Once upon a time, the Bay Guardian was headquartered in a giant converted warehouse at the bottom of Potrero Hill. Since Thee Parkside was just a short walk away, at 17th and Wisconsin streets across from Jackson Park, it was only natural for the music venue and pub to become a regular destination for Guardian staff.
Many classes of interns were welcomed to the newspaper via pitchers of beer filled (and filled again) by Parkside bartenders. Departing staff members were sent off in style with farewell bashes staged at Thee Parkside. So it’s with nostalgia for the days when we could amble over to this venerable dive any time we pleased that we honor Thee Parkside with a small business award.
A music venue that hosts a mix of metal, punk, country, and garage rock performers, Thee Parkside has patrons who tend not to be overly concerned with frills — think tater tots paired with Happy Hour specials such as $1 Natural Light in a can or $3 PBR tall boy specials. The dim interior is often filled with ecstatic sweaty music fans getting lost in a musical crush of sound, the back patio a glorious outdoor refuge, the bathroom doors well-loved with layers upon layers of graffiti and band stickers.
Aside from the punk and metal acts it’s probably most well known for, Thee Parkside also hosts Free Twang Sundays beginning at 4pm. The all-ages shows feature the Bay Area’s best country, western, bluegrass Americana, and rockabilly acts — if it’s twang, it’s Thee Parkside’s thang.
TABLEHOPPER Just when you thought you already had enough options of new places to check out, you get hit with more. Yup, this month is bonkers, and could very well be setting a record for the most openings in a month. Let’s do this.
Due to open this week is Outerlands (4001 Judah, SF; www.outerlandssf.com), with a newly expanded space (owners Lana Porcello and Dave Muller took over the Chinese restaurant next door and knocked the wall down) and a new chef (Greg Kuzia-Carmel). There will be 20 more seats, and a big bonus is the new bar area, with 10 bar seats and some high-top bistro tables, perfect for those moments when you just want to slip in for a cocktail, or even a full meal. You’ll notice the expanded kitchen with a cool architectural feature above it (it looks like a white wave). The cocktail list will be more extensive, with Chris O’Brien as the new bar manager and some consultation from Kevin Dowell, who is the bar manager at Foreign Cinema — look for some initial cocktail pop-up nights to start as they ramp things up. Other additions: Brunch will now be served Saturday and Sunday, and during the week 8–10am, there will be an edited brunch service. It’s enough to make someone plot a morning beach walk, with breakfast before (or after!). Outerlands plans to start with lunch this week (10am–3pm), but check its website before heading over — weekend brunch will be kicking in too, and then dinner service and bar bites soon thereafter.
Now for a couple of SF classics that have been redone and zhooshed. First up, the Big 4 (1075 California, SF; www.big4restaurant.com) has reopened, and fortunately not tooooo much has been changed inside. Ty is still shaking cocktails at the bar and telling jokes, the white tablecloths and leather banquettes in British racing green remain, and guests will still hear the grand piano playing. So what’s new? Well, the snazzy carpet for one. A big change is longtime chef Gloria Ciccarone-Nehls has departed, and the menu from the new chef, Kevin Scott, will be launching May 23 (there’s just an interim menu for now). Some of his dishes will include previous menu staples but with new twists.
There’s also a new cocktail menu with some additions. You can come by for breakfast and dinner daily (6:30–10:30am and 5:30–10pm) and there’s talk of lunch service returning too!
Another SF icon that got a big redo is Schroeder’s (240 Front, SF; www.schroederssf.com), the 120-year-old downtown German beer hall, with new owners and quite a new look too (although the Herman Richter murals remain in place). While it’s definitely a beer hall, the space has a sense of modernity as well (blond wood, Tolix metal chairs, and check out the illuminated glass shelving with beer steins). You can order cocktails from bar director Claire Jane Hunter at the original rosewood bar, cicerone Rich Higgins is behind the quality beer selection (15 on tap), and the wine list is from Mauro Cirilli of Press Club — yeah, people who know what they’re doing. Prost to all of it. Chef Manfred Wrembel (Plum, Incanto) is doing a Cali spin on German dishes (like spätzle with corn, tomato, and ricotta), with some meaty entrées (yes, there’s wiener schnitzel) and the bar menu features a dry-aged cheeseburger.
You like to play mini golf, drink beer, and eat deep-dish pizza, all without leaving the comfort of the Mission? Well, you’re in luck, because Urban Putt (1096 South Van Ness, SF; www.urbanputt.com) is now open (in a former mortuary, how vewy cweepy!). There’s a 14-hole course (complete with a Transamerica building — and you thought I was going to say Transylvania building), a restaurant and bar upstairs (just beer and wine for now), and even the kiddies can come play during the day (until 8pm); $12 adults, $8 kids, first-come, first-served. *
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column; subscribe for more at www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
Remember slowly drifting off while watching documentaries during history class on a warm afternoon? Well, if there’s anyone who can make a historical documentary interesting, it’s the great Ken Burns. If you’ve ever used iPhoto, iMovie, or Final Cut Pro, you’re familiar with “The Ken Burns Effect.” Known for bringing life to still photographs, the Ken Burns Effect is back with The Roosevelts: An Intimate History. Burns will present a sneak preview of his seven-part, 14-hour documentary after an onstage conversation about the film, which will premiere on PBS in September. The film takes the unique perspective of weaving together the lives of Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt, illuminating the influential stories of how two presidents and a first lady played integral roles in shaping American history — from human and civil rights battles to the creation of National Parks to the defeat of Hitler. (Laura B. Childs)
If you’ve never seen Sleepbomb do its thing at the band members’ main stomping ground, you’re in for a rare treat. This postindustrial improvisational band, made up mostly of Zeitgeist employees and regulars, will play a live soundtrack to Metropolis, the cult-classic silent film by German Expressionist filmmaker Fritz Lang. Sleepbomb has done live soundtracks to Metropolis and Nosferatu before in the Zeitgeist beer garden, and it’s always an eerie, artsy, urban, robotic, drunken good time. (Steven T. Jones)
British hardcore punk stalwarts the Anti-Nowhere League have made a name for themselves over the past three decades with an unabashedly aggressive and in-your-face approach, as evidenced by their signature songs “I Hate People” and the profanity-laced “So What” — the latter was even notoriously covered by Metallica. In a perfect pairing, Southern California punk icons T.S.O.L (True Sounds of Liberty), who became infamous for the police riots that would break out at their shows, and the tune “Code Blue,” an ode to the joys of necrophilia, join the bill for what promises to be one hell of show. (Sean McCourt)
Fou Fou Ha, our favorite cartoon performance troupe, makes a big leap forward as it returns to its roots for its latest original show, In Living Colors. This psychedelic dance journey through an exotic world is described as “Alice in Wonderland meets the Forbidden Zone,” combining elaborate 3D pop-up sets and projections by Obscura Digital. It’s a new twist on the lively choreographed comedy that is classic Fou, but on an occasion that’s a little bittersweet for Mama Fou (aka Maya Lane) and the rest of Family Fou. The troupe got its start in this location back when it was CELLspace, the players kept it as their home during its evolution into Inner Mission, and now this looks like it will be Fou Fou Ha’s final performance in a space that is being shut down this fall and converted into condos. So come laugh, cry, dance, and laugh some more. (Jones)
Last time Zion I was at the Independent was for a guest appearance during the venue’s 10th anniversary celebration. Tonight, the Bay Area indie hip-hop duo is back. Baba Zumbi and AmpLive of Zion I have been making music together for over 15 years. AmpLive brings the electronic dance beats that vacillate between reggae and drum ‘n’ bass, Zumbi carries the vocals with socially conscious lyrics. Originally formed in Atlanta, the Berkeley-based duo creates a relatable sound that’s difficult to define. Neither West Coast hip-hop, nor East Coast rap, the band’s musical influences remains deeply engrained in songs that deliver messages of unity and hope. (Childs)
Secrets, truths and lies…Black Market SF is hosting one of its legendary events tonight for the curious: Rendezvous. They say, curiosity killed the cat, but in this case, let your curiosity run wild. This clandestine discovery market will carry an assortment of local craft and food vendors as well as many secret activities to be discovered on the night of. Explore one of SF’s best-kept secrets in the intimate setting of the Folsom Street Foundry. If the city’s best craft artisans and food purveyors don’t pique your interest, an exclusive live set of up-and-coming acts will spearhead the dance party. This mysterious night will be one for the books. (Childs)
Many tribal people living on parched lands engage in ritualistic dances to encourage the falling of precious rain. Since water is the world’s most important and most endangered natural resource, we might as well try dancing. It just could help. For this weekend the bi-national Dance Monks, an interdisciplinary ensemble that works both in the Bay Area and Mexico, has enlisted local artists — Dohee Lee, NAKA Dance among them — to help out drought-stricken California. NOMAD: The Blue Road, takes audiences along the path of Strawberry Creek, Berkeley’s beloved small stream that still burbles and runs under the urban asphalt of downtown Berkley. The piece starts on the UC campus and winds its way along the creek’s trajectory with performances along the path. (Rita Felciano)
If you have friends participating in the race but, like so many of us, you also feel a local’s urge to get the hell out of town during Bay to Breakers weekend — or at least as far away from the costumed, beer-soaked debauchery as possible — get the best of both worlds by hitting one of the rival Hayes Street house parties along the course, with DJs, more than you could ever want to drink, and probably very little pressure to be athletic in any way. Alternatively, hit Alamo Square for an amazing view of some 30,000 people all making their way up the Hayes Street Hill. Just remember: The cops have pledged a zero-tolerance policy for public drunkenness this year. We’ll see how that all shakes out. (Emma Silvers)
First things first, she’s the realest. The Australian beauty and hip-hop performer, Iggy Azalea, has been making waves in this hemisphere since her Clueless-inspired music video for her hit single “Fancy.” With sassy raps and catchy hooks about the glam life, Azalea’s sound is reminiscent of the “it” girls of the early 2000’s. Think Gwen Stefani’s vocals and Lil’ Kim’s beats, but this former model adds personal flair with her zero-fucks-given charisma and unabashed obsession with America. She’s opened for household names such as Beyoncé and Rita Ora, but since the release of her debut album, The New Classic, Azalea is on the prowl with her Monster Energy Outbreak Tour. (Childs)
In the 17 years since his old band, Ben Folds Five, burst onto the national scene with “Brick” — likely the catchiest, most radio-friendly song ever penned about an abortion at Christmastime — pianist-singer-songwriter-storyteller Ben Folds has proven to be so much more than a flash in the pan. On this tour, he’s been performing solo with orchestras and symphonies around the world; if you’re not quite sure how his songwriting would stand up to such elaborate instrumentation, search for videos online of his performances with the Western Australian Symphony Orchestra. This one-off show should be a treat for devotees of the singer’s nearly three-decade career as well as symphony fans — nothing like a little pop-rock-classical synergy on a Monday night. (Silvers)
Who says writing isn’t a contact sport? The monthly Write Club, which bills itself with the motto “literature as bloodsport,” pits local lit figures against each other in a competitive readings series, with writers arguing such topics as “snow vs. fire,” “ham vs. turkey,” and “Santa vs. Jesus.” This month’s will see six writers, including Caitlin Gill, Rachel Bublitz, and founders Steven Westdahl and Casey Childers arguing over topics such as “beginning” vs. “end.” The audience picks the winner, and proceeds go to a charity of the winner’s choice. Reading, arguing, a full bar — what’s not to like? (Silvers)
Serious Damien Jurado fans — and the folksy indie-rocker does seem to inspire a certain (well-deserved) fervor amongst a certain set — know the songwriter’s gift for storytelling owes as much to a willingness to get weird as it does to playing with narrative. Jurado’s latest release, January’s Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Son, is the third piece in a three-part collaboration with producer Richard Swift, and it shies away from neither the religious overtones nor the heady, spaced-out hero’s journey type of tale 2012’s Maraqopa laid out; it’s more stripped-down, if anything, so those themes are laid bare. Live, he’s known for making even large rooms feel intimate; this show shouldn’t disappoint. (Silvers)
The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian, 225 Bush, 17th Flr., SF, CA 94105; or e-mail (paste press release into e-mail body — no attachments, please) to listings@sfbg.com. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.
Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant, Berk. www.nrdc.org. 6-9pm, $30/$20 for students. Author and advocate Anna Lappe serves as master of ceremonies for this year’s multimedia awards ceremony, celebrating leaders in sustainable food and agriculture. Presented by the Berkeley Food Institute and Natural Resources Defense Council. Food and wine reception follows.
THURSDAY 15
Global Day of Action Against Fast Food Industry
Downtown Oakland. sandra.eboc@gmail.com. 11am, free. Join fast food workers and allies from 36 countries and 150 U.S. cities for a day of action to call attention to some of the worst corporate behavior and income inequality. The first action will be in East Oakland at 6am and the second will be downtown at 11 am.
Community Forum on Proposed Development for 16th and Mission Plaza
Victoria Theater, 2961 16th St., SF. www.plaza16.org. 6-8pm, free. The proposed housing development near Mission and 16th Sts. will be too expensive and too big, shadowing Marshall Elementary School for five months of the year. Learn more about how this project will negatively impact neighborhood residents, community organizations, and mom and pop businesses. Be part of a community-based effort where the needs of people come before the needs of multimillion-dollar profits.
Fundraiser to support farming veterans
Goldman Theater, David Brower Center, 2150 Allston Way, Berk. 5:30-7:30pm, $100. Show your support and celebrate the accomplishments of the Farmer Veteran Coalition, portrayed in the award-winning documentary Ground Operations: Battlefields to Farmfields. Meet the veterans in the film who are part of a new generation of sustainable farmers, ranchers and artisan food producers.The evening will feature veteran-produced, farm-fresh tapas, beverages (wine, beer and mead!), as well as stories told by vets-turned-farmers. Meet the filmmakers, and watch the film, documenting how vets with post-traumatic stress disorder have found peace through sustainable agriculture.
Are you ready for an onslaught of new restaurant openings? Because I’m about to hit you with a tidal wave of new places to check out — it’s like Mavericks or something on the new restaurant front. Hang ten!
First up, the former wood-fired barbecue pit at Brother-in-Law’s/Da’ Pitt on Divisadero is lit back up, and the neighborhood should be smelling delightfully smoky again with the much-anticipated opening of 4505 Burgers & BBQ (705 Divisadero, SF; www.4505meats.com). Chef-owner Ryan Farr is busy serving a variety of smoked meats — brisket, pulled pork or chicken, and sausages (you can get it all by the plate or pound or in a sandwich) — plus salads, a whole bunch of sides (baked beans, potato salad, you know the drill), the 4505 hot dog, and what they call the best damn grass-fed cheeseburger, which you can get late (there’s a late-night menu that will be served at the take-out window Fri–Sat 10pm–2am, praise the lard). For now, everything is to-go (including a selection of cold beers!) until the patio opens up in June with seating. Opening hours are Sun–Thu 10:30am–10pm, and Fri–Sat 10:30am–2am.
More smoky smells: Over at Magnolia’s Dogpatch brewery location, owner Dave McLean’s new barbecue restaurant is due to open this week, Smokestack (2505 Third St., SF; www.magnoliapub.com). Chef Dennis Lee (Namu Gaji) is leading the charge on the menu, featuring barbecue classics coming from the smokers and custom grill, plus some creative sides. The 80-seat space is a looker, with an artsy-vintage patina, communal tables, and wait until you see the expansive, glimmering bar — it’ll make you very, very thirsty. Whether you’re into whiskey or just want a pint of Blue Bell Bitter, you’re covered.
Bacon Bacon truck chasers can now return to BB’s brick-and-mortar location in Cole Valley (205A Frederick, SF; www.baconbaconsf.com), which has reopened after installing the “odor abatement system” their bacon-hating NIMBY neighbors demanded. The space was updated inside, and you’ll find 13 seats where you can post up and chomp their breakfast sandwich (fried egg, bacon, cheddar, and bacon jam), fantastic banh mi, bacon burger, and other bacony items, like chocolate-covered bacon strips for dessert (we won’t tell Mom). Open Mon–Fri 7am–3pm, Sat–Sun 8am–3pm.
Hog Island Oyster Company has finished its expansion at the Ferry Building Marketplace (1 Ferry Building, SF; www.hogislandoysters.com) and is now double in size, with 65 seats inside, and 65 outside. There’s also a new chef at the helm (Christopher Laramie) and a fryer (!), so look for a bigger menu, with an oyster po’boy, fried smelts, and more (don’t worry, the clam chowder and grilled cheese sandwich are staying put). There’s also a full bar, score. Its insane happy hour will continue on Mon and Thu 5pm–6pm, with chef’s choice of half-price oysters on the half shell, plus beer and wine specials.
