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" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

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

By Kimberly Chun

We got places to go, people to see, crazy sounds to hear -- more for your show-going pleasure and more than we could fit in print.

BrakesBrakesBrakes
Cheney better watch himself when the Brighton, England, combo steps on it. With Ezra Furman and the Harpoons and Rachel Goodrich. Wed/21, 8 p.m., $10-$12. Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell, SF. (415) 861-2011.

Fu Manchu and Dirty Power
Heaviness is as heaviness does -- with the added oomph of the SF-bred Power brokers. With the Solid. Wed/21, 8:30 p.m., $21. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Pelican, Kid Sister, Le Loup, Sunset Rubdown, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dan Deacon, above, leads the mob, and a fiery dusk off Treasure Isle. All photos by Kimberly Chun.

By Kimberly Chun

Gawg-eous. And I mean both Dan Deacon - in full-tilt follow-me-folks mode and the jaw-dangler of a sunset Saturday night, Oct. 17, at this year's Treasure Island Music Festival. So sad that I couldn't get there early enough to catch Crown City Rockers and Federico Aubele and stumbled out too early to see alphabet-soup Bridge Stage acts MSTRKRFT and MGMT - nevertheless here are a few watercolor, waterside memories of the happenings mid-fest.

You gots to hand it to Dan Deacon - the man knows how to power out a show, either solo or with his current 12-piece Dan Deacon Ensemble. "We can get in the zone in three minutes!" yelped Deacon happily - ever the leader of the flock as he sounded out the air-guitar/air-conductor hand gestures shortly before his set. Way to get the energy up: the band entered on the waves of excitement generated by a stage-diving/ascending chum, who was carried from the audience and deposited onstage. And what a stage - crammed with musicians and sidekicks like the cavorting feller in the orange dot costume and a note-worthy three-piece drum ensemble. Switching it up from jumpy happy beats to piping drone, the outfit sounded for all the world like a spazz-tastic, kiddie digi-hardcore orchestra. Not all of Deacon's endeavors were a raging success - but try organizing a dance contest at the drop of Gucci-patterned fedora - and he continues to sound much better up close and on record than live (and across the Treasure Island compound) - but the man got the soiree started for sure.

The Streets followed, praising the crowd for its fashion-forward garb ("You also look great with it off!") and waxing humble about his own perpetual all-black ensemble and muttering about how well it hides dirt. The UK rapper was in a sexy yet unpredictable mood - dissing Sacramento, recalling his stage dive from a Fillmore balcony box, and commenting on the fact Treasure Isle is known for its solid sounds. At one point, he urged a woman perched on a pal's shoulders to take off her top while also chiding her for blocking the view of other fans. Beatles riffs floated over it all.

Later DJ Krush provided future-beats before for dinnertime while LTJ Bukem broke those beats and picked up the pace. As the sun set in flamingo pinks and outrageous purples, Brazilian Girls provided surprisingly good, if ditzy fun, closing their well-played set with a paean to - did I hear right - pussies as audience members climbed onstage to shimmy.

Other sights: the sad view of a tree broken by some jerk-offs who were watching the Streets from its branches. Puts a damper on the eco-friendly air surrounding the fest, no? A chainsaw came out as we bystanders gawked off to the side (one comment overheard: "Who cares?"). We found respite in the art booths on the adult midway, where we hung out stories written out on hand-painted petals in the Scales Project installation and checked out the live graf art. Sorry signs of the apocalypse: skate-board-ready Megan Fox and Kate Moss tributes.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

The tao of Au, the Wu of a Killah -- that’s the spirit. More sounds to sit with and move to.

AU - RR vs. D from Rainbow Dropshadow on Vimeo.

Au
Toy pianos, ethereal vocals, and Portland, Ore.-steeped experimentation. With Why?, Mount Eerie, and Serengeti and Polyphonic. Sat/17, 9 p.m., $16. Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750.

Dan Deacon
The high Deacon of the laptop gospel preaches to the choir. With Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Teeth Mountain, and Nuclear Power Pants. Sat/17, 9 p.m., $10. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. (415) 820-9669.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Dan Deacon, Ghostface Killah, La Roux, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 11:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Ariel Soto

"Kylie, Kylie, Kylie!" shrieked the ecstatic crowd on September 30 as Kylie Minogue, riding a gigantic gold skull, descended to the stage to start the what was the beginning of her very first US tour. From the stunning laser show to her edgy geometric costume, Kylie awed her fans with her energy and hot dance moves. The audience, which was largely dominated by beautiful boys and their beautiful boyfriends, were obvious devotees of the pop diva, and many were decked out in feathers, sequins and glitter. She must have known she would find hella love in the Bay Area and therefore honored us with the first show on her US tour. It's inspiring to see someone in her 40s be so sexy and confident on stage. You go, Kylie! Take on the US -- you'll have no problem winning over every last one of us!

Continue reading "Kylie Minogue at the Fox Theater" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Keep your ears open for the sound of rolling thunder, and your heart dilated with the music of yesterday and tomorrow. Today? Well, here’s some of the musical worthiness coming down the pike right about now.

Mark Eitzel and Victor Krummenacher
Singles going steady? The American Music Clubber meets up with his Camper/Monk chum, who flies solo. Thurs/24, 8 p.m., $12-$15. Red Devil Lounge, 1695 Polk, SF. (415) 921-1695.

Hammer
He won’t hurt you -- though his parachute pants could cause damage. With Whodini. Fri/25, 8 p.m., $45.75-$65.75. Fox Theater, 1807 Telegraph, Oakl. www.apeconcerts.com

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Hammer, Indian Jewelry, Rain Machine, MV and EE, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Oh, yes, SF -- you like it hot. And you got the sounds to send off the Indian Summer in a proper freaky styley. Here are the worthies that didn’t fit in print.

Alan Braxe
The French dance pop maestro, a.k.a., Stardust, gets out from behind the remix. With One Man Party and Bad Neighbors. Sat/17, 9 p.m. doors, $12-$15. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. (415) 820-9669.

Chairlift
Electropop loveliness from Brooklyn, exploding exponentially since its last liftoff in SF, thanks to an iPod commercial. With Magic Bullets and El Ten Eleven. Thurs/17, 9 p.m., $15. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: David Cross, Little Boots, Titus Andronicus, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Daniel N. Alvarez

DATA

"Skywriter"

(Ekleroshock/Naive)

While much has been made of the Sebastien Grainger-sung, electro-disco tracks "One In A Million" and "Rapture," "Skywriter" is full of that classic, synth-slathered French house sound that so many fell in love with when they first heard Daft Punk. Some hooks here will stay lodged in your head for weeks.

DatA, "Skywriter"

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michael Krimper

You don’t get quite what you expect from the aptly titled electronic duo, PANTyRAiD. A side project of forward thinking producers Martin Folb (Marty Party -- he'll be performing this Fri/11 at 103 Harriet) and Josh Mayer (Ooah of the Glitch Mob), PANTyRAiD delves into the rich cross-sections of hip-hop, dubstep, and ambient. Although the duo was previously best known for heavy hitting remixes like “Do You” and powerhouse party mixes -- e.g. for XLR8R and Mary Anne Hobbs -- of synth knocking beats flipped over modulated crunk lyricism, their latest effort The Sauce (Marine, Ingrooves) salvages their place as solid beat conductors on the quest.

PANTyRAID, "Get the Money"

PANTyRAiD most impressively experiment with multi-tiered arrangements, changing tempo and bass tonality by way of a jazz inspired fluidity. In “Worship The Sun”, dissonant synth vamps grace chilling tribal drums and chants, building into a wobbling bass riding “hot sex on a platter” bars from Silk E. Fyne’s one hit wonder, and reemerging once more with a graceful intensity.

Continue reading "Party-pinchers PANTyRAID deliver 'The Sauce'" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michael Krimper

DAM FUNK

Toeachizown

(Stones Throw)

Los Angeles ambassador of boogie grooves Dam Funk taps into the warmth of the sun with this five-volume effort.

Dam Funk, "Toeachizown" promo

Dam Funk performs this Friday with the Donuts crew. Marke B. says:

"Laidback techno-boogie and electro-funk from the shades-bedecked master of jambox rock. West Coaster Dam of L.A.'s luscious Funkmosphere parties will be showing off rare vinyl cuts from his personal collection as well as some of his own, much lauded tracks."

Fri/11, $10. Poleng Lounge, 1751 Fulton, SF. www.polenglounge.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

AIR FRANCE

No Way Down EP

(Sincerely Yours)

With the Honeydrips, Tough Alliance, jj, and this group, the Sincerely Yours label has established itself as Sweden's chief castle of indie pop. "Collapsing at Your Doorstep" and "No Excuses" could be outtakes from Saint Etienne's Foxbase Alpha (Heavenly, 1991), and ain't nothing wrong with that.

Air France, "No Excuses"

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Relaxing too hard this Labor Day weekend? Get the blood moving at these musical happenings – so much more than we could fit in print.

AC/DC
The Aussies are slipping on Black Ice and into the record books as the fifth best-selling band in US history. With Answer. Wed/2, 8 p.m., $92.50. HP Pavilion, 525 W. Santa Clara, San Jose. www.livenation.com

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: AC/DC, Japanther, Invisible Ocean Gathering, White Buffalo, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Marke B.

I have a soft-spot in my cold, cold heart for East Bay electro-funk duo Wallpaper -- I grin at their catchy-kooky antics, and whatever wrong rub I get from the pair's unironic frat-boy sentiments ("If I wasn't me, I'd date myself") is quickly sanded off by the amount of beguiling musical ideas in their songs. I'm still working my way through my advance copy of their new Eenie Meenie LP, Doodoo Face (see what I mean about the level of humor here?), and I'll have more thoughts on it before it hits stores on 9/22. For now though, here's Wallpaper's latest -- you can judge for yourself. It could be a giant statement about the loneliness of a crowded dance floor, it could just be a party jam. It's kind of both to me. Plus, they totally sample themselves.

Wallpaper, "I Got Soul, I'm So Wasted"

Wallpaper
Doodoo Face record release party
w/ HOTTUB
Sat/26, 9pm, 18+
$10 over 21/$15 under
Rickshaw Stop
155 Fell, SF.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

M.I.A. All photos by Kimberly Chun.

By Kimberly Chun

Outside Lands -- here and now gone. A final dispatch from the dusty, green groves.

Sunday, Aug. 30

Keeping your expectations low is key to smorgasbord fests. Still, I expected a sparser crowd today, the day of the canceled Beastie Boys appearance due to Adam Yauch’s cancer diagnosis, and those expectations were fulfilled. There was definitely less of a mob today: not quite as many specially propped-up cleavages and fewer well-heeled, supertanned oldsters (acolytes of George Hamilton?) than yesterday. What can you say? Dave Matthews definitely skewed the demographic toward the middle-aged, if not outright white-haired.

I don’t know how gramps and grammy would have felt about the fence-jumpers, but they were definitely hopping today as well: I spied about a dozen crash over the fence en masse near the Presidio stage mid-afternoon to the sound of congratulatory whoops from bystanders on the inside. Outside a few agile types peered in at the Sutro stage from the trees on the other side of the barrier. Low-key in comparison to last year’s gang fence-vaulting.

Matt and Kim.

Continue reading "Outside Lands: Mighty M.I.A., pale Dead Weather, peppy Matt and Kim, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 05:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder. All photos, except where noted, by el fotografo clandestino.

By Kimberly Chun

O Outside Lands - how sprawling thou art. So many acts in the dusty, leafy grounds of Golden Gate Park, so many goings-on at night at the Independent and Rickshaw Stop. A few dispatches, then, from the periphery and about.

Zap Mama.

Continue reading "Outside Lands: Inside with Deerhunter, Street Sweeper Social Club, Mastodon, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michael Krimper

Sub Swara at Burning Man 07

The first use of the word “glitch” traces back to fairly recent innovations in computer technology, initially describing a sudden burst or drastic change in voltage charge. More recently, glitch has become a frenetic pathos, an unexpected musical phenomenon, an intensely dissonant way of looking the world, and a methodology for mother fucking slaying crowds. I’m not even talking about genres; fuck a genre. Enter “Beats by the Bay”, a powerhouse dubbed out nastiness, glitch melter party featuring some of the most ridiculous production innovators of our day. Expect ferocious units geared with space age machinery and foot soldiers parading the illest beats. These cats together posses a schizophrenic style that blasts through free-jazz out thereness, supernovaeing (can I make that a verb?) hip-hop’s monster funk loudness into another dimension of “here I am”. And look at that, it’s right before Burning Man!

Beats By The Bay presented by Infinite Music & ArtnowSF
With Sub Swara, Marty Party, The Gaslamp Killer, Lazersword, The Flying Skulls, Djunya, Majitope, Emancipator, Bogl
Mission Rock Cafe, $20
817 Tery Francois St., SF
415 626-5355
More info: www.myspace.com/artnow

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 04:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Wow, it’s far from freezing but way too foggy at the beach – so dry off, stop gawking at the sea lion near the Sutro Baths, and check the head at these worthy musical happenings. Black Francis’ acoustic show may be sold out at Hotel Utah tonight, but there’s still too much going on for you to get your grump on.

Concrete Jungle Meets the SF Classic
Yeah, I can tell by your itchy mod finger that you’re just dying to check out the scooter rally afterparty. DJs Selecter Kirk and Prince Omar take the pulse of the mob with two-tone, ska, rocksteady, and more. Sat/8, 9 p.m., $5. Knockout, 3223 Mission, SF. (415) 550-6994.

