Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
Welcome to the dog days of Summer… We are in between all the festivals, and we get to melt our way into a sea of shows… Oh Wait! It’s the bay area! It’s a good thing that none of these are outdoors, because you will need a parka. Well, except for the Monkees, but Mickey Dolenz will keep you warm.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/7/11-7/13/11”
I’m not going to beat around the bush here… I really like Rihanna. I respect the fact that she doesn’t write her own music (or pretend to write their own music), because she doesn’t need to. I appreciate that, unlike many of her Rocafella peers, she doesn’t need to placate to the indie community for credibility. Because, quite frankly, I don’t need my pop stars hoping to get caught by the paparazzi at a Dirty Projectors show or swooning over Ratatat on their “blog.” Rihanna is a pure, classic pop star. And she knows how to handle an arena-sized live show.
Continue reading “Show Review: Rihanna, J Cole at Oracle Arena, 6/30/11”
It looks like things aren’t calming down for the bay area this July 4th… There are more than enough options, including several of the most controversial performers of the last 30 years… There is even a loin clothed wearing tea party icon playing on Divisadero, and I can’t wait to see what happens with that.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/30/11-7/6/11”
In 2007, Alison Krauss recorded a record with classic rock crooner Robert Plant. That record led to several years of touring, appearing on every critics’ best of list, and eventually helped solidify Krauss’ reputation as the queen of the Grammy’s. It also led to a 4 year hiatus from her regular band, Union Station. Everyone dabbled in solo stuff here & there, but rumors of a follow up to Raising Sand (the hit record that Krauss & Plantr recorded together) led some fans to worry that Alison Krauss + Union Station was a distant memory. This year, they quietly released a follow up to 2004’s excellent Lonely Runs Both Ways, the subdued Paper Airplanes. This led to their first stretch of shows since 2005, and SpinningPlatters caught them in the middle of their summer tour.
The one thing more dangerous than the “supergroup” is the “super star collaboration.” We’ve seen a lot of them lately, and for every great one like Bjork & The Dirty Projectors or Kimya Dawson & Aesop Rock, there are 100 Jay-Z & R. Kelly’s floating out there. On a warm Thursday Night, I ventured to the Tenderloin to see which side of the coin this Thao & Mirah project fell on.
Seriously folks…. What’s with all of these unGoogleable band names? Do you really think that’s a good idea? Some really great bands like BOBBY, Parachute, and Comma are all playing this week… And, I’m sorry, but you really need to sell yourselves hard at these shows so people remember you, and don’t end up finding Brady Bunch clips, airplane safety gear, or a book on grammar.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/23/11-6/29/11”
Can’t think of anything funny or witty to say… So here’s some Breeders lyrics:
Saints alive you’re saying
Walk in … squares
The hid are out, out for the year
It’s a lot of face
A lot of crank air
Eroding around here
Summer’s ready
Summer is ready when you are
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/16/11-6/22/11”
This week, you are treated to two youtube clips that I make brief appearances in… I think the loyal reader will be happy about that. Are you? Anyways, it’s a pretty good week for shows. Read on:
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/9/11-6/15/11”
Big shows, little shows, in between shows, there’s a little bit of everything for everyone this week. It’s a great week to go to shows in the bay!
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/2/11-6/8/11”
Memorial Day kicked off the first of a 3 night residency for Sleigh Bells, the much discussed and divisive band signed to MIA’s N.E.E.T. Records and featuring the bassist for the sadly overlooked teen pop groups RubyBlue, Alexis Krauss on vocals and Derek E Miller on guitar, formerly of Florida hardcore band Poison The Well. The hype behind these shows, where the first two sold out months ago, while a 3rd, smaller gig at Rickshaw Stop sold out moments after it went on sale last week, is amazing. The question is, does this band with only a single album under their belt, live up to the hype?
Continue reading “Show Review: Sleigh Bells, Neon Indian and Oberhofer at The Independent, 5/30/11”