2.10 A wknd w/ Ernesto Hex
The artist on spell-slingin', super burritos and Sunday's Bands do BK brunch (the real Super Bowl!!!!) at Arlene's Grocery
HAPPY FRIDAY!
Had a recycled intro prepped about how after a long winter season spent poppin’ Vitamin D supplements, spooning SAD lamps and Tetris-ing our torsos out the window to soak up the half-rays illuminating our fire escapes for five minutes a day, we were all desperately in need of some sonic tonic, a bright balm of a banger to squirt into our ears and slather all over ourselves like SPF 80…
That said, while we might be dead of winter on the date front, the weather is doing/saying something entirely different. Today in Brooklyn, the birds are chirpin’, the sun is shinin’ and the temperature is what can only be described as disturbingly delightful. SO, as your (unlicensed) MD, BdBK is prescribing this track as not a remedy, but a way to enhance your reality, a summery soundtrack for an unseasonably warm February courtesy of our SETLIST ⭐Ernesto Hex, a BK bedroom-pop artist whose band is, quite fittingly, called The Sunshine Magnetic.
Immaculate vibez, non?
We premiered this track—recorded by Ernesto in his home studio during quarantine—back in May 2021, when the artist offered some insight on the song’s surprising (and spoOoooOky) source material:
“I found a lot of inspiration for the song’s lyrics in the relationship between Louis & Lestat in Interview with the Vampire so please don’t mind the overt vampiric metaphors! Musically, the song draws a lot from old boom bap break beats, mo-town, and 1960/70s Tropicalia.”
Of course, that was just one of the tracks off Ernesto’s 2021 album Stellar Vista (another fave: “Babetown USA”), and the artist has released a few singles sense—all of which we’re looking forward to enjoying immensely when he and his band hit the stage at Arlene’s Grocery for our third BANDS DO BK BRUNCH this Sunday with Dameron and Skinny Dippers! Tix available here.
A hole in one! indeed.
As for the rest of your weekend, read on for an itinerary that Ernesto designed for some reason (we support it!) specifically for summer… which, uh, is pretty much what’s happening anyway.
Break out your bikinis, whip out your speedos and please get ready for some funnnn—
☀️☀️☀️We shall see you SUNday! ☀️☀️☀️
[BUT FIRST: PRESS PLAY]
DISCLAIMER: For the purposes of this perfect weekend summary in the life of Ernesto Hex we will be operating with some pre-conditions. First of all, it is summer time, the weather is nice, not sweltering. It’s not too hot where you HAVE to drink only white wine but you prefer it. Second, I’m under the assumption I have zero responsibilities where work is concerned. I’m imagining 2020 where the government was paying me to be a musician, without the virus though. Now that we have all of that settled:
FRIDAY
Breakfast is some sort of caffeinated beverage since I usually forego eating in the mornings. Today’s drink of choice is a drip coffee from my local coffee shop, BKG. I take it black, like my soul, and then I head to the gym to fight some of my demons. Figuratively, of course. Now it’s time to actually eat, and since it's such a nice day, we’re going to Putnam’s which is an Irish bar that happens to have really good brunches too. I order a Bloody Mary to start, and because I haven’t had anything besides coffee I get real buzzed before my steak and eggs come out, and this makes them extra tasty. One more bloody before I head back to my place in Bed-Stuy to do some recording. Weekday afternoons I usually try to get a couple of hours writing/recording in while everyone is out at their day jobs. It gives me the freedom to experiment without reserve and since I’m two bloodies in already the experiment is reeeaaal loose. Synths run through pedals into stereo tracks with oodles of plugins all on top of a pulsing disco beat. Hours go by and I have nothing to show for it. It’s the way it goes sometimes, at least I had fun and know what not to do now. Evening comes and some friends come by with a bottle of tequila and some Magic cards and we spend the rest of the night drinking, slinging some spells, talking shit, and eventually getting so salty with each other it’s time to call it. I’m vamosing a la playa real hard tomorrow.
