Another week, another Mercury music section to push aside as you collect your dollars and cents to purchase the musical equipment of Vancouver, Washington's finest talent. Priced to move! Everything must go!!!

For his first endeavor under the Morning Ritual moniker, keyboardist-about-town Ben Darwish recruited the Shook Twins for a conceptual piece about the search for water. Drinking water is a pretty good morning ritual. What's yours? (Mine involves some Carnation Instant Breakfast and Sugar Ray's "Every Morning" and I've already revealed too much.)

LISTEN: Morning Ritual - "The Search"

I know, I know, the name Black Pus is enough of a turn-on, but there's also plenty of legitimate exhilaration to be found in the warped spazz rock from Brian Chippendale of Lightning Bolt.

LISTEN: Black Pus - "1,000 Years"

The word "psychedelic" is officially meaningless. That said, the Black Angels are super psychedelic! Can we bring back the word phantasmagoric? Far out.

LISTEN: The Black Angels - "Evil Things"

With their second album Bathed in Blood on the way, the members of Witchburn still haven't taken advantage of their music-biz connections to make them stars. The Seattle metal band is quite capable of doing it on their own.

LISTEN: Witchburn - "Bleed the Stone"

And the Up & Comings you've grown accustomed to.