A Present to you from the Bots and Ross!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

Read More......

Happy Holidays!

Read More......

Lazyrobot's 2009 Gift Guide

It's finally here, that dreaded time of the year where folks scramble from shop to shop trying to nail down that one perfect object that say to your loved ones, "I prreciate jou!" It's a difficult job to do and the bots are stepping up to the plate with this easy Gift Guide for the 2009 season! Bon Chance and Happy Holidays!

For the foodie: a jar of pickled scrumptious-ness from Brooklyn Brine

For the parents of that special someone that has everything: a Sodastream, a machine that can carbonate any liquid, say goodbye to those Perrier bottles!

For the "green-themed" Secret Santa at your underpaid workplace: Handisleeve from the Containerstore (aka heaven on earth) a reusable sleeve for those crappy office coffee cups

For the music nerd: a Stylophone Portable Beatbox machine, a wha, wha, wha? how cool is this and for $30?

For the friend who can't grow a beard: a Beard knit cap! $135 is a little steep but I'm sure some knitting genius out in the Internet has created a way to DIY.

For the fashionista that won't rob your bank: Rubbish Fashionable finger puppets, who needs Dolce and Gabbana when you have Karl Lagerfield and John Galliano on your fingers!

For the poor starving artist: a case of instant ramen and a year membership to MOMA, just in time to see the latest exhibition on Bauhaus and Tim Burton!

For the iphone obssessed/earth lover: iPhone solar skin, charging your precious with the sun!

For that special someone/wind beneath your wings or your dwarf friend: a day @ Spa Castle! you can stay all day and get all wrinkly for the small price of $35/weekday or $45/weekend, (if you're under 3ft, there's a special discount!)

Read More......

You win some, you lose some

Last night we showed up at Santo's Party House to the sight of an ambulance outside (apparently someone was carried out on a stretcher moments earlier) and only to be told that the Trouble and Bass party, featuring UK dubstep don Joker, was sold out.

Though major disappointment ensued, instead of going home, we opted to meet up with some friends and squeeze in a nightcap at B Side Bar, an East Village dive whose special consists of a shot of whiskey and a PBR for a mere 5$.

We settled into the very back room to consume our beverages and were surprised to see the walls lined with original screen prints from an artist named Brian Ewing. Most, if not all, of the posters were done to promote gigs for bands such as NERD, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Death Cab for Cutie. A lot of them were really cool and for a moment, we nearly forgot that we weren't brocking out to the sounds of the one like Joker during his first NYC appearance.

So if you find yourself on Avenue B, in the vicinity of 12th or 13th street, check them out and momentarily forget your troubles too. And if the artwork doesn't do it, there's always the special!

Read More......

Coming Full Circle

Nestled betwixt the culinary delights that are Taco Chulo and The Lodge on Grand Street in Williamsburg now lies a new bar called Full Circle.

Like most people living through these tough economic times, I try and do my share to help new businesses thrive. And true to my French roots, I am drawn to any drinking establishment that opens its doors within a quarter mile radius of where I live. So it wasn't bound to be long before I set foot in there. The experience turned out to be quite educational.

Last week, I learned about Brostep, this week, I learned about Brewskee-ball, the first ever competitive Skee-Ball League which calls Full Circle Bar its home in New York City.

Seriously y'all, Kickball is so 2000 and late. It's all about Brewskee-ball these days!

Full Circle boasts twice as many Skee-Ball lanes as nearby Hugs and four times as many as Redd's - that's right people, four Skee-Ball lanes. At $1 a pop (anyone remember the days when it cost a quarter for a game of Skee-Ball?) and combined with alcohol, this formula ensures much wealth for the owners.

Here's to many rolls to come, Full Circle!

Read More......

Brooklyn Bowl: The Hella Late Lazy Review

By now, you've probably heard of a little spot called Brooklyn Bowl. It's just a small bowling alley that opened up in the Burg earlier this year, close to the waterfront. Except, it's not. The Gutter was. This is actually a bowling/live music venue/bar/restaurant mega-complex.

I first stepped foot inside The Bowl during CMJ when DFA threw a party there. The scene is somewhat bewildering. There's a dance floor and an enormous disco ball on one side and bowling lanes on the other.

I went back just the following week to check out Dam Funk and was completely perplexed by the fact that the giant screens behind the bowling lanes were simultaneously displaying a Fader ad (it was a Fader party) Dam Funk's performance from the stage AND a basketball game.

That's right kids, you can now catch your favorite band or DJ while bowling and watching sports. What is the world coming to? ADD much?

On a side note, all this month you can bowl for free Monday through Thursday from 6-7pm during The Bowl's "Very Happy Hour." So if you haven't checked it out yet, now's the time!

Read More......

