France transplants, CocoRosie sadly had to cancel their show at The Regency Ballroom on March 27th but the show has been rescheduled! The theatrical, experimental indie duo will be at The Regency Ballroom on October 30th, that's less than 2 weeks!
The Bay Area natives, sisters Bianca "Coco" and Sierra "Rosie" Cassidy love wearing costumes, so the timing of their rescheduled show in San Francisco couldn't be better it being the eve of All Hallows' Eve.
Berlin based electronic music producer Alexander Ridha also known by his DJ name, Boys Noize returned to San Francisco last week with a headlining set at The Regency Ballroom.
Since his first U.S tour in 2012, Boys Noize has released two albums, 2015's Boys Noize presents Strictly Vol. 1and Mayday at the start of Summer 2016. And it seems that the Mayday DJ has been busy touring, too: he was just at 1015 Folsom on August 4th! His fans in SF are lucky because there aren't too many US shows on his tour but two months later Boys Noize was back!
Boys Noize at The Regency Ballroom 10/6/2016 photo by Nikki DeMartini
His set time kept getting pushed back later and later since there wasn't very many people there by 9:30pm but DJs Gia and Pilo kept people lurking in the shadows of the empty venue happy and dancing.
An hour behind schedule, a midst a cloud of fake fog and blinding white light, Boys Noize finally hit the stage! He looked small in middle of structure that looked like pipes outlined with a handful of red siren lights but his music was loud! You could feel the beats in your bones as the hard bass vibrated throughout the venue. It may have gotten started late but Boys Noize definitely brought the party to SF once again!
He's only got a few shows left in the US, check out when and where you can catch Boys Noize live here!
The Brooklyn by way of New Zealand sextet, Streets of Laredo is gearing up for the release if their sophomore album, Wild, on October 21st!
Inspired by the 70's folk-rock circuit, close-knit brothers Dan and Dave Gibson and sister Sarahjane traded New Zealand for New York. They met bassist Sean McMahon and trumpet player/synthesist/percussionist, Andre McGovern and formed the band soon after.
In 2014 their critically acclaimed debut album, Volume I & II introduced us to their sing-a-long collision of jangling harmonies, heart pounding percussion, horns, guitars and a wide array of even more instruments. Now, two short years later, you can hear that their heart is still on their collective sleeve on their new album Wild.
Anyone and everyone who pre-orders Wild automatically gets a copy of "Silly Bones", a single off the new album! Pre-order your digital copy here and your physical copy here!
Currently on tour in support of her debut album, For All We Know, Neo soul singer Nao brought down the house at her sold-out show at Social Hall SF on September 27th!
I've been to a few shows since the underground venue opened last year but this was the first time I'd been to a sold-out show there. It was a whole new experience seeing the place filled to max capacity surrounded by fans buzzing with a youthful exuberance.
Nao @ Social Hall SF 9/27/2016 Photo by Nikki DeMartini
The one time back up singer from London was more than a few minutes late for her scheduled 9:30 start time which resulted in the girls who were perched against the front of the stage, taking copious amounts of selfies, to grow anxious. All nerves were settled though as the all boy back up band proceed to their spots on stage followed by the star of the Tuesday night show. Dressed in an all white, deep V jumpsuit, Nao grabbed attention before she even started singing, which wasn't long as they jumped right into "Happy".
Nao @ Social Hall SF 9/27/2016 Photo by Marc Fong
Self described as wonky funk, Nao's vocals are unique, smooth and soulful while her over all sound is synthy electro swirled with funk giving her that Neo Soul feel with a fun flare. The 28 year old Brit reminds me of mix of Nikka Costa and Macy Gray.
She glowed on stage, smiling wide and working the crowd as she sang, moving back and forth across the stage as her fans graciously sang along. They seemed to know the words to of the all songs from For All We Know, released this past July including, "inhale Exhale" and "Get To Know Ya" at the top of the set. Golden and indigo hues washed over her as she buoyantly connected with fans from the stage throughout the charmingly charged set.
Nao's last show in the States (on this run anyway) is tonight at Austin City Limits before she goes back to play more shows in the UK!
Tomorrow, Australia's 5-piece pysch-rock band, Sticky Fingers drop their 3rd album Westway (The Glitter & The Slums) and kick-off their North American tour!
The follow-up to their critically acclaimed sophomore album, 2014's Land of Pleasure, has already been getting praises for the first single, "Outcast at Last" released earlier this year. One of the stops on their 15 show run is this Saturday night at the Rickshaw Stop!
Here are some questions I for the band before they hit the road answered by keyboardist Freddy Crabs!
Q: I've read that the founding members of the band met while busking, does the band still busk these days?
A: Yeah, we met Diz, our lead singer, buskin' on the street as a kid when we first came Australia from New Zealand. Fortunately for the general public we don't busk on the streets anymore, but occasionally we might have a guitar in hand being a nuisance in a park, the beach or somewhere out in the open so if that counts then we still do.
Q: What's the inspiration behind the album cover artwork for Westway (The Glitter & The Slums)? It reminds me of Boulevard of Broken Dreams painted by Heinwein, the painting with Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley and James Dean at Phillies Diner.
