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OCT 15 - OCT 21
Fireworks blasting, horns blaring, and bars without TVs emptier than a sauna in August? It can only mean one thing: the Giants are in the Series! For those of you who aren't off to Anaheim to take your seat or line up for scalped tickets, we've got a few alternatives: readings, new media art, left-field film, dance competitions, and of course music of more than one flavor. |  |
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This week's flavor:
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| art: | New Fangle Opening Party, Touch: Relational Art from the 1990, Erwin Wurm |
| dance: | Momentum Dance Contest |
| festival: | In the Street |
| film: | Visual Urban Legends, Dark Wave Festival |
| multimedia: | Platform #8 |
| music: | Brass Monkey Brass Band, Chameleons UK, Chris Porro, French Kicks, Patty Griffin, Spoon w/the Oranges Band, Supreme Beings of Leisure, The Beatnuts w/ Non Phixion, Themselves, Tino Corp w/ Scientist |
| performance: | Generations, Third Wave Foundation Benefit |
| reading: | Camden Joy, Jeffrey Eugenides |
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| | For their second record, Divine Operating System, the LA-based electronic
pop group Supreme Beings of Leisure went inside the bedroom, literally. Eliminating
the stress of a recording studio where time is money SBoL found the
intimate surroundings liberating, especially for sexy frontwoman Geri Soriano-Lightwood's
seductive voice. NYC's electronic soloist Ben Neill, creator of the mutantrumpet (half
trumpet and half computer that can trigger synths to visuals), will open with his infectious,
pulsating jams. Also opening are the Baldwin Brothers, who play a mix of non-kitsch lounge
and '70s style rock-funk jams with electronic beats. (JO)
  
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| | Once upon a time, rock criticism was revered as an art form in its own right, and writers like Lester Bangs, Richard Meltzer, and Greil Marcus earned a special status halfway between Dylan Thomas and Bob Dylan. Camden Joy has revived the rock crit tradition in part by bending the genre's
rules his first "published" work was a series of manifestos on popular music wheat-pasted around Manhattan; he masks a book about Liz Phair as a novel about a depressed writer (named Camden Joy) commissioned to write a lowbrow bio of the singer. Tonight he reads from his new collection of stories, pamphlets, and posters, Lost Joy, in an appearance that's sure to be as unconventional as the book itself. (PS)
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| | The Beatnuts have been cracking listeners' shells for more than a decade now, beginning with productions for Monie Love, and going on to develop their own brand of blunted beats and deep grooves. Tonight's show is about more than just getting crunked and funked, though: the Rap the Vote tour aims to reassert hip hop's relevance, making "conscious" rap more than just another style. They appear alongside Non Phixion, who always keep it confrontational with tracks like "Black Helicopters" and "I Shot Reagan." And if all this politickin' gets under your skin, well, the nimble-fingered Vinroc is here to scratch that itch. (PS)
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| | The great thing about retro is that it makes everyone relevant again. Manchester's Chameleons (the legally-mandated addendum "UK" applies only stateside) ushered in the '80s with several records of timely British rock. They split in 1996 to pursue solo projects, but that year's acclaimed Strange Times wasn't their swansong after all having reformed in 2000 for Strip, a collection of acoustic reworks of their classic songs that revealed hidden pockets of beauty. Tonight's performance is also an acoustic reprise. The band retakes the stage Friday night, fully plugged in. (PS)
 If you were a chameleon, what color scheme would you adopt? The second and third answer each win a pair of tickets to the show.
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| | Tonight's performance is proof positive that San Francisco's live music scene is alive and well and even more to the point, that there are still a few brilliant singer-songwriters lurking around, if you know where to look. Chris Porro is one of the city's undiscovered gems, with a richly melodic style in the tradition of the Beatles, David Bowie, Archer Prewitt, and Richard Davies. Singing dreamlike songs of love, loss, and corporate lackeydom, and backed up by P. Lenny (on trumpet), Harry Kniznik (on percussion), and Os Mutantes affiliate Alex Cotta (on bass), Porro puts on one of the most melodically and emotionally satisfying shows in town. (PS)
Who's the greatest singer-songwriter of all time? The third answer wins a copy of Chris Porro's self-released CD.