Fifth Floor in the Hotel Palomar has completed its transformation into the bar-centric Dirty Habit (12 Fourth St., Fifth floor, SF; www.dirtyhabitsf.com). Chef David Bazirgan has put together a bar-friendly menu (think lots of tasty small plates), while bar manager Brian Means is shaking and stirring a variety of creative cocktails — many served in fun vintage glassware — plus pouring a bunch of rare spirits and whiskeys (there are also some special wines being pulled from the cellar). Big bonus: the new heated outdoor patio.
SoMa workers and dwellers have a swell new spot to get their coffee, breakfast (broken farro porridge, house-made muffins), sandwiches (bacon-wrapped meatloaf, or a roasted mushroom sandwich with Swiss cheese, spinach, and garlic), salads, and more. Lauren Kino of Il Cane Rosso (home of the best egg salad sandwich in town) has opened Fearless (303 Second St., SF; www.fearlesscoffee.com), serving you Mon–Fri 7am–5pm and Sat–Sun 8am–3pm. And looking very, very close is Outerlands (4001 Judah, SF; www.outerlandssf.com), due to open at some point this week, but we’ll save the details about the new chef (Greg Kuzia-Carmel), menu, and more until next week’s column. Because really, you have enough to keep you busy here, doncha? *
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column; subscribe for more at www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
Wonderfest, “the Bay Area Beacon of Science,” is a nonprofit that has been organizing fun, funky science events and meet-ups for nearly two decades, and best of all, most of them are free. This talk, presented at the SoMa StrEat Food Park (with all of the delectable food truck and beer options that entails) will tackle one of the last great biological mysteries — something we spend one-third of our lives doing, yet something scientists still understand very little about. Matthew P. Walker, an associate professor of psychology at Cal, will describe the latest research that suggests sleep is actually a highly active process, necessary for improving our learning processes, memory, creativity, and emotions. So grab a friend, grab some grub and get your education on, then go home and get a good night’s rest — you’ll be smarter for it. (Emma Silvers)
Got a bike? Ride it. Today marks the 20th anniversary of San Francisco’s Bike to Work Day, and it’s never been more rewarding to be a two-wheeled commuter. With thousands of cyclists on the road today, not only do tailpipe emissions decrease dramatically, but the visible presence of cyclists encourages motorists to share the road. What’s more, many small businesses will have special treats for bikers, and the SF Bicycle Coalition will have safety classes, workshops, parties, raffles, and energizer stations (snacks, beverages, and goodie bags) throughout the city. If you’re a two-wheeling newbie, don’t fret. The Coalition will also have Commuter Convoys leading you through the city. Keep an eye out for bike-friendly businesses: Yoga Tree is offering a free class to anyone who shows up on two wheels. Don’t forget your helmet! (Laura B. Childs)
“The New Forty-Niners” and “Scavenger: Adventures in Treasure-Hunting”
For centuries, stories of treasure hunters and great explorers have dominated American history. From the Gold Rush millionaire Samuel Brannan to Huck Finn to Lewis and Clark, the thirst for adventure and wealth is a building block of the American Dream. Tonight, Rayko Photo Center presents two exhibits based on this dream. “Scavenger: Adventures in Treasure Hunting,” by Jenny Riffle, documents one man’s treasure hunt, accompanied by his metal detector. Riffle romantically captures the mythical adventurer as he ventures out into rural Washington like a 21st century Mark Twain character. The second exhibit, Sarina Finklestein’s “The New Forty-Niners,” is a four year-long photo project chronicling modern-day gold prospectors in California. In gritty and rugged photographs, the exhibit reveals a small self-sustaining society dependent on gold mining, reminiscent of the original Gold Rush. (Childs)
Last November choreographer Katharine Hawthorne premiered Timepiece at the Joe Goode Annex. Bringing a background in physics and dance to her artistic practice, she had created an intricately structured and intriguing piece of choreography in which she explored the concept of time — not just dance as a time-based art, but time as a way of structuring the way we live our lives and think about the world. In the new The Escapement, she continues that process by examining the way clocks have enabled us to divide time into regular intervals. The invention of the “escapement” mechanism, apparently, was central to the process. Performing with Hawthorne will be Jesse L. Chin, Katherine Disenhof, Suzette Sagisi, and Megan Wright. (Rita Felciano)
With advice like “money looks better in the bank than on your feet,” #GIRLBOSS is one giant kick in the butt. The CEO, founder, and self-proclaimed “chief troublemaker” at the online fashion retailer NastyGal, Sophia Amoruso isn’t your typical CEO. Before reaching meteoric fame with her $100 million brand, Amoruso was an anarchist who survived off dumpster-diving and shoplifting. Dubbed the “Cinderella of tech,” Amoruso started an eBay store while living in San Francisco, selling old clothes; some eight years later, it’s a global marketplace specializing in scandalous and trendy clothing for 20-somethings. Filled with quick-whips and snarky illustrations, #GIRLBOSS covers all the nitty-grittiness of owning a company, and demystifies any ideas that because you were popular in high school, you’re guaranteed success — you have to work for it. (Childs)
Black Sabbath may be past their prime, but Berlin’s Kadavar is keeping the ’70s heavy metal dream alive — psychedelic, snarling, seething, dope-smoking, and very hairy. Drawing heavily —very heavily— from Sabbath and Pentagram (with some nods to Zeppelin), Kadavar have joined the time-travelling ranks of Electric Wizard and Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats in producing some seriously killer heavier metal tunes. Though Kadavar wears its influences on its sleeve, as these guys are singing through their prodigious facial hair about wizards, witchcraft, and lost souls, they are undeniably genuine. Their love for the music is clear, and entirely impossible not to headbang to. (Zaremba)
If you are a cat fan — or simply fond of Internet kitty videos — today is basically Christmas, Hanukkah, your birthday, Talk Like a Pirate Day, and every other awesome holiday rolled into one. In SF, the Roxie rolls out its “First Annual San Francisco Intergalactic Feline Film and Video Festival for Humans,” a meow-thful of a name befitting a fest that promises “a two-week film festival in the span of 12 hours.” In Oakland, OakCatVidFest presents an entire day of pussy magic; in addition to outdoor screenings, there will be cat-themed bands and dance performances, plus adoptable cats and the chance to sign up to be a kitten foster parent. Superstar Internet feline Lil Bub (of documentary, talk-show, and tongue-wagging fame) will appear at both events. And so should you! (Cheryl Eddy)
20th Anniversary Serial Mom Tribute with Ricki Lake
“I don’t like to read about movies. They’re so violent,” picture-perfect suburban hausfrau Beverly R. Sutphin (Kathleen Turner) tells a couple police officers during a brief non-lethal moment in Serial Mom. John Waters’ 1994 comedy about a secretly demented wife and mother with very, very high etiquette standards — you really do not want to wear white after Labor Day around he r— remains his personal best since the breakthrough of Hairspray (1988). That film’s discovery Ricki Lake, cast as Sutphin daughter Misty, will appear in person for Peaches Christ’s “Mother’s Day celebration to die for,” also featuring a pre-show performance with D’Arcy Drollinger and “the erotic dance stylings of SexiTude.” There will be blood. (Dennis Harvey)
Reassuring us all that growing up doesn’t mean you have to lose your sense of humor, the Old 97’s — the solid, steady fathers of alt-country, who never quite exploded (or imploded) like some of mid-’90s their counterparts did — are currently touring the country with their tenth studio album, Most Messed Up. The tour also functions as a 20th anniversary party for the band, and the record serves as perfect accompaniment: Never have songs about the ravages of road life and the slights of middle age sounded so fun. The band’s die-hard fans know they’re in for a helluva rocking live show, too, though the guys claim to never rehearse; if you’ve only heard a few radio singles, this is your chance to see what the fuss is actually all about. (Silvers)
Let’s start with the burning question: Is this guy for real? Part of the intrigue of Riff Raff’s over-the-top, ultra-campy hip-hop persona is that it might be totally genuine. This caricature-like white guy from Houston with a BET tattoo, a grill, and cornrows, who raps about Dolce and Gabbana, could be an elaborate joke. Nut authentic or not, Riff Raff is a hot commodity; “Feat. Riff Raff” seems to be the most popular phrase on iTunes. He’s tight with Drake, Justin Bieber, has over 50 million views on YouTube, and scored some seriously solid guests for his upcoming record Neon Icon — Action Bronson, Childish Gambino, and Diplo, to name just a few. Love him or hate him (it’s one or the other) Riff is undeniably fascinating, and this performance won’t be one you forget any time soon. (Zaremba)
You know the upside to life’s hideously embarrassing moments, right? Like that time you broke your ankle by slipping on a banana at the Muni station, at rush hour, and had to have Muni employees help you off the platform while covered in banana mush? And also you were headed to a job interview? (Note: this recently happened to an actual friend.) The upside, of course, is that you have an awesome story to tell, and this monthly “story slam,” based on the award-winning New York-based series The Moth, rewards naked honesty as much as it does storytelling flair. Fact-checkers won’t be on hand, but stories must be true and take five minutes or less to tell; contestants can’t use notes or cheat-sheets of any kind. But beyond that, anything goes, so start your storytelling engines.(Silvers)
Sure, she’s had her share of troubles over the years: prison time for tax evasion, comments about race that gave PR people across the nation simultaneous heart attacks, a laundry list of tardiness and other diva-tastic behaviors. But at the end of the day, Lauryn Hill is still among the most gifted musicians of the last two decades; her Grammy-sweeping album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which turns 16 this August, still graces many a Top 10 list (this critic’s included). Live, she’s been experimenting with a more reggae-fied and big band sound over the last few years, giving hits like “Doo Wop (That Thing)” the weight of a pseudo-religious revival experience. And if the new music she dropped following her release from prison in the fall of last year is any indication, this tour should be a good one. She might be late, she might be ornery — she won’t be boring. (Silvers)
The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian, 225 Bush, 17th Flr., SF, CA 94105; or e-mail (paste press release into e-mail body — no attachments, please) to listings@sfbg.com. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.
The San Francisco Bay Guardian is pleased to salute small businesses and recognize local merchants who are creating jobs, keeping neighborhoods lively, and contributing to the community. This year, our third Small Business Reader’s Choice Award will be given. What is your favorite small business in the San Francisco Bay Area? Our 2014 Small Business Awards Issue hits stands May 14. Voting will end at midnight on Thursday, May 8. To qualify as a small business your nominee must employ no more than 100 people. One entry per person, please. Visit sfbg.com for more.
FIGHTING FOR $15
The fight for a higher minimum wage is gaining steam throughout the Bay Area. Public employee union SEIU 1021 is gathering signatures to place a measure on the November ballot that would raise San Francisco’s minimum wage to $15. And while Oakland while mayoral candidate Dan Siegel released a policy paper pushing for a $15 an hour minimum wage, a potential initiative for the November ballot seeks to raise Oakland’s minimum wage from $8 to $12.25 per hour. Meanwhile, Oakland City Council considered an ordinance that would enact a citywide minimum wage of $10.20, but the proposal was held in committee.
CASH-STRAPPED DOCTORS
Resident physicians and interns at Oakland’s UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital are seeking federal mediation in ongoing labor contract negotiations. The starting salary for resident physicians is $52,000 — not much for someone tasked with, you know, saving lives, while shouldering the burden of hefty med school loans when Oakland rents are skyrocketing.
DRONE ZONE
So the annual Maker Faire won’t be coming to the San Mateo Fairgrounds until May 17-18, but here’s a heads up that drones will play a starring role in this year’s maker-movement fest. There will be an outdoor drone flying area, two indoor drone areas, and an official drone-flying competition, hosted by a maker known as Game of Drones. One can even play drone beer pong. Visit makerfaire.com for more.
DON’T B3 3VIL
One local artist is disrupting tech shuttle riders on their own turf: the Internet. Artist David Harris’ project DONTB33VIL mimics login credentials of the WiFi routers provided by the tech buses. When Google and Facebook employees login to WiFi, all they’ll see is an approximation of the sidewalk their cell phone or laptop is near. Harris said wants to confront tech shuttle riders with an “indeterminate symbol of failure, suggesting that something in their highly-customized interface has gone wrong, while not saying exactly what or why.”
SEXY POLITICKING
State Assembly candidate and San Francisco Supervisor David Campos’ newest fundraiser will be hosted by the local pornographers at Kink.com, at the Armory Club on May 7. The porn-purveyors known for ball-and-gag videos, submission wrestling and sex robots, will feature a gyrating (non-nude) exotic dancer, photos with porn luminaries, and a tour of the historic Armory. “He is one of the rare politicians who has ever reached out to me,” Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth said, “and is unafraid of the association.”
HOME SELLERS FLEE
SF homeowners who sell tend to leave the city, according to new numbers from Paragon Real Estate group. Their findings are like a mini-horror story centered around SF’s gentrification: *
60 percent of sellers are relocating outside San Francisco *
47 percent of buyers are employed in tech *
26 percent of homes are getting snagged with “all cash” offers
GET YOUR GROVE ON
Don’t have $400 lying around to shell out for Outside Lands tickets on Craigslist? You’re in good company. Luckily, there’s Stern Grove, the summer-long, admission-free festival that provides killer live performances without killing your hopes of ever sending your unborn kids to college. This year’s lineup of Sunday afternoon shows, announced May 1, includes such heavy hitters as Smokey Robinson, Rufus Wainwright, Andrew Bird, Darlene Love, Allen Stone, and plenty of other local stars, like LoCura, Vetiver, and, of course, the SF Symphony. Pack a picnic, bring a jacket (this is summer in San Francisco, after all) and get there early if you actually want to see the stage — all performances start at 2pm. More deets: www.sterngrove.org.
RAISING REEL HELL
Here’s your latest chance to see excellent, locally-made romantic drama Love and Demons on the big screen: it’ll make its way up to the Smith Rafael Film Center Sun/11 (www.cafilm.org) for a screening with director-writer-star JP Allen and other cast and crew members in person. An intriguing look at modern love, the film follows a dissatisfied couple on the verge of breaking up — until a pair of meddlesome demons enter the picture, nudging these hapless San Francisco mortals into some really ill-advised life choices. Made creatively on a shoestring, Demons is full of recognizable SF locations — and preserves for posterity some that are no more, including the thematically apropo Red Devil Lounge.
CHASE TARGETS SEX WORKERS
Chase Bank unleashed the wrath of the porn industry by taking steps to cancel the accounts of hundreds of sex workers, effective May 11. The bank reportedly explained its decision to bewildered customers by saying their work was deemed to be “high risk.” As a private bank, Chase has no legal obligation to do business with anyone, but the implications are disturbing. What if other major banks refuse service to porn actors due to their chosen line of work? Can a person even function without a bank account?
THEATER It got cold only once last week in Austin, and that was in the refrigerated beer grotto at the Whole Foods. Otherwise the famously incongruous Texas capital was a sultry pleasure. Arriving midway through the 12-day Fusebox festival (April 16–27) allowed for a concentrated dose of Austin’s relaxed mien and fervent tastes, as I took in a slab of what Fusebox’s organizers refer to as Free Range Art. Among other things, that meant a program that roamed widely over categories and disciplines as well as points of origin: The festival annually culls its performance-based, visual, conceptual, and food-related projects from local, national, and international artists in roughly equal proportion.
The Bay Area was represented this year by a rousing episode of choreographer Larry/Laura Arrington’s highly collaborative experimental “game show,” SQUART! (co-produced at Fusebox by Austin-based House of Ia), which had a far-flung mix of local and guest artists putting out completed (often complex and impressive) performances in a matter of a few hours. SQUART! also featured on its luminous panel of celebrity judges the likes of postmodern dance icon Deborah Hay (who by way of one critique led the crowded barroom venue in a chorus of “Don’t Fence Me In”). Another intimidatingly dazzling celebrity judge was Christeene, Austin actor Paul Soileau’s fierce and brilliant drag alter ego, who would go on to close out the festival on Saturday night with an all-new, ferocious floor show.
Underscoring the Free Range theme in the festival’s second week were several remarkable performances that straddled the line between visual art, installation, and conventional theater.
One of these was 33 rpm and a few seconds, by renowned Lebanese theater artists Rabih Mroué and Lina Saneh, whose stage comes littered with several past decades worth of communication technology — including the turntable alluded to by the title as well as a fax machine, an answering machine, a cell phone, and stacks of books, all backed by an enormous projection of the principal character’s Facebook wall. Notably, the stage remains devoid of any actor (other than a voice heard on the answering machine). Also notably, the principal character, based on an artist and activist in Beirut, is already dead. Only his devices and Facebook account continue to churn with life, as a host of friends, colleagues, and strangers remotely discuss, deliberate over, and variously appropriate his ambiguous suicide. With pointed associations for war-scarred Lebanon’s contentious recent history, yet reverberating with a larger state of affairs, this sly and intriguing, multichannel conversation shimmers with our own ghostly and fragmented existence.
