My American Heart

Bassett Brothers

Identical twin guitar duo the Bassett Brothers like to keep their audiences guessing by performing in an ever-shifting array of styles, from medieval to Metallica, Baroque to Beatles. Sean and Ian have played together since the age of fourteen, studying music from the Renaissance and classical eras as well as contemporary genres like rock, blues, and heavy metal. They originally made their local mark in the rock band Eradicate but have since expanded their musical horizons as classical guitarists, earning music degrees at San Diego State University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, with Sean pursuing a DMA in Music Education from Boston University. Sean has also taught music at SDSU, and Ian teaches at Mesa College. Their YouTube channel features performance videos and instructional tutorials, as well as archiving their many costumed appearances at San Diego’s Comic-Con International. The Alpine Library has been expanding its live music offerings with locals from all over the county and will host the pair on Thursday. It’s their last scheduled local appearance before embarking on a short tour of Arizona and New Mexico later this year.

Charles McPherson’s Song of Songs

The world premiere of Charles McPherson’s Song of Songs features a jazz score that celebrates an example of ancient poetry beloved by people from all walks of life and beliefs, considered among the Bible’s most engaging odes to love. “As unique as the piece from which it comes, Song of Songs illuminates the voices of two lovers, praising each other, yearning for each other, and inviting each other to truly enjoy and experience,” says the local sax star, who’ll stage a production of the score, composed for the San Diego Ballet, over three nights at downtown’s Lyceum Theatre. It’s the third collaboration between McPherson and SD Ballet Artistic Director Javier Velasco, and performances will feature Ballet members, including McPherson’s daughter Camille, a soloist with SDB. The band will be fronted by McPherson on sax, backed by Lorraine Castellanos on guitar and vocals, pianist Randy Porter, bassist Rob Thorsen, and percussionist Richard Sellers.

My American Heart

The bill for this year’s I Am Through Being Cool Fest includes Dead American, Audio Karate, Matty Mullins (DJ set), For The Win, Forever Came Calling, Andy’s Room, and – most notably – a somewhat surprise reunion of My American Heart. The band members were still teens attending school in Paradise Hills in the early 2000s when their MySpace page racked up over 100,000 friends and four million song plays. That led to being signed by Kevin Lyman to the Warped Tour founder’s record label Warcon Enterprises in autumn 2005. Founding guitarist Jesse Barrera was already replacing band members by the time they toured behind that album, and the lineup continued to be in constant flux until the band split in 2009. A couple of reunion shows happened in February 2012, but little seemed to come of the reconvening. In summer 2017, Barrera revealed that the group would be reuniting for the tenth anniversary of their sophomore album, Hiding Inside the Horrible Weather, which was rereleased in a limited vinyl edition. That October, they played the Roxy in L.A. with a lineup that hadn’t performed together in ten years, and things apparently went well enough that the band has decided to make another go of it. According to their Twitter account, the Irenic show will feature the “original lineup reuniting” once again, with their debut self-titled EP now available on Spotify for the first time and possible new music hinted for the near future.

Cash’d Out

Cash’d Out is a Johnny Cash cover band formed in late 2004 when singer Douglas Benson (who had only recently learned guitar) met guitarist Kevin Manuel through an ad in the Reader. The band strives to recreate music from Cash’s Columbia and Sun Records period, along with the famed live recordings Cash did at Folsom Prison and San Quentin. They have bragging rights as one of the few Cash tributes endorsed by Cash himself, after Cash’s friend Bill Miller asked the band to perform at the opening of a Cash exhibit at the Fender Museum in Corona, California, where they jammed with longtime Cash drummer W.S. Holland. The band returned to the Fender Museum in 2008 to play a Cash birthday celebration with John Carter Cash (Johnny Cash’s son) and Cindy Cash (Cash’s daughter). The Belly Up bill includes Nancarrow, fronted by Graham Nancarrow, whose father was well-known local newscaster/ecologist Loren Nancarrow. Other players in the group come from bands like Millionaires, Great White Buffalo, Lady Dottie & the Diamonds, and P. S. Your Cat Is Dead.

Lost Dakota

When El Paso’s If We Were Turtles play the Soda Bar on Tuesday, May 28, local openers include metalcore band Buriedbutstillbreathing and punk-emo group Lost Dakota. The latter ensemble was founded by Christian Perez after the breakup of Chula Vista’s Dark Tide, a melodic hardcore band that began in 2014 as a side project of Nightmare’s Riot guitarist Tomas Perez. Christian debuted Lost Dakota two years ago with a single called “Gold Coast.” After being joined by guitarist Gabe Gonzales and drummer Greg Degracia, they began gigging as a trio at local venues like Soma and Soda Bar, as well as at multiband events such as the SUMM Music Fest and Ramona’s Summerfall Radness Festival. A three-song EP released in September 2017, Beautiful View, included the track “Carlsbad” and a Shawn Mendes cover, “Treat You Better.” Their summer 2018 single “Unravel” came with a music video, as the band began touring through California and Arizona. After the departure of guitarist Gabe Gonzales, they spent the remainder of 2018 “in hiding, writing new music,” according to their Facebook page. They’re currently gigging as a two-piece with Christian Perez as singer-guitarist and Greg Degracia on drums, with a new single now available, “Complacent.” A lyric video for the track can be found online.