Despite their utterly forgettable name—“Who are we seeing again?” asked our companion for the third time—Scissors for Lefty give good show. We arrived at Chop Suey last night way early* in time to catch some of the soundcheck before the band played their tight-ass set. And what we heard both times was well put-together: sweet synth lines, catchy guitars, and Brit-leaning hooks up the wazoo. Cribbing from the Strokes one moment and verging into Pavement territory the next, the fact that this SF quartet is unsigned in the U.S. (in Europe, they’re on the venerable label Rough Trade) astounds us. While they didn’t play the soaring “Mama Your Boys Will Find a Home” [YouTube], they did close with “Ghetto Ways” [mp3], a radio-ready single if we’ve ever heard one. more ›

MUSIC: Normally, we try to avoid El Corazon at all costs, but there’s an early show there today for a very good cause. During last week’s storm, Kate Fleming, a talented voice-over artist, died while attempting to save the audio gear in her home studio. Tonight’s show—featuring Speaker Speaker, Patience Please, Megasapian, In the Empty City, and more—is in Kate’s memory, with the money benefitting her family. more ›