. Seemingly nobody has stepped into the role of frontman, and even when a lead vocal surfaces it is surrounded by enthusiastic shouts from the other band mates. One can practically see the members craning their necks toward the one open microphone, giving each song a real sense of physical space.

"There's kind of a group effort with us," says the Bismarck bassist Nate Marshall. "On our past album or two, I think (guitarist Chris Jury) and (drummer Dan Mohr) have been sharing the vocal duties most equally, but we always do shouty backups. We were going to start more of an instrumental band, like one of our older bands was, but we decided against that very early on. We realized it's more fun to yell things."

True to the name, the Bismarck is made up of friends who met while growing up in North Dakota, though the band was formed in 2002 after they had all individually made the trip to the Pacific Northwest. Bismarck's songs are raucous, jumpy affairs, dominated by overdriven guitars and an unerring sense of energetic urgency. To describe the band as punk would be incorrect, though the Bismarck does seem to embrace a DIY spirit and a fuck-you attitude (at least musically). Mostly, it just seems like Bismarck values noise and the very real possibility of damaging eardrums as much as classic rock structures. This also helps to explain why the vocals seem to have an insistent and frequently futile desire to rise above the music.

"I would say that the entire vocal structure is an afterthought," says Marshall. "It literally gets written after the rest of the song is done. ... Usually what happens with lyrics is we get a concept for either a phrase someone said, or a concept based on the song title, and we just build on that. We definitely concentrate more on the riffage, as the kids call it."

Growing up in North Dakota and playing in bands together through high school and beyond, the members of the Bismarck tend to have a great respect for the toil and passion that goes into creating music and getting it out to the people who need it.

"Based on my experience, the music scene in North Dakota is very much heart-on-sleeve," says Marshall. "People are hungry for music. I mean, there's nothing there. It's the lack of scene that creates the scene, I think. ... You have three choices in North Dakota: you drink yourself silly, you have kids, or you play in bands. And sometimes you do all three. We chose the band part."

Marshall tells me the Bismarck member Chris Jury even made a documentary (called Grateful Lovers) about the impact bands touring through North Dakota have had on the bands coming up in the area.

This hunger that Marshall speaks of, this need for music to reach the people that starve for it - the Bismarck is doing its best, in a small way, to keep it satiated.

Note: Dorky's will host two shows with the Bismarck Saturday - with an early, all-ages show preceding the 21+ show.

the Bismarck

Saturday, Oct. 15
7 p.m., all-ages early show with Red Hex and Girl Trouble
9 p.m., 21+, with Klondike Kate
no cover both shows
Dorky's Arcade, 754 Pacific Ave., Tacoma
253.627.4158