San Diego CityBeat • June 5, 2019

2 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

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UP FRONT | FROM THE EDITOR

Artists pay the price

T

hings were already getting bad before the recession hit in 2008.

I had a job at a magazine at the time and remember there were a number of competing publications popping up. And while social media and “influencer” culture were still in their infancy, blogging was at its peak.

Everywhere I looked, there was some tastemaking site popping up filled with creative voices trying to make a name for themselves.

When it came to the labor practices of major publications and websites, the rules up until the late-2000s were simple: If they hired someone to do something that was integral to the publication itself, that person would be paid. If a writer wrote something, they would be paid. If a photographer shot something, they would be paid. If a designer helped lay something out, they would be paid.

But then things began to change. The influx of bloggers and online creatives exposed an untapped stream of potential contributors. What’s more, because of their naiveté to the industry, these creatives were ripe to be taken advantage of. The magazine I worked for always paid freelancers well, but suddenly we were competing with publications that, rather than hire someone, opted to have aspiring creatives produce content for free.

Ethics aside, it makes sense. Why pay someone when they can use buzzy terms like “paid in exposure” and “paid in clicks” to get ambitious creatives to provide content for free.

And it worked. The recession hit and once the dust settled, this business practice was practically the new norm. Freelancers who once had a reliable career were now competing with a new crop of creatives willing to provide their services for free in hopes that the “exposure” would help them build a portfolio that might help them eventually land something full-time. Something that paid. There are publications based right here in San Diego that still get the bulk of their content from people working for free.

Meanwhile, the owners of the publications that made a name for themselves over the past decade made a ton of money (Huffington Post, for example) off the sweat of

their free content sources. Not too long ago, a wealthy magazine owner bragged to the L.A. Times that he only “hires” unpaid editorial contributors.

What’s worse, rather than place the blame on the companies that reaped the benefits of using free labor, creatives attacked each other. I still see longtime freelancers scream at young creatives on social media for taking their jobs, while the young creatives are simply doing their best to try to get a foot in the door.

Thank you for bearing with me through this microeconomical history of creatives over the past decades. Readers may be asking themselves what this has to do with them, and, well, here it is: If we value creativity, why aren’t we willing to pay for it? Whatever form it is—whether it’s visual art, music, writing, photography, performing arts, etc.—do we not value it enough to care whether or not the producer of that content is fairly compensated?

And if those in power truly care about people working in creative industries, they’ll understand that this predatory type of business model is likely to continue. Legislation such as Assembly Bill 5 (AB-5), which is headed to the state Senate, would benefit a few at the expense of many.

The bill’s aspirations are admirable and the hope is that businesses will hire more fulland part-time workers rather than rely on paid freelancers and independent contractors.

However, it’s much more likely that businesses relying on paid freelance creatives will simply choose to instead “hire” free contributors. AB-5 is intended as a means to codify a Supreme Court ruling that employers must hire freelancers and independent contractors if their businesses depend on said freelancers. This law might make a few companies hire a few more people at the expense of paid freelancers. What this bill doesn’t do, at least in its current form, is address the free labor practices that all creatives have suffered under for far too long. And it’s these practices— not the freelance creatives and the paying companies—that made this type of legislation necessary in the first place.

—Seth Combs

Write to seth.combs@sdcitybeat.com

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JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 3

UP FRONT | LETTERS

JUST SAY NO TO CONDIMENTS This was pretty damn funny, well done [“Condiments are trash,” Well, That Was Awkward, April 24]. I agree, it’s a waste of the chef’s best efforts to throw that on. In my opinion, the only time you should be using it is if something you created yourself simply isn’t good enough, and that may improve the flavor a bit.

But on something that is meant to be enjoyed, say no!

Jerry Fienseld via sdcitybeat.com

COME TO THE LORD… OR SOMETHING If only Jesus were alright with him. Alfred Howard’s latest Black Gold column [“Wax over facts,” May 22] in which he, among other things, bemoans the loss of the old days (a world he once knew gone crazy), seems to delight in the revelation of Phoenix Sonshine’s “He Died” (for which he claims “racing guitars” and a “percussive groove reminiscent of mid 60’s Donovan”—are those cheap bongos—without-a-break we hear? Really??!! Go hear the Lord’s true nature expressed in Fraction’s 1971 Doors-like darkness of “Moonblood.” Find me a sealed copy, please, Al!!) all while hiding in his anti-social distancing from any real Absolute foundation of judgment; a purely Ironic-Hipster-Aesthete posture that would make both Kierkegaard and Che chuckle.

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Without God, not to mention His sacrificed son, we are left with the free-floating relativism which has led Alfred to feel 10,000 leagues at sea (as Kierkegaard has noted in Fear and Trembling) and reduced our voices to an internal whisper about the possibility of financial gain or the relative value of one version of “Gloria” or another. (Them? The Gants? Shadows of Knight? Perhaps you will find Jesus in Patti Smith’s version, Al, my own choice).

Amongst the chud left behind I’m sure Alfred has passed on many copies of Wagner’s Die Gotterdamerung (see Solti’ Der Ring des Niberlungen, on Decca), which can offer an antidote to Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra (not the L.A. Philharmonic’s version of Decca) the clarion call in post-modern times to the death of God. In the face of this self-created relativism, isn’t it time to leave this distanced posture of Ironic-Hipster aside and get back to what Jim Morrison and Jesus (I came to both of them personally just off Santa Monica Blvd, in the late ’60s) knew was undeniable: pain, suffering, despair is only relieved by accepting the good news. It is the conquest of death itself through the death and Phoenix-rising of the Anointed One. Taking four bullets to the chest or $12 for a stack of records are one and the same with the acceptance of the Gospel.

The question then becomes: are you alright with Jesus, Alfred?

M. Eckhart Normal Heights

TABLE OF CONTENTS UP FRONT From the Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Letters to the Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Spin Cycle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Backwards & In High Heels. . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Well, That Was Awkward . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

FOOD & DRINK World Fare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

WE HAVE A

Anatomy of a Cocktail Scene . . . . . . . . . 11 Final Draught. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

It’s back! After a hiatus, the second season of Show in Progress with Matt Strabone is online now. This week, Strabone talks to local congressman Mike Levin, who successfully flipped the 49th District back in November and has proven himself to be one of the more progressive voices in the House ever since. On the show, the two discuss everything from the situation with the San Onofre nuclear waste to Levin’s support of the Green New Deal. Oh, and as always, Strabone ends the show with one of his awful/awesome jokes. Show in Progress is available pretty much anywhere podcasts are available, but readers can find it streaming on sdcitybeat.com as well.

The Short List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Calendar of Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13

PODCAST!

THINGS TO DO

ARTS & CULTURE Theater. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Feature: No Choice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Film . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18

MUSIC Feature: Diane Coffee. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Black Gold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 The Spotlight. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 If I Were U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Concerts & Clubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-26

IN THE BACK Astrologically Unsound . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 CannaBitch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

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JOHN R. LAMB

UP FRONT | OPINION

SPIN

CYCLE

JOHN R. LAMB

‘An independent fiefdom’ “A countryman between two lawyers is like a fish between two cats.”

—Benjamin Franklin

A

s far as Cory Briggs is concerned, it’s mission accomplished when it comes to the 2020 San Diego mayoral race.

The activist attorney now has his sights set on reforming what he calls the “structurally dysfunctional” City Attorney’s Office. And he’s aiming straight at the top.

Briggs, who has spent decades suing the city and various other government agencies to preclude them from doing, in his words, “stupid stuff,” had previously announced in January that he would be running for mayor. He was irked that no city leaders pushed back against Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s “YIMBY” call to lift development restrictions throughout the city (except in coastal areas) as a way to boost San Diego’s housing supply.

This prompted Briggs to proclaim,

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“Count me in.”

“Nobody stood up to say that plan is unrealistic and unworkable,” he told Spin last week. “But since I got into that race, people did start to have that conversation.

And I think voters and some of the candidates are now on the same page when it comes to ruining San Diego with uncontrolled development. I don’t see that happening.”

But since that January announcement, a couple things happened that prompted Briggs to turn his attention to the City Attorney’s race, which had incumbent Mara Elliott running uncontested.

The first came in March with Elliott’s efforts to alter the state Public Records Act through legislation (Senate Bill 615) from state Sen. Ben Hueso. Elliott claimed that she was simply trying to streamline the process and ease the burden on city employees overwhelmed by document requests. But opengovernment advocates like Briggs,

journalists and even City Council members had a much different take.

As Briggs sees it, “Mara decided that she singlehandedly was going to secretly gut the Public Records Act. When I got the documents on the plan, which we had to sue to get, it was clear to me that she had not been fully transparent with Hueso about what the changes would do. I think she gave Ben a Trojan horse.”

Hueso eventually withdrew Senate Bill 615, telling the Independent Voter Network, “My objective is to protect taxpayers while increasing transparency in government… I will not move forward with any legislation that compromises the obligation of government to be transparent in any way.”

Briggs also helped Matt Valenti, a San Diego Junior Theatre parent and former District 6 City Council candidate, obtain documents from the city that he claims raise questions about Elliott’s handling of sexual misconduct allegations at the Balboa Park institution. Valenti appeared before the City Council last month to ask for further investigation. Councilmember Chris Ward, whose district includes the park, said at the time, “There are certainly some substantial allegations there that merit investigation and full exploration.”

Ex-mayoral candidate Cory Briggs (right) now wants to replace City Attorney Mara Elliott and eliminate “kneecap breaker” Gerry Braun’s chief-of-staff position.

Briggs said obtained emails seemed to indicate that Elliott passed along the information Valenti provided to Gil Cabrera, Junior Theatre’s pro bono attorney, as well as a Convention Center Trustee and former City Attorney candidate. Elliott did this without reading them herself, which Briggs says is “yet another indication to me that there’s a systemic problem in the City Attorney’s Office.”

Elliott’s campaign consultant, Dan Rottenstreich, bristled at suggestions that she didn’t take the allegations seriously.

“It’s tempting to laugh off ridiculous allegations like these,” Rottenstreich told Spin, “but we know too well that fake news can do real damage, which is exactly what Valenti, and his attorney Cory Briggs, are trying to do.”

Added Rottenstreich: “What the public needs to know is that Valenti’s claims were reviewed by four law enforcement agencies— San Diego Police, the [state] Attorney General, the District Attorney’s Office, the City Attorney’s Office— and dismissed and discredited.”

Rottenstreich said Elliott welcomes “any and all opponents to the race.”

“More San Diegans voted for Mara Elliott than any other city official, and she’s doing an amazing job as a national leader in tackling gun violence, cracking down on elder abuse and defending taxpayers from fraud and waste,” he said, adding that Briggs is “a millionaire shopping around for political office, and he’s going to find out that winning the people’s trust is a lot more difficult than suing them.”

Briggs is used to such scorn. He figures he has roughly two-dozen lawsuits currently pending against the city. He most recently filed suit to halt plans to convert one of the few remaining single-room-occupancy hotels downtown, the historic Plaza Hotel, into a hostel.

What the City Attorney’s Office needs, according to Briggs, is “seri-

ous structural reform.”

He adds that the office was designed “at a much happier time when people weren’t anticipating the problems” of today and now “there’s all sorts of social unrest going on with homelessness and scooters and vacation rentals.”

“Mara is a product of a dysfunctional office,” Briggs said. “She’s been nurtured in this dysfunctional environment. I don’t fault her for that. Where I do fault her is for making the office political by appointing Gerry Braun as her chief of staff.”

Braun is a former San Diego Union-Tribune columnist who went on to work for Jerry Sanders when he was mayor. He also worked for Elliott’s predecessor at the city attorney’s office, Jan Goldsmith, and has become a frequent punching bag for Briggs. “Why does a law firm need a chief of staff?” he said.

“I consider Gerry to be the kneecap breaker. Gerry is the guy who doesn’t have a law license to lose, so he’s not bound by the rules of ethics that govern lawyers.”

Braun did not respond to a request for comment.

Briggs said, if elected, he would eliminate that six-figure position.

“That money could be much better spent on doing real legal work.”

“The big problems, the stupid stuff that the office does?” Briggs continued. “It’s all conceived at the Gerry Braun level and higher.

These aren’t career attorneys making these blunders. These are political mistakes made by a political person in the office. That’s why you have to reform the office so that it goes back to being a law firm and not a politics firm.

“Right now, it is an independent fiefdom, and that’s wrong. If I were running the office, the stupid stuff that gets the city into hot water would come to a screeching halt.”

Spin Cycle appears every other week.

