Syrups, shrubs and switchels—oh my! Burly Beverages is knocking on the door of Sacramento’s refreshment norms with a bunch of old time-y taste sensations. Now admittedly, I was not too familiar with shrubs and switchels until I met Burly Beverages owner Gabriel Aiello. Aiello is more than happy to educate anyone on Burly’s syrups and beverages and has recently opened a tasting room in North Sacramento for those with inquisitive palates to explore the unique flavor combinations of his creations.

So what is a shrub, you ask? A shrub is a syrup made of fruit juice, sugar, vinegar and a few other ingredients depending on the flavor. Shrub syrups are commonly found in cocktails, but Burly has created a line that makes for a most refreshing beverage when added to seltzer water or club soda. With flavors like Pomegranate Pink Peppercorn and Grape Clove, these shrubs are sure to boost any Sacramento summer day with or without spirits.

If you are someone that likes to stick to the classics, look no further than Burly’s cream soda. Steeped in the belly of a Western saloon and stemming from a formula that dates back to the 1800s, Burly’s cream soda is filled with traditional ingredients including cinnamon bark, vanilla beans and a bit of cream of tartar.

I met up with Aiello at his recently opened tasting room on Del Paso Boulevard in Sacramento. There I learned about the importance of seltzer bubbles and found out how an exploding linen closet led to his production of syrups.

This is an impressive setup. Where were you guys working out of before you settled in here?
I started production at Preservation & Co. I was on staff there making pickles and bloody Mary mix and the owner Jason let us use the kitchen there as our initial production facility, but he quickly outgrew being a commissary and needed his kitchen full-time.

Where did you guys go after leaving that space?
After that, we were working out of Lulu’s Kitchen over on 16th and G. It’s pretty much the only commissary on the grid, and because of that they are pretty much booked solid. They were able to give us only four hours a week on Mondays.

Oh wow! That’s barely any time to work.
We had to bring all of our equipment in and bring it all out when we were there. We were bringing in all of our pots, ingredients and bottles every time, so I couldn’t grow the business at all at that point. I couldn’t take on new restaurants or bars. I couldn’t try to go to grocery. We were stuck where we were. It was a complete stopgap. At that point we needed to get out of the situation we were in.

How did it feel to finally have your own space?
We were nervous about having the overhead without having grown the business, but we just jumped into it.

I really like the feel of this location. Did you always have this neighborhood in mind?
There’s an organization down the street called Sierra Service Project … They knew we were looking and told us about this place off of Del Paso. We were hoping to be in the Midtown/downtown area, but the prices were too high. If we wanted a place that was already built out as a restaurant with a hood and stove it would have been way above what we were capable of paying.

Just walking up and down the street here in Del Paso you can feel that there’s a new energy in the area with businesses like yours settling in. How do you feel about being here now?
We really came here with no intention of changing the neighborhood. We just needed a place to cook, but now we’re part of this revival and that is really exciting! This area is so cool!

Did you decide to go into the beverage business while you worked at Preservation & Co.?
Well, I worked at Sun and Soil before that. I helped them get started, I operated their juice press and kind of managed the front for them. When I worked there, I started learning about flavor combinations and beverages and started experimenting at home with ginger beer. I had given up soda about three years before that and started really missing ginger beer with my whiskey and bourbons.

Why did you decide to make your own instead of using other ginger beers on the market?
I just wanted a good ginger beer, and the ones that I found that had good ingredients like Bundaberg or AJ Stephans, they use good ingredients, but it just wasn’t gingery enough for me. I could drink it, but it’s just not what I was looking for. I watched an episode of Good Eats with Alton Brown—it was the ginger episode where he makes ginger beer and ferments it with bread yeast and carbonates it that way. I tried it, and it was OK, but it tasted like bread. I started messing around more … using Champagne yeast, ale yeast and lager yeast.

After you started messing around with ginger beer did you try your hand at other sodas?
I started experimenting with different things like root beer, ginger beer, cream soda and an old switchel I found in my travels. I started getting pretty good at it, but kept having all of these explosions in our house.

Explosions?! What do you mean?
You have to over-sugar soda so that when the yeast eats the sugars, by the time you are ready to open [the drink] and consume it there is still enough sugar for it to be soda. We were using our linen closet [for storage], because it kept a good temperature, and one night we were watching The Walking Dead, and I had a soda experiment in there that I forgot about; then all of the sudden during a peak moment in the show—boom! The linen doors fly open and all this foam and glass start spilling out everywhere, and I realized if I ever did want to sell this to the public, it’s just a time bomb.

Wow! So was that when the syrups came into the picture?
Yeah, there aren’t a lot of soda companies doing what I’m doing. There are a lot of shrub and cocktail companies that make their own syrups, but there aren’t very many people making syrups specifically designed to make sodas at home. And so I was like, “I can do that!”

When did you decide to expand from being solely a production facility to opening a tasting room?
I used the building as a production facility for a long while, then started going to the Del Paso Partnership meetings, and they told us it was great that we’re here and they love that we’re on the boulevard, but asked if we could open a storefront since they are a business district and want foot traffic. So, the store was sort of an afterthought, but only because we were focused on production.

Seems like it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
Yeah, I really do think what the partnership is trying to achieve with getting foot traffic out here is what really is going to make the current revival stick. And now we get to sort of follow Jason from Preservation & Co.’s model of wholesale, retail and a commissary, because now we also rent our kitchen out to caterers. We’re kind of trying to do what he did for us as long as we can.

