Obviously, we should all feel bad for the MedMen employees who are now out of jobs after the once-seemingly-high-flying company finally declared bankruptcy last week and announced that it would wind down operations.
But that aside, anybody who wants to see a healthy, thriving legal-cannabis industry should breathe a small sigh of relief over the news.
Or at least we can hope that MedMen’s demise is a harbinger of change. Cultivated Daily thinks it is: “The halcyon days of young, inexperienced founders raising millions on bold promises to build flashy-yet-unprofitable cannabis companies are over, as investors look for returns and to back diligent operators,” the cannabis newsletter declared on Monday.
That’s no doubt partly true, at least for the time being. But it took a lot more than just MedMen’s crash-and-burn to get investors to look for “diligent operators” where, previously, a lot of them just looked for the flash.
It only takes a quick look at the industry—the taxes, the regulations, the often-slim margins, the competition from the illicit market, the millions of things that can go wrong—to know that a lack of diligence will mean certain death.
Unlike, say, tech entrepreneurs during the dotcom bubble of the ’90s, cannabis companies can’t really ride for year after year on investor money raised solely on the basis of bullshit marketing drivel. In cannabis, you have to make sales, and those sales have to earn a profit. MedMen tried to emulate the tech boom, and failed miserably. Investors will feel forced to be more wary, and less credulous.
At the same time, though, we still live in America in 2024, a land where an obvious lunatic and maladapt is widely considered to be business genius and a tech visionary even as he stumbles about, woefully mismanaging giant companies that sometimes literally get people killed, making insane promises, saying bigoted stuff, and affirmatively providing a platform for literal Nazis to gather. “Late capitalism” has become a cliché for a reason.
Cannabis isn’t free of soulless tech-bro operators whose primary motivations are cash and hip cachet. It likely never will be, though few will measure down to Adam Bierman, the bro who founded MedMen.
Bierman’s tale has been told countless times, including in this space, but it involved stuff like massive, mindless spending on expansions and acquisitions, lavish bacchanals, Teslas for execs, insane levels of compensation, and stuff like him installing a panic room in his house. He’d been gone four years already when MedMen’s final slide began in January as it closed a bunch of stores and its stock was delisted upon reaching a value of zero.
The new management did what it could but the damage was done. In March, MedMen closed its last Bay Area location in San Francisco and had just two stores left in California, both in Los Angeles. At its peak, MedMen operated dozens of stores in more than half a dozen states. After it went public, it was “worth” more than $3 billion at its peak.
Before that, it had become the pot industry’s first “unicorn” (a private company valued at more than $1 billion). Despite the implosion he caused, Bierman is still proud of that fact. On his LinkedIn page (where he lists his current profession as “Cannabis Futurist”) he actually brags about the company’s erstwhile unicorn status.
There is little room in cannabis for excesses like the ones that killed MedMen. People like Bierman were attracted to the business because it’s still sort of outré and because they were expecting a gold rush. Reality quickly set in, but not quickly enough to save such people from themselves, or to save the industry from near-collapse. And it won’t keep mercenary types from entering the business, especially if and when the business starts to turn around.
Still, the void left by MedMen might serve as something of an opportunity for those people in the business—and there are many—who just want to make a good living doing what they love.
Local author and parttime Hawai’i resident Leslie Karst has made a volcanic pivot from her popular Sally Solari series with a brand-new adventure mystery, Molten Death. In this debut of her Orchid Isle series, Karst takes the reader well beyond touristic tiki bars and luau buffets. Once her protagonist sees a body being engulfed by hot lava, the hunt is on for a killer, an authentic hula and a cold mai tai. Molten Death is packed with island lore, simmering eco-politics, beaucoup hot lava and, of course, Karst’s tasty menus.
Did the experience of actually watching glowing molten lava from recent volcanoes trigger the idea for this book?
Leslie Karst: Yes and no. Molten Death has actually been a long time in the making. I came up with the idea for the story after I—like my protagonist, Valerie—was taken aback on my first visit to Hawai‘i at how very different the Big Island was from what I’d imagined it would be. But it was different in a captivating, almost magical way.
What makes the island special for this lava junkie is the presence of two active volcanoes. This ongoing volcanic activity has shaped not only the island’s geology, flora and fauna, but also the culture of the intrepid Polynesians who made the long voyage from the South Pacific to the archipelago by outrigger canoe some 800 years ago. Even today, inhabitants of the Big Island pay respect to Pele by leaving her offerings of gin and woven leis of ti intertwined with ‘ōhi‘a lehua blossoms along the rim of Kīlauea crater.
And when Pele sent a river of lava down through the communities of Leilani Estates and Kapoho back in 2018, I knew it was time to write the story. I had to share my awe and love for this geologically dynamic, culturally diverse and stupendously beautiful island and tell a tale of secrets and mystery, friendship and food, and hot molten lava.
This Orchid Isle Mystery is the first of a brand-new series for you. Was it refreshing for you as a mystery writer to move out in a new direction?
LK: It was. Much as I adore Sally Solari and the cast of characters in that series, after six books, I felt I was ready to move on—I’d told as much of Sally’s story as I needed to. I’ve also long been eager to set a book on the Big Island. A large part of that was my fascination with the volcanoes. But I was also taken with the unique cultural makeup of the place as a result of the history of immigration to the Hawaiian islands. Long after the original Polynesians came the whalers, then the missionaries and other haoles, who ended up in control of vast sugarcane and pineapple plantations. Next came wave after wave of workers brought in to work those plantations, including Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese and Filipinos. As a result, the Big Island is now one of the most culturally diverse places in all the country.
