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Stories by Jay Allen Sanford

Killer vegan tacos

Belle and the Dragon, featuring P.O.D. drummer Noah “Wuv” Bernardo and members of Flyleaf, took an impromptu tour of the streets of San Diego for the music video for their track “Trees.” “We shot this …

May 7, 2020
Songs From Self-Isolation

Reunited 1970s punk originators the Zeros have a new song called “Don’t Take Any Chances,” now available courtesy of Burger Records, as part of Quarantunes: Songs From Self-Isolation #2. The seven volume series will feature …

April 30, 2020
Tales Of Tomorrow: The Inside Story of TV's 1st Sci-Fi Anthology

The one about the little kid with supernatural powers. The shopkeeper who can magically materialize exactly what a customer needs. The episode with an invisible creature attacking people in the jungle. The show where an …

Alone Together

“We released a new video for an original song called ‘Alone Together’ about life in quarantine,” says Amy Day of indie-folk band the Spiritual Motels. “We did this by getting video clips from our friends, …

April 23, 2020
Thee Sacred Souls: analog champions

“Our commitment to analog contrasts the quick-fire nature of many other artists within the increasingly digital industry,” says vintage soul-inspired trio Thee Sacred Souls. The band insists on recording their tracks on vinyl and debuting …

San Diego history you never knew

90 Years of Curl Elwell says Kahanamoku surfed the OB Pier, and when he did, he asked a teenaged lifeguard named Charlie Wright if he could store his board in Wright's beach shack. By Jeannette …

April 19, 2020
Bring Back the Plague

Originally formed by members of the Locust and known for wearing beef jerky masks onstage, heavy metal vegetarians Cattle Decapitation have a new pandemic themed music video for their song “Bring Back the Plague” featuring …

April 16, 2020
Indie bedroom pop

Nobody was surprised in 2014 when Christian heavy metal band As I Lay Dying changed their name to Wovenwar. After all, their lead singer Tim Lambesis had just pleaded guilty to attempting to solicit the …

April 9, 2020
MFTJ: Neoclassical prog experiments from Mike Keneally and Scott Schorr

“A lot of popular music in the last couple decades has been really vapid,” says Scott Schorr, one half of prog-rock duo MFTJ with former Frank Zappa/Joe Satriani guitarist Mike Keneally. “I think people are …

Live Five: Kids stuff!

Being home with the kids can be an opportunity to explore online, with events streaming soon featuring kid-centric music, art, theater, and education. Little Fish Comic Book Studio Online Classes are available online right now, …

April 4, 2020
B-sides, studio outtakes, and live performances

Grand Forks, North Dakota native Tom Brosseau moved to San Diego in 2001 and quickly became one half of the American Folk Singers alongside Gregory Page. The duo’s first album was taped in Page’s living …

April 2, 2020
"I’ve contracted the Coronavirus" says San Diego guitarist Drew Andrews

"I had test results come back positive for Covid 19 today," says local guitarist Drew Andrews. "I’ve contracted the Coronavirus. I’ll share more when I feel up to it. I’m doing okay, and am in …

March 29, 2020
Live Five: Coming soon to a couch near you

Living Room Live presents Tamsin Waley-Cohen playing multiple concerts over the coming month, all livestreamed from home. The March 31 edition features guest player Ann Beilby, for a program set to include Passacaglia for violin …

March 29, 2020
Happy Ron Hill: drop a dollar in the e-bucket

With the closure of area bars and sit-down restaurant service, several locals who lost gigs are choosing to telecast performances for stay-at-home viewing. “We uploaded a full concert, professionally filmed,” says Ron Houston of the …

March 26, 2020
A little nod to Joy Division

Assuming the concert lockdown is over by June, Tulpa Luna - formerly known as Warsaw - will embark on a west coast tour with former local Adam Gnade (Three One G, Pioneers Press) in support …

March 26, 2020
Live Five: Local music happenings online

“Since mid-last year, Johno [Wells] and I have been co-hosting a series of once-a-month concerts at Morley Field called Modular On The Spot,” says Matthew Stewart (who has a band with Wells, June Water). “We …

March 24, 2020
Daily DVD & Download: Space 1999 - the complete series & then some

I finally got through the 17-disc Space 1999 set, a show I'd never watched before other than on early Mystery Science Theater 3000s. Most episodes failed to keep my attention for long, but I definitely …

