Thursday, November 29, 2012

Monday Night Preview- Paul Banks @ House of Blues

Photo Credit- Helena Christensen

This Monday night, Paul Banks (aka Julian Plenti, aka lead singer of Interpol) returns to San Diego with his eponymous act in benefit of his new album Banks.  Thousand Oaks, CA- based The Neighbourhood opens.  More from Matador Records:
 
Paul Banks, lead singer and guitarist for Interpol, finally steps fully out from behind his Julian Plenti alter-ego on his second solo album, Banks.  Following this summer’s limited-edition Julian Plenti Lives... EP, Banks is a tour-de- force of exhilarating minor-key intensity.

Banks was recorded in New York and Connecticut with producer Peter Katis (Interpol, The National, Shearwater, Jónsi...).  The album is both personal and epic, catchy and serpentine - much like your favorite Interpol albums - with Paul's wry humor, bare emotion, and varied influences all in full effect.  

Tickets available through the HOB website here or at the box office- doors @ 6:30, show starts @ 7:30.  See you there! 

More Casbah Show Announcements

I feel like a Christmas Elf today because I have spent the majority of my afternoon adding shows to the Casbah's website and there is SO.MUCH.GOOD.STUFF!! Many of these shows are already on sale, but a few of them will go on sale tomorrow at 10am. The New Years Eve show at the Lafayette will go on sale on Saturday.

Here's a rundown of shows that have been added to the Casbah's website:

Dec 20 - Dublin Mob XXXmas with Royal Crown Revue, Stephen Rey and the Sex Trash, Hands Down South $15 TICKETS

Dec 23 - X, My Jerusalem $35 TICKETS

Dec 20 - Dublin Mob XXXmas with Royal Crown Revue, Stephen Rey and the Sex Trash, Hands Down South $15 TICKETS

Dec 27 - Louis XIV $15 Onsale Fri Nov 30



NEW YEARS EVE:

Dec 31 - Steve Poltz and Friends $15/20 TICKETS

Dec 31 at the Lafayette Hotel: Little Hurricane, Get Back Loretta, Blackout Party, Shake Before Us and guests 8pm
Tickets:
$15 for 1 week beginning Dec 1
Dec 8 - $25
Dec 15 - $30
Dec 22 - $35
Dec 29 - $40


Jan 4 - Uncle Joe's Big Ol' Driver, Fluf, Black Hondo, Ghetto Blaster $10/12 TICKETS


Jan 16 - The London Souls $10/12 TICKETS


Feb 6 - That 1 Guy $12 TICKETS


Feb 10 - Big Freedia $14 TICKETS


Feb 20 - Buke and Gase,Aleuchatistas $10 TICKETS


Feb 28 - Electric Six announce today/onsale Fri Nov 30 $14 TICKETS


Mar 8 - Why?, Astronautilus, Dream Tiger $18 @ The Irenic All Ages 7pm TICKETS


Mar 30 - Veronica Falls, Brilliant Colors $10 TICKETS

Pay Attention San Diego: Upcoming Shows

I realize that I am lucky to work a life I love. Being on the inside of information at the Casbah still gives me a little tug of "is this reality?"  Sometimes this also means that you benefit when I get to give you little sneak peeks at our music goodness. The Casbah has some really great shows in December, and we're actually doing presales for a couple of them. Later today we'll be announcing two New Years Eve shows for you, but for now, we have a couple presales you might wanna get a jump on...

Click below to get tickets for some Big Deal shows coming to the Casbah:

December 23: X, My Jerusalem $35-  Presale Thursday 10am-Friday 10am

December 27: Louis XIV, The Howls, Boy King  $15- Presale Thursday 10am-Friday 10am 

Please Donate, Only a Couple of Days Left

Donate Here

I am not going to lie I cannot wait until I get to shave this thing off of my face, I will have it for a couple of more days.  I will not lie, I did receive more complements then I thought I would however my moustache will become a Wyclef Jean song if I reach my goal.  When I decided to do Movember I thought that maybe I could raise 100 dollars for prostate and testicular cancer research.  With only two days left I am almost to that goal.  Right now I have raised 95 dollars and if I could raise over 100 I will be thrilled and will do it again next year.  So please donate, if 5 readers donate one dollar each I will make the hundred dollar mark.  I want to take this time again to thank the following for donating:

Douglas Kinner
Sheila Sondergard 
Anonymous for donating without giving your identity I want to give you an extra special thank you
Amanda
Britney
Byron
Mitch
Utz
April
Jessie
Geo
Chandler

And thank you who contribute in the next couple of days and again you can DONATE HERE



Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 28-30, 2012

November is coming to an end and December is just around the corner. Josh and Jeff got the listings in early and I've been up till the wee hours of the day going through anything they might've missed. I love Christmastime and something I miss about working in an office (probably THE ONLY thing I miss about working in an office) is all of the fun holiday stuff that comes with the season. Fortunately, this city is full of freelancers and entrepreneurs and people who work in the service industry so there are many ways to celebrate the holiday season and find surrogates for gift exchanges, potlucks, and general gatherings. I'm sure there are plenty of things I still left out, but I tried to be a bit more thorough by mixing in some art shows, walkabouts, MOVEMBER mustache parties, and even a parade. Of course, as December progresses I hope to keep you up to date with all of these things while enjoying many of them with my friends and family, so if you see something missing, feel free to let me know. I'd also like to say that while we all generally shop at big box stores from time to time (not like you're buying artisan toilet paper, right?), during the holidays you can always find amazing local business, artisans, and restaurants, wineries, or breweries that have thoughtful gifts or gift certificates for services for the ones you love. Or just buy everyone you know a Casbah hoodie and your shopping is all done.

Wednesday through Friday archives are after the jump.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Under the Radar: Moon Duo @ Casbah Friday November 30, 2012

Psychedelic indie rockers Moon Duo are comprised of Eric "Ripley" Johnson (guitar) and Sanae Yamada (keyboards), forming one of San Francisco latest and most interesting spin off bands. Johnson also spends time as the lead guitarist for Wooden Shjips. Circles is the sophomore release from Moon Duo, reinforcing their signature heavy guitar riff laden sound. What separates this band from other noise/drone bands is the song structure that never gets lost during the longish length of most songs. Yamada's keyboard work plays well off her band mate, with an overall well balanced effort. Has 2012 become the new 1969?

While this band has been grouped with fellow space rockers, there seems to be a more varied offering on display here. The future looks bright for Moon Duo, and the band will be playing the Casbah this Friday. A great way to close a memorable month.

Life Coach (Phil Manley) & Wild Wild Wets set the stage.

Watch a video of Sleepwalker below.




Things To Do In San Diego: November 27, 2012

It's starting to feel like winter, at least by San Diego terms, and I've been completely content hunkering down at home, sleeping in a little bit longer in an attempt to beat back this cold that seems like it's going to knock me down the second I stop fighting. Fortunately I've got loads of vitamins, juice, and Emergen-C to fight with all I've got. I had a great weekend, hopping around town on Saturday with Abraham and friends at Whistle Stop, Bar Pink, and the Casbah, though I ended up at home on Sunday catching up on episodes of The Walking Dead before they get yanked from OnDemand. Yesterday I had a great afternoon at the San Diego Zoo and walking around Balboa Park before checking out the great performance by Three Mile Pilot at the Griffin. Today I guess I'm ready to go face the world, albeit a later start than I'd planned, but only after I update the Casbah calendar. I'm adding a bunch of shows, so check the site to see all the good stuff coming up in December and beyond. Tuesday archives are after the jump.

