Black Cobra Vipers have chops and they know it. Better yet, they know when and how to use their chops. Consider them a bands’ band that also happens to sell out The Chapel on a fairly regular basis. They’re sticking to what they’re good at and kicking off their second month-long residency at The Chapel along with Flagship and French Cassettes on Thursday.

Take, for example, “You Already Knew.” The first time I heard this song it was about 2am and I was in bed. By the second chorus I was trying to suppress my urge to air drum. The band knows how to edge their audience.

As any good drug dealer knows, the first taste is always free. The same goes for the chorus of “You Already Knew”. The chorus drops heavy, and immediately transitions in dynamics to a minimalist verse with Gregory DiMartino’s vocals slinking over Julian Borrego’s winding bassline. Drummer, Rob Mills peppers in some rimshots just to hint at the impending chorus, and right when you’re begging for that hook, it hits.

That, my friends is edging an audience. That is responsible use of chops. And that is a shitload of sound for three dudes to be producing.

Tickets are $12 and available at The Chapel’s box office.

105.7 the latino mix station is apparently about to become Hot 105.7 and as a result of the format change they said fuck this shit and have been playing Nelly’s It’s Gettin Hot In Here non stop since friday afternoon. It’s kind of fucking amazing. You can stream it on their site or bust out your radio and pump that shit like a St. Lunatic.

According to Susan Ring, co-owner of the building that houses Elbo Room with husband Dennis Ring, plans to redevelop the site into condos are just that—plans. “If we do anything, it’s not going to be for years,” she assured Uptown Almanac when reached by phone.

That echoes further assurances of the venue’s continued tenure by Matt Shapiro, booking agent and co-owner of the club with Erik Cantu. After contacting the club last week, Shapiro wrote in an email this morning that “Our lease is long and will be honored.”

Ring, who seemed entirely sincere, offered that “we had to submit something to the city” because “they won’t even have a discussion with you without submitting plans.”

“That’s all we’ve done. We haven’t made any decisions,” she added.  So relax, Afrolicious will still be holding their Thursday services through 2014 at the very least.

The proposal was submitted for assesment in September of 2013, and the Planning Department response gave the owners until May of 2015 to complete the work necessary for consideration, which includes required meetings with neighborhood stakeholders. News of the plans were first reported by SocketSite at the end of January, which later suggested that the expense of the plans, including drawings by Kerwin Morris Architects and the $5,000 application fee, were signs that the project would continue moving forward. However, Ring shrugged that off, saying “it costs a lot of money, but that’s how it goes.”

[Photo: Tim Lucas]

Valencia Street continues its turbocharged tailspin into terrible as developers and landlords club the last shreds of tolerable into a permanent state of soothing unconsciousness.  The latest victim is poised to be the undeniably important two-story venue Elbo Room, which SocketSite reports the owners have “quietly drafted plans to raze the bar and construct a new five-story building in its place.”  The grim details:

Early plans for the development include nine (9) residential units, three one-bedrooms and six two-bedrooms, ranging in size from 500 to 1,000 square feet over a 770 square-foot commercial space and parking for six (6) cars on the ground floor.

While the existing building at 645 Valencia Street wasn’t deemed to be historic when reviewed as part of the Inner Mission Historic Resource Survey in 2011, the Planning Department has since “received additional information that suggests that the subject property may have associations with the history of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) individuals in San Francisco.”

After SocketSite's story broke, Elbo Room quickly shot it down, writing on Facebook:

Once again, despite what the real estate blog says, Elbo Room is Not Going Anywhere, Anytime Soon! But thanx so much for the concern, the kind words, and the support! We appreciate you!

Of course, “anytime soon” is subject to interpretation.  “Our report isn't based on rumor or speculation,” SocketSite fired back. “But rather the Preliminary Project Assessment for the development which was submitted to San Francisco’s Planning Department for review.”

Ugh.

We all agree building more housing is important, and landowners have the God-given right to cash out when the market is drooling over Mission real estate like a starved dog.  But not like this.  Nine units is a drop in our drought-stricken bucket, and won't move the housing cost needle anywhere.  And what do we get?  The undignified death of another venue and stripping away of one of the very institutions that make people want to move here in the first place.

At least the bus stop is nearby…