This weekend is the awesome-rrific-est festival (in my humble opinion) that this city has to offer — the 37th Annual Nihonmachi Street Fair in Japantown! This festival, if you’re at all interested in the Japanese culture, is a bevy of art, live music, martial arts demonstrations, and seriously grubbin’ food. The coolest part for me, tho’ is the performance of the world-famous San Francisco Taiko Dojo. These masters of this complex and soul-shaping musical and percussion art form put on one of the best presentations of taiko drumming, and are superlative in their approach to the craft, treating it — as any serious taiko dojo does — as a discipline, a study in meditation, a marriage between the physical body and universal rhythms.
(Want to check them out before heading over to the fair? Rent “Rising Sun”; yeah, that’s them in the opening sequence. You’re welcome.)
Trust me, this is not to be missed…ever…especially since it’s TOTALLY FREE!
Check out the fair’s Web site for more detailed information, including other musical performances and demonstrations, and where you can best set-up a perch to watch the parade. (Last year, George Takei was the Grand Marshall — I LOVE this city!) See you there!
This weekend brings together two of my favorite things: superheroes and the Stern Grove Music Festival! So, time to get suited up and headin’ out. Start off on Saturday with the 2nd Annual Superhero Street Fair. Festivities begin at the noon hour and go ’til midnight — that’s right, babies! Twelve freakin’ hours of costumed mayhem, with a plethora of live electronic music from deep house to dub step and beyond! (Admission is free, but donations will be appreciated, natch.)
Then follow up your crazy Saturday with a slightly more decompressed and soul-fulfilling two hours of pure classical bliss, as the San Francisco Symphony takes over Stern Grove for their yearly free concert in the park. This is a truly San Franciscan tradition, complete with gorgeous tree-dappled setting and stunning, life-altering performances by our very own local greats. This year’s performance is being conducted by Donato Cabrera, an up and comer in the conducting world. Just watching him shape the journey of a piece of music is worth the price of admission alone — which, in case I didn’t mention it already, is free. Oh, wait, I did mention it, didn’t I? Well, I’m mentioning it again! It’s all right; you can take it. In any case, the symphony starts at 2 p.m., but I recommend getting there around noon; there’s usually an opening act that’s also awesome, and you just might actually get a spot in the inner ring of stone benches, rather than hoofin’ it up onto the hillside.
(Incidentally, if you do decide to come a little later and want to sit on the hill, I actually love doing this myself. Just make sure to bring a blanket, and regardless of where you sit, I suggest a picnic, too, complete with wine and cheese and fruit and crusty sourdough bread. Hell, if you’re gonna have a true San Francisco experience, might as well hit as many cliches as possible, right? Right!)
O.K., kiddies, that’s it from me for today! Peace, love, and lots of free live music to ya!
Hey, gang! This Sunday is Radio Alice’s Summerthing! For those of you who either are not from or are new to the Bay Area, Radio Alice is a local radio station that plays largely Top 40 pop-style music, and every year, they take over Speedway Meadow in Golden Gate Park and put on a free concert for anyone who wants to come listen. And the awesome thing about this concert is that (a) the weather’s almost always amazing and fabulous, and (b) they get some surprisingly big-name artists to participate! This year’s line-up includes Lifehouse, Kris Allen, One eskimO, and Thriving Ivory.
Seriously.
No…seeeerrriousssly!
Plus, there’s always a ton of vendors with grubbin’ food (garlic fries, anyone?) and fun activities to be had. This year includes an art station where you can get your Creative on, and photo booth station where you can get a free picture to commemorate the day.
A couple of things to know: dogs and kids are welcome! Yippee! That being said, please pick up after your pet(s) and youthful dependent(s) — for everyone’s sake! Plus, for those of you who are concerned that the welcoming of canines and children will lead to lame-o family fare, know that there generally are SEVERAL beer and wine and margarita stations, so adults get to play, too! Just make sure you add some water to the mix — trust me, even if it’s a little overcast, that sun will dry you out much faster than the local Irish pub. Which brings me to this: for God’s sake, wear some high SPF sunscreen, people! Trust me on this one! (I nag ’cause I love.)