Write to johnl@sdcitybeat.com.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 5

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UP FRONT | OPINION

AARYN BELFER

BACKWARDS & IN

HIGH HEELS

The middle of nowhere

W

hen we get to be “middle-aged,” life just swoops on by. One minute it’s Christmas and the next minute it’s Christmas again.

Of course there’s some blurry stuff in between like the month-long season running from mid-May through mid-June where my social media stacks up with images of young people posed, often in the evening sunlight, holding balloons and flowers, and with their necks draped in leis and ribbons. I watch the steady flow of young adults graduating from college, pseudo-adults graduating from high school and foal-like aspiring-adults promoting from the eighth grade. And dang it if this latter group isn’t just stuck in the purgatory of childhood/adulthood (chidulthood?). Poor gangly things wanna be grown so bad and yet... you really can’t put makeup on that piglet.

I do love seeing how my friends’ kids have successfully navigated the gauntlet of high school. I get the emotional shivers watching those I’ve known for the longest time launch into their lives with degrees from community colleges, four-year colleges and Ph.D. programs (shout out to you, Dr. Puritty!).

But getting churned through and spit out of middle school in one piece is a vastly underrated accomplishment. It’s a victory on par with climbing Mt. Everest for kids to survive the treacherous, hierarchical, competitive, thin-aired, elbow-jabbing, cutthroat, seethingwith-meanness knife’s edge that is middle school.

As of right now, most students across the San Diego Unified School District have just four days left in this school year and that is about 180 days too many when it comes to the seventh and eighth grade set.

As my daughter drags herself gasping and tattered from the tempestuous ocean of middle school and onto the beach of high school, I need to say this: For fuck’s sake, let it be over already.

Middle school is the relentless zombies from The Walking Dead and it’s time to drive a stake through its head and watch the blood and entrails spill out across summer.

Speaking of zombies, there are three things Herr Donald could do that I would agree with: 1.) resign; 2.) kill himself; or 3.) abolish middle school, resign and then kill himself.

I’ve long said that middle school-aged kids should be exempt from attending school. They have no business sitting in classrooms torturing teachers with their ennui. They aren’t learning anything there.

Trust me. They’re surviving, getting by, slogging through. Many are just trying to stay awake, or biding their time until they get to use their phones again.

Some lie in wait for any moment to humiliate other kids or get away with being slick. Some are making the really dangerous choices that can change the trajectory of their lives, though they don’t know it because they’re teens and they know everything except for the

fact that they are brain damaged.

Middle schoolers are like crazy, nasty-ass honey badgers and they will cut you. They hate everything and are amazed by nothing. Long gone are the days when they held your hand or giggled until they choked on their own spit or snuggled up to a storybook adventure. Blown bubbles no longer make their eyes wide but instead cause them to roll back in their heads because duh, whatever, bubbles are trash.

I think sixth grade should remain part of elementary school and seventh and eighth grades should be eliminated as formal education. Instead, this developmental stage would be undertaken as one extended gap year. During this extended time, these in-betweeners can lie around in their own pubescent beef-stick stink.

They should learn, of course: They should head outdoors, go to parks (skate parks included) and beaches; they should hike trails and visit museums.

They should go to the mall and to the movies with friends; they should read books on their own. They should play an instrument, change the oil in a car, balance a checkbook, cook a few meals, do their own laundry. They should do some community service, too, and perhaps smile at their parents once every three or four months.

In between all that (there’s free time aplenty when they’re not stuck in the prison of a lecture about linear equations), middle schoolers should stare at themselves in the mirror for hours, little narcissists that they are. They should laze about, daydream and sleep. A lot.

After all, their brains are growing faster than at any other time in human development besides the toddler years.

And in the privacy of their rooms, amidst heaps of dirty clothes and half-full Taki packages and empty Gatorade bottles and upside-down backpacks, they should touch themselves; just masturbate their young lives away. Better to learn how to pleasure themselves than have fumbling sex with other middle school randos. I can see the hate mail now, but let’s be honest here: Are 13-year-olds really thinking about anything else?

Eat, sleep, jerk off. Eat, sleep, jerk off. That is the middle school mantra.

And then, once this two-year period of freedom concludes—after the kids have learned a little bit about themselves and the world without exerting the performative effort required of middle school—they can enter high school, grown in the right ways and better prepared to handle what will be thrown at them.

And one day, in the fleeting time between Christmases, they’ll give us all the feelings when they cross that dais, their necks draped in leis and ribbons.

As my daughter drags herself gasping and tattered from the tempestuous ocean of middle school and onto the beach of high school, I need to say this: For fuck sake, let it be over already.

@SDCITYBEAT

Backwards & In High Heels appears every other week.

Write to aarynb@sdcitybeat.com.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 7

8 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

UP FRONT | VOICES

RYAN BRADFORD

WELL THAT WAS

AWKWARD

Weapons permitting

T

here are four rows of empty folding chairs in the back of 5.11 Tactical, a Mission Valley store that sells pseudo-military apparel for adults.

Well, for adults with seemingly way more opportunities than me to run through obstacle courses. I sit in one of the chairs, pull my Tractor Supplies hat down (my disguise), look at my phone and wait for the educational seminar on obtaining a concealed carry permit (CCW) to begin.

Besides a few 5.11 employees, there are only four attendees at this seminar, including me. We sit conspicuously apart from each other. Four dudes, no women. We are all lone wolves tonight.

Michael Schwartz stands in front of us and introduces himself as the executive director of San Diego County Gun Owners (SDCGO), a political group that does a lot of fundraising and Second Amendment advocacy. He’s good-natured and self-deprecating, and as much as I can’t get behind what he stands for, I feel an immediate affection for him. He’s also very matter-of-fact, not at all like the gun fanatics on social media who’ve been radicalized by 4chan and Call of Duty against libtard cucks like me.

Now, I’ve written about guns before. Personally, I wish Obama had fulfilled the right-wing fear fantasy of literally walking into everyone’s homes and taking their guns away. I also know that we’re not going to get rid of guns.

They’re as intrinsic to white, colonized America as baseball. I also know that responsible gun ownership does exist—I’ve known responsible gun owners. I know them. If we can’t rid the world of guns, I feel that understanding the process of obtaining and carrying one is a step toward unification... or something.

Before Schwartz gets to his spiel, he introduces a representative from LegalShield, a law firm that specializes in weapons cases.

For $10 a month, LegalShield will cover legal expenses if, say, someone tries to mug me when I’m changing a tire on the side of the road, and “you have to use a tire iron,” Schwartz says, grimly.

“Or if it’s Christmas and that’s not Santa coming down the chimney.”

I nod because, indeed, this world is a violent, horrific place where I may have to dispatch a stranger with a tire iron or blow away an evil Santa. I’m in the right-wing, gun-owner mindset now.

Schwartz begins the seminar with a little history about CCWs in San Diego. Two years ago he says, there were about 1,100 permits issued in the city of over three million—largely due to the prohibitive process it takes to obtain a CCW—but thanks to SDCGO’s

advocacy, there are about twice as many CCWs now.

It still seems like a relatively low number, and when Schwartz says that if we were to match the national average, there’d need to be 150,000 CCWs issued in San Diego. I quietly thank my lucky stars to live in this bastion of coastal elitism.

The first step toward obtaining a CCW is scheduling an appointment with the sheriff’s office to present your need to carry a weapon. This is called your “good cause,” and Schwartz stresses that this should usually be job-related.

“Don’t say for self-defense, and don’t say anything related to the Second Amendment,” Schwartz says. It feels like an admission that the oft-cited defense of guns is, in fact, crazy-sounding.

Since there are so few of us, Schwartz points at each person and asks if they mind sharing what they do for a living, and then he whips up an example of what they could use as a good cause.

My fellow attendees are: an Uber driver, a security guard and unemployed. I become judgy and think that the unemployed dude should reconsider his priorities. Twenty minutes in and I’m already a judgmental, cold-hearted right-winger.

When Schwartz calls on me, I say, “I do computer stuff... uh, for a news agency.”

“Oh, so you probably have expensive equipment and everything in those offices, yeah? Someone might want to come in and steal it?”

I shrug. “Sure.”

“Do you mind if I ask which news organization it is?”

I pause. “CityBeat.”

“Oh,” he says. It’s like the air in the room gets sucked out. I see the realization cross his face. He’s surely read my anti-gun pieces. He laughs a little. “Well, I’ve certainly thought about going to those offices myself...” He trails off.

And honestly, the implication is funny. I laugh. Out of all the attendees here, I have the best good cause: I’m a journalist in Trump’s America. Not a day goes by where I don’t imagine someone bursting through the office door, intent on sending me packing for some stupid shit I wrote. But Schwartz’s joke feels like there’s mutual acknowledgement of how insane things are these days. The politicized rhetoric, polarization and soap boxes crumble under the ridiculousness of it all.

Afterwards, we all get free 5.11 Tactical hats. I can tell the shop clerk takes no pleasure in giving a libtard cuck like me a free hat, but sometimes we just have to live with things we don’t like.

This world is a violent, horrific place where I may have to dispatch a stranger with a tire iron or blow away an evil Santa. I’m in the rightwing, gun-owner mindset now.

@SDCITYBEAT

Well, That Was Awkward appears every other week.

Write to ryanb@sdcitybeat.com

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 9

UP FRONT | FOOD & DRINK

BY MICHAEL A. GARDINER

THE WORLD

FARE

An Italian moment, simply

S

an Diego is having an Italian moment. Still, despite having a “Little Italy” and a Gaslamp District once silly with Italian joints, local Italian food offerings over the past several decades have been disappointing.

And while some recent high-profile Italian openings have promised change, it’s an unheralded one that might just steal the show: Caffè San Luca (690 University Ave., italiancafesandiego.com) in Hill� crest.

Until about a year ago, Caff�������� è������� ’s own� ers—Alice (pronounced “Al-ee-che”) Olivetti and her husband Stefano Re� vaglia—lived in Bologna, Italy. They moved to these shores as partners with Luciano Cibelli in version 2.0 of the Red Door Restaurant. In February, they ven� tured out on their own.

Caff���������������������������������� è��������������������������������� does not project its food as am� bitious—it’s not even open for dinner.

What it does offer is food honoring the most basic tenet of Italian cuisine: sim� plicity. At the core of what Caffè does is dishes from the owners’ Emilia-Romag� na home region, considered by many (particularly its residents) to be Italy’s gastronomical heart.

Take, for example, the lasagna. At one level it’s just the well-known dish of stacked layers of wide, flat pasta interbedded with strata of sauce, meat and cheese. That’s where the familiar� ity ends. The Caffè’s version may be rich but it isn’t heavy. The key to the dish is the pasta itself: soft, supple and yet structurally sound. The richness of the other elements of Revaglia’s dish are impor� tant, no doubt, but it’s the pasta that stars.

It’s a theme reprised throughout Caffè’s menu.

Tomato and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese lend acidity, sweetness, richness and umami depth to the green tagliatelle noodles but, at the end of the day, the dish is all about that pasta. It is, again, both luscious and perfectly al dente.

Another dish with familiar contours is the

10 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

eggplant parmigiana. As usual, the dish (not one originally from Emilia-Romagna) is made of baked layers of fried sliced eggplant, cheese and tomato sauce. But instead of the gut bombs that go out under that name in the American-Italian cannon, Caff����������������������������������������������� è���������������������������������������������� ’s version is, much like its lasagna, surpris� ingly light.

A whole section of Caffè’s menu is dedicated to tigella, little round breads from Modena made from flour, water, salt, and yeast and sandwiched around various fillings. The prosciutto di parma version was particularly good while the basil pesto and sliced tomato version seemed a bit shy on the salt. But ul� timately, it’s a dish about those terrific little breads, not the filling.

MICHAEL A. GARDINER

Eggplant parmigiana The best of the desserts at Caffè is the tiramisu.

Like so many of Olivetti and Revaglia’s dishes, it was the precision and the lightness of that tiramisu that shined. How could so rich a dish possibly float?

It was magical.

The food at Caffè San Luca is uniformly simple. It is never pretentious. Revaglia makes it clear he’s not there to be creative. Rather, he and Olivetti are sim� ply making the food they grew up with. But they’re making it with meticulous accuracy and exacting craft. The result is food that transcends its origin.

And it may take some people by surprise.

The World Fare appears weekly.

Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com.

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UP FRONT | FOOD & DRINK

ANATOMY OF A COCKTAIL SCENE #58: Shooting for the stars at Il Dandy

I

admittedly tend to go off topic when writing these columns. I ramble rather than focus on the cocktail I’m supposed to be discussing. However, I won’t be doing that here today. Today we will be focusing on the facts and the ingredients of the Allora cocktail at Il Dandy (2550 Fifth Ave., Ste. 120, ildandyrestaurant.com) in Bankers Hill.

