Rest In Peace
August 5, 1964 – May 4, 2012

It is with great sadness that we confirm that musician, rapper, activist and director Adam “MCA” Yauch, founding member of Beastie Boys and also of the Milarepa Foundation that produced the Tibetan Freedom Concert benefits, and film production and distribution company Oscilloscope Laboratories, passed away in his native New York City this morning after a near-three-year battle with cancer. He was 47 years old.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Yauch taught himself to play bass in high school, forming a band for his 17th birthday party that would later become known the world over as Beastie Boys.

With fellow members Michael “Mike D” Diamond and Adam “Adrock” Horovitz, Beastie Boys would go on to sell over 40 million records, release four #1 albums–including the first hip hop album ever to top the Billboard 200, the band’s 1986 debut full length, Licensed To Ill–win three Grammys, and the MTV Video Vanguard Lifetime Achievement award. Last month Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, with Diamond and Horovitz reading an acceptance speech on behalf of Yauch, who was unable to attend.
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I’m no huge fan of Lana Del Rey, but the backlash to her SNL performance was pretty astounding.

Since I’m pretty confident most of our readers only watched her performance after the show aired, (because really, who spends a Saturday night watching SNL?) here is a clip from last night’s episode, Kristen Wiig as Lana:

The music stage on ‘Saturday Night Live’ is hallowed ground, and I failed to reach the high bar set by past guests like Bubba Sparxxx, the Baha Men, and Shaggy.”

Oh yeah, you can add Bon Iver to that list. He played on the show last night.

That time of year has come and gone.

Michael Neff's Flickr

The gifts are given and received, the parties attended, and we’re all finally tired of holiday music.

By now, you’ve no doubt noticed the disregarded, bygone Christmas trees littering the streets of Williamsburg, and the truth is, there are many different ways to get rid of them. You can leave them for curbside collection, mulch them, or even feed them to rhinos, but local artist Michael Neff has his own plan.

Neff and a friend collected the fallen and forgotten firs around the neighborhood, and hung them in all their dry and dying glory under the BQE. There they swing and sway as the wind blows, and cars pass overhead.

According to Neff’s Flickr,

A proposal to install at a Brooklyn gallery this year was well received but they wanted more time to publicize the installation and asked me to install it for them next year. I wanted to do something immediately so I identified potential venues for installation and settled on this location under the BQE because of its visibility, ease of access, and the amount of traffic it gets.

The installation is located where Metropolitan Avenue crosses North 6th Street.

I have been intending to do an installation piece using the discarded Christmas trees for a number of years now. They begin to crowd the sidewalks of New York City as soon as the day after Christmas and have always felt a bit sad to me.

So you think Christmas cheer is for squares? Wrong.

Greenpoint’s McGolrick Trees is not only your one stop shop for a fresh Carolina Fraser or the perfect holiday wreath, but now they’re providing the soundtrack to your Christmas Party too.

Started last year by Charlie Poekell, the McGolrick tree stand is open 24 hours for late night carolers, and is manned by a steady staff of neighborhood friends and fellow artists.

“We sell Christmas trees and accessories to locals, by locals,” says the slogan on their Tumblr.

I imagine hanging out all night slinging trees gets cold and maybe a little boring, so with a group of stand workers like Woodsman‘s Trevor Peterson, Edwin white of Tonstartssbandht, Ari Stern of Underwater Peoples Records, Family Portrait‘s Evan Brody, Nate Grace of Pure X, and Jamie Granato of Group Tightener, it was only a matter of time before a compilation of previously unreleased Christmas tree mood music was born.

The comp features holiday tunes from Dent May, Woodsman, Eola, Ava Luna, Family Portrait, Dead Gaze, Flower Orgy, Low Praises, and Samurai Buck.

Oh come all ye faithful, and get a free limited edition recording  at the tree stand starting this weekend. Pick yourself up a copy, get one as a gift, or check it out here

To get you in the spirit, here’s a new take on a classic:

Family Portrait – All I Want For Christmas Is You by firetalk

Now, go buy a tree.

Nous

The Brooklyn-based “psych folk” threesome, SoftSpot is playing tonight at Big Snow Buffalo Lodge, a newer venue in Bushwick.

Softspot was off touring most of September, after the release of Nous, a Cassette release limited to 100 copies, which dropped September 3.

Since they’ve been back they’ve played Glasslands, DBA, and a few other clubs, filling the usual spots with their ethereal, evocative  melodies.

