Tonight we're wishing a great big Happy 4th Birthday to DJ Ted and his baby BAGeL Radio. The party is at Bottom of the Hill with performances by Birdmonster, Division Day and Two Seconds, and yes there will be cupcakes! The show is 18+ and only $10, but for those of you who aren't in the city tonight you can still listen in to the party performances thanks to the fine folks at Lala.com. Speaking of tuning in, this SFist is debuting her weekly radio show on BAGeL this afternoon at 4pm Pacific time. Hear yours truly playing indie singer-songwriters, be they solo artists or band leaders, plus their classic influences. Today's show includes Jose Gonzalez, Jesse Sykes, PJ Harvey, a special sound-a-like between Spoon and Edwyn Collins and more. 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 ›

It's been a few months since we raved about Ratatat and gave away their CD, so we figure it's time again to extol their greatness. Like we said last time, RATATAT's music is so melodic, varied and compelling that it makes vocals and lyrics seem superfluous. The Brooklyn duo expertly mixes snakey synth lines with sneering guitar, cello, sleigh bells and samples like the appropriately primal roar in "Wildcat". File under: Things That Make You Go "ROWR!" more ›

Pull out your wallets because we'd like to tell you about a few new records that you should consider buying. more ›

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Perusing the club listings for December, we're seeing an awful lot of blank calendars. We reckon that means many of SFist's great music venues are being rented out for holiday parties. Perhaps even parties to which we were not invited. Party throwers, don't be afraid to invite SFist. We promise not to do anything untoward that might tarnish our sterling reputation. Not like we did last year. more ›

Our man at the SF Weekly, Nate Cavalieri, put together a less somber but no less sincere benefit event at 12 Galaxies in the Mission. The Benefit Show for the International Red Cross Disaster Relief Efforts in South Asia will be on Wednesday at 7:30 and will include performers Mark Eitzel, Jolie Holland, Sonny Smith, Jeffrey Luck Lucas, Loquat, The Herms, Dave Gleason, Mike Therieau and Pat Johnson, The Bellyachers, Tom Heyman and Bart Davenport. It will be ten dollars at the door, although you can give more, and 100% of the door and much of the drink proceeds will go directly to charities helping with the relief effort. There will also be a benefit raffle with prizes, including Amoeba gift certificates and vintage Red Cross gear. more ›

Watch for "KCRW.com presents" banners at Hotel Utah's Thursday night show with Son, Ambulance and Gram Rabbit and Tuesday's show with Blonde Redhead and The Helio Sequence at Bimbo's. Well, at least they have good taste. If we already had that sponsor banner we're saving up for, we'd take it to Hotel Utah on Friday night to support local band The Herms and Endochine from Austin, Texas. Until then, we'll see what we can whip up with posterboard, masking tape and magic markers. more ›