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Priced-out artists As Sacramento’s Sacramento’s rents rents As rise, will will creative creative rise, workers leave? leave? workers

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Sacramento’S newS & entertainment weekly

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Volume 28, iSSue 52

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Becoming a citizen in trump’s america

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new cop Beating video

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mourning local artists

37

thurSday, aPril

13, 2017

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All Ages Welcome!

1417 R Street, Sacramento, 95811 • www.aceofspadessac.com wednesday, april 20

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coming soon 04/14 04/16 04/17 04/18 04/19 04/22 04/25 05/06 05/16 05/26 05/30 06/06 06/14 06/21 06/23 06/30 07/11 07/30 08/01 08/03 08/05

Beats Antique El Haragan Y Cia Oh Wonder Oh Wonder Sold Out! Jai Wolfe Jimmy Eat World Sold Out! Kehlani Sold Out! Keak Da Sneak, J Stalin & Husalah Blue October JJ Grey & Mofro Twiztid Poptone Hellyeah Kehlani - 2nd Show Added Dokken Tiger Army/Murder By Death Tour De Fat David Allan Coe Taking Back Sunday Firehouse Girls Rock Sacramento Show

EditoR’S NotE

apRil 13, 2017 | Vol. 28, iSSuE 52

27 29 Our Mission: To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages employees to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare. To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live.

Interim Editor Robert Speer Associate Editor Raheem F. Hosseini Arts & Culture Editor Rebecca Huval Assistant Editor Anthony Siino Editorial Services Coordinator Karlos Rene Ayala Staff Reporter Scott Thomas Anderson Contributing Editor Rachel Leibrock Contributors Daniel Barnes, Ngaio Bealum, Janelle Bitker, Alastair Bland, Rob Brezsny, Aaron Carnes, Jim Carnes, Willie Clark, John Flynn, Joey Garcia, Lovelle Harris, Jeff Hudson, Dave Kempa, Matt Kramer, Jim Lane, Kel Munger, Kate Paloy, Patti Roberts, Ann Martin Rolke, Shoka, Bev Sykes, Mozes Zarate

34 Design Manager Lindsay Trop Creative Director Serene Lusano Art Director Margaret Larkin Production Coordinator Skyler Smith Designer Kyle Shine Marketing/Publications Designer Sarah Hansel Contributing Photographers Lisa Baetz, Darin Bradford, Kevin Cortopassi, Evan Duran, Lucas Fitzgerald, Jon Hermison, Shoka, Lauran Fayne Worthy Sales Coordinator Joanna Graves Senior Advertising Consultants Rosemarie Messina, Joy Webber, Kelsi White Advertising Consultants Matt Kjar, Paul McGuinness, Wendy Russell, Manushi Weerasinghe Lead Director of First Impressions & Sales Assistant David Lindsay Director of First Impressions Hannah Williams Distribution Director Greg Erwin Distribution Services Assistant Larry Schubert Distribution Drivers Mansour Aghdam, Andy Barker, Kimberly Bordenkircher, Daniel Bowen, Heather Brinkley, Allen Brown, Mike Cleary, Jack Clifford, Lydia Comer, Rob Dunnica, Chris Fong, Ron Forsberg, Joanna Gonzalez-Brown, Lori Lovell, Greg Meyers, Mark Fox,

67 Sam Niver, Gilbert Quilatan, Lloyd Rongley, Lolu Sholotan, Zang Yang N&R Publications Editor Michelle Carl N&R Publications Associate Editor Kate Gonzales N&R Publications Writer Anne Stokes Senior N&R Publications Consultant Dave Nettles Marketing & Publications Consultant Dan Howells, Steve Caruso, Brian Taylor President/CEO Jeff vonKaenel Director of Nuts & Bolts Deborah Redmond Nuts & Bolts Ninja Leslie Giovanini Executive Coordinator Carlyn Asuncion Director of People & Culture David Stogner Project Coordinator Natasha vonKaenel Director of Dollars & Sense Nicole Jackson Payroll/AP Wizard Miranda Dargitz Accounts Receivable Specialist Analie Foland Sweetdeals Specialist/HR Coordinator Courtney DeShields Developer John Bisignano, Jonathan Schultz System Support Specialist Kalin Jenkins

05 07 08 14 15 16 27 29 32 34 36 45 51 67

STREETALK

Star struck

LETTERS

Sharp-eyed SN&R readers will notice a small change in this issue. We’ve stopped using a star system for rating restaurants. If you want to know what the reviewer thinks of the place, you need to read the review.

I say it’s a small change, but in some ways it’s huge. For one, we’ve been using the stars for almost as long as the paper has existed. I dug up an issue from 1993 and found a review of Bob’s Butcher Block, a kosher deli in Carmichael. Bob’s (love the name) had garnered a respectable four stars.

Sad to say, it’s no longer open.

I digress. From time to time over the years members of the SN&R editorial staff have questioned the value of the stars. What do they tell readers? Do the ratings convey the nuances of the restaurant? What impact do they have, especially on mom-and-pop shops? The questions and concerns were endless.

The discussion came to a head because of the restaurant review in this week’s issue (on page 30). Arts & Culture Editor Rebecca Huval pulls no punches. For her, dining at The Pier Lounge, Bar and Grill—thrice—was far from a pleasant experience.

“How many stars should we give The Pier?” we wondered. One seemed too kind, and a half-star just added insult to injury. That’s when we remembered how much we disliked the star system.

Good restaurant reviews do two things: They let you get to know the reviewer and decide whether he or she is a good judge of the restaurant under consideration, and they give you a detailed description of the restaurant, its food offerings and its service.

Then you can decide for yourself how many stars it deserves.

NEwS + beAtS gREENLighT ScoREKEEpER FEATuRE SToRy NighT&dAy diSh STAgE FiLm muSic ASK joEy ThE 420 15 miNuTES

coVER phoTo By SERENE LuSANo dESigN By mEg LARKiN

1124 Del Paso Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95815 Phone (916) 498-1234 Fax (916) 498-7910 Website www.newsreview.com Got a News Tip? sactonewstips@newsreview.com Calendar Events www.newsreview.com/calendar Want to Advertise? Fax (916) 498-7910 or snradinfo@newsreview.com Classifieds (916) 498-1234, ext. 5 or classifieds@newsreview.com Job Opportunities jobs@newsreview.com Want to Subscribe to SN&R? sactosubs@newsreview.com Editorial Policies: opinions expressed in SN&R are those of the authors and not of Chico Community publishing, Inc. Contact the editor for permissions to reprint articles, cartoons or other portions of the paper. SN&R is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or review materials. email letters to snrletters@newsreview.com. All letters received become the property of the publisher. We reserve the right to print letters in condensed form and to edit them for libel.

Advertising Policies: All advertising is subject to the newspaper’s Standards of Acceptance. the advertiser and not the newspaper assumes the responsibility for the truthful content of their advertising message.

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SN&R is a member of Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce, CNpA, AAN and AWN.

—RobeRt SpeeR b o b s@ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

04.13.17 | SN&R | 3

4 | SN&R | 04.13.17

“I especIally lIke DrawIng Dragons.”

aSked iN Old Fair OakS:

Do you care about art?

Ned SchumaN

lyN mateer

JOhNathaN legge

systems analyst

I like architecture … to me, it is a form of art. I like their designs, especially down in Old Fair Oaks. I like the buildings. I used to live in Chicago, and there is a lot of Frank [Lloyd] Wright there. I would like to see the Fallingwater house.

seventh grader

lOm mateer

business owner

I love art. When I think of art I think of lots of colors.

I like to draw. I keep a sketch book with me. I like abstract. I especially like drawing dragons. They look really cool. I usually draw them calm. Music is kind of like an art. Cooking is an art. Dancing is an art.

Absolutely. I think of paintings, oils. I like them all, but I am attracted to oils. We all [the family] dabble in painting. Oils are my favorite. I am always thinking my work could be better. The point of it is to give it away as a gift to someone who would be glad to have it.

J A ZZ JA ZZ

•

R&B

marc Smith

retired

•

I love it. There isn’t one form of art I love over another. I love it all. I love paintings, statues, songs and music. Unfortunately, I cannot draw even a stick figure. I cook. Cooking is an art. The last artful experience was a musical at the Mondavi Center. I enjoyed it.

ZYDECO

•

Shahzad k ahN

film editor

SOUL

•

cook

Art is very important in modern society. Like history, art shows us the world before us. Everything has art in it. Car design has art in it. When you put multiple types of art together you get a grand piece of art; like film. The writing, costumes, shooting and the art of acting all come together in film.

ROCK

•

SWING

•

Even making sodas can be an art form. Simple things, trees and how you look at things is art. We need to have art. Art is a good thing to have. It is a good way to express yourself.

Maybe you can’t say it, but you can express it. It is important for people to be allowed to be artistic.

LATIN

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3/17/17 5:04 PM

Email lEttErs to sactolEttErs@nEwsrEviEw.com

Righteous veganism Re “Vegan food fight” by Faith Lewis (Beats, April 6): This person [Kim] Sturla is doing nothing more than trying to impose her “religious” beliefs on others. The stereotypes on vegans (e.g., self-righteous and self-involved) are supported by people like her.

Tom sTePhens S acr am e nt o

Focus on a big problem Re “Down and out in suburbia”

by Scott Thomas Anderson (News, April 6): We already have tent cities. The question is whether we will continue to have unregulated tent cities spread throughout our parks and neighborhoods, or will

we have government- and private-sponsored tent cities in a more controlled environment, offering some services and protection for all of us from the impacts of homelessness? Will the city and county choose to provide consolidated garbage and sewage collection for the homeless, or will the waste continue to spread unabated throughout our streets, parks, and riverbanks?

The current city ordinances prohibiting camping and littering are ineffective in this regard, and the environmental impacts will remain as long as the “whack-a-mole” approach to enforcement continues to spread toxic waste camps from one site to another, in what was once “The Jewel of Sacramento.”

Jon Love Sa c ra m e nt o

a cool policy Re “Keeping their cool” by Robert Speer (Editor’s Note, April 6): Right on, Robert! I’ve been a land use/CEQA attorney over 17 years, and it constantly amazes me how many people revert to childish behavior late into the night at public hearings. I would fully support such a policy as Chico has! andee Leisy S a c ra me nto

Pat on the back Re “Down and out in suburbia”

by Scott Thomas Anderson (News, April 6): Scott, in my opinion, your article was to the point, well-written, quoted everyone correctly and covered the subject. It also did not sensationalize an issue that has been manipulated by many. Thank you.

RowLand Reeves S a c ra m e nt o

Correction Re: “Her illegal dad” by Raheem F. Hosseini (Feature, April 6): The caption on page 14 mistakenly identified the little girl in the photo Angela Velazquez is holding as her when she was a child. The image is of Angela’s sister, Citlalli Velazquez. SN&R regrets the error.

ONLINE BUZZ

on being nominaTed FoR sammies Thanks Sacramento News &Review – SN&R! We appreciate the acknowledgement, and for everyone who thought of us, there are a lot of great bands nominated this year. If you don’t recognize any of the nominees, nows an excellent time to check out the great music we have here in town! Cheers!

read more letters online at www.newsreview .com/sacramento.

@SacNewsReview

GhoStplay v ia Fa c e b o o k Thanks to the readers of Sacramento News & Review - SN&R for consistently nominating GROOVINCIBLE for the area’s best funk band every year since 2013. We were shocked when we took home the award last year!

See you guys at the SN&R’s 25th Annual Sammies award show at Ace Of Spades.

Groovincible v ia Fa c e b o o k

Facebook.com/ SacNewsReview

@SacNewsReview

online Buzz contributions are not edited for grammar, spelling or clarity.

WE ARE Determined We’re building a brighter future one student at a time.

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We are the future. We are Elk Grove Unified.

04.13.17 | SN&R | 7

Twenty-five people from around the world participated in a citizenship ceremony at the Folsom Public Library on April 8.

Photo by oscar granados

Citizens of Trump As two dozen new Americans pledge their allegiance in Folsom, some express concern with the political climate

by Matt KraMer

Niloufar Akhavan sat inside the crowded Folsom Public Library on Saturday morning waiting to raise her hand and say the words that would finally make her an American citizen. For the 21-yearold Iranian immigrant, a biology major at UC Davis, it was the end of a road paved before her birth.

Her father, who still runs a financial investment firm based in Iran, moved the family to El Dorado Hills six years ago in search of a “freer, happier life,” as Akhavan puts it. Akhavan’s dad first came to America during his college years 8 | SN&R | 04.13.17

and fell in love with the country, she says.

For Akhavan herself, it was a more gradual coupling. She arrived as a teenager with her older sister and parents, and started high school in El Dorado Hills, where she didn’t know anyone or much of the language.

“It was so hard,” Akhavan remembered. “I sat in the back of the class and didn’t know what was going on.”

Akhavan is the first in her family to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. She’s also among the first groups of immigrants to do so in the era of President

Donald Trump, who has spent his first three months in office advancing a hardline nationalist agenda bent on driving out unauthorized immigrants and making legal entry more difficult for refugees, visa-holders and people from majority Muslim nations, including Iran.

In other words, it’s a weird time to become an American.

Akhavan was one of 25 people to swear the oath of citizenship during the April 8 ceremony at the Folsom library.

While the ceremony, full of symbolic pomp and optimistic rhetoric, reflected

the realization of a dream for the college undergrad and two dozen others, it also begs certain uncomfortable questions.

Akhavan admits that she’s nervous about the president’s policies. Her ability to travel freely back to Iran to visit relatives—something her family had done every summer since it emigrated—was cast in doubt by Trump’s executive orders, which sparked retaliatory directives from the Iranian government.

“Actually, for [me and my family], it’s kind of scary,” Akhavan told SN&R. “What happens to us? What happens to our peers? What happens to our family back there if they want to come and visit? It’s a bit distressing, it really is.”

That ambivalence is making the rounds

these days.

According to Kevin R. Johnson, dean of the UC Davis Law School and an immigration expert, Akhavan’s concerns are shared by other prospective citizens on his campus. Johnson formerly served as a policy adviser on Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. He said his students, particularly those from China and Saudi Arabia, are worried.

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fiGHtinG for CHanGE “We have 35 to 40 students from China,” Johnson said. “President Trump has said some pretty negative things about the Chinese government, and they get the impression he’s not very sympathetic to China. That troubles some of the Chinese students—many of them are funded by the government to continue their studies in the United States. They’re uncertain about what all this means for their future.”

Johnson added that the Saudi students, while not directly impacted by Trump’s attempted travel bans, are concerned with the political climate in the United States.

“Most of them are Muslim,” Johnson said. “They’re feeling uncomfortable with his continued suggestions that Muslims may be terrorists, subject to extreme vetting and things like that.”

Before Trump’s election, the man who would be president called for “a complete and total shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.” Upon assuming office, Trump tried to make good on that rhetoric, issuing two travel bans that the federal courts have blocked. The leader of the “land of the free, and the home of the brave”—so lauded in song at the citizenship ceremony by Sacramento area singer Preeti Prabhu—singled out Akhavan’s homeland in his “Protecting The Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into The United States” executive order.

Such extreme vetting for select groups complicates an already confusing immigration process.

According to Sharon Rummery, a spokeswoman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the legal immigration process typically involves entry to the United States first through a H-1B work visa or a family-sponsored visa.

Congress caps the issuance of H-1B visas at 65,000 annually, a cap that was reached five months before the end of this fiscal year in September. Rummery said that was normal.

Once here, becoming a full-fledged citizen requires that the applicant be at least 18 years of age, have prior authorization to live and work in the United States through a green card for at least five years (30 months of which must be spent physically present in the country), have a working knowledge of English, pass a test on U.S. history and government, and be of “good moral character,” as determined

by USCIS. The final requirement is that the prospective citizen take the oath of allegiance.

So far, it isn’t clear whether Trump’s policies have had an impact on those seeking citizenship. Immigration numbers

for early 2017 won’t be available until largely in direct response to the last elecmidsummer. tion cycle. Becoming a citizen, he said, But, according to data from the will give him a chance to do something National Visa Center, Trump’s campaign about the concerns he has for his newly rhetoric doesn’t seem to have significantly official home. curbed the outside world’s attraction to “We don’t want to revert to 70 years America. As of November 1, 2016, nearly ago,” he added, referring to the events 2.5 million applications for family-sponthat led to World War II. “We need to be sored visas were pending determination, careful.” while another 24,629 applicants waited in the brightly lit library room, excited to hear back about their requests for chatter cut the silence as members of Boy work visas. Figures from the same source Scout Troop 1855 displayed the American show there were 76,084 more total visa flag. Sworn in as a group, the 25 applications at the same time in new citizens picked up their 2015, but the numbers tend individual certificates and to naturally fluctuate. posed for photos.

Meanwhile, the “I salute you all,” number of immigrants Folsom Vice Mayor seeking U.S. citizenKerri Howell told ship appears to be the attendees. “We growing. are a stronger nation Between October through your inclusion 1 and December 31, Niloufar Akhavan and participation in our 2015, USCIS recorded newly naturalized U.S. citizen democracy.”

187,635 naturalization For Akhavan, who has applications, a 13 percent family and friends back in bump compared to the same Iran, the words cut deep. period a year earlier.

