A Psychedelic First for San Antonio

Psychedelic Furs have updated their tour schedule recently to include some swapped dates as well as additional stops, one of which is The White Rabbit here in San Antonio, TX.

The general admission, all-ages event will take place June 29.  Doors open at 7pm and pre-sale tickets will run $25 (may cost more the day of the performance).  She Wants Revenge will be opening for the Furs along with additional support to be announced.

Since the Furs have begun touring after their 2000 reformation, this will be the first time they have visited San Antonio.  Fans of the legendary group can now save a trip to Austin by checking out this added tour stop in a city that is normally deficient in quality touring acts.

Move over Legs Diamond, here come the Furs.

UPDATED TOUR SCHEDULE

May 27 - ORLANDO, FL / Hard Rock Hotel (FURS ONLY) (on sale 4/30)
May 28 - WEST MELBOURNE, FL / Levelz (tickets)
May 29 - ATLANTA, GA / Masquerade (tickets)
June 01 - BALTIMORE, MD / Rams Head Live (on sale 4/8)
June 02 - PHILADELPHIA, PA / The Blockley (tickets)
June 04 - NEW YORK, NY / Irving Plaza (tickets)
June 05 - BOSTON, MA / House Of Blues (tickets)
June 06 - FAIRFIELD, CT / Stage One (tickets)
June 08 - TORONTO, ON / Lee’s Palace (on sale 4/8)
June 10 - ROYAL OAK, MI / Royal Oak Music Theatre (tickets)
June 11 - CHICAGO, IL / Metro (tickets)
June 12 - MINNEAPOLIS, MN / First Avenue (tickets)
June 13 - OMAHA, NE / The Waiting Room Lounge (tickets)
June 14 - KANSAS CITY, MO / The Midland (tickets)
June 16 - DENVER, CO / Gothic Theatre (tickets)
June 18 - BOISE, ID / Egyptian Theatre
June 19 - SEATTLE, WA / The Showbox (tickets)
June 20 - PORTLAND, OR / Crystal Ballroom (tickets)
June 22 - SAN FRANCISCO, CA / Fillmore (on sale 4/11)
June 23 - SAN DIEGO, CA / Belly Up (tickets)
June 24 - LOS ANGELES, CA / The Wiltern (tickets)
June 25 - ANAHEIM, CA / Grove (tickets)
June 26 - LAS VEGAS, NV / House Of Blues (tickets)
June 29 - SAN ANTONIO, TX / White Rabbit (tickets)
June 30 - AUSTIN, TX / Emo’s (tickets)
July 01 - DALLAS, TX / Granada Theater (tickets)
July 02 - HOUSTON, TX / Warehouse Live (tickets)

Local Artist Decks the Walls at Bijou

It is Thursday, March 25, and I find myself thinking about the past. It’s always there, I suppose, somewhere beneath the gauze of elapsed time in my mind, but this time it’s coming to me, really coming to me, in the form of an artist I once knew:  Alex Chagoya.

When I produced Echo for my modest, though devout, audience of readers two years ago, Alex was one of many people who made the publication memorable. His artwork graced covers and pages, and his creative vision was unique and true.

I hear it still is.

I am waiting for Alex now because his vision is so true that a bulk of his work will be featured the entire month of April at the Bijou Cinema Crossroads, and because it’s my turn to support an old friend.

Alex and I never met in person prior to this moment, prior to him walking into a crowded bar during happy hour on a Thursday. He is humble in appearance; demeanor, reserved. We shake hands for the first time and sit down to a couple of drinks. As a sea of blurred noise surrounds us, he talks about school, his final year as an undergraduate majoring in psychology, and I question his motives for pursuing that field when art is his passion, but Alex is practical and assures me of a future in which he envisions art therapy; he wants to fuse his love of helping others with his love of art.

When he was young, Alex would trace comic books and get in trouble in class for drawing Dragonball Z characters. His teachers, while disapproving of his misuse of class time, encouraged him to continue drawing, just at more appropriate junctions. In college, his artistic potential increased after a particularly engaging Art History course, and he switched from drawing to painting in 2008.

Since then, Alex has worked primarily in acrylics, layering and mixing colors to create his structured visions upon canvas. He admits one of his favorite things about working with acrylic is its longer dry time, which allows him opportunity for touch-up and additions, showcasing his interest in manipulating the temporal existence of his work. “What is art to you?” I ask him. After a few moments, he responds resolutely, “Life, time, and space.”

