San Diego CityBeat • Feb 25, 2015

Organs P.6 Revival P.17 Yob P.23

Meet our

Cover artist

P.19

2 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 3

Remain calm, politicians “Boy, that escalated quickly. I mean, that really got say, they can’t remain competitive. However, there’s out of hand fast.” no guarantee that the revenue will buy a winning That’s Ron Burgundy in Anchorman, assessteam—a look at last season’s standings shows no ing things after a deadly rumble among rival news correlation between PSLs and success on the field. crews, but it could’ve been the average San Diegan The Spanoses want us to take them at their word this week, after some highly entertaining public when they talk about finances and competitiveness. bickering between two powerful, privileged men The franchise is a private business that has no plans gave way to the announcement that the San Diego to let the public examine its books, which should be Chargers and Oakland Raiders are planning a jointa condition for anyone who’d even consider voting use football stadium in the city of Carson. yes on a taxpayer subsidy. CityBeat wouldn’t support Though it was a surprise announcement, it makes a tax increase for a new stadium under any circumall the sense in the world. The threat of moving to stances—there are too many more important unthe Los Angeles area is the only chip the Chargers funded public needs—but those who would should and Raiders have to play in their high-stakes game at least want to see the Spanoses’ income taxes. against their current home cities, and the two teams This should be the attitude of all elected officials David Rolland are a couple of steps behind the St. charged with minding the public’s Louis Rams on the road to L.A., money. For his part, San Diego the Rams having already proposed Mayor Kevin Faulconer is dancbuilding a stadium in Inglewood. ing on the head of a pin—telling Two teams might be allowed to the Chargers that he won’t support move to L.A.; three teams won’t. At a stadium proposal that the city least one of these contestants will can’t afford while at the same time have to go home a loser. ushering a symbolic pro-Chargers No offense, but we’re hoping resolution through the City Counit’s the Chargers. The National cil. He has to be worried both Football League is just an awful about being the mayor who lost the organization in so many ways, but Chargers and being the mayor who there’s a sizable portion of San Disupported doling out a huge chunk egans who love their Chargers, so, of welfare to a wealthy family in a for their sake, we hope the team city filled with ragged streets and Kevin Faulconer stays put—but only if taxpayers underpaid cops. don’t pay a dime for a new stadium.

Now he has Councilmembers Todd Gloria and Much of this will depend on which team or David Alvarez staking out budget-protection terteams the NFL wants in L.A. and when it wants it or ritory, jointly sending out a memo Tuesday that them there. If the Chargers lose L.A., their choices outlines the need for clarity on potential funding will be to figure out a way to privately finance a new sources, PSLs and the costs of building a stadium stadium in San Diego, privately finance upgrades to either Downtown or in Mission Valley. Gloria, we’ll Qualcomm Stadium or sell the team to a mega-rich remind you, is Faulconer’s leading potential chalindividual or consortium who can afford to pay lenger for the Mayor’s office in 2016. their own way—because it’s not likely that voters The resolution passed by the City Council on would approve a tax increase.

Tuesday, expressing support for the Chargers reFor their part, the Chargers are claiming they maining in San Diego, was completely unnecessary. can’t afford to stay in San Diego unless the team It may have made some people feel better, but it also gets a huge bailout; they say that’s not the case in started to worry some of us that the mayor and the L.A., because, unlike San Diego, the larger market council might lose their heads and go squishy amid will kick down hundreds of millions of dollars for the Chargers’ threat to leave. It doesn’t have to get corporate sponsorships and personal seat licenses nasty between to the two sides, but the city does (PSL), which give the buyer the chance to purchase need to remain sober and tough in its negotiations season tickets for specific seats. Sixteen of the 32 with its football team, which has a history of getting favorable deals at our expense.

NFL teams make money on PSLs or something similar (some of them in markets smaller than San What do you think? Write to editor@sdcitybeat.com.

Diego). Without this extra revenue, the Chargers This issue of CityBeat is lesi diem lecayin ihimom fopesus riva du biri di tu, sasip ca erotiru sasi het. Believe it. It’s true.

Our cover art is by Aaron Glasson.

Read about him on Page 19.

Volume 13 • Issue 30 Editor David Rolland Associate Editor Kelly Davis Music Editor Jeff Terich Arts Editor Kinsee Morlan Staff Writer Joshua Emerson Smith Web Editor Ryan Bradford Art director Lindsey Voltoline

Columnists Aaryn Belfer, Edwin Decker, John R. Lamb, Alex Zaragoza Contributors Ian Cheesman, David L. Coddon, Seth Combs, Tiffany Fox, Michael A. Gardiner, Glenn Heath Jr., Peter Holslin, Dave Maass, Scott McDonald, Jenny Montgomery, Susan Myrland, Mina Riazi, Jim Ruland, Ben Salmon, Jen Van Tieghem, Amy Wallen Production Manager Tristan Whitehouse

Senior account executive Jason Noble Account Executives Beau Odom, Christina MacNeal, Kimberly Wallace Intern Drake Rinks Accounting Alysia Chavez, Kacie Cobian, Linda Lam Human Resources Andrea Baker

Advertising inquiries Interested in advertising?

Call 619-281-7526 or e-mail advertising@sdcitybeat.com. The advertising deadline is 5 p.m. every Friday for the following week’s issue.

Editorial and Advertising Office 3047 University Ave., Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92104 Phone: 619-281-7526 Fax: 619-281-5273 www.sdcitybeat.com

Vice President of Finance Michael Nagami

Production artist Rees Withrow

Vice President of Operations David Comden

MultiMedia Advertising Director Paulina Porter-Tapia

Publisher Kevin Hellman

San Diego CityBeat is published and distributed every Wednesday by Southland Publishing Inc., free of charge but limited to one per reader. Reproduction of any material in this or any other issue is prohibited without written permission from the publisher and the author. Contents copyright 2015.

4 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

‘Ready and eager’ Thanks for the profile of the Climate Action Campaign, CityBeat [“News,” Jan. 14].

The Climate Action Campaign is a new nonprofit organization with one simple mission: Stop climate change. Our website is climateactioncampaign.org. While we’re flattered that people are interested in our story, it’s not about us. It’s about how this community will respond to one of the greatest threats ever posed to human existence. We have a collective duty to protect public health and our quality of life for future generations, and that is the driving mission of our organization.

We’re always open to new and better ideas from any source, but science makes overwhelmingly clear that what we’ve been doing is not enough to solve the problem. We believe “community choice” energy offers one of the best market-driven solutions to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, while providing San Diego residents and small businesses choice and competition in their electricity provider.

We are excited to begin the dialogue about this burgeoning opportunity.

For current success stories of community choice in Northern California, check out sonomacleanpower.org and marin cleanenergy.org.

If you’d like to have us come out and present about the climate plan and community-choice energy, please contact me at

nicole@climateactioncampaign.org. We’re ready and eager to engage in a robust community conversation about the future of San Diego.

Nicole Capretz, executive director, Climate Action Campaign

Single-issue voter Regarding your Jan. 21 editorial about Kevin Faulconer and Todd Gloria: My vote will go to the person who can stop the homeless from sleeping in front of my residence. These two individuals should not win—both of them say the same thing.

They smile, do nothing and say, “We’re working on that.”

Dennis Palas, Hillcrest

Hold them accountable Your Jan. 21 editorial this week made for an interesting read. Now what I would like to see CityBeat write about is how this infrastructure debacle came to be, naming names of responsible City Council members, city managers and mayors and ask them for their comments today about their lack of attention to this major responsibility they had when in office.

Talk to folks like Jack McGrory, Susan Golding, John Lockwood (if he’s still alive), Scott Peters, Toni Atkins, Christine Kehoe, Jim Madaffer, Brian Maienschein, Judy McCarty, Dick Murphy, Ben Hueso, Juan Vargas, Maureen O’Connor, inter alia. They stuck it to us taxpayers, and many of them went on to be elected to higher offices and/or to collect big pensions. It would be fascinating to hear what they have to say today. If they don’t respond, tell your readers who did not respond to your request for comments.

Lou Cumming, La Jolla

Thoughts on inequality I just finished your Jan. 28 editorial on income inequality and had a few issues or suggestions: Speaking as a former Occupy NY member now living temporarily in San Diego, I say you discredit the movement by saying Occupy “didn’t accomplish a damn thing” while citing evidence of political lip service on inequality absent before the movement is an obvious error in fact. Occupy, though disbanded, clearly raised awareness that politicians can’t hide any longer.

This is progress, albeit modest progress.

The rest of the piece is helpful, but I would like to have seen the California

perspective, particularly the Southern California perspective, further developed.

Who are the big players in the state?

What about the class war going on among coastal elites who, despite not technically in the 1 percent, sure as hell act like it or are aspiring to be? This versus the more working-class attributes inland.

Just some thoughts.

Adam Rocco, Encinitas

Poof!

Good luck to Roger Lewis and the North Park Preservation Coalition [“News,” Jan. 28]. They’re going to need it in this plutocratic town.

Does anyone remember the old Big Bear Market at Adams Avenue and Cherokee Avenue? It had a beautiful front wall with mosaic designs, truly artistic and unique. The community rallied to save this wall when a new tenant moved in, and I thought that was successful. Was I wrong?

Suddenly, overnight, Rite-Aid moved in with its brand, bland look, and—poof!—the “protected” wall disappeared. Were We the People lied to again, or just not as fast with our trickery as the pros at City Hall?

Nancy Drew, Normal Heights

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 5

Joshua Emerson Smith

Medical-cannabis patient Justin Turley at his apartment in University Heights

Not what the doctor ordered New bill would push hospitals to put medical-cannabis users on organ waiting list

by Joshua Emerson Smith Justin Turley smokes about a gram of cannabis every night before bed. Diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver in 2004, he’s used the drug for several years to treat pain and stave off nausea caused by the dozen or so medications he takes at any given time.

While Turley, who’s 39, said the cannabis has significantly helped him cope with his symptoms, his long-term prognosis isn’t good. On a regular basis, he’s hospitalized at UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest for a wide range of

6 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

complications, including edema and internal bleeding.

“They haven’t given me a date,” he said. “They’ve simply told me that I’m going to pass away from it. The liver, I don’t think it’s functioning that great now, but I guess it just stops.”

The only thing that could save Turley is a liver transplant, but, he said, his specialist at the hospital has refused to put him on the waiting list until he stops using cannabis.

Potential organ recipients are ranked largely based on the likelihood of a healthy recovery, and hospitals can delist patients for using illegal drugs.

“I’ve been told that it’s policy, but I don’t know what that means,” Turley said. “She was just, like, ‘No, it’s substance use, and that just won’t be tolerated.’”

UCSD Medical Center officials can’t comment on specific patients due to privacy laws, said Jacqueline Carr, spokesperson for the university’s health system. However,

she said that a patient’s use of substances, such as tobacco, alcohol and cannabis, are only part of the decision whether to place someone on the waiting list.

“Medical marijuana as prescribed by a physician in consultation with the transplant team is never the sole reason for a patient to be declined for transplant listing,” Carr said in an email.

Turley’s not alone. In recent years, similar stories have made headlines up and down the state. According to the cannabis-advocacy group American for Safe Access (ASA), hundreds of patients have been denied placement on the national organ-transplant list, including at Stanford University Medical Center, UC San Francisco Medical Center and Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles.

In response to concerns, state Assemblymember Marc Levine, a Democrat from San Rafael in Marin County, recently introduced AB 258, the Medical Cannabis Organ Transplant Act. Sponsored by ASA, the bill would prohibit hospitals and physicians from banning patients from the waiting list based “solely on” the use of medical cannabis, unless that use was found to be “medically significant.”

“These patients have done nothing wrong,” Levine told CityBeat in an email. “We need to get our public health policies out of the dark ages and recognize the science. Too often, patients are denied a life-saving organ transplant solely because they are prescribed medical cannabis.”

If Levine’s bill becomes law, California wouldn’t be the first state to pass such guidelines. Similar provisions have been written into the medical-cannabis laws in Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, Washington and New Hampshire.

National guidelines for transplant eligibility don’t address medical-cannabis use, so in states without clear rules, individual hospitals have wide discretion.

“Each transplant center in California has their own criteria for who gets on the list,” said Charlene Zettel, CEO of Donate Life California, a nonprofit that advocates for organ donation. “Ultimately, there are so few donated organs available that a transplant center wants to make sure that those rare gifts of life are transplanted into patients with the ability to survive surgery.”

Hospitals have cited both federal law and an increased risk of aspergillosis, a fungus infection that can attack the lungs, to explain the exclusion of medical-cannabis patients from the waiting list.

But, Kris Hermes, spokesperson for the ASA headquarters in Washington, D.C., said he believes doctors’ decisions are largely based on “stigma” against cannabis.

“There has been no evidence in patients that use marijuana that have adverse affects after a transplant,” he said.

“But we have many reports of people being denied transplant, some who have died.”

While Terrie Best, chair of ASA’s San Diego chapter, is an activist for medical-cannabis patients’ inclusion on the waiting list, she said hospitals face an awkward and often “very political issue.”

“I see AB 258 as an opportunity for great institutions

like the UC system,” said Best, who also works as the editorial manager of the Journal of Emergency Medicine at UCSD. If the bill passes, “they can use it as the political cover they need to reduce the federal stranglehold placed on healthcare institutions as regards medical cannabis.”

When advocates discuss the waiting list for organ transplants, they often talk about people like Norman B. Smith. After being diagnosed with inoperable liver cancer, the 63-year-old was kicked off the waiting list at Cedars-Sinai in 2011 for medical-cannabis use. The decision came just weeks before he would’ve been eligible for a new organ, and within a year, he died.

However, not every patient’s story is as sympathetic, including Turley’s.

As a teenager, the San Diego County native regularly smoked methamphetamine. In 1993, he graduated from high school and enrolled in treatment. He was sober for five years. He got married and started working as a bookkeeper for this father’s construction-and-restoration business. However, by 1998, he’d started drinking heavily, and shortly after, he and his wife divorced.

“I got up to a bottle or two of whiskey a day,” he said. “It started off more social, but then I’d just drink alone if I couldn’t afford to go out.”

In 2004, a doctor diagnosed Turley with cirrhosis of the liver and prescribed him a number of medications, including one that caused severe incontinence and made it very difficult for him to work. For the last eight years, he’s lived off of disability insurance and help from his family.

