In honor of one of the best weekends in San Francisco

First, a big Thank You goes out to Warren Hellman, the billionaire investment banker who puts on the what is probably the best free music festival in the country, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. It's in a forest (Golden Gate Park), there are top acts, and you're allowed to bring in whatever you want to the festival: chairs, coolers, beer, wine....anything.

Check out this quote from Hellman, who is also an amateur banjo player and puts on the festival as a gift to the city. I talked to a guy who said there is even a provision in his will that the festival should continue after his death.

Hellman says "it costs a lot -- bigger than a bread box, smaller than a house, one of those new billionaire homes, I guess." He tells how he was approached by someone who said he ran America's biggest (non-bluegrass) festival. "He wanted to buy mine. I said, 'Why? It's free.' He said, 'Well it wouldn't be if I owned it.' " Hellman said it wasn't for sale. "There's this famous Texas oil guy's remark about money: 'It's like manure -- if you spread it around, beautiful things grow. But if you leave it in a pile it smells like manure.' "

Awesome.

Thanks again, Warren, for paying for me to see Okkervil River, Dave Alvin, Boz Scaggs, The Old 97s, Steve Martin (comedian/banjo player), The Ferocious Few*, Richie Havens, Robert Earl Keene, Steve Earle, Elvis Perkins, Booker T and the Drive-By Truckers, Billy Bragg, Allen Toussaint, Galactic, Mavis Staples, Neko Case, Emmylou Harris, Old Crow Medicine Show, and Amadou and Mariam.

*Actually, you didn't pay for them. They just showed up.

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This weekend was also LovEvolution*. I went this year and didn't feel the need to go hear obscenely loud electronic music in front of City Hall amidst sweaty spunions while Hardly Strictly was going on, no matter how many underage topless girls there were at Love Parade. But that orgy of late 20th Century chemical energy gives me the perfect excuse to post this all-time classic video, TECHNOVIKING:



*Formerly Love Parade and then Love Fest.

The best person at Outside Lands

Original Content! Yea!

Were The Sex Pistols the first modern hipsters?

First read this article in Adbusters entitled "Hipster: The Dead End of Civilization." I think it adequately sums up why hipsters are a bad thing and indirectly explains the difference between a true hipster and somebody who merely subscribes to modern fashions and wears tight pants. To summarize, it comes down to hipsters standing for nothing really except seeking authenticity through consumerism. Co-opting working class values and trends and spending lots of money doing it.

A lot of quote-unquote hipsters are really just artsy people who do cool things like sell street food in The Mission or make swimming pools out of dumpsters in Brooklyn. These people are not actually hipsters in my eyes. They are doing something and creating interesting things rather than buying something obscure and then ditching it when it isn't obscure or authentic enough for them anymore.

Again, great article, but I disagree with it where it draws a bright line between hipsters and punks...which brings me to the penultimate punk band, The Sex Pistols.

They declared their allegiance to the working classes and held mainstream society in contempt but really I think it's pretty safe to say they were just intellectually retarded nihilists consumed with image, self-indulgence and popularity. Sound familiar?

Sid Vicious was chosen for his attitude rather than his musical ability and they ended up becoming just as vacuous and rich as the ruling classes and cliched rockers they claimed to abhor.

Punk was sort of an interesting counter-culture moment and I see the value in bands like The Ramones and The Clash. I like the do-it-yourself attitude and the quesitoning of authority, but check out this quote from Johnny Rotten: "[The Ramones] were all long-haired and of no interest to me. I didn't like their image, what they stood for, or anything about them; They were hilarious but you can only go so far with 'duh-dur-dur-duh'. I've heard it. Next. Move on."

Newsflash...The Ramones were developing your sound while you were busy tearing holes in your Pink Floyd shirts and spending money on hair gel and red dye. Get over yourselves. Who cares how long their hair was?

Also, The Pistols (and pretty much all punks and hipsters) constantly talked about how much they hated hippies. The punk-hippie dichotomy really deserves to be explored fully in another post, but when you come down to it, they really weren't that different. The main difference I see is that at least hippies were trying to do something and change the world* while punks were consumed more with rebelling for the sake of rebelling and were ultimately a much more selfish group of blowhards. It's the same difference between a hiptser and somebody who isn't utterly worthless.

*That they failed and ended up becoming the big wigs they were rebelling against is irrelevant to me. At least they initially stood for something.

Why don't hipsters dance?

If somebody can provide me with a logical answer, I will come over to your house and cook you dinner. This is not a novel observation and something I have kvetched about thousands of times in the past, but last night really hammered the point home for me.