Monday, November 26, 2012

Other Lives w/ Indians @ Casbah- 11.04.12


A couple weeks ago Stillwater, OK- based five piece Other Lives made their return to SD and treated the sold out Casbah crowd to an outstanding set of genre bending tunes.  Danish multi-instrumentalist Indians kicked off the evening with his one man show as the sole Sunday night opener.  More words and photos below.

Monday Night: Three Mile Pilot @ The Griffin

Three Mile Pilot, Vampires @ The Griffin. Doors at 8pm, show at 9pm. $20, Buy Tickets

Monday nights are always pretty great here in San Diego because you can always trust the Tim Pyles has put something cool together for Anti-Monday League at the Casbah, but tonight you might want to switch things up a bit because Daydream Nation has returned to San Diego and is bringing some great shows including Monday night with Three Mile Pilot and Vampires. The show is $20 and when I spoke to Joe at the Griffin early on Sunday night, he mentioned that there were tickets still available but he expected the show would sell out with a walk up crowd. Why risk it? Just grab your tickets in advance and then you won't have to worry about it being sold out when you arrive. If you're one of the lucky ones with a Black Card, they'll be honored for tonight's show. Me and D will be there and you should be, too!!

Photos: SDDialedIn 6th Anniversary!

Once again, Happy 6th Anniversary to SDDialedIn and we all owe a debt of gratitude to Rosey and her tireless efforts that benefit our local San Diego music scene. It is a rare occasion that I'm at a show where I've never seen or shot any of the bands on the bill, but I'm certainly glad I had the fortune to see these bands that turned out to be a super talented lineup. After the jump are some essential shots of all four bands, or click here for a full gallery.

The Howls


Friday, November 23, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 23-26, 2012

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was pretty fantastic, I have to say. I prepared some things at home and lounged until the afternoon until we went to my parents' house. My mom's feast was amazing, Darren met my dad for the first time, and I got some fun time with my nieces who got to play with Pascha for the first time in months. Johanna seemed particularly interested in the concept of her tia having a boyfriend and was calling him a prince, and I of course, his princess. There was this hilarious moment where she hugged both of us and told us she loved us, then made us kiss and then made pukey gagging noises when we did. Far too much Disney in that girl's diet, for sure. By night, we went on a bike ride through Kensington and realized we were just in time for This Must Be The Place starring Sean Penn at Ken Cinema, so we had a couple drinks at the Ken Club, took in a movie, then enjoyed some wine at home. (The movie is no longer playing, but it was fantastic nonetheless and you should see it when it's available on NetFlix or whatever). Today we avoided Black Friday and made a picnic with Thanksgiving leftovers and hung out at Morley Field where we watched some older ladies play doubles then shot some arrows at the Archery Range. Now the weekend is upon us...are you ready?  Coda Reactor will NOT be at Soda Bar tonight due to the hospitalization of their drummer with pneumonia...so best wishes to him on a speedy recovery, and I added a special weekend edition of Ken Club Karaoke for tonight. Friday through Monday archives are after the jump.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 21-22, 2012

It has been such a beautiful week and hopefully everyone gets to spend time with the ones you love for Thanksgiving. While I'm sad I can't see my niece and nephew on the east coast, I'm fortunate to have the majority of my family right here in San Diego and can't wait to bust out the stretchy pants to overindulge in turkey and ham and potatoes and pie and whatever else my family will have for the feast. Darren and I had a super week, though he's a little sick. We went on this cool little hike in the Normal Heights Open Space (who knew??), spent a day at the Safari Park, caught The Faint at House of Blues and Tamryn at the Casbah, and tonight we'll be at Anthology and maybe pop into the Casbah for a bit, too. I'm adding the weekend listings but haven't added any special events or Facebook listings. I'll try to get to those later. Wednesday & Thursday archives are after the jump. There's not a lot happening on Thanksgiving, but I tried to list some of the spots that will be open so you can unwind after your feast.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Shows Worth Feasting On

Anyone who is a regular reader of this blog knows how thorough the daily show listings are at all times. The dilemma becomes choosing those events which are more promising than others. Rather than focus on any specific show, what follows are recommendations for the upcoming week.

Tuesday November 20, 2012
Tamaryn, Young Prisms, Cathedral X @ Casbah...shoegazing at its finest...
The Faint, Trust, Casket Girls @ House of Blues...cannot go wrong on this one...

Wednesday November 21, 2012
Rachael Yamagata @ Anthology...the perfect venue for this talented performer...
Sofia Talvik @ Lestat's...Swedish singer/songwriter in an intimate venue...

Friday November 23, 2012
The Paragraphs, Trouble In the Wind @ Flying Elephant...head to North County for this one...
Unwritten Law @ House of Blues...hometown heroes hit downtown...

Saturday November 24, 2012
The Blasters @ Casbah...30 years and still going strong...
Karl Denson's Tiny Universe @ Belly Up...night #2, check out his world...

Sunday November 25, 2012
Wild Belle, Deep Sea Diver @ Casbah...Chicago siblings buzzing into town...
Delicate Steve, Dana Buoy @Soda Bar...Mr. Marion is a one man band tour de force...

In closing, just like turkey or ham (or something else), there are always musical choices here in San Diego. More importantly, get out and enjoy the shows.



Sunday, November 18, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 18-20, 2012

It doesn't happen often, but tonight I'm taking a hall pass and staying home bundled up in pajamas. The past week and weekend kicked my ass and I'm just beat. The Friday show at the Casbah was great with Generationals and Races, though I missed The Watson Twins over at the Griffin, arriving just as they ended. Saturday was awesome, too. I saw Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and they've made some tweaks since my first viewing and it was even better the second time around. It was also pretty cool because it was media night, so along with seeing several media buddies like Tim Pyles and Chris Cantore, and Madison from KPRI, Des McAnuff and Wayne Coyne were both there and we had a cool little moment with them before the show. I followed La Jolla Playhouse with Transfer at the Casbah and it was really, really sold out and really, really fun. So yeah, I wish I had the energy to catch Al Howard's newest band, Midnight Pine at the Casbah, but I think even the Casbah is sick of seeing me since I've been there 8 of the last 10 nights. It's Thanksgiving week, so I might chill out on the posts this week, but Sunday-Tuesday archives are after the jump.

Friday, November 16, 2012

The Yes Team EP Release Party Featuring The Paragraphs, Old Tiger and DJ Man Cat! A STACHE BASH! Friday, Movember 30th


By Caitlin Prenga of AMD Entertainment: 

Gentlemen, put away those razors. Ladies, start practicing your sharpie skills. It’s time to start growing your best Movember ‘stache in preparation for A Stache Bash brought to you by AMD Entertainment and One Hart Events and hosted by The Ruby Room on Movember 30th at 8pm. Along with raising proceeds to aid in the fight against prostate cancer, we’ll be celebrating The Yes Team’s latest EP release, “Life is Good”, with special guests The Paragraphs, Old Tiger, and DJ Man Cat.   
Less than two years ago, Kinnie Dye, Jonathan Walsh, and TJ Moss manifested the power of positive thinking into the sweet, folk sounds of The Yes Team. Their affirmative thinking and sheer raw talent has already led them to win an Emmy Award, numerous songwriting contests, and several fans from the west to the east coast. Their 2011 debut EP, “Back to the Sea”, consisted of mesmerizing harmonies and fresh lyrics that effortlessly lifted the spirit of anyone listening. 

