Shout Out To T-Sides Blog: Her Fave Music Of 2009

While our resident film critic Chris Cabin is gearing up for music in 2010, the KCB looks to the T-Sides for help recapping some good tunes from 2009 to start this weekend. While I'm not familiar with everything on her list, I was really into the new Dirty Projectors and Neko Case and I'm glad that I know at least some new music since my iPod must be screaming at me to stop listening to Strung Out and, I don't know, old New Found Glory.

Just as a taste, here's her 5 through 10:
10. (tie) Dan Auerbach, Keep It Hid
10. (tie) Dodos, Time To Die
9. Kurt Vile, Childish Prodigy
8. Akron/Family, Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free
*7. Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca
*6. Wild Beasts, Two Dancers
**5. The Jobz, S/T

She's got the good reasoning for all her picks so I suggest you check out her Top 5, those asterisks/footnotes, and other picks here: T-Sides 2009 In Review.

Where does Animal Collective fall on her list? Read to find out, but check out their video from their past year effort for "My Girls" below. I suggest listening to it after watching Avatar (click to read Chris Cabin's review).

Me So Hungry Blog Presents - Cookie Contest and Full Slate of Bands This Sunday Dec. 20th

Union Pool off the Lorimer L stop (I actually like the Graham stop just as much if not more) is where hipsters go to occasionally meet non-hipsters, drink 4 dollar beers, and throw down to either great soul music or bearded fellas playing the gee-tar. Our good man Jason over at foodie blog Me So Hungry is serving up some mighty fine holiday spirit this year with a combo of cookies baked by whoever feels like bringing cookies (he described it as a cookie pot luck, but I see it as a chance for cookie hipsters to fight tooth and tight jeans over whose is better) and a whole host of bands for Sunday evening. For free.

Music will have plenty of recognizable holiday tunes, done in the bands' own styles, which could range from indie rock to indie rock, depending on how you see it. Here's the flyer:

Hey, any excuse to chill at the depression I've felt called Kellogg's Diner is good enough for me.

Deep In The Heart Of Brooklyn Blog Loves some DoBro

Deep in the Heart of Brooklyn Blog has posted a lovely little passage devoted to Brooklyn Heights and the Borough Hall area. Reflective and seasonal are two words that come to mind:

"A little before 1 PM on a perfect late summer day in Brooklyn Heights. Sunny, not hot, with a gentle, cooling breeze wafting off the water down Montague Street. The Thursday Greenmarket is in full swing, selling delicious looking fruits, vegetables and organic baked goods. Folks taking their time today, enjoying being outdoors, unlike a couple of weeks ago when the heat and humidity had them on the run, seeking a cooler place. But today, a jazz guitarist performs on Cadman Plaza, and delightful cafe tables have been set out in the shade of Brooklyn Borough Hall, being enjoyed by the lunch-time crowd. Late summer is here. Fall not too far off. Always a great time to enjoy Brooklyn, outside, and at its best."

Eat It Brooklyn goes camping....

Peekytoe Crab Beignets. Gotta love hot balls filled with crabs.
Photo by Eat It: The Brooklyn Food Blog

The lovely Eat It: The Brooklyn Food Blog has yet another culinary greatness to report on over in Park Slope. I'm always looking for a nice seafood restaurant (Red Lobster totally counts, sorry folks but those cheddar biscuits rule and since they aren't in my neck of the woods I'll settle bitches).

Traversing the Brooklyn Fish Camp on 5th Avenue, here's what she had to say:

"When I asked my Mom the other night what she wanted for dinner, she said, "A salad and a nice piece of fish", so naturally we headed to Brooklyn Fish Camp, (165 5th Avenue, between Douglass & Degraw Streets, 718-783-3264), the BK outpost of Manhattan's Mary's Fish Camp. I'd actually never been there, but was pleasantly surprised and have now added it to the long roster of great Brooklyn restaurants. We were seated in the little backyard courtyard at one of the long communal tables. There were a few red, white & rose wines by the glass, a handful of beer on tap (we got a Pilsner and an IPA that were delicious - Victory and Greenflash), and a selection of specials as well."

"For our entree, my BF & I shared the Grilled Daurade Filet with Yellow Wax Beans,
Cannellini Beans and Radishes. There were two big pieces of fish that was meaty and slightly oily, brightened up by the beans & radishes. It was a satisfying and delicious dish."

For more photos of the meal and general uncensored food arousal, check out Eat It 3 times a week. I do like Victory Pilsner, especially when feeling full at The Spotted Pig on a Sunday afternoon.

All Ears All Eyes All The Time Fuels A Retrospective of James Bond - Dr. No

My friend at All Ears All Eyes All The Time blog is taking it upon himself to revisit all the James Bond films (we're still looking for odds and ends, but he's starting with the major ones for sure). Personally Quantum of Solace left a funny taste in my mouth, but I still thought it was a solid action flick.