Frustrations
Wah-wah-wow. The Detroit-based slaves to the skronkadelic grind it up something fierce. With the Mindless Things. Sat/8, 6 p.m., $5. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Los Amigos Invisibles, Caroline Weeks, the Frustrations, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

More music – you got it, SF. Just ‘cause you’re you. Here are a few worthy shows that didn’t make the jam-packed issue. (Psst, pass the tissue.)

Clip’d Beaks
The sometime SF-ers share their latest visions. With Boys IV Men, Vice Cooler, and Emily Hoof. Wed/29, 9 p.m., $5. Elbo Room, 647 Valencia, SF. (415) 552-7788.

The Donkeys
Balking? The Dead Oceans combo from San Diego responds to the healing powers of Beach Boys-style harmonies. With Magnolia Electric Company, Val Esway, and El Mirage. Wed/29, 9 p.m., $12. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Bowerbirds, N.E.R.D., Themselves, Dorkfest, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

What a beaut of a day -- I’m gonna get me some plein-air crème brulee. And guess what, the night will be even better. Here are a few of the shows worth squeezing in.

Men
Le Tigre’s JD Samson gets us off – “Off Our Backs,” that is – with a recent project. With Tussle and the Younger Lovers. Fri/17, 10 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Pterodactyl--"December" music video from Pterodactyl on Vimeo.

Pterodactyl
The Brooklyn ménage a trois swoops halcyon, rainbow-patterned skies of cacophony. With Bridez. Fri/17, 9 p.m., $8. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Men, the Audacity, Casiotone, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Tomas Palermo. Vieux appears on Sat/18 as part of the two-night 5th Annual Afrofunk Festival at The Independent. Fri/17 features the full-blown stylish sounds of Sila and the Afrofunk Experience.

PREVIEW A torrent of questions arose amid the global mourning over Michael Jackson's sudden passing. Was he addicted to prescription pain meds? How much was he actually worth? Did his father's abuse scar the star beyond repair? Speaking of paternal influence, will 12-year-old Prince Michael Jackson follow his famous father's musical calling? If he displays even an ounce of MJ's talent, the pressure will be enormous.

A similar scenario played out in the African music world following the 2006 passing of Malian blues guitarist Ali Farka Touré from bone cancer. Farka Touré's son Vieux expressed an early interest in music, but his father objected, hoping to shelter him from a professional musician's grueling tour circuit. It didn't work. Vieux picked up the guitar, releasing a self-titled debut on Modiba/World Village in late 2006, followed by the creative, youth-embracing Remixed: UFOs Over Bamako (Modiba) in 2007. With guidance from legendary Malian kora player Toumani Diabat, the younger Touré's first two releases express a reverence for his father's emotive, blues-soaked guitar style while exploring rock and electronic music interests.

These traditional and modern threads entwine so thoroughly that they fuse on the new Fondo (Six Degrees). Vieux gives voice to swirling Saharan dust storms on the energetic "Sarama," explores Mali's quiet spirituality on "Paradise" (featuring Diabate's kora solos) and ponders West African struggles in the 21st century on the reggae-tinged "Diaraby Magni." Like his father, Vieux's music has taken him from Bamako, Mali to Bonnaroo, the massive Tennessee music festival where his American summer tour begins. As U.S. indie bands like Vampire Weekend and Fools Gold incorporate African rhythms into their repertoires, it's worth hearing a talented African guitar hero whose taste for rock isn't just skin deep, it's in his DNA.

VIEUX FARKA TOURÉ With Luke Top, DJ Jeremiah. Sat/18, 8 p.m., $20. The Independent, 628 Divisadero, SF. (415) 771-1420. www.theindependentsf.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 09:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The fiercely invidious sound of psytrance has been popping up again all over, like, well, button mushrooms on the underside of this wet log we call meatspace. The gamma-beta-brainwave-boom-boom sound was an odd choice to headline Pink Saturday (and give more than a few unsuspecting Madonna queens headaches, I bet). Somehow, however, psytrance seems just right when it emanates from, of all Europhile places, Israel -- especially if mixed with a grandiose goth sensibility, a little clever world music parody, and a totally inappropriate guitar solo. Behold the quivery somewhat-astral thumps of Infected Mushroom, and tear out your hair a little to the beat.

Infected Mushroom
W/ DJ Taj
Fri/17, 9pm, $30
Regency Ballroom
1300 Van Ness, SF
www.goldenvoice.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Entombed in SF gloom? Silly, rabbit, this is the best weather to get your musical kicks in a dark, cloudy bar.

A-Frames and Climax Golden Twins
Three guitars and a rhythm section and soaring gamelan-sludge rawk? We’re talking ‘bout the real team players, Raider Nation. With Hank IV and Fresh and Onlys. Sat/11, 9:30 p.m., $7. El Rio, 3158 Mission, SF. (415) 282-3325.

American Idols Live
Haven’t had enough? Sample A-Lam in the flesh as Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey, Allison Iraheta, Anoop Desai, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud, Megan Joy, Michael Sarver, and Scott MacIntyre provide. Sat/11, 7 p.m., $38.50-$66.25. Oracle Arena, 7000 Coliseum, Oakl. (415) 421-8497.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: 'American Idols,' Slumber Cats, Slayer, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 10:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

DESIRE

Desire

(Italians Do It Better)

Sorry, but I can't hate: Johnny Jewel's latest disco project is too lost in emotion to be dismissed as a hipster poseathon. The 1980s touches dig below irony the same way Glass Candy's cover of "Computer Love" gave that icy-by-definition track a successful heart transplant. "Don't Call" is my jam of the summer so far, not least because of its live "Beat It" rhythm.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 03:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Mosi Reeves

Kode 9: aborted?

"The mainstream of dubstep is becoming such an abortion," Kode 9 complained to electronic music advocate (and former Bay Area writer) Philip Sherburne in an eMusic.com interview. It's a curious statement from someone who is being marketed (along with Burial, Skream, Benga, and a handful of others) as leaders of the dubstep incursion, a hybridization of 2-step garage, jungle breaks at half-speed and good ol' ragga. (It's the amalgamation of "dub" and "step.") Only two years after Burial's Untrue (Hyperdub) brought pop's cool-hunters to this bastard genre, it seems, dubstep is already eating itself.

U.K. electronic music (and its Anglophile offshoot) is herded by theorists, and Steve "Kode 9" Goodman is one of them. He has a doctorate in philosophy, and recently received a commission from the New Museum of Contemporary Art's Rhizome technology initiative for a forthcoming documentary, Unsound Systems, that explores the use of sound as psychological weapon. His record label, Hyperdub, started out as a Web site spotlighting futurists like Kodwo Eshun and was responsible for the aforementioned Untrue as well as Zomby's recent spin on '90s 'ardkore dynamics, Where Were You in '92? (Werk).

Kode 9's first collection, 2006's Memories of the Future, pairs bleak echoing tones with pummeling bass thuds. One popular track, "Sine," finds vocalist Spaceape reinterpreting Prince's "Sign O' The Times" as dread intonation: "Sign o' the times mess with your mind, hurry before it's too late."

Declaring that a scene is "over" just as the great unwashed embraces it — recent dubstep parties in San Francisco have packed dance floors — seems particularly snotty and perverse. But by disappearing into thicker brush, Kode 9 stays ahead of pop mediocrity. His new singles, particularly "Black Sun / 2 Far Gone," add melancholic melodies and popping bass, retracing a path back to 2-step. Accordingly, U.K. critics have made it an example of a silly new subgenre called "funky." (George Clinton would laugh at that one.)

All this ideological shoegazing shouldn't distract you from enjoying Kode 9's tunes. But it should tell you that U.K. electronic music has traveled very far up its own arse. "I think U.K. electronic music is a bit of a mess right now and very microsegmented, to be honest," said Kode 9 in the eMusic interview. "But there are some lines of intersection that are promising."

THE FUTURE: KODE 9, SPACEAPE, THE FLYING SKULLS Fri/10, 10 p.m., $10 (advance). 103 Harriet, 103 Harriet, SF. (415) 431-8609. www.1015.com/103harriet/events

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michael Krimper

Votel, freakin' you

A small portion of music nurtures body, mind, and soul. A miniscule subsect does so by ripping you magnificently out of your familiar musical safety zones with unpredictable and compellingly fresh organizations of sound. Some have baptized the songs that fall under this rarefied territory of music "face-melters," and for good reason. Assiduously dissolving toughened aural skin, face-melting music inspires knowledge of the outer galactic and inner expansive reaches of the embodied mind. Its dangerous allure has solicited varied responses from thinkers, poets, and musicians throughout history. Plato advises to obliterate such enigmatic revelry in The Republic. William Blake seeks to illustrate its destructive purity in Songs of Innocence and of Experience. More recently, Afrika Bambaataa's "Searching for the Perfect Beat" embodies the infinite quest for mystical rhythms.

The DJ, producer, and deep crate-digger Andy Votel has made a career out of cultivating and archiving the face-melting phenomenon. Conducting the freaked-out, electronic psych epic Styles of The Unexpected (Twisted Nerve Records, 2000), and helping spearhead Finders Keepers Records to reissue international instances of obscure and intensely monstrous tracks from around the world, Votel is a leading expert on the limit zones of post-World War II music. Notable Finders Keepers reissues and compilations that will rewire your neural networks have emerged from Anatolia (Mustafa Özkent, Selda), France (Jean-Pierre Massiera, Jean-Claude Vannier), and Pakistan (this year's comp Sound of Wonder).

One contemporary contributor to the Keepers catalog is Los Angeles' feral beatsmith and DJ the Gaslamp Killer. A mad scientist of the Low End Theory collective, GLK psychedel-ifies hypnotic boom bap cuts and mutates vocals into chilling hums and fuzzed out screams locked toward another kind of prayer. But don't believe me, peep his avant-garde corpse ringer mix I Spit On Your Grave (Obey, 2008). Once you've trained your ears on his radiated sewer funk, flip it fresh on Gaslamp's collaboration with fellow Theorist, Free The Robots, for the jazzier side of the gutter on The Killer Robots (Obey, 2008).

To mark the third birthday of SF funk wizard DJ Centipede's Catch the Beat party, Votel, GLK, and Free the Robots have come together for a face-melting good time. Leave your mask at home.

CHANGE THE BEAT 3RD YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY With Andy Votel, Gaslamp Killer, Free the Robots, DJ Mahssa, DJ Centipede, Citizen Ten. Fri/10, 10 p.m., $10. Paradise Lounge, 1501 Folsom, SF. (415) 252-5017. www.paradisesf.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Yes, you had to work like a dog for that Fourth of July hot dog - and to get ready for the long weekend. Wasn’t it worth it? Now’s the time to get out and get into trouble.

Sir Richard Bishop and His Freak of Araby Ensemble
The Sun City Girls son and Oakland resident also rises, this time in SF, with Oaxacan as his backing ensemble, on the closing show of his tour. For more on Bishop, go to this edition of Sonic Reducer. With Oaxacan and Rubber O Cement. Fri/3, 10 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Extreme Animals
The Pittsburgh-San Diego booty melters flaunt it at this light-show-bedazzled happening. With Nero's Day at Disneyland, Bulbs, and Teengirl Fantasy. Fri/3, 8 p.m., $6. Lobot Gallery, 1800 Campbell, Oakl. www.lobotgallery.com

Hospitals
The raging Adam Stonehouse project recently got a lotta love from UK’s Wire. With Photobooth and Baths. Fri/3, 9:30 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, S.F. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Sir Richard Bishop, Hospitals, David Dondero, Hightower, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B

Have to admit I'm more blown away than I thought I wuld be by the new "Sun of Gao" joint by Mr. Raoul K. on local Afro-house wiz DJ Said's recently revived Fatsouls label. It's truly an Afrominimal journey that seems perfectly of the moment. The gently expanding elements never exactly build to a climax (a hallmark of current dance music production) but they flow over you like smiling waves ....

Said will be virtuosically throwing this and other choice cuts from his stable this Friday at Otis. If you missed it, here's what I wrote in my last Super Ego clubs column (with a couple corrections -- hey I was blazin' at the time). This one's not to be missed for everyone who takes an interest in the growing effervescent confluence of traditional and electronic sounds.

DJ SAID
A decade ago, when the Internet was still booming, Said Adelekan brought some serious dance floor spirit to that oft-soulless go-go period with his local Afro-House movement, his Fatsouls label, and his lovely Atmosphere parties. I'm absolutely delighted that he and Fatsouls have resurfaced — goddess knows we could use a little more Afro-injection — to release a new Fatsouls single called "Sun of Gao" by Mr. Raoul K. Joining Said (and many familiar friendly faces from those days, I hope) will be the luminous DJ Dedan of the great Brothers and Sisters party in Oakland. Expect everything deeply felt, from Afrobeat to minimal techno — oh, and Nigerian legend Rasaki Aladokun on the talking drum.

Friday, June 26, 10 p.m., free. Otis, 25 Maiden Lane, SF. www.otissf.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 04:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

I’m a music lover... get me out of the house! Guess what, help has arrived - in more forms than we could fit into print.

Sugar and Gold\
The Bay dance fiends refuses to drown in their own shit. With Music for Animals and Castledoor. Thurs/25, 8 p.m., $10. Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell, SF. (415) 861-2011.

The Hunches
Knuckling down for a freaked-out, “Disease Free” frenzy, the Portland, Ore.-Bay Area garage oddballs slough into the sunset with a series of farewell shows. With Long Legged Woman and Blimp. Fri/26, 9:30 p.m., $8. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, S.F. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Wilco, the Hunches, Chelsea Handler, Lazer Sword, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Interview by Marke B. Photo by Alex Warnow. From our summer SCENE: The Guardian Guide to Nightlife and Glamour -- on stands in the Guardian now.

