Google Analytics

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Benefit Show at L’Etage Sunday July 24

Benefit Show at L’Etage
Featuring The Tough Shits and DJ Opal Rock
Sunday July 24th, 2011

Report By: Emily Currier

It’s always sweet when hipsters come out to support one of their own, sweet and usually a lot of fun. On Sunday night at L’Etage, a benefit show was thrown for a Creperie Beaumonde’s (on which L’Etage piggybacks) waitress who was involved in a hit-and-run on her bicycle. For a reasonable $5 donation at the door, guests were given access to a silent auction, a show by The Tough Shits, and DJ Opal playing late into the night. Based on the crowd that came out, hopefully a lot of money was raised to help pay off the waitress’s medical bills.

While the Facebook invite said the event kicked off at 7:30pm, those in the know didn’t meander in until around 9:30pm. For us early birds (suckers), we had plenty of time to peruse the silent auction before The Tough Shit’s set at 10pm. The silent auction, something I haven’t been treated to since elementary school, featured very generous gift certificates and goodies from local businesses including Philly Aids Thrift and the folks behind those cute plant terrariums. For a buck guests could also purchase a raffle ticket for a chance to win a painting by a local artist.

There were a few stray people in attendance, but in general the attendees were comprised of friends of the waitress and/ or fans of band. The crowd was in uniform by sex: the boys with tattoo sleeves and the girls in summer dresses and chunky heels. The boys were somewhat at odds with the classy, dimly lit décor of L’Etage but they didn’t seem to notice. I’ve had run-ins with this clique at a number of events but still don’t feel accepted into the fold; when my friends abandoned me for a smoke, I sat at the bar nursing my drink and making occasional awkward eye contact with the band members.

The music is worth the awkward wait, though. The Tough Shits always put on a high energy, really fun show. When asked to describe their music, my friend said “fun times Rock n’ Roll,” a completely accurate description. When he didn’t have a guitar in his hand, the lead singer jumped around the stage, kicked up his heels, wandered into the audience, and took swigs of beer. The music was reminiscent of pioneer rock without feeling stale, instead the band members pumped energy into every short, loud song. Their short set ended with the lead singer carrying the lead guitarist into the audience on his shoulders- and he still managed to sing. They’re not called The Tough Shits for nothin’.

Emily Currier

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Solo Doctor Zero Show Copabanana South Street July 12

The latest exciting report from writer Emily Currier, about a hot night on South Street -Adam


Solo Doctor Zero Show at Copabanana South Street, Tuesday July 12
Report By: Emily Currier


Even on a sweltering hot Tuesday night in July, South Street’s cheap drink specials and interesting people watching are able to draw a modest (yet scantily-clad) crowd. Without having to contend with hordes of Jersey tweens, even locals make an appearance on the “so over” street, as attested to by the turn out at Tuesday’s Solo Doctor Zero Show at Copabanana.

Despite the stifling heat and unusual venue, rock band Solo Doctor Zero and their guests attracted a large group of people who clustered in one of the Copabanana’s second floor’s three rooms (who knew?). The lure of a free show was clearly not the only factor in the turn out, as most of the audience seemed to be friends or acquaintances of the performers.

Sponsored by the Community Cultural Exchange, the night’s billing was the diverse collection of Stiofan Moriarity, Lora Bloom of Radio Eris, the band Invincible, along with the headliners. In addition to enjoying live music, the audience was supplied with paper, crayons, markers, and even Cray-Pas to add their own contribution of art to the night (being unable to find a pen, I scrawled my notes about the show in giant red Crayola).

As my friend sucked down the last of her Pina Colada, we missed the opening act and walked in during a spoken word performance (possibly by Lora Bloom?). The performer spoke of insanity and sex, topics that lacked the hoped-for shock value in a bar filled with tattooed locals. Solo Doctor Zero came on as a tall, thin woman with green and pink hair backed by three older men. With the woman churning out a dark bass line, the other bandmates kept up the energy. Occasionally the music sounded overly muddy but with a crowd of people out for a good time on a Tuesday, Solo Doctor Zero was easily forgiven.


Emily Currier

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

At Fifty Star Owl even the Ads are Great

While various writers are considering various venues, I have been firing up the FiftyStarOwl twitter account to find out what's being talked about here in Philadelphia. Currently I am only using it to announce new full-blown articles here at the website.

Full of the pride of ownership, I looked at my site a few minutes ago, and saw a fascinating ad: for Icelandic Nightlife. I like to imagine that it's very chic, blonde, and eager to enjoy hydrothermal energy. I can't click on it (clicking on your own website's ads is a no-no), so I do a little search and up it pops here: http://www.reykjavikrocks.is/ I like to think that if someone was visiting Philadelphia, (or perhaps is a Philadelphia expat pining for home) that my website here would give them a little reminder.

New articles are on the way. Until then, perhaps you'd like to revisit a night at the Walnut Room.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

People who present pictures

As regular readers have undoubtedly noticed here at the Fifty Star Owl, this web site doesn't have any pictures.

