Email Author Sam Prestianni

2005 Stories by Sam Prestianni

• Mat Maneri

  published December 14, 2005

  On his most ambitious album to date, renowned forward-jazz violinist Mat Maneri directs some of the headiest, head-spinning music of the year, and... More >>

• Get your improvisational noise on with the "Jyrk Jamboree"; get your Mexicali rock on with Los Lobos

  published December 14, 2005

  For fans of psychedelically experimental sound, the "Jyrk Jamboree," which hits the Hemlock Tavern on Wednesday, Dec. 14, looks to be an... More >>

• The Blind Boys of Alabama

  published December 7, 2005

  Even though the Blind Boys of Alabama have been performing in one incarnation or another since the 1940s, their approach to the gospel tradition... More >>

• Jelly Roll Morton

  published November 30, 2005

  Hearing jazz pioneer Jelly Roll Morton give Scott Joplin's classic "Maple Leaf Rag" a swinging makeover is just one of the many pleasures found in... More >>

• Freakwater

  published November 30, 2005

  Freakwater mines a downtempo, Southern Gothic vibe that can chill you to the marrow, like that god-awful feeling you get in your bones when you... More >>

• The Caged Bird Sings

  published November 23, 2005

  You've no doubt heard the controversy: After previewing early demos, produced by sound whiz Jon Brion, of broody pop chanteuse Fiona Apple's third... More >>

• Department of What the Fuck?

  published November 23, 2005

  Despite her conservative public persona, Martha Stewart is an alternative hipster. She's a convicted felon with legit street cred (she's done more... More >>

• Spotlight Reviews

  published November 23, 2005

  Electronic music is often a chilly affair, a cerebral-techie exercise that tends to be more fun for the composer/performer, who thrills to the... More >>

• Highly evolved goth rockers Current 93; OG sax addict Ornette Coleman

  published November 2, 2005

  Industrial-goth legends Current 93 are playing just two gigs in the United States this year, and both of them are going down right here.... More >>

• Dave Douglas soundtracks Fatty Arbuckle, Jen Leckman impersonates Stephin Merritt.

  published October 26, 2005

  The second release from acclaimed trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas on his recently launched Greenleaf Music label is Keystone, a... More >>

• Jimi Eat World Saxophone Quartet

  published October 19, 2005

  It's no wonder Jimi Hendrix killed himself with excess. His mercurial rise to fame and its debilitating pressures proved to be more than he could... More >>

• Calexico/Iron & Wine

  published October 19, 2005

  This DIY release of In the Reins makes it official: Lite rock is the new indie cool. The seven-song collaboration between Tucson's... More >>

• Chewy Marzolo's b-day and bands, Heavy Trash's wretched rock, and the return of goth pinups Bauhaus

  published October 19, 2005

  Chewy Marzolo has to be one of the most versatile percussionists working in San Francisco. He's been a fixture in the rock scene here for nearly... More >>

• Ivo Papasov and Yuri Yunakov

  published October 12, 2005

  The reunion of world-renowned Romani (Gypsy) instrumentalists Ivo Papasov (clarinet), Yuri Yunakov (saxophone), Neshko Neshev (accordion), and... More >>

• Dios (malos) drops dream pop at the Great American, and the experimental Fog City thrill ride that is Eddie the Rat

  published October 12, 2005

  Dios (malos), the South L.A. quintet formerly known simply as dios, has spent the last few years fielding cease-and-desist letters from... More >>

• Jazz cats the Dead Kenny G's stick it to everyone's favorite wuss; DMBQ drops a bluster-bomb on 12 Galaxies

  published October 5, 2005

  Kenny G is the most reviled composer in contemporary instrumental music. A bombastic performer who can barely play his soprano sax beyond a... More >>

• Shades of Bluegrass

  published September 28, 2005

  Bluegrass is one of those slippery genres born in the rich, dark loam of Rural Americana. You could call it the bastard child of the Grand Ole... More >>

• Kronos Quartet and Asha Bhosle

  published September 14, 2005

  It's ironic that the big zinger for Kronos Quartet's latest CD -- teaming up with famed "Queen of Bollywood" vocalist Asha Bhosle -- is actually... More >>

• P Is for Paradox

  published September 7, 2005

  If George Clinton and Parliament/ Funkadelic are indisputably the Afro-powered party band of all time, then why do their audiences tend to... More >>

• KAH Boom

  published August 17, 2005

  Too often, debates about what is or isn't hip hop serve little purpose beyond boxing in artists and polarizing listeners, most of whom are fine... More >>

• Marc Ribot, Roy Campbell, Henry Grimes, Chad Taylor

  published August 10, 2005

  Marc Ribot is the postmodern guitarist. From crusty garage rock to graceful classical, sculpted white noise to sultry Afro-Cuban... More >>

• Hear This

  published July 27, 2005

  Though this show is billed as "The 3rd Annual Rare Groove Revival," the phrase "rare groove" might be a bit misleading to the... More >>

• Gabby La La

  published July 20, 2005

  Produced by Primus frontman Les Claypool for his Prawn Song label, this stunning CD debut by eccentric 25-year-old multi-instrumentalist Gabby La... More >>

• Rosin Coven

  published June 29, 2005

  Rosin Coven is so Berkeley. With its penchant for puppetry, glamorous stage garb, ultra-exuberant theatricality, and endearing quirks... More >>

• Charles Lloyd

  published June 22, 2005

  Saxophonist Charles Lloyd is on a tear. Since 1999, he has released a string of albums that consistently rank among the best jazz titles of the... More >>