How do you come up with your recipes?
I really started to get geeky about the history of soda. That’s when I found the recipe we base our cream soda off of. It’s from the late 1850s, which is one of the earliest recorded soda recipes that I found, and it’s so different from the cream soda that we know today. It’s similar enough to be called cream soda, but when soda was in the saloons, a cream soda would be any soda where they would put a dollop of heavy cream or cream of tartar into it. Our recipe does have cream of tartar in it. We also use real vanilla bean, cinnamon bark, Thompson raisins, a little lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and Turbinado sugar. It’s a little more complex and almost horchata flavored with the cinnamon and raisins.

Do you recommend a particular seltzer water to use with your syrups?
Any seltzer water works; La Croix works well. I like the flavored La Croix so that I can make new flavors. I use our pineapple nutmeg with their coconut to make a pina colada flavored soda, but the ginger beer and the shrubs are the only ones I recommend playing around with. I can’t imagine the root beer and cream soda mixing well with flavored soda water. Also, the Safeway brand Refresh is really good, too, because it has a big bubble. I like seltzer water that has a big bubble because when you add syrup to it, it doesn’t dumb down the bubble too much.

Do you have any tips or techniques when adding your syrups to seltzer water?
The colder you get both of them the less bubble loss you’re going to have because particulate matter—which our syrups have—give gas an escape point, so you’re losing some carbonation there.

Well, I can’t wait to try all of the syrups and do some experimenting! Do you see the business quickly expanding outside the area?
All I’m focused on now is Sacramento. We have so much more work to do here!

Burly Beverages’ tasting room is located at 2014 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento For more info, visit their online home at Burlybeverages.com.

**This interview first appeared in print on pages 14 – 15 of issue #241 (June 5 – 19, 2017)**

The ‘90s is considered the golden age of hip-hop. A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, N.W.A., Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. easily come to mind. The raw truth, political content, clever rhymes and seemingly countless notable figures have molded the style’s existence into the unique limitless genre it is today. One of those responsible is Oakland’s very own, Del the Funky Homosapien.

California’s role during the golden age is most notable for the rise of gangsta rap. Del was among those, however, involved with alternative types of reality. His rhymes consistently mark a distinct abstract sense of thought. He is known for his eclecticism and awareness of the past, present, and more dominantly, the future.

I was introduced to Del the Funky Homosapien’s sound through Gorillaz’s pivotal 2001 single “Clint Eastwood.” The track off their self-titled debut album shot them to stardom not only through the song’s melancholic tinges; the lyrics rapped throughout the tune by Del specifically kept audiences hooked. His verses make the song.

Though many give praise to Gorillaz and their own elaborate brilliance on the single, as a child I was frustrated and more concerned with understanding why the funky ghost from the video wasn’t rapping on all the other songs on the album.

Obviously, as I grew older I learned he wasn’t a ghost but an undeniable hip-hop legend. He’s had impressive albums like 1991’s, I Wish my Brother George Was Here (co-produced by cousin Ice Cube) and 2000’s Both Sides of the Brain. Plus he’s largely responsible for founding underground supergroup Hieroglyphics.

I got the chance to talk to Del the Funky Homosapien about what he’s been up to, his creativity and process, the Japanese language and his thoughts on today’s music before he headlines Concerts in the Park on June 9, 2017.

Photos by Galen Driver

Your last release Iller than Most was put out in 2014 and in interviews circulating the internet you tease talks of new material. Can you tell me a little about that?
Basically I’m trying to update hip-hop sound. You know, I like the aesthetic from the ‘90s—the golden age, whatever you want to call it. I like the idea, the process. I think it needs to be updated. Other than battle rap, it’s [sound is] missing. I mean I’m not going to say it’s missing, because I’m not aware of everything that’s on the planet Earth. I don’t wanna offend nobody by saying, there is no hip-hop in existence unless I perceive it. But for me, as an artist and as a fan, what I want to listen to is not readily available.

What goes into making a Del the Funky Homosapien project? Where do you usually start?
It depends on what type of project it is. Something like Deltron takes several years to make. If it were up to me, it’d be pretty basic. I’m trying to keep my music more rhythmic than anything else. I don’t want it too melodic. Like my idea of music is more from an African, afro-centric perspective, based more on rhythm like funk or hip-hop too, centered-around beats.

You’ve worked with MF Doom, Wu-Tang Clan, Zack De La Rocha—the impressive list goes on. Do you have any new collabs in the works?
I just did a project with Amp Live. He’s a producer for Zion I.

When’s that going to come out?
I don’t know … It’s finished now. So we’re just trying to figure out what we’re gonna do with it. We think it’s good enough to be sold. But the industry is kind of dominated by, you know, a few conglomerates.

On “Stay on your Toes” (2000) and “Immediate Rap Hits” (2014), you not only talk about the lack of originality in popular hip-hop, but you also cover greed and the dangers of giving up one’s creative integrity for mainstream success. How have you stayed so centered and grounded throughout your career?
I guess it’s just my personality. There are certain things I’ll do and there are certain things I’m not gonna do. I’m not gonna do things that are not within my belief system or my integrity. No matter what it is.

