8 Days a Week

Oct. 29-Nov. 5, 2003

THE SIGHT OF multicolored banners and warm yellow marigolds and the sweet, heady scent of pan de muerto filling San Francisco's Mission District signal that Día de los Muertos festivities are underway. Precita Eyes Mural Arts and Visitors Center hosts the second annual 'Death and Rebirth' Day of the Dead celebration, in which local artists and volunteers turn the center into a grand exhibit featuring special altars and paintings to honor late muralists John Biggers, Antonio Burciaga, Arch William, and Eva Cockroft. Precita Eyes enjoys a devoted local following, with many of the refreshments and music for the event provided by folks in the community. People from all cultures are welcome and encouraged to bring offerings to honor family members or loved ones who have passed on. Come take part in this powerful social ritual of honoring your ancestors – and also learn a little something about the local muralists, art, and culture that make San Francisco so beautiful. Sun/2, 7-10 p.m., Precita Eyes Mural Arts and Visitors Center, 2981 24th St., S.F. Free. (415) 285-2287. (Cindy Emch)

Oct. 29

Wednesday

Biblical sense Let's face it: Letterman is slipping, Leno's a lightweight, and it's about damn time God got his own talk show. After years of languishing in the purgatory that is the open mic-standup circuit, the Supreme Being has finally landed a headlining gig. 'Late Night with God' features sinful improv and sketch comedy, rocking house band Muhammed and the Allah Stars, dating advice from Moses, and special mortal guest performers: beatbox missionary Z-Rox and angelic singer-songwriter Jolie Holland. Rapture or Armageddon? You decide. Half of the proceeds benefit local parent-teacher project Francisco Connection. Last Wednesdays, 8:30 p.m., El Rio, 3158 Mission, S.F. $5-$10 suggested donation. (415) 282-3325. (Jonathan Zwickel)

Oct. 30

Thursday

Opposable Sometimes a thumb is just a thumb – but sometimes, it's a champion. The time has come again to crack your knuckles, limber up your digits, and find out just what you're made of at the second annual Thumb Wrestling Tournament, a benefit for the writing and tutoring programs at 826 Valencia. Prizes, trophies, cheers, and jeers are up for grabs, with last year's champion on hand to defend his title. Southpaws and double-jointed folks are welcome (cheaters, however, will be made to walk the plank). E-mail to reserve a spot in the competition. 7 p.m., 826 Valencia, S.F. $2. (415) 642-5905, thumbwrestling@826valencia.com. (Cindy Emch)

Keys please You hear a lot about Cecil Taylor's unflinching artistic vision, about the groundbreaking approach to collective improvisation he forged with the Cecil Taylor Unit beginning in the late '50s, and about his unceasing search for new sources of inspiration and modes of expression. What's sometimes overlooked is that Taylor is also one hell of a piano player. His solo shows are exquisitely violent affairs with the pianist coaxing beauty from dense clusters of notes and staccato phrases that leap around the keyboard, and with individual sections often clocking in at close to an hour. But Taylor's performances aren't completely cerebral or avant-garde; they're made accessible by their musicality and rhythmic playfulness. Expect to be humbled, confounded, exhilarated, breathless, but don't expect to think about music in the same way afterward. 7:30 p.m., Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, 3301 Lyon, S.F. $24-$38. (415) 788-7353. (Bruce Wallace)

I scream, you scream For the 12-and-under set, candy corn, monster masks, and a little fake blood make for great fun. But how can adults savor the scary during Halloween? This year follow the creepily vague directions down to Hunters Point, where 'The Haunted Barn: A San Francisco Nightmare' awaits grown-up thrill seekers. Walk down the hill at the headless horse and experience re-creations of San Francisco's dark and deranged past and present ("Murderous Muni," "Chop Chop Chinatown," etc.). After having the wits shocked out of you, enjoy live music and some ghoulish refreshments in Satan's Saloon while you try to explain how you really weren't all that scared ... yeah, right. Through Sat/1. 9 p.m.-2 a.m., Hunters Point, follow signs from Third St. and Evans (check the Web site for a map), S.F. $13. (415) 285-8103, www.thehauntedbarn.com. (Emch)

