A stellar lineup of musicians, rare shorts weather, food vendors and — of course — the crowds. Here's a quick look at what you're missing in Golden Gate Park this afternoon. more ›

Here's a tune that's a few years old from a band/collective we've always loved, Broken Social Scene. They'll be here in S.F. this weekend performing for free (you may have heard) at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and thus they'll be one of several acts you'll likely want to get up close to see but won't unless you stake out your claim on some grass around 8 a.m. more ›

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, the yearly 3-day free music festival in Golden Gate Park's Speedway Meadow has announced their lineup for this year's event set to take place Friday, September 30th to Sunday, October 2nd. Some of the usual suspects like Robert Plant, Emmylou Harris, Bela Fleck and Kris Kristofferson will be returning, banjos in hand. But as with every year, the lineup isn't strictly limited to the twangy genre (hence the name). A couple notable, non-bluegrass acts: Broken Social Scene, Kurt Vile & the Violators, MC Hammer (who does the yearly children's program) and Bright Eyes. The full, lengthy lineup below: more ›

Hey y'all! It's the 10th anniversary of the free concert that Warren Hellman built in Golden Gate Park, and the stars are coming out to celebrate — along with, easily, half of San Francisco. Yes, it's wildly crowded (because it's free), but as Warren pointed out this week, there's never been any violence or strife in the nine previous years, and it's usually just a glorious, tightly packed celebration of music, hardly strictly limited to country and bluegrass more ›

We would have taken some more closups of the artists, but you know what? It was pretty goddamn crowded out there at HSB this year! It was especially crowded come around 5:30 p.m. when Neko Case went on in Lindley Meadow, which was perhaps too small a venue for her when the show's free. We think maybe Mr. Hellman should consider just taking over the polo field next year, or not inviting such big names. But it was, if you could stake out a few feet of grass to call your own, a lovely couple of days. (Photos by SFist/Joey DeRuy and Generik11 on Flickr.) more ›

It's going to be a semi-warm weekend and just possibly (though we can't promise anything) it will be sunny in Golden Gate Park at least on Friday and Sunday, so the ninth annual Hardly Strictly Bluegrass promises to be as jammed packed with free music seekers as ever. The annual roots music fest is sponsored by local billionaire and banjo-player Warren Hellman, and once again this year features some big acts that fall into the "hardly strictly" area, like Aimee Mann, MC Hammer, Okkervil River and Marianne Faithfull as well as a whole bunch of down-home American banjoin' and fiddlin'. It takes place in the Speedway and Lindley Meadows (basically the same grounds as Outside Lands, minus the Polo Field). And did we mention it's completely free? Below, a few quick recommendations. more ›

Again this week, our concert preview is being brought to you by Kevin Meenan of Epicsauce, who provides concert listings for Bay Area venues in a neat, easy format each week. Follow Epicsauce on Twitter.
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This year's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, the other annual multi-day concert in Golden Gate Park, will feature none other than Steve Martin performing with the Steep Canyon Rangers. Yay, celebrities! They make everything better. Other musicians of note? Neko Case, Marianne Faithfull, Boz Scaggs, Emmylou Harris, and many,many more. Check out www.strictlybluegrass.com for a complete list of scheduled performers. The concerts happens October 2, 3, 4. more ›

The Chronicle couldn't. And neither could we. That is, until we read today's most awesome "Corrections" on SFGate. more ›

Augie March, looking a bit haggard - maybe a little drunk, performed their second set of the day - earlier they made an appearance at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival at Golden Gate Park. This didn't stop the Melbourne based band from rocking out their eclectic mix of music at Slim's on Friday night. Their music ranges from pop in "One Crowded Hour" to folk in "Bottle Baby" then jumps head first into the... more ›

November 2004 - September 2007 more ›

Last week's winner, the deceptive SF Weekly. Letters abound, either outraged by the fake Barry Bonds story or entertained by the elk. Why don't the negative letters have the names of the authors? Are you now questioning all the journalism you read in the Weekly now, or did you just think it was a good joke? Matt Smith says Gavin Newsom is supporting a cult. No, not the cult of Gavin, though no doubt Gavin supports that too. Cover article: a family that's had two kids shot near the Sunnyvale housing project. It's a really interesting story! This weekend alone: Litquake, the Zine Fest, and Tease-O-Rama. It's good to live in SF! Meredith isn't so happy with an appetizer bar; SFist Ced isn't so happy with Meredith! Mercredi, C'est Ravioli will continue!!!! Yay! Recent disaster concerts in the Bay Area -- at least Lady Sovereign and Lauryn Hill showed up, unlike MF Doom. We liked Let's Get Killed's pensive mature tone about the tough times Rogue Wave's gone through, we really did. Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and the Bouncer deconstructs the dive bar. more ›

It's not too early to make plans for Halloween weekend, and if you want to make this year especially memorable, hop a plane to Las Vegas for the Vegoose Music Festival. It's an impressive lineup of tons of bands in one place: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Mars Volta, The Raconteurs, Cat Power and the Memphis Rhythm Band (we'll see about that), Gomez, Fiona Apple, Jenny Lewis, BRMC, and a bunch of those jammy/jazzy bands that people seem to like, including Widespread Panic, G. Love, MMW, and more. more ›

Last year's phenomenal lineup of the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival earned it one of our esteemed 'Fistie Awards for Best Musical Event, for being both amazing and free of charge. more ›

Were you among the tens of thousands who attended the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival this year? We cannot say enough good things about this event. If you're a fan of folk, Americana, country, bluegrass, or roots music of any ilk, you should have been at Golden Gate Park on September 30th and October 1st. This year's Hardly Strictly drew over 50 acts, most of which were headliners in their own right. Lucky for us, a friend of ours who was performing hooked us up with all access backstage passes, and we were able to witness how the vibe was as nice among the artists as it was among the crowd. more ›

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Amazing what getting in the wrong turning lane will do for you. After a movie at the Century 20 Daly City — about which theater, the less said, the better, but let's just note the presence of a half-dozen cop cars parked at the curb as like, a regular thing — we got into the far left lane and were shunted onto a road that led us past Val's Restaurant & Lounge, on Junipero Serra in Daly City. And seriously, with an old-skool neon sign like that outside, who could resist? We were instantly in restaurant-lust. But it was late and we still had a TiVo'd Yankees game to watch, so we passed it by. Couple nights later, after a beery afternoon at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival (Dolly Parton — she's sparkly!), we decided to hit Val's on the way home. more ›

How amazing is Dolly Parton? From "9 To 5" to "I Will Always Love You" and beyond, the woman has written a zillion classic songs and has sung them in a voice sweeter than any bird we've ever heard. Maybe it's her laugh, her over-the-top persona or just that she's been around so long, but Dolly is woven into the fabric of our musical memory. more ›