Things To Do In San Diego: November 16-17, 2012

What a week! There were so many great shows, I worked merch three times in the past week, had an incredible VIP night at Cavalia on Tuesday, and last night was super awesome and it was so great to see so many of you turn out for the sixth anniversary of this site. From the bottom of my heart, thank you all for making this little thing worth doing. The bands were awesome as always, and I was truly grateful that the night went off without a hitch. Jeff sent me some listings for Thanksgiving, but if you know of other spots open that night, please feel free to send me that info. Tonight is a good night, make sure you catch Races if you're heading to the Casbah tonight...definitely a band worth keeping an eye on. Friday and Saturday archives are after the jump.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Tonight's The Night: SD:Dialed In 6 Year Anniversary at the Casbah

I am so excited for tonight! In fact, it was one of those nights where I was up all night working just so I wouldn't have the cloud of email hovering over my head. Instead of sleeping this morning, Darren and I went on a nice bike ride to test out the Biria I'm likely going to purchase. Now I'm completely wiped out and ready to catch some sleep, but in a few hours I'll be all revved up. I hope to see some friendly faces tonight at the Casbah. I also want to let you know that the SoulCal Gourmet Food Truck will be outside if you need to get some tasty grub, and if you don't feel like driving, my friends at Uber set up a promo code. If you create a new account and use the promo code "ubersddialedin", you'll get a $10 credit for your first ride in the car service and since your fare and gratuity are linked to your account, you don't have to worry about having enough cash to get home. Darren and I tested it out a couple weeks ago and it is a pretty sweet service. Hope to see you all tonight!

Thursday, November 15, 2012 at The Casbah
featuring
Burning Jet Black (formerly The Whiskey Saints)
$10
Doors 8:30pm/Show 9pm

From the San Diego Reader:

“'Opinions expressed are subject to being personal, unfunny, and full of typos.' Rosemary Bystrak, blogger and all-around all-arounder, will celebrate six years of her very excellent reportage on the San Diego scene @SD:Dialed In. I like how the colon and the big D in “Dialed” make a smiley face, just like every picture I see of her on her site. She’s a fun-lover and just about the best booster of local bands San Diego ever had. Go celebrate with Rosie tonight at Casbah, buy her a beer, and enjoy rootsy barroom rock by The Howls, Trouble in the Wind, Michael McGraw & the Butchers, and Burning Jet Black."

Things To Do In San Diego: November 15, 2012

My oh my. Last night my cable box freaked out and flashed back and was set to three hours back. I wished that it was a gift of time because there just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day to enjoy everything we have at our disposal. Still, when it corrected itself, I was still grateful to be living this life in this time and I am just constantly amazed by all of the greatness that abounds in this city. Of course, I hope that if you're a regular reader that you come on down to the Casbah tonight for the sixth anniversary of this site. I mean, it all started by me being a super fan-girl of local music and has evolved into so much more than I ever dreamed. I have amazing contributors who help me out with listings and show previews and beer blogs and spectacular photography and I promise to keep bringing you inside soundchecks and private shows and shooting video at the sold out ones. Anyone who says music is dying is on the wrong side of history. As long as we participate, there will be the generous givers of their souls to play for us each and every night. I hope to see so many of you tonight at the Casbah, and I thank everyone for constantly clicking and making this my life. I never take for granted that I am a lucky girl. Thursday archives are after the jump.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Jeff's Weekly Pick: A.C. Newman @ Casbah Wednesday November 14, 2012

Music is, like any art form, both highly subjective and personal. It can trigger memories from the past, mostly good and sometimes bad. When I first listened to Carl (A.C.) Newman's third solo record, Shut Down the Streets, I was mentally transported back to one of my first "indie" shows at the Casbah. Wandering into the back to say both hello and thanks to Mr. Newman after his set, it became apparent I was hooked on the music of a different generation. There is little doubt Carl has achieved far greater success fronting the Canadian band The New Pornographers than as a solo artist. It is interesting to see this musician stepping away from the band and becoming more personal on his solo records. There is a consistency of power pop sprinkled with folk relating tales about all the issues we all deal with, including death. With vocal assistance from fellow New Pornographer Neko Case, the songs sometimes change rhythm but never lose their ability to keep the listener interested. Stating that I am a fan of A.C. Newman would be an understatement. I feel he is truly one the real treasures in the indie rock world. The chance to become the newest member of his fan base happens this Wednesday at the intimate Middletown venue.

Harriet sets the stage.

Watch a video of There's Money in New Wave below.


Things To Do In San Diego: November 13-14, 2012

Beer Week is over but the good times certainly never go away. I hope everyone enjoyed Veteran's Day and can get through the short work week with lots of great stuff to keep you entertained through the weekend. I'm ecstatic to head down to opening night of Cavalia tonight, sling merch for AC Newman tomorrow, and then it's the big SD:Dialed In 6 Year Anniversary show at the Casbah on Thursday. Keep in mind it is cheaper to buy advance tickets than to wait till the day of show. I also got word that my friend Nadia will be there with the SoulCal Gourmet Food Truck, so don't eat too much before you come down so you can try their delicious grub. Things are still all unicorns and rainbows over here, and I'll try to get weekend listings up as soon as they're sent my way.  Tuesday and Wednesday archives are after the jump.

Rosey's Diary: Love Is In The Air (10/22-11/12/2012)



I was trying to keep up with these diary posts because they always seem to get really long winded, but despite the fact that I actually prepared this post after I returned from Mexico (10/28), it has been sitting in a draft format in the queue since then. My last diary post was on 10/21, and naturally there have been so many things to add since then, even beyond my little headers that I write when I post listings. I guess mostly it's long winded because I have a lot to share-as the title suggests- and it would be cheap to leave any of the good stuff out.

So yeah, as always, if you're just here for listings or show recommendations, or contests or scene news, you can skip this post entirely. On the other hand, I've learned that I essentially have three types of readers: people who have a lot of free time to read anything and everything on the web, friends who live vicariously through me and/or want to keep up with me, or people who read my writing to judge me, though hopefully there aren't too many of those. Whatever category you may find yourself, by all means, click the jump.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Donate to Movember


It's November, that means Movember! time to grow out that moustache and or donate to the cause.  For those of you that do not know what Movember is, it is a time for people to grow out their moustache's in the month of November to raise vital awareness and funds for men's health, specifically prostate and testicular cancer (you can sign up here).  Last year in 2011, Movember had over 854,000 join the cause worldwide raising 126.3 million US dollars.  I hope this year matches or beats that amount.



