San Diego’s enduring all-girl post-psychedelic/60’s punk band from the mid 1980’s, Everybody Violet, has been reformed with a new line-up!  On Friday, May 29^th, 2009, Everybody Violet will take the stage to open the two -day Che Underground Showcase at The Casbah, which will feature some of the most influential acts of San Diego’s Rock Renaissance of the early 1980’s.

 Everybody Violet was an all-girl band which formed at the end of the punk, Mod and psychedelic era in San Diego, cued by the dispatch of the notorious Morlocks to San Francisco and the waning of what has been recently been coined “The Che Underground” The high spirited and intelligent girls in Everybody Violet insisted on performing sets of all- original music, which was unusual for bands of their genre. In a very short course of time, EV had gained the attention to of local critics with The San Diego Reader, Revolt In Style Magazine, and the San Diego Union, as well as renowned Los Angeles record producer and promoter Greg Shaw, who showed interest in signing the band to his indie label.

Unfortunately, the girls were young and in love and naïve, and before they had the wisdom to record a record with Shaw in 86, the group disbanded.-Many of the women moved to San Francisco and even worked together on EV projects and even jazz or cabaret acts into the 1990’s. Some of them would not speak again until winter of 2008, when Kristi Maddocks celebrated the 3 year recovery of a massive brain injury* and called many old dear friends together to celebrate life. This third “ReBirthday Party” marked beginnings of Every body Violet‘s rebirth and coincided with the evolution of the Che Underground Blog. Coincidence? I  think not!

 Now, over 22 years since the band worked together in any form, Everybody Violet has come together with a new sense of dedication and enthusiasm for creating and playing music that rocks the body and moves the soul! At the heart of the group are three original members- drummer Joey Miller (Noise 292, The Injections); guitarist/vocalist Carina Burns-Randolph; and lyricist and lead singer Kristi Maddocks (The Blues Gangsters, Burlap & Pearl, Café Du Nord). The new additions (who now make EV a sizzling sextet) include music aficionado David Flemminger on guitar, keyboards, and arrangements (The Answers, The Mirrors, Lemons are Yellow, The Blues Gangsters); Kristin Martin on bass and vocals (Noise 292, Lemons Are Yellow); and classically trained Heather Vorwreck on cello and violin (The Comeuppance).

Everybody Violet delivers a soulful blend of psychedelic indie pop & rock that is colored with tribal drums, haunting strings, and unexpected vocal harmonies. EV hopes that the addition of Dave’s guitar and arrangements, Heather’s strings, and the vocals skills of Kristin Martin to its repertoire will translate into a fuller sound with a majestic audio landscape. Everybody Violet is dedicated to engaging its audience, increasing its fan base, and reaching a level of performance and professionalism that eluded the band 25 years before.       

http://www.myspace.com/everybodyviolet

http://www.everybodyviolet.com

http://www.myspace.com/kristimaddocks

http://www.myspace.com/bluesgangsters

http://www.bluesgangsterscom

  A MESSAGE FROM MC FLOW - RECENT VIOLENCE AGAINST RHYTHM AND THE METHOD'S LEAD SINGER WAS A HATE CRIME

 Queer Abby - http://www.gaylesbiantimes.com/?id=14756

 Local Record Release Roundup - June

Dog Days, the first album from the Journeymen, pairs Ike Turner drummer Bill Ray with jazz keyboardist Neil MacPherson. “We recorded the whole thing without ever being in the same studio together,” says MacPherson. “Bill would email me recordings of himself goofing off on the drums, and I would layer a bunch of keyboards.” For the May 29 release party at the Kava Lounge, “We’re playing the album from top to bottom, with help filling out the songs from Sean Martin [Skirt Alert] and Mike Clairmont [The Riders].”

Iranian-born songwriter Bahman Sarram – who records as Bviolin – performs May 30 to launch his album Stretch Reach, produced by Sven-Erik Seaholm. “It’ll be a real intimate spiritual concert, held at Four Seasons Yoga in La Jolla,” says Sarram. “We’ll have some snacks, some belly dancing, and an opening meditation session by Sequoiya Neptune. The band will have some special guests, plus perhaps we’ll do a cover song never heard by us before…if people buy discount tickets online, they get the new CD as part of the ticket.”

The Predicates release their fourth album Words Teeth Sleep on June 6, with a performance at Lestat’s. “The Turtle Project is also on the bill,” says singer/guitarist Gregg O’Connell, “and we’ll be doing a cover song with them for their last song, to streamline the final two performances so attendees won’t have to wait for the next band.” The album – their second full-length collaboration DJ D-Fab, whose studio recorded it – is self-released. Says O’Connell, “Who needs a record label these days?”

Joey Harris and the Mentals are promoting their new 10-track self-named album with a June 14 release show at Brick by Brick. “Mojo Nixon and Paul and Caren Kamanski will be joining us onstage,” says Harris, “as well as Scottie Mad Dog Blinn of the Mississippi Mudsharks, who produced the album and is releasing it on his Double Barrel label. We’ll also have a special appearance by Slim Crowbar and the I.O.U.s.” Brick by Brick is where Harris was once chatted up by Frank Zappa, circa 1980. “I’d just played with Fingers, [and] Frank said he loved the band’s energy and the songs and asked me to contact his manager in L.A. on Monday morning. I did try. There were a lot of messages, but nothing ever came of it.”   

Jeff Berkley’s 5-piece rock band Citizen Band will appear June 21 at Brick by Brick, to launch their new album Breaker Breaker My Heart. “We’re gonna put our own spin on a Bill Monroe and Peter Rowan bluegrass tune,” says Berkley, best known as half of the roots duo Berkley Hart “CB allows me to do things I don’t get to do in BH, like kick and yell, or have a smoke machine, moody lights, distortion, and tape echoes. Also, there’s more drinking in CB. But BH is just the two of us.”

