sfbg

Enter our LIT123 contest!

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An oldie but goody from the the Early Office Museum

Hey SF scribes! Tell us a story — fiction, nonfiction, or poetry — that reflects life in the Bay IN EXACTLY 123 WORDS. Our 10 favorites will be printed in our 10/7 issue and the writers will win a gift certificate to Books, Inc.!

(Send your entries to culture@sfbg.com by Tuesday, September 22. Put “Lit123” in the subject line, and please include your name or nom de plume and city. See more details here.)

You’ve only got a little over a week left, so get to scribblin’! Here’s an example, written by our Executive Editor Tim Redmond, to get your gears lubricated:

Moon and I are walking through McLaren Park, looking for the dog run with the pond so she can chase ducks. But I have no sense of direction, so we wind up wandering toward where the park turns into a neighborhood where old white hippie-type men tend to be way out of place. And along come two young guys out of gangster central casting — tough, big, tats, baggy plants and puffy coats, and I’m maybe just a little bit nervous, until I notice that they’re … holding hands. So then I smile nice, and they smile back and we go on walking as I wonder: Is it homophobic of me to just assume that gay men are unlikely to be violent thugs?

It’s time for a Bad Brains reignition

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By Tony Papanikolas

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Most Bad Brains fans can remember where they were the first time they heard the DC hardcore legends’ self-titled debut (ROIR, 1982.) For me, it was during an extended drive through Utah with my parents, a trip made memorable by a fortuitous stop at a strip mall with a Sam Goody. (My Damaged story is a lot cooler, I swear.) The album did nothing to improve my PMA during the car ride, but I vividly remember finding Bad Brains’ sheer unhinged speediness awe-inspiring, and not a little disorienting. Though somewhat of a cliché at this point, it bears repeating that Bad Brains — all 34 breakneck minutes of it — started an arms race of speed and aggression that would germinate into the hardcore movement. The other side to the record, however, was the handful of incongruous reggae/dub tracks, measured interruptions to the album’s typical rock ‘n’ roll onslaught. By their third album, I Against I (SST, 1986), Bad Brains had begun mixing the two genres more fluidly, resulting in what would become the band’s trademark style.

Aside from establishing themselves as genre pioneers too singular for flat-out imitation, Bad Brains have also gained the reputation of being some of rock’s most volatile live performers, with all the pros and cons that title carries. Stories of vocalist (or "throat," as he’s memorably identified as in the liner notes) H.R.’s epileptic stage presence are the stuff of punk rock folklore, making concerts unpredictable affairs to be sure. Lucky for us, he’ll be anchored by the original lineup: Darryl Jennifer on bass, Earl Hudson on drums, Dr. Know on guitar, natch. Our Summer rager-mode has deactivated; it’s time for reignition.

BAD BRAINS With P.O.S., Trouble Andrew. Tues/15–Wed/16, 8 p.m. (doors 7 p.m.), $26, all ages. Slim’s, 333 11th St. (415) 255-0333. www.slims-sf.com

Outside Lands: another take — Pearl Jam, Tom Jones, Lucinda Williams, and more

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Sean McCourt reflects on Outside Lands. For Kimberly Chun’s takes, click here and here. You can find pics of the festival here and here.

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Oustide Lands windmills

Midway through Pearl Jam’s headlining set on the opening night of Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival, Eddie Vedder apologized for his voice not being in tip top shape, due to the strain of his band being on the road for several months. He invited the audience to help him out on several tunes, which they enthusiastically did, but that feeling of not quite firing on all cylinders set the tone for much of the rest of the festival; though many of bands on this year’s lineup were quite good, only a few really gave the impression of belonging on the large stages they were given. The crowds didn’t act like they minded all that much, however, seeming to be fine with wandering the wide expanse of the park and festival grounds, checking out various acts and sampling the wide variety of food and drink that organizers provided for this year’s outing.

Autolux kicked off the festivities on Friday, and though they were good, they didn’t seem to possess either the stage presence or the discography to perform on the main “Lands End” stage. There were probably a few thousand people there to watch the set, but on the immense landscape of the Polo Fields, it appeared to be a sparse gathering at best. Built To Spill and Silversun Pickups garnered larger audiences, generating the first tinges of genuine electricity that a festival of this stature should produce.

