The Julgust 2017 Issue of The Joshua Tree Tortoise Telegraph

Music & art our fall festival roundup W

hile we’re still broiling out here in the hi-desert, and those of us here at the Tortoise Telegraph continue to quietly hope for our two lost hikers in Joshua Tree National Park to be found and returned to their families (more on the search for them on our website), we’re starting to realize summer, as insufferable as it may be, may not last forever.

With the imminent arrival of autumn to the desert, comes a season filled with cultural events of music, art, and community. No longer does festival season wait until October to get underway. September is full of some of our best annual events, from the 13th annual Campout featuring Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker, that actually begins the last day of August, to Bhakti Fest, September 6-11, and the Joshua Tree National Park Art Exposition, September 16-17.

We have the info on these festivals back in our Tortoise Picks section, and the return of Desert Daze, inside.

There’s always more on our website and social media accounts as well. Join us for more fun!

Cracker returns for Campout 13 later this month.

Photo by Bradford Jones.

there’s more Tortoise online! www.jttortoisetelegraph.com 1

Tales from the tortoise

The Return of Desert Daze

by Steve Brown

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ast fall was a challenging time for the Joshua Tree Retreat Center, operated by the Institute of Mentalphysics. The clearing of several acres of land without a permit, followed by three days of Childish Gambino concerts, and then by the Desert Daze music festival, was a serious break from the center’s usual roster of events. Many locals who were already upset about the clearing, took issue with this change in direction, though most business owners I spoke with, especially those in the local hospitality industry, were pleased with the increase in business the events brought to town.

Desert Daze, though viewed negatively by some locals, including some practitioners of Mentalphysics, the Tibetan-derived school of self realization, breathwork, and meditation promulgated by Ding Le Mei (Edwin J. Dingle), who think the Institute of Mentalphysics should refrain from hosting events such as this, had a successful festival in 2016. Set on the vast, rambling grounds of the retreat center, festival attendees camped among Joshua trees and enjoyed music from dozens of bands, ranging from Primus, The Sonics, Television, and the Brian Jonestown Massacre, to King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Fartbarf, the Death Valley Girls, The Black Angels, and others.

The controversy over the festival hasn’t completely vanished in the Joshua Tree community, but Desert Daze, unlike Coachella, isn’t striving to become the kind of mass music festival that brings in crowds of 100,000 or more, instead planning to remain around the same size as the homegrown twice-yearly Joshua Tree Music Festival. We thought it might be good to take a closer look at Desert Daze and the people behind it, as the festival prepares for its second year in Joshua Tree.

“Desert Daze is an artist driven, live music and art festival,” said festival founder and producer Phil Pirrone. “People come to have a good time, but it’s not really a party.

It’s really a retreat in a lot of ways. That is one of the many reasons why Joshua Tree Retreat Center is the perfect venue for Desert Daze. The natural and powerful energetic properties of the land create an environment where you can really have a profound experience.

“I started the festival with my wife, Julie and best friends in 2012,” Pirrone continued.

“It’s sort of like the family restaurant of music festivals—everyone who works on it really cares a lot about each other, live music, and the world around them. There’s just a really great energy at the event. It’s real. The best analogy I can come up with is that we’re the grandma, the music/art/experience is the meal, and we just want you to eat and be full.”

Pirrone stressed Desert Daze has had a strong connection with, well, its namesake, the desert, since its inception, and that Joshua Tree seems to be a good match. Pirrone may be right, LA Music Blog’s Jillian Goldfluss found... “it was one of the most accessible, nofrills camping festivals I’ve been to, brimming with passionate artists that I was thrilled to have seen before they inevitably garner the mass attention they deserve.”

“Desert Daze has always been a desert event,” Pirrone said. “It started in 2012 in Desert Hot Springs, took place in Mecca for three years, and now we are so happy to be in Joshua Tree. We’ve grown it from the ground up with the help of local musicians, artists, staff, businesses, vendors, volunteers, and most importantly—local attendees, in addition to many travelers from around the world who work or attend the festival. “ Pirrone sees the festival’s three days as more than just a chance to see a long list of great bands, and as we locals know, Joshua Tree doesn’t need a festival to draw millions of people to our area. They come here, one way or another, and while the stresses of hosting upwards of three million visitors per year can wear thin, those who come here often connect with at least some part of our desert’s magic (though we’d like to see as much deep, meaningful appreciation of the desert as possible).

