And now, a break from our usual indie music musings and breaking brunch news to share some more serious info:

Police are searching for a man who sexually assaulted a woman around 4:20AM the night of New Year’s Eve on Maspeth Avenue (near the Graham Avenue L).

Crime sketch provided by the NYPD.

The woman was walking alone in the early morning hours when a man grabbed her and pulled her into a parking garage adjacent to a modern condo building. He indicated he had a gun, told the woman to stay quiet, and sexually assaulted her before fleeing the scene.

Cops say they’re looking for a man 20-25 years old, about 5’8” and 150 pounds, wearing a gray hoodie and a dark baseball hat. (What’s that, you say? That could fit the description of almost any guy you see on the street? Yeah, us too.)

If you have any information, please call CrimeStoppers: (800) 577-TIPS, or submit tips at  www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting CRIMES (274637) then entering TIP577.

And in the meantime, please, let’s all stay extra-vigilant on our late-night walks home.

South Williamsburg cocktail bar Dram made a name for itself serving up carefully blended seasonal drinks — it’s even drawn some national publicity, as evidenced in this perpetually hilarious clip of Martha Stewart getting a little toasted there (and then drunk-eating some Pies n’ Thighs deliciousness). But the NYT reports that from July 20-23, Dram will be taking a brief hiatus from mixology to moonlight as a bona fide dive bar — complete with cheap drinks and decidedly low-brow snacks.

The pop-up dive, appropriately called 86′d, takes place during the New Orleans drink convention (umm, why aren’t we there?) Tales of the Cocktail, a four-day long mixology smorgasbord complete with competitions, tastings and seminars. Since Dram is losing several of its best bartenders to the Big Easy for the weekend, they’ll be turning over the reins to two of the bar’s lesser-known staff members.

So for the second-to-last weekend in July, expect to see the bar’s typical $10-14 cocktails replaced with noncraft domestic beers, Jagermeister, and pickleback shots. If you’re set on a more, uhm, elaborate drink you can enjoy a White Russian or Salty Dog. All drinks will be $4-8. As for food, the bar will be nixing the typical tapas-style small bites in favor of pimento cheese bites and boiled peanuts ($2).

What can we say? You get what you pay for.

Dram, 177  S. 4th  St, Williamsburg. 718.486.3726.

This could prove useful, especially considering how the L train’s weekend “service” has seriously made us question the MTA’s sanity of late: the new East River Ferry, with three pickups in the Williamsburg/Greenpoint area (India St. in Greenpoint, N. 6th St. in N. Williamsburg, Schaefer Landing in S. Williamsburg) will be offering FREE ferry service for its first few days of operation – from June 13-24.

The ferry operates from 7am-8:30pm, with pickups every 20-30 minutes. It also offers a free connecting bus service from the East 34th St. terminal and into east midtown.  No word yet on how much the ferry will cost Edit: from a helpful commenter: After the 24th, 1 way trips will be $4, all-day hop-on hop-off passes will be $12, a monthly unlimited pass will be $140, and monthly unlimited with bike $170.

Check out the service map below for more info, or visit the ferry’s website.

Image courtesy nywaterway.com.

If the streets of Williamsburg felt a little empty the past two nights, it’s not because The Rapture struck New York’s hipster elite a few days early. The real culprit for the L-train exodus: cult favorite Fleet Foxes, which played two sold-out shows way, WAY uptown at the massive United Palace Theater venue Wednesday and Thursday night. The converted movie theater (which has been characterized as “Byzantine-Romanesque-Indo-Hindu-Sino-Moorish-Persian-Eclectic-Rococo-Deco” ) holds 3,293 people — that’s an awful lot of facial-haired, horn-rimmed glasses-wearing 20-somethings migrating to the northern tip of the city.

The six members of Fleet Foxes fit that description to a tee, but the Portland-based band’s image took a backseat to what these guys are really known for: lush, pure acapella harmonies coasting seamlessly into a neverending rotation of string instruments (which – impressingly – several members of the band often switched mid-song).

“We just randomly met Art Garfunkel,” frontman Robin Pecknold told the audience after a few opening songs. “He was like, ‘Hey there, I heard you guys have been copying my style…”

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A warm welcome tonight for the newest addition to Williamsburg’s burgeoning restaurant scene, Moomba. Soft-opening this evening in the space formerly known as Vertuccio’s, Moomba’s prime real estate – it borders McCarren Park on North 12th – should make it a popular stop for the neighborhood’s brunch aficionados and late-night diners alike.

