Band/Musical Artist
1st Place
Phil Salazar
2nd Place
The Shoemaker Brothers
3rd Place
Sound Effect
Bartender
1st Place
Mary claudia Ramirez at 5th Street Steak and Seafood, 231 W. Fifth St., Oxnard, 483-0200
2nd Place
Danny D’Auria at Paddy’s, 2 W. Main St., Ventura, 652-1071
3rd Place
Lynsey Ryan at Dargan’s, 593 E. Main St., Ventura, 648-3001
Cheap Date
1st Place
Regency Buenaventura 6, 1440 Eastman Ave., Ventura, 658-6544
2nd Place
Beach House Tacos, 668 Harbor Blvd., Ventura, 648-3177
3rd Place
The Beach
Club DJ
1st Place
J Scratch
2nd Place
Nick Dean
3rd Place
DJ Also
Comedian
1st Place
Stickboy
2nd Place
Wynne Ellis
3rd Place
Travis Greer
Comedy Club
1st Place
Ventura Harbor Comedy Club, 1559 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura, 644-1500
2nd Place
Ventura Improv Company, 34 N. Palm St., Ventura, 643-5701
3rd Place
W20 Lounge at Watermark on Main, 598 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-6800
Dance Club
1st Place
Paddy’s, 2 W. Main St., Ventura, 652-1071
2nd Place
The Tavern, 211 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura, 643-3264
3rd Place
Bombay Bar and Grill, 143 S. California St., 643-4404
Dance Troupe
1st Place
Emanon Dance Crew, Oxnard
2nd Place
Claddagh Irish Dancers, Ventura
Dive Bar
1st Place
Sans Souci, 21 S. Chestnut St., Ventura, 643-4539
2nd Place
Star Lounge, 343 E. Main St., Ventura, 648-4709
3rd Place
Rudder Room, 2929 Ocean Drive, Oxnard, 985-6096
Event DJ
1st Place
Bruce Barrios
2nd Place
Nick Dean
3rd Place
The Wedding Music DJs & SoCal Photo Lounge
Gay Bar
1st Place
Paddy’s, 2 W. Main St., Ventura, 652-1071
2nd Place
Blu Orkid, 76 S. Oak St., Ventura, 653-0003
Happy Hour
1st Place
Aloha Steakhouse, 364 S. California St., Ventura, 652-1799
2nd Place
Brophy Bros., 1559 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura, 639-0865
3rd Place
Yolanda’s, 2753 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-2700; 86 E. Daily Drive, Camarillo, 389-9922; 1601 S. Victoria Ave., Oxnard, 985-1340; 590 E. Los Angeles Ave., Simi Valley, 306-9933
Jukebox
1st Place
Sans Souci, 21 S. Chestnut St., Ventura, 643-4539
2nd Place
Dargan’s, 593 E. Main St., Ventura, 648-3001
3rd Place
El Rey Cantina, 294 E. Main St., Ventura, 653-1111
Karaoke
1st place
Golden China, 760 S. Seaward Ave., Ventura, 652-0688
2nd Place
La Dolce Vita, 740 S. B St., Oxnard, 486-6878
3rd Place
Outlaw’s Grill and Saloon, 2167 Pickwick Drive, Camarillo, 484-3691
Local Music Recording
1st Place TIE
Fables by 8Stops7
Self titled EP by Dirty Rice
Music Festival
1st Place
Ventura Hillsides Music Festival
2nd Place
Ventura Music Festival
3rd Place
Roadshow Revival: A Tribute to the Music of Johnny Cash
Music Venue (Large Concert)
1st Place
Majestic Ventura Theater, 26 S. Chestnut St., Ventura, 653-0118
2nd Place
Ventura County Fairgrounds, 10 W. Harbor Blvd., Ventura, 648-3376
3rd Place
Libbey Bowl, Ojai, 646-3117
Music Venue (Small)
1st Place
Zoey’s Cafe, 185 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura, 652-1137
2nd Place
Green Art People, 140 N. Ventura Ave., 729-2361
3rd Place
W20 Lounge at Watermark, 598 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-6800
Open-Mic
1st Place
Zoey’s Cafe, 185 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura, 652-1137
2nd Place
Golden China, 760 S. Seaward Ave., Ventura, 652-0688
3rd Place
Good Bar, 533 E. Main St., Ventura, 641-9951
Pool Hall
1st Place
Stiix Billiards, 2520 E. Main St., Ventura, 641-2020
2nd Place
The Q Club, 2362 N. Oxnard Blvd., Oxnard, 278-1231
3rd Place
Victoria Pub & Grill, 1413 S. Victoria Ave., suite F, Ventura, 650-0060
Radio Personality
1st Place
Stickboy, KVTA
2nd Place
Tom Spence, KVTA
3rd Place
Bill Frank, KVTA
Radio Station
1st Place
1520 AM, KVTA
2nd Place
100.7 KHAY
3rd Place
88.3 KCLU
Recording Studio
1st Place
Castaway 7 Studios, 654-TAPE
2nd Place
Goldmine Recording Studios, 1393 Callens Road, Ventura, 644-8341
3rd Place
Brotheryn Studios, www.brotherynstudios.com
Singles Hang-Out
1st Place
W20 Lounge at Watermark on Main, 598 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-6800
2nd Place
The Tavern, 211 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura, 643-3264
3rd Place
Brendan’s Irish Pub and Restaurant, 1755 E. Daily Drive, Camarillo, 383-4100
Sports Bar
1st Place
Cronies Sports Grill, 2855 Johnson Drive, Ventura, 650-6026; 370 N. Lantana St., Camarillo 482-5900; 2752 Cochran St., Simi Valley, 583-9999
2nd Place
Rookees, 419 E. Main St., Ventura, 648-6862
3rd Place
The Bench Warmer, 1855 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-4303
Theater Company
1st Place
Rubicon Theatre Company
1006 E. Main St., Ventura, 667-2900
2nd Place
Ventura Improv