Her family came to America In Sacramento County alone, 1,851 searching for opportunities, but also new citizens were naturalized between for freedoms it couldn’t exercise back October 1 and December 31 of last year. home, she said. Life in Iran was much According to Johnson, the trend will likely continue thanks, in part, to Trump’s more restrictive. For instance, religious enforcers would patrol the streets making increased immigration enforcement. sure women wore headscarves outside of “In the past, what we’ve seen when their homes. She recalls having to always there’ve been these kinds of concerns, be on guard. One of the first things she we’ve seen more legal immigrants recalls noticing in America, she said, was naturalize and try to become citizens,” a palpable sense of ease.

Johnson said. “You can’t be deported “[I saw] how comfortable people were if you’re a citizen who’s been lawfully here,” Akhavan said. “How people could naturalized. … It’s going to take some wear whatever they wanted, how they time to tell what’s going to happen, but could [say] whatever they wanted. In Iran, in light of the concerns over immigration it’s not like that. Everybody is constantly enforcement, we’re likely to see more [watching] what they’re doing.” legal immigrants try to naturalize and Becoming an American citizen was become citizens. I wouldn’t be surprised always hard. It’s a long, complex process in the least if we were to see an uptick mired in bureaucracy and doubt. But the in naturalization petitions over the next trajectory was in place. There was a path, couple of years.” a way, a hope.

The tenuous political climate is what “I think it’s sort of a mixed bag now,” spurred Gunnar Vestergaard to finally Johnson said. “It’s hard to guess what become a citizen. the attitude will be a year from now “I wanted to become a U.S. citizen because we’ll have more experience because of the political situation now,” Vestergaard said. “I just think we all need with President Trump’s immigration enforcement priorities. For now, there’s a voice, and I want to be able to vote in a great deal of uncertainty and concern this country.” among immigrants generally. … If you’re A Danish immigrant and legal U.S. an immigrant or a temporary visitor … resident for 42 years, Vestergaard spent you’re going to be paying attention to most of his life working as a cabinetwhat’s transpiring.” Ω maker here for a Danish furniture manufacturer. At the Folsom library, he said he was driven to finally become a citizen

“What happens to us?”

In a rare and public rebuke, the Sacramento Police Department suspended an officer Monday night for his “unacceptable” role in the beating of a pedestrian hours earlier in the Del Paso Heights neighborhood.

The altercation was captured in a cellphone video recording that was shared on social media, words that have become synonymous with the public’s increased awareness—and scrutiny—of law enforcement’s use of force.

The officer, a two-year veteran the department declined to name, was placed on paid administrative leave Monday night after the eyewitness video showed him assaulting a pedestrian he attempted to detain for jaywalking at the intersection of Cypress Street and Grand Avenue just after 5 p.m. April 10.

According to a Sacramento Police Department release, the officer exited his marked patrol car and attempted to stop the pedestrian for the unlawful crossing. The release says the pedestrian ignored the officer’s commands and walked away.

A cellphone video, recorded from inside a car, picks up the stalemate with the two men facing each other on a quiet residential street. The pedestrian, whom Fox 40 identified as Nandi Cain Jr., strips off his jacket and tosses it aside. The officer then charges Cain, swings him around and pulls him to the ground.

In the release summarizing the incident, the police department implies it doesn’t understand its officer’s response. “For an unknown reason, the officer threw the pedestrian to the ground and began striking him in the face with his hand multiple times,” the release states. “The videos of this incident portray actions and behavior that we would consider unacceptable conduct by a Sacramento Police Officer.”

As for Cain, the police department never charged him with a crime. Instead, the department’s Internal Affairs Division is investigating the officer’s conduct, the release says.

In the video, as he lies belly-down with his hands cuffed behind him, Cain can be heard shouting at the officers standing above him, “I just got off work! Y’all gonna be hearing from my lawyer, and my boss!” (Raheem F. Hosseini)

draftinG ClimatE talEnt More than 400 environmental scientists and experts have

sought work in California following the Trump administration’s clampdown on climate science, according to the California Public Utilities Commission.

CPUC President Michael Picker handed out job fliers in front of the federal Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy offices in Washington last month. Since then, hundreds of inquiries have come in, said Picker’s chief of staff, Nick Chaset.

A special job portal was set up on the CPUC website for work at the utilities commission, Air Resources Board and California Energy Commission, as well as on Picker’s personal CPUC page.

Most applications are in the early stages of being considered. Chaset said the utilities commission set up a series of webinars to help federal employees navigate the state hiring system, notorious for its difficulty.

State climate experts could impact the country, if not the planet. Jobs at the state include: pollution specialists, analysts, technicians, engineers and resources specialists.

The move to enlist the country’s top federal scientists is reminiscent of when Russian engineers, who designed the Soviet Union’s submarine-launched ballistic missiles, went to work on North Korea’s nuclear program following the end of the Cold War. (Michael Mott) This story was made possible by a grant from Tower Cafe.

04.13.17 | SN&R | 9

Sac State student aya Khalifeh wants her university to divest its ties to private prisons.

Photo by Scott thomaS anderSon

Green is the old black California looks to phase out private prison partnerships as Trump administration doubles down

by Scott thomaS anderSon

A bill to end California’s reliance on forprofit prisons jumped a major hurdle last week, passing the Assembly Public Safety Committee just days before students demanded that Sacramento State University divest its financial ties to those very corporations.

According to Assemblyman Rob Bonta, California is still contracting to house 6,000 state inmates inside private prisons.

“I don’t agree with this philosophy,” Bonta told fellow lawmakers on April 4. “These companies have a fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders to maximize profits around incarceration.”

To redress this, the East Bay Democrat authored Assembly Bill 1320, which would halt all new contracts between the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the private prison industry by 2018, as well as phase out all inmates in private custody by 2028. AB 1320 passed unanimously through the public safety committee. It will next be heard by the Assembly Appropriations Committee, which could move it to a final vote in the state house. It will also need Senate 10 | SN&R | 04.13.17

approval and the governor’s signature.

Last summer, the Obama administration announced plans to phase out federal private prison contracts. That tide shifted with the election of Donald Trump and the confirmation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. In February, Sessions officially rescinded the Obama plan, making Bonta’s bill yet another symbol of California parting ways with the federal agenda.

Bonta argues there’s a clear monetary incentive for private prisons to shortchange rehabilitation efforts, as more victims of crime—and incoming convicts—equal a higher earning trajectory.

Testifying April 4, a representative from Corrections Corporation of America, or CCA, a private prison company housing many California inmates, reminded committee members why CCA’s services were first called upon: In 2007, a panel of federal judges ruled that, due to overcrowding and inmate deaths, the state had to reduce its prison population by 40,000 inmates.

“We were simply part of that process and we’re proud of that,” CCA lobbyist

sc o tta @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

John Latimer said at the hearing. Though CCA is taking no position on the bill, Latimer defended the company’s rehabilitative efforts. Referring to how far California’s prison population has dropped since realignment, which shifted thousands of low-level offenders to county jails, and the passage of Proposition 47, which lowered some felonies to misdemeanors, Latimer added, “This process is already happening on its own, organically.”

According to a January 2016 report from CDCR, more than 23 percent of that initial reduction of 40,000 inmates was achieved by shipping bodies to private prisons.

While the number of inmates in private custody is falling, it’s not fast enough for critics. In recent years, CCA and rival prison corporations GEO Group and G4S have faced mounting lawsuits alleging that low-wage correctional officers, underfunded background checks and various cost-cutting measures led to inmate abuses—all while profits soared. CCA reported its total revenue for 2015 at $1.7 billion, while GEO Group reported profits of $1.8 billion.

G4S, which also owns a global security business that contracts with Sacramento Regional Transit, has contracts worth more than $2 billion annually.

Well before California lawmakers took action, college students were pressuring their educational institutions to stop subsidizing for-profit incarceration.

In April 2015, students pressured Columbia University to divest its shares in G4S and CCA. Seven months later, students convinced the board of regents of the University of California to divest $30 million from those companies, along with shares in GEO Group. Now, some Sacramento students think it’s time for California State University to take a stand.

On April 6, Abraham Mendoza III, vice president of academic affairs for Sacramento State’s Associated Students Inc., appeared in front of a campus audience to discuss his new resolution for CSUS to divest from Wells Fargo, specifically because of the bank’s key investments in private prison companies.

Mendoza’s resolution also calls for CSUS to divest from JP Morgan Chase over links to the Dakota Access Pipeline and several companies profiting off Israeli occupation of the West Bank in Palestine. Mendoza’s resolution characterizes all these financial arrangements that CSUS has as being tainted with human rights abuses.

Aya Khalifeh, president of Students for Justice in Palestine, told SN&R that her group is in full support of the resolution, and not just because of its mission around Gaza. “We don’t agree with what these private prison companies are doing,” Khalifeh said. “We’re completely aware of the grave issues going on, and the role these corporations play in mass incarceration.”

The event’s keynote speaker, Ahmad Saadaldin of Peace House, said it’s vital for the public to educate itself on the untold story of the private prison industry, particularly how the companies used the American Legislative Exchange Council to financially support politicians who championed so-called “tough on crime” bills, driving up both the number of incarcerated Americans and private prison contracts at the same time. The connections between ALEC and the private prison industry were first uncovered by investigative reporters at Reuters, the Palm Beach Post and The New Orleans Times-Picayune. Last year, it was re-emphasized in the documentary 13th, which also stresses the disproportionate number of black and brown men in American prisons.

“Consider the very concept: You’re in business to jail people,” Saadaldin said.

“It’s all been broken down and proven now that these companies lobbied Congress to target at-risk minorities.” Ω

Rise of the DigiGirlz Two-day technology showcase draws dozens of female middle schoolers to Sacramento State

by Corey rodda

~ Spring into Color Sale...April 9th to 24th ~

workforce, according to Science and Engineering It was a stuffy setting for something so cool.

Indicators, a quantitative information stream about A college classroom the color of weak coffee. the nation’s STEM industry. And 70 percent of Black-backed chairs lined up on a Tufted broadpeople working in science and engineering fields loom office carpet. A PowerPoint presentation are white. fighting for clarity on a projector screen. And 56 It’s not like one gender is better at science middle school girls preparing to take the future by and technology fields. Science and Engineering storm.

Indicators points out that high school girls achieve The students were participants in last month’s just as well as boys in math and science courses.

DigiGirlz, a two-day technology showcase But when these same students reach college, the gap co-hosted by Sacramento State, the city of between male and female achievement in STEM Sacramento and Microsoft, designed to whet fields widens. So what gives? their appetites for careers in science, technology, A study of the American Association of engineering or math—fields otherwise known as University Women found that barriers for women in STEM. DigiGirlz is one component of Microsoft’s pursuing STEM fields at the college level are linked YouthSpark, a worldwide initiative to get more to the false perception that they are not good at women and minorities into STEM professions. math or science because of their gender. The On March 23 and 24, the students who study discovered that even women who converged on Sac State learned about discount this stereotype still buy into robots used to teach nursing students an implicit bias about their role in how to respond to life-threatening “I became those fields. emergencies. They also tried proud to be the Greer experienced these their hand at coding. Sydney only woman in the doubts herself. Often the Bruce, an eighth-grader at Sutter only woman in her computer Middle School who hopes to class.” science courses at UC Davis, become a trauma surgeon, said Natasha Greer she eventually grew to view her the best part of the excursion website administrator, city rarefied status as a positive. was learning how to code a of Sacramento “I became proud to be the only computer program that would turn woman in the class,” said Greer, a LED light on and off. who is also African-American. “But That kind of reaction was gratifying I also had a lot of support—the National to Natasha Greer, a DigiGirlz organizer and Society of Black Engineers and the Minority the city of Sacramento’s website administrator.

Engineering Club on the UC Davis campus—those “I was in a program similar to DigiGirlz,” said were fantastic organizations that gave me the confiGreer, referring to San Francisco’s Gifted and dence to know that I could do it.”

Talented Education initiative. After she completed Besides DigiGirlz, the nonprofit Parent Teacher the GATE program, she was able to choose any Home Visits sends STEM teachers into the homes UC school for undergraduate education. Greer ended up obtaining her degree in computer science of students from diverse backgrounds.

April Ybarra said her daughter Kenya at UC Davis. benefited greatly from the initiative, rising to the Statistics speak of opportunity. top of her fifth-grade math class at Oak Ridge The Bureau of Labor and Statistics says Elementary School.

California is tops in the nation for the fastest-grow“My kids are more connected to their teachers ing professions in STEM fields. About a year ago, and I talk to their teachers just like they were a study created by SmartAsset ranked Sacramento friends,” April Ybarra said. Ω as the city with the most diverse STEM workforce in the country. SmartAsset’s findings chalked the results up to Sacramento’s innovation fund and its government hiring processes.

However, even though women make up more An extended version of this story is available at www.newsrethan half of the nation’s college-educated workview.com/sacramento. force, they make up only 29 percent of the STEM

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Estimated cost of damages to state highway system

$866,000,000

$800m

$700m

$658,300,000

$600m

$500m $416,400,000 $400m

$300m

$268,800,000

$395,200,000

$278,500,000

$200m

$167,100,000

$100m

$0 2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017*

*Through March 30. Source: California Department of Transportation

illustration by serene lusano

A potholed California Rains cause severe road damage as Legislature approves costly repair plan

by Ben Christopher

ben Christopher is a contributing writer to Calmatters.org, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

The Legislature’s approval last week of a $52 billion road repair plan couldn’t come too soon for rain-battered streets and highways that have already suffered severe damage this year.

Since the beginning of the year, California’s state highway system has been buffeted with more than 400 sinkholes, downed trees and mudslides.

Caltrans puts the price tag for all this wet weather damage at roughly $866 million.

That means 2017—just three months in—is already the most expensive year for California’s state road system in at least two decades.

“It’s a disaster out there,” said Rob Lapsley, president of the California Business Roundtable. “If we don’t have the ability to move goods and trade—we’re the largest trade state—then obviously that directly impacts our overall economy.”

12 | SN&R | 04.13.17

With additional snow melt still to come and the possibility of more weather damage in the months ahead, Caltrans is likely to see well over $1 billion in emergency road repairs and restorations before the year is out. That figure does not include the costs borne by city and county transportation and public works departments, which manage roughly 80 percent of the state’s roadways.

For state Democrats, this budget buster of a rainy season came at a politically opportune moment. Last Thursday, with a strong push from Gov. Jerry Brown, the Legislature approved a landmark spending plan that will raise $52 billion for road repairs in the coming decade with a spending package that includes a 12 cent gas tax and higher vehicle fees.

Though lawmakers failed to wrangle

sufficient support for a similar package last year, the Democratic leadership was able to make use of the supermajority it acquired in last year’s election.

The vote to approve the tax increase required support from two-thirds of the Legislature, and Democrats had no vote to spare. In the Senate, Democrats won the minimum 27 votes after Sen Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, opposed the plan and Sen Anthony Cannella, R-Ceres, joined Democrats in support.

In the Assembly, Democrats won the minimum votes necessary for approval after losing support from one of their members, Assemblyman Rudy Salas, D-Bakersfield.

“The rain has exacerbated—but it’s also really illustrated—the vulnerability of these poor streets and roads throughout the state,” said Amy Worth,

a commissioner for the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission and a council member for the city of Orinda, in a conversation prior to the vote. “The silver lining of the storm will hopefully provide the energy to push this [vote] over the line.”

The cost of providing emergency fixes to the state highway system has been on an upward trend for the last few years. In contrast to this year’s storm-induced damages, the $660 million bill from 2016 was largely the result of fire and the clearing of trees killed by the drought. But this year’s storm costs could be worse than they otherwise would be thanks to years of neglect.

Pockmarked, low-quality pavement degrades at an escalating rate, and small potholes beget larger potholes.

“The storms put the consequences of years of deferred maintenance and underinvestment on stark display,” said Caltrans spokeswoman Vanessa Wiseman in an email.

The governor and the leadership in the Legislature had been campaigning for the package at meetings across the state, portraying the bill as a commonsensical choice to pay now rather than pay more later.

“The Democratic Party is the party of doing things, and tonight we did

something to fix the roads of California,” Goodwin, a spokesman for the Bay Area Brown declared after the vote.

Metropolitan Transportation Commission.

By all accounts, there’s a lot of fixing According to Caltrans, the three to be done. counties that saw the most severe According to a Senate damage to the state-owned analysis, Caltrans would highway systems were need an additional $6 all in the Bay Area— billion each year to Marin, Santa Clara properly maintain and San Mateo. and operate the Though local state highway and county system. At the roads were local level, similarly cities and affected, the counties would region has need another passed local $7.2 billion sales tax initiato bring their tives to keep up streets and roads with some of the Vanessa Wiseman back up to working repair. That’s fortuCaltrans spokeswoman order. That adds up nate, says Goodwin, to $132 billion over the since repairing a modernext 10 years. ately damaged pavement Though few lawmakers disagree is five to 10 times cheaper than that the state’s transportation infrastrucreplacing it. ture has been neglected, opinions differ “By putting more local money in, over where to place the blame. [we] have been able to tread water in Supporters of the spending package terms of pavement quality,” Goodwin point to a chronic shortage of revenue. said. “But you can only tread water for The lion’s share of the money used to so long.” pay for state road repair and maintenance But even with with the support of comes from taxes levied on gasoline and the governor, organized labor, business diesel fuel purchases. But the base excise groups, city and county representatax—the portion of the tax that does not tives, and transit advocates, the April 6 rise and fall with the price of gasoline— vote was a “big lift,” according to the hasn’t been increased since 1994. Since governor. Asking Californians to pay then, inflation has eaten away 40 percent more for the privilege to drive is not of its real value. In the meantime, many generally a winning political strategy.

