Author: Dakin Hardwick

Single of the Week: “SHELL (OF A MAN)” by Saya Gray

QWERTY II by Saya Gray is one of my favorite releases of 2024. It’s a sonic adventure that takes more twists and turns than expected in a single EP. But her psych prog soul jazz pop mega opus didn’t prepare me for “SHELL (OF A MAN).” All those elements are in play in this song, but if Gray landed in Nashville in 1976 and recorded the song with session players on Music Row. In a decade, Gray will be making music that strengthens your eardrums. 

“SHELL (OF A MAN)” is the first single of Gray’s first full-length, SAYA, coming your way on February 21st. Pre-order / pre-save here! 

Show Review: Hinds, The Happy Return at The Chapel, 10/15/24

As much as I’ve LOVED Hinds since they were called Deers, I feel like I’ve lost track of them. I missed their 2020 release, The Prettiest Curse, and haven’t seen them live since their 2016 appearance at the penultimate Treasure Island Music Festival. I kinda forgot about them, but their infectious single, “Boom Boom Back,” came up as a suggestion by the algorithm, and it hooked me in. Viva Hinds, their 4th full-length album (and first as a duo), is their most accessible record, and it’s fantastic. I made sure to clear my schedule to see them make their triumphant return to the USA.  Continue reading “Show Review: Hinds, The Happy Return at The Chapel, 10/15/24”

Single of the Week: “godheads” by dear francis

dear francis is the nom de plume of Jennifer Clavin, my personal favorite songwriter, possibly ever? She spent her teens and 20s co-fronting the legendary Mika Miko, then she broke off and put together the power-pop tinged Bleached, and now she’s gifted us with the third release as a solo artist, and it’s bloody intense. Produced by No Age’s Randy Randall, this song is about losing a dear friend to addiction and the complexities of the emotions involved. If you’ve been through this, the song will feel like a warm hug. If you haven’t, this track will get you a little closer to understanding someone who has. 

There’s exciting stuff on the horizon with dear francis. New tracks can be found here as they arrive, and for those in LA, she’s debuting this project live ON MY BIRTHDAY (10/27) and Heavy Manners Library! (I’m on the Bay Area and can’t make it, but you should!)

 

“In The Living Room”: New Maggie Rogers Single Ahead Of Arena Tour

Maggie Rogers will kick off her first-ever arena tour tomorrow night in Austin. To prepare for bringing a party to the biggest crowds of her career, she’s giving us… a haunting, tearjerker of a ballad that will force the entire arena into mutual tears! BRILLIANT! “In The Living Room” is an excellent addition to her canon, and I can’t wait to experience shared catharsis in a room with 30,000 other people.  

Tickets still available for *some* of her fall tour. You can find those here! It’s fitting that she’s giving us a song about lamenting those we lost while playing SF on Dia De Los Muertos. 

Single of the Week: “All The People” by Daisy The Great

Honestly, the only reason I put on this track was because it was produced by Tony Visconti, best known as the man behind the majority of David Bowie’s esteemed catalog, as well as the person who helped Marc Bolan tap into his inner swagger. “All The People” is a track in the same family as T Rex- blissful orchestral pop with Daisy the Great’s signature head-swimmy harmonies and just enough of an edge kicking in to hit home the supervision of joy.

I’m really excited to hear the rest of this record, which is great because Spectacle: Daisy the Great vs. Tony Visconti is out TODAY! 

Single of the Week: “Crystals” by Sea Lemon featuring Benjamin Gibbard

Two nights ago, our owner was seeing bôa in Seattle, and I got a text from him saying, “This band opening is definitely Dakincore.” This was the first time I learned that I have my own genre of music. So… what is “Dakincore”? It’s both very feminine and very loud. It’s heavy yet delicate, and it’s great. Sea Lemon is doing something beautiful, and it definitely makes you feel the feelings that good music makes you feel. 

“Crystals” is a one-off single that can be enjoyed in all the usual places. Follow Sea Lemon to hear more!  

Single of the Week: “What Are You Doing To Me” by Beau

“What Are You Doing To Me” is such a classic rock song. Singer Heather Goldin delivers this song with such a wonderful, exasperated sneer that crawls under my skin, just like it should. And, for optimal effect,  listen on headphones. I haven’t heard such a clever use of right/left panning in YEARS. By the end of the song, I actually am mad at whoever this person is that is stringing Goldin a long. 

“What Are You Doing To Me” is from Beau’s upcoming record, Girl Cried Wolf. Pre-order it from your favorite digital music provider today! 

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Presents a Bonkers Full Lineup!!!!

The good folks at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass have unleashed the most bonkers lineup of any music festival this fall… I stare at the poster, and something I missed the first time jumps out at me. Like, how is Patti Smith just hiding on that poster? Oh, because it’s alphabetical.  Oh, and the whole thing is free, and the best way to kick off Rocktober and the event runs October 4th – 5th in Golden Gate Park- using a lot of the same space Outside Lands uses. 

Highlights include my all-time favorite band, Sleater-Kinney, Cat Power doing her Bob Dylan show, punk poet John Cooper Clarke, Aoife O’Donovan & The SF Girls Choir, SP favorite Zella Day’s new band Chaparelle, and legends like Mavis Staples, Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle, Dave Alvin, Robyn Hitchcock, Bobby Rush, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, and so many more that I’m sure I’m missing someone that you will be mad at me for overlooking. 

Anyways! All the details are here. Daily lineups are below. And you can enjoy classic HSBs at HSB.TV! Continue reading “Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Presents a Bonkers Full Lineup!!!!”

Heart’s Royal Flush Tour has been rescheduled!

I was GUTTED when I found out that Heart had to cancel their Fall 2024 tour for vocalist/flutist Ann Wilson to receive and recover from cancer treatment. I was worried that this was the end. Happily, Wilson looks like she’s recovered and is ready to go! I will note that I’m gutted that their SF show at Chase Center isn’t happening on this round, although it’s making me speculate wildly about Bottlerock 2025. 

Dates begin February 28th in Las Vegas, and tickets can be purchased here on all dates! Tour dates after the jump, along with a ferocious recent rendition of the best rock song of the 70s below the jump: Continue reading “Heart’s Royal Flush Tour has been rescheduled!”

New Festival: United Sounds NYC

The guy who owns Spinning Platters, our first Editor-in-Chief, Gordon Elgart, remains furious that The Dismemberment Plan keeps neglecting to play the Bay Area. He remains furious that they KEEP ANNOUNCING EAST COAST SHOWS!!! Including a brand new (and very reasonably priced) festival in Brooklyn called United Sounds NYC. Joining them on the top line is the great Blonde Redhead. Fleshing out the bill will be Sunflower Bean, Les Savy Fav, Model/Actriz, Man Man, Monobloc, Peel Dream Magazine + more to be announced. And it’s my birthday weekend, so if you aren’t hanging out with me, you should do this. 

Tickets are on sale now!