Experimental rockers Demasiado will launch their new album with a May 31 set at the Casbah, where the freaky-folkies of Astra appear on June 5 for the release of their debut CD The Weirding. On June 21, Sublime-ly groovy jam band Irieside celebrate their full-length debut on Above Ground Records at the Boars Cross’n in Carlsbad.

Stranger releases their new album at ‘Canes on June 5. Candye Kane’s new full-length Superhero (Delta Groove Records) debuts with a June 19 appearance at Anthology, her final San Diego appearance until her current world tour wraps up this October in Australia. Summer will also see new albums from Irish rockers Skelpin (The Singing Bird), acoustic blues guitarist Joshua Blatchley, headbangers Wolves of Eden, the Brit-inspired Modlins, and a live set from songstress Anna Troy.

Chuck Schiele’s compilation of Ocean Beach-based performers, Waves, is set for release June 27, with several acts appearing at that weekend’s OB Street Fair. “Everybody knows the jam band thing has a pretty strong foothold here,” says the Grams frontman and operator of StudiOB. “I work counter to that.”

 THE DUMBEST GIRL I EVER DATED...

 I reminded her that I CAN READ!

 She said "The ocean is salt water, and that's what my new boobs are made of anyway, and salt water is sterile or they couldn't put it inside me." (yes, I nursed her thru the subsequent infection).

 The Chinese food had been in a styrofoam container, which melted and caught on fire - Susan explained "Well, it works fine heating it in the microwave, but I wasn't in that much of a hurry."

 So I fired up the car, jumped on route 8 west, and headed for the ocean - sure enough, she recognized an exit just after Hotel Circle, we took it, she directed me from memory of where to turn, and I actually got her to the appointment. On time. In a city the size of Connecticut. Starting only with "Follow the seagulls."

TROPHY WIFE DOES IT IN THEIR PJS!

  "Last Sunday we played at The North Park Festival of the Arts," emails guitarist Joe MacAskill of Trophy Wife. "We were scheduled to play on the main stage at 10am. we knew it was pretty early for people to see us play, so we decided we thought we would do what any self-respecting band playing that early would do: We played in our pajamas. We even took it a step further, setting up a table with coffee and pastries."

"The pajamas went over well, but the free food and drink was a bigger hit. People were encouraged to make their way to the bounty at the front of the stage. The kids from Paul Green's School Of Rock made several trips, but of course were warned about cavities. One older gentleman found his way to the complimentary breakfast, even after he yelled 'You guys suck'! It was quite a fun show!"

Left to right: Matt Nelson, Jason Lewis, Joe MacAskill. Photo by Jaye Furlonger (of Nautical Disaster)

Formed in 2002, Trophy Wife have released an EP and two full-length albums,  Kissing Hands and Shaking Babies (2005) and Rose-Scented Cuddle Moments(2008). They've opened for performers like White Denim, the National, Steve Poltz, the Farmers, and Flogging Molly.

Trophy Wife appears July 26 at Bar Pink.

Related links

• As I Hear It: Trophy Wife
• myspace.com/trophywifemusic

MORE NEW MUSIC STORIES THIS WEEK

	The Kids Love It! by Barnaby Monk Thursday 28 | Looks like a Spice Girl fell off the rack. Brit rap brat Lady Sovereign will grace House of Blues tonight. The 23-year-old grime star, whom New Yorker music writer Sasha Frere-Jones described as "pithy ...
	Not the Loudest by Michael Hemmingson In junior high, Kelly Dalton started writing songs and playing in bands and then began gigging, touring, and recording in his teens and 20s. "In the late '90s I was in a punk band called ...
	St. Vincent by William Crain St. Vincent is the nom de rock of one Annie Clark, a young singer-songwriter shredder who has done time backing Sufjan Stevens and the Polyphonic Spree. When I first heard Marry Me, St. Vincent's debut ...
	Punk Rock High School by Jay Allen Sanford "The script was written based on the high school scene in coastal North County San Diego," says Fabulous Rudies singer Tom Voris, music director for the upcoming film Punk Rock High School. "It's based on ...
	Propagandhi by Dave Good A recent picture of the band Propagandhi shows four guys, a few of them approaching middle age, who look more about golf or office jobs than flat-out aggressive rock and roll. Founded in Manitoba in ...
	French Fries and Gravy by Bart Mendoza On May 29 and 30, the Casbah will host the Ché Underground Reunion, a gathering of bands and fans who frequented UCSD's student-run co-op Ché Café in the early '80s. Organized by the online community ...
	Mutantspaceboy, Josh Damigo, and the Turtle Project by Brian Carver I thought it was very different. It was mostly synthesizers. It started out really slow and then progressively picked up and got into a little jazz-fusion. It kind of reminded me of Pink Floyd's early days and then it went totally...
	Da Bears by Barnaby Monk Cleaning out the disc bin on my desk, the Sendak-like pen-and-ink critters on Da Bears' Classics/Cobra caught my eye. The collection was recorded from 2006 through ought eight. Better late than never, eh? And never having ...
	Record Release Roundup by Jay Allen Sanford Joey Harris and the Mentals are promoting their new ten-track self-titled album with a June 14 release show at Brick by Brick. "Mojo Nixon and Paul and Caren Kamanski will be joining us onstage," says ...