For 15 years, the much-loved and lovable warm-weather Sunset parties have shaken various hills, isles, parks, patios, and boats with funky, techy house sounds. Launched by underground hero DJ Galen in 1994 (has it really been that long?), the outdoor Sunset gigs have amassed a huge following of excited party newbies and familiar old-school faces — and now their kids! Early on in the game, Galen was joined by fellow Bay favorite DJs Solar and J-Bird, and the three — collectively known as Pacific Sound (www.pacificsound.net) — have kept the vibe strong ever since. This year saw a remarkable expansion on the Sunset fan base: attendance at the season opener at Stafford Lake reached almost 4,000, and Pacific Sound just launched an annual — and truly moving — party on Treasure Island that had multiple generations putting their hands in the air. "The vision was to take electronic music out of the dirty warehouses, away from the dodgy promoters, and into the sunshine," says J-Bird. Summer's just begun, and Pacific Sound, with several gangbuster parties lined up, keeps delivering.

SFBG You guys have been a major part of the party scene here for a while. What do you think of it right now?

Pacific Sound There's a foundation for creativity in San Francisco — that is something that will never change. Also, there definitely is quite a bit more international talent coming here than 10 years ago. It's this constant exposure to musical stylings from around the world that will facilitate a thriving scene. The recent crackdowns by the SFPD and ABC may be dampening some spirits, but it will never stop our creative heritage.

SFBG You mean all the pressure on venues lately ...

Continue reading "SCENE: Pacific Sound takes it outside" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Interview by Billy Jam. Photo by Leo Herrera. From SCENE: The Guardian Guide to Nightlife and Glamour -- on stands in the Guardian this week.

Like so much music and art these days, turntablism is easier to find online than in a public space. A turntablist can easily record their scratch practice session, upload it to YouTube, and sit back and wait for feedback to show up on their screen. But for sheer enjoyment, creative interaction, and advancement of the art form, turntable pyrotechnics really need to be experienced in the live, raw setting of DJ battles or sessions. That's why Bay Area turntablist duo Deeandroid and Celskiii recently decided to revive their hands-on scratch DJ club night, Skratchpad. Bay Area turntable fiends, missing the party's lively conviviality since it shut down earlier in the decade, were getting antsy.

The super-skilled, Vallejo-born female scratch duo who've toured with the likes of KRS-One now tears it up twice monthly at the Cellar in San Francisco. There, DJs from the aspiring to the established (Swift Rock, Shortkut, and Teeko have each turned in memorable sets) join the two and others like Winst-One and Bizibeats to carry on the sacred Bay scratch tradition. Skratchpad boasts two rooms, one with open tables for guest beat-juggling and the other for just plain getting down, and takes mighty inspiration from legendary late-1990s hip-hop joint Beat Lounge, where Deeandroid and Celskiii — and many others on the scene — got their start. Skratchpad even hosts the occasional DJ Q&A session, but all answers must be phrased in the form of turntable pyrotechnics only.

SFBG Why revive Skratchpad now?

Celskiii If we want to keep the music and culture alive, then we have to pass it on. A lot of younger cats didn't grow up during that raw '90s era, but that doesn't mean they can't experience what we were so lucky to have been exposed to.

SFBG How exactly does the open turntable policy work?

Deeandroid You must bring your own needles, headphones, and records, sign up on the list, and wait your turn for the MC host of the night to call the DJ names. We have seven turntables and five mixers usually for the open turn session. DJs rotate after they do their thing twice or we tell them to switch.

SFBG Is it ever a problem with some DJ hogging the turns?

Continue reading "SCENE: Deeandroid and Celskiii put the needle on" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Interview by Marke B. Photography by Keeney + Law. From our Summer SCENE: The Guardian Guide to Nightlfe and Glamour. On stands in the Guardian now!

Reggae: still fresh? Yes. A lot of stereotypes have attached themselves to reggae over the years, not all of them good or true. But this is the Bay, a blazing nexus for the sound, and a spirit of liveliness and innovation can always be found here — especially if members of the classic Jah Warrior Shelter Hi Fi sound system are twisting it. Since 1988, the crew has been rocksteady on the roots scene — and hardly a evening goes by that you won't find Rocker T, Jah Yzer, I-vier, or Irie Dole lighting up the decks or the mic with his unique approach somewhere. Serious with that: besides Jah Warrior Shelter's weekly Bless Up joint at Milk every Tuesday (celebrating its five-year anniversary July 14) and Toppa Top blast at Club Six every Thursday night, the crew brings the fire to EndUp, Laszlo, Luka's, Pier 23, Oasis, Jelly's ... I-Vier co-helms KPFA's Reggae Express show with Spliff Skankin, the sound system has snagged numerous soundclash competition titles, and Jah Warrior Shelter mixtapes flow like rolling verbiage throughout the scene. Check out their mad productivity at www.jahwarriorshelter.com.

SFBG Why do you think reggae has found such a home here?

Irie Dole San Francisco has always been a hub for reggae music and performers. The hippie movement's peace and love vibration naturally attracted Rastas — foundation artists Jacob Miller and Hugh Mundell were known to be around the city quite a bit. With San Francisco's beautiful landscape, healthy food, and lax weed laws, reggae just fell into place with a lot of people of our generation. California is the ganja capital of the world, the Bay Area is the reggae capitol of California — San Francisco is the place to be.

SFBG Have you seen the scene evolve at all?

Continue reading "SCENE: Jah Warrior Shelter Hi Fi lights up" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By Michael Krimper

I’m bumping the Latin Project’s second full length record, Musica De La Noche, in my headphones right now. The signature Latin-Electronica blended sound is the brainchild of British producers, Jez Colin and Matt Cooper, who now call Los Angeles home. Listening to the music transports me to the surreal place of one of those Hollywood film sequences where the slick talker dude walks into the smoky (not cigarette smokey, but fog-machine smokey) disco ball club where epileptic lights flash all over the sweaty dance floor. All of a sudden, a sultry red light shines on a sexy maroon lipped lady, and the eyes of our two protagonists lock in a moment of tidal crashing bass. Magnetism.

For this release, the Latin Project produce a finely polished fusion of house, broken beat, Afro-beat inspired polyrhythms, Latin grooves and vibes, with an occasional sprinkle of buttered hip-hop lyricism. The bass hits hard in that clean type of way and the jazzy horn sections uplift the mood, crafting easy going, dance friendly grooves. Some of the remixes venture into more experimental electronic territory, hinting towards a fresh Latin sound with coarser curves and layered intricacy. But most of the night music lives comfortably in a world without ghosts or werewolves or any other eerie spirits lurking around the corner, where your problems disappear in the heat of dance floor and your feet take you away.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Going out? Staying out? There's so damn much out there - consider this Sonic Reducer Overage, the Wonder Years/Part I. Look for the sequel in the next day or two.

Poirier
Jump and shake it like the riddim possess ya. The man's Caribbean and South Asian sonics keep it sweaty on his Soca Sound System EP. With Daedelus. Thurs/18, call for time and price. Mighty, 119 Utah, SF. (415) 626-7001. www.mighty119.com

Miike Snow
He has a nice chunky mohawk, but the Swede is "Still an Animal." With Esser. Thurs/18, 10 p.m., $10-$12. Popscene, 330 Ritch, SF. www.popscene-sf.com

Seth and Adrian Tomine
Sacto native, onetime Berkeley resident, ex-zine maker, and now Optic Nerve graphic novelist and New Yorker illustrator Tomine returns to the scene of so many of his yarns, to talk about his Shortcomings and 32 Stories, now both out on paperback on the esteemed indie publisher Drawn and Quarterly. Seth - famed for his Palookaville comics - tags along for moral support (I kid because I love). Thurs/18, 7:30 p.m., free. Park Branch Library, 1833 Page, SF. (415) 863-8688. www.booksmith.com

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage I: Polly, Poirier, Tomine, Ade, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michael Krimper

Fresh for the heat of the summer, Brooklyn based beatsmith Nickodemus -- seasoned selector for the acclaimed Turntables on the Hudson party -- drops a gem on us. In his inspired sophomore effort, Sun People (ESL Music), Nickodemus delivers a groove pummeling sound collage that expands on the cosmopolitan spirit fundamental to the Afrobeat tradition. He manages to inform Afrobeat’s free-formed jazz sensibility and funkified polyrhythmic arrangements with raw elements of celebratory music from around the world. Swaying jazz horns give way to uplifting blasts of air from Latin American and Balkan brass sections that loosen up the heavy hitting, grounding percussion. This strategy allows the drums to thrust in endless hypnotics without feeling too claustrophobic, a subtle formula for creating holistically sanguine dance grooves. And the fusion feels organic, perhaps due to the lively multinational character and experimental ethos at the very heart of Afrobeat, allowing the music's dynamic nature to morph, mutate, and evolve in provocative directions.

Collaborations bless nearly every track on the record, giving Sun People an organic, outernational party flavor. Quantic helps to arrange the infectious Latin number , “La Lluvia”, where Richard Shepherd croons joyful bars over congas and drums, wistful vibes, and swaying horn riffs. On “Brookarest”, the name tells it all; New York’s multicultural sound, armed with a drum machine and transformer effects, meets Romania’s hypnotic vocals and boastful, wedding brass band. All the influences converge in “N’Dini”, a monster jam bookending the album (“Sun People” on the jump), simultaneously taking on the cyclic role as closing and opening. The joint is impressively crafted out of, well, the nearly infinite histories bounded within the album; Afro-latin rhythms, dub percussion, blaring Gypsy horns, and electronic inspired bass. Such cross sectioned travels across the globe from Columbia to Guinea to Hungary and everywhere in-between might seem crass in the hands of a less skilled producer, but Nickodemus effortlessly pulls all the pieces together in a simple, innocent cry of joy. The coherent element might just have something to do with the sun, that giant ball of heat and energy, that ultimate source of life, shining above every single one of us on terre nostre. This ain’t world music anymore. Time to get down to sun music my people!

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 07:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Juan, two, three: the Juan Maclean. Photo by Troy Bayless.

By Kimberly Chun

Impressionistic sketches, hazy watercolor memories of the way I listened last week, before the veil of forgetfulness falls.

Dang, I wish I had a proper camera in hand to get my shutterbug on at Peaches. The lady wasn't going to let a little vault fire get in the way of her Grand Ballroom performance on June 5: she remains one of the most riveting performers to come out of electroclash on a sheer show-womanship level, and now that she has her live band, the Herms, complete with a leggy, black corseted blond guitar player who obligingly shimmies along to the boss lady's "Shake your tits, shake your dick," she's pretty unstoppable. Essentially - no lie - everyone in the room could not tear their eyes away from Peaches' ever-shifting spectacle, even if Vault Fire II broke out in the next room.

One-man UK opener Drums of Death made me consider suicide, but Peaches made up for it with a bout of crowd-surfing, a romp at the outer edge of the balcony, a slew of impressive costume changes (she poked fun at herself by coming out onstage in a robe at one point), and plenty of brain-teasing visuals, including a video-projected duet with Shunda K of Yo Majesty for "Billionaire" and a dance with super-shaggy Cousin-Its to the tune of "Talk to Me."

The next night, June 6, saw Stockholm's Axel Willner, otherwise known as the Field, hunkered down behind the decks at Mezzanine, opening for the Juan Maclean. Love the dreamy new long-player, though the show drew more from a minimalist techno vein, with assists from Dan Enqvist and Andreas Soderstrom. Still, it was mesmerizing - especially accompanied by video art that spliced images of shipping containers stacks with book piles. I stayed for just a dab of the Juan Maclean, who rocked the Human League-y robotic-pop vibe with mucho energy. Kudos to those who can pull off a nice, big Romulan shoulder pad - I'm scouring the thrift stores for mine soon. The kids were dancing as I departed amid complaints of pop monotony from companion Prof. Fluffy.

Continue reading "Show Diary: Neko Case/Jason Lytle, Peaches, Juan McLean/the Field, Telepathe, Handsome Furs, Au Revoir Simone" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 10:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Marke B.

Hey bay-bay, besides the wall-bouncing antics of DJ Stacey Pullen and The Martinez Brothers that I mentioned in this week's Super Ego clubs column, here's another party glamour to get your feet up off the floor. Also, for all you hip queer kids -- it's second Saturday, and that means another Cockblock vs. Cockfight showdown! As always, I recommend hitting up both. Because I care. Because I can.

Wallpaper at Blow Up

I can't get the stylishly jazzy electro-rap-lounge Oakland trio's latest treatment of Das Racist's "Combination Taco Bell and Pizza Hut" out of my freakin' noggin -- even though it makes my stomach a tad queasy -- but it's the lovely afrobeat-y remix of Passion Pit's "the Reeling" on their MySpace that really follows me around. They'll be at the ever-bonkers Blow Up at Rickshaw Stop on Friday, hopefully with live drums in tow .... be there, and if you're over 30 try not to try too hard to look cool, k?

Blow Up w/ Wallpaper
Fri/12, 10 p.m., $10,
Rickshaw Stop
155 Fell, SF.
www.blowupsf.com

PS -- oh god, Perez Hilton posted about Wallpaper on the same day as me? Really? ugh.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 07:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Bat For Lashes - "Pearl's Dream"

By Kimberly Chun

Color my world grey – you still yearn to romp and play, San Fran-frisky. So get outta the dog park and into the clubs and buy me a drink, hot pocket. Here are a few notable shimmy-shams where you might find me skulking.

Constantines and Crystal Antlers
The Toronto indie rockers venture out to “Islands in the Stream” and stretch their bones in a post-rock, minimalist mode. Meanwhile the LA psych-soul bros carouse in honor of their new Tentacles (Touch and Go). Thurs/11, 7:30 p.m., $14. Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell, SF. (415) 861-2011.

