[friday @ rosebud] Benefit for Japan with Gozu + Black Thai + Phantom Glue + more

Deadly tornadoes in the south, killer storms and mudslides in Haiti, the Vancouver Canucks goaltending at the TD Garden -- it seems there has been a frightening number of disasters around the world since an earthquake hit Japan back in March. Hell, we even had some twisters touch down in Western Mass.

Recent events have taken media and charitable attention away from previous disaster relief efforts, but Playground Boston is reminding us that Japan is still a nation in need. Tomorrow night at the Rosebud in Somerville's Davis Square, GOZU, BLACK THAI, PHANTOM GLUE and COCKED N' LOADED round out a night of top-shelf Boston hard rock on a night where all proceeds benefit Japan Society's Earthquake Relief Fund.

It's a pretty killer bill of bands really starting to hit their stride in the local circuit. Gozu are in the process of recording a follow-up to last year's eye-opening Locust Season, the wild Cocked N' Loaded are prepping a new release for early 2012, and sludgy metal bastards Phantom Glue are recording album number two with Converge's Kurt Ballou at Godcity Studios in Salem. After upsetting many an indie-popster by securing a wild card in this year's Rock And Roll Rumble, the crushing dudes Black Thai followed it by releasing a split 10-inch with Moth Eater off Play The Assassin Records.

This is certainly a bill that demands a double-figure door charge, but what's somewhat unique about the Rosebud benefit is the low cost. Admission is only a requested donation of $5, but organizers hope that the low cover will enable attendees to get involved with the raffle. Playground has secured prizes from Sony, Narragansett, Live Nation, Audio Cotton, Chameleon Tattoo & Body Piercing, Secret Society Ink, Stingray Body Art, Coda Bar & Kitchen, Canary Square, The Gaff, and others. Rosebud has waived the room's overhead, so all money passed around will go straight to relief efforts. For more information on the raffle, or to contribute prizes, contact bryan@playgroundboston.com.

And in case we need a reminder of Japan's ongoing crisis, here's the plea from the Playground camp: Around the northern coastal region of Tohoku, the Japanese government reported that 2,852 buildings were destroyed and over 40,000 were damaged either by earthquakes, tsunami, or fire. The tsunami waves caused the greatest destruction -- an estimated 5,000 houses remain inundated with water in the Iwate prefecture, 2,000 houses were washed away in the Sendai city of Miyagi, and 1,800 houses were destroyed in nearby Fukushima. The count of houses destroyed by these disasters is also expected to increase as government assessment teams gain additional access to the affected areas.

Step up, Boston.