Pratt Presents Sustainable Fashion

This week in art openings includes an exciting exhibition curated by a colleague of mine and one of our fellows at the museum. "Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion"opens at Pratt University this week as part of a series of shows by the school honoring Design and Sustainability. Objects in the show support the important themes of "Green Fashion" promoting "Reduce, Revalue and Rethink," and features the latest and most innovative in American fashion designers. Some of these top dogs include, Alabama Chanin, Bodkin, Loomstate, SUNO, and SANS. Head over to TreeHugger for coverage on Green Fashion and check out the exhibition opening on November 20.

Read More......

Damn, That's my Jam: From Memory

Drum and bass is my first love and my long lost love all at once. When I heard this song on the Hospital Records podcast so many emotions came rushing back. And when I saw the video, it was all over.

Not only is this song amazing, but the message and the video will ignite your imagination and possibly prompt you to have your very own Office Space moment.

From the monsters of your childhood jumping around your boring work charts to the realization that you would rather be at home playing records and making music, it's all so very poignant. Also, it's nice to see that the old guys (Matrix) have still got it and the new guys (Mistabishi) are killing it.

Check out the video. You won't be disappointed!

Read More......

DAMN THAT'S MY JAM (again)!!!

what? that's what i thought.

Type rest of the post here

Read More......

Rebuilding Central Park

Recently, I attended a small soirée thrown by Agency Magma in their Tribeca location featuring local artists and professionals (alongside champagne and tasty Hendrick's Gin cocktails.)

On display in the Magma office were posters for a campaign called Rebuilding Central Park that my boyfriend had been doing illustrations for two weeks prior to the event.

Rebuilding Central Park is a fundraising effort to get trees replanted in Central Park to replace the hundreds which were lost or damaged over the Summer due to a Storm.

The campaign utilizes a very cool technology called QR Code. QR Codes are bar codes (like the one you see on the top of this page) which can be decoded with a QR Reader that you can download onto your mobile phone or wireless device.

Magma is encouraging people to donate their Facebook and Twitter statuses or their blogs to raise awareness for this cause (which is precisely what I'm doing now!)

So check out the site, raise some awareness of your own or if you're feeling generous, kick some funds over to Central Park. Let's use the world wide web for good and fix this tree situation! Thanks for the inspiration, Magma!

Read More......

DAMN THAT'S MY JAM!!!!!

you know you love it. wutwut?

Type rest of the post here

Read More......

Dear Bento Box

On the lunch agenda: fried rice with leftover rotisserie chicken, with peas and zucchini, pickled cauliflower, cutout pickled radishes, yellow bear sriracha container and a panda bear hard boiled egg, apples and cherry tomatoes.

Read More......

Another reason to love New York

Sorry for the crappy cell phone pic, but it was the only device I could whip out fast enough to catch the moment. Even the old cell came out after a prolonged fight with my tote. Note to self: get a new bag. Anyway, I'm leaving dinner the other night with my dude and I come across a marching band. Yep, a marching band. Granted we were near NYU but a marching band? Oh, and it gets better. As they draw closer and I see that they're just a bunch of rag tag musicians sans band uniform, I hear them exclaim IN UNISON, "Push it real good!" My jaw dropped as I fumbled for my phone. They were playing SALT N PEPA!? That's another reason for me to love new york. Here I am minding my own business wandering down a random street and I encounter a marching band playing Push It. Amazing.

Read More......

Picture of the Day

This is so bad ass, it hurts. Praying Mantis Samurai helmet from the MET's latest exhibition on The Art of the Samurai: Japanese Arms and Armor, 1156–1868

Read More......

Too Late

I just found out that the season for camping Malouf's Mountain has just ended. Their season begins on April 15th and ends October 31st. It would've been fun to reserve Halloween weekend to tell ghost stories around a campfire. A client told me about her great experience there and I neglected to check it out.

Supposedly, for the average New Yorker (one who lacks storage for camp gear), Malouf's Mountain supplies everything you need for a quick weekend hike: tent, campsite, fire/cooking pit, firewood, even food and drink. There is no better way to put it than how it is explained on their site so for my first post as newest lazyrobot member, I'm wussing out and quoting (hehe):

"Upon arrival, the first thing you'll notice is the privacy of each site. You will find a stack of firewood and your fire pit for cooking. You will see your covered platform which is especially nice because you're not stuck in your tent if it rains. There is also a cover over your fire pit. You can bring your tent or rent one of ours. Then, there is our chow box - it has everything you will need for your stay, from pots and pans to a pad of paper and a deck of cards.

If you think that's nice, wait until you see the bathhouse - hot showers on one side, flush toilets on the other, and in the middle, sinks for cleaning up and sinks for dishes. There are also two dryers in case your gear gets wet. "

I can't wait to hit this camp up next year. Hopefully, coaxing my fellow lazy-bots won't take as long as me waiting to look up this site.

