3.18 A wknd w/ ... Everyone
From the archives! A selection of recs for drinks, food and fun from BK artists we love
Greetings from SXSW!
If you’ve been following along on Instagram, you’ve noticed that we’re really making use of our time in Austin… by catching all our favorite bands from Brooklyn.
While that seems (and probably is) a little silly, this is our beat, baby! And we’re happy to report that the BK scene is alive and well down at SX. As we watched GIFT perform a killer afternoon set at Side Bar yesterday, we ran into what amounts to half a Bushwick bar crowd (including the Dead Tooth saxophonist on rollerblades). We might as well have been at Our Wicked Lady, honestly. But while drinking Lone Star and sweating profusely. And we honestly wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Speaking of OWL, if you happen to be in Austin—or have friends who are!—our OWLxSXSWxBdBK showcase is happening TODAY at Austin Eastciders Taproom for freeeeee. (RSVP here.) And whether you’re in Austin or NYC, enjoy this NYCxSXSW playlist featuring some of our fave BK acts. Most of whom you will probably run into on the street and/or catch on a stage within one mile of your actual apartment, like, next week. So: still relevant!
ANYWAY! That background is mostly to say that due to SX circumstances (aka a packed cycle of prepping/packing/partying/panicking), rather than plan ahead for this week, we just cobbled together an untraditional SETLIST from the BdBK archives…all while hungover in bed on Thursday morning. That said: We assume you can kind of relate? Thanks for your understanding. Enjoy this list of oldies but goodies, complete with some IKEA fan fiction (?!), plus our first-ever BdBK playlist from back back back in the day to tie it all together—
We’ll be back to regularly scheduled programming soon. (If we survive this week, that is.)
Oh, and for the record, very happy to report that BK > ATX. You know, in case there was ever any doubt. Enjoy <3
[BUT FIRST: PRESS PLAY]
FOR DRINKS
Lounge with live music at FourFiveSix
“My favorite local BK hang. They have good food, drinks, chill vibes, outdoor space and live music and it’s right by my house. I basically consider it my backyard. I particularly like that they have big comfy couches. Reminds me of the ’90s coffee shop vibe.” – Alison Clancy
Put back pints with Pits at Lucky Dog
“One of my favorite bars. For a few of my friends with dogs, that’s the only bar they want to go to. It has this beautiful backyard… it’s like a dog run, but the owners are getting drunk.
It’s also one of the only bars that’s consistently open ’til 4am. And it’s also… certain bars just attract musicians more than others, and often it’s the ones that are the cheapest — it just works out that way. All of the venues are still around this area. Touring acts play Music Hall, Brooklyn Steel isn’t too far from here. So when I lived on South Fourth, I’d get a text message at 2am like, ‘Dude, we’re closing down Lucky Dog. What’re you doing?’ And I’m like, ‘Nothing, sleeping… but I guess I can go do this.’ Those are some of the nights I regret, but they’re memories.” – Savoir Adore
Find a sweet selection at Beer Street
“I got really into beer back when touring in Europe with Emanuel and the Fear because every country — particularly Germany, Belgium… the UK — has a lot of interesting beers, and we got really into trying all these beers that you just couldn’t get here. They have these small-batch microbreweries, but they’ve been there like a thousand years… like old monks used to brew beer or something. Now it’s this whole craze.
People were telling me about [Beer Street] before I moved [to this side of Williamsburg]. It’s really nice people, it’s super small and chill, and Cory [Bonfiglio, the buyer] is great — I think he has really good taste. There’s a lot of stuff here that you can’t get anywhere else.” - Emanuel Ayvas
FOR FOOD
Fuck with brunch at Cheryl’s Global Soul
“The best post-Brooklyn-Museum lunch spot is Cheryl’s. It was one of the first places I went when I moved to Brooklyn. You go in through that curtain and you feel like you’ve just walked into a tent or a camp mess hall — but a very elegant camp mess hall. It’s teeny and warm; they have a beautiful backyard. I don’t really fuck with brunch, but to get very great pancakes, waffles — your breakfast stuff — I do that at Cheryl’s.” – Lizzie No
Enjoy a slice of nostalgia at Paulie Gee’s
“In our two-square mile-town [Pelham], we have like 13 pizzerias and 20 nail salons — that’s about it. That’s pretty much the whole town. It’s a good place, but those are really the two things we have going for us and, ya know, I was only using one of those things. But growing up there was fun. It’s really just assumed that you’re going to have at least one slice of pizza a day.
