8 Days a Week

May 21-28, 2003

IF FRANKENSTEIN AND Dr. Seuss spawned a designer baby who grew up to be an artist, he would be Jeremy Fish. The work by Culture Cache's new artist in residence is the highlight of its latest exhibit, "Shelf Life." While Fish's playfulness, color choices, and humor are nostalgic, with sci-fi elements, he also addresses contemporary moral dilemmas with his symbolic, minimalist imagery. Raised in upstate New York, the artist gives sport hunting a kick in the pants with his "Hunting" sculpture series, which features hybrid fish with beer-can bodies, lovesick elephants, and banana slugs mounted on wood plaques. Although some 2-D artists flail at 3-D crossover attempts, Fish's minisculptures are as technically strong as his silk-screened and painted creatures. Influenced by pop culture, skateboarding, and the San Francisco grind, Fish (co-owner of skateboard company the Unbelievers) continues to create his own fantastical language of bunnies, bugs, skulls, and funny hybrids. Curated by Miranda Gill, "Shelf Life" also features work by Jeff Roysdon, Andrew Schoultz, Mars, Ferris Plock, Maura Vazakas, James Kirkpatrick, and Bryan Jablonski. May 24-July 7 (reception Sat/24, 7-11 p.m.; gallery hours Thurs.-Sun., noon-5 p.m., and by appointment), Culture Cache, 1800 Bryant, Suite 104, S.F. (415) 626-7776, www.culturecache.com. (Lori Spears)

May 21

Wednesday

Soulsville Sure, there are some strong contenders for greatest concert film of all time, but you'd be hard-pressed to find anything that outshines Wattstax, especially now that the doc is being rereleased with speaker-shaking digitally remastered audio, as well as the restoration of its original finale (two words: Isaac Hayes), trimmed in 1973 over copyright issues. Wattstax (directed, oddly enough, by Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory's Mel Stuart) captures the 1972 Los Angeles concert dubbed "the black Woodstock" and contains the kind of heartfelt, goose bumps-raising performances – from Carla Thomas, the Staple Singers, Albert King, the Emotions, Luther Ingram, and others – rare in today's image-conscious, manufactured music world. Other inspiring moments include the spectacularly attired Bar-Kays and the late Rufus Thomas, who appears clad in hot pink to lay down the basics of the Funky Chicken. But Wattstax goes beyond the music; it also contextualizes the importance of the concert by including incisive (and hilarious) cultural and political commentary by Richard Pryor, plus interviews with Watts residents still stinging from the neighborhood's riots in the mid '60s. Tonight's West Coast premiere screening benefits the upcoming 2003 San Francisco Black Film Festival. 7 p.m. (reception at 6 p.m.), Galaxy Theater, 1285 Sutter, S.F. $15. (415) 771-9271, www.urbanevents.com, www.sfbff.org. (Cheryl Eddy)

Barrel rollin' Our polished and swaggering city is famed for its own peculiar style in all arts and sciences, and the polka is no exception. Eschewing the tear-wringing dirges of Cleveland's Slovenian-tinged polkas, and parting company with the Polish whimsies preferred in Chicago, San Francisco's players are extravagantly eclectic, waggling their hot fingers to a jazz rhythm one moment, and pummeling with fury to punk the next. And now we can rejoice in our very own San Francisco Style Polka Hall of Fame, celebrating its inception today, with pomp, circumstance, and a very special bratwurst pizza. Don't miss this opportunity to mingle with the accordion aristocracy, as members of Big Lou's Polka Casserole, Polkacide, and the Squeegees induct Brave Combo and the Polkaholics into the city's newest cultural destination. 10 a.m., Escape from New York Pizza, 508 Castro, S.F. Free. (415) 468-5986. (Amir Baghdachi)

May 22

Thursday

Viva Von Iva! Sans six-string, San Francisco's Von Iva are a welcome respite from all of those acts ditching the bass for blues-crud cred. Including bassist Elizabeth Davis-Simpson (ex-Clone), drummer Kelly Harris, and Becky Kupersmith on keys, the band dance their rock around as vocalist Jillian Iva testifies to the transcendent powers of getting into the groove. "Vee are Von Iva, and vee like it ven you dance," she informed a recent Li Po's crowd, and if stone-still audiences don't do it, she'll do it herself. With the soulful, real-deal delivery of a more libidinal Rachel Nagy of the Detroit Cobras, Iva struts and shimmies with rabble-rousing abandon, getting deliriously down 'n' flirty to her band's stop, drop, rock 'n' roll. Shawna Virago and the Deadly Nightshade Family, Frozen Chicken Patties, Tribe 8, and Candy from Strangers also perform. 9 p.m., Eagle Tavern, 398 12th St., S.F. $5 (415) 626-0880. (Also Fri/23, 9:30 p.m., Tempest, 431 Natoma, S.F. $5. 415-495-1863). (Jimmy Draper)