Man Ex Machina, meanwhile, had at least half an actor onstage as it delivered a brilliant and chilling multimedia treatise on the evolution of human and machine. Written, directed, and performed (in a stationary but cleverly versatile steam punk cyborg suit with two bare legs poking through) by multifaceted Bulgarian artist Venelin Shurelov of SubHuman Theatre, this riveting “cyber lecture” unfolds as a combination video game, animated documentary (the stunning 3D animations are by Yosif Bozhilov), and post-human minimalist cabaret. Its alternately grim and bracing vision of human evolution comes leavened by a tender humor, but packs enough punch in its trim 50 minutes to leave your head swimming.
Los Angeles–based multimedia artist Miwa Matrayek had two exquisite, visually and musically lush works in this year’s festival, Myth and Infrastructure and This World Made Itself. Both feature her astounding multi-projection animations, into which she folds her own 2D shadow-screen persona in real time. Disappearing into this layered screen world, her shadow becomes traveler and witness to the great and ominous unfolding of human action in the natural world. Indeed, This World Made Itself in particular proved a forceful complement to Man Ex Machina as it pondered the evolutionary timeline of earth, human agency, and the fragility of life in its own distinctive aesthetic and emotional register.
Beyond the merits of any single work, what remains so impressive about the festival’s diverse offerings (and artistic director Ron Berry’s shrewd curatorial vision) is the way the pieces so often spoke to one another. These unpredictable resonances emerged organically for the most part, but together with infusions of the featured Paloma Mezcal punch they fueled a subtle expansion of thought and feeling in a laidback setting devoid of any preciousness.
Free Range meant one more thing at this year’s Fusebox: For the first time in this modest-sized but distinguished festival’s 10-year history, all tickets to all shows were free to the public. The festival’s organizers say they hope that by eliminating the ticket price — while still programming leading and challenging work — Fusebox will spur a deeper conversation about value, rather than continue to mask it behind the narrow and misleading idea that the ticket price is the end of the story (in reality, ticket prices rarely even come close to covering the actual material cost of producing such work).
Whatever else, the free ticket seemed to at least eliminate the mundane anxiety that comes with unfolding your wallet and deciding whether a purchase is worthwhile. Getting rid of that consumer judgment may also be enough to subtly but productively change the terms of relation between the public and the artist. If that’s a hard thing to measure, it was easy enough to detect in the amiable mixing that went on throughout the festival. And who knows, it’s possible too that a “free range” opens up a mental and social environment in which the real value and import of much of this work — whether delivered through the taste buds by high-concept gelato or reflected in the miraculously beautiful, agonized mirrors of Matreyek’s animated sets — can be transmitted to us all with less distortion from the ideological frequencies of a market-driven society. *
THE WEEKNIGHTERWeekends are for amateurs. Weeknights are for pros. That’s why each week Broke-Ass Stuart (www.brokeassstuart.com) will be exploring a different San Francisco bar, bringing you stories about the places and people who make San Francisco one of the most phenomenal cities in the world. Who wants a drink?
I used to hang out at the Noc Noc (557 Haight Street, SF. 415-861-5811) for too many hours in a row just so I could make out with the bartender after she got off work. She’d feed me bottles of powerful sake and I’d sit around bullshitting with the half dozen or so other dudes who’d come by with hopes of getting in her pants.
“This might be the night,” I imagined them telling themselves each evening on the walk over; it was the same thing regulars patrons of hot bartenders have been telling themselves since the day hot bartenders were invented.
I’d convinced myself I wasn’t one of them, since it was me that she made out with after her shift, but more often than not she’d get off and we’d cross Haight Streeet to Molotov’s so I could watch her play pool with all the dudes who hung around fawning over her at the bar. I’m not a competitive person and even more so, hate being forced into vying for someone’s attention, so I got tired of the scene fairly quickly and stopped doing it. Still, she was a really good kisser.
I spent a lot of time at the Noc Noc in my youth though. Many years ago I dated a USF girl who was under 21 and we’d go there because she and her friends could get in. They never carded back in those days (don’t worry ABC, they do now) and we’d sit on the Beetlejuice looking chairs, amongst the psychedelic cave paintings and the black lights, drinking sake and beer. I’d tell those naïve USF kids wild stories about what it was like to be over 21 even though I was just barely so, but it was good enough to impress them and my girlfriend and I would make out and be in love up and down Haight Street. Other people would see us and feel sick or jealous or both. She was also a really good kisser.
The name Noc Noc derives from Nocturnal Nocturne. When Ernest Takai opened the Lower Haight joint in 1986 it was the “first place to play industrial, ambient, dance, acid jazz in San Francisco” or so the website tells me. I didn’t know any of this stuff until right now when I went to the Noc Noc’s website. Anytime I’d ever asked anyone at the bar why the place looked so fucking perfectly unusual I got a bunch of drunk stories that basically amounted to “some crazy ass Japanese dude opened the place and I think he was an artist and liked music or something,” which was good enough for me.
Vagueness makes a bar story good and allows room for mystery, which is something the world is sorely lacking these days. When you can answer any question that’s ever been asked, simply by Googling it, mystery becomes the first casualty of too much information.
One of my favorite Joni Mitchell lines is, “Everything comes and goes, marked by lovers and styles of clothes.” And like always, Joni is right. We keep track of who we were back when, by remembering the people we dated and the silly shit we wore. But the same goes for the places we hung out in. The Noc Noc opened in 1986 and its dark corners and dark beats have been a cornerstone for kissing San Franciscans ever since. Making out with someone is one of the last bits of mystery left in the world. You have no idea where that path will lead but the initial excitement it makes you feel is worth all the Googleable knowledge in the world. Google is a lot of things, but it will never be a really good kisser.
Stuart Schuffman aka Broke-Ass Stuart is a travel writer, poet, and TV host. You can find his online shenanigans at www.brokeassstuart.com
Anyone who digs the Vietnamese vittles from the Rice Paper Scissors ladies will be happy to know they have expanded their weekday lunch hours to the weekend, and have launched brunch at Brick & Mortar Music Hall (1710 Mission, SF. www.brickandmortarmusic.com). Come by 11am–2pm Saturdays and Sundays and you’ll find a menu with a bit of Chinese influence too, with dishes like daikon rice cakes with Chinese sausage and dry-fried chicken wings. And why try to resist a fried egg banh mi or banh xeo? Just do it. Like it hot? There’s a mapo scramble, which sounds promising, plus a Sriracha Bloody Mary. Don’t forget your cash! No cards accepted, yo.
Fans of the Lime Tree in the Inner Sunset (and its roti, corn fritters, beef rendang, and martabak) will be pleased to know a second location has opened across the park in the Inner Richmond (836 Clement, SF. 415-831-8811). This popular Southeast Asian restaurant is fired up and ready to serve you Tue–Fri 11am–3pm and 5pm–9:30pm, Sat 12pm–9:30pm, and Sun 12pm–9pm.
Izakaya Roku (1819 Market, SF. www.rokusf.com) has two new chefs in the kitchen — and they’re brothers! Ends up Masaru and Yasu come from owner Jay Hamada’s same hometown in Japan (Miyazaki), and they’re collaborating and putting some country-style dishes from home on the menu. Also available: You’ll now find the Japanese curry that’s served from the JapaCurry food truck at the restaurant. Good stuff.
MOOD INDIGO
It’s not easy to be open for 15 years in the restaurant biz, but one place that just seems to keep getting even better is Bernal neighborhood restaurant Blue Plate (3218 Mission, SF. www.blueplatesf.com). It’s been feeding us fried chicken, famed meatloaf, and sell-your-soul-to-the-devil mac and cheese for 15 years, so now it’s time to celebrate!
For three nights, the Plate’s lined up three special winemaker dinners: Thursday May 1, Steve and Chrystal Clifton of Palmina Wines will be in attendance, 5:30pm–10pm, followed by Sean Thackrey Wines Friday May 2, 5:30pm–10:30pm, and John Lancaster of Skylark, Saturday May 3, 5:30pm–10:30pm. The winemakers will mingle with guests, talking about their wines — and here’s the best part: You’ll get a wine flight of five tastes for just $15. Chef Sean Thomas will be cooking up an à la carte menu (here’s hoping the grilled squid will be on there, so good). Make your reservation soon (415-282-6777), tables are filling up. All hail the neighborhood restaurant!
HERE, PIG
The full-tilt pig-fest that is Cochon 555 returns to San Francisco on Sunday, April 27, when five chefs compete to be crowned the Prince or Princess of Porc, plus there are five pigs (all heritage breeds from small-scale farmers) used for the whole hog menu, and five winemakers to keep you feeling good. This year, Kim Alter (Plum), Mark Liberman (TBD), Michael Rotondo (Parallel 37), Richie Nakano (Hapa Ramen), and David Bazirgan (Dirty Habit) will be competing by creating up to six dishes each, and judges and attendees will determine the winner.
Additional bonuses: a station featuring Goose Island Beer and Hudson Valley Foie Gras; a bourbon bar featuring Eagle Rare, Buffalo Trace, Breckenridge Bourbon, Hirsch, Templeton Rye, and Luxardo (pig and bourbon, you do the math); a cheese bar from Mission Cheese; a prosciutto di Parma station; an ice cream social; plus a hog butchering demo. Are you ready for all this? Yeah, it’s pretty debauched. Show up hungry. At the Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco, 600 Stockton, SF. 5pm–8pm (4pm entry for VIP). $125 general admission, $200 VIP, www.cochon555.com
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column; subscribe for more at www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
The 57th San Francisco International Film Festival runs April 24-May 8. Screening venues include the Castro Theatre, 429 Castro, SF; New People Cinema, 1746 Post, SF; Pacific Film Archive, 2575 Bancroft, Berk; and Sundance Kabuki Cinemas, 1881 Post, SF. For tickets (most shows $15) and complete schedule, visit festival.sffs.org.
Harmony Lessons (Emir Baigazin, Kazakhstan/Germany/France, 2013) Darwinian natural selection seems to be the guiding principle at the rural Kazakh school where bright farm boy Aslan (Timur Aidarbekov) is sent to further his education. What he learns there is mostly about survival, as he soon discovers the institution is dominated by an elaborate system of bullying and extortion in which a few older students terrorize the younger and weaker. Emir Baigazin’s striking debut feature applies a rigor both aesthetic and intellectual to a familiar theme here, his script as methodical as his minimalist compositions in dissecting the havoc wreaked by (and eventual unraveling of) a corrupt system that’s a microcosm of a societal whole. Fri/25, 3:30pm, Kabuki; May 4, 12:45pm, Kabuki; May 5, 6:15pm, Kabuki. (Dennis Harvey)
When Evening Falls on Bucharest or Metabolism (Corneliu Porumboiu, Romania/France, 2013) Romanian moviemaker Corneliu Porumboiu (2009’s Police, Adjective) turns his lens around, toward the casting couch and the oh-so-delicate damage done, in his third feature film. An everyday kind of corruption, sex, lies, and video — zipless, tapeless, and forging way beyond the limits of film — is the name of the game when a director (Bogdan Dumitrache) nonchalantly drops a nude scene on his actress (Diana Avramut) and the two try out a few ideas, on-camera for the screen and off-camera in the bedroom. The hardly working relationship plays both ways, as the moviemaker bends in turn to his producer, in this minimalist albeit layered glimpse into the unlovely guts of the last sacred cow: the so-called creative process. Fri/25, 3:45pm, New People; Sat/26, 6:30pm, Kabuki; Mon/28, 8:30pm, PFA. (Kimberly Chun)
Hellion (Kat Candler, US) Beer drinking and metal tees, shit-talking and shit-kicking, boys and their toys and their broken dreams — the signatures of director-writer Kat Candler are familiar even to those unversed in her 2006 Jumping Off Bridges and the short that this extended-play feature is based on. Yet somehow the motocross-fixated Jacob (Josh Wiggins) is finding his own fresh hell amid this testosterone-scape: with the death of his mother, his faded baseball star of a father (Aaron Paul) is struggling to hold the family together and kick his tendency to take refuge at the bottom of a beer can. Meanwhile younger brother Wes (Deke Garner) has been taken away and placed with the boys’ Aunt Pam (Juliette Lewis). Candler makes this hell of hurts fresh with her close attention to detail, relishing the whipped cream sandwiches and sofa bounce-offs of home-alone kids as well as the throttled rage of the Metallica and Slayer soundtrack, and charged performances from all, in particular Paul, also an executive producer here, and Lewis, two small-town castaways just a hair less lost than the kids. Fri/25, 6:30pm, Kabuki; Tue/29, 4pm, Kabuki. (Chun)
Blind Dates (Levan Koguashvili, Georgia, 2013) This rather wonderful deadpan comedy from Georgia (the former Soviet territory, not Jimmy Carter’s home) revolves around two best friends, male schoolteachers looking for love on the mutual brink of 40. Doleful-looking history prof Sandro (Andro Sakhvarelidze) and robust soccer coach Iva (Archil Kikodze) seem hapless and thwarted at every turn, yet simultaneously oblivious to scads of available women around them. The gentle, rueful tenor sneaks up on you, delivering some big laughs and narrative surprises as well as a very soulful sum impact. One of this year’s SFIFF sleepers (with no US distribution in sight), this droll yet bighearted gem is not to be missed. Fri/25, 9pm, Kabuki; Sun/27, 8:15pm, PFA; Tue/29, 6:30pm, New People. (Harvey)
Child of God (James Franco, US, 2013) You may not know that SFIFF It Guy James Franco has directed nearly two dozen shorts, documentaries, and features since 2005, in addition to his acting and miscellaneous multimedia dabblings. Don’t worry: You haven’t missed much. But this adaptation of a 1973 Cormac McCarthy novel is a great leap forward from his prior efforts, most of which felt like pretentious grad school thesis films. Scott Haze is startlingly good as Lester Ballard, a Tennessee hillbilly whose lack of conventional home, family, social instincts, or behavioral restraint gets him perpetually in trouble with the law — trouble that takes a macabre turn when he finds a dead woman’s body. The story’s shock value might easily have played as exploitative or ludicrous, but Franco hits the right tenor of mad intensity to reflect Lester’s near-feral state, in which acts that might appall any “civilized” mindset make perfect sense to him. Fri/25, 9:30pm, Kabuki; Mon/28, 3:45pm, New People. (Harvey)
The Double (Richard Ayoade, UK, 2013) Simon (Jesse Eisenberg) is a lowly clerk who gets nothing but indifference and scorn both at work and in his pitiful private life. Things slip even more insidiously beyond his control with the arrival of James (Eisenberg again), his exact doppelgänger — though no one else seems to notice that — and a climber as ruthlessly efficient as Simon is hapless. Not only does he steal his look-alike’s ideas in a rapid rise to the top, he seems to take great pleasure in kicking Simon further downward. Applying a Kafkaesque gloss to Dostoyevsky’s novella, with stylistic hat-tips to the Coens and Terry Gilliam, Richard Ayoade’s second feature is very different from his prior Submarine (2010) in all ways but one: It, too, is both overwhelmed and rendered fascinating by an excess of high directorial “style” whose self-consciousness infuses every frame and puts quote marks around every emotion. As a result, The Double is a striking objet d’art you’ll either love or hate — or enjoy aesthetically while being annoyed by its sacrifice of depth for a showoff surface. Sat/26, 1pm, Kabuki; Tue/29, 9:15pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Tangerines (Zaza Urushadze, Estonia/Georgia, 2013) It’s 1992, and carpenter Ivo (Lemit Ulfsak) and farmer Marcus (Elmo Nuganen) are old neighbors who are practically the only residents left in their rural Abkhazia village — everyone else has fled the approaching war between Georgian and Russia-backed North Caucasian forces that erupted over this disputed land after the USSR’s dissolution. The 60-something men have stayed behind out of habit, and to harvest Marcus’ latest (perhaps last) tangerine crop. When a shootout on Ivo’s doorstep leaves him stuck with one wounded soldier from each side, these uninvited guests must be kept from outside discovery — and from one another’s throats — as they recover. Wry and poignant, Georgian writer-director Zaza Urushadze’s antiwar microcosm is beautifully crafted, particularly in Rein Kotov’s gorgeous photography of the verdant countryside. Sat/26, 9pm, Kabuki; Sun/27, 6:15pm, Kabuki; May 6, 8:30pm, PFA. (Harvey)
The Sacrament (Ti West, US, 2013) This very disappointing latest by Ti West, of flavorful indie horrors The House of the Devil (2009) and The Innkeepers (2011), basically puts a piece of tracing paper over the climactic events at Jonestown, changing the names but otherwise refusing to do anything different — or really anything at all — with that historical model of mass religious cult freak out. Joe Swanberg, A.J. Bowen, and Kentucker Audley play filmmakers who visit a secretive jungle compound in order to figure out if somebody’s sister (Amy Seimetz) is staying there of her own free will or not. She seems to be doing OK, and in fact appears to be the favored apostle of enigmatic leader “Father” (Gene Jones). But once the strangers get a glimpse behind the facade of their carefully stage-managed visit, they glean that not everyone is happy here — indeed, some may be desperate to escape. Despite some good performance moments, there’s little psychological insight or real suspense to this fictionalized take on the 1978 catastrophe at Rev. Jim Jones’ Guyana settlement, and its quasi-“found footage” aesthetic feels very tired. Sat/26, 11:45pm, Kabuki; Mon/28, 9pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD8TrqVrFyU
All That Jazz (Bob Fosse, US, 1979) Stage and screen choreographer and director Bob Fosse’s autobiographical phantasmagoria modeled itself on Fellini’s very Italian 1963 8 1/2 (which also inspired the stage/film musical Nine), but its heart is pure, cold American show-biz brass. Roy Scheider is terrific as Fosse alter ego Joe Gideon, a driven workaholic whose decades of numerous excesses (pills, smoking, women, etc.) have put him at serious risk of a fatal heart attack just as he’s simultaneously starting rehearsals for a Broadway musical and finishing up editing on a Hollywood feature. The external pressure is exceeded only by his own compulsive perfectionism. He reviews his life of professional triumphs and failed relationships as it very possibly sputters toward an end. Like Joe’s character (and creator), Jazz is egomaniacal, charming, over-the-top, sexy, sexist, indulgent, and overbearing — a glitzy portrait of a brilliant heel, with dazzling musical numbers. Seldom revived in recent years, it’s being shown in a newly restored print. Sun/27, 12:30pm, Kabuki; May 2, 8:30pm, PFA. (Harvey)
