Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
Maybe I don’t get out enough. When I think multiple local bands on a single bill, I think of Noise Pop Fest, or maybe Phono Del Sol. Certainly something of a local festival flavor, or maybe a tiny bar. That’s why I was excited to hear about Andrew St James pulling together some friends and fellow local musicians at The Chapel for an event billed as FAST TIMES. Continue reading “Show Review: Fast Times: Holy Spirit, Sandy’s, French Cassettes at The Chapel, 9/14/19”
It’s been a tough couple of weeks as a nation. Mass shootings in Gilroy, Dayton, and El Paso were not particularly well timed with Outside Lands. In the days leading up to the festival, many people were debating whether or not it was safe to go. Maybe we were next? I had a long talk with my partner about going this year, which included a plan for alerting each other to our safety, and talking about all of the steps that I’ve observed in my years attending this festival that have made me feel safe. In fact, I think I feel safer in Golden Gate Park during Outside Lands than pretty much anywhere else on Earth.
I’m also a firm believer in “not letting terrorists win.” We can’t let these folks scare us off from living. And, seriously, if you don’t have communing with friends and strangers to appreciate live music, is life really worth living? I’m going to keep going to shows and supporting life music because, well, I really think my life depends on it. Continue reading “Outside Lands 2019: Instant Gig Reviews”
Photos and review by: Alan Ralph @ARPhotoSF
After a few days of rehearsals at Toyota Amphitheatre in nearby Wheatland to figure out how to put together their massive stage set, Slipknot‘s Knotfest Roadshow officially kicked off at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View on July 26. Joining Slipknot was an international array of metal including Volbeat (Denmark), Gojira (France), and Behemoth (Poland).
Continue reading “A local stagehand’s review of Slipknot’s Knotfest Roadshow at Shoreline, 7/26/19”
Featuring three possible fathers and a collection of ABBA hits, Mamma Mia! tells the story of mother-daughter Donna and Sophie as they navigate love, loss, and self-discovery. Widely staged throughout the world, SJSC’s production brings a level of intimacy to the story. Due to the space and set design (Michael Palumbo), the show feels a bit like the movie starring Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried where the focus becomes less about theatrics and more on the interactions between cast members. Songs include big hits such as Dancing Queen, Voulez-Vous, Lay All Your Love on Me, and the musical’s namesake, Mamma Mia. Continue reading “Theater Review: Last Weekend to Catch San Jose Stage Company’s Production of Mamma Mia!“
It’s July, and another successful SF Pride Parade is in the books… or so I hear. I personally missed it, sadly, but I did so for good reason. Obviously, we live in one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world, and while it would have been fun to come out to share the celebration (not to mention the spectacle) that is Pride in the Bay Area, I chose instead to celebrate with the LGBTQ+ youth of Salt Lake City.
Utah is, of course, fairly synonymous with Mormonism. Imagine growing up LGBTQ+ and having to consider whether to stay closeted, or to come out and risk being shunned, rejected, or excommunicated not only from your entire church, but your community and likely your whole family, too. It’s not hard to see why the LGBTQ+ youth in the LDS church have an incredibly high suicide rate. Enter one of the most famous Mormons this side of Donny & Marie: Imagine Dragons’ frontman, Dan Reynolds. Reynolds founded the LoveLoud Foundation, which puts on an annual festival in the Salt Lake City area every June to allow a safe place to celebrate Pride while raising money for local and national LGBTQ+ charities.
Continue reading “Festival Review: LoveLoud 2019 at USANA Amphitheatre, 6/29/19”
A double EP is always a little indulgent, but in this case we might forgive Bill Callahan a little indulgence. He’s been preoccupied these last six years, getting married and raising a son. Settling down. Continue reading “Show Review: Bill Callahan, Meg Baird at Castro Theater, 6/18/19 & Gundlach Bundschu Winery, 6/19/19”
“There’s so many dreams I’ve yet to find…” sings Carole King at her piano, as played by Sarah Bockel, in “So Far Away,” a powerful opening number that feels like an intimate concert. Bockel captures the nuances of King’s voice from her start in Brooklyn to her finish at Carnegie Hall. The musical returns to San Francisco, where it first premiered at the Curran Theatre in 2013. If only life worked like that, as Bockel’s King sings, “it would be so fine to see your face at my door…” and it takes a really strong songwriter to capture so much in one song. It’s the vulnerability through which she shares her life that allows her to speak for so many through her voice. Continue reading “Theater Review: SHN Presents Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at Golden Gate Theater”
As I get older, I have to admit that I really appreciate having a barricade to shoot photos from. I get that it’s not most audience member’s cup ‘o tea, but when you’re lugging around 5k worth of camera equipment it’s nice to not have to worry quite as much about being shoved around by rabid fans. This is one of the reasons why I tend to truly enjoy concerts at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood. Continue reading “Show Review: IDLES, Fontaines D.C. at The Fonda Theatre 2019/05/22”
It’s been 21 years since 2-Tone veterans The Specials have released any new, original material. Their legacy would have been preserved just fine if they decided to continue touring the classics, and audiences would still keep coming out to the shows even if all they did was keep playing the hits. It would seem that a band best known for their activist roots and songs with shrewd, biting observations about class warfare, racism, economics, and such, would only start writing again if the current world situation were to inspire it. And, sure enough, this year’s Encore is a full length response to the rise of fascism throughout Europe and the Americas. Continue reading “Show Review: The Specials at The Fox Theater, 5/25/19”
I have to start by admitting that what I witnessed this evening is difficult to paraphrase. To do so would be a disservice to the intimacy and honesty that Amanda Palmer shared with us. While that certainly sounds like an excuse for laziness, I am being quite earnest. It’s hard to come to terms with it, but I’m at a complete loss of how to describe what I experienced in that giant ex-movie palace where I watched a woman tell her story armed with nothing but a Steinway grand piano, a ukulele, and a hell of a lot more bravery than I think I’ll ever know.
