Events

Hi friends, Sometimes it’s Labor Day and sometimes it’s a labor to get through the day. Here’s hoping for a wonderful and relaxing late-summer respite from all your worries. Now, on with the show. This Just In! The enduring indie rock band Built To Spill plays live at Moe’s Alley on Nov. 19. Canadian-born singer […]

Hi friends, Grouchy Old Guy Chronicles, Vol. 1: Recently, I coughed up $2.39 for a can of this stuff that the young’uns are drinking called Liquid Death, y’know, just to see what the fuss was all about. Turns out it was just water. WATER! Like, that stuff that you shower in? OK, sure, I live […]

Hi friends, Prayers for Maui. There are so many ways to help, including here, here, here and here. Now, on with the show. This Just In! Tons of newly booked shows and appearances this week. Remember the gonzo SoCal band The Beat Farmers who played Santa Cruz a lot back in the 1990s? They return […]

Hi friends, One of the most popular songs from the great Texas trio Khruangbin is titled “August 10.” And, in a related story, would you look at Thursday’s date? Happy Khru Day! Now, on with the show. This Just In! The king of Los Angeles noir fiction, the great James Ellroy, is coming to Bookshop […]

Hi friends, I’m thinking this week of the time that Paul Reubens, the actor behind Pee-wee Herman, visited Santa Cruz many years ago as a guest of the Santa Cruz Film Festival. I got to meet him only briefly, but he struck me as a sophisticated and bright man who, at least at that time, […]

Hi friends, Of all of humankind’s engineering breakthroughs and technological advances, this time of year I wonder if any of them can top a rope hammock tied between two shade trees and a well-made margarita. Here’s to savoring the summer. Now, on with the show. This Just In! Newly booked upcoming shows this week include […]

Hi friends, Apparently, the whole country is melting like cheese toast under the broiler, except for a thin band along the Pacific coast. Years ago, it might have been fun to gloat at such a ridiculous situation, but no more. We are witnessing another slow-motion tragedy. Enjoy the mild summer, but think of those who […]

Hi friends, Your new vocabulary for this week must include “Barbenheimer,” a portmanteau of two completely unrelated upcoming summer movies, “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” that happen to share only a release date (next Friday, July 21). Why is this a thing? Maybe it’s because it ironically brings together two wildly different cultural ideas — a pink […]

Hi friends, Maybe you haven’t priced Taylor Swift concert tickets recently, but the cheapest tix for Tay’s shows at the 49ers’ stadium at the end of the month are going for four figures. And, if you happen to have a preference for Section C, Row 11, you’re going to have to cough up more than […]

Hi friends, Every year around this time, those strange little roadside stands pop up selling you things that sizzle and sparkle and then disappear as quickly as they came. You’ve reached the halfway point of 2023. Stay safe, and Happy Fourth! Now, on with the show. This Just In! Among the newly booked shows and […]