Boulder Weekly 4.28.2022 by Boulder Weekly

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New mental health diagnosis raises questions, p. 9

w w w. b o u l d e r w e e k l y. c o m

Mr. Mota takes the Hill by storm, p. 12

April

May

2022

Lafayette loaves feed Afghan refugees, p. 24

news:

New guidelines defining long-term grief as a mental disorder raise questions by Lavina Kalwani

buzz:

Against all odds, Mr. Motagram has captivated Boulder’s college audience by Carter Ferryman

overtones:

Steve Hackett, the esteemed former Genesis guitarist and longtime solo, artist shares a few thoughts by Dave Kirby

nibbles:

Part lawyer, part baker: Lafayette loaves feed resettled Afghan refugees by John Lehndorff

weed between the lines:

States with legal weed see dramatic prescription drug use reduction, suggesting viable alternative to numerous medications by Will Brendza

17 24 30

departments 5 6 15 20 22 23 27 29 31

The Anderson Files: Democracy isn’t corny but essential for equitable and decent society Op-Ed: The houseplant inudustry’s threat to biodiversity Arts & Culture: Caffè Sole delivers music and community Events: What to do when there’s nothing to do Film: Back to the big screen at the TCM Classic Film Festival Astrology: By Rob Brezsny Drink: Savoring growth at Abbott & Wallace Cuisine: Casian Seafood, John’s Restaurant’s Figs with Mascarpone, and a Taste of Summer Savage Love: Quickies

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

APRIL 28, 2022

Top Ten Novel of 2021 by The Bookbag United Kingdom Reviewer Jill Murphy: “Oh, I loved, loved, reading this novel. It’s wild and anarchic. Not a book for the fainthearted, Crosshairs of the Devil is violent, grisly and gruesome but also wonderfully charismatic and utterly compelling.” Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, & Boulder Book Store

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APRIL 28, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

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 April 28, 2022 Volume XXIX, Number 34 Cover photo, Susan France, Floyd’s Barber stylist Monika Tiffany and model Chris Roque 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.

Democracy isn’t corny but essential for equitable & decent society by Dave Anderson

re the Republicans going crazy? They are banning books, criminalizing abortion, attacking public school teachers who talk about racism, passing anti-LGBT laws and indiscriminately accusing opponents of being pedophiles. Broadly speaking, this isn’t terribly popular and these issues aren’t what most people are concerned about. Nevertheless, those issues are vehemently supported by a loud, well-funded and highly organized minority. In this midterm year, the Republicans need to win over moderate voters, but they calculate that many of them might not be paying attention. In a New York Times op-ed in October 2020, political scientists Yanna Krupnikov and John Barry Ryan said that “most Americans—upward of 80% to 85%—follow politics casually or not at all.” Most commentators talk about hopelessly bitter partisan polarization but there is an

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

“enormous gulf ” between political junkies and the politically indifferent. Krupnikov and Ryan note, “For partisans, politics is a morality play, a struggle of good versus evil. But most Americans just see two angry groups of people bickering over issues that may not always seem pressing or important.” On a number of issues, their survey reveals that many Americans don’t fit neatly into partisan camps: “For example, Democrats and Republicans who don’t follow politics closely believe that low hourly wages are one of the most important problems facing the country. But for hard partisans, the issue barely registers.” Activists in the labor movement are aware of this situation. When they organize a workplace, they have to win over workers who have a variety of political viewpoints. see THE ANDERSON FILES Page 6

APRIL 28, 2022

THE ANDERSON FILES from Page 5

Many working people are socially conservative or moderate, and too many voted for Trump (though the most fanatical Trump fans tend to be quite well-off ). During get-out-the-vote campaigns, unions tend to stick to economic “bread and butter” issues. They can talk about racism and sexism but emphasize that bigotry divides worker unity and lowers labor standards for everyone. Veteran labor journalist Steven Greenhouse notes that labor leaders this year are going to be talking about the wonky subject of saving American democracy. Shane Larson, the Communications Workers of America’s director of government affairs, told him: “Just a few years ago, some union leaders would complain, ‘Why are we focusing on these do-good democratic issues?’ They’d say we need to focus exclusively on labor rights and jobs, jobs, jobs. Now no one is complaining about this at all. There’s a real recognition that the entire labor movement has to be involved in this effort, that we have to do something for our democracy or we can lose it.” “January 6 was a real wake-up call,” Larson said. “Part of our effort is to hold accountable a number of insurrectionists running for some of these offices.” Hopefully, the House’s January 6 committee will be holding hearings soon. It’s crucial that Americans realize how close we came to a fascist self-coup by Trump. It’s hard to exaggerate how much the Republican Party has become an anti-democratic juggernaut of voter suppression, gerrymandering and administrative electoral sabotage. A survey by the Brennan Center for Justice found that nearly 8-in-10 local election officials feel that threats against them and their colleagues

have recently increased, and a majority say that they are either very or somewhat concerned about the safety of their fellow administrators. An investigation by Reuters reporters documented a campaign of vicious and terrifying threats by Trump supporters against election officials across the country. Law enforcement took little action. This month, the delegates and attendees at the Colorado GOP assembly and convention demonstrated that they don’t trust the state’s elections or the results of the 2020 elections. Tina Peters, the former Mesa County clerk indicted for election crimes, got the most votes for Secretary of State, and Ron Hanks, state representative for Cañon City, was the frontrunner for the U.S. Senate seat held by Michael Bennet. The party nominees will be determined in the primary. Hanks participated in the “peaceful” January 6 rally and march to the U.S. Capitol. He admits to crossing police barriers. He claims the insurrection was a “false flag” operation by Antifa and Black Lives Matter. He visited Arizona to observe the farcical Cyber Ninjas’ “audit” of the 2020 election. He promoted the Q Anon conspiracy movie The Deep Rig, which makes unfounded claims of election fraud involving hundreds of thousands of fake ballots and hacked voting machines. A party led by such laughable, lying traitors should suffer a crushing defeat at the polls. But Americans can inhabit alternative realities and also choose to ignore politics.

A PARTY LED BY SUCH LAUGHABLE, LYING TRAITORS should suffer a

crushing defeat at the polls.

This opinion column does not necessarily reflect the views of Boulder Weekly. APRIL 28, 2022

The houseplant industry’s threat to biodiversity by Cassandra Sterns

rom the onset of the COVID pandemic, houseplant sales have skyrocketed. Nurseries and greenhouses across the country have struggled to keep up with the demand for succulents, spider plants and bonsai, plus rising demands for rare and one-of-a-kind houseplants. In California, a prized succulent known as a liveforever grows naturally on the coastal cliffs. Unique species of these succulents, such as the Dudleya farinosa, fetch exorbitant prices, incentivizing poachers to dig them up for sale. As journalist Lois Beckett detailed in The Guardian, one of the most infamous succulent poachers, Byungsu Kim, illegally harvested over 3,700 dudleyas from California’s state parks during one excursion. The estimated value of the stolen succulents tallied up to $600,000, but the biodiversity loss caused by removing these plants extends at least 4 million years into the future, according to the educational U.K.-based YouTube channel Nature Bites. “A hillside denuded of dudleya [can easily slough] off into the ocean,” Nick Jensen, conservation project manager at California Native Plant Society, told The Guardian. These collapsing cliffs put “lives, homes, and vital infrastructure at stake,” according l

to reporting in The Atlantic. Poaching in the houseplant industry affects more than just California. In the American and Mexican Chihuahuan Desert—one of the most biologically diverse deserts in the world—landscapers and cacti collectors fuel the cacti smuggling business. In Mexico, the removal of wild cacti is often legal, but transportation across borders often is not, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Famous saguaro cacti, with their charismatic arms, have been dug up and sold, “leading to depletion of some cactus species in the Chihuahuan Desert,” botanist Christopher Robbins told WWF. Desert life like tortoises, deer, lizards, snakes, and coyotes all depend upon the cacti for water, shelter, and food. California and the Chihuahuan Desert represent only a small portion of the illegal plant trade that’s spread all over the world. Rare succulents species from South Africa, carnivorous plants from South Carolina and Australia, medicinally valued orchids from India, and flowering plants such as the Begonia from the Philippines have all been poached to provide for the fast-growing houseplant industry. Each time one of these endangered see OPINION Page 7

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

OPINION from Page 6

plants disappears from nature, it accentuates the loss of biodiversity, negatively impacting our children and grandchildren. “The continuing loss of biodiversity [undermines] our ability for poverty reduction, food and water security, human health, and the overall goal of leaving nobody behind,” UN Biodiversity Chief Robert Watson told Deutsche Welle. The growth of the illegal plant trade and consequently the loss in biodiversity has caused irreversible damage. To start, humans have only analyzed a small fraction of the world’s flora for potential uses. Every time a plant goes extinct, humanity loses the opportunity to uncover new plant-based medicines, or a revolutionary scientific discovery. In addition, the decrease in biodiversity also threatens life by causing disease to spread more rapidly. Luckily, many countries have laws protecting some of these endangered plants, but the enforcement of these laws has proven both tricky and lacking. The opportunity for profit in plant poaching is high, and the repercussions if caught are low (mostly just fines), exacerbating the plant poaching boom over the past few years. Unfortunately, plant biodiversity conservation is not a primary concern for most countries. Some countries, such as Colombia, Venezuela and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, prioritize issues such as social unrest, deforestation (slash and burn), and curbing drug cartels over protecting endangered plants. The demand for these major issues to be solved first is undeniable, but if nothing is done to protect these scarce plants, our descendants will suffer. We are currently living through a mass extinction caused by humanity: “The global extinction rate today is tens to hundreds of times higher than its average over the past 10 million years,“ reports Deutsche Welle. If nothing is done, pandemics will become more common and more deadly, scientific and medicinal knowledge will be lost, and humans will be less prepared to sustain the needs of everyone. You may be wondering if the succulent on your windowsill came from an illegal chain of commerce. The probability is unlikely. Most plants—the ones we buy from local big box stores or local “mom and pop” places—grow in greenhouses. The danger of buying poached plants appears when shopping online, and generally crops up when shopping for

more expensive or rare plants. Some poached plants can be identified by an unevenness of size in a large batch and/or weeds growing in the plant’s pot, but identifying others can be much harder. For example, those poached liveforever succulents from California are sold to high-end nurseries where the plants are pampered for a few years, then sent all over the world to be sold for thousands of dollars, reports The Guardian. For the sake of the world and our future, we need to protect biodiversity