Belle (Amma Asante, UK, 2013) The child of a British naval officer and a Caribbean slave, Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is deposited on the doorstep — well, the estate grounds — of her father’s relatives in 1769 England after her mother dies. Soon she’s entirely orphaned, which makes her a wealthy heiress and aristocratic title holder at the same time that she is something less than human in the eyes of her adopted society. For Belle is black (or more properly, mixed-race), and thus a useless curiosity at best as a well-bred noblewoman of the “wrong” racial makeup. Based on a murky actual historical chapter, Amma Asante’s film is that rare sumptuous costume drama which actually has something on its mind beyond romance and royalty. Not least among its pleasures is a fine supporting cast including Tom Wilkinson, Miranda Richardson, Penelope Wilton, and Emily Watson. Sun/27, 6:30pm, Kabuki; Tue/29, 3:30pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL-0RLaFcSg
Stray Dogs (Tsai Ming-liang, Taiwan/France, 2013) The fate of those left behind — the homeless, the stray dogs — amid the go-go aggression of tiger markets is ostensibly Tsai Ming-liang’s first concern in what he’s said is his last film. But the “Second Wave” Taiwanese director can’t help but leave a mark — those amazing performances, those achingly long, meditative shots — that makes you hungry for more. Ever so loosely knitting together a series of lengthy, gorgeously composed images that resemble still lifes of a metamorphosing Taipei that’s rapidly leaving its cultural core, the family, in the dust, Stray Dogs wanders, hangs, then drifts once more, much like the homeless father (Tsai regular Lee Kang-sheng) and two children at its rootless center. Dad holds an advertising sign at an intersection — necessitating what might be the longest urination shot in cinema and a singular burst into poetry and song — while the kids feed themselves with supermarket samples and wash up in public restrooms. Will they be brought together by the missing matriarch, in the form of a grocery store manager, or just a random instance of art or beauty in a crumbling building? Beauty, it seems, is everywhere, Tsai seems to signal, and time — here, spent and bent to new ends — might or might not tell, while this mesmerizing, testing, and ultimately rewarding digital farewell to the movies keeps you hanging on. Mon/28, 6pm, Kabuki; Tue/29, 3:15pm, New People; April 30, 6:30pm, PFA. (Chun)
The Overnighters (Jesse Moss, US) If you’re looking for a movie to affirm the resilient generosity of the American spirit (or economy), this isn’t it. But Bay Area filmmaker Jesse Moss’ new documentary is as engrossing as it is dismaying. When a fracking-related job boom hits low-population North Dakota, close-knit Williston — which had a population of just 12,000 at the millennium’s turn — suddenly becomes a magnet for the unemployed and desperate. That includes a diverse racial mix of men, including some transients, a few felons and ex-cons, plus others whom many locals are willing to skittishly term “trash.” There’s scant housing available to accommodate them; Pastor Jay Reinke of Concordia Lutheran tries to help out by letting some new arrivals sleep on the church (and even his family home’s) floor. But his congregation is increasingly unhappy about that, as is the community in general. The Overnighters grows more complicated, however, than a simple portrait of small-town closed-mindedness and a clergyman acting like Jesus would. Not every charity case is grateful, or honest, or manageable. Meanwhile, Rev. Reinke’s own psychological baggage starts looking pretty dang heavy well before a game changing late revelation that is painful on about 20 different levels. Mon/28, 6:30pm, Kabuki; May 3, 1pm, New People. (Harvey)
The Other One: The Long Strange Trip of Bob Weir (Mike Fleiss, US) Bob Weir gets a little of his share of the critical limelight in this doc by Mike Fleiss, which focuses on Weir’s personal life and gives Grateful Dead chronology a light scramble. It kicks off with a cruise across the Golden Gate Bridge with the SF-born musician, who was taught to drive by Neal Cassady and gleans admiration from both expected quarters (Sammy Hagar) and less so (The National, which tries a brief jam with Weir) and drops tidbits about his dyslexia, early hangouts with Palo Alto banjo player Jerry Garcia, his chronic shoulder pain, and songwriting approaches (“There’s no logic to it. It comes through the window when it wants to come though the window”), along with a visit to the famed Dead house at 710 Ashbury with his wife and daughters. Couched amid a bevy of performance snippets, none very long, the road-weathered rhythm guitarist comes off as a bit of tough nut to crack and almost too humdrum in his current downplayed presentation to ever really lead us on a truly “long, strange trip.” Still, this document serves as a decent primer for the rock generalist on the man (though not of his bands apart from the Dead) and goes a little way toward generating gratitude for the man oft dubbed an unsung hero. Tue/29, 8:50pm, PFA; May 2, 9:30pm, Kabuki. (Chun)
Eastern Boys (Robin Campillo, France, 2013) We first meet well-off, middle-aged single gay man Daniel (Olivier Rabourdin) as he’s cruising a Paris train station for rough trade in writer-director Robin Campillo’s bravura opening sequence. He settles on impish Marek (Kirill Emelyanov), negotiates an assignation, and goes home. But later on it’s not Marek who turns up on Daniel’s doorstep, but a couple dozen young former-Soviet-bloc illegal émigrés who take over his luxury apartment for an epic party as they cart his possessions out the door. (This unpleasant passage is the most difficult to swallow, as there’s no explanation why our protagonist is so passive about being robbed.) Yet Marek does eventually turn up, and despite all, a relationship develops — always at risk of incurring anger from “Boss” (Danill Vorobyev), the thuggish leader of the immigrant community Marek has aligned himself with. Like the Laurent Cantet films (1999’s Human Resources, 2001’s Time Out, 2008’s The Class) Campillo has edited, Eastern Boys doesn’t fill in all its narrative blanks, but is grounded in recognizable characters we can empathize with as the scenario takes unexpected turns. It’s a provoking movie that’s ultimately well worthwhile. April 30, 9:10pm, PFA; May 2, 6pm, Kabuki; May 4, 8:45pm, New People. (Harvey)
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (David Zellner, US) Fargo (1996), now also an FX series, is having a moment — and as bracingly sweet, tragicomic, and strange as its inspiration, Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter sets course from where the Coen Brothers left off. Essential ingredients include another moviemaking team of brothers, David and Nathan Zeller, and a waterlogged VHS tape of the North Dakota micro-epic, the latter leading one woman into white-out lunacy beyond the grinding conformity of Tokyo office work or small-town Minnesota mundanities. Shy, odd, and obsessive Kumiko (Rinko Kikuchi) is the nail that must be pounded down, as the Japanese saying goes; as she trudges through her job at a large, alienating company, her fantasy world is fueled by a video of Fargo she finds buried in a sea cave. Those grainy images set her on a quest among the determinedly kawaii in Japan and the hilariously humane in the States, which she compares to that of the conquistadors’. Even when accompanied by the Octopus Project’s vivid electronic score, which spells out the horror of this journey, Kumiko’s no Aguirre — though, like Fargo, her adventure’s end is based on a true case. A wonderfully weird — and ultimately compassionate — vamp on the power of fantasy and obsession that crosses international datelines. May 1, 8:45pm, Kabuki; May 3, 2:30pm, Kabuki; May 4, 12:30pm, Kabuki. (Chun)
Difret (Zeresenay Berhane Mehari, Ethiopia) Zeresenay Berhane Mehari’s film dramatizes a shocking human rights issue in Ethiopia: the continuing acceptance in rural areas of forcibly abducting young women for marriage. Fourteen-year-old Hirut (Tizita Hagere) is walking home from school one day when she’s surrounded by seven armed men, dragged off to a hut, then raped by the suitor whose marriage proposal she’d already rejected. When later she kills him in an escape attempt, tribal law decrees she be executed (and buried alongside him as “wife”). But a city lawyer for a women’s rights organization (Meron Getnet) takes up her cause. This is powerful material, but Difret would be a better film, and even better advocacy, if it didn’t handle its fictive events in such heavy-handed, pedestrian, everything spelled-out-for-you fashion. May 1, 6:30pm, Pacific Film Archive; May 3, 3:15pm, Kabuki; May 7, 3:30pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Abuse of Weakness (Catherine Breillat, France/Belgium/Germany, 2013) Those who last saw Isabelle Huppert as a dutiful daughter in 2012’s Amour will be both thrilled and piqued to see the tables turned so remarkably in Catherine Breillat’s Abuse of Weakness. Huppert gives an unapologetic, stunning tour de force performance in what appears to be a story torn from the filmmaker’s own life, when Breillat suffered a series of strokes in the ’00s and ended up entangled in a loving and predatory friendship with con man Christophe Rocancourt. Here, moviemaker and writer Maud (Huppert) is particularly vulnerable when she meets celebrity criminal and best-selling writer Vilko (Kool Shen). She is determined to have him star in her next film, despite the protestations of friends and family, and he helps her in return — by simply helping her get around and giving her focus when half her body seems beyond her control, while his constant machinations continue to compel her. Crafting a layered, resonant response to what seems like an otherwise clear-cut case of abuse, Breillat seems to have gotten something close to one of her best films out of the sorry situation, while Huppert reminds us — with the painful precision of this intensely physical role — why she’s one of France’s finest. May 1, 9pm, Kabuki. (Chun)
Of Horses and Men (Benedikt Erlingsson, Iceland/Germany, 2013) Benedikt Erlingsson’s astonishing directorial debut weaves together a half dozen disparate stories involving beautiful horses and mostly unlucky humans in and near a modern Icelandic small town. It’s a horsey movie like no other, each surprising tale marked to various degrees by black comedy, cruel fate, very earthy humor, and hints of the fantastical. Nature being a harsh mistress, some events here are rather shocking or tragic — those who automatically despise any film in which animals come to harm (only in dramatic terms, of course) had best stay clear. But less delicate souls may well find this unique equine-themed mix of folk art and fable exhilaratingly original. May 2, 4:30pm, Kabuki; May 3, 8:45pm, Kabuki; May 5, 6pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Salvation Army (Abdellah Taïa, Morocco, 2013) Paris-based Moroccan writer Abdellah Taïa adapts his presumably autobiographical 2006 novel in this accomplished feature. Teenaged Abdellah (Said Mrini) is stuck in the middle of a large, rambunctious family where his parents continually fight, sometimes violently, and he has to keep his feelings hidden — not least because they largely revolve around an infatuation with older brother Slimane (Amine Ennaji). While that attraction remains forbidden, Abdellah does find ways to access love or at least sex with other older men, though these sometimes exploitative interludes leave him dissatisfied. Salvation Army would be an effective if unmemorable portrait-of-the-artist-as-a-young-queer if it didn’t take an abrupt, unexpected jump forward 10 years, to chart the rough early days of a now-adult protagonist (Karim Ait M’Hand) in supposedly more gay-friendly (but not necessarily immigrant-friendly) France. It’s these later scenes that lend this directorial debut by (so far) the only out gay Arab Moroccan scribe its lingering gravity. May 2, 9pm, Kabuki; May 4, 8:30pm, PFA; May 6, 6:30pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Intruders (Noh Young-seok, South Korea, 2013) Noh Young-seok’s insidiously clever black comedy-thriller takes its time getting to the nasty stuff — although things start getting weird for our protagonist right away, when his bus ride to a remote resort region is interrupted by an overly-friendly local who will figure in his troubles later on. Sang-jin (Jun Kuk-ho) is here to spend some alone time finishing a screenplay. But he’s unlikely to get much work done, given various pesterings from the hitherto mentioned ex-con New Best Friend (Oh Tae-kyung), an obnoxious quartet of skiers, some hostile poachers, and … well, you’ll have to wait until the very end to get the complete list of unwanted guests. As misunderstandings and bodies pile up, Intruders cleverly finds ways to make the worst possible scenario even worse. May 2, 9:45pm, Kabuki; May 7, 9:30pm, Kabuki; May 8, 5:30pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Palo Alto (Gia Coppola, US) Adapted from the 2010 short story collection by James Franco, first-time director Gia Coppola’s depressive, aimless tale of disaffected youth tracks the ennuis and misadventures of a handful of Palo Alto teenagers: shy, inexperienced April (Emma Roberts), teetering on the edge of an affair with her soccer coach (Franco); naively promiscuous Emily (Zoe Levin); budding head case Fred (Nat Wolff); and his friend Teddy (Jack Kilmer, son of Val, who plays April’s out-to-lunch stepfather), who ambivalently participates in Fred’s mayhem while pining after April. Adult supervision is nearly Peanuts-level sparse — in other Peninsula households, helicopter parents may be fine-tuning the lives of their children down to the last extracurricular; here, the stoned, distracted elders who occasionally wander in front of the camera are more like flaky, absentee roommates. Meanwhile, their young charges fill the empty hours with copious amounts of alcohol consumption, random property destruction, and a round or two of social crucifixion. May 3, 7:30pm, Kabuki. (Lynn Rapoport)
The Lady Eve (Preston Sturges, US, 1941) Superficially the most conventional of Preston Sturges’ classics — being a romantic comedy vehicle for two major stars — this 1941 gem is no less great for it. Barbara Stanwyck plays Jean, the feminine lure in a team of wily con artists who spy easy prey in Henry Fonda, a fabulously wealthy “bumble-puppy” more interested in studying Amazonian snakes than inheriting the family brewery fortune. They relieve him of considerable cash at the card table, but when Jean decides she really does love the big dope and comes clean, he thinks she’s still lying. Now a woman scorned — and whatta woman! — Jean hatches a spectacular revenge scheme to teach him the lesson he deserves. As is Sturges’ wont, the film goes over the top a bit toward the end. But who cares, when Eve is so brilliantly written and performed, not to mention consistently hilarious. Film critic David Thomson and journalist-novelist Geoff Dyer will be present for this screening in conjunction with Thomson’s acceptance of the Mel Novikoff Award. May 4, 3pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5rVCYqW8U4
Ping Pong Summer (Michael Tully, US) Eighties teen flicks of the My Bodyguard (1980), smart-dweebs-beat-the-bullies ilk are paid homage in Michael Tully’s deadpan satire, which is closer in spirit to the Comedy of Lameness school whose patron saint is Napoleon Dynamite. Radley (Marcello Conte) is an average teen so excited to be spending the summer of 1985 in Ocean City, Md., with his family that he renames himself “Rad Miracle.” He acquires a New Best Friend in Teddy (Myles Massey), who as the whitest black kid imaginable might make even Rad look cool by comparison. However, they are both dismayed to discover the local center for video gaming and everything else they like is ruled by bigger, older, cuter, and snottier douchebag Lyle Ace (Joseph McCaughtry) and his sidekick. Only kicking Lyle’s ass at ping pong — with some help from a local weirdo (a miscast Susan Sarandon, apparently here because she’s an offscreen ping pong enthusiast) — can save Rad’s wounded dignity, and the summer in general. A big step up from Tully’s odd but pointless prior Septien (2011), this has all the right stuff (including a soundtrack packed with the likes of Mr. Mister, the Fat Boys, Mary Jane Girls, New Edition, Whodini, and Night Ranger) to hilariously parody the era’s inanities. But it’s just mildly amusing — a droll attitude with lots of period detail but not much bite. May 4, 6:30pm, Kabuki; May 7, 8:45pm, New People. (Harvey)
The One I Love (Charlie McDowell, US) Sophie (Elisabeth Moss) and Ethan (Mark Duplass) have hit a speed bump in their relationship — they don’t have fun together like they used to, and even direct attempts to replicate that past magic fall completely flat. Ergo they take the advice of a couples counselor (Ted Danson) and book a weekend at a country getaway he swears has done “wonders” for all his previous clients in relationship trouble. Things get off to a pleasant enough start, but the duo’s delight at recapturing their old mojo becomes complicated when they realize … well, it’s best to know as little as possible going into The One I Love, a first feature for director Charlie McDowell and scenarist Justin Lader that approaches a fantastical narrative idea with a poker face and considerable ingenuity. Duplass and (especially) Moss are terrific in roles that eventually require some very complicated (and subtle) nuances. May 6, 9:15pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Night Moves (Kelly Reichardt, US, 2013) Not to be confused with Arthur Penn’s same-named 1975 Gene Hackman thriller, Kelly Reichardt’s latest film nonetheless is also a memorably quiet, unsettling tale of conspiracy and paranoia. It takes us some time to understand what makes temporary allies of jittery Josh (Jesse Eisenberg), Portland, Ore.-style alterna-chick Dena (Dakota Fanning) and genial rural recluse Harmon (Peter Sarsgaard), beyond it being a mission of considerable danger and secrecy. When things don’t go exactly as planned, however, the three react very differently to the resulting fallout, becoming possibly greater threats to one another than the police or FBI personnel pursuing them. While still spare by mainstream standard, this is easily Reichardt’s most accessible work, carrying the observational strengths of 2010’s Meek’s Cutoff, 2008’s Wendy and Lucy, and 2006’s Old Joy over to a genuinely tense story that actually goes somewhere. May 7, 9pm, Kabuki; May 8, 7:30pm, Kabuki. (Harvey)
Just when you think the brunch at Slow Club (2501 Mariposa, SF. www.slowclub.com) couldn’t possibly rock any more than it already does, the perennial hotspot makes the move to offer it all week long. Really? For reals! You can have a fried egg sandwich for lunch, and you don’t have to wait until the weekend for bourbon French toast. Available Mon–Fri 11:30am–2:30pm, and of course Sat–Sun 10am–2:30pm.
