Page 701 – Good Times

For Students By Students: UCSC Rainbow Theatre Turns 25

Wendy Mayer-Lochtefeld

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November 6, 2018

For Students By Students: UCSC Rainbow Theatre Turns 25

As the Artistic Director of UCSC’s Rainbow Theatre, Don Williams isn’t sleeping much. Fall season is here, and a laundry list of details is keeping him up late.

Five shows will unfold over the coming weeks, each one focusing on cultural awareness and identity. When he’s not overseeing productions, juggling schedules, or teaching classes, Williams is hauling a stadium seating unit out of the storage bin to be transported to the performance space.

This is Rainbow Theatre’s 25th season, and Don Williams has been there every step of the way. “Our main direction and focus is pursuing cultures of color,” he says. “It’s not just that we do an Asian, African American, or Latin American play, but that we do them all in one season. These students work together as a cohort. They do these shows as a team.”

This year’s selected A and B program Rainbow Theatre shows include the Asian-American show Stop Kiss, African-American show The Coloured Museum, and Latinx/Chicanx show Real Women Have Curves. Each show explores themes related to each respective culture, identity and experience.

The seeds are planted in the spring, during a cultural studies class called Rainbow II. There, students review 10-15 scripts that tell stories of diversity. Plays may come from India, Cuba, the Philippines, or Compton, and students are welcome to add their suggestions to the mix.

“We tell them, ‘If you see a show that moves your spirit, submit it,’” says Williams. After much discussion, the class chooses the best in each category. “This is student-run,” he notes with pride. “As a mentor, I sit on the same side of the table as them.”

There are student actors, designers, directors, and even students on the board of directors who serve as cultural ambassadors for the program. The process and language are inclusive, involving them in everything from production to finance.

“We learn who has follow through and communication skills,” Williams says. “Can they say what they need, what they want? Then we can pursue it.”

One of the surprising aspects of Rainbow Theatre is that many students who participate aren’t theater arts majors. “They may be biochemists,” says Williams, “or studying to be doctors. But they love the arts, and when they have an opportunity to engage, they’re often impressive. Some of the best actors I’ve ever directed have become doctors.”

Out of the Shadows

When asked how theater shapes our conversations about race and identity, Williams puts it plainly. “It cuts to the chase,” he says. “To do a play, you have to know the characters. You analyze their every move. When you lock in a character’s motive and moment, that’s what tells the story.”

Williams points out that for too long, art created by people of color has been on the back burner. “It’s due to many things, including financial aspects, but also the fact that people of color are not in the limelight to actually present it,” he says. “As a society, we should be empowering that to happen more, because for us to really understand each other, we have to have stories we can see and hear, things we can view. They bring a commonality we can all embrace.”

This season, Rainbow Theatre will present a poetry reading and four plays, but equally compelling are the real stories that come out of the program. “I had a student who wanted to study law,” says Williams. “She worked on the tech crew because she was fearful of acting. But she watched and learned and wrote a play. We ended up producing it and the next year she wrote another one. We produced that, too. End of story, she went to Yale to become a playwright. Now her plays are produced professionally.”

Rainbow Theatre helps students of color feel like they belong. Williams empathizes with the black student who may be coming to UCSC from Oakland or L.A.

“They come into the dorm to find one or two students who even look like them, let alone talk like them. They’re trying to find a place for themselves,” he says. This is the gift that Rainbow Theatre offers to its participants and its audience, a compelling reminder that if we are all in this together, then every story counts.

Rainbow Theatre’s A and B programs run through Sunday, Nov. 11. Program C runs Friday, Nov. 16-Sunday, Nov. 18. Check online for complete details of show programs. 6:30 p.m. programs A and B, 2:30 p.m. program C. Stevenson Event Center. 1156 High St., Santa Cruz. 459-1861. cadrc.org. Free for UCSC students, $15 general.

Scorpio—Moments of Crisis & Nine Tests: Risa’s Star’s Nov. 7-13

Risa D’Angeles

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November 6, 2018

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Scorpio—Moments of Crisis & Nine Tests: Risa’s Star’s Nov. 7-13

Scorpio is a most interesting sign, it is also the most mysterious. Before we enter Capricorn, Scorpio offers us points of crisis and moments of reorientation, two deeply important functions of Scorpio and of great value for us to understand (concerning ourselves as Scorpio, friends and family who may be Scorpio).

Our lives on Earth are our chosen Spiritual Adventure. There comes a time in one or more lifetimes when we find that we have divine curiosity, we want to understand the underlying motives of livingness (our lives), and we are eager to progress forward sanely and with serenity.

When we are thinking this way, we can know we are stepping upon the Path of Return. We want to be practical, to understand what is of value to us (Venus retrograde), and we want to pass all of the Nine Scorpio Tests. It is only through understanding of these things and the nature of the tests that true insight may be cultivated. We then feel optimism and understand what it means to be a World Disciple.

