Boulder Weekly 5.26.22 by Boulder Weekly

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Tears for Fears rules the world again, p. 16

It’s no. 9 for Murder by Death, p. 18

Indica schmindica, p. 38

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MAY 26, 2022

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news:

Forest managers slow the spread of Colorado’s deadliest forest pest: the spruce beetle by Will Brendza

10 16

buzz:

Roland Orzabal from Tears for Fears chats about sidestepping fame’s sharp edges and dancing with relevancy by Dave Kirby

overtones:

Western-gothic stalwart Murder by Death releases ninth full-length album by Matt Maenpaa

art & culture:

Shelia Heti on her new novel, ‘Pure Colour’ by Emma Athena

nibbles:

Devising a wedding day menu that fits everybody’s dietary desires can be a tasting challenge by John Lehndorff

18 23 32

departments

7 8

9 21 27 31 35 37 38 39

Anderson Files: Populism: bigoted scapegoating or multiracial progressivism?

City Beat: Boulder set to pilot UBI, moves forward with gun legislation Letters: Signed, sealed, delivered, your views Astrology: by Rob Brezsny Events: What to do when there’s nothing to do Film: Now playing online, ‘The French’ and ‘Kyiv Frescos’ Drink: Copper Sky Distillery proves not every great bottle needs to break the bank Cuisine: Croquetas, Polish comforts and citrus-y chicken Weed Between the Lines: Cannabis users are being misled by indica, sativa and hybrid labels Savage Love: Quickies

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MAY 26, 2022

Publisher, Fran Zankowski Circulation Manager, Cal Winn EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief, Caitlin Rockett Senior Editor, Emma Athena News Editor, Will Brendza Food Editor, John Lehndorff Contributing Writers: Dave Anderson, Rob Brezsny, Michael J. Casey, Shay Castle, Angela K. Evans, Mark Fearer, Jodi Hausen, Karlie Huckels, Dave Kirby, Matt Maenpaa, Sara McCrea, Rico Moore, Adam Perry, Katie Rhodes, Dan Savage, Alan Sculley, Tom Winter SALES AND MARKETING Market Development Manager, Kellie Robinson Account Executives, Matthew Fischer, Carter Ferryman Mrs. Boulder Weekly, Mari Nevar PRODUCTION Art Director, Susan France Senior Graphic Designer, Mark Goodman CIRCULATION TEAM Sue Butcher, Ken Rott, Chris Bauer BUSINESS OFFICE Bookkeeper, Regina Campanella Founder/CEO, Stewart Sallo Editor-at-Large, Joel Dyer May 26, 2022 Volume XXIX, Number 38 Cover photo, Team Player Productions As Boulder County's only independently owned newspaper, Boulder Weekly is dedicated to illuminating truth, advancing justice and protecting the First Amendment through ethical, no-holds-barred journalism, and thought-provoking opinion writing. Free every Thursday since 1993, the Weekly also offers the county's most comprehensive arts and entertainment coverage. Read the print version, or visit boulderweekly.com. Boulder Weekly does not accept unsolicited editorial submissions. If you're interested in writing for the paper, please send queries to: editorial@boulderweekly.com. Any materials sent to Boulder Weekly become the property of the newspaper. 690 South Lashley Lane, Boulder, CO, 80305 p 303.494.5511 f 303.494.2585 editorial@boulderweekly.com www.boulderweekly.com Boulder Weekly is published every Thursday. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. © 2022 Boulder Weekly, Inc., all rights reserved.

Boulder Weekly welcomes your correspondence via email (letters@ boulderweekly.com) or the comments section of our website at www.boulderweekly.com. Preference will be given to short letters (under 300 words) that deal with recent stories or local issues, and letters may be edited for style, length and libel. Letters should include your name, address and telephone number for verification. We do not publish anonymous letters or those signed with pseudonyms. Letters become the property of Boulder Weekly and will be published on our website.

Populism: bigoted scapegoating or multiracial progressivism by Dave Anderson

opulism isn’t a coherent ideology, argues John Judis, but “a way of thinking” about politics that can be employed by the left, right or center. In The Populist Explosion, he writes: “Left-wing populists champion the people against an elite or establishment. Theirs is a vertical politics of the bottom and middle arrayed against the top. Right-wing populists champion the people against an elite that they accuse of coddling a third group, which can consist, for instance, of immigrants, Islamists, or African American militants. Leftwing populism is dyadic. Right-wing populism is triadic. It looks upward, but also down on an out group.” Populist progressives won quite a few victories in the Democratic primaries on March 17. Conservative super PACs spent enormous sums to defeat them. Consider the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania: John Fetterman, the state’s lieutentant governor, will be the party’s U.S. Senate candidate for the seat currently held by a retiring Republican, Pat Toomey. Fetterman’s an unusual politician with a straightforward speaking style, casual dress, shaved head and tattoos. Fetterman supports Medicare for All, abortion rights, higher taxes on the rich, marijuana legalization and a $15 hour minimum wage. He denounces the filibuster and the

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

obstruction of Build Back Better. Alexander Sammon of The American Prospect notes that Fetterman’s opponent, Conor Lamb, a Pittsburgh-area congressman, “had a not-insignificant record of voting against the party,” “a close personal relationship with Sen. Joe Manchin, the filibuster’s Democratic face,” and “was unable to make the case [for himself as] a Democrat who would actually advance the Democratic agenda.” Fetterman says, “This is the most important race in the country. Control of the Senate is going to come down to Pennsylvania, and we have to flip this seat.” Lamb has since pledged his support for Fetterman, saying, “Our entire democracy is on the line in November.” Are Lamb’s comments unnecessarily hyperbolic? In many primary races, Republican voters chose candidates who parrot Trump’s election lies and who seem determined to exert enormous political control over voting systems. Right-wing populism is going off the rails. It is getting extraordinarily vicious and stupid. Republican politicians and Fox News yakkers say that the Biden administration is stealing scarce infant formula and giving it to migrant babies and could be deliberately importing fentanyl to murder supporters of Trump. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Biden was giving “baby formula to illegal immigrants while mothers and fathers stare at empty grocery store shelves in a panic.” see THE ANDERSON FILES Page 9

MAY 26, 2022

Amid slow economic recovery, Boulder set to pilot UBI; in the wake of tragedy, Council moves forward with gun legislation by Shay Castle

uaranteed income by another name?

The city is moving forward with plans to give cash to low-income Boulderites, though how much, to whom and for how long are still TBD. City Council received more information on the guaranteed income pilot Tuesday night, after first discussing the proposal in February. Most elected officials were enthusiastically supportive of the approach, which 40 cities across the U.S.—flush with federal COVID recovery cash— are pursuing. Boulder plans to spend $3 million of its $20 million American Rescue Plan Act funds on a pilot program. It’s very difficult “to continually prove that you’re poor,” added Housing and Human Services Director Kurt Firnhaber, noting the time, complexity and “all the paperwork you need to continually create.” “This is meant to be a new approach, where we don’t decide what is needed,” Firnhaber said. It’s “creating an opportunity for people to pick up the pieces when pieces fall apart, and make real advances in goals.” Research from similar programs in other cities (and from existing direct cash assistance to low-income families in Boulder County) show increased employment, improved mental and physical health, and reduced household stress. The city won’t determine what success looks like, who should be eligible, how much money they will receive and for how long—a “citizen task force” will do that. Council members who are majority home-owning and relatively privileged should not be making those calls, said councilmember Nicole Speer. “It’s a place where we want to lean pretty heavily on the community to know what they need.” 8

Applications could open by December of this year, with payments beginning to flow in March 2023. Councilmember Bob Yates suggested renaming the program to avoid “community backlash” and to “lower expectations for people who will be receiving the temporary assistance. “It’s not necessarily guaranteed, and it’s not necessarily income,” he said.

Boulder’s budget recovering, but still below pre-pandemic health Sales tax—which funds the biggest chunk of city spending—was up 19% last year as people returned to restaurants, shops and (most importantly) travel. In fact, the only thing people are spending less on is groceries and weed, according to city sales tax data. Despite the strong recovery from 2020, revenue from sales tax is still below 2019 levels by about 4%. Parking and hotel taxes (which make up a smaller share of the budget) are still down 44% and 27%, respectively. City coffers are expected to keep growing into 2023, but economists are keeping an eye on the war in Ukraine, as well as increasing inflation, which is growing faster in Colorado than elsewhere. Rich Wobbekind, CU economist, said, “The question is, does the economy really slow down, or does the economy go into a recession next year?” The city will keep being “conservative” in its spending plans, staff said. The budget process for next year has already begun. Public engagement will begin with a Sept. 8 study session, with hearings and votes scheduled Oct. 6 and Oct. 20. MAY 26, 2022

See you next, next Tuesday

Hours after news broke of a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas (the latest numbers report 19 children and two teachers killed, with many others injured), City Council gave its first OK to a package of gun control laws. The unanimous vote came with a tearful speech from councilmember Matt Benjamin, a gun owner. “I got this news while I was outside at Bear Creek Elementary while I was cheering on kindergarten students as they got to graduate,” including his son. “It is a normal that cannot continue to be tolerated. “I am a law-abiding gun owner in this community, and my right, my need, my want to have guns cannot supersede the lives of people who have been killed by guns. It can’t, and it won’t.” A final vote and public hearing on the gun violence prevention ordinances is scheduled for June 7. Three hours have been allotted to allow community members to speak. The measures include: • A 10-day waiting period to purchase guns • Raising the age limit for purchase from 18 to 21 • The reinstated ban on assault weapons and highcapacity magazines • Prohibition on open carry (visible weapons on your person) • Disallowing concealed carry in “sensitive areas” such as schools, churches, voting locations, public places, etc. •A ban on guns without a serial number •Required signage in gun stores warning of the increased risk of homicide and suicide in homes with firearms There is no council meeting next week, May 31. Questions or comments? Contact editorial@boulderweekly.com BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

