AltWeeklies Wire
Inaugural Outside Lands Festival Lives up to Its Potentialnew
For the most part, the first-ever Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival did live up to expectations; at times there were simply stunning moments and the venue itself was quite a scene to behold.
East Bay Express |
Nate Seltenrich, Rachel Swan and Kathleen Richards |
08-27-2008 |
Music
Why Does the Bay Area Have a Hard Time Harboring Hip-Hop Venues?new

Hip-hop is one of the most popular genres on earth, and San Francisco is a world-class city. Yet this town seems hostile toward this musical nightlife with such revenue-generating potential. Why?
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Garrett Caples |
08-06-2008 |
Music
How Renters Work the System to Live for Free in a Very Expensive Citynew
Depending on the vigilance of the landlord, a seasoned serial evictee like John Getzow can get away with a minimum of 45 days and sometimes up to a year of free rent. The actual number of serial evictees operating in San Francisco is difficult to track, but some attorneys who specialize in representing landlords estimate there are between 20 and 100.
SF Weekly |
John Geluardi |
07-31-2008 |
Housing & Development
Insiders at San Fran's Daily Paper Hate the Ex-Mayor's New Columnnew
People in and around the San Francisco Chronicle newsroom -- which still includes news scribes dedicated to the pursuit of truth -- are sickened by the new Willie Brown deal. "Real journalists in the room were appalled by it," said one insider familiar with the mood at the paper.
Tear Your Knee, Wrench Your Back, Pirouette: Dancing at the San Francisco Balletnew

Pain is not the ballet dancer's friend, but it is his or her constant companion. The majority of a dancer's day is a high-energy quest to twist oneself into a series of poses and steps seemingly designed to belie the mechanics of the human body.
SF Weekly |
Joe Eskenazi |
07-24-2008 |
Performance
San Francisco is a Dangerous Town for Butterfliesnew
According to lepidopterist Liam O'Brien, 24 of 58 local species have been wiped out in regional extinctions caused mainly by habitat destruction. Another three or four, he said, will likely be gone within the next five years.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Kat Renz |
07-23-2008 |
Animal Issues
San Francisco Street Food Top Tennew
The farmers markets, taco trucks and street carts you shouldn't miss.
SF Weekly |
Meredith Brody |
07-17-2008 |
Food+Drink
State of the Cart in San Francisconew

Join us as we map the street food scene and find out why there aren't more vendors in this most food-involved and temperate of cities.
SF Weekly |
Meredith Brody |
07-17-2008 |
Food+Drink
Counting Down the Top Eccentrics of San Francisconew

Even as huge swaths of San Francisco are gentrified in a trend the Chris Daly camp warns will price out the very people who gave the city its flavor, these folks are holding on (one of them BARTs in each day from the East Bay), reminding us that no matter how many high-rise condos go up in the city, we won't turn into Orange County anytime soon.
Two Queer Legends of Indie Rock and Queercore Look Backnew

Pansy Division's Jon Ginoli and Camper Van Beethoven's Victor Krummenacher got together recently to talk about the way it was, coming out in the repressed 1980s and coming into their own experientially, politically, and musically in 1990s San Francisco -- each, as Krummenacher puts it, a "gay guy suddenly in Candyland."
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Kimberly Chun |
06-25-2008 |
Music
Bands Fume Over Bounced Checks from Bay Area Indie Music Festivalnew

The main promoter behind the inaugural event has yet to pay almost half the talent that performed there last year, including the headliners. These artists have made repeated attempts to contact the company, locally based 3 Udders Productions, without getting a cent.
In San Francisco's Projects, Truth Comes at a Pricenew

Deanna Johnson testified against a murderer to save her son, breaking the most fundamental law of the projects: Don't snitch.
SF Weekly |
Ashley Harrell |
05-23-2008 |
Crime & Justice
San Francisco Makes History with Successful Case for Marriage Equalitynew
Less than two hours after the California Supreme Court announced its 4-3 decision legalizing same-sex marriage, San Francisco City Hall filled with smiling couples and local politicians of various ideological stripes to celebrate the city's central role in achieving the most significant civil rights advance in a generation.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Steven T. Jones |
05-22-2008 |
LGBT
San Fran's Animal Welfare Commission Wants to Outlaw Cruel Artnew
Still fuming over a recent exhibition of videos showing six different animals being bludgeoned to death, the commission is proposing a law -- the Humanitarian Art Ordinance -- that would treat art that abuses animals like child pornography: If an animal is harmed for the purpose of making art, it would be a criminal offense to display or possibly even keep in San Francisco.
SF Weekly |
Benjamin Wachs |
05-14-2008 |
Animal Issues
Why is San Fran Falling Behind Other Cities on Bike Safety and Visibilty?new
The city still has a higher per-capita rate of bicycle use than any major city in the U.S., and that number has been steadily rising in recent years, even as construction of new bike facilities has stalled. Yet there are still political barriers to overcome in a city where cars are the dominant transportation option -- and the first barrier is Mayor Gavin Newsom.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Steven T. Jones |
05-14-2008 |
Transportation