Rob Brezny’s Astrology April 17-23

Free will astrology for the week of April 17, 2019

ARIES (March 21-April 19): French writer Simone de Beauvoir sent a letter to her lover, Aries author Nelson Algren. She wrote, “I like so much the way you are so greedy about life and yet so quiet, your eager greediness and your patience, and your way of not asking much of life and yet taking much because you are so human and alive that you find much in everything.” I’d love to see you embody that state in the coming weeks, Aries. In my astrological opinion, you have a mandate to be both utterly relaxed and totally thrilled; both satisfied with what life brings you and skillfully avid to extract the most out of it; both at peace with what you already have and primed to grab for much more.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The Beat Generation of American poets arose in the late 1940s as a rebellion against materialistic mainstream culture and academic poetry. It embraced sexual liberation, Eastern spirituality, ecological awareness, political activism, and psychedelic drugs. One of its members, Jack Kerouac, tweaked and ennobled the word “beat” to serve as the code name for their movement. In its old colloquial usage, “beat” meant tired or exhausted. But Kerouac re-consecrated it to mean “upbeat” and “beatific,” borrowing from the Italian word beato, translated as “beatific.” I bring this to your attention, Taurus, because you’re on the verge of a similar transition: from the old meaning of “beat” to the new.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “Scattered through the ordinary world, there are books and artifacts and perhaps people who are like doorways into impossible realms, of impossible and contradictory truth.” Argentinian author Jorge Luis Borges said that, and now I’m passing it on to you—just in time for your entrance into a phase when such doorways will be far more available than usual. I hope you will use Borges’ counsel as a reminder to be alert for everyday situations and normal people that could lead you to intriguing experiences and extraordinary revelations and life-changing blessings.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): The Free Will Astrology Committee To Boldly Promote Cancerian Success is glad to see that you’re not politely waiting for opportunities to come to you. Rather, you’re tracking them down and proactively wrangling them into a form that’s workable for your needs. You seem to have realized that what you had assumed was your fair share isn’t actually fair; that you want and deserve more. Although you’re not being mean and manipulative, neither are you being overly nice and amenable; you’re pushing harder to do things your way. I approve! And I endorse your efforts to take it even further.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Many experts who have studied the art and science of running fast believe that it’s best if a runner’s legs are symmetrical and identical in their mechanics. But that theory is not supported by the success of champion sprinter Usain Bolt. Because he has suffered from scoliosis, his left leg is a half-inch longer than his right. With each stride, his left leg stays on the track longer than his right, and his right hits the track with more force. Some scientists speculate that this unevenness not only doesn’t slow him down, but may in fact enhance his speed. In accordance with current astrological variables, I suspect you will be able to thrive on your asymmetry in the coming weeks, just as your fellow Leo Usain Bolt does.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Virgo adventurer Jason Lewis traveled around the world using transportation powered solely by his own body. He walked, bicycled, skated, rowed, pedaled, and swam more than 46,000 miles. I propose that we make him your role model for the next four weeks. You’re primed to accomplish gradual breakthroughs through the use of simple, persistent, incremental actions. Harnessing the power of your physical vitality will be an important factor in your success.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Curcumin is a chemical found in the plant turmeric. When ingested by humans, it may diminish inflammation, lower the risk of diabetes, support cardiovascular health, and treat digestive disorders. But there’s a problem: the body is inefficient in absorbing and using curcumin—unless it’s ingested along with piperine, a chemical in black pepper. Then it’s far more available. What would be the metaphorical equivalent to curcumin in your life? An influence that could be good for you, but that would be even better if you synergized it with a certain additional influence? And what would be the metaphorical equivalent of that additional influence? Now is a good time to investigate these questions.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): “I have the usual capacity for wanting what may not even exist,” wrote poet Galway Kinnell. How about you, Scorpio? Do you, too, have an uncanny ability to long for hypothetical, invisible, mythical, and illusory things? If so, I will ask you to downplay that amazing power of yours for a while. It’s crucial for your future development that you focus on yearning for actual experiences, real people and substantive possibilities. Please understand: I’m not suggesting you’re bad or wrong for having those seemingly impossible desires. I’m simply saying that for now you will thrive on being attracted to things that are genuinely available.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “Sometimes I have kept my feelings to myself, because I could find no language to describe them in,” wrote Sagittarian novelist Jane Austen. I’m guessing you’ve had that experience—maybe more than usual, of late. But I suspect you’ll soon be finding ways to express those embryonic feelings. Congrats in advance! You’ll discover secrets you’ve been concealing from yourself. You’ll receive missing information that’s absence has made it hard to understand the whole story. Your unconscious mind will reveal the rest of what it has thus far merely been hinting at.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): All over the world, rivers and lakes are drying up. Sources of water are shrinking. Droughts are becoming more common and prolonged. Why? Mostly because of climate change. The good news is that lots of people are responding to the crisis with alacrity. Among them is an engineer in India named Ramveer Tanwar. Since 2014, he has organized efforts leading to the rejuvenation of 12 dead lakes and ponds. I propose we make him your role model for the coming weeks. I hope he will inspire you to engage in idealistic pursuits that benefit other people. And I hope you’ll be motivated to foster fluidity and flow and wetness everywhere you go. The astrological time is ripe for such activities.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A blogger named Caramelizee offered her definition of elegance: “being proud of both your feminine and masculine qualities; seeing life as a non-ending university and learning everything you can; caring for yourself with tender precision; respecting and taking advantage of silences; tuning in to your emotions without being oversensitive; owning your personal space and being generous enough to allow other people to own their personal space.” This definition of elegance will be especially apropos and useful for you Aquarians in the coming weeks.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You Pisceans have been summoning heroic levels of creative intensity. You’ve been working extra hard and extra smart. But it seems that you haven’t been fully recognized or appreciated for your efforts. I’m sorry about that. Please don’t let it discourage you from continuing to express great integrity and authenticity. Keep pushing for your noble cause and offering your best gifts. I’m proud of you! And although you may not yet have reaped all the benefits you will ultimately sow, three months from now I bet you’ll be pleased you pushed so hard to be such a righteous servant of the greater good.