A nice addition to the lunch scene: the lunch at A16 (2355 Chestnut, SF. www.a16sf.com) in the Marina. You can now come by Wed–Sun 11:30am–2:30pm and feast on delicious pizzas, pastas, and small plates. It’s also worth checking out the $20 tasting menu, perfect for a leisurely lunch. Because leisurely lunches are the best.
Downtown workers no longer have to wait until the end of the day to check out recent fave-rave Trou Normand (140 New Montgomery, SF. www.trounormandsf.com), which has now added lunch service during the week, Mon–Fri 11am–2:30pm. You’ll find sandwiches, an awesome charcuterie plate, and more (like, uh, cocktails!).
And just in case the prices at downtown’s Hakkasan (One Kearny Place, SF. www.hakkasan.com/sanfrancisco) have always been a bit out of reach (or just too much, period), it’s added a menu of affordable lunch dishes for $5.50 each. We’re talking stir-fry roasted duck with chile in Szechuan sauce, pork and shrimp dumplings, and Teochew John Dory congee — eight dishes in all. And it’s hard to beat the location, it’s so beautiful.
DON’T PASS THIS OVER
Local restaurants and businesses are rolling out special Passover menus and more. (Passover goes through Tuesday, April 22.)
Guest chef Joyce Goldstein will be in the house (working alongside chef Staffan Terje) at Perbacco (230 California, SF. www.perbaccosf.com) for its annual Italian Passover dinner — the sixth — although this year the menu is featured for two days: Wednesday, April 16, and Thursday, April 17. There will be a four-course menu (with so many choices!) for $52 per person, with dishes like fegato di anatra alle uova sode (that would be chopped duck liver, Italian style) and stufato d’agnello (lamb stew with green garlic).
Delfina (3621 18th St., SF. www.delfinasf.com) is known for its matzoh balls with a walnut inside, which you’ll find on the menu along with other Passover-inspired items, like an edible Seder plate, salt cod croquettes, brisket, and more (through April 21). Kosher wine (the good kind!) and beer from He’Brew will keep you in good spirits.
Lastly, you can order some Passover goodies (and Easter treats too!) at Marla Bakery Kitchen Communal (613 York, SF. www.marlabakery.com). TCHO chocolate–dipped housemade matzoh, yes please! Pre-order on its site.
THANK YOU EASTER BUNNY, BWOK BWOK
Easter Sunday is coming April 20 — here are some hopping places to brunch.
For some wine-soaked fun, check out the BITE ME Easter brunch 11am–3pm (by Sean Lackey) at vino destination Tank 18 (1345 Howard, SF. www.tank18.com). It’s one of the best deals in town: for $29, you get Four Barrel coffee, popovers and honey butter, shaved melon and tarragon foam, frisée and asparagus salad with poached egg and uni vinaigrette, spicy pickled fennel and cauliflower, slow-roasted lamb with couscous, and a seasonal dessert. Whooosh! For another $20, you can add on wine pairings (hic). And no, with those prices, gratuity is not included. Get tickets at www.tinyurl.com/easterbiteme.
Cotogna (490 Pacific, SF. www.cotognasf.com) will be hosting a special Easter brunch 11:30am–2pm, serving some traditional Italian dishes (or you can come for Easter supper, served in the evening for $65).
Foreign Cinema (2534 Mission, SF. www.foreigncinema.com) is a classic spot for a swell brunch, and Easter will ramp things up with a $65 prix-fixe menu — three courses — and a children’s menu for $20. Something for the kids!
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column; subscribe for more at www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
Okay, so maybe I’m a little biased because how often does a music video shoot take place in yours truly’s little podunk hometown of Albany, California — which is where the dollar-beer-covered racetrack glory that is Golden Gate Fields technically lies, friends, not Berkeley — but this new Atmosphere video for the song “Kanye West,” which the hip-hop duo premiered today on Noisey, does feel a little like a “spot the East Bay shooting location” rendition of Where’s Waldo.
There’s plenty else to like, though: That’s also Oakland writer-superstar Chinaka Hodge in the role of leading lady, and local comedian/erstwhile Guardian opiner Nato Green as a scared-shitless corner store worker. Check it out below.
The duo’s new album Southsiders drops May 6 on Rhymesayers; this song will also be on The Lake Nokomis Maxi Single, released exclusively on vinyl for Record Store Day (that’s next Saturday, April 19, kiddos). They’ll be in town in August for Outsidelands.
Fun fact: I’m bad at festivals. It’s not that I don’t enjoy them, per se: there’s live music, the outdoors, fried food, great people-watching.
It’s just that — well, okay, I lied, I usually don’t enjoy them. I’m not 22 anymore. I don’t like waiting in long lines for disgusting Port-a-Potties. The sound is often unpreventably terrible. Trying to see all the bands you really care about becomes a headache-inducing feat of scheduling Sudoku. And the people-watching, while entertaining, often devolves into being so annoyed at/dismayed by the people around me that I’m too distracted to enjoy the music.
I’m great at parties, I promise!
Here’s the thing: I truly love a lot of the acts on the lineup at Coachella this year. OutKast, The Dismemberment Plan, come on. And the fact that I’m not going to see the Replacements tonight makes me feel all kinds of superfan failure feelings (see: the name of my column).
I can’t be alone in my competing excitement about this year’s artists and total lack of desire to physically be on the hot, crowded premises for their shows. Thus, without further ado — before your social networks start blowing up with pictures of your friends having The Time of Their Lives there — a step-by-step guide to doing Coachella this weekend from the comfort of your own home.
Step 1:Get dressed. Ladies, you’re gonna want one of these.
On the bottom, go for the timeless, comfortable class of cutoff shorts that let the entire bottom half of your ass hang out the leg holes (you can Google image-search that one yourself). Pair with tall, furry boots. If you’ve been working out lately — or even following the Coachella diet — and really want to show off your complete lack of self-awareness, try appropriating the rich, storied culture of a persecuted people with your headgear. Guys, you can do this one too.
Step 2. Hit the hardware store and garden supply center. You want a high-powered space heater and several bags of very dry dirt — we’re in a drought here, after all. On the way home, collect a full trash bag of empty beer bottles, used condoms, and other detritus from the street. (Optional, depending on personal preference: Buy drugs.) When you get home, turn the heater on full blast and close the windows; then scatter dirt and garbage everywhere.
Step 3. Invite some friends over. You’re not into big crowds, but come on, you’re not anti-social. Bonus points if you can get a local celebrity, like John Waters, Rider Strong, or the Tamale Lady. Instagram the shit out of everything they do, such as taking selfies, taking more selfies, and sitting on their bodyguards’ shoulders, smoking blunts.
Step 4. Put on some tunes. To get that special “festival” sound, try turning the volume and bass up until every single element is distorted, then wrap your speakers in heavy blankets. Follow up by either standing with your ear smashed against them or walking half a mile away. Here’s a playlist featuring all of Friday, to get you started:
Step 5. Sometime around 5am (your mileage may very depending on drugs of choice), try going to sleep. Hey, look at that — you’re in your own bed! If you want to get that authentic camping feeling, make your friends stay over and sleep in super-cramped positions next to you. Ideally, you’ll wake up to the sound of someone vomiting five feet away from your head. I’m lucky enough to have a bedroom window facing 16th Street; again, YMMV.
But don’t think about that now. Get a little bit of rest. Drink some water. Tomorrow’s another long, glorious day of the best music festival you’ve ever been to, and if you want to have document the Time of Your Life, you’re gonna need your energy.
[More seriously — we do have a photographer at Coachella this weekend, check back here for cool photos that are not the result of me gleefully Google image-searching “Coachella headdress terrible.”]
THE WEEKNIGHTER Weekends are for amateurs. Weeknights are for pros. That’s why each week Broke-Ass Stuart (www.brokeassstuart.com) will be exploring a different San Francisco bar, bringing you stories about the places and people who make San Francisco one of the most phenomenal cities in the world. Who wants a drink?
Sometimes I wish I could become unstuck in time — you know, in a Vonnegutian sense — and pop back into my own body at different times of my life. I’d love to once again see and feel who I was when I first visited the Gold Cane (1569 Haight, SF. 415-626-1112), back when I was 21, back when I was new to San Francisco, back when San Francisco was, well, different than it is now. They say Virginia is for lovers. Back then San Francisco was for freaks and weirdos. And I felt like I was both.
If I could pop into my own body that night when I was first visiting the Gold Cane, it would be 2002 and I’d be 21. My bed at the time was an air mattress and I slept in a living room that I shared with my friend Mani in a two-bedroom flat at Haight and Central. My hair was three different colors, my pants hung to my ass, and I wore an absurdly long hemp belt that dangled past my knees.
Walking in that night, I saw a barroom split in half: the right side was where the bar was and the left was full of tables. Beer signs and Giants paraphernalia littered the walls, as did old photos and art. Some mean fucker was running the pool table in the back and drunk people were doing drunk people things. It was perfect, and is pretty much exactly the same way today.
That night I met a pretty blond girl whose name I’ll never remember. We flirted for awhile, and I got her number, and when I left I imaged myself and the pretty blonde girl having a sweet summer fling and her letting me sometimes use her Internet to check my email. The place I was staying didn’t have Internet, and in 2002 W-Fi didn’t exist. I never ended up seeing the pretty blonde girl again because the next week I met my first love on the 71 bus.
If I could become unstuck in time I’d pop back into myself on the twentysomething-ish time I visited the Gold Cane. It was my first SantaCon and I’d turned 29 the night before. I’d somehow managed to lose everyone in my group and met some new friends at The Page. We got some food at The Little Chihuahua and then meandered up to the Gold Cane because it felt like the right thing to do. Walking in that night I saw an Irishman with white hair behind the bar, a jukebox playing impeccable tunes, and drunk people doing drunk people things. It was perfect and is pretty much exactly the same way today.
That night I met a pretty brown-haired girl. We drank and talked and laughed and spilled shit all over our Santa costumes. San Francisco was still full of freak and weirdos and we were of that ilk. The pretty brown-haired girl and I hit it off, but I had a girlfriend so I smartly dipped before I did something stupid. I’m not gonna say that being drunk in the Gold Cane makes you do stupid things, but it certainly doesn’t stop you from doing them either.
I dream about time travel a lot, both throughout the centuries and throughout my own life. If I’m time traveling within the Gold Cane I can do both, considering the bar has been around since 1926. I know the Gold Cane has some really cool history but I’m always too drunk to find out what it is, so I just tell my own stories instead.
Stuart Schuffman aka Broke-Ass Stuart is a travel writer, poet, and TV host. You can find his online shenanigans at www.brokeassstuart.com
TABLEHOPPING If we were finance people, we’d say Q1 of 2014 was a hella strong start to the year. But since we’re food people, we’re just going to hook you up with our version of a PowerPoint slideshow of all the latest openings, hot spots, and new dish faves. Please, leave your Google Glass at home, turn off your iPhone flash when taking food pics for Instagram, and just dig in.
WHAT’S THAT? I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THE BUZZ
Any of you SF old-timers will remember how nuts it was when Blowfish and Tokyo Go Go opened in the city. Yeah, both those places were bonkers. Well, the new incarnation of ICHI Sushi and NI Bar (3282 Mission, SF. www.ichisushi.com) in Bernal is registering on the same Richter scale, with hip-hop blasting, hour-plus waits at the sushi bar — on a Tuesday! — and crazy-delicious izakaya dishes, like miso asari clams (you will want to drink the entire bowl of porky and garlicky broth, trust) and ICHI’s famed yuzu-fried chicken wings. Why have spinach gomae when you can have asparagus gomae? Exactly. And deep-fried ocean trout in dashi is the best of both worlds: beautiful sushi-grade fish with a homey and belly-filling presentation. Be sure to try the ICHIBIER, a partnership with local brewer Almanac: It’s a shiso-yuzu ale that’s built for lather, rinse, repeat.
YOU HAVE TO BE HOT TO WORK HERE
Well, that’s not exactly true, but it sure seems that way at the new Valencia Street digs of Loló (974 Valencia, SF. www.lolosf.com). When you’re not busy ogling the darling servers, the caliente bartenders making you mezcal-y cocktails, or the cute clientele, the menu will also be winking at you with sabrosito dishes like fried-in-panko avocado tacos (you gotta get ’em!), smoky and juicy gorditas with mezcal barbecue beef, and the tuna tacon with seared albacore and a shellfish aioli. Ay, papi. The megawatt interior provides all kinds of color therapy — you’ll definitely leave even happier than you were when you arrived, for a multitude of reasons.
———-
A classic Margherita pizza at Il Casaro
———
THE NEXT GREAT HAWT BRUNCH
Have you hit Verbena (2323 Polk, SF. www.verbenarestaurant.com) yet on Russian Hill? What, you don’t like the sound of sourdough pancakes with maple butter, biscuits and herb sausage gravy with pepper vinegar, and poached eggs with braised duck ragout with peas and their leaves — plus excellent craft cocktails, handsome dining room decor, and an appealing wine list? Maybe the new brunch launching the weekend of April 5th is what’s going to get you to come visit. Really, you ought to experience the flavor-packed vittles from chef Sean Baker, also of beloved Gather in Berkeley.
IT’S OK TO DRINK YOUR DINNER (BUT REALLY, YOU SHOULD EAT SOMETHING, TOO)
You may be inspired to simply hit the sauce once you look over the thirst-inducing drink lists at Trou Normand (140 New Montgomery, SF. www.trounormandsf.com) and The Coachman (1148 Mission, SF. www.coachmansf.com), both new joints in SoMa with exceptional cocktail pedigrees. But that would be a mistake, because you would miss the beef tartare topped fried smelt at The Coachman, or the charcuterie plate and the honking pork chop at Trou Normand. You can still down a whiskey-laced Calvados cocktail at Trou, or let ye olde Coachman’s barkeeps fix you up a sherry cobbler or three. Just do it all. More is more.
