Reviews of albums, films, concerts, and more from the Bay Area Music and Movie Nerds
Before that show, I had no idea why I enjoyed Tove Lo so much. On the surface, she looks just like another Ke$ha-inspired glitter party clone. But standing in the middle of Rickshaw Stop, somewhere between the whiskey, vaporizer smoke, and bendy straws, it hit me. Somewhere in that crowd, in all those eyes glittering in the lights coming from the stage, it all became so painfully obvious: we are all hurt. And that’s why we were there.
Okay, I’ll be the first to admit my folly: I was tardy to the Gavin DeGraw party. I mean really tardy. It’s not that I’d never heard of him or didn’t enjoy his music. It’s just that, for some reason, while my friends were all obsessing over him back in 2004 when he first came on the scene, I resisted several opportunities to join them. It wasn’t until I got a chance to fall for his charming personality in 2012 on Dancing with the Stars that I finally saw the error of my ways and drank the Kool-Aid. Since then, though, I’ve been making up for lost time. Now a genuine, bona fide giant Gavin fan in my own right, I recently had my first chance to finally catch him live this past April in Napa, promoting his newest album, Make a Move. You might think that having just seen him two months ago would make me less likely to rush myself to see him again at my alma mater UC Berkeley’s Greek Theatre last Friday night when he co-headlined with the phenomenal local boy Matt Nathanson, but well… you’d be wrong. Dead wrong. Continue reading “Show Review: Matt Nathanson & Gavin DeGraw with Mary Lambert at Berkeley’s Greek Theatre, 6/20/2014”
To paraphrase Laura Rogers, lead vocalist for The Secret Sisters: “When Nickel Creek come on, you are going to smile, and stay smiling the whole time they are on stage.” It’s been nearly seven years since the great Southern California trio have last toured as a unit. Despite all three members making many trips to the Bay Area throughout the hiatus, it’s remained a very lonesome and sad seven years. During this period, we had to weather a folk revival with a slew of lesser bands become bigger than Nickel Creek ever were. Simply put, the world needs Nickel Creek.
Back in March of 2014, the massive art-metal juggernaut known as Tool rumbled through the Bay Area, gracing its residents with a set of shows once again at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Those who were wise enough to arrive early for the show might have had a chance to watch the real surprise of the night: the recently-reformed Los Angeles trio of Failure, bringing their expert musicianship and crushing brand of alt-space-rock back into the fold for a set of short but powerful sets. Continuing the connection, Failure made a reappearance for Tool singer Maynard James Keenan’s 50th birthday celebration, with all three members offering both their own songs and contributions to the sprawling evening of music that took place each night. With a healthy amount of new exposure under their belt, Failure is coming back on the road for their own headlining tour, this time with zero accompaniment — an Evening With, two sets, and a furious chunk of tunes across their three records to throw into the mix. If their show at the Great American Music Hall was any indication, this is one reunion that isn’t fading any time soon: Failure are back and as sonically potent as ever before.
Continue reading “Show Review: An Evening with Failure at the Great American Music Hall, 5/14/2014”
You can’t believe a word Eric Hutchinson says. Don’t believe me? See for yourself: his new album even admits it’s all Pure Fiction. Tall tales or no, I wanted to hear just what Mr. Hutchinson’s been up to since I saw him last, so I rounded up a couple girlfriends last night and headed out to the Fillmore to give him a listen. Shortly after we arrived, the “Tell the World Tour” support act Saints of Valory took the stage to kick the evening off. Continue reading “Show Review: Eric Hutchinson with Saints of Valory at The Fillmore, 5/1/2014”
I have no idea how to describe what just happened. This entire show felt like a crazy collision of surf, classic, psychedelic, and punk rock all interlocking and interweaving together to make Bleached, a veritable Voltron of music. Looked at individually, each of these groups are amazing reminders of angsty, dreamy, teenage Southern California rock days gone by. But their presence on stage here at Noise Pop unequivocally proves that this sound is timeless, and so, too, are the people who listen to it.