Homework: Imagine your future self sends a message to you back through time. What is it? freewillastrology.com.

Inside Coffeetopia’s Indie Coffee Expansion

What a great name, Coffeetopia, the fusion of an ideal world—utopia—and everybody’s favorite caffeine. Lucky us, with three family-owned Coffeetopias in the county, each one feeling like a cozy, neighborhood gem.

No hipster attitude at these assertively indie coffee emporiums, though visitors will still find free wifi and plenty of outlets for device charging.

Coffeetopia welcomes those who come for conversation or reading the newspapers or, yes, even working on laptops. Each outpost offers bracing macchiatos and fresh-dripped Arabica alongside an array of pastries from Kelly’s, a few custom items from artisanal bakers, and plenty of breakfast and lunch fare. Yogurts, burritos, Bagelry bagels, bottled drinks, and big, fat, luscious coconut macaroons. Coffeetopia’s got it all.

Baristas customize organic espresso orders and take the time to make sure green tea is steeped to perfection, and all of the shops also generously embrace local art exhibits. Check out interesting and colorful wall art by enterprising makers as you wait for your cappuccino.

My local Westside branch at 1723 Mission St. is a slender, well-lit, well-appointed haunt for UCSC students and neighbors who like to rendezvous over a latté. Each corner has its own design identity and smart feng shui. Two plump couches create one nook for chatting. Another corner has its own desk for two. The far end is a study counter with room for couples to work side by side. Friendly staff make every patron feel welcome.

The newly expanded Coffeetopia at 1443 Capitola Rd. is a revelation. Formerly a very small space lacking distinct ambience, this super-sized Coffeeteria is now ringed by wall outlets, red banquettes, artwork, and picture windows flooding the interior with light. Chairs are actually comfortable, and the red enamel hanging lights add color points and eye appeal. The front door opens to ample patio seating.

At the 3701 Portola Ave. Coffeetopia, bohemian ambience abounds thanks to artwork like the current colorful woodcuts and acrylics by Leah Beech. In warm weather, the outside tables fill up with Opal Cliffs denizens, their canine companions, and out-of-town guests.

Whatever side of town you’re on, the reasonably priced java always hits the spot. Find your own perfect Coffeetopia.

Open 6 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. coffeetopia.com.

Not your Mother’s Dining Hall

Congratulations to the culinary participants in last week’s UCSC Dining Hall Chefs’ Competition, at which I had a chance to sample and judge five ambitious entrée recipes. And the theme was vegan!

First-place winner Francisco Gonzales-Ruiz won over the judges—and the crowd of supporters—with an astonishing vegan puff pastry filled with mushroom duxelles on a bed of sautéed kale and baby carrots. In second place was a remarkable dish of potato enchiladas by Victor Camarillo Cruz, which featured hand-made tortillas accompanied by spicy sauteed cauliflower and a slaw of parsnips, cilantro and lime.

Saul Lopez’s delicious vegetable and quinoa-filled poblano chili was served with an outstanding chipotle cashew sauce. Scott Radek created a fusion dish of shitake mushroom cakes on yuba noodles with green curry coconut sauce. Janet Mucino’s beautiful tofu mixiotes with poblano rice showed off a sophisticated presentation.

Fabulous organization and emceeing by high-energy William Prime, executive director of UCSC’s Dining and Hospitality Services. Everything we tasted was made on the spot with ingredients sourced entirely from UCSC’s Farm and Garden or Coke Farms.

These dishes may well find their way onto the menus at campus dining halls. Lightyears beyond the choices I encountered as an undergraduate!

Three Festivals for Three Ages: Risa’s Stars April 17-23

We have entered a most important week of multiple festivals. Three festivals this week representing three religions and three Ages (Aries, Pisces and Aquarius)—stages for humanity’s development—are occurring simultaneously. Aries (Age of Laws), Pisces (Age of Faith and Love) and Aquarian (Age of Science, Humanity and Community). All three—Jewish, Christian and Esoteric teachings—are recognized and honored.

