BRAIDS with Painted Palms and Pepper Rabbit [Review]

Tuesday, September 27. San Francisco’s Bottom of the Hill. A night of musical reverence.

Encased in a Bay Area Indian Summer sultriness, the aptly named bar/live music venue at the foot of Potrero Hill hosts a night of performances by Painted Palms, Pepper Rabbit and BRAIDS. (Read an interview with BRAIDS’ Raphaelle Standel-Preston here.) Outside, the heat mixes with the fog in the air and the quiet of the neighborhood, adding a sense of mystery to the evening. I even feel as though I’m intruding on a well-kept secret as I approach the door and encounter a couple of BRAIDS members having a curbside chat, a fitting preview of the bar’s comfortable atmosphere. An air of relaxation reigns as the crowd begins to funnel into the room’s soft blue and red lighting, making for a full audience. And it’s not even the middle of the week! That’s what we call “winning.”

Painted Palms. Photo courtesy of Secretly Canadian.