Californians have opted for more fuel The last time the state decided to raise efficient cars, meaning that the average the gas tax, George Deukmejian was driver now pays significantly less while governor. Former Gov. Gray Davis’ delivering the same amount of wear and decision to raise the vehicle license fee tear to the roads. helped fuel the successful campaign to State Republicans place blame recall him. Even with super-majorities for the transportation woes on the in the Senate and the Assembly, many state’s own misguided spending moderate Democrats who won their priorities. Assemblyman Vince Fong, seats by narrow margins were not eager R-Bakersfield, had introduced an to support a tax hike in their first few alternative bill to the Democratic plan months in office. that he says would have raised money But the sorry conditions of the state’s by cutting wasteful spending, auditing roads and the resulting vehicular damage major projects like high-speed rail, and and congestion that it causes raised the streamlining repairs and upgrades by stakes for a tax hike. reining in environmental regulations and At a Senate hearing early last month, making more use of private contractors.

Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, recalled how Whatever the cause of the state’s even he had fallen victim to the state’s increasingly shoddy network of roads, ravaged road system. the result has been a higher burden on “The week after my election, when local and county governments, which I took my wife on a trip to the beach, have had to pay for maintenance and it was ruined by my car falling apart repairs out of their own budgets. because I hit a big, huge pothole,” he “The share of the burden borne on told the Senate Governance and Finance the shoulders of local funding has been Committee. “Isn’t that a lovely present growing for a generation,” said John for somebody who just got elected?” Ω

“The storms put the consequences of years of deferred maintenance and underinvestment on stark display.”

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Pot to the rescue? by jeff vonkaenel

Sitting on folding chairs at the Sam & Bonnie Pannell Community Center, approximately 20 concerned residents from Sacramento Councilman Larry Carr’s District 8 and 10 very concerned police and fire safety officers attended Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg’s city budget town hall meeting on April 5.

There were no protesters. In fact, it was like a high school government class on the city budget. And the class was led by one of California’s most knowledgeable and experienced government policy experts, our mayor.

Here are the Cliffs Notes: (1) Sacramento’s budget is around $1 billion.

(2) Half the budget goes to “enterprise funds” such as water and solid-waste collection. Money collected for those services can be used only for providing those services.

(3) The remaining $427 million is in the general fund; 55 percent of this goes to the police and fire departments.

(4) In 2012, city voters approved Measure U, a half-cent sales tax that generates around $30 million a year for the general fund, about 7 percent of the fund’s revenues.

(5) In 2018, city voters will decide whether to renew this tax.

(6) Due to a state mandate, over the next several years the city will also need to increase the money allocated to city workers’ pension funds up to $28 million a year.

This is due partly to increases in the number of pensioners and partly to lower-than-expected investment returns.

The big takeaway is that, even if city voters renew the tax in 2018, the city will have to find an additional $28 million to pay for the increased pension costs—that, or dramatically slash the 14 | SN&R | 04.13.17

je ffv @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

general fund. That would probably mean cutting police and fire positions, a very difficult choice. Where are we going to get that money?

Enter pot.

Steinberg said the city hopes that increased fees on marijuana dispensaries and production facilities and sales tax on marijuana products will generate millions of dollars for the city. Council members hope it will be at least $20 million.

So, in the strange world of politics, police and fire salaries and pensions are dependent upon the citys successfully establishing a significant amount of marijuana production and manufacturing within city limits.

Steinberg and Carr both talked about how money from the marijuana tax would be used to go after illegal indoor growers. These growers are relatively easy to identify because of their increased electricity use.

I wonder. If the city cracks down on illegal indoor growing, why wouldn’t these growers just move their operations from the city to the county?

Unlike the city of Sacramento, which hopes to benefit from the marijuana industry, the county has foolishly refused to allow medical marijuana dispensaries and is doing nothing to encourage legal marijuana production.

This means that the county will not have additional revenue to use to identify and investigate illegal indoor growing. Ironically, this will make it a safer place for illegal indoor growing.

All in all, the city budget town hall meeting was more interesting than a typical government class. Steinberg will be conducting these meetings in each district. He has five more coming up. You should go! It will be a real lesson in government at work. Ω

Jeff vonKaenel is the president, CEO and majority owner of the News & Review.

jOIn ThE

’S mento SacraerS and winn S—with loSer ry pointS ra arbit

hn by jo

flyn

TEam!

n

Trump’s firsT sTrike

SN&R is hiring an EDITOR

Citing his concern for the slaughtered children of Syria,

FOR mORE InFORmaTIOn anD TO apply, gO TO www.nEwsREvIEw.cOm/jObs.

President Donald Trump circumvented congressional approval and ordered his first airstrike against the civil war-ravaged

illuStration by Sarah hanSel

nation on Friday. The April 6 strike—ostensibly in response to the horrific deployment of sarin gas on Syrian citizens, believed to have been ordered by Syrian President Bashar Assad—delivered 59 missiles to an airfield that was up and running a day later. Trump’s transparent attempt to project strength and compassion might have meant more if he didn’t already block Syrian refugees fleeing Assad’s barbarism from entering America. It was a PR stunt befitting the former game show host.

- 59 Falling PRom sTaR After being turned down by a friend of his sister, Rio Americano junior Albert Ochoa did what any selfrespecting promgoer might: start a viral campaign to enlist a date. And it worked. On April 8, Ochoa

PhoTo DRoP

over the famously famous 19-year-old. It was a far better showing than the one her older sister, Kendall, made in a tone-deaf commercial that implied civil unrest can be quenched by Pepsi. If only inequality was as easy to redress as the rep of a spurned high schooler.

A woman plummeted 60 feet from the Foresthill Bridge in Auburn last week, after she stepped out on the bridge’s girders so she could take a selfie. The woman is expected to survive, but the Placer County Sheriff’s Office scolded the illegal “trespassing” that led to her near-death. Posting the photo that was snapped right before the April 4 fall, the office also tweeted: “You can lose your life and none of that is worth a selfie!” There are safer ways to spiff up that Tinder profile.

+ 19

- 60

attended his school’s spring formal with reality TV star kylie Jenner. Selfie-seeking pandemonium ensued

PasseD hockey Puck

JazzeD uP

At the age of 90, legendary comedian Don Rickles died.

A beyond-singular performer, Rickles enjoyed an unlimited license to mock, ribbing everyone from Frank Sinatra to Ronald Reagan to everyday audience members who loved him for it. “Mr. Nice Guy,” as he was known, was hilariously caustic, but never cruel. There won’t be another like him.

RIP, Mr. Potato Head.

For the second year running,

+ 90

sacramento state university’s jazz groups snagged top honors at the Monterey Next Generation Jazz Festival. Vocal jazz ensembles Vox Now and Sac State Jazz Singers placed first and second, respectively. Vox Now will perform at the Monterey Jazz Festival in September alongside legends like Branford Marsalis, Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock.

Groovy!

+2

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(916) 480-9200 2424 ardeN Way, suite 360, saCrameNto, Ca 95825 Veteran adVisor: sgt Major (ret) daniel j. Morales 04.13.17

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15

Fiction writer Arielle Robbins says she feels isolated in her new home in Rocklin.

Photo BY JoN hERMISoN

Painted into a corner 16 | SN&R | 04.13.17

As Sacramento’s rents rise, will artists and creative workers GET ERASED from the picture?

by Rebecca Huval | r e b e c c a h @ n e w s r e v i e w . c o m

A

hallway of naked and faceless bodies echoed with Sacramento’s darkest secrets.

“Immediately after my first assault in college, I stopped drinking for over a year,” one confessor wrote. “I blamed myself for getting too drunk.”

The Faceless exhibit at the temporary installation Art Street shared anonymous stories of mostly local women who had been sexually abused. Framed photos showed their vulnerable, unclothed bodies with eyes hidden from the camera.

To make the harrowing piece, local photographer Sarah Marie Hawkins spent more than 300 hours and almost $4,000 on supplies, out of pocket. In return, she was guaranteed only $500.

The splash she made at Art Street didn’t help Hawkins afford a new apartment when her landlord sold her $475-a-month room in South Land Park this past winter. The artist worried she might have to leave Sacramento altogether.

“In the past four and a half years, I haven’t lived in a place longer than a year,” Hawkins says.

The only artist-specific affordable housing in Sacramento, the Warehouse Artists Lofts, currently has a waiting list of more than 80 hopeful residents for both market-rate and subsidized units. When the building first opened in 2014 with a first-come, first-served process, artists lined up outside the day before to fill out an application. Hawkins couldn’t be there that day because she had to shoot a particularly inflexible event—a wedding.

In the past several years, Sacramento has achieved, according to Los Angeles Magazine, “a hint of newfound cool” (read: Instagram-worthy restaurants, galleries and boutiques). As a result, the city has lured new residents, and the corresponding rising rents have become increasingly unaffordable for the creative workers and restaurateurs who make it cool.

Meanwhile, the City Council’s solution to stimulate the arts community could make things even worse: Its $500,000 Creative Economy Pilot Project aims to draw higherpaying companies by dazzling them with our

sense of culture. Artists could attract new transplants willing to pay steeper prices for homes, effectively working to price themselves out of the city. If creative workers can’t find jobs or reasonable rent here, they might depart for a city that will provide at least one or the other.

In the “gentrification playbook” familiar in cities worldwide, first come the artists, then the galleries, then the yuppie boutiques.

All the while, rents rise, and the city’s coffers bulge—finally, the capitalist gestation of a place is complete. We’ve seen it happen in neighborhoods in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Portland, Austin.

When council members talk about “revitalizing” downtown even further, to some this reads as a euphemism for edging out poorer renters. But the very population that allegedly triggers this process might also be the key to saving the city’s soul.

Are we cool yet?

Growing up in the Sacramento suburbs, historian and writer William Burg was fascinated by the creative energy of Midtown and the bright murals by the Royal Chicano Air Force that wove tales throughout the city. Oh, and the rent was damn cheap. So he decided to move to the neighborhood in 1994.

Though his aging apartment building had no air conditioning, it boasted a rent price of $1,000 split eight ways—$125 to live in a punk house with enough space to host bands to play live shows.

“What draws artists to any city is cheap rent,” Burg says, “and that applies to San Francisco in the ’50s or the Lower East Side of New York in the ’70s.”

Lately, Sacramento’s arts scene has been getting more press outside of the city, but it’s been here all along. It looks particularly active today only because society’s definition of who an artist can be has expanded beyond white men.

“Part of why I think we kind of get short shrift is that a lot of our creative forces are—have been—women and people of color, whether it’s the Royal Chicano Air Force or Mark Teemer or Joan Didion,” Burg says.

Interesting fact: Didion’s burgeoning creativity was stimulated by the Federal Art Project, a Depression-era, federally funded program in Sacramento that taught art to children. It lasted only a few years and was defunded because of its controversial federal funding, Burg says. That trajectory sounds eerily familiar today, as the National Endowment for the Arts risks becoming defunded under the Trump administration.

Government grants or not, throughout the years Sacramento attracted artists because of its affordability. Creative hubs flared up in Oak Park in the ’60s with the Belmonte Gallery that exhibited avant-garde funk artists and Land Park and Curtis Park in the ’80s beside the scholastic William Burg stimulation of Sac State— author and historian and the cheaper rents near the highway.

In 2001, Trisha Rhomberg, owner of the vintage clothing and artisan jewelry boutique Old Gold, moved to Sacramento from St. Louis because of its affordable rents compared to other California cities. She and her boyfriend split $700 a month for a one-bedroom. When she moved into her own place, she could afford the $750 per month on her own, solely by selling handmade clothing at quarterly events.

“What draws artists to any city is cheap rent.”

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued on page 18

04.13.17 | SN&R | 17

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER”

continued from page 17

“I didn’t have to resort to bartending or working in a restaurant to pay my rent,” she says. “Moms would bring their daughters in to meet me and use me as an example of what you can do as a young, creative entrepreneur.”

As Rhomberg opened up boutiques—first Bows & Arrows in 2011, now shuttered, and then Old Gold in 2015—Sacramento changed, too. Old Gold arrived with the rest of the WAL Public Market and its hip restaurants and shops. They added to the countless sleek institutions that have opened in the past 10 years in Midtown, Southside Park and the R Street Corridor: LowBrau, Verge Center for the Arts, Shady Lady Saloon, m.a.r.k. vintage, Magpie, RIRE, Mother, CLARA Auditorium, Pushkin’s Bakery. As these storefronts gave a trendy polish to the grid, housing costs surged throughout the city.

Oak Park has also changed rapidly, as Barbara Range, the co-owner of the Brickhouse Art Gallery, can attest. In the past three years, restaurants, salons and shops popped up, including what Range calls “boutique row.” But “they call it the Triangle District,” she notes.

“The restaurants I can deal with because we were dry,” Range says. However, she has mixed feelings about the fact that the neighborhood is just now getting attention from the city at large. It got that TLC only after its demographics shifted away from being a

“We’re not the little trick monkey that plays music for you.

We’re professionals.”

Sarah Marie Hawkins artist and photographer

18 | SN&R | 04.13.17

mostly black community with black-owned businesses. “The issue for me is still race.

And we don’t want to talk about that. It’s all race driven.”

It’s also class driven. Rental prices in Sacramento have been rising abnormally fast, even compared to the Bay Area. Rents jumped 11.1 percent from December 2015 to December 2016—the highest year-over-year rent spike in the country, according to Yardi Matrix.

Rhomberg says she’s lucky she lined up for WAL housing at 3:45 a.m. and secured a slot in 2014. Without her subsidized apartment, she imagines she and her belowmarket-rate neighbors at WAL would have simply left Sacramento by now.

“Most artists can’t afford to live here anymore,” she says. “This year, more than ever, I’ve heard more people struggle for longer, looking for a place to live.”

Off the grid Among rows of beige tract housing, fiction writer Arielle Robbins settles into her living room to tap away on her laptop and construct her novel—tentatively titled Nothing to Do with Explosions. Half a year ago, she moved from Q and 10th streets to Rocklin because she, her husband, her four cats and her shiba inu felt cramped in a one-bedroom, $1,500-a-month apartment.

She figured they would be able to afford to buy a two-bedroom home in Sacramento; her husband works as a software engineer and, at the time, Robbins worked in operations at a nonprofit. After four months of searching, they gave up and moved to Rocklin. Though she has four bedrooms for a mortgage nearly the same price as rent at her last apartment, she now regrets the move away from downtown.

“I really miss it,” Robbins says. “All of the art events that I like to go to—to support other artists—it’s all down there, so I’ve just felt really isolated by the move.”

The new location has hindered her ability to recruit more artists to collaborate and show their work through her nonprofit, Retrograde Collective.

“You start to lose touch with the people there, and that isolates you even further, and then your own activities suffer as a result because you’re not connected to people anymore,” she says.

Arguably, artists have a real business need to live in the most expensive places in cities—downtown.

After moving here from Miami nine years ago, Robbins is now considering leaving altogether. In a reversal of the usual narrative of San Francisco creative workers seeking an

affordable haven in Sacramento, she and her husband may get priced out of Rocklin and seek out more economically viable shelter in the Bay Area. Though that metro area is pricy, the couple could command higher prices for their work and more easily connect to their industries there.

“If we’re going to be house poor somewhere, we might as well be house poor in the Bay Area,” she says. She and her husband are still struggling to build a community and pay for expenses with their paychecks, so she asks, “Why be in Sacramento and house poor?”

Robbins adds, “I know the city is trying to address that. … It’s just not happening fast enough. Expenses are outpacing opportunity by a lot.”

Indeed, the city claims to be working on it. One of the questions being asked by the Creative Economy task force is: “I don’t know if we’ll ever be the place where the proverbial bass guitarist gets so much work here that they don’t have to do anything else, but how do we make it better?” says Crystal Strait, senior adviser in Mayor Darrell Steinberg’s office.

The $500,000 Creative Economy money is about to start funding pilot projects that apply online to the city, with a priority placed on pop-up events that incorporate food, tech and art to “activate a space,” Strait says. The biggest criterion is economic impact, followed by social impact and potential for growth. She says the city hopes the increased artistic activities magnetize higher-paying companies to the area.

“Promoting creativity makes us a more attractive city, particularly in our efforts to bring in high wage jobs and the right talent to make sure those jobs are filled,” she says.

The idea is that new companies will also stimulate jobs in design, digital media and other creative fields. However, not every musician, painter or writer wants to work in those industries.

Though the Creative Economy task force is researching how to help freelance creative workers, its recommendations to the city won’t change the fact that those careers are more cyclical, with ups and downs and side jobs. As the city adds high-wage jobs, more artists like Robbins will be pushed to the city’s outskirts, away from the downtown foot traffic that would sustain their work as an independent business.

Even as creative enterprises have gained traction in Sacramento, housing remains a priority. Rhomberg has watched as the arts and crafts community has blossomed, but acknowledges the downside of this growth.

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued on page 21

T H E

m E C H A n I C S

o f

Art & gentriFiCAtiOn

starry-eyed artists

through the speculations of

THE VULTURE CAPITALIST by

k a r l o s r e n e aya l a

ingredients: 1 UnUsed warehoUse district

devon mc mindes

&

serene lusano

1.

unused warehouse

2.

3.

4.

