San Diego CityBeat • April 9, 2014

One young woman’s struggle to survive and overcome a life of prostitution

P. 6

by Joshua Emerson Smith

Barrio P.4 Disneyland P.9 Songs P.23 Scarlett P.25

2 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 3

For Barrio Logan: Yes on B and C Last Friday, San Diego County Superior Court its claim that the Association violated Election Judge Randa Trapp cemented her preliminary rulCode section 18600,” which essentially bars signaing against the Environmental Health Coalition ture gatherers from intentionally lying in order to (EHC), an environmental-justice organization that get people to sign a petition. wanted to kill a voter referendum on the Barrio LoAs for the other two, Trapp concluded that gan Community Plan. While disappointing, the rulclaims that the community plan would prompt the ing wasn’t a total loss for the good guys.

Navy to leave and lead to residential takeover of the When EHC and its supporters campaign against shipyards were merely opinions and not grounds the referendum, which will be on the June 3 balfor thwarting the referendum. lot in two parts as Propositions B and C, they can Well, it’s our opinion, based on the videos we truthfully say that a judge affirmed that the forces saw, that those opinions were intentionally aimed attempting to overturn a properly executed comat leading people to believe that waterfront-condo munity plan for Barrio Logan misrepresented facts development was part of the community plan and when they were collecting signatures to get the refthat the departure of the Navy was a direct result. erendum on the ballot.

The talking points that Wahl provided to signature Here are the details: gatherers said that the referendum would give “the The San Diego City Council last September apvoters the power to protect: The ability of the U.S. proved an update to the Barrio Logan Community NAVY to continue to have its ships built and repaired Plan that reflected a compromise, at the end of a in San Diego.” The talking points brought all three five-year process, between waterof the contested claims together in this front industry and the residents of sentence: “This defective plan sends the lower-income neighborhood. The the wrong message to the NAVY that goal was to create a buffer between adding 500 new homes in Barrio Logan the two that would improve air qualis more important than the 46,000 jobs ity in residential areas. The Port of San provided by the maritime industry.”

Diego Ship Repair Association didn’t At least in some cases, that was like the compromise, so it sponsored a boiled down by signature gatherers as: successful petition drive to put a referCondos are in; the Navy is out. endum on the ballot that would repeal Even Jim Sutton, the lawyer for the community-plan update. the SRA, was quoted by KPBS as acCoast Law Group, representing knowledging that what the petition EHC, sued, arguing that the Ship Redrive communicated to the public was Judge Randa Trapp “common… hyperbole that goes on in pair Association (SRA) misled prospective petition signers in three ways: by claiming political campaigns.” that the community plan would result in the loss of You know what lies and hyperbole have in com46,000 jobs and $14 billion in annual revenue, common? Deception. pel in the Navy to leave San Diego and lead to resiNow that the referendum is clear for the ballot, dential development in the shipyards. we’ll remind our readers again and again before According to Judge Trapp’s ruling, SRA hired a June 3 that the ship-repair lobby used both lies (accompany, National Petition Management (NPM), to cording to Judge Trapp) and hyperbole (self-admitrun the petition drive, and Chris Wahl, of the PR ted) to fool the public. firm Southwest Strategies, who served as SRA’s The Barrio Logan Community Plan is good for point person on the drive, provided NPM with talkthe residents of Barrio Logan because it gives them ing points for the paid signature gatherers. Numerwhat most other San Diegans take for granted: ous signature gatherers were caught on tape making protection from polluting industry. It creates the the three claims that EHC considered to be false. kind of buffer zone that you would insist upon in Of the three alleged falsehoods, Trapp ruled your neighborhood. It will be confusing to voters that the first one—that 46,000 jobs and $14 billion whether to vote yes or no. Just remember, a yes would be lost—was indeed misleading. Those figvote preserves the community plan. Commit this to memory: Vote yes on Props. B and C. ures represent the entire maritime industry in San Diego, and, as Trapp noted, the SRA knew it. Trapp What do you think? Write to editor@sdcitybeat.com. ruled that on that point, “EHC’s evidence supports This issue of CityBeat has been search-engine optimized to show up in all your weird fetish searches.

Volume 12 • Issue 35 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

Cover photo by Jeff Corrigan

Contributors Ian Cheesman, David L. Coddon, Seth Combs, Michael A. Gardiner, Glenn Heath Jr., Nina Sachdev Hoffmann, Peter Holslin, Dave Maass, Scott McDonald, Jennifer McEntee, Jenny Montgomery, Susan Myrland, Mina Riazi, Jim Ruland, Ben Salmon, Jen Van Tieghem, Quan Vu

Circulation / Office Assistant Giovanna Tricoli

Production Manager Tristan Whitehouse

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

Senior account executive Jason Noble Account Executives F. Scott Berman, Beau Odom

Accounting Alysia Chavez, Linda Lam, Monica MacCree Human Resources Andrea Baker

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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 2014.

4 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Heartbreaking entertainment I wish to thank you for your March 19 “Editor’s Note,” “SeaWorld: one guy’s take.” I’ve been a resident of San Diego for 34 years and visited SeaWorld once, years ago. The “Shamu Show” broke my heart, and the memory of the orcas performing tricks is forever etched in my mind.

It’s time to end the cruelty and captivity of orcas at SeaWorld. I commend the producer of Blackfish, Richard Bloom, ASPCA, San Diego Humane Society and everyone involved in passing the Orca Welfare and Safety Act. Patricia R. Trandal, San Carlos

Sweet deals for SeaWorld Regarding your March 19 “Editor’s Note” about SeaWorld: Thanks to the San Diego City Council, we were SeaWorld San Diego for a month. But for local school kids on free field trips to the park, they didn’t get to see primo attractions involving dolphins or killer whales. And while it was a chintzy business decision from management, maybe that’s not all bad.

Let’s acknowledge that SeaWorld has improved some of its past practices: Orcas are no longer required to wear giant sunglasses as they perform stunts for the paying public, and the highly social marine creatures may no longer be taken into captivity from Puget Sound.

But SeaWorld also breeds its captive killer whales—and that’s how they got into trouble with inbred orca Tillicum, who drowned a trainer, the

subject of the documentary film Blackfish.

But let’s also acknowledge the mutual benefit that exists between corporate SeaWorld and our city—$14 million in rent and a bunch of low-wage jobs. It’s a sweet deal all the way around. SeaWorld charges a fortune to get in—$84 per adult (and that’s anyone from age 10 up) and $78 per kiddie (ages 3 to 9). The separate parking fee is $15. If an “adult guest” (age 10 and up) wants to have a “dolphin interaction” in the water, the fee is $215. Between now and May 24, there’s a twofer deal—buy one ticket / get one free—only available in advance, not at the gate. (Presumably, that’s until proposed orcaprotection legislation in Sacramento gets killed off

by SeaWorld lobbyists.)

Frances O’Neill Zimmerman, La Jolla

Teach your children well Regarding your March 19 “Editor’s Note” about SeaWorld: Great article, dude. My feeling exactly. I would never want to teach my child that it’s OK to keep orcas in tiny tanks and to make them do stupid tricks for our entertainment.

I don’t care what the PR department at SeaWorld says or what the mayor who has accepted a $2,800 campaign contribution from them says.

That’s not the way to teach respect for nature. This is 2014, not 1975—that stuff is neither cool nor acceptable anymore.

Julian Christian, Bay Park

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 5

Joshua Emerson Smith

pimped

One young woman’s struggle to survive and overcome a life of prostitution

by Joshua Emerson Smith Sitting on a couch in a thrift store in National City, Jackie tells a caseworker through a cell phone that her husband has to do more than just promise to get clean if he wants to have contact with her 6-month-old daughter.

“It’s not about just enrolling,” she says, looking for a misplaced pack of Newports— the one vice she hasn’t kicked. “He needs to show some progress in the services before he’s allowed to even get a visit.”

Last winter, Jackie filed a restraining order against her husband. The two had been married for less than a year when one night he got high on painkillers and an argument turned violent. With her daughter screaming in the next room, he grabbed Jackie by the neck and squeezed.

In December, Jackie violated the nocontact order by meeting with him to talk about getting back together. Staff at a transitional-housing facility where the couple had been staying saw them and reported it to authorities. As a result, Jackie lost custody of her daughter.

“I had to prove that I was doing [domestic-violence] classes before I could get my unsupervised [visits],” the 30-year-old says into the phone. “I had to do this and that before I could get my overnights. So he should have to do the same thing, you know?”

Recognizing that physical abuse and getting high weren’t part of a healthy relationship is a new way of thinking for Jackie. In recent months, she’s been attending daily drug-rehab meetings, and to get her daughter back, she enrolled in a class for domestic-violence victims. But she knows that’s only a start.

For the last eight months, Jackie’s been clawing her way out of San Diego’s underground sex trade. A victim of sexual and psychological abuse from a young age, Jackie was recruited, manipulated and violently abused by several pimps. Over time, she became reliant on the sex industry for money and a sense of identity.

The underground commercial sex trade in San Diego, according to a study released in March by the Urban Institute, is a $96.6million-a-year industry, surpassing illegal drugs as the top moneymaker for criminals in the region. Of eight major metropolitan areas studied, San Diego had the most gang involvement, with about half of all pimps associated with an organized street gang.

Gang networks, which can stretch across state lines, follow a pattern of recruiting vulnerable girls directly from schools, foster homes and the streets.

The number of people who are traf-

“Jackie” revisits El Cajon Boulevard, where she often worked as a prostitute. ficked for sex every year remains unknown.

However, anecdotal evidence from law enforcement, news media and a spate of reports on the topic has raised awareness about pimping, especially of underage girls.

Under federal and California law, pimping of a minor is considered sex trafficking, a crime that carries a mandatory sentence of 10 years to life in prison.

However, for girls who have turned 18, force, fraud or coercion must be proved in order for a prostitute to be seen as a victim.

That means a woman must be willing to testify in court and provide proof of abuse, such as medical records. Often, prostitutes caught up in the legal system end up facing criminal charges rather than risk retribution from a pimp.

During her time as a prostitute, Jackie met hundreds of other girls working in the area, some in their early teens, others in their late 40s. While many of these former acquaintances continued to work, Jackie finally decided she had had enough.

Through the Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition, a nonprofit for victims of sex trafficking, Jackie was able to find a secure place to live. However, like many former prostitutes, finding a straight job would prove more difficult. After applying for numerous positions at fast-food restaurants and retail stores, she thought she might get hired at McDonalds.

But after a promising interview, the manager never called her back.

When she found out she didn’t get the job, Jackie was disappointed but not surprised.

She had no relevant job experience and was haunted by a long list of criminal charges.

For the last 20 years, there’s been only one thing on Jackie’s résumé: Prostitute. ackie’s mother Katherine hadn’t come home in a few nights when Aaron called the 7-year-old into his bedroom. Living in his two-story house in Lakeland, Fla., Katherine, now about 30 years old, had been dating Aaron for several years. A carpenter, he provided for the family, and having never known her father, Jackie called him “Dad.” “What is that on TV?” Jackie said, walking into the room.

“Oh, that’s just two women making love with a man,” Aaron said sitting on the bed.

“Why do you have that on?” she asked.

“Because that’s what I want you to do,” he said. “I want you to make love to me.”

That was the first of several times during the coming months that Aaron would molest Jackie. When Jackie told her mother, Katherine called her a “lying little whore.”

“He’s such a nice man,” she said. “He loves me.”

Two years later, the relationship ended.

Immediately, Katherine and Jackie moved into another man’s one-bedroom flat with no air conditioning. Around this time, it became obvious that Katherine and her new boyfriend had a serious crack habit, and it wasn’t long before Jackie could make a crack pipe for her mother out of a nail-polish or Jim Beam bottle.

Katherine worked a few shifts a week at a local bar, but most of her money came from prostitution. Before long, her customers started molesting Jackie.

Katherine kept Jackie home from school

Note to readers: CityBeat honored a request to change the names of the people involved in this story.

6 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

out of fear that the authorities would discover the abuse, but Child Welfare Services eventually intervened, and before Jackie turned 10, her mother’s parental rights were revoked and she was placed in foster care.

That’s when she started running away. For months at a time, she’d stay with Katherine before the authorities would catch up with her, and the cycle would start over. By age 11, Jackie was giving hand jobs for money.

One day, Katherine took her daughter for a car ride.

“Babe, I’m on my monthly,” she said. “I can’t do anything, but we need the money.”

Jackie, 13 years old, was scared as Katherine tried to convince her to have sex with a stranger. “Just this one time.

Just this one time. I promise you won’t have to do it again.”

Jackie watched her mother use the money to get high, and that one time turned into multiple times.

W

hile there’s no clear picture of how many juveniles like Jackie are sold for sex every year in the U.S., studies suggest the number is in the hundreds of thousands, according to a 2013 report from the California Child Welfare Council. Available data suggests that most children sold for sex have their first experience between ages 11 and 14 and have previously experienced extensive sexual abuse.

The vast majority of sex-trafficking victims remain hidden, as the crime is almost never reported to law enforcement, according to a 2013 report from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA).

However, during the last decade, the issue has been increasingly recognized as a significant problem around the country.

In 1997, Jackie, then 14, took up prostitution on her own and began regularly smoking crack to cope with the psychological challenges of the profession.

“It made me function better,” she remembers. “It helped me mask the feelings.”

Jackie’s teen years unfolded in blur of dope, prostitution and running from the law. In the summer before she turned 18, she was locked up at a juvenile-detention facility when Katherine came to visit. In a private room, mother and daughter sat across from each other for the last time.

Katherine tried to apologize. She said she wanted to make a change.

A month later, two police offers came to visit Jackie to say that her mother had died.

Later, a counselor at the detention center told Jackie that her mother had been suffering from full-blown AIDS. In late December, a few days before her birthday, Jackie was released from custody. Devastated by her mother’s death, she tried to hang herself on a razor-wire fence.

She survived but stopped eating and started experiencing seizures brought on by stress and drug use. It wasn’t long before she tried to commit suicide again by using a beer bottle to cut her throat.

“I twisted, and I was this far away from my jugular,” she remembers. “I was desperate for that. I didn’t want to live anymore.”

An adult, suffering from the trauma of molestation, drug abuse and losing her mother, she continued to prostitute to sup-

or father figures to exploit someone’s emotional dependencies. However, once a girl starts working, pimps frequently use physical abuse as a means of control. To show ownership, pimps will go so far as to tattoo their name on a girl.

Like many prostitutes, Jackie considered her pimp her boyfriend. However, that didn’t last for long. One day, she came up with $1,500. Bringing it straight to Luke, she suggested they rent a place together. Instead, he took the money and got an apartment with another girl.

“Stay the hell away from me,” she told him when she found out. “Don’t contact me.”

A few days later, She ran into Luke on the street Downtown.

“Bitch, what are you doing running from me?” he said, punching her twice in the face. “I’ll have my whole fucking clique beat your ass.”

The next day, she fled the shelter and stayed with an acquaintance. Without a permanent place to stay, she continued prostituting to support herself. She also started smoking crack again and, by then, had been introduced to crystal meth. n a hot summer day, That’s how she met “I didn’t come here riding the No. 15 Mike—looking to score. planning on being bus from Downtown to He picked her up off the North Park, Jackie was street and lured her back dressed for a date. But to a house to get high.

Luke looked serious “You’re too pretty to when he started laying be getting hit,” Mike said I came here with out a different plan. when Jackie told him “I’m going to give about her situation. “I’m to go you your start points going to get you a place to and your end points,” to stay. I don’t want you college and get Luke said. “I don’t want Downtown.” you to go beyond those Before long, Mike’s my son back.” points. Come up with boss, Carter, invited $500. Don’t spend no Jackie to stay in his onemoney on anything.” bedroom apartment in When she confided North Park. Mike’s brothher history to Luke a er Lucas and another prostifew days earlier, he’d hinted at how much tute slept in the front room. money she could make prostituting in San The first night she moved in, Carter Diego. But she had ignored him. Now he posted an ad for Jackie on Backpage.com, wasn’t hinting anymore, and when they got and she started doing calls at the apartto the bus stop under the big “The Boule- ment. Then, quickly, she started prostivard” sign at El Cajon and Park boulevards, tuting in hotel rooms in San Diego, Chula he told her to get off and start working.

