The Love of Beer
Public Enemy
- Photo by Robert Downs
Wednesday, Jan. 11
PLAN A: Ninjasonik, Jasmine Solano, Dr. Seahorse, Night Brawl @ Soda Bar. Listing both Slick Rick and The Sex Pistols as influences, Brooklyn duo Ninjasonik mix elements of hip-hop, punk rock and electro-pop into a weird, high-concept sound all their own, full of heady beats, indie-rock samples and vaguely satirical social commentary on topics like art-school girls and tight jeans. BACKUP PLAN: The Wailers, Outernational, DJ Unite @ House of Blues.
Thursday, Jan. 12
PLAN A: Afta-1, AbJo, Killer Swan, Mystery Cave, DJ PWC, Mateo @ Kava Lounge. Trading nightclub-ready beats for cool synths, squiggling sounds and sampled voices, Afta-1 makes breezy electronic music with a focus on mood and texture. PLAN B: Lady Dottie and The Diamonds, The Beautiful View, Sundrop Electric, Strange Vine @ The Casbah. Known for a residency at The Tower Bar, Lady Dottie is a soul singer with serious pipes, lots of style and an asskicking backing band. But though she’s the highlight here, I’m also curious to see The Beautiful View, a Chula Vista band that just released a rockin’ album, Life is Beautiful. BACKUP PLAN: Sista Monica Parker @ Anthology.
Friday, Jan. 13
PLAN A: The Dirt Daubers, Two Man Gentlemen Band, Restavrant @ Soda Bar. Hailing from Paducah, Ken., old-timey folk trio The Dirt Daubers play banjo-strummin’, jug-bass-pluckin’ tunes that hark back to a time when church congregants spoke in tongues and bluesmen sold their souls to the devil. PLAN B: Emerson, Montalban Quintet, Ray Barbee and The Mattson 2 @ Lestat’s. If film score composer Ennio Morricone teamed up with members of Pinback, their music would sound something like Montalban Quintet. Featuring members of Pinback, The Mattson 2 and No Knife, this local side project—playing live for the first time—fuses elements of post-punk, jazz and schmaltzy ’50s pop into an immersive sound. PLAN C: Christmas Island, Uzi Rash, Stalins of Sound @ The Tower Bar. Christmas Island and Stalins of Sound both sound great, but fans of noisier fare might just prefer punk-rock weirdoes Uzi Rash. Depending on whom you ask, their deconstructed junkyard riffs are either totally obnoxious or downright irresistible.
Saturday, Jan. 14
PLAN A: Pete Escovedo y Familia @ Anthology. The Corleone family of the Latin jazz world, the Escovedos are renowned for their percussion, singing and songwriting skills. Tonight, Pete joins Juan and Peter Michael for another one of their groovy family jams. (They’re also playing at Anthology on Friday, Jan. 13.) PLAN B: Kial, Jason, Mk Ultra, Arkon, Goldenchild @ Kava Lounge. The tides of the electronic-music world have shifted numerous times since Dragon Lounge started back in 1998, but the long-running electronic-music night is still going strong. Tonight, California producer Kial will celebrate the event’s 14th anniversary with some gnarly, monster-like drum ’n’ bass tunes. BACKUP PLAN: The Bloody Hollies, Los Hollywood, The Lyon Crowns, Love, The City and Space @ Soda Bar.
Sunday, Jan. 15
PLAN A: Public Enemy, Legacy Pack @ 4th & B. This one’s a no-brainer. One of the greatest hip-hop groups of all time, Public Enemy are still resilient three decades into their career, with a new album, Most of Our Heroes Don’t Appear on a Stamp, set to come out later this year. PLAN B: Handsome Furs, D/Wolves, Snakesuit @ Belly Up. Husband-and-wife electro-pop duo Handsome Furs are hard, fast and damn sexy. And marvelous local indie-rockers D/Wolves are just plain unstoppable: They told me in November that they were taking a break from live shows, but then they went ahead and booked more shows. BACKUP PLAN: Billy Joe and The Roosters, Mud Grass @ Soda Bar.
Monday, Jan. 16
PLAN A: The Silent Comedy, Transfer, Dead Feather Moon @ The Casbah.
Don’t be too bummed if you didn’t get to see local rock ’n’ roll powerhouses The Silent Comedy and Transfer at the Lafayette Hotel’s New Year’s Eve show: The two beloved bands will play back-to-back shows today and Sunday, Jan. 15, trading off as headliners. BACKUP PLAN: Branes, Erleen Nada, Aaimon @ Tin Can Ale House.
Tuesday, Jan. 17
PLAN A: Grammatical B, Bad Dad, Corona Lite @ The Casbah. If you need a lesson in bar etiquette, listen to Grammatical B’s “Rules & Laws.” In an in-your-face performance that could win accolades from every bartender in the city, the zany local rapper and Casbah bartender calls out d-bags who don’t tip, can’t wait their turn and do all sorts of other annoying stuff.
Email peterh@sdcitybeat.com or follow him on Twitter at @peterholslin.