 CATHRYN BEEKS’ WEEKLY LISTEN LOCAL HOTSHEET

Sunday 5/31 - Couch Sessions at Oasis House Concerts near Sorrento Valley.  2 feature spots still open!  6:00 open, 6:20 Crystal Pollard, 6:40 Jeff Bertino, 7:00 open, 7:20 Rod Worth, 7:40 Jeffrey Joe Morin, 8:00 Randy Chiurazzi, 8:20 Reverend Stickman, 8:40 Charlie Imes - Bring your unplugged instruments, small percussion and your voices to play along with featured acts.  $5 per person, refreshments available. YOU MUST RSVP to [email protected] to get the address and directions to The Oasis.

MUSIC NEWS

 Link of the Week:  In case you missed the big announcement on The KPRI Homegrown Show last Saturday night, Astra is passing the torch... to me!  She's gotten hella busy with her work at Studio West, her new band (just signed!) and some other endeavors so she's handed the show over to me.  I'm super honored to be given this opportunity and can't wait to play your songs.  I need your CDs!  Best way to get them to me is to visit the calendar to find out where I am and drop them off in person.  I look forward to hearing your music and to hearing what you think, tune in this Saturday at 9pm for my first show! 

Other stuff happening this Saturday, May 30th:  Guava Belly Plays the Belly Up Tavern; Kurt Young and Katie Leigh at The Brick by Brick; A.J. Croce at The Oasis; The Mere Mortals at the Beauty Bar; Ashley Matte and The Makepeace Brothers in Del Mar (email [email protected] for details) and last but certainly not least, BViolin CD Release at 4 Seasons Yoga.  That should keep you busy...

 From Danielle LoPresti:  "Some of you may have heard that our friend Rhythm was the victim of a hate crime last week....here's what we came up with to try and help.  We went to her house and filmed her with our new camera. Then Alicia learned an editing program and put this all together. I'm so proud of her, and so grateful that Rhythm wants to speak up. We hope to inspire others to tell their stories, as well. Please pass this on to as many folks as you can."  *sigh*  This is so distrurbing.  Be careful out there this weekend, be safe and happy.

 5/31 - The Couch Sessions still has a few spots left for featured artists.  Everyone else is invited to sing and/or play along with featured acts, watchers are welcomed, too!  At The Oasis in Sorrento Valley.  $5, refreshments available.  RSVP for info and directions

 The North Park Music Thing is still accepting bands for San Diego's own version of SXSW, which happens the weekend of August 7-9th.  All artists interested in performing must submit their music and an online promotional package, along with a $15 submission fee online via Sonic Bids.  Apply NOW here.  If you would prefer to send a package by regular mail, please click here for the performers application. Please send the registration form along with a non-refundable $25 submission fee to:  North Park Music Thing, c/o San Diego Music Foundation, 4876 Mount Royal Place, San Diego, CA 92117.  Promo packages, CD, DVDs etc will NOT be returned.  Selected artists will be notified no later than July 1, 2009 if they have been selected to perform.

 The San Diego Music Foundation (the crew in charge of The San Diego Music Awards and The North Park Music Thing) just added a page to the Music Award's site which explains eligibility and gives more info about the whole nomination process for the big event in September. 

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DiscoverSD's Silent Disco, at Kin Lounge - Thursday, May 28 from 5 pm to 2 am This ultimate happy hour is a party without a traditional speaker system, instead using wireless headphones and an FM transmitter. The first in DiscoverSD's new series DiscoverIT Lifestyle Events, showcasing events that break the mold of conventional socializing (just our sorta thing!), this night will be enhanced with complimentary hors d'oeuvres and discount wine.    Email [email protected] to get on the list.

Film screening of TREELESS MOUNTAIN - Friday, May 29 at 7 pm and 9 pm Happening at Reading Theaters Gaslamp (701 5th Street/92101) in two separate showings, Treeless Mountain tells the incredibly moving story about the betrayal of children when deprived of the warmth and security of a family home.    For more information, including ticket prices and parking, please  click here.

THREAD - Saturday/Sunday, May 30-31 from 11 am to 5 pm San Diego's top independent fashion and design event storms the Wonderhaus Bakery (171 14th Street in East Village). Be the first to revel in the latest work of San Diego's designers, while saving money in eco-conscious surroundings. For details and to purchase discounted advance tickets click here.

---

A MESSAGE FROM

Greetings and Salutations. We just posted the last set of videos from our Live at Luce Loft series. Joel P. West and The Paddle Boat have never sounded so good. Click here to check em out.



This month's site header is courtesy of Andrew Heine, a good friend, amazing artist and one of the more interesting characters we've come across. His interview discusses his distorted faces, machinery and San Diego's best Thai food. Click here to read along.

 

New York based rock/pop trio, The Virgins, are playing Belly Up Tavern this Friday with one-time San Diegan, Anya Marina.

Also coming up in San Diego:
Tonight - MIX Opens at MCASD, La Jolla
Friday - Art After Dark @ Oceanside Museum of Art
Saturday - Writer w/ Tape Deck Mountain @ Soda Bar
May 29th - Quint Contemporary Art presents Homing In
May 30/31 - THREAD Show at the Wonder Bread Factory

A MESSAGE FROM NARM RE NIGHTTIME BAND LINEUP

 NEWS SHORTS

Blabbermouth and AntiMusic reports: It looks like Megadeth have finished recording their new album. Blabbermouth has the report: On January 7, Megadeth commenced the recording process for its twelfth studio album at the band's own Vic's Garage studio in San Marcos.

The CD is once again being helmed by acclaimed British producer Andy "Undie" Sneap, who produced Megadeth's last album, "United Abominations" (May 2007, Roadrunner Records).

