FRIDAY
THEATER
‘MEXODUS’
The Rep’s associate artistic director, David Mendizábal, directed and designed the costumes in this production about Black and brown solidarity. Stories from the Underground Railroad leading to Mexico unfold in a musical composed in real-time with live-looping and the verbal gymnastics of the show’s magnetic writer/performers, Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson. Mexodus makes the lyrics of the song “Two Bodies” true: “There’s no stopping me.” Resilience is not to be taken for granted; the power of unified Black and brown communities offers hope for change. During a time when divisiveness, wars and weariness run rampant worldwide, the show thrusts forward an alternative narrative: Be righteously angry, but also be a little kinder. – LOU FANCHER
INFO: Fri, 8pm, Berkeley Rep, Peet’s Theatre, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. $23+. 510.647.2949.
FRIDAY
JAZZ
ROBERTA GAMBARINI & TAMIR HENDELMAN
Roberta Gambarini’s sensational set with ace accompanist Tamir Hendelman was a dazzling highlight of last month’s Summer Fest. It wasn’t just her liquid-plush tone, steeplechase scatting or consistently smart repertoire choices, either. The Italian jazz vocalist is at the top of her game, and ready to leap into uncharted space. She and Hendelman—an Israeli-born, Los Angeles-based pianist—are playing an intimate duo set in a rare Oakland showing. One of jazz’s finest accompanists, Hendelman has recorded with Barbra Streisand, Diana Krall, Gladys Knight and Bay Area star Jackie Ryan. It’s all in the game for Hendelman, who elevates every musical situation. – ANDREW GILBERT
INFO: Fri, 5:30pm, Piedmont Piano Company, 1728 San Pablo Ave., Oakland. $35. 510.547.8188.
SATURDAY
PUNK
GEE TEE
Gee Tee’s lo-fi punk rock is revved up, irreverent and laced with a retro groove, like Mad Max surf music. It’s pure lunatic silliness with a snarling punk edge—an addictive mix blown out into fuzzy, buzzing, cartoonish technicolor, with quirky but well-crafted storytelling hidden inside like an easter egg. Based in Sydney, Australia, headman Kel Mason and his band are on tour across the U.S. supporting their 2024 compilation album, Prehistoric Chrome, and they’re known for somehow being even more demented in performance. – SONYA BENNETT-BRANDT
INFO: Sat, 8pm, Eli’s Mile High Club, 3629 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland. $15/adv, $18/door. 510.808.7565.
SATURDAY
DOCUMENTARY
‘RAGKO’
The Mapuche know what they’re doing. For over 5,000 years, the Indigenous people of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina have preserved their traditional way of life, resisting the relentless onslaught of colonialism. The new independent documentary, RAGKO, takes a clear-eyed look at the environmental and cultural injustices the Mapuche continue to face, and explores how their ancestral knowledge could provide ways forward for all of us. The 40-minute screening will be followed by a Q&A with the Mapuche leader Lonko Juanita Millal, of the Chol Chol Group of La Granja, and Chilean activist Javier Muñoz Tavolari. – ADDIE MAHMASSANI
INFO: Sat, 6:30pm, La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. $10-$25. 510.849.2568.
SUNDAY
RAP
ANGRY BLACKMEN
Chicago-based experimental rap duo Angry Blackmen has a tour de force of a record: The Legend of ABM. Brian Warren and Quentin Branch describe their latest offering as “a 30-minute coming-of-age narrative about Black men navigating this wilderness known as North America.” Balancing heady themes of depression and Afro-futurism with visceral imagery and industrial stylings, the group has sonically captured the brutality—both mental and physical—that Black men face daily. As Dash Lewis, of Pitchfork, closes his album review, “The cacophony never ceases and the mind always races, but there must be some way to exist within the din.” – AM
INFO: Sun, 7:30pm, Thee Stork Club, 2330 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. $15/adv, $18/door. 510.859.8709.
