Obama’s campaign responded today to McCain’s assertion that he’s not President Bush. They had this one signed, sealed, and nearly delivered for a long time. Oh, and this “Joe the Plumber” you’re hearing about? He’s not even a plumber! He doesn’t even have a license to practice plumbing. Now the poor guy’s been dragged out onto the national stage by Gramps McCain and will have to deal with all this shit reporting on his private life, like what I’m doing right now by typing this.

HBO’s been executing a bum rush back into our hearts this fall, first with The Life and Times of Tim, and now, we’ve got wind of a new show coming November 9th called Summer Heights High. It’s shot like a mockumentary, as it follows three different high school personalities navigating the trials and tribulations of social cliques, bullying, stereotyping, profanity, racism, and homophobia in modern day high school. Based on what I’ve seen, it’s a really endearing and humorous account of life in high school in America (although it’s based in Australia…so?).
There’s Ja’mie King, a junior exchange student with a massive ego and sense of entitlement; Mr. G, a 30-something senior drama teacher with delusions of grandeur; and Jonah Takalua, a middle-school delinquent on the fast track to nowhere. And guess what! They’re all played by the same person, writer/creator Chris Lilley. I’ve embedded a clip for each character below the jump, but first, watch Jonah describe his bathroom grafitti, Dicktation. I’m gonna guess you’ll be seeing these in the bathrooms around town come December. Summer Heights High debuts Sunday, Nov. 9th at 10:30pm…meaning HBO’s thrown this in their coveted Sunday night slot, so, expect big things.

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Here are some pictures from last night’s show at the absolutely awesome Danbro Studios Warehouse, out in East Williamsburg Industrial Park (EWIP for short, from now on, cause that sucks to write). This venue is by far the coolest spot in Brooklyn to catch a show. It’s got vaulted ceilings, grimy floors, a huge outdoor spot to chill, and surprisingly in-place infrastructure (bathrooms, a bar, etc.)
Also, my shoes came back muddy but I could’ve sworn the place had a floor.
Pictures by me and angela cranford

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I managed to get my grubby hands on some leaked footage from tonight’s debate, and surprisingly, it all goes down in a rather organized manner. Consider this your FREEwilliamsburg debate preview. Check it out:

via BF

As promised on Sunday, here is Part II of our CMJ preview. If you missed our picks for Tues, Weds, and Thurs of next week, you can click right here to see ‘em. Friday and Saturday are going to be hot mess factories, so take a look-sie at what we think will be the best shows for the final two days of the music marathon.
Godspeed my children!
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24th
1. Panache Showcase @ The Knitting Factory, 8 pm — Monotonix, The Mae Shi, AIDS Wolf, DMBQ, The Apes, Akimbo, The Homosexuals, Shellshag, Catcall, Yip Yip, Sole, Aa, Fiasco, Screens
2. Sub Pop/Suicide Squeeze Showcase @ Pianos, 8:30 pm — Wolff, Pretty Good Dance Moves, Nickel Eye, The Ruby Suns, Oxford Collapse, sBACH, The Duchess & The Duke, Death Vessel, Cotton Jones
3. 7 pm @ Mercury Lounge — The Virgins, Eagle Seagull, Delta Spirit, Ambulance Ltd., Wild Light, Mother Mother, Other Lives
4. Social Registry Showcase @ Santos Party House, 8 pm — Gang Gang Dance, Growing, Psychic Ills, Slan Alice Group
5. Chouette Showcase @ Cake Shop, 1 pm — Phosphorescent, City Center, Castanets, King Darves, Endless Boogie, Julianna Barwick, Viking Moses, Virgin Forest, Donovan Quinn, Doug Paisley

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25th
1. Merge Records Showcase @ Mercury Lounge, 8 pm — Oakley Hall, The Rosebuds, The Broken West, Portastatic, Wye Oak, The Music Tapes
2. IheartComix CMJ Party @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, 8 pm — The Toxic Avenger, NinjaSonik, Heartsrevolution, Team Robespierre, Totally Michael, Shout Out Out Out Out, Designer Drugs, Juiceboxxx, Franki Chan, Lauren Flax
3. Crashin’ In/K9/Polyvinyl Party @ Public Assembly, 4 pm — Sky Larkin, PRE, Radio 4, Holy Hail, The Muslims, Shock Cinema, The Mae Shi, Cut Off Your Hands, Johnny Foreigner, The Uglysuit, Drink Up Butter Cup, Jean on Jean, Anni Rossi, Cale Parks, Frances
4. Oh My Rockness/Oya Festival Show @ Cake Shop, 6:45 pm — The XYZ Affair, Lukestar, Royal Bangs, Casiokids, The Uglysuit, Ingrid Olava
5. R5 Party @ Glasslands, 9 pm — Jay Reatard, Crystal Antlers, Amazing Baby, Women

