San Diego CityBeat • July 10, 2019

2 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

UP FRONT | FROM THE EDITOR

We see your true colors

A

nyone who’s taken an introductory psychology class is likely already familiar with the term “cognitive dissonance.” In a nutshell, it’s that mental discomfort one feels when our beliefs or attitudes don’t mesh with our actions or decisions. For progressive consumers, it’s that uneasy feeling one might get when waiting in the drive-thru line at Chick-fil-A or staring down at a In-N-Out milkshake knowing full well that there’s a reference to a bible verse on the bottom of the cup.

We’re all guilty of conveniently ignoring the better angels of ourselves when it comes to convenience and responsible consumerism. When it comes to shopping and the choices we make as consumers, it’s much easier to ignore a company’s politics when a store is so convenient or when a fast food chain’s sandwiches are so delicious.

That feeling of cognitive dissonance sometimes doesn’t even kick in until well after we’ve paid. That’s when we begin to make the excuses.

Well, I’m just one person. My purchase isn’t going to make that big of a difference.

Well, most corporations are bad in some way.

This one’s probably no worse than the others.

Well, as long as I support or contribute to causes that offset this company’s politics, I’ll be OK. I’m a good person.

Variations of these feelings come to me whenever I run over to the Target that recently opened next door to the CityBeat office. Target has come a long way from their anti-LGBTQ past, which has been all but whitewashed from search engines and the public consciousness. With hip, clever marketing and charitable nods to the LGBTQ community, Target is no longer seen as another example of corporate conservatism.

But the fact is that Target had to be slowly dragged into supporting the humanity of LGBTQ people. As recently as 2017, they were still supporting anti-LGBTQ causes and only agreed to stop after they realized it was bad for business (and with a little help from Lady Gaga).

The same goes for Walmart, which has only recently emerged as a pro-LGBTQ company even if they’re still being sued for things such as not offering health insurance to the samesex spouses of their full-time employees.

We internalize and easily retain the good news when it comes to corporations moving in more progressive directions. We see the Pride displays at Target and big-box stores and tell ourselves that these companies have turned a corner. If we’re to believe the Supreme Court, corporations are ostensibly people and it’s nice to think that those “people” are now on our side.

But are they?

For someone who remembers the days when the San Diego Pride Parade was relatively free of corporate sponsorships and floats, it’s often disconcerting and even overwhelming to see just how much the Pride movement has been co-opted by corporate interests in the hopes of putting a friendly, inclusive lipstick on what is still a pig.

It’s important to remember that the only reason these companies are now loud and proud is because they’ve done exhaustive research and determined that it’s now good for business. They didn’t make a stand when the community needed it most. They stood by until it was financially beneficial to embrace the community. In some cases, they even worked against us.

Yes, progress has been made but there are still companies out there that will smile in our face and then stab us in the back. Let’s look at our phones and remember that AT&T still donates millions of dollars to anti-LGBTQ politicians and political action committees. Let’s remember that just before the 2018 midterms, companies such as Home Depot, UPS and Pfizer all contributed to antigay causes, but expect us to now accept them as they drape themselves in rainbow flags.

Years from now, we may look back at Pride 2019 as the year we all woke up to the corporate homogenization of the movement. And as the Democratic field of presidential candidates begin to speak more forcefully about corporate tax breaks and exuberant CEO salaries, it’s likely those corporate donations to right-wing causes will begin anew. That’s when we will begin to see these companies’ true colors, and it won’t be a rainbow. It will be one color: green.

—Seth Combs

Write to seth.combs@sdcitybeat.com

CityBeat 2020: Is that Chuck E. Cheese party happening or what?

Volume 17 • Issue 47 EDITOR Seth Combs WEB EDITOR Ryan Bradford ART DIRECTOR Carolyn Ramos STAFF WRITER Andrea Lopez-Villafaña COLUMNISTS Aaryn Belfer Ryan Bradford Edwin Decker Alfred Howard John R. Lamb Rhonda “Ro” Moore

CONTRIBUTORS Christin Bailey, Torrey Bailey, Jackie Bryant, David L. Coddon, Beth Demmon, Julia Dixon Evans, Michael A. Gardiner, Sara Harmatz, Glenn Heath Jr., Lizz Huerta, Lara McCaffrey, Scott McDonald, Jim Ruland, Ben Salmon, Ian Ward EDITORIAL INTERNS Anna Fiorino Madelyne Quiroz Aviva Waldman PRODUCTION MANAGER Tristan Whitehouse SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Jason Noble

ACCOUNTING Perla Castillo Linda Lam

The advertising deadline is 5 p.m. every Friday for the following week’s issue.

HUMAN RESOURCES Andrea Baker

EDITORIAL AND

VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS David Comden ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Steven Persitza

ADVERTISING OFFICE 3047 University Ave. Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92104 Phone: 619-281-7526 Fax: 619-281-5273 sdcitybeat.com

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES Interested in advertising?

Call 619-281-7526 or e-mail advertising@ sdcitybeat.com.

San Diego CityBeat is published and distributed every Wednesday by Southland Publishing Inc., free of charge but limited to one per reader.

Reproduction of any material in this or any other issue is prohibited without written permission from the publisher and the author. Contents copyright 2019.

@SDCITYBEAT

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 3

UP FRONT | LETTERS

ARTS IS A REASON TO SURVIVE

This is an all too often told story of how the arts are pushed out of our priority in our communities [“Another reason to survive,” Arts & Culture, June 19]. The creative collaboration that James Halliday curated between serving the organization, beautifying the city and engaging the youth involvement is what every city needs. I am truly inspired by this story and look forward to seeing what else is in the future for ARTS. Bravo!

Melissa Williamson via sdcitybeat.com

TSA AIN’T NO SNITCH

I am a TSA Supervisor here to answer questions raised in Ms. Bryant’s article [“Sky high,” CannaBitch, July 3].

TSA searches bags looking for weapons, incendiaries and explosives or anything that could be a component of the aforementioned.

Our screening procedures are designed to be effective in our mission to protect the nation’s transportation system.

Here is what will happen if we discover marijuana: Since marijuana is illegal federally, we are required to notify law enforcement if we encounter it while searching for weapons, explosives or incendiaries.

Here’s where it gets interesting. The law enforcement that we contact is local authorities. CA recognizes marijuana as legal so if the amount that you possess is within limits, law enforcement will close your bag and return it to you with the wacky weed included because

4 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

possession is not illegal.

Once you board the plane, possession once again becomes illegal due to federal regulations. However there are no bag searches once you enter the plane so if you don’t spill it in front of an air marshal, you should be fine.

Keep in mind that once you land, you are under the jurisdiction of that state. If they have drug-sniffing dogs at your destination airport, you may regret carrying.

So there you go. Fly aware.

D.F.

North Dakota

LEGAL PROSTITUTION IS ACTUALLY BETTER FOR PUBLIC HEALTH

Keeping prostitution illegal clearly does not put an end to prostitution and people also transfer STDs in sex that does not involve prostitution [“I’m disgusted by anyone who thinks prostitution is disgusting,” Sordid Tales, June 26]. Therefore, the notion that keeping prostitution illegal suppresses the spread of STDs is less than probable. However, licensing prostitution provides the opportunity to better monitor and treat STDs in the sex-work business. Routine testing prior to license renewal would reduce treatable STDs. Furthermore licensing fees could be used for treatments and STD education. Obviously this wouldn’t totally stop the spread of STDs between sex workers and clients, but it would have a more positive impact than pretending that a law was going to stop the world’s oldest profession. It would also provide a safer environment for sex work-

ers, as the business would be monitored and subject to regulation.

David K. via sdcitybeat.com

TABLE OF CONTENTS UP FRONT From the Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Letters to the Editor. . . . . . . . . . . 4 News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 A Side-Eye of Sanity . . . . . . . . . . 6 Sordid Tales. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

FOOD & DRINK

WE WANT FEEDBACK

World Fare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Final Draught. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Did you read a story in San Diego CityBeat that made your blood boil, or caused you to laugh so hard you pulled a stomach muscle? If something inspires you to send us your two cents we welcome all letters that respond to news stories, opinion pieces or reviews that have run in these pages. We don’t accept unsolicited op-ed letters.

Email letters to editor Seth Combs at seth.combs@sdcitybeat.com, or mail to 3047 University Ave., Suite 202, San Diego, CA 92104. For letters to be considered for publication, you must include your first and last name and the part of town where you reside. Note: All comments left on stories at sdcitybeat.com will also be considered for publication.

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

THINGS TO DO

ARTS & CULTURE Theater. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Feature: Lips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Seen Local . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Film . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-22

MUSIC Feature: Snow Tha Product. . . 23 The Spotlight. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 If I Were U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Concerts & Clubs . . . . . . . . . 27-29

IN THE BACK Astrologically Unsound . . . . . 28 CannaBitch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

@SDCITYBEAT

UP FRONT | NEWS

A challenge from the left Jose Caballero looks to unseat Rep. Susan Davis in the 53rd District

By Seth Combs

I

f we’re to believe early polling, the 2020 primary and general election is likely to bring progressive voters out in droves. Not only is there the impetus to defeat President Trump, but San Diegans will also be voting for a new mayor, three Board of Supervisors races, and five city council seats.

But with the exception of Duncan Hunter in the 50th District, San Diego’s five Congressional races haven’t been getting a lot of attention. This could be due to the fact that most political insiders see San Diego’s four congressional Democrats (Susan Davis, Scott Peters, Juan Vargas and Mike Levin) as being easily reelected come November.

One of these seats, in particular, bothers Jose Caballero.

“She hasn’t followed through with a lot of the progressive policies she’s run on,” says Caballero.

“For me, I felt like she needed a challenge from the left. She hasn’t

@SDCITYBEAT

ever had a real challenge in a primary and I feel like the voters in the district deserve that.”

Caballero is speaking about U.S. Rep. Susan Davis. He’s hoping to successfully pull off in California’s 53rd congressional district what candidates such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Dave Brat have done in New York and Virginia: Beat an entrenched veteran representative in the primaries by bringing more attention to that representative’s record. In the case of Ocasio-Cortez and Brat, each did do by campaigning on refreshing new visions and supporting policies that moved away from the center—to the right in the case of Brat and to the left in the case of Ocasio-Cortez. Caballero sees San Diego as moving more to the left.

“You see this giant demographic shift,” says Caballero, pointing out neighborhoods like Kensington and South Park that

voted heavily for candidates like Bernie Sanders in the 2016 primaries. “You’re starting to see a lot of new growth and new development in the district—people who are moving in who are around my age and that’s contributing to that shift.”

And he has a point. Not only did a decidedly progressive candidate pick up a seat from a once reliably red district in the 2018 midterm election (Mike Levin in the 49th district), but Levin also beat out a more moderate group of Democrats in the primaries earlier that year. And while Democratic candidate Ammar Campa-Najjar still lost to Republican Duncan Hunter in the 50th district that same year, Campa-Najjar only lost by 3 percent of the vote. To put that in perspective, the last Democrat to run against Hunter (Patrick Malloy) in 2016 lost by 27 percent.

Rep. Davis also represents a

district that can be seen as moving closer to the left; a district that includes parts of inland San Diego, as well as parts of East and South County. On paper, it’s actually San Diego’s bluest district. But while her Democratic colleagues have come out in favor of issues such as the Green New Deal, Medicare for All and impeachment proceedings of the president, Davis has been reluctant or slow to embrace these policies despite being arguably the safest incumbent. She CHYANN COX

Jose Caballero only recently came out in support of the Green New Deal, but hasn’t joined Reps. Peters and Vargas in supporting impeachment proceedings. Mike Levin is the only San Diego congressional representative who supports the Medicare for All bill.

When it comes to these issues, Caballero doesn’t hold back.

On Medicare for All: “That was the real moment for me when I knew I wanted to challenge [Davis]—when she refused to budge on Medicare for All... Day one, I sign onto the Medicare for All bill.”

On the Green New Deal: “This will bring redevelopment to a scale not seen since the New Deal. I have been an environmental activist from the moment I understood that human society is the cause of the climate crisis. I will never stop fighting to ensure the climate crisis is addressed, and we take bold action.”

On impeachment: “Robert Mueller’s report states in the sub-text that it is up to Congress to take action. I agree that Congress must open an impeachment inquiry.”

Like many millennials, the 2016 candidacy of Bernie Sanders was something of a lightning rod for Caballero. The 33-year-old says he’s always leaned left even while growing up in a Republican household in Texas and serving in the Navy for six years. Sanders’ candidacy and the post-Trump

inlux of progressive candidates gave him hope that voters in the 53rd district will embrace more left-leaning policies. After receiving a political science degree from SDSU and becoming more involved in progressive politics, he ran for city council in 2016 and served as a fundraising director for a gubernatorial candidate in Connecticut. Caballero says these experiences helped him better understand the needs and priorities of voters.

Still, Caballero knows he has a tough road ahead of him and not just because he proclaims to be a “proud Democratic Socialist.”

Asked if that distinction might turn off some voters, Caballero points to the expansive selection of platforms he’s already taken a stand on, which he calls the “blueprint for the future.” These include everything from supporting student loan debt forgiveness and fighting vigorously for “Heroes’ Promise” legislation. The latter would provide military and veterans a “bill of rights” that includes access to free housing, healthcare and education, as well as mental health services. Most people love the idea of this, which is ironic considering it is, essentially, socialism.

“I always say that socialism is as American as apple pie. We have Medicare, we have Social Security, freeways, police and fire departments, parks and rec—we expect those things as Americans,” says Caballero. “I think there has been a good effort by a lot of people to redefine what Democratic Socialism is and when you explain it to people on that level, the more it makes sense.”

Rep. Davis has been in the House for almost 20 years, and has been reelected by more that 17 points in every election since first beating Republican Brian Bilbray back in 2000. Caballero says he’s obviously in it to win it, but also acknowledges that even a challenge from the left could force Davis to possibly reassess her tentativeness when it comes to progressive policies and move her more toward where many Democrats think the party is headed.