1 handfUl of hopefUl, starry-eyed artists (rinse oUt poor)

low income housing

4 lots of Uninspired architectUre ¼ coffee shops & yoga stUdios 1 dash of ineqUalities 1 handfUl of residents disillUsioned by city politics

5.

6.

low income resident relocation van can’t afford to live here used to live there

no end

04.13.17 | SN&R | 19

l i r p a n i n joi ! e e r f y a m t e g 7 Exp. 04/30/1

916.442.3927 | www.capitalac.com | Conveniently located at the corner of 8th & P 20 | SN&R | 04.13.17

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued from page 18

“As soon as you’re on the upside of that wave, you get hit—you get hit with the lack of places to live,” she says. “To keep creatives here, we need to offer them some kind of financial incentive when we can’t offer them a job.”

In other words, if artists don’t have enough opportunities in Sacramento, they might not even be interested in living here.

Branded and Burned Nearly at capacity with concerned artists and homeless advocates in January, the city of Sacramento council chambers were silenced as spoken-word performer Andru Defeye walked in the aisles, punctuating his explosive rhymes with

gestures toward the crowd. His words underlined the common concerns among the homeless and arts activists there that night.

“I see carbon copies of my future self on the street corners holding signs,” he spoke with force.

Hawkins was in awe: She had never seen spoken word and official policy mingle so directly, and it gave her more respect for Steinberg for allowing the artists to perform during the meeting and beforehand in the lobby.

“This is so different; this is rap and spoken word and hip-hop that’s empowering and about the community, and it’s woke as fuck. I mean, come on,” she says.

The city seems to be catching onto something: Though artists can’t stop the tides of gentrification, they can preserve the identity of a place as it becomes sterilized by the flood of

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued on page 23

The push for renT conTrol: Why noW? Housing shortage and lack of tenant protections are motivators

by Nick Miller

Last year, the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission selected Bryan Valenzuela as one of two locals to create public art for the new Kings arena. Today, you can witness his sculpture—blown-glass spheres suspended midair—inside the Golden 1 Center. During arena-christening festivities, politi-

Photo BY LISA BAEtZ

cians thanked him and other creative-class denizens for giving Sacramento its artistic soul.

And then, at the end of 2016, his landlord thanked him—with an eviction notice.

For seven years, Valenzuela rented the top floor of a Midtown house, paying $1,100 a month. Last September, he says, his landlord told him the monthly rent would be increasing by 36 percent. A brutal rent hike, but not unusual in a region facing an unprecedented housing-affordability crisis.

“In the last year, the rent’s gone skyrocket, because—I hate to say it—maybe the arena,” he told SN&R. “Obviously, I benefited from [the arena]. … But, you know, obviously there’s other downsides to it, for even people like me.”

After the rent hike, Valenzuela spent nearly two months negotiating with his landlord. He said that, over the years, he’d kept quiet about reporting plumbing, electrical and even rodent issues, which he took care of himself. But now that his landlord intended to up the rent, he wanted tenant improvements.

No dice: In October of last year, the landlord served him with a 60-day eviction notice.

renters’ new normal Jovana Fajardo calls this is the new normal for renters Artist Sarah Marie Hawkins and her roommate Claire Voigtlander hold up their rescue dogs, Ollie and Pip.

in Sacramento. She’s the local director with Alliance of

“WHY NOW?”

continued on page 23

04.13.17 | SN&R | 21

22 | SN&R | 04.13.17

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued from page 21

money that tends to make so-called world-class cities look the same. Why have just another pinewood cafe with exposed brick when you could have a coffee shop with a mural capturing a personality and a pulse? It’s something, at least.

Artists preserve a neighborhood’s character throughout “that revitalization process that people call gentrification,” according to Bill Blake, the West Coast Director of AMS Planning & Research, a consultancy for arts organizations.

“Nobody really does that better than artists,” Blake says.

However, in proposing the fund, the council and city staff buzzed about supporting the arts in the abstract, with much less mention made of the artists themselves. The council approved the Creative Economy fund to be split among players in the arts, food and tech. The money came from former Mayor Kevin Johnson’s Innovation and Growth Fund, so the initiative was framed by tech concerns from the get-go. The current mayor couched it as a citywide marketing effort in line with the city’s recent try-hard rebranding of the water tower from “City of Trees” to “Farm-toFork Capital.”

“We want to talk and act around making Sacramento a destination city that is for and about youth,” Steinberg said at that January meeting. “We want to highlight here at City Hall some of the energy around arts and food that we all ought to know more about.” To evoke the magical powers of the “arts,” the mayor said that word with a meaningful whisper, the vocal equivalent of jazz hands.

Strait explained that their team had surveyed tech entrepreneurs and found that focusing on technology alone wasn’t enough to seduce those companies to move to Sacramento.

“They really want this vibrant city,” she explained that evening. “We’ve seen this real, symbiotic relationship between the tech world and our identity as a farm-to-fork capital and the arts community.”

As officials spoke about how artists might attract the Bay Area’s overflowing tech talent and revenue, it left some feeling like they were being used.

“It kind of makes us a novelty instead of actual professionals,” Hawkins says. “It’s a little belittling. I remember laughing when I heard them say ‘cool.’ And then being like, ‘Oh, that’s not funny, that’s insulting.’ …

We’re not the little trick monkey that plays music for you. We’re professionals. This is our life, this is our livelihood, and you haven’t shown interest in us for a while. Now all the sudden we’re being used to pull people in, so now you see the value. You know the value of what we do, but you’re not quite meeting us there.”

So far, Hawkins appreciates Steinberg more than she does his predecessor. Still, she feels the city should be subsidizing more artist housing, providing more grants to individual artists and training artists in

business skills to ask for what their artwork is really worth.

Instead, the city seems to be investing more in sensational events like Art Street or arts administrative positions. It recently posted a Creative Economy Manager position with a six-figure salary. Even when the funds go to artists, the money doesn’t make a dent in their financial troubles. For her Art Street installation, Hawkins was granted $500 by the nonprofit behind Art Street, M5 Arts. That’s all that was available from the $25,000 the city had granted the temporary project, divided among the artists.

What’s often forgotten is that creative workers also represent an economic force. They made up 8 percent of the workforce in New York City in 2013, according to Center for an Urban Future. Though that percentage may never become as hefty in Sacramento, the city could encourage it to rise.

“Part of the education is encouraging electeds and encouraging the business community to see art as more than a pastime, as an activity, but as an economy, as an economic driver, and you can’t fake that,” Burg says. “Tech people aren’t dumb. If just you say, ‘Oh yeah we support artists,’ and kind of hold a cutout cardboard of an artist or make a 30 second video of people at an art show, but it doesn’t play out when you arrive, people figure that out.”

“WHY NOW?” continued from page 21

Tenant advocate Jovana Fajardo supports renter-protection laws in Sacramento.

Photo by Lisa baEtZ

Californians for Community Empowerment, or ACCE, a community-organizing group. Her focus is on tenant rights and renter protections, and she’s seen it all in recent months.

City of leaves To truly keep artists in Sacramento, and not just as a marketing strategy to retain a few dozen token creatives, artists say that the city needs to treat them as the independent businesses that they are and give them the resources and incubation they would to other, more moneyed entrepreneurs. It must do more than fund sporadic events and point to WAL as the only golden solution for sheltering creative workers. Burg, Blake and others say that the city must build more affordable and midmarket housing in and around downtown, for artists and for everyone.

The developer of WAL, Ali Youssefi, also believes Sacramento should be incentivizing and building more housing.

“We can’t fit all the artists in one building; I mean, this is 116 apartments,” Youseffi says.

When residents earn more income and no longer qualify for WAL’s subsidized units, they realize their options are limited in the city, even for middle-income housing. “We’ve had artists come to us and say, ‘Where can we live now?’” he says. “They start realizing that there isn’t really housing that’s readily available for them

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued on page 24

“There’s some apartment complexes where they’ve had four rent increases in one year,” Fajardo explained. “I’ve had tenants calling me crying.”

Fajardo and others argue that Sacramento is in dire need of renter-protection laws, including limits on the on the amount and frequency of rent increases, and also protections against no-cause evictions.

Historically, the absence of such protections didn’t affect most capital-city renters. “It has been a place that has not been expensive. You didn’t have price gouging,” explained Leah Simon-Weisberg, who represents Bay Area tenants facing eviction, and who also was elected to the city of Berkeley’s rent board. “But that’s really changing.”

The crisis has been amplified by the region’s housing shortage. Since 2014, for example, year-over-year rent growth has increased by double digits annually, according to Yardi Matrix, a reputable real-estate research and management firm based out of Santa Barbara.

And it’s not just Midtown. The neighborhoods of ArdenArcade and Rancho Cordova experienced close to 20 percent in rent appreciation from 2015 to 2016. Fajardo says most of the tenants she works with live in south Sacramento and Oak Park.

The bummer news for renters is that most experts agree rent hikes will continue locally through 2017, due to several

“WHY NOW?”

continued on page 25

04.13.17 | SN&R | 23

“PAINTED INTO A CORNER” continued from page 23

downtown, and they start facing the prospect of having to move out, back to the suburbs, and it’s such a travesty for downtown.”

The city does want to add more affordable units, says Greg Sandlund, a senior planner with the city. But federal funding for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development was cut by about $3 billion in the 2012 budget.

It’s under threat again in the Trump administration—the president has considered a $6 billion cut to HUD. “It’s not a matter of will,” Sandlund says.

“The city wants affordable housing, and we want to build as much as we can.”

Of the 10,000 houses to be built as part of the Downtown Housing Initiative, only 2,500 are affordable housing units. That’s

24 | SN&R | 04.13.17

Photo BY LISA BAEtZ

Sarah Marie Hawkins found the space to pursue her art, thanks to her strong network.

because each affordable unit costs an average of $280,000 to build, and it’s hard to recoup those expenses without more federal funding, Sandlund says. To add more artist and affordable housing, he’s open to ideas of reworking policies around tiny houses or renovating derelict buildings in Sacramento and other workarounds.

As a community, Sacramento should see to it that creative workers can afford to live downtown, Youssefi, Blake and Burg say.

After all, artists don’t just move to closet-like apartments in central cities because they love being uncomfortable. They do it for the sake of advancing their work.

The only reason that Hawkins met her “angel,” Claire Voigtlander, and therefore found

shelter in Sacramento, was because they crossed paths in Midtown. Hawkins was showing her art at her co-working space, Outlet, where Voigtlander “awkwardly” stood near a group of strangers. The artist called her over, and they talked for hours.

This winter, Hawkins put out a call for housing. Voigtlander, who makes a steady paycheck working for a San Francisco ed-tech company, offered to house her for free, indefinitely—no strings attached.

“It was just like, ‘Are you an angel?’”

Hawkins remembers days after the exchange, still with an astonished laugh.

Inside their cozy house with wildflowers sprinkled throughout the backyard, Hawkins and Voigtlander curl up with their rescue dogs, Pip and Ollie—named after Dickens characters because they’re both orphans.

Voigtlander jokes that she’s “Daddy Warbucks.” But she has a deeply personal incentive to house Hawkins. Years ago, the tech worker had given up on her dream of being a full-time artist when she was trying to sleep in her winter coat. During a frigid December in Scotland, her landlord wouldn’t fix the electricity in her “hovel,” but it was all she could afford on her piecemeal pay.

“I just couldn’t do it anymore,” Voigtlander says. “I couldn’t live my life with all of my anxiety and all of my depression, constantly worried about if I’m going to be evicted and whether or not I could keep my lights on.”

She moved to the States to find affordable shelter and a job. Now, she’s spreading her relative wealth to Hawkins.

“It’s kinda come full circle,” Voigtlander says.

Hawkins’ work is simply too necessary to let something like housing get in the artist’s way, Voigtlander says. “The Faceless project is so important to me and so important to women in general,” she says. “If I can help facilitate that, that’s more important to me than, you know, finding someone to help with the rent. Plus, I have a built-in dog sitter, so.”

Among Hawkins’ unpacked boxes and stacks of paintings and photographs shines the naked image of Voigtlander’s back and her signature flash of seafoam-green hair. Voigtlander was a participant in Hawkins’ Faceless project.

“It has changed my life so dramatically,” Voigtlander says. “I feel empowered and confident and in control of my own body and my life like I’ve never felt before, even after years of therapy.”

Hawkins takes off her clear-framed glasses to wipe away her tears.

“I don’t think people view art as a necessity—where it absolutely is,” Voigtlander says.

“Sarah’s such an incredible artist that I think she’s the best person to pursue this, and I would be devastated if she wasn’t able to because of paying the rent.” Ω

“WHY NOW?” continued from page 23

“We really need to put our tenants and our families first.”

Jovana Fajardo local director, ACCE

and take it off the market, they’re required to pay tenants relocation assistance.

That city also has a new rent board, whose members are appointed by the city council, which is different from other cities, such as Berkeley, whose voters directly elect board members.

Fajardo said she’s unsure about the specific asks of the renter-protection movement in Sacramento, or whether activists will push for a City Council ordinance or ballot measures.

“Well, we’ll see. We’re just kicking off the campaign.”

It’s worth noting that these renter protections apply only to multifamily housing built after 1995, not newer apartments, condos or single-family homes. This is because of state law, the CostaHawkins Rental Housing Act, which was also passed that year.

A Southern California lawmaker was working to repeal

factors, but predominantly a dearth of new units available to rent (fewer than 2,000 in the region) and anemic mid-tohigh-paying job growth.

All this makes for a perfect storm of renter vulnerability.

Fajardo says a lot of the tenants she’s met are Spanishspeaking and “scared” of fighting for rent control. “They’re going by without repairs, and letting mold or cockroaches go by, because they’re afraid of being evicted,” she said. “We have pictures of tenants where the roof has caved in because of the mold.”

One critical issue mentioned by several individuals interviewed for this story is that the city of Sacramento isn’t funding its rental-inspection program. For instance, the city inspects only 10 percent of its rental-housing stock each year.

“My understanding is that Sacramento passed a version of routine inspection; they just don’t do it,” Simon-Weisberg explained.

These struggles have incited a new local movement to pass renter protections.

Costa-Hawkins this legislative session, but this past Thursday announced that the effort would be paused, in part due to pressure from landlord groups and the California Apartment Association.

The CAA spent nearly a quarter-million dollars in 2016 working to defeat several renter-protection ballot measures in Northern California.

Groups that represent property owners, such as the CAA and the local Rental Housing Association, flat-out oppose any form of rent control, including ceilings on the amount that rent can be increased, or just-cause-eviction policies.

A spokesperson for RHA told SN&R in 2015 that landlords would prefer “slow, steady, predictable rent increases for everybody’s sake.” He noted how people forget that, during the recession, it was a renter’s market, and property owners “were upside-down and panicking.”

But Fajardo sounds ready for a fight. “These policies are what’s going to help the community,” she said. “We really need to put our tenants and our families first.”

In the meantime, her organization will host a “Tenants Rights Legal Clinic” on Thursday, April 13, in collaboration with Legal

The Richmond expeRience So-called “rent control” isn’t new in California. From San Jose to Los Angeles and Oakland to Beverly Hills, tenant protections have been on the books for years.

When it comes to rent control, ceilings on rent increases vary from city to city. In general, increases are limited to one a year and are based on the Consumer Price Index. For instance, voters in the city of Richmond approved a rentcontrol measure last November that limits rent hikes to 3

Services of Northern California. A flier for the event advertises all sorts of advice, including how to get repairs made, or even how to get your security deposit back.

The latter might help artist Valenzuela: He says he lost a $1,350 deposit during his eviction—and the landlord even sent him a bill on top of that, for things he said were broken or damaged. “We didn’t get any of our deposit back, and they tried to charge us,” he said. “I’ve tried to get hold of the resources that are supposed to protect me from this.

“But it’s a labyrinth.”

Ω

percent.

Richmond also prevents landlords from booting tenants for no reason. Property owners can evict tenants for not paying rent, breaching a lease or being a nuisance. But if landlords want to make repairs, move in, or sell a property

The “Tenants Rights Legal Clinic” is Thursday, April 13, at 5:30 p.m. at Fruitridge Elementary School / Fruitridge Community Collaborative, 4625 44th Street, Room 11.

Call (916) 228-8829 for additional info.

04.13.17 | SN&R | 25

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—dave Kempa

Lao New Year celebration SaTUrday, april 15, aNd SUNday, april 16 Get a taste of Sacramento’s rich cultural diversity at its biggest Lao New Year celebration. Day one is an all-night party, with live music, dance performances, a beauty pageant and lots of food. The next morning, the festivities shift toward alms offerings, traditional blessings and a parade.

CompETITIoN Free; 4 p.m. April 15, at Ben Ali Shrine Center, 3262 Marysville Boulevard; 9 a.m. April 16, at Wat Phosiesattanak, 4845 Rio Linda Boulevard in Rio Linda; www.facebook.com/watlaopho.

—JaNelle BiTKer

Easter River Cruise SUNday, april 16 There’s no better place to spend Easter than in Old Sacramento on a boat. Experience the lovely Sacramento and American rivers on this special one-hour cruise. $10-$20; 1:30 p.m., 3 p.m.

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—eddie JorgeNSeN

Drive-in movie and car show

W

hether or not you were raised with religion, there’s a good chance you coveted chocolate eggs and neon pink marshmallows every Easter as a kid. And maybe you maintain a habit of hitting up the postEaster candy sales as an adult.

It’s OK. We won’t tell.