Regarding new artists, who’s standing up with originality these days?
A lot of cats in New York are very creative. L.A., too. Daylyt. Disaster is extremely creative. This cat named Steams. I’ll just keep it simple. URL [Ultimate Rap League] and We Go Hard on the East Coast primarily are what I’m into. King of the Dot, Black Ice Cartel I’m into, too. So these are like [battle rap] leagues. So anybody on those leagues, you’ll be safe with probably.

In the battle rap scene, anyway.
Yeah, in the battle rap scene. But I feel if they made records they’d probably make bomb records too. But I think that’s part of what’s missing in the music now. And I feel like that’s a big reason why people stopped listening to it [hip-hop] because the lyrics started going from being fun and clever to, “I’m threatening you,” or, “I got more money from you. Now I’m richer than you.”

Do you go to anyone first about creative projects? Or do you just get an idea, stick to it, and then pursue it right away?
Sometimes I talk to people about it, but I’m pretty much by myself most of the time. I mean I just contemplate things. I’m trying to figure out solutions to questions or problems I might have either musically or lyrically. Right now I’m studying humor. Wordplay is about half of what humor is. That’s why I’m into it. Just to get my lyrics more clever, to surprise you, keep you entertained or keep you locked in with what I’m saying. Like Richard Pryor was a childhood hero of mine. But I never thought I could be involved with it all because I had a misconception about it.

In an interview, you mentioned studying the Japanese language in college. I hear the influences of the culture in your music. Have you spoken any Japanese lately?
Not very much. I studied for like three years but obviously if you don’t use the language, you’re not gonna be able to speak it. So I don’t know a lot of it. I know how it works, but if I picked it back up and practiced it, I’d know how to speak it, ‘cause I know the syntax. I would need more than a refresher. You know I’d need the whole set of vocabulary. It’s basically a lifelong thing you don’t just learn in a few days. 

When I listen to your music, specifically Deltron 3030, I hear the future. It reminds me of the dystopian settings in classic novels like George Orwell’s 1984 and Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Do you have a favorite dystopian novel? And if so, have they played a role in your music?
I’ve read a few. Definitely 1984 is one of my favorite books. That was a big influence on just how I look at things. Another that comes to mind is One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Not the book, but the movie. Jack Nicholson is in it. So that’s when I started being a fan of him, kind of really. His acting was just really good in that movie. But just what it was about was like mental institutions and how they keep dogging people. 

Can you tell me about how you, Dan the Automator and Kid Koala came up with the stories for Deltron 3030?
Well, I pretty much came up with the stories, they sort of filled some parts in but like really me and a friend of mine was chatting, I guess on AIM back then, and came up with the need of it. Then in about two hours we had the core of what I wanted the Deltron record to be. This is the second one. The first wasn’t really about nothing. It was basically just me battle rapping. Everything was just in futuristic terms with futuristic imagery and language and all that. 

Do you think there will be a third one?
There could be. Dan [the Automator] got the music all ready. I just have to be interested in writing it. But honestly it takes so much, and honestly, I don’t get that much out of it. I don’t feel like putting the amount of work in it, compared to what I should be getting back to.

Another level of it is like, “Why make a third one?” If it was me as a fan, after the second one, if I’d seen a third one, I probably wouldn’t buy it. Like I wish they would make another game other than Mario Bros. But they’ll probably never do it. They’ll just sit on that little nugget they got forever and just leach and blood suck it out dry

How do you maintain sanity in this chaotic world?
Man, it takes a lot. I’ll tell you that. From dealing with crazy people that come in and out of my life, I’m pretty relaxed for the most part. I don’t consider myself crazy, but it takes work to not lose your mind. I just try to keep focused on what I’m trying to do. I skate a lot, too. I’d say skating is something that helps me definitely settle my mind.

See Del the Funky Homosapien live for FREE at Concerts in the Park at Cesar Chavez Plaza, downtown Sacramento, on June 9, 2017. Also performing will be Soosh*e, The People’s Revolution and DJ Epik. For more info, go to Godowntownsac.com. Check out Del’s latest album Iller than Most via the Bandcamp player below.

**This interview first appeared in print on pages 28 – 29 of issue #241 (June 5 – 19, 2017)**

David Blaine’s brand of deadpan illusionism was brought to a wide audience back in 1997 when his Street Magic special first aired on NBC. From there, he beguiled (and sometimes infuriated) spectators with macabre forms of endurance stunts, such as when he was buried alive in a plastic coffin for a week or when he suspended himself in ice in Times Square for 63-plus hours. However, though he’s done all these things, one journey Blaine hasn’t embarked on is the somewhat more traditional cross-country tour. His travels will bring him through Sacramento on June 4 when he plays the Community Center Theater (1301 L St.). Be prepared for … well, given Blaine’s track record, we have no idea what you should be prepared for, but it’s safe to say you’ll probably leave feeling pretty freaked out. Tickets can be purchased online at Sacramentocommunitycentertheater.com or Davidblaine.com.

**This event preview first appeared in print on page 11 of issue #240 (May 22 – June 5, 2017)**

Do you like to get lit? So do the pair of Sacramento-grown brothers behind up-and-coming Blaq Tuxedo. And they’re bringing the fire.

