Peter Matthew Bauer @ Bottom of the Hill 7/9/2014

Peter Matthew Bauer of The Walkmen,  has gone solo following  the announcement late last November that the beloved indie band was taking an "extreme hiatus." Formerly a bassist/organist while in The Walkmen, Bauer is now the front man of his solo act and played one of his first shows after the release of his debut album, Liberation! in San Francisco.

Peter Matthew Bauer @ Bottom of the Hill 7/9/2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

I made it to Bottom of the Hill on Wednesday night minutes before he, two guitarists, one bassist, a drummer and two back up singers consumed the small stage before an equally small turnout. Because of the popularity of The Walkmen I was surprised that there wasn't more SF fans at the show but the people who did make it out were happy, ready for the show  begin and the band was happy to have their support.

 

Peter Matthew Bauer @ Bottom of the Hill 7/9/2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

 

All members of the band were dressed to impress and as they took their place,  Bauer thanked all of us for coming out on Wednesday night before starting the show with the album's opening track, " I Was Born in an Ashram."  The band that night consisted of his friends from his hometown in Philly including his wife supporting him on back-up vocals and Fleet Foxes' Skyler Skjelset. His acute humbleness made for a very personable performance. The fact that the band not only respects each other  as friends, but also as musicians made for a solid set. Radiating  positivity,  the front-man graciously gave thanks to show-goers, explained stories behind every song while his friends played it cool, letting Bauer soak it all in from center stage.

 

The  ensemble sounded superb, the best I have personally ever heard at Bottom of the Hill. As breathy, yet solid backup vocals harmonized with Bauer's croony singing style, you could tell that he was truly enjoying every second it. The strong presence of guitar in this act  bring  indie rock roots to the surface; however, the number of musicians on stage and the layered instruments/vocals give the show more of a folk feel.

 

 

Peter Matthew Bauer @ Bottom of the Hill 7/9/2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

As the title of the album suggests, Liberation! is a collected celebration of Bauer coming to terms with and accepting trials and tribulations of his past, enabling him to enjoy today. Liberation!  indeed liberated Peter Matthew Bauer and it's quite powerful to see.  If you've never seen  Bauer live (like myself) somehow you can just  tell that a weight has been lifted from the shoulders of the musician as he proudly performs his folky ballads.

Sprinkle White Cupcakes from a customer

I have a lot of really sweet regular customers at work, one of which likes to treat my co-workers and I  to her homemade baked goods! I am always happy to see her but I  was really happy the day she dropped off a container labeled "sprinkle white cupcakes" for me and my co-workers to share!

Curious about how her cupcakes would look, given the container they came in, I was surprised to see that her cupcakes were frosting-less! Genius! In it's place...Rainbow Sprinkles, one of my favs!  I'm not sure what brand of packaged cake mix she used, but it had to be either Pillsbury Funfetti or Betty Crockers Party Rainbow Chip because I could see the sprinkles in the cake before I bit into it.

 

The mini cupcakes must have been freshly baked because they were still alittle gooey on top yet fluffy and moist inside. The delicate sweetness of the white cake was made a touch sweeter thanks to the Rainbow sprinkles which also served as colorful decorations. It only took two bites to eat one, making them perfect for a quick sugar fix between customers! 

 

It's always nice to be pleasantly surprised at work: not only do my customer's sweet deliveries brighten up our work day, they also give us a chance to snack on something other than the pastries we offer.

Another great thing about her cupcakes? Mini cupcakes sans frosting cut calories  making these a great Summer treat!

 

Bonnie and The Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014

After playing the first annual Not Dead Yet Fest, a small festival supporting of the SF music scene, Bonnie and the Bang Bang were the headliners at Slim's on June 27th!

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

Back in March Bonnie and the Bang Bang opened for The Sam Chase at Slim's and it was so exciting to be back there to see them headline a show about two months later! 

It was close to 11:00 when the projector screen rose and right from the beginning, it was easy to see that the band was stoked and ready rock on the Slim's stage once again.
 