Vista and National City.

She did. It was a rush walking the Carter didn’t allow Jackie to hold any track again. If I make this money, he’ll love money. Instead, he supplied her with me, she thought as she strolled down the drugs and food and took her shopping so street, known to local sex workers and law she could stay dressed in heels and tight enforcement as The Blade. clothes. The money she made went to rent, “Instantly, my renegade personality food and repairs to Carter’s Cadillac. But kicked in,” she recalls now. “I know I can he also kept a bank account that she wasn’t make this $500 instantly. I didn’t under- allowed to access. stand what he was getting at until I laid At the time, Jackie brought in up to $2,000 down in my bed that night and I realized a day, having sex with 10 to 15 guys a night. that he was trying to force me to work.”

She justified the situation by considering During the next few weeks, Luke would Carter her boyfriend. Beyond turning tricks, slap her around when she went outside of Carter expected her to clean the house and her boundaries and threatened to beat her have sex with him every night, whether she if she didn’t produce her quota. wanted to or not. Before long, Carter started “Bitch, you better check in with me,” beating her or had Lucas do it for him. he’d say. “You know I’m your daddy.” At the She worked the street until 4 in the afend of the day, he’d put her back on the bus ternoon then switched to the hotels and to the shelter. the Navy base at night. Days rolled into Many girls recruited by pimps are look- nights and nights into the mornings. She ing for love and affection more than mon- got very little sleep, stayed high on crystal ey, according to the Urban Institute study. and usually ate only once a day.

Pimps routinely pose as romantic interests Carter controlled a few other prosti-

port herself. By the beginning of 2006, she’d racked up multiple felonies for solicitation and possession of cocaine, had done some jail time and a year in prison.

In 2008, she gave birth to a son. The following year, the boy was placed with her half-brother in San Diego after Jackie was sentenced to a three-year stint in state prison on a drug charge. While incarcerated, despite the availability of drugs, she stayed sober, did rehab and parenting classes and got her GED. When she got out in the summer of 2011, she immediately jumped on a bus heading west to get her son back and turn her life around.

On the three-day journey, the 27-yearold turned a few tricks so she’d have money to get her new life started. With $3,000 in her pocket, she met her brother in downtown San Diego. He helped her get a bed at Rachel’s Night Shelter for Women, run

by Catholic Charities. With her money, she bought some new clothes and enrolled in several classes at a technical college. Within a few weeks, she started seeing a guy named Luke who worked across the street from the school.

O

“ sexually exploited.

goals

—Jackie

tutes, but Jackie quickly became his top prostitute, recruiting, training and keeping tabs on the other girls.

By August 2011, she was pregnant with twins by Carter.

“I was pumped up,” she recalls. “I liked the situation. I didn’t take into realization what the fuck was happening to me.”

Eventually, Jackie lost touch with her brother, and her son was sent back to Florida to live with a cousin.

“I didn’t come here planning on being sexually exploited,” she says. “I came here with goals to go to college and get my son back.”

In September, Carter took Jackie on a road trip to St. Louis to attend his family reunion. In front of all his relatives, he announced that Jackie was pregnant and then proposed to her. She accepted happily. Pictures were taken.

Later that night, Jackie said she didn’t want to work, and Carter had his nephew beat her. She was used to getting hit a few times a month, but this infuriated her, partly because she was pregnant. Jackie ran away for a few nights but eventually came back.

Carter beat her again to punish her. The St. Louis trip lasted more than a month, and Jackie prostituted the entire time.

“Those six weeks were the hardest time in my entire life,” she says. “He made it seem like I was his wife. I was in love with this man, this pimp.”

Back in San Diego, Carter had his name tattooed on Jackie’s chest. She could barely sit still because of her crack and meth use, so Carter crushed up some painkillers in a glass of water and made her drink it. Then Lucas held her down while a guy with a makeshift tattoo gun branded her.

“I cared for him a lot,” she says. “But I knew that if I didn’t get away from him, he was going to kill me.”

One day, she met a friend of Carter’s named Max. He’d just been released from prison and took a liking to Jackie.

“You need a change in lifestyle,” he told her flirtatiously. About a week later, she ran away from Carter and asked Max to protect her. He agreed and paid Carter $1,500 to take control of Jackie.

“I was so in depth with the idea that I was making so much money that I didn’t want to give up the money, but I wanted to give up the pimp,” she says.

A

dark, nervous feeling overtook Jackie when she saw the Cadillac rolling slowly down the street toward her. Frantically, she dialed Max’s number, but he didn’t answer. Lucas jumped out of the front seat, grabbed her and threw her in the back.

“You’re going to learn, bitch, not to fucking leave me,” Carter said.

They drove Jackie back to their apartment, and as soon as she walked through the front door, Lucas kicked her in her back, knocking her into another room and slamming her into a metal bed frame. They kicked and punched her repeatedly. She heard several ribs crack.

Eventually, they let up, and she crawled into a closet and lay there crying with a bro-

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 7

ken jaw and several cracked teeth.

“All I could think about was the fact that I was going to lose my babies,” she recalls.

She slept for a day-and-a-half.

The evening of the second day, she told Carter that she’d go out and work and bring back some money. He agreed. She left the house, went to a corner market, borrowed a phone and called Max. When Max picked her up, Jackie was losing amniotic fluid and large amounts of blood. He dropped her at a hospital but didn’t stay, fearing the police. The doctors were able to stabilize her, but her twins didn’t make it.

“They said the babies came out, took about a breath-and-ahalf and died,” she says.

A few weeks later, the cops picked up Jackie and Max in a sting operation. Eventually, they also picked up Carter and Lucas.

Jackie told police that Carter and Lucas had brutally beaten her and that Max had routinely abused her when she didn’t want to work. According to court documents, she blamed Carter and Lucas for her miscarriage.

Eventually, all three men were sentenced to multiple years in prison for pimping and pandering. Carter and Lucas were also

charged with assault.

In recent years, regional law enforcement has cracked down on pimping and sex trafficking. In San Diego County, the District Attorney’s office prosecuted 43 cases last year, up from just nine in 2009.

However, such cases only scratch the surface of sex trafficking in San Diego. In most situations, there’s often little evidence to document force, fraud or coercion. That was the case in Jackie’s situation. There were no sex-trafficking charges, and she ended up doing six months in jail for prostitution and possession of cocaine.

Her deep-seated emotional vulnerability and early-childhood habituation to a life of prostitution prevented her from seeing herself as a victim. As a result, she remained susceptible to manipulation and abuse, seeing the beatings as part of a functional relationship.

“Over the little bit of time that Max and I were together, I felt in love with him,” she says.

Released from jail in the fall of 2012, Jackie kept prostituting for the next year. Tormented by what had happened, she used drugs heavily and attempted suicide several more times.

“I was suffering from three

8 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

different types of addictions: the streets, coke and meth,” she says.

S

itting on a bed in a motel, Jackie looked at her crack pipe and a bag of dope. She’d been trying to kick the drugs for the last few weeks. It was the summer of 2013, and she was seven months pregnant.

“I went to a doctor’s appointment, and they said, ‘You have two choices: die during birth or have a chance of living. Stop doing the dope or you’re going to die,’” she recalls now. “I was like, Fuck, I don’t want to be a murderer.”

She walked into the bathroom and stood over the toilet, crushed the pipe and flushed the drugs. She stayed at the motel for a week, turning tricks and saving up cash. Then she walked away from her old life, moved into a St. Vincent de Paul transitionalhousing unit and started a drugrehab program.

In August, the baby was born.

“The day I gave birth to my daughter was the best day of my life,” she says.

Earlier that year, she married a man she’d met at a drug house, and that winter he moved into the unit with them. However, he was still using heavy painkillers. One night, he got high and a fight turned violent. She had a no-contact order

placed on him.

When she violated the order by meeting him at the housing facility, Child Welfare Services took her daughter. To get her child back, Jackie enrolled in a class for domestic-violence victims. That’s when she started confronting the psychological trauma that had defined her life from childhood.

“I’ve chosen a lot of men in my life that meant no good for me, being blindsided by wanting to be loved,” she reflects. “Had my daughter not been taken, I would still be living that same false lie that my husband is going to change, that’s he’s going to be a family man.”

If she gets her daughter back, she’s been offered a room at a transitional-housing facility that provides services for homeless mothers. She also qualified for financial aid to attend a nail-technician course starting in May. However, Jackie knows one of her most difficult challenges is still ahead.

“Getting a job is not easy because of my record,” she says.

Amid law enforcement’s war on sex trafficking, victims often get swept into the criminal-justice system, racking up convictions that prevent them from securing employment and safe housing. In response, the state of New York

in 2010 passed the first law in the country allowing trafficking victims to vacate prostitution-related charges. Since then, 15 other states have enacted similar laws, including Florida, Washington, Nevada and Connecticut.

Determined to reintegrate despite her criminal charges, Jackie continues to focus on her daughter.

“I can give her experiences I never got to have,” she says.

“I’ll be able to take her to theme parks. I’ll be able to take her to the beach. I can buy her gifts and toys that are new and not used.

And it won’t be dirty money.”

Recently, Jackie has run into old acquaintances who’ve seemed surprised that she was still clean and not working the streets. For Jackie, it wasn’t surprising. All she wanted was a life many people take for granted.

“I have people that love me today, but what I long for is to have my own little family—a husband, my baby, have a house, waking up every morning knowing I have to go to work and going to get my daughter from daycare. I just want a normal life.”

Find a longer version of this story at sdcitybeat.com.

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

aaryn

backwards & in high heels

belfer M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E My best friend’s daughter Marley turned 9 recentthe magic all around her. ly, and her birthday wish was to celebrate at DisSpeaking of, I should admit right now that I go to neyland with her best friend, my daughter Ruby.

Disneyland steeped in existential conflict. The nonMarley had wanted the same thing several years conformist in me knows that place is a cesspool of ago, and Ruby went with Marley and her parents, the human condition (an overwhelmingly white letting Sam and me off the hook. We enjoyed a human condition, mind you) worthy of the most quiet weekend of Sleeping Beauty-esque sleep, serious people-watching. To get the most bang for and then some more sleeping when we were done my buck, I’d need to enter the front gates, park my with the first leg of our sleeping. We might have derriere on a bench at the end of Main Street and had sex, too, but most likely not. We probably just watch the world go by for 10 hours. tacked that 10 minutes onto the orgasmic sleep we Where else on Earth can you see a man with fawere having. cial tattoos pushing a stroller and wearing a Donald This time around, though, our families met in Duck hat? Or generations of rosy-cheeked families Anaheim for dinner at Downtown Disney (read: padding by one after the other like rows of Russian an overcrowded mall), a hotel overnight and then nesting dolls? Or a Michael Scott-type in pleated a day in the park from which I’m still recovering khaki shorts and a Tommy Bahama button down more than two weeks later. Such is the sacrifice I’m gumming the World’s Largest Chicken Leg while willing to make. Who would I be to deny my child waiting in line for a root-beer float? and her friend the extravagant extravaganza of a Where else on the planet are you repeatedly birthday visit to the Las Vegas for Littles? Or, more passed in a snaking line for a ride down a fake affectionately called (by me), the West Coast Armsnaking jungle by a family of six that’s headed by pit of America? I’m not one to beg off simply bea mother with one tooth? Dentists everywhere cause it’s too exhausting or too crowded, what with should be ashamed when the price of a single pora National Cheerleading Convention and the entire celain veneer costs more than amusement-park enstate of Oregon in town. Did you know that state trance tickets for a brood. I recognize that life is all has one spring break for its entire population? about choices, and in solidarity with the plight of Boot straps, people—I pulled myLoneTooth, it wouldn’t take much self up by them. for me to blow off a mere cleaning Actually, I wore my New Balin favor of It’s A Small World. (Dr. I wasn’t about to ance running shoes, which is against Yoo, if you’re reading this, I pinkyruin the Happiest everything I believe in as far as my swear I’ll make a dentist appointpersonal uniform is concerned. ment this month.)

Place On Earth Running shoes are for running, after Despite this homosapien tragedy by channeling all. But desperate times call for realunfolding in the park, I’m instantly Maleficent. ism, and this is how I know that A) triggered, in a tearfully happy way, I’m old and B) there’s no end to my from the moment I smell popcorn previously stated sacrifice. and lay eyes on Sleeping Beauty’s I can’t speak for my friend Rachel but, that day, I Castle at the end of Main Street. That’s because I made it my mission to eradicate the word “no” from went every summer with my parents in their calm my vocabulary for the entire 24 hours. I wasn’t about pre-divorce years—before the overwhelmingly heito ruin the Happiest Place On Earth by channeling nous pre-divorce years. It’s one of the few places I Maleficent. I wanted to be The Special instead, hereremember being happy as a child. tofore known as Mom of the Year. Would m’ladies Specific memories are vague and pretty well desire popcorn? An ice cream? A Mickey Mouseovershadowed by one particular summer visit, during which several teenage girls wearing bell-bottom shaped beignet? Yes? How about dozens of them? jeans slipped in a puddle of my brother’s post-Mad It really was a joyous day filled with mostly great Tea Party vomit. They were terrorized. I can picmoments if you don’t count the closure of a whole ture it vividly, the park custodian who arrived a mobunch of rides, including the one my kid had been ment too late with his broom and dustpan cringing talking about for two weeks prior to our trip. And if in awe of the sight. Or—maybe that’s a mental imyou don’t count how I accidentally terrorized her age created by my mother’s retelling. Memories are by taking her on the Haunted Mansion. “Nah, it’s tricky like that. really not that bad,” I said to a woman in line who But it doesn’t matter. I hope my child and her asked about it. friend someday look back on this most recent ex“You should see the kids who come out of it cryhausting day with an overall sense of glee, abandon ing,” Rachel’s husband said to her, sarcastically. We and, yes, happiness. And I hope, too, that the next had a good laugh about that one. Ha ha! Yes! Chiltime they decide to go, they’re old enough to let me dren weeping after the projected ghost rides in the just sit on the bench and watch it all unfold. That, or carriage with you! Oooooooh, scary! Ahem. let me stay home to sleep.

Ears covered, balled up like a potato bug and sobbing uncontrollably through the entire thing would Write to aaryn@sdcitybeat.com be an accurate description of Ruby in the Haunted and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

Mansion. But the child persevered, happily finding

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 9

by michael a. gardiner Michael A. Gardiner

good—quite good, actually. The (slightly) spicier version is particularly enjoyable, with an excellent balance of sweetness, acid and a hint of heat that’s not overpowering.

But there’s nothing— neither bacon, butter nor any sauce known to man— that can make up for improperly cooked meat.

And, sadly, Jones Brothers’ meat was not properly cooked. The pork I tried— ribs, rib tips and pulled pork—was, plain and simple, overly smoked. I own a smoker. I use it often. I Fried catfish and chicken drumettes love the taste of smoke.

But I don’t love the taste of smoke when it’s so pervasive that I can no longer locate the natural flavors of the meat. And, unfortunately, that was the case here. There was nothing subtle about the use of smoke. And the cooking on the ribs seemed uneven from trip to trip, one time fallWhere there’s smoke ing off the bone, the next not (at least it wasn’t tough). The beef brisket, like the pork, was My mother always told me that if the meat is high overly smoked and it came chopped, rather than enough in quality and properly cooked, there’s sliced or pulled. no need for a sauce. I always suspected she said A far better option at Jones Brothers is the that because she hated making sauces. But mom fried catfish. It came crisp on the outside, moist was not all wrong. It’s a lesson that Jones Brothand even sweet on the inside. A bit of tartar sauce ers BBQ (6911 Imperial Ave. in Jamacha Lomita, and I remembered just how good catfish can be. jonesbrothersbbq.com) ought to learn.