Brothers Dominique and Darius Logan have written hits for Ty Dolla $ign (“LA” featuring Kendrick Lamar, Brandy, and James Fauntleroy), Chris Brown (“Anyway”), The Rej3ctz (“Cat Daddy”) and a host of other famous rappers. But now, the duo is dropping their own full-length album on May 26, 2017, Art by Accident, blending West Coast rap and R&B sounds into chill vibes and hard-hitting bangers. Hooks that get stuck in your head in a good way alternate with quickly spit rhymes as the siblings trade verses.

When I asked them what it’s like recording and performing their music themselves versus writing tracks for other artists, Dominique discloses, “It’s actually a lot easier to write and record for ourselves as artists because we always know what we wanna say. When you’re writing for other people, you have to keep their perspective in mind and write for their worldview.”

And what do they have to say for themselves? Same as most musicians. Love and ladies are the predominant themes. “We come from an R&B background and so that’s at the core of our music still,” says Dominique. “But we also like to turn up and party and just have a good time, and that’s definitely reflected in the music as well.”

Although some of their lyrics could be construed as misogynistic by feminists like myself, misogyny still predominates the lyrics of many types of music, for better or worse. “Tell me how do you know what’s goin’ on? / How you know what’s in my phone? / You a stalker on the low / Bitch fall back back back / Unless you gon’ throw that ass back back back,” say the Logans in “Lit.” Meanwhile, “Steelers” is a thumping club track that makes it known they’re fans of the Pittsburgh football team while also touting their pussy-eating skills and game.

On the topic of inspiration for their songwriting from an instrumental perspective, which mixes elements of many genres, Dominique answered, “We’re inspired by beats. I feel like different types of music and production bring out different elements. If it’s a pop beat, we end up doing pop-style melodies; if it’s a hip-hop track, we end up doing hip-hop related melodies; and if it’s an R&B beat, we do more on the R&B side. We’re pretty versatile, and so it all depends on the music. Our biggest inspirations are Michael Jackson, Lil Wayne, Stevie Wonder, Justin Timberlake, James Brown and Pharrell.”

The Logans’ musicianship stands on its own, and only two songs on the new album feature other artists. Mike Jay makes an appearance in “Charisma”, while E-40 lends his talent to “Lit.” Says Dominique of collaborating with E-40, “A mutual friend of ours played it for 40 and he liked the song, so that’s how the collab came about. It’s an honor to have him on there because we grew up playing E-40 at home. It’s a blessing to be making music with a legend.”

You can stream much of their music online, even some tracks from Art by Accident that haven’t officially released yet. I checked out their video for “Lit,” and asked them about shooting that. “We shot the video for ‘Lit’ ourselves, but we’re working on a video for the remix with E-40,” says Dominique. “We haven’t shot it yet but we are going to link up with him and shoot it sooner than later.”

Prior to the release of Art by Accident, Blaq Tuxedo along with DJ Carisma also released a mixtape, Tap In, tiding over fans and building some hype. “We recorded Tap In at home in Sacramento over the span of a couple of weeks,” says Darius. “We wanted to raise awareness of our music and movement before we dropped the album.”

Previously, they’ve also released a couple of well-received EPs, Limousine and Red Flowers, that left fans thirsty for more, and Art by Accident answers. Look for them to tour the United States soon after the release of the LP, and they’ve just returned from Europe where they brought a little West Coast flavor across the Atlantic.

Although they’re from Sacramento, the Logans now reside in Los Angeles, trying to make a real go at blowing up, which I’m certain they will. Of their strategic move, Darius explains, “We moved from Sacramento to Los Angeles because we wanted to be successful in music and that was the only way. By living in L.A., we were able to go to parties, network and link up with artists in the studio on a consistent basis, which gave rise to our songwriting and subsequently, our artist careers.”

While some brothers would be at each other’s throats after spending all that time together writing, promoting and touring, in the Logans’ case, their sibling dynamic enables them to create freely and easily. Says Darius of what it’s like working together, “It’s a really natural feeling in the studio because we’re brothers. It’s fairly easy to get things done. We usually start with the beat first, and then the most important thing is the chorus. After that, it’s pretty easy to fill in the verses. Sometimes we’re collaborating on the ideas, but sometimes either one of us just comes up with the idea and the other one fills in the blanks.”

Not quite art by accident, but the art comes naturally.

Stream Blaq Tuxedo’s Art by Accident (released May 26, 2017) via the Soundcloud player embedded below.

**This article first appeared in print on pages 20 – 21 in issue #240 (May 22 – June 5, 2017)**

Everyone that filed into Starlite Lounge on May 12 was originally ready to hear Moving Units, the 15-year-old dance punk band, do their best Joy Division impression in the second story venue. Judging by the band’s recorded covers of post-punk staples like “Transmission” and “Digital,” Starlite was going to be a beautiful, sweaty swarm of moving bodies. Then something happened that is a little unclear and wholly disheartening.

Creux Lies lead singer Ean Clevenger addressed the notable absence during his band’s set.

“You’ll hear about it soon,” Clevenger said. That’s all he would say about Moving Units’ absence.

As of this writing, Moving Units has yet to make any statement regarding why their West Coast tour was canceled, and so it’s uncertain what happened with the band.

Most bands would be discouraged by their slot to open for a touring band change into a headlining show just three days before the set date, but Creux Lies powered through for one hell of a set.

