The Boredoms
Super Roots, Vol. 9
Thrill Jockey





As self-deprecating as they probably are, this band is not at all boring. Hailing from Japan, the Boredoms latest album, Super Roots, Vol. 9 is another dose of noise rock to relieve us of our boredom with the cookie cutter mainstream music. The entire album is live, so there are occasional cheers but it doesn't interfere at all.

Blending together angelic voices, tribal beats and a mesmerizing, transcendental sound, they sound like an inspired gospel group rocking out. Towards the end of the one, forty-minute track on the album, the beats start to pick up more, but the end is as soothing as sleep.

--Christine Thelen

Gordon Ramsay

Location: Midtown East, NYC
Event: Gordon Ramsay
Show time: 7:00 PM
Venue: Border’s
Food: Peking Duck House
Drink: Blackstones Pub & Restaurant
Miscellaneous: New York Milkshake Company

You’ve seen celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay on TV’s Hell’s Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares berating bad contestants till they cried. Tonight, he stops by Border’s to sign copies of his new book Gordon Ramsay’s Fast Food. At one of my favorite places to get duck, The Peking Duck House, the meat is succulent and the skin crunches like a potato chip. Sometimes you just want to grab a pint without paying a cover charge or playing host to a group of people after work, which is why I like Blackstones Pub & Restaurant. It looks like an old-time saloon and has two pool tables in the back and plenty of other games, while also being big enough to grab traditional American food from the menu. If you’re still hungry, check out the New York Milkshake Company for one of the best $6 shakes of your life.

They Might Be Giants
The Else
Zoe Records





New York's They Might Be Giants are not only one of the quirkiest bands to grace the music scene, they're also one of the most consistent. The Else is the 12th album for the ever-morphing group who have cranked out everything from kiddie pop to alternative hits like "Birdhouse In Your Soul" and "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)." This time around, the duo of John Linnell and John Flansburgh are trying out a harder sound. The guitars have garage rock riffs and the vocals almost snarl at times on songs like "Take Out The Trash." Their silly side comes out on the romp of a song called "The Mesopotamians" but the overall tone is steeped in such a gloomy shade of gray that you can't help but wish that the old merry pranksters would come out to play.

--Amy Wagner

Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn
Reading: Deborah Baker
Show time: 7:30 PM
Venue: Barnes & Noble - Park Slope
Food: Los Pollitos II
Drink: Pacific Standard
Accessory: Gorilla Coffee

While the Beat Movement has been heavily documented, biographer Deborah Baker wrote about a lesser known period in A Blue Hand: The Beats in India, chronicling Allen Ginsburg and his companions time in India during the 60’s. While Mexican restaurants may be everywhere, one that stands out, in that hood, is Los Pollitos II. What makes me come back for more are the Chilaquiles for brunch and the gorditas for dinner. The guacamole is damn good too. Did you say you like beer? I like beer! Hooray for puppies! At Pacific Standard, the front bar has 16 beers on tap and the back room looks like a high school library. I think this is my new favorite bar. Don’t forget to ask about the frequent drinker card program! I’m totally serious. If you like your coffee black, Gorilla Coffee specializes in deep roasted flavors and provides it through fair-trade.

Drink Oolong Tea for Your Health and to Stay Beautiful



On a recent trip to the Pacific Island of Taiwan, I was astounded by the 'ageless beauty' of the local women, who look, on average, 10 years younger than they should.

Determined to find out their 'secret,' I engaged in conversation with a local storeowner in the mountainous region of Alishan. Here, over the daily Taiwanese tea drinking ritual, she unveiled the mystery of their beauty - Oolong Tea!

Produced from the camellia sinensis plant, the tea is hand picked and hand processed. It contains large amounts of polyphenols, which in turn, fight free radicals responsible for age spots and wrinkles. By drinking only two cups a day, the skin will clarify and glow and the signs of aging diminish. Now, you're going to love this - the tea also activates the enzyme responsible for dissolving triglycerides [fat deposits.] In fact, Oolong burns over 157% more fat than green tea!* Drink up girls!

*source: www.oolongtea.org

Great Tea Salons in NYC to purchase Oolong: The Tea Box, Ito En, and Cha-An

--Michelle McDermott

Michelle, a former makeup artist for Christian Dior, writes about luxe resorts, spas and hotels for print and web publications. Check out her website at OhSoBoutique

The King of the TV sitcom, Norman Lear. Photo Credit: Zuade Kaufman

Location: Upper East Side, NYC
Event: Norman Lear
Show time: 8:15 PM
Venue: 92nd Street Y
Food: Barking Dog Luncheonette
Drink: The Auction House
Miscellaneous: Uptown Lounge

He created Maude, The Jeffersons, All in the Family, Sanford and Son, and countless other TV shows. Tonight, the godfather of the television sitcom, Norman Lear gives a lecture at the 92nd Street Y on his long and storied career in the television industry. If you love dogs, not hot dogs but real doggies, then you’ll really love the Barking Dog Luncheonette, as the décor features everything with a dog on it. The food, is your regular diner fare with plenty of burger, sandwich, and hot plate options. Grab a drink and feel like you were transported to the late 1800’s at The Auction House. With ornamental red velvet couches, exposed brick walls, and vintage chandeliers, this hidden gem of a bar is cozy. Beautifully designed, Uptown Lounge is a bar and restaurant serving American fare like Apple Peppercorn Pork Chops ($18), while being big enough to stick around afterwards for drinks.