This is my first year doing Movember as I generally look terrible with a moustache, but my face can take a month of punishment for a good cause. Per the rules I clean shaved on November first and the current picture is from November 7th, I will put up a weekly picture so you can see the progress.  As of right now  I have raised 5 dollars,  I am glad I raised something (thank you Douglas Kiner) but I believe that I can raise much more.  I ask the sddialedin readers and community to contribute.  I don't care if you give five dollars or five hundred dollars anything helps.  To make a contribution just follow this link and I appreciative your support and I will continue to grow this moustache (hopefully into a Ron Swanson).  In addition, by contributing to my Movember page you are also contributing to team 91X.

Again you can donate here, thank you

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Bowerbirds on SoundDiego TV

Last night I worked at the Casbah, selling merch for ...And You Will Know Us From The Trail of Dead, so I didn't get a chance to see my interview with Bowerbirds air on NBC. I was hanging out with my editor and we were talking about my interview. I have not watched the clip yet, in fact I probably wouldn't embed it if I watch it first, so in case you missed it, here's the clip. I think I will have to drink a couple bottles of wine before I can actually press play and watch myself. I did get some pointers...like I should've had a mic on my hoodie so The Bowerbirds could share the stick mic, and that I should've used my arm closest to them so as not to turn my shoulder to the camera. I also felt super rushed toward the end because Strand of Oaks started soundchecking in the other room as we wrapped it up. Still, I felt okay about my first time.

I also wanted to repost my Facebook status from last night, because as Darren pointed out, it is something that is normally posted in my Diary posts and not so much on Facebook, but it was an amazing night so I thought I'd share again to anyone outside of the 10% of my friends who can actually see my facebook entries.

I couldn't have asked for a better night of work at Casbah San Diego. The tour manager, Arne, was awesome and even tipped me out at settlement (which doesn't happen often), ...And You Will Know Me From The Trail of Dead gave a stellar performance, singer Conrad was so kind and had great stories about his art and even gave me a super cool print that he drew when he was 17, I got to hang out with friends that I don't see often, I may have been offered a new writing gig with a prominent local mag, I got great feedback on my SoundDiego interview, and I got a safe ride home from my superhero boyfriend Darren Whittaker and am now just waiting for him to come over after work as I listen to the new Joshua James record.

We learned the simplest fact in one of our earliest taught nursery rhymes...."Life is but a dream."

merrily, merrily, merrily living and loving it.



View more videos at: http://nbcsandiego.com.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 10-12, 2012

Bring on the cold! Shawn Styles is telling me that it isn't going to rain tonight, but I'll still be bundled up as I sell merch on the Casbah's patio for ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead. It was a pretty glorious day, Darren and I had a very late breakfast and then rode bikes through Normal Heights, Kensington, Talmadge, and City Heights enjoying the brisk 64 degree weather. I think I'm gonna buy my new bike next week and I can't wait to ride it everywhere. Mostly though, I just wanted to update the listings to remind you that I make my SoundDiego TV debut tonight! My interview with the Bowerbirds from a few weeks ago is finally going to air. SoundDiego TV airs on NBC 7/39 at 1 am, after Saturday Night Live, which should be great in the wake of the election. Saturday through Monday archives are after the jump.

SUNDAY NIGHT: Casbah Presents Those Darlins at Soda Bar

I keep telling you how busy the Casbah has been keeping me over the past couple months. I think October was a new record for the number of outside shows we put on, and this month hasn't slowed down at all. There are three Casbah Presents shows tonight (Japandroids at Porter's Pub, ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead at the Casbah, and Titus Andronicus at the Irenic- technically a Soda Bar show but we're helping to get the word out) and we have three more tomorrow- Minus The Bear at House of Blues, The Sea and Cake at the Casbah, and Those Darlins' at Soda Bar. There are still tickets for all six shows. Save service charges and just pay at the door, at this point it doesn't appear that any of them will sell out in presale, but definitely make plans to check out some great live music. It seems that perhaps San Diego hasn't gotten hip to the magic of Those Darlins' so I thought I'd share some quotes and music for you to check them out. Full lineups below.

“Those Darlins come off like the toughest, most dangerous group around. They deliver thrilling song after thrilling song that’ll have you hyping them to all your rock & roll friends as soon the album stops spinning.” - ALL MUSIC GUIDE

“Hooky, saucy, punky songwriting in a mood somewhere between Be Your Own Pet and the Donnas, only savvier. Those Darlins have mouths on them, yes they do. But their mouths are connected to their hearts and minds, and amped by loud guitars” - ROBERT CHRISTGAU A-, NPR’s ALL THING CONSIDERED

“an instant garage/power-pop classic that would make everyone from Iggy Pop to King Tuff proud.” - PASTE: 8.5 out of 10




SATURDAY:
JAPANDROIDS, BLEACHED at Porter's Pub $16

... AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD, TECHNICOLORS, GHETTO BLASTER at Casbah $20

TITUS ANDRONICUS, CEREMONY, WEATHERBOX at the Irenic $15

SUNDAY:
THOSE DARLINS, HEAVY CREAM at Soda Bar $12

MINUS THE BEAR, CURSIVE, GIRL IN A COMA at House of Blues San Diego (All Ages) $22

THE SEA AND CAKE, MATTHEW FRIEDBERGER (of Fiery Furnaces) at Casbah San Diego $15

Thursday, November 08, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 8-9, 2012

When I moved into my new space back in May, I never expected to still be living out of boxes in November, but I guess there are a lot of things about November that I didn't expect. I certainly didn't expect to see a heatwave like we did last week, but maybe that's why I'm so excited to pull out my box marked "scarves/gloves/jackets". Last night it started raining and I went out on the bike and it was glorious. Today was the perfect day to be bundled up in pajamas as I caught up on some work. I've been sitting on these listings a couple days, but I just have a funny schedule and have to take advantage of the time I do have whether for shows, working, catching up on my shows, or my bi-weekly 24 hour date when Darren's schedule and mine completely align. We saw Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots last night and I've been specifically asked not to review the show or give any spoilers, but it is really, really great and not at all what I expected. At all. It runs through December 16 and I've mentioned discount tickets, but I also learned that you can buy tickets in the first two rows for only $15 because they're partially obstructed, though it seemed that the people in those seats only had to crane their necks a couple times throughout the show. You don't have to know the Flaming Lips catalog to enjoy the show, but you do have to appreciate musical theatre. I hope you take the time to look through these listings because there are so many great shows this weekend. I haven't gone through my off-venue sites for other events, but hopefully I can update those tonight after Jon Spencer. Friday and Saturday archives are after the jump. 

New Local Music: sm57



sm57 is a collaborative effort between (UK signed/California super-producer) Room E and San Diego rap-pair Parker and the Numberman.  This is the first endeavor for Parker and the Numberman after their SDMA award win (for Clockwork Slang). sm57 upcoming album promises to be ..."the return of the avant-garde."  Check out the new track Horseback as a sample of the new album coming out November 26th 2012.  Enjoy.





