The snow makes the holiday seem more real, and pressing. If I could choose one day to be Christmas, it would probably be yesterday. Snow outside and cozy inside with chili and punch. The party ends but hot toddies continue and we eat magic brownies and have a rooftop snowball fight while listening to people playing in snow and laughing as hard as us all over town. And by town I mean Bushwick.
Oh and this clip made me laugh so hard it hurt. The Soup is such a great way to keep abreast of hilarious reality show moments without having to watch entire depressing blocks of said shows.
-Kastoory
Showing posts with label Bushwick. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bushwick. Show all posts
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Desperately Seeking SITE
7 p.m. - CROWD Reading Series (http://www.crowdyourself.blogspot.com/)
On the walk over to Café Orwell (http://bushwickbk.com/2008/12/19/cafe-orwell-opens-in-morgantown/), I ran into a couple with SITE map in hand, looking for something to do. When I told them I was going to a poetry reading, they shook their heads firmly in unison.
“I have nothing against poetry, per say,” said the woman. “It’s just that bad poetry is the worst art form imaginable.”
I can’t help but share this sentiment. A bad painting, you can look away from. A bad film, you can laugh at. But the inescapable horror of having to sit through a bad poem will stick in your system.
This is what I discussed with Daniel while we waited for CROWD to begin. “Poetry and music,” he said “are the two art forms where the bad significantly outweighs the good.”
Lucky for us, Bill Rasmovicz read that night, a poet who happens to fit the slim categories of unpretentious and “good.” There was also a lot of free wine, which facilitated our enjoyment of his words.
“I swallowed the black pill of childhood” (http://billrasmovicz.blogspot.com/2007/06/newish-poem.html) was my favorite. His book, The World In Place of Itself (Alice James Books, 2007) has several other poems with equally awesome titles, like “RULES FOR A SEMI-AUSPICIOUS LIFE” and “PORTRAIT OF THE MAN TRYING TO SHED ENOUGH MASS TO FLY.”
10:30 p.m.-The Brooklyn What (http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=98392540) took their shirts off on stage, as they played their first song “I don’t Want to go to Williamsburg.”
I can’t really think of a better introduction to IOSOUND, the music component of SITE, held at Goodbye Blue Monday (www.goodbye-blue-monday.com/).
I will let this video speak for itself :
12 a.m. -The Rhodes (http://www.myspace.com/therhodesmusic) appeared to be your run-of-the-mill band still wearing ties and riding The Strokes’ wave. But appearances can be deceiving.
Their punchy songs like “Call me” and “Shakedown” had a ‘50s spin that wasn’t trying too hard, and convinced me they could actually play their instruments pretty damn well. However, it was their cover of Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good” that truly won me over.
12:30 a.m.-Ava Luna (http://www.myspace.com/avalunaband) are my new obsession.
Frontman Carlos Hernandez’s lyrics are backed up by three females with gospel-like voices: Felicia Douglass, Mira Leytes, and the truly soulful Siheun Song. Add Alex Smith on drums and Nathan Thompkins on synthesizer, and you get one of the most unique cross-genre bands I have seen in a long time.
Ava Luna are back at Blue Monday on Saturday the 14th, at 9 p.m., so you should check them out (i.e. fall in love with them).
Bushwick is an obvious location for an art festival. It is the home of factories remodeled into artists lofts, innovative street art, hipster house parties, and arguably the most plentiful number of three piece bands to come out of a single neighborhood (other than Williamsburg). And, oh yeah, there’s also those people that originally lived there.
I approached SITE fest void of expectation, so as not to be disappointed by stodgy sonnets or bands that have mastery over two power chords (and not much else). But from what I saw on Saturday, the festival, unlike music and poetry as a whole, has a favorable good-to-bad ratio.
Bushwick, I’m impressed.
-Hannah Miet
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Packing Heat In The Hood
It’s cold and dark outside, but as the weekend comes to a close the promise of fresh salsa lures me out of my warm, Park Slope apartment. After enduring a long, circuitous subway ride around Sunday night track work, I finally meet the Pomp team for a much anticipated taste test at the Bushwick birthplace of the Brooklyn Salsa Company
The homegrown business was cooked up by friends Rob Bowman and Matt Burns, whose loft space inside a converted 19th century manse—once home to a pre-eminent German singing society—acts as office, kitchen, and living quarters. In a nod to its musical roots, the imposing brick building is now dubbed the Opera House Lofts and is home to a community of young, free-spirited residents who eagerly feed on the salsa-supply from apartment 112.