You include plenty of island politics in this new book. Do you have faith in your readers’ interest in the issues?
LK: My guess is that armchair travelers are happy to learn about this “real” Hawai‘i. No one wants to be preached to in a novel, but readers do expect an accurate portrayal of the place where the story is set. And in crime fiction in particular, cultural and political issues specific to the area can be vital to the crafting of the mystery, providing motives for the various suspects. Thus, Molten Death touches on such things as the Hawaiian sovereignty movement and the anger at what some longtime residents see as desecration of their land by the geothermal energy plant down in Puna.
Do you always know how the book ends? Or do you let yourself be surprised by the ultimate outcome?
LK: In the world of crime fiction, writers are often said to be “plotters” or “pantsers”—i.e, they either plot everything in advance or they write by the seat of their pants, making it up as they go.
For my first Sally Solari mystery, Dying for a Taste, I fell firmly into the first category, completing a detailed outline of the entire book before setting fingers to keyboard to begin writing the story. But with each succeeding book, I’ve slipped more and more into that loosey-goosey world of the pantser. That said, I never start writing until I know who did it, and also what prompts my amateur sleuth to investigate the death.
A book launch and signing with Leslie Karst, in conversation with Elizabeth McKenzie, takes place at 7pm on May 9 at Bookshop Santa Cruz. bookshopsantacruz.com
Dina Lusztig Noyes started writing out of necessity in order to make sense of the thoughts running through her head. She was barely in her teens when the Covid-19 pandemic took hold, and had to grapple with the isolation of the lockdown in a new way.
“I just didn’t really know what else to do with myself. So at some point I sat down and I was like, well, there’s a lot of words in my head [and] there’s no real way to get them out because there aren’t exactly many other people around,” she recalls.
Lusztig Noyes, who just turned 17, proceeded to write an entire fantasy novel at age 14 and self-published it. It was a turning point, she says, one which made her realize her capabilities. But that was only the beginning. Soon after, she moved on from prose to find her power in poetry.
Now, Lusztig Noyes has been selected to be Santa Cruz County’s inaugural Youth Poet Laureate. Out of five finalists, she was selected by a panel of local poets and educators during an event at Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz on April 10. The other finalists included Gregory Souza, Simon Ellefson, Sylvi Kayser and Madeline Aliah. The competition was open to any county resident aged 13 to 18.
The Youth Poet Laureate will serve a one-year term from 2024 to 2025.
Lusztig Noyes is quick to point out that the momentous honor is not only about her. She says the final felt more like a celebration of the artform than a coronation.
“I just felt that everyone was [there] to support everyone else,” Lusztig Noyes says about the Kuumba event.
The Youth Poet Laureate—much like the Poet Laureate—acts as an advocate and county ambassador for poetry, social action and civic engagement. According to the Santa Cruz Public Libraries website, the winner will “champion their own poetic practice while also encouraging their peers to take part in the artform through readings, workshops and appearances at events and engagements throughout the county.”
The establishment of the Youth Poet Laureate post was orchestrated by current Santa Cruz County Poet Laureate Farnaz Fatemi. A UC Santa Cruz graduate and longtime area resident, Fatemi was selected for the 2023-2024 term. After assuming the role, Fatemi says that creating a youth poet initiative was a priority.
“I heard from the arts council and county office of education that […] in the past few years different teenagers had asked, ‘why don’t we have a program for a Youth Poet Laureate?’” Fatemi says.
Soon after, Fatemi teamed up with Santa Cruz Public Libraries and it began to take shape. Her goal is to guide the nascent program while still in her post, but have it eventually taken up by youth poets.
“I’m committed to seeing this program for the next several years, work on this program for the next several years, whether I’m Poet Laureate or not. But also to try to make it self sustaining and youth-led,” Fatemi explains.
At the celebration on April 10, Fatemi says that the poet and attendees all experienced something powerful.
“They got something out of it. They felt more hopeful about the world and they felt more hopeful about our community. There were people in tears; it was so sweet.”
Lusztig Noyes echoes the call for more youth-centered poetry programs and events in the county. As inaugural Youth Poet Laureate, she hopes to establish a youth poetry open mic night locally.
“I respect the fact that adults have probably been doing this art form for a lot longer, but I don’t feel like their voice can capture what ours can because we have a very different perspective than they do,” Lusztig Noyes says.
“I want to create a space where I feel like people who are like you, people who do have fresher perspectives, feel comfortable; and feel open; and feel welcome.”
Her work grapples with themes of gender identity, mental health and self-reflection on issues of class. But her influences are more unlikely, citing humorists Douglass Adams and David Sedaris as favorite authors.
Lusztig Noyes says her work is not only to be read, but also to be heard.
“I encourage all those who read this article and enjoy what they read to try and find me at an event and hear what these poems are supposed to sound like, not just what they’re supposed to look like.”
Dina Lusztig Noyes and the other finalists will be reading their poetry at the Scotts Valley Multicultural Fair on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
Poems by Dina below:
CHANGE
Friend, you say it like I wanted this.
“To my knowledge you were born without a uterus.”
Look at me! I’m pretty now, but not without a phallus.
And you breathe now into the table.
You are in pain and to help I am unable;
and so I write, because this is a fable.
It’s hard for me to say that this is just.
Privilege shoots down right to disgust;
and so for life my jaws have shut and rust.
Because I was born a boy: femme of mind,
but not of body (god could never dare to be that kind).
And so I, stag, dream to look a hind.
But I was also born with paper skin.
My ivory organ burns quite easily, akin
to kindling that will never be called sin.