The Fiery Furnaces Courtesy of HRT

Friday April 25

Location: East Village, NYC
Band: Baby Dayliner + Blockhead
Show time: 4:25 PM
Venue: Rehab
Food: Veselka
Drink: B-Side
Miscellaneous: ChiKaLicious

Local frontman/one-man-band and crooner extraordinaire Baby Dayliner comes across like the great frontmen Morrissey and Frank Sinatra while sounding all his own. His live show is always fun. Don’t miss beatmaker Blockhead. You may know some of his work from Aesop Rock and Murs among others. Part diner with a Russian menu, Veselka stays open 24-hours and offers blintzes, pierogi’s, and stuffed cabbage along with standard diner fare. One of the L.E.S.’s favorite rock n’ roll bars, B-Side has a kickass jukebox, and an excellent happy hour from 3-8pm, where you can get a PBR and a shot of Whiskey for $5. If you’re serious about your desserts, then ChiKaLicious will blow you away with a $12 pri-fixe that includes an Amuse, Choice of Dessert, and Petit Fours (with wine pairing, $7 additional).

Friday April 25

Location: Fort Greene, Brooklyn
Bands: Paul Simon: American Tunes with Olu Dara + Grizzly Bear + Josh Groban + The Roches + Gillian Welch
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: BAM Howard Gilman Opera House
Food: Junior’s
Drink: O’Connor’s
Miscellaneous: Thomas Beisl

At the tail-end of Paul Simon’s month-long residency at BAM celebrating his long and storied musical career, tonight he performs with an eclectic group of modern artists he’s influenced including Olu Dara, Grizzly Bear, Josh Groban, The Roches, and Gillian Welch. Known more for its cheesecake than anything else on its menu, Junior’s also offers fantastic diner and deli style eats from steak burgers to deli sandwiches. If you can make it through dinner, the cheesecake will be worth the wait! One of Brooklyn’s most interesting dive bars, O’Connor’s offers cheap drinks in a place where Park Slope hipsters meet old-time drinkers, making for one of the oddest pairings that works. An excellent place to get schnitzel and goulash and other Austrian delights, Thomas Beisl is right across the street from BAM.

Saturday April 26

Location: Soho, NYC
Band: Bent Festival 2008
Show time: 7:00 PM
Venue: DCTV
Food: Nha Trang
Drink: Knitting Factory
Miscellaneous: La Esquina

Get ready to geek out as the annual Bent Festival comes to town! Featuring art, music and DIY electronics, hacking, and all kinds of circuitry, prepare to see bands from all over the world playing home-made instruments, artists giving workshops, and witness just what these circuit benders are creating. One of the best affordable Vietnamese restaurants in the city, Nha Trang is right near the downtown courthouse, making it a high volume place. Despite that, the food is great and the Pho (rice noodle soup) dishes are $5 and under. An hip and eclectic place for drinks, the Knitting Factory is also a music venue. The drinks here aren’t expensive and the crowd is fun and artsy. One of the best taqueria’s in the city, the Mexican food here is authentic and to die for. While tacos will set you back $3, plates are in the $6 to $7.25 range.

Saturday April 26

Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn
Band: The Fiery Furnaces
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: Southpaw
Food: Press 195
Drink: The Gate
Miscellaneous: The Chocolate Room

The genius of The Fiery Furnaces is well documented and tonight they take their recording process to another level as the debut “Democ-Rock,” a series of recordings written with the help of their fans. Taking the pressed sandwich to the gourmet level, Press 195 offers 30 kinds of hot pressed sandwiches that make this place hard to get tired of. One of the more social bars in Park Slope, The Gate is a great bar with a wide selection of local beers on tap and an outdoor patio overlooking the park. A great little dessert and coffee shop, The Chocolate Room has a menu filled with everything made with some form of chocolate. Try the hot chocolate, you won’t regret it.

Sunday April 27

Location: Tribeca, NYC
Film: Tribeca Film Festival
Venue: See here for times and locations
Food: Ear Inn
Drink: Village Lantern
Miscellaneous: Jacques Torres

With Robert Deniro’s Tribeca Film Festival, new films come first though there will be plenty of events, music, art, panel discussions, and special screenings including Tina Fey’s Baby Mama and Speed Racer. One of my favorite places for food, Ear Inn is a 200-year-old bar with a small menu featuring burgers, sandwiches, and a chalkboard with specials including Jerk Chicken that’s under $10. With $3 pints Monday thru Friday 12pm to 7pm along with comedy and music performances, the Village Lantern is a great bar to chill at after work, especially now that it’s finally getting warm outside. Watch some of the best chocolate in the world made right in front of your eyes or browse through the store and sample for yourself the fruits of this master chocolatier’s labor.

Josh Azzarella Untitled #23 (''Lynndied'') 2006


March 21 - May 17, 2008

Josh Azzarella
DCKT Contemporary
195 Bowery, ground floor
New York, NY 10002
Phone: (212) 741.9955

Hours:
Tuesday through Friday, 11am - 6pm
Saturday, noon - 6pm
Sunday, noon - 5pm

Unmaking icons and remaking history are the subjects of the first solo show by Josh Azzarella, currently on display at DCKT Contemporary's new Lower East Side gallery.

Appropriating some of the most famous images in the history of photojournalism and video reportage, Azzarella recontextualizes these images and forces viewers to confront their power by removing their historical significance.

