Saturday June 23rd: Free Sherman Heights Music Festival

Sherman Heights Music Festival 

Saturday June 23, 2018

12pm-7pm 

Free

at Sherman Heights Community Center

Rick & Friends

Quiquiriqui Coyotas

The Humble Chicanos

The Cat Chasers 

Things To Do In San Diego: Tuesday, June 19-Monday, June 25, 2018

I'm gonna be honest, the only real photos I shot last week were of Nova's soccer team in the Kickin' It Challenge, so I decided to use a pic of Iceage from the week before. It's not that I didn't get out...On Wednesday I went to see Olden Yolk and Mega Bog at Whistle Stop. I sold merch for Har Mar Superstar on Thursday and it was an amazing show, with the 15-piece marching band Mission Delirium opening and Har Mar playing Sam Cooke songs for an extended set. On Friday I went to Brownout at the Casbah and didn't bother with photos, and on Saturday after the tournament, we went to Oceanside to see one of Darren's college BFF's who was in town. It was a long and exhausting week, but we keep on rolling. This is Nova's final week before she heads to St. Louis for a month. There are tons of rad shows this week, too, but I'm awaiting some confirmations before I commit to a schedule. All the listings are after the jump.

Saturday- Free Pre-Father's Day Celebration in North Park

For more information, check the event page here.

Things To Do In San Diego: Tuesday, June 12-Monday, June 18, 2018

Well let's see how the last week went. Started Tuesday off by dropping my ballot off at the polling place and being pretty hopeful. I went to Iceage that night and made the mistake of checking my phone and though there were some wins, it was still an overall depressing midterm election. I just find it heartbreaking that people can't even be bothered to moderately pay attention to the world around them. It kinda left me in a stupor all week, and then my social media feed filling with talk of the suicides of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain didn't really help lift my moods. But I trudged through the week with Nova's daily soccer practices, getting to see Speedy Ortiz on Wednesday and Sick of It All on Thursday. We also got to watch Darren's indoor soccer game which was pretty intense, and his adrenaline was pumping so much that he didn't realize he took a cleat to the ankle and was left hobbling around the rest of the weekend. On Friday, I got a late start on the night and ended up seeing Jake Najor and The Moment of Truth at the Rabbit Hole. Saturday was lowkey and we went to Josh Krimston's birthday but after we got home after 8, we opted to stay in for the remainder of the night, and Sunday I worked for Justin Townes Earle and closed the night down at Whistle Stop. This week should be a lot more chill and hopefully far less depressing. I'm hoping to catch Sunflower Bean at the Che, I'm working for Har Mar on Thursday, and then I'm pretty much checking out for the weekend because Nova's got a soccer tournament. It hurts that we're going to be so close to A Ship In The Woods but not actually get to check it out. Such is life. Full listings after the jump.

Saturday Free Music Panel: How To License Your Music presented by San Diego Music Foundation

The San Diego Music Foundation presents - San Diego Music Thing! While the full two-day conference has mostly been dissolved, the SDMF still wants to educate musicians about the business. This is a free music business panel about licensing your music for uses like TV, film, games, commercial advertisements and more.  Doors are at 1:30pm on Saturday, June 9th, at Cinematic Arts & Sounds. After the panel and event, stick around for an art and music event to celebrate the Rock n Roll poster art of SCROJO (most widely known for his amazing years of creating Belly Up posters). That events starts at 6:30 and costs $10. 

