San Francisco-based songwriter, Kelly McFarling’s work is reflective of transitions, the wilderness, and its navigation. Sometimes she plays banjo, other times acoustic guitar. Often, she plays a Telecaster fronting her band, The Home Team, featuring pedal steel (Tim Marcus), drums (Nick Cobbett), bass (Oscar Westesson), and various other Bay Area musicians.

Water Dog, McFarling’s latest release, is her most intimate and folk-leaning record to date. She recorded the album in seasonal segments of 2016. The songs were first demoed with Allen Rothschild in his bedroom in Asheville, NC, where the creaks of his wood floor and the sounds of summer winding down made their way onto the recordings through open windows and live takes.The demos became the foundation of the record, and McFarling took them back to San Francisco, where Avi Vinocur of Goodnight Texas produced and engineered the majority of the record at his home in the Sunset District. “Recording at Avi’s house gave us the time to let the songs breathe and evolve.” McFarling said of the process. “It gave us space to make decisions at our own pace. I’ve never made a record like that, and it was a really special time. These songs were written in quiet spaces that were lived in. It made sense to record them in that way.”

Water Dog is out June 16. Here the album’s newest single, Both below.

Due out May 5 (Flenser Records), Succumb’s self-titled debut was recorded by bay area luminary Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Botanist, Oathbreaker, etc.) and features seven songs touching on far-spanning influences including death metal, metallic hardcore, and ‘90s Napalm Death. The ace in the sleeve, though, is vocalist Cheri Musrasrik, who juxtaposes powerful metal riffing with a cavernous howl, waxing poetic on themes like human experimentation and dystopian futures.

 The San Francisco based band, Cathedrals has released a new single entitled, Try to Fight!

"Try to Fight came about when we finally met in the studio to share and build upon the ideas we’d written separately. Coincidentally, one of Brodie’s melodic ideas fit perfectly on top of an instrumental Johnny had written. With spring now in full bloom, we’re so excited to finally share this song in time for the summer." – Cathedrals

San Francisco based artist, Jay Som has released a new single entitled, Turn the Other Cheek for "Our First 100 Days" campaign. You can catch Jay Som performing in San Francisco at the Phono Del Sol Festival on June 17th.

On Everybody Works, 22 year-old Melina Duterte solidifies her rep as a self-made force of sonic splendor and emotional might. This album – which Duterte wrote, recorded, played and produced entirely by herself, save a few backing vocals – was made in three furious, caffeinated weeks in her bedroom studio throughout October. Duterte even ditched most her demos, writing half the LP on the spot. If last year’s aptly named Turn Into compilation showcased a fuzz-loving artist in flux, chronicling her mission to master bedroom recording, then Everybody Works is the LP equivalent of a mission accomplished.

With this record, Jay Som takes us places we never could have imagined, wedding lo-fi rock to hi-fi home orchestration, and weaving evocative autobiographical poetry into energetic punk, electrified folk, and dreamy alt-funk. Inspired by the complexity of Tame Impala, the simplicity of Yo La Tengo, the messiness of Pixies, and the pop sounds of Carly Rae Jepsen’s E•MO•TION, Jay Som delivers 10 gorgeous tracks. Everybody Works features lushly composed pieces like "Lipstick Stains," shoegazey shredders like "1 Billion Dogs," sublimely spacious synth-pop beauties like "Remain," and luxe, proggy funk with "One More Time, Please."

San Francisco’s Lords of Sealand has announced the release of Motion, a four-movement dissection of the lives of plants and whether or not they are truly animate. Following the release of 2014’s debut album Found Fiction, recorded just 3 months after the the full lineup was assembled, the band intentionally employed a more intricate and methodical group composition dynamic that is now being first unveiled on Motion.

Originally conceived as a distraction from the long production process of the upcoming full-length dream-based album Zs, Motion quickly grew into a self-contained but dense concept record in its own right. Disparate influences including, Yes, Genesis, The Mars Volta, along with the addition of synths, electronic percussion and sound design elements paint a vivid homage to the classic prog epic that feels fresh, modern and, dare we say, danceable.

"Motion, simply, is an exploration of the lives of plants, asking if plants are, in fact, animate objects. Deeper, it explores a concept that is fundamentally human: what does it mean to be living an impactful, meaningful life? It is about yin and yang. The music and lyrics together take you through the journey of a lifecycle, the ups and downs that come with living a purposeful life." –Lords of Sealand

The Ethiopian-born, Oakland-based artist Meklit will perform at Rickshaw Stop on May 6th!

Combining Ethiopian jazz influences with soul and pop, Meklit’s music melds complex rhythms with vibrant melodies. Her new album When the People Move, the Music Moves Too will be released on June 23rd through Six Degrees Records, and was produced by multi-grammy winning artist Dan Wilson of Semisonic (Adele, John Legend) and features Andrew Bird as well as the Preservation Hall Jazz Band horns on several tracks.

