“Laugh at yourself first before anyone else can.” Sure, those words were written over five decades ago by gossip columnist Elsa Maxwell, but they still ring true in every comedy club today. The ten talented comedians who performed at the Punch Line Comedy Club Wednesday night showed how self-depreciation can be one of the most entertaining elements of the show. Stand-up comedians are notorious for having the gift of somehow making all things taboo sound hilarious, and there certainly was no shortage of racial insults and sexual innuendos directed at each other as well as the audience members. A few of them poked fun at a friendly couple sitting up front who shared that they had been dat

Scanning the Harlow’s crowd an hour or so before Le Butcherettes were slated for the stage, you would have found lead singer Terri Gender Bender leaning against a large pillar, her small foot tapping in rhythm with the hard drumming coming from Diciembre Gris, the second opener. This small metronome action would have been the only outgoing behavior exhibited by Terri, who, off stage, seems quiet, docile and introverted. When approached by fans or curious bystanders, Terri offered the same genuine smile and sweet responses, a reaction surprisingly different from what you would expect to come from a bawdy woman known for her bloody apron uniform. That is until Ms. Gender Bender got on sta

Law enforcement and correctional officers, military personnel and a firefighter went toe to toe in the boxing ring Saturday night, raising money for charity in the Battle of the Badges Fight Series: Road to the Championship. Held in the intimate courtyard setting of Liquid Nightclub in Citrus Heights, the well-attended event benefitted charities including the Armed Forces Foundation, Firefighters Burn Institute and Sacramento Sheriff's Toy Project. Battle of the Badges Fight Series events are a lead-up to the title fight at Battle of the Badges VIII. Last year's Battle of the Badges VII was held in August at Memorial Auditorium. All bouts had a three-round limit, and on the card Saturd

Hollywood sleaze-rapper Mickey Avalon performed for a huge crowd of die-hard fans at Ace of Spades Friday night, whipping the young crowd into a lustful frenzy with his provocative sing-along raps. Folsom rap duo Ill Effect kicked the show off with some tight rhymes and beats, sounding the best as they flowed over B.o.B's well-known hit "Airplanes," featuring Hayley Williams of Paramore. After a 30-minute delay that had everyone wondering what exactly was going on, rapper Ty$ (Ty Dolla Sign) took the stage. Unfortunately there was nothing spectacular in his short set that made up for the long wait. Highlights included some call-and-response about which side of the crowd was louder and b

You know that song with the can't-get-it-out-of-your-head whistling called "Young Folks" by Peter Bjorn and John that people seem to either love or hate? Los Angeles band Foster the People has a comparable track called "Pumped Up Kicks" – a sing-along with a cheery melody and dark lyrics about youth gun violence – that has the same effect. Polarizing song? For sure. One-hit wonder band? It doesn't look like it. Without seeming like they had anything to prove, the young group with more buzz than a beehive let its music speak for itself for a sold-out crowd at Harlow's Thursday night. Support act The Chain Gang of 1974 (aka Kamtin Mohager) from Denver came ready to warm up the crowd wit

Looking for something to do this Friday night? Put on your dancing shoes, head over to the Blue Lamp, and support a good cause! Japan XOXO is a benefit dance party, with all profits from the door going to the American Red Cross. Join local DJs Shaun Slaughter, Adam J, Sam I Jam, and Taylor Cho as they do what they love to support an amazing cause. Feel like you could do more about Japan's dire situation? Feel helpless? Japan XOXO offers a very easy solution: COME DANCE. Expect an evening of fun house, bouncy house, hip house, topsy turvy techno, treacherous techno, and some fun indie stuff mixed in the middle keeping the party going all damn night. Plus, enjoy drink specials all night--

