CURRENT • June10-15, 2015 • sacurrent.com 3
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CURRENT • June10-15, 2015 • sacurrent.com 7
18
CONTENTS June 10-16, 2015
10 NEWS Dead Miles Uber riders use loophole, but drivers look outside of SA for work Split Decision Mike Villarreal’s backers face a tough call in the mayoral runoff Ageless Apathy Millennials join the ranks of SA’s registered voters that stay home Rock On SA’s top metal music club struggles in wake of owner’s murder All Bark And No Bite? What happened to hard-liners’ legislative immigration crackdown?
18 CALENDAR
Our top picks for the week
24 ARTS Waxing Cosmic Geeking out with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Simply Inked Alamo City Tattoo Show aims to be SA’s top expo
8 CURRENT • June10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
45
Epic Dance-Off An ancient Indian text through the lens of AtticRep
28 SCREENS Fashionably Numb Saint Laurent examines an ultimately unknowable man Who’s The Boss? We’re eagerly anticipating season three of Orange Is the New Black
33 FOOD Choices Galore The menu is massive (in a good way) at La Bandera Molino Lunchtime Snob We slurped noodles at Nama Ramen Culinary Calendar 6 ways to get your drink/grub on this week Flavor File Food trucks on St. Mary’s Strip about to become a reality
40 NIGHTLIFE A Rare Blend Not much gets in the way of badass barkeep Zulcoralis Rodriguez
35
Bartender Story A scribe-turned-barkeep is manning the well at Dorcol Distilling
47 MUSIC Mmm ... Donuts Hip-hop trailblazer J Dilla’s legacy kept alive by his mom, Ma Dukes Neat Chaos SA jazz quartet Royal Punisher is on record with Bullets for Breakfast Welcome To The Fun House We Leave at Midnight to unleash flurry of new works this year Music Calendar What to see and hear this week
58 ETC.
Savage Love, Free Will Astrology, Jonesin’ Crossword, This Modern World
ON THE COVER
Get to know Zulcoralis Rodriguez, not your average bartender – to say the least Photography by Louie Preciado Art direction by Eli Miller
CURRENT • June10-15, 2015 • sacurrent.com 9
NEWS
DEAD MILES Local Politics To Determine Future Of Ride-Sharing In SA MARK REAGAN/@210REAGAN
Bexar County is huge, encompassing 1,247 square miles. Roughly one-third of that territory is covered by San Antonio, a spreading metropolis that presents a challenge for folks in the business of giving others a ride. For Uber drivers — Lyft is no longer operating here — working smaller cities like Alamo Heights, Windcrest and Terrell Hills is hardly worth it. The San Antonio Current spoke to a ride-share driver and a rider who frequents the service. Neither wanted their names used for fears of reprisal. The driver used to work for Yellow Cab, but left the company years ago. When Uber and Lyft started operating in San Antonio, he jumped at the chance and became a full-time driver for both companies. But since San Antonio passed its ride-share regulations prompting Lyft and Uber to leave town, the driver said he’s looking north to Austin and said some drivers he knows even go as far as Houston for gigs. And they’re all making more money. “Business was never great in San Antonio. Certainly not compared to Austin,” the driver said, via a hands-free device on Interstate 35 while stuck in a traffic jam south of the Capitol. “You can’t pick anyone up at the airport or downtown (in SA). That just really killed us. It just wasn’t worth it.” But not everybody’s quite ready to give up on SA. Uber General Manager Chris Nakutis said multiple jurisdictions create a confusing regulatory environment, but there is any easy way to understand where Uber can legally operate in Bexar County. “It’s everything that’s not San Antonio,” Nakutis said. San Antonio Police Department spokesman Sgt. Javier Salazar said drivers can pick up passengers in other municipalities — like Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills, Olmos Park and Windcrest — 10 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
allowing the service to use SA streets and even drop them off within SA limits. But the originating pick-up point cannot be in SA. As if that sounds confusing enough, add loopholes to the mix and you get a rather messy situation. Ordinances and policies are one thing — enforcing them is another. Some SA riders get around the problem by initially calling to get picked up in one of the Uber-approved municipalities, only to call in at the last minute with a change of plans. “So if you are in an area where Uber doesn’t run, you can’t pin yourself. So it will show no car,” said a rider who spoke to the Current on the condition of anonymity. “But you can change your pin. And so what I do is I pick the closest area that they still pick up at and pin myself.” Then riders call the Uber driver, indicating their actual location hoping the driver will still agree to pick them up. It’s a gamble and it doesn’t always work. Nakutis, Uber’s general manager in Texas, said he hadn’t heard of the loophole. “If drivers are using the platform in a way that is not intended, then we would remove them from the system,” Nakutis said. The ride-share driver that spoke to the Current said the issue is widely known — not that he cares for it. “It’s just not worth it because you’re getting a lot of dead miles. And those are the miles you drive to pick up and you don’t get paid,” the driver said. “And then if they call and say ‘I’m two or three miles away,’ you have more dead miles.” Salazar said no drivers have been cited since the ordinance became law in April. The rider interviewed by the Current would still rather take a gamble on Uber in San Antonio before calling a cab. The rider was arrested for DWI a couple years ago and is passionately against drunk driving, even using
Complicated: Uber riders have found a hit-or-miss loophole to get around SA.
spare time for nonprofit work to raise awareness about the dangers of drunk driving. “If go drinking, I don’t want to worry about killing someone,” the rider said, adding that Uber drivers are typically friendlier and more helpful than cabbies. “I’ve left stuff before and not gotten it back (from cabs) … I lost a DVD a friend had given me and the Uber driver took an extra trip to give it back to me,” the rider said. So did Uber and Lyft have enough reason to leave SA? The driver we spoke to didn’t think regulations were as strict as the ride-share companies have made them out to be. The driver didn’t have a problem with insurance requirements or criminal background checks. “The city bent over backwards and, really, all they wanted was better insurance because the insurance Lyft and Uber offers sucks so the drivers have to lie to their insurance companies,” the driver said. They decided to grandstand, thinking state leaders would create state-wide regulations that would’ve trumped San Antonio’s ordinance. Lone Star State legislators did consider a bill that had ride-share support, but it didn’t go anywhere.
“They don’t realize that Texas politics isn’t California politics,” a dig at the ridesharing services’ headquarters. Nakutis said Texas had a good bill that would have allowed ride-sharing and ended jurisdictional issues for the company, like the ones it faces in Bexar County. “But unfortunately, anti-competition lobbying slowed that down,” Nakutis said. Officially, Uber isn’t taking sides in SA’s mayoral runoff election on Saturday, but Nakutis reiterated the company prefers an “Uber-friendly” leader. So it’s hard to see how Uber would support Ivy Taylor, who backed the ordinance regulating Uber and Lyft. The other candidate in the running, Leticia Van de Putte, has said the way the city handled the issue was embarrassing — leaders need to embrace, not reject, disruptive technology. It all adds for more potential conflict on the ride-sharing front. The Uber driver who spoke to the Current said enough is enough: “Austin just destroys it. I’m probably going to move up here just because the business is good.” mreagan@sacurrent.com
sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 11
NEWS
SPLIT DECISION Villarreal Voters Face Tough Choice In SA Mayoral Runoff MICHAEL MARKS/@MICHAELPMARKS
Holly Ronkko put all of her eggs in Mike Villarreal’s basket. The San Antonio native and stayat-home mother of two fully expected the former state representative to be the next mayor of the Alamo City. So when Villarreal didn’t receive enough votes on May 9 to earn a spot in the runoff election — on Saturday, between Ivy Taylor and Leticia Van de Putte — Ronkko was shocked. “My husband and I looked at each other and said ‘Now what do we do?’” Ronkko told the San Antonio Current. Ronkko was surprised, upset and disappointed by the outcome of the election. And she wasn’t alone. Now she has to make a choice for mayor that neither she nor many other Villarreal backers relish. As one of 22,247 voters who picked Villarreal in the general election, Ronkko must now choose between Taylor and Van de Putte — two candidates who at first said they wouldn’t even run for mayor. “We’re really torn about who to vote for now. Neither of us have a very good feeling about either of the candidates. We have issues with both of them,” said, Ronkko, referencing her husband. Villarreal, 43, ran a promising campaign. He was the first candidate to enter the race, taking the plunge in November 2014. He even resigned from the state House of Representatives, where he was widely regarded as one of the state’s most effective lawmakers, to focus solely on his mayoral campaign. Along the way, he earned endorsements from SA political heavyweights such Rep. Joaquin Castro 12 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
and his mother, longtime activist Rosie Castro and State Sen. Carlos Uresti. He also garnered support from the business community, including leaders of Rackspace and Broadway Bank. Ronkko said she was drawn to Villarreal by his position on improving public infrastructure such as bike trails and how he described a vision for the entire city — not just the oft-discussed urban core. “It seemed like in between downtown and the outskirts of 1604, all of us in the middle, we kind of get neglected,” Ronkko said. “The way that he spoke, it was making sure that every part of the city had some improvements going on.” Erin Strauss, a retired teacher who is now Villarreal’s neighbor in the King William District, also said that Villarreal’s outreach to “every corner all over San Antonio” helped win her vote. “I did love what he had in mind for ... making every neighborhood worthy of attention,” Strauss said. But it just wasn’t enough on Election Day. Though Villarreal picked up
about 26 percent of the vote, Taylor squeaked past him with 28 percent. Van de Putte led all candidates with just over 30 percent. That means that there’s a huge bloc of potentially undecided (if a little disgruntled) voters from Villarreal’s camp who could now swing the election for Taylor or Van de Putte. But they won’t get any guidance from their top candidate. Villarreal announced last month that he wouldn’t endorse either remaining candidate, sticking to a pledge he made when he entered the race. “Our campaign was a unique mix that spanned political parties and brought together fiscal conservatives and social liberals,” Villarreal said in a statement to the Current. “They won’t all vote one way, and they don’t need me to tell them how to vote.” For some Villarreal supporters, many of whom are torn between the two remaining candidates, the nonendorsement was a letdown. “I think that him justifying why I’ve
chosen this candidate over another might have helped me make a better decision,” Ronkko said. She still hasn’t decided whom to vote for. Her strategy is typically to cast her ballot on the first day of early voting to avoid lines at the polls, but she needs more time to make a decision for the runoff. She’s worried about the “number of political races [Van de Putte] has been in the past few years.” And the only accomplishment she could list from Taylor’s time in office is “driving Uber out of town.” Strauss also said that she likely would have voted for whomever Villarreal endorsed, but she “admired” him for staying out of the fray. Now she’s leaning towards voting for Van de Putte — reluctantly, to say the least. “I’m going to vote, and I guess I’m leaning towards Leticia. But I’m not happy that I have to make a choice,” Strauss said. “I wanted to vote for Mike, and that’s it.” mmarks@sacurrent.com
NEWS
AGELESS APATHY Are Millennials To Blame For SA’s Low Voter Turnout? MARK REAGAN/@210REAGAN
Those pesky Millennials didn’t show up to vote at San Antonio’s mayoral election last month. But neither did anyone else. In the May 9 general election, roughly 88 percent of Bexar County’s nearly 960,000 registered voters didn’t cast a vote. All the city’s top offices were up for grabs, as well as a slew of propositions. “We got our numbers up. The voter registration numbers have been absolutely fantastic with the number of people registered,” Bexar County Election Administrator Jacquelyn Callanen told the San Antonio Current. “We got all the way up and still got some of the lowest turnouts.” With less than two weeks until the mayoral runoff between Ivy Taylor and Leticia Van de Putte, just 42,798 people have cast early votes. According to 2014 Census data, more than 898,000 people in Bexar County are 35 or older and roughly 475,000 are 18 to 34, the age range for Millennials, according to the UTSA-based Texas state demographer’s office. There’s no way those voters who didn’t show up were just those targeton-their-back Millennials with no sense of civic duty — though it’s true that their turnout was paltry. But it’s also true that, historically, young voters stay home. According to Census figures, nearly 51 percent of voters 18-24 years old cast a ballot in 1964. In 1972, that percentage steadily declined, bottoming out at 30 percent in 2000. The decline was then reversed with a push for young voter engagement, picking up to 45 percent in 2008 but then dropping off a bit again, down to 38 percent in 2012. So, if anything, Millennials are behind the resurgence in the young vote while
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ParisHatters.com sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 13
NEWS
J MICHAEL SHORT
ROCK ON 210 Kapone’s Struggles In Wake Of Club Owner’s Murder MICHAEL MARKS/@MICHAELPMARKS
Above the bar at 210 Kapone’s is a framed, black T-shirt featuring a picture of Pete Gonzales, smiling. Above it, in a font reminiscent of “The Godfather,” the shirt’s lettering reads: “In Memory of Pete Gonzales.” It’s a fitting memorial for the founder of 210 Kapone’s, arguably the leading venue for SA’s live metal scene, who seems as if to still be presiding over the premises — still running the show. Gonzales, a budding entrepreneur, was allegedly shot twice by Faustino Vasquez outside the club on March 15, dying later that night at a local hospital. But his spirit still looms large at 210 Kapone’s. The staff is trying to push past the tragedy and clean up the club’s image. “There’s so much potential to bring new music here,” LeRoy Botello, bar manager, said in an interview with the San Antonio Current at the club last week. “We want to make sure the community knows we’re not a gangster spot.” The club sits on the eastern edge of downtown as it peters out into Dignowity Hill and the greater East Side. Though the club puts on special theme parties and DJ sets from time to time, it has solidified its reputation as a hub for SA’s live metal scene. “That’s pretty much the place for metalheads in San Antonio,” said Jay Nanda, an expert on the city’s metal community and local freelance writer. Nanda praised the club as a “comfortable place to rock,” if a little rough around the edges. “It’s not in the safest neighborhood, it’s not in the most comfortable part of town. But if you want to see a [metal] show, it’s probably going to be over there,” Nanda said. “It’s been booking shows left and right.” Metal acts such as Queensryche, 14 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
Still known as SA’s top joint for metal music, 210 Kapone’s continues trying to find its footing nearly two months after its founder was murdered.