Headboggle
One-man low-end grumble from the bowels of SF, presented as part of the gallery’s New Music Series. With Commode Minstrels in Bullface, Midmight, and Amphibious Gestures. Thurs/11, 8 p.m., $6. Luggage Store, 1007 Market, SF.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Bat for Lashes, Datarock, Limp Wrist, Constantines, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

You may be worn out by indie dance acts that have "glass" in their name -- as well as those with "crystal," "soundsystem," and any kind of cute furry animal -- but the UK's The Glass have just released a summer anthem, about dancing outside in summer, that deserves to be as big as I hope it will be. The video is bananas good as well.

The Glass, "Wanna Be Dancin'"

Could that buried "It Takes Two" sample in the chorus be any more delicious? There's a killer mix of this track by one of my favorite, unfortunately overlooked, bands of 2k8, Clubfeet -- available at Beatport. I recommend downloading it and blissing out in the park, toute suite

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 07:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

This in from the folks at Great American Music Hall - so put those "Jean Genie" moves in the hopper till August. (And boy, I'm curious about how often these underground electrical vault fires happen! The answer: The last one was in 2005, according to the local CBS affiliate.)

"Unfortunately, tonight's BOWIE BALL at GAMH has been CANCELLED due to an underground electrical vault fire on Polk & O'Farrell St. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience - bummer!!!

"HOWEVER, we are glad to report that the date is rescheduled for Friday, August 14 - original tickets will be honored (or refunds are available at place of purchase until 2pm on Aug. 14).

"This event will be super fun, so please come down on Aug. 14 and show your support! This is our chance to celebrate EVERYTHING Bowie. All in one night. (Tix at www.gamhtickets.com or in person at Slim's or GAMH M-F 10:30-6.)"

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

Axel Willner of the Field borrows with the insightful and transformative intent of a master curator. On the title track finale of the Field's almost unanimously acclaimed From Here We Go Sublime (Kompakt, 2007), that means tapping into the Flamingos' 1959 "I Only Have Eyes for You." Kenneth Anger exploited that recording's deeply unsettling quality in the 1972 version of his Rabbit's Moon, paving the way for a dozen or more David Lynch imitations of such a tactic. Willner's trick was to distill the spectral eeriness of the recording into pure essence.

The Field, "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime"

On the new Yesterday and Today (ANTI-/Kompakt), Willner's something-borrowed gambit is a cover of the Korgis' glacial 1980 ballad "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime." On the surface level of trend, this is almost a stale move: Justice recently incorporated the Korgis' original into a mix, and Beck also has recorded a version. But Willner's interpretation is far superior. It is both minimalist and majestic. Here the sublime resides in what Willner leaves out: the chorus. In place of words, he piles layer upon layer of his trademark ghostly hums and drones so that a sonic cave becomes a cathedral. It's gorgeous.

Marke B chimes in: And check out this abso-brill recent collab between my favorite band of 2008, Foals, and Mr. Field-good. Rumor is more to come with the release of Foals' second album this year ...

The Field, "Foals Xiii (Foals Remix)"

The Field
opening for The Juan Maclean
Sat/6, 9 p.m., $20
Mezzanine
444 Jessie, SF
(415) 625-8880
www.mezzaninesf.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The grey can stay – it is, after all, summer in fog city – but you know you gotta get out. Leave home and get an earful of inspiration at, hey, maybe these worthwhile shows.

Parson Red Heads
The cute-as-a-button LA combo polishes up Cali folk rock for every parson, be it the preacher or Gram. With Cotton Jones. Tues/2, 8 p.m., $10. Cafe Du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

Rosewood Thieves
Going their way? The New York indie rockers are California dreaming and in love with the sun. With Mississippi Man and Lemon Sun. Wed/3, 9 p.m., $7. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: BFD, Wale, Handsome Furs, Holy Fuck, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 03:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Memorial Day weekend - the wind is down, and the moment has come to break out the hibachi, dust off those sassy hot pants, and kick back for at least a day or three. And of course, there's more worthy music to fit in there, in between the sunbathing, cookie-baking, and electroclashing.

Fischerspooner
Does the GE halo give me a double chin? And does it electroclash with the rubber tubing? The jaw-dropping live act whips out a dour, synthpop Entertainment, as well as a new stage show. Fri/22, 9 p.m., $29.50. Fillmore, 1805 Geary, SF. (415) (415) 421-8497.

TV on the Radio and Dirty Projectors
The praise-rattled TVs were peppy as all get out at Treasure Island fest last year - and here they come again with the better-than-ever Dirty Projs, which blew everyone away at SXSW this spring. Fri/22, 8 p.m., $30. Fox Theatre, 1807 Telegraph, Oakl. (415) 421-8497.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: TV on the Radio, Bun B, Fischerspooner, Webbie, Floating Goat, Passion Pit, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Everybody panic. Don't worry, electronic-symphonica mastermind Mason Bates, who I rave about in this week's issue, isn't gonna freak peeps out. But seriously, do not miss the premier of his orchestral suite for full orchestra and laptop, The B-Sides, which he'll be performing for three nights with the ever-game SF Symphony, Wed/20, Fri/22, Sat/23. After Friday night's performance (free with ticket!) you'll get ushered into a really cool secret space by Davies Symphony Hall for an afterparty, featuring Mason's Mercury Soul project, which kicks ambient-like trip-hop ass and will feature himself behind the decks, as well as some live, avant-garde surprises (and hottie conductor Benjamin Shwartz, *swoon*). If you haven't been to the symphony, or if you're in the mood for something spectacular oracular, this is the time to go.

Here's two views of Mason, aka DJ Masonic, at Carnegie Hall with the YouTube Symphony Orchestra in April, debuting the "Wharehouse Medicine" portion of The B-Sides.

The balcony view, complete with trippy visuals:

and here's from right down in the fray (I'm dying to know what the tiny grand piano behind his is for! Hello, Carl Stalling?) Note the dramatic use of drum pad:

I would be totally, regrettably remiss if I didn't also pump Bates' co-performer on the program, the heartbreakingly talented and just all around fierce Yuja Wang, who'll be performing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto #2, which at around the seven-minute-mark will honestly start to kill you with beauty. Girl's got skills.

Here's her performing at Carnegie Hall. Um, hi hotness.

Also featured: the majestically haunting, almost-4AD-foretelling Fourth Symphony by Sibelius, who's all the rage among young turk composers these days.

Mason Bates, Yuja Wang, and the SF Symphony
Wed/20, Fri/22, Sat/23
8 p.m., $35–$130
Davies Symphony Hall
201 Van Ness
(415) 552-8000
www.sfsymphony.org

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B., who thinks very highly of his ears, if not his latest dance moves. But he'll keep trying. View the previous Nite Trax here.

There are currently three Jamie Joneses in the music world. Two of them are kind of cute -- but I'd never ever listen to them again. As fate would usually have it, the REALLY cute one is the one who's turning me out lately, and has just produced what may well be the summer 09 jam, if I was lame enough to predict such things. Ladies and gentlemen and ladies, the only Jamie Jones that counts:

But I'm really only interested in his music.

The song is "You!" -- an eight-plus minute slice of loveliness, what I would perhaps call subtle tech-soul, that blends a couple grin-worthy retro effects with some serious mixing-board control (loving the dribble-dabs of tinkling percussion). Everything falls into the right place and climbs above genre-tiredness into a burnished place all its own.

Continue reading "Nite Trax: Jamie Jones" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 10:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Some smooth and mellow Mophono pho' ya

Oh, the transient grunts and groans of the dance floor: Just got word yesterday that the eagerly awaited appearance of disco progenitor Nicky Siano at Paradise Lounge has been cancelled -- my deep throat tells me there were sound and venue concerns (although I love the 'Dise!). In any case, there's plenty of other things to hold your ear-nterest and get you bangin' this weekend. Besides my rundown in this week's Super Ego column, below are some more earth shakers and affairs.

-----------

He loves me, he loves me not

Wanna spoon?

I had absolutely no idea that those little plastics coffee spoons from McDonald's were banned because of illicit uses (or perceived one, anyway.) You'd think after all this time, plastic + noses = OK. But no. In any case, snort in luxurious style with the unveiling of a perfect publicity stunt: renowned hip mens' clothiers and artists Ju$t Another Rich Kid, Nice Collective, Terence Koh, and more have designed cute, exclusive, and most likely expensive little Bolivian helpers (watch that terrorism funding!). They'll be giving the dish at Harput's from 6pm-9pm tonight (expect beautiful people), and then there'll be a kiki afterparty at Triple Crown. Don't try to force your way into the stalls. It's all called "He loves me, he loves me not" which brings to mind a kinky game somehow.

Thu/7, 6-9pm, free. Harput's Market, 1527 Fillmore, SF. www.harputsmarket.com
Afterparty, 10pm-midnight, free. Triple Crown, 1760 Market, SF. www.triplecrownsf.com

-----------

Lazer Sword + Mophono live

Lazer Sword, can you blap me for loving you?

Local future blap fave raves Lazer Sword are back from their whirlwind Euro tour with an uptempo live set to get you moving, supported by Bay man of intrinsic deep dance knowledge, Mophono at, yes, the Paradise. Put 'em up and get down, child -- and let's see if those speakers still work.

Lazer Sword at 111 Minna San Francisco 1/15/09

Fri/8, 10pm, $10. Paradise Lounge, 1501 Folsom, SF. www.hacksawent.com

--------------

The Rod

Post-Cinco uprising

Why, yes, I DO host a wet jock strap contest. Come down to Bus Station John's retro bathhouse disco monthly, The Rod, at Deco this Friday around midnight and see me and Hunky Beau scare up a willing and wet bevy of gorgeous, unclad alternaqueer boys -- and see who'll win $100. (No muscle queens need apply, thanks.) Then stay and dance until 3am to the best disco you've only ever heard sampled in other songs before. It's fun and a little scary: frisson alert!

Fri/8, 10pm-3am, $7. Deco, 510 Larkin, SF. www.decosf.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

What can I say? I'm cute and often clueless -- and as attested below I'm perpetually on Spring Break. In the print edition of my Super Ego column in this week's Guardian I mistakenly put the DirtyBird Pajama Jam down for Saturday, when in fact it's Friday at Mezzanine. Full and correct preview below. Somebody spank me!

Wig out to J. Phlip on Friday night, download her 2008 !@#$%^& mix (which I'm still wrapping my head around) here.

DIRTYBIRD PAJAMA JAM

Ha ha ha, I feel so spring break. Famed local techno label Dirty Bird matches its goofy sensibility with a no-slumber party, bunny slippers and all. DJs Claude VonStroke, Worthy, Justin and Christian Martin, and up-and-comer J. Phlip bring the post-minimal hijinks, you bring the stripy drawers and stuffed E.T. dolls.

Fri/8, 10 p.m., $15, Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. www.mezzaninesf.com

Claude VonStroke at 2007 DirtyBird Picnic in Golden Gate Park

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 07:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wherein Marke B. does go on about dance music past and present. View the previous Nite Trax here.

In the current issue of the Guardian, I have a little devilish fun with white labels and tell a few possibly apocryphal tales of foundational electronic music label Warp Records' genesis. Before I multimedially augment that article a bit, here's a spectral white label that really calls up the toe-tingling ghost of the unknown in my third ear:

Reese, "Power Bass"

The 1990 white label rumbler above, whose B-side apparently played inside out, was produced by Detroit techno god Kevin "Master Reese" Saunderson -- he later released it under his E-Dancer guise. (When I hung with Kevin at last year's Detroit Electronic Music Festival, I believe he was drinking Black Label, however.)

My own former prize possession white label turned out to be "The Green Man" by Shut Up and Dance that I snagged from Detroit's amazing Buy Rite Records in 'round 1991-- somehow an unlabelled test press had found it's way from London and into my bin. Below is a vid of a promo copy version. Warning: Never, ever, let go of your records. I could retire a bit if I had this slice of vinyl on me now ....

Shut Up and Dance, "The Green Man"

Thank you, magic of youtube. OK, then ... Warp Records. It's their 20th this year, and in a typically nifty yet slightly desperation-whiffy marketing gimmick, you can vote online for your favorite Warp tracks to be included in their forthcoming anniversary comp.

Continue reading "Nite Trax: White Warp bleep" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 07:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

OMAR S

Fabric 45

(Fabric)

"The music on this CD is fully 100 percent Analog — NO COMPUTER BULLSHIT PROGRAMS." With this liner note proclamation, Detroit's Omar S makes a strong case that, here in the 21st century, analog is the new acoustic when it comes to authenticity. His contribution to the Fabric mix series is all-original, just like Ricardo Villalobos'. Would it be sacrilege to say that, save for a wack vocal two, it smokes the Villalobos? Motor City techno still rolls.

Omar S, "Psychotic Photosynthesis"

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 10:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Makin' pleasure ...

One of my favorite clubs, Afrolicious, the afro-beat/Nuyorican/Brazilian/funk/disco/global weekly hosted by cute (very cute) brothers Senor Oz and Pleasuremaker, is celebrating two years of sterling service to the eager dance floor community with a double-header this week featuring NYC's Nickodemus and Nappy G. of the legendary decade-old Turntables on the Hudson party -- a formidable happening that every year I cry my eyes out for not being able to make. My East Coast friends then laugh in my face. Well, ha ha to them, I've got Afrolicious every week, now with Nick and Napp.

Nickodemus, "Give the Drummer Some"

As per usual, there'll be smoking live percussion (man, I love me some bongos on the dance floor -- old EndUp RIP) and a room packed with beautiful -- but not that icky kind of beautiful -- people not afraid to get sweaty and down. (Check out the tunes and vids here if you want a taste.)