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

The set opened with a stripped down, acoustic introduction of "Simple Ships" with drummer Michael Pettett on back-up vocals alongside Jake Dineen before bearing their bones and giving way to their true garage rock sound. Their transition from un-plugged to fully charged was seamless and  the venue's acoustics accentuated the rawness of the band's quintessential rock ambiance. The guys couldn't have been more comfortable on stage, performing for their local fan-base, friends and family who in turn were rocking out almost as hard as the band was.

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

The insanely explosive energy from guitarist Robby Cronholm is as entertaining and captivating as it is infectious. His antics invited those on stage, as well as those of us watching  to join the chaos as he paraded around, jamming with the bassist, jumping of the drum set and playing his guitar at a 180 degree angle his expression remained exuberant, never exhausted. Even more impressive was that none of it affected his solid performance. 

Bright eyed and bare-foot, front man Patrick Stiles' low-tempo vocals counteract his expressive, engaging stage presence and sounded as flawless as a garage rock singer can at Slim's. While the
collective energy on stage skyrocketed as the band got down with their nitty-gritty yet polished sound, the connection with the crowd grew stronger as the show went on.
 

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

At the end of the ten song set, which consisted of songs from their first album, The Dark Dream and their up-coming second album, Distance fans did not want it to be over. Sure enough, the native Bay Area band was welcomed back to the stage thanks to a wild roar of applause!
 

Bonnie and the Bang Bang @ Slim's 6/27/2014
Photo by: Marc Fong

First they laid down an awesome rendition of Miike Snow's "Animal", then their previous drummer came out of the crowd as Pettett and Cronholm threw down some vocals for the final song of the night, "Play Dead". Bonnie and the Bang Bang's headlining show at Slim's was a blast and the guys had a blast right up until the very end! I'm so happy I was there to share the experience with them.

They hopped in their band van after the show and made the trek down to LA to record new songs so keep your eyes and ears out for their sophomore album which should be out soon!
 

 Bonnie and the Bang Band set-list 6/27/2014
1: Simple Ships
2: Car Crash
3: Hungry Dog
4: Medicine Man
5: Pox America
6: Every New Love
7: Darlene
8: Rebellious
9: ReWrite
10: Matser Plan

Encore
Animal
Play Dead

White Arrows @ Popscene 6/19/2014

White Arrows @ Popscene June 19th, 2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

LA's White Arrows brought an interesting indie-dance rock flavor to Popscene in San Francisco last month. An overtly drunk yet obviously under age audience that was scattered across the dance floor fell restless as the band battled sound issues prior to their performance.

 

 

 

Seemingly less than impressed with the sparse turn-out, front man Mickey Church first confirmed that the crowd could hear feed back before asking the house to fix the feed back being heard, after which everyone was ready for the show to begin! 

White Arrows @ Popscene June 19th, 2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

Except for a mix of dim flashing psychedelic images and some DIY propaganda clips, the stage remained rather dark, suiting White Arrows' moody Psychotropical pop, borderline post-punk sound.

Vocals also remained low while John Paul Caballero's fierce guitar playing dominated the set.  

The band really connected on stage,  feeding off of each other's easy-going energy as they shared smirks and chuckles with one another throughout the night.

White Arrows @ Popscene June 19th, 2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

Mickey kept the dwindling crowd entertained between songs with silly, almost awkward banter, he then put on a purple wig half way through the set. They played a handful of songs from their upcoming sophomore album, In Bardo (due out later this year) for the first time on Thursday night along with highlights from their first album,  Dry Land Is Not a Myth and earlier EPs. With it's catchy hooks and funky-fun beat, the effortlessly cool single, "City Boy" closed the show on a high-note.

White Arrows @ Popscene June 19th, 2014
Photo by: Nikki DeMartini

White Arrows will be back in the Bay when they open for  The Neighbourhood  at The Fox Theater in Oakland on July 25th and 26th!

White Arrows Set-List June 19th, 2014

 

1) I Want A Taste

2) We Can't Ever Die

3) Get Gone

4) Leave it Alone

5) Screen

6)  Fireworks

7) Devils Chimes

8) G-Unit

9)  Coming or Going

10) JAM

11) Nobody Cares

12) City Boy