San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Long-anticipated concerts fill up the calendar in the Bay Area.
What was supposed to be a Hot Vax Summer is transitioning to a Cautious Autumn. But concert bookings are still filling up the Bay Area calendar, so The Chronicle has rounded up some highlights of the fall live-music season for in-person listening.
Indoors
Brick & Mortar Music Hall:
Probably best known for either portraying himself on HBO’s “Treme” or playing with Bonnie Raitt, British keyboardist (and sometimes guitarist) Jon Cleary plans to bring his effervescent band the Absolute Monster Gentlemen to town Sept. 24.
But that’s just one act slated to hit the San Francisco venue.
Torres supported Garbage on a 2015 tour; it was a perfect pairing of opener and headliner. She is now expected to bring her lyrical and musical intensity to the northern border of the Mission on Sept. 30.
Also mark your calendars for Katie Pruitt. The Nashville singer-songwriter was scheduled to perform at Cafe du Nord last December in support of her 2020 debut album, “Expectations.” While that got canceled due to the pandemic, she is scheduled to make it out to San Francisco for a show on Nov. 9.
Chase Center:
Bell Biv DeVoe plans to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their hit “Poison” during a concert Oct. 2 that boasts a bill featuring Brian McKnight, Silk, Ginuwine, 702 and 112. Get ready for a strong dose of nostalgia.
More of a Phish fan? The jam band’s inaugural Chase Center run is set for Oct. 16-17.
Great American Music Hall:
Two generations of singer-songwriter greats are scheduled to visit the Tenderloin: outlaw country hero Tanya Tucker (Oct. 21) and contemporary country triple-threat Brandy Clark (Oct. 28).
Other notable acts set to hit the stage this fall include Marian Hill (Sept. 25) and the Felice Brothers (Oct. 1).
The Fillmore:
Guitarist and Santa Rosa native Julian Lage is arguably the season’s most unexpected offering on the Fillmore’s historic stage, which has hosted legendary acts such as Willie Nelson, Prince and Tom Petty. But the jazz-trained musician with the Americana heart, set to make his headlining debut Sept. 26, should fit right in.
Utilizing guitars in an entirely different manner, the Ukrainian progressive metal quartet Jinjer is scheduled to make a tour stop in S.F. in support of its new album, “Wallflowers” (Oct. 27).
The Independent:
Millennial reggae vocalist Jesse Royal draws from the genre’s pre-hip-hop-influenced Golden Age (Oct. 5). Later in the month, the funk unit Pimps of Joytime usher in celebrations from the bandstand on two prime party nights (Oct. 8-9) for shows that were originally booked for
March 2020.
The Masonic:
Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry plan to perform songs showcasing four decades’ worth of music that they’ve created together as Dead Can Dance on their “A Celebration of Life & Works 1980-2021” tour, which makes a stop at the Nob Hill venue on Oct. 3.
On Oct. 16, Jack Antonoff, who has been back in the spotlight for his production work on recent albums such as Lorde’s “Solar Power” and Clairo’s “Sling,” is scheduled to perform from “Take the Sadness out of Saturday Night,” his Bleachers project’s third album.
The Regency Ballroom:
How impressive has Michelle Zauner’s 2021 been? “Jubilee,” her third album as Japanese Breakfast, has already been slotted among many critics’ top 10 releases lists, and her debut book, “Crying in H Mart: A Memoir,” earned the No. 2 slot on the New York Times’ hardcover nonfiction best-sellers list in the spring and is slated to be made into a feature film.
If you don’t already know what the hype is about, catch Japanese Breakfast doing a pair of San Francisco shows (Sept. 30 and Oct. 1).
She’s also set to return to Northern California in November, including at the UC Theatre in Berkeley on Nov. 7, Ace of Spades in Sacramento on Nov. 9 and Gundlach Bundschu Winery in Sonoma on Nov. 11.
Other hot dates at the Regency include singer — and youngest member of the Will and Jada Smith family — Willow (Sept. 18), blues guitar/vocal star Christone “Kingfish” Ingram (Oct. 20) and Pink Sweats, the singer-songwriter whose hit song “At My Worst” features Oakland native Kehlani (Nov. 7.)
The Warfield:
Wu-Tang Clan members GZA, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah are expected to perform their most popular solo albums — “Liquid Swords,” “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx …” and “Ironman” — in downtown San Francisco on Nov. 5.
Outdoors
Concord Pavilion:
Rescheduled from last year, Alanis Morissette’s tour with Garbage is back on the schedule with Cat Power subbing in for fellow singersongwriter Liz Phair (Sept. 29).
Sticking with that ’90s vibe, Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas plan to celebrate the 27th anniversary of TLC’s breakthrough album, “CrazySexyCool,” ( Oct. 10) with BoneThugs-N-Harmony as the opening act.
The Greek Theatre:
Here are two shows where you don’t want to snooze on the first act: Spoon is scheduled to open for guitar deity St. Vincent (Sept. 23), while the soulful Durand Jones &
the Indications support My Morning Jacket (Sept. 25).
Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival:
After a few delays due to the pandemic, the long-awaited return of the Golden Gate Park mega-fest is expected over Halloween weekend for three full days of music.
Outside Lands has kept most of its lineup that was scheduled to perform last year — including headliners the