There’s no denying that it’s a fun, sugary day for young families, and there are loads of affordable—and even free— Easter events to choose from in Sacramento this weekend.

Consider the following: Start your Easter with a hearty meal at the Fulton-El Camino Recreation & Park District’s annual Egg-o-Rama & pancake Breakfast at Howe Park (2201 Cottage Way). The flapjacks start at 8 a.m. Saturday, April

ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH HANSEL

15, followed by a full morning of games, pictures with the Easter Bunny and egg hunts divided by age group. Breakfast costs $3 and entrance to the carnival full of activities costs $5. For more information, visit www.facebook .com/FECRECPARK. A good free alternative is the Easter Carnival at Rutter Park (7340 Palmer House Drive), which starts at 10 a.m. In addition to an egg hunt, games and food, there will be live music courtesy of cover band Cover Me Badd. If you’re seeking an entirely secular experience, note that this event is organized

by Elevate Life Church. More at www.elevatelifechurch.com.

There’s also the Easter Eggstravaganza presented by Dre Day Entertainment, which begins at 1 p.m. While it costs no money

to attend, adults and older kids should bring a dish to contribute to the potluck-style barbecue.

Younger kids will be fed for free, and they can enjoy a jump house, face painting, crafts, bubbles and the playgrounds at Shasta Community Park (7407 Shasta Avenue). More at www.facebook .com/DDE916.

And for something a little different, check out the underwater Egg hunt at Fruitridge Community & Aquatic Center (4000 Fruitridge Road). Hosted

by Southgate Recreation & Park District, children 12 and under are welcome to dive and swim for eggs from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. It costs $3 per kid. Learn more at www.facebook.com/ SouthgateRecAndPark.

—JaNelle BiTKer

TUeSday, april 18 What better way to watch the Fate of the Furious than sitting next to the best-looking muscle cars?

That’s exactly what you’ll be doing if you roll in to the West Wind Drive-in on Tuesday night.

CuLTuRE Starting off, there will be a lowrider showdown. The eighth in the Fast and the Furious series will start at 7:30 p.m. $5.25; 4 p.m. at West Wind Drive-In, 9616 Oates Drive; www.facebook.com/ events/1374704945949590.

—lory gil

Dark and Dirty Disney Variety Show WedNeSday, april 19 If you see the dark undertones of Disney, you are just the person to enjoy local burlesque-and-variety troupe The Darling Clementine’s latest show. There will be comedy, spoken word, burlesque, circus acts and a lot of Mickey MousepERFoRmaNCE themed insanity. $10-$15; 7 p.m. at Starlite Lounge, 1517 21st Street; www.facebook.com/ events/286546181776890.

—aaroN CarNeS

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Chill out Coffee CoCoa nib iCe CReam sandwiCh, GinGeR eLizabeth Summer arrived early at Ginger Elizabeth. The Midtown chocolate shop’s 2017 lineup of warm-weather ice creams rolled out on April 1 with some new combinations, including the sweet pickme-up, Coffee Cocoa Nib Parisian Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich ($6.50). Creamy, dense ice cream is suffused with the bittersweet flavor of Chocolate Fish’s coffee and studded with crunchy cocoa nibs. A layer of toffee sauce adds a caramel-like chewiness. It’s all sandwiched by two chocolate macarons that crackle on the outside and glisten with gooey sugar on the inside. Though Sac hasn’t hit threedigit summer days yet, this cold and caffeinated treat still tastes refreshing when it’s chilly outside.

—RebeCCa huvaL

Cherry-chocolate blend 2015 Chateau Les RoCs de PLaisanCe boRdeaux IllustratIon by Mark stIvers

Sweets and suds

by John Flynn

Sweet as pie: Kira O’Donnell-Babich of the Real Pie Co. learned how to bake from her grandmother, who lived on a farm and only used freshly harvested fruits, instilling a lifelong love of orchard-to-tin baking. Now, she’s gearing up for the reopening of her store at a newly announced location (2425 24th Street) by browsing local farmer’s markets for ingredients.

“I’m picking out the fruit myself,” she said. “The array of produce that’s available is mind-boggling and superexciting for a baker. It feels like Christmas to me.”

In a “heartbreaking” decision, she had to close her first Sacramento store in 2008. Owning a bakery

conflicted with raising two children, especially the demanding start-at-4a.m. days. But now that they’re older, and willing to lend a hand, she hopes to open in the fall of this year.

Until then, her admittedly pricey but “totally handmade” pies (about $26) can be purchased through her newsletter (to get on it, email kira@realpiecompany.com). On April 15, she’ll offer, among one or two others, a Meyer lemon and toasted coconut pie, which people “went crazy” over during her Christmastime sale, and her signature Jumbleberry (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and cherries) pie that prompted protests when she

tried to take it off the menu at her first store.

O’Donnell-Babich expects to sell out thanks to a steady base of customers still hungry after nine years. But she’ll have a medley of spring fruit creations available on May 27 for Memorial Day weekend, as she prepares to launch herself back into her dream job.

“Baking is a joy for me,” she said. “I’ve been waiting for this for a long time.”

Different suds: Demolition began on the long-closed Midtown laundromat, City Suds (1830 L Street), to make room for the restaurant and nanobrewery Golden Road Brewing that should open later this year. Oh, and it’s owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev (read: Budweiser).

The developers are planning to have a two-story structure with a sizable patio and a shipping container motif, painted blue with gold, green and red highlights. The Southern California outlets of the brewery serve pub grub like burgers and salads, but it’s yet to be seen whether the Sacramento location will have the requisite farm-to-fork twists. Ω

Here’s another solid Bordeaux tucked away in the Grocery Outlet wine aisle. A deep ruby red, the 2015 Chateau Les Rocs de Plaisance Bordeaux ($8) is a blend of 50 percent merlot, 35 percent cabernet franc and 15 percent cabernet sauvignon. Aromas of plum and anise bring forth characters of black cherry and chocolate with mineral undertones. Midrange in acidity and tannins, you’ll want to pair this 2016 Gilbert & Gaillard gold-winner with toasted croque-monsieur or grilled tomatoes. Bon apetit. 1700 Capitol Avenue.

—dave KemPa

Holiday roots ‘easteR eGG’ Radishes Trying to cut back on sugar? Drop some “Easter Egg” radishes into your basket. These tender root veggies come bunched in shades of blush pink, lavender and cerise.

They’re mild in flavor and good raw with dips or roasted alongside their greens. Toss them with some oil and lemon pepper and roast just until lightly browned, then dot with some salty goat cheese. Radishes are good for your digestion and may have antifungal properties as well. The Egyptians used them to pay pyramid builders, but the French treat them properly and eat them with butter.

—ann maRtin RoLKe

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An edible identity crisis

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The Pier lounge, bar & Grill

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limeless “guacamole,” surrounded by ropelike squirts of miso remoulade—an unhappy, cloying marriage of Japanese and French seasonings. A charred and brittle wall of fried batter slid against 419 J Street, (916) 447-7437 the slimy fungi. They were supposedly stuffed http://thepierdowntown.com with crab, but I didn’t taste the seafood. It’s an overpriced appetizer.

Meal for one: $12 - $18 The bulgogi sliders ($12), on the other hand, Good for: happy hour before a Kings game are at least a cohesive dish. Soft, warm buns and Notable dishes: bulgogi fries, sliders and tacos Sriracha mayo compensated for other missteps.

The bulgogi beef was well cooked with its traditional sesame-and-garlic marinade. But a “kimchi slaw” simply mixed coleslaw with kimchi, When you order pricey dishes made by respected making each seem strange against the other: The restaurateurs, you hope for the best. However, slaw tasted like flavorless and dry kimchi, the steep costs and former success aren’t reliable kimchi like a sour and soggy slaw. predictors of what will arrive on your plate in a The Lobster & Shrimp Mac & Cheese (a new eatery. whopping $18) came with two shrimps and mealy In sight of the arena, a monolithic block of bits of lobster. A dry net of orange cheddar concrete houses two levels of “the sexiest dance cheese conjoined the large shells, which were floors” and a restaurant. The building formerly dusted with burned panko crust. A buttery, housed the Triple Double Sports Bar and Grill, clumpy pool of liquid at the bottom failed to which was open for less than a month. The owners meld with the cheese into a creamy and coheof Crab City Restaurant & Dessert sive sauce. Velveeta would be roughly bought the space to turn it into a six times cheaper—and better. business that lacks the simple For Sunday brunch, the deliciousness of their Asiankimchi scrambled eggs ($11) Cajun restaurant in Florin. arrived with what looked like Nowadays, the joint one-and-a-half eggs that that opened in October A dry net of orange cheddar took up about 15 percent is mostly dead, except of the plate. The kimchi cheese conjoined the large for the hours leading up tasted odd scattered among shells, which were dusted with to a Kings match, when the eggs that were crumbly basketball fans congregate burned panko crust. without enough milk to for all-day happy hours fluff them. The rest of the before games. Come time plate held golden, well-baked for the ball toss, they scatter potatoes, but also two stale like ducks at the first shot of sticks of bread the size of hunting season. Then, you’re left cucumbers. Their rosemary seasonalone to decipher menus for Sunday ing clashed with the kimchi. brunch, lunch or dinner that present a The saving grace of the restaurant came hodgepodge of ingredients and identities—crab from its friendly servers, who were obliging hosts cake sliders and tonkotsu ramen, Sea Fries (fried just trying to inspire a good time. They seemed to squid tentacles with aioli, naturally) and Korean be catching onto their patrons’ feelings, though. bulgogi everything: sliders, fries, tacos.

My waitress came by to ask, “Is everything tasting The most inventive of them all, the stuffed all right?” as if she suspected it might not be. The mushrooms ($14), abstracted its ingredients hostess asked, “What brought you in today?” with past the point of recognition. Four half-circles genuine surprise and curiosity. Apparently, I did of shiitake mushrooms arrived on a long plate. not look like a basketball fan. Ω They sat in their own small pools of saltless,

Chickpea history

by SHoka DavePops has packed up its popsicle cart and moved to Michigan. Proprietor Dave Feldpausch, the oneman show making and selling the creamier-than-dairy vegan frozen treats, made the announcement on the DavePops Facebook page on April 2. It is disappointing news for Sacramentans who look forward to spotting his colorful cart at the Oak Park and Carmichael farmers markets every spring and summer to indulge in a DavePop or sugarfree LukePop. But Feldpausch said

via email, “Moving to the Midwest allows me to … make DavePops better, plus find ways to mass produce rather than make them by hand as I do now”—and this hopefully means getting them distributed to Sacramento. Feldpausch will be selling his goods in St. Johns, the “heart of dairy country,” by midApril. He said his goal is to make nondairy ice cream better, available to everyone and affordable. Best of luck, DavePops!

On stands april 20

DavePops moves to the Midwest

SN&R’s

—Rebecca Huval

420 issue

Pita with hummus is reliably delicious, but from scratch, the pair gets taken to a whole new level of yum. Learn how it’s done in the hands-on TGIF Urban Roots Cooking Class 5-7 p.m. on Friday, April 14, at the Oak Park Multiservice Center. The host, Judith Yisrael of The Yisrael Family Farm, will teach the whole family how to make a Mediterranean meze platter, including hummus, pita and yogurt sauce, all for free. Yisrael says making pitas is “a lot simpler than people think.” You just need to mix ingredients lying around most pantries: flour, eggs, sugar, salt, yeast, olive oil and water.

Then, you press flat the dough balls and cook each side on a nonstick pan for a few minutes until they pop. She’ll also provide a side of wisdom: Yisrael will explain how the ingredients traveled all the way from the Arabian Peninsula to Oak Park and, soon, your kitchen. Learn more at www.facebook. com/events/840036246147589.

2 SliceS of Pizza + Small Salad & drink 11:30am–1:00pm

1439 del PaSo blvd • Sacramento, ca 916.514.0181 • www .uPtownPizzakitchen. com 04.13.17 | SN&R | 31

Come for the Pizza

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ReviewS

To the Greek Photo courtesy of Big idea theatre

by Jim Carnes

that she will be put to death if caught, which, of course, she is.

Family dynamics rise up again (Creon’s son wanted to marry Antigone and Creon’s wife says “I told you so” about the death edict), and blind prophet Tiresias (Maggie Upton) predicts hard times all around. Since nearly everyone ends up dead, I’d say she was right. Greek tragedy. Take no prisoners, indeed. Ω

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8 p.m. thursday-saturday; $12-$22. Big idea theatre, 1616 del Paso Boulevard, (916) 960-3036, www.bigideatheatre.org. through May 6.

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32 | SN&R | 04.13.17

Politics and family dysfunction, an act of defiance and a blind prophet who sees and knows almost all are at the heart of Sophocles’ Antigone, now on stage at Big Idea Theatre. It’s a complicated tale made simple and straightforward by director Gail Dartez and her cast. As The New York Times once posited about Greek tragedy, it “has always been take-no-prisoners theater.” That couldn’t be truer than in the case of Antigone.

In Greek mythology, Antigone (Carissa Meagher) is both the daughter and sister of the mother-loving Oedipus, whose sons Polynices and Eteocles agreed to share governorship of Thebes after their father’s death. But a family feud (Eteocles didn’t want to share) results in both brothers being killed and King Creon (a solid Scott Divine) assuming the throne.

Creon orders that Eteocles will be given a hero’s burial while Polynices will not be buried or mourned, but will lie uncovered to become carrion for predators. Antigone, however, believing that the gods would not want such infamy for her brother, vows to bury him herself. She knows

What better place to set a spooky mystery than in a basement of an old Victorian house? Errant Phoenix Productions, a new theater company in town, debuts its first production, the haunting Veronica’s Room, in the William J. Geery Theatre, which is housed on the lower floor of a beautiful 1890s classic Midtown Victorian.

For now, the company is “nomadic,” without a permanent location, according to its website.

Veronica’s Room is a quirky mystery—as expected from playwright Ira Levin, who also wrote Rosemary’s Baby, The Stepford Wives and The Boys from Brazil. It starts off when a friendly elderly couple invites a young couple they meet to come back to their old Boston home. They explain that the young woman is a doppelgänger of a long-departed acquaintance and perhaps it would help the surviving sister with closure if the young woman would dress up as the dead kin.

The young couple is a bit hesitant but nonetheless accepts the invitation, which the audience knows is the first of many bad judgment calls to come. Of course, the spookiness has been established from the beginning with a sheet-shrouded living room and haunting music, so we know this is not going to end well.

This production starts off with a very short first act, which comes across a little slow—both from the play itself and a bit of awkwardness from the actors. But this is a suspense play, and the tension really starts to build in the second half, where the four-person cast (Michelle Champoux, Tim Sapunor, Lucinda Otto and Jason Kaye) fully commits and embodies its shifting characters for a gripping payoff at the end.

—Patti RobeRts Veronica’s room ; 8 p.m. thursday-saturday; $17-$20. geery theater, 2130 L street; www.errantphoenix.com. through april 15.

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5

Concussed: Four Days in the Dark

Jack Gallagher is, first and foremost, a storyteller who can tell a sad story or a funny one and keep audiences enthralled.

It’s no surprise then that his new one-man show is funny and touching—and always entertaining. The premise derives from a concussion the comedian suffered after riding his bike when he collided with a car and hit his head. Out of this experience came a stream of reflections on life, love, growing older and parenting. Th, F 8pm;

Sa 5pm and 9pm; Su 2pm; Tu 2pm; W 6:30pm. Through 4/16.

B Street Theatre, 2711 B Street; (916) 443-5300; www .bstreettheatre.org. B.S.

1 FOUL

3

The Glass Menagerie

The beauty of this loosely autobiographical Tennessee Williams 1944 classic lies both in the playwright’s powerful, poetic prose and in Williams’ understated portrayal of his relationship with his histrionic mother and mentally and emotionally delicate sister. This production makes a curious diversion in the typical portrayal of a more reticent Tom, with actor David Crane presenting an angry, explosively charged character who rants and rages throughout. Unfortunately, while Crane gives it his all, this portrayal undermines what usually makes for such a heart-tugging journey.

There are still wonderful moments, most notably

from actress Janis Stevens, who was born to play the part of the highly theatrical and emotional Amanda Wingfield. Th 6:30 pm; F 8pm;

Sa 2pm and 8pm Su 2pm; W 6:30pm. Through 4/30. $15-38.

Sacramento Theatre Company, 1419 H Street; (916) 443-6722; www.sactheatre .org. Through April 30. P.R.

4

Guards at the Taj

Two guards find their worlds shaken at the opening of the Taj Mahal in 1648 and the unthinkable tasks they are asked to perform, which will change them forever. Th 7pm, F 8pm;

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Capital Stage, 2215 J Street; (916) 995-5464; http://cap stage.org. B.S.

Short reviews by Patti Roberts and Bev Sykes.

2

3

4

FAIR

GOOD

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5 SUBLIME– DON’T MISS

enter Sn&r’S

College Essay conteSt The prizes: First place

will receive a $2,000 award, plus $1,000 for second place and $500 for third place.

Genteel tug of war takes much longer.

The rules: High-school seniors graduating in 2017 are eligible. Only one entry allowed per student, and you must live in the Sacramento region to apply. No SN&R employees or their relatives may enter.

