1.7 A wknd w/ Slow Fiction

The band on rock-star vintage, late-night omelette platters and a Sunday destination where time slows down

Jan 07, 2022

Welcome to the first (official) weekend of the year, and we’ve got no one better to guide you through it than the fast movers of Slow Fiction!

Whether or not you’re familiar with the term, you’ve definitely experienced the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, or frequency bias, in action. You stumble upon something new to you—a word or a name, a brand or, say, a band—and all of the sudden, you see it everywhere. It’s popping up in books and on billboards, via your friends and through your feeds. While it was always there, you never noticed it before, and now you seem to see and hear it every time you leave your house or pick up your phone.

So was our experience with NYC indie rockers Slow Fiction, who absolutely exploded onto the scene last year. We don’t remember the first time we saw them on a bill; they were just suddenly on every bill, appearing alongside all of our favorite local bands and taking the stages at all of our favorite local venues.

And this wasn’t a slow burn; it was a fast start. Connected through a magical combo of Craigslist and mutual friends, the band had their first meeting just last April, banged out some demos in May, dropped a live album in June and six months later had clocked a whopping 17 shows. All without dropping any songs that had been ~professionally~ primed and polished in a studio setting—until, that is, this week.

Enter: The Cut / Niagara, Slow Fiction’s double single, out on Paper Moon Records, that premiered on Bands do BK this Wednesday!

And just because they’ve got music out, they’re def not slowing down. The band’s next release is a Paper Moon Records Live Session, out on January 13th. As for live shows, we’ve got January 20th at Berlin with Bad Waitress and Shred Flintstone and January 27th at The Sultan Room with Native Sun and The Wants.

But whew! For now, let’s focus on the present, shall we? Earlier this week, frontwoman Julia Vassallo, guitarists Joseph Skimmons and Paul Knepple, bassist Ryan Duffin and drummer Akiva Henig ever so kindly crafted a weekend itinerary just 4 you. And, whoops, it’s already 12:29… so we should probably go ahead and send it your way.

As we like to say, your weekend starts neeeeeeeeeOW! Make it a good one, won’t ya?

[BUT FIRST: PRESS PLAY]

FRIDAY

Happy Friday! A great way to start off your day is by streaming our debut singles “The Cut” and “Niagara” out with Paper Moon Records. Add them to a playlist or tag us in an insta story and we’ll give you a shoutout.
If you’re working remotely or have a lunch break, go to Punjabi Deli in LES. It’s one of our favorite spots for a delicious and equally affordable meal.
Friday evenings are usually reserved for band practice, which takes place in Ridgewood. If you’re in the area, meet us for a drink at TV Eye or The Bonus Room. After that, we’ll take the train back to Manhattan to play pool and listen to tunes from the jukebox at Mona’s on Avenue B.
End your night with either an order chopped cheese or an omelette platter from NY Grill & Deli.

SATURDAY

Might be nursing a hangover from last night, so start the morning (or afternoon) with a coffee from 9th Street Espresso.
Then, we usually like to go to a local thrift or guitar shop and browse around for a good find. Two spots we like are Finn Vintage in Bushwick and Rivington Guitars in the East Village. Support local!
Saturday nights, if we’re not playing a show, we’ll go see a friend’s band or check out someone new to us at one of our favorite venues, like Berlin Under A… if you’re looking for a drink before or after the show, we have on good account that the bar above Berlin, 2A, makes a pretty solid margarita.
If you want a late night snack before heading home, hit up the taco truck across the street from Berlin and 2A, you won’t regret it.

SUNDAY

Sleep in… you need it. Then, go for a walk… you need that too. While you’re on that cleansing walk, stream our songs again, maybe you’ll hear them differently this time.
Stop for a quick lunch at either Veselka or Remedy Diner before continuing your jaunt downtown for some window (or real) shopping at local spots like The Cast, specializing in really cool rock and vintage wear, and The Hunt, with some sick jewelry and antiques. We’ve also been known to shop for graphic band tees at City Fun.
For the evening, ignore the fact that Monday is tomorrow and grab a friend to catch a movie at Village East Cinema; time moves slower in a movie theatre.
Make sure to wind down your night at home with your legs up, maybe watch a Paper Moon Live Session on Youtube… After all, it’s been a pretty entertaining weekend.

Itinerary above written + submitted by Slow Fiction. Follow the band at @slowfictionband, buy their music on Bandcamp and find everything Slow Fiction at slowfictionband.com!

Feature image provided by the band.