Hitting the MAN-sion for Playboy

Led by local popster Bart Davenport, Berkeley's Honeycut will drop its debut on DJ Shadow's Quannum Projects label at the end of September: an excellent endorsement for a new group. The CD, The Day I Turned To Glass,is credibly eclectic without coming off disjointed as the band flirts with quirky hip-hop loops and balances on the edge of rock and soul. Watch it all make perfect sense live as the trio performs alongside locals Nino Moschella, Rapatron, and DJ Kitty (KALX) on Thursday, Aug. 31, at the Rickshaw Stop at 8p.m. Admission is $8; call 861-2011 or visit www.rickshawstop.com for more info.

New Jersey-born and New York-styled, music vet Junior Sanchez is the secret weapon of indie rock stars wanting to get more dancefloor-accessible with one of his potent electro-funk remixes (ask Bloc Party and Gorillaz). As a DJ he can also astutely connect the dots between the last 30-some-odd years of party jams — everything from Stevie Wonder to Ministry. Locals Kaskade and Paradise Boys will help Sanchez to celebrate BPM Culture Magazine's 10th birthday on Thursday, Aug. 31, at Mezzanine at 9 p.m. Admission is free by RSVP (email guestlist@nitevibe.com); call 625-8880 or visit www.mezzaninesf.com for more info.

The inconceivable happened when Ryan Robles and Juanita MORE! teamed up to turn a simple Saturday at the Stud into something rare and extraordinary: They got the gays to dress up for "Playboy," a new bimonthly that promises sophistication minus irony or pretension. Revamping the fading SOMA venue into a "MANsion," the duo added chandeliers and curtains while stripping the lousy house music to promote a chic and sexually charged atmosphere à la the amber-hued days before Internet sex sites. The butlers who roam the party have also been known to dole out shots on the dancefloor to the thirsty crowd. (Take note, club promoters: This is called hosting. Learn it.) DJs Saratonin and Ryan Poulsen pump out electro pop, disco breaks, hip hop, and — yay! — classic arena rock. Playtime starts this Saturday, Sept. 2, at the Stud at 10 p.m. Admission is $8; call 863-6623 for more info.