To hell with death, Black Lillies and Leg Hound

by Chris Aaland

Happy Day of the Dead to those you who survived the Zombie March (by capitalizing this event, should la policía consider it an official gathering?)
It’s a big deal down Mexico way, where the holiday’s roots trace to both Catholic (All Saints’ Day) and Aztec (a festival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl) traditions. In most parts of Mexico, it’s a two-day fiesta. Children and infants are recognized on Dia de los Inocentes (Nov. 1) while adults are honored on Dia de los Muertos (Nov. 2).

November 2012 has been a month I’ve dreaded. All of the emotions I went through a year ago are back in full force. Earlier this week, I tried to find an old Western duster for a friend to use for a Halloween costume. All of our old clothes – Shelly’s, Otto’s and mine — are stored in a room adjacent to our garage. The room is also stuffed with plastic bins filled with dishes, toys, magazines, stamp collections and other mementos. When Gus died, Shelly packed up all of his clothes, toys, baby strollers and the like and piled them into the storage area. So my futile search for the duster led to frustration, anger, rage, sadness and, ultimately, my first good cry for my baby in months. He’s always in my heart and thoughts, but the emptiness is something I’ve tried to keep in check. And I’m failing miserably at it.

Knoxvilla Americana supergroup Black Lillies play the DAC on Sunday night

So maybe a trip to Greenmount Cemetery – a place I’ve only visited for Gus’ burial and birthday – is in order. I can leave an offering of Halloween candy for him, as Otto will surely have scored more Snickers, Jolly Ranchers and candy corn than his dentist would like. Or I can drop off a couple of grouse feathers from birds I harvested in hunts with Otto this fall … Gus never got the chance to walk the slopes beside me like his big brother does. And maybe, after chugging a breakfast Molé Stout in his honor, I can summon the strength to get through Thanksgiving, the holiday that stole my son a year ago.
As they say in Mexico, al Diablo la muerte, mientras la vida nos dure. To hell with death while we’re still alive.

The Black Lillies bring dark Americana to the Durango Arts Center in the latest Durango Acoustic Music production at 7 p.m. Sunday. The band rose from the ashes of Robinella and the CCStringband, an outfit that featured Black Lillies’ singer/songwriter/frontman Cruz Contreras and his then-wife, Robinella Bailey. When their marriage broke up, so did the band … and the Black Lillies formed and recorded their debut album, “Whiskey Angel,” in 2009. Cruz wrote all of the material, much of which covers his divorce and band breakup. Two years later, they released their second record, “100 Miles of Wreckage.” Along the way, they’ve built a large following by playing such shindigs as Bonnaroo and, locally, the Pagosa Folk’n Bluegrass and Four Corners Folk festivals on Reservoir Hill. If you’ve seen them in Pee Town, then you’ve probably recognized their stark contrast to the usual happy-go-lucky bands (think Eddie from Ohio and Nickel Creek) that flood FolkWest’s lineups. The Lillies have a gothic feel to their music … a good thing when you’ve had to endure EFO singing about Old Dominion or suffer Chris Thile noodling incessantly too many times.

Nakai, Eaton & Clipman is a trio that blends the soaring melodies of R. Carlos Nakai’s Native American flute, the vibrant tones of William Eaton’s lyraharp guitar and the subtle pulse of Will Clipman’s world beat percussion. Together they create music that is at once ethereal and earthy. They’ll play the Community Concert Hall at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Got Beer’d? Kick off Snowdown three months early at 8 p.m. Friday for the kickoff of the Snowdown beard shave-off. You must be clean shaven and get your photo taken as proof you didn’t get a head start in the competition. Then, on Snowdown Thursday (Jan. 31, 2013), the furry-faced will present their work to a panel of judges and try to win prizes for best color, longest, greatest beer absorption and – for the ladies – best leg hair. There’s no entry fee for this 21+ event. This year’s Snowdown theme, for those of you hoping to recycle your Halloween duds, is “Get Your Geek On.”

In other beer-related news, Steamworks hosts its popular Firkin Friday. November’s one-off ale is going to the dogs – literally – in the form of sales to benefit Annie’s Orphans. The ale in question? Mississippi Leg Hound, which is a Belgian chocolate with dark, sweet cherries and black currants. It all starts with Steamworks’ fine Ale Diablo, then goes crazy with the added ingredients. The cask gets tapped at 3 p.m. Friday.

Also, Spruce Goose Ale has returned to Steamworks. Literally brewed with fresh spruce tips harvested in the San Juans, it’s a winter favorite for craft beer aficionados. Get it in bombers at your favorite booze merchant or in pint form at Steamworks.

Durango Nature Studies presents Mountain Film on Tour 2012 at 7 p.m. Friday at the Smiley Building. Eleven short films will be screened, with food and drinks from an assortment of local establishments available. Visit www.mountainfilm.org to check out clips from the films to be screened.

Elsewhere: Old North State brings its eclectic Americana brew to Ska’s chili night from 5-7 p.m. tonight (Thurs., Nov. 1); the Jelly Belly Boogie Band rocks the Wild Horse at 8:30 p.m. Friday; Pete Giuliani plays a solo acoustic show at Four Leaves Winery from 6-9 p.m. Friday; the Kirk James Blues Band returns to Vallecito’s Schank House from 7-11 p.m. Friday; the full Black Velvet is at the Derailed Saloon at 8 p.m. Saturday; and the Lawn Chair Kings return to the ranks of the living as a power trio in a twin-bill with Old North State at the Summit Saturday.

An early-bird announcement: tickets to the just-announced Josh Abbott Band show at the Community Concert Hall (Jan. 19, 2013) go on-sale at 10 a.m. this Friday. These guys are hailed as sensations of the Texas music scene.

Tired of campaign emails cluttering up your in-box? So am I. But this week’s Top Shelf list is a one-word suggestion: Vote.

Damned if I wouldn’t go to church on Sunday? Email me at chrisa@gobrainstorm.net.