Category Archives: TVD San Francisco

SAN JOSE, CA | Paul McCartney has been making music for sixty years and, now pushing into his late ’70s, shows no sign of slowing down. Currently out on his “Freshen Up Tour,” Sir Paul brought his legendary talents and extensive catalog to San Jose’s SAP Arena where the lines to get through the doors were only dwarfed by the bag check (apparently the SAP Arena’s new clear bag policy came as a surprise to many).

With no opener, McCartney took the stage with his band and wasted no time diving right into “A Hard Day’s Night,” plucking that classic left-handed Hofner “violin” bass as the crowd took to their feet and sang along. With a talented backing band which was later joined by a horn section, McCartney was not rushing to get through what amounted to practically a three-hour set, no small feat for men half his age, but reflective of the ground that had to be covered.

Early on Paul paused to shed his jacket, resulting in a whoop from the crowd, to which he responded, “that was the only wardrobe change of the entire evening.” Picking up an electric guitar, McCartney took an opportunity to show off his licks to Jimi Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady” but not before sharing any early story about Hendrix.

Proving that his instrumentalism is as prolific as his catalog, Paul hopped effortlessly between instruments … bass, electric, acoustic, grand piano, stand-up piano, and mandolin. And when he teased the crowd with “going way way back,” the crowd erupted but likely wasn’t expecting how far back he would really go until he busted out the pre-Beatles Quarryman’s “In Spite of All the Danger,” as he encouraged the crowd to help out with some “whoa-oh-ohs.”

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San Francisco on the Friday after July 4th was remarkably quiet, but inside the walls of the Regency Ballroom, synth-pop legend Howard Jones was bringing his “Transform Tour 2019” to a room full of middle-agers ready to relive their glory years. But hold on … this is not a show to chalk up to ’80s New Wave nostalgia. Jones has proven to be prolific, dropping album after album since his 1984 breakthrough, Human’s Lib, 2019’s Tranform being just another step in his evolution.

The evening kicked off with a thirty minute set by duo All Hail The Silence followed by Men Without Hats. Anchored by lead vocalist and founding member Ivan Doroschuk, MWH plowed through a shockingly entertaining set that was punctuated by the one song you probably recognize, “The Safety Dance,” which got the crowd moving for the first time this evening.

Howard Jones took the stage promptly at 10PM, greeted the room and launched into “Hide and Seek” from behind the keyboard before being joined by his guitar player and keyboardist. With the band set up at the back of the stage, Jones had plenty of room to move with his hand-free mic, occasionally rocking the keytar.

The crowd, which had previously been content to quietly sip their cocktails to the openers, finally woke up, singing along with Howard as he tore through 90 minutes of material from Transform and his first two albums (Human’s Lib and Dream Into Action) while leaving the night devoid of anything released between 1989’s Cross That Line and 2015’s Engage. But with Transform being his first album in a decade, it deserved to be celebrated.

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Coheed and Cambria and Mastodon are out on the road together on “The Unheavenly Skye Tour,” each celebrating a different album but with a common cause … to rock the local fans. And so it was they found themselves in front of a packed house at The Masonic in San Francisco on a Tuesday night, no small feat given that Judas Priest was holding court right down the street for their second of a two night stand. The show kicked off at the obnoxiously early hour at 6:30 pm for openers Every Time I Die, but kudos to the San Francisco audience for making an effort and the already-crowded floor was ready to dance to their generous 40 minute set.

As the crew made quick work of the stage, much of crowd filtered into the lobby bar for refreshments where the unavoidable glare from the sun (still high in the sky) came as a bit of a shock as people checked their watches. The sun was not even close to setting and Mastodon was about to take the stage to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their fourth album, Crack the Skye. Between the psychedelic LED screens and the wafting of weed, the crowd was lulled into a mild stupor as the band played through Skye sequentially. From there they finished the set with a handful of select tunes including “Black Tongue” which resulted in several “hold my beer” moments as the fans perked up and dashed into the pit.

