By Marke B.

The shoe

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

Hawking the shoe

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

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

Continue reading "A treasury of Tiësto moments" »

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

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

By Kimberly Chun

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

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

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

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

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

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

Photos and text by Ariel Soto

Bella Ciao

Those Darn Accordions

Big Lou's Polka Casserole

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

Those Darn Accordions

Bella Ciao

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

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

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

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

By Kimberly Chun

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

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

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

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

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

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

By Kimberly Chun

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

By Kimberly Chun

Halloween and NYE -- yes, it’s amateur hour once again for non-locals, gawkers, and ‘burb brats. Still, ya gotta fill the void -- here are a few more ways that didn’t make print.

Art Brut
Are the Anglo-Teutonic arty farties the next best thing to poppers like Fountains of Wayne? With Princeton Fri/30, 7:30 and 10:30 p.m., $16. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

No Age
The LA twosome skipped the Grammys for the road (“Best Recording Package?”). With Residual Echoes and Magic Bullets. Fri/30, 9 p.m., $16. Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell, SF. (415) 885-0750.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: No Age, Soapbox, Emerald Triangle, Kawabata, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 02:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

The Fillmore Theater was filled with yarmulkes and heart-pumping beats last Thursday as Matisyahu, a Hasidic Jewish reggae singer, bounced
his way across the stage. The eclectic crowd at the sold-out show seemed to represent everyone, from religious diehards to So-Cal blonds in high heels. Matisyahu's lyrics convey his strong religious beliefs, but somehow he's able to reach a broad and diverse crowd. With his long payots swaying to each reggae beat, one might imagine they were dreads and this was a Rasta show straight from Jamaica. But isn't that what makes going to see music so great? There are no rules, just pure creativity and a smorgasbord of cultures and ideas around every bend.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Matisyahu, Fillmore, 10/22/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 03:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Photos by David Schnur, text by Marke B.

Ian McCulloch, dark and lovely

Somewhat surprisingly sprinkled with young fans, a rapturous crowd received '80s guitar-pop heroes -Echo and the Bunnymen with open arms and singalong voices at the Fox on Thursday. The two remaining Bunnymen, singer Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Sergeant, definitely still had it, recreating with ease the big sound and goth-romantic poetry that positioned the Bunnymen in a direct line from Joy Division to U2 -- even wearing more of their original influences on their sleeves, with covers of the Doors and Lou Reed and new material that reflected their admiration for Oasis.

The main attraction for this overdue valedictory tour was the inclusion of a 10+ member orchestra to recreate in full the Bunnymen's most ambitious album, 1984's Ocean Rain, which was just lovely, if the sound was a bit muddy at times. No one can resist the beauty of such tunes as "Killing Moon" -- if you were a kid when it came out, the spooky and then-unique juxtaposition of bunny drum machines, lunar jewels, strummed steel strings, and cosmic murder was mindblowing, and those shivers returned in ample waves here.

Will Sergeant, left, creating his indelible sound

Continue reading "Live Review: Echo and the Bunnymen, Fox Theatre, 10/22/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 01:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

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)

As West Fest approaches, Noise is showcasing some of the 18 different concert posters created for the event, which takes place on Sunday, October 25 at Golden Gate Park. Take a gander ...

Poster by D. Hughston and G. Johnson

Poster by Mike Dolgushkin

Poster by Michael V. Rios

Poster by Pat Ryan

Continue reading "More West Fest poster art" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 01:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Folk this: Decemberists' Colin Meloy. All photos by Kimberly Chun.

By Kimberly Chun

Ah, washing up on Treasure Isle late in the day Sunday, Oct. 18, seemed like the way - though it was a bummer to miss Vetiver, Beirut, et al. The short and sweet stuff: it was considerably colder and foggier than Saturday, so it was in everybody's best interest to huddle together en masse while Walkmen and then the Decemberists played. And wow, what fabulous animations accompanied the Portland, Ore., band's set - tumbling with wild things, pyramids, geometrics, landscapes of jewel-like mountains and obelisks, star fields, and the like. The perfect accompaniment to the delicate Brit folk and outright psych-prog the band is purveying these days: the standout was the title track of this year's The Hazards of Love album (Capitol).

Greening of YLT: Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan, right, and James McNew.

The following set by Yo La Tengo seemed almost anticlimactic, though you had to appreciate the strenuous noise jams the band is rolling out. Ira Kaplan helmed the keyboard from the start then switched over to guitar as the combo abruptly segued into "Stockholm Syndrome," with James McNew on falsetto vocals. Up next, just as quickly: the loveable, cacophonous "Here to Fall" off YLT's new Popular Songs (Matador).

Man in a bubble: Flaming Lips in utero.

The wait was completely worth it, as we tarried in the photo pit (and my camera decided to die on me) and Wayne Coyne and the Flaming Lips set up on the main stage. All-girl backup vocalists with bunny ears, the Lips busting through the pull-apart screen at the exact do-go-there spot where a massive go-go girl opened her legs. (Coyne rolled out in his big bubble, followed by a stage-diving bunny.) Ah, no one delivers a show like FL (though there was a health emergency up front where I was -- the frontman later asked to see if the lady taken off was OK). Coyne offered an opening monologue about how the group is an honorary SF band of sorts since the first show they ever played was at the beloved ole I-Beam in the Haight. We'll take 'em.

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:26 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 Molly Freedenberg

(From L to R): Graham Terry, Rushad Eggleston, and Scott Manke cast "sound tornados all over the world." Photo by Guru Khalsa.

Tornado Rider isn't just a great band name - it's an apt metaphor for the three-piece musical phenomenon led by vocalist, cellist, and force of nature Rushad Eggleston. The often spandex-clad frontman wields his sticker-covered cello the way many before him have done with electric guitars - including leaps, jumps, and dramatic perches upon speakers - as he and Scott Manke (drums) and Graham Terry (bass and vocals) produce a unique, danceable sound that has more in common with punk rock than any other musical genre. Afraid you'll have a hard time taking a punk band led by a classical instrument seriously? Don't worry - Tornado Rider, though seriously virtuosic musically, delivers every show with an eye for spectacle and a sense of humor. After all, crowd favorites include songs with the lines "Oh no here comes a dinosaur!" and "I am the goat God," and all band members perform in some version of outrageous (and usually uncoordinated) costume. Catch the whirling sound dervishes, if you can, before they head out on their national tour.

Tornado Rider
Fri, Oct 2, 9pm
$8-$10
Red Devil Lounge
1695 Polk, SF.
www.myspace.com/tornadoriderband

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

Posted by Molly Freedenberg at 06:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

"I think this is going to be really romantic music," J said to me, as we sat down in our seats, our toes literally touching the mics and instruments on the makeshift stage area at Red Poppy Art House (http://www.redpoppyarthouse.org/). It was a perfect Fall evening and we were about to embark on a musical adventure through Chile with trusty our guides, the Quijeremá quartet. And yes, the music was very romantic, but also very sad.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Quijeremá at Red Poppy Art House, 9/25/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Green Day's Mike Dirnt, from left, Billie Joe Armstrong and Tré Cool. Photo courtesy of Warner Brothers Records.

By Kimberly Chun

Another helping of American Idiot, anyone? Berkeley Rep has obliged by extending the run of the musical through Nov. 1. Meanwhile here’s more from an interview with Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong in August -- for the rest of the story, see “No Brainer” in the Guardian’s Fall Arts Preview issue.

SFBG: So what does the album mean to you now?

Billie Joe Armstrong: Um, I think it means that we were right. [Laughs] I think it means ... a lot. I love that album. It’s one of my proudest moments as a musician, for sure -- having the guts and audacity to make a record that was that ambitious, but still, at the same time, be true to rock ‘n’ roll music, I guess.

Continue reading "Americana: More from Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and 'American Idiot,' the musical" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

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

An amazing amount of hype and chatter accompanied Brooklyn band (and Wesleyan Mafia contingent) Amazing Baby’s first MySpace musical postings. Time to judge for yourself. I traded e-mails with Will Roan before the group's Bottom of the Hill show on Sept. 19.

SFBG: How did your new album, Rewild [(Shangrila)], come to pass?

Amazing Baby: I think that we approached the recording with equal parts professional and amateur goals. We are always learning more about ourselves, and to be honest, it's hard to really know what our intentions were at the time. I think we wanted to express aural love, beauty, heartbreak, and humor. There are people that we love, there are people that have died, and all of the emotions that fall in between. I think next time we may focus more on rhythms and melody. But for Rewild, it was mostly emotive.

