What is WC04? Tomorrow we celebrate Black queer music and art in the Bay
In addition to our weekly show recs, check out two new rock full-lengths: a punkish one by Bay punks Marbled Eye and a jangly indie one by R.E. Seraphin
WC04 is the fourth event in a series by White Crate, where one of our favorite Bay Area artists fully envisions and curates a showcase of live performers, DJs, vendors, and more. Previous event curators were James Wavey, Mae Powell, and Dani Offline.
The next event, WC04, is curated by 7000COILS, a nexus of Blackness, queerness, and wellness. Hear what Lalin St Juste (co-founder of 7000COILS) had to say about their picks for the live performers at this event.
— White Crate
VISCERAL PUNK INTENSITY
“We all grew up on various strains of guitar music, dance, and hip hop, I guess when you smash all these things together, the common denominator is there’s always gotta be a hard-driving rhythm and a visceral intensity that people can hopefully latch onto–no matter how it’s manifested sonically.” — Michael Lucero
Even though it’s made for and by a generation of genre-agnostic music fans, Read the Air doesn’t deviate from its post-punk sonic palette. And that’s a good thing. Marbled Eye’s influences are there though, and it comes through the punchy drum beats and fills, the drawling depressed vocals, and the spacious, alternately vicious and tinkling guitars and bass.
This is Oakland punk, and it’s been Oakland punk for awhile: Marbled Eye’s quartet is made up of Chris Natividad (also of Public Interest), Michael Lucero, Ronnie Portugal (founder of Digital Regress label), and Alex Shen (founder and manager of the online radio station Lower Grand Radio). Released by Summer Shade and Digital Regress, Read the Air is the second full-length album by Marbled Eye—and it’s one of the tightest punk productions to come out of the Bay this year.
Pre-order the LP from Summer Shade.
— Ronny Kerr
HEADBOPPING JANGLE POP
“After playing in scrappy garage rock bands for over a decade, I’m drawn to more refined musicianship.” — R.E. Seraphin
The latest from Oakland’s Take a Turn—which in the past year has released albums by Al Harper, Burner Herzog, and Katsy Pline—is Fool’s Mate, the second full-length by R.E. Seraphin. A steady march of kick and snare starts the album and rarely lets up, as Seraphin drives forward a head bopping indie pop record for the jangle heads. It’s not all lyrically led, as best indicated by the jammy instrumental track “Somnia,” but Seraphin’s hushed vocals largely predominate otherwise, singing about love and life while alluding to “skin, sweat, teeth, and breath” to suggest “something more ominous.”
Featuring bandmates that play in several other local greats (Sob Stories, Body Double, Reds, Pinks, & Purples, Chime School, Extra Classic) as well as multiple contributions by local artists Owen Adair Kelley, Hannah Moriah, Yea-Ming Chen, and Anna Hillburg, Fool’s Mate is another bright star in the constellation of Bay Area indie rock.
— Ronny Kerr
SHOW RECS
Our top show recommendations for the coming week:
[alternative] Perhapsy (album release), Bad Tiger, Sarah Coolidge — Mar 29 at Santo
[club] Fake and Gay 6-Year Anniversary — Mar 29 at 1015 Folsom
[ambient] Ambient Awakening ft. Soulbeams, MutorSoundsystem, Matt Sussman, Raven — Mar 30 at DM Cone Shape Top for addy
[club] DJs Keishaboy, Tomu, 40 Split, Yungeradrian — Mar 30 at Thee Stork Club
[experimental] WC04 ft. Blu Moon x Lalin St. Juste, Mahawam, Zero Charisma, DPNY, Eartha Kunt, GHOSTMiLK, KKINGBOO, Madre Guía — Mar 30 at El Rio
[electronic] Hectorine, Plattenbau, W.O.E. — Mar 30 at Joaquin Miller Redwoods
[experimental] KMRU, Amma Ateria — Mar 30 at the Lab
[rock] Tay and the JangLahDahs (album release) — Mar 30 at the Starry Plough
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