LOCAL
EVENTS
CAMPUS
MARIACHI BRINGS
SOUNDS OF MEXICO
Hear the energetic ritmos from the
states of Jalisco, Michoacan, Colima
and more on Friday, Dec. 6 at
Phillips Hall Theatre. “Don Mariachi:
Music from Mexico!” features
traditional music that continues
to be played across America and
Mexico. The event showcases
the cultural signifi cance of music
derived from history. General
admission tickets cost $9.99, Entry
for students and children is $4.99.
Show starts at 7:30 p.m.
/ Bre Castañeda
VIBES /
Tony Martin
performs with
his band at the
Yost Theater
on Nov. 15
Brainstory live
STORY
KAREN RODRIGUEZ
PHOTO
ASHLEY RAMYNKE
Psych-rock trio from the Inland Empire takes listeners on a trip with
an album release show in Downtown Santa Ana
G
rowing up in the suburban sprawl of
Rialto, Calif., brothers Kevin and Tony
Martin didn’t have much to do — except
make music.
“There was nothing cracking,” Tony said. “If
you wanted something to crack, you had to
do it yourself. We kind of made something out
of nothing.”
The two found temporary escape through
skateboarding and the Inland Empire’s close-knit
punk-rock scene.
But it wasn’t until they started studying jazz at
Riverside Community College that the guitarist
and bassist met drummer Eric Hagstrom.
Together they started Brainstory.
Since then, the psychedelic-soul, jazz-rock
trio has used its two EPs to transport fans into
a never-ending Sunday afternoon of California
sunshine met with existentialist dread.
The band took listeners on a trip at their record
release show Friday, Nov. 15 at The Yost Theater
in Downtown Santa Ana.
Brainstory’s debut album, Buck, on New York’s
retro-soul label Big Crown Records, is a level-
up for the band, which released its previous
music under Chicano Batman’s SoCal-based El
Relleno Records.
“Buck is a soulful expression. Life can be hard
and sometimes you need a good buckin’,” said
Kevin, the vocalist and guitarist. “Basically, it
means doing whatever you’re doing to the
fullest — to the max —to get that release.”
The feeling of release was defi nitely translated
from the album to their show. Songs like “Dead
End,” a smooth soul jam with hints of the Classic
IV song “Spooky,” took the crowd from the
purple-lit venue to the sunny streets of Los
Angeles in the ‘70s.
With eyes closed and heads swaying, the
audience was in a trance. A feeling of liberation
overtook the crowd.
It was exactly what Brainstory hopes to share
with their music.
“I want people to feel a general sense of
abandonment,” Tony said. “I want them to feel
free to go on a journey in their minds and come
back after the show and feel like they went on
an experience.”
ONLINE
STUDENTS PRODUCE
ORIGINAL WEBSERIES
Theatre and TV/Film production
students teamed up to create a
webseries drama called Z Joined.
In it, five students grapple with
the difficulties of attending a
school that fails student needs,
while rooming together. The
hour-long pilot will be screened
on Dec. 13, at 7:30 p.m. at Phillips
Hall Theatre, with tickets selling
for $20. The episode will premiere
online at 10:30 p.m. Tickets are
available at zjoined.com.
/ Kate G. Bustamante
el Don Santa Ana College · December 2019
7