San Diego CityBeat • June 27, 2018

2 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

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UP FRONT | FROM THE EDITOR

It’s only going to get more complicated

L

et me paint readers a scenario real quick: A things like crime and wages. Just in the last week, white-haired, veteran politician not directly two Mexican mayoral candidates were murdered, affiliated with either of the two major politi- bringing the total amount of candidates slain to a cal parties decides to run for president. His populist whopping 44(!) people.

And one could look at these very tangible issues message begins to resonate with both city and rural voters. He promises to end corruption in the capital, as the reason why Lopez Obrador is surging. In many to champion the people and never be a puppet for ways, he’s tapping into a populist spirit much in the corporations or moneyed interests. He’s especially same way that Trump did in the lead up to the 2016 popular with younger voters, promising socialist- U.S. election. On the surface, their promises are much the same: to help the working-class, leaning policies designed to better bring jobs to those who need them their lives including raising wages and to combat the “elites” and corrupand access to education. tion that runs rampant in the capital.

Sound familiar yet? Well, how But unlike Trump, Lopez Obrador isn’t about this scenario: Let’s say that not using phantom problems to make his only does the candidate’s message respoints. Trump dressed nationalism onate with voters, but he actually wins up as populism and people fell for it. as well? Not only wins, but wins big.

Trump uses Mexico as a punching bag I’m not the first writer to compare and as a scapegoat precisely because leftist Mexican presidential candidate it’s much more convenient to blame Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador’s (who someone else (in this case, our third often goes by his initials AMLO) camlargest trading partner) than to take paign to that of Bernie Sanders. There responsibility for problems we all are plenty of parallels in their excithelped create. ing, sometimes vague policies. But Yes, I said it: The U.S. should take unlike Sanders, Mexico’s July 1 elecAndres Manuel tion will mark the third time Lopez Lopez Obrador Mexico’s lead and stop buying into nationalistic, America-right-or-wrong Obrador has run for president. And unlike Sanders, Lopez Obrador—who represents the Na- policies. The two major parties in Mexico—the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA)—seems to tional Action Party (PAN) and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI)—are, naturally, freaking out. be sailing toward a landslide victory on Sunday.

There’s nothing to be ashamed about if readers They’re scrambling to establish new coalitions in aren’t fully paying attention to the election in Mexico. hopes of retaining some of their seats in congress. The After all, we certainly have enough headlines to pay PRI in particular, which once held the presidency for attention to when it comes to our own president. Not 70 years before the election of Vicente Fox in 2000, is to mention the fact that the Mexican national team so unpopular that the current president is often told is kicking butt in the World Cup. However, it’s worth to go fuck his mother (not even joking) and his potenpaying attention to the election if only for the fact tial successor has all but been written off as having that, if we’re to believe the rhetoric from some of the any chance of winning on Sunday.

And make no mistake; this will be a historic elecMexican debates, relations between our countries are about to get a whole lot more, well, let’s just say it’s tion for all of Mexico. We need to get ready, because things are likely to get even more contentious with going to get even more complicated.

You see, while we’ve been rightly focused on the our neighbors. Lopez Obrador has already had some detention of the migrants and families requesting big words for Trump and who’s to say that over the political asylum from the U.S., the vast majority of next six years, he won’t end up more like Hugo Chavez Mexico is not all that concerned with the matter. than Bernie Sanders.

Sure, things are likely to get worse before they get Little attention has been paid to the issue of the migrants from Mexico’s presidential candidates. better and there will likely be more blood spilled, but Lopez Obrador is much more keen on pointing out U.S. citizens could all stand to learn something from how he plans on getting tough with Trump on things this election. like NAFTA and the proposed border wall. That is, if he talks about Trump at all, because at the end of —Seth Combs the day, most Mexicans are rightly concerned with Write to seth.combs@sdcitybeat.com This issue of CityBeat already misses Torrey Bailey. Godspeed, T-Bone!

Volume 16 • Issue 45 EDITOR Seth Combs MUSIC EDITOR Jeff Terich WEB EDITOR Ryan Bradford ART DIRECTOR Carolyn Ramos ASSOCIATE EDITOR Torrey Bailey COLUMNISTS Aaryn Belfer Edwin Decker John R. Lamb Rhonda “Ro” Moore Alex Zaragoza

CONTRIBUTORS Christin Bailey, David L. Coddon, Beth Demmon, Rachel Michelle Fernandes, Michael A. Gardiner, Glenn Heath Jr., Lizz Huerta, Davey Landeros, Lara McCaffrey Scott McDonald, Jim Ruland, Ben Salmon, Jen Van Tieghem, Amy Wallen, Ian Ward EDITORIAL INTERNS Tigist Layne Jonathan Mandel PRODUCTION MANAGER Tristan Whitehouse MULTIMEDIA ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Paulina Porter-Tapia

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JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 3

UP FRONT | LETTERS

I AGREE WITH YOUR POSITIONS, BUT… Mr. Combs, Your frustration is merited and, from my point of view, your positions are correct [“A post-primary airing of grievances,” June 13].

The problem always is that analysis and speech aren’t generally effective, at least in my experience. And this is after some years as an academic.

It is amazing how so many can allow so few to run our car into ditches, while we pay those few for the ride, but pulpit pounding doesn’t seem to do the trick. I don’t think either the driver or those along for the ride have much reason, yet, to pay attention.

The real question is how to get their attention.

Yes, the budget for your outfit is small, so your pulpit is not big. But still, even a huge pulpit doesn’t get to dance much. It’s dancing in the aisles that counts. What’s that mean? Wish I knew, but for me, at my age (I’m fairly ancient), what I’m doing is sending what bucks I can to the candidates I’d like to see win. I’d like to give more of them a better chance at dancing in the aisles. Of course, some aren’t good dancers to begin with.

What’s it mean for an organ of the press?

And its editorial policy? Yelling “the nasties are coming” is pretty traditional, but only when everyone is already alerted to the Brit invasion. So you’re trying to alert them. No one really knows where the pain will come from next, so it’s not clear who even is ready for the message. Telling a story isn’t the same as hearing it, and even hearing isn’t useful unless you identify somehow with the person on the other side.

4 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

I don’t want to analyze your frustrations; I’m having a tough enough time with my own.

Or your sincere hope something changes. But you are doing your job, which is a good first step. Motivation is never easy. But I would like to encourage you.

Yes, there are a bunch of goofy, often mean, and even more often ideologically useless folks out there, or here: need to include myself, but sometimes we can help someone cross the street just by keeping our eyes open and trying. The change we’d like to see won’t come easy. Let’s see if we can make November a little less sad.

Best to you & good luck,

Victor Laruccia Mission Hills

INCREASE THE TURNOUT I am Leonard Robidoux, a working dues paying member of 40-plus years in the union for the Railroad at Amtrak.

Not until the results of the Presidential election did I begin to realize that I am a Progressive Democrat. All those previous years of stable employment and good income keep me fat and happy. I was so angry I could not hardly sleep after the election results.

Not until January of 2017 did I begin to form my own grassroots group in Indivisible. As I became a political news junky, meeting with other group leaders and organizing rallies, I have met a whole new group of like-minded people to begin to understand my real values of empathy for others that have been affected by this administration.

I came into this with one concern about my union protection and have come to understand more than I realized before. From Healthcare coverage to higher education costs, women`s rights and equality, MeToo movement, Muslim ban, immigration protection, gun violence reform, racial injustice, gay rights, ethnic cleansing, right to work, climate changes, native protection, racism, bigotry, misogyny and even the Democratic party needs some reform of representative that are not taking corporate donations, ie...“dark money” So when you ask me how I feel about the primaries [“A post-primary airing of grievances,” June 13], I was very familiar with most of the candidates. I definitely did not like the DA results after going to the debates prior. Or the Board of Supervisors. Or the Senate for Congress. Even the Governor’s race. I believe I know what is right for a representative but how are they going to win with just small money donors? CA Districts 49 and 50 will be good to keep covered into the midterm. My District 53 seems safe with Davis and Weber and Atkins, but I would like to see a change with my City Council District 4 to Montgomery. So definitely local and state news would help to educate. But we still need to increase the turnout particularly for liberal candidates.

I would like to get your articles in the future.

Thank you for your insightful writing.

Leonard Robidoux

Co-Founder and Co-Leader for

Indivisible Rolando Park and San Diego County Indivisible Peace Keepers

UP FRONT

From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Letters to the Editor. . . . . . . 4 CityWeek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 A Side-Eye of Sanity. . . . . . . . 6 Sordid Tales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

FOOD & DRINK

World Fare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Final Draught. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

THINGS TO DO

The Short List. . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Calendar of Events. . . . . 10-12

ARTS & CULTURE

Theater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Feature: LGBTQ+. . . . . . . . . . 14 Seen Local. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Film. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-19

MUSIC

Feature: Big Ups . . . . . . . . . 20 Notes From The Smoking Patio . . . . . . . . . . . 22 The Spotlight. . . . . . . . . . . . 22 If I Were U. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Concerts & Clubs. . . . . . 24-26

IN THE BACK

Astrologically Unsound. . . 26 CannaBeat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

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NEWS | OPINION

HAM OF THE WEEK

By Torrey Bailey and Seth Combs

THE ISSUE: As of last week, at least eight governors had recalled the National Guard troops the

Trump administration had requested at the border. Among them are Democratic governors from New York, North Carolina and Virginia, but also Republican governors of Maryland and Massachusetts, citing the administration’s zero tolerance policy and the separation of immigrant families as their reasoning. However, California Gov. Jerry Brown is not one of them, despite signing an April memorandum to deploy 400 National Guard troops to the border. Now, 30 state senators and assemblymembers (including Todd Gloria and Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher) have signed on to a letter

by State Sen. Kevin de León urging Gov. Brown to rescind the troops.

National City pastor Sergio De La Mora sent this gem of a tweet out last week. The multi-millionaire and founder of Cornerstone Church of San Diego (his own father was an immigrant from Guadalajara) seems to have forgotten his own roots as someone who— much like the Central Americans now at detention centers— once had to escape the dangers of violence and gangs. Oh, that and the fact that Jesus was all about loving thy neighbor and helping those who most needed it.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:

Coming down the pipe

“This is a shameful chapter in American history and California should have no part in it — directly or indirectly—imposing irreparable trauma on thousands of vulnerable young children.”

—Sen. Kevin de León, in the letter to Gov. Brown

Previews of the important or idiotic items possibly coming to a ballot or legislature near you.

“We’ll continue to assess and review this just as we have since personnel were originally mobilized back in April... We too reject these callous, insensitive policies.”

—Evan Westrup, spokesman for Gov. Brown via SF Gate

“California should in no way support the inhumane actions of this federal administration.”

—Assemblymember Todd Gloria, via Facebook OUR TAKE: Kudos to the governors walking back on their promises to send National Guard

troops to the border in reaction to the recent, horrific accounts of separating asylum-seeking families and abusing immigrant children. Meanwhile, we are rather confused as to why Gov. Brown hasn’t hastily followed suit. There are Republican governors seeking reelection who are making this move, so why isn’t a Democrat, and one who is not seeking reelection, doing the same? Our best guess is that Brown may take the low road and keep the National Guard as a source of leverage later on. Or, maybe he doesn’t want to ruffle feathers on the way out of office. But when families and children are in danger at the hands of the feds, this is no time to be timid. The more outspoken state governments are, the more likely the federal government will have to change course. California, as is often the case, should be setting the example and not playing catch-up.

NEWSY BITS 6/20

6/21

Well, it’s official: The proposition aimed at repealing the Senate Bill 1 (AKA the gas tax) has officially gathered enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot. This isn’t a huge surprise by any measure, as the signature gathering process had some huge financial backing from folks like Paul Ryan and Rep. Kevin McCarthy, as well as big names such as Donald Trump and John Cox championing the cause. We’re on record as being against the repeal, but here’s what really has us worried moving forward: • Polls show that a majority of voters already want to kill the tax, despite the benefits to infrastructure and public transportation.

• Now that Republicans have a clear choice for governor, they will have incentive to show up in November and they will almost certainly vote for the repeal proposition.

• Gas prices will continue to go up. USA Today predicted back in May that prices would be well above $4 by summer. For swing voters, this will be what decides it. Despite the fact that the tax basically averages out to about $1.50 per fillup, most will just remember that $4.59/gallon and think that’s simply too much to pay.

• Money, money, money! The GOP and oil companies are going to pour millions into the repeal campaign. And despite the fact that Gov. Brown has about $15 million in his campaign coffers to help fight against the efforts, it’ll be an uphill battle moving forward.

All the seriousness, silliness and stupidity of the past week 6/22

6/23

6/24

6/25

Thousands gather in Downtown for first-ever Families Belong Together march.

Pacific Beach, Downtown, Oceanside and parts of Point Loma and Mission Beach cited as most dangerous places to ride a bike, according to law enforcement collision study.

National City Police Department begins handing out duffle bags to homeless residents instead of arresting them.

Citing Board of Supervisors ban on cannabis businesses in unincorporated areas, Sheriff’s Department raids Spring Valley marijuana dispensary.

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Sen. Kamala Harris joins hundreds at the Otay Mesa Detention Center to protest Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policies.

Sheriff’s Department Commander Dave Myers officially retires after primary defeat for County Sheriff.

California Public Utilities Commission judge approves proposed San Onofre settlement that saves consumers millions in closurerelated rate hikes.

Vista man officially changes his name to… wait for it… “kilometres miles 0.62137119224 lartch.”

Private prison company CoreCivic applies to expand Otay Mesa Detention Center.

Local mixologist Cervantes Magaña passes away after his motorcycle collides with a car in Downtown.

6/26 County Board of Supervisors votes to accept proposals to develop nine affordable housing complexes.

Roughly 335 units marked for affordable housing for families.

Two police officers shot after responding to a disturbance call.

Both officers expected to make full recovery.

Crews begin demolishing La Mesa landmark Drew Ford “Roundhouse of Values.”

