Monday, May 28, 2012

Cupcakes for Breakfast?!


San Francisco's new treat stars...meat!
Cako's Maple Bacon  is a carnivorous cupcake with a one-two punch sure to satisfy any savory-sweet tooth. 


Dissolving in my mouth like the most delicious pancake I've ever had after breakfast hours, the moist, yellow, buttery vanilla cake accentuates its mild maple vanilla frosting and the candied bacon is really the frosting on the cake. 
Though the maple in it's maple-vanilla  frosting could be turned up a notch for a more syrupy status Cako's Maple Bacon cupcake combines two food fads without leaving taste-buds overwhelmed. 

Friday, May 25, 2012

The Ting Tings: Sounds from Nowheresville


First they Started Nothing now four years later The Ting Tings bring us Sounds From Nowheresville.
 My first reaction to listening to their second  album was that it didn't sound like The Tings Tings.  Overall Sounds From Nowwheresville has a slower tempo, is less poppy, not as danceable or as catchy as We Started Nothing but that didn't stop me from listening to the new album again and again.
 With quickly delivered lyrics and a distinctive hook the single "Hang It Up" possess a feel close to that of Blondie's hit "Rapture" so it makes sense this song is the first single off  of the new album. 
Along with an entire verse of lead vocals on "Hang It Up" we hear more from  Jules de Martino on the track "Give It Up" which is a welcomed upgrade from their debut album where we merely hear him on back up vocals along side front woman Katie White.
 With a reggae feel on the track "Soul Killing", an acoustic sound on "Help"  and the melancholic "In Your Life" wrapping up the package The Tings Tings prove they can dance outside of their own lines with out falling out of step.
Nowheresville sounds different than Nothing but  it does sound like The Ting Tings and this funky-fresh duo definitely have something good going!

Thursday, May 24, 2012

They are We Are Serenades

Shout Out Loud's Adam Olenius has shifted musical genres sharing the stage with co-fronman Markus Krunegard in We Are Serenades and though ticket sales might have been low for the show at The Independent expectations were high and these Swedish singer song writers eagerly met them.  Playing songs off their  first LP Criminal Heaven, We Are Serenades had command of the stage and the handful of spectators through out their hour long set. 
 


Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Did you Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, I did.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah sold-out The Independent on the 22nd and fans were keen to the familiar favorites the indie rock-stars chose for their set:

Some Loud Thunder
Satan
Salt
Same Mistake
Over & Over Again
Hysterical
Ice
Motel
Yellow Teeth
Broken Memory
Misspent Youth
Details
Cool Goddess
 Maniac

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Sleepy Sun @ The Independent May 18th, 2012

April 10th 2012 marked the release of Spine Hits, the third album from SF's own Sleepy Sun and on May 18th Sleepy Sun played the album release show for Spine Hits at the always intimate Independent.

The dark yet colorful aesthetics at The Independent complemented this psychedelic post-garage rock band creating a seamless rock atmosphere as they hit the stage just before 10:30pm. There certainly wasn't a shortage of long hair or facial hair as Sleepy Suns' Bret Constantino, Matt Holliman, Evan Reiss, Jack Allen and Brian Tice maintained a comfortable balance between rockin' riffs and mellow vibes through out the set and during the third song the guest female keyboardist took over lead vocals adding a hint of  estrogen to this all male ensemble. 

Weren't able to make it to the show? Sleepy Sun is heading to Europe next but they're sure to be back in their home town soon so make it a point to listen to Spine Hits before then!





 

Friday, May 4, 2012

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, May 2nd 2012 @ The Fox Theater




 Alex Ebert expressed to fans he had been nervous about playing bigger shows such as the sold out show that he and his band Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros headlined at The Fox Theater in Oakland on Wednesday night but was relieved, surely by the warm welcome, therefore he felt good and it showed through out the set!







The stage was home to Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros' thirteen musicians as this eclectic indie-folk band delivered songs off 2009's Up From Above and their forth coming second album, Here. During their two hour set Alex went into the crowd numerous times, Jade Castrinos sang some lead vocals and fans loved it from beginning  to the end!






Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Canadian Cupcakes, eeh.


My adventure in Vancouver wasn't far underway before the sidewalk sign for Cupcakes caught my eye and the next thing I knew I was in line  deciding which frosted treat I was about to treat myself to.
Because it was my first time trying a cupcake from Cupcakes I played it safe and simple and chose Diva, or Diva-cake as I like to call it: chocolate cake with pink vanilla buttercream and sprinkled with pink sugar. My initial response to unwrapping the Diva-cake was  how small and narrow the cup of this cupcake was in comparison it's pink frosted top. The chocolate cake missed the indulgence mark and Diva's pink topping fell short of the buttermilk frosting expectation yet it was still a sugary delight that satisfied my sweet tooth that afternoon and it paired well with a cup of coffee.

Now that my taste-buds are no stranger to Vancouver's Cupcakes next time I'm in town I plan to dive into flavors like Lava Flow, Blue Hawaii and Caramella!