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.


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Have nothing to do this weekend? Open bar in Greenpoint: Getting "a couple chapters into the novel"

Don't worry folks, it's really not a novel. In fact, it's more like a photo book. Which is great because when I have several cocktails in me, I can't read straight either.


Abrams Books is on a bit of a hot streak, with some fun stuff in the works but the streak really consisting of Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, which has reached the hearts of 5th graders everywhere. Graffiti Kings looks really interesting especially when said graffiti was and is such an integral part of the urban vibe. I remember a terrific documentary called Style Wars (click on the link to watch the entire film on Google Video) about the graffiti culture made in 1983 , a sound bite of which ended up on the Dillinger Four record, Situationist Comedy. "Is that an art form? I don't know, I'm not an art critic. But I can sure as hell tell you it's a crime."

Come on, it's classic hip, it's an integral part of the urban culture of New York, and there's free drinks. Afterward you can walk to the Levee or something.


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Gold Fiction? Sounds like a Newberry Award that books used to win back in the day

Gold Fiction is a new piece of construction featuring a Mr. Charlie Pino and Galen Criscione on vocals, guitars, and keyboards. You'll enjoy their dusty sounds, twangy jangles, and feathery strands of singing (Mick Jagger-lite?) across two songs on their MySpace: "Something Great" and "Texas". Throw in some dissonance and introversion and you just might end up drinking a little bit slower and wondering about that girl across the room.

Gold Fiction is playing in lovely Greenpoint, at Red Star on 37 Greenpoint Avenue, which is one of the more sporty and less hipster spots to go to, complete with a nice backyard if I'm not mistaken. It's their debut show, so please come out and support!

Also on the bill are their friends, No Lindsay and Joanna Levine. Come join the event on Facebook or become a fan here.


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CONVERGE with Genghis Tron, Ceremony, Coliseum, Rise and Fall, Pulling Teeth at Europa Club 3.27.09

Eyeing this date for several weeks was I, and I knew after asking around this would definitely be a solo outing for The KCB. I brought my trusty and very old Canon which was giving me shit throughout the night but I managed many pictures from the same angle because hey, the pit got pretty heinous at times (but the entire concert was pretty controlled).

I got there right as Rise and Fall were finishing up, I would have caught their last tune but the guy in front of me had a bag full of weed and other crap that the bouncer wouldn't let him in with. So as the band downstairs was rocking out (it's amazing how separated the two levels can be especially since the stairwell is open) this guy pretended he couldn't hear the bouncer until the bouncer said, "Now I'm getting pissed off." Eventually the man was told to go home, it was like something out of 8th grade. My apologies for Rise and Fall and Pulling Teeth for not being able to make their sets.

After getting a PBR and surveying the very packed house with a really ominous wall of merch, fitting for a hardcore show such as this.

I wanted to see Coliseum (who hail from Louisville) as their stuff really caught on with me when listening to it at work and home in the weeks before the show. They have quite a bit of melody and a healthy dose of just straight up hardcore, although their look and feel during the show invited more awe at how tight the 3-piece played rather than THAT much moshing. Ryan Patterson, the big-bearded frontman and guitarist, was a pretty heartfelt guy and between the growls, chatter, and again, the surprising hints of melody (almost into Grade territory, and as many people know, I love Grade) he made a good set. It felt more rock than anything else really, very tight stuff.


Ceremony was really interesting and incredibly enjoyable; the lead singer mentioned he just came from a wedding (he looked like a younger and slimmer Bruce Campbell by way of Bridge and Tunnel). Since I love ska I guess I can take a little offense as to his mockings onstage, but then again, these guys really kicked some ass (although the guitarist reminded me a lot of Eliot's guitarist in some respects, just kinda weird). I think a lot of bands love being hybrids nowadays, as it's been trendy for a few years now. Or even having a newer, polished sound. These guys sound like they came straight from a Minor Threat, Descendents, or Circle Jerks show, and of all the bands, they actually came away as really the most integrated set with the audience, who gave them feedback in uproarious fashion and fairly violently. Toward the end of their set there was a dude who was knocked the fuzz out right next to me, sprawled on the floor as his friends and staff helped him drag his feet to the back. That's the kind of hardcore show that really hammers the feeling down, a sharp, communal rush of blood through your veins not through melody but through utter chaos, and alternating periods of speed and disruptive breakdowns.
Where's the singer you ask? Take a look in the middle, right in front of the dude with the black and white baseball shirt and below the bassist. Gotta love people who get in the mix like it's their birthday.


