Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
I kinda love a good, solid, melodramatic torch song. “Goodnight Moon” by Los Angeles’ Gabriella Marinaro may not be a torch song by strict definition, but in a concise 1:57 takes you on the same kind of emotional journey that the greats like Julie London or Amy Winehouse would take you through.
“Goodnight Moon” is the first single off Marinaro’s EP, Inner Space, due out May 6th. Keep an eye out on her official page and her Bandcamp for more details on this release!
If you are like me, you’ve been refreshing your inbox 2,235 times a day, waiting for ANY Outside Lands 2022 news. We’ve known the dates (August 5th-7th), we’ve purchased our Eager Beaver tickets. And now we have a lineup, and hopefully, I’m telling you first. Or maybe you’ve already read it, but, still! Continue reading “OUTSIDE LANDS 2022 LINEUP!! OUTSIDE LANDS 2022 LINEUP!!!”
I’ve DEFINITELY been sleeping on Nilüfer Yanya. “the dealer” is actually the 4th single off her second album, PAINLESS. It’s a frantic number that is so jittery it could be uncomfortable if the hook wasn’t so great. It’s a song that never “breathes,” the beat never drops, it just builds and then STOPS. It’s an emotional journey that she forces you on, whether you like it or not. And I like it.
You can find PAINLESS in all the usual places!
I know you’ve been patient. We have been, too. It feels like every major festival until the end of the year had dropped their line ups last month. Well, everyone except Outside Lands. FEAR NOT! Eager Beaver tickets are going on sale Wednesday, April 13th at 10am. YES, TOMORROW!! Those tickets are going live at https://sfoutsidelands.com/tickets.
You also know what that means? It’s time for Ranger Ruth and Ranger Dave to start dropping line up hints. And that’s happening on Tik Tok! It’s a fun game, and I’ll definitely be playing along. Hope you are, too! And see you in Golden Gate Park this August 5th-7th!
For those of you that have been following Spinning Platters since it’s inception (Hi, Mom!), you may recognize one of the two names sharing authorship of the book Bay Area Stand Up Comedy: A Humorous History. Yup! Our one-time comedy editor, OJ Patterson, has graduated from the world of volunteer blogging to become an actual published author! I’m so very proud!!! (I’m actually weeping a little. Don’t mind me!) I’m also very sad that, within his bio within the book, there is no mention of our little pocket of the internet. I won’t hold that against him, however. Because he, along with fellow Bay Area stand-up comic Nina G, has gifted the world with something that we’ve desperately needed: a written history of the highly influential Bay Area stand-up comedy scene.
There hasn’t been a debut rock record anticipated as hotly as Wet Leg’s debut in over 20 years. I haven’t seen this kind of prerelease hype since The Strokes’ monster debut Is This It. Continue reading “Album Review: Wet Leg / Wet Leg”
I’ve often said that the most rebellious music is disco. Being able to dance in the face of darkness is a far bolder move than anything presenting anger and violence. “sad disco” is one of the most vivid presentations of that feeling that I’ve ever heard. Oakland’s mxmtoon is clearly ready for the next level in her career, and this song is going to be the anthem for what may be the most confusing and weird Summer of our lives.
“sad disco” is the first single off mxmtoon’s upcoming record, rising… out May 20th. You can enjoy the single here! And, after the jump, you can get an eyeful of tour dates! Continue reading “Single Of The Week: “sad disco” by mxmtoon”
HOLY SHIT! I said that out loud when I hit the 2nd minute of this song. It’s not so much a song as it’s a sonic journey that takes you through nearly a dozen emotions and genres in a tight 3 1/2 minutes. This song is potent and powerful. It’s “experimental” but doesn’t sacrifice emotion for being clever. Our single of the week is an adventure for the ears and the heart and even on the 100th relisten, you’ll still find something new that you missed.
“IF THERE’S NO SEAT IN THE SKY (WILL YOU FORGIVE ME???)” the first single off Saya Gray’s debut record 19 Masters, is available in all the usual places on June 2nd.
I accept artist submissions for Single Of The Week. All you need to do is email me at promo@spinningplatters.com. But I get literally a hundred songs sent to me a day. I can’t listen to all of them. But I listen to the ones that I can, and hopefully, I can find a story to tell with the song, so you have some reason to listen. That being said, I found “Past Lives” by kohanna during a week of listening to a LOT of new songs, and this one’s hook just stuck with me. The opening notes- what I think is an African thumb piano- kept bringing me back. This gem of an electro-folk single reminds me of the debuts from Lorde and Sylvan Esso, putting her in great company.
You can learn more about kohanna here. She has a pretty extensive YouTube archive, and you can also find “Past Lives” on all the DSPs.
As with every other music blog on the planet, the editor in chief is allowed to play favorites and over-blog about their favorites. And, right now, Wet Leg is my favorite. And they finally have a fifth song out in the world! “Angelica” has a nice, clean, jittery riff that’s a little bit 60’s psych, a little bit Elastica, and definitely designed for getting “just drunk enough” at an indie dance club. Also, I definitely miss indie dance clubs.
Anyways, this song rips just like the other songs. They are playing the US this spring, but every show is sold out, just like God intended. (Try heading to SXSW or This Ain’t No Picnic in LA or Thing near Seattle.) You can also preorder their debut record, out April 8th, in a myriad of lovely ways. They even FINALLY have a t-shirt, just like Rhian prophesized in our interview last year.