“Many people don’t know what [Davis] has done. My focus is not to tear her down, but I will say that when it comes to getting things done, she has only sponsored two bills that have been passed…

I think it’s that perception—that she’s done a lot, but then when people start looking into her record, they see she hasn’t really done much.”

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 5

UP FRONT | VOICES

RHONDA “RO” MOORE

A SIDE-EYE OF

SANITY

Let’s not withhold

I

’m a bit of a cynic, but I earned my worldview the hard way.

I grew up in a household shaped by Southern culture, Catholic sentiment, military sensibilities and that good ol’ parental logic, “because I said so.”

As a result, I spent a lot of my years low-key anxious that I’d disappoint someone who mattered to me. It’s shaped every decision I’ve ever made, often with disastrous results. Now I try to use all that energy to remember to like myself.

As an adult, I know my anxiety stems from my dad’s nature to be withholding when it came to his love. He’d withhold time, attention and affection without batting an eye. My father is a sullen man comfortable with getting his way through tried-andtrue emotional manipulation and the type of gaslighting only a parent can do. I spent a lot of energy trying to figure out if he even liked me and even more time trying to ensure he did.

Sometimes, I’m still not sure if he likes me, but I honestly stopped caring by the time I was 15. It was around that age that I realized I could dance naked in the street singing showtunes and my mom would always love me (and my crazy) even if she occasionally didn’t like me very much.

Most people don’t think about how often they make others feel like their love and acceptance has strings attached.

But dear readers, if there are people in our lives who matter on a fundamental level, it’s definitely a good idea to curb that instinct to withhold. I’m not suggesting going through life without healthy boundaries or not knowing your personal emotional limits. I’m saying most people don’t even realize how conditional their affection is until they’ve been disappointed and subsequently withhold it. I also don’t think most people care so long as it gets them what they want, because affection-seekers are vulnerable to manipulation.

I’ve probably said it before, but my life’s goal isn’t to be nice. “Nice” people can (and do) lie, cheat, steal just as easily as “mean” people. Nice people feign empathy even as they leave emotional devastation in their wake. All being nice really does is deflect responsibility from the one doing the harm. It’s a damaging way to live, but it’s not like we don’t have a choice. Let’s all try avoiding the way of the sociopath, shall we?

I used to think this was just the way the world worked; likely because I failed to learn these lessons before choosing who to fall in love with and marry.

Now I’m on the other side of a divorce that also triggered a deep purge of my friend group, so I’m convinced more than ever that the act of withholding is all about control.

So, my personal goal is trying to be a good person.

A good person may not always be nice but they’re unlikely to ignore the harm they cause. Trying to be a good person is often counterintuitive because it requires consciously remembering it isn’t my place to judge anyone other than myself.

I can’t try to live vicariously through someone else and be a good person. Because predicating someone’s value to me will lead to me attempting to enforce my will on that person. Trying to be a good person means avoiding the emotional pitfalls inherent in forcing someone else to live up to your own personal standards.

If more parents worried less about what their kids said about them, they’d be more likely to ensure their kids felt loved and accepted for who they are. If parents spent more time trying to be good people, they’d be less likely to try to control kids and accept things about them that they can’t change. Disappointment is a powerful thing. It should be wielded with care.

Recently, I asked a high school friend who still lives in North Carolina what her plans were for the coming weekend. Without skipping a beat, she replied, “giving out ‘mom hugs’ during Pride.” I smiled and asked that she give out a few for me. I wasn’t surprised to hear later that when people realized it was OK to walk up and ask her for a hug, she found herself being sought out in the most random of places. Living your truth in the South, especially when you fall outside the narrow lane of “normal” (whatever that is), can lead to a challenging life for myriad reasons.

Growing up with one emotionally unavailable parent, I never wanted to give the other a reason to think I wasn’t worth it. So, I grew up anxious not to disappoint for a variety of different reasons. Hindsight being 20/20, I know my mom wasn’t above using that to steer me in directions she thought best. But she never withheld affection or made me feel like my place in her life was conditional.

And believe me, I pushed her patience to its limits.

I was so convinced she’d never turn her back on me, I spent junior high and high school sharing her epic mom-ness with pretty much anyone I knew who needed it. To this day, my mom has extra “kids” everywhere. She, too, knows that a “mom hug” can be the difference between hanging on and giving up when it feels like everything and everyone is against you.

Happy Pride, San Diego. Remember, love really doesn’t cost a thing so don’t withhold it.

Most people don’t even realize how conditional their affection is until they’ve been disappointed and subsequently withhold it.

6 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

A Side-Eye of Sanity appears every other week.

Follow Ro Moore on Twitter at @BookBlerd.

@SDCITYBEAT

UP FRONT | OPINION

EDWIN DECKER

SORDID

TALES

The real pride of a straight man

T

he controversy surrounding the Straight Pride Parade in Boston got me thinking. I mean, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with being proud of who you are, be it gay, queer, bi, fluid, furrysexual or straight.

But judging by the comments and actions of the organizers, it is pretty obvious that Boston’s upcoming straight festival is just another way to troll the gay one. This is why I can’t endorse it, which is a pity. I was really looking forward to visiting some of its exhibitions and attractions such as The Missionary Position Pavillion, The Dunk-a-Drunken-Divorcee Tank and the Dave Matthews Impersonator Wedding Chapel.

So no, I have no desire to celebrate Straight Pride.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t have a little gay pride during Pride month. In fact, I have a shit-ton of pride about gay pride. Not so much the kind that comes with having accomplished anything.

But pride in the accomplishments of others: the LGBTQ men and women I know personally, and the community as a whole.

For instance, I am proud of our city’s own Pride event.

Proud that the San Diego LGBT Pride Festival and parade is still motoring along after 50 years.

I actually coordinated an aspect of this event for a stint in the mid 2010s. It was an honor, a pleasure and an eye-opener.

Readers would be astonished if they knew the relentless evil forces that push and pull Pride’s organizers. Over the years, those forces have included the police department, the fire department, the health department, the city and town councils, the county, the community, the event’s critics and adversaries. And that’s not to mention the 18 hundred million groups with 18 hundred million agendas, and the dozens upon dozens of other politically powerful entities that are out to stamp out any such notion of pride. It makes a person wonder how the organizers don’t go bonkers, let alone produce such spectacular pageantry year after year.

I am proud of how far the LGBTQ community, as a whole, has come. When I think of what life was like for the movement back in the ancient, olden times— the ‘80s, for example—it makes me depressed. It also makes me thankful. Thankful for those who fought and sacrificed that future generations of LGBTQ people might coexist. Folks like Sergeant Leonard Matlovich, who in 1975 was the first active military personnel to come out. Like Barbara Gittings, who ferociously fought for gay rights in the ’50s—a time when the word “gay” and the word “rights” were almost never used in the same sentence. People like Harvey Milk, Martina Navratilova and Marsha P. Johnson, the Black trans woman who—along with the hundreds of other courageous souls on the front lines of the

Stonewall Uprising—pushed back against the corrupt, homophobic NYPD 50 years ago.

I was, and still am, brimming with pride for the two most influential gay men in my life. Scratch that— they were the two most influential people in my life who also happened to be gay. Mr. D and Mr. M were my elementary school science and math teachers, respectively. This was during the ’70s which was not the most woke decade for gay folk. And so Mr. D and Mr. M had to keep their relationship a secret at work. But because my mother, and half my neighbors, were also teachers, I was fortunate enough to have known Mr. D and Mr. M as a couple. They were frequent attendees at our various barbecues and pool parties, and I was utterly enamored by them. Not only were they exceptional educators, but also valued friends of the family. I simply did not understand why I couldn’t, as my mother instructed, tell anyone at school. Not that I would have, but it was my first encounter with institutional homophobia and I have loathed it ever since.

I am proud of my friends, nay, family members, Danielle LoPresti and Alicia Champion.

These are two of the most proactive, valiant and indestructible women I know. They are the founders and operators of a nowdefunct pro-gay rights, pro-civil rights, pro-independent music, and just plain pro-humanity festival called San Diego IndieFest.

I am proud about how gracefully they are raising their son Lucian (my godson) who is the cutest living thing to have graced the planet since the puppy was invented.

I am proud of Marcia Bergeson and Linda Zak, who waited, and waited some more, until California’s Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals removed the Stay of Effect on gay marriage in June of 2013. I am so wildly grateful—and, yes, proud—that a few months later they asked me to officiate their wedding.

Thanks Marcia and Linda! Thanks for letting me be part of your historical marriage.

Speaking of gay weddings, I am running a special for Pride Month! As a non-denominational reverend certified by the American Marriage Ministries, I will preside over any LGBTQ wedding for free! Yup, that’s right! During the month of July, I will marry same sex couples just for the asking. Furries will have to pay double, of course. It gets hot inside those rabbit suits! But for the rest, I leap at the chance to be proud about something else this month. So go ahead and email ed@sdcitybeat.com and let me marry your gorgeous, gay asses! Have a great Pride everyone!

You deserve it!

When I think of what life was like for the movement back in the ancient, olden times—the ‘80s, for example— it makes me depressed. It also makes me thankful.

@SDCITYBEAT

Sordid Tales appears every other week.

Write to edwin@sdcitybeat.com.

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 7

UP FRONT | FOOD & DRINK

BY MICHAEL A. GARDINER

THE WORLD

FARE

Beyond the barbecue

O

nce it hits American shores nearly every style of “ethnic cuisine” becomes inextricably associated with a single dish or class of dishes. That’s what happened with Japanese food and sushi; Mexican food and tacos; Vietnamese cuisine and pho. The story is the same with Korean cuisine and Korean barbecue.

That being said, it’s worth pointing out there isn’t a single tabletop burner inside Tofu House (4646 Convoy St., tofuhousesandiego.mybistro.online).

There is, however, a number of dishes that show sides of Korean cuisine that are less familiar to much of the American dining public.

A Korean “tofu house” is a restaurant that specializes in sundubujjigae, or soft tofu stew, a Korean comfort food staple. “Sundubu” directly translates as “pure tofu” and refers to curdled, extra-soft tofu and “jjigae” means “stew.” Tofu House has 19 separate soft tofu stews on the menu, as well as an “As You Wish” option in which the diner designs their own combination of seafood, meat, vegetables and noodle-type.

My favorite, by far, was the “Chef’s Special” with kimchi featuring clam, shrimp, pollack roe, oyster, scallop, mushroom and fresh kimchi. It’s like a box of chocolates, Korean stew-style: the diner never knows what they’re going to come up with on any given spoonful, but every single one yields something tasty. The broth itself is rich and spiked with gochugaru (Korean red chile flakes) and gochujang (chili paste). The dish comes to the table piping hot. Crack one of the eggs that’s in a basket on every table and it will cook in the stew yielding yet another layer of flavor.

Another good sundubu-jjigae option is the dumpling version with beef and pork. The broth on this and several other options is white and devoid of the spicy elements. Think a Korean version of wonton soup.

8 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

While Tofu House’s banchan game isn’t long, it’s strong. Every table is pre-set with four little (albeit bottomless) bowls of banchan: spicy pickled cucumbers, kimchi, sweet-pickled daikon radishes and fish cakes. They’re not rotated and there are no other options. But every one of those four are very good. The cucumbers and daikon radishes, in particular, are downright addictive. It would be very, very easy to fill up on those banchan and walk away happy.

Another set of dishes at Tofu House that shouldn’t be missed are the hot stone crispy rice options. As with the sundubu-jjigae, these come in a variety of protein choices as well as a build-yourown “As You Wish” option. Unable to decide, I went MICHAEL A. GARDINER

Hot stone crispy rice meat party with the combination of grilled barbecue prime rib, beef and chicken that, not inaccurately, was called the “Meat Party” option. The meat was good, but the rice was better. It arrives at the table with hot wafts of steam curling upward and obscuring the bowl. The rice continues to cook for minutes, crisping up all the while. The resulting textural contrast between the meats, the soft rice and the crisped-up stuff at the edges takes the dish to another level.

A trip to Tofu House can be an adventurous trip beyond the many K-BBQ options in the Convoy District. It can be an exercise in Asian comfort food.

But what it is, most of all, is fun and delicious.

The World Fare appears weekly.

Write to michaelg@sdcitybeat.com.

@SDCITYBEAT

UP FRONT | FOOD & DRINK

BY BETH DEMMON

FINAL DRAUGHT Brewing change

COURTESY OF NOEMÍ AND JACKIE RIVAS-LANDAVERDE

C

raft beer is a billion dollar industry in San Diego, according to the latest economic impact report from California State University, San Marcos and the San Diego Brewers Guild.

What’s more, craft breweries directly contributed nearly $5 million to hundreds of philanthropic organizations across the county and state in 2018 alone.

Local advocates Noemí and Jackie Rivas-Landaverde dream of redirecting some of those dollars to what they see as an underserved and particularly vulnerable group: the LGBTQ community.

The queer married couple’s vision is ambitious: “[To] become San Diego’s first nonprofit brewery aimed specifically for the LGBTQIA+ community.

Our vision is to create a safe, inclusive space for LGBTQIA+ individuals who are facing hardships due to homelessness, sex trafficking work, mental health, rejection from friends and family, et cetera,” according to the pair.

“No one should feel like they do not belong solely because of their gender identity or sexual orientation,” explains Noemí. “Inclusivity is a core value that we want for our brewery.”

Right now, this brewery haven is merely a dream. Noemí and Jackie have outlined a business plan, but say their immediate goals are to network in the San Diego and Baja beer scenes to eventually find the funding and space they need to launch.

If their dream becomes a reality, it would be one of the only nonprofit breweries in the United States.

Once operational, they estimate they’d need to raise between $2-4 million each year to cover the costs of both a brewery operation and four-point training program. The program would provide LGBTQ individuals with technical skills and additional life resources. Aspiring participants would first go through a screening process to determine eligibility and to create an individual plan of action.

