Will it be easy to hang around nearby and listen to the electronic music show Saturday in Civic Center Plaza even if you didn't get a ticket? Maybe! But promoter Another Planet says their equipment will be able to focus the sound pretty well so as not to disturb too may neighbors.
Yes, earlier this week we learned the surprise news of a Skrillex show this Saturday (June 1) — it's actually a Fred Again show featuring Skrillex as special guest — in the middle of Civic Center Plaza, outside SF's City Hall. Now we have some more details about the show, which Another Planet Entertainment has had in the works for several months now, under the radar.
Tickets sold out extremely fast on Tuesday, and Another Planet tells NBC Bay Area that they planned for a crowd of 25,000 for this outdoor concert — a one-off in a year in which the company is putting on an extra Saturday alt-metal concert in Golden Gate Park the weekend after Outside Lands, in addition to some promised free concerts in Civic Center and elsewhere, and all the while overseeing the renovation of the historic Castro Theatre.
The capacity for Civic Center Plaza is about three times the capacity inside the adjacent Bill Graham Civic Auditorium — which is also home to Another Planet's offices. Another Planet Senior VP Mary Conde tells the SF Standard that they couldn't resist the idea of putting on a big show in the plaza, right outside their office. "I have a soft spot in my heart for the Beaux-Arts architecture and what the plaza can be when it’s activated," Conde says.
There is also the distinct possibility that more special guests will show up, given that a lot of electronic music folk were already in California for Lightning in a Bottle last weekend. Conde hints as much to the Standard, which notes that Four Tet performed with the pair at Coachella last year.
Can you just show up near City Hall on Saturday (show starts and 6:30 and is booked through 10 pm) and hope to enjoy the music? Maybe. But Conde explained to the Standard that they're trying to avoid noise complaints and "speaker boxes are so technologically advanced [these days] that you can really focus the sound where you want it."
People appear to be flying in from all over for the dance party, which will be Skrillex's second appearance here a year, after headlining the Portola Festival last fall. And the excitement likely began with Skrillex tweeting last Friday, "Fred and I have way too much new music we need to test out so we’re going to throw a rave in San Francisco next week BRB."
Conde tells NBC Bay Area that they're seeing tickets being sold in 20 different states, and "All of a sudden, the flights and hotels are a little more expensive."
Also, the tickets are going for upwards of $200 on the secondary market, after originally being for sale for $80.
Nearby restaurants like Moya Ethiopian on Ninth Street and Gyro King Mediterranean on Grove Street are prepping for a large and hungry crowd.
Moya owner Fana Alemayesu tells NBC Bay Area, "We used to have tourists, we used to have different events, conventions, all of that. So, All these things have reduced after COVID. So, this kind of thing could really bring the business back."
Mayor London Breed's office put out a statement about the concert, saying, "We are a city that knows how to have fun. There’s an undeniable jolt of energy in this city, and we’re thrilled to welcome artists and entertainers."
As for the promised free concerts in Civic Center Plaza, Embarcadero Plaza, and Union Square, those have still yet to be announced by Another Planet.