“It’s a pilgrimage for people—not just for the music, but to discover the desert, and themselves,” Pirrone noted. “People from around the world come to this event and create memories and grow as humans and that experience never leaves them. And we consider this a huge responsibility—to the land, to the musicians, and to the attendees, to deliver a different kind of event and to leave no trace. “ Pirrone said Desert Daze wants to be a good neighbor in Joshua Tree, and cited examples of how the festival works toward that end.

“For a second year in a row, we’re partnered with Global Inheritance and Zero Hero for clean-up and recycling,” he said. “Thousands of pieces of waste were recycled at the on-­site Global Inheritance Recycling Store over the 2016 festival and diverted from the landfill.

“Desert Daze is a way to educate people about the land and themselves,” Pirrone continued. “Inside the Mystic Bazaar, attendees receive information on how to respect and connect to, and protect the land. There are plant walks and educational workshops from well known herbalist, Sophia Rose and other knowledgeable practitioners.

“We’re working hard to fix the things that didn’t work, to expand on the things that really made it work, not change the things that made it what it was, and to do the best job we can to produce an amazing event and be respectful to the nature, residents, and businesses in the area.” continued on page 7

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Joshua tree spaceships inspire kesha's new album

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e all know Joshua Tree is crawling with cool people these days—hipsterian cool, fauxhemian kühl, old school cool, trying waaaaay too hard cool, and even actual homegrown desert cool. How appropriate that Kesha, undergoing a new musical beginning phase of her life, had her own cosmically inspiring JT experience.

She described her Joshua Tree alien interactions on the Zach Sang Show. We’ll include the video interview on the online version of this story on our website.

“I was in Joshua Tree, totally sober, let me preface, completely fucking sober. No, no, it’s not a big deal. But I think people would be like, ‘She was on acid,’ or something. I wasn’t.

I was on nothing. I was a totally sober Sally, just a lady in the desert and I look up in the sky and there’s a bunch of spaceships. I swear to God, there were like five to seven, and I don’t know why I didn’t try to take a picture of it. I just looked at it.”

I was sitting on a rock, and then I was like, ‘What in the hell is that?’ I was trying to figure it out and then they went away and they came back, cause I was like maybe they’re fires on a mountain, really high up in the sky. Then they went away and I went maybe the fires went out. Then they came back in a different formation, and I was like, ‘Those are fucking aliens. They’re spaceships!’”

Kesha went on to describe the spaceships as “little balls of fire in the sky,” leading some of us longtime hi-desert residents to wonder if she wasn’t possibly treated to Marine night maneuvers instead of aliens, but as we’ve seen both spaceships and the Marines out here, it could be either. They both can be pretty trippy.

The spaceships became enormously influential on Kesha’s new album, Rainbow, which, features a song Spaceships, and on the cover, in addition to (presumably) her nude, includes a bunch of spaceships.

Rainbow, due out any minute now, also includes some collaboration with the Eagles of Death Metal, a nice touch. Her video of the single, Praying, off the album, also includes scenes from around the Salton Sea area, including Leonard Knight’s Salvation Mountain.

It would have been cool to have heard her do a duet with Leonard on one of his originals, but she showed up a little too late for that to go down.

After a very trying period of several years in her life and career, it’s great to know Kesha found some inspiration out here, and we’ll be happy to take her out to The Palms on her next visit, so she can meet some authentic shape-shifting reptilians in person, or reptilian. They’re always out there on Saturday nights.

Kesha photo by Peter Neill. Mucking about with it by Tortoise Telegraph.

Ghost Cabins in the Hi-(Desert, that is)

Rachel Whiteread’s Holocaust Monument in Judenplatz, Vienna. Photo by Hans Peter Schaefer.

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icholas Korody of Archinect News recently wrote about Turner Prize-winning artist Rachel Whiteread’s two new “ghost” cabins “in the desert outside of Los Angeles.” Really, Nick? We’ve been reduced to being “the desert outside of Los Angeles?” No thank you.

