Sorry, do I sound bitter? I just miss the cynical anti-religious sentiments of the San Francisco Bay Area, not to mention the music scene: This Thursday, Dec. 14, klezmer-punkalicious pranksters Golem will be playing the Independent as part of VodkaLatka, a “festival of rights” combining social activism, free food and accordian music you can dance to. Yo, my Hebraic peeps back in the Hilly Land: Light a candle for me, but don’t burn the house down!

(For those nowhere near San Francisco who have never heard of Golem, a band so hip it hurts, I’m particularly proud of last year’s feature about them, “Puttin’ The Pedal to the Shtetl”.)

Also playing this week closer to the coast I now inhabit but still far enough away from Jesus is Good for the Jews, a reconstituted version of the “Jewish joke-pop” sensation What I Like About Jew (also reviewed here early this year.) Rob Tannenbaum (the snarky “short one”) has a new partner in crime, indie musician David Fagin of NYC’s The Rosenbergs, so even if it’s questionable that these guys are good for the Jews, it’s sure to rock.

The droll duo will be at the Knitting Factory Thursday, December 14 with comedian Todd Barry, Rachel Feinstein, and singer Tammy Faye Starlite, as well as the next night with singers Lisa Loeb and Julian Fleisher. There are more dates during the season in Boston, D.C., Virginia and Chicago; email if ya need more info.

Don’t worry about me, I’ll just be here down South with a giant pillow over my head, trying to drown out “Come All Ye Faithful.”

*It’s really not that bad. Plenty of synagogue-related Chanukah activities to attend, though sadly, no gigantic Chabad menorah at the mall. But … so many … plastic nativity scenes on the lawns … it’s just too tempting to steal all the baby Jesusi and replace them with Hebrew National salamis…