Headliner: Damon & Naomi
Opening Acts: Vetiver, The Zincs, Micah P. Hinson
When: Saturday February 26th, 2005
Where: Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
Ticket Price: $10 advance / $12 @ the door

Saturday night and Noise Pop 2005 was nearly at a close. This time I made my way to Bottom of the Hill, the venerable club which historically has served as home ground for the Noise Pop festival. It's not a huge space -- a smallish stage at the back of one big drinking floor, plus a quaint, very San Francisco patio outside -- but it still attracts some of the better indie bands swinging by the city. I've seen some great shows here -- The Wrens, at last year's Noise Pop, jump right to mind -- and just stepping in had me feeling warm and snuggly. The stiff Makers and ginger also helped.

When my friend and I arrived, a handsome young man in a bright red shirt and a big acoustic guitar stood in the middle of the stage, singing in a strangely aloof, strangely compelling baritone. This was, or he was, The Zincs -- a.k.a. James Elkington, a one-man folk outfit originally from London by way of Chicago. While now and then he cued up a drum machine, mostly it was his able strumming and that deep, rich voice. His erudite lyrics of hesitation and connection, delivered just this side of coldly, made him seem the folky brother of The Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt -- with all positive connotations intended.

Next up was Vetiver, a San Francisco folk outfit who, I only later learned, often have the contribution of freak-folk rising star Devendra Banhart. Tonight, however, it was Andy Cabic on vocals and guitar, with cellist Alissa Anderson and violinist Jim Gaylord at his side. Cabic sang melodies which immediately worked -- not by rolling in tired tropes but by hitting that keen pitch of musicality which makes the original seem immediately familiar. Violin and cello surrounded his guitar and voice like mist in the Appalachians. Like Banhart and Joanna Newsom -- Vetiver's brethren in the San Francisco folk vanguard -- the band mingles sharp, knowing words with Americana's gnarlier flavors, slicing an edge from a traditional sound. I was surprised to be so taken by this (to me, at least) obscure opening band. Either the audience knew what they'd be getting, or the spell worked as well on them, because with each song the applause was more a roar. Vetiver set up a front porch and swing bench in the middle of hip San Francisco, then worked their magic.