San Diego CityBeat • May 3, 2017

2 · San Diego CityBeat · may 3, 2017

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 3

UP FRONT | FROM THE EDITOR

Wake up

A

few weeks ago, I posted a rather insensi- sponsibility to San Diego to make sure racial tensions tive Facebook post about my annoyance don’t boil over, but that doesn’t mean that she should with the United Airlines incident. It was speculate as to what, exactly, was going on inside Semy contention, at the time, that the beat- lis’ mind before police shot him to death. Is it possible ing and dragging of Dr. David Dao was being vastly that Selis’ actions were in no way racially motivated? overhyped on social media and that we should all be Sure, that is possible, but why didn’t he just shoot his more focused on matters that were, in my estimation, gun in the air and wait for the cops to arrive? Why did he look at two Asian people during the shooting and more important. tell them they should leave?

Boy, did I get it on that one.

It could be reasonable to speculate that Selis also In hindsight, it was an ignorant statement on my part. Initially, I was annoyed at the outpouring of suffered from what sociologist and masculinity expert sympathy for a man I saw as being, well, an uncoop- Dr. Michael Kimmel refers to as “aggrieved entitleerative nuisance. But as more and more of my friends ment.” It’s not off base to point out that many white of color engaged with me, some of whom write for men feel entitled, whether consciously or subconthis very paper, the more I saw what they saw. I did sciously, and that it’s not uncommon for white men, not take into account the racial undertones and ste- particularly in the U.S., to lash out if they feel they reotypes that come with being an Asian man in this have not gotten what they expect. This, says Kimmel, country. As I put it to one of CityBeat’s writers, “even leads to a feeling of humiliation, which is particularly people who consider themselves woke can get a little dangerous. Put simply, if a man feels entitled and he FACEBOOK doesn’t get what he expects, that is a drowsy sometimes.” recipe for humiliation, resentment and, So I found myself increasingly dispirsometimes, violence. ited and disturbed by the statements And from what we know about Selis, made by San Diego Police Chief Shelhe was indeed at the end of his rope, a ley Zimmerman when she said that race mixture of shame and humiliation that played no factor in the horrific shooting resulted from a breakup and personal spree in La Jolla on Sunday. debt that he manifested, like so many “These victims were just in the viwhite men before him, into an act of hacinity when he committed this horrible tred and anger. I also don’t doubt that tragedy,” said Zimmerman, referring to he was in pain and, as much as some Peter Selis, the 49-year-old man who people might not want to hear this, my shot eight people, one fatally, at a pool heart goes out to his family who will party inside a UTC apartment complex.

Monique Clark have to live the rest of their lives wonWhen it was over, Selis had shot four dering what they could have done to prevent this.

Black women, two Black men and one Latino man.

And then there’s Monique Clark. A Black mother of Because of my journalistic mindset, I’m instinctively inclined not to label something a hate crime three whose children will never get to see her again, until there is evidence to support that it was, which all because a white man with a gun decided he’d had is what makes Zimmerman’s statement so irrespon- enough. And if we’re to believe Chief Zimmerman, she sible. It was entirely too early to declaratively make was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Yeah, sure. such a statement. There is no evidence that would Now, I can only speak for myself when I say that suggest that the shooting was racially motivated, but while it’s unlikely we’ll ever know what was going there is no evidence to indicate that it was not.

There is also a difference between a crime being through Selis’ mind when he decided to open fire, but racially motivated and racially charged. The investi- right now, we have to be honest with ourselves: This gation is far from complete and for the chief of police shooting has as much to do with his race as it does with to make such a statement is pre-emptive. This is the the race of the victims. Sure, we can just chalk this up same police chief who, just a few days earlier, blamed to being a senseless tragedy, but we can’t simply ignore the media and community scrutiny for the depart- race in this matter. A Black woman is dead. And a white man with a gun killed her. Do the math. Wake up. ment’s inability to hire enough police officers.

Zimmerman saying that Selis’ actions weren’t ra —Seth Combs cially motivated are simply a way of controlling the narrative. To the chief’s credit, she does have a re- Write to seth.combs@sdcitybeat.com This issue of CityBeat is perfectly content with a cheese sandwich and a yurt.

Volume 15 • Issue 40 EDITOR Seth Combs MUSIC EDITOR Jeff Terich WEB EDITOR Ryan Bradford ART DIRECTOR Carolyn Ramos ASSOCIATE EDITOR Torrey Bailey COLUMNISTS Aaryn Belfer Edwin Decker Minda Honey John R. Lamb Alex Zaragoza

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 5

UP FRONT | LETTERS

RULE HATERS Dear Mr. Combs: In your editorial of April 26 [“Someone, Anyone”], you admonish “anyone in local politics” to “step up to the plate” to end homelessness in San Diego. Unfortunately, readers looking for your proposed solutions to this difficult social problem will be disappointed. Maybe the answer is to stage a demonstration, throw a brick through a liquor store window and get drunk on the plunder while waving an “I hate Trump!” sign. That seems to be the most popular action on the left lately.

I spent over 40 years working in downtown San Diego and, since I like to talk to people, I got to know quite a few homeless individuals. Their reasons for being on the street fall into a few discrete categories: Temporary financial reverses, alcoholism, drug addiction, severe mental illness and/or personality disorder and unwillingness to comply with any “rules” whether governmental or social. Obviously, the easiest to help are those who are homeless due to loss of income, since they often have job skills and some support system. Our most prominent homeless program, Father Joe’s Villages, has immediate solutions for these folks including meals, shelter, school for the kids, medical care and help with employment. The success rate in this group is high, but this cannot be said for the other homeless sectors. People suffering from addiction and mental illness are often very hard to help.

Before we closed our office, my wife and

6 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

I dealt almost daily with “Judy,” a homeless lady who spent most of her time at a corner near the train station. “Judy” suffers from severe psychosis. She was not violent or aggressive in any way, but was extremely paranoid and unable to cope with any of the tasks of daily life. We gave her money but that did no good to get her off the street and only contributed to enabling her to stay there. At different times we tried to connect her to three different agencies to get her help, but she consistently refused that help. Because she was not disruptive or dangerous, she did not qualify for any kind of involuntary commitment. “Judy” related that she had been raped on the street several times, but, out of concern for her civil rights (a legitimate and valid consideration) she remains on the street without assistance or protection.

There is one group that I call “rule haters.” These people are unaddicted [sic] and not mentally ill. They find clever ways to survive and sometimes prey on weaker, impaired and addicted homeless. These people seldom go to shelters because there are rules there against drinking and smoking and their behavior is monitored. One of them once told me that he only went to a shelter when the temperature dropped below 45 degrees or it was pouring rain. From my experience, these “rule haters” who are socially homeless are a small minority of those on the street, so debate about the morality of their choices is irrelevant to solving the overall problem. Except for the small group of physically and mentally sound “rule hat-

ers,” it is patently false to say that “people are homeless because they want to be!” [Editor’s note: Not sure who he’s quoting here, because there’s no way it’s me.]

Of course, there are homeless people who do not fit clearly in any of these categories, or, can be placed in several. This does not make it easier to help them.

Those who help homeless people professionally agree that the problem will not be solved simply by providing housing, other than for those on the street strictly for financial reasons. Getting long-time homeless people permanently off the street is a difficult and frustrating task and most agencies who try to do it have only a few successes in a given year. Sometimes, even those “rehabilitated” people appear back on the street. The amount of money spent in a program does not seem to matter much. The well-funded programs often do not have any better success rate than those that are underfunded and just scraping by.

So, exactly what is “anyone in office” supposed to do to get the homeless off the street in a legal and humane manner even if the public is willing to fund the plan? Let’s hear your solutions and your commitment to perform real work to advance your proposals! You might keep in mind that there are many dedicated people, both in government and in private agencies who do this difficult work every day.

How many hours do you volunteer each week to help them? Will you “step up to the plate?”

Steven S. Kane La Mesa

TABLE OF CONTENTS UP FRONT From the Editor................................4 Letters ..............................................6 Opinion: Homelessness.................. 7 Spin Cycle.........................................8 At The Intersection.........................9 Sordid Tales.................................... 10

FOOD & DRINK The World Fare............................... 11 Anatomy of a Cocktail Scene........ 12 Final Draught..................................13

THINGS TO DO The Short List................................. 14 Calendar of Events................... 14-15

ARTS & CULTURE Theater........................................... 16 FEATURE: Chula Vista.............. 17-22 Seen Local......................................23 Film........................................... 24-26

MUSIC FEATURE: At The Drive-In............ 27 Notes from the Smoking Patio......28 If I Were U......................................29 Concerts & Clubs.....................30-33

LAST WORDS Advice Goddess.............................34 COVER PHOTO BY TORREY BAILEY

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MICHAEL MCCONNELL

UP FRONT | OPINION

Will they make a difference?

A hard look at some of the new resources and initiatives that aim to fight homelessness

By Michael McConnell

I

t seems like a new effort to tackle homelessness in San Diego is being announced monthly. With the different terminology, crossover and multiple agencies and entities coordinating the initiatives—keeping track of all of them and if/how they work together can be confusing. In an attempt to break through the clutter, let’s detail some of the major initiatives that have or should have been in the news.

STATEWIDE INITIATIVES • No Place Like Home “No Place Like Home” is a statewide plan that complements local efforts. Funded by the Mental Health Services Act—a 1 percent tax on millionaires—the initiative will award approximately $150 million from the state to San Diego County to build *permanent supportive housing for people with a severe mental illness (SMI). Given San Diego County’s notoriously low vacancy rate, these new dedicated units will remove the struggle of finding actual housing units to get people off the street. *Permanent supportive housing is longterm community-based housing, which includes supportive services for homeless persons with disabilities.

• CalWorks Rapid Rehousing Program CalWorks is a public assistance program focused on helping families achieve selfsufficiency. The new *rapid rehousing component provides assistance to quickly rehouse families that have become homeless, so longer term self-sufficiency goals can be achieved. While rapid rehousing programs are relatively new, they have been successfully reducing homelessness in communities across the country, including Houston and Orlando. San Diego County is receiving

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Homeless encampment in the East Village $2 million worth of new rapid rehousing funding through this program. *Rapid rehousing focuses on providing short-term rental assistance and supportive services to help families and individuals quickly move out of homelessness and into permanent housing.

COUNTYWIDE INITIATIVES • Project One for All San Diego County’s “Project One for All” started last year with the goal of providing housing and services for every homeless person with SMI. This initiative is funded by the Mental Health Services Act—similarly to “No Place Like Home”—and is projected to permanently house at least 1,250 people over the next five years. The county expects to invest $16 million in the first year, rising to $19 million in year two.

• Whole Person Wellness Program San Diego County has recently been approved by the state to create a pilot program through the federal Medicaid insurance program. The “Whole Person Care” pilot, locally known as “Whole Person Wellness,” will target 1,000 people who are high-cost users of Medicaid resources and have a serious mental illness, substance use disorder or chronic health conditions. Over five years, $46 million will be allocated to the program and will primarily pay for care coordination, housing navigation and tenancy supports.

•Father Joe’s Villages Proposal Recently, Father Joe’s Villages released a plan to build 2,000 units of affordable and permanent supportive housing. The plan creates a blueprint for leveraging $531 million of federal, state, local and philanthropic funding to develop properties the organization already owns and acquire ho-

tels throughout the region to rehabilitate into housing.

CITY OF SAN DIEGO INITIATIVES • Mayor’s Office Proposal Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s office has recently become involved and is heavily focused on adding hundreds of additional shelter beds to San Diego’s existing inventory, but has yet to release a plan or funding for the idea. His office’s longer-term idea is to create a Support Service Assessment Center and have released a Request for Qualification from agencies that would be interested in outlining, developing and running the project.

• Housing First The San Diego Housing Commission announced the “Housing First-San Diego Plan” in late 2014. The plan initially focused on creating permanent supportive housing through the dedication of $30 million and 1,500 housing vouchers, with the goal of housing up to 1,500 homeless individuals and families. The first new housing to result from this program is Cypress Apartments off Imperial Avenue downtown, which will be completed this year and provide permanent housing and supportive services for 62 people from our streets.

“Housing Our Heroes,” a landlord outreach and rapid rehousing-focused initiative for veterans, is part of Housing First and was launched in year two. Recently, the next phase was proposed which would include an estimated investment of almost $80 million to go toward additional permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing and expansion of the landlord engagement program. It also would introduce a diversion program to keep people from entering homelessness and expand outreach

onto our streets to help people where they are—all key pieces to an effective system. To date, the initiative has housed more than 600 veterans.

All these additional resources are on top of a $100 million-plus annual investment that supports a maze of 8000-plus beds and a vast array of services that make up our regional homeless service system.

NEW LEADERSHIP Finally, there is a new sheriff in town.

Supervisor Ron Roberts has taken the reins of the newly enhanced regional body that is responsible for overseeing the region’s homelessness crisis response system. As the chair of the Regional Task Force on the Homeless (RTFH), he will have plenty of help. San Diego City Councilmember Chris Ward will be his vice-chair and 28 other key stakeholders sit on the board, ready to assist. The RTFH has also hired Focus Strategies, a highly-regarded consulting firm, to develop a road map forward.

CONCLUSION The results of San Diego’s annual homeless count conducted in January were released last week. Despite all the efforts of the past, the number of people who were living in shelters or on the streets grew to 9,116—a five percent increase countywide compared to the previous year. Breaking this out further, the unsheltered homeless population increased 14 percent countywide, while in downtown San Diego the number of people living on the streets surged 27 percent.