At the Magnolia Electric Co. show at Bottom of the Hill, the second to last song they played was a kick-ass cover of Warren Zevon's "Lawyers Guns & Money." Not only was it a recognizable cover, it was easily one of the most rocking songs of the night. Check out a video of the same song from an earlier show in Austin*:



For most people, that is a formula for dancing, toe tapping, mild head-bobbing, etc. But as I was jumping up and down and pumping my fist, I happened to notice that the crowd around me looked like the extras in a "Saved By The Bell" episode when Zach Morris calls a time-out.

Like I said, this is definitely nothing new. I wasn't even close to surprised, but I never seem to not be disappointed when I go to high energy show and the hipster throngs are doing their best to not move.

Is it lack of appreciation? Probably not. Fear of accidentally touching somebody else during the dancing and thereby suffering the indignity of human contact? Maybe. I think it could have most to do with the fear of looking uncool** by allowing the world to see just how bad they are at dancing. I guess I can somewhat sympathize with that because my dancing looks like a full-body dry heave. I have no idea how I haven't ended up on youtube by now with a ton of snarky hipsters making fun of me in the comments section like my good buddy Cameron Gunn.


*By the way, doesn't the guitarist look like a wampa from "Empire Stirkes Back"?
**This is a hipster's number one fear in life.

Who should fill in for The Beastie Boys at Outside Lands?

But first, I just want to say thank you to Tom Watson (from Kansas City) for getting me to believe the impossible could actually happen--even if it was just for a little while.

So....Adam Yauch has the cancer, which leaves a headline spot open at Outside Lands. It will be interesting to see who they have to back up the Brinks truck for to take their place.

1. This isn't life threatening, but get well soon, MCA.

2. It seems like so many people are getting cancer these days, even kids I went to college or high school with. I would have bet my life savings that cancer rates were increasing at an unprecedented rate and I would have told you it was because of the chemicals they intentionally or unintentionally put in our food, water, and air. But according to cancer.gov, new incidents of cancer have been decreasing since the early '90's. Shows what I know.

3. The Outside Lands twitter page has asked for suggestions on who to add. I'm glad I'm not the person who has the responsibility of signing a major artist to a festival and just over a month to do it, but it's nice that they're looking to the fans for input. So, who ya got?

I would say to get some cool up and coming band or somebody with local history, but this is the headliner of a $90/day festival, so they're going to have to get someone with a Name to compliment DMB and Pearl Jam. I just hope it's something just a little unexpected. So far, the lineup is pretty insipid and designed to appeal to the broadest audience possible.

My favorite 17 albums of the year so far

SF, DON'T FORGET TO SEE FOOD INC. FOR FREE TONIGHT

Tuesday was the All-Star Game, so we must be halfway through the year. And that means it's the time of making lists about the first half of the year.

DDoff Daily posted his albums of the year so far, so I feel obligated to give my five devoted readers the same royal treatment*. I used criteria that is entirely objective, so this is pretty much a factual, undisputed ranking and probably the only list worth reading**. Oh, and I'd appreciate if you commented with your list of favorites, which if you're a hipster, will include Animal Collective at #1.

And without further ado.....

17. We Were Promised Jetpacks - "These Four Walls" I've heard these guys will be the biggest thing to come out of Scotland since the janitor from the Simpsons. I don't know if they're even half as good as Frightened Rabbit but it certainly seems that the heavy, crescendo-ing drums and guitars and soaring vocals are resonating with me. I guess early U2's influence has finally crossed The North Channel.

16. Grizzly Bear - "Veckatimest" The best of the hipster pop of the year. Maybe a little overblown but still pretty catchy.

15. Wilco - "Wilco (The Album)" I love Wilco a whole lot but this album just hasn't hooked me yet. Still, there are some great tracks on this album. My guess is that it will either have grown on me by the end of the year and make it to the top 10, or it will join the giant scrap heap of discarded latter efforts of great bands.

14. Neko Case - "Middle Cyclone" Solid effort from Neko. Doesn't quite measure up to her early work, but the songs are good live. Too bad her nerdy banter isn't included on the album.

13. Patterson Hood - "Murdering Oscar (and other love songs)" A solo release from the Drive-By Truckers front man more than 10 years in the making, this record has some nice balads and whatnot. Hood is quite the lyricist and the songs come off as much more personal and [slightly] less dark than what he puts on Truckers albums.