Wednesday, November 07, 2012

Jeff's Weekly Pick pt. 2: Jens Lekman @ Belly Up Thursday November 8, 2012

Whenever I listen to Jens Lekman I am taken back to the night many years ago when the Swedish pop troubadour performed solo in front of a smallish crowd here in San Diego. Fast forward to the present where  Mr. Lekman will be appearing alongside a full four piece band Thursday at the Belly Up. On the last leg of a North American tour promoting his third full length, I Know What Love Isn't, Jens is basically the same off kilter singer we have all come to appreciate for his unusual and honest look at love and many other topics. Lyrically he has few equals with the ability to state the obvious in ways Jens has mastered. It becomes so easy to just feel like you have known him for years, even if you are seeing him perform live for the first time. There are many singers that visit our city, but none like Jens Lekman. Those willing to make the trek to North County should be well rewarded with a memorable night of music. Worth noting is this show is presented by the Casbah.

Taken By Trees set s the stage.

Watch a video of I Know What Love Isn't below.


Things To Do In San Diego: November 7, 2012

 What a glorious day, no? I don't think I've slept quite so soundly as I did last night, when all my election enthusiasm finally let my head hit the pillow around 4a.m. At the same time, today has been a little chaotic because it is very rare for an artist to cancel a show with such little notice, but when you're sick, you're sick, and unfortunately the Nick Waterhouse show for tonight has been canceled, with hopes of rescheduling in January. The Casbah will be closed tonight, but there are plenty of other great shows to catch...I'll probably check out Benny Marchant or New Cassettes, depending on what time Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots gets out. Happy, happy birthday to intern Jordan and thank to he and Josh for handling weekend listings, which I hoped to post today but realistically won't go up until tomorrow. In the meantime, I have a 24 hour date ahead of me so peace out my lovelies. Wednesday archives are after the jump.   

SD @ 140 BPM Recommends.............



Now that the election is over it is time to celebrate (or cure your sadness) with some great dance music.  Tonight Wednesday, November 7 at The Kava Lounge The Good Vibe Production presents Acoustic Minds, J*Labs, urBn:LgNd and Phunky Brewster with Live Painting by Ashley Bowers.  This is a night for the ladies as all artists performing include female members.  Acoustic Minds is a Portland based project composed of identical twins Jenni and Amanda Price who have been working on music together since the age of 3.  Their new project is a 5 piece band who take a live instrument approach to electronic, drum n bass, down tempo and dub step.  J*Labs will bring an original set with hopefully the same amount of energy that she brought to Electric Daisy Carnival, and local favorite urBn:LgNd will be closing the night out with a heavily UK influenced set.  Doors are at 9:00 pm and the event goes until 2:00 am.

Four More Years! Election Results Are (Mostly) In

(via Facebook)
I spent the majority of Monday and Tuesday dodging election information. While at home, for example, I caught up on some shows OnDemand so I didn't have to see the cluster of political ads on the networks and then went out to hang out with Darren and caught the Diamond Rings show at Soda Bar. Tuesday was an all-errand/no-TV day until I finally let myself pay close attention to social media as polls closed on the east coast (which is still better than watching cable news). It was a great moment, as Emily Wells performed at Luce Loft. She was dedicating a song to Obama and said she hoped for good news when I told her that the election had been called in favor of Obama mid-set. Barack Obama tweeted the photo seen here with "Four More Years" which quickly became the most retweeted tweet in history. She rejoiced, the crowd clapped, and the show's mood definitely lightened up.

Once the presidential election was called, I was happy to follow along with our local races and state propositions. I'm not going to go through everything, but am happy to say that it looks like some important things happened here. Bob Filner appears to be beating Carl DeMaio for mayor, Prop 30 passed which is a win for education, and it appears that Scott Peters defeated Brian Billbray, which is awesome even though I'm not in their district. Unfortunately, some things will never change, as evidenced by Districts 49 & 50 (where Darrell Issa and Duncan Hunter held their Congressional seats, respectively). Still, we can be happy that nationally there were big wins for gay marriage, marijuana, and women.

Obviously there are better places than this site to see results and what they mean to all of us, so check out KPBS Election Results to check on all the races and in case you missed Obama's victory speech, you can see/read it all here.

I believe we can seize this future together because we are not as divided as our politics suggests. We're not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater than the sum of our individual ambitions and we remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. We are, and forever will be, the United States of America.

Monday, November 05, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 5-6, 2012

Election Day is nearly upon us, so perhaps you're like me and have already cast your ballot via mail or early voting at the Office of the County Registrar. That means that on Tuesday you can either make yourself absolutely insane as you follow along with early returns or follow social media all day, or you can get out tonight for a show or #SDBW and make sure you're just hungover enough to warrant a day  under your covers without media, or keep really busy with a day at the Zoo or free museum day at Balboa Park, or at work if you're tied to a 9 to 5. I mean, once your own vote is cast, there's nothing you can do until the official results are in so all I'm really saying is that unless you're volunteering at a polling place or canvassing or driving people to polls or doing something productive, don't let this thing make you too crazy. I hope to see plenty of you out tonight because there are great shows all the way from the Casbah to the Belly Up, Soda Bar, Eleven, and Bar Pink and down on through the line. Monday and Tuesday archives are after the jump.

Let's Get Political: Election Day 2012

I have never been crazy about the idea of getting too political on this site and I do so with great caution and respect, but I have a voice (as do we all) and an audience and I just can't with good conscience go into tomorrow's election without speaking up.

It seems that every election is "the most important election in our lifetime", but you better believe that in 2012, this is no joke. I have never been quiet about my support and participation with organizations like MoveOn.Org, Courage Campaign, Planned Parenthood, and the Human Rights Campaign. It is also no secret that I lean far on the lefty progressive side of the spectrum and support Democratic candidates, even if they weren't necessarily the best of the best, they seemed better than the alternatives (Al and John, I'm looking at you). This presidential election, to me, is the strongest tug-of-war between the haves and the have-nots, the wealthiest of Americans not even trying to hide their cronyism, and the Republican goal of completely decimating women's rights. I believe that with the tremendous wealth of our nation, the lack of health care and a good education for everyone is shameful; Mitt Romney believes these are better handled in the private sector. With the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision in 2010, there has NEVER been so much money in an election, and just completely misleading and horrific political advertising (sadly from both parties).

If you haven't been keeping up, 90 Days, 90 Reasons has some great essays in support of Obama or check out this quickie site, What The Fuck Has Obama Done So Far?



I feel like I am a pretty informed voter, I've been watching endless state and city hearings about all of the propositions, but I still consult voter guides and my great friend and personal political advisor Lucas O'Connor and my brainy superhero boyfriend and other friends and relatives to make all of it make sense. I always believed that voting is a very private matter, but we're in a whole new oversharing social media world and for the first time, I'm going to post my ballot positions. I'm in 92104, so I know your local races may differ, but here goes.

from top to bottom:
President: Barack Obama,
US Senator: Dianne Feinstein
US Rep District 53: Susan Davis
State Senator 39th District: Marty Block
State Assembly 78th: Toni Atkins
Superior Court No. 25: Robert Amador
SDCCD Board District B: Bernie Rhinerson
SDUSD Board District A: John Lee Evans
SDUSD Board District D: Richard Barrera
SDUSD Board District E: Marne Foster

San Diego Mayor: Bob Filner
Prop 30 (1/4 Cent Sales Tax for Education)-YES!!!
Prop 31 (State Budget)-No
Prop 32 (Political Contributions)-No
Prop 33 (Auto Insurance)- No
Prop 34 (Death Penalty Repeal)-Yes
Prop 35 (Human Trafficking Penalties)-Yes!
Prop 36 (Three Strikes)- Yes!
Prop 37 (GMO Food Labeling)-Yes!!
Prop 38 (Income Tax increase for education)-No!!
Prop 39 (Multistate Corporate Taxation/Clean Energy)-Yes
Prop 40 (Senate redistricting)-Yes
Prop Z (School Bonds)-Yes!!