During that time, he found medical cannabis, which he said helped him kick alcohol, although he still smokes cigarettes. The cannabis also helped him stop taking a doctor-prescribed morphine de-

rivative for pain.

“It helped me cut down on a lot of the prescriptions that I was taking at the time,” he said. “They were giving me Dilaudid for pain, and [cannabis] just helped me quit that all together, because that was just turning me into a zombie.

“The effectiveness of antidepressants and the other things that they issue, like the anti-nausea meds and stuff, are good to a certain point, but it lacks an organic-ness that you can get by just diverting your attention away from the pain, which cannabis allows you to do,” he added.

Asked if he ever thought about not using medical cannabis in order to get on the waiting list, Turley said, “Yeah, a lot—almost every day. It’s just that I can’t imagine going back to a life without the medication and just relying on pharmaceuticals and lasting very long—even just mentally.”

These days, Turley spends his time attending ASA meetings and supporting medical-cannabis patients when they’re hauled into court. He tries to get out as much as possible, but walking can be painful.

While Turley’s shot at a new liver might be slim, he remains focused on the positive. In December, the California Medical Association opposed using medical cannabis as a factor in choosing transplant candidates and will vote in March on whether to support Levine’s bill.

“I believe now that just in the last week, I’ve seen more hope and more excitement than I’ve seen in years of having this condition,” Turley said. “Who knows, maybe this will trickle down into the healthcare organizations to where they’ll change their policies.”

Write to joshuas@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 7

edwin

sordid tales

decker Amnesty for ignorance is what it is Apologies for addressing this issue belatedly, but it cabulary, but we can’t be willy-nilly about it. We only recently became known to me. Apparently, a need the word “literally” to mean only what it little more than a year ago—quite silently and with used to mean because it distinguished the figuraminimal brouhaha—Webster’s Dictionary (and tive from the literal. For example, say you’re bringpretty much all the others) changed the definition ing your group a round of shots from the bar. Upon of the word “literally” so that it included the way returning, you are informed that “Bill had to go let many people tend to misuse it, which is to emphathe bear out of the cave—literally.” size a point.

Now, the way literally was formerly defined, Up till now, the definition of “literal” has always you would instantly know that Bill—who happens been (paraphrasing): the primary or explicit meanto be a zookeeper—returned to work to tend the ing of a word or phrase. For example, if a friend grizzly exhibit. But, now, with the expanded defiasked how the concert was and you said, “It was litnition, it could also mean he went to the bathroom erally on fire,” that would be incorrect—unless you because he had a very large and angry poop to exwere talking about Hendrix at Monterey, where he pel. This figuratively burns my hide. How are we poured lighter fluid on a Stratocaster and literally supposed to know the difference anymore? set it ablaze. Similarly, if you were to ask about the In the past, I would have understood, unequivStones show at Altamont, it would be grammaticalocally, that Bill returned to work, so I might as ly correct to answer, “It was a riot, literally.” well drink his shot. But see, now, with the added However, some people use the word to express definition, it’s entirely likely he will return from emphasis, such as, “I was literally freezing my ass the bathroom and say, “Hey, where’s my shot?” off.” Well, no, actually, you were just cold. If you and get all mad at me for drinking it, which will were literally freezing your ass off, your buttocks turn into a shouting match, causing me to say would slide from your backside some things that can’t be unand shatter to pieces on the said (“bears are stupid, and ground because, well, frozen so are you!”), causing him to Ah, but who cares? ass is quite brittle. But now that unfriend me on Facebook and the wordlords have expanded stop taking my calls, which The wordlords will the definition to include emwould truly suck, because he change the definition phasis, you can say you were was helping me land a job at soon enough. freezing your ass off and be the sea-cucumber exhibit, grammatically correct. which features such adorable Here’s the thing: I’m not one little animals that you just of these language fusspots who wanna hold and cuddle and— believes that words should never be altered. We well, are you feeling me? This whole thing—it’s must always review our vocabulary to change or a travesty! cull words that no longer work adequately (if they “Travesty,” incidentally, was used incorrectly in even ever did). Take the words “flammable” and that last sentence. It doesn’t mean what you think “inflammable.” Did you know they mean the same it means—a miscarriage of justice. Rather, “travthing? Yup, they’re both used to describe things esty” means an imitation that is grossly incorrect. that can easily be set on fire. Well, what kind of Ah, but who cares? The wordlords will change dumbass shiite is that? We need to redefine inflamthe definition soon enough. After all, isn’t that the mable to mean what it should always have meant— reason “literally” was changed? Because so many “not easily combustible,” like a rock, or a brick, or people have been using it incorrectly that the glosthe brain of the person who defined “inflammasarians simply threw up their hands in defeat and ble.” Same with “ravel” and “unravel,” as they both legitimized the incorrect usage, which is like lemean what “unravel” means—to unwind. galizing shoplifting because people do it anyway?

And while we’re tinkering with the language, Amnesty for ignorance is what it is. And for the let’s fix some of these spelling issues, such as the record, I’m not being judgemental toward people “I” before “E” except after “C” rule because, well, who don’t know how to use the word “literally” who died and made “C” king? Why on Earth do we any more than I’m judgemental toward people even need that exception? I know, I know, there’s who don’t know how to spell “judgmental.” I’m judging the wordlords. Because there are to kinds an exception to every rule, right? Well, why can’t of people in this world, those who know the differsome rules have no exceptions? Hence “rule.” ence between “two” and “to” and those whose job How about we have an exception to the rule that it is to always remind us of the difference—Webthere’s an exception to every rule. From now on, ster’s and the rest. They are supposed to protect if there is an “I” in a word and there is an “E” and serve the language, yet they murdered a perin the word, the “I” comes before “E”—no excepfectly useful word right in the face and dumped it tions! And I don’t give a good goddamn what “C” in a ditch like a roadkilled ’coon. has to say about it! Nor do I care how it’s going to affect the cheldrin, the cheldrin—what about Write to edwin@sdcitybeat.com the cheldrin? and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

The point is, I’m all for the evolution of our vo-

8 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

by michael a. gardiner Michael A. Gardiner

trays with separate dishes rather than traditional boxes. Most lunch options come with a protein dish, rice (brown or white), a miso soup, two side dishes and assorted pickles. The side dishes change daily, ranging from beef with broccoli to fresh bamboo shoots to pumpkin salad.

All the options I’ve tried have been excellent. Perhaps the best was the braised pork belly with boiled egg. Braised in its own fat with soy and sugar, the meat was a perfectly balanced blend of savory, sweet and umami flavors.

Garnishes of parboiled asparagus pieces and a swipe of miso, Bento with salmon sashimi along with a bit of the braising liquid, completed the dish.

While Okan is definitely not a sushi joint, the salmon sashimi is another dependably great choice. The fish quality was first-rate, the knife work skillful and the portion generous. Better still were the fried oysters. Breaded with panko breadcrumbs, they were light and crispy on the Best lunch in town, Part 1 outside, creamy and sexy on the inside.

A fantastic non-bento option at Okan is the Dinner is the glory meal. From chef-driven rescold soba noodles. Served on a basket-tray, gartaurants to the family table of your childhood, nished simply with nori seaweed strips, chopped when you think of a great meal, it’s dinner you scallions and a dipping sauce, it’s delicious and probably picture. Breakfast? It’s “the most imsatisfying. Perhaps the best single dish at Okan is portant meal of the day,” right? But lunch? It’s the the unattractively named “Cold Tofu.” It’s far, far forgotten meal: utilitarian. I submit that lunch better than it sounds. The tofu is house-made and deserves better. And thus began my search for very nearly sweet, with a luxurious, custard-like the best lunch in town. texture. It’s garnished with ginger paste, chopped My quest began at Wa Dining Okan (3860 scallions and a nest of bonito flakes; a dash of soy Convoy St. in Kearny Mesa, okanus.com). Perhaps sauce brings the whole thing together. It’s a dish more than any other culture, Japan has made not to be missed. lunch an art form, starting with the “bento.” The The word “okan” translates in English to word can refer to the traditional home-packed “mother,” and you can feel the presence of a meal of rice, fish or meat and pickled vegetables, mother here. The somewhat archaic mythology of or it can refer to the box in which that lunch is bento involves a mother at home sending her kids traditionally served. Where the original bento to school or husband to work with a bento box “box” was likely a small bag or leather pouch, that communicates her love to them during the by the late 16th century, bentos were already day. Women are now 49.5 percent of Japan’s laelaborate—and quite beautiful—lacquered boxes bor force, and bentos are more often store-bought with separate sections for each component. And than homemade. But, at Okon, it wasn’t difficult to imagine a mom’s heartfelt touch on every tray. where early bento meals were just cooked and dried rice, it was not long before artistry entered Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com that part of the equation, too. and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

At Okan, the bento lunches come on lacquered

the world

fare

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 9

by ian cheesman

beer &

chees

The brewery built on Brett Anyone even slightly familiar with this column has been introduced to my outlook on sour and tart beers. We’re not on the most affectionate terms, to say the least. I don’t despise them; I just don’t get them. When I crave a beer, no part of me is yearning for fruity or vinegar-y flavors.

Of course, not everything is for everybody, so it shouldn’t bother me—and yet it does. As an ambassador to the craft-brew world, I honestly desire to greet them with open arms and an eager palate.

This is precisely why I was so excited to hear about Toolbox Brewing Company landing in Vista (1495 Poinsettia Ave., toolboxbrew ing.com). At every turn, my friends were gushing about this brewery that not only featured tart and funky beers, but also seemed to have one that everyone enjoyed. If there were ever a brewery that stood a chance of breaking down my walls and forever vindicating this suite of beers, this could be the one. No pressure or anything, Toolbox.

Before I reached for my first potentially lifechanging sample, I noted that there was a lot to like about Toolbox Brewing Company in plain view. The tasting room is small, but it’s cozy and well-appointed, with thoughtful, hardware-

themed decor. It’s dog- and kid-friendly, which is always a plus. Most notably, outfitting the taster caddies with a labeling mechanism was a wonderful value-add, especially given the antagonistic relationship between alcohol consumption and short-term memory. For a business that’s been open for only about six months, it showed a tremendous amount of polish.

Even knowing what types of beers Toolbox Brewing Company favored, it was still disorienting to be in a San Diego brewery where the IPA was so heavily outgunned. The board stacked saisons, tarts and farmhouse offerings seven deep—eight if you count the Smells Like Nirvana “hoppy pale Brett.” The moment of reckoning had arrived.

I was midway through my first sip of Autumn Blossom, a “Brett Saison w/ Blood Orange,” when a peculiar feeling took hold of me.

Strange as it was to admit, I was absolutely not hating it. I know that’s not the highest praise in the world, but, remember, I was bracing myself for impact more than sipping casually. In reality, this medium-bodied saison possessed a moderate tartness and potent notes of red grapefruit and orange that were both refreshing and invigorating. I was not hating it more and more by the minute.

I continued to be pleasantly surprised with many of the other selections. The bright, citrus notes of the Sweet Baby Trey farmhouse ale had a white-grape-juice sweetness with a musty undercurrent that made it likewise very drinkable.

Things were going favorably enough to have considered myself a newly minted fan were it ian cheesman not for the enamel-peeling bite of “tart x with apricots.” Everyone I polled relished its sting, but my tenderfoot tongue had met its match.

Toolbox Brewing Company may not have made me a convert, but it’s certainly helped me appreciate tart beers far more. And no matter where my personal preferences lie, the vast selection of flavors (if not styles) is likely to give even unabashed sour fans something new to try.

Write to ianc@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

10 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

by Mina Riazi mina riazi

Diego’s only traditional Belgian pub.” It opened in late 2013 and dishes out hearty fare, like breaded, deep-fried hard-boiled eggs wrapped in sausage and pretzel-bun sandwiches stuffed with grilled rabbit.

Belgian-style beers—some from Belgium, others brewed here—nicely complement the robust menu items.

The building façade is rather unsightly: Boxy and beige, it sets a tone that instantly shifts when you enter. Wooden booths, tables and chairs stir up a relaxed and intimate atmosphere substantiated by more subtle aesthetic touches: porcelain dishes and rustic, cast-iron serving pots and thick candles placed on each table.

Appropriately, Brussels sprouts—first cultivated in Brussels—appear on the menu. In the appetizer, the twice-fried The rabbit-leg confit mini cabbages are combined with pancetta, toasted pecans, brown sugar and sea salt, creating a deeply flavorful dish that would taste even better if it toned down its saltiness.

The chewy cubes of pancetta lend the Brussels sprouts a rich flavor, but the sprinkling of sea salt offsets the balance.

The same can be said for the white-bean casHold the salt soulet, which is served alongside rabbit-leg confit and was one of Brabant’s chalkboard specials the My summer fling with the Liege waffle four years day I visited. Pancetta makes a second appearago was a sweet affair. Dense and chewy with a ance in the thick, stewy blend of beans, carrots thin sugar crust, the waffle effortlessly colonized and celery. The cassoulet was too salty, though, breakfast, lunch and dinner during my week in which is unfortunate, because the rabbit-leg conBrussels. Young and naïve, I waved off my parfit was exquisite: The crunchily crisped skin gave ents’ suggestions that I explore Belgium’s other way to tender, juicy meat. culinary offerings: moules-frites! waterzooi!

Probably the least authentic Belgian dish on stoemp! Their recommendations soon soured the menu, the vegetarian burger, was nevertheinto pleas, then urges, that I sample a single, perless the most resplendent: A dense fritter of pofectly crisped fry or a pungent curl of Limburger tato, mushroom, cannellini beans, carrot, white or a Speculoos biscuit soaked in coffee. Their onion, spring onion, sage, celery seed and flaxefforts were in vain: I was devoted to the Liege seed gets stuffed in a pillowy pretzel bun and waffle, served hot in a fold of wax paper. served with a side of fries. Gruyere cheese and Since then, my palate has evolved, along with house ketchup completed the concoction, which my understanding of Belgian cuisine. I no longer was easily one of the most satisfying vegetarian insist that the Liege waffle—however alluring in its burgers I’ve ever tasted. unfussiness and understated beauty—defines the In fact, I relished Brabant’s vegetarian burger Belgian dining experience. In fact, I have grown so much that I forewent the dessert section, which, to acknowledge and appreciate the charm of musunsurprisingly, featured several mouthwatering iterations of my once-beloved Liege waffle. sels-and-fries and the sturdy comfort of stoemp.

