Coachella Valley Independent July 2023

Mailing address: 31855 Date Palm Drive, No. 3-263

Cathedral City, CA 92234 (760) 904-4208

www.cvindependent.com

Editor/Publisher

Jimmy Boegle

staff writer

Kevin Fitzgerald

coveR and feature design

Dennis Wodzisz

Contributors

Max Cannon, Charles Drabkin, Katie Finn, Bill Frost, Bonnie Gilgallon, Bob Grimm, Valerie-Jean (VJ) Hume, Clay Jones, Matt Jones, Matt King, Keith Knight, Kay Kudukis, Cat Makino, Brett Newton, Greg Niemann, Dan Perkins, Theresa Sama, Maria Sestito, Jen Sorenson, Robert Victor

The Coachella Valley Independent print edition is published every month. All content is ©2023 and may not be published or reprinted in any form without the written permission of the publisher. The Independent is available free of charge throughout the Coachella Valley, limited to one copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased for $5 by calling (760) 904-4208. The Independent may be distributed only by the Independent’s authorized distributors

The Independent is a proud member and/ or supporter of the Association of Alternative Newsmedia, the California Newspaper Publishers Association, CalMatters, DAP Health, the Local Independent Online News Publishers, the Desert Business Association, and the LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert.

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The pandemic altered—and continues to alter—the lives of many people, in ways we’re just beginning to understand. Just ask people who produce theatrical productions.

One of Southern California’s venerable theater venues closed indefinitely in mid-June. The Los Angeles Times reported: “When Center Theatre Group … announced that it was indefinitely pausing shows at the Mark Taper Forum—the creative beating heart of one of the country’s largest regional companies—a sense of deep sadness and acute anxiety resonate with theater leaders across the country. Center Theatre Group might be calling this a ‘pause,’ many said, but that word is a euphemism for a closure—what the entire theater ecosystem had to endure when the COVID shutdowns hit in March 2020. The hard lesson learned—during closures that in some cases lasted close to two years—is that audiences won’t quickly return in nearly the numbers needed to make budgets. The result is a painful, and unprecedented, contraction of regional theaters nationwide.”

The bad news: Some local theaters, like Palm Canyon Theatre, say they’re struggling. The good news: Other local theaters and theater companies seem to be faring better than most. Two Palm Springs-based companies (where the Independent has been a media sponsor for years), Dezart Performs and Desert Ensemble Theatre Company, told supporters their 2022-2023 seasons were among their best ever. The McCallum Theatre’s 2022-2023 season was its second-best ever in terms of ticket sales, CEO Mitch Gershenfeld told me a couple months back.

That said, these theaters all have built-in advantages. It’s a lot easier to sell enough tickets in smaller venues like the Palm Springs Woman’s Club (Dezart) and the Palm Springs Cultural Center (Desert Ensemble) than, say, the 739-seat Mark Taper Forum. The McCallum has a loyal and diverse customer base due, in part, to the sheer variety of productions it hosts.

All of this made me think back to a story Kevin Fitzgerald wrote a few months ago, about older adults who have not been as socially active since the shutdowns. This was the topic of a panel discussion at the Cal State San Bernardino-Palm Desert campus, organized by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, where nationwide attendance is down about 30 percent compared to prepandemic times.

“Recently we had an event here, and I asked one of our former OLLI members why she hadn’t come back to campus,” said Angela Allen, OLLI’s executive director, during the panel discussion. “… She said, ‘You know, Angela, it’s just so hard to come. And it was just so easy to stay home.’ So all of these things made me start thinking: Is there something going on here? Is there some kind of a syndrome, a group of symptoms that are going on? There’s fear, depression and loneliness that seem to be (affecting) our senior population.”

Most of us, more or less, have fully returned to life as we knew it before the shutdowns. But not all of us have—and society is feeling the impact.

—Jimmy Boegle, jboegle@cvindependent.com

THE GIRL CLUB

BY KAY KUDUKIS

Meet Aneka Brown, a badass dancer, fashion designer and event producer

Although life began in San Luis Obispo, Aneka Brown has called Palm Springs home since she was 6 years old.

As a couple, Mom and Dad didn’t make it, and Mom remarried a white man. I ask Brown who she takes after, Mom or Dad, and she says she got a good mix of qualities from all three. Nature and nurture at its finest.

Little girls dream of being ballerinas, and so it was with Brown. Sometimes, little-girl ballerina dreams fade with knowledge and time (yay STEM program), while other girls realize they don’t have the talent or drive. Brown’s experience was a one/two punch to the gut. Here’s No. 1: “I was told that I would never be able to even know that I was technically good. I just

didn’t have the body type, because I was too muscular to be a ballerina.”

Here’s No. 2, a 2022 survey of balletcompany dancers by ethnicity:

• Hispanics 26%

• Asians 9.1%

• African Americans 3.8%

• Other/declined to say: 10.6%

• Caucasian: 50.5%

The disparity in the late 1980s was even greater than it is today, and the blatant racism was not lost on Brown. There were no well-known Black dancers “besides Katherine Dunham and Debbie Allen—and they were choreographers,” Brown said. “You did not see any African-American prima ballerinas. There was no Misty Copeland for me at the time.”

Palm Springs High School had an elite pep/ cheer squad that did dance routines. Brown (whose maiden name is Knight) tried out for “song leader” with five other AfricanAmerican girls—and none of them made the squad. Brown studied dance for 10 years, the final four with Alvin Ailey dancer Michael Green, and she played sports; lest you think she was not full of cheer, Brown is all cheer.

squads were much more diverse, and, Brown tells me, it became more about talent.

So, what do you follow that up with?

“I thought I was going to join the Peace Corps, because I wanted to go to Africa. That didn’t happen,” she said. “I ended up going to Fresno, (to be) around my dad’s family and get to know them more.”

Fresno had more people with faces like hers, so she settled in and went to college for a spell; she then moved back to Palm Springs and took a job as head cheerleader and choreographer for a local semi-pro sports team. She also taught dance at the Boys and Girls Club. Choreography skills took her to Los Angeles, where she had a variety of gigs in the music industry.

Awarded Best AC Repair Company

At 22, she met her husband; they got pregnant quickly, and Brown decided to go back to school for child development and education. Soon, another child was on the way, and they decided to move to Michigan to be closer to his family. No stranger to fashion, she opened her first clothing boutique. She’d been designing and making clothes for her dolls since she could think, using string and glue.

“Our parents … demanded to know how the scoring was done,” Brown said. “So they pulled our files, and (one of the scoring categories) was rhythm. We all received a one. On appearance … ‘the hair is unkempt; the hair’s untidy,’ so it was all this blatantly racist stuff that did not sit well with our parents. From there, they demanded to see the records (yearbooks) from Palm Springs High from the last 20 years. They checked the senior level for song and cheer, and figured out how many Black cheerleaders there were. There was only one.”

I asked what made that one Black girl special. “She was half white,” Brown said. They hired a discrimination attorney. You may have heard of her—Gloria Allred. They didn’t want money; they wanted change in the form of equality.

Although the school board gave themselves an “all clear” on the investigation, within two years, Palm Springs High School’s cheer

“It could have been a turkey baster— anything I can just put the clothes on,” she said. “It was never about the doll; it was about the clothes.” When she learned to sew in home economics, she created her own outfits.

After five years in Michigan, the economy tanked. Brown closed her shop, and the family returned to Palm Springs.

When she was 38, the lifelong nonsmoker received a diagnosis of adult onset asthma and environmental COPD, possibly as a result of the air from the Salton Sea. They put her on steroids for the cough, and that jacked her weight up and down four sizes. Not only could her wardrobe not accommodate the fluctuation; the options were abominable for a stalwart fashionista.

Just like in high school, she began dressing herself in her own creations, including a wax fabric line she calls California Afro-chic. Soon she was making clothes for friends—and a

successful online boutique was born.

Even while designing new collections, managing a thriving online business, and dealing with the limitations brought on by her condition over the past 12 years, Brown continues to raise the cultural and historical awareness of African Americans in our community with fun, educational events, like her recent Juneteenth celebration at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. Local artisans, topnotch entertainers, learning opportunities and some mighty good soul food were had.

(Although Juneteenth has been celebrated since 1866, I first heard about it was in 2017 on the sitcom Black-ish. The Tulsa Massacre, I learned about from Watchmen, which led to me read about Seneca Park and Lake Lanier. There are more.)

Some 33 years ago, five young Black girls got tired of hearing “no” because of the color of their skin, and they affected change. One of those girls sought to know more about her blackness, then came back to her hometown to continue what she started as a teenager. Although her condition constricts her airways, Brown continues to spread an inclusive message: We are better together.

That, and “live everyday of life like you’re on a runway,” because this fashionista is styling, whether she’s relaxing with family and friends, or out slaying dragons. And yes, she makes bags and jewelry to match. You know why. Begins with badass.

Learn more about Aneka Brown Designs at aneka-brown-designs.square.site.

Aneka Brown has been designing clothes since she was a kid. “It could have been a turkey baster— anything I can just put the clothes on,” she said. “It was never about the doll; it was about the clothes.”

OPINION

OPINION HIKING WITH T

BY THERESA SAMA

The heat came late this year; prior to mid-June, we’d only hit triple-digits a few times in the Coachella Valley. I’m certainly not complaining; the cooler temperatures have been ideal for hiking and enjoying the great outdoors, for sure.

But scorching summer heat is inevitable, so per usual at this time of year, we need to discuss how to stay cool when hiking in the high heat; how to plan and prepare for your hike; and the importance of staying hydrated before, during and after your hike.

REI’s Expert Advice column offers great advice for hiking in the hot weather, including tips on planning when and where to hike, what clothing to wear, and how to protect yourself from sunburn, dehydration, overhydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Do you

know it can take 10-14 days to acclimate to high heat?

One obvious but important tip: Stay in the shade! It’s a good idea to choose trails with some kind of shade, whether it be from trees or steep canyon walls, to avoid direct sun exposure as much as possible. Another tip: Choose a hike near water to keep yourself (and others with you) cool during hikes in the high heat. Hiking along flowing water is refreshing and rewarding. You can always keep cool by dipping your hat and/ or bandana/neck gaiter into the cold water, then wearing them to help lower your body temperature.

We’ve had above-average rainfall here in the desert, with more snow in the higher elevations, which has led to an abundance of running water that is still plentiful late into the summer months. Here are three great water-adjacent trails within the Indian Canyons (tribal land managed by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians):

• Andreas Canyon Trail is a popular hiking destination that provides shade and a stream with flowing water. The easy 1-mile scenic trail loop takes you through a lush palm oasis, offering a refreshing and cooler environment when compared to the surrounding desert. It has diverse vegetation with stately skirted palms and is excellent for birdwatching. As mentioned on the Indian Canyons website, this trail features beautiful and unusual rock formations where one can still see bedrock mortars and metates used centuries ago for preparing food.

• Murray Canyon to Seven Falls Trail offers shade and the opportunity to enjoy a seasonal stream while walking under a cool tree canopy. This is an easy to moderate trail, approximately 4 miles round trip. Along the way, you’ll encounter a variety of plants, including majestic palm trees, and you may see wildlife, such as the peninsular desert bighorn sheep and the Least Bell’s vireo bird, which is known to nest there.

• Palm Canyon is a 15-mile-long area

offering many moderately graded trails that wind deep into the canyon and make for amazing exploring experiences. There are places for picnics along the stream, and there are plenty of great spots for meditation, too. The upper canyon offers an easy 2-mile out-and-back hike, starting and ending at the Trading Post. The dense vegetation and towering palm trees provide shade and a cooler atmosphere. Palm Canyon is the world’s largest Washingtonia filifera (California fan palm) oasis.

Indian Canyons charges a modest entry fee and is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through July 4. After that, the canyons are only open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Sept. 30. Dogs are not allowed. If you want to take your furry friend out in this heat, they will be most welcome at the Whitewater Preserve. At one time the desert’s best-kept secret, the Whitewater Preserve offers more than 2,000 acres of hiking with shade and an abundance of cool running water this year (at least as of this writing). It’s a perfect escape and a great place keep relatively cool on hot days, allowing you to get some good exercise— followed by a picnic lunch in the shade, if you wish. It’s one of my coolest hangouts on the hottest days of summer. Learn more about The Wildlands Conservancy’s Whitewater Preserve at wildlandsconservancy.org/preserves/ whitewater.

Regardless of what trail you select, always wear a hat, preferably with a brim that will protect your face, ears and neck; wear light colors—such as white, tan or khaki—which will reflect the sun and keep you cooler (rather than darker colors, which absorb the sun’s rays). Clothing should be lightweight, loose-fitting and breathable to help regulate your body temperature. UPF-rated clothing (ultraviolet protection factor) is best.

Know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion (dizziness, headache and clammy skin) and heat stroke (dizziness, nausea, vomiting, a lack of sweat, confusion and disorientation). If you start experiencing any

symptoms, get out of the heat; drink water; and eat a snack. Stay calm, and don’t try to continue on if you’re exhausted; instead, seek shade, and stay put.

Even on trails with shade and water, the desert heat can be intense, and it’s essential to follow precautions, such as staying hydrated, wearing appropriate clothing and avoiding the hottest parts of the day. Otherwise, your fun day of hiking could

quickly become painful, dangerous and lifethreatening.

Always take more water than you should need—at least one liter per hour—and always be prepared for the unexpected. Have a plan! In addition, don’t forget the 10 desert essentials (www.desertmountains.org/10essentials) suggested by Friends of the Desert Mountains.

Stay safe, and have fun!

Yes, you can find cooler hikes during the heat—but give yourself time to acclimate

The Whitewater Preserve offers more than 2,000 acres of hiking with shade and an abundance of cool running water. Theresa Sama

OPEN DURING CONSTRUCTION

by Kevin fitzgerald

The Backstreet Art District sits just a block and a half south of a heavily traveled stretch of Highway 111 near Palm Springs’ border with Cathedral City—but the area with 11 galleries, a combination antique store/gallery and a custom framing shop can be easy to miss, even when you know where you’re headed.

Today, however, reaching the local arts mecca is even more difficult, thanks to a construction crew that suddenly arrived toward the end of May’s first week to install a much-needed, longdelayed storm water-drainage system.