Vote as you will, but I truly believe that it is your responsibility to vote. Feel free to comment, though all comments are moderated and I will not post any hate, vitriol, or crazy rants. Save that for your own blog/Twitter/Facebook/Tumblr.

Here's a little song a friend recorded for the election:


My friend Grampa Drew wrote a great (and really long) post on Facebook about Prop 30. Read it after the jump.

San Diego: Dialed In Six Year Anniversary!!


It was on this day in 2006 that I was sitting in my cubicle at an architecture firm and a lightbulb went off...maybe I should stop writing my diary online and I should focus on life in San Diego minus the details of who I was dating and how hungover I was from the night before. I launched San Diego: Dialed In on a fluke, no real goal in mind, just that I wanted to be personal without divulging every private detail. Of course, nowadays I live out loud anyway, so you still get my diary posts, my constant barrage of tweets and foursquare check-ins and facebook details, but hopefully this site has evolved enough to be informative and helpful for locals and tourists alike to get a feel for the amazing city we live in. I certainly never thought this would become a job or launch my other duties, among them publicity for the Casbah, writing for SoundDiego, booking, managing, band PR, being a member of the nominating committee for the San Diego Music Academy, and many other moving parts that keep me plenty busy. There are now over a dozen volunteer contributors to this site and to all of them, I am eternally grateful for all of their tireless efforts.

Naturally, the best way to celebrate is with a show at the Casbah, my home away from home.

Here's the info:

Thursday, November 15, 2012 at The Casbah
featuring
Burning Jet Black (formerly The Whiskey Saints)

Doors 8:30pm/Show 9pm

I hope to see all of your beautiful faces. Note that advance tickets have a small service charge, but are still cheaper than waiting until the night of the show. 

Things to do in San Diego: Beer Week Edition (Part II)


Ok, so the opening weekend of San Diego Beer Week 2012 is in the books, and while I didn’t get a chance to do everything I had hoped, I did have an absolute blast. With lots of quality time with good friends and (of course) some great beer to pair with the company, it was easily one of the better weekends I’ve ever spent in this fine city.

We started things off at Monkey Paw to try the Karl Strauss peanut butter cup beer, which tasted exactly as the name would suggest. From there we were on the move to the kick-off party and Brew Food book signing at Mission Brewery, which appeared to be a smashing success with a great time had by all in attendance. (Even if they did cover up the shuffleboard table for the event. Oh well, nothing’s perfect.) On Saturday I tried to work my way through 50 different IPAs over at Toronado, but was pulled away early as friends wanted to make a move to Monkey Paw to try the aforementioned Karl Strauss specialty, but sadly it was gone. (Luckily I was able to sample an 8 oz. pour of the Citra IPA from Kern River before we left Toro, which may have been the best beer I had on draft all weekend.) We were back at it again early on Sunday getting to Local Habit in Hillcrest bright and early to sample a cask of The Bruery’s “5 Golden Rings” a very interesting Golden Ale that is part of their “12 Days of Christmas” series which releases once a year. I haven’t had all the other releases, but this was my favorite that I have managed to try so far. After that we traveled over to Blind Lady Ale House who teamed up with the folks at Bine & Vine on Adams Ave. to throw what might have been the coolest bottleshare event ever convened. I had WAY too many special tastes to try mentioning them here (and boring you to tears, probably), but it was definitely the highlight of the weekend.

The best news? There are still SIX more full days of SDBW before it officially wraps up on the 11th. Like Part I, what follows is a brief listing of events that caught my eye. I’d recommend getting there early and often. If I missed anything too great to pass up be sure to let me know on the twitters (@mikebeebe). And if you see me out and about, please say hello!


11/5/2012
Hess Happy Hour 
Toronado (again!) will “welcome” their (soon to be) new neighbor to the ‘hood with this event featuring several Hess beers and (from what I’ve been told) a really fantastic keeper glass.

Beer, Art and the Artists!
The cool cats at Bottlecraft are hosting an art show, featuring art from (what else?) a beer label artist! Specifically the Ballast Point artist Paul Elder. Also, BP’s Colby Chandler will be on hand discussing beer. And drinking beer. And it’s free. Get some culture whilst you drink!

BEER WEEK BINGO
Bingo at Eleven is nothing new, but it is always fun. Plus all drafts are just $3. Bingo starts at 7pm.

11/6/2012
Kern River Brewing Co 
Surprise! Another Toronado event. (I may just move in for the week.) This one features the crew and (more importantly) the beer from the fabulous Kern River Brewing.

Night of a Million Zillion Speedways
If there is one event that is on everyone’s radar, then it is absolutely this one at O’Brien’s. With that in mind, expect lots of great beer but also lots of people. Is it worth it? That depends on your tolerance for crowds, but frankly...yes, it is worth it. The OB’s newsletter probably says it best: “FIFTEEN versions of AleSmith Speedway Stout on tap! It is pure insanity.“

(Also, it’s Election Day, so depending on the exit polls and your politics you may need several of these very strong beers.)

Beer Week!! Green Flash Night
A Green Flash event at my home base, bar Eleven. Delicious casks and walking distance home is a great combination. Incidentally, Eleven is also “home base” for a lot of GF employees...so this may end up being just like any other night. Which is fine with me.

Loci Habitus Returns! 
If you missed out on this Rye IPA from Hess to celebrate Local Habit’s 1st anniversary, then here’s a second chance to give this a shot. And if you were lucky enough to try it earlier this year AND scored the keeper glass, then bring that back in for $4 pours! (Note: an “I voted” sticker will get you this great price as well.)

11/7/2012
Monkey Paw Welcomes Sierra Nevada! 
I love the Paw, I love Sierra Nevada. The lineup hasn’t been posted yet, but you really can’t go wrong here.

Movie Night: Strange Brew 
One of my most favoritest movies ever (“Steamroller!”) screened for free at Sea Rocket in North Park, with drink and food specials as well. Go to there, ya hosers.

11/8/2012
Ommegang vs Lost Abbey - Battle of the Best Belgian Style Brewers in the Country 
Sublime Alehouse in San Marcos (SMBW?) hosts this “throwdown” between our very own Lost Abbey and Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY) - two of the finest (THE finest, probably) brewers of traditional Belgian style beers anywhere in America. Just like the title would suggest. Seriously though, this will be a delicious evening. Ommegang was my introduction to “craft beer” back in New York, and it still one of my favorites breweries to this day.

Brewmasters Dinner with Hess Brewing at Local Habit
This two session event sold out so fast they had to add a third session...which also promptly sold out. So unless you have your ticket, you’re not going. Which is really too bad because Chef Nick Brune is hands down the best chef in Hillcrest and Hess is one of the finest (and busiest) breweries in San Diego. If I could only attend ONE dinner during all of Beer Week, this would be the one.

