I'll be at the opening of Sushi's "Family Matters" exhibit this Friday, then cleaning and cooking for an Oscar extravaganza come Sunday! If you don't have to clean this weekend and have oodles of time (so jealous!) here are some options for how to spend your time.
ART
Tijuana-born Hugo Crosthwaite is currently creating one of his larger-than-life corporeal images on a wall at SDMA, but for a more in-depth look at the artist, visit Noel-Baza Fine Art this weekend. The museum will display Crosthwaite’s work (in conjunction with SDMA) in a new exhibit, Dark Dreams, featuring 12 years worth of his provocative, beautifully uncomfortable etchings.
How was there never a California Surf Museum before last month? Dude! The brand-new museum will explore the influence of some very board-acious betties in its premiere exhibit, debuting this weekend, Women on Waves, which boasts relics and decade-spanning photographs of female masters (mistresses?) of the break.
Shaun White may have decamped from Vancouver, and we all know what happened with L.T., but men in sports (and shorts!) still exist at MCASD La Jolla’s Grip, artist Erik Levine’s machismo video installation inspired by the competitive psyche of the male mind. It’s here until March 21.
Family Matters, debuting at Sushi Art tonight, is an inventive take on the history of avant garde. A few on display: expletive-embroidered welcome mats by the Iowa-based Donna Stack, Futurist and Robert Smithson-inspired pop songs from The Cedar Tavern Singers, and local artist Lisa Hutton’s dada-babble-as-multimedia installations.
FOOD
Love cheese as much as we do, but can’t discern Munster from Mozzarella? (Ok, that one’s not too tough). Visit Venissimo's Academy of Cheese tonight for a crash course in fromage at their “Getting to Know Cheese” class, complete with 12 types of the good stuff and complimentary wine and bread, as well a bit of, ahem, cheese-pertise on storing and slicing a wheel and what to serve with dinner.
MUSIC
This weekend, The Museum of Making Music celebrates ten years of making, sweet, sweet, well...you know. The free festivities include a community drum circle, a bring-your-own ukelele sing-along, and live music demonstrations aplenty, from the sax to the mandolin.
We’ve got music…it’s Rhapsody in Blue this weekend at the San Diego Symphony as its Evening with George Gershwin debuts, performed by the nationally-acclaimed Kevin Cole, who’s been billed by the Chicago Tribune as “the best Gershwin pianist today.” Who could ask for anything more… (yeah, yeah – sorry, we had to.)
More Gershwin can be found at The Crossings at Carlsbad this Sunday as the Connections Chamber Music series presents “Walk the Line”. The California Quartet and co. will perform tunes from the aforementioned pop classicist, as well as compositions from Duke Ellington, Maurice Rivel and more. Arrive at 4 for some pre-show seaside hors d’oeuvres.
Sing/songwriter Rocky Votolato’s wistful vocals and scratchy guitar will meet-cute for the perfect Sunday show at The Casbah. We’re also enamored with openers Adam H. Stephens and his piano-tinged tracks, as well as the lo-fi Coerreatown.
Exploring the intricacies of Indian classical music by means of East-meets-West this Saturday is Extemp, who will present rhythms from tabla (drum) expert Arup Chattopadhyay and Justin DeHart, who will demo Indian cross and poly rhythm’s influence in contemporary Western and jazz compositions. Ask the artists about their techniques post-show in a discussion facilitated by sitar impresario Kartik Seshadri. The in-home event takes place at 1345 Cherrytree Court in Encinitas.
FILM
BOOKS
Artie Kornfeld masterminded Woodstock when he was only 26, and next Wednesday, he’ll be at the Gotthelf Art Gallery to recount it all (well, most of it) as part of the JCC’s ongoing Jews Rock! Series. He’ll also sign copies of his novel, “The Pied Piper of Woodstock.”
Sun-kissed socialites imbibing on the French Riviera, clinking champagne flutes and gossiping… until they all go up in flames in a homicide-driven house fire. Quelle scandle! Such is the plot of "Proie," Londoner Stoddard Martin’s latest novel, which follows the fire’s burn-deformed survivor as they look for clues from St. Tropez and beyond. Martin will be at D.G. Wills this Saturday at 7 for a live reading.
