Happy New Year

I've been a slacker. I've been out of town so there's not been too many posts. I put up a few this week - mainly about music.

However, to make up for the lack of posting, the first week in 2007 I'll review 3 Asian restaurants located in the Inner Richmond (Burma Superstar), the Tenderloin (Sai Jai Thai), and Japantown (Kiss Seafood).

My favorite albums of 2006

My favorite album of 2006 was Silversun Pickups - Carnavas which features post-grunge fuzzed out brilliance channeling Billy Corgan. Here's an acoustic version of Lazy Eye.

Other albums that I liked, in fairly random order:
Cold War Kids - Robbers & Cowards
Raw, soul-flecked rock that reminds you that this rock-and-roll thing used to be FUN.

Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
Jumping from hip-hop to pop to soul to rock, Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse don't fit into any one genre and produce a dark album of introspective songs.

Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not
Punk rockers from Sheffield - drunken pub nights followed by coffee-and-cigarette-fueled mornings.

Jenny Lewis - Rabbit Fur Coat and Cat Power - The Greatest
These two albums released within a week of each other are pure unabashed soul and Americana. Chan Marshall (a/k/a Cat Power) has probably the wider range, but who can resist Jenny Lewis (late of Rilo Kiley) and her backup bluegrass band The Watson Twins?

The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
Having sung about pirates, the Civil War and basing albums on Irish poems, why not come out with an album based on a Japanese story? Theatrical and lyrical, Colin Meloy puts out an amazing major-label debut.

The Flaming Lips - At War With the Mystics
Slamming Dubya at every turn, this album is a reaction to the War in Iraq and Dubya's presidency. At times ethereal, catchy, and dreamlike, the Flaming Lips (more than 20 years on) are still as relevant today as they have ever been.

Mogwai - Mr. Beast
Scotland's Mogwai eschewed its usual electronics for a more stripped down sound. They still have extremely hard sounding rock songs on here but are able to feature their slower side too.

We are Scientists - With Love and Squalor
Looking like math geeks, sounding like rock gods, this post-punk trio puts out danceable tracks in the same sense of Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand.

Band of Horses - Everything All The Time
This year was all about bands with animals (think Wolf Parade, Wolfmother, Arctic Monkeys, to name a few). So, Band of Horses are an appropriate band to feature in a best-of-2006 overview. Melodies evoking Neil Young over raw rockness.

By the way, my favorite album for 2005 was Bloc Party – Silent Alarm.

Others included:
Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock and Roll
Beck – Guero
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Jose Gonzales – Veneer
Kaiser Chiefs – Employment
Kanye West – Late Registration
Of Montreal – The Sunlandic Twins
Ok Go – Oh No
Wolf Parade – Apologies to the Queen Mary

Shake your

bootie

http://www.bootieusa.com/bestofbootie2006/

If you like the mashups, this is a great compilation.

Merry Christmas!

Samberg & JT - Christmas wishes

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/#mea=51414

Samberg & Parnell - Lazy Sunday

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/#mea=2921

Samberg & Natalie Portman

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/#mea=2922

Extremely Loud Night

My ears are still ringing from Jack White's blistering guitar and vocals work in fronting The Raconteurs.

Last night, Live105 put on its annual holiday concert, appropriately titled Not-So-Silent Night. The usually eclectic lineup of indie bands and alternative bands was again in evidence last night. In reverse order of my favorite performances:

The Shins proved very underwhelming in concert. Perhaps this is not the right venue for them, as this soft, atmospheric indie pop band may be better suited for more intimate settings. And, if you have only a 30-minute set, how do you not play your biggest hit (New Slang off the Garden State soundtrack)? Disappointed.

Modest Mouse has been making indie rock since 1993. However, their sound was not fully embraced by people (when "alternative" led by grunge masters Nirvana took over the public conscience and "indie" stayed underground). In 2004, though, with their second major-label album, they broke through to the masses with songs like Float On and Ocean Breathes Salty (both played last night). Their modest sound and laid-back attitude on stage paled in comparison to the top 3 bands of the night.

The Killers put on a glitzy finale befitting their Las Vegas roots. They knew what people wanted, balanced it with new offerings from their latest album and benefitted from being able to play for a full hour. Post-punk with keyboards to recall the 80's, they blasted through the songs everyone wanted - everyone singing along to Hot Fuss favorites like Somebody Told Me, Jenny Was a Friend of Mine, and Mr. Brightside. At one poin, in All These Things That I've Done, Brandon Flowers - in true showman form - got up on top of his piano turned the microphone around and allowed the audience to sing the chorus. Great show.

Silversun Pickups - a band I've written about previously - give you the fuzzed out bliss of songs that Billy Corgan could have written. Sounding like a mix of Pixies-meets-Smashing Pumpkins-by-way-of-My Bloody Valentine (or maybe I should just say post-grunge?), Brian Aubert puts his falsetto voice over pounding drums and distorted guitars. A tight, 30 minute performance that proclaimed they are every bit as good as their hype.

