Music

Preservation Jazz Hall is Looking Good! (But Has a Long Way to Go...)

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

I was walking down Valencia Street Friday afternoon when I happened to find the owners of the forthcoming Preservation Hall West, which is bringing New Orleans jazz and grub to the giant green building across from Mission Bicycle and Paxton Gate, about to take a tour of the new venue.  So I rudely invited myself inside and got the scoop on what's the status of the place, which is supposedly opening Oct. 4th and hosting Elvis Costello on the 6th.

First of all, the place is massive.  It's like a miniature chaterdral in there.  I guess they call those churches?  Anyway, it's big, and the ceilings are nice and tall to keep the heat from dancing and what not in check.

Second, it's going to take some sort of mircle to get this place open in two weeks, and the people talking to me about the place regrettingly acknowledged that as well.  The bar and walls are still in the plywood/drywall phase, the floor is all torn up… hell, the stage isn't even built yet.  But whatever—whenever they do get it open, it stands to be one of the city's finer venues, and it's right in our backyard.

UPDATE: The Bay Bridged was also in the building and has additional shots and a longer interview with the parties involved:

The Mission getting a top flight concert venue is inarguably an amazing addition to an already red hot neighborhood. What makes the whole venture even easier to root for is Knowles’ child-like excitement surrounding the venue’s accessibility not only for the fans, but also the musicians. “I see this as a place where musicians can come play, walk outside and immediately have all this,” he says pointing up and down Valencia. “I want them to experience the Mission. Right now, if they play one night in San Francisco, they might not have time to come down here and explore.” Knowles also likes the idea of keeping musicians here for an extended period of time. “We want to have residencies here. Musicians can play multiple nights, they can stay in the Mission…we want them to be proud of this place.” Further exemplifying this stance, as he treated those in attendance to a champagne toast, Knowles raised his glass and, doing that same pause he did in the main room, said “Thanks for coming, and now we’ll toast to the San Francisco music scene.”

Rock Make Music/Art/Food/Booze Festival Returns This Saturday

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

I've made it over to the Rock Make fest at 18th and Treat for the past couple of years and it's yet to disappoint.  From the sound of it, this year will be no exception.  Nicole from The Bay Bridged fills us in on what we can expect:

There will be all the usual bells and whistles: 2 stages with 12 bands, a long strip of local vendors, inflatable activity for both kids and adults (jousting!), food trucks, and a huge beer garden placed in the center of the layout this year.

Some of the bands playing include Exray's, Twin Steps, John Vanderslice, The Mallard, Will Sprott (of The Mumlers), and plenty more. It's a diverse, local lineup and one of the only chances all year for the all ages community to check out some of these bands, which is something I think is really special.

And here's the schedule:

17th Street Stage (at Treat Avenue & 17th Street)
12:30pm: SF Rock Project
1:30pm: Kids on a Crime Spree
2:30pm: The Mallard
3:30pm: Yalls
4:30pm: Will Sprott (of The Mumlers)
5:30pm: Tartufi
6:30pm: Burnt Ones

18th Street Stage (at 18th Street & Treat Avenue)
1pm: Metal Mother
2pm: Permanent Collection
3pm: Twin Steps
4pm: DRMS
5pm: John Vanderslice
6pm: Exray’s

See you guys there!

I miss my friend

— By Serg |

(B.cause, me, Matthew)

Today I found out that my friend DJ Matthew Africa passed away this past Monday in a car accident. He was that dude of dudes, a generous and kind man with a wealth of knowledge that he shared with anyone. I'm still in shock and keep waiting for him to call me up and say it's bullshit and we're gonna get some beers before tomorrow night's rap show. He was a dj on KALX for years, wrote for Vinyl Exchange, made some incredible mixes (best of Too Short should be in everyone's rotation), we did a podcast together for the past year and a half. Most of all though he was an awesome person and today we all lost. Bay Area hiphop took a hit today and I can't believe I'll never see my friend but that is nothing compared to what his wife and family are going through.

If you've never heard him play I just suggest you check out his Soul Boulders mix series with B.Cause because it's fucking amazing. I miss my friend and just want to share things he did because he enjoyed sharing what he loved.