Located in South Park just north of the corner Write to minar@sdcitybeat.com of Juniper and 30th streets, Brabant Bar & Café and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

(2310 30th St., brabantcafe.com), calls itself “San

One Lucky

Spoon

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 11

[T echnology ] no life

offline

by dave maass

How state lawmakers hope to regulate the Internet Carl Malamud, a living legend in the government-transparency movement, likes to say that “law is the operating system of our society.” I take that to mean that instead of computer code, our government is controlled by a framework of rules and subroutines that determine what we can and can’t do and what the government will do to help or prosecute us. In this metaphor, our state legislators in Sacramento are computer scientists, maybe even hackers, who are constantly adding to the source code, sometimes patching vulnerabilities, but just as often adding new bugs.

Each session, lawmakers also attempt to quite literally change how computers work in California, with bills on everything from online commerce to state-funded pilot projects. This week, I’ll take you through some of the most noteworthy bills introduced so far, but first, a few full disclosures.

My day job is at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a digital-civil-liberties group that’s already lent its support to one bill and might weigh in on some of these other measures. My opinions here don’t necessarily reflect those of my employer, but you should suck on that grain of salt anyway. Also, my boss here at CityBeat, David Rolland, will be leaving in March to join Speaker of the Assembly Toni Atkins’ team in Sacramento.

Assemblymember Mike Gatto’s “Wiki” bill and Reddit hearing: It seems that every lawmaking body these days has at least one legislator who’s pushing the boundaries of civic engagement. In Congress, it’s Rep. Darrell Issa, who’s now famous for his social-media outreach and legislation-crowdsourcing efforts. Gatto, a Democrat, is implementing this on the state level by crowdsourcing text for a new privacy bill (details at mikegatto.wikia.com), which means anyone can go and propose language and policy ideas. Augmenting that effort, on Tuesday, Gatto hosted a live stream of one of the privacy hearings during an Ask-Me-Anything session on Reddit.

Assemblymember Marie Waldron’s revenge-porn bill: This week, Hunter Moore agreed to plead guilty to charges that he solicited hackers to steal nude photos from email accounts for his website, IsAnyoneUp.com. Waldron’s bill, AB 32, would increase the penalty for criminal hacking if it involves “acquiring, copying, or distributing” intimate images. Under the bill, a district attorney could pursue up to $10,000 in fines for each stolen image.

Waldron’s video-game tax credit: A 2013 survey by Public Policy Polling found that 67 percent of Republicans think video games are a bigger threat than guns. Waldron, a noted rightwinger, isn’t one of them. This session, she’s introduced AB 16, a tax credit for the “multi-billion dollar video game industry” as well as “the small start-up companies developing apps and smartphone software.”

Internet Poker Consumer Protection Act of 2015: Gatto and Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer have introduced pretty much

12 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

identical bills (AB 9 and AB 167, respectively) that would establish a fairly complicated regulatory scheme for intrastate online-poker sites. It includes requirements that sites apply for licenses and put down $5-million deposits.

Expanding computer crimes: With AB 195, Assemblymember Ed Chau wants to expand the state’s anti-hacking laws to criminalize the operation of websites that offer hacking services. Before he pursues this any further, Chau should watch the documentary The Internet’s Own Boy to familiarize himself with how vaguely phrased computercrime laws have been abused to persecute young innovators and activists such as Aaron Swartz.

Digital driver’s licenses: Assemblymember Matt Dababneh has introduced AB 221, which would allow the Department of Motor Vehicles to develop a mobile app that allows a driver to access a digital copy of her or his driver’s license.

Data breaches: Dababneh’s AB 259 would place significant liabilities on state agencies that are the sources of data breaches. If the breach reveals someone’s social security number or driver’s license number, the agency must provide the victim with a year’s worth of free identity-theft prevention and mitigation services.

California Electronic Communications Privacy Act: EFF is a strong supporter of this comprehensive update to digital privacy laws.

Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a previous version, but this time the bill is backed by some of the major Silicon Valley corporations, such as Facebook, Google and Twitter. Among the key provisions: A law-enforcement officer would need to obtain a search warrant before searching a mobile device or compelling a service provider to hand over communications and files, such as emails, text messages and location information.

To learn more about the bills or to subscribe to updates visit leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.

Write to davem@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

the

SHORTlist

ART

COORDINATED BY KINSEE MORLAN

exhibit alongside artists from those cities.

Now, San Diego’s being brought into the fold. MAS Attack 8 will be held from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at San Diego Art Institute (SDAI) in Balboa Park—75 artists will make the trip south to hook up with 75 San Diego artists.

There are some rules: Artists must be there in the flesh and must wear name tags so that attendees can place names and faces with the art on display (“A house party is not a house party if you don’t turn up,” Presneill says). Artists select their own artwork to show and must schlep it to the exhibition— no consigning that duty to a gallery. No sales may occur. (“How sales are going isn’t how your career is going,” Presneill says. “How sales are going doesn’t say anything about the quality of your artwork.”) And no VIPs. “Everything is about the exhibition. It’s about meeting each other,” Presneill says.

“We’ve actually turned down shows be“Redact 019” by Max Presneill cause they wanted a VIP section first. It’s really relaxed. We tend to drink a lot at these things. We hang out with each other and really build a sense of community for the artists.”

Max Presneill wanted to do something The L.A. artists were selected through a nominato help take some of the pressure and tion process on Facebook, and there’s a deliberate anxiety out of the art-exhibition pro- mix of genres, styles and career status—big names cess. The former gallerist and current museum cura- and emerging artists. The San Diego contingent, tor also wanted to bring artists together in a fun at- chosen by SDAI, includes many artists that CityBeat mosphere. So, Artra Curatorial, the organization he has covered, obviously too numerous to mention. cofounded in 2009, started a series of one-night-only Deschutes Brewery will provide the beer. There’ll be exhibitions called MAS Attack—“MAS” standing for live music and a DJ set. artrala.com “Mutual Appreciation Society.”

The early Attacks were limited to greater Los Angeles but have since expanded to places like Las A grassroots group in Barrio Logan has Vegas, San Francisco and Albuquerque, with Artra been stocking up on hundreds of jalaCuratorial bringing L.A. artists to meet up with and peño, carrot and other organic seeds.

Folks from the recently formed Barrio Seed Bank will introduce their project to the community and In the last couple of years, the San Di- discuss plans for starting a community garden, farmego Vintage Flea Market’s grown from ers market and other ways to provide healthy, fresh, hosting roughly 30 vendors to, now, a locally grown food to their neighbors. From 2 to 10 retro-goods lover’s wonderland, featur- p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at Bread & Salt (1955 Julian ing more than 90 purveyors of jew- Ave. in Logan Heights), the Seed Bank will celebrate elry, clothing, furniture, vinyl records, its launch with plant and seedling exhibits, a seedre-purposed goods, cocktail- bomb-making workshop hosted by the School of making accouterments—you Guerilla Arts, live screenprinting by The Roots Factoname it, they have it (for a ry, a children’s workshop and more. Free seeds will be full list of vendors, see SDVFM’s given out from 2 to 6 p.m.; music by Radio Pulso Del Facebook page). The next mar- Barrio will follow. facebook.com/BarrioSeedBank BOB GREEN ket takes place Sunday, March 1, from 9 a.m. (get there early, folks) to 3 p.m. at the North Park Theatre’s (aka Observatory North Park) back parking lot (2891 University Ave.). This iteration’s sponsored by Lionel’s Legacy Senior Dog Rescue and doubles as a fundraiser for the pups. Bring age-appropriate dog food, toys, treats or bedding to donate, or make a monetary contribution at the market’s info booth. facebook.com/SDVintageFleaMarket Community advocate and gardener Gloria Andrade

1

SAN DIEGO, MEET L.A.

3

STEPHEN GROSCH

2

COOL OLD STUFF

TAKING ROOT

SMILE! U-R-WT-U-C at 57 Degrees Wine Bar, 1735 Hancock St., Middletown.

Southern California invitational art event curated by Guy Lombardo and featuring new works from Mollie Kellog, Peter Geise, Jessica Johnson, Philip Petrie and more.

Opening from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27.

619-234-5757, fiftysevendegrees.com Performances on Practical Surfaces: Angie Jennings at UCSD SME Building, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. The UCSD MFA candidate will present new work for which she uses yarn dipped in acrylic paint to render fluid contour lines. The work reconstructs gestures and actions made during performances the artist enacted in 2014. Opening from 5 to 7 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 27. visarts.ucsd.edu HBarrio Art Crawl at Barrio Logan Arts District. A self-guided tour consisting of the open studios, galleries and local businesses of the Barrio Logan Arts District.

Participating spaces include Bread & Salt, The Glashaus, Aca Gallery, Low Gallery and over a dozen more. From 6 to 10 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 28. barrioartcrawl.com Joe Nyiri and Keith Stephens at Taylor Branch Library, 4275 Cass St., Pacific Beach. The two noted San Diego painters who’ve been friends for more than 50 years will exhibit figurative and landscape paintings. Opening from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. pblibraryfriends.org SDMA Free Weekend at San Diego Museum of Art, Balboa Park. In celebration of the museum’s newest acquisitions, guests can enjoy free admission the entire weekend. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 1. 619-232-7931, sdmart.org The Illusionist at Dolphin and Hawk Fine Art Gallery, 7742 Herschel Ave., La Jolla.

Charles Andrew Seaton creates illusion with smoke, lasers and frames of light to paint abstract art. The opening reception will showcase his new photo illustrations and photography. Opening from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 858-401-9549, dolphinandhawk.com HMAS Attack 8 at San Diego Art Institute-Museum of the Living Artist, Balboa Park. Seventy-five Los Angeles artists will join 75 San Diego artists for an exhibition model created by Artra Curatorial, which allows artists to meet artists across gallery distinctions, genres and borders. Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. sandiego-art.org HSundown at Rhino Art Co., 97 N. Coast Hwy. 101, Encinitas. Pop-up gallery and music event featuring art from Bakula and Eyegato, music from Ditches and DJ Pillowtalk, free beer, plus pop-up shops from M-Theory Music and Night Magic Vintage.

Opening from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 760-943-7440, rhinoartco.com HOne on One at Sparks Gallery, 530 Sixth Ave., Downtown. More than 60 San Diego artists will display work at the newly restored historic Sterling Hardware building space. Includes an unveiling of a two-story-high “Fractals Series” mural by Monty Montgomery. Opening from 6 to 11 p.m.

Sunday, March 1. 619-696-1416, face book.com/events/1405474459752615/ HFragile Waters at Maritime Museum of San Diego, 1492 N. Harbor Drive, Downtown. The traveling water-themed exhibition features 119 photographs from big names like Ansel Adams and Ernest H. Brooks II. Opens Sunday, March 1. On view through Sept. 15. $8-$16. 619-2349153, sdmaritime.org ReBirth at Hess Brewing North Park, 3812 Grim Ave., North Park. ReBirth celebrates renewal, symbolized by the com-

ing of spring. Check out original new work

by Jamie Cortorillo, Nhuy Reid, Krissy Fernandez, and dozens more. Opening from 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, March 4.

949-280-8587, hessbrewing.com

BOOKS HKevin Brass at Del Mar Library, 1309 Camino Del Mar, Del Mar, Del March The former local journalist will discuss and sign his new book, The Cult of Truland, a contemporary satire set in the world of celebrity journalism. At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25. sdcl.org Randy Henderson at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave. Ste. 100, Clairemont. The author will sign and discuss his debut fantasy novel, Finn Fancy Necromancy, about a teenage boy who finds himself exiled to the body of his 40-year-old self. At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25. 858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com HDavid Morris at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The former Marine infantry officer and war correspondent will sign and discuss his timely commentary on PTSD, The Evil Hours: A Biography of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26.

858-454-0347, warwicks.indiebound.com HJoyce Carol Oates at Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Drive, Point Loma, Point Loma. As part of the Point Loma Nazarene University Writer’s Symposium by the Sea, the legendary poet and novelist will give an informal speech followed by a signing. At 7 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 26. $5-$15. 619-8492200, pointloma.edu HRansom Riggs at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave. Ste. 100, Clairemont. The writer and filmmaker will be promoting the paperback release of Hollow City: The Second Novel of Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. mystgalaxy.com Robert Levinson at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave. Ste. 100, Clairemont. The bestselling author of more than a dozen mystery novels will sign and discuss his latest novel, The Evil Deeds We Do. At 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com Linda Thomas-Sundstrom Paranormal Party at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave. Ste. 100, Clairemont. The local author hosts a paranormal party to celebrate her latest supernatural romance, Wolf Born. Joining her party will be local authors Lisa Kessler and S.J. Harper. At 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28.

858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com Julia Sarcone-Roach at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla.

The author and illustrator will present her newest picture book, The Bear Ate Your Sandwich. She’ll perform an art demonstration as well as read her story. At 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 858-454-0347, warwicks.indiebound.com HKassandra King at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The local writer will discuss her book, Getting Real About Alzheimer’s: Rementia Through Engagement, Assistance, and Love. At noon Sunday, March 1. 858-454-0347, war wicks.indiebound.com Stephen Metcalfe at Warwick‘s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The writer and associate artist at the Old Globe Theater will debut his young adult novel, The Tragic Age. At 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. 858-454-0347, warwicks. indiebound.com

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 13

DANCE HThe Engagement Ring: Whose Dance Is This Anyway? at Malashock Dance Studio, 2650 Truxton Road, Ste. 202, Point Loma. A special dance event designed to engage audience members by encouraging participation in movement-based improvisation games that will culminate in a new dance. At 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 619-260-1622, malashockdance.org Ballroom With A Twist at Poway Center for the Performing Arts, 15498 Espola Road, Poway. Featuring pros of Dancing with the Stars, So You Think

You Can Dance and American Idol, this showcase features a fusion of Broadway, classical, contemporary, modern freestyle and international dance and song. At 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. $20-$104. 858748-0505, powaycenter.com

FOOD & DRINK Stone Brewing Beer Dinner at OB Warehouse, 4839 Newport Ave., Ocean Beach. Chef Elias Gonzales creates a five-course dinner designed to pair with Stone’s craft brews. Lead brewer Jeremy Moynier from

THEATER The Twenty-seventh Man imparts critical history lesson

•••

Intrepid Shakespeare Company does a bang-up job with Rebecca Feldman and William Finn’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, now marking 10 years since it opened on Broadway.

The spacious theater on the campus of San Marcos High School is ideal for this crowd-pleasing production, directed by former Moonlight Stage Production artistic director Kathy Brombacher. Geno Carr and his wife, Nancy Snow Carr, anchor a delightfully eccentric cast, with Omri Schein and Sarah Errington standouts among the young spelling contestants.