Won't you join me, shantytown butterfly?

AFROLICIOUS TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY
Thu/30: DJ Nickodemus and Smash, live drums by Nappy G
Fri/1: Pleasuremaker Live Band, DJs Nickodemus, Chris Nicholson, and Nappy G.
9pm, $7/$10
Elbo Room
647 Valencia, SF.
www.elbo.com

Bonus: Turntables on the Hudson 10-year party:

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By Johnny Ray Huston

RUBIES

Explode from Center

(Telle)

The Norway-to-our-Bay connection is strong in this group, which bridges Bergen and San Francisco. No cosmic disco, though: Simone Rubi plays chanteuse over pop arrangements. The result never reaches the Cardigans' sublimity, but it matches the warmth of Lois and Marine Girls.

Rubies, "I Feel Electric"

Rubies play Sunday, June 14 at The Independent

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Michelle Broder Van Dyke

I first saw Dan Deacon perform at Oberlin College's venue the ’Sco, a den of nascent creativity that eventually brought me to a city sometimes referred to by the same three-letter abbreviation. Deacon was there, balding and bearded, his glasses taped to his head, his muffin-top iced by a bright pink T. He set up his mad scientist's table of electronics in the audience's usual domain. Different colored cords sprang out in every direction and there were multiple mics for his one-man show. Lit by a neon green skull, Deacon began stretching, then implored the audience to stretch. They did.

Not only did we all stretch with Deacon, we danced with Deacon. For a generation that has been taught that to move is to be judged — or whatever excuse keeps scenesters so static — such an act is similar to the miracle of the Virgin Mary getting pregos. Deacon's inhibition-less philosophy was infectious: not only were the undergrads dancing, they were willing to participate in a high-five conga line and compete in a dance-off.

Dan Deacon, "Crystal Cat"

Although the complexities of Deacon's music become clearer when heard on an iPod, the experience verges on seizure-inducing. Live, the same music becomes hypnotic. Like his earlier work, Deacon's newest album Bromst (Carpark) is as much a singular composition as a collection of tracks, which should make it exhilarating to encounter. In concert, he has arranged for it to be played by a 15-piece ensemble. Now that he's decidedly bigger — in band, popularity, and girth — it's hard to predict how the intimacy and audience participation aspects of his performance will be affected. But it is sure to be a blast. And a bromst. (Deacon said he made up the word for his album title because it doesn't have a meaning and he likes the way it sounds.)

DAN DEACON With Future Islands and Teeth Mountain. Thurs/23, 9 p.m., $13. Great American Music Hall. 859 O'Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750, www.gamh.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Pangaea, younger than the Pleistocene

I've already freaked out to the atmospheric dubstep track "Maybes" by Mount Kimbie, and now comes along this just as lovely underground hit by London's Pangaea, "Memories" -- as remixed by Aaron Jerome, via Shook:

Sampling Gladys Knight, of course, is one of the easier ways for an earworm to burrow into my frozen heart.

Alas, though it's on every respecting dubstep DJs playlist, "Memories" probably won't be released singularly -- groove to it, and his too brief mix for Mary Anne Hobbs' Experimental Showcase at his MySpace.

I think that along with "Tea Leaf Dancers" by Flying Lotus -- was anyone else at his amazing show at Mighty last weekend? I told you FlyLo was the smilingest DJ ever -- well, we've got the beginnings of a lovely ambient dubstep mixtape on our hands ....

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 06:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Marke B.

Burakin'

That unflappably chipper "progressive kuduro" Portuguese foursome, Buraka Som Sistema -- who I write about in my latest Super Ego clubs column -- may have been joking when they said they based their truly wonderful smash "Kalemba (Wegue-Wegue)" track on a misheard lyric from an old house mix of More Kante's late 1987 classic "Yeke Yeke." Just for fun, here's "Kalemba," then the Afro Acid mix of "Yeke Yeke" (whose stock has risen enormously since techno god Richie Hawtin has claimed it as a signature tune to close out his sets), and afterwards some genuine Angolan kuduro from rapper Puto Lilas.

You can see in the Puto Lilas that the original kuduro form recounts sprawling tales of street life, something Buraka truncates to focus on a more danceable takeaway. (Incidentally, Buraka's name comes from a misspelling of Buraca -- a suburb, or frequesia, of Lisbon. And "som sistema" is also a mishearing, a bastardization, this time of "soundsystem." Buraka's global-minded dance floor antics really are subtexted by a kind of "map of mishearing.")

PS: If you dig the Afro Acid, the man behind it, basically the originator of acid house, DJ Pierre, will be at Vessel on Thu/23 with his Acid Afro project, 22 years after the "Yeke Yeke" mix came out, yikey yikes!

Anyway, here we go:

Buraka Som Sistema, "Kalemba (Wegue-Wegue)"

Continue reading "Super Ego: Fun with electro-kuduro" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 06:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Manic panic: Silversun Pickups' "Panic Switch."

Lucky you, you aren't broiling in the desert at Coachella - you're keeping your cool in SF, and boy, you've got a lot to keep your bad self outta trouble. So partake in the Coachella spillover - and then some...

Intelligence
"Icky Baby" is in the eye of the beholder - and the mind of the Intelligence, those hard-driving, gristly lo-fi smarty-pants. With Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall. Fri/17, 9 p.m., $8. Annie's Social Club, 917 Folsom, SF. (415) 974-1585.

Loop!Station
Loops, vocals, and cello are Robin Coomer's and Sam Bass' tools, arriving now with a new CD.
Fri/17, 8 and 10 p.m., $10. Yoshi's, 1330 Fillmore, SF. (415) 655-5600.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Silversun Pickups, Bloc Party, Atmosphere, Kylesa, free shows, and so much more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Danica Li

Late of the Pier is catchy while still retaining an essential core of flighty, fidgety weirdness. With its askew harmonics, squelchy synths, and wildly off-key vocals, Fantasy Black Channel (Parlophone, 2008) marks the big label debut of a band bent on peddling an oddball sound to the masses, to say nothing of a kitschy aesthetic. The album's cover presents a haphazard assortment of drums, kits, cords, and keyboards scattered atop outcroppings of granite — an apt visual for the band's chaotic approach. Some tracks suggest a recorder switched to on-mode at the site of a train wreck, while others rescue some order from the mayhem. Discerning musical adherents will peg the group as contemporaries of outfits like Metronomy, Hot Chip, and Klaxons. This quartet is inventive and almost extreme in how far they're willing to take their sprawling multipart sagas, instrumental transitions and elaborate glam guitar breakdowns. Plain-jane indie rock outfits have nothing on them.

Continue reading "Late of the Pier jump askew at Popscene" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Two quick takes on Junior Boys, who perform tomorrow with Max Tundra at Bimbo's (Thu/16, 7 p.m., $18. Bimbo's 365 Club, 1025 Columbus, SF. www.bimbos365club.com)

Junior Boys

Begone Dull Care

(Domino)

Johnny Ray Huston:
The knives are out at least a little for the critics' darling duo, and to be fair, this third full-length falters a bit in following the breakthrough of 2007's So This is Goodbye. But "Work" might be Junior Boys' best composition, and "Sneak a Picture" is simply sweet. A reward for those who care enough to dig: the title and lyrics braid through the life and work of Canadian animator Norman McLaren.

Junior Boys, "Work" live

Continue reading "Snap Sounds: Junior Boys" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

Stereo
Somewhere in the Night
(Minimal Wave 2008/ Carrere 1982)

"She's gotta be there, as you walk in the dark
Number four, at your door, number four
You're ost in the heaze, she's gotta be there...
Somewhere in the night"

1980s duo Stereo's criss-cross sunglasses put Kanye's Venetian shades to shame. Minimal Wave delivers once again with this synth jam gem. I'm on the lookout for another recent Minimal Wave release, a vinyl-only collection by Linear Movement. But Stereo -- not to be confused with Kompakt figurehead Wolfgang Voigt's early recording project of the same name -- has surprising songwriting chops. My fave track might be "Nowhere in the Island," which uses the echo vocal effect so beloved by circa-1983 new romantic acts to great effect. It includes saxophone and yet still has a potent air of melancholy. I wonder if these two French guys every rubbed pointy shoulders with Bernard Fevre of Black Devil Disco Club.

Stereo, "Somewhere in the Night"

Stereo, "No More"

Check out the previous Snap Sound here.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Brooklyn cheer: Japanther's "Challenge."

"Rising above the smoke and debris" - yes, we can. More to do, see, and hear...

Undebateable: Eef Barzelay's "I Love the Unknown."

Clem Snide
Hungry Bird (429), the latest release by the Boston-born band, almost succeeded in killing Clem Snide. Yet Eef Barzelay carries forth - sweet Snide 'tude in hand - alongside Brendan Fitzpatrick and Ben Martin. With the Heligoats and Pepi Ginsberg. Wed/8, 9 p.m., $10-$12. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Love X Nowhere
Immaculate shoegaze and anthemic pop stream from the SF fivesome's new self-released High Score Blackout. With Headlights and the Love Language. Thurs/9, 9 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Brit, Devendra, Japanther, Fleet Foxes, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

San Francisco just can't, just won't stop. More musical - and comedic - worthies than one can jam into print.

The Get Up Kids
These lesser-known monsters of emo, progenitors of punk-pop, are back. With Approach. Thurs/2, 8 p.m., $26-$29. Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Snoop Dogg, Eugene Mirman, Jeremy Jay, Skin Horse, and so much more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Taken from SCENE: The Guardian Guide to Nightlife and Glamour -- on stands in the Guardian now. Interview by Marke B. Photo by Pat Mazzera. Art Direction by Mirissa Neff. Mens room courtesy of Matador.

Ultraviolet, Kozee, Roommate, Rob Cannon, and Blackheart

To say that the woofer-rumbling, ragga-ripping dubstep sound has exploded on the club scene in the past few years is an understatement almost as low as the genre's freakiest frequencies. Dubstep seems perfect for our hyper-multicultural, urban-nomadic age, blending street rhythms with the most intricate laptop sonic technology available. It's especially perfect for the Bay, with its shimmering blend of moody menace and artistic bombast, and has duly been embraced by a number of DJs here, many with roots that stretch back to the early days of 2-step, drum 'n bass, and even rave.

DJ Ultraviolet (pictured in red, at left), heads up the fab two-year-old RedLine dubstep collective, and has been bringing her immaculate technique and overflowing energy to the decks in San Francisco since 1997. She was a seminal player in the drum 'n bass and breakbeat scene, as part of the Sleeveless collective with the Femmes Fatales, and was associated with the legendarily raucous Sister DJ crew. As a true vinyl fetishist, she was being booked at the tender age of 19 to play jungle at underground '90s raves and played a part in the Future Breaks FM (miss you!) juggernaut of the early aughts.

Now, along with the wonderfully gifted DJ Kozee, her "second in command," Ultraviolet reps the burgeoning female dubstep explosion, producing tracks and bringing a touch of grimy glamour to the scene with the MakeOut Sessions, RedLine's regular blowout at Matador. The upcoming installment of MakeOut features Matty G of Santa Cruz (www.myspace.com/mattygbeatz) pumping tracks from his new album, Take You Back.

MAKEOUT SESSIONS
Fri/27, 9pm, free
Matador
10 Sixth Street, SF.
www.myspace.com/redlinedjs

SFBG Who's all involved in RedLine?

ULTRAVIOLET Kozee and I, who do a lot of the event planning and are working on a big project together; Babylon System (www.myspace.com/thebabylonsystem), a.k.a Roomate and No Thing, is one of the top production crews in dubstep, currently on tour in Europe; the three DJs of Blackheart (www.myspace.com/lordsofblackheart) from Oakland are our newest addition; DJ Rob Cannon (www.myspace.com/djrobcannon), our youngest member; our L.A. residents Emu and Pawn, who are also a part of the SMOG crew down there, and on our business end, Cyn, Bruxxy, and Dymphna.

SFBG Do you think the dubstep sound is reaching a critical mass? Is the scene in danger of getting stale?

Continue reading "SCENE: RedLine shakes the bass up" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Funky love: Brazil's Garotas Suecas seduces at Emo's.

SXSW memories - fading now, but hey, it's only Friday. Among the highlights yesterday, March 18: Brazil's Garotas Suecas - the bright-eyed, fun 'n' funky heirs to Booker T. or at least Sharon Jones. My Portuguese is a bit nonexistent, but we got the picture loud and clear, thanks to the ensemble's hyper-expressive vocalist.

Even more mind-blowing: Flower Travellin' Band at Smokin' Music. The band sometimes best known for its nekkid, motorcycle-riding album shot finally made it to the states for the last of five shows on its first U.S. tour. Previous sojourns have been scuttled for various reasons, but wow! Deeply eccentric power-centered psych-stoner rock - Hideki Ishima's huge sitarla is only part of the story, generating resonant, almost boomingly bass-like sounds. Have to see more of them if/when they get to SF.

Massive massive: Hideki Ishima wields his mighty sitarla.

Continue reading "SXSW: Quick fixes with Flower Travellin' Band, Fleet Foxes' J. Tillman, Garotas Suecas, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Back to the basics: The Bronx whip it out March 18. All photos by Kimberly Chun.

Get away from the grip-and-grin events and rambles through parties that offer free drinks and barbecue (though Jackpine Social Club's Nick Tangborn supposedly threw an ace bash yesterday for ex-Parkside honcho Sean's Batter Blaster pancake spray product) - there's music out there if you seek it out. The corporate sponsors may be relatively absent, but there's still plenty of intrigue, sonically, if you seek it out: PJ Harvey and John Parish, J. Tillman of Fleet Foxes going solo, the Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Blk Jck, We Have Band, et al.

