Stay In the Know! Six of the Coolest Things Happening Around Sacramento This Month

For First Fridays on Jan. 4, the WAL Public Market (1104 R St., Suite 110) is hosting an opening reception for local photographer John Muheim’s new exhibit Right Place, Right Time, featuring awesome photos from the Sacramento music scene dating back to the 1970s. Over the years, Muheim’s photographed everyone from Slayer to Dead Kennedys to 7 Seconds and many others when they played in town. The reception is free and family friendly, and runs from 6–8 p.m. Look up Facebook.com/WALPublicMarket for more info. Infinite scene cred points to anyone who can look at some of those old photos and say, “I was at that show!”

The always fun and constantly rotating themed ArtMix series at Crocker Art Museum returns on Jan. 10 with Glow, featuring a blacklight party and performances by Obsidian Butterfly Fire Dance and Lorelei Bayne Project, along with DJ Pocket. Check out handcrafted wares from regional artists and take advantage of $6 drink specials all night from the Crocker Cafe by Supper Club. ArtMix is 21-plus and is $20 for non-Crocker members or $10 for members. The party runs from 6–9:30 p.m. and admission also grants you access to the entire museum and all of its exhibits, so don’t miss this opportunity to party in an art museum after hours! We’ve said it for years and we’ll say it again, ArtMix is hands down one of the coolest recurring events in Sacramento.

The 14th annual Dine Downtown Restaurant Week returns from Jan. 11–21 with 35 local restaurants participating and offering special three-course dining experiences for $35, with $1 from every meal donated to social services and food literacy programs. Get fancy at The Firehouse or Biba, or chill out at Skool Japanese Gastropub or Tapa the World. Some of the newest spots in town are on board with Dine Downtown, too, like Camden Spit and Larder and Tiger. Visit Godowntownsac.com to view menus and see a list of all 35 participating restaurants.

Alex Ciavarelli and Rudy Marquez, aka The Django Shredders, are two young jazz guitarists who do, in fact, shred. After watching a few of their videos online, this lifelong guitar player was ready to up and quit! These kids are too good, and people are starting to take notice. They’ve held their own at DjangoVegas and the San Diego Gypsy Jazz Festival, and now the folks from Center for the Arts are bringing them through the area on Jan. 13 for another one of their OnTheGo shows at The Besemer Concert Hall (11417 Red Dog Rd., Nevada City). Check out Thecenterforthearts.org for more info and don’t miss your chance to see two young virtuosos in their element.

Our favorite rockin’ sister duo Dog Party are returning home on Jan. 16 to headline a big gig at Blue Lamp (1400 Alhambra Blvd.) alongside local indie-folk outfit Honyock and instrumental surf-rock group The Me Gustas, with Los Angeles’ indie-punk band The Gutter Daisies on the bill as well. Just $10 for four killer bands! What a deal! 8 p.m., 21-plus. Hit up Bluelampsacramento.com for advance tickets.

And finally, after taking 2018 off, one of our favorite local craft beer festivals, The Art of Beer Invitational, is returning on Jan. 25 to McClellan Conference Center (5411 Luce Ave.), and it’s promising to be better than ever. Thirty-plus breweries from around the country will be pouring unlimited 4-ounce tastings, and in many cases, you can meet the brewmasters or brewery owners. There’s also an Art Gallery section, and a Silent Auction benefiting Make-A-Wish. General admission is $60, VIP is $80. Check out Artofbeerinvitational.com for a list of breweries that’ll be pouring and to buy your tickets before they’re gone.

**This write-up first appeared in print on page 3 of issue #282 (Jan. 2 – 16, 2019)**