“It’s a hipster dorm,” explains Bowman as he guides me and the Young brothers (Royal and Fury) to the subterranean common room, where ping pong tables, plaid shirts, and Michael Jackson provide the backdrop for the salsa-fest in progress. On the table before us, buckets of freshly baked tortilla chips flank trays of cilantro-infused taco fixins, which solicit copious salsa consumption from all in attendance. And that’s just the point for CTO (Creative Taste Operator) Burns, who has learned that free food is the best way to transform friends into flavor analysts.
In fact, the idea for BK Salsa was sparked in the Opera House basement on a night just like this one last April. With praise for Matt’s ever-present, always fresh party snack at a fever pitch, the realization that his tomato-based offerings were good enough to sell, dawned on him and marketing-minded buddy Rob. With the help of a third partner, Jake O’Connor, and all the Opera House taste buds, they have since embarked on a collaborative effort to craft a city-centric line of salsas. There’s one flavor for each borough, resulting in a creative and often surprising mix of ingredients that mirrors the diversity of the Big Apple and offers an irreverent take on traditional conceptions of salsa. It’s an appetizing model well worth exploring.
So, with chips in hand, I begin in a burnt over borough meant for diehards that know how to handle a bit of heat. Initial signs from The Bronx’s fire-roasted chunks of eggplant point me not to Mexico but to the Indian sub-continent, thanks to a surprising curry cameo on the tongue. It’s nothing like my tropical escape to Queens, apparently felt by subway riders emerging into the sun from the Manhattan underworld. The sweet, orange-colored concoction is a pleasant blend of cooling pineapple mixed with Caribbean spices and coconut milk. But not to be outdone as a Manhattan getaway is Staten Island’s suburban salsa verde, which works as a fresh marinade for the evening’s “taco meat,” an oversized portion of pink salmon steak.
While the least exciting of the bunch is the mild-mannered Manhattan, a simple taqueria style salsa, it does act as a good palette cleanser for the trademark Brooklyn variety. That hiccup-inducing blend includes four unique peppers that slowly marinate in my mouth before compelling another dip of the chip. I later devour half a jar on my couch at home, succumbing to the insatiable quality of the chips and salsa experience. “That,” says Matt, “is what New York’s all about. You simply can’t get enough.”
Nor can this city’s way of life be narrowly defined, except to call it eclectic. And that is just the word for BK Salsa. In short, opines Jake, who like Matt is an aspiring actor by day, “our lives make up the salsa.”
As they continue to work towards perfecting all five recipes with as many organic ingredients as they can afford, this artsy, fresh-faced trio of twenty-something entrepreneurs enjoys an outlook characterized by more pomp than circumstance. “We want to bring BK Salsa to the international scene,” declares Matt, who envisions a future roll out of other urban-based salsas and perhaps even a chain of Chipotle style eateries in places as unfamiliar with Mexican-influenced cuisine as Australia. Jake meanwhile, talks about bringing the brand beyond the gastronomic and into the world of fashion, while Rob, influenced by Paul Newman’s philanthropic efforts and his uncle’s own bout with cancer, emphasizes his desire to donate a portion of future profits to charity.
But as they search for the big investment dollars necessary to really launch this project off the ground, they haven’t lost sight of their local circumstances: “Giving back to the community is key,” explains Rob. They’ve already teamed with a number of area bands to host a slew of successful salsa-backed fundraisers.
As our expanded group of five makes its way back to the Myrtle Ave J stop following the party, our take home buckets of salsa attract the excited attention of a hungry passerby eager to talk salsa with us. This stuff, it seems, is already a local hit.
-Jake Englander
(Photos: Amanda Segur)
The homegrown business was cooked up by friends Rob Bowman and Matt Burns, whose loft space inside a converted 19th century manse—once home to a pre-eminent German singing society—acts as office, kitchen, and living quarters. In a nod to its musical roots, the imposing brick building is now dubbed the Opera House Lofts and is home to a community of young, free-spirited residents who eagerly feed on the salsa-supply from apartment 112.
