Despite not having a single political song in their set, indie-punkers Sourpatch is one of the most political bands in San Jose. That’s because it isn’t just the band’s lyrics that matter, it’s the band themselves, and Sourpatch openly and proudly represent the queer community—and have a blast doing it.

“Just being who you are, if it’s being trans, queer, just by being yourself, if your songs have anything to do with your life—which they usually do—you’ll be speaking to someone who’s like you,” says guitarist Christine Kaloni Tupou.

The members of Sourpatch, who all take turns singing, and even switching instruments around, write ultra-catchy twee-punk songs which tend to be about themselves and whatever they’re going through. “They’re personal,” drummer Rich Gutierrez says, “I think a lot of our songs are mostly dealing with emotions. It’s all about heartbreak, it’s all about being fucked up. People are into it, but then they see who we are, and are like, ‘I’m more in tune with this than I thought I would be.’”

In addition to providing visibility for the queer and transgender communities, Sourpatch makes a point to bring other queer-core bands from out of town into San Jose, which had been a scene seriously lacking in the South Bay before Sourpatch took that initiative. In fact, the band even created a DIY festival, Think and Die Thinking, which goes into its third year this November, with the mission of showcasing punk and indie bands that have members that are queer, transgender, women and/or people of color. So far it’s been a big success.

When Sourpatch began six years ago, the group members weren’t really thinking about any of these things. They weren’t even trying to make a “queer-core” band.

“It wasn’t intentional. People do that, like ‘this whole band is going to be nothing but people of color.’ That’s fine. I’m into that. It wasn’t for us. We’re just friends. It just happened to be that way. It was very serendipitous,” says Gutierrez.

Tupou and guitarist Nicole Munoz started out by playing a handful of songs Munoz had already written that were inspired by the sugary-sweet ’90s bands Velocity Girl, Rocketship and Tiger Trap. Gutierrez and then Mander Farrell later joined the band and everything just clicked.

They never were much for playing bars or clubs, but instead opted for basement shows, rented halls and coffee shops. Gutierrez already had years of experience drumming in hardcore and grind bands, and had put on countless under-the-radar punk rock shows since he had been old enough to go to shows.

“I am a firm believer forever about DIY culture. I have friends all over the world now, from just playing in the basement,” Gutierrez says.

Touring helped the band meet up, quite often, totally unintentionally, with a lot of queer-core bands in different cities. These bands taught them a lot about how other cities were fostering these kinds of scenes.

“Seeing what people do in other towns, it’s like, why can’t we have this? You kind of get used to people being pretty ignorant. Not in a bad way, just people don’t know,” Gutierrez says.

Sourpatch has also become more actively involved with creating a space for tolerance and diversity, whether they’re putting on shows in their basement or coffee shops or wherever. When issues come up they try and deal with it in a constructive way, so that people learn. Once they had a drunk girl act up and start calling everyone “gay.” They asked her to leave, but in the process they explained to her why behavior was offensive. They later saw her on a different day and she apologized.

“She was like, ‘do you remember me? I’m the girl who you kicked out cause I said everyone is gay.’ She’s like, ‘I say stupid things when I’m drunk,’” says Tupou.

Think and Die Thinking was an attempt to actually prepare a more formal mission statement for the kind of space they wanted to create. Sourpatch members think it’s important to provide examples, and for young queer punks to see others like themselves on stage playing music and making art.
“For me, I really wanted to go out of my way to make these events accessible to a lot of people, people who are marginalized,” Gutierrez says.

When it’s time for Sourpatch to get on stage and play whatever show they’re playing, everything political falls to the wayside. It’s just about enjoying music and singing songs from the heart, whether it’s about falling in love or having a broken heart. And that’s about the most political thing anyone can do.

More info.

After making it’s debut last year, the Think and Die Thinking music festival returns this weekend with two days of punk and indie music performed by bands with women, people of color and members of the queer and transgender communities.

Last year, Rich Gutierrez and Christine Tupou introduced the idea to San Jose with two days of music at the Billy DeFrank Center and one day of music Streetlight Records.

“It was a trial thing (last year),” Tupou says. “We didn’t quite know how it was going to go. We had never booked a fest before. It went better than we expected.”

This year, the focus remains the same, but they’ve made a few changes, like hosting all three days at the Billy DeFrank Center.

Though, last year wasn’t without its problems. They were faced with some last-minute band cancellations, plus several local bands got upset that they weren’t allowed to play, not fully understanding the mission of the festival. According to Tupou, women, people of color and members of the queer and transgender communities are underrepresented at punk and indie shows and therefore don’t always feel comfortable there. They wanted to do their part to help to change that.

“There’s always going to be those few people that are mad because they can’t play a fest,” Tupou says. I felt personally responsible for telling each and every one of those people why we were doing this. At the end of the day it’s a pride thing. I think it was good to have full disclosure and be really transparent of what our intentions were. The mission statement still rings true because we’re still making space for people in San Jose that don’t really feel comfortable at shows and don’t get to see people like themselves on stage playing music.”

