Screens tonight at 7:15 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. at the Red Vic; $5.50-8.

Update!: We accidentally screwed up our contest-o-meter, so we're embarrassed to say we're going to have to run the contest again! Sorry, sorry, sorry, APAture. Reenter away, and we'll pick a winner by mid-day tomorrow. more ›

-- New Pornographers: Yay, the New Pornographers! We heart them ever so. Seriously. Heart them yourselves tonight as they perform along with Lavender Diamond and Fancey at 8 p.m. at the Warfield, 982 Market; $25-27. more ›

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-- Barefoot Nellies: "The Bay Area's finest all-gal bluegrass band" headline at one of the Bay Area's finest bars, Amnesia, starting at 8:30 p.m., 853 Valencia; free. more ›

-- Writers With Drinks: Tonight Robert Mailer Anderson, writer and game designer Austin Grossman, Sheng Wang, Darieck Scott, and Dom Brassey read. 7 p.m. at the Make-Out Room, 3225 - 22nd; $3-$5. more ›

-- Writers With Drinks not only boasts an awesome substance-abuse party, but overlaps it with readings from some of your favorite local and national (that is to say, usually New York City- or LA-based) scribes and novelists. Who knew writers like to drink? more ›

a chance to help out Killing My Lobster? But of course! The Romane Event, the monthly music/film/comedy/spoken word event at the Make Out Room the last Wednesday of every month and hosted by Paco Romane, is a benefit for local comedy group Killing My Lobster, and will feature their sketches and movies tonight. Looks like fabulous fabulist Harmon Leon'll be there too! $7-15 sliding scale, 8 p.m., at the Make Out Room (3225 22nd, x Mission). more ›

with readings from the book, music, and a special Bloomsday feast at the Mechanics' Institute. 57 Post Street (x Market), $15, saloon opens 6:30, readings begin at 7:30. more ›

For a thorough sampling of the current Bay Area rock/indie/pop/folk scene, look no further than Penny Arcade, a monthly, semi-acoustic showcase hosted by one of the cities most likeable citizens, Raul Sanchez. For the past two years, Raul has regularly packed various venues, such as the Make-Out Room -- now the event's permanent home, Bottom of the Hill, and The Hotel Utah with bands and fans alike. Tonight, come celebrate Penny Arcade's Two-Year Anniversary at... more ›

Friend of SFist Charlie Anders reminds us that her nifty and unusual spoken-word group, Writers With Drinks, will be experiencing yet another stupendous explosion of literary greatness this Saturday, the 9th, from 7:30 to 9:30 at The Make Out Room. Presenters include: more ›

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Butoh dance is a post WWII form of modern Japanese performance art seen as a combination of dance, traditional Japanese theater, and mime, and which is described as provocative and shocking. Sounds like fun! The local Japanese dance group Theater of Yugen presents an evening of Butoh dance tonight, featuring nature-themed performances, along with music by new music ensemble the Nanos Operetta. 2840 Mariposa (between Florida and Alabama, near Project Artaud), 8 p.m., $15. more ›

Noise Pop announced their full line-up this week and it has us feeling a little dizzy with excitement. The fest's 15th anniversary kicks off on February 27th with a free Opening Night Event (lineup TBA), followed by highlights including Sebadoh performing with their original lineup and Roky Erickson of 13th Floor Elevators' first Bay Area show in 25 years. Read all about the events and performances and get your all-fest badge while they're still available. more ›

Starting next Wednesday, we're wishing the Rickshaw Stop a very Happy 3rd Anniversary! In the last three years the venue has presented shows with everyone from Jonathan Richman to Silversun Pickups and has hosted all manner of wacky special events. Our favorite memory was an early show by Phosphorescent, and a pretty fun time on New Year's Eve in '05. They're celebrating their anniversary with a three day festival featuring a different style of music each night, from singer-songwriter folk to pop to clubby dance-rock-electro. more ›