Read More......

A few weeks ago my dude and I went to see Paranormal Activity. Paranormal Activity? you say, exactly. I knew nothing about the movie except the little blurb I read on a random movie listing website that was literally one sentence long. In a nutshell a couple is bothered by a demonic presence and they can't sleep at night. The same sentence is on the movie's official website. I thought okay, how are they going to stretch this one out, but I went along in the spirit of fun.
Let me just say right here that I love scary movies, but dear reader I haven't been afraid in a movie theater for a looooong time. Well...at least of what's on the screen. Anyway I go in not expecting much, footloose and fancy free, then the lights go down. I'm not going to spoil the movie for you, but I'll just say it was pretty scary in a creepy stick with you sort of way. I've been telling everyone I know that they should go see it and I don't ever recommend movies. The two leads are very natural and believable so much so that I forgot I was watching a scary movie. When the creepy stuff starts you're totally taken off guard. The movie was punctuated with gasps and actual screams, with more than a few guys chiming in. Go see it, go see it, go...see...it!

Read More......

Dear Bento

Nice to meet you! Let me introduce my four food groupies: veggie, cheese, egg, hummus, crackers and apple.

Read More......

An open letter to the old Supreme Trading

Dear old Supreme Trading,

First of all, what should I call you now? You've undergone a transformation into "N8" yet I still see you in event listings as "Supreme Trading." I get it. It's because you're located on N. 8th Street. That's pretty clever.

But maybe I'm not pronouncing it correctly. I mean is it the letter "N" followed by the number "8" or is it like "Nate" in the same way that "8" becomes "ate" when one says "L8er sk8er?" Letter/Number combinations can be confusing.

Second of all, I was under the impression that you wanted to be a nightclub now. What's going on with your sound? Do you realize how horribly screechy it sounds -- especially in that front room? Don't you want to be taken seriously?

Also, what's with the state of general disarray inside you? Honestly, are you finished? Your unisex bathroom is a hot mess. I don't invite people over while I'm in the middle of showering and getting ready. Maybe you should spruce yourself up a bit before letting people in too.

And finally, why did my friend Tom have to pay $20 for two Coronas and a PBR while we were at you? That's math I can't even process. Is that $7 a Corona and $6 a PBR or is it $8 a Corona and $4 a PBR? Either way, it's a rip-off. You're in Brooklyn. You need to price your drinks accordingly.

Sincerely,

A-Bot

Read More......

POTD

E.V. Day's costume exhibition (sans mannequins) at the New York City Opera.

Read More......

An open letter to Cielo

Dear Cielo,

Why is it harder for me to get into you than it is for me to get back into America when I go to Canada without my green card?

Is it truly necessary for you to inspect every cigarette out of a cigarette pack? Can I really not bring in my bottle of Aleve if it is no longer sealed. Because honestly, if I wanted to sneak drugs into you, I would just hide them in my underwear.

I don't really know how we got here. Rumor has it someone OD'ed. But honestly, don't you think you've gone a little far?

And by the way, if I see something, I doubt I'll say anything. Club kids stick together. This isn't the MTA and I'm not being inappropriately felt up during rush hour. Your patrons probably need a little something extra once they get inside to forget the fact that they're paying $12 for well vodka sodas.

Oh and also, you should know that people are now just doing their drugs outside of you before they get inside. Your methods are really just making it hard for them to pace themselves, which kind of sounds dangerous to me.

PLUR!!!!

A-Bot

Read More......

Dear Bento Box

I will master you, eat you and take photos of you. Why are you so awesome?

I've been obsessing lately over Bento Boxes and the amazing things you can do to the lunch box. Although originating from Japan, the land of all things cute, the art of lunch boxing is pretty much a global phenomena. We've all packed our lunches in one way or another, wimpy turkey sandwiches and a crapass plastic bag of old carrot sticks, left overs from the night before stuffed in a recycled take out container . . . sounds kinda depressing compared to the Japanese who have taken the "Sandwich Artist" term to a whole new level. I mean, a piggy rice mold and sunflower hard boiled egg? I'm not sure if I can eat another sandwich EVER again!

According to NY Times, (that's how serious this has gotten) the visual aesthetic of a Bento Box is a great way to command portion control and lure the non-foodie over to enlightened side of "really, really good lookin" food. Because of all of these reasons and because I love food and all things cute, small and hello kitty, I have pledged a vow to become a "Bento-ist" a Bento Artist! Stay tuned to Dear Bento Box for future photos and adventures!

(You can buy the above Bento Box from Goodbyn)

Read More......

Drinking discoveries: The porron

In a tragic turn of events, B and I were turned away from tonight's Poprally event because it was oversold. Apparently Spike Jonze put a hundred people on the guestlist. I am now thinking twice about going to see Where the Wild Things Are…

Still, the evening wasn't a total loss. We managed to squeeze in a fantastic dinner at LES restaurant Macondo. We arrived in time for happy hour, or as they call it "Porron Hour," and got to experience something new -- drinking out of a porron.

