By Marke B.

The shoe

In this week's Super Ego clubs column, I talk to pop-trance juggernaut Tiësto -- certainly the most branded, if not the most bombastic, "big name" DJ out there. (Funny, though, whenever I told people I was talking to the "Biggest DJ in the World" they all thought I meant Paul Oakenfold.)

Hawking the shoe

I'm not against people making a living as a DJ -- or even getting rich off it. Or even being signed to Ultra Records. But there's a point at which you become a cliche, actually working against the advancement of electronic music, even when you're at the point of including the most disparate listeners into your polished genre's fold. That's why I pricked up my ears when Tiësto so easily shrugged off any attempt to still categorize himself as "underground" and began rebranding himself as a pop artist, a producer, and then finally "just Tiësto" during our brief conversation.

In any case, he's still a bit of a hoot. After the jump, some of my favorite Tiësto moments. He'll be at the Cow Palace this Saturday.

Continue reading "A treasury of Tiësto moments" »

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Posted by SFBG at 03:15 PM | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

It'll be a cold, cold January without monthly Monday goth spectacular Death Guild

Holy snuffboxes and ankle-baring skirt-ruffling! The ABC's war on fun in SF continues -- this time the victim is the ever-lively club DNA Lounge, host of great parties as Bootie, Death Guild, Hubba Hubba Revue, and so many more.

After a protracted struggle with the ABC -- which leveled charges of "lewdness" against the club for some hardly even eyebrow-raising go-go antics -- owner Jamie Zawinsky struck a deal to close his club from Monday, January 4th through Thursday, January 28th, 2010, in order to avoid having his liquor license revoked and the club shut down.

We wrote about the DNA woes earlier this year as part of our ongoing Death of Fun coverage. Zawinsky had applied for an all-ages permit, the ABC denied it, he appealed and won. Soon afterward, the ABC sent undercover agents into two parties, witnessed brief flashes of buttocks and such, including a (gasp!) simulated lapdance, and slapped DNA with charges of "running a disorderly house injurious to the public welfare and morals." Because this ridiculous charge from the 1700s targeted only the two queer parties at the club, accusations of homophobia on the part of the ABC roiled the gay community.

Wearing the charges proudly

Zawinsky spent more than $140,000 and a very stressful year fighting the charges. (He could really use your generous, keep-the-party-alive donations here. Join the "Save the DNA Lounge" Facebook group here. Plus: T-shirts!) He has also been a major player in organizing against the insidious War on Fun.

After the jump, Jamie's exclusive statement to us about his necessary compromise, the ABC's petty vindictiveness, and what a month's closure will cost the club:.

Continue reading "War on Funwatch: DNA Lounge to close for January" »

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Posted by SFBG at 12:08 PM | Comments (1)

SKAKKAMANAGE
All Over the Face
(Kimi)

By Kimberly Chun

Sounding for all the world like the lost Icelandic kin of Spoon’s Brett Daniel with his happen-now snarl and way with a jittery Amerindie hook, vocalist-guitarist Svavar Petur Eysteinsson could have grown up in Ohio, Nebraska or Texas, listening to the Breeders, Yo La Tengo, Uncle Tupelo, and any number of Homestead and Saddle Creek combos. His Icelandic husband-and-wife band, Skakkamanage, bears more than a passing resemblance to indie rock brothers by other mothers. A sweetness, naked earnestness and on-edge undercurrent of anxiety permeates tracks like “Costa Bravo” and “Like You Did,” helped along by the boy-girl vocals of Eysteinsson and wife Berglind Hasler, on piano and synthesizers. Mum’s Orvar Poreyjarson Smarason contributes harmonica and backing vocals, and throughout such assists and audibly in-your-face inspirations, Skakkamanage appears to be quickly approaching, by dint of its raw courage, a sound of its own.

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Posted by Kimberly Chun at 03:48 PM | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

I recommend taking some cult-cha with your cold cereal -- it’ll make the pre-Thanksgiving/Black Friday mania go down easier. More fun stuff than we could fit into print.

