Weekend Picks: April 24th-27th
April 24, 2008
Our weekly picks for some great live local music. Take a listen to some of these bands in our streaming audio player…
Thursday:
Know of something going on Thursday? Post it in the comments!
Friday:
- Dreamdate, Apache and East Bay Grease at 12 Galaxies. 9pm, $8/10.
- Silent Fidelity, Silian Rail, Settler and Schande at The Bronco at Santa Clara University. Free ($3 requested donation), 9pm.
- KUSF Birthday Celebration Featuring: Wooden Shjips (Feature Podcast), Citay (Feature Podcast) and Jenny Hoyston (of Erase Errata) at Cafe du Nord. $10 in advance/$10-$20 Sliding Scale at the Door, 9:30pm.
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Photos: The Ian Fays, The Catholic Comb, Here Here @ BotH
April 23, 2008
We have some great photos taken by Muhammad Asranur from our recent Bay Bridged Presents show last Thursday (4/17/2008).
This show, held at Bottom of the Hill, was the CD release party for The Ian Fays debuting their new album Dylan’s Last Days. The show was supported by The Catholic Comb and opened with Here Here.
You can check out the photo gallery after the jump.
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KUSF Celebrates 31 Years This Friday at Du Nord
April 23, 2008
This Friday, Apr. 25, KUSF will turn the big 31. And who better to celebrate with them than three of San Francisco’s most exciting acts – Wooden Shjips, Citay and Jenny Hoyston of Erase Errata.
Shrinking%20Moon%20for%20You%20(edit).MP3
Wooden Shjips – “Shrinking Moon for You” (edit)
Wooden Shjips, whom we just featured on the Bay Bridged podcast (Feature Podcast) in March, seem to be getting more praise as time goes by, from bloggers like Tom Lax to big-wig music journalists like David Fricke of Rolling Stone. Recently having released a 7″ on Sub Pop, the band soon heads to England for a few shows. It was also just announced that they’ll be playing at the My Bloody Valentine-curated All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival in upstate New York in September.
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Episode 111: Man/Miracle
April 22, 2008
Stream the episode:
This week’s podcast spotlights the eclectic rock of Man/Miracle, a quartet that recently relocated to the Bay Area after finding substantial success in Santa Cruz. The group debuted in the scene last year with the Bear on Bear EP, which earned them quite a bit of acclaim and radio play around Northern California. The excitement around the release is quite understandable, as the mostly uptempo CD mixes the self-conscious and intimate melodies of indie pop with the nervy energy and excitement of post-punk and dance-rock.
Considering that the EP consisted of most or all of the songs the band had completed writing at the time of recording, it was certainly an auspicious debut. Man/Miracle have continued to write and record since its release, all the while developing an energetic live show in venues from house parties to the Mezzanine, where they played during this year’s Noise Pop festival. The band’s latest material, some of which was released on a now sold-out tour CD earlier this year, finds them continuing to experiment with new sounds and styles, while retaining their strong melodic pop songwriting. We’re pleased to include some of these new songs in this episode and are looking forward to a new release from Man/Miracle later this year.
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Local Label Profile: Ghost Mansion Records
April 21, 2008
Click Here to download your exclusive Ghost Mansion Records mp3 sampler!
When the founders of Ghost Mansion Records say they’re in it to have fun and “celebrate good music and good vibes,” they mean it. There’s nothing uppity or exclusive about this operation. Case in point – they took a random music blogger into their home (moi), gave me beer, told me everything they could ever muster up about how their label works and then they taught me how to block print. Not an ounce of exclusivity in that deal.
The label was officially formed when members of Dame Satan, Sky Pilots and The Everlasting Arms (the latter two of which are no longer playing as those bands) moved into an enormous house in Potrero that they dubbed the “Ghost Mansion.” No ghosts have thus far been sighted, but the house ended up spawning multiple bands, recording and shows.
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The Gris Gris Bid Farewell With Two Final Shows
April 21, 2008
Gris_Gris_-_06_-_Year_Zero.mp3
Gris Gris – “Year Zero” from For the Season
Oakland band The Gris Gris will play their second-to-last show this Saturday, April 26th at the Ghost Town Gallery. After about six months of being essentially broken up (with one show we reviewed here), the Birdman Records band will record their final two shows (the last of which will be during the summer at 12 Galaxies) and release the live tracks as a last hurrah.
The band has been praised since their beginnings for the raw and experimental blend of psych rock and folk. The band is made up of multi-instrumentalists, and the shows can range from pared-down acoustic tunes to noisy rock.
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Neo-Retro Night at the Hemlock Tavern
April 18, 2008
Last Tuesday (4/08/08) at The Hemlock proved a night of 1930s flare as Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen, Uni and her Ukulele and Agent Ribbons put on a show worth going out on a Tuesday for. This “neo-retro” line-up combined the most entertaining aspects of the pin-up-girl – WW2 era – and somehow turned it into something modern and hip. Each band’s style made you feel like you were living in a different time, like you were Deborah Kerr or Montgomery Clift in “From Here to Eternity.” All three bands brought something a little different to the stage and made for a perfect bill.
Tippy Canoe and The Paddlemen are an Oakland five-piece signed to Late Bloomers Records. Michele Kappel, an expert ukulele player with a rich, classic voice, fronts the band. Accompanying her are The Paddlemen, Rick Quisol, Mikie Lee Prasad, Chris “T.G.” Green, and Sanda Mellow, each in vintage décor. The band’s sound is very wholesome, using terms such as “Nutter Butter” and “Sugar Baby” and somehow pulling it off. Their songs are optimistic and chipper even when singing about a broken heart or being far away. With the addition of the ukulele and a tin can microphone (aka a tin can attached to strings that creates a Woody Guthrie tone) Tippy Canoe’s sound came together into a nice little package with a cute string bow.
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Weekend Picks: April 17th-20th
April 17, 2008
Our weekly picks for some great live local music. Take a listen to some of these bands in our streaming audio player. We’d love to see you tonight at Bottom of the Hill!
Thursday:
- The Bay Bridged and Playing In Fog co-present The Ian Fays (CD release party), The Catholic Comb and Here Here at Bottom of the Hill. 9pm, $8.
- The Oh Sees, Master/Slave (Record Release) (Feature Podcast), The Mayyors (Sac) and The Traditional Fools at The Eagle. 9pm, $?.
- Black Diamond Heavies, Or, The Whale (Feature Podcast) and Low Red Land (Feature Podcast) at Hemlock Tavern. 9:30pm, $7.
Friday:
- KALX Presents The Papercuts, The Botticellis (CD Release) (Feature Podcast) and The Mantles at Cafe du Nord. 9:30pm, $10.
- Beatbeat Whisper (Feature Podcast), Love Menu (Portland) and Yes Please at Million Fishes Gallery. 7:30, $?.