New data shows that homeless population, while down in places like East Village, is up by 960(?!) percent in Hillcrest and 900 percent in Kearny Mesa. (Source: San Diego Union-Tribune)

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 5

CULTURE | VOICES

RHONDA “RO” MOORE

A SIDE-EYE OF

SANITY

Self-segregation is not always a bad thing

I

originally wrote a different piece this month. After too much time on Twitter and witnessing the latest toxicness from far too many (male) Star Wars fans, I let one rip. This original column was aimed at the triggered misanthropic geeks and their baseless gender bias, but the computer gods decided my machine was overdue for a crash. When I restarted, I was greeted by many unrecoverable files.

After hyperventilating (and throwing things), I walked away from my keyboard. It’s a laptop, so if I threw it, I’d surely destroy it. My bank balance dictated that I keep my level of rage at broke people status. There was no way I could reproduce that column calmly. I tried and failed repeatedly. I can admit when something’s best left in the recycle bin. It’s why I have wine.

So, with still no replacement piece as my deadline approached, I took a pause for the culture (and my sanity) to attend the Janelle Monáe concert. For the record, if you have the chance to catch the Dirty Computer Tour, do it. I admit I’m extremely biased, but you’re just not living your best life if it isn’t being influenced by Monáe. I left invigorated, inspired, and slightly less panic-ridden.

And now, I’m pleased to have the fresh start because, on that same night, “self-segregation” came up in conversation with a friend, which sent me chasing a whole other rabbit.

For those living the non-Fox News life, self-segregation is a term that’s often used to refer to gated communities or other deliberately exclusive enclaves designed to permit its inhabitants to live a rich, unbothered life. Now, however, it’s more often a pejorative description of groups of marginalized and/or disenfranchised people; particularly groups advocating for people of color or the LGBTQA+ community.

To a vast number of (white) folks, self-segregation is the real cause of racism, sexism, prejudice, bigotry, xenophobia, and even religious intolerance. I’m convinced the fumes released into their bubbles must be mighty nice, because they just keep inhaling and accepting such idiocy.

Then I remember this bias is the result of years of deliberate definition perversion and indoctrination.

Segregation as a concept has been deliberately disconnected from its historical context and meaning. In the game of creating false equivalencies, this campaign’s been an unqualified success. Many folks are adamant that anything not specifically stating that [insert: sex or race etc. here] is welcome must be intended to exclude them and pushing an agenda demanding special privileges. Some even go so far as to lean on this corrupted concept as proof that they’re the group being discriminated against or somehow being oppressed.

I’ll admit, the first time I heard the term used like

this, I was ready to fight. I cut my eye at the speaker hard and sat on my hands... literally.

But the conversation with my friend, a gay man of color, was about whether an event aimed to be inviting to the LGBTQA+ community would be perceived instead as alienating or exclusionary. He used “self-segregation.” My eye twitched. The event he was talking about wasn’t limited in scope or by type of attendee. The intent was to create a place where members of a specific community could come and work without the usual othering that can happen at such events. Like many such activities, it’s about alleviating that burden and putting participants on notice about behavior expectations so folks who show up don’t act up.

I was reminded of his concern when Monáe took a moment during her show to discuss her state of mind before deciding to release Dirty Computer. At one point, she said she had to “decide who she was alright with pissing off” and that we all need to remember freedom is an everyday battle. We have to support each other and speak up.

Her words resonated. It reminded me we have to be careful not to legitimize bias as well. Just because someone keeps saying something is factual doesn’t make it any truer.

I remember a coach telling me that Title IX made him let me try out for soccer. It didn’t mean he had to let me make the team.

I had no recourse and no support.

And in college, it was the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs that had my back when my roommates complained to our dorm rectress that I didn’t clean the room.

Without them, I could’ve lost my housing because three white girls couldn’t grasp that I wasn’t assigned that room to provide maid service.

One of the most powerful tools people have is being able to gather in numbers to defend themselves.

These groups for people of color and marginalized/ disenfranchised—or targeted events—support and advocate. Their call sign lets me know I’m not only welcome, but I’m expected. I’m not just black, nerdy and a girl, I’m also a Gen-Xer. I watch from that place Gen-Xers dwell when think-pieces focus on complaining about Boomers/Millennials and skip right over my cohort. So, I’ve been watching this slow slide into the land of WTF since “I like pretty” started being my response to nosy folks asking my sexual preference.

Thankfully, I decided a long time ago that I was OK with pissing off certain people. It’s one of the reasons Dirty Computer stays on rotation. But don’t mistake me, I’m also a post-Malcolm X-era kid and any space I occupy will be safe for me and mine even if I have to windmill on some fools to make it so.

It reminded me we have to be careful not to legitimize bias as well. Just because someone keeps saying something is factual doesn’t make it any truer.

6 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

A Side-Eye of Sanity appears every four weeks.

Follow Ro Moore on Twitter at @BookBlerd.

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JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 7

UP FRONT | OPINION

EDWIN DECKER

SORDID

TALES

When white comics tell Black comics what Black comics must joke about

B

y now you have heard about the tub of hot water in which Kathy Griffin scalded herself last week.

In short, she criticized fellow comedian Kevin Hart for the apparently cowardly offense of not attacking Donald Trump while being Black. “… [T]here is a thirst for all kinds of comedy,” Griffin told USA Today on June 13. “And look, if you want to not hear about Trump at all, go see Kevin Hart. He doesn’t even mention Trump. I personally think that’s a pussy move because he’s a black man.”

Unsurprisingly, her comment triggered a backlash.

And while I would never call for a boycott against Ms. Griffin, or support her being terminated from whatever jobs she might still retain after last year’s decapitated Trump head photo debacle. Still, her attack on Kevin Hart is so ridonkulous I have no choice but to pile on.

Seriously, Kathy, we’re all entitled to our opinions, but where do you get off griefing other comedians for subjects they aren’t covering? It is one thing to say (and I wouldn’t) that certain topics are off limits—like Holocaust and/or rape jokes—but to bash another comedian for the things he or she doesn’t joke about is like bashing Monet for not painting clocks that droop over tree branches. Please.

As if the wildly successful Hart should take career tips from the comic whose most famous gag is a photo of herself holding the likeness of the bloody, severed head of a sitting president?

Oh sure, she claimed it was a joke, but it was not funny. And I don’t mean “not funny” as in, “Presidential decapitation is not a laughing matter!” I mean that it wasn’t funny because I didn’t laugh. Nobody laughed. Even she didn’t laugh! In the picture she’s donning a facial expression about as humorless as a pilot with propeller problems. No doubt there were plenty of folks who saw the photo and thought, Right on, sister! But I assure you, the only person on the planet who maybe would have chuckled at her Trumpcapitation photo was a Goaribari headhunter with an overbearing, orange-haired father in-law.

Even more asslickulous is this notion that a Black comic is somehow a “pussy” if he or she does not write jokes according a white person’s idea of what a Black person should write jokes about. If that ain’t racist, then the KKK doesn’t have membership restrictions.

Had Kathy Griffin taken a mere five seconds to think her comment through, she would have considered the possibility that Kevin Hart is uninterested in politics.

Or perhaps he supports Donald Trump (news flash, Kath, some Black people do). Or maybe he hates the president, but considers him to be the low-hanging fruit of comedy.

The latter is the reason I don’t target Trump any-

more. When he was on the path to the White House, I could often be heard saying—as so many others who make a living trying to be funny—that a Trump victory would be the best thing to happen to political satire since Catherine the Great started dating her carthorse. Turns out, not so much. Trump’s just too easy of a target. Making jokes about the president is like making jokes at a stink bug’s expense. There are no gags that will make you laugh more than the fact that its first name is “Stink” and its primary defensive tactic is projectile farting. When there is a stink bug in your joke, you don’t need a punchline.

A priest, a rabbi and a stink bug walk into a bar. The end.

For his part, Hart’s response to being attacked by a deranged racebaiter was perfect. He didn’t respond. Why should he? It’s not like his feelings on the subject aren’t already known. In a 2017 interview with Variety, Hart explained his reluctance to wax political. “When you jump into that realm,” he said, “you’re alienating some of your audience.”

Makes sense to me. If my math is correct, I’d say he alienates about half of his audience.

If I were to do a little more math, I’d likely find that excessive politicizing is partly what is hurting so many other content providers. NFL viewership seems to be plummeting because fans are turned off by Anthem protests.

Saturday Night Live is on a downtick presumably because of their incessant berating of Trump. Late night talk shows are shooing conservative viewers with abandon. And look, I am not one of these people who believes that entertainers and athletes should refrain from activism. I am in favor of celebrities who choose to use their various platforms to raise awareness about whatever issues matter to them. What I do not favor is telling people they must use their platforms for that purpose or that they are somehow a coward, or a race-traitor—or whatever—if they don’t.

How uninhabitable would this planet be if all its entertainers were compelled to political action? If every joke had an agenda, every sitcom preached its own take on morality? What kind of world would it be if every movie was Pay It Forward and nobody made any Big Lebowskis? What if every song was “God Bless the USA” and nary a “No Sleep Till Brooklyn” to be heard for miles? Certainly not a world I want to live in.

So how about this as a revolutionary concept, Kathy (which I will now deliver in the form of political poetry)? You do you / Me do me / That’s how we live in harmony.

Trump’s just too easy of a target. Making jokes about the president is like making jokes at a stink bug’s expense.

8 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

Sordid Tales appears every other week.

Write to edwin@sdcitybeat.com.

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UP FRONT | FOOD & DRINK

BY BETH DEMMON

BY MICHAEL A. GARDINER

THE WORLD

FARE The new high-end

T

he search for the sushi bar with the freshest fish is an endless one. It’s also, perhaps surprisingly, a counterproductive one. The best sushi isn’t always the freshest. In fact, it never is. Many of us just didn’t know. One great place to learn that is Himitsu (1030-G Torrey Pines Road, himitsusd.com) in La Jolla.

Take, for example, Himitsu’s salmon nigiri. It’s not fresh off a boat, and it wouldn’t be nearly as good if it were. Chef Mitsu Aihara, a Sushi Ota protégé, cures the salmon in western-style white wine (not sake) before serving it. It’s a technique Mitsu-san learned from Yukito Ota, the goal of which is to refine some of the salmon’s flavors and results in a piece of fish better suited for sushi.

On the most recent of three trips to Himitsu, Mitsusan served zuke sushi—tuna marinated for a few hours in soy—that was an unabashed improvement on what it might have been without that bath. On the same trip, my request for kohada (gizzard shad) was met with a groan and a sheepish smile. Mitsu wanted to but couldn’t comply: the cure was not complete. It’s a technique that goes back to sushi’s Tokyo origins as fast food-by-the-bay. But cures, originally intended to lengthen the shelf life of the fish at a time when refrigeration wasn’t possible, are still used for a different reason: to make the fish taste better.

The best way to go about a meal at Himitsu is omakase, a Japanese word that translates literally as “I’ll leave it up to you” but plays out like a tasting menu in which each dish is a pleasant surprise and often combines sashimi (raw fish without

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rice), sushi and cooked dishes.

Mitsu-san started our omakase dinner with a sashimi platter that prominently featured some of that aforementioned salmon with a pile of uni and some edible gold flakes for a touch that added more visual appeal than culinary. Uni and salmon were on opposite sides of another dish: a duo of salmon and ikura (salmon roe) on one side, hamachi (yellowtail) and uni on the other. But the best dish of the meal featured a piece of sinfully delicious seared A5 wagyu beef topped with sliced scallion greens and served over kale with fried squid. A dash of soy and vinegar managed to tie the entire dish together and highlighted the wagyu’s richness without overpowering its balance.

MICHAEL A. GARDINER

Iwashi and zuke sushi Himitsu strives to be in the top ranks of San Diego’s high-end sushi places along with Ota, Tadokoro and Shirahama. It’s close. Himitsu’s very good, but not without inconsistencies. On one trip the zuke sushi seemed to want more time in the soy marinade. The knife cuts were not always consistent. These are hyper-technical points, yes.

But when the name of the game is simple elegance, not complexity—and when the goal is the top—the margin for error is thin.

Still, Himitsu is the sushi bar La Jolla has wanted but never had. It is beautiful, it is unabashedly high-end, and it is the right sushi bar in the right place at the right time.

The World Fare appears weekly.

Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com.

FINAL DRAUGHT Totally radler

came across as a creamsicle, perhaps even more so than most beer drinkers live in a house built nearly 100 years would like. But West comments that not ago. It has virtually no insulation and just beer drinkers are discovering the alsingle-pane windows. In other words, lure of radlers—they’re specifically tarit’s hot as shit inside during summer. My geting craft cocktail connoisseurs as well. unenviable lack of air conditioning means “This was our way to get creative and every summer, I search out the most re- hit on some of the more trendy things freshing beers to fill my days (and belly) in that sometimes Millennials gravitate toorder to escape my sweltering box of real wards… something that has a historical estate misery. My criteria: low in alcohol, reference, connects with our [bicycling] high in flavor, and if it’s BETH DEMMON community, [and] also on tap near the beach, so people that are looking much the better. for something on that Bay City Brewing fruitier side of the equaCompany (3760 Hancock tion,” says West. Bay St.) is close enough to City specifically avoids Mission Bay and Ocean fruited IPAs and hopes Beach to catch the cool to encourage people who breeze, and it offers one seek similar styles to try thing that few other brewthe soda/beer combo. eries do during summer.

Achieving balance Radlers—also known as with fruit sugar and shandies—are a historical acid is the key to makGerman style created in ing a successful radler. the 19th century that are Bay City’s radler method half soda, half beer and starts with a base beer marketed toward recreBay City Brewing Company (either its Vienna Lager ational cyclists as a way or Pilsner). Then comes to quench thirst without getting tipsy. (The the fruit addition (“we usually end up word “radler” literally translates to “cyclist” around 20 percent,” explains West) and in Bavarian German.) They’re also one of finally citric acid (the amount is based on my favorite summer beer styles and fit all what fruit is being used). When they’re of my summer drinking specifications. happy with the experimental keg, they “They’re really popular,” says Bay City bump up the recipe to a full 15 gallon head brewer Chris West. “It’s an easy batch. Thanks to restrictions from the drinking beer.”

