Eli and the Sound Cult works within established tropes to push the possibilities of pop music

If you think that the modern universe of pop music is composed of a homogeneous parade of sexed-up, music-industry drones, you’re probably not alone. Like an army of tongue-wagging, good-girls-gone-bad, some artists seem intent on pushing the boundaries of popular music to the brink of triviality.

For Elijah Jenkins and Jason Bove, the two members of Eli and the Sound Cult, their allegiance to the ethos of pop just might save the genre from a scourge of banality, just as long as it doesn’t interfere with their other shared passions: skateboarding, rock climbing and bread-and-butter pickles.

Drawing on a variety of sonic influences from Prince to Ween, the band’s debut album Best of Pop is an opus of sound that marries rock, soul and, of course, pop music.

“It’s kind of an amalgamation of all that stuff that we grew up listening to.” Bove says. “That spanned punk rock to metal to radio music to everything that inspired us as kids, you know, skateboarding culture and music culture.”

The two Sacramento transplants—Bove hails from Illinois and Jenkins is from Bakersfield, Calif.—realized after a chance meeting at Sacramento Pipeworks Climbing and Fitness gym that their combined talents and shared interests made for the perfect pop experiment. However, the duo isn’t looking to forge new musical trails, but rather to put out an album that provides their audience a visceral and engaging musical experience that celebrates the pop ilk.

“There are definitive things that it is not,” Jenkins says. “It is not post-anything, it’s not post-punk, it’s not trying to do anything new as much as it’s trying to exist within the walls of stuff that already exists. We’re not trying to push boundaries on this album, what we try to do is make waves within the walls that already exist.”

As a genre, pop music is exceedingly broad-based, often assimilating elements from other genres like hip-hop, dance, rock and indie, featuring accessible songs written in the verse-chorus-verse construct awash with melodic tunes and catchy hooks, and Best of Pop delivers exactly that.

“I think we push boundaries insomuch as we feel like it’s OK on one album to write a funk song, and an indie song, and a blues song, and a rock song,” Jenkins continues. “But we’re not trying to push genre lines, we’re just trying to say you can do whatever you want, you don’t have to be genre-specific in your music.”

“I go back to Prince as a good example,” Bove adds. “He’s pop music, but he’s not limited by pop music. That guy can do whatever he wants, so we kind of want to do whatever we want.”

Like a lot of pop music, much of the album’s inspiration draws from facet of the human condition: Love.

“We’re all chasing around boys or girls. I mean, I think that’s a large part of the pop element, too,” Jenkins says. “There’re no songs on this album that aren’t love songs, and they’re either [about] running toward it, running away from it or struggling with it. The fact that we wrote an album that’s eight love songs about five different women should be indicative of something.”

“Well, a lot of it, too, is love lost, right?” Bove adds. “We’ve all kind of been through relationships that haven’t worked but that have brought you to a different space in life. And then it’s trying to figure out why you’re in that space, and it’s because of your choices and your path. I wouldn’t be in Sacramento if it wasn’t for relationships.”

Continuing on this lyrical path, having recently concluded a successful Kickstarter campaign that helped the duo procure a van to take their pop party out on the road and preparing for an upcoming tour that kicks off with an album release party on Oct. 18 at Sacramento Space, Jenkins and Bove are already looking toward the future, without being bound by the trappings of their work.

“We’ve already started talking about the next project, which will involve us throwing everything out in a very Ween style…throwing the entire aesthetic out and going, ‘OK we’re going to create something totally new,’” Jenkins explains. “Then we’ll throw that out, then do whatever we want to do next, but I’ve always wanted to be in a band where we don’t feel pressure to play old stuff.”

Part of the band’s current aesthetic involves an engrossing live show that incorporates multi-media elements, including dynamic light installations and projected images drawing from popular culture figures syncopating in time with the beats emanating from their speakers.

“This movement is closer to a high-energy art installation,” Jenkins says. “That’s really the only sense where I feel like we’re pushing boundaries, this is an art piece, this is not a jazz ensemble.”

“Pre-Bitches Brew Miles, rather than post-Bitches Brew Miles.” Bove chuckles.

The duo’s genuine esteem for one another is evident, from their quip-y offstage banter to their keen ability to synthesize a singular message onstage and in the studio. Their meticulously crafted shows, like their music, is a catalyst for sparking a combustible reaction that explodes through the audience like a volcanic eruption.

“We want people to have a weird, amazing experience and walk away feeling a little changed. I want them to come away with the idea that they’ve been to a show that was well-choreographed, that was made to make them feel something emotional,” Jenkins says. “I want people to walk away with an emotional experience, where they feel like something has been added or taken away from them.”

“I’ve definitely seen people with their mouths hanging open like they were watching somebody be killed or something they didn’t expect to see,” Bove adds.

From skateboarding around town to scaling craggy peaks, on and off tour, their personalities complement rather than collide—as the frontman and singer, Jenkins’ vociferous nature is engaging and jovial while Bove’s quiet, introspective reserve reverberates perfectly in time as softly caresses the strings on his bass.

