The Civic Joy Fucks Are Here to Revitalize Your Face Off

It’s easy to feel down about the city these days. Flock cameras surveil our every move; AI is creeping into our public institutions. For San Francisco residents who have neither billions of dollars nor an insatiable hunger for government-sanctioned DJ parties in commercial corridors, the 1978 Invasion of the Body Snatchers comes to mind with disturbing frequency.

And then, if you’re lucky, you go see a band like the Civic Joy Fucks, a new punk trio that absolutely rips while also delivering pitch-perfect political satire, and you realize this city’s got some fight in her still. 

At least, that was COYOTE’s takeaway on Saturday night at the Fucks’ debut show, which brought a crowd of punks, artists, and goths of all ages to Moth Belly Gallery in the Tenderloin. The band members — who wear creepy, screenprinted ski masks and claim to be San Francisco politicians and power brokers Daniel Lurie, Chris Larsen, and Manny Yekutiel — stayed in character as they played through their just-released demo, Into the Streets. Song titles on said release include “We Love Police,” “Cameras Everywhere,” and “Have Some Joy, Motherfuckers.” That last one was the hit at the show, prompting the kids to form a pit. 

The stage banter was similarly unsubtle. “Wanna beat up some homeless guys after the show?” asked frontman “Lurie,” in a Levi’s T-shirt. “They’re right outside.” A guy dressed as the mayor’s bodyguard, complete with bluetooth earpiece, punched his palm on cue.

If you need a quick primer on billionaire-mandated fun, the band name and the members’ stage personas are all nods at the controversial Civic Joy Fund.

The lineup: Daniel Lurie (mayor, Levi’s heir, Civic Joy Fund cofounder, vox and guitar); Chris Larsen (fintech billionaire, SFPD and Flock financier, primary Civic Joy Fund benefactor, bass); and Manny Yekutiel (former supervisorial candidate, alleged perpetrator of multiple sexual assaults, Civic Joy Fund cofounder, drums). 

The EP’s title track smirks at the nonprofit Into the Streets, a major beneficiary of the Civic Joy Fund that organizes the massive Downtown First Thursday street party — an event that arguably bulldozed an existing DIY art walk, as Moth Belly co-owner John Vochatzer wrote about eloquently here. On Bandcamp, the genre is labeled “Technofascist Cronycore.” And the cover art is the visage of Mimi Haas: billionaire, Levi’s co-owner, mother of Daniel Lurie. 

But you don’t have to “get” every joke to feel a rush of catharsis from art that so directly confronts the powers that be — or to admire the band’s commitment to the bit. 

“We made the decision to start the Civic Joy Fucks a little earlier this year,” wrote “Daniel Lurie” in an in-character email to COYOTE last week, when we sent over a few questions. “Chris had some money from a Ponzi scheme he was involved in, and I got my mom Mimi to front us the rest of the cash we needed to record our demo … we think it might even be just what Salesforce City needs to save it from the Doom Loop.” 

Most importantly: The Civic Joy Fucks put on a real show. More than a tinge of Dead Kennedys, to state the obvious. Attendees casually surveyed by COYOTE used the words “inspiring” and “energizing.” We heard old heads saying they hadn’t seen anything this great in years. 

Sure, San Francisco is full of billionaire pod people. But shows like this one are a reminder that plenty of human beings still live here, too; it’s on us to find each other, to raise our middle fingers and laugh at it all together, to make some damn noise. We left thinking: More of this, please. 

The warm feeling was mutual, “Lurie” told the crowd at the end of the night.

“You guys,” said the screenprinted mayor, “are the best bootlickers we could ask for.” 

The Civic Joy Fucks just announced they’ll play Oct. 30 at El Rio (3158 Mission St., San Francisco). Check their Instagram for details.