The first two official Bond film reviews are up, starting with Dr. No:

"The recent release of several James Bond films onto high definition Blu-ray discs grabbed my curiosity a few months back and I decided to check out the titles that had been released to nerdily see if the new high definition transfers looked any better than the standard DVDs. As I started doing this, I realized that it had been a while since I watched a few of these Bond movies and in some cases even several years. I decided that I was going to embark on a gigantic undertaking: to re-watch every James Bond film in succession. I’ve been at it for a little over a month now and will be chiming in from time to time to update everyone on my progress and opinions of the films. Let’s begin where else, but the film that started it all..."

To read more on Dr. No, check out his review.

for From Russia With Love, which I think is the best Bond film (my personal favorite being For Your Eyes Only and the Dalton films, yeah so sue me), go here.

Eat It Brooklyn Digs Red Hook!

The KCB has been eating, weather provided, at Hope & Anchor (it's a very nice walk down Columbia, oh dub pies!!!!). Last time they had some gas problems (I know I do) but the cobb salad is so bank. Anywho, the friends at Eat It: The Brooklyn Food Blog serve up some wonderful food porn today courtesy of the Red Hook Fairway Cafe, check out their post here.

Eat It discusses the Red Hook trajectory taken by some but still undiscovered by many!

Here is their lovely photo:

Eat It: The Brooklyn Food Blog wines and dines every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday complete with mouth-watering photos, be sure to check them out as they are the real deal for Brooklyn eats.

The Powerstrip Circus Launch Party on Thursday June 4th: Be There, Or Be Lame

The friends at Powerstrip Circus, New York's premiere underground dance/hip hop/electro/awesomeness collective is finally giving themselves due props with an official launch party on June 4th (Thursdays in the summer are so bangin'). The place? Coco 66 in Greenpoint. How much? 5 bucks and a pristine mind to be blown.

All the details can be found at their site and on Facebook, but the real kicker is seeing the whole PSC mindtap in action. These guys hit a groove and just keep pinching it; even if you're not dancing, you automatically look cooler if you have people like KRTS at your back.

It's a great way to kick off summer and push the hotness to 11.


View Larger Map

Bringing MMA to New York: I Don't Like Bob Reilly

"Kickboxing...sport of the future"
- Lloyd Dobler

Really, who is to say anything against Lloyd Dobler? The man is DA MAN. Say Anything could be a perfect movie.

The friends at Cage Potato have been covering the Bob Reilly factor when it comes to sanctioning MMA in New York. There has been much debate and talk over this issue but as a excitable MMA fan The KCB doesn't like the logic that Mr. Reilly uses in his arguments. Sure it's not for everyone but to deny a sport that would bring millions of dollars into the local economy (say if there were cards at MSG) and also totally ignore how the sport has developed into a legitimate enterprise really shows how idiotic Reilly is being. I'm all for arguments even for stuff that I enjoy or back, but none of the words coming out of this guy's mouth remotely make sense or show that he did his homework (which often comes from very staunch 'opinions' that don't respect MMA as much and therefore have a skewed view, such as ESPN or Sports Illustrated). Dinosaurs....

What's worse is that he represents Albany, the area from which I'm originally from. That sucks. Next time I'm up there I'll let him know that he has illegitimate reasoning. And then I'll go to the track to mullet-watch.

Anywho, CP is suggesting a bridging of Reilly's political interests with his lack of support for MMA and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) more specifically. Check out the article here.

Such is a tricky situation if this is the chain that leads to Reilly's perspective on MMA in New York. In the end greed sort of wins out on either end, and that's sad, because as a fan you hate to see an intellectual argument (or not) to validate the sanctioning of MMA in this state pared down into political and financial tug-of-war.

T-Sides Reviews: Akron/Family @ Union Pool 3.29.09

I'm a little late on this but a good friend Colie and her mista Josh came to visit and see Akron/Family at Union Pool about a week and a half ago. Our friends at T-Sides did up a lovely review of the show which you can totally read here: Akron/Family review.

It's got set list, pictures, video, and downloads for a rising band that has been described to me as funky-groovy and folk at the same time.

Food2 presents: Cheese Doodle Day

One of my new favorite blogs is Food2 (that's Food to the power of 2, technically Food squared, but Food2 sounds better, I guess if they had Food squared Day, they could do like food that is square shaped, like lasagna, or brownies, or rice krispy treats, I think I'm onto something!!). I'm all for Eater and Slice and Chowhound and this is a new one thrown into the mix, poppy and bubbly and light. Unless you're talking about cooking lard. That's just heavy.

Anywho, I guess it's Cheese Doodle Day, which means the Levee in Williamsburg must be pretty happy about since they serve up free cheese balls and cheese doodles (puffy kind). We're having an argument at work about puffy vs. crunchy, I used to hate puffy (crunchy at least FELT lean to eat) but the best part about puffy is when you chomp it down it becomes this dense amoeba-ish thing before swallowing that has such a funky texture. Am I right or am I right?

For more on the article with a sick picture of people constructed entirely out of Cheese Doodles, go to the Food2 site.

Here is a shot of the Levee's Frito Pie with a cheese ball taken by my friends at The Cinephile New York, mmmm....