SFBG: There's a very glammy/glitter rock feel to the record? Is David Bowie an influence?

AB: Well, I've always been very drawn to Bowie and his effortless power over a song. However, I also feel that his other styles, more than glam, have probably had a larger effect on our songwriting and recording. You can't deny your first loves. And I think, as a music fan, I continuously find myself going back to his music. It's really strong stuff, isn't it?

Continue reading "Wa! Amazing Baby speaks of aural love, locked-out boyfriends, perfect pitch" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 12:57 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 Marke B.

Smoke out with Brownout. Photo by Sandy Carson

This week in the paper, I write about eight-piece Latin psychedelic funk outfit from Texas, Brownout. I'm really digging, in a mellow way, their new album Aguilas and Cobras on Six Degrees Records. You should throw on a rad patterned suit jacket and some slick shoes, light up something nice, and check them out at Elbo Room this Friday.

Want a taste? Check out this primo Brownout mix from Austin's DJ Chicken George and download their Olvidalo track.

Oh, and here's their new video for "Slinky"

BROWNOUT
Fri/18, 10 p.m., $8–$10
Elbo Room
647 Valencia, SF
(415) 552-7788
www.elbo.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 10:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

The air was thick with friendship and love as about 70,000 people went into tree pose to say a united prayer for peace in Speedway Meadows this Saturday for the 11th annual Power to the Peaceful concert. The day long concert has been the pride and joy of Michael Franti for the past decade, whose own music strives to motivate and cultivate love and peace between all us human beings.

This year the special guests included Alanis Morissette, Cherine Anderson, and Sly and Robbie along with inspirational speakers such as former Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney and Tibetan monk Namkha Rinpoche who hinted at the possibility of the Dalai Lama coming to next year's Power to the Peaceful.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Power to the Peaceful 9/12/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 03:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros - "40 Day Dream"

By Kimberly Chun

Strap yourself in for more musical thunder as San Fran girds itself for fall - here’s more of what floats the city’s boat.

Glitter Wizard
Wah-wah wow. Hard rock meets glamazon psych in the paws of the SF-Oakland combo. Sat/12, 9:30 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

The Honey Brothers
Adrian Grenier of Entourage yucks it up from behind the kit. With Soko and His Orchestra. Sat/12, 9 p.m., $15. Independent, 628 Divisadero, SF. (415) 771-1422.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Edward Sharpe, Vieux Farka Toure, Chris Garneau, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:18 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 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)

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 Kimberly Chun

So much to do and so many Mayyors ‘n’ Lamps hoedowns, Outside Lands night shows, and damaged prom benefits to attend. San Fran never disappoints. Here are the worthies still to come.

Big Sur Festival 2009/Party in the Pines
A mini-fest to rival Golden Gate Park’s massive -- with way coolios like Kurt Vile, who puts out his first Matador disc, Childish Prodigy, in October, and SXSW breakouts such as Woods. With Wooden Shjips, Vietnam, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, Gang Gang Dance, Dungen, and Saviours. Sat/29, noon-11 p.m., $31. Henry Miller Library, Highway 1, Big Sur. www.henrymiller.org. Dungen also plays with Woods and Kurt Vile Sun/30, 8 p.m., $14, at Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Blue Sky Black Death
From Haight to the wide blue yonder, with estimable hip-hop sounds for all. With Boy Eats Drum Machine and Boy in Static. Sat/29, 10 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Death Angel
You can’t keep the Bay thrash vets down. With Skinlab and Kaos. Sat/29, 9 p.m., $15. Uptown, 1928 Telegraph, Oakl. (510) 451-8100.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Woods at 'Pines', Os Mutantes, Baseball Project, Dirt Bombs, Foreigner, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 12:00 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

San Franwindy – that’s what we call you around the house while you’re busy blowing your butt off. It’s time to take refuge in musicland – here are some shows that didn’t get swept off our radar.

Foreign Cinema
Dreamy, chill, and, natch, cinematic – that’s the sound of the year-old SF trio and its trip-hop- and alt-rock-laced new debut EP. With Maggie Morris and Ghosties. Sun/23, 9 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Chuck Prophet
The SF singer-songwriter unveils his new long-player, live and track by track, alongside Ernest “Boom Boom” Carter, Rusty Miller, and Tom Ayres at “Let Freedom Ring.” Expect the proceedings to be properly documented, with Kelley Stoltz behind the wheels o’ steel. Oh, yeah, and kids wanna know: will there be Donkey Kong? Sun/23, 8 p.m., $10. Knockout, 3223 Mission, SF. (415) 550-6994.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Chuck Prophet, Fruit Bats, 'Audition,' and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kimberly Chun

Les Paul, Rashied Ali – Big Daddy Death keeps claiming another one. Goddamnit. You can find me at the bar, buried in vodka tonics, till you finally find the strength to perk up, listen to Interstellar Space again, stroke your koa-wood SG, and contemplate all the live music, still kicking all around you.

Society of Rockets and Dominique Leone
The SF psychedelicists bang noggins with the congenial local, NorCal synthesist. Thurs/13, 9 p.m., $10. Café du Nord, 2170 Market, S.F. (415) 861-5016.

Solillquists of Sound
Me likee the bubbling, robo-futuristic beats of the Orlando, Fla., quartet’s new No More Heroes - and the live act is supposed to be pretty awesome, too. With 40Love and Zutra. Thurs/13, 9 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Lil Wayne, Green Day, Down, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 03:25 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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

I love how everyone makes Latin music their own, from the blonde dude shaking his head and slapping his leg in time, to the Asian couple cha-cha-chaing across the room with elegant ease and perfectly choreographed movements. At a performance on Friday, July 31st, at the Red Poppy Art House, Tito Gonzales, a renowned Cuban tres player (an instrument similar to guitar), stated that the bolero was born in Cuba, but then someone in the audience shouted out "No, es de Colombia!"

But none of this really mattered because the only important thing that night was that everyone had a good dance partner and just enough space to shake and twist a bit. Tito's band played all the classics, including "Besame Mucho," and made it totally impossible for anyone to stay in their seats. If you like the Buena Vista Social Club, you'll love Tito and his Son De Cuba. And if you missed the show on Friday, they'll be preforming again at the San Jose Jazz Festival on Saturday, August 8th. As for the original birth place of Latin music, well, that will always be a mystery.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Tito Gonzales at Red Poppy, 7/31/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 10:00 AM | 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

Jarvis Cocker -- an endless source of compelling ruminations. Did you ever imagine it to be any different? More from a talk with the ex-Pulp pasha (for the other choice tidbits, see this week’s Sonic Reducer), right before he was about to get on a train and embark on a holiday with his young son -- and while I was being driven very speedily through the streets of San Francisco.

SFBG: So your new record, Further Complications [(Rough Trade)] -- how was the making of it different from your first solo album [Jarvis (Rough Trade, 2007)]?

Jarvis Cocker: Well I felt fairly prepared for this record -- we played the songs to other human beings. We played them live. There were only two songs that were recorded that we hadn’t played live, so I really wanted to capture the songs.

SFBG: Are the songs particularly personal, reflect your life?

JC: They are reflective of that. I write songs about personal things and songs that I use to make sense of what’s going on in life. I use parts of my experience in them, which is kind of a dangerous thing to do. But I hope to make something that can be amusing but still have some emotional content. For me songs have to have emotional content.

Continue reading "'Further,' indeed: More from Jarvis Cocker" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

There something incredibly nostalgic about the Indigo Girls. When I hear them I'm transported straight back to the freshman dorm room that I shared with my roomie Melbell, which was affectionately called the hippie-love room by the rest of our floor. There was a constant soundtrack of Indigo Girls and Joni Mitchell blasting from our speakers, and when we finally got to see the Indigo Girls live on campus, my girlfriends and I all braided our hair and donned colorful floral scarves around our waists.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Indigo Girls connect at the Fillmore 7/21" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 03:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

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)

This in from the producers; exciting to see Okkervil River, Neko Case, Amadou and Mariam, Marianne Faithfull, and - gasp - Steve Martin, among the performers:

San Francisco, CA – June 30, 2009 - What began as Warren Hellman’s bluegrass fantasy in 2001 as a wonderful gift to the city has now grown into one of the world’s largest and most anticipated festivals for concert goers and musicians alike. Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 9, the FREE festival in Speedway, Marx and Lindley Meadows in Golden Gate Park, will take place on Friday, October 2 – Sunday, October 4. Starting in 2001 with 2 stages and 9 bands, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass quickly grew by leaps and bounds over the next few years. Soon 3 stages quickly turned into 5, and everyone from Willie Nelson to Ralph Stanley to Dolly Parton has graced them. As the talent continues to impress, so do the crowds. Last year's attendance estimates were a staggering 750,000+ over the three days. For the first year ever, we are pleased to announce that the festival will be expanding to include SIX stages.

