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Pass the Patrón
04.29.09
Natasha James scored a hit on national roots-music radio charts with “The Restless Kind” from her 2007 album Bad Judgements, but “restless” is in her past. The Sonoma-based singer-songwriter insists that her newly released Tequila Time is “a playful record, that has some deep lyrics, but the overall tone is upbeat.” When I tell her I still hear bits of yearning in the new album’s spirit of fun, she chuckles and says, “If you’re hearing that on Tequila Time, then I’m curious if there’s a little more restlessness left in me than I thought!”
Playful, upbeat ease is indeed what colors Tequila Time, as James’ confident band nails roots styles ranging from the old-time barroom shuffle of “Stuck in Atlanta” to the salsa/Tex-Mex mix of “Cheetah on the Run” to the country blues groove of “Ain’t Done Nothin’ Wrong.” Gone are the horns that gave Bad Judgements a jazzy flavor, but Tequila Time ups the rock ante. “Straight to Hell” is a big, righteous ballad worthy of early ’70s Rolling Stones, while “Get Out of My Way” is sassy Southern rock reminiscent of the Allman Brothers.
Settled life trumps wanderlust on the final cut “Modern Life,” as James names common hectic details like internet games and soccer uniforms yet finds peace with the “bigger universals” she says “we all deal with in our own way.” James’ own life has taken her all over California, Mexico and Europe before she finally landed in New York in the early ’80s to pursue a songwriting career. When two kids came along, Sonoma County gave her a good spot to drop anchor: gorgeous landscapes, musical freedom, intelligent culture and community. She quit music for 15 years while working as an investment agent, but believers in the music industry coaxed her back, and her music focus is now nonstop. After a series of California gigs, she tours Texas and the East Coast, where radio support is strong, and shows no sign of letting up. “I just don’t have the off button,” she laughs.
Natasha James will be busy promoting Tequila Time on Thursday, April 30, starting with a performance and CD signing at Backdoor Disc and Tape (7665 Old Redwood Hwy., Cotati. 5pm. 707.795.9597). Her CD release party begins at 8pm at the Last Day Saloon (120 Fifth St., Santa Rosa. $15. 707.545.5876).
Bits ‘n’ bobs
04.29.09
Chris Benziger delicately held a glasss of real French Champagne in one hand as he stood outside the KRSH 95.9-FM studios last Wednesday at 8:25am. He took a sip and smiled. “There’s more inside!” he offered. Benziger, in the studio for a quick Earth Day chat, was off to oversee the opening of his family’s biodynamic discovery trail at the winery. Visitors can learn more about full moons and manure-filled horns at 1882 London Ranch Road, Glen Ellen. 888.490.2739. . . .
The Seven Ultralounge nightclub that the city of Santa Rosa successfully dogged to the ground has been taken over by The Vine, which plans an opening night gala on Friday, May 1, with $10 getting patrons plenty to eat and a DJ spinning the platters; the bar is hosted from 9pm to 10pm that night. The next day at noon, the Vine presents a Kentucky Derby hat party for $20, which includes appetizers, photos and bourbon samplings; the pleasure of an RSVP is requested, and fancy hats are expected. Check it out at the Vine, 528 Seventh St., Santa Rosa. 707.527.5600. . . .
The Ceres Community Project, which serves healthy nourishing meals to cancer patients while honing the skills of young chefs, is lookinf for recipes that might pique the palate of a cancer patient for a new cookbook they’re compiling. For details, call 707.829.5833 or email Kari Stettler at ka**@**********ct.org. . . .
When the venerable Lark Creek Inn closed earlier this month after 20 years of destination dining, foodies mourned but bravely kept to the grind of their days knowing that the place is due to reopen in late May. Reborn as the Tavern at Lark Creek with a new menu topping out at $15 for entrées, the Tavern promises to be seasonally aware and casual enough for neighbors and grieving foodies to stop in early and often for a quick, lovely bite that doesn’t need a prom dress or a birthday to prompt it. . . .
The Sebastopol Farmers Market hosts World Laughter Day on Sunday, May 3, with “certified laugh leaders” teaching market-goers the pleasures of guffawing for one full 60-second minute for no damned good reason (other than mere world peace and personal health). Get ready for a chuckle between 10am and 1:30pm in the Sebastopol Plaza. . . .
Dutcher Crossing Winery hosts Bravissimo!, a yowsa fundraiser for the Healdsburg School on Saturday, May 2, with a raffle that includes such treats as the chance to cook with Cyrus’ own Douglas Keane for a day, a week’s stay at an Italian villa, a 100-bottle “instant cellar,” a dollop of trapshooting, a slice o’ Hawaii and the ubiquitous more. Jazz, good food and fun, bien sur. Tickets are $100. For details, call 707.431.8508.