Jones Brothers’ fried-chicken drumettes were Jones Brothers figured to be just the sort nearly as good. The sides are nice, too: The beans of place I would love: a family-run neighborare sweet and tasty, the slaw only a bit less so. The hood joint serving the unique regional dishes collard greens, though, are at another and higher they grew up eating. It bills itself as “Mississippi level altogether, deeply savory with an intense hit BBQ.” I knew, of course, of the Memphis, Kansas of broth. The pot liquor takes it over the top.

City and various Texas and Carolina versions of The problem, of course, is that Jones Brothers barbecue. I’ve tasted them and understand what primarily (though not entirely) identifies itself as they entail. But “Mississippi BBQ”? I’d never a barbecue joint. Unfortunately, on my visits, barheard of it and never tasted it. I was, though, very becue is not something that it does particularly much looking forward to doing so. well. But if you stick to the broader Southern / Unfortunately, based on the evidence gathsoul-food-style offerings, Jones Brothers is a very ered during two separate trips to Jones Brothers, enjoyable meal. If, however, barbecue is what you the Mississippi variety is overly smoked meat want, perhaps you had best listen to my mother a little bit better than I did. drowned in sauce that’s a bit less sweet and a bit more vinegary than the more familiar Kansas Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com City style. To be clear, the sauces (spicy, non-spicy and editor@sdcitybeat.com. and a “twist” that’s the other two combined) are

the world

fare

10 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

by ian cheesman Ian Cheesman

beer &

chees

A poor house worth staying in These days, it seems like no matter how fledging a brewery, you can count on it dedicating a substantial portion of its square footage to a tasting room. I know that’s hardly a revelation, but that hasn’t always been the case. In our not-too-distant past, tastings were more commonly held adjacent to a makeshift cooler in whatever corner of the brewery was free of tubing and sacks of grain. Modern tasting rooms are practically cathedrals to beer by comparison, providing devotees a welcoming space for worship.

What’s more, these tasting rooms are often as accommodating as they are roomy.

It’s not just a growler-filling station; it’s the place to watch the sportsball match, grab some lunch and have a pint with your minime and dachshund in tow. And as much as I appreciate all those options, sometimes all I want is a cold craft beer served at the dark end of the bar. When that’s your pleasure, Poor House Brewing (4494 30th St. in North Park, poorhousebrew.com) is your place.

Poor House Brewing has a distinctly divebar feel, though only in the most affectionate sense of the term. It’s a dimly lit but inviting space where great music overhead nudges conversation to be slightly louder and livelier.

The bar eats up 60 percent of the square footage (at least until they fully expand into the neighboring suite), and essentially the only decorations adorning the walls—other than drink-special signage—is a crowd-sourced tapestry of customized dollar bills. It’s not a showpiece for the brewery; it’s a place for people to focus on beer and each other.

This isn’t to suggest that Poor House Brewing eschews what other tasting rooms allow. You can still bring your pup and enjoy the occasional game on TV. Food trucks and events, like the all-day craft-brew-and-sushi pairing on April 12, will still dot their calendar.

I’m just saying that Poor House isn’t where I’d

A mason-jar family portrait host my corporate team-building event, and I appreciate that.

There’s usually about 10 or 11 beers on tap, including Poor House’s infamous 18.5-percentABV “Panty Dropper.” With its warming aroma of gingerbread and boozy kick, it’s sort of a spiritual successor to Fireball Whiskey (which is appropriate, given the timeless dive-bar tradition of providing cheap shots). It’s syrupy and sweet, but there’s just enough pine-hop presence to prevent it from emulating cough syrup. It’s a monster, but one you’ll happily sip rather than shoot with a wince.

Many of brewery’s lighter beers, such as the Poor House Belgian Ale and ‘Wit’ney Witbier, favor a citrus-forward palate that felt a little redundant back to back. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy them, but, in retrospect, I would have been happier inserting the Poor House American Strong Ale between them. My favorite was probably the Clusterfukk IIPA, a dank and delicious quaff with a tenacious grassy finish.

Poor House Brewing may feel a little odd compared with glossier tasting rooms, but in everything from its solid catalog of craft brews to the simple comfort of complimentary bowls of peanuts, it knows what it’s about.

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

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 11

by jenny montgomery Jenny montgomery

some Euro pals of mine, who once told me how much they wanted to travel to the U.S. to “drive on Route 66 and go to a diner!” Adorbs, I know, but a quintessential American experience. The Wagon Wheel has that vibe.

The menu touts the fried chicken as “the best in town.”

Gauntlet thrown, I had to try it, and it is pretty damn good.

The large plate of chicken takes awhile coming to your table, as it’s all battered and fried to order, of course, but this bird is worth the wait.

My newfound love affair with chicken skin continued here as I bit into each scaldingThe Wagon Wheel’s fried chicken hot bite. The crunchy outer batter is thin and delicately flavored. At first, I thought it lacked seasoning, but the more I ate, the more I appreciated its simplicity. It never got to be too salty or cloying.

The chicken inside was absolutely bursting with juice and steam, and my poor fingertips kept getting burned. That didn’t slow me down.

Spinning my wheels The good folks at The Wagon Wheel also boast about their Certified Angus charbroiled I don’t own a smart phone. (I’m not principled, burgers, and I look forward to exploring the just cheap.) Most of the time, I don’t miss having beefier side of the menu. But my return to The one. But then I find myself lost in Escondido (cue Wagon Wheel will be for reasons of comfort, not horror-movie music sting), unsuccessfully lookculinary experimentation. ing for a specific restaurant, slowly losing my The mashed potatoes are milky soft and mind and wishing for that tiny pocket computer shaped like an ice-cream scoop, and I ate every to make it all better. Ah, but then I wouldn’t have bit of them. The garlic bread was pretty pointless, been forced to explore alternate options. Then I but everything else hit that sweet spot of nostalwould have missed out on The Wagon Wheel. gic diner tastes.

With its weathered exterior and empty parkSave room for the cherry-cheese pie, not being lot, The Wagon Wheel (427 W. Mission Ave., cause it rivals anything at Extraordinary Desserts, wagon-wheel-escondido.com) didn’t initially but because its brilliant, red topping of canned inspire much confidence. But it’s hard to resist cherries and soft filling of sweet, creamy cheese a quaint-looking diner that’s been feeding peoevokes long car rides, nameless roadside eateries ple for more than 60 years. They must be doing and lonely, romantic stretches of open highway. something right.

Nothing is reinvented here, and it’s certainly Wife-and-husband team Nancy and Sumnot a foodie mecca, but it’s hard to argue with clasner Rollings have been running the place since sic diner comfort food, and sometimes, after a long 2001, and one or both of them will probably and grumpy day, that’s all you really need. greet you when you walk inside. The décor is Write to jennym@sdcitybeat.com classic American diner, with red vinyl booths and editor@sdcitybeat.com. and cowboy-kitsch touches. I was reminded of

north

fork

12 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

urban

by Nina Sachdev Hoffmann

scout Where can I find…

Independent retail all in one spot?

A Whole Foods on one end, a Chipotle on the other. But a strip mall (albeit high-end) this is not. Because right smack in the center is, as they say, where the magic happens.

I’m talking about the Flower Hill Promenade, the open-air shopping center just off Interstate 5 in Del Mar, which, if we’re being honest here, looks completely unremarkable from the outside. I mean, yes, it’s nice. You Lone Flag stocks American- and locally made goods. might stop for a burrito or to pick up a few groceries. You might run to a doctor’s appointthemselves the Row Collective. With the exment at Sharp Rees-Stealy. Or maybe you’re not ception of Bon Bijoux (a mainstay since 2009), craving a burrito, not sick or injured and you shop they’ve been at Flower Hill for just a year, at Vons, not Whole Foods. Whatever. Here’s why since it underwent a $30-million renovation in you’d want to stop and take a closer look: March 2013.

Sam Larson’s Lone Flag (loneflag.com) is a “The main reason we set up shop here was men’s and women’s lifestyle store offering Amerbecause there really wasn’t any other ‘good’ reican- and locally made boots, denim and more. tail row in North County,” Lone Flag’s Larson Its No. 1 brand is Rogue Territory, aka the denim says. “At a certain level, it’s almost impossible to gods, and Lone Flag is the only store in San Difind a location that fits up here, so we thought ego selling Rogue’s stuff right now. Try some of we’d just create that fit and culture instead of the best coffee being made locally by the Powaytrying to find it somewhere already. It’s not a based James Coffee Co. Bag your old murse and perfect fit for Del Mar, either, but that’s really pick up something amazing from Boutonne, the the closest thing we could find. Now... it really is San Diego-based maker of totes, wallets and the best little retail / art secret in San Diego.” dopp kits. Or up your socks game with the patOthers, like Ellis, say the renovation and the vitern-obsessed Richer Poorer. In other words, you sion proposed by developer Jeffrey Essakow was could do a lot of damage here. what reeled them into the space. And then there’s Julie Ellis’ Rais Case (raiscase.com) recycles Efseaff, the jewelry maven, who weathered the and upcycles leather and other fabrics for pilrenovation last year with just a slight disruption lows and purses, keychains and koozies. With to her business. She says she’s happy to be joined a focus on American-made goods (see a trend by more and more artisan shops. In the next few here?), Rais Case cuts and sews all of its months, Flower Hill will welcome Studio products and sources its materials as close Penny Lane (studiopennylane.org), which to home as possible. Its latest design is has a neat concept that integrates pennies a tote that can go from diaper bag to into all of its jewelry and leather goods, travel bag to whatever you need it to and A Ship in the Woods (shipinthe be. And, if you thought fanny packs woods.com), the nonprofit you may were reserved for out-of-towners, have heard about that transformed then you haven’t seen Ellis’ take a mid-century house into an arton the travel accessory everyists’ safe haven back in 2010. one loves to hate (or the other Still, these small retailers way around?). aren’t getting the foot traffic Ellis shares her space with they deserve—it was fairly quiShem Gott’s Mr. B’s Luminaret on a recent weekend day— ies (mrbsluminaries.com), a because you just don’t expect candle shop born from what Gott a shopping center like this to Vida fanny pack by Rais Case saw as a waste of his son’s babyhave what Flower Hill now has. food jars. Each candle is hand-poured and made Hopefully, that will change with time, as more from all-natural soy wax. I was especially deshops are added and more people find themselves lighted to see a lemongrass scent, since that one’s looking for artisan products. Then, it won’t mata lot harder to find than I thought. ter that the promenade looks like every other strip Kim Efseaff’s Bon Bijoux (shopgirlyboutique. mall in affluent America. You’ll know it’s the inside that really matters. com), whose handmade jewelry—some of which is made with Swarovski stones—beats the chain Write to ninah@sdcitybeat.com stores’ bling selection any day of the week. and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

And there are more. Together, the shops call

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 13

the

SHORTlist

1

SONIC STUDENT TAKEOVER

ART

COORDINATED BY KINSEE MORLAN ADDIE EURE AND ADAM TINKLE

Seahorses, it turns out, are super-sensitive to loud sounds.

That’s why a quiet, calming composition called “Silent Singer” will be playing near the seahorse exhibit during the upcoming Immersion: Soundtracks for Sea Life concert at the Birch Aquarium (2300 Expedition Way in La Jolla) happening from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, April 13.

The unique event is part of the annual SpringFest: Experiments in Music, which kicked off April 6 and runs through Thursday, April 17, and features mostly free performances by UCSD music graduate students at locations on and off campus (the full schedule’s at ucsdmusic.blogspot.com).

At Immersion, which costs $10, guests are encouraged to wander Michael Matsuno (top), Tiffany DuMouchelle (bottom right) and through the aquarium and encounter Meghann Welsh are some of this year’s SpringFest performers. both live and recorded original music.

There’ll be electro-acoustic performances inside the diversity in the smallest amount of time.”

Hall of Fishes, contemporary classical melodies near Other SpringFest events sound just as sonically titthe kelp-forest tank, improvisational experiments in illating. The “Synthesizer Petting Zoo,” happening at 5 the courtyard and folk music in the outdoor plaza. p.m. Friday, April 11, at the Conrad Prebys Music Cen“We put the noise music by the sharks,” says lead ter, invites guests to experiment and play with UCSD curator Adam Tinkle. “The aquarium concert is students’ hand-built instruments, effects and controlprobably the best way to get the greatest aesthetic lers. And “Sound in Silence,” happening at 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, April 10, at Luce Loft (1037 J St., Downtown) includes a screening of two classic silent films (Samuel Beckett’s Film and Jean Epstein’s The Fall of the House of Usher) with live musical accompaniment

by UCSD students Felipe Rossi and Josh Charney. “… (T)here’s so much beauty in the “The professors run the show most of the time— world. Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once, you can see them throughout the year in concerts on and it’s too much. My heart fills up like a balloon campus,” Tinkle says. “But this is the time of year that’s about to burst.” Wes Bentley wasn’t talking when the students just totally take over.” about Art Alive in American Beauty, but he could’ve been. Art Alive, San Diego Museum of Art’s signature fundraiser, is an exhibition of 120 interpretations of For nine seasons, Discovery’s Deadlifamous works of art through floral arrangements, est Catch has depicted the brutal conand it happens from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, April 11, ditions of Alaskan crab fishing and the through Sunday, April 13, at the Balboa Park museum. The centerpiece is Carlos Franco’s (Green Fresh internal drama of the fishing vessels’ crews. Scott Florals) transformation of the rotunda, inspired by Campbell Jr., who heads the crew of the Seabroke, the museum’s Spanish Baroque architecture and the has co-authored a memgardens of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. $20. See oir, Giving the Finger: Risking it All to Fish the sdmart.org for a schedule of events.

World’s Deadliest Sea, with CityBeat book critic Jim Ruland—who himself has done time on the high seas (yes, we’re promoting our own here, but Ruland’s never let us down).

At 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 11, Campbell and Ruland will be at 3rdspace (4610 Park Blvd. in University Heights), where they’ll ofFloral interpretation of “Navagraha” fer behind-the-scenes Deadliest Catch tales and sell

by Diana Normandin signed copies of the book. 3rdspace.co

2

BEAUTY AND MORE BEAUTY

3

14 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

BEYOND THE SEA

State of the Arts at W Hotel, 421 West B St., Downtown. Art show and extended happy hour on the W’s rooftop lounge featuring urban photography by Mike Sumoto.

From 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, April 9.

619-398-3100, thewsandiegohotel.com Graphic Score: Performance and Discussion at SME Building, UCSD campus, La Jolla. Musicians and artists Rachel Beetz, Dustin Donahue, Curt Miller and Todd Moellenberg show graphic representations of music, discuss their work and perform a special concert. From 5 to 7 p.m.

Thursday, April 10. visarts.ucsd.edu Senses of Care: Mediated Ability & Interdependence at gallery@calit2, Atkinson Hall, UCSD campus, La Jolla. An array of artifacts and works that raise provocative questions about the dynamics of care, interdependence and diversity of ability. Artists include Cathy Greenblat, Petra Kuppers and the Olimpias and Sins Invalid Performance Project. Opening from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 10. gallery.calit2.net HJamex and Einar De la Torre at el salon, 114 W. Hall Ave., San Ysidro. The brothers and art collaborators invite guests to learn about their creative process as they prepare a new body of work inspired by their connection with the U.S./Mexico border. Open studio from 2 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 10. facebook.com/thefront147 Chicano Park Night at Centro Cultural de la Raza, Balboa Park. A fundraiser for the cultural center that features a sneak preview of the documentary Cycles of Change: Restoring Quetzalcoatl and the original artists from Chicano Park exhibiting work. From 7 to 11 p.m. Friday, April 11. $5 suggested donation. 619-235-6135, centroculturaldelaraza.com HDestination: Lost at Subtext, 2479 Kettner Blvd., Little Italy. New works from San Diego artist Christopher Konecki, who uses a mix of illustration, street art and assemblage to take a contemporary look at the era of the great American road trip.

Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, April 11. subtextgallery.com HArt Alive 2014 at San Diego Museum of Art, Balboa Park. Over 120 local designers will present floral interpretations of famous works of art from the museum’s permanent collection. This annual exhibition includes three full days of related events. See museum website for details. Friday through Sunday, April 11-13. $5-$20. sdmart.org HLinda Kardoff: Paintings and Drawings at Noel Baza Fine Art, 2165 India St., Little Italy. The local artist presents new works that mix the surreal and the everyday. Opening from 6 to 8:30 p.m.

Friday, April 11. noel-bazafineart.com Aerospace & Abstraction at Bottlecraft, 2161 India St., Little Italy. Taste some local craft brews while taking in new paintings from local artist Carl Raymond Schmidt. Opening from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Friday, April 11. bottlecraftbeer.com HUrbanscape from a Bizarre Present at TJ in China Project Room, Av. Revolucion No. 1332, Tijuana. New work that attempts to explore the often undefined boundaries of our cityscapes. Artists include Corrie Slawson and Marc Lefkowitz, Hugo Crosthwaite, Luis G. Hernandez and Pepe Mogt.

Opening from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, April 11. tjinchina.dinstudio.com Structure at Kettner Arts, 1772 Kettner Blvd., Little Italy. New sculpture works by John McDavid and Xiaoye Sun, as well as recent paintings by Ansley Pye, Susan Snyder and photography by David Fokos.

Opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, April 11.

619-269-6900, mcdaviddesigns.com HMega

Exhibition

Reception

at

Oceanside Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside. Join a huge art party and celebrations of OMA’s new and current exhibitions: Icons of Desire: Jean Wells, Dichotomy: Kenneth Capps, DNA of Creativity, Wet Birds Don’t Fly: Roy Rogers and Rank n File: John Daniel Abel. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $10.

760 435-3721, oma-online.org Artist Talk: Alexia Markarian at Art Produce Gallery, 3139 University Ave., North Park. Markarian discusses her show, Glamour at the End of Time, which explores the expressive power inherent in everyday objects like shoes and dresses. At 7 p.m.

Saturday, April 12. artproduce.org HValuable Content at Helmuth Projects, 1827 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Creative Catalyst fellow Bridget Rountree presents her solo exhibition of mixed-media art, paintings and found sculptural objects. Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12. helmuth-projects.com HLuft Gesheften: The Value of War at Quint Contemporary Art, 7547 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Surrealist work from the early ‘80s and mid-2000s by artist Kim MacConnel that examines made-up arguments and perceived threats used to justify war and military buildup. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m.

Saturday, April 12. quintgallery.com Portraitures and Alebrijes at Centro Cultural de la Raza, Balboa Park. Mexico-born, L.A.-based artist Sergio Vasquez showcases new paintings consisting mostly of vivid portraits and Mexican mythological creatures. Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12. centroculturaldelaraza.org HRay at Night along Ray Street in North Park. See new charcoal drawings from L.A. artist Rene Porter at Ray Street Custom Framing, recent works by mixed-media street artist Acamonchi at Visual Art Supply, graphic works by David Cuzick at obr Architecture and more. From 6 to 9 p.m.

Saturday, April 12. northparkarts.org HWelcome Home at Thumbprint Gallery, 920 Kline St., #104, La Jolla. Local artist Jordan J. takes a simple, old, vintage look and adds a clean modern twist. Opening from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12. thumbprintgallerysd.com The Wounded Doll at Expressive Arts, 3201 Thorn St., North Park. New collaborative artworks and writings by Janice Grinsell and Eider DeMello. Opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, April 12. expres siveartssandiego.com HSubnatural at ArtHatch, 317 E. Grande Ave., Escondido. New paintings from Portland artist Casey Weldon, whose work mixes iconography of the past and present to evoke a sense of humor, nostalgia, fantasy and even melancholy. Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12. arthatch.org HArtFest at San Diego Botanic Garden, 230 Quail Gardens Drive, Encinitas. Twenty artists will be showing and selling their works including sculptors, painters, potters, glass, gourd and fiber artists. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, April 12-13. $8-$14. sdbgarden.org Young Artists Scholarship Awards Ceremony at Off Track Gallery, 687 S. Coast Highway 101, Encinitas. MiraCosta College art students Andrea Arisiaga, Elizabeth Bautista, Melanie Marshall and Jerome Pansa have been selected to each receive a $500 cash prize from the San Diego Art Guild. See their work and enjoy refreshments. From 5 to 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 12. offtrackgallery.com HDanny Scheible at Planet Rooth Design Haus, 3334 Fifth Ave., Hillcrest. The artist showcases his Tapigami piece, a roomsize installation consisting of large light fixtures made from thousands of individual sculptures and a 70-foot-long wall of wire

hangers covered with fabric. From 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12. planetrooth.com Momentum Series at Alexander Salazar Fine Art, 640 Broadway, Downtown. Lifesize sculptures from Vermont artist Robert Michael Jones, who specializes in figure modeling, bronze casting and metal fabrication. From 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, April 12. alexandersalazarfineart.com HThree Thesis Exhibitions at SDSU School of Art & Design, 5500 Campanile Drive, College Area. Three SDSU graduate students showcase intricate and varied work: Olivia Denis (furniture and woodworking), Minae Kim (graphic design) and Aren Skalman (sculpture). Opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, April 12. art.sdsu.edu Combat Arts Exhibition at Old Globe Theatre, 1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park. Paralleling the Old Globe Theater’s production of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize winning drama Water by the Spoonful, Combat Arts is exhibiting new art created by Iraq War veterans. Opening from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 12. oldglobe.org

Mesa Blvd., Clairemont. Five young adult fiction authors will sign and discuss their books: J.R. Johansson (Insomnia), Rachel Hawkins (Rebel Belle), plus locals Debra Driza (MILA 2.0), Shannon Messenger (Let the Storm Break) and Nancy Holder (Hot Blooded). At 7 p.m. Friday, April 11. 858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com Gregory Benford and Larry Niven at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 7051 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., Clairemont. Discuss science fact and science fiction with the co-authors of Shipstar, about a human expedition to another star system. At 2 p.m. Saturday, April 12. mystgalaxy.com Susan Allen Toth at La Jolla Library, 7555 Draper Ave., La Jolla. The part-time La Jolla resident will sign and discuss No Saints Around Here: A Caregiver’s Days,

a memoir of her time caring for her husband who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and dementia. At 11 a.m.

Saturday, April 12. sandiegolibrary.org Eileen Barber at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Part of the Weekend with Locals program, Barber will sign and discuss her children’s book, The Pink and Purple Burple Bird. At noon Sunday, April 13. warwicks.indiebound.com HJohn Boyne at New Central Library, 330 Park Blvd., East Village. The author will discuss and sign his fourth novel for young readers, Stay Where You Are and Then Leave. At 5 p.m. Sunday, April 13.

619-236-5800, sandiegolibrary.org Gina Frangello at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The author sits

down for a conversation with local scribe T. Greenwood to discuss her new novel, A Life in Men. At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 16. 858-454-0347, warwicks.indiebound.com

COMEDY HHeather McDonald at American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Besides performing stand-up, McDonald is a regular roundtable commentator on the E!’s Chelsea Lately. At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.

Friday and Saturday, April 11-12. $22.

619-795-3858, americancomedyco.com HIan Edwards at Mad House Comedy Club, 502 Horton Plaza, Downtown. Once a cast member Punk’d, he’s also performed stand-up on Conan and Comedy Central’s

Live at Gotham. At 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. Friday, April 11, and Saturday, April 12. $20-$30. madhousecomedyclub.com Dominic Dierkees at American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. The comic is a writer for Comedy Central’s Workaholics and has appeared on Conan.

At 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 16. $16. 619795-3858, americancomedyco.com Your Mom’s House Podcast at American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Christina Pazsitzky and Tom Segura both perform. The show will be recorded for the latter’s popular podcast. At 8 p.m.

Wednesday, April 16. $19. american comedyco.com

CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

HEver Reluctant at R.B. Stevenson Gallery, 7661 Girard Ave., Ste. 201, La Jolla.

Frances McCormack presents new paintings based on botanical references and the processes of gardening and growth.

Opening from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 12. rbstevensongallery.com HLux Art Institute Education Pavilion Open House at Lux Art Institute, 1550 S. El Camino Real, Encinitas. Explore the new 7,000-square-foot facility during this free event. Take part in hands-on activities that reflect the new programs Lux will offer, snack on refreshments, snap memories in the photo booth and dance to live music by Trouble in the Wind. From noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 13. 760-4366611, luxartinstitute.org HBody Envelope at Experimental Drawing Studio, Rm. 202, SME Building, UCSD campus, La Jolla. Nina Waisman present her interactive sound installation: a 6-foot-square interactive sound chandelier that includes translucent tubes, wires and sensors creating an amoeba-like 3D envelope of sound. Opening from 6 to 7 p.m. Monday, April 14. visarts.ucsd.edu

BOOKS Lit & Libations: Ryan Winfield at Mission Hills Books & Collectibles, 4054 Goldfinch St., Mission Hills. The launch of a new series combines a book signing and Q&A with wine and appetizers. The inaugural event features Winfield discussing and signing Jane’s Melody. At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 9. $15. 619-5507749, adventuresbythebook.com Natasha Josefowitz at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The local author will sign Living Without the One You Can’t Live Without, a collection of poems about life after loss. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10. warwicks.indiebound.com Jennifer Shea at Williams-Sonoma Fashion Valley, 7007 Friars Road. The Trophy Cupcakes founder signs her new book, Trophy Cupcakes and Parties! and treats patrons to a cupcake-decorating demo. At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10. 619-2950510 x2028, williams-sonoma.com HScott Campbell Jr. and Jim Ruland at 3rdSpace, 4610 Park Blvd., University Heights. Join the captain from Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch in conversation with local scribe and CityBeat book reviewer Jim Ruland, as they discuss and sign their new book, Giving the Finger: Risking It All to Fish the World’s Deadliest Sea. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 11. 619-255-3609 Spring Fling YA Event at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 7051 Clairemont

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 15

THEATER

Time waits for no one in emotive Globe production When Kay Conway stares ahead searchingly and speaks what she believes is a numbing truth—“There’s a great devil in the universe, and we call it time”—you feel the chill in her heart. Are we captives of something inexorable? It’s then up to Kay’s brother Alan to remind her that time, daunting as it may be, is about joy as much as woe.

The notion and the workings of time loomed large in the mind of British playwright J.B. Priestly. Time and the Conways, now on stage at The Old Globe Theatre, was one of Priestly’s “Time Plays” written during the 1930s and ’40s. This Globe production, directed with the light touch of a second hand in motion by Rebecca Taichman, is a stirring experience.

You don’t necessarily expect a costume drama set initially in the immediate aftermath of World War I to wash over you so completely. But as Time and the Conways’ flamboyant characters go from present to past and back to present again, they become as fascinating as time itself.

Central among them is Kay Conway (Amanda Quaid), the manor’s intellectual presence, who’s resolved to become a statement-making novelist. Even in Act 1, on the occasion of her 21st birthday, when she’s instructing her siblings in a game of charades, Kay’s arch determination is at the fore. In Act 2, 19 years later, Kay is 40, and her grand vision is blurred by compromise and disillusionment. She’s not a broken woman, but there’s a crack in her will. How she came to such a state is revealed in Act 3, which returns the narrative to the evening of Kay’s party.

The thread between all three acts, which morph from one to the other with slow movement of the sets and the heart-rending notes of a piano, is unrelenting time.

Kay’s not the only Conway with a checkered fate. Sister Hazel (Rose Hemingway) is destined for an abusive marriage, Madge (Morgan Hallett) and brother Alan (Jonathan Fielding) for loneliness, brother Robin (Lee Aaron Rosen) for professional and marital failure and sister-with-a-heart-of-gold Carol (Leanne Agmon) for worse. Not only Quaid, but also Fielding, Hallett and Agmon bring tremendous poignancy

DANCE Entrances and Exits at Joan B. Kroc Theatre, 6611 University Ave., Rolando. This faculty-choreographed dance concert features Grossmont College students performing salsa, tap, ballet, contemporary, modern and hip-hop dance. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, April 10-12. $12. grossmont.edu/dance HBill Shannon at White Box Theater, 2690 Truxtun Road, Point Loma. The internationally renowned artist, break-dancer and skate punk was born with a rare hip defect that prevents him from standing and walking without crutches, but his legendary street performances challenge notions of ability. At 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, April 10-12. $12-$26. artpwr.com H(en)compass at Visionary Dance Theatre, 8803 1/2 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa. KO Dance Company

16 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

JIM COX

Amanda Quaid (left) and Leann Agmon to their characters, even in the first-act merrymaking before all the ominous signs emerge.

Time and the Conways runs through May 4 at The Old Globe Theatre. $29 and up. oldglobe.org

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

OPENING Mandate Memories: This is a world premiere of a drama about an elderly Holocaust survivor who pays a visit to a British woman whose father was killed by Jewish terrorists. Opens in previews on April 9 at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. northcoastrep.org Off the Cuff: Improvisational comedy. It happens on April 12 at Patio Playhouse in Escondido. patio playhouse.com The Outgoing Tide: A free reading of a newish drama about a elderly man with dementia who has different ideas than his wife about the remainder of their life together. It happens on April 15 at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. north coastrep.org Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure: In this adaptation by Steven Dietz, the famous detective is at the end of his career but is drawn into one last case. Opens April 11 at Coronado Playhouse. coronadoplayhouse.com Tricks: This one opened April 2, but we missed it last week. A world premiere presented by Chronos Theatre Group, it’s about two gay men who must confront their families, each other and themselves.

For adult audiences. It’s showing at 10th Avenue Theatre in East Village. chronostheatre.com Water by the Spoonful: The life of an Iraq War veteran intersects with those of four strangers in an Internet chat room for recovering drug addicts. Opens April 12 at The Old Globe Theatre. oldglobe.org

For full listings,

please visit “T heater ” at sdcit ybeat.com

presents this dance concert exploring emotions associated with the notion of change. At 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 11-12. $10-$15. 619-758-8112, kodanceco.org Alice in Wonderland at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. Whimsical ballet based on the classic tale. At 7 p.m. Friday April 11, and 2 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $24. 760839-4190, artcenter.org

FASHION Huge Frocking Sale at Frock You, 4121 Park Blvd., University Heights. Frock You will be putting out vintage clothing and accessories and will be joined by guest vendors. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday

through Sunday, April 11-13. frockyouvintage.com HStitched Market at Ramona Town Hall, 729 Main St., Ramona. Shop vintage, handmade and one-of-a-kind items from more than two dozen vendors. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $1. stitchedmarket.com

FOOD & DRINK AIDS/LifeCycle Pizza Party at Pizza Port Ocean Beach, 1856 Bacon Street, Ocean Beach. A night of charity, racing, pizza and beer to benefit Team Cretins, five local cyclists biking (on fixed gears) from S.D. to S.F. to raise money for AIDS Lifecycle charities. From 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday, April 10. tofighthiv.org/goto/teamcretins Thai Street Food Market at Saffron Restaurant, 3737 India St., Mission Hills.

Celebrate the Thai New Year with the annual street-food market featuring traditional dishes like Laotian sausage and macaroons. From noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 12. saffronsandiego.com

SDSU Jazz Ensemble and the Luebeck University Jazz Band at Smith Recital Hall, 5500 Campanile Drive, College Area.