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

by preserving the uncommon and priceless plants all over Earth. Plant poaching is not the largest source of biodiversity loss, but with the growth of the houseplant industry and all the ensuing environmental issues resulting from biodiversity loss, it’s important to take action wherever we can. As a (even potential) consumer of houseplants, it’s important to be aware of where plants are bought and what markets a houseplant purchase is funding. When buying online, ask the seller about where the plant came

from, how it was propagated, and ask for a picture of the mother plant—if the mother plant is not available, illegal methods could be involved. Additionally, seek further education about houseplants: learn to assess how easily they can be propagated or if they’re classified as “rare,” and use that information to make responsible decisions about the plants we buy. This opinion column does not necessarily reflect the views of Boulder Weekly.

Another Tequila Sunrise

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APRIL 28, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Redefining grief

and is marked by symptoms including identity disruption, difficulty moving on with life, and emotional numbness.

New guidelines defining long-term grief as a What PGD means for mental health mental disorder raise questions professionals By Lavina Kalwani

r. Jennifer Matheson knew immediately when the COVID-19 pandemic hit that feelings of anxiety, fear and loneliness would explode. “The fact that social isolating and distancing would be a major disease mitigation strategy told me this would become a grief event in and of itself,” says Matheson, a grief and loss specialist based in Longmont. In March, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) reclassified extended periods of grief as a diagnosable illness: Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD). With this change comes new understandings—and concerns—around grief in the mental health space.

The evolution of grief diagnoses

Treating more extreme forms of grief is not a new concept. For years, mental health professionals have used the term “complicated grief ” to diagnose and structure grief treatment. The Mayo Clinic defines “complicated grief ” as occurring when “the intensity of grief has not decreased in the months after your loved one’s death,” with some mental health professionals using parameters of “intense, persistent and debilitating” grief lasting over a year to determine a diagnosis. Complicated grief, although legitimized through academic research and acceptance by some in the mental health community, was never included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or the DSM, a textbook published by the APA that’s widely accepted as a tool for psychiatrists and mental health professionals to define and classify mental disorders, offering the field a common language and research platform. The fifth edition of the DSM, or the DSM-5, was released in 2013, with revisions, including PGD, published on March 18, 2022. Whether or not a disorder is included in the DSM can influence a patient’s treatment experience; for example, when disorders are in the DSM, clinicians have more pathways to bill insurance companies for treatment. Previous versions of the DSM provided some details about grief—in the DSM-5, “uncomplicated bereavement” is “a normal reaction to the death of a loved one” that comes with its own insurance code, but is specifically excluded as a mental disorder. That’s changed with the latest DSM revision, leaving a largely skeptical mental health professional community to make sense of PGD. The revised DSM reclassifies intense grief as a mental disorder in its own right. PGD can occur when an individual experiences “intense longings for the deceased or preoccupation with thoughts of the deceased,”

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

says adds risks of implicit bias, as it may “prime one to be thinking in a way that’s ‘industry friendly’”— referencing pharmaceutical and medical device industries.

Insurance: a tricky territory

“PGD is the only grief diagnosis in the DSM,” says Matheson, “so it provides a framework for clinicians to diagnose a very specific set of severe, non-normative symptoms after the loss of a significant other.” Each disorder in the DSM is linked to a diagnostic code. While practitioners don’t need a code to provide treatment, insurance companies require these codes to reimburse patients for treatment, possibly guiding a clinician’s treatment plan. Jackie Ashley, a licensed professional counselor, says the new PGD diagnosis won’t impact her practice very much. “It’s just psychoeducation for people. I will let [my patients] know,” but “because I don’t [need to] diagnose [in order to administer treatments], it’s not really going to impact me.” Ashley specializes in equine-facilitated psychotherapy at her Longmont-based practice and shares a sentiment many mental health professionals echo: “There are many things that are diagnosed that are fundamentally basic human experiences, and grief, loss, bereavement, is one of those.” One risk of labeling grief as a disorder is the potential for “misdiagnosis or overdiagnosis of normative grief as PGD,” says Matheson. “Research suggests that roughly 85% of people never need professional intervention for grief,” and mis- or overdiagnosis could lead to an “under-appreciation of the actual diagnosis in the population.” Furthermore, PGD can introduce a label that for some patients can be stigmatizing. “Pathologizing any set of symptoms can carry a risk of [patients] adopting a negative self-perception ... at a time when their sense of self may already be ruptured and distorted.”

To help patients cover treatment costs under DSM-5 codes, some mental health professionals diagnosed patients with depression even if they were struggling primarily with grief. Doing this, however, meant operating under the insurance’s definition of the claimed disorder, limiting patients to insurance-approved treatment modalities. Another option was to forgo insurance entirely, shifting the burden of payment onto the patient. Now insurance carriers may reimburse for PGD treatments, and, in some ways, this further complicates treatment, says Dr. Matthew Jones, a Denver-based licensed psychologist. “Insurance companies request full chart audits and reviews to justify covering mental health services, which is invasive of the patient’s confidentiality and, to be transparent, is often a major hassle for clinicians—as is the extra work of calling to correct rejected claims,” he explains. For non-insured patients, mental health professionals can “[accept] payment on a per-session basis, which may or may not include a diagnosis,” and thus may or may not be covered by insurance anyway, he says. This is in sharp contrast to treatments that go through insurance companies, where steps include “requesting preauthorization for treatment, requiring diagnoses, denying claims, and restricting how long a diagnosis is covered,” Jones adds. The complexity of insurance acceptance may “lead quality therapists to move away from accepting insurance in low-reimbursing states like Colorado,” Jones says. In a recent Twitter thread, Jones claimed that “clinicians with similar credentials and experience in my area make between $50 and $100 more PER HOUR [sic] when clients pay versus when insurance pays.”

The medicalization of grief

What does PGD mean for patients?

One statement found in the 2013 DSM-5’s overview of depressive disorders has drawn much attention over the years: “Bereavement-related depression tends to occur in persons with other vulnerabilities to depressive disorders, and recovery may be facilitated by antidepressant treatment.” Dr. Lisa Cosgrove, professor and faculty fellow at the Applied Ethics Center, University of Massachusetts-Boston, says such a statement “should not have been in there because [the DSM is] a psychiatric taxonomy and not a clinical practice guideline.” In the revised DSM, the first part of this statement is kept nearly verbatim, nixing any suggestion of treatment. In lieu of an explanation, the APA issued a statement saying that the sentence was never intended to be in the volume in the first place. The addition of PGD as a mental disorder may further medicalize grief by ingraining grief treatment into the insurance industry, which Cosgrove l

APRIL 28, 2022

Insurance provides “greater access to mental health coverage in cases where [patients] cannot otherwise afford out of pocket services,” Jones acquiesces. Beyond financial management, patients may see benefits in clinical management as well. Jennifer Key, a licensed clinical social worker in Boulder County, says grief treatment is trending toward more public education, which, overall, benefits society: “Historically, changes in the DSM have resulted in greater awareness for not only providers, but the general public, and with greater awareness comes greater attention to detail in treatment plans and treatment tools.” Key says it could manifest as “people [feeling] more comfortable in owning their grief process and seeking the help they need.” But as lived experiences unfold and the economics of the care industry shift, time will be the ultimate influencer of what it means to grieve . 9

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ELI MILLNER

estled deep in South Boulder is a concrete basement that looks like little more than a graveyard of discarded bric-a-brac: snares and toms, keyboards, a folded ping-pong table, mountain bikes, empty cases of beer and a number of obligatory unidentifiable objects under sheets. But a trail splits the sea of clutter, revealing an additional door deeper in the abyss—a musical lair behind lock and key. Inside, vocalist/keyboardist/ manager Max Lerman pounds angelic chords into a cherry-red Nord Electro 5D. On a two-seater couch to his left, adjacent to a row of four- and six-stringed beauties, sits bushy-haired bassist Ari Lerman (Max’s brother) and eccentric guitarist Willie Vogel. Directly to his right, drummer Brendan Lamb (unrecognizable without his usual attire: a cowboy hat) is perched in front of a lustrous drum kit—his baby. Five-thousand miles east in Barcelona, guitarist and lead vocalist Will Rosenthal sits next to his phone on speaker mode. This room serves as ground zero for Boulder’s leading troubadours of reggaeton/funk/folk/blues/indie fusion: Mr. Motagram. The band started as a five-year-long series of jam sessions between Vogel and the Lerman brothers, and, by the spring of 2021, organically accumulated into the hard-hitting quintet that will be taking the stage at the Fox Theatre on May 5. Once they officially assembled, a name was in order. “The problem with that,” Lerman says with a laugh, “is every name under the sun is taken.” The group recalls some of their ideas: Pastel Lotus? Nope. Stinging Rogers? Nope. “Remember Liquid Chicken?” Ari laughs. Really cool, but still nope. It was Vogel who hit the nail on the head. “My freshman roommate was from Puerto Rico, and I remember he’d always say, ‘Where’s the mota?’ In Latin America, it’s slang for weed. Years later, I had another friend who worked at a paint shop, and he’d tell me about this Latino dude that’d come in—always stoned—and my buddy would say to him every time, ‘Ahhhh, Mr. Mota, you came back.’ When he said that, it clicked for me.” Thus, Mr. Motagram was born. This outfit of early-20-somethings needed less than 12 months to captivate a college audience whose attention seems solely dedicated to EDM songs crammed into 15-second Tik-Toks. Fortunately, Boulder has ample space for both genres. “EDM is so cool, it just has an intense way of drawing you in,” Vogel starts, “but there’s always—I feel like—a level of familiarity between

