An alt-rock star’s Sacramento homecoming, plus a photography show and rising band

The following is the April 2 edition of Cultural Capital, an arts and entertainment newsletter written by Abridged contributor Chris Macias. Want it sent directly to your inbox? Sign up here.

April is here and Cultural Capital is hopping down the bunny trail with arts and entertainment picks. This week, I’ve also gone down the rabbit hole of Sacramento’s alternative-rock scene from the 1990s, with memories of gigs gone by at The Cattle Club, The Press Club and Old Ironsides.

One of the key figures from those times, Jonah Matranga, is back to his former Sacramento stomping grounds on Friday with a solo show (which just sold out last night) that celebrates a key date in his career. He spoke to me in an exclusive interview about his life in Sacramento in the 90s, what to expect at the show and his additional projects.

Along with these salad days of Sacramento music, we’ve also got a photography show for an inspired Friday night, classic theater, a new-school band from Sacramento that’s blowing up and so much more.

Let’s go!   

Celebrate a pivotal Sacramento alt-rock album

The details:

• The Side Door, 2900 4th Ave., Sacramento
• 7 p.m., April 3 (Friday)
• $25.63 (sold out)

Friday at The Side Door marks a mighty homecoming show for Jonah Matranga. Exactly 30 years ago, on April 4, 1996, his former band Far released its major label debut, “Tin Cans With Strings to You.” The album arrived during a peak for Sacramento’s alternative-rock scene, just as fellow 916 bands Deftones and Cake were hitting the mainstream. Spots like the Cattle Club and Old Ironsides raged as incubators for regional and national acts on the rise.

Far never reached mass appeal like some of its Cattle Club contemporaries, but the band’s influence resonated loudly throughout the emo and post-hardcore scenes. As a solo artist, Matranga’s collaborated with Deftones and Lupe Fiasco, while maintaining a fervent following through his individual project Onelinedrawing and other endeavors.

Once again, Friday’s show is sold out, but Matranga promises to be back soon. Now he’s ready to celebrate the birthday of “Tin Cans With Strings to You” in the city where it was born. 

Here’s what he had to say during an exclusive interview with Abridged, in a call from his Eugene, Ore. home. Click the link below for the full interview.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Chris Macias: Welcome back to Sac!The mid-1990s were such a heady time for local music. How do you look back on those Cattle Club days?

Jonah Matranga: I feel very lucky to have been in Sacto in the mid-90s. It wasn’t perfect for everyone, but it was perfect for me. My rent was $140 a month. And there was a crazy all-ages place, perfectly placed between Downtown and the suburbs, where everyone was allowed to be who they wanted to be.

Marie’s Donuts is in my head forever. We’d come back from Cattle Club at 3 a.m. and just head there. Those are the golden years. When I look back, I just feel so lucky that I ended up there and not in a bigger city.

CM: These past 30 years have gone by so fast. Anything else come to mind about those Sacto days?

JM: A lot of my memories aren’t music-related at all. They’re about just being with my kid. It was just so nice that she could come on Sunday to open mic at Old Ironsides to see me. It was a welcoming place for me and my young daughter, so that’s a whole other level of it. It was so full for me.

CM: Musically, what’s your game plan for this celebration of “Tin Cans With String?”

JM: It’s not going to be a folksy, softie version (of the album). What I’m imagining is my kind of growly guitar and do really full-energy ofthe songs without trying to make it sound like the album. It’s been really cool to sort it out for these solo-ish kind of shows, because people are going to join me on stage too.

CM: I’ve been digging into “Tin Cans” a lot these days and it still sounds so fresh. How does the album strike you while revisiting it now?

JM: One of my goals has always been to just to make music that I’d want to listen to, no matter what anyone else thinks of it. That sounds so simple but it’s tough to do. Enough time has passed that I still think it sounds like its own animal. I don’t know a record that sounds like it, which is cool after all this time.

CM: You always seem to be busy with various projects. What else can we expect from you this year?

JM: This is my busiest in a long time and in a beautiful way. I’m gonna try and do as many shows that I can celebrate “Tin Cans.” My dream is that by the end of the year, I’ll make it back (to Sacramento) with a full band and do it again.

There’s also a whole new album called “RAINBOWMACHINE.” It’s the loudest Onelinedrawing or solo thing I’ve ever done. It’ll be released around the summertime. And honestly, speaking of Sacto, I will say out loud: it is definitely the most Sacto thing I’ve ever released since Far.

Fill your Friday night with photography and stories

The details:

• Casa de Español, 1101 R St., Sacramento
• 6 p.m., April 3 (Friday)
• Free entry

R Street will already be popping Friday at the Warehouse Artist Lofts for its monthly open studios, shopping and art appreciation. While you’re at it, head across the street to Casa de Español for the opening of “Estamos Aquí.” It’s an irresistible group photography show from such noted local artists as Dominick Porras, Ruben Briseno Reveles and Janine Mapurunga, who’s also regarded in food circles for her Sacramento Farmers and Chefs series. Each photo at Estamos Aquí is paired with a story that gives extra poignancy to the visual pop.

Ponder themes of mass hysteria at a classic play

The details:

• Woodland Opera House, 340 Second St., Woodland
• 7:30 p.m., April 2-4 (Thursday-Saturday)
• $16.05-$24.08, with discounts for seniors (62+) and youth (17 and under)

Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” is just a couple years from celebrating the 75th anniversary of its Broadway debut. In this era of cancel culture and political polarization, this Pulitzer Prize-winning play based on the Salem witch trials seems just as relevant now. Head to the Woodland Opera House for its version of “The Crucible” that runs Thursday through Saturday.

A concert where the opening act could be the headliner

The details:

• Hard Rock Live, 3317 Forty Mile Road, Wheatland
• 8 p.m., April 4 (Saturday)
• $60-$141 plus taxes

Here’s a show where the opening act might draw as many folks as the headliner. Last time Destroy Boys played in the area, the Sacramento-born band sold out Channel 24 in Midtown. Now, the punk band with a ferocious international following is back to support Rise Against at Hard Rock Live in Wheatland. Expect a night of local pride and lots of moshing as both bands crank through their sets.

More events you won’t want to miss

Let’s keep it going with bonus picks for this week and beyond:

• Poetry, Resistance and Memory with open mic at La Cultura Bookstore in North Sacramento on April 2.
• HellaCappella 2026 at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts in Davis on April 4.
• Jesus Christ Superstar screening at the Crest Theatre in Downtown Sacramento on April 5.
• Alternative Rock Showcase at Blue Note Brewing in Woodland on April 5.

Before I go,

Thanks again to JonEmery Dodds and Scott Schiller for having me last week on “That California Sound!” via KDRT 95.7. We talked about Cultural Capital, mid-life skateboarding, the partnership between Abridged and Davis Media Access and all things Yolo. I had a blast and the segment can be found here around the 84:30 mark.

See you next week!

Chris Macias is a regular contributor, writing Cultural Capital for Abridged.