Over the course of 25 years of handwritten correspondence with my pen pal Persephone, none had ever been returned. Imagine my confusion when my last letter reappeared a couple of weeks later, unopened and defaced …

This is the principal service of God, there being nothing on earth which represents more perfectly the state of the blessed in Heaven, than to praise him with fervor and cheerfulness. For it is written: …

“When Metallica [played with an orchestra], it blew me away,” says Jason Lee, a veteran rocker who has fronted the surf-guitar-inspired Riptides for 13 years. Lee took the orchestral plunge with his other band called …

Erk! Suddenly strikes me: Halloween’s around the corner. And seeing I’m here in Barrio Logan, my mind starts gravitating to vampire tacos. Tacos vampiros. Always wanted to try one. Never had one. Only problem: the …

For the past six years, the San Diego Arab Film Festival has piggybacked off its sister fest in San Francisco. The same can’t be said of festival seven. Not only will they be flying solo, …

“The ’80s was a nadir: hair metal, New Romantic synth-pop, Foreigner, Hall & Oates, Men at Work — it was horrible,” says Mike Stax about the inspiration behind launching his ’60s music mag Ugly Things …

As Republicans’ grip on San Diego’s city council loosens, big labor has filled the void by getting into the city-hall advocacy game in a big way. The latest player to file as a labor lobbyist …

Dear Hipster: So, we have Marvel movies and DC movies, both killing it at the box office these days. November will see Justice League and Ragnarok in cinemas at the same time. What I, and …

Just east of Ramona in a section of the Cleveland National Forest, one can hike high above the San Diego River Watershed along an old fire road to a dramatic viewpoint overlooking Dye Canyon, where …

“Halloween on a Tuesday,” griped my friend Sarah. “That’s a long way from the weekend.” “Call it pre-gaming,” offered friend Kathy. “We’ll do a party at my house with all the kids on the actual …

Orange County proto-punkers the Vandals haven’t had a new member since 1989. Joe Escalante joined shortly after the band formed in 1980. “If you told me back then I’d still be playing in my 50s …

“My soul is humbled when I see the way little ones accept their lot,” says Mrs. Cooper at the end of Night of the Hunter. “Lord save little children. The wind blows and the rains …

“My new digital single ‘Have One More for Chesty’ is dedicated to Chesty Puller, the most highly decorated Marine in history,” says singer-songwriter Hank Sax of his upcoming release. “Modern-day Marines use the phrase ‘Have …

Dear Hipster: What are your top selections for Halloween costumes this year? — Sandy It’s once again time to celebrate that greatest of all hipster traditions: elaborate, ironic, pop culturally relevant Halloween costumes! Salt Bae …

Imagine Dracula meets Beauty and the Beast meets Frankenstein meets Footloose, and then add some music which has something of a Rocky Horror Picture Show vibe (but isn’t near the quality) and you’ve got Bat …

I used to think the Black Crowes were a loud band until I experienced Mastodon. The back story: I’d been granted a working-category stage pass back when San Diego still hosted Street Scene weekend concerts. …

Lil’ Blues For several days my heart has shared much in common with a barbershop, the shuttered drugstore, and empty parking lot. 5:30 p.m. Dirty plates, yellow napkins, cigarettes, mother-of-pearl ashtrays, a once-bitten fruit, the …

In May 2015, Bernard Vinluan’s job at Willmark Communities became more secret agent than apartment leasing agent. Vinluan waited for the employees to clock out of the office before he made his move. He snuck …

As she counts down the days until her lucrative retirement on the city’s notorious Deferred Retirement Option Plan, widely known as DROP, San Diego chief of police Shelley Zimmerman has increasingly taken to the road, …