SUPER EGO They call her cinnamon shot/ because she’s quick and hot/and when she’s really on?/ She’s a sake booomb! I recently affirmed — tipsier than the Costa Concordia and twice as cruisy — that one of my all-time favorite bars is that Sapphic Mission watering hole, the Lexington Club (3464 19th St., SF. www.lexingtonclub.com), wherein ace bartender Amy and a gaggle of scrappy lesbians got me good and watered on the cheap.
The Lex is a classic. But let’s stumble through some of the new joints in town that have just thrown open their bar doors. Social Study (1795 Geary, SF. 415-292-7417) in the Fillmore is a chill, evening nook where you’ll meet your dream sexy librarian. It’s beer and wine only: buy her a couple glasses so she’ll let down her hair and flip it around the brick-walled space like a Van Halen video. In Bernal Heights, Iron and Gold (3187 Mission, SF. 415-824-1447) took over the old Argus space — it’s all spruced up pleasantly, with one of those trendy Olde Tyme Californy wood stoves in the back, but has yet to find its flavor in the crowd and cocktail department, IMO.
Dear Mom (2700 16th St., SF. 415-625-3362), meanwhile, is blowing up faster than your Facebook wall did with shocking Whitney tributes from your punk pals. (They can care!) I had to slyly elbow my way through a pack of future indie rock cautionary tales to the bar, whose major architectural innovation is an extra corner for hanging onto. There I was rewarded with a PBR, so retro, and rad people-watching. You straight singles are kooky adorbs. Skip the weakish cocktails — surprising from the folks who brought us Whiskey Thieves, Thieves Tavern, and Dirty Thieves — and the, er, “revealing” ladies room (no doors), but watch Mom transform her old El Rincon space into a neighborhood magnet.
I didn’t make it to fresh-out-the-box Rock Bar (80 29th St., SF.), from the Front Porch folks, because my heel broke — um, can we finally move beyond late-night food trucks to outfit-repair kiosks and touch-up huts? — but don’t fear the musty-ish moniker: it’s a neat play on the stone-encrusted exterior, inherited from its days as the International Club. I’ll get there, though, once my shoe-glue dries.
“V”: VESSEL FIFTH ANNIVERSARY
The “upscale” club in Union Square has actually been very good to scruffy underground fans with its affordable weekly Thursday night techno blast, Base. (Who else could afford to fly in so many European DJs?) Now, in honor of its fifth anniversary, the club has planned a week of monster names, Wed/15-Sun/19, including Moby, A-Trak, Digitalism, and Hercules and Love Affair. Check out the details at www.vesselsf.com and go big in an intimate space.
ELLEN FERRATO
One of our local heroes of energetic techno — think storied 1990s weekly Sugar at the Stud — is finally back on the decks to throw down at the kicky monthly Dial Up party. Her muscular style (right down to her tank top) marries deep yet fleet-footed grooves with progressive house’s more rewarding trappings. Nice to see ya!
Thu/16, 10 p.m., $5. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
EWAN PEARSON
For six years the monthly Lights Down Low party has brought new intriguing sounds and old favorites to SF — this Brit legend (whose work as Maas is revered by techno heads and who’s been palling around with Andy Weatherall lately) brings some deep tech-funk and bleepiness, joining New Jersey house god Todd Edwards and many more for some in-the-dark madness.
Fri/17, 9:30 p.m.-4 a.m., $15 advance. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. wwwpublicsf.com
POOLSIDE
Opening for sophisticated Italian-Belgian pop-house act Aeroplane on Friday is our very own Poolside, the sun-kissed duo comprised of Filip Nikolic and Jeffrey Paradise, who’ve been slaying daytime parties around the world with dreamy acid house reveries and melodies that catch you in the bikini. A bit of lovely warmth in winter, this.
Intoxicating Mexican techno from this wavy-haired goofball, please, especially when hybridized with avant-pop structures into a bouncy funk, with one smart eye on retro-minimalism and the other on bumping rumps. Tim Sweeney, host of NYC’s invaluable Beats in Space radio show opens up.
“Nobody parties like the Brazilians!” is the motto of the Friends of Brazil, who are throwing their 45th outrageous Carnaval celebration on Saturday. I and my sore bottom are here to affirm that this is true! Mardi Gras is hard upon us, and it’s Rio’s traditional time to shine (even though our own big Carnaval street party doesn’t happen until May). Let those feathers fly and sequins shine with great live music and dancers.
LIL MISS HOT MESS’S ROLLER SKATING BIRTHDAY EXTRAVAGANZA!!!
This adorably meshuggah yet politically sharp (her satirical stage extravaganzas are to die for) drag queen threw one of the parties of 2010 when her birthday Bar Mitzvah rolled around. The long-awaited follow up, on wheels, promises just as many bumps, thumps, and bewigged triumphs.
Sun/19, 3 p.m.-8 p.m., $6 admission, $4 skate rental (or bring your own). CellSpace, 2050 Bryant, SF. www.lilmisshotmess.com
Somehow, we thought we’d timed it perfectly. We’d saved up for decades (or at least my husband had — I’m a writer). We’ve lived in San Francisco for close to 20 years, sometimes holding down three jobs at a time and spending every available hour enmeshing ourselves in the cultural fabric of the city. Mortgage rates are insanely low; credit is loosening up again. We’re not looking for anything extra-fancy, just somewhere with a little charm to finally set down financial roots and maybe even have enough room to start a family.
So boring! And yet, in the era of Zynga and Facebook … so seemingly impossible.
Hunky Beau and I have spent the last year looking for a two-bedroom condo, and it has been hilarious. Sometimes Three Stooges hilarious, like when open houses are so mobbed you almost catch a flying checkbook in the eye. Sometimes Saturday Night Live hilarious, like the broker who introduced himself with, “If you know what gentrification means, then you’ll know the rapidly gentrifying Bayview neighborhood might be for you!” But mostly The Office hilarious, like the time we excitedly put in a bid on a place right after the open house, only to be told there were seven bids already in, three of them $50,000-plus above asking, two all cash. Sad honk.
Of course, we’re being a little fussy. If my husband and I are going to spend more than half a million for somewhere to live in San Francisco — and $500K is pretty much the base price here for a non-studio condo — then we want it to be situated somewhere we can bike to work in less than 30 minutes, easily accessible by Muni or within stumbling distance of the clubs, and built before 1940 with some charm intact. We may not be rich but, dammit, we’re still gay. (Dear quickie-flip contractors: whoever told you all to slap horrid sandstone travertine tile into every bathroom and kitchen was wrong in the 1990s, and still is.)
And yes, we’re small potatoes, too, and definitely more fortunate than most: I moved here when a tragic confluence of AIDS, earthquake, recession, and urban population incarceration made San Francisco real estate cheap, and it’s only by virtue of a rent controlled apartment, one I’ve been basically trapped in since the first Internet Boom raised rents sky-high, that I’ve been able to stay in the city I love. Yet it’s become especially obvious in the past three or four months — since Zynga went public in fact, and Facebook announced its IPO — that the market has become almost absurdly competitive.
Paula Gold-Nocella, managing broker at Vanguard Properties, confirmed my observations. “On top of the notoriously low inventory that’s part of the winter season here, we’re seeing an incredible interest due to recent technology developments,” she said in a phone interview. “With Twitter moving in downtown, Saleforce, the Facebook IPO announcement … the seller’s market is especially hot right now. I have a broker down the Peninsula who’s fielding offers where they’re waiving the inspection contingency. And some sellers are most likely waiting to see what happens with Facebook. It’s kind of a perfect storm that’s brewing.”
I don’t think we’ve missed the buyers boat just yet — and for my friends who are renters I know the situation is getting far worse. But Oakland and the Outer Avenues are looking more and more attractive, even if that means remaking our lives from scratch to buy into the current economy. At least we may meet other artsy types there.
Hooray, it’s time for our favorite blog post of the year. Every year Wonkette goes to the huge Conservative Political Action Convention in DC, and trolls Craigslist for attendees looking for gay sex. Then Wonkette posts the ads. This installment features Dan Savage scanning the CPAC crowd with Grindr! Check it out here.
“I have been around the bhangra block,” says DJ Rekha, NYC’s ambassador for the highly danceable contemporary Punjabi (by way of London) sound, and founder of the popular, long-running Basement Bhangra party. “The biggest gig was definitely the White House. I have played all over the US and in Brazil, Sweden, New Zealand. I’ve done a bunch of music festivals and performed at cultural spaces including the Kennedy Center in DC.”
Talk about “world music” (even if that term has fallen from fashion). Rekha brings her Basement Bhangra spin — which includes a good bit of hip-hop and global bass influence — to our own beloved Non Stop Bhangra this Sat/11, joining the monthly party’s dholrhythms dance crew and DJ Jimmy Love for its reboot at Public Works, as I detailed in this week’s Super Ego nightlife column. In an email interview, Rekha wrote about bhangra’s changing scene, her favorite moments from the past 15 years at her club (Padma Lakshmi, anyone?), and her favorite bhangra bangers of the moment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgfMjwfs7H0
SFBGCan you share some of your favorite moments from Basement Bhangra?
DJ REKHA There have been a few. 1) I guess the first favorite moment is the first time I saw the line extend to the end of the block. We were always crowded, but by the following summer it was all the way down the street and not single file. 2) Having Wyclef stop by in the first few years of the night. 3) Dropping the Basement Bhangra anthem the first time. 4) Playing Panjabi MC’s Beware of the Boys after it was already hitting New York radio, having playing it there so much several years before. 5) Watching Ted Forstmann (RIP) crawl and look for his date Padma Lakshmi’s phone after she dropped it dancing 6) Getting a note to the booth saying I am Anil Kapoor (the game show host in Slumdog Millionaire) — and me dismissing it as a ploy to alter the bhangra musical direction of the night to Bollywood.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJztXj2GPfk
SFBGHave you been to San Francisco before, and if you have can you tell me if you think there are any differences between the bhangra scene here and in NYC?
DJ REKHA I have been to SF many times but I must sheepishly admit I have never been to a bhangra party there. But Non-Stop Bhangra is very well-known and regarded so I am super excited to be playing there Saturday. My DJ experiences in SF have been awesome — most recently at the Asian Art Museum and for the 25th Anniversary of Trikone. In both cases I play a range of sounds. But SF is home to the best bhangra dance crew — Bhangra Empire — they’ve performed at the White House, professional sporting events.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKWPzTF8-sw
SFBGBesides the fact that bhangra is infectious (I grew up partly in London and have loved it since the ’80s), do you think the influx of young Indian people moving to the US in the past couple decades has helped fuel bhangra’s popularity in clubs here?
DJ REKHA I think South Asian culture is more prevalent due to many factors — Bollywood Dreams, Slumdog, globalization. Specifically for bhangra it’s the dance teams on the college scene that really help keep the music alive. Every major city in the US has some form of regular South Asian club night but only a few are actually focused musical on bhangra. Every major university has a bhangra team. SFBGWhat other types of music besides bhangra are you into — anything that might surprise some of your regulars?
DJ REKHA I love many styles of music. Being from NY, I love hip-hop, but also dancehall, electronic, tropical bass. I am big Beatles and Prince fan.
SFBGWhat developments do you see happening within the bhangra sound?
