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Civics and Urban Life

Book of Essays and Show for Park Slope’s Simon Dinnerstein

The Fulbright Triptych and Related Works by Park Slope artist Simon Dinnerstein will be on display at the Tenri Cultural Institute at 43A West 13 Street in Manhattan. The opening is on Friday, April 29th from 6-8PM and the event is open to the public.

Advance copies of Dinnerstein’s,  The Suspension of Time, will be available at the gallery. A collection of essays on Dinnerstein’s painting, The Fulbright Triptych, the book includes writing by a diverse range of contributors, including Jhumpa Lahiri, Dan Beachy-Quick,  Colin Eisler, Albert Boime, Thomas M. Messer, George Crumb and  John Turturro.

Here’s what Jonathan Lethem had to say:

“Simon Dinnerstein’s Fulbright Triptych is one of those singular and astonishing works of art which seem to imply a description of the whole world merely by insisting on a scrupulous gaze at one perfect instant. It functions as a time capsule and a mirror for its viewers’ souls, and so, despite personal and historical referential elements, has become permanently contemporary and universal. No surprise that it has now served as a point of instigation for a cycle of astonishing written responses; this book is like tuning the painting in like a radio, to a station where these responses were always already playing.”

Nice.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: Springsteen Film, Li’l Mo Live, David Olney Video

Tonight there’s a pretty good double feature.  First up is music film.  City Winery will screen The Promise: The Making of Darkness at the Edge of Town and the extremely reasonable $10 admission goes for charity.  Once the film is finished, head on over to Banjo Jim’s to catch New York’s own Li’l Mo and The Monicats. You can catch all the details for these shows at Now I’ve Heard Everything by clicking here.

The term “literature with guitars” was coined by writer George Pelicanos.  It certainly applies to the novelistic/cinematic song, Wait Here for the Cops, by David Olney, who gets an entire story of desperation due to a life gone wrong down in just four minutes.  Click here to see the video of the song and learn how you can see David at a rare New York City appearance at a Sunday, May 1 house concert.

–Eliot Wagner

arts and culture

Sea of Bees at Sycamore: Sweetest Pain in My Side

The Loom and Sea of Bees played Sycamore’s basement room on Saturday night. I’ve heard Loom at the Cortelyou Road bar, flower shop and performance space before, and enjoyed them immensely tonight with their new singer and keyboardist, Sarah Renfro, with her her huge glasses, long stringy hair and calm vocal facility.

A mash-up of Fairport Convention, Incredible String Band and The National, The Loom has great drumming, the talented Lis Rubard on trumpet and french horn, and stirring shared vocals by Renfro and songwriter John Fanning. The electric guitars, banjo and sometimes ukulele conspire to create a propulsive foundation as the group mesmerizes with its hypnotic drone-like vocals and exciting arrangements. In the two years since I first heard them, their music and cohesiveness as a band have evolved enormously as they convey a prairie-like stillness with echoes of timeless American and English balladeers.

The evening’s surprise and great discovery was Sea of Bees, a band encompassing the strange—and very appealing—presence of lead singer and songwriter Julie Baenziger, who is, make no mistake about it, the real and original deal when it comes to singing, songwriting and performing.

Dressed in a man’s shirt and tie, Baenziger’s visual is one of gender ambiguity but her voice is uber-feminine evoking Joanna Newsom and Jane Siberry with its easy and almost otherworldly soprano swoops and flourishes. And she’s got original pop songwriting chops all her own with gorgeous flights of melody and harmony with a vague tinge of another Northern Californian, Chris Isaks. Her cool yet emotive songs with names like Gnomes, sure to be a radio fave Wizbot, Marmalade, and the exquisite Sidepain, are riveting performed live.

Sea of Bees includes a wonderful electric guitarist and back-up singer,  female drummer and a male bassist.

From Sacramento, California, Baenziger and her delightfully effusive guitarist/back-up singer, have been touring in Europe for the last few months and her album, Songs for Ravens, is definitely gathering buzz (no pun intended) as revealed by a quick peek at the Internet.

But it’s Baenziger’s effortless stage presence that is, ultimately, so compelling. She is utterly unselfconscious about projecting her fetchingly strange and vulnerable inner self to the audience between songs with humor and no small measure of oddity that is utterly charming coupled with such real talent.

This girl is, I tell you, the real deal. That’s why Sea of Bees has me buzzing. They’ll be in New York all week. Check out their website and go to the show at the Rock Shop in Park Slope on Sunday night April 25th at 7PM.

arts and culture

Loom at Sycamore Tonight

Loom, a band I like very much, is playing Sycamore tonight on Cortelyou Road in Ditmas Park. They are a six-piece indie rock band from Brooklyn that features male/female vocals, horns, guitars, banjo, ukulele, keys, and percussion.