12. Iron & Wine - "Around the Well" Should this even count since most of the songs aren't new? I don't really care, this is still the best baby-making music around. I seriously wish that I had this in my repertoire to lure girls back to my rape cave, I mean dorm room, instead of the ubiquitous "Have you heard the latest "1x1" > "Rock" > "I'm Not Alone" from the latest Paolo Soleri run? It's pretty h3tty."

11. Son Volt - "American Central Dust" Solid alt-country. Son Volt is somehow still an under the radar band despite great talent. Jay Farrar must look at Wilco playing huge venues and wish death upon Tweedy every night.

10. Pink Mountaintops - "Closer To Heaven" Listening to this all the way through for the first time as I write, I'm thinking that this might actually be one of my favorite albums of the year. Like its mother band, Black Mountain, it's just the right mix of hard psychadelic rock and Candaianness. Unlike BM, it's a little bit lighter and easy to listen to.

9. Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears - "Tell 'Em What Your Name Is!" Hard to believe that people are still making old music this good. This "garage soul" band from Austin sounds like it could have been made in the 70s. Joe says he wants to be the Black Elvis, but I'll be content if he continues to the be the modern James Brown.

8. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - "Self-Titled" I can't sing this guy's praises enough. I'm sure it was tough to get the boot from the Drive-By Truckers following his divorce from bassist Shonna Tucker. He has had to start from scratch and play smaller half-full clubs while Patterson Hood is being interviewed on CNN and the Truckers are selling out bigger venues and joining forces with The Hold Steady. Isbell is an incredible guitarist and lyricist, though, so I think he'll be just fine.*** This is his second album and he shows that "Sirens of the Ditch" was no fluke.

7. Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse - "Dark Night of the Soul" This really doesn't sound like anything else, which is a good thing. Check out the story behind this album:

It's a friendly collaboration that turned out to be a match made in limbo. Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous and Gnarls Barkley's Danger Mouse wrote a set of comely, haunted songs for alt-rock heavies (Black Francis, Julian Casablancas, James Mercer, Wayne Coyne, Iggy Pop) to be sold with a coffee-table book of darkly ironic photos by director David Lynch (who also lent his keep-your-day-job warble to two songs). But EMI inexplicably shelved the album. In response, the Horse and the Mouse came up with a sneakily Borgesian stunt, commodifying their music's very absence by selling blank CD-Rs online, with Lynch's book.

6. Ryan Bingham - "Roadhouse Sun" I'm not sure if I like this album for itself as much as I like that it reminds me of the show I saw at Hotel Utah, which has probably been my favorite live performance of the year. Bingham's Texas/New Mexico sound is both different and familiar at the same time. I can play his music for just about any type of fan and they all seem to enjoy it. This is music that has some sort of universal appeal.

5. Various Artists - "Dark Was The Night" Again, maybe this album shouldn't count but this is a double album that has probably gotten more plays around my house than any other. Just look at the artist list and tell me this isn't a great album. And if you downloaded this AIDS benefit album from the Internet, you better not eat before sundown at Yom Kippur this year.

4. The Decemberists - "Hazards of Love" You have to love the amitious effort from Colin Meloy here. Not too many people can pull off the rock opera. I saw him perform the whole thing from start to finish with a straight face, and I am here to tell you that this album kicks ass like no other folksy, pseudo-19th century rock epic has before it.

3. Phoenix - "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" I'm almost a little embarrassed to say how much I like this French electro-pop, but this has become my new cooking music. What can I say? A guy can't listen to roots music all day, every day.

2. Justin Townes Earle - "Midnight at the Movies" Your grandpappy's country music. Earle is making music that nobody else that I know of is making today. Son of Steve, named after Townes Van Zandt, these songs come from somebody who knows the blues. Good to know that kicking crack hasn't affected his song writing ability.

1. Magnolia Electric Co. - "Josephine" Alt-countryish master Jason Molina's first album since the band's bassist died in a tragic gardening accident****. Soulful vocals, good guitar work, country influence....it should come as no surprise that I love this music.

*Plus, DDoff likes that hippity-hop music, so I knew my list would look completely different from his.
**Actually, I just picked the 15 albums I've listened to the most--or upon making this list, wish I'd listened to the most.
***Check out the video below from his solo-ish performance at Cafe du Nord last year.
****It may have actually been an apartment fire in Oakland.

Why is English the language of rock and roll?

I first started thinking about this at a Jens Lekman show last month. What would possess a person born in Sweden to sing in a second language? I started to think about other foreign musicians like France's Phoenix, Germany's The Scorpions, or Peter, Bjorn and John, also of Sweden. Why would all of these people not choose to sing in their native tongues? It worked for Autobahn, didn't it?

