Thanks to Heart on a Stick's heads up, I've just watched the season premiere of Friday Night Lights. It's streaming on Yahoo right now through the end of the weekend. INTENSE, to say the least. Tho I'm not quite sure if it's going in the right direction. Thoughts after the jump (SPOILERS!!! DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER UNLESS YOU'VE SEEN THE EPISODE!). My thoughts on Gossip Girl can wait for another day... (pic via)
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I can't support those haircuts, but this music is undeniably good.
You know, sometimes you just have to look beyond looks and image to recognize good music. For a band that looks like the Bravery meets Flock of Seagulls, I would suspect many fans not interested in that sort of thing to overlook these guys completely, and for the most part that makes sense. I probably wouldn't have given them a first look if I didn't stumble across them at Bamboozle earlier this Summer. See, there was a bunch of downtime before Muse and MCR that day, which led to a bunch of aimless wandering trying to avoid having to listen to Cartel or Say Anything, and at one of the side stages we found this band I ended up really liking called Manchester Orchestra. I bought their CD and hoodie that I have been wearing and listening to a bunch all year. So once they were done, the band next to them immediately came on and it was these goofy fellas pictured above. I distinctly remember saying that I thought they sounded great, but looked so silly I couldn't take them seriously.
Well now, like 4 months later, I their name kept popping up, and I'd hear a song here or there that, of course, was pretty rad, so I finally tracked down their album. It's great! I've been listening to it for the last couple weeks and really dig it a lot. There is a microscopic line between emo-pop shit and success, and this record squarely falls on the side with MCR, Taking Back Sunday, Armor for Sleep and the rest of the good guys. Sure, it's big and obvious and really easy to fall into all those massive hooks, but sometimes (often times) that's exactly what I want to listen to.
Oh, by the way, did I mention this is a concept album? OH YES. Just found this out while googling the band this AM. From wikipedia: (and I have no reason to question it's validity here...)
"Madina Lake is named after the fictional 1950's town from a story Matthew penned. The town is turned upside down when its most famous socialite, Adalia, mysteriously disappears."
Of course it is. I also learned that the two twins in the band took prize money from winning fear factor to record the first demos. So there's that too?
Listen, all the pieces fall into place for this to be a band that gets endlessly mocked if they are lucky enough to break out beyond their already somewhat sizable fanbase. The twist is they're significantly better than the rest of their bands from their genre. Hope that helps. They also seem like nice guys from this MTV2 interview, for whatever that's worth. Anybody who bitches about all the style over substance bands owe it to themselves kick that attitude in reverse and give these guys a shot.
Madina Lake - Here I Stand (mp3)
Madina Lake - Now or Never (mp3)
More at Myspace, etc.
I woke up on the early side Saturday morning, started txting around about brunch plans. Agreed to go to Essex at Noon with good-sized group. We called a bit ahead at around 11am and put our name down. We were told that if we arrived by Noon, there’d be an hour wait to sit, but that was OK. We were all happy to kill some time at the bar, catch up, hang out, etc.
Our entire party was there at a few minutes before Noon (a rare feat for a group this size), and we checked in to notify. They told us it’d be about an hour, as before, and we settled in by the bar, had a few drinks. No big deal.
A little more than an hour goes by and we check in to see the status of our table, expecting something along the lines of “oh, you're table's just paying now, should be a few minutes.” Instead we are told, rather matter of factly, that it will probably be another 40-45 minutes before we can be seated.
Ahem. My friend confirms that they have our name down already, tries to explain that we had called ahead, were told an hour an hour ago, etc, but that didn’t seem to impress either hostess.
So here’s the fun part. After expressing a bit of frustration, she told us that we should have called ahead if we ever expected to get seated. After explaining that we, um, had, she curtly stated “I mean, like 2 weeks ago” Then, perhaps rudely reminding her that we were talking about a $15 brunch special and not the main fucking dining room at Jean Georges, she told us, “Well, that’s just how it’s done in New York.”
Yikes.
