a look into the vibrant culture of san francisco

It was around five o'clock last Saturday and I was driving around a very industrial part of San Francisco. As I drove up to where the address was marked on google maps, I was so confused because it just looked like all the other warehouses around. After I parked though and walked toward the warehouse though it became very clear to me that this wasn't just another warehouse.

There to set up early like I was, artists were setting up their stations on the walls to start painting. Other artists were setting up their photography and other crafts on the long table where I was also set up. Right as I arrived people couldn’t have been more friendly.

artist

As people started pouring into the warehouse, they started to come by the table and ask about the Zine. Honestly I couldn’t have hoped for more positive reactions. People seemed genuinely interested and were excited to take the free Zines. They were happy that we were dedicated to covering underground music.

The band’s that played had amazing energy, by far the highlight of the night was Surfbort. They were just so raw and the crowd went crazy. Honestly it was probably the best mosh pit I’ve ever been in. While I was in the mosh pit I started to recognize people I’d seen at other shows, even other bands I had seen live. It’s a tightly knit community. Everyone seems to know each other and even if you're new to the scene, they are so welcoming and there is never a feeling of being judged.

The woman that makes this all possible though and is one of the main people who organizes Random Door is Burd. I first met Burd a few months ago at a house shows she’d helped organize, and I had an amazing time. Burd is not only a musician herself, but she puts on many shows and seems to know everyone in the San Francisco music scene.

The amount of wonderful people I met who were just excited about music and art and just creating in general was truly beautiful. San Francisco’s has a radiant culture, you just have to look a little closer at the city.

pictures and words by mac