The deTails: Essays must be no longer than 650 words. Email essays as a Word document or PDF attachment to collegeessay@newsreview.com, with the subject line “College Essay Contest.” Deadline is Friday, April 21, at 5 p.m.

sponsors

PhOTO cOURTESy cOMMUNITy ASIAN ThEATRE OF ThE SIERRA

Slithering love Each spring the Community Asian Theatre of the Sierra presents one elaborately staged show. This year it’s The White Snake, an ancient Chinese fable (with costumes, music and puppets) about a gentle serpent spirit and her feisty companion Green Snake. Both transform themselves into beautiful women and fall in love. Of course, complications ensue. The show runs through May 6. 7 p.m. Thursday, April 13, and Friday, April 14, 8 p.m. Saturday, April 15, and 2 p.m. Sunday, April 16; $23-$25. Nevada Theatre, 401 Broad Street in Nevada City; (530) 273-6362; www.catsweb.org.

—Jeff Hudson

04.13.17 | SN&R | 33

Bodies and souls

Your name. is it really anime if neither of these folks is a robot?

5

by Daniel Barnes

44 years old, Shinkai has also been quite active in the worlds of commercials, short films, video games and manga. The man likes to work! Given that prolific output, it’s stunning that he could Let’s get some bookkeeping out of the way first: produce something filled with so much honesty Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name. is the best film of and integrity.

2017 so far, and it wouldn’t surprise me if it never After the first of several high-energy musical relinquishes the top spot. Additionally, it’s the best interludes, the story opens in the remote village animated feature of the 2010s, and nothing else comes of Itomori, where high schooler Mitsuha struggles close—Coraline in 2009 and Wall-E in 2008 are the with the limited options (the local “cafe” is a bus last two movies I could find that are even in the same stop vending machine) of her quiet little mountain ballpark. Your Name. might be the best animated town. One morning, Mitsuha wakes up in the body feature since Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away. It is of “handsome Tokyo boy” Taki, while Taki inhabalso just so goddam beautiful that I can hardly its Mitsuha, each only hazily remembering believe it exists in the world of today, the experience the next day, as though and yet it’s a bracingly modern and in a dream. But the reactions of infectiously energetic work. friends and family members and a Your Name. was technically series of furious notes and phone released in Japan back in August messages prove the tangibility of 2016, breaking box office An emotionally their experiences. records and becoming the It’s the rare work of art that loaded, apocalyptically highest-grossing anime ever. can base an extraordinarily metaphysical mindfuck.

At first glance, the plot seems powerful moment of emotional like a body-switch comedy catharsis on a recurring joke concocted for a couple of the about compulsive boob-squeezing, lowest-rung Wayans siblings: As a but that’s the miracle of this comet streaks overhead, a small-town movie. Shinkai has apparently often girl and a big-city boy suddenly find been compared to a young Miyazaki, but themselves switching bodies, meddling in perhaps there is a better comparison to be found each other’s lives and gradually falling in love. But in the deeply personal but cosmically expansive the result is more like a Studio Ghibli version of an bedroom melodies of a young Brian Wilson. After emotionally loaded, apocalyptically metaphysical all, the sublime Your Name., brimming over with mindfuck like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind the perfect youthful mix of anticipation and terror, or Donnie Darko. discovery and discouragement, plays a lot like a If you follow the world of Japanese anime, you’re teenage symphony to God. Ω certainly familiar with Makoto Shinkai, but for slaves of the domestic distribution market like me, this is probably your first opportunity for exposure. Your Name. is Shinkai’s fifth feature film, and it’s based on his novel of the same name, which was published Poor Fair Good Very excellent Good one month before the movie’s release. Although only

1 2 3 4 5

34 | SN&R | 04.13.17

fiLm CLiPS

2

Beauty and the Beast

Remakes present a challenge for critics, especially remakes of widely seen films, since the obvious urge is to make insipid apples-to-apples comparisons between the two, rather than judge each movie on its own merits. Bill Condon’s ghastly live-action remake Beauty and the Beast, on the other hand, practically pleads for comparisons to the 1991 Disney animated feature. Rather than reimagining or recontextualizing a Disney chestnut, this new Beauty and the Beast is essentially a scene-for-scene, note-for-note recreation of the cartoon, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken songs and everything. It’s a highgloss recycle job, designed to do nothing more than massage your nostalgia sensors for two interminable hours. The problem for Condon and company is that every single scene in their remake pales in comparison to the animated feature—in every place that Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise’s enchanting animated feature is nimble and magical, this remake is bloated and clumsy. D.B.

2

Cezanne and I

French screenwriter Danièle Thompson (Queen Margot; Cousin cousine) wrote and directed this stuffy and simplistic biopic about the longtime frenemy-ship between writer Emile Zola (Guillaume Canet) and painter Paul Cézanne (Guillaume Gallienne). Childhood chums and mutual outsiders in the French arts scene, the wealthy and difficult Cézanne and the icy intellectual Zola always made for a strange pair, growing further apart as Cézanne came to resent Zola’s success and acclaim.

After Mike Leigh’s Mr. Turner, the bar has been raised for generation-spanning biopics about incorrigible artists, and the pseudo-salacious, Dawson’s Creek dramatics of Cezanne and I just don’t cut it anymore. The film rushes through their crucial preprofessional friendship in a few unmemorable scenes, only to spend the rest of the running time mooning over it like paradise lost. Thompson fails to inject any urgency or momentum or emotional investment into the narrative, explaining too much and feeling too little. D.B.

3

Ghost in the Shell

In a future megacity that makes Blade Runner’s Los Angeles look like a ramshackle frontier town, a weaponized cyborg (Scarlett Johansson) pursues an elusive terrorist (Michael Carmen Pitt)—while being haunted by flashes of her forgotten life before she was repurposed by a sinister robotics corporation. Director Rupert Sanders and writers Jamie Moss, William Wheeler and Ehren Kruger remake Mamoru Oshii’s 1995 anime cult classic, shamelessly currying Asian audiences even as they recast many of the characters with Caucasians (Johansson, Pitt, Pilou Asbæk, Juliette Binoche, Peter Ferdinando), and needlessly complicating a straightforward story by gussying it up with dazzling CGI. It’s slick and entertaining, but time will tell if it stays in the mind the way Oshii’s original did; personally, I’m dubious. J.L.

2

BY DANIEL BARNES & JIM LANE

Gifted

A boat mechanic (Chris Evans) is raising the 6-year-old daughter (McKenna Grace) of his late sister. When the girl shows signs of having inherited her mother’s genius for mathematics, it catches the attention of the grandmother she’s never met (Lindsay Duncan). This in turn leads to a custody struggle between mother and son, who have been long estranged because he blames her for the suicide of the girl’s mother. Got all that?

Tom Flynn’s script has enough soap opera, maudlin sentimentality and button-pushing melodrama for a dozen Lifetime Channel movies of the week. Director Marc Webb marshals a good cast (including Jenny Slate doing double-duty as Grace’s teacher and Evans’ love interest, and Octavia Spencer underused as a caring neighbor), but the movie is too slick and manipulative for its own good. J.L.

Even the zebras look sad.

4

The Zookeeper’s Wife

When the German invasion of Poland destroys the Warsaw Zoo, the zoo’s director Jan Zabinski (Johan Heldenbergh) and his wife Antonina (Jessica Chastain) stay on in their residence on the grounds, covertly helping the Polish resistance and smuggling over 300 Jews out of the doomed Warsaw Ghetto—most of whom, along with the ŹabiŹskis themselves, survive the war.

It’s a true story, adapted by Angela Workman from Diane Ackerman’s book and directed with relentless intensity by Niki Caro. Caro lets her cast overdo the intense dramatic whispers, a bit of a drawback in a movie with so many Polish names—but that’s a minor nitpick, and don’t let it keep you away. The movie is powerful and riveting, well-acted by all (with the exquisite Chastain first among equals) and sublimely photographed by Andrij Parekh. J.L.

4

Going in Style

Three retirees who’ve lost their pensions (Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Alan Arkin) decide to turn outlaw and rob the bank that brokered the dissolution of their retirement fund. Writer Theodore Melfi and director Zach Braff remake the 1979 caper comedy that starred George Burns, Lee Strasberg and Art Carney; it starts out as just another shambling vehicle for over-the-hill stars (think Last Vegas or Grumpy Old Men), then gets better as it goes along. There are traces of substance under the formulaic surface, and the formula itself perks up considerably, keeping us amused and guessing right up to the climactic Big Reveal. A couple of bonuses: Ann-Margret as a love interest for Arkin, and a young actress named Annabelle Chow, who steals the show with a five-minute cameo that ought to make her a star. J.L.

3

Life

Set aboard an international space station orbiting around the earth, Daniel Espinosa’s Life opens with an extended pretitle sequence in which the astronaut crew discovers a new life form floating through the void.

They bring the life form, nicknamed Calvin, on board for study, but the seemingly harmless substance quickly reveals a fierce survival instinct, as well as a lethal intelligence. The surprisingly persistent and diabolical Calvin grows at a rapid pace, eventually escaping the laboratory and threatening the entire crew, and possibly the entire world. For all of its chin-stroking pretension, Life is almost endearingly dim-witted, frequently pausing for monosyllabic ruminations on life itself, even as it turns CGI space bacteria into a traditional horror movie antagonist. Considering the Zmovie premise, the film looks shockingly good, but ultimately I was more entertained by the low-rent crud that Life is than the Interstellar highbrow hogwash that it wishes it was. D.B.

3

Power Rangers

In this reboot of yet another toy franchise, five high-school students (Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Ludi Lin, Becky G.) are recruited by the disembodied Zordon (Bryan Cranston) to carry on the eons-old struggle against the evil Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks). Misfit teenagers

become superheroes and save the universe; The Breakfast Club meets The Avengers. This movie certainly knows its target audience, and, actually, it’s not bad; the cast is attractive, director Dean Israelite keeps things popping and Cranston and Banks (both barely recognizable behind their CGI disguises) add a dash of grown-up gravitas. It’s cheesy but endearing; there are worse things for teenagers to spend their allowance on. J.L.

2

Smurfs: The Lost Village

3

Wilson

Smurfette (voiced by Demi Lovato) goes questing for her place in Smurf life; her search leads her and friends Hefty (Joe Manganiello), Clumsy (Jack McBrayer) and Brainy (Danny Pudi) to a hidden village populated entirely by she-Smurfs, presided over by Smurfwillow (Julia Roberts) as a female version of Papa Smurf (Mandy Patinkin)—with the wizard Gargamel (Rainn Wilson) hot on their trail.

When director Kelly Asbury and writers Stacy Harman and Pamela Ribon aren’t banging us over the head with their Girl Power message, this thing is harmless enough, even if sitting through it is like being force-fed 10 pounds of Gummi Bears. Fans of the franchise and small toddlers will be entertained—but if they were all that hard to please, these wretched little blue creatures would have gone extinct decades ago. J.L.

A cranky middle-aged curmudgeon (Woody Harrelson) reconnects with his ex-wife (Laura Dern) and learns that he has a biological daughter who was given up for adoption (Isabella Amara); his efforts to cobble together some sort of family with them lead, like just about everything he’s ever done, to disaster. Adapting his own graphic novel, writer Daniel Clowes leaves in the comic-book clumps of the original—setup-punchline, setup-punchline—and director Craig Johnson fails to smooth them out or to instill the liberating unpredictability that Terry Zwigoff gave another Clowes adaptation, Ghost World, in 2001. But there’s still some cranky fun along the way, what with Harrelson’s slovenly charm and Dern’s attitude of bedraggled exasperation (both of them show a refreshing lack of moviestar vanity). J.L.

04.13.17 | SN&R | 35

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by AAron CArnes

going to be in, you have to be all in and then some. You have to dive into the pool from the top of the high-rise,” Ray says.

Music has always been a part of Ray’s life. He started playing the harmonica at age 8. By 12, he was playing the guitar. The blues were always his style of choice, but his interest in hip-hop led him to release a rap album while still in high school. These days, he’s back to the blues and fostering a local draw. He released his second EP—and first studio Proudly wearing the name of his deodora—oh, that’s a “p.” record—Dope on April 14 at the Torch Club.

The Dope EP is a mostly stripped-down version of Ray’s bluesy sound. His prior release, Live at the Local singer-songwriter Michael Ray is a little reluctant to get into his back story for fear of its being Old I, was a live recording with only him and his guitar. Dope has some instruments layered in, but perceived as a “sob story.” it’s still quite low-key, with an unexpectedly upbeat In 2013, he lost his dad to cancer. This is after sound. Despite the darkness of the lyrics, there’s a having a stroke a few years earlier, which he recovpunchy pop energy behind Ray’s intimate guitarered from. Around that time, Ray’s apartment burned strumming style and conversational singing. down, and with it nearly everything he owned. He As clearly as Ray’s blues influences are, he never also got married and then quickly divorced. sounds like a parody of someone playing Delta blues Ray felt like he was floundering, particularly with or a corny copy of Muddy Waters. The stronger pop his music, which he’d approached with half-assed elements and bouncy soulful grooves give enthusiasm. Seeing his dad pass away at 53 it a modern flair. Plus, he crams more completely changed his perspective on words into his tunes than is typical his own mortality. for the genre. Ray attributes this “I had failed in whatever to his hip-hop background. avenue I had tried to go in life,” “If you look at a blues Ray says. “It was, in a weird song written on paper, it way, liberating because I felt can be seven minutes, but like I had nothing.” a half page of lyrics. A Ray realized that his single rap verse is going life could just as easily to be longer than that. I end abruptly. In 2014, he feel like that gave me some made the decision to go freedom,” Ray says. all in with music. He sold This EP release is the start everything he still had that wasn’t Michael Ray of something for Ray, even if music-related, including his muchSinger-songwriter it’s been nearly three years since cherished Xbox game console. (“I can he made the decision to go all in. play this game for four hours, or I can put He’s got his eye on playing bigger and that into recording something.”) better shows this year. But in the end, it’s about These days, Ray lives in Midtown, where living in the present. passersby will often see him walking around with a “Music is literally my favorite thing in the world,” guitar strapped to his back, probably on his way to a Ray says. Ω performance. Since his decision, he’s done his best to Photo by Lauran Fayne thomPson

SMOG CHECK

After his father died, local blues player Michael Ray doubled down on his music career

“If you’re going to be in, you have to be all in and then some.”

fill up his schedule with as many shows as possible.

He books solo gigs, and when he can afford it plays with his band.

“It makes no sense to say you’re going to be a musician from a financial point of view. If you’re

Check out michael ray at 9 p.m. Friday, april 14, at the torch Club, 904 15th street. tickets are $7. Learn more at www.michaelrayblues.com.

SouNd advice

Dirge for a beloved DJ In memoriam: Pioneering local deejay,

artist and music-scene ambassador Daniel Osterhoff passed away unexpectedly this past weekend, and the Sacramento music scene is devastated.

“I look at Sacramento and I see a loss whose magnitude cannot even be possibly calculated,” wrote Terra Lopez of Rituals of Mine.

“The streets are filled with his energy, with his art and with his love for the culture here. He is undeniably one of the reasons I ever felt confident enough to start creating electronic music, and I know I’m just one of the many who feel this way.”

Osterhoff performed under the moniker DJ Whores, which he adopted as a dig at groupies who jock club deejays. In 2010, he founded Grimey, a bass-music series on Tuesdays at Townhouse in Midtown, which exploded as the city’s most popular dance night. Grimey captured the spirit of Bay Area warehouse parties, and it became a haven and safe space for Sacramento’s underground and LGBTQ-plus communities.

But Osterhoff was about more than just electronic beats; he was versatile, a deejay also at home mixing funk, soul, hip-hop, ’80s pop and R&B, thanks to his mom’s influence.

He inspired and charmed his peers with his irrepressible passion for music and his drive to make Sacramento a thrilling live-music town. “I owe a lot of what I am as a deejay to Dan, for making me work harder and stretch further,” wrote DJ Shaun Slaughter, a longstanding contemporary, friend and collaborator. “Any DJ who’s been in town long enough will tell you the same.”

April has been a particularly tragic month for the local creative scene: Two other artists also passed away, including fashion photographer David Alvarez and John Carlson, the sound technician at Harlow’s Restaurant & Nightclub.

Osterhoff, 37, was also a prominent sign artist, a craft he learned from his father. He is responsible for numerous murals and business signs in the city, including Anthony’s Barbershop and B-Side.

“He’s done so much to push our music community forward and that effort, and its impact, often goes unnoticed,” wrote Clay Nutting, local music promoter and restaurateur. “As

a person, he was such a solid dude, loved his daughter so much. He was a treasure.”

—Nick Miller On a lighter note: Do you know what a music paradox is? I made this one up. It’s when two local bands, one sludge and the other neurotic indiepop, rock the same show. It just doesn’t happen. Black metal bands play with doom bands, pop-punk shares the stage with post-pop, and never the subcultures shall meet, unless it’s the bill of an outdoor festival or someone’s house party.

But lo, a tasty buffet of genres began with Josiah Gathing on Saturday night at Starlite Lounge.

The singer of the Palsy Bells blew through a set of sleepless indie rock

poetry on a single, sprightly electric guitar with Mallard’s Alison Jaster on drums. It was a perfectly paced backlog of Gathing’s solo work.

George Seruset and Cameron Betts were the night’s second duo, the ever-despondent Eugene Ugly.

The two crafted well-told musical stories of anxiety and internal woes.

Seruset’s humble percussion bowed in and out to Betts’ semi-operatic vocals and indie rock riffs, and half the fun lay in hearing that complex conversation.

