The lovely local ladies in Von Iva are gearing up to release a brand new CD called Our Own Island. They're doing their part to heat up the chilly San Francisco summer by having a special CD release party on August 4th at 12 Galaxies (in addition to tomorrow's party at the Blank Club in San Jose). They promise a bikini bonanza (use your imagination) so risque that you have to be over 18 to get in. Don't worry, they'll make sure your beer stays chilled by offering special "I Partied with Von Iva" cozies, which is possibly the best merch item we've heard of all year. We're giving one lucky winner a copy of the brand new CD and a beer cozy of their very own. Listen to the new single "Lala" and enter to win (contest ends July 31st; winner will be notified via email.)

How 'bout them Cardinals? Ryan Adams was in town this week, and he evidently brought two very different moods to the San Francisco and Berkeley shows. We were at the Herbst Theatre show and were completely loving the setup: 8pm show time, gorgeous theater, front row seats on the second level for perfect sound quality. Ryan and his magnificent band The Cardinals were set up for an acoustic show, with all six members lined up across the stage in an arc and Ryan tucked in modestly on the left side. Ryan sang beautifully, sometimes playing acoustic guitar and sometimes not, and The Cardinals backed him up on piano, acoustic guitar, acoustic bass, steel guitar and a tastefully modest set of drums. Together they made music that was bigger than just the six of them; we especially enjoyed their vocal harmonies when two, three or four band members joined Ryan to make choir-sized sounds.

The set lasted two hours, with a brief intermission in between, and musically it's among one of the best shows we've seen this year. The only disappointment was the fact that Ryan hardly spoke five words to the crowd the entire evening. At one point toward the end an optimistic woman in the audience yelled out, "Ryan, what did you do in San Francisco today?" and was met with dead silence. Awkward! It was a little off-putting and created tension in an otherwise terrific show. In contrast, the Berkeley show was electric and this account of it paints Ryan out to be talkative and gregarious. Well, at least they're not phoning in the same routine every night.

Click below for show recommendations, music videos and big love for Hall & Oates.

This week's show recommendations: Tonight we'll be at Swedish Hall to see Eisley return for a special acoustic tour. The talented young family band from Tyler, Texas, is back with a new album, Combinations, out August 14th. On Friday, Honeycut play the Dark Matters opening party at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. The action-packed dance party called Three Kinds of Stupid is back with Music For Animals, The Airborne Toxic Event, DJ Brother Grimm and DJ Trev at Rickshaw Stop. The Smashing Pumpkins are still playing at the Fillmore. Could it be the longest residency ever?

On Saturday, M.I.A. is still around with a sold out show at Rickshaw Stop, or head to the Hemlock to see The Finches. At Cafe Du Nord, Jackpot play songs from their wonderful CD Moonbreath with Ray's Vast Basement and Harbours.

On Monday, the legendary all-female punk band The Slits tear the roof off the Independent with openers The Icarus Line. Hear the deep honky-tonk croon of Austin Music Hall of Fame inductee Dale Watson at 12 Galaxies with opener Toshio Hirano. Watch this hotel room rendition of Watson's "From the Cradle to the Grave":

Also on Monday, we'll be at Cafe Du Nord to see the fantastical folk of England's Bat For Lashes. Frontwoman Natasha Khan is part sorceress, part wood nymph, and can rock a golden headband with aplomb. She backs up her impeccable style with her music's bewitching substance. We highly recommend checking out their Fur and Gold album as well as watching their creative videos. Here's the video for "Prescilla":

And on Wednesday night, we couldn't be more thrilled to see Daryl Hall and John Oates at the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre. It's Hall & Oates, people. You can check out this recent clip from Fox News to witness Daryl Hall's still-lustrous blond locks and hear him talk about the good ol' days and still being a well-paid legend, but we really recommend watching this genius video for "She's Gone" featuring perhaps the most brilliantly unenthusiastic performance we've ever seen.