"The Bay is a magnet in strange turmoil. Natural magic, gripped too tight." New interviews with Everyone Is Dirty, The Breathing Room, Marika Christine, and Arts and Crafts
Ahead of WC02, a curated party by Mae Powell in collaboration with White Crate, explore interviews, photos, and playlists of the Bay Area artists performing
Ambient Grace - just two words that completely embody warmth and comfort in an otherwise cold and dissonant world. Wrap yourself up in that concept at Grace Cathedral tonight - As You Like It presents a special night of live ambient techno in heavenly surroundings with rEAGANZ, Cahl Sel, and Davis Grunzweig. Additionally, Zachary Rodell will enliven the space with lush visual textures.
rEAGANZ has a very local connection - made up of legends David Moufang aka Move D and Jonah Sharp (now an SF resident) aka Spacetime Continuum. They recorded their first album together, entitled 'Reagenz' in both San Francisco and David's native Heidelberg, Germany in 1994 after meeting before an early Autechre show in San Francisco. Should be a warm embrace from the heavens.
And then you know what to do tomorrow afternoon:
WC02 is the second in a quarterly party series presented by White Crate and curated by Bay Area artists. Mae Powell—generous spirit, jazz pixie, psychedelic indie folk chanteuse, and the Bay's rainbow-embodied ambassador of peace and magic—has put together an incredible lineup featuring live performances by Everyone is Dirty, The Breathing Room, Marika Christine, and Arts and Crafts - plus DJ Stanley Ipkuss.
Read on for interviews with all the artists plus a collaborative playlist.
— Elliot Engel
“THE BAY IS A MAGNET IN STRANGE TURMOIL. NATURAL MAGIC GRIPPED TOO TIGHT”
Y’all are sleeping on East Bay band Everyone is Dirty, and if you come out tomorrow you’re about to have a rude awakening. And about damn time! Expect a velvet hammer to the face. Expect melody upon melody layered over lush baroque pop. Expect to find your new favorite band. Hard to categorize and impossible to define, Everyone is Dirty brings their dreamy and grungy brand of art rock across the bay for an evocative closing set at our party tomorrow evening.
“THE BAY IS A PLACE THAT ENCOURAGES OPEN-MINDEDNESS”
Easy does it. Good words to live by, and if you need help embodying that ethos, then you should check out The Breathing Room. Their music glides from genre to genre, nodding to jazz and soul from the past while splitting the difference between modern indie and psychedelic music. The Berkeley band will be playing this Saturday at our party, so daytrip with us under the bright skies.
“PLAYING WHATEVER FEELS RIGHT”
God, I love stone fruit season! Some people call it summer but it’s not summer until you bite into your first ripe apricot. There’s nothing as refreshing - that is until you meet Marika Christine or listen to her album Soft Like an Apricot. Gentle, breezy, poetic, her tender vocal-led folk rock brings visions of Janis Joplin to mind. And if you come to our party this weekend, you’re in for a real treat as Marika will be performing live under our nectarine tree.
“WE DEFINITELY LOOK TO INSTRUMENTAL BANDS FOR INSPIRATION”
I’m not saying you’ll need an edible, but it sure wouldn’t hurt to nibble on that mushroom chocolate before SF/Oakland band Arts and Crafts kicks off WC02. We loved their album Petrolia from earlier this year - a sweet wiggly piece suspended somewhere between the coolness of Khruangbin and the zany desert wanderings of King Gizzard. Their unique soulful instrumental psychedelic sound feels like a walk on the beach, and will definitely get the party started - and what a party it’ll be.
LISTEN TO THE WC02 PLAYLIST
SHOW RECS
Our top show recommendations for the coming week:
[ambient] Reagenz, Cahl Sel, David Grunzweig — July 7 at Grace Cathedral
[folk] Mae Powell, Cooper Wolken, Judith Horn, Asha Wells — July 7 at Martial Arts
[club] Squish 4 Year Anniversary ft. Batu, Laurel Halo — July 7 at F8
[rock] Credit Electric, Big Search, Holy Matter, Asha Wells — July 8 at 2125 13th Ave, Oakland
[rock] Sugar Candy Mountain, Mild Universe — July 8 at the Chapel
[rock] WC02 curated by Mae Powell ft. Everyone Is Dirty, The Breathing Room, Marika Christine, Arts and Crafts — July 8 at DM for location
[latin] Pete Escovedo — July 7-8 at Freight & Salvage
[hip hop] Luniz, Dregs One, Nef the Pharaoh, Mac Mall — July 9 at the Midway
[r&b] Hot Summer Nights ft. TLC, Shaggy, En Vogue — July 9 at Concord Pavilion
[rock] Tommy Guerrero, Ritmos Tropicosmos — July 13 at California Academy of Sciences