One great budding band of women: Portland, Ore., trio Explode Into Colors. An all-power two-drum approach draws from the Slits and Gang of Four to fashion impassioned, sinewy primal punk. Fully formed and in full possession of their own voice. The group played March 18's Finally Punk-curated all-ages music-made-by-women show at Ms. Bea's, which also included Pocahaunted, Yellow Fever, Micachu, and the East Bay's Splinters.

Boy meets girls: Explode Into Colors.

Continue reading "SXSW: Explosions as Sahm, Floyd are toasted, the Bronx pounds, Tara Jane O'Neil tears it, Explode into Colors does just that" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

More Mochi: 215 the Freshest Kids hurl some words at Daly City Records' Pre-SXSW/St. Patrick's Day Party at Beso Cantina March 17. All photos by Kimberly Chun.

Or is a whimper more accurate. Yes, the signs are in the air and in the program, as we scan the pages of the official guide and the unofficial day party lists. Welcome to South by Southwest on the downlow, rocked by the turbulent winds blowing off a global economic meltdown.

The big conference keynote names like Pete Townshend, Neil Young, Robert Plant, and Lou Reed? This year we get the uber-talented and esteemed but nonetheless much less sexy - sorry, Quince - Quincy Jones. Instead of the Stooges and Morrissey, we will have onstage interviews with Carlene Carter and the Hold Steady. The corporate banners are still here, but with a not-quite-as-splashy, diminished presence - just where is that MySpace South By Party Bus? The major labels and glossy publications are quieter than usual - whither the Vice party? Is there a Vice party?

Instead Rachael Ray - wholesome indie rock fan incarnate - is serving up the New York Dolls and the aforementioned Hold Steady at her showcase. Hey, after all, we're all eating in these days - we can use some new recipes. This is SXSW on the cheap, forced onto a low-budg diet by a still-suffering music biz. Yes, music continues unabated, but can its makers afford to make it out here this year? The underground bashes around SXSW appear to slowing down or maybe they just aren't on the public radar - in any case I still want to make Todd P's Ms. Bea free all-ages shows and the French Legation outdoor bills - now Arthur-free (R.I.P.). We'll see if there's anything as fun as Dan Deacon and Fucked Up's guerrilla throwdowns shaking up the university campus and the bridge, after hours.

Continue reading "SXSW: It begins... with a whisper?" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Men at work: MSTRKRFT's "Work on You."

Yes, San Francisco, you're unstoppable. As usual, the city by the Bay bays - nay - howls at the moon. More worthy sounds that didn't make it to print.

Judgement Day
The Bay Area band is using the tools of Bach and Beethoven for... devil horn-throwin' eve-ill! Wed/18, 8 p.m., $10. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

Eleni Mandell and Victor Krummenacher
The LA singer-songwriter strikes an arch, jazzy note with her praised **Artificial Fire** (Zedtone) and the ex-**Guardian** art director digs deep with **Patriarch’s Blues** (MagneticMotorworks, 2008). Thurs/19, 8 p.m., $12-$15. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Farflung, MSTRKRFT, Eleni Mandell, the Homosexuals, and mo'" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 12:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Rupture goes there

"A DJ mix that stands alone as an album is a rare thing, but leave it to Jace Clayton, a.k.a. DJ/rupture, to make one, as he has with Uproot (Agriculture)," wrote the Guardian's Brandon Bussolini last year. "Deeply, er, rooted in the bass plate tectonics of dubstep and cut with the finest in eclectic samples, ranging from experimentalist Ekkehard Ehlers to lazer bass don Ghislain Poirier, Uproot rolls deep with dubbed-out ambience, but DJ/rupture is just as happy to turn things upside down, as when he plunks down Ehlers' gorgeous string loop, "Plays John Cassavetes, Pt. 2," around the mix's halfway point. And if bangers of the future don't sound like "Gave You All My Love (Matt Shadetek's I Gave You All My Dub Remix)," which subs out dub's organic space for Fisher-Price primary-color contrasts that split the brain evenly in two, I'm not sure it's a future worth living in."

I'd have to agree with all of that, but also emphasize DJ/rupture's extremely thrilling versatility when it comes to global musical styles with regards to both his recordings and live sets. That's why I'm tickled hot pink that he's putting together a special cumbia set for this Saturday's Tormenta Tropical with the Bersa Discos boys, who've consistently stirred some of the world's best DJs into their electro-cumbia-hop stew. Tormenta Tropical was bangin' last month, and this one should be a real ruptured doozy.

Tormenta Tropical
w/ DJ/rupture
Sat/14, 10pm, $10
Elbo Room
647 Valencia, SF
www.myspace.com/bersadiscos

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 02:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Yep, queeroids, it's one of those rare and muy delicioso head-to-heads that a nightlife writer lives for: This Saturday night, one of SF's biggest hot dyke parties, Cockblock, squares off against the highly anticipated launch of a giant new alternative fag party, Cockfight. That's right:

VS.

Could it get any better? Only if you trade your GluStik for paint thinner.

In the irrespective corners:

Continue reading "Super Ego: Cockblock vs. Cockfight!" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 03:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wake and bake: ...And You Shall Know Us by the Trail of Dead's "Another Morning Stoner."

It all sounds so ethereal this week: dream-pop, shoegaze, and even, well, ...And You Shall Know Us by the Trail of Dead. Here, you'll know us by these breadcrumbs - and perhaps you'll find a few intriguing musical diversions to check out on a chilly night.

Azeda Booth
Enter the echo chamber with the Calgary, Canada, threesome, then look for its music for the Bay's Absolutely Kosher imprint. Wed/11, 10 p,m., $6. Knockout, 3223 Mission, SF. (415) 550-6994.

Elvis Perkins in Dearland
The Hudson Valley likes it sweet and low: this blues-folk combo likes to riddle their indie with Nawlins second-line lyrical soul. Wed/11, 9:30 p.m., $13-$15. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Trail of Dead, Asobi Seksu, Gunslingers, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

I just came upon this 2k7 vid of the best-club-ever-after-Paradise-Garage Body and Soul tour in Tokyo. And I don't know if it's the beauty of DJ Joe Clausell's knob-tweaking, the pain of the recent Depression, the gay-soul-gorgeousness of Dan Hartman and Loleatta Holloway's barnstormer duet, or the sight of hundreds of off-their-nut Japanese boppers singing "Relight My Fire" -- but I'm bursting into tears.

Body & Soul Live in Tokyo Open Air 2007

Those kids are so amped up that by the time of the breakdown ("I'm strong enough to walk on through the night") they can't shout any louder. Srsly, it's time for a house comeback. There's already a couple of underground roving house revivals going down in NYC, and Body & Soul itself will rock Webster Hall there this Sunday. Let's pick it up SF!

We could do worse that pack Vessel on Thursday night for a very rare appearance by way-more-than-legendary Body & Soulmate Francois K.

Continue reading "Super Ego: Relight my fire, Francois K." »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 03:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Danica Li

On first listen, you wouldn't think Fujiya and Miyagi were composed of a couple of mild-mannered British blokes. The name says Japanese, the influences say krautrock, but the music, defying all attempts at ethnic pidgeon-holing, just sounds weird.

Formed in 2000 after David Best (he's Fujiya) and Steve Lewis (and he's Miyagi) met warming benches at the local Sunday league football kick-around, the duo released their debut in 2002 before dropping abruptly off the screen for about half a decade. Then came Transparent Things in 2006, and, following that, effusive praise concerning the band's craft by Pitchfork and Mojo.

Continue reading "Hip bone to knee bone: Fujiya and Miyagi to bust out contagious blip-rock at the Independent" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 05:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kewl: Kool Keith's "Aliens."

By Andre Torrez

For a minute there I became enraged at the thought I was missing out on the latest drink sensation. Everyone had these shiny cartons in their hands as my mind raced, fantasizing about all the possibilities. What could that be? Oddly, my head had me convinced it was some sort of coconut concoction. No, wait, what’s that trendy fruit right now? Acai berry! That had to be it.

After all, wine in a box had long since become passe. My jealousy abated only when I realized it was merely a carton of Plant it Water. Those things were everywhere. Still, the evening wasn’t about sponsorship. No, this festival was about the music. Now just a blur of a memory, bars, clubs, and venues alike opened their doors last week to welcome musicians (and music types who like to live vicariously through them) for Noise Pop’s 17th showcase in weirdo San Francisco and beyond. Here’s my personal account:

Continue reading "Noise Pop: A blurry look back" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Woof! Har Mar Superstar's "DUI."

You're stormy, San Francisco - yet you still partay like no other city. Here's even more worthy music - more than we could squeeze into print.

Har Mar Superstar
Sean Tillmann, Sean Na Na - hey whatever your name is: we know you got the stuff to write songs for the Cheetah Girls. With the New Trust and the Limousines. Wed/5, 8 p.m., $12. Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell, SF. (415) 861-2011.

M. Ward
She and Him? No, him! The former South Bay teacher has made a pretty swell name for himself - though I'd love from him to break out of his Hold Time (Merge) shell.
Wed/5, 8 p.m., $29.50. Palace of Fine Arts, 3301 Lyon, SF. (415) 563-6504.

Color me evocative: Christopher Willits' "Colors Shifting."

Ghostly International Live
Michna, Tycho, Christopher Willits, and other phantoms party like it’s the label’s 10-year anniversary. With the Sight Below, Lusine, Kate Simko, Deru, and Eliot L. Fri/6, 10 p.m. doors, $15-$20. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. (415) 820-9669.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Ghostly, M. Ward, Har Mar Superstar, and so much more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 05:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

LONEY DEAR
Dear John
(Polyvinyl)

By Todd Lavoie

Can a simple punctuation change make such a big difference? Serious business for the wordsmiths and grammarians of the world, but I'd reckon maybe also for Emil Svanängen, the sweet falsetto behind the Loney Dear moniker. Up until recently, the Swedish vocalist had been known for two things in particular: sunshine-kissed happy-pop and a clunky ol' comma dropped thud-like in the middle of his alias.

Alas, Loney, Dear is no more - having bid b-bye to that pesky punctuation mark, he also seems to have reined in the giddiness quite a bit, as documented on his latest, Dear John. Intended as “the final piece in a five-album puzzle,” the disc offers considerably more melancholia than before, along with a cleaner, more intimate production.

Continue reading "Are you Loney Dear? The Swedish band takes a ride into the darkness" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

LATE OF THE PIER
Fantasy Black Channel
(Astralwerks)

By Todd Lavoie

Given the manic pulsations emanating from this English indie-electro quartet, I suppose it's only appropriate that Late of the Pier's ascent from teenage obscurity to darlings of the British music press would be swift and twitching with drama. Formed in 2004, when all four members were only 16 or 17 years of age, the group released its first single on an independent label in March 2007 - the hype machine began tossing superlatives almost immediately thereafter. From there, a couple of additional singles followed - and the accompanying hyperbole from the press seemed to compound exponentially.

By the autumn of last year, their debut, Fantasy Black Channel - which includes some of their previously issued singles - found a major-label release in Britain (on Parlophone/EMI), preceded of course by a level of advance buzz that almost always dooms the poor coveted object to eventual disappointment. Now, several months later, the disc has finally seen a domestic release; only time will tell whether the famously excitable Brit press will stick with these guys long enough to respond to their next move, but in the meantime, a valid question persists - was the hype merited?

Continue reading "Too late for UK band Late of the Pier?" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Andre Torrez

I entered SoMa’s Paradise Lounge for the first time this past Valentine’s Day, startled by an unexpected fashion show - it was scheduled, I just didn’t know about it - oddly set to the music of the Jackson 5. And it wasn’t your typical “ABC," or “I Want You Back." No, that wouldn’t have fit the atmosphere at all. It was one of their less obvious '70s grooves, something a little grittier and less innocent, so props to the DJ who demonstrated the intuition to foreshadow an evening of freaks on the floor.

The brief parade of design provided a blur of a background as we settled into the club. With drinks in tow, my friends and I made our way upstairs to get a better view above the stage. Before we knew it, HOTTUB, Oakland’s answer to queercore, was shakin’ its shit all over the place. If memory serves me right, the group has referred to a few of its tracks as real “pussy bangers." Perhaps that’s a suggestion for what to do while listening to their music. I’m not really sure.

Continue reading "'Clear': Falling in with Juan Atkins, Dam Funk, and HOTTUB at Paradise Lounge" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pop rocks: Tainted Love at Bimbo's 365 Club. All photos by Ariel Soto.

By Ariel Soto

A spandex- and leg warmer-clad audience rocked out to Tainted Love's sold-out show at Bimbo's 365 Club Feb. 13. The '80s cover band, which also performed the following night on Feb. 14, did a run through of everything from "Rock the Casbah" to "Like a Virgin," while the enthusiastic crowd sang and jumped along to every tune. Vocalists Brett and Chad Roman added their own twist to each classic song while continuing to inject an '80s flair, and guitarist Franklin Vasquez put his heart and soul - and sweat - into every move he made. All and all, a perfect night of neon and pop jams.

Continue reading "Eighties obsession bubbles up at Tainted Love" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Marke B.

