TEA AND COCKTAILS WITH HELLO KITTY • “FLAT AS THE TONGUE LIES” AT UCI’S ROOM GALLERY • KOBE BRYANT TALKS “THE PUNIES” OCTOBER 29, 2018 • No. 2 YEARS of Empowering Employment Success IRVINEWEEKLY.COM | OCTOBER 29, 2018 29, OCTOBER 2 | Celebrating 25 years of providing the unemployed and underemployed in Orange County the skills and resources they need to get and keep a good job at no charge. • Since 1993, WHW has served over 90,000 Job Seekers at no charge. • 79% of WHW Job Seekers are employed within 3 months increasing their household income by over 560%. • In 2017-2018, WHW Job Seekers who reported wages earned over $61 million saving tax payers over $16 million in entitlement payments. Donate • Volunteer • Shop • Connect • Remember 2803 McGaw Avenue • Irvine, California 92614 • 949.631.2333 • whw.org WHW is a 501(c)(3) Nonprot - Tax ID #33-0576900 IRVINEWEEKLY.COM | IRVINEWEEKLY.COM OCTOBER 29, 2018 • No. 2 CONTENTS OCTOBER 29, 2018 29, OCTOBER | 7 3 HELLO KITTY CAFE AT THE IRVINE SPECTRUM CENTER PHOTO BY JAKOB LAYMAN NEWS...4 ARTS...11 Best Choices for Irvine’s Future BY IRVINE WEEKLY Exploring Speech, Sound and Source with Ella de COMMUNITY EDITORIAL BOARD Búrca BY EVAN SENN MUSIC...5 ENTERTAINMENT...13 Young the Giant BY PAUL ROGERS Kobe Bryant Talks “The Punies” BY BRIAN CALLE FOOD...7 Hello Kitty Cafe Lands in Irvine BY MICHAEL COOPER ON COVER: Young the Giant performed October 5, 2017, at FivePoint Amphitheatre in Irvine • Photo by Kirsten Balani For all inquires: [email protected] Irvineweekly.com NEWS IRVINEWEEKLY.COM | DONALD P WAGNER ANTHONY UO LAUREN OHNSONNORRIS OCTOBER 29, 2018 29, OCTOBER | 4 BEST HOIES OR IRINES UTURE DONALD WAGNER FOR MAYOR ANTHONY UO PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE CANDIDATES AND LAUREN OHNSONNORRIS FOR CITY COUNCIL BY IRINE WEELY COMMUNITY EDITORIAL BOARD Donald Wagner is the important local issues. prepares him for the challenges facing has been able to develop a groundswell best choice for mayor For the foreseeable future, many critical Irvine. From tra ic mitigation to housing, of grassroots support. Her candidacy issues facing Irvine need Wagner’s tem- Kuo has perhaps the best background is much like that of Councilwoman Under the tenure and leadership of perament and experience to successfully to serve on the City Council of anyone Melissa Fox — who has endorsed John- Mayor Donald Wagner, Irvine has address them. Temperament in politics seeking the o ice this year. son-Norris. Fox originally won a seat made noteworthy progress. He has lent today should not be undervalued. We do What sets Kuo apart from his peers on the council without typical support a steady hand to a City Council that has not want the City Council to revert to a seeking election is his unparalleled in the city and has proven to be a solid, had a history of markedly cantanker- divisive pit resembling the bickering and devotion of time to civic causes. He is independent thinker for Irvine. ous politics and replaced it with civility, partisanship in Washington today. involved in seemingly countless charity Johnson-Norris also has the backing of thoughtfulness and results. For that, we From ensuring the city’s commitment and community organizations where public safety — both the Irvine Police As- are proud to endorse Don Wagner. to quality education, the veterans he has shown leadership for the veteran sociation and the Orange County Pro- One of the most unnecessarily challeng- cemetery, housing, tra ic and the re- community, small businesses and the fessional Firefi ghters Association have ing issues over the last decade in Irvine sponsible completion of the Great Park, community college system. endorsed her candidacy. That makes was the promise by the city to build the Irvine has important issues ahead. That Kuo’s breadth and depth of knowledge sense given she has made community Great Park. For years, residents won- is why we support one more term for of Irvine would serve the City Council safety the centerpiece of her campaign. dered when the park would come alive Donald Wagner. Vote Don Wagner for well. Vote Anthony Kuo for Irvine City Vote Lauren Johnson-Norris for Irvine under the iconic orange balloon visible mayor of Irvine. Council. City Council. by anyone passing on the 5 freeway. Today, construction of the park feels like Anthony Kuo for Lauren Johnson-Norris Our Editorial Approach it has been expedited. One example is Irvine City Council for Irvine City Council the recent completion of the world-class After researching each candidate athletic complex, already attracting top- Few people exude the passion for the What we like about Lauren John- thoroughly, consulting with community tier sporting events and a professional city of Irvine shown by Anthony Kuo. He son-Norris for Irvine City Council is that leaders, taking into