Saxon and Mastadon have all played at 210 Kapone’s in the past two months. But Botello wants to bring in bands beyond just the hard rock and metal acts for which the venue is known. He’s reached out to a few Latin and EDM performers to expand the club’s audience. In mid-May, 210 Kapone’s hosted the children’s music group School of Rock for two days for their Spring concert series. There are also plans to stage a BMX and skateboard demonstration in the club’s massive garage in July. The plans are ambitious. But the venue apparently struggled in the aftermath of the murder. Botello said he used to make over $300 in tips each shift behind the bar. It has slowed down significantly since the murder, to the tune of as little as $25 on some nights. Botello, a San Antonio native, called Gonzales “a mentor.” When Botello returned to SA after serving in the Army, Gonzales hired him to work the door at a few bars around town. Botello later become a bartender and has been loyal to Gonzales ever since. “When the owner gets murdered, that’s horrible [PR],” Botello said. “We took a hard hit. We were limping for a bit, but now we’re pushing forward.” There are still some slow nights and
the club isn’t keeping its previous regular hours as listed on its website. Some staff members said that the venue is still in a state of transition. Although 210 Kapone’s didn’t cancel a single concert in the wake of Gonzales’ death, the staff has had to make some changes, particularly beefing up security during shows. That’s also caused problems. During a Mastodon show on May 5, multiple reports on social media claimed that off-duty police used pepper spray on moshing concert-goers. The club faced a virulent social media backlash afterwards and later put out a written statement, apologizing for the mishap. “Rest assured that it is not the policy of 210 Kapone’s to pepper spray our patrons. Our goal is to provide the best experience possible and to earn your loyalty with each show we host for you,” the club posted on its Facebook page. Meanwhile, the case of Gonzales’ alleged murderer is slowly creeping toward resolution. Vasquez, also known as Celestino Vasquez or “Kasper,” allegedly murdered Gonzales in the early morning of Sunday, March 15. Gonzales had Vasquez kicked out of the club for causing a disturbance in the VIP section, according to police. Vasquez, identified as a “known gang
member” by San Antonio police, drove back to 210 Kapone’s later that night. Then, according to police, Vasquez fired three shots at Gonzales while the club owner was outside the building, standing on a sidewalk along Houston Street. Two of the shots from Vasquez’s .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol hit Gonzales — one in the elbow, the other in the upper-right portion of his back. Vasquez fled towards downtown and paramedics rushed Gonzales to San Antonio Military Medical Center. Doctors pronounced him dead just before 2:30 in the morning. Cops arrested Vasquez four days later in Converse and charged him with Gonzales’ murder. Vasquez, who was previously sentenced to seven years in prison for molesting a four-year-old girl, has been in Bexar County Jail ever since, awaiting trial on $150,000 bond. Vasquez’s case is in the process of transitioning from one district court to another. He will likely face trial within the next two to three weeks. But at Kapone’s, the focus is no longer on the random act of violence that ended Gonzales’ life — it’s honoring his vision by improving the venue. “We’re not going to let his memory die,” Botello said. “We’re going to keep going.” mmarks@sacurrent.com
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NEWS
ALL BARK AND NO BITE? Anti-Immigrant Legislative Crackdown Avoided … For Now TONY CANTÚ
AUSTIN — The 2015 session of the Texas Legislature, which ended last week rather unceremoniously, was widely panned as a bust. Immigrant advocates couldn’t be any happier. They’re claiming victory. “We were very excited, but it kept us on our toes,” Chloe Sikes, a member of the Coalition to Save In-State Tuition, told the San Antonio Current. A slew of proposals cracking down on undocumented immigrants — from repealing in-state tuition to targeting disadvantaged children in medical care programs — died on the vine as time expired on their proponents. Post-battle, those in the political trenches described behind-the-scenes machinations that dealt the fatal blows to the anti-immigrant bills. Scenes of high drama — suffused with broken loyalties, clash of wills, moral indignation — that would’ve made Shakespeare raise an eyebrow. Sikes’ group primarily focused on SB 1819. The proposed legislation by State Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, would have repealed a 2001 measure (signed by fellow Republican Rick Perry, former Texas governor now on his second presidential quest) allowing undocumented immigrants to pay in-state tuition at public colleges and universities. After spurts surfaced threatening to advance Campbell’s bill, it finally died on May 20 after the deadline for discussion passed. “It was extra concerning the repeal effort was put forth in this session,” Sikes said. “Texas was the first to pass that type of legislation,” she noted with palpable pride. Indeed, many other states followed in the Lone Star State’s footsteps. Other anti-immigration measures died a slow death on the rotunda floor, most notably SB 1252, directing the governor to negotiate an interstate border security compact toward federal immigration law enforcement; SB 185 aimed at outlawing
so-called sanctuary cities; HB 2835, which would’ve given lower priority to taking undocumented children off medical waiting lists. The mainstream media attributed the mass death of bills to the GOP focus on gays and guns. But battle-worn lawmakers who fought the latest antiimmigration bills described a wholesale change in dynamics from past sessions, prompted by the upending of the twothirds rule in the Senate. In January, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick ended the 70-year practice of requiring the support of twothirds of senators to bring up a measure in favor of a three-fifths majority. The old rule was in place to protect minority interests, a less-than-opaque measure by Patrick to push his party’s priorities. “While it was definitely a loss for the Senate, it has empowered the House,” said State Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer, a San Antonio Democrat. “The truth of the matter is there was no appetite for that kind of conversation in the state House, which is a more mature body,” Martinez-Fischer added. “Most of those bills originated in the Senate, but died a slow and painful death on the House floor.” Indeed, SB 1819 and SB 185 never made it out of the Senate, while SB 1252 withered away in committee. State Sen. José Menéndez, another SA Democrat, described a similar sense of empowerment in killing off bad bills — a rallying cry that even lured some Republicans to discreetly stray from party lines. The same three-fifths rule implanted this year now requires 12 senators to block a bill, prompting recruitment of dissenters across party lines. “The Republicans who joined us think it’s not in the best interest of the state to be anti-Hispanic and anti-immigrant and don’t agree with those politics,” Menéndez told the Current. The turncoats’ identities are being jealously guarded to shield them from potential backlash from their base in the next election cycle, Menéndez noted.
“We tried to provide them anonymity so they don’t get beat up in the next primary election,” he said. The rise of the Tea Party and the intractable stance on social issues among its rank and file also increasingly complicates the way business gets done at the Legislature — prompting some Republicans dissenting from party ideology to quietly support Democrats with votes. “It’s caused so many moderate Republicans to be kicked out by these far-right Tea Party members,” Menéndez noted. Cal Jillson, professor of political science at Southern Methodist University, said that anti-immigration bills largely failed — for the second consecutive legislative session — because they ran counter to the powerful businesses lobby. Rhetoric and slogans make for juicy red meat for the base, but they have nothing on business leaders who ultimately set the GOP’s tone. “At the end of the day, the business community is interested in cheap labor, particularly in the construction, hospitality and restaurant industries,” he said. “This is not just this legislative session, but part of the culture of our politics forever.” Jillson invoked the trope of “campaigning in poetry and governing in prose” to further his argument. “Texas has seen the value of a substantial supply of cheap labor. The anti-immigrant rhetoric and border security rhetoric is standard fare of elections, and that rhetoric is very effective,” he explained. “But when you get into governing, you have the lobbies
pushing in a different direction.” Whatever the reasons for the mercurial session, Sikes, the advocate, said she lived through the drama created by the changed dynamics during this year’s session, with the gasps and spurts of SB 1819 as it threatened to come back to life. The bill had an unconventional birth on April 6 as an extension of a Senate subcommittee hearing on border security. From there, it was placed on the Senate calendar on April 15, only to see it removed the next day but then placed on the calendar again on May 19. The next day, it was removed again, eventually dying as the deadline for discussion passed. Martinez-Fischer acknowledged he and his counterparts must now work twice as hard as before, given the changed dynamics fueled by the suspension of the two-thirds rule. But past fights pre-dating that change inform his moves on the revamped battlefield, he suggested. In the previous session, he helped kill off a former iteration of the sanctuary city bill via a procedural maneuver. “It was the most divisive debate we had, and I was able to derail it on a point of order that challenged the committee paperwork,” he recalled. The ploy worked, delaying the bill’s reintroduction long enough to prevent it from returning to committee. Yet he and his fellow Democrats in Austin, along with immigrant advocates, know full well their victory is ephemeral. “We’ve dodged a bullet, but let’s see what they bring in 2017,” MartinezFischer said.
We’ve dodged a bullet, but let’s see what they bring in 2017. — State Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer, SA Democrat
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CALENDAR
WED
10
Mouthful of Snow MUSIC
With this glorious combination of talented locals with rad out-of-towners, The Ten Eleven just keeps on delivering excellence. For the main course, catch the frenetic and moody indie rock stylings of Mouthful of Snow and the noisy, punktinged pop extrapolations of Kids., both hailing from California. Local fare on the menu includes the shit-fi experimental shoegaze outfit Ants, the dour singersongwriter project Public Speaking, from The Beers’ Nathan Martinez, and the deconstructed R&B/experimental pop group More Eaze, which is the latest project of SA/ATX wunderkind Marcus Rubio (pictured). $5, 8pm, The Ten Eleven, 1011 Avenue B, (210) 320-9080, theteneleven.com. — James Courtney
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WED
10
‘The Southwestern Clichés’ ART
From 1982-1989, painter Mel Casas drifted from sex, politics and cinema in order to tackle something bigger: the Southwest. These focused paintings would later become the crowning achievement of Humanscapes, a series inspired by a drivein movie screen. Guest curator Ruben C. Cordova assembled 30 of these large-scale acrylics chronologically at Texas A&M for “The Southwestern Clichés (1982-1989).” This exhibit is the first comprehensive study of this key series and the second of four summer shows occurring around San Antonio in tribute to the late artist. Free, 6pm, Educational & Cultural Arts Center, 101 S. Santa Rosa Ave., RSVP (requested) by calling (210) 784-1100, tamusa-ecac.com. — Murphi Cook
THU
11
‘Infinite Horizons’ ART
Nineteenth-century naturalist John Muir once said, “The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness.” Ruiz-Healy Art presents two vastly different universes, both deeply immersed in that wilderness in “Infinite Horizons,” featuring recent works by Abelardo López and Leigh Anne Lester. López’s landscape paintings recall the topography of his homeland in Oaxaca and seek to immerse the onlooker in a tranquil daydream, while San Antonio-based Lester’s scientific examinations use graphite and film to offer viewers an intimate peek into the unseen struggles of genetically modified plants. Free, 6-8pm Thu, Ruiz-Healy Art, 201-A E. Olmos Dr., (210) 804-2219, ruizhealyart.com. — MC
FRI
12
Queers & Beers LGBT PRIDE
Billed as a “big gay party for/from all our friends,” socially conscious folkrapper Chris Conde (pictured) and dancer/ Uptown Studio owner Stephan Gaeth’s Queers & Beers toasts the festive season of LGBT Pride with an eclectic evening uniting local artists, musicians and artisans. Benefiting the nonprofit resource and support hub Pride Center San Antonio, the all-ages event features performances from Conde along with Pink Leche, Alyson Alonzo, Zombie Bazaar Belly Dance and the fashion collective Rainbowstarchild, plus unique wares for purchase from Las Ofrendas, Very That and Lovely Minivans. $5, 8pm-midnight, The Uptown Studio, 700 Fredericksburg Rd., (210) 387-1617, theuptownstudio.com. — Bryan Rindfuss
CALENDAR
SAT
13
1st Anniversary of San Antonio | The Saga SPECIAL EVENT
Dazzling tourists and locals alike since its unveiling last summer, French artist Xavier de Richemont’s 23-minute video installation San Antonio | The Saga employs San Fernando Cathedral as a canvas to “narrate the historical discovery, settlement and development of San Antonio.” On view through 2024, the 7,000-square-foot projection celebrates its first anniversary with the publication of a commemorative book. Besides screenings of the video and a signing with de Richemont, the event features live music by accordion hero Flaco Jiménez, singer-songwriter Tish Hinojosa and Mariachi Corazón de San Antonio. Free, 6-9pm, Main Plaza, 115 N. Main Ave., (210) 225-9800, mainplaza.org. — BR
SAT
13
E:MERGE MUSIC
Presented by local house/electro boosters The SOUL Family, E:MERGE is a recurring SA event that shines a bright strobe light on some of the best upand-coming local, regional and national practitioners of club music. For this incarnation, E:MERGE is showcasing ATX native and forward-thinking electronic music, nu-disco/house shape-shifter Josh “Le Doom” Vela (pictured), performing under his latest moniker MSCLS. Supporting Vela in this special Saytown performance are SOUL Family residents Abe Novy, KeeQue, Lando and Josh Granado. All in all, here’s a swell opportunity for a crash course on the latest nuances of house music. Free, 7pm, Southtown 101, 101 Pereida St., (210) 263-9880. — JC
SAT
13
‘Infrathin 29.401248 x -98.485324’ ART
When asked to define his concept of the “infrathin,” Marcel Duchamp described the nearly imperceptible state as “the warmth of a seat (which has just been left).” Years later Kenneth Goldsmith updated the concept, calling it the “data haze” that surrounds us. With those two thinkers in mind, Carolyn Sortor developed “Infrathin 29.401248 x -98.485324.” Once dubbed “the hardest working woman in the Dallas art scene,” Sortor traded her longtime law career for a BFA. Since then, her artistic pursuits have included large-scale projections, performance broadcasts and an “artificial MFA course.” Free, 6-9pm, Epitome Institute, 222 Roosevelt Ave., (210) 5350918, epitomeinstitute.com. — MC
SUN
14
Caliente Gallery Grand Opening ART
One of three local outfits we profiled in the 2014 feature “Glass Menagerie,” Caliente Hot Glass Studio is a membership-based co-op offering rental space, classes and demos. Born out of a partnership between owner Ralph Laborde and glassblower Glen Andrews, the studio opens a new chapter this weekend with the addition of a gallery dedicated to showcasing local artists. Coinciding with demos from Andrews and Laborde, the gallery’s grand opening promises buyable works from the likes of Archetype Glass & Structural Design, Kathleen McBride, Andy Hull and others. Free, 11am-3pm, Caliente Hot Glass Studio, 1411 N. Hackberry St., (210) 313-3254, calientehotglass.com. — BR
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CALENDAR
WED-TUE
10-16
‘Recycled, Repurposed, Reborn: Collage and Assemblage’
KELLY O’CONNOR
Although collage has existed in varying forms since the emergence of paper, the first “intentional” collages are most often attributed to Cubist contemporaries Pablo Picasso and George Braques. After coining the term from the French verb coller (to glue or stick), the duo went on to challenge conventions while championing a high-low fusion sprinkled with everything from postage stamps and newspaper clippings to rope and gingerbread. Developing since Marion Koogler McNay’s founding bequest of 1950 — which notably included Picasso’s 1912 collage Guitar and Wine Glass — the McNay’s love for collage (and its three-dimensional sister assemblage) takes center stage this summer via “Recycled, Repurposed, Reborn.” Representing a collaboration between McNay curators William J. Chiego, René Paul Barilleaux, Jody Blake and Lyle Williams, the exhibition draws from all corners of the museum’s collection and showcases a broad range of artists, including Austin’s Lance Letscher, Atlanta-based Radcliffe Bailey and San Antonio’s own Kelly O’Connor. $5-$10, 10am-4pm Wed, 10am-9pm Thu, 10am4pm Fri, 10am-5pm Sat, noon-5pm Sun, 10am-4pm Tue; McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., (210) 824-5368, mcnayart.org. Through August 17. — Bryan Rindfuss
Art
Art opening: “To Raise the Darken’d Veil” Clamp Light resident artist Sarah T.
Roberts’ new solo show combines metal sculpture, antique lace and performance to examine what lies within and between the boundaries of protection and threat, isolation and intimacy and reality and perception. Free, 7-10pm Friday; Clamp Light Artist Studios & Gallery, 1704 Blanco Rd., (512) 569-8134.
Art opening: “Here and There, Everywhere” High Wire unveils new works by Swedish-American abstract painter Björn Sjögren and Bangalore, India-based architectural photographer Archana Vikram. Free, 6-10pm Friday; High Wire Arts, 326 W. Josephine St., (210) 827-7652.
Art opening: “Trail of Time” San Antonio
native Jose Cardenas presents a series of large-scale, minimalist charcoal drawings designed to to evoke self-reflection. Free, 7-10pm Saturday; 3rd Space Art Gallery, 141 Cassiano St.
Art Party: Jamie Wyeth The June edition
of SAMA and KRTU’s collaborative Art Party series includes tours of the traveling retrospective “Jamie Wyeth,” beer and wine from GS1221 (cash bar), art-making activities and live music by Austin/San Antonio-based indie rock quartet Colleens. $5-$10, 6-8pm Friday; San Antonio Museum of Art, 200 W. Jones Ave., (210) 978-8100.
“En Aquellos Tiempos: Fotohistorias del Westside” The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center hosts a walk from
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Rinconcito de Esperanza to the AlazanApache Courts for the unveiling of more than 20 new photo banners highlighting “an experience unique to Chican@s in the Westside of San Antonio.” Free, 10am Friday; Rinconcito de Esperanza, 816 S. Colorado St., (210) 228-0201.
Indep Arts & Film Festival Presented in
the spirit of Juneteenth celebrations, the Indep Arts & Film Festival is committed to supporting artists and filmmakers in their abilities to create, inspire and share within our community. Highlights from the four-day fest include screenings of films by Geeta Gandbhir, Ya’ke Smith, Sai Selvarajan, Cedric T. Smith, Marcellus Cox and others (free, 6-10pm Thursday, Santikos Rialto, 2938 NE Loop 410); a ribbon cutting ceremony and art exhibit at the new East Side resource center EastPoint (free, 5:3010pm Friday, 718 N. Cherry St.); an artist and artisan market with performances by Pink Leche, Pop Pistol and Boca Negra at Alamo Beer (free, 5-10pm Saturday, 202 Lamar St.); and a Second Sunday Smooth Jazz Concert featuring BillyRay Sheppard and benefiting the Ella Austin Community Center ($15, 6:30-9:30pm Sunday, Hays Street Bridge (803 N. Cherry St.). Visit indepartsandfilm.com for details.
