Ben Wanicur Quartet live at Dizzy's
Robert Bush 6:31 p.m., May 18
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Stories by Bart Mendoza
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Empty nesters open Craftlab Gallery
Craftlab Gallery in Oceanside opened its doors on April 6 with a solo exhibition by San Diego artist and musician Fernando Apodaca.
Carl Durant is heading back to Belgium
Personal, political, economical
Belgian singer-songwriter Carl Durant, a mainstay of the local circuit for the past several years, is heading home. Durant arrived with his wife in San Diego during 2002 to work at an early-stages startup company ...
Real housewives, fake band
Tim Foley is best known in San Diego as a multi-instrumentalist performer with the Celtic-folk group Skelpin and for his solo work, but for his appearance in the upcoming season eight of Bravo television’s reality ...
Dizzy's sculpts its new space
Jazz nightspot Dizzy’s found a new home in the showroom at San Diego Jet Ski Rentals in P.B.
Dancing with Myself — International Swingers at Brick by Brick
The June 28 show at Brick by Brick by new supergroup the International Swingers, featuring bassist Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols), drummer Clem Burke (Blondie, the Romantics), lead guitarist James Stevenson (Generation X, Gene Loves Jezebel), ...
Dusting Off the Big Ol' Driver
Ex–San Diegan alt-rockers Uncle Joe’s Big Ol’ Driver are returning to the studio for the first time since 1995. The new recordings will feature frontman Andrew McKeag, guitarist Dave Jass, bassist George Viduarri, and original ...
The Mutual Admiration Society of Tilbrook and Poltz
While some artists choosing to open a tour in San Diego might do so for the scenery or weather, Squeeze cofounder Glenn Tilbrook’s reasoning for his band coming to town on April 10 at the ...
Page's Six-String Sibling
Gregory Page’s music may not have troubled the charts just yet, but the same doesn’t hold true for his acoustic guitar, a 1953 Guild M-20. Long his favorite instrument, Page recently learned that the guitar ...
Keys to the Soul
After 22 years, the Soul Persuaders played their final show on January 19 at Humphrey’s Backstage Lounge. The band started in 1989, fronted by Steve and Mark Siers, as a side project to their long-running ...
Whisky in a Barrel
On December 7, Queen Divas of the Universe hosts a CD-release show at Humphrey’s Backstage Lounge, for their debut album All Wrapped Up in Christmas. The band consists of three music vets: bassist Shaaron Hancock-Schuemaker ...
Reelin’ in the Years' Profit of the Heart
Music and DVD sales continue their downward spiral, but San Diego–based video archive company Reelin’ in the Years has had a banner 2011. Over the past two months, RITY has released nine DVDs, including titles ...
Occupy San Diego Inspires Get Back Loretta Song
Singer-songwriter Kevin Martin, frontman for Get Back Loretta, is best known for his Beatle-esque melodies. Indeed, the Vista resident’s new solo album is titled Throwback Pop. However, the Occupy San Diego movement has inspired Martin ...
Art and Sound on Common Ground
“It seems natural that music and art go together,” says Irradio frontman Dan Dasher. “There is a big art scene in San Diego but not too many people know the names.” Dasher and co-coordinator Brigitte ...
Going Mobile with Alan Sanderson
Recording technology has become more portable than ever, but Grammy-winning producer Alan Sanderson was still surprised when he received a call to engineer a vocal recording at Humphrey’s Half Moon Inn prior to America’s concert ...
Humphries at Humphrey’s: Cats 'n' Jammers
On June 14, British-born Hillcrest resident and singer/songwriter Dave Humphries will perform at the opening of the Humane Society’s new North County small-animal facility. Located at 572 Airport Road in Oceanside, the new 30,000-square-foot building ...
Fat 'Daddys
San Diego’s Crawdaddys are reforming for a pair of shows this year. On June 10, the band will headline the sixth annual “Go Sinner Go” festival in Spain. Then, on September 2, the band will ...
Requiemme Bags Bug
Former Dragons frontman Mario Escovedo has expanded his Requiemme Management to include a record label of the same name, distributed digitally by music publishing giant Bug Music. On May 24, the label will release its ...
Guitar Grab at 4th&B
Downtown nightspot 4th&B has among the most stringent security measures of any local venues, including a pat-down on entry, surveillance cameras, and security roaming inside and outside the club. On February 11, however, none of ...
Seven Degrees
Matthew Rothenberg would like to put San Diego’s music scene on the map. And the rest of the world’s as well, with a new website called Scene Roller. “It’s a group-driven, grassroots, music-history machine,” said ...
Fable of Reconstruction
There is no shortage of tribute bands in San Diego. However, only one, Murmur, a new tribute to R.E.M., was built by an agent around the looks of its front man, in this case North ...
San Diego Indie Fest Can Kiss the Mature Audiences Goodbye
The six-year-old Indie Music Fest will be moving from North Park to the NTC Promenade at Liberty Station for the next event, March 12 and 13, 2011. While the first day will be music-based, the ...
The Grass Is Totally Greener in San Diego
While there has been an exodus of musicians from San Diego in recent years — including Anya Marina, Barbara Nesbitt, the Album Leaf, John Miller, Kim Divine — musicians are also relocating to San Diego. ...
Superhero Power
After five years, six tours, and over 150 shows, indie pop quartet the Modlins are calling it a day following a final performance at the Whistle Stop on August 20. During its run, the prolific ...