PIZZA! PIZZA! PIZZA! OH, AND PIZZA.
Just because our city likes to prove that you can never have enough pizza, here are four more pizza outposts for you, starting with another place for a legit Neapolitan-style pizza: Il Casaro (348 Columbus, SF. www.ilcasarosf.com). Since casaro means “cheesemaker,” you should dive into the raspa dura, a cheese shaved off its wheel and served in a cone. Plus there’s housemade fior di latte mozzarella, pure heaven. Looking for something new to North Beach? Try the panuozzo, a pizza dough sandwich. Sounds good, huh!
Pizza lovers are making the pilgrimage to La Lengua to sink their choppers into the pies by Jeff Krupman at PizzaHacker (3299 Mission, SF. www.thepizzahacker.com). A good place to start? The Yo Vinny (marinated onions, Mama Lil’s pickled goat horn peppers, 4505 hot Italian sausage, tomato sauce, mozzarella). The arugula pie with lemon, chile paste, and garlic is also big on flavor. Grab a seat and share a slice with some strangers at indoor picnic tables. Drink beer. Good times.
Another quest-worthy pie can be found in Dogpatch at Long Bridge Pizza Company (2347 Third St, SF. www.longbridgepizza.com), whose pizzas are a little bit New York and a little bit Neapolitan in style. Pile on the toppings with a Loading Dock, or go tomato-less with a White Pie. Small or large — wait, scratch that, isn’t the answer always large?
The Mission has a new slice shop, and it’s definitely not one of those nasty places you so often find around town claiming to be the best. (Like, the best of the worst at 1am, maybe.) Anyway, swing by The Pizza Shop (3104 24th St, SF. 824-1840) for a $4 slice or $19 whole pie. Thin crust, yes! Check out the white spinach. Be impressed. And bring your cash.
———–
Cochon de lait po’boy at High Cotton Kitchen
————
MEAT-SEEKERS, HUNT THESE DOWN
Not like we’re trying to exclude vegetarians here, but here are five meaty dishes that really have us sharpening our canines.
— There is some very special fried chicken and waffle (2-piece plus side, $9.25) action for brunch — and that’s all-day brunch during the weekend, people! — at soul food respite Little Skillet’s expansion into the kitchen of Victory Hall & Parlor (330 Ritch, SF. www.victoryhallsf.com). Cocktails too. Fun.
— The $6.95 El Frijolazo hot dog at Los Shucos Latin Hot Dogs (3224 1/2 22nd St, www.losshucos.com) is gonna be your next bad habit. A toasty bun comes with a bacon-wrapped frank, refried beans, smashed avocado, mayo, imported salsa chapina (a green sauce from Guatemala), and queso fresco. WHAT?! Ridiculous!
— The $8 housemade chorizo burger — with a runny fried egg, oh you know it — at New Central Café (301 S. Van Ness, SF. 722-0601) is great for breakfast, lunch, brunch, whenever. Plus it comes with sautéed kale, roasted squash, and cilantro mayo, and you get sweet potato fries. Sweet.
— The $9 cochon de lait po’boy at High Cotton Kitchen thrills at Second Act Marketplace (1727 Haight, SF. www.secondactsf.com). Juicy, mustardy, drippy, messy as hell. And made by a legit New Orleans native, which means it’s big enough to share. (Really, you should.)
— The $5 bacon Twix at Pinkie’s Bakery (1196 Folsom, SF. www.pinkiesbakery.com) is also on this list. I was lucky to work with owner Cheryl Burr on this custom-treat twist for a special promotion, and now she’s offering these bad boys for sale. Dare we say they’re better than the original? We dare!
THE LATE-NIGHT BERMUDA TRIANGLE
We often complain that San Francisco shuts down too early — but, in fact, we’re the ones who can’t stay up. So many restaurants open with the noble intention of wanting to feed us late into the night. But six weeks after opening and seeing too many empty tables at midnight, well, they start rolling back the kitchen hours to 10pm. Unless. We. Support. Them. So here are three new spots serving up post-midnight snacks. Do your civic duty and hit them up after bar time. (And hey, if you’re a night owl, you should download my app, Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats, ya heard?)
SHE’S A VERY KIN KHAO GIRL
Pim Techamuanvivit’s Kin Khao (55 Cyril Magnin, SF. www.kinkhao.com) a very unique Thai place — how often do you get Devil’s Gulch Ranch rabbit in your handmade green curry? But it also boasts late-night bites, 11pm–1am, and a full bar, with a cocktail list created by the Bon Vivants. Try the Thai chili-spiced Priew Wan Sour or the mezcal-kicked Kafe Mao if you need a little boost. Don’t miss the pretty hot wings, the kua kling ribs (fried pork ribs in a dark and spicy dry rub, you do the math), Dungeness crab rice noodles that will make you give up pad Thai forever, and the beautiful yum yai salad with tempura asparagus and chili jam. Bonus tip: the restaurant is just blocks from ACT, making it a perfect pre– and post–theater stop — go see Venus in Fur, right now.
————-
Yum Yai salad at Kin Khao
—————
HIGH LIFE
It’s not like we ever get tired of the late-night hours of our beloved Zuni, but just a few blocks down Market Street is Alta CA (1420 Market, SF. www.altaca.co), a new-ish NorCal bistro from the Daniel Patterson Group. It opened in December, with a kitchen serving until 1am. Chef de cuisine Yoni Levy’s housemade bialy and pastrami, a mighty-fine burger, and the much-lauded cracked wheat porridge with mushrooms are as awesome at 11:30pm as they are at lunch, when you’ll probably have some Twitter folks (the HQ is kitty corner) and City Hall types filling the room. Late night draws more of an industry crowd (der). It’s a handsome space with a horseshoe bar, where you can get your craft cocktail on too. Winos, you’ll be happy here as well.
CIRCLE GETS A SQUARE
North Beach is usually where the wheels come off the proverbial party bus. (Girls! Girls! Girls! Drinks! Drinks! Drinks!) Fortunately, there are a number of tasty places that can catch you before you fall (Comstock Saloon and Golden Boy Pizza, I’m looking at you). But there’s a brand-new kid on Washington Square, appropriately called The Square (1707 Powell, SF. www.thesquaresf.com), with a bit of a pedigree: The owners are behind lauded Sons and Daughters. Unlike that upscale restaurant, this lovely spot is less about tweezer food and more about shareable, satisfying fare, like gougères, steak tartare, an aged cheddar cheeseburger, and some large-format feasting: whole roasted crab and guinea hen, a delectable rack of ribs. Manly! Cocktails, check. All until 1am Wed—Sun.
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column: Subscribe for more at www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
Considering the sudden preponderance of fascinating panel talks concerning the state of San Francisco, it is safe to say that the dialogue between newcomers and longtime residents is officially underway. This talk, hosted by inimitable bookstore Green Apple and the charitable San Francisco Elks, promises to be extra kicky. Five big-time local cultural figures and authors — Gary Kamiya (San Francisco Magazine), Reverend Cecil Williams (Glide Memorial Church), Julia Flynn Siler (House of Mondavi), John Law (Burning Man), and Joel Selvin (SF Chronicle) — will meet in a town hall format to address the city’s shifting identity. Plus, cocktails! And a glimpse inside the gorgeous Elks Lodge No. 3, the “oldest continuously operating lodge in Elkdom.” (Marke B.)
The Pacific Film Archive wraps up a series mostly dedicated to documentarian and Harvard professor Ross McElwee with this shorts program featuring other filmmakers from McElwee’s Massachusetts stomping grounds. Author Scott MacDonald (American Ethnographic Film and Personal Documentary: The Cambridge Turn) appears in person at this screening of works by Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Stephanie Spray — known for their fest-favorite experimental works — as well as Cambridge veteran Alfred Guzzetti. Also of note is J.P. Sniadecki’s Songhua (2007), shot along the banks of China’s Songhua River. What begins as an observational document soon begins to intimately involve the filmmaker, as his subjects, mostly local vendors, appropriate his presence: “Who will buy a windmill as the American films me?” (Cheryl Eddy)
7pm, $5.50-$9.50
Pacific Film Archive
2575 Bancroft, Berk
bampfa.berkeley.edu
THURSDAY 3
The Cult
Singer Ian Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy have led British rockers The Cult for three decades now, charging across the Atlantic with songs such as “She Sells Sanctuary,” “Sweet Soul Sister,” and “Fire Woman.” The group returned with their latest album, Choice of Weapon, in 2012, and toured around the world last year celebrating their 1987 record Electric. Bay Area fans are in for a treat as the band visits the city as a warmup for their two slots down south at Coachella later this month. (Sean McCourt)
Lady Stardust, a San Francisco-based David Bowie cover band, is committing “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide” (aka playing their last show). As a girl-dominated cover band, the group will be performing the entirety of David Bowie’s magnum opus, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardustand the Spiders From Mars, from start to finish. And for those who wanted to hear Prince and the Revolution’s “When Doves Cry” and Heart’s “Barracuda” all performed in one set, Purple Heart can satiate that desire — the band plays a strict regimen of Prince and Heart covers. Also joining for the cover-tastic night is Bones of a Feather, a band with a calling card for doing soul covers. So throw on some glitter and your tallest platforms, and come out for a night of what should be a “Moonage Daydream.” (Erin Dage)
Thrillville’s 17th Anniversary-Farewell Bay Area Show
The rumors are true, Daddy-o: Will “The Thrill” Viharo, well-known to patrons of Oakland’s New Parkway Theater (not to mention the original Parkway) for programming the B-movie series “Thrillville Theater,” is leaving town. But he’s not saying aloha without throwing one last cinematic shindig, highlighted by a screening of his personal fave, the ever-quotable 1957 noir classic The Sweet Smell of Success. Pull up a couch, grab a beer, and toast a true original before he packs up for Seattle — where his wife will be attending grad school, and where he’ll be soaking up the rain as inspiration for his own pulp-fiction writing. (Cheryl Eddy)
Wearable tech has been a hot topic in recent months, to say the least — but don’t write off these machines because of one woman’s tactless decision to wear her Google gear at a dive bar. The Exploratorium’s adults-only event will explore the countless possibilities for how technology can help us mere humans transcend our physical limitations. Think powered exoskeletons and adaptable, 3D-printed prosthetics that could help disabled folks or, you know, RoboCop. And what about LED couture (those awesome glow-in-the-dark and light-up garments worn by ravers and Lady Gaga)? So before we spark up the debate about the world’s first tech “hate crime” again, think about what wearable technology could mean for the future — and how it might change many people’s lives for the better. (Laura B. Childs)
Though old-school California punks the Angry Samoans have been playing for more than 35 years, don’t expect that they’ve matured at all in that long duration of time. Nope, continuing to tour with founding members singer-guitarist “Metal” Mike Saunders and drummer Bill Vockeroth, the band remains purveyors of short, loud bursts of hilariously offensive — yet sing-along-inducing— rock n’ roll. Come on, you know you’re going to yell out the lyrics to classic tunes such as “Gas Chamber,” “My Old Man’s a Fatso,” “You Stupid Asshole,” and of course, “They Saved Hitler’s Cock.” (Sean McCourt)
So far the Equal Justice Society hasn’t succeeded in abolishing the death penalty in California. But they have formidable forces behind them, and the momentum — at least we all hope — is growing. Two years ago, as a part of their campaign to restore the 14th Amendment to victims of discrimination, including those on death row, they commissioned Dying While Black and Brown from choreographer from Zaccho Dance Theater’s Joanna Haigood. The piece poetically examines the degrading effect of incarceration and death row on men of color. You can’t miss the work’s haunting tearing open of these wounds, but they do so because of the strength of Haigood’s sensitive choreography and jazz composer Marcus Shelby’s powerful score. (Rita Felciano)
Through her 45 years in the music industry, Emmylou Harris has been hailed as an icon in country, roots, rock, Americana, and the bluegrass revival; she’s worked alongside countless others, lending her distinctive voice and incredible musicianship to the likes of Dolly Parton, Roy Orbison, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Denver, to name a few. Decades into her career, her voice is powerfully beautiful, and her songwriting is as strong as its ever been. Harris is a legend, and rightfully so. But hey, don’t take it from us. Just let her 13 Grammys do the talking.
You know the old saying: What happens on Muni stays on Muni. Except for when you see something totally hilarious, sketchy, or gross, which — let’s be real, it’s Muni — you usually do. That’s when you post on Facebook about it, or tell all your coworkers or, if you’re the storytelling type, take it to Muni Diaries Live: an evening devoted to the “only in San Francisco” kind of weirdness that takes place on your daily commute. This edition’s storytellers include Chron pop culture critic Peter Hartlaub, i09 editor-in-chief Annalee Newitz, SF comedy scene favorite Kate Willett, and more. Bring your own Muni story and you’ll get entered to win gift certificates from Pizza Hacker, The Tens, and Ike’s Place. Bonus: this event is (almost certainly) guaranteed to smell better than the 47-Van Ness. (Emma Silvers)
Gary Numan’s success exploded with the release of his 1979 solo record The Pleasure Principle, which featured the hit single “Cars.” Inspiring untold New Wave, industrial, and goth bands with his sound and look over the ensuing years, Numan has been enjoying a resurgence as of late, and has found himself on stage as a special guest with groups such as Nine Inch Nails. His latest album, Splinter (Songs From A Broken Mind), came out last October, and finds him further honing in on a darker sound, collaborating with NIN guitarist Robin Finck among others. (Sean McCourt)
Whether your sweet tooth sings to the rhythm of Bow Wow Wow’s “I Want Candy,” Warrant’s “Cherry Pie” or Kelis’ “Milkshake,” it’ll find the perfect date at Project Open Hand’s finger-lickin’ dessert party. Come with loose pants or carve an extra hole in your belt, because tonight, stuffing your face is not only welcome, it’s mandatory. Project Open Hand — a non-profit that prepares meals for individuals with serious illnesses and disabilities — has brought together a slew of talented dessert chefs for one night only. From the mouthwatering macaroons of Tout Sweet Patisserie, to the French delicacies by Bisou, to Dynamo’s delectable donuts, expect a myriad of tasty treats. While the desserts are the main attraction, the event will also serve creative cocktails and fine wines. Burn some calories on the dancefloor before going back for round two, and help support Project Open Hand at the silent auction; 100 percent of the proceeds benefit the non-profit. (Laura B. Childs)
The Dum Dum Girls’ newest effort, Too True, is a bi-coastal record: Frontwoman Dee Dee Penny recently made the big move from LA to New York, but wrote the new record in some sort of in-between space. Not literally. She wasn’t in Nebraska, but rather in a haze, shuttling back and forth between coasts, hatching half-songs into the melodies that make up the strongly New Wave-driven album. “Do you hear Suede?” she asks of her listeners. “Siouxie? Cold-wave Patti? Madonna? Cure? Velvet and Paisley Undergrounds? Stone Roses? Cuz I did.” The resulting sound is not derivative, but fresh and grounded in strong melodies. The new material, like the old, promises to shine on stage, with Penny’s strong vocals and the rest of the Dum Dums’ tight musicianship. (Haley Zaremba)
The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian, 225 Bush, 17th Flr., SF, CA 94105; or email (paste press release into email body — no attachments, please) to listings@sfbg.com. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.
Listings are compiled by Guardian staff. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Selector.
THURSDAY 3
“The Bittersweet Search for My Bubbe’s Ukrainian Shtetl” Jewish Community Center East Bay, 1414 Walnut, Berk; www.jcceastbay.org. 7:30pm, $8-10. Author and journalist Judith Fein discusses her autobiography, The Spoon from Minkowitz.
“Local Nerdz” Mini Bar SF, 837 Divisadero, SF; www.neverendingradicaldude.com. 6pm, free. Opening reception of work by artists who contribute to Never Ending Radical Dude, a website dedicated to “nerd news.”
“1939: The Making of Six Great Films from Hollywood’s Greatest Year” Books Inc. Opera Plaza, 601 Van Ness, SF; www.booksinc.net. 7pm, free. Charles F. Adams shares his new film-history book.
“Reel to Reel NightLife” California Academy of Sciences, 55 Music Concourse, Golden Gate Park, SF; calacademy.org/nightlife. 6-10pm, $12. The San Francisco Film Society co-presents this week’s NightLife, with a variety of screenings, plus music by Sweater Funk.
