A surfer silhouetted by the late afternoon sun, Far Rockaway Beach, Queens.

One last night of hot jazz, blues, pop and R&B with L.A. Blacksmith in JJ Byrne Park (AKA Washington Park) on Park Slope’s Fifth Avenue and Third Street. The entertainment and the weather promise to be hot so dress light and get ready to dance.

The festivities start at 6 with kids programming. The adult, dancing portion of the program begins at 7PM and continues until 9PM.

See you there…

Artist/educator Debby Albenda introduces Art in the House, a new after-school creative arts program at the Old Stone House in Park Slope.

I worked with Debby on PS 321’s annual poetry magazine, Pandamonium, and I know her to be a talented artist and a lovely person.

An arts educator, who is also a professional graphic designer and artist (she worked at the beloved but now defunct Nickelodean Magazine for years) Debby aims to put a contemporary spin on historically relevant techniques, including painting, print-making, embroidery, sculpture and other craft activities after-school on Mondays for 2nd and 3rd graders and Tuesdays for 4th and 5th graders.

The 10-week program will follow the public school schedule. To register, call OSH at 718-768-3195 or e-mail info@theoldstonehouse.org. For more information: http://www.artinthehouse-osh.org/?p=5

Continue reading Creative After-School Program: Art in the House →

The Ashy Sidewalks of New York

East Side, West Side,
All around the town,
No smoking’s allowed in the office,
Fewer teeth are turning brown.

Men and women addicts
Scared that they’ll pop a cork
Puff–then drop cigarette butts
On the sidewalks of New York.

Adam Bernstein’s Jazz Mindfulness Program (JMP), now entering its second year, is set to begin a new semester in October. Bernstein, a well-known musician and jazz educator, has created a program designed to bring music and mindfulness practice together in a new way to nurture young people in their day-to-day lives. Students have the opportunity to play jazz while learning mindfulness meditation.

“When students learn mindfulness at a young age, they can experience both the joy of music and also get beneath the chatter and judgment that can suppress the creative, open mind,” says Bernstein. “The skill of mindfulness can help them in their daily lives, too. One of my youngest students, who was being very hard on herself about her schoolwork, told me that when she stopped to notice her breath, she was able to calm down.”

Continue reading Jazz and Meditation Together →

Although there’s still a bit of summer left ahead of us, on Wednesday it will be September.  That means it’s time for the September edition of the monthly music calendar over at Now I’ve Heard Everything.  Check out 25 shows, and get ready for Rosanne Cash‘s visit to our borough as part of the Brooklyn Book Festival on September 12th (which this year has five panels devoted to writings about music).  And speaking of Rosanne, if you are not following her on Twitter, you are missing her very funny take on what’s going on.

–Eliot Wagner

What’s going on Friday: Brooklyn Vegan

The glass of art: Truth and Rocket Science

Cat Celebrezze: Art in Brooklyn

Birthday salutations from a year ago: Do the Math

Portal Land: Brooklynometry

Who is watching the watchers: Brooklyn Bachelor

Bob Dylan and the Beats: Deep in the Heart of Brooklyn

Ezra, the new (or soon to be new) owner of the Community Bookstore wrote in with news: “and we don’t mean the arrival of Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom, Suzanne Collins’ Mockingjay or Wolf Hall in paperback (though they have perked things up considerably in a month to which, usually, the adjective torpid barely does justice). No, we’re referring to the return of the mystery swap, a bookstore institution whose abrupt disappearance several months ago left Slope sleuths scratching their heads…

Continue reading Mystery Swap at the Community Bookstore →

The best drummer playing around town these days?  For my money that honor goes to Linda Pitmon of Steve Wynn and The Miracle 3 and The Baseball Project.  Linda’s originally from Minnesota and a long time Upper West Sider, although I have seen her play and attend shows here in Park Slope.  You can see her in action with The Baseball Project playing Steve Wynn’s signature song Tell Me When It’s Over posted here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

But if you want to see Linda hit the skins live, she’s playing with The Pretty Babies, an all-female Blondie cover band at Le Poisson Rouge tonight.  I’m not a big fans of tribute bands, but I’ve seen The Pretty Babies before and I can recommend them.  They’re not only musically quite good, they are just flat out a lot of fun, and  Tammy Faye Starlite does a great job as front woman/lead vocalist as well.  You’ll find more details here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

–Eliot Wagner

RFP Issued for Tobacco Warehouse in Dumbo:McBrooklyn

Annie’s porch: CasaCara

Hello Kitty house: Reclaimed Home

Dining table ding ding ding: Limestone Adventures

Napkin origami: Swiss Miss

Good bones: Apartment Therapy

Best of offices: Design*Sponge

An anthropologist’s take on homemaking: NY Times

Nested doors at Moxie Spot: McBrooklyn

A few days ago, I noted that Ted Leo had, in a long rambling post, announced that he’s worked on a musical film project of some sort.  To make a long story as short as possible, Ted’s post was a head fake.  What Ted has done is produce an extremely funny music video which parodies “half-assed musicals which cheapen [the] music and embarrass everyone involved” (perhaps this one).  See Ted’s video (which includes a prominent Park Sloper) here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

I got an email from singer-songwriter Amy Speace earlier this week and she’s selling a pretty special guitar (a Taylor GS Western Red Cedar/Indian Rosewood with Taylor’s Expression II pickup system installed).  Maybe you’re interested; if so the details are here.  If not, you can see the video of John Hiatt’s Perfectly Good Guitar here.