This year the organizers decided, while still staying steadfast to their original mission statement, to book a broader range of artists including non-punk bands, performance artists and comedians.

“I want to expand the fest as much as possible,” Tupou says. “I want to keep the theme punk and indie, but I want to show people you don’t have to limit yourselves to one form of art. You don’t have to play punk. You can get a drum machine and play that kind of music and still hang out with punks. It’s making room for anything that you don’t usually see and sometimes you don’t even know you want to see, other than when you see it it’s completely insightful and inspiring.”

Think and Die Thinking is August 24 to August 26 at the Billy DeFrank Center. Tickets are $7-$10. More info.

When Jeff Brummett isn’t busy working at Streetlight Records, he’s playing guitar and singing in Doctor Nurse, one of San Jose’s best indie rock bands, featuring heavy psychedelic and folk influences and a balance of lush vocal harmonies and carefully textured instrumentation.

Their song craftsmanship is surprisingly sophisticated, better even than a lot of touring psychedelic-influenced indie rock bands. Mood and understated emotional intensity are at the forefront of every song, usually starting out mellow, using repetition and layering to give the songs a slow and powerful buildup. While Doctor Nurse has only been around a couple years, Brummett is no newbie to the San Jose scene. We asked him to share the spots in San Jose he knows and loves.

What part of San Jose are you from?

I live in Willow Glen and there’s this particular homeless guy I’m fairly obsessed with. He is always madly scribbling what looks like crazy scientist Aztec symbols in this book. Whenever I give him some dough, I’m tempted to ask him about it, but ultimately I don’t want the mystery revealed. The not-knowing is the thing. Unless he’s making blueprints for a time machine or something—I definitely want in on that.

What’s your favorite place outside of San Jose?

Costa Rica is a magical land filled with green trees, monkeys and banana milkshakes. Can’t beat it, and their capital is named San Jose.

What’s the best show you’ve seen in San Jose?

This one is easy. In 2008, the Blank Club had Extreme Elvis, Neil Hamburger and The Legendary Stardust Cowboy on one bill. The stars were aligned that night in ways I’d never conceived. The Ledge left the stage during a song leaving the band to finish without him as he went and caught the bus. Neil Hamburger did the Colonel Sanders/Sally Field joke and Extreme Elvis (after um, “marking his territory”…. yes, what you’re thinking is absolutely correct) eventually led the crowd to the street for an acoustic sing-along rendition of “Suspicious Minds.” Did I mention that he was completely naked? Sublime.

Who’s your favorite local band?

Well, I loved Worker Bee so much I am now in a band with two of the members. I’ve gotten sneak peeks of the new Plantain and Ugly Winner records and they are really, really good. Totally looking forward to the Amonie record coming soon. The new Sourpatch record is great. It seems like a bunch of folks will finally be releasing material this year. Very cool.

Where’s your favorite place to get a drink in San Jose?

Good Karma has an amazing selection of high-end beers. They have such great variety and are always getting new and unique brands. They have events with exclusive brews that you can’t find anywhere else. Ryan Summers is the best host in town and all the staff there are incredibly nice and welcoming and don’t yell at me when I’m hanging in the back getting in their way.

Where’s a cool spot for new threads?

I’m the most unfashionable dude ever. Black and Brown is pretty much the only place I go. Last time I went there, I scored this corduroy jacket and Irene who works there said that I liked “grandpa clothes.” She was right. Plus, they have cool art and music shows and are generally awesome people.

What’s your favorite spot for a cheap bite in San Jose?

Me and my buddies have been obsessed with Taco Bravo for years. I can’t say I’ve actually eaten there in a long time, but what other place can you order an item off the menu item called “The Boneyard.” I work down the street from there and one of my favorite pastimes is driving by and counting the number of people waiting in line during breakfast time. The record? Eleven people wanting Bravo at 10:30 am. The world is a wondrous and mysterious place. Plus, the dudes who work there go to the same bank as I do.

What’s the best thing about living in San Jose?

A few things I guess. The group of talented, creative geniuses/doofuses I hang with truly make this place all worthwhile. The close proximity to the greatest radio station on Earth, KFJC. Joey Myers still lives here. Plus, that beer-batter thing at the SJ Giants game is kind of a hoot. Did I mention Bravo already?

Where’s the best place in San Jose to go relax?

Funny you bring that up. Every Cinco De Mayo I like to put on a nice velour jogging suit, whip up a little chamomile tea and take a leisurely stroll down Santa Clara St. and soak in all the stabbings. Very zen.

Where’s the place to see a show in San Jose?

Unquestionably the Gingerbread House. It’s by far my favorite place to play. They get a lot of touring bands that are under the radar and are real independent musicians scraping by, driving through the country just having a good time. The bands don’t have to worry about drawing a crowd, because there’s always enough friends to fill it up. You don’t have the stress of club owners and promoters being bummed on the lack of support. The room sounds amazing and Todd and the crew who live there are such great people. They open up their house to let strangers do their art, which is definitely a very generous and selfless act. It’s an important bubble in our little scene here.

What’s San Jose’s best kept secret?

R & D Liquors on Willow has free hot coffee!