Sunday, August 30, 2009
Outside Lands, Day 3
Breaking News / Local Show Reviews Sun, Aug 30, 2009 at 1:38 PM
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Saturday, August 29, 2009
Outside Lands Day Two Cont'd Cont'd
Breaking News / Local Show Reviews Sat, Aug 29, 2009 at 7:41 PM
Wow. Mars Volta starts but everyone is at Dave Matthews Band.
Omar says don't drink the water because there's a fish in the percolator. Sage advice.
Mars Volta fans are flocking to Dave Matthews. Has he played Crash yet?
Dave crowd about equal to Tom Petty last year. Lame but Ants Marching is good.
Outside Lands 2009: Day Two Con'd
Sat, Aug 29, 2009 at 4:00 PM
... Dengue Fever, the great LA-Cambodian jazz-pop band, played a marvelously energeic set to an appreciative crowd of thousands. One minute there were a few dozen people in the meadow, and then fifteen minutes later, this. It was a testament to how thoroughly tthe festival seems to have banished the crown-management problems of 2008.
Even the members of Mars Volta are checking out Mastodon, who're playing the only SF date of their national tour. At first the crowd wasn't sure what to make of the heaviest band of the three day fest. After a few songs, they're now moshing. The Atlanta band was loud. Too loud. But an epic, dynamic set sampling grunge and metal. Drummer Brann Dailor's double bass drumming shook the whole stage. Stragglers in the back couldn't hang with the heshers up front.
My Bloody Valentine and Bjork makes Bat for Lashes. Mystical, cinematic, electronic. A small but devoted crowd digs in.
TV on the Radio stage fills up to transcendant sounds. Vocals and sax sound trebly but sharp. Kyp Malone is going for it.
Drum circle breaks out by the ecomom tent. Suddenly feels like Sproul Plaza.
Black Eyed Peas had the whole crowd jumping. There's waay more people here today than yesterday. Note: it's getting chilly!
Chill song selection on the PA before Mars Volta. Peace Train, Creedence, Grateful Dead.
Outside Lands 2009: Day Two
Sat, Aug 29, 2009 at 12:31 PM
Taking Muni to Golden Gate Park. First they only take coins. But they don't provide change; that would encourage more ridership or something. Now we've been sitting in the hot sun for ten straight minutes without moving. Why do San Franciscans stand for this? It makes Emeryville traffic a bit more bearable.
The Dirtbombs deliver danceable, dirty Detroit rock n roll to open the Twin Peaks stage. "Underdog" is predictable highlight. Great vocals from female vocalist. Who needs GM when we got the Dirtbombs? Well, okay, NUMMI. Never mind.
Bostitch and Fussible from Tijuana's fabulous
Nortec Collective sound great. They're like Ennio Morricone for the club set. Just too bad they went on at 1:30 p.m. and not 1:30 a.m.
The weather is great. Light breeze. The crowd is mellow. The beer and bathrooms are plentiful. The logistics are incredible: Handicapped viewing platforms, media uploading stations, and everything seems on time so far.
Raphael Saadiq is covering "Search & Destroy" by Iggy and the Stooges. C for execution but A+ for effort.
Extra Golden, a blend of American indie rock and African pop, whose members hail from DC and Kenya, is devoutly upbeat. And everyone is sitting.
A large green dragonfly hovers helicopterlike above the sunbaked, dancing crowd at Groundation. Maybe thinking what the fuck? Many gawk but it isn't fazed and stays throughout an excellent reggae set.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Outside Lands, Day One Continued
Breaking News / Local Show Reviews Fri, Aug 28, 2009 at 5:15 PM
More live coverage from Golden Gate Park.
Outside Lands, Day One: Live!
Breaking News / Local Show Reviews Fri, Aug 28, 2009 at 10:59 AM
The Express will be live blogging at Golden Gate Park. Check this post for frequent updates...
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Hearing Scheduled to Decide Fate of Kimball's Carnival
August 15 shooting prompts OPD to request a "60-day cooling-off period" and cabaret license suspension.
Law Enforcement & Crime / People / Breaking News Rachel Swan — Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 10:12 AM
On August 15 three men were ambushed and shot on the in the 400-500 blocks of Broadway, shortly after leaving Kimball's Carnival, one of the only remaining hip-hop and R&B clubs in downtown Oakland. As a result, Oakland Police requested a hearing to determine whether Kimball's cabaret license should be temporarily suspended. "From my prior experience, once violence occurs at or near a club, the reputation and propensity for additional violence increases," wrote OPD Sergeant Kyle Thomas, in a letter to the city's administrative hearing officer Barbara Killey. Thomas' prior experience includes patrolling outside Mingles Martini & Champagne Lounge, a now-defunct nightclub associated with shootings in the Jack London Square Area. He said that in this case, Kimball's was the "nexus" of the shooting, even though it actually occurred several blocks away. In his letter, Thomas asked for "a 60-day cooling-off period."
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Your Daily Lick: pc muñoz
What Happened?! (Talking House Records)
Bay Area Bands Nate Seltenrich — Wed, Aug 19, 2009 at 12:57 PM
Some moments find this San Francisco musician and producer channeling Prince. Others, like leadoff track "Happy Hour," could be outtakes from Beck's Odelay. Spoken-word saga "The Master Thief" was co-written by avant-garde legend Joan Jeanrenaud, and three tracks later it gets the remix treatment. What happened? Only muñoz knows, but that's why we like it.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Your Daily Lick: The New Up
Better Off EP (self-released)
Bay Area Bands Nate Seltenrich — Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 12:56 PM
With this third release and second EP, female-fronted San Francisco quintet the New Up has grown into one of the Bay Area's most interesting rock groups. What began as anonymous alt-rock on an uncertain foundation has matured into a Radiohead-inspired hard-rock hybrid delivering as many familiar references as trademark touches. The songs aren't all winners, but the potential is palpable.
At Bottom of the Hill (1233 17th St., San Francisco) on August 21. 9:30 p.m., $12
Monday, August 17, 2009
Your Daily Lick: Steve Taylor
Has the Size of the Road Got the Better of You? (self-released)
Bay Area Bands Nate Seltenrich — Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 12:55 PM
What could've been just another singer-songwriter vanity project gradually reveals a more nebulous context. Newly minted Rogue Wave keyboardist Taylor opens his debut full-length with fairly standard 1960s pop number "Reality," then proceeds to survey soul, psychedelic folk, gospel, and easy listening. This record about the road of life offers a journey of its own.