MAUREEN CAVANAUGH (Host): If you've always wanted to spend the weekend with the great women of surfing while eating gourmet cheese and listening to San Diego music, then this is the moment you've been waiting for. Those are three of the remarkable events we're profiling this time on our Weekend Preview. Joining me to discuss the best of what to do are my guests. Liz Bradshaw is curator at The Loft at UCSD. Liz, welcome back.
LIZ BRADSHAW (Curator, The Loft, UCSD): Good morning.
CAVANAUGH: And Chris Cantore is a veteran radio personality in San Diego. Among other things, he now hosts NBC’s SoundDiego. Welcome, Chris.
CHRIS CANTORE (Host, NBC’s SoundDiego): Hi. Great to be back.
CAVANAUGH: Let’s get right into this new SoundDiego project…
CANTORE: Sure.
CAVANAUGH: It’s an online project from NBC that you’ve spearheaded. Explain what it is.
CANTORE: Exactly that, online platform or blog, if you prefer, and it’s centered around San Diego music, community and culture. Personally, I’m blogging daily, shooting video submissions, two a week, and hosting events around town. Also be covering “South by Southwest” here out in Austin in the next couple of weeks, too…
CAVANAUGH: Oh, wow.
CANTORE: …for the platform.
CAVANAUGH: Now, do you already have contributors to the site?
CANTORE: Oh, yes. And amazing, absolutely amazing people. We have my friend Rosie from SD Dialed In. She posts daily listings, shows around the city, events happening, highlights her top picks, then we also have on the roster Tristan & Chris from Owlandbear.com. They’re tremendous San Diego-based music writers with a beautiful artistic website and they contribute interviews and show reviews.
CAVANAUGH: So you’re having a launch party tonight, right, at Bar Basic?
CANTORE: Correct.
CAVANAUGH: What’s going to happen at the party?
CANTORE: It’s a opportunity to kind of hang, mingle with those who are contributing to the site and to the platform, as well as early supporters of the platform, SoundDiego, and members of the local music community. We have live music with Gregory Page and The Silent Comedy as well, two of my favorite acts in town.
CAVANAUGH: I think a lot of people are familiar with Gregory Page. He’s a bit of a San Diego institution and he’s been a guest on These Days. But our listeners might not know about Silent Comedy. Tell us about them, Chris.
CANTORE: Wonderful band, wonderful band. Hard working act, as well. San Diego-based indie folk band. Started by two brothers, Joshua and Jeremiah Zimmerman and they started back in 2005 in IB. And today there’s a lot of buzz backing this band. They sell out the Casbah time and time again. Great act.
CAVANAUGH: Well, the SoundDiego launch party takes place tonight, as I say, at Bar Basic in downtown San Diego.
CANTORE: Correct.
CAVANAUGH: Moving on to you, Liz. A new exhibit opens at the California Surf Museum. This time it focuses on women. Tell us about it.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, I’m super excited about this and it’s very aptly timed being Women’s History Month in March, of course. This is a special exhibit for 2010. It’ll actually be running until January of next year and it’s celebrating and showing the history of women surfers from the queens and princesses of the South Pacific 300 years ago through to the current kind of like wave of the young ladies tearing up the world circuit. So it’s going to be – it’s just a really great way to kind of highlight and document the women’s contributions through, you know, to this sport and culture of wave riding.
CAVANAUGH: Well, what’s going to be part of the exhibit? What will people see?
BRADSHAW: Well, people are going to see – So the exhibit actually takes over the whole museum, which I haven’t had the opportunity to visit yet. I’m going to definitely go this weekend. And there’s going to be photographic pieces documenting, you know, surfing through definitely the last century, around 20 surfboards, trophies, wetsuits, swimwear, there’s going to be matchbook covers, trading cards, there’s even going to be the board from the real life Gidget is going to be there as well.
CAVANAUGH: That’s…
BRADSHAW: Yeah, it’s going to be great. Actually, a surfer called Kathy Hohner from – sorry, Kathy Kohner from Malibu. Yeah, so that’s exciting.