Wait a minute, it's February? Sheesh. In the spirit, perhaps, of our recently bipolar weather systems and my on-again off-again memory banks, I've been raving in my cubicle to two disparate tracks all week -- one a tingly, moody laptop dubstep (lapstep?) zonker by Mount Kimbie:

Mount Kimbie, "Maybes"

And the other some good ol-fashioned achingly lovely wronged-woman house by Teddy Douglas of the Basement Boys, with his frequent collaborator, the immaculately voiced Margaret Grace. I've never really been a fan of Teddy's basic-seeming beats, but this one really comes together around the three-minute mark, and grows and flows like a classic track by Quentin Harris (who actually cribbed quite a bit off the old Teddy, melody-wise):

Neither of which will probably be played at any of the choice upcoming parties below, but hey -- a miracle mashup in my wobbly head can be dreamed and deemed righteous, no? Check these out, and also more in my latest Super Ego clubs column. Do whatcha like!

-------------

ROLLER DISCO PARTY
In absence of a nearby rink, rollerskating parties have found a new home in nightclubs and galleries. Just watch out for those warped floors! Do the bump, indeed. SF Indie Fest is throwing a Big Lebowski-themed shindig on wheels at CellSpace, with tunes by the Black Rock Roller Disco camp. Rentals provided - snowball and bromance optional.
Fri/13, 9 p.m., $10, $5 with costume. CellSpace, 2050 Bryant, SF. www.cellspace.org

Continue reading "Super Ego: Bear attacks, roller skates, dry humps" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 02:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Danica Li

It's about time that the lineups for the two biggest of the bigwig music festivals on the continent, Coachella and Bonnaroo, leaked online, precipitated by a now traditional annual flurry of bizarre Internet rumors, faux photo-manipped posters, and jittery, cross-fingered posts on Stereogum. Naturally there's plenty of cross-pollination between the two, and no stunners, except that Phish hasn't played Bonnaroo ever before, where most of the bands on both lineups are religious frequenters of music festivals as well-established as South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, and as far-flung as the Roskilde Festival in Denmark and Punkkelpop in Belgium.

The big names aren't so dimunitive, but then Coachella has a long and storied history of luring in bomb marquee reunions that it's struggled to live up to since the legendary Pixies jammed together onstage in 2004. Paul McCartney headlines on Friday, the Killers on Saturday, and the Cure on Sunday. My Bloody Valentine's playing on Sunday, too, while Leonard Cohen, Superchunk, Okkervil River, Morrissey, MSTRKRFT, Franz Ferdinand, Girl Talk, Crystal Castles, TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Throbbing Gristle, and Lykke Li are all scheduled to play during the fest's three days of music, California sunshine, and wacky art installations.

Continue reading "Does Coachella or Bonnaroo have the better lineup?" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

By Marke B.

Photos from Feb. 4's jungalicious Booty Call party by Brandon Norris. Hi-ya, Terry T!

This past Friday, Hunky Beau and I breezed through the new and a little lamely named Club Q (didn't every college town have a straight bar with a gay night called "Club Q" or "Q Bar" or something Q-similar on some random week day? Maybe that's the point, here. I'll keep mum on the continuing genericalization of the Castro.) In any case, it didn't look like it had transformed much beyond the location's past incarnation, Bar on Castro, which is now Bar on Church, on Church. Confusing! Well, maybe there was some more red lighting.

One definite vote for the new joint though: Joshua J. and Miss Juanita More have kept their fantastically successful Booty Call nights there.

Your hostess and sometimes DJ, Miss Juanita More

Every Wednesday, fashionista gays (and alt friends!) gather to prance around to some soothing disco, funk, and soul, while fab photog pulls people into the theme-decored back room to snap them in party glory.

Continue reading "Super Ego: Hear that Booty Call y'all" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wanna see my 'stache: Eagles of Death Metal's "Solid Gold."

Confucius may not have approved of 1015's big ole Chinese NY beat-down - but, hey, he never really knew how to par-tay. Here's more fun schtuff that shoulda, coulda, but didn't make it to print.

Delta Spirit
Northern soul and indie rock - just the combo for the San Diego unit. With Other Lives and Dawes. Wed/4, 8:30 p.m. doors, $12. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Origami Ghosts
Raul Sanchez hosts the contemplative Seattle indie-rockers at his monthly semi-acoustic Penny Arcade showcase. With Eyes, Il Gato, and Floating Robot Familiar. Wed/4, 8 p.m., $7. Make-Out Room, 3225 22nd St., SF. (415) 647-2888.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Social Distortion, SF Bluegrass Festival, Eagles of Death Metal, Chinese NY dance party, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 05:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Juliette Tang

Listening to College and Anoraak, two talented DJs involved with the French collective Valerie, is like driving back to the balmy summer of 1981 in a white Camaro convertible with the top down, a cold Tab in your hand, and a tiny silver disco ball hanging from your rearview mirror. Valerie, a group of musicians from Nantes whose dramatis personae includes acts like Russ Chimes, Minitel Rose, and The Outrunners, among others, uses retrofuturistic synthpop to evoke the magical '80s teenage years they were too young to experience.

Valerie has a very specific fantasy of the '80s, informed vaguely by John Hughes movies and V. C. Andrews novels, by images of roller rinks, drive-thru diners, Orange Juliuses, and Love's Baby Soft perfume. But rest assured that their sound isn't trying to enshrine those bygone days. Rather, by traveling back in time to the '80s [Ed Note: Or rather, back to '80s nostalgia for '70s nostalgia for the '50s], Valerie reinvents a future that was dreamed back then but which never happened, a past-modern interpretation of utopia that creates an alternative to the present -- with dancing.

In conjunction with making me want to dance like a teenager, College and Anoraak made me want to drink Malibu and pineapple like a teenager, which was the only lamentable incident that occurred last Friday at Mezzanine, where Valerie ended their US tour. The show itself was exactly what I thought it would be: lively but controlled, suffused with an easy, dance-y energy that never quite reached the point of unbridled release.

College at Mezzanine. Image credit: Franklin Wong, www.wherewolves.net

College played a wonderfully non-trancey, entirely instrumental synth set that left me wishing I was Sarah Jessica Parker in Girls Just Want To Have Fun.

Continue reading "Valerie's live end: Love's Baby Soft breezes of imagined youth" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 11:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

I just got word about another installment of the fantastic BiBi party, happening this Saturday night at Club Six. BiBi's the number one top happening for queer folks of SWANA (Southwest Asian–Northern African) descent -- ladies, the ladies who go are fucking gorgeous -- and their admirers. DJs Emancipacion, Josh Cheon of Honey Soundsystem, and Massood wil bring their exhilarating blend of traditional and contemporary Arab, Persian, Indian, and Latin hits, because basically if it's brown, they're down. Palestinian hip-hop duo NaR will be performing, as will fave-rave dancer Cherry Gallette. Part of the proceeds will benefit Middle-East Children's alliance.

Lucky for club kids like me (who also happens to be a big queer Arab!) the party will take place at the same time as dread bass monthly Surya Dub's huge 2-year anniversary bash that I wrote about in my last Super Ego clubs column, also at Club Six in the basement and main room for a separate fee. All-night belly dancing, Palestinian hip-hop, and bowel-shaking dubstep beats? I'm all over it.

BiBi
Sat/7, 9pm-afterhours, $10/$15
Club Six
60 Sixth St., SF.
www.clubsix1.com
www.myspace.com/bibisf

Read more SFBG Noise blog clubs coverage here and more Super Ego clubs columns here.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 03:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Michelle Broder Van Dyke

The records highlighted in Roger Bennett and former Guardian music columnist Josh Kun's 2008 book, And You Shall Know Us by the Trail of Our Vinyl (Crown, 240 pages), are delectable nuggets and kernels of history that, chronologically compiled together, tell the story of five generations of Jews in America. And You Shall Know Us by the Trail of Our Vinyl - the inspiration for a new exhibition at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco - anecdotally informs the reader of a massive and swift movement from tradition to modernity, city to suburb, and poverty to affluence, through the music and album art of 12-inches rediscovered in the basement bins of thrift stores in Boca - as Bennett puts it, "the place Jewish vinyl goes to die" - and other parts of the U.S.A.

The text reflects what one might expect from a coffee-table book yet contains a wealth of information dealing with important shifts in Jewish American history, complemented by the ridiculous to awe-inspiring images that adorn more than 400 LP covers: cantorial images of beards and flowing robes of yore morph into visions of Israeli disco fever and mambo interludes at Bar Mitzvahs. Pointing to the permeability of communities and the fluidity of identity, the authors look to, for instance, a Jewish Latin craze with such gems as Bagels and Bongos (Decca, 1959) and Mazel Tov, Mis Amigos (Riverside, 1961).

Continue reading "Jewish vinyl: co-author Josh Kun's book inspires new exhibit at Contemporary Jewish Museum" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

It's time for you weekend nightlife forecast, but first this update from that horribly "hip" new Domino's BBQ chicken pizza campaign:

Viral! Compare that, of course, with SF's very own dirty techno birdie, Claude VonStroke -- and is anyone else 100 blog centuries old like me, and remembers that whole Burger King "subservient chicken" viral campaign where you could tell the guy in the chicken suit what to do? From like 2k3? OH MY GOD IT'S STILL HAPPENING!!!

I'll never understand why we always make cute what we want to eat. Except puppies. Even kitties are cheezburger on the Internetz.

But let's put away childish things, shall we, and dig into some of this weekend's better affairs:

--------------

TONITE! THU/22

THE NOISE

New local promotion juggernaut Hacksaw Entertainment launches with a grab-yr-cha-chas blast at 103 Harriet -- featuring, of course, my laptop life-love Lazer Sword bringing the future bass soundz, plus the very talented Ana Sia who'll bring some of her techno-burner pedigree to the tables, and SF mashup psyphy duo Hookerz and Blow, who blow the hooker-roof off live .... High-tail it to the H&B MySpace page and check out "Blow the Whistler" and it's Too $hort meets Claude VonStroke (again with him!) for some pure traffic jam genius.

The Noise
Thu/22, 10pm, $7
103 Harriet, SF
www.hacksawent.com

---------

FRI/23

ALPHABEATS

Beloved DJ Andrew Phelan and the rest of the chunky beats Prismatic crew -- the promos behind the hyperinventive Tonal color-coordinated loft parties -- bring in the big names for their AlphaBeats party, subtitled A is for Alien (I eagerly await B is for BetaMax). I would scoff a little at the umpteenth appearance of 90s god Doc Martin, but his set at LoveFest this summer was out of hand with its perfect blend of old school house numbers and new school choons. Doc's never really been known for his subtlety on the tables (it's all about bangin' hard into the cosmos), but he's definitely evolved stylistically as a major dance artist. BONUS: Sunshine Jones, of fave raves Dubtribe Sound System, will be on hand to spread it. DOUBLE BONUS: dress as an alien and get a free mix .... do it now!

AlphaBeats
Fri/23, 10pm-4am, $15-$25 (presale info here)
DNA Lounge
375 11th St., SF.
www.dnalounge.com

Continue reading "Super Ego: Alien techno chickens go bang, with hacksaws" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I knew it. I knew it! This weekend is the first holiday weekend I'm gonna be in town for the past year -- and I'm totally gonna blow my wad early and end up watching old episodes of Mad Men in bed, dutifully stoned. Why? Because Thursday night sees the launch of Daly City Records and ArtNowSF's ' new monthly Bass Camp at 111 Minna. And their bringing in all the big Montreal names in lazer bass, damn. I'm so lazer there.

Freakin' Megasoid, freakin' Lunice, freakin' Hovatron -- and a little somethin' I like to call Lazer Sword.

All that, PLUS Robot Koch and Bass Science -- with way-too-cute residents Mochipet, Epcot, Quitter, Salva, and MC Buddy LeRoy. It'll be the blaps, y'all ...

I LOVE LAZER BASS

Bass Camp
Third Thursdays, 9pm, $10 advance
111 Minna, SF.
www.111minnagallery.com

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 07:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Mind that One Track Mind: Egyptian Lover's "Freak-A-Holic."

San Francisco stirs itself, shakes its shaggy head, and leaves home. Here are a few more reasons.

Leopold and His Fiction
The many moods of the SF indie-folk-rock combo turn toward...celebration with the unveiling of their new full-length Ain't No Surprise. Electric! With the Healing Curse and Candy Apple. Fri/9, 9:30 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

LoCura
Living la vida LoCura? That means an eye-opening blend of flamenco, rumba, reggae, and hip-hop complete with bellydane and plenty of Animas. Fri/9, 9 p.m., $15. Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Magic Bullets, LoCura, White Cloud, Chuchito Valdes, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

AMP FIDDLER WITH SLY & ROBBIE
Inspiration Information
(Strut)

By Todd Lavoie

It's a meet-up that, admittedly, came as a bit of a surprise, but ultimately makes a world of sense: Detroit retro-futurist funkmeister Joseph "Amp" Fiddler has joined forces with collaboration-loving riddim-machine Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare (better known as Sly and Robbie) for an album's worth of smooth, spaced-out soul and gravy-thick reggae rhythms.

Bestowed with the quite-appropriate moniker Inspiration Information - the title surely a nod to the great fellow traveler of righteous grooves, Shuggie Otis, whose 1974 album of the same name has seen its influence extended further with every passing year - the disc is the first in what is slated to be a series of releases from the consummate tastemakers at Strut Records built around an intriguing concept.

The idea? Take a few musicians who have never worked together before, stick them in the studio on a tight schedule, and see what happens - it's a strategy that yielded fascinating results for the Dutch label Konkurrent, whose "In The Fishtank" series drummed up tasty pairings from Tortoise/the Ex and Low/Dirty Three, for example. I'm dead curious to hear what Strut comes up with next - how about a Tussle/ESG tête-à-tête, folks? - but for now, I'm more than content to float and bob along with the rumbling, churning head-music of this first installment.

Continue reading "Amp Fiddler lays down the 'inspiration' with Sly and Robbie" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 10:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Another in a series of year-end picks from Bay Area musicians, writers, scene-makers, and music lovers. Here's the rest of Mi Ami's best of 2008; for more of their selections, go here.