Fact number one: The Michelin guide to California is out as of June 3, opening a floodgate of hypothetical foodie questions and theories about the unforeseeable future. Sure, there will be the obvious murmurings of “why didn’t so-and-so get any stars, they worked so hard for it?” or the more malicious responses of “I can’t believe they gave a star to those fucking people—the food there sucks!” and so on.

But, the more exciting questions on the horizon will be the ones focusing on who will be striving for stars in the future and why they deserve it. Il Dandy will be involved in those foodie conspiracy theory talks, not only because of the owners’ previous experience with Michelin (they opened the two-starred Ristorante Abbruzzino in Italy), but also because they understand a very important principle: Food with a philosophy tastes better.

ALLORA

as prepared at Il Dandy 1 oz. Dominique brandy 3/4 oz. Merlet Apricot 1/2 oz. Cardamaro amaro 1 oz. Lemon juice 1/2 oz. Demerara syrup Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice.

Shake and strain into a chilled coupe glass.

Garnish with orange leaf.

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BY IAN WARD

Fact number two: The word fusion, when it comes to food, can be very off-putting. However, when the intentions behind it are curated properly, it can be beautiful. Il Dandy, for example, brings years of heritage experience with Italian cooking while incorporating some of San Diego’s more noteworthy ingredients. In doing so, they showcase a knowledge of what San Diego dining could and should be. The JAMES TRAN same can be said for the drinks at Il Dandy, which bring a very Southern California approach to cocktails and combine them with Italian ingredients. In the case of the Allora cocktail, it’s by using Cardamaro amaro.

Fact number three: In proper proportions, things that are bitter and things that are sweet are incredibly complimentary, as is the case with Allora the Allora. Sweetness from the Apricot liqueur balances the slightly bitter Cardamaro. The lemon juice also compliments the pair with sourness while the brandy brings in bold wood notes. The result is a delightful cocktail with perfect equilibrium.

Fact number four: Cardamaro is fucking delicious. For those who are unaware of what Cardamaro is, it’s a wine-based aperitif made from infusing cardoons and blessed thistle into wine, then aging it in oak for at least 6 months. Cardamaro drinks similar to a vermouth, but with more weight and richness and higher herbal tones.

Fact number five: Somehow Il Dandy was able to persuade both Cesar Sandoval and Eddie Avila to come on board. Given that the two previously worked at Catania and Avila at Whisknladle, there is high expectations for the bar. And they deliver. I asked Mr. Sandoval how the Allora came about, and he credited the creation of the cocktail with working on it together with Mr. Avila.

Fact number six: When at Il Dandy, drink the Allora.

BY BETH DEMMON

FINAL DRAUGHT Curating the craft

S

an Diego’s beer scene rose to prominence because of a few factors: early pioneers like Karl Strauss, sheer number of breweries and the quality of the beers coming out of them. But as craft beer’s popularity continues to increase across the country, those once-impressive markers aren’t quite as dazzling. Up-andcoming beer destinations in states like North Carolina, Ohio and Texas are doing a better job providing that crucial element of newness that beer tourists eternally chase. As a result, they’re dulling our deeply-rooted “Capital of Craft” narrative.

The Museum of Beer (MoB) seeks to change that. Tapping into San Diego’s already robust tourism industry, the MoB plans to put down roots in the rapidly developing East Village neighborhood. Its proximity to the airport, convention center and hotels makes it an ideal jumpingoff point for visitors.

“Beer tourists could fly into town and use the museum as their first destination,” says Jake Nunes, taproom manager at North Park Beer Company. “I think the museum is a good idea to help people get excited about the local beer industry.”

The catch is that there isn’t an actual location yet.

“We have boiled it down to a few fantastic choices and will be making a decision in the near future,” promises Mike Kociela, one of the Museum’s co-founders, via email.

The Museum of Beer is slated to open in spring or summer 2020. That’s an ambitious timeline for an undertaking of this size, especially one that’s been in the works for two years and hasn’t nailed down a location yet. When I look at similar endeavors—Brew: The Museum of Beer in Pittsburgh, for example, has yet to open years after its estimated launch date—I can’t help but worry about the logistical hurdles left to clear.

I might have no reason to worry. It’s

clear that MoB has some capital since their branding game is fire. They even have a pretty rad bus and got Tony freakin’ Hawk to appear in a promo video. But as I write this, the Museum’s Indiegogo campaign has ended and it only raised $15,100 from 125 people. That’s 10 percent of their $150,000 goal.

Kociela explains that the Indiegogo was “designed primarily to raise awareness and to give the public the opportunity to support the project,” as opposed to actual financial need. He assures me that regardless of Indiegogo pledges, the team personally guarantees the museum will be built with “private investment, our own contributions and through sponsorship of the various attractions.”

COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OF BEER

A rendering of The Museum of Beer Kociela helped found the National Blues Museum in St. Louis, so I trust he knows what he’s doing when it comes to fundraising. But like the stalled Pittsburgh museum, MoB is a for-profit entity, which means they’ll be required to comply with liquor laws. That limits the fundraising avenues available to other museums, the bulk of which are nonprofits.

I want to believe that this museum is going to happen. If MoB is able to deliver the world-class experience they’re promising without delay, it could further solidify our position on top of the beer pedestal. If not, San Diego stands to become just another Pittsburgh.

Write to bethd@sdcitybeat.com or check her out on Instagram at @thedelightedbite.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 11

EVENTS

SHORTlist

ART

the

THREE YOU HAVE TO SEE

COORDINATED BY

SETH COMBS

SAN DIEGO

COURTESY OF SAN DIEGO FRINGE FESTIVAL

FRINGE BENEFITS

Held in dozens of cities all over the world, Fringe festivals offer patrons everything from puppetry to poetry, cabaret to comedy. As if the “fringe” distinction didn’t give it away, these types of fests showcase works that are decisively under-the-radar, but, to hear Kevin Charles Patterson tell it, some of these performances go on to play for much larger audiences.

“We’ve had a couple different shows go to present Off Broadway and win awards, and that’s cool to see,” says Patterson, who founded the San Diego International Fringe Festival seven years ago. “I think that we’re filling a niche for San Diego, for sure, and we’re happy to fill it.”

And while it will certainly appeal to those on the fringe, we like to think this year’s fest has a little something for everyone. There are nearly two dozen shows to choose from, but a couple of our favorites include Lonesome Whistle Productions’ skewering of Trump’s Space Force, as well as Renée Westbrook’s more serious production of Shelter, which takes a hard look at the issue of homelessness. There will also be dance productions from Disco Riot and even a virtual reality theatre experience from Icelandic company Huldufugl.

One of the major changes this year, however, is Patterson’s decision to get some of the fest out of the traditional theatre setting and into outdoor spaces.

SOUTH PARK

Tangata Circus Company He points out a “silent disco tour” that will begin at the Starlight Bowl and move throughout Balboa Park.

“The tour guide is an actor dancer that will get everybody in their wireless headsets with the disco music playing and they follow the disco choreography all through the park,” explains Patterson. “It’s an immersive experience to bring exposure to the Fringe and, of course, let the audience have fun in a different way.”

The San Diego International Fringe Festival begins Thursday, June 6 and runs through June 16 at venues throughout San Diego including the WorldBeat Cultural Center and the Centro Cultural de la Raza to name a few. Tickets (which range from $10 for individual tickets to $72 for a 10-show pass) and more info are at sdfringe.org.

COLLEGE AREA

MISSING LINKS

PATCH IT UP

UC San Diego professor Dan Werb’s first book began as a study of the skyrocketing numbers of women being murdered in Tijuana over the last decade. Werb discovered, however, that these murders weren’t the only thing detrimentally affecting local women, but rather, could be understood as symptomatic of a range of deadly issues. An epidemiologist and data-miner, Werb reveals these issues in the recently-released City of Omens: A Search for the Missing Women in the Borderlands and digs deep into the real causes of what he calls “Tijuana’s femicide.”

He’ll discuss his findings and sign copies of City of Omens when he stops into The Book Catapult (3010-B Juniper St.) on Wednesday, June 12 at 7:30 p.m. More info and thebookcatapult.com.

JOSEPH FUDO

Pins and patches have decorated our clothes and accessories for ages, silently letting everyone we encounter know our interests and passions. Still, enthusiasts don’t often get the opportunity to come together and buy, swap and share their passion for the wearable artforms.

That changed last year when the San Diego Pin & Patch Con started in San Diego. The convention will include pin trading, a Q&A panel with artists and much more. Since this year marks the 90th anniversary of Popeye, it makes sense that the iconic “Sailor Man” was named the official pin-trading mascot and the convention will feature exclusive merchandise to celebrate. The second annual convention is happening Saturday, June 8 from noon to 6 p.m. at Montezuma Exhibit Hall at San Diego State University (6075 Aztec Circle). Tickets are $10. More info on pinandpatchcon.com.

COURTESY OF SAN DIEGO PIN & PATCH CON

Heroines on the Homefront at Women’s Museum of California, 2730 Historic Decatur Road, Ste. 103, Liberty Station, Point Loma. Preview of a new exhibit celebrating the women who gave their time and energy to support WWII efforts in the 1940s. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 6. $20. womensmuseumca.org H…and then the skies were silent at Martha Pace Swift Gallery, 2820 Roosevelt Road, Liberty Station, Point Loma. Martha Pace Swift Gallery presents a solo exhibit from Stacie Birky Greene centered on the extinction and endangerment of birds across the globe. Opening from 5 to 8 p.m.

Friday, June 7. Free. expressiveartsinstitute.org Wonderspaces: in common at B Street Pier, 1140 N. Harbor Drive, Downtown. The latest iteration of the immersive and experiential art experience and featuring works from Margaret Noble, Don Ritter, Foo. Skou, Candy Chang and more. Various times. Friday, June 7 through Friday, June 21. $15-$24. sandiego.wonderspaces.com HLaugh A Little: New Works by Regan Russell & Ricardo Ales at Thumbprint Gallery, 920 Kline St., La Jolla. New works from the local artists, both of whom specialize in intricate drawings. Opening from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 8. thumbprintgallerysd.com HIndoor/Outdoor at Athenaeum Art Center, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. A collaborative Swedish/American art exhibition featuring the work of artists from Feminist Image Group and Krogen Amerika. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, June 8.

Free. ljathenaeum.org Figurative Art Exhibition at The IN Gallery, 1878 Main St. Ste. D, Barrio Logan.

Cassandra Schramm curates an exhibit featuring a collection of works by local artists. Also features live music, belly dancing and live painting. Opening from 5 to 9 p.m.

Saturday, June 8. Free. theingallery.com HBarrio Art Crawl at Barrio Logan Arts District, 1878 Main St., Barrio Logan. A selfguided tour consisting of the open studios, galleries and local businesses of the Barrio Logan Arts District. Spaces include Bread & Salt, Chicano Art Gallery and over a dozen more. From 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 8. Free. barrioartcrawl.com Overstand at Sacred Heart Gallery, University of San Diego, 5998 Alcala Park, Linda Vista. Paintings and installations from D.L. Smith responding to the artist’s intersecting identities and blending street art with the animal kingdom. Opening from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, June 8. Free. 310497-2055, dlsmith.weebly.com Celestial Awakenings at Distinction Gallery, 317 E Grand Ave., Ste. A, Escondido.

Distinction Gallery presents an exhibition inspired by the senses and featuring oil paintings on wood by Victor Roman.

Opening 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 8.

Free. distinctionart.com The Great Outdoors at La Bodega Gallery, 2196 Logan Ave., Barrio Logan. A group photography show capturing diverse perspectives of the best Mother Nature has to offer. Opening from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 8. Free. labodegagallery.com HAlley Art Festival at Backfence Society, 110 S. Citrus Ave., Ste. F, Vista. Vista Art Foundation presents a festival that includes exhibits, unique installations and live performances. From 1 to 7 p.m. Sunday, June 9. Free. alleyartfestival.com HGraphic Design Studio Exhibition at Seaport Village Lighthouse District, 809 W. Harbor Drive, Downtown. Seaport Village and Birch Aquarium present an exhibition

Dan Werb 12 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

San Diego Pin & Patch Con

H = CityBeat picks

of San Diego City College graphic design students’ plans have worked alongside Seaport Village and Birch Aquarium to develop design plans for a healthier planet.