But anyway, Whiteread, who does some really impressive architecturally-driven cast sculpture art all around the globe, has created these two new cabins out here (we don’t know where—we’re too cheap to pay for a subscription to the Wall Street Journal, which had the full story). The cabins are said to “reveal” the negative space of the 1950’s era homestead cabins we all know and love, especially Kim Stringfellow. We’re more of the opinion that her cabins appear far more substantial and structurally sound than any of the cabins we’ve ever seen, but they are definitely interesting looking, and they appear to be difficult to transform into a meth lab, an additional bonus.

If anyone finds them, please let us know where they are and we’ll go snag some photos.

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Tales from the tortoise

becoming snake jagger By Snake Jagger by way of introduction

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he desert produces some fascinating creative spirits, and often, they have stories as interesting and varied as themselves and their work. Whenever possible, we like to share those stories with our readers to give you a deeper look down the tortoise hole, into the minds and souls of our friends and hi-desert neighbors.

I’ve known Snake Jagger for quite a few years now, and his artwork has been featured on the cover of our sister publication, The Sun Runner. He’s featured in our Morongo Valley episode of our TV series, Southwest Stories, doing lip-ups and talking about Frank Sinatra and his Dad, lip synching competitively, and being a pirate, something we share (it’s a long story).

Snake is a uniquely talented desert artist with a penchant for creating desert scenes of orderly, sometimes raked, desert landscapes, with the occasional UFO, doorway, or even a rake, included. It’s what he calls whimsical surrealism, and the name fits.

He has a playful painting style that is a perfect match for his personality.

But don’t just listen to me. Read Snake’s story in his own words. I’ve done minimal editing because I like to let people tell their story their way. He’s working on a book, so the Tortoise Telegraph is serializing his story in this, and upcoming, issues. It’s a great way to get to know Snake, and it’s a hell of a ride.

You can also peruse Snake’s online gallery and shop online at www.snakejagger. com. And yes, that’s one of his works in our masthead. – Steve Brown

with a Witness family for a few days while we tried to work things out between us.

As far as I can remember we must have worked things out, at least temporarily, because I remember us getting a different place to live in, and then Kay going into labor, and the two of us piling into my car and racing to the hospital, where three hours later my son Gino was born. Now we were a family, and I was making amends by trying to be a good Christian, a better husband and father to our son. But it wasn’t long before it was discovered by the elders in the church that I was occasionally indulging in a bit of marijuana smoking. So they decided that such a discovery and the fact that I had been unfaithful added up to me being disfellowshipped by the congregation.

Well, that was just too much for Kay to bare, and she decided to leave me with our son, finding an apartment for herself and Gino. This was about the lowest point in my life, being ousted and tossed aside as not being fit to be a good Christian or father.

It wasn’t long before I decided to head back up into the mountains. To leave behind the world below, in a symbolic way. I found a place to set up camp, pitched a tent and began to build a larger tent to extend my living area.

This would be my home, back in the mountains, across the street from the Vines, living close to nature the way I was used to. I was 21, and starting a new chapter in my life, and the beginning of the making of the Snakeman.

Check out more of Snake Jagger’s artwork at: www.snakejagger.com

Chapter 11 Back to my mountain hideout

K

ay and I had discussed our options, realizing that we would not be able to afford the $1,300 or more, monthly rent for the cute little studio apartment in Iao Valley, on the money we were making working at Pino’s restaurant. And with Kay being pregnant, we needed to find a more secure situation for our growing family.

The decision we made was that I would go ahead, back to Palm Springs, to secure a job and a place for us to live that we could afford. And Kay would stay behind for a month and find a home for the kitty, then join me back on the mainland when I got things settled.

As I said before, leaving the island again was probably not the best thing we would do. I imagine that if we stayed in Maui, maybe we would still be together today. I don’t know.

I returned to the desert and started looking for work and an apartment, and soon I was gainfully employed at the Old World Restaurant in Palm Springs. I knew of this place from the days when I was a young lad, and my dad would take us to the original place on Sunset Blvd. It was owned by a retired doctor, Dr. Frank I believe his name was, and it had a very healthy menu, which I cottoned to because I was very much into eating well and living a healthy lifestyle.

