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Matei Predescu on August 7, 2019
Every second Thursday of the month, the Caravan Lounge hosts one of San Jose’s best known open-mic sessions. The Cypher features rappers and turntablists in a freestyle session, followed by showcases of underground artists. This week, Guatemalan rapper Kontra Marin, signed to Barba Roja Records, is headlining alongside San Jose rap crew…
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I just work out here, I don’t own the joint. Still, you show up, peep out the spots for a week, and decide to start jumping in the station I’ve taken for years. Nice. Your smell … it’s as if Gilroy’s finest crop of garlic rotted in the field for a month.…
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Andrew Lentz on July 31, 2019
An acoustic guitar-wielding troupe of Andalusian descent, the Gipsy Kings came up in the south of France and play a Roma-influenced flamenco style known as Catalan rumba. But don’t let that intimidate you. Even if you’ve never owned any recordings by Gipsy Kings, you’re likely guilty of crooning uber-ballad “Volare” in the…
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Nick Veronin on July 31, 2019
Back in the late ’50s and early ’60s, there wasn’t anything more punk rock than surf music. The musical rebels of yesteryear repurposed the Spanish scales they heard on their parents’ Andrés Segovia records—speeding it all up and running it over the top of rumbling drums and through overdriven amplifiers. Today, many…
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Erika Rasmussen on July 31, 2019
It’s not every day that such iconic characters as Carmen, Tosca or Figaro roam the food court. But this weekend, Opera San Jose—celebrating its 35th year—serenades SoFa Market. Resident artists from the local company show off their vocal chops and mingle with fans. Attendees may enjoy drinks from the Fountainhead Bar while…
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Metro Staff on July 31, 2019
While the Baby Boomers and Gen X-ers have been busy worrying about the work ethic of Millennials, Gen-Z has been quietly blossoming into a cultural force all its own. L.A. bedroom pop sensation Cuco mixes loungy, bossa nova guitars, lo-fi drum clippings and the inside jokes of a generation raised on the…
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Metro Staff on July 31, 2019
Pat Simmons Jr. is primarily known for his music, which is to be expected when you’re the son of a founding member of one of the most famous groups of the ’70s and ’80s—San Jose-bred Doobie Brothers guitarist Patrick Simmons—and your own musical career began when you were barely old enough to…
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Matei Predescu on July 31, 2019
Caffe Frascati’s Tuesday open mic nights and Cafe Stritch’s Wax Wednesdays draw crowds of young artists, musicians and poets who convene to jam, freestyle and share ideas. The vibrant community of local creatives is all there. What’s lacking, however, is a larger network of performance spaces, accessible and all-ages, to sustain this…
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Bill Kopp on July 31, 2019
There’s more to George Clinton than many fans realize. The Kannapolis, NC-born musician is the voice and face of Parliament Funkadelic. A leading light of the music scene, Clinton brought a sensibility that—much like Frank Zappa, to whom he is often compared—combined humor with advanced musicality. Through the 1970s and ’80s, the…
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That was a really fancy maneuver you pulled on your bike. Blowing through a red light at Julian and Fourth streets while being on the wrong side of the road. Or were you riding on the sidewalk on Fourth? Because the way you suddenly zipped in front of me from around the…
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