Porrones look a whole lot like bongs but they are actually wine pitchers that pour a very thin stream of liquid into your mouth. From 5-7pm, Monday through Friday, Macondo offers a menu of tapas for six dollars and each tapa ordered gets you a mini porron filled with beer with a hint of Fresca (it's tastier than it sounds.)

I learned from the coasters that "for centuries porrones have been used to easily share drinks around the table" in Spain. This means there's only one porron to wash when the meal is over as opposed to several glasses. Genius. Thank you Spain!

And thank you Macondo for introducing me to a new drinking vessel! I recommend heading down there and getting your porr-ON! The food rocks too. Macondo = win/win.

Read More......

POTD - Picture Of The Day

Hello Kitty - Interal Organs, kinda cute and kinda gross weird.
(Cheers to TokoyoMango!)

Read More......

Latest news in Collab-ashion!

Collab-ashion
Function: noun
Etymology: Brooklyn, Lazyrobots, from the Late Latin collaboratus, past participle of collaborare to labor together and Middle English facioun, fasoun shape, manner
Date: 21st Century

1 : to collaborate fashion ideas
2 : to sell out to giant fashion moguls
2 : basically making yo shizzle cheapizle!

Jill Sanders for Uniqlo, black is the new, New Yorker, may have to take a sick day to hit up Uniqlo, last time I was there, the velvet roped-off line was a bit lame!

Jimmy Choo for H&M, now, you, your mom and next door neighbor can be Carrie Bradshaw and this will leave you with enough $$ to take cabs everywhere, considering stiletto heels are not kosher for NYC streets

Read More......

Speaking of artin' it up...

...at the Museum of Art and Design in Columbus circle, you can definitely get your art on. They have an amazing new exhibit called Slash:Paper Under the Knife which features, duh, paper. There is a resurgence in the popularity of paper in the art world currently, not just as a ground but also as a sculptural medium. The new exhibit features some incredible ways artists are using paper. You definitely get the spectrum of paper uses as you walk through the two floors of the show. You'll see everything from the arts and crafts cut and paste to some intensely personal, imaginative and artistic pieces. My only complaint would be that when we went, 4 days after the exhibit opened, some artists were STILL installing their work. On the one hand it was nice because you actually got to talk to the artists about their works and processes, but on the other hand it was pretty lame to see unfinished pieces in a museum. Slash will go on until April 4th, so you've definitely got time to swing by and check it out.

Read More......

Dexter is what's up at Sweet Ups on Sundays

Living in the NYC, one must often sacrifice luxuries that suburbanites take for granted. Great big closets, washers, dryers and dishwashers are reserved for the lucky few. And for many people, including myself, cable television also falls into the "can live without" category.

The reasoning: you're not going to be home all that much so why not save that money for where it really belongs -- your local watering hole.

This usually goes by without a hitch but can be a bummer when your friends with cable -- a distinct group who are either older, have been in New York longer or are seriously coupling -- start talking about how awesome the last episode of True Blood or Dexter was.

But thanks to Sweet Ups, a quaint little bar on Graham Avenue near the corner of Grand Street in Williamsburg, I can fulfill my infrequent desire to catch cable programming without giving up my need to be out on the town!

Every Sunday night, Sweet Ups is showing new episodes of Dexter and featuring theme cocktails (such as the "Dexter Daiquiri" and "Miami Mojito") for you to throw away all that money you're saving on! It's a win-win situation.

See you at Sweet Ups, Dexter fans!

Read More......

The pros and cons of shows in New York

One of the things I enjoy the most about living in New York, and it’s probably evident from the posts you see from me, is all the great bands that breeze through this city that I might otherwise never see.

In the past 10 days, I’ve seen Phoenix, Fever Ray and Mono (the Japanese one). Here’s why each show was awesome and why you should be jealous.

Though the Phoenix show ran rampant with dude bros -- I’m talking hordes of early 20’s, backwards-hat wearing, straight up douche bags -- they played a fantastic encore including a song they co wrote with Air for The Virgin Suicides score called "Playground Love" and the commercially friendly “1901” not once, but twice!

Fever Ray was amazing but I couldn’t see anything. Seriously, it feels like the only people who like the same bands as me are guys over six feet tall and they all get to shows before I do.

Luckily, there were giant rave-type lasers to keep me entertained. And the sound was lush and bass-heavy. Also, this is Fever Ray’s only and last tour so I’m feeling very lucky that I caught them.

And Mono, well I guess the only bad thing about this show was that I saw them earlier this year with the Wordless Music Orchestra. Note to self – you’re never going to have a better experience seeing a band than when they’re backed by a 23-piece orchestra.