Food and Drug Administration regarding Bay City’s radlers, dubbed the Rad unfermented fruit products—as well as the Summer Series, launched in May with a need for strict temperature control for the tequila oak-chipped Paloma radler featur- unpasteurized ingredients—these radlers ing grapefruit and lime. New flavors are aren’t likely to move past in-house availreleased every two weeks; lemon pome- ability for the most part. But West has high granate is currently on draft with wa- hopes for the future. termelon mint coming out on July 1 and “That’s a long term goal,” West prompassionfruit, orange and guava on July 15. ises. “You never know what’s going to Each one is around 4.5 percent ABV and happen.” made with locally sourced fruit.

I sampled the creamsicle version with Write to bethd@sdcitybeat.com or check her orange, vanilla and lactose. It definitely out on Instagram at @thedelightedbite.

I

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 9

EVENTS

SHORTlist

ART

the

THREE YOU HAVE TO SEE

COORDINATED BY

SETH COMBS

SAN DIEGO

NO FIREWORKS NECESSARY

Not only does the next issue of CityBeat come out on July 4, but many readers are likely finding themselves planning around a national holiday that, this year, happens on a Wednesday. So in the spirit of the holiday, we came up with a week’s worth of cool, independent events that have nothing to do with firework shows, but everything to do with what makes America great.

First, on Thursday, June 28 from 7 to 10 p.m., stop by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (1100 Kettner Blvd., Downtown) for eXit pARTy. The semi-regular art event will serve as the closing reception for Yve Laris Cohen’s Meeting Ground and Sadie Barnette’s Dear 1968,... exhibitions. There will also be custom cocktails, live music and art-making activities. Tickets range from free to $25 at mcasd.org.

On Friday, June 29, take the fam, a date or just yourself up to the Birch Aquarium at Scripps (2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla) for the opening of Oddities: Hidden Heroes of the Scripps Collections, a new comic-book inspired exhibit highlighting the near-supernatural adaptations of ocean species. The aquarium is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and tickets are $15 to $18.50 at aquarium.ucsd.edu.

On Saturday, June 30, check out Vanguard Culture’s SENSORIUM at the IDEA1 condo lofts (899 Park Blvd., East Village). The inaugural event from 7 to 11 p.m. will see 15 lofts transformed into immersive art experiences, as well as dance performances,

LOGAN HEIGHTS

GRADE A First time art collectors, art collecting veterans and, yes, even those of us whose “art collections” consist of band posters and inspirational quotes, it’s time to step it up a notch.

At the Museum School Art Auction, dozens of notable local artists, COURTESY OF THE ARTIST many of whom have appeared in these pages, will be putting their works up for auction with proceeds going toward the Museum School, Untitled piece a tuition-free, public

by Matt Devine charter school in San Diego that focuses on the arts. Some of our favorites include Beliz Iristay, Matt Devine, Melissa Walter, Perry Vasquez and many more. And in case any readers are thinking they still won’t be able to afford any of the pieces, it’s worth noting that many of the works on display go for as little as $50. The auction is open to all art enthusiasts on Saturday, June 30 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Bread & Salt space (1955 Julian Ave.). More info at museumschool.org.

a “Five Senses Fashion Show,” cocktails and a blindfolded, VIP food tasting event on the rooftop. Tickets are $20 to $60 at vanguardculture.com.

On Sunday, July 1, we’ll be at the San Diego Vintage Flea Market from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Held behind the Observatory North Park (2891 University Ave.), the market is the perfect spot to find cool treasures from clothes and furniture, to knickknacks and more. More info at facebook. com/SDVintageFleaMarket.

Don’t be miserable like Garfield on Monday, July 2. Play hooky at work and head up to the San Diego County Fair (it closes on July 4!) in Del Mar (2260 JimSENSORIUM my Durante Blvd.), ’cause nothing is more American than eating a bunch of fried foods and riding a bunch of thrill rides. Oh, and we’re partial to this day if only because the crowds will likely be small and soul legends The O’Jays (of “Love Train” fame) are playing. Admission ranges from free to $19 at sdfair.com.

Finally, spend the evening just before the 4th at Tiger!Tiger! (3025 El Cajon Blvd., North Park) for A New Era in Local Culture, a Cura Caos-hosted discussion featuring four young and dedicated arts advocates, many of whom we’ve featured in these pages (Alejandra Frank of Teros Gallery and Carmela Prudencio of SDIY Coalition, for example). Local hip-hop group Tulengua will also perform. The free talk will happen on Tuesday, July 3 from 7 to 9 p.m.

More info at facebook.com/curacaosradio.

SOUTH PARK

GOATS AND GOODIES It doesn’t take much to get us excited about an event with “cupcake extravaganza” in the title, so throw in some baby goats, and you can bet we’ll be there. The annual Cupcake Extravaganza is back at Eclipse Chocolate (2145 Fern St., eclipsechocolate.com), with nine assorted cupcakes for a discounted price of $25 and a goal of selling 10,000 cupcakes. Flavors include safe bets like Toasted S’mores along with more adventurous options like Mango Salsa.

There are also plenty of vegan and glutenfree choices. Each box purchased is an entry to win a year’s worth of free cupcakes. And why is there a baby goat petting zoo on site?

Because baby goats are Cupcake Extravaganza adorable, that’s why. The deliciousness kicks off Friday, June 29, and runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily through Sunday, July 8.

HeXit pARTy: Revisiting 1968 at MCASD Downtown, 1100 Kettner Blvd., Downtown.

The closing reception for Yve Laris Cohen’s Meeting Ground and Sadie Barnette’s Dear 1968,... exhibitions, looking back on the activism of 1968. Plus custom cocktails, live music and art-making activities. From 7 to 10 p.m. Thursday, June 28. Free-$25.

858-454-3541, mcasd.org HMuseum School Art Auction at Bread & Salt, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights.

This event will feature work by dozens of local and international artists including Beliz Iristay, Matt Devine, Dan Allen, Jason Sherry and more. Proceeds go toward the Museum School, a tuition-free, public charter school that focuses on the arts. From 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 30.

Free. 619-236-8712, museumschool.org HAshes of Us (An Inventory of Memory) at The Hill Street Country Club, 530 S Coast Hwy., Oceanside. New works from multimedia visual artist Harley Cortez, who specializes in paintings, drawings and abstract pieces dealing in themes of duality and the spirit world.

Opening from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 30. thehillstreetcountryclub.org Art Supply Garage Sale at Bravo School of Art, 2690 Historic Decatur Road Ste. 206, Point Loma. The Bravo School of Art and local artists will sell their new and/or lightly used arts materials, including brushes, weaving tools, mosaic supplies and more. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Saturday, June 30. Free. 619-223-0058, bravoschoolofart.com HSENSORIUM at IDEA1, 899 Park Blvd., East Village. Fifteen lofts in the IDEA1 complex will be converted into immersive art environments with the help of 78 local artists. Plus dance performances, a fashion show, a wine tasting and flavors from six local chefs, with proceeds benefiting arts organizations around town. From 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, June 30. $20-$40. vanguardculture.com

COMEDY Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The American stand-up comedian boasts more than 300 million YouTube views and is known for his shows I’m Not Fat… I’m Fluffy and Hot & Fluffy. At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 30. $15-$79. 858755-1161, sdfair.com HJeff Ross at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. This comedian is known as the king of roasts, with Justin Bieber, Donald Trump, Pamela Anderson and more among the celebrities who have appeared in his Comedy Central specials. At 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. Free-$42. 858-755-1161, sdfair.com

DANCE Nations of San Diego International Dance Festival at Lyceum Theater, 79 Horton Plaza, Downtown. The world dance festival will feature over 200 dancers and musicians representing San Diego’s cultural diversity. The event will include performances from Brazil, China, New Zealand, India and more. From 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Through Saturday, July 1. $25. nationsdancefestival.com

FOOD & DRINK Six Course Pairing Dinner with NOVO Brazil Brewing at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse, 2150 Harbor Island Drive, Point Loma. The restaurant’s executive chef Kyle Kovar presents a pairing of six dinner courses with six brews by Chula Vistabased NOVO Brazil Brewing Co. Includes

H = CityBeat picks 10 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

duos such as the Chula Pils with chicken katsu lollipops, and Mango IPA with seared halibut. From 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, June 27. $60. 619-291-9110, facebook. com/events/167502823943046 HCupcake Extravaganza at Eclipse Chocolate, 2145 Fern St., South Park. At this annual event, patrons can enjoy nine assorted cupcakes for a discounted price of $25. Includes vegan and gluten-free choices, and there will apparently be some kind of goat petting zoo as well. From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, June 29 through Sunday, July 8. eclipsechocolate.com HFestival of International Food, Dessert and Beer at Waterfront Park, 1600 Pacific Hwy., Downtown. Enjoy food and dessert from around the world, local San Diego craft beer, retail vendors and games. Proceeds from this event will go toward providing scholarships for innercity high school students. From noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 30. $20-$60. facebook.com/events/136741700361771 Farm to Table Dinner at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. A dinner featuring locally sourced food as prepared by Executive Chef Barry Schneider and his team. The meal will be paired with award-winning beer and wine, plus attendees will receive goodie bags.

At 4:30 p.m. Saturday, June 30. $135.

858-755-1161, sdfair.com

FOURTH OF JULY HStar Spangled Pops at Embarcadero Marina Park South, 200 Marina Park Way, Downtown. San Diego Symphony’s Bayside Summer Nights concert series kicks off with its traditional salute to the nation from the San Diego Master Chorale. Featuring patriotic hymns and Broadway classics, plus fireworks after the concert. From 7:30 to 10 p.m. Friday, June 29 through Sunday, July 1. $27-$92. 619-235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org Independence Day Celebration & Fireworks Spectacular at California Center for the Arts, 340 North Escondido Blvd., Escondido. Salute Lady Liberty with local and regional bands, the Third Marine Aircraft Band, a light show, children’s activities, food vendors, pro-wrestling a community art sale and a fireworks display.

From 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 4.

760-839-4186, artcenter.org HBig Bay Boom The largest display in the city. Fireworks will be discharged simultaneously from barges placed strategically around the San Diego Bay, off Shelter Island, Harbor Island, Embarcadero North, Seaport Village and more. At 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. 760-839-4190, bigbayboom.com H4th of July at Cabrillo National Monument, Point Loma Peninsula. Patrons can watch firework shows while enjoying the sunset and nighttime views at the Cabrillo monument. From 6 to 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. $50. friendsofcabrillo.com America’s Birthday with Clint Black at Embarcadero Marina Park South, 200 Marina Park Way, Downtown. The Bayside Summer Nights concert series continues with a performance by country music star Clint Black, immediately followed by the Big Bay Boom fireworks. From 7:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. $31-$104. 619235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org HSan Diego County Fair 4th of July Celebration at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. An all-day celebration featuring patriotic performances, concerts and a fireworks display at 9 p.m. From 9:30 a.m. to midnight.

Wednesday, July 4. Free-$18. 858-7551161, sdfair.com La Jolla Cove Fourth Of July Fire-

EVENTS CONTINUED ON PAGE 11 @SDCITYBEAT

BOOKS: THE FLOATING LIBRARY

Dancing into the past

A

fter being named an International Book Award Finalist for Best New Fiction for her debut novel The Black Velvet Coat, San Diego author Jill G. Hall is back with her sophomore effort, The Silver Shoes, published earlier this month by She Writes Press.

In The Silver Shoes, Hall weaves a lush pair of narratives to tell a tale of stifled desire and frustrated ambition. Protagonist Anne McFarland is a San Francisco artist who uses found objects to create stunning collages. Though her work has been exhibited at a solo exhibition, she works as a valet to finance her long-distance relationship with Sergio, a wealthy Italian yoga enthusiast in New York City.

When we meet Anne, she has stepped into a curiosity shop in search of material to use in her art. There she discovers a beguiling pair of silver shoes and tries them on.

“Shifting her feet from side to side, she admired how the leather moved, soft and supple. The best thing about buying used shoes was that someone else had worn them in for you. As she stepped along the aisle, a warm glow ran from the soles of her feet up to her heart and swirled there. Maybe they were magic!”

These bedazzled, rhinestone dancing shoes are mysteriously connected to Clair Devereaux, a young woman of means from New York City’s flapper era. She lives in a suite at the Waldorf with her father, a stern figure who works on Wall Street. The death of his wife when Clair was a young girl has made him humorless and overprotective.

During a trip to Macy’s to pick up a pair of gloves for her debutante ball, Clair meets Winnie, a free-spirited shop girl who shares her dream of becoming a dancer with Clair. For Clair, Winnie is a symbol for the life she feels is slipping away.

“She looked forward to school starting in the fall but had no idea what she would do with her life once she graduated. She longed to do more than to go to church bazaars, teas, and balls.”

Filled with longing, The Silver Shoes is a reminder that it’s never too late to nurture one’s creative impulses. Dance like no one’s watching is great advice, but first you need a pair of shoes.

Jill G. Hall will be signing The Silver Shoes at The Book Catapult (3010-B Juniper St.) in South Park on Wednesday, July 11 at 7 p.m.

—Jim Ruland

The Floating Library appears every other week.

EVENTS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

ist” and will release her debut album later this year. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 28. Free-$36. 858-755-1161, sdfair.com

works at Scripps Park, 1180 Coast Blvd., La Jolla. Bring a blanket, check out the fireworks and celebrate the holiday at the scenic cove. At 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. Free. lajollabythesea.com

The San Diego Smooth Jazz Festival at Embarcadero Marina Park North, 400 Kettner Blvd, Downtown. Jazz musicians, such as Eric Darius, Monty Seward and Brian Culbertson perform a variety of smooth jazz ranging from vocal-based songs to instrumentals. Various times.

Friday, June 29, Saturday, June 30 and Sunday, July 1. $65. sandiegosmoothjazzfestival.com

Red, White And Boom! at LEGOLAND, 1 Legoland Drive, Carlsbad. Patriotic activities throughout the day including allAmerican family picnic games, water-balloon tosses, burlap sack races and more.