Band on the Hill

Against all odds, Mr. Motagram has captivated Boulder’s college audience

by Carter Ferryman

APRIL 28, 2022

people our age and a set of drums, a guitar, a bass, some keys and a singer. Boulder students, most of whom love EDM, definitely had exposure to bands like the [Red Hot Chili Peppers], or [Grateful Dead], or Otis Redding.” Lamb points out one of Ari’s bass pedals, an envelope filter, “that right there helps bridge a gap between what we play and EDM. It’s our band’s version of ‘wubs.’ People’s heads turn when they hear it.” Max keeps it short and sweet: “[Mr. Motagram has] worked because [people have] seen us somewhere. We consistently play so many shows all around Boulder.” To this point, just under a year since its inception, Mr. Motagram’s existence has been nothing but live performances—seemingly hundreds of them. No songs on streaming or videos on YouTube—just them and a stage, or a grass plot, or the parking lot facing The Sink on Thirteenth Street. Oddly enough, between studying abroad, COVID and school vacations, you can count on one hand the shows that have featured all five members. In December 2021, the band—save Vogel—played its debut Fox Theater gig for a sea of hundreds of people. The line was quite literally out the door, wrapping beyond the bright white awning and past Ado’s

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Kitchen and Taco Junky, all for a band built largely on word of mouth. “That turnout was unexpected. It was huge,” Lamb says. A couple months later, every member—save Rosenthal—crammed a flock of audience members under the low, raggedy ceilings of Denver’s Larimer Lounge. Again, this was a result tied to word of mouth—and a further extension of the band’s no-holds-barred drive to play as many live shows as humanly possible. “The improvisation at our shows is super appealing,” Ari says. “We haven’t really changed our setlist too much. There are some songs that we’re so tired of playing. But then, like, once we kick it off, we find that freedom to do what we want with the record. There’s not one guy that makes most of the creative decisions either. We all really, really respect each other’s work—what we do on our instruments. It’s that sort of respect that allows us to explore our sonic landscape.” Therein Ari’s statement lies Mr. Motagram’s smoking gun. Despite age and a general carefree regard to musical output, every member is both wildly experienced and mind-numbingly talented. Vogel rattles off his favorite jazz chords like scripture: “major seventh, minor nine, major nine, dominant thirteen...,” he speaks with passion. “We’ve got this one song where it’s D major six but when you put your thumb over it, it’s a D major seven but then still a D major six... then you’ve got a high E which makes it a Lydian Mode....” While abroad, Rosenthal—who released his debut solo album, William, on April 20—spent his spring months metaphorically setting Spanish clubs Jamboree and Marula Café on fire, alongside musicians who didn’t speak a lick of English. Max and Ari Lerman are musically-inclined cowboys; you’d be hard-pressed to name an instrument they couldn’t—or haven’t—broken into, especially saxophone—a deep-rooted family tradition. Lamb is the percussionist backbone for two bands: Mr. Motagram and Civic Duty. In early February, he opened with Mr. Motagram for Shady Oaks. When the set finished, everyone got off stage but Lamb, who slung a strap over his shoulder and returned to his third role as Shady Oak’s bassist. The band’s proclivity for fusion comes from a genre-agnostic list of musical influences, citing everything from rock outfits like Rage Against the Machine and Led Zeppelin, to purveyors of funk like Vulfpeck and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, to glossy psych-rock from Tame Impala and Stick Fingers, and mind-bending jam work from Phish and Goose. Between taste and skill, there’s something for almost any music fan in the band’s output. But if Mr. Motagram’s music doesn’t appease one’s pallet, their personability is sure to. It’s a trait best exemplified on the band’s social media. On Instagram, the group is unabashedly sincere: a collection of high-quality live photography, simple, humorous images (oftentimes featuring the band’s mascot; a threefoot-tall wooden butler statue with Mike Tyson’s face tattoo), and “karate in scenic locations”—courtesy of Ari.

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Considering the band’s role as a group of college-age guys whose music exists in backyards on Tenth Street and Euclid, one could reasonably argue Mr. Motagram is bearing a torch that house-rockers like Big Head Todd and The Samples carried in the early-’90s. But then again: they’re just having fun with it, something patrons are sure to notice at the group’s May 5 show at the Fox Theater—titled “Mr. Mota’s Graduation Party.” “We’re absolutely leveling up,” Max says of the band’s second show at the Fox. “We’ll have so many originals. We’ve got this horn section playing with us. The Knuckle Pups and High Street Joggers Club are performing too—two incredible bands. There are going to be college students, ELI MILLNER

of course, but parents as well. People who took a chance and came to see us last time are coming. Friends, fans, everything.” Max and Ari say a third member of the Lerman family will be joining them on stage come Cinco de Mayo. Their uncle Danny—a renowned jazz saxophone player who’s toured the world—is bringing his skill to the stage. Above all else, what makes Mr. Motagram’s return to the Fox Theater special is the band’s full presence. This will mark the ﬁrst time that all ﬁve members will be together in front of a live audience. They’ve captured hearts and ears, gained the respect of venues from Boulder to Denver, and plan on a summer tour in mountain towns across Colorado. They’ve gained popularity in a streaming era without a second of recorded music on streaming platforms. It’s not far-fetched to say that—in almost one full year on the dot—the Fox Theater on May 5 will be the first “true” Mr. Motagram performance. And as sure as God made green apples, they’re going to blow the roof off that sucker.

APRIL 28, 2022

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PHOTOS BY ADAM PERRY

Last supper club

Caffè Sole delivers music and community

by Adam Perry ON THE BILL: Caffè Sole Jazz Supper Club. Dinner service: 6-9 p.m. Show times: 7-9:30 p.m. 637R S. Broadway, Boulder, caffesole.com

itting outside Caffè Sole in South Boulder recently, owner and manager Suter Du Bose remembered what the west side of Table Mesa Shopping Center was like when he opened Sole as an espresso bar in 1994. “This was a ghost town then,” he said, before motioning to the stunning view of the Flatirons. “But where do you ﬁnd this kind of relationship with the mountains?” Originally from Fort Worth, Texas, Du Bose was a working musician while studying ﬁnance in college, and after focusing on a career as a mortgage broker he decided to open Sole “to create an income stream independent of the bond markets.” Citing the Dakini principle, Du Bose credits his wife as the spark that made Sole happen. “In Tibetan Buddhism, women are the catalysts for new things and brilliant things,” Du Bose—who is a longtime member of the local spiritual community—explains. “That’s actually the consort principle, that things can’t happen, or they can’t manifest, without the feminine principle being the spark of creation.” “I loved coffee and community,” Du Bose says, “and my wife and I were eating dinner in Boulder and across the way was Paul Songer, who was one of the senior guys in the world of coffee. She said, ‘Go talk to Paul about opening an espresso bar.’ I went over and talked to Paul. He worked at Allegro as their executive-level quality control and training person. Paul and I put together a BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

partnership, founded Caffè Sole and it did really well.” Around 2010, the business was declining due to so many good coffee shops opening in Boulder, and Du Bose was at a crossroads. “The top line kept dropping and dropping and I said, ‘We either close it and sell it or we reinvent it.’ We created a wine bar and a kitchen and started bringing in live music, because that is really my primal love. We did a remodel and had kind of the barebones beginning of a jazz supper club. It evolved over time and became a really outstanding jazz supper club.” Jazz and eclectic musicians from Colorado and all over the U.S. and abroad have come to Caffè Sole over the last decade to play for generous tips from the dedicated audience and enjoy the high-quality food and drinks Du Bose provides. “Artists like to be treated with respect and warmth,” Du Bose says, “and people actually give more than the suggested donation if they give based on inspiration. I always say, ‘Give what you can afford, and if you’re inspired to give more, by all means give as much as you can.’” Versatile Sole employee Gabriel Cwern, who is a Naropa student and a local musician, says high-quality musical talent continues to play Sole’s supper club because of the buzz it’s developed in the local music scene, but adds that “the wine and food help. We try to l