SUNDAY
WORLD
DEYA DOVA
Categorizing someone’s music as “world music” is often lazy labeling by Euro/American-centric critics, journalists and authors. However, it’s the best way to describe Australian artist Deya Dova’s blend of African, Gaelic and Native American music. Deya Dova is a spiritual visionary who recognizes the sanctity of sound as a healing element and connector of all humans across time, space and culture. Over the past decade, she’s recorded in 44 different locations along the Earth’s energy lines, culminating in her Planetary Grid Music Collection—12 albums focusing on energy, vibration and frequency. Her live performances are as mindful, precise and symbolic as her music, collaborating with performing artists to celebrate the cosmic origins of all living things. – MAT WEIR
INFO: Sun, 7pm, Cornerstone, 2367 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. $39.50/adv, $45/door. 510.214.8600.
TUESDAY
SYNTH POP
FUTURE ISLANDS
It’s incredible to watch a band rocket to stardom like Future Islands has. Twelve years ago, the Maryland-by-way-of-North-Carolina band played 350-capacity rooms. Two years later, they sold out 1,000-capacity rooms, appearing on national television with their song “Seasons (Waiting on You),” named the year’s best song by Pitchfork Media and Consequence of Sound. Today, Future Islands boasts 2.5 million monthly listeners on Spotify, selling out large theaters worldwide. Their music draws from post-punk, synth-wave influences like Joy Division, OMD and the Cure. Earlier this year, they released their new album, People Who Aren’t There Anymore, exploring singer Samuel Herring’s dissolution of his long-distance relationship during the pandemic. – MW
INFO: Tues, 8pm, Fox Theater, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. $66-$210. 510.302.2250.
WEDNESDAY
UKULELE
FENG E
Ukulele fever has infected Gen Z. Taiwanese teenager Feng E has amassed millions of YouTube views of his covers of popular music, including rocking Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas” in a Taipei park. The 17-year-old took up the ukulele after his father offered to play Lego with him if he practiced, and it was all coconuts from there. He’s performed in competitions worldwide, earning a golden buzzer on Asia’s Got Talent. Feng E also composes original music and recently released his first single, “8 Plus,” via digital distribution. Ukes appear headed for world domination. Find out for sure with Feng E at the Freight. – JANIS HASHE
INFO: Wed, 8pm, Freight & Salvage, 2020 Addison St., Berkeley. $39/adv, $44/door. 510.646.2020.
THURSDAY
RAP
BLACK MILK
Detroit rapper and producer Black Milk has grown from an underground up-and-comer to a respected and well-seasoned artist celebrated for his expertise in injecting creativity and novelty into his productions. Soul, electro-funk and psychedelic rock ribbon through his sound in perfectly curated samples and layers. Take the 2024 single “In the Sky,” where dreamy synths lay down a lush, ethereal base layer that contrasts with punchy drums and eerie, distorted vocals. Altogether, it creates a laidback and hypnotic mood, like a sonic moonlight bathing you for a full minute before Black Milk starts rapping. – SBB
INFO: Thu, 8:30pm, The New Parish, 1743 San Pablo Ave., Oakland. $20-$30. 510.227.8177.
THURSDAY
DOCUMENTARY
‘MURALISTS OF OAKLAND’
Oakland mural artists anchor this documentary series about the city’s underground public art scene. Stoking the pipeline are dedicated individuals who archive and amplify Oakland’s history as a cultural center through art. Public artists tell stories with paint. They work on bricks, stucco, plywood and more, adapting to small-scale projects on one-story buildings and venue ceilings, or stretching to appear on billboards or street-wide series. The art addresses social issues, expresses race and ethnic heritage and pride, or makes a mark through abstract design, environmental imagery or typography. To understand Oakland and its role as a hub of creative energy, see the film series, then go find your favorite murals. – LF
INFO: Thu, 6pm, Crybaby, 1928 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Free.