Once participants are approved, they’d be enrolled in a no-cost, eight-week program covering topics like brewing basics, finances, sales and more. Successful completion of the curriculum would transition into a four-week paid internship and, eventually, graduation and job placement.

They also hope to provide mental health services and assistance with housing and transportation when necessary.

“We want to teach our participants how to brew beer and become self-sufficient to lead a healthy, balanced life,” says Jackie. “It’s a future idea but the more we share our idea, the more traction we get.”

Although neither woman is employed by the beer industry, they have experience in the nonprofit sector. Jackie is currently completing a master’s degree program at the University of San Diego for nonprofit management and leadership. She’s also worked at various nonprofits for a decade, most recently at the International Community Foundation in National City. Noemí is enrolled in an undergraduate program, and her dream of one

@SDCITYBEAT

Noemí and Jackie Rivas-Landaverde day uniting her love of beer and philanthropy has helped drive the couple’s shared goal.

According to a Human Rights Campaign Foundation study, the LGBTQ community faces a much higher risk of depression, suicidal thoughts, addiction and other serious mental illnesses than heterosexual adults. As an openly queer Latina couple, Noemí and Jackie have both experienced hardships from friends and family, which have triggered feelings of isolation, depression and anxiety. But they’re open to the fact that the struggles of their past are helping to shape their future.

“It has been through these experiences that we’ve learned to value the importance of creating and having ownership of spaces for our community,” says Noemí.

The Brewers Association, a national nonprofit craft beer industry group, regularly releases statistics proving what’s already pretty obvious: the vast majority of craft beer drinkers are white and male. While the ratio of men to women has tilted slightly over the past few years, racial diversity is still woefully lacking. (No studies exploring gender identity or sexual orientation in the industry currently exist.)

“Minority craft drinkers are growing, but only because the total population of craft drinkers is growing, not because craft drinkers are getting more diverse along racial lines—as we saw, the gender trends are more positive,” explains Bart Watson, Ph.D. and chief economist for the Brewers Association in a recent report.

San Diego does have a handful of Latinx-owned craft breweries in historically Latinx neighborhoods, such as Border X Brewing in Barrio Logan. Breweries specifically catering to the LGBTQ community like Hillcrest Brewing Company (who proudly proclaim to be “the first gay brewery in the world” on their website) are even fewer and further between. The crossover opportunity to embrace the non-white, non-heterosexual male beer drinker is wide open and sorely needed. Noemí and Jackie believe the craft beer scene is ready.

“It’s time for something new,” says Noemí.

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

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 9

EVENTS

SHORTlist

ART

the

THREE YOU HAVE TO SEE

COORDINATED BY

SETH COMBS

SAN DIEGO

LEAVING A LEGACY

Now is not the time to get complacent.

With a decidedly conservative Supreme Court and a Trump administration attempting to curtail the rights of LGBTQ citizens, it’s important for the community to not only celebrate our accomplishments, but remember those who fought to get us here in hopes their lessons prove valuable in fighting back now.

Of course, this year’s San Diego LGBT Pride theme of “Stonewall 50: Legacy of Liberation” is particularly apt for the annual Spirit of Stonewall Rally at 6 p.m. on Friday, July 12 at the Hillcrest Pride Flag (1500 University Ave.). The free annual Pride weekend kickoff event will feature speakers including activist and singer/songwriter Mila Jam, who will also perform “The StarSpangled Banner” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Stick around after the rally for the annual Pride Block Party, a dance-friendly festival in the streets that includes DJs, bars, go-go dancers and performers from RuPaul’s Drag Race. It goes until 11 p.m., and tickets range from free to $55 for VIP tickets.

Get some sleep because on Saturday, July 13, there’s the Pride 5K, while others will want to grab a prime viewing spot for the annual Pride Parade. Happening from 10 a.m. to noon all along University Avenue, the parade includes dozens of floats, marching bands and community groups.

SAN YSIDRO AND MORENA

ROCKING BACK

COURTESY OF SAN DIEGO PRIDE

San Diego Pride Parade Also on Saturday and into Sunday, July 14, there’s the Pride Festival at Marston Point inside Balboa Park (Sixth Avenue & Laurel Street). Opening at 11 a.m. every day, the fest includes multiple stages of performances including CityBeat faves such as King Princess, Mykki Blanco, Snow Tha Product and more (see this week’s music feature and If I Were U section for more). There will also be dozens of vendors and food options as well. Tickets are $20 to $175.

And there will be more off-site and sponsored Pride activities throughout the week. See the special section in the paper and our calendar listings for more events, including special concerts, art shows, film screenings, food events, drag shows, religious services and more. Tickets and info for all of the above can be found at sdpride.org.

TIJUANA

ZINE SCENE

Don’t let anyone tell you the local music scene isn’t an altruistic bunch. The proof is in two women-run benefits this weekend that attempt to give back and even fight back. First is the It’s My Choice! Fest, an all-day showcase of over a dozen music acts that aims to raise money for Planned Parenthood. Happening Friday, July 12 at the The FRONT Arte Cultura (147 W. San Ysidro Blvd.) from 3 to 11 p.m., the benefit will feature bands such as Racketgirl, The Fazes and headliners Strawberry Army. Admission is $10 and more info is at facebook.com/sriosly. On Saturday, July 13 at 8:30 p.m., a host of local women will perform at the Rock Goddess Benefit Night at Brick by Brick (1130 Buenos Ave., brickbybrick.com). The rock goddesses performing include Rhythm Rose Turner, Juliet Hawkins, Shamini Jain and many more. The $15 cover will benefit the Voices of Our City Choir.

The binational arts community of San Diego and Tijuana is thriving through its DIY scene and zine artists are no exception.

Independent artists, illustrators and writers from the border region and beyond are producing work that aims to create greater cross-border communication through print. The Tijuana Zine Fest aims to bring this work to the forefront and it all goes down on Saturday, July 13. The festival will be held from noon to 6:30 p.m. at Pasaje Rodriguez (Avenida Revolución, entre Calle 3ra y Calle 4ta, Zona Centro). The annual fest will bring together all kinds of comic creators, artists, writers and DIY aficionados. There will be more than 50 exhibitors selling and exchanging their work, as well as food, visual art and music. Admission is free. tijuanazinefest.com EMILYO ARIAS

TORREY BAILEY

HRainbow Pride Art Show and Open Mic at The Brown Building, 4133 Poplar St., City Heights. Chris Mok Creations and Loud & Queer Zine present a pridethemed art show featuring LGBTQ artists.

From 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, July 11. Free. thebrownbuilding.org HClaudia Dominguez: The Making of a Graphic Novel—More Than Money at the Athenaeum Art Center, 1955 Julian Ave, Logan Heights. Exhibition of watercolor paintings by Claudia Dominguez, whose debut graphic novel, More Than Money, tells the story of her father’s kidnapping and ransom in Mexico City. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, July 13.

Free. ljathenaeum.org/aac-gallery Out and Proud Gallery Art Show at Kava Collective, 1731 University Ave., Hillcrest.

The Empowered Art Society hosts a vendor art show exhibiting work by LGBTQ artists.

Additional wall space available to local artists throughout Pride Week. From noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, July 13 and Sunday, July 14. Free. facebook.com/thempoweredart HA Show About Touching at Bread & Salt, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights.

A group art show curated by Elizabeth Rooklidge and exploring women’s desire through the evocation of bodily touch.

Artists include Jessica Buie, Kate Clark, Chantal Wnuk and more. Opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. facebook.com/breadandsaltsd HBrian Kesinger: Dream It Yourself at the Oceanside Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside. An exhibition of sculptures, illustrations and animations by artist and filmmaker Brian Kesinger. Opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, July 13. $8. oma-online.org HTijuana Zine Fest at Pasaje Rodriguez, Avenida Revolución, Entre Calle 3ra y Calle 4ta, Tijuana. The DIY zine and art festival will feature live music, food and drinks and more than 50 exhibitors selling and exchanging art. From noon to 6:30 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. tijuanazinefest.com HThe More I Paint, The Less I Know at Thumbprint Gallery, 920 Kline St., La Jolla.

An exhibition of new works by FilipinoAmerican artist Carlo Guevarra Miranda.

Opening from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. thumbprintgallery.com HArchitecting Happiness at Thumbprint Gallery, 920 Kline St., La Jolla. An exhibition of new architectural-based works by contemporary urban abstract artist Victorio Villa. Opening from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. thumbprintgallery.com

BOOKS HMaurice Broaddus at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave., Ste. 100, Clairemont. The novelist will discuss and sign his new Black steampunk novel, Buffalo Soldier. At 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 10. Free. 858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com HKimi Eisele at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave., Ste. 100, Clairemont. The novelist and multi-disciplinary artist will discuss and sign her new dystopian novel, The Lightest Object in the Universe. At 2 p.m. Sunday, July 14. Free.

858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com Andy Duncan at Mysterious Galaxy Book Store, 5943 Balboa Ave., Ste. 100, Clairemont. The Nebula Award-winning writer will discuss and sign his story collection, An Agent of Utopia. At 7 p.m.

Tuesday, July 16. Free. 858-268-4747, mystgalaxy.com Tom O’Neill at Warwick’s Bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The awardwinning journalist and writer will discuss and sign his new book, Chaos: Charles

Voices of Our City Choir 10 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

Tijuana Zine Fest

H = CityBeat picks

Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties. At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 17. Free. warwicks.com

COMEDY Daniel Sloss at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. The Scottish comedian and star of multiple Netflix specials will perform a dark, stand-up comedy show as part of his latest worldwide tour.

At 8 p.m. Friday, July 12. $38.50. 619570-1100, sandiegotheatres.org

FOOD & DRINK Little Italy Food Hall Anniversary Party at Little Italy Food Hall, 550 W. Date St., Ste. B, Little Italy. Celebrate one year of the outdoor food court with anniversary cocktails and treats, live music and Sam the Cooking Guy whipping up bites on the patio. From 3 to 10 p.m. Friday, July 12.

Free. littleitalyfoodhall.com Helia Fest at Helia Brewing Company, 1250 Keystone Way, San Marcos. Community music and arts event with beer, live painting, local vendors, festival games, raffles and live music from Boostive, Helena Holleran, Sealight and more.

From 3 to 10 p.m. Saturday, July 13. $12. heliabeer.com HOUT in Little Italy: Pride Brunch at Piazza Della Famiglia, 555 W. Date St., Little Italy. Brunch-goers can enjoy bottomless mimosas, food from eight participating eateries, and drag performances by Glitz Glam and Kickxy Vixen-Styles. From 9 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday, July 14. $75. littleitalysd.com HPhil’s Big BBQ at Petco Park, North Tailgate Lot on 14th Avenue and K Street, East Village. The annual fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of San Diego County bundles barbecue, a beer garden and a ticket to see the Padres play the Atlanta Braves. From 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, July 14. $25-$60. sdbigs.org

FILM HMotherload at 10 Barrel Brewing Company, 1501 E St., East Village. Join others for a screening of Liz Channing’s new film, Motherload, and celebrating the launch of Velocker, a bicycle cargo company that emphasizes versatility and sustainability. launch party. At 6:30 p.m.

Friday, July 12. $5-$10 suggested donation. ebikecargo.com

MUSIC Legendary Women’s Voices: An Evening with Cynthia Erivo at Embarcadero Marina Park South, 200 Marina Park Way, Downtown. The Tony, Emmy and Grammy award-winning singer will perform hits from the greatest female singers, including “Stormy Weather,” “Midnight Train to Georgia,” “Ne Me Quitte Pas” and more.

From 7:30 to 10 p.m. Friday, July 12. $24$93.619-235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org HIt’s My Choice! Fest at The FRONT Arte Cultura, 147 W. San Ysidro Blvd., San Ysidro.

Support the voices and the rights of women in this all-women festival featuring musical performances including Strawberry Army, Fazes, AMZEL and more. All proceeds go to Planned Parenthood. From 3 to 11 p.m.

Friday, July 12. $10. facebook.com/sriosly San Diego International Organ Festival at Spreckels Organ Pavilion, 2125 Pan American Road E., Balboa Park. Showcase performance of the rising stars in the organ world, featuring the first prizewinners Aaron Tan and Luke Staisiunas of the National Young Organists Competition. At 7:30 p.m. Monday, July 15. Free. 619702-8188, spreckelsorgan.org

EVENTS CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 @SDCITYBEAT

@SDCITYBEAT

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 11

BOOKS: THE FLOATING LIBRARY

EVENTS EVENTS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 HPine Mountain Logs at Birch Aquarium, 2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla. The annual Green Flash Concert Series continues with the aquarium-favorite cover band, performing classic hits from Led Zeppelin, Jackson Five and more. From 5:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 17. $33-$38. 858534-7336, aquarium.ucsd.edu

PERFORMANCE HDrag Me to the Del at Hotel del Coronado, 1500 Orange Ave., Coronado. Willam and Lady Bunny Forever! headline the drag show, with all proceeds benefiting the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus. From 8:30 to 11 p.m. Thursday, July 11. $45$125. 619-522-8490, hoteldel.com The Try Guys: Legends of the Internet at Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Keith, Ned, Zach, and Eugene will bring their YouTube brand of “trying everything and anything” to the stage for an evening of comedy and spectacle. At 7:30 p.m. Sunday, July 14. $40-$90. 619-5701100, sandiegotheatres.org

POETRY & SPOKEN WORD Long Story Short: Try Anything Twice at Kava Collective, 1731 University Ave., North Park. Improvised storytelling show in which participants sign up to tell a true, five-minute story to an audience related to the week’s theme of “Try Anything Twice.”

From 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, July 11.

Free. sosayweallonline.com HPalabra at La Bodega Gallery, 2196 Logan Ave., Barrio Logan. The evening of poetry will include readings from local poet Chris Ernest Nelson and hosted by Ted Washington. From 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, July 11. Free. 619-255-7036, labodegagallery.com HCheck, Please! An Open Mic Experiment at You Belong Here, 3619 El Cajon Blvd., Normal Heights. This open mic, hosted by Kelsey Olivia, is all about experimentation and inclusivity. Observe or sign up at the door to participate. From 7 to 9:30 p.m.