Before long I had acquired a really cool one bedroom apartment that had a sunken living room and was next to a swimming pool. I have always wanted to live in a place with a sunken living room, when I was growing up on Sierra Bonita in LA, I used to draw pictures constantly of just such a place, designing how it would look, and thinking it was so James Bond-like. This was the ultimate little bachelor pad. But it was going to be our family home as soon as Kay arrived from Maui. At least that was the idea.

One day a friend of mine stopped by for a visit. Dorian was one of the local hippies that hung out at the health food store where most of us vegetarians would gather almost daily for carrot juice and healthy conversation. A free-living hippy chick that just wanted to have fun. We opened a bottle of wine and may have had a puff or two of a joint, something I liked to do, even though it went against the beliefs of the JW’s that I was trying to follow, but the temptation was too great for me, and as they say, "while the cats away", you know the rest.

Well, one thing led to another, and soon I found myself taking a shower with my hippy friend, and you can imagine what happened next. I had broken my marriage vows, and engaged in an indiscretion that I would later come to regret.

At the time I didn’t think it was such a big deal, and tried to just put it behind me, even though the guilt was eating me up. Kay was on her way back to California now, and I had to go pick her up at he airport in LA. I had purchased an old Ford Fairlane for $350 that ran very well, and made it to LA, then I made my way into the waiting area and watched as her plane pulled up. Still working on trying to bury my guilt deep down in my gut. Finally she came walking up to where I was standing, with a half smile on her face, and the first thing she said to me was, "I had a dream last night.” “Oh?” I said. “I dreamed that you had an affair with Dorian!” "What?” I asked, feigning innocence. “That’s crazy"!

I couldn’t believe my ears. How could this be? Was it God somehow letting her know that I was a no good bum? Or some kind of woman’s intuition, working against me? I pulled myself together and we continued on our way back to the desert, dropping the subject like it was a hot potato. We got back to the Palm Springs, where I decided to come clean with her about my indiscretion. Kay was devastated and decided to stay

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Butch and Sundance's

Desert Plants: Texas Ranger

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ope, not that pistol totin’, cayuse ridin’ bad ass with a star who chased Butch and Sundance’s namesakes across the wild western plains. No, sir, we mean that lovely silvery gray shrub with masses of purplish pink flowers that no ranger pinned to his vest, ever.

The Texas Ranger, also known as the Texas Sage although it isn’t a sage, is a native of the Chihuahuan Desert and therefore loves the hot sandy soils of Morongo Valley. Butch and Sundance give this shrub the paws up as it provides a lot of thorn-less shade where they can chill during the hot summer days. It is a hummingbird favorite, too, as it provides masses of blooms all through summer.

For more desert gardening tips, visit Butch & Sundance at Cactus Mart in Morongo!

– Barbara Demmocks, photo: Lisa Burford.

Gary Numan’s My Name is Ruin music video shot out in Wonder Valley by steve brown watch the video of my name is ruin from gary's new album savage on our website jttortoisetelegraph.com Numan in all his post-apocalyptic glory for “My Name is Ruin,” above, and with his daughter persia, while filming (this photo).

Persia has a leading role in her father’s music video, bottom.

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op music fans of the eighties may remember British musician Gary Numan for his hit single Cars, but there’s far more to Numan’s career—and talent—than what’s made it to the Top 10 (and we encourage you to check it out).

Recently, Numan was out in the Wonder Valley and Twentynine Palms area (and maybe a little Joshua Tree) shooting the video for his single, My Name is Ruin, from his new album Savage – Songs from a Broken World. Savage is set for release in September.

“BMG have chosen the song ‘My Name Is Ruin’ from the ‘Savage’ album as the first single,” Numan recounts in his blog. “Although I’m notoriously bad at choosing singles, and so not the best judge, I agree that this song is a good choice. The video for it was filmed last Friday and Saturday (June 16-17) in the desert area around 29 Palms and Joshua Tree.

As luck would have it both days witnessed a monster heat wave and we saw temperatures as high as 118 F (48 C) so it was HOT!!”

Numan noted the video was filmed by Chris Corner, assisted by Janine Gezang and her sister Lydia. Corner had filmed Numan’s video, I Am Dust, for his Splinter album. Numan calls it “without doubt one of the best videos I’ve ever made.”