The evening wrapped with Coheed and Cambria, on tour supporting their latest (2018) concept album, The Unheavenly Creatures. Taking the stage, Coheed launched right into “Prologue,” the opening track off the album—similar psychedelic visuals on the LED screens as Mastodon, but with a much different reaction from the San Francisco crowd. Make no mistake, the same people who were only 45 minutes earlier passing a joint were now rocking the hell out and singing along to Coheed’s special brand of nerd metal, which actually had frontman Claudio Sanchez putting down his guitar for a moment to perform raucous rendition of “Key Entity Extraction V: Sentry the Defiant.”

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It’s hard to believe that it’s been 30 years since The Cult released their iconic Sonic Temple album, but leave it to The Cult to remind us with a tour and a sold out show at San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom. A two-hour power outage at the Regency delayed doors, and openers The Beta Machine were still sound checking as the lobby filled with the eager fans who rushed to the barricade the moment they had the chance, venue staff hollering, “walk please!”

Due to the crew’s herculean effort to get the show back on track after the outage, The Beta Machine was able to take the stage only 10 minutes late for their 30 minute set. You may not know The Beta Machine but you’ll likely recognize some familiar faces … Matt McJunkins (A Perfect Circle, Eagles of Death Metal and many more) and Jeff Friedl (A Perfect Circle, DEVO, Puscifer and many more) held down the rhythm section and joined by Nicholas Perez (guitar/keys) and Laura Vall (vocals) for what would only be her third show with the band. In spite of the mad scramble to get the show rolling, the band’s performance was flawless and the shared vocals between McJunkins and Vall sounded great.

By the time The Cult finally took the stage, the Regency Ballroom was packed to capacity. First Damon Fox (keys), then John Tempesta (drums), and Grant Fitzpatrick (bass) stepped out and launched into the groove of “Sun King” followed by original members Billy Duffy and finally Ian Astbury as the crowd went wild.

The notoriously-deficient Regency air conditioning was living up to its reputation, leading Astbury to comment, “this place seems to have its own weather,” as the temperature and humidity soared (maybe “Rain” would have been a better opener). A playful Astbury shrugged off the heat and strutted the stage while demonstrating his tambourine acrobatics skills which left the stage littered with its casualties.

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The Hollywood Vampires were originally conceived in the 1970s as a rock star drinking club housed in the bowels of the iconic Rainbow Bar on the Hollywood Sunset Strip. Fast forward to 2019 and original Vampire Alice Cooper, along with Johnny Depp and Joe Perry, have decided to take the show on the road in support of their forthcoming second album, Rise, which is due in stores on June 21. The seven show jaunt includes Tommy Henriksen (guitar), Glen Sobel (drums), Chris Wyse (bass), and Buck Johnson (keyboards).

With no opening act, Hollywood Vampires took the stage at an entirely reasonable 8:15 pm and launched into an unreleased original track, “I Want My Now,” with Alice on vocals. Despite the new track, the crowd immediately lit up. It wouldn’t be a proper Vampires show without a healthy dose of cover tunes and the band did not disappoint, celebrating the likes of The Doors, AC/DC, The Who, and more. The band sounded tight … clearly prepared for the mini run … but drummer Glen Sobel was a stand-out. Man that guy can play, and his solo during “Baba O’Riley” was truly inspiring.

While Cooper handled the majority of vocal duties, there was still room for the rest of the band to step up to the mic. Joe Perry sang vocals on Johnny Thunders’ “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory” and Depp took the lead on The Jim Carroll Band’s “People Who Died” which he dedicated to his late bodyguard Jerry Judge who passed last month. If there was any doubt who the biggest star on that stage was, a quick look around the room at the number of cell phones in the air on record during Johnny’s totally legit version of David Bowie’s “Heroes” would have made the answer clear.