Our darling friends at Nita Nita will be showing the debate tonight on their projector screen at 9 pm sharp, and we recommend stopping by. Get there early for their terrific ‚”Bailout Package” Happy Hour, and drown your concerns with cheap food and drinks. WARNING: ‚”Bailout Package” prices are in effect 7 days a week for happy hour, and may become habit-forming.
Nita Nita is located on the corner of North 8th and Wythe…..

img via picturepostcard
Todd P’s breaking in a new venue tonight out in the outskirts of Williamsburg and the inskirts of Bushwick, in my former village of East Williamsburg Industrial Park. The venue, the DANBRO STUDIOS WAREHOUSE is set in an old Brooklyn beer brewery, long defunct.
Todd explains, “Shows happen in an ancient, dramatic vaulted room that used to house stores of grain for the building’s original incarnation: the Goldenrod Brewery, a once famous Brooklyn brewery that folded after the 1930s due to Prohibition.” Tonight’s show is for the Dillinger 4‘s record release party and the beloved Ergs last NYC show. There are still about 25 tickets or so at Academy Records, where you can grab them pre-show until 5:30. Then, they’ll be selling $9 tix at the doors, which open at 7. Location is 268 Meserole St @ Bushwick Pl, off the Montrose L stop.
The line-up via ToddP:
:: DILLINGER FOUR ————> RECORD RELEASE PARTY!
:::: the Measure
:::::: the Ergs —————-> LAST NY SHOW EVER!
:::::::: Carnal Knowledge
Click through the jump for some shots of the new venue, or go here!

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Paper Rad is arguably one of the most influential art collectives to come out of this decade. If you are not familiar with them, they have their hands in many different projects from music to animated videos. And whether you know it or not, designers seem to love to rip off their aesthetic. See MIA’s website.
Recently, Rhizome posted an oldy but goody of theirs. It’s essentially “get well soon” cards informed with the Paper Rad sense of humor.

Get the full effect at their site.

I stopped in Phoebe’s Cafe last for a beer and some WiFi and just-so-happened to catch an amazingly talented jazz trio rocking the back half of the store. As it turns out, the Ron Petrides trio was kicking off the first of many live music nights here at Phoebe’s, which is set to go an incredible seven days a week as the fall and winter season starts creeping into Brooklyn.
When Phoebe’s owner Christian Pala bought the place about five months ago, he had the vision of turning this gentle coffee shop with a sprawling backyard into a lunchtime vegetarian cafe, a coffee house, a bar, and a reliable low-scale music venue. Being a musician himself (Brazilian guitar’s his specialty), he knew musicians needed consistent booking to stay sane and make money, so the majority of the acts he’s brought in are essentially residencies. And which such a wide range, you can stop in a few different days during the next week or so and find your routine night-of-the-week band.
With the first night in the books, it certainly seems that he’s already well on the path to envisioning his dream. He’s already booked solid for the next two weeks, hosting a wide variety of musical acts – from the jazzy trio that played tonight to open mic blues jams, with a healthy mix of solo guitar players, rock bands, and genuine folk rock in between. As for the trio last night, they’re awesome. I absolutely recommend them if you’re looking for a dizzying mix of smooth jazz classics with the occasional regular-person (me) favorite, like Salt Peanuts! They’re friendly guys too, so feel free to say hi or ask some questions in between sets.
For more info on who’s playing and when, visit Phoebe’s Cafe’s website or myspace, orrrrr just be a real person and stop by any night of the week for live music. They’re at 323 Graham Ave, just a block from the L.
Oh! Here’s their current schedule for the next couple weeks:
Upcoming Shows
Oct 14 2008 8:00P – Uri Gurvich
Oct 15 2008 8:00P – Mike Clifford
Oct 16 2008 8:00P – Vito Chiavuzzo
Oct 17 2008 8:00P – The Tollywood Allstars
Oct 18 2008 9:00P – Thierno Camara / afro beat
Oct 19 2008 8:00P – Brother dave show and open blues jam
Oct 20 2008 8:00P – Ron Petrides
Oct 21 2008 8:00P – Uri Gurvich
Oct 22 2008 8:00P – Gabriel Miller-Phillips
Oct 23 2008 8:00P – Aaron McLendon Trio + Jam session
Oct 25 2008 9:00P – Abdoulaye Diabate / word music / afro beat
Oct 26 2008 8:00P – Brother dave show and open blues jam
Oct 29 2008 8:00P – Dan Fishback
Oct 30 2008 8:00P – HAPPY HALLOWEEN / Aaron McLendon Trio + Jam session

Friday night there will be a party and silent auction to benefit Barack Obama, presented by Create Change NYC. It starts at 7 pm at The Bell House (149 7th Ave in Brooklyn), and the goal is to raise $20,000 for the campaign as Election Day closes in.
With DJ sets from the French Kicks and Cassettes Won’t Listen, and performances by Dirty on Purpose and others, it sounds like fun to us! There’s a $25 minimum donation which should be submitted online at www.createchangenyc.org – once you pay up, you print your receipt for admission to the party, and you’re also automatically entered in a grab bag raffle. But cash/credit will also be accepted at the door, so last-minute attendees never fear!