Creux Lies | Photo by Dillon Flowers

The band, formerly known as NMBRSTTN, is a dark, brooding synthwave and post-punk outfit of the highest caliber. Their near hour-long set was made up of entirely new tracks that will eventually be a full-length to be released later this year. The five-piece glided through each song with vigor and precision. The drums hit hard, the synth-driven melodies were nothing short of infectious and the vocals were dynamic.

The whole band was brimming with nervous energy that moved over the crowd quickly. If the songs had been well-known, the room would have been a certified goth dance party.

Clevenger had some personal words to say during the Creux Lies set. He spoke about the need to end rape culture and misogyny in the punk scene and society as a whole.

“We are here to make sure that women are treated fairly and equally,” Clevenger said. “[Rape culture] is too much of a problem still.”

Creux Lies will release their debut album later this year and it’s bound to be one of the local scene’s highlights.

It’s entirely respectable that Creux Lies not only kept the show going, but were able to swiftly find a couple of acts to fill out the night with even more synths and what can only be described as a goth Batman mask.

Killer Couture | Photo by Dillon Flowers

Local duo Killer Couture opened the late night with screams, an Apple computer and a masked percussionist using a literal hunk of metal as their drum kit. The band calls themselves “electronic junk punk,” and it’s no secret as to why. Lead singer Seth Draven painted his face like he was celebrating Dia de los Muertos and wore a shirt that read, “I’m a fuckin maniac,” that came off during the first song. Everything they did was in vein of the chaos that is gladly accepted in the Sacramento punk scene.

The band even covered Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer” in which they paused the song to recite the infamous Donald Trump “Grab ‘em by the pussy” tape and end the speech with a Nazi salute.

Killer Couture | Photo by Dillon Flowers

Once Killer Couture was done shocking the audience like a live dada art piece—they even said, “We’re going to make you feel real uncomfortable” at one point—Oakland post-punks Tremor Low took the stage.

Tremor Low is unsigned according to the band’s Facebook page, and that’s just a travesty. Indie labels should be throwing their money behind the Bay Area synth-loving quartet. Their music is danceable, versatile and intricate. They are even working on creating the soundtrack to an indie video game.

Tremor Low knows how to use their music to fit an ambience. They don’t necessarily need to create one, they just need to be able to get the vibe of the room to create the right mix of their tracks to fit the night. Tremor Low gauges their surroundings and puts the music to the room, not the other way around.

Tremor Low | Photo by Dillon Flowers

Whatever went on with Moving Units could have easily ruined that Friday night at Starlite Lounge. The show could have been entirely canceled. Instead, Ean Clevenger and Creux persevered with this show. Thanks to them, it paid off. Everyone at Starlite was treated to Northern California goth punks going all out for the music they love and damn was it good.

**This review first appeared in print on page 29 of issue #240 (May 22 – June 5, 2017)**

“So uh, the vibe here is way different than last time.”

There is no one “type” of tourist that visits Locke, California. One weekend there is a brigade of motorcyclists, the next, grandma and the grandkids are on a weekend escapade along the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Since investing in a motorcycle, most of my “long rides” (I don’t even know if you can call them that) have been along the delta. Before riding a motorcycle, I had lived in Sacramento for 15 years and not once had I ventured onto River Road.

River Road—my experience with this road began as what seemed like a fairy tale. For as long as I can remember I’ve had this vision of what would be the most romantic rendezvous—a privileged one albeit, but none the less, a dream. It consists of a spontaneous trip in some sort of open vehicle (convertible, motorcycle, truck bed, etc.). It’s summertime; the warm wind gently kisses our faces, the trees above carve a natural tunnel with the long soft branches hanging so close you can almost touch them as you go by. My feet hang out the window, my arms spread wide, rays of sunshine flirt with the slight separation of leaves and perhaps nearby is a body of water that reflects these sun rays. In this moment, everything is perfect. I must have read a children’s book or watched an old cartoon at some point that embodied this visualization.

On a first(ish) date, I was offered a ride on his motorcycle. Keeping my fanatical excitement in check, we casually rode through the city as I held on gently, keeping my cool. What seemed like moments later, a dream I envisioned since I was a small child began developing into reality. No, it was reality. I lifted the face mask, felt the warm air on my cheeks, opened my arms to the sides and looked up to see a romantic covering of trees. With my arms spread I could nearly touch the soft branches and a glistening, flowing river was beyond. We rode past grapes and blackberries along the side of the road and waved to other people on motorcycles riding by. This, was River Road. Since then I have been countless times, with said “boy,” by myself, with my parents, and every time is just as great as the last. Though, that first time really blew my mind.

OK, enough with the romance, but seriously you guys, this drive is amazing. Whether you are in a car, on a motorcycle, a bicycle or walking, you need to take a stroll down this little slice of heaven.

As you meander down the road there are various stops along the way such as wineries, bars and small towns strewn about. One town specifically that I suggest you visit, is named Locke. Hidden off the main road, Locke is a small town about three blocks in size known for its Chinese history. Built in 1915, the town blossomed into a Chinese community and today is one of the last standing Chinese communities in the area.

A good friend and I took a Sunday trip down to Locke recently, and upon our arrival we headed to the only bar in town, Al the Wop’s. There’s history behind the name—just ask about it when you go. A miscellaneous assortment of condiments littered the bar top when I noticed peanut butter and jelly among the collection. Swiftly ordering banana peppers, my friend opened the PB&J, handed me a spoon and introduced me to one of Locke’s traditions (though, I’m pretty sure this one isn’t Chinese).