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The hallowed halls of the Fillmore echoed with rock and roll as Rival Sons brought their “Feral Roots” tour to San Francisco in support of their sixth studio release which dropped earlier this year. Filling a void for straight-up rock and roll that bands like Greta Van Fleet have forcefully pointed out exists in the music world, Rival Sons came to rock and the Bay Area crowd showed up early to roll with them.

Openers The Soft White Sixties kicked off the evening about 15 minutes ahead of the posted schedule but the room was already filling in anticipation. The Sheepdogs followed with a set of Southern Rock inspired tunes from Saskatoon, Canada that would make any Allman Brothers fan giddy with their clean, dueling guitar leads.

Sufficiently warmed up lubricated by the flow of cocktails, the San Francisco crowd was clearly pumped when Rival Sons keyboardist Todd Ögren strolled on stage to announce a mini comedy set by Dean Delray. The 10 minutes of standup went by quickly but could easily have been skipped because the crowd was clearly growing restless.

Finally it was time and Rival Sons strolled onto the stage, clearly ready to rock the Fillmore as they launched into “Back in the Woods.” Those attending damned well better have liked the new album, because the band did not hold back on unleashing the new material live, plowing through 7 songs (half the setlist) off of Feral Roots and leaving little room to do justice to the rest of their catalog during the whopping hour and 45 minute set.

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The San Francisco Bay Area doesn’t let a little thing like a 6:30 start time on a Thursday night stop them from enjoying a quality evening of metal, especially when it comes to a Parkway Drive and Killswitch Engage co-headliner. The San Francisco crew lined up early and got rowdy for opening sets by Vein and After the Burial.

By the time Parkway Drive took the stage, the Warfield was packed to the rafters and floor went sideways when they launched into “Wishing Wells” off of last year’s Reverance. It had been well-over a year since these Aussies have hit the stage here and they had clearly been missed. No doubt these guys could have easily headlined this show on their own and as the sweaty kids hobbled out of the pit after the set wrapped with “Bottom Feeder,” the obvious question was how the heck was Killswitch Engage going to follow that? The answer: crushingly.

After a quick change-over KSE was on the stage and frontman Jesse Leach was up in the crowd and wailing to “This Fire.” While some of the faces of front had switched out, the floor was no-less furious as the band raged on, guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz always making sure the mood stayed light as he pogoed around the stage. Not too shabby for a band that’s not only been crushing it for nearly 20 years, but has maintained relevance throughout. Now about that new album, it’s been a while…

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It’s been over a year since Justin Timberlake dropped Man of the Woods and he finally brought the show to Oakland, California after having to reschedule from last fall due to bruised vocal chords. The delay certainly did not seem to impact the enthusiasm of the crowd which was clearly in the mood to party.

Upon entering the venue it became immediately clear why there were twenty or so semis parked out front. Timberlake’s stage took the concept of the “in the round” concert to a new level with a main stage on one end with a catwalk snaking through the crowd to a smaller stage on the other end. In the middle, the “Stage Bar” in the VIP “Party Pit” kept the drinks flowing.

Not surprisingly, the crowd was mostly women (many of whom seem to be dating Justin look-alikes) and when Timberlake finally emerged onto the stage back-lit by blazing white light, they collectively lost their shit. Well-choreographed and perfectly executed, Timberlake sprinted and danced across the arena floor along with his dance troupe, “The Tennessee Kids.”

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In support of his new album White Bronco, rapper Action Bronson has taken to the road along with partners in rhyme Meyhem Lauren and Roc Marciano. The Monday after Daylight Saving Time’s “spring forward” BS found the trio at Oakland’s Fox Theater. Not surprising, the fans slowly trickled into the venue. But you can usually gauge the ticket sales at any Fox show by the number of bars that are open and, with all but one bar running, the attendance quickly swelled to a fair-sized crowd.

