Friday, April 2, 2010

The Weekend: 4.2-4.4

Lot's to do this weekend. Here's a look at what's happening in a neighborhood near you:



Weekend



Pop art: Explore the '60s through the photographs of Rowland Scherman at DeCastellane Gallery in Boerum Hill.



High-flying fun: Suspended Cirque swings into DUMBO with "Swingin' at Jacks," at Galapagos Art Space.



Friday, April 2



Big pimpin': The Pimps of Joytime get Brooklyn Bowl into a sweat.



Saturday, April 3



Music: Megafaun rocks Union Pool in Williamsburg. With Sharon von Etten.



Brass act: The Trombone Festival kicks some brass.



Sunday, April 3



Foliage: The cherry blossoms are reaching their peak at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

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Thursday, April 1, 2010

Pumps & Pleats: Sweetest stores in Williamsburg and Greenpoint


Story and photo by Michèle De Meglio

Williamsburg and Greenpoint are two of the hippest nabes in Brooklyn. (Please excuse the hipster pun.)

So, of course, they’re home to a slew of cool shops.

Wanna take a trip? Oh, I do! I do!

Pumps & Pleats loves so many sizzling stores in the northern Brooklyn neighborhoods that it’s difficult to pick favorites. But we’ll try.

Over in Williamsburg, you’ll find arty hipsters pawing through the vintage clothing racks at the Salvation Army but if you want something new and fresh head to Mini Mini Market (218 Bedford Avenue, 718-302-9337, www.miniminimarket.com).

The seriously tiny shop carries casually cool dresses, Brookadelphia’s laser cut acrylic necklaces and trendy faux leather handbags. Many of the pieces have a vintage or retro look so you’ll fit in with Williamsburg’s hipster crowd whether you want to or not.

There’s a slew of merchandise bearing the borough’s name. For instance, “I Miss Brooklyn” t-shirts and faux gold knuckle rings screaming “Brooklyn.”

For footwear, check out Mini Mini Market’s sister boutique Shoe Market (160 North Sixth Street, 718-388-8495, www.shoemarketnyc.com).

You’ll find cute ballerina flats, Jeffrey Campbell pumps and men’s loafers. Don’t forget the tie-dyed socks.

There’s two ridiculously hot shops in Greenpoint that you should visit right now!

The first is Fred Flare (131 Meserole Avenue, 718-349-1257, www.fredflare.com).

The shop carries a few cute dresses and coats but it’s known for its quirky finds.

Need gum that looks like bologna? Or fridge magnets shaped like sushi? How about earbuds decorated with cupcakes? Fred Flare has all this freaky fare and more!

Once your silly streak is satisfied, get your chic on (ha!) at Hayden-Harnett’s Design Shop (211 Franklin Street, 718-349-2247, www.haydenharnett.com).

Here you’ll find high-end leather handbags that are rough on your wallet — but are oh so pretty!
Test out the bestselling Havana hobo ($498) or try the newest styles for spring.

What does Pumps & Pleats want? A Trophy satchel! At $598, I’ll be seeing you only in my dreams.

Michèle De Meglio is a native Brooklynite addicted to all things chic. Check out Pumps & Pleats each week for more adventures as she scours the borough for fab duds and accessories.

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Our exclusive mus-o-meter registers The Library is on Fire


The Library is on Fire has been characterized as 1990s rock revival. It’s easy to see why, as the trio’s echoes of the alternative rock scene are reminiscent of the bands Steve Five would have listened to growing up in Kent, Ohio. But to really get a sense of what it’s all about, the band can only be described through the musical-mathematical science that goes into our exclusive Mus-o-meter.

Take the pounding, guitar-centric rock and melodic bass lines of Dinosaur Jr.’s 1985 debut “Dinosaur,” then add …






The lo-fi pop sensibilities of Guided by Voices “Bee Thousand.” Then add …







The melancholy vocals of Oasis’s “(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?” The sum?








The Library is on Fire’s “Magic Windows, Magic Night.”


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The new MonkeyTown?

Greenpoint News posits that the new Greenpoint venue McCarren Hall, occupying the former Shank space 98 Bayard St., is the new MonkeyTown, a "place where you can find a dimension beyond the quotidian, have conversations ranging from randomness to conspiracy, or take your ideas and inspirations for a spin.”


We're still on the fence about its invitation only policy, but then what's so bad about a little intrigue?

Photo by Tod Seelie

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Get into Jean Renoir — the French film guy! — at BAM

Skip the latest 3-D box office gimmick and get acquainted with one of cinema’s giants this month.

François Truffaut called Jean Renoir’s body of work “the most alive films in the history of the cinema, films which still breathe 40 years after they were made.”

BAM celebrates that legacy with a five-week retrospective of the late French director’s work.

A prolific and enduring filmmaker, Renoir started his craft in the silent era, graduating to sound and then color, without his films ever losing their power.
Twenty-one of Renoir’s films, including the masterpieces, “Grand Illusion,” a World War I drama, and the society spoof, “The Rules of the Game,” will be screened.

Other festival highlights include his early silent works such as “Nana,” accompanied by live piano, 1930s classics such as “Boudu Saved from Drowning” and “La bête humaine,” Technicolor spectacles like “The River” and “French Cancan,” and rarely screened American features such as “The Southerner,” made while the director was in Hollywood exile during World War II. That one, of course, will be in English.

Jean Renoir retrospective at BAM Rose Cinema [30 Lafayette Ave. between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street in Fort Greene, (718) 636-4100] runs April 9-May 11. Tickets $12 ($8 members). For info, visit www.bam.org.

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Get spirited at a great food and booze event at the Bell House

By Elizabeth Dana


What, you never ordered a Bali Hai before?

Brooklyn’s best mixmasters will bring their shakers to the Bell House on April 6 for Good Spirits, where you can dine on dishes prepared some of the borough’s top chefs paired with exotic cocktails.

Brian Floyd, bar manager at Vanderbilt in Prospect Heights, has created a spiced tiki drink called the Bali Hai just for the occasion. It’s comprised of homemade ginger ale, fresh pineapple juice and clove with rum, perfect for the spring season.

“Traditionally tiki beverages have at least two kinds of rum and some layer of spice,” Floyd said. “The flavor is somewhat mysterious.”

On the food front, Park Slope-based Pan-Latin restaurant Palo Santo will pair two stews with mescals, which will come with a cactus pear chaser. Both pairings are recipes from Oaxaca, and chef Jacques Gautier tried to keep his dishes as close to the traditional tastes as possible rather than experiment.

“I feel like when it comes to combining flavors, it’s all been done before,” he said.

For Brooklyn foodies, the event will provide samplings from restaurants from Williamsburg (Walter Foods) to Ditmas Park (The Farm on Adderley), so you can try the best without hopping on the subway, and in the fashion that food and drink are meant to be shared — communally.

“I think there’s something really nice about sharing drinks and food with strangers,” said Samanatha Seier of Edible Brooklyn, which is producing the event. “It gives similarly minded people a chance to come together and also meet the people who are producing these items in their neighborhood.”

Good Spirits at the Bell House [149 Seventh St. between Second and Third avenues in Gowanus, (718) 643-6510], April 6 at 6 pm. Tickets are $40. For info, visit www.thebellhouseny.com.

-with Tony Cella

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?uestlove every Thursday in April

?uestlove is coming back to the Bowl for another month of late night DJ sets, every Thursday night this April, starting tonight.


He’s sparking the fuse for a series of really great hip-hop/DJ shows at Brooklyn Bowl, highlighted by a mid-month visit from Snoop Dogg.

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