March 22, 2020
Live Five: Locals staging live music feeds and debuts

Jewel will be hosting Live From San Quarantine: A Livestream Concert via Instagram and Facebook, to raise funds for her Never Broken program powered by the Inspiring Children Foundation. A planned fundraising event was cancelled, …

March 21, 2020
Daily DVD & Download: Buck Rogers VS Nolan's Batman

I finally slogged thru most of the Buck Rogers complete series DVD set, and it was pretty much as dismal as I feared, other than a small – very small - handful of exceptions. The …

March 21, 2020
RIP Kenny Rogers, Barona Casino songsmith

Singer Kenny Rogers - who composed, sang, and starred in popular ads for Barona Casino -- has passed away at the age of 81. Rogers reportedly died peacefully at home from natural causes, while under …

March 20, 2020
Old concerts for a new world

I kind of feel like I unknowingly prepared myself for the entire world changing, as the past few years have been unlike any other period of my life. Up until the 2000-teens, I not only …

March 20, 2020
Daily DVD & Download: Capsule reviews before you buy or binge

I've got over 1000 DVDs I can watch during this stay-at-home shutdown, including several crates I recently purchased full of obscure horror movies, recent blockbusters, plus plenty of grindhouse oldies, including a 1983 Chuck Norris …

March 20, 2020
Go ahead, see a live concert tonight - online!

"We're having a virtual Seaport Sessions show this evening, live streaming on Vimeo," says Casbah operator Tim Mays. "Dirty Sweet and Low Volts will be performing live in studio at Seaport and you can watch …

March 19, 2020
UCSD jazz stars and other locals worth knowing

The Mattson twins say their father introduced the boys to artists such as Art Blakey and Lee Morgan practically as soon as they could walk and talk. While their older brother achieved indie rock stardom …

March 19, 2020
Local music news from Hot Snakes, Justin Pearson, Reverend Stickman, and more

Rick Froberg and John Reis have spent most of their adult lives playing together, from Pitchfork in the ’80s through Drive Like Jehu, and then Hot Snakes, which Reis formed while his band Rocket from …

March 12, 2020
Fiddle folk

When I first heard the music of Umphrey’s McGee, it was on a radio station that failed to identify the band, leaving me to assume I’d just heard one of the best Rush tunes since …

March 12, 2020
Quentin Tarantino meets the Doors nodding to Dick Dale

“Our music has been described as Quentin Tarantino meets the Doors, with beachy elements nodding to the late Dick Dale,” according to Mdrn Hstry, which started blending live music and performance art in 2017. “This …

March 5, 2020
Underage and underground

Ignant Benches was founded in 2014 by Chula Vista 8th graders Anson Kelley (guitar, vocals) and Andy Tistoj (guitar), who wanted to play that year’s school talent show. Subsequent gigs were scored at the Casbah, …

February 27, 2020
Rookie Card: four more years

“Since our last Leap Year show in 2016 at the Whistle Stop, we’ve only played a couple of sets in a Carlsbad park for a friend’s picnic,” says Adam Gimbel of Rookie Card’s tendency to …

Elevator music you can twerk to

Founded in 2009, Parade of Horribles is a hard rock-punk duo featuring Jason York of Civic Unrest (bass and vocals) and Chris Mazzola (drums). They say their songs are an “experimental sound disaster best described …

February 20, 2020
Rediscovered working at College Grove’s Jolar porn shop

You Think You Really Know Me: The Gary Wilson Story details the life of the eccentric indie-punk pioneer best known for his 1977 LP You Think You Really Know Me, recorded in the basement of …

February 13, 2020
Psychotic Waltz: nearly as big as David Hasselhoff

“The band was over, obituary written, done,” says Psychotic Waltz bassist Ward Evans. “It stayed that way from 1997 to 2008 or so. There was minimal contact between any of us during that time. Everyone …

Tapping strings like piano keys

Mortiis began as a Norwegian side project enabling former Emperor bassist-lyricist Håvard Ellefsen to put on a costume with a weird face mask and create pounding electro-goth concept pieces with elaborate stories: basically Peter Gabriel-era …

