Sainthood
If you don’t know Lili St. Anne yet, you’re truly missing out
You won’t find Lili St. Anne (the performer name for musician Elizabeth Fagan) on social media anymore, which is a rather bold and admirable choice at this particular moment in human
history. Labels, festivals, bookers, promoters, agents and so on all seem to want to know an artist’s follower count these days (ugh) but, according to her website, Lili St. Anne has chosen to not participate.
“Instead of posting on social media, I like to spend time walking in the woods with my dog…and [writing] letters to people I care about,” she writes on her website.
Trés cool.
That kind of stance says a lot about Lili St. Anne’s general gestalt. She’s a folk troubadour, no question, but one who pulls from a long line of indie and punk rock songwriters from Mirah to The Crabs—whether that’s overt or not, the point is that Fagan’s musical project is part of a long line of acoustic guitar-wielding lyricists with a penchant for relatable lyricism; the kind of words that make one feel less alone and more hopeful, even if they’re sometimes delving into intense material.
Take the song “Stranger,” which dropped last June, in which Fagan
addresses an obviously intense change with a lost love. “I cry for our kids who will never be born/like I cry for a country that’s torn up by war,” she sings, catapulting a deeply personal potential future moment with the altogether more universal issue of widespread violence. Not to sound pretentious, but she sets up so much more to consider in the words she doesn’t sing here and, like most good art, challenges the listener to consider their own position and future possibilities when weighed against the ever-present threat of annihilation. Chills.
“I definitely don’t have an agenda…but I think I tend to write about whatever is on my heart—especially the feeling of grief,” Fagan tells SFR. “I’m feeling a lot of grief for our world and nature and i’m trying to figure out how to keep connecting and keep loving and keep loving through times…i feel better when I get to share them with people.”
And there is so much to discover from there, including a stellar live show this week at Beer Creek Brewing Company. There, Lili St. Anne will consider crises like climate change, AI and more through musical prowess. (Alex De Vore)
Lili St. Anne: 5 pm Saturday, April 19. Free. Beer Creek Brewing Company, 3810 Hwy. 14, (505) 471-9271
Om is Where the Heart is
Courtesy Yeru Bon Center
When the opportunity to engage with a Tibetan Geshe or Rinpoche (basically a spiritual master) presents itself, there is most likely a solid reason, and Tibetan monk and writer Latri Nyima Dakpa Rinpoche’s talk at Ark Books could contain the wisdom you’ve been searching for. Dakpa Rinpoche discusses his translation of 43 Guiding Principles for an Enlightened Mind, teachings from the Yungdrung Bön tradition and a text that might just make that mysterious enlightenment accessible to us all. A teacher from eastern Tibet, Dakpa Rinpoche was the first to introduce Tibet’s Bön traditions to the United States, which share similar philosophies to those of Buddhism, highlighting mental clarity and the liberation of suffering. (Adam Ferguson)
Book Discussion: Latri Nyima Dakpa Rinpoche: 43 Guiding Principles for an Enlightened Mind: 6-7:30 pm Thursday, April 17. Free. Ark Books,133 Romero St., (505) 988- 3709
Fam & Frybread
IMDB
Frybread Face and Me from writer and director Billy Luther, this screening at Jean Cocteau is your chance—and it also comes with an opportunity to meet with Luther himself during a post-screening Q&A. The film tells the story of a young Navajo boy from San Diego who heads to the desert of Arizonan to spend the summer with his grandma and cousin on the rez. The summer turns into a cultural awakening of sorts and a rebonding with a forgotten landscape. Originally from Winslow, Arizona, Luther belongs to the Navajo, Hopi and Laguna Pueblo tribes. And though he’s got a whole list of film projects under his belt, Frybread Face and Me is the filmmaker’s narrative debut. (AF)
Frybread Face and Me Screening and Q&A with Billy Luther: 6:30 pm Friday, April 18. $10. Jean Cocteau Cinema, 418 Montezuma Ave., (505) 466-5528
Mythic Quest
Wikipedia Commons
Do you have one of those nerdy friends who always tries to link stuff like Star Wars with the grand tradition of mythological storytelling? Perhaps that’s annoying, but they’re kind of onto something with that. Turns out that pop culture absolutely has an impact on technology—y’know, like with flip phones and car design and apps and so forth. This week at the Santa Fe Public Library’s Southside branch, Refract Studios’ Lauren Carson will discuss just that using writer Joseph Campbell’s The Power of Myth as an anchor point. Refract Studios is all about emerging tech in the AR space and beyond, and counts Google, Ikea, CURRENTS and Meow Wolf among its clients. You’ll learn something and it’ll be legendary. (ADV)
Books Behind the Business w/Lauren Caron: The Power of Myth: 6 pm Tuesday, April 22. Free. Santa Fe Public Library (Southside), 6599 Jaguar Drive, (505) 955-2820