Thursday, July 11. $5. youbelongsd.com

POLITICS & COMMUNITY HClose the Concentration Camps Rally and March at Larsen Field, 4100 Camino de la Plaza, San Ysidro. Gather to protest conditions faced by refugees in concentration camps. There will also be children’s activities, art installations, and a Lights for Liberty Vigil. From 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, July 12. Free. facebook.com/events

Hands Off Iran: Detailing the Hypocrisy of the US Empire at the San Diego Justice Center, 4410 Glacier Ave. Ste. 101, Grantville. An informative session for those who want to better understand IranU.S. diplomatic relations. From 6 to 8 p.m.

Sunday, July 14. Free. facebook.com/ events/323105635284278

SPECIAL EVENTS HRob Benzon Foundation Pride LAUNCH Party at Historic Burnham House, 3565 7th Ave., Bankers Hill. The 20th annual Pride launch party will feature food, drinks and speakers, all to raise funds for the foundation’s mission to provide help and hope to LGBTQ individuals who are suffering from a personal catastrophic event. From 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, July 12. $90. robbenzon.org HSpirit of Stonewall Rally at Hillcrest Pride Flag, 1500 University Ave., Hillcrest.

San Diego celebrates the 1975 Pride rally at Stonewall and honors leaders in the LGBTQ community with awards and speakers. From 6 to 7 p.m. Friday, July 12.

Free. 619-297-7683, sdpride.org HPride of Hillcrest Block Party at Pride Square Plaza, 1500 University Ave., Hillcrest. Celebrate San Diego’s vibrant LGBTQ community with live performances, laser light shows, food trucks, a beer garden, Ferris Wheel and celebrity guests. From 2 to 11 p.m. Friday, July 12. Free-$55. sdpride.org HSan Diego Pride Parade and Festival at Hillcrest and Balboa Park. Celebrate LGBTQ pride with the annual parade, festival, rally, block party and more. Parade happens from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, July 13, along University Avenue in Hillcrest. Festival ($20-$200) happens at Marston Point inside Balboa Park (6th Avenue & Laurel Street) from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Saturday, July 13, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Sunday, July 14. sdpride.org HPet Photo Shoot Fundraiser at Green Flash Brewing Company, 6550 Mira Mesa Blvd., Mira Mesa. Pet-lovers can support the San Diego Humane Society by booking a photo shoot for their pet at this onsite event with Agolg Photo Pet Photography. From 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 13. $50-$195. facebook.com/agoldphotos HJunk in the Trunk Vintage Market at Ingram Plaza, 2645 Historic Decatur Road, Liberty Station. All things antique, vintage and handmade will be displayed in more than 90 vendors, alongside live music, food and drinks, photo-ops and more. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, July 13 and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, July 14. $10-$25. junkinthetrunkvintagemarket.com HPaper Theatre Festival at Geisel Library, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. The 18th annual, family-friendly celebration of the art form from Victorian Era Europe, featuring

12 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

She’s a maniac

I

n Juliet the Maniac, Juliet Escoria’s autobiographical novel, the teenaged protagonist sets out on what will be a wild night of reckless drugtaking and excessive partying with a hatchet in her purse. In a different kind of novel, this would mark a night of terror, bloodshed and gore, but Juliet is not that kind of maniac.

Set in the years between 1998 and 2000, Juliet the Maniac explores what it’s like for a teenager to experience massively disruptive health issues. In Juliet’s situation, however, it’s her brain and there’s no traumatic trigger, no incident that can be pointed to as a definitive cause of her suffering. In fact, Juliet has a plethora of advantages and opportunities that many students lack: She’s attractive and intelligent, comes from a stable home and is the daughter of affluent parents.

When she finds herself in a group therapy session at a mental hospital following a suicide attempt, this reality becomes problematic.

“Not once did anyone ever talk about what it was like when your only trauma was yourself,” Juliet says to herself.

Diagnosed with bi-polar disorder, Juliet struggles to navigate an illness with no obvious origin.

She also struggles to not let the illness—or the medication she takes to combat it—define her. In other words, she’s more than her diagnosis.

Set in the fictional town of Santa Bonita in San Diego’s North County (the author now lives in West

impromptu performances of the toy theaters and DIY crafting. Various times. Saturday, July 13 through Monday, July 15.

Free. 858-822-5758, library.ucsd.edu HLa Pulga Flea Market at 2292 National Ave., Barrio Logan. Located in the Barrio Logan Art District, this market will have art, clothing, jewelry, and vintage items from artisans and independent vendors. Kid and pet friendly. From 4 to 9 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. labodegagallery.com HInspire Festival at Heritage Garden, 121 W. Juniper Ave., Escondido. Annual fundraising event for ARTHATCH with live music, art demos, interactive play-art and food and unlimited tastings from Jacked Up Brewery, Milagro Winery, Modern Maker and more.

From 5:30 to 9 p.m. Saturday, July 13. $15-$35. 760-781-5779, arthatch.org Sun and Sea Festival at Seacoast Drive between Portwood Pier Plaza and Dunes

Virginia), Juliet the Maniac invites comparisons to Susanna Kaysen’s memoir Girl Interrupted and Andrea Seigel’s Like the Red Panda, which was set in Orange County.

Escoria is especially adept at portraying the fraught and, at times, volatile friendships of troubled teenage girls dealing with a multitude of disorders and diagnoses.

Written in a series of short vignettes, Escoria takes her readers through the literal highs and figurative lows of a teenager seemingly wired to self-destruct. Every so often, Escoria punctures the narrative with “A Letter from the Future.”

These chapters clue the reader into ways the story differs from how Escoria lived it.

“I kept thinking about how the fictionalized version of myself should lose her virginity,” Escoria reflects.

“Maybe I should write it just the way I lost mine. Maybe I should write it where she was so fucked up, she didn’t even know if she’d lost her virginity of not. Maybe I needed to make a statement about teenage sexuality. But then I decided, fuck that.”

Juliet the Maniac is a howl of despair, but one that needs to be heard in order to understand afflictions such as depression, bi-polar disorder and schizophrenia, as well as destigmatize those who suffer from them.

—Jim Ruland

The Floating Library appears every other week.

Park, Imperial Beach. Professional sand sculptors compete to build the most impressive sandcastle for the viewing pleasure of the public. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, July 13. Free. sunandseafestival.com HPride 5K Run/Walk at University Avenue and Centre Street, University Heights.

The annual LGBTQ pride race includes team and individual competition, with proceeds benefiting The Center’s Youth Housing Project and San Diego Pride Community Grants. At 7 a.m. Saturday, July 13. $45-$50. frwsd.org/pride5k San Diego 250 Civic Commemoration Ceremony at Junipero Serra Museum, 2727 Presidio Drive, Mission Hills. Distinguished guests, officials and the Kumeyaay Nation will gather to commemorate the past and celebrate the future with cultural performances, speakers, food and more.

From 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 16. Free.

619-232-6203, sandiegohistory.org

HDel Mar Thoroughbred Club Opening Day at the Del Mar Racetrack, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. The first races of the Del Mar race season will include a hat contest with cash prizes, elegant fashion worn by attendees, celebrity sightseeing and, of course, horse racing. From 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, July 17. $15-$30. 858755-1141, dmtc.com

TALKS & DISCUSSIONS HMid-Century Collectors Circle: A Conversation with Modern San Diego and Objects USA at Central Library, 330 Park Blvd., Downtown. Local mid-century experts, collectors and enthusiasts Keith York and Dave Hampton share their favorite acquisitions from the era. Free. At noon. Saturday, July 13. 858-964-8805, mingei.org

@SDCITYBEAT

THEATER JIM CARMODY

Death of the party

L

issette is having a death party. When it’s over—when the guacamole and chips have been consumed and the margaritas downed—she will drink a fatal cocktail that will end her life with dignity at 38 years old.

The Luckiest, now playing at La Jolla Playhouse����������������������������������� , is neither morbid nor overly sen� timental in spite of its subject matter. Me� lissa Ross’ play was produced as part of the Playhouse’s formative DNA New Works Se� ries. The world-premiere production pres� ents Lissette, portrayed in a bravura per� formance by Aleque Reid, as a gutsy woman who decides to take as much control over her death as she has her life. In doing so, she enlists the help of her best friend Peter (Reggie D. White) and, more reluctantly, her mother Cheryl (Deirdre Lovejoy). Over 90 minutes, the story moves back and forth in time as all three characters confront a real� ity that’s known to bring out the best, as well as the worst, in human beings. This is espe� cially true of those who care for one another.

Jaime Castañeda, who served as the Playhouse’s associate artistic director from 2014 to 2018, returns to helm The Luckiest.

Still, for all of the playwright’s considerable insight, the play itself strains to achieve the most effective level of dark comedy. What’s more, none of the dramatic scenes between Lissette and the other two characters are

@SDCITYBEAT

OPENING: Another Roll of the Dice: This world premiere musical works as a pseudo sequel to Guys and Dolls and includes hits from the Frank Loesser songbook. Based on the stories of Damon Runyon, it opens July 10 at the North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach. northcoastrep.org The Wizard of Oz: The story of a Kansas farm girl who gets swept up in a tornado, gets attacked by a lion and kills two witches, but somehow manages to never stop singing. Directed by Lesley K. Pearson, it opens July 11 at the VANGUARD at Westminster Theatre in Point Loma. vanguardsd.org Out on a Limb—New Play Festival: A collection of world-premiere productions from local playwrights. It opens July 12 and runs through July 21 at the Scripps Ranch Theatre. scrippsranchtheatre.org

The Luckiest as visceral as the audience-facing mono� logue she delivers toward the end of the play, where she explains the devastation and hopelessness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). It’s a shame that explana� tion couldn’t have been integrated into the narrative of the play rather than isolated, even if it’s intended this way for maximum impact.

Ross does build intricacies into her three principals, most of all Lissette, who is no long-suffering saint. She confronts her fate with anger, fear and no small amount of courage. As played by White, Peter is the giving, no-B.S. friend who anyone would be lucky to have in their day-to-day life

and especially in a life-or-death crisis.

Lovejoy’s mama Cheryl, played with a Bos� ton accent so heavy it sometimes overpow� ers her lines, skirts the fringe of caricature, but finds a genuineness about two-thirds through the story.

The Luckiest is most certainly a message play, though it’s an important and affirming one.

The Luckiest runs through July 28 at La Jolla Playhouse’s Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre, UCSD. $39-$47; lajollaplayhouse. org

—David L. Coddon

Theater reviews run weekly.

Write to davidc@sdcitybeat.com.

The Wizard of Oz: Another production of the classic tale of Dorothy trying to find her way home.

Directed by Becky Brooks, it opens July 12 at the Patio Playhouse in Escondido. patioplayhouse.com Matilda: The musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s tale about a witty young schoolgirl who may or may not have telepathic powers. Presented by Moonlight Stage Productions, it opens July 17 at the Moonlight Amphitheatre in Vista. moonlightstage. com Million Dollar Quartet: A musical about the legendary 1956 Sun Records meeting between Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins. Presented by Lamb’s Players Theatre, it opens July 17 at The AVO Playhouse in Vista. lambsplayers. org

For complete theater listings, visit sdcitybeat.com

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 13

14 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

SAN DIEGO PRIDE 2019 • A LEGACY OF LIBERATION

STONEWALL SATURDAY • JULY 13

THURSDAY, JULY 10 – SUNDAY, JULY 14 Join San Diego Pride for a weekend of fabulous fun and entertainment. Honor our community leaders at the Spirit of Stonewall Rally, strut your stuff at our Pride parade, and celebrate at our annual Pride Festival.

July 10 - Light Up The Cathedral July 12 - Rally and Block Party July 13 - 5K & Parade July 13–14 - Festival

For tickets and more information, please visit:

SDPRIDE.ORG

SAN DIEGO PRIDE 2019 • A LEGACY OF LIBERATION

12:35-1:35pm Jon Doss 1:45-2:30pm Sateen 2:45-3:15pm SD Gay Men’s Chorus 3:40-4:40pm Mila Jam 4:45-5:35pm Greyson Chance 5:40-6:40pm Drew G, Vassy 6:45-7:45pm Aquaria, Asia O’ Hara, Kim Chi 8:00-9:00pm King Princess 9:00-10:00pm Drew G

SUNDAY • JULY 14 12:00-12:45pm Car Astor 1:00-1:30pm Dorian Electra 1:45-2:45pm Knights of Zion 2:50-3:45pm PERTA 4:00-4:45pm Jarina de Marco 4:50-5:20pm Slayyyter 5:30-6:30pm “True 4 Colors Revue” Drag Show 7:00-9:00pm Melissa Etheridge

THE MOVEMENT

MUNDO LATINA

EUPHORIA

SATURDAY • JULY 13

SATURDAY • JULY 13

SATURDAY • JULY 13

12:00-2:00pm DJ Image 2:00-2:10pm Amber St. James 2:45-3:45pm Zareen Anjum 4:00-4:30pm Cheyenne D’ville Masters 4:30-6:30 K-Swift 6:45-7:15pm HYM 7:30-8:30pm Kinky Loops 8:45-10:00pm Mykki Blanco

SUNDAY • JULY 14 12:00-2:00pm Jalil 2:05-2:25pm Issa Simone 2:30-3:30pm DJ Shorty 3:35-3:55pm PrettiBoiRoq 4:00-6:00pm HEVROCK 6:00-7:00pm TT The Artist 7:00-8:00pm Heabnasty 8:00-9:00pm DJ KiKi

11:30am-12:30pm Miss Lady D 12:30-12:45pm Queer Youth Chorus 1:00-2:00pm Dulcet 2:05-2:50pm Z33R0 3:00-4:00pm DJ Sebastian La Madrid 4:00-5:00pm Franceska with special guests: Groupo Folklorico Herecia Mexicana 5:00-6:00 Vince Delano 6:10-6:30 Fehr Rivas 6:45-7:15pm Alondra Garibay as Gloria Trevi!

