It’s back and sporting some kickass line-ups for this year. Tonight kicked off the San Francisco side of the festival with shows at The Makeout Room, Café Du Nord, and The Knockout. The festival itself was created in 1996 and has since hosted the likes of Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart, Deerhoof, The Dodos, Kelley Stoltz, Thee Oh Sees, and Vetiver. This year is no exception. So to kick off this little festival, we decided to name our top five favorite artists on the bill (one of which performed last night, sorry Rykarda). So if you aren’t going to this Friday’s Snob Theater; the only excuse I will accept is, “I was at Mission Creek Festival rocking out to Grand Lake!”
#5 – Lau Nau
A singer-songwriter and musician from Helsinki, Finland; Lau Nau is going to be a real treat to witness. Known for her free-form improvisational ambient-folk, Lau channels the lighter side of Grouper, which in all honesty, is pretty freakin’ dark.
Lau Nau will be at Amnesia Bar with Tecumseh, Myrmyr, and T.I.T.S. on Thursday from 9:00pm – 1:00am.
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[mp3] Lau Nau – Ruususuu from Nukkuu (2008)
#4 – Ganglians
An experience both live and on record, is beyond psychedelic. They traverse into a whole ‘nother realm of other worldly sounds, choruses, reverb, and hip driven pop. When it comes down to it, Ganglians is indescribable (yeah I know I just described them).
Ganglians will be at McLaren Park on Saturday somewhere between 11:00am – 6:00pm.
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[mp3] Ganglians – Valient Brave from Monster Head Room (2010)
#3 – The Fresh & Onlys
Our own The Fresh & Onlys are more than a psych-pop band, they understand the importance of a dark atmosphere while still maintaining a sense of expansion. They create literate, atmospheric, moody, trashy post-punk music that recalls ’80s faves the Psychedelic Furs. And this is definitely a good thing.
The Fresh & Onlys will be at McLaren Park on Saturday somewhere between 11:00am – 6:00pm.
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[mp3] The Fresh & Onlys – Invisible Forces from Grey-Eyed Girls (2009)
#2 – Rykarda Parasol
Always an incisive lyricist, the eloquent singer-songwriter further hones her wordplay to a razor-sharp edge. Rykarda Parasol subjects are so adroitly sliced and diced that little blood is shed, though they’re permanently cut down to size. The syncopated, bluesy melodies and strong ensemble of musicians make for a polished effort, and Parasol’s gimlet eye doesn’t miss much. Plus it’s always a treat to witness her play guitar (it’s kind of hot too).
Rykarda Parasol performed at Cafe du Nord last night with Kevin Junior and Mark Matos & Os Beaches.
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[mp3] Rykarda Parasol – Covenant from For Blood and Wine (2009)
#1 – Grand Lake
It may not be a huge surprise that we have a mega hard-on for this band. Not only did their debut album receive an A- from us, but we also hosted the band at our own Snob Theater May showcase. A deeply original and personal band, make some of the catchiest, most confident rock ‘n’ roll of any group in the Bay Area. Their debut full-length Blood Sea Dream is nothing short of a sprawling, exhilarating, filler-free album of keenly focused artistic vision and ambition.
Grand Lake will be with Parenthetical Girls, The Lambs, and LENS at the Eagle Tavern on Saturday at 9pm.
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[mp3] Grand Lake – Spark from Blood Sea Dream (2010)