Author: Patty Riek

Caribou Fox Theatre, Oakland February 16, 2022 Photos by Jon Bauer Caribou emerged from the stage haze…to start a set of contrasts:  uptempo backtracks / sultry lyrics, bright bold lights/ambient stage fog, dance beats/reflective tunes. The trance-inducing light show met the approval of an appreciative audience. The middle section of the show featured black and white lights a la peg boards with sweeping spot lights over the crowd and playful sounds woven into bass forward dance pieces building to a musical and light crescendo suggesting what Yeats’s “the centre cannot hold” might sound and look like in a dance club.…

Daydream Accelerator Rob Garza Available from the usual places Jon Bauer contributed to this review. Rob Garza’s Daydream Accelerator melds musical styles to create a multi-faceted whole. Much like a technology “accelerator,” Garza’s work underscores that collaboration with myriad artists, yielding a stronger work than a mono-focused effort. Rob Garza’s 25-plus years of collaboration with Eric Hilton as Thievery Corporation paved the way for Garza’s solo venture. Synth heavy with an EDM focus, Garza invites a variety of collaborators to join him on his internationally inspired sonic journeys. “Summer Is Ours” starts out the album with soaring high register vocals…

Branford Marsalis Quartet Miner Auditorium October 21, 2021 Photos by Jon Bauer. The Branford Marsalis Quartet captivated and delighted the Miner Auditorium audience at the SFJAZZ Center across four nights from October 21 to October 24. Marsalis, the renowned saxophonist, shared the stage with long-time band members Joey Calderazzo on piano, Eric Revis on bass, and Justin Faulkner on drums. Randall Kline, SF Jazz’s Founder and Executive Artistic Director, introduced the musicians as the hardest working band today. Once on stage, their dress jackets neatly draped on the piano, they played 85 minutes without intermission. Intense and emotional, Marsalis, Calderazzo,…