And, finally, even though this concert is free — and I mean, it’s truly free; no passing the hat or not-so-subtle suggestions from your emcee to help out these poor, not-so-starving musician/artist types — Radio Alice will have a booth where you can find out more information about the San Francisco Parks Trust, the featured non-profit organization for this year’s concert. Not to get all politico on y’all, but seriously! Can we please all agree that having parks that are free and well-maintained and have not just a dedicated and much-appreciated volunteer staff but also a highly skilled and reasonably paid professional staff is a good thing?
*sigh*
O.K., that’s enough outta me. So, please, take advantage of this free concert! It’s a great time had by all in one of the city’s most beautiful outdoor areas with a surprisingly kickin’ sound system. I truly cannot recommend this enough (unless, y’know, you really hate these artists; then stay home — haters!). Peace, babies!
Extra! Extra! Extra! Tonight, the de Young Museum and Alliance Franςais are hosting one of a series of Friday Night Soirées, in partnership with the French American Cultural Society — and it’s FREE! Tonight’s installment is entitled “Fête de la Musique,” and features music performances by International School of the Peninsula Children’s Choir and troubadour Eric John Kaiser. Plus, there will be a strolling accordion player — how cool is that! Highly, highly recommend this one, kiddies! Festivities begin at 5:00 p.m. and go until 8:45 p.m.
Oh, and did I mention that you’ll get to participate in hands-on art projects? Seriously. Don’t walk — run to this event!
Guess what? You got it — it’s Festival Season. Yippee! Know what that means, dontcha? Loads and loads of grubbin’ food, thrivin’ throngs, and — most importantly — FREE LIVE MUSIC!
This is a great family-friendly event, and keep in mind, festivities go from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday, so it’s not a late-night kind of gig. But if you want to experience a true local slice-of-life event unique to the area, and hear some great performances from established local favorites, well…what can I say? Getcher ass down there! ‘Nough said.
I know this is unforgivably last-minute, but today until 5:30 p.m. is the 33rd annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair, chock full o’ peace, love, happiness, and awesome free live music, including sets by Brothers Horse and Pan Demon. Get out there and get you some Street Fair, baby!
Tuesday, June 8th, unwind from a stressful mid-term Election Day with some rockin’ local bands at Cafe Royale. Here’s the skinny:
Artist/Event: Songwriters’ Circle Venue: Cafe Royale, 800 Post Street (@ Leavenworth) Genre: Acoustic/Americana/Folk/Pop/Rock/Singer-Songwriter Time: 8:00 p.m. Anything Else?: The featured artists are David Luning, KC Turner, Wish Inflicted, and Jeff Campbell. If you’re a fan of singer/songwriter music, complete with catchy guitar riffs and pop-flavored lyrics, this is your show! Plus, check out these artists’ pages; there’s some serious eye candy action goin’ on here! And, if you’re lucky, Jeff Campbell will sing “Thank You” — his awesome acoustic cover of Led Zeppelin’s gorgeous, soulful tune that I just can’t get enough of these days! True, the venue doesn’t exactly have great parking anywhere nearby, so public transportation is highly recommended, and no fewer than five Muni bus lines stop within two blocks of the place (altho’ BART is — yikes! — eight blocks away). This’ll be a great, foot-stompin’, American beer-swillin’ kind of night. Who knows? You might run into The Scene while you’re there! (You never know; it could happen.) One more nice thing to note: the venue is a bar AND a cafe, so all ages are welcome!
Hey, gang! We’re baa-aack! I’ve missed you guys so much — you have no idea! But enough with the mushy stuff; down to business. Here are a couple things happening this Tuesday which caught The Scene’s eye. Check’m out!
LIVE:
Artist/Event: Seed of Crowell Genre: Acoustic/Alternative/Pop Venue: Cafe Royale, 800 Post St. (@ Leavenworth) Time: 8:00 p.m. Anything Else?: This band’s flavor is definitely acoustic, with bare-bones instrumentation and clean-yet-mournful vocals. And occasionally there’s a bit if gypsy style thrown in. Note that they hail from Berkeley, so for you East Bay’ers, if you like what you hear, seek’m out!