Tentatively due in September via Roadrunner, Megadeth's forthcoming LP will be the group's first with guitarist Chris Broderick, who replaced Glen Drover at the end of 2007. - read what Dave had to say

Antimusic reports: In a Rolling Stone piece, some more definitive information has been revealed about Blink 182 's upcoming reunion tour. The blurb confirms that Weezer and Fall Out Boy will provide support on the tour, which hits San Diego's Cricket in September 16. Blink did an unannounced set in L.A. on Thursday, May 14, their first live set in around four years. At a private T-Mobile party with Travis Barker’s band TRVSDJAM on the bill, the other two Blink-ers joined him for a surprise three-song set. They'll appear on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show on May 21 and Fuel TV on May 22 (on The Daily Habit). The band is reportedly "rehearsing more than they have in the past." (more here)

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Stone Temple Pilots/ex-Velvet Revolver singer Scott Weiland and his solo band recently played a stripped down set in the 98.7 FM Lounge in Los Angeles for a handful of fans. (more including video)

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The latest episode of "Talking Metal" features interviews hosts Mark Strigl and John Ostronomy conducted with Rob Halford of Judas Priest and Dave Lescinski of Autumn Hour.

The Rob Halford interview topics include Judas Priest, the "British Steel" album, Metal God Apparel, the Halford band, Mickey Rourke, and Ray Brown. The 60-minute podcast can be downloaded - (more at this location)

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After tapping three songs this season from Vanguard Recording artist Greg Laswell’s latest album, Three Flights From Alto Nido, the producers of the hit drama Grey’s Anatomy asked the acclaimed singer-songwriter to pen and perform a song specifically for the show’s season finale. “Off I Go,” the resulting composition, was the final song used in the two-hour, two-part season finale of Grey’s Anatomy, which aired on ABC Thursday night, May 14, with millions of viewers tuning in. “Off I Go” is available as an iTunes single now!  Trivia fans should take note, the Grey’s season premiere last fall featured “And Then You” in a pivotal scene, which essentially gives Laswell musical bookends to the series.

From a Queen song to a better music search engine

New song dissection technology from UC San Diego

		IMAGE: A screen shot from the trivia game on Herd It, the new music discovery game on Facebook http://apps.facebook.com/herd-it/ created by electrical engineers at UC San Diego.... Click here for more information.

The system "listens" to songs it has never heard before, labels them based on the actual sounds in the song, and then retrieves songs, as appropriate, when people type descriptive words—like "mellow jazz"—into the team's experimental search engine.

At ICASSP, UC San Diego electrical engineering Ph.D. student Luke Barrington presented a new model for music segmentation that can capture both the sound of a song and how this sound changes over time. By modeling music in this way, Barrington showed how to automatically segment songs such as Bohemian Rhapsody into homogenous sections such as verses, choruses and bridges. This new approach to training computers to dissect songs into heterogeneous segments and then accurately label each chunk could improve the accuracy of the new music search engine built by engineers from the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego. View the paper here: http://cosmal.ucsd.edu/cal/pubs/Barrington-MusicDTM-ICASSP09.pdf

The team's nickname for their experimental music search engine is "Google for music". Users type descriptive words—rather than song titles, album names or artist names—and the search engine returns specific song suggestions. The engine currently works for more than 100 words that cover music genres, emotions and instruments. The Jacobs School engineers are working to expand the search engine's "vocabulary" before opening it up to the public later this year.

		IMAGE: A screen shot from Herd It, the new music discovery game on Facebook http://apps.facebook.com/herd-it/ created by electrical engineers at UC San Diego. Click here for more information.

In order to "teach" the search engine new words, the engineers need to show it many different examples of songs that fit that description. Initially, the engineers paid UC San Diego undergraduates to manually label songs that would serve as training materials for machine learning algorithms. But instead of continuing to rely on this expensive option, the engineers built online music games that encourage people connected via the Internet to do the song labeling while listening to music online.

In April, the electrical engineers launched their games on Facebook as an application called Herd It. http://apps.facebook.com/herd-it

To play Herd It, log in to Facebook, open the Herd It app, select a genre of music, and start listening to song clips and playing the games. Some games ask users to identify instruments, while others focus on music genres, artist names, emotions triggered by the song, and activities you might do while listening to a song. The more your answers align with the rest of the online crowd playing the game at the same time, the more points you score.

"The Facebook games are a lot of fun and a great way to discover new music. At the same time, the games deliver the data we need to teach our computer audition system to listen to and describe music like humans do," said Gert Lanckriet, the electrical engineering professor and machine learning expert from the Jacobs School of Engineering steering the project. Lanckriet also leads UC San Diego's Computer Audition Laboratory, housed at the UC San Diego division of Calit2.

For the system to "listen and describe music like a human," it must find patterns in the songs using the tools of machine learning. For example, for the system to learn to identify and label romantic songs, it must be exposed to many different romantic songs during the training period.

		IMAGE: Herd It is a new music discovery game on Facebook http://apps.facebook.com/herd-it/ created by electrical engineers at UC San Diego. Click here for more information.

This exposure enables the machine learning algorithms find patterns in the wave forms of the songs that make the songs romantic. Once trained, the system can identify romantic songs that it has never before encountered, offering the tantalizing possibility of amassing a huge database of songs that can be tagged and retrieved based on text-based searches with no human intervention.

"The more examples of romantic songs our search engine is exposed to, the more accurately it will be able to identify romantic songs it has never heard before," explained Barrington.

Part of Barrington's Ph.D. dissertation will involve demonstrating that data collected from the Facebook games reliably improves the accuracy of the search engine.