“I think we like the constraints of having to work within what two people can do. Essentially we have eight limbs that we can work with and that’s it,” Jenkins explains. “But the nice thing is that we only have to deal with two people’s egos, two people’s schedules, two people’s desires, and we get along. Like, I’ve never been in a band where everybody gets along. We butt heads plenty of times on vision and all that, but neither one of us are purists. We never go, ‘It has to be this way.’”

The twosome’s frenetic energy, undeniable bond and surging creativity is the perfect recipe for musical harmony, but it’s their boyish charm and quirky sensibility that may find their empire expanding into Vlasic’s territory.

“Pickles are fantastic. I might start pickling everything,” Jenkins beams. “Apparently you can pickle grapes; red wine vinegar, Sriracha and grapes. I had them at Total Wine; they were fantastic. The sweetness of the grape against the vinegar made them savory and the Sriracha made them spicy. Imagine a savory, spicy fruit.”

Eli and the Sound Cult’s Music and Pickle Emporium, now that has a nice ring to it.

Prepare to get your pants charmed off when Eli and the Sound Cult celebrate their record release at Sacramento Space on Oct. 18, 2013 at 8 p.m. Sun Valley Gun Club will also perform, all for a suggested donation of $5. This is the first show of the band’s winter West Coast tour, so give them a proper send off. Learn more about the band at Facebook.com/eliandthe.

All-female improv troupe, Lady Business, set to perform at second annual Sacramento Comedy Festival

When James Brown belted out the words, “This is a man’s world, but it would be nothing…without a woman or a girl,” he could have very easily been talking about the world of comedy. It’s a scene so dominated by men that just last year Adam Carolla was quoted in the New York Post as saying, “The reason why you know more funny dudes than funny chicks is that dudes are funnier than chicks.”

For about as long as people have been telling jokes, there have been detractors peddling the notion that women can’t tell them. Looking to annihilate this perception, the ensemble of all-female improvisation performers, Lady Business, takes the stage at the Sacramento Comedy Spot in Midtown one Saturday a month to lead the audience through a bawdy, and yes, funny, comic romp.

The troupe originally formed in 2010, and now improv-ers Mel Gelbart, Micaela Pettigrew, Michelle Daubner, Tiffany Hart, Mignon Foster, Jennifer Whelan (not pictured) and Christiana Dominguez constitute this uproarious and ribald troupe that celebrates a point of view that women can relate to and men can appreciate.

“If you go to any comedy show the ratio is usually 2-to-1 for guys to girls, and I remember every once in a while there’d be a show of almost half and it was exciting,” Pettigrew says. “I’d go see Christiana and Tiffany and other people that are in our group now who were just students, and at that time the only show was ACL (Anti-Cooperation League), which is our main stage show, and so we wanted to put a group together of just girls to perform together.”

The troupe’s moniker is quite the contradiction. These comediennes certainly aren’t “ladies” in the conservative, Miss Manners kind of way, and it’s this bawdy sense of community that inspired many of its members to join its raucous ranks.

“I joined the group about a year afterward, I think, and it just seemed like such a cool thing to see a whole group of female comedians being able to get together to do improv,” Foster says. “Improv is such a rare thing, but to have such a large community that we do have at the Comedy Spot to pull all female comedians together to do a show, I thought was really the point. From an audience perspective, it was really attractive because I remember going to the shows and seeing them perform and every single time it was so smart and so witty and just real supportive and it just seemed like so much fun.”

Incorporating suggestions from the audience, Sacramento’s only all-female improv troupe blend true stories from the audience and cast members to provide the vehicle for their brand of the long-form improv show with sharp-witted humor, characters that defy stereotypes and guaranteed yuks. After the cast and audience share stories centered around a monthly theme, the cast of Lady Business does a series of improvised group montages inspired by the stories.

“The thing about Lady Business is that we’ll take that word [or story], and we can make smart scenes from that. Everyone comes from different backgrounds on our team; we have two lawyers, I work in real estate, everyone has a different background and does totally different things,” Foster says. “We can all come together and share in this art form that is really unique but really big now in Sacramento at the Comedy Spot.”

While many of the Lady Business members also participate in regular ladies’ nights at the club, which feature all-female comedians and improv sketch teams, they’re quick to say that their routines are for everyone, not just those with ovaries.

“It’s not all menstruation jokes and babies,” Dominguez says. “It makes it different for us in the group because sometimes, if you’re one of two girls out of 10 people on stage, you’re going to be the girlfriend in every scene, you’re going to be the prop item in every scene and so you definitely are your gender, but in our shows we don’t have that role. It’s a lot more open than that.”

For Sacramento transplants Pettigrew and Dominguez, they’re in the right city to forge their comedic dreams. According to real estate blog Movoto.com, Sacramento is the ninth funniest city in the nation—based on a ranking of factors that included the number of comedy clubs and comedy festivals, where comedians were born or currently reside, settings of sitcoms and the number of improv groups per capita.