We remain hopeful that this new leadership and additional resources will be the breakthrough that we have been waiting for, but it’s too early to know.

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 7

UP FRONT | OPINION

SPIN

CYCLE

JOHN R. LAMB

“I’m like radioactive right now, right?”

If once you forfeit the confidence of your fellow-citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem.

H

—Abraham Lincoln

e lives alone in a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment just a short walk from Los Angeles City Hall. He jogs, tends to a modest balcony garden and plays old showtunes and songs by his “good friend” Carole King on a Casio electronic piano. He’s taken up cooking as well, and boasts about his lasagna.

Two years of combined house arrest here and self-imposed probationary exile in L.A. kept former San Diego mayor Bob Filner pretty much muzzled.

“If I said something a judge didn’t like,” he said before uncharacteristically cutting himself off. “They have complete control over you when you’re on proba-

tion. Who knows how they’re going to think?”

How people think about him is very much on his mind these days, Filner said in a wide-ranging two-hour interview he granted after Spin Cycle agreed to read his new, self-published book, Trumping Trump: Making Democrats Progressive Again.

With his parole now up, so is his antenna—and it’s searching for any signal that his voice, his ideas and his presence will serve any future purpose following his highly publicized fall from public office in 2013 when he resigned after a slew of sexual-harassment allegations.

Two months later, he would plead guilty to a felony—false imprisonment—and two misdemeanor battery charges. He was sentenced to three months of house arrest and three years of

8 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

probation, which ended in December.

Now legally unshackled to speak his mind, he knows many people couldn’t care less what he has to say—particularly in the San Diego region, where he spent 30 years in politics and two decades as a U.S. congressman.

“I’m like radioactive right now, right?” he said, when asked if he’s read the social-media vitriol directed toward him since the book emerged. “These people have no idea who I am, they have no idea what happened, and they keep up this hatred four years later.”

His voice trails off momentarily, and Spin half expects to hear a muffled “Serenity now!” from the other end of the line. But instead he explains that he left San Diego because of his polarizing personality. “I mean, I would walk down the street,” he recalled about post-resignation citizen encounters, “and half of them would hug me and say, ‘You’re still my mayor,’ and half would want to shoot me... I didn’t want to put people through that.”

He chose “isolation,” as he called it, in Los Angeles because it was close enough to San Diego to tend to legal matters and reconnect with family members (the book is dedicated to his two children and two ex-wives), but

JOHN R. LAMB

Former mayor Bob Filner wants his progressive voice back, but will anyone listen? far enough away to deal with “the psychological stuff” in relative obscurity. “I knew I’d be anonymous here,” he said.

It also gave him time to write the book, part confessional—the first chapter is titled, “What Was I Thinking?”—but mostly a tutorial of lessons learned during his tenure in Congress. It closes with a sample of Filner’s “100 Laws of Politics,” concluding with “Never forget the three Bs: Be brief, Be personal—and Be gone.”

“My years in office had made me arrogant and drunk with power—and I am deeply ashamed of that,” he writes in the first chapter. “I never stole money, but I did abuse my power as an elected official to convince women to sleep with me. My arrogance blinded me to the demeaning way I had treated women.”

During the interview, Filner repeated this realization, but then added, “I didn’t ever violate anybody’s physical or emotional space.” When Spin recounted his experience with the infamous “Filner headlock,” the former mayor pleaded ignorance. “I never knew what that was about because I’m a hugger,” he said. “I hug people. Old, young, male, female. The only thing I can figure out is I hug a little higher than most people.”

Filner said the best advice his therapist has offered is, “Be humble and be honest.” The book opens with an encounter on a train to L.A. with a man who intently stares at him before saying he can forgive him for the “stupid stuff” but not for setting back the local progressive movement a decade.

To that Filner replied, “That’s my biggest regret, obviously that we let down people in the city that were counting on me… The purpose of the book was to say, ‘Hey, you know, I screwed up, but I’ve still got a lot of experience and a

lot of ideas,’ and people should be open to skimming them.”

Contrary to what a Union-Tribune columnist recently speculated, Filner said he has no plans to run for public office, but at 74, “I have 30 years left of trying to help what I was doing before.”

He said he’s volunteering with various homeless agencies up north, and is particularly excited about using his Veterans Affairs expertise to help transform a formerly misused medical center in West L.A. into a safe haven for homeless veterans. If the book is well received, he hopes for a more public platform, perhaps even a “talk show.”

“I would be perfect, frankly, say to be homeless czar here—or in San Diego,” Filner volunteered.

When Spin suggested L.A. might be a better prospect both for the lack of notoriety and the billions the region plans to spend on the problem versus the pittance here, he can’t help but take a shot at Mayor Kevin Faulconer.

“He has no commitment,” he said, “and he doesn’t see any political benefit… I take up issues and fight on behalf of people. He just shows up and doesn’t fight for anything.”

If still mayor, Filner said he would be “in the forefront of anti-Trump stuff.” He described the president as “intellectually uncurious” and “the shallowest, most narcissistic person you could imagine.”

Asked to find any parallels between his behavior and Trump’s, Filner laughed. “I mean, there’s a surface comparison,” he said, but added, “I wouldn’t say that was me.”

For now, it’s baby steps for Filner.

“Like instead of hugging anybody,” Filner said, “I shake hands…

I’m careful about that.”

Spin Cycle appears every week.

Write to johnl@sdcitybeat.com.

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CULTURE | VOICES

MINDA HONEY

AT THE

INTERSECTION Rachel Dolezal, Luvvie and the Boundaries of Blackness

I

sat nearly knee-to-knee with my professor in his cramped office. Pulled up on his computer was my latest essay. I was trying, rather unsuccessfully, to write about my experience growing up Black and Filipino in Kentucky. I wrote about my mother, born and raised in Manila by her mother. About her Black father who lived in California.

About my mother’s skin, pale as cashews and lighter than my own. I wrote about what it was like for her to marry a Black man and move to the U.S. only to be confronted, through her children, with the same racism that had plagued her much darker siblings their entire lives.

My professor wanted to know, “Why now?” Why was I writing about all of this now? Was it because identity politics were in vogue?

Sometimes I feel “Black (and Filipino).”

Like my Filipino identity is bracketed off from my overall experience as a Black wom-

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an in the United States. I’ve never been denied a job opportunity for being Filipino.

No one has ever spat a Filipino-based racial slur in my face. I’ve never had a man casually tell me he just doesn’t date “Filipinas.”

I was born in the Philippines, but have never returned. I wasn’t taught Tagalog; my parents didn’t want me to have an accent (but that sure didn’t keep them from raising me in Kentucky!).

I’ve never taken a class where the history of the Philippines was more than a tacked-on note to some war or political act of the U.S. My ties to my Filipino heritage run as deep as my mother and the adobo, pancit and lumpia she cooked up on special occasions. I grew up surrounded by other kids with Filipina mothers and retired military fathers. We had our own half-and-half culture that never felt incomplete until I was older.

As I aged, I noticed there were Black cultural touchstones I’d missed because of my

parents’ interracial marriage. My mother never dragged a hot comb through my hair, there were Black movies I had to seek out myself as an adult, and my complete and total lack of rhythm has been the hot topic at more than one family reunion (let’s just say you can find me hiding out in the bathroom during the Electric Slide). I was just Filipino enough to displace certain Black experiences.

And it really wasn’t until my twenties that I was able to the do the work of defining my Black identity, of discovering that Blackness expands to encompass whoever you are. Until then, I’d leveraged my proximity to whiteness—via my light skin privilege and my mixed-ness and my middle-class back ground—to get by without unpacking identity. But that line between ignoring and self-hatred is thinner than a razor. It wasn’t until I’d done that work that I could even begin to take on my Filipino identity, which was why, at 31, I was sitting in my professor’s office looking for feedback on an essay about the racially ambiguous nature of my childhood.

It’s also why, a few weeks ago, it felt incredibly unfair when popular blogger Luvvie went in on a Black, mixed-race activist because she disagreed with her methods of activism. She made comments about lightskinned folks hollering the loudest about being hurt by racism and accused the activist of only having recently stopped passing and begun living life as a Black woman.

I don’t think any of those accusations are true, but also Luvvie doesn’t know what

she’s cotdamb talking about. I don’t talk or write a lot about the struggle growing up biracial because I feel like that narrative is played out. I’m not a tragic mulatto.

I recognize the privilege inherent in being biracial. I know that when Black women are represented in the media or their beauty is celebrated, it’s going to be someone with my complexion like Beyoncé and natural hair that looks like the curls of Mariah Carey. Lupita Nyong’os are few and far between. I know that when white people look at me that they see a “safe” Black person.

But in response to Luvvie, I am going to say as someone who’s done that work—that decades-long work—of figuring out who they are as a Black person within the bounds of a white supremacist society, no one gets to then strip me of that Blackness. Luvvie isn’t in charge of the deck of Black cards, okay? And in a moment when we have to deal with white women like Rachel Dolezal zipping themselves up in Black identities like footie-jammies, it’s really reckless to call another Black woman’s Blackness into question particularly for a white audience.

Don’t be that Black friend.

I’m still not sure how to write about all the intersecting parts of my identity. The words come slow, the sentences sound stilted. But I’m hoping someday, with enough time, I find a way for my Blackness and my Filipina-ness to coexist on the same page in the same way they coexist within me.

At The Intersection appears every four weeks.

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 9

UP FRONT | OPINION

EDWIN DECKER

SORDID

TALES

Why I despise all those self-empowering, macho clichés and catchphrases

I

knew there was something I did not like about my bartender when I pulled up a stool in that dive bar in upstate New York.

My suspicion was confirmed when the 30-something server turned to fetch my drinks and revealed the phrase, “No Regrets!” silk-screened on the back of his T-shirt.

Really? I thought. Not a single regret in the 30-plus years you have been alive on this planet? You have never over-served the wrong drunk? Taken home the wrong barfly? Spit in the wrong drink? I mean, the existence of a regretless dive-bar bartender is about as believable as the existence of a monument to Ann Coulter on the campus of UC Berkeley.

There is just something about these blustery, macho, self-empowering, nuance-free and logic-impoverished catchphrases like “No Regrets” that you see on some people’s shirts, hats, posters and bumper stickers that really make my eyeballs roll. Below are five examples.

1. “You Miss 100 Percent of the Shots You Don’t Take”: My friend Dave has a poster of this famous Wayne Gretzky quote which is presumably applicable to both sports and life. Alas, it is applicable to neither.

First of all, you cannot “miss” a shot you do not take. That’s like saying “You wreck every car you don’t drive,” or “You kill every patient you don’t treat,” or “grant citizenship to every Mexican you don’t build a wall in front of.”

Secondly, I haven’t played much hockey in my life, but I played a ton of basketball. I know guys who subscribe to the 100 Percent Shot Misser Theory. They’re called chuckers—players who haul off shots every time they touch the ball. Whether they’re in double coverage, falling to the ground or shooting five feet past the three-point line, they’re continually heaving low percentage shots instead of passing the ball to earn high percentages.

The same is true in life as well. Take the guys who apply the chucker mentality to courtship. They hit on every gal that crosses their path. Whether at work, in the bars or on the street, the 100 Percent Shot Misser Man will launch a barrage of low percentage “shots” at these poor women—like wolf whistles, ass pats and/ or pathetic shout-outs like, “Hey gorgeous, how about a smile?”

2. “That Which Does Not Kill Me Makes Me Stronger”: That is a Nietzsche coinage, to whom I say, “Keep telling yourself that, Friedrich.”

I know of no stroke victims that emerged more resilient than before. I doubt the majority of stabbing and gunshot victims are more robust because of their injuries. It is a myth that broken bones heal back stronger. Even Nietzsche was afflicted with an assortment of maladies that left him tattered in both body and mind.

Oh sure, there are a handful of things that will

make us stronger if they don’t kill us, like doing pullups or reading dictionaries. However, unless you are RoboCop or the Six Million Dollar Man, pretty much everything else in the universe that doesn’t kill us messes us up—and good!

3. “You Can Do Anything You Put Your Mind To”: Oh fuck off, no you can’t! The list of things that are impossible is infinite. In fact, if you were to make a list of all the things that are impossible to do the very first item on that list would be, “Make a list of all the things that are impossible to do.” (Second on the list would be, “Get San Diegans to fund a Dean Spanos monument at City Hall.”)

4. “Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way”: OK, sure, this one makes sense, but do you have to be such a dick about it? Usually, when you see this on someone’s T-shirt, it’s in all caps and/or has multiple exclamation points. Basically, your shirt is yelling at me. And your shirt doesn’t even know me!

5. “Just Do It”: It’s not Nike’s fault that this ingenious marketing campaign has been adopted by the alpha macho class because, well, isn’t Just Doing shit one of the problems with our culture?

We have too many go-getting dimwits lurching into action without considering the unintended consequences.

Of course, I agree with the spirit of the Just Do It slogan, but unchecked, slogans like these are the reason we have trust fund fuckers on publicity busses talking about how they grab whatever pussies they feel like.

Speaking of spirit, I know that some of you feel that I am interpreting these idioms too literally.

Perhaps. However, I can’t help but wonder if the macho alph-holes who display and/or abide these expressions don’t also take them literally.

This is why I’d like to see them rewritten, so that the intent is retained, but that they also ring thoughtful and true.

For instance, “No Regrets” would be better written as, “OK, Sure, Don’t Be Ruled by Regret, But You Should Still Have A Few, Asshole.”