Ty Segall and Culture Kids
The raging Goldie ‘09 winner lets it fly with the buskable, combustible Bay Area noise makers. With the Baths. Sat/14, 9 p.m., $7. Amnesia, 853 Valencia, SF. (415) 970-0012.

Turks
The Oakland combo likes its tempos convulsive and screams pitched a few notches above the deep, dark pit of post-punk hell. With Rats Eyes and La Guardia. Sat/14, 9:30 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Grant Hart, 'In C,' Flobots, Talk Normal, and more" »

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Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:15 AM | Comments (0)

Photos and text by Ariel Soto

Bella Ciao

Those Darn Accordions

Big Lou's Polka Casserole

"What time is it? It's polka time!" That's right, it was polka time at Cafe Du Nord last Thursday night, as three different accordion bands took the stage to play not only polka, but also Broadway show tunes and even some country. The bands, which included Those Darn Accordions, Big Lou's Polka Casserole and Ciao Bella, drew quite a diverse crowd.

Those Darn Accordions

Bella Ciao

There were some utilikilts, cowboy hats, lots of poofy skirts and in my friend L's words "Aren't their a lot of guys with ponytails in here?" We counted eight in total. But no matter what they were wearing, everyone seemed to be enjoying the music and several couples even took to the dance floor for a little polka dancing. And then there were all the lovely accordions, their shiny black and white keys gleaming, their bellows breathing in and out, keeping everyone in time and on time, all in the name of polka time!

Continue reading "Live Shots: Accordion Festival, Cafe Du Nord, 11/05/09" »

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Posted by SFBG at 12:21 PM | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Fight the power, Anna Conda!

Farewell, sweet punk 'n drag apocalypse! Just in time for 2012, beloved five-year-old Friday weekly queer meltdown Charlie Horse at the Cinch has released its gin-soaked core neutrinos and called it quits. Charlie Horse hostess, deconstructed Courtney Love, and Guardian cover girl Anna Conda blames the influx of yuppie condo-dwellers and an increasingly anti-gay agenda overtaking the once queerific Polk district for the club's demise. Apparently, noise complaints forced the Cinch to come before the Entertainment Commission and be threatened with fines or closure if the Polk bar didn't tone it down. The Cinch asked Anna to take a break, but she decided it was time to move on from the hostile climate.

It's a truly tragic state of affairs -- one which points up even more the continuing War on Fun that the city seems to be raging against its own origins and spirit. No real problem with drunk bachelorettes in ridiculous heels and Ed Hardy-drenched dudes squealing and puking up and down the street, but some drag queens getting incredibly creative inside a gay bar? WELL, GASP!

Charlie Horse has been a bright spot in the City's increasingly dreary weekend club scene for half a decade, one that made of family of disparate non-wealthy queers who gagged on Gaga and wanted people to know there were amazing blackout options that didn't involve cologne and gay cockatoo hair. It will be sorely, Horsely missed. Anna Conda's tearful letter of farewell -- and rousing vow to carry on -- after the jump. (And catch her Herr-A-Chick nights every first and third Wednesday of the month at the Eagle!)

Continue reading "Charlie Horse axed for queer noise" »

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Posted by SFBG at 10:53 AM | Comments (1)

By Kimberly Chun

This in from the Juan MacLean's people and the Mezzanine: the band's drummer Jerry Fuchs sadly passed away Nov. 8 (The live band will obviously not be performing as scheduled on Nov. 20 at Mezzanine, but Juan will be out for a tribute DJ set to benefit Jerry’s family – all proceeds will be donated to them.):

"Gerhardt “Jerry” Fuchs, beloved and respected drummer for The Juan MacLean, Holy Ghost!, Maserati, !!!, and Turing Machine, amongst others, passed away in the early hours on Sunday, November 8th due to an unfortunate elevator accident that occurred in a Brooklyn loft building. He was pronounced dead at Bellevue Medical Center , a few hours later.

"Jerry was born on December 30, 1974 in Marietta , Georgia . After attending the University of Georgia for graphic design, he left for New York in 1995 to join the band Vineland . His achievements were numerous as he became a New York fixture in the music scene, providing incredibly complex and energetic drumbeats that elicited wide praise and excitement from fellow musicians, critics and friends. On the rare occasion that he was not touring, Jerry did graphic design work for publications such as Chunklet and Entertainment Weekly. Throughout all of his endeavors and successes, Jerry remained one of the most humble and down-to-earth artists anyone could meet. His smile, and loving energy will be missed dearly, as will his talent and contributions to the music scene.