“I’ve been performing at the Comedy Spot since probably about 2007. I started as a student there in 2006 and I wouldn’t leave,” Dominguez says with a wry grin. “I started taking comedy classes kind of on a dare with a friend of mine. We pinky swore that we were going to do this. He went to Los Angeles and did classes with The Groundlings and now he does TV. So, when I moved to Sacramento in 2006, I literally Googled Sacramento comedy classes and came up with the Sacramento Comedy Spot.”

As the women, all veterans in improvisation and regular players at the Sacramento Comedy Spot, gear up for the second annual Sacramento Comedy Festival running Sept. 13 through 21, they’re a tight knit group of girls who say they just want to have fun on the fly.

“It’s like playtime. It’s like make-believe. Let’s go to the playground again and run from hot lava monsters,” Dominguez jokes.

“How I explain improv to people, it’s like a really fun adult camp. It’s super fun. It’s imaginative and creative in a way that you don’t have to memorize lines,” Foster adds. “I loved being in drama in high school and I love that community and I love the creativity, but man, I hated memorizing lines. I could not do it, and then I found improv and it was like funny and enjoyable and physical and all this great stuff and I just got to make it up off the top of my head. It is scary when you think about it that way, but you’re in a group with such supportive people that it’s easy, and they’re the ones that make it easy.”

The troupe will be performing on the closing night of this year’s comedy festival with the “I’m Sorry! Lady Business Apologizes to the One That Got Away,” show, which they describe as a comedic exploration of making amends with someone they want to go back and say sorry to. A catharsis of sorts, something they say fuels their creative process on stage.

“I find it oddly relaxing, the practice of [doing improv]. It is very freeing because the point is to not think and just react and it takes you back to childhood play time,” Dominguez says. “I tell people it’s relaxing and they’re like, ‘You’re weird, that sounds terrifying,’ but there is really no wrong way to do it if you’re just reacting and in the moment.”

Lady Business will perform at 8 p.m. on the final night of the Sacramento Comedy Festival, which runs until Sept. 21, 2013. A full festival pass costs just $45, and all events will take place at the Sacramento Comedy Spot. For a full schedule and for ticket information, go to Saccomedyspot.com. Catch up with Lady Business at Facebook.com/ladybusiness.

Charting the Meteoric Rise of Sacramento’s LAUNCH Festival

When the Canadian duo Chromeo unleashed their brand of electronica-imbued funk on the masses at Cesar Chavez Plaza last year, it was like a shockwave of electrofunk energy surged through the crowd, sending thousands into a music-induced trance as the hoard heaved in time with the synth-laden beats.

It was at that moment that Sacramento’s LAUNCH Music Festival appeared poised to join the music festival glitterati. And now, after five years on the summer music festival circuit, the little festival that could appears ready to take on the mainstream.

“The basic ethos [of LAUNCH] is celebrating the overlaps of art, architecture, fashion, music—music really being the backdrop of it all—and celebrating the creative culture,” says LAUNCH founder Michael Hargis. “And really, since we’ve grown into this, it’s really about creating a culture that keeps the local creators here in Sacramento.”

Hargis says LAUNCH was born out of a passion for all things creative and a commitment to expanding the reach of the Sacramento brand. Through his experience as an architect and fascination with the entirety of the local creative culture, Hargis’ “Why not here?” mentality is what inspired him to bring a little bit of the Coachella magic, a source of his inspiration for LAUNCH, back to Sacramento.

Michael Hargis

With major buzz surrounding the event, LAUNCH has also become a major talent magnet, bringing in acts that are blowing up on the national and international scene. Case in point: this year, Hargis is flying in Van She from Australia to complement this year’s already stellar lineup, which includes indie-rock powerhouse Imagine Dragons..

“This year…bands started coming to us,” says Greg Patterson, one of the LAUNCH partners and co-founder of the ticketing and concert logistics company Ground(ctrl). “So, Blonde Redhead is a prime example of where, it’s a band that I wouldn’t even have thought that we could have gotten, but their agent reached out to us.”

“This is the top agent, the owner of The Windish Agency, which is one of the biggest independent booking agencies,” Hargis adds. “He’s the owner and the personal contact for that band, [and he] reached out to us, and that’s kind of a big deal.”

In just five short years, LAUNCH has grown from a single-day event exhibiting the talents of local creative types to a few hundred attendees, to a multi-day, multi-venue collaboration of local and international artists exposing their talents to a few thousand voracious music, art, fashion and design enthusiasts. Proving that last year’s surging crowds wasn’t a fluke, Patterson says this year’s event is on track to sell as many tickets as it did last year. And with a budget in the high six-figures, you know this year’s event is going to bring it.