There are notable exceptions, but for the most part modern music--the vast majority of which is derived from from rock and roll--is sung in English. The French have even gone as far to establish quotas of how much francophone rock must be played on the radio.

There are, I think, some obvious reasons why music is so often sung in English*.

1. Rock and roll was invented here. If you are a foreign musician and you're into rock and roll, then you probably grew up listening to music by English-speaking artists. Singing in English would be a natural progression if you happen to be proficient in English. Which brings me to my next reason.

2. English is the most common second language in the world. If you were going to write lyrics in a dialect that is not your own, chances are it's going to be English. And because so many people understand English, your market appeal is that much wider than if you were going to sing in a language like Swedish.**

I guess those two reasons could just about explain it, but then I start thinking about how hard it is to write a song in the first place***. It seems like it would be 10 times harder to write a song in a language you weren't as familiar with. Music is already such a personal art form that it's hard enough to express yourself in a first language.

I would be terrified of coming off like a cheesy foreigner writing a song in Spanish or something. Imagine if Manu Chau had translated "Me Gustas Tu" into English before recording it. I doubt all the white kids at festivals would be singing along with the lyrics the likes of "I like marijuana, I like you, I like airplanes, I like you, I like your kitchen, I like you."

Furthermore, we can look at other periods of time when a certain type of music developed from a certain language. Opera began in Italian but quickly spread throughout the rest of Europe. Wagner didn't write his operas in Italian. Why is that?

So, all you not scared of leaving comments, why is English the language of rock and roll?

*Of course, as a blogger, I have done no serious research whatsoever and these reasons can be taken as pure xenophobic speculation.
**Sigur Ros is one band I can think of that sings in a Nordic language and has achieved commercial success. Wait, does Bjork sing in Icelandic? I guess that would make Icelandic the language of pretentious art rock.
***Or maybe it's not? Just like at Phish's lyrics and the success they have achieved. Maybe getting a good sound is even more important.

Updating Previous Stories

ABC Drops the Hammer on Buckshot

I came across this article in the Guardian last week. The ABC, which had already been threatening to pull the liquor licenses of some of the city's finest music venues (Café du Nord, Slim's, Swedish Music Hall, Great American Music Hall, Rickshaw Stop, Bottom of the Hill, etc.) over some arcane Puritanical Blue law bullshit, has claimed its newest victims in The Campaign Against Fun.

When I first wrote about the evil ABC, I wasn't sure whether there really would fire accompanying the smoke (see e.g. any pre-smoking ban hysteria from bar owners), but according to the article, ABC has already body slammed two local bars over similar food sale-related issues. From the Guardian:

Most recently, Revolution Café in the Mission District had to stop selling beer and wine for 20 days after ABC cited them for patrons drinking on the sidewalk adjacent to its front patio. Inner Richmond's Buckshot's liquor license was pulled because of technical violations of alcohol and food regulations, forcing owners to close their doors for a few weeks.

This is government idiocy at its finest, and I pray to the god I don't believe in that they don't touch any of the city's music venues. I would say they need to go find something better to do, but they're already a pretty stupid bureaucracy to begin with, so I doubt there is anything else.

taxdollarsatwork'd

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Lucero* Makes Me Look Stupid

After gushing about Lucero's dedication to being a professional bar band, I came across the trailer for a show called "$5 Cover" that recently premiered on MTV. Craig Brewer of "Hustle and Flow" fame apparently put his name on this, but from the acting and cinematography, I would guess the people behind "Undressed" may have had more to do with it than anyone else.

Check out Ben Nichols on the motorcycle and then the whole band playing "San Francisco" on stage near the end.

MTV five dollar cover Trailer (HD)


Normally I would be pumped that a band I like is doing a series about struggling bands and the Memphis music scene. But this series happens to be by MTV, and paraphrasing Broke-Ass Stewart, the "M" in MTV stands for "Making me hate humanity."

Furthermore, I learned via wikipedia that Lucero recently signed with Universal, so maybe they'll make it to the big show after all. If so, just go ahead and completely disregard my last Lucero post.

*And by Lucero, I'm really referring to myself here.

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The Media Gives Nadal a Pass

I'm not sure if I should be surprised at this or not. Nadal is a media darling, but we're also living in the age of gotcha journalism.

So far I have yet to see anyone in the mainstream media** call out Nadal for being a spineless coward. Shortly after I questioned the seriousness of Nadal's injuries, there was an article on espn.com/tennis about Nadal's parents getting divorced. called "Personal Woes Affecting Rafa?" The writer, Greg Garber says that his parents' divorce, and not his kness, may be behind Nadal's withdrawal, but he never takes Nadal to task for being the first champion ever to not defend because of dubious ailments.

