Music

The Brew is the JCC’s monthly music series, bringing you the best local acts representing music from all over the world. These evenings pair a relaxed atmosphere with top-quality music; beverages (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) and light snacks are served.

All shows Co-Presented by the Jewish Music Festival and Berkeley Hillel.

Beth Custer Ensemble Black Olive Babes The Beth Custer Ensemble’s diverse array of projects—from musical theater productions (Ballad of Pancho & Lucy, Le The, and June in a Box, all with collaborator Octavio Solis) to silent film scores to avant-pop compositions—fluidly blend the group’s influences of jazz, funk, and Latin rock. Featuring the crème de la crème of Bay Area musicians, including drummer Jan Jackson (who plays with Grammy-nominated Will Bernard), guitarist David James (The Coup, Spearhead), iconic pianist Graham Connah, bassist Lisa Mezzacappa, and, of course, Beth Custer (Club Foot Orchestra, Clarinet Thing), the band bursts forth with a genre-defying repertoire. Black Olive Babes, a new project led by Juliana Graffagna—a twenty-year veteran of the premiere women’s vocal ensemble KITKA—kick off the evening with a mix of concert and dance tunes derived from Albanian, Romani, Greek and American traditions, showcasing a catalogue that jumps effortlessly from the American ballad Wayfaring Stranger to the Albanian standard Valle Korcare. Saturday May 31, 8:00pm $10 member, $15 general Buy tickets here

Aleph Null Deli Kanlı Exotic yet never wholly unfamiliar, Aleph Null’s original compositions and arrangements are distinctively Middle Eastern, with hints of Balkan and Asian flair. Performed on a panoply of instruments and anchored by the Farsi and Kurdish vocals of Iranian-born Hossein Massoudi, their music wanders through varied acoustic soundscapes at an oft-changing pace, from a dreamy meander to a full-out gallop. The sextet’s collective improvisations and extended instrumental solos periodically bring an underlying jazz sensibility to the fore. Deli Kanlı, roughly translated as “crazy blooded” in Turkish, describes a person passionate and wild at heart. The group’s sound makes good on its moniker, pushing the strong tradition of Turkish music to its edge, blending the disparate sounds of the Chinese erhu and upright bass with the conventional Turkish oud, clarinet, and darabuka. Co-Presented by the Turkish American Association of California Saturday June 28, 8:00pm $10 member, $15 general Buy tickets here

Iron & the Albatross Katy Stephan Iron & the Albatross perform original music composed by Ara Anderson. Their brand of junky circus music conjures images of Scandinavian seascapes, the Great Tricycle Race of 1910, sailing vessels set adrift, Blackbeard’s drunken ramblings, handle-bar mustached acrobats and love poems discovered in dusty attics. Sonorous vocals seesaw with a gentle accordion, wailing trumpet, harmonium bridges and an assortment of tiny clock noises, evoking a sound that teeters between twisted Chinese opera and a beautifully ghoulish vaudeville variety show. Soprano and pianist Katy Stephan’s suitcase is well-worn and papered with stickers from all over the world. Inside, frilly classical training nestles alongside a casual pop sensibility, creating a unique sound that is both sweet and smart, delicate and powerful. She offers beautifully crafted sonic valentines made from scraps of Chopin nocturnes, Puccini arias, vintage glass glitter, angel prayers, musical jewelry boxes and a bloody beating heart. Saturday July 19, 8:00pm $10 member, $15 general Buy tickets here

Nice Guy Trio Jessica and Ramon The Nice Guy Trio constantly re-shuffles a spicy mélange of traditional folk tunes, using forward-thinking jazz as their adhesive to craft intimate and spontaneous music. Navigating through a diverse terrain that encompasses the klezmer, jazz, Balkan dance and afro-beat genres, the band is persistently innovative, growing their roster of original compositions by the day. The trio of Rob Reich, Daniel Fabricant and Darren Johnson will be joined onstage by special guests guitarist John Schott, clarinetist Ben Goldberg and drummer Micha Patri. San Francisco songwriting duo Jessica and Ramon play a few unusual instruments, from the humble toy piano to the slightly janky Casio mini-keyboard, in addition to the more standard guitar and violin. Their poppy singer-songwriter compositions are deceptively spare, repaying a careful listen and an open heart in spades. Co-Presented by the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival Saturday August 30, 8:00pm $10 members, $15 general Listen (Nice Guy Trio) Buy tickets here

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