Backstreet tenants had been told that construction would begin on Oct. 31, 2022, and be

completed by Dec. 30, 2022. That didn’t happen, and for months, they heard nothing from anyone about the project’s status. Then came the unannounced arrival of contractor Sukut Construction’s workers, trucks, earthmovers and the like—along with the huge sections of concrete pipeline, which suddenly surrounded the newly formed island of art galleries.

“It’s just really unfortunate that there’s not a lot of communication, so that we could all work together to keep things optimal for everyone,” said Kelly Truscott, owner and operator of the Artize galleries in both the Backstreet Art District and La Quinta. “They should get to do their job in the most efficient way, and we should still be able to have our businesses. Selling art is not one of the easiest businesses, but when it becomes more complicated for visitors to get here, it makes (our jobs) more difficult.”

The crew began by shutting down and then digging up the portion of Matthew Drive (a road which becomes Gene Autry Trail on the other side of Highway 111) that runs along the back of the L-shaped strip mall housing the galleries. As a result, the Art District lost the use of roughly a dozen parking spots. According to one business owner, building management was forced to urgently call both the city of Palm Springs and Sukut Construction company management when the digging, which was expected to occur only in public spaces, began encroaching on the mall property itself.

That digging, however, was never the main concern of the Backstreet Art District businesses. Rather, it was the negative impact on customer traffic caused by the road closures, the absence of any obvious detour signage, and the mud, dust and dirt generated by the trucks and construction.

Truscott shared with the Independent a page from her hand-written customer-traffic records. It revealed a drop in weekly customer visits of roughly 50-65% in the weeks since the road closures went into effect.

“The critical (access) issue is the

intersection of Seminole Road and South Cherokee Way, which is where our main parking entrance is,” Truscott said. “Also, the (detour) signage isn’t as clear as it needs to be. And whose responsibility is that? I don’t know. Is that our responsibility as the business owners? … We see curbs being put in on the other side of the street, and we didn’t have curbs here before, so that’s a nice sign.”

At the opposite end of the Art District from Artize Gallery is Howard’s Custom Frame Shop. Justin (he would only give us his first name) said he had been the store manager for seven years before he purchased the business about 10 months ago. He said he’d been told that this entire storm water-installation project would be completed by January 2023. Previously, he said, there had been consistent walk-in business, and some art collectors who purchased a painting at a neighboring gallery would come directly to his business to have it custom framed—but that’s not happening now. He expressed frustration about the lack of communication from Riverside County and the city of Palm Springs to residents and business owners about the status of the project, and when road closures would take place.

Julianna Adams is in charge of emergency management and government affairs at the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District (RCFCWCD), and Komy Ghods heads up the design and construction division there. After visiting the Backstreet Art District, the Independent spoke with them via phone—and they expressed concern when they heard about the challenging situation the project has created for these businesses.

Ghods described the project’s purpose: “Basically, it’s a storm drain and basin project that we’re building in that area to provide flood protection to both residents and business owners along Matthew and South Cherokee, extending all the way down to Highway 111. … So in a nutshell, (it’s about) collection and conveyance of storm water that comes off that mountain there.”

We asked Adams why the residents and business owners had been given such little

information about what to expect.

“We do multiple things, usually in coordination with the city where the projects are being constructed,” Adams said. “So it’s in partnership with the city that we communicate with the different businesses and residents. Also, we have to coordinate with the contractors to develop a schedule. But in this case, it seems that there’s a misconnect, so what we’ll do is talk to the city and request that the city reach out to the different business owners and communicate the latest schedule that we have for the project. That way, the business owners will have the latest information and know when we expect to be out of that area, so that their businesses can (go back to normal operations).”

When can these struggling businesses expect the disturbance to come to an end?

“It’s kind of hard to (say),” Ghods said during our interview, which occurred at the end of May. “It’s up to the contractor, because it’s their means and methods. They’re doing the best they can. They’re doing good work out there, and we’re getting close. I figure

we’re some three to four months away, but it’s hard to give a definite date. Everybody always wants to know when the final day will be, but that’s just hard to predict.

“We’ll definitely reach out to (the Arts District businesses) again now, and to the city of Palm Springs (to) coordinate with them some more. This project has been years in the making. It will greatly improve the safety of these areas when the next flood situation arises, and we want to complete it with as little disruption to residents and businesses as possible.”

While businesses owners in the Backstreet Art District are frustrated about the disruption and the lack of communication, they’re definitely happy the storm waterdrainage system is going in.

“It has to be done,” Truscott said. “Some of us were here when that storm four years ago came in, and we had the Seminole Road river out here. It came up within 10 feet of the building. We saw mailboxes still attached to concrete cinder-block moorings going by. … So I’m grateful that they’re now putting in storm drains.”

Backstreet Art District business owners bemoan the lack of communication regarding a much-needed storm water-drainage project

The closed intersection of South Cherokee Way and Seminole Drive is visible from the front door of Artize Gallery. Kevin Fitzgerald

TAKE THE INDEPENDENT CHALLENGE

1. Peruse the Independent. Look at the quality of the writing, the layout, the topics, etc.

2. Do the same with any other local publication.

3. Compare.

NEWS

CV HISTORY

by greg niemann

Gambling is ubiquitous in the desert communities today, but that wasn’t always the case. In fact, gambling was considered taboo in Palm Springs back in the 1930s and 1940s. In 1931, Nevada legalized gambling. While it was still illegal in most of the country, many communities looked the other way; after all, the Depression years were tough, and gambling was a welcome diversion. Gambling boats had started appearing offshore near Los Angeles, where water taxis shuttled out customers. Clubs also began opening in the city itself. Al and Lou Wertheimer, members of the infamous Purple Gang that terrorized Detroit, moved West in 1931 and opened up the Clover Club, one of Los Angeles’ finest gambling

houses. A third brother, Mert, was running a casino in Reno. They wanted to broaden their activities to Palm Springs—but Al and Lou ran into a roadblock: In Palm Springs, town leaders, led by the indomitable Nellie Coffman (owner of the popular Desert Inn), effectively squelched all attempts to open gambling clubs.

After being denied in Palm Springs, the brothers bought 20 acres in nearby Cathedral City to build their casino, and they opened the Dunes Club in 1934. The Spanish-style building was out in the middle of the desert off a newly bulldozed street called Date Palm Drive.

The Dunes was first-class, with elegant chandeliers, gilt-edged China, cut crystal and French cuisine. There was even a dress code for the patrons requiring formal evening gowns and suits. The finery seemed a bit at odds with the green felt tables and heavily armed guards. It was also alleged that the games could be rigged for the house.

It is said that Al Wertheimer had sufficiently bribed a local official who, in turn, notified the Dunes when a “raid” might take place. Many felt that the occasional “raids” were merely for show. The accommodation worked well, and for years, the Dunes Club was the “in” place to go. Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, Carole Lombard and Darryl Zanuck were all visitors.

The original Dunes Club burned to the ground in a suspicious fire in 1943. The success of the Dunes, however, prompted others to get into the game in the small community of Cathedral City.

Also in the 1930s, the 139 Club was opened by Earl Sausser and featured free chili, sawdust on the floor and numerous slot machines. It became the most popular club by appealing to a broader audience. (For example, the Dunes Club did not have slot machines, only table games.) Sausser died in 1942, and his lawyer, Walter Melrose, ran it until it closed in 1947. The building later became a thrift shop and was finally torn down in 1985.

An associate of the Wertheimers, Frank

Portnoy, along with parking lot mogul Jake Katelman, opened The Cove, an upscale gambling club in Cathedral City. Constantly hassled by the authorities, they closed it down and moved to Las Vegas. The Cove Club, on East Palm Canyon Drive, later became an Elks Lodge.

Irwin “Ruby” Rubinstein, a close friend of Frank Sinatra, along with Wertheimer, bought a pool hall and café at 238 N. Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, where they opened Ruby’s Dunes. Though it was a restaurant/nightclub, not a gambling venue, it was still a popular hangout, as Sinatra’s presence attracted his celebrity friends. After Wertheimer was convicted for tax evasion in 1942, Ruby took over the ownership. Rubinstein sold his interest in 1969, and the place underwent numerous ownerships and name changes.

The famed Howard Manor

Not content with the success of the Dunes Club, Al Wertheimer tried to operate an illegal gambling operation out of his home, an intimate hotel he built in 1937. Originally called the Colonial House, it later became Howard Manor.

The Colonial House, at first, was more or less a private hotel, housing the owner and his gambling buddies. It was reported that his home/hotel had a large illegal gambling room downstairs, entered through a secret stairwell concealed behind a locked pantry cupboard.

Wertheimer was later busted for tax evasion and given a 60-day sentence. While he made money from gambling, he did give back to the community. A Palm Springs Life article noted that he supported local charities, particularly youth groups. He bankrolled Palm Springs’ first baseball diamond, and contributed to other worthy causes, including repairs to Our Lady of Solitude Catholic Church. He earned the gratitude of many, even if they criticized his gambling ventures, before his death in 1953.

Howard Manor, at 572 N. Indian Canyon Drive, began its long run as a popular resort

hotel in the late 1940s, when Robert S. and Andrea Leeds Howard bought the property. Robert was the son of Charles Howard, a successful car dealer and owner of the famous racehorse Seabiscuit. Andrea Leeds was an actress who had achieved fame in the 1937 movie Stage Door with Katharine Hepburn; Leeds even earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

The Howard Manor’s supper club was called the Academy Room, and it became a legendary Palm Springs hotspot. For three decades, the Howard Manor gave larger resorts a run for their money.

In 1956, Annie and Dave Margolis leased the hotel from Robert Howard and continued operating it. In 1957, former boxing heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey, Margolis’ friend, bought a 10 percent interest. Dempsey spent a considerable amount of time in Palm Springs at the hotel, greeting guests and looking after his investment.

Countless celebrities visited the Howard Manor, including Frank Sinatra, Howard Hughes, Ronald Reagan, Kirk Douglas and Zsa Zsa Gabor. It was the type of social scene that became legendary in Palm Springs.

In the mid-1970s, when it was still a hot spot, I left Los Angeles for a carefree and relaxing Palm Springs weekend and stayed at

Howard Manor when it was still a hot spot. Heck, I even bought a “Howard Manor” T-shirt. The hotel was sold in 1979 to fitness pioneer Sheila Cluff and her husband, Don, who established one of the first spas in the desert. Sheila was a former figure skater and physical-education teacher and soon had her charges doing aerobics and other fitness routines.

The Cluffs changed the name to The Palms and made major renovations, creating a 45-room health resort. The Palms was not only one of the oldest spas in Palm Springs, but one of its most popular.

Extensive renovations were again performed in 2007, when it was renamed the Colony Palms Hotel. Today, it is a four-star boutique hotel spread out over three acres.

In 2023, tribe-owned casinos, including the three Aqua Caliente casinos, provide a plethora of gambling options in the Coachella Valley. People no longer have to run casino games out of the basements of their own homes.

Sources include Palm Springs Confidential, by Howard Johns (Barricade Books, 2004); Palm Springs Babylon, by Ray Mungo (St. Martin’s Press, 1993); Palm Springs Life, August 1988 issue; Los Angeles Times, May 26, 2021; and Colony Palms Hotel archives.

Before the tribe-owned casinos, illegal gambling operations brought crowds to Cathedral City

The former Ruby’s Dunes. Courtesy of the Palm Springs Historical Society

CIVIC SOLUTIONS

by Maria Sestito

People often assume that I’ve always loved books because, well, I’m a writer. But this wasn’t the case; I was a bit of a reluctant reader.

It wasn’t that I didn’t like reading or wasn’t confident; I just couldn’t find anything I liked. When other kids were reading the Harry Potter series, I was reading CosmoGirl magazine—and, let’s be honest, I was mostly looking at the pictures, cutting things up and making collages for my wall. Thankfully, there were several factors working in my favor. Teachers were encouraging of my reading and writing ability; my mom and I both liked the idea of me getting into reading; and we really enjoyed getting free Six Flags tickets, the prize given to students who logged 300 or so

minutes reading anything other than school material. My magazines counted, but mom and I still looked for something better, perusing local library shelves for what seemed like hours until something piqued my interest.

I wasn’t interested in wizards, dragons or talking animals, so my mom let me go into the teen and adult sections of the library. My mom remembered enjoying Danielle Steel, but her books didn’t work for me, either. (I tried The Promise, published in 1978.)

We kept trying and, as a reward, we enjoyed a day of riding roller coasters each summer— something we may not have been able to afford otherwise.

Librarians are trained on how to make book suggestions to people like me. I recently spoke with Jeannie Kays, director of library services at the Palm Springs Public Library, about the importance of summer reading.

“Children lose reading achievement if they don’t read over the summer,” Kays said, referring to what educators call “summer slide.”

Though the research on summer learning loss has been mixed, there’s no question that disparities in education, combined with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, have taken a toll on student learning and achievement, in addition to students’ physical and mental health. Reading and math scores of 9-year-old students, for example, fell significantly between 2020 and 2022, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).

“Students in 2022 are performing at a level last seen two decades ago,” said Daniel McGrath, acting NCES associate commissioner, last September.

Some school districts, including Los Angeles Unified, considered adding more days to the school year to help, but these ideas haven’t been popular. Fortunately, local programs, like those at Coachella Valley’s libraries, can help kids and families can make up some of that time.

Summer reading can help get kids back on track by increasing literacy (which helps students across Common Core learning areas), exposing them to new skills or ideas, activating their imagination and helping them relax.

Reading can even be social: Students and families can read together, join a book club or attend a story time.

“We want kids to read. We want them to find the right books,” Kays said. “We want to match people with books that they will enjoy, because it’s not homework. It’s just fun.”

Summer reading programs often offer incentives—like those theme park tickets—and the Palm Springs Public Library is no different. Participants can win anything from a Nintendo Switch to an Amazon gift card or, for early readers, a Power Wheels ride-on Jeep!

This year’s theme at most libraries in the valley is “Find Your Voice.”

“It can mean many different things,” Kays said. “It can mean become an advocate; speak up. It could also mean find your passion, find what you love to do—and that’s really what we’ve taken to heart here in Palm Springs, find your passion.”

With that in mind, library programming goes beyond reading, and includes cooking classes, drum circles, animal shows, craft activities and more. Libraries are a place to connect to information, learn, play and explore.

