Where Great Things Start

A decade ago, Brooklyn’s Broadway felt like a “here be dragons” zone to us: gritty, unfamiliar, and shrouded in the eternal twilight cast by the elevated subway.

Just off Myrtle Avenue, Palisades made its mark — a true DIY venue that, in its early days, sold beer straight from a cooler box.

The lineup at Palisades was stellar: a curious mix of international up-and-coming bands, local mainstays, and everything else in between.

However, DIY does not really have a place in New York City, and they eventually had to close due to fire code violations. Coincidentally, this happened on the eve of the first shared Northside Festival showcase of Audiofemme and glamglare, an event that was cancelled to our surprise a few days earlier by the Palisades booker. We managed to pull off the show at a different venue, but Palisades ceased to exist.

We had many great and memorable moments there and across the street in a cozy and hip bar called Skytown. Palisades was also where we saw Negative Gemini, now known as Neggy Gemmy, for the first time in January 2016.
Neggy Gemmy – real name Lindsey French – has always been a curious artist who went her own way with a musical style that resists easy classification within electronic music. She releases her music on 100% Electronica, a label that she runs alongside her now-husband, George Clanton.

Her show back then was beautiful, and we had the opportunity to shoot some great photos. Tomorrow, she’ll release her fourth full-length album, She Comes from Nowhere, and if the two singles are representative, this will be another Neggy Gemmy classic. We also booked tickets for the New York release show on the 28th – fashionably late at 11 PM.

A Lady’s Companion

Elke and I don’t watch much TV, but some shows capture us and draw us in front of the big screen every now and then. Typically, we gravitate to light and romantic fare because, frankly, real life is exciting enough. The last show we discovered was the Spanish TV show A Lady’s Companion on Netflix about a professional chaperone, who is hired to find a husband for the oldest of three sisters who have lost their mother. The show is fully dubbed in English, and unfortunately, there’s no subtitled version available.

It takes place sometime in the past in Spain, presumably in the 19th century, but this is not crucial, as there is no intention to depict history accurately. Protagonist Elena Bianca breaks the fourth wall frequently, sometimes in the middle of a dialogue with somebody else, and there are graphic Spanish-language title cards between some scenes. The characters are likable, and the conflicts are mild; Elena seems to be able to maneuver herself out of the trickiest situations. In other words, a perfect show to wind down after a busy day.

“Very Bad at Lyrics”

Björn Ulvaeus is one of the primary songwriters for the Swedish pop band ABBA and, as such, the creator of hits over many decades. According to Variety, he is working on a new musical. He did that before, as with Chess in 1986, which spawned the earworm “One Night in Bangkok.” This time, he is using AI as a creative inspiration. His perspective is a refreshing one for an 80-year-old: use the tool as an inspiration, and know what it can do and what it cannot.

glamglare favorites

Listen to glamglare favorites on Spotify, Apple Music, or below on YouTube.

This week’s five songs are from artists we saw play at Palisades in 2015 and 2016. As mentioned above, Neggy Gemmy, who lived in Brooklyn at that time, played a show there, as did international, highly hyped acts like Shopping from the UK and Gold Class from Australia, both of which are now defunct. The first band we ever saw at Palisades was Dead Leaf Echo, and they might have played “Temple” at that opportunity. Last but not least, emo pop queen Mothica had her very first show at Palisades before she ventured out to play festivals and headline global tours.

Song Pick of the Day

Listen to/watch all seven songs on YouTube. Follow our daily updated playlists on YouTube, Apple Music, or Spotify for the 50 latest Song Pick of the Day features, or subscribe here to receive them in your mailbox in real-time. Thank you for following us and sharing the excitement.

• “An Hour Per Day“ is sort of a meta track about itself. “What started as a guitar-based demo and a piano noodle grew into a layered, mostly instrumental track shaped by intuitive improvisation, tension, and happy accidents,” says Dutch musician Robin Kester.
• The second single, "Get Lost!" by Mercy Land  is a dark synth-pop gem. They will release an EP in the fall.
• Chasing "Diamonds and Gold?" But "what do you hold onto when the shine wears off", asks Austin-based musician Lew Apollo in his groovy new song. His new album is scheduled for release in August.
• Raquel Martins moved from Portugal to London, but does not yet feel at home there. That inspires great music, though, like the impossible-to-categorize "DEAD END."
• “Foggy Like a Bladerunner” refers to June 6, 2023, when NYC was clouded by red smoke caused by wildfires in Canada. Brooklyn duo SORRYNOTSORRY coped by writing a song. “Instead of absorbing that darkness, we channeled our gratitude into the music,” they say.
• Sometimes you want something even if you know it’s wrong. In other words, “FMLU” as the new single by Canadian indie rock band King of Foxes explains.
• The singer-songwriter Cass McCombs releases a new single, "Peace," and announces his new album "Interior Live Oak" for August 15.

Nine Photos of a Sunny Day in London

Weather is a matter of both science and perception. Meteorologists can tell you exactly how wet May or June were, by comparing rainfall data and concluding something like “rainier than what’s typical for May or June.” But my personal perception? It feels like there hasn't been a single sunny day in New York for the past six weeks!

So, I’m turning to something more cheerful: our photos from London. We already shared a few snapshots from our sunny Sunday, when we met the lovely Yodashe. Now here’s what caught our eye the next day: more sunshine, more impressions, and a few favorite corners of the city.

(1) View from our hotel room on the 8th floor.
(2) Pub and one of the many murals around Shoreditch.
(3) Our hotel, the citizenM in Shoreditch.
(4 - 6) Exploring the Barbican.
(7) A stroll down Oxford Street.
(8) London’s Theatre District.
(9) View from a double-decker bus on our way back to Shoreditch.