Ask The Staff: What do you want your First Concert After to be?
(Ceremony and Perfume Genius: Estefany Gonzalez. Lizzo: Ian Young.) As chroniclers of the Bay Area's live music scene, we are obviously so, so excited for concerts to come back. Well, kind of — some of us have some trepidation about the speed at which live events are announcing their return, considering that, though case numbers have fallen dramatically, we're still in an active pandemic. But that doesn't mean a number of us haven't been daydreaming about what the perfect first concert to see after this is all over (or at least mostly over) would be. So we asked the staff: [...]
Big Thief playing two Bay Area shows following LP release
Big Thief are touring in support of their upcoming fourth album Two Hands and previously released sister album U.F.O.F. Big Thief will headline two Bay Area shows next month, with Palehound supporting the Fillmore show on October 28, and Mount Eerie supporting the Fox Oakland show on October 29. Two Hands was recorded at Sonic Ranch in the desert of El Paso County, providing the context for a more earthly, stripped-down recording style in contrast to the lush, celestial sounds of U.F.O.F. For example, Two Hands features minimal overdubbing in favor of live recordings and unaltered vocal takes. The forthcoming [...]
What’s Happening This Weekend? A Guide To Shows Around The Bay, October 6 – 8
Touring under their much-praised new record, the War on Drugs plays Berkeley Friday. Friday, October 6 The War On Drugs @ The Greek Theatre Have you heard their new record yet? The Sam Chase and the Untraditional @ Milk Bar The first of many HSB after parties. Randy Newman @ The Uptown Napa You probably know him as the Toy Story guy, but he's actually a real songwriter's songwriter. Burner Herzog, Shame Waves @ Eli's We recently wrote about Oakland's whimsical, weird Burner Herzog. Go see them in person. Saturday, October 7 Joon Moon, Karina Denike, Lila Blue @ Bottom [...]
Big Thief bringing ‘Capacity’ tour to the Chapel, Hardly Strictly
(photo: Shervin Lainez) Big Thief are returning to San Francisco this weekend to perform a sold out headlining show at the Chapel on October 7. Don't worry if you slept on tickets, they're also playing a set at this year's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival on October 6. The Brooklyn quartet already reached acclaim upon the release of their debut album Masterpiece last year, recording their sophomore follow-up just a few months later. Their second album Capacity was released in June by Saddle Creek, and is still a top contender for album of the year for many music fans, including myself. [...]
Big Thief headline Rickshaw Stop on July 5
Adrianne Lenker, the lead singer for Big Thief, evokes a number of formidable female vocalists over the course of her group’s debut album, Masterpiece. There is the medieval balladry of Joanna Newsom in “Lorraine,” the defiant-yet-vulnerable reveries of Sharon Van Etten in “Masterpiece,” and the cool, removed evocations of Angel Olsen in “Randy” (and it’s not just females that Lenker evokes, either, as “Velvet Ring,” sounds hauntingly similar to Elliott Smith’s best work.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oacUgWXrqwc But one artist looms large over this album, and it’s Jenny Lewis, former lead singer of Rilo Kiley (and current member of the surprise rock trio [...]
Brooklyn’s Big Thief makes “Masterpiece” video, plays Bay in March
Isn't it great and awfully convenient when a song is so aptly titled? Big Thief, a four piece out of Brooklyn, are making their mark with their first single since announcing their signing to Omaha-based label Saddle Creek. "Masterpiece" is, well, a slow-burning masterpiece that brims with emotional vigor, fueled by Adrianne Lenker's gritty, lilted vocals. The accompanying video riffs on this emotional component, but with added fun and games that show an alternate side of the band. The video starts by revealing their vibrant and goofy personality right off the bat: They're sitting around a table, exchanging fake telegrams via phone chargers [...]