RE: ‘THE VICTIM PENALTY’ I just wanted to reach out to you and say that I have no proper words to express my immense gratitude to Boulder Weekly for telling my story (News, ‘The victim penalty,’ Feb. 24, 2022). After 15 years of not being heard, even being given the opportunity to tell my story was cathartic. Since the article was published, CU Boulder contacted me and will (hopefully soon) be canceling my debt to them. They also changed my final semester’s grades from F’s to W’s. Fingers crossed, I should be able to receive a transcript from them, without paying anything over and above the usual transcript fee. I had been put in a prison of sorts by the school, and when I finally get my transcript, those chains will have been lifted. I feel like I have been given my life back. This couldn’t have happened without Boulder Weekly, and I will always and ever be thankful. My hope had already been that things had changed for young female students at that school, but I can attest that, with your help, they finally changed for me. Kristin Vietti

CU SOUTH DEFIES NEED FOR CARBON REDUCTION Despite the severity of drought in Colorado and the United Nation’s announcement of the necessity of immediate global carbon reduction, the University of Colorado-Boulder stubbornly continues to pursue its expansion into South Boulder. This is either simple-minded ego flexing or perhaps a revelation that there is an economic necessity for the project to go forward. A retired professor told me years ago that new buildings were being financed by the income from earlier construction, a business model based on real estate acquisition that has little to do with education. CU has become a corporate real estate tycoon with environmental goals, such as achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, that are pure green wash hog wash. It is hard to take that wiser thinking seems so absent in an institution of higher learning. Robert Porath/Boulder

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THE ANDERSON FILES from Page 7

The truth is that the federal government is required by law to provide nourishment to temporarily detained migrant babies. Starvation isn’t an option. Strangely enough, even the Trump administration did the same thing. (Did anyone tell Stephen Miller?) This is a tiny population of babies. The formula shortage is serious but it is the result of monopoly power, market and supply-chain failure. Republicans don’t seem to be too interested in resolving that problem or much of anything else. When Democrats in the House voted to provide $28 million in aid to the FDA to address the formula shortage, 192 Republicans opposed the measure. That bunch included House GOP leaders Kevin McCarthy, Steve Scalise and Elise Stefanik (who had just been yelping that the Democrats weren’t doing enough). It’s quite alarming how much the “Great Replacement Theory” advocated by the Buffalo mass murderer is being mainstreamed by GOP leaders and Fox News. Tucker Carlson, America’s most popular cable news host, has promoted this theory over 400 times, according to the New York Times. It has inspired numerous

massacres of demonized minorities around the world. Kathleen Belew, historian of the violent far right, says that the theory is “the latest incarnation of an old idea: the belief that elites are attempting to destroy the white race by overwhelming it with nonwhite groups and thinning them out with interbreeding until white people no longer exist.” It isn’t just about immigration. She explains: “This belief transforms social issues into direct threats: Immigration is a problem because immigrants will outbreed the white population. Abortion is a problem because white babies will be aborted. L.G.B.T.Q. rights and feminism will take women from the home and decrease the white birthrate. Integration, intermarriage and even the presence of Black people distant from a white community—an issue apparently of keen interest in the Buffalo attack—are seen as a threat to the white birthrate through the threat of miscegenation.” The far right will continue to kill, but they are also hoping to control the government.

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DAN WEST

Learning to live with beetles For the 10th year in a row, the spruce beetle is Colorado’s most deadly forest pest, but forest managers can slow their spread

by Will Brendza

he drone of the small propeller airplane is loud enough to scatter birds from the branches. The aircraft flies low over the treetops, up one side of a mountain drainage and back down, across, over and up the opposite side. Within the plane, Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) surveyors glance back and forth, from the window to tablets in their laps, down at the forest, and again back to the screen. They swipe and press buttons, typing, identifying and making note of the trees below, what species they are, and what pests or diseases might be affecting them. Every year they fly over all 24.4 million acres of Colorado’s forests like this, according to Dr. Dan West, an entomology program specialist with CSFS. He says it isn’t a job for anyone who’s prone to motion sickness, but it’s essential for managing the state’s forest pests and tree populations in the face of an ominouslooking wildfire season. “The goal of the survey isn’t to identify Mrs. Smith’s apple tree [from the air],” West says. “The goal is to really key in on areas where we’re noticing some kind of forest disturbance and then we can get a spatial bound on that.” As West puts it, the annual aerial survey helps the Forest Service understand the scope of threats. “It all boils down to using the right tool for the right job,” West says. The Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) annual aerial detection survey is led by the U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, and CSFS. By monitoring native tree pest populations, Colorado’s land managers can better maintain healthy, resilient forests while still providing timber, wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities on both public and private forest lands. And this year, for the 10th year in a row, the survey found that Colorado’s most deadly forest pest held its position at the top of the list: Dendroctonus rufipennis—the common spruce beetle. “Trees are really drought stressed and bark beetles are—I don’t want to say ‘having their way’—but for the most part, they have very little impediment to continuing growing their populations,” West says. The environmental factors are perfect for

these insects right now, he explains. As drought worsens and temperatures rise, trees have less ability to fight off spruce beetles, who lay eggs beneath their bark, reproducing extensively, and spreading to more trees. It’s a negative feedback loop that’s amplifying wildfire risks across the state. Many Coloradans will remember the pine beetle outbreak that dominated headlines through the 2000s and into the early 2010s. Officials described that outbreak as “catastrophic,” with pine beetles killing over 500,000 acres of lodgepole pine forests multiple years in a row. Since 2012, though, the spruce beetle has outpaced the pine beetle, which is likewise devastating Colorado’s forests at alarming rates. According to the report, in 2021 alone, spruce beetles affected 53,400 acres of high-elevation Engelmann spruce forests. Since 2000 the total affected area is estimated to be more than 1.54 million acres. That’s been slowing down somewhat in recent years, the report notes—but we’re still losing a lot of spruce trees to these beetles. And until the state gets more moisture, the trees will remain vulnerable. “Trees defend themselves primarily through resin,” West explains. He likens an arboreal immune system to a series of garden hoses called resin ducts, running along the inside of the bark within the phloem layer. That critical layer moves carbohydrate sugars produced by photosynthesis in the needles down into the roots, and transports water up from the roots to the needles. The phloem layer is where bark beetles want to go, West says; to feast on free carbohydrates and lay eggs. “In years where there’s not a lot of water, there’s not as much resin within those resin ducts, and so [the beetles] have less resistance

MAY 26, 2022

to get into the phloem layer,” West says. “The larva that hatch [there] are severing that floam layer ... so [the trees] can no longer get food to their roots and they can no longer move water up into their upper portion of their crown.” Then the tree dies and dries out; its needles fall off, its roots decay underground, and eventually the trunk comes crashing down and the forest floor becomes thick with dead timber—tinder—and the bark beetles move on in even greater numbers. “Should lightning strike or a human throw their cigarette butt out a window, then you end up with a source and a lot of fuel,” West says. “I wouldn’t say that it’s more likely to cause a fire. It’s just that certainly, should a fire occur, it becomes more intense.” It’s contributed to a run of dramatic wildfire seasons that have left hundreds of thousands of acres of Colorado’s forests scorched in their wake. The Pine Gulch Fire burned almost 140,000 acres. The East Troublesome fire burned another 193,812 acres. The Cameron Peak fire burned 208,663 acres. That was all just in 2020. In 2021, Colorado lost another 42,000 acres to wildfire burns. As wildfire season starts creeping into see BEETLES Page 12 BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Trend or outlier?

Colorado climate expert weighs in on our windy spring and the future of fire season

by Samuel Shaw

f the wind has tormented you more than usual lately, it’s not just in your head. Data from across the state puts this April among the gustiest in 25 years. In order to understand why, and what that means for everything from fire season to snowpack, we sat down with professor Russ Schumacher, department head of Color State University’s Colorado Climate Center. Boulder Weekly: Coloradans are no stranger to a gusty spring. To set the stage, what normally drives our annual winds this time of year? Russ Schumacher: April tends to be our windiest month on average across most of eastern Colorado. It’s the time of year when the jet stream starts making its march back to the north after the winter, but it also tends to be quite rainy. You’ll usually see severe thunderstorms out on the Great Plains, in the Midwest, and the South. In Colorado, we will often get periodic snowstorms through April. It’s the

transition season and a volatile time of year. Coming along with that are strong winds in a lot of cases. BW: According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, this spring, and April in particular, stood out as one of the windiest on record. Can you walk us through the science behind what’s going on here? RS: The big picture perspective is we’ve been in La Niña since the winter. What that does is push the storm track farther north than usual. That’s what we’re seeing this year; more northern states have had a lot of wet conditions, but in the southwest, it’s very dry and drought-stricken. All that lined up with winds we’ve seen this year in Colorado. When the low-pressure centers formed in the spring, they went to our north and we ended up on the dry and windy side of the storms. We don’t get any precipitation out of the storms, or not much. When we’re talking about drought conditions in the spring, those

two processes feed off each other. If it’s not raining or snowing, then you’re not getting that moisture. And then when it’s windier, the atmosphere is thirstier for water as well: it wants to suck moisture out of the soil and the snow. That led to a very dry, windy April, with little precipitation. BW: So we know we’re looking at an outlier then, but are we also looking at a trend? Should Coloradans expect more of the same from spring in the coming years or is it too soon to say? RS: However you look at the data from this April, it was unusually windy in Colorado. But it’s difficult to establish any clear, long term-trends because we don’t have long-term records. NREL only has 20 to 30 years of data, which isn’t unique when we talk about wind. Contrast that with temperature and precipitation and we have records that go back 100 or 150 years in places. That being said, even over the last 30 years, there’s no obvious trend. Wind is highly variable: You have some years see WIND Page 13