And just because it's Matthew, in 2008 we came together and released a 4th in a series of violent rap mixes I was releasing because we both really loved music about getting buck as fuck. (click the image for dl) 

Doc Brown to Save Us From the Zombie Apocalypse

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

How about this new video from The Fresh & Onlys?  I'm not going to go so far as to say this is the best video produced for an SF group this year (because that title obviously belongs to Toast), but the video for “Presence of Mind” features an old dude behind the wheel of a bus flying through space n' stuff, reanimating dogs, and stopping the zombie apocalypse.  I mean, it combines the wonder of Back to the Future with George Romero and real life Muni experiences (that is, someone holding a dead animal and a methy dude throwing up a geyser of blood)—this is some choice youtube.

Anyway, if you're looking for more, the group's new album Long Slow Dance is out next Tuesday and they'll be performing at The Independent Saturday the 8th.

[via Amoeba]

Digital Underground’s Giant Humpty Hump Head Needs a Home

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

If you're itching to desecrate some quintessential hip-hop iconography at Burning Man this year, some sketchy warehouse has a helluva a deal for you.

This giant head of Humpty Hump, used in Digital Underground's video for “Return of the Crazy One”, has been sitting abandoned in an Oakland warehouse for years, and the owner is just giving it away to whomever wants it.  What's better?  Shock G himself will have your back if you snag it, according to an email he sent to Steven Hughes:

Whoever grabs it up, please stay in touch, and when we next need it again, I’ll reimburse your transport, storage & cleaning expenses up to the current date, to either buy it back or rent it out if it’s no longer for sale. – SHKG

Here's the rundown of what you get:

  • dimensions are 12ft high by 16 ft wide at it’s base.
  • splits into 3 pieces for smaller storage or transport.
  • required an 18-wheel truck to transport and a 4-man fork lift team to move.
  • full dressing room inside, w/electric elevator that lifts out thru nose.
  • also has metal stairs inside and nose-door opens manually as well, in case of electric failure.
  • sunglasses light up and scroll circular light patterns around the rims.
  • The lips and chin double as steps to walk down to stage.
  • 50k to build; built by FM Productions South San Francisco. (they also did the giant pig for Pink Floyd. lol)

And should SF rents get too much, the head can double as an apartment.  Apparently a guy, upon getting evicted from his apartment, “lived surreptitiously in the head for several weeks before being discovered.”

Anyway, hit this dude up on Tumblr if you're interested!

[h/t Jackson West]

City Shuts Down Casanova's Turntable

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

Bad news, folks.  We're being told that city officials paid a visit to renowned happy hour hotspot Casanova a few weeks back, telling the bewildered staff they had to unplug their turntable perched at the end of the bar immediately, or they'd close the place up for good.

This is what Casanova DJ Jacob Guillermo Peña had to say about the situation:

Y'know, it's a bummer to think about all the little niches that are gonna go unfilled without Casanova Lounge having DJs. I mean, I understand the decision. But really, there were some great folks playing some nice records there. I know you can hear some of em over at Hemlock (Caroline plays some great records for happy hour, you should really hear em) but some of these other nights would NEVER go over well at a “club”. I've been turned on to a ton of great records while hanging out there. Anyway, just wanted to throw that out there. I know Doyle's gonna have a killer jukebox (no, for real) but it's just not the same. Anyhow, I need to go there for a drink now. Cheers y'all.

Apparently, the city objected to the bar's lack of a cabaret license, and told them they had apply for a license ($1,600) and soundproof the joint ($8,000) if they ever wanted to do so much as plug an iPod in again.  This, of course, seems particularly heavy-handed, given that Casanova is typically known for spinning slow jams at a reasonable volume—hardly a club, or even a rowdy dive bar. Alas, that's the situation.

DJ Sonny Phono has some thoughts on what's going on:

This summer has been one of the busiest on that area, and right after a kid got murdered on 16th the guillotine dropped hard. I know a lot of the Vice/ABC officers from my time at [111 Minna] and they tell me they work almost exclusively in the Mission this year. There's a much bigger picture [than NIMBYs] and a lot of it has to do with a basic liquor license being worth half a mil in that neighborhood, not just dudes with wicked record collections nerding out on each other.

I guess it's not just $15 burgers we have to worry about now…

Previously on Uptown Almanac: 

They're Ruining Jack's Karaoke

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

I realize Jack's lost DJ Purple, which is about as devastating as losing Buster Posey in May, but I can't help but think the bar is intentionally trying to fuck up the magic that was Karaoke Thursdays.  The lights were so bright that I got confused and thought I was drinking in the hospital.  And their famed mini-pitchers of Busch?  No more.  It's only overpriced beer in plastic cups from here on out.

On the bright side, it was deader than a doornail in there.  You could get up as much as you wanted.

Previously on Uptown Almanac: 

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