MORE 2008 PICKS FROM MI AMI'S DANIEL MARTIN-MCCORMICK AND DAMON PALERMO

- Omar-S, "Psychotic Photosynthesis" (both the original and beatless versions) (FXHE)
- Rhythm Based Lovers, "Boogie Vision"/"Snow Drift" 7-inch (Future Times)
- Group Inerane, Guitars from Agadez (Sublime Frequencies)
- Zomes, Zomes (Holy Mountain)
- Kyle Hall, Worx of Art EP 1 (Wild Oats)
- Liquid Liquid, Liquid Liquid (Grand Royal)
- Theo Parrish, Sound Sculptures Volume 1 (Sound Signature)
- Silver Apples, Selections from the Early Sessions (ChickenCoop Recordings)
- Droids, Star Peace (Barclay)
- La Düsseldorf, Viva (Water)
- Methusalem, Journey into the Unknown (Ariola)

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Caffeine-d: Sonic Youth's Hits Are for Squares (Starbucks Entertainment)

Another in a series of year-end picks from Bay Area musicians, writers, scene-makers, and music lovers.

YELLOW SWANS' GABRIEL MINDEL'S TOP TEN KILL-YR-IDOLS MOMENTS OF 2008

1. Sonic Youth's "Hits Are for Starbucks"
Crap, you guys — really?
2. Obama's cabinet
Ah, hope and change, I hardly knew you ...
3. Guns N' Roses, Chinese Democracy (Interscope)
What about this isn't beating a dead horse?
4. Scarlett Johansson, Anywhere I Lay My Head (Atco)
I think my crush has worn off.
5. Ian Curtis' gravestone gets stolen
6. The "free market"
Too late, capitalism.
7. Heath Ledger.
8. MIA "retires"
I hope she's better at this than Jay-Z.
9. Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Steven Spielberg, US)
10. The USAISAMONSTER announce their breakup
This is probably only a big deal to about 50 people, but it really does bum me out.

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Doing it better: Chromatics.

Another in a series of year-end picks from Bay Area musicians, writers, scene-makers, and music lovers.

MICHAEL HARKIN'S TOP 10

- Nobunny, "I Am a Girlfriend"
If the original Ramones replaced Tommy with a drum machine, it might've sounded as amazing as this track from Love Visions (1-2-3-4 Go!).
- Danzig at the Warfield
"Mother"... kicking a pizza box out of a roadie's grasp ... Glenn still rules.
- Nodzzz, Nodzzz mini-LP (What's Your Rupture?)
Fantastic, distortion-free guitar pop.
- Special Disco Version at Mighty
God bless James Murphy and Pat Mahoney for their brilliant edits and many mirrorballs.

Continue reading "'Girlfriend,' Special Disco, Danzig: Michael Harkin's tops for 2008" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ladies do the same: Charles Hamilton's "Brooklyn Girls."

Another in a series of year-end picks from Bay Area musicians, writers, scene-makers, and music lovers.

DANIEL N. ALVAREZ’S TOP 10

10) Lil Wayne, Tha Carter III (Cash Money/Universal)

If for no other reason, Tha Carter III belongs on this list, because it proves that in the age of illegal downloading, hip-hop can still commercially thrive. While the record is uneven, its widespread success was achieved by Wayne’s hard work and prolific output. Most of his mixtapes, especially the ones in the “Da Drought” series, are stronger than this record, yet this album does have some dizzying high points. His expansive collaboration with the elder with Jay-Z, “Mr. Carter,” brilliantly builds to an explosive crescendo, where Wayne lets his hair down and destroys Infamous’ soulful beat.

“Next time you mention ‘Pac, Biggie, or Jay-Z, don’t forget Weezy, baby!” - Mr. Carter

9) Kidz in the Hall, The In Crowd (Duck Down)

Bursting out of hip-hop hotbed, the University of Pennsylvania, the duo’s breakthrough effort is one of the slickest of the year. Riding old-school soul beats, provided by Michael Aguilar (a.k.a., Double-O), the group’s MC Jabari Evans (Naledge) effortlessly cruises through downtown Chicago, putting a premium on storytelling. Often unfairly lumped in with the “hipster-hop” crowd, Kidz in the Hall’s sound actually aligns more with the Chicago scene, drawing striking parallels to Common and pre-robot Kanye West.

“And I’m looking blessed, like I said achoo.” - “Drivin’ Down The Block (Low End Theory)”

Continue reading "The in crowd: Lil Wayne, Charles Hamilton, Zo! and Tigallo, and others make a hip-hop top 10" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

I'm a-freezing my hanukkah latkes off in Detroit right now (-10 wind chill), so maybe it's appropriate, among the blizzard of end-of-year lists, that I pop in my hot mix of the year. All 45 Ghostworld conga-line minutes of Detroit wizard Jeff Mills' triple-table symphonic techno tour de force, "The Exhibitionist."

Before the techno purists claw my ears out, yes this mix came out in late 2k7 -- but I'm on drag time. What really got me about this mind-blowing performance (the sleeve clean at 17:20 made me burst into tears) was how Mills tweaked the massive global rhythms that have always existed subconsciously below fine techno's surface to come up with the kind of polyrhythmy that dubstep can only achieve at its best. Not that it's a competition -- and I was addicted to more dubstep mixes this year than I can count -- but I'm a technoist at heart, and this mix really said something I've been trying to say for years: that machine music possesses a global soul.

I will eternally worship the person who transcribes this for the New York Philharmonic. Or whips out the entire set at Carnaval.

BONUS: SF-made mixes I loved this past year:

Lazer Sword: Future Blaps

Kontrol: XLR8R techno tear-up

Richie Panic: An Amazing Lifelike Companion

Public: all mixes (esp. Metallica)

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 10:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's an interview with new-cumbia whizzes Bersa Discos -- on the eve of their party Tormenta Tropical's first anniversary this Friday at the The Elbo Room -- as published in this week's Scene: The Guardian Guide to Nightlife and Glamour magazine, on stands inside the Guardian...

DJ oro11 and Disco Shawn. Photo by Conor Collins.

"The reception to our sound has been amazing here," says new-style cumbia pioneer DJ Oro11 — who, along with partner DJ Disco Shawn, heads the Bersa Discos label (www.myspace.com/bersadiscos) and puts on the packed Tormenta Tropical monthlies at Elbo Room. "A place like the Bay Area is a perfect spot for new cumbia sounds to take hold. People here are always looking for new music, plus there's obviously a huge Latino population. A lot of younger Latinos who grew up hearing cumbia also listened to hip-hop and electronic music. They're really into what we're doing."

Cumbia, the irresistible traditional accordion-driven dance music of Argentina, has undergone a mutation of sorts, opening up to include electronic augmentation, hip-hop beats, and even punk styles. The new iteration has taken hold in clubs like the cutting-edge Zizek, in Buenos Aires, where Oro11 was living and performing when Disco Shawn sought him out in 2006 for a taste of the electro-cumbia sound. The two returned to San Francisco, their home base, to form the Bersa Discos label as a kind of sonic nexus. "DJs and producers were selling burned CDs and swapping MP3s, but nothing was very organized at the time," says Disco Shawn. "We just wanted to get some of these amazing tracks pressed up on vinyl and circulated a little more officially."

Bersa Discos is now on its fourth release, titled, appropriately, Bersa #4 and featuring Afro-Colombian-tinged tracks by Brooklyn's Uproot Andy and deeper sounds from the Netherlands' Sonido del Principe. And the Tormenta Tropical party has seen legends like DJ/Rupture, South Rakkas Crew, Buraka Som Sistema, Toy Selectah, and even the Zizek folks burn up the stage. Shawn says to keep a 2k9 ear out for DJ Panik's Texan "crunk cumbia." Meanwhile, UK "bashment" crew the Heatwave hop in Dec. 19 to enliven the party's first anniversary.

SFBG What originally attracted you to the new cumbia style?

Continue reading "Scene: Bersa Discos hits the bueno" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 05:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

News from the Lady Sovereign camp:

"Lady Sovereign is back and got her own label through EMI and has a new record for April. She has just put up a new song on her MySpace for fans to download.

"Midget Records is her label that has a global partnership with EMI. Her upcoming record is called Jigsaw and will be out April 7, 2009."

The song is "I Got You Dancing" and it's a free download on the performer's Web site as well. The lady calls it "an early Christmas gift" and goes on to write: "Hey, hey! Just to let you now I'm alive!... I just finished writing the new album in London... The album is the next chapter. It's a massive leap forward for mankind!!! Love, Sov."

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This in from Special Lord B - and hurry it's tonight:

"CLUB INTERNATIONALE!!! Thursday, Dec. 11.

"Hear obscure pop, psych, disco, and funk from Turkey, Italy, Thailand, India, Japan, Germany, France Africa, and more!

"Guest DJ LOACHFILET, aka, Bobby Adams (Mummers, Caroliner, Honeywell)

Continue reading "Global obscuro-a-go-go: Club Internationale goes off tonight" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 09:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jump in: Too $hort's "I'm a Player."

Party-hopping, penny-pinching, craft-making and cookie-baking, and singing for your supper - the holiday activities never let up - and the city responds in kind...with more, more, more shows. Here's what you might be missing...

All righty: Cold War Kids' "Something Is Not Right with Me."

VAMPIRE WEEKEND AND COLD WAR KIDS
"Golden Gate Jumpers" alert. The combos warm up Not So Silent Night with this toasty pre-show. Wed/10, 8 p.m., $25. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. (415) 625-8880.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Mudhoney, Too $hort, Not So Silent Night, the Bug, and more" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

But will he ever find sunrise?

Look, I love all kinds of nightlife -- even zillion-selling sellout nightlife on occasion (yes, I've been to Ibiza) -- and I've championed a lot of dumb music just because it's fun. Ain't nothing wrong with a little fun, and I'm comfortable with being accused of being gushy about absolutely silly things at times.

But I've also spent most of my life trying to convince people that electronic dance music is so much more than lazy, repetitive drivel made for a million blank-minded lockstep androids -- that it can have true soul and experimental meaning, inducing both chills and progress in a subcultural community -- only for many of my arguments to come undone by this horrid bombast:

Continue reading "Super Ego: My nightmare, it is real" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 03:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

I would seriously follow local turbocrunk duo Lazer Sword to the ends of the earth -- and I just might have to, once they embark on their European Tour in February (come back, come back ...). One of the last times to see them rock the little electronic boxes live will be this Thursday at the fun-filled monthly Work party at UndergroundSF, hosted by the Unicrons crew.

I've had a few small reservations about the Work parties -- they've been popular, and I dig all the local music-making talent they've brought in. Particularly, I'm partial lately to Unicrons members Futuristic Prince, whose jam "Amok Time" has lodged itself in my ears. But the party seemed to follow a kind of tired banger party template, and the promotion has at times seemed a tad desperate. Once they even claimed to be celebrating the release of the new G4 iPhone and The Dark Knight Returns! I hope that was in jest, and I certainly understand that you gotta do what you gotta do to build a party. Twenty Myspace bulletins an hour, though, usually only serves to turn me off. (Can we make that a rule for all club promoters at this late point in the MySpace thingie?)

HOWEVER!

Continue reading "Super Ego: Work that Lazer Sword" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

The Guardian's Year in Music issue doesn't come out for a couple weeks, but I'm getting my musical top 10 of 2008 (clubswise) list ready -- check out last year's here -- and I'm pretty sure the loves of my musical life for the past two months will be on it: Clubfeet, a golden trio from Australia, where most great dance-ish music seems to come from. OK, it's not too dance-ish, maybe (although look for the slew of banger remixes to follow), but the tuneful coupling of innocently cynical sentiment with absolutely beautiful production is a marvel that has me skipping around in my undies. Check out Clubfeet's album Gold on Gold (Plant Music -- available on iTunes etc.) and get ready to sing a long ....

Below, the vids for "Teenage Suicide" (if you don't get the reference, then I fear for your Gen-X soul) and the gorgeous "DIE Yuppie Scum" which puts me in mind of Stephen Duffy/Tin Tin, especially the vocals. And I will bestow a million kisses on the first DJ here to play them ...

Clubfeet, "Teenage Suicide"

Clubfeet, "DIE Yuppie Scum"

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by SFBG at 01:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Oh, hai, the '80s -- ur doin it rong. Unless you've been hitting up the totally awesome roving monthly New Wave City for the past 16 years, right? I remember when NWC DJs Shindog and Skip were just a twinkle in the '90s eyes -- 1992, wha? -- going against the rave-inundated mainstream and reliving the cozy Morrissey-tinged conundrum that was the '80s: shy neon. Love those children. And take that Calvin Harris fans -- the '80s started again the minute they finished! Lather rinse repeat.

'80s! I'm just gonna write that a thousand million blood- and mascara-stained times.

NWC's planned a massive synthalicious hoedown at DNA Lounge this Saturday, Dec. 6, to blow out their Sixteen Candles with appropriate assymetrical haircut aplomb. Special guest DJs they've fi-Nageled for the occasion: Melting Girl, Donimo, and Andy T. PLUS: an '80s fashion contest to win those fancy new Smiths and New Order deluxe compilations! Be there or be Huey Lewis.

After the jump: My NWC sweet 16 top 7 special requests

Continue reading "Super Ego: New Wave City's sweet 16" »

digg • del.icio.us • sphere • google •

Posted by Marke B. at 04:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

Clubwise, this is an absoschmutely luverly weekend to catch up on your real house music education. Representing the actual, incredible old school is the Godfather of House (and the sqwonky inventor of acid) himself, Marshall Jefferson, moving your body at