CAVANAUGH: That’s amazing. So is there a section – because I saw some of the pictures on the website about how the beach, the surfing fashions have changed through the years.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, they’ve somewhat teamed up with the swimsuit company Jantzen who also is celebrating their 100 year anniversary this year to do just that, to celebrate the different styles and the different trends in swimwear throughout the last century so it’s really exciting. And there’s going to be the likes of Linda Benson and Joyce Hoffman from the fifties and sixties are going to be there.
CAVANAUGH: Wow.
BRADSHAW: Linda Benson was the first woman ever to surf Waimea Bay in 1959. She’s bringing her surfboard. Through to like Jennifer Smith, San Diego native, and current ASP Longboard Champion. So it’s going to be really interesting and, I think, really inspirational to ladies.
CAVANAUGH: Now, Chris, I know that you’re a surfer.
CANTORE: Yes.
CAVANAUGH: Do you plan to attend this?
CANTORE: I am now. I am now. And I’m just in love with your voice, by the way. I’m just mesmerized. I just got lost in your voice. I’ll be honest with you. What were you talking about? There’s a surf event?
CAVANAUGH: Okay.
BRADSHAW: Women’s surfing, oh, that’s right.
CANTORE: Oh, yeah, I’m going. I’m there. I am there.
CAVANAUGH: Marvelous. “Women on Waves” opens at the California Surf Museum in Oceanside on Saturday, March 6th. Now that we’ve got your attention, Chris…
CANTORE: Yes, and I support women in the lineup, absolutely, out there in the water.
CAVANAUGH: The Blind Boys of Alabama will be at the Belly Up this Sunday night. This is bound to be a crowd favorite. For those who don’t know about these musicians…
CANTORE: Umm…
CAVANAUGH: …tell us a little bit.
CANTORE: Yeah. In short, the Blind Boys of Alabama are a Grammy Award-winning gospel – gospel group from Alabama, formed in 1939, and the three main vocalists of the group and their drummer/percussionist are all blind.
CAVANAUGH: And there are some original members still in this group?
CANTORE: Yeah. Sadly, the last couple of years, within the last three to five, I’d say, some of the original members have passed but there is a handful of original members and they’re alright now. I would say that it’s amazing that they’re still touring today.
CAVANAUGH: Yeah.
CANTORE: They’re in their late seventies into their mid-eighties.
CAVANAUGH: Wow.
CANTORE: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: And they recently performed at the White House, right?
CANTORE: Correct, in February and – just last month. And the Blind Boys, they played the White House for the President, the First Lady, along with Bob Dylan, Natalie Cole, John Mellencamp, Seal and Smokey Robinson.
CAVANAUGH: Tell – How did this band actually get started in the thirties?
CANTORE: It’s an amazing story. The original group, again, formed in 1939 at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind. And for the next 40 years, they actually toured just relentlessly, just working the gospel scene, received national attention. Finally, in the eighties, where they were featured on Broadway, they actually did a Broadway production or featured their music as well as some soundtracks and after 53 years in the music industry, they were finally nominated for a Grammy. Didn’t win in 1992 but did win in 2001 for their record “Spirit of the Century,” which blended traditional gosset – gospel with contemporary songs.
CAVANAUGH: A typical overnight sensation, right?
CANTORE: Yeah. A lot of time on the road and working it.
CAVANAUGH: Let’s hear their version of “Free At Last.” This is the Blind Boys of Alabama.
(audio clip from the Blind Boys of Alabama performing “Free At Last”)
CAVANAUGH: What? We have to stop? No.
CANTORE: Love it. I know. Fantastic, isn’t it?
CAVANAUGH: That’s “Free At Last” by the Blind Boys of Alabama. Chris, have you seen them perform?
CANTORE: No. Honestly, I have not, and I can’t wait. I’m going Sunday, Belly Up, to see them.
CAVANAUGH: Blind Boys of Alabama performing at the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach on Sunday. Now, Liz, we have to move along. You want to recommend a class on cheese.
BRADSHAW: I do.
CAVANAUGH: Why?
BRADSHAW: Well, I love cheese and I love tastings and getting involved. And this class is actually at Venissimo Cheese, which is a San Diego-based cheese shop. They’ve now got four locations, one of them which they just opened in Long Beach, actually. And then they’ve just started their downtown location and started to open an Academy of Cheese.