In his re-working of the Jules Naudet video footage from 9/11 of American Airlines Flight 11, tragedy becomes a near-miss as his footage shows the plane flying harmlessly by the still standing towers. Another series of images based on the photographic evidence of torture at Abu Ghraib, shows Lynndie England and her fellow Army Reservists in their grotesque banality, with all traces of their victims erased.

The work, ultimately, is less about the image, than the importance of the historical moment. By removing the icon, Azzarella places the emphasis fully on the reality that the image re-presents.

Jonathan Shieber

Speed Racer Debut's at The Tribeca Film Festival

Location: Tribeca, NYC
Film: Tribeca Film Festival
Venue: See Tribeca Film Festival website
Food: Ear Inn
Drink: Village Lantern
Miscellaneous: Jacques Torres

With Robert Deniro’s Tribeca Film Festival, new films come first though there will be plenty of events, music, art, panel discussions, and special screenings including Tina Fey’s Baby Mama and Speed Racer. One of my favorite places for food, Ear Inn is a 200-year-old bar with a small menu featuring burgers, sandwiches, and a chalkboard with specials including Jerk Chicken that’s under $10. With $3 pints Monday thru Friday 12pm to 7pm along with comedy and music performances, the Village Lantern is a great bar to chill at after work, especially now that it’s finally getting warm outside. Watch some of the best chocolate in the world made right in front of your eyes or browse through the store and sample for yourself the fruits of this master chocolatier’s labor.

Great Northern
sleepy eepee
eenee meanie records





sleepy eepee may be short, but is it ever so sweet! Consisting of 5 brief songs, this prequel to Great Northern's highly acclaimed Trading Twilight for Daylight, packs a whole lot of talent into a teeny (eenee) space. For starters, the vocals are pretty great. Great Northern's primary songwriter, Solon Bixler, delivers his disaffected lyrics with a scratchy voice that is perfectly picturesque. However, the songs get boring somewhere in the middle of the album, on tracks like "summertime," in which Bixler's vocals are not heavily featured. But the album's best songs – "loose ends" and "this is a problem" – feature memorable vocal melodies and skillful harmonization over a spare instrumental framework of piano, guitar, and percussion. And as if simple, adept songwriting weren't enough to make an album great, producer Mathias Schneeberger has helped create a highly polished package, with sounds reminiscent of works by New York's The Fireflies.

--Gregory Hyman

©2008 Takashi Murakami/Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
Art: ©MURAKAMI
Venue: Brooklyn Museum
Show Time: Wed to Fri: 10 AM to 5 PM; Sat to Sun: 11 AM to 6 PM
Food: Tom’s Restaurant
Drink: Soda Bar
Miscellaneous: Old Brooklyn Parlor

Celebrating the art of Takashi Murakami, this retrospective of the acclaimed Japanese artist shows more than 90 of his works, spanning painting, sculpture, installation, and animation. It’s the place where Susanne Vega wrote “Tom’s Restaurant,”but Tom’s restaurant is just as famous for its food. With a near insane breakfast menu, expect items like pancakes with apples and pecans to be brought to you by the sweetest waitresses in Brooklyn. Soda Bar is a great place for drinks. The alcohol is cheap, there’s surprisingly excellent food, and there’s even another room where DJs spin. If it’s too much, you can hang outside in the backyard patio under the stars. The Old Brooklyn Parlor specializes in old school drinks like the Brooklyn Egg Cream and the Lime Cherry Rickey, making it an excellent anchor to this neighborhood.

The Duke Spirit
Neptune
Shangri-La Music





Neptune, the second full-length from U.K. band The Duke Spirit, finds the group delivering on the promise of their debut LP Cuts Across the Land. Their first album was a dark bare bones effort but this time out, the group is letting in some light. The result is an album that is more pop-centric but still captivating. Fans of the original album will rally around songs like "Dog Roses" that find the band employing the usual tools of their trade (crunchy guitars and tough-talking songs) but the cheery production behind "My Sunken Treasure" should lure new listeners. If there's one song that perfectly blends the conflicting light/dark sides of The Duke Spirit together, it has to be the mid-tempo rocker "The Step And The Walk." It takes the bands My Bloody Valentine-esque roots, adds in the here and now, and dashes headlong into the future.

--Amy Wagner

Jenna and Laura Bush Discuss Literature at the 92nd Street Y. Photo Credit: Seth Wenig

Location: Upper East Side, NYC
Event: Laura and Jenna Bush
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: 92nd Street Y
Food: Brother Jimmy’s Bait Shack
Drink: Cavatappo Wine Bar
Miscellaneous: Ship of Fools

Push aside your political leanings for one night and check out the First Lady Laura Bush and her daughter Jenna stop by the 92nd Street Y to read from their new children’s book Read All About it, and talk about the importance of literacy and education. Now that it’s getting warmer out, what better way to celebrate than with some BBQ. Jimmy’s Bait Shack is known for their BBQ’d meats, smoked in house. The menu is all Southern favorites like po boys, catfish, fried chicken, along with burgers. Though it’s small, Cavatappo Wine Bar packs a mighty punch, offering an amazing selection of wines from all over the world for under $10 a glass. With more than 40 TVs featuring sports, Ship of Fools also has darts, pool tables, and video games.