From 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, June 9. Free. seaportvillage.com copy|write at San Diego Art Institute, 1439 El Prado, Balboa Park. The closing reception for artist Joe Cantrell’s SDAI residency, which features a room papered with printouts, glamorized by a 10foot portrait of Ariana Grande in strips of receipt sheet. From 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, June 9. Free. sandiego-art.org

BOOKS Scott Pelley at Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice, University of San Diego, 5998 Alcala Park, Linda Vista. The 60 Minutes anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News will discuss his new memoir, Truth Worth Telling. Admission price includes a signed copy of the book. At 7 p.m. Thursday, June 6. $27.19. warwicks.com Melanie Benjamin at Warwick’s, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The New York Times bestselling author of The Aviator’s Wife and The Girls in the Picture will discuss and sign her new book, Mistress of the Ritz. From 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 6. Free. warwicks.com HElizabeth Gilbert at Shiley Theatre, University of San Diego, 5998 Alcala Park, Linda Vista. The New York Times bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love and Big Magic will discuss her new novel, City of Girls. At 4 p.m. Sunday, June 9. $30.17. warwicks.com HElizabeth Cobbs at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The award-winning historian and documentary filmmaker will discuss and sign her new historical novel, The Tubman Command.

From 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 11. Free. warwicks.com David Hu at San Diego National History Museum, 1788 El Prado, Balboa Park.

David Hu, a Georgia Tech engineer and author, will give a presentation on how animals have adapted and evolved through the years and sign copies of his book, How to Walk on Water and Climb Up Walls: Animal Movement and the Robots of the Future. From 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, June 11. $9-$12. sdnhm.org HDan Werb at The Book Catapult, 3010 Juniper St., South Park. The associate professor of epidemiology at UC San Diego will discuss and sign his new book, City of Omens: A Search for the Missing Women of the Borderlands. At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 12. Free. warwicks.com HJessica Yellin at Warwick’s, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The former CNN Chief White House Correspondent will discuss and sign her new book, Savage News. At 11:45 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 12. Free. warwicks.com

COMEDY HJeff Dunham at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The comedian and ventriloquist will perform on the Corona Grandstand Stage as part of the San Diego County Fair’s festivities. At 7:30 p.m.

Friday, June 7. $15-$151. sdfair.com

DANCE HNew Directions at Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla. An exciting mix of dance, theater and interdisciplinary collaborations that highlights UC San Diego undergraduate choreographers.

At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 6, Friday, June 7 and Saturday, June 8. $10-$20. theatre.ucsd.edu

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EVENTS EVENTS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12

FOOD & DRINK HToast of the Coast Wine Competetion and Festival at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. Enjoy unlimited samples of award-winning wine along with food pairings presented by winemakers and chefs. Admission to the San Diego County Fair included. At 1 and 4 p.m. Saturday, June 8. $67-$115. sdfair.com Avolution Fest at Broadway Pier Port Pavilion, 1000 N. Harbor Drive, Downtown.

Celebration of all things avocado with live music, art installations and food trucks with avocado-centric menus and drinks.

From 4 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 8. $20$30. eventbrite.com Women’s Museum of California’s Vintage Bake Off at Women’s Museum of California, 2730 Historic Decatur Road, Liberty Station, Point Loma. Sample desserts from the competition participants and enjoy a pop-up exhibit of vintage cookbooks and kitchenware. From 10 a.m. to noon. Saturday, June 8. $5. 619233-7963, libertystation.com

MUSIC HJenny Scheinman & Allison Miller Parlour Game Quartet at Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. The violinist and drummer lead an all-star quartet through rootsier elements of jazz, exploring swing, gogo, backbeats and ballads. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 7. $25-$30. ljathenaeum.org La Jolla Symphony & Chorus at Mandeville Recital Hall, UC San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. Performance of

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works made during World War I, including by Maurice Ravel, Ralph VaughanWilliams, George Butterworth and more.

At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 8 and 2 p.m.

Sunday, June 9. $15-$35. 858-534-4637, musicweb.ucsd.edu HMainly Mozart Festival Orchestra: The Spark of Genius at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Concertmasters and principal players from leading orchestras will perform works by Handel, Mozart and Mendelssohn. From 8 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 8. $15-$88. 619239-0100, mainlymozart.org Neil Sedaka at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The platinum-selling pianist and singer will perform on the Corona Grandstand Stage as part of the San Diego County Fair’s festivities. At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 8. $22$139. sdfair.com M A L U: 2 Year Anniversary Aria for Soprano & Electronica at Bread & Salt, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. The twoyear celebration of M A L U with producers and DJs from San Diego, Los Angeles and Tijuana. At 8 p.m. Saturday, June 8. Free. facebook.com/events/327213774622843 San Diego Youth Symphony Spring Concerts: Ovation at Copley Symphony Hall, 750 B St., Downtown. Advanced string, wind, brass and percussion musicians perform a season finale conducted

by Music Director Jeff Edmonds. From 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, June 9. $10-$35. 619233-3232, sdys.org Mainly Mozart Youth Orchestra Showcase at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Music Director Hernan Constantino and Associate Director Jane Frey lead six ensembles with student musicians. From 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, June 9. $25. 619-239-0100, mainlymozart.org

PERFORMANCE HSan Diego International Fringe Festival at various locations. Experience multiple performances, ranging from theater to music to dance and more at this annual event that gives artists the opportunity to perform in a festival setting. See website for showtimes, locations and prices. Various times. Thursday, June 6 through Sunday, June 16. $10-$72. sdfringe.org 420 HighKu: The Circular Swirls at Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theatre, 2130 Pan American Road, Balboa Park. A musical one-man-show telling the story of a hippie succumbing to mental disorders, alcohol use, depression and suicidal thoughts.

Various times. Friday, June 7 through Saturday, June 15. $10. 420highku.com HAround the World in 80 Minutes (or more) at Old Town Theatre, 4040 Twiggs St., Old Town. Write Out Loud hosts an evening of multicultural stories and poetry from all over the world read by professional actors. From 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, June 10. $25. 619-297-8953, writeoutloudsd.com

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD The Butterfly SD: Revolution at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern, 3025 El Cajon Blvd., North Park. The Butterfly San Diego presents a night of storytelling along with a reading from a local author. From 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 11. Free. thebutterflysandiego.weebly.com

SPECIAL EVENTS HSan Diego County Fair at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del

Mar. It’s time again to ride some rides, play some games and, best of all, stuff your face with a bizarre variety of deep-fried food. Various times. Through Thursday, July 4. Free-$20. 858-755-1161, sdfair. com HPaws & Pints La Jolla at The LOT, 7611 Fay Ave., La Jolla. Sip beers at the annual fundraising event, which includes an auction to raise much-needed funds for the FOCAS Program at the Rancho Coastal Humane Society and The FACE Foundation. At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 6. $25. pawsandpints.com HNat at Night at San Diego Natural History Museum, 1788 El Prado, Balboa Park. The Nat’s adult-friendly after-hours event that includes food, beer and wine on the rooftop, in addition to half-off admission and access to all of the museum’s exhibitions. From 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday, June 6 and Friday, June 7. $10. sdnhm. org HTaste of KAABOO! at Quartyard, 1301 Market St., East Village. An evening of music, art, and culinary tastes featuring live music from Quartyard’s Nu Moods performers and more. From 6 to 10 p.m.

Thursday, June 6. Free with RSVP. quartyardsd.com HFirst Friday (((amplified))) at Arts District Liberty Station, 2848 Dewey Road, Point Loma. San Diego’s biggest monthly art walk includes a craft beer garden, a pop-up market, art exhibitions and a free concert from New Reveille and Nena Anderson. From 5 to 9 p.m.

Friday, June 7. Free. ntcfoundation. org/first-friday HMakers Matter at Historic Barrio Art District, 1900 Main St., Barrio Logan. Barrio Logan Flea Market and Clean Slate present a market highlighting music, art,

vintage, crafters, food and local businesses. From 4 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 8.

Free. cleanslateswapmeet.com HSan Diego Pin & Patch Con at Montezuma Exhibit Hall, 6075 Aztec Circle Drive, College Area. The world’s first wearable art convention will include pin trading, a scavenger hunt, giveaways, demonstrations, a Q&A panel and more. From noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 8. $10. 619487-0363, pinandpatchcon.com Enjoy La Jolla: Global Wellness Day at National Geographic | Fine Arts Gallery, 1205 Prospect St., La Jolla. An afternoon filled with live music and entertainment, mini fitness classes and workshops, yummy treats and exclusive prizes. From 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 8 through Saturday, Sept. 14. Free. lajollabythesea.com HSan Diego Festival of the Arts at Waterfront Park, 1600 Pacific Hwy., Downtown. Close to 200 artists with showcase all types of artworks works alongside a silent auction and beer and wine garden.

From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 8 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 9.

Free-$28. sdfestivalofthearts.org Second Saturday Market at San Diego Made Factory, 2031 Commercial St., Sherman Heights. San Diego Made presents a new monthly event featuring open artist studios, a pop-up shop of local makers, music, food and more. From 2 to 6 p.m.

Saturday, June 8. Free. sandiegomade. org The San Diego Really Really Free Market at Teralta Park, Corner of 40th Street and Orange Avenue, City Heights. Bring free stuff and take free stuff at this ongoing event of community sharing. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, June 9. Free. sdrrfm. blogspot.com

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 13

THEATER AARON RUMLEY

The art of the deal

I

n its sedate but steely reflection on nuclear disarmament, Lee Blessing’s A Walk in the Woods manages to be idealistic and cynical at the same time. It’s also highly fatalistic. This is not merely because Soviet negotiator Andrey Botvinnik (David Ellenstein) and his American counterpart John Honeyman (J. Todd Adams) are of different mindsets. Each, in his own way, badly wants the superpower nation he represents to make concessions and to see a pathway to peace.

But in Blessing’s 1988 play, now onstage at North Coast Repertory Theatre, the more diplomatically battle-scarred Andrey already knows what John, the relative newbie at high-level negotiations, will soon learn: That the appearance of negotiating disarmament is the best they can do.

It’s even, according to Andrey, the goal of their sensitive dialogues.

Are the madness of nukes and the fruitlessness of negotiation as relevant more than 30 years later? Look no further than the failed U.S.-North Korea talks (and of late, the deadly consequences, under Kim Jong-un’s reign, of that failure). Look no further than Donald Trump boasting of having the bigger nuclear button.

Polemics aside, A Walk in the Woods is a showcase for two actors who have been given the chance to play vivid characters. Andrey is the larger-than-life of the two, a gesturing, charming fellow for whom formality is “argument with its hair combed.” Ellenstein’s portrayal is earnest, understated and full of fun—just the kind of fun that Adams’ sober American diplomat does not find appropriate.

Occupying the less engaging role, Adams succeeds in ultimately conveying John Honeyman’s innate human frailties. The playwright was smart enough not to allow his

14 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

OPENING: Sonnets for an Old Century: José Rivera’s anthology-style play that showcases a series of sonnets presented as if they’re the final testament of the characters. Directed by Kym Pappas, it opens June 5 for four performances at the Arthur Wagner Theatre at UC San Diego in La Jolla. theatre.ucsd.edu In Every Generation: A staged reading of Ali Viterbi’s family dramedy about a Jewish family tackling big topics over a Passover dinner.

Part of the Jewish Arts Festival, it happens June 6 at the Lyceum Theatre in the Gaslamp. sdrep.org A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Students from John Paul the Great Catholic University’s Acting Program will perform Shakespeare’s fantastical comedy filled with fairies, an Amazon queen and an honest Puck. It happens June 6 at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido. artcenter.org

A Walk in the Woods character study to devolve into a sentimental, oppositesattract buddy story. Andrey’s and John’s bond is their mutual, agonizing frustration.

Richard Baird directs the production with respect for the material and for the actors, while the Swiss woods set by Marty Burnett—just an inviting bench in a bucolic clearing of forest complete with birds chirping high in the trees—is a serene spot for an audience to spend two hours.

For a Cold War drama, A Walk in the Woods has no shortage of warmth.

A Walk in The Woods runs through June 23 at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. $42-$53; northcoastrep.org

Theater reviews run weekly.

Write to davidc@sdcitybeat.com.