At the Rancho Mirage Library—which, like the Palm Springs Public Library, operates outside of the Riverside County Library System—the theme is “Read for the Stars.” Its summer programming is centered on learning about outer space; the library’s observatory is open, and telescopes can even be checked out.

Kays said that libraries are also advocates in the community, helping protect the right to read and access information. The American Library Association reports that there were an unprecedented number of attempts to ban books across the country last year—nearly double the amount reported in 2021.

“Of the record 2,571 unique titles targeted for censorship, most were by or about LGBTQIA+ persons and Black, Indigenous and people of color,” according to the ALA.

“This is a dangerous time for readers and the public servants who provide access to reading materials. Readers, particularly students, are losing access to critical information, and

librarians and teachers are under attack for doing their jobs,” said Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, ahead of Banned Books Week, which will be in October.

Why do some people want to ban books? According to the ALA, books are usually challenged (restricted) or banned (removed) with good intentions “to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information.”

I decided to look through the books that were most challenged when I was growing up. The list includes I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene, the Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine, the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein, and even Where’s Waldo? by Martin Handford.

The list goes on and on. It makes me wonder: If all these books were banned, what would be left for children to read? A common claim in book challenges is that the books are “sexually explicit.” Though I haven’t read all of the recently challenged books, I doubt any of them are as violent or as sexually explicit as, say, the Bible, which, in 2015, actually did make the American Library Association’s list of the most challenged books.

When I finally found a book that spoke to me—Falling From Fire by Teena Booth—it was because it reflected a reality that I wasn’t seeing in other texts. It was a family drama dealing with a house fire and what I now know to be PTSD. It felt closer to my life than wizards or dragons. I wanted to read about girls my age dealing with real drama.

I went on to read The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (which did give me nightmares but was the first book that I couldn’t put down) and The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. Both books have been challenged in recent years.

The Lovely Bones is one of the books that’s most often been challenged, and was recently banned in schools in Martin County, Fla. Despite the nightmares, I loved reading it—and the unfortunate fact is that many girls (and adolescents in general) have already dealt with sexually explicit language, sexual harassment and/or abuse. I can see parents not wanting The Lovely Bones to be assigned reading—but to restrict access altogether? Talk to your kid when they bring it home; don’t prevent the rest of us

from finding life in the fantasy.

And if a kid really wants to access this type of content, they’re going to find a way—even if it is successfully removed from libraries and schools. I’m not a parent yet, but I’d rather a child read about something in a book before they encounter it in the media, on the internet or out of the mouth of a politician or celebrity.

We should be encouraging critical thinking, which means teaching children to read and to question what they read, watch and hear. We should be encouraging them to find their passions and use their voices. They are the future, after all.

In my case, The Secret Life of Bees and The Lovely Bones always stuck with me and are big reasons I became both a reader and a writer. Thank goodness my local library didn’t remove these books from the shelves.

I grew to love reading and writing thanks, in part, to often-challenged books I got at my local library

Jeannie Kays, director of library services at the Palm Springs Public Library: “We want kids to read. We want them to find the right books. We want to match people with books that they will enjoy, because it’s not homework. It’s just fun.” Maria Sestito

JULY ASTRONOMY

By Robert Victor

Soon-to-depart Venus reaches peak brilliance in July. With an optical aid, it presents an ever-thinner crescent. Binoculars and a vantage point with unobstructed views toward the west will become increasingly essential to follow Venus, two other planets and a star—down into the evening twilight glow.

Jupiter and Saturn, 62 to 66° apart and well up in the predawn sky, suffer no barrier to observation—except, for some, the early hour. The Summer Milky Way, from a dark site on a clear moonless night, is recommended to all.

In July, Venus takes the plunge: On July 1 at sunset, as seen from the Coachella Valley, Venus appears 29° up in the west, and 41° to the upper left of the setting sun. That evening, Venus sets

2.4 hours after the sun. By Aug. 1, Venus will be only 5° up at sunset, and 18° to the upper left of the sun. Venus will then follow the sun below the horizon by only 27 minutes. Venus’ distance narrows, from within 46 million miles of Earth on July 1, to within 29 million miles on Aug. 1. The apparent size of Venus’ disk grows from 35” (arcseconds) to 55”, while the fraction illuminated wanes from 31 percent on July 1, to a slim 5 percent on Aug. 1. The apparent size is large enough for the crescent to be resolved with ordinary binoculars of 7 or 8 power. To succeed, find Venus very soon after sunset. Having the planet near greatest brilliancy at magnitude -4.7 in first half of July makes sightings in the daytime and bright twilight easier. When searching for Venus in daytime, take care to avoid pointing your optics at the sun!

Binoculars are also useful to follow the pairs and trios formed by planets and stars low in the western twilight glow, as plotted on our evening twilight sky map. On June 30, Venus approached within 3.6° to the west (lower right) of Mars in a quasi-conjunction, and now begins to fall back. On July 4, look for a patriotic gathering of red Mars. 3.8° to the upper left of white Venus, and 3.4° to the lower right of blue Regulus, heart of Leo, the Lion. All three fit within a field 7 degrees wide. Compared to Venus, Mars and Regulus are faint, magnitude +1.8 and +1.4. Venus and Regulus appear within 5° from July 9-25, and reach a minimum separation of 3.5° on July 15 and 16, as Venus passes below Regulus. This is another quasi-conjunction, since Venus approaches within 5° of Regulus without overtaking it. Mars fits within the same 5° field on July 9 and 10, forming a trio, at its most compact on July 9, 4.7° across. On July 10, Mars appears 0.7° (minimum distance) above Regulus and 4.9° to the upper left of Venus. Mercury enters the mix by mid-month, but you’ll need binoculars and an unobstructed view, as it remains very low in twilight. During the week of July 16-22, look to the lower right of Venus, by 17° on July 16, and 10° on July 21.

As Venus sinks lower into bright twilight, and Mercury is slightly higher daily, you’ll be looking to the upper right of Venus the following week, by 6° on July 24, and 5° (least separation) on July 26. If you can still find zero-magnitude Mercury on July 28, look for fainter Regulus just one-quarter of a degree to its right.

The waxing crescent moon overtakes Mercury, Venus, Regulus and Mars from July 18-21— all twilight gatherings accessible with binoculars! Follow the moon past Spica on July 24 and Antares on July 27-28, until it’s full on Aug. 1.

Saturn (magnitude +0.8 to +0.6), approaching its opposition in late August, rises south of east in the late evening in July, from 3.1 hours after sunset on the 1st, to 1.3 hours after on the 31st. Bright Jupiter (magnitude -2.2 to -2.4) rises in the east-northeast around 2 a.m. at the start of July, and about a quarter hour after midnight at month’s end.

Predawn skies: Follow the waning moon past Saturn in the south-southeast to south on July 7; Jupiter in the east on July 11-12; and the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters and Aldebaran, in Taurus, on July 13-14. The “V” of Aldebaran and the Hyades points through 2.5-magnitude Alpha and 4.1-magnitude Delta in Cetus, 7° apart, and another 6° in a straight line beyond Delta to the long-period variable star Mira, expected to reach peak brightness near third magnitude this month. An hour before sunrise by late in July, Orion has risen in the east, while the Summer Triangle (Vega, Deneb and Altair) is high in the west.

Stars and the Milky Way: Now that the aforementioned Summer Triangle is in the eastern sky at nightfall, and Scorpius is in the south, we know that the season for evening viewing of the Milky Way has arrived. On dark, moonless nights, look for the Teapot asterism formed by eight bright stars of Sagittarius, the Archer. It follows Antares and the Scorpion across the southern sky, while the Summer Triangle climbs high in the east. The Milky Way looks like a cloud of steam rising out of the spout of the

Planets and Bright Stars in Evening Mid-Twilight For July,

2023

This sky chart is drawn for latitude 34 degrees north, but may be used in southern U.S. and northern Mexico.

Evening mid-twilight occurs when the Sun is 9° below the horizon. July 1: 46 minutes after sunset.

15: 46 " " "

31: 44 " " "

Teapot, and passing through the Summer Triangle, along the neck of Cygnus, the Swan. As we face the Great Sagittarius Star Cloud above the Teapot spout, we’re looking toward the inner regions of our Milky Way galaxy. As we examine the Cygnus Star Cloud, we’re facing ahead of the sun in its revolution around the galactic center, into our own nearby spiral arm, which binoculars readily resolve into countless stars!

The Milky Way is in an ideal position for observation in a dark, moonless sky, with the center of our galaxy highest and due south, in Palm Springs on Sunday, July 9 at 11:22 p.m., getting four minutes earlier each night, until Friday, July 21, at 10:34 p.m. There are other good viewing times! On earlier dates or earlier in the night, the Milky Way won’t be quite as high in the sky. Later, southern parts of the Milky Way descend closer to the horizon. Avoid bright moonlight or areas with bright artificial

lights. On the full moon night of July 2-3, and again on the evening of July 29 (when 90% full), the bright moon is at its southernmost place, in Sagittarius, and creates poor viewing conditions.

The July 2023 Sky Calendar illustrates many of the events described in this column. It is available by subscription at www. abramsplanetarium.org/skycalendar.

The Astronomical Society of the Desert will host a star party on Saturday, July 15, at Sawmill Trailhead, a site in the Santa Rosa Mountains at elevation 4,000 feet. For maps and directions, visit astrorx.org.

Robert C. Victor originated the Abrams Planetarium monthly Sky Calendar in October 1968 and still produces issues occasionally, including May and July 2023. He enjoys being outdoors sharing the beauty of the night sky and other wonders of nature.

The month offers plenty of chances to view portions of our own Milky Way galaxy

AFTER 18 MONTHS of negotiating— and bickering amongst themselves—the three lower Colorado River basin states of California, Arizona and Nevada reached an agreement on how to best conserve the river’s valuable water supply in the near term.

Although the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation had set a Jan. 31 deadline for the three lower-basin states and their four upper-basin colleagues (Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming) to deliver a plan to conserve 2 to 4 million acre-feet of Colorado River water in 2023 and years beyond, no consensus was reached until May 22.

On that date, the lower-basin states sent a proposal to the Bureau of Reclamation detailing a conservation strategy to save 3 million acre-feet of Colorado River water between now and Jan. 1, 2027. California committed to saving 400,000 acre-feet of water per year—which means that a bit more than half of the total savings will be achieved by California alone.

What does this mean for the Coachella Valley water picture over the coming four years, presuming the proposal is accepted by the Bureau of Reclamation? Well … it’s complicated.

To start, let’s go back to November 2022, before Reclamation’s deadline, when the Coachella Valley Water District—one of the two valley water agencies, along with the Imperial Irrigation District, which has direct access to Colorado River water—submitted two of its own proposals to the bureau. After working closely with Reclamation, the CVWD board of directors recently approved one proposal, the Replenishment Facilities Curtailment Program. The second program, which would involve federal compensation for water savings by CVWD’s east valley agricultural sector, is still in discussion

between Reclamation and CVWD, and any agreement would require approval by the CVWD board.

Jim Barrett is the general manager of the Coachella Valley Water District. On June 8, he spoke to the Coachella Valley Association of Governments’ Energy and Environmental Resources Committee about the Colorado River’s impacts on the local economy— and he began his remarks by discussing the Replenishment Facilities Curtailment Program. It calls for the district to leave 35,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water per year in Lake Mead, as a recurring conservation contribution, through the end of 2026.

“While there’s tension between the different parts of the community, like municipalities and agriculture, what we’ve attempted to do is minimize the impact locally by not proposing to curtail service to anybody who’s using water now,” Barrett said.

While that’s good news to the more than 100,000 business and residential customers of the district, which serves the middle and eastern portions of the Coachella Valley, it means the CVWD will completely cease groundwater replenishment

at its Thomas E. Levy Groundwater Replenishment Facility in La Quinta.

“What we did starting last year (in October) was suspend our replenishment operations in the east valley,” Barrett said. “Our deliveries in the lower valley to the Levy facility have been consistent over time, because the Colorado River water deliveries have been consistent over time. We have put in about 500,000 acre-feet since 2010. … Moving forward, what we’re doing is suspending the 35,000 acre-feet each year to leave (that) in Lake Mead. We’ll still have about 3,000 acre-feet that we’ll run through the plant to keep the pumps from seizing up.”

Will the cessation of groundwater replenishment have any negative impacts?

“We will be watching to see how conditions in the east valley change during this period,” Barrett said. “It’s important to us to recognize how the basin responds, not only to replenishment, but also to the suspension of replenishment.”

He then sounded a reassuring note: “We do have a large expansion of our irrigation system in the east valley for agriculture that’s just about done. We’re waiting on power drops so we can get our pumps moving. That should help with some of the replenishment, since we estimate about a 30-35% return flow to the aquifer from irrigation that takes place for agriculture.”

The Colorado River water-conservation proposal is basically a pay-to-conserve deal. Through the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed last year, the U.S. government will disburse money to the three lower basin states, to pay agriculture businesses to cut back on water usage by artificially restricting production for months or years at a time.

But the CVWD deal has a twist: Since the CVWD’s contribution involves water that would have gone toward aquifer replenishment, the IRA funding it will receive at $400 per acre-feet will bring the district about $14 million in new revenue per year through 2026. No customers will need to be compensated for artificially restricting production efforts, so the CVWD will be able to keep those funds. How will this revenue windfall be utilized?

“The CVWD Board must discuss/decide how the money will be used,” said Lorraine Garcia, the CVWD communication manager, to the Independent via email. That prompted a follow-up question: Could these revenues be used to reduce customers’ monthly water service fees? She did not reply as of this writing.

TINA SHIELDS is one of two waterdepartment managers employed by the Imperial Irrigation District, which serves some water customers in the east valley, as well as Imperial County. In a recent phone interview, the Independent asked her what the IID expected its compensation arrangement with the Bureau of Reclamation would be from now until the end of 2026.

“We submitted a funding proposal … which is an open solicitation where you propose a volume in a specific time period, and a price,” Shields said. “Then you work with Reclamation to get to a common agreement. We’ve had productive discussions, but as of yet, we (haven’t reached an agreement).”

