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Where It’s At

Ethan Miller’s Oakland Hangs

     As the leader of internationally acclaimed experimental-psych outfit Comets on Fire and then the more soulful yet still hard rockin’ ensemble Howlin Rain, Ethan Miller has been so instrumental in aughties Bay Area underground that the Oakland musician deserved a little downtime in ’09. Since the ’08 release of Magnificent Fiend (Birdman/American Recordings), the combo has been writing, arranging and rehearsing some 25 songs in preparation of this year’s rehearsals and pre-production at Prairie Sun Studios and then recording in Southern California with the band’s American Recordings mentor, Grammy-winning producer Rick Rubin.
     The time seems right, then, before the tough and rewarding work on Howlin Rain’s highly anticipated third album begins, to hit Miller up for his Oaktown favorites:

Lake Merritt  I live on Adam’s Point above the lake, so the lake is really my compass — spiritually, physically and mentally. I jog around the lake for exercise, and my wife and I walk the lake on Sundays to watch the birds (Lake Merritt is home to the oldest wildlife sanctuary in North America.) I could go on and on about the lake. On the way home from a walk or run in the spring or summer, I always stop at the aqueduct on Harrison between Grand and 27th and find the turtles that live in the lake sun-bathing on the rocks that stick out of the water. My whole life outside of work and home is so connected to this place.

Piedmont Grocery Co.  The whole grocery store is great — expensive but worth it, though a little shy of Whole Food’s prices — but I especially have come to love and rely on the butcher counter there. The butchers are always friendly and, no matter how mobbed the counter is, they always have time to answer questions and get you the right fillet of fish or cut of meat for what you need. I find they have the consistently best fish and meat of any upscale grocery store butcher I have tried in the East Bay, or anywhere, really.
4038 Piedmont Ave., (510) 653-8181

Issues   Great spot for magazines, books, records or even just running into friends or other musicians and artist acquaintances that frequent the store and shooting the bull, or catching up to the sounds of stoney dub, avant-garde music or psychedelic rock playing on the store record player. The owners are great folks with a business and community vision.
20 Glen Ave., (510) 652-5700, issuesshop.com

Mountain View Cemetery  Amazing. I just revisited this massive cemetery with my folks because of a recent write-up in the Chronicle about the Julia Morgan Chapel of the Chimes, which is an architectural jewel but is only one of the wonders of this vast and artistic cemetery. There is nothing morbid-feeling about this graveyard: It feels much more like stepping into a vast secret garden and walking amongst the historical figures of the Bay Area and their strange and beautiful monuments.
5000 Piedmont Ave., (510) 658-2588, mountainviewcemetery.org

The Uptown Area  As an Oakland musician and a fan, the coming of new popular venues to town can only be good. Cafe doors are open, tables out on the street, people everywhere — the bars are packed after the Fox Theater or Paramount lets out. On warm summer evenings, that great weekend-afternoon ‘everybody is there’ vibe at the lake just seems to spill right on over into the Uptown area after the sun goes down. Really great vibe for foodies, bar hoppers, music lovers.