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MAY 26, 2022

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BEETLES from Page 10

spring and winter, the need to mitigate these risks is growing by the season, according to Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control director, Mike Morgan. “Colorado’s core fire season is now an average of 78 days longer than it was in the ’70s,” Morgan said in a press release encouraging Coloradans to prepare for intensifying wildfires. While spruce bark beetles aren’t the root cause of Colorado’s wildfires, they’re certainly a contributing factor—and they’re starting to reach unnatural population sizes. Only two things naturally kill bark beetles: fire and extremely cold temperatures lasting extended periods of time (-30 F or below). Obviously, we can expect the former, but the latter is an extremely uncommon occurrence in this state. And as Colorado’s current drought continues, spruce beetles will continue to spread through our forests. But, it isn’t all doom and gloom, West says. Forest managers do have methods for fighting the beetles. Or, as West puts it, “tools in their toolbox” for slowing them down and directing their spread. “That’s part of the beauty of the aerial survey,” West says. “It really gives us a cool priority map. It gives us an indication of where the bark beetles are and might be heading, and then also an indication of where we should focus our efforts.” They gather the data from the air, discerning where the worst outbreaks are, the direction the beetles are moving, whether that’s on private or public land, and then assemble a plan for managing the forest. Sometimes that means going in and preemptively protecting existing trees by cleaning out dead timber. Or, it could also mean waging chemical

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“Bark beetles use chemical compounds to communicate. They can’t see very well,” West explains. “They don’t talk to each other, but they’re incredibly adapted to using chemicals.” The insects’ olfactory senses are surprisingly keen and based on the different chemicals they excrete, they help guide each other to the best trees. “We’ve learned that we can synthesize those compounds,” West says. “It’s using the communication signals against the bark beetles themselves to say, ‘Hey, this tree is not good, it’s becoming full, you need to go elsewhere.’” CSFS can then lure the beetles into a specific area, like an aspen grove or a large meadow, where they won’t have a source of food. West says they can also use chemicals to make spruce trees smell like nonhosts (like maples or oak trees) to confuse the beetles and get them to move on and away from the most vulnerable areas. “We can make these trees less desirable for a couple of years to get us out of the outbreak, and then we can figure out what we want to do long term,” West explains. All that said, spruce beetles are native pests and serve an important ecological role. West calls them “sanitizers of the forest” as they deplete the biggest trees with the most carbohydrates and then leave the rest untouched for future seasons. They help shape the forest structure and composition, and influence the forest’s productivity and biogeochemical cycling. West says that eradicating them entirely would be detrimental to Colorado’s forest ecosystem. “So it’s all really just a matter of trying to learn to live with them and learning how to make our forests more resilient,” West says. “That’s our job.”

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MAY 26, 2022

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WIND from Page 11

that are very windy in the spring, and some not so much. Regardless, this year definitely stands out on the windy side. BW: If the historical data is inconclusive, what do climate models speculate about wind in the future? RS: If you consider the U.S. as a whole with a warming climate, the jet stream will probably shift northward and perhaps weaken. I’m speculating, but we could actually see a trend toward less windy conditions. The caveat is that winds are an extremely local phenomena. Climate models don’t resolve our mountains all that well, or at least the variations between mountains and valleys, which we know are critical to understanding local wind speeds here. So I don’t think we really know exactly what the future holds. BW: An extreme wind event in late December was part of what propelled the devastating Marshall fire through Louisville and Superior. Putting that tragedy into a climate context, does it tell us anything about the potential for future fires across the Front Range? RS: The Marshal fire … was driven by these extreme downslope winds that are common in that spot, though still extreme for that location. That area south of Boulder, Louisville, and Superior is a spot that is very prone to those extreme wintertime downslope winds. The unusual dryness in December is what made that fire unique. So, it’s a little bit different from this spring, where the maximum wind speeds haven’t been record-setting. What it has been is relentlessly windy for such a long period combined with low humidity and precipitation. Those conditions tend to dry out the landscape more quickly than then if it’s cloudy, cool and not windy. These are the kinds of conditions that favor the fast growth of wildfires. This spring in Colorado, we’ve been very fortunate that none of our fires got big. But then we don’t have to look far to our south in New Mexico where they’re having among the largest fires they’ve ever seen there. BW: Could you unpack what a “thirsty atmosphere” means for readers? RS: The atmosphere “being thirsty” is a colloquial way of talking about evaporation. The air is always trying

to take water from wherever it can get it: from soils, from grasses, from crops, accelerating in the summer when it’s warmer. Likewise, as temperature increases, or it gets windy, or you have these periods of really low humidity, then that evaporative demand goes up. That part of what’s been happening in the West and Southwest. A recent study that looked at trends in evaporative demand over the entire country showed the Southwest experiencing the most. Evaporative demand has been increasing over the last 40 or 50 years and It can increase because of more solar radiation, more wind and lower humidity. But what the study found was that the largest single contributor is rising temperatures. BW: So the winds are only a necessary accomplice to the fires. The main culprit is the increased aridity. How does this bode for our fire season in the coming decades? RS: There’s a large and growing scientific literature pointing to increased areas burned over the West as the climate continues to warm. Other studies are revealing how more days with hot, dry and windy conditions will lead to fires. But it’s not necessarily like each year is going to be worse than the one before, but instead that the next decade is worse than the last decade. As you have temperatures going up, that essentially expands the fire season. Think about what we saw in 2020 with the fires in October. It wasn’t exceptionally windy. What was unusual was that it had been so warm and dry in the months before. Fires were still burning into October and then when one of those strong winds came, it was primed to explode. BW: Besides winds and fires, is there anything else about this spring readers should keep an eye on? RS: One thing we’ve been looking at with this spring in particular is how the snowpack across the southern mountain basin has melted extremely fast from what was a decent peak this winter. April was really sunny, without many cloudy days; It was warm, it was very windy, and that wind brought dust, which is the other factor that can lead to rapid snowmelt. Dusty snow absorbs more sunlight and warms up quickly. So that’s one indirect outcome of our windy spring.

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MAY 26, 2022

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G FRANK OCKENFELS

rowing up in the Baptist church in Denver, a queer Black boy slept while the preacher gave his sermon—but the boy came to life when the choir belted out the gospel.

ow is beautiful Boulder?” asked Roland Orzabal a few weeks ago when connected for a brief phone interview. It is quite common for touring musicians to refer to Boulder thusly, often genuinely as a marker of appreciation for past triumphs and receptive audiences. And sometimes, perhaps, politely playing to our well-celebrated localenarcissism. But Orzabal sounded quite sincere, and we soon learned why. At the time, Boulder was sunny, hot, windy and dry. (This was a week before that freak snowstorm pruned our trees.)

Roland Orzabal from Tears for Fears chats about the band’s new music, rescuing creative productivity from loss, sidestepping fame’s sharp edges and dancing with relevancy

in our North Boulder neighborhood about a week before, teasing the edges of a sub-development half a mile from where we sat. Someone dumped still-hot barbeque ashes in an open space in the middle of a parching windstorm. It was contained quickly; no one was quite sure what (or whether) the perpetrator was thinking. But Orzabal was keenly aware of what the community had been through a few months prior. “We were there last Christmas, and we were driving down the freeway toward In fact, Orzabal was at the time in the company of his second wife, Emily, a Denver native and erstwhile Boulder resident, so he knows the area, knows Boulder and its surrounding communities. Personally now invested in this part of Colorado, he understood the ongoing peril so abruptly visited upon us last December. Orzabal and his musical partner Curt Smith roll their roadshow into Denver on Sunday night, and unlike most of the extensive touring they’d done since reuniting as a 16