She Likes Beer Pairing Dinner at The Range
While not strictly a “ladies only” event (as far as I know) this She Likes Beer will put the focus on all the women craft beer fans in San Diego and features “a four-course meal that will show off some of San Diego's greatest beer with a paired dish that compliments their flavors.”

11/9/2012
Hess Brewing Featured Flights 
Another Hess event at Local Habit (one of my favorite spots in town) will feature no fewer than SIX beers from Hess, including the delicious Loci Habitus Rye IPA, brewed up special just for Local Habit’s first birfday. PLUS as an added bonus they’ll be opening up at noon to serve lunch!! See you there! (UPDATE: I have since heard that LH will not be opening for lunch this day. Still worth seeking out Friday night though!)

Enjoy a tour and tasting of Home Brew Mart and Ballast Point Brewing (Linda Vista Road location) 
This “event” is actually happening several times a day EVERY day during Beer Week. Get a free tour of the BP brewing facilities in Linda Vista, and get a couple of samplers to boot.

And that’s it for me. I know I left off a couple of days at the end, but I just won’t be able to attend any events next weekend, so I am wrapping things up on Friday at Local Habit for lunch. There will be tons going on next weekend I am sure, so check out sdbw.org or sdbwplanner.org to see what’s happening.

Sunday, November 04, 2012

Jeff's Weekly Pick pt. 1: Dark Dark Dark @ Luce Loft Tuesday November 6, 2012

If the upcoming election goes as the experts predict, we might not know the results for some time. What better distraction than live music this Tuesday night. Once again, the nice folks at Sezio are presenting quite a lineup downtown at the intimate Luce Loft. Headlining will be Minneapolis five piece indie rockers Dark Dark Dark. Touring in support of the bands third full length, Who Needs Who, founding members Nona Marie Invie (vocals, piano) and Marshall LaCount (banjo, vocals) have primarily rendered what is a recurring theme, that of the breakup album. It is interesting to note the group has moved forward so I suppose love does not always conquer all. The power of this album is clearly evident from the outset, with Nina's smooth vocals overpowering (but not in a bad way) the music itself. The result is a well balanced effort which flows evenly from beginning to end. I profess to never having seen Dark Dark Dark perform live, so feel free to journey downtown for a pleasurable night of music. This is an early show (7:30) so plan accordingly. Tickets can be purchased here.

I would be remiss if I failed to mention the opener, the eccentrically wonderful Emily Wells, who is also touring to promote her most recent album.

Watch a video of Tell Me below.



Friday, November 02, 2012

Things To Do In San Diego: November 2-4, 2012

It is funny to be writing right now because I was going to ask if you're ready for the weekend and then I realized I'm in my pajamas getting ready for a disco nap. So my own answer is no, I'm not ready, but in a couple hours I will be and I just hope to wreak some serious havoc on the town tonight. I plan on hitting up Ruby Room and Soda Bar, and perhaps a drop in at the Casbah for good measure. Let me tell you that if you're planning on going there this weekend, there will be plenty of tickets for Kid Koala at the door, so save yourself on service charges, but be warned because at this moment (5:55 pm on Friday), there are only 29 tickets left to Com Truise on Saturday and only 9 left for Other Lives on Sunday, so buy now!! I also want to let you know that yesterday Alt-J won the Mercury Prize and they'll be at the Casbah on December 13. That one will definitely sell out (only 68 tickets left right now), so grab tickets for that one, too. I'm kinda glowing after an awesome night last night and a great morning and afternoon, so I hope to keep this happy momentum throughout the weekend. Ain't nobody gonna break my stride. Friday through Sunday archives are after the jump. 

Brace Yourselves...#SDBW Is Here!




In a way, I am glad October is over. Don’t get me wrong, it is probably my favorite month of the year. I mean, who doesn’t like having an excuse to dress slutty, drink pumpkin beers, go to the Great American Beer Festival, go to the Santa Barbara Beer Festival or see Red Fang at the Casbah? Don’t worry, I didn’t dress slutty at Red Fang.

It really was one hell of a month, but I’m glad it’s over so I can finally relax-- and by relax I mean drink more beer within a ten day period then I probably drink in one year. That’s right, I’m talking about San Diego Beer Week which starts today and continues until November 11th. Sure, it’s technically a little longer than a week, but you know that 7 days isn’t enough to celebrate America’s Finest Craft Beer City! You can head on over to the SDBW events page by clicking here and this year they even included a nice “Add to Calendar” feature for each event so you can sync it your iCal, Google Calendar, Yahoo etc. Here’s some of the events I’ll be checking out this weekend if you’re interested in meeting up and talking beer:

Friday Nov. 2nd

Karl Strauss’s Brew Your Own Brunch - http://sdbw.org/events/3275/
Pizza Port OB’s San Diego IPA Extravaganza - http://sdbw.org/events/3506/
O’ Brien’s Pub 10 Tasty Treats from Alpine Brewing - http://sdbw.org/events/3241/

Saturday Nov. 3rd

Toronado’s 3rd Annual IPA Blowout (50 IPA’s on tap!!) - http://sdbw.org/events/3634/
Public House’s Russian River/Bear Republic Tap Takeover - http://sdbw.org/events/3534/

Sunday Nov. 4th

Hamilton’s Man the Victory at Sea Fleet - http://sdbw.org/events/3337/
Amplified Ale Works’ Farm to Table Beer and Bacon Brunch - http://sdbw.org/events/3612/
Sessions Public’s Duvel Art Glass Brunch - http://sdbw.org/events/3648/


That’s all I got for now but I may try and sneak out to a few more since the events list seems to update each day with more and more SDBW goodness! Are you planning on going to any events? If so, comment below and let us know which events suit your palate!

Cheers,
Charles Eck

Thursday, November 01, 2012

Things to do in San Diego: Beer Week Edition (Part I)



If you like (love?) beer then you already know about the wide variety and selection of amazing breweries and craft beer bars around our lovely hometown. You also, no doubt, know that from November 2nd through November 11th we will be celebrating another San Diego Beer Week, or simply SDBW. Yes, that’s more than a week...in this town it needs to be. It’s no secret that as craft beer lovers we have an embarrassment of riches here in San Diego with the seemingly endless supply of great brews from amazing local breweries and some of the top craft beer bars in the Country. This “week” is enough to get even the most dedicated SD beer fan more excited than they have been since the Craft Brewers Conference was here in May. But while CBC was ostensibly for the “pros” this week is just for us, my fellow imbibers. 

Most (all?!?) of the craft beer bars, many many restaurants and, of course, every brewery around town have a full slate of dinners, special events, kegs and casks available to ALL of us. SDBW is so packed that I’ve given up trying to schedule anything definitively. I learned last year that the best laid plans are easily changed once you get out and about and end up moving to someplace completely unexpected or simply camping out where you started the night. That said I have been using the very good web app put out by sdbwplanner.org  to find events that sound interesting. Head on over yourself and give it a shot, or check the events calendar at the official sdbw.org site. (Note, these are far from exhaustive lists of all the events, tap takeovers and beer pairing dinners around town over the next 10 days or so, so be sure to check the website/facebook/twitter of your personal favorites as well.)

