It’s Elementary

GOLETA GOODNESS: Tonight, Thursday, May 11, The
Hard to Find Show Space in Goleta will host yet another exemplary
performance of indie rock when Springtime Is
Wartime, Vaz, and Cair
Paravel play. Brothers Josh and
Tim Eymann, who play drums and bass for Springtime
Is Wartime, are the sons of the pastor of the church that The Hard
to Find is adjacent to, which helps explain why they’re also in
charge of booking shows at the venue. Playing with them is Vaz, a
two-piece band from Brooklyn that’s very intense, perhaps to the
point of theatrics with so many references to death, fuzzy guitars,
and bone-rattling drumming. It’s grab-you-by-the-throat music. Also
playing is Cair Paravel — clean, fast, intricate electric
piano-driven rock from Chico. Despite the venue’s name, it ain’t
all that hard to find at 7190 Hollister Avenue in Goleta.
 — Erin Warren

STICKIN’ AROUND: When exploring the ins and
outs of the Los Angeles music scene, it isn’t very often that you
are confronted by a native Angeleno who is the caliber of
Quincy Coleman. Coleman isn’t another one of those
singer/songwriters who has migrated from the Midwest in search of
greener musical pastures. Nor is she someone just passing through.
Just like her music, and the delectable songs it embraces, she was
born, bred, and molded in the cultural cavalcade that is the
southland, which might account for why a selection of her songs
have found way their onto Nic Harcourt’s play list at KCRW. Or
maybe they made it there simply because they are damn fine
recordings. But judge for yourself when Coleman joins Matt
White, Molly Jenson, Chris
Pierce, and Rocco Deluca for the next
installation of the Element Music Series at SOhO, Tuesday, May 16.
 — Brett Leigh Dicks

GET HEARD! Got some talent, but not the guts or
wherewithal to break through? Giovanni’s in Isla
Vista hosts a weekly Open Mike Nite every Thursday
starting at 7 p.m. Test the waters in front of similar-minded
artists, performers, poets, and people who just want to watch and
have fun. Pizza and beverages are available, so even if you’re just
a fan, grab some food, have a seat, and get a look at up-and-coming
aspiring artists from your hometown. All genres and tastes welcome,
but leave the vulgar and/or profane at home (you’ll be broadcast
four times per week on Santa Barbara Channels 17 and 21). Signup
begins at 7 p.m. and it’s first-come, first-served, so be timely.
 — Hudson Hornick

PATO WAS PERFECT: Perhaps the greatest KJEE
Reggae Tuesday of recent vintage, last Tuesday’s concert at
Cooney’s with Dubcat, Half Pint,
and Pato Banton had everyone in the crowd holding
hands and waving them high. Most of those bummed that the
Long Beach Dub All-Stars — who were advertised on
the ticket — didn’t show up, shut their traps while watching
Dubcat, which allegedly contains some members from
Sublime/LBDAS, rock steady all night as the backup
for Half Pint and Pato. (Some concert-goers are still officially
irked, however.) Pato’s peace ’n’ love ’n’ sinsemilla set was
knocked into the legendary level with the appearance of his buddy
Tippa Irie and the steel drum mastery of
Einstein Brown. Big ups to the Cool Ruler for
reminding us about the power of reggae, which he does again this
coming Tuesday, May 16, with Warrior King and
Wisdom.  — Matt
Kettmann

SKY HIGH REGGAE: Groundation, which plays
traditional and savory grassroots reggae, is touring California
before taking off on its fourth tour of Europe in three years. What
began at Sonoma State University has spread into a worldwide
phenomenon, after incorporating a pair of Jamaican singers on the
latest tour through Europe. Fusing jazz, reggae, and dub,
Groundation is best heard as an overall experience rather than
noting selective talent. Now is your one chance to see them before
they’re gone for the summer, when they play SOhO, on Wednesday, May
17.  — HH