Lucio Bubacco, Three Graces, 2000; Flameworked glass. Photo Credit: Ed Watkins

Location: Midtown West, NYC
Art: Cheers! A MAD Collection of Goblets
Show time: Open Daily 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM, Thursdays 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Venue: Museum of Arts & Design
Food: Swizz
Drink: Russian Vodka Room
Miscellaneous: Zip Burger

To celebrate the Museum of Arts & Design’s (MAD) upcoming move to its new space at Two Columbus Circle, they are showing a sneak peak of their collection of glass, metal, clay, fiber, wood, and mixed media goblets. For fans of fondue, Swizz is where it’s at. Try the Traditional Cheese Fondue (serves two) with Gruyere and Emmenthal cheeses, served with cubed bread ($40). When it comes to making great vodka, at the Russian Vodka Room, the menu says it all as they offer 53 different vodka’s not including their 10 specially infused flavors like strawberry, ginger, and if you’re feeling bold, garlic, pepper, and dill. If your looking for a burger with lot’s of extra’s, then check out Zip Burger, where farm-raised, organic/grass-fed meat and poultry help them create a better burger. Burgers start at a mere $4.50 but can get dangerously expensive depending on your toppings.

On Their New Album Walk it Off, Tapes n' Tapes Sound Better Than Ever

Friday April 18

Location: Midtown West, NYC
Band: The Headhunters
Show time: 8:30 & 10:30 PM
Venue: Iridium
Food: Island Burgers and Shakes
Drink: Smith’s Bar
Miscellaneous: Colony Music

The first time I heard Herbie Hancock’s 70’s jazz/funk project The Headhunters, I realized there was more to jazz than the acoustic upright bass/drums/horn trio. Though the original Headhunters are here for the reunion and Hancock is not, this is sure to be magic live. For a kickass burger or chicken sandwich, Island Burgers and Shakes specializes in making great burgers like the Bourbon Street Burger that’s blackened, with bacon, Jack, bayou mayo, and onion on sourdough. One cheap bar in midtown, Smith’s is a dive bar with cheap booze, friendly locals, and live music daily in the next room. Though the place is way expensive, Colony Music is a fun music store that sells albums and sheet music. You can walk around and check out the entertainment memorabilia. Whether you’re looking for an autographed guitar signed by the Rolling Stones or an autographed 8x10 of Linda Carter, they’ve got it.

Friday April 18

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Band: Cock Lorge
Show time: 7:30 PM
Venue: Pianos
Food: The Stanton Social
Drink: Motor City Bar
Miscellaneous: Ludlow Guitars

Cock Lorge is like that really dirty joke you heard, spread out over an album. This sex talking folk singer may come across as creepy at first thought, but after hearing him harmonize with a lady singing backup, you’ll blush but you’ll also laugh. Part lounge and all restaurant, The Stanton Social offers a very chic décor and a menu of small and affordable items meant for sharing. Try the Wasabi Pea Crusted Salmon with Asian pesto and soba noodle Beet salad ($15). If you like your bars loud, Detroit Rock City loud, then Motor City Bar is for you. With inexpensive drinks and an automobile motif, this is the place to party hard late into the night. Whether you’re in a band, looking for gadgets, or just want to strum on a $2,000 guitar, Ludlow Guitar is your wet dream.

Saturday April 19

Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Band: Regina Spektor
Show time: 1:00 PM
Venue: Sound Fix
Food: Bliss
Drink: Spike Hill
Miscellaneous: Ella Cafe

So apparently Saturday is Record Store Day. Not sure if that’s an actual holiday, but in celebration of it, Regina Spektor will play a free show here. So get there early as the performance space is small and a free show by Spektor doesn’t come along often. For veggie lover’s, Bliss Café is an excellent place for tempeh, tofu, and vegetables, with all menu items $10 and under. Right off the L train at Bedford, Spike Hill is a really nice Irish pub with a great selection of draft beers on tap and booths in the back to sit, drink, and even order off an Irish menu of food. While several new coffee shops have popped up in Williamsburg recently, Ella Café is not just the best designed, with it’s blond wood interior but the coffee is pretty good too.

Saturday April 19

Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Bands: Tapes n’ Tapes + White Denim
Show time: 10:00 PM
Venue: Music Hall of Williamsburg
Food: SEA
Drink: Galapagos
Miscellaneous: Academy Records

Touring in support of their new album Walk it Off, Tapes n’ Tapes have put out an even better album than their last one, The Loon. Openers White Denim are punk, funk and spazz rock worth checking out. Though it looks like a fancy club belonging in the Meat Packing District, SEA is one of the best Thai restaurants in Williamsburg. Huge in size, the menu serves up your typical Thai cuisine, but it’s the space, where a giant Buddha sits over an indoor pond that’s one of its draws. More than just a bar, Galapagos is also an art space with front and back rooms filled with art, music, burlesque, and most importantly, inexpensive drinks. Whether you’re a music geek, an audiophile, or someone who appreciates the warm crackle of a record player, Academy Records is a huge warehouse sized space filled with vinyl and CDs at relatively cheap prices.

Sunday April 20

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Bands: Bad Wizard + Monotonix + Dark Meat + Heavy Hands
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: Cake Shop
Food: Paladar
Drink: Libation
Miscellaneous: Bereket

An excellent lineup of bands here as Brooklyn’s Bad Wizard heads up this awesome lineup. With Dark Meat, a psych-rock band, Monotonix a heavy rock outfit known for their live performances, and rockers Heavy Hands. One of the best Pan-Latin restaurants in the city, Paladar, helmed by Chef Aarón Sanchez, creates eclectic dishes that tickle your palate like the Salmon con Parcha, a seared salmon with black squid rice and spicy passion fruit glaze ($17). Very swanky for Ludlow Street, Libation is a three-floor bar and nightclub beautifully designed with mostly warm brown and gold colors. Though the drinks are pricey, it’s worth trying this place, at least once. One of my favorite late night places for eats, Bereket has some of the best falafels on the L.E.S. and is one of the funniest places to eat after 2 a.m., because everyone there is just as drunk as you are.