“The locations were stunning,” Numan said. “Desolate, dry, forbidding and, as I said, incredibly hot. Absolutely perfect for an album devoted mostly to a future world devastated by Global Warming.”

For those wondering who the mysterious looking blonde is in the video, it is none other than Numan’s daughter Persia, who also sang on the track. The 11 year old turned in an accomplished performance, though it was her first real experience filming, according to Numan.

“I was nervous that nerves would get the better of her (she’s only 11 after all) and she would just giggle and not be able to do what was needed. But, she overcame her nerves, shyness and the ridiculous heat and just got on with it. I was very proud of her, and she looked amazing.”

Numan, who would fit in just fine on Saturday night at The Palms, or during Wasteland Weekend, did refer to Wonder Valley as “flat featureless desert,” but we’ll let you watch the video and decide. We’re biased—the hi-desert’s our home, after all, and we love every inch of it. We will say, however, that Corner did a fine job of capturing the epic scale and vastness of our home, and we love Numan’s song. We can’t wait to hear Savage when it’s released!

Photos courtesy BB Gun Press.

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Tortoise picks Keeping The Sun Runner Truck on the road since 2004!

Reach 100,000 hi-desert locals and 2.8+ million visitors!

Advertise in The Joshua Tree Tortoise Telegraph

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Lucky Campout XIII Campout 13 returns to Pappy & Harriet’s and Pioneertown for Labor Day Weekend, August 31 - September 2. Featuring Cracker, Camper Van Beethoven, Chris LeRoy and The Dangers, Tribesmen, David Lowery, Johnny Hickman, Cracker Duo, Victor Krummenacher, Jonathan Segel, Black Marshmallows, Jack Houston and the Royal Flush, Indio Romero, and Thelma and Sleeze. Get tickets at www.crackersoul.com/store.

Bhakti Fest The premier yoga, sacred music, and personal growth festival in the country, returns to the Joshua Tree Retreat Center, September 6 - 11. Join the best yoga teaches, kirtan musicians, and workshop leaders in the world in this positive, uplifting spiritual celebration.

Jai Uttal, Krishna Das, Yogrishi Vishvketu, Govind Das & Radha, and so many more, plus great healthy food, quality vendors, and a range of awesome activities. LA and San Diego folks can now take the Bhakti Bus to the festival, and local residents and military get special discounts (military gets in free on Sunday). Intensive workshops also available, as is camping on site. www.bhaktifest.com.

Joshua Tree National Park Art Exposition This relatively new arts festival returns to Twentynine Palms on September 16 - 17. The event takes place at five venues around the historic Oasis of Mara—the 29 Palms Art Gallery, the 29 Palms Inn, the 29 Palms Creative Center, the Old Schoolhouse Museum, and Joshua Tree National Park Headquarters and Oasis Visitor Center.

Activities include a nature walk at the Oasis of Mara with naturalist Pat Flanagan (always a good bet), a patio talk at the Oasis Visitor Center, the juried exhibition at the 29 Palms Art Gallery, where there will also be interactive art workshops and awards for artists, a community mosaic project at the Creative Center, live music, and an art market on the lawn at the 29 Palms Inn. The Juried Art Exhibition for the Art Expo is open at the 29 Palms Art Gallery for the month of September. Hours are Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

International artists selected for the show were David Flatt of Vancouver, British Columbia, and Izabela Pawlaczyk of Koszalin, Poland. Seven out-of-state artists were selected: Pam Ambrosio of Tucson; Chin J. Banham of Las Vegas; James Bush (Remi JaBuh) of Scottsdale; Shelly Hull of Denver; Alexandra Taggart of Santa Fe; Katherine Tonnessen of Vashon Island, Washington; and Kim Zarney of Cleveland.

Artists in the Joshua Tree Gateway Communities include Marcia Geiger, Raini Armstrong, Gerhard Kammer, Eileen Kaniefski, Jessie Keylon, Alane Levinsohn, Alita Van Vliet, Doug Dolde, Mitch Miller, Jim Smart, John Van Vliet, Penelope Benson-Wright, Chuck Caplinger, Marilyn Fernald, Lisa Manifold, Elisabeth Pollnow, Hannah Campbell, Janis Commentz, Timothy Hearsum, Rossana Jeran, Ed Keesling, Daniel Lee, Ilona Mercier, Darlene Morris, Esther Shaw, Heather Sprague, Travis Usher, Nichole Vikdal, and Krista Wargo.