“Lesley Dill: Performance as Art”
Literature and poetry are constant sources of inspiration for New York-based artist Lesley Dill, who has degrees in English and philosophy. A painter, printmaker, sculptor, needlepointist, photographer and performance artist, Dill frequently explores
SAT
13
Jorge Villareal
While Jorge Villareal’s background in architecture and digital art has surely helped shape his sharp aesthetic, it’s safe to say his world travels — particularly in Cuba — have played an even larger role. Admittedly inspired by “the rawness, the grit, the discomfort of reality,” the San Antonio-based artist has developed bodies of work exploring voodoo, street life and tobacco culture but might be best remembered on a local level for “All My Friends Are Sketchy” — a digitally manipulated portrait series he promoted in 2014 by wheat-pasting a pop art-inspired image of Gregg Popovich on the exterior of Agora Art Space. As a means to investigate “the world of objects and people that surround him,” Villareal has since started building a series of still-life photographs he’ll unveil at Dorcol in conjunction with Second Saturday in the South Flores/Lone Star Arts District. Free, 7-11pm, Dorcol Distilling Co., 1902 S. Flores St., (210) 2290607, dorcolspirits.com. — BR
the relationship between the written word and human figure in nearly every medium and technique imaginable. Interweaving aspects of contemporary art and theater, the McNay’s “Lesley Dill: Performance as Art” focuses on her emotionally evocative work in performance and brings together a number of costumes, ephemera, photographs and video projections spanning more than two decades. $5-$10, 10am-4pm Wednesday, 10am-9pm Thursday, 10am-4pm Friday, 10am-5pm Saturday, noon-5pm Sunday, 10am-4pm Tuesday; McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., (210) 824-5368.
Film
2nd Annual San Antonio River Authority Environmental Film Fest In celebration
of National Rivers Month, the San Antonio River Authority (SARA) teams up with the South Yuba River Citizens League to screen a selection of national and international short films about nature, adventure, wildlife, environmental justice and conservation. In addition to viewing enlightening shorts like Spaceship Earth Passenger Briefing (6:10pm), The Wilderness Act 50th Anniversary (8:42pm), Monarchs & Milkweed (8:50pm) and Nobody’s River (9:27pm), guests can visit with reps from a variety of environmental groups, including Alamo Area Master Naturalists, Bat Conservation International, Edwards Aquifer and Green Spaces Alliance of South Texas. Free (seating is limited to the first 200 attendees), 5-10pm Thursday; Santikos Bijou, 4522 Fredericksburg Rd., (210) 734-4552.
City Slickers The Briscoe’s “Comedic
West” film series revives director Ron Underwood’s 1991 comedy starring Billy Crystal as an unhappy Manhattan yuppie who’s roped into joining two friends on a cattle drive in the Southwest. Hosted in the Jack Guenther Pavilion, the screening includes free popcorn, beer, food truck fare for purchase and chuck wagon expert/ trail boss Ed Parson’s presentation “Cow Punchers and Dough Punchers and the Mystical Lure of the Glamorous Cowboy.” $5 suggested donation, 6:30pm Tuesday; Briscoe Western Art Museum, 210 W. Market St., (210) 299-4499.
Memento The McNay kicks off its “A Way
with Words” film series with a screening of Christopher Nolan’s neo-noir thriller starring Guy Pearce as an amnesiac who develops a unique system to remember things in an attempt to solve his wife’s murder. $5-$10, 2pm Sunday; McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., (210) 824-5368.
Theater
Mamma Mia! Cleverly weaving together
20-plus earworms by Swedish pop quartet Abba, British playwright Catherine Johnson’s jukebox musical Mamma Mia! follows a young bride-to-be who invites three of her mother’s ex-lovers to her wedding in hopes of determining which one is her father. $30-$100, 7:30pm Wednesday-Thursday, 8pm Friday, 2pm & 8pm Saturday, 2pm & 7:30pm Sunday; The Majestic Theatre, 224 E Houston St., (210) 226-3333.
FEATURING THE
CHOREOGRAPHED BY
Miguel Vargas
Guadalupe Dance Company
MUSIC PERFORMED BY
Luisma Ramos & Chayito Champion
June 12 & 13, 2015 ◆ 8:00 pm June 14, 2015 ◆ 3:00 pm $15 - $50
Guadalupe Theater 1 301 Guadalupe St. San Antonio, Texas 78207
A
F L A M E N C O
J O U R N E Y
21 0.271.31 51 guadalupecult ur alar t s.org
Photo Credit: Edward Benavides
sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 21
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JUNE 19
22 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
nosferatu
The Rock Opera June 12-28th
Friday & Saturday 8PM Sundays 3PM Purchase Tickets Online at Nosferatu.BrownPaperTickets.com OR use promocode CURRENT for $2 OFF at the BOX OFFICE! 15705 San Pedro • performingartssa.org • 210-557-1187
CALENDAR
Nosferatu The Vampire Performing Arts
San Antonio tackles Bernard J. Taylor’s operatic take on F. W. Murnau’s 1920sera adaptation of Dracula. $18-$25, 8pm Friday-Saturday, 3pm Sunday; Performing Arts San Antonio, 15705 San Pedro Ave., (210) 557-1187.
The Mystery of Edwin Drood When
Dickens died, he left a mystery in his wake. His final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, remained unfinished — until Rupert Holmes came along. Holmes’ musical adaptation follows the players of the Music Hall Royale as they perform the incomplete tale, allowing the audience to choose the ending. $12$33, 8pm Friday-Saturday, 3pm Sunday; San Pedro Playhouse, 800 W. Ashby Pl., (210) 733-7258.
Comedy
Harry Basil Inspired by the likes of Jerry
Lewis and Mel Brooks, Los Angelesbased comic/actor/director Harry Basil travels with an array of props and costumes that enhance his celebrity impressions and movie spoofs. $16, 8pm Wednesday-Thursday, 8pm & 10:15pm Friday-Saturday, 8pm Sunday; Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club, 618 NW Loop 410, (210) 541-8805.
Words
It Starts with Trouble Authors/educators
Clark Davis and John Phillip Santos come together at the Twig for a conversation about Davis’ It Starts with Trouble, the first complete account of the life and work of East Texas native William Goyen. Free, 7-9pm Saturday; The Twig Book Shop, 306 Pearl Pkwy., Suite 106., (210) 826-6411.
My Migrant Family Story / La Historia de Mi Familia Migrante Seguin-based
author Lilia García visits the Twig to read from her bilingual collection of vignettes about her family’s experiences as migrant workers in the 1970s. Free, 11am-1pm Saturday; The Twig Book Shop, 306 Pearl Pkwy, Suite 106., (210) 826-6411.
live entertainment. $45-$55, 7-10:30pm Thursday; San Antonio Zoo, 3903 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 734-7184.
Talks Plus
Break OUT This program deals with the
transgender “coming out” process and how other factors impact the experience, focusing on socioeconomic influence and access to healthcare. The program begins with a screening of the film The T Is No Longer Silent, to be followed by a panel discussion with filmmaker Keith Wichinski. Free, 6-8pm Monday; Landa Branch Library, 233 Bushnell Ave., (210) 207-9090.
Rock OUT Soul siren Alyson D. Alonzo and other local LGBT artists perform at Igo Branch Library in celebration of Pride Month. Free, 6-7:30pm Wednesday, Igo Branch Library, 13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy., (210) 207-9080.
Work OUT Westfall Branch Library hosts
a discussion addressing the importance of coming together as business leaders, entrepreneurs and community allies for the fair treatment of LGBT people. Is your company serious about initiating a change to recruit a diverse workforce? Are you an employee that would like to improve inclusion practices by establishing an employee resource group? Free, 6-7:30pm Wednesday; Westfall Branch Library, 6111 Rosedale Ct., (210) 207-9220.
w
Dance
Pisando Fuerte: A Flamenco Journey
An artistic interpretation reflecting the energy and stamina it takes to stand one’s ground, Pisando Fuerte combines the talents of the Guadalupe Dance Company, Spanish choreographer Miguel Vargas and SA-based flamenco vocalist Chayito Champion, among others. $15$50, 8pm Friday-Saturday, 3pm Sunday; Guadalupe Theater, 1301 Guadalupe St., (210) 271-3151.
Harry Basil
Downtown Since 1993 SPECIAL EVENT
TOM GREEN, MTV
The Movie Guy
June 10-14
Comedy Central
June 29
Special Events
Mission Marquee Market Mercado O’liva hosts an open-air farmers and artisan market with live entertainment, classic cars, informationals, children’s activities and healthy food at the newly renovated Mission Marquee Plaza. Free, 10am-2pm Saturday; Mission Marquee Plaza, 3100 Roosevelt Ave., (210) 386-7153.
Zoo-La-La Grab your wildest friends for an
adults-only, Mardis Gras-inspired night at the San Antonio Zoo with cuisine from area eateries, a Wine Trail and Craft Beer Crawl, animal encounters and
SPECIAL EVENT
Mary Lynn Rajskub
Chloe from “24”
June 26-28
Poppy Champlin & the Queer Queens of Comedy
July 8th & 9th at LOL
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ARTS
WAXING COSMIC
entire Earth from space, like the Apollo 8 Moon Earthrise image and other images of Earth at a distance where it doesn’t reveal color-coded boundaries, then you take a very different perspective. I would say a cosmic perspective that thinks of Earth as a system of systems. As a planet, rather than as something that happens to be below your feet.
Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Takes Us Out Of This World
What do you think the greatest mystery in space right now is?
MATT STIEB/@MATTHEWSTIEB
I have an unorthodox answer to that. I could list major unsolved problems, but that’s not what keeps me awake at night. What keeps me awake at night are problems that have yet to be imagined as problems, because the solution to other problems has not yet been found.
With his head in the clouds and hands on the budget, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson is one of the few American scientists commanding the attention of pop culture and the scientific journal. Speaking in an interview with the San Antonio Current with a casual brilliance and a passion for education, Tyson advocates a focused effort and boosted tax dollars towards NASA to jumpstart the economy and recreate a “culture of innovation” in America.
What’s the most exciting thing we’re learning in space right now? I would say the search for life, even in our own solar system. How do you go from organic molecules to selfreplicating organic life. That’s a huge frontier. Because this can happen in space, it’s piqued the interest of astrophysicists as well — not just biologists.
Is it possible to achieve what you’ve called a “culture of innovation” without a nationalist bent, without feeling behind the curve to China or, in the past, the Soviets? That’s clearly a motivator, the question is: is it the only motivator? And by my read of history, yes, war is the top motivator. But a close second is economics, the promise of economic return. So it seems to me, one could make a very strong case, for just that, for why we should go into space. People think, ‘oh is it about spinoffs?’ It’s not even about spinoffs [water filters, scratch-resistant lenses and a heap of computing innovations come from NASA]. Yes, there will be spinoffs. But that’s not the primary return on that investment. My read of history tells me that when you engage in such activities, the culture of exploration permeates the land. Since you’ve been on a mission to increase science literacy and awareness, what are some of the successes that you’ve seen? So I don’t think of it as a mission. I know it looks that way. But I don’t think of it that way. I think of it as I’m home minding my own business and someone calls. And I come when called. And in that regard, I’m more of a servant of people’s interest,
Do you have a favorite space movie? It’s a toss up between The Matrix, Contact and Deep Impact. rather than on a mission statement … I get asked to give talks and I oblige. And when I give talks, I comment on what the country looks like to me as an educator and a scientist. I see certain things slowing down. I see the absence of certain levels of scientific and engineering creativity. I see other countries investing in just that way. I see other countries leading in certain products that they now play the song and we must dance to their tune. It’s an unfamiliar posture for Americans, specially coming out of the 20th century. So maybe we have to fall lower before we resurrect ourselves.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Sold Out ($25 simulcast tickets available) 7:30pm Tue, June 16 Tobin Center for the Performing Arts 100 Auditorium Circle (210) 223-8624 tobincenter.org
How does taking a step back to the level of the solar system help us to understand the threat and importance of global warming?
How can people that love science or space, but have no practical ability in it, contribute to make sure that positive momentum is happening? That’s an awesome question, especially the notion that you need positive momentum here. I think you shouldn’t approach science as something that you need to learn every bit of. That’s unrealistic, you’d have to go back to school for that. But if you’re a casual TV watcher or book buyer or magazine reader, then you have some fluency. If you go to a bar and someone starts talking about their horoscope, you’re in a position to tell them and demonstrate to them why their belief system is deeply flawed. mstieb@sacurrent.com
Once you start getting images of the
GAUGUIN, PICASSO, & VAN GOGH HAVE A SAN ANTONIO HOME. And it’s only ten minutes from the Riverwalk. Vincent van Gogh, Women Crossing the Fields (detail),1890. Oil on paper, Bequest of Marion Koogler McNay
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SUMMER CONTINUING EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES • June 15: Lean Services & Office Improvement
• July 20: AIR 205 Indoor Air Quality Awareness Day Course
• June 16-19: OSHA 510 Standards for the Construction Industry
• July 20-22: OSHA 502 Update for Construction Outreach Trainers
• June 23-26: AP Summer Institute • June 25-26: Six Sigma Yellow Belt
• July 20-24: Certified Information Security Systems Professional
• June 29-July 2: WTR 301 Resource Conservation & Recovery Act
• August 3-5: Cyber Incident Management • August 4-7: AP Summer Institute
• June 29-July 3: Cyber Defense Techniques
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• July 7-9: OSHA 3015 Excavation, Trenching and Soil Mechanics
• August 18: Narrative Non-Fiction Writing
• July 15-17: OSHA 503 Update for General Industry Outreach Trainers
• August 19: Conversational English in the Workplace
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After the 12th Annual Slinging Ink Tattoo Expo and the Inaugural Texas Tattoo Jam butted heads in March when both shows opened back-toback causing conflict between organizers, many wondered if there was enough room for multiple expos in San Antonio. Waiting quietly in the wings and away from all the drama was Jedidiah Reid working at a past Alamo City Tattoo Show. Anthony Montemayor, owner of Arc Angel Over 200 tattoo artists from Tattoo in Universal City and creator around the country are scheduled of the Alamo City Tattoo Show, which to participate, including shops from celebrates its 11th year as the only one Florida, California and Maryland. Local of the three local tattoo shows run by an shops like Element Tattoo, Dandyland actual tattoo artist. Tattoo Studio and Calaveras Custom That fact alone makes all the difference Tattoos are also on the roster. and proves his event is the preeminent Jenny Siegel, tattoo artist and one in the city, Montemayor said. owner of Tattoo Eleven on the city’s “Those other tattoo shows are run northeast side, said she respects what by tattoo pimps, not by tattoo artists,” Montemayor has been doing with his Montemayor told the San Antonio show for more than a decade. Before Current last week. “They rape the opening her own business, Siegel tattoo artists. Tattoo conventions worked at shops that were not owned weren’t started by production by tattooers. companies. They were started by “A show like Anthony’s is more people with a love for tattoos.” personal because he knows how we Not impressed with the extra side work as tattoo artists,” said Siegel. “He attractions the other tattoo shows caters to his artists and understands provided — concerts, flesh suspension what we need. Someone who has never performances, escape artists, etc. — done it before tends to work [their Montemayor said his event is “strictly tattooers] a lot harder.” about the art of tattooing and For Montemayor, the Alamo City nothing else.” Tattoo Show is at a good place. He Simplicity is the name of the game as looks forward to watching it grow and far as he’s concerned. staying faithful to the craft. “I want people to come “I only really worry about in specifically to get Alamo City Tattoo Show my own show,” he said. “I tattoos at the convention,” $20/day; $40/3-day pass don’t care what the other June 12-14 Montemayor said. “I’m not Noon-10pm Fri-Sat; noon-8pm Sun tattoo conventions do. I just doing this so people can Grand Hyatt Hotel know they don’t have the come drink beer and listen 600 E. Market St. true love for it like I do.” to live music.” alamocitytattooshow.com
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27 ARTS
EPIC DANCE-OFF From The Mahabharata Makes South Asian Tale Come Alive STEVEN G. KELLMAN
In 1985, Peter Brook mounted a nine-hour stage production of the Mahabharata, the ancient foundational text for the cultures of South Asia that functions as kind of a cross between the Bible and the Odyssey. In 1989, PBS aired an abridgment of Brook’s project, clocking in at six hours long. In conceiving and directing his own adaptation of the 200,000-line Indian epic, Roberto Prestigiacomo wisely limited his ambitions. From The Mahabharata – The Great Dance-Off is, like Six Characters in Search of an Author and A Esmail borrows the percussive qualities Chorus Line, metatheater; it dramatizes of traditional Indian ragas, though how a talented troupe sets about the inclusion of a clarinet adds an translating the Sanskrit poem into dance. occasional klezmer-like melancholy to Surrounded on three sides by the the proceedings. Additional music was audience, the dancers, confined to a improvised by violinist Ananda Nadayogi box-like space within the Tobin Center’s and tabla player Aditya Kalyanpur. But Carlos Alvarez Studio Theater, start with the stars of the production are the warm-ups. A division soon becomes dancers, whose exquisite gymnastic apparent. Some of the dancers movements were choreographed favor the classical Bharatanatyam by Kausi Subramaniam and Seme conventions of movement, whereas Jatib. The dance sequences — both others prefer a looser contemporary Bharantanatyam and contemporary — style. Though selected episodes are marvels of athleticism and grace. from the Mahabharata — including After separate rehearsals for the extraordinary tale of how the the proponents of classical and of five Pandava brothers are born and contemporary dance, it all culminates the section of the Bhagavad Gita in in a face-off between the two, a grand which Krishna explains terpsichorean battle of the enlightenment to Arjuna — bands. In an extended, From The Mahabharata – are narrated, most of the bravura sequence, akin to The Great Dance-Off production is non-verbal, a $18-$28 jazz virtuosos alternating 8pm Thu-Sat, 2:30pm Sun matter of sight and sound riffs, Bharantanatyam and AtticRep rather than syntax. contemporary dancers Carlos Alvarez Studio Theater The original music — confront and compete Tobin Center for the Performing Arts 100 Auditorium Circle performed and recorded with each other on stage. (210) 223-8624 by the SOLI Chamber Call it a draw — both atticrep.org Ensemble — by Reena styles win. Through June 14
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SCREENS
CAROLE BETHUEL/SONY PICTURES CLASSICS
FASHIONABLY NUMB Saint Laurent Tracks Iconic Designer’s Untimely Demise DANIEL BARNES
Biopics tend to take on the personalities of their subjects and writer-director Bertrand Bonello’s Saint Laurent offers all of the clean, flowing lines of the Algerianborn designer’s iconic fashions, while remaining just as mercurial and indulgent as the man. It’s a stubbornly oblique, aloofly stylish and oddly compelling film that offers little biographical context or narrative form, instead compiling a Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould-style mixtape of banal and crucial (and crucially banal) moments from Saint Laurent’s life, forming a fascinating silhouette of an ultimately unknowable man. Like almost every good biopic, Bonello’s film doesn’t try to compact its subject’s entire life into a three-act narrative, but rather concentrates on a very specific period, in this case the time between 1968 and 1976 when Yves Saint Laurent was at the height of his fame. Saint Laurent is unique in that it’s not a story about an artist’s difficult ascent toward triumph, but about his easy descent from triumph toward irrelevance and into oblivion. The Yves Saint Laurent that we see here devolves from a man into a brand into mere initials — and finally into nothing. By the end of his life, an oversized photo of Saint Laurent is deemed an acceptable, even preferable, stand-in, at an important company event. Bonello opens the film in 1974, as an exhausted Saint Laurent (played well by Gaspard Ulliel) checks into a Paris hotel room and prepares to give his first tell-all interview. We mostly see him from behind, an outline of a man with thick glasses and an inscrutable expression. By the end of this 150-minute film, he feels just as vaporous and unembraceable. After the prologue, Bonello cuts back to 1968, with Saint Laurent riding high on his prêt-á-porter popularity, haunting nightclubs into the dawn and cruising 28 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
Bertrand Bonello’s stylish biopic features Gaspard Ulliel as legendary fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent.
