If you've never listened to Daytime Moon before, you really should fix that. This majestic three-piece band—which includes Brent Simpson, formerly of Spankshaft—incorporates several different genres into the music. The band will perform at the Beatnik Lounge on Wednesday, Oct. 17, and The Saguaro on Friday, Oct. 26. For more information on Daytime Moon, visit www.facebook.com/daytimemoonband. Brent Simpson was kind enough to answer the Lucky 13; here are his answers.

What was the first concert you attended?

Canned Heat at Pappy and Harriet’s. I think I was about 10. I went up to country, and got my mojo workin’ for whisky and wimmen and boogie music. I’m serious. I realize those are all titles of songs by them, but I was 10 years old, and it blew my mind.

What was the first album you owned?

The first CD I ever bought with my own money was one of the Now That's What I Call Music! CDs, but I can’t remember which volume it actually was. The first album of a band that I actually liked and knew what I was getting into was Blink-182’s Enema of the State. Then it was pure mayhem, and I quickly maxed out my parent’s subscription to one of those “pick some CDs and get them in the mail”-type deals.

What bands are you listening to right now?

I am enjoying some Family Thief, Slothrust, Mystic Valley Band, Amine, Animals as Leaders, Mourners, and Jouska. I am also listening to the new Daytime Moon masters from Get Right Recording Studios.

What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone love, but you don’t get?

I don’t get why so many artists have to pop pills and drink cough syrup and all that nonsense. Life is beautiful, and mental health is not talked about enough. There are a ton of amazing artists out there who feel incomplete or unhappy the way their chemistry is, and they should be able to talk about it.

What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live?

Jimi Hendrix! Or, maybe Elvis. This is a really hard question, because I feel like maybe Elvis wouldn’t live up to the expectations. Jimi would probably blow anyone away, but everyone probably chooses one or the other, so maybe Jimi.

What’s your favorite musical guilty pleasure?

Have you heard of The Moog Cookbook? Also, jazz ensembles are sometimes cool. I was a band geek back in the day, ya know, so I kinda have a different take on this.

What’s your favorite music venue?

The Palms in Wonder Valley.

What’s the one song lyric you can’t get out of your head?

“This a rollie not a stopwatch, shit don’t ever stop,” Drake, “Nonstop.”

What band or artist changed your life? How?

The Beatles. They taught me that love is all you need.

You have one question to ask one musician. What’s the question, and who are you asking?

I would ask Mozart: “DO YOU WANT TO JAM?”

What song would you like played at your funeral?

I would love it if there was a karaoke-type thing and a sweet jam session or a drum circle, but if it had to be one song, it would probably be Blink-182's “Adam’s Song,” but played on a dozen ukuleles and one bass guitar. Or an a capella version of that “Time Traveler” song by The Flusters.

Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time?

Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy. It’s the only album I own two of, so it must be my favorite, right?

What song should everyone listen to right now?

“Alien Boy” by Oliver Tree. (Scroll down to hear it.)

Kosha Dillz is one of the hardest-working people in hip-hop. He spent the summer touring the country on the final Warped Tour, and he’s heading out on tour again in the fall.

He’ll be performing at The Hood Bar and Pizza this Friday, Sept. 28, at a show presented by the Coachella Valley Independent.

Despite the name Kosha Dillz, the fact he’s performed with Matisyahu, and some Jewish references in his music, he is not is a religion-focused rapper. Instead, most of his music is quirky, such as his song “What I Do All Day.”

“I’m the least-religious person ever,” Kosha Dillz said during a recent phone interview. “The whole idea behind Kosha Dillz is more of a sexual reference. I guess there is some Jewish representation in it. It was more of being proud of my heritage, and then I sort of lost that and changed it for a few years—when I started rapping in battle raps, and I went by KD Flow.

“When I had gotten clean and sober and gotten out of jail for the last time, I was like, ‘All right, I’m going to release my music as Kosha Dillz.’ There’s no religious aspect to it, but religious people just started reaching out to me. It has nothing to do with anything biblical or anything like that. There’s not a ton of Jewish people coming to my shows; it’s more non-Jewish people.”

Kosha Dillz said that while he felt out of place at times on the Vans Warped Tour—he participated both in 2015 and this year—he did connect with audiences.

“The final Warped Tour was great, because it was the last time it was ever going to happen. There was a sense of urgency to be part of something legendary,” he said. “The goal of Warped Tour wasn’t to get a gazillion fans, but to find the people who were really right for me. That kind of situation is always interesting, because you never know who you’re going to meet. A lot of people went for the nostalgia factor. To be part of that, people want to keep that alive—and you might meet people who are going to follow you in the years to come.”