I had seen Genghis Tron before, and now with their ever expanding lightshow and electro setup, it definitely divided the crowd. Winning the contest of taking the longest to set up shop isn't really fun. Interesting mix of grooving rhythms (they have no drummer, it's all set up via machine) and noisy high pitched tomfoolery but ultimately not my thing. There was one girl who was totally enthralled and had their number, she was flailing about in the pit almost alone (save a couple other fans) in a trance, it was nice to see that someone really got them. Their cover of Big Black was probably the high point for me.


You can really tell that Converge, they are great showmen (Nate the bassist started things off with a loud "who fuckin' farted?"). The banter is constant and tonight they were actually just a really happy group, so I guess considering the dark subject matter they explore in their music (they managed to hit cuts from most of their albums and "Locust Reign" from their split with Agoraphobic Nosebleed, including two songs from their new album that sounded like much of what was on No Heroes but with a few more hooks thrown in). Starting off ominously with "Plagues" and breaking into "The Saddest Day" from their early work on Petitioning The Empty Sky (which consisted of a different line up, as their earlier days had constant shifts but included members of Bane and Cave In). Jacob Bannon took a break from his raspy shrieks to lend the stage to a friend for a cover, but all other times most eyes were on him; he's a great front man and his lanky frame allows him to take up a lot of space and have a strong presence but in a fluid way, smoothly working the point home. The bassist Nate Newton rocks hard with his bass hung way down low and well, it looks really cool and a bit effortless. My wrist always hurts when that happens. The hang low part, not the looking at Nate look effortless.



I always thought Converge had an amazingly large sound for a 4-piece band, and literally all the elements come together, from the crunchy distortion and very quick guitar riffs to the rumbling distorted bass to drumming you swear was done by a robot for how much endurance is needed. At the same time their sound is tighter than a NYC subway turnstile (yeah I just did that). Or no wait, the 6 train during rush hour (YES! In it goes!).

Weird side note, in 2003 in Philly at the tail end of UPenn's Spring Fling, the guitarist Kurt, his girlfriend helped me when I tripped trying to get napkins from the McDonald's station at 30th Street station. I was so psyched because my college roommate who was with me Austin was a huge Converge fan (he got me into them) and he was totally passed out on the bench.



Anywho, they rolled through their set and finished furiously with 3 of their minute-long songs ending with "Concubine" from their much acclaimed album, Jane Doe. Much stage diving to be had indeed.

For more on the respective bands, go to one of their pages and please purchase if you rikey:

Converge
Ceremony
Coliseum
Rise and Fall
Pulling Teeth
Genghis Tron

For more info on Europa Club in Greenpoint, the premiere Polish-American club, go to their official site (they do a lot of hardcore and punk shows).

Recent Netflixing (Not Really 'Cuz I Own This on VHS Beeyotch!) - Laws of Gravity

"Mucka ferguson."

I don't even think it's out on DVD yet, and considering the budget and the quality of stock it's not really necessary (did I catch a boom in a shot?). I revisited this Brooklyn gem, from then first-time director Nick Gomez and featuring wonderful early performances from Edie Falco, Peter Greene (who I haven't seen in a WHILE) and Arabella Field (her first feature performance I think).



Adam Trese, who plays Jonny (similar to DeNiro's Johnny in Mean Streets, but in a more cutesy, baby-faced, modern version) has continued acting as well, but is also a successful real estate agent as well at Halstead! From his lips came one of the most ingenious non-profanity laced insults I've heard, which is why I started this post with it.



Gomez has since gone on to a very successful career as a TV director with shows like Brotherhood and earlier hits like Homicide: Life on the Street, after started off with 3 features (Laws of Gravity, New Jersey Drive, Illtown).