–Eliot Wagner

Joe and Steve who work at Video Forum on Park Slope’s Seventh Avenue are in a band called Blind Giant. They’ve been writing music together for 5 years now and are ready to record their debut album. But they need your help. And that’s where  Kickstarter comes in.

Kickstarter is an interesting new way to fund creative ideas and ambitious endeavors. It is based on the notion that a good idea, communicated well, can spread fast and wide; that a large group of people can be a tremendous source of money and encouragement.

It’s an all-or-nothing funding method where projects must be fully-funded or no money changes hands. Read more and find out about Joe and Steve’s project. They’re a couple of terrific guys who work very hard and make Video Forum one of the last great remaining video rental shops.

Continue reading Video Forum’s Joe & Steve Need a Kick Start →

The office of the Brooklyn Borough President has announced that John Ashbery, the Pulitzer Prize winning poet, will receive the annual Brooklyn Book Festival “BoBi” Award on Saturday, 9/11 and appear on Sunday 9/12 in conversation with author Paul Auster

Each year, the Brooklyn Book Festival “BoBi” award is given to an important author. Previous BoBi recipients are Edwidge Danticat (2009), Walter Mosley (2008), and Paul Auster (2007). Ashbery will also participate in this year’s festival program, in an on-stage conversation with Paul Auster, Sunday, September 12.

The fifth annual Brooklyn Book Festival will take place on Sunday, September 12, with an all-star literary lineup, including Salman Rushdie, Naomi Klein, Colson Whitehead, Mary Gaitskill, Paul Auster, Rosanne Cash, Paul Krugman, Sarah Silverman, Gary Shteyngart, Francine Prose, Dennis Lehane, Pete Hamill, Jennifer Egan, John Ashbery, Russell Banks, Michael Connelly, John Hodgman, Kristen Schaal, Per Petterson, Sam Lipsyte, Sloane Crosley, Sandra Rodriguez, Paul Harding, Maaza Mengiste, Amy Goodman, Marlon James, Jean Valentine (New York State Poet Laureate), Elizabeth Nunez and many, many more, as well as Children’s and Young Adult Lit stars like Rebecca Stead, Sara Shepard, Jacqueline Woodson, Jon Scieszka, Jenny Han, Mac Barnett, Tad Hills, Chris Raschka, Michael Rex, Matthew Reinhart and Francisco X. Stork. Continue reading Poet John Ashbery to be Honored at Brooklyn Book Fest →

As he did last year, filmmaker Spike Lee is organizing a gathering to honor Michael Jackson’s 52nd birthday in Prospect Park. The second-annual “Brooklyn Loves Michael Jackson” celebration will take place on Sunday August, 29th from noon until 5PM in the Nethermead (no, not Neverland). DJ Spinna will be spinning the star’s hits. Just enter at 16th Street and Prospect Park Southwest and follow the music.

It’s the dog days of August with so many people away that you can actually park in Park Slope.  Things look they might be a little quiet this week too.  But four years ago this week, things weren’t so quiet as The Gin Blossoms (who have a new record, No Chocolate Cake, coming out at the end of September) played The Apple Store down in Soho, where they performed their hit from the early 90s, Hey Jealousy.  See the video here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

Rosanne Cash, currently on tour to promote her just issued book, Composed has already lined up her next music project; Ted Leo worked on a musical film project of some sort which will be announced today and Paste Magazine has posted a list (complete with videos!) of the 50 Best Fictional Bands.   You’ll find details for all that here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

–Eliot Wagner

On Saturday night Hepcat and I decided to head out for an evening of music and food on the shores of the Gowanus. We were curious about the bands  Asobi Seksu and Golden Triangle that were playing outdoors on President Street and we knew that vendors from the Greenpoint Food Market would selling be their home-made specialties at this event organized by Mean Red Productions.

Our evening walk in the Gowanus area was lovely. We passed the Trash Pony Bar on Fourth Avenue, which is Root Hill Cafe’s evening bar and music venture, and caught a little bit of music by Matthew Brookshire from Chapel Hill, NC.