In addition to bringing back those who have been with us from day one (such as Steve Earle, Emmylou Harris and Hazel Dickens) - we are excited to welcome new faces to this year's festival – Richie Havens, The Chieftains, Steve Martin with the Steep Canyon Rangers, Old 97’s, Marianne Faithfull, Amadou & Mariam and many more!

Continue reading "Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 9 lineup finalized" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 03:11 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)

By Tony Papanikolas

The world of rock music is full of “wolf bands”, but few live up to their feral moniker. Steppenwolf’s John Kay, for example, claims that he was born to be wild –a promising start– but writes lyrics about magic carpets. Not very wolf-like. Likewise, Wolf Parade betrays a dangerous ignorance of its namesake (wolves are easily spooked; incorporating them into a parade would be disastrous.) And then there’s Wolves in the Throne Room, the enigmatic Olympia, WA outfit responsible for some of the most cosmic black metal ever produced outside of Scandinavia.

If the crowd at Slim’s was any indication, Wolves’ fan base has extended beyond the immediate metal set. Metal fans made up a good percentage of the audience but there was also a sizeable punk contingent, as well as the requisite handful of hipster-types (also, a headbanging dude in an incongruous business suite, my personal favorite.) The crowd was still relatively thin when opening act Ninth Moon Black began playing, but receptive nonetheless. I’m a sucker for visual aids at shows, and the psychedelic black and white swirls projected behind Ninth Moon Black provided a neat visual counterpoint to the group’s ambient instrumentals.

Continue reading "Live Review: Wolves in the Throne Room howl at Slim's" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 09:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

Dynasty Handbag: she's real

Children, go where I send you. Seek out the wild women of the Mission Creek Music Festival Collision Fest.

Sure there are some sweet boys — any pleasure-seeker with eyes and ears should enjoy Mike Mantle of the Mantles (headlining July 22 at Hotel Utah), or Myles Cooper's solo journey outside the Passionistas (opening a June 24 El Rio bill). But this year's MCMF says here's to the ladies who launch — the women who make new musical rules in order to break them.

Ryder Cooley reps recent Bay Area ingenuity on Thursday at the LAB. But the double bill bonanza crazier than any acid trip involving Tony Danza goes down same place, same time the next night, when Dynasty Handbag and Ann Magnuson take the stage. Dynasty girl Jibz Cameron is a treasure as classy as your mom's favorite perfume — not even Lypsinka sinks her teeth into the art of lipsyncing with such ferocity. Try not pee yourself as she puts the p in performance and prepares you for the musical dramatics of Ms. Magnuson. What can be said about the queen of Bongwater, besides that on the cover of Power Of Pussy (Shimmy Disc, 1990), she was both outdoing and lampooning Burning Man before it even became a phenomenon?

Since Magnuson rubbed extremely pointy shoulders with Klaus Nomi back at the Mudd Club, it's safe to assume she would be intrigued by the Nomi-esque stage theatrics of Fauxnique, a.k.a. Monique Jenkinson, who is bringing her recent show Faux Real back for a weekend stint outside of the Mission Creek rubric. Word has it that the show is brilliant — for real.

While Magnuson and Dynasty Handbag exemplify the Collision Fest's cross-disciplinary antics, the Convergence Fest is a trip into filmdom. And in the case of Ira Cohen's 1968 cinematic mirror-warp The Invasion of Thunderbolt Pagoda (Sun/19 at Artists' Television Access), I do mean trip. Along with a documentary about Krautrock godheads Faust (Sat/18 at ATA), Cohen's movie is one of MCMF's screen gems.

FAUX REAL Thurs/16–Sat/18, 8 p.m. $20. Climate Theater, 285 Ninth St., SF.(415)704-3260, www.climatetheater.com

COLLISION FEST AND CONVERGENCE FEST www.mcmf.org

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

Posted by SFBG at 08:35 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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

Fast Love, a punk/pop trio, may be new to the San Francisco music scene but they're destined to be fast favorites. When they're on stage they're into every note, not only for the sake of the music but also because they're having so much fun. This being my first time seeing them, I decided to chat with their drummer Kimberly and lead vocalist Melinda to learn more about the true punk band experience.

SFBG: What's the best part of being in a punk band?
Kimberly and Melinda: The free beer!

SFBG: Who are your punk idols?
K: Dee Dee Ramone.
M: Fuzzy rocks the hot hairstyle.

SFBG: What are your goals as a band?
M: To party and have a good time.
K: It's all about the good times and beer!

Continue reading "Live Shots: Fast Love at Sub-Mission, 7/10/09" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 02:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

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 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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

Any show that ends with a bunch of people in a conga line has to be great. This past weekend, Pink Martini, a twelve-piece band hailing from Portland Oregon, joined the San Francisco Symphony for an electrifying performance that covered everything from classical concertos to foot stomping Brazilian street music. The range in styles of music this ensemble covers makes a single night at one of their concerts seem like twenty different musical experiences and then some. Being part Puerto Rican, I'm drawn to their more Latin based songs, like "Donde Estas Yolanda" and "Andalucia" but there's really no way not to love all their music, especially when they get a little help for our very own San Francisco Symphony.

Continue reading "Pics: Pink Martini brings it with SF Symphony" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

French rock band Phoenix has canceled its Spectrum Festival headling performance tonight, June 27, due to illness: word has it vocalist Thomas Mars has a virus. Still, the Spectrum Fest sallies forth - the artists on the bill will continue to perform.

Phoenix's publicists report that all tickets will either be refunded or honored for the band’s next show in San Francisco (ticket holders should see their point of purchase for details). And according to Joan Rosenberg at Goldenvoice, Phoenix's next in SF will be at the Warfield Sept. 18.

Spectrum Festival
Sat/27, 9 p.m., $27.50-$70
Regency Ballroom
Van Ness and Sutter, SF
www.goldenvoice.com

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:08 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)

By Kimberly Chun

Get out and lend an ear - it’ll be returned, perhaps changed. Here are more intriguing shows that didn’t make it to print.

Elvis Costello
Certified rock genius - up in the house! No secrets here: in true diehard music lover form, Declan MacManus gives back to music emporiums with his one-day “Amoeba Music Tour” performances here in the Haight and then at Amoeba Hollywood. Expect him to play acoustic versions of tunes from his new Secret, Profane and Sugarcane (Hear Music) alongside Jim Lauderdale, and to sign copies of the CD (copies purchased at Amoeba come with a poster silkscreened for the event). Mon/22, noon, free. Amoeba Music, 1855 Haight, SF. (415) 831-1200.

Nihlotep performing Mosaic and studio clip

Nihlotep
Drink in the unearthly screeches and high-drama doom metal sturm und drang from the San Jose group. With Vesterian and Condemned to Live. Tues/23, 9 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Starfucker
The Portland, Ore., combo with the oh-so-naughty moniker has somewhat innocuous origins: Josh Hodges started out with just a borrowed drum set, loop pedal, and a mic - one-off, one-man entertainment for a house party. Now, with the addition of three bandmates, Starfucker is busy reproducing the 8-bit electro pop-dance punk off its mini-album, Jupiter (Badman).
With Atole and White Cloud. Tues/23, 9 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., S.F. (415) 621-4455.

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 11:57 AM | 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)

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 Max Goldberg

Just Dando

For a brief time in the early 1990s, Evan Dando was an It boy. He wore great jeans and hid behind his hair — the shaggy pop songs didn't hurt either. His band, the Lemonheads, coasted to success with an easy cover of "Mrs. Robinson," and then Atlantic took a bath on Come On Feel the Lemonheads (Atlantic, 1993), an album that's likely still haunting remainder bins. These are the facts, but the melodies that snag your adolescence are destined to boggle any attempt at objectivity.