Still, they were stellar, as usual. Mono’s songs come in waves of all sizes, starting out with small rollers crashing gently onto the shore and building to epic tsunami-sized giants, the types of waves that carry sharks with them to snack on surfers.

Check out “Ashes in the Snow” from their latest album Hymn to the Immortal Wind to see just what I mean. And stay tuned to Lazy Robots for your habitual dose of cool music, art and adult diaper happenings from the NYC!

Read More......

TGIF: Stupid Dancers

These two all female dance crews are so dope they are stupid. Can't even stand it, even though We Are Heroes picked up this season's ABDC award, still think the Beat Freaks from season 3 were better all around dancers, poppers, isolationists, what have you. I did appreciate Hiro, We Are Heroes' group leader's wacking in this interview video.

Read More......

ARTIN' IT UP! James Mother&#^@in' ENSOR!

As summer winds down to a bitter hella cold, we're left often wondering, "what in the heck did we do during all those non-summer months,"(besides frequenting our usual drinking holes, I mean). The bots, I do have to say are great at "Artin' it up!" It helps that the NYC is loaded with art every corner we turn. But, as I write this blog I realize in lazy typical fashion, the art show in which I will speak of is, OVA!
The James Ensor show @ MOMA just closed :( damn, stan, my apologizes.

For those of you that managed to take any art history courses in your academic careers Ensor was this wacky Belgian Expresssionist painter who was crazy about the ocean, death and light. But MOMA surpasses these themes to present a show that traces Ensor's development as an artist and one who appreciated both human comedy and tragedy. Thankfully for those of you that missed the show, MOMA still houses a great interactive website here.

Read More......

Ummm?

So picture it, Brooklyn at the ungodly hour of 5am on a weekday. My dude is walking me to the train. We're walking in silence with the occasional yawn or a sleepy grunt that means, look out for that dog poo! In the distance by the very entrance to the L we're trekking to we see two women. Of course anyone that's accustomed to walking around during ungodly hours of the morning is a bit leery of anyone else you come across. Also due to their dress, and I don't mean to jump to conclusions here folks, but I'd say they were a couple of prossies. As we get closer we hear them chatting away. Then one goes "I said you need depends!". "What?", says the other. "I told him Depends!I said! You need adult diapers." What a way to start the morning, picturing a prostitute with a trick that needs adult diapers.

Read More......

New York, I Love You: Ho Crusty

Mmmmmmm....Just the way I like it!

Read More......

Mustache fever

After a heavily champagne drizzled baby shower in Manhattan's Upper West Side a few weeks ago, I made the pilgrimage to the very last stop on the F train down in sunny Coney Island. Our friend Neil was defending his Best Styled Mustache title in The Second Annual Coney Island Beard And Mustache Competition.

You would think that in a city like Brooklyn, filled with countless numbers of ironic hipsters sporting all styles of ridiculous facial hair, an event like this would be massive but it was quite small, boasting a modest 34 male and female contestants. Some were creative while others merely showed off their natural manly facial hair growing chops.

We didn't stick around for the judging and sadly found out later that our friend was dethroned of his title. We did, however, get to see a guy hammer nails and shove a drill up his nose, a woman swallow many swords a bearded lady juggle three machetes and facial-haired hopefuls drink whiskey shots out of a tube hanging from a man's nose.

You know, just another day in the life in the NYC! Check out some pics below.



And speaking of Mustaches, Jimmy Fallon held a Mustache contest of his very own last night called "Ultimate Mustache Fighter," where Geraldo Rivera's mustache took on John Stossel's mustache in a boxing ring. Most definitely worth a watch!

Read More......

Lazy Travelogue: The Portland edition

Several weeks ago, I had the distinct pleasure of sashaying across the country to the quaint city of Portland (Oregon -- not Maine, an important distinction) for the nuptials of my dear friends Charles and Kathleen.

The wedding was on Sunday but we flew in Friday night to catch the bachelor and bachelorette parties. The boys hit up some strip clubs (typical) while the girls met up at The Fez for 80's night with the notorious DJ Gregarious.

That seemed pretty PG-13 to me, but as I tossed back my third or fourth $4.50 vodka soda and wondered if it was fair to consider Interpol and MGMT "80's," the evening took an interesting turn when Gregarious and his DJ partner ran up on stage to get down to their own bad selves in the buff!

Naturally, we jumped up on stage ourselves to join the naked dance party.

So if you find yourself in the ever so conservative town of Portland, OR, here are some Lazy recommendations of things to check out:

1. DJ Gregarious's naked romp at the Fez
2. Contortionist stripper, Satori, at Mary's Club
3. Voodoo Doughnut, where you can order doughnuts shaped like male appendages and female glands. (Just check out the menu…)

Anyone sense a theme here? Seriously Portland, maybe you should change your name to "Pornland?"

