Bay Area icon sells out 3 nights at haunted SF venue

During their sold-out three-night residency at the Chapel in San Francisco, Shannon and the Clams proved why they’re one of the Bay Area’s most beloved local bands. Formed in 2007 during the height of the Bay Area garage rock renaissance, Shannon and the Clams quickly rose to popularity, evoking the early rock ‘n’ roll stylings of the 1950s and 1960s blended with a modern punk approach and callbacks to doo-wop and R&B.

Each of the three concerts focused on a different side of the band — Thursday leaned into its rowdy punk rock reputation, Friday was a psychedelic freakout, and Saturday’s New Year’s Eve finale ended with a “good ol’ fashioned sock hop,” channeling Wall of Sound groups like the Ronettes. 

In addition to the 1970s-inspired liquid light show provided by Mad Alchemy, who performs with psych bands nationwide, Friday’s set included a festive backdrop on the Chapel’s mezzanine, where fans took group photos and selfies alongside gigantic props like a lifesize spiked choker necklace. 

One can assume that the “ghost girl” who reportedly haunts the venue enjoyed the playful decorations, which served as a perfect initiation into the gritty and soulful cult of Shannon and the Clams.

A tragic backdrop

Leading up to the New Year’s Eve bash, lead songbird and bassist Shannon Shaw shared on Instagram that fiance Joe Haener had helped pick the setlist for each night at the Chapel and also had selected the opening bands Cool Ghouls, the Moore Brothers, Anna Hilburg and Kamikaze Palm Tree, among others. Haener tragically died in August from a truck collision in Aurora, Oregon, just months away from the couple’s wedding date in November. He was 41. 

Despite the somber backdrop, Shaw glowed as she walked onto the Chapel stage Friday night wearing a beautifully flowing floral dress with bell sleeves. By her side, guitarist and vocalist Cody Blanchard wore a red Pied Piper’s cap, keyboardist Will Sprott played the role of the psychedelic wizard, and Garrett Godard held it down behind the drum kit. Seeing the Chapel’s dramatic, arched ceiling bathed in psychedelic waves of color made the concert feel like a religious psych rock revival. 

Feed your head: Shannon and the Clams perform at the Chapel with full-blown Mad Alchemy light show, plus Anna Hillburg and Noelle Fiore, lower right, on backing vocals. (Charles Russo/SFGATE)
Feed your head: Shannon and the Clams perform at the Chapel with full-blown Mad Alchemy light show, plus Anna Hillburg and Noelle Fiore, lower right, on backing vocals. (Charles Russo/SFGATE)

Shannon and the Clams opened the show with a powerhouse cover of Zager and Evans’ 1969 hit “In the Year 2525,” with a lively duo of backup vocalists. Next came the spaghetti Western-galloping tune “I Leave Again,” one of their several songs that have racked up over a million plays on Spotify. Crowd surfers dove into the audience, one by one slowly disappearing toward the back of the room.

Shaw’s voice was indeed as moving as ever throughout the night, hitting both high and low octaves with fluidity and that air of confidence that has transfixed fans for nearly two decades. 

“She came through with such full force and really seemed to be present and seemed to be there with us,” said Ruby Strandlund, 32, a hairstylist in the city and a fan of the band for almost a decade. “… I was praying for her to play ‘Corvette.’ It’s by far my favorite song by them. It was nice because there was a buildup with a bunch of really punchy, fun songs, and then ‘Corvette’ came on, and it switched up a little bit.”
 
Still, many in the room could feel the underlying aches Shaw expressed between songs when she opened up about her fiance, Haener, before she started “If You Could Know.”

“I wrote this song the first time I remember ever writing a song and being happy,” she said to cheers. “So I’m going to dedicate it to my fiance, Joe; his birthday is tomorrow at midnight. It’s about feeling good. It’s about being in love. It’s about having things to look forward to.”

One thing’s clear: To see Shaw come out with the support of not just her bandmates but the outpouring of love from her fans was so powerful that it gave me chills and prompted me to sing out loud with a room full of strangers with no regard. 

‘And if you go chasing rabbits …’

Other highlights included many songs that spanned the band’s six albums, such as “Sleep Talk,” “Mary, Don’t Go,” “The Bog” and “The Cult Song.” But it was the foreshadowing of those trippy clocks up on the mezzanine that reappeared during the band’s much-welcomed encore that sent me over the edge of musical bliss. 

Shannon and the Clams busted out a cover of Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” — a true homage to the pioneers of San Francisco’s psychedelic rock sound of the late 1960s. Shaw sang it with such tenacity, and I will never forget it.

“The Jefferson Airplane cover, it was so epic, especially with the crazy, psychedelic lights inside the Chapel. It was wildly trippy,” said Nicole Kangas, 40, guitarist of the garage rock band the Ruby Woos. “I also loved when they played ‘Midnight Wine.’ The energy was so intense. That song is about alcoholism and just struggling — at least that’s my interpretation of it. So seeing her play that and just knowing what’s recently been going on in her world was really crazy.”

As the night’s encore came to a close with the song “Backstreets,” off the band’s fifth album “Onion,” I wished for the ability to rewind those cartoonish clocks and relive these moments. In the end, I’m just glad I was a part of it.

“It was amazing to see them come together on stage and just the resilience and passion that she puts into the music as well as the rest of the band,” Kangas said. “You can tell that they’re all so closely knit, and it’s a testament to her incredible strength as a human, in addition to being so talented.”

Listen to Shannon and the Clams and follow the band on Instagram to keep up on future performances.