Rifle Through Garbage

Think of this weekend’s Total Trash Fest as the kid sibling of Budget Rock, the Bay Area’s longstanding, annual garage-punk marathon. This cluster of shows hosts many of the same raw ’tudes and tunes as its Budget brethren. Organizing band the Rock N’ Roll Adventure Kids booked Thee Parkside, the Knockout, and a couple off-the-record gigs with lots of raucous talent, pooling shows with the Pets, the Flakes, the Lateenos, Hunx and His Punx, Nobunny, and Thee Oh Sees (who play with the Adventure Kids on May 4 alongside Italian blooze-a-billy band Movie Star Junkies), among others. Tonight’s show is the pièce de trashsistance, though. Seattle’s old-school, cheaply costumed synth punks the Spits lord over a lineup that includes local greasers Personal and the Pizzas, two bands that mix biker looks with bonehead punch lines. The Spits have a particularly awesome blend of the crusty and the clever, as one listen to popular pit anthems like “Let Us Play Your Party” and “Take Back the Alley” proudly display.

The Total Trash Weekend kickoff with the Spits, Personal and the Pizzas, the Ebonics, Culture Kids, and Wild Thing starts 9 p.m. at Thee Parkside, 1600 17th St. (at Wisconsin), S.F. Admission is $10; call 252-1330 or visit www.theeparkside.com.
May 1-4, 2009