7:05-7:35pm Dario Black 7:25-8:25pm Tributo a la Reina the Celia Cruz Tribute Band 8:45-10:00pm DJ Fariba

11:00am-2:00pm Jenny Pocket 2:00-4:00pm Bounce House 4:00-5:00pm Lucas Dice 5:00-6:00pm Oscar P 6:00-8:00pm DJ Ana Paula 8:00-9:00pm Casey Alva 9:00-10:00pm Whitney Day

SUNDAY • JULY 14 11:00am-1:00pm Jenny Pocket 1:00-2:00pm Prince S. 2:00-3:00pm Erick Diaz 3:00-4:00pm Jon Doss 4:00-5:00pm Paul Cowling 5:00-6:00pm Casey Alva 6:00-8:00pm DJ Paulo 8:00-9:00pm DJ Tatiana

SUNDAY • JULY 14

11:45am-12:45pm Puro Feeling 1:00-2:00pm Miss Lady D 2:15-3:15pm La Mera Candelaria 3:30-4:00pm Jessica Wild 4:00-5:00pm DJ Les Ortiz 5:15-6:15pm Snow Tha Product 6:30-7:45pm Ukeim 8:00-9:00pm Nubes - Tribute to Caifanes

SAN DIEGO PRIDE 2019 • A LEGACY OF LIBERATION

SAN DIEGO PRIDE 2019 • A LEGACY OF LIBERATION

ANDREA LOPEZ-VILLAFAÑA

CULTURE | PERFORMANCE

Lips performers clockwise from left: Vavavoom, Cassidy Violagi Richards, Tootie, Cheyenne D. Simmons and Ella Mentry he dimmed lights and disco balls hanging from the ceiling create the kind of ambiance one would expect to see at Lips San Diego, but I’m the only person in the showroom this morning. Upstairs, someone is doing administrative work in the office and downstairs a man puts together a vacuum, preparing himself to clean up all the glitter from the evening before. The speakers overhead are playing “Shake It” by MC Shy D on repeat.

Then Tootie, Lips headliner since 1999, walks in.

“I was doing outreach around the community,” says Tootie, taking off a gray suit jacket. Tootie recently became the executive director of the El Cajon Boulevard Business Improvement Association. Because of the role that Lips and Tootie have played in the neighborhood, it’s no surprise that before our interview the star of the show is doing business outreach in the community.

Lips San Diego is celebrating its 20 year anniversary in San Diego since first opening in Bankers Hill, and then moving to North Park 12 years ago. It’s one of five sister showplaces with locations in New York City, Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta and Chicago.

On any given night, the showroom will be filled with customers celebrating all kinds of special occasions, from birthday parties to divorce celebrations. And although it’s easy to

@SDCITYBEAT

only think of Lips as a place for special occasions, it didn’t earn that reputation without hard work and dedication to improving the community surrounding the establishment.

“When we moved here, El Cajon Boulevard was pretty seedy,” says Tootie, explainCOURTESY OF TOOTIE

Todd Gloria and Tootie ing that there were problems with illicit activity going on in the streets. For many years, certain stretches of El Cajon Boulevard were infamous for the high number of sex workers in the area.

Still, Tootie says a lot of the businesses in the area—what is known as the 30th Street El Cajon Boulevard Hub—came together with the goal of changing the culture and reputation of the neighborhood.

“I love that we (Lips) were the first ones on the boulevard to start attracting limousines because I think it called for a new era on the boulevard,” says Tootie.

Founder of the Lips franchise Mark “Yvonne Lamé” Zschiesche opened the San Diego location in 1999 in Bankers Hill. The city was no stranger to drag shows and drag dining experiences, with several clubs in the city hosting drag nights. The earliest drag dining restaurant was the Show Biz Supper Club, which closed in 1982.

At the Bankers Hill location, Lips was open six nights a week with seven performers who would perform shows every night. Tootie says that, back then, they didn’t realize there was potential for growth—their staff has more than tripled since moving to North Park.

“Those years were very fun and fruitful but they weren’t like when we moved here,” says Tootie.

The decision to move from the Bankers Hill location came after the building was purchased by new owners with plans to transform the office spaces above the restaurant into lofts, which Tootie says was not going to work.

“We are not the quietest neighbors,” says Tootie. “We try to be responsible neighbors but we are not the quietest, so we started looking around.”

Creating the colorful, lively showroom was no easy feat. Tootie remembers they had only eight weeks to move into the new location in North Park, a number based on how long they could stay closed, continue to pay employees and how long performers could go without earning tips.

On the night the keys to the new location were handed over, Tootie rushed to the North Park building and started to take the bathroom apart.

“I grabbed a crowbar and I came here to start taking things apart because we only had eight weeks and I knew how important this was,” Tootie says. Working on the new space meant working 12 to 15 hour days for Tootie, but every employee worked hard to turn Lips into what it is today.

“I had all the girls working. In fact, I wish I had videotaped that,” Tootie recalls with a laugh. If Tootie hadn’t been busy taking down the ceiling to make it higher, those moments would have made “for a good drag reality show” as Tootie puts it. “I had girls with nails out to here sawing. It was pretty fabulous.”

The Lips headliner eventually moved to management and now doesn’t have an official title, but says “the head bitch in charge” sounds right. Tootie walks me up the stairs to the dressing room and past the dozens of photos hanging on the walls of past performers.

“I always want Lips to be seen as a place of celebration,” says Tootie. “But for me, it’s been a lot of work and it has been some heartache too because the baby that I gave birth to 20 years ago or helped raise, is not my baby anymore.”

Tootie was recently recognized as a LGBTQ Community Pride Honoree at the State Legislature’s Pride Month ceremony, and is featured in the San Diego History Center’s Legendary Drag Queens of San Diego exhibit.

Aside from creating change in the community, Tootie says when marriage equality was a hot topic, Lips was instrumental in changing perception about the issue among their customers.

“From the stage every night, 1,000 people a week, I would try to impress upon [that] we don’t have the same rights you guys do. This is a matter of love and equality—that’s what it’s a matter of and they were very receptive to that,” says Tootie.

Twenty years in operation is a lot for a restaurant, and Tootie says that although there is usually an expiration date for restaurants, just like bread, Lips is not white bread.

Lips will host a party in October to celebrate the 20th anniversary and although they’re not ready to disclose details yet, Tootie adds, “there’s so much going on in the boulevard, I don’t see why we wouldn’t move it to the street.”

In the meantime, the future looks fabulous for Lips.

“More glitter, more fabulous performers and to move into a role as a community leader not just on the boulevard, but within greater San Diego,” says Tootie. “Twenty years of being open is nothing to sneeze at and we are primed to be a model business.”

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 19

CULTURE | ART

SEEN LOCAL

human connection. Her paintings, such as the aptly named “Another Painting About Touching,” served as the inspiration for the show’s title.

A Show About Touching exposes a more specific aspect of intimacy: how women’s desires are explored through bodily touch, a subject that is still somewhat taboo.

The group exhibition—which opens Saturday, July efore the start of her residency at After 1920, 13 from 6 to 9 p.m. at Bread & Salt in Logan Heights— an art program in South Park, curator Elizabeth features a variety of media to explore this concept, Rooklidge says that she including paintings, drawCOURTESY OF THE ARTIST felt creatively burnt out. ings, sculpture and video inBut it wasn’t long before she stallations. Participating artfound herself revitalized by loists include Jessica Buie, D.S. cal artists and national moveChapman, Kate Clark, Flavia ments. During Rooklidge’s resiD’Urso, Sarah Farnsworth, dency, the U.S. was in the thick Emily Harter (another After of the Brett Kavanaugh hear1920 resident), Amel Nelson, ings. Social currents like the Tessie Salcido Whitmore and #MeToo movement were also Chantal Wnuk. fighting back against sexism, “It’s always challenging misogyny and the patriarchy. [to know when a collection is And so, the development complete],” Rooklidge says. of Rooklidge’s new exhibition She adds that the curation prowas, in part, driven by this cess is a constant assessment political context. Soon the of the art, individually and as concept behind what would a whole. When selecting and become A Show About Toucharranging pieces, she looks at ing, a new exhibition devoted “how the work addresses the to desire and intimacy, as they subject and the variety of ways pertain to women. they address the subject.”

“It was a show I wanted to Some of the works are ex“Another Painting about Touching” see that hadn’t been done,”

by Chantal Wnuk plicitly physical. Others are says Rooklidge, who also works subtle and abstract, evoking as an art historian in Orange a sense of anticipation. The show aims to present a County. balance between the presence and absence of touch.

More specifically, Rooklidge says a San Diego paintFor Rooklidge, the goal for the show is simple: “I er and sculptor more immediately inspired the concept. hope it uncovers another facet implicit in the conver“Last year, I was introduced to Chantal Wnuk’s work,” sation that is often taboo.”

Rooklidge says. “It’s all about relationships, intimacy and loneliness, and how deeply those things impact us.”

—Anna Fiorino Many of Wnuk’s works spotlight the complexity of

FINISHING TOUCH

B

FINE LINES: QUEEN’S CIRCLE: CRUISING ORAL HISTORIES OF BALBOA PARK A semi-regular column where we review notable new poetry collections, literary journals and zines.

F

or many Americans, especially those under 30 years of age, it may be hard to remember a time when hooking up with someone didn’t involve some sort of digitized courting process. These days, we simply slide into someone’s DMs or swipe right on a smartphone app. Instances of real-life meetings that lead to intimate encounters are increasingly rare.

Queen’s Circle: Cruising Oral Histories of Balboa Park (Burn All Books) is a new collection of essays and interviews edited

by Kate Clark and Samantha Alberts. The zine-style book provides a window into pre-millennium hookup culture, specifically those that occurred in an area of Balboa Park that became known as “the Fruit Loop,” which has been re-knighted as “Queen’s Circle” for the purpose of the project. As if either distinction wasn’t telling enough, Queen’s Circle was a cruising spot for LGBTQ people long before it was even somewhat socially acceptable to show any sort of queer affection in public.

Queen’s Circle works as a postscript to Clark’s “Parkeology” programming (kateclarkprojects.com/ parkeology), a series of on-site public art programs that explored the history of public spaces. Without

20 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

sounding as if I’m dumbing it down, the 2016 programs were essentially really cool group tours of Balboa Park locations that had a somewhat hidden history. They often included artistic and performative aspects, including, in one instance, actors in nude bodysuits for a tour of an area of Balboa Park that once hosted a nudist colony. One of those tours included a video and audio project that explored the queer cruising history of Marston Point, and how it often served as a spot for casual liaisons.

The idea behind “Parkeology,” and now the accompanying Queen’s Circle, is simple enough: to not let this history of these spaces go unnoticed or, even worse, become lost to history. Clark worked with the Lambda LGBTQ Archives and interviewed dozens of elders in the community for the project, and some of those interviews are included in this supplemental book. It’s a quick, fascinating read and filled with first-hand accounts from not only the men and women who frequented Queen’s Circle, but also the cops who busted them and the lawyers who defended them. It’s both historical and anthropological, but more importantly, it’s an immensely valuable document to understanding the secret lives many had to live in late 20th century America.

—Seth Combs @SDCITYBEAT

CULTURE | FILM COURTESY OF THE MATCH FACTORY

Uncertain terms

Our Time

Carlos Reygadas’ epic relationship drama is a taxing, fascinating experience

by Glenn Heath Jr.

T

he narrative conflicts in Westerns are often tied outward across generations. However, Our Time is exto collisions between civilization and nature. plicitly concerned with the adult experience, probably Much of the violence that ensues is connected because Reygadas and López are actually married and to the extreme unbridled urges of capitalism, known the film becomes something of a protracted therapy in the history books as Manifest Destiny. Vast fron- session that explores the couple’s past kerfuffles.

Juan’s internal struggles and insecurities end up tiers, untapped natural resources and indigenous cultures represent new revenue streams for the oppor- mirroring the masculine struggles of many Western tunistic white businessman, as they desire to control characters. Yet, instead of environmental or financial and monetize what has remained untamed for as long volatility, it deals with emotional chaos and Reygadas positions his character as a something of a stalker as anyone can remember.

If not a classic example of the Western genre, Car- who only gets off on seeing his wife in sexual situalos Reygadas’ Our Time does feel like a kindred spirit tions that he controls.

Of course, what he can’t control is Ester’s emotionin the sense that it’s a film that also explores obsessive possession. But instead of land or power, it’s a al connection with Phil (Phil Burgers), the actual cowwoman’s sense of sexual identity that is being threat- boy she has been slowly falling in love with. Their tryst occurs largely off screen until late in the film when ened with confinement.

The enigmatic Mexican director also headlines Juan confronts them during an uncomfortable pillow talk exchange that devolves this taxing relationship drama quickly. Men are largely ineffecas Juan, a world-renowned poet tual in Our Time, and this scene who decided to turn in his pen in particular reveals why Juan is for spurs long ago. Living the OUR TIME the gender’s standard-bearer. cowboy life, he owns and operDirected by Carlos Reygadas Reygadas is known for intiates a bull ranch with wife Ester Starring Natalia López, mately challenging and visually (Natalia López). Despite their Carlos Reygadas and Phil Burgers striking films (Silent Light and mutual agreement not to be Post Tenebras Lux, for example) monogamous, their relationship Not Rated that use duration to expand upon grows increasingly complicated the nuances of emotional disconafter Ester begins having an afnections. He achieves something fair with another man.

Masculinity likes to exist on its own terms and closer to chamber pieces with this rigorous melodrama when those terms are threatened, the masculinity about the stifling patterns of insecurity. His flare for comes lashing out. Juan has mastered the art of pas- formal surrealism and magic takes a backseat to a more sive aggressive jabs, playing the victim one second lived and numbing experience.