Instead of “You Miss 100 percent of the Shots You don’t Take,” maybe your shirt should say, “Take Smart Shots, Ya Ball-Hog, And Pass the Rock Once in a While!”

And “Just Do It” is a perfectly fine catchphrase for a T-shirt, so long as you follow it with, “But Think About It At Least a Little. Just Don’t Overthink It, Because Too Much Thinking Can Lead to Inaction; Instead, Strike the Perfect Balance Between Too Little and Too Much Thinking, That’s My Opinion Anyway— Thank you, The Shirt Owner,” which might be a bit cumbersome for a shirt, but at least it’s good advice.

Slogans like these are the reason we have trust fund fuckers on publicity busses talking about how they grab whatever pussies they feel like.

10 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

Sordid Tales appears every other week.

Write to edwin@sdcitybeat.com.

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UP FRONT | FOOD

BY MICHAEL A. GARDINER

THE WORLD

FARE

Drowning in torta goodness

J

ust about anything taken to its logical extreme falls apart. The torta ahogadas (“drowned tortas”) of Guadalajara are an example of that.

They take the Mexican torta to its logical extreme, and they certainly fall apart. However, there is definitely nothing wrong with that. In fact, that’s a good thing.

One of the best places to find out why is the El Gallito (1008 Industrial Blvd.) torta truck permanently parked in a Toys “R” Us parking lot in Chula Vista.

Tortas are Mexico’s version of submarine sandwiches and are one of the classic forms of Mexican street food. In their most common incarnations, tortas feature one or more meats with accompaniments such as avocado, pickled vegetables and salsa on telera bread.

They are, in essence, variations on the theme of taco done in the key of sandwich. Tortas tend not to be the tidiest of affairs. The telera not being particularly structurally sound, torta fillings invariably find ways to escape the bread’s confines.

But if tortas are messy, ahogadas take that tendency beyond their logical extreme. In its classic form, the torta ahogada is a carnitas-filled sandwich utterly drowned in sauce (either a spicy arbol chile sauce or one somewhere between a salsa rojo and spaghetti sauce). The urge to reach for fork and knife is overwhelming but there’s none to be found. Tortas ahogada should—no, must—be eaten with the utensils God gave you: your hands. Fortunately, unlike usual utensils, napkins (and even hand wipes) are generally available.

At El Gallito, the classic carnitas filling is rather untraditional. Instead of pork braised in its own rendered fat—incredibly delicious if not precisely what your cardiologist had in mind—El Gallito oven roasts the pork without fat. While oven-roast-

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ed faux-carnitas might ordinarily be a poor substitute for the real thing, the simple fact is that a torta ahogada isn’t all about the filling. It’s not the star of this dish.

Rather, the star—as El Gallito’s version shows— is the bread. Instead of soft telera, the bread used for tortas ahogada is more like a superb, crusty French bread crossed with sourdough. The hard crust, which initially protects the bread from the onslaught of sauce, slowly absorbs that sauce, evolving and giving the sandwich another flavor, another dimension, altogether. It’s a dish that develops over time even as you eat it.

MICHAEL GARDINER

Torta ahogada

El Gallito offers their classic ahogadas (#1 on the three item menu) anywhere on a 1 to 10 heat scale. Five was not too hot for me; eight was. They also offer a “gemma” version of the torta featuring a creamy chipotle sauce. While that cools the dish down, it also detracts from its direct message.

There’s also a tostada featuring its signature roast carnitas. Stick with the #1: it is spicy, savory, messy and marvelous.

El Gallito’s tortas ahogada are a reason to go miles out of your way. They’re a hot mess in the best possible way. They’re a reason to get your hands messy. They’re the pot of gold at the end of a deliciously sloppy rainbow.

The World Fare appears weekly.

Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com.

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 11

UP FRONT | FOOD

BY JAMES VERNETTE

DISHING IT

Had I known this, I would have bucked tradition and asked that the salad be served before the appetizers when it would have made more of an impact.

As far as cocktails are concerned, my designated driver liked his Sicilian Mule more than I enjoyed Instagram-worthy Italian my Picante Peppercorn Margarita. The flavors in my cocktail were decent, and I enjoyed the pink hen Liberty Station was being built, I peppercorns but they didn’t quite blend together.

Before you get on my case about the lameness was one of those cranky locals holding my arms together while sneering that of ordering a margarita at an Italian restaurant, the place was doomed to become a fake sort of it should be noted the Sicilian Mule wasn’t really Italian either, just Russian vodka, grapefruit theme park like the Gaslamp.

My attitude has mellowed a lot since then. It juice, lime and ginger beer. But in the case of the still seems eerily dark at night, especially because mule, the flavors melded better than those in my none of the businesses have light-up signage, but margarita.

For the main course, we split a gourmet Luigina places such as Liberty Public Market, The Lot and Stone Brewing have made it a place I can safely Pizza with mozzarella, white truffle cream, porcini visit without feeling stuck in a tourist trap. Add to and prosciutto di parma. The white truffle cream did the work of the tomato sauce that Officine Buona Forchetta JAMES VERNETTE and added a nice, unexpected (2865 Sims Road), a new mouth feel. It worked well Northern Italian place that has with the creaminess of the a sister restaurant in South Park. mozzarella and the saltiness of I haven’t been to the original the prosciutto, but overpowered location, but it’s obviously good the porcini. The pizza itself is enough that the owners were soft and thick. The pie is cut in able to set up shop in Liberty quarters so customers will likely Station where the real estate is be folding a piece before putting undoubtedly pricier. it in their mouth.

If it had been warm enough, When I saw pork parmigiana I would have sat outdoors, as Lamb skewers in a clay jug on the specials menu, I wanted the atmosphere seemed slightly more festive. However, the dining room has a Fiat to try it. It’s such an old-school dish that I wanted that’s been converted into a table for two to sit to see how a more new-school place might tackle side-by-side. These types of design elements give it. The tomato sauce was on the sweet side and the place a great date-night vibe; cozy yet cool, the cheese was more mozzarella than parmesan. warm hearted with good food served in an eye- I really liked it, especially the tenderness of the catching manner that should inspire a thousand pork. It would have been nice if the cheese was saltier to play off the sweetness of the sauce, but selfies.

I started with the lamb skewer appetizers, or I was happy with the result, especially because the Arrosticini: chunks of lamb served kabob style server paired it with a juicy Sangiovese.

There’s a lot to bring me back to Officine Buona in a big jug with fingerling potatoes and arugula.

The presentation is definitely Instagram-worthy Forchetta, but now that I’ve experienced it, I will and the skewers themselves are juicy and tender definitely ask for the Octopus Carpaccio first and enough to please even those who aren’t fond of stick with the wine over the cocktails. Still, there lamb. The artichoke hearts are also a good call, as was no sneering, nor were there any theme park they are not diced up, but removed in one piece and feelings. If readers have relatives in town or are served with herbs and olive oil. They practically trying to impress a date, it’s definitely worth a visit. melted in my mouth.

The Octopus Carpaccio had a nice flavor, but seemed a little bland next to the previous dishes. Dishing It Out appears every other week.

OUT W

12 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

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UP FRONT | DRINK

THE

ANDREW DYER

BY ANDREW DYER

BEERDIST Novo Brazil’s second chance

C

hula Vista’s Novo Brazil Brewing (901 Lane Ave.) celebrated its second anniversary the same way most breweries do—with a party. Multiple pouring stations and a live band entertained patrons in the parking lot while the spacious tasting room interior was filled to capacity. All in all, it was a celebration like any other.

No one at Novo Brazil was celebrating a year ago, however.

That’s when West Coaster eviscerated the brewery in the magazine. The writer found significant problems with many of Novo’s brews and gave a county full of selfproclaimed beer geeks reason enough not to venture out to the Eastlake brewery.

The poor review came after a social media outburst by Novo’s then-general manager, leaving it with a less-than-stellar image in the eyes of many in the beer community. Perhaps insulting potential customers and telling the “haters” to “kiss my brewery” was not the best public relations strategy.

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But Novo Brazil looks to have turned the corner on its early stumbles. Director of Sales Dennis Keller partially credits brewer Eduardo Pentagna, who was brought in from Brazil, with the turnaround.

“This equipment is Brazilian,” he says.

“When Eduardo got here they figured out what the problem was. Once they gained precise control of fermentation temperatures, the diacetyl issues they were having went away.”

Production is up at Novo Brazil. The brewery’s cans, with their distinctive tropical design, have been showing up at retail stores throughout the county. But, like many start-up breweries, Novo is facing the growing pains associated with the retail market.

“We make a ton of money in the tasting room, but outside sale is still a very expensive proposition,” says Keller. “We’re building a brand.”

Part of that brand building is maintaining some control over the quality of the beer once it hits distribution. Keller says he inspects their distributor’s warehouse twice a month.

“I look at [the dates] on every can and

every keg,” he says. “It’s labor intensive and hands-on.”

Novo Brazil has also hitched on to the hazy IPA train and now brews both a single and double New England-style IPA. When its first was in development, the brewery offered six differently hopped varieties in its tasting room and had customers vote on their favorite. That beer, “Samba,” became Novo’s first hazy IPA. “I think people say it shouldn’t be called an IPA, because it’s not clobber-me-inthe-head bitter with alpha acid hops,” he says. “But if someone comes up with a version of IPA that’s cloudy and doesn’t have huge chunks of sediment in it, and that’s selling—I’m OK with that. I believe cloudy beer can be appealing and technically wellmade.”

Novo has released its NE IPAs in the same manner as other San Diego breweries—as tasting-room only releases. But Keller says they distribute them as well.

“If it doesn’t sell out the first week it’ll go out to accounts,” he says. “Creating artificial shortages for the sake of hype is not what we’re about. I despise standing in lines.”

Aging barrels at Novo Brazil Novo’s hazy single IPA “Samba” will be released on May 10. “Bossa,” a hazy double, follows on May 17.

The Beerdist appears every other week.

Write to andrewd@sdcitybeat.com

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 13

SHORTlist

EVENTS

ART

the

THREE YOU HAVE TO SEE

COORDINATED BY

SETH COMBS

SAN DIEGO

1

DA ME CINCO

We look at our readers as an enlightened group of individuals, but we’d like to break something down once and for all: Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day. In fact, it’s not even close. Día de la Independencia is in September. What’s more, Cinco de Mayo— which celebrates the Mexican army’s victory over the French in the Battle of Puebla—isn’t all that big of a deal in Mexico. Let’s be real; like other cultural festivals and holidays in the U.S., Cinco is something some people have co-opted as an excuse to eat tacos and get drunk on tequila.

However, there are ways to celebrate the Mexican culture on Cinco de Mayo and be culturally respectful. Fiesta Old Town on Friday, May 5 through Sunday, May 7 at Old Town Historic Park (4002 Wallace St.) is a nice place to start. The free annual fest will include cultural performances, a two-day folklórico competition and crafts throughout the fair. Check out cincodemayooldtown.com for times and more info.

Live performances are the emphasis at the Cin-

LA JOLLA

2 SURF’S UP

When the topic of surfing movies comes up, most people think of teen dramas such as Blue Crush or the iconic Endless Summer, but the San Diego Surf Film Festival has created surf cinema that celebrates surf legends.

This festival features 25 international surf films, a surf photography workshop with Grant Ellis, surfboard demos and a showcase of featured artist Victoria Huff. Featured films range from a quirky comedy starring surfer Frank Solomon to a directorial debut from Patagonia surf ambassador Lea Brassy. Renowned surfer Skip Frye will also be receiving the Lifetime Tribute Award for his work in shaping Southern California surf culture. The festival will end with a beach cleanup in Encinitas. The fest runs from Wednesday, May 10 to Saturday, May 13 at Misfit Gallery (565 Pearl Street, Suite 100). Tickets range from $10 to $125 at sdsurffilmfestival.com.

co de Mayo Music Festival (cincodemayomusicfestival.com) in Chula Vista. Held on Sunday, May 7 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., the free fest includes 20 musical performances throughout the day, as well as a children’s area and COURTESY OF FIESTA OLD TOWN a taco and beer fest. It happens on H Street between Bay Blvd. and Marina Pkwy.

Other events that emphasize culture over cliché include Barrio Network’s Cinco de Mayo party at The Casbah (2501 Kettner Blvd.) at 8:30 p.m. on Friday. There will be live music from La DiaFiesta Old Town bla, Thee Commons, The Sleepwalkers and a half-dozen others. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Check out barrionetwork.com for details. Chicano Park (Logan Ave. in Barrio Logan) will host the Cinco de Mayo con Orgullo Festival and Car Show on Saturday, May 6 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Highlights from the alcohol-free fest include food, live cultural performances and, naturally, a classic car show.

Whatever readers get into this weekend, please remember to be respectful of Mexico’s amazing and vibrant culture.

NORTH PARK

3 POETIC JUSTICE

National Poetry month just passed, but poets, writers and readers should celebrate the cause all year. In dedication of the latest edition of Poetry International’s annual poetry journal, Verbatim Books will be providing the space for Poetry International’s 22/23 Launch and Reading Party. Since its opening a little over a year ago, Verbatim Books (3793 30th St.) has been a channel through which San Diego authors can expose their work. This Thursday, May 4 from 7:30 to 9 p.m., local poets and editors from SDSU will be giving readings of their work, as well as have their chapbooks for sale. Included in this year’s poetry journal are Chris Abani, Malena Mörling and Emily Berry, and dozens of other talents, all of whom share diverse backgrounds and unique sentiments throughout their work.

