Dripping Ceilings: Monotonix at Rickshaw Stop with Ty Segall and Nodzzz
January 31, 2011
Sometimes I feel like I’ve seen it all with Rock and Roll, but when I first saw Monotonix at Treasure Island last year I realized I was wrong (again). Monotonix hail from Tel Aviv, and life there certainly creates quite a few interesting characters. The band claims this is their last tour, as the drummer, Bonanza, is about to be a father. “This is a historic moment” yelled lead singer Ami Shalev, insisting everyone sit on the floor.
The band pulled a lot of the same moves as they did at Treasure Island, but it was far more intense in the familiar confines of the Rickshaw. They set up on the floor, surrounded by swirling, swarming fans. Shalev jumped off the stage and onto the crowd. He swam across the sea of heads and climbed up to the balcony railing, singing all the while. With a brief count: “1,2,3″, he jumped back into the crowd.
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London Calling: Chuck Prophet’s Spanish Bombs at the Great American Music Hall, 1/29/11
January 31, 2011
I was 13 when my 20-year-old brother saw The Clash without me. Heartbroken, I drank enough vodka to puke in grandma’s bed and pass out on the floor. I awoke at the local hospital with an IV in my arm, my pale mother and smirking brother at the bedside. It reminded me of M*A*S*H. It was the last chance to see The Clash before self-destruction — drummer Topper Headon was going on a major heroin bender, and within a year Mick Jones would split for General Public and Big Audio Dynamite.
London Calling came out in 1979. The double album was a major departure from the first 2 recordings (self-titled in ’77 and Give ‘em Enough Rope in ’78). It still had plenty of amazing punk rockers but it also stewed up ska, reggae and rockabilly. It somehow brought together disparate tales of the Spanish War in the late ’30s (“Spanish Bombs”) alongside stories of the drug addicted, ’50s-Hollywood megastar Montgomery Clift (“The Right Profile”). It was at once political and revolutionary, been called one of the greatest of all records, and at the time The Clash were often labeled ‘The Only Band that Matters’. I loved that t-shirt and couldn’t agree more. If you are unfamiliar with this work please stop reading and go directly to your local record store. Bring it home, pull the shades and play it loud. Wear comfortable clothing. It matures with age but is eye opening from the first spine-tingling chords of the title track, which approaches issues like the 3-Mile Island nuclear disaster that had just occurred in Pennsylvania, but goes on to attack unemployment, racial injustice and drug abuse. It’s quite an opener.
Local treasure Chuck Prophet released his first record in 1990 with the Green on Red. He has released at least 11 solo records since then and collaborated with many great artists including: Alejandro Escovedo, Kelly Willis, Aimee Mann, Warren Zevon, Cake, Jim Dickinson and most recently Chris Von Schneidern for this current project. Chuck remembers buying London Calling on cassette at Rasputin Records in Pleasant Hill and considers it the “Rosetta Stone of the punk apocalypse” (via SF Chronicle).
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Recommended, 1/31-2/6: Exray’s/Tim Cohen, Cass McCombs, The New Parish’s One Year Anniversary, The Midnight Snackers
January 31, 2011
Every Monday, we’ll be offering you early picks for some of the week’s best concerts. Do you think we omitted something worthwhile? Let us know in the comments! Be sure to visit our Local Concert Calendar for an expanded set of daily listings.
Exray’s and Tim Cohen celebrate new records at Cafe Du Nord
Jon Bernson and Tim Cohen have played together in Window Twins and Black Fiction, but on Friday, February 4th, the duo are celebrating new albums by their bands Exray’s and Tim Cohen’s Magick Trick. For Exray’s, it’s the band’s first full length, and comes after a lot of buzz and inclusion in the soundtrack for The Social Network; for Cohen, it’s the latest solo release from one of the Bay’s best artists. The show happens at Cafe Du Nord (9pm, $12), and also features Fiveng and DJ Cyclyst.
Exray’s – “Hesitation”
Tim Cohen – “Oh, Oh, Ohâ€
Cass McCombs plays a free show in advance of Wit’s End
Singer-songwriter Cass McCombs, who grew up in Concord, recently announced the upcoming release of Wit’s End, his fifth full length release, on April 12th. Before embarking on a U.S. tour this summer, he’ll be performing at one of the free Clift Sessions at the Clift Hotel this Friday night.
