THURSDAY 6/11
COUNTRY
THE TURKEY BUZZARDS Launched in Morro Bay, The Turkey Buzzards are guitarist North Carolina native Dylan Nicholson and Lodi’s Eric Patterson on bass. Together, Nicholson and Patterson weave musical tales that draw from their rural and small-town foundations, imbuing the song craft with vocals that balance grit and harmony. There’s an authenticity to the Turkey Buzzards’ folky Americana that connects with listeners. Following their self-titled 2017 debut, Swing Bridge from 2019 and 2021’s Driveway Vacation, the duo’s latest album, Dog in the Sun is available on vinyl. From Bonny Doon, California, the Joe Kaplow Band opens. BILL KOPP
INFO: 8pm, Crepe Place, 1134 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. $15. 429-6994.
FRIDAY 6/12
ROCK
THE SMITHEREENS Leave it to a group of guys from New Jersey, who look just like guys from Jersey, to launch a band in 1980 that caught the MTV wave in 1986. The Smithereens had already established themselves by that time with catchy songs and schlubby everyman looks. Their music video “Blood and Roses” began in mild rotation in 1986. In 1987, on MTV’s Live from the Ritz, which featured entire shows from bands like Run DMC and Guns N’ Roses, The Smithereens made a deep impression and became an MTV favorite. A 1990s appearance on MTV Unplugged solidified their place in the empire of rock and roll. Solid dudes in a solid band. DNA
INFO: 8pm, Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Drive, Santa Cruz. $48. 479.1854.
OPERA
LA BOHÈME A passionate romance doomed by poverty and illness, Puccini’s La Bohème is one of opera’s most enduring love stories. The tragic opera spotlights struggling artists and a devastating heartbreak set in a cold Parisian winter. The Santa Cruz Opera Project brings it roaring into the present with an updated English adaptation transplanted to modern-day Santa Cruz, where poet Rodolfo falls headlong in love with the fragile, luminous Mimì, and the stormy passion between painter Marcello and the vivacious Musetta pulls at every heartstring. Directed by Andrea Hart with music direction by Mickey McGushin, this production strips away the grandeur of an opera house in favor of something more intimate. Goes until June 14. SHELLY NOVO
INFO: 7pm, Woodhouse Blending and Brewing, 119 Madrone St., Santa Cruz. $50. 313-9461.
PUNK
HUNX AND HIS PUNX For those street punks not in the know, the story of Hunx and His Punx is a sordid one full of twists and turns from the Bay to L.A., all with immaculate makeup, stylish clothes and the chicest haircuts. Founded by Seth Bogart, the band has gone through several line-up changes but currently consists of Bogart, Shannon Shaw (also known as the frontwoman and namesake for Shannon & the Clams) and Erin Emslie (of The Time Flys). If a John Waters movie turned into a band, it might just be Hunx and His Punx. Their music is catchy, steeped in 1960s garage nostalgia with a punk twist and unabashedly kitschy. MAT WEIR
INFO: 8pm, Catalyst, 1011 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $31. 713-5492.
SATURDAY 6/13
CELTIC
ÉILÍS KENNEDY AND WILLIAM COULTER Ancient songs of West Kerry meet the fingerstyle mastery of classical guitar to create something quietly extraordinary. Éilís Kennedy grew up on Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula, raised by parents who wove Gaelic language and traditional song into daily life. Her voice, soft and lilting, carries decades of Irish musical tradition with an effortless grace. Alongside her is William Coulter, a Santa Cruz-based guitarist whose fingerstyle technique made him a Grammy-winner. His steel-string arrangements bring a warm classical elegance that deepens and frames Kennedy’s vocals without overpowering them. Together, the two blend folk, traditional Irish music, and classical influences into something as evergreen as the Irish hills. SN
INFO: 7pm, Ugly Mug Cafe, 4640 Soquel Drive, Soquel, $30/adv., $35/door, 477-1341.
CLASSICAL
SANTA CRUZ SYMPHONY MOVIE NIGHT The Santa Cruz Civic is hosting a street party where attendees and looky-loos can enjoy live music, food trucks, and dress up like their favorite movie characters. Then inside, the Santa Cruz Symphony will be playing selections from Titanic, Lord of the Rings, The Avengers, Pirates of the Caribbean and other classics. Dress like Jack, Rose or Thanos and you’ll fit right in. Stirring symphonic movie themes rouse the soul, and this is a rare chance to bring the kids to something everyone will enjoy. This Spring Pops Concert is to benefit the Symphony, so go early and stay late. DNA
INFO: 5pm, Santa Cruz Civic, 307 Church Street, Santa Cruz. $15-$130. 420-5030.
SUNDAY 6/14
BLUES
MISSISSIPPI MASALA Aki Kumar was born and raised in Mumbai, nearly 9,000 miles from the Mississippi River Delta. But his love for (and understanding of) the blues is heartfelt and genuine. His brand of the blues is informed by greats like Little Walter, but it’s also indelibly suffused with the character of his native India. Alabama Mike is nominally a blues singer/songwriter, but his music is steeped in a symphonic soul aesthetic that at times recalls Sly Stone. Paired onstage as Mississippi Masala, these two Bay Area bluesmen deliver music that plants one foot in tradition, the other in adventurousness. BK
INFO: 4pm, Moe’s Alley, 1535 Commercial Way, Santa Cruz. $25. 479-1854.
MONDAY 6/15
WORLD CUP
FIFA WORLD CUP SCREENING: SPAIN VS CABO VERDE Local soccer fans of all ages are invited to watch the Spain versus Cabo Verde game on a big screen at the MAH! This free event hopes to bring together the local soccer community to enjoy the international event. All attendees are welcome to have some complimentary popcorn to snack on or to throw at the screen if the need arises. Along with popcorn, the MAH will also put out an art activity for folks to work on during the game. Regardless of who you root for, enjoy watching the match with fellow soccer fans. ISABELLA MARIE SANGALINE
INFO: 9am, The MAH, 705 Front St, Santa Cruz. Free. 429-1964.
WEDNESDAY 6/17
JAZZ
BARBARA HIGBIE & TERESA TRULL This must be the week for reunion tours because the amazing Barbara Higbie and Teresa Trull are back! They gained critical acclaim and a devoted fanbase when they first hit the scene in 1983 with their Unexpected album. Fifteen years later, they did it again with 1998’s Playtime and have been called “The most exciting musicians we have heard” and “absolutely magnificent” by the San Francisco Chronicle. They’ve been Grammy-nominated and have worked with a who’s-who of artists like Carlos Santana, Bonnie Raitt, Huey Lewis and even Whoopi Goldberg. Now, Teresa Trull leaves her home in New Zealand to once again travel the country with multi-instrumentalist Barbara Higbie in support of their Greatest Hits album. MW