Oct. 31

Friday

Girl gang No boxes here. Hang on the Box are true to the school of first-wave punk with their oddball assortment of feisty pogo-worthy pop and broody ballads. But in the spirit of being Beijing's first (and supposedly sole) all-female punk combo, they do more than simply bop along with the pep of Generation X and the off-kilter lilt of the Raincoats. The trio embrace their role as feminists and take on subjects like rape, bras, sex, and so much more, warbled in English to boot. Vocalist-guitarist Wang Yue, bassist Yilina, and drummer Li Yan Fan were obviously paying attention in language class; they all met in high school and went on to be the first girl group to play in the Chinese capitol's most notorious punk club, Scream. Now they're touring with Brain Failure, whose singer once supposedly dissed Wang by calling her band "Hang on My Dick." Times change. Jack Saints and Black Furies also play. 9:30 p.m., Thee Parkside, 1600 17th St., S.F. Call for price. (415) 503-0393. (Also with Deadfall, Brain Failure, and Love Songs, Sat/1, 8 p.m., 924 Gilman, Berk. $5. 510-525-9926). (Kimberly Chun)

Witchin' The series is called 'Ten Perfect Moments: A Decade of Film,' and tonight's spooky lineup at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts could easily be dubbed "Two Perfect Films." Fans of Italian horror can forget trolling for candy this Halloween, 'cause when Mario Bava and Dario Argento have dates with the big screen, all the Milk Duds and mini Butterfingers in the world couldn't make for a sweeter night. That's sweet as in exploding coffins, gorgeous black-and-white photography, and vengeful witches in Bava's 1960 Black Sunday; and death by rats, the world's creepiest apartment building, and even more vengeful witches in Argento's 1980 Inferno, the lesser-seen, kind-of sequel to Suspiria. Black Sunday, 7 p.m.; Inferno, 9 p.m., Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission, S.F. $3-$6. (415) 978-ARTS. (Cheryl Eddy)

Fully conscious San Francisco's Los Mocosos make a playful, party-starting ruckus that rolls Latin rock, salsa, ska, and hip-hop into a vibrant and colorful sound. In line with the band's multiculti grassroots activism, several politically minded hip-hop acts – Company of Prophets, Youth Fiyah Sound DJs, Freedom Smugglers, and Ras Ceylon – open the show. "From Dusk til Dawn: The Revolution Must Go On" is the theme of the night; it's a costumed carnival and peace party, so get dressed up and ready to spook the Man. 9 p.m., StudioZ.tv, 314 11th St., S.F. $10. (415) 252-7666. (Zwickel)

Nov. 1

Saturday

Partying for a cause Unlicensed radio broadcasts may unite communities through progressive political debates and indie-music programming, but the Federal Communications Commission requires permits, and that's allegedly why federal marshals raided San Francisco Liberation Radio last week with a battering ram and a search warrant, seizing the station's high-tech equipment and the staffers' CD players. Tonight's benefit – the first in a series of rallies for SFLR – raises awareness of the station's plight and money for its legal defense fund, and if horn-player Ralph Carney (Galaxie 500, Tom Waits's band), stand-up comic Tony DuShane, and other local artists have anything to say about it, beats will be dropped, hips will shake, and Liberation will return. 8 p.m., Odeon Bar, 3223 Mission, S.F. $7-$20 sliding scale. (415) 550-6994. (Daniel King)

Screen presence Founded in 1991, the Berkeley Video and Film Festival provides a forum for independent film- and video makers to show their innovative and diverse feature films, shorts, documentaries, commercials, and animation. The fest, one of the largest in northern California, screens more than 160 original works by local artists and by those from as far away as Cuba, juried by a committee of professional media makers. Projects range from straightforward features like Temptation, Kim Caviness's comedy about "politically correct pornographers," to more offbeat selections, like Damon Packard's The Untitled Star Wars Mocumentary. Hip-hop fans take note: Eminem provided the inspiration and music for an animated music video based on his song "White America," one of several shorts on the program. Through Sun/2. Noon-11 p.m., UC Berkeley, Wheeler Auditorium, Berk. $8-$10. (510) 843-3699, www.berkeleyvideofilmfest.org. (Melissa McCartney)