A: Ah that's fair! We had a bit of inspiration from the Streets song, "A Grand Don't Come For Free" and from David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust. We actually though of the stain glass idea when we were playing pool in the local lawn bowls club across the road from our studio in Marrickville, Sydney. We saw this real classic stained glass window and thought, fuck wouldn't it be cool if we just got our own? I originally wanted my character to be naked with one of those classical biblical small penises but that didn't quite workout, unfortunately. We were stoked with the final product. A lotta people don't realise that the album cover is actually taken of one of our local drinking holes called The Gladstone Hotel. The stain glass window is also real, so if ya ever in Sydney go check it out.
Q: Rumor has it that the new album features a collab with a hot new artist. without giving anything away, who are some of your favorite new bands/artists this year?
A: Man. I'll give it away cos it's out soon. His name is Remi and he's a fiercely talented rapper coming out of Melbourne. He's got his own unique flavours and will do some big things around the world soon. I have no doubt. The track he's on is one of the more fun flavours off of our album and it's prob one of my favourites. Some juicy bass lines, big guitar lines and solos. In a nutshell that's usually me, done!
Q: Westway (The Glitter & The Slums) drops on September 30th, the same day as your North American tour, is this a coincidence or intentional?
A: Pure coincidence my (wo)man. We didn't plan on playing heaps of the new album on this tour but now that's it's out there for the world to peep so we have no choice! We're pretty stoked to get some of these new songs in the set. Sometimes when you play the same songs over and over again you need to mix it up and keep it fresh and that's what new material offers. It's def sounding hot in rehearsals so we can't wait to show the North Americans.
Q: Any venues or cities on this tour that will be new to Sticky Fingers?
A: A few joints like Edmonton, Winnipegand. Also over in the States I haven't been to Minneapolis before. That will def be a vibe, keen to hear that accent! Places like Montreal and Van City and obviously San Fran will be super fun again. Plus these shows are bigger than last so that's real exciting for us. It's been an upward ride for us in terms of venue increases so we've never really stopped being excited bout coming to the Americas knowing that more cats are jumpin' on us. It's a crazy feelin'!
Q: Favorite album(s) of 2016 so far?
A: It's worth checkin' out our pals The Delta Riggs Active Galactic. Real good groove rock with some disco flavours and fat bass lines. A solid listen. You won't go wrong.
Also, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds' most recent record, Skeleton Tree is real moving. Cave's teenage son died recently and this album deals with his intense emotional response to that. A must listen.
Thanks for the awesome insight Freddy!
The Sticky Fingers show at Ricksaw Stop this Saturday is sold out!
Billie Eilish @ Popscene 9/9/2016 Photo by Marc Fong
People were still staggering into the show as Billie Eilish and her under-age entourage hit the stage close to 10:00. With huge black Xs across both hands, it was easy to see that the whole band, including the white haired songstress, were under-age or straight edge and proud. But, I would have never guessed just how young the leading lady actually is. Heartfelt lyrics about heartache and damaged indifference age her well beyond 14 years old. Soft vocals harboring deep emotions carried the first song of of the set, her most recent single "Six Feet Under". Her airy falsetto un-pretentiously romanticized a Lana Del Rey kinship while her bashful stage presence played well with the warm delivery of songs with otherwise cold themes.
Billie Eilish @ Popscene 9/9/2016 Photo by Marc Fong
The all boy band behind her, which consisted of a synth player, a drummer on an electric drum kit and bassist, had a shy feel too, hardly lifting their gaze from their respective instruments. Unassuming backup vocals from the synth player, gently coincided with Billie's, so much so that their light harmony went almost untraceable. Tuning a ukulele, the young leading lady opened up a bit, playfully introducing a song about "an interesting way to break up with someone". It turned out to be sassy outlook on the unsavory situation of being dumped on your birthday.
Flashes of swirling lights casually illuminated Billie on the dark stage, casting a hauntingly romantic aesthetic throughout the small venue.
Billie Eilish @ Popscene 9/9/2016 Photo by Marc Fong
She sweetly thanked Popscene founder, Aaron Axelsen for being cool before ending the short set with her critically acclaimed single, "Ocean Eyes". The introspective allure of her music flawlessly translates to the stage. There's no denying that Billie Eilish has found her voice, now we'll see her to grow as a performer.
Summer is the time of the year when bands jump on the Music Festival bandwagon and I don't blame them: it's an easy meal ticket (so to say), it's great exposure and awesome chance to expand their fan base (for example I discovered and ultimately fell in love with The Dead Weather at Outside Lands in 2009). Being surrounded by other bands and music biz peers has to be fun experience for them, too! And, depending on the festival, the band's show day and when they roll-in, bands and crew might be looking at treasured, per diem off day (AKA a day off)! Festivals can also be great platforms for staging come-backs: like how LCD Soundsystem reunited after 5 short years and hopped on the Festival circuit starting at Coachella this year and riding that "reunion tour" wave all the way to Outside Lands in August. They're not the first band to take advantage of staging a Summer Music Fest comeback and they certainly won't be the last.
