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Speaking of unheralded New York signifiers, I bring you exhibit C, the psychedelic electronic duo known as Silver Apples. Now perhaps, dear reader, you’re the type of switched-on young newsletter subscriber that knows Silver Apples as a pioneering band that inspired the likes of Suicide by introducing electronic instrumentation into the milieu of psychedelic rock. But did you know that they were Mayor John Lindsey’s favorite band? And that he described them as “the sound of New York”? Or that they were asked by the city to perform live in Central Park during the broadcast of the moon landing? For the unacquainted, Silver Apples were a duo that first brought oscillating electronic instruments from the sober and hyper-serious confines of academia and into rock n roll. The Velvets, The Dolls, The Ramones, Talking Heads, Run DMC, Biggie, Gershwin — these acts are all etched into the city’s history. Silver Apples don’t enjoy the same proximity, likely because after only two relatively obscure albums, they were forced by PanAm to disband (long story, look it up!). I think its time we carved the name Silver Apples into the Big Apple.
Oct 19, 2021
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The internet sucks ass for sharing nuanced ideas or having meaningful discourse, but it’s a wonderful tool for looking up the dumbest shit on Earth. I’ve been obsessed with “Smurfed Up” Eurodance for a while now. One of my faves of the genre is the German Smurfs (Die Schlümpfe) 1995 dance compilation Tekkno Ist Cool Vol. 1. It’s got iconic, high pitched, renditions of Cotton Eye Joe, Saturday Night, and No Limit, amongst various other Hi-NRG anthems. All in nasal Deutsch! I was extra shocked, not too long ago, to discover a variation on this record, also from 1995, by a sus, GREEN, Smurfs knock-off called Die Schlapse. The album’s called Let’s Go Tekkno. It offers basically the same covers but with a slightly different intonation and ‘tude. I don’t really know what’s going with ‘em but they do a wicked Cotton Eye Joe!
Apr 7, 2022
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I grew up always hearing from family members and friends that my dad was in a cool band in the early 70’s…I even remember seeing photographs of him on stage playing guitar. It was frustrating because I had never been able to hear what it sounds like. They only made a limited amount of 7” records that were misplaced over the years. It was not long ago that I came across a song that was uploaded to YouTube by Anton Newcombe (one of my favorite bands) The Brian Jonestown Massacre with the caption “thanks for.” This was the first time I was able to even hear his music so I’d like to thank him someday.
May 25, 2023
Maybe one of the best bands ever love when bands say nothing but everything at the same time. The documentary on David is so heartbreaking. wish this man knew how much he meant to people before he died:(. Beautiful music however
Feb 22, 2024
Top Recs from @a.-savage
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In my opinion, one of the more unheralded New York foods is the crumb cake. Sometimes known as the coffee cake, it’s an item that is so New York-centric, but somehow hasn’t made it onto the bucket lists of tourists. In my opinion, the crummier the better. I like there to be a thick layer of crumbs on top, the ideal ration sort of being half crumb, half cake. You’ve seen it beckoning for your attention in glass deli cases, or on an Entenmann’s endcap at the grocery, or in the shadow of scones and croissants at your local bakery. Hell even Drake’s makes a decent version if you’re in a pinch. Much like bagels and pizza, most places in New York make a uniformly great version of it, so there’s no need to seek out the “best”. The “best” is in fact the one that’s closest to you.
Oct 19, 2021
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I guess you could say I’m a pretty avid backpacker; I enjoy the autonomy of carrying your bed, kitchen and house on your back, while navigating the unpredictability of nature. For this reason I make routine sojourns to Harriman State Park. The park is both approximate to the city, and also very remote feeling once you are inside of it. No car? No problem. Just take NJ Transit from Penn Station up to the Tuxedo, NY stop. There are multiples trailheads just near the station. About 40 miles of the Appalachian Trail pass through the park, which boasts the trail-famous Lemon Squeezer obstacle. It also is a great place for climbing, with the Claudius Smith’s Den being the best known locale for rock-heads. Harriman is a labyrinthine network of trails of varying difficulties. It’s probably the only place where you can get mauled by a black bear while looking at the Empire State Building. Actually I have had multiple bear encounters there that were totally were drama free. Great for leaf peeping as well!
Oct 19, 2021
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I’ve lived in the same apartment in BedStuy, Brooklyn for over a decade now. I moved here to flee the nightlife scene in Williamsburg, which had become tedious living on Grand Ave. Then a few years later, the action followed me, and now my neighborhood is robust with newer bars and restaurants catering to gentrifiers like myself. Bar LunÀtico is one of those watering holes; one that I actually feel lucky to live quite near. The bar, which is excellent, has live music every night. No tickets, first come first serve, and the owner passes the hat around, all of which goes to the musicians. I’ve seen ensembles from Morocco, Brazil, Hungary. It’s nice to have a place you can just show up to and expect to see some really interesting music you’ve never heard before. The atmosphere is confidently cool without being pretentious, and in a city where most bars have morphed into this hemogenous urban nightlife experience, its unique in a way that’s become increasingly rare. See you there perhaps?
Oct 19, 2021