He cites Magritte as one of his favorite painters, an artist whose manipulation of time and space within paintings, which – as well as the the pop surrealism of such painters as Todd Schorr and Robert Williams – has inspired Chagoya. And the influence is evident in Chagoya’s work, which contain baffling images, beautifully overlapped colors, recurring themes of our planet, and mysterious roads that end in unexpected places. His love for psychology and a consciousness of the self seems hazardously disregarded within his work, unless it is the consciousness of a self yet unexplored.

Toeing the waters of my own passion, I ask him about the connection between art and music, both in general and specifically for him. He identifies music as a different form of artistic expression, and suggests it is a driving force behind visual art: an emotionally-charged, auditory representation of image. He admits to painting while music plays, though is careful not to let the energy of music sway his creative process; Chagoya’s paintings are intentional depictions of his imaginative world and not entirely subject to instantaneous emotions.

From April 1 to April 30, 2010, Alex Chagoya’s work will adorn the walls of the Bijou’s main hallway. The exhibit is a two-year retrospective of his progression as a young artist, and individual pieces will be for sale. While this is not the first time Chagoya’s work has sold or been displayed, it is his first solo installation, one of which he is tremendously proud.

Alex departs the bar shortly after our conversation, leaving me to finish my drink in thoughtful silence. “Life, time, and space,” I whisper to myself at last, suddenly aware that I have spoken aloud. There is so much of each, and yet so little. I pay my tab and exit.

The sun is almost down when I step outside.

- N. Gonzales

Traxx Bar a New Feature at The Industry Thursdays

To help with the influx of patrons crowding The Industry on Thursday nights, staff there have decided to open up the back room known as Traxx Bar. 

Still building off the same cheap drink specials ($.75 well drinks; lowest in town), Traxx Bar offers guests a slight change in atmosphere.  DJs Fell and Malediction will be playing the best of forgotten underground music that, while similar to the indie feel of DJ Eddie’s music in the main room, is more representative of underground darkwave than the instantly recognizable top 40 retro hits.  “With… the fact that Thursdays have become so successful,” says DJ Fell, “[Industry] decided to open up the back to redirect some of the traffic coming in to an alternate avenue with an alternate format of music.”

Traxx Bar, though smaller compared to Industry’s main room, comfortably accommodates 100+ people and has a dance floor large enough for most of its patrons.  Adorning its walls are old vinyl records, vintage posters, and other memorabilia that accent the vibe of the music.  According to DJ Fell, “the music we play is timeless, ageless” and easily accessible for most fans of dance and indie music; most of his followers (a medley of 20- and 30-somethings) have been waiting for Traxx Bar to open for quite some time. 

Both he and Malediction have played sets at Atomix, Club Rain, The Prestige, and SWC Club.  When asked why The Industry brought them together to control Traxx on Thursday nights, he answers confidently, “[Malediction] and I have good chemistry and we work very well together as a DJ team.  And we play the stuff others don’t dare to play… you know, the good stuff people have just forgotten.”

The Industry and Traxx Bar are located at 8201 Pinebrook Dr. off of Callaghan Rd.  No cover and $.75 well drinks all night long are the foundation of The Industry’s Thursday night fame, but its retro playlists keep patrons returning week after week as well.

Diamond in the Rough

I usually judge a bar negatively based on how often I see Greg Simmons inside of it, but Joey’s is one place for which I can let that slide.

Located between Dewey and Ashby on St. Mary’s, Joey’s is an over-sized neighborhood bar complete with plenty of seating and plenty of pool tables; it is never overly-crowded, and the drinks are inexpensive and free-flowing. A visually intimidating, though surprisingly nice, mohawk-ed man watches the door, a lone obstacle before the easy-going atmosphere of Joey’s envelopes entrants.

Perfect for the bohemians of central S.A., Joey’s hardwood interior is classically not typical of most local bars. Its high ceilings and balcony seating reflect a subtle sophistication without being overly stuffy or kitschy. There’s added space with an outdoor stone patio and outdoor balcony seating, and a full-service al fresco bar serves patrons during warmer seasons. Inside, a large, mirrored wall stands behind the bar, partially covered by intricate wood shelving that displays a great selection of beer, wine and liquor, with prices ranging between $3 and $5 dollars on average. The venue also offers a respectable menu of bar food, reasonably price, and more savory and trustworthy than the pizzas hocked by the long-haired, streetwalking delivery guys. Instead of a questionable, $5 pizza from a random courier, try Joey’s hot, fresh Mexican Pizza.