I was born third generation:
not first, not second, past the pain of relocation,
Charles Moothart launched his career collaborating with fellow early-aughts Laguna Beach garage-psych legends Ty Segall and Mikal Cronin. When he’s not playing drums in Segall’s backing band or working on the pair’s hard rock project Fuzz, Moothart can be found recording his own songs with the Fast Band. Far Out Magazine writes, “Being sweet, harsh, and more than a little bit zany in places, Moothart’s latest shows promising signs that he may be able to go toe-to-toe with Segall in the next few years.” ADDIE MAHMASSANI
ANN ALTSTATT: WHY IS THERE SOMETHING INSTEAD OF NOTHING?
Sometimes, it’s not clear when something is lacking. Sometimes, something is only understood through how it affects another thing or someone else. Taking a moment to explore something or someplace from different angles and different perspectives can reveal new details or new understandings of it. Not everything can be directly and fully known immediately and through one angle. Inspired by dark matter and “things that cannot be fully known,” Ann Altstatt explores temporary and hidden stories in their latest exhibition. Specifically, they look at the intersection of scientific inquiry and mysticism to find new ways to understand the material world and find new meanings and stories. ISABELLA MARIE SANGALINE
INFO: 5pm, Indexical, 1050 River St. #119, Santa Cruz. Free.
SATURDAY 5/4
AMERICANA
GRAHAME LESH & FRIENDS
Grahame Lesh, the son of Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh, is Northern California royalty. The musician carries his father’s legacy as the vocalist and guitarist for multiple country-rock projects, including the Terrapin Family Band and Midnight North. The latter band’s latest offering, Diamonds in the Zodiac, features soulful arrangements, optimistic reflections and some highly respected collaborators. Phil Lesh appears on bass for the lead single “The Colors Here,” while producer Amy Helm, the daughter of drummer Levon Helm, provides vocals. Also memorable is the album’s centerpiece, a contemplative ballad called “Jupiter” set to lyrics Robert Hunter wrote. AM
Downtown Santa Cruz brings in free family fun and education from noon to 4pm. Schools, after school activities, camps, artists, face painters and performers ring the area from Abbott Square and along Pacific Avenue. It’s a day for kids to strut their stuff. There are kid DJ’s, dancers, musicians, artists and actors taking center stage in an event that draws thousands of families. It’s also a chance for exhibitors to show what they offer for kids year round. The event has grown over the years and this year’s should be the most popular ever. Downtown businesses join in the celebration with special discounts for the day.
INFO: noon to 4pm. Free. Exhibitors will be lined up on Cooper Street and Pacific Ave (between Church St. & Locust St.)
AFRO-BRAZILIAN
SAMBADÁ
Brazilian-born singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Papiba Godinho has a long history of touring internationally and teaching capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes dance, acrobatics, music and spiritual elements. He’s the founder and director of a local Raízes do Brasil Capoeira School and has led the band SambaDá since 1998. The group’s lead singer, Dandha Da Hora, is a master dancer, vocalist and percussionist. Born and raised in Salvador, Bahia, Da Hora has been a member of Ilê Aiyê, one of Brazil’s leading musical and cultural institutions, since she was six. The septet has developed an infectious blend of samba, reggae and funk. Though the group plays locally frequently, this is a unique and special Capoeira performance you won’t get at a typical SambaDá show. DAN EMERSON
Mark Twain said, “Laughter without a tinge of philosophy is but a sneeze of humor. Genuine humor is replete with wisdom.” Today, one only needs to look at the work of David Sedaris to see how that truth cuts through time. Author, humorist, lecturer and stylish dresser, Sedaris can be described as the modern Mark Twain. His books, short stories and column musings deliver hard truths about being a person in a world of Covid, MAGA and people who use the word “awesome” too much. Make sure to bring a favorite Sedaris book (or buy a copy of his latest at the event), as he’s known for staying after shows, sometimes for hours, signing and drawing personal messages for fans. MAT WEIR
INFO: 7:30pm, Civic Auditorium, 307 Church St., Santa Cruz. $30.50-$61.50. 420-5240.
JAZZ
JEFF HAMILTON ORGAN TRIO
A former protege of the late Mel Lewis, jazz drummer Jeff Hamilton has developed a reputation as a player who is a masterful accompanist while maintaining a distinctive style. Among his most high-profile gigs have been stints with singer Diana Krall, big bandleader Woody Herman, singer Rosemary Clooney and pianist Monty Alexander. He is also coleader of the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and a former member of the LA Four. Since 1992, Hamilton has recorded and released 16 albums as a bandleader. At Kuumbwa, Hamilton will be joined by organist Akiko Tsuruga and guitarist Steve Kovalcheck. DE
INFO: 7pm, Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $36.75/adv, $42/door. 427-2227.
WEDNESDAY 5/8
METAL
EXHUMED
The first thing to know about San Jose Deathgrind band Exhumed is that they are not for weak-stomached individuals. The second thing to know is they’re not for anyone without a bit of a twisted sense of humor. Anyone who meets the criteria will most likely love the absolute brutality that is Exhumed’s music and imagery. After all, not everyone can find solace in songs like “Dinnertime In The Morgue,” “Open The Abscess” and “Rapid Unplanned Disassembly,” but it’s guaranteed someone reading this is already looking up tickets. Exhumed’s 34-year onslaught has been defined by over-the-top gore and raging circle pits. This Wednesday, they launch an all-out assault at the Blue Lagoon with Skeletal Remains and Morbikon. MW
INFO: 7:30pm, Blue Lagoon, 923 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $20/adv, $25/door. 423-7117.
