Whassup: Non-Escape from New York Edition

You're not going anywhere, Snake (via storminforms.com).

There must be some sort of festival-planning wisdom about the weekend before Memorial Day weekend, given last week's schmorg of events (including a certain overhyped two-day event that rhymes with Ooga Booga). This weekend, the event gods are comparatively silent, surely aware that most New Yorkers will be fleeing the City like the Cloverfield monster has arrived. But, if you're taking your chances that the monster is a total Manhattanite, there's still some stuff to keep you occupied in Brooklyn. It's Whassup: Non-Escape from New York Edition:

* Thursday, May 24: Tastefully Naked, Bell House: Comedian/general-purpose-performer Dave Hill releases, or in his terminology "unleashes," his first book, a collection of essays called Tasteful Nudes, with accompanying comedic and musical performances. John Hodgman, Janeane Garofalo, and more share the stage. 8pm, $12.

* Thursday, May 24: Zydeco Dance Party, BK Bridge: The last of three Brooklyn Bridge Park dance parties put on by the Celebrate Brooklyn folks (see, Prospect Park, bandshell) rocks it with Grammy-winner Terrance Simien's Zydeco Experience -- that's Louisiana folk music. Free dance lessons in two-step before the get-down. 7-10pm, FREE.

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Whassup: Anti-Mooga Edition

 

Man, the promo and PR push for this GoogaMooga thing has been intense. Everyone's all over this Googa thing's jock (and we here at FiPS have been no better). Clearly, there is absolutely nothing else going on in Park Slope this week, yes? WRONG! In fact, there is so much else going on that it's unreal. Welcome to Whassup: Anti-Mooga Edition:

* Thursday, May 17: Cringe, Freddy's: The shame-fest of teenage diary entries, horrible poetry, and more middle school drama is back to make presenters' faces hot and audience members howl. It's Freddy's own creation and one of the Backroom's most popular events. 7:30pm, FREE.

* Thursday, May 17: Brazilian Dance Party, BK Bridge: The folks behind summer's Celebrate Brooklyn shows in the bandshell gotcher spring covered, too, with the second of three Brooklyn Bridge Park dance parties. The rhythms are Carnival-esque this time, with Brazil-meets-Bayou Brooklyn group Nation Beat, DJ'd Brazilian tunes, and hip-nourishment from the drums of Maracatu New York. Make it your pre-Mooga warmup if you must. 7pm-10pm, FREE. 

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A FiPS Guide To GreatGooga Moosic

via whatupdoe.com

It's Great GoogaMooga week, bitches! To prepare you for the upcoming 2-day food, wine and music orgy FESTIVAL, we here at FiPS are going to be talking about it nonstop from now 'til Saturday.

If you haven't heard, The Great GoogaMooga, at its core, is about food. Hence the internal rhyme (I assume). But to aid in digestion, a gaggle of musical acts will gently massage your intestines via sonic wave. And, OK, let's admit: save maybe the Roots (and, I suppose, Hall & Oates), these aren't big names. It's also heavy on NYC-based groups, and shame on us for not seeing more local musical talent in a city overflowing with it. Long-story-short, you'll be in a food coma anyway, so it's probably all gonna sound great. There will be two stages, and acts will go from 11:30AM-8PM Saturday, and 11:45AM-7:30PM Sunday. Here's the FiPS rundown of the two-day fest's ear food: 

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Whassup: Nigh Summertime Edition

Not sure why, but classic soul has always sounded like NYC in summer to me. So, I think it's appropriate that the year's first offering from Celebrate Brooklyn is a soul party. Check it out tonight (more below). Welcome to Whassup: Nigh Summertime Edition:

* Thursday, May 10: Beastie Bowl, BK Bowl: MCA. Damn, MCA. As FiPS' own Benjamin eloquently eulogized (hey, sometimes we're not ALL curse words and breeder bashing), Brooklyn lost a Beatle in the Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch last week. Brooklyn Bowl celebrates with MCA's Awesome: I Fuckin' Shot That, a film documenting the Boys' performance at MSG. With DJ'd Beastie tunes. 6pm Doors, FREE.

* Thursday, May 10: Soul Dance Party, BK Bridge: Celebrate Brooklyn, the folks behind the summer bandshell shows in the park, take on the spring with the first of three dance parties at the Bridge. Dance your way into a reasonable facsimile of swimsuit shape with this soul party, helmed by Booker T. Jones, former soul-mate of Otis Redding and Bill Withers. 7pm-10pm, FREE.

* Friday, May 11-Sunday, May 13: Bayou n' BK Fest, Jalopy: For three days, the sounds of New Orleans (or, as people trying to sound like they know what they're talking about say it, "Nawlins") fill Red Hook's olde tyme theatre. Cajun, Creole, and Zydeco performers twang the strings, with Louisiana food and musical workshops on the side. Various times. Visit their donation page to pre-score tickets.

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FiPS Is Giving Away 2 Tickets to The Jukebox: Comedy & Karaoke At Union Hall

Do you love comedy and karaoke as much as you love getting free shit? I thought so. That's why FiPS is giving away two FREE tickets to local popular hybrid show The Jukebox, which pairs -- you guessed it -- comedy and and karaoke ("Com-Karao-Dy?" Is that what you'd call it?). Anyway, here's how the evening works:

Everyone on the line-up performs something inspired by a song -- be it stand-up, a story, or a written piece -- then sings that song karaoke. Performers choose their own songs based on the theme for that month's show; each one is a type of playlist or mixtape. THE JUKEBOX is a comedy-karaoke hybrid, blending The Moth, Hot Tub, and Union Hall's own Karaoke Killed The Cat. It satiates the three founders' love of comedy, storytelling and life-changing karaoke.

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