the streets for men while carrying on a relationship with his business partner Pierre Bergé (Jérémie Renier, a favorite of the Dardenne brothers). The designer that we see in 1968 is aloof and withdrawn, but he’s also genuinely engaged with his work, an exacting artist, restlessly sketching and creating, not the hollowed-out husk we see in 1974. In one of the film’s most indelible moments, Saint Laurent spies the statuesque blond model Betty Catroux in a nightclub booth, and briefly envisions himself in her place, the artist and his writhing muse fused into one. But as the YSL brand merges with an American corporate entity, mundane economic realities and unrealistic expectations begin to clash with artistic ambitions, and Saint Laurent the man becomes less important than Saint Laurent the brand — even the tell-all interview eventually gets squashed. An exposed and soul-sapped Saint Laurent retreats into the narcotic comfort
of prescription medication and the lifeless company of ennui-drenched, hard-partying sycophants. While the world outside goes through the wringer of social unrest, Saint Laurent remains sealed in a disco fishbowl ribboned with neon rainbow skies, a blaring temple to “bodies without souls” that affords him “no contact with reality.” One of Bonello’s best — and most potentially alienating — techniques is to crank the soundtrack music up so loud that it blots out the possibility of discernible conversation and we see how Saint Laurent clings to club life as a way of shutting out human contact. As Laurent’s life nods off into a dutiful orgy of drugs, booze, pills and men, Bonello treats it with the same elegant zombie detachment (imagine Spring Breakers directed by “Alienation Trilogy”-era Antonioni). The standoffish tone, deliberate pace, lengthy running time and zombie protagonist of Saint Laurent seem
designed to frustrate and alienate audiences (it crashed and burned at Cannes last year), but I felt intoxicated by the simple, sexy camera moves of cinematographer Josée Deshaies and by Bonello’s piecemeal portrait of artistic desiccation. There are times when the film is too on-the-nose, as in a sequence where a parade of Saint Laurent seasonal lines gets split-screened with scenes of the protests and riots occurring outside of his bubble. But a few ill-conceived and annoyingly self-conscious moments aside, Saint Laurent stands as a beautiful and bleak portrayal of artistic success as the ultimate artistic poison. Saint Laurent (R) 150 min. Dir. Bertrand Bonello; writ. Thomas Bidegain, Bertrand Bonello; feat. Gaspard Ulliel, Jérémie Renier, Louis Garrel, Léa Seydoux Opens June 12 at Santikos Bijou
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sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 29
TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 7 PM SANTIKOS BIJOU
3 phases — and many different ways — to provide input on the City’s Budget this year:
SPEAK UP! Tell Us your priority services with a video clip on social media. Post a clip to Twitter, Facebook or Instagram answering the question: “Which City service do you love and why?” Don’t forget to hashtag it #SASpeakUp! This is the start of a conversation about balancing the cost of the services we love. Rather not take a video or use social media? Take a picture and caption it with your answer OR share via the website SASpeakUp.com.
SUGGESTED DONATION: $10 TPR MEMBERS $15 NON-MEMBERS
With special guests from the Woodlawn Theatre’s stage production
MEET UP!
INFO & TICKETS: TPR.ORG 800-622-8977
Learn about City services & budget — we come to you! MeetUps will take place where residents are already gathering — at their neighborhood, community, church and work meetings. Residents will learn about City services and budget and we’ll learn about your priorities and ideas! Visit SASpeakUp.com or call 207-8360 for details on MeetUps. Too busy to MeetUp? Learn about the budget and submit ideas at: SASpeakUp.com.
2015 SUMMER
JOIN UP! Connect your innovative ideas to City service providers. Ideas submitted via social media, online at SASpeakUp.com or at a MeetUp will be sent to department staff to consider for their budget this year or for future budgets. We’ll be joining up your ideas directly with the staff that provide those services!
KIDS CAMP LINEUP
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Everyone’s favorite low-security inmates have their own hierarchy within their prison ecosystem, but what’s likely to be on viewers’ minds when it comes to the mysteriously shrouded third season: Who will run the cell block this season? When Orange Is the New Black kicked off in 2013, Red (Kate Mulgrew) called the shots as the kitchen overlord and master smuggler. But, of course, that all changed when bully Vee (Lorraine Toussaint) came into the picture in season two and rattled everyone’s cages. Last season ended with Vee presumably escaping, which could mean that series creator Jenji Kohan is cooking up a second coming of Red this season, especially given that she’s a fan favorite and it’d give writers a chance to push viewers’ buttons while they sit slackjaw and stream through the whole season in one sitting. But it could make things a little more interesting if Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling), without a hubby to manipulate (sayonara, Jason Biggs!), mutates further and fills that brutish void to manage one of the most monstrous character arcs yet. With Alex Vause (Laura Prepon) back behind bars, Chapman’s manipulations are already turned up a notch from
the bratty flashbacks we saw of her unwitting criminal past. Now without her little mouse of a hubby on the line to toy with, she’s without conflict to explore her feelings for Vause and as anyone who’s been spurned could solemnly swear, that kind of fixation can breed a whole new beast. Other contenders are much less likely. Lea DeLaria’s Big Boo is ultimately too gentle (we’ll probably find out she’s in lockdown for stealing hearts). Knowing Vause, she will likely take a page from the mute-maven Norma (Annie Golden) and sulk back to giving Chapman the silent treatment for half the season. And unless some kind of higher force intervenes, Taryn Manning’s Pennsatucky is probably too nutty to inspire a legit following and too impulsive to match the maneuvers Red and Vee measured out so patiently. It’s really too bad that Mary Steenburgen’s new character won’t be an inmate, or else we’d lift an eyebrow to consider her as one of the prison’s prevailing whackjobs next season. Instead, she’ll be wrapped up in the gooey baby drama as Pornstache’s mom. Maybe when she finds out it was the onelegged man who did it, she’ll shiv Daya and we’ll be done with the obligatory “Who’s the daddy?” snooze of a plotline.
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CHOICES GALORE La Bandera Molino Offers Never-Ending JESSICA ELIZARRARAS/@JESSELIZARRARAS Menu Of Goodies The urgency on my Facebook Messenger chat box was palpable. “Seriously. You have to try La Bandera Molino. Breakfast tacos on point! I dropped $30 on breakfast … but had like so many tacos, Mexican sodas and coffee and menudo.” The only thing that exchange needed was the still nonexistent taco emoji. I was clearly intrigued. A quick search later, I had found a haphazard and unclaimed Facebook page and several comment threads that continued to sing the praises of the eatery. I made my first visit bright and early on a weekday morning. For the uninitiated, La Bandera Molino is located in a small shopping strip along Zarzamora Street in a bright tangerine building that proclaims their goods loudly in hand-painted lettering. There’s plenty of parking in the front, but come weekends, you’ll want to make use of the extra parking lot available in the rear. To be completely honest, the space is a lot to take in. Once you step inside, taking stock of the operation is almost overwhelming in its magnitude. The cavernous space holds a masa mill, an open kitchen and smoker, two large display cases and a wall-length fridge replete with every variety of Jarritos, Mexican sodas, Topo Chico and various staple items. A 24-count of brown eggs will cost you $6.50, while you can also pick up Serrano peppers and tomatoes
ripe for making salsa and ready-to-mash avocados. And this is just half the store. Orders are taken and paid at the counter, so try to have some idea of what you’ll be ordering. I stared at the large menus above the counter for a good minute before committing to bacon and egg (naturally), barbacoa and nopal tacos. Nopal and egg was an option, but I chose the more enticing nopal y chile, with a good dose of ancho peppers. The order was up in a matter of minutes and I was on my way (after grabbing an apple Lift, the likes of which I haven’t found since living in the Rio Grande Valley). At $2-ish dollars apiece, the tacos were massive — I could see the appeal of chowing down on the barbacoa after a night of heavy drinking (for those wondering, yes, they have Big Red by the caseload). The bacon and egg was decent, though I should have asked for crisp tocino. The nopal, also large in size, was savory and smoky without a hint of sliminess usually associated with the cactus blend. Sturdy tortillas kept the fillings intact — commendable considering the barbacoa (available in regular or less mysterious “all-meat”) was oily and rich. Again, perfect for soaking up weekend boozin’. A Thursday lunchtime visit was up next, as La Bandera Molino is only open ‘til 3 p.m. Armed with slightly more confidence and my tipster, we ordered just a fraction of the menu. I can’t emphasize it enough
Week-long barbacoa specials are always a plus at La Bandera Molino.
— the offerings are plentiful. You’ll find lunch plates served with rice and beans and à la carte items along with daily barbacoa specials. With calabacita not being an option during this particular visit, I opted for lengua guisada, because … why not? And while at it, a crispy order of fried tripas on a corn tortilla. Any fan of charcuterie, salami or the like that turns their nose at this crunchy delicatessen is no friend of mine. We made our way past the thick clear vinyl curtains that separated the dining room from the cafeteria-style counter and picked up a basket of fresh-fried tortilla chips. Salted just right and with a delicate crisp, the tortillas could have benefited from a little more draining. Our orders trickled out at a fine pace, as members of the family-run restaurant staff dropped off our lunch in separate batches. Should I sing the praises of the tripas
some more or move on to the tender lengua that included finely diced and stewed peppers and onions? Had the slices of tongue not been clearly visible, I would have confused this for regular lean beef. Paired with the standard Spanish rice and pureed refried beans, the lengua could have been enjoyed as is or in taco form using those same flour tortillas. My lunch partner’s mini tacos were loaded with thick chunks of carne asada and a third companion’s barbacoa was just as filling; a basic avocado-only guac helped tie the tacos together. We’ll forgive the slightly excessive frying this time. There’s not much to knock at a place where you can drop off prepared briskets for overnight smoking ($5), whole or quartered cabritos are found and where you know the tortillas are always ground and made fresh. flavor@sacurrent.com
La Bandera Molino 2619 N. Zarzamora, (210) 434-0631 Skinny Grocery store meets molino de masa meets sizable eatery. The stick-to-your-ribs tacos and plates from this Zarzamora joint will have driving over to battle the crowds on weekends. Best Bets barbacoa specials, nopales con chile, mini tacos Hours 6am-3pm Tue-Sun Price $2.95-7.99
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sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 33
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FOOD
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Nama Ramen, which recently salty and the hot oil is a must if you like opened to diners’ delight in a your ramen with a kick. shopping center on Babcock If you are extra hungry or with a Road, was a pleasant surprise in a group, like I was during this visit, the very unsuspecting spot. A very modern okonomiyaki fries are a crowd favorite. finish with fun Japanese anime art on Topped with kewpie mayo, okonomiyaki the wall makes for a unique dining sauce and bonito furikake, they’re truly experience. Lunch offerings include a a must-have. The bonito furikake flakes full menu of sushi rolls, several starters come out curling up on the hot fries, and a ramen bowl. The sushi is made which is fun to watch. We also shared fresh to order with a boatload of fish on an order of gyoza. In my opinion, it is presentation in their sushi case. pretty hard to mess up fried dishes, This particular lunch trip I had the so saying they were good does not ramen — how could I not? It is the necessarily make them unique. namesake after all. Although Nama Lunch service is prompt and not only offers one of its ramen dishes crowded, lending itself to a swift quick at lunch, they do offer a variety of solo lunch or easy spot to take a larger add-ons to step it up a bit. I added a group. Diners will find a bubble tea soft-boiled egg and spicy oil and was shop next door to satiate those posttempted to add extra pork, but held lunch sweet tooth cravings. We didn’t back to try more of the menu. make a stop but definitely next time. Other options to add My next visit will be for are extra noodles, corn or dinner. There’s another ramen pork. The ramen noodles that comes with seaweed salad Nama Ramen are nicely done and though not available at lunch. It also 6565 Babcock Road, Suite 19 I could not discern if they seems the chef is playing it fast (210) 641-2888 were homemade or not, they and loose come supper time, 11-2:30pm and hit the spot. The broth has a where a recent special included 5pm-midnight for dinner; closed Sundays. nice flavor without being too serving up fresh sea urchin.