COMEDY
COLIN QUINN
Long ago, in the days of yore, when television couldn’t be recorded without the proper VCR equipment, Saturday Night Live’s satirical news segment Weekend Updatehad but one host. His name was Colin Quinn, and he was wry, ironic . . . and maybe sometimes a little drunk? Quinn is a quintessential Irish New Yorker, with a thick Brooklyn accent and a self-deprecating bent to his humor. His ability to maintain a straight face while cracking big jokes is almost inhuman; the man even sat next to Will Ferrell in a wig and managed not to lose his cool, which makes Quinn even funnier. JI
INFO: 8pm, Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $35-$45. 423-1854.
Imagine yourself way back in January, embarking on a trip to the 50th annual Fungus Fair at London Nelson. Perhaps you convinced a skeptical friend to join you, only to find a line wrapped around the building. And facing a choice between fungus and friendship, trudging back to your car, consoling yourself with a pledge to start earlier next year.
If you too are wondering when mushrooms became all the rage, Far West Fungi, a regional specialty grower, is stepping up with two exciting days’ worth of answers. Far West’s Kierra Garrone and Erin Raser are the planners behind the inaugural Santa Cruz Mountain Mushroom Festival, May 4-5 at Roaring Camp Railroad in Felton.
Garrone and Raser represent the generation following in the footsteps of Far West founder John Garrone, who started out selling mushrooms out of a Volkswagen bus at a San Francisco Farmers’ Market in the ’80s. Today Far West’s eight-acre mushroom farm in Moss Landing produces about 25,000 pounds of mushrooms per day. Yet the family passion for mushrooms extends beyond the culinary into multiple realms of health and sustainability.
So, it makes perfect sense that Far West is stepping onto the events planning stage—and that during our conversation I would learn words like “myco-curious” and “shroom boom.” I was also surprised to learn that the $50 billion-plus global mushroom market is expected to expand at a rate of almost 10% from 2022 to 2030 in response to the booming culinary and medicinal demand.
The planning duo, who are also sisters in law, said they spent the past year traveling to multiple conferences, seminars and trade shows around the country, taking note of the best people and practices. The resulting list of presenters, experts, teachers and performers scheduled along five stages is expansive.
Truly, there are many sides to the humble fungi. Flavor, sustainability and health benefits are familiar. But mushrooms also have medicinal, therapeutic and even spiritual value. With subjects ranging from “thinking and being with fungi” to a mushroom mixology lab and a panel on psychedelics, it was hard to choose where to focus.
So, let’s lead with the news, the latest advances in mushroom research. Allison Feduccia, PhD, is a neuropharmacologist, psychedelic researcher and educator. Her list of credentials is too long to list here, but her talk about Psilocybin Therapy for Mental Wellness promises a look at how psilocybin-assisted therapy and microdosing are revolutionizing our approach to mental wellness.
Interest in medicinal mushrooms, including but not limited to psilocybin, is a big shroom boom topic, and the festival provides multiple opportunities to learn more.
On the food front, Maria Finn—author of Forage, Gather, Feast, Recipes from West Coast Forests, Shores and Urban Spaces—imparts a wealth of mushroom wisdom. Her new book explains how to find and what to do with the delicious foodstuffs you can dig, snip or catch. But her message is less about living off the land than encouraging a relationship with nature in what she calls ecosystem-based living.
Finn wisely notes, “nature has its own systems; we’d be better suited to adopt them than to impose ours onto nature. Nature knows what we need when we need it. Mushrooms come out in the fall, providing a rich source of vitamin D when the sunlight dwindles.”
When asked to name her favorite place in Santa Cruz to forage, she mentioned the beaches north of Davenport, May through June.
Maria left me with an important tip: if you do decide to forage, make sure you get your picks checked by an expert before you eat them. Zooming back out, Kierra and Erin described the upcoming event as a maker’s fair in a music festival format. You’ll find everything from hands-on cultivation workshops to tantalizing cooking demonstrations.
The wild energy of youth is pouring from the practice rooms of Be Natural Music on rehearsal day. Evening approaches in the hours after school, and the kids have traded textbooks for guitars and drums, saxophones, and microphones.
Days before Be Natural’s annual fundraising concerts begin, the band members of Le Son are laying down their playful blend of ska and traditional jazz. “Yoga Matt,” their guitar playing music teacher, bandmate and taskmaster, calls out the tempo changes before launching into a crazy, overdriven solo, backed by the sax, bass, drums and keyboard of the teenage boys.
By the end of the hour-long rehearsal, the combo has run through a creative mix of jumpin’ genres, from the ska classic “One Step Beyond” (“because it’s fun”), to the hard bop “Song for My Father,” creatively reimagined, a piece by the late American jazz pianist Horace Silver.
The quiet between songs is filled with the riffs of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman,” coming from the band rehearsing next door in Studio B.
Le Son doesn’t seem to notice. They’re hesitant to start the next song because “the timing is scary.”
Matt holds their attention with a firm reminder that practicing at home every day will make the time changes easier.
A ferocious rendition of Pearl Jam’s “Even Flow” filters in as Le Son launches into Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five.” When a first take goes awry, Matt keeps things humorous while hinting at his holistic attitude about learning. “Are you guys okay?” he asks. “Are you getting protein in your breakfast?”
AMERICAN NIGHTMARE Adrian Sanchez on guitar and Avel Gonzalez on bass will join bandmates Ozzie, Mica, Gus and Max for Be Natural Music’s Spring concerts. PHOTO: Be Natural
At the top of the hour, the kids gather up their instruments to head home, as a new band arrives, the pre-teens of American Nightmare.