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MULTIMEDIA
Platform #8, N/E/S/W
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| when: | Thur 10.17 (7pm) |
| where: | 440 Jessie Gallery (440 Jessie St, 415.409.8697) |
| price: | $5 donation |
| links: |
Platform |
| | Where else can you inhale a healthy dose of SF-style high fashion, award-winning shorts, paintings, installations, photography, and turntablism, all in one social helping? Platform, the city's "all you can experience" multimedia buffet has a new home in a 12,000 sq ft space. This month's films include Hypocrite, a social commentary on media stalking by David Chalker, and Cellular Crimes, a darkly humorous look at everyone's movie-going pet peeve by Lilly Prillinger and Bret Simon. The new space accommodates a multi-level fashion show featuring seven bay area designers, as well as the work of 15 visual artists. (KV)
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ART
GenArtSF New Fangle Opening Party
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| when: | Thur 10.17 (7pm-10pm) |
| where: | Herbst International Exhibition Hall (385 Moraga Ave, 415.561.5075) |
| price: | $10 |
| links: |
GenArtSF | Wired |
| | Art and technology have recently returned from their honeymoon. Now Mr. and Mrs. New Media Art are working on the happy marriage between his ideas and her pragmatism. The annual exhibition New Fangle is a window into their growing relationship. In its fourth year and sponsored by Wired, it is a showcase of emerging artists and promises distinctive works that, in the organizer's words, "combine creative expression with innovation in new, technology-based genres and mediums." That translates into sculptural, digital, illusive, and interactive art including a jelly floor watch out after those non-virtual drinks kick in. (LJ)
Why is the intersection of art and technology interesting? Best two answers win a pair of spots on the guest list.
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FILM
Visual Urban Legends
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| when: | Thur 10.17 (8pm) |
| where: | New Langton Arts (1246 Folsom St, 415.626.5416) |
| price: | $8 / $6 members, students |
| links: |
New Langton Arts |
| | Whether it's The Empire Strikes Back's "I am your father" shocker or Dustin Hoffman's wedding-stopping "Elaaaaine!" in The Graduate, everyone has an all-time favorite film scene. Visual Urban Legends takes this idea and runs with it, enlisting the help of Bay Area film and video artists to create an all-star collage of the "best of the best" movie moments. Contributors like technology experimentalist Elliot Anderson and edgy performance artist Nao Bustamante collaborate to liberate classic scenes from their narrative context and craft an entirely new story in this ambitious project of video anarchy. (CT)
What's your all-time favorite movie scene? Best answer wins a ticket to the show.
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| | She started her career more than a decade ago as a bluesy folk singer whose
style owed a great deal to the low rock of Boston pal Mark Sandman. But when
Patty Griffin released her first album in 1996, her sound was stunning a
skilled songwriter, she sang her heart out and played her acoustic guitar with such
fierce energy that she'd wear holes in the instrument. A second album had her exploring
a rock sound that didn't quite fit, but on her recent third disc, 1000 Kisses,
she returns to the acoustic sound that originally set her apart. Griffin is an arresting
performer; her songs, powerful poetry. (AS)
In what film did Patty Griffin make an unlikely appearance? The first correct answer wins a pair of tickets to the show.
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MUSIC: Hip hop
Themselves w/ Alias
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| when: | Fri 10.18 (9pm) |
| where: | Slim's (333 11th St, 415.255.0333) |
| price: | $12 advance / $14 door |
| links: |
Slim's | Tickets |
| | With a name that could easily turn into an Abbott and Costello routine, Themselves the duo of Anticon and cLOUDED members Doseone and Jel don't mind throwing listeners for a loop. Hanging onto hip hop by the skin of their teeth, Themselves craft a billowing, obfuscatory underground sound that owes as much to early experimentalists like This Heat as it does to their B-boying forebears. Still, they ain't afraid to rock a rhyme when the time is right, and tonight's a prime occasion to pluck their super-ripe rap straight from the vine. The man called "Alias" shares the bill. Who's on first? Don't even ask... (PS)
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PERFORMANCE
Generations: Celebrating the Possibilities of Language
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| when: | Fri 10.18 (8pm) |
| where: | Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (701 Mission St, 415.978.ARTS) |
| price: | $22 / $20 advance / $17 students |
| links: |
Yerba Buena |
| | Not for the tongue-tied, the Living Word Festival presents a night of speech
swapping and thought dropping from five generations of wordsmiths.
