Kim Gordon, “The Collective.” The second solo album by Kim Gordon, The Collective, is a little like the beginning of Charles Dickens’ “A Tale of Two Cities,” as it sounds like both the best of times and the worst of times. The Collective Kim Gordon Matador, March 8 9/10 Get…

Taj Mahal, “Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa.” Like the palace in India, musician Taj Mahal has been around for awhile. The bluesman, born Henry St. Claire Fredericks, Jr. is, in fact, a national treasure who should be as revered here as his namesake palace halfway around the…

André 3000 performs at Bimbo’s 365 Club in San Francisco on Feb. 20, 2024. Courtesy Stephanie Port. SAN FRANCISCO — “I never thought I’d be onstage playing flutes,” André 3000 told the audience two thirds of the way through his early show at The Independent on Saturday. After a moment…

Ty Segall performs at Starline Social Club in Oakland on Jan. 14, 2020. Karen Goldman/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — “Give a warm welcome to our new drummer, Evan Burrows,” Ty Segall told the assembled crowd at Great American Music Hall Tuesday night. Segall and his Freedom Band weren’t just debuting…

J Mascis, “What Do We Do Now.” There’s a special kind of yearning found in only the best of love letters: short vague sentences, pregnant with meaning, written to be read over and over again like a magical incantation. “Wish you were here,” “Thinking of you,” “You’re living all…

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog hosts quiz show “Let’s Make a Poop!” with Michael Winslow, Adam Savage, Rob Schneider, “Weird Al” Yankovic, Thomas Lennon, Amber Ruffin and Dave Hill during SF Sketchfest at Castro Theatre in San Francisco on Jan. 21, 2024. Courtesy Jakub Mosur. SAN FRANCISCO — Triumph…

Ty Segall, “Three Bells.” No matter how intensely we try to imagine the future, tomorrow is always a little weirder than we envision. Our predictions are scuttled by unforeseen events and circumstances both great and inconsequential. Rock and roll has consistently outmaneuvered its supposed prognosticators, and no one grunging…

The Smile (Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood and Tom Skinner), “Wall Of Eyes.” The collaboration between Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood with Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner checked all the boxes on the debut album by The Smile, 2022’s A Light For Attracting Attention. It had cool retro…

One of the many rehearsal spaces at Music City San Francisco. Courtesy. Following a $20-million revamp, Music City San Francisco has opened and is offering free time at its rehearsal rooms through Friday, Jan. 19. The “Star Factory,” a 29,000-square-foot space at 1353 Bush St. in downtown San Francisco,…

Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew perform during Mill Valley Music Festival at Friends Field in Mill Valley, Calif. on May 14, 2023. Courtesy. SAN FRANCISCO — With nearly a dozen musicians onstage, Talking Heads co-founder Jerry Harrison and guitar hero Adrian Belew‘s Remain in Light touring band got seriously…