"Once enough people play our new music discovery games on Facebook, I'll have the data I need to both improve our search engine and finish my Ph.D.," said Barrington.

The song-word combinations collected by the Facebook games will also enable the researchers to grow their music search engine's vocabulary and increase its coverage in genres and classes of music.

2009 ICASSP (IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing): "Dynamic Texture Models of Music," by Luke Barrington, Antoni Chan and Gert Lanckriet from the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at UC San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering. To appear in ICASSP 2009.

Herd It game on Facebook: http://apps.facebook.com/herd-it or http://herdit.org

Watch a two minute video about the development of the music search engine at: http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/news/news_video/play.sfe?id=28

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded some of the research leading to this publication, as well as some of the students who contributed.

UC San Diego's von Liebig Center provided funding that enabled the researchers to create Herd It's professional interfaces for the music games. The von Liebig Center also provided the engineers with entrepreneurship advisory services and "incubation space". http://www.vonliebig.ucsd.edu/

A self proclaimed “Southern California girl,” Sarah Lavely has taken the long scenic route to find herself in sunny San Diego. Sarah grew up in Los Angeles and quickly progressed along the traditional path laid out before her. She attended a prestigious school of veterinary medicine, the University of Pennsylvania, before receiving her doctorate and practicing veterinary medicine with an emphasis on veterinary emergencies for 5 years in Los Angeles, and 5½ years in New England.

Now she breaks things for a living. Or rather her clients do.

After passing through a difficult period of frustration in her life, Sarah had a vision of going into a special room where she could let loose of all her pent up energy and destroy everything in sight. She thought to herself, “Other people must want to do this too. I can create a place where that's just what we'll do. We'll break sh-t, and it'll be fun.” It turns out she was right.

“I was ready for a change of career at that point, anyway. I went to my friend, Ed & told him about my idea for a business. He thought it was great, and we started spinning ideas for how to make it happen. A couple of years later, we opened our doors.“

Sarah’s Smash Shack was born.

She’s only been in San Diego since 2006 but success has followed her every step of the way. The Smash Shack has quickly become an integral fixture in downtown, helping us blow off some collective steam. She and her team host monthly fundraisers for such causes as the Susan Komen 3 Day Walk, Rady Children's Hospital, and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. They also have wasted no time getting noticed by the national media, apparently we were beaten to the punch. Damn you Katie Couric! [angry fist shake]

“We have been covered by ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, KUSI, CNN, Good Morning America, CBS Evening News with Katie Couric (no, that's really what they call it), NPR, KNX, KFI, and so on. I have given probably 100 radio interviews, both nationally & internationally. I have been live via satellite on Austrailia's number one morning show -- those guys get it! Psychology Today ran an article on me in February, we've been in RedBook, Inc. Magazine, BUST Magazine, People Style Watch, Everyday With Rachel Ray, Fortune Small Business, City Beat, The Union Tribune, Where Magazine, 944, multiple foreign magazines, a couple of in flight magazines...and we have a piece coming up in Self Magazine & Expo Magazine.” The LIST goes on and on. Pun intended."

 

”Our most recent big things around The Smash Shack are the VIP Lounge area, which allows us to host great group events! We can easily accomodate 30 people, with the new set up. People come in, hang in the lounge & chill...bring in their own food & beverages, then we gear them up & they go down & smash sh-t...then hang in the lounge some more, etc. Some of the group events we've had up there: bachelor & bachelorette parties, girls night out, corporate team builders, kid's & adult's birthdays, support groups, holiday parties, etc. And, we have The Smash Shack Mobile, which is starting to make appearances at local events. Expect to see us at some cool events this summer!” 

An especially heartwarming story: "I had an incredible woman come in from out of town, specifically to visit Sarah's Smash Shack. She had a plan. She wrote the name of a disease on her breakables, and smashed the hell out of them. I packed them up in a little acrylic to-go container, so that the broken words and lovely pieces of glass could be admired. She was here with her grown daughter, and she turned to her daughter and said, ‘That's it. I'm done with that. It's over.’ It was very moving. It was amazing to have been a part of someone closing the chapter on her experience with cancer.”

Many of her clients’ stories are as incredibly moving as this, while others offer a lighter side of smashing:

** Several young men have brought in their girlfriends, as a "peace offering", for something they had done wrong. These young men were obviously in the dog house!

** A women's support group came in & visualized, discussed, destroyed and let go, as a team!

** A mother brought her daughter here, to bond before sending her off to college.

** A father brought his young son in here, because the boy had specifically asked if there was somewhere he could go to break some stuff, since he knew he wasn't allowed to at home!

** Both men & women bring their FIRST dates here...it's a great barometer! How will they react? And, it makes a great first date impression! A lot of new & long time couples leave here...kissing, hugging, smiling, laughing and holding hands!

What's next for Sarah's Smash Shack?

"Family Day Sundays...15% off, with the kids in tow.  Kids love this!  2 for 1 Mondays -- choose one item off of the menu & get a second of the same item for free.  Check YELP...we always have an offer there, and scour around...we've got coupons & deals out there, all over the place...you've just gotta keep your eyes open!  Oh, yeah...we've got something HUGE in the works, but I can't say anything, yet. I mean really huge. Wish us luck.”

Sometimes...you just need to break something.

Recording artist Jon Foreman joined the DARFUR FAST FOR LIFE today following activist-actress Mia Farrow and Virgin Group Founder and Chairman Sir Richard Branson. A longtime activist and front man for multi-platinum selling rock band Switchfoot, Foreman will undertake a water-only fast in order to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis currently taking place in Darfur, as well as to encourage long-term U.S. Government actions to bring lasting peace to the people of Sudan. Foreman begins his three day fast today and is joined by U.S. Representative Donald Payne who is Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health and works tirelessly to end the suffering in Darfur.