Quick dining snapshots by Bohemian staffers.
Winery news and reviews.
Food-related comings and goings, openings and closings, and other essays for those who love the kitchen and what it produces.
Recipes for food that you can actually make.
Arcade Fire: Mirroir Noir DVD
Who will be the next U2? Spike and I discussed it the other day, and even three years ago, the Arcade Fire were the only serious contender; Mirroir Noir cements it. They have uplift, they have bombast, and now they have the requisite artistic film-document thing. I did not come right out and say that they were the next U2 in this Neon Bible review, but read between the lines.
Wasn’t Neon Bible, like, so 2007? To be reminded of it now by this DVD is to force a reassessment. I was interested in its haunting quality. In hindsight, I don’t understand what the album’s uncertainty was all about. Wasn’t uncertainty, like, so 2002?
Love how her feet manage themselves when she plays the pipe organ. Think that the band is giving Bjork a run for her money in the “everything is music” department. Magazine ripping is percussion, and it is done together! Everything is done together! We dance in the studio! We dance backstage! Two people beating on a cymbal is better than one!
No song is completed all the way through. People walk across parking lots. People swim in the 1920s. The illusion of falling. Hypnosis. When your eyes are half-closed, distant lights become circles. People call in and hypothesize about the meaning of “neon Bible.” On and on. What it means is religion is chintzy. No uncertainly required.
Dear Arcade Fire: The longtime host of The Price Is Right is Bob Barker.
“Power Out” and “Rebellion (Lies)” happen at the end, reminding you that Funeral was way better. My favorite Neon Bible moment was one that didn’t happen on the album, nor did it happen in this DVD. It happened when Bruce Springsteen gave his approval by covering “Keep the Car Running” at a show in Ottawa, and when a fan in the crowd was completely overcome with joy, surprise, happiness, confusion, elation and disbelief all at once.
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April 27: Lark Theater Youth Film Festival
Lest we allow YouTube to have us believe that every teenager who picks up a video camera only wants to film themselves dancing to Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance,” the Lark Theater Youth Film Festival showcases 20 short films by Marin teenagers that capture the depth, thought, insight and spirit of youth. This year’s third annual festival adds a “green” category to the documentary, music and narrative lineup; each entry is under 12 minutes long, but if prior years are any indication, the talent and entertainment at the festival is high. Spread across two age categories, 10-13 and 14-18, the competition rewards the best entries in front of a perennially sold-out crowd. Advance tickets are recommended when the festival returns on Monday, April 27, at the Lark Theater, 549 Magnolia Ave., Larkspur. 12:30pm. $10. 415.924.5111.
Gabe Meline
April 25 and 26: Recessionary Re-Swapping
Spring cleaning means finding a lotta stuff you don’t need, but as these recessionary times have reminded us, throwing perfectly useful items away is absurd. Three swaps this weekend offer the opportunity to pass along unwanted items. The Great Shoe-In collects gently worn athletic shoes (tied together, please) to be distributed to local shelters, Third World countries and, in the case of irreparable shoes, ground up into bouncy playground surfaces. Drop shoes off on April 25 and 26 at Santa Rosa High School, Coddingtown Mall or the Shomrei Torah at 2600 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa. The Plus-Size Clothing Swap offers women with larger waistlines the ability to shed old duds and don new gently-worn new-to-you clothes (with all donations helping to provide services to the local womens’ shelter the Living Room) on Saturday, April 25, at Making it Big, 525 Portal St., Cotati, from 11am-5pm. And in Petaluma, the anything-goes Free Sale is a community garage sale without the little neon circular price tags sponsored by activist youth group Impact! Bring just about anything and leave with just about anything, with free food and music, on Sunday, April 26, at 1251 Marian Way, Petaluma. 11am-5pm.
Gabe Meline
April 25: 1960s Day at Redwood Empire Ice Arena
For anyone who’s grown up in Sonoma County, the Redwood Empire Ice Arena has been a huge part of fond childhood memories. In the next four months, the ice arena now known as Snoopy’s Home Ice celebrates 40 years of ice skating with specialty-themed skate nights by decade. This weekend, it’s the 1960s, where admission and rental prices will be rolled back to $1.25 and $0.25; the Warm Puppy café will serve uncovered dishes for rolled-back rates; music from the ’60s will play on the rink and contests for best costume and hairstyle will reward the diehards. Apart from the absence of Charles Schulz, little has changed at the ice arena since it opened in 1969—the Scandinavian décor is timeless, and even hometown hero Skippy Baxter still skates rings around the Zamboni (his famous backflip is now on YouTube). In subsequent months, the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s will be feted, but for now, spray up that beehive hairdo and come for the party on Saturday, April 25, at Snoopy’s Home Ice, 1667 W. Steele Lane, Santa Rosa. 12:30pm-4:30pm. $1.50. 707.546.7147.
