Tis the season to freak out about what to get our loved ones.

It seems to get harder every year, as -- thanks to the internet -- the world becomes smaller and choice becomes more vast. How can you find that perfect gift for someone that not only has everything, but can get whatever they want online in a matter of minutes?

Here's the answer: outsmart them. Use this guide to scoop them on their own desires. They may not yet know they lust after these amazing items, but with the Amoeblog's help, you will reign victorious as this year's King / Queen of Christmas / Hanukkah / Kwanzaa / Festivus /  Winter Solstice.  

For your old school punk:
San Francisco’s seminal punk band Crime was  formed in 1976 and ripped post-hippie San Francisco a metaphorical new one when they released their first (and many say Punk’s first) single“Hot Wire My Heart / Baby You're So Repulsive.” They mixed a rebellious and sexually-charged image (they were most often seen flaunting their vampiric, just-outta-rehab good looks in tight leather, regulation police uniforms, or old-time gangster duds) with their unique blend of intellectual and furious lo-fi rock and roll. Crime found local refuge at the now legendary Mabuhay Gardens, but became nationally notorious after playing a gig at San Quentin Penitentiary in full police uniforms. (Read more about them on the Amoeblog.)

Now, after many years, you can purchase official Crime merch directly from original member Johnny Strike and his business partner Faustino Mendonça. Bootleggers be damned! Get some stunning shirts, posters, and pins from the source!

Shana Tova, y'all!

Have you ever sat slumped at your miserable computer at your excruciating job, staring blankly at an Excel spreadsheet that mocks your very existence but really secretly hoping that a heavy metal band would come and whisk you away to a magical land of booze and Satan? Sure, we all have. ~audra~

by Sally
Davey Havoc pic by Audra, all other pics by Kaitlin.

Every year Record Store Day just gets bigger and bigger, and the craziness grows! Here in SF before we opened the line was INSANE outside our doors and the first person in line had been there since 6am! That's some dedication! Even more astounding, customers were calling Friday night and asking if they could camp out for prime spots on the big day!

At 10:30am on the button, the doors were opened and people swarmed into the treasure-laden vinyl aisles of Amoeba SF. There were hoardes of people packing the rows and surrounding the 7"s. Watch an awesome video below shot by Audra of the line and the vibe before the doors were flung open!

Not only are the Amoeba employees masters of arcane musical knowledge, but a number of them are gifted visual artists and musicians too. After a long day of helping customers locate rare Do-wop 45’s, determining the going rate of an early 80’s Axe album, and stock-checking the Watchmen soundtrack, many Amoebites rush home to paint, film, draw, compose, sculpt, and, of course, go to band practice.

For the last couple of years, Amoeba Music has thrown annual art shows to exhibit and celebrate the creative works of its multi-talented staff members from all three Amoeba locations. For the Third Annual Amoeba Art Show, which took place on Friday, March 6, 2009, Amoeba transcended the “art show” format and went straight for an outright “happening” with the Andy Warhol-inspired Factory Party. Collaborating with the East Bay Express, OFFSpace, and contributing sponsor the de Young Museum, Amoeba turned the 44,000 square foot Hero Arts warehouse space in Emeryville, California into a teeming hotspot of live art, film, musical performances, and theatrical art forms.



On the evening of Friday, March 6th, after weeks of preparation, the doors were thrown wide to over 4,000 attendees, revealing a labyrinthine network of rooms packed with Amoebite art, beautiful revelers, and a staggering number of Andy Warhol and Factory “Superstar” look-alikes. The East Bay Express devoted one massively large room to recreating Warhol’s Factory, complete with silver-foiled walls and reproductions of the now-iconic red couch and mirrored disco ball table (built by East Bay Express Sales & Marketing Director Terry Furry). Screen printing demonstrations were held by Jesse Hazelip and Tim Belonax, and the room featured an homage to Warhol’s Brillo Boxes built by Jason MacDougall and screened by Philip X. Diaz.