For those not contributing to the haze of weed smoke that hung over the crowd, the contact high was inescapable. And with only two turntables and a microphone on stage, the change-overs were speedy. Together, this made for an evening that would prove to be chill by any measure. In fact, none of the acts even brought a single piece of merch to sell, leaving the venue opting to hawk Fox Theater shirts and hoodies.

Meyhem Lauren kicked things off and immediately had the crowd in his pocket. There was no doubt that the Oakland crowd loves this guy and, even when he stepped on stage later that night during both Roc’s and Action’s sets, he was met with huge cheers. In comparison, Roc Marciano seemed to have a tougher time keeping up the momentum. It wasn’t a bad set but he just never seemed to click with the crowd in the way that Meyhem was able to.

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It’s been a year and a half since Muse last passed through the San Francisco Bay Area but with a new album (Simulation Theory), there was good reason for a return visit, this time to a sold out Oracle Arena in Oakland.

Upon entering, fans were greeted with a massive stage setup which only hinted at the marvel that was set to unfold. Even during Walk the Moon’s 45 minute opening set, the stage was kept dimly lit to avoid letting slip any spoilers.

Doubling down on the space rock theme, the set kicked off with the band seeming to be “beamed” down to the stage while a squad of space trombonists marched their way to the end of the catwalk where frontman Matt Bellamy rose through the floor with mic in hand.

The arena, on its feet from the floor to the rafters, went nuts with what was only the start of a two-hour epic set that was full of surprises. Matt made frequent use of the catwalk before sprinting back to his main mic was fixed stage right. And while his range may have been sometimes limited, the insane visuals punctuated by a giant alien robot rising from behind the stage, more than made up for it.

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The legendary Bob Mould took the stage at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium as part of the city’s annual Noise Pop Music and Arts Festival. Fans seemed to trickle in slowly as openers Film School kicked things off but by the time Bob’s set time rolled closer, it venue was near-capacity.

Clearly not a man for easing into things, Mould speed-walked onto stage without a hint of foreplay where his tech met him half way to the mic stand with his Strat at which point the show was officially on. Pushing his late 50s, Bob was as energetic as someone a fraction of his age as he spun his way around the stage while shredding on “The War,” all without missing a note.

With nothing on stage besides three guys and their instruments, the starkness of the production highlighted the sonic blast filling the room. It was loud and raw and simply mind-blowing. There’s an easy path for a guy like Mould … pick up an acoustic guitar and slow it all down. That is certainly not something that he seemed to have been considered for this tour. In fact, anyone who has given his excellent 2019 release Sunshine Rock a spin would have had a pretty good idea of what would be in store for the evening.

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A rainy Saturday night in Sacramento, a middle-aged gentleman sat at the bar across the street from the Golden 1 Center wearing a KISS Farewell Tour t-shirt from the year 2000. Nineteen years later, KISS is still playing to packed arenas and still talking about retiring. In fact after 45 years, their “End of the Road Tour” promises to be their last. And they mean it this time. Really.

Performance painter and the evening’s hype man David Garibaldi warmed up the crowd with some brushes and a couple of buckets of paint, transforming three huge black canvasses into rock and roll art as the music blasted. The arena was packed to the rafters when the curtain finally dropped, as Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, and Tommy Thayer were lowered to the stage to “Detroit Rock City” as both the pyro and the crowd went off.

The KISS purists are quick to point out their disappointment that neither original guitarist Ace Frehley nor original drummer Peter Criss are part of the band’s final tour. In fact, just seeing Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer wearing their iconic “Catman” and “Spaceman” makeup is sure to trigger the apoplectic rage of many a KISS Army die-hard.

KISS concerts have always been over the top and this night’s show was no different. Gene spat fire and blood during “God of Thunder,” Paul whizzed over the crowd to perform a couple of songs from a second stage that lowered from the rafters, and there was enough fire and pyro to singe hair in the nosebleed seats. Paul Stanley, still with that swoosh in his swagger, constantly peppered the crowd with picks and commanded the audience like a man far younger than his years. Gene stomped around in his platform boots, tongue hanging out of his mouth.