DJ REKHA I think the latest thing we are seeing/hearing is Punjabi vocals with no actually bhangra music in the track. For example the song Amplifier by Imran Khan. There is also a lot more over hip-hop stylings in the song in terms of vocals and not just beats. The lines of what is a bhangra track vs something that is desi urban are being blurred. Its never easy to keep a genre constrained. Also in the last year or two as a reflection of dance music today there are a lot more faster tempoed songs.
SFBGCan you share your bhangra top 5 of the moment?
DJ REKHA My top 5 joint of the moment are:
>>”Tohar,” Garry Sandhu
>>”Electro Love Boliyan,” Ranbir S. and Bikram Singh
SUPER EGO The last time I tried to make out with a cute boy who wasn’t my husband, he actually said, “OK, I’m going to stand over there now. But you’re a great dancer.” Smooth save, Cornelius J. McRejector. I mean, if I had any pride left to be wounded do you think I’d be standing here wearing pink Baby Phat bedazzled cutoff jeans, a sequined visor that reads “Party Bottom,” possum-brown Keds, and some totally offensive, insensitively appropriated Native American item, possibly a dreamcatcher nose ring? I don’t need you! I’m busy re-embracing irony.
Anyway, that whole tackiness is over, and the point is this: dancing. If it seems there are more wild Valentine’s themed parties than ever this year (check out our roundup in this issue), there are also, well, more parties in general, including choice ones such as below. Just like Lana del Ray’s top lip, there’s always enough nightlife to go around. So don’t let some piddly fear of rejection lock you in the closet with zombie Mitt Romney. Be the great dancer you are.
LIGHT ASYLUM
Wide-ranging party players Marco de la Vega, Gary Riviera, and Brian Furstman have launched the new Future Perfect weekly at Monarch with the intent to obliterate whatever few genre boundaries remain in dance music — no central feel, “just good, forward thinking, contemporary” music, de la Vega told me. That’s a tough trick: without a definable flavor for a crowd to hold onto, you need to sustain a wholly unique energy (drink specials help!) or rely on big guest names to draw people back. Future Perfect seems to be succeeding at both strategies. The party’s already hosted Cold Cave, Jokers of the Scene, and Nguzunguzu; the latest big name is beguilingly dark live duo Light Asylum, anchored by singer Shannon Funchess’ throaty vocals. Considering Light Asylum’s justifiable reputation as one of the most riveting live acts around, this party’s energy will keep building.
Thu/9, 9 p.m., $10–$15. Monarch, 101 Sixth St., SF. www.monarchsf.com
BACK2BACK SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY
SF’s cosmic jam legends Jeno and Garth brought down club Mighty’s roof when they played at their original party Wicked’s 20th anniversary last year. Now they’re celebrating the lucky seventh of the party that sees them both on decks at the same time, finishing each others’ musical sentences. Poetry for your feet, child, and not to be missed for anyone interested in DJ sets that color outside the lines. (I’m so excited, I’m mixing my metaphors.)
Fri/10, 8 p.m.-4 a.m., free before 11 p.m., $7 after. Mighty, 119 Utah, SF. www.mighty119.com
NON STOP BHANGRA
Rad dance sounds from India seemed in danger of fading from the SF club scene recently. The lively Bollyhood Cafe in the Mission closed. (The space was taken over by expanding Senegalese restaurant-nightclub Bissap Baobab, so all is not lost worldwise). Forward-thinking global bass collective Surya Dub had faded from local DJ decks, although member Kush Arora continued to release ass-kicking riddim tracks at a furious pace. And when I heard long-running monthly dance extravaganza Non Stop Bhangra was looking for a new home I totally got a Punjab sad. Luckily, Non Stop has now landed on second Saturdays at Public Works — last month’s launch included the return of the Surya Dub crew, even. Whirl away with the expert Dholrhythms dance crew to DJ Jimmy Love’s bhangra bangers and a truly diverse Bay Area crowd, now going afterhours. This month, DJ Rekha of NYCs raucous Basement Bhangra guests. (Check out my interview with her — full of some amazing tunes — here.)
Sat/11 and second Saturdays, 9 p.m.-3 a.m., $10 advance, $15. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.nonstopbhangra.com
OPEL 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY, PART ONE
A part of our nightlife so huge, its decade celebration had to be split in two. Opel usually blows up the underground with tech house and drum and bass glory — founding member Syd Gris is responsible for the massive Lovevolution festival. But this above-board extravaganza at Mezzanine boasts Opel stalwart DJs Meat Katie, Dylan Rhymes, Syd, and Melyss downstairs, and a “looking back” room upstairs with longtime spinners Kramer, Ethan Miller, Dutch, and Spesh.
Some tasty undergroundish events have been popping up at 46 Minna lately — raising a few eyebrows, since 46 Minna is otherwise known to the mainstream bottle-service crowd as Harlot. A recent chat with one of my favorite DJs, Adnan Sharif of the Forward SF house collective, cleared up the mystery: the Harlot peeps want to draw a more adventurous crowd to their lovely space on non-weekend days. Rebranding’s fine with me, especially if it brings a four-hour set by Droog, the LA trio of expert house deconstructionists who fill their funky mindtrips with all kinds of electronic Easter eggs. This is the launch of Forward SF’s weekly Forward Sundays Sessions (with a fresh fruit buffet!). Adnan himself is opening up.
Somehow, Valentine’s Day has grown into an entire week — and come hell or high Hallmark, we may just get away with avoiding it altogether (despite all the actually cool stuff going on). What we will not avoid, however, is enjoying this special Cupid of the Castro, caught on tape way back in 2006. Heart u, SF!
VALENTINE’S Whether you’re hopelessly in love, completely philophobic, or somewhere in between, here’s a sweet slew of events on the horizon that won’t tap you dry. We’ve chosen our favorites that are all less than $20 (except for a couple worthwhile charity fundraisers). Now go out and get starry-eyed, you kid.
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WEDNESDAY 8
Aphrodesia Afterhours Valentine’s Day Conservatory of Flowers, Golden Gate Park, 100 John F. Kennedy, SF. (415) 831-2090, www.conservatoryofflowers.org. 6 p.m.-10 p.m., $10. Chocolate is hands down the best part of Valentine’s Day. Join local chocolatier TCHO’s chief chocolate guru, Brad Kintzer, for his demonstration on how to transform beans into bliss. Afterwards, grab a love potion from the Cocktail Lab, frolic amongst the orchids, and enjoy a live performance by Le Quartet de Jazz. Remember to take a picture in the photobooth — a night dedicated to chocolate is a night to remember.
Love on Wheels dating game Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. (415) 932-0955, www.sfbike.org. 6 p.m., $5 for SF Bicycle Coalition members; $10 for non-members. The cutest people always seem to be railing past each other on their bikes. The SF Bicycle Coalition is going to sit all you guys down so you can date already. Lovebirds will quiz three potential dates (hidden from view) and go on a date provided by one of the sponsors. This annual tradition is a cute hoot.
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THURSDAY 9
“Animal Attraction” NightLife aquarium gallery and sex talk California Academy of Sciences, 55 Music Concourse, SF. (415) 379-8000, www.calacademy.org. 6 p.m.-10 p.m., $12. Cal Academy’s weekly Thursday evening party, NightLife, is launching a new gallery for fish-lovers (and friends!) with a series of reproduction-themed talks. Various experts will be talking about mating strategies in the animal kingdom, penis bones of different species, and the sex life of Zodiac signs. Dr. Carol Queen from Good Vibrations will be sharing her knowledge about the science of orgasms. So let’s do like they do on the Discovery Channel.
“Cupid’s Back” sixth annual Valentine’s Day party Supperclub, 657 Harrison, SF. (415) 348-0900, cupidsback.kintera.org. 8 p.m.-midnight, $30-35. Gay charity impressario Mark Rhoades is back — like Cupid, you might say — with this popular shindig that brings together oodles of hot men. DJ Juanita More will fluff the crowd, and it all goes to help out our invaluable GLBT Historical Society. Shoot your arrow and it goes real high …
“Go Deep” lube wrestling for the boys El Rio, 3158 Mission, SF. (415) 379-8000, www.calacademy.org/events/nightlife. 8 p.m.-11:30 p.m., $10–$15. What says romance more than watching half-naked queer boys with fantastical monikers like Yogzar and Red Dragon wrestling in a vat of lube? Slide your way into V-Day at this monthly (second Thursdays) grip ‘n slip put on by neo-Vaudevillian troupe SF Boylesque, with DJ Drama Bin Laden, a performance by the Bohemian Brethren, and Cajon food from Family Meal available on the back patio.
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FRIDAY 10
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FRIDAY 10
Bardot A Go Go Pre-Valentine’s Dance Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell, SF. (415) 861-2011, www.bardotagogo.com. 9 p.m., $10. “Music by French people for everybody” is the motto of the neato longtime roving Bardot A Go Go — and that includes a bubbly beretful of cute folks who revel in 1960s pop glamour filtered through contemporary va-va-voom. Live band Nous Non Plus is très adorable, and DJs Pink Frankenstein, Brother Grimm, and Cali Kid bring French kisses galore. Plus: free hairstyling by Peter Thomas Hair Design, d’accord.
I Heart Some Thing The Stud, 399 9th St., SF. (415) 863-6623, www.studsf.com. 10 p.m.-late, $8. “We love love! We just love it!” scream the awesome queens of Some Thing, the mind-altering weekly friday drag show and party at the Stud. You may detect a hint of the sardonic in there, but the smart Some Thingers always cover their bases with a healthy dose of sincerity to go with the staged pop culture send-ups. heart-shaped performers include Glamamore, Manicure Versace, Cricket Bardot, and Nikki Sixx Mile. Afterhours dancing, too.
Mortified’s Annual Doomed Valentine’s Show DNA Lounge, 375 11th St., SF. (415) 626-1409, www.getmortified.com. 7:30 p.m., $14 adv; $21 at door. Do you remember your first kiss when you went in for the gold, missed completely, and your lips puckered mid-air? Well, the folks at Mortified sure do. They have sorted through the oldest and nerdiest notebooks, letters, photos, and shoeboxes so that they can share with you their most humiliating romantic encounters. Reinvigorate your disdain for this holiday by taking comedic comfort in the mishaps of these thick-skinned Valentine’s veterans.
Ninth Annual Food from the Heart Festival Ferry Building Marketplace, 1 Ferry Building, SF. (415) 983-8000, www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com. Through Saturday. 5:30-8 p.m., free entrance. Nothing says “I love you” like food. Give the gift of a happy stomach to your lover this Valentine’s in the candlelit Grand Nave of the Ferry Building, with a night of dancing and eating. Revel in the magic of the waterfront, sip on wine poured by local Napa Vinters, and taste a scrumptious hors-d’oeuvre or five.
“On The Edge 2” erotic photography exhibition Gallery 4N5, 863 Mission, SF. (415) 522-2400, www.gallery4n5.com. Through Sunday. Gallery hours Fri., 4 p.m.-9 p.m.; Sat., 11 p.m.-9 p.m.; Sun., noon-5 p.m., free. Valentine’s Day may be about romance for some people, but for us it’s about getting naked. (And eating, but mostly getting naked.) This group exhibition features 400 pictures of artful sexiness taken by 25 erotic photographers who bring on the nudes.