Nov. 2

Sunday

Strong currents Not every poet lives the kind of life that's eventually immortalized in a biopic with Gwyneth Paltrow in the lead. But that doesn't mean his or her art should be overlooked or underfunded. Since publishing poetry is rarely a moneymaking enterprise, wordsmiths have to look beyond mainstream imprints to circulate their work. Enter nonprofit collective Sixteen Rivers Press, founded in 1999 and still collaboratively run by the poets it publishes. Support literary ingenuity – and get an earful of some compelling verse – at 'Rivers to the Sea,' a benefit featuring a reception and readings by poets Kay Ryan, Diana O'Hehir, Gillian Conoley, and Ellen Dudley, all Sixteen Rivers Press advisory board members. 2:30-5 p.m., First Unitarian Universalist Church, 1187 Franklin, S.F. $10-$50. (415) 273-1303, www.sixteenrivers.com. (Eddy)

Nov. 3

Monday

Show and sing With gospel like hers, keyboard player Dee Spencer (Stanford Jazz, SFJazz, Branford Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin) should host an Open Mike Jazz Jam every week. Wait, she does – and she presides over this shindig with more peppery focus than most other hosts. Disagree? Then swing by and strut your unsigned-vocals stuff as a walk-on alongside Spencer, the Wizzard MC, and other emerging talent on saxophones, bass, and drums. The aroma of the restaurant's heavy berbere- and cardamom-spiced Ethiopian food mixes kindly with the group's pounding bebop chops. This month marks the showcase's two-year anniversary. 8 p.m.-midnight, Rasselas Jazz, 1534 Fillmore, S.F. Free. (415) 346-8696. (King)

Freakdom fried I failed high school French, but looking at the artwork on Costes's 1987 debut CD, Les Oxyures (Costes Cassette), with its scratchy sketches of nether regions, and listening to the no-fi rambling cabaret crack-up contained therein, I feel confident my French teacher Mr. Cabanne would not approve of Costes as an educational tool. Affiliated with Lisa "Suckdog" Carver (whom he married for a green card) and a scatological perviness that even San Franciscans might find immodest, French provocateur Jean-Louis Costes throws race-baiting into his taboo-pressure cooker. Still, the scrappy keyboards and drum machine clatter, vomitous babble, and tape-loop disintegration fit right in with the local noise folk who accompany this show. Stupor group Mount NB (usually with members of Zeek Sheck, Murder Murder, and Monopause) play along with Aerobics King and Prairiepusher. 9 p.m., Edinburgh Castle Pub, 950 Geary, S.F. $5. (415) 885-4074. (George Chen)

Nov. 4

Tuesday

Noise boys Skreeek. Aka-aka-ak. Thumpa thumpa shoooshk. Familiar sounds to fans of former Faith No More leader Mike Patton, who as a solo artist and with bands Tomahawk, Fantômas, Lovage, and Mr. Bungle has created some of the most beautifully strange and energizing music of our time. For a select few shows he joins up with Rahzel, the beatboxing master from the Roots and renowned Godfather of Noyze. This pair of cutting-edge musical deconstructionists are sure to create an orchestra of vocal experiments, percussions, noises, and some simply crazy shit. At this time they have no plans to record, so if you want to see, hear, and experience something truly revolutionary – attend this gig. 7 and 10:30 p.m., Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell, S.F. $20. (415) 885-0750. (Emch)

Nov. 5

Wednesday

Miles along You know Judah Bauer. He's that other guy, the one not named Jon Spencer, playing guitar in the aforementioned's Blues Explosion. The one who can get grown men chanting "Judah-Judah-Judah" at the drop of a power chord. Things are much more low-key with 20 Miles, Bauer's solo project with revolving partners. On 20 Miles' latest, sixth album, Life Doesn't Rhyme (Fat Possum), he goes plainspoken, morose, and serious – without his brother, Donovan, along for the ride. In the end, the downbeat Life sounds more akin to the works of Bill Callahan than those of Big Bill Broonzy. This time, Bauer comes through with a new drummer, Jimmy, before he gets back to work on the next JSBX album in December. Sonny Smith also performs. 10 p.m., Thee Parkside, 1600 17th St., S.F. Call for price. (415) 503-0393. (Chun)