APRIL 28, 2022

take care of people.” Virtually everyone who works at Sole is either a musician or a music enthusiast, and a bunch of them— Cwern included—have lobbied Du Bose to book more nights of music and branch out. “I have selfish interests,” Cwern jokes, “but I’d also like to see Sole survive and thrive coming out of the pandemic, and definitely get a younger demographic. I also wanted to get music that I was really passionate about. Really my favorite music is that Colorado blend of country and blues and folk and modern indie, all kind of swooping into one. I’m mostly passionate about live performances with somebody telling a story, and we have in Colorado a glut of really creative artists that blend all my favorite genres together, and we don’t have, in Boulder, a lot of places to support those artists. I feel like if we could build this into a regular spot for people to come and show their chops and be supportive, I think people in Boulder would like it.” Will Thomas, a young Naropa music student and barista at Sole, happened to walk in during my conversation with Cwern and Du Bose on his way back from a rehearsal with a local band. Asked about the staff lobbying Du Bose to expand the music menu, Thomas said, “It wasn’t just about more music—it was, like, have music that reaches a different demographic; do Americana, folk, rock, and get more of a younger, drinking crowd.’” Du Bose has recently hosted more rocking Boulder acts such as Banshee Tree and Clay Rose, and quips, “We did have some pan-generational evenings recently and there wasn’t a food fight, so I think that was good.” “It’s going to take some time,” Du Bose says about his staff’s quest to push the musical and social envelope at Sole. “When you create anything it takes some time. It’s aspirational, and the inspiration was partly because of [Cwern] being a passionate musician, trying to get a younger demographic here. We’ll bring in a new crowd and have some fun with it.” “This is a very musical community,” he adds. “It’s a very musical culture in Boulder. It’s really kind of thrilling in that way.” 15

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LEE MILLWARD

Steve Hackett carries On

The esteemed former Genesis guitarist and longtime solo artist shares a few thoughts about serving a progrock constituency, King Crimson, and Genesis songs that were practically too hard for Genesis to actually play

by Dave Kirby

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hey say that a band can best secure its legacy by knowing when it’s time to go out, even if most of the people saying that aren’t actually in a band and have day jobs and have something worthwhile to do the next day, while their freshly retired musician idols may not. The final curtain call for Genesis came a few weeks ago in London before a packed O2 Arena consisting of aged first-gen prog fans and their younger, pop-era counterparts. Whether or not the last tour, which actually got decent reviews, came one tour too late, a speculation inspired by the sight of a wizened Phil Collins singing from a stool, was a subject of plenty of debate among the faithful, even if the band’s chops were still largely intact and much of their music retained the same punch and crafted arch that had served them well, in different contexts, since the late 1960s. Steve Hackett, who joined the band in 1971 after founding guitarist Anthony Phillips surrendered to unrelenting stage fright, was a central figure in the band’s rise as one of progressive rock’s most successful acts, recording six studio albums and a handful of live albums with them before embark-

APRIL 28, 2022

ing on a fulltime solo ON THE BILL: An career in 1977. For the Evening with Steve pre-mega-hit Genesis Hackett. 8 p.m. Tuescrowd, for whom the day, May 10, Boulder prog years were often Theater, 2032 14th a dimly recognized St., Boulder. Tickets: footnote, the music the $39.50-$69.50 band produced during the Hackett years represents the true canon. We asked Hackett in a brief interview a couple of weeks ago whether he’d had the chance to catch his old band’s swan song tour at all. “I didn’t, I was doing so many shows myself, there never really was a moment when that was possible. One of our [band members] caught COVID at the beginning of our tour, so we had to put the Canadian shows on hold, so we’re doing that at the end of the year now. “I had one night off when I could go and see them in London if I wanted, and I thought, I cannot risk catching COVID myself when we have this see STEVE HACKETT Page 18

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STEVE HACKETT from Page 17

American tour coming up. If one of our number would have gone down… to sit in a crowd, even with a mask and even though I’m triple-vaxxed, I didn’t want anyone else to get electrocuted.” But you would have seen them otherwise? “I would have gone, absolutely, yeah.” If his original band has finally taken their last bow, Hackett surely has not. He has been re-recording and touring much of the Genesis catalog from the early- and mid’70s off and on, since first revisiting it in 1996, all the while maintaining a steady output of solo material. There’s a little irony involved here, of course—Hackett left the band in some frustration that he couldn’t get more of his own contributions on the records, and much of the music that keyboardist Tony Banks delivered was so heavily keys-based, Hackett was finding it increasingly difficult to find his role. Yet, more than 40 years later, Hackett is re-delivering many of those songs live with his own band, in combination with his own material, which more than one observer has noted sounds a lot like what Genesis may have evolved into had they not found and embraced the four-minute, MTV-friendly single. “Well, I think that became an abandoned place for Genesis,” he noted of the prog years. “There was a Genesis audience who liked the classic early stuff, the stuff with Peter Gabriel and the things we did with Phil when we were a four piece. The direction the band took, and it was hugely successful, didn’t serve what had spawned it in the first place. There was a certain reliance on programming and drum machines and all that, and yes, we knew they still had the fire when they wanted to pull it out of the bag. “The difference, I think, is that what you get with the guys I work with, is a band on fire.” Setting aside any old-schooler skepticism about guitarists playing their old band’s material—we’re kind of past that now—Hackett’s band moves aggressively through much of the old material with startling kinetic confidence. Vocalist Nad Sylvan and keyboardist/music director Roger King both nail and expand upon Banks’ and Gabriel/Collins’ presence, and Hackett’s solo material, typically elaborately arranged and forcefully rendered, makes a strong case that, in some ways, Hackett’s band is a more confident and stylistically ambitious live unit than Genesis circa 1973. “Yep. I think there’s confidence, I think there’s virtuosity at work. I don’t think any of it has been diminished with time. I think it’s much more intense, in a good way. Craig Blundell (drums) is on TV in the UK, he’s extraordinary, he’s working with everybody. “[Roger] was originally an organist, then got into film music, and yeah, he gets better all the time. But he’s extraordinary. He’s the only guy I’ve ever met who can transcribe Bach by ear. Very deadpan, very dry humor, very British.” “I’m very, very lucky to have these guys. It’s fortuitus for everyone in the band. l

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Some of it is very demanding music, but it’s also music that has surprises, and I think we’re re-invigorating it, not just revisiting it.” When Hackett last came through several years ago to play the Boulder Theater, we were quite surprised to hear some of the more obscure, and fiendishly difficult Genesis material, poised alongside Hackett’s solo album at the time, the spooky and transcendent Wolflight. “Can-Utility and the Coastliners”? That maddeningly arranged and oddly titled (slyly referencing King Canute, the Dane royal who governed Britain in the early 11th century) nugget from 1972s Foxtrot? “With ‘Can-Utility,’ I ended up writing the song part and doing the lyrics to that. There’s a writer, a lady by the name of Joanne Harris, who wrote the novel Chocolat, and she’s a fan of that track, which I just read recently. That was very nice to hear. But I think we played it two or three times with Genesis and we just gave up, I think it was just too complex. We threw in the towel, but not with these guys. They do a wonderful job with it.” And thankfully, the technology has caught up with some of that early band’s ambitions. The lengthy and decidedly weird narrative tune “Battle of Epping Forest,” from 1973s Selling England By The Pound, was legendarily dropped from the band’s live setlist, forever exiled as a deep cut. Another piece that they just couldn’t get right onstage. “We started playing that one live in the States, and we gave it up. I was using an Echoplex in those days, and I just couldn’t get it to work properly. That was 1973, a long time ago. But we do it now because I know it comes across with some power. But you have to have a band that’s very, very precise to do it properly. There’s a lot of contrapuntal stuff on that one. In those days, the rhythm section, Phil [Collins] and [bassist Mike Rutherford] were doing anything but playing it straight. It was a sort of a 5-to-1 situation. ‘What time signature are these guys playing in?’” But if the delight for Genesis old schoolers is in the old stuff, Hackett’s solo material, especially his last few, are a revelation in and of itself. His latest (which, to be fair, Hackett may not have even mentioned himself had we not brought it up in our 20 minute chat, in an oddly non-self promoting turn) is called Surrender of Silence, and for anyone who may regard the Genesis covers as performative nostalgia, Hackett reveals himself on this record with no restraint as a big statement, big arrangement, big instrument prog soldier of massive ambition. From the ominous “The Devil’s Cathedral” with King’s furious organ vamp opening and Sylvan’s menacingly vocals, to the grand strings-and-choir piece “Natalia,” the world-music shaded “Shanghai to Samarkand” and the touching closer “Esperanza,” featuring Hackett’s deft and under-appreciated nylon string playing, this is progressive rock at its most mature, most gloriously indulgent and meticulous crafted. Hackett is a believer. He never stopped being a believer. “It’s a very intense album. There are some albums I can listen to from beginning to end, but that one, the energy just keeps coming at you. It’s very much a rock record, but with some world music. Tracks like ‘Natalia’ or ‘The Obliterati’, you get that sort of.. is it rock? Is it classical? Is it a heavy metal orchestra? But yeah, I’m very proud of the arrangements.” The Financial Times, which recently ran a sympathetic piece on Genesis’ last show, also featured a piece about how prog rock was having something of a moment with a resurgence of the genre (especially in Europe), and in some ways coinciding with the recently released Toby Amies documentary about King Crimson. It reminded us that we read an odd tidbit about Crimson’s history not long ago that Robert Fripp, pressed by a few musical colleagues to resurrect the band during one of its hiatuses, suggested to someone or other that Steve Hackett should take over as guitarist for the mighty Crim. We asked Hackett if he had ever heard this himself. “Well,” he laughed, “he never actually phoned me up and asked me if I’d replace him in King Crimson. I think at the end of the day, any version of King Crimson without Robert would be, ‘The King is Missing.’ “Unfortunately, my great pal from King Crimson, the brilliantly talented Ian McDonald, just passed away. For me, Ian seemed to embody, if not be the one who invented what we think of as ‘progressive rock.’ I used to see them live, before they made In The Court of the Crimson King; his work was stunning. He could play incredible sax, incredible flute, devastating mellotron. Just to die for.” The heart to Robert’s brain? “Yeah, in some ways I think so. They were a brilliant band when they burst onto the scene, and I think paved the way for Genesis to a large degree. I think we were all fans of that band, who seemed to arrive fully formed. Whereas other bands took longer to really establish themselves. Genesis took its time to evolve, but suddenly there was this big bang called King Crimson.” BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

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E VENTS

EVENTS

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

■ Summer Bike Storage Drive

9 a.m.-5p.m. May 2-5, UMC Bike Shelter and Williams Village Bus Stop, 3300 Baseline Road, Boulder, 303-492-1411 Are you leaving Boulder for the summer but can’t take your bike? The CU Bike Program will store it in a secure, covered location for the entire summer for only $20! Stored bikes will be available for pick-up during the ﬁrst week of Fall 2022 classes. Bikes left locked to outdoor racks are often stolen and abandoned bikes are subject to impound, so take advantage of the CU Bike Program summer storage.