Expressing his outrage at the situation in Darfur, Foreman said, “Can it be possible that right now, two and a half million people are waking up in camps and refugee camps having been driven from their homes by violent means? Under the same sun, could it be true that almost half a million people have died of starvation, violence, and disease over the past six years in Darfur? Is this true?!  And if this is true, why has the media remained almost completely silent on the issue? Why has our government maintained it’s current stance of inaction?”

Foreman follows Actress-Activist Mia Farrow and Virgin CEO and Founder Sir Richard Branson and others in sharing their experiences during the fast through video and blog posts at www.fastdarfur.org <http://www.fastdarfur.org> .

The Darfur Fast for Life |  We are leaders, activists and citizens around the world who fast in solidarity with the people of Darfur because they do not have a choice. We fast as a personal expression of outrage at a world that has allowed the suffering of millions of innocent people. We fast because as we simply watched, Darfur’s defenseless people were forced into wretched camps where today they are facing starvation and disease. We fast because those in positions of authority who know what is right and just, could and should do more to alleviate their suffering and bring peace, protection, and justice to the people of Sudan.

We fast for Darfur’s courageous people —because we yearn for a world where human rights are respected and a life of dignity is the legacy for every man, woman and child.

For more information, please contact Jaime Rosenberg and Carla Sacks at Sacks & Co., 212.741.1000, [email protected] or [email protected].

THE GRATEFUL DEAD IN SAN DIEGO...

5-11-69: The Grateful Dead headlined SDSU's Spring Fling concert at the Aztec Bowl. Held on Mother's Day, the show included Canned Heat, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Lee Michaels, Tarantula, and Tijuana-bred Carlos Santana. Jerry Garcia performed "Morning Dew," and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (four years before he died) sang lead on a 20-minute version of "Hard to Handle." Pigpen also fronted the band for "Good Lovin'," "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl," and "Turn on Your Love Light," the last highlighted by a jam with Santana's percussionists and singer.

One of Spring Fling's promoters was future mayor Roger Hedgecock, who at the time aspired to create a local concert scene similar to San Francisco's. "There was a lot of opposition from the city," he recalled in a 1980 interview with Kicks Magazine. "But all the predictions of total chaos and calamity did not come true." Hedgecock recruited the local chapter of the Hell's Angels to provide security, sealing the deal with a complimentary case of Jack Daniel's. "I got a note back from them thanking me for the case," according to Hedgecock. "They drank it all at one party."

Space was provided for arts-and-crafts exhibits, as well as a booth for the city's brand-new free clinic. "Even the Black Panthers had a booth," said Hedgecock. Much of the show was aired live on KPRI-FM, and tapes of the broadcast still circulate among tie-dyed and squinty-eyed collectors.

MORE DEAD IN SAN DIEGO...

12-28-78 - The Grateful Dead at Golden Hall: This second of two nights at downtown’s Golden Hall was one of the Dead’s last performances with soon-to-be-fired keyboardist Keith Godchaux. An audience-recorded tape of the show has long circulated – with an much-cursed break during “Eyes Of The World” - but now a soundboard recording of all twenty-one (or so) songs, provided by Dead guitarist Bob Weir, is available to fans online.

Some review excerpts from the trading website Deadbase:

“The Tennessee Jed solo has always fascinated me and this one is in my top twenty percent...[Bob] Weir of course screws up the lyrics to Truckin’…5:01 into Wharf Rat, Jerry yells ‘Quiet!’ I think he was directing it to Keith.” “Nice Sugaree opener, although in the middle, Donna [Godchaux] gets a little too wobble waily [sp].”

“The Shakedown [Street] is tight and super-funky. Bob's rhythmic fills are just fantastic…Check out the transition between Truckin’ and Wharf Rat. Picture perfect.”

“The Estimated Prophet lead, it's a friggin' anthem. One can imagine ancient Irish warriors racing into battle with the bagpipes playing this tune.”

“The Eyes of the World is quick-paced but clean. In the jam coming out of it, there's a short section where Phil [Lesh] and Keith are definitely playing Turn On Your Lovelight, sans Pigpen, alas.”

"Eyes is glorious in its noodley [sp] splendor. What are those, 1/164th notes?”

7-1-80: Grateful Dead fans, however believable their addled faculties may be, usually cite the band's 1980 album "Go To Heaven" as the nadir of their recording career, though "Alabama Getaway" and "Don't Ease Me In" became later concert staples. That year's tour still managed to bring out the tie-dyed and squinty-eyed in big numbers for an appearance at the Sports Arena. Advance press reports made it clear that local police were "on guard" for the expected influx of illicit drugs and illegal activity in the parking lot and audience seats.

Even before the show started, several people were arrested for smoking pot. One bust was witnessed from alongside the stage by Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and band manager Danny Rifkin.

The trio tried to intervene, cajoling onlookers to join them in separating the young potsmoker from police offers trying to effect the arrest. Cops pulled out additional handcuffs and arrested Weir, Hart and Rifkin for "suspicion of inciting a riot."

The three defendants had to return to San Diego several weeks later to face charges. Their offense was reduced to a low grade misdemeanor, fines were paid and everyone walked out of the courtroom with a grudge against the SDPD that lingers to this day. "We couldn't believe what fascists they are down there," Weir told Golden Scarab, a Dead fanzine, in 1999. "We almost never went further south than Irvine after that. We didn't wanna set the kids up to be busted by a bunch of gorillas with no education, who hate rock and roll music."

