Each Tuesday we will feature new music that should (or whatever) be on your radar. Standouts: 1. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend: We've been spouting praise about Vampire Weekend's newest release since early December, when we heard their album for the first time. Since then, we've seen them live at The Independent, put them on our "Albums We're Looking Forward To in 2008" list and finally featured them (once again) in "This Week in Le......

A man in a black leather jacket carefully backs his Yamaha into one of the six motorcycle spaces on Haight at the corner of Shrader. He's here to see Pinback's in-store performance at Amoeba Music across the street later in the evening, but he's also pulled his bike into a world where the warm early evening air is alternately punctured by the scent of patchouli, McChickens, pee, and smoke from silly cigarettes. Plenty of off-street fee parking and reminders of the 1960s glory days are also available. Certain parts of Haight between Shrader and Stanyan have seen better commercial days – specifically, the shuttered and boarded Cala supermarket at its west end, and on a much lesser scale, the former home of taco/burrito retailer Chabela's at 1805 (dormant since the mid-'00s) – and there's no escaping the persistently suffocating sense of flower power and "revolution" around here anytime soon. (Kind bud?) The vibe on the block's sidewalks can be construed as seamy or circus-like (or perhaps both), depending upon one's tolerance for American Youth in Very Big Pants, or for politely deranged men pushing shopping carts and singing "COME TO AFRICA!!" at the top of their high-pitched lungs. But regardless of one's frame of reference, there's always a lot to take in down here in Amoeba Gulch....

Geek out! At Ask a Scientist SF, a monthly lecture slash happy hour with a guest speaker on some sciencey topic. This month's meet-up touches on everything you ever wanted to know about terra incognita, Antarctica, with Kurt Cuffey, a UC Berkeley professor of geography. Get there by 7pm to snag a beer and a seat. Axis Cafe, 1208 Eighth St., SF. If Le Tigre and The Shangri-Las had a British love child, it......

Before you bike to work on Thursday, brush up on your inner urban cyclist with a free bike clinic with tips on navigating through the city -- not to mention step-by-step instructions on how to fix a flat. Get there by 7 for the workshop. REI San Francisco, 840 Brannan, SF. Elegant illustrations by Bay Area residents Marci Washington and Michele Carlson are on display at Giant Robot SF, 618 Shrader. After checking out the......

Dave Eggers and Vendela Vita are rumored to have reproduced, and to have named the girl October Eggers Vida. We're thinking that the sound of an oompah band or sight of lederhosen will make her reach for a xanax later in life. In other literary news, check out this response to a craiglist job listing. Hey, it's more than Calacanis pays! Jenguin has found the finished commercial that features all the superballs released on......