Arts Devo

Danksgiving leftovers Sorry, Santa. This week, Krampus is the reason for the season. On Dec. 5—the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas—we will clutch our flasks of schnapps and run after the great horned dude as he gathers up all the naughty funmakers to run wild in the streets singing songs of drunken merriment! Merry Krampuslauf, my friends!

• Hot show alert: Phoenix-based dance-party punks Playboy Manbaby are back in town this week. Joining them Friday, Dec. 1, 8 p.m., at Monstros, are a trio of local troublemakers—Sex Hogs II, Licky Lips, Cell Block—for what promises to be a wild night of commemorative proportions. Don’t miss it!

• Return to Dannyland: Musical avant-gardesman Danny Cohen has been out of the Chico spotlight for a minute, but he’s reappeared on local stages as of late. Next chance for a Danny sighting: Saturday, Dec. 2, 8 p.m., at The Naked Lounge.

• Fight fire with music: Whoa! Could this be the most power-packed local lineup of 2017? This benefit for victims of Nor Cal fires in Yankee Hill and the North Bay Area features four local heavyweights on one bill: Jonathan Richman, Big Mo & the Full Moon Band, Pat Hull and Bogg. Sunday, Dec. 3, 5 p.m. (doors 4:30), at the Chico Women’s Club. Tickets ($7 minimum donation) at the door only.

• Su-su-supergroup: Brand new local crew Susurrus makes its Chico debut next week, and based on the local rock pedigree alone, Arts DEVO is stoked. Featuring Shoko Horikawa (XDS), Becky Brown (Royal Crown, Pan Pan), MaryRose Lovgren (Ant Farm, Butcher Shop) and Anna Adams (Pan Pan), the band plays live Wednesday, Dec. 6, at Maltese Bar & Tap Room.

• Idea people: The bright minds behind the Chico and Santa Cruz Idea Fab Labs have their own documentary. A Bright Idea interviews those involved in the creation of the two maker spaces, and will debut at a screening/reception at the Chico space this Saturday, Dec. 2, 8:30 p.m. (after the IFL Holiday Maker Market, noon-6 p.m.).

• Hot dog, we have a weiner! Chico musician Matthew Weiner is putting the double (triple?) entendre potential of his last name to work for a good cause by selling shirts emblazoned with “I ‘heart’ weiner” to raise money for AIDS research. Half of all proceeds from the “weiner” shirt sales will be donated to the AIDS Research Institute at UC San Francisco. Visit www.iheartweiner.org and stock up. The perfect gift for nana!

• Art transplant: Is the 1078 Gallery on the verge of returning to the scene? Maybe. The word on the street is that the local heroes behind the one-time local arts/music hub are zeroing in on a potential new spot on Park Avenue in south Chico. Nothing is confirmed yet, but negotiations have commenced. Stay tuned.

RIP Ann Last week, Chico lost another one of its arts giants. Longtime local artist and teacher Ann Pierce died Monday, Nov. 20. She was 86. Pierce moved to town from Boulder, Colo., in 1964 to teach painting at Chico State, and didn’t stop for three decades (even serving as chair of the Art Department for three years in the ’80s). She retired from the university in 1995, but continued to teach around town and to paint. Pierce is best known locally for her mastery of watermedia, creating bold works in a wide range of styles. In 2015, she was part of a three-artist Chico Masters exhibit at Chico Art Center with Dolores Mitchell and Claudia Steel (the latter of whom also died this year, on Aug. 29), and her works are included in the collection of Chico’s new Museum of Northern California Art (see the museum’s short documentary on the artist at goo.gl/uYGQz3). No memorial plans had been announced by press time.