Continue reading "Juan MacLean's drummer Jerry Fuchs, RIP; band to do DJ benefit set at Mezzanine" »

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Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:34 PM | Comments (0)

SONYA COTTON
Red River
(self-released)

By Kimberly Chun

San Francisco-by-way-of-Connecticut singer-songwriter Sonya Cotton hails from the halcyon peaks of Joan Baez, Judy Collins, and Judee Sill: she’s a songbird of a soprano, given to praise though drawn to the dark side of folk song. She contemplates the corpse of a doe on the cover of Red River, but rather than dragging the dead deer of genre up a hill and into new turf, ala Grouper, Cotton prefers to pay her respect to the past and observe tradition with reverence and careful attention. Her immaculate footprints: the three-part harmonies on “Bear” and spare arrangement of “Hunters.”

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Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:01 PM | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

You want to wipe away the gloom with some swoony, loony sounds, you know you do. More music than we could cram into ye olde newsprint.

Alternative Tentacles 30th Anniversary Incest-a-Thon
The proceedings kick off with Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine -- and it's going to be raging and ornery from the sound of the outfit's new The Audacity of Hype (Alternative Tentacles). The fun continues with Citizen Fish, Star Fucking Hipsters, and MIA (the hardcore band not the lady) opening tonight; Ludicra, Munly and the Lupercalians, and Knights of the New Crusade Friday, and Alice Donut, Victims Family, and Burning Image Saturday. Sounds like a good, loudly irreverent time for all. Thurs/5-Sat/7, 8 p.m., $20-$22 ($50 three-day pass). Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750.

Hank IV and Celine Dion
Hank Sr. gets a hard twirl in his grave, as the Bay Area troublemakers’ hearts go on. With Blues Control. Thurs/5, 9 p.m., $7. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk St., SF. (415) 923-0923.

Dawes
The early-20-something LA foursome have been listening closely to The Big Pink -- namely the Band, not the UK 4AD duo. With Langhorne Slim and Austin Lucas. Fri/6, Independent, 628 Divisadero, SF. (415) 771-1422.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Alternative Tentacles, Pixies, Paramore, Finches, R. Kelly, and more" »

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Posted by Kimberly Chun at 05:26 PM | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Ty Segall

It’s easy to imagine a battered and bruised zombie surfer hanging 10 to “Standing at the Station” off Ty Segall's Lemons, or the album's shaking version of Captain Beefheart’s “Drop Out Boogie.” Picture drag racing along to Segall's “In Your Car” and “Cents,” with the finish line at a fuzzed-out, frenzied Point Panic party. Deep-in-the-red ragers like “Johnny” take on hardcore’s crash-and-burn strategy -- tearing around on the edges of distortion on just two wheels -- while “Rusted Dust” strips it all down to Segall’s mournful falsetto and a single, evocatively ungainly electric guitar.

Lemons brought Segall together with the gloriously gritty Goner Records. “I actually just asked them if they wanted to put out my record,” he explains. “I didn’t think it was going to happen because I’ve been a huge fan for a long time. And they were, like, ‘Yeah!’

“I was super-psyched. I’m extremely lucky because they’re an amazing label.”

Ty Segall, "Lovely One"

It’s been a major evolution, going from Laguna Beach to Memphis. Segall first relocated North to attend USF, where he bonded with the rest of the Traditional Fools, bassist-vocalist Andrew Luttrell and guitarist-drummer-vocalist David Fox, who grew up in nearby coastal hamlets in Southern Orange County. “When we’re back at home, it’s like we’re all living in the same city," Segall muses. The Trad Fools didn’t know each other very well back home, but together, in the Bay Area, they started hanging out and jamming and, in early 2006, morphed into a legendary party band.

Continue reading "Goldies Extra -- Ty Segall works out the kinks" »

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Posted by SFBG at 03:00 PM | Comments (0)