Cass McCombs – County Line by DominoRecordCo
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The Bay Bridged Presents: Thee Oh Sees, Sic Alps, Ty Segall, The Sandwitches at the Great American Music Hall, 2/9/11
January 31, 2011
On Wednesday, February 9th, four of San Francisco’s best bands come together for a night of rock and roll to benefit the Coalition on Homelessness, San Francisco. Add to that the fact that the Great American Music Hall remains one of the City’s best (and best-sounding) venues, and we’re excited to be a part of what should be an excellent show.
Thee Oh Sees
Sic Alps
Ty Segall
The Sandwitches
February 9, 2011
Great American Music Hall
8pm, $13 adv/$16 door, All Ages
Purchase Tickets Here
Thee Oh Sees – “Warm Slime”
Sic Alps – “Do You Want To Give $$?”
Ty Segall – “California Commercial (live)”
The Sandwitches – “Makes Me Sick”
About the bands: [More...]
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Video: Melted Toys ventures Into the Woods via own living room
January 28, 2011
Young and in lust with soft-pop and a drum machine, Melted Toys have started off on a strong path, with the date February 22 set for their debut 7-song EP. To garner attention before the release, the group brings us into the living room of their “cat palace” for a faux fog performance of “Portals,” made possible by Into the Woods.TV.
Yesterday, the trio unleashed the smooth-sailing “Come On” (via Altered Zones) from the upcoming Washed & Dried EP, which comes pressed to a 12″ via Underwater Peoples next month.
Previously:
- Review: Young Prisms/Melted Toys/Speculator at Bottom of the Hill 1/19/11
- Photos: Woodsman, Craft Spells, Melted Toys, Skeletal System at MILK
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From the Mailbag: Big Tree, Grand Lodge, Courtship
January 28, 2011
We get more submissions than we can handle here at TBB, so periodically we’ll dip into the mailbag and check out a bunch of songs we’ve recently received. As always, feel free to let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Big Tree – “The Concurrence Of All Things”
Big Tree relocated from Brooklyn to the Bay Area last summer, and the band’s been playing some local shows while working on a full length album and planning a national tour. The song above, a swirling, energized piece of folk-rock, comes from last year’s Home(here) EP.
Grand Lodge – “Pleasure Out Of Pain”
Grand Lodge is an SF band whose debut EP is expected out in March. There’s a certain 90s-indie feel to some of the angles in “Pleasure Out of Pain,” mixed with catchy art-pop. Grand Lodge emerged from the solo songwriting of bassist-vocalist Smith Dobson.
Courtship‘s not the first band to cover Shellac’s “Prayer to God,” which is understandable given the raw emotions conveyed in the lyrics. Courtship’s Patric Fallon described his approach as “to take the anger and ferociousness of Steve Albini’s original delivery and inject it with some sadness, regret, and loss—the protagonist lamenting his once tender love for the woman he can’t help but despise now.”
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Video: Sea of Bees @ Chasing the Moon
January 28, 2011
Sea Of Bees @ Chasing The Moon from Scott McDowell on Vimeo.
Chasing the Moon is a video podcast series best known for capturing delicately precious moments between musicians, and the latest CTM session features Sacramento’s quickly rising Sea of Bees. Finding lead lady Jules cross-legged on the floor with a keyboard definitely sets this apart from most Sea of Bees performances; in addition, the set brings out the enchanting melodrama of the band’s remarkable 2010 debut, Songs for the Ravens (Crossbill Records).
Setlist:
1. “Gnomes”
2. “Strikefoot”
3. “It Won’t Be Long”
Chasing the Moon releases new episodes about once a month. To be notified of future episodes you can subscribe to our podcast either through iTunes or with this feed.
Produced By: Brian Berberich, Shot By: Elijiah Pahati, Mixed By: Scott McDowell
Location: Hyde Street Studio C
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The Attachments – “I Wish I Could Always Be As Excited As I Am Now”
January 27, 2011
Photo by: Anna Gazdowicz
The Attachments – “I Wish I Could Always Be As Excited As I Am Now”
Go Away is the debut full length from Berkeley/Oakland indie pop band The Attachments, a record that the group’s been working on for what seems like forever. The ten-song set’s full of bright indie pop, culminating in album closer “I Wish I Could Always Be As Excited As I Am Now.” The Attachments’ CD release party is Saturday, January 29th at the Rickshaw Stop (8:30pm, $10) with The Hot Toddies and Scrabbel, and every attendee gets a copy of the new album.