The IID is committing to conserving 250,000 acre-feet of water per year—a much larger amount than the CVWD. However, the funding the IID would receive from the federal government will mostly be paid to the agricultural businesses in the IID service area, which will need to employ various strategies to reduce their annual water use. Shields admitted that meeting the commitment will be a challenge.

“This year is halfway over,” Shields said, “and we still don’t have a funding agreement and authorization that would be necessary to move forward. So as the year goes on, IID will not be able to reach 250,000 acre-feet in water conservation this year, but we’re hoping to get that funding agreement sooner rather than later. All of this is contingent upon whether contracts can be developed (with customers), if the funding agreement is in place, and if permits are issued by the appropriate resource

Jim Barrett, general manager of the Coachella Valley Water District: “It’s important to us to recognize how the (Coachella Valley) basin responds, not only to replenishment, but also to the suspension of replenishment.” CVI file photo

“

Saving 250,000 acrefeet is a really big number, and I doubt that we can get that much more water out of our on-farm conservation programs. So we’re working with our growers to develop alternative programs.”

– Tina Shields Imperial Irrigation District water-department manager

agencies. It all needs IID board approval. So there’s a lot to be accomplished.”

WHILE THE AGREEMENT

announced on May 22 may help in the short-term, it includes no strategies for long-term, post2026 Colorado River conservation.

Chris Harris is the executive director of the state of California’s Colorado River Board. At the June 8 CVAG committee meeting, he expressed optimism that a deal can get done.

“We anticipate the Department of Interior will be releasing a notice in the Federal Register sometime (in June) indicating that they’re going to be kicking off a formal (National Environmental Policy Act) process to begin developing the next set of guidelines for the post-2026 framework—in other words, the long-term guidelines that will replace the 2007 guidelines,” he said. “But I think we have a foundation now that we can build upon. The states are working together well now, better than we had been, say, six months ago. I think all of us remain cautiously optimistic that we can do the good work that needs to be done over the next few months— and then over the next 3 1/2 years—to get us to a set of guidelines that can help stabilize the reservoir system over the long term.”

Shields explained how the IID is approaching this conundrum.

“Our (initial) goal is to maximize our on-farm efficiency-conservation program,” Shields said. “If we had additional monies, we can add to the funding for the farmers; then they can implement more expensive measures, which right now are costprohibitive. However, saving 250,000 acre-feet is a really big number, and I doubt that we can get that much more water out of our on-farm conservation programs. So we’re working with our growers to develop alternative programs.

“The obvious one is fallowing, although I

hate that, and it’s one of our measures of last resort,” Shields continued. (Fallowing refers to leaving land without crops.) “Our growers are working on developing what would be considered a deficit irrigation program, where you have low-yield (plantings) that require high water use, and you shut the water off for a 60-day period, and then you water it back, and it is able to withstand that shortterm without irrigation. We have some other growers who are interested in programs that would allow them to convert to lower-wateruse crops, or other potential ideas. Once we have the funding locked down, we will then take to our board the various options that we’ve developed in concert with our growers.”

Ultimately, Shields said, the IID will prioritize programs that support farming.

“It’s too important to our community,” she said. “We’re an agricultural community, and one in every six jobs is directly related to agriculture. We’re interested in helping the river out, because that’s our long-term water supply. Still, we don’t want to kill our community in a back-handed way. You know, farming communities like to farm. It’s what we do. It’s more than just a business. It’s people’s livelihood. It’s about family, and often the employees are your family members and have been for generations.

“The longer-term agreements are going to be tough. But the history of the Colorado River is collaboration. It may get a little tenuous at times, but we all know that we’re better off plotting our own future together, rather than having the regulatory agencies do something that ends up in court. The history of water litigation is that it takes decades, so that’s not a productive path.

“We’re going to stand by our water rights, and we’ll work to develop solutions that work for our community and our state. Frankly, the other states are going to have to go through some tough things that we’ve dealt with already.”

The CVWD will completely cease groundwater replenishment at its Thomas E. Levy Groundwater Replenishment Facility in La Quinta through 2026, as part of its agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation.

The Nonprofit SCENE

DO-GOODER

HONORING THE PEN

By CHarles drabkin

The Palm Springs Writers Guild supports local talent with programs, scholarships and prize money

The Palm Springs Writers Guild was established in 1977 by a small group of writers—and has now been dedicated to nurturing and supporting writers in the Coachella Valley for 4 1/2 decades.

With a current active membership of 254 individuals, the guild plays a vital role in fostering the growth and development of established and aspiring writers.

“We are writers helping writers,” said Kristina Hoffman, the guild’s director of member engagement.

Wreath award winner Cherri Liebelt at last year’s Christmas in July. Suzanne Fromkin

The Roost Lounge in Cathedral City will host the third annual “Christmas in July” celebration on Sunday, July 23, to raise funds for Tools for Tomorrow’s free afterschool arts-literacy program.

“Through the fabulously fun ‘Christmas in July’ events the last two years, the Roost Foundation has donated $100,000 to support Tools for Tomorrow’s program integrating art, creative writing, theater and music in Coachella Valley elementary schools,” said Tools for Tomorrow board president Judith Antonio. “Tools for Tomorrow helps develop creativity, communication skills and selfesteem among students ages 8 to 11. We deeply appreciate the Roost’s generosity.”

“Christmas in July” will kick off with a drag brunch catered by Lulu California Bistro and hosted by Ethylina Canne, and featuring Paris, Jasmine and Kalista.

The dinner show will feature renowned singer/actress Lindsey Alley’s “A Musical Holiday,” with Emmy Award-winning composer John William Kavanaugh. Broadway World praised Alley, saying: “She engages the audience and proves a force to be reckoned with. Alley is a talented entertainer who embraces the audience in a comical diva fashion reminiscent of Carol Burnett.”

The dinner show also will include Trilussa Ristorante’s turkey with all the trimmings, and a holiday-wreath auction. The allholidays wreath contest offers prizes for the most creatively decorated wreaths; entries are due to the Roost by July 22.

For “Christmas in July” info, visit theroostcc.com; tickets will go on sale Wednesday, July 5. To learn more about Tools for Tomorrow, visit toolsfortomorrow. org, or call 760-601-3954.

—Submitted on behalf of Tools for Tomorrow by Suzanne Fromkin

The Palm Springs Writers Guild believes in acknowledging and supporting young talent in writing. To that end, the guild recently awarded a total of $5,000 in scholarships to two outstanding high school seniors, because of their exceptional writing abilities and dedication.

As part of its third annual scholarship program, the guild presented the funds to Marielle Lazaro from Cathedral City High School, and Haley Meberg from Rancho Mirage High School. The applicants each submitted two essays; the guild doesn’t require a certain GPA level or attendance

record, and the only prerequisite is what these young writers reveal about their passion for writing, and how it influences their lives. The scholarship funds awarded by the Palm Springs Writers Guild will assist these students as they embark on their college careers.

“Our passionate belief in the future of young talent supports this scholarship, and (the scholarships) are some of the largest that are provided by a small local group,” said Judalon Manes, the guild’s director of education.

The guild also sponsored the prize money for the second annual Slam Poetry Contest at Indio High School. This event, held on April 28, showcased the poetic prowess of

23 young poets. Students, their families and faculty members gathered to support the participants. The contest winners—Melissa Ramirez (first place), Ashley Garcia (second) and Lucas Maduena (third)—captivated the audience with their powerful spoken-word performances.

The Palm Springs Writers Guild supports writers at all experience levels. The diverse membership offers numerous programs and resources to help writers advance their craft, offering a nurturing environment that fosters growth, creativity and collaboration through writing workshops, mentoring groups, writing contests, critique sessions and guest speaker events.

“Writing can be a lonely profession; our programs provide not only support and engagement, but help foster a sense of community for the writers of the Coachella Valley,” Hoffman said.

For more information, visit palmspringswritersguild.org.

Marielle Lazaro and Haley Meberg celebrate their scholarships with cake at a recent Palm Springs Writers Guild event.

ARTS & CULTURE

INTIMATE ENTERTAINMENT

By Matt KING

One internet dictionary says cabaret can be defined as “a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant or a nightclub with a stage for performances.”

In the case of CVRep’s Summer Cabaret Series, the venue is the newish, gorgeous and intimate CVRep Playhouse. On most Thursdays through Aug. 24, CVRep will host a number of different performers, representing a wide variety of genres. In July, you can enjoy Miguel Bernal and his Flamenco Company (July 13), internationally acclaimed tenor Maximo Marcuso (July 20), and Broadway performer and EMI recording artist Christia Mantzke (July 27).

This year’s series has been running since May, and during a recent interview, CVRep executive artistic director Adam Karsten said the shows have been well-attended so far. “People seem to be loving it,” Karsten said.

“The difficulty is getting people to know that it’s here, and who we’re bringing into the valley—because the talent is really quite remarkable. We have not just Tony Award nominees and Broadway veterans, but a wide variety of talent and artists who are going to share those experiences with us and the audiences on Thursday nights. In July, we’re going to have a flamenco company, an operatic tenor and a Billboard Award-winning recording artist.”

Karsten said it is important, from the business side of things, to keep these experiences affordable.

“We try to keep our ticket prices fair for that type of an event at $45, and the response has been really positive,” said Karsten. “What’s unique about this is that you get a very intimate experience. These cabaret performances where it’s just the artist, breaking the fourth wall, and really talking to the audience, it’s wonderful.

“It’s really great, because you experience (the performances) in a very personal way, and you also are able to see the rawness, the uniqueness, and the brilliance of the talent of each of these acts. If you see something like flamenco, and you’re in a 1,200-seat house, and you’re in the first or second or sometimes third balcony, you don’t experience it the same way as when you’re 20 feet away. In that regard, it’s really wonderful and pretty amazing.”

Beyond the Summer Cabaret Series, CVRep is hard at work on a new program to find the next big Broadway show.

“One of the things that we do, and we’re really trying to do at a whole other level, is revivals of Broadway works, Golden Age works, but also new work,” said Karsten. “We’ve started a new work development program where we’re looking for the next Broadway show, and we’re pretty confident that’s going to be the end result of that, even though it’s going to take some time. It’s a safe space for writers, for creatives and for artists to come to the desert and work on their works

at no cost. CVRep absorbs all the costs, and then we select one of those works each year and put it into our season, and we produce it. It’s a unique experience in that it’s at no cost to the writers and the creative teams, but it benefits everybody. … That’s where I believe our success path lies.”

Karsten came to the Coachella Valley last year and just completed his first season as CVRep’s executive artistic director. He said discovering the Coachella Valley’s deep attachment to theater was a very welcome surprise.

“It was really not knowledge or information that I knew of before,” Karsten said. “My career was in New York and on the East Coast, so I was not aware of the depth of the support, the depth of the actual Broadway veteran community, and the knowledge of the theater-audience patrons. That was a surprise to me, but very welcomed.”

CVRep’s mission is to provide “thoughtprovoking theater of substance,” per their website. Karsten explained how the Summer

Cabaret Series furthers that mission.

“A lot of times, we think of that (statement) with storylines and themes that create obstacles for the characters,” Karsten said. “When you attend these cabarets, they’re almost always personal in nature, and you learn of the journey of the artist, and you learn what they’ve overcome, or what they’re struggling with, or what they’re loving, or what their passions are. I find that inspiring, so that’s one of the reasons I feel it really fits into what I look for. When I ask artists to join us, they share human experiences that we all feel … and things that we have to overcome. The success of that is what I find inspiring and uplifting, and therefore, in many ways, thought-provoking.”

The CVRep Summer Cabaret Series continues at 7 p.m. most Thursdays through Aug. 24 at the CVRep Playhouse, at 68510 E. Palm Canyon Drive, in Cathedral City. Tickets are $45. For tickets or more information, call 760-296-2966, or visit cvrep.org.

CVRep’s Summer Cabaret Series brings in big talent for a series of personal performances

Christia Mantzke is coming to the CVRep Playhouse on Thursday, July 27.

I love this town.

ARTS & CULTURE

JAZZ, ELEVATED

Idyllwild Arts hosts the 29th Jazz in the Pines Festival and Student Clinic

by Cat Makino

The annual Jazz in the Pines Festival is returning to Idyllwild. From July 3-15, a flock of jazz musicians will head up the mountain—led by three-time Grammy Award-winning trumpeter John Daversa and his Big Band.

The event serves as a fundraiser for Idyllwild Arts and its summer program. Idyllwild Arts is an internationally acclaimed arts high school for gifted young artists in music, dance, theater, film, fashion design, visual arts and creative writing. Ticket sales support scholarships for students whose families cannot afford the school’s tuition.

“Every environment has its own vibrations; the mountains in Idyllwild are on sacred lands,”

Daversa said. “The honesty and humanity of the place comes out in the music, which inspires people. You will leave the festival feeling better than when you came.”

Daversa has been part of the school’s summer program for nearly six years. “The students come here with such a purpose, so hungry and receptive,” Daversa said.

The composer, arranger, conductor, bandleader, producer and educator has a unique musical style which combines rock, blues and gospel. He’s worked with numerous legendary musicians including Moonchild, Fiona Apple, Burt Bacharach, Joe Cocker and Andraé Crouch.

Daversa said he’s come to appreciate adversity.

“Challenges are our greatest gifts, and our gifts are our challenges,” he said. “Challenges provide the opportunity for us to learn who we really are, revealing our true inner strength and wisdom by how we move through them.”

Daversa is just one of the many talented performers coming to Idyllwild. The festival will feature live music by Marshall Hawkins’ Seahawk MOJO, the Euphoria Brass Band, Joshua White, Sherry Williams, Yve Evans, Rose Colella, Tom Hynes, Dan St. Marseille, Bob Boss, Tina Raymond and various Idyllwild Arts students.

Colella, an acclaimed jazz vocalist, is the festival’s curator. She said she’s always wanted to build a bridge between the professionals and the next generation of jazz artists.

“It is the most special and beautiful festival I have ever performed in,” she said. In fact, she moved from Chicago to Los Angeles to be closer to Idyllwild to produce this event—and others in the future.

“The original point of the festival (according to) its co-founder, legendary bassist and teacher Marshall Hawkins, was to be centered around the students by giving these young musicians a chance to work and play alongside some of the great musicians of contemporary jazz from all over the country,” Colella said.

saxophonist, received a scholarship to the academy three years ago. It changed his life.

