-- Patterson Hood: Co-founder of the très hip Athens, Georgia rock/alt-country/cowpunk band Drive-By Truckers performs solo tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Swedish American Hall, 2170 Market (as Sanchez); $15. more ›

-- Rykarda Parasol: Dreamy rock crooner (and fellow beverage taste-tester) performs tonight along with the Dilettantes and Brad Brooks. Show starts at 9 p.m. at Cafe Du Nord, 2174 Market; $10. more ›

This week's shows have an equal emphasis on the old and the new. Mix things up a little by seeing an up-and-comer followed by a living legend or two; it's just the kind of eclectic variety that San Francisco's concert venues have to offer. more ›

Special video bonanza! more ›

Video geeks are descending on San Francisco this weekend for Vloggercon 2006 (or 'video blogger conference' if you're not a fan of tech neologisms). It was inspired by Webzine and the original Vloggercon in New York City last year. The daytime events at the Swedish American Hall are booked solid, but tonight there will be a "Meet the Vloggers" event at the Apple Store which is open to the public (likely followed by drinks at the House of Shields), and there are plenty of other satellite events. more ›

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 first heard of Rogue Wave when they opened for Spoon a few years ago, and though we liked them back then, we had no idea they'd make such gorgeous records. Descended Like Vultures, released last October, is a must-own and with airplay on MTV2, a deal with Sub Pop and tours with Nada Surf and The Shins, they're not our hometown secret anymore. more ›

Saturday: So much to do! Berkeley's Impact Theatre's kicked ass, and we can't wait to see what they do with the Greatest Dane. more ›

We're trying out** a new way for you to hear the music we're writing about this week. Ever heard of a service called Rhapsody? We've been subscribing for nearly a year now, and for less than the price of one record a month, we get access to tons of artists and albums to stream at any time. If you have Rhapsody, click on the link below for songs from 10 of the artists who are playing shows here this week. Click here to get a free 14-day trial of Rhapsody. more ›

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Last time we saw Merlin Mann in the flesh, he was graciously stealing us a beer at the Google party we crashed together after his Web 1.0 party. The first time we saw Merlin Mann was drinking a free beer at a Creative Commons party at the Swedish American Hall. In other words, wherever there's beer and bloggers, you'll find Merlin talking out his ass and taking names. more ›

If you're interested in DIY online publishing, you should be with us at Webzine this Saturday and Sunday from 12noon - 6pm at the Swedish American Hall. Registration for the whole weekend is only $22 in advance or $30 at the door. Anyone who registers before Thursday night also gets free admission to SFist's Webzine kickoff party, which features Red Stripe beer specials and DJ sets by Karen from KALX and DJ Roxy Fox of Touch Me I'm Sick. Find your favorite SFist staffer and hit us up for a free drink. more ›

Here at SFist HQ, we were excited when we heard that Friend of SFist Eddie was going to go ahead with his plan (first rumored at SXSW) to give WebZine a kick start. In the last few months we've gotten drunk at many meetings, put together a panel, traded buttloads of email and spent most of our time thinking about the parties (that's how roll). more ›

Our concert picks for the week of 5/26-6/1. more ›

Our live music picks for the week of 2/17-2/23. more ›

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 is sold out, but buying a ticket from a scalper would be even more wrong than usual. Bottom of the Hill's "Wave of Relief" benefit is on Sunday, with Blind Justice, The MoFonics, OM&M, et al. Monday night Erase Errata, Murder Murder, Curse of the Birthmark and So So Many White White Tigers rock the Elbo Room. Wednesday night brings another benefit at Bottom of the Hill, with Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Jason Quever from the Papercuts and several others, for $7 and up. Also that night is a benefit presented by A Show of Hands at Rickshaw Stop with comedy, film, dance, theatre and music from the likes of Hard Nox and Killing My Lobster, for a donation of $5-20. Look at you, San Francisco, doin' so good! For those about to rock for a good cause, we salute you. more ›

It's good to be a nerd. At least that's how SFist feels after hanging out at the Swedish American Hall, taking full advantage of the open bar, nodding our head to the DJ's beats, nibbling on tidbits from the trays of finger food and stuffing our bag with schwag at the Creative Commons party last night. Intellectual property lawyers sure know how to party! more ›

However things aren't all hunky-dory down in Cupertino, either. One iTunes user is suing Apple for anti-competitive practices for not providing iTunes downloads in a format that works on players besides the iPod. Apple has had a tradition of making their software exclusive to their hardware, though until the AAC format they have had very open media standards (and a small hardware marketshare). Apple is also a plaintiff in two cases involving leaks to the web of details on their upcoming products -- the first regarding their firewire audio device, the latest involving their sub-$500 desktop and office suite which was revealed by ThinkSecret. Looks like somebody inside Apple has taken their non-disclosure agreement a little too lightly. more ›

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