Girl happy It's hard to be a diva these days, what with getting flak from everyone for being "difficult," un-politically correct, or unpatriotic. Sigh. Come support your local divas (along with a few in from New York and Boston) tonight at the opening of this year's DIVAfest. Produced by Exit Theatre, DIVAfest celebrates womanhood with more than 30 performances of 10 different works: new plays, solo shows, cabarets, dance theater, puppetry, and staged readings. All are performed on Exit's four neighboring stages, where the female energy is allowed to crescendo from one to the next. While the subliminal subject for all of the events is the power of women, Y chromosomes are also included – both as show participants and as welcome audience members. See Stage listings for this week's schedule. Opens tonight, 8 p.m. Runs Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m. (also Sat., 3 p.m.). Through May 31. Exit Theatreplex, 156 Eddy, S.F. $5-$20 (all-show pass $55). (415) 673-3847, www.divafest.org. (Kerry Rodgers)

May 23

Friday

Homeland insecurity The recent (or ongoing) Iraq war didn't really spawn any protest songs, unless you count the Dixie Chicks' anti-Bush comment heard 'round the world. Kristin Heavy of Element Dance Theater takes her concerns to the stage in another form with Full Scale, which makes use of the various skills of her powerful dancers (ballet, rock climbing, gymnastics, martial arts, etc.) to respond to recent world events, most notably the privacy-invading USA PATRIOT Act. The piece, an expanded version of last year's Scale, also addresses how the war on Iraq has made Americans more prejudiced, as well as the negative effects of militarization. Full Scale's set resembles the scales of justice, further emphasizing how lately there's been anything but fair treatment going on. The performance also features works by Navarrete X. Kajiyama Dance Theater and Oscar Trujillo. Through Sun/25. 8 p.m., Dance Mission Theatre, 3316 24th St., S.F. $15-$20. (415) 642-1082. (Eddy)

May 24

Saturday

Doctor doom Better not miss this week's show at Other Cinema: it might save your life! Or at least give your funny bone a good massaging and tune up your gag reflexes. Curated by Noel Lawrence, 'Medical Madness' features an array of educational medical films, notably the local debut of Abel Klainbaum's The History of Choking with Erick Estrada. Though sadly, the Estrada involved is not the actor of CHiPS fame, the film does include an interview with the esteemed Dr. Henry J. Heimlich in its strangely informative rundown of throat-clogging matters. Also on the bill: the matter-of-fact military instructional video "How to Give an Enema" (hey, you never know when the need might arise); the garish 1962 "Pain and its Alleviation"; and some artful selections from Bay Area filmmaker Kerry Laitala ("Breathing for Others" and the recent San Francisco International Film Festival selection "Out of the Ether.") 8:30 p.m., Artists' Television Access, 992 Valencia, S.F. $5. (415) 290-0401, www.othercinema.com. (Eddy)

Street smart It's all about juxtapositions: house DJs and acid jazz instrumentals, street geeks and brow furrowers, graffiti flamboyance and armchair arcanum. The result is flashy, urbane, and appropriately high octane. Now in its second run, art show 'The Apex' remains preoccupied with linking avant-garde and street forms. This time around the lineup includes ceramics master Antony Sear, glassblower Bryan Jablonski, and a crew of local graffiti artists: Apex, Mars, Neon, Monica Nelson, Jason Sato, and Brown. Boogie down to grooves provided by the new-school group Broun Fellinis, along with the deep house breaks of local wax slingers DJ Canyon and Charlotte the Baroness. Be awed as the artists transform the banal – toast, spray paint, a public rest room – into the totally bizarre. 9 p.m.-4 a.m., Club Six, 60 Sixth St., S.F. $10. (415) 863-1221. (Rachel Swan)