Jack White, the showman, the performer, was in full effect last night. While in The White Stripes, he shares the stage with only one other person, in the Raconteurs he is one of five (they have a touring keyboardist) and actually only one of two guitarists. He often doesn't sing lead and he only had one of the guitar solos. Yet, he was the star of the night. He commands such a presence on stage, and was able to guide the band from a near-country ballad to pop favorite Steady As She Goes to feedback-drenched rawk. They stole the show and were the best performance of the night.

Wonder who they'll line up next year...

Tagine!

When I traveled around Morocco, I would eat tagine whenever I got a chance. Tagine is both the type of pot it's cooked in and the meal itself. There's a picture here of what a tagine looks like. What is the food? It's usually a mixture of lamb, prunes or dates, almonds or some other nuts, chick peas, and couscous: a real spicy/sweet mix.

You don't have to travel all the way to Morocco to enjoy a good tagine, though. In fact, there's a great French-Moroccan restaurant called Baraka in Potrero Hill. Perched on the corner of 18th and Connecticut, it has a cozy, intimate feel to it.

Their menu is an interesting mix of typical French bistro offerings (foie gras, steamed mussels), Moroccan specialties (stuffed dates, tagine), and offerings from all over (prawns ceviche, dungeness crab cakes).

When we went, we had the prawns ceviche (presented on a plate - we were expecting to receive more than we got, but they were excellent) and the stuffed dates (stuffed with chorizo, cabrales, and jamon serrano). We had originally chosen a glass of wine each (she chose a rose, I chose a pinot noir), but the manager/sommelier came over and suggested that the rose we were going to get would not be as good as another rose. He preferred us to try the other rose and, if we did not like it, he would happily spend the rest of the night drinking the bottle himself.

He was right, the wine was excellent - from Provence, by a winemaker called Dott. Look for it when you are dining at Baraka. The great thing about rose is that it does not overpower the food you are eating and it accompanies things like Asian food and turkey exceptionally well. Pairing it up with a tagine works out well as well.

The tagine: the lamb was succulent, the prunes were bursting with sweet flavor, the almonds gave an interesting textural balance. Just an excellent all-around dish. With the ambience, nearly the whole bottle gone, and the wonderful food, this restaurant is an excellent date place. After, when you are walking back to your car, make sure that if it's a clear night like it was when we were there, to look back across to San Francisco's skyline with its lights twinkling.

Hill of Goat

I had dinner on Monday night in Potrero Hill. So, this week I thought I'd focus on this part of town. In particular, I like the corner of 18th and Connecticut with its assortment of restaurants, cafes and bars: Chez Papa, Chez Maman, Baraka, Aperto, Goat Hill Pizza, Lingba, Eliza's, Farley's to name a few.

The pizza at Goat Hill is some of the best in the city. It's a great place to go with a bunch of friends and have a lazy lunch of pizza and a pitcher.

Their crust is pretty unique - it's not the thick deep dish Chicago style, nor is it the thinner NYC style. It's a medium crust, and what makes it unique is that it is made from sourdough. They've been around since 1975, so they definitely know what they're doing and people still keep coming back.

The sauce is homemade as well and the toppings range from the traditional to the gourmet (think everything from pepperoni and sausage to sun-dried tomatoes and feta). Of course, you can come by here at night as well - it's usually pretty boisterous, fun atmosphere especially on the "all-you-can-eat" Mondays.

After Work Downtown

You are spoiled for choice when it comes to drinking options in the Financial District. I'll highlight four spots that might fit your mood.

Opened last year, Americano at the Hotel Vitale (one of the Joie de Vivre hotels) quickly became the trendy spot for financial types and the Gap-ettes who love them. It's a pretty strong singles scene and fits in a bit more in New York than laid-back San Francisco. Good mixed drinks, impossibly long lines, lots of wine choices, and surprisingly good food. During the nicer months the outside patio with its picnic tables is the place to hang out for a higher-priced afterwork drink.

Across the street in the Ferry Building, there are two great spots. First, MarketBar also features an outdoor patio (one side drinks only, the other side dinner only) and a great bar whose bartenders really know their stuff. They will sometimes whip up their own concoctions for you to try. They have an ever-changing wine-by-the-glass list. Food is excellent. Not as expensive as Americano, but still fairly hefty.

The other place I recommend in the Ferry Building is inside - it's the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant. It's a wine shop with very knowledgeable people who work there, so you can simply buy some wine and leave. They allow you to bring in any food you wish, although they also have some basic snacks on offer. What I like doing is going to Cowgirl Creamery in the Ferry Building, purchasing some cheese, and then heading over to see what wines-by-the-glass are on offer that night. Every couple weeks or so, they feature a wine flight by a particular vineyard with the winemaker there to talk about their particular offerings. This place is reasonably priced.

Finally, if you're simply looking to grab a pitcher, catch the game, and snack on some mini tacos or hot dogs, then Beale Street Bar & Grill (no website - 133 Beale Street) is your spot. They have great deals during happy hour. They always have the games on (this was definitely World Cup HQ this past summer). And the people who work there are very friendly. So are the prices.