COURTESY OF POETRY INTERNATIONAL

GLEN GORHAM PHOTOGRAPHY

HDoméstic/a at SDSU School of Art + Design, 5500 Campanile Drive, College Area. A solo exhibition by Claudia Cano, who specializes in interdisciplinary art that explores the interactions between Mexican and American cultures. Opening from 5 to 9 p.m.

Thursday, May 4. Free. claudiacano.com HSan Diego Mesa College Spring Student Art Show and Sale at Mesa College Art Gallery, 7250 Mesa College Drive, Clairemont. Close to 100 artworks in a variety of media by students enrolled in studio art classes and the fashion department. From 3 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 4. facebook.com/mesacollegeart HDownside-Up and Parking with a View at UCSD Visual Arts Facility 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. The thesis exhibition for graduating UC San Diego M.F.A. candidate Trevor Amery, who specializes in large-scale sculptural and installation work. Opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, May 5. Free. visarts.ucsd.edu Recovering the Artist VI at Martha Pace Swift Gallery & Expressive Arts Institute San Diego, 2820 Roosevelt Road, Liberty Station. The sixth annual juried exhibit displays works by artists who consider themselves in recovery, be it trauma, addiction, abuse or loss. This year’s theme is hope. Opening from 5 to 8 p.m., Friday, May 5. Free. 619239-1713, expressiveartsinstitute.org HWhat’s Mine is Yours at San Diego Art Institute Project Space, 141 Horton Plaza, Gaslamp. A solo show by SDAI artist-inresident Allison Manch who explores the relationship between parent and child and the ideas, objects and traits that are passed from one generation to the next.

Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, May 6. Free. sandiego-art.org HAlimentos Del Mago at Linksoul, 530 South Coast Hwy., Oceanside. The Hill Street Country Club hosts this new art show featuring original collages by Juan Beaz. Opening from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, May 6. Free. thehillstreetcountryclub.org Raw: Verse at House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave., Downtown. A showcase featuring film screenings, musical performances, a fashion show, art gallery, performance art and hair and makeup design. Artists and designers include Brendon Trenberth, Athraa Yalda, Melissa Marquardt and more.

From 6 to 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 9. $22-$30. rawartists.org/sandiego

BOOKS Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave., Ste. 100, Clairemont. Editors and contributors Tricia Barr, Adam Bray and Cole Horton will be promoting the new star Wars book and hosting a themed trivia. At 2 p.m. Saturday, May 6. Free.

858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com HDan Norland at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. A book discussion and signing with the editor of Witness of the Unseen: Seven Years in Guantanamo. At 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 8. 858454-0347, warwicks.com Marie Brennan at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave., Ste. 100, Clairemont. The fantasy writer will sign and discuss the fifth and final installment in the memoirs of Baroness Isabella Trent series, Within the Sanctuary of Wings. At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 9. Free. 858268-4747, mystgalaxy.com

FILM HSan Diego Surf Film Festival at Misfit Gallery, 565 Pearl Street, Ste. 100, La Jolla. This annual festival features 25 international surf films, a surf photography

San Diego Surf Film Festival 14 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

Poetry International’s 22/23 Launch and Reading

H = CityBeat picks

workshop with Grant Ellis, surfboard demos and a showcase of featured artist Victoria Huff. Various times from Wednesday, May 10 to Saturday, May 13. $10-$125. sdsurffilmfestival.com

FOOD & DRINK H San Diego Jewish Food Festival at Temple Adat Shalom, 15905 Pomerado Road, Poway. The annual foodie fest will showcase Jewish deli cuisine prepared from traditional family recipes. Includes entertaining celebrity chef demos, live music and a bazaar. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 7. $20. sdjewishfoodfest.com

MUSIC HMahler Symphony No. 3 at Copley Symphony Hall, 750 B St., Gaslamp. Conductor Jahja Ling, mezzo soprano Tamara Mumford, the San Diego Master Chorale and St. Paul’s Cathedral Choristers tackle the symphony, which attempts to capture nature in six movements. At 8 p.m. Friday, May 5 and Saturday, May 6, and 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 7. $20-$96. 619-235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org HSt. Lawrence String Quartet at Conrad Prebys Concert Hall, UC San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. The concert shows the quartet’s breadth of repertoire with a program including John Adams’ Second Quartet, Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 16 in F Major and Saint-Saëns’ String Quartet No. 1. At 8 p.m. Friday, May 5. $45-$59. 858-822-3199, artpower. ucsd.edu Pictures at an Exhibition at UC San Diego Mandeville Auditorium, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. Guest conductor Michael Gerdes leads Mussorgsky’s musical work.

Plus, Carl Nielsen’s “Flute Concerto,” Vivian Fung’s “Biennale Snapshots” and a free, one-hour pre-concert lecture by Gerdes. At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 6 and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 7. $15-$29. 858534-4637, lajollasymphony.com HReflections: Looking Back on Our First 30 Years at University Christian Church, 3900 Cleveland Ave., Hillcrest. The San Diego Women’s Chorus celebrates 30 years with a retrospective concert highlighting their favorite songs. At 3 and 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 6 and 4 p.m. Sunday, May 7. $20-$30. 619-291-3366, sdwc.org Bill Charlap and Renee Rosne at The Auditorium at TSRI, 10620 John J Hopkins Drive, La Jolla. The Jazz at TSRI series concludes with this husband and wife duo who create extraordinary and impassioned piano duets. At 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, May 9. $30-$35. 858-454-5872, ljathenaeum.org

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD H22/23 Launch and Reading Party at Verbatim Books, 3973 30th St., North Park. A release show for Poetry International’s annual poetry journal. Local poets and editors from SDSU will be giving readings of their work, as well as have their chapbooks for sale. From 7:30 to 9 p.m.

Thursday, May 4. Free. 619-501-7466, verbatim-books.com HNon-Standard Lit: Jennifer Pilch and Brandon Som at Gym Standard, 2903 El Cajon Blvd, North Park. The final reading for the spring 2017 series features the author of Deus Ex Machina (Jennifer Pilch) and The Tribute Horse (Brandon Som).

From 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, May 7. Free. facebook.com/events/1537617699615595

SPECIAL EVENTS HFiesta Old Town Cinco De Mayo at Old Town San Diego, 2474 San Diego Ave, Old Town. The annual fest features a Ballet Folk-

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BOOKS: THE FLOATING LIBRARY Red rovers

W

hile on a recent road trip through the Four Corners region of the Navajo Nation, I was struck by the strangeness of the rock formations and the redness of the earth.

It was a Martian landscape, I said over and over again, probably because I could seldom say for certain if we were in Arizona or New Mexico, Colorado or Utah.

What do I know what Mars looks like anyway? What does anyone know? Well, thanks to the images beamed back by the Curiosity Rover, we know quite a bit about the red planet’s features.

But if we want to know what it actually feels like to walk on Mars, we have to turn to art and ask novelists and filmmakers to take us there. To gain an appreciation of what a long journey that will be and just how far away we are from realizing it, I checked out Meg Howrey’s latest novel The Wanderers.

A trio of international cosmonauts— Helen Kane, Sergei Kuznetsov and Yoshi Tanaka—have been assembled by the space exploration company Prime Space for the mission to Mars. What’s fascinating about The Wanderers is that it covers the 17-month training simulation of their expedition to Mars, their brief stay on the planet, and their journey back, all without leaving Utah. Piece of cake, right?

I used to think that being an astronaut wasn’t all that different than being a fireman or a solider: a job in which one oc-

casionally came face to face with death but was marked by unrelenting boredom.

Reading The Wanderers I realized that an astronaut confronts the worst-case scenario in the face of oblivion 24/7. And that’s just the logistical aspects of sending a tin can so deep into space that you can no longer see earth with the naked eye.

Imagine that for a moment.

Where The Wanderers really blasts off is when the psychological implications of deep space travel are peeled back and exposed– not just by the crew, but by those they’ve “left behind” on the home planet.

“Sergei cautions himself against anticipating wild liberty during the Mars Simulation. He will step outside only technically: his spacesuit is only another kind of craft. He will not feel the wind on his face, he will not see the sky as it is.”

You might think that the notion that all of this takes place inside of a simulation reduces the drama and tension. Not so. The only thing worse than living inside of a simulation when one’s hold on reality begins to slip is the sneaky suspicion that a fellow crew member is becoming delusional, or delusional in a way that differs from the mutually-agreed-upon delusion to which the cosmonauts all voluntarily subscribe.

Buckle your seatbelts, space rangers; The Wanderers is one hell of a ride.

—Jim Ruland

Write to jimr@sdcitybeat.com.

COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

EVENTS lorico competition, 20-plus bands, live entertainment, a children’s area, over 100 retail and food booths, and much more. From 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, May 6 and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 7. Free. www. cincodemayooldtown.com HCinco de Mayo con Orgullo Festival and Car Show at Chicano Park, Logan Ave., Barrio Logan. An alcohol-free, family-friendly fest that includes food, live cultural performances and, naturally, a classic car show. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 6. Free. facebook.com/events/1797141393946031 Escondido Renaissance Faire at Felicita Park, 742 Clarence Lane, Escondido. The annual festival will offer three stages of entertainment, period music, battle pageants, 50 different vendors and an assortment of themed food and drink. From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 6 and Sunday, May 7. $6.50-$22.50. oldetymeproductions.com Cinco de Mayo Music Festival at H Street between Bay Blvd. and Marina Pkwy., Chula Vista. The Cinco de Mayo fest includes 20 musical performances throughout the day, as well as a children’s area and a taco and beer fest. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 7. Free. cincodemayomusicfestival.com

TALKS & DISCUSSIONS HArt Connection: Amplified Urbanism at Copley Symphony Hall, 750 B St., Gaslamp Quarter. Local architects discuss artists’ influences on city planning, plus a chamber version performance of Aaron Copland’s “Quiet City.” At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 7. Free. Reservations recommended. 619-235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org

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“Retratos de Limpieza” by Claudia Cano will be on view a Doméstic/a, a solo exhibition opening from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday, May 4, at the SDSU School of Art + Design (5500 Campanile Drive) in the College Area.

WORKSHOPS HQualities of Creativity: Dancing with Words at San Diego Performing Arts Center, 4579 Mission Gorge Place, Grantville. Best-selling author J. Ruth Gendler of The Book of Qualities hosts a writing workshop on making lists, asking questions and more. Followed by a meet-and-greet and book signing. At 4 p.m. Saturday, May 6. $25. 619-758-8112, visionarydancetheatre.org

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 15

THEATER

Sky’s not the limit

KEN JACQUES

W

e have astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt to thank for the knowledge that the universe is infinitely more vast than our own Milky Way galaxy. That knowledge, the scope of which transcends mere science, is every bit as significant as the discovery that the earth is round, not flat, and that it revolves around the sun rather than the opposite. Understanding the magnitude of the universe gives us perspective about our minute place in it.

Leavitt’s prodigious but all too short life (she succumbed to cancer early in her 50s) is the basis of Lauren Gunderson’s 2011 play Silent Sky, currently at Lamb’s Players Theatre under the direction of Robert Smyth. Equal parts science and sincerity, it’s an homage not only to the complex woman that was Leavitt, but to the other unheralded women who worked at the Harvard Observatory around the turn of the century. Put simply, their job was to read photographic plates and measure the brightness of stars. Not satisfied with being what was called a “computer,” the compulsively driven Leavitt took her work further, which led to her momentous discovery.

Silent Sky makes clear that Leavitt’s life, attending to and away from her research, was often an uphill battle. This constitutes the drama of the play, which otherwise is satisfied to bask in wonder.

Rachael Van Wormer’s earnestness in the title role is almost otherworldly. She’s more affecting when evincing Leavitt’s vulnerability in her fractured personal life. The vitality of the story comes from Cynthia Gerber and Deborah Gilmour Smyth as Leavitt’s fellow scientists. Brian Mackey has stammering down to a science as an uncomfortable suitor, while Caitie Grady brings sweetness and light to the peripheral role of Leavitt’s sister back home in Wisconsin. A noteworthy “co-star” is Sean Fanning’s multi-functional observatory set.

An education in astrophysics isn’t essential to understanding the science of Silent Sky, for its inquiries and revelations are framed in philosophical, big-picture contexts, a technique at which the talented Gunderson is expert. That being said, Silent Sky would be more absorbing if, as regards Leavitt, it looked inward as much as it does to the heavens. Who, really, was Henrietta?

Silent Sky runs through May 28 at Lamb’s Players Theatre in Coronado. $24-$68; lambplayers.org

—David L. Coddon

Theater reviews run weekly.

Write to davidc@sdcitybeat.com.

16 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

Rachael Van Wormer (left) and Caitie Grady in Silent Sky

OPENING: Ballast: Georgette Kelly’s new play focuses on two relationships between trans and cisgender partners. Directed by Matt Morrow, it opens May 4 at the Diversionary Theatre in University Heights. diversionary.org Picnic: William Inge’s Pulitzer-winning drama about a group of women dealing with issues of life and love in ‘50s Kansas.

Presented by Oceanside Theatre Company, it opens May 5 at the Brooks Theatre in Oceanside. oceansidetheatre.org Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?: Edward Albee’s classic drama about two married couples who meet for drinks and leave forever changed. Directed by Brent Springfield, it opens May 5 at the Patio Playhouse in Escondido. patioplayhouse. com Lyndon: A one-night performance of Laurence Luckinbill’s acclaimed one-man show about President Lyndon Johnson.

It happens May 8 at the North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach.