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Charlie Brown’s Neighborhood Bar & Grill
SAN ANTONIO’S NEWEST PROHIBITION STYLE BAR
FELICIA DEINNOCENTIIS/@FELICIADINO
Thursday, June 11 Mardi gras is coming to the Alamo City via Zoo-La-La, San Antonio’s Annual Feast with the Beasts. This event is exclusively 21+, so keep the kids home for this one. Sample local craft brews and wines while stomping the grounds and chow on local and chain favorite restaurants at various stations. Check out featured keeper chats and try your luck at winning prizes at the Zoo Pool. You can bring your own masquerade mask or get one there. $45-$55, 7-10:30pm, 3903 N. St. Mary’s St., sazoo.org. Saturday, June 13 The Chef Cooperative’s “It’s OfFISHal” (clever, clever) Pop-Up dinner provides a feast of many flavors Time to get wild at Zoo-La-La. for San Anto diners, particularly if you like seafood. Hosted by O’liva, a new downtown, fresh-living eatery opening this summer, the event will be held in the courtyard of the Spanish Governor’s Palace, where you can dine on seasonal gulf favorites and enjoy live entertainment. Pair your plate with local brews, wines and spirits. $65, 6-9pm, 105 Plaza de Armas, (210) 854-4479, chefcooperatives.com.
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HAPPY HOUR: 3-7PM | OPEN: 3PM-2AM
FREE APP WITH FIRST DRINK!
Karaoke • Trivia Live Music
11888 Starcrest | 210 496-7092 Charlie-Browns.com
LOCATED AT
1 0 0 V I L L I TA S T
The 2015 Texas Folklife Festival will remind you why it’s great to be a Texan with a weekend’s worth of food, music, culture, crafts and family fun. The 44th Annual festival is dedicated to celebrating the diverse history and cultures that thrive today in the Lone Star State with seven stages and more than 150 menu items to accommodate ravenous attendees. Don’t be afraid to dress up in your favorite costume to showcase your heritage. $5-12, 11am-11pm Saturday; noon-7pm Sunday, Institute of Texan Cultures, 801 E. Cesar E. Chavez Blvd., (210) 458-2224, texancultures.com. If you need some summer fun away from the heat, stay in the kitchen and join the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) “Summer Salads and Sandwiches Class.” Learn how to craft an entire repertoire of fresh and healthy meals, ranging from simple starters to elegant main courses, along with tips on how to serve and stylize plates. Perfect for people looking to broaden their cooking skills. $39.95, 10am-noon, 312 Pearl Pkwy., Building 3, (210) 554-6400, ciachef.edu/texas. Flex those nerdy muscles and take in a pint or two during Geeks Who Drink’s latest quiz challenge that takes on the anything written by George R. R. Martin and up to the first five seasons of HBO’s fantasy romp through Westeros. All men must quiz during “Fire Cannot Kill A Quizmaster.” $5 per person in teams of six or less, 6pm, Firehouse Pub & Grill, 5380 Walzem Rd., geekswhodrink.com. Sunday, June 14 Baked goods taste sweeter when they’re for a great cause, don’t they? That’s what bakers hosting “Baking for a Cause” sale at Beethoven Maennerchor believe. These professional bakers and local restaurateurs are ready to cook up a variety of classic and alternative goodies for whatever you’re craving. (Proceeds will go to San Anto Cultural Arts). Prices vary, 11am-3pm, 422 Pereida St. Send food- and booze-related events to flavor@sacurrent.com
ORDER TO GO:
623 URBAN LOOP, SA, TX 78204
210-800-3487
Tue-sun: 11am-4pm • closed Mondays
RO-HOPORKANDBREAD.COM
The Most Appreciated lunch from the land of the tequila + the mariachi
Puerto Rican Grill y Tapas EL SABOR DE LA VIDA
HAPPY HOUR 3PM - 7PM $5 TAPAS, $3 GUAVARITA, $4 SANGRIA
NOW OPEN ! 2603 S.E. Military Dr. #107 SATX 78223, By City Base Cinema
210-314-3111
sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 37
Fresh Pastries
Free Coffee
Breakfast & Lunch Croissants
Daily Breads 8055 West Ave, Suite 107 • SA, Tx | hours: 7am-6pm 210.259.8359
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fried pickles mac & cheese brew bites cheese sticks (2) mini corn dogs cinn sugar pretzel bites (5) with kahlua chocolate french fries fried jalapenos fried mushrooms chicken tenders chicken taco (1) small chips & salsa small chips & queso
8827 HWY 151 @ POTRANCO SAN ANTONIO, TX 78251 38 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
FOOD
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WINE - CIGARS - FOOD
Learn how to make cool sips with “Latin Twist” on Saturday.
HAPPY HOUR
FLAVOR FILE
St. Mary’s Strip Gets A Food Truck Park & More Upcoming Events
Mon.- Fri. 4 - 7pm Open 4pm-2am Everyday
1032 S. Presa · TacoHavenSouthTown.com
Bluestar 1420 S. Alamo • 210.227.1420
JESSICA ELIZARRARAS/@JESSELIZARRARAS
Expect to find a new food truck park this fall on the St. Mary’s Strip. Zurich International Properties is turning the former Mr. Lucky’s (2710 N. St. Mary’s St.) into a breezy bar, patio and food truck station capable of holding two mobile kitchens. Laurence Sieterle, of Zurich, gave us a walk highlighting some big changes for the makeover, including patio seating. If you like Hi-Tones, Faust Tavern and Phantom Room, you’ll probably enjoy this project by Danny Delgado.
7 9 5 9 B R O A D WAY S T | 2 1 0 . 3 2 0 . 2 1 0 0
1/2OFF
BOTTLES OF WINE MONDAYS&TUESDAYS
Vianney Rodriguez and Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack, two local food bloggers, have teamed up to create a cocktail book. You can get your own copy of Latin Twist: Traditional & Modern Cocktails in which the authors show readers how to whip up libations from 18 Latin American countries and Spain. You can pick up a copy of the book at a book signing at Melissa Guerra-Latin Kitchen Market (303 Pearl Pkwy., Suite 104) on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Branchline Brewing’s (3633 Metro Pkwy., 210-403-2097) monthly tasting is upon us again 4 to 7 p.m. this Saturday. The brewery only opens its doors once a month with its signature lineup of beers and a few limited releases. Grab your pals and take in the hoppy magic along with goodies from Melting Point food truck. In throwback news, the South Texas Popular Culture Center (1017 E. Mulberry Ave., 210-792-1312) will host an exhibit and concert to celebrate the long-gone Casbeers, a restaurant and venue owned by partners Barbara Wolfe and Steve Silbas, which closed its doors in 2011. Revisit the old days this Sunday with photos, gig posters and music by True Stories, Miss Neesie & the Ear Food Orchestra and Michael Martin & the Infidels from 1 to 5 p.m. A $10 minimum donation is requested. The mezcal aficionados at Mezcaleria Mixtli and The Monterey (which has a sizable agave-spirit alist of its own) will join forces next Monday to host a pachanga fundraiser for the Tequila Interchange Project. Expect to find tacos by Mixtli, smoked meats via The Monty and cocktails from bar managers Karah Carmack and Jesse Torres. The evening starts at 5:30 p.m. with a tasting and discussion on mezcal-making guidelines for bar industry members (to reserve your spot: Houston@esquiretavern-sa.com). Lüke San Antonio will feature pastry professional Kelly Fields. The dinner, slated for June 18 at 7 p.m., will feature masterful mash-ups of sweet and savory dishes including pigs in a blanket with apricot mustard and family-style service of Southern faves including pimento cheese, shaved ham, crackers and pickles; roasted carrots, charred leeks and goat cheese; Frogmore stew with skillet cornbread; and Willa Jean cookies and milk. Tickets run $65 and are available at chefjohnbesh.com. flavor@sacurrent.com
Craft Beers • Fresh Pasta • LunchSpecials • Wine Bar
SPORTS•KARAOKE•POOL•DARTS T B HE IN A R B E S UN I V E S TA T RS F F AL
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LIVE MUSIC Friday: Arrowhead Saturday: TBA
12PM-2AM | 210 E. Aviation Universal City, Texas | (210) 659-1090 sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 39
NIGHTLIFE
A RARE BLEND Could SA’s Zulco Rodriguez Become The Nation’s Top Barkeep? JESSICA ELIZARRARAS/@JESSELIZARRARAS
The scene was much like one would imagine for a baby’s typical first birthday party. Streamers, balloons, gift bags and rowdy tots teetered around the festivities, squealing and shouting — all except for the birthday girl, who quietly and calmly observed the raucous party. Some parents would have sighed with relief at the thought of a mild-tempered child. But Diana Coral Aleman knew something was off. Despite her mother’s spot-on instincts coming true, that baby has turned into a 28-year-old woman about to board a plane to New York City to compete as the Texas representative in a national bartending competition. It’s but the latest feat in the life of Zulcoralis “Zulco” Rodriguez. She simply refuses to be held back despite her moderate to severe congenital sensorineural hearing loss with which she was diagnosed as a baby. “I don’t let that stop me. I’ll do this as long as I can,” she told the San Antonio Current last week. “I’m very independent, you don’t have to worry about me … I’m not like, ‘I’m deaf, boohoo.’” Precisely. Get to know Zulco, and you’ll quickly realize that her disability is actually just one of many traits that make Rodriguez — whose win at Miss Speed Rack Dallas regional contest in January earned her a ticket for the Big Apple — quite the unique individual. Good luck trying to fit her into one clear-cut category. There’s no such box to check off to describe her.
Island Girl Rodriguez may have made a home for herself in San Antonio, but her story starts in the tropics. The first-born daughter of Angel Luis Rodriguez and Aleman, she grew up in the bustling seaside capital city of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Her mother distinctly recalled little 40 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
Zulco as a fast-developing little one — she walked and had a set of milky whites at just five months old. After her initial diagnosis, Rodriguez got cochlear implants. By second grade, she needed a hearing aid in her right ear to manage the condition. By that time, she and sister Dennise played guessing games that helped Rodriguez eventually learn how to read lips. “You have to make sure you’re in front of her, or else she can’t,” Aleman said in an interview with the Current last week. By sixth grade, she had hearing aids in both ears. The family couldn’t afford to pay on their own, so a family friend and a local politician chipped in to make it happen. “I had those for six years, but I went back to the outer shell because my hearing loss got more severe,” Rodriguez said. “That’s why you see a lot of old people with those.” By that time Rodriguez had already found hobbies and extracurricular activities in ballet and the Girl Scouts (she retired from her scout career as a senior member, two years shy of getting her own troop). She was also active, playing soccer, volleyball and track and field in middle school and high school. “She always excelled at what she tried, I never had to work at teaching her or helping her. She always got it, gracias a Dios,” beamed Aleman. But school wasn’t without strife. Kids bullied Rodriguez and teased her about the hearing aids — “I told her to say they were for hearing the stupid things they said,” Aleman recalled — and teachers at her Catholic school weren’t always keen on Rodriguez’s chatty ways. Childhood friend Fernando Villar said that’s just her personality. “She’s very intelligent, you never know what she’ll say,” Villar told the Current in a phone interview from Orlando. “Even when she does run into trouble, she likes challenges.”
That assessment received motherly approval. “You have to understand her. I get her,” Aleman said. “I have two daughters, but she and I have this beautiful relationship that’s unlike mother-daughter, but that of friends.” So when Rodriguez decided she wanted to head stateside to pursue a degree in forensic pathology, the family agreed to give San Antonio a shot. South Florida, home to a large Puerto Rican population, would be too similar to home so Texas would definitely be trying something really different, Rodriguez said.
CSI: San Antonio Rodriguez’s interest in forensic pathology wasn’t completely surprising to her family. As a kid, she watched Discovery Channel and NatGeo with her father and always voiced an interest in death. She clipped articles and stockpiled books on ancient civilizations, mummies and lost cities. But after a few shaky pre-med semesters at St. Mary’s University, Rodriguez transferred to San Antonio College, where she hoped to build on her biology credits. But then she took a different turn — to the service industry. “I noticed my sister making more than I would. I was working harder; she was working smarter,” Rodriguez said. She landed at La Marginal off
Nacogdoches, a popular Puerto Rican hangout where she found herself retooling their simple bar program and eventually increasing profits by 30 percent during her year there. When it comes to working in the bar industry, Rodriguez doesn’t let her hearing loss affect the service she’s providing. More often than not, diners and bar-goers aren’t even aware of her impediment. On particularly rowdy evenings, she may have to tap a fellow bartender on the shoulder and ask for help with getting the correct drink order down. Her lip reading allows her to fill in the gaps, as long as orders are pronounced well. “Mumbling is my biggest enemy,” said Rodriguez, a native Spanish speaker. “It’s not about knowing the language, it’s about people speaking clearly.” After a brief stint at Club Rio, Rodriguez began bartending at Hotel Havana, where a co-worker clued her in on the mortuary science program at San Antonio College, just one of four offered in Texas. It piqued her interest. “I was struggling academically for a while. I needed a boost. I could still do something related to people,” Rodriguez said. Rodriguez, voted most eccentric in high school back in Puerto Rico, saw mortuary science as a good opportunity. After all, both embalming and bartending
NIGHTLIFE
KODY MELTON
Zulcoralis “Zulco” Rodríguez hopes that practice makes perfect as she heads to NYC this weekend to take part in the country’s top bartending competition.
are two distinctly service-oriented crafts. None of this was shocking to Aleman, who pointed to Rodriguez’s passion for taxidermy. Visit Rodriguez’s apartment and you’ll find things like a stuffed chicken foot and a velvet monkey paw Her latest addition includes a bejeweled (and admittedly quite stylish) lamb leg necklace. Most of her finds, including a mounted mouse butt, are purchased through Etsy or Ebay. Villar was also not shocked by her friend’s drastic career change. “That’s normal for her. She’s been into autopsies and such since I met her,” he said. Rodriguez studied and worked concurrently. She readily impressed her boss as a cocktail server at The Brooklynite. “Her impairment never stopped her once form taking an order. She’s done it for so long she knows the tricks … she has a drive about her that’s rare and beautiful,” gushed bar manager Jorel Peña. That work ethic and determination eventually landed her as a barback and later cocktail producer at Esquire Tavern, where she still holds down the craft well. At the time, she had no problems continuing to juxtapose both careers. “Zulco would come in with this big smile on her face and we’d ask what was up and she’d go, ‘I embalmed a body today!’” Esquire manager Myles Worrell said.
Speed Demon But eventually she was forced to choose between the two. After completing her associate’s degree in May 2013, Rodriguez found herself in a conundrum — focus on cocktails or head back to the preparation room. For now, the decision is boiling down to a scheduling conflict. Entry-level morticians, especially those working for smaller, family-owned funeral homes, often get the short end of the stick when it comes to on-call shifts. Rushing off to pick up a body during a bartending shift at 2 a.m. is not the ideal scenario, to say the least. Her internships included working at Puente & Sons Funeral Home and Olinger-Saenz Mortuary Service, where Rodriguez had to tone down her alternative image. To date, she’s collected 13 piercings and 12 tattoos (feminine drawings, Russian nesting dolls, a hydra, eyes, an eye of Ra, a fern, an open bird cage with flying birds and a trace of Puerto Rico with symbols of the Tainos, Puerto Rico’s original inhabitants). But if she was going to stick with bartending, at least for now, Rodriguez had her sights set on making her mark. After working with Karah Carmack, San Antonio’s first Miss Speed Rack Texas winner in 2012 and becoming friends with the following year’s winner, Elisabeth
Forsythe, Rodriguez warmed up to the challenge. The contest gathers the top female bartenders from across the state. The goal? Making near-perfect classic cocktails in as little time as possible. Proceeds from the event go toward breast cancer awareness and research. Worrell, who coincidentally helped train Denver’s winner, Tacy Rowland, helped Rodriguez craft her entry video, in which she highlighted her uniqueness as the only female member of Esquire’s bar staff at the time, as well as her hearing loss. “She’s one of our hardest workers we have. I wasn’t surprised by her win at all,” Worrell said. Her finish time for Speed Rack Dallas clocked in at two minutes and 45 seconds (she did get a 20-second demerit). Before heading into finals on Sunday in New York City, Worrell and Rodriguez, along with other bartenders in town, mapped out practice rounds where cocktail lovers could see firsthand how fast the libations come together. During a guest spot at Park Social earlier this month, Rodriguez took down 11 practice rounds with times hovering around the two minute mark. Guests were asked to choose from the list of 50 classic cocktails, shaken and stirred. Velia Cox, a regular who’s followed Rodriguez professionally since her days at Hotel Havana, had a first-row seat to the feat.