Now, in fairness to the restaurant, this particular hostess seemed young and none of us, who semi-regularly come here for brunch, had recognized her. But to tell anyone “how it's done”...no less a bunch of old friends who were born and raised in New York City, is a slap in the face to an astronomical degree. With a smile, my friend promptly told her to fuck off, and we went down the street to Bondi Road, where we ate more or less the exact same food and drank the exact same unlimited Mimosas with a lovely Aussie charm. I mean, for Christ sakes, Essex! If you won't be able to seat us, tell us over the phone like grownups. If you realize once we got there that you might have underestimated the crowd and won't be able to seat us, come over and tell it to us straight. To treat us as if we, a group of willing paying customers, are to blame for wanting to come eat at your restaurant is beyond pathetic. Especially after telling us you'd be able to seat us in the first place. What an awful, awful experience.
I'm starting to feel the same way about below Houston Street as I felt about above 14th street growing up. It's becoming harder and harder to find reasons to go there, and I'm almost always frustrated/disappointed when I do.
Two local dining notes...
First off, last night I had dinner at Blue Hill on Washington Place. Now...I know I don't talk about food all that often, but bear with me for a sec. I do get out to nice meals every so often...a few times a year (mostly with my parents.) I'm not bringing this up to boast, just to establish a base that I'm not a hack who's so easily wooed by a fancy meal. I just don't want to confuse my inexperience writing about food to dampen my actual opinions on the meal.
SO...that said, this was just about the best meal I've ever had. At least at a restaurant in New York City. Everything (except for the slightly cramped dining area) was absolutely perfect. I had a poached farm egg with this sort of cold lettuce reduction sauce that went perfectly. Then the Berkshire Pork was on a different level. While the egg was perfect, it's so unique...hard to compare to anything else, I've had pork prepared many different ways and this was like nothing I had ever tasted. It was like eating magic. Essentially a porkchop (with a think slab of bacon on the side,) but it had the consistency of a delicate steak and the taste of a stick of butter. In a good way. And it was on this sort of risotto/rice pilaf base which could not have been prepared any better. Then the dessert...this unbelievable blueberry cake thingy...maybe the best sweet I've ever had. A prefect, not-too-heavy compliment to a flawless meal.
What really impressed me was how well the whole thing flowed. The proportions were spot on, didn't leave stuffed (despite maybe eating too much bread while waiting for the first course.) Even the wine, something I admit I have very little knowledge or taste for, was amazing. For the first time ever, all the flavors everyone goes on about came through. Was like whoh.
So that's that. The best meal I've ever eaten in a New York City restaurant. AAA+.
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Also, the rapidly-declining-in-quality BBQ on University Place...an INSTITUTION of the Central Village for my entire life, has been gutted and is officially dunzo. On my way home from Blue Hill last night I asked a guy taking garbage bags out of the front door, who said it will reopen in "about 3 months down the street (pointing West down 8th.)" So we will see. It's a sad day, tho, even if the food had become virtually inedible, the giant blue drinks never wavered. Neither did the affordable prices (especially for Happy Hour.) That space should be landmarked and turned into a chicken museum or something.
I started watching the DVDs of 30 rock this morning. After going all
the way through the entire series of Saved by the Bell twice, I needed
to mix it up a little in the AM. Problem is, at only 21 20-minute episodes, I'm
gonna be done with it by the end of the week. You really take for
granted what you can do with 2 hours of unobstructed TV watching. So I
need a new show. Perferebly something lighthearted and with multiple
seasons available on Netflix. Also wanna keep it to 30 minute-or-less episodes. Thoughts? I got excited for a second
about watching the complete Charles in Charge series, but they only
have Season One on DVD and it's the Penbroke years, which are
completely irrelevant. I'm thinking the 4 disk best-of Larry Sanders show maybe? That'd be good for a week or two. Anything else out there? I've already watched Sportsnight all the way through twice. I'm open to suggestions.
Seriously...haven't we gotten past this? I know it's fashion week, but it's not like this band doesn't exist the other 51. What...who...what the hell? I feel like my inbox just got set back 5 years. Thanks, Musebox but I don't think I'll make it to that karaoke bar to see your band play.
I did enjoy that Gridskipper interview, tho. The only thing better than a band that looks and sounds like this is one that takes itself too seriously. Go get em!
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