Scorpio is the sign of the World Disciple. The Nine Tests (nine-headed Hydra, which Hercules must confront) are divided into three major tests for the three levels of the personality (physical, emotional, lower mental). Each disciple must pass into Scorpio for testing nine times. Scorpio carries the tests down into the physical plane where the tests are faced and must be handled.

All of the tests and difficulties must be “carried up into heaven,” which means all problems must be solved through the use of the reasoning, illumined mind. Lifting all difficulties up to the Light of the Soul. We visualize this. (More on the Three Tests next week. And note, in Scorpio, the battle is on.)

ARIES: You may struggle to maintain equilibrium between desires for things to occur and what is actually possible. It’s good to study the subject of sacrifice (coming from the heart)—the First Law of the Soul. At the center of sacrifice is Love—a paradox. Love and sacrifice are the same. We’re on Earth because we chose and sacrificed to be here. You may feel that you’ve become the warrior. You have. Spiritual warriors are always triumphant.

TAURUS: You assess all relationships in terms of value. Something you always do, but more so now. Simultaneously, it’s most important to assess the values you offer others and if there is more you can give of Right Relations through intentions for Goodwill. You offer the goodness of yourself in relationships. Goodness is a purity and inner quality. What is your goodness and what do you offer others? Include all relationships. Remember true love isn’t a feeling.

GEMINI: Tend to all things great, small and necessary in daily life with the deepest attention. Observe all habits, agendas, and how you serve yourself, your work, your environments and all others in your worlds. We evolve step-by-step, beginning with tending to our physical, emotional and mental bodies. Then we progress to the Soul. Each day brood upon the service for the coming day. Do this as the Soul. Emotions are then calmed.

CANCER: You reassess aspirations and goals the next two months. The Earth (soil, trees, plants) is very important to your well-being. Make sure you’re out and about daily in the Sun and in nature—the most balanced kingdom. Its radiations strengthen your heart and mind, refocus your enthusiasm (“filled with God”), allowing calm practicality to emerge. You live the life of ideals. It’s time for those potentials to enter form and matter. Where is your garden and who are your companions?

LEO: Ponder upon how you want to be seen, known and recognized in the world and in the context of helping to build the new culture and civilization—your work now. You are to nurture the new era at its foundational stages because you are a leader. Begin your garden soon, have a worm bin, create biodynamic soil, save seeds. Then teach everyone your discoveries. Leo’s nurturance needs to move from self to the community called humanity.

VIRGO: Past friends, relationships, values, siblings, family and past resources should be renewed and contacted. They are valuable for reasons revealed in the future. Memories from the past hold great value to you. They hold out great mental possibilities and a way to understand the life stream of humanity through study and understanding of the mysteries. You should be studying your transits/astrology.

LIBRA: In the next month consider how valuable your life is and the life of all those around you. Make many lists (write by hand) of all your talents, gifts, abilities, your kindnesses, good associations, good deeds, thoughts, ideas and plans. Here you will find your value. Place these lists on your walls, reading and reviewing them daily. This is the beginning of your self-identity as a server for humanity—the great tasks for all in the Aquarian Age.

SCORPIO: Things go into hiding, especially you. Or you find someone else in hiding asking for assistance. There’s someone in your life who is very valuable to you. Be in contact with them. They’re knowledgeable and have the skills needed for your next creative stages. All of your creativity is important for humanity’s future. Money, too, may be hidden at this time. It’s available but you must call it forth and use it to help others.

SAGITTARIUS: Life becomes subtler, slightly different, deep feelings of compassion awaken. Tend to debts and then give (tithe) to charity. Some examples of giving to those in need: St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital; Catholic Charities; Doctors Without Borders, the Heifer Project. These are difficult financial times for many. The spiritual law is what we give is returned tenfold. When we serve others, our life is spiritually cared for. Be of service. The Third Law of the Soul is service.

CAPRICORN: Things seem crazy at times, moving toward out-of-control. Eliminate all things not absolutely necessary. A complete new identity is making itself apparent. This new identity is yourself. Allow the necessary changes to occur. Stand up for yourself in all ways. You are strong and confident. You don’t want the river of life to carry you downstream without a lifeboat. You’re to help create the new culture and civilization. What interests you about this? Ponder on these things.

AQUARIUS: You’re neither sentimental or emotional. You see the need for nourishment of self and others, realizing one source of nourishment is financial security. Let’s discuss how security looks in terms of a home and land? Visualize a home that you own. Draw each room, see those you love living close by, include a workspace for yourself, for the arts and for preparing pure foods. Work daily on this. Should there be pain in your body make golden milk each night before sleep.

PISCES: A return to a previous, perhaps put-aside creative work allows you to redefine, reassess and reaffirm its importance to your life’s work. There’s a renewed fire in the mind, calling you to two things. Amusement and a sense of play, much missed in your life for a long while. And direct creative work that reflects who you are now, today, and who you will become. All parts of you sing within a close spiritual unity. Om.