■ Seniors Fish-Off

6:30-10 a.m. Friday, April 29, Wally Toevs Pond at Walden Ponds Wildlife Habitat, 75th St., between Valmont and Jay Roads, Boulder. Free, bouldercounty.org/events The trout have fattened up and are biting! Prizes awarded for heaviest rainbow trout, most experienced (oldest) angler, best fishing hat, and first to catch the limit. Open to seniors 65 years and older. Anglers must sign in—no fishing before 6:30 a.m. Valid 2022 Colorado fishing license required. Live bait and artificial flies/lures permitted—bring your own gear. Wheelchair-accessible fishing pier is available.

■ Pop-Up Cat Cafe with NoCo Cat Cafe

Noon, Saturday, April 30, The Times Collaborative, 338 Main St., Longmont. Tickets: $12 NoCo Cat Cafe is hosting a pop-up cat cafe! Join in from noon-3 p.m. for a relaxing afternoon with adoptable cats and kittens. $12 gets you in the door with light snacks available. You can purchase tickets for a noon or 1 p.m. entrance; space is limited. Drinks available for purchase—enjoy a meowmosa while snuggling a kitten.

■ Firefly Handmade Spring Market

■ Boulder Environmental, Nature, Outdoors Film Festival: Screening of Women’s Adventure Tour

10 a.m.-4 p.m., April 30-May1, 29th Street Mall, 1710 29th St., Boulder. Price: Free, fireflyhandmade.com Firefly artisans will be popping up their tents and creating their mini storefronts in the middle of Twenty Ninth Street at this central Boulder shopping district. As always, Firefly will creatively curate a collective of fabulous returning and new artists, makers and designers. Just in time for Mother’s Day, graduations and other spring celebrations, this will be a spectacular spot to kick off the new market season and gather our wonderful Firefly community again! The weekend features: 80-plus creatively curated artisans, free admission and family-friendly live music, plus pups are welcome.

3 p.m. Saturday, April 30, Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Tickets: $15, boulderenoff.org The Women’s Adventure Film Tour line-up includes seven diverse short ﬁlms in a two-hour program, featuring women of all ages and abilities: There’s Australian Olympic champion Torah Bright, ultra trail-running champion Lucy Bartholomew and more, such as women in climbing, distance swimming and mountain biking. Every year, the selection of unique ﬁlms is carefully chosen to show women achieving their adventure goals. However, being adventurous doesn’t always have to mean being the fastest, going the highest or doing the most extreme things. Adventure for most of us is just stepping outside our comfort zones and climbing our own personal Mount Everest. Each year, Boulder ENOFF strives to showcase unique stories from around the world, with a keen eye toward expanding global awareness of the further need for diversity, equity and inclusion.

■ Boulder Potters Guild Spring Show & Sale

10 a.m-6 p.m., May 5-8, Boulder County Fairgrounds, 9595 Nelson Road, Longmont. Tickets: Free, bouldercounty.org/events Members of the Boulder Potters’ Guild will be showing and selling their recent work at this year’s Spring Show & Sale, just in time for Mother’s Day. The show includes functional, decorative, and sculptural ceramic work as well as jewelry, hand painted silk scarves, and embossed note cards. The show includes daily artist demos.

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

APRIL 28, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

EVENTS

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CONCERTS

RAVEENA, PHOTO BY FURMAAN AHMED

Estate of Jan F. Kreider, aka Jan Frederick Kreider, aka Jan Kreider, aka Dr. Jan Kreider, Deceased. Case Number 2022PR30120. All persons having claims against the above named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to the District Court of Boulder County, Colorado on or before August 15, 2022, or the claims may be forever barred. Macon Cowles, Esq., Attorney for the Personal Representative, 1726 Mapleton Avenue, Boulder, CO 80304

YOLA, PHOTO BY JOSEPH ROSS

★ Friday, April 29

Yola. 8 p.m., Fox Theatre, 1135 13th St., Boulder. Tickets: $30-35 Freddie Gibbs with MIKE, redveil. 9 p.m., Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St., Boulder. Tickets: $22-25 Peter Bradley Adams. 7:30 p.m. Chautauqua Community House, 301 Morning Glory Drive, Boulder. Tickets: $25 Rosalee Walsh. 7 p.m. eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St., Boulder. Tickets: $15 Big Thief. 9 p.m. Mission Ballroom, 4242 Wynkoop St., Denver. Tickets: $35-39

★ Saturday, April 30

Everyone Orchestra with The Green House Band. 8 p.m. Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St., Boulder. Tickets: $22-25 Oh Snap Improv Jazz. 7:30 p.m. The Muse Performance Space, 200 E. South Boulder Road, Lafayette. Tickets: $10 Proph Bella presents Funky Delicious Equinox: The Sun Returns. 10 p.m. Trident Bookseller & Cafe, 940 Pearl St., Boulder. Tickets: $10

LIVE MUSIC FRIDAYS!

ON THE BILL: Yola takes the stage at the Fox Theater on Friday April 29; while Raveena will grace the Larimer Lounge with her Indian-infused R&B on May 4.

Interpol plus special guest Matthew Dear. 7 p.m. Mission Ballroom, 4242 Wynkoop St., Denver. Tickets: $40-75

★ Wednesday, May 4

Records & Tea with Josh. 5 p.m. Trident Bookseller & Cafe, 940 Pearl St., Boulder. Free

Show starts at 7pm NO COVER Happy Hour drink specials 4-6pm Trivia Night Every Wednesday at 7pm Win a $50 bar tab

Raveena. 7 p.m. Larimer Lounge, 2721 Larimer St., Denver. Tickets: $26

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★ Thursday, May 5

Leon Vynehall. 9 p.m. Meow Wolf, 1338 First St., Denver. Tickets: $25

★ Friday, May 6

Pi’erre Bourne. 8 p.m. Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St., Boulder. Tickets: $23.50-27.50 Mat Kearney. 7 p.m. Fillmore Auditorium, 1510 N. Clarkson St., Denver. Tickets: $53-244 Fruit Bats. 9 p.m. Bluebird Theater, 3317 E. Colfax Ave., Denver. Tickets: $25.75-30

★ Tuesday, May 3

Omar Apollo. 8 p.m. Ogden Theatre, 935 E. Colfax Ave., Denver. Tickets: $25-75

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

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

APRIL 28, 2022

All together now

Back to the big screen at the TCM Classic Film Festival

by Michael J. Casey

ost movies are a window you gaze through for two or so voyeuristic hours. Others are a door through which you walk. Jewel Robbery, a 1932 pre-Code comedy, is like falling into a glass of champagne. The black and white photography by Robert Kurrle shimmers, and the gowns—there are many—Kay Francis wears sparkle. Francis plays an Austrian baroness who’s grown bored with her lovers (also many) until she meets the world’s most charming jewel thief, played by the incomparable William Powell. You could say that getting lost in Jewel Robbery is akin ON THE BILL: to living nostalgically. But considering the movie is celebratJewel Robbery ing its 90th anniversary, only those pushing their centenary, turns 90 this year, and with a really sharp memory, could call it nostalgic. For and in the restored the rest of us, including the legions of movie lovers—many version, it’s looking decked to the nines at the 13th annual TCM Classic Film better than ever. Festival in Hollywood, California, last weekend—stepping inside the theater to see Jewel Robbery was a chance to leave the real world behind. I get enough reality from my life, more than one pre-screening introduction started. For my movies, I want a little escape. Ditto for those who saw Jewel Robbery on its initial run 90 years ago. Released during the height of the Great Depression—unemployment was at 23% in ’32—the lavish opulence of Jewel Robbery did not engender an “eat the rich” response from the unemployed and unhoused in the audience, but a chance at fantasy: A bit of cotton candy in the middle of a dust storm. And there was plenty of candy to go around at this year’s fest—the first in-person TCMFF since COVID sank its spiky teeth into all things communal. From Burt Lancaster in floppy hair and green tights swashbuckling and tumbling his way through The Flame and the Arrow (1950) to Doris Day singing and fighting for a seven-and-a-halfcent raise in The Pajama Game (1957)—when was the last time you watched a musical about labor unions? Then there was the hard stuff: I, the Jury (1953), a low-budget noir featuring crime novelist Mickey Spillane’s snub-nosed private eye, Mike Hammer (Biff Elliot). Practically forgotten for 70 years, I, the Jury is far from a masterpiece, but is one of the few black and white noirs filmed in 3D, lensed by the master of light and shadow, John Alton. And thanks to advancements in 3D projection, the restoration of I, the Jury probably looks sharper today than in ’53. Restoration premieres are always plentiful at TCMFF, but this year’s lineup featured an amazing array of the work being done to preserve and restore our cinematic heritage. From a new 4K HDR and audio restoration of the sweeping western epic Giant (1956) to the photochemical restoration of the comical heist film Toptaki (1964). But one of the best discoveries at this year’s festival was also a restoration in progress: 1966’s A Man Called Adam, an under-seen, socially conscious drama about an alcoholic and self-destructive jazz trumpeter played with queasy uncertainty by Sammy Davis Jr. The musical interludes are great—no surprise there—but so is Jack Priestley’s stark cinematography in this unrelenting insiders’ look at the music industry, ruled by marginalization and racism both on stage and off. And if that wasn’t enough, Louis Armstrong plays the premonition of Johnson’s future, should he be so lucky, while his love interest (Cicely Tyson) reflects the coming civil rights movement. A Man Called Adam is great. They’re all great, each in their own way. Jewel Robbery is for leaving your troubles at the door, while A Man Called Adam reminds you that those troubles are here to stay. Thank god we have the movies. Life would be so much less tolerable without them.