Riding the wave of success from 2012’s behemoth of an event, after which the festival was nominated for a 2012 V.I.B.E. (Visionary Innovators in Building Excellence) award by the Downtown Sacramento Partnership, the worlds of music, design and fashion blasts off again on Sept. 4. And its partners are convinced that this year’s festival will prove that Sacramento can hang with the festival big boys.

With the meteoric rise of the festival, Hargis realized that in order to really pull off an event that could top last year’s spectacle, a team of local producers, booking agents and technicians had to be employed. This year, Transmission Events is managing the fencing and some of the other logistics once managed by Hargis and crew. Eric Rushing, owner of Ace of Spades, took on the role of booking the bands. Rushing says the process of developing the lineup was like assembling a dream list of acts.

“We basically sat on a committee and kind of put together a bunch of acts that we’d like to see,” Rushing explains. “LAUNCH has a certain demographic and art about it that Michael really wants to bring across, so it started as more of an electronic and art festival and it’s kind of evolved a little bit, but [we’re] still keeping a lot of the creativity of the festival intact now that there are a lot more partners involved in the festival.”

Local multi-media company Ground(ctrl) also proved to be a major asset to the LAUNCH team, handling some of the other logistical details like ticket sales, website design and helping the LAUNCH team realize their staggering vision to transform the park into something that would top last year’s staging.

“You’re not going to believe you’re in Cesar Chavez Park,” says Patterson. “You’re not going to believe what you’re going to witness. It is going to be freaking incredible.”

From its humble beginnings, including a heavy personal investment from its founders—yes, even Hargis had to dip into his 401(k) to make it all happen—this year’s party in the park promises to deliver big.

“I feel like, from my perspective, it grew from a very organic, really small arts and fashion and music festival into a multi-day, multi-location festival,” Rushing says. “We have the MARRS location with the kick off on Wednesday, Thursday night we have a pre-party at Ace of Spades, Friday night we have the fashion show and then Saturday and Sunday we have the big blowout as well, and we have after-parties planned. It’s one of the biggest things Sacramento has ever seen when it comes to music in the inner city.”

So, if you think that you have to caravan down to the dust bowl that is Coachella or jet out to Austin for South by Southwest to see some of the best music acts to hit the scene, then think again, and prepare to unpack your bags, because LAUNCH is about to jump off, again.

2009

• In 2009, the inaugural Launch event featured local music heavyweights Sister Crayon, electronica maestro Tycho, family trio Dusty Brown, DJ Mike Diamond and Must.Not.Die.

• A contingent of out-of-town bands ripped through the Green Hotel enclave, including L.A. Riots, Wallpaper and Dances With White Girls.

• Set up like an interactive wonderland, the Greens was transformed into a three-stage, mid-century modern homage to Sacramento’s vibrant artistic community. The main stage, poolside deejay station and electro lounge provided booty-bumping grooves while the hotel rooms served as vignettes for vendors and artists to showcase their wares and talents. Adam Saake also helped plan
the event.

2010

• The fashion set included designs by several local design mavens, including Adrienne Cheng’s Reject Clothing line and the futuristic designs of Van Der Neer, Velvet Leaf and Artifacts.

• Invigorated by the success of Launch’s first year on the scene, Hargis set up shop at The Artisan Building, a premier, multi-use facility in Del Paso Heights.

• Live musical performances from visiting artists included a deejay set by The Faint’s alter ego, Depressed Buttons, out of Omaha, Neb.; Woodhands, an outfit out of Toronto specializing in ambient electro-pop tunes; Oakland’s HOTtub; and Los Angeles’ RESA.

• Bands representing Sacramento included The Generals; New Humans; Shaun Slaughter’s project, D.A.M.B.; Sea of Bees; DoomBird and Exquisite Corps.

• DJ sets throughout the night featured the turntable prowess of Jon Droll, Mike Diamond, Sex and Weight, DJ Whores and John Michael Michaels.

2011

• The runway oozed with styles from Krazy Mary’s boutique, R. Douglas Custom Clothiers, Van Der Neer, Fringe and YSJ Vintage.

• The spacious venue also provided ample gallery space to a slew of local and not-so-local artists, photographers, stylists and furniture designers, including Los Angeles-based illustrator, painter and digital artist Brady Tuazon, who also plays in the band RESA; Seattle’s John Horton and Joel Lee; ISO50’s Scott Hansen, aka Tycho; and Sacramento artist Alexa Wolfe.

• Completing the artistic circle, furniture designers David Tracy of Lego, Steve Hamm of Urban Design, Mike Whisten of 12mm Design, Marvin Maldonado of Inform Design, Scott Tiesing of Tiesing Design and Brian Fuller of Brian Fuller Design converged on the scene to display their creations.

• After Neon Indian unexpectedly bowed out of the 2011 Launch lineup, an unfettered Hargis forged on without ruffling a hair on his perfectly coiffed head and invited the reverb-laden Ganglians to join the bill when the festival returned to the Greens Hotel, billed as “Back to the Hotel.” At this point, local promoter Clay Nutting stepped in to help Hargis, and has contributed to the festival ever since.

