The Coachella 2008 line-up was announced last night. The reason you didn't hear anything about it was because they announced it in Mexico City, something to do with creating international ties. “This is really a way for us to get closer to our fans throughout Latin America who have been supportive of Coachella for the past 10 years,” says Goldenvoice’s Paul Tollett. Super; we just care about the line-up. more ›

This week's giveaway comes from The Finches, a local duo who play endearing folk pop. The songs are refreshingly gentle and Carolyn's voice rings with a true sincerity. See them Saturday afternoon at 2pm when they play a free in-store at Amoeba, or celebrate their CD release at Cafe Du Nord on Wednesday night with The Moore Brothers, Colossal Yes and The Mantles. We're giving away a copy of their brand new CD Human Like A House to one lucky winner. (Contest ends 1/30. Winner will be notified via email.) more ›

We visited The Homestead for the first time last summer and it instantly fell in love with the relaxed ambiance, gilded decor and fantastic jukebox. We'd never seen a DJ in there before, so when we saw one this past Monday we were a little worried. It didn't take long for Shellac Shack, a weekly 78 rpm listening party hosted by DJ Chas Gaudí, to win us over. He plays blues, jazz, R & B, country and early rock n roll - all on twin Califone turntables. We don't even want to think of how long and hard he had to work to fill three boxes full of pristine scratch-free 78s. Catch him any Monday this month at the Homestead. Highly recommended. more ›

Looking for a one stop shop for everyone one on your list? From your Eccentric Aunt Marge to your teened out god-daughter? Darly Bird may be the ticket with everything from vintage earrings to family games, and a full line of kids products. more ›

Who was fortunate enough to see Sufjan Stevens last week? more ›

You know who's going to be upset about those Bikini Bandits? The Houston school system. Houstonist also reports on some redevelopment shenanigans over a landmark theater. more ›

The debate rages on about whether Bevan Dufty is right to try and cancel Halloween in the Castro, and what that all means about the future of San Francisco. How do we balance the idea of fun for the city and security for neighborhood residents? As always, you readers impress us with your articulateness, thoughtfulness, and intense dedication to our beloved burg. Thanks, MattyMatt, for bringing up the subject and giving people a place to discuss it. more ›

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Now that Noise Pop is over, things are settling down at live music venues across the city, and we miss it a little. more ›

We're wishing Noise Pop a happy birthday today, as San Francisco's indie-est music festival kicks off its 14th year. The all-festival badges are sold out, as are tickets to some of the biggest shows, but SFist will bring you our coverage so you can live vicariously. Check the festival schedule for all the shows, and stay tuned for SFist's show reviews and what we're hoping is going to turn out to one Noise Pop giveaway every day this week. SFist Emily is also going to re-run her interviews with Noise Pop performing artists so you can know before you go. more ›

Our concert picks for the week of 1/26-2/1. more ›

. We promise that we'll be getting it back this weekend. Then again, if you're all that eager to read it, may we suggest you pick it up at one of our fine local independent bookstores? more ›

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Our concert picks for the week of 5/12-5/18. more ›

Tonight at the Last Day Saloon features MC Art Link-Letterz, Lowfat and award-winning vocalist Tony Lindsay. Show starts at 9:30, and the Last Day Saloon is at 5th and Clement -- west side represent! For other weekend music pics (and a chance to win to next Friday's Cake show) check out When The Lights Go Down In The City. more ›

Books incite strong emotions in people, as you can see from the thoughts below. Sometimes we love a book so much that we want it forever, so we pick it up at one of our fine local independent bookstores. Other times we're glad we just reserved it online from the SF Public Library, because, dang, there are a lot of crappy books out there. more ›

We always try to have something for everyone at SFist, and last week we feel we really hit it out of the park. Some examples: more ›

SFist has always taken note that it's pretty hard to go wrong taking pictures and film of surfers. It's also nice to watch nature at it's most terrifyingly powerful. Put the two together, and you've got some seriously compelling stuff -- hence we couldn't wait for the first pictures and video from Mavericks. Kudos to the 'Gate for having the best stuff we've found so far -- even flickr is pretty sparse right now. Hand it to blogger Joe Pennant, though -- he caught two Australians practicing under the Golden Gate Bridge this morning. more ›

