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Weekend Preview: Michael McDonald, Metalachi And A Zombie Prom

Cover band Metalachi brings it metal-mariachi madness to Oceanside on Friday, October 12.
Courtesy photo
Cover band Metalachi brings it metal-mariachi madness to Oceanside on Friday, October 12.
Weekend Preview: Michael McDonald, Metalachi And A Zombie Prom
GUESTSBeth Accomando, arts reporter at KPBS. Claire Caraska, production assistant and Culture Lust blogger at KPBS.

CAVANAUGH: A hint of Halloween, and a mix of metal and mariachi! You can also catch a pop rock legend and leadership how to start shooting that movie! Beth Accomando, hello. ACCOMANDO: Hello. CAVANAUGH: And Claire Caraska, production assistant and Culture Lust blogger at KPBS. Welcome. CARASKA: Thanks for having me. CAVANAUGH: Beth, Morp 2012, a zombie affair to remember is happening! ACCOMANDO: Oh, it's delightful! It's a morp, which is a reverse prom, and the theme is zombies! I'm wearing my zombie boots and jewelry to celebrate. CAVANAUGH: I wouldn't have noticed. [ LAUGHTER ] ACCOMANDO: And it's a fund raiser for circle circle dot dot, so you get a two for one! Zombies and you get to do something good! CAVANAUGH: Besides the zombie boots, what does one wear to a zombie prom? ACCOMANDO: Good question. I went out shopping for a zombie dress at Good Will. I was hesitant to go with the strapless gown until I reconsidered that it's real estate for more zombie wounds. So I've actually drafted Andy Trimlett from KPBS, one of our pledge producers. He does in his spare time zombie makeup! Now I have plenty of space for some nice bite wounds. And gipsy treasure is great place for the makeup. CAVANAUGH: It's a fund raiser for circle circle dot dot. Tell us more about that group. ACCOMANDO: They are what they call a community-based theatre. And their artistic director goes into communities, interviews people, gathers information, and then tries to create plays from that. So they did deconstruction of a drag queen, which was about the drag queen, a community about LARPing, and next up I believe is going to be on graffiti artists. So it's a really great community-based theatre, and this is one clever, fun way for them to raise money. CAVANAUGH: So Morp 2012, a zombie affair to remember. Claire, Metaliachi in Oceanside. CARASKA: They proclaim to be the world's first and only heavy metal mariachi band. And they're real classically trained musicians that love metal and love mariachi. They're out of Hollywood, and they cover songs by Ozzie Osborne, guns and roses, Led Zeppelin. One writer described them as Gwar and KISS on a holiday in Tijuana. [ LAUGHTER ] CARASKA: So their music is serious. But their live shows are very Jean Simmons tongue in cheek, with over the top costumes, kind of like KISS, unpredictable antics. CAVANAUGH: I don't think anybody is going to dispute their claim that they are the only metal mariachi group! [ LAUGHTER ] CAVANAUGH: Let's hear some of this music. (Audio Recording Played) CAVANAUGH: Oh, yeah! CARASKA: It warms my heart that this band exists. And I'm just sad I only discovered them yesterday. [ LAUGHTER ] ACCOMANDO: I saw them at the fair. They were awesome! MAUREEN CAVANAUGH: Tell us about that show. What are they like? ACCOMANDO: Oh, they were awesome. The sad part was they were in an over 21 area, and I was with my son. So we had to go in and leave my poor son outside to listen from far away. But they're hilarious! They are great musicians, but it's that mash-up between mariachi and metal that is just delightful! We listened to their album. We bought the album. Listened in the our while we were stuck in traffic trying to get out of the Fairgrounds. CAVANAUGH: And just to emphasize the fact, this show doesn't take itself seriously as all. The musicianship is there, but the costumes and the makeup, pretty over the top. CARASKA: Yeah. It's pretty entertaining from what I've read and heard. And a lot of comedy, a lot of belly-laughs will be had. And who knew? Mariachi and metal, it's such a winning combination. ACCOMANDO: Brings joy to your heart! CAVANAUGH: Friday at the Royal Dive in Oceanside. Now, this is very different, where people can learn something! The media arts center is hosting a cinematography class tonight. What are you going to learn at this class? ACCOMANDO: It's a great place to learn about film making. They have different classes all the time. Tonight they start a cinematography class. It's going to be three Thursdays in October. But you can attend any single one class that you'd like. Tonight's class is kind of the basics. If you do have an interest and not a whole lot of knowledge, this might be the one for you to start with. And the thing that's great about them too, is they're really inexpensive. You can take a class for 20 or $30 and get a lot of basic information. And I've gone to a couple of their producers classes, and I'm scared a couple of those 13-year-old kids can take my job! They know more about color-correction than I do. CAVANAUGH: Do you have to bring your own equipment? ACCOMANDO: They suggest you do. But they do have equipment available for rent and use. If you have a problem, I would suggest calling them up and just explain what you have, what you don't have, but if you have a cellphone, an iPHONE, that counts as a camera too! . CAVANAUGH: I'm curious, so everybody is making little movies these days, right? What do you learn in a class like that? ACCOMANDO: This particular class, you are going to learn some basics about actual cinematography, how you light a set, how you shoot so when you edit, are your shots going to match? Fundamental things. There's also the team producers project which is Saturdays, and they teach you more about story telling, journalism, finding stories in your community. So you can get kind of a complete experience through the media arts center of getting your technical fundamental information as well as some artistic skills, creative skills, story telling skills. CAVANAUGH: And Mike will McDonald, the voice of the dobbie brothers! He's playing here this weekend. CARASKA: The dobbies were huge in the '70s and early '80s. People most likely remember their hits, Listen to the Music, Jesus is Just All right, and when Michael McDonald joined the group, they had hits with What a Fool Believes. And I really think it doesn't get any bigger than when a band appears on a popular '70s show, What's Happening? [ LAUGHTER ] CARASKA: So that's a big indicator of how popular these guys were at the time. It spawned the famous line from Reyou know, which dobbie you-be? Which I'm so glad I got to say that on air today. [ LAUGHTER ] CAVANAUGH: This is an incomparable voice. Let's hear him singing. (Audio Recording Played) CAVANAUGH: Let's forget everything else! [ LAUGHTER ] CAVANAUGH: The pledge drive, everything! CARASKA: More Michael McDonald! CAVANAUGH: He performs Sunday at the belly-up in Solana beach. Beth, thank you, Claire, thank you so much. CARASKA: Thank you. ACCOMANDO: Thank you.

