San Francisco – Page 33 – Spinning Platters

Show Review: MNDR at 330 Ritch – Popscene, 12/09/10

I don’t know what’s happened to Popscene over the years. When I was in my early and mid-20s, it was pretty much just a dance club. Then every once in a while, a really awesome band would come play. It was a fabulous treat, but really, it was still a dance club with lots of dancing before and after the band played (if there was one that night). Moved away to LA, moved back, basically fast forward to a world where I’m now 31 and haven’t been going out dancing as much. But I have been coming for shows every once in awhile. But maybe that’s what happened, more and more relevant bands have been playing this venue, so its turned more into a place for great late night shows than it is a place for dancing. Because there was sure no dancing going on this past Thursday night, well besides me with my recovering foot dancing almost by myself, when all the young kiddies were being lame and hanging out by the walls. Continue reading “Show Review: MNDR at 330 Ritch — Popscene, 12/09/10”

Show Review: The I Am Donald tour with Donald Glover and Childish Gambino at Slim’s 12/11/10

DonaldGlover&band — Donald Glover and band (my apologies for the iPhone photo)

Home from the first ever I Am Donald Tour I find myself, though my ears are ringing and my feet are aching, sitting here smiling as I write this. Although the evening was based around one person it was one of the most entertaining and well rounded performances I’ve ever seen. Maybe it is because Mr Donald Glover is such and entertaining and well rounded guy. He wrote for 30 Rock before he was 25 (as attested to in “Let Me Dope You”), does stand up, stars on NBC’s Community and raps under the name Childish Gambino. The most impressive part being that he does all these things well and with all his heart. There was never really a chance that this wouldn’t be an amazing show. Continue reading “Show Review: The I Am Donald tour with Donald Glover and Childish Gambino at Slim’s 12/11/10”

Show Review: Peter Hook and The Light performing Unknown Pleasures at The Mezzanine, 12/10/2010

2010 has been a year for a different kind of performance: the full-album gig. While not necessarily filled with the same wonder and anticipation that your more common setlist will contain, a full-album set guarantees the kind of rapt excitement that comes with knowing that your favorite songs from that record will all be played, and the surprises at the end of the set become that much more exciting. There have been a few artists who selected the albums that truly defined their careers — Weezer performed their classics, the Blue Album and Pinkerton, and Roger Waters recreated The Wall with modernized visuals and ideas, capturing much of the same excitement and wonder that had accompanied the album upon its release in 1979. In the case of Peter Hook, co-founder and bass guitarist of the seminal post-punk masters Joy Division and New Order, Friday night’s performance at the Mezzanine was truly the best time and place for a full performance of Unknown Pleasures, the album that began Joy Division’s career, and the only record to be released before the death of their singer, Ian Curtis, in 1980.

Continue reading “Show Review: Peter Hook and The Light performing Unknown Pleasures at The Mezzanine, 12/10/2010″

Show Review: Margaret Cho with John Roberts at Nob Hill Masonic Center, 12/04/10

San Francisco’s own Margaret Cho gave a triumphant hometown concert at the Nob Hill Masonic Center on Saturday night in support of her first music album, Grammy nominee Cho Dependent. But those concerned that Cho would forgo stand-up to focus on music needn’t worry: comedy was still very much the priority of the evening, and Cho has rarely been more uproarious.

Continue reading “Show Review: Margaret Cho with John Roberts at Nob Hill Masonic Center, 12/04/10”

Show Review: Os Mutantes, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, Teen Inc. and Diva at The Regency Ballroom, 11/30/2010

At the Regency Ballroom on Tuesday night was one of the unsatisfyingly satisfying shows I’ve been to in a long time. There were some great music, some pretty decent music, some bad music, and a whole lot of empty room. This all combined to make for a fun night, but in the end a fairly poor showcase for the bands on the bill. I wish a better future for all of them, but this one was odd. Continue reading “Show Review: Os Mutantes, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, Teen Inc. and Diva at The Regency Ballroom, 11/30/2010”

Show Review: Turkey Trot 2010 with The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Misisipi Rider, Hang Jones and Walking in Sunlight at Cafe Du Nord 11/26/10

This show was a big step away from the ordinary and comfortable for me. I do not generally listen to country music unless Jenny Lewis and She and Him’s first album count, and I’m pretty sure they don’t. So really I had no idea what to expect. What I got was a fun evening full of talented musicians and smiles. Continue reading “Show Review: Turkey Trot 2010 with The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Misisipi Rider, Hang Jones and Walking in Sunlight at Cafe Du Nord 11/26/10”

Show Review: Wild Flag with Grass Widow and Royal Baths at Bottom of the Hill, 11/18/2010

Mary Timony, Janet Weiss, and Carrie Brownstein of Wild Flag. All photos by Christopher Rogers.

WOW.

Wild Flag, the much-buzzed new supergroup featuring Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney, Mary Timony of Helium, Janet Weiss of S-K and Quasi, and Rebecca Cole of The Minders, made their Bay Area debut last night. And what a debut it was.

Continue reading “Show Review: Wild Flag with Grass Widow and Royal Baths at Bottom of the Hill, 11/18/2010”

Show Review: A Perfect Circle performing eMOTIVe at The Fillmore, 11/18/2010

As massive undertakings go, a tour focused around three-show residencies, full-album sets, and no-opener-just-what-you-paid-to-see performances is pretty high up on the list. The ante is upped even further when the third night of said shows is focused on an album entirely comprised of cover songs — most of which, according to the band tonight, had never been played live before. The thousand-plus fans that showed up to witness A Perfect Circle perform these songs at the final night of their Fillmore residency reacted to such a statement with awe and applause — while all good things must, eventually, come to an end, the precision and care that the band emphasized in tonight’s show helped their stay come to a brilliant conclusion, and the crowd was all the more excited to witness it.

Continue reading “Show Review: A Perfect Circle performing eMOTIVe at The Fillmore, 11/18/2010″

Show Review: A Perfect Circle performing Thirteenth Step at The Fillmore, 11/17/2010

The average passerby outside The Fillmore this evening might have been puzzled at the sight that met their eyes. Several hundred people — maybe around a thousand at the most — all lined up next to the post office? There’s no big tour bus, no semi full of stage gear, parked out in front of the famous club. The more keen-eyed observers — specifically, those who might have happened by this location yesterday — might also have spotted a great deal of people from the night before this one. What would possibly draw so many people back again? It’s still two hours before the doors open, but the devoted fans of A Perfect Circle don’t mind the wait; tonight marks the second of the band’s 3-night album-performance residency at the Fillmore, with their sophomore effort Thirteenth Step taking center stage for the evening that was to follow.

As singer Maynard James Keenan would say later on that night, the message of excitement that ran through the crowd was a simple one: “Welcome to Night Two.”

Continue reading “Show Review: A Perfect Circle performing Thirteenth Step at The Fillmore, 11/17/2010″

Spinning Platters Interview: Brandon Young of Delta Spirit

Delta Spirit, one of my personal favorite bands, is coming to the Bay Area in December. Their breakthrough album Ode to Sunshine was packed with such raw, personable authenticity that it was shocking to find out they had emerged from my hometown of San Diego (land of the cultural brain fart). This band came together organically. Through the music you can hear the enjoyment of their jamming together and the shit-talking session that ensues, which is at the core of what makes it work. Their music is intimate, free and unapologetic like a good drunken conversation. I can’t wait to hear what they’ve come out the recording cabin with this time. They have a steady track record of releasing an album every two years and then touring like, well, like dedicated musicians. Continue reading “Spinning Platters Interview: Brandon Young of Delta Spirit”