Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
starring: Abbie Cornish, Andrea Riseborough, Oscar Isaac, James D’Arcy, Richard Coyle, James Fox, Judy Parfitt
written by: Madonna and Alek Keshishian
directed by: Madonna
MPAA: Rated R for some domestic violence, nudity and language
starring: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Jessica Lange, Sam Neill, Scott Speedman, Wendy Crewson
written by: Jason Katims, Abby Kohn, Marc Silverstein, and Michael Sucsy
directed by: Michael Sucsy
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for an accident scene, sexual content, partial nudity and some language
February is a pretty nutty month for shows in SF. And that’s not just counting Noise Pop… The weeks warming up to Noise Pop are pretty insane, too! So, clear your schedule, and go out to a few shows!
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 2/9/12-2/15/12”
Sketchfest, the three week long behemoth of a comedy festival came to a mind-melting close on Saturday night. Although there were some more popular events with bigger stars, nothing stood up to the sheer volume of “Bring The Rock.” This was, quite literally, the first time I ever needed to wear ear plugs at a comedy club.Yes, other shows were fun, but nothing could prepare you for this epic event.
Reviewing w00stock is a silly concept. I’ve done it once before. Because the event is performed under the Creative Commons non-commercial, attribution, share alike license (as is this website), the entirety of the thing is online in video form for your viewing pleasure. But which videos are the best? That’s the hard part. So rather than a standard review, I’ll instead give you a guided tour to The Best of w00stock Founders’ Night, as found on the Internet. Continue reading “Sketchfest Review: w00tstock Founders’ Night at Marines Memorial Theater, 1/29/12”
When we started Spinning Platters back in 2009, we really weren’t thinking about the fact that our name could remind people of two ground breaking, classic R&B groups. We were really trying to get at a pun on records, CD’s, and hard drives. I’m not sure where the trigger came from reminding us of The Platters and The Spinners, but I decided that we needed to be there the next time either act played. Due to legal reasons, it seems that the likelihood of a Platters show is slim, but when Yoshi’s announced a three night stint with The Spinners, well, I had to seize this moment.
Continue reading “Show Review: The Spinners at Yoshi’s — Jack London Square, 2/3/12”
Will Durst doesn’t shy away from political humor, and with 2012 bringing us one of the most entertaining lineups in Republican presidential primary history, it didn’t matter which one was chocolate and which one was peanut butter. Johnny Steele and four other comics made sure that both got all over each other.
Dripping late from a brisk sprint through San Francisco’s saturated cloudiness, I stepped into an alternate reality. Everything looked copasetic: the expansive and brimming Eureka Theater with Phil LaMarr and Jordan Black beginning a scene. Not quite, the truth: the expansive and brimming Eureka Theater with Lewis J. Poole and Danger beginning a scene.
Polle and Danger are two African American actors separated by age but bonded by prior convictions and thespian rehabilitation. They were bad, objectively horrible, nightmarishly stiff and unflinchingly unaware. It was brilliant. Continue reading “Sketchfest Review: Beverly Winwood’s “The Actors Showcase” 1/22/2012″
Comedy, as a method of entertainment, works best when we can relate to the entertainer, and the exaggeratedly hilarious (yet quite often true) stories that they tell. Most standup artists use this science as the core of their act, pointing out the sometimes terribly obvious, but far more often insignificant, details that we all have experienced, barely speak about, and yet go through on a regular basis. That excess blast of thought over such inane minutiae succeeds at hitting our funny bones hard, not only because of the presentation, but because we can, in fact, relate. If this is a regular formula for comedic success, then anyone willing to break the mold and give those common trivialities a winning partner with absurdity, disconnection, and whimsical rambling has the potential to turn heads, and in the case of Reggie Watts, he succeeds spectacularly, and leaves you wondering what the hell just bowled you over with laughter.
Continue reading “Sketchfest Review: Reggidency: A Reggie Watts Series”
Some of the most talented people on earth hail from right here in the San Francisco Bay Area. In fact, we have so many uber-talented musicians, writers, comics, speakers, artists, chefs, and so on, that it’s easy to take them for granted. Reggie Watts is one of those performers. He seems to be performing all the time, and everyone in the bay area seems to swoon over him. Yet, I have yet to see him. It could be due to the fact that every show sells out, no matter what the venue. Which is also how Sketchfest was able to book him four nights in a row, also giving him the ability to indulge in whatever he pleases.
Continue reading “Sketchfest Review: Reggie Watts, Garfunkel & Oates at Mezzanine, 2/1/12”