Sean Rawls is the creator and lead singer of Still Flyin’, an indie rocksteady band known for its sing-a-long lyrics, party-like performances, and international following. The self-described “hamm-jamm” band, or a band that makes a good time even better, consists of over 15 different band members and aims to create a rowdy all-inclusive beer-guzzling atmosphere wherever they go. (Sean credits Matthew McConaughey’s lifestyle as one of the band’s role models.) This party-wagon crew does steady tours in Australian, Europe and North America and we were finally able to catch the Still Flyin’ Social Chairman at his home in the Mission District of San Francisco.
Why did you choose the Mission District as your personal home base?
Well, my friend lived in this house here and it became well known as a good party house for having bands play in the backyard and for hosting other shows. Everyone wanted to play here, come to the shows here, it was also great place for people to come crash on the couch if they were from out of town. It’s just a fun place to be, in general. My friend had to move to Berkeley for work and he wanted the house to go to someone he knew would continue the legacy.
I said yes because of that, and also because the rent is super cheap. I’ve been here 3 years, and for 2 years before that I was in Bernal Heights.
The rent is super cheap? Is that the Mission’s reputation?
Well, my friend had been here so long that he got a great deal and I was able to continue that. My rent is $1100 for a 2-bedroom, which is one of two units in the house. Around here rent is usually $1600 or $1700 for a similar place.
How has the Mission changed over the three years you’ve been there?
Well, there’s two sides of the Mission. On the western border there are hipsters, bars, and fancy restaurants and records stores. That dominates the west side. On the east side, where I am, it’s mostly Latino, with burrito joints and taquerías.
This side is getting gentrified though with fancy ice cream shops, fancy restaurants, and coffee shops. Before it was mostly a bunch of Mexican restaurants, which was good. All this yuppie stuff is coming in now. Well, I’m white and I do like some of it, so I guess I’m part of the problem too, I suppose.
Anything else change?
The Jay ‘N Bee Club changed. It is a bar nearby here. They have a good outdoor area here in The Mission. We used to go there all the time when my friend used to DJ there. But now they have changed owners, changed the menu and everything there has changed, so we don’t go there anymore. But back in the day that was the place to be.
Does the Mission remind you of anywhere else you’ve lived?
Kinda like Bernal Heights, but that’s just the next neighborhood south of the Mission.
For other places outside of San Francisco, there are some similarities to Athens, GA, where I lived before. It’s like a big city version of a very small hipster section of Athens, near the Grit, a vegetarian restaurant down there.
If they made Athens where people were much more stacked on-top of each other and then had 75% Latino people mixed in, which makes it much better, then it would be like the Mission. But I like Athens how it is too.
Where do you go to work on your music within the neighborhood?
My bandmates live around the corner with a built-in studio in their basement, so we usually rehearse there. I know some artists with warehouses and art spaces we can play in too. It’s kinda hard to have practice here as it’s so residential, so we’re lucky to have my bandmate’s basement studio.
We play shows at a few places in town – The Knockout, which is a pretty cool and fun bar. The Make-Out Room is pretty cool too. El Rio has shows sometimes, and they also have a big outdoor area in the back when the weather is good.
Describe a perfect day in your nabe.
Wake up not hungover and see that it’s a brilliant beautiful day outside. It never gets really hot here, but it gets to be t-shirt weather sometimes. Each nabe has it’s own weather system here. The Mission is the warmest and the sunniest nabe in San Francisco.
How about perfect neighborhood activities?
I would take my dog to the dog park in Dolores Park. But last time I was there one of my dogs ran really far away and he ran like 100 mph at this girl on a picnic blanket as she was putting a bagel in her mouth. My dog ran full-speed in-between her hand and her mouth and stole the bagel. So I don’t bring him there anymore. Potrero Hill is where I go to now. It overlooks the city and has a pretty good view.
After that, my wife and I would usually go eat something. I don’t really like brunch but a lot of people come to the Mission to eat brunch. But I like to go to a Mexican place, Los Jarritos on 20th Street and Van Ness Ave and get chili quiles – chips and eggs mixed together with chicken. I also get a horchata to drink.
After that, maybe come back to my house and open up the backyard and invite some friends over to drink some beers and hang out. We’d fire up the bbq to grill some sausages or burgers and tell some jokes and some lies to each other and have some fun.
At night, it would probably get nice and chilly, so we’d put on some jackets, and hit my favorite bar right now called the Lone Palm on 22nd Street and Guererro, The reason I like it is that is it’s not overwhelmingly crowded and not many people go to it yet for some reason. And then on the way home, El Farolito. They have two locations and I get a burrito or split one because they are really big.
Still Flyin' on the steps of Sean's party house
What would you change about the Mission?
It can be a pretty rough nabe. There are some gangs and stuff where I live. It can be dangerous, and you have to be careful at night and stick to the more busy streets or you’ll get mugged. I’d stop the violence. Maybe get Jimmy Carter to come make peace.
On the other side of the coin, the mission is most famous for the burritos as it was apparently invented here. It didn’t really exist in Mexico before it was made here. There are two hundred taquerías here and there could be something different. Maybe something different than like 12 coffee shops within a few blocks from each other too.
So violence, taquerías, and coffee shops – those are the problems.
Which high school superlative winner should live here?
The first thing that comes to mind would be “Coolest.” Or “Most Likely to be Cool”.
How would you describe your nabe to, let’s say, a cowboy in North Dakota?
Lots of great Mexican food and lots of great any kind of food. The rent is cheaper than most of the rest of the city. A lot of diversity, culturally, than anywhere else in the city. And tons of parks and outdoors.
You’ll see a lot of things you’ve never seen before, both good or bad. Mostly good though. And there are people who can’t really speak English here and they are still willing to try really hard to help each other out, and that’s really important too.
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