hunter::gathering

and here's our live band showcase taking place next tuesday, march 18, at the  rickshaw stop.   we've got new wave superstars ming and ping from la, and then local stalwarts the old fashioned way and goh nakamura.  plus dj chan chan holding it down in between.  there you go, two good excuses to break from the usual and have a better time at it…  

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DIRECTIONS IN SOUND: Notes from the Asian American Underground
a musical showcase of the SF Intl. Asian American Film Festival

TUESDAY, MARCH 18
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell Street at Van Ness, San Francisco
8pm doors/9pm show, 21+, $10
Tickets at www.asianamericanmedia.org

MING & PING – www.mingping.com
THE OLD FASHIONED WAY - www.doittheoldfashionedway.com/
GOH NAKAMURA – gohnakamura.com
DJ CHAN CHAN

Come ride the wave of the best indie and crazily creative bands either side of the Mississippi at this annual musical showcase hosted by the SF Intl. Asian American Film Festival.  San Francisco’s beloved songster (and recent YouTube sensation) GOH NAKAMURA kicks off the evening, full band in tow, with his whimsical and witty pop tunes.  THE OLD FASHIONED WAY follows with their multi-instrumental orchestral indie pop–tuneful, intricate and with a snap to get your feet moving.  And finally, dance, dance, dance into the night to the electro new wave madness that is identical twins MING & PING as they deliver synthed-out bliss.  DJ CHAN CHAN on the ones and twos between sets!

alright, so once again i find myself in full promo mode.  i'm strictly behind the scenes on these next two events, having organized the music showcases that are part of the sf intl asian american film festival.  this friday, march 14 at 111 minna, we've got a kickass event going down.  killer dj's, fashion show, visual artists, great partners (popscene, massive selector, surya dub, fabric8, azalea, elevation salon).  more details below…  come out, it's going to be a great event.  spend the evening with the all-star dj's, festival filmmakers, models, and all the coolest peeps in town.  don't miss the NO LUCK CLUB, who are playing for the first time in sf and are urb next 100 honorees.

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DIRECTIONS IN SOUND: Fast Forward to the Future
a musical showcase of the SF Intl. Asian American Film Festival

FRIDAY, MARCH 14
111 Minna, San Francisco
9pm, 21+, $12 advance and before 10:30pm, $15 after 10:30pm
Tickets at www.asianamericanmedia.org

Global gypsy beats.  Broken beats ‘n nu jazz.  Spacey cosmic disco.  Crunked up glitch hop.  Dubsteppin’ digi-dancehall.  Synthed-out indie dance.  Two turntables and… a laptop?

Re-defining genres and fusing sounds, the DJ’s and producers in this year’s Directions in Sound are musical pioneers, opening minds nightly, while always killing it on the dancefloor.  Join us as our all-star artists take us on a trip through the future-forward music blowing up the underground the world over.  Special treats include a fashion show hosted by Azalea and Elevation Salon, and visual goodies by Contact.  Dancing shoes required!

Sponsored by Toyota and in collaboration with Massive Selector, Popscene, Surya Dub, Azalea, Elevation Salon, iMeem, KMEL, and Fabric8.

ARTISTS:

NO LUCK CLUB (Vancouver, Expansion Team) – www.noluckclub.com
Take two brothers, one a laptop guru, the other a turntablist wiz, add in a DMC champ, and you’ve got a “Shadow meets Shortkut” brew combining electronic hip hop, jazz-funk, scratching, tall tales and humour.

MANEESH THE TWISTER w. MC DADDY FRANK (Surya Dub) – www.myspace.com/maneeshthetwister
Named the Guardian’s best DJ of 2007, this Dhamaal co-founder unites global dub communities with his bass-driven blends of dubstep, dancehall, bhangra, and more.

PROOF (Massive Selector) – www.massiveselector.com
From classic funk to broken beat, 80’s r&b to house, nu jazz to hip hop, as long as it’s got soul, the Massive Selector head honcho rocks it.

NAKO (Popscene) – www.popscene-sf.com
Week in and week out, the Queen of Popscene delivers only the choicest indie cuts for SF’s dancing pleasure, spanning brit pop, new wave, electro rock, and much more.

ANA SIA (3WS) – www.myspace.com/ana_sia
Sure to get the dancefloor crunked and connected with her unique brand of glitched out, sexed up, low freq, bassy & beautiful global slut psy-hop.  

AMAR (Electric Vardo, Surya Dub) – www.solunamar.com
Bringing worlds together with his global gypsy beats, this mixmaster will take you on a seamless journey around the world, from Asia to Africa to Europe and beyond.  