The childlike chaos of Our Time’s opening is shockuntil it suits him to recklessly judge the decisions and ingly bookended by footage of Juan’s prized animals feelings of others.

Importantly, Our Time begins with Juan’s chil- battling for supremacy. The belt level camera tracks dren and his extended family partaking in their own the livestock with the same roving spirit it did the vindictive gender games. Marching through a muddy nomadic ruffians, except this time the confrontations river, tween boys decide to launch an all out attack lead to brutal violence. Still, compared to Juan’s selfon the sunbathing girls. Close by, teenagers casually destructive attempts to remake Ester’s sexuality in his drink alcohol and flirt under the blistering sun, trying own image, the rampaging bulls and their battles to the death seem like the far simpler existence by comto feel out exactly where they stand with each other.

It seems that these are the innocent dress rehears- parison. als for what Juan and Ester are currently experiencing.

Like with all of Reygadas’ challenging works, down- Film reviews run weekly. falls seem inevitable and emotions and regrets ripple Write to glennh@sdcitybeat.com

@SDCITYBEAT

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 21

CULTURE | FILM TIMOTHY GREENFIELD-SANDERS / COURTESY OF MAGNOLIA PICTURES

Words of wisdom

C

Toni Morrison

onventional rules of language never meant much to Toni Morrison. The acclaimed writer of Beloved and Nobel Prize winner has been defying the traditions fortified by a largely male literary world ever since her debut novel, The Bluest Eye, was published in 1970. Not surprisingly, many of these same people decried Morrison’s radical exploration of race, identity and class for not being mainstream enough,

as if the only worthy reader was white.

Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’ superb Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am dutifully examines Morrison’s cultural impact, slyly deconstructing the cinematic portrait documentary arc in the process. Using Morrison’s literature as a structuring device, the author, along with multiple literary critics and academic luminaries, give each book release insightful and funny historical context that deepens each achievement.

Not only does this approach provide viewers with an in-depth survey of Morrison’s vast accomplishments, it complicates the auteur label by referencing specific relationships and memories that would inevitably influence each book. This allows for Morrison to come across as a deeply enigmatic yet accessible artist. Interestingly, this transparency does nothing to diminish the mystery surrounding her vision.

The Pieces I Am also doubles as a film about the process of writing as a psychological endeavor.

Morrison confesses early on that she wakes up before dawn every day because mornings offer her the most clarity and serenity. After a certain time of day she “gets dumb.” It’s a beautifully honest and self-aware statement by someone who has spent countless hours toiling away with pen and paper.

Morrison’s legacy will be defined by her profound dedication to the social complexities of black experiences, not just through prose but archival efforts. The Pieces I Am (opening Friday, July 12, at Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas) furthers those pursuits by taking some of the same formal risks that its subject has for nearly five decades.

—Glenn Heath Jr.

OPENING Crawl: While caught in the middle of a massive hurricane, a young woman tries to save her trapped father while battling a horde of hungry alligators. Opens on Friday, July 12, in wide release.

Our Time: Carlos Reygadas’ epic relationship drama follows a pouty poet whose relationship with his wife grows increasingly rocky. Opens Friday, July 12, at the Digital Gym Cinema in North Park.

Stuber: Dave Bautista stars as a volatile detective who recruits an unsuspecting Uber driver (Kumail Nanjiani) to help him solve his latest case in this new action film.

Opens Friday, July 12 in wide release.

Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am: This lovely portrait doc examines the career of writer Toni Morrison, the author behind novels such as Beloved and Song of Solomon. Opens Friday, July 12, at Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas.

Walking On Water: In this visionary doc, renowned environmental artist Christo sets out to realize “The Floating Piers,” a project he conceived with his recently deceased wife and creative partner JeanneClaude. Opens Friday, July 12, at the Landmark Ken Cinema.

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

22 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

COURTESY OF PRODUCT ENTERTAINMENT

MUSIC

Snow Tha Product efore she was a self-sufficient independent musician, Snow Tha Product spent seven years on a high-powered major label, Atlantic Records. And before she was on Atlantic, she was a successful underground rapper, renowned for her rapid-fire bilingual flow.

And when we go way back to the time before all of that stuff, Snow Tha Product was a San Diego kid named Claudia Feliciano who attended Mar Vista High School to the south of the city, and Mira Mesa High School up north. Things were different then, in more ways than one.

“It’s been a cool feeling to have some success and then come back home and be like, ‘Yay, I did it,’” Snow says. “But I think coming back to perform at Pride means a lot, especially because back then I wasn’t necessarily out. I was just getting into dating, so I was just kind of figuring everything out, you know?”

Fast-forward to 2019 and Snow stands tall as a pioneering LGBTQ rapper. Proudly out for about seven years, she has performed at high-profile queer festivals like The Di-

@SDCITYBEAT

nah in Palm Springs and Girls in Wonderland in Florida. Today, she’s in a committed relationship with a New York woman, and the two plan to spend the rest of their lives together. She’s bringing that same energy to San Diego Pride, where she’s playing the Mundo Latina stage on Sunday.

“I can be so proud of who I am as an adult,” she says. “My shows usually include a little bit of mariachi, some piñatas and all that. It’s Latin. It’s proud. It’s LGBTQ. It’s probably gonna be a whole crazy turn-up.

I’m excited to go have fun.”

Indeed, San Diego Pride will act as a sort of celebration for Snow after a period of major professional transition. Last year, she left Atlantic after too many years of what she saw as spinning her wheels.

“I wanted out a long time ago. I didn’t feel like I fit in,” she says. “I just think I’m a little bit of a particular case because I’m bilingual—I’m a really good rapper but I was signed on the pop side, and I’m a female. So they’re trying to do the sexy thing but I’m more alternative looking. I’m hard to pin down in a business where you really need to know what genre you’re going after.”

The decision was mutual: Atlantic appreciated her efforts for the label, she says, and let her out of her contract. Not every artist/label split is so amicable, but after a few

months of back-and-forth, Snow was free to direct her career as she sees fit. Her first priority was going on tour to show that she could play the right places, fill venues, sell a bunch of merch and make money without the guidance of a large corporation.

“I wanted to prove it to myself that the way I wanted to do it was the right way to do

it,” she says. “We’ve been selling out shows and adding legs to the tour. This tour has so many legs it’s a damn octopus.”

Concurrently, she’s started dropping songs and videos at her preferred pace. The cream of the crop includes “Say Bitch,” a track that bounces like a Bay Area party anthem and includes lyrics that encourage women to lift each other up rather than tear each other down. There’s also “Bilingüe,” which finds Snow shifting seamlessly between English and Spanish against a stuttering bass line and icy, dancing synths. The track’s first lines are instructive: “I really cannot wrap my head around the fact it’s / Taken me this long to finally realize I’m fantastic / I used to write my little raps, they’d always look right past it.”

“You hear it coming up, ‘Nobody knows what’s better for you than you,’” Snow says.

“But for me, I’ve always been that 15-yearold who has social anxiety and everything, so sometimes you’re like, ‘Oh, well, this guy sounds like an adult and he’s wearing a suit, so he must know what he’s talking about.’

I’m coming to the realization that I know what I wanna do with my life and I just have to go for it.”

It’s easier to have that perspective, of course, with success and experience. Snow has both. Add in her strong work ethic, her fertile creative mind and her trust in the people around her, and it’s easy to see why she feels like she’s ready to book her own tours, make her own videos, lead her own crew (known as VibeHigher) and even run her own label (Product Entertainment).

Where her lyrics may have sounded like bluster in the past, it now sounds like real, hard-earned confidence.

“I’m finally starting to listen to my gut feelings and to feel like my instincts are on point,” she says. “Sometimes we’re too humble about things, but I think I need to appreciate the fact that I’ve been doing this for 10 years and I think I know what the fuck I’m doing.”

Her road to this point hasn’t always been smooth, but that just makes it all the more rewarding. When asked to reflect on it, Snow comes back to that word again: pride—this time, lowercased.

“I’m proud of my fans. I’m proud of my immediate team that’s always with me. I’m proud of us and this little movement,” she says. “And I’m proud of myself because I’ve been right on a lot of things… and for the things that I always said would work to be working just fine, I’m proud that I’m finally starting to listen to myself.”

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 23

24 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

BY RYAN BRADFORD

MUSIC

NOTES FROM THE SMOKING PATIO

THE

SPOTLIGHT QUIQUE CABANILLAS

voice covers of hip-hop songs. After moving to New York City for college, she began playing in the more pop-focused band Gingerhe title of Jackie Mendoza’s recently released solo EP, LuvHz, lys. Listening to that band, the sonic departure on LuvHz is quite manages to be both a misnomer and a clear designation. Yes, noticeable.

“I guess I liked having all the control, and it was a completely she affirms that it’s pronounced “love hurts,” but also points different sound too,” says Mendoza, who often characterizes her out that it can be just as easily pronounced as “love hertz.”

“Yeah, so two years ago, I moved back home in San Diego,” music as having an oceanic, underwater sound. “I was starting to learn how to produce electronic music, and I resays Mendoza from her current home in TAYO OYEKAN ally wanted to jump into that world and learn how Brooklyn. “I was in a long distance relato produce.” tionship for like a year. And that’s when I One of the more admirable aspects of LuvHz, wrote the song, ‘De Lejos.’ It means ‘from and Mendoza in general, is her seemingly effortafar’ and it’s basically about that relationless mixing of Spanish and English lyrics. The ship.” success of artists such as The Marías and Cuco are The six tracks on LuvHz were almost proof that there’s an appetite for experimental, all written during this period and, upon bilingual pop. What separates Mendoza, however, closer examination, the title can be seen is her aquatic, almost tropical production that has as more of a statement on the measure of hints of reggaeton (“Mucho Más”) and even synsound rather than an assessment of pain. thy noise-pop (“Puppet Angels,” “What I Need”).

That is, the sound of her musical journey, “When I’m writing, I always think back to as well as a measure of the communicaJackie Mendoza when I lived there and my childhood growing up tive sounds of her girlfriend traveling to her from across the country, in hopes of keeping the relationship in San Diego,” Mendoza says. “Even sonically, that Latin influence from being on the border. And then also that feeling of being untogether.

The sounds of love, and how one goes about measuring them, derwater is very beachy and tropical. I even sing about the ocean are all over the EP. It’s quite the departure for Mendoza, who was and seahorses. I feel like it’s the biggest influence on my music.” born in Tijuana and moved to Chula Vista when she was 6-yearsold. When she was a teenager, she would post vids of ukulele-and —Seth Combs

LOCALS ONLY

T

ALBUM REVIEW Drug Hunt Drug Hunt (Blind Owl)

C

an a concept album still exist?

It’s a question that comes to mind when listening to Drug Hunt’s immersive and thrilling self-titled EP. The question is rhetorical, of course. As long as there is music, there will be songwriters who craft sprawling narratives around central themes and ideas. But the pop-culture landscape isn’t the same as in eras that produced Tommy or The Wall. Now—given the internet of everything—successful music creates a dialogue with the world around it, which is extremely difficult for a concept album to do. That is: with a built-in narrative, there’s hardly any room for conversation. And unless the concept/narrative is spoton, the audience is less likely to pay attention.

According to their press release, Drug Hunt’s EP is a “a true concept-album for the post-millennial age” and seeks out to confront a gamut of power structures—everything ranging from

politics to religion. It’s heavy stuff to say the least, even at four tracks.

But Drug Hunt are no strangers to heaviness, and within the first track of their EP, it becomes clear that the music can carry whatever weighty conceit they stack on top of it. Opening track “The Tower” is a seven-minute bruiser of sun-drenched, fuzzybass desert rock. It feels simultaneously vintage and new, like Sabbath and Queens of the Stone Age gave birth to a mutant baby.

Then, at about the three-and-a-half minute mark, the band kicks up the tempo, busts out some Latin flair and takes the listener on a serpentine thrill ride. Even if the lyrics are bleak AF (“Libraries are burning in the beautiful dawn”), it’s the kind of tune that requires headbanging and devil horns.

The band also has an uncanny knack for trading hammers for knives, as is evident on “The Blood,” a sneaky, sinister song that mixes ’70s prog, Giallo soundtracks and even a little bit of Stevie Wonder. It’s a daring bit of showmanship that feels Tarantinoesque in its ability to pay tribute to past masters while creating something new.

With songs that hit this hard, it doesn’t matter if the concept makes sense.

—Ryan Bradford

T

Dávila 666

he one and only time I went to South by Southwest (SXSW), I spent an entire day at a pool hall where Burger Records and San Diego’s Volar Records were co-hosting a garagepunk showcase. The place was nestled in a strip mall, far from downtown Austin and, well, it was anything but cool. Don’t get me wrong: The bands were great, but watching them perform in the corner of a brightly-lit pool hall pretty much killed any punk vibes.

Halfway through the day, Dávila 666 took the stage. I hadn’t heard of them at the time, but after that show, I’ll never forget them. The Puerto Rican rockers seemed to have been delivered by the gods of punk, playing the room not as if it was an outdated pool hall in the middle of the day, but as if they were playing CBGB at the height of its prime. Their singer, Sir Charles, worked the tight crowd into a frenzy, pouring water on himself and barking songs in Español while the rest of the band flung themselves this way and that. For a couple of minutes, it was beautiful chaos.

Later that night, we ran into Sir Charles sitting on the stairs of a 7-11. He was drunk and smoking an e-cigarette—which was the first time I had seen such a device.

The whole experience left me thinking: This band is not of this world. That thought would occur to me a few years later when I saw them play a San Diego Music Thing showcase at Bar Pink and Jello Biafra was there, nodding approvingly at their insanity.

Dávila 666 plays July 12 at Soda Bar.

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 25

MUSIC

IF I WERE U

BY CITYBEAT STAFF

Our picks for the week’s top shows

WEDNESDAY, JULY 10

PLAN A: Vaya Futuro, Le Ra, The Slashes, Penny Pacheo @ The Casbah. From topto-bottom, this is a great lineup of local and Tijuana bands. We especially recommend Tijuana band Vaya Futuro, who play gorgeous, hypnotic indie rock en Español that deserves way more national attention.