Related links

"Where Have All The Deadheads Gone?" Local flower children, after the head Deadhead was dead.

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/aug/31/rock-operas-leaving-town-plus-playing-with-michael/

DO BANDS EVER MOVE FROM L.A. TO SAN DIEGO??

The list of local performers who seek success by moving near L.A. is long – from Ratt and Stone Temple Pilots through Stolen, Delta Spirit, Anya Marina, the Soft Pack, and more.

But, once in awhile, it works the other way ------------- 

 “We had so many bad experiences in L.A.” says Tyler Monks, whose band JuneNine has been enjoying U.K. airplay on BBC, Vox, and Kerrang Radio. “Stolen cars, homicides, alcoholic producers, one and a half-hour commutes, roommates with poor hygiene…I decided I was done with L.A. and moved to San Diego, to enjoy a lifestyle free of traffic, parking tickets, and pollution.”

“L.A. is intoxicating,” says Monks, “and the buzz of the music biz is undeniable, but you really have to spend time in L.A. to network. That’s the one thing San Diego lacks; well-connected industry people. San Diegans have a healthier lifestyle, though.”

Dave Madden’s path to Ocean Beach wasn’t paved until after spending 25 years with L.A. Doors tribute band Wild Child.

 “I lived in Los Feliz, across the street from Griffith Park,” says Madden. “Madonna and Gwen Stefani had houses up the hill from me, and I would frequently run into and shoot the sh-t with Beck on my walks through Silver Lake.”

So why quit the successful band he co-founded and move to OB? “If you’re already disposed to having an addictive personality, it will eventually catch up to you,” he says. “After two stints in rehab, I found myself in the hospital…I had complete organ failure, fell into a two-week coma, was diagnosed with double pneumonia, and I flatlined three times. To this day, my doctors have no clue why I didn’t die.”

Here in SD, Madden fronts That '70s Rock Show.

“It’s a theatrical production using lasers, strobes, blacklights, fog machines, and everything you’d expect to see at 1970s concert,” he says of the show, which opens for his former band Wild Child at the Ramona Mainstage on May 22. “It’s a lot less stressful, with a lot less temptations, than touring the world with ‘Jim Morrison.’”

Starting June 28th, That '70s Rock Show hits the stage every Sunday at Winstons in OB.

Free JuneNine MP3 download

• Safe To Say - Add to playlist

Related links

• JuneNine MySpace page
• www.juneninemusic.com
• That '70s Rock Show
• www.that70srockshow.com

 

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BEWARE OF BOOTLEG GUITARS!!!

“I’ve heard too many stories of kids who are saving their money for their dream Fender Stratocaster or Gibson Les Paul, only to find out later they’ve been burned by a cheap fake,” says guitarist David Szabados. “Counterfeit instruments are being produced in China and Korea, and then sold off here as the real thing by unscrupulous sellers on places like eBay, Craigslist, local storefronts, and pawn shops.”

 

 

 

“I just did searched ‘Gibson Les Paul new’ on the San Diego Musicians Craigslist,” he says, “and right away found one that was certainly questionable, due to the location of the volume and tone knobs.” Szabados mentions other ways of distinguishing fakes, including whether inlays are real or painted on, and number of neck bolts.

 

 

“Many fake Gibsons have their pickup cavities painted black inside,” he says of one commonly bootlegged axe. “The counterfeit organizations sell in bulk, ten guitars at a time, shipped direct from China or Korea, and then the purchaser resells them locally…pawn shops might sell them as the real thing without even realizing, [since] they have no expertise, so someone ends up paying $1,000 or more for a guitar that only cost $150.”

 

To illustrate his point, Szabados created a video called “Destroying a $5,000 Guitar” for his LegendaryTones.com website. “We smashed a counterfeit PRS, complete with Paul Reed Smith logo on the headstock, bird inlays, and other signature PRS details. The guitar came out of a factory in Korea, and looks real enough that people are really shocked to see us destroy it…it seems like a good way to raise awareness.”

 

At this writing, http://www.zxcmusic.com posts several guitars evincing known bootleg earmarks, advertised as authentic, such as an Epiphone Ace Frehley signature model (normally retailing for $1,000 but selling for $259), as well as a Slash Les Paul Gold Top (missing headstock logo) and a left-handed Zakk Wilde signature edition Gibson (minus legit factory inlay).

 

 

Tips on spotting fakes can be found at FenderForum.com, LesPaulForum.com, and Forums.Gibson.com.

 

One dead giveaway seen in Craigslist ads purporting to be local is a tendency toward foreign-sounding text, as in the suspicious Gibson Les Paul pitch; “Wish we can cooperate happily with and possible do more business in future waiting for you do good news.”

Related link

• http://www.legendarytones.com

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  WHAT I’M LISTENING TO...

I came across the MySpace page for local punk rockers The Bugs/Dangerous Dave - all their songs clock in at around one and a half minutes, but my favorite was "Dave Navarro's Goatee F-cking Sucks," which made me fall off my chair laughing! There's a terrific video, with shots of Navarro that hopefully won't get the band sued. I was so inspired, I created a 45 single sleeve for the tune ----