MAY 26, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

team in 2004—bracketing an estrangement that effectively ended their partnership as Tears for Fears in 1991—they will be touring behind an album of new and original I wondered what Orzabal’s comfort level would be, giving life and performance material, The Tipping Point. polish to these things—a songwriter who isn’t (and never has been) reluctant to give The road to the new release, however, was far from simple and straightforward. himself away in song—but isn’t this different? “We were very happy playing live; we had a great set,” Orzabal says. “We “We’ve shared a similar experience,” Orzabal said. “I kind of think it’s our job to worked hard at putting together a good set, adding new songs. And if an artist share these things. You’ll never, ever, be able to communicate how it really felt. You’ll came along and did a cover of one of our songs, we’d incorporate that, too. So, for never be able to do that. And you never forget. instance, we’d play the Lorde version of ‘Everybody Wants to Rule The World’ before “But what we can do—what I think I can do—is make a nice song. That hints, in we’d play our own version. some way... the beauty of music is that it cuts through the crap in our neocortex and “There was a kind of interweaving of other artists’ versions of our own stuff, and goes straight to our heart. And then they can get a sense. it had a sort of contemporary feel to it, and we were quite successful with it. But “‘Please Be Happy,’ I can’t listen to it now. I mean, (I can) sing it, because it’s my without question we came to a stage where we needed voice and there’s a barrier. But when Curt sings it, it kills me. new material. And it was really just about what we wanted It just kills me.” from new songs; it wasn’t really about making a record. And Such is the weird energy that traces the circuitry of there were always songs laying about. Songs come along decades-long collaborations. Smith and Orzabal are quite in my life all the time. different people. When Smith left the band in 1991, it “So there was a discussion,” Orzabal continues. “Our seemed a familiar story, one that we might have recognized manager at the time persuaded us that we needed to be retrospectively after watching Peter Jackson’s Beatles more relevant. I don’t know what that means—needing to documentary. There comes a time for many bands that start be relevant means, I suppose, that you’re irrelevant.” young, and perhaps most often to those who experience What emerged from this period was a “Greatest Hits” success early on, when partners graduate from youth and package, with the added bonus of a couple of new tracks they become more possessive of their own artistic assets, and a handful of collaborations with other artists ostensibly less willing to compromise, more invested in opportunities intended to return the band to its sound and tenor of the 1980s. a trite and probably perfect way to describe it. “‘Well, hang on,’ I said, ‘that doesn’t make much sense,’” Many of these broken partnerships are permanently Orzabal noted. Relevancy? Smith and Orzabal set about to severed. Orzabal and Smith’s weren’t. rework some of the odds and ends that came from that period, “I would say, the journey that I was on, post-grief, I rewriting lyrics and arrangements, salvaging the bits they liked was with Emily. From Colorado. Very different culture from and, essentially, coming around to a place where they actually sounded like themselves. working-class Britain, where you have to have a bit of thick skin. Sarcasm is the And by 2016, they had an album’s worth of material, more or less. common language. You just get used to being not very nice to each other. Fate intervened, and Orzabal went through a traumatic period in 2017 when he “You can see it in the Beatles documentary,” Orzabal says. “That sort of Liverpool lost his wife to depression and alcoholism, followed by his own medical challenges humor where McCartney has absolutely no problem in attacking Harrison, even the following year. though the person he was really pissed off with was Lennon. It is now part of his story, losing his wife, whom he had known since his teen “Emily grew up in a family where there’s just a lot more respect and empathy years, a life diversion that I confessed to Orzabal I had experienced myself, 18 years and kindness. I’ve had to learn that from her. Curt’s been living in America, he’s an ago. Orzabal was 56. I was 46. American citizen, so he’s probably already there. I’ve had to learn this new way of The isolation, the assault on one’s identity. Grief and panic and disorientation. communicating, learn a new language, and learn not to be so damned defensive. The changes that emerge immediately proximate to your day-to-day life, and the There needed to be a lot of letting go. hidden and evolving changes that only reveal themselves months or years later. The changes are permanent, even if one’s conception of permanence itself has been liberty for that look in her eyes. compromised. “If you’re on your own, you’re poor. You gain riches by interacting and trading It occurred to me, and I asked if the same was true for his own experience, with someone else.” that one aspect of that experience was that you no longer trust yourself. Trust your And as far as riches go, Orzabal experienced it full force at the age of about instincts, trust your abilities, trust your surroundings and your place in your own story. 24, when Tears for Fears’ landmark album Songs From The Big Chair, with hits like “No, you don’t. You’re absolutely right,” he said. “And you don’t realize if you’ve “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” “Shout” and “Head Over Heels,” utterly blew gone mad. You’ve had that other person trusting that for you. Though up the pop world. With arrangements, musicality and durability that you can make yourself appear and feel sane while that person is going would humble most contemporaries of the time, it is consistently ranked ON THE BILL: through that, once that other person is no longer there, it all hits you as one the best albums of the 1980s—were they ready for the ensuing Tears for Fears because there’s no one in the way anymore.” exposure? with Garbage. There are few events in life, maybe none, as deeply felt as the “No, but I think we dealt with it in different ways,” Orzabal admits. 6:30 p.m.Sunday, loss of a spouse. The record that emerged from the ashes of Orzabal’s “I think Curt was more a pop star, I was more of a backroom guy, a coMay 29, Levitt tumultuous 2017 and 2018 is tinted, though not uniformly, in a dark Pavilion, 1380 way, with references to that period. Much of the album exudes the and Curt was more on his own. And he embraced it more fully than I did. W. Florida Ave., beautifully crafted pop that infused Tears for Fears’ heyday material of He fell into the trappings of that life. The drugs and the blah blah blah. Denver. The big house. statement of liberation of “Master Plan,” the oddly sequenced acoustic “I got through it pretty unscathed, to be honest. I was set on the guitar number “No Small Thing” kicking off the record. primal therapy thing, absolute set on it. I remember, and I’ve said this But you can hear it. The buoyantly orchestral title track, glazed with often, I was talking with [former Tears for Fears keyboardist] Ian Stanley, the band’s impeccable vocal harmonies, evoking the image of a hospital room where, and since I was the main songwriter, he said, ‘Do you realize how much money as Orzabal puts it, “you are just looking at someone and waiting for the point when you’ve made?’ And I said, ‘I didn’t give a fuck, I just needed primal therapy.’ I was they are more dead than alive”; “Rivers of Mercy,” which appeals to a time before completely driven by this spiritual need. The money meant nothing. chaos and uncertainty; and perhaps most directly, the heartbreaking “Please Be “And of course, we were living in the days of 60% tax, so most of the money we Happy,” about watching someone dissolve into the umbra of an irredeemable void. A made went to the government anyway.” wine glass shattering into pieces on a staircase. A scene from a slow-motion tragedy, Contact editorial@boulderweekly.com with questions or comments. BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

BECKY DIGIGLIO

Haunted musical magic Western-gothic stalwart Murder by Death releases ninth full-length album, ‘Spell/Bound’

by Matt Maenpaa

W Exorcist, But More Breakdancing,

MAY 26, 2022

Like The

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

out of each year, packed in a van shuttling from gig to gig across the country to play smaller venues and dive bars. “There just wasn’t money going around for independent music, so you were doing it for the love,” Turla says. “So we were out there and enjoying it, but we had resigned ourselves to being starving artists.” When 2006 rolled around and the band released its third album, In Bocca Al Lupo, Turla wasn’t sure how much longer the group could keep it up. When one of the original band members left to go back to college, the rest of the band followed suit. Already in the process of writing In Bocca Al Lupo, the band decided if that album didn’t work, they’d call it quits. “The funny thing is (the album) didn’t really work, but it didn’t not work,” Turla says. “So we were just hanging on. It was a time where we were trying to make enough to keep doing it.” Turla says the change came from “betting on ourselves.” The band never got trashed by the press, he explains, but never got the same coverage as its contemporaries, so the members took matters into their own hands. MbD self-released Bocca with some behind-the-scenes support from Warner Brothers, and the band played on. Betting on themselves has paid off for MbD, particularly with the launch of its sixth album, Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon, through Kickstarter in 2012. A loyal fanbase lent support, backing the project to the tune of $187,047. The band offered some unique incentives for backers, ranging from covering amusement park with the whole band (for a $4,000 buy-in). The Kickstarter launch would become tradition, a way for the band to fund the costs of producing an album, releasing special edition vinyl and connecting with fans through unique offerings that go beyond

the music. The cover requests would continue, along with a trip to Space Camp and the introduction of shows at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. “We branched out into doing our own concerts, so we aren’t just playing clubs,” Turla says. “This last decade has been us saying, ‘Well, what else can we do that’s cool?’” When the pandemic hit in 2020, MbD had just started its 20-year-anniversary tour with dates across the U.S. and Europe. Then live music came to a screeching halt. Canceling hundreds of dates was a harrowing experience, according to Turla, and the uncertainty and anxiety of the pandemic left the band in the lurch. “We lost something like 80 shows (worth of) income right out of the gate, and then two years of work after that,” Turla says. With a stockpile of merchandise sitting in storage from the abandoned tour, MbD once more turned to its fans. On May 1, 2020, the band launched the “Limited Merch & Post Apocalypse Rummage Sale” to try and recoup losses from the pandemic. Fans raised $296,450 in the month that followed, putting their faith in the new music and albums that would come as soon as the pandemic allowed. Turla admits there was some concern that without touring, without a new album, fans might lose interest—but he’s been mildly worried about that since the beginning. “I thought: Do I really need to stop being an artist? Is this game over for us?” he says with a laugh. In late April, the band announced a tour, along with its ninth full-length album, Spell/Bound. MbD initial funding goal of $300,000 by May 11. “This Kickstarter makes me realize how see MURDER BY DEATH Page 20 MATT MAENPAA

MATT MAENPAA

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

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MURDER BY DEATH from Page 19

supportive people are still going to be and how ON THE BILL: interested and excited they still are,” Turla says. Murder by Death “And the process of making this album was & Amigo the Devil. the most fun I’ve ever had making a record. 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Everybody enjoyed this process so much, it Aug. 27, Ogden was a total joy. We’re in this moment of extreme Theatre, 935 E. relief and gratitude.” Colfax Ave., Denver. To keep things interesting for the band and Tickets are $38-$75 the fans, the Kickstarter for Spell/Bound has changed up some of the backer extras. Gone are the cover requests and private shows, and in their place are some personal offerings. Turla, along with drummer Dagan Thogerson, offered custom wooden frames with MbD posters. Balliet offered up a yearlong subscription to the ceramic mugs and bowls she makes, in limited quantities. MbD is also releasing a comic book as part of the Kickstarter. MbD’s Spooky Tales does double duty as a lyric book for the band’s back catalog, paired with the work of 20 artists who picked the songs they wanted to illustrate. Nine albums in, Turla relishes the challenge of pushing his bandmates Maintaining a niche status and working as an independent band, MbD hasn’t “We’re really just doing this because we want to be creative as long as we’re allowed to do it,” Turla says. “It’s

Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, & Boulder Book Store

think we did a great job on this record of pushing our boundaries.” Every album has been an exploration, constrained by the Spaghetti Western sounds and ghost stories they began

with. Whereas MbD’s last album, The Other Shore concept album about a dying Earth, full of spacy and etheric sounds, Turla calls Spell/Bound “an ode to the sounds of movies and music that we grew up with and a celebration of the dark, the weird and the lovely.” The Kickstarter page name drops Massive Attack and Portishead

Vangelis, alongside 80s Cure and Serge Gainsebourg. Spell/Bound won’t release until July 29, though a preview track, “Never Be,” was released a couple weeks ago. The song channels dark 80s pop balanced against Turla’s At the time this was written, the Kickstarter for Spell/Bound sat close to $375,000, making it the eighth most funded music project on Kickstarter. The with the funding goals already met, the project is on track for release at the end of July. chunk of Spell/Bound written while the band was in the state for the Stanley shows. “It’s been fun to have an exciting place to sneak into,” Turla says. “We spend at least a month every year in Colorado, which is a luxury.” Email comments and questions to editorial@boulderweekly.com. 20

MAY 26, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

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BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Sheila Heti, everybody

An artist and her form

by Emma Athena

Pure Colour besides the author herself. “I just see it as a novel,” Sheila Heti says after waking from a nap in her home in Toronto, Canada—which is exactly how she subtitled the book: A NOVEL. But a novel, she says, “can be so many things. Any account of the world or human experience that draws in the imagination and tells some kind of story, however oblique, is, to me, a novel.” Throughout Pure Colour, stories about loss and its twin tracts of philosophical dialogue. In this version of existence, God is an artist and humans his subjects. “After God created the heavens and the earth, he stood back to contemplate creation, like a painter standing back from the canvas,” Pure Colour opens. “This is the moment we are living in—the moment of God standing back.” When we meet the humans—Mira and her father, and Annie, Mira’s lover—the earth is beginning to heat up “in advance of its destruction by God, who has decided that What unfolds is life in the age of God’s criticism; to collect feedback, God appears in the sky, splits, and manifests as three critics represented by three archetypes: the birds, interested in aesthetics and order, harmony and concerned with the health of the collective rather than the wealth of individuals; and the bears, devoted to singular, deeply affecting loves. Each of these spirits assume their godly duties by inhabiting humans, peering through their senses, taking notes. When two godinfused humans come “It is like turning on a light in a darkened room. We might remember that moment of seeing better than any of the other moments in our lives,” Heti writes; a magnetism appears: “There is a new orientation to life and the self when the eyes of the gods are upon you.” the American Academy of American Critics, where, as students, they contemplate the reasons humans turn to art, if not “to locate within themselves that inward-turning eye, existence—for what is art but the act of infusing matter with the breath of God?” It seems we’re inclined to seek God, to

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

work beside him in the medium of art, because we yearn for how and why the world works—for “God had done pretty well: he had given us for the blank in the heart.” Mira loves art, which is why she’s drawn to criticism, but she also loves her father (a bear spirit), who’s back at home dying while Mira experiences the world with Annie. The tugof-heart-war grows more tense once Mira’s father dies, and grief sets in; discombobulated, swaying between a profound sense of peace and the temptation to abandon life, Mira’s pull toward Annie—toward life in a world that, even God admits, path ahead feel tough to navigate. What to do? and When to do what? are questions Sheila novel, published in 2010, is titled How Should a Person Be? and probes and portrays artists, including narrator-Sheila, as they struggle to answer the titular question. Pure Colour, similarly philosophical in tone, follows Heti’s 2018 book, Motherhood, a polarizing exploration of what is gained and what is lost when a woman becomes a mother. While writing Motherhood, Heti says she began perceiving time differently, feeling “the presence of a larger time frame.” our lifetimes—if you’re 30, you situate yourself between the 30 years you’ve already lived and the rest of your expected lifespan. “But these timeframes are just so small,” she says. “I started thinking about my lifetime as being a continuation of my mother’s lifetime, which was a continuation of her mother’s lifetime, and I began to feel that the soul doesn’t only live in one’s own body, but it lived, or lives, simultaneously in the bodies of one’s ancestors,” she explains. “This makes you feel less like the center of your experience—or experience period—which is a good feeling, and true.” She massages this concept of soul-continuity throughout Pure Colour, reconnecting us humans to a pulsing web of art, history and organisms that spans time, providing reminders to decenter ourselves from certain experiences that we’re tasked with during our time on earth. At one point Mira recalls a stirring art seminar from the Academy that examined “The Apagarus,” a painting by 19thcentury French artist Edouard Manet. “What if some of the spirit that had been Manet traveled through pigs and plants and people until some of it wound up in Mira, and this was why she was drawn to his paintings—because spirits draw their related parts close, like orphans seeking their kin.” It’s a take on reincarnation that, when combined with Heti’s short, rhythmic sentences, harkens the work of German novelist Jenny Erpenbeck, whom Heti calls a genius friend. In Erpenbeck’s 2012 novel The End of Days, the life each attempt. In “Book II’’ (the second life), the unnamed narrator, a young woman in post-World War I Vienna, is also torn between the vacuum of grief and the expulsion of desire: her best friend dies and the now-ex-boyfriend asks her to spend the night, so she follows him, “lying down in the bed of had loved ever since he returned home from war that past December like someone she’d never seen before. What? see HETI Page 24 l

HETI from Page 23

She lies down in the place of her dearest friend, who has been dead only since the morning, 3:20 a.m. The end of a day on which a life has ended is still far from being the end of days.” At the beginning of Pure Colour, Mira is paying her bills working at a highend glass lamp store, tasked at the end of each day with turning off the lamps, a chore requiring 11 tedious minutes of pulling “the chords with a gentle sort of care.” Mira gravitates toward one, the least expensive lamp: “There is no point in loving something that is not a bit within reach,” she considers, reaching for it—suddenly a symbol of the power of perspective, of contextualization. The cheapest lamp becomes Mira’s most luxurious possession. Sitting in its glow, Heti writes, “She loved her meagre little existence, which was entirely her own.” When her father dies, however, existence grows more confusing as his spirit, upon leaving his body, binds to her; the shifting energies demand she been to decades prior with her father. She strips and dives into the water, and is swept up, up, up into the tree, sprouting as a leaf, where she dialogues with her father’s spirit. He advises her in blended conversations that quickly obscure who’s doing the asking and what passes for answers:

“MY BASIC PREMISE IS THAT IN LIFE, YOU LIVE FOREVER, because as soon as you die, you don’t realize you’re dead, so you’re kind of always alive, so the thing is, you shouldn’t worry about yourself. The only ones to worry about are the people you leave behind who might have needed you. Right, like if you have little children or something. But otherwise? I mean, a hundred and

June 23-26

Featuring comics from Late Night and Comedy Central along side local headliners. The festival highlights women and diversity in comedy. Shows are at Tilt, License No. 1, Finkle and Garf, Front Range Brewing, Dairy Arts and Tiki on Main. Tickets at BoulderComedyFestival.com 24

MAY 26, 2022

every day. That’s a huge number, and life goes on. It’s not a big tragedy, so it’s not worth worrying about. Yeah, and I mean, what’s the alternative? Well, there is no alternative. That’s what I’m saying, what’s the alternative?”

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

It’s Annie who eventually pulls Mira out of the leaf, as she comes to sit under the tree, stoking Mira’s desire to return. The comforting sense of smallness that Mira found in the leaf compounds, claustrophobia sets in; Mira bursts from the leaf, leaving her father’s spirit behind, landing more grounded in herself. “In the moment of being stripped,” Heti writes, “a person becomes more clear to themselves.” During the writing of Pure Colour, Heti lost her own father—an experience that seeped into the book that art and literature can play in life. At one point, Mira, reminiscing about a long-ago afternoon, remembers her father’s promise to give her “all sorts of mysterious, rare and marvelous things, including pure colour—not something that was coloured but colour itself!” A jewel-like disk that “turned inwards … for its outside was what it was all the way through.” It’s a familiar sensation, picking any random page in Heti’s novel and feeling her portrayal of the human experience resonate through and through. “None of us can live enough different lives to get our entire worldview from our own experiences, so that’s one role of literature,” Heti says. For religious people, spiritual texts provide natural landing pads for advice on predicaments or sorrows. But where do non-religious people turn? In the wake of her own father’s death, Heti turned to writing and reading, in particular Dostoevsky, as she began to process what came next: the unknown, a life sans a love. The more Heti lives, the more she believes it to be “a real loss” that many of us have no relationship to religious texts. “It’s hard to be a human being because we don’t really have the answers to any of our biggest questions,” she says. “I’m not sure because I’ve never been a religious person, but I imagine that if you have God, or a real connection with religious texts, maybe when you have those periods where there’s a sense of a void in the center of your life, that’s where you turn, and religion feeds you.” In those terms, Pure Colour is, according to Heti, “You don’t need answers to have joy. You don’t need answers to have a sense of connection. You don’t need answers to have peace or creativity, or any of those things. Answers are not necessary for any of that. In fact, answers probably get in the way.” Email the author at eathena@boulderweekly.com.