The acclaimed jazz ensemble, is joined by the Luebeck University jazz band from Germany. At 6 p.m. Monday, April 14. $10$15. 619-594-6031, music.sdsu.edu Lisa Hilton at Saville Theater @ San Diego City College, 1313 Park Blvd., Downtown. The jazz pianist/composer blends modern and traditional jazz and is on tour promoting her 16th release, Kaleidoscope. At 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 15. $10.

619-388-3037, sdcity.edu/savilletheatre HSoweto Gospel Choir at Price Center Ballroom, UCSD campus, La Jolla. Singing in English as well as a number of South African languages, the two-time Grammy Award-winning choir fuses traditional African gospel music with Western songs of

celebration. At 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 16. $12-$30. 858-534-8497, artpwr.com Adrienne Nims & Spirit Wind at University Community Library, 4155 Governor Drive, La Jolla. Flute and sax heavy jazz and new-age music from the local group.

At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 16. 858552-1655, sandiegolibrary.org

PERFORMANCE Indian Music and Dance Festival at David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre, 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. More than a dozen performance of traditional Indian music and dance taking place daily through Sunday April 13. Highlights include a tribute to Ravi Shankar at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 11. See website for full sched-

ule. $25-$45. indianfineartsacademy.org For the Sender: Love Is (Not a Feeling) at Star Theatre, 402 N Coast Hwy., Oceanside. Author and singer-songwriter Alex Woodard will celebrate the launch of his sophomore book/CD with a multimedia experience of stories and songs.

Proceeds benefit EcoLife and Feeding the Soul Foundation. From 6:30 to 9 p.m.

Friday, April 11. $25. forthesender.com HLive Arts Fest at White Box Theater, 2690 Truxtun Road, Point Loma. Two weeks and 10 performances featuring dance, film, theater, music, art installations and more. Highlights include Animal Cracker Conspiracy on April 18 and Tijuana’s Minerva Tapia Dance Group on April 27. See website for full schedule. The event kicks off Tuesday, April 15 and runs through Sunday, April 27. $20-$100.

619-225-1803, sandiegodancetheater.org

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD HLong Story Short: Odd One Out at ArtLab Studios, 3536 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. So Say We All’s monthly, interactive storytelling show centers around the theme of when things just don’t quite fit and the detriments and benefits of being the odd one out. From 7 to 9:30 p.m.

Sunday, April 13. $5 suggested donation. sosayweallonline.com Gina Frangello and Rob Roberge at The New Ink Spot, NTC at Liberty Station,

CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

HCollege Area Taste at College Area Business District. From pasta to cheesecake, tasters can indulge in cuisine from over 20 area restaurants. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, April 13. $25-$30. 619582-1093, collegeareabid.com HFallbrook Avocado Festival at Downtown Fallbrook, S. Mission Rd. and Main St., Fallbrook. “The Avocado Capital of the World” celebrates its annual festival, now in its 28th year. Highlights include arts and crafts, games, guac contests, beer gardens and creative foods featuring the delicious, green fruit. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 13. 760-728-5845, fallbrookchamberofcommerce.org

MUSIC HSynthesizer Petting Zoo at Conrad Prebys Music Center, UCSD campus, La Jolla. Part of the UCSD Springfest Series, the Audio Electronics Club invites music enthusiasts to get hands-on with their hand-built instruments, effects and controllers. At 5 p.m. Friday, April 11. audio electronics.ucsd.edu Reflections & Lamentations at St. Andrews by the Sea, 1050 Thomas Ave., Pacific Beach. San Diego Pro Arte Voices presents this concert featuring music for the Lenten season or any time of reflection. At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $20 suggested donation. sdproartevoices.com A Royal Concert, Last Night of the Proms at First Unitarian Universalist Church, 4190 Front St., Hillcrest. The Hillcrest Wind Ensemble presents its spring concert. At 7 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $15-$20. hillcrestwindensemble.com HStraighten Up & Fly Right: The Nat King Cole Tribute at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Composer, pianist and jazz legend Ramsey Lewis and worldrenowned jazz guitarist and singer John Pizzarelli join forces. At 8 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $27-$77. 619-570-1100, ljms.org HPavel Kolesnikov at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. Part of the La Jolla Music Society’s “Discovery Series,” the young pianist and 2012 Honens Prize Laureate performs an intimate concert of classical music. At 3 p.m. Sunday, April 13. $20$30. 800-988-4253, artcenter.org HBirch Aquarium Springfest at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 8602 La Jolla Shores Drive, La Jolla. Walk through the aquarium and encounter live and recorded pieces written by UCSD music graduate students specifically for this event. From 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, April 13. $8-$10. 858534-3624, aquarium.ucsd.edu

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 17

2730 Historic Decatur Road, Barracks 16, Ste. 204, Point Loma. Frangello will read A Life in Men, Roberge will read from The Cost of Living and Bonnie ZoBell will read from her book What Happened Here. At 6 p.m. Sunday, April 13. $5 suggested donation. sandiegowriters.org Janice Steinberg at SDSU Library, 5500 Campanile Drive, College Area, College Area. The author of five novels, including Death in a City of Mystics and The Tin Horse, will present a reading as part of the Spring 2014 Hugh C. Hyde Living Writers Series. At 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 16.

619-594-6054, library.sdsu.edu

SPECIAL EVENTS Craft Fair at Excelsior Academy, 7202 Princess View Drive, Allied Gardens. Arts and craft show with unique Easter and Mother’s Day gifts available. There will also be a craft table for kids and a live band. From 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 11, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 12. 619-583-6762, excelsioracademy.com A Night of Hope at Numbers, 3811 Park Blvd., Hillcrest. Enjoy live ‘50s music and raffles while raising awareness and funds for Christie’s Place, a local charity helping with access to healthcare for women, children, and families impacted by HIV/ AIDS. From 7 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, April 11. $10. 619-294-7538, christiesplace.org Fighting Parkinsons Step by Step 5K at NTC at Liberty Station, 2640 Historic Decatur Road, Point Loma. A dog friendly walk/run. Other activities include Paws for Parkinson’s Pet Festival, a health and fitness pavilion, marketplace, kids zone, food court, beer garden and more. From 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $45.

858-273-6763, parkinsonsstepbystep.com Khmer New Year Festival at Colina del Sol Park, 5319 Orange Ave., City Heights.

Welcome the Year of the Dragon with traditional Cambodian games, music, dance performances, food, cooking demos and more. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, April 12-13.

Salk Institute’s Step into Discovery 5K at Salk Institute, 10010 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla. Begins with the annual Walk for Salk 5K in the morning and continues into the afternoon with Explore Salk, a free event that offers participants a behindthe-scenes tour of Salk Institute laboratories. From 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $35. 858-453-9600, salk.edu Treasure Bazaar Sale at Assistance League Thrift Shop, 108 University Ave., Hillcrest. Annual sale of collectibles and jewelry benefiting Operation School Bell providing uniforms and supplies for local school children. From 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 12. assistanceleague.org Mad Men Party at The Pearl Hotel, 1410 Rosecrans St., Point Loma. Dress in your swankiest ‘60s garb and enjoy The Pearl’s specialty cocktail list and the ’60s soundscapes provided by DJ Dex Diego at this annual party. RSVP@thepearlsd.com.

From 9 p.m. to midnight. Saturday, April 12. 619-226-6100, thepearlsd.com April in Paris & Tall Ships at Chula Vista Harbor Excursion Dock, 600 Marina Pkwy., Chula Vista. The fifth annual community art and maritime fair will feature ship tours, live music and the April in Paris juried art show. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Saturday, April 12. sobarts.com HMorning Glory Brunch at St. Madeline Sophie’s Center, 2119 E Madison Ave., El Cajon. This brunch in the SMSC organic garden features food and beverage tastings from over 20 local restaurants, artwork from SMSC students, live music,

18 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

silent auctions and the famous great frog race. Proceeds benefit adults with developmental disabilities. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 12. $25-$60. 619442-5129, stmsc.org HDigital Gym Cinema Anniversary at Digital Gym Cinema, 2921 El Cajon Blvd., North Park. A day of film screenings and a reception to celebrate one year of indie cinema in North Park. Reception from 6:30 to 8 p.m. includes music, food, a raffle and silent auction and mescal tastings. See website for full list of screenings and times.

From 2 p.m. to midnight Saturday, April 12. $10-$30. 619-230-1938, digitalgym.org Village Street Faire at Chula Vista Village, Third Avenue from E to G Streets.

Celebrate the history of Third Avenue Village in Chula Vista with over 120 vendor booths and performances on two stages.

From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 13.

619-422-1982, thirdavenuevillage.com La Jolla Concours d’Elegance at Ellen Browning Scripps Park, Coast Blvd., La Jolla. Check out fine automobiles, from Italian marques, British marques, Woodies, ’50s classics, American sports cars at this 10th annual auto show. From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 13. $40-$125. lajollaconcours.com Day at the Docks at Sportfishing Landing, 2803 Emerson St., Point Loma. The 35th annual celebration of the official start of Southern California’s spring saltwater fishing season includes more than 200 exhibits of fishing tackle, marine art, “how-to” seminars, and entertainment.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 13. sportfishing.org

TALKS & DISCUSSIONS HRenewable Energy and Positive Impact Buildings at Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. Moderated by Robert Pincus, Robert Ferry and Elizabeth Monoian, principals and co-founders of Land Art Generator Initiative, will discuss the present and future of sustainable architecture. At 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, April 10. ljathenaeum.org Let There Be Light: The First Billion Years at Geology, Math, and Computer Science Bldg., Room 333, SDSU campus, College Area. Dr. Bahram Mobasher, Professor of Astronomy at UC Riverside will discuss the universe’s first billion years. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 11. mintaka.sdsu. edu/schopp Laura Wait at Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. The Santa Fe-based artist discusses her painting and work in book arts. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 11. ljathenaeum.org HArtists + Designers in Real Time: Tara Smith at Hepner Hall at SDSU, 5500 Campanile Drive, College Area. The deputy director and chief curator of the Oceanside Museum of Art discusses art and design topics. From 5:30 to 6:45 p.m.

Tuesday, April 15. 619-594-5200, face book.com/artistsinrealtime Brigitte Shim at New School of Architecture & Design, 1249 F St., Downtown.

The principal of the Toronto-based design firm Shim-Sutcliffe Architects explores work that straddles the artificial line between the interior and exterior. At 7 p.m.

Wednesday, April 16. 800-490-7081, newschoolarch.edu

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Vanessa Contopulos

From left, The SongStream Project’s Michael Fryer, Alex Dausch, Talia Morales and Vanessa Contopulos

Music’s memories

Michelle Josey / Living Aesthetics

New arts group collects colorful stories of San Diegans and their connections to songs

by Kinsee Morlan

Boni Musa records a lullaby and story at the SongStream Project booth at the City Heights farmers market.

W

hen Irene Castruita was pregnant with her first child, she was understandably nervous about going into labor.

“It was kind of a little bit nerve-wracking,” Castruita says in a recent podcast recorded by The SongStream Project, a San Diego arts group. “I didn’t know what to expect, so I wrote this song to kind of manifest the birth—the natural birth—and then just to kind of express [my baby girl’s] galactic-ness and her energy that I felt coming through.”

In the audio recording, posted online at thesongstreamproject.org, Castruita explains that the fear, mixed with excited anticipation, inspired her to write a song that would both calm and celebrate her and her baby.

She says she started singing the lullaby to her child while she was pregnant, and three years later, the song remains one of her daughter’s favorites. The artist and powerhouse vocalist then starts performing the song on the podcast, revealing the unique combination of spoken-word and sung melody that she still shares with her children (she’s since had a second child, a daughter) to this day.

On a recent Saturday morning, Castruita and her two kids were among a handful of people at the City Heights Library who were there to listen to The SongStream Project’s “A Landscape of Lullabies,” a collection of stories about songs San Diegans sing to their children. It’s a mix of original songs, like Castruita’s, and traditional

classics; every lullaby eventually segued into personal stories about people’s backgrounds, cultures and the values that they hoped to pass onto their children or were passed onto them by their parents.

“What we’ve found is that people start to talk through music, and then it opens up the door to a wider conversation, which they maybe wouldn’t have started talking about if we’d said, ‘Could you please sit down and talk about memories of your grandfather?’” said Michael Fryer during the listening event. “Music is the thing which opens that door.”

Fryer, along with Vanessa Contopulos, Talia Morales, Megan Gilbert and Alex Dausch, came up with the concept for The SongStream Project about two years ago.

They envisioned a mobile recording studio, ideally housed in a refurbished vintage Airstream trailer, which would travel around, gathering stories somehow related to music. Both Contopulos and Morales are music therapists, so they know how inextricably linked songs and melodies are to memories and emotions.

“We just knew there was a treasure trove of stories there,” Morales said.

A year ago, the group posted the first collection of stories, “Voices of Autism,” on its website. The series checks in with three local families affected by autism and explores the ways in which music has played

an important role in discovering the abilities—rather than disabilities—possessed by those on the autism spectrum. The group’s since recorded an in-depth piece featuring local duo The Lovebirds as the first story in a series focused on how music is a source of resilience and recovery during tough times.

The Lovebirds’ Veronica May is open about her struggles with bipolar disorder, and her former girlfriend and bandmate Lindsay White joins the discussion, which is intimate and long (almost an hour).

The SongStream Project collected the most recent stories about lullabies by setting up a recording studio in a canopy at the City Heights Farmers Market during the last few weeks (the Airstream has yet to materialize).

“What we’ve essentially been trying to do with all of [these series] is explore, through the lens of music and memory, social issues and just capture voices, which maybe aren’t being heard,” Fryer said.

The SongStream Project is so new that it’s not officially a nonprofit yet, but it’s supported by the nonprofit Creative Visions Foundation, an arrangement that will allow them to receive grants and other funding in the future when they have the resources to pursue those options. Currently, though, the founders pay for everything out of pocket, and nobody is paid for long hours spent producing and editing the segments. They’re driven by their belief that shared stories evoked through music can lead to connections across cultural and religious divides, and the lack of funding doesn’t seem to be limiting the group’s enthusiasm. They’re currently wrapping up editing a piece about addiction and recovery. In the future, they want to collect stories relating to people’s memories of home and tales about the songs

Irene Castruita and one of her daughters people listen to when they’re low to help them grieve.

At the City Heights Library, the small group of listeners was introduced to lullabies and stories from a mother from Guam, a father from Mexico, a young family living in City Heights and other people from myriad backgrounds.

“The thing that excites me about this ‘Landscape of Lullabies’ project is that we’ve hardly even scratched the surface,” Fryer said after the last story was played.

“We would love this to expand, so we record and gather lullabies from all over the world that are being sung here in San Diego.... And then, as a result of that, there might be conversations about connections and all of these shared common values.

“So,” he continued, “a family from Somalia who maybe thinks they have nothing in common with a family from Vietnam suddenly realizes they have some connections.

My ultimate dream is that a wealthy white mother from Del Mar ends up singing her child to sleep with an Iraqi lullaby because she heard it and it was just beautiful.”

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

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 23

Seen Local

home. His concept was intriguing enough to win a modest grant from the DNA of Creativity project (dnaofc.weebly.com). He and his team of local artists and biologists set out to create sculptural objects that could double as homes for animals and organisms. The scientists provided information on the Art + science = interesting basic necessities the critters would need to survive; One morning, conceptual artist and science teacher the artists then created designs. Once finished, the Jason Rogalski heard loud bangs outside the door pieces were scattered throughout urban neighborof his City Heights home. He walked out to find a hoods and put to real-world use. neighbor throwing rocks at a skunk who’d taken Some of the sculptures have been removed from Kinsee Morlan cover under his truck. He asked their locales and can now be the neighbor to stop scaring the viewed at the DNA of Creativicritter. Skunks, he explained, ty show, which opens alongside have to live somewhere, right? several other exhibitions from 6 “That’s what spawned the to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 12, at whole idea,” says Rogalski, the the Oceanside Museum of Art team leader of Urban Succes(704 Pier View Way, oma-onsion, one of four teams that parline.org). Admission is $10. ticipated in DNA of Creativity, Rogalski’s “Honey Pot,” a multiyear project, sponsored a ceramic piece, won’t be at

by San Diego Visual Arts NetOMA but will be featured in a work, that launched in 2012. looped film during the exhibiThe project teamed artists with tion, along with all the Urban scientists and asked them to colSuccession work. He shows me laborate on in-depth explorathe whimsical sculpture in his tions fusing the two practices. small backyard; it’s meant to “Humans try to totally control be mounted on a rooftop and the natural environment, and we serve as a beehive, and it’ll soon do largely, but there are things be given to a family who volunwe can’t control,” Rogalski says. teered to host it. Then he points “We are always trying to get rid to “Urban Hive,” a quirky towof the insects, animals, weeds ering plaster sculpture.