Gabe Meline
April 25: Bob Pittman at Legends
It is refreshingly easy to become completely beguiled by the homespun charm of Bob Pittman’s recent CD, 10 Totally Catchy Songs By Some Guy You’ve Never Heard Of, released on Your Record Company Here, 123 Happy Ln., Anytown, USA. Whether through the Lou Reed talking-singing of “Waiting for my Ship to Come In,” the Erasure-esque synth-pop of “Pit Stop” or the Being There-era Wilco twang of “The Hard Line,” Pittman has made an utterly unpretentious record—despite the back cover’s tongue-in-cheek declaration that it’s “the only album you’ll ever need!” Lighthearted humor and subtle social commentary surround poignant stories, such as “The Palm of Her Hand,” and even though it bears no resemblance to the accepted genre, it is truly an indie-rock record. Pittman, a postal carrier, appears with Cotati’s wacky blackface-controversy councilman George Barich at a golf course karaoke party to celebrate the release of 10 Totally Catchy Songs on Saturday, April 25, at Legends, Bennett Valley Golf Course, 3328 Yulupa Ave., Santa Rosa. 8:30pm. Free. 707.523.4111.
Jello Biafra is Not Singing with Dead Kennedys at the Harmony Festival
I heard the rumors. You might have heard them too. So before all the ridiculous hearsay gets out of hand, let me set the record straight: Jello Biafra is not singing with Dead Kennedys at the Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa.
It all started when I wrote an appreciative post about the Harmony Festival branching out and booking punk rock bands (the Bad Brains, along with three members of Dead Kennedys, minus Biafra). Someone wrote in: “Have you heard? A little birdie told me that Jello is singing with them!”
In the next week, five or six separate people asked me if I’d heard the news that Jello was, in fact, singing with Dead Kennedys. People in bands, employees at music stores and record stores heard the same thing. Jello Biafra was just up here recording a new album at Prairie Sun, after all, and a cryptic notice on Dead Kennedys’ official website further fueled the fire: “Keep an eye out for a rare and special event on June 12, 2009!”
I told everyone that they were totally crazy. After the acrimonious lawsuit a few years ago, there’d be no way Jello would ever sing with Dead Kennedys again. But the buzz persisted.
So I wrote to the Harmony Festival’s publicist to clarify the rumors, and asked who was singing for the band. She wrote back: “We cannot officially confirm or deny the appearance of Jello Biafra at Harmony Festival this year—yet.”
It seemed weird.
So I called up Jello Biafra.
He’d never heard of the Harmony Festival, nor did he have very nice things to say about the other three ex-members of Dead Kennedys (“It’s at least an ugly situation as Brian Wilson versus Mike Love, with a lot of the same horrible behavior,” he told me).
It’ll be in the Bohemian in a couple weeks, but for the time being: Jello Biafra is not singing with Dead Kennedys at the Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa on June 12, and despite repeated assertions from certain people that he’s been “invited to attend,” the truth is that neither he, nor his label, nor his booking agent have been contacted about it.
–
(UPDATE: The interview is here.)
Live Review: Throbbing Gristle at the Grand Ballroom
In the further adventures of Throbbing Gristle as the most ingratiating band on the planet, the four original members turned on all the house lights in the Grand Ballroom last night, uncoiled an incessant low, seraphic noise from the stage, and started their first set in San Francisco since 1981’s famous show at Kezar Pavilion with “Very Friendly,” a peppy little tune about murdering children.
“No matter how fucking loud you yell,” declared a sort-of-almost-halfway-transgendered Genesis P-Orridge, “my voice will always be louder than yours.”
That could very well be Throbbing Gristle’s motto: Our voice will always be louder than yours. Of course, the band was quiet for years. In the aftermath of the Kezar show, they stopped performing, and the live album from that swan song, Mission of Dead Souls, served as a final spurt from one of the world’s most abrasive, interesting and unique groups. Last night’s return to the city of Dead Souls was a historic event, yes. It was also a sonically vicious onslaught, and its voice, definitely, was louder than yours.
In front of the speakers was not the healthiest place to be standing, where both physical and mental faculties were repeatedly strained by jarring stabs of digital knifeplay from the laptops of Chris Carter and Peter “Sleazy” Christopherson. And yet in front of the speakers was the most appropriate place to fully absorb the live experience, a full-body workout unavailable on Throbbing Gristle’s albums. The health of their audience is not a concern. The bass sounds blew loose-fitting clothes with each gut-churning wallop; up in the piercing tweeter range lay Cosey Fanni Tutti’s slide guitar abstractions; and in the middle of it all, the soul of the band, P-Orridge, delivering litany after litany on death, bondage, masturbation, mayhem and disorder.
