Dakin’s taking the week off to play with his cat and get ready for the Treasure Island Music Festival. I’m ready for the festival — Friendly Fires, Cut Copy, Explosions in the Sky, Death Cab For Cutie, Empire of the Sun, Battles, Geographer, Aloe Blacc, many more, bring it! — so I’m suggesting shows for the rest of the week.
Thursday, October 13th
Foster the People with Cults and Reptar at The Fillmore
The first of two sold out nights featuring this year’s band that came out of nowhere, Foster the People. They have an incredibly catchy earworm of a tune, “Pumped Up Kicks,” but when you see them live, you’ll like all of their other songs better. They seem to be enjoying their new found fame, so see them while they still are. Tickets will be around somewhere.
Thomas Dolby at Bimbo’s 365 Club
A lecture and performance. This looks awesome. Can anyone tell me why I’m not going?
Thee Oh Sees at Brick and Mortar Music Hall
This is a free show, so sign up and go.
Friday, October 14th
Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls with Andrew Jackson Jihad and ‘Into It. Over It.’ at Slim’s
I saw this guy a couple of years ago, having never heard of him before. He was freaking awesome. Now, he’s got a backing band, and his awesomeness has not lessened. Go listen to some inspiring songs from an exciting performer. And if you’re an anglophile, even better.
Bryan Ferry with Phenomenal Handclap Band at The Fox Theater – Oakland
This will be good, with or without any Roxy Music songs. But it would be nice to hear some Roxy Music songs.
Saturday, October 15th
Journey with Foreigner and Night Ranger at Shoreline Amphitheater
This show is the only excuse I’ll accept as valid for your not being at Treasure Island today. Seriously, it’s ok if you go to Journey. I want to sing “Don’t Stop Believing” with 15,000 drunken idiots, really I do. Also, I like to act out one of the greatest bad videos of all time.
JFK with Chain Gang of 1974 at Mezzanine
You’re not too tired to keep going? Good for you. Keep dancing!
Sunday, October 16th
Why aren’t you at Treasure Island today? Death Cab For Cutie, Explosions in the Sky, and Friendly Fires are just three of the dozen bands playing today. Oh, what’s that? You don’t want to take a free bus to the best music festival in SF? Fine, stay home and watch football. And text me updates, please.
Monday, October 17th
The Musical Box at The Regency Ballroom (also Sunday the 16th)
This is a prog nerd’s dream. Almost. Perhaps the greatest tribute band of all time, The Musical Box broke up a few years ago, and are doing a reunion tour of their most popular tribute, the complete Lamb Lies Down on Broadway album, complete with the original projections from Genesis’s tour of the same album. This is, frankly, ridiculously cool. Since you may have seen Australian Pink Floyd last week, and The Musical Box this week, can Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience be far behind?
Compare the shaky bootleg to the Musical Box version. Uncanny, no?
Tuesday, October 18th
The Adrian Belew Power Trio with Stickmen at The Regency Ballroom
OK, prog nerds, you’re going to spending a lot of time at The Regency Ballroom this week. Tonight is Adrian Belew Power Trio, during which you’ll hear all sorts of crazy sounds coming out of the guitar of one of the all time greats. The opener is two bass players from King Crimson, and they promise a Crimcentric encore. So get ready for some crazy shit.
Opeth with Katatonia at The Warfield Theater
Talk about your difficult choices.
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience at The Uptown Theater in Napa
I guess not.
Wednesday, October 19th
The Foo Fighters with Cage the Elephant and Mariachi El Bronx at The Oracle Arena, Oakland
I love the Foo Fighters, but I don’t have a ticket for this show. I also don’t have a day job right now, so I’ll be outside the arena next Wednesday, waiting through the openers to get a cheap ticket. This will make me sad because I’ll miss what everyone says is the most amazing opening band going — Mariachi El Bronx.