Explosions in Farmingdale, NY. Photo Credit: Valerie Fremin


Explosions in the Sky
Crazy Donkey Bar and Grill
Farmingdale, NY 4/6/08



I'm so glad I didn't listen to those kids outside. They told me not to bother going in. I stood there listening to guitars explode behind closed doors, which told me I had to plead to be let in. What ensued was the kind of luck some single people have: "All right, just you can come in." Beyond those doors of the Crazy Donkey in Farmingdale, I joined the standing meditation.

Up close to the stage I joined a quiet crowd, all of us watching carefully as the musicians all swayed in synchronicity with the slow, building songs, before they crashed down around us. The absence of lyrics allowed them to easily melt one song into another. I heard a quiet whisper, "These guys soothe souls," and I felt an air of peace around me that I hadn't experienced for a long time.

--Christine Thelen

Location: Chelsea, NYC
Film: From Fluxus to Media Art
Show time: Tues thru Sat 11 to 6:00 PM
Venue: Maya Stendhal Gallery
Food: Cookshop
Drink: The Half King
Miscellaneous: Café Grumpy

The 60s were a crazy time, and the art was no different. In New York it was the Fluxus movement that was experimenting and making big waves. From Fluxus to Media Art focuses on the history of media art during that period, featuring works by Jonas Mekas, Andy Warhol, and Nam June Paik among others. Cookshop offers American fare blending fresh and healthy ingredients. Try the Five Grain Risotto with Oregon black trumpet mushrooms, crème fraiche, and fried sage ($20). All wood and brick, The Half King is a great bar in Chelsea, minus the attitude its neighboring bars have. Grab a draft beer for $7 or a burger among other great menu items. If you’re fanatical about your coffee, Café Grumpy is your place to get some of the city’s best. The coffee’s are brewed to order and the espresso drinks are out of this world. I highly recommend this place.

Eels
Useless Trinkets
Geffen/Universal





The Eels latest album Useless Trinketts, is the 8th compilation from the band, and the 19th record put out by frontman (and the Eels only consistent member) Mark Everett. So it shouldn’t have been a surprise that this was a sort of survey of various Eels musical styles. What is a disappointment is that it doesn’t hang together as any sort of coherent album. Disk 1 is not a pleasant listen unless you’re a huge fan of extended wanderings in the Eels’ particular kind of weirdness.

Disk 2 is a bit more enjoyable, being more eclectic. The opening track, “Mr. E’s Beautiful Remix,” could have come off a Beck album, and by track 3 the sound shifts to what could be Tom Waits with a bit less grit. Since Tom Waits has been a past Eels contributor, this isn’t surprising.

The concert disk is where this set really shines. Only six songs long, it ends too fast, and the sound quality is a little rough, but it’s just good Rock & Roll, leaving you wanting to play it over and over again. If that’s not enough, there’s also impressive facial hair, ridiculous hats, and body cavity searches.

--Gidalya



Cat Power
Jukebox
Matador







Cat Power's new release Jukebox is a tribute to many great singers such as Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, and Hank Williams. Marshall carries songs with her familiar smoky, sultry voice, taking one like "New York, New York" to a completely different level, and making it another song in and of itself that doesn't show up Sinatra's performance, but rather, reinvents it. Later on, there are explorations of genres such as gospel, soul, and country. How this all manages to come together without falling apart is all in Marshall's beautiful style, which doesn't seem to bore but rather grows as the album plays on. Marshall isn't afraid to take chances and try new things, and that's a great place to be after a breakdown last year. The mood is relaxed, and I can imagine myself not touching the jukebox for a while.

--Christine Thelen

Make Your Answers Count at this Game Show

Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn
Event: Dick Swizzle’s Sudden Death Game Show
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: Union Hall
Food: Press 195
Drink: Union Hall
Miscellaneous: O’Connor’s

At this Jeopardy style gameshow, Dick Swizzle is your host and Perry Combover and Koo Koo the Mind Key help co-host. Buzz in your answer to questions off a wide-screen TV, and win free shots and money. Lose, and win Budweiser. Either way, you walk away drunk. The theme at Press 195 is pressed comfort food. A sandwich shop with quite the menu, they offer 30 types of delicious sandwiches like the turkey and fontina cheese sandwich with a cranberry and roasted pear chutney on ciabatta ($7.75). While Union Hall looks like a cabin at a ski resort with a fireplace, stone walls, comfy couches, and inexpensive drinks, you may want to stick around rather than barhop. A low-key bar in this hood, O’Connor’s is a hole in the wall where you can grab a cheap drink and watch the game on their TV, just like your grandpa sitting next to you!

El Perro Del Mar
From The Valley To The Stars
Control Group/Tcg






Sweden's Sarah Assbring records under the moniker El Perro Del Mar and has gained a reputation for mixing the sweet sounds of 1960s girl group pop with a melancholy twist that's all her own. Her sophomore effort From The Valley To The Stars finds the singer/songwriter expanding on her musical palette. Her song sketches are still drenched in sunny day sweetness but there's even more to love this time around. What was merely lush before is now radiant. Assbring's perfect pop voice glides easily through sugar-laced melodies backed by organs and more contemporary pop arrangements. "Do Not Despair" plays like a gospel piece filtered through The Ronettes while the mid-tempo "Somebody's Baby" coos along like a wall of sound chart topper that would have blared out of a transistor radio.

