32 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY NOVEMBER 13-19, 2025 www.montereycountynow.com MUSIC “Shrouded Strangers are kind of like if you went prancing around in the woods at night and all of a sudden an alien ship comes and picks you up, and you get up to the spaceship and it’s all your friends and family having a good time dancing around.” That’s how Richard Tripps describes the band that opens for him at the two-night celebration of psychrock. He is a reliable source; after all, he will play drums with Shrouded Strangers before he gets back up on stage and presents his own material. Defining either band is futile, especially since everything about Richard Tripps and Shrouded Strangers is so meta—from lyrics to how they choose to present themselves. Shrouded Strangers proclaim on Instagram to be playing “guitar cubism” and “appalachian jazz.” Psychedelic rock is an umbrella term, with a few characteristics at core: distorted guitars and metaphysical and/or absurd lyrics. Tripps, who is based in Big Sur, has been writing and recording music for years, but it wasn’t until 2023 until he put a band together. He then released his LP, Between the Morning, and is now working on releasing new material. The signature song from the LP is a soothing anthem with spare lyrics, perfect for observing the passing day. A video loop shows Tripps in a blue striped pajama gown and a matching nightcap, dancing on a hill with a rattle in his hand. His deep, slightly old-fashioned vocal style defines the sound of his band. Shrouded Strangers, with Aaron Carlson from Santa Barbara and Mike Scutari of Big Sur at the core, have a longer history. “I guess we recorded our first thing in 1999,” says Carlson, adding that for a long time the band had “48 fans or something.” They have put out five albums, toured nationally and now are “ramping back up after a post-pandemic hiatus,” Scutari adds. The band combines weird guitar sounds with bold storytelling. They introduced their most recent (2019) album, Night Prancing, as “arguably the soundtrack to an ‘unrealized film script’ chronicling the adventures of a late1950s surfer gang (the ‘Night Prancers’) in the fog-enshrouded coastal hamlet of Seaview, Washington.” They promise new material out in spring 2026. Richard Tripps and the Shrouded Strangers perform 10pm Friday, Nov. 14 at Fernwood Resort, 47200 Highway 1, Big Sur (free show) and 8pm Saturday, Nov. 15 at Pop & Hiss, 215 Forest Ave., Pacific Grove ($3). fernwoodbigsur.com, popandhiss.net. COURTESY OF RICHARD TRIPPS Get Psyched Enjoy two nights of local psychedelic rock with Richard Tripps and the Shrouded Strangers. By Agata Popęda Big Sur musician Richard Tripps (standing, center) has been making music for years, but only recently did he finally put together a “solid band,” he says. 101 WORD STORY CONTEST First Prize is $101 2nd and 3rd place winners receive gift certificates! We’ll publish the winners in our December 25, 2025 issue 1. All stories must contain the word “light” (or lit, lightning, etc.) 2. Stories may contain fewer than 101 words. 3. If a hyphenated word can be broken into two (or more) free-standing words it will be counted as two (or more) words. 4. Abbreviations are counted as one word. (“CA” or “California,” it’s still one word.) 5. Contractions are counted as one word. (“Isn’t” is one word; “is not” is two.) 6. Titles are not counted and are not necessary. 7. We reserve the right to re-title stories. 8. Poems are not acceptable. 9. Limit 3 entries per person. 10. If you mail in your entry, it must be submitted on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. Upload stories at: www.montereycountynow.com/101words or by mail: Monterey County Weekly 101-Word Short Story Contest 668 Williams Ave., Seaside CA 93955 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3 Write your name, address and phone number on each page you submit. Monterey County Weekly assumes no responsibility for returning submissions. PRINT | WEB | MOBILE december 26, 2024-January 1, 2025 montereycountynow.com LocaL & IndePendent Potty-mouthed Parrot 6 | In a PIckLe 8 | rIng In the new year 38 | baroque bash 40 FIrst PLace generaL exceLLence • 2024 ca JournaLIsm awards • the winners of the 101-word short story contest run free with their imaginations to blur the lines between fantasy and reality. p. 20 101-Word Short Story Contest Roll With it Challenge Word for 2025: Light. All stories must contain the word “light” (or lit, or lightning, etc.)
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