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SATURDAY 11
“Drunk with Love” with Carol Peters The Emerald Tablet, 80 Fresno, SF. (415) 500-2323, www.carolpeters.net. 8 p.m., $10. Carol Peters, a.k.a. “Velvet Voice,” is known for her passionate and amorous renderings. For one steamy night in light of Valentine’s Day, Peters will grace the stage to croon sensual tunes that capture the many dimensions of love.
Valentine’s SurpriseSF Lindy Ball Womens Building, 3543 18th St., SF. sfswingjam.eventbee.com. 7:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m., $22 This Lindy Hop and Swing ball is actually the centerpiece of a three-day swing summit in celebration of romance (check the website for full line-up) — because what says, “I love you” more than artfully mopping the floor with your partner? We sure don’t know. Hoppin’ workshops and technique tune-up sessions complement the ball, which consists of a Lindy contest, live swing music, and a surprise 91st birthday celebration for classic movie star Ray Hirsch. Lessons offered!
Watson’s “Naked at the Art Museum Scavenger Hunt” Legion of Honor, 34th Ave, SF. (415) 750-3600, legionofhonor.famsf.org. Through Sunday. 2 p.m.-4:30 p.m., $20. Who said museums had to be tame? Bring a lover or friend this weekend to the Legion of Honor for a sexy scavenger hunt. You will scope the halls for studly sculptures, titillating paintings, bathing beauties, and many sexy inanimate objects more. Museums will never be the same again.
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SUNDAY 12
SF Mixtape Society’s “Under The Covers” music exchange and contest The Make-Out Room, 3225 22nd St, SF. (415) 440-4177, www.sfmixtapesociety.com. 6 p.m., free with mix. Don’t have someone to make a mixtape for this year? It’s OK. Your ex’s music taste was awful anyways! Put that playlist you love on a CD, cassette, or USB drive and have it land right in the ears of a random yet lucky someone. You’ll end the night with someone else’s coveted mix, and everyone will get to vote for the playlist with the best track listings and artwork.
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MONDAY 13
Litquake Literary Festival presents: Love Hurts readings of grief-stricken passages of love and lust The Make-Out Room, 3225 22nd St, SF. (415) 440-4177, www.litquake.org. 7 p.m., $10. Ten Bay Area writers will give their own cynical (and mostly hilarious) twists on the forlorn words of some of the most melancholic and/or melodramatic novels ever written. Come sort out the parallels between drug dependency and romance in Valley of the Dolls, the masochistic plotline of The Story of O, and many more classics that well forewarned of broken hearts.
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TUESDAY 14
Club Neon’s Eighth Annual Valentine’s Day Underwear Party The Knockout, 3223 Mission, SF. (415) 550-6884, www.theknockoutsf.com. 10 p.m.-2 a.m., $5, free with no pants before 11 p.m.! This is THE event for fresh and nubile indie heartbreakers, stripping down to make you all “damn!” and stuff. One of our favorite annual pantsless throwdowns, with steamy rock DJs Jamie Jams and EmDee making you want to take it all off.
The Fifth Annual Poetry and Music Battle of ALL of the Sexes Uncle Al and Mama Dee’s Cafe at POOR Magazine, 2940 16th St, SF. (415) 865-1932, www.poormagazine.org. 7 p.m., $5-$20 suggested donation for dinner and show. Instead of scribbling your words in to a Hallmark card, show off your love this Valentine’s in rhyme and verse. All proceeds will support POOR magazine, a local arts organization that advocates education and media access for struggling communities. The theme is 1950s, but the beats will be timeless.
Love Story film showing and gala with Justin MX Bond Castro Theatre, 429 Casto, SF. (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. 8 p.m., $10 film only; $25 for gala tickets. Relive the drama, the tragic heartaches, and the swooning love story of the 1970 film classic. Ali MacGraw will be at the Castro mezzanine in person, “Theme from Love Story” will be sung by Katya Smirnoff-Skyy, and special guest Mx Justin Vivian bond will be doing a “sorry” medley.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMjsuYytrkg
Passion Punch Valentine’s day kickboxing class UFC Gym, 1975 Diamond, Concord. (925) 265-8130, www.ufcgyms.com. 6:30 p.m., free. Valentine’s got you foaming at the mouth? Let it out. This 60-minute class will incorporate dynamic boxing moves so that you can punch away all the annoyances you will be feeling by the end of this day.
The Crackpot Crones present “I Hate Valentine’s Day” sketch comedy and improv show The Dark Room, 2263 Mission, SF. (415) 648-5244, www.crackpotcrones.com. 8 p.m., $20. Outrageous duo Terry Baum and Carolyn Myers are providing a public service for the romantically challenged. They will be making fun of everything Valentine’s related — especially silly little concepts like true love and soul mates. Belt along to the song, “The Twelve Days of Being Dumped,” and give your best evil cackle at this sketch comedy show.
Valentine’s Day Party with T.I.T.S and Uzi Rash Hemlock, 1131 Polk, SF. (415) 923-0923, www.hemlocktavern.com. 9 p.m., free. There is no need for all the fuss, the fancy gifts, the cutesy ribbons, or the overpriced dinner. If you’re sick of the pink, come dance your anti-heart out at this doom punk show. Flowers wilt anyways.
I was pretty excited to hear about Heliotrope (www.heliotropesf.com), the new line of locally sourced, all-natural, unisex, essential oil-based, mostly fragrance-free beauty products launched by Bay Area style maven Jonathan Plotzker. I got more excited when Heliotrope’s exquisite, neighborhood-feeling retail boutique opened in Noe Valley (1515 Church, SF. 415-643-4847) — you mean I can grab some insanely good hot and sour soup from Eric’s Chinese and snag some natural product to vanish my all-night party bags? OK!
But things really got crazy for me when Plotzker told me over the phone about Heliotrope’s massage candles — when the candles melt, the heated wax dissolves into an oil perfect for an intimate rubdown. “We’re all about integration,” he said with a laugh, “our candles will melt you two ways.” Yes, I could go for a two-way melt right about now, in the middle of winter.
Plotzker had just returned from a visit to one of his chemists in Sonoma. “One of my original visions for the line was to help bring to light a lot of the small-batch local beauty developing going on,” he said. “The name Heliotrope means ‘turn toward the sun’ — but besides have the connotation of ‘enlightenment,’ I just really like the word. I think it describes our customers: smart, nature-oriented, and confident.” He adds that the company’s wood-grain logo comes from a scan of an actual redwood log that he happened to have in his car when he met with a graphic designer, giving it an extra local angle.
Heliotrope puts out dozens of products, from Witch Hazel and Birch Head-to-Toes Wash to single-note lemongrass essential oil. (The Heliotrope boutique sells a full range of accessories as well.) I asked Plotzker to pick out a few favorites that he’d recommend for our unique Bay Area winter.
FACE CARE
OLIVE LEAF AND NEROLI MOISTURIZER
Neroli is the essential oil of the orange blossom, and it’s a wonder, with anti-inflammatory and anti-redness properties. No more winter bloaty look. ($29 for 2 ounces, $39 for four ounces)
FRANKINCENSE AND ROSE GERANIUM OIL SERUM
People are realizing how good the right kind of oils can be for their skin! Our serums are concentrated treatments for the face — the frankincense calms, and the rose geranium rejuvenates. ($42)
ROSEWATER AND VITAMINS EYE LIFT CREAM
The rosewater acts as a humectant, meaning that the rose oil molecule attracts and retains the water molecule, keeping you hydrated and healthy. ($32)
BODY AND MASSAGE
SHEA AND BEESWAX HAND AND CUTICLE THERAPY
This is my favorite product in the shop. It’s a rich, creamy treatment for hands, cuticles, and nails that sinks in quickly so you don’t feel it — and your mittens won’t stick to your hands. ($16)
SOY AND SHEA BUTTER MASSAGE CANDLES
Soy wax melts at a lower temperature, so the resulting liquid can be poured on the skin and used as a smooth and natural massage oil, in fragrances like black fig cardamom and citrus nutmeg or fragrance-free. ($24)
ORGANIC AROMATHERAPY SPRAY MISTS FOR BODY AND HOME
Use this on your body to enhance your mood, use it as a facial toner to stay hydrated, and use it as a room fragrance — aloe, açai, pomegranate, and more. It’s a triple threat! ($19)
Our weekly Super Ego clubs column took a wee breather from the paper this week in order to bring you some great live bands we love. But does that mean you’re not going to go out partying? Possibly even partying like this dude, who last month broke the world record for continuous DJing (130 hours and 30 mins)? Maybe! After the jump, my picks of the week.
>>Mike “Agent X” Clark
The expansive, blues-house Beatdown sound is finally making it to the Bay Area. Last week, so-called “First Lady of Beatdown” Lady Blacktronika visited us from Mt. Shasta. And now one of the three Detroit originators of the decade-old sound itself, Mike “Agent X” Clark, comes to one of my favorite new weekly parties, Housepitality. But Clark has a long and varied history of tasty dance sounds; he’ll be bringing a whole bag of soulful tricks to lift you up.
Last week I bitched about how expensive some parties were getting — I can barely keep myself in lynx stoles and unicorn caviar! Well, here’s the response for queers and friends: how about a free weekly party with $3 well drinks and $2 PBR, plus DJ Stanley Frank and a wild performance by the lovely Donna Personna? I say yes.
Thu/2 and every Thursday, 9 p.m., free. The Stud, 299 Ninth St., SF. www.studsf.com >>DJ Hell
Helmut Josef Geier is, yes, German and also one of the folks who brought us some of the better parts of electroclash. But wait! He’s been making music for more than 20 years (and DJing since 1978!), so his catalog is incredibly deep. If he plays 1992 anthem “My Definition of House Music,” I may weep.
Fri/3, 9 p.m.-late, $12 presale, $15-$20 door. public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
>>Forró Brazuca
Awesome Brazilian dance music monthly party Braza! — um, yeah, the patrons are freaking friendly and gorgeous — is kicking off a series of live music showcases with this accordion-powered roots music quartet, each member from a different region of Brazil. Really stoked for this one.
One of the strongest representatives, along with his Desolat label co-founder Loco Dice, of the current polished German techno sound, all flexing muscle and audio wizardry under the surface, but floated with enough bright swing (especially in the example below, one of my faves) to pull anyone onto the floor. He’ll fill every inch of your ear on Mighty’s mighty sound system.
One of the best long-running parties in Brooklyn — and the nerve center for East Coast techno and “avant-house” — is the Bunker, which this month meets our own techno nerve center, Kontrol, in a delectable conflagration of like minds. Bunker DJs Derek Plaslaiko (who blew us away at Berlin’s Tresor club last year), the more classic house-oriented Mike Servito (likewise at Honey Soundsystem), and Spinoza will let us know how the other coast lives. This is another stealth Detroit takeover, too, since Plaslaiko and Servito both originally hail from the Motor City. The waves just keep on comin’.
Sat/4, 10 p.m.-6 a.m., free before 11 p.m., $20 after. EndUp, 401 Sixth St., SF. Facebook invite
>>Dan Beaumont
This week’s fab Honey Soundsystem party on Sunday play’s host to this revered London club owner (Dalston Superstore) and DJ (Disco Bloodbath collective). I’m digging his refined style, plugging into deeper synth-electronic waves.Should be a stylish international wrap-up for a kind of crazy SF weekend.