When Kosha Dillz plays a show, he’s everywhere. He’s promoting himself and casually chatting with audiences; this was the case when I saw him multiple times throughout the day at the Warped Tour in Pomona in 2015, and again when I saw him at the campgrounds at Coachella in 2016 and 2017. He’s also known for pop-up live performances at large events, one of which was a Radiohead concert in Israel in 2017.

“There’s a famous video of the world’s most famous violinist playing in a New York subway, and people just walk by and brush him off without realizing who he is. That’s sort of the same concept of what I do out there. It’s mass attention,” he said. “You’re going to a show, and you’re going to see people you haven’t seen. When I did that Radiohead show in Israel, it was a very discussed show, because it was the second-longest show they ever played, and because of Roger Waters trying to protest them (for not boycotting Israel due to the treatment of Palestinians). Then I’ve done stuff like that outside of the Grammy Awards, and I landed a national commercial for Chevrolet. I met people at that Israel show who have seen me perform at other festivals who were excited to see me again.”

Kosha Dillz has been vocally opposed to Pink Floyd bassist Roger Waters’ involvement in the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement against Israel. Kosha Dillz said what Roger Waters promotes during live shows is anti-Semitic.

“If you put Roger Waters on paper, he’s a massive musician, but he displays imagery that is anti-Semitic and is old folklore of classic anti-Semitism with pigs and Jewish stars. … It’s modern anti-Semitism under the guise of anti-Israel,” he said. “For the basic person who just comes across that, they don’t know how deep it goes. I think it’s unfortunate. … What Roger Waters does is poison minds for the first 30 seconds, and people don’t really care much about it. He’s speaking on such a grand level: ‘It’s Roger Waters, so he must be right!’ Unless you’re invested a bit more, you’re not going to understand what the Middle East peace conflict is and how long it’s been going on for. It’s what Roger Waters does: He’s really anti-Israel and anti-Jew, but it’s under a different guise.”

Kosha Dillz is currently touring with Devmo, who is also performing at The Hood Bar and Pizza.

“Devmo is an amazing artist, and she’s a really prolific rapper,” he said. “She’s really likable, and as a human being, I like her. None of us are getting rich out here yet, so I figured I’d bring her out on her first tour. I remember when I went on my first tour with Matisyahu, and it was eight shows. It was an opportunity for us to bring someone, and she has a lot to contribute. If she becomes massive, we can say it started here, and I really think she’s capable of it. I think she deserves it.”

Kosha Dillz is somewhat familiar with the local music scene, he said.

“I’m honestly looking forward to meeting all of your people. … Just in general, it’s exciting to go play in the desert,” he said. “I think people only go out there for Coachella, but I think there’s a great music scene there. I know the Yip Yops, and I met Alf Alpha out there. I played in Palm Springs back in 2007, and I met these people there who were from San Antonio. Whenever I’d come back for Coachella, I’d stay at one of the guy’s houses with his grandma in Palm Desert. This is a town we could do good in, and I think the quality of the show we’re going to bring, people will be blown away by it. Towns like Palm Desert and other small towns like Mobile, Alabama—it’s exciting to go to these places.

Kosha Dillz will perform with Off Kilter, The Bermuda and Devmo at 9 p.m., Friday, Sept. 28, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is free. For more information on the show, visit the event’s Facebook page.

If you’ve never seen a show by Se7en4, you’ve been missing out.

Unfortunately, chances to see Se7en4 have been few and far between as of late. The band played its first show in a long time earlier this year at The Hood Bar and Pizza—and will be playing there again on Friday, Oct. 12.

Se7en4 has been rocking the Coachella Valley music scene since 2000, and the current lineup includes frontman Nico Flores (the younger brother of Blasting Echo drummer and 5th Town bassist Armando Flores), drummer Steven Hall (brother of Thr3 Strykes’ Josh Hall), bassist Trevino Martin and guitarist Pete Burquez.

During a recent phone interview with Flores, he joked about the recent hiatus.

“Dude, we play like once or twice every three years or some shit like that,” Flores said with a laugh. “But we always have a great turnout. We have been around for a long time, and we barely play. We have a lot of loyal friends to the band and to the music scene. When we play, they always know it’s going to be a fun time.”

I’ve heard people compare Se7en4 to nu-metal, and say the group sounds like Suicidal Tendencies. Flores laughed when I mentioned that.

“I know where people get that from: Me and Steve (Hall) are really two of the only punk-rockers out here who roll up blasting gangsta rap, and we love hip-hop,” he said. “We may incorporate it a tiny bit into our music, but for the most part, we like it hard, fast and loud. It’s how we look and what we listen to on the side where people probably get that. We definitely listen to Suicidal Tendencies, who are a huge influence to us, and (Hed) P.E. is an influence, (as are) Snot, Rage Against the Machine and Black Flag. We love obnoxious rock that’s in-your-face shit.”