Friday is the second Aries Festival—second full moon during Aries. This is most unusual. Friday is Good Friday, historical day of the Crucifixion (Sacrifice Initiation). Friday night begins Jewish Passover, observing the celestial passage from the Age of Taurus to the Age of Aries, symbolized by the Hebrew people’s 40-years walk from Egypt through the Sinai Desert to Canaan (land of milk and honey), culminating with Moses given the 10 Commandments, which began the Age of Aries (Age of Laws). These were laws that directed humanity through the Aries Age and continue to direct humanity today. Passover celebrates the Hebrew people’s safe passage out of Egypt and, “the Angel passing over the Jewish homes, safeguarding their first born.”

Sunday is Easter (Christian ritual, Resurrection festival) representing the restoration of humanity’s hope, life and well-being. During Easter, the Spirit of Resurrection, under the new life of Aries, uplifts humanity into a new light. Guidance is given to the New Group of World Servers as to the new education and training humanity needs.

The three religious festivals, occurring simultaneously, signal that the coming new world religion (Aquarian) is at hand—a synthesis and integration of all religions. We stand with our brothers and sisters of all faiths everywhere in celebration. We see what has created separations between us disappears. We step forward together in the new light, the Spirit of Resurrection and the Forces of Restoration directing us. Hosanna!

ARIES: Often your compassion and sympathy are so very well hidden that many do not recognize you actually possess these virtues. However, you definitely do, and it takes tremendous effort to bring them forth. No longer can you draw the curtain on spiritual realities. No longer will we think you don’t have tender feelings. No longer can you believe they interfere with practical daily life. Feelings and spiritual realities are actually guideposts, talismans, amulets, and your protective lucky charms.

TAURUS:  It’s important to begin assessing goals, hopes and wishes for the future. As you do this, others are reaching out to you from groups and organizations asking for your intelligent, researched professional sense so they can begin to understand and be directed. Nurturing and strengthening ties within your group is a task only you can do at this time. Over and over you tell everyone to prepare. You are like John the Baptist on the shores of River Jordan.

GEMINI: There’s a continued assessment concerning your purpose and value in the world. You may feel that great hindrances block you from your purpose. However, there is a new potential and vitality coming forth. Create a new journal. Place your astrology chart on the first page. Then make a list of everything you have done, all that you can do. Then list all that you hope to do. How you want to be remembered? What and whom you idealize and want to be like? These lists help create a deeper self-identity.

CANCER: The sign Cancer is guided by a star in the Big Dipper called Ray 3. This is the Ray of Divine Intelligence, a quality and virtue of all Cancer people. The word altruism is an important word to study. I suggest you research and write a short paper on altruism. Altruism is responsible for creating new philosophical ideas, attitudes and visions in the life of humanity. And in you, too. Your mind is traveling far distances. Soon to the Wesak Valley in the Himalayas.

LEO: You will be thinking of new endeavors, challenges and how to best use resources. Notice that intuition and perception are very strong at this time. If you quietly turn inward, you will know who is thinking of you with a loving heart. Concern about resources continues. However, in the long run this concern will evaporate. Did you expect something that didn’t occur? Is there disappointment? This too will pass. Love is all there is.

VIRGO: Are you being diplomatic, bringing goodwill to all relationships and sharing more? Someone significant is either in need, or you need them. Do you feel there is a lack of support? If so, begin to support others and that which you give is returned a hundred-fold. Be truly gracious. Don’t put on an act or act in ways you think others expect. Learn how to be authentically gracious. It has to do with opening the 12 petals of the heart.

LIBRA: Soon it will be time to get down to business, be practical each moment and establish routines that will handle the details of a great change occurring in your life. Attempt to work with enthusiasm (“filled with God”); summon efficiency, order and organization; ask for assistance (from humans and angels); eliminate everything not needed; and make health and well-being your priority. You can do all of this with ease and charm.

SCORPIO: You need some just-for-fun endeavors, things playful with just a drop of intensity. You also need to call forth your creative gifts. Only when creativity is involved are you truly happy and able to consider your impact on the world. This allows you to be brave and bold, always rebuilding your self-identity and confidence. You’ll express yourself this week and next, and in all the weeks thereafter.

SAGITTARIUS: Are you paying attention to what your feelings and intuitions are telling you? Are you assessing what you consider as safety and security? Are you stirring up activity at home, leaving home, seeking home, or needing a home? What are your support systems? Everything that leads to reorganization is or will be occurring. All things new come forth from strange and unusual places. Stay alert, awake and humble.

CAPRICORN: If you’re feeling frustrated concerning creative endeavors, children, loved ones, and intimates, this will pass. You could feel the need to be highly creative to offset disappointments. You sometimes dream of things so significant and beautiful they take a long time manifesting. In and over time they actually will. You might be sacrificing for your family and feel somewhat sad and confused. Express your feelings over and over in a neutral tone. Ask everyone to listen without judgment. The angels listen.

AQUARIUS: Tend carefully and with detail to personal health and daily life tasks. When you take care of yourself, you’re at ease with yourself. Then a rapport with others develops spontaneously. Walk through neighborhoods, stroll down the middle of town, tend to bills and monetary responsibilities. Be alert, gracious and communicative, your Aquarian self. And realize with gratitude all that you value surrounds and serves you.