The town is old and beautiful; a handful of museums reminisce on its history and the grade school brings back memories I hadn’t felt in years. There is a traditional Chinese medicine shop and a statue of Confucius. Families sit outside in their yards while the kids run and play together. There are wooden-planked alleyways and big barn doors etched with writing. The town has some real culture and although it’s small, it packs a punch with its authenticity. I highly suggest getting out to Locke or one of the other River Road towns, but at the very least, enjoy the wonders of the River Road Delta that is so close to our home of Sacramento.

**This piece first appeared in print on page 14 of issue #238 (April 24 – May 8, 2017)**

It’s hard enough to be a comedian of any age, but to try to grow and thrive as a minor has additional challenges. You’re still awkward around people, your life experiences may not be as extensive and some venues either won’t let you perform, or make you stand out in the rain until it’s your turn to go up on the microphone. Despite these challenges, Marcus Peverill and Parker Newman are two 20-year-old comics that have less than a year in stand-up comedy but are already getting reputations as fresh, dark and clever personalities. I’ve watched them win over obnoxious out-of-control rooms and bomb horribly in front of them as well.

Marcus Peverill frequently performs in Sacramento but is based out of Modesto. His family recently moved to Virginia, and he stayed behind to keep working on his comedy. He’s 20, but he could easily be mistaken for someone several years younger. Crowds at bar mics often treat him like a kid that snuck in, but once he disarms them with relationship jokes and sarcasm that someone his age shouldn’t have, he quickly gets them on his side.

Parker Newman, also 20 years old, is a Sacramento native and has a style and observational material that is wickedly disturbing and hilarious. Jokes like, “I don’t think it’s such a big deal when someone says, ‘Jesus Loves You.’ He loves everybody. That’s like getting excited about the free square in the middle of a BINGO card,” feature prominently in his wheelhouse. In March, he tweeted “how’s it going dad?” to Artie Lange, which resulted in a chain of responses, retweets and even a phone call with career advice from the comedy vet and actor on HBO’s Crashing.

I spoke with the two of them individually about the challenges and experiences young new comedians face.

What was your first performance on stage like?
Marcus Peverill: I first performed at The Queen Bean Coffee House open mic in Modesto. There were a bunch of comedians who had been doing it longer than me who went up. I kind of just bombed my ass off pretty much.
Parker Newman: I bombed so badly I didn’t come back for a year. It was horrible. I tried to do an act out that I gave up on halfway through. The joke was supposed be that whoever built a time machine would be really mad about something, so in this joke his motivation was that he wanted to order salad instead of soup. In the middle of my joke, I saw the light and thought I had to get off the stage, so I just said, “That’s my comedy” and walked off.

So the joke was just that he wanted salad instead of soup so he built a time machine?
PN: Yeah, I’m not proud of it.

How did you come back after bombing?
PN: I waited a year and went to Luna’s Café, because I didn’t want anyone to recognize me. But I didn’t realize the same comics go to all of the mics. I actually did alright when I came back, but I didn’t want to bomb again, so I stopped going for another year.
MP: I feel like the reason I stuck with it, even though I bombed, was that all of these comedians told me to keep going. I saw them do well and it inspired me that I wanted to be as good as them, or even better. I kept working on it. I’d go every week by myself, and I started hitting mics in other areas.
PN: I got booed and heckled so badly at Vince’s [Ristorante] in West Sac. I couldn’t even respond to the heckles because new ones would come at me before I could even think of a comeback.

What’s it like at Vince’s?
PN: It’s a bar crowd, but it makes that bar in Star Wars look like Chuck E. Cheese. I am very happy for stage time, but people there aren’t drinking to escape, they don’t even want to live. I don’t even think they’re drinking alcohol there. It’s like anti freeze or some shit. They’re just downing Windex.

What’s a funny experience talking to someone after they saw your set?
MP: I have a joke about my girlfriend hanging herself. I had a couple come up concerned that it actually happened to me. It was so ridiculous that they asked me that I just acted upset that they would even question it. It got really uncomfortable after that.
PN: I have an AIDS joke that wasn’t polished at all. A woman told me that AIDS jokes weren’t funny. I just told her I didn’t know how to talk to girls. Then she said that it wasn’t my joke she had a problem with but that Leonardo DiCaprio made an AIDS joke that she didn’t like. I just said, “OK, I’ll keep that in mind.” I had no idea what she was even talking about.

Parker, you got a lot of attention and encouragement through Twitter from Artie Lange. How did that all happen?
PN: People said that I looked like him so I tweeted, “Hey, Dad, How is it going?” and he saw another tweet of mine that he thought was funny, and we started shooting the shit back and forth. It was awesome to hear from him. It makes me sound like a dick that I’m bragging.

No. You threw a comment that probably should have got ignored, but he responded and dug your stuff. You actually talked to him on the phone for a while?
PN: Yeah, he said he’d like me to open for him. He gave me some pretty good advice. He told me to keep wearing my cargo shorts on stage. “A lot of people will give you shit for cargo shorts, but keep them, and be yourself.” Some people get very anal about how you dress on stage. I get where they’re coming from, but I think it doesn’t matter if you’re not being yourself. You have to be comfortable.