Rob Brezny’s Astrology Nov. 7-13

Rob Brezsny

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November 6, 2018

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Free will astrology for the week of Nov. 7, 2018.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In 1994, Aries pop diva Mariah Carey collaborated with an associate to write the song “All I Want For Christmas Is You.” It took them 15 minutes to finish it. Since then it has generated $60 million in royalties. I wish I could unconditionally predict that you, too, will efficiently spawn a valuable creation sometime soon. Current planetary alignments do indeed suggest that such a development is more possible than usual. But because I tend to be conservative in my prophecies, I won’t guarantee anything close to the $60-million figure. In fact, your reward may be more spiritual in nature than financial.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): An interactive post at Reddit.com asked readers to write about “the most underrated feeling of all time.” One person said, “When you change the sheets on your bed.” Another extolled “the feeling that comes when you pay all your bills and you’ve still got money in the bank.” Others said, “dancing under the rain,” “physical contact like a pat on the back when you’re really touch starved,” and “listening to a song for the first time and it’s so good you just can’t stop smiling.” I bring this to your attention, Taurus, because I suspect that the next two weeks will bring you a flood of these pleasurable underrated feelings.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “Beer makes you feel the way you ought to feel without beer,” wrote Gemini author Henry Lawson. Do you have any methods for making yourself feel like you’ve drunk a few beers that don’t involve drinking a few beers? If not, I highly recommend that you find at least one. It will be especially important in the coming weeks for you to have a way to alter, expand, or purify your consciousness without relying on literal intoxicants or drugs. The goal: to leave your groove before it devolves into a rut.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Study the following five failed predictions. 1. “There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom.” —Robert Millikan, Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1923. 2. “This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us.” —Western Union internal memo, 1876. 3. “Rail travel at high speeds is not possible because passengers, unable to breathe, would die of asphyxia.” –Dionysius Lardner, scientist, 1830. 4. “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” —Ken Olson, president of Digital Equipment Corporation, 1977. 5. “Most Cancerians will never overcome their tendencies toward hypersensitivity, procrastination, and fear of success.” —Lanira Kentsler, astrologer, 2018. (P.S. What you do in the next 12 months could go a long way toward permanently refuting the last prediction.)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): German scientists have created cochlear implants for gerbils that have been genetically modified, enabling the creatures to “listen” to light. The researchers’ work is ultimately dedicated to finding ways to improve the lives of people with hearing impairments. What might be the equivalent of you gaining the power to “hear light”? I understand that you might resist thinking this way. “That makes no sense,” you may protest, or “There’s no practical value in fantasizing about such an impossibility.” But I hope you’ll make the effort anyway. In my view, stretching your imagination past its limits is the healing you need most right now. I also think that doing so will turn out to be unexpectedly practical.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Here’s useful wisdom from the poet Rumi. “Our defects are the ways that glory gets manifested,” he said. “Keep looking at the bandaged place. That’s where the light enters you.” Playwright Harrison David Rivers interprets Rumi’s words to mean, “Don’t look away from your pain, don’t disengage from it, because that pain is the source of your power.” I think these perspectives are just what you need to meditate on, Virgo. To promote even more healing in you, I’ll add a further clue from poet Anna Kamienska: “Where your pain is, there your heart lies also.” (P.S. Rumi is translated by Coleman Barks; Kamienska by Clare Cavanagh.)

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Artist David Hockney is proud of how undemanding he is toward his friends and associates. “People tell me they open my e-mails first,” he says, “because they aren’t demands and you don’t need to reply. They’re simply for pleasure.” He also enjoys giving regular small gifts. “I draw flowers every day and send them to my friends so they get fresh blooms.” Hockney seems to share the perspective expressed by author Gail Godwin, who writes, “How easy it was to make people happy, when you didn’t want or need anything from them.” In accordance with astrological omens, Libra, I suggest you have fun employing these approaches in the coming weeks.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I am not currently a wanderer or voyager or entrepreneur or swashbuckler. But at other times in my life, I have had extensive experience with those roles. So I know secrets about how and why to be a wanderer and voyager and entrepreneur and swashbuckler. And it’s clear to me that in the coming weeks you could benefit in unforeseen ways from researching and embodying the roles of curious wanderer and brave voyager and savvy entrepreneur and prudent swashbuckler.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “The best thing one can do when it is raining is let it rain.” That brilliant formulation came from poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Does it seem so obvious as to not need mentioning? Bear with me while I draw further meaning from it, and suggest you use it as an inspiring metaphor in the coming weeks. When it rains, Sagittarius, let it rain; don’t waste time and emotional energy complaining about the rain. Don’t indulge in fruitless fantasizing about how you might stop the rain and how you’d love to stop the rain. In fact, please refrain from defining the rain as a negative event, because after all, it is perfectly natural, and is in fact crucial for making the crops grow and replenishing our water supply. (P.S. Your metaphorical “rain” will be equally useful.)