We all have parents. But while many may love and appreciate their mothers and fathers, there are just some things not meant to be shared between parents and children. The Sacramento Press recently posed the question, “Where in Sacramento would you never want to take your parents,” to individuals at Westfield Downtown Plaza. After speaking to some fellow Sacramentans, the most common response was nightlife activities. Kevin Watson, 29, lives downtown and works as a graphic designer. He said he thought taking his dad to a club could get pretty weird. “I wouldn’t want to take my dad to Faces (Nightclub). That place is pretty crazy, and it would just be really awkward if he got hit on while

Sacramento, CA | Club goers leaving a local club escape fallen tree incident with minor injures and damaged vehicles. Late Saturday night, as Azukar Lounge at 16th Street and J Street was winding down and club goers filled the parking lot heading to their cars, a large tree collapsed landing on one occupied, damaging others and pinned a female to the ground. Several bistanders worked together to get the tree off the girl as resue crews responded. The victim was transported to the hospital via paramedics with minor injures.  Occupants of the vehicle struck by the tree were unharmed and able to exit the vehicle without further incident.  For more weather impact photos and stories, CLICK H

On the heels of an inaugural show last week featuring Rob Zombie, the first "all locals" show at new music venue Ace of Spades goes down Saturday. SacShows Presents: Soundcheck will feature performances by local bands Ten After Two, Carcerys Vale, Batten Down Your Heart, Above The City, The Winter Formal, City of Kings, and Oneira. Above The City is a relatively young, currently unsigned band made up of members Davey Sparks (vocals), Simon Pesely (guitar), Taylor Whitehurst (guitar), Zack Lee (drums) and Toby Hart (bass). The Sacramento Press recently spoke with Pesely, 21, about being in an up-and-coming band in Sacramento. How did Above The City get started? We started about nine mon

No, Murder by Death is not a screamo or metalcore band. But the band does explore some dark themes, like revenge, the devil and drinking away your troubles with whiskey. Taking their name from the 1976 Robert Moore/Neil Simon film of the same name, the four-piece rock band from Bloomington, Ind., takes their listeners on a ride through a "country gothic" soundscape, led by the powerful Johnny Cash-meets-Nick Cave baritone of frontman Adam Turla. Armed with galloping punk-country, somber themes and interesting concepts — their 2003 "Who Will Survive and What Will Be Left of Them?" is an album about the devil being shot in a small, Western town and the aftermath that follows — this show ha

The Dive Bar is the last of three new businesses on K St. to have its sign completed. The sign maker put the finishing touches on it early this evening. Pizza Rock and District 30 signs are up and the trio are on track to open on or before Jan. 1, 2011. Crest Theatre's marque is reflected in the glass. For more info on these businesses, CLICK HERE>>> . SacPress Photo | Kati Garner

Making a stop in Sacramento this Monday is a fresh, new band called The Gracious Few, featuring members of '90s alternative rock veterans Live and Candlebox. After Live effectively disbanded in 2009 due to the departure of singer Ed Kowalczyk, the remaining members sought to continue making music and recruited longtime friend and Candlebox frontman Kevin Martin for their new venture. Martin in turn brought aboard Candlebox guitarist Sean Hennesy to round out the sound and complete the lineup. TGF describes their sound as being influenced by '70s rock bands such as Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Black Sabbath and the Rolling Stones. The band’s eponymous debut album was produced by Jerry Harrison of

A new downtown bar and grill is catering to a lunch and dinner crowd while still providing a venue to showcase local music and sports talent. Shenanigans  – located at 705 J St. in the building that used to house Image – opened Oct. 28, and local band Tesla was there for the grand opening, according to co-owner Max Archuleta. Shenanigans is the first joint venture by Sacramento natives Archuleta and Eric Schaefer. “Our concept is a sports bar and live music venue, but we kind of want to celebrate what Sacramento has to offer those areas of entertainment,” Archuleta said. The name is intended to make the concept somewhat vague. “We sat down and thought, hey, you know, we want to do som