Languorous bike-riding, age-old mother-daughter conflicts, technicolor flower-bursts, and a surprising glimpse into the Ethiopian community of (we suppose) Seattle, the hometown of cosmic hip-hop duo Shabazz Palaces make the video for their new single, “Are You … Can You … Were You? (Felt)” off last year’s awesome Black Up album a nice Monday start. They’ll be performing this Thu/2 at Yoshi’s SF. (10:30 p.m., $18-$22. 1330 Fillmore, SF. www.yoshis.com)
In this week’s Super Ego column I bitched that club cover charges were getting too high — and pumped some affordable, worthwhile upcoming parties. Here are even more for this weekend, including one called, yes, Cheap. You know it!
>>CHEAP This new Thursday weekly party at the Stud promises “cheap booze, cheap fags, cheap tunes, cheap everything.” Free cover, $3 well drinks, $2 PBR — and a couple weeks ago a SWAT team landed across the street, no shit. So cheap entertainment, too! I’m totally saving some cash and turing gay for this.
This outrageously fun monthly party turns the Castro’s LookOut Bar into a kooky Mexican cabana bar, replete with drag performances, dance numbers, giant sombreros and inflatable flamingos. Hostess Ambrosia Salad and probably SF’s two cutest gay DJs, Taco Tuesday and Stanley Frank, play everything from salsa to Trina for a loosey-goosey crowd. Well drinks are $2 untill 11 p.m., mijas!
We at SFBG have a total soft-spot for the immersive, tribal-like second generation Detroit techno DJ — he’s got as much subtlety as muscle on the decks, but still leads you to ecstatic places. he’ll be at the weekly BASE party at Vessel, which is a whole lot of fun for techno freaks and friends. And it’s free before 11 p.m. with guestlist signup here. (Sign up before 8 p.m., though!)
Thu/26, 10 p.m., free before 11 p.m. with site RSVP, $10 after. Vessel, 85 Campton Pl., SF. www.vesselsf.com, Facebook invite
>>DECENTRALIZED DANCE PARTY Helping to inaugurate a strange new era of crowdsourced party funding — i.e. in order for the party to happen, there was a Kickstarter campaign (!) — the DDP takes a really fun, familiar idea and slicks it up: bring an old boombox (with batteries!) and an FM transmitter will broadcast tunes from every speaker. It’s decentralized! It’s spontaneous! The theme is “Strictly Business” so wear formal business attire.
Dark music, gay goth fans, industrial dancing, free whiskey shots before 11! Need we say more — other than our favorite little hole-in-the-wall queer goth monthly will depeche your mode with complimentary silk-screened tees for the first 50 people through the door, in honor of its ghoulish first anniversary.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfkYzxQKIYE
Sat/28, 10 p.m., $5, The Hot Spot, 1414 Market, SF. Facebook invite.
>>GO BANG! Time for another installment of this sweaty-lovely monthly disco-soul free-for-all, this time featuring LA sleazy edit hound Cole Medina, self-described “drunk funker” Tal M. Klein, and one of my longtime crushes, Rich King of NYC’s decade-old SNAXX club, which is indeed snaxxtastic.
>>MOSCA Got to give it up for the always innovative Icee Hot party, popularizing the bouncy-deep UK bass sound in San Francisco and giving our nightlife a few other juicy headtrips, tunes-wise. For Icee’s second birthday, Mosca, a prominent rep of the London’s Night Slugs scene (read this neat interview with Paloma Ortiz), will join fellow rave-y Brit Altered Natives on decks, along with chill-toasty regulars Rollie Fingers, Shawn Reynaldo, and Ghosts on Tape.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywAJL8sKYvk
Sat/28, 10 p.m.-3 a.m., $5 before 10:30 p.m., $10 after. Odd Job Loft at Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com, Facebook invite
LIT “When you’ve lived so far like I have,” Christine Beatty’s wry voice came crackling through the phone as she drove to Las Vegas to play the slots, “you sometimes just have to catch your eye in the rearview mirror and laugh. I’ve led such a charmed life, really.”
Some doe-eyed Wisconsinite may have snagged the Miss America crown last week, but in terms of representing this nation’s glorious variousness, that tiara should be tucked neatly into Beatty’s glovebox. A transsexual activist, author, and good-time girl, Beatty just published her memoir, Not Your Average American Girl on her newly christened Glamazon Press (available at Modern Times bookstore in the Mission, www.mtbs.com). In it, she tells her story of growing up and discovering her inner self during a very turbulent time in Northern California, through the stoner 1970s to the economically rocky ’80s to our own time, when trans people have gained an unprecedented visibility yet still find themselves the targets of discrimination from both conservative quarters and other LGBTs.
“I started Glamazon Press because I want transwomen to have another outlet for expression that I think is lacking, ” Beatty said. “I feel that the Internet has brought us more visibility, but we’re still tucked under the wing of the gay movement, and maybe it’s time to move out. I don’t want to divorce the ‘T’ from LGBT, it’s been very politically beneficial in many ways. But we need to develop our own voice. There are situations unique to us — the surgery costs money, and we’re completely vulnerable in the work place from a legal viewpoint, if people employ us at all.”
In her memoir, a significant amount of valuable San Francisco history is unearthed. Not Your Average American Girl’s juiciest bits, for me, recall her life as a trans newbie in the Tenderloin in the ’80s, hanging out at the Spirit Club and embracing sex worker life — a period vividly evoked, the city seething with a grimy energy and sense of family, a lost drama of payphones, sex ads, and backrooms. And then she’s a ’90s rocker with her band Glamazon, the book also nailing the electrifying live scene of the time.
The most resonant parts, all recounted with a kind of surprised honesty, deal with Beatty’s deathly drug habit and recovery, her HIV diagnosis 25 years ago, and her journey into transwomanhood, something she approached with such unrelenting drive that her ex-wife and her mother became two of her biggest supporters, despite initial upset.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWziz4N6RUY
Even considering Beatty’s storytelling talents, however, it’s a wonder that Not Your Average American Girl exists at all. It meticulously recreates scenes from Beatty’s experiences using entries from the journals that she’s kept all her life. And really, if your mortal coil encompassed typical suburban mama’s boy, stoner hippie, macho soldier, undercover married cross-dresser (or “frilly werewolf”), Tenderloin call girl, recovering heroin addict, pioneering rock musician, and author-publisher, how legible would your diary be?
“When I went to write the book, I looked at these old journals and I was filled with gratitude,” Beatty said. “I was so scared, hopeless, resentful in parts. But I see how far I’ve come and I’m still alive. And I must have known I was going to survive — otherwise why the hell would I write all this down?”
SUPER EGO Let’s be honest. Let’s start the new year out a month late with honesty. (Gung Hay Fat Choy, btw). Going out these days can really cost you someone, and that someone is named Pretty Penny, if not Armina Leg.
The average cover charge in the city, according to my professionally drunken self-survey, is pushing from $10 to $15, if not $20. Officially a night out — drinks, cabs, cover, recovery pizza slice — can run you upwards of $50. (Unofficially, you may just have to put out for your ride and pony up for new Underoos when the flask seal breaks in your back pocket. I am not advocating anything here. Just don’t opt for Drano instead of blow.)
Some parties are absolutely worth it. If Radiohead tickets are, like $144, then the party of the year so far, Laurent Garnier at Public Works — a four-hour live set with three musicians, full digital effects, huge bass boost, and a Thursday night crowd of serious dance fiends — was $25, $15 presale, invested in the supreme life force. There are fortunately still many parties hovering around the $5 mark where you can hear fantastic innovation and occasional international stars. And by all means, if you want to cough up $35 to hear some pop-EDM millionaire douchnozzle vomit down your earhole, be my guest. Just bring me back a pair of neon shutter shades. (Full disclosure: I gladly pay to get into about 70 percent of the parties I attend.)
But nightlife appears to be recession-proof here, possibly because of our tech bubble, and I wonder if one of the most democratic of art forms, dance music, is turning into a prissy connoisseur enterprise that only the wealthy can fully experience and enjoy. The answer, of course, is to go outside and make our own damn noise.
Bull sessions The Red Bull Music Academy has become quite a thing in the past 14 years — championing some mighty forward-thinking dance music, linking past legends with newbies through interviews, workshops, lectures, and lively parties, and putting me in the funny spot of sounding like a full-on Red Bull product placer.
The Academy itself could number you among its ranks. It’s a group of talented musicians, DJs, and producers chosen to attend a massive, globe-roving yearly summit full of cultural and clubby goodies. A Hogwarts of hip-hop, an Exeter of electronica, a Quattrocentro of Moombahton. This year’s takes place in NYC in October, but to kick off the Academy application process — get in gear and apply starting Feb. 2 at www.redbullmusicacademy.com — Red Bull’s launching a series of tasty events here in SF that are open to all.
In the taurine ring? Saxophone deity Gary Bartz (Wed/25, 8:30 p.m., $30. Yoshi’s SF, 1300 Fillmore, SF. www.yoshis.com) — whose African-rooted jazz of the late 1960s and ’70s became associated with the Black Panther movement — drops some fierce “Uhuru Sasa” with Aloe Blacc and Bilal. Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito (Thu/26. 10 p.m., $8. Mighty, 119 Utah, SF. www.mighty119.com) revive their groundbreaking hip-hop days as hosts on Columbia University’s WKCR in the early ’90s. And finally, in a coup that has the classic house community abuzz, Nuyorican heroes Kenny Dope and Lil Louie Vega, a.k.a. Masters at Work (Fri/27, 10 p.m., $15. 103 Harriet, SF. www.1015.com) will reunite for the first time in 10 years.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSoD3qKiU1o
I’ll take them wings, gimme.
ROCKET
A newly-formed passel of local queer techno DJs, the Rocket Collective (Mat Dos Santos, Brian Maier, Trevor Sigler, David Sternesky) is shooting for the moon with this underground sound-oriented party which benefits different Burning Man camps every month. Always-energetic drag astronauts — dragstronauts! — Ambrosia Salad and Miss Rahni perform.
Superhot funky bass and minimal tech DJ and Bass Candi label owner flaunts her supreme technique — her sets are wide-ranging surveys of the best various current dance music genres have to offer, but who cares we’re dancing. With dirtybird’s Worthy, Little Jon of Raindance, and more.
Sat/28, 9 p..m.-3:30 a.m., free before 10 p.m. with Facebook RSVP, $5 after. Public Works, 161 erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
Reverend Bertie Pearson, the cool cleric who brought us the absolutely epic Episcodisco parties at Grace Cathedral, is now at the Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist — and there’s no way that church won’t see some nightlife blowouts as well. Like this all ages blast featuring longtime local experimental tech cat C.L.A.W.S. with cute “proto-synthpop without raping it” band Shakes Gown and also Earth Jerks.
Sun/29, 6 p.m.-10 p.m., all ages, $5–$10 sliding scale, no one turned away. Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist, 1661 15th St., SF. www.saintjohnsf.org
Watch your snowballs: the First Lady of Beatdown, Lady Blacktronika, is hopping on her magic sleigh and coming down the mountain for Honey Soundsystem on Sun/22. She’ll be giving SF some much-needed transwoman power on the decks, and it will be the tea.
