God builds condos downtown!
Via Chrysanthe, who spotted this note in Austin. I like to think it applies to us back here in the ‘Burg as well. Tip your bartenders, folks.

Hot Chip – I Feel Better

Hot Chip | MySpace Music Videos

For anyone left in New York, last night the Norwegian Oya Music Festival and Oh My Rockness hosted a SXSW send off for Norwegian bands Pirate Love, Hanne Hukkelberg, and The Megaphonic Thrift along with New York natives headliners The Depreciation Guild.

The show was a mix of different genres with Megaphonic Thrift starting off with an impressively high energy hard, noise rock set. With Santos as probably the most suiting venue for their loud music, Megaphonic showcased both their aggressive sound and musicianship. When asked how they mustered that energy after just arriving in New York from Norway, Megaphonic explains to Free Williamsburg, “Our music really gives us energy on stage, and it’s not like we need to huddle up and scream things at each other before a show, somehow we just end up in that energy every time.”

Juxtaposed against Megaphonic Thrift, there was a major downshift for solo singer songwriter Hanne Hukkelberg with a collection of sensitive and ambient folk songs.

Pirate Love came on stage in what might have been the most alienating pair of denim cut off shorts since Tobias’s from Arrested Development. Definitely putting on a performance, Pirate Love piqued audience curiosity and drew in the crowd with their noise rock.

Experimental, emo-rock The Depreciation Guild closed the evening with a tight set. The Depreciation Guild was recently on tour with Indie sweethearts The Pains of Being Pure at Heart– drummer Kurt Feldman’s second band. The Depreciation Guild’s impressively cohesive set and strong musicianship was a great ending to the show.

More pictures after the jump!

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Ok, so it’s not really psychedelic, just kind of weird. But, we get it Devendra, you like to be “different” all while looking extra cool– even though the new album is a corporate packaged version of all your previous work. It’s ok, we’d still probably sleep with you even if you like to space travel in a suppository. Via Pitchfork:

In the adorably tripped-out new video for Devendra Banhart’s lilting “Baby”, Devendra and his bros (including MGMT’s Andrew VanWyngarden and the Strokes’ Fabrizio Moretti) travel in a cigarette-shaped spaceship through what looks like a planet’s butthole, whereupon they party with animated aliens, a baby, and GZA, the latter of whom is dressed like an interstellar pharaoh. And yet the weirdest thing about the clip may be the ill-advised mustache/soul-patch combo that Banhart is currently rocking.

The Sandpit from Sam O'Hare on Vimeo.

The music is by Human, co-written by Rosi Golan and Alex Wong. How was it made?
Sam O’Hare:

It is shot on a Nikon D3 (and one shot on a D80), as a series of stills. I used my Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 and Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 lenses for all of these shots. Most were shot at 4fps in DX crop mode, which is the fastest the D3 could continuously write out to the memory card. The boats had slower frame rates, and the night shots used exposures up to two seconds each. The camera actually has an automatic cut off after 130 shots, so for longer shots I counted each click and quickly released and re-pressed the shutter release after 130 to keep shooting.

How many stills you ask? 35,000 stills! Kottke correctly notes it it feels like something you can “hold in your hands or put in your pocket.”

Radegast is expanding into an adjacent building around the corner on Berry Street and a company operating under the name “Biergarten Williamsburg” and owned by Chef Michael Psilakis (of Manhattan’s Kefi), “did get approval from the board on March 9 for the spot just off N. 11th Street.”

Brunch in Williamsburg is a battlefield. New restaurants and cafes pop up every week, and by weeks end have lines down the block. Armed with a MacBook, an open mind, and an appetite, here are the stories of one brave girl who braved the tight lines, tight pants, and French Toast to offer her unbiased opinion on those restaurants. Welcome to the Brooklyn Brunch Chronicles.
Le Barricou (Grand Street off the Lorimer stop)
The first thing you’ll notice when sitting down for brunch at le Barricou is the basket of croissants swiftly placed in front of you (one butter and one chocolate, if you are with a group of four you only get three croissants-I’m not sure of the logic here). In an economy where the free basket of bread is slowly becoming extinct, they are a welcome addition to brunch. The coffee is strong, and if you haven’t had enough to drink the night before, the Home-made bloody mary is large, and satisfying. The omelets are tasty, as are the three different types of eggs benedict offered.
But without question the best dish is the unparalleled pancake. Covered in fresh fruit, it borders the line between ‚”cake” and ‚”pancake”. You must try it for yourself. It’s more than enough to share.
Now, if you’re one of those people who likes to order lunch items for brunch (not that there’s anything wrong with those people), burgers, chicken sandwiches, and merguez sandwiches are also on the menu.
Cute décor, friendly waiters, and great food, le Barricou comes highly recommended!
Brunch is served Saturday-Sunday 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
— Fiona Goldstein
[image via Flickr]

Between this cover and Yeasayer’s new video, I think I’m in love with yet another Brooklyn-based band.
via Prefix