Family Affair | Vegas Seven, Seven Nights | May 18-24, 2017

FAMILY AFFAIR MUSIC LEGEND

FREE May 18–24, 2017

JOHN FOGERTY

& HIS FORTUNATE SONS

TIËSTO

PORTER ROBINSON

THU MAY 18

FRI MAY 19

M AY

T H U RS DAY

M AY

F R I DAY

M AY

SAT U R DAY

18 TIËSTO 19 PORTER ROBINSON 20 TIËSTO

SAT MAY 20

TIËSTO

N I G H TC TA U RUARN 1 1 77002222 88 99 1 KAKSAASNANNI G NHI G HLTC UO BM .C O N IL GU HB TC+L1U B7+012 2 7809212 1839 8 13 1 388 3| 8 R|E S RE S TA AT N T+ + 1 1177888888 | | HH AA KK TC U BL.C | M |

DRAKE S U N D AY M AY 2 1

O F F I C I A L A F T E R PA RT Y

Gin Blossoms

SATURDAY 20 TASTE: Plaza Hotel & Casino is hosting

a Luau Beach Party at its pool, and it’s all-you-can-eat! We’re talking Mahi Mahi, Kalua Pig and Huli Huli Chicken. But swing by the ATM, because it’s a cash bar. 7 p.m., $40, plazahotelcasino.com

HEAR: Rock and/or roll is on the menu

W HA T TO DO

AF T ER DARK

By JASON R. LATHAM

THURSDAY 18 LAUGH: The Crapshoot Comedy Festival kicks off in Downtown Las Vegas, and that’s better than any hack sitcom they’re showing on Thursday nights these days. The first evening promises shows at El Cortez, Commonwealth, Ne10 and Beauty Bar, but just make sure you get to Zappos Chambers to see Dave Attell. 9 p.m., $49, 400 Stewart Ave., crapshootcomedyfestival.com. Meet more of the headlining comedians in this issue of Vegas Seven.

DANCE: If it’s been a few nights since you’ve hit the

club. Start a fresh streak with Tiësto at Hakkasan.

10:30 p.m., $20–$30, inside MGM Grand, hakkasanlv.com

FRIDAY 19 HEAR: ’90s nostalgia is in bloom with Gin Blossoms

at Downtown’s Golden Nugget. 8 p.m., $39–$139, goldennugget.com

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

LAUGH: You can catch Bill Maher during his Real Time show on HBO tonight, or you can see him live at The Mirage. The comedian performs the first of two weekend shows (the second is Saturday).

10 p.m., $66–$87, mirage.com SEE: It’s a huge day for science-fiction fans, for

America and for the world at large. Alien: Covenant is in theaters. Venues, showtimes and ticket prices vary, fandango.com. Check out our review at vegasseven.com/aliencovenant

DANCE: XS turns 8 years old this year. Relive the

memories you’ve made (and make new ones) as the Encore nightclub celebrates Night One of its 8 Year Anniversary extravaganza with Marshmello. 10 p.m., $20–$30, inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, xslasvegas.com Omnia Nightclub counters that booking with Calvin Harris and Generik. 10:30 p.m., $30–$50, inside Caesars Palace, omnianightclub.com And down at Mandalay Bay, Light taps T-Pain for a live performance. 10:30 p.m., $26-$38, inside Mandalay Bay, thelightvegas.com

at The Cannery with a twofer: Edgar Winter Band and Rick Derringer.

Lawdy mama, light my fuse. 8 p.m., $19–$33, cannerycasino.com CBS Radio’s SPF summer concert goes off at The Cosmopolitan’s Boulevard Pool. DNCE, Hailee Steinfeld, Jason Derulo, Niall Horan and Post Malone are on the bill. That’s gonna be a big deal. 9 p.m., $45, thecosmopolitanlasvegas.com Or, if you’re into the acoustic stuff, American Idol finalist Chris Daughtry brings his band to M Resort for an unplugged performance. 7 p.m., $25, themresort.com And Chris Brown’s The Party tour rolls into MGM Grand Garden Arena, with guest stars Fabolous, O.T. Genasis and Kap G. 7:30 p.m., $40–$130, inside MGM Grand Las Vegas, mgmgrand.com DANCE: Hold on, back up, let’s give some more love to

Fabolous, because he was an early-aughts favorite who hung in there—and he’s still too cool for that extra “u.” Fab (and Chris Brown) will host their concert after-party at Drai’s Nightclub. 10:30 p.m., $60–$75, inside The Cromwell, draisnightlife.com

Meanwhile, David Guetta steps up for another installment of XS’ 8 Year Anniversary bash.

