[more photos of The Mantles, by Robert Khoury]

Tuesday
Plastic Villains, Cool Ghouls | Bottom of the Hill, 6pm [free show/ noise pop party]
Wild Moth, Heist, Street Justice | The Knockout, 8:30pm
Wet Illustrated, Magic Leaves, Noah Gundersen | Brick and Mortar Music Hall, 8pm [free]

Wednesday

Thursday
Lana Del Ray | Amoeba, 6pm [free]
Gardens & Villas, Young the Giant | Rickshaw Stop, 9pm [popscene]
Flails, Dimples, Mo Odds, Pink Films | Thee Parkside, 9pm
The Younger Lovers, Los Headaches, Guitar Magazine | Hemlock Tavern, 9pm

Friday
Bare Wires, Toys that Kill, The Pharmacy | 1-2-3-4 Go! Records, 7pm [all ages]

Saturday
Brother Jt, Nothing People, Swiftumz | Hemlock Tavern, 9:30pm
Digital Leather, Blasted Canyons, Glitz | 1-2-3-4 Go! Records, 7pm [all ages]
The Mantles, Pamela, Rat Columns | Engine Works (17th & Capp), 9pm [positive destruction showcase]

Sunday
Indian Jewelry, Jealousy | Hemlock Tavern, 9pm

Anything else?

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[Wax Idols @ Cake Shop by Phil Maier]

Tuesday
Thee Cormans, Uzi Rash, Sweat Lodge @ Vitus, 9pm

Wednesday
Bare Wires, Meat Market, Big Drag @ The Knockout, 9pm
King Lollipop, Wild Ones, Up All Night @ 1-2-3-4 Go! Records, 7pm [all ages]
Religious to Damn, Wax Idols, Alexis Blair Penney @ Elbo Room, 9pm
Ty Segall, Shannon and the Clams, Hank IV, Lenz, DJ Primo @ Mezzanine, 9pm [jonathan toubin benefit]

Thursday
Dirty Ghosts, Swiftumz, City Deluxe @ The Knockout, 9pm
Deep Teens, Jealousy, Dadfag, Nathan Grice @ Amnesia, 9pm
The Soft Moon, Blouse, Blank Dogs DJ Set @ Cafe Du Nord, 9pm [captured tracks showcase]
White Cloud, Jeffertitti’s Nile, Moccreto, Arms N Legs @ Thee Parkside, 9pm
Zodiac Death Valley, Mister Loveless, The Spyrals, Baby Talk @ Brick and Mortar Music Hall, 8pm

Friday
Fleshies, Big Eyes, Wild Assumptions @ 1-2-3-4 Go! Records, 7pm [all ages]

Saturday
Terry Malts, Balaclavas, Rat Columns, Yi @ 1-2-3-4 Go! Records, 7pm [all ages]

Sunday
Bare Wires, Unko Atama, Deadbeats, Adults, Glitz, Shop Talk @ Eli’s Mile High Club, 6pm [day 1 of Rock 'N' Roll Madness Fest]
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Anything else?

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Nostalgic vid from the creator of one of our favorite albums of the year, featuring Brontez Purnell of The Younger Lovers. Directed by Brian Hamilton.

The Bay Area absolutely smashed it in 2011, with some of our favorite artists releasing amazing albums, EPs and cassettes that we’ve been listening to endlessly this year. It was incredibly difficult to cull the past 12 months to our favorite 15 releases, but we did it anyway. Check them out below and let us know what you think in the comments.

15 The Sandwitches // Mrs. Jones’ Cookie

mp3:
The Sandwitches // “Lightfoot”

14 Bare Wires // Cheap Perfume

mp3:
Bare Wires // “Cheap Perfume”

13 King Lollipop // Woodland Whoopee Songs

mp3:
King Lollipop // “Cheeseburger and Fries”

12 Pamela // Pamela is Hungover

mp3:
Pamela // “Lie Down (Eye Contact)”

11 Weekend // Red

mp3:
Weekend // “Hazel”

10 Wet Illustrated // Wet Illustrated

mp3:
Wet Illustrated // “Gypsy Town”

09 Ty Segall // Goodbye Bread

mp3:
Ty Segall // “Goodbye Bread”

08 Swiftumz // Swiftumz

Hunx collaborator Christopher McVicker managed to release one of the most understated albums of the year under the moniker Swiftumz. “Don’t Trip” is an immersive collection of hazy, moving jams that transcends the limits of bedroom pop.

mp3:
Swiftumz // “4EVA”

07 Rank Xerox // Rank Xerox

Rank/Xerox // “Sterile Regions”


Rank/Xerox // “Nausea”

06 Blasted Canyons // Blasted Canyons

Never before has an ode to weed and ice cream sounded so raw, explosive and all-together effortless.

mp3:
Blasted Canyons // “Ice Cream Man”