CAVANAUGH: What…
BRADSHAW: Which kind of sounds funny. But they’re basically a husband and wife team, Gina and Roger Freize. This is a Cheese 101 class. They’ll be teaching you how to select, pair, present and store cheeses. You’ll be able to learn about the history of cheese and they’ll feature at least 12 types of cheese with, you know, nice bits of bread and pair them with wine from their Del Mar store.
CAVANAUGH: Now this isn’t the only cheese class they teach, is it?
BRADSHAW: No. They do their Cheese 101, which is this class. They do a beer and cheese class, which I thought sounded interesting.
CANTORE: Nice.
CAVANAUGH: Hmm.
BRADSHAW: Coffee and tea with cheese.
CAVANAUGH: Who thought? Who woulda thunk?
BRADSHAW: Who would’ve thought that. And Mozzarella Making class.
CAVANAUGH: Oh, that’s great.
BRADSHAW: Which sounds super fun.
CAVANAUGH: Yeah.
BRADSHAW: And then Venissimo Stinks is another one of their signature classes, too.
CAVANAUGH: I suppose that that would feature the stinky cheeses.
BRADSHAW: Yep, that’s right. They’re exploring stinky cheeses from around the world, and if you go on the website it’s kind of, you know, definitely aimed towards are you scared of stinky cheese? You know, this is what to do with them. This is, you know, what to eat them with, what to drink – you know, what to drink with them. And sounds like a lot of fun.
CAVANAUGH: Now are these classes expensive?
BRADSHAW: Eh, well, it kind of depends on what your budget is. The classes are $50.00 but I know, for instance, that this Cheese 101 class is going to be featuring 12 different cheeses from goat, sheep, cow, buffalo, aged cheddar, gouda, brie, bleu, alpine and some stinky cheese as well, pairing them all with wine, so it’s really, you know, it might sound like quite a lot initially but it, really, I think it’s really like a whole experience and I think they’ve got your night out sorted.
CAVANAUGH: Cheese world
BRADSHAW: Cheese world.
CAVANAUGH: Do you have to reserve a spot?
BRADSHAW: You can go on their website and reserve a spot. I would definitely say that this is likely to fill up fast, so it’s probably best to go ahead and do that.
CAVANAUGH: Okay, the “Getting to Know Cheese Class” takes place tonight at 6:30 at Venissimo’s in the downtown location. So, Chris, the band Manchester Orchestra plays the House of Blues this weekend. Who are they? Not from Manchester, right?
CANTORE: No, and, in fact, when I first obviously heard the name I made that association. I thought they were a UK band but they’re actually a young indie rock outfit out of the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. They formed in 2005 officially but some of the members have been playing since they were in the 8th grade together. And in a very short time, very – this ambitious band, they released two records, six EPs, late night TV appearances, and they tour incessantly.
CAVANAUGH: So what are they fans of Joy Division or the Smiths? I mean, why did they go to Manchester to get their name?
CANTORE: Yeah, actually the entire – good point and you pretty much nailed it. The entire Manchester, England movement of the eighties…
CAVANAUGH: Uh-huh.
CANTORE: …which includes, personally my favorite bands, the Smiths, New Order, Happy Mondays, even Oasis, they’re in the late eighties. Their name pays homage to that movement.
CAVANAUGH: Huh. And so how would you describe their music?
CANTORE: It’s interesting. It’s indie rock but it has a classic rock esthetic or mentality. It has beautiful melodies, fierce guitar work, loud/soft dynamics, passionate vocals out of lead singer Andy Hull.
CAVANAUGH: Well, let’s hear a track from the Manchester Orchestra. This is “I’ve Got Friends” from the 2009 album, “Mean Everything to Nothing.”
(audio clip from “I’ve Got Friends” performed by the Manchester Orchestra)
CAVANAUGH: And that’s “I’ve Got Friends” from the Manchester Orchestra. Now, Chris, I heard that the front man for this band, Andy Hull, recently revealed that they’re going to start recording a new album in June.
CANTORE: That is correct.
CAVANAUGH: Do you know anything about those plans?
CANTORE: Yeah, right after they get off the road. They’re doing this tour right now. They’re going to be road testing, actually, some new material and plan to return to the studio, as you mentioned, June 2010, and already have 30 songs in the bag…
CAVANAUGH: Wow.
