Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
Welcome to the dog days of Summer… We are in between all the festivals, and we get to melt our way into a sea of shows… Oh Wait! It’s the bay area! It’s a good thing that none of these are outdoors, because you will need a parka. Well, except for the Monkees, but Mickey Dolenz will keep you warm.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/7/11-7/13/11”
I’m not going to beat around the bush here… I really like Rihanna. I respect the fact that she doesn’t write her own music (or pretend to write their own music), because she doesn’t need to. I appreciate that, unlike many of her Rocafella peers, she doesn’t need to placate to the indie community for credibility. Because, quite frankly, I don’t need my pop stars hoping to get caught by the paparazzi at a Dirty Projectors show or swooning over Ratatat on their “blog.” Rihanna is a pure, classic pop star. And she knows how to handle an arena-sized live show.
Continue reading “Show Review: Rihanna, J Cole at Oracle Arena, 6/30/11”
This evening with Sondre Lerche and friends reminded me about why I go to shows. The right performer can take their music and twist it just the right amount to bring you something new and dynamic with their live show. Sondre Lerche, with his sweet pop/rock sounds on record will rock the hell out of you live; jumping around and playing his guitar hard. It is unexpected and quite punk rock of him. Add to that a great accompanying band and his intricate melodies and you get a show to remember. Continue reading “Show Review: Sondre Lerche with Nightlands and Kishi Bashi at Great American Music Hall, 6/28/11”
starring: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Bryan Cranston, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Cedric the Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson, Rita Wilson, Wilmer Valderrama, George Takei, Pam Grier, Rob Riggle
written by: Tom Hanks and Nia Vardalos
directed by: Tom Hanks
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for brief strong language and some sexual content
It looks like things aren’t calming down for the bay area this July 4th… There are more than enough options, including several of the most controversial performers of the last 30 years… There is even a loin clothed wearing tea party icon playing on Divisadero, and I can’t wait to see what happens with that.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/30/11-7/6/11”
In 2007, Alison Krauss recorded a record with classic rock crooner Robert Plant. That record led to several years of touring, appearing on every critics’ best of list, and eventually helped solidify Krauss’ reputation as the queen of the Grammy’s. It also led to a 4 year hiatus from her regular band, Union Station. Everyone dabbled in solo stuff here & there, but rumors of a follow up to Raising Sand (the hit record that Krauss & Plantr recorded together) led some fans to worry that Alison Krauss + Union Station was a distant memory. This year, they quietly released a follow up to 2004’s excellent Lonely Runs Both Ways, the subdued Paper Airplanes. This led to their first stretch of shows since 2005, and SpinningPlatters caught them in the middle of their summer tour.
The one thing more dangerous than the “supergroup” is the “super star collaboration.” We’ve seen a lot of them lately, and for every great one like Bjork & The Dirty Projectors or Kimya Dawson & Aesop Rock, there are 100 Jay-Z & R. Kelly’s floating out there. On a warm Thursday Night, I ventured to the Tenderloin to see which side of the coin this Thao & Mirah project fell on.
starring: Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Jason Segel, Lucy Punch, Phyllis Smith, John Michael Higgins, Thomas Lennon, Eric Stonestreet, Molly Shannon
written by: Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg
directed by: Jake Kasdan
MPAA: Rated R for sexual content, nudity, language and some drug use.
Keren Ann and opener Chris Garneau put on a dreamily beautiful, strikingly intimate show at Yoshi’s SF last night. Keren Ann is touring behind her latest album, 101, which finds the French chanteuse exploring electronic textures rather than the spare, heartrending acoustics with which she has become associated; the album, with its more aggressive tone and dashes of lyrical violence, inspired the New York Times to stupidly dub it “gangsta folk”. But don’t run for your ghetto blasters just yet, because if last night’s show was any indication, Keren Ann won’t be abandoning her chansons and acoustic guitar any time soon.
Continue reading “Show Review: Keren Ann with Chris Garneau at Yoshi’s SF, 6/21/2011”
Seriously folks…. What’s with all of these unGoogleable band names? Do you really think that’s a good idea? Some really great bands like BOBBY, Parachute, and Comma are all playing this week… And, I’m sorry, but you really need to sell yourselves hard at these shows so people remember you, and don’t end up finding Brady Bunch clips, airplane safety gear, or a book on grammar.
Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/23/11-6/29/11”