Ticket holders to this year's Exotic Erotic Ball at Craneway Pavilion will have to hang up their chaps and put their leatherware back in the closet. There will be no event this year, according to a press release issued this morning. Organizers cited dismal ticket sales, overstretched budgets, and operational snafus as reasons for canceling the two-day event and corresponding VIP voyage on Hornblower cruise ship, The San Francisco Belle. The producers urge ticket holders to "file their refund claims by following the appropriate bankcard procedure."
Perhaps it was the dizzying array of vaguely deciphered multilingual lyrics and the rapid succession of reggae beats, acoustic homemade techno rhythms, and punk rock pounding. Or maybe it was the first-pumping revolutionary bravado and the random cast of groupies who intermittently materialized on stage and swiftly dove off it into the kinetic mass of people below. From whichever angle one chose to observe, Manu Chao's long ago sold-out performance at The Warfield Theater last Friday was - much like the artist himself - a frenetic display of sound and energy. Yet after all was said and done, it made for a downright entertaining show. It was a two-hour display of sweaty bare-bones performance and utter audience euphoria.