History After Hours: Headbanger’s Ball
Schedule
Thu Jan 29 2026 at 07:00 pm to 09:30 pm
UTC-08:00Location
1911 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, WA, United States, Washington 98402 | Tacoma, WA
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History After Hours: Headbanger’s BallThursday, January 29, 7:00 to 9:30 PM
$20 for members; $25 pre-registration, $30 at the door
Northwest Rock & Roll’s historical highpoints are well documented—in the late 20th century, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and other grunge gods took the world by storm. Previously, Seattle’s Queensrÿche and Heart had ruled the heavy metal realm. And prior to that, The Wailers, The Kingsmen, Paul Revere and The Raiders, and The Sonics had all fueled local teen dances with garage-rock versions of the region’s signature song, “Louie Louie.”
Yet these iconic bands are only half the story. In this talk, join author Peter Blecha to discover the lesser-known but vitally important bands and scenes that laid the foundation for what was to come—finally connecting all the dots between the fabled Northwest era of Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, and Jimi Hendrix, and the R&B-spiked roots of a distinct regional artform: the “Original Northwest Sound.”
Peter Blecha (he/him) is the director of the Northwest Music Archives, an award-winning author, a founding curator at MoPop, and a longtime staff historian at HistoryLink.org. Blecha’s newest book, Stomp and Shout: R&B and the Origins of Northwest Rock and Roll, draws on his deep knowledge as a leading expert on Pacific Northwest music history to chronicle both well-known and overlooked icons of the early Northwest Sound.
This evening of fun and history is a 21+ event, and IDs are required. Admission includes two drink tickets.
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Where is it happening?
1911 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, WA, United States, Washington 98402Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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