Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2010 11:38 pm
The condo board president is now tweeting alerts and notices to owners. FUCK! Does that really constitute legal notice?
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SF in SF: 2010
Page 4 of 9
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 4:58 pm
What's the expected time frame for setting an exact date/venue, just out of curiousity?
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 5:09 pm
None yet.mico saudad wrote:What's the expected time frame for setting an exact date/venue, just out of curiousity?
This is getting to be a problem.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 5:09 pm
Well, I already have a venue that I like and which we may still be able to get into (although I'm afraid of generating ill will by stringing them along), and there's a few other venues that the other locals are talking to as well.
My understanding is that the best weekend for the most people is July 16/17. That one is still available at SF Submission (formerly known as the Balazo), which is an all-ages venue, and which has (IMO) the best cover/admission arrangement for us, but the downsides are that we can only get 4 hours per night (so we'd want to supplement it with an acoustic show somewhere on Saturday) and the parking is apparently pretty bad there (apparently even by San Francisco standards) and it's a somewhat sketchy neighborhood. On the plus side, it's about a block from BART, so it's not like parking is even an issue except for the people who are hauling gear.
The other major venues on the table are the Brava theater in a nicer part of the Mission district, and a place called Mojitos which is a bar in the North Beach/Telegraph Hill area. I think Brava would be all-ages (but with no staffed concessions or whatever), while Mojitos would be 21+ (but would be fully staffed). I don't recall all the various details about those things in terms of show time/length, availability, etc.
Mojitos definitely has the advantage of extra foot traffic though, but it means the handful of under-21ers can't attend, so if Bjam decides to come then Mojitos is definitely out of the question.
Personally I'm just really tempted to book SF Submission now if we can't get our act together really soon, because it's a venue that is available and waiting to hear from us.
My understanding is that the best weekend for the most people is July 16/17. That one is still available at SF Submission (formerly known as the Balazo), which is an all-ages venue, and which has (IMO) the best cover/admission arrangement for us, but the downsides are that we can only get 4 hours per night (so we'd want to supplement it with an acoustic show somewhere on Saturday) and the parking is apparently pretty bad there (apparently even by San Francisco standards) and it's a somewhat sketchy neighborhood. On the plus side, it's about a block from BART, so it's not like parking is even an issue except for the people who are hauling gear.
The other major venues on the table are the Brava theater in a nicer part of the Mission district, and a place called Mojitos which is a bar in the North Beach/Telegraph Hill area. I think Brava would be all-ages (but with no staffed concessions or whatever), while Mojitos would be 21+ (but would be fully staffed). I don't recall all the various details about those things in terms of show time/length, availability, etc.
Mojitos definitely has the advantage of extra foot traffic though, but it means the handful of under-21ers can't attend, so if Bjam decides to come then Mojitos is definitely out of the question.
Personally I'm just really tempted to book SF Submission now if we can't get our act together really soon, because it's a venue that is available and waiting to hear from us.
Feel free to help us out if you can do better.Generic wrote:This is getting to be a problem.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 6:14 pm
Here's my pros/cons list for Mojito's.
Pros:
I go way back with our contact there, so I trust him to be responsive and professional
It probably would cost little to nothing for us to have the event there
They would be as accommodating as they could be
We'd get our pick of weekend nights in July
There would be lots of foot traffic so new people would be exposed to our music
We'd have a decent PA and a sound guy who knew what he was doing
They have a great bar and bartenders
There are lots of restaurants right nearby, from fancy places to pizza by the slice
It'd be pretty easy to get there by public transportation for folks staying in San Francisco, I think (it's in North Beach)
We could play till late (12am? 1am?)
Cons:
They do allow minors but only till 9pm
The foot traffic could be pretty drunk and unruly later in the night
Parking will be really bad except for maybe very early in the evening
It will probably feel more like a crowded busy bar than a slow paced coffee house or art space
They might want us to perform Saturday and Sunday night, rather than Friday and Saturday night
Pros:
I go way back with our contact there, so I trust him to be responsive and professional
It probably would cost little to nothing for us to have the event there
They would be as accommodating as they could be
We'd get our pick of weekend nights in July
There would be lots of foot traffic so new people would be exposed to our music
We'd have a decent PA and a sound guy who knew what he was doing
They have a great bar and bartenders
There are lots of restaurants right nearby, from fancy places to pizza by the slice
It'd be pretty easy to get there by public transportation for folks staying in San Francisco, I think (it's in North Beach)
We could play till late (12am? 1am?)