The article was never was on the front page and was archived off the tennis page in a matter of minutes, hours at the most. Nowhere on the New York Times tennis blog did they mention the personal issues, nor have I heard any espn or NBC commentators mention it. I guess we're all just supposed to accept Uncle Toni's version of things.

I definitely find this free pass more than a little unpalatable, and I still say Nadal should be out there unless he honestly cannot move without risking serious injury. Looks like even in the gotcha age, some people are still above the law.


Oh, and I think Wimbledon has been pretty great so far. I like the Murray and Hewitt story lines.
Federer and Roddick both look great. What a compelling final it would be if either Murray or Roddick faces Federer. Roddick beating Roger would be an incredible moment for American tennis, and this could be the year it finally happens. Sucks that Oudin lost today, but the Williams sisters are looking awesome. Why, oh why, must I be working the one week when I could be watching tennis all day?

**I don't count.

One from the Archives

Yes, this was written five years. No, I don't think it's particularly well written.

But this review of David Byrne from 2004 when I was working for the Lawrence Journal-World was salvaged from Byrne's Web site just in time to preview his show at the Greek tomorrow night. I'm not exaggerating when I say the show I saw in '04 was in my top 5 of all time.

This will be my first time at the Berkeley monument, and it's a long time coming. Tickets are still available and DeVotchKa is opening. Get on it.

http://www.davidbyrne.com/music/cds/grown_backwards/grown_press/Lawrence_com.php

Byrne continues to redefine rock

By By Kendall Dix - Journal-World

Friday, September 17, 2004

Kansas City, Mo. — Few musicians possess the ability to have Wookie-lookalikes and bespectacled old men in high-water pants dancing side by side in the aisles. David Byrne, though, displays a limitless imagination and unparalleled work ethic that few musicians could even dream of having.

On Wednesday night, the creative force behind Talking Heads tore through a two-hour set at The Uptown Theater in Kansas City, Mo., as if he were Hurricane Ivan. At 52, Byrne parades the same fire he showed in "Stop Making Sense," the Heads' epic concert film.

The skinny, silver-haired Scot treated the crowd to classics like "NaÃive Melody," "Psycho Killer" and "Life During Wartime." Dressed in a brown uniform that matched his fellow band members', he jumped, ran in place and spastically danced his way all over the stage. When he picked up his guitar or microphone, he showed no signs of aging after almost 30 years of touring. However, if his energy and the purity of his voice have not changed, the sound of Byrne's new material was a far cry from his rock music of the late '70s and early '80s.

Accompanied by a three-piece rhythm section and The Tosca Strings, a six-piece band from Austin, Texas, Byrne showcased cuts from his new album, "Grown Backwards." The record favors a mature sound, with influences from samba to classical to opera. Of the concert's 21 percussion-and-string-laden songs, five were new and four were off 2001's "Look into the Eyeball." He included a cover of "One Rainy Wish" by Jimi Hendrix, which substituted heavy strings for electric guitar.

The show had more variety than Liberace's closet.

The enthusiastic crowd seemed almost as appreciative to hear the new material as the Heads tunes. Byrne received extended standing ovations whenever he wasn't talking or playing. After each, the consummate New Yorker smiled and looked at his band as if he were pleasantly surprised by the passionate Midwestern crowd.

The hyper-busy artist rarely finds time to stop through the central U.S. He tends to tour internationally and splits his time with some of his other hobbies: exhibiting his artwork in museums, directing documentaries, composing musical scores and recording a track for an album to benefit the MoveOn PAC.

The way Byrne is going now, he could tour until he's hooked up to an oxygen tank. He'll probably be back soon with another album that redefines what we think of as rock 'n' roll.

Video of the Day and Free Wild Salmon Dinner

First, the follow up to last week's dance mob from Sasquatch from one of my favorite bands, Lucero.

They're one of those great bar bands that will probably never make it big but keeps on grinding it out. They have put out something like seven albums, they have a rabid fan base, but they still don't play venues any bigger than a few hundred people*. To me, there is something about that business model that is just goddamn awesome--like a un-depressing and more successful Anvil.



Here's to professional bar bands and here's to Henry, one hell of a dancer.

*I saw them a few weeks ago at a sold-out show Slim's and (along with Black Joe Lewis), they blew the roof off that place. Check them out next time they're in town.