But Joey’s isn’t without its detractors. The level of service expected inside possibly varies based on degrees of familiarity with its employees, and the competency of its two regular bartenders reflects this. While my success-to-attempt ratio with this bartending duo is 1:2, I’ve learned (much like working with the French) how to choose my battles. I typically order from one bartender only if I can absolutely help it; the last time I encountered the other more gruff bartender, he offered me a glass of Coke and a glass of Jim Beam, both sans ice, in response to my order of a bourbon on the rocks with a splash of Coke (and this coming after he correctly made the beverage the first time I ordered it just half an hour before). You’re better off ordering from the waitresses… if you can get their attention.

Still, Joey’s offers itself as one of the nicest, cleanest, least obnoxious bars on the St. Mary’s strip. And while I understand that’s not saying a lot, it’s worth discovering Joey’s for yourself to realize how large that gap is. Plenty of parking and bicycle racks, an eclectic crowd, and affordable wares make Joey’s a must-visit establishment both for remaining low-key during the week, or letting loose on the weekend.

Not So Silent Night for Bad Pop/Rock

You may have scoffed at — or attended, if you’re a girl with bad tastes in music or a dude who likes Texas high school football – Mix 96.1′s Not So Silent Night, a concert event it’s been hyping for the last two weeks plus.  What you may not have scoffed at — or attended — was Phoenix‘s performance at the Hard Rock Cafe Riverwalk; that’s because you probably didn’t know about it.

Yes, Mix’s best kept indie secret was Phoenix‘s 3pm performance yesterday, December 16, at the Hard Rock, a small concert sponsored by one of San Antonio’s most annoying radio stations in support of its Not So Silent Night event at Hemisfair Park scheduled to take place later that evening.

Don’t worry, you didn’t miss much (other than S.A.’s display of not knowing alternative from Big Red).  The French quartet played alongside Blue October, 3OH!3, and lyaz.  We’re actually fairly sure it was a fluke on Mix’s part to have Phoenix there, the most accurately labeled indie group of the event.  This belief is further supported by the idea that Mix’s Kidd Kraddick and Co. were ill-prepared to encounter French culture, asking Phoenix post-performance if Jean-Claude (yes, van Damme) was one of the more prominent French actors.  That’s just Kraddick-ulous!

What Mix 96.1 knows better is how to promote miserable excuses for mainstream pop disguised as indie music (see The Fray, Boys Like Girls, etc.) for its concert Wednesday night at Hemisfair.  What’s worse is that attendees had to fork over $30 for it all.  You should’ve gone to see Phoenix at an intimate setting for free instead…

…if you’d known about it.

Fear not.  Attend Phoenix‘s well-publicized concert tonight at La Zona Rosa in Austin, a city who knows a real thing or two about indie music.

Café Latino, Dec. 5, 2009

Tonight, starting at 7pm, Café Latino will host a free artistic event: an all ages, BYOB art opening featuring work by Ernest Olivo & Jenn Alva (of Girl in a Coma fame). And if that isn’t enough for you, DJ Daecos will be on the turntables all night for your listening enjoyment.

Further listening enjoyment will be provided by Nina Diaz (also of Girl in a Coma) as she performs an acoustic solo set, rounded out by alt.-rockers, Pop Pistol, as they celebrate the release of their new 3-track EP, “Shadow.”

Cafe Latino
2911 N. St. Mary’s St.
7p – 11p

• 7:00pm – Art Opening
• 7:30pm – Nina Diaz
• 9:00pm – Pop Pistol

Free Show | All Ages
BYOB

Joke’s Half-Assed Patio Bar

The “soft opening” week of Jack’s Patio bar at its new location would have been more appropriately labeled a “shouldn’t be opening quite yet.”  At least that’s what the smell of drying paint, exposed portions of wall and a ladder in one corner suggested.  But just as I was curious as to why a bar in a long-established location would be relocating to a new cookie-cutter shopping center, I was equally curious to see how its new interior would look.