At night, there will be a fireworks display set to a patriotic musical tribute. From 1 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. $89-$139. legoland.com An Old Fashioned Fourth of July and Fireworks at Old Poway Park, Midland & Temple, Poway. The turn-of-the-centurystyle festival includes patriotic entertainment, gun fighting re-enactments, free crafts and old-fashioned games. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, July 4. Free. poway.org

MUSIC Noah Cyrus at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The daughter of Billy Ray Cyrus and sister of Miley Cyrus will perform. She’s been nominated as MTV VMA’s “Best New Art-

@SDCITYBEAT

HSan Diego Air Guitar Championships at The Merrow, 1271 University Ave., Hillcrest. Witness 20 of California’s best air guitarists battle it out to see who will move on to the national championship in New York City. From 8 p.m. to midnight.

Saturday, June 30. $15. Facebook.com/ events/140888076742337 HAthenaeum Summer Festival at Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. The 20th annual fest returns with celebrated pianist Gustavo Romero’s four-part concert series celebrating the music of legendary composers such as Bach, Brahms, Chopin, Debussy and more. At 4 p.m. Sunday, July 1 through Sunday, July 22. $40-$172. 858-4545872, ljathenaeum.org

EVENTS CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 11

EVENTS EVENTS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 Sin Bandera at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. Musicians, composers and singers Leonel Garcia and Noel Schajris make up this Latin pop duo, which has won a Latin Grammy for “Best Group Album.” The duo split in 2008 but reunited in 2016. At 7:30 p.m. Sunday, July 1. Free-$36. 858-755-1161, sdfair.com HThe O’Jays at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The group is often called The Sound of Philadelphia and known for their hits “Backstabbers,” “Love Train” and more. At 7:30 p.m. Monday, July 2. Free-$131. 858755-1161, sdfair.com Brit Floyd at the San Diego Civic Theatre, 1100 Third Ave., Downtown. The Tribute

band will perform a retrospective of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon in honor of the album’s 45th anniversary. Musical, visual and theatrical components of the performance all seek to closely recreate those of Pink Floyd’s concerts. At 8 p.m.

Monday, July 2. $31-$166. 619-5701100, sandiegotheatres.org WAR at Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. Formed in 1969 in Long Beach, this American funk band is known for their hits including “Spill the Wine,” “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” and “Low Rider.” At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 3. Free-$36. 858-755-1161, sdfair.com

PERFORMANCE HSan Diego International Fringe Festival at various locations. A nonprofit

project that celebrates theatre, street performers, cabaret, comedy and tons of other multidisciplinary arts. See online for full list of performances. At various times.

Through July 1. $7-$72. sdfringe.org

SPECIAL EVENTS Marriage Equality Anniversary White Party at 1220 University Ave., Hillcrest.

Round out Pride Month by celebrating three years of marriage equality, featuring drink specials, a drag show and music by DJ Rebekah Hardt. Don’t forget to wear white! From 7:30 p.m. to midnight.

Thursday, June 28. $10. 619-260-8023. facebook.com/events/1722801227755230 HOddities: Hidden Heroes of the Scripps Collections at Birch Aquarium at Scripps, 2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla.

A comic-book inspired exhibit highlighting the near-supernatural adaptations of ocean species. Opening from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, June 29. $14-$18.50. 858534 3474, aquarium.ucsd.edu

their parents and to provide support for families who have already been separated.

In coordination with rallies occurring across the country. At 11 a.m. Saturday, June 30.

Free. moveon.org

HNat at Night at the San Diego Museum of Natural History, 1788 El Prado, Balboa Park. The San Diego Museum of Natural History continues its late-night Friday program with half-price admission. In addition to access to exhibitions and 3-D nature documentaries, there will be food trucks, creative activities, live entertainment and games. From 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 29.

Free-$10. 619-232-3821, sdmnh.org

HSan Diego Vintage Flea Market at Observatory North Park, 2891 University Ave., North Park. Hundreds of vendors show off interesting vintage or vintage-inspired treasures including home furnishings, bric-abrac, clothing and accessories, tiki-infused items and much more. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, July 1. Free. 619-239-8836, sdvintagefleamarket.com

HFamilies Belong Together Rally at Waterfront Park, 1600 Pacific Highway, Little Italy. A gathering to continue opposition to the separation of immigrant children from

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD HVAMP: Let’s Dance at Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St., South Park. So Say We All’s monthly storytelling night features stories about dancing, be it literal, metaphorical or otherwise. Featured readers include Louise Julig, Rea Concepcion, Holland Holzer and more. From 8:30 to 10 p.m.

Thursday, June 28. $5 suggested donation. 619-284-6784, sosayweallonline.com San Diego Poetry & Art at San Diego Art Institute, 1439 El Prado, Balboa Park. The local org will read from their 2018 Poetry Annual. Readers include Ameerah Holliday, Jill G. Hall, Chris Wakefield and more.

At 7 p.m. Friday, June 29. Free-$6. 619236-0011, poetryandartsd.com

TALKS & DISCUSSIONS HComics in San Diego: The Impact on Culture & Economy at Revel Revel, 868 5th Ave. Level 3, Downtown. Founder and CEO of IDW Publishing Ted Adams hosts a discussion with Chief Communications and Strategy Officer at San Diego ComicCon, the Board Chair of the San Diego Convention Center and many more on Comic-Con’s local effect. From 5 to 8 p.m.

Wednesday, June 27. $30. 619-2690438, travelingstories.org Dr. Jordan B. Peterson at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. The University of Toronto psychologist and YouTube sensation will lecture on self-improvement and overcoming life’s obstacles in promotion of his latest book, 12 Rules of Life: An Antidote to Chaos. Q&A discussion with Dr. Peterson following the lecture. From 7:30 to 10 p.m.

Thursday, June 28. $35. 619-570-1100, sandiegotheatres.org Qualitative Analysis of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy for PTSD at Rooted Kava Bar, 1731 University Ave., Hillcrest.

The Aware Project hosts a discussion on the potential of MDMA and psychotherapy treating PTSD. It will cover preliminary findings and suggestions for future research. From 7 to 10 p.m. Monday, July 2. $17.89-$49.56. facebook.com/ events/407508099719012 HA New Era in Local Culture at Tiger!Tiger!, 3025 El Cajon Blvd., North Park. A Cura Caos-hosted discussion featuring four young and dedicated arts advocates, including Alejandra Frank of Teros Gallery and Carmela Prudencio of SDIY Coalition. Local hip-hop group Tulengua will also perform. From 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 3. Free. facebook.com/curacaosradio

WORKSHOPS HZines: The New Print Vanguard Workshop at San Diego History Center, 1649 El Prado, Balboa Park. Grrl Zines A-Go-Go presents a zine workshop responding to the exhibition Gaps in the Record: Vanguard Print Culture in San Diego. Participants will also collaborate in a DIY group zine. From 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, June 30. $15-$20.

619-232-6203, sandiegohistory.org

12 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

@SDCITYBEAT

THEATER DAREN SCOTT

Romeo, Romeo & Juliet

Bizarre Bard love triangle

L

ook, a��������������������������������������� nything that pumps new life into Shake� speare’s timeworn Romeo & Juliet is welcome.

Not only is it his most famous love story, but it’s a staple on world stages and in high school au� ditoriums alike. The lovers tragedy has been filmed and adapted and reinvented to death. The balcony scene has become a literary cliché.

But there’s good news: That very balcony scene provides the backdrop for zany romantic tension in playwright Ruff Yeager’s farcical Romeo, Romeo & Juliet, a presentation of the Roustabouts Theatre Co., of which Yeager is a co-founder. His play is not a retelling of R&J per se, but a triangular love story about a summer stock production of Romeo & Juliet somewhere in Cape Cod. In the course of rehearsal, principally of that balcony scene, passions simmer to the fore. Nancy (Michelle Marie Trester), who is playing Juliet, is a prattling goody two-shoes from St. George, Utah whose only vice is an occasional Sprite soda. Her naiveté blos� soms into lust for Tracy (Michael Silberblatt), who is playing Romeo. She is unaware that he’s gay and has himself fallen for the show’s neurotic director, Simon (Brian Mackey). Pop-eyed complications en� sue in this briskly paced offering directed by Kim Strassburger.

While the story doesn’t deliver any particular surprises, the actors bring their best to the telling.

Mackey, a standout already this year in Lamb’s Players Theatre’s wacky Noises Off, executes physi� cal comedy like few others in town. Silberblatt is a graduate of the Coronado School of Arts with a resume that includes King Lear at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. Making his local debut with the Roustabouts, he makes clear his intuition for Shakespeare’s exquisite language amid the fun.

But Trester is the rightful star of this production, partly because her character is the only one who changes during the course of Romeo, Romeo & Juliet and partly because she’s just so out there as Nancy. Her bosom-clutching, soda-sipping Mor� mon girl is a genuine treat.

The Roustabouts are staging Romeo, Romeo & Juliet at Moxie Theatre on a set designed to look like an old barn, which���������������������������� , in the play, is being em� ployed as a rehearsal space. That every character yearns for a roll in the hay there is half the fun.

Romeo, Romeo & Juliet runs through July 8 at

@SDCITYBEAT

Moxie Theatre in Rolando. $38 and up; theroust� abouts.org

—David L. Coddon

Theater reviews run weekly.

Write to davidc@sdcitybeat.com.

OPENING: Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax: The Oliver Award-winning musical tells the classic tale of a mustachioed, Walrus-looking thingy trying to save all the trees in the Truffula forest. Co-presented by the Children’s Theatre Company, it opens July 2 at the Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park. theoldglobe.org Queens: A world premiere play from Pulitzer-winning writer Martyna Majok about a young woman who moves to New York in hopes of starting a new life. Directed by Carey Perloff, it opens July 3 at the La Jolla Playhouse. lajollaplayhouse.org Much Ado About Nothing: An open reading of the Bard’s witty comedy about how a war of words can sometimes lead to a marriage of hearts. Presented by the San Diego Shakespeare Company, it happens July 3 at The Upstart Crow Bookstore and Coffeehouse in Downtown. sandiegoshakespearesociety.org

NOW PLAYING: The Father: The West Coast premiere of Florian Zeller’s moving play about a father who may or may not be in the early stages of dementia. Directed by David Ellenstein, it runs through June 24 at the North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. northcoastrep.org For Better: Billed as a “romantic comedy for the digital age,” Eric Coble’s play centers on an engaged couple who are planning their lives and spending most of their time together online. Presented by Scripps Ranch Theatre, it runs through June 24 at the Legler Benbough Theatre in Scripps Ranch. scrippsranchtheatre.org Native Gardens: The West Coast premiere of Karen Zacarías’ comedy about a Latinx couple who moves into nice a D.C. neighborhood only to find their next-door neighbors aren’t as welcoming as they’d like. Directed by Edward Torres, it runs through June 24 at the Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock opera about the life of Jesus as seen through the eyes of Judas Iscariot. Presented by Patio Playhouse, it runs through June 30 at the Kit Carson Amphitheater in Escondido. patioplayhouse.com

For complete theater listings, visit sdcitybeat.com

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 13

COURTESY OF SAN DIEGO HISTORY CENTER

as part of this exhibit,” says Bill Lawrence, the museum’s executive director. “It will continue to evolve.”

LGBTQ+ San Diego was realized through a series of conversations the History Center had been having about future exhibits. Board member John Morrell suggested the institution showcase San Diego’s LGBTQ history.

Lawrence says the History Center wants to continue exposing visitors to histories of underserved peoples of San Diego like the LGBTQ community. He considers their past exhibitions on San Diego’s Jewish community and Black community as efforts to do this.

“It is a direction that the History Center has been moving toward,” says Lawrence.

“We’re using these exhibits all as a basis for a new core permanent exhibition on the region’s history and how the past has shaped the San Diego that we have today.”

In addition to bringing on the Lambda Archives, the History Center formed a community advisory council to advise the exhibition’s content. The council comprises local LGBTQ leaders such as San Diego Pride, The Center, Evans Hotel president and CEO Robert Gleason, and former senator, Christine Kehoe.

Kehoe, San Diego’s first openly gay politician, said the council worked on making sure LGBTQ+ San Diego showcased a diverse history. During its meetings, the council discussed the exhibit’s content and worked The Center’s first location at 2250 B Street in 1973, previously called The Gay Center hard to decide who should be a part of their conversations. Faderman also gave presentations on LGBTQ+ San Diego’s progress. Kehoe, who came on board in March, said she personally suggested more individuals from Black and Latino communities be invited to join the process.

“We acknowledged from the very beginning that of course everything can’t be includan Diego’s first center for LGBTQ cit- through hundreds of photos, newspaper about the Navy’s 1982 witch hunt for lesbian ed when you’re looking at decades of history,” izens was initially located at 2250-B clippings, artifacts, artwork and more. Items sailors on the USS Dixon. There’s a photo- says Kehoe. “But we want to do as accurate Street in the Golden Hill neighbor- telling these stories like photographs of graph of the Gay Liberation Front’s 1971 and inspiring and inclusive a narrative about hood. A 1973 photograph shows Pride parades past, matchbooks from vari- protest against San Diego police harassment the LGBTQ San Diego community as possible.” its founder, Jess Jessop, sitting on the stoop ous gay bars and a portion of the NAMES of the LGBTQ community. There are even Kehoe’s own history will be documented of the second story building when the non- Project AIDS Memorial Quilt that commem- displays of conquistadors and missionaries’ in LGBTQ+ San Diego. She was first elected profit first moved in. Jessop, who started the orates San Diegans who died of AIDS-re- diary entries condemning Native Americans’ to public office in 1993 when she won a seat organization in 1971, is surrounded by other lated illness will be displayed. Once up, the acceptance of queer sexual orientation. on City Council.