As a frontman, Flores gets down and dirty—and he definitely knows how to get the crowds going.

“Having grown up in the valley, and just watching all the old-school punkers like John Summers, Sean Wheeler, Herb Lienau and Ian Taylor from Unsound—growing up, I was like, ‘I want to be in a band!’” he said. “And then I was like, ‘Whoa! What are those guys doing?’ We grew up in the MTV era, too, which was all about being a rock star and their antics. When you’re a kid, you want to emulate that.”

What stops Se7en4 from playing more often?

“Real life gets in the way,” Flores said. “I’m the only one who still lives down here now, and I have a full-on family—a 15-year-old daughter and two little boys. All the guys live up in Los Angeles. Pete (Burquez) does music stuff on the side, and Steve does music stuff and also tours. Everyone stays busy musically; they don’t let not playing in this band stop them. Trevino is from up north and has a THC/growing operation going. Everyone went up to Los Angeles, and I just kind of stayed down here.

“We play whenever we can. It’s fun and takes our mind off shit; it’s always fun to get together. It’s frustrating when people ask, ‘Yo, bro, when are Se7ven4 playing?’ It’s good, though, because you’ll see Pete and Steven pursuing other music opportunities, and they’re doing great for themselves. For me, Se7en is my music getaway. My three passions in life are my music, wrestling, and I’m a daddy.”

Flores said the band members make a point of getting together when they can.

“We have a little studio up in L.A., so I just go up there, and the boys are all out there,” he said. “I have to plan it a little, but we’ll spend a whole day in the studio writing or jamming. It doesn’t happen as often as I’d like it to because of distance and all that stuff.”

Will there be any Se7en4 recordings in the future?

“I think the other guys say no, but I say yes,” he said. “We’re like that girlfriend that you fight with and get back together with the next day. We just have too big of a connection to never record anything together. It won’t be any time soon, but I think we will. I have songs, and the other guys are writing songs here and there.”

Se7en4 will perform with Throw the Goat and Mega Sun at 9 p.m., Friday, Oct. 12, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is $5. For more information on the show, visit the event’s Facebook page. 

Summertime in the Coachella Valley can be brutal—but those of us who live here year-round know that the local music scene never stops because of a little heat.

The Hood Bar and Pizza in Palm Desert, Kilo's Cantina in Thousand Palms, and Plan B Live Entertainment and Cocktails in Thousand Palms hosted many local rock shows during the summer—and the crowds often came out. The Hood Bar and Pizza, for example, hosted several weekend shows at which attendance was near capacity; the venue also launched and regular theme nights, including an open-mic night on Wednesday, and comedy night on Sunday.

Here are some photos of local musicians from shows that happened over the summer.

• Austin Lawrence Austin Lawrence
• Bill Barret and Joel Daniel of Spankshaft Bill Barret and Joel Daniel of Spankshaft
• Bolin Jue of Town Troubles Bolin Jue of Town Troubles
• Chelsea Sugarbritches of 5th Town Chelsea Sugarbritches of 5th Town
• Doug Van Sant of The Flusters Doug Van Sant of The Flusters
• Jacob Garcia of When Tides Turn Jacob Garcia of When Tides Turn
• Luis Diaz of In the Name of the Dead Luis Diaz of In the Name of the Dead
• Michael Anthony, aka Mikey Sick Boy Michael Anthony, aka Mikey Sick Boy
• Russel Waldron of Karr Russel Waldron of Karr
• Tyler Ontiveros of Mega Sun Tyler Ontiveros of Mega Sun
•  

Outside of some exposure at open-mic performances, local hip-hop duo of Off Kilter is largely unknown. However, that’s about to change.

Burny and TLick, originally from Northern California, are transplants to the desert who have great samples and mad skills on the mic. See for yourself when they play at The Hood Bar and Pizza on Friday, Sept. 28, as part of the CV Independent Presents show with Kosha Dillz.

Burny was the first to relocate to the desert, in October 2017, with TLick following in April 2018.

“Part of my family moved out here about two years ago. I was still up in San Jose with my dad, and then my dad and I came down here,” Burny said. “Then (TLick) moved down here and stayed on my couch until we upgraded our spot.”

TLick said he moved to the Coachella Valley because of Burny.

“I was up in the Bay Area making music, but (Burny) and I were doing it remotely. We decided we wanted to take it seriously, so I moved down here and moved in with him,” he said.

Since that move, they’ve been slowly building a following at open-mic nights at The Hood, Plan B and Big Rock Pub.

