Warm(er) nights and light evenings mean a number of things in San Francisco, and one of them is that it will soon be time to spend your Sunday afternoons relaxing on a lawn in Stern Grove, enjoying good live music for the cost of nothing. Yes, folks, the Stern Grove Festival begins June 16, and organizers just released the lineup for this year. It includes soulful guitar genius Shuggie Otis, celebrated NorCal hip-hop outfit Deltron 3030, Kronos Quartet, the SF Symphony, Michael McDonald and Boz Scaggs (!), and more. And yes, every one of these shows is free.
Now that our hearing has returned, a good week and a half after Alice's Now & Zen festival went down on Sept. 30 in Golden Gate Park, we take this time to present the reason for that loss of hearing: tens of thousands of teenagers freaking the eff out at the performance of Ed Sheeran, the lovable ginger from merry old England.
Oakland's Hieroglyphics crew and Parish Entertainment Group have organized Hiero Day, a new, free block party in Oakland on Sept. 3, with live performances from Hieroglyphics, Blackalicious, Planet Asia, Equipto, Z Man, and Moe Green, and DJ sets from Honor Roll, Kev Choice Ensemble, and DJ D Sharp. There will also be a marketplace of local vendors, food trucks, and activities for kids.
"This is our way of giving back," says Hiero Imperium label CEO and Souls of Mischief member Tajai Massey. "It's also to celebrate all the good things about Oakland. We get such a bad rap -- no pun intended -- as far as the city that we're from. Hiero's positive. We've been independent for decades, feeding our families. The city's always getting ragged on, so let's just show the best side we can."
While the music industry gathers in Austin for SXSW, San Francisco will get a two-day confab of art and music, courtesy of Vice and Intel's Creator's Project. On March 17 and 18, the project is taking over Fort Mason, bringing live performances from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Squarepusher, the Antlers, James Murphy, and more, along with a number of big art installations and panels. And the kicker? Just like the best parts of SXSW, it's all free with RSVP. Check the full lineup and details after the jump.
Some weeks ago, we told you about a concert planned to honor the memory of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass founder Warren Hellman, who passed away in December. The show will feature performances by Emmylou Harris, Robert Earl Keen, Gillian Welch, Steve Earle, and others. And now, a location for the event has been set: Rather than Golden Gate Park's Hellman Hollow, where Hardly Strictly Bluegrass takes place, the tribute concert is happening this Sunday, Feb. 19, on the Great Highway between JFK Drive and Lincoln Ave. -- so basically, at Ocean Beach.
The music will cover two stages operating at staggered timetables and will run from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Of course, the show is free. However, since there's less space than at Hellman Hollow, the concert organizers are also streaming the show on their website and encouraging fans to watch at home.
My, my, it's been a big week, what with M.I.A.'s middle finger, that new Jay-Z and Kanye video, the quickly sold-out Hot Snakes show, and what else? We forgot already. Point is, you should come by our party at the Noise Pop-Up Shop tonight. For one thing it's free, and there will be performances by moody, forward-leaning S.F. rap duo the Jealous Guys, voracious local bass music producer DJ Dials (he of Change the Beat fame), and electronic/indie DJ Yr Skull, who's also been a conspirator at some of the local Epicsauce parties you may have been to. These are good soundmakers -- check them out:
Over here at All Shook Down, we like to throw a little party each year before the Noise Pop festival takes over San Francisco. So mark your calendar: On Thursday, we're inviting you all to the Noise Pop Pop-Up Shop for a get-together featuring a live set from S.F. rap duo the Jealous Guys, and performances by DJ Dials and YR Skull.
If you didn't lose your fucking mind amid the flurry of end-of-year lists clogging the Internet last month, you might remember our wrap-up of the best Bay Area electronic records of 2011. Tonight, one of the artists who made that list, Magic Touch, is playing the very first installment of a new free party at SF Underground, an oft-neglected little dance club in the Lower Haight.
Called Push the Feeling, the monthly party is a new effort by Epicsauce DJ and local show promoter Kevin Meenan to broaden the appeal of the dance party: "Aiming to make this an unpretentious, dancey affair that can appeal to both folks who frequent the city's more house/boogie/disco-centric parties and those more accustomed to seeing live bands or hanging at dive bars," he says.
SFO's newishly remodeled Terminal 2 is supposed to be an outpost of Bay Area arty/foodie/boho heaven specially for the jet-setter class, right? In addition to its airy design and Hayes Valley-worthy food options, consider this: The city's own DJ Qbert, aka Richard Quitevis, aka the guy who was declared America's best DJ last year, is playing a free show at Terminal 2 this Friday night -- and you don't even have to be flying anywhere to catch it.