They’ve got an unusual sound: early British folk rock with french horn and ukulele. Fairport Convention meets The National. Apparently Loom has completed a full-length album, Teeth.  The new album, currently unreleased, features cover art by Asthmatic Kitty artist DM Stith.  It was recorded in New York at Maverick Studios with producer Allen Farmelo and mastered at Masterdisk studios.

The new material mines a “decidedly louder sonic territory” (according to The New Yorker). 

Sycamore: 1118 Cortelyou Road Brooklyn, NY 11231. T 347-240-5850

Civics and Urban Life

5th Annual Edgy Mother’s Day on May 19

This is not your mother’s Mother’s Day. Save the date for this annual reading of writing about motherhood and mothers by writers who use sharp pens and sharp wits.

So what is an Edgy Mom?

She’s feisty and fun and a little bit zany. She whines to her friends and can be a bit of a martyr. She fantasizes about taking long trips without her children. She lets her kids have dessert before dinner and reheated pizza for breakfast. And she NEVER remembers to bring Cheeros or tissues to the playground. Except when she does and then she feels victorious.

Her kids have seen her fight with their dad, yell at her mother and curse her sister on the phone. They’ve watched her cry. She’s been know to throw away her children’s old toys and art supplies when they’re not around. And then pretend she doesn’t know where they are when they ask.

And she knows NEVER to miss Edgy Mother’s Day because it’s such a blast and the wine is free.

Stay tuned for the line-up of writers who will rock you and  shock you, make you laugh, cry, cheer and look at motherhood in a whole mother way.

On Thursday, May 19, 2011

@ The Old Stone House

Fifth Avenue and Third Street in Park Slope’s Washington Park

Curated by Louise Crawford and Sophia Romero

$5 donation includes free wine and snacks.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: My Pet Dragon

My Pet Dragon is a band with some interesting 70s and 80s influences and whose live show is musically interesting and fun. Their song, Lover in Hiding, was one of my favorite songs released in 2010, and they have a new album in the pipeline.  They consist of Todd Michaelsen (guitar, lead vocals), Reena Shah (backing vocals, percussion) Mario Padron (bass), Rajeev Maddela (drums) and Vincent Mascolo (guitar).  They are playing at the Studio at Webster Hall tonight, and you’ll find the details about the show at Now I’ve Heard Everything by clicking here.

–Eliot Wagner

arts and culture

May 12: 6th Annual Brooklyn Blogfest

“Where better to take the pulse of this rapidly growing community of writers, thinkers and observers than the Brooklyn Blogfest?” ~ Sewell Chan, The New York Times

Since it was founded in 2006, the Brooklyn Blogfest has established itself as the nexus of creativity, talent, and insight among the blogosphere’s brightest lights. This year will be no different with Keynote speaker, Jeff Jarvis of Buzzmachine.com, who will discuss new business models for bloggers (i.e. making money as a blogger).

Just added to the program: an opening video by award winning photographer Gabriela Herman. For her series, Bloggers, she photographs bloggers at night lit by the light of their computer screens (see photo left).

Also on tap: a video tribute to Brooklyn’s photo bloggers, special networking sessions for like-minded bloggers, and Blogs Aloud, a dramatic reading of the most interesting blog writing out there. Plus: a roof-raising after-party with cash bar, food and music.

Buy tickets NOW at thebellhouse.com. Blogfest is for bloggers, social networkers, journalists, creative entrepreneurs, and anyone interested in reading or starting a blog.

Thursday, May 12, 2011 at 7:30 PM

@ The Bell House

149 7th Street (between 2nd and 3rd Avenues) in Park Slope/Gowanus

Admission $15 plus cash bar! Buy tickets @ The Bell House.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: Sunday Night at The Rockwood Music Hall With Norah Jones

There was a strangely named band on the schedule of The Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 last night.  But with the place rather full, it seemed that people knew who was going to be playing.  Right after 10pm, Cobble Hil’s Norah Jones, Park Slope’s Sasha Dobson and Catherine Popper took the stage. Get more details and see seven pictures from the show at Now I’ve Heard Everything by clicking here.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: Serena Jean and Hobson’s Choice in Greenpoint

For some reason, April 15th is not Tax Day this year (Monday, April 18th is).  So you don’t have to stand in line at the post office tonight.  Instead, why don’t you make your way up to Greenpoint where Serena Jean and Hobson’s Choice are playing?

Serena Jean plays a blend of music which is mostly rock with a bit of alt country thrown into the mix and which has a bit of a 70s feel to it.  Originally from Canada, she certainly shows that the saying that no one plays American music better than Canadians is correct in her case.  And guitarist Thomas Bryan Eaton not only rocks, he knows how to shred when the situation calls for it.  Thomas’ band, Hobson’s Choice, will also be on the bill.  Expect more of the same from Thomas and the band.