—David L. Coddon

John Ferguson: A small-town family’s faith is tested in the face of being evicted from their farm. Written by St. Ervine Ferguson, it opens June 7 at the Community Actors Theatre in Oak Park. communityactorstheatre.com Wiesenthal: Tom Dugan’s one-man-play about a Holocaust survivor who becomes a Nazi hunter after WWII. Directed by Jenny Sullivan, it opens June 10 for two performances at the North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. northcoastrep.org Mixtape: A “totally awesome” musical revue of the fashion, fads and songs of the 1980s. Directed by Kerry Meads, it opens June 12 at the Lamb’s Players Theatre in Coronado. lambsplayers.org The Producers: Mel Brooks’ musical comedy about a producer and an accountant who concoct a plan to stage the biggest Broadway flop ever only to have it backfire. Presented by Moonlight Stage Prodiuctions, it opens June 12 at the Moonlight Amphitheatre in Vista. moonlightstage.com

For complete theater listings, visit sdcitybeat.com

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JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 15

XAVIER ASCANIO / ISTOCKPHOTO • JOEL CARILLET / ISTOCKPHOTO

CULTURE | THEATER

ong before the passage of Alabama’s near-total abortion ban, Indiana was getting into the act with some guy named Mike Pence right in the middle of things. Two years ago, the then Indiana Governor Pence signed into state law two measures that would restrict abortion rights: One requires that fetal remains after an abortion be buried or cremated; the other bans women from having an abortion for reasons of gender, race or disability of the fetus. After being struck down by a higher court, the legislation ended up in the U.S. Supreme Court, which, in a split decision on May 28, upheld the burial/ cremation law but let stand the reversal of the gender/race/disability ban.

The original Indiana legislation was the inspiration for a play, No Choice, written by retired Judge H. Lee Sarokin. The longtime Rancho Santa Fe resident is a former United States Circuit Judge for the District of New Jersey, a position he held for 15 years. He also served for two years on the U.S. Court of Appeals (3rd Circuit). Having spent more than 60 years in the law, Sarokin is perhaps best known as the judge who, in 1985, overturned the triple-murder conviction of boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter.

In his retirement years, Sarokin, 90, has turned his attention to writing plays about social and legal issues in order to stir public conversation. No Choice, which will be read onstage at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach on June 18, is the latest of 10 such plays. It centers on a young couple fighting the exact kind of law that passed in Indiana.

“It raises the fundamental question of who gets to decide whether there should be

16 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

an abortion: the legislature or the parents,” explained Sarokin in an interview with CityBeat. “I thought this was particularly interesting because it deals with under what circumstances the legislature has decreed that people are not permitted to abort. All the other cases have to do with the timing of abortion. This one set conditions based upon what they had discovered about the fetus. That was something that I had never seen before.”

Sarokin said he has his own personal opinions about issues such as abortion rights, but he leaves them out of his plays.

“I try to take subjects,” he said, “for which there are two valid arguments. My formula is to basically leave it to the audience as a jury to discuss it afterward.”

“I basically write for the talkback, making the play provocative enough to have people want to discuss it,” he added.

Though an avid theatergoer, Sarokin hadn’t planned on becoming a playwright, but to hear him tell it, the journey began on a challenge from his wife, Margie.

“I was at a play one night with my wife,” he recalled, “and I thought it was sort of long and boring. She said, ‘Why don’t you take a crack at it and see if you can do better?’ That’s sort of what launched it.”

Sarokin refers to his writing process as “like none other, because I’m a pure amateur. I’ll see something in the newspaper, like this Indiana statute, and think ‘This would be a great idea for a play.’ I spend three or four days writing it, and that’s it.”

“I try to pick something controversial and build a story around it that will provoke conversation.”

Prior to No Choice, Sarokin had written

about issues such as the right to marry (The Wedding Cake), government leaks (Traitor or Patriot?) and just last year, immigration and deportation (The Protester).

“Basically, you see everything as a judge,” said Sarokin. “You have an exposure to real life. I’ve been in the law 65 years, 25 years as a trial lawyer. I’ve also discovered that I like to write dialogue.”

Judge H. Lee Sarokin Each of Sarokin’s plays-for-discussion has been read onstage at North Coast Repertory Theatre, where David Ellenstein is artistic director. Ellenstein calls Sarokin “a brave man with great integrity and a kindness and humanity. He puts his fingers on issues and presents then in a really open and unbiased way, shedding light on things that are important for us all to be thinking

about. Though his plays are short (about 40 minutes each) the great part about them is what they do to the audience that comes.

They inspire discussion… The theater has always been a great medium to encourage discussion.”

Ellenstein said that theatergoers at the readings “can be adamant about their opinions, but we’ve never had anybody pick a fight with anybody else.”

Sarokin expects a lively discussion about abortion rights following the reading of No Choice, especially considering it’s being read at a time where the issue is making headlines all over the U.S. He also expects heated discussion at the highest levels of the law. When asked, he said he does not foresee an ultimate overturning by the Supreme Court of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision of 1973.

“I know there is a lot of fear of reversal of the Roe decision,” he said, “but I don’t see that happening. I see restrictions getting greater and greater and abortions becoming more and more difficult to obtain.

There are a number of forces at work not to reverse it. First of all, I think the Chief Justice (John Roberts) would not want the court to be known as so conservative and that it was willing to abandon a precedent that’s existed since the 1970s. I think of everybody on the court, he’d be most concerned about preserving the reputation and integrity of the court and not subjecting it to political forces.”

Even as he writes his plays and enjoys his retirement, Sarokin closely follows the important legal issues and cases of the day.

“It’s still a very big part of my life,” he said. “I’m fascinated by it. I spent my entire life in the law. I can’t help myself.”

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JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 17

CULTURE | FILM NICO CHAPIN (CMPR)

Say anything

Non-Fiction

Olivier Assayas’ talky, tedious infidelity drama lacks bite

by Glenn Heath Jr.

O

During a disastrous, sparsely attended book talk livier Assayas has been quite a purveyor of ghosts lately. The last few efforts by the former later in the film, Léonard is ambushed yet again, comcritic-turned-nimble-art-filmmaker—Clouds of ing under fire from some local trolls for using details Sils Maria and Personal Shopper—both deal with cri- from his failed marriage in the new novel. Accused ses of artistic expression through the lens of intimate of victimizing his estranged ex-wife in the process, hauntings. Both films used Kristin Stewart’s ever-per- he worriedly retorts, “All fiction is autobiographical.” plexed face to connect with the great beyond. It’s a Macaigne’s sweaty, nervous performance is one for brilliant and beguiling construct in which meditations the ages because it toes the line between pathetic preon trauma and genre subversions mesh together in tentiousness and endearing confusion with such ease.

He alone gives Non-Fiction its spark, and a benchmark formally mysterious ways.

Such cinematic enigmas are absent from Non- for panicked modern anxiety.

Every other character uses an endless array of Fiction, Assayas’ blandly shot, new infidelity drama that talks, talks and then talks some more. Set in the words to mask the stagnation that has made their remodern Parisian literary world currently grappling lationships feel akin to sleepwalking. Selena (Juliette with the messy transition to digital, the film follows Binoche), Alain’s renowned actor wife, is unfulfilled multiple couples as they engage in affairs, lie effort- with her starring role on a mega-hit Netflix-style cop lessly and confront wary premonitions of their future thriller. Léonard’s better half Valérie (Nora Hamzawi) malaise. Gone are the sublime spiritual echoes and appears more interested in following her progressive jarring temporal jumps of Assayas’ previous work, politician boss around the country on campaign trips than listening to her husband’s replaced here with lengthy, cirwhiny diatribes. Both women cular dialogue sequences about have secrets, but nothing Non“important” topics like capiNON-FICTION Fiction would deem salacious talism, artistic ownership and Directed by Olivier Assyas enough to disrupt the daily grind changing technologies.

Starring Juliette Binoche, of silently suffering.

From the beginning salvo, AsGuillaume Canet and Assayas’ critique of boursayas makes it clear every conVincent Macaigne geois semantics and digital adversation will double as a boxing diction ultimately lacks bite, and match that mostly ends in a draw.

Rated R instead dwells on the obvious Characters talk over their sparemotional contradictions that ring partner instead of listening or considering different perspectives. Alain (Guillaume have populated much of French cinema for decades.

Canet) falls into this camp, smoothly uttering opinions These include the tensions between ambition and inwith the arrogant certainty of someone who doesn’t timacy, creative expression and financial success.

Despite these tedious narrative tendencies, Nonhave time to waste on diplomacy. He runs an esteemed publishing house that’s successfully embraced the e- Fiction (opening Friday, June 7, at Landmark Hillcrest book craze, and has shifted the company’s marketing Cinemas) is by no means a disaster. Assayas is one of priorities away from art house writers like the sloppy, cinema’s great tightrope artists, balancing between tones and perspectives so that it’s impossible to know bearded man child Léonard (Vincent Macaigne).

In Non-Fiction’s sharp opening sequence, the two just how cynically he views this cast of verbose waytalk around the truth during an uncomfortable work- ward souls.

The sunny, hopeful final scene would suggest that ing lunch that reveals just how disconnected they’ve become since the failure of Léonard’s most recent only new life could jar someone like Léonard out of book. If Alain embodies the film’s glibly rapid pace such a self-imposed funk. But all those sleep-deprived and willful egotism, the slovenly anti-capitalist (in parents out there know that this is just another of name only) writer Léonard represents a genuine cre- life’s booby traps. At least he’s walking into his last ative in crisis. Despite some obvious cues to the con- ambush with a smile. trary, Léonard still ends their meeting by asking Alain if he is going to publish his follow up. “No,” the man Film reviews run weekly. says. “I thought that was clear.”

Write to glennh@sdcitybeat.com

18 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

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CULTURE | FILM SABAN FILMS

Domino (now screening on video on demand) might be the epitome of a mixed bag, something plucked from the archives of Cinemax circa 1992. But the moments that sting with uneasy truth remind us why De Palma remains such a potent artist.

—Glenn Heath Jr.

OPENING Domino

Dark Phoenix: Yet another X-Men film focusing on Jean Grey (played by Game of

Thrones’ Sophie Turner), one of the most powerful mutants, and her descent into villain territory. Opens Friday, June 7, in wide release.

Domino: A pair of Danish cops stumble upon a terrorist plot orchestrated by ISIS in Brian De Palma’s Euro-thriller. Screening on all VOD platforms.

Echo in the Canyon: This music doc covers the mid 1960s when Laurel Canyon was home to a number of rock bands that ushered in a new musical era. Opens Friday, June 7, at Angelika Film Centers Carmel Mountain and ArcLight La Jolla Cinemas.

Non-Fiction: French auteur Olivier Assayas’ new infidelity drama follows two couples as they cheat on each other, talk social issues and try to evade responsibil-

ity. Opens on Friday, June 7, at Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas.

The Secret Life of Pets 2: Blockbuster sequel to the animated film about pets that lead completely different lives once their owners are absent. Opens Friday, June 7, in wide release.

Woodstock: Three Days that Defined a Generation: Documentary about the planning and staging of the iconic 1969 music festival in upstate New York. Opens Friday, June 7, at the Landmark Ken Cinema.

For complete movie listings, visit Film at sdcitybeat.com.

Faces of death

D

omino has the panicked urgency of a film ready to selfdestruct at any minute. It views like one of those combustible messages from director Brian De Palma’s own 1996 thriller, Mission Impossible. This makes sense considering he’s gone on record with the French publication Le Parisien to discuss the tumultuous production that eventually ended with his producers taking over post-production responsibilities.

At times, the final product is ruthlessly cut to ribbons. Yet, for a nasty European thriller of this ilk— one that is primarily concerned with cross-sections between terrorism, filmmaking and ideological revenge—the notion of butchering (images, people, emotion) is central to De Palma’s vision.

Things kick off when Danish cops Christian (Nikolaj CosterWaldau) and Lars (Søren Malling) stumble upon an elaborate terrorist plot involving an ISIS operative named Ezra (Eriq Ebouaney) who’s trying to avenge one of his own leaders. The trio tangle in Domino’s opening set piece, a high-wire rooftop sequence where De Palma shows off all of his trademark stylistics.

In the pursuant action, Christian and various shady stakeholders (including Guy Pearce’s southern-accented CIA agent and Carice van Houten’s avenging mistress) seek retribution for the events that transpired in the opening sequence. It is their vengeance, along with the rage fueling an ISIS terrorist cell that carries out a disturbing live-streamed massacre at an international film festival, that De Palma correlates with how fundamentalism and cinema converge to allow violent people a certain psychological release.

The harrowing final sequence, set in an Andalusian bullring, plays on the bloody implications of these ideas. Tensely paced and strikingly shot, it seems De Palma spent most of his time orchestrating this individual sequence since it stands in such contrast to the rest of the film.

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JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 19

20 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

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ALEXA VISCIUS

MUSIC

Diane Coffee t used to be shocking when an artist switched gears.