That mountain would be Mt. Shasta, where the prolific, San Jose-born producer and DJ has been headquartered lately, releasing track after track of absorbing, soul-seizing grooves on her Sound Black Recordings label. Her aesthetic takes the expansive and unrushed Detroit beatdown blues-house sound (with which she’s had some personal experience) and the mesmerizing moodiness of artists like Theo Parrish and Alton Miller in unexpectedly deep directions — using her notable experience as a singer and some lovely dubby effects shared with her former production partner Mattski to give the malleable beatdown sound some intriguing new shapes.
In anticipation of her first DJ gig in San Francisco after spinning around the world, I chatted with her over email about her gospel music-loving roots, the challenges of being a transgender woman in the electronic music industry, and some of the women on the scene that she admires.
SFBGThis is really the first time you’ve DJed in San Francisco?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA Yes this will be the first time I’ve ever played in the Bay Area. It’s a long time coming since I am a born-and-raised Bay Area girl from San Jose.
SFBGYour music transmits such a deep, techno-spiritual quality. Can you tell me some of your favorite music growing up — and who might some surprising people you’re listening to now be?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA I grew up on KSOL out of San Mateo and DJ Cameron Paul’s mixes. Lots of soul and lots of disco, boogie, and dance music. Dance music, primarily disco, has always been in my life thanks to KSOL and KMEL growing up. I also always loved traditional African music and gospel music even though I was raised a Jehovah’s Witness and was told it was wrong to listen to gospel, cause it was false religion. (PS: All religion is false religion. LOL.) Now beside house and disco I’m listening to John Grant’s Queen of Denmark and Montreal’s glitch-hop crew Alaclair Ensemble.
SFBGYou’ve said the Detroit beatdown sound really struck you — but a prominent Detroit label rejected the tracks you offered them because there was “no progression.” When you compose a track, what shape do you usually aim for, if not traditional “progression?” What types of tracks by others catch your ear that seem to fit in with your aesthetic?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA Emotion Emotion Emotion. I am super moody, often able to find joy and happiness but sometimes very sad. I am resilient though. I put all that emotion good and bad in to my music. If it ain’t got that swing as they say… but in my case it’s heart and soul that I must put in to every track. That’s what I want to hear from other music, and what I hope to convey with my sound. Honesty is also a huge ingredient in my witch’s brew.
SFBG I see you’re active in the Women in Electronic Music group on Facebook. Can you share some of your thoughts about the state of electronic music in regards to female presence, and who are some women you think should be ruling the electronic music world right now?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA I think the broad mainstream presence of women in electronic music is lacking but growing. Women are in full force though in the underground and not to be underestimated. I hope I am representing women well with what I do. As far as other women to watch out for you know I have to big up my Supreme Scyence sisters Jenifa Mayanja and Lola Dakinin9. Also non-producer DJs to watch out for: Jennifer Xerri is a bad muthah shut yo mouth. LOL. Sarah Farina in Berlin is a nu soul-broken beat-avant-guarde newcomer that I am gagging over. Her mixes are dope as shit.
SFBGCan you give us a current top five tracks?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA 1. Juan de Dios, “Spirituality”; 2. Mattski, “Twilight”; 3. WBTTU Anthems, “Stebeni’s Theme”; Eddie Leader, “Ummmm Well”; Core 4 Spin, “Brothers and Sis”
SFBGCan we talk a little about your feelings as a transgender woman in the electronic music community? Have any reactions stood out for you?
LADY BLACTRONIKA We can. Although as a transwoman in the industry, my experience has pretty much been that of a woman in general. Though I did have someone suggest I do drag show-type gimmicks to further my career. I was like, Why should I have to do that when I already have media attention?
I also had someone say “I knew a woman couldn’t be making beats that good” after I told him I was transgender. I was so shocked. I take offense to that as a woman and as a transwoman. It’s difficult to imagine that this sort of blatant and utter sexism exists in underground house, but it does.
SFBGIck about the sexism ;( Do you find that as a transgender woman you’re able to step across the gay-straight club divide — and do you think that there is such a huge divide anymore? Also, are there other transgender people on the scene who you admire?
LADY BLACKTRONIKA I don’t live in the city so I don’t know what’s going on with the club scene so much. This is the first time I’m getting fanfare in the gay community which is great. I’ve been wondering where all the family was at. So nice to know we are not all in to circuit bullshit LOL
I wish there were other transwomen that I knew who were into the sound I am into. I can’t say I know any others personally or have any I admire.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xauvwT_u1JA
SFBGSo what are some of your favorite places in Mt. Shasta? I might be heading there come spring …
LADY BLACKTRONIKA Some of my favorite places in Mt. Shasta are the freeways, railing and greyhound station — any way to get out of here. LOL.
I managed to fit a helluvalotuv parties in this week’s Super Ego column — but since nightlife is proving to be completely recession-proof, of course there are many more I must list here. And they are good ones! Plus some news about old favorites: check out the scoop.
>>BALLIN’ AGAIN Let’s start with a big ball, why not: The announcement came yesterday via this amazing video, directed by Dirty Glitter and playing cheekily off this, about classic soul party Hard French’s highly anticipated Winter Ball, taking place on Feb. 4 near the Santa Cruz boardwalk — and already there are like 100 entries for king and/or queen:
>>222 NEWS One of my favorite clubs in the city, 222 Hyde, has been closed for a wee bit (since early December) in order to remodel. Reopening was said to be scheduled for earlier this month, but no go yet. A number of people, including moi, are straining at the bit to get back on 222’s underground dance floor. I wrote to owner (and friend) Emilio to ask what was up, and got this reply:
“Hi Marke! Thanks for getting in touch. Its nice to hear that people are interested in what’s going on at the club! We’re still getting the work done, doing it myself with the building owner. Taking a little longer than expected, as it usually is with stuff like this. Looking at two weeks out maybe before a soft opening, and a few weeks after that for the grand reopening. We will have another fire exit, so higher capacity, bar and coat check on the dancefloor (back left corner), added a lounge style hangout room, and outdoor smoking area (so folks wont have to go out front). Newly tuned soundsystem, cdj2000s, and the most impressive addition will be on the dancefloor and will be unique in sf (more on this soon 🙂 [:-)] So we are very excited to show everyone what we’ve been up to making 222 even better! I’ll keep you updated and would love to give a tour once its all done.”
I’ll pass on the details to y’all — but sounds pretty spectacular …
>>RITUAL ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
The raging — yet brain-tickling — dubstep weekly from the Irie Cartel, amazingly the city’s first, just celebrated one year of residence at Temple Nightclub 9the party itself turns two in May). Ritual’s still going strong, this week with special appearances by Tankman, Blackheart, Maneesh the Twister (the killer Surya Dub head is back!) and more at Temple. Irie Cartel member and one of my personal favorite DJs Nebakaneza Dubstep just boosted me this deeper mix — perfect tunes for the low barometric pressure:
After a triumphant two-year anniversary, weekly dragstravaganza party Some Thing is doing something else special — bringing in bathhouse disco god DJ Bus Station John (of the Tubesteak Connection and Love Will Fix It) to celebrate his 21st birthday for the 30th time. With a twist! he’s picked out special rare disco and funk songs for all the performers to take on — who will be the first to shake their sacrophiliac?
Fri/20, 10 p.m..-3 a.m., $7. The Stud, 399 Ninth St., SF. www.studsf.com
>>ICEBREAKERS BALL
Famed ’90s funky breaks innovator DJ Icey’s sugar rush style will melt this annual affair at Mighty, which brings together some classic SF progressive house and breaks heads for a banging good time. Dress in white — Silent Disco outside.
Sat/21, 10 p.m.-4 a.m., $15-$20. Mighty. 119 Utah, SF. www.mighty119.com
>>SCREATURE
Sacramento expetimental act Screature joins Tint and Hobo Seance (plus resident DJs C.L.A.W.S., Nay Nay, and (Keep It) Keith Slogan at essential monthly new music showcase O.K. Hole.
In this week’s Super Ego nightlife column in the paper, I write about this coming weekend’s giant Edwardian Ball at the Regency Ballroom, which spans five events and welcomes thousands into its playful goth-steampunk-burlesque embrace. Named for Edward Gorey but encompassing more than a few winks at the Edwardian Era of the last turn of the century, the all-ages ball has come to act as a summit for a certain essential, instantly recognizable San Francisco nightlife subculture.
The ball was launched in 2000 by Justin Katz of “premiere pagan lounge ensemble” Rosin Coven and Mike Gaines of the neo-cirque Vau de Vire Society, and has grown enormously in the 12 years since — including branching out to Los Angeles. I interviewed the genial Katz over email about the ball’s Gorey origins, the challenges of expansion, combatting the dreaded FOMO, and welcoming a new generation of Friends of Ed.
SFBGCongrats on 12 years of the Edwardian Ball. When you started this, did you think it would take off in this big a way? Can you share a couple of your favorite memories of the Ball since the “turn of the century”?
JUSTIN KATZ Thank you! Each year in the history of this event has been such an adventure, with unpredictability even for us being a constant! Our first year we used a slide projector to show images from a Gorey book. Slides! The second year we did our first interactive theater with the audience, inviting friends to come up and be part of “The Curious Sofa.” Our fifth year was the first with Vau de Vire Society, one of the best decisions Rosin Coven ever made, and I can’t believe the amount of theatre, aerial, and huge open flames that we fit into the back room of the Cat Club. From then on it’s been astounding to see the growth and participation, first the Great American Music Hall, then up to three nights there before waltzing into our current home, The Regency Ballroom.
SFBGYou’re extending the festival over six events this year — can you tell me a little about that? Have you ever had this many events, and is this in response to demand?
JK This is definitely our biggest offering to date. The event has developed in so many ways concurrently that there is just too much to see and do during a nighttime event. The Vendor Bazaar (afternoon of Sat/21) has grown into a world of its own and people want more time to shop and mingle amongst the dozens of amazing artisan vendors we now house for the weekend. It gives people a chance to focus without dreaded FOMO — fear of missing out! — with all of the revelry of the Ball afterwards. And this year’s tea with Professor Elemental (also afternoon of Sat/21) is a new one. We are so pleased to have such an excellent artist flying all the way from the UK that it only seemed proper to have a tea party, and give fans a chance to get up close and personal in a more relaxed setting. So it’s about opening up and spreading things out a bit, to enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iRTB-FTMdk
SFBGThis year’s theme book is the Iron Tonic — will there be specific references to the book, or do you adopt these just as general frameworks to work within? And what are some of the special things you’re looking forward to this year?
JK: Each year Rosin Coven & Vau de Vire Society, co-hosts of The Edwardian Ball, choose a featured Gorey story to bring to life on stage. So this year’s tale is “The Iron Tonic”, which will be presented on Saturday night with original music, staging, choreography, and video as our “big show.” So you will see the story in its entirety. And more, actually, because Vau de Vire always goes to the next level in creating the story – showing you what Gorey doesn’t. One of the most intriguing things about Gorey’s work is that he shows you so little, and implies so much. Vau de Vire plays with character, back story, scenes between the scenes, and really draws you in. Rosin Coven works closely with them developing this and creating the music and narrative that drives and showcases all of the amazing theatrics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qgIGKobTe4
Another addition to this year’s event that I just can’t wait to see is our new Museum of Wonders – we’ve added an entire third floor of The Regency to the event, a dense, dark playground of eccentric collections, unusual artifacts, circus sideshows, mechanical dolls that sing you songs, fortune telling, tarot reading, a haunted pipe organ, and a living statue garden by Vau de Vire performing more Gorey stories. We’ve taken the wonderful art that has filled our ballroom and given it its own home, a whole new world to wander during the event, and a place to get away from the crowds for a different experience. This also allows us to open the Ballroom up even more for dancing and enjoying the show – more space to tango!