• Music was front and center when Juli Lydell of the Dreaded Diamond opened the annual fete. The robust cast of musicians also included Chain Gang of 1974 (fresh from Lollapalooza), Sister Crayon, Who Cares, Little Foxes, Exquisite Corps, Favors, Evrika, Sam I Jam, Adam J and Taylor Cho.

• Swimming-pool shenanigans cooled down party-revelers and bathing beauties chilled out poolside while soaking in DJ sets by Mike Diamond, My Cousin Vinny and Jon Droll.

• Local vintage virtuosos Citizen Rosebud and Fringe boutique joined furniture designers Reclamation Art + Furniture and Tiesing Design.

2012

• In its fourth year, the Launch organizers unleashed a fury of events on the Sacramento scene by busting out the heavy guns and showcasing a selected discipline at different locations throughout the grid, concluding with an all-day music festival for its 2012 extravaganza.

• One of the festival’s highlights included a raucous performance by King Tuff at Harlow’s, with equally engaging performances by rockers Jaill and the Coathangers.

• The festival kicked off at Hot Italian with a pop-up shop by Model Citizens NYC, an independent collection of furniture and industrial designers. The crew over at Bows and Arrows then commandeered the reins with a screening of three independent silent films with original scores performed by live musicians.

• The ultimate block party at the MARRS building block erupted as Exquisite Corps set the corridor on fire with a free album-release party. Local architectural group SacDigiFab, longtime partners and collaborators with the Launch squad, created interactive installations constructed out of recycled cardboard that littered the street. The brew team at Ruhstaller was also on hand.

• The festival’s finale, at its new home in Cesar Chavez Plaza, brought the crowd of nearly 6,000 to its collective feet as Chromeo, Grouplove, Chk Chk Chk (!!!), DJ Shadow and others performed throughout the day.

LAUNCH kicks off Sept. 4, 2013 with LAUNCH X MARRS, a free block party at 20th Street between J and K, and features a kickass event every day of the week (LAUNCH X Party Sept. 5, LAUNCH X Fashion Sept. 6) before culminating in LAUNCH x Music at Cesar Chavez Plaza Sept. 7 and 8. All events are all-ages. For tickets, the full lineup and more info, visit LAUNCHsacramento.com.

Local Rapper Blee Gets Cooking in the Studio and in the Kitchen

A peppery waft of aromatics seduces the palate as a mélange of vegetables is introduced with a hiss to a searingly hot, well-seasoned stir fry pan. The chef delights in the fragrance emanating from his cooking vessel and bops his head up and down in time with the hip-hop track bumping in the background, as if in approval of his edible creation.

This isn’t a demonstration by one of the city’s culinary bigwigs or a lesson on the fine art of stir-fry at a cooking class, but rather the creation from the kitchen of local rap artist, music impresario and organic food-lover, Blee.

As the artist prepares for the release of his sophomore effort on July 9, aptly titled Hotwater Cornbread, the rapper talks music, cookery and his passion for clean eating.

“I just wanted something really clean…plus it’s hot [outside] and when it’s hot, you don’t want to invest a lot of time in cooking,” Blee says. “I’m inspired by friends of mine who have really turned their lives around by eating clean.”

Putting the final flourishes to his Brussels sprouts, asparagus and flank steak creation, accompanied by a simple salad of spring greens and baby carrots and adorned with a smattering of perfumed raspberries, the self-anointed “stir-fry technician” reflects on his artistic vision.

“I get shit started,” Blee says. “I’ve done block parties, I’ve had my own radio show, I’ve done different things and I wear different belts, but I’m primarily an artist first and then a promoter.”

With a listening party slated for July 13, 2013 at Omina Laboratories, and a CD release party on deck July 20, 2013 at Capitol Garage, the rapper-cum-chef looks back on the year-long recording process proudly.

“Production was crazy,” Blee gushes. “I had Nicatyne from Fly High, NPire Da Great, the Gonzalez Brothers, and N8 the Gr8 from legendary group The Cuf…and I can’t forget Billy Hi-Life, this dude is incredible. He gave me [the track] “Black Skillet Commentary,” which is kind of an anthem where I’m talking about how I’m living…like eating clean and taking care of myself.”

Regarding the album’s direction, the rapper also took some calculated risks with his style.

“I wanted to stick with the same formula as Full Course Meal, but I wanted to implement a new sound because I know sonically right now it’s about EDM…and I wanted to implement that, too, without compromising my creative direction.”

Laid down at Omina Labs located on 16th Street, which has seen some of the area’s most talented MCs such as Chase Moore, C-Plus and countless others spit lyrical fire in its booths, Blee’s follow up to his debut, Full Course Meal, features whip-smart lyrics, frenetic beats and, of course, a heaping serving of food references.

“You can look forward to all of my concepts being cuisine-based,” Blee says. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to rap about food, but it inspires me.”