10 p.m., $30–$50, inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, xslasvegas.com But, that’s not the only nightclub anniversary happening this weekend. Can you believe it’s been a year since Jewel Nightclub opened? Celebrate with Kaskade. 10:30 p.m., $20–$75, inside Aria Resort & Casino, jewelnightclub.com EXPERIENCE: There should be more throwback events

like the Roaring ’20s Anniversary Party at Remedy’s in Henderson. The joint is hosting a live

jazz band, and everyone gets to dress in jazz-era costumes. Let’s hope it’s more like Boardwalk Empire and less like that Stallone movie Oscar. 7 p.m., 3265 St. Rose Pkwy., remedystavern.com

Drake (left) and Melody Sweets

RAGE UNDER THE RAYS

SOAK UP THAT VITAMIN D AT THE DAYCLUB variety show to satisfy your sweet tooth, let her give you a slice of heaven. 9:30 p.m., $25–$40, thesmithcenter.com HEAR: Las Vegas MC Hassan Hamilton and group Brother Mister bring Life After Death, a Notori-

ous B.I.G. tribute to Brooklyn Bowl. 8 p.m., free, at The Linq Promenade, brooklynbowl.com DANCE: “Breathe It In,” people. Rising star Savi is playing Marquee Nightclub. 10:30 p.m., $18–$32, inside The Cosmopolitan, marqueelasvegas.com

BTW, they haven’t run out of Champagne at XS. Tonight, the club puts The Chainsmokers in the spotlight for its 8 Year Anniversary. 10 p.m., $25–$35, inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, xslasvegas.com And Vegas headliner vet Zedd takes the stage for the final night of Jewel’s first anniversary celebration. 10:30 p.m., $20–$70, inside Aria Resort & Casino, jewelnightclub.com

SUNDAY 21 HEAR: Thrash metal legends Testament have been doing their thing since 1983. Tonight they celebrate their legacy at Brooklyn Bowl with guests Sepultura and Prong. 6 p.m., $25, at The Linq Promenade, brooklynbowl.com/las-vegas

Speaking of legends, The Temptations are playing The Orleans Showroom. We ain’t too proud to beg for a ticket. 8 p.m., $49–$70, inside The Orleans Hotel & Casino, orleanscasino.com And, Las Vegas is playing host to another big-time awards show at T-Mobile Arena. Here’s a sample of the lineup for the 2017 Billboard Music Awards: Bruno Mars, Drake, Florida Georgia Line, Imagine Dragons, John Legend and Nicki Minaj. Bad news: Quarterflash didn’t make the cut. But if you still want to see the show in person, go for it.

3:30 p.m. (no admittance after 4:30 p.m.), $87–$1,000, t-mobilearena.com SEE: A Burt Reynolds flick never needed to be

good to be great. One of the best there ever was—

Smokey and the Bandit —is celebrating its 40th

anniversary with a screening at various theaters.

It’s perfectly cool to blow off the Billboard Awards for Burt. 7 p.m., ticket prices and venues vary, fathomevents.com DANCE: Just checking in on the 8 Year Anniversary at

XS and—whoa, it’s Nightswim—with Diplo. 10 p.m., $40–$60, inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, xslasvegas. com

And Drake hosts the official Billboard Music Awards after-party at Hakkasan. 10:30 p.m., $75–$150, inside MGM Grand Las Vegas, hakkasanlv.com

MONDAY 22 EXPERIENCE: Absinthe’s Melody Sweets brings The

Sweets’ Spot back to The Smith Center’s Cabaret Jazz. If you’ve been looking for a burlesque and

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

TUESDAY 23 TASTE: Hey, now, this looks good. The Foundation

Room is hosting its Nibbles & Sips Happy Hour, which sounds kinky, but is not quite kinky enough to actually be kinky. Enjoy $10 bites and $5 drinks and do kinky later. 5–8 p.m., free with RSVP, inside Mandalay Bay, houseofblues.com/lasvegas

WEDNESDAY 24 HEAR: Jennifer Lopez is back for another round of

installments of her Planet Hollywood residency.