Internationally acclaimed poet, playwright, and activist Sarah Jones, whose
words once infamously incurred the wrath of the FCC, will offer an aural
glimpse of her legendary spoken word act, including a piece called "Metaphorplay"
discussing the, ahem, satisfaction she gets from words. Ms. Jones is joined
by 2001 SF Poet Laureate Janice Miritkitani and cultural
writer/former prisoner Piri Thomas. You also get performance and perspective
from spoken word's next big thing, Chinaka Hodge, Youth Speaks 2001 Teen
Poetry Slam Champion. Cat got your tongue? (CT)
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MUSIC: Live Dub
Future Primitive Sound Session in Dub: Tino Corp w/ Scientist
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| when: | Sat 10.19 (9pm) |
| where: | StudioZ (314 11th St, 415.252.7666) |
| price: | $15 |
| links: |
StudioZ | Tickets |
| | The battle is a long-standing tradition in hip hop, but the Future Primitive crew isn't so much about competition as it is cooperation their sessions often present DJs playing head to head in bouts of collaborative turntablism. Tonight they bring their approach to dub, putting Jack Dangers' (of Meat Beat Manifesto) and Ben Stokes' (of DHS) excellent Tino Corp on stage while the legendary Scientist handles the controls, mixing and dubbing them live. Expect more delay than a phone call to Mars from this SF soundclash. (PS)
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| | Brooklyn's French Kicks are trying their darnedest to avoid the media hype surrounding bands like The Strokes and The White Stripes. While their moppy hair, tight vintage tees, and swaggering Jagger-esque stature may naturally lump them into the ubiquitous NY garage rock mania, this poppy post-punk quartet insists their music is no fad. Showcasing heavy guitar riffs and alternately brooding and cartoonish vocals, the French Kicks' infectious sound grows on you with each listen. Tonight, the Kicks play with indie veteran Neil Gust, who played in the decades-old Heatmiser with Oscar-nominated Elliot Smith and now fronts acclaimed pop-rock band No. 2. (CT)
What the heck is a "French kick"? The first six creative answers will each win a pair of tickets or a copy of the band's CD.
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| | When a few of us first went to one of these dance competitions last spring, it felt as if we'd
stepped into an underground scene in a different time inside a raw brick warehouse space
a fired-up crowd of hundreds formed a circle on the wood floor, in front of a
small stage with eight-foot speakers and a few DJs, while dancers entered the middle and flipped, spun, and top-rocked solo, then locked, popped, and fronted with each other in mock battles of street prowess, power, and gymnastics. Afterward, the real fun began when salsa dancers, b-boys/b-girls, freestylers, househeads, capoeiristas, and many more let loose, vibing off each other. Come see some new olympic events in the making. (MM)
Who won the last 90 second competition? The first four correct answers win a pair of tickets to this event.
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| | The Brass Monkey Brass Band is nothing short of a funked-up portable party. Resembling a classic New Orleans Mardi Gras jazz band, Brass Monkey features a lineup of tuba, saxes, trumpets, trombones, and bass drum and snare. They've played everywhere from The Make-Out Room to the North Beach Jazz Festival and even some impromptu street jams. Whether it's their energized version of "When the Saints Go Marching In," their downright sinister take on Led Zeppelin's "The Ocean," or one of their own originals, make no mistake this is party music. Their first SF appearance in six months, the band will show you what it really means to blow the roof off. (NN)
Name a famous monkey. The first two answers each win a pair of tickets to the show.