PISCES: You’re wondering how to look and express yourself differently and with true authenticity. It’s important for you to be both strong and kind, to seek understanding and harmony with others and for your actions to be understood and not misinterpreted. Often you dream your way through life. You long to learn self-confidence and self-realization. Over time, with more life experiences, this occurs. Be brave. Everything that you wish for comes to you.

Music Picks: April 17-23

Santa Cruz live music highlights for the week of April 17

WEDNESDAY 4/17

FOLK

GAELYNN LEA

Gaelynn Lea is a talented, classically trained violinist, but it’s her captivating vocals that seduce the ear. She sounds wispy, yet powerful; controlled, but free. Most inexplicably, she has an Emerald Isle lilt coupled with a touch of twang. It’s a great combination, adding tons of feeling to her songs, which touch upon disabilities and empowerment. In “Dark to Light and Dark Again,” Lea matter-of-factly croons: “Muscles, nerves and skin and bones/They carry us on our journey home…But our bodies, they never fully contain us/We rise above that matter which seeks to detain us.” It’s an honest, accessible assessment, gracefully delivered. AMY BEE

INFO: 7:30 p.m. Michael’s On Main, 2591 Main St., Soquel. $12 adv/$15 door. 479-9777.

 

THURSDAY 4/18

AMERICANA

M. LOCKWOOD PORTER

“The Dream Is Dead” is an optimistic song. No, really, it is. M. Lockwood Porter wrote it to talk about how the myth of the American Dream is just that—a myth. The problem with believing in myths is that is traumatizes people who don’t understand that no matter hard they try, they can’t achieve them. If we can accept this, we can build a whole new society where maybe people can be a lot happier. This kind of unexpected optimism is all over his latest record Communion in the Ashes, an album of heartland rock ’n’ roll that will make you feel whole again. AARON CARNES

INFO: 9 p.m. Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $7. 429-6994.

 

FRIDAY 4/19

REGGAE

FREDDIE MCGREGOR

You don’t have to be a hippie, stoner, Rastafarian, or iconoclast to appreciate reggae music, though it doesn’t hurt. Soul music at its core, Jamaican reggae fundamentally changed the sound of the world, and Freddie McGregor played a large part in it. Starting out at the tender age of 7, McGregor sang in pre-reggae rocksteady group the Clarendonians before going out on his own. In the ’80s, he had a string of hits worldwide, including UK Top 10 hit “Just Don’t Want to Be Lonely.” Today, he’s a living reminder of reggae’s connective power across generations. MIKE HUGUENOR

INFO: 9 p.m. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $25 adv/$30 door. 479-1854.

JAZZ

GERALD CLAYTON TRIO

An inordinately talented pianist who hails from a vaunted Los Angeles jazz dynasty, Gerald Clayton turns every performance into a bedazzling sojourn. His latest album, 2017’s Tributary Tales, explored an array of jazz and funk idioms with an expansive cast of players, but as a touring artist he usually works in a trio context. The L.A.-based pianist heads north with a different kind of trio for a gig that marks the Kuumbwa return of guitarist Anthony Wilson. They’re musical lives are deeply intertwined, as Wilson spent years performing with Clayton Hamilton Jazz Orchestra. Alan Hampton rounds out the combo. ANDREW GILBERT

INFO: 7 p.m., Kuumbwa Jazz, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $29.40 adv/$34.65 door. 427-2227.

 

SATURDAY 4/20

HIP-HOP

EARL SWEATSHIRT

L.A. rapper Earl Sweatshirt emerged with his debut Mixtape Earl at the age of 16. From the moment that album dropped, it was clear that he was not only an incredible voice, but the most talented rapper in the bizarro Odd Future crew. His latest record, Some Rap Songs, seems at first like a throwaway with short (mostly under-two-minute) rap tunes most likely spit off the top of his head. But he delivers some of his most profound and personal raps yet. “I think … I spent my whole life depressed/Only thing on my mind was death/Didn’t know if my time was next.” AC

INFO: 9 p.m. Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $28 adv/$32 door. 423-1338.

 

SUNDAY 4/21

ROCK

ZENITH SUN

Zenith Sun might not be a household name, but the two guitarists in the emerging group are more familiar. Eric Lindell and Anson Funderburgh hit the stage for some classic rock ’n’ roll, Chicago blues, and good ol’ fashioned Americana goodness. These two friends have played together throughout the years, but Zenith Sun is a new venture for the seasoned musicians. This is part of Moe’s “Afternoon Blues Series,” so don’t forget doors open at 3:00 and the house begins rockin’ at 4:00. MAT WEIR

INFO: 4 p.m. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $20 adv/$25 door. 479-1854.

 

MONDAY 4/22

ALT COUNTRY

NORMAN BAKER

“Rollicking” is one of those descriptors only appropriate for a certain kind of sound, and Seattle’s Norman Baker has it. Rootsy and rollicking in equal measure, Baker’s country is far from the Florida-Georgia Line, tucked in behind the rusted-out truck about halfway up the hill. “She don’t mind I don’t got much money/My tattered shoe don’t matter to you,” he sings, with Pacific ease, on “Dinner Plans.” Simple needs brought to vivid life: that’s Norman Baker. MH

INFO: 8:30 p.m. Flynn’s Cabaret & Steakhouse, 6275 Hwy. 9, Felton. $10 adv/$12 door. 335-2800.