“So persecution dated all young people of the Center. They hang out showcase will take up 8,000 square feet of There have been smaller exthe History Center’s facility the way back to that before of windows, perch on the hibitions about San Diego’s LGin Balboa Park and has been there was a city called San Diroof, stand behind Jessop or BTQ history in the city, but orgamonths in the making. ego,” says Faderman. sit beside him. Everyone is nizers point out that it’s nothing For LGBTQ+ San Diego, The exhibit will then move gleefully smiling and wavnear the scale of LGBTQ+ San Dithe History Center tapped into milestones achieved by ing, as if happy to finally ego. Kehoe and Faderman recall a the LGBTQ repository Lamb- the LGBTQ community. Hishave a safe space to call little exhibit at City Hall in 2010 da Archives of San Diego. tories of successful LGBTQ their own but also knowing called A Celebration of San Diego The exhibition was curated couples will be told like Jesse that the road ahead would LGBT History. There was another by historian in residence, Shepard and Lawrence Tonner still be an arduous one. exhibit last year called Queen’s Lillian Faderman. Although who built Villa Montezuma, This is just one of the Circle, which focused on LGBTQ this is the first time Fader- a Sherman Heights mansion, many photographs that hookup culture in ’50s-’60s Balman has curated an exhi- in 1887. There will be artifacts will be on display at LGboa Park. bition, she is a renowned from weddings after LGTBQ BTQ+ San Diego: Stories LGBTQ+ San Diego will open Lillian Faderman scholar in LGBTQ history marriage was legalized, such of Struggles and Triumphs, the week before the San Diego and literature. a large scale exhibition on as invitations, photographs and cake knives. Pride parade and festival, and Lawrence “I started working for- Union rituals before marriage legaliza- hopes the exhibit will attract some of the San Diego’s LGBTQ hismally curating this exhibit tion will also be shown. For example, there thousands of Pride weekend participants. tory opening next month A Gay Liberation Front last December,” says Fader- are photographs of a Black lesbian couple at the San Diego History Faderman believes the scheduling is signifimember protesting outside man. “But that wasn’t the “jumping the broom” where a couple literalCenter (sandiegohistory. cant because LGBTQ+ San Diego is a part of of a police station in 1971 beginning of my research.” org). According to organizly jumps over a broom together to formalize Pride in a way.

Faderman has taught at several universi- their relationship in this ceremony. ers, it will be the biggest exhibit of its kind in “It’s the history of stories of struggles Balboa Park and marks a new direction the ties and published multiple books such as LGBTQ+ San Diego also gives patrons an and triumphs, and that’s what the Pride pamuseum is taking—focusing on the history Gay Revolution, Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers opportunity to add their own history to the rades are about,” said Faderman. “They’re of underserved communities. The exhibition and her newest, Harvey Milk: His Lives and exhibit. Visitors can submit their LGBTQ about struggles and triumphs, about what will run July 8 through January 2020. Admis- Death. Gay Revolution includes some San Di- family photos to a photo wall called “Fami- happened to us that was loathsome persecuego LGBTQ history. Faderman says LGBTQ+ lies We Make and Choose.” They can record tion and how we’ve fought and continue to sion is a suggested donation of $10.

LGBTQ+ San Diego will document de- San Diego will start off with documentation their own LGBTQ stories in another section. fight to overcome discrimination and persecades worth of struggles and triumphs of LGBTQ struggles. There are news articles “We’re looking to involve the community cution and oppression.”

CULTURE | ART

COURTESY OF LILLIAN FADERMAN

COURTESY OF SAN DIEGO HISTORY CENTER

14 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

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JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 15

CULTURE | ART

SEEN LOCAL

in glow-in-the-dark penises at last year’s exhibit. Basabe has specifically requested that the artists create pieces with erect penises, since that’s an image largely banned in museums and traditional spaces.

“Art censorship is huge in the art world, especially here in San Diego it’s super conservative,” says Basabe. “Also homophobia too, we have a large homosexual population in San Diego and there’s a lot of homohen Mesheeka Gallery owner Manuel Bas- phobic people… and I really wanted to pull all of these abe’s mentor, famed Chicano artist Salva- issues to the front in an uncomfortable way and have dor Torres, first suggested he hold a phalpeople talk about it and address DENNIS COVEY lus-themed art show, Basabe was their own flaws, maybe, that naturally hesitant. However, Torthey have inside themselves.” res told him that, while hospitalBasabe says he received a lot ized, he’d found his own erecof criticism from Barrio Logan’s tion the only interesting subject Chicano art community the first to draw, but that the nurses time he put on the show. While had found it inappropriate and doing outreach, people would confiscated Torres’ sketchpad. throw the fliers back at him. But Knowing Basabe’s hatred of art that further convinced him of censorship, Torres suggested the show’s necessity. Now, he’s that he be the one to host such a had heterosexual men come into taboo show. the gallery telling him the show “‘Are you an art censor?’” Bahas widened their perspective sabe says Torres asked him. “And and that they look forward to I said ‘No,’ and he said ‘Are you attending the upcoming exhibit. a homophobe’ and I said ‘No,’ Phallusy opens at Mesheeka and he’s like ‘Are you afraid that Gallery (2113 Logan Ave.) on you’re going to get turned on beFriday, July 6 from 6 to 11: 30 ing around a bunch of penises in p.m. with a suggested donation the gallery?’ And I was like ‘No,’ of $3. The reception will have “Wild Coctus in Spring Carousel” and he’s like ‘Okay, what’s the

by Dennis Covey a DJ, as well as a 6-foot-long problem then?” phallus that people can sit on for a Basabe says that before he went to sleep that night, photo op, as well as penis-shaped popsicles, lollipops he’d already decided to go through with it. That was and cookies. Basabe also has an artist talk planned for before Mesheeka Gallery’s first penis-themed art show Saturday, July 14 from 6 to 7 p.m. three years ago. The exhibit, previously called Mem“I’m not homosexual, but I know that my friends bers Only, has been rebranded this year as Phallusy. that are gay go through so much, so much hatred, and The show will include 30 artists, most of whom are lo- I wanted to try and open minds.” cal, including special effects artist and costume pho —Torrey Bailey tographer Dennis Covey, who exhibited a wall covered

ERECTILE FUNCTION

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STRONG ROOTS

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or many locals, it’s sometimes surprising to with the remains of their eucalyptus tree. Eventually learn that eucalyptus trees are not, in fact, na- it was decided that Mitchell, whose background is mainly in music and sound protive to the area. Many were COURTESY OF THE SAN DIEGO BOTANIC GARDEN duction, would carve out a baoplanted in the late 1800s as a bab tree from the stump of the fuel crop. But many of the trees eucalyptus tree. Over the course in the area are dying off, both as of six weeks, Mitchell used difa result of pests as well as age. ferent size chainsaws, grinders, So when the oldest eucalypsanders and a lot of elbow grease tus tree in the San Diego Botanic to sculpt the majestic “Baobab Garden in Encinitas (sdbgarden.

Tree” piece that fits right in with org) had to be euthanized this the Madagascar-themed area of year—exactly a century after it the Botanic Garden. was planted—the garden’s staff “It was hard because eucahad a choice to make: remove the lyptus trees, the branches kind tree entirely or try to pay tribute of reach for the sky and then to it in some way. Luckily, fate baobab trees, they’re out like seemed to intervene. outstretched arms,” says Mitch“I was carving up the ‘Hodell. “Then there’s the fact that gee Monster’ and I looked at my it’s one big thing, one big stump, donation box, and there was a and that turned into two difbusiness card,” says artist Erwin ferent sections. There wasn’t a Young “Mitch” Mitchell IV of Mitchell Unique Carvings, referThe “Baobab Tree” sculpture whole lot of branch support that ring to a sculpture he recently at the San Diego Botanic Garden I could work with.”

Still, Mitchell is pleased with completed out of the stump of the result of his hard work. a eucalyptus tree in the Lake “I just milled stuff away until it started looking Hodges area.

The business card was from San Diego Botanic Gar- like something. I took a lot of wood off of it, that’s den President Julian Duval. A few weeks later, Mitchell for sure.” and garden staff began the discussions on what to do

—Seth Combs

16 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

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JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 17

CULTURE | FILM

Disposable income

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

People are the most valuable (and expendable) commodity in brutal Sicario sequel

by Glenn Heath Jr.

R

eleased in the fall of 2015, Denis Villeneuve’s countant turned assassin Alejandro Gillick (del Toro) fanged border thriller Sicario anticipated the to help instigate the brutal turf war between competpervasive governmental deceit and antipathy ing criminal syndicates. Priority number one: kidnap that would eventually become numbingly common- Isabel Reyes (Isabela Moner), daughter of the most place just one year later. Told mostly from the van- powerful cartel boss.

Sheridan’s scattered script dangles another subtage point of Kate Mercer (Emily Blunt), an ethicallyminded federal agent that sees behind the ugly veil of plot involving a new cartel recruit whose importance America’s clandestine foreign policy efforts, this pum- only becomes apparent in the final act. Up to that meling film depicted violence as unflinchingly ghostly, point, all of the political posturing, muscular action and something that can touch anyone from any angle. scenes and ominous threats merely act as MacGuffins Far messier by comparison, Sicario: Day of the Sol- for the film’s core theme.

While Villeneuve’s original film surveyed the loss of dado is only loosely aligned plot-wise with its predecessor, possibly mirroring the chaos sewed by the first ideological fortitude, Day of the Soldado suggests that few years of MAGA poison. Blunt’s moral center has the next generation hasn’t even been given the chance vanished, and the film focuses instead on her tormen- to develop a moral compass. The film is a meat grinder tors, the lethal for-hire wolves played by Josh Brolin and for the young; one unrelenting sequence holds venomBenicio del Toro. The bullet-riddled trailer makes it look ously steady on victims trying to escape the blast radius like a blistering action film featuring endless gun bat- of a suicide bomber’s vest. Isabela’s status as chess piece becomes moot when Alejandro is tles and mid-day assassinations. ordered to tie up all loose ends, a Some of those elements are presdirective from the current Amerient, but director Stefano Sollima SICARIO: DAY OF can president who Graver outand screenwriter Taylor Sheridan THE SOLDADO wardly describes as “cowardly.” are up to something else.

Collima and Sheridan are eeDirected by Stefano Sollima If drug smuggling fueled the rily curious about what happens narrative of Sicario, people are Starring Benicio del Toro, when children have no emonow the cartel’s main product Josh Brolin and Isabela Moner tional involvement outside of pipeline. Brazen kidnappings, Rated R violence. That is, what happens terrorist attacks and ambushes when only war and revenge exist all become natural extensions of this profitable business model. Sollima purposefully and the young are expected to step up, no questions strips these plot devices of all narrative cohesiveness asked. Even if the eventual outcome complicates both and consequence. Not quite nihilistic, the film oozes Graver and Alejandro’s feelings about this vicious with rage, the cinematic equivalent of an open wound. cycle, Day of the Soldado (opening wide June 29) does Unlike its more artful antecedent, Day of the Soldado not delude itself into thinking they are heroic.

The singular image from Villeneuve’s Sicario—tracer features an array of striking dead ends, glaring red herrings, unceremonious deaths and absent figureheads. fire from the Mexican side of the border ripping across Narrative parallels between characters are overtly the horizon—belongs to the great cinematographer systematic. Case in point: The clandestine American Roger Deakins. There’s clear differentiation between contractors led by Matt Graver (Brolin) operate within two nations that are criminally and morally intertwined. the same kind of destructive hierarchal network as Day of the Soldado offers no such distance. While the film those Mexican human traffickers they are tasked to may be a Frankenstein’s monster of competing direchunt. Sensing the opportunity to kill two bad apples tions and ideas, it seems perfectly suited to a time where with one grenade after coyotes help smuggle in an Is- the separation of immigrant children from their families lamic terrorist, the American government (represent- is somehow justified by the ruling political party. ed only by Matthew Modine’s Secretary of Defense) green lights a secret insurgency against the drug lords. Film reviews run weekly.

Graver recruits his favorite killing machine, ex-ac- Write to glennh@sdcitybeat.com

18 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

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CULTURE | FILM Pattinson) who goes in search of his true love (Mia Wasikowska).

Gabriel and the Mountain: A graduating senior decides to forgo college for one year and travel around the world, eventually ending up at the base of an African mountain. Opens Friday, June 29, at the Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Ideal Home: Paul Rudd and Steven Coogan play a bickering gay couple whose normal lives are turned upside down upon the arrival of a 10-year-old boy at their doorstep. Opens Friday, June 29, at the Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Damsel

Distress case

O

nly 32 years of age, Robert Pattinson already has the face of a career stress case.

His on-screen expressions range from anxious to uncomfortable with very little room for contentment in between. This makes the rare smile seem more like an act of physical struggle. All of which proves why he was the only actor who could take on the enigmatic bastard Samuel Alabaster, a slick-tongued delusional whose crooner tendencies hide far more sinister intentions.

David and Nathan Zellner’s Damsel (opening Friday, June 29, at Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas) firmly plants Samuel at the center of an off-kilter Western nightmare where caricature and sincerity are often confused for one another. In the opening sequence, Robert Forster’s spiritually spent priest strips down to his skivvies and runs frantically into the desert. Even righteous souls are not right in the head.

Bizarre slack-jawing and brazen grotesqueness follows, a motif that might seem fresh if Jim Jarmusch’s Dead Man hadn’t already better surveyed the sublime beauty of rotgut misery. Hell-bent on reconnecting with his long lost true love, Penelope (Mia Wasikowska), Samuel recruits the drunken Parson Henry (David Zellner) to stage a surprise proposal.

At first, these intensions appear noble. But Damsel builds toward

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a pivotal sequence that violently strips classic western masculinity down to its foundational insecurities, upending Hollywood’s star system in the process. The shot of Samuel’s pathetic figure sulking in an outhouse doorway feels like a purposeful jab at John Wayne’s most iconic pose in The Searchers.

Penelope’s frustration and rage are given top billing once the façade of Samuel’s heroism is stripped away. Wasikowska spends the film’s second half riding, shooting and arguing for the chance to move on.

She’s a woman of action in a world that won’t recognize her struggle.

The film ultimately caves under the pressure of twee irony, but it leaves a mark, lashing out at weak men who take what they want. In truth, their fragile egos are the only thing in Damsel that’s truly in distress.

—Glenn Heath Jr.

