>>WEDNESDAY 24
MUSIC
Mi Ami
I’m thankful for Mi Ami. Without the SF band that is two thirds ex-Black Eyes members, I’d be more wistful about that band’s untimely collapse. Listening to Mi Ami is like visiting an old friend; it’s even the next logical step in the evolution of that unmistakable Black Eyes sound. Sure, there are lots of drums and rhythmic bass, and the squealing vocals of Daniel Martin-McCormick are one-of-a-kind, but Mi Ami’s songs are longer, more about repetition and atmosphere. With a sophomore LP due this spring, Mi Ami’s abrasive sound isn’t ever going to snag an MTV spot — but they’ll always have a reliably loyal following of listeners to show for it. (Peter Galvin)
With High Places and Protect Me
8:00 p.m., $10
Rickshaw Stop
155 Fell, SF
(415) 861 2011
EVENT
“Luna Negra: A Night of Performance for and by Women”
It’s only right that during Women’s History Month, we sit down and listen to writers like Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz. Born to a landless father/farmer and Native American mother in Oklahoma, Dunbar-Ortiz built a life around supporting the struggle of the disenfranchised. She protested the Vietnam War and played major roles in the Native American civil rights movement and publicizing U.S. treachery against the Sandinistas during the contra war. She’ll be joined onstage by other spoken word voices, Afro-Caribbean music, dancers, an Ecuadorian curandera, and not one Y chromosome. (Caitlin Donohue)
7 p.m. , $5–$7
Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts
2868 Mission, SF
(415) 643-5001
>>THURSDAY 25
EVENT/MUSIC
Healing Haiti: An Evening of Arts and Culture
The Haiti benefits of recent weeks often bring together more talented artists than you’d normally find on a single bill. This one is no exception. The Berkeley label Wide Hive (celebrating its 10th anniversary) and the music workshop Own the Mic are uniting with the Element Lounge to put on a show that includes everything from belly dancing to new Bay Area R&B, with gift baskets and raffles thrown in. Tribal Mystics will bring the belly dance, while the music lineup includes DJing by Matt Cali and vocal turns by new voices Alexis Rose, Charito Soriano, Yvette Plant, and Guardian writer Lilan Kane. Radio mainstay Jamillions is one headliner — all proceeds go to Yele Haiti. (Johnny Ray Huston)
9 p.m., $5–$7
Element Lounge
1028 Geary, SF
(415) 440-1125
www.ownthemic.org/healing-haiti
DINE/EVENT
Querido Viejo Tequila Tasting Event
At some point, everyone has a bad run-in with tequila. It could be downing too many margaritas at your coworkers’ wedding or putting back shots because your friends thought you “weren’t quite drunk enough.” We all know this stuff is strong and not to be messed with. Fortunately, Querido Viejo Tequila is offering a tasting where you can actually enjoy the flavors and aromas and not feel pressured to pound one right after the other. This local distiller has been fermenting pure agave for years and is sharing its new line of hooch. The Terrace Room’s 180-degree view overlooks Lake Merritt, so be sure to bring a camera and enjoy the sunset. But remember: pace yourself. (Elise-Marie Brown)
6 p.m.; $2 tequila, $5 appetizer
Terrace Room
1800 Madison, Oakl.
(510) 903-3771
MUSIC
Ana Tijoux
As one of Chile’s most respected lady MCs, Ana Tijoux is different from the summery South American songstresses who often breeze through town. Born into exile, Tijoux began life in France, where her Chilean father and French mother fled during Pinochet’s cruel regime. As a teenager, she returned to her father’s homeland and quickly found a home in Santiago’s burgeoning hip-hop scene. It was there that she earned her cred as a conscious “rapera.” Her upcoming solo release 1977 (Nacional Records) drops lyrics that reflect on the year of her birth, and that unique moment in Chile’s turbulent history that heavily influenced her own. (Mirissa Neff)
With Funky C and Joya; DJ set by Juan Data
8 p.m., $12–$15
La Peña Cultural Center
3105 Shattuck, Berk.
(510) 849-2568
>>FRIDAY 26
MUSIC
Nite Jewel
She pops in a blank 8-track cassette and takes a deep breath before pressing the ‘Record’ button. Romona Gonzalez, the L.A. lady behind Nite Jewel, insists on making and mixing her sound with old gadgets. She hits play on another deck, letting the beats of early ’90s hip-hop and R&B reverberate on the speakers, while her fingers plunk out lace-lined synth-sounds. Nite Jewel is absolutely ideal for a hazy discotheque or any smoky bedroom with glowing stars on the ceiling. Gonzalez sings and the ghostly melodies bounce and swirl, pulling listeners into a desirable, hypnotic state. She is Debbie Deb, Bronx pop, and alternative disco all at once, layering sounds and personalities that pulse and push, yet still manage to relax and soar. (Amber Schadewald)
With Neon Indian, DJ set by Jonas Reinhart
9 p.m., $15
Mezzanine
444 Jessie, SF
(415) 625-8880
DANCE
Ballet Folclorico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez
Ballet Folclorico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez is one of the best in the grand tradition of researching indigenous dances and adapting them to the proscenium theater. It’s also a legendary family-run institution led by the daughter of anthropologist/dancer Amalia Hernandez, who founded the company in 1951. The dances still encompass a wide spectrum of the Mexican experience: an initial quasi-mystical encounter between Aztec gods and humans, the struggle for independence; and the carnivals associated with religious festivals. But they also include choreographies inspired by such mundane activities as games, hunting and wedding rituals. (Rita Felciano)
8 p.m., $25–$65
Marin Veterans Memorial Auditorium
10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael
(415) 499-6800
FILM/SEX
Too Much Pussy! Feminist Sluts in The Queer X Show