--Amy Wagner

Don't Miss This Live One with the French Kicks
Photo Credit: Matthew Stinchcomb

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Bands: French Kicks + Miguel Mendez
Show time: 9:30 PM
Venue: Mercury Lounge
Food: San Loco
Drink: Max Fish
Miscellaneous: Sugar Sweet Sunshine

On their recent album Swimming, the French Kicks blend garage rock, mod music, and pop among others to create beautiful songs. Live is where they shine. Let’s face it, San Loco does not serve the greatest Mexican food ever. But it certainly isn’t bad. The prices are inexpensive, you can get a heaping amount of nachos for as little as $3.75, and telling by the heavy traffic, the place is doing just fine. What I like about Max Fish is that it’s a local bar for local artists. It’s walls play host monthly for art exhibitions, there’s a pool table in the back, and drinks aren’t pricey, like many new bars springing up in this neighborhood. For one of the best cupcakes in the city, Sugar Sweet Sunshine has 10 varieties, on top of cakes. Try the Sexy Red Velvet or the Bob, a yellow cupcake with chocolate almond buttercream.

Cai Guo-Qiang Will Make a Believer Out of You. Photo Credit: Simon Norfolk

Location: Upper East Side, NYC
Art: Cai Guo-Qiang: I Want to Believe
Hours: Sat to Wed 10:00 AM to 5:45 PM, Fri 10:00 AM to 7:45 PM, Closed Thurs.
Venue: Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Food: Jackson Hole
Drink: Metropolitan Museum of Art Balcony Bar and Roof Garden
Miscellaneous: Café Sabarsky

In Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang’s exhibition I Want to Believe, he presents four areas of his work including his early paintings, gunpowder drawings, video and photos documenting explosions, and his installation of nine cars hanging from the Guggenheim’s ceiling. If you like your burgers big, Jackson Hole is where you want to bring your appetite. Home of the 7oz. burger, you can get a beef, turkey, or the veggie kind prepared in a number of ways. Try the Eastside, a bacon cheeseburger topped with ham, mushrooms, tomato and fried onions ($12.50). For drinks on top of the world, the Metropolitan Museum of Art Balcony Bar and Roof Garden has an amazing view of the city and some delicious cocktails. Located in the Museum of German and Austrian Art, Café Sabarsky offers a menu of traditional Austrian delights like strudel and linzertorte while it’s design is straight out of Europe’s 1920’s.

Yeasayer Bring Their Bag of Tricks to Brooklyn

Location: Fort Greene, Brooklyn
Film: Man Man + Yeasayer
Show time: 7:30 PM
Venue: Brooklyn Masonic Temple
Food: Bonita
Drink: The Hideout
Miscellaneous: Tillie’s

While Man Man’s experimental rock that whoops and howls is the polar opposite of Yeasayer’s melodic and eclectic songs, they both are of those bands that are pushing musical boundaries, which should make for an excellent live show. The sister restaurant of it’s Williamburg location, Bonita makes really delicious Mexican food like the chicken burrito. The rub they use on the meat makes it taste out of this world. The Hideout, a new bar on Dekalb St., might have a name suggesting it’s desire for secrecy, but most who know about it love its unconventional style. Though tiny, it’s known for its cocktails, falling on the expensive side for Brooklyn ($12-14) but are well worth the price. Tillie’s is a coffee shop where you can sit and relax, get a great cup of joe, eat baked goods with vegan options, and people watch while waiting for the show.

Please Don’t Tell & Crif Dogs
113 St. Marks Place
New York, NY 10009
Tel: (212) 614-2728




PDT is the kind of bar that makes you wish you could live during the prohibition days just so you could feel vivacious and dangerous. Hidden behind the door of a pretend telephone booth inside Crif Dogs on St. Marks Place, once inside (you need a reservation), you’ll understand why the place is called Please Don’t Tell. The bar has an underground-hipster-meets-country-club-chic. One of the many fabulous, but strange cocktails consists of a bacon-infused whisky made with maple syrup and bitters. The Black Flip is made of rum, stout beer, and egg. It’s delicious.

The bathroom, adorned with broken mirrors on the walls, warns its patrons not to sell cocaine inside the lavatory.

Also, you can order dogs and tater tots from next door to accompany your high profile cocktail. White trash at the country club never tasted so good. So drink some bacon under a stuffed deer. You’ll love it.

--Mindy Hyman

Anita Chernewski (American, b. 1946). Coney Island (Thunderbolt), 1987. Gelatin silver print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the artist

Location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
Art: Goodbye Coney Island?
Show time: Mon. to Fri: 10:00 to 5:00 PM, Sat. & Sun. 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Venue: Brooklyn Museum
Food: Tom’s Restaurant
Drink: Soda Bar
Miscellaneous: Cheryl’s Global Soul

With all the controversy surrounding Coney Island and what the future will hold for this New York landmark, the Brooklyn Museum shows Coney Island’s development in this photo exhibition from its heyday through its many ups and downs over the years. Open since 1936, Tom’s Restaurant is more than just a diner. You may have to wait on line to get in, but the waiters are constantly bringing you coffee and other goodies. The food is excellent with an insane breakfast menu and the people treat you like family. One of my favorite bars in Brooklyn, Soda Bar offers inexpensive drinks, great DJs, and the food is very good too. It’s the combination of all these things that’s the draw. Cheryl’s Global Soul takes a more international approach to soul food. With fare like Thai Coconut Curried Mussels and Moroccan Vegetable Tagine, the food here is fresh and inventive.