 

TUESDAY 4/23

HIP-HOP

TOKYO JETZ

Gonna be honest, I hate Florida. In a matter of 30 minutes, the weather can change to half-sunny, half-cloudy, somehow-raining-with-wind yet still too hot for shorts. To see how crazy that makes anyone, look no further than a simple “Florida man” Google search. However, if it keeps producing strong lyricists like Tokyo Jetz, I’ll reconsider my opinion. This Jacksonville rapper gained notoriety from her freestyle videos she would record in her car and quickly caught the attention of the Grand Hustler himself, T.I. Two albums later, her gritty rhymes and disgusting beats are drawing more blood than ever. MW

INFO: 9 p.m. Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $15 adv/$20 door. 423-1338.

Film Review: ‘Ash Is Purest White’

It begins like a gangster melodrama—a flinty tough guy, his bold, sexy girlfriend, and the circle of underworld petty criminals in which they move. The time frame is contemporary, and the locale is an urban landscape of discos and motorbikes in an industrial city in the Shanxi province of northern China, where an epic drama of fierce loyalty, loss and regret unfolds in Ash is Purest White.

From the trailer for this movie, you might expect some sort of violent morality play acted out in the city streets. But writer-director Zhangke Jia has something more complicated in mind. After its flashy beginning, the story plays out over the next 15 years or so as the characters struggle to find themselves, each other and their bearings in an era of extreme social upheaval and cultural change.

Qiao (Tao Zhao) is a poised young woman at the center of a local “jianghu,” a mafia-style family of criminal “brothers.” Her position in this boy’s club is secure because her boyfriend Bin (Fan Liao) is the enforcer for the boss. They go disco dancing to “YMCA,” and  sightseeing around the vast countryside. In the shadow of a famous Shanxi tourist attraction, the Datong Volcano Cluster, Qiao says she’s read that, “Anything that burns at a high temperature is made pure.”

But things change fast when Bin is violently attacked in the street one night by a rival gang. Qiao fires a gun to chase off the attackers, saving Bin’s life. Next thing we know, she’s behind bars for possession of an illegal firearm; then we see her with short hair, in shapeless prison garb, serving a five-year sentence. But Qiao’s emergence back out into the world is where Zhangke’s real story begins.

The world she knew is disappearing. The jianghu have scattered. The notorious Three Gorges Dam, which will wipe entire towns and villages off the map and displace thousands, is being built. (The story stretches from 2000 to roughly 2017.) When her belongings are stolen and Qiao has to live by her wits on the street for a while, it might be a new beginning for her. Instead, she launches herself on an odyssey to find Bin—who has gone through profound changes of his own.

The story is divided, visually and psychologically, into thirds. Colors are neon red and poison green in early gangster scenes, drab greys and beige when Qiao emerges into the new world, and she’s dressed in black in the third section, when she’s become a kind of enforcer herself, a scowling nanny to the hapless remaining members of her former tribe.

It’s intriguing to watch the ever-shifting dynamics of Qiao and Bin’s personal relationship. Typically, movies (and drama in general) serve up a small slice of their characters’ lives, but Zhangke is more interested in the long term, showing how actions and consequences progress not only through individual lives, but also across the vast, sprawling landscape of China itself in an era of change. Coal mines close, the streets fill up with the disaffected unemployed and increasingly hell-bent youth, and Bin’s “brotherhood” of old-school, Western-style gangsters becomes outdated.

Zhangke’s scope is ambitious, yet for all his thematic ideas, I wanted to feel more involved in the central story of Qiao and Bin. Their prickly relationship is never meant to be taken for a great love story, but if viewers are completely indifferent about whether or not they reunite, the movie loses a lot of its momentum along the way. It’s stylish and admirable, often surprising in interesting ways, but rarely engaging.

Tao Zhao’s performance, however, is totemic. She evolves from sure, confident party girl to avenger, from stoic prisoner to resourceful street hustler, finally becoming the face of weary pragmatism itself. Or perhaps the face of China itself, resolute against all odds. The question of whether she is  “made pure” after her various trials by fire—or simply survives—is left to the viewer to decide.

ASH IS PUREST WHITE

*** (out of four)

With Tao Zhao and Fan Liao. Written and directed by Zhangke Jia. A Cohen Media Group release. Not rated. 136 minutes. In Mandarin with English subtitles.

Love Your Local Band: The Avi Zev Band

By drawing inspiration from acts like Yes, the Beatles and Frank Zappa, Avi Zev builds towers of songs, filled with levels of meaning and sound, out of multiple key changes and chord progressions, all in four minutes or less. True to classic prog-rock style, the Avi Zev Band bleeds genres together, with pop, rock, jazz and the dreamier elements of surf all swirling together into a marshmallow haze for the ears. Or they can simply call it prog-pop.

But don’t confuse sweetness for empty calories. Zev’s songs are chock full of social, economic and political awareness, like in their first video, for 2017’s “1st World Blues,” where Zev sings, “What we want/We’ve been told/And we’re the ones being bought and sold.”

“It was near the time of Trump’s ascendency and one of the songs I had in reaction to some of the complacency I saw,” says Zev.