ROBOT HUSTLE (Honey Sound System) – www.robothustle.com
Representing SF’s only queer DJ crew, Robot Hustle merges the past with the present, spanning underground disco, old school electro, and contemporary electronica.

i've been so bad about recording my dj sets.  literally i have nothing to give people when they ask for some sort of mix of mine.  not to say that i haven't tried to, it's just it's hard for me to either a) find the time to do one at home or b) get the recording right when i'm playing out.  plus, i'm kind of a perfectionist, and that's a problem cause i'm definitely not a perfect dj.  

that's why when howie and shilo asked me to prepare a primetime mix in advance for their wedding, as there was no dj equipment on-site in mexico, i figured this would be a good chance to actually record for posterity something i could put out in the world.  now, it's certainly different than what i'll play at a tasty party or a club or an art show or really anything but a wedding, it still reflects the eclectic nature of the music i dig.  and it's definitely not perfect.  frantically put together a day before leaving for mexico.  

anyways, i think it went over well, at least that's what the rest of the wedding-goers said (albeit after lots and lots of tequila).  the wedding was a blast, on this private beach in puerto vallarta, and everyone was dancing on a dancefloor on the sand and all over the beach itself, with a bonfire adjacent and the ocean lapping at the shore.  plus, since all i had to do was hit play on the ipod, i could actually be on the dancefloor side of things while i was still "djing."  plus, i knew when to get pumped up.  while i was thinking about just calling it "howie and shilo's wedding mix", fawn came up with something better…

hipster wedding mix, volume 1 (right click and "save as") 

p.s. thanks to julio outerspaciousness for the party pix

i am now a published photographer, well, sorta, thanks to my friends at online travel guide company schmap. one of the photos in the seattle art museum’s set is yours truly. if you’ve been wondering where i’ve been hiding, i think “working on my new career as a professional photographer” is an interesting answer…

check out one of the best indie shopping event at dai's holiday design utopia.  come down this sunday to medjool in the mission.  christian and i will be providing the beats, while sf's finest designers and artists provide the goods.  screw the mall, support your community…

in the wake of radiohead's unique name-your-own-price approach to selling their new album, in rainbows, the best music mag in the world, paste magazine, is offering annual subscriptions for whatever you want to pay.  i think this is a great paradigm shift that may prove to become more prevalent in this dawning of the user-generated consumption.  diehard fans will pony up more to support their faves, while those less familiar or passionate can still pay a bit to give something different a try.  short-term customers become long-term ones, as the pricepoint fluctuates to accomodate changes in disposable income.  while the average sale price may be lower than what you get with a fixed price, the increase in volume and the elimination of supporting middlemen and retailers should make up for the difference. 

anyways, put this theory to work by subscribing to paste, which to me is the "npr of music mags."  smart, literary writing that makes the music you listen to better.  hurry, this special lasts for only two weeks.  now the question is… how much are you willing to pay?

that would be mstrkrft.  these two exiles from one album wonders death from above 1979 have been killing dancefloors worldwide ever since.  if you've read my blog in the past, you'll know that imho their remix of justice's "d.a.n.c.e." is the remix (if not song) of the year.  

standard bearers of the nu rave/new disco/electro rock (take your pick) movement, the boys bring their show to san francisco this saturday.  check them out this saturday live and in the flesh at blasthaus' halloween bash at fat city.  no tricks, only treats…

i know, i know, how can i fall off the blogwagon for so long and then come back with a promo post about our tasty season finale this sunday?!?  hopefully this will kick my ass back in gear.  just got back from hawaii after a visit to the hawaii international film festival in honolulu and some r&r on the big island.  and work's been kicking into high gear too.  but no excuses.  come out sunday and show me that there's a reason for me to keep doing this!

yo, this friday, come out and spend some time arting/drinking/dancing (take your pick).  we'll be at the space gallery, where your tasty dj's christian, brent, and melvin (poolboy), along with our dear friend d, will be throwing down from 8pm-2am alongside our favorite artists jennifer wildermuth, shilo randall, david young, michael azgour, and daniel ochoa.  

details for the party and reception:

"brick to blue": an exhibition of paintings featuring paintings in the theme of 'blue'

+space gallery - 1141 polk st. @ sutter
++friday, october 5, 8pm-2am

so radiohead is releasing a new album, in rainbows october 10.  you can either pre-order it to be mailed to you on the website, or, why i'm really posting about this, is that you can download it at a price that you name.  that's right, name the price you're willing to pay, whether nothing or ten or one hundred pounds!

i don't know, this always seemed like it made alot of sense.  that being said, it wouldn't work for the majors, who need to take a huge cut out for their existing distribution infrastructure, but for an indy label that is moving rapidly towards online distribution?  why not??? 

so what's music worth to you?  that is the question…