She’s also taking a break from being photographed everywhere with A-Rod. Or is she? Check it out and let us know if A-Rod’s in the crowd. 9 p.m., $109–$870, The Axis Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, planethollywoodvegas.com DANCE: London trio Studio B will perform at Light,

Been indoors all week? Starting to feel like you’re losing your tan? That’s all the excuse you need to spend the next three days poolside.

FRIDAY 19 Make up an excuse to bail out of work before lunch and see Austin’s Tritonal play at Marquee Dayclub.

11 a.m., $18–$32, at The Cosmopolitan, marqueelasvegas.com

Electronic dance music duo BRKLYN dropped its latest, “Heart of the City,” in March. It’s excellent. If you’re lucky, maybe they’ll play it during their gig at Aria’s Liquid Pool Lounge. 11 a.m., $10–$20, at Aria Resort & Casino, liquidpoollv.com

SATURDAY 20 You’ll see Travis

Barker with Blink-182 at this year’s Life Is Beautiful Festival. If you can’t wait that long, see him with Jesse Marco at Drai’s Beachclub. 11 a.m., $20–$40, at The Cromwell, draisbeachclub.com

Don’t say a word while we dance with the devil and Duke Dumont at Daylight.

11 a.m., $20–$30, at Mandalay Bay, daylightvegas.com Alesso is onstage at Encore Beach Club.

10 a.m., $30–$75, at Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, encorebeachclub.com

If you want to see the Strip from another point of view, you can head up to Radius Pool on the 25th floor of the Stratosphere. DJ Stephi K plays from noon to 5 p.m. 11 a.m., $14 and two-drink minimum, stratospherehotel.com

and they’re bringing a special guest. That’s a secret, so if you know who it is, don’t spoil it. 10:30 p.m., $26–$38, inside Mandalay Bay, thelightvegas.com

And DJ Nova is spinning at Bare Pool Lounge. Yes, it’s topless—try and keep it together, you pervs. 11 a.m., $10–$20, at The Mirage, barepoollv.com

And if you absolutely cannot wait until Electric Daisy Carnival to see Flosstradamus, you can catch him at Surrender Nightclub. 10:30 p.m., $25–$45, inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, surrendernightclub.com 7

SUNDAY 21 You think you’re tired?

David Guetta will have just pulled

an all-nighter, spinning at XS’ 8 Year Anniversary party, before stepping into the sunlight at Encore Beach Club. 11 a.m., $30–$75, at Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, encorebeachclub.com

The same goes for Tiësto, who has a gig at Hakkasan on Saturday night, but will be back among the swimsuit crowd at Wet Republic. If he can pull it together, you can, too. 11 a.m., $20–$60, at MGM Grand, wetrepublic.com Rehab Beach Club brings out another big name for its new season. This time, Kid Ink gets the call. 11 a.m., $20–$40, at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, rehablv.com –J.R.L.

it’s all relative John Fogerty brings his family on for a new chapter in his career

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

By Jarret Keene Photography Denise Truscello

John Fogerty, the music legend responsible for some of the greatest classic rock songs ever recorded, is backstage before a sound check, holding a bottle of coconut water that he says is “a vain attempt to stay hydrated in Las Vegas.” It’s the end of the first chapter of his Wynn Las Vegas residency. The show is Fortunate Son in Concert, drawing on Fogerty’s half-century-long career in American music. Still draped in flannel and denim, he’s now 71 years old but seems younger, ageless— just like the songs he’s written.

And what a collection of tunes he’s given the world. If you think about it, Fogerty has written the ultimate baseball song (“Centerfield”), the ultimate Vietnam War song (“Fortunate Son”), the ultimate swamp-rock song (“Born on the Bayou”), the ultimate walking-dead song (“Eye of the Zombie”), the ultimate soda-pop song (“Soda Pop”) and so on. The only subject matter Fogerty feels he hasn’t nailed down yet is, in his own words, “a song about love and family.”

“The first love song I wrote that meant something was ‘Joy of My Life’ for my wife Julie on [the 1997 album] Blue Moon Swamp,” he says. “It’s fairly simple: a conversation from our life together. I’m dearly in love with my beautiful wife and my family. When you get older, you feel things more deeply, which was an element in my songwriting I didn’t possess when I started out. I just [wanted] to write a grown-up song.”

His current situation—surrounded by his spouse and grown sons backstage—is a long way from the sharp-edged, frenetic momentum of touring he outlined in his Creedence Clearwater Revival hit “Travelin’ Band,” which reached No. 2 on the Billboard chart in 1970.