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Gooferman

In between several of the larger acts’ sets, a small outdoor stage and a tent structure near the back end of the Polo Fields nicknamed “The Barbary” featured a variety of entertainment such as self-proclaimed “micro circus and band” Gooferman, whose bizarre clown and kabuki influenced make up and outfits perfectly matched their unique sound, a cross of rock, funk, electronic, and a host of other influences. Several women members of the troupe danced around the band on stage, and even climbed above them on the curved metal scaffolding crisscrossing overhead.

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Janet, Arguello and Balboa

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Tells us about your look: “Pretty much I go for comfort and cheap.”

Snap Sounds: DatA

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By Daniel N. Alvarez

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DATA

"Skywriter"

(Ekleroshock/Naive)

While much has been made of the Sebastien Grainger-sung, electro-disco tracks "One In A Million" and "Rapture," “Skywriter” is full of that classic, synth-slathered French house sound that so many fell in love with when they first heard Daft Punk. Some hooks here will stay lodged in your head for weeks.

DatA, “Skywriter”

Sexcipe: Pork ribs with a side of rubber gimp

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By Mistress Eve Minax, a professional dominatrix, sex educator, and food lover based in SF

After I met my nutrition coach Matt Lascala, (in my spanking class at Good Vibrations no less), I was told that eliminating all sugars, dairy, and grains from my diet would be helpful to me. I was somewhat skeptical to say the least – okay, I thought, I’ll try it for a week or two, and then maybe let it go. After only three days I had much more energy, slept well at night (I had tendencies towards insomnia), became more productive and basically regained a new sense of pleasure in life! I was sold.

I have always been interested in cuisine and decided long ago not to become a chef because I was afraid of losing my creative compunctions in the kitchen from working long hours for other people. So I became a Dominatrix. The PaleoZone diet has opened up a new sense of creativity for me as far as foods I can and cannot eat and how to get that crazy Provencial Gourmande feel from such a paltry sounding diet. It has been a phenomenal inspiration. I liken its rustic feel to Medieval debauchery, and since I love playing as well as eating, I decided to start “pairing” my meals with my play.

Modifications:
Technically, one does not drink wine while dieting, but since this regimen is for optimal health and not for weight loss (though I have lost 10 lobs or so in the first six weeks), I keep wine because it gives the Mistress a certain quality of life she enjoys. You may wish to modify things as well, depending on your dietary and quality of life needs.

Menu:

Pork Spare Ribs Braised with Beets and Onions
Collard Greens and Baby Daikon
Cirtrus Peaches with Filberts

Paired with: Rubber Abduction, Electrical Play, Forced Release

‘Best of British Noir’ bonanza of shadiness

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By Max Goldberg

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Lady, It Always Rains on Sunday

That undisputed champ of repertory programming, film noir, is getting a good workout during otherwise sunny September. Elliot Lavine combs the Columbia vaults for a 22-film Roxie bonanza, while the Castro Theatre and Pacific Film Archive look across the pond for a touch of "tea and larceny." Even if it’s disingenuous to label these Anglo entries as noir — the camera angles are right, the mannered scripts not so much — the down-and-out British crime films make for a fascinating mirror image to their American counterparts, not least for the visible evidence of World War II trauma. The rarity-heavy PFA series will better satisfy the buff, but only a fool would pass up a week’s worth of Rialto restoration prints at the Castro. Three of the five films are Graham Greene affairs, including a long-overdue re-release of Brighton Rock (1947). The real discovery of the series, however, is Robert Hamer’s It Always Rains on Sunday (1947), an unusual mélange of kitchen-sink drama, Dostoyevskian moral tale, and on-the-lam thriller. If the steady downpour is pure noir, the film’s narrative is less typical. Instead of concentrating trauma and repression into a single (male) figure, Hamer spreads it around an entire East London neighborhood. There is a escaped convict at the center of the story who looks every bit the seductive part, but in spite of a stylish chase finale, Hamer is more interested in the drab corners of ordinary deceit. His resourceful dramatizations of working class spaces — and specifically their lack of privacy — are consumed with an anxiety far in excess of the film’s serviceable plot.