Offering a diverse (and ambitious) menu including wood-fired pizzas, a wide-ranging but well-priced list of small plates and tapas, and a fantastic selection of wines, Moomba seems perfectly positioned to accommodate larger groups looking for a family-style meal sharing experience. Adding to the party atmosphere: live music from a rotating list of local talent, as well as theme nights starting in the next few weeks.

Stay tuned for a full review of the restaurant, as well as a PDF copy of the menu. For now, here’s a sneak peek at the bar – made with repurposed wood! – and the place where the magic happens (also known as the pizza oven).

Moomba Brooklyn, open tonight, 232 N. 12th St btn. Driggs and Roebling; 718.486.3900

It’s hard not to be captivated by Gnome Life, a Tumblr documenting the urban adventures of an anonymous gnome living in New York. The artful composition of the Gnome’s photos, paired with his candid and often poignant musings about the city, are enough to pique anyone’s curiosity, but the identity and whereabouts of the Gnome remain shrouded in mystery. So it came somewhat as a surprise when the Gnome agreed to a rare interview with Free Williamsburg — but only under the condition that the details of his life remain anonymous.

And so, without further ado, an interview with New York’s most famous Gnome:

Where do you live? What do you think of your neighborhood?

I live in Manhattan. In New York, I am surrounded by so many people, but there are still mornings, whole afternoons, where I feel alone. I am most taken by the sheer amount of people and the energy that grabs you.

When I came here, I remember I would fight against New York, for myself. Now, I know it is always better to play along with the city. At this point, I am happy I left the garden for this place. I love it for its differences not despite them.

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Cutting-edge British instrumentalist Jaime xx (better known as 1/3 of the critically-acclaimed the xx) makes admittedly strange bedfellows with Gil Scott-Heron, the 61-year-old soul singer whose signature spoken-word style influenced generations of hip-hop greats, as well as black militant activists back in the 1970s.

But collaborate they have, and the result is something unlike anything we’ve heard before. “We’re New Here,” Jaime xx’s album-length remix of Heron’s latest album, adds dubstep-inspired underpinnings to Gil Scott’s gravelly vocals, with warm waves of reggae marrying electronica and hip-hop with remarkable ease.

The album doesn’t drop until February 22, but for a limited time smartphone users with HTML5 can stream the entire thing here, via the XL Recordings/Young Turks “We’re New Here” album transmitter.

The stream is limited to users located within the range of one of the broadcast stations, but that shouldn’t be a problem: according to the website, there are three transmitters in Williamsburg alone, including one near Hope and Roebling, a second at N. 5th and Bedford, and a third at N. 6th and Berry.

If the radio gods still refuse to smile on you this dreary Wednesday day, you can preview one of the album’s most affecting tracks, the hypnotically beautiful, reggae-tinged “I’ll Take Care of U,” here:

Score one for cash-strapped zen-seekers: Yoga to the People celebrates the grand opening of  the studio’s first Brooklyn location this weekend – and in doing so, it’s giving more expensive hot yoga practices off the Bedford stop a serious run for their money.

Located on North 11th between Roebling and Driggs, the latest Yoga to the People opens officially next Monday, but this weekend (January 22 and 23) all hot yoga classes are FREE. Just make sure to head to their website – located here — beforehand; there’s only 50 spots available per class, and you have to sign up to guarantee a place in class. Didn’t get to the website on time? Most of the YTTP classes in Manhattan are very reasonably priced (between $5-10 per class), so chances are you won’t have to break the bank to achieve nirvana here on opening day.

Photo: The Feast

A warm welcome to the newest addition to the Williamsburg food & drink scene: The Feast reports that Juniper, a local burger joint located on Berry (btn. 7th and 8th) opens at 4pm for dinner today.

A quick look at the menu for the tiny spot reveals carnivorous standbys — burgers, barbecue, fries — but we’re kind of pumped to see a few variations on the classics, including a chorizo burger and truffle burger, both $13.

After today, the restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner, 11am-11pm. You won’t get to wash down those rib-sticking delights with a cold one just yet, though — the restaurant’s still waiting on a beer and wine license, which should be coming in the near future.