Comments (0) Q&A: Anthony Bedard, Hemlock Tavern Live Music Booker - 2010
By Jennifer Maerz
Photograph by Julie Michelle
What are all the bands you've been in over the years?
Going back to 1989, my first band in San Francisco was Icky Boyfriends. Then I went on to play in Leather Uppers, Resineators, the Roofies, Mr. & Mrs. & Mr. Evil, Mr. & Mr. & Mr. & Mr. & Mr. Evil, Fisherman's Famous San Francisco Burlesque, Bride of Ozzy, and the mercifully short-lived Pro Gear/Pro Attitude (with Utrillo Kushner). Currently playing in Hank IV.
What are some attributes you're going to acquire if you live here long enough?
A [lack of] interest in seasonal weather and an opinion about Burning Man.
When did you move to San Francisco?
I moved to San Francisco after college in Boston and have been here for 20-plus years now. Currently residing in the Lower Haight.
What's the best thing about your neighborhood?
I moved three months ago, after 15 years in Upper Market/Castro. It's just one neighborhood over, but much quieter than living right on Market Street. Instead of the F-Market going by and the teeth-rattling techno soundtrack to all-you-can-drink-Korbel brunches, it's now the quiet surf of skateboards and bicycles. There are better restaurants close by, and I'm right on the main bike path for rides out to the beach several days a week.
What's the worst thing that's happened to you on the streets of San Francisco?
Someone tried to talk me into booking their thrash-funk metal band in front of my parents.
What's your favorite place to be alone in the city?
Riding my bike around Lands End or being at the Hemlock for a "free jazz" show.
What or who do you think of as a very San Francisco band/artist?
Snakefinger.
When you're not at your own club, what's your favorite place to see music?
The Hollywood Bowl.
What local band is doing the best at the Hemlock right now?
The Baths and Dadfag are killing it. So are the Mantles, Hunx and His Punx, Brilliant Colors, Barn Owl, Clipd Beaks, Shannon and the Clams, Young Prisms, and comedian Chris Thayer.
What's something happening in the local music scene that you're particularly excited about?
A resurgence in bands that can count to four.
What drives you crazy about San Francisco?
That even with all these burrito parlors, there's still a lack of good Tex-Mex.
What's the most interesting thing about Polk Street these days?
Miller's East Coast West Deli.
What's something that will forever be an element of the San Francisco music scene?
Costumes. That, and the fact that San Francisco will always be an archipelago of microscenes.
What has the local music scene lost over the years?
Good old-fashioned self-hatred.
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