OPENING Boundaries: After her estranged potdealing father (Christopher Plummer) is kicked out of his nursing home, a woman (Vera Farmiga) and her son must drive him across country. Opens Friday, June 29, at Angelika Film Centers—Carmel Mountain.

Damsel: Directors David and Nathan Zellner deconstruct the western fable with this story about a romantic crooner (Robert

Sicario: Day of the Soldado: Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin reprise their roles as killers for hire in this border thriller sequel directed by Stefano Sollima. Opens wide on Friday, June 29.

Uncle Drew: Based on a successful ad campaign, NBA superstar Kyrie Irving plays an elderly basketball maverick in this sports comedy that also stars Lil Rey Howery, Shaquille O’Neal and Chris Webber. Opens wide on Friday, June 29.

ONE TIME ONLY Spaceballs: Mel Brooks skewers the Star Wars-style space opera in this spoof from 1987. Screens at 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 27, at The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

Raiders of the Lost Ark: Famed adventurer and archeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) searches for the powerful Ark of the Covenant only to discover a secret Nazi plot to harness its powers. Screens at 8 p.m. Thursday, June 28 through Sunday, July 1, at Cinema Under the Stars in Mission Hills. #TAKEMEANYWHERE: Shia LaBeouf, Nastja Säde Rönkkö and Luke Turner make art together while randomly traveling with fans who’ve contacted them online. Screens at 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday, June 30, at the Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Cocktail: Tom Cruise plays a talented NYC bartender who decides to take a job in Jamaica and ends up falling in love.

Screens at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 30, at Rooftop Cinema Club San Diego on the terrace of the Manchester Grand Hyatt.

Top Gun: Two highly competitive fighter pilots hiding some seriously repressed sexual energy duke it out for bragging rights in the Navy’s top aviation school. Screens at 8 p.m. Monday, July 2 and Tuesday, July 3, at The Pearl Hotel in Point Loma.

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

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 19

MONTANA ELIOT

MUSIC

from left: Joe Galarraga, Amar Lal, Brendan Finn and Carlos Salguero Jr. hen Joe Galarraga looks back at the music he made eight years ago, he says he feels detached from it. The vocalist of Brooklyn’s Big Ups co-founded the band in 2010, when he was just 21 and everyone in the group was still in college. Back then, Big Ups were a fairly straightforward punk band with one-minute songs about nothing in particular. Take, for instance, “Hi 5,” from their first demo. Some of the sample lyrics include, “Up high! Down low!... Great job and way to go!”

Juxtaposed with new album Two Parts Together, released in May via Exploding in Sound, Big Ups’ early recordings don’t even sound like the same band. Not even close, really. Their interests and priorities have changed, as well as their musical vocabulary. And as Galarraga approaches turning 30, he’s moved on from wanting to make straightforward party punk.

“I was still in college at that point. The music was all about partying,” he says. “They were kind of sad songs, but it was like, how do we get all our friends in a room and ev-

20 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

eryone’s drinking and we can play loud and fast and jump around and have a good time?

I think I was happy with that for a while, but I feel like a very different person. I had things I believed in, but it was never like ‘What do I want to be doing with myself? I’m just going to do music and I’ll figure it out.’”

Two Parts Together is the most progressive entry in Big Ups’ catalog to date. It’s both their most complex and dynamic while also offering up some of the heaviest and most aggressive songs they’ve ever written.

Galarraga, guitarist Amar Lal, bassist Carlos Salguero Jr. and drummer Brendan Finn have spent most of the past decade evolving into a taut, yet flexible unit, able to deliver anthemic punk rock with sophisticated dynamics and a post-hardcore intricacy that recalls the likes of Slint or Drive Like Jehu. The title track is a blend of heavy, pummeling choruses and quiet, tense verses, but a song like “Trying to Love” is more of a slow burner, saving its explosive climax until they’re already several minutes into the song.

In many ways, Big Ups are continuing

along the same progression they’ve always been, from the more visceral sound of their debut, Eighteen Hours of Static, to the more mathematical arrangements of 2016’s Before a Million Universes. With each release, they offer up something a little bit different, but still hold onto the core ideas of the music that preceded it.

“I think our rule is, generally, if it sounds like us, let’s go for it,” Galarraga says.

“That involves testing the limits of what our sound is. If you listen to some of the songs from our first record, and then you listen to songs from our third record, it doesn’t sound like the same band.

But maybe the second record is the perfect in-between. I think there’s always a gradual shift, and I think that we don’t really want to make the same thing twice. Who knows what our future output’s going to sound like or what the

subject matter’s going to be? We just kind of follow our gut.”

As much as the band’s music is more agitated these days, it’s likewise more philosophical. Galarraga’s lyrics carry a greater degree of introspection. On “Fear,” he ponders, “Will I be the same person when I wake up in the morning?” And on “Imaginary Dog Walker,” a chanted refrain of “We walk the dogs” gives way to a cry of universal struggle: “We all want the same thing, and that is to thrive!” Galarraga’s in a more contemplative mood, and in spite of how intense some of the music is, he’s examining deeper questions of existence and purpose.

“As I get older, I realize that I know a lot less than I thought I knew,” he says. “There’s a lot of reflections on human nature on this album and the one before it. There are so many things that we don’t understand about human beings and brains and spirituality and all these things that kind of compose a person. And I think it’s pretty profound.

“We started this band when I was 21, and now I’m almost 30,” he adds. “The questions you generally ask yourself when you get older are more existential. The world, with our current global, political situation feels tense and fraught, and I won’t deny that it plays into it a little bit: What kind of world will I be living in in 10 years? If you’re not asking yourselves these questions, you’re probably not doing something right.”

While Big Ups aren’t that far removed from their beginnings in the scheme of things, they’ve done a lot of growing up since first forming. Their music is an outlet for asking bigger questions, and for taking bigger musical risks. Not that they’re against partying, necessarily, but it’s not their biggest concern at the moment.

“I’m not necessarily interested in making music for that kind of purpose anymore,” Galarraga says.

“It’s kind of hard when you play a show and everyone’s really rowdy.

Sometimes I’m into it. I don’t even know if anyone’s listening to the lyrics.

But sometimes it’s more like, ‘Let’s be rowdy, and the world sucks, and let’s have a good time.’

That’s fine too.”

Write to jefft@sdcitybeat.com. Follow him on Twitter @1000TimesJeff

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JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 21

MUSIC

NOTES FROM THE SMOKING PATIO LOCALS ONLY

M

embers of the local community are making an effort to raise money for organizations combating against the Trump administration’s immigration policies. The Department of Justice’s “zero tolerance” policy (under Attorney General Jeff Sessions) has led to children of undocumented immigrants being separated from their families, as well as more aggressive prosecutorial actions against illegal entries. And local artists are doing what they can to aid organizations that are fighting back.

Local darkwave group Hexa announced that they’d be donating a portion of the band’s merch sales and money earned from shows in June to organizations aiding immigrants affected by the policy.

“This cruelty is fucking mind blowing,” the band says in a statement on Instagram. “Please use your voice, your money, your vote, everything at your disposal to put this to an end.”

The Whistle Stop is also lending a hand by donating a portion of its proceeds from DJ Claire’s Unwind Yourself Happy Hour on June 23 to the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES).

Local label Volar Records (volarrecords.bandcamp.com) is

ALBUM REVIEW The Color Forty Nine The Color Forty Nine (Self-released)

O

ne look at the musicians involved with The Color Forty Nine (thecolorfortynine.com) reveals something of a group of local all-stars, albeit ones who’ve been historically underrated. Made up of members of Black Heart Procession, little white teeth, The Album Leaf, System’s Officer and the John Meeks Band, the quartet brings decades worth of experience to the table.

That being stated, it’s easy to assume that these guys were really ready to cut loose and jam. On the contrary, the band’s debut EP is likely one of the more tight and restrained local releases I’ve heard in a while. What’s more, it’s unlikely that listeners will find it to be immediately accessible. That’s not to imply that frontman Phil Beaumont’s voice isn’t somnolent and worn down in all the right ways or that the musicianship isn’t top notch. Rather, the record works its way inside the listener over repeated listens.

If there’s a thematic element that ties the EP together, I suppose it can be seen as both a lament and a testament to aging; a vulnerably honest reflection on the traps we continue to fall into despite becoming older and wiser. This is no more evident than on the opening track, “I Will,” a tender ballad that begins with

22 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

BY RYAN BRADFORD THE

also donating all proceeds of one week’s worth of sales to the ACLU and the RAICES. It’s not the first time that Volar owner Craig Oliver has used his platform to benefit organizations helping groups negatively affected by Trump administration policies. Back in November 2016, a week after Trump was elected, Volar had taken similar steps to use its platform to raise CRAIG OLIVER money for the ACLU and Planned Parenthood. And this is just another way in which Oliver says he wanted to use whatever opportunity he could to work against the Justice Department’s harmful policies.

“With everything we’ve learned this week, it was clear that the ACLU, in its ability to go after the government and its vile policies, and RAICES, in its efforts to provide free or low-cost legal support to refugees Craig Oliver and immigrants, could both use every little bit of financial support they can get,” says Oliver. “It seemed too easy a chance to at least try and help in whatever small way I could.”

—Jeff Terich

Beaumont singing, “Well, I will strive to be all that you would hope for/I will sometimes be all that and more.” With a grizzled baritone, Beaumont then launches into a list of troubles that lay ahead for him and his lover while also managing to make a dutifully strummed baritone ukulele sound dark AF. As always, Matt Resovich—one of San Diego’s most precious musical treasures— sends the song into a the stratosphere when his violin kicks in.

The darkness continues over the course of six more songs.

Even when Beaumont takes a lighter touch with his voice and lyrics—such as on “Storyteller”— the songs still unfold at a meditative pace. The closing track, “Side of the Road,” spirals into something of a droning mesh of beautiful noises, with the rhythm section (drummer John Meeks and bassist Jason Hooper) the only thing keeping the track grounded. I wish this track had gone on forever.

In fact, that would be my only minor criticism. These are songs that I feel would have been better served with further expansion and a lengthier running time than the standard three-to-five minutes per song. But it’s a small gripe, because just as their name invokes images of miners from a bygone era, there is gold to be found in the songs of The Color Forty Nine. The listener will be rewarded if they choose to wade through some murky waters with them in order to find it.

—Seth Combs

SPOTLIGHT CHARLIE LOWE

James Alex

E

arnestness is difficult to pull off in any genre of music, but especially rock. Rock stars are rock stars because they exude disaffected coolness, ironic detachment, and the aura of just-not-giving-a-fuck. It’s even worse in the age of the internet, when showing genuine emotion and vulnerability can often lead to ridicule.

But James Alex, the frontman of Beach Slang, can pull off earnestness like a goddamn master. Since 2015, Beach Slang has released two full-lengths and a handful of EPs that deliver Replacements-esque bursts of punk yearning, nostalgia, heartbreak and joy.

Although Alex is now in his 40s, he’s very good at distilling the complicated emotions of being young and an outcast.

This year, Alex put out an album under the name Quiet Slang, titled Everything Matters but No One is Listening. The concept strips Beach Slang songs of their distortion, replacing it with a piano and strings section—basically, turning punk pretty. It’s a ballsy move for someone who previously had the benefit of hiding his vulnerability behind volume, and there are times when it feels maybe just a little too precious, a little too emo. But for the most part, it’s gorgeous. Only those with darkest hearts will not be touched by the orchestrated version of my favorite Beach Slang song, “Dirty Cigarettes.”

Bring someone whose hand you can hold during this show, and maybe an extra pack of tissues.

Quiet Slang play Friday, June 29 at Soda Bar.

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MUSIC TRAVIS SHINN

JEFF TERICH

IF I WERE U

MONDAY, JULY 2

A music insider’s weekly agenda WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27

PLAN A: Slum Village, Sante Prince, Kid Vista x Nixxt, Boon League @ Music Box. Detroit’s Slum Village have an impressive hiphop legacy, having given legendary DJ J Dilla his start as a teenager. Those unfamiliar with the group would do well to get schooled at this show. PLAN B: Slay Dean, Sociedad Secreta del Vacio, Con-tact @ SPACE. This is a showcase being put on by Fresh Pots, a website that makes weekly playlists and recently released a cassette compilation featuring some of the best bands in town. They’ve got good taste and the three bands at this show are proof of that.

BACKUP PLAN: Ingrogio & Snapghost, Pulls, Sun June, Shindigs @ Soda Bar.

THURSDAY, JUNE 28

PLAN A: Quintron and Miss Pussycat, Low Volts, Stephen El Rey @ Soda Bar. One of the weirdest shows I’ve ever seen was Quintron and Miss Pussycat in Austin in 2011, which involved a really bizarre puppet show.

Definitely one of those performances that

@SDCITYBEAT

has to be seen to be believed. PLAN B: Fear, Street Dogs, Left Alone, The Last Gang @ Observatory North Park. Fear has been making rowdy punk rock for more than 40 years, which is a long time to be reveling in noisy anarchy. But then again, tracks like “New York’s Alright If You Like Saxophones” are timeless.

FRIDAY, JUNE 29

PLAN A: Cold Cave, Black Marble, Choir Boy, DJs Vaughn Avakian and Javi Nunez @ Music Box. Any good goth has probably seen Cold Cave a handful of times (I’ve seen them four times so far), but their shows are always fun. Leather jackets, synthesizers and gloom— it’s the goth trifecta. PLAN B: Quiet Slang, Abi Reimold @ Soda Bar. Beach Slang is typically a band known for earnest, hearton-sleeve punk anthems that sound a little like The Replacements. At this show, they’re performing as Quiet Slang, which means those anthems will be heard in a new context.

BACKUP PLAN: Shrubravo, Belladon, Fistfights With Wolves @ Black Cat Bar.

@ The Casbah. Fans of groups such as Chvrches or Purity Ring would do well to check out Transviolet, who make catchy, synthheavy pop with some elements of R&B. It’s atmospheric, sexy stuff best heard late at night.