Thanks to the “use it in a sentence” quips of Geno Carr’s uptight vice principal, the good-sport audience contestants and musical numbers that are just the right length and gravity, Spelling Bee is a splendiferous—I hope that’s spelled correctly—two hours of entertainment.

It runs through March 15 at the San

14 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

JIM COX

Besides sharing an important, under-told story, The Old Globe’s The Twenty-seventh Man showcases three veteran actors at the peak of their game. Hal Linden, Ron Orbach and Robert Dorfman portray three (of 26) Soviet Jewish writers who were jailed and then executed at Stalin’s behest on “The Night of the Murdered Poets.”

In this potent one-act play, written by Nathan Englander and directed by the Globe’s Barry Edelstein (who directed its New York premiere in 2012), the silverhaired Linden is Yevgeny Zunser, who’s regarded as a national treasure. Ever the wise and dignified man, he accepts his fate behind bars. Orbach’s Moishe Bretzky is the most emotional of the three, a blustering man of temptations and passions. Dorfman’s Vasily Korinsky is the most visibly shaken and, in his mind, the most betrayed. Into their cell comes the titular 27th man—actually a boy, Pinchas Pelovits (Eli Gelb). How he fits into the moving and terrible denouement provides the play’s subtextual intrigue.

The Twenty-seventh Man is a study in courage and truth in self that, for the most part, avoids mere philosophizing.

Rarely will you encounter a play set in a prison cell so liberating.

It runs through March 22 at The Old Globe’s Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre in Balboa Park. $29 and up. theoldglobe.org

Hal Linden (left) and Ron Orbach in The Twenty-seventh Man Marcos Performing Arts Center on the San Marcos High School campus. $35. intrepidshakespeare.com

—David L. Coddon Write to davidc@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

OPENING Baby with the Bathwater: In this comedy by Christopher Durang, a couple of not-so-great parents produce a child who grows up struggling with identity issues. Opens Feb. 26 at Diversionary Theatre in University Heights. diversionary.org Chapter Two: A man whose wife died recently and a woman whose marriage has just ended aren’t sure if they’re ready to start dating. You either love Neil Simon or you hate him. Opens in previews on Feb. 25 at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. northcoastrep.org Hamlet: Shakespeare’s classic tragedy about the vengeful prince gets a treatment at UCSD. Opens Feb. 25 at UCSD’s Mandell Weiss Theatre. theatre. ucsd.edu Love, Loss, and What I Wore: A series of monologues written by Nora and Delia Ephron, performed by five women, in which clothing is the focal point of life stories. Presented by Philip Roger Roy and Dana Matthow, it opens Feb. 25 at the Lyceum Theatre at Horton Plaza, Downtown. lyceumevents.org Mr. Doctor: A free staged reading of a new musical co-written by B.D. Wong, artist-in-residence at La Jolla Playhouse, and composer Wayne Barker.

It starts at 5 p.m. on Feb 27 and 28 in the Experimental Theatre on the SDSU campus. Reservations are required: eallison@mail.sdsu.edu.

Prison Boxing: A free, one-woman show written and performed by Leah Joki about life and culture in state lockup. It starts at 7 p.m. on Feb. 25 in Performance Hall 111 in the Arts Building on the CSU San Marcos campus. csusm.edu/sofa (click “SofA Events”).

For full listings,

please visit “T heater ” at sdcit ybeat.com

Stone Brewery Co. will be on-site to discuss tasting notes and anecdotes. At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $55. 619-2221700, cohnrestaurants.com/obwarehouse

festive Chinese repertoire with the touring Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $15-$91. 619235-0804, sandiegosymphony.com

HCooking With Friends Dinner Series at Leroy’s Kitchen and Lounge, 1015 Orange Ave., Coronado. Executive Chef Tim Kolanko joins forces with The Fishery’s Paul Arias and Greg Hess of Mike Hess Brewing for a multi-course dinner and pairing menu. Reservations required. At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. $55. 4376087, leroyskitchenandlounge.com

Venice Baroque Orchestra at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. One of the world’s premier ensembles devoted to period instrument performance with a focus on bringing freshness and experimentation to early music. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. $21-$65. 800-988-4253, artcenter.org

HTaco Fights 3: Championship Round at The Blind Burro, 639 J Street, Gaslamp.

Six local chefs engage in an Iron Chefstyle competition using an ingredient selected by public vote on The Blind Burro’s Facebook page. Attendees can try each of the chef’s prepared tacos and vote for the best. From 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 3.

619-795-7880, theblindburro.com Spicy Storytelling at CSUSM University Student Union, 595 Campus View Drive, San Marcos. Artist Erin O’Brien presents an interactive, multi-sensory cooking experience with flavors and spices from around the world. At 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. $6-$12. 760-750-7450, csusm.edu/al

MUSIC Celtic Thunder at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. The popular Irish music ensemble performs an eclectic collection of the group’s most popular songs. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $65. 619-570-1100, sandiegotheatres.org San Diego Chinese New Year Concert at Copley Symphony Hall, 750 B St., Downtown. Three internationally renowned Chinese soloists will perform a

Gil Shaham at Sherwood Auditorium, 700 Prospect St, La Jolla. La Jolla Music Society continues its “Celebrity Recital Series” with the acclaimed violinist. At 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. $35-$99. 858-4543541, ljms.org HMusica Poetica: Theatre of the Baroque Bach Collegium San Diego performs a program of Bach and Handel under the guest direction of Nicholas Kraemer. At 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, at St. James by the Sea, 743 Prospect St., La Jolla, and 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at San Diego History Center in Balboa Park. $10-$45.

619-235-0804, bachcollegiumsd.org HPeter Sprague String Consort at Museum of Making Music, 5790 Armada Drive, Carlsbad. Sprague and his sevenpiece group features a classical string quartet interacting with a jazz guitar trio.

The music travels between Brazilian samba, jazz and even Bach. At 7 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 28. $20. 760-438-5996, museumofmakingmusic.org Beethoven the Great at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. The Center Chorale’s tribute includes two of Beethoven’s works, “Choral Fantasy” and “Mass in C Major.” Both will be accompanied by a

festival orchestra, piano and vocal soloists. At 3 p.m. Sunday, March 1. $17$20. 800-988-4253, artcenter.org Robin Henkel & Billy Watson at Encinitas Library, 540 Cornish Drive, Encinitas. Twice awarded “Best Blues CD” at the San Diego Music Awards, Henkel performs country blues drawing from the influences of Robert Johnson, Fred McDowell, Muddy Waters, Skip James and others. At 2 p.m. Sunday, March 1. 760753-7376, encinitaslibfriends.org Yemen Blues at La Paloma Theater, 471 S. Coast Hwy. 101, Escondido. Yemenite Israeli vocalist and composer Ravid Kahalani leads a rare combo of musicians from NYC, Uruguay and Tel Aviv for a unique sound that mixes Yemenite, West African and jazz influences. At 7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 1. $25. 760-436-7469, sdcjc.org Center Chorale: Beethoven the Great at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. The Chorale’s tribute to one of the most influential composers includes the “Choral Fantasy” and the “Mass in C Major” accompanied by an orchestra, piano and vocal soloists.

At 3 p.m. Sunday, March 1. $10-$20.

760-839-4190, artcenter.org HPrayers and Songs at San Diego Museum of Art, Balboa Park. This program features The Formosa Quartet, Art of Elan’s first ensemble-in-residence. Selections include “Prayer of St. Gregory” by Alan Hovhaness and the West Coast premiere of Avner Dorman’s “Prayer for the Innocents.” At 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. $12-$30. 619-692-2081, artofelan.org Eric Dickerson at Rancho San Diego Library, 11555 Via Rancho San Diego, El

CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 15

Cajon. The local musician presents an evening of music for classical guitar. At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. 619-6605370, sdcl.org/locations_RD.html Don Williams at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. The legendary country singer stops by on his current tour. At 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 3. $44$65. 619-570-1100, sandiegotheatres.org WOW First Wednesdays: The Lacemakers at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day early with this trio whose intricate three-part harmonies blend traditional Irish, Scottish and Appalachian sounds. At 4 and 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 4. 800-988-4253, artcenter.org HKris Bowers at The Loft @ UCSD,

Price Center East, La Jolla. The 24-yearold pianist plays a concert rooted in the jazz tradition, but with tinges of electronic music. At 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 4. $12-$18. artpwr.com

PERFORMANCE Pink BoomBox Revue: The Foodie Show at Brass Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave., Hillcrest. A food-themed burlesque variety show with special guests EgyptBlaque Knyle and Valentina on the Rocks. At 7 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 28. $5-$20. 619-298-2233, pinkboomboxproduction.blogspot.com Teresa Goes to Rehab at Saville Theater @ San Diego City College, 1313 Park Blvd., Downtown. Teresa Gunn performs a show described as a “one woman od-

yssey told in stories, songs, and spoken word.” All proceeds benefit Street of Dreams Education Programs. At 7 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 28. Suggested donation.

619-388-3037, musiciansforeducation.org Kiss & Tell Cabaret at New Village Arts Theatre, 2787 B State St., Carlsbad. An evening of song and storytelling with some of San Diego theatre’s hottest couples performing Broadway favorites, classic standards and current hits. At 7 p.m. Sunday, March 1. $25. newvillagearts.org ABBA Mania at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. The original tribute concert from London’s West End recreates one of the world’s most popular pop groups. At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 4. $24.50-$49.50. 619-570-1100, sandiegotheatres.org

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD HVAMP: Dirty Talk Vol. 4 at Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St, South Park. So Say We All’s monthly live storytelling show featuring raunchy tales from some of San Diego’s best writers. From 8:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $5 suggested donation. so sayweallonline.com HRae Armantrout at D.G. Wills Books, 7461 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and 2008 Guggenheim Fellow reads from her new book, Itself. At 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. 858456-1800, dgwillsbooks.com HNon-Standard Lit: Brent Armendinger, Caren Beilin and Junior Clemons at

Gym Standard, 2903 El Cajon Blvd. Ste. 2, North Park. The second spring reading in the series features Armendinger (The Ghost in Us Was Multiplying), Caren Beilin (The University of Pennsylvania) and San Diego poet Junior Clemons (So Many Mountains But This One Specifically). From 5 to 7 p.m.

Sunday, March 1. gymstandard.com HRed Poets Society at Kafe Sobaka, 2469 Broadway, Golden Hill. A new weekly poetry, prose and spoken-word open-mic co-hosted by Tazha Williams and David Proulx. From 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, March 4. 619-297-4007, facebook.com/ sdredpoets

SPECIAL EVENTS Tower After Hours: Ireland at San Diego Museum of Man, Balboa Park. Taste Irish pub fare from local eateries, watch music and dance performances and enjoy a cold Guinness at this after-hours cultural event.

From 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $15$30. 619-239-2001, museumofman.org Urban Mobile Market at The Headquarters at Seaport District, 789 West Harbor Drive, Downtown. Food trucks, fashion trucks and mobile businesses hang out every Friday. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. 619-339-9314, urbanmobilemarket.com The Swoon Event at Moniker Warehouse, 705 16th St., East Village. A boutique wedding show featuring handmade, eco-friendly and unique wedding flare from local creatives. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. $8. theswoonevent.com Casino Italia at India Street Design Center, 2171 India St., Little Italy. A night of casino games, drinks, music, prizes and more to benefit the Little Italy Association. Guests receive $1,000 in Casino Italia chips and a complimentary drink. From 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28. $31.50.

619-338-4927, littleitalysd.com

TALKS & DISCUSSIONS HDegrees of Freedom Public Lecture Series: Sheldon Brown at Great Hall La Jolla, 4275 Campus Point Court, La Jolla.

Brown, a UCSD visual arts professor, will discuss the importance of understanding and engaging imagination. At 7 p.m.

Wednesday, Feb. 25.

Art from the Land of Diamonds at San Diego Museum of Art, Balboa Park. Marika Sardar, associate curator of Southern Asian and Islamic Art, will introduce the art of the five courts of India’s Mughal Empire and present new discoveries and research. At 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26. $8-$12. 619-232-7931, sdmart.org HBlack Lives Matter at Malcolm X Branch Library, 5148 Market St., Valencia Park. Alicia Garza, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, will discuss its history and goals and invite discussion around local related movements for social justice. From 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27.

619-527-3405, sandiegolibrary.org HBlack Civil War Reenactors Reenact Freedom at San Diego Central Library, 330 Park Blvd., East Village. Prof. Patricia Davis of Georgia State University discusses the little-known world of African American Civil War re-enactors. From 6:30 to 8 p.m. Monday, March 2. 619-236-5800, sandiegolibrary.org

For full listings,

please visit “E vents” at sdcit yb eat.com

16 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

Kinsee Morlan

moving to the Museum of Photographic Arts, where he eventually became the director. He served on the Port of San Diego’s Public Art Committee and, most recently, was the managing director of North Coast Repertory Theatre before taking his job at the church three years ago.

Bayview is a big church with an onsite school, large chapel, administrative offices and another huge building—dubbed the M.L. King Center—that was once intended to be a gym but has served as extra event space. Finnie saw the building’s lofty ceiling and sprawling square footage and almost immediately envisioned it as a potential home for the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art. “I thought, man, we could put something here that might work, because a lot of time museums don’t need much,” he says.

On Feb. 1, 2014, Finnie relaunched the museum with In Our Lifetime, a photo exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. In October, he followed that show with The Question Bridge: Black Males, a provocative contemporary video installation that presented viewers with an honest dialog about what it’s like being a black male in America.

Despite the limitations of running a makeshift museum tucked into a corner of a church building, exhibitions and the accompanying programming—film screenings, lectures, etc.—were well-executed and popular.