05 White Fence // Is Growing Faith

mp3:
White Fence // “And By Always”

04 Ty Segall // Singles 2007-2010

mp3:
Ty Segall // “Bullet Proof Nothing”

03 Wax Idols // No Future

The debut LP by Wax Idols features singer/songwriter Hether Fortune elevating the charming pop sensibilities found on her earlier work to a complete full-length, with lyrics veering from the lovesick to the macabre.

mp3:
Wax Idols // “Gold Sneakers”

02 Mikal Cronin // Mikal Cronin

This scuzzed-out compilation of pop songs marked a solid debut album from Moonhearts/Ty Segall collaborator Mikal Cronin. Unexpectedly wistful and incredibly catchy, this is a record we’ve been spinning endlessly.

mp3:
Mikal Cronin // “Get Along”

01 Thee Oh Sees // Carrion Crawler/The Dream

Thee Oh Sees scorched through 2011, releasing two mind-blowing full-length albums and a singles only double-LP all while maintaining a frenetic touring schedule that recently concluded (with Total Control). Carrion Crawler/The Dream was announced only a few weeks after Castlemania, and proved to be the “pummeling” record John Dwyer promised it to be. An instant classic and our unequivocal favorite record of 2011.

mp3:
Thee Oh Sees // “The Dream”

Thee Oh Sees // “Carrion Crawler”

mp3:
Positive Destruction // december 2011 mix

[right click/save as]

[image]

tracklist:
01 Yikes // “The Cars”
02 Sic Alps // “Breadhead”
03 Wax Idols // “Hitman
04 POW!// “Night Train to Fog Town”
05 Ty Segall// “It”
06 Thee Oh Sees// “The Dream”
07 The Spyrals // “Sunflower Microphone”
08 Swiftumz // “Angelita”
09 Part Time // “Touch Me Responsibly”
10 Wet Illustrated // “(Where I Wanna Be) Buried”

NME recently put together a “cool list” of music makers and shakers for 2011; GorillavsBear did a good job ripping it apart in their list and perhaps pointed out the obvious in stating that making “‘cool lists’ is not really that cool.” Nevertheless, here’s our Bay Area version. Let us know what you hate in the comments.

10 Shiv Mehra // Creepers

mp3:
Creepers // “Spiral”

09 Corey Cunningham // Terry Malts

mp3:
Terry Malts // “Tumble Down”

08 Lars Finberg // Thee Oh Sees

mp3:
Thee Oh Sees // “The Dream”

07 Mikal Cronin

mp3:
Mikal Cronin // “Get Along”

06 Mark Tester // BURNT ONES

mp3:
Burnt Ones // “Do the Spell (Loud)”

05 Robbie Simon // Wet Illustrated

mp3:
Wet Illustrated // “Gypsy Town”

04 Tim Presley // White Fence

03 Blasted Canyons

02 Chris McVicker // Swiftumz

mp3:
Swiftumz // “Angelita”

01 Mike Donovan // Sic Alps

mp3:
Sic Alps // “Breadhead”

Monday
Built by Stereo, Simon and the Fire Breathers, Meat Market, Younger Lovers @ Bottom of the Hill, 8:30 pm

Tuesday
Deep Teens, No Babies, Uzi Rash, Whitman @ Jam City (1570 7th St., Oakland), 8pm
Switftumz Listening Party @ Casanova Lounge, 6pm
Dum Dum Girls, Crocodiles, Colleen Green @ Great American Music Hall, 8pm

Wednesday
Zola Jesus @ Amoeba, 6pm (free)

Thursday
Switftumz, Little Mercury, Lenguas Largas @ The Knockout, 9pm

Friday
120 Minutes, Sleep ∞ Over @ Elbo Room, 10pm
Melted Toys, ChuCha Santamaria Y Usted @ 1314 Grant Ave., (free)
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Twin Sister @ Slim’s, 9pm
The Fresh and Onlys, Tamaryn, Wax Idols @ Great American Music Hall, 9pm
Old Firm Casuals, Brassknuckle Boys, Young Offenders, Airfix Kits, Living Eyes @ Thee Parkside, 9pm

Saturday
Barn Owl, Date Palms, Danny Paul Grody @ San Francisco Zen Center, 6pm
Dead Meadow, Burnt Ones, POW! @ Cafe Du Nord, 9:30pm
Girls, Sonny and the Sunsets, PAPA @ Great American Music Hall, 9pm
Big Troubles, Young Prisms @ VITUS (201 Broadway), 9pm

Sunday
Japanther @ East Bay Rats MC Club House, 9pm
Girls @ Amoeba, 2pm $free
Girls, Sonny and the Sunsets, Carletta Sue Kay @ Great American Music Hall, 8pm

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We’re giving away tickets to the Halloween weekend Ty Segall + Nobunny show at Brick and Mortar Music Hall. Read more details here.