APRIL 28, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

Stressed Out? Think Massage!

BY ROB BREZSNY

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ARIES

LIBRA

busy. I am practicing my new hobby of watching me become someone else. There is so much violence in reconstruction. Every minute is grisly, but I have to participate. I am building what I cannot break.” I wouldn’t describe your own reconstruction process during recent months as “violent” or “grisly,” Aries, but it has been strenuous and demanding. The good news is that you have mostly completed the most demanding work. Soon the process will become more fun. Congratulations on creating an unbreakable new version of yourself!

tender approach to expressing her struggles with addiction, depression, and other tribulations. One of her supreme tests was being a single mother who raised her son Sam. In this effort, she was her usual plucky self. Anytime she hosted playdates with Sam’s young friends at her home, she called on the help of crayons and paint and pens and clay and scissors. “When we did art with the kids, the demons would lie down,” she testified. I recommend a comparable strategy for you in the coming days, Libra. You will have extra power as you tame, calm, or transform your demons. Making art could be effective, as well as any task that spurs your creativity and imagination.

MARCH 21-APRIL 19: Poet Jennifer Willoughby writes, “I am so

TAURUS

APRIL 20-MAY 20: Rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z tells us,

“Don’t ever go with the flow. Instead, be the flow.” Here’s what I think he means: If we go with the flow, we adjust and accommodate ourselves to a force that is not necessarily aligned with our personal inclinations and needs. To go with the flow implies we are surrendering our autonomy. To claim our full sovereignty, on the other hand, we are wise to be the flow. We should create our own flow, which is just right for our unique inclinations and needs. I think this is the right approach for you right now, Taurus. Be the flow.

GEMINI

MAY 21-JUNE 20: The Italian language used to be a dialect

spoken in Tuscany. That area comprises less than eight percent of the country’s territory. How did such a dramatic evolution happen? Why did a local dialect supersede other dialects like Piedmontese, Neapolitan, Sicilian and others? In part, it was because three potent 14th-century writers wrote in the Tuscan dialect: Dante Alighieri, Francesco Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio. Another reason: Because Tuscany is centrally located in Italy, its dialect was less influenced by languages in France and other nearby countries. I offer this as a metaphor for you in the coming months. One of your personal talents, affiliations or inclinations could become more influential and widespread—and have more authority in your life.

CANCER

JUNE 21-JULY 22: “Always strive to be more interested than interesting,” said actor and activist Jane Fonda. That may not be easy for you to accomplish in the near future, dear Cancerian. Your curiosity will be at peak levels, but you may also be extra compelling and captivating. So I’ll amend Fonda’s advice: Give yourself permission to be both as interested and as interesting as you can imagine. Entertain the world with your lively personality as you go in quest of new information, fresh perceptions and unprecedented experiences.

LEO

JULY 23-AUG. 22: “When in doubt, act like God,” proclaimed Leo singer-songwriter Madonna. I wouldn’t usually endorse that advice. But I’ll make an exception for you Leos during the next three weeks. Due to a divine configuration of astrological omens, you are authorized to ascend to new heights of sovereignty and self-possession—even to the point of doing a vivid God impersonation. For best results, don’t choose an angry, jealous, tyrannical deity to be your role model. Pattern yourself after a sweeter, funnier, more intimate type of celestial being.

VIRGO

AUG. 23-SEPT. 22: My Virgo friend Amanda told me she felt tight and overwrought. She was overthinking and on the verge of a meltdown. With a rueful sigh, she added, “I adore anything that helps me decompress, unwind, simmer down, stop worrying, lighten up, compose myself and mellow out.” So I invited her to take deep breaths, close her eyes, and visualize herself immersed in blue-green light. Then I asked her to name influences she loved: people, animals, natural places, music, books, films, art and physical movements that made her feel happy to be alive. She came up with eight different sources of bliss, and together we meditated on them. Half an hour later, she was as relaxed as she had been in months. I recommend you try a comparable exercise every day for the next 14 days. Be proactive about cultivating tranquil delight.

SEPT. 23-OCT. 22: Author Anne Lamott is renowned for her

SCORPIO

OCT. 23-NOV. 21: “My heart has developed a kind of amnesia,

where it remembers everything but itself,” writes Scorpio poet Sabrina Benaim. If you suffer a condition that resembles hers, it’s about to change. According to my astrological analysis, your heart will soon not only remember everything; it will also remember itself. What a blissful homecoming that will be—although it may also be unruly and confounding, at least in the beginning. But after the initial surprise calms down, you will celebrate a dramatic enhancement of emotionally rich self-knowledge. You will feel united with the source of your longing to love and be loved.

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SAGITTARIUS

NOV. 22-DEC. 21: “Just because things hadn’t gone the way I

had planned didn’t necessarily mean they had gone wrong,” writes Sagittarian author Ann Patchett. Her thought may be helpful for you to meditate on. My guess is that you will ultimately be glad that things didn’t go the way you planned. God or your Higher Self or the Mysterious Forces of Destiny will conspire to lead you away from limited expectations or not-big-enough visions so as to offer you bigger and better blessings.

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CAPRICORN

DEC. 22-JAN. 19: Novelist Jane Austen (1775–1817) confessed she was a “wild beast.” Really? The author who wrote masterfully about the complex social lives of wealthy British people? Here’s my theory: The wild beast in her made her original, unsentimental, humorous, and brilliant in creating her stories. How is your own inner wild beast, Capricorn? According to my reading of the astrological omens, now is an excellent time to give it fun, rich assignments. What parts of your life would benefit from tapping into raw, primal energy?

AQUARIUS

JAN. 20-FEB. 18: Aquarian poet Jack Gilbert wrote, “I lie in the dark wondering if this quiet in me now is a beginning or an end.” I don’t know how Gilbert solved his dilemma. But I suspect you will soon be inclined to pose a similar question. In your case, the answer will be that the quiet in you is a beginning. Ah! But in the early going, it may not resemble a beginning. You might be puzzled by its fuzzy, meandering quality. But sooner or later, the quiet in you will become fertile and inspirational. You will ride it to the next chapter of your life story.

PISCES

FEB. 19-MARCH 20: The genre of poetry known as haiku

often relies on unexpected juxtapositions. Critic R. H. Blyth observed, “In haiku, the two entirely different things that are joined in sameness are poetry and sensation, spirit and matter.” I suspect your life in the coming weeks will have metaphorical resemblances to haikus. You will be skilled at blending elements that aren’t often combined, or that should be blended but haven’t been. For inspiration, read these haikus by Raymond Roseliep. 1. in the stream / stones making half / the music. 2. horizon / wild swan drifting through / the woman’s body. 3. birthcry! / the stars / are all in place. 4. bathwater / down the drain / some of me. 5. grass / holding the shape / of our night. 6. campfire extinguished, / the woman washing dishes / in a pan of stars.

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

APRIL 28, 2022

GREGOR MACGREGOR

A slice of home Part lawyer, part baker: Lafayette loaves feed resettled Afghan refugees

by John Lehndorff TOP: Louisville-based Vulcan Mine bakery prepares regional breads for refugee families who have resettled in Boulder County. INSET: Cousins Waris Yousiﬁ and Yousof Kohistani were resettled in Colorado after being injured in a bombing at Kabul Airport.

or cousins Waris Yousifi, 23, and Yousof Kohistani, 25, the Afghani flatbread noni is not optional at meals. “It’s compulsory. You must have this in the morning,” says Kohistani, noting the central role bread has in Afghan meals. “You eat with your hands using bread a lot of the time,” Yousifi adds, recalling the curry and rice dinners they’d eat with extended family at their home near Kabul. Kohistani says his hometown was famous for producing big, juicy pomegranates. We are sitting around a dinner table in the Broomfield home of their co-sponsors, Scott and Heidi Henkel—part of a group helping the cousins and dozens of other refugees settle in Colorado. It’s early evening during Ramadan, and Yousifi and Kohistani, both Muslims, haven’t eaten since dawn. They are happy to nibble on the seeded Afghani-style flatbread, herbed artisan bread and raspberry coffee cake brought along by Gregor MacGregor, of Lafayette’s Vulcan Mine Bakery. In August of last year, the cousins were in Kabul Airport trying to get relatives through the gates to escape the danger in Afghanistan when a suicide bomb went off. “There was blood everywhere,” Yousifi says. Both were injured—Kohistani extensively, due to bomb shrapnel in his brain. Both were evacuated by U.S. forces and spent three months at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, during Kohistani’s recovery. They then arrived in Colorado. “Afghanistan has lived through more than 50 years of war. It’s like a bad disaster movie. We aren’t celebrating that we are here. Our families and friends are still there. I just want to help my family and give them hope,” Yousifi says. The cousins are both twins whose siblings live elsewhere in the world. They had been studying in India, Yousifi earning a degree in business and Kohistani was working on an IT and programming degree. They are looking for jobs, an apartment and a restaurant that serves authentic Afghan cuisine.