Artist/Event: “Flower” Genre: DJ/Pop Venue: Knockout S.F., 3223 Mission St. (@ Valencia) Time: 9:00 p.m. Anything Else?: Featuring DJs Will Ivy and Moses of Honey. The sound is reminiscent of early 80s Euro-Pop and pretty catchy. They self-describe as Psych-Rock. You decide.
DJ:
Artist/Event: “Alcoholocaust” Genre: DJ/Hard Core/Punk/Rock Venue: Argus Lounge, 3187 Mission St. (@ Valencia) Time: 9:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Anything Else? Featuring DJs What’s His Fuck and The Wizard. Part of the draw of this party is that these guys aren’t just DJs; they’re also trivia game hosts! That’s right, there’s a chance to win free cans of Tecate! Just be the first to correctly guess the name of the song that’s being spun before it’s over, and you win a free drink ticket.
NOT QUITE FREE:
Artist/Event: 16 Volt, Chemlab, Left Spine Down, Slave Unit Genre: Cyberpunk/Drum ‘n’ Bass/Electro/Experimental/Industrial/Metal/Punk/Rock Venue: DNA Lounge, 371 11th St. (@ Folsom) Time: Doors @ 8:00 p.m., Show @ 9:00 p.m. Anything Else?: This is one of the stops on the MIDI Ghetto Tour being headlined by 16 Volt and Chemlab, and featuring local favorite Slave Unit (based out of Oakland). Tickets are $10 if you buy them in advance or $15 at the door. And no doubt this goes without saying: this show’s gonna be kick-ass, especially if you like experimental alternative rock music that pulses through your bones. Alas, The Scene will be working. But if you go, post your pictures over at our Facebook fan page!
Hello, beautiful readers! I apologize for being absent these last few weeks. The good news is that The Scene is now once again gainfully employed — yay! Paying bills = happy blogger!
That being said, I’m working on re-vamping the writing schedule for The Scene so that you will continue to get the high quality, reliable, and variegated kind of information that you’ve come to expect from this site. Look to April as the resumption of all things The Scene! And I thank you for sticking with me through this transition. It’ll be worth it, I swear!
In the meantime, at the beginning of this post I embedded a little something from The Mummyshots, a band that The Scene will be reviewing (if all goes as planned) in April — enjoy!
Friday night’s all right for…deep house! Infusion Lounge has a weekly dance party with resident DJs who bring in a regular rotation of freestyle artists — so, in a way, it’s like getting a DJ-driven show along with a side of live performance! Plus, the venue’s pretty chi-chi and trippy, and they have drink specials from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., including $3 beer and $5 mixed drinks. Sounds good to me! Here’s some other things that I think are cool for a Friday night:
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26th:
LIVE: Artist/Event: John Richardson Band Genre: Blues/Funk/Jazz/Rock Venue: SoCha Cafe Location: 3235 Mission St. (at Valencia St.) Time: 8:30 p.m. Anything Else?: In case you didn’t already know, this is a great little neighborhood cafe, with awesome ambience, and is something of a local favorite. For those of us who are fans of alcoholic libations, please take note that this is a strictly beer ‘n’ wine venue.
DJ: Artist/Event: Downtown Underground featuring DJ Duo Ace & Gunz Genre: Dance/DJ/Electronic/House/Jam Venue: Infusion Lounge Location: 124 Ellis St. (between Powell & Cyril Magnin Sts.) Time: 6:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m. Anything Else?: This is a weekly happy hour dance party that features freestyle musicians on guitar, vocals, violins, percussion, etc. Not your average DJ-driven gig! Drink specials only go from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., so get there early and drink up!
NOT QUITE FREE: Artist/Event: All My Pretty Ones, Nathanael Trimboli Singers Genre: Folk Venue: Make-Out Room Location: 3225 22nd St. (between Bartlett & Mission Sts.) Time: 7:30 p.m. Anything Else?: Cover is $7.