Johnathan Rice
Further North
Reprise/WEA






Johnathan Rice isn't going to be the next household name--but that's completely okay. Further North is a straight-up folk tinged rock album that rests easy on the ear. By the third listen, the simple but sensitive lyrics stick in your head and one finds themselves singing along. Influences far and near can be heard on "It Couldn't Be Me" (which at first, sounds like early Smith's ballads), "It Is Best To Keep It All Inside" (which could have clearly been from Bob Dylan's catalogue), and on title-track "Further North" (where Springsteen references can be drawn). The album is a solid, enjoyable hint of the talent Rice has to offer without indulging too much in those who influence him. One doesn't have to listen to Nick Drake or any other famous name to appreciate Further North.

--Tania Katherine Dworjan




Eisley
Combination
Reprise






There used to be an endearing sound to the Dupree sisters voices. That charm is not present on Combinations and the album is proof that there is only so far a saccharine sweet voice will take you. Unfortunately, there’s too much filler here and not enough killer. The CD's first track, "Many Funerals" starts too abruptly--you can't even get it into the stereo before it starts to bombard you with too much too soon syndrome. By the time the listener makes their way mid-album to "Come Clean," the repetitive choruses actually become grating. It feels like someone is punching tiny little kittens square in the jaw. Though there is a bright side to the album "Ten Cent Blues" (an endearingly whimsical song of love lost and self-love gained), it's too little too late for this throwaway album.

--Tania Katherine Dworjan

Kim Gordon's Exhibit Shows Art From the Performers Point of View

Location: Soho, NC
Art: Kim Gordon “Come Across”
Show time: 11:00 to 6:00 PM
Venue: KS Art
Food: Souen
Drink: Antarctica
Miscellaneous: Knitting Factory

No stranger to art, Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon has an exhibit up called “Come Across,” featuring abstract watercolors painted on translucent rice paper of audience members faces from the performers perspective. A sound piece by Thurston Moore is also featured. For macrobiotic food, Souen is where you can get plenty of soy, seitan, tofu, and even fish that is insanely healthy and beautifully prepared, not to mention inexpensive. Though Antarctica is freakin’ cold, the bar is not. In fact, the interior will make you feel warm inside as it’s 276 years old, and with an all-wood interior and brick wall, this establishment serves up cheap beer with no attitude. Not just one of NYC’s best music venues to see up and coming acts, it’s also a bar. You don’t have to pay an entrance fee to grab a pint and eavesdrop on featured acts playing in the next room.

Portishead
Third
Island Records






It's been nearly ten years since the release of their last album, but now Bristol's Portishead are back with their third studio album, aptly titled Third and it's more than worth the wait.

A sense of foreboding hangs over the album, adding a feeling of mystery to the disc's dark tunes. Beth Gibbons plaintive voice soars with equal parts warning and yearning on songs like the mystical "Hunter" and the deliciously hypnotic "Nylon Smile." "Machine Gun" offers a rata-tat-tat of adrenaline, while Gibbons sings "Savior come my way / I thought I'd see you in the cold light of day." One of Third's most fascinating tracks, the percussion heavy "We Carry On," tick-tocks like a heart beat or perhaps an internal metronome for the soul.
A haunting song called "Threads" closes the album and as Gibbons' wail fades out, you can't help but hope we don't have to wait another decade before we hear some more.

--Amy Wagner

Here's the first video for the single "Machine Gun" off Portishead's new album Third:

The Duke Spirit

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Band: The Duke Spirit + The Pierces
Show time: 7:30 PM
Venue: Bowery Ballroom
Food: Sammy’s Roumanian Steak House
Drink: Sweet & Vicious
Miscellaneous: Pravda

UK’s The Duke Spirit play a bluesy kind of rock led by sultry vocalist Liela Moss. With their recently released album Neptune, expect a lot of new material from this up and coming band. Don’t miss openers The Pierces, a sister duo who play eclectic folk music with attitude. At Sammy’s Roumanian Steakhouse, expect an atmosphere involving some sort of scene, dancing, and plenty of vodka. The eastern European menu comes down to steaks and chops, and Jewish delicacies like Kasha Varniskes and Kreplach. One of the hipper bars in Nolita, Sweet & Vicious has an all-wood interior featuring big round circular fixtures with lights that make Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” come to mind, and the prices won’t burn a hole in your wallet! Want a $12 martini that’s worth more? Pravda has an extensive selection of Russian vodkas, and who knows vodka better than the Russians?

Halfway Through This Interview with Charlie Rose, See Norman Mailer make everyone uncomfortable on The Dick Cavett Show

Location: Midtown West, NYC
Event: Sparring with Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal: Dick Cavett Narrates His Legendary Show
Show time: 6:00-7:30 PM
Venue: The Paley Center for Media
Food: Eatery
Drink: Zanzibar
Miscellaneous: Island Burgers and Shakes

Who says literature is boring? Legendary talk show host Dick Cavett takes us back to the 1971 episode of his show The Dick Cavett Show, providing play-by-play of an episode where Norman Mailer began a verbal fight with Gore Vidal and New Yorker journalist Janet Flanner. With an upscale lounge setting, the food at Eatery is also dressed up, with entrees like Pan Roasted Atlantic Salmon with sweet corn relish, baby basmati rice and seven vegetable slaw ($19.95). A great place for mixed drinks with an inviting atmosphere, Zanzibar specializes in inventive cocktails like the Rejuvenation with Grey Goose Vanilla, and cucumber, muddled with sugar and sour mix ($13). A fave of mine in the area for burgers, Island Burgers and Shakes offers one of the best burgers in the city that isn’t $80! Try the Princess Grace Burger with ham, boursin, mushroom, onion, and peppers on ciabatta ($7.50).