“It gave me confidence and forced me to be independent,” he said. “I could explore my passion for music and meet wonderful and talented people from all over the world.”

He said he learned about Idyllwild Arts at Jazz in the Pines when he was a freshman at Palm Desert High School.

“I started taking private lessons twice a week with Paul Carman, a professor of jazz studies and saxophone teacher, who encouraged me to apply for a scholarship,” Tanner said.

After graduation, Tanner went to the University of Southern California for a year and is transferring to the Conservatory of Amsterdam.

The festival includes open master classes and book readings/signings. Guests can join the conversation as Idyllwild Arts president Pamela Jordan interviews world-renowned artists for her podcast One World. One Idyllwild. The Series

The Jazz in the Pines Festival and Student Clinic will take place July 3-15 at various locations, including the Idyllwild Arts campus, Ferro Restaurant, Middle Ridge Winery, the Grand Idyllwild Lodge, the Creekstone Inn, Harvey House and Café Aroma. Ticket prices vary. For tickets or more information, visit idyllwildarts. org/jazz-in-the-pines.

Carson Tanner, a local student and The John Daversa Big Band.

VINE SOCIAL

JASON DAVID HAIR STUDIO

LOVE YOUR HAIR

By Katie finn Chardonnay

Country Club and Cook Street

Palm De sert

I was invited to have lunch at Redd, the now-closed iconic restaurant in Yountville owned by superstar chef Richard Reddington. The invitation came from a few winemakers, winery owners and fellow sommeliers I would be working with in the valley. This was huge— the equivalent of a Los Angeles newbie being invited out with Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro

same, right? It was going to be full of fat toasted oak and syrupy butterscotch, with that signature creamy texture and movietheater buttered popcorn flavor. Tried one, tried ’em all.

got to experience what they wanted to drink! What kind of unknown, super-geeky, cerebral wine would they order? An Austrian white?

A Romanian red? A blend from the Canary Islands? Oohh, it was gonna be good!

After only a few minutes of deliberating, one of them turned to me and asked me if

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I had ever tried “Ceritas.” Tried it? I’d never heard of it. So with a shake of my head, the wine was ordered: “We’ll do the Ceritas Trout

CHARDONNAY?! This was the epic wine we were going to have for lunch? A huge wave of disappointment washed over me, and I sank into my chair. This is why you should never meet your heroes.

I was convinced I knew exactly what this wine was going to taste like. After all, chardonnay from California all tastes the

The wine was poured, and we raised our glasses for a toast. Trying to conceal my internal eye-rolling, I took that inaugural sip, and … what in the hell is this? This isn’t chardonnay. Where is the butter? Where is the fat toasted oak and syrupy butterscotch? We clearly had been given the wrong wine, and all the experts at the table missed it.

Of course, I was the one who was wrong.

I, too, had been consumed by the “ABC” wine trend du jour—anything but chardonnay. In my naiveté, I thought California chardonnay was a one trick pony. Sure, I was familiar with how clean, crisp and vibrant some French chardonnays are, but I had never experienced anything like this from California.

This mind-blowing moment was brought to me courtesy of a winery called Ceritas, located in Healdsburg. This is a tiny production winery, specializing in single-vineyard expressions of chardonnay, pinot noir and cabernet sauvignon. Their wines are highly allocated and available only through their mailing list. That’s why these are the most incredible wines you’ve never heard of.

The Trout Gulch vineyard is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains, a mere 3.5 miles from the ocean. The marine life in the soils, the dense fog that rolls in and the cold ocean air all contribute to the electric acidity and minerality in this chardonnay. It was like lightning in a bottle, and it turned everything I thought I knew about California chardonnay on its head.

is a true chameleon of a grape. The reason it was chosen as the white grape of Burgundy is because of its ability to absorb and highlight where it’s grown. The Cistercian monks realized hundreds of years ago that each little plot of land in Burgundy is different, and chardonnay is a grape that’s neutral enough to act as a catalyst to showcase the differences in each of those little squares of dirt. They somehow knew that this was a grape that could create a wine that would taste completely different based on where it was grown.

Because of its neutrality, chardonnay is malleable and easily manipulated by winemakers with a heavy hand or a certain style they’re trying to achieve. So all that oak, butter and cream that we associate with chardonnay was put there. It’s not inherent to the grape; it’s not the grape’s fault. Chardonnay does not naturally taste like that.

When people tell me they don’t like chardonnay, I get it. I’ll pour customers a zippy and bright style, and they’ll tell me, “Oh, I like this, because it doesn’t taste like a real chardonnay!” In fact, it’s quite the opposite: This is exactly what “real chardonnay” should taste like—clean, fresh and bright. What they mean is they don’t like a particular style of chardonnay. And like me, before my Ceritas awakening, they don’t realize that it’s not a one-size-fits-all wine.

So hear me, all you ABC folks: Don’t give up on chardonnay. You do like it. You just haven’t tasted it yet.

Katie Finn is a certified sommelier and certified specialist of wine with two decades in the wine industry. She can be reached at katiefinnwine@ gmail.com.

If you think all California chardonnays taste the same, you’re very, very wrong

FOOD & DRINK

SUMMER SLURPERS 3

A guide to staying cool with nonalcoholic beer, wine and

by Michael moberly

People are generally surprised to hear I don’t drink, mostly because I’ve spent 16 years putting drinks in people’s hands and talking about drinks with anyone who will listen. I chose to stop imbibing because I genuinely love not drinking. I feel better; I am more present; and it’s the easiest time in my life for me to be a teetotaler—in part because we now live in the golden age of NA options.

Advances in technology and a demand for better-tasting non-alcoholic options have opened the door for a whole new world of delicious and fun non-boozy drinks. So if you are sober or sober curious, here is a handy guide to some tasty NA slurps for your slippery summer.

Beer: Long gone are the days of skunkyfunky non-alcoholic beer. As the world’s beer has gotten more fun and wild, so has the world of n/a. This industry is no longer an afterthought—because sales of NA beer reached more than $20 billion in 2022. Chefs, celebrities and some of the most significant players in the beverage world are investing in NA beer because of the demand. Brands like Corona and Guinness have upped their game by creating delicious and near-perfect versions of their flagship beers that you can order at many bars nowadays. But it’s not all big brands: Athletic Brewing makes fantastic versions of every style; Crux delivers nearperfect IPAs; and Busty Lush has a selection of fruited sours that are to die for.

Wine: To answer an obvious question before it’s asked: No, non-alcoholic wine is not just grape juice. There is a new generation of winemakers using their knowledge of wine and new technologies to offer the complete wine experience without the buzz. Some companies like Empress, a Norwegian nonalcoholic brewery, craft vibrant flavors using tonics and kombucha techniques. Brands making genuine non-alcoholic wine remove the alcohol content or reduce it to less than 0.5% by volume. The alcohol can be removed through various methods, including vacuum distillation, reverse osmosis and evaporation. What is left, if it’s done right, is an articulate, delicious and food-friendly wine. Brands to check out: No & Low, Empress, and Lautus. Spirits and cocktails: Sober or not sober, everyone enjoys a good cocktail. We all crave balanced and refreshing concoctions that reflect the care and thought of a bartender. I am happy to report that the bar world has embraced the trend of non-alcoholic tipples. The world of non-alcoholic spirits is also growing daily, with brands like The Pathfinder making wholly unique styles of NA spirits, while brands like Seedlip and Lyre’s deliver classic spirit styles like rum and gin. There is no wrong time to take a vacation from drinking. Sometimes you must, and

sometimes it just seems like a good idea. The most important thing is to listen to your mind and body, and when you need a break, do it. But when you take that break, there’s still a world of fun and delicious beverages to enjoy by the pool.

This piece originally ran in the Reno News & Review.

CAESAR CERVISIA

JASON DAVID HAIR STUDIO

By brett newton

LOVE YOUR HAIR

orgive me; there is simply no space for me to include a cute introduction here—because Invitational beer festival, as I have every year for more than a decade (save the two years it

Country Club and Cook Street

Palm De sert

My good friend Jose and I made the exceedingly boring drive through the Central Valley to Paso Robles and pulled straight into Firestone Walker. Firestone had been kind enough to invite me to the fest again, and the invite included an afternoon barbecue, a rare beer tasting for their

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mean they don’t have to buy as much (which is a good thing, seeing as carbon dioxide is often harvested through a process that involves petroleum). They don’t just talk a good game at

For starters, we went off-roading: Behind the brewery, just past the train tracks running parallel to Highway 101, are the watertreatment and solar-farm areas. The theme of the tour was sustainability, and the ducks swimming in the treatment areas were a good sign. The brewhouse has a centrifuge dedicated to separating out the yeast from fermented beer for use in later batches, and a jacketed pipe that leads from the top of the brew kettle captures heat to heat up the water for the next batch. Firestone also uses a process called “wet milling” which conserves grain. Additionally, they are in the process of installing a Pentair system to recover carbon dioxide, which would

Of course, I was really there for the festival. My VIP ticket allowed me to enter an hour early. This can be dangerous, but I had a plan: An aspect of the fest that’s not to be overlooked is the food. Firestone invites local eateries, cheesemakers and chocolatiers to put their talents to work—and when you are imbibing a larger-than-normal amount of beer, attendees should take advantage of this fact. But first, I pushed past an already long line for Russian River, and an even longer one for New Zealand’s Garage Project. (The Garage Project is known to return festival-goers for out-of-the-ordinary yet tasty beers; this year’s gimmick was a “peanut butter miso and raspberry sour layered stout,” according to the

insane description.) My goal was to find Liquid Gravity, out of San Luis Obispo, and try their Really Sketch Vibes IPA as my first pour. It’s a tasty, citrusy beer—and it offered a great start. While nobody was at the booth, I tried WeldWerks’ Colorado Ale, which on a sunny, warm day was a welcome, crisp and light. I found the same situation at another favorite of mine, Cellarmaker, where I tried the gorgeous Maximum Joy IPA, offering a brilliant mix of American and New Zealand hops. I knew I’d be back (I later returned to try their Imperial Coffee & Cigarettes smoked coffee stout), so I kept moving, grabbing a pulled-pork slider with a small cup of jalapeño macaroni and cheese from Side Street Ale House. I enjoyed the food on a nearby bench as I scouted my next move.

Wildflower Brewing, from Marrickville, Australia (part of greater Sydney), was the discovery of this year’s festival. Co-founded by two brothers-in-law, Topher Boehm and Chris Allen, Wildflower is largely interested in nuanced mixed-fermentation beers using select local ingredients. This includes using the yeast and bacteria from local wild flora to inoculate their brews, creating unique tasting experiences. I spoke with Boehm about what he does while trying four beers over the course of about 15 minutes. First was a brilliant organic table beer, 2.9% alcohol by volume, that used Motueka hops from New Zealand; it had a lot of flavor for a small beer. Next was Village 2022. Boehm proceeded to talk about this collaboration with Mountain Culture Beer Co. in the Blue Mountains outside of Sydney, where they used ingredients entirely grown in Australia, then let the wort cool in a copper

coolship, before using ambient microfauna to ferment and help flavor the final beer, which was finished in oak. Then I tried Hive: Post Brood, which was so unique and involved that I can’t accurately describe it here within my word count; the same goes for the final beer I tried, Jaune d’or. This was all in the first 30 minutes of the festival!

I can best summarize the rest of the festival in one word: LAGERS, so many delicious, crisp lagers in varied styles, from breweries including Beachwood, Cloudburst, Mahrs Brau (from Germany), Bagby Beer Co (which also had a killer English-style bitter), Heater Allen and Gigantic (with an excellent kölsch; OK, it’s not technically a lager, but it drinks like one). Finally, Green Cheek offered a delicious hoppy rye pilsner, which was the People’s Choice winner at the fest and a column favorite. I am overjoyed to see all these lagers, and I hope this trend completely blows up and continues long-term.

This year might have been the most consistently enjoyable Firestone Walker Invitational for me; I don’t remember a single beer that was below a 7 on a scale of 1-10. While my beer experience peaked in the first half of the first hour of the festival, I had a great time throughout.

I’ve said it before, and I will say it again: I will attend the festival every year as long as it is possible for me to do so. Thank you, Firestone; I needed that.

Brett Newton is a certified cicerone (like a sommelier for beer) and homebrewer who has mostly lived in the Coachella Valley since 1988. He can be reached at caesarcervisia@gmail.com.

This year’s Firestone Walker Invitational may have been the best yet

Green Cheek Brewing won the People’s Choice award at this year’s Firestone Walker Invitational; at their booth, the brewery gave out temporary tattoos and poured samples for people waiting in line. Brett Newton

FOOD & DRINK INDY ENDORSEMENT

We savor Vietnamese crispy rolls, and have our minds blown by Thai honey duck in DHS

By Jimmy Boegle

WHAT Vietnamese crispy rolls

WHERE Rooster and the Pig, 356 S. Indian Canyon Drive, Palm Springs

HOW MUCH $16

CONTACT 760-832-6691; roosterandthepig.com

WHY It’s a crispy, savory delight.

I’ll never forget the first time I tried Vietnamese food. I was a college intern, home for the summer in Reno, and a colleague took me to lunch at Golden Flower Vietnamese Restaurant.

The pho. The bún (grilled pork with cold noodles). The imperial rolls. OMG, I was in love.

I get food from Golden Flower every time I am back in Reno. Here at home, I frequent a couple of Vietnamese places—and few months ago, I was afraid we’d lost one of those places, Rooster and the Pig.

If you read the column on the next page regularly, you know why. If you don’t, a recap: In early February, a major electrical issue shut down the building that Rooster and the Pig, Rio Azul Mexican Bar and Grill, and several other businesses call home. It would take more than two months—during the busiest time of year for Coachella Valley restaurants—for the issue to be resolved.

The closure forced Rio Azul to close for good (under the original ownership, at least). Fortunately, such was not the case for Rooster and the Pig, which reopened in early June. Thank heavens.

While the Vietnamese food I first fell in love with at Golden Flower is as old-school as it gets, Rooster and the Pig’s fare is decidedly unique and modernized. However, one of my favorite menu items is one of the more traditional dishes—the Vietnamese crispy rolls. Filled with ground pork, wood ear mushrooms, jicama and glass noodles, the rolls are amazing.