PLAN B: Glitterer, Dnll @ Che Café. Our editor hates glitter. Like, really hates it.

So while a band with a name like Glitterer might be a hard sell, he actually quite likes the one-man weirdo-pop project that manages to combine disco bass lines and garage rock. BACKUP PLAN: Nightmares On Wax @ Music Box.

THURSDAY, JULY 11

PLAN A: Horse Jumper of Love, Quali, Mariel @ Soda Bar. Despite having one of the worst names in music, Boston band Horse Jumper of Love play a slow-moving brand of rock that draws comparisons to Silver Jews and Low. It’s quite lovely at times, volatile at others, but it’s always interesting.

BACKUP PLAN: Xiuhtezcatl, Mato Wayuhi @ House of Blues.

4’ w/ Alice Glass, Glass Spells, Ethics, Closeness, and DRÆMINGS @ Club 207.

Readers might recognize Alice Glass’ name from her time in synth-punk band Crystal Castles. Her solo music is much more club-ready electro-pop, but it’s still dark AF. BACKUP PLAN: Spice Pistols, Skid Marks, Dumdum Boys, Red Brigade, Executives, Kid Galahad, Mr Firley, Bossfight, Diatribe, The Yucks @ The Casbah.

SUNDAY, JULY 14

PLAN A: ‘San Diego Pride Festival’ w/ Melissa Etheridge, Car Astor, TT the Artist and more @ Balboa Park. Check out this week’s music feature on Snow Tha Product, a former local who has some straight-up bilingual bangers and is headlining the fest’s Mundo Latina stage. PLAN B: Jackie Mendoza, Tulengua, Digigurl @ Soda Bar. Speaking of bilingual jams, Brooklyn via Chula Vista’s Jackie Mendoza plays hypnotic electro-pop that’s perfect for making out in dark corners (check out this week’s Smoking Patio section for more). BACKUP PLAN: The Havnauts, Los Pinche Pinches, Pink Eye @ The Casbah.

CARLOS JUICA

FRIDAY, JULY 12

PLAN A: Dávila 666, Chango Rey & His Broken Heart Beat, Creepseed @ Soda Bar. Puerto Rico’s Dávila 666 practically reached legendary status with their 2008 debut, which was filled with short blasts of abrasive garage-punk. The fact that they disappeared for seven years only added to the legend.

But now they’re back with a new album on the way and that same spirited live show that even inspires gringos to sing along to the Spanish lyrics. PLAN B: Cold Showers, Vacant Stares, Second Still @ Whistle Stop. This could have easily been a Plan A. L.A.’s Cold Showers combine shoegaze and post-punk—new-wave and no-wave—for a sound that’s both sexy and sad. BACKUP PLAN: Tori Roze & the Hot Mess, Ginger Cowgirl, Chloe Lou & The Liddells @ Winston’s Beach Club.

SATURDAY, JULY 13

PLAN A: ‘San Diego Pride Festival’ w/ King Princess, Mykki Blanco, Kinky Loops and more @ Balboa Park. A day filled with some great musical acts and DJs. We especially love genderqueer chanteuse King Princess (listen to the glorious “1950” right now) and Mykki Blanco, who’s putting out some of the best avant-garde hip-hop in the game right now. PLAN B: ‘Disco Goth

26 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

Vaya Futuro

MONDAY, JULY 15

PLAN A: No Knife, Rob Crow @ The Casbah. Local band No Knife have been playing on and off for nearly two decades, but their combination of punk, hardcore and math-rock still manages to sound fresh after all these years. BACKUP PLAN: MOON + Bodie, Charlie Powers @ Soda Bar.

TUESDAY, JULY 16

PLAN A: FEA, Bruiser Queen @ Soda Bar. Two kick-ass, woman-fronted punk projects for the price of one. And with songs like “Feminazi” and “The Kill,” expect some down-with-the-patriarchy vibes. BACKUP PLAN: The Hiroshima Mockingbords, The Lucy Ring, City Windows @ The Casbah.

@SDCITYBEAT

MUSIC

CONCERTS HOT! NEW! FRESH!

The Loons (Casbah, 7/27), DJ Artistic’s Hip Hop Battle Bot (Casbah, 7/30), The Slow Kill (Soda Bar, 8/6), 3rd Ear Experience (Brick By Brick, 8/8), Planet B (Casbah, 8/11), The Bomboras (Casbah, 8/17), Homeshake (Observatory, 8/23), Hot Flash Heat Wave (The Irenic, 8/28), Sitting on Stacy (The Irenic, 8/31), The Dead Rabbitts (Brick By Brick, 9/6), Brothertiger (Soda Bar, 9/18), Flatfoot 56 (Casbah, 9/26), Beyond Creation (Brick

By Brick, 10/4), Monolord (Brick By Brick, 11/5), Nekromantix (Brick By Brick, 11/15).

ALL SOLD OUT Billie Eilish (Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre, 7/13), Jeff Bridges (BUT, 8/6), The Psychedelic Furs (Observatory, 8/6), Death Cab For Cutie (Observatory, 8/9-10), Touché Amoré (Ché Café Collective, 8/13), Orville Peck (Casbah, 8/15), David Grisman (BUT, 8/29), Queen Nation (BUT, 8/30), The Marshall Tucker Band (BUT, 9/12), Oliver Tree (Observatory, 9/18), Girl in Red (HOB, 9/27), MXMTOON (HOB, 10/2), Jonas Brothers (Pechanga Arena, 10/7), Morcheeba (BUT, 10/13), Tyler Childers (Observatory, 10/15), Mike Watt & The Missingmen (Casbah, 11/2), Two Door Cinema Club (Observatory, 11/8), Built To Spill (Casbah, 11/14).

CANCELLED Jagwar Twin (Casbah, 7/21), Ozzy Os-

@SDCITYBEAT

bourne (North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, 7/23).

GET YER TICKETS Porter Robinson (OMNIA, 7/19), Pouya (HOB, 7/23), Lil Jon (OMNIA, 7/26), Blink-182, Lil Wayne (North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, 8/7), Kacey Musgraves (Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre, 8/27), Andy Grammer (HOB, 9/2), Carrie Underwood (Pechanga Arena, 9/10), Tony Bennett (San Diego Civic Theatre, 9/14), Yungblud (Observatory, 9/19), Cigarettes After Sex (Observatory, 10/5), The Who (Viejas Arena, 10/16), Judah & The Lion (Observatory, 10/17), Senses Fail (HOB, 10/19), Hozier (Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre, 10/26), Helmet (BUT, 11/7).

JULY WEDNESDAY, JULY 10 Bob Schneider at Belly Up Tavern. Jon Bellion at Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre. Guster at Humphreys. Nightmares on Wax DJ set at Music Box. Glitterer at Ché Café Collective. Vaya Futuro at The Casbah. King Whisker at Soda Bar.

THURSDAY, JULY 11 Tim Skold at Brick By Brick. Foghat at Belly Up Tavern. The Manhattan Transfer at Music Box. Xiuhtezcatl at House of Blues. XYLØ at The Casbah.

FRIDAY, JULY 12 The Silent Comedy at The Casbah.

Ward Davis at Observatory North Park.

Daniel Sloss at Balboa Theatre. Davilla

666 at Soda Bar. Phutureprimitive at Music Box. Mistresses of All Evil at Brick By Brick.

SATURDAY, JULY 13 Roni Lee at Brick By Brick. The B-Side Players at Belly Up Tavern. The Loons at Soda Bar. Spice Pistols at The Casbah.

Furrageous at Music Box.

SUNDAY, JULY 14 Jackie Mendoza at Soda Bar. Tower 7 & The Professors at Belly Up Tavern. The Havnauts at The Casbah.

MONDAY, JULY 15 No Knife at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JULY 16 Hugh Jackman at Pechanga Arena. FEA at Soda Bar. The Hiroshima Mockingbirds at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 17 Dylan LeBlanc at The Casbah. August Burns Red at House of Blues. The Appleseed Cast at Soda Bar. Atomic Groove at Belly Up Tavern.

THURSDAY, JULY 18 Dressy Bessy at Soda Bar. Lunar Vacation at House of Blues. Elizabeth Colour Wheel at SPACE. Paragraphs at Belly Up Tavern. Vince DiCola at Brick By Brick.

Malt Couture at The Casbah.

FRIDAY, JULY 19 Why Don’t We at Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre. Rick Braun at Humphreys. Thunderpussy at Belly Up Tav-

ern. The Claypool Lennon Delirium at Music Box. Birdy Bardot at Soda Bar. Porter Robinson at OMNIA. Confide at Brick By Brick. Emo Nite at The Casbah.

SATURDAY, JULY 20 Beck at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. Monsieur Perine at House of Blues. SuicideGirls at Music Box. Cigar at Soda Bar. Betamaxx at Belly Up Tavern. Chantel Jeffries at OMNIA. Mrs. Henry at The Casbah.

SUNDAY, JULY 21 Infinite Floyd at Brick By Brick. Don’t Stop Or We’ll Die at Soda Bar.

MONDAY, JULY 22 We Were Promised Jetpacks at The Casbah. Ringo Deathstarr at Whistle Stop. Kim Gray at Soda Bar.

TUESDAY, JULY 23 Pinky Pinky at Ché Café Collective.

Pouya at House of Blues. Party Nails at The Casbah.

Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. Reel Big Fish at House of Blues. The Highwayman Show at Belly Up Tavern. AJ Froman at The Casbah. Lil Jon at OMNIA.

SATURDAY, JULY 27 $UICIDEBOY$ at SOMA. Wayward Sons at Music Box. X at Belly Up Tavern.

Black Sabbitch at Soda Bar. A Midsummer Masquerade Ball: French Follies at Observatory North Park. ‘80s Metal Jam Night at Brick By Brick. The Loons at The Casbah.

SUNDAY, JULY 28 The Raconteurs at Cal Coast Credit Union Air Theatre at SDSU. Matt Costa at Music Box. Decrepit Birth at Brick

By Brick. Wayward Sons at Music Box. X at Belly Up Tavern. Ric Scales at The Casbah.

MONDAY, JULY 29 Ninet Tayeb at Soda Bar. Le Saboteur at The Casbah.

TUESDAY, JULY 30

WEDNESDAY, JULY 24 Jonathon McReynolds at House of Blues. Cracker at Belly Up Tavern. Drab Majesty at Music Box.

THURSDAY, JULY 25 Bob Log III at The Casbah. Andy McKee’s Guitar Masters at Music Box. Golden Vessel at Soda Bar. The Alarm at House of Blues.

FRIDAY, JULY 26 Stef Chura at Soda Bar. Thrice at North

The Drums at Observatory North Park.

Full Blast Fun Boy at Soda Bar. DJ Artistic’s Hip Hop Battle Bot at The Casbah.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 31 Everything Is Terrible! at The Casbah.

Stranger at Belly Up Tavern. Psychic Graveyard at Soda Bar.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 27

BY CHRISTIN BAILEY

MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

AUGUST THURSDAY, AUGUST 1 Easy Wind at Belly Up Tavern. Alison Sudol at Soda Bar. Born of Osiris at House of Blues. Talib Kweli at Music Box. William Clark Green at The Casbah.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 2 Rascal Flatts at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. Mystic Braves at The Casbah. These Handsome Devils at Music Box. Lil Duval at House of Blues.

Bad Cop/Bad Cop at Soda Bar. Billy Bio at Brick By Brick.

rCLUBSr

710 Beach Club, 710 Garnet Ave., Pacific Beach. Fri: A Perfect Tool & Township Rebellion. Sat: Charlie Rae, Triton Eye. Tue: Ital Vibes, Kapu System, African Postman.

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

Thu: ‘CoolLikeDat’. Fri: ‘House Music Fridays’. Sat: ‘Juicy’. Mon: ‘Organized Grime’. Tue: ‘Deep & Progressive’.

American Comedy Co., 818 B Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: Jeff Dye. Fri: Jeff Dye. Sat: Jeff Dye. Sun: Langston Kerman. Tue: Open Mic. The Bancroft, 9143 Campo Road, Spring Valley. Wed: Karaoke. Thu: Colours of Monochrome. Fri: Clementine, Subspecies. Sun: Tayler Lacey, Five by Five, Michael Bottomley. Mon: Trivia. Tue: Karaoke.

Bang Bang, 526 Market St., Downtown.

Fri: Steve Darko, John Summit, Shuski.

Sat: Kraak & Smaak.

Bar Pink, 3829 30th St., North Park. Sun: ‘Rat Sabbath’.

Beaumont’s, 5665 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Thu: Dude Cervantes. Fri: Stranger.

Sat: The Voices.

Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave., Solana Beach. Wed: Bob Schneider, Carolina Story. Thu: Foghat. Fri: Abbey Road, Jumping Jack Flash. Sat: The BSide Players, Ozomatli’s Raul Pacheco, La Diabla. Sun: Dick Dale, John Blair. Tue: Aviator Stash, WYO, Dorothy & Bill.

Black Cat Bar, 4246 University Ave., City Heights. Fri: Ypsitucky, The Lonesome Lowdowns. Sat: Civil War Rust, Western Settings, Allweather.

Blonde, 1808 W. Washington St., Mission Hills. Wed: ‘Dance Klassique’. Thu: ‘Disco Goth’. Fri: ‘We Are Yr Friends’. Sat: ‘Blonde 54’. Sun: ‘Sunday is 4 Lovers’.

Mon: ‘Restraint Festish Fantasy’. Tue: ‘Techit Easy’.

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

Sat: Big Dude.

ASTROLOGICALLY UNSOUND Weekly forecasts from the so-called universe ARIES (March 21 - April 19): Before you use your iron, check the settings to ensure the heat setting is correct for the fabric… Or else…

TAURUS (April 20 - May 20): I read once that most vitamin supplements are a scam. I am telling you this less to dissuade you from using them and more to encourage you to start a supplement business this week.

