Spinning Platters Interview: Kevin Allison of Risk! True Tales Boldy Told

Kevin Allison.credit Dave Dietz.sm
Photo by Dave Dietz

 

Kevin Allison is probably best known for being the tall, redheaded member of 90’s cult sketch comedy group The State. Since the dissolving of The State, Allison has been doing a podcast called “Risk! True Tales Boldy Told” where people tell stories from outside of socially accepted norms. He will be doing a Storytelling Workshop with Sketchfest at Brava Studio on Friday, January 31st at 3 PM (tickets). He will also be doing a live recording of Risk! at the Brava Theater at 7:30 on the 31st with Dana Gould, Nato Green, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Brendon Walsh telling stories, as well as an opening set by fellow The State alums Michael Showalter and Michael Ian Black (tickets). We had a chance to sit and talk with Allison ahead of these performances. Since he is a storyteller, I was only to squeeze in three questions. It’s ok, because I didn’t want him to stop talking! Continue reading “Spinning Platters Interview: Kevin Allison of Risk! True Tales Boldy Told”

Show Review: The Pharoah Sanders Quartet at Yoshi’s, 1/3/14

Sanders

Confession: I don’t know as much about jazz as I should. I do consider myself a music nerd, but my collection of jazz records consists of a handful of excellent staples (Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, John Coltrane’s Meditations and A Love Supreme, Dave Brubeck’s Time Out, and compilations from Sun Ra, Thelonious Monk, and Joao Gilberto), and I have a good idea as to who is important in the field. Pharoah Sanders is a name that I know from other artist’s referencing him as an influence more than anything else. That, and he played on Coltrane’s Meditations, which, in my own humble opinion, is one of the greatest pieces of art created by mankind.  Continue reading “Show Review: The Pharoah Sanders Quartet at Yoshi’s, 1/3/14”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 1/2/14-1/8/14

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Show Review: Icona Pop, k. flay, Sirah at The Fillmore, 12/18/13

iconapop

Icona Pop were supposed to play The Fillmore back in August. I was out of town, and bummed that I couldn’t make it. I don’t generally get excited about illness, but I was happy that one of the members falling ill led to a rebooking to a date I can make.  The rescheduling didn’t hurt attendance, either, as it was still the hottest ticket in town. They are riding high on a debut record where nearly every track is all over the radio, from the spring time smash “I Love It,” to the current “All Night,” they are one of the few break out acts of 2013. So selling out The Fillmore was a most epic way to end a stellar year.

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/18/13-12/24/13

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Merry Christmas! Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/18/13-12/24/13”

Spinning Platters Interview: Janet Varney, Cole Stratton, and David Owen, Organizers Of SF Sketchfest

SF Sketchfest

This is the 13th year of the SF Sketchfest, and it seems to be getting bigger every year. The event’s founders, David Owen, Janet Varney, and Cole Stratton tooks a few minutes out of their day, busily putting together another epic line up, in order to chat with me. Tickets for all dates go on sale on December 15th, and you can find a full line up of festivities here:

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Spinning Platters Interview: Director Sini Anderson of “The Punk Singer”

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The Punk Singer is a documentary about the life of Kathleen Hanna, the feminist icon best known for being the frontperson for two of the most innovative bands of the last twenty years: Bikini Kill and Le Tigre. Spinning Platters had the honor of getting to sit down and talk with the director of this film, Sini Anderson. The film covers nearly all of Hanna’s life, and is a fantastic document. The movie opens Friday, December 6th at The Roxie in SF!

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/4/13-12/10/13

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Coming to The Fillmore, this Thursday Night!

Wednesday, December 4th

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Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 11/27/13-12/3/13

DaveTurkeyDay Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 11/27/13-12/3/13”