When the People Move, the Music Moves Too is the result of a fateful encounter Meklit experienced in Addis Ababa with the legendary vibraphonist/composer Mulatu Astatke, who helped spark Ethiopia’s 1960s musical renaissance. She was deeply engaged with his music at the time, but he pushed her to think about how to bring her own experiences into her songs – “He was very pointed with me, saying several times ‘You keep innovating!’” she recalls. “He took me to task and he tasked me. It took me a while to digest that. It’s a big thing to have someone like that say that to you. I sat with it for a couple of years.”

The San Francisco based band, The Undercurrent, has released a new music video for their first single, Waves, from their upcoming EP. The song and video embody the band’s soulful, indie pop sound with a distinctive California vibe. This new Bay Area duo cleverly combines driving beats, layered guitar riffs, and distinctive melodies, by tying them all together with heartfelt lyrics. The Undercurrent is currently working on their first EP, Lost in the Haze, expected to be released Fall 2017.

As a multi-instrumentalist and producer, Paul is able to both craft and record complex guitar parts, compelling bass lines, and dynamic drum beats, whilst maintaining a keen ear for detail and balance. Wendy’s expressive and soulful voice spans.

On April 20th, the San Francisco based neo psych band, Down Dirty Shake will be performing live and sharing a bill with the SF based band, Cosmic Correlation Conspiracy and the UK based psych duo Black Doldrums. Make sure you head down to the Elbo Room to experience a full on night of heavy psychedelic rock vibes.

Down Dirty Shake is a rock n roll band based out of San Francisco. The group is deeply influenced by the 60’s/70’s. Touching on latin, psych, soul, pop and garage rock. The live shows are guaranteed to be an experience; always full of energy and raw emotion. DDS is most well known for there annual milk bar residency and throwing DIY music festivals. Cosmic Correlation Conspiracy made their first appearance as the opening act for the 1960’s cult-classic, The Chocolate Watchband on their 50th year anniversary show at the Acid Test in May of 2016. Stemming from the universal musical tradition of reinterpretation, their music is a fusion of freewheeling freak-flagged blues with a twist of eastern mysticism and tribal rhythms. Black Doldrums supported Sterling Roswell of Spacemen 3 and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth at the Stock Newington Music Festival as well as Lee Scratch Perry and The Fall at Levels Festival. Additionally, they took time out to play two shows back to back in London and Manchester for the Alan McGee curated charity events Musicians Against Homelessness, supporting ‘Blue Orchids’ and sharing the stage with Martin Bramah (founding member of The Fall). 

NYC-based producer DeModa shared his latest single, the epic electro-pop single "Blind Contour" featuring vocals from Laura Weinbach of the Oakland-based Foxtails Brigade.

DeModa (David Johnson) spoke, "I’ve grown to be most satisfied with the way ‘Blind Contour’ came out because it incorporates all of the individual styles and rhythms that I’ve loved over the course of my life. My favorite element of the song is most certainly Laura’s contribution (Foxtails Brigade). It’s as if we were on the same wavelength because from the moment I first heard her vocals I was sure they were perfect for it."

The San Francisco based post punk band, The Truants are a breath of fresh air as their vintage punk sounds bring a welcomed dose of nostalgia to any punk music aficionado. New music lovers will be into these songs just as much as The Truants’ sound can skate across eras, giving them the ability to touch listeners of different ages and music tastes. Check out their newest singles, Wasted Youth and Millenial. Both songs are about the folly of youth and reality of growing up in a generation of gentrification and the modern age. The guitar riffs and vocals are epic and their entire sun drenched, angry punk aesthetic is appealing and hard to ignore.

This weekend, Oakland is going to positively overrun by the power of WOMEN IN MUSIC!

Women in Music – Bay Area, is a weekend-long multi-generational conference and festival dedicated to women breaking ground in music. Between panels, workshops, film screenings, and dance parties, Women in Music strives to bring together women from all areas of the music industry, while encouraging more female participation, empowerment, and entrepreneurship.

The goal of #WIMBayArea is simple: to provide a local platform for women in music and beyond to unite, network, and celebrate. For more information, visit: https://www.wimbayarea.com/

Weekend passes allow you entry to all ticketed parties April 7-9 in Downtown Oakland, CA.
Weekend passes are currently on sale for $25. You must be 21+ to purchase a weekend pass.
NOTE: WEEKEND PASSES DO NOT INCLUDE ACCESS TO PANELS, WORKSHOPS, MARKETS, OR WELLNESS EVENTS.

The San Francisco based band, Grace Sings Sludge has released a new music video entitled, A Man Doesn’t Want in anticipation from their upcoming album, Life With Dick (Empty Cellar Records).

Life With Dick is the new album by Grace Sings Sludge (The Sandwitches, The Fresh and Onlys). It’s the continuation of a world Grace Cooper began illustrating as one of the lead songwriters of the San Francisco band The Sandwitches, and on her previous three collections of solo home recordings (released as limited run cassette tapes). As with the other solo albums, Grace does the artwork for Life With Dick. Her delicate yet disturbing pen and watercolor creations are the perfect accompaniment for her songs, and seem as though they’ve emerged from the same troubled dreams.