Show Review: Dennis Lloyd with Ryan Caraveo at Great American Music Hall, 4/11/19

Lloyd’s hair is shorter than this now. Either way, meeeooowwww.

The first time I heard Dennis Lloyd’s single, “Nevermind,” I was intrigued. I started hearing the song a lot on satellite radio, and on the music channel I turn my TV to when I’m in the kitchen. A month or so ago, Lloyd’s name came up on my radar: he was coming through the Bay on tour. I requested to cover the show and quickly forgot about it. I didn’t find out that I had a ticket until the day before the show. The next day, I realized I only knew that one song, so I spent several hours listening to Spotify’s This is Dennis Lloyd playlist. Unfortunately, I wasn’t into it. I’m a girl of my word, though, so I headed to Great American Music Hall on Thursday in hopes that Lloyd live would change my mind.

Continue reading “Show Review: Dennis Lloyd with Ryan Caraveo at Great American Music Hall, 4/11/19”

Single Of The Week: Shitty Ballet by Bleached

The last time we heard from Bleached was back in early 2017, when they released their brilliant EP and companion zine, Can You Deal?. Two years isn’t a long time in normal situations, but these last two years have felt like twenty. So, this has been on repeat on my headphones all day, and it will be in going with you, too.

Bleached are on tour right now with The Hives and Refused, but, sadly, do not have any Bay Area dates yet. Tour dates can be found here!

Show Review: Dermot Kennedy with Luca Fogale at Fox Theatre Oakland, 4/10/19

“An Evening I Will Not Forget,” indeed.

You know how sometimes all it takes is the first listen to a great new song by an artist you’ve never heard before, and you’re in? That’s how it was for me the first time I heard Dermot Kennedy’s “Power Over Me.” Not long ago, I was in my kitchen cooking dinner, with a music station playing on my TV. Before the lyrics of the song could even register in my brain, Kennedy’s haunting voice had drawn me in. I remember literally stopping what I was doing and turning around to gape at the screen so I could make a note of the artist. And then the lyrics hit me: “you’ve got that power over me… my, my… everything I hold dear resides in those eyes… you’ve got that power over me…” I’ve been obsessed with the song ever since. As soon as I could, I took a deep dive through Kennedy’s music, and accordingly made a note to catch him live as soon as possible. Last night, my chance came as Kennedy graced the stage at Fox Theatre in Oakland for the very first time. To say it was mildly earth-shattering is: an oxymoron, a little hyperbole, and also still somehow true.

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Show Review: SRSQ, Uniform, and The Black Queen at The Regent 03/28/19

“Maybe we could just…”

After a long work period it’s nice to have an evening to cut loose and check out some damn good music. It was this thought that ran through my head as I navigated through traffic on a Thursday night from Sherman Oaks to downtown Los Angeles to see The Black Queen perform at the Regent. It wasn’t too cold, though that may have been from all the traffic, and something in the air just said that tonight was going to be a good night for some dark and synthy dream pop.

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Film Feature: SFFILM 2019 Spotlights #1

62nd annual San Francisco International Film Festival opens today, Wednesday, April 10th

The 62nd annual San Francisco International Film Festival begins today, Wednesday, April 10th, and runs almost two weeks, until Tuesday, April 23rd. This year’s Festival boasts 163 films from over 50 countries in 36 languages, and will include twelve world premieres and five North American premieres. The Festival is proud that this year close to 45% of its films are directed by women. More information, complete program listings, and online tickets can be found here.

With so many offerings, figuring out your Fest schedule can be tricky. But never fear! As always, Spinning Platters has your back. We’ll get you started by sharing five Festival film spotlights (two narrative features and three documentaries). And of course be sure to check back here throughout the Festival for more spotlights and updates. 