Cons:
They do allow minors but only till 9pm
The foot traffic could be pretty drunk and unruly later in the night
Parking will be really bad except for maybe very early in the evening
It will probably feel more like a crowded busy bar than a slow paced coffee house or art space
They might want us to perform Saturday and Sunday night, rather than Friday and Saturday night
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 6:39 pm
Okay, this is going to sound whiny, so I'll try to leave my personal stuff out and just phrase it in terms of real-life cause-and-effect.fluffy wrote:Feel free to help us out if you can do better.Generic wrote:This is getting to be a problem.
Plane tickets are cheaper when you buy them in advance. It's frustratingly difficult to figure out when that "sweet spot" is when they're cheapest, but it's sometime between 6 and 12 weeks in advance. Most jobs require advance notice before taking time off. (Just for reference, mine requires eight weeks. Others might be more flexible.)
The only dates you've asked about have been in July. It's now May. If this event is going to be in July, then someone needs to make an executive decision about the date soon, or else logistical concerns will prevent me (and maybe others?) from attending. I might be the only one with these issues, and if so, then pardon me, but most Songfighters have lives and jobs, and it is logicistically unfeasible to put other things on hold for "some yet-to-be-determined weekend in the middle of the summer."
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 7:17 pm
I understand, and I empathize. If it were all up to me I would have just booked SF Submission long ago.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 7:48 pm
Based on Lunkhead's pro/con list, it seems like a no-brainer to me. Go with Mojito's and get the thing booked.
Just my two cents.
Just my two cents.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 8:03 pm
I'm fine with that.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 12:55 am
Make that four cents.frankie big face wrote:Based on Lunkhead's pro/con list, it seems like a no-brainer to me. Go with Mojito's and get the thing booked.
Just my two cents.
Yep - that sounds like the place I'd be wanting to go. Wish I could make it - but I think I will be in Thailand around that time.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 7:30 pm
Okay, since none of the other locals raised any objections, I think this is as good a time as any to announce THE DATES
No matter what venue, Song Fight! Live (title pending) will be in San Francisco from July 16-18. Two of those days will be the full show. Whichever day is left we will organize something else for (an acoustic show, a barbecue, panhandling at BART or the Ferry Terminal, or who knows what else).
Update your calendars accordingly.
No matter what venue, Song Fight! Live (title pending) will be in San Francisco from July 16-18. Two of those days will be the full show. Whichever day is left we will organize something else for (an acoustic show, a barbecue, panhandling at BART or the Ferry Terminal, or who knows what else).
Update your calendars accordingly.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 7:37 pm
Calendar updated.fluffy wrote:Update your calendars accordingly.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Wed May 05, 2010 12:59 am
Got not holiday left so not this year for me. A sad day for all.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue May 11, 2010 10:44 pm
I just heard about the show from Spud and Glenn. I live about 4 blocks from Mojito's. It's a very cool venue. The only issue will be the inevitable throngs of drunken idiots spilling in and around the venue and the complete and utter lack of parking. They have a good sound system, though, and food if I'm not mistaken.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Thu May 13, 2010 3:09 pm
Not looking good at this point. Had I got one of those $10 flights, maybe...
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Sat May 15, 2010 8:19 am
Okay, so, it seems we have venues!
My understanding (Lunkhead should clarify on the board) is that for Sunday we are on at Mojito, and I just got confirmation that for Saturday we're at SoCha. The only restriction at SoCha is that they'd prefer "mostly acoustic with slight amplification," but I'm sure a lot of us can do that. Also, we have to provide our own equipment (there's no house sound).
Also, they say that performances normally go form 8:30 to 11 PM. I can see about how early we can start, but there's definitely a hard cutoff of 11 PM at the end.