“It feels like our sound is a little more fresh down here, and we’ve been getting a positive response,” TLick said. “Obviously, we didn’t know anybody, so we’ve been going to the open mics and trying to meet people, which has been going pretty well for us. We also just did a show in Hollywood thanks to our friend who has been helping us get shows around Los Angeles. We’re trying to seize every opportunity that we can.”

The style Burny and TLick have is unique, as are their styles of delivery. Burny is gifted with the ability to rap at a fast speed.

“I grew up listening to classic rock and alternative,” Burny said. “Then I heard Eminem and Tech N9ne, guys who were lyrically gifted, as well as gifted with their flow. I heard it; it caught my ear, and I just wanted to repeat it. I would read their lyrics, because they rap so fast, and I thought, ‘I want to do that!’ I would do that with other people’s songs, and I wanted to start doing that with my own.”

TLick said he’s had a passion for writing since he was a child.

“I’m really into language, so the reason I was attracted to hip-hop is because it’s an art form dedicated entirely to language,” TLick said. “How can you use your language to express an idea, and how creatively can you do it to make yourself stand out? It’s everything I’m interested in, in a nutshell.”

Their beats are smooth with a nice groove to them.

“We make our own beats,” TLick said. “I’m really funk-inspired, and I like things that have good rhythm. I like funky bass lines and music from the ’70s, soul, funk and classic rock. I like things that groove, and a lot of the modern hip-hop doesn’t really do it for me, because it doesn’t have that soul feel to it that I’m attracted to. So what I’m trying to do is fuse what I like into something that sounds modern, but also make that sound that I like and I’m inspired by.”

T Lick said the band’s name comes from one of the first songs the duo recorded.

“We recorded this song called ‘Forever Off Kilter,’ which was before we came up with the name,” TLick said. “We were trying to come up with a name for our duo and said a lot of names back and forth. Burny called me one day and said, ‘Hey, I got a name: Off Kilter.’ We sort of realized that describes us very well. We fell in love with that name.

“The more we say it, the more we like it. Every day, I still think it’s cool. It’s such a tight name, and it’s the fusion of the funky older sounds and grooves on the production and the really rapid-fire style that we do. It’s not what you hear a lot in 2018.”

The show with Kosha Dillz will be the first local show with a full set.

“I’m looking forward to people being there to see us do a hip-hop show as opposed to seeing us on a Wednesday night at open mic because they wanted to go to The Hood,” Burny said. “They’ll be able to see our abilities.

“We get a good response at open mics, but … when you do an actual show, (attendees) know what they are going to see. So we actually have an opportunity to gain some fans, because the people there that night will be into the actual music that we’re making. I’ve done a lot of open mics in the Bay Area, and I know how they work: They’re very hit or miss. Oftentimes, you perform late in the night, and people are tired of watching 20 acts before you, or they aren’t into the type of music that you’re doing, so they aren’t really going to become fans. It’s more for practice and to stay sharp, so when we get a show, we’re prepared.”

Off Kilter will perform with The Bermuda and Kosha Dillz at 9 p.m., Friday, Sep. 28, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is free. For more information on Off Kilter, visit www.offkiltermusic.net.

Three fine musicians, formerly members of well-liked local bands, have joined forces to create something new.

Karr features drummer Russel Waldron (formerly of Spankshaft), guitarist and vocalist Paul Karr (Unheard) and bassist Andy Gorrill (Machin’, Warsaw Poland Bros.), and the group will be making its low-desert debut—and playing its second show, period—at The Hood Bar and Pizza on Saturday, Sept. 1.

During a recent interview in Yucca Valley, Waldron said he was looking to play music again after leaving Spankshaft—and found chemistry with Gorrill and Karr.

“I consider it like the band Chickenfoot of the desert,” Waldron said. “We all come from these big bands of the desert—Warsaw Poland Brothers, Spankshaft and Unheard—and we decided to go our separate ways from them. As far as Spankshaft goes, I still love those guys like brothers, but it was time for a change.

“Me and Paul (Karr), who is my brother-in-law, got together. I jammed with everyone I could in the desert, but with Paul, it just clicked, and it felt like a heroin feeling. … After three practices, I was like, ‘Oh my god, this is where I belong.’ It’s been awesome, and it’s a huge breath of fresh air.

“We were on the prowl for a bass player, and I’ve played with 90 percent of the bands in the valley, and I never thought about hitting up Andy Gorrill; I always thought he was busy. I remember he texted me saying, ‘Totally interested!’ He came over, and after the first practice, Paul said, ‘He’s in!’ We’ve been practicing two to three times a week.”

For Paul Karr, the band marks a return to the rock world.

“I’ve been doing acoustic sets here and there, but nothing in rock for several years,” Karr said. “I didn’t really think I was going to do it again; my first intention was to get together with other guys and do stuff acoustically. That didn’t happen. I put an ad out on Craigslist, and it was while Russel was still in Spankshaft. I got all these replies and booked all these practices. But Russel said, ‘Hey, let’s get together!’ So I canceled all those. … I had been playing mostly benefit stuff because my mom is involved in a lot of charities.”