I still remember picking It's a Shame About the Ray (Atlantic, 1992) off the rack after spotting it in an older friend's collection — I must have been 11 or 12. Soon, I went the extra mile for a couple of bootleg cassettes I then listened to in ritualistic isolation. In Dando, I heard the sympathetic reticence of a dropout. I beached my shyness on his languid refrains; he was good company. I wouldn't say I wanted to trade places (Ben Lee took up this mantle on "I Wish I Was Him"), but the Lemonheads furnished my imagination with yearning and ennui — sensing those things without knowing them was sublime. I loved the band for coming from Boston; their stoned melodies padded the lonely stretches of Memorial Drive and sandy dunes of Cape Cod where I moved into my feelings. Nearly all Lemonheads songs are letters, and I imagined I too would come to know a "you."

Trying to sort out how memory imprints my continued weakness for these melodies would require a novel rather than a capsule review, but I like to think the Lemonheads albums still hold up because I wouldn't have had it any other way. I don't put them on very often, but I can easily lose a whole afternoon when I do.

THE LEMONHEADS With Kim Vermillion. Wed/10, 8 p.m., $21. Slim's, 333 11th St, SF (415) 255-0333. www.slims-sf.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 12:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Modesto, your Jason Lytle is truly a pleasure to chat with. Here’s more of an interview with the disarmingly honest, down-to-earth ex-Grandaddy songwriter, now touring with his first solo album, Yours Truly, the Commuter (for the rest of the talk, see this week’s Sonic Reducer). Lytle headlines at Café du Nord June 8 and opens for Neko Case at the Warfield June 9.

SFBG: So right now you’re multitasking, printing out flight info for your tour. Is flying an issue for you? I’m just looking at the crashed plane in the artwork for Yours Truly, the Commuter.

Jason Lytle: Ummm, I’m actually OK with flying – I’m a lot better with flying than a lot of people I know. I guess if you’re looking at the artwork - I do have a problem with airplanes landing in my front yard.

Continue reading "Not lost: More from Jason Lytle, uncovered in Montana" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 03:59 PM | 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 Tony Papanikolas

Since 1984, Oslo's favorite sons Mayhem have had a reasonable claim to the title of most fucked-up band on the planet, the eagerly repeated stories of the lurid spectacle that is their live show representing only some of the milder aspects of their mythos. Colorful history aside, the men of Mayhem have established themselves as architects of the modern black metal sound, taking the nasty musicianship and overt occultism of Venom and early Bathory and using them as the foundation for a terrifying new kind of metal that mixes breakneck drums, guttural riffs, and croaking vocals with eerie, understated melody. Often imitated, the 25-year veterans' unique style is seldom matched in terms of sheer, unhinged intensity.

Co-headliners Marduk, one of countless bands to follow in Mayhem's footsteps, spent the better part of its career becoming even more gruesome and unpalatable to mainstream audiences with each successive album, until it was not inconceivable to mention the satanic Swedes in the same breath as their more established tour mates. By the late 1990s, Marduk began branching out instrumentally, refining its musicianship while remaining true to the genre it helped pioneer.

The two black metal greats are supported by a diverse collection of bands taken from all corners of the extreme metal scene. Progressive, black metal-inspired Withered makes a logical opener, and the presence of dizzying grindcore virtuosos Cephalic Carnage is strange but welcome. Rounding out the bill is the brutal Cattle Decapitation, a consistent favorite among fans of uncompromising, technical death metal. Fans of life-affirming music would do well to avoid this show.

MAYHEM Wed/3, 6 p.m., $25–$30, all ages. DNA Lounge 375 11th St., SF. (415) 626-1409. www.dnalounge.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 09:39 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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

I remember the first time I watched Flight of the Conchords on TV. I was at my friend's house, people were drinking beer and a pet rat was running back and forth across the wood floor. The Conchords' humor is weird, dry and their New Zealand accents just add to the hilarity. Now the band members, Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, are beyond famous, with hordes of adoring fans, some of which were lucky enough to cram into the Berkeley Community Theater on Monday, May 25th, 2009, to see the last show of their US tour. Comedian Arj Barker started the evening off with some great laughs that covered everything from the weakness of Blue Shield's health insurance to the exorbitant price of crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. Then, clad in ridiculous carboard and tinfoil space costumes, the Conchords started the concert with the iconic "Too Many Dicks on the Dance Floor" that had the audience in a state of hysteria. There's something genuine about the Conchords' lyrics like "Business Time" where they sing about getting it on once a week after sorting the recycling, to pieces that raise awareness about epileptic dogs. But then again, Bret and Jermaine are superstars now and every girl (and probably some dudes too) just couldn't seem to take their eyes off the Conchords' two sets of sugarlumps.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Flight of the Conchords" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 08:00 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)

By Kimberly Chun

There are a few things you can count on in Ez Eff: the big tree goes up in Union Square every Xmas, summer will be freakin' freezing west of the Park Presidio fog line, and Chow Nasty will bring the boogie to the wackies walking, running, and huffing in Bay to Breakers each year.

So what happened? First word had it the band was rocking it up as usual at the corner of Hayes and Webster on Sunday, May 17. Then today, according to the shopkeep at the corner market, the group will not be making its date out front, validating all the zany goings-on in that fine every-day-is-a-par-tay SF tradition. Explanation, guys? And band dormancy is no excuse when it comes to those lil' reminders of only-in-the-citay goofery.

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

Walking confidently on stage and decked out in tradition Japanese garb, the Yoshida Brothers took over the stage at Yoshi's SF in the Fillmore -- they'll be performing there until May 16th. The Yoshida brothers play the shamisen, a square shaped guitar like instrument with only three stings that twangs and resonates long after the stings have been plucked.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Yoshida Brothers strum up Yoshi's" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 04:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Andre Torrez

Photo by Francis Chung

Enough about Thee Oh Sees already. Let's talk about Shannon and the Clams. John Dwyer's new outfit is great and all, but Shannon is bodacious. She's a peroxide-haired, punk-rock pin-up who gets real mean on her Danelectro bass.

I caught the classic beauty out and about last week with an unmasked Nobunny. They were catching a glimpse of those pretty Black Lips performing at the Great American Music Hall. A few months earlier, I saw Shannon and her Clams doin' their thing for the hometown crowd at Oakland's Stork Club. For sure, the highlight of the night was their rendition of Del Shannon's "Runaway." I can't get enough of that song. Anytime I hear it, it's embedded in my brain for days. I enjoyed the guitarist's mimicry of whatever high-pitched instrument is used in the bridge of the original recording. Surf rock interpretation at its finest.

Shannon and the Clams, "Blood"

Shannon's gnarly, gruff-sounding wail conveys the angst of an exhausted teenage wreck (see "Cry Aye Aye"). She's somewhere between a woman possessed by Little Richard and the vocal huskiness of the Gossip's Beth Ditto. Another standout track, "Blast Me To Bermuda," is pure teen-punk energy, with a slicing riff that propels the Clams' late-1950s, early-'60s style into a more contemporary garage rock sound.

Shannon is worthy in my book. Good ol' rock 'n' roll!

SHANNON AND THE CLAMS With Thee Oh Sees, Sonny and Sunsets, and the Mystery Lights. Fri/15, 9 p.m., $8. Amnesia, 853 Valencia, SF. (415) 970-0012. www.amnesiathebar.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 12:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Could it be any prettier, any more delicately dewy, any more enticing, out there in this stone-beauty by the Bay? And when the sun goes down, you must go out to play - or watch others play. More worth-while sights, sighs, and sounds for you, more than could fit in print.

Steve Earle
Far from Nashville and an outlaw and songwriter-activist born a little too late, Steve Earle is rattling the chains of his past and looking back on the music of his late brilliant and damaged mentor Townes Van Zandt with the new Townes (New West). Thurs/14, 6 p.m., free. Amoeba Music, 1855 Haight, SF. (415) 831-1200.

Loney Dear
Dudes, make up your mind - comma or no comma? Ah, hell, none of it matters when the Loneys wash those sad-and-lonelies away with their sweet indie-rock melodicism. With Headlights and Audio Out Send. Fri/15, 10 p.m., $10. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Dead Meadow, Steve Earle, Fracas, Loney Dear, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto. Read Marke B.'s take on Boy in Static's single "Young San Francisco" here

Alexander Chen

Newish to the San Francisco music scene, Boy in Static already has a fledgling following. Only one of the duo could make it, but Bottom of the Hill on Wednesday, May 6, Alexander Chen used everything from a violin, ankle bells and a toy piano to play pieces that expressed both joy and melancholy.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Boy in Static celebrates sweet suspicion" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 12:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Johnny Ray Huston

In addition to making music, Christopher Willits is a guiding force behind the art and experimental music site Overlap (www.overlap.org). In conjunction with Overlap's next event, I caught up with him by e-mail.