Cold Cave

SATURDAY, JUNE 30

PLAN A: The Schizophonics, Alice Bag Band, Dream Burglar, HooverIII @ The Casbah. The Schizophonics’ name kind of sells itself at this point, thanks to the band’s fiery rock songs and unmatched showmanship. But this show also features punk legend Alice Bag and raucous locals Dream Burglar, so that’s two more great reasons to be here. BACKUP PLAN: Negative Gemini, George Clanton, Twin Ritual, Trip Advisor @ Soda Bar.

SUNDAY, JULY 1

PLAN A: Transviolet, Magic Bronson

PLAN A: Space Cadaver, Mars, Fermentor, Monochromacy @ Tower Bar. If all I knew of Space Cadaver was their name, I’d still probably at least make them a Backup Plan. But the group’s atmospheric, supremely heavy and psychedelic sludge metal blew me away once I heard it. Get there early to be annihilated by Monochromacy’s wall of sound.

PLAN B: Reyno, Mutual Radio @ Soda Bar. Mexico’s Reyno play a cool, groove-heavy rock ‘n’ roll sound somewhere between Spoon and early Tame Impala. It’s an easy sound to love, and further proof of the immense level of talent coming from south of the international border. BACKUP PLAN: Outrun the Sunlight, Aviations @ Ché Café.

TUESDAY, JULY 3

PLAN A: Pity Party, Dum Cumpsters, All Beat Up @ Tower Bar. Pity Party, not to be confused with Puddles’ Pity Party (which features a sad, singing clown) is an Oakland emo/punk band with infectious melodies and lots of complicated feelings. Perfect for some Tuesday night catharsis. BACKUP PLAN: New Madrid, David Barbe and Inward Dream Ebb @ Soda Bar.

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 23

MUSIC

CONCERTS HOT! NEW! FRESH!

Sneaks (Soda Bar, 8/16), AJJ (Observatory, 8/20), The Frights (Observatory, 8/24), Revocation (Brick by Brick, 9/28), Orgy (Brick by Brick, 9/29), Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band (Observatory, 10/1), Mothers (Soda Bar, 10/10), Clutch (Observatory, 10/14), Monster Magnet (Brick by Brick, 10/16), Still Corners (Casbah, 10/30), Blitzen Trapper (BUT, 11/12), Southern Culture on the Skids (Casbah, 11/18), Steady Holiday (Casbah, 11/19), Lemaitre (Irenic, 11/30), Kurt Vile (Observatory, 12/9).

GET YER TICKETS Neurosis, Converge (Observatory, 7/14), Toad the Wet Sprocket (BUT, 7/17-18), Paramore (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 7/19), Wye Oak (Soda Bar, 7/20), Car Seat Headrest (SOMA, 7/21), Logic (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 7/24), The Decemberists (Humphreys, 7/30), American Football, Phoebe Bridgers (Observatory, 8/3), Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Dwight Yoakam (Open Air Theatre, 8/3), Hop Along (Irenic, 8/5), SOB x RBE (SOMA, 8/9), ‘X-Fest’ w/ Beck, Death Cab for Cutie (SDCCU Stadium, 8/11), Boris (Casbah, 8/15), Chris Stapleton (Mattress Firm, 8/16), Snow Patrol (Harrahs SoCal, 8/17), Deafheaven (Brick by Brick, 8/17), Red Fang, Elder (Brick by Brick, 8/20), J. Cole (Viejas

Arena, 8/22), The Alarm (BUT, 8/23), Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson (Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, 8/24), Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever (Soda Bar, 8/25), Napalm Death (Brick by Brick, 8/27), Peter Frampton (Harrahs SoCal, 8/29), Smashing Pumpkins (Viejas Arena, 9/1), B-Side Players (Music Box, 9/1), Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (Copley Symphony Hall, 9/1), Jeremih (Observatory, 9/4), Leon Bridges (Open Air Theatre, 9/5), The Original Wailers (BUT, 9/6), Lee Fields and the Expressions (BUT, 9/8), Ms. Lauryn Hill (Open Air Theatre, 9/9), Murder

by Death (BUT, 9/11), YOB (Brick by Brick, 9/14), Jason Aldean (Mattress Firm, 9/20), The Eagles (Petco Park, 9/22), Nothing (Soda Bar, 9/22), Grizzly Bear (Observatory, 9/24), First Aid Kit (Observatory, 9/25), Deep Purple, Judas Priest (Mattress Firm, 9/26), Loudon Wainwright III (BUT, 9/27), Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band (Humphreys, 9/27), Natalie Prass (Casbah, 9/30), Courtney Barnett, Waxahatchee (Observatory, 10/3), Chelsea Wolfe, Russian Circles (Music Box, 10/3), Roky Erickson (Casbah, 10/5), The B-52’s (Humphreys, 10/6), Ozzy Osbourne (Mattress Firm, 10/9), Mew (Observatory, 10/9), Shannon and the Clams (BUT, 10/10), Graham Nash (Humphreys, 10/13), Alkaline Trio (HOB, 10/15), The Joy Formidable (Casbah, 10/17), D.R.I. (Brick by Brick, 10/20), Simple Minds (Humphreys, 10/22), Dawes (Observatory, 10/29), The Selecter, The English Beat (Casbah, 11/2), Khruangbin (Observatory, 11/10), Ghost (Spreckels Theatre, 11/12), Neko Case, Destroyer (Observatory, 12/8), Fleetwood Mac (Viejas Arena, 12/8), Ministry (HOB, 12/18).

24 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

JUNE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27 Aaron Neville Duo at Belly Up Tavern.

Slum Village at Music Box. Willie Nile at The Casbah. The Fray at Del Mar Fairgrounds.

THURSDAY, JUNE 28 Dave Hillyard and the Rock Steady 7 at The Casbah. Fear at Observatory North Park. Shwayze & Cisco Adler at Music Box. Quintron and Miss Pussycat at Soda Bar. Exmortus at Brick by Brick.

Noah Cyrus at Del Mar Fairgrounds.

FRIDAY, JUNE 29 Quiet Slang at Soda Bar. The Go-Go’s at Humphreys by the Bay (sold out). Milk Carton Kids at Belly Up Tavern. Cold Cave at Music Box. Farruko at Observatory North Park. Chuck Ragan at The Casbah. Combichrist at Brick by Brick.

Dua Lipa at Open Air Theatre. Little Heroine at SPACE.

SATURDAY, JUNE 30 Magic Giant at Belly Up Tavern. The Regrettes at Ché Café (sold out). SIR at Observatory North Park. Dread Mar I at Music Box. Schizophonics at The Casbah. Negative Gemini at Soda Bar. Mighty Mighty Bosstones at House of Blues. Famous Dex at SOMA.

JULY SUNDAY, JULY 1 The Young Dubliners at Belly Up Tavern.

Transviolet at The Casbah. Katchafire at Music Box. Passafire at Harrah’s SoCal. Sin Bandera at Del Mar Fairgrounds.

MONDAY, JULY 2 Reyno at Soda Bar. Jon Snodgrass and Buddies at The Casbah. The O’Jays at Del Mar Fairgrounds. Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy at Belly Up Tavern.

TUESDAY, JULY 3 New Madrid at Soda Bar. WAR at Del Mar Fairgrounds.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 4 Fleshgod Apocalypse at Brick by Brick.

Moe. at Belly Up Tavern.

THURSDAY, JULY 5 Celso Pina at Observatory North Park.

Uada at Brick by Brick. Moe. at Belly Up Tavern (sold out). Dead Meadow at The Casbah. Launder at Soda Bar. Kaminanda at Music Box. S O L V at SPACE.

FRIDAY, JULY 6 Dead & Company at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Forth Wanderers at House of Blues Voodoo Room. The Donkeys at The Casbah. Kottonmouth Kings at Brick by Brick. Metalachi at Belly Up Tavern. Still Woozy at Soda Bar. Primus, Mastodon at Open Air Theatre.

SATURDAY, JULY 7 Vance Joy at Harrah’s SoCal. The Donkeys at The Casbah. Daedelus at Soda Bar.

SUNDAY, JULY 8 Petal, Camp Cope at Ché Café. Sully and the Blue-Eyed Soul Band at Belly Up Tavern. Toots and the Maytals at Harrah’s SoCal. The Jacks at The Casbah.

MONDAY, JULY 9 TWRP at Soda Bar. Angelo de Augustine at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JULY 10 Counting Crows at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Kina Grannis at Music Box. Joan of Arc at Soda Bar. Straight No Chaser at Humphreys by the Bay. Castlecomer at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 11 Bob Schneider at Belly Up Tavern. Big Ups at Soda Bar. Jackson Browne at Civic Theatre. Goodnight, Texas at The Casbah.

THURSDAY, JULY 12 Citizen at The Irenic. Opia at The Casbah. Monarch at Belly Up Tavern. Negative Approach at Soda Bar.

FRIDAY, JULY 13 Weedeater at Soda Bar. We Are Scientists at The Casbah. Jefferson Airplane at Belly Up Tavern (sold out). CO-OP at Brick by Brick. Random Rab at Music Box. Barrington Levy at Observatory North Park. Palisades at House of Blues.

SATURDAY, JULY 14 Dope at Brick by Brick. Brothers Gow at Belly Up Tavern. Neurosis, Converge at Observatory North Park. Yung Bae at Soda Bar. Ministry of Truth at The Casbah.

SUNDAY, JULY 15 Inanimate Existence at Brick by Brick.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 25

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MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24 Paul Thorn at Belly Up Tavern. Etana at Harrah’s SoCal.

MONDAY, JULY 16 Billy Bob Thornton and the Boxmasters at Belly Up Tavern. FACS at Soda Bar. In the Whale at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JULY 17 Chris Isaak at Humphreys by the Bay. Sarah Shook and the Disarmers at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 18 Toad the Wet Sprocket at Belly Up Tavern. Hobo Johnson at Music Box.

THURSDAY, JULY 19 Paramore at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre.

Rhye at Observatory North Park. Toad the Wet Sprocket at Belly Up Tavern.

Brian Posehn at The Casbah.

FRIDAY, JULY 20 Brad Paisley at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy at Humphreys by the Bay. Wye Oak at Soda Bar. Dennis Quaid and the Sharks at Belly Up Tavern. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks at The Casbah (sold out). Psychedelic Furs at Del Mar Racetrack.

SATURDAY, JULY 21 The Adicts at Observatory North Park.

Juliette and the Licks at Music Box. Car Seat Headrest at SOMA. Covet at House of Blues. Thirty Seconds to Mars at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre. Surf Curse at

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The Irenic. Iration at Del Mar Racetrack.

Stan Bush at Brick by Brick.

SUNDAY, JULY 22 Reckless Kelly at Music Box. X at Belly Up Tavern. Cicada Rhythm at Soda Bar.

MONDAY, JULY 23 George Thorogood and the Destroyers at Humphreys by the Bay. Fashion Jackson at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JULY 24 Logic at Mattress Firm Amphitheatre.

Judith Owen at Music Box. The Teskey Brothers at Belly Up Tavern. Now, Now at The Casbah. Goon at Soda Bar. Roger Hodgson at Humphreys by the Bay.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 25 Jenny and the Mexicats at The Casbah.

Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore at Belly Up Tavern. Dent May at Soda Bar.

THURSDAY, JULY 26 Joe Bonamassa at Humphreys by the Bay. Stephanie Brown and The Surrealistics at The Casbah. Henry Kapono at Belly Up Tavern. Tennis System at Soda Bar.

FRIDAY, JULY 27 Weirdos at The Casbah. Joe Bonamassa at Humphreys by the Bay. Steel Pulse at Del Mar Racetrack. Mrs. Magician at Soda Bar.

SATURDAY, JULY 28 Brian McKnight at Harrah’s SoCal. Playboy Carti at SOMA. OFU at Brick by Brick. Swindle at The Casbah. Wayward

Sons at Belly Up Tavern. Sleeping With Sirens at The Irenic.

SUNDAY, JULY 29 Adam Ant at Humphreys by the Bay. faUSt at The Casbah. The Body at Soda Bar. Taipan at Brick by Brick.

MONDAY, JULY 30 The Decemberists at Humphreys by the Bay. The Modern Appliances at Soda Bar.

TUESDAY, JULY 31 The Faceless at Brick by Brick. Corey Leal Duo at Belly Up Tavern. Cobi at Soda Bar.

rCLUBSr

710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave., Pacific Beach. Wed: Open mic. Thu: Karaoke.

Fri: The Supervillains, Synyrgy, Roots of Mine, Ocean Natives. Sat: Making Incredible Time, Roman Watchdogs, Midnight Track, Punchcard. Sun: Karaoke. Tue: Elektric Voodoo, Utility Players.

Air Conditioned Lounge, 4673 30th St., Normal Heights. Wed: ‘Hip Hop Wednesday’ w/ MC Kahlee. Thu: ‘Subdrip’ w/ DJ Damon Millard. Fri: ‘House Music Friday’ w/ DJ Matthew Brian. Sat: ‘Juicy’ w/ Mike Czech. Sun: ‘Chvrch’ w/ DJs Alice, Will Lavin, 2bit. Mon: ‘Organized Grime’.

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Wed: Frank Caliendo.

Thu: Marcella Arguello. Fri: Marcella Arguello. Sat: Marcella Arguello.

The Bancroft, 9143 Campo Road, Spring

Valley. Wed: Karaoke. Thu: Cancel Express, VPN, Lynda. Sat: Catlow, Star Cullars, Tennessee Tina. Mon: Smokestack Relics.

Alice Bag Band, Dream Burglar, HooverIII. Sun: Transviolet, Magic Bronson. Mon: Jon Snodgrass and Buddies, Gods Of Mount Olympus, Zach Quinn.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St., Downtown.

Fri: Spencer Brown. Sat: Neon Indian.

Ché Café, UCSD campus, La Jolla. Fri: South Beacons. Sat: The Regrettes, Mt. Eddy, Destroy Boys (sold out). Mon: Outrun the Sunlight, Aviations.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St., North Park. Wed: DJ Old Man Johnson. Thu: Tennessee Tina, Fresh Veggies. Fri: The Touchies, Kitty Plague. Sat: City Windows, The Rough, Stray Monroe.