This is by design.

Even though a fellow denizen of the night might be fairly well described by one of the authors, it's still not as clear as a picture. I look forward to sending intrepid writers into burlesque shows and gentleman's clubs, but pictures might be too racy for my little operation here.

But, as you may have noticed with yesterday's post, I have no such concern about linking to other people's work, such as the great galleries at http://philly.cities2night.com/ As you'll see, they do great work.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Other Sites with Info - Swellco & Swellco

When word comes from the artists at Swellco & Swellco that they plan on putting together another party here in Philadelphia, I am hopeful that I can get a report. In the meantime, I am heartened to learn that their plan for world-domination is proceeding apace. [Please Note, the images you may see may disturb you should you click to their site, and at the very least I ought to warn you that they are not safe for workplace viewing.]


Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Fifty Star Owl Business Update

So, Fifty Star Owl, my website devoted to paying writers for first-hand reports of Philadelphia nightlife, has now been in operation for about a month.

As a result, I want to thank all of the readers who have taken the time to read the stories it's been my privilege to bring to you. And of course the writers too, who each have contributed exciting stories I've been proud to bring to you.

Something I've personally found very interesting are all of the international visits. I would never have realized how much interest is out there yearning to learn more about Philadelphia's nightlife. Indonesia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, India, the Philippines and even Azerbaijan have all stopped by to read about what it's like to go out here. I hope you can come visit and see all the city has to offer, but until then, I hope you enjoy reading about the part of the world I call home.

Regardless of where you are reading from, I want to invite you to comment on or hit the +1 button at the bottom of this (or any other) post you find interesting. Don't be discouraged if your're the first one to comment, at every party someone has to break the ice.

I also wanted to bring the new twitter feed to your attention: it's at the very bottom of the page. So far I've only used it to let people know when new posts are up.

Finally, as a very junior entrepreneur, I know of no good way to convey how amazing it is to watch the advertising revenue come in. Thank you considering the advertising messages you see around you. I genuinely appreciate your support.

Adam

Monday, July 4, 2011

Electric Butter at the Walnut Room

A fresh new report from Bryant Nnadi, reporting on a night at the stylish Walnut Room. -Adam


Electric Butter at the Walnut Room, Thursday June 30
Report by: Bryant Nnadi


Last night I went to a party called Electric Butter created by Philadelphia's resident DJ, DJ PHSH (pronounced "fish") at the Walnut Room. The event featured an artist/MC named Buddy Leezle and guest performer Charlie (former drummer for the Philly Hip Hop Group Subliminal Orphans).

The music was a combination of Electro and Dub Step with a twist of live drum & bass. Charlie played off of an electronic drum set, and he would overlap the drums to various tracks that DJ PHSH spun. The performance was amazing, because you got to watch a live remixing of popular songs like SBTRKT ft. Little Dragon - Wildfire (RMX ft. Drake).

During the intermission, Buddy Leezle performed some of his material but it wasn't that good. In fact, it killed the party a little bit. His constant use of the word "bitch" turned the majority of the female crowd away from the stage. After a quick switch up though by DJ PHSH the party was rejuvenated with life and the festivities continued.

As for the crowd is was predominately women. Attractive Women!

I was fortunate enough to snag a dancing session with a rather energetic hipster Asian chic who, for the purposes of confidentiality we'll call "Sasha".

Sasha was the secret star of the party. Of all the many dancers and breakers that fluttered about, Sasha had the attentions of practically everyone in the club-including myself. What brought her to the forefront of everyone’s attention was when she dropped to the floor and performed a dance called the "Body Roll". I never heard of this dance until I saw it in action last night, but when Sasha dropped, time stopped.

If your wondering what the Body Roll looks like, let me draw a mental picture for you.

Imagine someone falling to the ground and landing on his or her knees almost in prayer position. Then imagine the dancer leaning to the floor as if they were going for the title of lowest limbo. Now the next part of this dance is when the dogs come out. After the dancer's back is parallel to the floor, he or she starts to gyrate their hips in a slow winding circular motion. Or, if you can’t imagine this, here's youtube, where there's tons of examples. But keep in mind none of those videos will ever match the real thing in person. I wasn’t as skilled on the dance floor as Sasha was, but I had a good time talking and doing the same old two-step. It’s a good thing that not all dances go out of style.

I never thought I'd walk into a party and I would be a part of an endangered populous.

Although there were a few other men at the party, I could literally count them on my fingers and foot.

Otherwise the demographic was multicultural and stylish. After talking to a few folks, I got a feel for what everyone at the party was into. A lot of people were into Hip Hop and House music, while the rest preferred a varied selection of songs. It was honestly a great time, and I'm not surprised that it was at the Walnut Room.

Electric Butter is held every last Thursday of the month, from 10pm - 2am. So if you're into an upbeat party with great looking people and music Electric Butter is the spot to be.