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| | The Luggage Store Gallery's eighth annual In the Street festival explores the social acoustics of urban spaces with two related events. Chris Brown and Guillermo Galindo present Tenderloin Transmission a collaborative, cacophonous live-radio performance featuring a cast of... well, however many it takes. Bring a battery-powered boombox or portable radio and plug into the collective broadcast. Meanwhile, the daylong Vision Quest: Hip Hop in 100 Years brings together speakers, DJs, B-boys and B-girls, and the visual art exhibit Calling Planet Earth (at 509 Cultural Center) which is curated by Kamau Amu Patton and numbers Futura 2000 and Rigo 02 among its numerically-monikered graffiti exhibitors. (PS)
In the spirit of "Hip Hop in 100 Years," name a hypothetical rap artist from a century down the line. The best two answers each win an In the Street Festival t-shirt.
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| | Fabulous feministas and unabashed activists, tonight is your night. It's a who's who of sassy female writers, singers, beat poets, and community-builders performing to benefit the Third Wave Foundation. Show highlights include an appearance by Rebecca Walker, a founder of Third Wave and author of critically-acclaimed Black, White, and Jewish, and a performance by saucy wordsmith Sarah Jones, who made headlines when her Gil Scott-Heron inspired anti-misogynist hip hop anthem "Your Revolution" was banned from the airwaves. Tonight's roster of testosterone-free talent is a rarity so grab your grrls and guys and support the next generation of fierce feminists. (CT)
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MUSIC
Spoon w/the Oranges Band
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| when: | Mon 10.21 (8pm) |
| where: | Slim's (333 11th St, 415.255.0333) |
| price: | $12 |
| links: |
Spoon | Slim's |
| | Austin's Spoon has traveled a bumpy road to get where they are today. After major label woes, rotating bass players, and being banned from Wyoming, the group has found a cozy place with indie stalwarts Merge Records and has grown into a solid rock band that holds its own on the stage with the likes of Guided by Voices, Pavement, and Archers of Loaf. The band brings their infectious mix of melodic pop hooks and raucous guitar riffs to Slim's tonight in support of their latest album, Kill the Moonlight. Britt Daniel's seductive lyrics and growling voice, not to mention drummer Jim Eno's tight drumming skills, promise a night of intense musical entertainment you'll enjoy getting Spoon's songs stuck in your head, so clear your mind and open your ears. (MG)
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| | Jeffrey Eugenides has upped the ante on the shopworn topic
of the confused teen first with his debut, The
Virgin Suicides, about a group of boys lusting after
a bewitching group teenaged sisters only to
observe the girls' preference for death over life,
and now with Middlesex, the story of a Greek-American
who discovers at puberty that she is a hermaphrodite.
Strangely, both novels are inspired by true stories.
Eugenides wrote The Virgin Suicides after hearing from
a babysitter that she and her siblings had attempted
suicide, and Middlesex's muse was a 19th-century
hermaphrodite's memoir. Talented at giving his
bizarre characters emotional depth, Eugenides imbues
his characters' with the sweet and stormy
voices of youth. (JO)
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ART
Touch: Relational Art from the 1990
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| when: | Thur 10.17 - 12.14 (Mon-Sat: 11am-6pm) |
| where: | SF Art Institute, (800 Chestnut St, 415.749.4507) |
| price: |  FREE |
| links: |
SF Art Institute |
| | Ignore all "do not touch" signs, because relational art is all about interacting with the work. These sculptures, installations, and performance-based pieces demand your complicity for completion. The relationship the artist creates with the viewer is the framework and the art itself a dinner prepared with the artist, a conversation pit for sitting and chatting, or a pile of candy to be taken and eaten. Seeing art as more than an object takes some action and acclimatization, so if there is something there to touch, by all means remove those kidskin gloves life is art! (LJ)
Note: There is an opening reception on Thur 10.17 (5:30pm-7:30pm).
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| | Sculpture, for Austrian artist Erwin Wurm, goes way beyond bronze. It is a temporary act, a three-dimensional performance. His one-minute sculptures bring together people and everyday objects bicycles, balls, brooms, and gherkin pickles in uncommon ways. Documented as video and photographs, these works are at once ludicrous and thought-provoking, prodding static art into dynamic life. Rodin won't even come to mind. (LJ)
Note: The opening reception on Thur 10.17 is from 6pm to 8pm.