Wagner New Play Festival: Five UC San Diego students debut new works which range from comedic to dramatic. It happens from May 9 through May 20 at the Sheila & Hughes Potiker Theatre in La Jolla. theatre.ucsd.edu Escape to Margaritaville: A resort worker falls head over heels for a tourist in this world premier musical featuring the tunes of Jimmy Buffett. Directed by Christopher Ashley, it opens May 9 at the La Jolla Playhouse. lajollaplayhouse.org Jersey Boys: The Tony Award-winning musical about the rise of pop music hitmakers Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons.

Presented by Broadway San Diego, it opens May 9 at the San Diego Civic Theatre. broadwaysd.com

For full listings, visit “Theater” under the Culture tab at sdcitybeat.com

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TORREY BAILEY

ith just more than 52 square miles of land, Chula Vista is the second largest city in San Diego County and the seventh in the state. In a rough translation, Chula Vista means “beautiful view” as named by Spanish colonists, but the area’s origins trace back to the Yuman-speaking people of 3000 B.C. and was later populated by the Kumeyaay tribe. However, it was both World Wars that most affected the city’s development, beginning with a kelp processing plant that produced an alternative to gunpowder. This was followed by the nation’s most prosperous lemon orchards that funded Chula Vista through the Great Depression, and finally the arrival of Rohr Aircraft Corporation before Pearl Harbor was bombed. All three provided a surge of jobs, but as the industries shifted, the servicemen and women remained.

Now, this South Bay city has a largely Latino, familydriven demographic that’s witnessing an upswing in community involvement. The Third Avenue Village Association, the South Bay Craft Beer Business Guild and other local organizations are shaping western Chula Vista into a destination by introducing craft breweries and revitalizing the marina area. Heading east, homeowners turned off by San Diego’s inflated housing prices are piling into the Eastlake, Otay Ranch and Rolling Hills neighborhoods. Chula Vista is known for large-scale attractions like the Olympic Training Center, the Mattress Firm Amphitheatre and the Living Coast Discovery Center, but mom and pop businesses and hole-in-the wall restaurants are at its core. Despite its evolution, local mainstays persist, such as family-owned La Bella Pizza, the no-frills taqueria Tacos El Gordo and even a mountainous salt factory dating back to 1971. With city plans for increased cultural arts, a revitalized bayfront and a new university, Chula Vista residents seem, to be welcoming the city’s transitional phase.

Third Avenue and F Street pinpoints the center of the Downtown Chula Vista business strip, the latest addition in the city’s revamping process.

Outwards from the intersection, a torta shop, multiple hair salons and the Village Plaza crowd the tree-lined avenue while locals and students of the trade school, UEI college, rush to the bus stops.

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MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 17

18 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

—Jamie Ballard

“We always tell people that when they come here, they’re eating memories because that’s a big part of it—the smells of the restaurant and the tastes of the restaurant and the conversation,” says La Bella Pizza Garden General Manager Gonzalo Quintero, although he’s known to most locals as Dr. Q. New Yorkers Tony and Kitty Roso started the pizza joint back in 1955.

Since then, the restaurant and family have expanded simultaneously, including when Quintero married the Rosos’ granddaughter, Stephanie. “Eloise, our daughter, is a fourth generation Sicilian, and I hope she makes pizza too someday,” Quintero says. La Bella Pizza (373 Third Ave.) more recently became a local leader in the craft beer scene too, thanks to Quintero. Though many in the community told him that Chula Vista’s Latino population would only support Mexican lagers or light beers, he was determined to feature new microbreweries each month.

The revolving tap list’s popularity soared to the extent where he’s now helping craft brewers set up shop in Chula Vista. Quintero says it wouldn’t have been possible without symbiotic support. “Part of why we and other businesses in our community have found success is because if the community is behind you, they’re behind you 110 percent.”

—Sofia Mejias-Pascoe

From an octagonal kiosk overlooking the Chula Vista marina, Susan Johnson operates two nonprofits—South Bayfront Artists and South Bayfront Sailing Association. Both are dedicated to the upkeep of the marina’s quality of life, where she lived aboard a ship for ten years. Together with her husband, she instructs boating courses and first aid classes, but also keeps an eye on the Bill of Rights, a 136-foot boat modeled after an 1856 cargo vessel. “Its purpose was education, teaching people how to sail, the history of sailing and how to work together as a crew. To maintain this, you have to build a community.”

Since moving to the marina in 1990, she’s seen Chula Vista’s sense of community ebb and flow. During the 2000s, she said it became a place where kids went to school and people came home from work, but that the work itself, plus shopping and activities, were found elsewhere. That’s when she turned to local politics, becoming former City Councilmember Pamela Bensoussan’s top aid for six years. Johnson said she couldn’t let Chula Vista’s sense of community fall to the wayside. “It doesn’t really matter what happens in the country or in the world as long as your community is strong and you have the seeds to rebuild what might be destroyed.”

PHOTOS BY TORREY BAILEY

“We came down and walked Third Avenue and I just fell in love. I thought, there’s so much potential here,” said Luanne Hulsizer, executive director of the Third Avenue Village Association. The organization’s focus is to create a more pedestrian-friendly, lively neighborhood in Chula Vista, subsequently driving up property values and increasing community pride. Hulsizer’s personal vision for the Third Avenue district of Chula Vista seeks to push entrepreneurship forward while still honoring a small-town ambiance. “There has been an infusion of new property owners and investors who are creating excitement,” she said. “I think some of the established businesses are catching on, and they’ll be able to ride the wave that’s being created by a new era of investors.” Hulsizer said one property owner, who has been in the area for 30 years, asked her whether the excitement will actually continue this time. “It’s definitely happening, and that’s a benefit for everyone,” she responded. Hulsizer’s main goal is “more feet on the street.” And to do that, she and the Third Avenue Village Association are turning their attention to the craft beer industry. “There’s evidence in places like North Park, South Park, Hillcrest. When craft beer comes in, everything follows.”

—Torrey Bailey

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 19

TORREY BAILEY

Look, if readers want to get some authentic tacos and tortas, they should head 15 minutes south. Really, go experience Mexico. Life is better and culturally richer when we travel. But when I need something slightly closer, Chula Vista has the best Mexican grub this side of the border. I realize this is a potentially controversial statement, but the existence of my beloved Tacos El Gordo is exhibit A, B and C. Here are a few places readers should seek out in lieu of ever eating a fried chicken Doritos Chalupa or whatever fast food fuckery is trending.

Tacos El Gordo (689 H Street): Just off Interstate 5, Tacos El Gordo is consistently packed for a reason.

There’s no fried fish tacos (sorry, gringos and güeros) and skip the safe carne asada tacos. Try the Tijuanastyle lengua (beef tongue) and adobada (spiced pork, sliced off a vertical rotisserie) tacos to get an idea why converts are so excited that Gordo is soon opening a spot in the Gaslamp.

Rating: Plazas (1550 Broadway): I know a few locals that claim this unassuming spot has the best menudo (aka pozole, aka tripe soup, aka best hangover cure) in all of San Diego. That’s a bold proclamation, but I recently became addicted to the Caldo de Pollo (chicken soup, best with lots of lime juice). I also tried the Camarónes a la Diabla burrito, but took a friend’s advice and ordered it with a bunch of sour cream to, as she eloquently put it, “save your butthole.” Good call.

Rating:

20 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

Tacos El Gordo Roberto’s (444 Broadway): Despite some eyebrow-raising Yelp reviews, Chula Vista locals line up at this place after last call. The 24-hour spot is greasy, grimy and I liked the fact that they used cotija cheese on the carne asada fries.

Rating: Other recommendations: Anything on the breakfast menu at El Huevo Estrellado, shrimp cocktails at El Dorado and tortas at El Gallito (see World Fare on page 11). ¡ !

—Seth Combs

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 21

TORREY BAILEY

Rails on rails

Because I’m a basic bro who’s also lived in dorms at one point in his life, Chula Vista’s South Bay Salt Works instantly brings to mind the movie Scarface. Looking upon the white mountains of salt, it’s hard not to think of Tony Montana shoving his face in a ridiculously large pile of cocaine before meeting his untimely end.

But that’s where the comparisons stop. It’s unlikely South Bay Salt Works will ever go out in a similar blaze of glory. In fact, it’s the second oldest company in San Diego County, behind The San Diego Union-Tribune.

During a recent visit, I strike up a conversation with an employee, Dave, who’s been working for Salt Works for over 15 years.

Dave, humble and knowledgeable, gives me a crash course in salt.

He tells me the salt they produce is used mainly for industrial purposes (salting roads, water softeners, etc.). Dave says that Salt Works produces nearly 80,000 pounds of salt per “harvest.”

“But it isn’t anywhere what they do at The Great Salt Lake,” Dave says, and I love his subtle animosity toward Big Salt.

Dave tells me that it’s perfectly edible (“it’s just got dirt in it, nothing that’ll kill you”), so after he leaves, I lick my finger and use it to pick up some salt that’s drifted through the fence. It tastes pure.

Uncut. The good shit.

—Ryan Bradford

In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, punk sent anarchic shockwaves from several key epicenters: London, New York City and Los Angeles, specifically. Chula Vista is rarely discussed in the history of punk, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t warrant a mention, specifically because it was the home of local legends The Zeros. The group formed in 1976 and quickly were handed the tag “the Mexican Ramones,” which the band didn’t care for.

The Zeros—whose members included Javier Escovedo and Robert Lopez (aka El Vez)—had a raw sound with catchy guitar leads and sing-along choruses, and shared the stage with other old-school heroes such as The Germs and The Weirdos.

The Zeros were just the first phase of what became a long legacy of punk rock in Chula Vista. In the 1990s, metalcore band Unbroken emerged with a much heavier and more confrontational sound, and were recognized by Alternative Press as one of “23 Bands That Shaped Punk.” That band’s Rob Moran and fellow Chula Vista native Sal Gallegos also played in hardcore supergroup Some Girls. And today, that D.I.Y. punk spirit lives on in Chula Vista through bands like noise-pop group Of Ennui and surf rock outfit T. Rexico.

The sound may always continue to evolve, but as long as South Bay kids keep picking up guitars, Chula Vista punk will stay alive.

22 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

—Jeff Terich

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CULTURE | ART

SEEN LOCAL

Manch. She will also offer a free stitching circle the following weekend where patrons can sit down to talk about her work and, hopefully, learn a thing or two from one another.

“I’ve done embroidery workshops for years, often in conjunction with the shows,” Manch says. “It’s been a really cool way to get the community involved. One time I had one in Seattle and a few women bussed over llison Manch wants us all to put down the from a retirement home. It was just three older women phone/computer/tablet for a moment. In a and me, and we were talking about my show and what world saturated with digital technology, the they took from it and their life experiSan Diego Art Institute artist in resiCOURTESY OF THE ARTIST ence and how it related to the work. It dence has chosen a hand crafted, dewas really fascinating to get their take tail oriented and historic medium in on it versus my intentions and find which to express her vision, and she out how close the two were actually.” wants to share it with people, in more While Manch’s fine art background ways than one. is in photography, embroidery is a “I think it’s just so accessible. You skill she had learned and loved as a don’t need a computer, you don’t youngster. need all the technology.”

“I grew up embroidering. When I Manch is talking about embroiwas in middle school my mom taught dery, her medium of choice, which me to embroider my jeans,” the artist she smartly layers on top of manipureminisces. lated fabric to form illustrated charWhen photography became too acters both real and imagined. With focused on Photoshop and working in many of the characters drawn from “Five Sketches of Mom” photo studios and darkrooms proved her childhood in Arizona, the work is

by Allison Manch expensive and difficult, the thread personal, playful and inviting. once again came calling.

“It’s about really thinking about “I initially started embroidering on handkerchiefs that person as I’m making it. You can really convey that were my grandmother’s. And then as time has people’s expressions and their personality through gone on I’ve moved on to embroidering on canvas or embroidery,” she says. on big silk pieces,” says Manch. “There wasn’t much Her newest project is called What’s Mine is Yours, new I could bring to the conversation of photography. and it’s an apt title. In addition to the new pieces at Whereas with fabric and textiles there was a lot of room the show—which opens Saturday, May 6 from 6 to 8 for experimentation and new ideas I could explore.” p.m. at the SDAI Project Space in Horton Plaza—there will also be a brief performance and poetry reading by

—Rachel Michelle Fernandes

IN STITCHES

A

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MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 23

CULTURE | FILM

The poet herself

A Quiet Passion

Terence Davies and Cynthia Nixon bring Emily Dickinson to life

by Glenn Heath Jr.

W

ith A Quiet Passion, British director Terence cation to the process of writing. In a film of many vital Davies constructs a calmly defiant biopic small moments, one of the best comes when Emily that refuses to indulge the genre’s worst asks her Father (Keith Carradine) if she can spend her impulses and conventions. It sees historical events nights penning poems, a request no husband would like the Civil War as backdrops framing the decisions ever grant.

Challenging traditional boundaries of family is one of complex people instead of defining them. Time often passes slowly without much external incident. thing, but Emily finds it an altogether different matWords are paramount. Of course, this is entirely fit- ter when dealing with religion. She mostly challenges ting of the rebellious and aloof subject, poet Emily the hypocrisies of Christianity in outward ways that Dickinson, whose words consistently challenged soci- bring disgrace to the Dickinson household. At other etal norms regarding gender roles and religion in 19th times gospel sermons seduce Emily, producing an unhealthy infatuation with the married Reverend Wadcentury America.