APRIL 28, 2022

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

That said, they smile and admit a certain affection for Taco Bell, In-N-Out Burger and KFC. If you rewind the clock two years, Boulder-born Gregor MacGregor says that baking bread for refugee families was not exactly something he’d placed on his to-do list. He is a water law attorney who teaches at the University of Colorado Law School and has a pro-bono project at CU aiding Hispanic farmers with water rights’ legal problems. But in October 2020, he added another section to his resume upon launching Vulcan Mine Bakery in the Lafayette home he shares with his wife and two kids. “I thought it would be a fun way to pass the time during COVID. I thought: ‘I can make doughnuts with the kids,’” MacGregor says. Soon, neighbors started asking for bread. “It grew and grew until I was making 200 doughnuts and baking dozens of loaves a week with 18-hour baking days,” MacGregor says. He started looking for ways to give away food. “After the fires in 2020, I got bread to the firefighters. After Afghanistan fell, I started reaching out to see if I could help. Now, I get to sit down with families KELLY MACGREGOR and have tea and talk. For me it was just: ‘Here’s some bread. Welcome to town,’” he says. Vulcan Mine Bakery is one of the many examples of a pandemic-born food hobby that turned into a business and a community resource. MacGregor mills his own grain into flour to bake round, long-fermented, white, herb and whole wheat boules, as well as doughnuts and coffee cakes. “We also have pizzelle cookies whenever my daughter wants to make them,” MacGregor says. Customers order online for his regular “bake days” and they pick it up in the colorfully painted bakery cabinet in front of his Lafayette home next to the family’s Little Library. “Baking bread is so tactile. You get to make this thing from start to finish and feel it becoming alive. My boules crackle when I take them out of the oven,” he says. For MacGregor, baking is not something he does to make a living, although he does try not to lose money. “I do it as a creative outlet and to make people happy. When you arrive with bread, people always smile. That’s not always the case when you show up as a lawyer,” he says. To contribute to the fund supporting the resettlement of Yousef and Waris: gofund.me/bb6296b3 To order Vulcan Mine Bakery bread: vulcanminebakery.com

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!

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GRADUATION PARTIES

Local Food News

CONGRATS GRADUATES OF 2022!

The May 5, 2022, Nibbles column will be devoted to upcoming local summer food and drink events, tastings, classes, markets and festivals. Send info asap to: nibbles@boulderweekly.com. … Busaba has opened a sister restaurant of the same name as its popular Louisville Thai eatery at 4800 Baseline Road, Boulder. … Erie Social Club, a bar and eatery, is open at 105 Wells St., Suite 120, Erie. … The folks at the Estes Park cafe You Need Pie! have opened The Daily Donut at 865 Moraine Ave., Estes Park. … Coming attractions: Urban Field Pizza and Market, 150 Main St., Suite 202, Longmont; Curtis Park Deli, 3000 Pearl Parkway, Boulder.

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APRIL 28, 2022

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Savoring growth at Abbott & Wallace by Matt Maenpaa

ocktail menus can be a challenge for craft distilleries. There needs to be a balance between something delicious to entice customers through the doors of the tasting room and unique enough to stick in a drunken memory, with enough variation to appeal to as many tastes as possible, while also helping do the work of selling a few bottles. As Abbott & Wallace Distilling in Longmont, also known as Longtucky Spirits in some circles, rolls out its spring cocktail menu, truly unique offerings are interspersed with enough classics to tease anyone’s palate. With multiple fat-washed spirits, milk-clarified cocktails and some clever twists on classics, it’s clear that bar manager Chase Riley and the rest of the staff have put a lot of love into the bar menu. Riley helped develop cocktails for previous seasonal menus at the distillery, he says, but this is the first where he took on the majority of the recipe development. Coming from life as a professional chef, Riley says he’s applied some of those philosophies to the art of the cocktail. “A huge part of it is learning flavors and how they go together, so I’ve been enjoying doing that with alcohol and seeing what plays together,” he says. Riley’s culinary background stands out with the ginbased Caprese Martini, a savory offering that is both a challenge and a delight. A splash of fire-roasted tomato

juice adds some body to the spirit-forward martini without turning it into a bloody mary, and cracked pepper offers some sharpness to bring things into balance. A garnish of mozzarella, balsamic reduction and basil is well-placed, a counterpoint to olives as a booze-soaked snack at the end of the drink. Abbott & Wallace gin was washed with olive oil for the cocktail—a relatively MATT MAENPAA simple technique involving emulsifying gin and olive oil then using freezing temperatures to separate the fat from the alcohol—resulting in a smooth mouthfeel and a richness of flavor that brings the botanical qualities of the gin to the forefront over juniper. It’s worth sampling on its own if you’re a gin drinker or have a strong appetite for the curious. “I think the caprese is my favorite because it’s so savory,” Riley says. “That’s one thing I’m really trying to lean into more, savory cocktails. You don’t see them very often outside of dry martinis or Gibsons.” On the sweeter side, the Blueberry Pie tastes just like the name says. A sweetened play on a whiskey sour, the pie in a glass combines cinnamon whiskey, clarified butter, blueberry and egg white for a cocktail that very subtly masks any taste of alcohol. A vibrant color and perfectly creamy texture should make this a perfect choice for your friend that doesn’t like cocktails. Riley also continues to play with milk clarification on

the menu, replacing last season’s clarified milk Mai Thai with the Dragon of the West, a pleasant mix of green tea, lemon and gin. Milk clarification is a process of using acidic ingredients to separate the solids and particulates from milk. When used in cocktails, it acts as both a filter and preservative while producing a clear libation. Riley says the added benefit of milk-clarifying a cocktail with tea is that it removes the more bitter and astringent qualities. “The milk in it gives it a really nice, creamy texture you won’t get anywhere else, but it’s still pretty light,” Riley says. “It’s a great way to make new flavors.” Abbott & Wallace is also getting ready for the return of the Kentucky Derby, distillery co-owner John Young says. Derby Day has become an annual tradition for the distillery, honoring the roots of bourbon-making. The celebration on May 7 will be full of big hats and “pony” races, while the Longtucky Juleps flow. Keeping Derby season going a little longer, Young said the distillery will also bring the Julep back to their canned cocktail offerings as well. The growth in the tasting room has been a slow and steady process, Young says, but some big changes are on the horizon as Abbott & Wallace nears its fifth anniversary. Olive-oil washed martinis aren’t the only savory flavor—Young is waiting on the final paperwork to expand into a distillery pub. The change won’t have any immediate effect on their spirits production or distribution, he says, but does allow them to start serving beer, wine and food. The soft launch of the new food offerings is aimed for mid-May, Young says, with a full launch of the menu and a re-grand-opening slated for June. The distillery won’t be building out a full kitchen just yet, he explains, though it could be an option for the future. The idea is to partner with other local purveyors for the meals, continuing to support the community that has shown them so much love already. “We’re still focused on the libations, but we’re hoping to have more substantial food options for people who want it and hopefully people stick around for another round,” Young says.

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by JOHN LEHNDORFF

Casian Seafood

any great tastes come to mind when we think of Asian cuisine, but sausage is seldom one of them. Over the years I’ve sampled some lap cheong, the thin Chinese preserved sausages, but almost all were packaged and imported from China. I raised my eyebrows when I read that Lafayette’s Casian Seafood restaurant had scratch-made artisan sausage on a unique menu featuring Hmong dishes from Laos, and Cajun favorites from Louisiana. One taste and I was wowed—these sausages are like an Asian flavor fest captured inside a big grilled bratwurst. The kitchen grinds juicy pork belly with fresh ginger, lemongrass and zesty Thai chili peppers for a legit mouthwatering experience. It was served with a fiery dipping sauce made with fish sauce, plus sides of sticky rice and house-made kimchi. We also sampled a bowl of true-to-its-form seafood and sausage jambalaya and a refreshing lettuce-wrapped fusion of shrimp ceviche and larb, the popular Southeast Asian salad. Owners Dau Xiong and Maria Nguyen also serve shrimp and seafood boils, fried oysters, Cajun fried rice, Cornish game hens, papaya salad with fried pork skin, banh mi and fried-fish po’boy sandwiches. The food has intrigued so many diners since the restaurant opened in Lafayette that it received a semi-finalist nomination for the 2022 James Beard Awards.

Culinary Calendar: Taste of Summer

Boulder Recipe Flashback: John’s Restaurant

n the Glenn Miller Ballroom in CU’s UMC building, Boulder’s culinary community gathers annually for the Taste of the Nation, a walk-around restaurant sampling event that benefits local hunger relief organizations like Community Food Share, and the national efforts of Share Our Strength. In 1995, a group of volunteers created the Taste of Boulder Cookbook featuring recipes from favorite local restaurants. Chef John Bizzarro of the much-loved John’s Restaurant (now the site of River and Woods) contributed the following recipe. John’s Figs with Mascarpone, Almonds and Port About 16 large almonds (regular or Marcona) 8 fresh ripe figs (4 whole, 4 quartered) 8 ounces mascarpone cheese 6 teaspoons (approx.) powdered sugar 6 ounces port wine Toast almonds in a skillet or oven. Score the four whole figs by cutting an “X” in the top, three quarters of the way down, and separate the sections so they look like flower petals. Stir powdered sugar and two ounces Port into mascarpone. Spoon mascarpone (in a dome shape) into four bowls. Place four almonds in the middle of each flower. Arrange fig quarters around the edge. Spoon one ounce of Port over each dessert. Serves four.