“It’s a hipster dorm,” explains Bowman as he guides me and the Young brothers (Royal and Fury) to the subterranean common room, where ping pong tables, plaid shirts, and Michael Jackson provide the backdrop for the salsa-fest in progress. On the table before us, buckets of freshly baked tortilla chips flank trays of cilantro-infused taco fixins, which solicit copious salsa consumption from all in attendance. And that’s just the point for CTO (Creative Taste Operator) Burns, who has learned that free food is the best way to transform friends into flavor analysts.
In fact, the idea for BK Salsa was sparked in the Opera House basement on a night just like this one last April. With praise for Matt’s ever-present, always fresh party snack at a fever pitch, the realization that his tomato-based offerings were good enough to sell, dawned on him and marketing-minded buddy Rob. With the help of a third partner, Jake O’Connor, and all the Opera House taste buds, they have since embarked on a collaborative effort to craft a city-centric line of salsas. There’s one flavor for each borough, resulting in a creative and often surprising mix of ingredients that mirrors the diversity of the Big Apple and offers an irreverent take on traditional conceptions of salsa. It’s an appetizing model well worth exploring.
So, with chips in hand, I begin in a burnt over borough meant for diehards that know how to handle a bit of heat. Initial signs from The Bronx’s fire-roasted chunks of eggplant point me not to Mexico but to the Indian sub-continent, thanks to a surprising curry cameo on the tongue. It’s nothing like my tropical escape to Queens, apparently felt by subway riders emerging into the sun from the Manhattan underworld. The sweet, orange-colored concoction is a pleasant blend of cooling pineapple mixed with Caribbean spices and coconut milk. But not to be outdone as a Manhattan getaway is Staten Island’s suburban salsa verde, which works as a fresh marinade for the evening’s “taco meat,” an oversized portion of pink salmon steak.
While the least exciting of the bunch is the mild-mannered Manhattan, a simple taqueria style salsa, it does act as a good palette cleanser for the trademark Brooklyn variety. That hiccup-inducing blend includes four unique peppers that slowly marinate in my mouth before compelling another dip of the chip. I later devour half a jar on my couch at home, succumbing to the insatiable quality of the chips and salsa experience. “That,” says Matt, “is what New York’s all about. You simply can’t get enough.”
Nor can this city’s way of life be narrowly defined, except to call it eclectic. And that is just the word for BK Salsa. In short, opines Jake, who like Matt is an aspiring actor by day, “our lives make up the salsa.”
As they continue to work towards perfecting all five recipes with as many organic ingredients as they can afford, this artsy, fresh-faced trio of twenty-something entrepreneurs enjoys an outlook characterized by more pomp than circumstance. “We want to bring BK Salsa to the international scene,” declares Matt, who envisions a future roll out of other urban-based salsas and perhaps even a chain of Chipotle style eateries in places as unfamiliar with Mexican-influenced cuisine as Australia. Jake meanwhile, talks about bringing the brand beyond the gastronomic and into the world of fashion, while Rob, influenced by Paul Newman’s philanthropic efforts and his uncle’s own bout with cancer, emphasizes his desire to donate a portion of future profits to charity.
But as they search for the big investment dollars necessary to really launch this project off the ground, they haven’t lost sight of their local circumstances: “Giving back to the community is key,” explains Rob. They’ve already teamed with a number of area bands to host a slew of successful salsa-backed fundraisers.
As our expanded group of five makes its way back to the Myrtle Ave J stop following the party, our take home buckets of salsa attract the excited attention of a hungry passerby eager to talk salsa with us. This stuff, it seems, is already a local hit.
-Jake Englander
(Photos: Amanda Segur)
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Snowy Stilts
The guitarist of Crystal Stilts is an ashy young man, playing with his back to the audience. They’re a peculiar breed. Singer JB often sings with closed eyes or rolled back in his head—all whites. I went to see them on a cold, snowy January night at the Market Hotel, a new venue in the heart of Bushwick. Hoping the nasty weather would stave off crowds, I made my way to the front. The show had sold out. Being a Brooklyn band, I'm sure Crystal Stilts felt at home on their own turf at the Market Hotel. I was there to see them play from their first full length LP on Slumberland Records, "Alight Of Night.” Its wall-of-sound production and tracks like "Dazzled" and "The Sinking" remind me of Joy Division. At the show, I expected to see JB do "The Dead Fly Dance" (Ian Curtis fans will understand.) To make up for the lack of seizures, opening band Box Elders' guitarist, got naked on stage and donned a homemade loincloth.