What do you get when you put seven ladies — musicians, artists, activists, sex workers, and porn stars — in a van and send them around Europe with the duty to discover the line between art and pornography? You get Too Much Pussy, a sex-positive road movie by Emilie Jouvet. The camera follows the group of radical women in and out of nightclubs in Paris, Berlin and Stockholm during the summer of 2009. They span sexual (dis)orientations and gender expressions and the experiences they gather are just as diverse: political, inspiring, sexy and frustrating. Chat up two of the stars, Madison Young and Sadie Lune, after the film for even more dirty secrets. (Schadewald)
8 p.m., $10–$15
Femina Potens
2199 Market, SF
(415) 864-1558
>>SATURDAY 27
MUSIC
Audio Alchemy: Kid Koala
Who doesn’t love Dan the Automator? From Dr. Octagon to Handsome Boy Modeling School, Loveage, and Deltron 3030, this guy is one of our favorite DJs. Fess up. He is. And here’s another reason to love: he’s presenting Kid Koala in Audio Alchemy, a bimonthly mixing of live music with top DJs at Yoshi’s. Yoshi’s has been been on some other for a minute now. Last year’s sessions with 9th Wonder, Black Quarterback and Manicato in the front room; Alan Marshall, De La Soul, Gil Scot Heron, and Amiri Baraka in the auditorium; swank mixers thrown by the dandies at Brooklyn Circus — they’ve got a tight off-hours scene. One that seems to be fusing together some tastier elements of our desolate culture. (D. Scot Miller)
With DJ Shortkut and the Jazz Mafia All-Stars
10:30 p.m., $20
Yoshi’s SF
1330 Fillmore, SF
(415) 655-5600
DANCE
ODC Pilot 56: “My Young Nostalgic Life”
ODC’s Pilot program showcases are a deal for audiences who like the thrill of discovery. They’re also a break for young choreographers, who get 11 weeks in a supportive environment to create work even as they learn ancillary skills such as marketing, program design, and production and box office management. Since the first Pilot in 1990, close to 300 choreographers have gone through this gentle boot camp. Pilot 56 features six women who collectively decided that “My Young Nostalgic Life” best describes ideas they want to explore through dance. (Felciano)
8 p.m. (also Sun/28, 5 and 8 p.m.), $12
ODC Commons
351 Shotwell, SF
(415) 863-9834
MUSIC
Soweto Gospel Choir
Times are tough in Soweto. Fault me for stating the obvious to provide context for the Soweto Gospel Choir. Are they joyful? Yes. Are they melodious? Uh-huh. Do their voices meld from ululatory to raspy to soaring to proud to a blend of gospel noise and traditional African rhythm? Do audiences come away clapping and laughing and smiling fit to beat the band? Sing it! Part of the group’s elation may have to do with the runaway success of their mission — providing shelter and hope to AIDS orphans in their home communities. So far they’ve toured the world performing for some pretty receptive big dogs — Nelson Mandela, Oprah and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, to name a few. (Donohue)
8 p.m., $25–$65
Paramount Theatre
2025 Broadway, Oakl.
(415) 575-6100
EVENT
Pearls Over Shanghai Kabuki Makeup Class
If the only knowledge you have of Kabuki makeup comes from Memoirs of a Geisha, don’t droop your head in embarrassment — instead, take a class on the traditional Japanese art form. RetroFit Vintage is offering a chance to educated the misinformed or the curious on what it takes to create the perfect Noh heroine. Kegel Kater will apply the makeup for her role as a whore, angel, and lotus dancer in Thrillpeddlers’ Pearls Over Shanghai. (Brown)
3–5 p.m., free
RetroFit Vintage
910 Valencia, SF
(415) 550-1530
EVENT
“Muchas Voces Una Vision/Many Voices One Vision”
What is the function of a poet laureate, exactly? I’m fairly certain I’ve never seen one designing fanciful special boards for the neighborhood diner, or doing anyone’s English homework. How can we put these decorated people of the pen to work? Happily, the dilemma is being resolved in fine fashion this weekend, when SF’s official bards past and present join forces and rattle off original lines to benefit the people of Haiti. Catch readings by poet laureate Diane di Prima and her predecessors Devorah Major and Jack Hirschman. They’ll be joined by more than 30 other artists. (Donohue)
7 p.m. , $10 (suggested donation)
La Peña Cultural Center
3105 Shattuck, Berk.
(415) 849-2568
>>MONDAY 29
MUSIC
Nellie McKay
You probably didn’t see it coming, but now that Nellie McKay’s As Normal as Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day (Verve) is out, it’d be tough to come up with a more suitable pairing. Musician, comedienne, actress — if there’s one thing McKay isn’t, it’s predictable. But who knew she’d pay genuine homage to one of the swinginest singers of the 1950s? Setting aside her often self-depreciating wit, McKay reintroduces Day to a new generation of fans with irresistible exuberance and charm. To make it a truly classy affair, the Great American is going for the sit-down experience. (Galvin)
With Howard Fishman
8:00 p.m., $21
Great American Music Hall
859 O’Farrell, SF
(415) 885-0750
MUSIC
Taylor Texas Corrugators
As founder and leader of legendary Southern California punk rockers Black Flag — he started the band and its record label, SST — Greg Ginn has earned his place in the DIY underground pantheon. The famously hard-working artist has never been complacent, and he comes to the city tonight with his new project, the Taylor Texas Corrugators. The Corrugators finds the guitarist leaning in a more Western swing direction, but, as always, with a host of other musical influences thrown in to keep things evolving. (Sean McCourt)
With Guella and Barney Caldron
8 p.m., $10
Red Devil Lounge
1695 Polk, SF
(415) 447-4730 www.reddevillounge.com
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