Things To Do in San Diego: Tuesday, June 5-Monday, June 11, 2018

Adulting can be so exhausting sometimes. Between the chaos of work because of the Ticketfly outage and running Nova around to soccer practices, and trying to sneak in a little fun here and there, too, I end up just trying to grab sleep when I can. Besides all the usual stuff, we got to see Nova's derby pal in Guys And Dolls at Lakeside Middle School, which was adorable), we spent some time at Silver Strand for the Soccer in the Sand Tournament on Saturday and Sunday, and I went to see Curtis Harding at the Casbah and stayed out way too late for Sunday morning soccer, but some swimming and boogie boarding in the ocean was the perfect remedy. This week I'm hoping to catch Speedy Ortiz, and maybe Sick of It All and James Supercave, Maps & Atlases, and Los Aterciopelados. I'm also dying to get up to Safari Park to see the new Australian Walkabout, but with one more soccer tournament coming up before Nova finishes school and leaves for her month in St Louis.  There are some amazing shows this week and we have a Warriors fan in the house, so we'll be watching the rest of the finals when we can, too. Today is election day. I hope everyone I know takes the time to vote.

Things To Do In San Diego: Saturday, June 2-Monday, June 4, 2018

I thought I'd update the listings because they got kinda buried with all of my other posts and there's so much going on today. We will be spending the majority of the day at Silver Strand Beach for the Soccer In The Sand tournament, but if you're not out soccer momming, there are some rad things, like the record swap at Casbah, Jupiter's grand opening,  and Art arund Adams. I also want to shout out to Nova's derby squad, formerly Juvenile Dollinquents but now called the Spitfires. They're in Seattle this weekend defending their national title at Battle on the Bank. If you've ever wanted to watch derby, you can steam it live here.  Have a great weekend.

Saturday: Art Around Adams

ART AROUND ADAMS 2018

2-MILE MUSIC & ART WALK

Saturday, June 2nd from 12 – 8pm

Where Craft, Live Music, Social and Commerce meet.

The Adams Avenue District continues to evolve, and so has our event. Come visit the many participating storefront businesses with galleries and stages curated just for the event.

Enjoy Adams Avenue in a friendly, relaxed and carefree environment where taste-makers and free thinkers mix freely with family and friends. Experience exhibits and performances that will dazzle the eye and stir the senses. Each year we strive to infuse new and exciting artists and talents that reflect this year’s local trends in art and business. Stroll the entire route, or take the complimentary “Comedy Trolley.” It’s FREE FUN for young and old.

To see full participants and schedules, go to their site here.

Ticketfly Hacked & Down For Service- New Temporary Casbah Links

Following recent site issues, we determined that Ticketfly has been the target of a cyber incident. To protect our clients and fans, and to secure the website and related data, we have temporarily taken all Ticketfly systems offline. We’ll keep you updated.

— Ticketfly (@ticketfly) May 31, 2018

While working on listings this week, I noticed the Casbah site being wonky. I could see the backend Casbah stuff, but our site and all ticket links were down. Then the site was back up for a heartbeat and then back down, and now nothing is accessible. This morning (around 4am), Ticketfly issued a statement that they believe they've been cyber attacked, so all Ticketly and related site are down. For us here in San Diego, that included Casbah, Soda Bar, and Brick By Brick, and if you go to comedy clubs, Mad House Comedy and maybe a few others that I can't recall off the the top of my head.

The Casbah is working with an alternate ticketing site to temporarily restore your ability to purchase advance tickets. For now you should know that the remainder of the shows currently booked through Monday will all have tickets available at the door for purchase. I believe the same to be true for Soda Bar, but I don't speak for them.

Those shows are:
Thursday:
WAND, C57Black6, Sumatraban @ Casbah

Friday:
The Paladins, The Bedbreakers, The Tighten Ups @ Casbah (Tickets)

Saturday:
Vinyl Junkies Record Swap @ Casbah (11am-5pm)
Curtis Harding, Algiers @ Casbah (Tickets)
Alex Lahey, Whiskey Circle, Mittens @ Soda Bar

Sunday:
Josh Rouse, True Stories @ Casbah (Tickets)

Monday:
The Lexicons, Nothing Special, Krook Tone Classics @ Casbah

What this could mean, and sadly we do not know the extent of the cyber attack or data breach, is that you might want to start to change passwords if, for example, your Ticketfly password was your 'universal password' and it links to any sensitive credit info, and keep an eye on your credit accounts for any suspicious use. It's extreme and hopefully doesn't come to that, but right now, we only know what TIcketfly is sharing publicly and to clients.