Tomorrow, they will be performing for an audience at Pono in Downtown Santa Cruz, at the first of Be Natural’s fundraisers. No one knows what the turnout will be or how the show will go, but the kids appear cool and ready for the challenge.
YOGA MATT
Ozzy Osbourne may have changed little Matt Pinck’s life forever way back when, and his future world for the better. The grinding metal of Black Sabbath proved unforgettable to the 7-year-old, when his brother invited him to listen to the band’s new record.
“‘Iron Man’ is obviously cliché, right? But the power chords, I couldn’t believe it,” he says, tracing his way back from his present vocation teaching a new generation the joys of music.
Later, in 7th grade, his brother handed him a CD. “Ride the Lightning,” by Metallica.
“He shaped me a couple times, without realizing it.”
The founder and driving force behind Be Natural Music, now known as “Yoga Matt,” began his journey here with piano lessons at 5 years old, getting airplane stickers on his sheet music as a reward for sight-reading. As a kid he wrote a lot of music, and even tried playing tuba and saxophone.
“I did pretend radio shows with a cassette tape recording—just goofy stuff.”
Soon he was taking guitar lessons, being taught the fundamentals and the rudiments, something he appreciates and makes a part of his method as a teacher.
“My first guitar was called a Hondo,” Matt laughs. “It was so fake. I was like, what’s a Hondo guitar?”
By junior high he was into metal—Metallica and Megadeth.
“My room had a second-floor window where I would rock out with the window open. The neighbors hated it!”
His advanced education in music continued, including studies at UC Santa Cruz, Berkeley and Cabrillo. He earned his music degree in jazz guitar, but his love of rock music remains.
Matt came to Santa Cruz from Southern California, following a girl who broke up with him on his birthday in 1997, and has been teaching music here for 25 years.
“When I got here, I was just teaching door to door. I just fell into it, I just started teaching.”
His girlfriend at the time got him to teach at a Montessori school in Felton, teaching 4-year-olds the piano.
“The first thing I learned was I was too intense. Which I still am, I’m still pretty intense. I remember the first kid I made cry. I actually used to make a lot of kids cry. I even made some parents cry. I don’t do that anymore.”
Matt jokingly credits his early education with his penchant for excellence.
“I went to Catholic school,” he laughs. “They’re too strict! I got hit on the knuckles by nuns in the ’50s and ’60s!”
A later influence on his career in teaching came from studying martial arts for four years, when he placed third in the nation for ages 12 to 15. The philosophy of the Be Natural schools reflects his time in the dojo, a blend of structure and playful coaxing to excel.
“I’m known for being a hard-ass for teaching in this town,” he says. “You need to have discipline, and you need to have fun. As a teacher it’s a balancing act.”
Matt’s wife and music partner, Sarah, teaches voice, saxophone, harp and piano at Be Natural.
They met at a natural food store, The Herb Room, in 2011 and married in 2022. The pair honeymooned in Europe from Amsterdam, through Belgium, Paris, London and Dublin.
“We busked the whole way and we had the best time of our lives.”
They love to perform as street musicians when they travel—recently to Kona—Sarah with her alto sax and Matt on guitar with his little 5-watt street cube amp.
THE SCHOOLS
The modest size of Be Natural on Water Street belies all of its creative activity. There are nine teachers at the Santa Cruz school, and 10 at the sister school in Cupertino. There are 190 students in SC, and 60 of them are in bands.
Importantly, Be Natural is a jazz and rock performance school.
“It’s because when you’re on stage there’s a difference,” Matt explains. “When you’re in a band and beginning to bond together, it gives you interaction and meaning. It gives you purpose.”
The live shows that the bands perform every spring are also part of learning and growing.
“When you’re up on stage at Abbott Square and a lot of people are listening, those nerves are still there, and some kids still get nervous, so I have to coach them on that too.”
Matt explains the significance of the name. “There’s a play on the natural half-step, the musical note. But it also has to do with a healthy lifestyle—musicians are known to be pretty unhealthy unless they get rich enough to have really good caterers—or blood transfusions. Our shirts say ‘Just Be.’”
THE KIDS
PJ Corbal, the lead singer of Faceplant, came to Be Natural like many of the students, wanting to sharpen her skills for a school project. Dressed for the day’s rehearsal in cut-off jeans, Doc Martens-style boots and an oversized flannel shirt, she is the playful spark at the center of her seriously focused bandmates: Kai on bass, Dylan and Max on guitars, and Frank behind the drums.
PJ explains between songs why the kids still appreciate the music that was written before they were born, with rock from the ’90s most often at the top of the list.
“The older rock music is just more real and less produced and artificial.” she says. “It’s music that a live band can learn and perform.”
She’s a big fan of Damon Albarn, the singer from Blur and Gorillaz. Kai says Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers is his favorite bass player, and Frank names drummer Daniel Carey of Tool as an inspiration.
The setlist for today’s practice includes a long-rehearsed challenge, the song “Limelight” by the Canadian prog-rock band Rush. The young musicians handle the complex arrangement and rhythm changes with confidence, and their pride in accomplishment shows as they nail the last note.
But it’s not all classic rock for the kids of Be Natural.
Some of the new musicians are “metalheads,” as Matt calls them, but many of the youngest kids, especially the girls between 7 and 9, love the chance to practice pop tunes, songs from Disney musicals like Frozen, and Broadway shows like Hamilton.
The enthusiasm the students have for their favorites is the opportunity Matt takes to inspire well-rounded musicians. “I really appreciate the kids who are studious,” he says, “and I think comes from their parents.”