RIALTO’S BEST OF BRITISH NOIR Sept. 11–16, $10. Castro Theatre, 429 Castro, SF

(415) 621-6120, www.thecastrotheatre.com

Better than sex? ‘Architecture and and the City’

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By Marke B.

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I don’t know whether this is awesome or boring, but one of the most perverse pleasures to be had in the Bay for the last decade has been fantasy house-hunting — dressing like you can afford more than a rent-controlled railroad flat’s closet and hitting the Sunday open-house real estate orgy circuit, mostly to decry the recent penchant for tacky recessed lighting and cheap beige granite counter-tops. The ’80s are back! If you’re a premium architecture and design junkie, though, you’ll be swooning all September — launching your intellectual and tactical fantasies into the clouds with the Architecture and the City festival, presented by AIA San Francisco. The sixth annual celebration of unique builds, the nation’s largest, not only takes you on the San Francisco Living: Home Tours drool-a-thon (Sept. 12-13) focusing on smart sustainability, but also explores a bonanza of exciting, dialogue-stimulating Bay design ideas through presentations, investigations, demonstrations, and more. Prepare to push up your teeny octagon-shaped eyeglasses and scream, "Build it! Build it NOW!"

ARCHITECTURE AND THE CITY Through September 30. Check Web site for locations, times, and prices. www.aiasf.org/archandcity

Party-pinchers PANTyRAID deliver ‘The Sauce’

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By Michael Krimper

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You don’t get quite what you expect from the aptly titled electronic duo, PANTyRAiD. A side project of forward thinking producers Martin Folb (Marty Party — he’ll be performing this Fri/11 at 103 Harriet) and Josh Mayer (Ooah of the Glitch Mob), PANTyRAiD delves into the rich cross-sections of hip-hop, dubstep, and ambient. Although the duo was previously best known for heavy hitting remixes like “Do You” and powerhouse party mixes — e.g. for XLR8R and Mary Anne Hobbs — of synth knocking beats flipped over modulated crunk lyricism, their latest effort The Sauce (Marine, Ingrooves) salvages their place as solid beat conductors on the quest.

PANTyRAID, “Get the Money”

PANTyRAiD most impressively experiment with multi-tiered arrangements, changing tempo and bass tonality by way of a jazz inspired fluidity. In “Worship The Sun”, dissonant synth vamps grace chilling tribal drums and chants, building into a wobbling bass riding “hot sex on a platter” bars from Silk E. Fyne’s one hit wonder, and reemerging once more with a graceful intensity.

Preview: “Corpo/Ilicito: The Post-Human Society 6.9”

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By Robert Avila

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Violeta Luna photo by Zach Gross.

Humans and post-humans take note: Corpo/Ilicito: The Post-Human Society 6.9, latest provocation-installation from acclaimed Mexican American performance artists Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Violeta Luna (aka La Pocha Nostra), unfurls for two nights only, this Friday and Saturday, at CounterPULSE.

Corpo/Ilicito premiered in the 2009 Habana Biennale in Cuba and the Trouble Festival in Brussels. This weekend marks its Bay Area premiere. In terms of what you might expect, here’s this from their press release: “In their latest project, la Pocha creates a performance setting that is both live jam session and reflective zone. The full environment installation ultimately allows the audience to co-direct the fate of the performance.

“Gomez-Peña has said about this project: ‘As live artists, our task is to create living metaphors that articulate a new aesthetic, culture, spirituality and a sexuality that emerge out of the ruins of our Western civilization.’”

These are the ambassadors from badass. Go ahead and call them edgy, especially if by edgy you mean pissed off. Or edgy as in the fractured, fractious frontier running between Mexico and the United States — slithering East to West, West to East, in all its slippery serpentine significance, delusional substance, riotous pretense and delightful permeability. And while you’re at it, throw in all the other frontiers of identity that go into limning our “postmodern” “Western” borderline personalities.