As with most modern shopping center interiors, the new space is a giant square devoid of personality.  The interior of nouveau Jack’s is dressed up with a “modern” slate paint to trick patrons into feeling… well, I don’t know what.  It’s as generic as most Clark bars with the added generia stemming from the fact that it’s NOT a Clark bar, but a full-on rip-off… like tacky Ed Hardy knock-off clothing that is somehow… SOMEHOW… more God awful than genuine Ed Hardy clothing.

So the space is actually a giant square divided awkwardly by a wall to create two rectangles.  On one side is a stage area where, obviously, live music will still take place; the other, a “lounge” of sorts with tables and a jukebox.  Both areas contain a bar and the dividing wall has a door through which guests can move freely.  That night, the stage area was harshly lit by bright flourescents and contained most of the renovation equipment.

Maybe I picked the wrong night.  Maybe Jack’s picked the wrong week to open.

Inside the lounge area was a scattering of patrons, most of them obviously friends of the barstaff and off-duty bartenders as I recognized a few faces sitting on the wrong side of the bar.  Basically, the “soft opening” was a gathering of friends.  Still, I ventured to the bar tended by a couple of busty women dressed about 10 years beyond their actual ages and ordered a drink for myself and my companion.  $6.50.  At least the prices were still reasonable.

My companion and I sat at a table and enjoyed a few moments of conversation before the friends of the barstaff began assaulting the jukebox and, in turn, our ears by playing Lady GaGa at a very unreasonable volume considering the new and improved minimal size of Jack’s.  We opted for 30 degree weather on the patio outside instead.

Now as a kid who grew up down the street from Jack’s, I’ve seen it through a lot of changes:  bar & grill, biker bar, dive bar, music bar; a bar with karaoke nights and offensively un-funny comedy nights and nights when they tried to revive the dead grill. 

But through it all, its large patio remained its saving grace.  I mean there, you were safe from the hordes of minors with white belts, striped clothing, and destroyed Converse who showed up to see Jimmy Eat World-inspired pop rock.  The patio opened its arms to you on warm summer nights when it was a sin to have a drink in your hand and a roof over your head, when stars rained ancient light upon the musky wood and twisted oaks; it was an apology for everything that occurred within Jack’s walls, and it was an apology I could accept.

Nouveau Jack’s, however, is unapologetically itself, and almost as an insult, they kept a handful of that magnanimous patio and bastardized it by positioning it on the side of the building facing the service area of a lube joint.  It’s no longer an apology; it’s a handicap accessible joke.  But there we sat on the poor wounded animal that, at one time, made middle-aged couples fill up the HEB and Bill Miller parking lots and risk life and limb to cross Thousand Oaks.

After one drink, we returned inside to pay out my tab, which — to my chagrin — required a $10 minimum.  Most bars have a neatly posted sign proclaiming such, but like I said, Jack’s shouldn’t have been open just yet as nary a sign was found.  Fortunately, I rarely carry cash and am a veteran when it comes to the $10 minimum rule.

I tell the bartender, “Just run it for $10 even and keep the difference as your tip.”

Bartenders love this as it usually forces a good tip.  $3.50 on two drinks?  Forget about it.

“Actually, the bank applies a $1.50 charge on cards under $10 and there’s nothing I can do about it.  I’m sorry.”

Jack’s $10 minimum sign is going to be one lengthy mother full of fine print.

We emerged into winter air once again.  The stars, augmented by the chill, stunned the crisp night with a bluish glare.  I heard something in the treetops as, a block away, a demolition fence set up around the original Jack’s patio moved in the wind.

The Pedicab Proper

I’m thinking about finding pleasure in toothache, perhaps more than a century too late, and while I’m no Doestoevsky, I can’t help but think of the immediacy of the past.  Always.  What I mean is my wisdom teeth are raging inside of my head on a Sunday night as I drive to The Pedicab to speak with its owner, Michael Urbano.

This is my groan.

It’s a quiet evening at The Pedicab when I meet Michael.  Like his bar, he’s cool and calm, respectable and respectful.  He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would have driven cabs in New York City for 8 years, but maybe I’ve been watching too many movies.  In reality, every cab I’ve ever been in has had a nonchalant driver who primarily kept to himself and mumbled monotonously into the Bluetooth attached to his ear.  So I change my mind; I can see Michael driving cabs in New York City.

