Angel and the centerfolds

It’s not every day I get e-mails from readers asking me out. In fact, it’s never happened. So, when I opened one such e-mail this week, I knew it couldn’t be for me. A quick glance at the address revealed it was actually for our Ask Joey columnist, Joey Garcia. I forwarded it on, chuckling. Then another one came.

It wasn’t Joey’s recent column on tithing that fired up the flirtatious advances. The February issue of Sacramento Magazine features Joey in the “Single in Sacramento” cover story, where she describes herself as direct, passionate and hoping “to be a source of joy and healing to everyone I meet.” As we approach Valentine’s Day, it’s heartening to know Sacramentans find such upstanding qualities attractive.

Another local spiritual adviser, the Rev. Steve Galindo of the Sacramento-based Church of Ed Wood, appears in a less-wholesome magazine this month. In a recent e-mail missive, Galindo wrote, “Look for the March issue of Playboy magazine, on newsstands in February (some strange magazine time warp I don’t understand). As part of the second coming of Wood that has been in the media lately, Playboy will have listed in its Raw Data section the estimated amount of legally baptized members of the Church of Ed Wood and a little blurb about us.” Good luck getting past the centerfold to find the item. At least if your girlfriend catches you, you can honestly say you were reading it for the articles.

Speaking of centerfolds, has everyone seen the one in the new local-music zine Ricochet? The two-page “spread” offers the model’s height, weight, eye color and other physical details normally found on a driver’s license—as well as a large, pixilated photo of her in a thong—but doesn’t mention her name or any non-physical information. Perhaps she wished to remain anonymous while smiling nearly naked in every issue?

Ricochet, which appeared in Sacramento stores last week, is published by Josh R. Perry, formerly of Rant, and his wife Janice Marie. It treads closely to the footsteps of Rant and Alive & Kicking, from the local-band interviews to the seemingly obligatory burger reviews. (Don’t music fans ever go out for falafel or udon?) In the introduction, the couple reports that Ricochet went from concept to print in six weeks and that it is actively looking for advertisers. Since Alive & Kicking publisher Jerry Perry admitted to serious financial setbacks for his publication in its January issue, one has to wonder how many music monthlies the scene can sustain.

Some of Ricochet’s features are well-conceived, like Warren Bishop’s political column and Laura Winn’s charmingly enthusiastic all-ages show reviews. However, despite the presence of the female-fronted Kimberly Trip on the cover, portions of the zine seem dated in terms of gender politics. Blame it on the centerfold, or the “It’s All About Good Tone” column that promises to highlight the area’s best guitarists—“the guys who know what good tone is all about.” Next month, how about female guitarists and a male centerfold?