This Saturday- Vinyl Junkies Record Swap at the Casbah

This Saturday is another Vinyl Junkies Record Swap at the Casbah!

The DJ Lineup is extra-special and ALL FEMALE!!
Shop early for the best inventory!

11am-5pm

$5

21+

All Female DJ Line-Up!

1am-Noon: Special Guest

Noon-1pm:  Brandy Bell (Strangers in A Fire)

1pm-2pm:  Carrie Gillespie Feller (Hexa)

2pm-3pm:  Chulita Vinyl Club

3pm-4pm:  Chulita Vinyl Club

4pm-5pm  Betty Bangs

Photos: King Tuff at the Casbah, May 3, 2018

This is just a quick little post. There's certainly nothing exceptional about these shots of King Tuff...I took them with my Samsung S7 mobile device, but the show was definitely exceptional, as is his latest record, The Other. We were at the second night of the Arctic Monkeys at the Observatory (of which I have no photographic evidence whatsoever because of the strict no photo policy) and we cut out at the encore to see Tuffy and get some Casbah cocktails running through our blood. It was a super fun night and you should definitely make a point to catch King Tuff whenever he returns.

Del Mar Racing Announces Summer Concert Series

When I was growing up, one of my favorite things to do was to go to the racetrack. My grandpa had trained and raced horses at Caliente long before I was born, and though he'd eventually lose all his horses, he never lost the love of the track. He was a farmer, always in his tan long-sleeve button down work shirt and work pants with a scruffy face of stubble and his hole-ridden straw work hat. That is, unless it was a day at the races, in which case he'd shave, slather on his Old Spice, a long sleeve button down dress shirt and dress pants, and his fancy boots and hat. It was joyful. Sometimes it would be the whole family at the races, sometimes just Tata, my dad, and me. I'd race with him to the paddock, because he always had to see the horses before they'd race, and he and my dad would teach me how to handicap.

Memories are sweet and I'll cherish them forever, but it's 2018, and I have to say that I'm only halfheartedly sharing this year's Del Mar Summer Concert Series. I'd be an asshole if I didn't share shows that are so popular to San Diegans, but I feel like horse-racing will go the way of bullfighting in the next generation. And I'm not a vegan by any stretch, so perhaps that makes me a big fat hypocrite, but I feel like if I'm going to post a link to the concerts, I should also post a couple links to the very real and ugly side to horse racing.

If you do choose to attend the summer concerts, they're free with the cost of track admission ($6) so long as you arrive before the final race. Shows are standing room only and 18+.

2018 Del Mar Summer Concert Series:  

7/20- Psychedelic Furs 
7/21- Iration
7/27- Steel Pulse
8/3-Matisyahu
8/10- Aloe Blacc
8/11- Reggae Fest with Ziggy Marley
8/17- Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
8/24- Tribal Seeds
8/31- Café Tacvba
9/2- Ice Cube

Things To Do In San Diego: Wednesday, May 30-Friday, June 1, 2018

Let's start with the bummer. Ticketfly was down and it's the end of the month so I'm missing a ton of listings from Brick By Brick, Black Cat, Casbah, Soda Bar, El Dorado, FLUXX, Ken Club, and Sycamore Den. Other than that, you've got the SD Fair starting this weekend, Art Around Adams, and I even included the Temecula Balloon and Wine Festival in case you want to check out our neighbors to the north this weekend.
As for catching up with me, I already told you I have been uploading pictures to my site like crazy, but I still have to go through and take out the duds and write them up, even minimally. Our week was pretty sweet, Nova had a couple sleepovers during the week and I got to shoot The Head and the Heart,  went to the Blondie tribute at Blonde, a fundraiser for Nova's derby, and caught the Posies. And I slept a ton, which I'm not upset about at all. Listings are back through Monday after the jump. I'll try to update anything missing, but you have to tell me in the comments.

