Author: David Price

Photo Journal: Rock The Bells at Shoreline Amphitheater, 8/27/11

The crowd at RTB 2011

Guerilla Union’s annual traveling hip hop roadshow touched down in Mountain View recently, and it may have been the best one yet. It proved that Lauryn Hill can still play the big rooms. It proved that The Infamous Mobb Deep, Cypress Hill’s Black Sunday, Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star, and Illmatic by Nas are all classic records have stood the test of time. We saw that comedian Donald Glover’s alter ego Childish Gambino is doing some of the most inventive stuff in hip hop. We also learned that no matter how much critical acclaim you’ve got, you still have to contend with nature, causing east coast rappers Mac Miller and Doom to stay behind.

Without further adieu, here are the sites of Rock The Bells 2011:

Continue reading “Photo Journal: Rock The Bells at Shoreline Amphitheater, 8/27/11”

Show Review: Public Enemy at Yoshi’s SF, 1/14/2011


Yoshi’s might not be a typical spot for a hip-hop show, especially one that can incite the kind of passion that Public Enemy can. However, recalling that Public Enemy put out their first record nearly 24 years ago, Yoshi’s might actually be the perfect place for one of the undisputed best Hip-Hop groups to Bring the Noise. Continue reading “Show Review: Public Enemy at Yoshi’s SF, 1/14/2011”

Show Review: LIGHTS at Slim’s, 10/25/2010


LIGHTS is definitely not hard on the eyes! Think Alexandra Lawn from Ra Ra Riot but edgier. She’s not exactly hard on the ears either. Synth heavy female vocals, lightly backed by a drummer, and when I say lightly I mean he could play with one arm half the time.  She breaks from her elrctro-pop way mid-way through her set to play a solo acoustic song off her purely acoustic EP, and to do what I guess would be a “cover” of the YouTube video “hide your kids hide your wife,” And then she finishes out the remainder of the set like the beginning. Continue reading “Show Review: LIGHTS at Slim’s, 10/25/2010”

Show Review: Rusko at The Mezzanine, 9/28/2010


If you’re not into electronic music, then Rusko might be hard for you to swallow. However, if you are, it might be exactly that new pill you’ve been asking about that no one seems to have. Rusko is undisputedly one of the premier dupstep producers and DJs in the world, and also one of the busiest. By the end of 2010 he will have attacked San Francisco four times! Cramming all those gigs in might seem tiresome, that is until you see Rusko. With more power and energy than that drumming pink bunny, Rusko takes hype and turns the heat up. In fact. the heat was quite literally turned up Last night at the Mezzanine mostly due to the 80 degree weather outside at 10pm, but also due to a room full of half-naked 20-somethings most likely juiced on more then just a tall boy of Pabst. Continue reading “Show Review: Rusko at The Mezzanine, 9/28/2010”

Show Review: Portugal. The Man at The Fillmore 6/18/10


If there is any one band that’s keeping the idea of psychedelic rock alive, it’s Portugal. The Man. That’s not to say that there are not other bands out there that partake in psychedelic rock, moreso that Portugal’s ability to blend other more popular styles of rock in to their psychedelic style has helped keep them relevant and accessible to more of a broader audience.

Continue reading “Show Review: Portugal. The Man at The Fillmore 6/18/10”

Show Review: The Bloody Beetroots (Live) at The Independent, 4/22/10

The Bloody Beetroots own the stage.

For the longest time I have been looking for an electronic DJ to bridge the gap from DJing and samples to actually playing tracks live. The Bloody Beetroots seem to have done it. Not only have they done it, but they did it in a way that demands you to rethink electronic music! Continue reading “Show Review: The Bloody Beetroots (Live) at The Independent, 4/22/10”

Show Review: Flosstradamus at The Independent, 4/3/10

When will they put the Spinning Platters laptop sticker on there?

Flosstradamus isn’t really one of those groups that you’d want to go “see.” Flosstradamus is really a group that you go to simply dance to. Think of The Independent as your living room and these hundred or so random folks as some of your closest friends. Now turn down the lights, and turn up the Flosstradamus. Continue reading “Show Review: Flosstradamus at The Independent, 4/3/10”

Show Review: Neon Indian at The Mezzanine, 3/26/10

Coming up with a new way to rock your world

It’s not hard to see why Spin magazine calls Neon Indian one of the top ten bands most likely to break in 2010. There’s nothing to dislike. Beats that demand dancing and vocal melodies that layer with funky 80’s synth so well, you’d have to be a regular Principal Belding not to like the energetic romp of Neon Indian. Continue reading “Show Review: Neon Indian at The Mezzanine, 3/26/10”

Our 30 Favorite Photos from SXSW 2010

his Orchestra gets honorary slot #31 because we like the band so darned much

While the photos on this post are all by David Price, he’s in Vegas this week, so all the text here is simply an …

Editor’s Note: Our photographer, David Price, dealt with inconsistent lighting, security that weren’t all on the same page, a lack of photo pits, and plenty of cameras in his face to take over 10,000 photos at SXSW. And then I went and boiled them all down here to 30 favorites. There’s other photos in individual posts, and we’ll be drawing from other ones as we continue our coverage as well.  Inside, you’ll find several shots of the most photogenic guy at SXSW this year, Pink Eyes of Fucked Up, including one with our managing editor Dakin Hardwick. It’s not the most well-lit shot in the world, and it’s not particularly newsworthy, but we like it. And that’s how I picked these 30 photos. Because we like them. Continue reading “Our 30 Favorite Photos from SXSW 2010”