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “Every true love and friendship is a story of unexpected transformation,” writes activist and author Elif Shafak. “If we are the same person before and after we loved, that means we haven’t loved enough.” I bring this to your attention because you’re in a phase when your close alliances should be activating healing changes in your life. If for some reason your alliances are not yet awash in the exciting emotions of redemption and reinvention, get started on instigating experimental acts of intimacy.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I suspect you will be an especially arousing influence in the coming weeks. You may also be inspiring and disorienting, with unpredictable results. How many transformations will you unleash? How many expectations will you dismantle? How many creative disruptions will you induce in the midst of the daily grind? I hesitate to underestimate the messy beauty you’ll stir up or the rambunctious gossip you’ll provoke. In any case, I plan to be richly amused by your exploits, and I hope everyone else will be, as well. For best results, I will pray to the Goddess of Productive Fun, begging Her to ensure that the commotions and uproars you catalyze will be in service to love and kindness.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson wasn’t always a wild and crazy writer. Early in his career he made an effort to compose respectable, measured prose. When he finally gave up on that project and decided he could “get away with” a more uninhibited style, he described it as being “like falling down an elevator shaft and landing in a pool full of mermaids.” I foresee a metaphorically comparable development in your future, Pisces.

Homework: When they say “Be yourself,” which self do they mean? Testify at FreeWillAstrology.com.

Music Picks: Nov. 7-13

Aaron Carnes

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November 6, 2018

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Live music highlights for the week of Nov. 7, 2018.

WEDNESDAY 11/7

HIP-HOP/FUNK

TNERTLE

Enzo the turtle must burn down the sun in order to save his planet. That’s the storyline of Tnertle’s new album, Burning Down the Sun, released this week. Full of cosmic vibes and aural exploration, the band’s blend of electro-funk and hip-hop is stronger than ever. They believe in the redemptive power of a live show, and it’s the riveting horn section that absorbs the dynamic energy of electronic music and transforms it into a living thing, giving it a buoyancy and vitality often missing in purely digital sounds. Which is exactly what Enzo will need to save his world. AMY BEE

INFO: 9 p.m., Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $8/adv, $10/door. 429-6994.

THURSDAY 11/8

ROCK

TODD RUNDGREN

Todd Rundgren’s resume reads something like a Jackson Pollock painting. He was in the influential psychedelic band Nazz in the ’60s, then went on to make an “interactive” album of hundreds of one-second clips (including Rundgren rapping). His ’70s hits “Hello It’s Me” and “We Gotta Get You a Woman” are classics of a cozy sort of piano-and-organ rock subgenre, while in the ’80s he composed for Pee Wee’s Playhouse. His appearance at the Rio Theatre is billed as “An Unpredictable Evening,” so he may even pull a few songs from his 1985 album composed entirely of vocal samples. MIKE HUGUENOR

INFO: 8 p.m. Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $39. 423-8209.

PSYCH-ROCK

SUPERNAUT

Any Santa Cruzan with even a slight finger on the pulse of the scene knows the power of local psych supergroup Supernaut. For the rest of you living in your caves, this trio burst onto the scene in 2014, and throughout the years has bewitched audiences with tales of madness, magic and mayhem—culminating in their debut self-titled album, released last year. They’ll be joined at Flynn’s Cabaret by Los Gatos funk and blues ensemble the Summit Boys. MAT WEIR

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

FRIDAY 11/9

HIP-HOP

PUSHA T

Forget about Pusha T’s public beef with Drake for a moment. His latest album Daytona is his best to date, and definitely a contender for hip-hop album of the year. It’s a tightly wound Kanye-produced record that shirks Pusha’s recent flirtation with pop hooks and goes back to hip-hop fundamentals. Pusha has a knack for conversational bite, which fits comfortably on top of Kanye’s oddball avant-rap beats. The seven songs are a direct, emotive expression of his world: hustling, selling drugs and buying expensive things. It’s a short cutting-edge record that exists on its own island. AARON CARNES

INFO: 7:30 p.m. Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $35/adv, $38/door. 423-1338.

SATURDAY 11/10

JAM BAND

MELVIN SEALS AND JGB

You may know Melvin Seals as the Hammond-organ-player extraordinaire, or maybe as the heir to the Jerry Garcia Band. Either way, he’s an onstage force for lovers of groove-heavy jam band tunes. He started playing with Garcia in 1980 and stayed in the band until the guitarist’s death in 1995. Seals immediately started up JGB as a way to keep the fire lit. Nowadays, he plays under the moniker Melvin Seals and JGB—and he’s earned it. AC

INFO: 9 p.m., Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $20/adv, $25/door. 479-1854.

SUNDAY 11/11

FOLK

CAITLIN JEMMA

Caitlin Jemma has had plenty of time to consider the expanse of night sky, its panoply of stars and hazy configurations of cosmic dust. In a live video, she describes a youth of celebrating solstices and holding family talent shows on the days most visibly affected by the Earth’s place in the universe. The folk-by-way-of-soul singer’s voice has mountainous twang, and winds its way around some heartbreaking melodies in her songs of wanderers, drifters and migrants. MH

INFO: 8 p.m. The Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave, Santa Cruz. $10. 429-6994.