While they’re different from Golden Flower’s imperial rolls in a number of ways, the flavor profiles are similar—and Rooster and the Pig’s Vietnamese crispy rolls remind me why I first fell in love with Vietnamese fare all those years ago.

WHAT Thai honey duck

WHERE Thai Palms Restaurant, 12070 Palm Drive, Desert Hot Springs

HOW MUCH $20.95

CONTACT 760-288-3934; thaipalmsrestaurants.com

WHY It’s unique.

I’ve eaten at a lot of Thai restaurants—and I’ve never had anything quite like the Thai honey duck at Thai Palms Restaurant.

We met some friends there for dinner on a recent Monday evening. While there weren’t a lot of people dining at the restaurant, a steady stream of people came in for takeout orders— which I took as a good sign.

Thai Palms is clearly doing something right; according to the

menu, the DHS restaurant has been around since 2001, and there was also a location in Palm Springs for a while.

We ordered all sorts of food. While some dishes didn’t quite excite our taste buds, others did, including the tasty wonton chicken soup ($6.95 for a bowl) and the huge, delicious papaya salad (a steal at $9.95).

However, the dish I can’t stop thinking about is that Thai honey duck. Wow.

Let me be clear: This dish is not for everyone. If you don’t like entrées with a big dose of sweet along with the savory, do not order this— because it’s very sweet.

But, wow, it’s different. Wonderful crispy duck is joined by broccoli, cabbage, lots of bell pepper, pineapple and ginger. (The menu says the dish comes with tomatoes, but there weren’t any on my plate.) And it’s all swimming in a brown sauce that’s … well, it’s hard to describe. Yes, there’s honey, but there are also several other flavors I couldn’t quite place. (Tamarind, perhaps?)

Put it all together, and it’s one of the more bonkers plates of food I’ve had. Frankly, I wasn’t sure what to think at first—but I couldn’t stop eating it.

Did I like the Thai honey duck at Thai Palms? I think so. Would I order it again? Maybe. Should you order it? If you like your mind blown, go for it.

Restaurant NEWS BITES

By charles drabkin

UPDATES ON ROOSTER AND THE PIG, RIO AZUL

I want to start by welcoming Rooster and the Pig, at 356 S. Indian Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, back to the desert dining scene after a four-month closure due to electrical issues. I have gone twice since they reopened—I really missed the congee—and the food is as good as ever! Learn more at roosterandthepig.com.

In related news: Waldo Cesoni, owner of Backstreet Bistro and Waldo’s Ristorante in Palm Desert, tells me he has purchased Rio Azul Mexican Bar and Grill, which is in the same building as Rooster and the Pig, at 350 S. Indian Canyon Drive. Rio Azul was shuttered by the same electrical issues—but Cesoni says he will reopen Rio Azul, and plans to keep the menu as we all remember it. I hope he has the recipe for the salsa negra!

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SUMMER DEALS

The desert doesn’t slow down as much as it used to during the summer, although some restaurants still go on a summer hiatus or cut back their hours/days of operation—so check websites and/or make a phone call before you show up for dinner, if you’re not sure your destination is open. A few restaurants, including Willie’s Modern Fare (69830 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage) and Manhattan in the Desert (2665 E. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs), offer discounts and/or special menus through the summer months. You can also check out the Summer Eats Pass, a program created and managed by Visit Greater Palm Springs, through which you can win gift cards and get money donated to FIND Food Bank. Learn more at visitgreaterpalmsprings.com/summer-eats-GPS.

IN BRIEF

Two Coachella Valley spots are among the 184 restaurants in California that have been awarded $5,000 grants as part of the California Restaurant Foundation’s Restaurant Care Resilience fund. Congratulations to Lala’s Waffles Crepes and Shakes (42250 Jackson St., No. A104, Indio; eatlalas. com) and Otori Japanese Cuisine (68100 Ramon Road, Cathedral City; otorisushi.net). … Friday Nights on Pierson, the food-truck round-up created by the city of Desert Hot Springs, will continue through the summer due to overwhelming community support. It takes place at 11940 Palm Drive; visit cityofdhs.org/event/friday-nights-on-pierson to learn more. … Chef Shawn Applin has taken over the kitchens at Holiday House (200 W. Arenas Road, Palm Springs; holidayhouseps.com) and Sparrows Lodge (1330 E. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs; sparrowslodge.com). Shawn was the chef de cuisine at Flying Fish in Seattle when I worked there in the 1990s. (Gawd, that makes me feel old.) He led restaurants around the Seattle area in the ensuing years, and I can’t wait to see what he does here in the desert. … In other chef news: Bar Cecil chef Gabriel Woo, in addition to working on opening the new restaurant at the Palm Springs Art Museum, is updating the menu at the Del Rey inside the Villa Royale, at 1620 S. Indian Trail, in Palm Springs; delreypalmsprings. com. … Pasadena ice cream shop Carmela has opened a location at the Flannery Exchange, at 750 N. Palm Canyon Drive, in Palm Springs. Carmela emphasizes farmers’ market products in ice cream creations like white peach vanilla bean, and rose petal. (They are from Pasadena, after all.) You can never have too much ice cream in the summer. Learn more at carmelaicecream.com. … Window Bar at the Kimpton Rowan (100 W. Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs) has launched a food menu exclusive to the bar, with bites like three cheese and mushroom flatbread, crispy pork belly, and potato tots! Get details at rowanpalmsprings.com/palm-springs-restaurants/lobby-bar.

… Wrap Houz has opened behind the Hair of the Dog Pub, at 555 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Suite 109, in Palm Springs near the Sun Center parking lot. Although it is a bit hard to find, the falafel and the halloumi cheese wraps are worth the effort. Learn more wraphouz.com. … The owners of Umami Seoul (67555 E. Palm Canyon Drive, Cathedral City) are retiring, and their daughter is taking over the restaurant, which will be closed over summer while they revamp the menu to focus more on Korean dishes. Watch umamiseoul.com for updates. … New to Palm Desert: Dragon Café, at 72261 Highway 111, Suite 122, offering brunch options from classics like pancakes and eggs, to benedicts and chilaquiles, as well as burritos and sandwiches. Find out more at www.dragoncafepd.com.

… Vegans and vegetarians, take note: Chef Juan Morales at the Agua Caliente Casino Rancho Mirage, 32250 Bob Hope Drive, has added more plant-based dishes to the menu at the Waters Café, including a pulled jackfruit BBQ sandwich, and a grilled portobello caprese sandwich. Find details at aguacalientecasinos.com/properties/rancho-mirage. … Texas Roadhouse is coming to Indio. The chain, with 600 locations in 49 states and 10 countries, plans to open the Indio outpost in September; www.texasroadhouse.com.

Got a hot tip? Let me know: foodnews@cvindependent.com.

The Heartless Bastards’ Erika

Wennerstrom reflects on two decades of methodical songwriting

The Sonic Stargazers concert series features performers curated for the environment

For the first time in nine years, Town Troubles has a new EP—on vinyl

THE Venue Report: Bryan adams, Dwight Yoakam, Leann Rimes—and more!

The Analog Lab duo utilizes their close connection to create new EP ‘Anti Dove’

THERAPEUTIC MUSIC

MUSIC

MUSIC OF THE HIGH DESERT

By matt king

The valley owes a lot to our desert-rock pioneers. Not only did they cultivate a massively influential music scene; many of them continue to find ways to celebrate our local environment.

Take, for example, Sonic Stargazers. It’s a new concert series happening at the Institute of Mentalphysics (aka the Joshua Tree Retreat Center) throughout the summer, and it’s being

organized by Coachella Valley music legend Mario Lalli.

The series was slated to kick off on Saturday, June 24, with Yawning Man and the Sound Bath Duo, while the show on Friday, July 28, will feature Earthless and El Padre El Don. The series will conclude Saturday, Aug. 26, with Sean Wheeler and the Rubber Snake Charmers alongside Mathias Schneeberger and Janie Cowan. General admission tickets for each show are $30.

“I’ve been setting up stuff in the desert for a long, long time,” Lalli said during a recent phone interview. “I started when I was a kid doing generator parties and underground events, and then I had a club in Indio back in the ’90s called Rhythm and Brews. I’ve always loved bringing people together around music, and over the last 10 years, the high desert has been drawing me up there because of the really vibrant artist community, both musically and visually. It just seems that 90% of the venues in the desert region are in the high desert, and every city out there has a spot for live music.”

Sonic Stargazers will be held at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center thanks to a connection with artist Rolo Castillo.

“Rolo is really a very hardworking, prolific artist, and he has a few creative spaces up in the Joshua Tree area,” Lalli said. “We’ve been collaborating on music and art stuff for a few years now, and he was helping me with this other event I did up in Joshua Tree at the High Desert Cultural Center. He and his wife have a lot to do with managing and maintaining the Joshua Tree Retreat Center, the Institute of Mentalphysics, so if you see a sculpture up there—if you see an installation or physical art there—it’s probably Rolo who facilitated it or actually built it himself.”

The event poster features a beautiful photo of a Joshua tree with stars behind it. Lalli said the image is helping build excitement for evenings of music out in nature.

“We started talking about summertime, and the weather being really great up there to have people out to do some sort of music series,” he said. “A friend of mine, Bruce Feagle, is an astrophotographer, and he did

The Sonic Stargazers concert series features performers curated for the environment

the photo that’s on the poster. Looking at his photography from the park and stuff, I just started thinking that it’d be cool to put in people’s minds that an outdoor show at Joshua Tree Retreat Center in the summertime in the evening could be really, really beautiful.”

All of the bands performing were selected because of their sound, Lalli said.

“I want to bring it to people’s consciousness that the music is curated to kind of fit that environment, so the music that I chose is primarily instrumental music,” Lalli said. “It’s also very cinematic and visually inspiring music. Yawning Man, of course, is somewhat of an ambient-rock improv (band). It’s very powerful. … The other band we got was Earthless, and they’re a bit more intense, and more on the rock side of things, but still very fitting for the theme of these events. Then I’m performing with my son at that show; we’re doing some kind of spacey ambient guitar music as El Padre El Don. The final show, we have Rubber Snake Charmers, which is Sean Wheeler getting his desert-centric poetry and readings with a band of eight to 10 musicians who are hand-picked for the event. There are one or two who are coming from out of town, but primarily, they’re all desert musicians. You have Robbi Robb from 3rd Ear Experience, Brant Bjork, Ryan Gut, Otis Link and myself included in that lineup.

9.9

formula came from going out into the middle of nowhere and letting nature take over.

9.16

“I also have on the bill Janie Cowan, another instrumentalist with very unique performances. She plays the upright bass with a bow, with all these kinds of spacey ambient effects on it, and then she does these kinds of soundscapes. The other person involved in that performance is Mathias Schneeberger.

He’s affiliated with Rancho de la Luna studio, and he produced a number of artists. Mathias’ music is also perfectly fitting to this environment. He’s a brilliant instrumentalist, keyboard player and guitar player, and he does a loop-based performance in these instrumental, very rhythmic, meditative kind of explorations.”

The goal of Sonic Stargazers is to allow music to be shaped and changed by the landscape. For Lalli, it all goes back to how the desert-rock

“The music is setting the scene to not necessarily be staring up at the stage the whole time, but just to relax and look at the sky, and look at the environment around you, and enjoy the vibration of that spot,” Lalli said. “I don’t mean to sound too hippiedippie, but I don’t care where you’re from, or what your deal is; when you’re up there, it’s undeniable that there’s something special about that area. It’s nice to curate music that is fitting in the environment. When I used to go out in the desert and jam with my friends, we all came from playing punk rock and rock ’n’ roll, and being outside with the generator just jamming, the music took a certain direction that really had nothing to do with us or our thinking. It just flowed out, and it had very much to do with the environment that we were in. If you’re in a garage with a lamp on, and all your rock posters are on the wall, your songs are going to be verse-chorus, verse-chorus. When you are in the middle of the desert, the music starts to be affected by where you are.”

Lalli emphasized that respecting the environment is his main priority.

“I’m really inspired by the space at the

Retreat Center to do more things there—and they’d always be very small things, because we’re very mindful of the environment of the space,” he said. “We want to tread very lightly up there and respect the environment, both the desert environment and also the environment they (at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center) have created. We have to respect all that when we do things. We can’t just go do some crazy rock ’n’ roll party fest; it’s got to fit and be respectful of all those elements.

“If I was just going to do some kegger-rock show, I’d do that somewhere down in the low desert where we could raise hell and not bother anybody—but that’s not the point of these things.”

Sonic Stargazers Summer Concert Series continues at 7 p.m., Friday, July 28, with Earthless and El Padre El Don, while third event, at 7 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 26, will feature Sean Wheeler and the Rubber Snake Charmers, with Mathias Schneeberger and Janie Cowan. Tickets are $30 for each show, which all take place at the Institute of Mentalphysics, aka Joshua Tree Retreat Center, 59700 Twentynine Palms Highway, in Joshua Tree. For tickets or more information, visit plastic-cactus-presents. ticketleap.com.

Earthless will perform as part of the Sonic Stargazers series on Friday, July 28.

MUSIC

DUO ROCK SIMPLIFIED

By matt king

Very few local bands survive 10 years. People can be driven apart or lose interest; life and families can get in the way; a lack of local-music support can take a toll.

Town Troubles, however, has been a musical powerhouse in the Coachella Valley since 2010. The members have experimented with their sound and style through the release of a few EPs, and while the band grew to four members in the mid ’10s, Town Troubles is—currently and

always at its core—the duo of Bolin Jue on vocals/guitar and Bryan Garcia on drums.

Now 13 years into the band’s career, Town Troubles is releasing its fourth EP, Love Overrides Beauty. It’s a six-track sonic mix of riffs, experimentation and danceable jams with an electronic, overdriven tinge. Standouts include “Addicted,” which features heavy driving guitar matched with soft vocals, reminiscent of Royal Blood; and “Blemishes,” a creepy yet headbanging track that transforms into a pop-ballad chorus. Production-wise, it’s some of the band’s best work to date—but for now, the EP will only be available on vinyl.

During a recent Zoom interview with Jue, he explained why nine years have passed since the band’s last EP.

“We didn’t release anything, because I felt like it was difficult to find people to record us who weren’t us,” said Jue. “If you have a DIY setup, what you put out can sometimes not sound as high quality or as touched up as it can sound if you have someone else do it. For a while, we couldn’t really find anyone that we were happy with.”