On a recent shopping trip to the farmers’ market, the Sacramento rapper (who credits his Dominican Republic roots and the matriarchs who instilled in him a love of food and cooking as the inspiration for his appetite for organic and whole foods), cruised through the maze of people, purveyors and verdant veggies like a pro.

“I think it really stems from my mom and her just making everything from scratch,” Blee says. “She would point fingers and make fun of the neighbors’ mothers who would make cornbread with Jiffy. That whole bravado and pride in your food, it just blended into me as a person.”

Head down to Capitol Garage on July 20 to help Blee celebrate the release of his new album Hotwater Cornbread. Party will go from 9 p.m. until close. DJ Epik, NPire, Peso Harlem and more will also be on hand. For more on Blee, go to Facebook.com/blee.gordon.

The Stir-Fry Technician’s ingredients for Beef and Vegetable Stir-fry

Ingredients:
Olive oil
Garlic
Baby Brussels sprouts
Asparagus
Summer squash
Button mushrooms
1 pound sliced lean flank or skirt steak
1 package fajita seasoning
Jasmine rice

Blee’s commitment to preserving the integrity of the ingredients during the cooking process shines through in this quick and easy stir-fry.

“I don’t measure anything. I’m using just a splash of olive oil and fajita seasoning—that’s it, no salt, no extra seasonings. I let the vegetables speak for themselves by not cooking them for too long, just about a minute each, like the baby Brussels sprouts, you want them crunchy. Then I add the beef strips—a little Ranchers Reserve, pre-cut, no fat, real lean. Then I serve it all over a bed of jasmine rice. Add a good salad and we’re good to go. It’s guilt-free cuisine. When you eat this, your body smiles.”

Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a large wok over medium-high heat. Add baby Brussels sprouts and cook, tossing occasionally, about one minute. Add one bunch trimmed asparagus and cook, tossing occasionally, about one minute. Add sliced summer squash and cook, tossing occasionally, about one minute. Add button mushrooms and cook, tossing occasionally, about one minute. Sprinkle vegetables with half of the fajita seasoning packet and cook, tossing occasionally, about one minute. Spread remaining fajita seasoning over steak then add to vegetable mixture and cook, tossing occasionally, about three to five minutes.

Cook rice according to package directions. Top about a half-cup of rice, per person, with about one cup per person of the stir-fry mixture and enjoy.

Mixed Spring Greens Salad with Raspberries

Ingredients:
4 cups mixed baby greens
1 cup baby carrots
1 handful raspberries
Scant drizzle of Asian-inspired sesame salad dressing

Inspired by a raw-food concept restaurant in Los Angeles, Blee creates a simple salad that doesn’t come in a pre-made bag, unfettered by an army of overwrought ingredients and free from the shackles of heavy salad dressings. It only takes minutes to get from fridge to plate.

Place two large handfuls of mixed baby greens in large bowl (Blee draws a pair of surgical gloves from a box that sits within reaching distance of his cooking range, for this very process). Toss with whole baby carrots. Divide greens among two plates. Top salads with raspberries and a scant amount of the Asian-inspired sesame salad dressing.

INK Eats and Drinks

2730 N Street • Sacramento

When Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins first put ink to skin in the late ’20s and uttered the words, “Color is here to stay. Good color that is,” he encapsulated the very essence of the tattoo culture that exploded in the ’90s onto the arms, legs, chests and even faces of almost one in four Americans.

Now, some 40 years after his passing, you can’t stroll down the street without seeing an endless stream of walking canvases sporting pinup queens, tribal bands and portraits of loved ones. No longer are they a rite of passage for soldiers, sailors or those living on the fringe of society that defined ink-lovers a generation or two ago—a 2006 survey by the American Academy of Dermatology revealed that 24 percent of Americans between 18 and 50 are tattooed.

It’s not often that art, food and commerce converge, but after a decade in one of the most challenging businesses to break through, the tattooed-themed INK Eats and Drinks has built a solid following of regulars and bar hounds who frequently gobble up its fare.

“We’re not trying to be a chain or corporate,” says Christina Arntson, bar manager and assistant general manager. “Our success was just [being in] the right time and location—it was like the stars aligned and now we’ve been here for 10 years.”

The scene at INK Eats and Drinks in Midtown reads like a living tribute to Sailor Jerry’s artistic style—the space is open and inviting and sleeved-up with a vibrant adornment of tattooed-inspired art in the classic tattoo tradition.

“Most of the stuff that you see on the ceiling is by a couple of artists at Forever Tattoo, Brent [Patten] and Eiland [Hogan],” Arntson says. “The mural is actually by [David] Garibaldi, who is kind of a big deal now. He did the mural right when we opened.”

The eatery recently put on a hum-dinger of a bash in celebration of its 10 years on the grid. The daylong affair included the christening of its new outdoor patio, where guest artists flexed their creative muscles with body painting, chalk art and live painting demonstrations. Also on hand were a few of the members of The Sizzling Sirens Burlesque troupe.