Bob Dylan got booed when he went electric. Radiohead fans still argue over which “version” of the band is better (pre- or post-Kid A). And Katy Perry certainly didn’t please her gospel base when she “kissed a girl” and—even worse—“liked it.” Change is hard, especially when audiences have been conditioned by major labels to love a musician that looks and sounds as advertised.

Labels used to control how an artist was presented and would attempt to set their brand in stone. Now artists put music on the internet to see what sticks. They adopt one persona today and another tomorrow, mostly without consequence. Shaun Fleming, aka Diane Coffee, is living proof that a tectonic shift has benefits.

“You can throw up whatever you want. You can be an artist and people get it,” Fleming says. “We’re living in this time, thankfully, where we are starting to maybe understand it’s OK to experiment and evolve. We can thank technology for that.”

It’s a positive take on the tech revolution and not at all the same tune Fleming sings on Diane Coffee’s Internet Arms. The album explores what it means to be hooked on social media and how developments like AI could result in some dark scenarios like totalitarian computer overlords and general soul sucking. Which isn’t to say Internet Arms is anti-tech. He’s not suggesting the machines are definitely taking over (yet), but wants to raise questions while also singing his damn heart out.

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“This album is an album of questions,” Felming says. “I don’t know if I have all of the answers, but it’s something we need to be discussing more. Things that are more pressing.”

Internet Arms is described as a major departure for Diane Coffee whose previous releases channeled groovy psychrock (Fleming used to drum for Foxygen), but it’s really a natural evolution of Fleming’s talents and interests. A former child actor turned successful voiceover artist, he started

Internet Arms before playing King Herod in Lyric Opera’s Jesus Christ Superstar. Fleming is a talented performer who loves theatrics and spectacle. Why wouldn’t he want to try his hand at dramatic synth-pop?

And not just any synth-pop. Internet Arms features tracks that could easily power a good ’80s movie montage. Opening track “Not Ready to Go” starts with throbbing synthesizers and a measured drum beat that jointly build to a victorious

chorus powered by Fleming’s angelic voice. If this dropped into a John Hughes joint, the protagonist would be proudly walking out of a bad situation, leaving behind the forces that dragged her down; raising a strong fist in the air.

The song’s lyrics paint a less victorious picture. “I must be going crazy or maybe it’s just I’m just lonely / I’ve grown too dependent to make it alone,” Fleming sings before a string of “do-do-do-do-do” background vocals chime in. It’s a catchy hit that could easily describe an abusive relationship between two human adults or someone trying to quit Instagram.

This dichotomy of upbeat sound and unsettling vision continues throughout Internet Arms, as does the slick production and electronic yacht rock overtones that make it such a pleasurable record. Other tracks feature more explicit callouts to tech’s ill effects on humanity. “Simulation” touches on mating in cyberspace (“We can make a lover that’s life-like / I could even simulate you tonight”) while the title track pairs muffled, robotic exposition with a brainwashing smooth talker: “Step inside the world of mine and lose control… humankind will soon be mine / you’ve lost control / but don’t freak out.”

Fleming wrote the bulk of Internet Arms at home in his Bloomington, Indiana bedroom where he also laid down the music, plugging his guitar directly into his laptop and adding synth patches that would inform the subject matter of one song, which in turn informed the next synth patch, and so on.

Then he took his skeleton songs to a friend’s professional studio where he taped up pictures from Simon Stålenhag’s dystopian book, The Electric State, a vision of an alternate post-war, post-drought, post-human 1997 America. Fleming surrounded himself with inspiring horror—and he often recorded at night, alone, surrounded by depictions of his sinister muse. Listeners can almost hear the unsettling effect the atmosphere had on the artist. It lurks beneath each pop banger, and it should be interesting to see how that translates to Diane Coffee’s live show.

“You can expect more of a show than just four guys up on stage with dirty T-shirts standing around and playing the same way they play on the record,” Fleming says.

Fleming puts a lot of effort into his onstage presence, including outlandish costumes designed by his creative director and partner, Melinda Danielson. Many see his makeup, attire and theatrical movements and define Diane Coffee as a gender-bending project, which he says is a bit off-base.

“I believe in gender and sexual fluidity, and I don’t identify as anything. I love who I love and am attracted to who I’m attracted to,” Fleming says. “But our shows are more like going to see Meatloaf than David Bowie. Diane Coffee is just an amplified version of myself. I’m a child of the theater— that’s where I came from and that’s what I want to bring to the stage.”

Offstage and at home, Fleming takes off one day a week to unplug from the limelight of social media, but even then, he can’t entirely shake it.

“I don’t know if there’s a separation between personal and professional when it comes to being an artist these days.

I feel like I’m on all the time but I’m not on nearly as much as I should be.”

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 21

BY RYAN BRADFORD

MUSIC

BLACK

Utah jazz

ALFRED HOWARD

GOLD

T

here are not a lot of Black people in Utah.

I know they have enough to staff a basketball team (the Utah Jazz), which absolutely must be a misnomer. Utah and jazz go together like peanut butter and hand grenades. But I digress.

A few years ago, I was one of the Black folks in Utah. I was passing through the town of Moab for a gig. I had arrived early and my favorite way to pass the hours has always been to dive headfirst into nature. I had been to Moab’s Arches National Park a number of times, but as breathtaking and alluring as that was, the sea of summertime visitors bordered on overwhelming. Once someone has seen a morbidly obese man with Kentucky plates feed a squirrel a Twix bar next to a sign that reads “don’t feed the wildlife,” the road less traveled just seems all the more appealing.

I decided my best bet was to ask a local for a hiking trail off the beaten path. I found a health food store and looked for a standout hippie working in the shop. I asked a young woman with, naturally, a Phish concert T-shirt if she had any suggestions for a local spot. Now, when I asked her, she wasn’t facing me so she didn’t know what I looked like. She exuberantly said, “You want to go to…” but she began to glitch out the second she saw me. The first half of her response was eloquent and incorporated familiar words from the English language.

The second half of the sentence deteriorated into some Mushmouth gibberish that was reminiscent of Charlie Brown’s teacher.

I asked her again.

“Sorry, I couldn’t quite understand the latter half of the sentence. Would you mind repeating?” She took another stab at it but at the same important point in her response,

22 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

her words fell to pieces. It was as if the nitrous balloon kicked in at the midway point.

I figured it out after following her directions to a canyon. See, up until the 1960s, it was officially called Nigger Bill Canyon and, up until 2017, it was Negro Bill Canyon. It’s currently Grandstaff Canyon and I’m sure it will be called Verizon Wireless Canyon in 2045, but that’s another essay.

“Hooligan Rock” by Nigger Charley The Phish woman wasn’t expecting a Black man when she turned around. It’s one of the safer Utah bets (that and that the Jazz will get booted from the first round of the NBA Playoffs) so she glitched out and had to buffer while trying to send me to a place named Nigger Bill Canyon. This was fortunate because it was a beautiful canyon and had I known the name, it’s unlikely my sense of danger and adventure would have brought me there.

Most people I tell that story to are astounded it took so long to change the name.

When I told my father, he was the first to say, “I wish they’d kept it Nigger Bill Can-

yon.” His point was that there’s an inherent danger in whitewashing history (no pun intended), and an importance to having these reminders of our not-so-distant past. So that when we discuss longstanding equality in America, we can recall that, not long ago, Nigger Bill Canyon was on official maps.

The other day I was digging through some 45s at Pack Rat Records on El Cajon Boulevard and I came across a Nigger Charley record. I’m hoping that this article is the most readers have encountered the N-word in a long time. It’s a word that still rattles my soul when I hear it or see it in print.

I wondered what kind of music it would be. I wondered for a second if it was the song title or artist name. Maybe it was something from Alabama. Maybe it was something for which the curiosity of my ears didn’t need to be satiated. I wondered how hard it was for Nigger Charley to book shows with a name like that. Were the offers exclusively from Lynchburg, Tennessee (yes that’s a real town and no, I have no desire to drive through it)?

Was it an early example of reclaiming the word as our own, to rob it of it’s potency?

Or was it the opposite—an artist acknowledging how the world views him and making listeners come to terms with a truncated distance that separates us from a past most of us long to eclipse? I put the record on when I got home.

“Whether you’re Black and white, it’s time for I and I to unite,” sings Charley. A simple message is often the most poignant.

I have to imagine Nigger Charley’s message was stunted by the inability to hoist his name upon the marquee without inciting riots. But all in all, the song “Hooligan Rock” was a solid reggae song that made me dance the way one sways while cleaning a house alone.

The music wasn’t as exciting as the rush I felt contemplating what resided in those dusty grooves—the flood of Utah memories that had long escaped my mind, the history of a jarringly abrasive word that hits no softer today than it did at the turn of the century. After all, music is a mechanism to transport and evoke and this record did exactly that.

Black Gold appears every other week.

Alfred Howard is always looking for vinyl and stories, and can be contacted at blackgoldsandiego@gmail.com.

THE

SPOTLIGHT ANDREW BISDALE

I

Worriers

t always sounds a little cheesy when someone says “the kids are alright.”

I just imagine some content boomer congratulating themselves for remembering a Who song title while recusing themselves from the damage inflicted by their generation on “the kids,” who are working hard to fix it.

But in the case of Worriers, the kids are definitely all right.

Not to say that Worriers are snotty, young punks. Rather, they’re working within the confines of pop-punk—a genre that generally appeals to “the kids”—to shine a light on sexism and gender in thoughtful, nonreductive ways. Namely, Worriers strive to make punk a safer place for all people, regardless of their identity.

And even though that’s a value the punk genre has espoused since its inception, anyone who’s been to a punk show knows that it’s mostly the white, shirtless dudes in the pit who benefit.

In addition to their positive message, Worriers are catchy as hell. Artist, writer and non-binary advocate Lauren Denitzio crafts tight, fierce melodies with a voice that’s somewhere between Natalie Merchant and Eleanor Friedberger. Each song feels simultaneously assured, nervous and excited, like a caffeine high without the comedown. Worriers’ 2015 album Imaginary Life (produced by Against Me!’s Laura Jane Grace) was one of my favorites of that year, and their follow-up, 2017’s Survival Pop, is similarly infectious.

Also, arrive early to catch Le Saboteur, who are my favorite San Diego punk band these days.

Worriers play Thursday, June 13 at Tower Bar.

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MUSIC

IF I WERE U

BY CITYBEAT STAFF

Our picks for the week’s top shows

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5

PLAN A: The Skints, The Amalgamated, San Diego City Soul Club DJs @ The Casbah. We at CityBeat often get accused of hating on reggae. Let’s be clear: We don’t hate reggae. We just hate when beach bros commodify it and play the same tired-ass Bob Marley and Sublime covers. That being said, London’s The Skints are our type of modern reggae band. Reverent, talented and making songs that are both catchy and original.

BACKUP PLAN: Spiral Stairs, The Rightovers @ Soda Bar.

THURSDAY, JUNE 6

PLAN A: Father John Misty, Jason Isbell @ Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre. What a dynamic duo this is. Country singer Jason Isbell’s plaintive, self-reflective songs should balance perfectly with Father John Misty’s self-aggrandizing torch songs.

PLAN B: The Wild Reeds, A.O. Gerber @ The Casbah. The three frontwomen in L.A. quintet could easily be making music on their own, but what a powerful, harmonic sound they make together. Their new record, Cheers, is packed with singalong indie folk that pulls on all the heartstrings. BACKUP PLAN: The Jack Moves, Adeumazel @ Mous Tache Bar, Tijuana.

POONEH GHANA

B: Fawns of Love, Slowness, Steilacoom, Battery Point, DJ Jon Blaj @ Whistle Stop.

This is a great, gothy lineup from top-tobottom. Bakersfield duo Fawns of Love have kind of a moody Cure-meets-Chromatics feel while San Fran’s Slowness channel vintage Low with excellent results. BACKUP PLAN: TTNG, The Kraken Quartet @ The Irenic.

SATURDAY, JUNE 8

PLAN A: together PANGEA, Vundabar, Dehd @ The Irenic. L.A.’s together PANGEA often get labeled garage-punk, but they’re only punk in that they’re kinda all over the place. One minute, they’ll be playing a snidey, three-chord anthem and the next, they’ll be playing a tender, acoustic ballad. They pull it all off pretty well. PLAN B: Taken By Canadians, Shane Hall, Creature and the Woods, Low Volts @ The Casbah. A great lineup of local bands with blues-rock leanings. Oceanside’s Taken by Canadians, in particular, are worth checking out. BACKUP PLAN: AJ Froman, Ezra Bells, Megafauna @ Winston’s.