Afternoon shows at the Bottom of the Hill, like Saturday's Earlimart Noise Pop show, are so excellent -- the buses are running, the sun is out, you don't have to worry the whole time that you'll become a poignant entry on the SFist Blotter ("Ladyfest becomes Slay-dee-fest as music lover is killed: Victim loved jangly guitar-driven pop") -- and, if you're fortunate enough to run into SFist Emily on the way in, you can grab a coffee at Farley's and hear about her interview with them! Well, we did almost get mowed down by some aggressive sparrows (it was like The Birds, only embarrassing), but it was a great afternoon. Earlimart is a Fresno band with five members, many of whom rotate through various instruments (it is darn cool to have two drum sets on stage, can we just say?), who crank it up and play dreamy wall-of-sound indie rock, in that My Bloody Valentine/ Creeper Lagoon/ Dealership kind of way. This is Earlimart's fourth or fifth Noise Pop outing, but, as lead singer Isaac Espinoza noted, with a tone of genuine amazement, "This is our first time headlining." The show was jam-packed full, with not only the usual coterie of Bay Area indie scenesters (ironic t-shirts, layering with hoodies), but Earlimart's other mass following of LA Silverlake scenesters too (exposed midriffs, jean jackets with shearling linings). People solemnly shaking their moneymakers, digital cameras artfully tilting above the crowd, and a whole mess of instruments, after the jump. Map of Earlimart, California off mapquest.com more ›

SFist loves our online reserve queue from the SF Public library so much, we wish we could have SFPL "friends" like the Netflix Friends list, and share what we're reading with others (which, come to think of it, is kind of the point of this feature). We also like the recommendations we receive at our fine local independent bookstores, and wish that we could buy every book we love for everyone we know. Maybe one day. more ›

SFist is all about the free, which is why we love to reserve books at the San Francisco Public library. We're even scouting out the City for free copies of this book, so much are we fans of the free. However, if we can't find one of the copies stashed around EssEff, we'll pick up a copy at one of our fine local independent bookstores. more ›

SFist can take or leave most of the email we receive, but we never fail to get a little thrill when we get that email from the San Francisco Public Library letting us know that our online reserve is in. We're not quite as thrilled when we get that note about how irresponsibly high our fines have gotten, as that keeps us from blowing our extra dough at one of our fine local independent bookstores. more ›

We reckon a good percentage of San Franciso music-lovers will be at Great American Music Hall this week, whether it's at one of the three sold out Arcade Fire shows or Saturday's sold out X show. We commend you, SF, your taste is impeccable. While you're down at Great American, SFist Emily recommends stopping by the box office to purchase your ticket for the Tsunami Relief Benefit on January 28th. A $20 donation gets you in to see performances by Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie), Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters) and Eric Bachman (Archers of Loaf). We smell another sold out show coming on. more ›

A dear friend of SFist's is contemplating a career change to library science, and we couldn't be happier for him. How nice it would be to have a "connection" to move us up the online reserve list. Alas, his library talents will probably end up being utilized by the San Francisco Unified District of Schools. Now, if only we could get a pal at one of our fine local independent bookstores.... more ›

Like SFist Emily, I'm bad at lists. So I'm just going to relish the chance to write in the first person singular for a moment and break down the highlights and lowlights of the year for me, in no particular order: more ›

SFist is celebrating the holidays in many ways, as some of us will travel to far-off lands (or just the Midwest), while others of us will remain right here. All of us are psyched about the additional free time the holidays bring us to read books we've reserved online from the SF Public Library. Others of us have made book purchases from our local independent bookstore. Whatever your holiday plans, SFist wishes you the best, and encourages you to keep on reading. more ›

It's our last First Thursday before Christmas, and we'd like to indulge our inner child and post on toy-themed opening receptions today. We'd also like to offer the gift of art event listings in the form of Fecal Face (thanks again SFist Emily!), which is where we crib our art listings when we aren't shamelessly shilling for our friends. more ›

When SFist hears that Beastie Boys song, we automatically think about checking out reserved books from the San Francisco Public Library. We wish there were a song that reminded us of our great local independent bookstores, if you can think of one, tell us about it in the comments! more ›

at home, but a tad embarrasssing for public transit. more ›

Sfist is just sick over several of the election results, and is eager to take advantage of our public libraries while they're still here. Reserve a book today, for you may not be able to tomorrow. And if you want something for keeps, may we suggest making your purchase from one of our local bookstores? more ›