If variety is the spice of life, brace yourself for an eclectic weekend. Metal mariachi, a zombie prom and the smooth vocal stylings of Michael McDonald: it's all happening here. Here are some options for a spicy weekend:

You don't need a date to attend this backwards prom. Local theater company Circle Circle Dot Dot hosts its second annual "morp" (that's "prom" spelled backwards) fundraiser Saturday and this year's theme is all about the zombies. Be sure to dress in your most tattered attire or ghoulish costume for “MORP 2012: A Zombie Affair to Remember." All of San Diego's walking dead are welcome to get down this Saturday at the Queen Bee’s Art and Cultural Center in North Park. In addition to a costume contest (including a "Best Celebrity Zombie" category), attendees can enjoy live music, zombie-themed cabaret acts, performances by local drag queens Grace Towers and Utopia Pleneesha, and of course, food and drinks.

You might think that heavy metal and mariachi are polar opposites on the musical spectrum, but LA-based cover band Metalachi begs to differ. The quintet (all classically trained musicians) masterfully transforms metal and hard rock classics like Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train," Guns N' Roses "Sweet Child O' Mine" and Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" into authentic mariachi orchestrations. While the music is serious, Metalachi's live shows are Gene Simmons' tongue-in-cheek, featuring over-the-top costumes, make-up, comedy and unpredictable on-stage antics. Audiences will wanna rock and roll all night, and party every day when Metalachi performs Friday at The Royal Dive in Oceanside.

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Aspiring and established filmmakers looking to hone their skills should head to the Media Arts Center San Diego tonight (Thursday, October 11) for a cinematography class. Students of all ages will learn how to navigate their shots, and in subsequent classes, will learn about the importance of lenses (October 18) and lighting (October 25). Classes are held at the Media Arts Center San Diego on El Cajon Boulevard in North Park.

Michael McDonald, the smooth bearded crooner famous for his time in The Doobie Brothers, performs Sunday at the Belly Up in Solana Beach. McDonald is often credited with shaping the band's original bluesy rock ("China Grove," "Listen to the Music") into a more jazzy and R&B-infused sound ("Takin' It to the Streets," "What a Fool Believes"). If you keep forgetting how soulful McDonald's voice is, this is a rare opportunity to remind yourself of one of music's most distinctive and legendary voices in an intimate club setting.