How do you feel about holiday music? We thought that KOIT started playing their 24/7 holiday programming a little early this year, but we do love randomly hearing Jose Feliciano's "Feliz Navidad" in our car. There are two holiday albums out this year that we've been enjoying. If you're a fan of Sarah McLachlan, you should buy her holiday album Wintersong. The CD has several traditional holiday tunes, but we were pleasantly surprised by a cover of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" and "Christmas Time Is Here". And while no cover of Joni Mitchell's "River" can really improve on the original, it was still a nice inclusion. The other Christmas collection we highly recommend is Sufjan Stevens' Songs for Christmas. For around twenty bucks, you get 5 CDs gorgeously packaged with stickers, a poster and a singalong book. That's over 42 Sufjan Christmas tunes. more ›

- free public lecture by Norwood Pratt (we don't know if he has a charming British accent, but with a name like that, he so should) hosted by the Book Club of California. Pratt talks tea history, literature and lore. He is currently compiling an Encyclopedia of Tea. Pratt's lecture is preceded by teatime from 5 to 7pm at 312 Sutter St., Suite 510 (at Bush). more ›

Saturday: We're hitting the Pandora's Trunk art and fashion event. Come by 916 Natoma (at 10th Street) between 1-7 p.m. for "handmade fashion goods, art, homemade truffles, and a deluxe spa and massage corner." See the entire lineup of vendors for this free event here. more ›

This week we're giving away a night of rock n' roll debauchery. more ›

Fill in your Wednesday so that every row, column, and 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9! Tonight: Local author ZZ Packer will be reading from her acclaimed short story collection, Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, at the SF Main Public Library. 6:30, in the lower level auditorium. After the reading, go hear another set of interconnected tales at the Make-Out Room as the band Deliver Me From Nowhere covers Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska, in track order. That show starts at 9. Thursday: Has anyone else seen this Dance Dance Revolution-type game where instead of dancing, you drum? Help us try and remember the name of that game as you attend the SF Conservatory of Music percussion department student recitals! Student Jamie Drake is performing for free at 8 pm in Hellman Hall (19th Street and Ortega). and Friday: It's the Exploratorium's opening night event for its show "Reconsidered Materials," and Elizabeth Hickok will be displaying her awesome San Francisco in Jello (tm), for one night only. Hickok makes a scale model of city scenes, then casts the buildings in gelatin, and then paints and lights it up. (See above.) The gelatin then falls apart. Event starts at 7. Picture of Alamo Square from LizHickok.com more ›

My Wednesday brings all the boys to the yard.... Tonight: The Make Out Room is dedicating tonight's PYT dance party to the memory of Sarah Tucker, who founded the monthly club event and was tragically killed in a hit-and-run bike accident two weeks ago. All proceeds will go to Uncommon Legacies, a group Tucker supported. Thursday: Take a private tour of the Contemporary Jewish Museum in support of its exhibition "Intersections: Reading the Space," an exploration of three women artists on faith, patriarchy, and collaboration. The centerpiece of the exhibition is a piece of cloth that the three artists, located around the globe, each worked on and passed along to the next. The museum's at 121 Steuart Street, call 415-292-1233 to register or for more information. and Friday: Stargazing! Bring binoculars and a red-colored flashlight (to preserve your night vision) to the SF Botanical Gardens tonight. Sunset is at 5:28 p.m., and the gazing begins at 6. They promise you that guide Bing Quock of the Morrison Planetarium will be able to point out sights like Saturn, Mars, and the Taurus constellation tonight, but we gotta say, the only one we can ever find is Orion. $8 members, $12 non, reservations appreciated at (415) 661-1316, meet at 5:45 outside the main gate. Picture of Sarah Tucker more ›