Walking across Carroll Street is always a treat. We passed Monte’s Venetian Room, a now-defunct neighborhood Italian eatery, that I went to with my dad years and years ago. As we neared Bond Street we could hear the throbbing guitars and high pitched vocals of Yuki Chikudate, Asobi Seksu’s singer. When we got to the entrance at 8:40 we realized that the show was set to end at 9PM (duh we should have looked at the poster that was on the blog) but we paid the steep admission fee ($15) anyway just to see what it was like.

Continue reading Saturday Night in the Slope/Gowanus →

Construction work at the Newkirk station on the B & Q lines.  I was captivated by all the lines, including the thousands of feint lines stemming from the process of smoothing over the concrete with a broom.  I wondered  though what the construction worker would think when he saw my camera but went ahead anyway (of course).  As the train pulled up he shouted over the noise something about me emailing him the photo!

I scour the city’s cultural listings to find interesting movies, music, theater and art for the readers of OTBKB to do and see. This weekend’s treats include Battle Week a variety of interesting events including a 10-mile race on Sunday, commemorating the first battle of the Revolutionary War, Emotional Sloppy Loose Limbed Cinema at BAM , a film series curated by Benny and Josh Safdie at BAM and Non-native NY, a group show of art by artists from outside the US and more so keep reading…

Continue reading The Sunday List: August 22 →

I was out at Jamaica Bay and saw this beautiful Great Egret in flight.  I mainly shoot birds because I love nature (that didn’t sound right) and it’s good practice as they’re challenging to capture.  But I don’t consider myself a “birder” and hence I’m not all that skilled at identifying what I see.  Had to look this one up to identify it.  Learned that one of the identifying features is the way they fly with their necks in a “S” curve.

Big, exciting news at the Brooklyn Museum: beginning Wednesday, October 6, the Brooklyn Museum will open to the public eight additional hours a week, including remaining open until 10 p.m. every Thursday and Friday. For specifics on their new hours keep reading…

Continue reading Brooklyn Museum to Extend Hours →

I scour the city’s cultural listings to find interesting movies, music, theater and art for the readers of OTBKB to do and see. This weekend’s treats include Battle Week a variety of interesting events including a 10-mile race on Sunday, commemorating the first battle of the Revolutionary War, Emotional Sloppy Loose Limbed Cinema at BAM , a film series curated by Benny and Josh Safdie at BAM and Non-native NY, a group show of art by artists from outside the US and more so keep reading…

Continue reading The Weekend List: August 21-22 →

Abe Gurko, who writes the blog I Mean..What??!?! wrote to say that Juliette Lewis will be performing in Brooklyn. “It is not often that I go to Brooklyn. Yes, I know how cool it is…and perhaps how cool I am not. Did I say that?”

Juliette Lewis has been on a worldwide tour for her new album Terra Incognita and she is making a a brief stop in Brooklyn at the  Music Hall of Williamsburg. For more details and a link to an interview with the effervescent Lewis (and Gurko)…

Continue reading Juliette Lewis to Play Music Hall of Williamsburg →

Wednesday night’s James Maddock show at The Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 belongs in the “you should have been there” category.  It was it recorded for a live album (due around mid October), it was a sell out, it had the air of a party, and the band just nailed everything.  If you weren’t there, a video taken during the show of James and the band singing Never Ending is waiting for you here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

–Eliot Wagner

Tonight, James Maddock will be recording a live album at The Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2, and I think that this will be the first live album recorded in that new room.  James has been playing a bunch of new songs lately and his band, as always, has been tight.  So this is your chance to not only see a great show but to be part of history as well.  Details for this show are here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

–Eliot Wagner

I originally discovered Second Dan through a bit of serendipity.   I was at a party a few months ago and after a while, the guy I was talking to told me that he not only was a photographer and a blogger, but he played in a band as well.  As you have no doubt figured out by now, that band was Second Dan.  They play tonight at Rockwood Stage 2 and you can find the details about the show here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

The Baseball Project played a spirited nearly two hour long show at Maxwell’s in Hoboken Thursday night.  You’ll find a dozen photos from that show here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

If you didn’t make it over to Le Poisson Rouge last Wednesday to see Eli Paperboy Reed you can see Eli and the band in action in this music video of their song Name Calling.

–Eliot Wagner

Wednesday’s Eli Paperboy Reed and The True Loves show at Le Poisson Rouge was another top notch soul dance party.  Unlike the show I saw at The Bell House earlier this year, this time I had my camera with me and was able to take a bunch photos to share with you.  You can see them here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

Back in March, The Baseball Project promised to issue a monthly topical song about the 2010 baseball season.  August’s contribution, (Do The) Triple Crown,  is now out.  You can listen to and download your very own absolutely 100% legal copy of that song here at Now I’ve Heard Everything.

–Eliot Wagner