“Kids will come in to work on something they’re doing in school, like Hamilton, but we have them do their warm-ups, some scales, and then land on what they’re working on.”
When kids come to Be Natural with songs to practice that they don’t love, Matt makes sure they’re given something extra.
“We get kids that say, ‘I’ve got to practice a song I’m doing for school,’ but some are terrible, like the worst songs ever. So we’ll teach them how to play the song, but we tell them, you should also learn a song that you like that you listen to on your phone.”
Matt notes the difference in music culture as it’s changed from the ’80s and ’90s.
“Kids have so much media at the tips of their fingers now. With the music, it’s overstimulated, there’s too much to check out. And everything’s mixed, so kids hear classics through a remix. I don’t think it’s a bad thing, but it’s nice for them to know that song was written in 1970.”
PIZZA PARTY At fundraisers like this (at Woodstock Pizza) kids get excited about
making music. PHOTO: Be Natural Music
SUMMER IN THE CITY…
When summer arrives, it’s time for Be Natural’s music camps. In the five-day camp, musicians hone their craft, learn basic music composition, and prepare for a multi-track, professional-quality recording session. Students participate in the full production of an original song and music video.
Bands often begin in the summer camp because there are many new kids. The teachers have basic songs to start with and the kids begin adding songs that all can agree on.
THE BANDS
Matt explains that the Be Natural bands are constantly morphing, as students come and go, and occasionally changing their name, many of which reflect the personalities of the members.
“We had a band called Not My Fault,” Matt says. “A perfect teenage sentiment.”
A band called The Uninvited became Lies and Lullabies and the dad of one of the band members, a tattoo artist, drew their logo.
“We used to have a band called MEH,” says Matt. “They hated it, but they wouldn’t come up with anything else.”
A band of 12-year-olds called Bananaman created a yellow T-shirt featuring a “banana man” slipping on a peel.
The youngest students with Be Natural are a mere 4 years old and band members are generally from 10 to teens. A band is currently re-forming in Cupertino with retirement-age members, called Young @ Heart. Matt is considering bringing back a similar band of seniors for the Santa Cruz location.
THE GIFT OF MUSICIANSHIP
Yoga Matt shows his passion and dedication for teaching music when asked about what kids get from learning music in an environment with a holistic approach.
“So many things—it helps kids’ cognitive skills, it helps you focus, it helps you in math and science. Besides that, what about your nervousness and your self-doubt, and how you feel about yourself? You’re here and you feel good. We help them cope with humor and being able to handle criticism and critique. That’s huge, and that’s what you’re faced with playing onstage, playing in front of your peers. Besides that, you can’t underestimate friendships. It’s sweet. Insecurity is such a common thing.”
He remembers a surprise birthday party at the school for a longtime student.
“I looked around and I thought, ‘All these people met through us’ It’s a trip, The psychological, emotional part.
“Every time I see someone from the way past, the last time I saw them at 10 or 12, you can really see how much they’ve grown. I saw some kids a couple weeks ago, and you could tell they’re so stoked for what I taught ’em.”
FAME
Matt shows an obvious pride in his students who have made music a career or a big part of their lives, but he’s honest and even protective about them aspiring to fame and stardom.
“There is no from here to here to fame unless you’ve written the right song at the right time with the right sound and the right person hears it at the right time—and I tell kids that fame kills you, it gets really harsh.”
He explains how the internet has changed the nature of fame and success.
“I keep finding a bunch of our kids in big bands that are really popular on Instagram. Will they become rich and famous? No, but there are so many levels of fame now, like pockets of fame.”
Matt wants the kids to be heard and appreciated. They ask how it’s done, and he explains how they need a distributor. Be Natural maintains a library of music from the bands on Soundcloud and uses Distrokid to distribute to other platforms.
KEEPIN’ IT REAL Be Natural rockers Lies and Lullabies kick off the 2024 fundraisers at Pono. PHOTO: Be Natural Music
CONCERT DAY
It’s a typically beautiful day in Downtown Santa Cruz as the kids of Be Natural gather at Pono restaurant for their fundraiser. In the minutes before concert time, there are still empty tables in the large space, but the kids are focused on sound checks and psyching each other up.
Yoga Matt takes the mic and starts to rev up the audience, while the first band takes the stage.
The tables fill quickly, and soon the room is SRO, filled with music and excitement. New arrivals are waiting outside hoping to get in. The sound is great and the crowd is almost as loud as the bands.
Matt is on fire and Sarah is beaming as the kids play their sets. At the show’s end, Matt is pleased and proud. He says it was the biggest crowd they ever had there, and they stayed around.
Matt’s verdict of the Pono show: “epic.”
Be Natural’s Fundraising Concert Series continues through May. Students will be performing at Abbott Square on Kids Day, May 4 from 11:30am to 2:30pm, and on May 5 from 12:30 to 4:30pm at Bruno’s Bar & Grill, 230 Mt Hermon Rd, Scotts Valley.
If you could learn a musical instrument, what would it be? What music would you play?
Kiko Leiani
My dad’s teaching me bass because I’m trying to play reggae. I feel like it opens up a whole new world. It would be nice if I could play music with my dad and his friends.
Kiko Leiani, 15, Student
Miguel Higareda
Probably violin, because it’s the most like singing, in a way. A lot of people use the violin to interpret people’s voices when they do covers. But I have no clue what song or style I would play.
Miguel Higareda, 25, Barista
Tiernan Boyd
I’ve been into ska music lately, so I’d like to learn something more brassy, like trumpet or saxophone, any band instrument that’s brassy.