The Cool Kids, Making the 80s Famous Again

Friday April 4

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Band: Dirty on Purpose + Mahogany + Shooting Spires + Sisters
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: Mercury Lounge
Food: Pukk
Drink: The Magician
Miscellaneous: Mason Dixon

A night of awesome local shoegaze music, Dirty on Purpose lead off this bill along with Mahogany, who are amazing, Shooting Spires, and Sisters. Not a reference to that “Real World” guy, Pukk serves up some delicious vegetarian Thai food. With a futuristic design, plastic, and green tint everywhere, the menu offers traditional Thai from Pad Thai to Spicy Watercress Duck, only the duck, like all meat here, is made of vegetarian soy. A chill bar where you can go, have a drink, and not be bothered with loud, annoying drunks is The Magician. This place, which has no visible name, is across the street from Welcome to the Johnsons. With a southern theme, the big draw at Mason Dixon is being one of the only bars in NYC with a mechanical bull. For $10 you can ride it. Expect to be thrown off in 5 seconds, if you can stay on that long!

Friday April 4

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Band: Murder by Death + O’Death + Kiss Kiss
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: Bowery Ballroom
Food: Inoteca
Drink: Loreley
Miscellaneous: Sugar Sweet Sunshine

Two shots of death and a kiss! Indiana natives Murder By Death head up this goth-rockabilly extravaganza with O’Death and Kiss Kiss. While equally known as a wine bar as it is an Italian eatery, Inoteca is one of the hipper places to eat on the L.E.S. offering a menu of small items like cheeses that are more about sharing with friends than walking away stuffed. An excellent German beer garden, Loreley offers 12 German beers on tap and a menu of German food items like potato pancakes with smoked salmon applesauce and lingonberries ($15). One of the best cupcakes in the city, Sugar Sweet Sunshine has a menu of 10 different cupcakes daily. Try the “Sassy Red Velvet,” you won’t be disappointed.

Saturday April 5

Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Film & Music: Dystopians: THX 1138
Show time: 7:30 PM
Venue: Monkeytown
Food: Relish
Drink: Radegast Hall & Biergarten
Miscellaneous: Zebulon

Tonight, Sci-fi gets scored as Monkeytown plays one of the sci-fi genres greatest movies, George Lucas’s THX 1138 as The Dystopians, made up of Stuart Argabright and Bones (Black Rain), and Norman Westberg (Swans and Heroine Sheiks) revise the soundtrack live. Though Relish looks like a 50s diner or an even larger version of an L train car, this restaurant offers up some gourmet treats for dinner. With influences from all over the globe, Relish features diner classics like burgers and onion rings, and step it up with the likes of Blackened Yellow Fin Tuna ($21). Williamsburg’s first beer garden, Radegast, has a beautiful all-wood interior, an enclosed outdoor backyard, and 12 German/Austrian beers on tap and more than 30 bottles. Another great bar in the area, Zebulon offers free live jazz and afrobeat. The drinks here are inexpensive, and I’ve never seen a bad show here before.

Saturday April 5

Location: East Village, NYC
Bands: Jens Lekman + The Honeydrips
Show time: 7:00 PM
Venue: Webster Hall
Food: Momofuku
Drink: The Village Pourhouse
Miscellaneous: Sundaes and Cones

Swedish folk singer Jens Lekman, whose influences vary from hip hop to folk rock, shine through in his songs. His new album, “Night Falls Over Kortedla,” sees Jens drawing material from everywhere, while his lyrics are more fun than literate. Opening for him is fellow Swede, The Honeydrips. If you like ramen noodles and pork, then Momofuku is your spot for food. The Berkshire pork is the best I’ve had and it’s the only place I’ll eat pork period, which should tell you just how good Momofuku really is! What looks like a neighborhood bar to watch sports actually has three more rooms, where you can order food or find a quiet place to smooch! For dessert a little left of the dial, Sundaes & Cones offers eclectic flavors like wasabi and corn and many more flavors that are familiar.

Sunday April 6

Location: SoHo, NYC
Bands: The Cool Kids + Mickey Factz
Show time: 8:00 PM
Venue: S.O.B.’s
Food: Souen
Drink: Ear Inn
Miscellaneous: Alidoro

One of my favorite hip hop groups of late, The Cool Kids take 80s beats and make them their own. Featured on HBOs Entourage and in a Rhapsody commercial of late, I’m sure these kids will rock S.O.B.’s along with Mickey Factz. For fans of macrobiotics, tofu, seitan and even fish, Souen is great for healthy food that won’t have you feeling like you shouldn’t have ordered that. Try the Broiled Tofu Okabe, which sees thick slices of tofu, broiled and topped with a sesame and sake paste ($11). One of the oldest bars in the city, Ear Inn offers cheap pints in a timeless environment. Walk through the doors and it’s like you’re in the early 1900s, though the occasional ringing cell phone will bring you back to reality. Possibly one of the best sandwich shops in the city, Alidoro has 40 kinds of amazing Italian sandwiches, all named.