Born in Illinois, his family moved to Walnut Creek when he was 3. When he moved to Santa Cruz for college in 1997, he quickly settled in and made it home. Since then, Zev has played in a number of different music acts around town, including cover bands, rock groups and hip-hop group Blyndsite. When they broke up in 2012, Zev decided it was time to go in his own direction.

“I started writing songs and assembling players,” he says. “We’ve gone through a rotation of players before coming upon the current lineup.”

The line-up in question features: Zev on vocals, guitar and keys; Matt Wolfe on drums; Nat Canyon on rhythm guitar; and newest member, fresh for 2019, Tiphanie Bowens, on bass. They are currently working on a new five-song EP, yet to be named. Zev says the new material is more “streamlined” than their previous recordings, but adds that people can decide for themselves at the Blue Lagoon on April 19.

INFO: 8:30 p.m. Friday, April 19. Blue Lagoon, 923 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $5. 423-7117.

Actors’ Theatre Explores Transgender Identity in ‘Looking for Normal’

Smart direction, skilled performances and a plunge into the fireworks of self-discovery energize the Actors’ Theatre production of Looking for Normal. It will come as no surprise to audiences that director Tandy Beal knows how to move actors across a stage, but her ability to incite an ensemble into confrontations as poignant as they are raw is a fresh surprise.

Much has changed, evolved and erupted in the almost two decades since Emmy-winning playwright Jane Anderson debuted her play in 2002. The idea that a happily married man would feel so intensely that he’s in the wrong body as to opt for the agonies of gender reassignment surgery is not a new one. Today’s conversation around gender tends to erupt into rhetoric and identity politics. But in Looking for Normal, it’s the history of that conversation that motivates Anderson, who went on to write for television’s Mad Men, and created the Oscar-nominated Glenn Close film The Wife.

Married for 25 years in the straight-arrow Midwest, Roy (Jerry Lloyd) and Irma (Kristin Brownstone) seek counseling from their amiable pastor (Avondina Wills). Caught in the upheaval are Roy and Irma’s teenage daughter (Solange Marcotte), twentysomething son Wayne (Nicolas Terbeek), and emotionally dense father (Frank Widman) and mother (Tara McMilin).

It all starts with Roy’s admission to his wife that while he loves her, he is committed to becoming the woman he was always meant to be—to which his stunned wife replies, “There’s no way you’re a woman—because only a man could be that selfish!” Indeed, Roy’s myopic fixation on his desired change propels this situational drama; a blend of Greek tragedy and high-key sitcom spun through Thornton Wilder.

Once Roy has announced his decision, each member of the family steps forth to react, and ultimately to interact with their shock, dismay and feelings of betrayal. At the center is a remarkably vulnerable performance by Lloyd, whose graceful handling of his character’s pain and determination outweighs the script’s shortcomings. As his wife, Brownstone gets some of the best lines and most painful/hilarious confrontations. Absolute confidence and just the right amount of wry acceptance (kudos again to Beal) distinguish her portrait of the wife who discovers that she can’t stop loving her husband, no matter how much he has changed.

The play as written often makes puzzling choices, including sexual development, menopause and the act of impregnation described in detail as variations on the theme of normal human behavior. Is the playwright suggesting that transitioning one’s gender is as typical as having a period? And even Beal’s savvy can’t quite rescue a non-sequitur sermon about the book of Genesis and God-given gender.

But the short drama offers powerful moments and strong visual play. Actors are on stage throughout, sitting in the shadows until their moment to address the audience. The staging gives quiet dignity and flexibility to the explosive confrontations to come. In a few choice soliloquies, Roy’s grandmother (Lillian Bogovich) steps out of the past to reveal her own sexual curiosity during the early 20th century.

As a humorist, Beal is pitch-perfect. The stand-up gestures used by Marcotte as the budding teenager talking us through the biology of puberty are silly, funny and hilariously recognizable. I found the consummate portrayals of central characters compelling enough to sweep through flaws in the text. For theatergoers intrigued by the history of gender issues—before social media obscured common sense and critical debate—this play boldly and candidly introduces some of the key issues and implications that still resonate today.

There is much to chew on in this unflinching production. A sure hand at the helm and some very fine performances make for absorbing theater.

‘Looking for Normal,’ written by Jane Anderson and directed by Tandy Beal, runs through April 28 at Actors’ Theatre, Center Stage, 1001 Center St., Santa Cruz. sccat.org.

Mark Kozelek Brings Sun Kil Moon to Kuumbwa

Santa Cruz music fans have been following saxman Donny McCaslin’s incredible growth as a musician and musical innovator since he was a kid playing around town in his father Don McCaslin’s iconic jazz band Warmth. The group Donny put together as a teenager is a bit of a local legend, having played the Monterey Jazz Festival three years in a row while he was still at Aptos High.

Most of the world, however, discovered Donny McCaslin in 2016, when David Bowie brought him in with his New York jazz combo to collaborate on Blackstar, Bowie’s final album.

McCaslin is the kind of boundary-bludgeoning, genre-hyphenating talent that some people can’t quite wrap their heads around. In other words, a perfect match for indie-rock madman Mark Kozelek, who started his career fronting the San Francisco 4AD band Red House Painters in the late ’80s, and in 2002 more or less restarted that project as Sun Kil Moon. In 2010, Sun Kil Moon evolved into a solo project for Kozelek, who also records under his own name, leading to a prolific decade of increasingly wild experimentation with different collaborators.