Festivals are great for bands and fans alike: bands reach hundreds of fans with a huge potential to make more fans and fans get to see a bunch of different bands in a day, two days or over the course of a weekend depending on the festival! In all of their glory, Music Festivals just can't compare to a one-off show and, as seasoned show goers know, this time of year is slow as far as shows go. Except for a few indian-summer/Fall fests like: Voodoo Fest, Austin City Limits, Life is Beautiful, Desert Trip and Treasure Island Music Festival, the end of Summer is bitter sweet because it's also the end of festival season BUT when the fests end, the one-off shows begin!
The identical twin sister indie duo took last year off to work on their 8th studio album, Love You To Death after hitting the festival circuit pretty hard in 2014. Their new album dropped on June 3rd, and their world-wide tour in support of it, which started in London on June 22nd, brings them to states in September!
PEACHES @ Outsidelands 2016
photo by Nikki DeMartini
It had been SIX years since we heard anything new from PEACHES but as of last year she's back and ready to rock our world! The provocative, feminist rocker is currently on tour in support of 2015's Rub, her 6th studio album. October 3rd is your chance to get up-close and personal at her intimate and titillating show at Mezzanine!
One year after their sophomore album, Voices, Josh Carter and Sarah Barthel of the electronic-dream-trip-pop duo, Phantogram joined forces with Outkast's Big Boi to create the experimental hip-hop group known as Big Grams. The trio graced stages at festivals the past two Summers but Phantogram released a new single earlier this Summer and their current tour is in support of their third album! Threedrops two days after their headlining show at the beautiful Fox Theater in Oakland!
Music Video for Phantogram's single "You Don't Get Me High Anymore"
The Lumineers @ Bottle Rock Napa 2016
Photo by Marc Fong
The 4 years between The Lumineers' self-titled debut and their sophomore album Cleopatra felt like forever, right?! At long last the feel good indie-folk faves returned earlier this year with the single "Ophelea" and the release of Cleopatra on April 8th. Now they're on the road again! A second show at The Greek Theater in Berkeley was added by popular demand on October 7th with one of last year's biggest breakout artists, BORNS!
The fun loving, energetic, alternative-dance group, Grouplove is back with their third album! Big Mess dropped September 9th, the same day they kicked off their tour in support of it!
Seattle's indie-folk rockers, The Head and the Heart are hitting the road in September following the release of their third album, Signs of Light. The gang plays The Greek Theater in Berkeley October 8th, the day after they play The Greek Theater in L.A!
Fitz and The Tantrums' "Hand Clap" is one of this Summer's hottest singles and the energetic jazz-pop fusion band is going to rock The Fox Theater in Oakland on October 12th! The debut solo album Neon Trees' frontman Tyler Glenn drops on October 21st! The "Shameless" singer is opening for Fitz and The Tantrums on their 2016 Come Get Your Love Tour!
The Temper Trap just played at Mezzanine on June 5th but the Aussie boys are already on their way back to the Bay. This time they're playing at The Warfield! The foursome has grown since the their wildly successful 2009 debut, both literally and figuratively: the now a five-piece indie-rock band explore their own sound on their latest release, Thick as Thieves which they're on tour in support of!
The last time I was this excited about a comeback was a couple years ago when The Matches from Oakland reunited! Berkeley's original punks, Green Day never technically "left" so I guess it's not really a "comeback" but I am super stoked! Four years ago Billie Joe, Mike and Tre gave us three separate albums, Uno! Dos!, Tres! and onOctober 7th the Rock n' Roll Hall of Famers' deliver their 12th studio album, Revolution Radio! Their hometown show at the newest music venue in the Bay Area, The UC Theater in Berkeley on October 20th is already sold-out!!
Home of the Strange, Young the Giant's 3rd album featuring "Something to Believe In", "Silvertounge" and "Amerika" dropped August 12th! They'll be at The Fox Theater in Oakland with Ra Ra Riot on October 22nd!
Icelandic rock band, Kaleo and the unsigned, British musician (now based in L.A) Bishop Briggs both continue to grow in popularity with their singles "Way Down we Go" (Kaleo) and "River" (Bishop Briggs). With no album to date, Bishop Briggs still manages to drive throngs of fans to see her live, making her show with Kaleo at the historic Fillmore on October 23rd a highly anticipated one! Kaleo's sophomore album, A/B is available now!
Five years after their famous Hurry Up, We're Dreaming album, Anthony Gonzalez's M83 returned this year with their 6th studio album, Junk. Now the acclaimed synth-shoegaze-dreampop pioneers are on their second tour of 2016! On April 17th they graced the stage at The Fox Theater in Oakland and next month they're bringing their show to The Bill Graham Civic Auditorium!
Stanford University Alumni, K-Flayslayed sets at Music Fests this Summer, including Bottle Rock Napa and she just released a brand new EP! Crush Me is the innovative indie, hip-hop artist's fourth EP to date but it's the first release from Imagine Dragons' frontman Dan Reynolds imprint Night Street/Interscope Records! Catch her headlining show at Great American Music Hall October 27th!
music video for K-Flay's single "Blood in the Cut"
