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Rickshaw Stop Celebrates 15 Years With Show Series

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Songwriter Sean Hayes headlines day two of the Rickshaw Stop's anniversary celebration. (Courtesy Sean Hayes )

Known for its ear-to-the-street booking and ace slate of regular parties such as Gameboi and Popscene, the Rickshaw Stop is a staple mid-size music venue in San Francisco.

And amid increasing difficulties for independent clubs in the city, the 400-capacity Fell Street venue is celebrating 15 years of business with four nights of concerts.

The show series started Wednesday with indie-pop groups Diet Cig and The She’s. Sean Hayes headlines Thursday, with Tiny Telephone Recording operator and songwriter John Vanderslice as main support. Popscene co-presents Friday’s sold-out show featuring Capital Cities and Planet Booty, and things wrap Saturday with electropop outfit Coast Modern and Y Axes.

Tickets, ranging $20-$25 per night, are still available.

Christopher White and Waldo Williams, respectively a touring cyclist and bike messenger, founded the Rickshaw Stop to throw parties in a former television studio in 2004, as they recount in a recent interview. “We threw open the doors and threw caution to the wind,” White said.

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They also hired Dan Strachota, a longtime San Francisco music journalist, as an in house talent-buyer, and the club has developed a reputation for pairing touring acts bound for bigger stages with proper local openers.

In the video below, Strachota gives a presentation on defunct San Francisco music venues at the Rickshaw Stop last year as part of Nerd Nite.

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