“She’s very inspiring and a total feminist. She’s very empowering. I think that’s what drew me to her … besides the drinks,” Cox said. For Forsythe, who hosted Rodriguez at Barbaro for several practice rounds, Rodriguez has what it takes to compete at a national level. “She’s got this no nonsense attitude and an air of confidence about her. She’s definitely a competitor,” she said. “The times she’s working with now are impressive; she’s got a good shot.” Rodriguez’s notes, all 12 pages of cocktail recipe and appropriate glassware, will get more wear and tear as she goes into Sunday’s competition and she’s being cheered on in spirit by her cocktail brethren and regulars back in SA. Regardless of the outcome, Rodriguez can look forward to coming home to a supportive and diverse community — from fellow bartenders to pizza-makers at Main Street Pizza where she’s a regular, to the Alamo Orchid Society where Rodriguez and her mom geek out over the fickle and beautiful plants. Should she continue to bartend, or eventually head back into the prep room (she’s got an offer on the table), Rodriguez will likely excel at either … or both. “Both businesses are pretty similar — everyone drinks and we all die,” Rodriguez laughed. flavor@sacurrent.com sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 41
CLUB SiRIUS
HAPPY HOUR Mon- Sun: noon-8pm
11 years & counting
$2.00 wells $3.00 dom. 16oz. Cans & Pints $3.00 Jäger
FEATURING DJ SLIC RIC & DJ NAAWZ • MIXING THE LATEST MUSIC AND VIDEOS ON 5 HD SCREENS
Women’s Wednesday LADIES RECEIVE 20% OFF
Thursday Men’s Happy Hour 4-8PM, MEN RECEIVE 20% OFF REGULAR PRICED ITEMS
Sensual Sunday We Carry Bettie Page Pleasure Products
7AM TIL MIDNIGHT COUPLES RECEIVE 20% OFF
Reserve our new Events Room Today! 9405 IH-35 @ STARLIGHT • 657-9999 | 11827 HWY 281 N @ NAKOMA • 404-0011 | Open Daily 7am - 2am |
42 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
/MegaplexSA
HAPPY HOURS HAPPY HOUR OF THE WEEK
Downtown Central
On The Rocks Pub
270 Losoya, SATX 78205 facebook.com/ontherockspubTX HAPPY HOUR: Mon-Fri, 2pm-7pm $3 Wells, $3 Domestics $3.75 Flavored Vodkas
Charlie-Browns.com 210-496-7092 Mon.-Fri. until 7pm $2.75 well drinks $8.00 domestic pitchers $2.75 domestic longnecks Mon.-Fri. 2-6pm 60¢ Wings
Serna’s Backyard Sports Bar
SernasBackyard.com • HH Daily 2-8pm (12pm Sundays): $2 Domestic Longnecks $2.50 Well Drinks, $3 Smirnoff Vodkas (13+ Flavors)
Kimura
Happy hour monday - friday 4-7 Saturday 12-4 $6 Kimura Cocktails, $5 House Wines $4 Bottled Beer, $6 Draft Beer $3-$4 Appetizers, $6 Miso Ramen
The Local Bar
$3.00 Cosmos All Day Mondays, Shot Specials All Day Tues. & $2.75 Wells $2.50 Margaritas all day on Wednesdays $2 Ziegenbock Draft “River Rat Special”
Luna Rosa
2603 S. E Military HH:; 3-7pm $5 Tapaas, $4 sangria, $3 Guavarita
Club Sirius
DrinkSirius.com • @ClubSirius HH Daily Noon-8pm: $2 Wells, $2 Domestic 16oz Cans/Pints, $3 Jager
1919
Happy Hour M-F 4pm-7pm $1 off Draft Beer Select cocktails on Special
North Central Bucks Saloon
$2 Domestics, $2.25 Specialty Beers Cheap Drafts, $9 Dom. Buckets $11 Prem. Buckets Thurs-Live Music & Free Pool
Da Bunker
12pm-2am, Daily Drink SPecials Happy Hour All Day Thurs & Sun.
PICKS
4553 N Loop 1604 @ Lockhill Selma 210-253-922O Happy Hour 3p-7p Mon-Sat.: $1 Off All Beer & Wells, $3 Specialty Beer, $4 Select Appetizers
Shenanigans
Original Live Music Mon-Wed-Fri-Sat Happy Hour 12-7 $2.25 Wells $2.50 Domestics $2.50 Shiner Birthday Beer of the Month Drink and Shot Specials Daily Try our Texas Infusions Check Facebook for our Events! facebook.com/shenaniganssanantonio
Slackers
Sports-Drinks-Arcade SlackerSA.com • $2.50 Domestics, $3 Wells Daily, $3 You Call It
Northeast Spanky’s Clubhouse
6pm-2am, Closed Sundays Featuring TEXAS Booze and Brews Happy Hour 6-9pm: $2.25 Domestics $3 Premium Beers $2 Smirnoff Moonshine Mondays Texas Tues. $2.50 All Drafts & Keep the Glass Wed $3 You call it Thurs. $3 All Tequilas Fri.- $3 Fireball Sat.- Ladies Night $3 Margs & Martinis Try our Texas Vodka Infusions
Beer Goggles
HH 2p-8p: 2 tecate & heineken 3.25 domestics bottle/draft 3.25 shiner&dos xx, $3 wells Plus Daily Specials
The Lost Bar
12730 NW Military • Facebook.com/TheLostBarandGrill Hangover Brunch 12pm- 3pm ALL DAY HH on Sundays: $2 Mimosas, $2.75 Domestic Longnecks, $3 Wells & Sangris Mon-Fri HH 2-7 pm: $2.75 Domestic Longnecks, $3 Wells Sat-Sun 12-7 pm: $2.75 Domestic Longnecks, $3 Wells • REVERSE HAPPY HOUR 10pm-2am • DAILY SPECIALS!
Smoke
700 E Sonterra210.474.0175 SmoketheRestaurant.com Smoke Break- 4:20pm- 6:30pm Post Shift- 9:20pm- 11:30pm 7 Days a Week! $2 OFF ALL APPETIZERS, WINES, BEERS, & COCKTAILS
V I S I T H A P P Y H O U R S . S A C U R R E N T. C O M sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 43
VISIT SANTIKOS.COM FOR SHOWTIMES & MORE
SPECIAL ENGAGEMENTS the children’s shelter presents JUNE 16 AND 17 JUNE 9 - AUG 19
TUESDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS at 10AM At Palladium IMAX | Silverado | Embassy Rialto | Mayan Palace | Northwest
JUNE 23 AND 24
SEE FULL LIST AT SANTIKOS.COM
8PM
JUNE 17 AT NOON AND 7 PM At Bijou
FREE MOVIE NIGHT JUNE 18 AT 7 PM At Bijou
NEW THIS WEEK AT THE BIJOU A FILM BY FREDERIC TCHENG
DIOR AND I
SWEETLARAINE@SWEETLARAINE 4741 Fredericksburg Rd. San Antonio 78229
Dior and I brings the viewer inside the storied world of the Christian Dior fashion house with a behind-the-scenes look at Raf Simons’ first couture collection.
210-979-9877
GASPARD ULLIEL
JEREMIE RENIER
SAINT LAURENT Yves Saint Laurent's life from 1967 to 1976, during which time the famed fashion designer was at the peak of his career.
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US /SANTIKOSFAN | FOLLOW US /SANTIKOSTHEATRE SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE BY TAGGING #MYSANTIKOS
44 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
PRESENTING THE BEST TATTOO SHOP IN SAN ANTONIO. FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK:
NIGHTLIFE
SARA LUNA ELLIS
BARTENDER STORY Dorcol’s Newest Face Ditches Deadlines For Shaker Sets RON BECHTOL
It’s not exactly like Trevor Noah replacing Jon Stewart, but there are similarities. Well, maybe a couple. Nick Kenna helped define the brand as the first bartender at Dorcol Distilling, an enterprise whose bar exists primarily to promote owners Boyan Kalusevic and Chris Mobley’s apricot brandy. The entire list of cocktail zingers, as currently constituted, is Kenna’s creative take on turning an unfamiliar spirit into drinks with which most people would feel comfortable. So when Kenna received an offer he couldn’t refuse to depart for Blue Box, it was a little hard to imagine who might fill those stylish shoes. Sure, bartenders are notorious for moonlighting and moving around, but the rise of cocktail culture in San Antonio has seriously stretched the gene pool. At least at first, it was even harder to imagine that the replacement might not be an experienced bartender at all. But after some mutual sniffing around, Kalusevic and Mobley offered the job to Valentino Lucio, who spent the last decade as a reporter at the San Antonio Express-News with just under a year writing for the paper’s food section (Taste). As a writer, also with no behind-the-bar experience, who did a guest shaking-and-stirring stint at Dorcol during its search for a candidate, I couldn’t decide if this was visionary or suicidal. (Both terror and elation were part of the equation during those seven hours on my feet.) Only one way to find out. Lucio and I met at Bar 1919 for a heart-to-heart session over drinks. You’ve been at the E-N long enough to have experienced print journalism in many capacities. Where was writing in the food section on that spectrum? I started out in advertising, but had an interest in writing. There was an opening in Neighbors [long-defunct community sections] and I did that for a year before it changed and I moved to the cop beat. I can now go to parts of the city and remember ‘this is where that guy got stabbed … But I have a degree in business, so I eventually
Valentino Lucio’s leaving behind his journalistic career to take over the well and other social duties at Dorcol.
took over real estate writing at a time when Pearl was developing and the craft beer scene was beginning to emerge. I was keeping an eye on that industry when the opening in Taste came around. I think your personality should match your job, so I was lucky to find that one. So why did you leave? I wasn’t looking to, but the position was described to me as not being purely behind the bar. They wanted blogging, more social media presence, help with events and press releases, new product development … plus there’s something romantic about bartending. Shooting the shit with guys like Don (Marsh), Jeret (Peña) and Nick was inspirational. They’re all willing to share and their passion drew me in this direction. It would have been hard to walk away [from the offer]. Apart from madly trying to memorize all of Dorcol’s rakia-based cocktails, what have you been doing to prepare? I’ve been messing around with the spirit to see what goes with it. I’m looking at chamomile, maybe some oily nuts or tropical fruits … but mostly getting familiar with the current menu. I’m a home brewer, so I understand how flavors work … as a brewer you’re always experimenting, playing with different ingredients. Maybe we’ll do a hops-infused house
bitters, a few beer cocktails… You have a wife, two young kids, a house … is your family cool with such a drastic change? I got my wife’s thumbs-up. She’s not into mezcal yet, but otherwise she’s a willing participant [in my spirts investigations]. And my house is only a block and a half from Dorcol; I can do some work from home and I’ll be with my kids even more than before. Where do you see the SA bar scene, and your place in it, in the future? San Antonio hasn’t yet reached a saturation point. The action is now [mostly] around downtown, but there’s plenty of room for growth north, towards The Dominion … Personally, I’m wanting to expand my skill set, looking to get involved in next year’s cocktail conference. And [the guys] have talked about expanding offerings [to some other spirits], there’s also an oak barrel at the distillery that they want to play around with … What that will yield and when, who knows. So does becoming a bartender mean you’re going to have to acquire some tatts? I don’t have any now and no idea of getting any. Anyway, I’m not that attached to any one symbol. sacurrent.com • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 45
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YOUR HOME FOR THE NBA PLAYOFFS!
MS PAC-MAN MORTAL COMBAT II MAXIMUM FORCE
TAILGATE WITH US STARTING 1HR BEFORE TIP-OFF!
THE SIMPSONS X-MEN VS STREET FIGHTER PRIMAL RAGE NFL BLITZ TEKKEN TAG CENTIPEDE DONKEY KONG MEGA MAN
Sa's first lifesize soccer pool!
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SPORTS BAR • SUNDAY FUNDAY • BARCADE BEST LOOKING BAR STAFF • HAPPY HOUR
Open 7 Days A Week • Mon-Fri: 2PM-2AM • Sat-Sun 11AM • slackerssa.com
JUNE 28 - AT&T CENTER
21+ 46 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
MUSIC
B PLUS
MMM … DONUTS Talking Shop With Ma Dukes, Mother Of Hip-hop Innovator J Dilla MATT STIEB/@MATTHEWSTIEB
The Frankenstein model has always been essential to hip-hop, taking old, trusted samples then sewing them together to give them a new life. But J Dilla — né James Yancey — somehow knew his way to the best creations, cutting up and pasting together the entire canon of black music from when Charlie Parker first picked up a horn. Born in Detroit in 1974, Dilla came to prominence in the ’90s with his Slum Village trio and moonlighting for Janet Jackson, De La Soul and Q-Tip. By the new millennium, Dilla was the producer for underground hip-hop — if you couldn’t get him, you (poorly) faked his popcorn soul sound. Tragically, Dilla’s peerless run in hip-hop was cut to a short, prolific sprint. Suffering from lupus and a rare, polysyllabic blood disorder, Dilla passed away in 2006 at the age of 32, just three days after his opus, Donuts, hit store shelves. After his death, Dilla’s mother, Ma Dukes, opened the J Dilla Foundation to raise dough for music programs to keep momentum going into the next generation. Proceeds from the San Anto show, featuring Dilla’s brother Illa J and a smattering of SA hip-hop heads under the sway of Dilla, will go to the foundation and the Lupus Foundation of America. The San Antonio Current chatted up Ma Dukes on Dilla’s work, the foundation and the long shadow of his influence on hip-hop. Why has Dilla’s music remained so vital to hiphop 10 years after his death? I could answer that a lot of ways. I think that as an artist, most people say he was before his time. So, on that labeling, you’re just about right, since it’s been about 10 years. How did you get your nickname? That was something that Dilla [and] Frank n Dank [a hip-hop duo that collabed with Dilla] called their mom. So I’m not the only Ma Dukes. They did a song on one of their recordings called “Ma Dukes.” It just happens that me being in a position of being around all the artists and Dilla calling me Ma Dukes. It’s something that people picked up on. What was Dilla’s relationship to music like as a child?
James Yancey, aka J Dilla, led a short yet prolific career as a hip-hop producer.
He came from a very unorthodox home, where music ruled. You know the saying ‘girls rule?’ Music ruled the household. That was the number one thing. He was privy to all genres of music from birth. I studied the opera, so that’s what I played while his dad was at work. In the evening, when his dad was doing rehearsal with bands at the home, he was exposed to all types of music ... He played upright bass and keyboard. Dilla, being a nocturnal animal, his dad had to play the upright bass to make him go to sleep. Music was the only thing that really soothed him and I think the heavy bass was what his comfort was. As long there was heavy bass playing he could sleep endlessly. What is the role of the J Dilla Foundation? We started out to just do music programs. To elevate the awareness and to encourage young people to pick up instruments or better themselves through the arts. The first couple years, we never really went further than the aspect of hip-hop or the arts. But I think what we hadn’t thought about, which needed more pioneering, was the instruments in the schools. Because most schools have taken instruments out of their
schools and entire music programs out. So the fine arts is gone to almost half of our children these days. How did it feel when the Smithsonian accepted Dilla’s equipment for the museum’s “Musical Crossroads” exhibit opening in 2016? We’re still up in the air about it, we’re so happy. The joy that I felt inside that museum was watching how they care and preserve everything that they do, that’s a feeling of pride that I’ve never felt. I felt that he was being honored in a place that would really appreciate him. And the fact that people will learn of his personality and his music. How much unreleased music is in the Dilla catalog? He seemed like such a workhorse.
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Oh my god, he was. He did thousands of productions. We’re still talking about at least a thousand or two pieces of material that was done that have never been heard or released. That was one thing about Dilla. He didn’t care if somebody thought that a project was ready when they heard it. He made certain that there was nothing more he could do to it before he let it go. sacurrent.com • • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 47
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June 10
June 12 | Micky and The Motorcars
Flipside
June 11
John Dailey (center) & We Leave At Midnight are busy with — count ‘em — three 2015 releases.
