For reasons of space and decorum, I’m going to (mostly) hold my tongue about 2024, other than to say, man, what an evil nightmare. Here’s hoping the next one eases up a lot. And if it doesn’t, I’m coming swinging for the kid in the top hat and the “2025” sash.
See ya next year.
Thursday
The Claire Bent Jazz Quintet is playing a show at the Basement tonight, in case you are in the mood for being on the receiving end of some of the best pipes in the county backed up by a fine group of local journeymen jazz-bos. No cover and doors open at 7:30 p.m.
Friday
Lots of gigs going down tonight, but I’d like to give a shout out to two, something old, and something new. In the first camp is Holus Bolus, a one-man guitar looping sound-meister who I’ve been writing about and advocating for since my first days on this beat. He’s playing a free gig at the Kaptain’s Quarters tonight at 8 p.m. Another free show is happening an hour later at the Logger Bar. Gnawed On is a new group I caught during Porch Fest, who dabble in a mathy, heavy, grungy sound ordeal that I found charming. Also on board is The Uncredible Phin Band, a band lead by Oryan Peter-Jones of world music fame here and abroad, and centered around the titular Thai guitar, buttressed by some sexy grooves from the rhythm section.
Saturday
Here are two very different shows happening at roughly the same time, 9 p.m.-ish, and for more or less the same price. The Basement is featuring guitarist Greg Douglass, possibly most famous for his time with the Steve Miller Band, during which he co-wrote the hit Jungle Love. He’ll be sitting in with Grateful Dead-ites Friends of the Devlin. Just $10 gets you in the cavern of sound.
A few blocks towards the tsunami zone will take you to the Miniplex, where acclaimed local DJ duo Hispanic! At the Disco will be spinning all the Latin beats, cumbia treats and reggaeton bombs you could possibly want to shake some butt-meat to (I’m losing my perspicacity, along with my mind, and just giving in to casual vulgarity like a warm bath to eternity). This one’s a sliding scale dance party, $5-$10 to be exact.
At 8 p.m. at the Siren’s Song Tavern, there will be a fundraising benefit show for the embattled venue, which, word on the street, has it potentially closing up shop as early as January. Local heavies Image Pit, Mystery Meat, Cheshire High and TeethEater are joining forces to try to keep the lights on. You can help, too, by coming through and chipping in $5-$20 at the door towards the effort.
Sunday
Let’s break from the musical build-up to the year-killer and enjoy a day at the movies. The Eureka Theater is showing a 2 p.m. matinee of An American Tail, the beloved 1986 film animated by Don Bluth and co. about the coming to America story of young Fievel Mousekewitz, whose family is escaping a Cossack pogrom in the Ukraine ($10, $5 for kids 12 and under).
Three hours later at the Arcata Theatre Lounge, you will encounter the latest Miyazaki flick The Boy and the Heron, which is a very different tale of wartime violence and a synergistic relationship between humans and animals. Get in the door with $8; $12 lets you leave with a poster.
Monday
It’s New Year’s Eve-eve, and the folks at Septentrio are kicking off a two-night goodbye to 2024 with a couple of big-ol’ dance parties starting at 7 p.m. DJs Red and King Maxwell will be providing the musical mortar to fill the gaps between sets by funk masters Object Heavy and Deadheads The Magnificent Sanctuary Band. The pricing structure goes a little something like this: $25 for tonight, $35 for New Year’s Eve, and $45 if you want to bundle the experience and go to both nights.
New Year’s Eve
It’s the long goodbye, coming in early in the week this year, and I’m going to make a few suggestions, not in chronological order, but rather paired by location and style. For instance, if you are interested in some DJ’ed dance parties, you can check out the big EDM blow at the Arcata Theatre Lounge at 8:30 p.m., with Bass Culture, Whomp, John Holliday, Esch and many more. Tickets are $20, $15 advance, and $30 if you want to go to this shindig as well as Friday’s reenactment.
If you want to go a little lighter on the bass and the wallet, slip $10 to the door person at the Basement around the same time to enjoy the darker wax spins of DJs Blancatron, Zero One and Anya Slayer. If country music is your deal, head over to Blue Lake, where there are two shows available in that genre. Monument Road will be at the Casino at 9 p.m., while the magnificent outlaw country act Barnfire will be burning it up at the Logger Bar an hour later. Both shows are free.
Finally, if you’re looking for some fun in Eureka — and let’s be honest, who isn’t? —, you can go light on the wallet and hang out at Savage Henry Comedy Club starting at 7 p.m., where DJs Billabong and Ghila Ghila will be spinning the music of Australian microtonal cult jam band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.
If you want to dance to the DJ’s beat and enjoy some burlesque performers doing the same, the Eagle House has your ticket at 9 p.m. Burning Leaf and Fraktal Productions present the 8th annual New Year’s Eve Ball at said venue, with Alex Sibley, Papa Lu, Marjo Lak, Jsun, L.S.B. and perhaps most importantly to some of you, the Gambino Glitter Mob Burlesque troupe. ($35).
New Year’s Day
Welcome to the future. I don’t know what to say other than hopefully it will be less terrible, shitty and infuriating than the recent past and present. I completely understand if you find yourself immobilized by last night, or last year for that matter. But assuming you aren’t frozen in terror or hungover malaise, the Arcata Theatre Lounge is playing the ultimate film about the past and the future. Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey remains one of the most visually stunning and conceptually brilliant films about space travel, evolution, what it means to be human and the dangers of A.I. Kubrick (probably) had no way of knowing this in 1968 but, as it has been pointed out, our cell phones now resemble the black monoliths, outfitted with an unblinking eye like that of the nefarious HAL 9000. Not an ideal combo, but I am happy to face such a degradation if we end up with a world-changing Starchild on the backend of the deal. Anywho, doors open at 6 p.m., the show is at 7 p.m., there’s a raffle in between and tickets are $6, $10 if you care for a poster.
Collin Yeo (he/him) is ready for something completely different.
This article appears in Top 10 Stories of 2024.