On the Bill: ‘If Artists Ruled the World’: Sheila Heti in conversation with Vauhini Vara. 7 p.m. Friday, May 27, Holiday Theater, 2644 W. 32nd Ave., Denver, mcadenver.org

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MAY 26, 2022

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E VENTS

EVENTS

‘The Frog Princess’ Theatre Hike

10 a.m. every Saturday and Sunday May 28-June 26, Chautauqua Picnic Shelter, Chautauqua Picnic Area, 900 Baseline Road, Boulder. Tickets: $16-$21 Dating in present times can make you turn green, and the term “dating pool” is just a metaphor, isn’t it? Not when your future spouse is an actual frog who lives in a pond... Most people would be hopping mad at the prospect of marrying an amphibian, but our prince is jumping at the chance to get to know his groovy green gal. Too bad the same can’t be said for his family. Hit the trail for one of the most ribbit-ing tales ever toad.

If your organization is planning an event, please email the editor at crockett@boulderweekly.com

Bard at the Bar! Shakesbeer & Opera on Tap

3-6 p.m. Sunday, May 29, Front Range Brewing Company, 400 West South Boulder Road, Lafayette. Tickets: $15, available on Eventbrite The Inclusion Collective will hold a fundraiser at the Front Range Brewing Company for Isabelle

The SpongeBob Musical

May 27-Sept. 3, 5501 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder. Tickets: $70-$75, bdtstage.com The stakes are higher than ever in this dynamic stage musical, as SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom face the total annihilation of their undersea world. Chaos erupts. Lives hang in the balance. And just when all hope seems lost, a most unexpected hero rises up and takes center stage. The power of optimism really can save the world.

graduate from the University of Northern Colorado with a four year degree. Proceeds raised will support disability services and advocacy for youth with disabilities. The theme of the night will be William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A great event, for a good cause, with lots of fun, great beer and great food.

Author Talk: Rick Reilly—‘So Help Me Golf’

CU Yard Sale

6:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 1, Boulder Bookstore, 1107 Pearl St., Boulder. Tickets: $5, boulderbookstore.net

9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, May 28, Resource Central: Materials Reuse, 6400 Arapahoe Road, Boulder, resourcecentral.org CU Boulder’s Zero Waste team picked up loads of donations from University of Colorado Boulder students on move-out day—more than 12,500 pounds! If you’re in need of organization units, lamps, fans, decorations and more household items, stop by. Proceeds go to supporting conservation programs in the community.

his insatiable curiosity, trademark sense of humor, and vast knowledge of the game in a treasure trove of original pieces about what the game has meant to him and to others. We meet the PGA Tour player who robbed banks by night to pay his motel bills, the golf club maker who takes weekly psychedelic trips, and the caddy who kept his loop even after an 11-year prison stint. We learn how a man on his third heart nearly won the U.S. Open, how a Vietnam POW saved his life playing 18 holes a day in his tiny cell, and about the course that’s absolutely free. Connecting it all is the story of Reilly’s own personal journey through the game, especially as it connects to his tumultuous relationship with his father, and how the two eventually reconciled through golf.

Boulder Creek Festival

10 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday, May 28 and Sunday, May 29; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday, May 30, Downtown Boulder, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Free

The Cultural Caravan June 2022 Festival Kickoff: ZiMbira

5:30 p.m. Friday, June 2, Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: $5 Zimbabwean musician Zivanai Masango brings his

Hosted annually for more than 30 years, Boulder Creek features three days of festivities, including bands and performances; food and beverage, ranging from food trucks to healthy vegetarian eats; a curated marketplace showcasing

back to the Cultural Caravan to kick off the Caravan’s June Festival MainStage series! Come dance at the Boulder Bandshell as Zivanai mingles the traditional sounds and rhythms of his home country with his own original songs.

Creekside for Kids area with family-friendly activities and entertainment.

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

For more event listings, go online at boulderweekly.com/events

MAY 26, 2022

EVENTS

CONCERTS

FRIDAY, MAY 27

Lionel Young-All Star Blues Band. 6 p.m. Caffe Sole, 637R S. Boulder Road, Boulder. $15 suggested cover. SAT. MAY 28

SAT. MAY 28 ROOSTER & TERRAPIN CARE STATION PRESENT: GUTTER TIL I DIE TOUR

JANTSEN

WOLF-E-WOLF, IAM_JACKO, KRUSHENDO FRI. JUN 3

TAYLOR FEST THU. JUN 9

DANIEL NUNNELEE DRUMMING BIRD

105.5 THE COLORADO SOUND & AVERY BREWING PRESENT

BUILT TO SPILL

SUNBATHE, DISTANT FAMILY WED. JUN 8 DAZZLE, KUVO 89.3 & BOULDER WEEKLY PRESENT

TIGRAN HAMASYAN FEAT. ARTHUR HNATEK & EVAN MARIEN THU. JUN 10

UNITE TO FIGHT VI

THU. JUN 16 KGNU, DEADHEAD STORIES, WESTWORD, TERRAPIN CARE STATION & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT

EXTRA GOLD’S “DEAD & COUNTRY” FRI. JUN 17

KBCO, ROOSTER, TERRAPIN & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT: DEAD & CO AFTER PARTY

LET’S GO CRAZY A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE & THE TIME FEAT. CASEY RUSSELL, DJ WILLIAMS, DAN AFRICANO, & MORE SAT. JUN 18

SUN. JUN 12 CHANNEL 93.3, WESTWORD, PARTY GURU PRODUCTIONS & SPIKED SNOWMELT PRESENT

PURITY RING EKKSTACY

THU. JUN 16 KBCO, TERRAPIN CARE STATION, SKA BREWING & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT: A DEAD & CO PRE-PARTY

MELVIN SEALS & JGB FRI. JUN 17

KBCO, ROOSTER, TERRAPIN CARE STATION & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT: DEAD & CO AFTER PARTY

KBCO, TERRAPIN & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT: DEAD & CO AFTER PARTY

PINK TALKING FISH ARE DEAD

TUE. JUN 21

KBCO, TERRAPIN CARE STATION & GRATEFUL WEB PRESENT: DEAD & CO AFTER PARTY

THE JERRY DANCE PARTY FEAT. DJ JERRBROTHER THE STEEL WOODS FRI. JUL 1 88.5 KGNU, WESTWORD & MCDEVITT TACO SUPPLY PRESENT

MOUNTAIN ROSE

SOLSATELLITE, THE GREEN HOUSE BAND SAT. JUL 2 ROOSTER & PARTY GURU PRODUCTIONS PRESENT

THE EXPENDABLES A-MAC & THE HEIGHT, P-NUCKLE FRI. JUL 15

PERFORMING THE MUSIC OF PINK FLOYD, TALKING HEADS, PHISH AND GRATEFUL DEAD SAT. JUN 18

ROSS JAMES & GOO BROS.

FEAT. ADAM MACDOUGALL (CIRCLES AROUND THE SUN, GRATEFUL SHRED), KEITH MOSELEY (STRING CHEESE INCIDENT), JEREMY SALKEN (BIG GIGANTIC)

The River Arkansas. 8:30 p.m. Gold Hill Inn, 401 Main St., Boulder. $15 cash cover charge. Dead Phish Orchestra. 6 p.m. Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: Free

SATURDAY, MAY 28

Paul Kimbiris. Noon. Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: Free Tony Crank & Los Cheesies. 3:30 p.m. Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: Free Daniel Wander. 5 p.m. Gold Hill Inn, 401 Main St., Boulder. $15 cash cover charge. Mestas/Abbot Quartet. 6 p.m. Caffe Sole, 637R S. Boulder Road, Boulder. $15 suggested cover. Foxfeather Music. 7 p.m. Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: Free

THU. JUN 23

TETON GRAVITY RESEARCH: ESPERANTO SAT. JUL 23 105.5 THE COLORADO SOUND PRESENTS

JAMES MCMURTRY

Jake Shimabukuro with the Boulder Phil. 7:30 p.m. Macky Auditorium, 1595 Pleasant St., Boulder. Tickets: $18-$78; Students $10 Samantha Fish with Cary Morin Duo. 7:30 p.m. Chautauqua Auditorium, 198 Morning Glory Drive, Boulder. Tickets: $28-$40

WED. AUG 3

DAB RECORDS PRESENTS

COLORADO’S FINEST UNDERGROUND HIP HOP

FEAT. LANDON WORDSWELL & THE DON AVELAR/MCAD OF FREEDOM MOVEMENT, VOZ-11, INDIGENOUS PEOPLES, OSCIFY, SAV, ROBIN SAMPLES, TMC! & TONE ET SAT. JUL 16

STEELY DEAD FRI. JUL 29 88.5 KGNU PRESENTS: KING OF THE BEACH TOUR

WAVVES

INSIDE AN HOURGLASS TOUR

LOCAL NATIVES THU. AUG 4

Samantha Fish performs at Chautauqua on Saturday, May 28.