And like so many people who relocate to different cities, Michael and his wife left New York in search of that all-too-elusive change.  After researching a few different major Texas cities, they decided on San Antonio.  Against the advice of friends and other do-gooders, Michael bypassed Austin to make his home here because he, unlike so many non-Texans — and unlike so many San Antonians, too — saw potential.  While everyone else buried their heads in the sand of the “Keep San Antonio Lame” mentality, Michael set right to work making a positive impact on his new home.

In a word, Michael’s plan is progress.  As a seasoned cabby, it was no stretch for one of his first business ventures to be a pedicab service in S.A.  He did his homework on Austin’s success and even the former success of San Antonio’s pedicab service when the Spurs inhabited the Alamodome.  It made sense for him to introduce the pedicabs to a city that had none, especially now when the green movement is in full swing, but it’s been an uphill battle most of the way struggling against city ordinances and curfews.  Undaunted, however, Michael continues to operate his cab service and continues to find ways to challenge some of those antiquated regulations that keep San Antonio a step behind 2009.

What started as a pedicab service led to something more.  In April of this year, Michael opened a bar on the storage site for his pedicabs.  The name of the bar?  The Pedicab.  His vision of The Pedicab is a community-friendly environment that caters not only to beer drinkers, but to art and music lovers; his vision is unique.  Stocking over 100 different brands of beer, Michael keeps his patrons curious about what else there is beyond their comfort zones.  He admits that at the end of the day, his regulars will stick to their Bud Light and Miller Lite, but that they at least have myriad options is the most important thing, and all at affordable prices.

Drinking isn’t the only option at The Pedicab, either.  From Wednesday to Saturday, The Pedicab offers delicious gourmet hamburgers also at very accessible prices.  With Angus beef and ingredients crumbled right into the patty, these hamburgers are sure to please the pallette of any burger fanatic, and if it’s only spice you crave, then try the “410 Burger,” a concoction of habanero peppers, serrano peppers, jalapenos, and chile piquin that will have you come down with a case of exploding head. 

But The Pedicab isn’t just accessible to spend-thrifty beer and burger lovers, it’s also accessible to those who love bicycles.  A good community of riders frequent the bar and Michael makes them his first priority; after all, cycling is the theme of his bar.  As mentioned, Michael wants to make a positive impact on his community, and he wants to use The Pedicab as a launch pad for community involvement centered around activity and art.  As we talk, a former employee comes to our table and suggests Michael have a bicycle sale at his bar and talks about the success of one he previously attended.  Michael is intrigued and eager for the help of his former employee and friend to make such a bike sale a reality.  Perhaps it’s Michael’s openness and willingness to new ideas that makes him so unlike San Antonio, but it’s what also makes him just what the city needs.

Several paintings adorn the walls of Michael’s bar and he charges the artists nothing to display their work.  This way, artists aren’t obligated to over charge for their work to compensate for the high cost of public display, and it also opens the doors to a broader range of artists.  This may come as a shock to most, but some artists, especially budding artists, don’t have a lot of disposable income to show their art when most of it goes to supplies and materials.  Michael appreciates this and offers his establishment as a safe haven from the greed of other venues eager to squeeze a dime out of anyone in any way they can.

He feels the same way about musicians.  As a no-cover venue, The Pedicab doesn’t take part in driving away new audiences with stiff admission.  Furthermore, Michael is not interested in pigeonholing himself into a certain wedge of the scene, and leaves his booking wide open to any genre of music.  His pay-out is fair and his establishment is a lot nicer than most of San Antonio’s age-old bars that are still hanging on to the glory days of some long-past era very few remember.  Most importantly, Michael is wary of many of the local promoters who have corrupted the music scene and who have been tossed from venue to venue like trash.  You know who you are.

Michael admits to me that he doesn’t want to get rich off The Pedicab.  He even admits that it may not even be a possibility.  This isn’t defeatism, it’s awareness.  Michael, as a business owner, is in touch with something that so many small business owners are not:  reality.  He is comfortable with the moderate success of his other ventures: the pedicab service and his downtown segway tours.  The Pedicab is merely something fun for him, something that should be fun for its patrons, as well.  It’s less of a bar and more of a message; a message of support; an answer to the emptiness.