Sarah Kinlaw’s  haunting, airy vocals seem to float over the music as it steadily builds, driving forward with help from her longtime collaborator and multi-instrumentalist, Bryan Keller. Along with Andrew Spaulding (aka Ca$h Bundles) the trio the produces a dreamy, yet passionate and high-energy sound that truly captivates.

SoftSpot will be joined tonight by Rifle Recoil, Pigeons, and Gray Pages. Follow the links to their bandcamp sites, and don’t miss tonight’s show. Check here for more info.

If you can’t make it tonight, Sarah and Bryan will perform at the 3rd annual LENNON concert to benefit Arts Education International tomorrow at Knitting Factory. The Full band plays again Sunday at Shea Stadium with Phonetag, Small Reactions, and Caged Animals, and again Dec. 29th at Glasslands when Popgun Booking presents SoftSpot, Julian Lynch, and Amy Klein (of Titus Andronicus) and the Blue Star Band

Slack Tide by SoftSpot

Someone close to me once said, “Don’t end sentences with prepositions and be thankful for your friends.” Make this Thanksgiving cocktail for a friend and think about all you can be thankful for.

Burnt Turkey
1 oz Wild Turkey Bourbon
1 oz cinnamon schnapps
3-4 fresh mint leaves

Fill a chilled glass with crushed ice and 3-4 fresh mint leaves. Combine the bourbon and cinnamon schnapps in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake, then strain over ice into a rocks glass, mason jar, or coffee cup . Listen to Big Star on the fire escape with your friends.

Going to art openings is a lot of fun, and a great way to get to know and hang out with the local and visiting artists that are part of what makes north Brooklyn the kind of place we like to call home.

I support independent, original art, and I wish I had the money to patron so many of the artists I know and love. Unfortunately, I can usually only afford to buy the occasional piece, which makes me happy, but I’d love to be able to do more.

Do you like going to art shows? Have you always wanted to purchase more original, even local, pieces of art?

Tonight come check out Everything Must Go!!! at Brooklyn Fire Proof. Everything is supposed to get started around 8-9pm.

This is a great opportunity to see some great art, and purchase some amazing pieces. Get this: Reyka Vodka will host an open bar from 9-10pm!

Brandon Fonville: east of desirable (one)

Art and Photography by:

Matt Dobbs, Brad Westcott,  Brandon Fonville, Ivan Cazzola, Maria Koulioufas, Chris Bradt, Rosemary Gonzales, Nikos, Bill Wendt, & Sarah Braun

Installation by:

Owen Jones, Federico Frum, & Carson Deyoung

Live Screen printing by Youth Waste and music by Dj Jimmy the kid.

Curated by Matt Dobbs.

An ex-lead singer of epic New York thrash metal band Anthrax is suing his former band-mates and the band’s accounting firm according to the Manhattan Federal Court.
Dan Nelson, who joined the band in December of 2007 is suing drummer Charlie Benante, bassist Frank Bello and guitarist Scott Ian along with Berdon LLP for $2.65 million.

Nelson and the band parted ways in July of 2009 and their tour was cancelled, but not because Nelson “abruptly resigned” due to illness, the suit claims.

This was the reason for the tour cancellation according to a July 2009 press release from the band.

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At the Occupy Wall Street Protest it’s a bit crowded, cold, and the distinct smell of the unwashed is as bold as the political fervor.

There are those who see the protests as a popular movement against institutions and corruption. Others criticize the movement for lacking focus or goals, but those there last night were treated to a surprise solo acoustic set by none other than the notorious troubadour, Jeff Mangum

He even took requests. “Sing it if you know it,” he yelled. “Hello my name is Jeff from Neutral Milk Hotel, and I’m occupying Wall Street,” he said to livestream cameras capturing the impromptu performance.

Mangum played All Tomorrow’s Parties festival last weekend in Ashbury Park. Maybe this is a sign his infamously reclusive days are waning.

From Pitchfork:

“He lead singalongs to Holland, 1945″, “Ghost”, “Song Against Sex”, “Two-Headed Boy Part 2″, “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea”, “The King of Carrot Flowers Part 1″, and “Oh Comely”. The “we know who our enemies are” line in the latter song got an especially big cheer. He also covered the Minutemen’s “Themselves”

After performing, he said, “You guys have done a beautiful fucking thing.”

On the heels of ‘Bizness’ comes the latest video from tUnE-yArDs 2011 release, w h o k i l l, ‘Gangsta‘. It was directed by Merrill Garbus herself. Definitely a different style than their last release, but still worth a look. Check it out!