You remember The Inept, right? The band composed of five English teenagers that played a handful of gigs in the small town next to their boarding school in the mid-80s. Ring a bell yet? They …

Nick Costa became interested in guitar when he was ten years old. He noticed a friend that he admired playing one and thought he looked cool. Lessons commenced and he became skilled at the instrument …

Since March, the only students and personnel permitted on the campus of Palomar College have been those connected to the nursing program. The enforcement is so strict that it took Rob “DJ Roob” Blackwell a …

Christmas Jerk I managed to avoid being homeless on Christmas Eve 1979, but just barely. Unemployed since that summer, I found a cheap flophouse on 12th and Island where 70 bucks a month got me …

Brendan Boyle began his vinyl education while working at a record shop in Sacramento. Following that, he went solo and spent about ten years selling vinyl online. The combined experiences gave him a 20-year education …

Wanted Noise is a bit of throwback to the free-for-all attitude that bands such as The Minutemen personified. The execution of their songs falls comfortably under the punk rock umbrella, but the influences at play …

Look for the online list of Best Of voting winners soon. We have printed and re-stocked extra copies of this week's print version where the Best Of voting winners are listed. Best place in San …

Katryn Macko met Ryan Stanley while they were both living in Tallahassee and attending Florida State University. Macko worked at a venue called Club Down Under, which was run by a student organization. She describes …

Encinitas to the core, that’s what Tate Sanderson is. He was raised in the North County beach community and has returned to live there. He pays homage to his hometown roots with “Back In Encinitas.” …

By the time Jefferson Jay started hosting the Thursday night open-mic at Winstons, he was already an old pro. At that point, Jay already had a long history of running these events at venues that …

Say goodbye to 30th Street as it is “You guys are just thinking about North Park residents shopping here and eating at your shops,” she said. “You’re not thinking about the people coming from down …

If you are one of the millions of Americans whose couch and flatscreen have transformed into personal, makeshift AMC theaters, you may have already rented the Pete Davidson film, The King of Staten Island. Local …

Friday the 13th of March capped off a week that most Americans will never forget. The NBA had shut down the remainder of their season that Wednesday, and the NHL followed suit the next day. …

When California enacted Assembly Bill 5 (AB5) at the beginning of 2020, the music industry braced for a heavy shake-up. The law created a new standard (the ABC test) that employers would have to meet …

The world of live music came to an abrupt halt in mid-March as concerts large and small were canceled. While most of the local attention centered on the postponement of major events such as Coachella …

The Mother Hips formed in Chico, California in the early 90s. They were operating against the grain from the start — most of the bands in their college town were playing covers. They set out …

Yale Strom first learned of Lou Curtiss back in the 1970s. He attended the folk festivals that Curtiss held annually at San Diego State University. Strom’s father encouraged Yale to ditch high school to attend …

The Philadelphia-based punk four-piece Mannequin Pussy had two albums under their belts before they were signed to famous hardcore label Epitaph and released 2019’s Patience — which required just that. The album gestated for three …

Tijuana destroys Spanish and English “Tengo que ir hacer laundry, then I have to study en la biblioteca,” I’m paraphrasing what the Latina students in my college sounded like. My first real encounter with Spanglish …

Cartel tunnels to Otay Mesa are infrastructural marvels The amount of warehouse space in Otay Mesa has nearly quadrupled since the mid-’90s, and the expansion has been almost as frenetic in Garita de Otay. Forklifts, …

Longtime Buck-O-Nine lead singer Jon Pebsworth pops up as a talking head in the new documentary Pick It Up! Ska In The ’90s. The film details the history of ska music while concentrating on the …

High on fitness Patrick Henderson Pyles Peak Corner of Golfcrest and Navajo Drives Mission Trails Cowles Mountain is a very popular, very crowded hike — especially if you’re taking it from the Golfcrest/Navajo staging area. …

North Park and South Park – say goodbye to 30th Street as it is The main roadway connecting North and South Park may be on the eve of a massive transformation. Councilmember Chris Ward is …

Dishwater was in the midst of one of their greatest scores when the band began to fall apart. Guitarists Jason Hill and Robbie Dodds had become more interested in country music driven by the likes …

North Park residential housing lots often feature a diverse array of habitats crammed into a space intended for a single home. An old, craftsman house may be complimented by a granny flat behind it or …