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Second, if you're broke like me, then why not check out a free traditional tribal salmon bake tonight on Ocean Beach? Fresh Klamath salmon caught by Yurok fisherman will be served at 6:30.



Plus you'll be supporting Salmon Aid, a really cool organization devoted to protecting wild salmon. And according to Salmon Aid, the best way to protect them is by eating them. Sounds good to me.

Can't make it tonight? Check out the festival in Oakland this weekend. Zydeco, afro-beat, blues, and salmon galore.

Phish at the Fox... a guest posting

Having not seen Phish since their (underwhelming) end to the “post-hiatus” at Coventry, there were naturally lots of thoughts going through my mind driving to St. Louis yesterday… ranging from a personal interrogation into justifying this continued behavior to the fond memories I have of all the friends I miss and wish could also be there to, finally, how I felt that they were even back on tour now 5 years later…

What’s evident is that unlike their previous return, this time they appear to be taking it on with more of a focus on the quality of their live product, which is to say that they aren’t up there lollygagging (see also Bull Durham) and doing whatever they want to just b/c they are who they are and they can basically get away with it. Of course, there’s a fine line between experimentation and structure, but I guess the best way to put it is that they appear more disciplined altogether.

At least that’s the impression I had from the setlists and reviews of their first several shows. And it’s something that I’m comfortable endorsing now that I’ve seen them again.

Standing a quarter of the way up the middle balcony inside the magnificent (Fabulous) Fox prior to the show, I was sort of unable to mentally process the gravity of the fact that I was about to see a band play that had not played such a personal environment in, well, since I was old enough to drive and see them. Seriously, an amazing treat… gawd I love Phish.

Although admittedly, at this juncture in my musical evolution, I find that I rarely listen to Phish at all anymore. I don’t really crave them like I used to… I still consider them my favorite band, but in the absence of seeing them live – which is the true addiction – I’ve simply gotten older and moved on.

And that is precisely why, as show time neared, I flat out could not wait to see them just blow it up at the Fox. I think that was everybody’s vibe, which – as always – results in crazy anticipation and subsequent discussion re: the Opener. Naturally I thought they would show up with a tap-in par, some kind of fashionable, tasty intro. Something unexpected, but classy, and excitable. The other half of me thought they’d screw that notion and walk right out there and slam a monster right off the bat, like a YEM or a Reba or a Ghost…

So the place is just dripping with adrenaline, ready for the roof to just fly off, and they come out and drop two duds right off the bat: Kill Devil Falls and then Ocelot, two of the new songs that they’ve recently debuted. Talk about sucking the life out of the place. I mean, people were still pretty receptive and the songs were interesting enough, but prevailing sentiment is always to put those somewhere other than right at the beginning. Definite letdown.

But they completely exuded sync and discipline. Sharp, crisp. Trey wasn’t hiding behind the nasty ass post-hiatus distortion. I think that I read (or heard) that they were going back to their old amp rigs, so old sound and equipment. Old stage setup, too, with Fishman back on the right side of the stage, which I think is cool.

The rest of the first set was pedestrian in terms of what they played and how they played it. Highlight was probably Ya Mar for me, just b/c I love that song… lots of Page, too… and they really let him jam out his keys for that as well. And it’s pretty much impeccable sound inside that venue. The Possum was also huge. The Reba I’d rate standard, but really well done and I forgot how sweet Kuroda is with the lights, too. Uncanny how much he’s able to add in that capacity.

First Set

Kill Devil Falls

Ocelot

Brian and Robert (gentle and reflective, I love this song)

Sample in a Jar

Rift

Ya Mar

Reba

Train Song

Horn

Possum

Slave to the Traffic Light

So from a personal standpoint, I wasn’t gaga over the first set, but still, pretty cool to see the overwhelming assemblage of prowess at work again… easy to take for granted until you go 5 years without really hearing that kind of cohesive awesomeness.

Second set was indeed Fabulous. More energy, funk and power. Less structure. Halley’s Comet right off the bat… this would probably be on my ultimate setlist. They go right into a good Runaway Jim and then a Frankie Says only to drain all the energy out the of building with another new song, Time Turns Elastic, my only objection to the second set. My first impression – unlike the two they dropped in the first set – was negative on this song, which kind of sucked b/c it lasted for probably 15 minutes.