SFBG I’m fascinated by the general culture that’s coalesced in the past decade or so around the Edwardian Ball — it’s such a San Francisco signature style incorporating burlesque revivalism, playful goth, circus and steampunk, various aspects of Victoriana and Edwardiana. You guys seem to be the major exponents of this certain culture. Have you had any thoughts about it as you’ve seen it develop? What changes or developments have you seen in the Edwardian Ball culture through the years that you’re proud of or that have really made you think?
JK It’s an honor to be recognized as an influence on San Francisco’s style and trends, I’ve always seen us almost more of a great receiver of ideas and influences. We provide a creative, permissive space for people to inspire each other and cross-pollinate. By creating a mood but not strict rules, people have developed their own interpretations and styles over the years, the sum total of which become “Edwardian.” We initially used the name Edwardian just to dress up Edward Gorey, but its been fascinating to see people develop the historic elements of the event on their own. Steampunk is an interesting one too – when we started that word didn’t even exist. We’ve never self-promoted as a “steampunk” event, any more than we would be a “period recreation” event, but we’ve enjoyed the dovetailing of the trend and it’s expansion into more elaborate costume and character. I’ve enjoyed seeing people take Gorey’s work and meld it into their own creations too – characters and monsters and oddities from the pages of his books have been found in the most wonderful corners of the events.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjjDt2_oKyU
SFBGHow has the Los Angeles Ball been going and do you plan to expand further?
JK Los Angeles has been inspiring and challenging. Our first year was gorgeous, held in the mostly-defunct, run down Tower Theater in Downtown LA. It was moody and intriguing, and difficult from a production standpoint. So last year we moved to The Music Box, which is such a great venue. We had a little hiccup when the venue double-booked the night and bumped our date, and we had to push it back a month. But this year The Music Box outdid themselves and shut down a week ago, out of business, so we’re hard at work on finding a new home and date in time to announce at the SF event. LA is just good at tossing us curveballs – but aside from the nuts and bolts we have a wonderful time down there and are inspired and impressed by how ready the crowd is to step up, dress up, and immerse themselves in the Edwardian world. I see no reason not to keep expanding the reach of this event: New York, Seattle, New Orleans, there are so many places that the Edwardian Ball could pay a delightful visit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3ISx6UaKw0
SFBGYou welcome all ages to the Ball. Do you find that, as steampunk and burlesque enter the mainstream consciousness more, that more younger people are drawn to the culture that the Ball represents?
JK I think that’s a good assessment. I think we’re seeing a couple of groups of younger people – there are those that are drawn to live music, circus, and performance, and this gives them a place to go when most shows are 18+. It’s such a well-behaved crowd – playful but respectful – that we feel good about including all ages and creating a safe space for young people. Their presence adds a really vital energy, and I think affirms that we are creating something that can continue on, it’s not just for the producers and their own social circles. New, young ideas can and will influence where this event goes.
Also, some of the longtime fans are getting older and having children themselves, and starting to bring them to see this unique world. We’re starting to see the “Under-10” crowd show up for the first few hours – they watch the show, climb aboard a bike-powered carnival ride, play midway games with clowns, pose for photos, and head back to school for an unbelievable round of show-and-tell.
Fri/20: Edwardian World’s Faire Kinetic Steam Works, Cyclecide, Vau de Vire, games, and more
Sat/21: Edwardian Ball 2012 “The Iron Tonic” with Jill Tracy, The Fossettes, Miz Margo, and more
Both at Regency Ballroom, 1300 Van Ness, SF. All ages, see www.edwardianball.com for prices, times, and more events.
SUPER EGO Wax up your handlebar mustache, dust off your stripy topcoat, burnish your steampunk petticoats, and oil those wheezy accordions: The Edwardian Ball, that phenomenal annual gathering of exquisitely decked-out freaks, is back for its 12th installment of mannered mayhem. This time it aims to quell any kvetching about crowding by stretching itself over five official local events (and a satellite ball in Los Angeles next month). But the Fri/20 World’s Faire and the Sat/20 Ball itself will still be the main attraction for thousands of Friends of Ed.
Where did it come from, the distinctly San Franciscan style that the Edwardian Ball represents, the curious — and, in some pale lights, socially conservative — amalgamation of circus revivalism, steampunk mechanicals, Wild West gumption, burlesque peekaboo, 1990s anarcho-sincerity, and more than a hint of Burning Man fairy dust? The ball itself, launched in 2000 by Justin Katz of “premiere pagan lounge ensemble” Rosin Coven and Mike Gaines of the neo-cirque Vau de Vire Society, delectably conflates affection for Edwards Gorey, author, and Windsor, British king, producing a turn-of-the-last-century high-brow goth fantasia that’s impossible to resist. There’s more than a hint of Burtonesque Scissorhands-worship in there as well, bringing our Ed count to three. (Check out my revealing interview with founder Katz.)
Like absinthe, the ball’s drink of choice, I savor this native subculture most in small, strong doses — sometimes its sheer mass can overwhelm, and its style seems always in a state of coalescence rather than expansion. (An Edwardian Ball in 2112 would, and probably should, be much like the one this week, hover-bikes notwithstanding.) That’s why the ball’s a perfectly cromulent occasion to check in on the dark-eyed, ruby-red, velvety feast of one of our essential undergrounds. Promenade, anyone?
Fri/20: Edwardian World’s Faire Kinetic Steam Works, Cyclecide, Vau de Vire, games, and more
Sat/21: Edwardian Ball 2012 “The Iron Tonic” with Jill Tracy, The Fossettes, Miz Margo and more
Both at Regency Ballroom, 1300 Van Ness, SF. All ages, see www.edwardianball.com for prices, times, and more events.
BENEFITS FOR DJ TOPH ONE Beloved “wino” Toph One got struck while riding his bike by a hit-and-run driver on Sun/8 and was hospitalized with a broken pelvis and internal bleeding. The DJ, bike activist and annual AIDS Rider, and party promoter (of the incredibly long-running Red Wine Social and Pepper) is OK and in good spirits now. And the great Bay Area nightlife scene is banding together once again to help out a friend in need. There are going to be two big benefits — all proceeds going to Toph’s bills — that are also serving as major bay talent summits. One’s at Public Works (Fri/20, 9 p.m.-3 a.m., $10. 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com) with J-Boogie, Jimmy Love, Matt Haze, Pleasure Maker, E Da Boss, Chris Orr, and many more. The other’s at SOM (Sun/22, 8 p.m., $10–$20 but no one turned away. 2925 16th St., SF. www.som-bar.com) with Billy Jam, Sake One, DJ Pause, Rolo 1-3, Rascue, Jah Warrior Shelter Hi-Fi, and tons more. Get well soon, buddy — and anyone with information on the crime please call the anonymous police tip line at (415) 575-4444 or send a tip by text message to TIP411.
LAURENT GARNIER
One day, I will write an entire book about French techno polymath Laurent Garnier’s seminal 1993 “Acid Eiffel,” a monumental track whose throbbing chords (not quite nabbed from Mr. Fingers), squiggling acid jabs, and cheeky whale-song bass figures pretty much audibly nailed where my rave-fatigue head was at back then. He hasn’t been here in a decade: this time he arrives as part of the trio LBS (Live Booth Sessions) with Garnier DJing and knob-twisting, Benjamin Rippert on keyboards and Scan X on “machines.” They’ll be tearing through a whole host of electronic styles at this installment of the whip-smart As You Like It roaming party (co-produced with Public Works), throwing some brilliant corners on Garnier’s signature ecstatic style. With M3, Rich Korach, Briski, and P-Play.
Thu/19, 9 p.m.-3 a.m., $15–$25. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
THE QUEEN IS DEAD
Honey, is she ever! There has actually been quite an uptick in Smiths tribute nights (maybe making up for Morrissey’s string of Bay Area concert cancellations?). And this monthly one, celebrating a year on Saturday, is the Frankly Mr. Shanklyest of them, with a wide range of melancholy jangle-pop tunes and DJ Mario Muse on decks. Unhappy birthday!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oYsQ1Ra1hI
Sat/21, 9 p.m., $5. Milk, 1840 Haight, SF. www.milksf.com
OCTAVE ONE
The classic Detroit techno Burden Brothers whose seminal “I Believe” and “Black Water” will always get me on the dance floor hollering and waving my arms around like the homosexual muppet I am have been touring successfully. Catch them on the swell Club Six sound system.
Kooky-rad monthly queer and friends party Dial Up dials up a special Friday night with Berlin ‘s Souki, whose deep-but-friendly techno prowess is making recent waves. She’ll be performing a live PA, sure to get funky.
Fri/20, 9 p.m.-3:30 a.m., free before 10 p.m., $6 after. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
DUBSTEP PRODUCER BATTLE FINALE
Some great beats have come out of the rounds leading up to this grand wobble finale — nice to see so much local talent holding forth (and stretching the often narrow dubstep definition.) Come jiggle and support finalists Fivel, Taso, and Kontrol Freqs at the new Fuel Lounge (formerly Etiquette).
Fri/20, 9 p.m., $5 before 10 p.m., $10 after. Fuel, 1108 Market, SF. www.fuelsf.com
As I affirm in this week’s Super Ego clubs column, I adore the weekly Some Thing drag party every Friday at the Stud — and now it’s turning two years old. The special Some Thing confluence of onstage shoestring razzle-dazzle, challenging themes, uninhibited embrace of drag diversity, afterhours dancing to braintickling tunes, DIY genius Haute Gloo’s craft table, and hot-hot crowd has strengthened the city’s club scene, although to many it still remains a secret.
I’m fine with keeping this wonderfully successful event just between you and me, but why? Joy like this should be shared. And I already made out with you anyway.
In anticipation of Some Thing’s big fourth anniversary party this Fri/13, I conversated over email with the ever-lovely — and Best of the Bay-winning — proprietors, Glamamore, VivvyAnne Forevermore, and DJ down-E, about the current nightlife scene, the challenges of runnning a weekly party in this economic climate, and the future of alternative drag performance. (And in the spirit of the fourth anniversary theme — duet and group numbers — Glama and down-E responded together to some questions).
SFBG Some Thing is generally credited with bringing an appreciation for unabashed dramatic theatricality, classic show showbiz, and old school drag iconography — plus an artistic approach to contemporary pop — to a new generation (or two). What do you think of the drag scene in general right now, and what are your hopes for the future of this kind of performance?
GLAMAMORE Let’s see… The drag scene right now… Broad and amusing. For the future Glama hopes that they change, challenge, grow, adapt, and adopt.
DJ DOWN-E My hope is that the drag scene continues to provide things that surprise me.