The batch of songs on Love Overrides Beauty were composed as part of their journey to find the perfect recording situation—and a fulllength album is not too far behind, Jue said.

“Before we recorded the album, we were trying to figure out the best way of doing this: Is it better to record it ourselves and have someone else mix it? Is it better to have someone else record us and mix it?” Jue said. “Before we decided how we wanted to record the album, we decided to record a ‘guinea pig’ family of songs to just test out that process. I wrote these six songs as a way of figuring out how to record the album; we actually have a whole album of unrecorded songs.”

A match was made when Town Troubles found Luciano Avalos.

“We used actual compressors and actual EQs that weren’t just added and edited later or whatever,” Jue said. “We recorded it really quickly; I think it took 11 hours to do everything. The drums were in one day; all the guitars were in one day; all the vocals were in one day.”

Both the EP and recent live performances have showcased the power of this duo, thanks

to the emphatic sound of Jue’s guitar run through effects pedals, and Garcia’s beastly beats.

“I always was a fan of us being a two piece, even when we weren’t,” Jue said. “It wasn’t always entirely up to me when we weren’t. I’m still down with us playing as a two piece, and playing with other musicians, too. It doesn’t really have to be one way or another. … I frequently remember moments when I was looking at a roomful of musicians I was playing with and thinking to myself, ‘I wonder how this would sound if it was just us two.’ I also didn’t always have my live sound down. That’s still something that I’m battling with, but back then, I was a lot more broke, and I was younger, and not really understanding what I was doing. I had a lack of a musical identity, in terms of gear, so I think I was more OK with the idea of having other people fill in the lack of sound that we were producing with just us two, especially if I was just playing through a guitar amp and nothing else.”

While Jue said Town Troubles has always valued simplicity, Love Overrides Beauty features unique vocal phrases and lines, including a number of moments when Jue treats his lyrics like call-and-response. This new style came directly from Jue’s experience with Native American poets, he said.

“I read a lot of Native American poetry in grad school, and I met a few at some readings that I had gone to,” Jue said. “Something that I admired about that style was, once again, the simplicity of some of the chant-y call-andresponse lines that you find in that stuff. It was something that I started mimicking, and it worked well for certain things. I don’t have a 23andMe kit, but I’m sure I’ve got some of that in me, so it just made sense to sort of emulate that style of poetry.”

A thread throughout the EP is social-media obsession; song titles include “Influencers” and “Addicted.” There are also lyrical references to cat videos and reposting. Jue explained that the inspiration for some lyrics came from The Brain That Changes Itself, a book on the concept of “neuroplasticity.”

“(The brain) is very plastic in terms of what people find attractive, what people can be

addicted to, our habits, our beliefs,” Jue said. “There’s a woman who has a disorder—if I spin you around, and I stop spinning, the feeling remains that things are still sort of moving. This woman has that all the time, and she couldn’t stop it. She was seeking different professional help and opinions, and she found someone who basically helped her through it. Part of getting through that was just therapy through training your brain and recalibrating it. The same can be said for addictions and outside entities that have the power to control that plasticity of our brains. It’s just a really fascinating concept to me.”

Jue explained how controlling our brain can help us change for better—or, in the case of products to which many are addicted, for the worse. The songs on Love Overrides Beauty refer to looking inward.

“I feel like if you just looked at things a little bit more critically, perhaps our lives would improve,” he said. “That’s what all of these songs have in common—we’re all sort of speaking to that faceless thing that I feel like a lot of us are battling.”

The vinyl-only EP comes 10 years after Jue told the Independent that the band was working on a limited-print vinyl release.

“I have a thing for listening to music on vinyl,” Jue said. “I know it’s a super-hipster and

nerdy to do now, but for me, it’s kind of like going to the theater. It’s this magical thing, and it really makes me appreciate music. … I think listening to music on vinyl helped me realize that this is why people get paid a lot of money to do this. Listening to music on vinyl, you realize how magical it is, and it sort of puts it in your face. I thought, ‘Well, I want to do that.’”

Love Overrides Beauty

Dale’s Records in Palm Desert, Finders Keepers Records in La Quinta, and at the release shows. “We’ll be playing the EP in its entirety, and then after that, whoever wants it can listen to it online,” he said. “The vinyl is cool because it’s a physical thing. There are lyrics inside of them, and we’ll probably put some stickers, and you get the artwork. I know there are a few people out there who like that stuff still. I just would like to pass those out first, and then whoever wants it digitally, that’s free. I don’t really expect to make money off of any of this.”

Town Troubles will perform alongside Koka, Desert Crows and Las Tias at 7 p.m., Saturday, July 8, at Second Saturdays, 82868 Miles Ave., in Indio. The event is free. The band will also perform with Camala on Friday, July 28, at Club 5 Bar, 82971 Bliss Ave., in Indio. The event is free. For more information, visit instagram.com/ towntroubles.

For the first time in nine years, Town Troubles has a new EP—on vinyl

Town Troubles.

THERAPEUTIC MUSIC

By matt king

The Heartless Bastards’ Erika Wennerstrom reflects on two decades of methodical songwriting

ince forming in 2003 and releasing debut album Stairs and Elevators in 2005, the band Heartless Bastards has been building and tweaking a sound rooted in rock, blues, punk and more. The band moved from hard blues/punk on “Gray” in 2005, to soulful, funky soft rock on in 2012) to, most recently, a mix of Western, gospel and pop on “You

A Beautiful Life

but this is my time to work on new material, so I’m just embracing that opportunity while it’s here—while working on self-care and hanging out with my dog.”

Wennerstrom equated the process of writing new music to therapy.

my songwriting is growing, and I guess that’s a bit subjective to the listener, but I just really take my time. I’d like to think it’s quality, not quantity at this point.”

Some artists release music more often because of short attention spans. When I mentioned that, Wennerstrom quipped: “If somebody has a short attention span, isn’t it going to be even shorter if it’s a bad song?”

July 2023

By matt king

“I think the best preparation is just self-care,”

“When I was younger, I don’t think I equated it with therapy, but it really kind of is,” Wennerstrom said. “Any time any of us as people can explore our creative side, it’s very therapeutic, and my process is just to explore that. I feel like music is medicine. I didn’t use to understand why I did what I did; I just felt compelled to do it. But more and more, it gives me more of a sense of purpose … and I guess it’s good for my mental health. People have told me various songs have helped them over the years, and I guess it drives me all the more to heal myself, and I know that it might offer somebody some benefits as well.”

The music of Heartless Bastards has resonated with fans all over the world, if streaming numbers are any indication. “Only for You” is nearing 50 million Spotify streams and 23 million YouTube views at the time of this writing. Wennerstrom explained how she relies on the healing power of her music to lift her through periods of writer’s block.

“I’ve been really challenged by (writer’s block), and in all honesty, I can be a little hard on myself when I don’t feel like I’m being productive,” she said. “I realized in some ways— and I shouldn’t get so philosophical—but I am this little speck of dust in the world, and if I’m having some writer’s block, and I’m not producing something, it’s OK. When I do finish a song, I find comfort in knowing it can help somebody. I think that’s part of my taking-careof-myself writing journey, being OK with a slow writing process. It’s always been that way for me, knowing that it’ll come in time.”

A self-proclaimed slow writing approach could be one reason the group has released just six albums over their 20-year career, with the biggest gap between records being six years.

“I’m not extremely prolific, but I guess I have seven albums (including one solo record),” Wennerstrom said. “I don’t write very fast, but I’ve had some longevity here, and I’m still doing it. It’s still kind of a big body of work. I think

“People just have to ask themselves why they’re doing what they do, and for me, it’s always been a bit of therapy, also,” Wennerstrom said. “It kind of starts with me trying to write songs that I think I would enjoy, or messages that I think I need to hear.”

In 2022, Heartless Bastards re-released signature album Arrow, in celebration of the LP’s 10 year anniversary. The re-release included a few bonus tracks and acoustic versions.

“There’s nostalgia, but I also feel like I’ve consistently played a lot of that material since then, even when I did my solo album,” she said. “When I look back, I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, it’s been 10 years,’ but we’ve been playing those songs over the years, so it’s not like I’m completely revisiting the material in a way.

“Jim Eno, who produced that album and plays drums in Spoon, is moving to Rhode Island. We did a kind of a celebration of Jim with different people he’s worked with. It’s been interesting to look back and think about (recording Arrow). I wrote some words for the event; we played some songs; and it was nice to just think about that experience with Jim and that whole process. He was real, real patient with me. It takes me a while to find my way through songs. It’s like I’m searching for something, and I have to trial-anderror quite a bit before I find my way through it. Sometimes it’s a feeling, and I can’t quite place it or put my finger on exactly what I’m trying to get out there.”

Wennerstrom remains grateful for the album.

“I know it’s been our biggest album, and I just look back with gratitude,” Wennerstrom said. “I’m so thankful that people responded to it the way they did, and I’m really grateful for the response it got, and people are still listening to it a lot on the DSPs (digital streaming platforms). Back then, I was just putting one foot in front of the other, and I don’t know if I even had a grasp on how well it was doing.”

Heartless Bastards will perform at 9 p.m., Sunday, July 16, at Pappy and Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, 53688 Pioneertown Road, in Pioneertown. Tickets are $35. For more information, call 760228-2222, or visit pappyandharriets.com.

Little Big Town

It’s July. It’s the Coachella Valley. This is the Venue Report! Any questions?

Acrisure Arena is Acri-sure to entertain this month! At 8 p.m., Saturday, July 8, one of the most popular Mexican rappers, Peso Pluma, continues his wildly successful year with a stop in Palm Desert. Remaining tickets start at $180. Emo mainstays-turnedalternative-rock titans Paramore will ignite the new arena at 7 p.m., Saturday, July 15. Remaining tickets start at $124. Mexican legend and Grammy Award-winner Pepe Aguilar comes to town at 7 p.m., Friday, July 21. Tickets start at $29. At 7:30 p.m., Friday, July 28, one of the best-selling artists of all time, Bryan Adams, will perform an evening of rock from multiple decades, alongside Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Tickets start at $34. Acrisure Arena, 75702 Varner Road, Palm Desert; 888-695-8778; www.acrisurearena.com

Fantasy Springs only has one featured concert for the month of July, but it’s a good one: At 8 p.m., Saturday, July 8, country vocal group Little Big Town returns to Indio for another great evening of country jams! Tickets start at $79. Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, 84245 Indio Springs Parkway, Indio; 760-342-5000; www.fantasyspringsresort.com.

Spotlight 29 Casino’s entertainment schedule is rather diverse. At 8 p.m., Friday, July 7, enjoy a night of dancing with the help of Mexican banda icons Banda Machos. Tickets start at $35. Wishing you had a time machine back to the 1960s? Experience the closest thing to that with the Happy Together Tour, featuring performances by The Turtles, The Vogues, Little Anthony and others! Tickets start at $35. At 8 p.m., Friday, July 21, singer, actor and director Dwight Yoakam heads to Coachella for an evening. Tickets start at $50. You must be 21+ to attend these shows. Spotlight 29 Casino, 46200 Harrison Place, Coachella; 760-775-5566; www. spotlight29.com.

Morongo has all of your figurative bases

Erika Wennerstrom. Aaron Conway

MUSIC

INSEPARABLE INDIE

By matt king

When we first checked in with indie-rock duo Analog Lab a year ago, Miguel Arballo (guitar/vocals) and Sean McCune (drums/vocals) were bright-eyed and excited about their new partnership.

Today, their bond is deeper than ever—and that’s apparent in their music, especially their newest EP, Anti Dove. Although the EP has only four tracks (with one being a minute-long

interlude), the project packs a multi-layered punch, shifting through moments of hard rock, pop, rap, psychedelic, groove and more, often within the course of a single song. The 17 minutes of protean jams show maturity and growth since the band’s first few singles.

During a recent Zoom interview, Arballo and McCune explained how the recording process for Anti Dove differed from earlier recordings.

“We improved our rigs massively during that time, especially my guitar rig,” said Arballo. “… We actually sat down and figured out parts, seeing what fits and what doesn’t. We really worked on the tracks for several months. We tested them out live, and some of them changed.”

McCune said the act of completing the recording was “kind of a process.”

“We had a lot going on, and we actually had to set aside time to finish recording it,” he said. “During that time, I got COVID, and I was at home with the songs on (digital-audio program) Ableton. I was just doing the things I normally do on Ableton, which is fuck shit up, and I was transposing things, making them faster. ‘Anti-Dove’ really changed a lot from what it originally was. It kind of reflects the direction that we’re going in for the future—a lot faster and crazier.”

Earlier releases like “Swallow the Sun” and “Roads” were primarily developed by Arballo, while the tracks on Anti Dove came from working together.

“This EP really showcases us as an actual band, writing and truly collaborating,” Arballo said. “We let ourselves finally go in the direction that we wanted to go. It really solidified us, because now we’re finally realizing that we really like our songs, and we like our process. We like that we can be really open and communicate how we are feeling about the songs.”

Arballo and McCune said their close relationship—including a weekly bowling night—has helped them establish a creative environment that never feels stifled or stressful.

“One of the first things that made me want to start making music with Miguel is that, even though he’s quite a bit older than me,

The Analog Lab duo utilizes their close connection to create new EP ‘Anti Dove’

he’s always treated me with the same amount of respect as he would give to everybody,” McCune said. “Working with him, in my opinion, is just a really easy process, because he’s open to all my crazy ideas.

“The songwriting process has been really natural. We both are listening to similar music … and we both have a vision in mind for the band that is really similar. We’re both on the same page, so when we go and we start writing these songs, it ends up being really easy. I might come up with a part; he might come up with a part, and there are times when we write songs just because he’s playing something random. Miguel plays a lot of shit that sounds cool, and it always catches my ear.”

Added Arballo: “I think it’s really important to be able to go back and forth and be open with what you feel on the song. When we started working on the EP after he came back from having COVID, with some of the songs all sped up, he’s like, ‘Tell me what you feel.’ I listened to it for a couple of days, and I didn’t have the same feeling for myself—and I didn’t have any fear of being able to communicate that to him. … It felt easy to turn around and be like, ‘You know what, honestly, I don’t feel it,’ and go back to how it was … without having feelings hurt.”