“When I was there it was a pretty good turnout,” says Elizabeth Miller, a regular customer and tattoo artist at Relentless Tattoo. “There were some old, familiar faces from back in the day from when we first started going to the first happy hour, so the old-school group from happy hour was there. I got to see faces that I hadn’t seen in a really long time.”

Partygoers also were treated to raffle prizes from Side Show Studios, Relentless Tattoo, Trash Film Orgy, Sacramento Horror Film Festival, The Sizzling Sirens Burlesque Experience and Body Advantage.

“The first big push was all of our regulars,” Arntson says. “We had a pretty good turnout, but the most important thing was to get all of our regulars together to have a good time and show our appreciation. We also featured our brand new merchandise with our 10-year logo by Liz at Relentless.”

The Relentless ink slinger, who has also decorated the bodies of many of the staff at INK with her work, was allowed to display her artistic chops as well as express her passion for traditional-style pin-up art by designing the restaurant’s T-shirts commemorating its decade-long run in the business.

“Christina approached me to see if I would design a logo for their 10-year anniversary. They gave me some information on what they wanted, they wanted me to use the INK logo, but they let me pretty much pick overall how it would come out,” Miller explains. “The pin-ups on the back were something I came up with to make the 10—tattooing pinups is one of my favorite things.”

The restaurant boasts an extensive menu that includes classics like burgers, sliders, hot wings and macaroni and cheese, but it’s their dedication to their guests with daily specials that keeps their doors swinging open with a parade of guest after guest. Every day there’s a special deal; on “Medical Monday” members of the medical industry can score 35 percent off of dine-in or to-go eats, on “Taco Tuesday” flashing your ink gets you $3 drafts, $5 wine and $3 Tuaca shots, on “Whiskey Bum Wednesday” whiskey specials flow all night long with $3 whiskey cocktails and $3 Jameson shots, while Thursday draws in the many construction crews working nearby with their “Hard Hat Lunch” where workers get 35 percent off their tab.

On the weekends, when brunch reigns supreme on the grid and everyone seems to be doing bottomless mimosas and build-your-own bloody Mary bars, Arntson is looking to steer people away from the typical brunch bevvies.

“I know people are all about the bottomless mimosas, but I’ve been trying to incorporate other things. I have a five-dollar breakfast cocktail menu,” Arntson explains. “I’m starting to do St. Germain sangria pitchers with all seasonal, fresh fruit.”

A recent trip to the restaurant proved why the spot has been around for 10 years. The room was bustling with construction workers enjoying a quick break from the dust and grime while chatting it up with the wait staff. The staff, while obviously enjoying the jokes and stories being told by the construction workers, still managed to provide impeccable and attentive service to the rest of the diners in the room.

The food didn’t disappoint either. The mac and cheese was a display of ooey-gooey goodness, the salmon BLT was an artful display of smoky succulence, the classic Reuben, while not overloaded with pastrami, was lightly dressed in Thousand Island and lovingly sandwiched between two slices of a soft and buttery marble rye and their fried calamari was a study in deep-fried perfection—not too chewy or reminiscent of an old rubber tire.

“My absolute favorite is the grilled triple cheese and a cider,” Miller says. “I get that every time. They put Parmesan cheese on the outside of the bread and then they grill it—it’s buttery and the top of the bread has that kind of burnt cheese on the top.”

Miller also says that while tattoo art typically resides on the human flesh, she is currently working on art for two local restaurants. Proof that the trend set by INK wasn’t just a gimmicky ploy to wrangle in diners.

“I think when people see the art in INK, they look at tattoo art in a different light,” Miller says. “I think that’s why a lot more restaurants are steering toward that [design aesthetic] because I think they realize tattoo artists aren’t just tattoo artists—they can do a lot of other cool things, too.”

Somewhere in tattoo heaven Sailor Jerry is beaming with pride.

World travelers put a multicultural, organic spin on soft drinks

When New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg started grinding his political ax against the soft drink industry and its so-called promotion of Big Gulp-sized sodas, the sugary libation was instantly vilified as the root cause of all that is unhealthy in the United States.

While Bloomberg’s ban fizzled out, courtesy of a judge’s overruling of the law just one day before it was set to take hold of New York soda lovers, the debate continues across the nation, but for two locals—a microbiologist previously with Genentech, Srijun Srinuanchan, and a former corporate sales representative, Payam Fardanesh, turned natural soda makers—it’s really as simple as the old adage: everything in moderation.

“Soda is a treat. It has sugar, but our soda is at least made with good stuff. It’s made with real sugar. It’s organic and there are no chemicals, so it’s good as it can be for a soda,” Srinuanchan says. “And, again, it’s a treat. It’s like having a slice of chocolate cake. Sure you can make chocolate cake healthy but that takes the fun out of it.”