Since most of Dickinson’s work was published af- sworth (Eric Loren). These contradictions take their ter her death in 1886, only the ghost of success lingers toll, and the consequences can be found in Nixon’s forced smiles and broken posture. in A Quiet Passion. It is a film A Quiet Passion rarely leaves the about isolation rather than confines of Emily’s Amherst childcelebrity, and brilliance misA QUIET PASSION hood home, and the gardens where taken for bitterness. But first she walks with her sister Vinnie Davies makes it a point to inDirected by Terence Davies (Jennifer Ehle) and fellow femitroduce Dickinson’s relentStarring Cynthia Nixon, nist Ms. Buffam (Catherine Bailey). less soul. When pressed by a Jennifer Ehle, Keith Carradine This builds a distinct sense of place devout schoolteacher about and Catherine Bailey filled with detail, allowing for the her lack of spiritual knowlcasual breach of Emily’s guarded edge, teenage Emily (Emma Rated PG-13 independence. Unlike most biopics Bell) fires back a revealing that advertise behind-the-scenes barb: “I am not even awakexploration of the past, Davies’ ened yet.” This is someone who will live and die on her own terms. Conformity film actually feels like it is unmasking a personal side under the guise of evangelism or any other institu- of history.

Stanzas narrated from Dickinson’s poetry break up tional hierarchy is something to be admonished.

Such rigorous intellectual subversion has an or- scenes like chapter headings, infusing the film with a ganic place throughout the film’s glowing first act. flow that seems at odds with Emily’s physically stagDavies establishes the importance of natural light nant life. But that’s the great contradiction of Emily’s from the beginning, placing Emily in front of large life. She is at once a force of nature that refuses to stained glass windows flooded by sunbeams. During yield and a crumbling figure whose body cannot susa marvelous 360-degree pan shot we see the entire tain the pressure of disease or stress. What’s left is an Dickinson household peacefully partaking in their intimacy with her writing, and sometimes the words chosen pastimes, beginning with Emily reading by and ideas are enough to quell the pressure of being candlelight and ending with her looking up at the such a formidable resister.

As Emily lies on her deathbed suffering from Bright’s camera in sudden wonder.

If Emily’s youth only hints at the internal struggles disease, Ms. Buffam’s eternal words continue to echo: to come, A Quiet Passion brings them to the forefront “I refuse to be forgotten.” While most people never live once she hits middle age. The flash forward occurs in up to this statement, the poet herself endures. dynamic fashion with the faces of each family member slowly aging while seated for photographs. Cyn- Film reviews run weekly. thia Nixon brings out adult Emily’s withered determi- Write to glennh@sdcitybeat.com nation and resilience, but also her fundamental dedi-

24 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 25

CULTURE | FILM “history is either a lie or a bore.”

The Dinner manages to be both at the same time.

—Glenn Heath Jr.

OPENING

The Dinner

Digestion pains

O

ren Moverman has made a name for himself constructing gritty characterdriven films around the roughand-tumble talents of actors such as Woody Harrelson and Richard Gere. Urgent, propulsive and often timely, each of these works expresses a genuine interest in the lasting consequences of trauma in post-9/11 America, illuminating complex emotions within traditional masculine archetypes.

Strangely, The Dinner looks and sounds nothing like Moverman’s previous work, opting instead for flashy aesthetics, ensemble casting and hot-button pandering. The fractured plot revolves around a fancy evening meal between Paul Lohman (Steve Coogan) a dis-

26 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

gruntled history teacher, and his congressman brother Stan (Richard Gere), who are accompanied by their wives, Claire (Laura Linney) and Katelyn (Rebecca Hall) respectively.

Obviously, there’s no love lost between these two families. Flashbacks conveniently interrupt heated conversations in order to reveal more information about why this meal is so important to both sides.

The characters are supposed to gain more resonance as they are fleshed out beyond the surface, but the opposite becomes true.

Coogan’s bitter, petulant manchild is especially hard to take as the story becomes increasingly convoluted.

Moverman often centers his films on one social issue—PTSD, racism and homelessness have all been areas of focus. But in The Dinner, there’s no shortage of rippedfrom-the-headlines plot points: mental illnesses, millennial evil, political gerrymandering, failing education systems and snooty foodie culture all collide in what becomes a uniquely awful dramatic hodgepodge.

Attempts at experimental storytelling reveal Moverman’s loftier ambitions. One character narrated in their head while another tries to speak to them. The sound design features jarring bits of noise that help create an omniscient feeling of anxiety. But none of these creative decisions make a lick of sense in relation to the story being told.

At one point, Paul whines that,

A Quiet Passion: Terence Davies’ biopic explores the life of poet Emily Dickinson (Cynthia Nixon) as she battles societal contradiction, gender discrimination and her own burgeoning bitterness.

Citizen Jane: Battle for the City: Matt Tyrnauer’s documentary looks at the life of urban activist Jane Jacobs, who fought a vicious battle to save historic New York City during the 1960s. Opens Friday, May 5, at the Ken Cinema.

David Lynch: The Art of Life: The life and career of iconic director David Lynch are explored in more than 20 conversations recorded with him at his home.

Opens Friday, May 5, at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2: Your favorite wisecracking space opera characters are back in this sequel to the hit Marvel film from 2014. Starring Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana.

Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent: The infamous celebrity chef gets the documentary treatment, featuring interviews with Anthony Bourdain, Mario Batali, and other luminaries of the cuisine world.

The Dinner: Oren Moverman’s (The Messenger) latest film follows one eventful meal between two estranged brothers (Steve Coogan and Richard Gere) whose families are fatefully intertwined.

The Transfiguration: This bittersweet thriller follows troubled teen Milo who hides behind his fascination with vampire lore. When he meets the equally alienated Sophie, the two form a bond that begins to challenge Milo’s dark obsession, blurring his fantasy into reality. Opens Friday, May 5, at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Tomorrow: Mélanie Laurent’s inspirational documentary looks at the individuals providing concrete solutions to the world’s agricultural, environmental, ecological, and social issues. Opens Friday, May 5, at Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

For a complete listing of movies, visit F ilm on sdcitybeat.com.

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JÚNN

MUSIC

Clockwise from top left: Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Paul Hinojos, Keely Davis, Tony Hajjar and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez t the Drive-In never wanted to be a reunion act. Few bands ever do; reuniting to play the hits on the festival circuit can be a frustrating experience. It might pay the bills, but it’s weighed down with expectations of things being exactly as they were before the breakup. And, as is sometimes the case with a band starting up after more than a decade apart, there’s always the possibility of members not getting along. Just ask Art Garfunkel if he’ll ever play music with Paul Simon again.

When vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, guitarists Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Jim Ward, bassist Paul Hinojos and drummer Tony Hajjar got back together in 2012 to play their first shows in a decade, they did so with the intention of eventually making something new. In fact, Hajjar—in a phone interview from his home in Los Angeles—says that they drew a line in the sand: If everyone in the band was still invested in being in the band by 2016, they’d take the extra step of making a new album.

Not everybody was; Ward left the band last year before they began recording. Yet with new guitarist Keeley Davis, At the Drive-In started the process of creating something new in 2016, making good on a years-old promise and fostering a bond between the members again.

“That’s how we communicate, other than hanging out and eating,” he says. “We kind of stayed out of the conversation of writing music, but we were like ‘you know what,

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let’s get back to playing in ‘16.’ And once you cross that line, you’re in. There’s no more excuses, there’s no more talking about the past—let’s move on. We drew that line in the sand, and we made the decision that we’ll write a new record on the road, and we wanted to show that we were back in a new way.”

With new album in•ter a•li•a, out on Friday via Rise Records, At the Drive-In make the leap from being a short-lived reunion act to being a full-time band again. And despite the 16-year wait after their last album, 2000’s Relationship of Command, in•ter a•li•a is a record that fits very comfortably within the rest of their catalog. “Hostage Stamps” pulses with syncopated rhythms and intense guitar riffs, while “Incurably Innocent” has an abrasive back and forth between guitars and “Governed by Contagions” is punk with a psychedelic edge.

It was probably inevitable that in•ter a•li•a ended up sounding like a logical follow-up to Relationship of Command—Hajjar says that when the five members of the band get together in a room, what comes out of them sounds like At the Drive-In. And while they’ve grown up and explored various individual styles and sounds in the meantime, they were mindful of where they left things back in 2000.

“When we’re in a room together, there’s something about it,” Hajjar says. “I’m not saying it’s any better or any worse, but there’s this way that we write when we’re together.

There’s a positive anxiety, I call it, when I’m behind the kit with these guys. And the only direction we talked about when writing the record is that this is the record after Relationship of Command. We’re not talking about how much time has passed, and we’re not thinking about the past. It’s just a record after Relationship.”

Getting back to the point where playing in At the DriveIn felt as good as when they were at their most active didn’t happen overnight. When they first began playing together again in 2012, Hajjar says there was a period of adjustment and getting comfortable with being part of the same band again. Yet it was exactly that step of picking up their instruments and making some noise that brought back the spirit of camaraderie that kept them together in the first place.

Hajjar adds that being in At the Drive-In requires a pretty intense personal commitment, and that it would only work if everyone was willing to make that sacrifice.

“If it feels right to play instruments, then it’ll feel right to hang out. That’s the way the band got together really,” he says. “I wasn’t friends with Omar and Cedric before the band.

It was like, that drummer is willing to give up everything to play in a band—let’s ask him to be in this band! That’s how it was, because...at 22 or 23 years old, in a small scene who’s really going to give everything up? So, fast forward to current times, who’s willing to give it all up again? And for us, that’s always been the thing. Music first, and then we knew we’d get along. I know a lot of bands just don’t hang out that much, but we’re together on our days off. We have band dinners. We like to be in close quarters together.”

Considering At the Drive-In started when the band’s members were in their early twenties, they’ve done a lot of maturing since their first run. They’re older, healthier, less prone to interpersonal conflict and better equipped to handle disagreements. They’re still a volatile live act, but not offstage—which means they’re a stronger band overall, Hajjar says. In fact, he says that in their first incarnation, he had to take on a specific role as the adult in the group, which he’s thankful to no longer have to do.

“Back in the day, jokingly and unjokingly, I was Dad,” he says with a laugh. “I was the guy that said, ‘no, we have to play, I don’t care if nobody’s here.

We have to play.’ I was the guy that was constantly pushing everything. But now that we’re older, we’re calmer and we know how to deal with things. Everyone’s matured in the right direction. We’ve grown up, but when we get on stage we still feel like we have something to prove. It’s like nothing’s mattered before that show.”

Write to jefft@sdcitybeat.com.

Follow him on Twitter at @1000TimesJeff

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 27

MUSIC

NOTES FROM THE SMOKING PATIO LOCALS ONLY

D

ream Joints, aka Mike Turi of Wild Wild Wets, is getting ready to release his debut album, Just Like Medicine, via Bleeding Gold Records.

The record release show will take place on May 26 at The Casbah, with a headlining set from Dream Joints, along with performances by Hexa, Body Song, Vakoum and Fivepaw, along with DJ sets from Andrew McGranahan and Camilla Robina. The songs on the album first started to come together around five years ago, back when Wild Wild Wets was first coming together as a band.

“I wrote the first song, ‘Everyday Obstacle,’ before there was ever a Wild Wild Wets song,” Turi says. “Nobody else was in the band besides me and Marco (Piro), and I was getting frustrated because I was relying on other people to be able to make music. So I started making beats and just geeked out on my computer.”

After two name changes, from Emerald Rats to Gooon to Dream Joints, Turi finished up his first batch of songs, with another batch already written for the follow-up. Everything on the album was played by

Turi, with the exception of a couple of bass tracks from Brian Rathjen. And stylistically, it covers a lot of ground, from electronic to psychedelic to post-punk.

“The sound came from a really natural place, just of what I think is cool,” he says. “It’s a lot of things.

But it’s a style that’s close SUMMER LUU/MIKE TURI to my personal aesthetic. It doesn’t sound like any other band I’ve been in.”

Both the name of the project and the album refer to an autoimmune disorder that Turi has, which affects his joints. (“Music was my medicine,” he says, referring to a rough patch he went through with the condition.) However, he recognizes that there’s a kind of double entendre to the name as well.

“I put the album on to hear it over the soundsystem at Bluefoot,” says Turi, who works at the North Park bar. When he Dream Joints told a patron what the name of the band was, he got a surprising response. “He said ‘Dream Joints? I think I’ll need a couple of those to understand what’s going on with this.’”

—Jeff Terich

ALBUM REVIEW Die Mißbildungen Des Menschen DMDM.1 (Dream)

D

ie Mißbildungen Des Menschen’s debut cassette isn’t divided up into songs. Because it’s a cassette, it’s divided up by its sides: The first side is “Electronique,” and the second is “Batterie,” and that’s the tracklist. The album’s 43 minutes aren’t easily chopped up into digestible pieces to be distributed among mixtapes or Spotify playlists (though it is available to stream on Spotify, for the record). Far be it from me to tell anyone how to consume music, of course, but it takes a certain amount of commitment and patience to fully take in Die Mißbildungen Des Menschen’s music.

DMDM.1 is a sprawling, massive work that’s a pretty safe distance from pop, but while it’s complex and experimental, it’s also really cool.

Throughout “Batterie,” there are only so many moments that reveal a discernible melody, but it’s a textural wonder.

The opening swell of synthesizers is cosmic and feels seemingly infinite; it’s breathtaking and terrifying, like the opening of a Kubrick film. Yet once the drums start up, it becomes a psychedelic dirge that grows more accessible, if only temporarily. There’s always

28 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

more noise and weirdness just around the corner.