In any case, SoCha is a great little place. It's a bit like the Empyrean in Spokane - great food, coffee, beer, and wine, and a nice warm acoustic venue. There's also a decent amount of foot traffic, and quite a few excellent bars and restaurants nearby (including a taqueria open until 2 AM right next to it). It's also got pretty good access via mass transit - several bus lines go directly to it, and it's not too terribly far from BART (about half a mile down a hill). It's also right next door to my place so we can use that for gear storage, to offset the crappy parking that's endemic to San Francisco.
My understanding (Lunkhead should clarify on the board) is that for Sunday we are on at Mojito, and I just got confirmation that for Saturday we're at SoCha. The only restriction at SoCha is that they'd prefer "mostly acoustic with slight amplification," but I'm sure a lot of us can do that. Also, we have to provide our own equipment (there's no house sound).
Also, they say that performances normally go form 8:30 to 11 PM. I can see about how early we can start, but there's definitely a hard cutoff of 11 PM at the end.
In any case, SoCha is a great little place. It's a bit like the Empyrean in Spokane - great food, coffee, beer, and wine, and a nice warm acoustic venue. There's also a decent amount of foot traffic, and quite a few excellent bars and restaurants nearby (including a taqueria open until 2 AM right next to it). It's also got pretty good access via mass transit - several bus lines go directly to it, and it's not too terribly far from BART (about half a mile down a hill). It's also right next door to my place so we can use that for gear storage, to offset the crappy parking that's endemic to San Francisco.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Sat May 15, 2010 9:04 am
Cool! Thanks fluffy (et al.) for all your hard work on this. I'm 99% there and would be glad to do the mostly acoustic thing if that helps sort out the schedule.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Sat May 15, 2010 2:13 pm
Wait, so there's a Sunday performance this time?fluffy wrote:Okay, so, it seems we have venues!
My understanding (Lunkhead should clarify on the board) is that for Sunday we are on at Mojito, and I just got confirmation that for Saturday we're at SoCha. The only restriction at SoCha is that they'd prefer "mostly acoustic with slight amplification," but I'm sure a lot of us can do that. Also, we have to provide our own equipment (there's no house sound).
So I should ask for Monday off from work, then.
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Sat May 15, 2010 3:00 pm
Sunday at Mojitos is confirmed. We can have whatever hours we like there, though I don't think we can really start much earlier than 6-7pm. Still working that out.
From the Founder
Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 10:04 pm
narbotic wrote:First off - a massive HAPPY BIRTHDAY to SongFight!
Just yesterday, I was recounting the awesomeness that is now Song Fight! - explaining to a friend how amazing it is to see a whole community of talent bring life to a such simple idea I had. In fact, you guys have done so much more with it than I ever imagined possible - ongoing live events, multiple concurrent fights, and now 10 years(!!) of music. FREAKING AMAZING.
For me, it's downright touching to witness what SF! has become. It continues to remind me of how ideas ultimately defy ownership, and only truly flourish once everyone can contribute to them.
In case it's useful at all, here's some backstory as I recall it:
Around 2000, Sam Brown and I began experimenting with the idea of making things from 'user-submitted' titles. I turned them into songs and posted the results to narbotic, and Sam made them into pictures for explodingdog (which he currently continues to do). I found the process to be a lot of fun but just a tad lonely - so decided to try getting some fellow bedroom musicians in on the action in the form of a friendly contest, a la SongFight! I was surprised to find many others eager to contribute as well, and began posting entries from anyone willing to give it a go. As time went on, posting new fights in a timely manner proved (regretfully) more than I could handle - and during one particularly lengthy stretch between updates I was delighted to find fighters posting their own independent iteration of concept … and well, I suppose you know the rest.
My sincerest thanks and congratulations to you and everyone involved for making all this happen - please, please do keep it up!
Sadly, I'll be prepping for Maker Faire Detroit throughout most of July, so am unable to attend the festivities in SanFran :-/
- but please crank amps in my name!
C
PS - Here's hoping my electronics videos come in handy for any DIY-loving fighters out there
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 10:15 pm
Narbotic, we still love you!
Re: SF in SF: 2010
Posted: Mon May 31, 2010 12:38 am
Might actually make it. Whoo!