METAL

DECREPIT BIRTH

When local technical death rockers Decrepit Birth played the Glass House in Pomona in mid-October, lead singer Bill Robinson broke his leg in a stage dive gone wrong. But it came as no surprise to their fans when they announced that they’d continue “even if we have to wheel Bill out in a wheelchair.” Decrepit Birth showed the world how tough Santa Cruz really is, and at this show they’ll play with eight other heavy-hitting bands for a full day of headbanging fun. MW

INFO: 4 p.m. Appleton Grill Event Lounge, 410 Rodriguez St., Watsonville. $25adv/$30door. 724-5555.

MONDAY 11/12

JAZZ

STRINGSHOT

Slide guitar master and eight-time Grammy-nominated producer Roy Rogers is no stranger to unusual collaborations. He brought out the best in elemental bluesman John Lee Hooker and spent almost a decade touring and recording with ex-Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek on the Translucent Blues project. But Rogers has never tackled anything quite like StringShot, an ensemble that melds three singular voices into a protean pan-American supergroup. Featuring Paraguayan-born violinist/harpist Carlos Reyes, and Brazilian guitar goddess and vocalist Badi Assad, StringShot is in the process of translating tunes created in the studio for StringShot—Blues & Latin into vehicles for live exploration. They’ll be joined by Steve Campitelli, the percussionist best known for his work with Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. ANDREW GILBERT

INFO: 7 p.m. Kuumbwa Jazz, 320-2 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $36.75/adv, $42/door. 427-2227.

TUESDAY 11/13

INDIE-POP

SURE SURE

Indie-pop sweethearts Sure Sure have no tricks up their sleeves. Instead, they play straightforward, sometimes breezy, but always catchy tunes which rely on good songwriting rather than dramatics. Sure Sure is willing to occasionally throw in a tiny jam or two to emphasize the mood or enhance their underdog sexiness, but ultimately it’s the bright, addictive hooks and fetching lyrics which propels them into the indie-star stratosphere. Basically, if this were the early ’90’s everyone’s check-this-shit-out mixtape would have one of their songs on it. AB

INFO: 8:30 p.m. Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $12/adv, $14/door. 423-1338.

Khruangbin Brings Global Playlist to The Catalyst

Aaron Carnes

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November 6, 2018

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Khruangbin Brings Global Playlist to The Catalyst

Have you ever flown to a foreign country and wanted to listen to that country’s music as you were zipping through the skies?

That was kind of the idea behind the “curated playlists” that Houston, Texas trio Khruangbin set up last summer on their website, calling it “Air Khruang.” You can generate a Spotify playlist of their recommendation based on your city of departure and your destination.

These playlists tell you everything you need to know about the band. The mostly instrumental laid-back trio mixes surf, funk, soul and psych-rock with diverse global elements, so it’s kind of a creative way for them to share cool, obscure music of the world while also pointing a big shiny finger at their influences.

The idea came up because the band got a lot of press when they released their debut album The Universe Smiles Upon You in 2015. They cited ’60s Thai music as an influence, earning them the label of “Thai funk” from music journalists. Last summer, they had some time off from touring and thought it would be fun to curate some global music playlists.

“I wanted to find a way to connect with our audience in a period where we weren’t out connecting with them physically,” says bassist Laura Lee. “They’d ask us, ‘How do we find Thai music and music from all around the world?’ We decided to use this.”

Not only do most people in the U.S. not know what “Thai funk” sounds like, but the group also wasn’t really playing Thai music, per say. It just happened that they were listening to a lot of vintage Thai music when they formed, and it seeped into their songs. You’d have to understand the nuances of the rhythms and note choices of Thai music to even understand that influence.

“It’s kind of weird for people to keep calling us that,” says guitarist Mark Speer. “It’s like, ‘Dude, you should probably go listen to some actual Thai music, because although we are influenced by it, we aren’t Thai. We are from Houston, Texas. We like playing music that we like.”

For their second record, Con Todo El Mundo, released earlier this year, the influences broadened. The band members were digging a lot of Middle Eastern funk, soul and garage rock. Those elements come into play on this new record, but it’s not a major shift.

“Mark is always researching to find new music,” Lee says. “I think because I knew the effect of listening to a certain type of music and what it has on your subconscious, we were listening to a particular playlist a lot before we went into recording.”

The band’s music is difficult to define, and as more and more people listen to global music on Spotify, it’s going to be more challenging to use the traditional genre labels to categorize musicians.

“Streaming is based on moods,” says drummer Donald “DJ” Johnson. “You go to whatever streaming platform you’re on and you can basically select the mood based on however you’re feeling. Moving into this next phase of how people consume music, that’s only going to become more prevalent.”

Thinking about the vibe the music creates leads to a more clear through-line of Khruangbin’s sound. The band’s songs drift in soft grooves with spacious atmosphere and paints surreal desert landscape images with its tender textures. Speer’s guitar lines are used as de facto vocals.