BRADSHAW: Wow.
CANTORE: …ready to go. Very ambitious. Very, again, ambitious act.
CAVANAUGH: What kind of live show does this band put on?
CANTORE: Fantas – Just amazing. Raw emotional, energetic, and an authentic – it’s just an authentic show. That’s what I love most about it.
CAVANAUGH: So no bells and whistles but a lot of passion.
CANTORE: Nah, it’s not contrived. Yeah, just passion. It’s fantastic.
CAVANAUGH: The…
CANTORE: I highly recommend it.
CAVANAUGH: …Manchester Orchestra plays the House of Blues on Sunday night. Liz, tell us about Rocky Votolato. I love that name.
BRADSHAW: Me, too. So Rocky Votolato – Votolato is a singer/songwriter and he’s out of the Pacific northwest. Grew up actually – Sorry, he was born in Texas and grew up in the Pacific northwest. He’s the father of two. And he’s been making music for over 10 years, used to be in a punk rock band, now turned acoustic troubadour and this is his fourth album as a singer/songwriter.
CAVANAUGH: Now what kind of songs does he write?
BRADSHAW: You know, really gritty, stripped down, bare bones, heartfelt, unpretentious, you know, storytelling songs. Really paying homage to the folk and country music where he…
CAVANAUGH: Now he has a new album out called “True Devotion” and some critics are saying this album is a bit of a departure for him, a little bit more hopeful?
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: Is that true?
BRADSHAW: Well, everyone loves a depressing singer/songwriter. Well, actually, so I was reading up a little bit on Rocky and he’s actually sort of battled throughout his life with depression. And so I think what the critics are referring to is that a while ago he actually ended up shutting himself away a little bit and really studying and reading and trying to overcome his demons and so when you listen to this album all the way through, you can kind of really hear the kind of reflective darker times in the first half of the album and then, you know, as you progress through the album you kind of feel yourself kind of moving towards the light and the future and, yeah, so it’s really – It’s a great album, though, so heartfelt, wonderful.
CAVANAUGH: Well, let’s hear something from it and is it Rocky Votolato?
BRADSHAW: You know, I’m not sure. I was wondering that myself.
CAVANAUGH: Okay, well…
BRADSHAW: Or it might depend on your accent.
CAVANAUGH: …I’ll say it both ways.
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: This is a cut from “True Devotion” by Rocky Votolato and it’s called “Don’t Be Angry.”
(audio clip of Rocky Votolato performing “True Devotion”)
CAVANAUGH: That is “Don’t Be Angry” by Rocky Votolato and it’s from his album “True Devotion.” So it sounds a little bit like it’s going to be a low key night at the Casbah.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, in one sense, yes, but not necessarily. Playing with him will also be Adam H. Stephens from – he’s better known as the singing half of the Two Gallants, which are a folk – kind of a folk punk outfit from San Francisco, and so I think what you’re going to get rather than, you know, super low key is very, very passionate singer/songwriters. And I think, you know, somewhat intense, intensive, you know, an audience and everybody really getting into it, so…
CAVANAUGH: Oh, that’s great.
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: Okay.
BRADSHAW: So kind of quiet but, you know, but, you know, kind of folk punk at the same time.
CAVANAUGH: Concentrated music.
BRADSHAW: Very concentrated.
CAVANAUGH: Rocky Votolato plays the Casbah this Sunday night. And, Liz, we’re going to you for our last weekend preview. And it’s about a new exhibit at Sushi Performing Arts, opening this weekend. It includes lots of elements. Tell us about it, it’s called “Family Matters.”
BRADSHAW: Yeah, so this year there’s a guest curator for Sushi Arts in the East Village and it’s Brian Goeltzenleuchter. I hope I pronounced that right. And so this is, I think, part of a series of four exhibits that he’s going to be curating this year and it’s a mulit-media, multi-genre art exhibit that introduces audiences to an eclectic group of artists with their own avant garde take on pop culture. And there’s going to be multi-media animations and profanity-laden welcome mats…
CAVANAUGH: Oh.