Read More......

Damn, that's my jam: Telefon Tel Aviv

Many people dubbed this past summer "The Summer of Death." But tragedy struck much earlier for me, as far back as January, with the death of Charlie Cooper, one half of the electronic music duo Telefon Tel Aviv.

I was lucky enough to catch Telefon Tel Aviv at the old Knitting Factory in May of 2008 (after an infamous David Mancuso loft party, mind you) when they were thrown onto the bill at the last minute to open up for Apparat (Score!)

I was somewhat apprehensive about seeing them again in light of Charlie's death but their last album, Immolate Yourself, a far more mature and fuller sound than the simple glitchy IDM I had loved from the duo early on, is such a beautiful opus that I couldn't pass up the chance to hear it on a loud system surrounded by other fans at Mercury Lounge earlier this month.

Joshua Eustis and "new member" Fredo Nogueira (who has previously worked with the duo) played many songs from Immolate Yourself, dedicating the OMD inspired "Helen of Troy" to the late John Hughes and ending it all with a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire."

It was a decent show but sadly not as good as the last time I saw them.

Eustis remains undecided about the future of Telefon Tel Aviv but I'm certain we haven't heard the last of him and interested to see what he'll do next.

In the meantime, check out "I Made A Tree On The Wold," my favorite track from Immolate Yourself. It contains no beats -- just four minutes and 39 seconds of pure ambient goodness. Enjoy!

Read More......

BANSKY Strikes Again

Thanks to Arrested Motion for posting Banksy's latest stand against global retailer, Ikea. B has been busy this summer, he opened a show at the beginning of summer entitled Banksy vs. the Bristol Museum. Check out videos and images over at BBC.

Read More......

A little help for all those beauty pageant contestants.

Sooo, did anyone realize just how peace filled the month of September is? I didn't. Did you know that September 21st is the end all be all of peace? No? Okay, well lets get in a quick refresher before it's too late, and we're on stage under those bright Mrs America pageant lights and we have to back up the answer "world peace" with some facts.

The International Day of Peace was established by the United Nations in 1981, and it was celebrated for the first time in September 1982. It was unanimously decided in 2002 that it would be officially celebrated on September 21st as a day not only of peace but of ceasefire all over the world from then on. Now, this peace day is all about action. The website suggests anything from lighting a candle or having a private get together to public concerts and forums. People from all over the world are encouraged to participate.You can get involved on a local scale by following efforts on facebook and twitter.

Then we have, and here's where it get's a little tricky, Peace one day...umm day, also on September 21st. Launched in 1999 by filmaker Jeremy Gilley whose mission was to document his efforts to establish a worldwide annual day of non-violence and ceasefire on a fixed calendar date. It was through his efforts that the UN decided to adopt September 21st as the International Day of Peace. It is Gilley's mission to not only get the individual involved in observing peace but also governments, national and regional organizations, including those in the United Nations system. By 2012 Gilley hopes to introduce 3 billion people to Peace Day.

So next time contestants, back up your tired old wish for world peace answer with a little effort on your part. Have an International Day of Peace get together, organize a peaceful demonstration to educate others, light a single candle and have a moment of silence, for goodness sake.

Read More......

Autolux @ MHOW

Back in the day, circa 2005, when Soundclash Champion Graham M. was the gracious soul supplying me with habitual doses of MP3's in the form of cd's, I was introduced to some pretty choice bands including Ms. John Soda and Hot Chip. Last night, I had the chance to see one of those bands, the elusive, obscure, phenomenal Autolux.

Autolux never played in Atlanta and by the time I moved to New York, the only way to see them was on their opening tour with Nine Inch Nails (AKA large venues and opening sets.) Therefore, I'd never seen them. Add to that the fact that they haven't released anything since 2005's Future Perfect, a record that can only be described as "Perfect" itself, I had somewhat forgotten about them. But last night's show didn't only remind me how much I love them, it severely pshyched me up for what's to come from this band.

They played 50% old material and 50% new material. The new stuff sounded amazing. The encore blew my mind.

Their newest album, entitled Transit Transit, won't see the light of day until at least 2010 because none of the labels the band is talking to "want to put it out in the fourth quarter." Boo! Maybe if they changed their name to "Autotune" it would get automatically released and snatched up by the public like hot cakes because that's all anyone wants to hear these days.

At any rate, I'm sure it will eventually come out and rock everyone’s face off the moment it does. Autolux = awesome! Don’t sleep.

Read More......

The freedom

I've resisted twitter for as long as I can.