“You know, being in a successful rock band and getting on airplanes and buses and trains and even boats—for a kid of 22—was wonderful and fascinating, but also draining,” he says. “Things are still hectic, but I don’t have the nagging ache I used to feel when I was away from my family and I just wanted to get home.”

Fogerty’s son Shane plays guitar in his band, and his other son Tyler sometimes performs with him, too. Fogerty’s wife and brother are involved as agent and road manager, respectively. In years past, the CCR mastermind hated the separation of his private and professional lives. Now, everyone is involved and focused on the same goal. At the moment, that goal is dazzling audiences at Wynn.

“As a kid, especially one who wanted to be a musician, I thought of [Las Vegas] as a city where they put you out to pasture,” he admits. “I certainly didn’t think I was headed here. But a lot of things have changed. I’ve changed. And rock ’n’ roll in a Las Vegas hotel is now embraced. So my attitude is: ‘Hey, let’s give that a whirl.

Let’s begin a new chapter. Let’s bring our best game.’”

It’s the band’s A-game, for sure, especially with the presence of Fogerty’s powerhouse drummer Kenny Aronoff (who used to play with John Mellencamp). It’s a full-throttle rock show that doesn’t skimp on passion or aggression. Indeed, despite the supernatural and horror-tinged aspects of his best songs (“Bad Moon Rising,” “Run Through the Jungle”), Fogerty’s music has always been and still is, at its core, family music, community music. The songs are passed down from one generation to the next, almost like Fogerty intended it.

“It’d be great if I could engineer something like that, but I can’t,” he says.

“When I started writing, I drew from songwriters I loved—from Tin Pan Alley, Irving Berlin, Hoagy Carmichael, Leiber and Stoller, Bob Dylan. It wasn’t until I wrote a song in the Army—a song called ‘Porterville,’ about being born on the wrong side of the tracks and paying for the sins of the father—that I found a direction. That song had substance. It was about something, and I could flesh it out, fabricate it, invent it, give it color.

That’s when it became exciting.”

It’s inevitable that Fogerty’s rhythm guitarist, his son Shane, joins the conversation. Asked to reveal his current favorite moment in the set, the younger Fogerty says it’s the jazzy B-flat sixth chord in “Someday Never Comes,” a song about life’s looming uncertainties. Which leads to another question: Will the sons be joining their father for some musical collaborations in the near future?

“Well, that’s the hope,” says the elder statesman. “My sons have their own band [Hearty Har], and I want to be respectful of that. They’re young, and I’m not, and they have their own vision. But the idea of collaborating and creating arrangements would be the best. Who knows what kind of gumbo will come out of it?” 7

John Fogerty: Fortunate Son in Concert May 19, 20, 24, 27 and 28, 8 p.m., $60–$800, Encore Theater inside Wynn Las Vegas, wynnlasvegas.com Left: Flanked by his sons Tyler (left) and Shane (right), John Fogerty poses with his 1969 Rickenbacker 325 guitar. The rock legend played the instrument at Woodstock, on The Ed Sullivan Show and at many other performances during Creedence Clearwater Revival’s glory days. He only recently reacquired the axe—after being without it for 43 years—and played it onstage during his Wynn residency in March.

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

Comedic Direction Seven must-see acts at Crapshoot Comedy Festival

[ LAUGH NOW ]

Clockwise from top: Sam Jay, Josh Adam Meyers, Flula Borg

By UNA LAMARCHE

“Crapshoot,” the noun, means “risky and uncertain,” but Crapshoot Comedy Festival promises to be anything but a gamble. With its deep bench of both comedy veterans and exciting up-and-comers, it’s nearly impossible to choose just seven to highlight. I tried, but it might be a crapsh—you know what, never mind.

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

Flula Borg began his career as a traditional Bavarian Schuhplattler dancer before becoming an actor, singer, screenwriter, DJ, YouTube celebrity and comic—more or less in that order (he played the snide German a cappella group leader in Pitch Perfect 2). Watching Borg in action almost feels like seeing a Saturday Night Live character come to life, in a good way, whether he’s musing on the literal meaning of “party pooper,” or teaching Conan O’Brien how to call someone an “anus violin” in German.