“Donny and I met a few years ago in Australia. We were playing different nights at the same venue and he joined us on stage on his night off,” says Kozelek. I later learned it was him who worked on David Bowie’s Blackstar, and I loved the horns on that record. He’s a great collaborator because he’s a genius sax player, and knows how to listen and adapt to any style. He finds a spot in the music that makes sense.”

Sun Kil Moon contributed to McCaslin’s 2018 album Blow, with Kozelek unleashing a very weird and funny story in “The Opener” (the song also has a great video). In turn, McCaslin’s contributions are essential to the newest Sun Kil Moon album, which was almost called Mark Kozelek with Donny McCaslin and Jim White—until Kozelek saw the title for hip hop duo Suicideboys’ 2018 debut album I Want to Die in New Orleans, and renamed his record I Also Want to Die in New Orleans.

What McCaslin and Kozelek did on “The Opener” would have fit right into I Also Want to Die in New Orleans. Beginning with 2014’s Benji, Kozelek’s Sun Kil Moon albums have become increasingly sprawling, as he’s taken his trademark laid-back vocal style and stretched it into a vehicle for epic stories that are sometimes spoken, sometimes sung. On the new record, McCaslin helps him open up these unorthodox songs even more, providing a richer, more complex (and more unapologetically jazz) backdrop for the narratives than they had on last year’s This is My Dinner. On songs like “Couch Potato” and “I’m Not Laughing at You” (both of which run just under 12 minutes), the sonic backdrops are essential to the way the words come across.

Kozelek says he didn’t just stumble into this shift in style five years ago.

“Once you’ve made 30 or 40 conventional albums and you’re pushing 50, it’s time to make a change, unless you want to become what they call a hack,” says Kozelek. “I don’t have an ounce of hack energy in my blood. Mid-life told me it was time to explore collaborating with guys like Jimmy LaValle,

Justin Broadrick, Donny McCaslin, Sean Yeaton, Steve Shelley, Jim White, and Ben Boye, and it’s broadened my horizons. I’m loving playing music with all of those guys.”

One of Kozelek’s trademarks is interesting covers, which have ranged from a slew of AC/DC folk-ups to a whole album of Modest Mouse songs on the 2005 Sun Kil Moon record Tiny Cities to the Misfits’ “Green Hell” and Dayglo Abortions’ “I Killed Mommy” on 2013’s Like Rats to standards like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” on 2016’s Mark Kozelek Sings Favorites. Longtime fans will appreciate that he hasn’t abandoned the art, revisiting AC/DC’s “Rock ’N’ Roll Singer” and detouring into a one-minute take on the Partridge Family theme “Come On Get Happy” on This is My Dinner. I most recently saw him at a Leonard Cohen tribute show at the Chapel in San Francisco doing a memorable version of “Famous Blue Raincoat.”

But Kozelek doesn’t see his cover songs the same way he does an album of originals like I Also Want to Die in New Orleans.

“Getting praise for how you cover songs is a hollow victory,” he says. “It’s a fun thing to do, but I’m backstage and everyone says, ‘That was amazing!’ and I say, “Yeah, Leonard Cohen wrote some great songs.”

Sun Kil Moon performs at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17 at Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $30/$35. folkyeah.com.

5 Things To Do This Week in Santa Cruz: April 10-16

A weekly guide to what’s happening

Green Fix

Birding For Beginners

On this one-and-a-half hour walk, be prepared to hike 2 miles on uneven surfaces, with many stops to view the birds, plants and scenery along the way. Bring your binoculars if you have them (binoculars are also available to borrow), clothes for variable weather and good walking shoes. Everyone is welcome, but children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by adults. Rain cancels.

INFO: 9 a.m.-noon. Friday, April 12. Wilder Ranch State Park, 1401 Coast Rd., Santa Cruz. Meet at the interpretive center. 426-0505. Free/$10 vehicle day-use fee.

Art Seen

‘Looking For Normal’

Santa Cruz County Actors’ Theatre continues its 2019 season with the full-length staged production of Jane Anderson’s Looking For Normal, directed by the renowned Tandy Beal. The production is a domestic comedy-drama about Roy and Irma, who have been married for 25 years. They have two children and are respected members of their church and their community.  But when they go to their pastor for marriage counseling, Roy confesses that he identifies as a woman and wants to transition genders. The play explores the complexities of marriage and family, and deconstructs the very notion of love.  

INFO: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. Show runs Friday, April 12-Sunday, April 28. Center Street Theater, 1001 Center St., Santa Cruz. sccat.org. $32 general/$29 student or senior. Photo: Jana Marcus.

Saturday 4/13

Climb For Good

Spend an evening climbing with your friends while supporting Hospice of Santa Cruz County, the oldest and largest hospice non-profit in Santa Cruz, which serves around 1,000 children and teens annually. This event features climbing opportunities for both experienced and new climbers, music, refreshments, and raffle prizes. All climbing gear is included with each donation. All donations will be given to the Hospice of Santa Cruz County Youth Grief Support program. Parents or guardians must accompany children ages 6 and over.