“Electronique,” by comparison, is more chaotic as it unfolds, with electronics firing and synthesizer effects oscillating. It picks up a minimal pulse, and after a few minutes sounds more like a conventional song, relatively speaking. It eventually turns into something sounding more like new wave, complete with a robotic recitation of the band’s name.

It’s surprisingly fun.

The full DMDM experience isn’t encapsulated without the addition of member Xavier Vasquez, who provides all of the visuals for the band’s performances (which make them all the more psychedelic and weird). To deliver the complete package, the group has released a DMDM.1 audio/visual component on Amazon, which Prime members can stream for free. Whatever method one consumes the album, it is still a guaranteed trip. Just make sure to carve out enough time to take in the whole thing.

—Jeff Terich @SDCITYBEAT

MUSIC

JEFF TERICH

IF I WERE U A music insider’s weekly agenda WEDNESDAY, MAY 3

PLAN A: AJ Froman, Cardinal Moon, Brothers Weiss @ Music Box. The best way to begin your week (yeah, it’s Wednesday, but bear with me) is with some local jams. AJ Froman blends epic progressive rock with psychedelia and Latin sounds, which might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but is definitely entertaining.

THURSDAY, MAY 4

PLAN A: Tim Kasher, Allison Weiss, The Oxen @ The Casbah. I’ve been a fan of Tim Kasher’s since he was releasing records with Cursive in the early ‘00s. While his solo material doesn’t rock quite as hard, it definitely has witty wordplay and knack for melody. PLAN B: Charly Bliss, Upset, Dime Novels @ Soda Bar. Charly Bliss is a young band worth keeping an eye on. They have a big, fuzzy indie rock sound built on super-catchy pop melodies.

They’re new, but they’ve already got their share of excellent songs. BACKUP PLAN:

@SDCITYBEAT

Cosmonauts, Spooky Cigarette, Svelte @ Space.

FRIDAY, MAY 5

PLAN A: Oddisee, Good Compny, Oliver St. Louis @ Music Box. D.C. emcee Oddisee has built up a pretty impressive discography of a dozen studio albums and mixtapes full of buttery-smooth flows and breezy, boom-bap production. If you like young emcees that can appreciate old-school sounds, then Oddisee is the kind of dude you should be listening to. BACKUP PLAN: La Diabla, Thee Commons, The Sleepwalkers @ The Casbah.

SATURDAY, MAY 6

PLAN A: Diet Cig, Lisa Prank @ The Irenic. Diet Cig’s music is easy to like. It’s accessible, tuneful, youthful indie rock that most strongly speaks to people much younger than me. Not that I let that get in the way of enjoying some wonderful pop

music, of course. PLAN B: The Weeks, Lonely Biscuits @ Soda Bar. For a slightly more straightforward, dude-approved power pop sound, check out The Weeks, who I imagine Kings of Leon might sound like if they weren’t so awful.

SUNDAY, MAY 7

PLAN A: Flaming Lips, Klangstof @ Observatory North Park. The Flaming Lips have been spending a lot of their time covering other people’s albums lately, but I won’t let that get in the way of recommending a band who never fails to put on a hell of a show. They do spectacle right, and considering they’ve written a lot of great songs, even better.

MONDAY, MAY 8

PLAN A: Batwings, Distant Beds, Ric Scales, Sonny Kay DJ Set @ SPACE. Three One G’s Planet B night has moved from Blonde to SPACE, and its inaugural event features the spastic punk of Batwings and a DJ set from punk vet Sonny Kay, who is also, as it turns out, releasing a book. PLAN B: Beira, Chiefs, X Suns, No-Knock Raid @ Til-Two Club. San Diego does, in fact, have some heavy as fuck doom metal bands. Beira is one of those bands, with Oddisee

a catalog of songs that rarely dip below 10 minutes apiece, and always destroy.

TUESDAY, MAY 9

PLAN A: At the Drive-In, Le Butcherettes @ SOMA. Read my feature this week on veteran El Paso post-hardcore band At the Drive-In, who broke up for a decade and then returned with the same energy and drive that made us love them in the first place. They have a new album too, so expect some new material as well. PLAN B: Amigo, State to State, Chiefs @ The Casbah.

For a smaller show, but nonetheless a loud one, check out local stoner rock outfit Amigo, who are sure to bring some powerful guitar licks and low-end thunder to this Tuesday night riff fest.

MAY 3, 2017 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 29

MUSIC

CONCERTS HOT! NEW! FRESH!

XXXTentacion (Observatory, 6/7), The Family Stone (BUT, 6/23), Future (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 6/27), Melvins (Casbah, 7/5), Joan Shelley (SPACE, 7/12), Joshua Radin and Rachel Yamagata (Observatory, 7/15), BadBadNotGood (Observatory, 7/20), Rozwell Kid (Soda Bar, 7/21), David J (Casbah, 7/27), Swirlies (SPACE, 8/3), Meat Wave (Soda Bar, 8/13), Brazilian Girls (Casbah, 8/17), Mew (Observatory, 8/24), Ira Glass (Balboa Theatre, 8/27), The Juliana Theory (Observatory, 9/7), Leo Kottke (BUT, 9/14), Face To Face, Reverend Horton Heat (HOB, 9/17), Jay Som (Soda Bar, 9/30), The Afghan Whigs (BUT, 10/12), Hamilton Leithauser (BUT, 11/9), Fall Out Boy (Viejas Arena, 11/15).

GET YER TICKETS Com Truise, Clark (BUT, 5/12), Conor Oberst (Observatory, 5/14), Pallbearer (Casbah, 5/16), Thundercat (Observatory, 5/19), Modest Mouse (Open Air Theatre, 5/30), Mount Kimbie (Music Box, 5/31), In-Ko-Pah 4 w/ Mattson 2, Zig Zags, Mrs. Magician, Birdy Bardot (Desert View Tower, 6/3), Elvis Costello and the Imposters (Balboa Theatre, 6/5), The Anniversary (Irenic, 6/10), ‘91X X-Fest’ w/ Phoenix, Empire of the Sun (Qualcomm Stadium, 6/11), Ziggy Marley (Humphreys, 6/12), The Body (SPACE, 6/17), (Sandy) Alex G, Japanese Breakfast (Irenic, 6/17), King Crimson (Humphreys,

6/19), The Revolution (HOB, 6/22), The Game (Observatory, 6/23), Maxwell (Valley View Casino Center, 6/23), Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (Civic Theatre, 6/26), Deftones, Rise Against (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 7/7), Mutoid Man (Casbah, 7/12), The Sword (BUT, 7/18), Hall & Oates, Tears for Fears (Valley View Casino Center, 7/19), Beach Fossils (Casbah, 7/20), Dead Kennedys (Brick by Brick, 7/21), Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 (BUT, 7/21), Taking Back Sunday (Observatory, 7/28), Steve Gunn (SPACE, 7/30), Huey Lewis and the News (Humphreys, 8/1), AFI, Circa Survive (Open Air Theatre, 8/1), Metallica (Petco Park, 8/6), 10,000 Maniacs (BUT, 8/6), Incubus, Jimmy Eat World (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 8/11), Hans Zimmer (Viejas Arena, 8/12), Royal Blood (Observatory, 8/15), X (BUT, 8/17), 311 (Open Air Theatre, 8/20), Bryan Ferry (Humphreys, 8/23), Sylvan Esso (Observatory, 8/26), Pink Martini (Humphreys, 8/26), The Gipsy Kings (Humphreys, 8/27), George Benson, Kenny G (Humphreys, 9/10), Goo Goo Dolls (Open Air Theatre, 9/12), Green Day (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 9/13), Indigo Girls (Humphreys, 9/13), Steve Winwood (Humphreys, 9/14), Black Uhuru (BUT, 9/15), Future Islands (Open Air Theatre, 9/17), The Beach Boys (Humphreys, 9/23), Sublime With Rome, The Offspring (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 9/26), The Shins, Spoon (Open Air Theatre, 10/1), Father John Misty (Observatory 10/56), Depeche Mode (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 10/6), Coldplay (Qualcomm Stadium, 10/8), The Black Angels (HOB, 10/17), Café Tacuba (Observatory, 10/1718), KMFDM (HOB, 10/20), Carla Morrison (Humphreys, 10/22), Luke Bryan (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 10/27), Blues Traveler (HOB, 11/19), Mogwai (Observatory, 11/20).

30 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

MAY WEDNESDAY, MAY 3 The Drabs at Belly Up Tavern. Current Swell at Soda Bar.

THURSDAY, MAY 4 Dweezil Zappa at Belly Up Tavern. Tim Kasher at The Casbah.

FRIDAY, MAY 5 Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness at House of Blues (sold out). Mariachi El Bronx at Belly Up Tavern (sold out). Oddisee at Music Box. The Expendables at Observatory North Park.

SATURDAY, MAY 6 Face to Face at The Casbah. The Weeks at Soda Bar. Diet Cig at The Irenic.

SUNDAY, MAY 7 Blue October at House of Blues. Flaming Lips at Observatory North Park. Frank Iero and the Patience at The Casbah.

MONDAY, MAY 8 Lionel Richie at Viejas Arena. The Chainsmokers at Valley View Casino Center.

TUESDAY, MAY 9 Fuel, Marcy Playground at Belly Up Tavern. At the Drive-In at SOMA. Amigo at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 10 Stephanie Brown and the Surrealistics at Belly Up Tavern. Gabriel Garzon-Montano at The Casbah.

THURSDAY, MAY 11 Schizophonics at The Casbah. The Wind Playing Tricks at Soda Bar.

FRIDAY, MAY 12 Timber Timbre at Soda Bar (sold out).

Matt Pryor at The Casbah. Com Truise, Clark at Belly Up Tavern. Me First and the Gimme Gimmes at House of Blues. Iration at Observatory North Park.

SATURDAY, MAY 13 Common Sense at Belly Up Tavern. Author & Punisher at Soda Bar. Suburban Legends at The Irenic. Cashmere Cat at Observatory North Park. JOY at The Casbah.

SUNDAY, MAY 14 Train at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Twin Forks at The Irenic. All Them Witches at The Casbah. Conor Oberst at Observatory North Park.

MONDAY, MAY 15 Joe Goddard at The Casbah. Brother Ali at Observatory North Park. Testament at House of Blues.

TUESDAY, MAY 16 Pallbearer at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17 Marty Stuart at Belly Up Tavern. Six60 at The Casbah.

THURSDAY, MAY 18 Chris Stapleton at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Matthew Logan Vasquez at The Casbah. DIIV at Music Box.

FRIDAY, MAY 19 Robin Trower at House of Blues. Woods at The Casbah. Thundercat at Observatory North Park. Holy Grail at Brick by Brick.

SATURDAY, MAY 20 Back to the Garden at Poway OnStage.

Magic Giant at The Casbah. Sweet Spirit at Soda Bar. Rubblebucket at The Casbah. The Iron Maidens at Brick by Brick.

SUNDAY, MAY 21 Ann Wilson at Belly Up Tavern. The Strumbellas at Observatory North Park.

MONDAY, MAY 22 Bryan Adams at Open Air Theatre.

TUESDAY, MAY 23 Rodriguez at Humphreys by the Bay. Catfish and the Bottlemen at House of Blues. Draco Rosa at Music Box. Kikagaku Moyo at SPACE. Hoops at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 24 Brian Wilson at Civic Theatre. Melissa Etheridge at Humphreys by the Bay. Fakear at The Casbah.

THURSDAY, MAY 25 Mono/Poly at SPACE. Giuda at Soda Bar. L.A. Takedown at The Casbah. Jefferson Starship at Belly Up Tavern. Celtic Woman at Civic Theatre.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

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@SDCityBeat

may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 31

MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 30 FRIDAY, MAY 26 John Brown’s Body at Music Box. Foster the People at Observatory North Park (sold out). Paul van Dyk at House of Blues. Los Lonely Boys at Belly Up Tavern. Taake at Brick by Brick. ‘San Diego Freak Out’ w/ Dream Joints at The Casbah.

SATURDAY, MAY 27 CRX at Soda Bar. The Adicts at Observatory North Park. ‘Freedom Concert’ w/ Lifehouse at USS Midway. Shawn P. Rohlf at The Casbah.

SUNDAY, MAY 28 Yngwie Malmsteen at House of Blues.

MONDAY, MAY 29 DLD at Observatory North Park.

TUESDAY, MAY 30 Modest Mouse at Open Air Theatre. Barrows at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 31 Mount Kimbie at Music Box. Sam Outlaw at The Casbah. Durand Jones and the Indications at SPACE.

rCLUBSr

710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave., Pacific Beach. Fri: Bulevar Descarga, Cumbia Machin. Tue: The Vinyl Moods.

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: Rachel Feinstein. Fri: Rachel Feinstein. Sat: Rachel Feinstein.

32 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

The Bancroft, 9143 Campo Road, Spring Valley. Sat: Rock ‘N’ Roll Suicides, CYKA, Gentroside.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St., Downtown.

Sat: Alpha 9.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St., North Park. Wed: DJ Grandmasta Rats. Thu: Ypsitucky, Me and You. Fri: ‘First Friday’ w/ DJ Artistic.

Sat: Mittens, The Touchies, DJ Mike Delgado. Sun: ‘Rat Sabbath’. Mon: DJ Thug Wave. Tue: The Fink Bombs.

Beaumont’s, 5665 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Thu: Ariel Levine. Fri: Fish and the Seaweeds.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave., Solana Beach. Wed: WildEyes, The Drabs, Band of Gringos. Thu: Dweezil Zappa: 50 Years of Frank. Fri: Mariachi El Bronx (sold out). Sun: Bob Schneider, Trouble in the Wind. Tue: Fuel, Marcy Playground.

