Cynthia AndersonCrystal Stilts show highlights Bay Area events
Crystal Stilits vocalist Brett Hargett/Image courtesy of Mai LeThis week SW is rounding up the best-bet live music events with a little help from music and fashion guru, Mai Le from Fashioni.st . On Saturday Mai recommends:
The Crystal Stilts headline SF's Rickshaw Stop on Saturday, May 7 (playing with local favorites, The Mantles and Angel Island). Hailing from Brooklyn, Crystal Stilts play droney, yet extremely melodic shoegazer. Obvious influences detected include Bauhaus, Joy Division, and Luna.
Yes, bands have (especially in the last 10 years), been oft-compared to the big JD, but here the comparison rings true. It's in the somnabulant vocal stylings of Brad Hargett and that well-worn, lovely guitar feedback.
When they were in SF in 2008, Frankie Rose (Vivian Girls, Dum Dum Girls, Frankie Rose and the Outs.) hemmed drums and played standing up with a kit that lacked cymbals, but not skill. That show had Hargettt wandering around the stage at Bottom of the Hill, slowly waving the mic as his band played a tight set of songs from their album, Alight of Night (Slumberland Records, 2008 and Angular Recording Corporation, 2009). They return tomorrow with a new album, In Love with Oblivion, (Fortuna Pop! (UK) and Slumberland Records (US), 2011) and a new line-up.
Sat, May 7, 2011, 9:00 pm
Rickshaw Stop
$10.00 in advance, $12.00 at the door
Image via myspace.com/dirtyheadsMoving on to Sunday SW resident music guru, Simon recommends:
Having toiled away since 1996 when they were originally formed, The Dirty Heads were finally thrust into the spotlight by Rolling Stone in 2010 as they were noted as "one of the best new bands of 2010". Now, as part of LG's One to Watch series, they make there way to SF at The Fillmore.
Often compared to Sublime (they recently collaborated with Rome Ramirez) and Matisyahu, The Dirty Heads fit tidily into the reggae rock genre that continues to emerge from Southern California. As the bands exposure increases, they are sure to start turning up on the festival circuit very soon, but, this is a great opportunity to catch them in a more intimate environment.
Sun, May 8, 2011, 8:00 pm
The Fillmore
$18.50 in advance
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