I have a love-hate relationship with creating TOP 20 playlists of local bands. On one hand, the playlist becomes my favorite thing to listen to for the next year. Additionally, it makes it super easy for me to recommend bands to friends. I also love posting a link to the playlist in my friend’s Facebook feeds when they say, “tired of my music, I need a new playlist.”

Have your listening habits changed from 2009 to 2019? Following in the trend of 2009 vs 2019, I’ve created a playlist that documents the San Francisco bands I was listening to when I started writing about the Bay Area music scene compared to the bands I just eat breakfast with now.

As 2024 winds down, we’re reflecting on another incredible year of sharing the stories, art, culture, and nightlife that make the Bay Area so unique. BrokeAssStuart.com wouldn’t be what it is without you—our community of readers, supporters, and believers in independent media. This year, instead of asking you to join Patreon

My top 20 list only features bands that created new music in 2017 and booked a local show to perform said new tracks. The following artists accomplished that and more.

Phono Del Sol is hands-down the best festival for giving and getting hugs in San Francisco. Featuring two stages attendees simply need to walk back and forth from one stage to the other every 30 minutes.

The Seshen is a San Francisco Bay Area-based six-piece led by singer/lyricist Lalin St. Juste and bassist/producer Akiyoshi Ehara. Their forward-thinking sound combines synthesizers, drum machines, live percussion, and entrancing harmonies to create an unmistakable fusion of R&B, synth-pop, and electronic music. This chemistry is complemented by St. Juste’s stirring

The Seshen is a San Francisco Bay Area-based seven-piece led by singer/lyricist Lalin St. Juste and bassist/producer Akiyoshi Ehara. Their forward-thinking sound combines synthesizers, drum machines, live percussion, and entrancing harmonies to create an unmistakable fusion of R&B, synth-pop, and electronic music. This chemistry is complemented by St. Juste’s stirring

  The Seshen is a San Francisco Bay Area-based band that draws influences from an eclectic range of genres from hip-hop, soul, pop to electronica, producing an original sound that is not bound to any particular category. Bells Atlas emerges from the vibrant cultural and musical backdrop of Oakland, CA. Blending heavy

  Headlining band, Geographer, is a San Francisc-based American indie rock band. The eight-year-old band has “described their sound as being “soulful music from outer space” using analog, electronic and acoustic elements to craft dense layers and unique sound textures.” They share the stage with local darlings, and my absolute