The heavy trio Chrome Ghost conjured an awesome contradiction of fuzzed out wallops and civilized vocal harmonies. Their disembowelment soundtrack was reined in by the fact that front man-guitarist Jake Kilgore and bassist Cole Thompson can make awfully pretty sounds together with their voices.

Similarly, the boys in Mad Tantra were nothing like the other bands. One minute, they played heady math jazz and guitar solos, and the next, radio-friendly funk rock. They were all seriously gifted musicians, but not without a light heart, which they showed in one of a few rap songs called “I Love My Squad.”

Not sure if this was an anomaly, or if we’ll see more shows like this at Starlite. Either way, the night’s softer vibes made sense until Chrome Ghost brought their bedlam.

Then it made perfect sense.

—Mozes zarate

04.13.17 | SN&R | 37

14 FRI

14 FRI

14 FRI

15 SAT

Beats Antique

Frack!

Sunday School

Arlo Guthrie

Ace of SpAdeS, 7 p.m., $27

cAfe coloniAl, 8 p.m., $9

Two genres that are rarely mentioned in the same breath—electronic music and world beat—are the primary ingredients for SF experimental group Beats Antique. The group was founded by multi-instrumentalist David Satori, as well as belly dancer Zoe Jakes and jazz/prog drummer Tommy Cappel. The group takes influences from Middle Eastern music, Afrobeat, electrohouse, hip-hop, and mashes it together into something barely recognizable, but highly ElEcTRonIc danceable. The shows are also theatrical (belly dancing!), which really shows off the innovative music the group has managed to create. 1417 R Street, www.beatsantique.com.

StArlite lounge, 9 p.m., $7

Frack! is Sacramento’s loudest band wielding a lap-steel guitar. Since its first live performance last August, the trio recently opened for Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine and continues to PUnK bolster its reputation one show at a time. Singer-guitarist Chema Salinas says Frack! looks forward to releasing its debut album This is Not a Drill this summer. The band writes gritty, hard-hitting punk rock with its tom-heavy percussion courtesy of Eric Marais, chunky bass lines from Malcolm O’Keeffe and its signature distorted, lap-steel twang from Salinas. 3520 Stockton Boulevard, www.facebook.com/frackband.

If you’ve been nostalgic for the chilled-out distortion of Built to Spill, then you should check out local garage rock four-piece Sunday School’s debut EP release. Guitarist Alex Giddings and singer Will Heimbichner have been buds since high AlT-RocK school, and now they’re crafting catchy hooks and pop-punk belted harmonies. Heimbichner sings about faded love with a sense of casual regret that might have you remembering relationships circa the time you first heard Built to Spill. Also on the lineup are Cities You Wish You Were From and Jordan Moore. 1517 21st Street, www. facebook.com/sundayschoolcanbefun.

—Steph rodriguez

—rebeccA huvAl

—AAron cArneS

GeT sPRUnG On sPRinG

sweeTdeAls

sn&R HAs discOUnT GiFT ceRTiFicATes And TickeTs TO THe BesT ResTAURAnTs, VenUes & sHOws in TOwn! sAVe UP TO 75% wiTH sn&R sweeTdeAls! TickeTs:

GiFT ceRTiFicATes:

Micky and The Motorcars @ Harlow’s (4/28): $12 tickets; YOU PAY $6

Federalist Public House & Beer Garden: $10 gift certificates; YOU PAY $7.50

11th Annual Raley Field Brewfest ViP Admission (5/11): $65 tickets; YOU PAY $45.50

iron Grill: $25 gift certificates; YOU PAY $15

Fleetwood Mask @ Harlow’s (5/20): $12 tickets; YOU PAY $6

Tower cafe: $50 gift certificates; YOU PAY $42.50

sacramento Music Festival 2017 (5/26-5/29): $50 single day passes; YOU PAY $35

Vampire Penguin: $10 gift certificates; YOU PAY $5

cannabis cannaiseur Tour 2017 (07/21-07/23): $55 two day passes; YOU PAY $38.50

Vic’s ice cream: $10 gift certificates; YOU PAY $7.50

Broadway sacramento Presents: The Bodyguard (4/18): $65 tickets; YOU PAY $28.90

38 | SN&R | 04.13.17

mondAvi center, 8 p.m., $13.50-$72

crepes & Burgers: $10 gift certificates; YOU PAY $4.50

never pay service fees!

Arlo has been organizing themed tours over the past few decades. After last year’s Alice’s Restaurant 50th Anniversary Tour that stopped in Davis, Arlo has likely pulled that 18-minute beloved song off the current setlist, in favor of much shorter songs penned by Woody, Dylan and Arlo himself spanning mostly the ’60s and ’70s. On the current tour Running Down the FolK Road, the band Shenandoah is along for the ride, expanding Arlo’s solo act by backing his trademark harmonica, guitar and good-natured vocals with a pop-rock sound.

1 Shields Way in Davis, www.arlo.net.

—mArk hAnzlik

yOU wON’T GO HOmE wiTH A BANGOvER.

15 SAT

15 SAT

17 S UN

20 T HU

GOZU

Cage The Elephant

Bilal

Ex-Rippers

Starlite lounge, 8 p.m., $10

CreSt theatre, 8:30 p.m., $47

GOZU is a four-piece heavy rock band that planted roots in Boston eight years ago. If you listen, even for a ROCk moment, to the slurred drudging riffs, you’ll be able to tell that the group is heavily influenced by the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, but with a twist of metal straight from the heart of early Sabbath.

The sometimes gravely, sometimes ethereal wails of singer Marc Gaffney tread the line between psychedelic ’90s grunge and doom metal. You can bang your head to the slow drone beats, but you won’t go home with a bangover. 1517 21st Street, www.facebook. com/GOZU666.

—lory gil

harlow’S reStaurant & nightClub, 9 p.m., $25-$50

Although point of origin should not be an issue, Cage The Elephant formed in Kenucky and then made the move across the pond to London years ago. And while the band’s sound has changed drastically, let’s just say that’s a good thing. They defy categorization and cross musical genres including punk, classic rock, blues and even funk without sounding dated nor derivative.

Their current theater tour is dubbed Live & Unpeeled: The ExpERimENTAl ROCk Acoustic Tour and will feature songs from their storied catalog and, most importantly, their latest album, Tell Me I’m Pretty. 1013 K Street, www.cagetheelephant.com.

You know Bilal, even if you think you don’t. His vocals have carried hooks and provided backing ambiance to hundreds of hit records across multiple Common albums, Jay Z’s “Fallin’,” and most recently on Kendrick Lamar’s last three R&B albums. He’s a soul brother henchman that deserves the same name recognition of Nate Dogg when it comes to blessing a track. Bilal keeps supreme company like Soulquarians in its heyday or his current cohorts of Robert Glasper, Kimbra and Adrian Younge. Meanwhile, his albums A Love Surreal and In Another Life are testaments that he’s not merely a support singer. 2708 J Street, http://bilalmusic.com.

—eddie JorgenSen

voted best dance club in sacramento! Kcra stage coach ticket giveaways

at stoney’s every friday night valued at $300 each with b92.5 the bull. horns up!

weDnesDays

college night $2/$3/$4 drinK specials 9-11

thUrsDays

industry night specials $1,000 progressive KaraoKe contest

FriDay

b 92.5 country fridays .50 cent beer & $2 jacK special 8-9

satUrDay

—blake gilleSpie

blue lamp, 8 p.m., $8 The indie-pop infused tunes by the Ex-Rippers have that jangly, road-trip sound that paints an audio picture of summer skies and jaw-dropping sunsets.

Pensive lyrics delivered by slacker-esque vocals sung in unison make it clear that those hazy, atmospheric sunsets are the result of smog-filled air, the same inhaled by our lungs and sickening our iNdiE pOp heads and hearts. The message is not just that beauty is fleeting; it also has consequence. They say it best in song, Misery: “Don’t get caught up in your love, no, no, no.” They release the EP Extra Natural at this show. 1400 Alhambra Boulevard, www.facebook.com/theexrippers.

—amy bee

STarT The 25Th annIverSary SaMMIeS CelebraTIOn early and CheCk OuT One Of TheSe nOMInaTed bandS aT a SaMMIeS ShOwCaSe! More details to be announced each week.

4/22 @ Shine: Dyana & The Cherry Kings and more!

4/29 @ Silver Orange: Dog Party, The Croissants 5/5 @ Old Ironsides: Once An Empire, Shotgun Sawyer

5/9 @ Torch Club: Michael Ray, City of Trees Brass Band 5/21 @ Torch Club: Jessica Malone with Hanna Jane Kile and more!

5/23 @ Torch Club: Sun Monks, Salt Wizard and more!

country dance saturdays/KaraoKe up front

sUnDay FUnDay

vote for your favorite artists now at

18 & over country dance night plus .50 cent beer & $2 jacK from 7-9pm free late night biscuits n gravy

1320 Del paso blvD in olD north sac

Stoneyinn.com

916.402.2407

earS

nG 25 y I T a r b e l Ce

www.sammies.com 04.13.17 | SN&R | 39

Badlands

2003 K St., (916) 448-8790

thURSday 4/13

FRiday 4/14

#TURNTUP Thursdays, 8pm, no cover

Fridays on the floor, 10pm, no cover

Bar 101

CheCk ouT sn&r’s Brand new online Calendar

101 Main St., RoSeville, (916) 774-0505

Blue lamp

LIL PETE, 9pm, call for cover

1400 alhaMbRa, (916) 455-3400

newsreview.Com/ saCramenTo/Calendar

List your event!

Post a free listing on our website, and our editors will consider your event for the print edition of the nightbeat calendar as well. Print listings are also free, but subject to space limitations. online, you may include a full description of your event, a photo and a web link.

Simply go to www.newsreview.com/ sacramento/calendar and click on +Add Event.

Califesto Afterparty W/ NEF THE PHARAOH, 9:30pm, call for cover

International Sundays, 9pm, $5; LIL DEBBIE, 1TON, DEMRICK, 5pm, call for cover

The spotlight, 9pm, M, no cover; SADISTIK, NACHO PICASSO, 9pm, W, $10

3SD, NOVA SUTRO, 9pm, call for cover

THE STRAIGHT SHOOTER BAND, call for time and cover

CAPTURED BY ROBOTS, 8:30pm, call for cover

Karaoke, Tu, call for time and cover

Dance Party W/ DJ Menace, 9pm, no cover

KENNY FRYE BAND, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm M, Tu, W, no cover

Freedom Fridays, 8pm, call for cover

Obsessed Saturdays, 10pm, call for cover

Lyrical Shaman 3, 8pm, $20-$22

235 coMMeRcial St., nevada city, (530) 265-0116

Karaoke, call for time and cover

CounTry CluB saloon

2007 tayloR Rd., looMiS, (916) 652-4007

The disTillery

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

2107 l St., (916) 443-8815

disTriCT 30

1016 K St., (916) 737-5770

Karaoke, 8pm, Tu, no cover; Trapicana, 9pm, W, no cover

Moxiecrush Burlesque Comedy, 8pm, $10

CenTer For The arTs Cooper’s ale works

FaCes

2000 K St., (916) 448-7798

Country Dancin’, 7pm, no cover

Every damn Monday, 7pm M, no cover; Purgatory, 7pm W, no cover

TOADMORTONS, SMOKE SHOVELERS, 9pm, $5

Open Mic, 7:30pm, M; Pub Quiz, 7pm, Tu, no cover; DJ AAKNUFF, 8pm W, no cover

Fox & Goose

MICHAEL B. JUSTIS, 8pm, no cover

GoldField TradinG posT

MICHIGAN RATTLERS, 7pm, $10

halFTime Bar & Grill

Karaoke contest, 7pm, $5

LEFT OF CENTER, 9pm, $7

SKID ROSES, 9pm, $7

harlow’s

B. DOLAN, DJ ABILITIES; 6:30pm, $15-$18

RUTABAGA BOOGIE BAND, 7pm, $20$25; WONDERBREAD 5, 10pm, $12-$15

BILAL, RES, 9pm; $25 - $30

1001 R St., (916) 443-8825 1603 J St., (916) 476-5076

5681 lonetRee blvd., RocKlin, (916) 626-6366 2708 J St., (916) 441-4693

QUE BOSSA, 9pm, $5

SPAWNBREEZIE, 7pm, $12

DAVE B, 7:30pm, $12 - $15

hideaway Bar & Grill

AB-SOUL, 7:30pm, M, $22-$25; ROGER CLYNE & THE PEACEMAKERS, 8pm, W, $18 - $20

Open Jam, 4pm

2565 FRanKlin blvd., (916) 455-1331

hiGhwaTer

Monday-WedneSday 4/17-4/19

ORION BAND, call for time and cover

TWO20, 7pm, $10

314 Main St., GRaSS valley, (530) 274-8384

SUnday 4/16

JACOB WESTFALL, call for time and cover

The Boardwalk

9426 GReenbacK ln., oRanGevale, (916) 988-9247

SatURday 4/15

1910 Q St., (916) 706-2465

On The Low, 10pm, no cover; Swish, 10pm, no cover

No Chill, 10pm, no cover

Eric & Juan, 10pm, no cover; Salty Saturday, 9pm, no cover

Heavy, 10pm M, no cover; Tussle, 10pm Tu, no cover; Good Stuff, 10pm W, no cover

luna’s CaFe & JuiCe Bar

Poetry Unplugged, 8pm, $2

JAMES ISREAL BAND, EMPTY WAGON; 8pm, $5

SUNDAY IRIS, MANZANITA; 8pm, $5

Nebraska, 8pm M, no cover; Open Mic, 8pm Tu, no cover; Comedy, 8pm W, no cover

1414 16th St., (916) 441-3931

2708 J Street Sacramento, CA 916.441.4693 www.harlows.com Coming Soon

4/13 6PM $15ADv

B. Dolan, DJ aBilities,

4/16 6:30PM $12ADv

Dave B

CAS OnE vS. FiGuRE (ALL AGES)

(ALL AGES)

4/14 5:30PM $20ADv

rutaBaga Boogie BanD 4/17 6:30PM $22ADv

aB-soul (ALL AGES)

4/14 9:30PM $12ADv

WonDerBreaD 5

4/19 7PM $18ADv

roger Clyne anD the PeaCemakers 4/15 8PM $25ADv

Bilal

AuRELLiuS THE SAinT

40 | SN&R | 04.13.17

04/20 Goldlink 04/21 Petty Theft 04/22 Life in 24 Frames 04/23 Mike Love 04/24 Robert Ellis 04/25 Reverend Horton Heat (solo) 04/26 Sounds for Safety 04/26 Big Freedia 04/27 Brvndon P 04/28 Micky and the Motorcars 04/29 Okilly Dokilly 04/30 Betty Who 05/02 Anthony David 05/04 Lil Peep 05/05 Futurebirds 05/09 Cashmere Cat 05/10 The Black Lillies 05/12 The Dustbowl Revival 05/13 Stevie Wonder Tribute

live MuSic APR 14 Jacob Westfall APR 15 orion band APR 21 broken & Mended APR 22 stephen YerkeY APR 28 GYasi ross APR 29 the bonGo furYs MAY 05 revolution beat: beatles tribute band MAY 06 Zach Waters band MAY 13 facedoWn MAY 19 ZuhG MAY 26 flYin coWboY

33 Beers On Draft

Monday Pint night 5-8 PM, trivia @ 6:30 PM taco tuesday $1.25 tacos noon - close Wednesday oPen Mic – sign-uPs @ 7:30 PM 101 MAin StReet, RoSeville 916-774-0505 · lunch/dinner 7 daYs a Week fri & sat 9:30pM - close 21+

/bar101roseville

tHursDAY 4/13 Midtown Barfly

1119 21st st., (916) 549-2779

FriDAY 4/14

sAturDAY 4/15

sunDAY 4/16

MonDAY-WeDnesDAY 4/17-4/19

Salsa & Bachata, 8:30pm, $8

KHROMATA, B FUNKY; 9:30pm, $10

Salsa & Bachata, 7:30pm, W, $5

naked lounge downtown

DYLAN CRAWFORD, COLIN CURTIN; 8:30pm, $5

JIMMY HADDEN, BRIANNA CARMEL; 8:30pm, $5

ALEX WALKER, PARTNERS IN CRIME; 8:30pm, $5

PROXY MOON, YOU YOU YOU; 8:30pm, W, $5

old ironsides

1901 10tH st., (916) 442-3504

ZACK KIBEE BAND, FLIGHT MONGOOSE; 8pm, $5

BLACK SADDLE HOOKERS, THE MACHETTES; 8pm, $7

Lipstick, 9pm, $5

HEATH WILLIAMSON, 5:30pm M; Karaoke, 9pm Tu, no cover

on the y

Open Mic, 8:30pm

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm, M, Tu, no cover

1111 H st., (916) 443-1927

670 Fulton Ave., (916) 487-3731

PalMs Playhouse

DIRK HAMILTON, 8pm, $20

13 MAin st., Winters, (530) 795-1825

Placerville PuBlic house

MERRYGOLDS, 9pm, call for cover

RANELL CARPENTER, 9pm, call for cover

Powerhouse PuB

JOY & MADNESS, 10pm, $10

TAKEOUT, 10pm, $10

414 MAin st., PlAcerville, (530) 303-3792 614 sutter st., FolsoM, (916) 355-8586

the Press cluB

Dope, 7pm, no cover

shady lady saloon

EMILY KOLLARS, 9pm, no cover

2030 P st., (916) 444-7914 1409 r st., (916) 231-9121

CURRENT PERSONAE, 9pm, no cover

sol collective

torch cluB

904 15tH st., (916) 443-2797

Sunday Night Dance Party W/ DJ LARRY, 9pm

JULIE & THE JUKES, 9pm, no cover

ALEX JENKINS, 9pm, no cover

SUNDAY SCHOOL, 9pm, $7

GOZU, FELL, 8pm, $10

ROPE TRICK, 8pm, Tu, $7; THE DARLING CLEMENTINES, 7:30pm, W, $10 - $15

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

Karaoke, 9pm, $5-$10

Karaoke, 9pm, $5-$10

Country Dance Party, 8pm, no cover; Karaoke, 9pm, $5-$10

Karaoke, 9pm, W, $5-$10

X TRIO, 5pm, no cover; KYLE ROWLAND, 9pm, $6

THE OUTCOME, 5:30pm, no cover; MICHAEL RAY, 9pm, $7

RAY CATFISH COPELAND, 5:30pm; BIG EARL & THE CRYIN SHAME, 9pm, $8

Blues Jam, 4pm, no cover; Front The Band, 8pm

PINE STREET RAMBLERS, 8pm Tu, $5; PETER PETTY, 9pm W, $5

1517 21st st., (916) 704-0711 1320 Del PAso BlvD., (916) 927-6023

Pop 40 with DJ LARRY, 9pm, $5

The Experiment, 5pm Tu, no cover

starlite lounge

stoney’s rockin rodeo

7:30pm Friday, $22-$25.