“A lot of times with the things he’s playing, he’s trying to sound like singers in a foreign language, and the particular inflections that they have melodically on their vocals,” Johnson says.

Khruangbin plays at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 13 at the Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $25. 423-1338.

Be Our Guest: Akae Beka

Cat Johnson

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November 6, 2018

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Akae Beka was born in 2015. At the time, the prolific reggae artist Vaughn Benjamin was trying to figure out what to do after his band Midnite—one of the biggest reggae groups to come out of the Virgin Islands in the ’90s—had dissolved.

His new project carries with it his highly spiritual, plain-spoken political and incredibly emotional take on ’70s-style roots reggae. He’s a true master, who keeps his vocals low-key but potent.

And he plays with purpose now. The first show he ever played as Akae Beka just happened to land on Nelson Mandela Day. Fitting.

INFO: 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17. Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $25/adv, $30/door. moesalley.com.

WANT TO GO?

Go to santacruz.com/giveaways beefore 11 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8 to find out how you could win a pair of tickets to the show.

Film Review: Suspiria

Steve Palopoli

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November 6, 2018

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It’s not hard to figure out why the new Suspiria—a remake of the 1977 horror masterpiece by Italian director Dario Argento that had languished in development hell for a decade—finally got made.

From Netflix’s new The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina series to American Horror Story’s latest season, Apocalypse (which is basically a sequel to its popular third season, Coven), witches are cool again. And they’ve gotten a makeover for the modern age, evolving from the old-crone templates to hip symbols of liberated female power.

The problem with remaking Suspiria in that vein is that it’s difficult to imagine a more pointless movie than Argento’s Suspiria to throw a pussy hat on. A story about a coven operating in the secret halls beyond the façade of a German dance academy, the original was steeped in dread powered by a sense of ancient evil.

The climax of that film, in which new American student Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) finally confronts Helena Markos, the terrifying embodiment of Mother Suspiriorum, scared me more than any movie I’d ever seen the first time I watched it. With nearly the whole film set inside the dance academy, removed from the outside world, the story took on a fairy-tale quality, with Suzy piecing together the mysteries of the Tanz Dance Academy and youthful innocence standing up to the corruption of the establishment. It was a feminine story, but also an old one, drawing power from the way it tapped into our cultural archetypes.

The new remake from director Luca Guadagnino tries to be the opposite of Argento’s original in every way, and there’s something to be said for that. The flood of scary-movie remakes that have already come and gone in this young century have proven that if a great (or even marginally notable!) horror movie can be remade, it will be. The least they can do is try a different approach.

So while Argento layered on famously vivid bursts of color, Guadagnino sticks mostly to bleak winter tones. While Argento set his film to the bombastic goth-metal of Goblin, Guadagnino uses whispered rhythms from Radiohead’s Thom Yorke.

Those changes actually work really well. But for a director who seems keen on fashioning a bold artistic statement with this remake, Guadagnino chases way too many trends. Socio-political horror à la Get Out and Hereditary is in? Let’s pull this story (still set in 1977) into the real world and obsess over the hijacking of Lufthansa Flight 181 and the post-World War II division of Berlin!

Hmm, maybe let’s not. Unlike other recent horror movies that made a powerful gut-punch of a social statement, the new Suspiria approaches its historical element like a college thesis, and every time it ventures outside the walls of the academy, this way-too-long-and-slow film flatlines.

But the worst change is a new layer that’s been nonsensically tossed on top of Suzy’s story arc; with the way it pays lip service to the notion of female empowerment, it seems desperate to latch on to the zeitgeist, but there’s no there there. I suppose perhaps a better actress than Dakota Johnson might have pulled it off, but I actually don’t even think it’s her fault. It’s just a stupid twist that I won’t spoil here; suffice it to say that it pushes a story that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to begin with into infuriatingly random territory.

The original Suspiria was a horror film that transcended into art. This remake is an art film that occasionally descends into gory horror. When it does, it’s way more Ken Russell than Dario Argento, a sea of writhing nude bodies and flashy symbolic montages.

This Suspiria remake will have some fans; like mother! last year, its extreme mix of high and low art can be as tantalizing as it is polarizing. But ultimately, besides a great Tilda Swinton performance as the director of the academy—she also plays, much less convincingly, Helena Markos and an old man (!) whose story doesn’t belong in this movie at all—there’s nothing here to make Guadagnino’s Suspiria feel like anything beyond a failed experiment.

SUSPIRIA

Directed by Luca Guadagnino. Written by David Kajganich. Based on Suspiria by Dario Argento and Daria Nicolodi. Starring Dakota Johnson, Tilda Swinton and Mia Goth. R, 152 minutes.

Who Serves Santa Cruz’s Best Pumpkin Pie?

Christina Waters

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November 6, 2018

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Who Serves Santa Cruz’s Best Pumpkin Pie?

No one needs an excuse to take the short drive north to Davenport. Matchless ocean views, sweeping fields of strawberries and artichokes dotted with old ranch houses.