SATURDAY
Leisurely sleep in for a bit but eventually pry myself out of my heavy tequila soaked slumber because I need to be in the Rockaways in a couple hours to meet up with some friends. The hangover is real and my wife offers to pick up bagels over at Bergen Bagels before we hit the road. I know I said I don’t eat in the mornings and it’s true, but a night of pounding tequila changes your priorities real quick. I get a turkey, egg, and chee on an everything bagel. A light bit of mayo and some black pepper. I brew up some coffee and I’m coming back to life. It’s a standard but oh so beautiful kind of beach day. Finger foods and hard seltzers in the sun sprinkled with little one or two minute naps in between. The water is cold but perfect. We all decide to flag down one of the Nutcracker vendors and treat ourselves to New York’s finest cocktail. The finger foods stop cutting it so it's time for some Super Burrito and then it’s a real quiet ride back home on the A train as everyone contemplates the life choices they’ve made in the last couple hours. A little time to kill before we head to a friend’s house for a BBQ later. An episode of a tv show, anime, maybe a couple rounds of Street Fighter, and it’s off to our friend’s place in Greenpoint for some burgers and minimal partying. For some reason I have a show in the afternoon the next day so I really need to reel it in early tonight ;)
SUNDAY
Show day, and Super Bowl Sunday apparently (I know the whole summer time line doesn’t work with this but let’s just say that it does…) Light home work out in the morning, vocal exercises, lots of tea, lots of water. Hydration is the name of the game and also maximum chill age. I usually solidify the set list day of and print copies to give to The Sun Magnetic at the show. Eggs and toast eventually, maybe a rerun of Kitchen Nightmares before it’s time to head to Arlene’s Grocery. More water and more vocal exercises that make me sound like a maniac to anyone walking by the green room (or more like green hall in the case of Arlene’s). I don’t want to jinx myself but the show goes really well. Every band is incendiary and on point and at some point Julian Casablancas himself comes in and just drops a stack of hundreds on the stage, points at me with two fingers, winks his eye and goes click click with his mouth. I look down at the stack for a bit and eventually look him dead in the eye and say “Is This It”. He looks at me for a while, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, before he says “You’re right”, drops another stack of hundreds on the stage, neighs like a horse, and walks out of Arlene’s Grocery for the last time. The Sun Magnetic and I look at each other for about a second before we take the pile of money to the closest bookie and bet it all on the NFL team known as the……………..
Itinerary above written + submitted by Ernesto Hex. Follow the artist at @ernesto_hex, buy his music on Bandcamp and add his songs to your Spotify playlists!
Feature image provided by the artist.
MORNING ANNOUNCEMENTS
IYMI: WE’RE BRINGING ICELAND TO NYC BABY!!! Got blown away by Karma Brigade when we caught them at a bookstore/bar/venue (!!!!!!) in Reykjavik during Iceland Airwaves in November. As is custom, we accosted them with compliments and a lot of “If you ever want to come to New York…” action and GUESS WHAT! We zoomed a few weeks later and we’re stoked to share we’ve set up THREE SHOWS in NYC during the first weekend of March:
3/3 @ East Williamsburg Econo Lodge w/ Di Ivories + The Thing
3/4 @ Our Wicked Lady w/ Couch Prints + Atlas Engine + Wetsuit + Sandile
3/5 @ Arlene’s Grocery w/ Jelly Kelly + Ilithios + Color Tongue
Get a little taste of them via these video clips. Hope to see you at one, two or all of these shows. You’re gonna love them!
The New Colossus Fest schedule is officially liiiiive! Find the whole thing here and don’t miss the official BDBK X NEW COLOSSUS PARTY with NYC faves My Son The Doctor, NEVVA and J. Pastel plus Big Sea of Italy, Yo Diablo of Spain and Astronomies of Norway—Friday at Arlene’s Grocery! Entrance available with NC pass + tix for sale soon.
On February 18th, our friends Loose Buttons are throwing a benefit show at Baby’s All Right with 100% of proceeds going to Kind Deeds, an org that is providing prosthetics for wounded Ukrainian soldiers. Grab your tickets here.
You don’t have to ask a punk but plz tell one that applications for bands, zines and volunteers for Punk Island 2023 are officially open. Find links to all apps here.
In even more fest news, applications for live and virtual performances are now open for Mondo.NYC — “NYC’s only music/arts/tech business conference and global showcase festival” — which takes place October 10-13, 2023. Find info on the fest and how to apply to be an artist or a speaker or to host a salon here.
RELEASE RADAR
New(ish) stuff from local (+ occasionally, once-local) artists we love, listed in no order whatsoever:
Human Being Animal // Lily Mao
Disco Hits Radio (Or, The Ecstasy of Ego Death) // Gold Casio
“Dangerous” // LOVECOLOR
“When will you come home” // Nara’s Room
Uneasy Remixes // Joudy
“2 Carat” // Eighty Ninety
“Desert of the Heart” // Small Black
IT’S HAPPENIN’
Here’s a look at the events we’ve got coming up. Mark your calendars and come hang!
2.12 BANDS DO BK BRUNCH - An afternoon show w/ Ernesto Hex & The Sun Magnetic, Dameron, Skinny Dippers @ Arlene’s Grocery - tix here
2.21 STRONG LITTLE SONGS - A living-room fundraising show for Razom for Ukraine w/ Stephen Berthomieux of The Big Easy, Junebug, Ofer Shouval of O.Wake, Arlo Indigo @ BdBK HQ (donation-based, BYOB, DM 4 address)
3.10 BDBK x NEW COLOSSUS FEST w/ My Son The Doctor, NEVVA, J. Pastel, Big Sea, Yo Diablo, Astronomies @ Arlene’s Grocery
+ ICYMI
Around the blog + on the radio + from the archives:
PREMIERE: “Cryin’ Shame” and “I’m Blue’ from SEMI-AUTO
Thx 4 reading! Find more fun stuff at bandsdobk.com and @bandsdobk. <3
Order the Bands do BK BOOK (!) (out now via Lit Riot Press) here.