VIVVYANNE FOREVERMORE The drag scene is too broad and constantly shifting to really pin down. I agree with down-E I hope that the style of drag performance in sf continues to surprise me. I’m constantly inspired by the new baby queens and also my peers and elders. I’m really into the super art moments that are mixing it up on stage with the classic sequin gown moments. Seeing folks like Gina LaDavina talking with newbies like DIAmanda Kallas or Charity Buckets backstage warms my heart There’s been a lovely crossover between the performance art world and drag world at SOME THING with folks like Phillip Huang or Jorge Rodolfo Jr. performing, and even Martha T. Lipton/Evan Johnson. I hope it continues.
SFBGYou’ve been doing Some Thing for like 200 years now 😉 How do you keep it fresh, and what are some of the challenges you face in terms of operating a smaller party in this economic and cultural climate?
GLAMADOWN-E more than anything, we’re determined to have fun at our party. That keeps it fresh for us. The challenge for us is keeping the harmony between all the different kinds of people we work with. That is integral to keeping it fun. Also, we don’t just bring drag queens together. The fun starts when you walk into the room with the craft table manned by Haute Gloo, and continues late into the night with dancing by the best djs from San Francisco and all over the world. It is important to have a place in the city where people can go dancing after hours. It is the definition of nightlife.
VVFM: To be honest the economic climate hasn’t affected us much. We started with a tiny party (Tiara Sensation, which ran on Mondays at the Stud for several years) that catered to the weirdos, freaks, DJs, drag queens, and hardcore nightlifers, those might be considered our challenging times, we were on a Monday night. But some of the best performances came out of those moments when therewere more folks in our cast then on the dance floor. There’s a magic that can happen when folks don’t have enough, or think they don’t have enough, they make worlds out of cardboard, their lipsynchs are better because they don’t have the lettuce to buy that new wig. The worse the economy gets the more inspired I am to make a space for everyone — EVERYONE — to come together and celebrate. It’s really about inspiring ourselves and each other. I feel that the weirder and more outlandish we get the more permission we are all granted to be different/ourselves, thusly less defined by our “haves” or our dollars. Also to echo my partners, it’s about FUN for us. So the weirder the world gets the more things we have to have fun with.
SFBGI want to ask about the concept of “alternative” vs. “mainstream,” especially now that “trash drag” has gone bigtime and punkish drag tribute nights sell out large venues. Some Thing non-ironically embraces everything from current top 40 to obscure showtunes (although I’m still waiting for a killer ’90s Belgian techno number). And yet, even as it breaks down the boundary between underground and mainstream, the party retains an alternaqueer context. Do you have any thoughts about that? Is there such a thing as alternative vs mainstream when it comes to drag anymore? Or is it all just a matter of quality and sincerity?
GLAMADOWN-E I like how much variety (a pu pu platter) there is in characters in our world–drag or otherwise. I like how a kid who has only performed once or twice in his/her/their life can get on the same stage as Nikki Starr or a Gina La Divina or a Phatima or Fauxnique who has been performing for decades. I love how it can go from a lip sync to a live song to a burlesque dance to a performance art piece in the course of a single show. And I love that how all the performers get along backstage.
VVFM Thank you for calling us alternaqueer. I think alternatve and mainstream exist on a continuum, and they are not mutually exclusive. Our “job” as performers in the nightlife or as drag queens is often to reframe larger things happening in the world or in our neighborhoods or in pop music (or maybe our jobs are to be just entertaining), so doing a pop song doesn’t make you a mainstream queen, and doing a Dead Kennedys song doesn’t make you underground, it’s all context and all tools. There is what we see on Rupaul’s Drag Race … but there’s so much variety even in those queens. It’s exciting.
SFBG What special things do you have planned for the anniversary — and for the future? What about individually for the future, as in personal projects?
GLAMADOWN-E For the anniversary, we’re asking everybody to do a duet or group number. It makes all of these disparate performers work together. Creating a party that we can get excited about before during and after is important. Coming up we have our annual Some Are Camp retreat. A weekend chock full of cool wet drag under the hot sun. We’re also looking at taking a little Some Thing worldwide in the near future. Glama is celebrating doing 30 years of drag this year with a retrospective produced with Juanita More. Down-E is always helping artists learn how to make a living doing their art.
VVFM I have an artist in residence at CounterPULSE showing in March, and I’m also working on the Work MORE! tour for next fall.
SFBGCan I ask about the division of labor? Who does what? And do you claw each others’s eyes out like sisters? Because none of those seams ever show.
GLAMADOWN-E There’s never any actual clawing. The three of us mostly just entertain each other. Half of our weekly meetings are spent giggling at each others dumb jokes. We each have our own roles, but all of us are involved in every decision of the party.
VVFM While we do have distinct roles, those roles are fluid, and as much as there are hard core tasks (ie flyer design, booking talent) there’s also alot of intuitive work too, like feeling out the best theme, or the right cast. Sometimes it takes us a few ridiculous hours of laughter to get the names right for each theme. It’s fun.
SFBGI feel that Some Thing’s rise has coincided with and abetted a new kind of sophistication in Bay Area nightlife that reflects the flow of social information and diversification of taste. People don’t justlike one easy kind of thing anymore, and they expect entertainment and a crowd that is open to all kinds of things. Some Things. What other parties do you admire and what are some of your general thoughts about nightlife now?
GLAMADOWN-E I enjoy that in San Francisco you can go out on any night of the week to a party put together by thoughtful creative people who want you to have a good time. From Vienetta Discotheque to High Fantasy to Oh!, Stay Gold, Mary Go Round, Booty Call to Tubesteak Connection, Dial Up, Cheap, I Love Cochina Tonga’s, Red Hots Burlesque, Trannyshack, the Hot Boxxx Girls, Go Bang, Dark Room, Beat Pig, Hard French, Love Will Fix It, It’s Five O’clock Somewhere, Ice Cream Queens, and Honey Soundsystem. Yes, we go out every single night. But we’re always looking for more fun clubs.
VVFM How democratic of my cohorts to list all these parties. I personally have a sweet spot for High Fantasy because I bartend there (Tuesday nights at Aunt Charlie’s Lounge), but they are doing some really silly brokedown high camp drag there. The nightlife is exciting. There’s alot of creativity flowing and it feels alot like family without much competiting (in the parties listed above). It’s nice to have each promoters phone number on speed dial, we really like collaborating with folks. It’s fun to book our friends and other promoters and DJs, and instead of homogenizing the “scene” it seems to be diversifying and enhancing it.
SFBGFinally, how the hell do you corral like 20 queens every week to perform?
GLAMADOWN-E That’s the magic. We do it with pokers and branding irons.
VVFM Have you heard of the phrase “hearding cats”? It’s like that but they have heels and false eyelashes.
WINTER LOOKS Drop your Zappos, gentlemen, it’s time to score some 2012 flash at the brick and mortars. Once slim pickin’s in terms of local, independent, mostly affordable menswear options (RIP, Kweejibo and Huf), San Francisco’s manly man shopping scene has been on the upswing lately, augmenting essential mainstays like Sui Generis, Upper Playground, Nomads, Azalea, D-Structure, Density, Darkside Initiative, and Revolver with fresh faves (including Welcome Stranger, pictured in this issue’s fashion photospread). Here’s a handful of relative newbies to get into.
ACRE/SF
It’s been a wee while since I found myself clothes shopping in North Beach, but Acre/SF — above the usual touristy fray in a cool spot on Telegraph Hill — drew me in the moment I heard about it. It’s brought to us by the folks at Acrimony, but with a stronger focus on handsome casualwear and a slightly lower price point. A nifty pop-up Gitman Brothers vintage-y flannel shop paired well with Acre’s Blue Bottle coffee when I was there (it’s also a café with a great view), and more such felicitous additions are in store, I’m told.
The just-out-the-box Fillmore boutique falls into the Ivy League-aspirational category of current menswear trends, but with a dash of urban snazz. The natty clothes aren’t priced too outrageously (button-down shirts are around $80), and familiar classics are tweaked with unique elements like scalloped collars and stripy inseams. Husband-wife owners Ron and Tricia Benitez have reworked an old mattress store into an absolutely lovely space with brick walls and blond wood floors. Here’s where you’ll score that funky two-tone cardigan, irreplaceable Oxford, or much-sought-after Makia tee. You’ll have to supply your own air of undergrad gravitas.
1850 Fillmore, SF. (415) 567-5953, Facebook: Asmbly Hall
GANGS OF SAN FRANCISCO
A retro-cute Hayes Valley hole in the wall whose eponymous t-shirt line, designed by Buenos Aires transplant Laureano Faedi, emblazons vintage graphics of San Francisco historiana (“Sutro Speedway,” “Bayview Butchers,” “Fleischhaker Diving Club” ) onto comfy tees.
Yum. I want to eat/wear everything in this small but powerfully curated shop at Church and Market, from the sturdily-structured Norse Projects hooded jackets to the micro-patterned White Mountaineering FW11 sweaters. Owners Stephen Chen and Otto Zoell are helping to finally make the Castro an actual shopping destination for people uninterested in fluorescent pink mankinis and rainbow love beads.
This delicious Mission B-boy vintagewear throwback joint got some love in our Best of the Bay Editors Picks last year, but it’s worth pumping what may just be the coolest secondhand gear store in SF for freaky-stylies. A mouthwatering selection of broken-in team jackets (satin even!), sports team tees and caps, geometric-patterned pullovers, neon tracksuits, and any number of awesome retro streetwear goods awaits you and your fantasy breakdancing self.
299 Guerrero, SF. (415) 624-3751, newjackcitysf.blogspot.com
TRIPLE AUGHT DESIGN
There’s a really interesting thing going on in men’s activewear right now. It’s all about obsessive technology when it comes to insulating layers — call it Extreme North Face — and several companies are making exquisitely structured, extremely durable thermal wear that doubles as attractive street fashion. Aether, from Los Angeles, and New Zealand’s rad Icebreaker (which just opened a location, or “Touchlab,” in Union Square) are touchstones, but our very own Triple Aught Design, with Hayes Valley and Dogpatch outposts, really shines, with futuristic-feeling apparel and gear. (I especially desire the strappy, Sand People-esque backpacks.)
Bringing together Mollusk surf shop, Revolver clothing, Spartan accessories and goods, and Michael Rosenthal Art Gallery, Voyager’s a visually stunning geodesic-like, refurbished wood cabin concept gallery-store collab in the Mission. (It reminds me of something from “Hello Meth Lab in the Sun.”) The menswear side of things focuses on the sporty and outdoorsy with a contemporary prep twist — what you’d expect from the fine Revolver, slightly bro’d up for the Mollusk crowd. Pretty damn cool.
SUPER EGO The slightly “meh” body of 2011 isn’t even cold and already we have two completely ridiculous yet ridiculously adorable, new deliberately manufactured subcultures to pretend argue on blogs about, because who blogs anymore? Seapunks and bronies, yep. I hope they fight, too, because it’d be the 2012 apocalypse in one cute, handy metaphor. Sparkly rainbow annihilation now!
Luckily, both also provide some cotton candy for thought. Bronies (and Pegasisters) are adult fans of “My Little Pony,” spanning the glittery spectrum from dedicated furries to wayward anime admirers. And yes, they dress up, and yes, there was a packed Bronycon in NYC last week. The Brony dance music of choice is variously called rainbowstep, ponystep, or dubtrot, and consists mostly of “My Little Pony”-based samples (“Fluttershy will snuggle you in your sleep!”) laid over basic dubstep tracks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2F7-Bz1lvBU
Many will find this to be divine justice for the much-maligned dubstep genre; I’m fascinated by both the ever-evolving cuddlecore-kawaii movement — humanity is so awesome — and the strange amalgamation of retro commercialism and celebratory fetishism, dancing together to something someone whipped up on a laptop for the occasion.