Gorrill said that while being part of Machin’ was fun, he and frontman David Macias didn’t always see eye to eye.

“I definitely had different life goals,” Gorrill said. “David (Macias) wanted to go one way, and it was different than what I was up for doing. … I played ball for a long time, but it got to a point where I needed to do me. It left a sour taste in my mouth, but it was good for me, because it let me not have to worry about shows, not worry about gigging, and it let me sit in my garage and play what I wanted to play, which was loud rock ’n’ roll. … In this band, it’s, ‘Let’s try this,’ or, ‘Let’s try that,’ instead of, ‘Learn how to play it is this way!’ There’s a lot of freedom now, and we’re not focused on perfection. Music should be fun, and when it becomes a job, the fun starts to peter out.”

Waldron said he understands it’s not easy to run a successful band.

“You have to keep the momentum going,” Waldron said. “You have to keep up with your publicity and all that. It can become a second job, but as long as it’s fun, and I’m happy like I’ve been, and it stays this way, I could play music for the next 20 years with these guys. It’s super-fun, and it’s exciting, and we’re just going to grow. It’s not perfect right now by any means, but it’s pretty damn awesome.”

Only a short demo for Karr has been released so far, but all three members agreed that coming from different music backgrounds was a positive.

“Genre-wise, I came from a ska band,” Waldron said. “We did a lot of ska, reggae and pop-punk. I’m still a huge reggae and ska fan at heart, so I’m going to bring a lot of those roots with me. It’s really cool to blend these different backgrounds together and see how it goes. I bring a lot of my roots with me, but playing with Paul and Andy’s different styles brings a lot of new stuff out of me I didn’t know I had.”

Karr said the creative atmosphere works well for him.

“Way back in the day in my band, it was way more catchy and riff-driven. As time went on, it became harder and harder, and it felt like it was becoming depressing metal,” Karr said. “But for me now, I’ll bring something in, and I never leave bummed out, because we’re continuously creating. I feel like they’re more open to working on a song and giving it their best shot.”

Gorrill said Machin’ should not define him as a musician.

“In Machin’, there was the cumbia, the ska and the gypsy jazz—which was all cool. It’s great to have that background, but it’s not what I listen to when I’m at home,” he said. “I’m listening to Foo Fighters and stuff like that, so it’s nice to be in a guitar band.”

There’s no doubt that Karr will offer some surprises during the show at The Hood.

“We have some studio time … and we’ve been putting it off, because we’ve been working on our set, but we want to go in there and get some records done hopefully by the end of the year. Everybody has been seeing our posters everywhere, and we have no music to show them yet—so the only way you’re going to hear us is to come to the show.”

Karr will perform with Sunday Funeral and Sticky Doll at 9 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 1, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.karrband.com.

Jeff Bowman has largely been a quiet guy in the background, kicking ass on the drums in the local music scene for the better part of three decades.

But he recently had a fantastic idea that brought him into the spotlight: He’s bringing a variety of local musicians to The Hood Bar and Pizza on Saturday, Aug. 25, to play a benefit concert for the Desert Cancer Foundation.

However, this is not a normal benefit show. Here’s how it will work: Various musicians, many of whom have never played together before, were grouped up and given a band name by Bowman. Each group was then given a list of songs to cover—songs the musicians need to learn, rehearse and perform the night of the show.

“I thought that it’d be cool to get a few local people together, learn a set and try to play as a brand-new band by the end of the summer,” Bowman said during a recent interview in Palm Desert. “Then I thought, ‘I wonder if I could get a few more people together, and we could make a whole night of it. Maybe even five bands.’ I’ve played music in the desert now for about 30 years, and there are still a ton of people I haven’t played music with, and we have a ton of talent out here. I called Nigel (Dettelbach) at The Hood Bar and Pizza and asked, ‘You have anything (open on the schedule) at the end of the summer?’ He had something open and booked it.

“I put a Facebook post together on a Wednesday afternoon, and I said, ‘OK, here are some rules, and if everyone abides by these rules, this is going to work. Be open to doing your homework and learning these songs; be open to playing with people you’ve never played with before; and be available on the night of the show. I put it out there around noon. I was practicing with Waxy that night; I had to put a stop on the post because I had so many responses.”

There is a personal reason Bowman chose to do a benefit for the Desert Cancer Foundation.

“My mom is a cancer survivor, but my aunt was not and passed away,” Bowman said. “My uncle was also recently diagnosed with cancer, and it’s stage 4. I think that (cancer) affects all of us.