In the past few months a favorite pastime during the lunch hour at work is gathering around the one ancient desktop in the office and perusing fun websites. It so slow it takes the WHOLE lunch hour. When I say this computer is ancient I mean it's tower should probably take up a whole room and be covered in blinking lights circa 1950's sci-fi. When I say slow I mean this tortoise never, ever beat the hare. Usually the websites range from cute animals, awww, to hipsters and douche bags gone wild, whoa! Recently someone came in with a new one, twitter.com/shitmydadsays. In one word it's hilarious. In two words it's freaking hilarious.
So, this 28 year old dude lives with his 73 year old dad and twitters about the shit he says on a fairly regular basis. Granted not a terribly exciting premise unless the old guy is suffering from dementia...which...really...isn't funny. Anyway dementia aside, this guy is funny. He's old, he's tired, and cranky and has no filter whatsoever. Ahhh the freedom of kids and seniors. It kind of makes me impatient to get old and just say whatever I want without consequence, watch out for twitter.com/shitIsay in about forty years or so.

Read More......

The Cove - The Must See Documentary of the Year

Who would of known the dolphin trainer in the TV show Flipper would turn around and become this huge dolphin activist. An activist committed to saving thousands of dolphins who are being lured into this cove off of Japan and killed. Please go see The Cove, tell your friends to go see The Cove, tell your friends who are Japanese-American who have Japanese relatives still living in Japan to see The Cove. Please do it!



UPDATE: O'Barry just posted the latest news from Taiji, no dolphin killings at the start of the season!

Read More......

Cocktail of the Week: Hemingway Daiquiri

(Hemingway drinking his daiquiri)

B-friend was telling me about a lovely cocktail he just had at Huckleberry Bar in Williamsburg. H. Bar is known for their lusciously complicated cocktails and yummy food (which is just a bit classier than reg. bar fare). The daiquiri features Maraschino liqueur (no relation to red juice floating at the top of cherry jars) and goes by various other names but Ernie H. drank a version of it that was a tad boozier and in a glass that some called a "vase" (my kind of guy!). Spending some serious time in Havana, our favorite American writer fell in love with this cocktail and today it even exist in a the frozen form! Thanks Seriouseats for this great recipe, happy drinking!

Hemingway Daiquiri

Ingredients
2 ounces light rum
3/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice
1/2 ounce grapefruit juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon maraschino liqueur

Procedure
Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker, fill with ice, then shake and strain into a goblet or a champagne saucer filled with shaved ice or skip the ice and pour into cocktail glass.

Read More......

Ponyo!

Hayao Miyazaki, the man responsible for two of my very favorite movies in life (Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away) has a new feature film out called Ponyo.

I saw a commercial for it the other night and immediately declared my intent to go see it.

And you know what? It’s HAND-DRAWN. How rare! I mean, why would anyone draw by hand in this day and age?

From an AP news article that came out today: "'I realized that by using computers, what we were doing is that people who could draw by hand, the computer somehow entered in their heads,' Miyazaki said through a translator during an interview."

Computers entering in their heads? Who wants that? Hand drawing is the only solution!

As if Miyakazi’s previous work did not in itself seal the deal, Tina fey does one of the voices for the US version. It just gets better and better.

Sadly, I probably won't be seeing it until September since I am leaving for vacation Monday and the weekend is pretty packed. That is, unless the film somehow enters in my head…

Read More......

Eternal sunshine on a rainy night

Did you know the last two weeks of Summerscreen were cancelled due to looming bad weather yet both times, it never actually rained?

So with an ominous 50% chance of thunderstorms last night, L Magazine still decided to hold a screening of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and deem it "rain or shine."

Four words though: Still no porta potties.

On the plus side, apparently when there's a chance of a rainout, no one runs the door. This means outside food and, most importantly, alcohol is most definitely a go.

Not only did the dreaded rain never fall, but the movie was fantastic (as it always is.) Who wants to meet me in Montauk?

Afterwards, we stopped by Kiss and Tell at Rose Bar for some stellar sets from resident DJ Bethany and guest DJ Nick Chacona and then by Satellite Lounge for Percussion Lab's relaunch party.

Some nights, it's fun living in South Williamsburg, despite being "surrounded by Laundromats, bodegas and whooping car stereos" (according to TONY - see Arepa Arepa review.)

Read More......

Damn, that's my jam: Bop

I'd like to urge everyone to head over to the recently relaunched Percussion Lab website and check out some DJ sets.

And if you happen to find yourself overwhelmed by the 140+ choices you encounter there, might I suggest starting out with a 40-minute mix by Russian drum and bass producer Bop, submitted by yours truly?

If you like the mix, be sure to grab the full-length album he just released entitled "Clear Your Mind."

Per Boomkat: "... anyone who's ever been partial to glitchy, tricksy beat editing and soft, lavish synth designs is likely to find themselves hit by Bop's mighty IDM suckerpunch."

Mighty IDM suckerpunch! Don't sleep!

Read More......

Redefining real estate

He's not really selling *a* house -- he's selling house music (and he's selling it pretty hard to boot...)