Tiernan Boyd, 24, Herpetologist and Musician
Brady Harmon
I’ve studied piano, but I’d love to be better. I can’t play a song, so I can’t say that I can play. When I paint I can use both hands, and I used to be able to write with both, so not being able to do that with piano was annoying.
Brady Harmon, 27, Behavioral Technician
Michelle Boyd
It would be violin, and I would play classical and zydeco music. The violin sings, doesn’t it, violin is almost like lyrics when you hear it.
Michelle Boyd, 54, UCSC Medical Reception
Alex Hubbard
It would be really cool to play a Flying V electric guitar so I could play a sped-up version of “Stonehenge” from the Spinal Tap documentary.
Are you ready for how downtown Santa Cruz is going to look in a few years? Giant towering buildings on both sides of Pacific Avenue. The historic Clocktower dwarfed by a structure that looks like it was transplanted from New York City.
That’s what politicians say the voters wanted when they voted 60-40 percent against the Measure M ballot measure that would have put new tall buildings to a vote. Is that really what you were voting for? Didn’t the politicians tell us that no developer would ever want to put up a building higher than 12 stories?
You can read about the new proposed complex in WIlliam S. Woodhams’ story in our news section today. Some say it’s a done deal and there’s not much objectors can do, because after all, for years everyone has been calling out for more housing and now it’s being delivered.
On the lighter side, we have dual cover stories bach to bach. On one hand, there’s a look to the past, one of the great works of Johann Sebastian Bach presented by our symphony, previewed in interviews by Christina Waters.
On the other hand, you can read about how Santa Cruz changed the future of music and allowed you to get a new release by Bach or Taylor Swift online in the blink of an eye. Mat Weir’s story about the Internet Underground Music Archive shows a huge local accomplishment by some idealistic UCSC students.
Too many people only see us as a laid-back surf town but major history and inventions have been made here.
You ever get the feeling that the government is going to do what it wants regardless of how it affects people? (See above!) Imagine you have a house and your city decides to block your driveway for the summer tourist season. They pile giant blocks of wood and put up a fence, after they originally said that wouldn’t happen and there is open space right across the street.
That’s what happened to a Capitola couple who have been renting out their apartment by the Capitola wharf. The city just parked its building materials in front of their garage, the only place for renters to park from now through August. There goes the business.
And when they complained, they were told to “file a complaint.” Homeowner Mark Nicholson, who is a science fiction writer, says it feels like his dystopian novel came true. Journalist Josué Monroy talked with him and city officials.
PHOTO CONTEST
SURFER SILHOUETTE: A vibrant winter sunrise glows behind our favorite statue. The Boardwalk, Wharf, and Loma Prieta enhance this stunning view from West Cliff Drive. Photograph by Andrea Randall
GOOD IDEA
Nighttime drivers in Capitola are greeted by flashing red lights around several stop signs. That’s a brilliant idea, literally and figuratively. No one can miss those signs and we wonder why all street signs aren’t similarly lit up. In New Jersey signs have reflective tape along the posts, which makes them unmistakeable. Why not something more helpful in our county, especially with our obscuring fog.
GOOD WORK
Oral Health Access (OHA) has been working to help the County’s oral health. Its new strategic plan includes mobile dentistry at senior centers, group meal sites and living facilities; promoting transportation options to get to appointments; oral health education and hygiene kits; as well as advocacy for dental coverage to be added to basic Medicare. For teens it will provide onsite care at middle and high schools, work on peer-to-peer education campaigns, and integrate oral health into classrooms. And for diabetic patients, it will increase education with patients and providers about the direct correlation between oral health and diabetes.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.” —Neil Degrasse Tyson
CORRECTION
In our story about saving rainwater there was a miscalculation for how much water you can save in a 1-inch rain event off of a 1,000-square-foot roof. It should have read a 10 X 100 roof not a 10 by 10 roof. Thanks, sharp-eyed readers.
“Take a Hike With Richard Stockton” appears weekly on the Good Times website.
I make the mistake of turning on NPR. As I drive past the Corralitos Market and Sausage Company on Hames Road and turn left on Browns Valley Road, I hear a Texas politician pontificate about his divine knowledge of when life begins. For me, that would be my first cup of coffee. I turn on my windshield wipers and wonder, “Why the hell am I heading for the Byrne-Milliron Forest in this storm? Who would drive through driving rain to climb a mountain?” I’m indeed a curious duck.
SIGNS OF CONFUSION Browns Valley or Brown Valley? Google Maps says Browns.
The Roses of Yesterday and Today sign with monarch butterflies on it is an easy landmark for the road up to the parking lot. Turn left onto the entrance road across from the Roses sign. It’s about a mile up to the Land Trust parking lot.
YESTERDAY’S FLOWERS Welcome to the forest.
My Prius is the only car in the parking lot. There is a blue porta-potty that claims a video camera is capturing everything. I wasn’t too keen on using the porta-potty anyway but reading that my defecation reflex efforts are going to be captured on video makes me want to take my chances with a poop bag in the woods.
I start from the parking lot and find the Byrne Trail. The rain has slacked off, but the wind picks up. It blows harder and harder. The trees bend sideways, creak and pop. Is this a little crazy to be up here now? Yeah, it probably is. I’ll try not to get hit in the head with a redwood limb.
Why do I love hiking in a storm?
Inclement weather can turn a hike into an adventure. Even the easiest trail feels like it’s going into uncharted territory. You can’t see far, you pay more attention to what’s under your feet. You become wild. You’re not just a person invading the landscape, you’re part of it.