“I was really impressed by the shows,” says Marilyn Rees, who signed on as a volunteer for the museum when Finnie deGaidi Finnie cided to breathe new life into it. “This is a really, really good.” huge challenge, but Gaidi took it on and has Williams launched the San Diego Af- just run with it…. Black culture in this rerican American Museum of Fine Art in gion is present, but it isn’t always as obvious 1989, with the help of a small group of or put forward as it could be, and the type volunteers. Conceptualized as a museum of discussions that Gaidi is offering are just without walls, the organization thrived healthy and even necessary.” for a decade without a permanent home When the museum first reopened, Finby partnering with other arts groups and nie thought its permanent home would be holding exhibitions in venues around the at the church. He hired consultants and city. Shortly after the museum staged its collected quotes from contractors, settling 10th-anniversary exhibition in 1999, Wil- on a price tag of roughly $800,000—the liams died and the museum essentially cost of adding lighting, climate control, sedied with her. It wasn’t until last February curity and other elements necessary to get that Finnie decided to revive it. the space up to museum standards. In the Finnie’s the chief operating officer at future, he’d like to be able to borrow AfriBayview Baptist Church, but he has a long can-American art from institutions like the background in the arts. He spent a few CONTINUED ON PAGE 18 years at a fine-art gallery in La Jolla before

No walls necessary San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art rolls carefully into its second year of revival by

Kinsee Morlan

aidi Finnie reaches for a thick, white binder on top of a file cabinet in his office at Bayview Baptist Church in Encanto. He opens it to reveal years’ worth of historic documents and other memorabilia from the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art. “These are some of the original shows here,” he says, flipping to a page of old ex-

G

hibition fliers and invitations. “This one here is one I was involved in, Black Cowboys: Reconstructing an American Myth, an exhibition of photographs by Tony Gleaton. We did that one at the B Street Pier, Downtown, back in 1997.”

A quick glance through the rest of the salvaged history makes one thing clear— the museum’s founder, Shirley Day Williams, was wholeheartedly committed to putting on high-caliber exhibitions of fine art made by African-Americans. And she did so without having a permanent place to stage the shows.

“That was one thing that Shirley was definitely known for,” Finnie says. “She would only do really high-quality stuff. She was insistent that whatever we put up was

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 17

Smithsonian, but he can’t do that unless the venue meets the strict requirements for showing valuable fine art.

“Maintaining the quality of the work we show in our exhibitions is of the utmost importance,” says Finnie, who’s started considering locations that are better equipped to show and store art. “We want to make sure that the level of art we’ve shown in the past stays at that level.”

Heading into the second year of the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art’s revival, Finnie’s decided to be conservative. He’s put the costly plans for rehabbing the church’s M.L. King Center on a backburner and is instead continuing as a museum without walls that survives with partnerships and pop-ups.

This month, the museum is collaborating with the Mingei International Museum by participating in and hosting events related to the Balboa Park institution’s current Black Dolls exhibition (see the sidebar for details).

And in August, the museum will open an exhibition at San Diego State University’s Downtown Gallery, featuring original work

by Jonathan Green alongside pieces from the well-known artist’s personal collection.

Finnie and his team of board members and volunteers are working to raise the estimated $100,000 it’ll cost to ship Green’s art, pay for insurance, host an elegant opening and cover other costs associated with putting on a museum-quality exhibition.

“So, we’re right in the middle of just hustling, trying to raise the money,” he

Upcoming events Gaidi Finnie, executive director of the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art, will help lead a discussion after a screening of the documentary Why Do You Have Black Dolls? at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday Feb. 25. From 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, Finnie will screen the film again at the M.L. King Center at Bayview Baptist Church (6134 Benson Ave. in Encanto). Get details at facebook.com/sdaamfa.

The Question Bridge: Black Males video installation at the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art says, pointing to a long and impressive list of corporate sponsors who’ve pitched in for shows in the past. “We won’t commit to something unless we know we can raise the money to do it right, because we’re not doing cheap exhibits.”

Finnie says all the funds currently being raised go directly toward exhibitions and programming. He acts as the executive director but doesn’t take a salary, and he says the museum is powered by its volunteers.

Running the museum, he says, can at times feel like an incredible amount of work, but his passion for art and the enthusiastic response from not only the black community

18 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

but also the wider San Diego community has inspired him to keep going.

“We really feel like we can reach the whole region,” he says. “It’s important because it just feels like the African-American culture is just diminishing in this area…. So far, we’ve been humbled, if you will, by the comments from the community saying, ‘We really need this. We really were missing this, and I’m so glad you’re doing this.’ So, those conversations have been very powerful. People are excited about what we’re doing.”

Write to kinseem@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

From 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 14, the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art and Mingei will host a discussion, Black Art, Memorabilia and Collectibles, focusing on the responses evoked by historical art objects depicting African Americans.

From 4 to 6 p.m., the program will shift into A Tribute to Our Daughters, an opportunity for proud dads to express how they feel about their daughters through poetry, song, a letter or just a few words. Those who want to participate should contact Finnie at gaidi.finnie@gmail.com or 619-262-8384.

Seen Local Sparks it up

Mo

rla

n

Artist Aaron Glasson often reimagines the natural world as a neon-colored magical land where almost anything can happen. His surrealistic paintings twist together organic-inspired imagery with psychedelic embellishment, creating a colorful landscape in which the strange and imaginative inhabitants he conjures up can play.

In “Que Tu Vida Siga Manifestando la Luz,” the piece featured on CityBeat’s cover this week, the New Zealand-born artist (aaronglasson.com) was commissioned to paint something for the opening of his friend’s record store in Mexico City. Glasson says the painting is inspired by the world music his friend enjoys and that the central figure is a mashup of visual references to musicians like Fela Kuti, Moondog, Sun Ra, Francis Bebey, Alice Coltrane

see

Meet our cover artist

Kin

After more than a year-and-a-half worth of construction and rehabilitation projects, Sparks Gallery is finally ready for its big reveal. Located at 530 Sixth Ave., Downtown, the fine-art gallery will launch with One on One, a group show featuring a huge lineup of local artists, opening from 6 to 11 p.m. Sunday, March 1.

Walking through the refurbished 4,500-squarefoot building, constructed in 1924, owner Sonya Sparks is as likely to point out unique architectural or historical details as she is to talk about the art that’ll soon be on the gallery walls.

“This is the original floor,” she says, pointing to the freshly revamped wood beneath her feet.

“With a good deal of patching,” adds her dad, Barry Wilson, who owns the building and, with help from his son, a general contractor, led the renovation.

For most of its early life, the building served as a hardware store. Reviving it was necessary for making much-needed aesthetic changes, but, more importantly, Sparks and Wilson needed to improve the structural integrity of the building so they could increase the capacity.

Steel beams now reinforce the hollow masonry walls, so, unlike the single, three-week, pop-up exhibition they hosted in 2013, when attendance was limited to 49 people at a time, they can now host nearly 350.

“We were waiting for the building to be exactly right,” Sparks says. “We did open briefly, because there was a window of time where we weren’t tearing things apart.

The capacity limit was a huge hindrance for us, though. We

had people lined up down the street at that opening.”

Sparks, whose mother is active in historic preservation, makes sure to point out the gallery’s antique curio in the back that’s filled with relics found during the rebuild. She says they discovered broken sake bottles and other artifacts stemming from the area’s former life as a red-light district populated by Japanese immigrants.

“This was an empty lot back then, so when we were doing some excavation, we found old kanji and other interesting historic things,” she says.

Now that the history of the building is preserved, Sparks says she’s ready for its future. She hopes to put her business and arts background to use by building a contemporary gallery focused on local art. She knows the venture will be a challenge in a region that has few collectors and is apparently unable to support many fulltime, brick-and-mortar fine-art galleries.

“I think we can do it,” she says. “That’s why we’re sort of treating the gallery like a retail store in some ways. I’m really focusing on the business aspect of it—so, looking at it in terms of price range and how the market will respond to certain prices and artwork. We’re really going to be looking closely to see what works here.”

The opening exhibition will feature works by Amy Paul, Anna Stump, Gloria Muriel, Eric Wixon, ManRabbit, Richard Salcido and dozens more. Monty Montgomery’s two-story mural will be on view on the back patio, and Vincent Robles will construct a site-specific installation in the storefront window.

“I consider the gallery itself as a big personal art project,” Sparks says. “I wanted to start a business, but I just felt like I wanted to support the arts community, too. It’s meaningful to me, and I think this could be a great thing to happen to the community.”

Sonya Sparks

—Kinsee Morlan

and Jon Hassell. The landscape behind the figure is inspired by Maori Bay in New Zealand, where Glasson was staying while painting the piece.

“Often, I’ll paint something from my direct surNaomi Shon roundings,” Glasson says. “I guess a lot of my work is autobiographical in that sense. As much as it all has this grander conceptual idea, I think my paintings are also reflective of my personal life.”

A few of Glasson’s pieces are on view in Castles in the Sky, a group exhibition that will close at the new Low Gallery location (1878 Main St. in Barrio Logan) during the Barrio Art Crawl from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28.

Aaron Glasson —Kinsee Morlan Write to kinseem@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 19

The grifters Will Smith and Margot Robbie steal the show

by Glenn Heath Jr. Couture dresses and exotic locales, classy foreplay and suave timing. The razzle-dazzle of old Hollywood courses through the veins of Glenn Ficarra and John Requa’s Focus, a charmingly self-aware heist movie sweet on the possibility of love. Danger may lie around every corner, but these characters are smart enough to walk the other way, coming at the problem from a different angle with a calm swagger necessary to survive the high-stakes game of beWill Smith and Margot Robbie, similarly suave and sexy ing a criminal.

This is the pop fantasy land of Lewis Milestone’s bars and gambling dens, watching as each criminal Oceans 11 and Norman Jewison’s The Thomas Crown plays her or his role effortlessly.

Affair (not to mention their respective modern upBut Focus shows its true colors during a key sedates), an enjoyable and sexy genre postcard about quence set in a lavish skybox overlooking the big other people living otherworldly lives. game. Anchored by a lurid cameo by B.D. Wong, Jess As Nicky, the lifetime grifter whose elaborate net- gets to see the depth of Nicky’s charm and deceit in work of pickpockets and blackmailers is turned up- one fell swoop. This jarring shift gives way to the side down when he meets an alluring new upstart, film’s breezier second half, set three years later in Will Smith reminds us why he became a star in the the car-racing world of Argentina, where, after an first place: charisma and vulnerability. Way back in extended time apart, the two swindling love birds 1993, he burst onto the Hollywood scene as a debonair are reunited during a con involving a game-changing con man in Six Degrees of Separafuel-efficiency formula held by a tion, a role that feels like an origin business mogul (Rodrigo Santoro). story for Nicky’s brand of flawed If Smith does a solid job of conFocus yet calculated sleight-of-hand. stantly subverting our trust while Directed by Glenn Ficarra Focus begins with an amazingly smiling, Robbie achieves a sincere and John Requa convenient meet-cute: After a few balance between witty ditz and Starring Will Smith, Margot drowsy helicopter shots of New knowing femme fatale. Both actors Robbie, Adrian Martinez York City’s skyline, angelically prove to be versatile, especially and Gerald McRaney augmented by some fitting soul when they’re playing off each othRated R music, Ficarra and Requa let their er. Whenever things hit a rut in the stars collide. As Nicky eats alone twisty script, the filmmakers rely in a swanky restaurant, blonde on great supporting turns by Adribombshell Jess (Margot Robbie) moves in for the an Martinez and Gerald McRaney. Focus really isn’t proverbial kill. Attraction blossoms over wine and about plot mechanics, even though it often claims to smart-ass quips, then she takes him upstairs for an be. Instead, it provides a glossy frame for actors to incriminating, compromising situation. Nicky turns rambunctiously propel off each other in an enjoyably the tables on her immediately and thus begins their low-stakes game of chicken. drawn-out, innuendo-driven relationship where the Ficarra and Requa previously made the excellent personal becomes professional and vice-versa.

I Love You Phillip Morris and the lively Crazy, StuEnergetic and fleet, the film’s first half is a training pid, Love, two films that work because of the conflict session for Jess. She joins the ranks of Nicky’s elabo- and chemistry shared by their central pairings. Focus, rate crew in New Orleans to help conduct a massive which opens Friday, Feb. 27, might not mine the depths clandestine assault against tourists and adulterers in of romantic entanglement with the same success, but the lead-up to the Super Bowl. Having the veil lifted it achieves a demure and tactful whimsy that’s very on such underworld operations inspires a spark, giv- easy to appreciate. Razzle-dazzle, indeed. ing her the space to grow as an artist of thievery. Part of the film’s virtues lies in letting the audience in on Write to glennh@sdcitybeat.com the con, with the camera seamlessly gliding around and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

Kangaroo court

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem

20 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

Bunkered down in the cramped hallways and trial rooms of an Israeli Rabbinical court, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem unflinchingly traps the viewer within a physical manifestation of stagnant bureaucracy. Viviane (Ronit Elkabetz) has requested a divorce from her husband Elisha (Simon Abkarian), who’s refused

for years, pushing the marital dispute before a trio of religious elders. The court cannot force Elisha to acquiesce due to the laws protecting the rights of the husband, leaving the couple mired in a brutally prolonged purgatory.

In the opening sequence, Viviane’s advocate Carmel (Menashe Noy) makes a convincing case for her freedom. But the rabbis force the couple to try to reconcile, set-

ting in motion a pattern of delays that continues for months and years. During this time, the hearings become more intense and absurd, and much like the great courtroom drama 12 Angry Men, words and ideas get manipulated to twist the facts. Character assassinations are a regular occurrence, with Viviane’s gender at the root of most attacks.

The smug patriarchy of the rabbinic court (and multiple other male characters, for that matter) is suffocating in its resistance to show empathy for Viviane’s plea.

“When will you see me,” Viviane screams late in the film, throwing the court’s social nearsightedness right back in its face.

Confrontation is key to the film’s sense of fierce determinism.

As directed by Elkabetz and her brother Shlomi, many of the shots are composed in direct address, with the actors staring nearly right back into the camera.

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem, which opens Friday, Feb. 27, lays bare the hypocrisy of male self-righteousness through gripping monologues. It’s like an action film in which bullets are replaced with words, most of them hitting their target with ferocious resolve.

—Glenn Heath Jr.

Opening Big in Japan: Members of a struggling rock band from Seattle head to Tokyo, hoping to make it big and leave their day jobs behind. Screens through March 5 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Focus: Will Smith and Margot Robbie talk wise and look sexy as grifters embarking on one last con job. It’s directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (I Love You Phillip Morris). See our review on Page 20.

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem: A distraught Israeli woman spends years in a rabbinical court trying to obtain a divorce from her well-respected husband.

See our review on Page 20.

Hitman: Agent 47: Based on the popular video game about an assassin who teams up with a woman to help uncover the mystery of her ancestry.

The Lazarus Effect: Olivia Wilde stars in this thriller about a team of medical students who discover a way to bring back the dead. From the looks of the creepy trailer, this was not the best idea.