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The hot ticket in town this past Friday was Metallica at the Golden 1 Center which should not come has a surprise since this is the first time in nine years that the band has played this city. Riding high on the 2016 release of Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, the band delivered a scorching set to the capacity crowd.

The evening kicked off with comedian Jim Breuer and his trusty sidekick Joe Sib warming up the crowd with games, tunes, and (of course) comedy, making the wait bearable as the clock ticked past 9 PM. When the lights finally dropped and the “The Ecstasy of Gold” started blaring through the PA, the entire arena stood at attention waiting for the band to emerge.

Having performed in the round for well-over two decades, Metallica has truly mastered this format for live shows and the Hardwired set was truly epic. Dozens of cube-shaped LED screens dropped from the ceiling keeping the attention of the crowd even as the band roamed every inch of the stage. Add the occasional pyro and flames from which you could feel the heat from almost anywhere in the venue, and you’ve got yourself a true spectacle. And if that’s not enough, during “Moth Into Flame,” drones emerged from trap doors in the stage and buzzed around the band members’ heads.

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It’s been exactly one year since I saw Jake Shears live in London. It was one of two shows where he would showcase new music a few weeks before the official release of his debut record. That was November 14, 2017, and it just so happens that I would be in San Francisco to see the show again on November 14, 2018. I know, what are the odds?

Then again, what are the odds that anyone would put so much time and effort into crafting a remarkable album in the era of the single? A time when albums as a whole are under attack by seemingly shorter attention spans and the current viral flavor of the week? Enter Jake Shears and his eponymous debut record which he’s quoted as saying “This is a fucking expensive record…but I made something that’s exactly the way that I want it to sound. It’s become a lot harder to make music the way I just did it.” Amen to that Mr. Shears.

But it’s not just the investment from a cost point of view that goes into this record, and you can tell there’s not only a tremendous amount of passion here but also a healthy dose of pain. The song titles read like the chapters from a life’s narrative—someone who’s figured out a way to take virtually every element of emotion and inject it seamlessly through a storyline.

It’s like a soundtrack without a motion picture that relies more on storytelling, knockout hooks, soaring harmonies, and enormous production values that take the listener on a journey where they conjure up their own visuals along the way. It’s one of those records you can throw on the turntable, sit back in a bean bag chair with a pair of over the ear headphones and get lost for an hour reading along with the liner notes. When is the last time any music lover did this?

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Very rarely will a band live up to the industry hype that’s swirling around it during that ever so important album release and subsequent tour, but this is one of those times where it does. Having signed to Mike Patton’s Ipecac records, the Rhode Island band Daughters return with their first album in 8 years, You Won’t Get What You Want. Critics and fans alike are hailing this record as the perfect evolution of the band. The songs, the lyrics, the musicianship; but most importantly the live show have all come together as the stars have finally aligned for these post-punk underdogs.

How good is the live show? So fucking good that I went two nights in a row and brought my camera to document the experience at the nightmarishly dark and small (but super cool) Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco. Daughters would headline for two sold-out nights with rumors that Mr. Patton himself would be in attendance for night two. The calm before the storm took place just after 10PM—then the fury would hit fast and hard.

Frontman Lex Marshall and guitarist Nicholas Andrew Sadler lead the five-piece live band which quickly becomes an orchestrated assault on all senses. It falls somewhere between a Mack truck crashing through a brick wall at 100 miles per hour and a massive wall of noise that teeters in and out of Melvins-style drudge and punk fury. The remarkable thing here, and what makes it so unique, is the underlying melody that brings an element of light to the overwhelming darkness and anger that ignites the crowd. There was a full-blown mosh pit that would rival anything I’ve seen at a Slayer or Lamb of God show.

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