Chase Center in San Francisco on Sept. 10, 2019. Photo: Gary Chancer. Even from a purely logistical standpoint, Chase Center could not have asked for a better opening night when Metallica headlined alongside the San Francisco Symphony. Concerns about traffic and congestion seemed minimal. Whether non-attendees anticipated event traffic…

  Annual San Francisco street fair and music festival 20th Street Block Party will return to the Mission on Aug. 18, producers announced Thursday. The sixth annual event, organized by Noise Pop, will again benefit the Mission Language and Vocational School. Performers and vendors will be announced in the coming…

Blossoms may be one of the hardest-working bands in the business right now. The indie rock quintet from Stockport, a blue-collar city on the outskirts of Manchester, has been touring relentlessly since releasing their full-length self-titled debut album in 2016. The album, coincidentally, was the only one that held…

Noise Pop, the promoter of 20th Street Block Party, has announced the return of the annual San Francisco street fair and music festival. The event will return to the Mission on Aug. 19 and proceeds will once again benefit the Mission Language and Vocational School. Performers and vendors have yet…

Photos: Alessio Neri SAN FRANCISCO — London electronic trio The xx began its U.S. tour Saturday ( a show at Coachella the previous night notwithstanding) with the first of three shows at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium—expecting to draw around 25,000 of fans during the run—using a beautifully lit production and…

Photos: Johan Doornenbal SAN FRANCISCO — Arriving straight from SXSW with lots of  well-deserved hype, Vagabon outshined her headliner at Rickshaw Stop Thursday night. Cameroon-born producer and musician Lætitia Tamko, who plays under the moniker Vagabon, played nearly all of the songs off her debut, Infinite Worlds, some with just a guitar and synthpads.…

When Zucchero Fornaciari first visited the United States in 1984, the Italian musician was on the cusp of greatness in his native Italy. The singer-songwriter, now Italy’s most famous bluesman, was just beginning to blend the American genre into his own Mediterranean style. Zucchero 7:30 p.m., Sunday, March 19 The…

Photos: Jose Saucedo SAN FRANCISCO —  Canadian ‘world music’ band Delhi 2 Dublin brought a mixture of bhangra, electronica and hip-hop to The Independent Saturday, and along with it, a ton of energy and stage presence. Though the genre may confound indie rock fans, Delhi 2 Dublin easily crossed that bridge at…

With a new album, Foxygen also bring a new sound. Wearing their oldies influence on their sleeves, Foxygen ditches the ’70s psychedelia and strikes for an even older vein: ’60s baroque-pop. Similar to Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys, The Zombies and Scott Walker, Foxygen uses a wide array of instrumentation—mostly piano and…

Photos: Ian Young By all accounts 2016 was a shitty year. But amid the chaos were much needed distractions in the form of live music. This year I traveled to Iceland, Chicago, Indio, Los Angeles and Seattle to attend 110 shows and eight festivals, watching and photographing more than 250 bands. Here’s…