You can get all the details at Now I’ve Heard Everything.  Just click here to do so.

–Eliot Wagner

arts and culture

In The Year of the Rabbit Tonight at BRW at 8PM

Brooklyn Reading Works presents “In the Year of the Rabbit: Voices from the East,”  a celebration of Asian and Asian-American writers on April 14, at 8PM at the Old Stone House in Park Slope, Brooklyn. (336 3rd Street (5th Avenue) Brooklyn, NY 11215 718.768.3195).

The event will be curated by Sophia Romero, author of Always Hiding (William Morrow) and blogger behind Shiksa From Manila.

For the first time since Brooklyn Reading Works began writers from across the Pacific (or Atlantic depending on where one is standing!) will gather under one roof to read excerpts from their work.

Featured artists are poet Joanna Sit, novelists Thad Rutkowski, Bino A Realuyo, and Ronica Dhar, and playwright Diana Son.  There will be a Q&A at the end of the reading.

$5 suggested donation includes refreshments from Purple Yam and wine. Q&A will follow the readings. For more information go to www.brooklynreadingworks.com or www.theoldstonehouse.org

arts and culture

Senior Moment: Caring For One’s Aging Parents

by Katie Husted

Even though I work for seniors, it’s their adult children who tend to find me and hire me. They are often either living too far away or are too busy to be able to handle the nitty gritty of planning their parent’s move.

In senior world, we call these adult children “caregivers.” But the caregivers themselves very rarely identify as such. One said to me once “Caregiver? That sounds so professional. I’m just helping my mom.”

The truth is that as the population ages, there will be a lot more caregivers out there who don’t think of themselves as such. It can be an isolating role. There’s no “What to Expect When Your Mom Turns Eighty” (yet) and – in our neighborhood – if you throw an old tennis ball in any random direction you’ll find a good dog walker, but try finding someone you trust to take your parents around when they can no longer drive themselves. Good luck with that.

So, in honor of all those wonderful people who are devoting countless, unpaid, hours to helping their parents navigate their eighties and nineties, I’ve compiled some resources that I hope might help make the role a little easier

In a great book with an odd title, How to Say it to Seniors, David Solie explains why seniors and their kids so often clash as they wrestle over control when the parents need support. His examples are often hilarious and make you pause and realize why your dad explodes every time you suggest it may be time for him to consider hiring help at home.

A woman I know who runs the New York City branch of an excellent homecare agency,  Senior Helpers, has started a website site called Senior Care. Kathy is compiling articles and resources to make life easier for local caregivers and she’s asked me to help with some contributions. Right now there’s a great post about the museums in the city that have programs for seniors with dementia.

I follow a couple of blogs with interesting articles about aging: “http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/” The New Old Age blog at the New York Times is always covering some unexplored aspect to aging.  There’s a recent post about a topic dear to my heart – the editing process of deciding what to keep and what to shed when you have to move into a smaller residence.

And: “http://www.elderguru.com/” Elder Guru stays on top of creative products and services to make life easier for seniors and caregivers. How about GPS shoes for people with dementia?

Also: “http://www.caringtoday.com/” Caring Today is an online caregiver community. I love this site because they devote a lot of their space to sharing personal stories from caregivers all over the country.

And of course, if you need a senior move manager, check out: http://www.nasmm.org” The National Association of Senior Move Managers and select one in your part of the country.

Caregivers and all you people who are just taking care of your parents but are decidedly NOT “caregivers,” I wish you all the luck in the world as you navigate your new, complex, role.

Katie Hustead, the owner of Paper Moon Moves, is a regular contributor to OTBKB. She loves seniors and has been running a volunteer reading program at a senior residence in New York City for seven years and was honored by President Bush for her commitment. She has an MBA from UCLA and has worked in project management and finance at major financial services companies for almost twenty years. She is personally involved in every job. She named the company after one of her favorite songs.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: A Couple of Videos for A Rainy Day

Tired of the rain in Park Slope?  Then how about some Death Valley Rain? Here’s a video of Steve Wynn and The Miracle 3 playing one of their signature songs at SXSW this year.  The photography is excellent and the sound is pretty good.  You’ll find it at Now I’ve Heard Everything by clicking here.

Here’s another video, this one from Brooklyn-based Harper Blynn performing Sucker, a song which is going to appear on their next album (currently being recorded).  Since this video was shot at The Rockwood Music Hall, there have been a few minor changes in the band: Pete Harper (playing keyboards here) removed his beard; J Blynn (lead vocals and guitar) has had his appendix removed.  No matter; this song rocks.  See it by clicking here.

–Eliot Wagenr