The Bay Area is a great place to live because, well, we are never without amazing live music.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/31/12-6/6/12”
Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/31/12-6/6/12
Show Review: Spiritualized with Nikki Lane at The Fillmore, 5/23/12
In 1997, Britpop was at an odd sort of crossroads. The Oasis/Blur feud had already sort of fizzled out. Coldplay and Snow Patrol were still trying to figure out their inoffensive brands of soft rock. During that in-between period, we got two of the most fantastic British rock records off all time: Radiohead’s OK Computer and Spiritualized’s Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space. These two albums are both dark and intense bodies of work, and, to the surprise of nearly everyone, were both critical and commercial successes. The two bands even hit the road together, playing arenas around America, with their own different brands of apocalyptic, hypnotic, and vaguely psychedelic rock music. Of course, we all knew what happened to Radiohead- the remain one of the biggest bands in the world. However, Spiritualized ended up taking a very different path. Bandleader J Spaceman went through bouts of drug addiction and illness, causing trips to American to be few and far between in the last decade and a half. Thus making their recent trip to The Fillmore very special.
Continue reading “Show Review: Spiritualized with Nikki Lane at The Fillmore, 5/23/12”
Show Review: Tenacious D with The Sights at Fox Theater, 5/24/2012
If you search my iTunes account for “Jack Black,” you’ll find results in two separate areas: comedy films like School of Rock, and hidden in the music of a band known as Tenacious D. Their music has the distinction of being the only band on my entire iPod listed with the genre I call “comedy rock.” But the truth is, I never paid the band much mind. See, I love Mr. Black’s movies, and frankly I quite like everything I’ve seen of him as well. I’ve noticed over the years that he’s got a pretty great voice, too, which is how I came to acquire these Tenacious D albums. But the truth is, I’ve never really listened to them. I’m not sure why, but there’s the truth. So when I noticed they were headed my way (The Fox Theater in Oakland, to be exact) this week (Thursday night) promoting their newest album, Rize of the Fenix, I couldn’t pass up the chance to finally check out this band loud and live, the way I suspected they’re best experienced. Continue reading “Show Review: Tenacious D with The Sights at Fox Theater, 5/24/2012”
Film Review: “Men in Black 3”
starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, Emma Thompson
written by: Etan Cohen
directed by: Barry Sonnenfeld
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, and brief suggestive content
Show Review: Sparta with KI:Theory at The Independent, 5/21/2012
Rising from the ashes of a former band can be a help or a hinderance to a new act that has cut their teeth in the music scene and is ready to unleash a fresh new set of tunes to the world. When you are as volatile and chaotic of an act as At The Drive-In, it can safely be said that people will be waiting to see where your musicians will head and what songs they will craft next. While the afro-clad frontmen of the El Paso post-hardcore quintet went on to form The Mars Volta, and burst back into the world with a mindbendingly-wild blend of fusion punk and Latin-flavored experimental prog rock, co-founder Jim Ward and drummer Tony Hajjar followed in their original band’s aggressive-but-pensive footsteps with the newly formed quartet known as Sparta. While both bands endured their respective sets of ups and downs in terms of popularity and following, and despite the titanic response of the reformation of At The Drive-In all but eclipsing the enthusiasm for their sister acts, Ward and his cohorts have lost none of the furious passion that drives the aptly-named four-piece, and on Monday night, they returned to San Francisco to prove just how excited they were to share their rekindled energy with their most devoted fans.
Continue reading “Show Review: Sparta with KI:Theory at The Independent, 5/21/2012”
Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/24/12-5/30/12
The first of 400,000 outdoor music festivals of the Summer start this week, but there is plenty of other rocking for you, so good luck and make some excellent live music decisions.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/24/12-5/30/12”
SpinningPlatters Interview: Penelope Houston of The Avengers
Penelope Houston is a rock legend. She is the lead singer of seminal San Francisco punk rock band The Avengers, and actively performs with both The Avengers, and releases solo albums. She recently released a fine new record called On Market Street, as well as a 2-disc edition of the band’s 1983 debut full length, self titled release, often referred to as “The Pink Album.” The Avengers will be performing at The New Parish on Friday, May 25th. SpinningPlatters had the opportunity to sit down with Penelope to discuss her career and her writing process.
How do you feel about people constantly asking you questions about the Avengers?
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Show Review: Rachel Platten with Madi Diaz at Hotel Utah, 5/18/2012
What’s a girl to do with a Friday night off in San Francisco? When Rachel Platten is in town with her first headlining gig (supporting her album Be Here), the choice is easy. When she brings the lovely Madi Diaz with her and sets up her keyboard on the Hotel Utah’s tiny stage, I’ll even grab a girlfriend and be there with bells on, as was the case last Friday night. Continue reading “Show Review: Rachel Platten with Madi Diaz at Hotel Utah, 5/18/2012”
Film Review: “What to Expect When You’re Expecting”
starring: Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Anna Kendrick, Matthew Morrison, Rodrigo Santoro, Ben Falcone, Chace Crawford, Dennis Quaid, Brooklyn Decker, Rebel Wilson, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Chris Rock
written by: Shauna Cross and Heather Hach
directed by: Kirk Jones
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, thematic elements and language
Continue reading “Film Review: “What to Expect When You’re Expecting””
Film Review: “Battleship”
starring: Taylor Kitsch, Brooklyn Decker, Rihanna, Alexander Skarsgard, Liam Neeson
written by: Erich Hoeber and Jon Hoeber
directed by: Peter Berg
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, action and destruction, and for language