What’s it like performing in a bar compared to a comedy club?
PN: You learn a lot more outside of clubs. I can’t stand telling the same jokes, so I like places like that. But if doing open mics kill your self esteem too much then you can go to The Punch Line or Comedy Spot.
MP: It’s definitely harder [in a bar], but those are the kind of rooms you need to do well in to murder in a club. It advances your crowd work skills. It’s so much more about the material than your stage presence. What sucks is just looking so young.

Do you think your youthful appearances set an expectation with the audience that helps you?
MP: It’s fun because I can talk about things I’ve been through, and they think there’s no way I could have gone through that.

Have you faced obstacles performing at 20 years old? Most of the bars will let you come in to perform, but you have to wait outside, then immediately leave when you’re done.
PN: I’m happy waiting outside anyway, so I can prepare my jokes and hang out with people. There’s a few places that flat out won’t let you in.

How would you describe your comedy?
MP: Darker material and stuff people are uncomfortable talking about. I talk about anxiety and insecurities. My favorite comedians are Rory Scovel and Bo Burnham who have material like that.
PN: Not good yet [laughs]. I’m still working on it, to be honest. People see me as a darker comic but I’m not trying to be offensive. I’m just experimenting with a lot of stuff. I’m still finding my voice and being myself.

You’re getting a lot of praise from veteran comics. Is it hard to get that when you’re so new?
PN: It’s great and I’m honored, but at the same time, I try not to let it get to my head. When I first started getting laughs from veteran comics, and I thought, “OK, cool, I don’t have to work anymore!” But I realize that I’m not shit yet, and I need to keep my ego in check.

What comedians inspired you to start comedy?
MP: The first time I realized I liked it was watching Bo Burnham’s Words Words Words special. I had seen other stand-ups, but I really didn’t think they were that funny.
PN: Bad ones [laughs]. I remember watching people on Comedy Central and thinking I could do better than that. I was wrong. But I love Chris Rock, Kyle Kinane (and a bunch more).

What are goals on your comedy bucket list?
MP: By next year, I’d like to travel. My parents live in Virginia, so I’m maybe going to get a couple of comics to come with me from California to there and find some places on the road to perform at along the way. JR De Guzman said he’d put in a good word for me. Just to see what it’d be like to be a road comic.
PN: I’m just trying to build up my time. I’d love to be able to write as much as I can. I heard getting 30 good minutes is good for going on the road.

In addition to being regulars at many of the open mics in the area, you can catch both Parker Newman and Marcus Peverill together along with headliner Sean Peabody on the Smile Out Loud show at Laughs Unlimited on June 29, 2017. Newman also runs an all-ages open mic comedy show at Café Colonial every third Wednesday of the month.

**This interview first appeared in print on pages 24 – 25 of issue #239 (May 8 – 22, 2017)**

It can be a daunting feeling to try and understand art that feels over your head. A dense novel, an age-old opera—these experiences can be intimidating enough to avoid altogether. That’s the beauty of projects like Dangermuffin, a band that can be enjoyed from any level, whether it be for their airy, easy Americana feel, or the lyrical, more analytical examination of our very existence. Tune in however you feel.

“Folks can take from it whatever they want. I don’t think it needs to be insistent upon itself at all,” said Dangermuffin frontman Dan Lotti. “People can come out, and whether they listen to the lyrics or not, it’s of no consequence because they’re gonna take what they wanna take from it. You can look under the surface of this and find enough there to really dig deep, but if you just wanna take it at a casual level too—that’s sort of the approach we have, almost like a yin-and-yang.”

Back in 2005, Dan Lotti and Mike Sivilli began playing locally around the Folly Beach area in Charleston, South Carolina. Over the next few years, the duo picked up Steven Sandifer (and more recently Markus Helander) and formed officially under the name Dangermuffin, an odd juxtaposition chosen precisely for that reason.

“It started off as something to remind us to not take ourselves too seriously,” Lotti said. “One of the best explanations we have is there’s an old T-shirt design we have that’s sort of like the garden of Eden, Eve by the tree of knowledge, and she’s picking a muffin off the tree, so it’s kind of like the forbidden fruit, if you will.”

By 2010, Dangermuffin had begun touring nationally. Throughout the last decade, the band has recorded six albums, with their newest, Heritage, having been recently released at the end of March. Heritage delves into humanity’s collective roots, how we’re connected spiritually and how that relationship differs from a religious context.

“I think religion is more like a collectivized perspective, a one-size-fits-all sort of thing, whereas a spiritual approach would be a very individual path,” Lotti said. “With Dangermuffin’s music and what we do, it’s a very unique, independent musical expression, so it’s more along the lines of a spiritual pursuit. Less dogma, a little more open-ended, esoteric. Lyrically we use a lot of very old symbols or archetypes—it’s always about the ocean or the sun—these natural themes that everyone all over the planet has a relationship with and can connect with in their own way.”

Coincidentally, the band decided to record part of the record at the Unitarian Church in Charleston, a national historic landmark founded in 1772.

“We got into the space and immediately recognized its phenomenal energy and vibe, and acoustics,” Lotti said.

The church sits in an area of downtown Charleston that is known for being haunted, with frequent ghost tours offered to tourists. Rather than playing into the space’s spooky reputation, Dangermuffin sought out a spiritual connection with the past.