Sam Jay has been compared to Patrice O’Neal for her stone-faced delivery and relaxed comic timing. As a queer woman of color, the Boston-bred Jay isn’t shy about addressing race and sexuality with candid, confessional warmth. She’s opened for Hannibal Buress and Dave Attell, but is poised to become a headliner herself. In 2015, she was named one of Comedy Central’s Comics To Watch, and she can be seen in the Viceland series Flophouse, about the lives of young comedians.

Aparna Nancherla by her own admission is a textbook introvert. But she takes that wallflower stereotype and turns it into dry, hilarious comedy, focused on the lighter side of anxiety and depression (sample tweet: “Team Apathy for the whatever”) and, more recently, living in the age of President Trump. In addition to her debut album Just Putting It Out There, you can catch Nancherla on Crashing, Master of None and Inside Amy Schumer, or doling out advice for depressives on her comedic self-help podcast, Blue Woman Group.

Josh Adam Meyers is the creator of The Goddamn Comedy Jam, a live show in which comics tell funny personal stories before bursting into a song of their choice backed by a live band. Meyers loves the idea of comics getting out of their comfort zones, which might explain why he’s so raw on stage, whether he’s discussing the panic of masturbation or dissecting animal mating rituals in his self-described “strip club voice.”

Bert Kreischer partied so much in college that he was the inspiration for Van Wilder; now, he performs his trademark brand of outrageous storytelling (drinking with the Russian mob, doing acid at Disneyland) to sold-out crowds across the country (usually not wearing a shirt). Kreischer is a regular guest on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, and recently wrote a memoir called Life of the Party, Stories of a Perpetual Man-Child.

Brad Williams got his awkward big break in comedy when Carlos Mencia called him up onstage at a show (Mencia had been making midget jokes, and Williams has a form of dwarfism). But ever since, he’s been a mainstay at comedy clubs, on late night shows and on his podcast About Last Night with Adam Ray (they’ll do a live taping of it at Crapshoot). Williams’ small stature informs a lot of his material (his top-rated Showtime special is called Fun Size), but his self-deprecation is charming and his energy onstage explains why Robin Williams once called him “Prozac with a head.”

Michelle Buteau brings swagger to every set with her Jersey girl frankness and disarming delivery. Recognizable as “the crazy ex-girlfriend” on Key & Peele, or as a co-host of VH1’s Big Morning Buzz Live, Buteau tours the country performing at clubs, colleges and festivals in between TV appearances. Her first album is titled Shut Up!, but after seeing her act—full of fresh observational comedy punctuated by priceless facial expressions—you won’t want her to. 7

From top: Bert Kreischer, Brad Williams, Michelle Buteau

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

[ SEE THIS ]

A Blank Canvas Barman David Cooper’s creativity extends well beyond spirits at Other Mama

By XANIA V. WOODMAN

At 7:30 p.m. on an evening teetering between spring and summer, I’m sampling cocktails destined for Other Mama’s next seasonal menu. A table of 10 diners dominates the room, creating a buzz, and all but one seat is taken at the bar where the Davids (bartenders David English and David Cooper) are taking turns shuttling drinks with names like Sadako, Svetlana and Geraldine to guests happily hunched over chef-owner Dan Krohmer’s Instagrammable sashimi bowls. While they’re checking out their photo handiwork, I keep peeking over my shoulder, as if the mural Cooper just completed on the long wall to the right of the front door may have somehow changed since my last look. But the work is done, and it’s turned out even better than I could have imagined.

Cooper is an artist in every sense of the word, able to express himself on any canvas, be it a blank page, a cocktail glass or a restaurant wall.

“Some guy dropped off a cocktail book as his résumé,” Krohmer says, recalling how he found out that an applicant for an open bartender position had other skills. “He understands the vibe, the energy.” About two months into Cooper’s tenure there, Krohmer invited him to adorn the walls of the jewel-box restaurant as a paean to the sea. Left to find inspiration, Cooper saw the kitchen’s excitement about a new ingredient: fresh octopus. “I really loved the design of the tentacles, the fluidity. So it was just a really obvious choice.” The artist doesn’t name his work, but an Other Mama food server calls the octopus Hector, and he is an example of what Cooper describes as his “whimsical, kind of psychedelic” and also tongue-in-cheek style. “I always have the same formula, with the background kind of minimal but with a high-contrast color—just one or two colors, and then everything is finished with the black outline,” he says.

