Noise Pop Festival – Page 5 – Spinning Platters

Noise Pop Review: Body/Head, Horsebladder, Burmese at Rickshaw Stop, 2/26/13

When Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore split up last year, my heart broke. I always felt that they were the perfect rock couple- Moore was the pop yin to Gordon’s experimental yang. And, as expected, Moore’s post Sonic Youth output has largely been filled with guitar pop. And Gordon has been largely quiet. So, when Noise Pop announced that they were featuring her new project, Body/Head, on their opening night of Noise Pop, I was thrilled. When I learned that it was a “noise” project with east coast avant gardist Bill Nace, I had very high hopes for this performance. My favorite Sonic Youth moments have always been when Gordon vocalizes over thunderous guitar shredding. To have a band that strips them down to the just this part was practically a dream show. So, yes, I needed to be there.

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Spinning Platters Interview: Chloe Chaidez of Kitten

Kitten at Bottom Of The Hill last June. Photo by Marie Carney

Kitten are a beast of a band. They play a furious blend of punk and new wave, while their lead singer, Chloe Chaidez, is at the tender age of 17, one of the most dynamic and aggressive front people in rock. We recently took the time out to speak Chaidez about their recently released EP, Cut It Out, the evolution of their sound and the logistics behind being in a teenage rock band. Kitten will be playing a Noise Pop Happy Hour show on Thursday, February 28th at Bender’s Bar & Grill as well as opening for Paramore at The Warfield on May 4th, and their debut full length is due to drop later this year. You’d be foolish to miss their live show.

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A Music Nerds Guide To Noise Pop 2013

Every year, for one week, the good people of Noise Pop with their epically refined tastes put together the best week of live music program of the year. And, of course, it could be highly intimidating as well. So, here is a well thought out guide to Noise Pop 2013.

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10 Quick Questions with Dawson Ludwig: Marketing Director for Noise Pop

The only time a Dave Matthews Band picture will be featured in a Noise Pop Preview

Noise Pop is having it’s 20th birthday this year, and it’s bigger than ever! What started out as a small, one night mini-festival at The Kennel Club (now The Independent), has evolved into a week long event that takes over nearly every venue in San Francisco. In addition, it’s organizers have also created Treasure Island Music Festival (aka The Best Music Fest in America in my opinion) and opened do415, a site to help music fans find shows. SpinningPlatters got the opportunity to talk with Noise Pop’s Marketing Director, Dawson Ludwig, to learn a bit about this year’s festival and his own evolution as a music listener.

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Noise Pop Show Review: The Fresh & Onlys, Disappears, Talkdemonic at Bottom of the Hill, 2/22/12

the-fresh-onlys-promo — The Fresh & Onlys gaze on...

The Bottom of the Hill is one of those venues where amazing things can happen. Its intimate space creates a setting where bands, their friends, and patrons can all rub elbows without the pretense of Rock Stardom bogging down a conversation. Many a band right on the verge of blowing up have graced the stage fully aware of their sparkling future and have played to it, creating an “I was there” situation where one constantly reminds his or her friends (or just about anyone who happens to be around) of the night they saw so-and-so play Bottom of the Hill. I’ve been known to drop an “I was there” once or twice myself (cough Arcade Fire cough).

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Spinning Platters Guide To Noise Pop 2012

For the last 20 years, the good folks of Noise Pop have turned a single show at Kennel Club (now known as The Independent) into a huge, weeklong festival that causes Bay Area music nerds to clear their calendar every year. In recent years, the fest has expanded beyond music- we have movies, craft fairs, and literary events in addition to one of the best programmed music fests you will ever go to. Go to 2012.noisepop.com for a full listing, but if you want to know what I think you should go to, follow the jump!

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Noise Pop Show Review: Ben Gibbard at Great American Music Hall, 2/27/11

Ben Gibbard is called out by Bob Mould at Noise Pop

Closing the Noise Pop festival with solo acoustic shows from Ben Gibbard and Zach Rogue was the right choice. People flew in from Europe, skipped the Oscars, even skipped church for an a relaxing evening at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall. The young crowd was a mix of experienced Noise Pop festival attendees and those that made last night’s show their select choice. Continue reading “Noise Pop Show Review: Ben Gibbard at Great American Music Hall, 2/27/11”

Noise Pop Show Review: No Age, Grass Widow, Rank/Xerox and Crazy Band at Rickshaw Stop, 2/26/11

I want it to be understood that I’m fucking sick of irony…and I’m not being ironic here either. Continue reading “Noise Pop Show Review: No Age, Grass Widow, Rank/Xerox and Crazy Band at Rickshaw Stop, 2/26/11”

Noise Pop Show Review: Peanut Butter Wolf, Dam Funk, Guillermo and Hakobo at Public Works, 2/26/11

Tables — The balconies at Public Works allow for this kind of educational view of the DJs at work

Do you remember when Hip-Hop was good and everything that came out was, well fresh? I’m talking about the days of Tribe Called Quest, Pharcyde, Freestyle Fellowship, Nas, DJ Shadow, The Roots, Paris, KRS- One, The Fugees, DJ Greyboy… I do, that’s when I fell in love with it. Before shorties having birthdays, and milkshakes in the yard. When grillz donned by Method Man were being sold on the back page of The Source and before the term ‘bling’ was added to the dictionary. I am ready for this goodness of Hip-Hop to return. Continue reading “Noise Pop Show Review: Peanut Butter Wolf, Dam Funk, Guillermo and Hakobo at Public Works, 2/26/11”

Noise Pop 2011 — My Notes and Ramblings

koala 11 — Kid Koala capped off my Friday evening, and I wasn't drunk. He really was wearing a koala suit. (Kid Koala action photos by David Price.)

What you might be thinking is, “why does he get to write all of his Noise Pop comments in one post when everyone else did full reviews of each night they went?” From an excuse standpoint, I’ll just say that I’ve been so busy editing posts, resizing & captioning photos, and redesigning the website, I decided to give myself a little slack. (Editor’s privilege?) But really, this all started because of Wednesday night.

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