FRIDAY 4
Art Explosion Spring Open Studios 2014 Art Explosion Studios 17th Street, 2425 17th St, SF; www.artexplosionstudios.com. 7-11pm. Free. Also Sat/5-Sun/6, noon-5pm. The Mission artist collective hosts an open studios weekend, with over 100 participating artists.
“Cambodian New Year Celebration” Peralta Hacienda Historical Park, 2465 34th Ave, Oakl; www.peraltahacienda.org. 10am-5pm, free. Traditional Cambodian music and dance, plus food and crafts.
“Creative Growth Beyond Trend Runway Show” Berkeley Art Museum, Gallery B, 2626 Bancroft, Berk; bampfa.berkeley.edu. 7:30pm, $7. Creative Growth Art Center and current BAM exhibit the Possible collaborate for this runway show featuring unique textile designs created in the Creative Growth studio and the Possible dye lab. Part of the museum’s L@TE series.
Jane Goodall King Middle School, 1781 Rose, Berk; www.brownpapertickets.com. 7:30pm, $15. KPFA presents the renowned scientist and chimpanzee researcher, here sharing her new book, Seeds of Hope: Wisdom and Wonder from the World of Plants.
“Greetings from Oblivion” Grant’s Tomb Gallery, 50-A Bannam, SF; www.winstonsmith.com. 7-10pm, free. Winston Smith and other “fellow thought criminals” display art inspired by George Orwell’s 1984.
“Let the Big Kids Play” Habitot Children’s Museum, 2065 Kittredge, Berk; www.habitot.org. 6:30-10pm, $15-20. RSVP at letthebigkidsplay.eventbrite.com. The kid’s museum goes adults-only with Ninkasi Brewery beer, music by CelloJoe, and access to exhibits. Yes, there will be face painting.
Mary Roach Pegasus Books Downtown, 2349 Shattuck, Berk; (510) 649-1320. 7:30pm, free. The acclaimed author discusses and signs Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal.
Roller Disco Party Women’s Building Auditorium, 3543 18th St, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. 8pm, $10. Benefit SF IndieFest and groove on wheels (skate rentals available) at this party presented by Black Rock Roller Disco.
“West Portal’s Sidewalk Arts and Crafts Show” West Portal between 15th Ave and Ulloa, SF; facebook.com/PacificFineArts. 10am-5pm. Free. Through Sun/6. Over 40 artists display photographs, paintings, ceramics, jewelry, and more.
SATURDAY 5
“Humanism and Its Boundaries” Women’s Building, 3543 18th St, Rm A, SF; www.sfhumanists.org. 3-4:30pm, free. Jim Barnett, co-president of the Bay Area Humanists and Humanist Institute student, discusses the philosophy and principles of Humanism.
“Raw Fury: The Art of Mike Zeck” Cartoon Art Museum, 655 Mission, SF; www.cartoonart.org. 11am-5pm, $4-8. Exhibit runs Tue-Sun, 11am-5pm, through Aug 10. Career retrospective honoring the iconic comics artwork of Mike Zeck, including The Punisher, G.I. Joe, The Amazing Spider-Man, and more.
Moazzam Shiekh Eastwind Books of Berkeley, 2066 University, Berk; www.asiabookcenter.com. 3pm, free. The author and City College of San Francisco teacher reads from Café Le Whore and Other Stories.
SUNDAY 6
“Poetry Unbound #11” Art House Gallery, 2905 Shattuck, Berk; (510) 472-3170. 5:15pm, $5 (no one turned away). Readings by Jerry Ratch, Selene Steese, and Adele Mendelson, with a brief open mic hosted by Clive Matson and Richard Loranger.
TUESDAY 8
Poetry reading City Lights Bookstore, 261 Columbus, SF; www.citylights.com. 7pm, free. With Raina J. Leon, Alexandra Mattraw, and Kevin Simmonds. *
Some interesting openings this week, starting with Trou Normand (140 New Montgomery, SF. www.trounormandsf.com), inside the historic Pacific Telephone Building in SoMa. It’s from Thad Vogler of Bar Agricole, so yeah, there will be awesome booze there. And good ice. Cocktails include Armagnac, Cognac, and Calvados. (Be prepared to throw back a traditional shot of Calvados, a French brandy, in preparation for or during a big meal to “make room” with “a Norman hole” — hence the name, Trou Normand).
It will eventually be an all-day affair, so you’ll be able to swing by whenever for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — but just dinner for now, hold up. The menu includes many meaty items, ranging from caraway sausage to housemade charcuterie by chef Salvatore Cracco, plus polenta, white wine–braised artichokes, and other vegetable dishes, because it’s not good to just have meat all the time, you know. The Deco space is so stylish, with lots of custom artistic touches (all the art on the walls is by women artists), incredibly tall windows, reclaimed marble for the tables and bar, dark oak floors, and tufted booths the color of tobacco. How’d we get so lucky to have this space? Seriously. It’s a sexy one.
North Beach has a new neighborhood spot for Neapolitan-style pizza, Il Casaro (348 Columbus, SF. www.ilcasarosf.com), and some bona fide Italians opened it: chef Francesco Covucci and Peter Fazio, who are also behind the nearby Vicoletto. Casaro means “cheesemaker,” so there is definitely some dairy in the casa, including the rarely seen raspa dura, a cow’s milk cheese (young Lodigiano) that is shaved off the wheel and then served in a cone. Cheese cone, hell yes.
There’s also housemade fior di latte mozzarella, burrata, and a menu full of “cibo da strada,” the late-night street food you find in Italy (think arancini and crocchette). Plus there’s the sure-to-be-awesome panuozzo: pizza dough sandwiches stuffed with broccoli rabe, Italian sausage, and scamorza, or one with ground pork, pepe rosso, fennel seed, and french fries (the best late-night eats, that panuozzo). As for the pizzas you’ll see coming out of the wood-fired Stefano Ferrara oven, they’re made by a pro pizzaiolo, and feature classic Italian toppings ($12–$18). No need for pastas here, but you’ll find plenty of Italian wines. Say cin cin Sun–Thu 12pm–11pm and Fri–Sat 12pm–12am.
Craft beer (we’re talking 43 on tap). Deep-fried Monte Cristo sandwiches. An adventurous location. The cobwebs of the former and looong-vacant Fulton Street Bar have been blown away to make room for Barrelhead Brewhouse (1785 Fulton, SF. www.barrelheadsf.com), a brewery and restaurant from owner-brewer Ivan Hopkinson, previously assistant brewmaster at Park Chalet. Check out a sleek mezzanine, a honking torpedo that holds all the taps, and a bunch of brewing equipment (soon actually brewing, but not just yet). Stoners will appreciate a fun touch: quirky items embedded in the lacquer on the reclaimed wood slabs. The kitchen plans to stay open nightly until 1:30am, pretty damn cool, that. (Chef Tim Tattan was previously sous chef at Monk’s Kettle).
BALLIN’ ON A BUDGET
Anyone wistful for a little taste of Hawaii will want to scoot on over to the to-go window at Butterfly on the Embarcadero for their next lunch. The window is now Sammy’s Aloha (Pier 33, The Embarcadero at Bay, 415-864-8999), with Sammy Kong Kee stuffing the awesome housemade milk buns with kalua-style pork and BBQ chicken (just $8). Rice bowls in effect (ahi poke and loco moco), noodle bowls, salads, bao… And whoa, the Spammy Fries ($5) come with fried sushi rice and salmon roe. All the ingredients are quality, and nothing’s over $11. Mahalo. Open Tue–Sun (11am–3pm).
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column, www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.
“On the Rise” almost feels inappropriate for Useless Eaters, since it began in 2008 as Seth Sutton’s bedroom recording project in Memphis, Tennessee. On the scene (now that its founding and creative force relocated to the Bay Area last year) and ready to take over might be a more appropriate description.
When I was a DJ at the original KUSF, 90.3 FM, Goner Records had sent the station a care package. One of the 7″ singles included was “Sucked In” b/w “Malfunction” and “My Help.” It was an unexpected but eye-opening and welcome surprise. Blown-out, edgy, and punk as fuck, it was a relief to hear something that sounded both retro and fresh. I immediately placed it in heavy rotation on my show.
Sutton’s self-described “angular punk” really is an incorporation of many influences. The Clash, notably, struck a chord with him, and Devo’s humanoid approach can be heard on some of the recent (darker, distorted in a new-wave sense) material. The sleeve on the aforementioned single (designed by him, like most of his collaged record sleeves) credits Sutton with pretty much all of the instruments and songwriting, but the latest incarnation of the band is as “solid” a unit as ever, he says. Now they’re even writing songs as a group.
He keeps good company with POW!’s Byron Blum on guitar (another band Sutton has since joined), Brendan Hagarty on bass, and Miles Luttrell, formerly of The Mallard, on drums. As for their live show, they’ve got enough energy to blow up a car on stage like the late Wendy O. Williams. If she were still around, they’d at least have her pumping her leather-gloved fist.
Five years worth of recorded output shows three LPs, a stockpile of exciting singles, and EPs on multiple labels including Southpaw, Goodbye Boozy, and Tic-Tac Totally!, with another full-length due on Jeffery Drag Records this year. They also just finished playing their fourth SXSW, did some tour dates with another Bay Area band, Scraper, and are picking up the pace by sinking their teeth into a number of gigs on both sides of the Bay. Fleeing bands, farewell. We now have Useless Eaters. May they wear the crown well.
What brought you to the Bay Area?
I was living in Nashville for two and a half years. No one seems to really have any ambition to do much more than drinking shitty beer and going to country karaoke bars. [It] has no soul compared to Memphis, where I grew up.
I had always planned on moving to the West Coast, but was just waiting for the right time. I have always been infatuated with SF since the first time I rolled through on tour with my hardcore band in 2008. Living here just feels natural to me at the moment, and it’s a good change from the slow pace of the South.
It’s no secret that comedy is a male-dominated business. For years, there’s been this stereotype that women aren’t funny. Honestly, how often do you see a comedy with a female lead? While movies like Bridesmaids and Ghost World are few and far between, over the past couple of years, women in entertainment have been speaking out against this double standard. “Gender Night” is the most recent development. Comedian and ardent supporter of gender equality Freddie Rainbow presents an encore presentation of comedy from California’s finest comediennes. Expect jokes about shopping and love as well as fart jokes. Girls fart too, get over it. “The only reason to miss this show is if you hate women,” says the comedy club website. “Please don’t hate women.” (Laura B. Childs)
For more than 15 years, English DJ and producer Simon Posford and Australian flutist Raja Ram have collaborated to produce expansive, mind-bending, psychedelic music. Fans are still raving about how Shpongle rocked Oakland’s Fox Theatre just before Halloween 2011, when Posford and Ram played with a live band and an ensemble of colorful dancers. Posford, who takes to the decks for this show in support of the duo’s latest album Museum of Consciousness (Twisted Records), was a major contributor to the frenetic psy-trance scene that blossomed in Britain in the early ’90s. Those early musical influences shine through in the track “How the Jellyfish Jumped the Mountain,” an intricate, mid-tempo, 10-minute journey through filtered melodies, distorted vocal samples and catchy basslines. (Kevin Lee)
IDEO founder David Kelley and his brother Tom Kelley believe that we are watered-down versions of what we could be. On the heels of their bestselling The Art of Innovation, the businessmen brothers have written Creative Confidence, a book that challenges the idea that only some people are creative, suggesting that creativity is not innate but rather a skill. At this JCC event, the IDEO founder and Stanford University professor will speak about unlocking our creative potential; the night will also include a guest lecture by the pioneer for modern journalism and story-telling, Douglas McGray, editor-in-chief of Pop-Up Magazine and the brand new California Sunday Magazine. (Childs)
Boasting what some have called both the best pizza and jazz in the city (can you really beat that combination?), Club Deluxe is bringing back Little Minsky’s Burlesque Cabaret every second Thursday of the month. If you like your cocktails stiff and your burlesque dancers flexible, this is the night for you. Take a trip back in time with a lovely lineup of vintage cabaret performers and Prohibition-era jazz musicians. The night is sure to get hot and heavy, but in the classiest of ways, of course. (Childs)
Remember the good old days, when your parents signed you up for various art classes or random activities just so they didn’t have to deal with you on the weekends or school breaks? Workshop SF is oddly reminiscent of summer camp. With Jameson lamps, metallic saws, and only the necessary amount of clutter, the NoPa studio offers awesome classes from Sewing 101 to Hair Bootcamp to Pickling 101. Tonight, they offer a special late night edition of “Screen Printing for Newbies.” Learn the basics of silkscreen printing with an hour-long, hands-on tutorial and two hours of time to print. Bring your own printing supplies or come empty-handed — either way you’ll walk out with some cool designs printed on paper, T-shirts, and even beer koozies. (Childs)
It’s been a while since we have seen Stephen Petronio’s dancers fill a local stage with the interlocking complexities of choreography so fiercely layered — and performed at such speed — that the mind sometimes had difficulties in absorbing it all. Apparently, given the newest work’s name, we can expect some slower passages. In Like Lazarus Did, Petronio and his 10 dancers are dancing about death and resurrection, not exactly a hot topic on the traveling dance circuit. But perhaps the subject makes sense for a dancer-choreographer who is close to 60, who was the first male dancer with Trisha Brown — whose troupe is currently on life support — and whose own company is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. So happy birthday and many more to come. (Rita Felciano)
With a keenly creative outlook and modernist style mixed with bold, beautiful colors, artist Mary Blair helped inspire and design some of the most beloved films and attractions made by Walt Disney Studios during the 1940s and ’50s, including Peter Pan, Cinderella, and Alice In Wonderland. This new exhibit features 200 works that examine not only her seminal time and iconic output with Disney but also her early years, as well as her later work as an illustrator for advertising, theatrical sets, clothing, children’s books, and much more. (Sean McCourt)
Through Sept. 7, 2014
10am-6pm, Wed-Mon, $10 for Blair exhibit only, museum combo ticket $17-$25
There is a difference between listening through your ears and listening through your heart. For the latter, there’s nothing better than the voice of Chilean cellist Mochi Parra. This performance will see Parra teaming up with Peruvian native bass virtuoso and Berkeley Jazz School teacher David Pinto to present a concert of South American musical jewels that will undoubtedly set a precedent for the possibilities of these two instruments. There’s nothing sparse about this: Pinto’s six-stringed bass seems to dialogue with Mochi commanding interpretations, and the duo’s original arrangements combine to create an exquisite orchestration right at the edges of the unpredictable nueva canción styles. (Fernando A. Torres)
In the market for a sugar rush? Now in its 8th year, this annual smorgasbord of all things cocoa-based promises “55,000 square feet of chocolate,” in the form of tastings, demonstrations, new product launches, author talks, wine pairings, a “Chocolate Art Gallery,” and more. Artisan chocolatiers, confectioners, and self-proclaimed chocolate aficionados from all over the globe will converge at the Fort Mason Center to hear from locals like John Scharffenberger, chocolate maker at, yes, Scharffen Berger Chocolate, as well as chocolate-obsessed celebrities from the cooking show world. Let’s get real: It’s been a month since we had any heart-shaped truffles and there are still a few weeks to go until Cadbury Creme Eggs. Our sweet tooth needs this. (Emma Silvers)
Compelling mysteries arise whenever the Portland Cello Project is slated to perform. What sort of ensemble will participate? Will they go all cellists, or will they incorporate some combination of vocals, horns, winds, and percussion? Moreover, what sort of music will they play? Known as an “indie music orchestra,” PCP (an affectionate nickname from fans) unabashedly reappropriates rap, rock, and pop artists, from Kanye West’s upbeat “All of the Lights” to Radiohead’s melancholic “Karma Police,” into provocative covers that defy easy genre classification. The Project’s most stirring renditions seem to come from slowing down a track and teaming up with a powerful voice, which seems to naturally emphasize the emotional power of the cello. Accompanied by vocalist Chanticleer Tru, the Project’s take on Beck’s “Don’t Act Like Your Heart Isn’t Hard” is a particularly devastating, soul-laden heartbreaker. (Lee)
Sunday Sampler at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre
If you’ve spent more time practicing your Oscar acceptance speech than you’d perhaps like to admit, come out of hiding: Three times a year, the professional thespians at the Berkeley Repertory’s School of Theatre hold an afternoon of free acting workshops that are entirely open to the public, to serve as a preview of the school’s upcoming programming. Classes for youth, teens, and adults are available, from Beginning Acting and Musical Theatre to Playwriting and “Acting Violence” — aka how to stage a swordfight without actually injuring your coworkers or yourself. Even if you never go pro, you never know when that last one could come in handy. (Silvers)
Crossroads Irish-American Festival with Katherine Hastings
For those whose ideal St. Patrick’s Day celebration is a little more literary, a little less passing-out-in-your-own-green-puke, this evening honoring the legacy of Irish-American poetry, featuring Sonoma County Poet Laureate Katherine Hastings, should be just the ticket. With her recently published Nighthawks, Hastings has established herself as a poet unafraid to tackle controversial current events in her work, but there’s a constant undercurrent of appreciation for nature — she previously edited What Redwoods Know: Poems from California State Parks as a benefit for the struggling California State Parks Foundation. And because poets do know how to have fun: Irish soda bread and other Irish treats will be served. (Silvers)
This feature-length documentary, produced by video game developer Valve, takes viewers inside the world of competitive gaming — sorry, e-sports — as three professional gamers travel the world, competing for a $1 million prize in the first Dota 2 International Tournament. What was once considered a niche interest is now serious business, with trading and politics that mirror professional sports; Dota 2, a five-person team sport, is especially big in China, where one wealthy man recently bought an entire team for $6 million. This premiere will feature a live Q&A with the film’s creators and other special guests. (Silvers)
The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian, 225 Bush, 17th Flr., SF, CA 94105; or email (paste press release into email body — no attachments, please) to listings@sfbg,com. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.
