There were quite a few hurdles over this year’s Treasure Island Music Festival. Not only were they up against a the BART strike, essentially crippling transportation into San Francisco, but it may have been the coldest October weekend I’ve ever experienced in San Francisco. However, those things didn’t stop the people from coming out in full force to this year’s event. In fact, it was a sell out year for the event! Proof that us San Francisco residents don’t let little logistical nuisances spoil our fun.
Yes. Lionel Richie. Everyone needs to see Lionel Richie before they day. I saw him in Austin a last year, and he killed with a high energy, two hour set that started at 11:30 at night. Every song is a classic, and he’s one of the finest performers out there. There is nothing more fun you could do this night than dance all night long. (all night)
Paramore’s “brand new eyes” was a one of the best albums of 2009. It was a glorious peace of emotionally dynamic guitar rock. However, I didn’t know how deep those emotions ran until learning that half the band left during the tour for the record. It required Paramore to take stock if itself, and managed to take four years to produce a follow up. What we got was one of their most aggressive and ferocious record to date.
Braids, Hundred Waters, Kodak To Graph at Rickshaw Stop
There is never any reason to do anything other than Treasure Island Music Festival if you are in town the weekend of said festival. It is the best music festival in America. Of course, you should read this for maximum enjoyment! The best part is that there is no overlap. So you don’t need to decide between Animal Collective and Sleigh Bells or Tricky and Atoms For Peace. It’s the best value for your festival dollar.
I bet you forgot about The Sounds. They’ve put out several wonderful records filled with Blondie-inspired dance rock, and they aren’t showing any signs of stopping. Just because radio station programmers have decided to stop getting behind these wonderful Swedes doesn’t mean you should. I think you should be shaking your booty at The Fillmore tonight, because Mondays are hard, so your Monday night should be pure bliss.
It’s official. There are now more original Beach Boys touring with Brian Wilson than touring in the actual Beach Boys. This show is, essentially, an extension of last year’s epic Beach Boys reunion tour, only instead of Mike Love, we’ve got guitar legend Jeff Beck. Which means that this show might actually be better than last year’s tour.
Fact: Au Revoir Simone took their name from Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. If that’s not enough of a selling point, then just listen to their super fun brand of synth pop:
Rocktober is already in full swing this year. Early Rocktober is starting with a lot of folk music and a two rare public appearances by groundbreaking 80’s bands. It’s gonna be a good one!
Melt-Banana are one of those bands that I consider to be a rite of passage for anyone that is a serious music listener. They essentially invented the genre of music known as “spazz.” At one point in time, a friend of mine referred to them as “Barely listenable. Which is why I insist in listening to them frequently.” They’ve recently released their 9th studio record, Fetch, their first record in five years. They are also about to embark on their first tour of the US as only the core duo: vocalist Yasuko Onuki and guitarist Ichirou Agata, which their breakneck drum parts being performed by a computer instead of a human. The band will be hitting The Oakland Metro Operahouse on November 16th. Tickets available here!
Have you every felt the deep desire the mosh? Like, really, really badly? Because it happens to me. And when I do it, it feels good. It feels so good that I want to extend that blissful feeling to one of our lucky readers. So, on Wednesday, October 9th at Rickshaw Stop, Denmark’s Iceage will be helping you get your pit on. They are coming around in support of their excellent new record You’re Nothing. It’s even an all ages show, so ANYONE CAN COME!!!
Click here to enter to win two tickets! Contest ends on Thursday, October 3rd at midnight. Winner will be notified in the afternoon on October 4th. Of course, if you don’t win, you should still buy a ticket here!
I distinctly remember my first experience with Zola Jesus. She was a side effect of my obsession with trying to see every Canadian band. It was July of 2010, and I was set to enjoy Wolf Parade, not knowing that they would be splitting not long later. Zola Jesus was the first of two support acts, and a most surprising one before a rock band. Zola Jesus, the nom de plumb of Nika Roza Danilova, was the most unassuming frontperson. She was backed by a pair of synth players, and simply stood their and let her voice handle all of her performance duties. It was fantastic and beautiful, and very brave. I enjoyed the set immensely, and, somehow, forgot about her a few months later.
What’s this? This is the latest release from Matt & Kim. And you, our lucky reader, gets to listen to it before you are able to purchase it! Lightning Remixes features remixes of tracks from last year’s excellent Lightning by Anamanaguchi, DJ Venom, Bonde do Role and many more.
The album is available in all the usual places on October 1st!
All photos by Kara Murphy. Check out the full gallery here!
The last time Kathleen Hanna performed music in San Francisco was over 8 years ago, opening for Beck at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. It was the first time I had gotten a chance to see her, after being consistently sold out of gigs for most of my life. Their 45 minute set was excellent, but I kept wanting more. I wanted a crowd that cared. Alas, I had to wait nearly a decade to see the woman that coined the phrases “Riot Grrl,” “Girl Power,” and “Smells Like Teen Spirit” play a full set of music. Sure, I really wanted a Bikini Kill reunion, but getting her to dig up her old Julie Ruin moniker with fellow Bikini Killer Kathi Wilcox on board was a suitable replacement.