Leviathan: A land dispute in a rural Russian town escalates quickly, leaving a family in ruin and reinforcing the corruption wielded by government and religious institutions. Director Andrei Zvyagintsev updates The Book of Job with striking force.

Red Army: Documentary about the Soviet Union’s famed Red Army hockey team, as seen through the eyes of the squad’s leader.

She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry: Director Mary Dore’s documentary looks back at the brilliant and outrageous figures who founded the modern women’s movement in the late 1960s. Screens through March 5 at the Ken Cinema.

One Time Only

Tub gang jumps back into the time machine and begins messing with the past.

The Two Faces of January: While traveling in Greece, a couple (Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst) meet a mysterious American (Oscar Isaac) who may be a con man. Screens at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, at the Mission Valley Library.

McFarland, U.S.A.: Kevin Costner stars as a cross-country coach in a small California town who takes a team of Latino athletes and transforms them into championship contenders. Disney strikes again.

Why Do You Have Black Dolls: This award-winning documentary explores history, race and social justice by focusing on a little-known community that collects black dolls. Screens at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park.

It Happened One Night: Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable are perfection in Frank Capra’s classic romantic comedy about an heiress on the run and a reporter snooping for a story. Screens at 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Feb. 25, at Arclight La Jolla.

The Duff: Bianca (Mae Whitman), a teenager who’s been labeled unattractive by her more popular friends, decides to lead a social revolution that will undermine the pecking order at her high school.

The Last Five Years: Richard LaGravenese adapts the famous musical about a struggling actress (Anna Kendrick) and her novelist lover (Jeremy Jordan) who experience the highs and lows of a volatile relationship.

The Tale of Princess Kaguya: Animation master Isao Takahata’s final film tells the story of a tiny girl who’s born in the sprout of a beanstalk and raised against her wishes to be a princess in feudal Japan. Ends Feb. 26 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

What We Do in the Shadows: Four vampires living in modern-day New Zealand struggle to find happiness and friendship in Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi’s hilarious mockumentary.

A Girl Who Walks Home Alone at Night: Set in the dystopic town of Bad City, a young vampire tries to find solace in the arms of a drug dealer. Screens at Reading Gaslamp Cinemas.

Fifty Shades of Grey: The perfect Val-

entine’s Day present for your masochistic significant other.

Kingsman: The Secret Service: Colin Firth leads a team of British secret agents against a maniacal bad guy played by Samuel L. Jackson.

Seventh Son: Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore team up in the craziest sequel to The Big Lebowski that you could possibly imagine.

For a complete listing of movies, please see “F ilm S creenings” at sdcit yb eat.com under the “E vents” tab.

Pretty Woman: Julia Roberts plays a prostitute who becomes the object of affection for Richard Gere’s rich businessman. Screens at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, at The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

Catch Me if You Can: Leonardo DiCaprio is a successful con man by the time he’s 19, drawing the attention of a seasoned FBI agent Tom Hanks, who spends years chasing his trail. Screens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, at the San Diego Central Library in East Village.

Una Piccola Impresa Meridonale: Scandal and religion collide in a quaint coastal Italian community in this drama by filmmaker Rocco Papaleo. Screens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, at the Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park.

The Theory of Everything: Eddie Redmayne is Stephen Hawking, the brilliant scientist who continues his research despite his crippling disease. Screens at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 27 and 28, at Cinema Under the Stars in Mission Hills.

Purple Rain: Prince stars as a talented young musician whose rise to fame is complicated when he meets another aspiring singer who breaks his heart.

Screens at 11:55 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Ken Cinema.

Taxi to the Dark Side: Alex Gibney’s scathing documentary about an Afghan taxi driver who’s tortured by the American military will be presented by Amnesty International. Screens at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 1, at the Mission Valley Library.

Words and Pictures: Art and English literature collide in this romantic comedy starring Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche as rival teachers. Screens at 6:30 p.m.

Monday, March 2, at the San Diego Central Library in East Village.

Women’s Film Festival San Diego: The selection for this date is currently listed as a TBA. Check for updates at womensmu seumca.org. Screens at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, at the Women’s Museum of California in Point Loma’s Liberty Station.

Pacific Rim: To defeat a bunch of megamonsters that threaten to destroy Earth, some highly skilled warriors build their own army of massive robots as a last line of defense. Screens at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, at the Arclight La Jolla Cinemas.

Tommy Boy: Chris Farley and David Spade romp around the country, trying to sell brake pads and stave off their company’s imminent bankruptcy. Screens at 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, at The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

Now Playing Hot Tub Time Machine 2: In order to save a friend who’s been shot, the Hot

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 21

alex

there she goz

zaragoza Partying with the artsy elite Sitting on the hardwood floor of a total stranger’s school cafeteria trying to find a table that would house and watching a performance in full swing have us. He continued asking questions. I continued just three feet away is not totally new to me. I’ve to have few answers. We drank, as anyone who feels spent many nights sitting cross-legged on dingymoderately awkward does. But what it is? Then it carpeted floors of dilapidated houses that had all made sense. earned nicknames like The Sandwich House or The We were called into the house to watch a perSuicide House. formance. Once again, I found myself sitting on The living rooms of those dirtbag mansions were the floor of a living room about to watch somestages for punk bands, or a girl with a ukulele singthing that could be special or total horse shit. And ing earnestly about how neat friendship is, or small then out came a young woman from the California art shows, or amateur poetry in which “incendiary” Ballet Company, moving gracefully before a large, is rhymed with “hairy.” Those days of free-spirited abstract photograph by the night’s featured artist, house shows went from awesome to tiresome for Maite Agahnia. me the moment a stoned idiot stole my pizza. Do The performance was hypnotic and beautiful, not mess with my pizza, ever. But there was, and enhanced by the warm lighting and intimate setstill is, something radical and exciting about this ting. She was followed by another young woman, medium for exposing people to art. gliding lithely to a somber piece of original music.

There was no danger of any pizza thievery in It was as though Edgar Degas’ ballerinas twirled the living room where I found myself parked on off of a canvas and landed right in front of us in all the floor at Vanguard Culture’s Foodie Soirée. The their moody, impressionist glory. All in the room quarterly event is all about “delicious cuisine and wore expressions of awe. The performances were creative conversations,” according to the email inbreathtaking, but, more so than that, they reminded vite. Fifty people involved in the arts in San Diego me why I love the arts. come together at a private residence to eat, drink, While San Diego’s art scene tends to be pretty mingle and chat about artsy stuff. There are perlow-key, urban art scenes in general tend to get formances and a featured artist showcasing his or written off as pretentious and exclusive. Let’s be her work. The party sounded like the kind of rager real: They totally can be, but so can anything inFrasier and Niles Crane would volving creative endeavors or get sherry-wasted at while individuals. Creative people fighting over the final spot on can be mega-assholes, and I I’m a collection the Seattle League of Opera Painclude myself in that group. of contradictions trons and dropping tons of geA while back, John had an art nius SLOP puns. piece from Pier 1 Imports at his fighting it out for Even though the invite read, apartment. I unleashed a distop billing, depending “This is not a potluck. It’s an exgustingly snobby tirade on the ploration of the senses, and we offensive nature of the piece. Its on the argument. mean that in the most unpretencrime was being boring, lame tious way possible,” it was hard and from Pier 1 Imports. not to drop some side eye. With The thing wasn’t even on his verbiage like that and a name like Foodie Soirée, I wall. He didn’t even care for it. It just existed, and mean, could you blame me for thinking it would be for that he got an earful. On the flip side, I go into stiffer than an old rich lady’s morning martini? long-winded complain-a-thons about pompous artI had no idea what kind of house show this ists and their sense of entitlement, especially when would be. John, my boyfriend, asked what felt they talk down to others who don’t have the benefit like 568 questions about it: “But what it is? What of rich parents funding a cozy lifestyle. No one can should I wear? Will you know anyone? What do win. I’m a collection of contradictions fighting it we need to cook? Sorry—what do I need to cook?” out for top billing, depending on the argument.

I couldn’t provide solid answers, other than “Um, Despite my jumbled opinions on the arts scene, what I saw at the Foodie Soirée was an exciting maybe pasta?” example of the best the arts can be. The fact that a The dark, hardwood floors we sat on at the Foodliving room can easily transform into a punk club, ie Soirée were laid in a beautiful Point Loma home a smoky bohemian coffeehouse, a gallery or a thethat looked straight out of the pages of Architectural ater for intimate dance performances is incredible.

Digest. Instead of busted tees and sneakers, guests It’s what keeps me exploring new and interesting were dressed in that sort of kooky-art-teacher-whothings in the city’s arts-and-culture scene, in becomes-from-money look. No one was barfing in the tween TV sessions on my couch, of course. sink or pilfering rolls of toilet paper—a change from What I saw at the Foodie Soirée seems like a good the house shows of my salad days. model for what other arts-minded people can do with John and I wandered around, posting up in the limited resources. All it takes is a living room. back porch, dressed according to the code that called for “casual, artsy, fabulous.” That means all Write to alexz@sdcitybeat.com black with a funky print coat, at least in my book. I and editor@sdcitybeat.com. knew no one. He knew no one. We were in the high-

22 · San Diego CityBeat · February 28, 2015

James Rexroad

From left: Aaron Rieseberg, Mike Scheidt and Travis Foster

Oregon’s Yob create massive doom metal with a human touch

by Ben Salmon or many people, Mike Scheidt is Yob. Gentle and hirsute, he’s the face and the versatile voice of the Oregon doom-metal trio. He writes the band’s songs and its lyrics, and that’s his guitar that yawns and rumbles across Yob’s sprawling, slo-mo epics.

Indeed, Yob is a massive musical force that’s built from and guided by Scheidt’s vision. But a third of the way through a 30-minute conversation about the band’s intensely personal 2014 album, Clearing the Path to Ascend, he attempts to shift the focus away from himself and onto the whole.

“It’s just my music that I write to help me deal with life and deal with being on this planet, and it helps me do that,” Scheidt says. “It wasn’t that long ago that no one hardly gave a fuck, so I didn’t realize that all these years later there’d be more eyes and ears on me doing it.”

He pauses.

“And Aaron and Travis,” he continues, referring to bassist Aaron Rieseberg and drummer Travis Foster. “It’s

not just The Mike Band. It’s Yob.” The line where Scheidt ends and Yob begins has never been blurrier than it is on Clearing the Path, a stunning work that achieves pulverizing power, cathartic beauty and just about every shade in between across its four lengthy songs.

Those four songs, combined, run a very Yob-like 63 minutes, and sonically, they trace a period in Scheidt’s life marked by divorce, depression and ditching psychiatric meds, then overcoming these things, celebration and, ultimately, hope.

It’s an incredible story told through thunderous riffs and lyrical candor; recording Clearing “helped me get through it,” Scheidt told Noisey, Vice’s music website, last summer.

And that, he says, is all that mattered at the time.

“I went into this album really feeling like it was working for us, but having no idea if any of it was actually good,” Scheidt says. “But, you know, it was working for us, so that’s the most important thing. If everyone else hated it, it’s still good for us. … In order to keep it pure, you acknowledge that there’s some expectation and just keep your head down and do the work and make sure that you really mean it.”

Of course, everyone didn’t hate it. Upon its release last fall by Neurot Recordings, Clearing the Path received near-

ly universal praise, and at the end of 2014, it was named one of the year’s best metal albums by outlets ranging from Rolling Stone to Decibel Magazine to The Quietus. “Few bands deliver as completely,” The New York Times raved.

Much of the album treads the same ground that Yob has dominated for nearly two decades: deep, dark, devastating doom metal that’s heavier than Earth and moves more slowly than evolution. Anchored by Rieseberg and Foster’s glacial rhythms, Yob’s songs are wide-open, apocalyptic landscapes that provide ample space for Scheidt’s howls, growls and six-stringed wizardry. On Clearing the Path, the 17-minute “In Our Blood” and the 15-minute “Unmask the Spectre” begin with quiet, reverberant guitar tones and build into congested battlefields of sludgy riffs, modest guitar solos and Scheidt’s grizzly incantations.

The song in between, “Nothing to Win,” is a relative punk rager that bludgeons for eight minutes before blasting off through squalls of space-junk for three.

And then there’s the closer, “Marrow,” which finds Yob floating through a prettier, more melodic world that it has explored before, but never so triumphantly. At 19 minutes long, it’s a sea of undulating low-end, chiming guitars and vocals that soar as high and clear as anything Scheidt has ever done. Taken with the three preceding tracks, “Marrow” is the sun breaking over the night’s horizon, the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s as uplifting as doom metal gets, if it’s even still doom.

For Scheidt, what you call it doesn’t matter. What people think of “Marrow” does matter to him, but he can’t control it.

What matters is that Clearing the Path is an honest reflection of his life, his mind and his work at the time it was made.

“I’d say this album’s more personal in some ways than other ones,” he says, “meaning it’s closer to home rather than digging into wide-open subjects that can be interpreted any number of ways but don’t necessarily point directly to the heart of the person.”

“I mean, maybe they do… but on the new album, the person is a little clearer in focus,” Scheidt adds. “To me, it has the same goal—it’s just feet in the mud instead of the head in the clouds, I guess.”

Much has been made about Scheidt’s more personal—and thus less spiritual or mystical— lyrics on Clearing the Path. To hear his analogy, that shift makes perfect sense.

“People that go to meditation retreats, there comes that period of time in the retreat, however many hours or days in, where the romance of sitting kind of gives way… to being uncomfortable and being tired and being hungry. All this stuff will come into play,” he says. “I guess on this album, that’s kind of more where I’m at: dealing with the stuff that comes up when the romance of it goes away, and you have to deal with the shit.”

Write to editor@sdcitybeat.com.

February 18, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 23

24 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

notes from the smoking patio Locals Only After four years, the hardcore / sludge-metal group Kodiak is coming to an end. “Thanks if you ever made it to one show,” the band said in a statement on Facebook. “If you came to a few shows, you’re fucking rad, and if you came to a lot of the shows, then you were probably cool as fuck.”

Guitarist Clayton Word tells CityBeat that the breakup is amicable, the result of mostly mundane circumstances.

“We got back from tour and had high spirits, but then we got a little lazy,” he says. “There’s no bad blood. A couple of guys in the band just wanted to take a break and wanted to do adult things.”