Whenever I see Edie Falco, I really take myself back always to this film. It was one of the first films I ever bought, on VHS, right after Reservoir Dogs and a couple of John Woo movies. I had never heard of it but I was intrigued as it seemed like a modern day Mean Streets.

What surprises me about the film, considering it was made 16 years ago now, is not only is it documentary and realistic in feel, but it's down to earth. The drama is not forced, and the dialogue consists of lots of subtle shifts and hints that never are told, always shown. At the same time, it's a very straightforward movie: Jimmy (Greene) and Jonny (Trese) and their respective ladies Denise and Celia (Falco and Field) are Brooklynites where the men don't work but steal and hustle, and the women work late at jobs that can't afford much more than some beers and a bed. One of the great quotes, as character actor Paul Schulze's (24, Sopranos) Frankie asks about cable, Jimmy goes, "Nah we don't have cable, this is Brooklyn". Another great moment is when Jimmy relights an almost fully smoked cigarette bud to grab a couple extra drags. There's such a great street sense in this film; even though the tough guys have beefs sometimes, they have no problem either expressing it violently while still coming in constant contact with each other because it's a community here.

Sal (Saul Stein) is the local loan shark/muscle and Frankie is back from Florida under shady circumstances to sell guns and evade questions about being a rat. Jonny's temper gets the best of him EVERY time. In the middle of it all, Jimmy owes people here and there and isn't quite peaceful, but overall is the moderator of the whole sh-bang. The film does a great job in grabbing a sense of desperation, the sense that there are not a lot of resources for these characters to live on. Everything is driven by the characters' tempers, and the movie ebbs and flows on that, not on any coincidences or contrivances. The camera roams verite style and never veers or strays too far, giving everything a claustrophobic, intimate feel. The style is classic and showed cinematographer Jean de Segonzac's potential as a lenser for Law & Order and other TV series as recent as New York's Gossip Girl. The daily hustles that the men go through are both necessary for them to exist but stem totally from an antisocial mindset. And the performances are really top notch.

Greene actually makes for an interesting leading man; a heel in The Usual Suspects, Pulp Fiction, and The Mask, among other films, he has a calming presence and when he rages, it's of a righteous quality. His soft spoken nature and sleepy eyes get you behind him as he moves and shakes through the little world they have going. Trese makes good use of all the blow ups and tantrums; his lazy mouthed stare belies the anger-at-any-moment nature of his character and is fun to watch.

Falco shows you that she's going to be a force in the material she works on later in her career; a natural sarcasm flows out of her and she's the voice of reason in all of this. Field's tragic character, getting stomped on by Jonny, yet coming back to him out of pure love but almost destructively confrontational, has an interesting vocal rhythm and it brings flavor to the role in a movie centered on the men.

Each scene tends to have its own situational banter and at the same time works toward the overall story. It's that kind of down to earth feel that makes this film a winner. There are no artsy shots; no time for that. The dialogue flys around (people talk at the same time, oh Altman) and it breathes and brims. Shot in 12 days for less than 40k, you couldn't ask for a better hour and a half.

The bar where they filmed at was the Ship's Mast Pub (link to NY Times article) on North 5th in Williamsburg, which was shut down not too long after they filmed; John Gallagher, the owner, plays Bobby the bartender in the film. The rest of the film was shot in Greenpoint; it's great to see the difference then and now, especially considering that Williamsburg has evolved into something completely different from the rest of Brooklyn and at the time was still like many now upscaling 'hoods like parts of Park Slope, etc. suffering from lots of crime and social unrest.

One note: Bill Sage has an extremely small part as a friend of a harrassed patron at the bar. Turns out he has gone on to a serious TV and film career with recent stints on the short lived Cashmere Mafia.

Laws of Gravity was nominated for 4 Independent Spirit Awards including Best First Feature, Best Actress, Best Actor, and Best Cinematography. Gomez won the Wolfgang Staudte Award at the Berlin Film Festival in 1993 for this as well.

I love this movie; if you really want to see some great footage of a bygone Brooklyn, check this out.

Laws of Gravity on IMDb