SFBG What was it like to collaborate with Ryuichi Sakamoto on Ocean Fire (12k, 2008)?

Christopher Willits It was surreal. We fell into an oceanic trance, and a bunch of music suddenly emerged. Then a Godzilla-like sea monster morphed out of his piano and he vaporized it with his max patch.

SFBG You've also worked with Brad Laner of Medicine. Are you an admirer of that (ahead-of-its-time) band?

CW Medicine [had] a mind-splittingly original sound — it was a soundtrack to many high school adventures. Now it's an absolute joy to be friends with Mr. Laner. Together we are the varsity band members (guitar I and II) of the North Valley Subconscious Orchestra. We're aiming for nationals next year.

SFBG What do you like about the Bay Area's close proximity to the ocean?

CW The smell of fresh wind, and dreams of flying great white sharks.

SFBG I saw a fave list of yours once that had Magma, the Carpenters' "Close to You" and Sun Ra's Lanquidity on it. Who is inspiring or obsessing you at present?

CW That is a timeless list — can I say them again? Let's add Morton Subotnick, Wild Bull (www.merlindarts.com), all Eliane Radigue, all Elvin Jones, John Coltrane, and that band that plays at El Rio on Sunday night.

SFBG You recently toured in China, including a performance with images on ice. What did you discover?

CW I discovered a resilient community of artists and experimental musicians pushing against the grain (and firewall) of this mammoth country or force. They understand my history and what I'm doing — another win for Chinese bootlegs? I also found some of the best food ever: huajiao (flower pepper) with asparagus! But hold the boiled big brains. Those I'm definitely not into.

LISTEN/VISION 06 With Christopher Willits, Taylor Deupree, and Classical Revolution. Sun/10, 8 p.m., $10. Café Du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016. www.overlap.org.

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

Posted by SFBG at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By LC Mason

Kreator at a German fest earlier this year

Quality bangover: the gloriously painful aftermath that results after a night of heavy headbanging to brutal bass drum runs and diabolic guitar solos, characterized by roaring tinnitus, aching neck muscles, bruises and scrapes from slamming and stomping into others, as well as stiff hands from gratuitous handing and devil horn-throwing.

This was my condition when I woke up the next morning, ringing ears and all, after witnessing the merciless onslaught of the Kreator and Exodus show at Slim’s on Tuesday, April 28. Except I wasn’t brave enough to enter the roiling whirlpool of 200-pound man-bodies, because a lot more than bruises and scrapes would have gone down, especially as Kreator vocalist-guitarist Mille Petrozza repeatedly and ravenously commanded the audience to “kill each other in the mosh pit.”

In a rhapsodic homecoming performance that surely sated the entire pantheon of thrash metal gods, San Francisco’s legendary sons Exodus played faster and harder than any band half their age and challenged their fans, both young and old, to act accordingly.

Continue reading "Live review: Kreator and Exodus deliver the quality bangover" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 09:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Andre Torrez

In the 1960s Booker T. and the MG's served as Stax/Volt's house band, much like the Funk Brothers were for Motown. Playing alongside Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, and the Staple Singers, among others, they beat Love and also Sly and the Family Stone to the racially-integrated rock-band punch. It was 1962's "Green Onions" on the Memphis-based soul label that put them on the map. The song's recent omnipresence at sporting events has given it a bit of a "jock jam" tag, but it isn't tarnished completely.

Today Booker T. Jones is letting his signature Hammond organ sound sing alongside "the Great Lady of Soul," Bettye LaVette. After hearing her humbling rendition of the Who's "Love Reign O'er Me" at that group's Kennedy Center Honors, I knew LaVette's tag was legit. Even Barbra Streisand — in attendance that night — recognized it. She turned to Pete Townshend in disbelief, asking if he'd really written that song.

Bettye Lavette, "Love Reign O'er"

LaVette gives the rock opera ballad a gut-wrenching, soulful treatment. She owns it.

For most of her career, the Detroit native has struggled, but she's steadily built an audience, touring with late legends including James Brown and a young Mr. Pitiful along the way. LaVette's had one-off singles released by Atlantic and Motown. It seems she is finally getting her due, having had the honor of dueting on a song at President Obama's inauguration ceremony — even if it was with Jon Bon Jovi.

Now LaVette's career has paralleled Booker T's. Both are signed to Anti- Records. Booker's new album for the label, Potato Hole, features Neil Young and includes a playful version of Outkast's "Hey Ya," Expect covers aplenty — and some surprises, too — from this bill's soulful one-two punch.

BOOKER T. AND BETTYE LAVETTE Fri/8, 8 p.m. Independent, 628 Divisadero, 415-771-1421. www.theindependentsf.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 06:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Rain-day women, overcast men - it's drizzling all over SF, but the music keeps coming. Here are more worthy shows than we could drip into print.

Brilliant Colors
The SF trio surfs the latest wave of girlish lo-fi pop with sweet, primal punchiness. With Abe Vigoda, High Castle, and No Babies. Wed/6. 8 p.m., $7. 21 Grand, 416 25th St., Oakl. www.21grand.org

Myka 9
Everyone seems to be borrowing from the rapid-fire Freestyle Fellowship fella, who has lent a hand to performers like Busdriver and Prefuse 73. Thurs/7, 9 p.m., $15. Independent, 628 Divisadero, S.F. (415) 771-1422.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: the Dead, Alela Diane, Myka 9, Destroyer, Ponytail, Brilliant Colors, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Talk about an unrelenting burst of creativity: San Francisco indie rock band Loquat will be going for broke with its May residency at Cafe du Nord. Vocalist-guitarist Kylee Swenson told me the group is attempting to make each show special, with visuals arranged by the mysterious Kernel Panic, special guests like Raul Sanchez of Penny Arcade, and special DJs like Ted of BAGel Radio. “I just hope it works!” she said by phone. “It could be a total disaster!” As we spoke, Loquat was still tweaking the blend of performers and stage sets.

The group hasn't been slacking on working on music, either: it has 20 songs written for its next full-length - though don't expect Loquat to share its latest tunes yet. "We’re still in the incubator stage," Swenson explained.

Continue reading "Whole lotta Loquat: the SF indie rockers kick off their du Nord residency Thursday" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 05:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Marke B.

This just in from metal heaven:

Ancient Canadian glam-slam heroes Anvil, the touching Spinal Tap of our times who have a critic-ecstatic doc about them (Anvil! The Story of Anvil) out at the moment, will be PERFORMING LIVE at the Bridge Theater this Sunday after two sure-to-be-raucous screening of said doc. Here's Cheryl Eddy's review of the film:

Screw you if you compare Anvil to Spinal Tap. Yeah, there are moments of eerie similarity (and Anvil's drummer is named Robb Reiner — how's that for a coincidence?), but this heartfelt doc (first seen locally at last year's San Francisco Jewish Film Festival) doesn't mock. Friends and bandmates since the early 1980s — when Bon Jovi-level success seemed nearly possible — Reiner and vocalist-lead guitarist Steve "Lips" Kudlow have been chasing the rock god dream their entire adult lives, toiling at day jobs and raising families but leaping at every chance to capture glory, be it a poorly planned European tour or an emotional trip back to the recording studio. Even if you scoff at hair bands, it's hard not to get wrapped up in this tale of success, failure, and power chords. And with no less than Lars Ulrich calling Anvil "the real deal," there's no need to, uh, smell the glove.

And here's what to shredxxpect:

Anvil, "School of Love" live, Japan, 1984

Anvil live with Anvil! The Story of Anvil
Sun/3, 7:10 and 9:45, $10.50
Bridge Theatre
3010 Geary, SF.
(415) 751-3212
http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Market/SanFrancisco/BridgeTheatre.htm

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

Posted by SFBG at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Dina Maccabee

Entertain whatever stereotypes you will about tango as a relic of an openly macho era: tango in San Francisco is alive. Okay, and kicking.

