Few live music contexts afford as visceral and as engaging an experience as punk shows. Often hosted in the concrete basement or dirt backyard of some local beneficiary of the punk arts, punk shows have the unique ability to convert any setting, however unassuming or dilapidated, into an exhilarating space of youthful angst, political rage, moshing, blastbeat drumming, dissonant guitar riffs, and some more youthful angst.
For the uninitiated wishing to dive into the Bay Area’s dynamic punk scene, we’ve prepared a list of San Francisco and Oakland’s best underground venues to catch all the local up-and-coming punk acts; don your black beanies and nose rings and prepare for an unforgettable, ear-splitting evening.
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The Knockout
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3223 Mission St / Website
Just a few blocks from Bernal Heights Park, The Knockout has been a San Francisco punk staple since its inception in 2005 and brings to the city a myriad of punk-rock genre variants, from hardcore to rockabilly to shoegaze. Their June 15th show will showcase the hazy melodies of Berkeley shoegaze artist Absinthe Father and the electric stylings of San Francisco rock group World Smasher.
Thee Parkside
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1600 17th St / Website
Right across The Embarcadero from Chase Center, Thee Parkside hosts alternative rock, punk, and electronica in a quaint outdoor patio setting (come equipped with a jacket to fend off the chills). For those that need, say, a beer and burger to recoup their energies after a particularly intense set, Parkside boasts a full bar as well as a dinner menu. Don’t miss their June 25th harcore bash, which will feature local metal acts Blind Illusion and Agnostic Priest.
Bottom of the Hill
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1233 17th St / Website
A short stroll down the block from Thee Parkside, Bottom of the Hill is one of the city’s oldest and most storied rock clubs, featuring different indie artists each night of the week. Acclaimed folk-punk duo Crywank and emo-punk group Chastity will be bringing their morose lyricism and stripped-down instrumentation to the venue this August.
924 Gilman St
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924 Gilman St / Website
Founded over three decades ago in 1986, 924 Gilman St. was one of the first spaces of its kind - regularly hosting low-cost live music, art shows, and community events for Berkeley and the wider Bay Area all while being collectively owned and democratically operated entirely by volunteers. In addition to punk, Gilman hosts local bedroom pop, indie, and hip-hop acts.
The New Parish
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1743 San Pablo Ave, Oakland / Website
A demure club-like space in the heart of downtown Oakland, The New Parish platforms both the most promising names in the indie scene and the best alternative local acts. Their outdoor courtyard adjacent to the indoor stage area provides a needed reprieve from the head-banging and moshing, offering local food vendors and a full bar. The much lauded Portland post-punk project Soft Kill will be coming to The New Parish in late September.
Rickshaw Stop
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155 Fell St / Website
Occupying what used to be a former television studio just below the Civic Center Plaza, the Rickshaw Stop marries all the familiar trappings of a classic concert venue - red curtains, high ceilings, and upper mezzanines - with the underground, idiosyncratic ambience of more modest punk spaces. Don’t miss the San Francisco garage rock outfit The Cool Ghouls at the Rickshaw on Friday, June 17th.
Toxic Beach
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300 24th St / no website
Concluding our list is surely the most authentically punk of this selection of venues, as it’s not even a formal venue. Just north of Pier 80, Toxic Beach is the punk nomenclature for Warm Water Cove Park, a waterfront hang-out spot that was once a dispossessed space of industrial waste and urban decay: is there a more apt environs for a punk show? Local hardcore groups Witchmelter and False Flag will be playing a Saturday show at Toxic Beach on June 18th.
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Photography by: Natalie Parham/Unsplash