Escondido native RC Krueger got heavy into music circa eighth grade. A No Knife record from his friend’s step-brother sealed the deal. It opened up a new world of music that he could enjoy as …

The Coronado Yacht Club is nestled in a cove on the northwestern end of Glorietta Bay, where where it is flanked by neighbors such as Bluewater Boathouse Seafood Grill and the Coronado Municipal Golf Course. …

Pete Bayard had performed in a series of bands in St. Paul, Boston, and New York City before he landed in San Diego and started playing in the local outfit Inigo in the mid-2000s. He …

Richard Snow may live in Spring Valley, but he has owned property near the Salton Sea since the early 90s. What initially drew him to the area was flight. He was part of a small …

Besides managing the Casbah, Ben Johnson has played in local bands (the Long and Short Of It, Hostile Combover, Grammatical B), and he’s authored a couple of books (A Shadow Cast In Dust and Blood …

Circa 2007, members of Ocean Beach-based rock acts Vinyl Radio and Cape May united to start a new project — the Swedish Models. According to guitarist Andrew Bernhardt, the band was a collection of “thrashy …

X bassist/vocalist John Doe has spent a large chunk of the last five years taking a trip down memory lane. In 2016, his book Under the Big Black Sun, which explored the early days of …

The physical location of Iacon Sound is history. The Golden Hill studio that also housed six rehearsal spaces was shut down at the end of September after the building’s ownership changed. Their lease expires at …

I moved to San Diego in 1998 and started going to shows immediately. Live bands were simple to find any night of the week. These days, it’s a hair more difficult. DJs have become a …

The misbegotten children of San Carlos San Carlos in 1960 was a series of tract homes out in the boonies. There were plenty of hills, trails, and wilderness for a young boy to run wild. …

A couple years back, Jarabe Mexicano was approached by producers who had heard their rendition of Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up.” In their live set, the song snippet served as a transitional element. Their …

“I decided I wanted to start a band after my kids all grew-up and left the house,” Rachel Enyeart explains. “I knew Liz Borg, because our husbands were in a band together, Whole Hog. One …

Appellate court turns back Hosking's fake cattle ranch Inhabitants of Julian who oppose the development of 1416 acres of local back country have a newfound victory to celebrate. An appellate court has reversed the decision …

Archie Thompson grew up in a very musical family. He had two brothers, and all three of them played multiple instruments. His oldest brother, Mike, was a musical prodigy who eventually landed a gig playing …

Titus Andronicus is in the midst of a 63-date North American tour that has brought the band to cities that don’t often fall in the path of traveling rock acts. Besides the usual stops such …

The Louisiana is a mixed-use complex on the corner of Louisiana Street and University Avenue in North Park. There is a hip restaurant (Louisiana Purchase) on the bottom level that, according to its website, “was …

In League with Dragons, the new LP by the Mountain Goats, began its life as a concept album. John Darnielle, the band’s chief architect of songcraft, had grand plans for a fantasy rock opera that …

Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough is a fitting title for the new Bleached album. The release marks the first time the Clavin sisters (Jennifer and Jessie) have written and recorded an album completely sober. …

It’s tough to believe at this point, but North and South Park made it through about four months of 2019 before terms such as floating parking, sharrows, bollards, and NIMBY entered their daily lexicon. The …

Ryan Jubela owns Masters Kitchen and Cocktail in Oceanside. Earlier this year, he asked Dennis Sheridan if he wanted to play an acoustic gig at his restaurant. Sheridan took the offer as a challenge. He …

Inhabitants of Julian who oppose the development of 1416 acres of local back country have a newfound victory to celebrate. An appellate court has reversed the decision by the county board of supervisors which would …

Kaaboo filled a void when it landed in Del Mar in 2015. San Diego once again had a major music festival. This November, the Wonderfront Festival will give San Diego a second music festival — …

A few weeks ago, I was startled to find an unwelcome visitor climbing up a wall inside our North Park garage—a rat. My wife and I had dealt with mice at our last house (also …

Bobby Bray spent over a decade singing and playing guitar in the Locust —a well-known local hardcore act that, by comparisom, transformed fellow hardcore acts into Wham. The Locust specialized in a calculated lunacy that …

Many musicians seem to stumble into their profession. Morgan McRae was not one of these. He had a plan from the start. While attending St. Louis University he studied piano and business management. He is …