You might envision a wacky, tacky ballroom competition — but not so rapido says Tango No. 9's founder and violinist Catharine Clune, whose explorations over the last decade have unearthed what she calls "the many faces of tango." With trombonist Greg Stephens, pianist Joshua Raoul Brody, accordionist Isabel Douglass, and newest member Zoltan Lundy singing the Argentine blues, Tango No. 9 revels in tango's many approaches to music, to dancing, and to life. And it's not alone. "There's an underground squadron of tango dancers, ranging from their 20s to their 60s," Clune says. "You can dance tango every night in the Bay Area. It's in these crazy little back rooms you didn't know existed, and that's where we've practiced our chops." As social dancing, which she notes hasn't been a mainstream American cultural movement since the '50s, tango is "something people seem to want."

Professional dancers will be on hand at Noe Valley Ministry to perform the sultry moves, but if you only ogle los bailarines, you'll miss half the fun, or half the pain. "If you can lose anything, from a horse race to a heart, they talk about it," Clune says of the moving and theatrical side of tango's songs — for listening, not just getting down at the local milonga. In a set that traverses the genre, from its roots to the obscure late works of Astor Piazzola, the group performs the first "sentimental" tango, Carlos Gardel's inspirational rendition of Pascual Contursi and Samuel Castriota's "Mi Noche Triste," which set fire to an international phenomenon mourning lost love and tragedy. Like, Lundy says, "being left by a woman who was also your prostitute."

TANGO NO. 9 Sat/2, 8:15 p.m., $16-$18. Noe Valley Ministry, 1021 Sanchez, SF. (415) 282-2317. www.tangonumber9.com

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

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

Babes in Ty land: Ty Segall messes with ya as part of Total Trash Weekend.

By Kimberly Chun

Bay rap vets and raucous rock sprats - it all goes splat this week. I'm guessing you'll find plenty of trouble to get into - and musical artistry to appreciate - when you're not busy downing scrump-dilly-icious (and cheap!) pastor tacos at the Gallo Giro taco truck at 23rd and Treat.

Goapele
Oakland's own draws the curtain on new music: check her site for the spanking, sinuous "Milk + Honey." With Cody Chestnutt. Fri/1, 9 p.m., $27. Independent, 628 Divisadero, SF. (415) 771-1422.

Zion-I
This is the weekend Bay hip-hop stages The TakeOver. The local twosome takes it to another level in honor of its new long-player. With Kev Choice Ensemble and Trackademicks and the Honor Roll. Fri/1, 9 p.m., $19-$23. Slim's, 333 11th St., SF. (415) 522-0333.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Paris, Total Trash Weekend, Garrett Pierce, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Nicole Gluckstern

Throbbing Gristle blur the lines at the Regency Ballroom, 4/23. Photos by Morlock E.

It’s a veritable rogue’s gallery at the Regency Ballroom on April 23, every single statesperson of the Bay Area underground having emerged from their respective lairs for Throbbing Gristle, the first, the foremost industrial noise band come back to destroy the universe, one eardrum at a time. The last time I saw such a profusion of familiar faces was, well, last week at Leonard Cohen. And just like at Leonard Cohen, the faces around me bear expressions that are expectant, electric, slightly starstruck. Unlike Leonard Cohen though, the band launches first into a sweet little ditty penned in tribute to the Moors Murderers Myra Hindley and Ian Brady, “Very Friendly”.

Genesis P-Orridge, hand out

“Could you imagine what might have happened if Myra Hindley and Ian Brady had met me and Cosey back than?” quips Genesis P-orridge, who wears the role of flamboyant frontperson like a comfortable pair of bright pink polka-dotted stockings. An array of “greatest hits” follows: “Persuasion”, “Something Came Over Me”, the infinitely creepy “Hamburger Lady”. The set may verge on this side of predictable, but honestly, these are the songs we all want to hear.

The venue lights stay on, loud; the sound system cranked, loud; Genesis P-orridge channeling Marianne Faithfull in a bright orange Stevie Nicks tunic, loud. More “disciplined” than dangerous, the evenly rhythmic computer-generated beats smack just as much of Coil as chaos unleashed. Still, at certain points in the evening, the relentless throb threatens to dislodge both my intestines and my equilibrium. “If I stand with my legs apart I get an erection,” I hear someone mutter. And ultimately, that’s the crux of this whole experience, this sonic onslaught. Industrial at its hard core is precisely the music of solitary erections, the music of intestinal distress, the music of bondage games, vertigo, and boots of shiny leather (just like Cosey’s). That said, all those iMacs onstage? Neither sexy nor disturbed. The blue-screened sea of iPhone photogs below me? Ditto. The price of progress, I suppose, disturbance demystified.

Continue reading "How To Destroy Your Eardrums, Part 6" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 02:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photos and text by Ariel Soto

The Red Poppy Art House, an artist community and intimate performance center in the heart of the Mission, welcomed Karamo Susso, a world famous kora player from West Africa, who performed this Saturday, April 25th. Susso, who was raised in Mali, is a master of the kora, a 21-stringed instrument originally from Gambia, that is played solely with the thumbs and index fingers, creating tones that sound somewhat like a harp, a guitar and maybe just a bit of toy piano.

Continue reading "Pics: Karamo Susso hypnotizes Red Poppy Art House" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 05:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Champs Elysees cool cuddles up with dustbowl derring-do: it's an unlikely union but it works beautifully on Marianne Dissard's self-released 2008 debut, L'entredeux. The filmmaker behind the Giant Sand documentary, Drunken Bees, Dissard played the silky seductress to Joey Burns' easy dupe in Calexico's cowboy noir "Ballad of Cable Hogue." L'entredeux sees her donning assorted new chapeaux with help from co-writer and producer Burns. Count on the chanteuse to smoke up the room with her fivepiece when she stops at the Hemlock Tavern on April 29.

Beautiful losers and dour dreamers who can't make that date will likely dig the 12-track L'entredeux. Calexico's John Convertino pitches in on drums, along with Willie Nelson contributor Mickey Raphael on harmonica and Tin Hat Trio player Rob Burger on piano, accordion, orchestron, cimbalom, and organ. Now planted in Tucson dust, the French native apparently found plenty of common ground with Burns in the making of this music: the music of Nick Drake, Serge Gainsbourg, and Django Reinhardt as well as the films of Sam Peckinpah. They save the violence for the future recordings - this is music for hot, hazy, lazy days.

Continue reading "Ballad of Marianne Dissard" »

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

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

By Ari Messer

In the era of Slow Food in the City of Fog, I wonder why more people don't slow down for a second and get out to taste some local music. Think about the last time you were willing to fork over more than a fiver for some local talent. Seriously. San Franciscans sometimes seem fonder and more aware of what the Bay Area attracts than of what it produces. Jimmy Sweetwater is out to change that. Sweetwater is the rare breed of promoter who is also a musician — he plays a mean harmonica and a dirty washboard. He has been giving his all to keep his series of local music going in a town drawn to touring bands. Sweetwater, a historian of Mission District music from the past 20 years, has put on five shows at the Great American Music Hall, four at Slim's, and one at Cafe du Nord. According to Sweetwater, club staff has largely been supportive, but it's a struggle to fill venues in these times of financial woe. "There's a ton of local talent that never gets to play the big clubs," he says, noting that he tries "to combine different kinds of music in one night." All-local nights and combinations of different genres — these aren't traditional strategies, but the Bay Area is the perfect place to unleash them.

This weekend sees a diverse Jimmy Sweetwater Presents lineup at the Red Devil Lounge, including the high-speed-Calexico-like Diego's Umbrella, honkeytonkers 77 El Deora, the East Bay's Ben Benkert, and the Mission Three, a group including Sweetwater that will play a number of tunes by the Band, even one of my favorite (and rarer) Band joints, "Acadian Driftwood." Sweetwater always seems to be doing a thousand things at once. It's all for the love of song in this songlike town.

JIMMY SWEETWATER PRESENTS: DIEGO'S UMBRELLA, BEN BENKERT, 77 EL DEORA, AND THE MISSION THREE Sat/25, 9 p.m., $10. Red Devil Lounge, 1695 Polk, SF. (415) 921-1695. www.myspace.com/jimmysweetwater

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

Posted by SFBG at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Brandon Bussolini

Now two years old, I Put A Record On (Monika Enterprise, 2007) is a record worth lingering over. In addition to being the first solo release from Berlin-based musical gadabout Gudrun Gut, it's remarkable for how unhurried Gut was in getting around to it: she's been appearing on recordings and taking part in bands, including a very early incarnation of industrial pioneers Einstürzende Neubauten, for more than 25 years. Her intervening projects give her the aura of a post-punk Zelig: the all-female punk band Malaria! formed in 1981, toured with the Birthday Party, put out records on Belgian boutique label Les Disques du Crepuscule, and performed with Nina Hagen at Studio 54. That the group's "Kaltes Klares Wasser" would later be covered by Chicks on Speed was a foregone conclusion.