At their recent EP-release show, the duo performed six new songs that will be featured on their first full-length album. During our interview, Arballo at one point said that new songs are “literally vomiting out of us,” so I asked how they are able to tell when a song is truly finished.

“Sometimes we don’t give songs time,” Arballo said. “For the upcoming album, we used our time very well. … We sat there with a song, and then we would upload it to our drive and listen to it, and then be like, ‘I have an idea for it.’ We wanted to get these demos done quickly, but make sure that when we’re doing our songwriting, we’re doing it correctly, instead of letting things hang. We’ve learned a lot in this past year, and that has helped us streamline our ideas.”

Arballo said they make sure to set time aside for recording. “We don’t take gigs when we’re recording, or we minimize the gigs that we take, because we want to make sure that we’re

focused. Sometimes we miss out on shows, but getting things done, I think, is way more important to us.”

The theme of the Anti Dove EP is going against the grain, and the title came about from an inside joke.

(Now, consider yourself warned: Things are going to get a little … deep here.)

“We were talking about crows, and I saw a meme and said, ‘That shit’s so crow,’” McCune said. “I thought of Anti Dove, and it kind of gave me the idea that the name Anti Dove is not like a crow, and it means you’re going against what you’re supposed to be, or what people see you as, or where people think that you should be.”

Arballo also tried to explain the meanings behind track “Objectif.”

“‘Objectif’ is about music from the other side, if music was a person,” he said. “The first part of it is music, literally, not wanting to be the sole purpose for you. It doesn’t want to be there to save your life; it’s just a thing that exists. Obviously, people sometimes read a

lot into music, and it does save lives, but (the song) is music talking back to people, to a person, and saying, ‘I’m not here to save your life.’ The sun may be shining, and shit might be fine around you, but just because you’re feeling the song doesn’t mean that it’s meant to save your life. The second part of the song is the person talking back: ‘I can’t tell if I need you, but I can pretend that you want me.’”

Metaphors are obviously important in Arballo’s writing.

“I can write very direct, and some of the songs are very direct, but it’s nice to write something down and take the time and analyze it, to give it a different perspective,” Arballo said. “I actually got that idea from reading Maynard James Keenan’s book. He talks about some of the songs that he writes, seeing it from the other side and giving it a different perspective, instead of it just being your emotions that are there.”

For more information, visit analoglabband. bandcamp.com.

Analog Lab.

Events 2023

DATE EVENT

July 7-8 Sizzlin' Summer Sale @ Hilton with KGAY

July 13–23 Outfest LA LGBTQ+ Film Fest

July 14–16 Gay Wine Weekend - Sonoma

July 15 Artful Event - Mid-Summer Dance Party @ A+D Museum

July 15–16

San Diego Pride & Parade

Aug 5-6 Long Beach Pride

Aug 11–13/18–20 Splash House August Weekends 1 & 2

Aug 12-13 Laguna Beach Pride

Aug 17–20 Big Bear Romp

Aug 18 Out on the Mountain @ Magic Mountain

Sept 20–24 Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend

Sept 23 8th Annual Aging Positively Conference

Oct 7 Pride Under the Pines

Oct 19–22

Oct 26–29

Oct 29

Modernism Week - October

PS Leather Pride

Palm Springs Halloween on Arenas

Nov 3–5 Palm Springs Pride

The Venue REPORT

continued from page 25

covered. At 8 p.m., Thursday, July 13, ’00s rockers Nickelback will pay a special visit to the valley. Tickets prices, as of our deadline, were unavailable. A blast from the past in the form of the Little River Band is headed to Morongo, at 8 p.m., Friday, July 14. Tickets start at $39. Apple Valley musician Chayce Beckham will perform at 6 p.m., Sunday, July 23, on Morongo’s smaller stage. Tickets are $20. At 9 p.m., Friday, July 28, regional Mexican act Enigma Norteno will shake up the night! Tickets start at $39. At 9 p.m., Saturday, July 29, classic rockers 38 Special bring almost 50 years of Southern rock to town. Tickets start at $39. Morongo Casino Resort Spa, 49500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon; 800-252-4499; www.morongocasinoresort.com.

Agua Caliente in Rancho Mirage is offering entertainment in all forms! At 8 p.m., Friday, July 1, Grammy Award-winning country star Leann Rimes returns to the Coachella Valley. Tickets range from $45 to $100. Drag yourself over to The Show at 8 p.m., Saturday, July 15, for the RuPaul’s Drag Race “Werq the World” tour. Tickets range from $60 to $175, and the event is 18+. Agua’s speaker series continues with an appearance from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Lisa Rinna at 8 p.m., Saturday, July 15, in the Cahuilla Ballroom. Tickets range from $35 to $75. Country trio Midland heads to town at 8 p.m., Friday, July 21. Tickets are $65 to $100. At 8 p.m., Saturday, July 22, a powerful musical duo from Mexico, Jesse and Joy, will grace The Show stage. Tickets range from $45 to $85. Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage, 32250 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage; 888-999-1995; www.aguacalientecasinos.com.

Agua Caliente in Palm Springs continues its “triple threat” of residency events in July.

Desert Blues Revival Wednesdays feature the Shea Welsh Hope Diamond Blues Experience (July 5), a record-release party for local favorites The Dreamboats (July 12), more local love with an appearance from the Brad Mercer Band (July 19) and the Los Angeles-based Alvarez Band (July 26). Shows are at 7 p.m., and tickets start at $10, available at eventspalmsprings.com/blues. Jazzville Thursdays bring Adam Moezinia and Folk Element Trio (July 6), acclaimed jazz vocalist Mon David With Trio (July 13), a genre-mixing evening by the Irving Flores Afro-Cuban Jazz Quintet (July 20) and an appearance from Amanda Castro Band (July 27). Shows take place at 7 p.m., and tickets start at $15, available at jazzvillepalmsprings.com. Caliente Comedy Fridays bring laughs from Nikki Bon (July 7), Tatanka Means (July 14), Joe Praino (July 21) and Dana Moon (July 28). Shows are at 8 p.m., and tickets start at $7.99, available at www.eventspalmsprings.com/calientecomedy. Agua Caliente Casino Palm Springs, 401 E. Amado Road, Palm Springs; 888-999-1995; www.sparesortcasino.com.

Pappy and Harriet’s has a number of great concerts happening in July. At 9 p.m., Thursday, July 13, experience a unique performance by comedic country bluesmeets-White Stripes-infused group Laid Back Country Picker. Tickets are $20. Doom-rock titans Acid King pay a visit to perform their 2023 release Beyond Vision, with special guests Mondo Drag, at 9:30 p.m., Friday, July 21. Tickets are $25. Insatiable ska-punk icons Save Ferris will perform an intimate show in Pioneertown at 9:30 p.m., Saturday, July 29. Tickets are $30. At 9 p.m., Monday, July 31, catch an acoustic evening led by Steve Earle, a Grammy Award-winning songwriter who has had his songs recorded by a number of legendary country artists. Tickets are $59.50. Pappy and Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, 53688 Pioneertown Road, Pioneertown; 760-228-2222; www.pappyandharriets.com.

Oscar’s in Palm Springs is offering a fun drag offering along with the usual events. At 7 p.m., Friday, July 21, enjoy a unique performance from Flaming Queen featuring song, dance and much more. Tickets are $40. Oscar’s Palm Springs, 125 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs; 760-325-1188; oscarspalmsprings.com/events.

The Palm Springs Art Museum is hosting a fun event in July. At 8 p.m., Saturday, July 15, enjoy the Mid-Summer Dance Party, which intends to “bring back the ’80s” with the help of DJ Modgirl. Tickets are $75 ($55 of which is tax-deductible) and include entry into an afterparty starting at 11 p.m. Palm Springs Art Museum Architecture and Design Center, 300 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs; psmuseum.org.

DJ Modgirl

MUSIC

LUCKY 13 the

Get to better know a rock/country great coming to Pappy’s, and a local indie-rocker

by matt king

What was the first album you owned?

First, I started collecting every Elvis album I could find. Dion and the Belmonts, Frankie Avalon, then the Beach Boys, Beatles and Rolling Stones were the records I wanted! That is where all my money went!

What bands are you listening to right now?

I listen to Lucinda Williams, Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, The Mavericks, and the Long Ryders, as well as local bands in Austin: Fausto/Faustito, Sue Foley, West Texas Exiles, Bonnie Whitmore, and BettySoo.

What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone love, but you don’t get?

I get it, but I can’t say I love rap. A song or two is cool, but when the rapper gives too much anger and sounds like hate, it turns me off. Although some rap mixed with melody and harmony, I dig it. I dig the cadence and the rhythm of words.

What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live?

back then, so that really did change my life. Once I started playing music and being in a band at age 16, well, I just never stopped.

You have one question to ask one musician. What’s the question, and who are you are asking?

Keith Richards: Please call me?

What song would you like played at your funeral?

“Free as a Bird” (on repeat!) by the Beatles.

Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time?

Ooh scary! Just one? OK, Sam Cooke, Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963

What song should everyone listen to right now?

“Imagine,” John Lennon.

NAME Ben Villa

GROUP Case Study

MORE INFO Although Case Study was formed in Pomona, vocalist and lead guitarist Ben Villa is from the Coachella Valley. The band experiments with everything from sparkly indie rock—see “Fool (From the Start)”— all the way to crunchy, driving, pop-punk (“Whiplash”). In 2023, the band has released eight singles and one album. Villa describes the writing process as “indie rock therapy,” which makes sense, considering the lyrical tales of lost love and emotional experiences. For more, visit instagram.com/casestudybnd.

What was the first concert you attended? With Confidence.

What was the first album you owned? American Football (1999).

What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone love, but you don’t get? Pop music. It all sounds the same and sometimes can lack creativity.

What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live? The 1975.

What’s your favorite musical guilty pleasure?

Rap. I love the poetry and storytelling from ’90s hip-hop.

What’s your favorite music venue? The Glass House, Pomona.

What’s the one song lyric you can’t get out of your head? “Here’s a plaque on your wall, for the hall of fame of fucking off,” Waterparks, “High Definition.”

What band or artist changed your life? Waterparks. Their songwriting and ability to cross over multiple genres is amazing.

You have one question to ask one musician. What’s the question, and who are you asking? Awsten Knight (of Waterparks): What goes through your mind when creating the lyrics for your songs?

What song would you like played at your funeral? “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” by Death Cab for Cutie.

MORE INFO Rosie Flores is truly one in a million. She entered the music scene playing country punk, before her country-focused stylings helped her break into the Billboard charts in the late ’90s. Since then, she’s continued to mix country and rock into her own unique sound, and she continues to kick ass and perform regularly at the age of 72. She’s heading yet again to Pappy and Harriet’s, a venue she’s performed at for more than 35 years, on Friday, July 14. For more information on the show, visit pappyandharriets.com.

What was the first concert you attended?

The Beach Boys in Balboa Park (San Diego), 1963. It was the best concert to this day! We were all so young, so excited, and I even went backstage and got a kiss on the lips by one of the Beach Boys. (David Marks.) Yee haw!

I used to love seeing Jeff Beck play live; I’m sad that he’s gone. I’d love to have seen Queen, and I’d love to have seen Patsy Cline and Elvis back in the day. I’m a huge fan of Paul McCartney and his band, and I’ve seen them only twice! I’d like to see Mavis Staples again, too!

What’s your favorite musical guilty pleasure?

Singing and listening to jazz, all kinds!

What’s your favorite music venue? The one I’m playing! At home in Austin, I absolutely love The Continental Club. My favorite owner, bartenders, staff and bands!

What’s the one song lyric you can’t get out of your head?

Whatever song I just wrote or recorded. Today, it’s “Dig a Pony” by the Beatles.

What band or artist changed your life?

I’m sure so many people will say the Beatles, which is also true for me. They made me want to play guitar. Girls didn’t play electric guitar

What bands are you listening to right now?

Waterparks, Hot Mulligan, Deftones, The 1975, and Motion City Soundtrack.

Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time? Commit This to Memory, Motion City Soundtrack.

What song should everyone listen to right now? “Brainwashed” by Waterparks.

NAME Rosie Flores

OPINION COMICS & JONESIN’ CROSSWORD

“Exactly!”—that’s what that is.

By Matt Jones

Across

1. Pulitzer-winning rapper Kendrick

6. Over again

10. “Butter” group

13. Awestruck

14. Narcotic-yielding leaf

15. Navy, e.g.

16. Desert of Israel

17. Daybreak, in poetry 18. Teensy bit

19. <---

22. Like some verbs (abbr.)

23. Gradually lessen 24. <---

32. Loser to Bjorn in the 1976 Wimbledon final

33. “Didn’t think I had it ___”

34. Angiogram image

36. Dallas basketball player, for short

37. Mythological

Theban with a chemical element named after her

39. Exclude

40. Rhode Island-based auto insurance company

43. Crust deposits

44. River deposit 45. <---

48. Massachusetts Cape 49. Greek vowel 50. <---

59. Jacob’s biblical twin 60. Wilson who says “Wow”

61. Gut trouble

62. Flippant

63. Format for old ringtones

64. Internet company with an exclamation point

65. Collector’s objective 66. “Mr. Roboto” group

67. Angioplasty device

1. “Video Games” singer ___ Del Rey

2. Like some whiskey

3. D&D spellcaster

4. Simian

5. Echo effect

6. Pinnacle

7. First-time gamer

8. Hosiery hue

9. Poster heading

10. Amorphous amount

11. Coppelia costume

12. Sewn line

15. Guggenheim Museum’s Spanish location

20. Empty fully

21. “Four Leaf Clover” singer-songwriter Moore

24. “Letters from Iwo ___”

25. Car rental company

26. Courteous

27. Writers Guild of America, for example

28. Atlanta university

29. Rise up

30. Sex and the City role

31. In any way

35. Pot starter

38. Serpentine symbols

“12 for 1” Columbia House deal, essentially

Admit freely

React harshly toward, like a dog

Everyday expressions

Tech bros?

Asks for table scraps

Spot in the ocean

Cafe au ___

Knucklehead

Actress/inventor Lamarr 55. Alternative to DOS or Windows

Dull pain

Inert element used in lights 58. Moderate horse gait

© 2023 Matt Jones Find the answers in the “About” section at CVIndependent.com!