Blonde, 1808 W. Washington St., Mission Hills. Wed: ‘Dance Klassique’ w/ Ryan Bauer, Gomez, Joe Pea. Thu: True Ghouls, Dark Thirty, Los Pinche Pinches. Mon: ‘CBGB Night’. Tue: ‘The Pixies Live Tribute’.

Boar Cross’n, 390 Grand Ave., Carlsbad.

Fri: ‘Club Musae’.

Brick by Brick, 1130 Buenos Ave., Bay Park. Fri: Soulfly, Gruesome, Lody Kong, Godhammered.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Thu: Tim Kasher, Allison Weiss, The Oxen. Fri: La Diabla, Thee Commons, The Sleepwalkers. Sat: Face to Face, Bad Cop Bad Cop. Sun: Frank Iero and the Patience, Dave Hause and the Mermaid.

Mon: Atlantic Answers, The Wild Young Hearts, Sweet Myths. Tue: Amigo, State to State, Chiefs.

Dirk’s Nightclub, 7662 Broadway, Lem-

on Grove. Fri: Too Little Too Late. Sat: Autumn Lielani.

Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Downtown. Wed: Gunhild Carling.

The Field Irish Pub, 544 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Wed: Fiore. Thu: Shoeless. Fri: Chrome Domes. Sat: The Getdown Party.

Sun: Dan Porter. Mon: Stacy Antonel.

Tue: Joseph Carroll.

Fluxx, 500 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Fri: Frankie J. Sat: DJ Kaos.

The Holding Company, 5046 Newport Ave., Ocean Beach. Wed: Reina Mystique and the Dynasty. Thu: Loosely Structured, Going Postal, Kitty Plague. Fri: Quel Bordel, DJ Mancat. Sat: Weezerton, MXPX Tribute, DJ OMZ. Sun: Tommy Mitchell, Janie. Tue: Maruak, Raggabond.

Hooley’s, 5500 Grossmont Center Drive, La Mesa. Thu: Highland Way. Fri: Tony Cummins. Sat: Sam Bybee.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Wed: Leela James, Daley. Thu: SD Cajun Playboys. Fri: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Atlas Genius, Night Riots.

Sat: Which One’s Pink. Sun: Blue October, Ryan Delahoussaye. Tue: Robin Henkel.

Humphreys Backstage, 2241 Shelter Island Drive, Shelter Island. Wed: Backwater Blues Band. Thu: Pop Vinyl. Fri: Rising Star, Sara Petite. Sat: Viva Santana, The Reflectors. Sun: R. Tyme, Jason Brown.

Mon: Michele Lundeen. Tue: Blue Largo.

The Irenic, 3090 Polk Ave., North Park.

Sat: Diet Cig, Lisa Prank.

Ave., Normal Heights. Fri: Jon A, Stephanie Love. Sat: Gary Wilson and the Blind Dates, Kan-Kan, Flower Animals. Sun: Mojo Jackson, Nick Crook.

The Loft @ UCSD, Price Center East, La Jolla. Thu: Julia Vari. Sun: Elise Trouw, Tolan Shaw.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave., Coronado. Wed: Goodall Boys. Thu: Jackson and Billy. Fri: Pat Ellis and Blue Frong Band. Sat: Manic Bros. Sun: Ron’s Garage. Tue: Glen Smith.

The Merrow, 1271 University Ave., Hillcrest. Wed: Twin Ritual, Edges, Dirty Dragon. Thu: All Things Blue, The Fresh Brunettes. Fri: The No Name Gang, The Unit, Vanguard, Void Vator. Sat: Deliverance Machine, Bred Dogs, Wither. Sun: Burlesque Sunday Tease. Tue: The Dirty Pennies, Kid Haney & The Imaginal Cells, The Innocent Bystanders.

Music Box, 1337 India St., Little Italy.

Wed: AJ Froman, Cardinal Moon, Brothers Weiss. Thu: Juan Gabriel Tribute w/ Javier Miranda. Fri: Oddisee, Good Compny, Olivier St. Louis. Sun: Los Master Plus, Azucar, DJ Saul Q. Numbers, 3811 Park Blvd., Hillcrest. Fri: ‘Uncut’. Sun: ‘R&B Divas’.

The Office, 3936 30th St., North Park.

Wed: ‘The Reflex’. Thu: ‘No Limits’ w/ DJ Myson King. Fri: ‘Nite Moves’ w/ DJ Beatnick. Sat: ‘Strictly Business’ w/ DJs EdRoc, Kanye Asada. Sun: ‘Uptown Top Ranking’ w/ Tribe of Kings. Tue: ‘True Bass’ w/ DJ Ramsey.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Wed: ‘Midnite Wave’. Fri: ‘Vibrate’.

Sat: ‘Ascension’. Sun: Mandapa. Tue: Symphonic Frequencies.

OMNIA Nightclub, 454 Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: Mash’d N Kutcher. Fri: Savi.

Sat: GTA.

Lestat’s Coffee House, 3343 Adams

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 33

@SDCITYBEAT

MUSIC

SPOTLIGHT

The late ‘90s may have been the bleakest time for rock music. After the fall of grunge, “alternative” rock pretty much became a synonym for adult-contemporary with guitar distortion. Fuel is no exception. If you can’t remember the band’s hits, it’s probably because they’re easy to get confused with Our Lady Peace, The Verve Pipe, Lifehouse and a bunch of other bands that sound constipated. But hey, if you’re old enough to have nostalgia for Fuel, maybe you’re in the right demographic to enjoy them now. Fuel plays with Dishwalla, Candlebox and Marcy Playground on Sunday, May 7 at Casino Pauma, and again with Marcy Playground on Tuesday, May 9 at Belly Up Tavern.

—Ryan Bradford

MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 32 Panama 66, 1450 El Prado, Balboa Park. Wed: Gilbert Castellanos. Fri: Soul Scratch Band. Sat: Unsteady.

Parq, 615 Broadway, Downtown. Fri: Crooked. Sat: Konflikt.

Plaza Bar at Westgate Hotel, 1055 2nd Ave., Downtown. Fri: Gilbert Castellanos. Sat: Allison Tucker.

Mon: Julio de la Huerta.

Rich›s, 1051 University Ave., Hillcrest. Wed: DJs John Joseph, Kinky Loops. Thu: DJ Kinky Loops.

Fri: DJs K-Swift, Moody Rudy. Sat: DJs K-Swift, Taj. Sun: DJs Cros, Brynn Taylor.

SPACE, 3519 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Thu: Cosmonauts, Spooky Cigarette, Svelte. Sat: ‘Boogie Down’. Mon: Batwings, Distant Beds, Ric Scales, DJ Sonny Kay. Spin, 2028 Hancock St., Midtown. Sat: Destructo, J. Worra, Hotfire.

Sycamore Den, 3391 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Wed: ‘Dreams’ w/ DJ Gabe Vega. Sun: ‘Too Sad to Be Mad’.

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Fri: Fatal Jamz, Xetas. Sun: Pants Karaoke. Mon: Beira, X Suns.

Riviera Supper Club, 7777 University Ave., La Mesa. Wed: ‘Boss Jazz’ w/ Jason Hanna. Thu: Swing Thing. Fri: Gino and the Lone Gunmen. Sat: Alvino and the Dwells.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St., Bay Park. Wed: Benji and the Honeycats, Theo and the Zydeco Patrol. Thu: Blue Largo. Fri: The Distractions. Sat: Groove Mercenaries. Tue: Sue Palmer.

Rosie O’gradys, 3402 Adams Ave., Normal Heights.

Fri: Modern Day Moonshine. Sat: Brian Macpherson.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave., City Heights. Wed: Russian Tremors, The Cowboys, Punk Yacht Club, Rubek’s Cube. Fri: ‘Hip Hop vs. Punk Rock’ w/ 1019 the Numberman, Se Vende, All Souls, Veks. Sat: Steeltoe, The Gorgeous Boyscouts, The Hand of Gavrilo.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Wed: Current Swell, Jesse LaMonaca and the Dime Novels, Lead Pony. Thu: Charly Bliss, Upset, Nancy Sin. Fri: Koffin Kats, The Strikers. Sat: The Weeks, Lonely Biscuits. Sun: The Black Lillies, Dustin Schaefer. Mon: Joshua Powell and the Great Train Robbery, The Candlelights, Golden Hour. Tue: The Gravities, Sotaria, Orange Pickers.

SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd., Midway. Sat: So This Is Suffering, Born Blind, Shawshank Redeemed, Ascensions, Set Your Anchor, Raw Dawg, Cries of The Captive, Treaded, Lords & Wolves, Petrichor.

Tue: At the Drive-In, Le Butcherettes.

@SDCITYBEAT

U-31, 3112 University Ave., North Park. Thu: ‘Thursdaze’. Fri: DJ Junior the Disco Punk. Sat: DJ Bacon.

Tue: ‘Electricity’.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St., South Park. Fri: The Amandas, DJ Claire.

Winstons, 1921 Bacon St., Ocean Beach. Wed: The Smash Up, DJ Carlos Culture. Fri: The Routine, The Moves Collective. Sat: Sure Fire Soul Ensemble, Natural Sounds Trio. Mon: Electric Waste Band.

MAY 3, 2017· SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 33

LAST WORDS | ADVICE

AMY ALKON

ADVICE

Swarm Fuzzies

GODDESS

I got in an argument with my boyfriend about the reason not to have sex outside our relationship. He said he wouldn’t do it because he wouldn’t want to hurt me.

I said he shouldn’t want to be with anybody else, but he said that’s just not realistic for guys. Are men really just these unfeeling sex machines?

—Dismayed Male sexuality is about as sentimental as an oar.

In fact, if there’s one secret guys try to keep from women, it’s this: A man can really love a woman and still want to spend the afternoon wrecking the bed with her BFF, her well-preserved mom and her sister.

As awful as that probably sounds, men’s evolved lust for sexual variety isn’t something you and other women should take personally. Evolutionary psychologists David Buss and David Schmitt explain that genetically speaking, it’s generally in a man’s interest to pursue a “short-term sexual strategy”—pounce and bounce, coitus and, um,

34 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · MAY 3, 2017

avoid us—with as many women as possible.

This isn’t to say men evolved to be entirely without discernment. Because “beautiful” features (like pillowy lips and an hourglass bod) reflect health and fertility, if a man has a choice in casual sexmates, he’ll go for a hot woman, but if he doesn’t, he’ll go for a woman with a pulse.

However, Buss and Schmitt explain that there are times when it’s to a man’s advantage to pursue a “long-term sexual strategy”—commitment to one woman. It’s a quality-over-quantity strategy—wanting a woman with “high mate value” (one who’s physically and psychologically desirable enough to hold out for a guy who’ll commit).

Other factors include seeking the emotional, social and cooperative benefits of a partnership and wanting to retire from the time-, energy- and resource-suck of working the ladies on Match.com like a second job.

In light of this, think about what your boyfriend’s really telling you by opting for “Honey, where do I sign away my sexual freedom?” This isn’t dismaying, degrading,

or any of the other bummer D-words. In fact, it’s really romantic, considering that men evolved to be sexual foragers. But for your boyfriend’s desire to make a life with you, he could be wandering the planet and sharing his life and hopes and dreams—uh, for about six minutes and 23 seconds—with a wide variety of oiled-up naked strangers.

Crazy Belittle Thing Called Love

My boyfriend of five years has gotten super moody. He picks fights with me and even gets a little verbally abusive and condescending. I know he’s a good guy, and I want to help him sort through his stuff, but I’m finding myself flirting with other guys and fantasizing about cheating on him. I am not the kind of person who cheats, and I feel terribly guilty even having those thoughts.

—Demeaned Ideally, “I’ve never felt this way before!” reflects something a little more romantic than longing to tunnel out of your relationship with a sharpened spoon.

I wrote recently about a cocktail of personality traits that are associated with a susceptibility to infidelity in a person—basically those of a narcissistic, lazy con artist with all the empathy of a bent tack. That finding is from research by evolutionary psychologists Todd Shackelford and David Buss, who also studied the emotional circumstances in a relationship that might lead one of the partners to cheat or to want

to (even if that person isn’t some ethically bankrupt, empathy-deficient turdpiece).

They found that there are two personality characteristics someone can have that make a relationship particularly miserable.

One is emotional instability—marked by mood swings and a gloomy obsessiveness about things beyond one’s control. As Buss explains in “The Dangerous Passion,” when emotional instability is paired with quarrelsomeness (and all of the ugly condescension, sniping and emotional neglect that goes with it), relationships become “cauldrons of conflict.” This, in turn, raises the odds that one’s partner will seek solace in the, um, back seat of another.

Part of being in a relationship is taking out the trash when it starts to overflow—including the psychological trash spilling out of the dumpster that has become “you.” Talk compassionately with your boyfriend about the need for him to start figuring out and fixing whatever’s causing him to act out in toxic ways.

Don’t expect change at “Poof!” speed, but look for signs that he’s taking meaningful steps to dig out of his emotional winter.

Give yourself some time markers—maybe the two-week mark, a month from now, the three-month mark. This should keep you from just blindly continuing along with a partner whose interests could be advertised as: Enjoys dive bars, French cinema, long screaming arguments on the beach, and staying up till dawn pondering the age-old question, “I KNOW YOU ARE, BUT WHAT AM I?!

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may 3, 2017 · San Diego CityBeat · 35