Beaumont’s, 5665 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Sat: Slower.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave., Solana Beach. Wed: Aaron Neville Duo. Thu: Norwood Fisher All Stars. Fri: Milk Carton Kids. Sat: Magic Giant, Young Rising Sons. Sun: The Young Dubliners, Lexington Field. Tue: ’80s Heat.

Black Cat Bar, 4246 University Ave., City Heights. Fri: Fistfights With Wolves, Belladon, Shrub. Sat: The Downs Family, Ypsitucky.

Blonde, 1808 W. Washington St., Mission Hills. Thu: ‘Dopaliscious’. Sat: ‘Whatever Forever’. Sun: Quinn DeVeaux, Mike Pope, Julia Sage, Clint Westwood.

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

Thu: ‘Club Musae’.

Brick by Brick, 1130 Buenos Ave., Bay Park. Wed: Dio Disciples, Symbolic, Deliverance Machine, ElectroMagnetic.

Thu: Exmortus, Hatchet, Novareign, Sentinel, Mortar. Fri: Combichrist, Wednesday 13, Night Club, Prison, Death Valley High.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., Middletown. Wed: Willie Nile. Thu: David Hillyard and the Rock Steady 7, San Diego City Soul Club DJ’s, Mochilero Allstars. Fri: Chuck Ragan. Sat: The Schizophonics,

Dirk’s Nightclub, 7662 Broadway, Lemon Grove. Fri: Nemesis. Sat: DJs Jersan, Calvin.

Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Bay Park. Fri: ‘Remembering Butch Lacy’. Sat: The Benedettis.

F6ix, 526 F St., Downtown. Fri: DJ Scooter. Sat: DJ Vision.

Fluxx, 500 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Fri: Deejay Al. Sat: Shabazz.

Hooley’s, 5500 Grossmont Center Drive, La Mesa. Fri: Private Domain Unplugged.

Sat: Kevin Begin.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Wed: School of Rock West Coast Tour. Thu: Jerry Demink. Fri: Led Zepagain. Sat: The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Los Kung Fu Monkeys, Buster Shuffle.

Sun: De’Anza.

Humphreys Backstage, 2241 Shelter Island Drive, Shelter Island. Wed: January Berry Band. Thu: Kim Jackson. Fri: Detroit Underground. Sat: Wildside, Michele Lundeen.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd., Middletown. Wed: ‘Midnight In a Perfect World’.

Thu: Why Be, 7e, S O L V, Tall Drk, Osk Bltvk. Fri: ‘Techsposure’.

Kensington Club, 4079 Adams Ave., Kensington. Fri: Tomcat Courtney.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 25

BY CHRISTIN BAILEY

ASTROLOGICALLY UNSOUND Weekly forecasts from the so-called universe ARIES (March 21 - April 19): Just because explanation gives an action context, that doesn’t mean it is justified to try to hit a white moose with your car because you thought it was a ghost and you’d simply drive through it.

TAURUS (April 20 - May 20): There are two fundamental truths: Songbirds sound different if you’re hearing them while crawling into bed after sunrise, and it is because they’re making fun of you.

GEMINI (May 21 - June 20): If you

find yourself at a loss for words, you can always spend a few paragraphs comparing and contrasting whatever your thoughts are on that obscure passage from The Great Gatsby.

CANCER (June 21 - July 22): Fear

is a primordial response that’s been built into your brain over zillions(?) of years, and it is important to listen to the message your body is telling you: There is an even bigger lizard nearby.

LEO (July 23 - August 22): Things could go any number of ways for you this week depending on how and when you use the word “obsequious” in a sentence.

VIRGO (August 23 - September 22): Imagine how different your day

would be if, for once, you walked out into the world assuming that absolutely no one was trying to lie to you.

LIBRA (September 23 - October 22): There is no such thing as “intuition”

and the fact that you intuited that I might say that due to my disagreeable demeanor is just common sense.

SCORPIO (October 23 - November 21): A broad outlook shows us everything’s connected, but from a narrow view—like through the cracks in the stall you’re locked in—you must rely on faith to know you’re walking your cosmic path.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 -

December 21): Vultures only do what they’re programmed to do so when they’re flying over your head, you really ought to worry about what kinda vibes you’re putting out.

CAPRICORN (December 22 January 19): I had a dream I was writing the horoscope for Capricorn this week, but unfortunately I have completely forgotten what my dream horoscope was so you just get this.

AQUARIUS (January 20 - February 18): Life’s forking paths give you new opportunities for personal growth and exploration, but then again, at any time you may also run into girls from high school that do pyramid schemes now.

PISCES (February 19 - March 20): Dreams become a reality for you this week, as you will have to give a naked presentation at work in front of your boss and all of your coworkers.

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

MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

OMNIA Nightclub, 454 Sixth Ave., Downtown. Fri: Cash Cash. Tue: Illennium.

Lestat’s Coffee House, 3343 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Fri: Damian Sage, Tender Beats. Mon: Open mic.

Panama 66, 1450 El Prado, Balboa Park.

Wed: Gilbert Castellanos. Thu: Lorraine Castellanos. Fri: Erika Davies. Sat: Chris Murray. Sun: Zzymzzy Quartet.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave., Coronado. Wed: The Sophisticats. Thu: Wild Heart. Fri: Street Heart. Sat: Never 2L8.

Martinis Above Fourth, 3940 Fourth Ave., Hillcrest. Thu: Sacha Boutros. Fri: Janice & Nathan. Sat: Joanna Baduria and Soul Fire. Sun: Ria Carey and Don L. Mon: Andy Anderson and Nathan Fry. The Merrow, 1271 University Ave., Hillcrest. Fri: ‘Trailer Trick’ w/ DJs Mateo Segade, Big Dipper, Biqtch Puddin. Sat: US Air Guitar Championships.

Mother’s Saloon, 2228 Bacon St., Ocean Beach. Thu: DJ Dub B. Mr. Peabody’s, 136 Encinitas Blvd., Encinitas. Thu: Dayna Lane. Fri: The Traumatics. Sat: Snake Oil Gypsies. Sun: Tony Ortega jazz jam.

Music Box, 1337 India St., Little Italy.

Wed: Slum Village, Sante Prince, Kid Vista x Nixxt, Boon League. Thu: Shwayze & Cisco Adler, Goody Grace. Fri: Cold Cave, Black Marble, Choir Boy. Sat: Dread Mar I, FAYUCA, El Arka and DJ Stepwise (sold out). Sun: Katchafire, E.N Young & Imperial Sound, Notis Heavyweight Rockaz. Tue: JJ Flores, Freshcobar & Lavelle Dupree, Myron Eugene, Arielle Z & Drummer John.

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

Wed: ‘Instant Crush’ w/ DJs Nastea, Camilla Robina. Thu: ‘No Limits’ w/ DJ Myson King. Fri: ‘Cool Party Bro’ w/ DJs Heminguey, Ikah Love. Sat: ‘Strictly Business’ w/ DJs EdRoc, Kanye Asada.

26 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JUNE 27, 2018

Parq, 615 Broadway, Downtown. Fri: Karma. Sat: T.I. Proud Mary’s, 5550 Kearny Mesa Road, Kearny Mesa. Thu: Tomcat Courtney. Fri: Bayou Brothers. Sat: Mercedes Moore.

The Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave., Hillcrest. Fri: ‘Hip Hop Fridayz’. Sat: ‘Sabado en Fuego’. Mon: ‘Manic Monday’ w/ DJ Junior the Disco Punk.

Rich’s, 1051 University Ave., Hillcrest.

Wed: DJs John Joseph, Kinky Loops.

Thu: DJs Kayden, Moniq. Fri: DJs Dirty Kurty, Hektik. Sat: DJs K-Swift, Kid Madonny. Sun: DJ Cros. Tue: DJs Casey Alva, K-Swift.

Riviera Supper Club, 7777 University Ave., La Mesa. Wed: ‘Boss Jazz’ w/ Jason Hanna. Fri: Lex and the Jewels. Sat: Jason Hanna and the Bullfighters.

Rosie O’Gradys, 3402 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Fri: Brown Party Liquor. Sat: Ian Patrick Cler Trio. Mon: Monday night jazz jam.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Wed: Ingemar & Snapghost, Pools, Shindigs. Thu: Quintron and Miss Pussycat. Fri: Quiet Slang, Abi Reimold.

Sat: Negative Gemini, George Clanton.

Mon: Reyno, Mutual Radio. Tue: New Madrid, David Barbe and Inward Dream Ebb. SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd., Midway.

Fri: Rimani Styles, K Brock, Dorian Greyy, The Prophet, BurnMoney, YungFTY. Sat: Famous Dex. SPACE, 3519 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights.

Wed: Slay Dean, Sociedad Secreta Del Vacío, Con-tact. Fri: Little Heroine, Love Glow, Kevin Nichols. Sun: ‘Night Sector’ w/ Indradevi, Jak Syn, Spirits of the Night.

Spin, 2028 Hancock St., Middletown. Fri: ‘The Pink Party’. Sat: ‘Club Sabbat’. Sun: A Day With Doubting Thomas.

Sycamore Den, 3391 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Thu: Burlesque Boogie Nights.

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Fri: Robbie Studio. Sat: Batmobile, Hard Fall Hearts. Sun: Pants Karaoke.

Mon: Autogramm, Lil Evil, Some Daggers, Davey Tiltwheel, DJ Power Pop Jeff.

Tin Roof, 401 G St., Downtown. Wed: Evan Diamond Goldberg. Thu: Undercover Live, Keep Your Soul Trio. Fri: Manic Fanatic, Scott Porter. Sat: Cassie B Project, Scott Porter.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St., Bay Park. Wed: Theo and Zydeco Patrol. Thu: Nathan James and the Rhythm Scratchers. Fri: The Corvelles. Sat: Dennis Jones Band.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave., City Heights. Sat: Twin Tribes, Oak Palace, 8IM, DJ Disorder. Sun: Sluka. Mon: Space Cadaver, Mars, Fermentor, Monochromacy. Tue: Pity Party, Dum Cumpsters, All Beat Up. U-31, 3112 University Ave., North Park.

Wed: ‘Yes Lawd’. Thu: ‘Boom Boxx Thursday’. Fri: DJ Senema. Sat: Eddey Hyatt.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St., South Park.

Wed: Stand-Up Comedy. Thu: ‘Vamp’.

Fri: ‘Death by Dancing’ w/ DJ Jon Blaj.

Winstons, 1921 Bacon St., Ocean Beach.

Wed: Babylon Rockers, DJ Carlos Culture. Fri: Particle, 7Come11. Sat: Lust For Life, The Shenanigans. Sun: Karaoke.

Mon: Electric Waste Band. Tue: ‘Mass’ w/ Ian Livingston.

@SDCITYBEAT

IN THE BACK

CannaBeat FDA Approves First Drug Derived from Cannabis

GW PHARMACEUTICALS

@SDCITYBEAT

—Benjamin J. Adams

Senate Committee Blocks Cannabis Banking Bill

O

n June 25, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Epidiolex for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, making it the first-ever cannabis-derived drug to be approved by the organization, and also the first drug approved for Dravet syndrome.

“This is the first FDA-approved drug that contains a purified drug substance derived from marijuana,” the organization wrote in a press release. “It is also the first FDA approval of a drug for the treatment of patients with Dravet syndrome.” While the FDA has approved synthetic cannabinoid solutions such as Marinol or Cesamet since 1985, this is the first time a drug derived from cannabis has been approved.

Epidiolex contains CBD and was likely approved because it causes no intoxication.

But while CBD causes no intoxication, it can potentially help fight seizure disorders that are considered incurable and treatment-resistant.

Dravet syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes seizures, is considered incurable.

Recently, families all over the world have

the British drug-maker GW Pharmaceuticals, which will be making a lot of money off of Epidiolex, it’s even greater news for the families who rely on CBD-based medicine.

C Epidiolex been noticing CBD’s incredible anti-epileptic abilities, and the overly bureaucratic pharmaceutical industry is just starting to catch up. Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut, as mentioned in the press release, are difficult to control, and require new and developing treatment routes such as medical cannabis.

“This approval serves as a reminder that advancing sound development programs that properly evaluate active ingredients contained in marijuana can lead to important medical therapies. And, the FDA is committed to this kind of careful scientific research and drug development,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. Many have been speculating what the approval means for CBD vendors, if anything. While this is certainly great news for

annabis businesses will continue to be forced to deal in cash, after another solution was tabled for the time being.

The Senate Appropriations Committee shot down an amendment June 21 that would have protected banks that cater to cannabis businesses.

1152, or the Secure And Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, was voted down 21-10. The bill was, however, supported by Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Lindsey Graham, typically conservative leaders who are suddenly interested in cannabis. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Jeff Merkley, who pleaded his case before the vote. It would have blocked federal banking regulators from: • Terminating or limiting the deposit insurance or share insurance of a depository institution solely because the institution provides financial services to a legitimate marijuana-related business; • Prohibiting or otherwise discouraging a depository institution from offering financial services to such a business;

• Recommending, incentivizing or encouraging a depository institution not to offer financial services to an account holder solely because the account holder is affiliated with such a business; • Taking any adverse or corrective supervisory action on a loan made to a person solely because the person either owns such a business or owns real estate or equipment leased or sold to such a business.

Cannabis activists including the leadership of NORML were disappointed, to say the least.

“The Senate Appropriations Committee chose to bury its head in the sand rather than make it easier for licensed and regulated marijuana businesses to operate safely, transparently or effectively,” Justin Strekal, political director for NORML, told Forbes.

“It’s absurd.”

Sen. Jon Tester explained his reasoning for opposing the bill. “I’ve supported it in the past and I think it’s different today,” Tester said. “It adds a level of confusion to the folks who are out there doing business.”

Since the bill doesn’t deal with the Department of Justice, and only with the Department of Treasury, some leaders don’t think the bill is enough.

—Benjamin J. Adams For the latest cannabis news and lifestyle trends, please pick up our sister magazine CULTURE every month or visit culturemagazine.com.

JUNE 27, 2018 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 27