After having their opening date pushed back, the three establishments on the 1000 block of K Street are on track to open by New Year’s, if not before then. “We think we can have them open before Christmas,” said Russ Conley, superintendent for Terra Nova industries. Conley said power has been supplied to the three businesses and that working with SMUD was a breeze. Construction was delayed due to an unstable electrical vault under the property. The three business concepts include a "mermaid bar," a gourmet pizza restaurant with acrobatic pizza tossers and a high-end, over-30 dance club to further develop K Street Mall into an entertainment district and to bring people from as far away

If the long line snaking in front of Harlow’s on a chilly Thursday night was any indication, this city was ready to play with Cold War Kids. Indeed it was, easily selling out the popular venue and providing a packed, electric atmosphere for the Long Beach-based band to feed its ravenous fans. Anchored by the pounding kick of drummer Matt Aveiro and the soulful vocals of Willett, the ’Kids soldiered through a setlist that included several cuts from their first two albums, ’06’s “Robbers & Cowards” (“Red Wine, Success!” and “Hospital Beds”) and ’08’s “Loyalty to Loyalty” (“Mexican Dogs” and “Dreams Old Men Dream”), as well as ’09’s “Behave Yourself EP” (“Audience” and "Santa Ana Winds”).

 Sacramento, CA | After two groups leave a Downtown night club, an argument ensues and a female is shot. Early Friday morning, two groups leaving a downtown club, per SacPD, got into an altercation in the parking garage off L st. between 10th and 11th Sts in Downtown Sacramento. When officers arrived they found that a female victim had been shot. She was transported to UC Davis via Paramedics. The suspect fled on foot and remains at large. See video coverage of this incident>> Follow @SacMav on Twitter for local breaking news.  

Faces, Sacramento’s premier gay night club, is celebrating their 25 year anniversary in colorful fashion this weekend. Faces posted the following on their website to thank the Sacramento community: Faces opened on August 15th 1985, and it is the great community of Sacramento that has kept Faces open for an amazing quarter century. Our nightlife experience in the area has expanded in many ways that make us proud to be a part of your memories and anxious to provide more and more ideas and opportunities to celebrate with you. Friday, August 13th will be our "Kick-Off" party in honor of our 25 years in Sacramento. With a Thank-You to the wonderful community here we begin with NO COVER Frida

Venue, located at 1417 R St., officially closed its doors today after being sold last week. That’s according to Bob Simpson, one of the establishment’s partners. “I can’t disclose the terms of the sale because it’s confidential,” Simpson said. “The business is sold. We’re excited about it. We got a good offer, and at this point, we decided to go for it.” Simpson said he couldn’t disclose what the concept is for the business that will be taking it over. Any performances scheduled to take place in the 1,000-capacity club have been canceled, according to Simpson. “We were only doing occasional performances,” he said. Venue opened in February in the building that formerly housed Empire.

There was a lot of fishnet at Blue Lamp on Wednesday night, which could mean a few things, but in this case it was lo-fi pop quartet Dum Dum Girls visiting Sacramento in support of their debut album I Will Be. Dum Dum Girls is led by Dee Dee (real name: Kristen Gundred), the creative force behind the all girl group, á la Trent Reznor. The name of the group is a nod to both The Vaselines' album Dum-Dum, and the Iggy Pop song "Dum Dum Boys". The 27-year-old singer/songwriter started recording songs in her bedroom and eventually looked to her friends to take the show on the road. The debut album I Will Be was produced by Richard Gottehrer, who is responsible for writing 60's classics "My Boy

  There is Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus pop, and there is Rooney pop. It was nice to see the Rooney kind on Wednesday night at the Boardwalk in Orangevale. Both Rooney and one of their support bands on this tour, The Young Veins, have a throwback pop sound that isn't so common these days. As someone who grew up with Weezer, I was definitely looking forward to seeing Rooney for the first time. The Young Veins were a great opener (the other support bands were local band Flatlin, and Black Gold, from Brooklyn). The 'Veins are compromised of two former members of Panic! at the Disco and are touring in support of their first release Take a Vacation!  If The Byrds and The Beatles had a baby, their