Fri/11-Sat/12, 8 p.m., $15-20
CounterPULSE, 1310 Mission, SF
(415) 626-2060, https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/73700

Snap Sounds: MF Doom and Empress Stahhr

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By D. Scott Miller

MF DOOM FEATURING EMPRESS STAHHR

"Still Dope" (from MF Doom’s Born Like This)

(Lex)

Sista spits some of the tightest shit over jagged hard beats with clarity, wit and grace for two minutes and forty seconds with no punches — or punches pulled. I wake up in the morning sometimes with her voice in my head and it feels good! Still dope? Yeah.

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Daneekah, Lyon and Fulton

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Tell us about your look: “I got these overalls at Crossroads for $8.”

Appetite: Joy of Sake and Ghirardelli Chocolate Fest bring the flavor

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Every week, Virginia Miller of personalized itinerary service and monthly food, drink, and travel newsletter, www.theperfectspotsf.com, shares foodie news, events, and deals. View the last installment here.

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EVENTS

9/10: Joy of Sake at Yoshi’s San Francisco
Though you cannot imagine a Japanese meal without sake, you know there’s a whole world of sakes out there you have yet to discover. The Joy of Sake is an annual event highlighting the best of the rice spirit, featuring 100 gold and silver award–winning sakes (and finalists) from the 2009 U.S. National Sake Appraisal. Junmai, ginjo, and daiginjo… it’s all here for tasting, including 49 unavailable in the U.S. In the past, this event has been held at hotels at a higher cost with over 200 sakes, beyond medal winners. This year, the best have been weeded out for you and it takes place in the ideal, Japanese-chic setting of Yoshi’s San Francisco. Skilled Executive Chef, Shotaro "Sho" Kamio, serves an all-inclusive menu of dishes like Okinawa rock sugar–braised short ribs with peach compote, Kakiage Tempura fritters with veggies, shrimps and scallops… or why not wood burning–oven roasted American Kobe Tri-tip with caramelized shallot teriyaki? It’s an education and a feast, all in one evening.
7:30–10:30pm (food 8-10pm)
$50 advance, $60 at the door
Yoshi’s on Fillmore
1330 Fillmore Street
415-655-5600
888-799-7242
http://joyofsake.com

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9/12-13: Ghirardelli Square’s 14th Annual Chocolate Festival
If your not "festival-ed out" yet, it’s almost time for the Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival, benefiting Project Open Hand. Going 14 years strong, the weekend hosts over 40 vendors serving chocolate well beyond truffles (including Amore Chocolate Pizza, Ana Mandara, Boomerang Vodka Chocolate Martinis, Bo’s Best Pancakes, Eat My Love For You Vegan Desserts, Gelateria Naia, Kara’s Cupcakes, Kika’s Treats, Mighty Leaf Tea, Pacific Puffs, Spun Sugar, The Toffee Company), loads of chef demos hosted by Season 3 Top Chef finalist, Casey Thompson, the “Hands Free Earthquake Ice Cream Sundae Eating Contest" (may be even be more fun to watch than to participate in), Cadillac Ride & Drive (Cadillac is displaying luxury cars in the Square while offering visitors an opportunity to test-drive the 2010 SRX – not sure what gets you ‘in’?), and Crown & Crumpet hosts a tea party with chocolate teas, scones, sandwiches and truffles (both days at 3pm, $12). Surrounded by chocolate sampling stations and views of the Bay, it’s not a bad weekend.
Free; $20 for 15 tasting tickets
9/12-13, 12-5pm
900 N. Point Street
415-775-5500
www.GhirardelliSQ.com

Assembly supports sale of Candlestick Point Park

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Text and photos by Sarah Phelan

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On Wednesday night, as folks were getting ready to watch President Barack Obama’s speech about health care, the State Assembly voted 69-1 in support of an amended version of Sen. Mark Leno’s SB 792.

Leno’s bill, which is now back in the Senate, gives the State the authority to sell 23 acres of Candlestick Point State Recreation Area for $50 million.

Assemblymember Tom Ammiano was the lone dissenter on Leno’s bill with seven others abstaining or not voting.

Those voting “aye” included Assemblymembers Fiona Ma and Nancy Skinner. Florida-based developer Lennar, which has entered into a public-private partnership with the City of San Francisco to redevelop 770-acres at Hunters Point Shipyard and Candlestick Point, is arguing that it needs these additional 23 acres of prime waterfront property to build luxury condos, if the rest of its massive redevelopment plan is to pencil out.