We saw the saddest obituary last week in the Chron, for the death of Sarah Tucker, a 26-year-old Mission resident who was killed in a hit-and-run bicycle accident on Polk and Geary Street on Thursday January 12. Witnesses reported seeing a black Honda CRV run a yellow light, and heard Tucker loudly shout "Hey!" before she was struck. The driver, reported to be an African-American man in his 40s, then turned off his headlights to hinder the reading of his license plate and drove away. Tucker, who was wearing her helmet, suffered severe head injuries and died shortly afterwards. Tucker, as she was known, was returning home from the Tango, Tango dance party when she was killed. Tucker was a fundraiser for the Cal Academy of Sciences by day and a filmmaker/DJ at night, volunteering for the SF Film Society, screening movies for the SF Int'l Film Fest, and running the Pretty Young Thing dance party at the Make-Out Room, among many other activities. As the obit says, "Sarah loved pugs, soul music, dancing, acronyms, sticky buns, fashion and aesthetics." If you see a black Honda CR-V with a large dent in its side on the passenger door, call SFPD Inspector Pat Tobin of the hit-and-run division at (415) 553-1641 or the confidential tip line (415) 575-4444. There's a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Please, folks, ride and drive safely out there. You probably love pugs and sticky buns too. more ›

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Most 2005 holiday parties and Top Ten lists have already come and gone, but here at SFist we like to procrastinate. Thankfully we can count on friends like Ted from BaGeL Radio who is going to spin at our holiday party (which hasn't even happened yet). Until we post our Top 10 of 2005 next week, check out what Ted had on heavy rotation this year and congratulate him on being voted on of SFBG's Best DJs of the Bay in 2005. more ›

Nobody puts Wednesday in a corner -- nobody! Today: Stumble on down 22nd Street and check out the Bay Guardian-awarded Best Comedian Paco Romane's Romane Event at the Make Out Room. Romane will duel it out with the SF Weekly's best comedian Will Franken, along with another comedic troupe, the Hurley Brothers (no doubt soon to become the EBX's best comedy troupe). They'll also be screening a movie by cartoonist Lev. $7, 8-10 p.m. Thursday: Lush romanticism and plush seats! Local classical cult leader Michael Tilson Thomas conducts the Brahms violin and cello concerto at 2 p.m. in Symphony Hall. Also, a flashy Liszt piece (is there any other kind?), nominally about Faust. Dedicated slackers, if you get there early, you can line up for the 40 tickets in the Center Terrace (behind second base, as it were), which go on sale 2 hours in advance for $15-20. After you get your ticket, go check out the free pre-show talk at 1 p.m. too. Friday: Support the developmentally disabled artists of Creativity Explored at their annual holiday art exhibition and sale. Opening reception goes from 6-9 at their store, on 16th Street right off Guerrero (right by Otsu). Picture of Paco Romane and Robin Williams from Free Dirt Media website more ›

Covering your entertainment scene for the rest of the work week! Tonight, Go check out Neil Strauss reading from his new book on picking up women, "The Game," and learn how you too can have Courtney Love crash on your couch for an indefinite period of time! 7:30 p.m. at the Marina Books Inc. (of course). Thursday, it's tiki night at the Make-Out Room! Hula dancing, tiki carving, tiki movies, and tiki art for sale. Polynesian merriment will abound! and Friday: fans of contemporary opera can whet their Doctor Atomic appetite and check out the premiere of the Oakland Opera's performance of La Belle et la Bete by Philip Glass. The opera's based on the Cocteau film, and the Oakland Opera is staging it as a circus performance. Grab some chicken and waffles after the show! more ›

Reach a hand across the blogger/print media divide and get your weekly buzz on at the Indie Mag All-Star party this Saturday from 8-10. Locally-published magazines Kitchen Sink, Bitch Magazine, Other Magazine, LiP, and Ohio's Clamor throw a reading party at the Make Out Room, in conjunction with the independent press convention this weekend. Admission is free, drinks are on you (or whichever cute indie writer/editor you can get to buy). The current issues of the magazines feature writings on borders (Clamor), home and travel (Bitch), winners of the fiction contest (Kitchen Sink), current issues in left-wing politics (LiP), and utopia/dystopia (Other), so there should be food for thought accompanying your $2 PBR. ($2 happy hour PBR! So good it should be illegal!). Pic from Kitchen Sink. Obligatory disclosure: this correspondent's affiliated with Bitch; come by and say hi on Saturday to the person in the special SFist-designed Mrs. Chris Daly t-shirt! more ›

Local producer Count interviews with EssEffist. more ›

Get together for drinks and lit at the Makeout Room this Saturday. more ›