The band has one final show scheduled for Friday, Feb. 27, at Soda Bar, with Griever, Ghostlimb and Deep Sea Thunder Beast. During their time togeth-

er, Kodiak released one album—their 2013 self-titled album—and one EP, last fall’s Machete. But Word says they’re better known for what they do onstage.

“I like to tell people we’re a live band that puts out records,” he says. “We’re more known for our live show.”

Word says that some members plan to continue playing music in one capacity or another. He says his next band will probably be less complex, more rock ’n’ roll, so “I don’t have to be on my shit constantly.”

In the meantime, Kodiak plan to make the most of their last show, and Word says to expect their wildest party yet.

“It’s one more chance for all of us to play together,” he says. “We’ll have some of the usual party tricks, but we’re going to try to up the ante.

“We want to go out with a bang.”

—Jeff Terich

Clayton Word (second from left) says Kodiak’s last show will be a blowout.

The Kaaboo conundrum Ever since Street Scene ended its long run in 2009 after declaring bankruptcy, San Diego’s had a music festival void just waiting to be filled. Or so it would seem—there are numerous festivals happening each year on a smaller scale (Adams Avenue Street Fair, San Diego Music Thing, etc.), but nothing even close to approaching Coachella, Lollapalooza or Sasquatch.

In its first year, the Kaaboo festival, which will run Sept. 18 through 20 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, looks to be a strong contender for picking up where Street Scene left off, judging from its lineup announcement on Monday. The Killers, No Doubt and the Zac Brown Band will headline the festival, offering a cross section of alternative, pop and Americana artists, and it retains that mixture deeper down the lineup. There’s hip-hop (The Roots, Snoop Dogg), indie rock (Spoon, Lucero) and electronic (Girl Talk, Griz). Much of the rest, however, is largely an amalgamation of folk, roots rock and jam bands.

From a festival organizer’s perspective, this is probably the smart way to go. Almost everyone in the lineup—which skews toward a Bonnaroo-style, crunchy M.O.R. mix—has proven successful at selling out venues in San Diego. But that also means that the lineup is fairly conservative. It would be nice to see more bands that don’t deal in blues riffs or banjos—and more young artists. I’m not necessarily saying Kaaboo needs to be Coachella, but a few

The Killers headline the first Kaaboo festival. more artists younger than 40—preferably with no jam-band affiliations—could go a long way.

Yet, while I admit to being disappointed with the lineup, I want to make clear that I want to see the festival succeed. San Diego’s had trouble making festivals work in the past, and if this one ends up doing well, it could allow for more freedom to take risks and make something even bigger in the future. In 2002, Bonnaroo was nothing but jam bands; now it’s one of the biggest and most diverse fests in the country, this year featuring artists as far ranging as Caribou, Against Me!, Shabazz Palaces and Slayer.

Kaaboo could get there eventually, but this year’s lineup looks a little too narrow.

—Jeff Terich Write to jefft@sdcitybeat.com or editor@sdcitybeat.com.

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 25

if i were u

strong runners-up. In any case, it turns 20 this year, and it’s being performed in its entirety here. Amazing. PLAN B: Deap Vally, Muscle Beech, Wild Wild Wets @ Belly Up Tavern. I still don’t know what’s up

BY Jeff Terich with the spelling of Deap Vally’s name, but the Los Angeles duo rock pretty damn hard, and that’s all that matters. Get there early to Wednesday, Feb. 25 catch local psych-rockers Wild Wild Wets, PLAN A: Tijuana Panthers, Teenage whose album 14th Floor is still on reguBurritos, The Soaks @ Soda Bar. Get lar rotation for me. BACKUP PLAN: The your week off the ground with some catchy Dabbers, No Promises @ Seven Grand.

Southern California punk and garage rock.

Yeah, I know I rag on the ubiquity and predictability of it sometimes, but that doesn’t Friday, Feb. 27 mean it’s not a lot of fun when it’s done PLAN A: Griever, Kodiright. PLAN B: Charts, Kids in Heat, ak, Ghostlimb, Deep Sea Swift Beats @ The Hideout. As it turns Thunder Beast @ Soda out, there’s a lot of surf-inspired garage Bar. Griever are playing rock happening along El Cajon Boulevard a record-release show for on Wednesday night. Charts hail from Port- their new album, Our Love land, so their reverb-heavy jangle might is Different, which I rehave a little heavier cloud cover, but it’s viewed in last week’s issue. tuneful, layered and fun in a melancholy It’s an impressive slice of sort of way. BACKUP PLAN: Terokal, hardcore and sludge metal, Nerve Control, Slums of the Future @ so come down to this one and see how San Diego does The Tower Bar. heavy. PLAN B: Metalachi, Madly @ The Casbah. If you saw Brown Sabbath or Mac Thursday, Feb. 26 Sabbath earlier this month, then you might PLAN A: GZA @ The Observatory North be tapped out on clever heavy-metal cover Park. The greatest solo album ever to come bands. But maybe you aren’t, in which case out of the Wu-Tang camp is GZA’s Liquid Metalachi is the band to catch. They put a Swords. I’m not really interested in accept- mariachi spin on songs by Ozzy Osbourne ing any other answer, though there are some and Iron Maiden, among others, which is

26 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

be quite the same without the other three members, but the group’s leader H.R. is doing a solo thing, and I’m going out on a limb Saturday, Feb. 28 and saying it’s still worth checking out.

PLAN A: Six Organs of Admittance, Eli- BACKUP PLAN: Theophilus London, Fasa Ambrogio, Dominick Joseph Gambini ther @ Belly Up Tavern. @ Soda Bar. Six Organs of Admittance is the project of Ben Chasny, whose catalog ranges from American primitivist folk to Monday, March 2 noisy freakouts. His latest album, Hexadic, PLAN A: Crocodiles, Colleen Green, is definitely the latter, so bring earplugs Keepers @ The Hideout. Crocodiles have and hear the aural equivalent of a bad acid long since left San Diego, but they’ve got trip firsthand. PLAN B: roots here and, at this stage, a fairly rich Craft Spells, The Bilinda catalog of music to their name. They’ve got Butchers, Meishi Smile another new record on the way, so it should @ The Hideout. Seattle’s be fun to hear which direction the noiseCraft Spells play a melody- pop duo is taking in this installment of The heavy style of indie pop, Hideout’s first-anniversary shows. PLAN B: but it’s the layers of effects No Joy, Heavy Hawaii, Scruffles @ Soda and dreamy aesthetic they Bar. Montreal’s No Joy make a whole lot of blanket over everything beautiful noise. They’re, for lack of a better that makes it so mesmer- term, a shoegaze band, heavily stacking up izing. The Church sold out distortion and effects over pretty pop melotheir show at The Casbah dies. It’s not a new idea, necessarily, but it’s tonight, so here’s a good al- one that gets me every time.

GZA ternative if you need to get your dreamy, jangly fix. an absolute hoot to hear.

Tuesday, March 3

PLAN A: Milk Music, Gun Outfit, Teenage Burritos @ The Hideout. Milk Music PLAN A: H.R. of Bad Brains, Willie Psy- are a little bit Hüsker Dü, a little bit Dinocho, Inconsiderate Jerks @ Brick by saur Jr. and a little bit Creedence. It’s clasBrick. I saw hardcore legends Bad Brains sic rock for people who like a little more at South by Southwest a few years back, feedback and distortion—tuneful and assand it was absolutely nuts. I’m not sure it’ll kicking at the same time.

Sunday, March 1

HOT! NEW! FRESH! Rae Sremmurd (Observatory North Park, 3/4), DJ Quik (Observatory North Park, 3/20), Jeff the Brotherhood (Soda Bar, 3/26), Ying Yang Twins (Porter’s Pub, 4/6), Angry Samoans (Soda Bar, 4/26), Tennis (Irenic, 5/2), Vaadat Charigim (Casbah, 5/12), Wayne the Train Hancock (Casbah, 5/13), Passion Pit (Observatory North Park, 5/17), Pinback (BUT, 5/22), Diarrhea Planet (Casbah, 5/30), Anuhea and Etana (Observatory North Park, 6/12), Keb’Mo’ (BUT, 7/1213), J. Cole (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 7/17), Marc Cohn (BUT, 8/18),

stroy You, Cymbals Eat Guitars at The Casbah.

Monday, March 2 Crocodiles at The Hideout.

Friday, March 20

Tuesday, March 3 Don Williams at Balboa Theatre. Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience at Belly Up Tavern. Milk Music at The Hideout. Second Cousins at The Casbah.

Wednesday, March 4 Swervedriver at The Casbah. Rae Sremmurd at Observatory North Park.

Monday, March 23

GET YER TICKETS

Wednesday, Feb. 25 Cold War Kids at North Park Theatre.

Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band at Viejas Arena.

Thursday, Feb. 26 Celtic Thunder at Balboa Theatre. Taking Back Sunday at House of Blues (sold out). Deap Vally at Belly Up Tavern.

GZA at Observatory North Park.

Friday, Feb. 27 Griever at Soda Bar.

Saturday, Feb. 28 The Church at The Casbah. Six Organs of Admittance at Soda Bar. Craft Spells at The Hideout. Pine Mountain Logs at Belly Up Tavern. Fifth Harmony at House Of Blues.

March Sunday, March 1 Theophilus London at Belly Up Tavern.

Sunday, March 22

The Last Bison at The Casbah. Jake Shimabukuro at Belly Up Tavern (sold out). The Ting Tings at House of Blues.

Voodoo Glow Skulls (Soda Bar, 5/16).

February

Saturday, March 21 Railroad Earth at Belly Up Tavern. San Diego Experimental Guitar Show at Soda Bar.

John Doe, Exene Cervenka and Robyn Hitchcock at Belly Up Tavern.

CANCELED

Bleachers (HOB, 3/12), Twin Shadow (BUT, 3/13), Ani DiFranco (HOB, 3/16), John Doe, Exene Cervenka and Robyn Hitchcock (BUT, 3/22), Tweedy (Balboa Theatre, 3/24), George Benson (Balboa Theatre, 3/26), Andrew Jackson Jihad (The Irenic, 4/10), D.I. (Brick by Brick, 4/11), Father John Misty (Observatory North Park, 4/14), Built to Spill (Irenic, 4/14), Toro y Moi (Observatory North Park, 4/15), Ratatat (Casbah, 4/16), Marina and the Diamonds (Observatory North Park, 4/18), Iggy Azalea (Valley View Casino Center, 4/23), Waxahatchee (Casbah, 4/26), Dan Deacon (Casbah, 4/29), The Decemberists (Observatory North Park, 4/30), The Growlers (Observatory North Park, 5/9), The Sonics (BUT, 5/10), NKOTB, TLC, Nelly (Viejas Arena, 5/11), The Wombats (HOB, 5/13), Ex Hex (Casbah, 5/16), Lana Del Rey (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 5/16), Little Dragon (Observatory North Park, 5/18), Train (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 5/24), Xavier Rudd (BUT, 5/27-28), Spoon (Observatory North Park, 6/1), John Mayall (BUT, 7/2), Imagine Dragons (Viejas Arena, 7/21), Idina Menzel (Open Air Theatre, 8/8), Fall Out Boy, Wiz Khalifa (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 8/8), Diana Krall (Humphreys, 8/24), The Who (Valley View Casino Center, 9/14), Ricky Martin (Viejas Arena, 9/20), Def Leppard (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 9/22), Foo Fighters (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 9/24).

Railroad Earth at Belly Up Tavern. DJ Quik at Observatory North Park.

A$AP Ferg Thursday, March 5 Enslaved, YOB at Brick by Brick. Umphrey’s McGee at House of Blues.

Tweak Bird at Soda Bar. A$AP Ferg at Observatory North Park. Kim and the Created at The Hideout.

Friday, March 6 Sprung Monkey at Brick by Brick. Super Diamond at Belly Up Tavern. Coliseum at The Hideout. Hot Nerds at Soda Bar.

Saturday, March 7 Viet Cong at Soda Bar. Super Diamond at Belly Up Tavern. Agent Orange at The Casbah. Cheap Girls, Restorations at The Hideout. Nahko and Medicine for the People at Observatory North Park.

Monday, March 9 Kongos at House of Blues. Black Pussy at Soda Bar. Geographer at The Casbah. Comeback Kid at Epicentre. Craig Wayne Boyd at Belly Up Tavern.

Tuesday, March 10 Walk the Moon at House of Blues. Joshua Radin at Belly Up Tavern.

Wednesday, March 11 Bayside at House of Blues. A Place to Bury Strangers at The Casbah. Hurray for the Riff Raff at Belly Up Tavern.

Thursday, March 12 Martin Sexton at Belly Up Tavern.

Bleachers at House of Blues. The Dreaming at The Hideout. Single Mothers at Soda Bar. Tin Hat at The Loft.

Friday, March 13 The Twilight Sad at The Merrow. 2:54 at The Hideout. The Velvet Teen at Soda Bar. Rebel Souljahz at House Of Blues.

Twin Shadow at Belly Up Tavern.

Saturday, March 14 Tommy Castro and the Painkillers at Belly Up Tavern. Wand at Soda Bar.

Sunday, March 15 Dent May at Soda Bar. Gondwana at Belly Up Tavern. Kevin Seconds at Bar Pink.

Monday, March 16 Ani DiFranco at House of Blues.

Thursday, March 19 Saviours at Soda Bar. This Will De-

Tuesday, March 24 Lust for Youth at The Hideout. Pete Rock and Slum Village at Porter’s Pub. Tweedy at Balboa Theatre. Quantic at Soda Bar.

rCLUBSr

710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave, Pacific Beach. 710bc.com. Wed: Open mic. Thu: Live band karaoke. Fri: The Verigolds, AJ Froman, Viscous. Sat: Social Club, The Younger Brothers. Mon: DJ Royale.

98 Bottles, 2400 Kettner Blvd. Ste. 110, Little Italy. 98bottlessd.com. Fri: Rob Thorsen Trio. Sat: Spiral. Sun: The Matt Smith Neu Jazz Trio.

Air Conditioned Lounge, 4673 30th St, Normal Heights. airconditionedbar.com.

Wed: DJs Big Bad Wolf, Strmtroopr B2b Pro-K, Genesiah, Parradax. Thu: DJ Paul Najera. Fri: DJ Kat’s Meow 2. Sat: Mike Czech. Sun: DJs John Reynolds, Karma.

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave, Downtown. americancomedyco.com.