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| | Relax. America's days of getting pilloried for the gratuitous violence in our media may finally be behind us the rest of the world is quickly catching up. This week, SF Film Society looks at that progress with Dark Wave, a three-day shockfest of recent international horror and fantasy flicks from such normally civil societies as Sweden, Japan, Spain, and the UK. It's tempting to dwell on the cultural implications of such instant classics as Dog Soldiers, which pits British soldiers against Scottish werewolves, or Teenage Hooker Became a Killing Machine, in which a schoolgirl-cum-hooker is dismembered by her teacher and rebuilt as a cyborg, but it's probably better not to. Instead, sit back, relax, and enjoy some of the less obvious fruits of globalization. (RR)
The second and third people who remind us in which year the first A
Nightmare on Elm Street film was released will win two passes each for the
entire Dark Wave series.
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| CD REVIEW: Machine Drum, Urban Biology |
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m3rck
Released 9.1.02
$14.99 (Insound)
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Ever since Autechre 'fessed up to their B-boying antics in the '80s, bedroom music producers have been falling all over themselves trying to fuse hip hop's raw energy with electronica's attention to detail. Urban Biology, the second album from Orlando's Machine Drum (aka Travis Stewart) succeeds where so many attempts have failed. Instead of merely grafting glitches onto leaden breakbeats, Machine Drum takes delicate scraps of texture and turns them inside out, wrapping papery melodies around rhythms carved from broken |
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glass. Pastoral melodies peel away to reveal the glint of steel; folk and funk clash and are pulverized into a fine silicon spray. There are echoes of Boards of Canada and Prefuse 73, but Stewart's very much his own man. He proves it on "Dog Day," a deep ambient shuffle that smoothes out the album's ragged finish. (PS) |
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| ARTS: Martin Building |
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Charitable contributions to incubate the arts come in many forms. Martin Building Company is an SF-based urban real estate firm that continuously provides art exhibit spaces free of charge. Add their expertise in historic preservation and their flair for combining high-design with technological innovations, and theyre poised to set a new example in promoting collaborative artists communities in cutting-edge urban environments. Lets hope this trend continues, eliminating the need for city artists mass-exodus to more affordable studio and exhibit spaces across the bridge. The space for this weeks Platform is donated by Martin Building. (KV)
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| STREAMS: Groovetech |
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We've all heard about how the legendary massive London club scene rules the global dance world (they do love their DJs don't they?) but very few of us seem to find the time (and pounds) to make the pilgrimage across the pond and see for ourselves. Since we are not about to fly any of you (or ourselves) over there this week we did the next best thing DJ streams from London mate! Grab some pints or chill a few Red Bulls with Vodka, and break out the disco ball at the flat you'll feel the London vibe all without a single strip search.
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| CREDITS |
| Header Design: |
| Barry Bonds | Chris Porro | | |
| Staff: |
| Yogi Berra | Philip Sherburne | | Roy Hobbs | Sascha Lewis | | Kirby Puckett | Husani Oakley | | Sadaharu Oh | Christopher Hampton | | |
ABOUT US
flavorpill SF is a free weekly mailer covering music, arts, and cultural events in San Francisco. All listings are researched and written based on what we think has flavor. Please email in any event submissions that you think may be worth listing here. As always, feel free to send in any and all feedback comments, questions, ideas or rants. Spread the flavor... |
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| Contributors: |
| Bob Ueker | Mark Mangan | | | | Kirk Gibson | Cristy Turner | | Miguel Tejada | Hillary Hall | | Scott Eyre | Jana Klass | | Benito Santiago | Nihal Mehta | | Joe DiMaggio | Nish Nadaraja | | George Brett | Robert Rosenthal | | Reggie Sanders | Heather Luttrell | | Jackie Robinson | Jamie Okubo | | Micah Bowie | Michele Pred | | Cal Ripkin, Jr. | Karine Versace | | Billy Koch | Menaka Gopinath | | Neon Deion | Andrew Strickman | | Ramon Hernandez | Laura Richard Janku |
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