Like many of you, we were fond of visits past to the fabled Cash Store, emporium of world textiles, jewelry and artifacts that formerly adjoined the rambling dining room. Now in its incarnation as the Davenport Roadhouse, the restaurant sports a full bar, live music on weekends, and a kitchen offering comforting California cuisine with tourist-worthy views of the blue Pacific.

My companion has developed a fondness for one particular lunch item—the fish tacos—and last week on a seriously gorgeous October day we headed for Davenport. Our destination was two-fold: wine from the Bonny Doon Tasting Room, followed by lunch at the Roadhouse next door.

Yes, we did have those tacos! (full disclosure: my companion uses this lunch dish as an excuse to indulge in a Diet Coke). For a mere $12 dollars the dish involves a huge platter—half tacos, half delicious black beans. On the side arrived two little bowls, one of queso fresco the other of chipotle aioli. These were applied liberally to the main attraction, soft corn tortillas filled with layers of marinated purple cabbage and nuggets of flash-fried fresh cod. On top of the brilliant purple cabbage lay a creamy avocado guacamole and ribbons of cilantro.

Bite, sip, enjoy the view of sunlight glinting off the waves, repeat. Of course you don’t need an excuse to head north for some time in Davenport. But I’ve just given you one anyway. davenportroadhouse.com.

Pumpkin Pie Trials: Part 1

Early returns from our pumpkin pie fieldwork yield the following observations.

From Gayle’s comes a fully classic pumpkin pie: delicious, tender crust; silky, firm texture; great spice balance. The Buttery’s version offers a thinner crust and more custardy filling. Also good spice balance, but a lighter, more moist interior. Both pies satisfied our desire for a classic Thanksgiving flavor, and both are priced at around $3 a slice. A decently sized, not overwhelming, yet not stingy slice.

But there’s more research to be done. My waistline is expanding as I write this, but I am dedicated to discovering the top pumpkin pie in our area. Somebody’s gotta do it.

Doon’s Day

Winemaker Randall Grahm provided me with follow-up thoughts on Bonny Doon Vineyard’s pivot toward a Cigare alternative, which he calls “the end of an era as well as a change of focus.”

“Le Cigare Volant does have some very ardent followers but the way the wine is produced—i.e. long macerations, a higher acid style, coupled with the decision to use screw caps (which pushes wine back into a slightly reductive state), and you have a wine that really needs a few years in the bottle before release to be presentable,” he said. “The reality is, however, my real passion at this point is to produce a true vin de terroir, not a vin d’effort, such as is the current Le Cigare Volant. A composed wine, produced from sundry terroir, while capable of deliciousness and balance, and even complexity, can never reveal the same degree of soulfulness as a wine of place, such as I aspire to produce at my San Juan Bautista vineyard Popelouchum. The new style of Cigare Volant (or whatever it is we end up calling it) will be utterly delicious, drinkable, substantially less expensive than the current Cigare Volant, accessible to a younger audience, and above all, financially viable for us. Le Cigare est mort; vive Le Cigare.”

FYI

November is World Vegan Month. Plan accordingly.

After Red-Tagging, Planet Fresh Plan for Reopening Unclear

GT Staff

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November 6, 2018

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After Red-Tagging, Planet Fresh Plan for Reopening Unclear

Planet Fresh Gourmet Burritos remains shuttered, after being red-tagged seven weeks ago by city safety inspectors who say the spot is unsafe without needed repairs to the kitchen. Representatives of the business, who asked not to be quoted, say it will reopen. They’re not saying when and remain tight-lipped about the hold-up at the 131-year-old structure.

Magnolia trees shade the building, and a long planter with blooming hibiscus runs the length of it. An old sign still leans out over the corner proclaiming it the Santa Cruz Hotel, a name that’s also still inscribed on decorative upstairs windows.

Planet Fresh opened in 1996 at Locust and Cedar streets in the former hotel. The historic building also houses the Red Restaurant and Bar upstairs, and the dimly lit Red Room.

All three were red-tagged on Sept. 19, after fire department inspectors nearby spotted “gross” violations—including exposed, unsafe wires outside the building—while walking to a new business, Chief Building Official Mark Ellis tells GT in an email.

After repairs, both “Reds” reopened Oct. 5.

The building and all three businesses are all owned by Germaine Akin, who also owns downtown’s 515 Kitchen & Cocktails, as well as Splash and Riva Fish House on the wharf. She acquired Planet Fresh about a year ago, after original owner Fred Henschel “let it go,” according to Henschel’s 27-year-old son, Taylor, who says he has fond memories of working there as a kid.

UCSC student Olivia Stewart says Planet Fresh is “big” with students and was surprised to see it abruptly close. “It’s nice to be able to eat out healthy. I hope it reopens,” she says.

Ellis says conditions at the old hotel building were unusual. Besides problematic electrical wiring, issues included leaking plumbing and clutter in the basement that created a fire hazard.

