2.3 A wknd w/ Two-Man Giant Squid
Mitch of the band on killer Szechuan, his “Judas Priest Bar” and TONIGHT'S BdBK b-day bash at The Broadway
ICYMI it’s ~AQUARIUS SEASON~ bbz, and according to the internet, this particular annual window has historically served as the time frame for the birth of the following famous water bearers:
Babe Ruth, Bob Marley, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Jordan, Michael B. Jordan, Susan B. Anthony, Shakira, Charles Dickens, Cristiano Ronaldo, Chris Rock, Cristian Dior, Harry Styles, James Dean, Yoko Ono anddd OPRAH.
Plus, Grigori Rasputin. But you probably already knew that.
However, while various online astrological aggregations of stars boasting this star sign might be fairly comprehensive, they are all missing two VERY IMPORTANT entities who also first made their way into this world during the age of Aquarius: Abyssal Gigantism, the debut LP from Brooklyn’s Two-Man Giant Squid, and Bands do BK—both of which we’ll be celebrating (while simultaneously sticking it to onthisday.com) TONIGHT at The Broadway, when/where TMGS will be hitting the stage for BdBK’s 4th birthday bash, serendipitously one year to the day since the album’s release!
Tix available here.
When building the bill for this party, we knew, above all else, that we had to have Two-Man Giant Squid—and not just because our birth charts are totez in sync. In what was truly the most predictable piece of news, our Spotify Wrapped revealed TMGS to be our top artist of 2022 and “Don’t Make Your Presence Known” to be our most-played song, and whenever the opportunity presented itself out and about and at shows over the last 12 months, we couldn’t help but introduce Mitch Vinokur—the main man behind the TMGS—as the musician responsible for our favorite album of the year, which we actually had the privilege of premiering last February. (Fun fact: Found out this week on the radio that he kinda hated that intro! But we stand by it!!!)
That’s all to say that there’s nothing we’d rather share a birthday with than this extremely rad record (a track-by-track breakdown is available here, btw) and no soundtrack to which we’d rather party than Two-Man Giant Squid—plus, of course, Shred Flintstone, Talon, Go Home and Screenager! So, to get you properly pumped, here’s a short lil playlist for your pre-gaming pleasure:
Also want to take this opportunity—before launching into our TMGS-crafted wknd itinerary—to take a break from the ~we~ to be ~me~ and, as Sam, offer a huge, heartfelt THANK YOU to all of the incredibly talented and wonderful people I’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with through BdBK and to everyone who has supported this project and been so fun and cool and kind over the last four (!) years. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, and it’s 100% due to this community, which is such a goddamn privilege to be a part of. If you’re coming to the show tonight, please come up and say hi and let me hug you and we can talk music and love and life and, idk, maybe even cry a lil? Then get back to rocking out, naturally.
ALRIGHT! Enough of alllll that. ONTO THE WEEKEND! Big ups to Mitch for setting expectations with a two-part plan that includes both the perspective of the party animal he wishes he was and that of the aging (29) (🙄) rocker he claims to be. Good news is, no matter which route you personally relate to—which can definitely change depending on the day—we’re pretty sure our dude got you set.
Go forth, be safe, have fun and, for the love of god, STAY WARM. Love love love you all~
[BUT FIRST: PRESS PLAY]
I’m a big fan of this segment so I’ve read a lot of these. And pretty much what I’ve learned is “holy fuck these other bands do so much cooler shit than me.” I’m not trying to sound like the complainey aging guy because at 29, I’m really not that old. But 29 is almost 30. And 30 is almost dead. And let’s face it, when you’re almost a walking corpse your weekend can look a lot different than the fun & downright ridiculous things you did when you were 23. So in that vein, I’ve decided to split this up into 2 sections: How I wish my ideal weekend went down vs how it probably would these days.
FRIDAY
How I wish I it went.
SHOW DAY! I wish on gig days I could just wake up, and immediately slam 11 bud lights at Ontario Bar with no repercussions. I’d be young and in a punk band so this would obviously help me perform later.
For lunch on show day I am at 7th street burger. Grease before jumping around on stage? Absolutely not a problem. How could this be a problem... I AM YOUNG AND IN A PUNK BAND.
Pre-show I am at Flower Shop. Im on my 38th bud light and I am starting to feel tipsy.