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

ine out on April 28, 2022 for Dining Out For Life at participating restaurants that include Santo, Blackbelly, Avery Brewing and The Post—all of which will be donating 25% of the day’s sales to Project Angel Heart, an organization providing medically tailored meals to Coloradans living with life-threatening illness. diningoutforlife.com … The Denver Botanic Gardens has reopened its authentic Japanese Tea House for tea ceremony experiences on weekends from June to September. https://bit.ly/3iH3A0H … Plan ahead: Botanica — A Festival of Plants is June 18 and 19 at Lafayette’s Three Leaf Farm. botanicafestival.com … Slow Food’s summer food on the farm gathering with tours, burgers and a campﬁre is June 25 at Longmont’s Community Table Farm. slowfoodboulder.org … Eagle Mushroom & Wild Food Festival, Aug. 5-7, with classes, forays and food. eaglemushroomfest.com

APRIL 28, 2022

The alt-green pharmacy

would be between $1.4 and $1.7 billion annually. “So our prior going into this was that we would see similar reductions in states with [RCL].” Raman says of the study he and Bradford published this April, titled “Recreational cannabis legalizations associated with reduction in prescription drug utilization among Medicaid Enrollees.” For the study they looked at Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data (SDUD), examining 1,834 observations across all 50 U.S. states and D.C. from 2011 to 2019. They then compared the rates of prescription drug use in prohibition states to the 11 states that have legalized RCL: Alaska, Colorado, California, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, Washington state and D.C. The results conﬁrmed their hypothesis, according to Raman. They found “signiﬁcant reductions in the volume of prescriptions within the drug classes that align with the medical indications for pain, depression, anxiety, sleep, psychosis and seizures,” the study says. RCL appeared to correlate with an 11% decrease in prescriptions for depression medications, a 12% reduction in anxiety medication prescriptions, 8% reduction in pain medication prescriptions, 10% reduction for seizure medication prescriptions, and 11% reduction in prescriptions for both psychosis and sleep medications. Raman and Bradford aren’t the only researchers to make observations like these. Another study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons in 2021 looked at how state cannabis laws affected opioid prescriptions by orthopedic surgeons

States with legal weed see dramatic reductions in prescription drug use, suggesting it’s a viable alternative to numerous medications

by Will Brendza

n 2017, Medicaid paid $29.1 billion for prescription drugs—amounting to 5.1% of total Medicaid costs that year. And according to the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC), prescription drugs are expected to see one of the largest growth rates in annual spending among any health care goods or services over the next decade. That’s an expensive burden for a federal program that uses taxpayer money. And while politicians in Washington argue over healthcare spending policies and how to cut costs while still providing federal aid and services, new research published in Health Economics suggests there is at least one very accessible, very achievable way to bring those Medicaid prescription drug costs down. And (you guessed it) it has to do with cannabis legalization. Shyam Raman is a researcher and public health economist at Cornell University. He recently co-authored a paper with Ashley Bradford, who studies public policy at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, in which they examined how recreational cannabis laws (RCL) affected rates of prescription drug use among Medicaid enrollees. The study was based on previous research conducted by Bradford that found states with medical cannabis laws (MCL) saw significant reductions in Medicaid prescription rates. Her 2018 study concluded that if every state adopted MCL, the programmatic savings

APRIL 28, 2022

in those states. That study found that states with legal medical cannabis saw a full 20% decrease in opioid prescribing. A third study, published in the Journal of Health Economics, analyzed a dataset of over 1.5 billion opioid prescriptions between 2011 and 2018. That paper concludes that recreational cannabis access laws were associated with an 11.2% reduction in those drug prescriptions, and medical cannabis was associated with a 4.2% reduction. “[These] results have important implications,” Raman and Bradford’s discussion section notes. “The reductions in drug utilization that we ﬁnd provide information about potential cost savings for state medicaid programs.” Raman suggests that recreational cannabis legalization could bring down Medicaid’s $29.1 billion prescription bill. That equates to less taxpayer money spent on opioids, antidepressants, epilepsy medications and other prescriptions, which could bring Medicare premiums down across the board. “Our results also indicate potential harm reduction [opportunities], as pharmaceutical drugs often come with dangerous side-effects or—as with opioids—potential for misuse,” the discussion section continues. That is particularly useful for a country that is still in the midst of an opioid crisis. Just in 2021 there were 100,306 overdose deaths in the U.S.—28.5% higher than in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Recreational cannabis offers people a non-addictive natural alternative to those drugs. One that people are actively using despite the fact it isn’t covered by any health insurance plans, Raman points out. In the end, their results just raise a host of new questions necessitating more research, he says. Like quantitatively, how effective is cannabis as an alternative to these other meds? Why is it such a universal substitute across different classes of prescription drugs? And could cannabis help curb a national opioid crisis? For scientists like Raman and Bradford, those are all exciting new studies to pursue. But, they’re also studies that can’t be done until federal prohibition comes to an end. Until that happens, there’s really no way for researchers to get into the weeds of those deeper questions.

BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

BY DAN SAVAGE

is kind of playing with my head so I can’t just relax and enjoy myself when topping. Should I just accept that topping isn’t for me? —Subpar Orgasms From Topping

Dear Dan: I’m a heavy sleeper, and my wife knows that, but not so heavy that I don’t wake up when she Dear SOFT: You could accept that periodically masturbates next to me topping isn’t for you and swear off and has the bed shaking pretty hard. topping forever... but that seems a little She doesn’t know this wakes me. How dramatic, SOFT, and a whole lot drastic. do I handle this? Do I offer a hand (or How about accepting this instead: while a dick) the next time? Talk to her when you prefer bottoming to topping and she’s not having her moment and ask your orgasms are better when you botif she feels like our sex life is lacking? tom, you also enjoy topping occasionalOr just let it go and continue to pretend ly, so long as you don’t push too far in that I’m still asleep when this happens? and/or get ridden too hard. You might Our sex life seems healthy to me also wanna accept the compliments otherwise. you’ve been getting about your topping —Nocturnal Incidents skills/style. Instead of ROMAN ROBINSON That Erupt Necessitate assuming the guys you’ve Inquiries To Elucidate topped are lying to you, give them the benefit of the Dear NITENITE: doubt and assume they’re The wife masturbating in telling the truth: you’re a the middle isn’t by itself good top and bottoming evidence your sex life for you is a good time. is lacking, NITENITE. And with more experience, She’s most likely waking SOFT, you’re likelier to get up horny at 3 a.m. and even better at it, earn more rubbing one out to get praise and grow to enjoy back to sleep. You can topping more. and should tell her over breakfast—with a loving and supportive Dear Dan: I am a 60-year-old woman smile on your face—that you sometimes who has had a lot of lovers. My current wake up when she’s masturbating, and lover does not enjoy cunnilingus, which that you’re happy to help her out. But happens to be the only reliable way to get if all your wife wants and/or needs at 3 me off. How can I make cunnilingus more a.m. is a quick orgasm, she may not be enjoyable for him? I thought about getting interested in a full-blown sex session. a can of whipped cream to “sweeten the And if “helping her out” means she’s deal,” but will that work? obligated to get you off before she can —Exciting Additives That Make go back to sleep, NITENITE, don’t be Eating Pussy A Lark surprised if she passes (and slips out of bed the next time she needs to have Dear EATMEPAL: It won’t work. a wank). First, putting whipped cream on your clit and labia isn’t good for pussy— Dear Dan: Gay man here with a and since whipped cream rapidly question about topping. I was a top with melts after being applied to the body, my college boyfriend but switched to EATMEPAL, it’s not going to look sexy being mostly a bottom in my early 20s. or taste good for long. Minutes after I’m in my late 30s now, and recently got emptying that can of whipped cream, out of a decade-long relationship, so you’re gonna look and smell like a I’ve been doing a lot of exploring and newborn puked on your lap. Chocolate rediscovering what I want in bed. While sauce, flavored lubes, whipped cream— I’m very experienced as a bottom, I feel none of those things have the power to a bit like a fish out of water when I’m turn someone who doesn’t like eating topping. The guys I’ve fucked have all pussy or sucking dick into someone been very complimentary, so it doesn’t who does. Pussy is not a sundae, dick seem to be a problem with my techis not a candy bar. If cunnilingus is the nique, but it’s just not as intense for only thing that reliably gets you off, it’s me. Also, I’m uncut and I find that if I’m a new lover you need, EATMEPAL, not pushing deep inside someone then my a dairy product. foreskin pulls all the way back while I’m inside to the point that it hurts. (This is Email questions@savagelove.net especially a problem when a guy rides Follow Dan on Twitter @FakeDanSavme.) I’m with a new boyfriend who has age. Find columns, podcasts, books, enjoyed bottoming for me, but all of this merch and more at savage.love. BOULDER COUNTY’S INDEPENDENT VOICE

APRIL 28, 2022

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Articles inside

Savage Love: Quickies

Cuisine: Casian Seafood, John’s Restaurant’s Figs with Mascarpone, and a Taste of Summer

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

The Anderson Files: Democracy isn’t corny but