WELCOME TO THE FUN HOUSE
We Leave At Midnight’s Triptych Of 2015 Releases MATT STIEB/@MATTHEWSTIEB
Terror Flora isn’t your average side of totally awesome. home recording. Far from “Unfortunately I’ll never hear it like the stuff of bargain bin mics that, because I did it,” Dailey joked. and overused, under-understood toy “It’s definitely hard to not be too busy effects, We Leave at Midnight’s new when you’ve got a lot going on. It’s so EP is a lush little in-house project, with easy to have these tendencies to keep frontman John Dailey expertly pushing adding stuff and adding stuff. ‘Cause faders at home like Kevin Parker down it’s fun. But after a certain point it only in Perth, Australia or Phil Spector in his makes it worse.” six-by-eight cell in Delano, California. In the five-cut effort, Dailey walks us “I’ve always had an interest in finding through a funhouse of rock ‘n’ roll styles. the tools that I needed to be creative,” Whirling effects act like carnival mirrors, Dailey told the San Antonio Current. “I warping the songwriting traditions of think in sixth grade I already had a fourLennon and McCartney that the effort track. I would hook up a Casio keyboard holds so dear. Formed in that Fab mold, and do cheesy drumbeats and overdub Dailey twists some anxious thoughts into the rest.” Terror Flora to butt against its upbeat, if Fast-forward two decades of Dailey’s crazy-eyed, aesthetic. musical development and the whiff of “This is a very heavy EP for us,” said cheesiness is gone. Terror Flora floats Dailey. “Dark, troubled, but glazed with into headphones with a pro’s sense of some sugar. There’s definitely more of arrangement. Guitars stomp around that in the full-length, it’s circusy.” with satisfaction, but never tread on Terror Flora is a candied taste of a each other. Little bubblegum phrases prolific year to come — dessert before stick to you for the day. Dailey, under dinner. After signing to San Anto label all sorts of lacquered finishes, calls Texas Is Funny in March, We Leave at for and receives the Midnight plans to release ear’s attention. an LP, The Holy Rolling We Leave at Midnight Like an animal T-shirt Flower Band and another Terror Flora Release from Walmart or a EP later this year. feat. Lonely Horse, The volcano spew that breeds “What I love about [Texas Bolos, Crown a lightning storm, there’s Is Funny], and identify with, $3 9pm Fri, June 12 so much happening is their ambition,” said Hi-Tones in Terror Flora, but it Dailey. “They’re go-getters, 621 E. Dewey manages to err on the and I like that.” (210) 785-8777
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June 13 | Steve Earle & The Dukes
June 12 E7
June 13
Lipstick Junkys
June 14 | Dwight Yoakam
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Billy Ray Sheppard
June 15
June 19 | Aaron Lewis
Chris Lopez
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Shawn Michael
June 20 | Whiskey Myers
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TEXAS HOLD’EM EVERY NIGHT! If you’re a hardcore jazz traditionalist, Royal Punisher may not be your cup of tea.
NEAT CHAOS SA’s Royal Punisher Unveils New Jazzy Rock Album MATT STIEB/@MATTHEWSTIEB
Happy Hour 12-7pm
5943 Bandera Rd.
“Bullets for Breakfast!” picking up the pieces of everything screams the band, roughly in we’ve created as individuals and sync, as if drinking into the coming together and trying something morning and agreeing on a lead brunch new every time we play.” is something to cozy up with. On Bullets for Breakfast, that It’s the first thing we hear on Royal equates to a brawling crew of rock Punisher’s first record, Bullets for ‘n’ roll dudes bringing a leather jacket Breakfast, a long awaited, all-original energy to jazz (or reviving the bad boy document of one of SA’s favorite jazz attitude of the bop musicians, sans bands (cleaning up the San Antonio heroin). An acolyte of Ornette Coleman, Music Awards since 2011). saxophonist Estevan Garcia flies above The next thing we hear is a fat solo the band, releasing hawkish, piercing from drummer Kory Cook, pounding bursts of alto. On guitar, Don Robbin at his snare in knockout, Tyson-grade pops in with unexpected chordal combos. Only then do we get the head jabs, opening up with mean bursts of of the tune — the dog-eared melody that Santana-like guitar in solo sections. grounds a traditional jazz composition. Cook throws haymakers into the In form and in style, Royal Punisher rhythm, keeping the band on its toes works to upend the polite jazz regimen at each turn. As a result, bassist Phil of head-solo-head and fakebook Luna becomes the timekeeper, franticly reliance of a lab band, pissing off a pushing the tempo and pointing at his traditionalist or two along the way. pocket watch with the jitters of Lewis “I think Royal Punisher is a pseudoCarroll’s White Rabbit. jazz group, somewhat “We’re all alpha players, so created for people who may we turn our shit on and play all Royal Punisher or may not like jazz, people the notes,” said Luna. who prefer rock ‘n’ roll,” Cook Album Release “The other guys, they don’t feat. Krudas said. “Jazz pursuits that come Cubensi think about much. If you listen see us may not like it. We to the album, there’s four things $5 7pm Thu, June 11 don’t strive for perfection as going on at once. It makes a lot Paper Tiger a group. We don’t strive for of neat chaos,” he added. 2410 N. St. Mary’s nailing charts. It’s more about papertiger.queueapp.com mstieb@sacurrent.com sacurrent.com • • June 10-16, 2015 • CURRENT 51
MUSIC
THU
11
Bones
A year ago, when Bones and the Sesh crew swung through The Korova, it truly was a force of nature. Bringing together the city’s hip-hop nerds and Tumblr-goths like some online pied piper, the basement of the building was about 15 degrees warmer than outdoors and the humidity levels made summertime in Houston seem refreshing. Over the last year, Bones hustled in the warrens of internet rap, releasing six mixtapes of dark, ambitious work. When he goes in with intention, his wan, ghostly bars are some of the best in hip-hop today — an anxious, minor trap lord fighting for his territory. He’s so good, in fact, that on a recent feature on A$AP Rocky’s At.Long.Last.A$AP, Rocky kept him at arms length with a vocal sample of Bones’ “Dirt” instead of letting the young rapper get in and tear the track to shreds. On tour with the Seshollowaterboyz, the gig features the fierce support of Chris Travis, Xavier Wulf and Eddy Baker. $25, 8pm, The Korova, 107 E. Martin, (210) 226-5070, thekorova.com — Matt Stieb, mstieb@sacurrent.com
Wednesday, June 10
Animal Spirit, Deer Vibes, Parallelephants Originating in Fort
POOL • DARTS • PING PONG ENJOY OUR PATIO AREA
Worth, Animal Spirit was formed in 2012 by Andrew Stroheker (guitar/vox), Sam Wuehrmann (vox, keys), Parker Anderson (drums/percussion/vox) and Zach Tucker (bass, vox). As Deer Vibes leader Michael Carrillo picks up steam with his side project Michael J and the Foxes, don’t expect the big band to get dropped anytime soon. Complete with its mini orchestra, indie rock darlings and local heros, Deer Vibes soothe and awe with their majestic jams. “Are you patient?” asks singer Thom Sykes, kicking off Parallelephants’ “Online Baptism.” With such perfect pop execution, you don’t need much patience to admit to the rite. Hitting only the floor tom and snare, the drums give emphasis to the clean, pastel work on guitars and synth. With You and I Underwater. 502 Bar, 9pm
Bill Kirchen The world is filled with skilled guitar players, but Bill Kirchen is one of those rare virtuosos who not only possesses his own distinctive sound, but who’s also able to faithfully imitate an endless range of six-string legends. Gruene Hall, 7pm
200
Midtown Jazz Sound Drummer John
Fernandez, leader of Midtown Jazz Sound, returns to Soho for the sixth year of residency at the downtown club. Soho, 10:30pm
Noah Peterson On his live album At Biddy 10141 Wurzbach, San Antonio, Texas 78230 • (210) 877-2100 wurzbachicehouse.com • Corner of Ironside and Wurzbach 52 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
McGraw’s, SA saxophonist Noah Peterson
charts his way through funk-laced bop standards. J&O’s Cantina, 7pm
Saxaphonics Among all his other ambitious
projects, tenorman John Magaldi somehow finds time for his straight-ahead band the Saxaphonics. The Cove, 8pm
The Georges South Texas stalwarts The
Georges inject rockabilly with the pop stylings of the Fab Four. Gruene Hall, 7pm
The Numinous New Braunfels’ The
Numinous cut a hi-fi curio of folk-pop in “Truth Sometimes,” the first single from the forthcoming album Procession. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8pm
Toro Flores and Miguel Garza Guitarists Toro Flores and Miguel Garza team up for a capable evening in six-string jazz. Urban Taco, 6pm
Thursday, June 11
Cock Block Thursdays Phantom Room
returns with its weekly Lesbian night hosted by Phanie Diaz of hometown heroes Girl in a Coma and FEA. Phantom Room, 9pm
Ken Slavin Like a comedian careening
through a familiar joke, Slavin has incredible control over the pacing, charm and melodic intricacies of the crooner pages of the fake book. The Last Word, 9pm
Spirit Animal Brooklyn’s Spirit Animal is
a werewolf or sorts, coming to life with electric, party rock ‘n’ roll. In the stylishly monochromatic video for “The Black Jack White,” Spirit Animal crafts the next dance
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craze, “And shake your hand like it’s gone to sleep, and that’s The Black Jack White,” properly filling the void left behind by the “Macarena.” 502 Bar, 9pm
The Suite feat. DJ Gibb and Donnie Dee Two of SA’s finest soul and funk
jockeys deliver a Thursday night soundtrack in original funky drummers. Southtown 101, 10pm
Saturdays at Highlander can only mean one thing ...
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Vetter Kids Comprised of current and
former members of several excellent local outfits — Sohns, Brother/Ghost, God Townes and Yes, Inferno — Vetter Kids stand as a testament to the good that can come from musical crosspollination. With a fuzzed-out slacker sound that’s equal parts fun and fuckall, these guys make some seriously righteous rock that sweats and sears and wanes and smolders. With P I N K O, Amygdala, Aviator, Papertowns. Hi-Tones, 9pm
Friday, June 12
Alamo City Review 2 Scoremore
Shows, the Austin booking company curating the fine hip-hop hitting Alamo City Music Hall, presents its second showcase of San Anto rap. With Blues, MateoSun, AQ and Madjik, Iq and Mista Williams, Robsta, P2 the Goldmask. Alamo City Music Hall, 8pm
Carl Sagan’s Skate Shoes, Super Thief Austin trio Carl Sagan’s Skate
ur Come watch yoon favorite sportsVs! any of our 18 T
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Shoes basks in the light of its scientific namesake and sonic inspiration, the great J Mascis. On a self-titled effort on Weiner Records, Super Thief does an incredible job of building and destroying post-punk compositions. With Blithe, The Freebies. Paper Tiger, 9pm
Henry + The Invisibles SA’s own Henry
+ the Invisibles continues to turn in soulful, ridiculously costumed one-man shows. Rebar, 10pm
Larry Joe Taylor Inspired by the Austin
country scene of Doug Sahm and Jerry Jeff Walker, Larry Joe Taylor has been grinding out Americana work in their wake since the 1970s. He’s earned the admiration of the masters, too, with Jerry Jeff Walker calling Taylor “the Jimmy Buffett of Texas. He’s learned to survive by grinding it out, doing whatever it takes to keep himself viable.” Gruene Hall, 8pm
Michael Martin and the Infidels
Named after Bob Dylan’s 1983 album, Michael Martin and the Infidels play in the wordy spirit of the great American songwriter. The Cove, 9pm The Cove, 9pm
Micky and the Motorcars By their own
admission, brothers Micky and Gary Braun haven’t been this fired up about playing together since they first rode south from the Whitecloud Mountains of Idaho to stake their claim to the Texas and Americana music scenes. Of course, that’s not to say that the years between then and now have been fallow for Micky & the Motorcars, who have spent the last decade and change establishing themselves as one of the exciting young roots-rock bands up the road in Austin. With The Thieving Birds. Floore’s Country Store, 7pm
Saturday, June 13
Big Bill On “Claws In” and “I Wanna Do
Evil,” Austin’s Big Bill continue in the silly, awesome, Halloween style of The Cramps. With SA horror punks The Grave Babes. Paper Tiger, 9pm
Girl in a Coma, Piñata Protest
Hometown heroes unite! With Nina Diaz on an exciting solo run and Jenn Alva and Phanie Diaz putting together heavy punk as FEA, the trio will reunite as Girl in a Coma for the first time in some time. After seizing NPR’s Alt. Latino for a day, Piñata Protest is back to prove why they rule the field. Paper Tiger, 8pm
Junior Brown A certain generation of
Junior Brown fans were introduced to his ouvre through the underwater trip of SpongeBob SquarePants, when the squirrel figure Sandy Cheeks sang a duo with Brown lamenting her fair state of Texas. Hopefully, the Nickelodeon audience dove deeper into Brown’s catalog, finding the songwriter’s work on the double neck guitar, a hybrid of an electric and a lap steel rig. Gruene Hall, 9pm
K. Phillips and the Concho Pearls On
American Girls, K. Phillips spits out snarling tales of Southern rock ‘n’ roll. With Pardo and Reed. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8pm
Los #3 Dinners Since the late ’70s,
Los #3 Dinners have been a San Anto institution with tunes like “Take a Walk on the West Side,” “South Presa Man” and “Livin’ Inside the Loop.” The Cove, 9pm
Sunrise & Ammunition, Televangelist On 2013’s Tesseract, Houston’s Sunrise and Ammunition take progressive theories into a modern stratosphere, while holding on to the torch of the psychedelic ’60s proudly. The vocals on “Light Dream” sound almost backmasked, like the Beatles’
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“Tomorrow Never Knows” with a step forward in instrumentation and structure. With Knifight. Hi-Tones, 9pm
The Lost Project Tour Kickoff While The
Lost Project’s live sets have always included heavy doses of ska, mixed up in an edgy pop-punk vibe, Far From Where You Are finds the trio accomplishing an impressive blending act, where many seemingly disparate elements coalesce to form a remarkably cohesive and polished whole. With Harvey McLaughlin & The Bottomfeeders, Fishbrain, Frontage. Phantom Room, 9pm
Travis Tritt From Marietta, Georgia,
Travis Tritt has earned six platinum designations for his contributions to country rock, including the Grammywinning tunes “Same Old Train” and “The Whiskey Ain’t Workin’.” Tobin Center, 8pm
Sunday, June 14
Doc Watkins Trio Unlike some jazz
musicians whose claim to a doctorate is just a nickname (looking at you, Dr. Lonnie Smith) and others who have won honorary degrees (congrats, Sonny Rollins!), Brent ‘Doc’ Watkins has the paper to prove it. Esquire Tavern, 3pm
Kid Millions & Jim Sauter Coming
from respected avenues in the avantgarde, drummer Kid Millions and saxophonist Jim Sauter teamed for the feral album Fountain late last year. On it, Millions flattens time and Sauter’s pedal-affected saxophone sounds like a cross between a guitar, an elephant and Eric Dolphy. Paper Tiger, 8pm
Mitch Webb and the Swindles A gifted songwriter straight from San Antonio, Mitch Webb pulled together the finest the Alamo City has to offer for his 2008 album The Lonely Kind. Backed by Grammy-winner Joe Reyes (Freddy Fender, Flaco Jimenez, Lara and Reyes) and produced by Ronnie Morales (Texas Tornados, Flaco Jimenez, Selena) The Lonely Kind made out on the radio in 2008, spending nine weeks
in the Americana Music Associations Top 40 chart. The Cove, 4pm
Rich Robinson A founding brother
of The Black Crowes, guitarist Rich Robinson spends his vacations from the band much like he spends his time on the clock, releasing stark rock ‘n’ roll like 2014’s The Ceaseless Sight. Sam’s Burger Joint, 8pm
Monday, June 15
Jim Cullum Jazz Band Playing the
music of King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Sidney Bechet and Bix Beiderbecke, cornetist Jim Cullum is a leader among a growing community of trad jazz players. Tucker’s Kozy Korner, 7pm
Small World Led by drummer Kyle
Keener and guitarist Polly Harrison, Small World places world music in a jazz setting. The band features music from the Great American Songbook and bossa nova sung in the original Portuguese. Olmos Bharmacy, 7:30pm
The Swing Commanders Adept in swng and its Western lineage, The Swing Commanders take over Sam’s weekly swing night with a stomping backbeat. Sam’s Burger Joint, 7pm
Tuesday, June 16
Girls Night Out T H U R S D AY, J U N E 18 T H 9 P M - 12 A M • $ 5 , 21 & U P
Join us for our G-Spot & Anal Class, Games, Rafffles, Prizes, Goody Bags, Beer & Wine. (SAN PEDRO LOCATION) MUST RSVP IN ADVANCE 210-348-6902
6957 SAN PEDRO RD. • 210-348-6902 | 5117 FREDERICKSBURG RD. • 210-348-9401
1349 Taking its name from the year
the Bubonic Plague hit Norway, Oslo quartet 1349 strikes with a speedy, black metal. With Necrophagia, Vattnet Viskar, Morgengrau, Plutonian Shore. The Korova, 7pm
Los Skarnales The San Antonio Current
and Coors Light present the second installment of a summer-long, free series at the Arneson River Theater. Founded in 1994, Los Skarnales rose out of the ashes of Houston’s Desorden with help from original members Felipe Galvan and Jose Rodriguez. Always true to roots music in all forms, Los Skarnales perform a mixture of ska, reggae, rockabilly, swing, mambo, cumbia and danzones, all with a punk attitude. With Slick Dickens, The Lucky Odds. Arneson River Theatre, 7pm
