Last night SFist went to see the inaugural live collaboration between the Bay Area's own Kronos Quartetand Bollywood legend Asha Bhosle. Competing only with her sister for the title of most prolific singer in recorded history, Bhosle and KQ teamed up recently to re-record a dozen or so RD Burman compositions from Bhosle's 20,000 (!) song catalogue for hifalutin label Nonesuch, home to NPR faves like Mali's Amadou & Mariam and indie legend Stephin Merritt. The crowd was pretty upmarket - with tickets topping out over 100 clams, this was not the sort of bustling young artist bash that YBCA has been excelling at of late. Kronos kicked off the evening solo, as it were, with a performance of a Terry Riley composition that featured frequent guest performer (so frequent that Kronos joked she was their newest member) Wu Man rocking the pipa and vocals. By SFist Isaac...

The books we got this week from our online reserve list were dull, dull dull -- we're so happy that we hadn't gone out and bought them from one of our fine local independent bookstores, as we're sometimes tempted to do. We're relying on our thick stack of magazines to get us through the rest of the week, and apparently we're not alone! SFist Isaac is (eruditely or ironically, you decide) catching up on......

There are two great things about getting to compile this column -- one is the sense of camaraderie and sharing we get when our wonderful SFist colleagues or readers recommend, refer, or concurrently read (Christine, that's you) books from their online reserve list. There are so many books we've read only because we've checked them out, borrowed them, or purchased them from one of our fine local independent bookstores at the behest of a......

Ladies and gentlemen, the returning champ, the East Bay Express! Make your Best of the East Bay nominations now! People in Contra Costa don't appreciate public access TV. Can collectors aren't making as much money now that Oakland's giving everyone big recycling bins. Cover article: Baby boomers are making it unpleasant for other senior citizens in nursing homes. Addis Ethiopian in Oakland has new management that cooks better. Food cartoonist: Is Legendary Palace really legendary? And Savage Love: teenage boys looking for dates, meeting online buddies in real life, and someone bragging about sexual exploits. The SF Weekly: Cover article: Music special! Though, and we hate to quibble, but we think we've seen this cover art, with the tape-embossed lettering, on the Weekly a lot recently. Maybe mix it up a little? Harmon Leon reports on the white supremacist hate mail he's gotten post-Applebees, Nate Cavalieri follows a documentary film maker making movies for advertisers. So yeah! The music special! An article about Quannum Records and SFist's very own favorite hip-hop mogul! Yay SFist Isaac! Fun blurbs about musicians' day jobs, a very detailed article on how to get signed to a record label, SuperDiamond made almost $1 million last year, what it's like to work at GuitarWorld, and a whole lot of info on Bay Area music today. Our favorite ex-Examiner reporter in the Bay Guardian, no Metro this week, and the WRTW weekly pick of the litter, after the jump....

Valentine's Day is upon us, which means it's time to separate the lovers from the haters. Are those tiny red hearts shooting from your eyes, or little sharpened daggers? It's no matter, SFist promises to love you either way. Here are our picks for the this week's bay area music offerings. If you're aware that umlauts are the universal symbol for rock, you might already have your tickets for Thursday night's Queensrÿche show at......

Music-loving good samaritans, this is your lucky week. If you like to enjoy a little partying and live performance in exchange for your charitable contributions, you have no less than six different tsunami relief benefits to choose from. On Friday, The Independent is having their second benefit, featuring members of New Monsoon, ALO, Samantha and the Ritual for a donation of $10-50. Great American's benefit that night with indie kings Gibbard, Kozelek, Richman and Bachman......

ENTER TO WIN! "I've got a non-dairy creamer in my jeans, I'm happy to see ya if you know what I mean." Oh, do we ever. Those are the words of Jose Miguel Contreras, ringleader of By Divine Right, a power-pop quartet en route from their hometown of Toronto to rock the bay area next week. Sweet Confusion, the title of their latest release, is the perfect description of their sound -- they add a......

SFist listens: what our contributors are rocking on the ipod...

SFist is thankful that San Francisco has the greatest live music venues in the country, despite the bad news SFist Isaac gave us about the closure of seminal Lower Haight club The Top. If you're looking for an excuse to get away from visiting relatives, or a fantastic place to take them for some entertainment, read on for our suggestions. Tonight you can get your punk rock served up stadium-style with hometown boys Green Day......

Just look at the cornucopia of musical entertainment options you have for this week! (Yes, we're pulling out the Thanksgiving-themed "horn of plenty" reference a week early). Read on for a bounty of opportunities to support local artists, flash back with old favorites and check out the up-and-comers you've read about elsewhere in the blogosphere. It pleases us that MTV2's Subterranean has taken to airing the video for local band Communique's "Perfect Weapon" as of......

roundup of the Bay Area weeklies...