For the business partners, who formed a close friendship while engaging in one of their shared passions—traveling the world, the experience of launching Silk Road Soda Company, Inc. has been a dizzyingly meteoric enterprise, they say. It was only about a year ago that the two made the decision to set out and make their entrepreneurial dreams come true with their organic, Iranian-inspired sodas.

“It’s been unreal,” Srinuanchan says. “We can’t believe the level of support we’ve received from everyone.”

It was their love of travel and appreciation for different cultures that inspired their soda creations, even the name of the company, taken from the Silk Road trade route that existed centuries ago, exemplifies their passion—Fardanesh spent his early childhood in his native Tehran, Iran, while Srinuanchan’s Laotian and Taiwanese roots drive his creative pursuits.

When the duo decided to share their cultural experiences through soda, they took to Srinuanchan’s Del Paso Heights kitchen, turning it into a lab of sorts and, drawing on his experience at Genentech, worked on the formula until it was perfected. Although they started with 10 potential flavors, the partners settled on three; mint, cucumber-mint and pomegranate-mint, but say to look out for some of the seven remaining flavors to hit the shelves in the future.

The duo then worked with a food lab in Santa Cruz, Calif., Venus Research and Development, where the formula was perfected for mass production and, most importantly, to obtain organic certification.

“Sharing a little bit of the Eastern culture with the West was kind of cool to us,” Fardanesh says. “We wanted to represent the region that [these flavors] originated in so, for instance, the gold flavor is exactly the way my grandmother made it, so it’s her recipe. Now, we had to alter the recipe some so we could lower the calorie count and get it up to organic standards.”

“From there we went to the cucumber mint; in Iran and in Greece cucumber is shaved into the drink,” Fardanesh continues. “With the pomegranate, it’s really popular in the region. In Iran people eat pomegranates like apples, so it seemed natural.”

Manufactured in Sonoma County in the sleepy town of Healdsburg, the nearest facility that could produce their product at the level they aspired, and where they could also pasteurize the drink—meaning no preservatives were added, and in the soda business that’s basically unheard of, they say.

“That in a soda pop, in and of itself, is like whack-o. It’s just not what people do,” Fardanesh says. “Soda pop companies add preservatives so they can bottle [en masse] and keep it shelf stable, but we decided we wanted to keep it pure and use a pasteurization process, and it was expensive, but the markets reacted and understood.”

“Any food, actually,” Srinuanchan adds. “Even potato chips, or even candy bars, anything packaged, most of those items have preservatives, some chemical to keep it from rotting and our product doesn’t have any of that.”

The partners say their decision to use pasteurization methods over preservatives account for the price tag of $1.99 and up, depending on different retailers and restaurants.

For the two enterprising men, their success has been rooted in a community that is eager to see them succeed. From former classmates in their MBA program pitching in on the bottle design to random strangers on their Facebook page, they say community support has far exceeded their wildest expectations.

“The top restaurateurs in town, Pat Mulvaney for instance, tasted our product. You know, we didn’t even know him, and he was very interested and very supportive,” Fardanesh says. “We’re two guys basically selling our drinks out of our truck, literally. When you drive up and pull it out of your trunk, it’s kind of Ben and Jerry-ish.”

Their laid-back, homegrown style hasn’t deterred vendors from carrying Silk Road Sodas—from Sunrise Natural Foods, Corti Brothers and Nugget Markets to restaurants like Hock Farm Craft & Provisions and Thai House Restaurant, their product can be found in more than 22 locations.

Not bad for a couple of thirty-something’s selling a homemade soda out of the trunk of their car, concocted in their kitchen.

Based on a decision to keep the product organic versus local, most of the soda company’s ingredients are sourced from Southern California, Oregon (verbena) and even Florida, via a distribution company in Southern California (cucumber). The two plan on meeting with flavor consultants once again to look through each component in their products to see if they’re doing it right. For them, keeping the integrity of the ingredients is paramount.

Although the company is currently a two-man operation, they say through the community’s support it feels like they have 100 employees. Fardanesh and Srinuanchan are looking forward to taking their product nationally, but not too hastily.

“We want to create a brand identity. We want to make sure people like it, and both of those things are happening, so we think the next area will be San Francisco,” Fardanesh says. “It’s our baby, so we want to watch it while it grows, and we’ve already gotten inquiries from New York and Los Angeles, but we don’t want to stretch it out too far yet.”

“We’d love to go national, but we don’t want to bite off more than we can chew,” Srinuanchan adds.

For those on the Bloomberg soda ban-bandwagon, the soda makers say not all sodas are built alike, but again, moderation is the key.

“I even tell people don’t drink more than one a day, but there’s a cleanliness to it because of the ingredients we use; on the back end is apple cider and white vinegar,” Fardanesh says. “So those are things that aren’t in soda pop. We were even having trouble naming it; is it a soda pop or is it a tea with sugar in it? It’s kind of a tea, soda pop and Kombucha, all mixed into one—it’s from the Mediterranean diet, which the world covets being super healthy, but if you’re diabetic you shouldn’t be slamming them.”