Photos: Cigarettes After Sex at Observatory, April 30, 2018

Let's talk Cigarettes After Sex. This was another one that I was begging to shoot. I had seen them at The Hideout when there were fifty-something tickets sold, then I worked when they played The Irenic and I remember being so tired that I didn't stay for the whole show and certainly didn't try to bust out my camera. Then some strings were pulled to let me shoot at the Observatory and I realized the whole show was going to be shrouded with massive hazers and I'm thinking, "please, just let me get something, anything". Darren was able to come and we'd been listening to them so much it was a super nice date night and their music is certainly sexy-time music. But my biggest regret of the show was that after I was done shooting, I ran to West Coast to use the bathroom and grab more drinks, and completely missed their cover of REO Speedwagon "Keep On Loving You". Damnit. Fortunately, two days after the show, singer Greg Gonzalez had performed a session for SiriusXMU that included the song and it's such an amazing take on the song (which, I should admit, was a favorite when I'd listen to KyXy with my mom as a little girl). Anyway, the show was incredible, though I have to say was better that it was not on a weekend because the crowd was cool to be chill and quiet instead of the weekend warriors who might have ruined the whole thing had it been on a Friday or Saturday. They're also a band that I would love to see get enormous, but I'm also selfishly hoping a venue like the Observatory is as big as they'd play because they're not an arena or stadium type band. But I love them, and I did my best shooting, but with the whole band shrouded in darkness, it's a whole lotta Greg. More pics after the jump.

Photos: The War On Drugs at the Observatory, April 15, 2018

Nova was away for a lot of the weekend, so I spent several hours trying to catch up and upload photos from the past few weeks. Then I about had a full meltdown when I realized there were shows as far back as February that I never uploaded. So bear with me as there will be a ton of photo posts this week. By my count, there are about 35 shows I never posted.

So let's start here with The War On Drugs. The band played both weekends of Coachella and we stayed close to home for the most part that first weekend because we love watching the YouTube stream of the major stages. As we watched the band on our TV that Friday night, I was still trying every avenue available to me to get a photo pass but up to that point it was still a hard no. I don't know what strings were pulled but more than a few awesome people worked to my benefit, so that by Sunday evening, I got an approval and was one of just two photographers to shoot the show. Of course, that makes me all the bigger loser that I never posted these, but I'm trying not to be so insecure about my photography, because there are few things I love more than being behind a camera.

So here are some of the shots. I tried to whittle it down to a couple dozen but when you shoot upwards of 300 shots a band, I find I have lots of favorites. This show was amazing. I don't think I'd seen The War on Drugs since their Casbah show a few years back, and while sometimes I can get bored when a band just breaks into heavy noodling, there's so much going on on the stage and in the music that once I was done shooting, I found myself just kinda closing my eyes and getting lost in the music. More photos after the jump.

Things To Do In San Diego: Tuesday, May 22-Tuesday, May 29, 2018

It has been a helluva week. I got to have some big nostalgic moments, catching Nada Surf's 10 year Anniversary of Let Go, seeing Trashcan Sinatras perform Cake (from 1991!), Pedro the Lion, and getting to interview and see MGMT. We also went to Disneyland on Sunday...our first time as a family and my first time in maybe two decades. So it was quite a whirlwind and now I've got 1000+ new photos to sift through and share. But it's also been crazy because I have a 20 year old cat. She's doing mostly well, her mom lived to 22, and she still gets around on her own, but we've been having litter box issues. I suggested a visit to the vet and thankfully they confirmed an ear infection and a bacterial infection in her bladder. The good news is both are treatable, but until both clear, we are single-handedly keeping Nature's Miracle in business. We love her and all of our pets, but there are few things more frustrating then cleaning up pet messes. So there's some real life for ya. I did listings through Tuesday for this week only so that I don't lose my entire Memorial Day staring at my laptop. All listings are after the jump.