Zorn Has Landed

I’m not going until Saturday. But the SF Chronicle gives you an idea what to expect from John Zorn’s six-night residency at Yoshi’s in San Francisco.

Here’s an overview of the music, and a review of Tuesday night’s Secret Chiefs 3 performance.

The review says the show sold out — score one for the good guys. It’s worth noting, though, that that $20 show was the cheapest ticket of the week, with prices as high as $50 for the weekenders.

Zorn has brought an all-star team from New York to play these shows, so he probably commanded quite a premium for being here. I can understand how Yoshi’s arrived at the prices it did, but then again, I know I probably would have bought one more ticket for a little less skin. Considering they’re already having trouble attracting jazz fans to the venue, this might turn out to be a gamble that backfires — which would be a shame. There’s certainly some hubris to be accounted for here, and yes I complained about the ticket prices earlier, but I’d still hate to see Yoshi’s get punished for trying something this bold.

UPDATE: Wow, Zorn gave a long and gracious interview to KTVU — check it out here. I especially like his explanation of what he’s trying to accomplish with The Stone. Thanks to Siebert on Twitter for pointing it out.