Jason Rogalski’s “Urban Hive” and all that stuff, but it comes “There’s a skunk living in it serves as a home for skunks. back, and we can’t stop it.” right now,” he says. “It’s beautiRogalski wanted to help his neighbors and other ful, right? But also strong and totally functional.” urbanites embrace, rather than constantly battle, —Kinsee Morlan skunks and other creatures simply trying to find a Kinsee Morlan

Bridget Rountree is ready to unveil her new work.

The hierarchy of help

project, Animal Cracker Conspiracy.

The grant allowed Rountree to focus on her own artwork again and gave her the time and money needed to home in on a concept and create one cohesive body of work using found materials to tell a story.

Rountree’s concept has evolved over time, eventually taking shape as a series comparing different ideologies and examining the hierarchy constructed when one culture attempts to “help” another; in some of the works, images of history’s perceived “winners” are set against images of the “losers.” A found photo of a Native American warrior in one of the works, for example, is seamlessly woven together with a found image of a painting of a European prince.

“You can’t have the savior without the saved,” Rountree says, picking up a few other mixed-media works made by precisely cutting and pasting the two found photos together.

In other pieces, including the two big paintings in the show, Rountree mashes up Renaissance portraiture with minimalistic modernist works, still attempting to juxtapose the ideologies and politics represented by the different painting styles.

Rountree, who partnered with nonprofit Young Audiences and recently hosted art-making workshops for Barrio Logan teens, wants the clashing imagery to inspire thought and conversation.

“Hopefully, a space opens up for reconsidering what these images mean, a place where people can think about what’s being represented in an image and its connotations,” she says.

Bridget Rountree and Iain Gunn’s University Heights home is a hotbed of creativity. The married couple and artistic collaborators were each recipients of the 2013 San Diego Foundation’s innovative Creative Catalyst: Individual Artist Fellowship Program, which teams artists with nonprofits and puts up to $20,000 of grant money in artists’ hands (the nonprofits’ involvement helps ensure public programming and other tangible results).

During the last year, Rountree and Gunn have been busy creating new work. While Gunn’s is still a few months away, Rountree is ready to show roughly 25 new mixed-media pieces, two large-scale paintings and found sculptural objects in Valuable Content, a solo show opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12, at Helmuth Projects (1827 Fifth Ave. in Bankers Hill).

—Kinsee Morlan “The Creative Catalyst is a huge, huge, huge help,” says Rountree, who’d been spending most Write to kinseem@sdcitybeat.com of her time on the couple’s experimental-puppetry and editor@sdcitybeat.com.

24 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Her Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Glazer’s challenging sci-fi marvel

by Glenn Heath Jr. The act of viewing implies that each of us chooses a specific angle with which to see. Our perspective can refer to a physical vantage point, but there’s also Scarlett Johansson is watching. an ideological and emotional element to the process. We all bring bias to the table; it’s what It’s safe to say that Under the Skin is an ambiguous makes us fallible human beings. The infinite assump- film, but it’s by no means indecipherable. As Laura’s tions that are produced from a single person watch- focus shifts from goal-oriented to shapeless, the film ing the world go by are downright scary. itself begins to stray with her into various pockets of Laura (Scarlett Johansson) spends a lot of time experience. She’s sucked into a trance-like rave by a gazing: at streets, horizons and crowds, but she tsunami of young women and later drifts through a brings no judgment to the table. Her probing eyes knotty forest in the highlands with puddles for eyes. scan the foggy, rain-drenched Scotland landscape Through it all, Laura’s confusion (and curiosity) inwith the objectivity of a lion stalking a herd of ga- creases, culminating in a moment of sexual curiosity zelle. She is an alien that dresses itself in a human that cements her alienation. cloak during a surreal sequence early in Jonathan Remember, it’s all about angle. Like the naked Glazer’s sci-fi marvel Under the Skin. For the rest of young men who are forced to look up at Laura as the duration, this extraterrestrial explores Earth as if they descend beneath a surface of black tar, the charit were a complex diorama, one that eventually traps acter herself must stand in awe of the planet she has her in a web of humanity. been tasked to invade. Take, Glazer loves a splashy for example, the magnificent opening. Under the Skin besequence that finds Laura Under the Skin gins with all-encompassing wrapped in a blanket of stifling Directed by Jonathan Glazer darkness that leads to a falling fog on a remote highway, which Starring Scarlett Johansson, Paul orb taking center stage before calls to mind Michelangelo Brannigan, Krystof Hådek and finally splintering into an arAntonioni’s equally haunting Jessica Mance ray of constellations and planroadway scene in Identification Rated R ets seemingly locked in perof a Woman. Here, Johansson’s fect formation. These celestial images are juxtaposed with a scratching musical score that conveys a sense of longing and confusion that will reflect Laura’s own transformation. Under the Skin’s magnetic lead salvo finally comes to rest on a close-up of an eyeball, another inference that seeing is indeed believing, even if we aren’t quite sure what to feel.

There’s a mysterious man on a motorcycle who provides Laura with a van, the vehicle she’ll use to lure young men into a dark, soupy ocean. Her mission is almost ethnographic, collecting human tissue and transforming matter into data. But what’s most important is how she begins to see her victims and the world at large. First, Laura views her surroundings from an angle of professionalism, conducting an investigation above suspicion due to her sensuality and gender. This all changes when she meets one particular gentleman who challenges these notions of duty and purpose.

eyes convey the simultaneous panic and wonder that comes with the birth of an emotional range.

If Glazer ends his sunburnt debut, Sexy Beast, on a happy note and his gloomy existential tragedy, Birth, on a doomed partnership, he gives Laura a denouement that somehow finds aspects of both. Transformation once again plays a role, yet the notion of life after death is completely stunted by the parade of self-destruction we’ve just witnessed. With its kinetic attention to image and sound, it’s clear that Under the Skin—which opens Friday, April 11, at Hillcrest Cinemas—wants us to experience the perspective of its intergalactic protagonist. But Glazer also recognizes Laura’s fateful inability to fully understand humanity’s worthy subtext, especially when all we’ve shown her is our bafflingly brutal surface.

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

Paternity tests

Joe

Deep in the heart of Texas, David Gordon Green’s Joe immerses itself in the sweat and blood of backcountry living. Streaks of Faulkner and The Night of the Hunter color the straggly posture of this singular gothic tale about Joe (Nicholas Cage), a low-rent landscaper who offers a teenager named Gary (Tye Sheridan) and

his drifter father Wade (Gary Poulter) a job poisoning trees.

For a long time, there’s very little plot; instead, Green dedicates his time to exploring the cadence of language and the relationship between setting and character.

Joe moves at such a strange pace that it could be argued that the filmmakers are presenting a

CONTINUED ON PAGE 27 April 2, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 25

26 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

near ethnographic view of an alien world. Tones change on a dime, from comedic to absurdist to horrific. Funny interludes between Joe and his crew of African-American workers give way to insane moments like the one involving a deer carcass hanging in someone’s living room. Unpredictability is the film’s main virtue.

Themes of revenge and redemption ultimately take root, revealing themselves in the physical conflicts between Joe and the human threats knocking at his door.

This is where Green’s film takes a left turn into genre territory, specifically thriller tropes that stand at odds with the film’s eccentric identity. Instead of adding drama, the more traditional final act simply halts momentum.

But the performances by all three leads are so strong that such a narrative digression feels moot: What remains unforgettable is Wade’s wrinkled face as he stands over a man he’s just brutally beaten, or Joe and Gary’s drunken trek to locate a missing dog. These complex and haunting scenes prove Joe—which opens April 11 at AMC Fashion Valley—to be a wicked slice of regional cinema, wholly dedicated to the rhythms of a specific place and the darker quirks of the human experience.

gothic starring Nicolas Cage as a broken man out to befriend and help a teenage drifter whose drunken father poses an imminent threat to his safety. See our review on Page 25.

The Raid 2: After surviving the carnage in 2012’s The Raid, a Filipino police officer named Rama goes undercover to take down the crime bosses responsible for the city’s rampant corruption.

So Right, So Smart: Documentary, narrated by Darryl Hannah, about the sustainability crisis and how it relates to corporate reform and environmental activism. Screens through April 16 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Tercera llamada: A theater group attempting to put on a big-budget production of Caligula teeters on the brink of madness as rehearsals descend into chaos. Screens through April 17 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Under the Skin: In Jonathan Glazer’s sci-fi art film, Scarlett Johansson plays a mysterious being that descends to Earth and begins wreaking havoc with lonely men. See our review on Page 25.

The Unknown Known: Errol Morris offers an in-depth and scathing look at former Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld through a series of personal interviews with the man himself.

One Time Only Napoleon Dynamite: At one point, this film about a Midwest loner who tries to become class president of his high school was a large part of the cultural zeitgeist.

Now, that’s incredibly hard to believe.

Screens at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 9, at

The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: Chapter 2 of Peter Jackson’s three-part adaption of Tolkien’s novel. This part has a dragon. Screens at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 11 and 12, at Cinema Under the Stars in Mission Hills.

Chastity Bites: A notorious serial killer bathes in the blood of virgins to keep herself young and beautiful forever, causing distress (and confusion) in horny young men everywhere. Screens at 10 p.m. Saturday, April 12, at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Rabbit Hole: Nicole Kidman grieves for a lost child in this sobering drama by director John Cameron-Mitchell. Screens at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 13, at the Point Loma / Hervey Branch Library.

Ride with Larry: An inspiring documentary about Larry Smith, a middle-aged man who’s lived with Parkinson’s disease for more than 20 years. With hopes of inspiring others living with Parkinson’s, Larry embarks on a 300-mile bike ride across South Dakota. Screens at 2 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday, April 13, at La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas.

Lawrence of Arabia: Peter O’Toole and Alec Guinness star in David Lean’s masterpiece about a flamboyant British military officer who fights in the Middle East during World War I. Don’t miss it on the big screen. Screens at 7 p.m. Sunday, April 13, at Arclight La Jolla.

The Wait: Two sisters experience a supernatural event when they receive a phone call from a force that may or may not be their dead mother. Screens at 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 14, at the San Diego Public Library in East Village.

Amador: A young immigrant suffering from financial woes decides to work as a live-in nurse for an elderly man who may provide the solution to her problem.

Screens at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, at the Point Loma / Hervey Branch Library.

The Missing Picture: Rithy Pahn’s innovative documentary recreates atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, using clay figures, voice-over narration and archival footage. Ends April 10 at the Ken Cinema.

Enough Said: James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus star in this straggly comedy about middle-aged characters attempting to find love in sun-drenched Los Angeles. Screens at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 16, at the Scripps Ranch Library.

Jodorowsky’s Dune: Documentary looks back on filmmaker’s Alejandro Jodorowsky’s failed attempt to bring Frank Herbert’s sci-fi novel Dune to the big screen.

Superbad: Michael Cera and Jonah Hill made quite the splash in this teen comedy that also introduced the world to McLovin’. Screens at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 16, at The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

Now Playing Breathe In: A young foreign-exchange student moves in with a family in upstate New York and complicates their lives. It stars Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce.

Captain America: Winter Soldier: Chris Evans reprises his role as the patriotic avenger who must now battle a mysterious super soldier who’s threatening to destroy Washington, D.C. Goodbye World: A couple living off the grid suddenly find their rural oasis clogged with estranged old friends who begin showing up after a massive cyber attack cripples the American government and sends the nation into a state of collapse. Ends April 10 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Jinn: A supernatural thriller about an automotive designer whose idyllic life is uprooted when he receives a cryptic warning of imminent danger.

Nymphomaniac: Volume II: The second chapter of Lars von Trier’s controversial character study about a self-professed nymphomaniac named Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg), who tells her sordid story to a stranger.

Teenage: Documentary by director Matt Wolf that uses filmed portraits, archival footage and voice-over to explore the evolution of the modern teenager. Screens at Reading Gaslamp Cinemas.

White Water, Black Gold: David Lavallee journeys down the Athabasca River in Canada to investigate the impact oil has on the water quality. Ends April 9 at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Cesar Chavez: The first narrative film to dramatize Cesar Chavez’s attempts to unify farm workers in California’s central valley in the 1960s. It’s directed by Diego Luna and stars Michael Peña.

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

—Glenn Heath Jr.

Opening Alan Partridge: Steven Coogan brings his smarmy, egomaniacal BBC radio host to the big screen in this farcical satire by director Declan Lowney. Screens through April 17 at La Jolla Village Cinemas.

Cuban Fury: Bruce (Nick Frost) tries to win the heart of a woman by reinvigorating his passion for salsa dancing. But an equally savvy competitor threatens to ruin his perfect plans.

Draft Day: Kevin Costner plays the general manager for an NFL team looking to score big on a young player in the latest draft. Somewhere, drama will be created out of thin air.

Joe: A strange and beguiling Southern

April 2, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 27

F

Five attractive alternatives to Coachella

by Jeff Terich

or the next two weekends, tens of thousands of festival-goers will descend upon the Coachella Valley for three days of live music, debauchery and the occasional nude wizard being Tasered by security. And if you’re hoping to join those revelers as they cultivate their sunburns in front of Tupac holograms, let me stop you right here—it’s way too late for that. Tickets sold out three hours after they went on sale, and though you could drop $450 on tickets from Stubhub, it’s worth asking yourself whether Skrillex is really worth that kind of scratch. (Spoiler alert: he’s not.)

But that’s OK—you don’t have to go to Coachella to take advantage of the spillover festivities taking place in Southern California. Much like enjoying SXSW doesn’t require a platinum badge, you don’t actually have to have Coachella tickets to party.

Here’s a roundup of Coachella parties and related shows you can enjoy—for a lot less money:

L.A. Font

1

Brokechella: One of Coachella’s biggest drawbacks is how costly it is. A weekend pass this year went for $375. But if you’re willing to make a comparable drive for the weekend, you can take in the much more affordable Brokechella on Saturday, April 19, in downtown Los Angeles. The event features a lineup of Southern California bands including L.A. Font, Greenhorse and Kera and the Lesbians. Additionally, there are food trucks, art and other attractions, and it’s so much more affordable than Coachella.

Tickets are only $10 at brokechella.com.

2

Party in Palm Springs: A lot of people make the trek out to Indio (and splurge on a three-day ticket) for Coachella weekend just for the sake of participating in the region’s biggest live-music party. But if it’s a great weekend party you’re looking for, head over to Palm Springs instead. On Friday, April 11, Saguaro Hotel kicks off two weekends of partying with a performance by the U.K.’s FKA Twigs, plus more to be announced at thesaguaro desertweekender.com. Meanwhile, The Ace Hotel is hosting Desert Gold, where Festival NRMAL is curating live sets during both Coachella weekends, and acts such as Kindness will be DJing. Almost all of the live goingson will happen poolside. Go for a dip and soak in some hot beats on the weekends of April 11 through 13 and April 18 through 20. All events are free.

Ages 21 and up. RSVP at acehotel.com/palmsprings.

