pickwick san francisco independent

As bands continue to pack up and set their GPS for Austin, Texas & SXSW 2013, Seattle’s Pickwick, Portland’s Radiation City and Sandy’s visited San Francisco’s The Independent Friday night. After years of carefully crafting their tunes, Pickwick will release their much anticipated debut LP Can’t Talk Medicine this Tuesday. Having heard it already, I’ve had it on repeat and highly recommend you pre-order a copy. It’s the fruition of several years of diligent work and refining, an effort I imagine will be one of the best Seattle records in 2013. Likewise, Radiation City have a new full-length record, Animals in Median, out May 21.

Sandy’s: Heading into the Independent, I was informed several times that Sandy’s was eventually a new incarnation of the Botticellis, sans a member or two. While I won’t claim to have an extreme knowledge of the Botticellis, I’ve heard a few tunes and enjoyed their surf-pop-esque jams. The Sandy’s seemed to offer a bit more upbeat take. They delivered 60’s era, mellow, psyche jams with patient, pleasant melodies interspersed between extended instrumental jams that complemented one another very well. Definitely some music to close your eyes to and imagine an ocean scene or another tranquil environment.

Radiation City: If you read our site regularly, you’ve probably heard mention of Portland’s Radiation City. They’ve recently taken some time off from touring to work on their new record Animals in the Median, out 5/21 on Tender Love Empire. Now, I caught them in San Francisco at Rickshaw Stop this fall. That was an excellent set and their intricate harmonies and layerings sounded great there. Yet it was amazing to see how much larger the turnout and reception was for this show at the Independent. They sounded marvelous in the larger space, which provided plenty of space for Lizzy Ellison’s soaring vocals. Additionally, each Rad City member’s contribution had plenty of room to breath in the Independent and the nuances of their tunes came through. Regarding their new material, the Animals tracks seem to incorporate some more rhythmic oriented songs while retaining their doo-wop and sixties, bossa-nova style. Also, look for some psychedelic experimentation in the mix.

Pickwick: As the headliner of a sold out Friday night show in San Francisco, it was quickly apparent that the Bay is more than familiar with Pickwick. While I’m well aware of Pickwick’s following in their hometown of Seattle and their draw capabilities up north, the SF crowd was singing along the lyrics from the get go. We’re holding our Cascadia SXSW showcase next week, and Pickwick was actually slated to play the original Cascadia Festival on a farm back in 2010. From that perspective, it’s completely surreal and awesome to see how far Pickwick has come since then. Hats off the the dudes for the relentless hard work and refinement of their music. I’ve seen them play the Can’t Talk Medicine tracks a number of times live, but each show they seem to tighten up, hone in and bring a bit more kick into their performances. Galen was simply on point last night and it’s beautiful to watch him continue developing confidence in his range and ability. Watch for big things nationally for Pickwick in 2013.

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Pickwick Tour Dates

3/9/13 Los Angeles, CA THE ECHO Purchase Tickets
3/10/13 Phoenix, AZ CRESCENT BALLROOM Purchase Tickets
3/11/13Albuquerque, NM LOW SPIRITS Purchase Tickets
3/13 – 3/15/13 Austin, TX SXSW
3/18/13 Aspen, CO BELLY UP Purchase Tickets
3/19/13 Denver, CO BLUEBIRD THEATER Purchase Tickets
3/20/13 Telluride, CO SHERIDAN OPERA HOUSE Purchase Tickets
3/21/13 Salt Lake City, UT URBAN LOUNGE Purchase Tickets
3/22/13 Boise, ID TREEFORT MUSIC FESTIVAL Purchase Tickets
3/23/13 Portland, OR WONDER BALLROOM Purchase Tickets
4/11/13 Victoria, BC LUCKY BAR Purchase Tickets
4/12/13 Vancouver, BC RICKSHAW THEATER Purchase Tickets
4/13/13 Nelson, BC THE ROYAL Purchase Tickets
4/14/13 Calgary, AB THE GATEWAY Purchase Tickets
4/15/13 Edmonton, AB AVENUE THEATER Purchase Tickets
4/17/13 Winnipeg, MB WINNIPEG FOLK FESTIVAL Purchase Tickets
4/18/13 St. Paul, MN TURF CLUB Purchase Tickets
4/19/13 Chicago, IL SCHUBAS Purchase Tickets
4/20/13 Cleveland, OH BEACHLAND BALLROOM Purchase Tickets
4/21/13 Toronto, ON HORSESHOE TAVERN Purchase Tickets
4/22/13 Montreal, QC LE DIVAN ORANGE Purchase Tickets
4/24/13 New York, NY MERCURY LOUNGE Purchase Tickets
4/25/13 Cambridge, MASS THE BEARS PLACE Purchase Tickets
4/26/13 Philadelphia, PA MILKBOYP urchase Tickets
4/27/13 Washington DC DC9 Purchase Tickets
4/29/13 Chapel Hill, NC LOCAL 506 Purchase Tickets
4/30/13 Atlanta, GA THE EARL Purchase Tickets
5/1/13 Nashville, TN MERCY LOUNGE Purchase Tickets
5/2/13 St Louis, MO OFF BROADWAY Purchase Tickets
5/4/13 Memphis, TN BEALE STREET MUSIC FESTIVAL Purchase Tickets

Radiation City Tour Dates

SAT 9 MARCH
The Echo Los Angeles, CA, US
SUN 10 MARCH
The Crescent Ballroom Phoenix, AZ, US
WED 13 MARCH
The Grackle Austin, TX, US
THU 14 MARCH
Club Vice Austin, TX, US
THU 14 MARCH
Club Vice Austin, TX, US
TUE 19 MARCH
Hi-Dive Denver, CO, US
WED 20 MARCH
The Cavalcade Fruita, CO, US
THU 21 MARCH – SUN 24 MARCH
Treefort Music Fest 2013 Boise, ID, US
THU 21 MARCH
Urban Lounge Salt Lake City, UT, US

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