February 6, 2020
Hey, man, nice ponytail

The last time I had an actual haircut was March 1983, when I was so new to North Park that I accidentally booked myself by phone to get my ponytail whacked at a nearby African-American …

February 6, 2020
A big honking deal in the great white north

Jazzy psychedelic rockers Le Ra features members based in Tijuana, San Diego, and L.A. The lineup includes Mónica Mendoza (lead vocals, guitar, keys), who founded the group in 2010, alongside Milka Luna (drums, vocals) and …

January 30, 2020
Belladon’s last show with Anastasya

“One side will have all our dream pop songs, and the other has our gothy nasty ’80s songs,” says Belladon’s Aimee Jacobs of the band’s upcoming Dreaming/Dreading EP. “Both sides will have a collection of …

Quentin Tarantino meets the Doors

Originally based in Pacific Beach and known as Lad’s Holiday, indie-alternative group the Frets formed in late 2015 when founding members Liam Wilkes (a native of Manchester, England) and Cody Seeger met via Craigslist. Their …

January 23, 2020
Live Five: La Jolla High alumni

“Avenue Army relocated from Saint Paul, MN to San Diego specifically because they felt that their sound would fit nicely in Southern California, and because they strongly felt that this was the place to build …

January 16, 2020
Big in Spain: The Loons and The Rosalyns rock León

San Diego acts remain big in Spain, a longstanding trend that arguably kicked off when the Zeros stormed out of Chula Vista in the late 70s. The influential punk band has a new single on …

Moving and grooving with San Diego Autism Society

Most bands favored by Deadheads are content with providing psychedelic spinners with the requisite groove to get their tie-dye twirling. Chadwick Stokes likes to use his folky jam band style to educate, engage, and yeah, …

January 9, 2020
Renegade country stars

Local concert attendees now pushing their fifties still swap war stories about the times that T.S.O.L. (which stands for True Sounds of Liberty) played around town at punk-friendly places like the Adams Avenue Theater and …

January 2, 2020
Mrs. Henry, Jack Daniels, and Dr. Feelgood

“It was sponsored by Jack Daniels, who put up money and booze so we could do this thing, and as you can imagine that night was a whiskey-soaked endeavor,” says singer-guitarist Daniel Cervantes of Mrs. …

Mission Hills – don't be fooled

Book-lovers chew the fat at the Mission Hills Library His watch tells him 6:45. This Mission Hills branch stays open tonight — it’s Monday. He slaps the book closed, reshelves it, glances to his left. …

Vision of a Sweaty world

An El Vez show is like a cross between an Ike and Tina Turner Revue, a Tom Jones Las Vegas gig, the LSD episode of Dragnet, and Elvis Presley’s 1968 comeback special. The self-proclaimed “Mexican …

December 25, 2019
Christmas Cash

Jeff Berkley and Calman Hart, aka Berkley Hart, have long been staging occasional themed concert programs. “We do it just to put a different spin on things,” says Hart. “For New Year’s 2001, we did …

December 19, 2019
Murderers of Love Motel EP based on the short stories of guitar maker Creston Lea

Based in Carlsbad, Americana band Murderers of Love features singer-songwriter and graphic designer Jaimie Muehlhausen, a one-time open mic host at Drowsy Maggie’s (which helped launch Steve Poltz and Jewel). His new five-song EP Motel …

All-female, non-fictitious band

Second Chance San Diego will be raising funds and awareness to stop the cycle of incarceration and poverty with a packed bill that includes Deep Sea Thunder Beast, Hurricane Kate, Black Cat Sabbath, and headliners …

December 12, 2019
DJ GarGar’s unconventional San Diego band samples

“I made a new record with Talls from the KneeHighs that we’re releasing December 6,” says Edgar Alminar, aka DJ GarGar, one half of the Beautiful State. The duo builds multilayered hip-hop tracks from recorded …

Prison songwriting workshops

Astra Kelly began her singing career after taking note of Chicago’s subway performers while en route to her job. Already trained in classical and jazz guitar, and with a few pointers from a veteran subway …

December 5, 2019
Tribute to Billie Holiday

The San Diego Jazz Fest & Swing Extravaganza runs November 27 through December 1, with multiple stages hosting over two dozen acts, including Dan Levinson, Molly Ryan, John Royen, Katie Cavera, Carl Sonny Leyland, Marty …

November 28, 2019

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