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Initially, SB 792 would have allowed the State to sell 43 acres of Candlestick Point State Recreation Area, the Bayview’s only major park, for condos. As such, it faced stiff opposition from the Sierra Club, Arc Ecology and Friends of Candlestick Point Park.

In its amended form, SB 792 authorizes the exchange of 23 acres, thus preserving 20 acres of existing parkland—a compromise, Leno says, that secured the neutrality of these three key environmental groups.

“I am especially pleased that after months of negotiations, amendments to SB 792 resulted in the neutrality of the Sierra Club, Arc Ecology and Friends of Candlestick Point,” Leno said.

So, what does SB 792’s passage mean for the park’s ecological integrity? And won’t the impact of removing 23 acres from the Bayview’s only major park be magnified, once condos and high rises have been built?

Introducing our LIT123 contest!

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Camus can do, can you?

Hey, y’all — grab your peacock-plumed keyboards, polish up your virtual inkwells, and unleash your mini-Kerouac because we’ve got a little competition for you to take part in. Wanna win a nifty gift certificate to Books, Inc?

All you have to do is submit a little story — fiction, nonfiction, or poetry — that somehow reflects living in the Bay Area to culture@sfbg.com by Tuesday, September 22. (Put “Lit123” in the subject line, and please include your name or nom de plume and city.)

The catch? All entries must be exactly 123 words. Easy as 123, right?

We’ll publish our 10 favorites in our special Writers Issue on 10/7, and give those authors gift certificates to Books, Inc. To help get you started, here’s a horrific little story by our always zombie-fightin’ arts and entertainment editor. Submit yours today!

Alone in his dilapidated Victorian, the hulking cannibal mutant arranged his weapons collection with pride. There was the chainsaw he’d refurbished after finding it abandoned on the 22; the hatchet and axes he’d inherited from his hulking cannibal mutant father; and the set of steak knives he’d ordered from QVC. He also had, strewn about his SoMa property, various bear traps, pits concealed with leaves, trip wires, and so forth. Earlier that day, he’d waddled out to the nearest road — pothole-strewn, dirt, the kind of route only a traveler lost mid-shortcut would take — and felled a large tree that blocked both lanes. It would only be a matter of time, he figured. He was ready. And man, was he ever hungry.

Film review: “A Woman in Berlin”

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By Louis Peitzman

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As titles go, A Woman in Berlin is rather vague. A clearer option, to borrow from a popular children’s books series, would be A Series of Unfortunate Events. Based on a true story published anonymously by, well, a woman in Berlin, the film recounts the tribulations faced by German women at the end of World War II. As the Russian army occupies Berlin, these ladies must defend themselves against rape and domination while they await their husbands’ return. It’s a dark chapter in history — and a frequently forgotten one at that. But though A Woman in Berlin may be an important film, it’s not a good one. Without the cinematic flair required to handle a story of this magnitude, writer-director Max Färberböck turns the movie into something monotonous and draining. The characters are morally ambiguous but not interesting; the plot is depressing but tedious. I’m reminded of a quote from The History Boys (2006), another film that touches on (albeit briefly) the atrocities of the second world war: “How do I define history? It’s just one fuckin’ thing after another.”

A Woman in Berlin opens Fri/11 in Bay Area theaters.

Power Exchange is back and ready for action

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By Marke B.

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After facing an unholy buttload of opposition to relocate in its same neighborhood, storied (and I mean storied) sex club legend Power Exchange quietly reopened this past weekend at 34 Mason near downtown. We’ve yet to experience the joys of the new locale — will there still be a doctor’s office play room? Nurse! — but I’m sure we’ll have lots to report. … Check out the Power Exchange Web site for more details.

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Oh, rudimentary Power Exchange Web site, of course we agree!

