Unseating the incumbent

We tried to find some kind of “re-elect the president” benefit concert to tell you about—suburban black metal bands for Bush, perhaps, or sippy-cup country singers against flip-flopping liberals. Unfortunately, none of the right-leaning radio stations in town had any kind of Bush-pushing, Kerry-bashing concerts listed on their Web pages.

However, if you’re looking to rock the vote to unseat the incumbent, you have a few choices. The now-concluded Vote for Change concerts were the most publicized, but because California isn’t a swing state (at least politically speaking), we didn’t get to witness the spectacle of Bruce Springsteen, John Fogerty, R.E.M., Pearl Jam and others live, telling a certain former Texas governor to take a long holiday on his ranch in Crawford. Rock Against Bush, put together by Fat Wreck Chords proprietor Fat Mike, also stated its agenda right up front.

Locally, we have Pollbooth Knockdown, a two-concert series staged by Sacramento for Democracy at the Grand, at 1215 J Street. The first concert, beginning at 5 p.m. Friday, October 15, will open with a screening of Fahrenheit 9/11, to be followed by musical performances from Daycare, Soul Taco, Porterville and ¡Búcho!, along with emcee Jerry Perry and various speakers. The primary objective of that concert is to make sure everyone who isn’t registered to vote does so by the Monday, October 18, deadline.

The second Pollbooth Knockdown concert takes place two weeks later, beginning at 6 p.m. Friday, October 29, with a screening of the documentary Unprecedented. Following the film, the Nitz, the F-Bombs, Raigambre, Honeyspot and Brother Nefarious will take the stage. The evening’s emcee will be Gratitude frontman Jonah Matranga, who most likely will perform, also. It’s $7 in advance or $9 at the door. The event organizers advise people to get their tickets in advance.

If you’re not so gung-ho on attending a political event on Friday, October 15, or you’re looking for something with a different kind of inspiration, you could go see Sista Monica Parker and Karen Drucker at the Crest Theatre, 1013 K Street. Parker is a longtime blues and gospel singer who is also a recent cancer survivor; the show is promoted by Healing Journeys, a 501(c)(3) organization set up to promote “Cancer as a Turning Point” conferences. Admission to the 7:30 p.m. concert is $25-$50.