Seapunk is a bit more complex, a wonderful bit of subcultural engineering masterminded by elfin LA producer Fire for Effect, of underground pop group Ssion, who wanted more environmental consciousness in the club scene. (The original concept came from a “GIF dream” designed by Twitter personality Lil Internet, according to the legend.) Seapunk’s aqueous adherents, mostly in the Midwest but spreading fast — SF just got its first octopussy Seapunk mural at Market and 12th Street — have been characterized as goth mermaids, which certainly captures the look and feel: think turquoise-dyed hair and an embrace of all things oceanic, yay for steampunk jellyfish outfits.
But the whole idea is perhaps appropriately diffuse, nay watered-down: it’s more an “immersive Internet concept” than a pre-packaged lifestyle. And the music isn’t punk at all.
Besides an odd bubbly noise or two, it would be hard to identify any seapunk tracks (by Zombelle, Teams, Slava, Unknown, mostly on the Coral Records label) as anything but deep, dreamy tech house and bass music, a bit drowned-sounding, with those chipmunked rap samples now back in vogue. The lighter side of witch house, maybe.
It’s in the DJ sets, though, that seapunk catches my ear, especially those by Ultrademon. They’re perfectly party-ready, smart but completely nonthreatening, slightly melancholic fun runs you can imagine someone raving out to in a giant polyurethane bubble. But the intermittent, seemingly random fast-slow timeshifts are something more. What if mix tempos could shift suddenly, freely, and often at the clubs — like the currents of our rapidly rising, steadily depleting oceans?
Some Thing turns two: I want to give a special birthday shoutout to one of my favorite weekly clubs, Some Thing (Fridays, 9 p.m.-4 a.m., $7. The Stud, 399 Ninth St., SF. www.studsf.com), which brings a fantastically twisted and hot, hot, hot community of queers and (other) together every Friday for shoestring razzle-dazzle drag shenanigans and afterhours dancing. Helmed by the glorious Glamamore, who celebrates 30 years of drag this year; VivvyAnne ForeverMore, fresh back from dance performances in NYC; and DJ down-E, our king of deadpan cataclysmic retro (why not just throw on some Carpenters occasionally?), this is really one of the hardest working parties in town — no sweat ever shows, though, those seams are seamless. There, you’ll see 10-plus performance numbers covering everything from nonironic Broadway showtune adoration to scandalous punk rock conflagration. Meet me there for a shot or four this Friday — and hit up the Noise blog for my juicy interview.
NGUZUNGUZU
In a stunning show of actual musical taste, Gawker named the rad, boppy LA global-bass duo’s “Perfect Lullaby” DJ mix one of 2011’s best. Catch them live at the new Future Perfect weekly.
Look, if you’re in the mood to just rave the fuck out to some good ol’ hardcore electro and minimal techno, you could do far worse than these two French dudes who are not douches, really!
Fri/13, 10 p.m., $20 advance. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. www.mezzaninesf.com
LEGOWELT
Fab Dutch hybridist performs live, bringing his unerring ear for totally jackable tech tracks and brain-tickling deep Chicago house vibes to the lovely No Way Back party.
Sat/14, 10 p.m.-4 a.m., $10–$15. Public Works, 161 Erie, SF. www.publicsf.com
DJ SPEN
One of the Baltimore’s famed Basement Boys, the energetic house legend welcomes in MLK Day at the soulful Harlum Muziq label monthly, with David Harness and Chris Lum.
[UPDATED BELOW] Gah! One of my favorite SF nightlife people, DJ Toph One, is in intensive care at SF General after being struck by a hit-and-run driver while bicycling on Sunday morning. As reported yesterday by SF Appeal:
“Witnesses said the vehicle involved in the collision fled the scene.”
I’ve just now learned that the victim is Toph — a longtime bike activist and producer of such quintessential long-running parties as Red Wine and Pepper.
Police are encouraging anyone with information about the incident to call the anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or send a tip by text message to TIP411
Toph’s friend Spider Davila, who himself was the victim of an awful hit-and-run in 2006, posted this on Toph’s Facebook wall:
“Friends of DJ TophOne/Toph: Our homie was in bicycle crash and broke his pelvis. He is currently at SFGH in the ICU.
Send him your well wishes telepathically or on his FB page. DO NOT CALL the hospital. The abundance of calls is interfering with the staff’s ability to care for him. He currently is unable to receive visitors, as well. Check his FB page: Toph Kerpan Evans for updates and start thinking about the awesome fundraiser we’re gonna through him.”
We hope Toph gets well soon and the asshole gets caught. I’ll be posting about benefits as soon as details come in.
UPDATE, 7 p.m.: This was just posted by DJ Wisdom:
“Toph is in good spirits. broken pelvis and possibly internal bleeding! they will probably operate soon too fix up the pelvis.”
“I just got off the phone with a very nice nurse at the hospital. She said Toph is doing good but they will not let anyone speak with him because he needs his rest. They might operate tonight or tomorrow she said. Toph has been hit before and I am certain he will recover from this. Send all your love & good vapors for his speedy recovery. Perhaps we need to think about doing a benefit sometime soon.
Stay safe on the mean streets of SF my biker friends.”
UPDATE, Tuesday, 8 a.m.: Toph’s friend Kenya just posted the below comment to his FB wall — seems like Toph’s doing well. I’ll post again if there’s any major change and blog any upcoming fundraisers:
“i’ll head back to sfgh, as soon as toph can have visitors. he’s currently in icu. we’re trying to share news here to make sure the nurses can focus on helping toph get better. so, still no calls for now — please.
by sunday toph had already made friends with the sfgh crew and they were taking really good care of him. the ortho said he’d need reconstructive surgery this week, then 6-10 weeks of pt — and seemed confident toph would be okay. toph’s first response was to be sad to hear about surgery — then work back from June and get stoked he’d be better in time for AIDS Ride.”
UPDATE: PUBLIC WORKS BENEFIT INFO
A benefit for Toph has just been announced for Fri/20 at Public Works, 9pm-3am with J Boogie, Brass Tax Crew, Guillermo (Sweater Funk), Kirk The Selector (Sweater Funk), Chris Orr, and E Da Boss: all proceed go toward Toph’s recovery. See you there!
Local techno producer and live performer Marc Kate, a.k.a. Silence Fiction, a.k.a. Husband, a.k.a. Never Knows comes to us from the future with this heady emendation of the recent musical past, replete with technicolor shadows, tripped-out mixtape passings, overdue redos, shapeshifting pop sublimity, fortunate live distortion, and bass hauntology. Check it.
>>Young Galaxy, “Shapeshifting”
I can’t imagine pop music being more sublime than this.
>>Trish’s Mind Bending Motorway Mix
On January 14th, we lost Trish Keenan, vocalist of Broadcast, one of the most beautiful and haunting voices of our time. Before she passed, she made this bizarre, tripped-out mixtape for a friend.
The worst live sound I’ve ever heard. As if someone treated the speakers to violent stabbings at soundcheck. Somehow, the torrential force of the Soft Moon through that PA created a gorgeous, terrifying squalor.
>>Simon Reynolds, Retromania
A great diagnosis for the current cultural trap we’re all in – reveling in the past rather than evolving towards an unknown future. Too bad it doesn’t come with a repair kit.
>>My Bloody Valentine, Loveless Remastered
This release was delayed several times in 2011. And at this rate, it may never come out. Sometimes perfection takes a little time. Or sometimes an endless amount of silence before the sensuous scream.
Tabletop electronics that fuse techno with Krautrock. I love their recordings, but live, they created an even more technicolor density.
>>Kangding Ray – OR
My favorite raster-noton release in a long time. It’s austere and lush and a bit EBM and a bit techno and even skirts the edges of hauntological dubstep.
>>Bear in Heaven – I Love You, It’s Cool streaming preview
This album doesn’t come out until April 2012, but it’s streaming from the band’s website. However, it has been time-stretched to take four months to play beginning to end. Go there now. I’m sure it’s still droning on.
It was a huuuge year for LGBTMNOPs — what with the legalization of same-sex marriage in New York, the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Lady Gaga’s suicide via family-friendly Thanksgiving Special, and, of course, the Honey Badger. And yet, like a troupe of half-naked acrobats raked by the pope’s hungry eyes or Chaz Bono on Dancing with the Stars, members of our community managed to twist themselves into some mighty uncomfortable positions. Let me remove my Valentino couture and tell you about it.
FRANK AND FRESH
US Rep. Barney Frank announced his retirement with a wonderfully characteristic burst of straight talk — but then took to the House floor in an uncharacteristic sky-blue T-shirt, which highlighted his large, erect nipples. (This was actually hot, but we hope it doesn’t establish a precedent).
KNOW THYSELF
Homosexual Republicans are very easy, but the GOProud gay conservative organization really took the pineapple upside-down cake this year. There were so many ways in which it was wrong (defending Newt Gingrich’s anti-gay stance, courting Michelle Bachman, inviting Ann Coulter to speak) but it even twisted the one thing it did right: outing Rick Perry’s top pollster after the Perry campaign’s famous anti-gay television ad. GOProud head (since resigned) Jimmy LaSalvia, who used his own gay-bashing earlier this year to attack “expensive” hate crimes legislation as “useless,” tweeted after seeing the ad: “I’ve just about had it with faggots who line their pockets with checks from anti-gay homophobes while throwing the rest of us under the bus.” Um, mirror much?
BASS ANGELS
Lance Bass resurrected the creepy pedophile-baiting boy band impresario trope by endorsing his own version of ‘N Sync, Heart2Heart — a quintet of underage hooker-looking twinks who sang about wanting to post a “heart on” your Facebook page.
MILKING IT
Bevan Dufty’s horrifyingly unscrupulous mayoral campaign attempted to conflate saving bullied queer kids from killing themselves with electing him to the city’s top position. Seriously. He even used the words “It can get better” and implied that gay people would be spitting on Harvey Milk’s grave if they didn’t vote for his milquetoast, waffling ass. Queen, please.
BUTT, BUTT ….
The apparently deeply conservative Castro clutched its pearls all year because, my goodness Hetty Louise, some gay people were walking around naked. This led Sup. Scott Weiner to propose a law forcing naked people to sit on towels(?) Who knew the gay neighborhood could fit such a giant stick up its ass? Oh.
PILING ON
On the testimony of a disgruntled ex-employee, perennial gadfly-activist Michael Petrelis blogged that the Castro Theatre was closing. Roger Ebert picked up the story and tweeted that the institution was “abandoning gays,” making it national news. When the tale was deflated, everyone childishly piled on Petrelis with years’ worth of pent-up grievance. Even the usually stilted Bay Area Reporter made fun of his weight in an editorial*. It was ugly, and exposed both the limitations of hearsay blogging and the underlying bitterness of the gay press. Surprise!
STOP COMING TO SF FOR “SPECIAL APPEARANCES”!
The A-List cast. Shudder.
Correction: The item in the B.A.R. was in fact an out There column by B.A.R. Arts editor Roberto Friedman called “Recipe for a red-hot editor’s note,” not an editorial from the BAR editorial board.