Rain is easy. We’re made of water. Wind is different. Wind is to be reckoned with. Wind can be frightening. I was near a tornado once. Very near.
It’s 1996, I’m in Lubbock, Texas, and the comedy club put me up in a motel room that has indoor-outdoor carpet on the floor. The walls shake every time a cattle truck goes by. I pace the floor and berate myself.
“I’ve been a comic for ten years and I’m playing in Lubbock, Texas, at a club called Froggy Bottoms. My career is on fire!”
That’s when I hear the wind. At first it whistles around the windows but grows to pound the little motel and the walls shake. I turn on the radio. The DJ says, “Get down, people. The big blow’s comin’. Ya’ll, it is time to git to the root cellar!” The radio dies and the lights go out. I tremble in the dark as the walls rattle and the wind howls. I’m going to die in Lubbock, Texas.
I go to the door, because being from California, I know that it is safer in a doorway. I open the door three inches. I see a lawn chair blow by. A garbage can shoots down the street. I see a young boy, caught out in the tornado. He is being blown down the street. I should go out and carry him to safety, right? Where exactly is it safe? Am I going to do nothing? Will I let a child perish?
Wait a minute. He is on a skateboard. He has his jacket pulled up over his head as a sail to catch the wind. He shoots past and I hear him yell. “Yeeeeeeeeeehaaaawoo!”
I shake and he sails. There it is. You can cower in fear or go on the ride of your life. No, I did not save that boy. He saved me.
Tornadoes aside, how dangerous is it to hike in a storm?
CLOUD COVER The view from Byrne Trail’s observation deck.
In the Central Coast I think we can probably get away with hiking in weather. Our climate is so temperate, you’re not going to freeze, you’re not going to die of thirst, and it’s not like I’m going to get lost on the Byrne-Milliron mountain and starve to death. It would be hard to get lost enough to have an intermittent fast.
I talk to a woodlot owner, with 20 years in the forest industry. He says, “Walking in the forest during windy conditions can pose risks, especially if there are old or weak trees. You may be able to hear a tree start to fall, but the question is if you will have enough time to react and get out of the way. It can be dangerous, particularly in softwood stands.”
Softwood? That would be redwoods, right? Like the giants that are creaking, moaning and groaning all around me?
I make it to the Byrne Trail observation deck and can look over Watsonville all the way to the ocean and a panorama of much of Monterey Bay. This observation deck alone is worth the trip. Binoculars are amazing up here.
The deck looks like a stage, with Monterey Bay as the backdrop. I feel like King Lear, shouting into the wind.
Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! rage! blow! You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout Till you have drench’d our steeples, drown’d the cocks!
A PATCH OF BLUE as the wind dies down
The rain stops, the wind dies down. Blue sky opens over the ocean and the angry heavens pass over us. I’ll bet you a dollar that back in the day, Ohlone people would stand here to check in on their land and their tribe. It feels like they are here now.
I’ve walked the mountain, with nothing but the feel of the wind and rain across my face. I’m at peace with my storms. Tromping around a mountain of old trees in a violent storm? Probably not a good idea and I don’t recommend that you do it. Unless you have to. Then pull your coat up over your head to catch the wind.
How to Get There: Take Highway 1 to Freedom Boulevard, cross over the freeway and drive up Freedom to Hames Road. Drive through the metropolis of Corralitos, which consists of the Corralitos Market and Sausage Factory, and continue straight. Turn left at Browns Valley Road and go until you see the Roses of Yesterday and Today sign, with monarch butterflies on it. Turn left there. The road up to the Land Trust parking lot is approximately a mile after you turn off Browns Valley Road.
Byrne-Milliron Forest Land Trust: a 2.9-mile loop trail near Watsonville, California. Considered a moderately challenging route, it takes maybe 2 hours to complete. This is a popular trail for birding, hiking and walking, but you can still find solitude. The trail is open year-round and is great to visit anytime. Dogs are welcome and may be off leash in some areas.
An Australian Cattle Dog, called a Queensland Heeler. They’re smart, loyal, fun, very active. You can get one from a farm where they breed them for cattle work. I think my dream dog is a long haired chihuahua mixed with a Cattle Dog.
—Dawn Howell, 34, Aspiring Farmer
Demitrius Ackerman
I would probably say Golden Retriever. I like their fluffy hair. They’re a snuggly dog and they seem pretty energetic too.
—Demitrius Ackerman, 16, Student
Geneva Ludington
Probably a Doberman. They’re kinda scary looking, but they’re really sweet, and they’re good to train.
—Geneva Ludington, 15, Student
Alexander Mills
My first dog was a West Highland Terrier, a little Scottie dog. He had the spunkiest personality, and I’ve just been obsessed with that breed ever since. They’re stubborn little beasts—and so am I.They’re the little white ones with beards.
—Alexander Mills, 20, UCSC Student, works at Santa Cruz Cinema
Lindy Howell
Manx cats are pretty cool. I ended up with two barn kitties, and one was a Manx with just a stub of a tail. He was more of a wild creature, used to running around, catching. He brought me lots of presents.
—Lindy Howell, 64, Radiographer
Christopher Criswell
American Bull Terrier. I have one now—American Bull Terrier crossed with a hound. She’s got long floppy ears and she wiggles, she wiggles around. She’s beautiful, she’s a happy dog.
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If you could learn a musical instrument,what would it be? What music would you play?
My dad’s teaching me bass because I’m trying to play reggae. I feel like it opens up a whole new world. It would be nice if I could play music with my dad and his friends.
Kiko Leiani, 15, Student
Probably violin, because it’s the most like...