“Originally, we wanted to do something for the American Cancer Society, but that’s a national organization, and anything we raise will just go into the national pot. Also, because The Hood Bar and Pizza allows smoking on the patio, (the American Cancer Society) won’t support it. But the Desert Cancer Foundation does cancer-treatment assistance for people with cancer right here in the valley, and they were OK with The Hood Bar and Pizza allowing smoking on their patio.

“I think it’s great our local music scene can support people with cancer. It’s a theme that’s close to home.”

After more than 30 local musicians responded to Bowman’s post, he had to turn others away.

“I had a lot of people tell me, ‘I didn’t hear a thing about it!’ It’s true: They didn’t, because it was an idea that I had on a Wednesday afternoon that I put out on Facebook,” Bowman said. “If you weren’t logged into Facebook from noon to 6 p.m. on that Wednesday, you missed it. But there was enough interest in it to where I could see this being a semi-annual or even an annual event. If I did it again, I’d put it out there, saying, ‘The window is open from this time to this time.’”

Bowman said it was surprisingly difficult to completely mix up the one-night-only bands: Each one includes at least two musicians who are currently in bands together, while others used to play together.

“I tried to be as random as I could with the band selections and the song selections, but there were certain band members who have a depth of history to where that was impossible,” Bowman said. “I literally did little pieces of paper with everyone’s name on them and put them together by the drummers, the bassists, the guitar players and the vocalists to try to make it an interesting experience of people playing with others they’ve never played with—generating relationships, generating energy, storytelling and things like that.”

Of course, the newly created bands have had to overcome some obstacles. Coval had issues with rehearsals because the drummer, Benny Cancino Jr., has been on a tour—so Bowman has filled in. The Oneders had to switch gears after Herb Lienau needed to back out. That band, which includes Sleazy Cortez bassist Derek Timmons, will be fronted by Timmons’ girlfriend, Stevie Jane Lee, who will be making her local live music debut after moving here earlier this year from Utah. Lee said she is thrilled to be taking part.

“I am really excited to be a part of it—and what better way to get to know all the musicians in the area that I don’t know already?” Lee said. “I was a bit worried at first, because most of the songs we we’re assigned, I didn’t know, but we have been rehearsing at least once a week, if not two, since the bands were announced. I can honestly say that I couldn’t have hoped for a better group of people to be in. I am getting to do one of my favorite songs that I have always wanted to cover, so I have no complaints.”

Coval will include a reunion, of sorts: Monreaux frontman Giorg Tierez will be performing publicly with Monreaux guitarist Marcus Bush for the first time in two years, as Monreaux has been on an extended hiatus.

“I asked to participate because I needed an outlet back into the scene, and the show is the night before my birthday,” Tierez said. “It just made sense to me. Plus, I didn’t know Jeff Bowman personally, but I knew of him, and after meeting him and jamming with him, I can say that he’s one of my favorite people, by far, and probably one of the best musicians I’ve ever seen.”

Bowman said the show has been the subject of some inaccurate rumors.

“I’ve heard people calling it a competition, and I need to put the kibosh on that: This is NOT a competition. This is not one of those things that’s, ‘Let’s find the best guitar player!’” he said.

The lineups as of this story’s deadline:

The Oneders: Derek Timmons, Stevie Jane Lee, Cara Makuh, Tom Edwards, Nick Hales, Matt King and Troy Whitford.

Blonde Moment: Noe Gutierrez, Natasha Carian, Alex Mirage Burdon, Randy Caserta, Damian Lautiero, Armando Flores and Rob Peterson.

Bounce Haus: Robbie Waldman, Linda Lemke Heinz, Lindsey Bowman, Robert Bowman, Bobby Nichols, Matt Whyte and Robert Garcia.

Banned Four: Chelsea Sugarbritches, Nico Flores, Pakko Lopez, Josh Heinz, Rob Martinez and Jeff Bowman.

Coval: Giorg Tierez, Esther Sanchez, David Burk, Chris Rivera, Marcus Bush and Benny Cancino Jr.

A Mixed Up Music Party!, an event to benefit the Desert Cancer Foundation will take place at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 25, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is $5 at the door. For more information, call 760-636-5220, or visit facebook.com/HoodBarAndPizza.

If you’ve seen Gutter Candy perform recently, you may have noticed a new yet familiar face behind the drums: Dani Diggler, also a member of Sticky Doll, and the guitarist and drummer for Van Vincent. That’s not all: Diggler is also a solo artist. Catch him in action with Gutter Candy this Friday, July 13, at The Hood Bar and Pizza; and Friday, Aug. 3, at Gadi’s, in Yucca Valley. See him with Van Vincent on Friday, Aug. 10, at the Joshua Tree Saloon, in Joshua Tree. Diggler was kind enough to take the Lucky 13; here are his answers.