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Show Review: Cass McCombs, Sam Evian at The Fillmore, 4/5/19

 

When Entering the iconic SF Fillmore, you are immersed in the 60’s & 70’s rock n roll scene, familiar whether you were there or not. Technicolor posters swirled with psychedelic, lettering illegible to sober eyes, line the walls from floor to ceiling.  Bill Graham’s spirit awaits guests at the top landing of the stairs with a barrel of shiny red apples — for free of course. Bill created the perfect container for musical adventurers. Continue reading “Show Review: Cass McCombs, Sam Evian at The Fillmore, 4/5/19”

Outside Lands 2019 Line Up HAS BEEN UNLEASHED

PSSST! Outside Lands has released their line up a little bit early… Like, um, 9am PST on Tuesday, March 26th early. And it’s pretty exciting! As usual, we are going to deep dive into the best acts from the bottom half of the calendar closer to the event. But, first, the headliners: both Paul Simon and Childish Gambino are postponing their retirements to visit us in Golden Gate Park. And, if you missed last year’s farewell shows at Oracle Arena from either of them, both were practically religious experiences. (I cried twice at that Childish Gambino show) Those two are pretty universally loved acts. The third headliner is twenty øne piløts, and, well, the moment I read that, I could see the Reddit page explode! That being said, just because a band sells a lot of records and crossed over to Top 40 radio, doesn’t devalue them. This duo first played early on the day in the 2013 Outside Lands Fest, and has taken their dissonant, tribal brand of dark pop rock, and continued to experiment with it while crossing over to the mainstream.

Other highlights include gospel legend Mavis Staples, R&B avant gardist Santigold, the most aggressive hip hop performer I’ve ever seen, Denzel Curry, 2018 Grammy winners Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals and Kacey Muscgraves, LA rock n roll heroes Cherry Glazerr, and SO MANY MORE! GA, VIP, and the brand new “Golden Gate Pass” with special elevated viewing area, a clear bag for your things, and much, much more. Tickets can be purchased starting Thursday, March 28th here!

Full line up below: Continue reading “Outside Lands 2019 Line Up HAS BEEN UNLEASHED”

Film Review: The Aftermath

Knightley, Skarsgård helm predictable but entertaining post-War melodrama

In 1946, British Rachael (Keira Knightley) is none too happy to meet the German Stefan (Alexander Skarsgård, l.), despite the fact she and her husband (Jason Clarke) will be sharing Stefan’s Hamburg home.

With Jordan Peele’s Get Out follow-up Us opening today and receiving a ton of buzz, you may not realize there actually are a few other quieter, less high-profile films opening today as well. One of these is The Aftermath, an old-fashioned historical drama that, while somewhat forgettable and ultimately predictable, is a serviceable alternative for those searching for something less intense than Peele’s headline-grabbing horror flick.
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Noise Pop Review: Anemone, Sugar Candy Mountain, Li Xi at Bottom Of The Hill, 2/27/19

The night’s NoisePop lineup at the always intimate and enjoyable Bottom of The Hill was an inspired collection of complementary bands, each unique but playing through similar sugary grooves. We just caught the tail end of the first act, Agouti, but as first acts go, they were delivering capably. The crowd was good and warm by our arrival. Continue reading “Noise Pop Review: Anemone, Sugar Candy Mountain, Li Xi at Bottom Of The Hill, 2/27/19”

Film Review: Gloria Bell

Every now and then she gets a little bit nervous / that the best of all the years have gone by 

Gloria (Julianne Moore) frequents LA’s dance clubs looking for love.

Chilean director Sebastián Lelio peppers his new picture Gloria Bell with enough ‘70s and early ‘80s pop songs to make a Gen X’er weep, but often it’s hard to distinguish whether the songs are meant to match the film’s themes, or the other way around. But to watch Julianne Moore, as the titular Gloria, in her car, alone, singing her heart out along with Olivia Newton-John’s “A Little More Love” is to experience a sublime and intimate moment with a fully realized and utterly unique character. Scenes like these make Leilo’s reliance on musical crutches forgivable. Continue reading “Film Review: Gloria Bell“