consideration public soccer team run by the Orange County lives, breathes and sleeps Irvine. That is she is independent. And at a time where comments during the candidate debate Soccer Club. exactly the type of person we want to see ideology and special interests dominate hosted by the Irvine Chamber of Com- Wagner’s approach to mayoral lead- serving on the Irvine City Council. most politics, independence is exactly merce and weighing the experience of ership is praiseworthy. He has adopted Kuo has a long history with the city. He what we need from our elected leaders. each candidate against the issues fac- a thoughtful style of weighing the has lived in Irvine his entire life and is a Johnson-Norris is an interesting can- ing Irvine, we believe Don Wagner is the concerns of our community’s various product of Irvine’s lauded school system. didate for council because she is not best choice for mayor while Anthony stakeholders and has achieved, for the And, he has long been on the city’s backed nor beholden to the typical Kuo and Lauren Johnson-Norris are the most part, compromise and balance on Planning Commission — a post that well political powers in the city. Even still, she best choices for Irvine City Council. NEWS MUSIC | IRVINEWEEKLY.COM lot of vigor and excitement – I think people wanted to try something di erent.” Young the Giant’s status as local heroes – with hit sin- THE gles including “My Body”, “Cough Syrup” and “Apart- ment” – is such that not only did the quintet headline YOUNG GIANT FivePoint’s opening in 2017, but they also supported ONEOFIRVINE’SGREATESTMUSICSUCCESSSTORIES Gwen Stefani at two “farewell” shows for the nearby, BY PAULROGERS now-demolished Irvine Meadows (also known as Ver- izon Wireless Amphitheatre) the previous year. Earlier IRVINEWEEKLY.COM this month they released their characteristically me- | lodic and gently eclectic fourth album, Mirror Master. OCTOBER 29, 2018 29, OCTOBER “WE ARE PROUD OF THE FACT THAT WE DO COE FRO IRVINE THAT OUR PARENTS OVED THERE FOR BETTER OPPORTUNITIES FOR US” DONALD P WAGNER ANTHONY UO LAUREN OHNSONNORRIS -SAEER GADHIA “I moved to Irvine [from Canada] when I was 15,” says OCTOBER 29, 2018 29, OCTOBER YtG drummer Francois Comtois. “Just meeting all these | | kids who were so passionate about the DIY scene and 4 making their own records and putting on shows was 5 BEST HOIES OR IRINES UTURE something I’d never experienced anywhere else I’d lived.” While a string of big-selling bands put Orange PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE CANDIDATES DONALD WAGNER FOR MAYOR ANTHONY UO County on the world’s musical map in the 1990s, these tended to be from anywhere but Irvine. Fullerton punk AND LAUREN OHNSONNORRIS FOR CITY COUNCIL legends Social Distortion found mainstream success at the turn of that decade, while No Doubt exploded BY IRINE WEELY COMMUNITY EDITORIAL BOARD out of Anaheim with “Just a Girl” in 1995, and Garden Grove’s The O spring became enduring radio staples. “Irvine was encapsulated in its own world and kind Donald Wagner is the important local issues. prepares him for the challenges facing has been able to develop a groundswell of, for better or worse, just had its own scene that was best choice for mayor For the foreseeable future, many critical Irvine. From tra ic mitigation to housing, of grassroots support. Her candidacy not able to really branch out,” mulls Gadhia, who issues facing Irvine need Wagner’s tem- Kuo has perhaps the best background is much like that of Councilwoman worked for the city of Irvine, at its Fine Arts Center, Under the tenure and leadership of perament and experience to successfully to serve on the City Council of anyone Melissa Fox — who has endorsed John- while in high school. “Irvine in itself is entirely di erent Mayor Donald Wagner, Irvine has address them. Temperament in politics seeking the o ice this year. son-Norris. Fox originally won a seat from the rest of Orange County. Yes, it is a suburb and, made noteworthy progress. He has lent today should not be undervalued. We do What sets Kuo apart from his peers on the council without typical support yes, it is planned and, yes, it has this corporate sense to a steady hand to a City Council that has not want the City Council to revert to a seeking election is his unparalleled in the city and has proven to be a solid, it, but it is also this crazy, weird social experiment in a had a history of markedly cantanker- divisive pit resembling the bickering and devotion of time to civic causes. He is independent thinker for Irvine. lot of ways, because it is such a young city.” ous politics and replaced it with civility, partisanship in Washington today. involved in seemingly countless charity Johnson-Norris also has the backing of The cultural melting pot of Irvine, which was only thoughtfulness and results.