But after that they completely ripped it up. One of the better Mike’s > H2 > Weekapaug that I can recall seeing… so much energy; the place was really ready to let it out, too. Tremendous F# Mike’s Jam… totally rocking and dominant baseline, not all that funky per se, but kind of dark and spacy, enough for me to wonder if they’d turn it into a Simple Jam. Really really good. Followed by an outrageously heady Boogie On Reggae Woman, Page driving an awesome laser-funk sound throughout that jam… I could have sworn that they were teasing the Macarena, which would have been a badass full-fledged segue. They finished with a powerful Character Zero, a perfect example of a song that depends on how and where they play it… and they killed it.

Second Set

Halley’s >

Runaway Jim

Frankie Says

Time Turns Elastic

Sleep

Mike’s >

I am H2 >

Weekapaug

Boogie On

Character Zero

Encore

The Star Spangled Banner

McGrupp

While My Guitar Gently Weeps.

Choice encore. Very solid way to end it. A totally playful and perfectly executed a cappella Star Spangled Banner into the rare gem of the night: McGrupp and The Watchful Hosemasters. I like to think that when the band comes across a special moment or place or juncture in some capacity, then they decide to mark it with a small slice of Gamehenge, which I was actually expecting/hoping to see at some point in the night, and the encore was the perfect slot – totally tranquil and serene and batty.

Overall, they sounded about as good as they ever have, which is probably the most significant takeaway from this resurgence. I would say mostly average setlist, but certainly special to see them at such a classy, intimate joint. Only 4300 people, which is quite the excellent departure from raucous “productions” at much larger venues…

Going into it, I was debating to what extent I’d go out of my way to see them and re-embrace them at this point… not just with respect to my own life and where I am along the musical path, but at this point in the band’s existence.

Coming out of it, it’s hard to not walk away wanting to do it again.

Street music (updated)

Everyone in this town knows that The Mission has the best street food. I guess it makes sense that it would also have the best street music.

Last Thursday, I was waiting for a bus at the corner of 16th and Valencia and a full-blown concert was taking place. This wasn't just a guy in a ponytail with an acoustic guitar; they were plugged in and loud, and people were dancing and cheering.

After doing a little Internet research, I'm convinced that the band was the Ferocious Few, a local rock/punk/rockabilly band. Though the band is officially a duo, there were at least a couple other guys playing instruments with them, including a crazy guy in a sombrero playing a tambourine. I'm not sure if they were encouraged to play by the band or just a couple of enthusiastic members of the audience of about 30 that had gathered on the corner.

I absolutely love the do-it-yourself attitude in the Mission. Don't have enough money to open a restaurant? Take your creme brulee or curry skills to the streets. Can't book a gig on Thursday night? Take your drum kit and amp to a street corner.

I'm not exaggerating when I say these guys were truly rocking that corner. I've paid a lot more money to see bands I liked a lot less. But I think my favorite part was that when I was on my way home more than an hour later, the band was still playing and people were still crowded around and dancing. And the cops were no where in sight.*

Maybe if really great street performing takes off, they'll come to disperse the crowds like they did at the Linda Street Friday night food festival a couple weeks ago, but for now be on the look out for Ferocious Few while you still can.



*Well, actually they were in sight, but they were a few blocks down arresting some malcontent who had caused trouble on bus.

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UPDATE: Ferocious Few, along with The Red Verse, is opening for The Blacks at the Rickshaw Stop on Thursday night, and I won tickets. Let's do this thing.

The power of the female voice and spontaneous dance mobs

Last night at the Neko Case show at the Warfield, I couldn't stop thinking how absurd it was how impressed I was by a singer who can actually sing.

Silly as it sounds, in what may be the Golden Age of Autotune, it often seems like you don't even need to have an actual singing voice to be a singer. Stars are chosen for their looks or God knows what other reasons and we're presented with a live show complete with prerecorded vocals and multiple costume changes like it's supposed to mean something.

It doesn't seem like it would be that hard to find a woman who can sing and just let her do her thing. It worked pretty well for Patsy Cline, Janis Joplin, Emmylou Harris, and Aretha Franklin.

Despite the changes over the last fifty years in what society thinks popular music should be, female vocalists still seem to dominate the landscape. Apparently this Taylor Swift person has made quite the run on the charts, as did that Umbrella girl who got beat up a poor man's Ike Tuner.

My friend Jordan will probably read that last sentence and give me shit for what he sees as willful ignorance and hipster indifference, but I can promise that my apathy is real. I listen to pop music and feel like I have no idea if the people singing can actually sing. Everything is so manipulated that I get better idea of the producer's talents than the musician's.

I had no such problem last night.

Neko Case's soaring vocals had the crowd captivated and rapt for a couple hours with nothing but a solid band, a great backup singer, and the ever-present banter between the songs. There wasn't a single costume change or pyrotechnic display--just one talented ginger lady and a microphone.