After the jump you’ll find a sampling of events that caught my eye at some of my favorite spots and/or what will be the most popular and widely anticipated events around town. I’d recommend getting there early and often. If I missed anything too great to pass up be sure to let me know on the twitters (@mikebeebe). I can’t honestly hope to make it to all of them, but I’m for damned sure gonna try! 

Contest: Win Tickets To See Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots

PhotobucketBack in the spring, I had the pleasure of meeting Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips. He was in town for Sunset Sessions and after delivering a really interesting keynote, he hung around and chatted with anyone who wanted to talk to him. I didn't really have anything profound to ask him or to say to him, but I asked about Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots and he lit up. Even though there was a whole lot that still needed to be worked out, you could tell he was really excited by the endeavor.

Fast forward to November, and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots is finally ready for the public.

Yoshimi must choose between two boyfriends, but first she’s got to take down an army of pink robots. This magical tale of love and the struggle for survival is a poignant and humanistic story set to the music of The Flaming Lips.

Featuring a 14-foot robot puppet, dancers in “glowing” LED costumes and stunning projections — - this is another world premiere musical from Playhouse Director Emeritus and Tony Award winner Des McAnuff (The Who's Tommy, Jersey Boys, Jesus Christ Superstar) that you just cannot miss!


PhotobucketThe musical is the collaboration of Wayne Coyne and Des McAnuff and is a must-see for any fans of the Lips, fans of musicals, and anyone interested in the arts but might be put off by the snooty perception of the theatre world.

La Jolla Playhouse has generously given FOUR pairs of tickets to opening week shows. To enter, leave a comment on this post with a Flaming Lips memory and the day you would like to attend (Tuesday 11/6, Wednesday 11/7, or Thursday 11/8). Make sure your comment links to a valid email. I will select four winners over the weekend and you will be notified no later than Monday morning.

If you would like to purchase tickets, you can do so here. The La Jolla Playhouse has a 20 under 30 program, offering $20 tickets for people under 30 years old (ID required), and they also ran a text promo for $30 discount tickets, just text "YOSHIMI" to 56654.

(update: I have to moderate all comments, so you only have to submit once. I know the captcha can be annoying, but I promise I see them all, and post them sporadically over the weekend, so your comment won't necessarily appear right away.)

Things To Do In San Diego: November 1, 2012

I'm not really sure how this week has gone by so quickly. Maybe the fact that I consider Thursday the start of the weekend and take Mondays off, I've tricked my brain into three day workweeks that blow right by. Whatever the case may be, I hope everyone had a fun Halloween and is ready to move on and greet the more important things in life, like San Diego Beer Week. Yes, the week that lasts 10 days because 7 is just not enough. There are sooo many events connected to SDBW that I'm not going to list them (since many of them are just keg tappings, brewery takeovers, pairings, and keep-the-glass events), but you can see the comprehensive list on the official site, or check out the San Diego Beer Blog or West Coaster for additional insight. I'm hoping Charles or Jonathan or Mike will enlighten all of us with their beer picks for SDBW, but I'm going to guess that they've probably already started participating. Don't forget to enter my contest for Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, tune in to KPBS midday today as I join Seth Combs for the Weekend Preview with Maureen Cavanaugh, and check out SoundDiego TV on Saturday night because I think my Bowerbirds interview is finally going to air. Thursday archives are after the jump.

SDMTS Change Fees Starting November 1

I've been meaning to talk about the changes to SDMTS that go into effect today, but to be completely honest, I didn't really understand the changes. Here's what I do know: SDMTS will no longer issue $5 paper day passes on the bus for riders. You will be required to have a Compass Card to get the $5 fare, or without one, you will now be charged $7 for a day pass.

From the SDMTS website:
Once you have a Compass Card, it's easy to load a 1-Day Pass on the bus:
• Look for Compass Card symbol on or near farebox and tap your Compass Card flat on the symbol
• Wait for the message – Fare Due $5
• Insert exact fare ($1 and $5 dollar bills accepted; no change given if $10 or $20 bill used)
• Wait for the message – PLEASE TAP CARD TO ADD PASS
• Tap card again and wait for the message – 1 DAY Pass added
• Keep Compass Card on the target until you see the expiration date for your Day Pass

Beginning November 1, riders without a Compass Card may purchase a 1-Day Pass on paper, but a $2 fee will be added ($7 total).
Look, I enjoy taking the bus and trolley, I was even a featured rider by SDMTS a couple years ago, but I also don't have to use public transportation every day. In fact, with a bike in my new neighborhood and my amazing superhero taxi-cab driving boyfriend, I hardly have to use the bus at all. I acquired a Compass card when I was using the trolley a couple months back, but just a few days later found myself downtown with a different, lighter wallet, and couldn't buy a day pass without buying an additional Compass card. There's also a caveat on the back of the card that any unused balance will be fined after two years of non-use, which might not seem like a big deal, but suppose you end up with a small stockpile of the cards with balances on them, eventually you either use it or lose it.

Taking the bus used to be easy. You paid a fare, asked for a transfer if you needed it. The $5 day pass is great if you're traveling between neighborhoods, but you're not exactly going to hop on a bus just to go one or two stops, and an adult monthly pass at $72 means you have to do at least 4 roundtrips per week to justify the purchase. Our public transportation in the city needs to be a priority. It is great that the city is now seeing a budget surplus and it would be amazing to see MTS improvements like added routes (after many were cut or merged during the budget crisis) and increased frequency for busy routes (ever taken the 15 outbound on a weekday between 4 and 7?). Pretty sure neither DeMaio nor Filner give much thought to public transportation, but it sure would be nice if they did. Consider yourself warned.

[Update: Check out this article on KPBS about SDMTS teaming with local bands for a new ad campaign]

San Diego Newsy Bits: New Owners for Eleven

Back in early August, I was at the Soda Bar and overheard a friend say that Eleven had been sold. I tweeted something like "Just overheard Eleven got sold?" My friend requested that I delete the tweet though just hours later said it really didn't matter, he was friends with Alex Kacha and she said it was cool to openly talk about. Unfortunately a friend at Eleven disagreed and I got my ass chewed out for being a rumor mongering jerk. In fact, for about 12 minutes as he yelled at me, I was technically 86ed from the bar for life. Fortunately the whole thing settled down, traces of my Tweet were long gone, andfor the past 3 months have kept my mouth shut, despite many of my industry colleagues telling me that the bar had been up for sale for over a year and it was suggested that Scot Blair is just more interested in focusing on his beer bars and not running a music venue.

On October 20 the "public notice for ownership change" went up and yes, it has taken me this long to write about, though there's nothing really to talk about. The buyers, KADU, Inc, is a hybrid of the last names  Alex Kacha & Neil Dutta. I don't know Neil or Alex, but you've definitely seen Alex out at the cooler shows in town with her camera in hand. Peter Holslin covered the sale in last week's CityBeat and points out that Alex plans to keep things "pretty much...the same". Kelsey Breunig has been booking there the past few month in addition to booking by Zeke, and rumor is that Mario Orduno will also be booking nights under the new owners.

Being that Eleven is the closest cool bar to my house, I hope things truly stay "pretty much the same" and my part of El Cajon Boulevard doesn't get neglected from future Drinkabouts or Craft Beer events.