INFO: 6:30-9 p.m. Pacific Edge Climbing Gym. 104 Bronson St. #12, Santa Cruz. 430-3000, pacificedgeclimbinggym.com/hospice. $20 donation.

Saturday 4/13

Natural Dyeing With Onions

Local artist and maker Kaitlin Bonifacio has been working with natural dyes for years, making beautiful scarves and textiles using avocados, onions skins and indigo. She started her local business Yuzu and Rose out of the Craftsman Collective space in Soquel last year, and has since been teaching workshops using indigo and other natural dyes for attendees to create homemade, one-of-a-kind baby slings, napkins and pillowcases to take home. Onion skins in particular make a beautiful, yellow-hued dye. Hangings will be mounted on driftwood, making the perfect addition to your home decor, or a thoughtful gift.

INFO: Noon-2 p.m. The Craftsmen Collective, 4600 Soquel Drive, Soquel. 325-1553, thecraftsmencollective.com. $55.

Thursday 4/11

‘Councilwoman’

Hosted by the Watsonville Film Festival, the second event of the Reel Work Film Festival tells the story of Carmen Castillo. Castillo is a Dominican woman who maintains her job cleaning hotel rooms as she takes on her new role in politics as a city councilwoman in Providence, Rhode Island. She faces skeptics who say she doesn’t have the education to govern, and the film shows a behind-the-scenes journey of a worker taking on the political system.

INFO: 7 p.m. Watsonville Civic Plaza Community Room, 275 Main St. 4th Floor, Watsonville. reelwork.org.

Testarossa Cuvée 2016 Chardonnay

In the market for a moderately priced Cuvée 2016 Chardonnay to sip as the weather warms up? For about $18 a bottle, Testarossa Winery of Los Gatos produces a really well-made Chard.

With its straw-yellow color and lovely aromas of tangerine, tamarind-orange, peach, apricot, banana, and vanilla, it’s a delightful semi-sweet mouthful of almost-tropical nectar. A multi-vineyard blend of grapes harvested in Monterey, this lovely wine that I found at Aptos Natural Foods has bright acidity and a balanced finish. It comes with a screw cap. What could be easier?

“Cuvée Los Gatos by Testarossa pays homage to the historic 19th-century town which Testarossa has called home since 1997,” the label explains. Testarossa Winery sits on an old novitiate property where wine has been made since 1888. It’s well worth visiting—if only to walk through the tunnel where stunning old photos of yesteryear’s Silicon Valley are displayed, along with old photographs of Jesuit fathers checking the barrels back when they made wine there.

Testarossa now has three places to enjoy their fine wines: Los Gatos, Carmel and a new spot called Wine Bar 107 attached to their Los Gatos tasting room. “Wine Bar 107 is an extension of the Testarossa Winery experience,” say the folks at Testarossa. Wines are paired with small plates in a beautiful setting during afternoons and evenings Thursday-Saturday. Add in live music, and it’s a new upbeat offering for wine lovers.

Testarossa Winery, 300 College Ave., Los Gatos. 408-354-6150, testarossa.com.

Wrights Station Supper Club

Wrights Station is putting on a three-course paella dinner by Living Roots Catering Company, featuring organic, sustainable and locally sourced food. Upon arrival you’ll get a complimentary pour of your favorite Wrights Station varietal, then purchase by the bottle or glass to go with dinner. A first course will include greens from Blue Heron Farms and goat cheese from Harley Farms. Dessert is flourless chocolate cake served with Verve coffee.

Friday, April 12, from 6-9 p.m. at Wrights Station Winery, 24250 Loma Prieta Ave., Los Gatos. Tickets $80. wrightsstation.com.

Rob Brezny’s Astrology April 17-23

Astrology, Horoscope, Stars, Zodiac Signs
Free will astrology for the week of April 17, 2019

Inside Coffeetopia’s Indie Coffee Expansion

coffeetopia
Revisiting a local favorite for a caffeine fix, plus UCSC's top chefs

Three Festivals for Three Ages: Risa’s Stars April 17-23

risa's stars
Esoteric Astrology as news for the week of April 17, 2019

Music Picks: April 17-23

Earl Sweatshirt
Santa Cruz live music highlights for the week of April 17

Film Review: ‘Ash Is Purest White’

Ash is Purest White
Gangsters cope with changing China in ambitious drama

Love Your Local Band: The Avi Zev Band

Avi Zev Band
The Avi Zev Band plays the Blue Lagoon on Friday, April 19

Actors’ Theatre Explores Transgender Identity in ‘Looking for Normal’

Looking for Normal
A later-in-life identity struggle plays out on local stage

Mark Kozelek Brings Sun Kil Moon to Kuumbwa

Sun Kil Moon
Iconic indie rocker collaborated with Santa Cruz favorite Donny McCaslin on new album

5 Things To Do This Week in Santa Cruz: April 10-16

Looking For Normal
'Looking For Normal,' the Reel Work Film Festival and more

Testarossa Cuvée 2016 Chardonnay

Testarossa Winery
A taste of history—at an affordable price point
17,623FansLike
8,845FollowersFollow