3

Desert Daze Festival: It turns out there’s another festival with some bigname acts happening in the desert just after Coachella’s stages are dismantled and the festival grounds go back to being polo fields. A West Coast equivalent to Austin Psych Fest, the Desert Daze Festival, on Saturday, April 26, offers a lineup of noisy and psychedelic bands at Sunset Ranch in Mecca, Calif. The lineup includes Liars, Blonde Redhead, The Raveonettes, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Autolux and Disappears. All ages are welcome; tickets start at $45. desertdaze.org.

4

Pappy and Harriet’s: Southern California desert-goers already know about Pappy and Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, a restaurant and music venue situated in the campy ghost town of Pioneertown, just outside of Joshua Tree. There’s not a whole lot else there, but if you’ve got some comfort food, a beer and some great live music, why would you need anything else? On the dates surrounding Coachella, several great bands are playing the venue’s two stages, including Swedish psych-rockers Goat (April 10, indoor stage), alt-rock legends The Afghan Whigs (April 10, outdoor stage) and eclectic Tuareg troupe Tinariwen (April 20, outdoor stage). pappyand harriets.com/events

5

Keep It Local: When all else fails, there’s always the idea of making the Herculean effort of seeing as many Coachella artists as possible when they come to San Diego. Now, a lot of them aren’t, so if you’re hoping to see, say, Outkast or The Replacements, Coachella is the closest they’re coming.

But a few headliners aside, you’ll be able to curate your own local miniCoachella experience without leaving town or spending as much money.

A few artists, like Dum Dum Girls, have already passed through, but there are plenty more on the way. Some of the notable Coachella artists hitting San Diego include City and Colour (Humphreys, April 15), Mogwai (Belly Up, April 15), Temples Drowners (The Casbah, April 16), Bonobo (Belly Up, April 16), Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (The Casbah, April 17), Bombay Bicycle Club (Belly Up, April 17) and Bear Hands (The Casbah, April 18).

FKA Twigs

Blonde Redhead

The Afghan Whigs

28 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Write to jefft@sdcitybeat.comand editor@sdcitybeat.com.

notes from the smoking patio Locals Only Kill Holiday are getting back together. More specifically, both lineups of the band—which formed in San Diego in 1994 and broke up in 2000—are getting back together for one double-reunion show at Soda Bar on May 31.

Steven Andrew Miller, the frontman and only member who’s in both lineups, says the band isn’t commemorating any particular anniversary; the idea of a reunion has simply been circulating among the Kill Holiday, with Steven Andrew Miller second from left. members for a long time.

In recent years, thanks to rampant nostalgia and “It’s pretty random, to be honest,” he says. “Basi- increasingly lucrative opportunities to play big festically, everyone who had ever been in the band has vals, reunions have become a fairly common occurbeen trying to organize a reunion.” rence among punk and indie-rock bands from the In their first incarnation, Kill Holiday played a 1990s. Miller even says the band’s been approached louder and more intense style of post-hardcore, as by booking agencies with offers to play tours. But heard on their Monitor Dependency EP. But a few that doesn’t seem to interest him. Kill Holiday is years later, Miller reconvened with new musicians coming back for one night in May, and, for Miller, and a new sound, inspired by the likes of Ride and that’s enough.

The Smiths, on 1999’s Somewhere Between the Wrong “Some bands get together and start writing new is Right. The only way to make a reunion show work, songs,” he says. “I don’t want to do that. I just want he says, is to split it into two different sets, so that to play these songs for fun. it does justice to both versions. Though, Miller does “It’s just kind of like a big party, you know?” point out one complication of that approach.

—Jeff Terich “The workload all falls on me, because I have to practice with both bands,” he says.

7 must-see Coachella acts So, this week, I’ve already given a thorough rundown of all the best bets for live entertainment during the two Coachella weekends and surrounding dates (see Page 28). But if you’re going to the massive desert festival, then I’d be remiss not to give my recommendations of acts to see—acts, I should add, that won’t be heading to San Diego anytime soon. Here are my recommendations for Coachella 2014: Darkside: This electronic duo of Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington blend psychedelic dance music with blues for an experience that’s less like going to a rave than hearing the house band at a dystopian road house. Epic jams are what they do best.

Future Islands: Baltimore synth-pop trio Future Islands bring the house down at pretty much every show, and they even made an impressive latenight debut on The Late Show with David Letterman this year. Watch frontman Sam Herrington and you’ll be hooked.

The Knife: Swedish duo The Knife, in a live setting, have been likened to a surrealist performanceart troupe. There are elaborate visuals, interpretive dance, bizarre musical instruments—it’s quite the spectacle. And you don’t come to Coachella for earnestness; you come for spectacle.

29 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Motörhead: If you’ve ever enjoyed anything resembling rock ’n’ roll or heavy metal, then you’d be passing up an amazing opportunity by not watching Motörhead. Lemmy and Co. have been thrashing stages for nearly four decades and show no signs of slowing down.

Outkast: This one’s pretty obvious, I suppose, since they’re headlining. But Outkast haven’t performed live together for more than 10 years, so carve out a comfortable spot on the grass to see Andre 3000 and Big Boi reignite the funk flame.

The Replacements: Another obvious one. If we’re talking bands that haven’t been together for a long time, The Mats were disbanded for more than 20 years. And while they did some reunion shows last year, they didn’t hit California. Check off a bucket-list item and hear “Left of the Dial” on the left coast.

Solange: I saw Beyoncé’s li’l sis last year at FYF Fest, and she OutKast was amazing. At Coachella, you should only see artists who can use a giant venue to their advantage, and Solange definitely brings it.

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

if i were u

BY Jeff Terich

Wednesday, April 9 PLAN A: Jeffertitti’s Nile, Jail Weddings, Shiva Trash @ Soda Bar. The Jeffertitti of Jeffertitti’s Nile can often be seen playing bass for Father John Misty, who in turn played drums on J-Nile’s upcoming album, The Electric Hour. That rootsy singersongwriter likely won’t be at this show, but there will be plenty of psychedelic, rockin’ fun. PLAN B: Kodiak, Gone Baby Gone, The End @ The Casbah. Kodiak are some of the best purveyors of eardrum-busting music in this town, their hook-laden hardcore reminiscent of Los Angeles’ The Bronx. So if you’re looking for something louder and heavier, this is the place to be.

BACKUP PLAN: Amigo, Candy Warpop, Tactical Ffever @ Tin Can Ale House.

thought of masked weirdos playing loud music made parents uncomfortable. As it turns out, Ghoul know their way around a hook, and, terrifying or not, their brand of thrash is super-fun to rock out to. PLAN B: Small Disaster @ Seven Grand. Unorthodox trio Small Disaster put a fun pop spin on the concept of a jazz combo. Their sets often involve works by Radiohead, Stereolab and Björk, in addition to some originals.

Pair that with an aged bourbon and you’ve got yourself a hell of a Thursday night.

Friday, April 11

PLAN A: The Dodos, Inspired and the Sleep @ The Loft at UCSD. Last week, I profiled Bay Area indie-rock duo The Dodos, whose new album, Carrier, finds them sounding as tuneful as ever, but with more attention to dense, dreamy arrangements.

They’re known for putting on a great live show, so don’t miss this one. PLAN B: Idols Plague, I Trust You to Kill Me, Titanarum, Ramp Locals @ Tower Bar. If the Ghoul show on Thursday doesn’t provide enough metal for you (there’s never enough metal!), then hop on over to Tower Bar to get a menacing grindcore fix from loThursday, April 10 cals Idols Plague. That should do the trick.

PLAN A: Ghoul, Iron Reagan, Occultist, BACKUP PLAN: Brothers Weiss, JackThey Feed at Night @ Soda Bar. Masked son Price, Diamond Lakes @ Soda Bar. thrash-metal band Ghoul recall a time back in the mid-’80s when heavy metal was still sort of scary. You know, when Satanism Saturday, April 12 frightened suburbanites shitless and the PLAN A: The Stitches, The Stalins of

30 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Sound, Midnight Eagle @ Soda Bar. The Stitches are billed as a “70s style punk band,” but what that really means is they’re just as much a new-wave or power-pop band as they are punk. Big guitars, big hooks and big fun are all part of the package. PLAN B: Hexxers, Northern Tigers, Los Apaches, Fugitive Fleas, DJs Mongo Style, T-Murder, Chango Rey @ Tower Bar. There are a lot of bands on this bill, but, for now, I’ll give you one to focus on: Hexxers. They do surftinged rockabilly with a touch of Sonicsstyle garage-rock mayhem. Kitsch, theatrics and extra-catchy tunes—they’ve got it all.

Enon and Caribou, but his new band, Vertical Scratchers, is yet another interesting direction for the guitarist and songwriter. It finds Schmersal giving into power-pop jangle, and it’s infectious in all the right ways.

Sunday, April 13 PLAN A: “For the Love of Hip-Hop” with Miki Vale, Parker and the Numberman, Spinach, Herbalistics @ Kava Lounge.

Local MC Miki Vale balances laid-back hip-hop and rich R&B in equal measure, able to go back and forth between dropping science and a soulful singing style without missing a beat. Before you head back to the grind on Monday morning, make some time for this Sunday-night show. BACKUP PLAN: Thy Squid, I Trust You to Kill Me, Suffer Along, Groms @ The Che Café.

Monday, April 14 PLAN A: Vertical Scratchers, Octagrape, The Cardielles @ Soda Bar. John Schmersal has one of the most impressive résumés in indie rock, having played with Brainiac,

Mobb Deep

Tuesday, April 15 PLAN A: Mobb Deep, Young Farrow, Parker and the Numberman @ The Casbah. Mobb Deep at The Casbah? Now that’s a hell of a Plan A! The legends of hardcore hip-hop are coming up on the 20th anniversary of their amazing album The Infamous, and hearing its chilling anthems, like “Shook Ones Pt. II,” at an intimate venue should be legendary. PLAN B: Mogwai, Majeure @ Belly Up Tavern. Scottish post-rock icons Mogwai are also playing Coachella, but they were nice enough to make a stop in our city. And let’s be honest: Their intricate, climactic sound works a lot better on a stage like the Belly Up’s anyhow. BACKUP PLAN: Peelander-Z, The Touchies, Pleasure Fix @ Soda Bar.

April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 31

HOT! NEW! FRESH! Dizzy Wright (Epicentre, 5/4), Roach Gigz (Porter’s Pub, 5/10), Thundercat (The Irenic, 5/11), Early Man (Til-Two Club, 5/15), Red Fang (Porter’s Pub, 5/18), Protomartyr (The Hideout, 5/25), Pete Yorn (Casbah, 6/1), King Buzzo (Casbah, 6/10), Guided by Voices (BUT, 6/14), The King Khan and BBQ Show (Soda Bar, 6/30), Deafheaven (Casbah, 7/1), The Fray (Open Air Theatre, 7/10), Quiet Riot (HOB, 7/10), Cloud Nothings (Soda Bar, 7/11), La Roux (HOB, 7/12), The Antlers (BUT, 7/16), Slightly Stoopid (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 7/26), Pity Sex (Che Café, 7/27), The Sonics (Irenic, 8/16), Rascal Flatts (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 8/17), Peter Hook and the Light (HOB, 11/26).

GET YER TICKETS Ghost B.C. (HOB, 4/26), George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic (HOB, 5/1), Danny Brown (Porter’s Pub, 5/2), Goblin (HOB, 5/2), Tokyo Police Club (BUT, 5/2), Riff Raff (HOB, 5/7), Tom Jones (HOB, 5/8), Old 97s (BUT, 5/8), ‘Channel 933 Summer Kickoff’ w/ Fall Out Boy, Tiesto, Paramore (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 5/9), Against Me! (HOB, 5/23), YG (HOB, 5/24), Backstreet Boys, Avril Lavigne (Viejas Arena, 5/28), Eagulls (Soda Bar, 5/28), Lady Gaga (Viejas Arena, 6/2), Rodriguez (North Park Theatre, 6/3), Wanda Jackson (Casbah, 6/7), Little Hurricane (HOB, 6/7), The Both (BUT, 6/15), EMA (Casbah, 6/29), Devo (BUT, 6/30), Lee Fields and the Expressions

32 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

(Casbah, 6/30), Peter Murphy (BUT, 7/2), Kiss, Def Leppard (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 7/6), Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band (Humphreys, 7/11), Chris Isaak (Humphreys, 7/16), Arctic Monkeys (Open Air Theatre, 8/6), Nine Inch Nails, Soundgarden (Sleep Train Amphitheatre, 8/21), The Beach Boys (Humphreys, 10/5), Fleetwood Mac (Viejas Arena, 12/2).

April Wednesday, April 9 Kodiak at The Casbah.

Thursday, April 10 Tyrone Wells at The Griffin. Ghoul at Soda Bar.

Friday, April 11 Super Diamond at Belly Up Tavern.

Slaughterhouse at Porter’s Pub. The Dodos at The Loft at UCSD.

Saturday, April 12 Super Diamond at Belly Up Tavern.

Sunday, April 13 Break Anchor at Soda Bar. John Scofield at The Loft.

Monday, April 14 Vertical Scratchers at Soda Bar.

Tuesday, April 15 Mobb Deep at The Casbah. Peelander-Z at Soda Bar. Mogwai at Belly Up Tavern. City and Colour at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay.

Wednesday, April 16 Bonobo at Belly Up Tavern. Chrome Sparks at Soda Bar.

Thursday, April 17 Bombay Bicycle Club at Belly Up Tavern. Cypress Hill at House of Blues.

Bryan Ferry at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay. Jon Spencer Blues Explosion at The Casbah.

Saturday, April 19 Caravan Palace at Belly Up Tavern.

Sunday, April 20 40 Oz. to Freedom at Belly Up Tavern.

Leopold and His Fiction at The Casbah.

Monday, April 21 Deadphones at The Loft.

Tuesday, April 22 Thou at Che Café. Gondwana at House of Blues.

Wednesday, April 23 Big Mountain at Belly Up Tavern. The Men at The Casbah. Jeff Bridges at Belly Up Tavern.

Thursday, April 24 The Alarm at Brick by Brick. The Underachievers at Porter’s Pub.

Friday, April 25 CunninLynguists at Porter’s Pub. Night Beats at Soda Bar.

Saturday, April 26 Chinchilla at The Casbah. Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers at Belly Up Tavern.

Dillinger Escape Plan at Porter’s Pub. Ghost B.C. at House of Blues.

Sunday, April 27 Reignwolf at The Casbah. Jim Jones Revue at Soda Bar.

Monday, April 28 DIIV at The Casbah. O.A.R. at Belly Up Tavern. David J at Soda Bar.

Tuesday, April 29 O.A.R. at Belly Up Tavern.

Wednesday, April 30 Howler at Soda Bar. Michael Nesmith at Belly Up Tavern.

May Thursday, May 1 Bleeding Rainbow at Soda Bar. George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic at House of Blues.

Friday, May 2 Danny Brown at Porter’s Pub. Goblin at House of Blues. Tokyo Police Club at Belly Up Tavern. Eukaryst at Soda Bar. Circle Takes the Square at The Che Café.

Saturday, May 3 Unwritten Law at House of Blues. Step Brothers at Porter’s Pub.

rCLUBSr 710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave, Pacific Beach. 710bc.com. Wed: Open mic, open jam. Thu: Karaoke. Fri: Whetherman (5 p.m.); Devastators, Indubious (9 p.m.). Sat: Zig Zag Jones. Sun: Karaoke.

Tue: DJ Non Profit.

98 Bottles, 2400 Kettner Blvd. Ste. 110, Little Italy. 98bottlessd.com. Thu: Sometimes Julie. Fri: The Benedetti Trio. Sat: Sunday Hustle. Sun: The Matt Smith Neu Jazz Trio.

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

Wed: ‘Disco 4 Dancing’ w/ DJs Pro-K, Karma, Dizkotek, Panda. Thu: ‘DIVE’ w/ DJs ALA, Mikeytown. Fri: DJ Junior the DiscoPunk. Sat: ‘Juicy’ w/ Mike Czech.

