Stranger Dance would like to extend a special thanks to the team who invited us to last night’s ALS Foundation charity event at San Francisco’s Barrel House (aka the good folks at Pereira & O’Dell). The night featured an intimate performance by Mayer Hawthorne whose debut album, A Strange Arrangement, is due out this September on Stones Throw.

Review, venue info and MP3 after the jump…

Short but sweet, Hawthorne’s set included highlights like “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out,” “Maybe So, Maybe No,” and a cover of M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes.” His retro style is basically an homage to the soul of the 60s and 70s, but with overt playfulness throughout – in other words, not as fine-tuned as Winehouse, but somewhere in the neighborhood of the whole Mark Ronson thing. After all, barbershop falsettos about the “crazy things guys do for ladies” may not be what you’d expect from a white 29 year-old, but it will certainly get you on the dance floor.

Reserved for private charity events like last night, the Barrel House is a hidden gem worthy of its reputation. Serving as a safe haven during prohibition, the space has been kept up as an office until 2008 when it started hosting fundraisers with guests like Tortoise, Christian Finnegan and Wyclef Jean. Join their facebook group to get invited to future events.

MP3:

About the ALS Foundation:

The ALS Association symbolizes the hopes of people everywhere that Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis will one day be a disease of the past – relegated to historical status, studied in medical textbooks, conquered by the dedication of thousands who have worked ceaselessly to understand and eradicate this perplexing killer. For more about the ALS Assocation or to donate, please visit www.alsa.org