LEFT OF THE DIAL Is there any problem more thoroughly modern, more reflective of the way we currently measure the value of our experiences, more completely indicative of a charmed First-World life than that of FOMO?
The fear of missing out on a good time is, of course, hardly generational. If all our grandmothers had, at age 16, discovered their friends were throwing a giant party without them, they’d likely be a little hurt — but then they’d be like, “Wait a minute, I’m a garment worker and I make three cents an hour in terrible conditions and women still don’t have the right to vote, maybe I have bigger things to worry about.” More importantly, they never would have known said party took place unless one of their coworkers at the garment factory said something directly to them about it — which, what gives, bitchy garment factory coworker?
Now, of course, we have The Internet. And in the prevailing social economy of the times — under whose rules it didn’t happen if you didn’t Instagram it — an event like South by Southwest has all the right conditions for a perfect FOMO-inducing storm.
Yes, we’re bringing you SXSW coverage this week on our website — and so will roughly one-third to half your friends on Facebook. Yes, those breakfast tacos look delicious. Hey, cool, that’s you and Lena Dunham taking a selfie together, with Edward Snowden in the background making bunny ears via satellite. Of course we’re incredibly jealous that you’re seeing [insert band that will be considered cool for the next two years and then become “too mainstream” and then you can tell everyone you saw them way back when at SXSW].
You know what else is cool? Staying in San Francisco. At the risk of sounding like the least-fun person in the world, it’s tough for me not to wonder during events like this — weeks when half the young white-collar people in town defect from the Bay Area en masse — what would happen if half these folks were to spend even half of what they’re spending elsewhere on the arts scene in San Francisco.
With that in mind, here’s a handy guide to musical happenings for those of who are staying in the Bay Area this week. And remember: Staying home is the new hitting the road.
Oakland’s moonbell makes heady, moody, psyched-out shoegaze that doesn’t skimp on the requisite wall-of-reverb. There are obvious nods to My Bloody Valentine, but there’s also a modern, melodic sensibility here, in no small part thanks to the guitar fireworks layered over floaty vocals that don’t sound disaffected so much as they seem to be transmitting emotions — or the soundtrack to a hazy afternoon bender of some kind — from outer space. The band’s new LP drops April 1, but it’ll have some cassette copies available at this show, as bands that record at Tiny Telephone are wont to have.
Barbecue pairing: A slab of ribs from Everett & Jones. Alternatively, one too many greyhounds at Cafe Van Kleef.
Wed/12 With That Ghost and White Cloud 8pm, $8 New Parish 579 18th St, Oakland www.thenewparish.com
The Kenyan-born, longtime SF-based singer-songwriter-producer Sila Mutungi uses the term Afrofunk to define his music, but the list of influences that announce themselves on his new record, SuperAfrican, is an impressively long one: There’s Sly Stone-esque funk, to be sure, but there’s also jazz, more than a little R&B, Latin-infused guitar, bright, big band horns, almost maniacally shouted choruses, and a vibe that pays homage to the country of his birth. This record release show will also mark the release of a comic book by the same name, written by Eric K. Arnold, that “focuses on a young African superhero who takes on villains in African settings, from refugee camps to diamond mines” — African kids should have a superhero that looks like them, Mutungi explains. All proceeds from the comic book sales will go to onemama.org, a non-profit funding a self-sustaining medical clinic in Uganda.
Barbecue pairing: Rotisserie chicken, Pete’s BBQ.
Fri/14 With Sambaxé 9pm, $17 The Chapel 777 Valencia, SF www.thechapelsf.com
The Record Swap at the Knockout has, one would like to imagine, a vibe that would have been in place at the first few SXSW festivals: that of a room full of people who really want to nerd out about music, and have a found a tiny little corner of the world to do it in. Unlike the current state of SXSW, you probably won’t find any tech talks or marketing gurus; it’s not known for inciting social media mayhem. (They have a Facebook page, but that’s about it; if anyone wants to start hashtagging things #rsatk with me next week, you’re more than welcome.) This pseudo-monthly party is completely free, and comes with the benefit of Taqueria Cancun next door. Say what you will about breakfast tacos; I’ll take San Francisco Mexican food any day of the week (and at any time of day).
Barbecue pairing: Nope. See previous sentence. Super veggie burrito, black beans, extra hot sauce, please.
We Became Owls is the name for the musical output of Oakland’s Andrew Blair and Ross Warner, Orinda natives and guitarists who’ve been writing songs together since middle school, plus a cast of rotating supporting characters on the banjo, cello, upright bass, piano and drums, with lap-steel and sing-along, sit-around-the-campfire-with-a-bottle-of-whiskey choruses front and center. Call it alt-folk, Americana, what have you — these kids have listened to their Bob Dylan, and there’s a depth to their songwriting, a level of genuine soul in their sound that’s not just easy on the ears; they mean it, and that makes all the difference in the world.
Barbecue pairing: Why, the kitchen at BOTH of course. A cheeseburger, plus copious amounts of PBR.
Sat/15 With decker., TaughtMe8:30pm, $12 Bottom of the Hill 1233 17th St, SF www.bottomofthehill.com
If you’re among the brave souls who will actually be venturing into North Beach during this weekend’s St. Patrick’s Day tomfoolery (socially-sanctioned, Jameson-fueled screaming in large groups), you could do a lot worse than to catch the lineup at O’Reilly’s annual block party. The Quiet Men is an eight-piece that takes the structure of traditional Irish folk music and adds elements of rough-hewn, forward-charging punk rock, with half the members taking turns on the writing and lead vocals. Think The Pogues, sure, but with less-shitfaced vocals (singer Erin Vogel’s clear voice, in particular, sounds like it can rise above a lot of chaos), plus members who have clearly taken more of their cues from the Against Me! side of the spectrum. Still darn good drinking music.
Barbecue pairing: I really have to tell you what thematically appropriate foods and beverages to put in your body at a St. Patrick’s day block party? Didn’t think so.
Sat/15 With Fergus & Michael, The Hooks, The Guverment, more 1pm, $10 O’Reilly’s Irish Pub & Restaurant 622 Green, SF www.sforeillys.com
The Parmesans are a string trio that somehow, over the course of the last year, became the secret favorite local band of every musician I know. It’s not hard to see why: Their sense of showmanship is matched by a game-for-anything, lyrical sense of humor, but they’re all too damn good at their instruments for any of it to actually be a joke. Throw in tight vocal harmonies layered over mandolin, acoustic guitar, and trumpet, and you get a live band experience that somehow manages to seem like far more than just three dudes on a stage. Their debut LP last year was a bright moment on the SF musical landscape, but we also hear they’ve been in the studio recently, so this show should have some newly-birthed gems.
Barbecue pairing: Think about how much money you saved by not going to SXSW — not to mention this show being free. Now try to eat that amount of tater tots and consume that amount of whiskey and beer on the back patio, in the sunshine, surrounded by zero celebrities and, accordingly, zero gawkers, with nary a VIP pass nor a viral marketing scheme in sight. Later (if you are not dead from attempting this — YMMV), go sleep it off in the sunshine at Jackson Park.
Fear of missing what, now?
Sun/16 With Sunny Jim Brown, Hay Babes 4pm, free Thee Parkside 1600 17th St, SF www.theeparkside.com
Listings are compiled by Guardian staff. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Selector.
FRIDAY 14
St. Patrick’s Day Alley Party Taverna Aventine, 582 Washington, SF; facebook.com/aventinesf. 4pm, free. Plunge headfirst into St. Paddy’s weekend with this indoor-outdoor bash, featuring drink specials, Sam’s Chowder Mobile food truck, and music from DJs Chris Harnett, Zhaldee, Don Lynch, and FGL DAN.
SATURDAY 15
Funcheap’s 2014 Shamrock St. Patrick’s Weekend Bash SoMa Streat Food Park, 428 11th St, SF; www.somastreatfoodpark.com. Sat/15-Sun/16, noon, $5-10; Mon/17, 5pm, free with RSVP (check website for info). Three days of Irish food truck specials, green beer and other “shamrock drinks,” and live music. Arrive before noon Saturday and Sunday to get in free.
Irish Bank St. Patrick’s Day Block Party 2014 Irish Bank, 10 Mark Lane, SF; www.theirishbank.com. 9am-midnight, $10 (free before noon). Also Mon/17. Live music starts at noon both days with the Shams, Bog Savages, and DJ Marcus.
“Little Green Men Weekend” Playland-Not-at-the-Beach, 10979 San Pablo, El Cerrito; www.playland-not-at-the-beach.org. 10am-5pm. Through Sun/16. $10-15. This weekend, little green men refers to Martians and leprechauns at this museum of carnival games, antique amusement devices, pinball, and more.
San Francisco’s 163rd St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival Parade begins at the corner of Market and Second Sts and marches to Civic Center Plaza, SF; facebook.com/SaintPatricksDaySF. 11:30am, free. The West Coast’s largest Irish history and culture event includes a parade down Market Street (you will not believe how many Irish dance troupes hail from the Bay Area!), followed by a Civic Center party. This year’s theme is “A Tribute to the Irish Workers of America.”
St. Patrick’s Day Block Party O’Reilly’s, 622 Green, SF; www.sforeillys.com. Noon-10pm. $10. Also Mon/17. Today, check out Fergus and Michael, the Quiet Men, Hooks, Guvernment, and the Bad Jones. Mon/17, check out Gas Men, McCrae’s Battalion, the Shams, Shanty Town, and Zoo Station.
“St. Patty’s Punk Bash XIV” Thee Parkside, 1600 17th St, SF; www.theeparkside.com. 3:30pm-1am, $12. Music starts at 4:30pm, and here’s the order: Dirty Denim, the Rinds, Arnocorps, Nihilist Cunt, Bankrupt District, the Criminals, Poliskitzo, Crimson Scarlet, and La Plebe.
MONDAY 17
“St. Patrick’s Day Blowout” Elbo Room, 647 Valencia, SF; www.elbo.com. 9pm, $5. With McCraes Battalion, the Butlers, the Guverment, and Another Tangent.
St. Patrick’s Party Cha Cha Cha/Original McCarthy’s, 2327 Mission, SF; www.cha3.com. 6pm-midnight. Corned beef and cabbage, rivers of Guinness, and live Irish melodies by the Frisky Frolics Quartet. *
Listings are compiled by Guardian staff. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Selector.
WEDNESDAY 5
Bikes to Books beer and map social Bender’s Bar and Grill, 806 S. Van Ness, SF; www.burritojustice.com. 7-9pm, free. Gather to talk lit history, maps, and urban cycling with like-minded folks.
David Grand City Lights Bookstore, 261 Columbus, SF; www.citylights.com. 7pm, free. The author reads from Mount Terminus. Also reading: Wesley Stace, author of Wonderkid.
“Twelve Brief Moments: Reading and Publication Launch’ Southern Exposure, 3030 20th St, SF; www.soex.org. 7pm, free. Culminating event of a year-long series of readings by artist Michael Swaine, who performed a short text-based work every month from February 2013 through this event.
THURSDAY 6
“A Curious Menagerie” Creativity Explored Gallery, 3245 16th St, SF; www.creativityexplored.org. Opening reception 7-9pm, free. Exhibit runs through April 16. Over two dozen Creativity Explored artists interpret various members of the animal kingdom, both real and imaginary, in this new gallery show.
“Shipwreck: Wind in the Willows” Booksmith, 1644 Haight, SF; www.booksmith.com. 7:30pm, $10. Six writers “destroy” one great book and character using their literary skills and creative imaginations. This month’s participants include Alan Leggit, Sean Keane, Alitzah Oros, Christopher Steffen, Kate Santos, and one more TBD.
“Urban Air Night Market” SoMa StrEat Food Park, 428 11th St, SF; www.urbanairmarket.com. 5-10pm, free. Ongoing every Thursday. It’s not just food trucks anymore: Urban Air Market brings its array of independent designers, artists, and other vendors for a weekly event at the park.
FRIDAY 7
Anchee Min Books Inc., 1344 Park, Alameda; www.booksinc.net. 7pm, free. The best-selling author (Red Azalea) reads from her long-awaited memoir sequel, The Cooked Seed.
“Quiet Lightning with San Francisco Center for the Book” San Francisco Center for the Book, 375 Rhode Island, SF; www.quietlightning.org. 7:30pm, $7-10. Celebrate the release of a “live literary mixtape,” the latest issue of Sparkle + Blink.
“What Do the Women Say: A Celebration of International Women’s Day” La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck, Berk; www.goldenthread.org. 8pm, $15. Golden Thread’s annual celebration of International Women’s Day features an eclectic array of Middle Eastern female artists, including filmmaker Maryam Keshavarz, comedian Zahra Noorbakhsh, author Ayesha Mattu, and others.
SATURDAY 8
“Babylon Salon” Cantina SF, 580 Sutter, SF; www.babylonsalon.com. 6:30pm, free. With readings by Daniel Alarcon, Katie Crouch, Robin Sloan, Melissa Stein, and Molly Antopol.
“Benefest 2014: Subterranean Arthouse’s Fifth Anniversary Party” Subterranean Arthouse, 2179 Bancroft, Berk; www.subterraneanarthouse.org. 6-11pm, $20-100. The nonprofit, volunteer-run arts venue presents a fundraising night of live music, plus a visual art exhibit and a silent auction.
“In Love and Struggle: A Celebration of International Women’s Day” La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck, Berk; www.lapena.org. 7:30pm, $10-15. Hip-hop and spoken word performance, plus a dance party, to benefit Berkeley Copwatch.
“Pretty in Ink: North American Women Cartoonists 1896-2013” San Francisco Main Library, Fourth Flr, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Exhibit runs through June 5. Photos, letters, comic books, artwork, and more highlight this exhibition showcasing female cartoonists past and present.
“World Naked Bike Ride: San Francisco Southern Hemisphere Edition” Justin Herman Plaza, One Market, SF; facebook.com/wnbrsf. 11am, free. Back for its fifth year, this “as bare as you dare” ride propels packs of naked or nearly-naked cyclists through Fisherman’s Wharf, the Embarcadero, and other popular spots to draw attention to the dangers of global dependency on oil. Don’t forget the SPF!
SUNDAY 9
Philip B. Choi Eastwind Books of Berkeley, 2066 University, Berk; www.asiabookcenter.com. 3pm, free. The architect and Chinese American studies pioneer discusses San Francisco Chinatown: A Guide to Its History and Architecture.
MONDAY 10
Julian Hoffman Booksmith, 1644 Haight, SF; www.booksmith.com. 7:30pm, free. The author reads from Being at Home in a Beckoning World.
TUESDAY 11
Clifford Chase Magnet, 4122 18th St, SF; www.booksinc.net. 7:30pm, free. The author of Winkie reads from his new memoir, The Tooth Fairy: Parents, Lovers, and Other Wayward Deities.
D. Foy City Lights Bookstore, 261 Columbus, SF; www.citylights.com. 7pm, free. The author reads from his new novel, Made To Break.
Shaham Mufti Booksmith, 1644 Haight, SF; www.booksmith.com. 7:30pm, free. The author discusses The Faithful Scribe: A Story of Islam, Pakistan, Family, and War.
“Edith Wharton at Home: Life at the Mount” Koret Auditorium, de Young Museum, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr, Golden Gate Park, SF; deyoung.famsf.org. 7:15-9pm, $15. American Decorative Arts Forum of Northern California presents this talk about Edith Wharton and her “autobiographical house” by Richard Guy Wilson. *