It has a hint of something altruistic, a hint of something from the past, as progressive as it is.  It calls to mind a San Antonio that few defended because they saw potential instead of just giving up and slapping a “Keep San Antonio Lame” sticker on a vehicle and admitting defeat.  It reminds me of a time when there was more to S.A.’s underground scene than image.  I’m keeping Michael’s vision close.  I believe in it.  ”While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavement’s gray, I hear it in the deep heart’s core.”

I drive back home on a Sunday night, smiling to myself about finding pleasure in toothache.

- N. Gonzales

Music Down

One of San Antonio’s locally-owned, independent music stores, Music Town, will be closing its doors this Friday, November 6, after more than two years of service to local music lovers.

The S.A. branch (there’s another family-owned location in the Spring-Klein area), will bow out gracefully Friday afternoon with an all-day rummage sale followed by a little musical entertainment in the evening.  The event, dubbed “Brentapalooza” (after the S.A. branch manager), will begin at 12pm, capping off the evening with live music from 8pm until midnight. 

Friends, fans, and former customers of Music Town are encouraged to attend this final event as everything in the store is liquidized (DVDs, CDs, vinyl, stereo equipment, posters, store fixtures, etc.).

Attendees should feel comfortable naming their price on any item in the store as all offers will be entertained.

No, not ‘petty’… ‘PEDI’!

When it comes to live music venues, San Antonio certainly struggles to stay competitive.  In a city where Legs Diamond and Judas Priest shows still tally stupefying numbers, the pressures of drawing a crowd without worrying whether or not Michael Prince has died increasingly vex many small club owners.  And if you’re anything like me and had to do some googling to figure out who Michael Prince was, then you should definitely keep reading this article.

It’s true that the epicenter of San Antonio’s alternative music scene is central S.A., largely concentrated around the famed-though-long-dead St. Mary’s strip, but more and more local bars are opening their doors to musicians hungry for a much needed departure from the waning trend.  Some of these bars are way off the mark despite their very honest attempts to diversify their clientele and offer their existing patrons something new.  Take, for example, Martini Ranch inside the loop on West Ave.  A nice local dive with a great built-in regular crowd, full bar, and abundant drink specials.  Its biggest problem, however, is that it doesn’t properly serve the expanding St. Mary’s genre either through its clientele or accommodations.  Unless, of course, you’re a musician keen on assembling the “stage” yourself which requires stacking enough tables and chairs to allow your band to set up in a cozy, semi-partitioned corner of the bar.  Or perhaps you like listening to a nice medley of Nickelback and booty music between sets?

Such is my skepticism when approaching these new venues eager to embrace alternative music.  Such was my skepticism when I approached The Pedicab.

Located in Southtown, the heart of San Antonio’s artisanship, The Pedicab serves as storage  for the cycle rickshaws fairly new to downtown; it also stores over 100 different brands of domestic and imported beers.  This cash-only, beer-only, no-cover venue is not only new to the city, but new to musicians interested in breaking the St. Mary’s cycle.

I initially had mixed feelings about The Pedicab when I first explored its trendy interior.  The decor was nice, although typical: corrugated tin, exposed ceiling and lots of painted, lacquered hardwood.  The furniture arrangement was disorganized and the chair to table ratio was about 3:1.  The “stage” was another story, dominated by a metal staircase that led upwards to who-knows-what and was surrounded by boxes and miscellaneous junk.  It had a lot of potential, it was just… cluttered.

But if Martini Ranch refuses to sweeten its invitation to local musicians, The Pedicab is not going to follow suit.  Within 2 months of my initial visit to Southtown’s newest venue, it not only organized the furniture in a more inviting fashion and reduced the chair to table ratio, but removed the unecessary staircase and even built an actual raised stage on which bands can perform.  Innovation is something to which S.A. has only all too recently been privy, and its trickle-down effect is overtly present in grand and minute details, from green-inspired pedicabs to venues that actually give a damn about its musicians.

The Pedicab isn’t just attractive to musicians, either.  With an eclectic collection of beers, and all reasonably priced (averaging $2 for domestic beers and $3 for imported), it’s sure to draw a good crowd year-round.  Whether you’re a patron looking for a new bar, or a musician looking for a new venue, The Pedicab opens it arms and its doors to you. 

The Pedicab, located at 415 E. Cevallos St. behind La Tuna, offers over 100 brands of domestic and imported bottled beers at an average price of $3 per bottle.  It is within walking distance of the Blue Star Complex.