105.5 THE COLORADO SOUND PRESENTS

SON VOLT

JACK BROADBENT FRI. AUG 5 88.5 KGNU PRESENTS

LES CLAYPOOL’S BASTARD JAZZ SAT. AUG 13

BOYO, SMUT

50 YEARS OF MUSIC

ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL

FRI. AUG 5

SUN. AUG 14

EIVØR

105.5 THE COLORADO SOUND PRESENTS

BOMBINO

EMILY JANE WHITE THU. AUG 11

WED. AUG 31

88.5 KGNU PRESENTS

LOVING

HIATUS KAIYOTE

SYLVIE

SAT. AUG 13

THE PAMLICO SOUND + THE BURROUGHS

OCT 4 .................................................................................................. RY X OCT 5 ........................................................................................ STEVE VAI OCT 8 ........................................................... HERE COME THE MUMMIES OCT 25 ............................................................................. GRAHAM NASH NOV 8 ...................................................... CHARLES LLOYD OCEAN TRIO

CARD CATALOG

AUG 20............................................................................... THE DISTRICTS OCT 3 ..................................................................................... BLACK MIDI OCT 4 ............................................................................. EARTH + ICEAGE OCT 7 ................................................................. VIAGRA BOYS + SHAME OCT 18 ............................................................................................... FLOR

One On One. 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: $15-$20

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MAY 26, 2022

Ryan Chrys & the Rough Cuts Buckstein. 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: $15-$25 Built To Spill. 8 p.m. Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St., Boulder. Tickets: $25-$30 Jantsen with Wolf-e-Wolf, iAM_Jacko, Krushendo. 9 p.m. Fox Theatre, 1135 13th St., Boulder. Tickets: $20-$25

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

SUNDAY, MAY 29

Hippie Bluegrass Church. 10:30 p.m. eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. Tickets: $15 Little Twist. 11 a.m. The Old Oak Coffeehouse, 136 Second Ave., Unit B, Niwot.

Joe Purdy (above) performs at eTown Hall on Thursday, June 2.

Call 720.253.4710

Strangebyrds. 5 p.m. Gold Hill Inn, 401 Main St., Boulder. $15 cash cover charge.

All credit cards accepted No text messages

Kind Hearted Strangers. 5:30 p.m. Glen Huntington Bandshell, 1212 Canyon Blvd., Boulder. Tickets: Free Big Richard Band. 6 p.m. MainStage Brewing Company, 450 Main St., Lyons. Skanson & Hansen. 7 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: $15-$20 Redhorn. 7 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. Tickets: $10

MONDAY, MAY 30

UPCOMING CONCERTS and EVENTS at DOG HOUSE MUSIC PRESENTS

Mountain Music Festival and Barbeque featuring The Gasoline Lollipops, The Greg Shochet Swing Band, The Rose Valley Thorns. 12:30 p.m. Gold Hill Inn, 401 Main St., Boulder. $25 cash at the door, $18 more for food, half price for kids under 12.

AN EVENING OF ORIGINAL MUSIC BY

TUESDAY, MAY 31

“MOTOWN/DANCE”

FACE “All Vocal Rock.” 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: $15-$25

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1

Bourbon, Blues, & Grooves: Stacey Turpenoff Band. 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: Free

THURSDAY, JUNE 2

Gabriel Santiago Quartet. 6 p.m. Caffe Sole, 637R S. Boulder Road, Boulder. $15 suggested cover.

“COUNTRY/ROCK”

BOURBON, BLUES, & GROOVES

“DANCE” FREE ADMISSION

FREE ADMISSION

“ROCK”

live entertainment, special events, great food and drinks

Joe Purdy. 7 p.m. eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. Tickets: $25 Ragged Union. 7 p.m. Velvet Elk Lounge, 2037 13th St., Boulder. Tickets: $10 Groove ‘N Motion. 7:30 p.m. Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center, 1455 Coal Creek Drive, Unit T, Lafayette. Tickets: Free Michael Franti & Spearhead with Tropidelic. 8 p.m. Fox Theatre, 1135 13th St., Boulder. Tickets: $89.50-$95 BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Nissi’s Entertainment Venue & Event Center 1455 Coal Creek Drive Unit T • Lafayette Get your tickets @ www.nissis.com MAY 26, 2022

Boulder Weekly is now accepting submissions for its

101-word fiction contest Five entries maximum per person with no more than 101 words each. Winning entries will be published in Boulder Weekly in early July.

Please submit entries by June 15 to fiction@boulderweekly.com and include “101 CONTEST” in the subject line.

Introducing

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No Hormones

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Only at Cluck-N-Burger Located in the Spirit Hound parking lot 30

MAY 26, 2022

4196 Ute Hwy, Lyons, CO 80540

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

All eyes on Europe Now playing online, ‘The French’ and ‘Kyiv Frescos’

by Michael J. Casey

P The

French

The French

For more movie reviews, tune into After Image, Fridays at 3 p.m., on KGNU: 88.5 FM and online at kgnu.org.

The

French

Email questions or comments to editorial@boulderweekly.com The French

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Kyiv Frescos

MAY 26, 2022

Marrying meals

Devising a wedding day menu that fits everybody’s dietary desires can be a tasting challenge

by John Lehndorff

t seemed like a simple enough task. You prepare a menu for friends and family to enjoy after the happy couple is wed. However, as a former caterer, I know that deciding what to dish on the big day can tie you in knots.

announced they would be married in Colorado over the Memorial Day weekend, I was overjoyed. Naturally, my thoughts as a father turned to dessert. Would there be cake? Would there be pie? Maybe both? Once the guest list challenge was settled, invitations were extended digitally and family and friends were asked a short question: “Do you have any dietary restrictions or requests?” That’s how I found myself with the happy couple seated at a Lodge in Allenspark. We sampled plate after plate loaded with tasty bites of appetizers, entrees and side dishes, everything from baconwrapped dates and Rocky Mountain oysters to rainbow trout and braised beets. Joining us at the tasting were our personal food preferences and a spreadsheet detailing the dietary needs. We had a few folks coming who were vegetarian, and some who were gluten-free.

MAY 26, 2022

A couple of them were both vegetarian and glutenfree. There was also one vegan and seed/nut allergy request. When it came to proteins, the couple were common request. The chicken dishes were quite nice but didn’t seem special enough. Pork was also nixed because of the spiritual beliefs of one attendee. The venison was simply too odd, and also not that tender. When it came to beef, the decision was that the pot roast was nice, but not for a wedding. As we tasted we were made aware that the menu at the rustic wedding venue is designed to be

TASTING WEDDING CAKES and pies at You Need Pie Estes Park.

JOHN LEHNDORFF

problematic ingredients.

how to please highly diverse taste buds. The plate-after-plate tasting process actually seemed normal to my son and me. I was a Denver dining critic for eight years and he went on a lot of review meals where he had to taste everything on every plate. As the items were tasted and debated, I are the ones who are getting married. Make sure there’s something on this menu that you want to eat.” With two family-style entrees to be served to the assembled family and friends, the couple settled on prime rib with smashed BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

potatoes and horseradish sauce and crispy butternut squash ravioli with brown butter over ratatouille, arugula and Parmesan—the menu item we really loved. However, it won’t be served topped with toasted pinon nuts due to that one guest with a seed and nut allergy. Pumpkin seeds will also be deleted from the salad. For side dishes, it will be mac-n-cheese, simply because the couple loves mac-ncheese along with fried Brussels sprouts with bacon brown sugar glaze. In the end, only a couple of friends will be served special meals. I don’t remember the wedding food being that complicated when Betsy, my former wife and Hans’ mom, and I got hitched at Chautauqua Park 30 years ago. I remember making sure there were meatless options for my younger brother and his family. “We had total freedom to choose a menu. If it was something we loved to eat, then we had it for everybody,” Betsy Lehndorff says. Curiously, there was no pie. “I remember that the food was great,” Betsy says. “There was so much joy in feeding our friends.” My dear friend Andria catered most of the food served at our wedding. “It sure was simple back then. You made a whole lot of one or two dishes, and everyone was happy. If someone didn’t like something, they just didn’t eat it and never made a fuss,” she says. Now, Andria notes, if you serve a buffet you have to post signs listing 100% of the ingredients in each dish: “Potlucks and receptions are now landmines to be carefully navigated through.” After our meal tasting at Wild Basin Lodge, we drove to Estes Park and sampled sugary free-for-all. I’m happy to say they will be cutting a chocolate cake. And pie will a gluten-free blueberry pie. At the event, I will tearily toast the couple and the ancestors that fed us and got us

Hello Boulder! We can’t wait to welcome you through every season ahead. Opt for a cozy indoor dining experience with enhanced cleaning protocols and our air filtration system or enjoy all of your Japango favorites on one of our four heated patios. Prefer to indulge in the comfort of your home? We can do that too with curbside pick up. Hope to see you soon!

Daily 11am-10pm | 303 938 0330 | BoulderJapango.com JapangoRestaurant

JapangoBoulder

My best to all the other families crafting a wedding day menu as memorable as the JOHN LEHNDORFF photos that will capture the moment.

Where are Boulder County’s farm stands?

Boulder County’s backroads are dotted with roadside stands for farms and food makers you don’t see at the larger weekly farmers markets. They produce heirloom varieties of vegetables and fruits plus eggs, honey and other prepared foods. We are assembling a comprehensive guide to local farm stands. Please e-mail information including hours, offerings and a detailed location to: nibbles@boulderweekly.com

Words to Chew On

THE BOULDER LAVENDER roadside farm stand is just one of many that punctuate the county’s back roads.

or even an indulgence, but is in fact fundamental to our humanity.” —Michael Ruhlman John Lehndorff hosts Radio Nibbles Thursdays on KGNU. Listen to podcasts at news.kgnu.org. Email questions or comments to nibbles@boulderweekly.com. BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

Boulder Weekly Market A market for discounts on local dining Up to 25% off purchases New merchants and specials added regularly Check it out so you can start saving!

