rock loving size queen in search of authentic intimacy

I admit it: I'm a size queen; I'll only go see shows at what I consider small venues (Great American Music Hall is as big as I'll go). I want to smell the reverb. I want to admire the way the lead singer's hair changes after an hour in the spotlight, from puffy curls to droopy sweat drenched waves. I need to at least be able to identify the faces of the performers so that should I run into them on BART, I can giggle and avoid eye contact.

We saw Si Se last week at the Independent, which was my first show at this venue. It was the perfect space for me, because the sound was as loud and large as Bottom of the Hill, but the room could accomodate three times the crowd. There were even seats on both sides of the room, which appreciated but didn't use. Si Se is releasing their new album and kicking off a tour, so I suspect they'll be back in San Francisco in the fall, but probably playing at a larger club much to my dismay.

We went to see Bento at the MakeOut Room and immediately fell in love with the opening band, Cloud Cult. We only caught the tail end of their show, but I was deeply impressed and even more so with the album "Advice from the Happy Hippopotamus." Unfortunately they aren't touring right now, so seeing them again will have to wait. In the meantime, I obsess over their album, which is a collection of varied, layered masterpieces filled with hearfelt lyrics, metaphors, jangly percussion, quirkyness, humor and grinding guitar.

Caught a really great Iron & the Albatross show at the Red Poppy Art House. This is an amazing space to see a show, very intimate and dim lit, lots of candles and ambiance. There's a small bar in the back, and all the proceeds support the gallery. The Red Poppy gallery is quaint, accomodating 50 people or so. It was filled to capacity by the time we arrived. The opener, Kathryn Jensen, played guitar and was accompanied by a stand up bass and drummer. She complained about the heat frequently during her set (amateur!). The temperature was fine by me, but we were seated at tiny benches, low to the ground, which slowly cramped our lower backs. Nothing a few stretches at the break couldn't allieviate. Watching the newly dating couple grope each other and makeout in the middle of the room was also memorable. See, that's the shit you just don't get at the oversized stadium shows! Kathryn Jensen's music was actually really enjoyable and I'd see her again. As a charming addition to the performance, Todd T. Brown was on the loft above us, creating a stunning painting during the set. It's going to be auctioned off later to benefit the gallery.

We went to see the Ebb and Flow at the MakeOut Room, and again I was impressed. The MakeOut Room isn't the ideal venue for this band, because most of the crowd is seated at tables and the sound quality is poor, but I was still rockin' nonetheless. They played a new song, "Indian Ocean" that combines Sam and Roshy's vocals and incorporates some accordian. I think if there's on thing this band needs, it's songs that balance the two styles of songs on the album. Both styles are excellent, but not entirely cohesive. They are heading out on a 3-month tour and return to San Francisco for a free show on September 7th at Mezzanine with the Herms and Tartufi. Then they play on September 30th at Bottom of the Hill.

Finally, we saw Living Space play at the Brainwash Cafe last Friday, which was a nice little set. Unfortunately it got rudely cut off at the end by the raging asshole who plays under the name Broken Ladder. This guy started yelling from the back of the room, getting all pissy, saying Living Space was over their time and it was HIS TURN to play. Waaa waaa waaa. Fuck you, Broken Ladder! May you play free shows for the rest of your grumpy, uninspired solo career. I may have to give my weekly show fix a rest for a while and let fatty bootcamp kick my ass. We'll see. This getting up at 6 a.m. stuff surely puts a wedgie in the social life.