SUNDAY, JUNE 9

PLAN A: Rufus Wainwright @ Belly Up Tavern. Half of the CityBeat staff regularly cries while listening to Rufus Wainwright’s bewitching ballads and hypnotizing voice.

Yes, you’ll likely find us at this show, close to the stage, being big blubbering babies.

PLAN B: Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, Amasa Hines @ The Casbah. Not many artists could write sweaty soul jams titled “Bitch, I Love You” and “Get Yo Shit” and still make them sound sexy as hell. Mr. Lewis does. BACKUP PLAN: Bustié, DJ Miss Lady D @ Whistle Stop.

MONDAY, JUNE 10

PLAN A: Kid Congo and the Pink Monkey, Birds, Slim Cessna’s Auto Club @ The Casbah. Brian Tristan (aka Kind Congo Powers) has played in The Cramps and with Nick Cave, but his solo material is worth your attention. Since 2005, he’s been releasing dark garage-rock with a Chicano outlook, and his live shows are always smoking.

BACKUP PLAN: SOURCE, Of Ennui, ElectroMagnetic @ Soda Bar.

The Wild Reeds

FRIDAY, JUNE 7

PLAN A: Sebadoh, Flower @ The Casbah.

Lou Barlow and company have been going strong since first reuniting in 2007. Their masterpieces, Sebadoh III and Bake Sale, have stood the test of time, filled with lofi rock gems that were brilliant rejoinders to the pomp of the ’90s alternative scene. PLAN

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TUESDAY, JUNE 11

PLAN A: Babe Rainbow, Paint @ The Casbah. Australia’s Babe Rainbow are proud of their “hippy rockers” distinction and it shows in their songs—dreamy, lysergic pop that sounds like it was made for beach strolls and dancing around in flower crowns.

BACKUP PLAN: Sadistik, Trizz, Rafael Vigilantics, Preacher Vs. Choir @ Soda Bar.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 23

MUSIC

CONCERTS HOT! NEW! FRESH!

Vinyl Junkies Record Swap (Casbah, 6/8), Phil Weeks (Music Box, 6/22), DJ Artistic’s Hip Hop Battle Bot (Casbah, 6/24), Amerikan Bear (Soda Bar, 7/5), Helsott (Brick By Brick, 7/5), The Convalescence (Brick By Brick, 7/6), Earthless (Casbah, 7/6-7), Phutureprimitive (Music Box, 7/12), Psychic Graveyard (Soda Bar, 7/31), Talib Kweli (Music Box, 8/1), Bad Cop/Bad Cop (Soda Bar, 8/2), The PettyBreakers (BUT, 8/3), Mike Love (Music Box, 8/15), Molly Burch (Soda Bar, 8/23), The Young Wild (Casbah, 8/31), The Robert Cray Band (BUT, 9/5), Mr. Kitty (Brick By Brick, 9/12), Jay Som (The Irenic, 9/12), Benjamin Francis Leftwich (The Irenic, 9/18), DSB (BUT, 9/14), Kendra Morris (Soda Bar, 9/23), Wax Tailor (Music Box, 9/25), Titus Andronicus (Soda Bar, 9/27), TWRP (Casbah, 9/30), Morcheeba (BUT, 10/13), Lucy Dacus (BUT, 10/28), Mating Ritual (Soda Bar, 11/15), Pip Blom (Soda Bar, 11/18), Buku (Music Box, 11/29).

ALL SOLD OUT Bob Saget (HOB, 6/8), Patty Griffin (BUT, 6/8), Oh Sees (BUT, 6/14), Local Natives (Observatory, 6/19), Jamestown Revival (BUT, 6/19), Scott Russo (Casbah, 6/22), John Hiatt (BUT, 6/25), Sticky Fingers (HOB, 6/30), The Struts (Observatory, 7/12), Billie Eilish (Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre, 7/13), The Psychedelic Furs (Observatory, 8/6), Death Cab For Cutie (Observatory, 8/9-

10), David Grisman (BUT, 8/29), The Marshall Tucker Band (BUT, 9/12), Jonas Brothers (Pechanga Arena, 10/7), Mike Watt & The Missingmen (Casbah, 11/2), Two Door Cinema Club (Observatory, 11/8).

GET YER TICKETS Jennifer Lopez (Pechanga Arena, 6/10), Toby Keith (Del Mar Fairgrounds, 6/14), Rebelution (North County Credit Union Amphitheatre, 6/15), Rob Thomas (Humphreys, 6/20), Khalid (Pechanga Arena, 6/23), Aly & AJ (Observatory, 6/25), Priests (Soda Bar, 6/26), Pouya (HOB, 7/23), Blink-182, Lil Wayne (North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, 8/7), Carrie Underwood (Pechanga Arena, 9/10), The Who (Viejas Arena, 10/16), Judah & The Lion (Observatory, 10/17), Hozier (Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre, 10/26).

JUNE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5 Spiral Stairs at Soda Bar. Toad the Wet Sprocket at Belly Up Tavern. Skints at The Casbah. Siddhartha at House Of Blues.

THURSDAY, JUNE 6 The Wild Reeds at The Casbah. Father John Misty / Jason Isbell at Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre. Jackie Greene at Observatory North Park.

Pleasure Fix at Soda Bar. CHALI 2NA & The House of Vibe at Music Box. The Shane Shipley Band at Belly Up Tavern. The Shane Shipley Band at Belly Up Tavern.

24 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

FRIDAY, JUNE 7 Sebadoh at The Casbah. Hillsong UNITED at Viejas Arena at SDSU. TTNG at The Irenic. Mac Sabbath at Soda Bar. Inner Wave at Observatory North Park. Random Rab at Music Box. Mykal Rose at Belly Up Tavern. Spirit of the Beehive at Ché Café Collective. Vini Vini at House of Blues.

SATURDAY, JUNE 8 Taken by Canadians at The Casbah.

Dirty Dozen Brass Band at Music Box. together PANGEA at The Irenic. Los Enanitos Verdes at Viejas Arena at SDSU. Death Cab For Karaoke at Soda Bar. Avolution Fest After Party at Music Box.

SUNDAY, JUNE 9 C.J. Ramone at Soda Bar. Black Joe Lewis at The Casbah. Rufus Wainwright at Belly Up Tavern. For King and Country at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre.

Blessthefall at SOMA. Pepe Aguilar at Pechanga Arena. Lecherous Nocturne at SPACE. The Ataris at Brick By Brick. Bad Religion at Observatory North Park. Rich The Kid at House of Blues.

MONDAY, JUNE 10 Kid Congo at The Casbah. Jennifer Lopez at Pechanga Arena. SOURCE at Soda Bar.

TUESDAY, JUNE 11 Babe Rainbow at The Casbah. Sadistik at Soda Bar. Merchants at Brick By Brick.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12 Big Brother and the Holding Company at Del Mar Fairgrounds. John Paul White

at Belly Up Tavern. Plague Vendor at Music Box. Jake Owen at Del Mar Fairgrounds. WidowMade at The Casbah.

THURSDAY, JUNE 13 Dizzy Wright at House of Blues.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited at Del Mar Fairgounds. RVG at Soda Bar. The Weight Band at Belly Up Tavern.

FRIDAY, JUNE 14 Operators at The Casbah. Toby Keith at Del Mar Fairgrounds. Parachute at House of Blues. No Vacation at The Irenic. Flotsam & Jetsam at Brick By Brick. Pile at Soda Bar. Train at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre.

SATURDAY, JUNE 15 Rebelution at North County Credit Union Amphitheatre. Smokey Robinson at Del Mar Fairgrounds. Frenship at Music Box. My Life With the Thrill Kill Kut at Brick By Brick. Vincent at Soda Bar. Diane Coffee at The Casbah. Mustache Harbor at Belly Up Tavern. Eric Burdon & The Animals at Humphreys. Chris Webby at House of Blues.

SUNDAY, JUNE 16 Blue October at Observatory North Park.

The Felice Brothers at The Casbah. The Holdup at Soda Bar. Greg Douglass at Belly Up Tavern. New Years Day at Brick

By Brick. Anberlin at House of Blues.

MONDAY, JUNE 17 Lucinda Williams & Buick 6 at Belly Up Tavern. Dark Alley Dogs at Soda Bar. Drug Apts at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JUNE 18 Jamila Woods at The Casbah. Lucinda Williams & Buick 6 at Belly Up Tavern.

Be Mine Phantom Valentine at Soda Bar.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19 Slingshot Dakota at Soda Bar. Alanis Morissette at Humphreys. James Supercave at The Casbah. PUP at Music Box.

THURSDAY, JUNE 20 Rob Thomas at Humphreys. The Mattson 2 at Belly Up Tavern. Katie Toupin at Soda Bar. BAILEN at The Casbah. Eric B. & Rakim at House of Blues.

FRIDAY, JUNE 21 Matthew Logan Vasquez at Soda Bar. Jenny and the Mexicats at Music Box. Antibals at Belly Up Tavern. Hootie & the Blowfish at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. Alanis Morissette at Humphreys. Xavier Wulf at SOMA. Long Beach Dub Allstars at House of Blues.

Emo Night at The Casbah. Larry Dunn at Music Box.

SATURDAY, JUNE 22 As Cities Burn at Brick By Brick. Tom Gun at Music Box. Paul McCartney at Petco Park. America at Humphreys. Emo Night at House of Blues. Desperado at Belly Up Tavern. BAT! at Soda Bar.

SUNDAY, JUNE 23 Tacocat at The Casbah. Remo Drive at The Irenic. Khalid at Pechanga Arena.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 25

@SDCITYBEAT

BY CHRISTIN BAILEY

MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24 Santana at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. Clairo at Pechanga Arena. Nathan Lee at California Center for the Arts.

MONDAY, JUNE 24 Heart Attack Man at House of Blues. No Exits at Soda Bar.

TUESDAY, JUNE 25 Aly & AJ at Observatory North Park. Jon Walker at Soda Bar.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26 Priests at Soda Bar. Mini Mansions at The Casbah. Indigo Girls at Humphreys.

Anderson .Paak at Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre.

THURSDAY, JUNE 27 Rooney at Soda Bar. Okkervil River at The Casbah. Half*Alive at Music Box. Warish at Belly Up Tavern.

rCLUBSr

710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave., Pacific Beach. Wed: Open Mic. Thu: ‘Bringing Back Rock ‘N’ Roll’. Fri: Headphone, The Brewhahas. Sat: JQ Music & Art Benefit Show. Sun: Karaoke. Tue: Lucier, Clean Cut Hippies.

Air Conditioned Lounge, 4673 30th St., Normal Heights. Wed: ‘#HipHopWeds’.

Thu: Jonathon Lestat. Fri: ‘House Music Fridays’. Sat: ‘JUICY’. Sun: ‘Phantasy Lounge’. Mon: ‘Organized Grime’. Tue: DJ Staci.

@SDCITYBEAT

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: Chingo Bling. Fri: Chingo Bling. Sat: Chingo Bling. Tue: Open Mic. The Bancroft, 9143 Campo Road, Spring Valley. Wed: Karaoke. Fri: RAAG, 9 Volt Murder, Fallen Monuments, The Waste Aways. Sat: N-E-1, Beta 7. Sun: Color Til Monday, Up From Here, The Transparent Tones, Maruja. Mon: Trivia. Tue: Karaoke.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St., Downtown. Fri: Cosmo’s Midnight. Sat: David Hohme.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St., North Park. Thu: The Downs Family, Chloe Lou & The Liddells.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave., Solana Beach. Wed: Toad the Wet Sprocket, Peter More. Thu: The Shane Shipley Band, Sarah Rogo, Lindsay Perry. Fri: Mykal Rose ft. Sly & Robbie, Reggae Angels, New Leaf. Sat: Patty Griffin, John Smith (sold out). Sun: Rufus Wainwright.

Blonde, 1808 W. Washington St., Mission Hills. Wed: ‘Dance Klassique’. Thu: ‘Hype Beatz Party’. Fri: ‘We Are Yr Friends’. Sat: ‘Blonde 54’. Mon: ‘Restraint’. Tue: ‘Techit EASY’.

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

Sat: Big Dude.

Brick by Brick, 1130 Buenos Ave., Bay Park. Sun: The Ataris. Tue: Merchants.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Wed: The Skints, The Amalgamated, San Diego City Sould Club DJs. Thu: The Wild Reeds, A.O. Gerber. Fri: Sebadoh, Flower. Sat: Taken By Canadians,

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

ASTROLOGICALLY UNSOUND Weekly forecasts from the so-called universe ARIES (March 21 - April 19): If you could capture all the kinetic energy you wasted on dozens of half-started and never-completed tasks, then you’d be unstoppable. In a way, the rest of us are grateful you can’t do this.