Get your fringe on: SF Fringe Fest brings out the irresistable

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By Cheryl Eddy

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Ticonderoga pulls no revolutionary punches

PREVIEW There is literally something for everyone at this year’s 18th annual San Francisco Fringe Festival. Don’t try to argue, man — this year’s slate, which jams over 250 performances of over 40 experimental works by companies near and far into just under two weeks, is incredibly diverse. And though the old judging-a-book-by-its-cover cliché definitely applies to theater, some of the titles here are pretty irresistable: Hell, the Musical (inhabitants include a Valencia Street dyke and a Marina ditz); Spider Baby the musical (based on the 1968 movie subtitled The Maddest Story Ever Told? Yes, please!); and the Ed Gein-inspired The Texas Chainsaw Musical (sense a theme here?). For fans of history and, uh, sketch comedy, there’s the Revolutionary War-themed Ticonderoga; for morally-conflicted mountain climbers, there’s The Tao of Everest; and for anyone who thinks plays are boring, there are several on tap that challenge that belief in the most scandalously delightful ways, including Bible-stories-on-crack Pulp Scripture and the site-specific Missing: fugue #9: wear a warm coat, performed as audiences stroll through Bayview’s Quesada Gardens.

SAN FRANCISCO FRINGE FESTIVAL Sept 9–20, $10 or less. Various venues (main venue is Exit Theater, 156 Eddy, SF). (415) 673-3847, www.sffringe.org

Snap Sounds: Dam Funk

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By Michael Krimper

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DAM FUNK

Toeachizown

(Stones Throw)

Los Angeles ambassador of boogie grooves Dam Funk taps into the warmth of the sun with this five-volume effort.

Dam Funk, “Toeachizown” promo

Dam Funk performs this Friday with the Donuts crew. Marke B. says:

“Laidback techno-boogie and electro-funk from the shades-bedecked master of jambox rock. West Coaster Dam of L.A.’s luscious Funkmosphere parties will be showing off rare vinyl cuts from his personal collection as well as some of his own, much lauded tracks.”

Fri/11, $10. Poleng Lounge, 1751 Fulton, SF. www.polenglounge.com

Live Shots: Jonesin’ and the Sandwitches at Hemlock Tavern, 9/3/09

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Text and photos by Ariel Soto

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Donning matching black and white outfits, the Jonesin‘ duo bounced around the stage, singing old Dolly Parton covers and also their own lyrics, that sometimes focus on aliens, their amour, roller skates, and the foggy city we all call home. Their music is totally bubbly and funky with just a hint of country and irony. With only their mikes and a boom box for back-up , these two belted it out at Hemlock Tavern for their official Hi, We’re Jonesin’ (Telemarketer’s Worst Nightmare) record release party and as a send-off for their around the country tour, which includes stops in Kansas, Mississippi and Texas, too.

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Snap Sounds: Bibio

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By Mosi Reeves

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BIBIO

Ambivalence Avenue

(Warp)

Some albums escape criticism…they just sound good. And as much as I try to pick apart Bibio’s surprising breakthrough — from its heavy allegiance to Boards of Canada, J Dilla and other beat icons to its catalog of hip indie styles — I can’t stop listening to it. I’ve played it on long drives to L.A., and I’ve fast-forwarded through it on quick trips to the supermarket. Perhaps what moves me about it is its humanness. When he begins to croon as "Lovers’ Carvings" builds into a bright, sprightly square dance, it usually leaves a smile on my face. I’m a sucker for melody.

Bibio, “Jealous of Roses”

Bibio, “Lovers’ Carvings”

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Chris, University of San Francisco

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Tell us about your look: “I like dark, primary colors. Today I’m wearing all blue and black.”

Snap Sounds: 24-Carat Black

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By Johnny Ray Huston

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24-CARAT BLACK

Gone: The Promises of Yesterday

(Numero Group)

The title here rings all too true: 24-Carat Black is a memento of all that soul music could have been, had economic woes not killed its most ambitious tendrils. This dozen-plus ensemble’s unfinished sequel to 1975’s oft-sampled Ghetto: Misfortune’s Wealth (Stax) is just as conceptual, but more downtempo. "The Best of Good Love Gone" is Dusty in the ghetto instead of a satin Memphis boudoir. "I Want to Make Up" does a slow burn then floats off in the nighttime breeze.

24-Carat Black, “The Best of Good Love Gone”

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