34 N. Palm St., Ventura, 643-5701
3rd Place
Santa Paula Theater Company
125 S. Seventh St., Santa Paula, 525-4645
Theater Production
1st Place
Hello! My Baby, Rubicon Theatre Company
2nd Place
Gem of the Ocean, Rubicon Theatre Company
3rd Place
Cinderella, Ventura County Ballet
Trivia Night
1st Place
Garman’s Restaurant and Irish Pub, 932 E. Main St., Santa Paula, 933-4600
2nd Place
Bernadette’s on Main, 701 E. Main St., Ventura, 643-6749
3rd Place
Paddy’s, 2 W. Main St., Ventura, 652-1071
EDITOR’S PICKS
Best revival theater
Insomniac Cinema
Insomniac Cinema at the Regency Buenaventura 6, 1440 Eastman Ave., Ventura, 658-6544, insomniaccinema.com
Founded in Westlake Village by local impresario Andrew Gualtieri in the summer of 2004, Insomniac Cinema has become Ventura County’s definitive source for the films people have come to know and love for decades, all shot on the big screen. Over the years, Gualtieri has taken the Insomniac experience to Los Angeles (at the now-shuttered Fairfax Theatre), Westwood (at the historic Village and Bruin Theatres), Pasadena, Agoura Hills and Las Vegas.
“I firmly believe that films should be shown on a big screen and whenever possible, on film. Movies bring us closer together,” Gualtieri asserts. And the films that bring people together are the classics of the pantheon: Casablanca. The Wizard of Oz. The Big Lebowski.
Using criteria for selection that includes audience polls and his own sterling cinematic acumen, he has his own favorites — post-noir classics, such as Brick and Road to Perdition. When asked what films he’d screen if he could but hasn’t, he replies without hesitation, “The first titles that come to mind are the Star Wars films. I know they’d be fun and draw a crowd but they aren’t available.”
Now that theaters are changing their projection equipment to handle only digital prints, Insomniac feels the pressure to change with the times.
“With most theaters going to digital, the studios are slowly converting their library titles to this format,” Gualtieri says. “(Director) Christopher Nolan has said there is no equal or better to 35mm film, and I agree. I try to play film as often as possible, but as the 35mm film prints get older or more damaged from use, the studios aren’t going to strike new prints. Digital makes some titles easier to get if they’ve been converted, but if they haven’t, then I’m still stuck without some titles.”
And how has the audience changed over the years he’s done Insomniac?
“The audience really hasn’t changed over the years. It’s always consisted of people that love movies,” Gualtieri says. “When the lights go down, everyone is there for the same reason: to be entertained.”
— David Cotner
Best intimate folk
Russ & Julie’s House Concerts
houseconcerts.us
Hank Linderman and Jeff Larson, live at Russ & Julie’s House Concerts.
Even though there are only 10 performances a year in their 75-seat capacity living room, Russ & Julie’s House Concerts in Oak Park have become renowned for the atmosphere and the intimacy of those performances. House concerts — small, private gatherings at which singer-songwriters experience the closeness of an audience — are a growing phenomenon, and for the past 15 years, even before Oak Park got its own ZIP code, Russ and Julie Paris have invited the fans to experience a very personal kind of music in the comfort of their home.
It came from a real need, Russ says, to not “drive to a large venue, fight the crowds, and pay lots of money to see quality music.” After more than 160 shows, the format hasn’t changed, it’s only been streamlined, and demand and respect has only solidified in the wake of their devotion. All sorts of genres have appeared at Russ & Julie’s, including folk, bluegrass, jazz, rock, country, and even New Age, which the neighbors doubtlessly love.
“We do it for the love of the music,” Julie says. “There is so much great music being written and produced today that isn’t getting airplay.”
All of the proceeds collected from the door go directly to the performers, which have included Jim Messina of Buffalo Springfield, Chris Hillman of The Byrds, Van Dyke Parks, singer and politician John Hall of Orleans, actor Ronny Cox, Marshall Crenshaw and the late Andrew Gold, singer of the hit “Lonely Boy.”
Many house concerts — including Russ & Julie’s — don’t advertise because of noise restrictions, so they keep things friendly. That’s how it should be when you’re in another person’s home. And it’s the very idea of home that is the soul of this place that music built.
For the concert schedule, houseconcerts.us. For address and set times, e-mail rsvp@houseconcerts.us or call (818) 707-2179.
— David Cotner