-Diana Kinscherf
(Photos: www.dominickmastrangelo.com)
Friday, October 31, 2008
CMJ Hangover
This Bushwick bitch is back in action NYC-style just in time for CMJ. This marks the one-year anniversary of me moving to this town from the O.C. Going to the same party that opened up CMJ last year - the infamous Conflict of Interest party (put on by the Syndicate for the 10th year in a row) was definitely a culmination of my moxie. Last year I was desperately alone - this year not only was I able to avoid the hour-long line to get in - I knew someone around every corner.
From cutie Nicky Digital pulling PBRs out of his back pocket for me to kids from college giving me high-fives I was ballin...ok enough of my ego...
"Sleepyhead" the song by Passion Pit - kids if you don't like it, maybe you'll pretend to love it live to be hip. My verdict is that Passion Pit have been hyped way too much but It's a fun jam live -- especially after a shot of tequila (oh shit it's only Tuesday?!).
I was lucky enough to attend the Brooklyn Vegan showcase at the Music Hall of Williamsburg Tuesday night with my friend Nicole marking Passion Pit's first show in BK. I also caught a heartbroken DJ Jens Lekman (rumor has it he just broke up with his love). Some awesome Lykke Li remix was the highlight of the set but it was fun and he looked adorable-- like a sad puppy in a silly sweatshirt.
Since I'm sick as a dog a week later and there is mouse shit next to my bed I'm going to give a one liner of everyone else I saw:
Audrye Sessions - Incredible band from Oakland who you really have to see to believe.
Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons - It was my first time seeing him with the complete ensemble dubbed "the Wandering Sons" and it was magical, especially in candlelight. (see Nicole's review below of his solo show in BK)
Shugo Tokumaru - Whimsical folk music from Tokyo, need I say more?
The Whip - Took a whole roll of polaroids, so yah I must have been drunk. (See Nicole's review and digi fotos)
Riddenpaa - Awesome punk threesome from Portland, I think Eric might be my new favorite person. Also ran into this dude I met in Montreal whose sister just happens to be in the band. Music is a small world after all.
Lucky Soul - Chris from Music Snobbery (an awesome music blog) put it best: "The Cardigans have a dinner party with St. Etienne and The Pipettes. After dinner, they decide to get drunk on after-dinner wine and make songs."
Little Boots - Cute brit in sexy boots performing post-modern Kylie Minogue-esque dance-worthy pop jams.
Chief - Wow where have these boys been all my life? I definitely fell in love with one of the three singers -- guess which one?! They all harmonize so well and rock harder.
Billy Bragg with the Watson Twins - OK so this wasn't officially part of CMJ but it was an incredible way to end my week. Highlights - The Watson Twins covering The Cure's "Just Like Heaven" and Billy Bragg waxing political and yelling at some Irish dudes.
OK forgive me while I go back to sleep or clean up some more mouse poo. New York is a constant flux of high highs and low lows.
-Lauren Mooney
From cutie Nicky Digital pulling PBRs out of his back pocket for me to kids from college giving me high-fives I was ballin...ok enough of my ego...
"Sleepyhead" the song by Passion Pit - kids if you don't like it, maybe you'll pretend to love it live to be hip. My verdict is that Passion Pit have been hyped way too much but It's a fun jam live -- especially after a shot of tequila (oh shit it's only Tuesday?!).
I was lucky enough to attend the Brooklyn Vegan showcase at the Music Hall of Williamsburg Tuesday night with my friend Nicole marking Passion Pit's first show in BK. I also caught a heartbroken DJ Jens Lekman (rumor has it he just broke up with his love). Some awesome Lykke Li remix was the highlight of the set but it was fun and he looked adorable-- like a sad puppy in a silly sweatshirt.
Since I'm sick as a dog a week later and there is mouse shit next to my bed I'm going to give a one liner of everyone else I saw:
Audrye Sessions - Incredible band from Oakland who you really have to see to believe.
Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons - It was my first time seeing him with the complete ensemble dubbed "the Wandering Sons" and it was magical, especially in candlelight. (see Nicole's review below of his solo show in BK)
Shugo Tokumaru - Whimsical folk music from Tokyo, need I say more?
The Whip - Took a whole roll of polaroids, so yah I must have been drunk. (See Nicole's review and digi fotos)
Riddenpaa - Awesome punk threesome from Portland, I think Eric might be my new favorite person. Also ran into this dude I met in Montreal whose sister just happens to be in the band. Music is a small world after all.
Lucky Soul - Chris from Music Snobbery (an awesome music blog) put it best: "The Cardigans have a dinner party with St. Etienne and The Pipettes. After dinner, they decide to get drunk on after-dinner wine and make songs."
Little Boots - Cute brit in sexy boots performing post-modern Kylie Minogue-esque dance-worthy pop jams.
Chief - Wow where have these boys been all my life? I definitely fell in love with one of the three singers -- guess which one?! They all harmonize so well and rock harder.
Billy Bragg with the Watson Twins - OK so this wasn't officially part of CMJ but it was an incredible way to end my week. Highlights - The Watson Twins covering The Cure's "Just Like Heaven" and Billy Bragg waxing political and yelling at some Irish dudes.
OK forgive me while I go back to sleep or clean up some more mouse poo. New York is a constant flux of high highs and low lows.
-Lauren Mooney
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Pomp Culture
Santogold and Diplo remixes - if it wasn't obvious enough when you heard the cross-genre sleeper hit which is the Santogold album that this lady was going to be a force to reckon with, this remix album shows more of her unquenchable fire. First off, you have to love anyone who can take a line that is meant to kill your hopes and dreams, and make it into a dance classic. Second of all, Diplo is solid, as always, but it's the Devo, B 52s and Aretha that save this compilation from being just any old dancehall hit.
Florals - yeah apparently they're back... I would be careful before hopping into that bandwagon though, the print has to be subtle and fresh, think the opposite of your childhood bedroom drapes and more towards mixing some daring colors.
True Blood - ok, I'll be the first to admit the trash-factor of this show, but that being said, the trashiness juxtaposes well with the wonder of how people react when they are afraid of things, how sometimes they should be afraid, and how other times the fear turns them into monsters. I mean... come on it's a timely topic, and splicing in all that serious fear and fear reaction with some hot vampire sex is a good way to keep the audience hooked.
Hoodies - ah yes, hoodie weather means we're kicking it hoodie style. I am noticing a major return of Where's Waldo-esque stripes, but the craze is really about interesting prints. I don't know about floral hoodies, though I dare you to try it, take a picture and send it to me so I can laugh at or with you.
And as for events, there is the Hiro Ballroom Afterparty tonight with Chromeo DJ'ing (which you know will be amazing.) And it's very likely you'll need the booze and the music to make up for the vice presidential debates that are also the big event for the night (there I said it, we use these things to overcompensate for our sense of doom.) And as for your Friday, well... as you can guess, the best place to get your Pomp Culture is at a Pomp Romp.
-Kastoory K.
Florals - yeah apparently they're back... I would be careful before hopping into that bandwagon though, the print has to be subtle and fresh, think the opposite of your childhood bedroom drapes and more towards mixing some daring colors.
True Blood - ok, I'll be the first to admit the trash-factor of this show, but that being said, the trashiness juxtaposes well with the wonder of how people react when they are afraid of things, how sometimes they should be afraid, and how other times the fear turns them into monsters. I mean... come on it's a timely topic, and splicing in all that serious fear and fear reaction with some hot vampire sex is a good way to keep the audience hooked.
Hoodies - ah yes, hoodie weather means we're kicking it hoodie style. I am noticing a major return of Where's Waldo-esque stripes, but the craze is really about interesting prints. I don't know about floral hoodies, though I dare you to try it, take a picture and send it to me so I can laugh at or with you.
And as for events, there is the Hiro Ballroom Afterparty tonight with Chromeo DJ'ing (which you know will be amazing.) And it's very likely you'll need the booze and the music to make up for the vice presidential debates that are also the big event for the night (there I said it, we use these things to overcompensate for our sense of doom.) And as for your Friday, well... as you can guess, the best place to get your Pomp Culture is at a Pomp Romp.
-Kastoory K.
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