San Francisco – Page 18 – Spinning Platters

Show Review: Counting Crows with the Wallflowers at America’s Cup Pavilion, 7/18/2013

Thanks to Daniel Gluskoter (dgpics.com) for the awesome Crows pics! — Thanks to Daniel Gluskoter (dgpics.com) for the great Crows pics!

Imagine a terrible day: you’re sick. You’ve been fighting with one of your best friends all day. You’re late to an important appointment because traffic is insane, and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. Said lateness makes you miss a fantastic opportunity, so you’re even more upset than you already were. Oh, and it’s chilly outside, with the wind picking up. Your saving grace: you’re seeing two awesome bands that night. Do Counting Crows and The Wallflowers have the superpowers necessary to turn your whole day around, and end it on a bright note? I showed up last Thursday evening at America’s Cup Pavilion to find out. Continue reading “Show Review: Counting Crows with the Wallflowers at America’s Cup Pavilion, 7/18/2013”

Frameline Spotlights: C.O.G. / In the Name Of

From June 20-30, Frameline: The San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival is showing an eclectic lineup of films steeped in social, political, and sexual themes, pushing the boundaries and bringing audiences closer to the incredible stories of numerous individuals and communities, both fictional and real. Tickets for screenings are available at http://ticketing.frameline.org/festival/. Here is a glance at two of this year’s festival entries:

C.O.G. (USA, 2013)

Jonathan Groff is a sour apple in C.O.G.

Based on the unassuming essay by David Sedaris and under the steady direction of Kyle Patrick Alvarez, C.O.G. is the piercingly honest tale of a young man’s escape from his privileged Ivy-league world into the apple orchards and Christian community of a small town outside Portland, OR. The sold out audience at the Castro Theatre laughed, cheered, sat silent, and gasped, and left with a welcome sense of renewal, as if the film’s flawed characters had challenged each of us to examine ourselves in a way we hadn’t considered for some time.

C.O.G. screened on Saturday, June 22nd. For more info on the film, visit the film’s festival page or C.O.G.’s official website at http://www.cog-movie.com/

Continue reading “Frameline Spotlights: C.O.G. / In the Name Of”

Show Review: They Might Be Giants with Moon Hooch at the Warfield, 6/14/2013

They Might Be Giants have been playing together, in some shape, since 1982. Please, take a moment to let that sink in; this Brooklyn-based nerd-pop outfit has been churning out music for more than thirty years. This is a band that’s spanned five different presidents. A band that has witnessed countless similar acts form and breakup, reform and rebreakup. A band that has been making music for twice as long as Jaden Smith has been alive. A band with a legacy this long has two choices: They can become their own cover band, playing the hits that their audience crave, never growing, never changing. Or they can keep producing new music, evolving their sound, keeping their live-show fresh.

Fortunately for both the band and the fans, They Might Be Giants opted to take option B, and their set at the Warfield last Friday was all the better for it.

Continue reading “Show Review: They Might Be Giants with Moon Hooch at the Warfield, 6/14/2013”

Film Review: The Internship

Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn in The Internship

(NOTE: I worked at Google for a number of years. Let us just say that I may be slightly biased…but I can also shed some light on accuracies and inaccuracies depicted in The Internship about life at Google.)

In a performance review, The Internship would meet expectations. It is a silly film with a few laugh-out-loud moments and many more moments that miss the mark. We have seen this story before — a group of underdogs learn to work together and discover real value in themselves that helps them fight against the odds. It crosses every stereotype and dots every cliché. The Internship borrows elements from fish out of water stories, bromance plots, and sappy inspirational tales. Such a concoction of non-surprises fit into a one-note joke of a movie would be forgivable if it were actually hilarious. Unfortunately, it is not. However, if you are a fan of Vince Vaughn’s motor mouth, you will have a good time. If you work in the tech industry, you will find the film highly amusing. But most importantly, if you don’t expect much, you will be decently rewarded.

Continue reading “Film Review: The Internship”

Show Review: Sara Bareilles at Slim’s, 05/13/2013

Sara Bareilles wants to see you be brave.