What was the first concert you attended?

Aerosmith, 1993, in Costa Mesa. Jackyl was the opening act. It was a great show, and I remember most of it.

What was the first album you owned?

Too far back to recall, but I believe it was a cassette tape given to me by my aunt: Draw the Line by Aerosmith. (Aerosmith was) also my first favorite band.

What bands are you listening to right now?

I’m always listening to Tool, Primus and The Doors.

What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone love, but you don’t get?

Rap. It’s just not music at all.

What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live?

Without a doubt, it would be The Doors. I can’t think of a show that could be more legendary than that.

What’s your favorite musical guilty pleasure?

Tori Amos. She’s amazing. Most people can’t believe I’m into her. Why not? She’s amazing!

What’s your favorite music venue?

I’d have to say the Greek Theatre (in Los Angeles). Great place to see a show.

What’s the one song lyric you can’t get out of your head?

“Death makes angels of us all, giving us wings where we had shoulders, smooth as ravens claws,” The Doors, “A Feast of Friends.”

What band or artist changed your life? How?

Again, The Doors.

You have one question to ask one musician. What’s the question, and who are you asking?

Les Claypool: “How the hell do you do what you do on the bass so well?” Greatest bassist of all time. Period.

What song would you like played at your funeral?

Two songs: From a band I was in years ago Chili Cow, “... And the Story Begins,” and an original I wrote, currently unreleased, "Death My Friend."

Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time?

Tool, Ænima.

What song should everyone listen to right now?

“Right in Two,” again by Tool. So accurate. (Scroll down to hear it.)

There’s not much of a standup comedy scene in the Coachella Valley—but The Hood Bar and Pizza and aspiring local comedian Jacob Cantu are hoping to change that.

Cantu has often made people laugh during the Wednesday-night open-mic at The Hood—and management has taken notice. As a result, Cantu is now organizing a standup comedy night at The Hood every other Sunday.

“I always had it in the back of my mind to do it, but I just didn’t have the balls to do it,” Cantu said during a recent interview. “My grandpa died in 2015, and I was taking care of him. He had Alzheimer’s, and I took care of him for about five years. I was depressed, and my therapist told me, ‘You know, you’re funny here when you tell me about sad stuff; you should try standup comedy.’ I told my wife about it, and my wife found an ad for an open-mic—and I just did it. I sucked, but I got hooked and got a couple of laughs.”

He’s now been performing for almost three years. At a recent open-mic night, he told a humorous tale about a woman in yoga pants chiding him and ruining his day because he was purchasing Doritos.

“I still don’t know how to be myself when I’m onstage yet,” Cantu said. “That bit at open-mic with the Doritos was probably the most comfortable I’ve felt onstage ever. I’ve consciously been trying to do stuff like that.”

Cantu has long had standup comedy aspirations, and said he was inspired by greats including George Carlin and—before his, uh, recent troubles—Bill Cosby.

“I had Bill Cosby’s Himself on tape, and I just watched it over and over and over again,” Cantu said. “When George Carlin was putting out an HBO special every year, I was living in Mexico. My dad made sure he had DirecTV as soon as it came out and that we had HBO. I watched any special that would come on—stuff like Chris Rock when he did Bring the Pain, and Dave Chappelle. It was before the internet.

“I did a class with this guy who had the only standup open-mic (in the valley) at Caliente Tropics. I knew it was a hustle, but I supported him, because I didn’t want them to stop the open-mic. I paid him $50. It wasn’t like I was being told anything I didn’t know already. I listen to a lot of podcasts, and one thing I learned from them is to go up there and be yourself. The jokes come later. The first part is learning how to be yourself onstage.”

Cantu said The Hood’s open-mic night has been a great place to learn.

“The Hood is a tough room, especially on Wednesday,” he said. “People want to go see music, and the thing about music at a bar is that music is in the background. When you (perform) standup, you have to get people’s attention. I’m not a dirty comic; I don’t cuss, and I walk on the borderline talking about death a lot. It’s hard for me to get a bar’s attention on a Wednesday night—but it’s also made me better. I let them listen to themselves be assholes. If you’re quiet for a second, the talking of the people watching you will shut everyone up, and I’ve learned to do that at The Hood, which has been a good thing.

“One of my main motivators is having a regular comedy show there. I also want to have a comedy open-mic somewhere so people can try it. It’s going to be raw; it’s going to be a little rough, and there are going to be people who are funny—or who think they are funny. But at least you know what you’re getting into, and that’s how you get better.”

Cantu said putting together the first show, which took place June 10, was personally challenging.