New Merchants: Cantina Lunada & Whole Sol Blend Bar bestofboulderdeals.kostizi.com Go to website to purchase

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Water for a Month

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MAY 26, 2022

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www.EldoradoSprings.com • 303.604.3000

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Whiskey for the people Copper Sky Distillery proves not every great bottle needs to break the bank

by Matt Maenpaa aking whiskey is a patient trade. Once the spirit goes in the barrel, there’s nothing left to do but wait years for the end result. For a startup distillery, the process can

sourcing spirits from a commercial wholesaler and blending them. Dear readers, you may be surprised to learn that spirits like George Dickel, Bulleit, Templeton and Angel’s Envy are sourced and bottled from private label distilleries like Midwest Grain Products. Sourcing and blending whiskies is a perfectly reasonable choice for distilleries, ensuring some consistency and quality control. Aside from getting a product ready for bottling without having to wait a few years, there are other advantages to sourcing barrels of whiskey, according to Copper Sky Distillery owner Mike Root. Buying barrels wholesale is costeffective, which means the price of a bottle is lower for the consumer. “Basically that’s the premise I started Copper Sky on,” Root says. “I like good whiskey and good people, and not everything needs to cost $100 a bottle.” Root started Copper Sky Distillery a couple years ago, taking over the space formerly occupied by micro-distillery Still Cellars in Longmont. Now the distillery is moving into a brand new space near downtown Longmont, behind the South Main Station apartments built on the remains of the old turkey plant. Copper Sky’s portfolio hews closely to wheated bourbons and whiskies, ranging from 5-year-old bourbons up to a 16-year-old light whiskey. Root says his tastes still veer toward the smooth, sweet notes that

come with wheated whiskies, but adds that he’s warming up to spicier spirits like rye thanks to Copper Sky’s head blender and distiller, Isaac Haefner.

PHOTOS BY MATT MAENPAA

DETAILS:

compliment to each other,” Root says. That balance comes into play when making spirits as well, Root says. The distillery has rum still in the barrel, he says, waiting until it tastes just right. Balance and patience are the watchwords with Copper Sky’s spirits, and thanks to sourcing, Root doesn’t feel pressure to release something before it’s ready. “Even though we’re making our own, we’re still following that same blending track. That’s just one of the pages in the portfolio we’ll always keep,” Root says. “We’ll stay a hybrid distiller, we’re not going to stop sourcing and blending because it’s a fun art for us.” Copper Sky’s former location barely had enough space for stills and fermentation, let alone keeping barrels, so outgrowing the space was only a matter of time. The new space means a bigger tasting room,

Copper Sky Distillery, 110 Emery St., Longmont, 720-204-6064

other cities around the Front Range tried to lure them in, but Copper Sky’s home is Longmont. “This is where we belong, so it’s perfect that we get to take on part of a historical building with the old turkey factory,” Root says. community, he says. The distillery hosts regular

“WE’LL STAY A HYBRID DISTILLER. We’re not going to stop sourcing and blending because it’s a fun art for us.”

—Mike Root, Owner Copper Sky Distillery

Locally owned & operated since 2020

in addition to increased barrel storage and production space to distill and blend spirits.

NOW SERVING BRUNCH SATURDAY & SUNDAY 9am - 3pm

Whiskey and Veterans Community Project to support veterans in need with limited release bottles. Construction is still underway at the new location, Root says, leaving the distillery temporarily without a tasting room. They still have space to blend and bottle, so Boulder County and other areas of the state won’t be bereft of their bottles. Root says he’s hopeful that the space will be up and running before the end of June. Contact the author at mattmaenpaa@gmail.com

HAPPY HOUR DAILY - 4pm-6pm

$1 off Well Drinks, Beer and House Wine

Sunday: Not so crabby Sunday - all you can eat crab legs $48.95 Monday: $10 Stampede Burger/Fries/Drink Tuesday: BOGO Prime Rib Night Wednesday: Wine Down Wednesday 1/2 price bottles under $70 Thursday: Ladies Night $5 Martini’s & Half off Appetizers

NEW HOURS: Monday - Thursday 3PM - 10pm • Friday 3pm - 10pm • Saturday 9am - 10pm • Sunday 9am - 8pm

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

events with the Firehouse Art Center and Longmont Creative District. An Air Force veteran himself, Root also

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BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

by John Lehndorff

JOHN LEHNDORFF

Taste of the Week: Croquetas and Quince

JOHN LEHNDORFF

Another Roadfood Attraction: Polish Comfort

Boulder Recipe Flashback: Citrus-y Chicken

ChrisSar’s Citrus Chicken with Fettuccine

Culinary Calendar: A Day of Chocolate

Manitou Springs Wine Festival Meet the Honeybees Vail Craft Beer Classic Boulder County Chocolate Festival Boulder Taco Fest Boulder Valley Wine Festival

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

MAY 26, 2022

The wrong labels

Cannabis users are being misled by indica, sativa, hybrid labels—new research provides a solution

by Will Brendza

ndica, sativa, hybrid. Walk into any Colorado dispensary and the products on the shelves will

cultivators and retailers are required by law

categories. Sativa cannabis supposedly gives you energetic, active highs, while indicas are relaxing and

Keegan are delving into and parsing.

Or so we’ve been told. But that distinction is deceptive, suggests new

Keegan says that these aren’t the only clusters that are possible, a larger database that was representative across six Plos One it included. they’re about to ingest, those three labels are pretty What they observed could change how cannabis is “We plugged in all this data and cranked it through Keegan hopes this research will change that. clusters would line up with indica, sativa and hybrids. However, when they tried to overlay those categories

Because, as he explains, prior to legal cannabis, no one

research opportunities.

Instead, the three clusters were sorting based on terpene content. caryophyllene and limonene myrcene and pinene the third group was high in terpinolene and myrcene,

MAY 26, 2022

As a result, Keegan says users who go to a

“You think you’re buying one thing, but that could be Email comments and questions to editorial@boulderweekly.com.

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

BY DAN SAVAGE

y laptop died last week. My laptop couldn’t die when I was in the office, with capable tech support people close by. Oh, no. My laptop lost its will to live when I was thousands of miles away, in a country where I don’t speak the language. So, I wasn’t able to access my Savage Love email – which is a problem, since no questions means no column. So, I put out an SOS on Instagram, asking my followers there to send me their quick-and-dirty questions. I wrote my responses on my phone… which I dropped at one point, shattering the screen, BECAUSE OF COURSE I DID. So, my laptop is dead, my phone is broken, and my thumbs are bloodied. But I got this week’s column done with the help of my followers on Instagram. Thanks, gang. —Dan Q: In the mountain climbing community there is a backlash against a route at a particular climbing site that’s named Gangbang. Critics say it refers to a nonconsensual sex act. Your thoughts? A: Missionary position in the absence of consent is not sex, it’s rape; a gangbang with consent is not rape, it’s sex. That said, most representations of gangbangs consensual scenarios with women as the victims, and it’s understandable why

some would want the name of that route changed. So, change it. Q: What do you do when you’ve told someone who is supposed to be a friend to stop making sexual comments but they keep saying sexually charged things? A: You realize this person isn’t a friend and hang out with your actual friends instead. Q: British fag here. (I mean, cis gay guy in his mid-30s in the U.K.) I am living in Germany. My question: You had a British caller living in the USA on the Savage Lovecast a few episodes back and he said his accent alone unbuckled belts there. Is it true? German guys do not States would I be drowning in cock? A: Cock is a solid (ideally), not a liquid (although with a powerful enough blender, anything is possible), so you would be choking on cock over here, not drowning in it. And, yes, a British accent is a plus in the USA—because unlike Europeans, Americans don’t have to put up with mobs of English tourists hopping on with their drunken bachelor/bachelorette parties and puking on our doorsteps. Q: How do I tell my friends and family that

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

I’m poly now? A: Use your words. Q: Best way to tell your hubby his armpits have started to smell? (He’s never needed deodorant before!) A: Use your words! Q: How do I tell my boyfriend nicely that he needs to brush his teeth more often? He’s very sensitive to this kind of feedback, but I don’t want him to have stinky breath in a work meeting! A: USE YOUR WORDS! When my breath stinks or I need to take a shower or use some deodorant, I’m grateful when my partner says something to me—because I’m a grownup. If your partner can’t handle this kind of feedback, you need to ask yourself why you’re wasting your time on someone who isn’t a grownup. Q: I’m a 40-year-old woman. I was sexting with a guy (29) who started sending me nude/sex pics (including face shots) of another woman he had been with, without her consent. He thought it was sexy, but I was repulsed. Teachable moment or trash him? A: If you ghost him, he’s likely to assume the photos he shared (and the massive consent violation they represent) weren’t the issue or even an issue. He needs to know. So, teach, then trash. Q: Can you please explain the difference between transgender and transsexual? A lot of arguments happen online about the semantics of these foundational

MAY 26, 2022

appreciated. Thank you! A: at us so fast these days—to say as hate speech—that there’s no point in attempting to answer this question. Because by the time this column is published, odds are good that whatever I write today will be out of date and/ or a cancelable offense. But so far as I know right now… all transsexual people are transgender but not all transgender people ar transsexual. I hope that clears things up. Q: Do you think we will keep seeing self-labeling in the future? A: In the future everyone will have their own niche sexual orientation for 15 minutes—and their own neo-pronoun rise and the planet will bake and we will be arguing about whether “cake” can be a pronoun as the meteor hurtles toward earth. Q: How much time do bottoms really douche? A: “You can douche all of the bottoms some of the time, and some of the bottoms all of the time, but you can’t douche all of the bottoms all of the time.” —Abraham Lincoln Email questions@savagelove.net Follow Dan on Twitter @FakeDanSavage. Find columns, podcasts, books, merch and more at savage.love.

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Articles inside

Savage Love: Quickies

Events: What to do when there’s nothing to do

Drink: Copper Sky Distillery proves not every great bottle needs to break the bank

City Beat: Boulder set to pilot UBI, moves forward with gun legislation

Anderson Files: Populism: bigoted scapegoating or multiracial progressivism?