502 Bar 502 Embassy Oaks, (210) 257-8125, 502bar.com Alamo City Music Hall 1305 E. Houston, alamocitymusichall. com Arneson River Theatre 418 Villita, (210) 207-8614, lavillita.com Esquire Tavern 155 E. Commerce, (210) 222-2521, esquiretavern-sa.com Floore’s Country Store 14492 Old Bandera, Helotes, (210) 695-8827, liveatfloores.com Gruene Hall 1281 Gruene, (830) 606-1281, gruenehall.com Hi-Tones 621 E. Dewey Pl, (210) 573-6220 J&O’s Cantina 1014 S. Presa, (210) 485-7611 Olmos Bharmacy 3902 McCullough, (210) 822-1188, olmosrx.com Paper Tiger 2410 N. St. Mary’s, papertiger.queueapp.com Phantom Room 2106 N. St. Mary’s Rebar 8134 Broadway, (210) 320-4091, rebarsatx.com Sam’s Burger Joint 330 E. Grayson, (210) 223-2830, samsburgerjoint.com Soho 214 W. Crockett, (210) 444-1000 Southtown 101 101 Pereida Street, (210) 263-9880 The Cove 606 W. Cypress, (210) 227-2683, thecove.us The Korova 107 E. Martin, (210) 226-5070, thekorova.com The Last Word 229 E Houston, (210) 314-1285, thelastwordsa.com Tobin Center 100 Auditorium, (210) 223-8624, tobincenter.org Tucker’s Kozy Korner 1338 E. Houston, (210) 320-2192, tuckerskozykorner. com Urban Taco 290 E. Basse, (210) 332-5149, dinedsrg.com
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SAVAGE LOVE by Dan Savage
A big congrats to Caitlyn Jenner on her big reveal and lovely Vanity Fair cover! But I am having a crisis of conscience. On one hand, I support a person’s right to be whom-ever the heck they want to be. You want to wear women’s clothing and use makeup and style your hair? You look fabulous! You want to carry a pillow around with an anime character on it and get married to it, like a guy in Korea did? Congrats! You want to collect creepy lifelike dolls and push them around in a stroller, like a woman on Staten Island does? Great! But I’m confused where we draw the line. When a thin person believes they’re “fat” and then dangerously restricts their food intake, we can have that person committed. Most doctors won’t amputate your arm simply because you feel you were meant to be an amputee. But when a man decides that he should be a woman (or vice versa), we will surgically remove healthy body parts to suit that particular desire. Of course, we modify/enhance/surgically alter other body parts all the time. I guess I’m confused. Could you shine some light on this for me? I want to be less conflicted about sexreassignment surgery. No Surgery For Me Gender identity, unlike marrying a pillow or pushing a doll around in a stroller, is not an affectation or an eccentricity or plain ol’ batshittery. Gender identity goes to the core of who we are and how we wish to be — how we fundamentally need to be — perceived by others. Take it away, Human Rights Campaign: “The term ‘gender identity,’ distinct from the term ‘sexual orientation,’ refers to a person’s innate, deeply felt psychological identification as a man, woman, or some other gender, which may or may not correspond to the sex assigned to them at birth… Transitioning is the 58 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
process some transgender people go through to begin living as the gender with which they identify, rather than the sex assigned to them at birth. This may or may not include hormone therapy, sex-reassignment surgery, and other medical procedures.” Unlike people who have healthy limbs amputated (which some doctors will do, if only to prevent people with “body integrity identity disorder” from amputating their own limbs) or thin people starving themselves to death because they think they’re fat, transgender people who embrace their gender identities and take steps toward transitioning are almost always happier and healthier as a result. That said, transitioning is not a panacea. Just as coming out of the closet isn’t the end of a gay person’s struggles or troubles, transitioning — which may or may not involve surgery and/or hormones — won’t protect a trans person from discrimination or violence, or resolve other personal or mental-health issues that may exist. You seem pretty concerned about the surgical removal of healthy body parts. To which I would say: Other people’s bodies — and other people’s body parts — are theirs, not yours. And if individuals want or need to change or even remove some part(s) of their body to be who they are or to be happy or healthy, I’m sure you would agree that they should have that right. Again, not all trans people get surgery, top or bottom, and many trans people change everything else (they take hormones, they get top surgery) but opt to stick with the genitals they were born with. (The ones they were born with tend to work better than the ones that can currently be constructed for them.) But unless you’re trans yourself, currently sleeping with a trans person, or about to sleep with a trans person, NSFM, it’s really none of your business what any individual trans person elects to change. For me, it boils down to letting people be who they are and do what they want. Sometimes people do things for what can seem like silly and/or mystifying reasons (marry pillows, grow beards, vote Republican), while sometimes people — sometimes even the same people — do things for very sound and serious reasons (come out, alter their bodies, vote Democrat). Unless someone else’s choices impact you in a real, immediate, and material way — unless someone wants to marry your pillow or wants to surgically alter your body or wants to persecute you politically or economically — there’s no conflict for you to resolve. Accept that you won’t always understand all of the choices that other people make about their sexualities or gender identities — or their partners or their hobbies or their whatevers — and try to strike the right balance between minding your own business and embracing/ celebrating the infinite diversity of the human experience. I’m a 23-year-old man. I left an abusive relationship a year ago, and I’m currently in therapy dealing with the fallout. This abusive relationship really affected me negatively. On the one hand,
she was the first person I was ever really intimate with. And when I say intimate, I mean pretty much everything you can think of — holding hands to kissing to intercourse to kinky sex. I identify very strongly as a submissive man, but she coerced me to be way more dominant than I actually am, among other shitty things she did to me. This has made me even more desirous of expressing myself submissively in bed, because I never really got to be who I actually am. How can I explore my submissive desires in a place that doesn’t really have much in the way of BDSM-related meet-ups, munches, clubs, etc.? How do I meet a Dominant who is respectful and kind? I may need more time away from relationships to recover and get my life in order, but being a submissive is more and more on the forefront of my mind. Seeking A Dominant If you don’t live someplace with kinky clubs and social organizations — no classes, no munches, no dungeons — you have three options. 1. Look for kinky people in your area on kinky dating sites. Mention that you’re looking for kinky friends, too, not just dates or lovers, because a kinky friend could invite you to private party in your area. 2. Date women you’ve met on non-kinky sites or in non-kinky venues and roll out your kinks in good time. I’ve been to lots of kink events, SAD, and I’ve met two kinds of people there: people who were always kinky and people who fell in love with someone kinky and then fell in love with kink. You know from personal experience that being coerced into playing a certain role is no fun — it can even tip over into abuse — so your mission is to find one of those women who loves being Dominant but won’t realize it until she falls in love with a submissive guy. 3. Move someplace that has kinky clubs, social organizations and BDSM-related events and play parties. Your advice to FACTS, the guy who cheated on his wife, was spot-on as usual. He should not tell a woman on a first date about the number of women he cheated on his ex-wife with before his divorce. You might also let him know to not mention the “crying myself to sleep every night” bit, either. But then, I am just a middle-aged gay man — so what do I know? Just Saying Middle-aged gay men — what do we know about anything? On the Lovecast, Dan and Ophira Eisenberg discuss the wisdom of face tattoos: savagelovecast.com. mail@savagelove.net
ETC.
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“They’re All Here”— so let’s all jump in. 1 Get a whiff of 6 Londoner, e.g., informally 10 Open a crack 14 Portraitist’s prop 15 Norse trickster of myth 16 Adidas rival 17 Wire worker 19 Tip jar bills 20 TP layer 21 Like some hours 22 Electric toothbrush battery size, maybe 24 Bankbook amt. 25 Zooey’s “New Girl” role 26 Drink in the morning 28 Former Israeli P.M. Ehud 31 Less partisan 33 Big one 34 1984 hit for ZZ Top 35 Popeye’s Olive and family 38 Catch a few z’s 39 Gang of characters seen in the four longest answers 40 Watery, like tea 41 Attain peas? 42 “Mystery!” host Diana 43 Arabian Peninsula native 44 Belter on Broadway 46 Cathedral toppers 47 More majestic 49 Candy bar served in twos 50 Hive-minded prefix? 51 Keanu’s role in “The
Matrix” 53 “Star Wars” figure 54 “___: Cyber” 57 “Read before posting anything” pages 59 Live through a hot day with no A.C., say 62 Make even 63 Pinball disaster 64 Alberta NHLer 65 “... with ___-foot pole!” 66 Dos + dos + dos 67 Smartly dressed
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23 Ventilate 25 Blog with the tagline “Celebrity, Sex, Fashion for Women. Without Airbrushing” 27 “Cats ask for it by name” brand 28 Preakness postings 29 Do some pirating 30 Neighbor of South Africa 31 Pretend to have 32 Worked up 34 “Star Wars” figure 36 Lois of the Daily Planet 37 Street wear? 39 They may be unwillingly shared on airplanes 43 That’s what YOU think 45 Cartoon dog surnamed Hoek 46 Hit flies 47 Hot topic of the 1992 presidential campaign 48 The painting in Roger Sterling’s office on “Mad Men”, for example 49 “___ how I roll” 52 Honey of a boo-boo 54 Mare’s child 55 Bird feeder block 56 “Just doin’ my job ...” 58 Hill worker, for short 60 Peyton Manning’s brother 61 ___ Maria (coffee liqueur)
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ETC.
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob Brezsny ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): “To look at a thing hard and straight and seriously — to fix it.” Aries author Henry James said he wanted to do that on a regular basis. He didn’t want to be “arbitrary” or “mechanical” in his efforts. I invite you to make this perspective one of your specialties in the coming weeks, Aries. Pick out a tweaked situation you’d like to mend or a half-spoiled arrangement you want to heal. Then pour your pure intelligence into it. Investigate it with a luminous focus. Use all your tough and tender insight to determine what needs to be transformed, and transform it.
TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): Drug expert Jonathan P. Caulkins estimates that Americans are stoned on marijuana for more than 288 million hours every week. A U.N. report on global drug use concluded that Canadians consume weed at a similar rate. Among Europeans, Italians are number one and the French are fourth. But I encourage you to avoid contributing to these figures for the next twelve to fourteen days. In my astrological opinion, it’s time to be as sober and sensible and serious as you ever get. You have the chance to make unprecedented progress on practical matters through the power of your pure reasoning and critical thinking. GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): I think it’ll be better if you don’t engage in much sacrifice, compromise, or surrender in the next two weeks. Normally they are valuable tools to have at your disposal, but for now they may tend to be counterproductive. Judging from the current astrological omens, I suspect you need to be more commanding than usual, more confident in your vision of how to take action with maximum integrity. It’s time for you to draw deeper from the source of your own power, and express it with extra grace and imagination.
CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): You will soon be escaping — or maybe “graduating” is the right word — from your interesting trials and tribulations. In honor of this cathartic transition, I suggest you consider doing a ritual. It can be a full-fledged ceremony you conduct with somber elegance, or a five-minute psychodrama you carry out with boisterous nonchalance. It will be a celebration of your ability to outlast the forces of chaos and absurdity, and an expression of gratitude for the resources you’ve managed to call on in the course of your struggle. To add an extra twist, you could improvise a rowdy victory prayer that includes this quote adapted from Nietzsche: “I throw roses into the abyss and say: ‘Here is my thanks to the monster who did not devour me.’”
LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): I propose a Friends Cleanse. It would be a three-week-long process of reviewing your support team and web of connections. If you 60 CURRENT • June 10-16, 2015 • sacurrent.com
feel up for the challenge, start this way: Take inventory of your friendships and alliances. If there are any that have faded or deteriorated, make a commitment to either fix them or else phase them out. Here’s the second stage of the Friends Cleanse: Give dynamic boosts to those relationships that are already working well. Take them to the next level of candor and synergy.
VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): After Walt Whitman published Leaves of Grass in 1855, he made sure it would get the publicity he wanted. He wrote anonymous reviews of his own book and submitted them to several publications, all of which printed them. “An American bard at last!” began the glowing review that appeared in one newspaper. According to my reading of the astrological omens, Virgo, you now have license to engage in similar behavior. You will incur no karma, nor will you tempt fate, if you tout your own assets in the coming weeks. Try to make your bragging and self-promotion as charming as possible, of course. But don’t be timid about it.
LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): If you carry out the assignments I recommend, you will boost your charisma, your chutzpah, and your creativity. Here’s the first one: Try something impossible every day. Whether or not you actually accomplish it isn’t important. To merely make the effort will shatter illusions that are holding you back. Here’s your second assignment: Break every meaningless rule that tempts you to take yourself too seriously. Explore the art of benevolent mischief. Here’s the third: Clear out space in your fine mind by shedding one dogmatic belief, two unprovable theories, and three judgmental opinions. Give yourself the gift of fertile emptiness.
SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): In the 16th century, roguish French author Francois Rabelais published a comic novel entitled The Life of Gargantua and of Pantagruel. In the course of his satirical story, a learned teacher named Epistemon takes a visit to the afterlife and back. While on the other side, he finds famous dead heroes employed in humble tasks. Alexander the Great is making a meager living from mending old socks. Cleopatra is hawking onions in the streets. King Arthur cleans hats and Helen of Troy supervises chambermaids. In accordance with the Rabelaisian quality of your current astrological aspects, Scorpio, I invite you to meditate on the reversals you would like to see in your own life. What is first that maybe should be last? And vice versa? What’s enormous that should be small? And vice versa? What’s proud that should be humble? And vice versa?
SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC.21):
AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18):
There’s no better time than now to ask the big question or seek the big opening or explore the big feeling. People are not only as receptive as they will ever be, they are also more likely to understand what you really mean and what you are trying to accomplish. Which door has been forever locked? Which poker face hasn’t blinked or flinched in many moons? Which heart of darkness hasn’t shown a crack of light for as long as you can remember? These are frontiers worth revisiting now, when your ability to penetrate the seemingly impenetrable is at a peak.
Sidney Lumet was an American director who worked on 50 films, including 14 that were nominated for Academy Awards, like Network and Dog Day Afternoon. Actors loved to work with him, even though he was a stickler for thorough rehearsals. Intense preparation, he felt, was the key to finding the “magical accidents” that allow an actor’s highest artistry to emerge. I advocate a similar strategy for you, Aquarius. Make yourself ready, through practice and discipline, to capitalize fully on serendipitous opportunities and unexpected breakthroughs when they arrive.
CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19): The writer Donald Barthelme once came to see the artist Elaine de Kooning in her New York studio. Midway through the visit, loud crashes and bangs disturbed the ceiling above them. De Kooning wasn’t alarmed. “Oh, that’s Herbert thinking,” she said, referring to the metal sculptor Herbert Ferber, who worked in a studio directly above hers. This is the kind of thinking I’d love to see you unleash in the coming days, Capricorn. Now is not a time for mild, cautious, delicate turns of thought, but rather for vigorous meditations, rambunctious speculations, and carefree musings. In your quest for practical insight, be willing to make some noise. (The story comes from Barthelme’s essay “Not-Knowing.”)
PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): “It is not only the most difficult thing to know oneself, but the most inconvenient one, too,” said American writer Josh Billings. I agree with him. It’s not impossible to solve the mystery of who you are, but it can be hard work that requires playful honesty, cagey tenacity, and an excellent sense of humor. The good news is that these days it’s far less difficult and inconvenient than usual for you to deepen your self-understanding. So take advantage! To get started, why don’t you interview yourself? Go here to see some questions you could ask: http://bit.ly/ interviewyourself.
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