Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett, former Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra and rockers Creeper Lagoon are among the San Francisco artists scheduled to join forces November 5 to protest the city's rising rents and inhospitable climate for artists.

Hammett is scheduled to give a speech, and Biafra and Creeper Lagoon will perform, along with former American Music Club frontman Mark Eitzel, Latin jazz percussionist John Santos, veteran gospel group the Blind Boys of Alabama and garage-rockers Zen Guerilla, according to organizers.

"We've had 12 dance studios close, 20 nightclubs, five rehearsal studios for musicians — it's been devastating," said Ian Brennan, the concert's promoter.

The free event, dubbed Take Back San Francisco, will also include a "Million Band March," with musicians marching from the city's Mission neighborhood to City Hall.

The concert, which will also include surprise performances, will be broadcast live on Berkeley's KPFA-FM radio.

A spokesperson for Metallica at Elektra Records said Friday (Oct. 27) that Hammett is expected to participate in the march, but that his plans to speak at the event are still tentative.

• Jello Biafra
• Metallica

Jello Biafra for president?

• Jello Biafra

June 16 [14:00 EDT] -- Taking a page from the Grateful Dead's book, 80s Cal-punk icon Jello Biafra and 90s platinum-punk frontman Dexter Holland have established a foundation to benefit a variety of charities.

Based on the same principle as the Dead's Rex Foundation, Biafra (formerly of the Dead Kennedys) and Holland (currently of the Offspring) have cooked up the F.S.U. Foundation, which plans to raise funds through frequently scheduled events like concerts.

"I first found out about this kind of a concept from the Grateful Dead of all people," Biafra said in a written statement. "The Rex Foundation raised money every year via concerts to put into a fund, then gave out grants to various types of people in need. I thought it was a great a way to share the wealth, so to speak."

Some of the folks in need that the foundation plans to help include AIDS Project Los Angeles, Poor People's United Fund, Trees Foundation, and Amnesty International, who will all benefit from three upcoming California Offspring shows which will get the ball rolling for F.S.U. (Friends Shall Unite).

While the idea of what the foundation should do was clear to Biafra from the beginning, he still needed to enlist the help of Holland to get the organization off the ground. "When some longtime friends of mine blundered into mass success," he said of the Offspring's sudden windfall, "I thought the time had come for me to propose the idea to them."

Holland was more than receptive, and now sits on the F.S.U. board with Biafra, Rex Foundation director Danny Rifkin, and others from the music community.

The good karma starts flowing on June 29 at the Ventura Theatre in Ventura, California when the Offspring plays the first F.S.U. benefit.

• Jello Biafra
• The Offspring