Arts & Entertainment
East County Nightlife: Celebrating Independence from Boredom
Your Patch guide to East County nightlife, June 30-July 4.
As mentioned before, there are few things in life more awesome than a three-day weekend. National holidays are also pretty sweet, but a bit of a bummer when they fall in the middle of the week. So capping off a three-day weekend with the celebratory pizzazz of a holiday as spirited as Independence Day is like getting your Cool Whip/berry flag cake and eating it, too.
Even though the Fourth is supposed to celebrate independence from our tea-swilling, blood sausage-eating, oftentimes incomprehensible British overlords, it’s also a darn-near government mandated occasion to celebrate all the things that make America terrific—like barbecue and rock bands and garish firework displays that leave you mostly deaf the next morning.
While there’s plenty of ways to battle boredom and general lameness in East County during any weekend of the year, make it a point to get out in the next few days—if anything, the US economy could still use your disposable income. But above all, have fun, just as founding father John Adams decreed in a letter to his wife after signing the Declaration of Independence: The Fourth of July “ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.” Rock on, John Adams, rock on.
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THURSDAY
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Where/when: , Santee, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday.
Why Go: Blast back to the past during this local San Diego band’s oldies revue, featuring the toe-tappingest, skirt-twirlingist hits from the 1950s and 1960s at Santee's.
Price: Free
Where/when: The Regal Bar, 8344 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa, 7 to 10 p.m. Thursday
Why Go: Come for the , stay for the rock and roll. With influences ranging from Led Zeppelin, James Brown and the Stray Cats, the trio’s originals are sure to please a variety of rock palettes.
Price: No cover.
FRIDAY
Where/when: West Main Street and North Magnolia Avenue, El Cajon, 6 to 8 p.m. Friday.
Why Go: Instead of offering a broad mishmash of songs from several eras like most cover bands, Back to the Garden offers a trip back to a very specific time, in a very specific set of shoes—the music and era of Crosby Stills Nash & Young. Check them out during El Cajon's .
Price: Free.
HUGH GASKINS & THE G STRING DADDIES
Where/when: , 8528 Magnolia Ave., Santee, 9 p.m. Friday.
Why Go: Ever heard of “Blues Fusion”? No, it’s not some trendy new cuisine that would be embraced in Downtown and laughed at in East County. According to Hugh Gaskins & the G String Daddies, it’s a “melding of various blues styles with rockabilly, rock, country and an exploration of the spaces in between.”
Price: $5 cover.
SATURDAY
Where/when: Jamul Haven B&B, 13518 Jamul Drive, Jamul, 4:30 p.m. Saturday.
Why Go: Romantic comedies (or RomComs in today’s obnoxious lingo) are notorious for being formulaic, derivative, overly sentimental, and a host of other put-offs that nevertheless lure moviegoers to the cinema. For something completely different, how about a RomCom about a tie? Find out just what that means during the reading of “Boston Forty-Nine Flamingo” by K. Biadaszkiewicz.
Price: Free admission.
DIRTY BIRDZ & THE HORN STARZ
Where/when: , 8528 Magnolia Ave., Santee, 9 p.m. Saturday.
Why Go: The stage might be crowded with 12 (yes, 12!) band members, but as “students of blues and R&B” (consisting of several native La Mesans), this band knows how to rock it East County style.
Price: $8 cover.
SUNDAY
Where/when: , 7662 Broadway, Lemon Grove, 9 p.m. Sunday.
Why Go: There’s only a week left before American Idol comes to San Diego, so if you’re dreaming of becoming the next Carrie Underwood or Adam Lambert (or hey, even a Clay Aiken, because the world needs those, too), practice up during Dirk’s karaoke contest.
Price: Free.
MONDAY
Where/when: Town Center Community Park, Santee, 3:30 to 9:30 p.m. Monday.
Why Go: Cap off the last day of your glorious three-day weekend out in the fresh air, listening to live music and watching a rockin’ fireworks display after the sun goes down.
Price: Free.