Ellis says representatives for Akin have asked what improvements are needed at Planet Fresh and that he expects them to submit a plan outlining a kitchen remodel, including new equipment and floor repairs.

Hopefully, it won’t take too long, says Meghan Miller of Monterey, who heads to Planet Fresh whenever she comes to Santa Cruz. “I love the quirkiness. It’s such a neat building, and the food is so good,” Miller says. “It’s a great price for that kind of food.”

Santa Cruz Warriors Shoot For Rebound Season

Hugh McCormick

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November 5, 2018

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Santa Cruz Warriors Shoot For Rebound Season

One could call the Santa Cruz Warriors’ 2017-18 season a disappointment. The team failed to make the playoffs, after a very un-Warrior-like 23-27 record.

But the team has started off on the right foot this time around, after a 118-108 win in its first match of the season, an away game against the Northern Arizona Suns on Saturday, Nov. 3. Returning guard Damion Lee led the way with 26 points and three steals. The team’s first home game is Wednesday, Nov. 7, when Santa Cruz hosts the Stockton Kings at the Kaiser Permanente Arena.

“Last year was tough,” Santa Cruz Warriors general manager Kent Lacob says. “It was a great learning experience for us. There were a lot of ups and downs.”

Lacob, the son of the Warriors organization’s majority owner Joe Lacob, is in his third season as Santa Cruz’s GM, and he’s used to winning, having coordinated basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors, the Santa Cruz team’s NBA affiliate, during an epic 73-win season in 2015-2016.

“We had a lot of success in terms of helping players reach their goals last year. We had four players called up to the NBA: Antonius Cleveland, Georges Niang, Damion Lee and Quinn Cook. But in losing a lot of players, it was tough to maintain team continuity,” Lacob explains.

The goal this time is to win the championship, something the Santa Cruz Warriors last did four seasons ago in 2015. In six seasons here, last year was only the second in which the local Warriors failed to get to the playoffs. The team made it to the finals in each of its first three seasons in Santa Cruz.

The team currently has two players on two-way contracts who will split their time between Santa Cruz and Golden State—both of them guards. The first is Lee, who happens to be the brother-in-law of Golden State’s two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry, and the other is Marcus Derrickson.

“This year is different, and we are better prepared to balance player development and winning. This can be a special year for us,” Lacob says.

In his second season with Santa Cruz, Head Coach Aaron Miles wants to establish a culture of winning and give players the opportunity to learn, grow and get called up to the NBA.

Before starting his coaching career last year, Miles played ball himself—carrying Kansas to two consecutive final four appearances, briefly playing for the Golden State Warriors in 2006 and playing overseas in Russia, France, Spain, and Greece.

There’s a sense of pride and swagger that comes with being a part of the Warriors organization. Players want to fit into the dynasty that is Golden State, where they could get assigned at a moment’s notice. While Miles hopes that all of his players get to follow in his footsteps and play in the NBA, he says that “In reality, that is probably not going to happen.”

Shooting guard Will Cherry, who already has some NBA experience, grew up in Oakland. He says that getting to play for the Golden State Warriors would be a dream come true. “Everyone wants to play for their home team and represent the city they grew up in,” he says.

Cherry says he’s ready. “I do think I’m going to get called up, man,” he says. “But once the season starts, I can’t control whether they call me up or not. I keep working hard. The grind never stops.”

Leadership is already a skill at his disposal. In addition to briefly playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Cherry spent time playing for clubs in Lithuania, Germany, Turkey, and Croatia. Each team asked him to lead offensively and defensively, he says, expecting him to rack up assists and make sure his teammates were in the right spots.

“It’s easy to be a leader when things are good,” Cherry says. “A man’s true character is how he responds when things are going bad.”

Cherry’s personal goal is to be a better defender. The 2018-19 Sea Dubs should be a defensively minded ball club, concentrating on defensive efficiency, forcing turnovers, and grabbing defensive rebounds.

They are few familiar faces on this year’s manifestation of the Santa Cruz Warriors. A large number of players have only just arrived in Santa Cruz and are trying to get used to the area—and each other. The club has been doing team activities together to build comradery and enhance cohesion on and off the court. Players have explored downtown, gone bowling, and enjoyed the Boardwalk. Each player is provided his own room at the Hyatt Place for the duration of the season.

Joe Lacob’s decision to purchase the Dakota Wizards in 2011 and move the team to Santa Cruz has worked out. Having a development team less than a 100 miles from its parent club benefits everyone.

“The vibe is so unique here, and the city has embraced basketball and the Warriors in such a great way,” says Kent Lacob. “Being at Kaiser Permanente on game day is such a spectacular experience. We feel the love from the community on a daily basis.”

The Santa Cruz Warriors play their home opener against the Stockton Kings at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 7, at Kaiser Permanente Arena in downtown Santa Cruz. For ticket information, visit santacruz.gleague.nba.com.

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SUSPIRIA

Pumpkin Pie Trials: Part 1

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FYI