Thursday, February 9, 2012

Puka Bar A Hotbed Of Diverse Musical Scenes In Long Beach
by Sander Roscoe Wolff | | 07.28.10 | 
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The Puka Bar, located in the Wrigley District of Long Beach, has become a hotbed of diverse musical scenes. Under the gentle guidance of Ken Huntington (bar tender, talent booker, sound man, and gifted musician and songwriter in his own right), the little Tiki bar that could, has.

The bar ls classic Tiki kitsch, with dessicated blow-fish, shrunken heads, strange maritime trinkets, and an endless series of Hawaii 5-0
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episodes on the flat screen TV. They also feature exotic cocktails, made to order.

The other half of the bar, however, is more practical. There, a full stage with some lights, monitors, a decent PA, and a semi-cavernous room that has seen nearly every great band that came out of Long Beach.

These days, Ken's thinking outside the box. For example, he's dedicated the first Monday of every month to experimental music. Thursdays feature karaoke and, on the weekends, the occasional touring band pops in for a gig. He even has a 'band development night' where groups can simply practice, live, on a stage in a club, and refine their performance chops.

Here, Ken gives us a brief run-down of the Puka Bar's specific assets:



The Puka Bar
710 West Willow Street
Long Beach, CA 90806
562.997.6896



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Sander lives with his wife, step-daughter, dogs, and cats. He's an avid photographer, and enjoys creating close-up images of flowers and plants, and capturing urban landscapes. He's been involved in music production since the early 80's, and worked professionally as an audio engineer, live sound mixer, and producer.

Sander Roscoe Wolff is a musician, artist, and was co-founder and Executive Director of LongBeachCulture.org, the City's first comprehensive, and free, arts calendar and registry.

He has served on the boards of the 2nd City Council Art Gallery + Performance Space and the East Village Arts District, curated a 6 month gallery exhibition in the Long Beach World Trade Center, and produced Songs For Bethune, a CD of original and traditional holiday songs by local artists, to raise funds for the Arts Council's Passport to the Arts program.

His work has been featured in local gallery exhibitions, in SoundWalk, and L.A. Siggraph's Photon Ballet.

His current music project is Ain Soph Aur, a systems based improvisational performance duo and studio team.

Sander's Community

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