You know what they say, "House is a feeling," an intangible thing which obviously makes it tough to market.

But this guy totally nailed it. Literally, he nailed a little white picket fence onto a rectangle of astro turf, threw in some potted plants for good measure and there you have it. House. Stick a "For Sale" sign on it and you're done!

I can almost see the light bulb that popped up over his head when he cooked up this brilliant idea.

Long live the sale of "House" on the Soho sidewalks! (The only kind of house I'll ever be able to afford there.)

Read More......

Have a gander at this flippin' scenester

I was going to submit the above to LATFH but then it dawned on me: I too have a blog. And I too like to poke fun at people when it is so clearly due.

Spotted yesterday at the Simian Mobile Disco show in Williamsburg's East River Park: one dude, sporting a pretty amazing hat, casually puffing on a cig and rocking an enormous New Kids on the Block duffle bag (circa early 90's, I would guess.)

What do you think -- hot or not?

Read More......

Food Porn Sundays

-Sweet and sour beef, Happy hour @ Baden Baden in K-town



- the best fish tacos in town and huevos rancheros @ Mesa Coyoacan

Read More......

Did you know that Facebook is the new Disco?

According to Rajendra Ro, who moderated a Q&A with The Last Days of Disco writer/director Whit Stillman and actor Chris Eigeman following a screening of the film at MOMA last night, the internet has become the modern day equivalent of nightclubs in terms of social gatherings.

Maybe it's just me, but isn't the modern day equivalent of nightclubs… nightclubs?

Ro's awkward comparison was met with uncomfortable laughter and started the Q&A off badly. It did get somewhat more interesting though. For example, I learned that Drew Barrymore's mom was in The Last Days of Disco. She played the Tiger Lady.

This was the fourth PopRally event I've attended and for the whopping price of $8, it included a pre-movie cocktail reception, a screening of one of my favorite films followed by a Q&A with one of its stars and the director and then another cocktail reception. You can't even buy one ticket to a new release for that in New York City!

Can't wait to see what you have in store for us next, PopRally!

Read More......

Just another day in the life...

... watching Cookie Monster and a pink gorilla bust out the Inspector Gadget theme song on a xylophone and stand up bass as I wait for the F train to transport me onto the next adventure.

I love New York.

Throw these guys a dollar so they can take this show on the road to India.

Read More......

MC Hammerhead Sharks

The Hammerheads made an appearance at Coney Island's Mermaid Parade this Saturaday to a day of rain and dedicated Mermaid fans. An important Flickr account holder claims [the hammerhead] "was by far the most original theme." Thanks man! We totally organized this hot mess in one week, kudos to everyone who participated!!!!

I've also posted some crazy video footage for your viewing pleasure!

Read More......

The Best Recession Special EVER

I don't know if I should be blogging about this latest find but, why not, everyone needs a recession break. Sweet Ups bar, sister of the infamous hipster dive/dance club, Royal Oak, is offering $1 mini-pitchers of beer from 12-5 every day!!!!!!!

Read More......

Best New Pizza Joint!

Huge fan of Williamsburg's latest brick oven pizza joint, Motorino. I've walked by a few times admiring the lovely glass facade and small but quaint outdoor patio. B-friend and I went this past weekend after a long walk around the block complaining about the lack of tasty restaurants in the hood. We started out with the roasted beet salad with mint and ricotta and the fingerling potatoes with ramps submerged in a very delicious pesto sauce. The apps were simple yet delicious and made with wonderful ingredients. We decided on the traditional Margherita DOC pizza and the Anchovie pizza. Both pies were well balanced and screaming out with simplicity, not too much sauce, not overbearing with cheese, it was all the right portions of ingredients on a very crispy, charcoal flavored crust. Oh, and btw, Motorino blows Roberta's out of the water.

Read More......

AC @ T5

Rainbow strobe lights underneath tables covered with white tablecloths, in turn covered with electronic music equipment -- Check!

Giant orb over which to project trippy visuals-- Check!

Large screen hanging on back wall patterned not unlike the tapestries your hippie room mate in college used to hang on the walls -- Check!

What we have here is not only the recipe for a most excellent mushroom trip but also all the ingredients for an Animal Collective show, in this case, at Terminal 5 last night.

I wish I'd been able to take a photo that better portrays the psychedelic setup but we were way too far back (as clearly illustrated by the picture above.) Brooklyn Vegan has great photos and a set list.

The show was absolutely amazing. The super long version of "Fireworks" was really cool and they even threw in Panda Bear's "Comfy in Nautica." My only disappointment was "My Girls" which I thought didn't sound very good live. It's possible I just like that song too much or maybe it's just overproduced on the album.

All in all, a top notch show. Can't wait to see Animal Collective in Prospect Park in August!

Read More......