SCORPIO (October 23 - November 21): Do you feel like horoscopes are always telling you it’s a bad time to sign contracts? Well, I’ll never tell you that.

Sign as many contracts as you want— what’s the worst that could happen?

GEMINI (May 21 - June 20): This week, watch out for jammed zippers, rabid raccoons and all of the bad choices you’ve made in your life finally catching up to you.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 December 21): When you find out that other people have inner lives with the exact same emotional range and depth as you do, you are really gonna flip.

CANCER (June 21 - July 22): Is it better to carry the tray you know you can balance, or try to show off and end up with shattered porcelain all over the floor?

CAPRICORN (December 22 January 19): You’ve mentally prepared for every possible crisis scenario (including what to do if you wake up two inches tall), but have you readied yourself for when nothing happens—at all?

Brick by Brick, 1130 Buenos Ave., Bay Park. Thu: Tim Skold. Fri: Mistresses of All Evil. Sat: ‘Rock Goddess Benefit Night’.

LEO (July 23 - August 22): You must help the bees but not lose the perspective that, in the grand scheme of things, they are really the ones helping you.

The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Wed: Vaya Futuro, Le Ra, Penny Pacheco, The Slashes. Thu: Xylo, Jane Holiday, Zolita. Fri: The Silent Comedy, Dead Feather Moon, The Liquorsmiths, The Heavy Guilt. Sat: Spice Pistols, Skid Marks, Dum Dum Boys, Executives, Kid

VIRGO (August 23 - September 22): You are going to have to do some work and plan ahead a little more now that everybody knows all of the good ways to survive a Titaniclike shipwreck.

MUSIC CONTINUED ON PAGE 29

28 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

LIBRA (September 23 - October 22): It is important to move through the world with purpose but—more than that—with money. Oh man, you’re really gonna need money for pretty much everything.

AQUARIUS (January 20 - February 18): You’ll move through this week with that feeling you have when your phone battery is at one percent and you plug it in only seconds before it was about to shut off.

PISCES (February 19 - March 20): Going with the flow sometimes leads you over the Niagara Falls in a barrel. But if you can publicize the drop, maybe you can make a career out of it.

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

@SDCITYBEAT

MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 28

Ave., Normal Heights. Mon: Open Mic. Tue: Comedy Night.

Sun: Shane Shipley. Mon: Trivia. Tue: DJ Lexicon Devil.

Shanghai Beach, Post Tropic. Sun: ‘Goth Swap’. Tue: Karaoke.

Galahad & The Eternals, Mr. Firley, Bossfight, Strychnine 99, Diatribe, Personal Conflict, Bathwater Babies, The Yucks, Ak Skurgis. Sun: The Havnauts, Los Pinche Pinches, Pink Eye. Mon: No Knife, Rob Crow. Tue: The Hiroshima Mockingbirds, The Lucy Ring, City Windows.

Mc P’s Irish Pub, 1107 Orange Ave., Coronado. Wed: Harmony Road. Thu: North Star. Fri: Mystique. Sat: Pat Ellis & Blue Frogs. Sun: JG Solo. Mon: JG Solo.

Tue: Glenn Smith.

Proud Mary’s, 5550 Kearny Mesa Road, Kearny Mesa. Wed: Anthony Cullins. Thu: Tomcat Courtney. Fri: Fred Heath & The Sidewinders. Sat: Fish & the Seaweeds.

Spin, 2028 Hancock St., Midtown. Fri: ‘Unite! Music Festival’.

Che Cafe, 1000 Scholars Drive S, La Jolla. Wed: Glitterer, Dnll, Small Talk. Fri: Slater. Sat: Alternate Era, Golden Boy, The Abstracts, Questhaven, Cardboard Boxer.

Sun: Vansire, Boyo. Tue: One Step Closer, Anxious, Big Takeover, Jinx.

Dizzy’s, 4275 Mission Bay Drive, Bay Park. Fri: Curtis Taylor Quartet. Sat: Ian Buss Quintet.

F6ix, 526 F St., Downtown. Thu: ‘TakeOver Thursdays’. Sat: Birdy Bird. Sun: ‘Reggae Sundays’.

Fluxx, 500 Fourth Ave., Downtown. Fri: Beats by Che. Sat: DJ Dynamiq.

House of Blues, 1055 Fifth Ave., Downtown. Wed: Patrick “BlueFrog” Ellis Brand.

Thu: Xiuhtezcatl. Fri: ‘Y2K: One Direction vs Jonas Bros Dance Party’. Sat: Chad & Rosie. Sun: Jerry “Hot Rod” DeMink. Tue: Robin Henkel.

Humphreys Backstage, 2241 Shelter Island Drive, Shelter Island. Wed: Tradewinds. Thu: Modern Country Band.

Fri: Funks Most Wanted. Sat: Evidence Band. Sun: Funkology Band. Mon: Fuzzy Rankins. Tue: Manzanita Blues.

Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. Fri: ‘Umbrella Nights’.

Kensington Club, 4079 Adams Ave., Kensington. Thu: Metal Yoga.

Lestat’s Coffee House, 3343 Adams

@SDCITYBEAT

Martinis Above Fourth, 3940 Fourth Ave., Hillcrest. Wed: Jackie Beat. Thu: Jackie Beat.

The Rail, 3796 Fifth Ave., Hillcrest. Thu: ‘Country Dance’. Fri: ‘Dilf Out & Proud Pride Party’. Sat: ‘Sabados en Fuego’.

Sun: ‘Noche Romantica’.

The Merrow, 1271 University Ave., Hillcrest. Fri: ‘Subwoofer’. Sat: ‘Merrow Pride Party’. Sun: ‘Boots & Chaps’. Mon: ‘Playground Monday Night Dance Party’. Tue: Erick Tyler & the Vibe.

Rich’s, 1051 University Ave., Hillcrest.

Wed: ‘Mischief Pride Kick-Off Party’. Thu: ‘#Lez Pride Blackout Party’. Fri: ‘ElectroPop Pride’. Sat: ‘Pride Massive’. Sun: ‘Stripper Circus Pride’.

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

Riviera Supper Club, 7777 University Ave., La Mesa. Wed: ‘Boss Jazz’. Thu: Chloe Lou & Davies. Fri: Imagery Machine. Sat: Three Chord Justice. Tue: ‘The Works Jam’.

Mr. Peabody’s, 136 Encinitas Blvd., Encinitas. Thu: Jim Allen. Sat: Last Call.

Sun: ‘Jazz Jam’. Mon: Open Mic. Music Box, 1337 India St., Little Italy.

Wed: Monsieur Turbeau, Jon Wesley.

Thu: The Manhattan Transfer. Fri: Phutureprimitive, Dela Moon. Sat: ‘Furrageous’. Sun: Jack Mason, Calisamba.

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

Wed: ‘Drip Trop’. Fri: ‘Factory’. Tue: ‘Night Shift’.

OMNIA Nightclub, 454 Sixth Ave., Downtown. Thu: ‘Undone on Thursday’. Fri: Deorro. Sat: DJ Politik.

Panama 66, 1450 El Prado, Balboa Park.

Wed: ‘The Wednesday Jam Session’.

Thu: Charlie Arbelaez. Fri: Quinteto Aleatorio. Sat: Gabriel Sundy. Sun: Funk Jam. Parq, 615 Broadway, Downtown. Fri: Dynamiq. Sat: Justin Credible.

Pour House, 1903 S. Coast Highway, Oceanside. Wed: Open Mic. Thu: School of Rock. Fri: The Loons. Sat: NuVintage.

Rosie O’Gradys, 3402 Adams Ave., Normal Heights. Wed: DJ Milky Wayne, Parker Meridien. Thu: The Brothers Burn, DJ Redlite. Fri: Reverie Noise. Sat: Sangre. Mon: ‘Jazz Jam’. Tue: ‘Adams Gone Funky’.

Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Wed: King Whisker, Violet Dyes, Polux. Thu: Horse Jumper of Love, Quali, Mariel. Fri: Davila 666, Chango Rey & His Broken Heart Beat, Creepseed. Sat: The Loons, Hollywood Sinners, Salt Lick, Velvet Starlings. Sun: Jackie Mendoza, Tulengua, Digigurl. Mon: MOON, Bodie, Charlie Powers. Tue: FEA, Bruiser Queen.

SOMA, 3350 Sports Arena Blvd., Midway.

Sat: Mainsail, The Model Youth, Calmgrove, Saving the State, Dive at Dawn, Lost Dakota.

SPACE, 3519 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights.

Thu: Sister Schools. Sat: Child of Night,

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

Til-Two Club, 4746 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. Sun: ‘Pants Karaoke!’.

Tin Roof, 401 G St., Downtown. Wed: Lauren Leigh. Thu: Corey Gray & Jake Coco. Sat: Cassie B. Project. Sun: Karaoke. Mon: Chad & Rosie. Tue: Corey Gray & Jake Coco.

Tio Leo’s, 5302 Napa St., Bay Park. Wed: The Jazz Pocket Swing. Thu: Gino and the Lone Gunmen. Fri: The Siers Brothers. Sat: Detroit Underground. Sun: Plow.

Mon: ‘Sexy Salsa & Sensual Bachata’.

Tue: The Tourmaliners.

Tower Bar, 4757 University Ave., City Heights. Fri: Throw, Se Vende, Them Cuts. Sat: Be Like Max, The Steadians, Spaztik, Put On The Batteries. Sun: The Spooky, The Writhers.

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

Wed: DJ Mo Lyon. Thu: ‘BoomBox Thursdays’. Fri: DJ Kid Wonder. Sat: DJ Bacon Bits. Sun: King Schascha, The Drednotz, Jah Army Sound. Mon: ‘#31 Flavors’.

Whistle Stop, 2236 Fern St., South Park.

Wed: Phantom Twins & Adeumazel. Thu: Ohcult, All Beat Up, Gay Agenda. Fri: Cold Showers, Second Still, Vacant Stares. Sat: ‘Booty Bassment’.

Winstons, 1921 Bacon St., Ocean Beach.

Wed: ‘Club Kingston’. Thu: Loose Cannon. Fri: Tori Roze & The Hot Mess, Ginger Cowgirl, Chloe Lou & The Liddell’s.

Sat: Ocean Beach Hip Hop Social. Sun: Karaoke. Mon: Electric Waste Band. Tue: Martrys For Mayhem, Trevor and the Jets.

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 29

30 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · JULY 10, 2019

@SDCITYBEAT

BY JACKIE BRYANT

IN THE BACK

CANNABITCH Terpenes envy

L

ast month I found myself at Concentration 2019: A Cannabis Conference, an industry event at Pala Casino hosted by Terpenes and Testing Magazine. If that last sentence didn’t give it away, this event was as nerdy and niche as cannabis gets these days.

The conference’s main goal was to highlight the significant strides made in the concentrates industry in the last few years.

Naturally, it provided a platform for several ancillary topics, one of which was the discussion that sprouted up around terpenes.

“What even is a terpene?” a friend of mine who works in San Diego’s cannabis industry asked me.

I laughed and thought, “Shouldn’t she know?”

Still, I couldn’t answer much beyond saying, “Uhh, it’s a compound and it affects flavor and, umm, smell,” before trailing off and realizing I didn’t have a thorough grasp on the subject myself.

Like many terms and concepts in cannabis these days, “terpenes” (also called terps) has become an industry buzzword that gets thrown around a lot without much education behind it. For example, several Cali-

@SDCITYBEAT

JACKIE BRYANT

fornia cannabis flower brands are all up in my inbox, spouting off about the benefits of high-quality terpenes in their products. I can almost guarantee that these hired guns at the New York-based public relations firm writing these emails don’t understand the concept of terpenes, either.

A terpene is an aromatic hydrocarbon that naturally occurs in the essential oils of many plants and other organisms, like certain insects. Terpenes are what make an orange peel have that distinctly citrusy smell that differs ever-so-slightly from the terpenes that make up a lemon’s scent. When it comes to cannabis, terpenes are responsible for the difference in smells between strains—why one strain displays hints of pine and another is more floral, like lavender, for example.

Many enthusiasts are seeking out cannabis products high in terpenes because they truly enjoy the potent tastes and smells. Consuming concentrates is, at the moment, the best way to truly drill down on a particular scent and flavor.

But other benefits are emerging as well.

For example, both the medical and recreational cannabis industries have noticed that people respond to different cannabis strains with similar levels of THC in different ways.

Terpenes display at Concentration 2019 Though the science is inexact at the moment, the variance in terpenes is believed to be the difference. This means certain terpenes could produce certain desired medical or recreational effects when used along with different cannabinoids—including differences in mood, pain relief and everything in between.

Some flower brands, like Canndescent (canndescent.com), are digging into the science behind terpenes. According to Headset, a cannabis industry data company, 49 percent of the legal market still lies in flower. So they created an “Art of Flower” growing program, which utilizes proprietary genetics, purified water, organic pest

management and a customized growing environment for different strains.

Canndescent’s flower is dried and cured for 60 days, picked by stem and trimmed by hand. The bud is never touched, so as to avoid cross-contamination. The goal is to produce several different mood-altering effects according to strain. The Limonene terpene, for example, is found in mint, juniper and pine, and is present in the Art of Flower program’s Calm, Cruise, Create, Connect and Charge strains. Terpinolene is found in kumquat, tea tree and lilac and is present only in Charge, which is intended to uplift and energize.

I’ve tried the Calm and Charge, myself, but I haven’t isolated my mood and surroundings enough to really adequately assess if it’s just the terpenes that cause the varying effects of my high. Still, the weed is pretty killer, so I’m looking forward to trying more.

I’m thrilled to be a part of any conversation that moves past the lack of nuance and science in the indica vs. sativa narrative.

Though I’m a bit of a newbie when it comes to terpenes, the science behind it seems encouraging and a necessary next step for a legal cannabis industry that is finally modernizing and growing up.

JULY 10, 2019 · SAN DIEGO CITYBEAT · 31