Paulie Gee’s reminds me of those [places] in such a beautifully authentic way. You walk in, you’ve got the New York Yankees on the TV, they’re yelling your name out on a way too muffle-y microphone…
I think it just brings me back to 11 years old, after a rec baseball game, going to Pelham Pizza, watching Mariano Rivera win the game for the Yankees. While New York is full of pizzerias, I miss that smalltown you’re-in-our-pizzeria kinda feeling a lot of the time, and Paulie Gee’s Slice Shop fully provides that for me.” – Sean Carroll
Meet and eat at Brooklyn’s Natural
“Look, we know Brooklyn is chock-full of bodegas turned overpriced organic food shops, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention this place because the employees are among some of the best people we’ve met in Brooklyn. They’re all magnificent people with very interesting backstories if you can find a moment to chat with them between customers.
The grill there is also excellent and open late. A few sandwiches we recommend: the Mexican with pesto for a quick evening munch or the 49 Bogart with a fried egg for a bangin’ hangover cure.” – Bandits on the Run
Take mom and dad to Roberta’s
“The only place you should bring parents because let’s be real, you ain’t got the budget for this incredible pizza.” – The Misters
FOR FUN
Hit the rink at Brooklyn Skates Club
“If you’re looking to show off your skating skills or just fall on your ass on a lacquered wood floor, BKLYN Skates in Bed-Stuy is the way to go. The school gymnasium turned roller rink hosts skate nights every Wednesday and Friday. It’s super inexpensive and you can either take some laps around the rink or watch the pros from the sidelines perform some of the most stunning OG roller disco moves. It’s just good, clean fun.” – Tanners
Come on down to C’mon Everybody
“C’mon Everybody is my favorite place to be in Brooklyn. It’s an incredible bar and music venue with an emphasis on LGBTQ performers and racial diversity. It’s also just a short walk from my apartment in Bed-Stuy. The owners are sweethearts, and my label Floordoor Records hosted a monthly show there for several years before the pandemic. I have so many fond memories of seeing my amazing friends perform there, and talking and laughing with them before and after the shows. The place feels like home…” – Public Speaking
Get your fresh-air fix at Maria Hernandez Park
“This park has it all. Trees? Check. Music? Sometimes. People skateboarding? 40% of the time. Sunshine? That’s entirely dependent on the weather, but I found an app on my phone that will attempt to let you know if it’s gonna be sunny, cloudy or rainy. DM me for more info.” – Jeremy Neale
Thrift and gift at Green Village
“I’ve lived in a few neighborhoods in BK over the past 8 years, but I’ve resided in Bushwick the longest. Green Village is this crazy second-hand store, with items piled high. Dressers stacked on dressers, old pots in a basket, #1 GRANDPA coffee cups on shelves from somebody you’ll never meet’s grandpa. Sometimes I go just to look, but I definitely have decorated a lot of my home with their quirky items.” – Raycee Jones
Get weird with it at IKEA
“As for the best place in Brooklyn, maybe in the world: IKEA. I love all IKEAs equally, except for one. The one in Red Hook, that’s the best IKEA. I visit the store from time to time and it is especially striking: being by the water and kind of isolated from everything else makes for a mystical experience. I get lost in braided silk window curtains and find pieces of myself in the drawers of my favorite dark oak wood nightstand. My skin rubs against a kaleidoscope-patterned rug that hangs vertically; with wool so thin I feel my own fingerprints. Enthralled by touch and hypnotized by the sight of the most beautiful kinetic multicolored lamp I lose my sense of self and with it the knowledge that my phone is on 1%. I am IKEA. I am the stream from the top of the mountains all the way to the sea. I am bliss. All of a sudden the flow is disrupted as a big rubber boot stomps into the water, its sound echoes through the entire forest: ‘Our store will close in fifteen minutes, please proceed to the checkout counter to complete your purchase. We’re open daily from nine thirty am to ten pm…’
I snap out of the cosmos, knowing I either swim to the ocean or the fisherman fishes me out of the river. So I choose to swim. I exit the temple, reborn.” – Assassin of Youth
MORNING ANNOUNCEMENTS
Our friend Kalen recently released a video for a new song called “Sunflower” “to help raise money for war relief efforts” and encourages you to donate to organizations making a difference on the ground. Watch here.
RELEASE RADAR
New(ish) stuff from local (+ once-local) artists we love, listed in no order whatsoever:
Not Just Me // Middle Youth
Stairway / Episode 4 // HYPEMOM
“Coda” video // Le Big Zero
“Heartbreaker” // Endearments
IT’S HAPPENIN’
Here’s a look at the shows we’ve got coming up next month and beyond. Mark your calendars and come hang!
4.1 BdBK Presents: Max Pain and the Groovies (single release) w/ TVOD and Nevva (+ some sweet, sweet Jonathan Toubin DJ action) @ TV Eye (tix here)
+ ICYMI
Around the blog + on the radio + from the archives:
PREMIERE: “Suicide Watch” from Red Sun Radio
NYC x SXSW: Friends & Faves You Can Catch At the Fest
Thx 4 reading! Find more fun stuff at bandsdobk.com and @bandsdobk. <3