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Before hitting the sundry of top-notch hilarity littering San Francisco during the 7th Annual SF Sketchfest - i.e., the sad clowns making funny - be sure to stop by tonight's opening party. No really, it's well worth the price of admission. And then some. They have Aimee Mann, Kristen Schaal (aka the girl from Flight of the Conchords), Paul F. Tompkins, Todd Barry, Rhys Darby, and DJs Skip & Shindog on-hand to perform. Plus, you'll have the chance to get wasted near other comedic types. And as we all know, alcoholism runs wild within the bloodstreams of stand-up comedians. Amateur night for substance abusers and comics this is not. more ›

-- Aimee Mann's Second Annual Christmas Show: Paul F. Tompkins, Sean Hayes, Chuck Prophet, and Morgan Murphy join the delightfully blond songstress for a night of holiday warm fuzzies. Because X-Mas is coming and there's no way around it, come catch this wonderful singer/songwriter during the, um, recording-a-holiday-album period of her career. Show starts at 8 p.m. at Bimbo's 365; $35.50. more ›

It's been a few months since we raved about Ratatat and gave away their CD, so we figure it's time again to extol their greatness. Like we said last time, RATATAT's music is so melodic, varied and compelling that it makes vocals and lyrics seem superfluous. The Brooklyn duo expertly mixes snakey synth lines with sneering guitar, cello, sleigh bells and samples like the appropriately primal roar in "Wildcat". File under: Things That Make You Go "ROWR!" more ›

We were treated to performances on Monday night at the Palace of Fine Arts by Zach Rogue, Dave Eggers, Mark Kozelek, Sarah Vowell and Patton Oswalt (also the host), and Aimee Mann, during Bookeaters, a benefit for 826 Writing Centers nationwide. more ›

Our concert picks for the week of 8/11 - 8/17. more ›

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