“Driving over here to meet you, I was worried, because I thought I was going to get ambushed or something. That’s what makes you a standup comedian,” he said. “Nigel (Dettelbach, the promoter/booker at The Hood) is used to dealing with confident people. He’s used to dealing with people with self-esteem. Nigel wasn’t so sure, and it came together on the fly. I put together the show real quick, and comedians came down from Los Angeles.

“There’s no comedy scene here, and when I started doing this, I had nowhere to go. I’m 35, and I know where I am in life. I’m not going to be on television. The highlight of my life would be to run a show here in the Coachella Valley and get paid for it—or getting a famous person who thinks I’m funny to write jokes for them. Why not here? Standup gives you an outlet. You can’t play an instrument, but you can talk on a microphone.”

On top of the shows at The Hood, Cantu is working with Plan B Live Entertainment and Cocktails in Thousand Palms on a local-comedy night.

“My wife is pretty mad at me, because I’m dedicating a lot of time to this, but I think it’s important,” Cantu said. “Someone has to start this, and I know there are other standups in the valley, but it takes a lot of work to put shows together. … (It would be nice) if I had someone to help me, because I don’t want to get divorced anytime soon.”

If the desert-rock gods of Kyuss had a baby with the members of the band Primus … you’d get Sleazy Cortez.

The local outfit that features bassist Derek Timmons, guitarist Nick Hales and drummer Damian Garcia has played a long list of shows over the past year—and released the album Trailer Trash Blues late in 2017.

But Sleazy Cortez actually goes back some years … eight years, to be exact, when Timmons was part of Robotic Humans with Lalo Beat, and a jam session with Nick Hales indirectly led to the creation of Sleazy Cortez.

“We’ve existed since 2010, although not consecutively,” Derek Timmons said during an interview on the patio of The Hood Bar and Pizza. “There are some big gaps where we were busy with other bands, but we would still jam. That was back in the days when we had Lalo Beats on drums. Lalo and I were in Robotic Humans at the time, and we started jamming, and we had a gig come up at the Red Barn, and we were unable to do it as Robotic Humans. We were like, ‘Let’s just do it as Sleazy Cortez, even though we don’t have any songs.’ We went there and made it up on the spot, and there were a bunch of people groovin’ and loving the songs. We decided to go ahead and put some songs together.”

The songs on Trailer Trash Blues have existed for years. Former drummer Lalo Beats even came back to help finish and style them.

“A lot of those songs have existed since I was living in Indiana years and years ago—not exactly as they are now, but mostly fully formed,” Timmons said.

Drummer Damian Garcia was praised by Hales and Timmons during the interview as bringing more groove and funk to the band—elements which have helped them stand out in the local music scene.

“It was very complicated for me to switch between Lalo’s drums and mine. … He was more metal, and that was what he was doing in Robotic Humans,” Garcia said. “When I heard this, I was obviously going to try to imitate his style, given it was already there, but I threw some of my own style into it. The way I emphasize that is to add accents on the songs and bring them out more. I added more feeling and more groove to them.”

The album actually sat collecting dust for a long period of time.

“It was recorded back during the fall of 2015,” Hales said. “From the time we started, it took about five years to actually come from, ‘Hey, we played this random-ass show with no fucking songs,’ to a whole full-length EP.”

Timmons said the delay was due, in part, to Sleazy Cortez being put on the backburner.

“It was everyone’s part-time thing for a while,” Timmons said. “We had that whole album already done, and then didn’t play for a year before we got back together and got it together the way that it finally came together. Every song except ‘Backwoods Woman’ was already like it was for the album. But we would play ‘Bud the C.H.U.D.’ however we wanted. We would be like, ‘We should at least determine how long we’re going to play that one,’ instead of 15 minutes one time, and seven minutes the next time.”

Timmons was frustrated—amusingly so—the day he received their initial shipment of CDs late last year after he spotted a defect in the artwork on the cover. He declared that as long as they and others had been waiting for the album, they were willing to wait longer for it to be perfect.

“The cover is still not perfect, though,” he said. “We’ll probably do another pressing of it, given it bothers me when shit isn’t right. It’s good now, but later, it’ll be better.”

Songs like “Mountain Man”—about a guy who owns a marijuana farm who shoots trespassers—as well as “Beat Up Your Mom” make some people raise their eyebrows.

“We don’t advocate anything we sing about,” Timmons said. “We like to sing about picking up high school girls from the bowling alley, killing people trespassing on a drug farm, and backwoods prostitutes. It’s more fun to sing about them than get involved in any of those things in real life. People can do whatever they want with our music, but I feel I’m not responsible, even if I said to do it.”

Sleazy Cortez will perform with Throw the Goat and Bossfight at 9 p.m., Friday, June 1, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111, in Palm Desert. Admission is free. For more information on Sleazy Cortez, visit sleazycortez.bandcamp.com.