May 25

Sunday

Winging it Three is a magic number for Kyle Field, a.k.a. Little Wings, who alights in S.F. during his short, sweet two-week Spring Swing Tour. The follow-up to his "Wonder" trilogy, Field's latest K Records full-length, Light Green Leaves, is three, three, three great takes in one – one concept, that is. Call it a self-contained trilogy, if you're in a pretentious mood. The CD version of Light Green Leaves was recorded at his former home, the "Birdnest," in Portland, Ore., alongside various hometown and Cali players. The LP was sketched out at the Dub Narcotic studio with K kingpin Calvin Johnson, the Microphones' Phil Elyrum, Yume Bitsu's Adam Forkner, and a cast of other characters on hand. The cassette versions went straight to tape in all sorts of garden spots: cars and campgrounds, etc. Was it a case of paradise by the dashboard mic? And where are the eight-track and MP3 versions? Bug Fields about it – he'll be flying solo on tour, though he'll likely round up a few friends to play along on his sometimes barbed, always beatific tunes. Anamude and Adam Selzer also play. 8 p.m., Hotel Utah Saloon, 500 Fourth St., S.F. $5. (415) 546-6300. (Kimberly Chun)

All-day music The road traveled by the late, sometimes great Bammies (Bay Area Music Awards) from mainstream rock's glory days to this year's feel-good-in-the-sun California Music Awards is long and complicated. The journey is marked by success stories (artists who've soared into the spotlight) and VH1-worthy tragedy (bands who've crashed and burned). Look back and you'll find rock history, rock horror, epic levels of gossip, and memories – and, of course, some terrific music. What can you say but Journey is dead, long live Green Day, or Third Eye Blind, or the Coup, or whoever's going to run away with the hardware. If the Bammies circa 1984 had giant spotlights, preening rock stars, and more white limos than the senior prom, this year's event – on the concrete expanses of downtown Oakland – is a lower-key, people-friendly, no-parking zone. Along with the awards, the afternoon features an array of performers beginning with the fabulous, heaven-sent voices of the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir (they recently released a great album), and including artists like O.G. funkmaster Larry Graham, singer-songwriter Chuck Prophet, R&B revelation Goapele, and headliners Green Day. Sunday marks the midpoint of the three-day weekend – make it special with an afternoon of music and sunshine. Noon-6 p.m., Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, San Pablo between International Drive and 15th Street, Oakl. Free. (510) 553-9553, www.californiamusicawards.com. (J.H. Tompkins)

May 26

Monday

Happy Monday Chances are, you're going to spend much of today (weather pending) lazing around and lolling in the sun, so why not start the day off with a bang – literally – at the Memorial Day Observance at the Presidio? The traditional event includes a parade (starts at Moraga and Graham Streets), a memorial service in the San Francisco National Cemetery, and a rousing musical program with the Concord High School marching band and the Pipes and Drums of the 91st Division. At noon the 91st Division Salute Battery busts out the 21-gun salute. And after the smoke clears, you're perfectly positioned to hit the coast and explore – on a Monday, no less – the scenic parts of San Francisco most chained-to-the-cubicle types rarely have time to appreciate. 10 a.m., Presidio Officer's Club, 50 Moraga, Presidio, S.F. Free. (415) 561-5444, www.atthepresidio.org. (Eddy)

May 27

Tuesday

Sic 'em Are we not men? We are Polysics. Tokyo's three-pronged answer to Devo or Man or Astroman? touches down in the United States with an amped-up live reputation, matching yellow jumpsuits, wraparounds, and a penchant for aggro synth drone and guitar screech. After recording "Black Out Fall Out" in S.F. for the Sony comp Japan for Sale Vol. 3, they return for one of several CD-release parties in the states – consider it also a sneak preview of a 2003 U.S. tour for Neu, their forthcoming Asian Man release and rejoinder to Hey Bob, My Friend. 8 p.m., Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., S.F. Free. (415) 474-0365. (Chun)

May 28

Wednesday

Cook's book He has made rigatoni for the mafia, stabbed a man in the shank for his insolence, shanghaied sous-chefs from dank Manhattan kitchens, swallowed the still quivering tissue of a giant clam, eaten an iguana tamale in the rain forest, shamed a band of desperate Muscovites with his capacity for vodka, and savored a sheep testicle on a lonely sand dune. He is Anthony Bourdain, celebrity chef, author of Kitchen Confidential, sworn enemy of Emeril, and terror to the Naked Chef. Come see the gaunt and deadpan star of Food Network's Cook's Tour, appearing tonight to chat about his new noir novel, The Bobby Gold Stories, based on his experiences in the corrupt and blood-drenched underworld of New York's club and restaurant scene. Noon, A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books, 601 Van Ness, S.F. (415) 441-6670, www.bookstore.com. (Baghdachi)