Bake the Tapes
Seventies punk band the Cardiac Kidz are back at it. “We’ve been rehearsing for a month, just to see what comes of it,” said singer-drummer Jim Ryan. Other original members include guitarists Billy Williams (rhythm) ...
Which One's Pink?
Local progressive rock band ASTRA and musician-producer Rafter Roberts have been included in British music magazine Mojo #193 (on newsstands in the U.S. through December), a special-edition issue celebrating the 30th anniversary of Pink Floyd’s ...
Re-Rolling History
Music-history books and websites report that the Rolling Stones visited San Diego ten times to date, but tour posters and handbills have turned up that shed light on a little-known 11th concert a matinee on ...
Jazz Champion
While San Diego seems to be weathering the decline in jazz better than most cities, with several venues spotlighting the genre, including Anthology, Croce’s, and Dizzy’s, singer Karin Carson considers the local scene too small ...
Anthology Hits the Airwaves
Starting on October 9, Little Italy venue Anthology will join forces with KPRI (102.1 FM) to broadcast a live, two-hour music show, Homegrown Fridays Live. Airing from 10 p.m. to midnight, additional concerts will take ...
Checking in at Morrison Hotel
High-end music photography shop Morrison Hotel Gallery shuttered its five-year-old La Jolla location at the end of August, shifting its business to a storefront at Flower Hill Promenade in Del Mar. Though both galleries ran ...
No Joke
On July 7, 31-year-old Nick Pizana, aka Big Yikes, of South Bay hip-hop crew South Psycho Cide, passed away from cardiac arrest following a bout with pneumonia. Pizana’s enjoyment of practical jokes had his bandmates ...
French Fries and Gravy
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 ...
Raising the Red Flag
Eighties electronic duo Red Flag performed for the first time in San Diego since 2002 on April 22 at the House of Blues. Originally a project of siblings Chris and Mark Reynolds, the show marked ...
Fooled Around and Felt Surreal
On May 14, 1976, Bay Area blues group the Elvin Bishop Band, with 25-year-old Johnny Vernazza on guitar, recorded their concert at downtown’s Civic Theatre. Two tracks recorded at the show were included on the ...
Crawdaddy's Plight
A website, paulwilliams.com, has been set up to help raise money for the care of author Paul Williams, who in 1995 suffered a brain injury from a bicycle accident. Riding near his home in Encinitas, ...
More Acoustic Coffee
The fifth incarnation of Java Joe’s, a music venue known as a launching pad for the careers of Jason Mraz, Jewel, and Steve Poltz, will open downtown in early April. Located in a former day ...
Heard It All Before
Katy Perry’s new single, “Broken,” sounds familiar, it’s not your imagination. The same song, with minor lyrical revisions, was released as a single in 2003 by San Diego’s sister-fronted pop group the Troys under the ...
Not So Quiet on the Set
While much is being made of pop stars Beyoncé and Mos Def portraying music icons Etta James and Chuck Berry in the movie Cadillac Records, several San Diego artists have also had stints impersonating hit-makers ...
Goodbye Again
William “Doc” Hunter, 70, jazz pianist, Chicago Six, South Market Street Jazz Band. d. 1/8/08. Bob Finch, 82, jazz bassist and bandleader for the Chicago Six. d. 1/12/08. John Stewart, 68, member of the Kingston ...
Strange Stage Moments
Randy Seol/Strawberry Alarm Clock: “We got to play the big music festival, Cal Jam II [in 1978], on a side stage. It was a big production, with modern dancers and backing singers. For some reason, ...
Overdue
It’s a long way from swinging 1969 London, but over the past few months at Earthling studios in El Cajon, publisher/musician Mike Stax and producer Mike Kamoo have been working on an album of 12 ...
Oh, Doctors
Marc Intravaia: “Eve Selis and I played a private show back in 1994 or ’95 for about 1000 doctors at the Hotel Del. A doctor dropped dead at the side of the stage of a ...
Strange Stage Moments
James Brady/New Day Mile: “During my teens in New Jersey, I attended a Sunday Bible study every week. The woman running it asked if my band would like to play at the youth-group meeting at ...
Impalin’ the Candidate
The Flimz, featuring singer-songwriters Annie Dru and Amy Mayer, may be the first San Diegans to impersonate a vice-presidential candidate in a video. On October 10, the pair posted their third scripted video, “Palin’s VPilf ...
Page to Quit Recording
The music of Brad Paisley, Roy Orbison, the Blind Boys of Alabama, and local troubadour Gregory Page is included on the soundtrack of the new Billy Graham biopic Billy: The Early Years, released on October ...
Tough Blow
“If anyone tries to sell it, I will certainly know about it,” says uilleann-pipe player Tim Foley, whose instrument was stolen on September 6. “There’s a lot of eyes and ears on the lookout there.” ...
Strange Stage Moments
Robin Henkel: “I remember that I [fell] asleep onstage one time. Before a show with Big Rig Deluxe, I’d eaten a huge Mexican meal and was sitting in this comfy chair playing steel guitar. It ...
The Other Man
On August 10, Sherman Oaks—based 43-year-old character actor Shelley Malil, best known for a role in 2005’s 40-Year-Old Virgin, allegedly stabbed former girlfriend Kendra Beebe 20 times at her San Marcos home. With her two ...
Define Combat Zone
After performing in over 100 countries, San Diego-based Liquid Blue thought they might have a world record. The band spent months researching the possibility of getting their accomplishment certified. After checking combos known for their ...