LIBRA (September 23 - October 22): Just when you think you have it all

TAURUS (April 20 - May 20): Every choice creates a small fissure that divides you from opportunities that would have been possible with another choice.

Except when you’re deciding which gum to buy. That’s consequence free.

SCORPIO (October 23 - November 21): This week you have to practice

GEMINI (May 21 - June 20): This week builds like an exponentially growing snowball rolling down the face of a mountain. Where are you in this metaphor? Thanks for asking. I have no idea.

CANCER (June 21 - July 22): Facts do not necessarily convey any sort of meaningful capital “T” Truth, but still— suffice it to say—if there is a hiking trail called Rattlesnake Way, you should probably pay attention.

LEO (July 23 - August 22): No matter how alone you feel, you can look to your SPAM folder and see that there are always sexy singles in your area that want to meet you.

VIRGO (August 23 - September 22): Yes, you’re more likely to be trampled by bison than win the Powerball. But what does math know?

figured out, the card reader at the selfcheckout comes along and makes a sound so loud that you can’t help but be humbled.

being as honest with yourself as when you accidentally opened the front-facing camera on your phone.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 - December 21): Never let the judgments of

other people dictate how you feel about yourself. Likewise, also understand that your opinion about others is equally meaningless.

CAPRICORN (December 22 - January 19): You only have control over the

future in the liminal space known as the present, where there always seems to be better things to do than worry about later.

AQUARIUS (January 20 - February 18): Resist any impulse to make irrevers-

ible decisions regarding your finances this week, unless you really want to. I mean, who knows?

PISCES (February 19 - March 20):

True intimacy is not possible without high-stakes vulnerability, like openly crying while in line for an Auntie Annie’s pretzel. Or not like that—it will be exactly that.

Astrologically Unsound appears every week. Follow Christin Bailey on Twitter at @hexprax.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 25

MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

Loft @ UCSD, Price Center East, La Jolla.

Sat: YLJC All Ensembles Showcase.

Shane Hall, Creature and the Woods, Low Volts. Sun: Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears. Mon: Kid Congo and the Pink Monkey Birds, Slim Cessna’s Auto Club. Tue: The Babe Rainbow, Paint.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave., Coronado. Wed: Fish & JG. Thu: Jackson & Billy. Fri: Alternatives. Sat: Stand Up Guys. Sun: Glenn Smith. Tue: Goodall Boys.

Che Cafe, 1000 Scholars Drive S, La Jolla. Thu: ‘Hope 4 Homeless’. Fri: The Spirit of the Beehive. Sat: Entry, Bayonet, Madrugado.

Martinis Above Fourth, 3940 Fourth Ave., Hillcrest. Wed: Christina Blanco.

Thu: Darryl F. Walker. Tue: ‘Girls and Guys Night Out: Male Revue’.

Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Bay Park. Fri: Twin Peaks Middle School Jazz Ensemble, La Mesa Arts Academy Big Band. Sat: San Diego Latin Jazz Project.

The Merrow, 1271 University Ave., Hillcrest. Fri: Fused, Warpath, Latex Grenade, K Prouty. Sat: ‘Club Sabbat’. Sun: Showstoppers Talent Contest. Mon: ‘Playground Monday Night Dance Party’. Tue: Jehlad, Tennessee Tina, Rodrigo Bars.

F6ix, 526 F St., Downtown. Thu: Wave Check Competition. Fri: Isaac B. Sun: ‘Reggae Sundays’.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Wed: Siddhartha. Thu: Alborosie & Shengen Clan, King Yellowman. Fri: Vini Vici. Sat: Tim Atlas. Sun: Rich The Kid. Humphreys Backstage, 2241 Shelter Island Drive, Shelter Island. Wed: Whiskey Ridge. Thu: DJ Chuck. Fri: Wildside. Sat: Platinum Vibe. Sun: The Dudes of San Diego. Mon: Fuzzy Rankins. Tue: Chris Thayer & The TCB. The Irenic, 3090 Polk Ave., North Park.

Fri: TTNG, The Kraken Quartet, Standards. Sat: Together PANGEA, Vundabar, Dehd.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Thu: Father Bear. Fri: Lost Garden.

Lestat’s Coffee House, 3343 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Fri: Tommy Ragen.

Sat: Jones & Peterson. Mon: Open Mic. Tue: Comedy Night.

26 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 5, 2019

Mother’s Saloon, 2228 Bacon St., Ocean Beach. Tue: Trivia.

Mr. Peabody’s, 136 Encinitas Blvd., Encinitas. Thu: The Sickstring Outlaws. Fri: It’s Never 2 L8. Sat: ROADOG. Sun: Tony Ortega Jazz Jam. Mon: Open Mic. Tue: Karaoke.

Music Box, 1337 India St., Little Italy.

Thu: CHALI 2NA, The House of Vibe. Fri: Random Rab, Bluetech. Sat: Avolution Fest Afterparty.

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

Thu: ‘Dig Deeper’. Sat: ‘Strictly Business’.

Mon: ‘Motown on Mondays’. Tue: ‘Night Shift in The Office’.

OMNIA Nightclub, 454 Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: ‘Undone on Thursday’. Fri: ‘Party Favor’. Sat: MadeinTYO. Panama 66, 1450 El Prado, Balboa Park.

Wed: ‘The Wednesday Jam Session’. Fri: Victor Baker Quartet. Sun: ‘Funk Jam’.

Parq, 615 Broadway, Downtown. Fri: DJ Hollywood. Sat: R3HAB.

Pour House, 1903 S. Coast Highway, Oceanside. Wed: Open Mic. Thu: Warish.

Sycamore Den, 3391 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Wed: Paul Gregg. Tue: Trivia.

Proud Mary’s, 5550 Kearny Mesa Road, Kearny Mesa. Wed: Charles Burton. Thu: Tomcat Courtney. Fri: Bill Magee. Sat: Townhall Brawl.

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Sun: ‘PANTS Karaoke!’. Mon: Coast 2 Coast Artist Showcase.

The Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave., Hillcrest. Thu: ‘Country Dance’. Fri: ‘Bad Behavior’. Sat: ‘Sabados en Fuego’. Mon: Trivia.

Riviera Supper Club, 7777 University Ave., La Mesa. Wed: ‘Boss Jazz’. Thu: Swing Thing. Fri: Dave Gleason Trio. Sat: True Stories.

Rosie O’Gradys, 3402 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Wed: Chloe Lou & Davies.

Thu: DJ Ratty. Fri: Never Come Down, Gold Crush, Subsurfer. Sat: Acoustic Revolt. Mon: ‘Jazz Jam’.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Wed: Spiral Stairs, The Rightovers. Thu: Pleasure Fix, State to State, Satellite Citi. Fri: Mac Sabbath, Playboy Manbaby, Fiends. Sat: Death Cab For Karaoke. Sun: CJ Ramone, Mean Jeans, Midnight Track. Mon: SOURCE, Of Ennui, ElectroMagnetic. Tue: Sadistik, Trizz, Rafael Vigilantics, Preacher vs. Choir.

SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd., Midway.

Sun: Blessthefall, Slaves, Glass Houses, Here From The Start, Cardio Kazan.

SPACE, 3519 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights.

Wed: Psychedelic Summer Night. Thu: Ingonoir & Snapghost, Laje X Bados, Thug Guapo, Gian. Fri: ‘Rituals’. Sat: DJ Dodger Stadium. Sun: Lecherous Nocturne.

Tue: Karaoke.

Spin, 2028 Hancock St., Midtown. Fri: San Diego Unicorn Invasion. Sat: ‘Disco Aquatica’.

Tin Roof, 401 G St., Downtown. Wed: Chad & Rosie. Thu: Corey Gray & Jake Coco. Fri: Boone & Kiel. Sat: DJ Jwin.

Sun: Karaoke. Mon: Lucky Devils Band.

Tue: Mitch Clark.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St., Bay Park. Wed: The Jazz Pockets. Thu: Tommy Price & the Stilettos. Fri: Bump City Brass. Sat: Detroit Underground. Sun: Plow Plow.

Mon: ‘Sexy Salsa & Sensual Bachata’.

Tue: Big Tim Operator Orchestra.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave., City Heights. Wed: Wicked Bears.Thu: Tim Hampshire, Jared Stinson, Kevin White, Mitch McSteamy, Michelle Pannell. Fri: ‘Hip Hop vs. Punk Rock’. Sat: Focke Wolves, Jonny Manak and the Depressives, Space Force.

U-31, 3112 University Ave., North Park.

Thu: ‘BoomBox Thursdays’. Fri: DJ Freeman. Sat: DJ Bacon Bits. Sun: KL Noise Makerz. Mon: ‘#31 Flavors’.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St., South Park.

Wed: ‘Open Oscillator’. Fri: Fawns of Love, Slowness, Steilacoom, Battery Point.

Sat: ‘Booty Bassment’. Sun: Bustie, Adios Mundo Cruel, DJ Miss Lady D. Mon: ‘Electric Relaxation’. Tue: ‘Sketch Party’.

Winstons, 1921 Bacon St., Ocean Beach.

Wed: Open Mic. Thu: OB Hip Hop Social.

Fri: Synrgy, Sandollar. Sat: AJ Froman.

Sun: Karaoke. Mon: Electric Waste Band.

Tue: The Black Crows Revival, Radd Company.

@SDCITYBEAT

BY JACKIE BRYANT

IN THE BACK

CANNABITCH Up for dabs

COURTESY OF JAY FRENTSOS

U

p until recently, I’ve been something of a purist when it comes to ingesting cannabis. For me, a large part of the romanticism of enjoying weed has to do with the fact that I’m smoking an actual plant.

Edibles always made me sleepy and concentrates were admittedly scary and unknown territory for me—something only exceptionally serious stoners dabbled in.

Overall, I prefer joints and smoking out of glassware, though the former comes with some seriously heavy health risks, not unlike the type that come with smoking cigarettes. Smoking weed is also smelly and therefore not ideal for public consumption. And since my line of work requires more product consumption than the average person, my THC tolerance has shot through the roof in the last year. I needed to level up.

So I’ve recently been trying my hands at all kinds of concentrates, which is an umbrella term for any cannabis product produced through an extraction process. This process often involves butane or other solvents, resulting is a smaller amount of product that looks nothing like a plant.

The end product packs a much higher punch thanks to the increased level of THC, CBD or any other cannabinoid.

Cannabis oils are an ideal starting point for most users, and have quickly gone mainstream due to the widespread availability of vape pens. Most pens come with pre-set burn temperatures or offer only a small range of variation, so it’s fairly impossible to screw up or get too stoned from

@SDCITYBEAT

just one puff. Plus, the vapor dissipates quickly, making it a discrete on-the-go option.

Next up was dabbing, which had been a bit of a blind spot of mine. For the uninitiated, dabbing is a method of consuming cannabis concentrates that requires a blowtorch, a hot surface (like ceramic or glass) and the concentrate of choice. The smoker fires up the torch, heats the concentrate and inhales. The resulting high is acute, clear and intense.

Shatter was the first concentrate I dabbed. It comes folded up in wax paper. At first glance, it looks like flattened caramel, but in reality it has a clearer, amber-like texture and appearance and is exceptionally sticky to the touch. Stretching shatter out slowly allows the user to wrap it around things, such as joints, while pulling it apart quickly allows the user to roll it into small balls or rolls, which are ideal for using in a dab rig or vaporizer pen. I started off with a rig that attaches to a bong.

I’ve always had a bit of impostor syndrome when it comes to the cannabis community. I’ve been smoking bowls and joints consistently since I was about 16, when this guy I was regularly making out with bought me a gorgeous bowl that was subsequently confiscated by my parents. So, when cannabis was recreationally legalized in California, I knew that, while I was qualified to write about it from an immersion standpoint, I also knew that I was way behind in terms of technology and other ingestion methods.

All of that trepidation vaporized (pun intended. Sorry) the moment I inhaled from a dab rig. A fuzzy wave swept over my body while the tip of my scalp started to sweat a little bit. Sounds were more isolated and clear, colors popped and terpenes swirled in my mouth. It felt hardcore.

As it turns out, dabbing kicks ass! When it comes to concentrates, the Cannabitch is converted.

CannaBitch appears every other week.

Follow Jackie Bryant on Twitter at @jacqbryant.

JUNE 5, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 27