SFR Picks x2: X-Mas Sucks

We totally feel for those of you out there who dread this time of year. Maybe you don’t celebrate Christmas for personal or religious reasons, or maybe you’re just sad you’ll have to spend all that time with family. Regardless, what does one do when the whole town goes bonkers and the businesses keep weird hours and you just want to go on living your life? Well, there are a number of things to aid in passing the time. For a mere $22, you can see an HD performance of the play No Man’s Land with Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart (7 pm Wednesday Dec. 21. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St., 988-1234). Or there’s Eve LaFountain and Matthew Rowe (5 pm Friday Dec. 23. Free. Addison Rowe Gallery, 229 E Marcy St., 982-1533), a meeting of the minds that covers photography, ceramics and more. How about the Cuban street music of Savor (Saturday Dec. 24. Free. La Fiesta Lounge, 100 E San Francisco St., 982-5511)? Victor Alvarez and company remind us of beaches and rum instead of Christmas. The big day itself is pretty sparse, but there’s always the movies (we liked Star Wars, which you can read about on page 53) and, if you can make it to the 26th, Jean Cocteau Cinema is screening Blade Runner as part of their Director’s Cut series (6 pm Sunday Dec. 26. $5. 418 Montezuma Ave., 466-5528). By the time we hit Dec. 27, drag queen Bella Gigante performs her fiery covers of songs you know and love (and maybe some you hate) at the Santa Fe Botanical Garden (5 pm. $6-$9. 715 Camino Lejo, 471-9103) and Hidden Whale rocks Skylight on Thursday Dec. 29 ($7. 139 W San Francisco St., 982-0775) for member Jim Goulden’s birthday. Before you know it, it will be New Year’s Eve (see NYE pick) and this whole terrible mess will be behind us for another year. You’re welcome. (Alex De Vore)

Home for the Holidays

Courtesy the Artist (Courtesy the Artist)

Singer-songwriter and former New Mexican Lucy Barna takes the stage at the Mine Shaft Tavern once again with an eclectic show comprised of new songs, holiday tunes and original versions of songs written for her full band, Hot Honey. “My lyrics are way more important than my sound,” Barna tells SFR. The part-time musician/part-time jeweler also hopes to collaborate with friends while she’s in town and looks forward to spending her days in Madrid before returning to Oregon. “It should be a pretty awesome show,” Barna says. (Kim Jones)

Lucy Barna:
5 pm Friday Dec. 23. Free.
Mine Shaft Tavern,
2846 Hwy. 14, Madrid,
473-0743

I’ll Have What She’s Having

The Santa Fe Jewish Film Festival presents a neo-traditional Hanukkah event with

Flix & Chopstix

, a Nora Ephron film tribute followed by a Chinese dinner at Temple Beth Shalom. This year’s event praises Ephron’s writing talents with screenings of

When Harry Met Sally

and

Everything is Copy

. Festival director Marcia Torobin helped organize the event that acknowledges and appreciates Jewish culture as well as successes in the film industry. “It’s a fun thing to do on Christmas if you’re Jewish or don’t have any holiday traditions,” she says. (KJ)

Flix & Chopstix:
Various times Sunday Dec. 25. $6-$36.
Visit santafejff.org for full schedule.
Center for Contemporary Arts,
1050 Old Pecos Trail,
982-1338

Homecoming King

For two years now, prodigal son Trevor Bahnson has been gigging and recording around Berlin, Germany, where electronica reigns. The honey-voiced acoustic singer-songwriter has even found a few electronic beats creeping into his craft as a result. He’s returned home to Santa Fe for the holidays, and picked up an evening show at Cowgirl. As for the German scene, Bahnson says, “it’s different—people still care about music there. They give a shit. When I’m touring it’s a lot of small towns, so they get super excited and they all come out.” Make like Germany, Santa Fe! (Charlotte Jusinski)

Trevor Bahnson:
8 pm Tuesday Dec. 27. Free.
Cowgirl,
319 S Guadalupe St.,
982-2565

Auld Lang Fine! See you in hell, 2016!

Selfie Courtesy Future Scars (Selfie Courtesy Future Scars)

Wow, you guys—we made it through another year, and a particularly terrible one at that. So breathe. Relax. Breathe again. And then go out on New Year’s Eve and get just so totally, biblically, earth-shatteringly messed up. You can pre-game it during a laid-back country-Western performance from

Gary Paul

at Upper Crust Pizza

(6 pm. Free. 329 Old Pecos Trail, 982-0000). As a bonus, the pizza you eat can act like an internal booze-sponge later, resulting in more drinks!

David Geist

also does his thing at 6 pm at Pranzo Italian Grill

($2. 540 Montezuma Ave., 984-2645), so if a nice dinner with wine and show tunes sounds good, be there. Everyone’s best friends from

Meow Wolf

take over the Santa Fe University of Art & Design’s Shellaberger Tennis Center for the

Galactic Jungle New Year’s Eve Party

—what we hear will be about the biggest jam of all time (8 pm. $25-$40. 1600 St. Michael’s Drive, 473-6144)—with

The Rev

Ana M

, a whole mess of food trucks, interactive art and more. For folks who wish to go the social butterfly route and party-hop,

Chango

descends upon Cowgirl with a free show of rock covers with which y’all can sing along at 8:30 pm (Free. 319 S Guadalupe St., 982-2565),

DJ Oona

brings the dance action to La Posada at 9 pm ($30. 330 E Palace Ave., 986-0000),

Boomroots Collective

melds reggae and hip-hop over at Boxcar starting at 10 pm (Free. 530 S Guadalupe St., 988-7222) and baffling-yet-catchy post-rock math weirdos

Future Scars

play an unexpected (in that they’re not an Americana-ish band) set at the original Second Street Brewery for free at 11 pm (1814 Second St., 982-3030). There are plenty of other things to do as well, so be proactive—but you should also not drive if you’re going to drink. Seriously, you guys, we’re begging you. Anyway, do it for David Bowie and we’ll see you out there! (ADV)

Fine Print

Courtesy Lewallen Galleries (Courtesy Lewallen Galleries)

Everyone knows Pablo Picasso’s sweeping “Guernica,” Edvard Munch’s “The Scream.” The heavily worked paintings defined the artists’ careers. But what did the artists do when they were feeling punchy and wanted to challenge the establishment in an acute way? Printmaking, that’s what. “The prints give us a glimpse into the great experimentation that was going on,” says LewAllen Galleries associate Alex Gill. “They’re rough, unpolished. For that reason, the creative energy in these prints is even more distilled and powerful than the paintings that everyone knows.” This extensive collection of works on paper provides a rawness not seen in thicker pieces. (CJ)

Genius on Paper Opening Reception:
5 pm Friday Dec 30. Free.
LewAllen Galleries,
1613 Paseo de Peralta,
988-3250

Home on the Strange

The post X-mas world somehow goes on, this time in the form of a show from local rockers St. Range (formerly The Strange) at Cowgirl. The boys not only recently welcomed back their original keyboardist Mitchell Lacassagne, they’re also a few songs deep into writing and recording their newest album, according to front man Justin Lindsey. “We’re doing a lot more synth work and effects,” Lindsey says, “kind of modern psych mixed with our desert rock and surf stuff.” Since we love when a band evolves, and also anytime someone does “psych,” we’re pretty on board. “We like to start New Year’s Eve a bit early,” says drummer Braden Anderson. And now we’re double-down. (ADV)

St. Range:
8:30 pm Friday Dec. 30. Free.
Cowgirl,
319 S Guadalupe St.,
982-2565

Santa Fe Reporter