Harlow’s Hip hop

Global Local Mercado, 12pm, no cover

2574 21st st., (916) 476-3628

All ages, all the time ace of sPades

1417 r st., (916) 930-0220

cafe colonial

3520 stockton BlvD., (916) 736-3520

shine

1400 e st., (916) 551-1400

TECH N9NE, 6pm, $40

BEATS ANTIQUE, 7pm, $27

EL HARAGAN, 7pm, $27

HABITUALS, BLACK CROSSES, 8pm, $8

SITTING & WAITING, O’MULLIGANS, 8pm, $5

THE GOLD SOULS, ROCCO FAMIGLIETTI BAND, 8pm, $7

AUSTIN JAMES HICKS/RYAN SCOTT LONG DUO, 8pm, $6

Ab-Soul

OH WONDER, 7:30pm M Tu, $20; JAI WOLF, W, 7pm, $20

Rope Trick with Doofy Doo 8pm Tuesday, $7.

Starlite Lounge Psych rock

04.13.17 | SN&R | 41

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Respect yourself Now that my man and I are not together, I see my denial about the dishonesty between us. I stayed because I wanted a relationship so badly. I keep thinking about the red flags that warned me not to trust him. These thoughts are daggers of resentment, harmful only to me. I am grateful for the good times, yet the times I was not treated with respect keep surfacing. Advice?

Breakups are like crash diets. The mind craves what it had, and lost. Those feelings reoccur until we decide we no longer want to live in the past. When the mind replays pre-breakup scenes, it’s often searching for information to prove we were right, and our partner wrong.

We want to trust that we knew (or should have known) sooner that our partner was a bummer, and not our bae.

Obsessively combing the past proves nothing, except our power to distract and exhaust ourselves.

Be kind to yourself.

You wanted a partnered relationship, and the enormity of that desire encouraged you to tolerate being ill-treated, at least for a time. Don’t judge yourself harshly. Cherish the part of you who hungered for intimacy.

Be tender with the part of you who believed your love could change this man. The cultural and religious pressure to be coupled is seductive. We can be brainwashed into believing that any relationship is worth keeping. That’s nothing to be embarrassed or ashamed about. It’s an insight into yourself that can help you make better choices in the future.

All you need now is the courage to release a man when the relationship doesn’t align with your values. If you are not clinging to a man who seems to be a reasonable facsimile, it’s easier to meet the right mate. Above all, cherish yourself. The joy of falling in love with yourself will enlarge your capacity to attract the love you crave.

ADVER

@AskJoeyGarcia

Have you ever been in a situation where everyone at work likes a certain person but you can see through that person and know he is not who he pretends to be? My co-workers fawn over this guy who will say anything he thinks the other person wants to hear. I can tell he is a fake. Why can’t they see it? He knows that I know he is a phony so he doesn’t try to flatter me or overcompliment me like he does with others. I tried to warn some of my co-workers about him but they accused me of being jealous. I’m not.

It’s tough being a savior, isn’t it? Especially of people who don’t know they need saving, or who don’t care to be saved.

Your co-workers probably enjoy the spotlight of appreciation this man offers. Not everyone wants to see beneath the surface of another human being.

Of course, you could also be completely off base about this situation. What if this man is not engaged in verbal bribery? His compliments might be positive reinforcement, not manipulation. If he is truly manipulating others into feeling special so that they will do his bidding, be glad. Your eyes are open. Save yourself. Ω

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Law-abiding stoners I am almost 63. I smoked my first joint in 1971, so I have come a long way from buying illegally to buying medical grade cannabis at the dispensary. I light up with my morning coffee, smoke throughout the day (when I am not out or under circumstances that still make it unacceptable) and at the end of the day. No one in my household smokes and I live in a condominium that does not allow smoking, so I either step out onto the patio or go to my car.

I accept the fact that the smell bothers other people. Here’s my question: What can I do to cut back a bit and also how not to feel like a criminal?

—C.G. Woo-hoo! Way to be a conscientious pot smoker! Yes, some people don’t like the way marijuana smells, but I have always held the opinion living in a city means having to put up with small nuisances. Pot has a much better aroma than a lot of other odors associated with city life. I’m sure if you asked people if they would rather live in a city that smelled like pot or a city that smelled like piss, most people would pick the weed option.

If you are trying to cut down a bit, remember that cannabis use is really more of a habit than an addiction. Try not to smoke first thing in the morning. Wait until after the coffee has kicked in and you have maybe run a few errands or done some other productive things before you light up. You could always roll smaller joints or take fewer hits and see how you feel.

And there is no need to feel like a criminal.

Marijuana is legal in California! You aren’t doing anything wrong. I know you’ve had to deal with decades of anti-pot propaganda telling you that pot users are criminals and reprobates, but I am also sure that you know that most pot users are cool and nice. Enjoy your law-abiding pothead status. You have earned it.

There is no need to feel like a criminal.

I heard you just got back from Texas.

How is the weed?

—Austin Sanantonio The weed was pretty good. I managed to find some Agent Orange (also known as Tangie), some sort of Diesel Kush and a really nice Chem Dawg/Kush variant named Star Dawg. Most of the weed in Texas comes from other states, but I heard tell (but couldn’t find) of some pretty good Houston homegrown. Weed is still illegal, although San Antonio, Austin and Harris County (where Houston is) have all passed some form of marijuana decriminalization in the past few years. In fact, a committee in the Texas House of Representatives just passed a bill to decriminalize cannabis throughout the entire state! The bill has good support in the House and the Senate, although the governor has indicated that he plans to veto the bill, apparently because he likes jail overcrowding and locking up minorities. I still think Texas will be the first southern state to legalize. Howdy. Ω

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FRee will aStRology

by Dave Kempa

by ROb bRezsny

FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 13, 2017 ARIES (March 21-April 19): Before visiting Sicily

for the first time, American poet Billy Collins learned to speak Italian. In his poem “By a Swimming Pool Outside Siracusa,” he describes how the new language is changing his perspective.

If he were thinking in English, he might say that the gin he’s drinking while sitting alone in the evening light “has softened my mood.” But the newly Italianized part of his mind would prefer to say that the gin “has allowed my thoughts to traverse my brain with greater gentleness” and “has extended permission to my mind to feel a friendship with the vast sky.” Your assignment in the coming week, Aries, is to Italianize your view of the world. Infuse your thoughts with expansive lyricism and voluptuous relaxation. If you’re Italian, celebrate and amplify your Italianness.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): It’s closing time.

You have finished toiling in the shadow of an old sacred cow. You’ve climaxed your relationship with ill-fitting ideas that you borrowed from mediocre and inappropriate teachers once upon a time. And you can finally give up your quest for a supposed Holy Grail that never actually existed in the first place. It’s time to move on to the next chapter of your life story, Taurus! You have been authorized to graduate from any influence, attachment and attraction that wouldn’t serve your greater good in the future. Does this mean you’ll soon be ready to embrace more freedom than you have in years? I’m betting on it.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The heaviest butterfly

on the planet is the female Queen Victoria’s Birdwing. It tips the scales at 2 grams. The female Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing is the butterfly with the longest wingspan: over 12 inches. These two creatures remind me of you these days.

Like them, you’re freakishly beautiful. You’re a marvelous and somewhat vertiginous spectacle.

The tasks you’re working on are graceful and elegant, yet also big and weighty. Because of your intensity, you may not look flight-worthy, but you’re actually quite aerodynamic. In fact, your sorties are dazzling and influential. Though your acrobatic zigzags seem improbable, they’re effective.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Picasso had mixed

feelings about his fellow painter Marc Chagall, who was born under the sign of Cancer. “I’m not crazy about his roosters and donkeys and flying violinists, and all the folklore,” Picasso said, referring to the subject matter of Chagall’s compositions. But he also felt that Chagall was one of the only painters “who understands what color really is,” adding, “There’s never been anybody since Renoir who has the feeling for light that Chagall has.” I suspect that in the coming weeks, you will be the recipient of mixed messages like these. Praise and disapproval may come your way. Recognition and neglect. Kudos and apathy.

Please don’t dwell on the criticism and downplay the applause. In fact, do the reverse!

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): “Go Tell It on the Mountain”

is the title of an old gospel song, and now it’s the metaphorical theme of your horoscope. I advise you to climb a tall peak—even if it’s just a magic mountain in your imagination—and deliver the spicy monologue that has been marinating within you. It would be great if you could gather a sympathetic audience for your revelations, but that’s not mandatory to achieve the necessary catharsis. You simply need to be gazing at the big picture as you declare your big, ripe truths.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): If you were a snake,

it would be a fine time to molt your skin. If you were a river, it would be a perfect moment to overflow your banks in a spring flood. If you were an office worker, it would be an excellent phase to trade in your claustrophobic cubicle for a spacious new niche. In other words, Virgo, you’re primed to outgrow at least one of your containers. The boundaries you knew you would have to transgress some day are finally ready to be transgressed. Even now, your attention span is expanding and your imagination is stretching.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): For over a century,

the Ringsaker Lutheran Church in Buxton, North Dakota, hosted rites of passage, including 362 baptisms, 50 marriages and 97 funerals. It closed in 2002, a victim of the area’s shrinking population. I invite you to consider the possibility

that this can serve as a useful metaphor for you, Libra. Is there a place that has been a sanctuary for you, but has begun to lose its magic? Is there a traditional power spot from which the power has been ebbing? Has a holy refuge evolved into a mundane hangout? If so, mourn for a while, then go in search of a vibrant replacement.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Most people throw

away lemon rinds, walnut shells and pomegranate skins. But some resourceful types find uses for these apparent wastes. Lemon rind can serve as a deodorizer, cleaner and skin tonic, as well as a zesty ingredient in recipes. Ground-up walnut shells work well in facial scrubs and pet bedding. When made into a powder, pomegranate peels have a variety of applications for skin care. I suggest you look for metaphorically similar things, Scorpio. You’re typically inclined to dismiss the surfaces and discard the packaging and ignore the outer layers, but I urge you to consider the possibility that right now they may have value.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You’re grow-

ing too fast, but that’s fine as long as you don’t make people around you feel they’re moving too slowly. You know too much, but that won’t be a problem as long as you don’t act snooty. And you’re almost too attractive for your own good, but that won’t hurt you as long as you overflow with spontaneous generosity. What I’m trying to convey, Sagittarius, is that your excesses are likely to be more beautiful than chaotic, more fertile than confusing. And that should provide you with plenty of slack when dealing with cautious folks who are a bit rattled by your lust for life.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Until recently,

scientists believed the number of trees on the planet was about 400 billion. But research published in the journal Nature says that’s wrong.

There are actually 3 trillion trees on earth— almost eight times more than was previously thought. In a similar way, I suspect you have also underestimated certain resources that are personally available to you, Capricorn. Now is a good time to correct your undervaluation.

Summon the audacity to recognize the potential abundance you have at your disposal. Then make plans to tap into it with a greater sense of purpose.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The poet John

Keats identified a quality he called “negative capability.” He defined it as the power to calmly accept “uncertainties, mysteries and doubts without any irritable reaching after fact and reason.” I would extend the meaning to include three other things not to be irritably reached for: artificial clarity, premature resolution and simplistic answers. Now is an excellent time to learn more about this fine art, Aquarius.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Are you ready for a

riddle that’s more enjoyable than the kind you’re used to? I’m not sure if you are. You may be too jaded to embrace this unusual gift. You could assume it’s another one of the crazy-making cosmic jokes that have sometimes tormented you in the past. But I hope that doesn’t happen.

I hope you’ll welcome the riddle in the liberating spirit in which it’s offered. If you do, you’ll be pleasantly surprised as it teases you in ways you didn’t know you wanted to be teased. You’ll feel a delightful itch or a soothing burn in your secret self, like a funny-bone feeling that titillates your immortal soul. P.S. To take full advantage of the blessed riddle, you may have to expand your understanding of what’s good for you.

you can call rob brezsny for your expanded Weekly Horoscope: (900) 950-7700. $1.99 per minute. Must be 18+. Touchtone phone required. customer service (612) 373-9785. and don’t forget to check out rob’s website at www.realastrology.com.

Hearts, not parts Kenna Cook has a day job, but sex education is her passion. A health programs volunteer with the Sacramento LGBT Community Center who spends her free time helping the launch of web-based sex ed platform O.school, the poly pansexual princess (with a knack for alliteration) is also the founder of the Pansexual Pancake Breakfast, which meets the second Sunday of each month. So far, the PPB is a success, with some two dozen attending each event since its February launch. But Cook’s still cooking. She’s on a mission to raise awareness and acceptance for Sacramento’s pan and bisexual communities—one carb-loaded plate at a time.

OK, so I’m pretty sure I know what bisexual means, but let’s just clarify that from the start.

Bisexual means the opposite of monosexual. Monosexual means that you’re attracted to one gender, whether that is your own gender or the opposite gender, whereas bisexual is multisexual. You are attracted to your own gender and a gender that is not your own.

What is a pansexual and how is that different?

So, pansexuality, our catchphrase is “hearts, not parts.” So you fall in love with people regardless of whether they’re born male, born female, trans, intersex, asexual.

It sounds like a rejection of the gender binary, then.

It is. You know, a lot of bisexuals that I’ve seen online, they sort of see this interest in pansexuality as another way of erasing the bisexual identity. A lot of the times the erasure looks like, “You’re bi until you’re making a choice.” You’re gay, straight or lying. So with pan, it’s like, “Oh, you don’t want to be identified with us,” and it’s even more of an erasure of our identity.

Interesting.

Part of the reason I identify as pansexual vs. bisexual is because, if I told you that I have a boyfriend, you’re most likely going to assume I am just straight. If I told you I have a girlfriend, you’re probably going to assume that I am a lesbian. And if I tell you I’m bi, you’re probably going to sexually fetishize that. Whereas if I tell you I’m pan, you’re gonna have no idea what I’m talking about and then ask me and then it’ll be the conversation that I can have with you on the partners that I have; it doesn’t matter

PHOTO by Lucas FiTzgeraLd

the sex or the gender or the sexuality that they are.

How often do you have to have that conversation?

Literally all the time. Pansexuality. It’s like, wait, pancakes? Or like, pan—frying pan?

Yeah, I’m sexually attracted to frying pans.

That was a joke I promised my editors I wouldn’t make.

Right? Or like Peter Pan. Or like Pan, the god playing the little flute, chasing all the nymphs. So, yeah, I have to explain it all the time. But I love that because it gives me the opportunity to let someone really know who I am.

I’m told that younger people are more likely to identify as pansexual than bisexual. Is that true?

I would say yes, and I would say the reason is that we have language now.

Younger people that I’ve met, also, are more often identifying as asexual, meaning that they don’t have sexual attraction to people but they may have romantic attraction, or demisexual, meaning they can only feel sexual attraction if they have a romantic connection. And those are things that we didn’t have words for 15-20 years ago.

Tell me what the Pansexual Pancake Group is all about.

I have been a health programs volunteer with the LGBT Center since 2015. [At a recent meeting they mentioned that

they] don’t have, and haven’t had for a long time, a bisexual group. So I said, “Well, I have this idea: A pansexual pancake breakfast, because when I think of pansexuals I think of pancakes.” And they’re both delicious.

What are the biggest problems facing pansexuals today and what are the solutions?

I think the biggest problem is coming out and feeling supported. I know that when I came out it was a lot darker than it was in the closet. When I was in heterosexual relationships, I felt a lot of shame for my bisexuality from partners. And so that’s really scary to not have that support.

The likelihood that you’re going to be in a relationship with another pan or bisexual person is not very high, just because a lot of people don’t self-identify that way.

So I think that the solution is to have a community that you can go to that you know is going to accept you as you are and you don’t have to hide any aspect of your identity. A lot of the times bisexuals talk about wearing two different masks and having to float between the gay world and the straight world, but not having a bi world to exist in. Ω

check out the Pansexual Pancake breakfast at the sacramento LgbT community center on 1927 L street the second sunday of each month from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

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