The synthy Matador followed Malaria!'s collapse, but Gut's ear eventually led her, like any good punk, to techno. With typical great timing too: Berlin had just undergone a techno surge, spearheaded by local duo and label Basic Channel. Abandoning the constraints of playing in a rock-derived idiom in favor of more uncharted territory, Gut also had the good fortune to run across Thomas Fehlmann, a producer with post-punk roots who had recently collaborated with Alex Paterson's downtempo pace-setters the Orb. The two founded Ocean Club, producing a weekly genre-stomping radio show as well as parties that paired up the likes of experimental techno producer Thomas Brinkmann and splay-shirted southern gothic aficionado Nick Cave.

Gudrun Gut, "Move Me"

None of this is new information, yet all of it is useful in figuring out how something like I Put A Record On came to be. It's beguiling, though free of big emotions — a left-field album that functions as an homage to the hypnotic state that arrives when you're sucked into your favorite records. The best indication of its intentions is provided by the sole cover, of Smog's "Rock Bottom Riser." Gut's multitracked delivery, over a pistoning and downtrodden bass drum, is affectless enough to make Bill Callahan's stoic delivery on the original seem fraught. But by the end, she's wracked by giggles, as flecks of color appear like dried spittle around the monochrome production's edges. Gut is not an innovator: both she and Callahan are committed to the old, inexhaustible pleasure of listening, regardless of genre. And this is exactly what allows them to give back to their respective genres, if we care to name them, some missing essence.

FIRST PERSON MAGAZINE BENEFIT PARTY FEATURING GUDRUN GUT with Thomas Fehlmann, Grecco Guggenheit, and Nate Boyce. Fri/24, 10 p.m., $10-$15. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. (415) 625-8880. www.firstpersonmag.com/events.htm

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

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

Take the wheel: Vivian Girls' "Tell the World."

How to destroy a weekend - or, for that matter, a weeknight? Sticky, sweaty, and sill up for fun - SF knows how it's done. Telling ya, there's so much more to see and hear than we could fit into print.

Dry Spells
Folk rock gets another angelic kick upstairs when the Bay Area band gets onstage. With Pillow Queens and Vultures. Wed/22, 9 p.m., $6. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

The Pets
The Oaktown garage-rock threesome preps for its European journey. With International Espionage and Master Volume. Wed/22, 9 p.m., $5. Kimo's, 1351 Polk, SF. (415) 885-4535.

Continue reading "Sonic Reducer Overage: Vivian Girls, Ghost, Spinal Tap, How to Destroy the Universe, and more" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 06:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

Yonder Mountain String Band has serious groupies. I mean really hardcore groupies. I talked to several String Band fans in the audience before the show. For one person it was his 36th time seeing Yonder Mountain and he has plans to follow the band through California and then up to Oregon for their tour. There was another woman in the audience who said she saw them at least 70 times ... how is that even possible? By then I was excited for the show to get started -- who were these string strummers? Once the band made its way to the stage the Fillmore was thoroughly saturated with sweet smelling smoke, feet were stomping, and hippy skirts were twirling as the folksy, bluegrass notes weaved their way between the band's eager, dare I say, obsessed, devotees.

Continue reading "Live Shots: Yonder Mountain String Band at the Fillmore, 4/10" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 06:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By D. Scot Miller

Anyone who heard "Big Brother Beat" on De La Soul's 1996 album Stakes Is High (Tommy Boy) was soon saying, "Who's this kid Mos Def?" Still, it's hard to believe that, 13 years later, the radiant voice on that track would become the ubiquitous scion of that good old Native Tongue can-do.

Mos Def can turn up simultaneously in a movie (his next project is a film version of Iceberg Slim's Mama Black Widow) and on a television show (you catch him on House last a few weeks ago?), yet still find time to cameo on other people's albums, win an Obie for his performance in a play (Suzan Lori Parks' Fuckin' A), and come out with a book (Black 2.0, due this summer). It's like, wait a minute, there's got to be more than one Mos Def.

His four albums explore his tortured id and black people's rightful place as the inventors of rock 'n' roll and just about all forms of popular music — all that, and they still maintain the dedication to socially conscious protest we've come to expect from our once and future truth-tellers. His fifth, The Ecstatic, is due later this year. He's coming to Yoshi's in Oakland for a few sets with Robert Glasper on piano, Mark Kelly on bass, Chris "Daddy" Dave on drums, Casey Benjamin on sax, and Keyon Harrold on trumpet. Be a part of history in the making. It's not like you have a choice. His name is Most Definite, not Think So.

MOS DEF Tues/14–April 16, 8 and 10 p.m., $55. Yoshi's Oakland, 510 Embarcadero West, Oakl. (510) 238-9200. www.yoshis.com

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

Posted by SFBG at 11:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Marke B.

Get ready, kids -- this Saturday night's all about the new-bass (and I go in deep on it in this week's Super Ego clubs column). Do like I said and hit up both mindblowing parties featuring this amazing nightlife sound of now.

Ghislain Poirier, helloooo

In one corner is Montreal's "King of Bounce" Ghislain Poirier, whose Bounce Le Gros monthly in the MTL not only helped launch the careers of such wiggy Canadian future bass purveyors as Megasoid and the tres-tres atmospheric Sixtoo, but also put Quebec on the world dance music map. Ghislain will storm the Tormenta Tropical monthly's electro-cumbia castle at Elbo Room.

Below are two video examples of how Poirier wonderfully "plays it both ways" as it were -- super-danceable and brainily abstract -- with the dancehall boinger "Blazin'" and the headphone freaker "Hit & Red." The third vid, "Don't Smile, It's Postmodern" is his awesome kinda middle ground (although the visuals are waaaay goofy.)

Ghislain Poirier, "Blazin'" featuring Face-T

Ghislain Poirier, "Hit & Red"

Ghislain Poirier, "Don't Smile"

AND in this other corner, righteous kings of woofer-blowing abstractitude Flying Lotus, Kode9, and the Bug hit Mighty for a jam called "The Future." I'll let the videos after the jump give you an idea of each of their genius individual styles, but DO NOT MISS THIS PARTY.

Continue reading "Super Ego: New-bass invades the Bay" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 01:57 PM | 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)

By Laura Mason

Members of lo-fi favorites Bridez hang out in this "candid" pic.

We may pride ourselves on this city’s intellectual panache or European debonaire, but the real ego tripping starts with the thriving rock & roll pedigree ingrained in the underbelly of San Francisco that I suspect is the real reason the city’s 20-something set gets dressed in the morning.

This snarling, sweating rock & roll animal is the perfect companion to the stiff drinks and barroom sleaze that dominate our night lives, and bottle-feeding this beast is Bridez. Their lo-fi gospel is true blue, rough-hewn and rife with cool angst, fronted by a singer who could be the testtube lovechild of Karen O., Lou Reed and Courtney Love. Chanteuse Liza Thorn, formerly of So So Many White White Tigers, has impressively mastered a white-hot on-stage swagger most girls only have the courage to do in front of a bedroom mirror, and is quickly blooming into the blazing frontwoman San Francisco needs.

Continue reading "Live Review: Bridez at the Knockout 4/2" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Kimberly Chun

Who is the shy girl casting her eyes downward on the cover of Little Hells (Kemado)? Here in Hell, Marissa Nadler could be a damsel who has tumbled from a frayed tapestry in search of her unicorn, a crystal doll who has escaped from her vitrine, or a tubercular maid who has slipped out of her Victorian deathbed photograph to traipse this earthly plane. She's the dark, downbeat cousin of the enormous-eyed cameo cutie gracing The Saga of Mayflower May (Eclipse, 2005), the sunlit warbler singing in the lawn at the first Arthur Fest, and the whimsical Rhode Island School of Design-educated artist I spoke to around the time of Songs III: Bird on the Water (Kemado, 2007).

