Happy New Year, everyone. This year is set to be a great one for live music: BottleRock announced their stellar lineup and Coachella gave us a reason to root for another fauxchella. Oh, and there are already a bunch of awesome, mostly local bands playing in SF this weekend. Hit it!
we will be lions
Friday: Hometown heroes We Will Be Lions are the NorCal answer to Semi Precious Weapons set to the eccentricities of Tally Hall. They’re far more than their saccharine sound of choice. As glam rockers, they’re loud and proud about the genre’s theatrics and will be celebrating what inspires them this Friday at the Rickshaw Stop. Expect a bit more disco on this gig and get on your dancin’ shoes.

What: We Will Be Lions plays the Rickshaw Stop
When: Friday, January 9th; doors: 8pm, show: 9pm
Where: Rickshaw Stop: 155 Fell St
Cost: $ 15-20; purchase tickets here

synchronized watches
Saturday: The coziest venue in all of SF plays host to dreamy SFians Synchronized Watches this Saturday. The sheer fact that the band loves tequila enough to mention them in their Bandcamp bio should be enough to warm you up and endear them to you. Songs like the slow burn “Eat Me Alive” and the poppy Pixies charm of “Flowing Wells” make them a band to watch.

What: Synchronized Watches plays Neck of the Woods
When: Saturday, January 10th; doors: 8pm, show: 8:30pm
Where: Neck of the Woods: 406 Clement St
Cost: $ 15; purchase tickets here

trade wind
Sunday: Bi-coastal punk duo Trade Wind has no home and thus can’t be your hometown band. No matter how catchy their debut EP Suffer Just To Believe is, you can’t claim them. Former Stick To Your Guns frontman Jesse Barnett makes up the SoCal-leaning side while Stray From The Path guitarist Thomas Williams brings a bit of Long Island sound to Trade Wind. The effect is powerful, smooth, almost too good to be true. Catch them at hit-making venue Bottom of the Hill before they blow up like so many others who’ve played the Potrero Hill hotspot.

What: Trade Wind at Bottom of the Hill
When: Sunday, January 11th; doors: 8:30pm, show: 9pm
Where: Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St
Cost: $10; purchase tickets here

the author

Always in motion. April Siese writes about music, takes photos at shows, and even helps put them on behind the scenes as a stagehand. She's written everything from hard news to beauty features, as well as fiction and poetry. She most definitely likes pie.

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