Wed: Open mic. Thu-Sun: Jay Mohr.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St, Downtown. facebook.com/BangBangSanDiego. Fri: Moon Boots. Sat: Matoma.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St, North Park. barpink.com. Wed: DJ L. Fri: ‘80s vs 90s’ w/ DJs Vaughn Avakian, Heather Hardcore. Sat: DJ Mike Delgado. Sun: ‘Rat Sabbath’. Mon: ‘Motown Monday’.

Tue: ‘Tiki Twos Day’ w/ Adrian Demain’s Exotica-Tronica.

Bassmnt, 919 Fourth Ave, Downtown. bassmntsd.com. Thu: Vinai. Fri: Torro Torro. Sat: Borgeous.

Beaumont’s, 5662 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla. brocktonvilla.com/beaumonts.html.

Thu: Luke Daniels. Fri: Neighbors to the North. Sat: Slower.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave, Solana Beach. bellyup.com. Wed: Taken

By Canadians, The Midnight Pine, Vinyl Mill. Thu: Deap Vally, Muscle Beech, Wild Wild Wets. Fri: The Highwayman, California Rangers. Sat: Pine Mountain Logs. Sun: Theophilus London, Father.

Tue: Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience (sold out).

Boar Cross’n, 390 Grand Ave, Carlsbad. boarcrossn.net. Wed: Monolith. Thu: Trouble in the Wind. Fri: ‘Club Musae’.

Sat: Simmer Down Rhythm Section.

Brass Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave, Hillcrest. thebrassrailsd.com. Thu: ‘Muscle’. Fri: ‘Hip Hop Fridayz’. Sat: Pink BoomBox Revue: The Foodie Show; DJs XP, KA. Mon: ‘Manic Monday’ w/ DJs Junior the Disco

CONTINUED ON PAGE 28 February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 27

Punk, XP. Brick by Brick, 1130 Buenos Ave, Bay Park. brickbybrick.com. Thu: Detonated, Beheading the King, The No Name Gang, Raise the Guns, Groove of Death. Fri: Zepparella, Hell’s Belles. Sat: Madman, Nukem, Deeper Purple. Sun: H.R., Willie Psycho, Inconsiderate Jerks. Mon: ‘Metal Monday’. Tue: The Obscure80s, Arena.

Cafe Sevilla, 353 Fifth Ave, Downtown. cafesevilla.com. Thu: Malamana. Fri: Joef & Co. Sat & Sun: Oscar Aragon & Bruno Serrano. Tue: Noches Bohemia.

Croce’s Park West, 2760 Fifth Ave., #100, Bankers Hill. crocesparkwest.com.

Wed: Josh Damigo. Thu: Peter Sprague Quartet. Fri: Dave Scott and the New Jazz Groove. Sat: Gilbert Castellanos and the Park West Ensemble. Sun: Besos de Coco. Mon: Dave Scott Duo. Tue: Ruby Duo. Dirk’s Nightclub, 7662 Broadway, Lemon Grove. dirksniteclub.com. Fri: Wild Rumour. Sat: DJ Dizzy D. Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Mission Bay. dizzyssandiego.com. Fri: The Benedetti Trio. Sun: ‘Brazil Jazz Festa’.

Epicentre, 8450 Mira Mesa Blvd, Mira Mesa. epicentreconcerts.org. Sat: Chin Chin Optometrist, Fight My Tractor, Lame Daisies, Cult of Sergio, No Sleep Gang.

F6ix, 526 F St., Downtown, Downtown. f6ixsd.com. Fri: Deejay Al. Sat: Nicholas Crates. Sun: Dre Sinatra.

Pocket Whiskey Fellas, DJ Lya. Sat: Chill Clinton, DJ Chelu.

Hard Rock Hotel, 207 Fifth Ave, Downtown. hardrockhotelsd.com. Fri: DJ Skratchy. Sat: Craig Smoove.

Henry’s Pub, 618 Fifth Ave, Downtown. henryspub.com. Wed: The Fooks. Thu: DJs Junior the Disco Punk, Antonio Aguilera. Fri: ‘Good Times’. Sat: DJs E, Yodah.

Sun: Karaoke. Tue: Big City Dawgs.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave, Downtown. houseofblues.com/sandiego. Thu: Taking Back Sunday, Letlive, The Menzingers (sold out). Sat: Fifth Harmony.

Sun: Black Veil Brides.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd, Midtown. kavalounge.com. Thu: Tyler and Adam. Fri: Lost Kawz. Sat: ‘Subdvsn’.

Sun: ‘Fully Patched’. Tue: ‘High Tech Tuesday’.

Kensington Club, 4079 Adams Ave, Kensington. 619-284-2848. Thu: Kooties, Glass Spells, Splavender, Teenage Exorcist. Fri: Santa Claus, Systematic Abuse, Sorry State.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave, Coronado. mcpspub.com. Wed: Tone Cooking. Thu: Harmony Road. Fri: The Upshots. Sat: Ron’s Garage.

Numbers, 3811 Park Blvd, Hillcrest. numberssd.com. Thu: ‘Throwback Thursday’.

Fri: ‘Uncut’. Sat: ‘Club Sabbat’. Sun: ‘RnB Divas’. Tue: Karaoke Latino.

Fluxx, 500 Fourth Ave, Downtown. fluxxsd.com. Thu: Bob Sinclair. Fri: Reflex.

Sat: Sid Vicious.

Onyx Room / Thin, 852 Fifth Ave, Downtown. onyxroom.com. Fri: ‘Rumba Lounge’. Sat: ‘Onyx Saturday’. Tue: ‘Neo Soul’.

Gallagher’s, 5040 Newport Ave, Ocean Beach. 619-222-5303. Wed: Dan Porter.

Thu: Kush, Of the Blood, Fyah Angels, DJ Reefah, TRC Soundsystem. Fri: Ass

Patricks Gaslamp, 428 F St, Downtown. patricksii.com. Wed: The Upshots. Thu: Myron and the Kyniptions. Fri: The Bill Magee Blues Band. Sat: Mystique Ele-

28 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

ment of Soul.

Porter’s Pub, 9500 Gilman Dr., UCSD campus, La Jolla. porterspub.net. Fri: ‘Get Loose, Get Funky’.

Rich’s, 1051 University Ave, Hillcrest. richssandiego.com. Wed: DJ John Joseph. Thu: DJ Moody Rudy. Fri: DJs Taj, Will Z. Sat: DJs Ed Bailey, K-Swift, Nikno.

Sun: ‘Stripper Circus’.

Riviera Supper Club, 7777 University Ave, La Mesa. rivierasupperclub.com.

Wed: Westside Inflection. Thu: V Tones.

Fri: Johnny Deadly Trio.

Seven Grand, 3054 University Ave, North Park. sevengrandbars.com/sd. Wed: Gilbert Castellanos jazz jam. Thu: The Dabbers, No Promises. Fri: The Suffers. Sat: Jimmy Ruelas. Mon: DJ Tah Rei. Side Bar, 536 Market St, Downtown. sidebarsd.com. Wed: ‘Queen of the Scene’.

Thu: DJ Rags. Fri: DJ Epic Twelve w/ Jason Whitmore. Sat: DJ JLouis.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. sodabarmusic.com. Wed: Tijuana Panthers, Teenage Burritos, The Soaks. Thu: The Sidekicks, Cayetana, Future Crooks. Fri: Griever, Kodiak, Ghostlimb, Deep Sea Thunder Beast.

Sat: Six Organs of Admittance, Elisa Ambrogio, Dominick Joseph Gambini. Sun: Empires, The Sinclairs. Mon: No Joy, Heavy Hawaii, Scruffles. Tue: Pete RG, La Cerca, Katie Leigh and the Infantry.

SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd, Midway. somasandiego.com. Fri: DFA, Illuminate, Voidlines. Sat: Guidelines, With Age, Heavyweight, Anton Jon, Fake Tides.

Stage Bar & Grill, 762 Fifth Ave, Downtown. stagesaloon.com. Thu: Superbad.

Fri: Disco Pimps, DJ Slynkee. Sat: Hott Mess, DJ Miss Dust.

Sycamore Den, 3391 Adams Ave, Normal Heights. sycamoreden.com. Thu: Bakkuda, Lightworks.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd, Midtown. casbahmusic.com. Wed: One I Red, The Major Minus, Cult Vegas, Plastic Deer. Thu: That 1 Guy, Mark aka Big Toe. Fri: Metalachi, Madly. Sat: The Church.

Sun: Gayle Skidmore, Minor Birds, The Liquorsmiths. Mon: Gone Baby Gone, Cedar Fire, Pharmacy, Zombie Barbie, DJ Total Recluse. Tue: Second Cousins, Paper Days, Lightworks.

The Hideout, 3519 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. thehideoutsd.com. Wed: Charts, Kids in Heat, Swift Beats. Thu: DJ Dimitri.

Fri: Girls Names, Flaamingos. Sat: Craft Spells, Bilinda Butchers, Meishi Smile.

Mon: Crocodiles, Colleen Green, Keepers. Tue: Milk Music, Gun Outfit, Teenage Burritos.

The Loft @ UCSD, Price Center East, La Jolla. theloft.ucsd.edu. Wed: Adam Rudolph - GO: Organic Orchestra, The Kirk Knuffke Trio. Thu: The Antar Martin Aggregation, Amadou Fall. Fri: Dumbfounddead (sold out). Sat: The Kei Akagi Trio, The Kyle Motl Trio.

The Merrow, 1271 University Ave, Hillcrest. theMerrow.com. Wed: James Dean, The Moves, Artemis Arthur. Fri: Mortuus Terror, Thanatology, Seraphic Disgust. Tue: The Tighten Ups, ThunderLux, The Honkys.

The Office, 3936 30th St, North Park. officebarinc.com. Wed: ‘Friends Chill’. Thu: DJ Myson King. Fri: DJs Adam Salter, Kid Wonder. Sat: DJs Ikah Love, Pleasure Victim. Sun: Tribe of Kings. Mon: Lauren Scheff’s All-Star jam.

The Tin Roof, 401 G Street, Gaslamp. tinroofbars.com/Home/SanDiego. Wed: Pat

Hilton. Thu: Freeze Frame. Fri: CLAMR, Jonathan Lee Band. Sat: Random Radio, Trace Loptien. Sun: Overdrive Rock. Tue: Fish Out of Water.

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. tiltwoclub.com. Fri: Moonshine, Plant Tribe, Loom. Sat: ‘Sleepwalking’.

Sun: Open mic comedy. Mon: Karaoke.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St, Bay Park. tioleos.com. Thu: Little Party. Fri: Full Strength Funk Band. Tue: The Mud Bugs.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave, City Heights. thetowerbar.com. Wed: Terokal, Nerve Control, Slums of the Future. Thu: ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Preservation Society’ w/ DJs Heather Hardcore, Diana Death. Fri: Gambler’s Mark, The Blackjackits, Cursed Bastards. Sat: Christ Killer, Ramp Locals, Nerve Control, Downward Spiral.

Ux31, 3112 University Ave, North Park. u31bar.com. Wed: DJs Ukeim, Mo Lyon. Thu: The Travelers Club. Fri: Lee Churchill. Sat: DJ Junior the DiscoPunk.

West Coast Tavern, 2895 University Ave, North Park. westcoatstavern.com.

Thu: DJ A-Lo. Fri: Billy the Kid. Sat: DJ Shadowman.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St, South Park. whistlestopbar.com. Wed: Lady and the Lion. Thu: VAMP: Dirty Talk Vol. 4. Fri: Sean and Zander. Sat: ‘Booty Bassment’ w/ DJs Dimitri, Rob. Winstons, 1921 Bacon St, Ocean Beach. winstonsob.com. Wed: Revival, DJ Carlos Culture. Thu: Charles Neville, Gent Treadly, The Terpsichords. Fri: ‘Ocean Boogie’ w/ DJs Peril, Green T, Unite.

Sat: The Concrete Project, Parker and the Numberman, Atlantis Rizing, Odessa Kane. Sun: Karaoke. Mon: Electric Waste Band. Tue: Nu Blu, Mohavisoul.

February 25, 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 29

Brendan Emmett Quigley

Across

Here’s the kicker

1. “___ fat” (apt political palindrome) 5. The “I” in IUD 10. Cy Young candidates 14. Hip-shaking move 15. Night: Prefix 16. Bollywood dress 17. Flavor in some decadent cheesecakes 18. Product symbols 20. Of the moment 21. Talking stuffed animal in R-rated comedies 22. Snap and then some 23. Stuffed Middle Eastern restaurant appetizers 27. Invoice number 28. Sexy lingerie material 29. Porkslap Pale ___ 30. Title for Rabbit, Fox, and Bear in children’s stories 31. Internet problem 33. Conducted a tour 35. Coral reef swimmers 36. People enter into them for green cards, sometimes 40. Sorel product 41. “Keep that to yourself,” initially 42. Flavor enhancer in canned vegetables: Abbr.

43. Minstrel’s instrument 44. Tough ending?

46. Grouses forEVer 50. Hobbit creature 51. Mutual fund vehicle 54. Moviegoer’s morsel Last week’s answers

30 · San Diego CityBeat · February 25, 2015

56. Dizzy music?

57. Flub up big time 58. What any of the shaded words are in the long answers 61. A cappella member 62. Speaker of Siouan 63. Smug jerk 64. Saucer alternative 65. Big name in notebooks 66. Laugh riots 67. Fire at a funeral

Down 1. Stripper’s money belts 2. Sleeping Beauty’s first name 3. Attacked suddenly with vigor 4. Chinese principle 5. Collection for a CIA briefing 6. “You got me!”

7. “31 Days of Oscar” cable channel, briefly 8. Google Maps recommendation: Abbr.

9. Target path?

10. “You buy it, you keep it” 11. Like some organic eggs 12. Athlete with the Big Easy wine line 13. Rock’s Haim, e.g.

19. Scotch-Brite rival 21. Bathroom break time 24. Passion play role 25. Court order?

26. Move out of the way 30. One seeking change 32. Clock setting at 0 degrees: Abbr.

34. Kinda stupid 36. Musician’s mistake 37. Après-shoveling treat 38. Revival meeting shout 39. Entertainment publishing org.

40. Mature 45. Romeo slew him 47. He was trapped in the closet 48. More high-spirited 49. Walked with a strut 51. Actress Whitman 52. “Selma” costar/producer 53. Social ___ (etiquette) 55. Included in the Gmail 59. “Shameless” channel: Abbr.

60. ___ cool for school 61. Lethal injection provider?

February 25 2015 · San Diego CityBeat · 31