In a blonde wig, orange blouse, pink skirt and brown vest, the bosomed P-Orridge commanded the stage, intractable during the frightening narratives of classic Throbbing Gristle material like 20 Jazz Funk Greats’ “What a Day” and “Persuasion,” and Mission of Dead Souls‘ “Something Came Over Me.”
A dash of humor came when a note was thrown on stage. “Genesis: Thank you for creating you,” P-Orridge read out loud, reciting the note. “Love, Stephanie. Call me.” Then, to make sure that everyone had a chance to write it down, P-Orridge twice read off Stephanie’s phone number. “Stephanie has brown hair, a blue dress, some cleavage,” he continued, “and she’s ready to be created with you.”
For as much as P-Orridge is painted as an antagonist, an iconoclast, and an artistic anarchist, he is still, in his heart, a human being. During the lone song played last night with the lights dimmed, the new song “Almost a Kiss,” he stepped back from each verse to unfurl his arms and plead to the skies for a love that had mysteriously disappeared. It was a dark, revelatory moment, unveiling the universal sadness that is so often shrouded in Throbbing Gristle’s industrial venom.
The show ended sweetly, with P-Orridge introducing his daughter Genesse to the crowd, and concluded with a long, long version of “Discipline,” which the up-till-then staid crowd took to heart by finally becoming undisciplined; bodies started moving, someone in the back dropped their drink, a fight broke out in the balcony. Finally, all the ingratiation had worked. Finally, Throbbing Gristle had made their grand return. And just like that, with an appreciative bow and no encore, they were gone again.
More Photos Below.
Pass the Patrón
04.29.09Natasha James scored a hit on national roots-music radio charts with "The Restless Kind" from her 2007 album Bad Judgements, but "restless" is in her past. The Sonoma-based singer-songwriter insists that her newly released Tequila Time is "a playful record, that has some deep lyrics, but the overall tone is upbeat." When I tell her I still hear bits...
Bits ‘n’ bobs
04.29.09Chris Benziger delicately held a glasss of real French Champagne in one hand as he stood outside the KRSH 95.9-FM studios last Wednesday at 8:25am. He took a sip and smiled. "There's more inside!" he offered. Benziger, in the studio for a quick Earth Day chat, was off to oversee the opening of his family's biodynamic discovery trail at...
Arcade Fire: Mirroir Noir DVD
Who will be the next U2? Spike and I discussed it the other day, and even three years ago, the Arcade Fire were the only serious contender; Mirroir Noir cements it. They have uplift, they have bombast, and now they have the requisite artistic film-document thing. I did not come right out and say that they were the next...
April 27: Lark Theater Youth Film Festival
Lest we allow YouTube to have us believe that every teenager who picks up a video camera only wants to film themselves dancing to Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance,” the Lark Theater Youth Film Festival showcases 20 short films by Marin teenagers that capture the depth, thought, insight and spirit of youth. This year’s third annual festival adds a “green”...
April 25 and 26: Recessionary Re-Swapping
Spring cleaning means finding a lotta stuff you don’t need, but as these recessionary times have reminded us, throwing perfectly useful items away is absurd. Three swaps this weekend offer the opportunity to pass along unwanted items. The Great Shoe-In collects gently worn athletic shoes (tied together, please) to be distributed to local shelters, Third World countries and, in...
April 25: 1960s Day at Redwood Empire Ice Arena
For anyone who’s grown up in Sonoma County, the Redwood Empire Ice Arena has been a huge part of fond childhood memories. In the next four months, the ice arena now known as Snoopy’s Home Ice celebrates 40 years of ice skating with specialty-themed skate nights by decade. This weekend, it’s the 1960s, where admission and rental prices will...
April 25: Bob Pittman at Legends
It is refreshingly easy to become completely beguiled by the homespun charm of Bob Pittman’s recent CD, 10 Totally Catchy Songs By Some Guy You’ve Never Heard Of, released on Your Record Company Here, 123 Happy Ln., Anytown, USA. Whether through the Lou Reed talking-singing of “Waiting for my Ship to Come In,” the Erasure-esque synth-pop of “Pit Stop”...
Jello Biafra is Not Singing with Dead Kennedys at the Harmony Festival
I heard the rumors. You might have heard them too. So before all the ridiculous hearsay gets out of hand, let me set the record straight: Jello Biafra is not singing with Dead Kennedys at the Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa.
It all started when I wrote an appreciative post about the Harmony Festival branching out and booking punk rock...
Live Review: Throbbing Gristle at the Grand Ballroom
In the further adventures of Throbbing Gristle as the most ingratiating band on the planet, the four original members turned on all the house lights in the Grand Ballroom last night, uncoiled an incessant low, seraphic noise from the stage, and started their first set in San Francisco since 1981’s famous show at Kezar Pavilion with “Very Friendly,” a...
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