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com

borgore

KID INK

SAT, MAY 20

SUN, MAY 21

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

machine gun kelly SAT, MAY 27

REHAB@HRHVEGAS.COM | 702.693.5505 | HARDROCKHOTEL.COM | REHABLV.COM /REHABLV #REHABLV

usher SUN, MAY 28

Completed in mid-April, Cooper’s latest work at Other Mama is a sea-inspired triptych. “The middle panel is a riff on the story of Jonah and the whale, but [with dark humor]: two hobos having a cookout in the belly of the whale,” he says. While there was talk of the panel to the right depicting “a battle royale between a seahorse and a crab or a lobster,” the be-tentacled quartet of jellyfish echoes the dreamy curls of the mermaid who perches in the panel to the left. The piece is so at home it appears to have always been there.

Cooper just celebrated his one-year anniversary behind the bar at Other Mama, but it’s something of a homecoming for the multitalented artist. Born in Reno, Cooper was raised in Las Vegas, where his father was the vice president of operations at the Desert Inn in the early-to-mid-’80s. The family lived on property for a year when Cooper was in fourth grade while their house was being built. “This was during the transition between mob and corporate,” he says, recounting how his father’s car was regularly swept for bombs. Cooper graduated in 1998 from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a degree in illustration—“by hand, obsolete,” he says—then returned briefly to Las Vegas to design “belly glass” for slot machines. “Also obsolete!” he notes, laughing and shaking his head.

After college, Cooper moved to Portland in 2000 and spent the next 17 years doing freelance graphic design and illustration, all the while bartending. In 2012, he wrote and illustrated a take-home cocktail book for an art show, 30 classic recipes with accompanying sketches. “I really love the history of classic cocktails,” he says. “To me there are only, like, a couple dozen drinks in the world, and they’re all variations on those, one way or the other. It doesn’t matter how weird you get, there’s always a base that you start from.” The little book was incredibly popular with the increasingly serious cocktail scene that fetishized top hats and mustaches. “But I don’t even have one tattoo,” he says with a smile and a shrug, noting the irony of an entirely inkfree artist/bartender before returning to the drink at hand, Rosie. Perhaps Cooper prefers the impermanence of painting with consumables—a mixological mandala.

Mural-wise, he’s left his mark here and there—a few restaurant and nursery walls, all likely painted over by now. As tortured

artists go, Cooper’s pain is singular, as he’s found two things he does well, for which he has received recognition in his lifetime and for which people willingly give him money. Actually, there are three things: He also bakes pies. “Because there are rules. With drinks and painting, there’s an absence of rules a lot of the time. Sure, you’ve got to know the guidelines to make something cohesive, but if you know the basic rules, you can go any way you want to. With baking, you cannot.” His pies (especially his Key lime) have a decade-long winning streak. “That’s the only thing I really brag about,” he says.

Cooper is the first to see where his myriad artistic talents cross over. “I like things with high contrast. It translates to my drinks, too. But you have to have balance,” he says. “Before you drink your cocktail, you look at it. And you want to make sure it’s appetizing.” But it can’t all be about the aesthetics; quality must follow through to the palate. “It gives me a lot of pleasure to make something for somebody. Think about it: This woman gets off of work, and this is the first and probably only professionally made cocktail she’ll get all week. You want it to be good for her. And it makes her have a good experience, a good night, a good weekend, the rest of her week. It just kind of helps make life a little easier sometimes.”

His visual art has a similarly ameliorative aim. Across the room, to the left of the daily oyster lineup, another Cooper piece hangs, one he estimates he did 20 years ago that Krohmer liked and asked to display. Like much of Cooper’s art, it’s abstract expressionism, inspired by artists Francis Bacon, Jackson Pollock and Jean-Michel Basquiat. “It doesn’t have to make sense to me. It’s more about getting the energy out,” he says. “You can let your eye travel around the room and clear your thoughts. That’s what I really want: It’s more of a pain pill, an aspirin of sorts.”

A fourth Cooper is displayed in the men’s room, an assembly of bonelike shapes that seem to form a Seussical instrument. It’s captivating in a way that bathroom art rarely ever is. “I was listening to a lot of jazz at the time, I guess,” he says. Curious, I ask: Nothing for the ladies room? Head down, focused on assembling the next cocktail, he says matter-of-factly, “Oh, that’s the next one I get to do.” 7

David Cooper’s murals depict life under the sea, a perfect match for Other Mama’s theme.

May 18 –24, 2017 vegasseven.com