Over the past three decades, I’ve called many a band my favorites, but of course over time, preferences change and so have I. For me, the ones that “stick” are those that tend to have qualities I can’t find elsewhere: a voice so unique I recognize it even a new song, a melody I can’t get out of my head, or lyrics that make me feel like I’ve been spied on… No matter what, though, the favorite bands I come back to again and again always share one quality in particular: they sound even better live than they do on their albums. Seriously: imagine that seeing concerts regularly is what you do, and after the zillionth time of getting amped up to see a band you’ve been into, you discover they’re less than stellar live. Trust me, it sucks, and it definitely always sours my love for not-so-amazing-live bands. (At least a little.) So after a year and a half spent devouring every single Imagine Dragons song I can get my ears on (and a little preview at a festival last summer), I was beyond ready to see if these Dragons had what it takes to launch a long-term love affair with me. I don’t subject myself to standing-room-only general admission floor tickets for just any act (I may be getting too old for all of that), but there I was on Thursday night, about six rows back from the stage at SAP Center, waiting for the lights to go down. Continue reading “Show Review: Imagine Dragons with The Naked and Famous and X Ambassadors at SAP Center, 2/13/2014”
In the world according to Stace (that’d be me, for those not paying attention), Maya Rudolph is a genius. A comedic genius, you might say, but I mean it in a more general way. I’m just sayin’, if this woman ran for president, she might get my vote. Beautiful, funny, and musically talented, she’s got it all. As if that isn’t enough, she’s in a long-term relationship with the music of Prince, and it’s getting pretty serious. Recently, she’s been sharing it with the world alongside her college buddy, singer-songwriter Gretchen Lieberum, and together they are Princess.
Lucky, lucky me: SF Sketchfest brought this act to my city and gave me a ticket to watch! (Don’t be jealous.) So last night, I planted my feet outside the doors at Mezzanine in the drizzle and waited an hour to be let in. At first, I thought I’d finally found the island of misfit toys, as no one remotely associated with the venue seemed to know much about what was going on, who the artist was, if tickets would be available (the show was sold out, but of course there were still those willing to try at the door), or how long the event would go. In the end, after an hour, I was the first one in the door. Cocktail in hand, I picked a spot against a pillar near the front and there I stood for the two hours until the ladies graced the stage. I have to be honest: these were torturous hours. Though I subject myself to them regularly, I’m not especially fond of huge crowds, and Mezzanine really packed ’em in last night. I can’t blame everyone else in the city for wanting to witness the glory of Princess, but it didn’t stop me from wishing I had a little more room to breathe. (Seriously: I even texted managing editor Dakin, who was up front, to ask if it would be any better if I went back near the door. He said probably not much, so I sucked it up and stayed put.)
At last, though, the show was about to begin. Continue reading “SF Sketchfest Review: Maya Rudolph and Gretchen Lieberum are Princess: An Evening of the Music of Prince on 2/9/2014”
On June 18, 2000, Transatlantic played their first ever show in Bethlehem, PA. It was a loose, joyous set that was technically a little off, but felt like a big event. At the time, I thought “well that was fun. Too bad I won’t get to see them again.” Why? Because supergroups hardly ever last, and prog rock supergroups are even more fleeting. So to be sitting in front of a stage watching Transatlantic nearly 14 years later was an absolute treat. Continue reading “Show Review: An Evening with Transatlantic at The Regency Ballroom, 2/1/2014”
One of the best things about SF Sketchfest is that it brings fantastic comedic talent we might not otherwise have a lot of opportunity to see right here to the Bay Area. For example, Megan Mullally. The woman is equal parts brilliantly funny and beautiful. I’ve been a fan of hers since Will & Grace, though admittedly haven’t followed her career as closely as perhaps I should have. That’s why I’d never heard of her musical act (a duo with funny girl Stephanie Hunt, who I know from How to Live with Your Parents…, Californication, and Friday Night Lights), Nancy and Beth.Anyway, thanks to Sketchfest’s awesome musical offerings, I was able to catch their set last Friday night at SF’s JCC with the utterly wonderful and hilarious opener The Lampshades, and one night was all it took to make a fan out of me! Continue reading “SF Sketchfest Review: Megan Mullally in Concert with her band Nancy and Beth on 1/31/2014”