Sun: ‘Sunday Sonic Chill’ w/ DJ Shermz.

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave, Downtown. americancomedyco. com. Wed: Cort McCown. Thu: Kevin Shea. Fri-Sat: Heather McDonald. Sun: Dominic Dierkees. Tue: Open mic.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St, Downtown. facebook.com/BangBangSanDiego. Fri: Jon Dadon, Halo, Justin Baule. Sat: Paluka, Cris Herrera.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St, North Park. barpink.com. Wed: ‘20XX Party’. Thu: Smoke Season, Jacuzzi Hi-Dive. Fri: Euphoria Brass Band. Sat: The Milkcrates DJs. Sun: Rat Sabbath, DJ Ratty. Mon: ‘Wreckord Mania’ w/ DJ Nate ‘Macho Man’ Bohy, Queen Aida, The @Largester.

Bassmnt, 919 Fourth Ave, Downtown. bassmntsd.com. Thu: Paul Van Dyk. Fri: Don Diablo. Sat: Audien.

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

Thu: Aquile. Fri: Fish and The Seaweeds.

Sat: Mike Myrdal Band. Sun: Sando.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave, Solana Beach. bellyup.com. Wed: Foster the People, Young and Sick (sold out).

Thu: Netsky, Ghost M.D., MC Ridda, Collagey. Fri: Super Diamond, Betamaxx.

Sat: Super Diamond, Trial By Fire (sold out). Sun: Thunder Road. Mon: Cage the Elephant, Juliette Lewis (sold out). Tue: Mogwai, Majeure.

Bluefoot Bar & Lounge, 3404 30th St, North Park. bluefootsd.com. Fri: Kembang Sunda.

Boar Cross’n, 390 Grand Ave, Carlsbad. boarcrossn.net. Thu: Indubious, City Reef. Fri: ‘Club Musae’. Sat: Yovee.

Brass Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave, Hillcrest. thebrassrailsd.com. Thu: ‘Opium’ w/ DJ Simon Taylor. Fri: ‘Wired’. Sat: ‘Sabado en Fuego’ w/ DJs XP, KA. Sun: ‘Noche Romantica’ w/ Daisy Salinas, DJ Sebastian La Madrid. Mon: ‘Manic Monday’ w/ DJs Junior the Disco Punk, XP. Cafe Sevilla, 353 Fifth Ave, Downtown. cafesevilla.com. Wed: Aro di Santi. Thu: Malamana. Fri: Joeff and Co. Sat-Sun: Aragon y Royal.

Comedy Palace, 8878 Clairemont Mesa Blvd, Clairemont. thecomedypalace.com.

Fri-Sat: Zoltan.

Comedy Store, 916 Pearl St, La Jolla. lajolla.thecomedystore.com.

Fri-Sat: Chris Porter.

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

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April 9, 2014 · San Diego CityBeat · 33

Wed: Kyle Myers. Thu: Steph Johnson.

Fri: Allison Adams Tucker Quartet. Sat: Gilbert Castellanos and The Park West Ensemble. Sun: Patrick Berrogain.

Dirk’s Nightclub, 7662 Broadway, Lemon Grove. dirksniteclub.com. Fri-Sat: FX5.

Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Mission Bay. dizzyssandiego.com. Wed: Chihiro Yamanaka. Fri: Kid Songs.

El Dorado Bar, 1030 Broadway, Downtown. eldoradobar.com. Wed: ‘The Tighten Up’. Thu: ‘Smiths Night’. Fri: ‘Posse on Broadway’.

Epicentre, 8450 Mira Mesa Blvd, Mira Mesa. epicentreconcerts.org. Fri: Nothinghead, Chinchin, Optometrist, Riboflavin, Yung Bros. Sat: Everybody Knows, PlayFight, Still The Skyí Ûs Limit, Resonance, AndrewJustin, Honorable Mentions.

F6ix, 526 F St., Downtown, Downtown. f6ixsd.com. Fri: DJ XP. Sun: DJ Brett Bodley.

Fluxx, 500 Fourth Ave, Downtown. fluxxsd.com. Thu: ‘IDGAF’ w/ Bare. Fri: DJ ERock. Sat: DJ Sid Vicious.

Gallagher’s, 5040 Newport Ave, Ocean Beach. 619-222-5303. Wed: Scott Pemberton Trio, Mudgrass. Thu: Kingz Land, DJ Reefah, TRC Soundsystem. Fri: Black Market III, DJ R2. Sat: Ottly Mercer, DJ Chelu. Sun: So Cal Vibes.

Hard Rock Hotel, 207 Fifth Ave, Downtown. hardrockhotelsd.com. Thu: Sundrop Electric, St. Cloud Sleepers. Fri: Problem. Sat: ‘Audio Playhouse’ w/ Myron Eugene, DJ Dynamiq.

Henry’s Pub, 618 Fifth Ave, Downtown. henryspub.com. Wed: Johnny Tarr, DJ Christopher London. Thu: Mark Fisher, DJ Yodah. Fri: ‘Good Times’. Sat: ‘Rock

Star Saturday’. Mon: ‘Kinetic Soul’. Tue: Big City Dawgs.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave, Downtown. houseofblues.com/sandiego. Thu: Tyrone Wells, Ty Mayfield. Fri: Howie Day; Turnpike Troubadours, Low Volts (side stage). Mon: Josh Damigo.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd, Midtown. kavalounge.com. Thu: Alpha Pup. Fri: Mimi Zulu. Sun: Miki Vale.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave, Coronado. mcpspub.com. Wed: 3 Guys Will Move U. Thu: Tone Cookin’. Fri: 4-Way Street. Sat: The Upshots.

Onyx Room / Thin, 852 Fifth Ave, Downtown. onyxroom.com. Fri: ‘Rumba Lounge’. Tue: Rashondra Angelle.

Rich’s, 1051 University Ave, Hillcrest. richssandiego.com. Wed: DJ Marcel.

Thu: Von Kiss. Fri: DJs Dirty Kurty, Will Z. Sat: DJ Taj. Sun: DJ Paulo Ramirez.

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

Thu: The Liz Grace Swing Project. Fri: Surefire Soul Ensemble. Sat: Homesick Hitchers.

Seven Grand, 3054 University Ave, North Park. sevengrandbars.com/sd.

Thu: Small Disaster. Fri: Mafard. Sat: 50 Sticks of Dynamite, Hit Dog Hollar.

fertitti’s Nile, Jail Weddings, Shiva Trash.

Thu: Ghoul, Iron Reagan, Occultist, They Feed at Night. Fri: Brothers Weiss, Jackson Price, Diamond Lakes. Sat: The Stitches, The Stalins of Sound, Midnight Eagle. Sun: Break Anchor, Plane Without a Pilot, Ash Williams. Mon: Vertical Scratchers, Octagrape, The Cardielles.

Tue: Peelander-Z, The Touchies, Pleasure Fix. SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd, Midway. somasandiego.com. Fri: Fall City Fall, Wrath Of Vesuvius, A Truth Betrayed, Of Hope and Heresy, Roar Like Me!, Shadow Of The Martyr. Sat: Millionaire Beach Bums, Parkway Avenue, Rockin’ Rangers, The Four Elements, Sunday Evening.

Stage Bar & Grill, 762 Fifth Ave, Downtown. stagesaloon.com. Wed: Mark Fisher and Gaslamp Guitars. Thu: Van Roth.

Fri: Disco Pimps, Jetpack Mojo. Sat: Hott Mess, Trunk Slam, DJ Miss Dust. Sun: ‘Funhouse/Seismic’.

The Bancroft, 9143 Campo Rd, Spring Valley. 619-469-2337. Wed: Karaoke.

Thu: ‘Stratus Soundwave’ w/DJ Dharma Dolly. Fri: Demons Over Easy. Sat: DEA, Piglife, Die Raldo, Piss Regardless, Neverland Ranch Hands, Hog Boss.

Side Bar, 536 Market St, Downtown. sidebarsd.com. Thu: ‘Divino Thursday’.

Fri: Joey Jimenez. Sat: Epic Twelve.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd, Midtown. casbahmusic.com. Wed: Kodiak, Gone Baby Gone, The End. Thu: Smooth Harbor Yacht Club, DJ Claire. Fri: The Beautiful View, Takahashi, Neighbors to the North, The Paragraphs, Subsurfer.

Sat: Nashville Ramblers, Schitzophonics, The Scouse Gits. Mon: Proud Mary, Saint Shameless, Vaya Futuro, Ape Machine.

Tue: Mobb Deep, Young Farrow, Parker and the Numberman.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. sodabarmusic.com. Wed: Jef-

The Che Cafe, UCSD campus, La Jolla. thechecafe.blogspot.com. Sun: Thy

Shakedown Bar, 3048 Midway Drive, Point Loma. theshakedownsd.com. Thu: Fang, G.O.D. Fri: Slut Machine, Voyage of Slaves, Monolith, 13 Wolves. Sat: Red Wizard, 13 Angels, Lizardfish.

34 · San Diego CityBeat · April 9, 2014

Squid, I Trust You To Kill Me, Suffer Along, Groms. Mon: SiLM, Half Shadow, Space Missionary. Tue: I Am the Avalanche, Diamond Youth, Turnover.

The Hideout, 3519 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. thehideoutsd.com. Fri: ‘Bitch Please’.

The Loft @ UCSD, Price Center East, La Jolla. theloft.ucsd.edu. Thu: Saint Motel.

Fri: The Dodos. Sat: Tiger Heroes, Chasing Norman, Santana Brothers. Sun: John Scofield Uberjam Band.

The Merrow, 1271 University Ave, Hillcrest. rubyroomsd.com. Thu: Candy Warpop, Burnt, Hakura. Fri: Everlong, Blink-180TRUE, Hey! Ho! Let’s Go!. Sat: ‘Lush’ w/ JoshthebeaR. The Office, 3936 30th St, North Park. officebarinc.com. Wed: ‘Dub Dynamite’.

Thu: ‘No Limits’. Fri: ‘After Hours’. Sat: ‘Strictly Business’.

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd, City Heights. tiltwoclub.com. Fri: Easy Groove All Stars, The Lexicons, Mochilero All Stars. Sat: Jason Lee and the RIP Tides, The Fink Bombs, Kon Tiki. Mon: Karaoke.

Tin Can Ale House, 1863 Fifth Ave, Bankers Hill. thetincan1.wordpress.com.

Wed: Amigo, Candy Warpop, Tactical Ffever. Thu: Mrs. Henry, Shawn James and the Shapeshifters, Luke Johnson. Fri: Artifact, Slow Season, Loom. Sat: Chica Diabla, Mitten, Focke Wolves. Mon: ‘Tin Can Country Club’ w/ Gayle Skidmore.

Tue: Kid Wilderness, Joe Clarke Band, Dangerdanger.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St, Bay Park. tioleos.com. Wed: Christopher Dale. Thu: Blue Largo. Fri: Lundeen, Burton, Bayou Bros. Sat: Sol Sacrifice. Tue: Michele

Lundeen.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave, City Heights. thetowerbar.com. Fri: Idols Plague, I Trust You To Kill Me, Titanarum, Ramp Locals. Sat: Hexxers, Northern Tigers, Los Apaches, The Fugitive Fleas.

Tue: Sound Lupus, The Cobra Las, The Nearly Deads, Quad IX. Turquoise, 873 Turquoise St, Pacific Beach. theturquoise.com/wordpress.

Wed: Kevin and Eduardo (4 p.m.); Tomcat Courtney (7 p.m.). Thu: Mark Hall (4 p.m.); Jade Visions Jazz Trio (7 p.m.). Fri: Gabriela Aparicio (4 p.m.); Tomcat Courtney (7 p.m.). Sat: Zak Lipton Trio (4 p.m.); Tomcat Courtney (7 p.m.). Sun: Sounds Like Four (4 p.m.); Blue 44 (7 p.m.). Mon: David Hermsen (4 p.m.); Stefanie Schmitz (7 p.m.). Tue: Stefanie Schmitz (4 p.m.); Grupo Globo (7 p.m.).

Ux31, 3112 University Ave, North Park. u31bar.com. Wed: Cobra Heart, Viices, Prayers, Pal and Drome. Thu: ‘Revive 619’. Fri: DJ 1979.

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

Wed: DJ Qenoe. Thu: DJ Clean Cut. Fri: DJ Billy the Kid. Sat: DJ Wil Hernandez.

Tue: Mike Delgado.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St, South Park. whistlestopbar.com. Wed: ‘Wu-Tang Wednesday’ w/ DJ Cros One. Fri: Two Wolves, Low Volts. Sat: ‘Booty Bassment’ w/ DJs Dimitri, Rob. Winstons, 1921 Bacon St, Ocean Beach. winstonsob.com. Wed: Roots Covenant, DJ Carlos Culture. Thu: ‘Subdvsn’. Fri: Project:out of Bounds, Arise Roots, DJ Carlos Culture. Sat: Ocean Boogie. Mon: Electric Waste Band. Tue: The New Division, PRGRM, Pal and Drome.

Proud sponsor: Pacific Nature Tours

Ink Well Xwords by Ben Tausig

Across 1. “Un momento, ___ favor” 4. Sites for skateboarding tricks 9. Mugged, say 14. Google Maps suggestion, for short 15. It may be poached 16. Crosswise, on a ship 17. Anthem contraction 18. Woman with a killer voice?

19. [Turn to the next pg.]

20. Refreshments at many a 57-Across, represented in two of this puzzle’s corners 23. “Invisible Man” author 24. Bearish?

26. Fifths, on musical scales 27. “___ 99 problems ...”

30. Lousy ballplayer, to an old-timey fan 31. Fish and chips fish 34. NBA or NFL part: Abbr.

36. Units of wax that aren’t actually wax 37. Refreshments at many a 57-Across, represented in the other two corners 40. Nation where most Mormons and Scientologists live 42. Sperm’s destination 43. “Roger, Rémy” 44. Muscle exercised by push-ups, casually 45. Modernist composer Charles 47. Brazilian football megastar with a reduplicated name 51. Plants from which chocolate is derived 54. ___ Meow (Internet meme cat with extremely long fur) 57. Event featuring new work, and where the items in the corners might be found 60. Put on

Last week’s answers

61. Words before lunch?

62. [You should try some of this grass] 63. Pixar film with a longbow-shooting protagonist 64. Caesar’s tongue 65. Very much unlike the OED 66. Outright 67. One of Puff Daddy’s clothing labels 68. Say that this clue is 69-Across, say

Down 1. Alien abduction story instruments 2. Verdi opera based on a Shakespeare play 3. Throw the dice again 4. Puts on the line 5. Dispatch boat 6. Angel in the Book of Mormon 7. Bk. intro 8. Harmonize 9. Bird, notably 10. Instruments with trilling 11. Like a car that’s safe, gets good gas mileage, etc.

12. Devoured 13. DDS alternative (they essentially mean the same thing) 21. San Jose company in the Dow Jones Industrial Average 22. Quarterback’s call 25. Half of moms?

28. Bearded garden dwarf 29. Neanderthal 32. Brand sold at Bed Bath & Beyond 33. Dream up 35. Chinese-American actress Lucy 37. Casino game for Bond 38. Kia Sportage, e.g.

39. Big name in lenses 40. Bars that allow you to buy a drink, e.g.

41. Ritzy Jersey Shore town 46. Enterprise engineer 48. Muppet drummer in Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem 49. Jedi Master Obi-Wan 50. Noted beard grower of 2001 52. Advil alternative 53. More ancient 55. Word before nerve or disc 56. Sierra ___ 58. What one might get typecast in 59. Chinese cabbage?

60. ___ Ghraib (Iraqi prison)

A pair of tickets for a 4.5 or 8 hour Pacific Nature Tour will be awarded weekly. Email a picture of your answers to crossword@sdcitybeat.com or fax it to 619-325-1393. Limit one win per person per 30 days.

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