Checkout the tune here - The Bugs/Dangerous Dave on MySpace

“I wrote the song when he was on that Rock Star Supernova show,” says “Dangerous Dave” Swain of the Bugs. He used to be in Jane’s Addiction/ Now he’s on TV trying to earn a buck He was so much cooler when he was on drugs/ Dave Navarro’s goatee f-cking sucks “All that makeup and jewelry,” says Swain, “what a jerk. Where the hell is he getting off wearing all that crap? He’s so full of himself. Anyone with any soul would want to tell him to go [screw] himself.” The Bugs may have a problem with their video for the song, which features a couple dozen enlarged photos of Navarro on a screen behind the group as they mock his facial hair. “I keep waiting to hear from his attorney about the video,” says Swain. “I’m sure they wouldn’t appreciate us using his pictures without consent. If they do email me, I’m printing it in the insert of the next album.” With tours booked around California, are the Bugs worried about running into the rock star? “I’m really not the fighting type. But if he came at me, he’d definitely get a little chin music. I don’t really want to [meet him]. He may try to French me.” The band’s other songs include “No More Emo Haircuts,” “Meth on My Mind,” “Lesbo Lesbo,” and “Email From a She-Male” (also an amusing video). Clocking in at around two minutes each, the songs will appear on the Bugs’ upcoming Cabana Records seven-inch vinyl album. “Yeah, that’s right, the whole album fits on a seven-inch. And there’s still room for another song or two!” ***************************************************

  WHAT I’M WATCHING...

 So I finally watched one of the new Futurama movies, Bender's Game - I was falling down laughing ---

"Eat the wizard

eat the slut

eat the robot's shiny butt!"

 

 The Scary Door/Twilight Zone bit rocked - there were a buncha Scruffy cameos, but my favorite was when I spotted him cleaning up centaur poop. Not sher how many people "get" the Mork attack (the creatures all quote Robin Williams punchlines from the old Mork and Mindy TV show), but I almost bust a gut with this one:

 

Lela: Is that a hobbit?

 

Farnsworth: No, it's just a hobo and a rabbit. But they're MAKING a hobbit....

 

My face hurts again just from typing it ------

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WHY AL KOOPER HATES LOCAL WRITERS (BUT LOVES SAN DIEGO)

The legendary Al Kooper has been making regular appearance at the old Normal Heights church that hosts the Acoustic Music San Diego series. During one visit, he ran somewhat afoul of music columnist Buddy Blue; on Kooper's return, he took issue with a Reader columnist.... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2009/jan/09/why-al-kooper-hates-local-writers-but-loves-san-di/

 

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METALLICA IN SAN DIEGO - LARS LIKES US! HE REALLY LIKES US! 

The Metallica San Diego footage streaming on the band’s website is top-notch, pro-shot, and fairly impressive – I can take or leave Death Magnetic, but it looks like they still command and destroy on stage. They’ve been such cartoons of themselves, for too very long now.... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2009/jan/09/why-al-kooper-hates-local-writers-but-loves-san-di/

 

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Famous Former Neighbors - The Article: Underground With The Celebrity Dead - Local gravesites of the rich and famous... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jan/31/famous-dead-neighbors-plus-public-access-mtv

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Do It Yourself Music Television - A history of local public access music TV shows... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jan/31/famous-dead-neighbors-plus-public-access-mtv

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Weird Beatles Merchandise - WTF were these licensors (and bootleggers) thinking... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/feb/06/my-brunch-with-yoko-plus-weird-beatles

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My Brunch With Yoko - Brunch with a Beatle bride... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/feb/06/my-brunch-with-yoko-plus-weird-beatles

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Yoko Ono Comics and Stories  - When Johnny Met Yoko, with dialogue and captions paraphrased from published Lennon interviews. Plus John Lennon: A Life in the Day... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/feb/06/my-brunch-with-yoko-plus-weird-beatles

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Snotley Crue Comics and Stories  - spoofing U-know-hooey... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jan/30/snotley-crue-comix-and-stories

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When Your Love Is Locked Up - On California women's prisons and the families and loved ones of prisoners. Focus is on my good friend Danielle Barcheers, the 2nd youngest female ever convicted of a capital crime in CA state history (now ten years into a 20-to-life sentence). Plus 100 Rockin' Local Lawsuits.... http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jul/30/when-kids-go-to-prison-plus-100-rockin-lawsuits

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"Before It Was The Gaslamp: Balboa's Last Stand" - Cover story 6-21-07: In the late 70s/early 80s, I worked at downtown San Diego's grindhouse all-night movie theaters, for the owner of the Pussycat Theatre chain, Vince Miranda - this detailed feature recalls those dayz, the death of the Balboa Theatre, etc.

More Before It Was the Gaslamp

 

"Battle Of The Peeps" - feature article about a weird gig I had in the mid-'80s, running a strip club called Jolar, for the nation's second biggest pornographer, Harry Mohney (Deja Vu Showgirls founder).

More Battle of the Peeps - An Insider History of San Diego Porn Shops

"Field Of Screens" - Cover story 7-6-06: Complete theater-by-theater history of San Diego drive-ins thru the years, including a few which screened X-rated fare for awhile.

More Drive-In Theaters in San Diego: Complete Illustrated History 1947 thru 2008

  

"Pussycat Theaters - When 'Cathouses Ruled California" -- for the first time, the detailed inside story of the west coast Pussycat Theater chain of adult moviehouses, which peaked in the '70s but later died out. Told by those who actually ran the theaters!

More Pussycat Theater History: When Cathouses Ruled CA

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Today's Top MP3 Downloads

• Bill Travis - 4 Hands
• (760) - (760)
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Like this blog? Here are some related links:

OVERHEARD IN SAN DIEGO - Several years' worth of this comic strip, which debuted in the Reader in 1996: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/photos/galleries/overheard-san-diego/

FAMOUS FORMER NEIGHBORS - Over 100 comic strips online, with mini-bios of famous San Diegans: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/photos/galleries/famous-former-neighbors/

SAN DIEGO READER MUSIC MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/sandiegoreadermusic

JAY ALLEN SANFORD MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/jayallensanford