Show time. We hit the stage at The Broadway with an unreal lineup. Shred Flintstone is an act whose energy must be seen to be believed. Talon, Go Home, & Screenager are bands that we’ve wanted to play with for a while and now we are all on one bill! In this scenario the bud lights in my system will have caused me to incite a crowd-spanning freakout during our tounge-in-cheek punk ripper, “Versechorus.” Absolutely nothing went wrong. How could it? I’m young and in a punk band.
How it probably goes.
SHOW DAY. The thought of drinking alcohol today is absolutely terrifying. What if I get drunk and forget half the words to Bowling Shoes? What if I throw up on my pedal board. This is a nightmare. Go back to sleep.
For lunch I’m at Commodore having their biscuits with honey butter. Its maybe the best biscuit I’ve ever had and I dream of it often.
Pre-show I am going through 14 permutations of what to wear on stage before inevitably settling on the same thing I wore last show.
Show time. Its seriously gonna be an incredible night celebrating BDBK and 5 great bands at The Broadway. We may even be debuting some new songs..
SATURDAY
How I wish I it went.
Hart Bar. What time does this place open because I wish I could be there all day. I’ve done a lot of research on this matter (for science) and I think this is the perfect bar. The drinks are cheap, they have great hang-and-chat space upstairs, and live music downstairs. The holy trifecta.
Night moves. Yes, I am aware that I am a walking parody of the “James Murphy worshipper guy”. I’ve seen his shows, ate at his restaurant, and read his books (or, the Don DeLillo book-turned-movie that he recently did one (1) song for). So goddamnit I will dance at his nightclubs too!
How it probably goes.
The truth is, Hart Bar is not in my neighborhood. And the thought of having to get on the subway to go drink is enough to cripple my weak & lazy brain. Thankfully I don’t need to do that because Rocka Rolla exists. Me and my friends call this the “Judas Priest Bar”. Because for better or worse you’re about to hear some Judas Priest and Van Halen and you’re gonna like it.
To get into Nightmoves you usually have to be on a “list.” While I do know someone that could probably get me on, I simply do not know how I would even begin to write that text (shivers). So I’ll go have a nice dinner at Birds of a Feather instead. This is pound for pound my favorite restaurant in the city. It offers incredible Szechuan at an affordable price and should be protected at all costs.
SUNDAY
How I wish I it went.
I wish I was going to see Mary Shelley at The Sultan Room.
How it probably goes.
I will be going to see Mary Shelley at The Sultan Room. Sundays are easy.
Itinerary above written + submitted by Two-Man Giant Squid. Follow the band at @twomangiantsquid, buy music on Bandcamp and add the songs to your Spotify playlists!
Feature image provided by the band.
MORNING ANNOUNCEMENTS
It’s BANDCAMP FRIDAY BABY and you know what that means! Cough up some cash and support your fave artists by buying (!) music and merch on the holiest of days on which the site takes no fees. (The next ones, for future reference, ae March 3rd, April 7th, May 5th, August 4th, September 1st, October 6th, November 3rd and December 1st.) HAPPY SHOPPING!
Our pal LG Galleon (of Clone, Dead Leaf Echo, Sweatshop ~etc.~ fame) is looking for third roommate for his 3BR duplex off the Morgan Stop for $1300/month. Must be cool with cats. Find the full ad here.
WINTER MADNESS is officially upon us! Follow @ourwickedlady for keep up with the battle of the bands all month. See ya there!
RELEASE RADAR
New(ish) stuff from local (+ occasionally, once-local) artists we love, listed in no order whatsoever:
Rap Music to Take a Bath to // Kahiem Rivera
“Dirt” // The Thing
“You Have Changed” // Bandits on the Run
Evil Ghosts // Sam and the Sea
“Linden Boulevard” // Lowhency Pierre
“Power” // Supertaste
IT’S HAPPENIN’
Here’s a look at the events we’ve got coming up. Mark your calendars and come hang!
2.3 BdBK 4th BIRTHDAY BASH w/ Shred Flintstone, Two-Man Giant Squid, Talon, Go Home, Screenager @ The Broadway - tix here
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)
+ ICYMI
Around the blog + on the radio + from the archives:
PREMIERE: “Tara Dreams in Spanish” from Go Home
PREMIERE: “Lights” from King Bug
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.