Artists from the Coachella Valley are Hunter Johnson, Douglas Shoemaker, Robert Miramontes, Andrea Raft, Martha Villegas, and Ehrick Wright.

Other California artists are: Robert Arnett, Valerie Messervy Birkhoff, Linda Brown,Teal Buehler, Larry Carpenter, Jane Culp, Lee Edwards, Celeste Evans, Michael E. Gordon, James Hammons, Rose Ireland, Joan Lamensdorf, Greg Lucker, Chip Morton, Christopher Pecharka, David Sabet, Marie Van Dorp Skelly, Brice Weaver, and Jocelyn Young.

More information: www.jtnparts.org.

desert daze, continued

The festival does have local desert ties and involvement, whether it’s performers, vendors, or artists. :We’re absolutely thrilled to host Eagles of Death Metal, earthlings?, Prescott McCarthy, Meika May Ginsburg, Cristopher Cichocki, Pie for the People, The End, and more local musicians and artists at the festival,” Pirrone said. “Also, I want to extend a thank you to Cynthia Merino and other local staff members who are such a big part of what makes Desert Daze what it is. We are always looking for more local staff, volunteers, vendors, and artists to participate in the festival” Pirrone acknowledged there were some aspects of the festival that could have been handled better during its first year in Joshua Tree, but said the festival is determined to address those issues and continually improve each year.

“We’re working hard to fix the things that didn’t work, to expand on the things that really made it work, not change the things that made it what it was, and to do the best job we can to produce an amazing event and be respectful to the nature, residents, and businesses in the area,” Pirrone said. “We hope to meet everyone from the community there. Iggy Pop, John Cale, Terry Riley, Spiritualized, and many many other amazing live music groups will be playing over the weekend. Please come say hi.”

While not everyone may welcome the return of Desert Daze, we’ll be checking it out to visit with the locals who are involved, and to get the feel for the festival’s culture and how it interacts with its hi-desert environment. We’ve heard about some things that alarm us—campers starting open fires, against the rules, for instance (all we need is a typical desert wind, and there goes 100 square miles of charred Joshua trees and creosote, along with about 300 Airbnb homes, and some of our local residents, human and otherwise, all thanks to some ignorant buffoon who wanted to make s’mores), but we’ve heard lots of good things as well, so we’ll support the good and call out the bad with hopes the festival will continue to evolve and progress.

Locals can obtain discounted tickets, available at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center, and artists and vendors who would like to be involved can find information on those opportunities at desertdaze.org.

We’ll see you at Desert Daze, October 12 - 15 at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center/Institute of Mentalphysics!!

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published by the sun runner, po box 2171, joshua tree, ca 92252 (760)820-1222 publisher@sunrunnersw.com www.jttortoisetelegraph.com www.facebook.com/jttortoisetelegraph www.instagram.com/jttortoisetelegraph published monthly. distributed free of charge in the hi-desert.

Editor/Publisher/telegraph operator: Steve Brown Assistant to the editor: Juliett, the mojave sand leopard Photos and editorial by: Steve Brown, barbara demmocks, lisa burford, snake jagger, Hans Peter Schaefer, Peter Neill.

Distribution: eventually by tortoise, of coursus Submit story ideas, photos for consideration, dining/shopping/lodging/favorite places and event photos to: tortoisetelegraph@gmail.com advertising inquiries: tortoisetelegraph@gmail.com or 760-820-1222 (voice or text) see the advertising page at www.jttortoisetelegraph.com for pricing and specs. remember – support your local independent media and it will support your community! distribution inquiries: tortoisetelegraph@gmail.com join the tortoise telegraph online at: www.jttortoisetelegraph.com, on facebook at: www.facebook.com/jttortoisetelegraph on instagram at: www.instagram.com/jttortoisetelegraph join the sun runner, the journal of the real desert, online at: www.sunrunnersw.com on facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheSunRunner join southwest stories with steve brown online at: www.southweststories.us on facebook at: www.facebook.com/RealDesert

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thanks for joining us! Keep it real!

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