For me, it was refreshing to hear a woman's voice and react with child-like wonder. It had been a long time since I paid to see a woman sing and I didn't know what to expect. Needless to say, I got my money's worth.



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VIDEO OF THE DAY

Check out the scene from Sasquatch Music Fest. We all need more of this.

MONOCULTURES SPREADING...

In what is surely one of the most bizarre and aggressive marketing campaigns in the history of advertising, Bacardi® tried to seduce me caveman-style with sheer, brute force. For better or for worse, they definitely got my attention by clubbing me over the head, but I'm not sure they managed to drag me back to their cave to consummate the relationship.

For those who didn't attend the Ghostland Observatory show at the Mezzanine last night, the event was so inundated by Bacardi® propaganda that in retrospect, I can't believe admission wasn't free.

The ad wizards at Bacardi® decided the best method to endear me to their product was to take away my beloved whiskey and microbrews and replace them with [cornfield-like] row after row of fermented sugar cane. My choices were either sobriety or Bud Light® and rum drinks*.

There literally wasn't a drop of bourbon or pale ale in the house, so I'm sure you can imagine how thrilled I was.

My compensation for suffering this indignity? A plastic baggie filled with metal coins embossed with the rum giant's corporate logo that could be traded for Bacardi® merchandise, such as freshly screen-printed crappy white T-shirts, crappy Bacardi® posters, and cheesy photo-booth pictures which I'm sure were tagged with the nefarious organization's signature markings. Pretty cool, right?




I wonder if Bacardi® also pays the Haitians who cut their sugar cane in the same funny money to be used at the campesino store. Thanks for the 16 hours of hard work, fellas. Now go get yourself a Bacardi® beach towel and a pint of rum to take back to your shanties.

So what are we to take from this experience, other than that supply seems to drive demand when it comes to the industrial food and beverage complex? Has the government started to subsidize sugar cane? Is rum making a Prohibition-like comeback? Are alcoholic monocultures the wave of the future? How much responsibility should The Mezzanine and Ghostland Observatory share in this debacle?

Those questions are probably best answered by somebody smarter than me. All I know is that I probably won't be drinking Bacardi® for a long, long time**.

Nice backfire, marketing guys.

* I opted for a steady diet of mojitos.
** Possibly ever.

Prohibition making a comeback?

The Puritanical forces of evil fire another shot across the bow of all that is good and fun:




Apparently Bottom of the Hill and other SF music venues aren't selling enough old hot dogs and soggy pizzas to satisfy the California Alcoholic Beverage Control's stringent demands for how much food a MUSIC venue has to sell. Despite not having many (or sometimes any) complaints on their liquor licenses, Slim's, Great American Music Hall, Cafe du Nord, and Bottom of the Hill are in jeopardy of not having their liquor licenses renewed.

That's right, the same people who brought you patrolling bars to dole out MIPs and issuing three-figure fines to pimply faced cashiers who lazily sell beer without checking IDs are now threatening some of the city's best music venues. In these times of economic hardship, the ABC has decided to target small businesses that are making this community vibrant and creative.

Way to go, ABC, let's make sure 18-year-olds have no place to hang out at night. We all know they get into less trouble when they're roaming the streets and public parks. Much better than letting them listen to some live music.

Notes from a food desert....

Two firsts last night: First time at the gorgeous Fox Theater in Oakland and first time seeing The Decemberists. Both exceeded my expectations.

The Fox is a beautiful and comfortable enough venue to warrant a trip no matter who is playing:
















I can't speak highly enough about this place. The concourses are spacious, there are plenty of concession stands (being able to take beer into the theater was an unexpected surprise), and the seats were more comfortable than most office chairs. Plus, it looks like a museum or a place to see opera--definitely a nice change from the flop houses and gin joints I'm used to.

As for the music, I was happy to finally see this band with Rachel, who has long been a fanatic. We didn't know what to expect after listening to the NPR podcast of their performance at SXSW. I figured there was a chance they would play the new album, Hazards of Love, but I wasn't really ready for it when it happened.

The whole first set was basically a rock opera, full of seamless segues and instrument changes. The tone of the songs changed from lighter country to almost heavy metal and somehow managed to all make sense. What an ambitious undertaking for a band almost always primarily described as "literate."

My only wish was that I was down on the floor, so I could have started head banging and bowling over the hipsters who were mostly standing there with their arms crossed, but alas, we had decent balcony seats. The tight jeans crowd was spared my wrath for at least one more night.

Full review from the Mercury News.