It’s been two and a half years since Sara Bareilles released her last fantastic record, Kaleidoscope Heart. Now she’s got a great new single, “Brave,” and is challenging herself to be just that by touring solo. The “Brave Enough Tour” challenges Sara to play not only alone on stage, but without the support of an opening act. This week it was San Francisco’s turn to get up close and personal with Miss Bareilles at a sold-out, standing-room-only show at Slim’s on Monday night. And what a treat it was, as usual… Continue reading “Show Review: Sara Bareilles at Slim’s, 05/13/2013”

Show Review: Maps and Atlases, Young Man, Cannons and Clouds at Rickshaw Stop, 4/26/2013

Maps and Atlases by Andrew Moore — All Photos by Andrew Moore

Everybody socialized with the reserved excitement of a freshman orientation. Fun was to be had, sure, but to what degree was the procession supposed to fall backwards in trust. Nobody had an answer in Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco’s nook of clamoring dynamite, for what to expect from Maps & Atlases and company. Neither the crowd’s collective facade nor the ampersand-heavy line-up insinuated flame for a powder keg; that was a misguided prejudgement. Continue reading “Show Review: Maps and Atlases, Young Man, Cannons and Clouds at Rickshaw Stop, 4/26/2013”

Show Review: Marnie Stern with SISU and E V Kain at the Rickshaw Stop, 4/28/2013

Incendiary guitar goddess Marnie Stern returned to San Francisco on Sunday night in support of her fourth and most accessible LP, the wondrously titled The Chronicles of Marnia. The show, which transpired at the Rickshaw Stop, drew a full house of giddily enthusiastic fans, or at least what passes for “giddily enthusiastic” on a Sunday night in San Francisco. By which I mean we all pretty much stood there stone-faced for three hours. But we were into it! Honest! I think Marnie might actually prefer our notoriously chill style of audience participation; when she noticed that the only overtly expressive dancers in the entire club had positioned themselves directly in front of her, she actually ordered them to go dance in front of her bassist, Nithin Kalvakota. “It’s distracting! And confusing! And it’s making me dizzy!” she protested in that vaguely “It’s Pat” voice of hers. And what the lady wants, the lady gets.

Continue reading “Show Review: Marnie Stern with SISU and E V Kain at the Rickshaw Stop, 4/28/2013”

SFIFF Spotlights #1: Ernest & Celestine / Key of Life / Leviathan / Much Ado About Nothing

The 56th Annual San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF) is in full swing. From April 26th through May 9th, Bay Area cinephiles, filmmakers, and movie lovers of all ages can visit select theaters on either side of the bay to see exciting new films from all over the world.

Here at Spinning Platters, we’ll shine our spotlights on a few films we’ve had the pleasure of seeing and other festival events we’ve had the pleasure of attending. We encourage you to follow along and also visit the SFIFF website at http://festival.sffs.org/ to learn more about upcoming screenings!

Ernest & Celestine
(France/Luxembourg/Belgium 2012, 80 min)

The unlikely friendship between a hungry street-busking bear and a spirited young mouse takes center stage in this delightful French animated film. Based on the series of children’s books (which I haven’t read but now intend to), Ernest & Celestine is a charming story about friendship told through excellent voice work, a great musical score, and beautifully painted images. I was smiling all the way through. This is a title you shouldn’t miss!

Next Showing:
Wed., May 1st at 7:00PM – Sundance Kabuki Cinemas

Continue reading “SFIFF Spotlights #1: Ernest & Celestine / Key of Life / Leviathan / Much Ado About Nothing”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 4/11/13-4/17/13

FEAR THE BEARD — Where have you gone, (baseball’s) Brian Wilson? You weren’t there for the San Francisco Giants’ 2012 ring ceremony.

Concerts! Shows! Performances! And this week in the Bay Area, they’re extra-beardy!

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 4/11/13-4/17/13”

Show Review: Phoenix with Mac DeMarco at The Independent, 4/1/2013

Photo by Jenz. — Thomas Mars, as if he’s in front of the sun.

The announcement sent panic waves throughout the indie rockers of San Francisco: Phoenix at The Independent on April Fool’s Day. And this was not a hoax. What it was, though, was an impossible ticket. A representative of The Independent was quoted in the paper as saying the show sold out “immediately.” It sent everyone I know scrambling for tickets, wanting to be at what was officially the welcome back party for Steve Masters of Live 105, and would also serve as the unofficial kickoff to Fauxchella. Continue reading “Show Review: Phoenix with Mac DeMarco at The Independent, 4/1/2013”