“It didn’t have an eerie feeling, but it did feel like you were tapping into the ancestry of the place,” Lotti said. “We wanted to do the lead vocals late at night with the lights off, and it definitely felt like the place was coming alive energetically, particularly for the songs ‘Ancient Family’ and ‘The Sea and the Rose;’ those two songs, when we laid down the vocals, it was very vibey in the room. It kind of became this reciprocating synergistic situation where it was imparting itself on the performance. It was really cool to do.”

On previous albums, there has been a level of electric grit in Dangermuffin’s music, a spark that would ignite more loosely formed Americana instrumental breakdowns. Though the fluidity remains, there’s a more breezy feeling to Heritage, in part because the album is completely acoustic, with more forward percussive elements.

“Dangermuffin has always been really eclectic musically. We’re running the gamut of all these different grooves and genres,” Lotti said. “We like to call it roots music, because it’s bluegrass, a little bit of reggae, some island-y vibes. The term ‘Americana’ itself is an ever-expanding sort of genre. What is the American experience? It’s all of this amazing music and influences kind of melting together in the American soundscape.”

The result is something easily enjoyed, the kind of laid-back music you’d equate with a lazy afternoon at a festival like High Sierra in Quincy, California, or the now-defunct American River Music Festival (which Dangermuffin has played). However, if you’re looking for a little more to chew on, there’s the deeper message of Dangermuffin, the one that questions where we come from, and how we each on our own relate to this planet and its past inhabitants. It explores our greater need for peaceful resolution and healing, which coincidentally could begin to be found in that laid-back sound.

“In particular, this record is about just further recognizing your roots as a human being and how much your natural surroundings are connected with you,” Lotti said. “That’s really what our heritage is—it’s realizing the truth that’s always around you, and the healing that could take place if we just get back to some of these traditions that have been sort of hanging on by a thread for quite some time. My wife for the past few years has been studying herbal medicine and now she’s a practicing herbalist, and I’m learning so much just from her growth and understanding of these older traditions that are so phenomenal when it comes to bridging the gap through plants. There’s a guy named Immanuel Velikovsky who was a brilliant psychoanalyst who made the connection between planetary trauma and the condition of humanity, and that each one of us carries around this trauma on a daily basis. The most important thing we can do in our lives is to try to heal. I think one of the greatest tools that we have to facilitate that is music.”

The beauty of layers is there’s no pressure in the choice. Whether you want to ask the hard questions or hear the light acoustic hooks, it’s all meant for the taking and for Dangermuffin, about the offering.

“Sometimes I think artists, and I’m not judging anybody, but in a lot of it the message can become insistent, like, this is how it is, we all should do A, B and C,” Lotti said. “It can turn people off. I think it’s more pure if you can approach it from a casual perspective. And a lot of people are really open to the deeper discussion, and when the time’s right to have that conversation I really value it, and we’re just getting back to continuing that conversation and connecting in this lifetime. It’s both of those things, it’s up to them.”

Get down with Dangermuffin any way you see fit at one (or more) of their three upcoming shows in the greater Sacramento area. On May 20, 2017, they play Coloma Gold Trail Grange 452 in Coloma, May 24 they’ll be at Torch Club in downtown Sacramento, and May 26 they play the Strawberry Music Festival in Grass Valley. Learn more at Dangermuffinmusic.com or Facebook.com/dangermuffin. Below you can check out the video for “Ancient Family” off their new album, Heritage.

**The article above first appeared in print on pages 18 – 19 of issue #239 (May 8 – 22, 2017)**

When she was just 22 years old, Cheryl Strayed had lost everything. Her mother died and soon after, her marriage dissolved. However, the young woman was able to put the pieces of her life back together. She decided to walk a thousand-mile trek along the Pacific Crest Trail—from the Mojave Desert all the way to the border between Oregon and Washington. The memoir of her journey, Wild, published in 2012, was wildly successful, netting her numerous accolades. The book became a No. 1 New York Times Bestseller and was even adapted into a film starring Reese Witherspoon. On May 3, 2017, you can see the author in person for a talk at the Community Center Theater (1301 L Street, Sacramento) as part of the Sacramento Speakers Series. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at Sacramentospeakers.com.

**This write-up first appeared in print on page 11 of issue #238 (April 24 – May 8, 2017)**

The inaugural Sacramento Mural Festival took place for a week in August 2016 and left a colorful mark on the downtown area, bringing together nearly a dozen local and international artists to paint large-scale murals on buildings and walls. This year the event will return with a similar mission, even more artists and a new name, Wide Open Walls. Organizers are also looking to expand the event’s overall footprint to bring new works of art to areas like Natomas, Del Paso, the River District, Broadway, Oak Park, South Sacramento and Power Inn Road.

In a press release, Wide Open Walls event founder and well-known benefit auctioneer David Sobon stated that, “This festival will celebrate the incredibly rich story and promising future we have as a city that realizes the value that art brings to our lives,” going on to say, “Our strong artist culture is yet another great reason to live in, or visit Sacramento.”

Wide Open Walls will run from Aug. 10–20, 2017. Hit up Wow916.com to learn more and to find applications to be a participating artist or to volunteer. Be sure to mark your calendars and follow W.O.W. on their social media platforms, because you won’t want to miss this rare opportunity to see huge works of amazing art be created right in front of your own eyes.

**This write-up first appeared in print on page 8 of issue #238 (April 24 – May 8, 2017)**