When the Springtime Comes Again 

Spring is coming back, which means we've pushed through two human-made hurdles in which I have little interest: the Oscars and Daylight Savings time. To the latter I say pick one and stick with it, a sentiment shared by a majority of my fellow Californians, and, like many such things, an issue hopelessly tied up in a legislative Phantom Zone, despite having been soundly voted on. To quote Kent Brockman from The Simpsons, "I've said it before and I'll say it again, democracy simply doesn't work." As to the former, I'm glad the nuke movie won a lot, because it was very good and damning in all the right ways. I also enjoyed Zone of Interest director Jonathan Glazer's succinct protest speech, which was immediately misquoted by some of the sleaziest people in media and politics, thus proving how shameless and/or stupid they are in the face of concise moral rectitude. Don't get mad at Glazer (or me, for that matter) if you never learned how to parse a sentence, or that your target audience of angry rubes hasn't done so either.

Enough about human attempts to manipulate the world at large, I just want to do a victory lap for the coming wave of flowers and wet sunshine. Have a nice week.

Thursday

Sansfu is a portmanteau word for sans Tofu, which isn't a menu option, but rather a reference to the members of Absynth Quartet when they are performing without the drummer (his nickname is Tofu, you see). However, the plot thickens tonight at the Basement because the group is working with some additions: new mandolin player Amanda Malachesky and star chanteuse/multi-instrumentalist Beverly Twist. I am told the musicians will be performing some old tunes from the quartet's catalog that haven't been dusted off in quite a while, as well as some covers by David Grisman, Tony Rice and more. 8 p.m. (free).

Friday

Seattle trio Biblioteka struts a wide line across a garage rock and punk frontier littered with chewed-up bubblegum pop and distorted grunge debris. Big sounds and big fun come wrapped up in a tight, bombastic package, like a TNT glitter-bomb. Tonight at 9 p.m. at the Miniplex, you can park yourself at ground zero and absorb the blast with fantastic furry freaks Pills for Thrills bringing some local shockwaves to the dropzone ($10).

Saturday

Luke and Rachael Price are a married couple who form the structure of the roots and country-fried soul act Love, DEAN. The fella plays fiddle and backup, while Rachael sings and strums to a gospel-tuned style of uplifting songwriting. The two lovebirds will be doing their thing at Wrangletown Cider Co. this evening at 8 p.m. for a mere $25 for an intimate recitation of their songbook.

Sunday, St. Patrick's Day

Regular readers will already know my preamble for this holiday, so I'll make it brief. I'm one of the few American guys named Collin who doesn't flex on claims of Irish heritage, and I bartended too much to pretend to enjoy this plastic Paddy green beer fest. But for those about to rock, I salute you, especially those among you for whom this day has a greater meaning. Here, humbly submitted, are two certified fine events to settle into and let the good times roll. Starting at 5:30 p.m., the Logger Bar will be featuring live bagpipe music, Irish dancers and a main attraction performance by The Vanishing Pints. There will be corned beef and cabbage while supplies last, and this event also serves as the second anniversary of the new ownership of the joint, which is on its own well worth celebrating.

If you prefer your fun to happen under the sun — or whatever we have going on at the time in this county — consider heading to the Shanty at 2 p.m. for a matinee performance of everyone's favorite local drinking punk and heavy folk act The Smashed Glass. Both events are free and, if you party responsibly or arrange sober rideshare plans, you won't miss a thing. Sláinte.

Monday

Savage Henry Comedy Club is hosting another Metal Monday and tonight's line-up has a distinct grind flavor, so fans of extreme noise and outer-reach sounds should prick up your ears. Our scene will be represented by Malicious Algorithm and Sadistic Hallucinations, while Seattle is sending some rotten sonic spores in the form of the bands Rat King, Re-Buried and Isenordal. As is generally the case, it's a $5-$10 sliding scale cover and all-ages, so bring an appropriate I.D. to drink.

Tuesday, Vernal Equinox

Don't ask me how, but we have hit the shoreline of the second season of the year and considering the windy wake of this winter's wet wallop, not a moment too soon. There are many ways to celebrate this shift, from the internal reset to the journal entry to a nude, screaming barbaric yawp and plop into a body of cold water. But my beat is music so I'll stay in my lane. If you happen to be a fan of soulful roots rock and jazzy jam music, you might want to go to Humbrews to check out the Jennifer Hartswick Band, the leader of which is a singer and trumpet player known for her work with Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio in his solo band, among other acts. Bay Area jam band six-piece Wreckless Strangers provide a lot of real groovy support at 8 p.m. ($25).

Wednesday

Seeing as the changeover technically happened last night, this is the first official day of our new spring season, and although I scratched around in the mud quite a bit, I was unable to turn up anything worth passing through the aural gizzard grindstone of that live music digester which is seated in the spiritual core of every veteran audience member. In other words, no shows recommended tonight. Sorry about that. However, in the interest of keeping our beachball afloat regarding the notion of listening to the songs of musicians we lost in 2023, let's all have a really good time and put on some Harry Belafonte! Nothing else I write here can hope to compete with the pleasure of hearing that lovely man work his magic over his many decades of exuberant brilliance. Shake!

Collin Yeo (he/him) has nothing clever to say right now. He lives in Arcata.