With her fourth full-length, Nadler enters a new, more synthetic, and increasingly richer musical realm than that on her previous recordings — one outfitted with its own exquisite troubles and terrors. The almost imperceptibly swooping faux strings that strafe "Heart Paper Lover" sound like tiny planes dive-bombing a cruel sweetheart. The goth muses slumbering within Nadler's out-folk also come to light, blinking: one imagines Mary Shelley waking to find herself in Frankenstein's grave-dirt-encrusted shoes on the harpsichord-strewn, almost Sisters of Mercy-like "Mary Comes Alive." Still, Nadler's voice has never sounded so fine — catching itself on miniscule beads of longing on "Rosary" and fading, delicately detuned, like a dying darling on "Ghosts and Lovers."

MARISSA NADLER With Eric Shea. Wed/8, 9:30 p.m., $10-$12. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016, www.cafedunord.com

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

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

By Molly Freedenberg

I've just figured out what I'm doing on Thursday: going to see Battlehooch (what a great name) at Cafe du Nord. The musicians are friends of a friend, so I might've ended up there whether or not I'd done any research. But after listening to their strange, energetic prog rock on myspace - and then watching a vlog piece on what they're about (the first one on their myspace page)- I'm officially hooked for my own reasons. Thing is, I can't decide if I like them because these guys are music nerds, because they're just plain nerds (bandmember non-musical interests include ideas, concepts, and topography), because their music is engaging and strange, or because they seem like so much fun I kinda just want to hang out near them. Either way, I'm betting this band will tickle some of my favorite places - cerebral and otherwise. I'll have some of that hooch, thanks.

Read the Wiretapmusic review here.

Battlehooch, with The Lovely Public and Schande
Thurs/9
9pm, $10
Cafe du Nord
2170 Market, SF
(415) 861-5016
www.cafedunord.com

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

Posted by Molly Freedenberg at 01:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Text and photos by Ariel Soto

Habib Koite and his band Bamada filled Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley with a myriad of rythms and beats Friday, April 3. Habib started the show with a mellow set of almost lullaby-esqe pieces, using his luscious voice and beautiful guitar playing to entrance his audience.

Continue reading "Pics: Habib Koite and Bamada have 'em dancing in aisles" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 05:47 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)

BONNIE “PRINCE” BILLY
Beware
(Drag City)

After multiple career tangents, name changes, and rambles hither and yon, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, ne Will Oldham, appears to have finally arrived. The accolades are pouring in from NPR to small-town daily newspapers -- a marvel when one considers the fact that the Louisville, Ky., post-punk scene that Oldham sprang from was so roundly ignored during its most vital years in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, when Squirrel Bait, Slint, and later Oldham and brothers Ned and Paul performed as Palace (Brothers/Songs/Music).

The most accessible, clean, and least eccentric recording to date from Oldham, Beware might be considered the recording in which the songwriter assumes his rightful place in the current rock canon as the music-maker who prefigured the so-called freak/out-folk scene and the enabler and encourager of such talents as Joanna Newsom and Dawn McCarthy.

This time, his roving sensibility finds its soothingly smooth fit with help from Josh Abrams of Town and Country, Emmett Kelly of Cairo Gang, Akita Youssefi, Jon Langford of the Mekons, Rob Mazurek of Isotope 217, and renowned pedal steel session player Greg Leisz, among others - likely his most accomplished set of contributors to date. Still, despite Beware’s full-bodied, country-soul sound, I feel almost nostalgic for the humanizing glitchy folk Palace and early Bonnie “Prince” Billy was known for - perhaps that’s just my indie rock values rearing their scruffy heads.

Continue reading "Don't fear Bonnie "Prince" Billy - 'Beware' marks his most accessible effort to date" »

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 07:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pros to go: "A song by the Mae Shi celebrating the life and work of Xtian Bale."

You have until Monday to find your place in the sun - or in the shadows. More fun musical offerings than we could fit into print - as usual in super-sweet SF.

Lil Wayne
The Nawlins rapper is said to pumped a good deal of performance-enhancement production values into his stage show - courtesy of a full band, a smoke machine, pillars of fire, and a set of backup dancers. But will Wayne deliver the goods? Or at least appear on time? With T-Pain, Gym Class Heroes, and Keri Hilson. Fri/27, 7 p.m., $42.50-=$147.75. HP Pavilion, 525 W. Santa Clara, San Jose. www.livenation.com

The Mae Shi, Pre, and Past Lives
Hey, it's all good here. Well, I've never seen Pre but the Mae Shi are monsters (gag songs or no) and Past Lives - a band of ex-Blood Brothers - impressed at South by Southwest. Seems to me, though, that Skin Graft's Pre combines squealing girly vocals with propulsive, clanging post-punk in a way that I'm sure SF kids can get with. Fri/27, 9:30 p.m., $8. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Starfucker
Don't hold the fucked-up name against them - the Portland, Ore., combo could be the next Glass Candy, with a newly amplified sense of humor. With Grand Lake and Guidance Counselor. Sat/28, 9:30 p.m., $8. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

Bonfire Madigan
Sometime SF dweller Madigan Shive whoops it up for her blessed b-day - and for the release of her new EP. With Excuses for Skipping. Sun/29, 8 p.m., $12. Cafe du Nord, 2170 Market, SF. (415) 861-5016.

White Magic
The Brooklyn psych-folk spell-casters send us spiralling. With Avocet. Sun/29, 5 p.m., $10. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923.

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

Posted by Kimberly Chun at 08:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By L.C. Mason and Andre Torrez

----------

THEE OH SEES AND EAT SKULL

Fuzz is the new black — at least according to the gospel preached by Thee Oh Sees and Eat Skull. The two West Coast combos will take the beer- and noise-soaked pulpit at the Eagle Tavern to bang out hazy sermons of garage wit and wisdom.

With Grant Hart and the Fresh and Onlys. Thurs/26, 9 p.m., $5. Eagle Tavern, 398 12th St., SF. (415) 626-0880. www.sfeagle.com

-----------

DARK DARK DARK

Dark Dark Dark released its debut album in 2008 on Rhode Island's Supply and Demand label. The group's folky, rootsy instrumentation and female-to-male vocal tradeoffs take over the Caretaker's House.

Fri/28, 8 p.m. www.myspace.com/darkdarkdarkband

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

TRANS AM, EZEE TIGER, FUTUR SKULLZ

Imagine you're in high school: Trans Am are the electronics nerds who jam to Rush, Anthony Petrovic of Ezee Tiger is the misunderstood indie guy who is into the Flaming Lips and Lightning Bolt while you're still spinning Sublime, and Futur Skullz are the long-hairs who know metal is cool five years before you will — and who just got busted for stealing Dad's whiskey.

Sun/29, 9 p.m., $14. Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., SF. (415) 621-4455. www.bottomofthehill.com
-----------

Continue reading "This week: A six-pack of rock picks" »

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

Posted by SFBG at 02:19 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 Matthew Reamer. Art Direction by Mirissa Neff. Crotch-buffing by Kalri$$ian. Location: Shattuck Downlow

In these trying economic times, does the Bay really need a motor-mouthed, drug-snorting, pussy-obsessed playboy hip-hop collective — one that shouts out Eric Estrada, acid house, and Optimus Prime while bragging about using paper bags for condoms and instructing someone to "juggle balls in your mouth like a circus act"? Well, yes, actually. Hilariously quick-witted San Francisco-based beastly boys Kalri$$ian certainly bring the sparkling regression to match the recession — by channeling naughty spirits from rap's past like Kool Keith, Shock G, and Prince Paul, and literally melting themselves to audio gaga as they "lick Cool Whip off your flatmate." The bouncy braggadocio of Kalri$$ian's new album, Tales from the Velvet Pocket (Psychokinetics) and over-the-top flashback image somehow seem perfectly refreshing right now.

Experienced Bay nightlifers will recognize some long-time scenesters among the Kal's colorful cast. No need to fret over missing all the in-jokes, though — Kalri$$ian's got a million of 'em, and most involve doing lines off your girlfriends' ass. Check them out live at the release party for Daly City cool kid Mochipet's new Bunnies & Muffins platter:

KALRI$$IAN

April 4, 9 p.m.– 5 a.m., all ages
The Ranch
1433 Van Dyke, SF
www.kalrissianbaby.com

SFBG You sure got a lot of people — it's like you're a super group or something. Tell me about who's all involved ...

"UNCLE" TONY HIGHRISE (producer) You're goddamn right this group is super! I'll tell you what — I wouldn't have left Miami unless it was for something really, really super. I came up on the scene in Delaware back in the day. I was a freelance hype man for a while with my cousin Wicked Awesome J, rest his soul. After the accident, I drifted south and started wearing polyester. I