BRADSHAW: …that, I quote, would make Martha Stewart blush. And so it’s definitely going to be kind of like a weird and twisted take on pop culture and, you know, bordering on what’s actually suitable for families.
CAVANAUGH: And it’s not suitable for families.
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: Well, let’s talk about some of the art first. There’s a piece called “Kiss” in the show. Tell us about it.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, so this is a piece by a featured artist Andrew Kaufman and when I was looking at pictures of this, it kind of reminded me of that old magic trick where you have to put two cups of water together. I don’t know if you remember that one, anyone?
CAVANAUGH: Two cups of water together.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, kind of stacked one on top of the other so he has these glass vessels that are – the lips of them are touching so they sat one on top of the other and they’re both filled with water.
CAVANAUGH: That’s a kiss.
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
CAVANAUGH: Yeah.
BRADSHAW: It’s kissing vases. But it looks really, really interesting. And, you know, I’m like how do they do that? Kind – That was created in 2005 and there’s – “Kiss” is made up of ten pairs of glasses that will be completely filled to the brim mirroring each other. So…
CAVANAUGH: Oh, that’s great.
BRADSHAW: …yeah, I think it’s awesome.
CAVANAUGH: Now there’s an artist from Holland who makes adult playground sculptures. I’m almost afraid to ask, Liz.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, so I think this is going to be really interesting and I – I’m definitely going to go along and check this out. So Oscar Prinsen is the artist and he’s created playground sculptures for dysfunctional adults. And he, in his role as an evangelist in Institute for the Wandering Man, he’s going to be doing a series of interventions on the streets of San Diego and, from what I can tell, bringing people into his dysfunctional adult playground world to somewhat mentor them.
CAVANAUGH: I see.
BRADSHAW: Rather like a guru. So that’s going to be a self-help guru and it’s very, I think, tongue-in-cheek but fairly dark at the same time.
CAVANAUGH: Oh, really?
BRADSHAW: So, I’m pretty interested in checking this piece out.
CAVANAUGH: This whole thing sounds very, very playful.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, I really think it’s – I mean, it’s just going to be really interesting. There’s, you know, all sorts of different, you know – It’s very multi-faceted, lots of different types of media, very different types of artists from performance art to sculpture, and I think it’s playful but definitely with a dark side and definitely a good commentary on, you know, today’s pop culture.
CAVANAUGH: And just – we have just enough time to mention the duo called the Cedar Tavern Singers who are performing as part of the “Family Matters” exhibit. Tell us about them.
BRADSHAW: Yeah, so they’re a Canadian duo, Mary-Anne and Daniel, the Cedar Tavern Singers, aka Les Phonoréalistes from Canada. They call themselves an arternative folk band.
CAVANAUGH: Oh, yeah.
BRADSHAW: Which I liked. And, you know, again, they – they’re very much fitting for this so composing, you know, great sort of pop culture, pop songs. They have an excellent website if anybody gets to go and check it out. It’s almost like this vintage newsletter textbook style homepage. I think they’re going to be a really fun band and then they’re going to be a good addition to the installation for sure.
CAVANAUGH: So “Family Matters” installation not so much for the family.
BRADSHAW/CAVANAUGH: …maybe…
BRADSHAW: Forward thinking family?
CAVANAUGH: All right. Fair enough. “Family Matters” opens at Sushi’s East Village locale on Friday night and the Cedar Tavern Singers perform on Saturday night. You guys, thank you so much. I really appreciate it.
CANTORE: Thank you.
BRADSHAW: Thanks.
CAVANAUGH: There’s so much to do this weekend. Chris Cantore and Liz Bradshaw, thanks so much.
CANTORE: Thank you.
BRADSHAW: Thanks.
CAVANAUGH: I want to let everybody know that These Days is produced by Angela Carone, Hank Crook, Megan Burke, Pat Finn, Sharon Heilbrunn, and senior producer is Natalie Walsh. Our Production Manager is Kurt Kohnen, with technical assistance from Tim Felten. And our production assistants are Jordan Wicht and Rachel Ferguson. I’m Maureen Cavanaugh, hoping you’ll enjoy the rest of the week. Thank you so much for listening to These Days on KPBS.
(audio clip from the Blind Boys of Alabama performing “Free At Last”)
