By Charlotte Lytton 11/15/12 6:02pm

FRENCH FANCY

Dom Perignon Presents "The Power Of Creation"with A Private Performance and Dinner by Lang Lang and John Legend

Champagne in Church? Don’t Mind if We Do

As we entered the dimly lit foyer of St. Bartholomew’s Church on a cold November Wednesday, there was a certain eeriness in the air: perhaps God was frowning upon Dom Pérignon’s choice of venue for a Champagne soirée. But it would seem that He soon warmed up to the idea as the party quickly accelerated into full swing, with the fizzy stuff flowing at every corner, and the suited, booted and fabulous of Manhattan supping from glasses in every alcove of the byzantine building.

The evening was sophistication itself, with the flavor of the Champagne enhanced only by a collaborative performance from soul singer John Legend and concert pianist Lang Lang. Mr. Lang told The Observer that the duo had been preparing for the brand’s “The Power of Creation” event for three days, and their hard work undeniably paid off. The pair were the toast of the evening, and happily milled around the reception, Mr. Legend looking particularly loved up with his model fiancée Chrissy Teigen. Read More

By Foster Kamer 8/27/12 4:57pm

WOMP WOMP

LOU_duckling_1867

Louis C.K. Performing Three Surprise Shows Tonight, Resulting in Unsurprising Ticket-Buyer Outrage

The star of FX’s Louie—widely considered to be the comedian of the moment— Louis C.K. is a tough ticket these days, especially for New Yorkers, whose venues are almost never big enough to accommodate either the sold-out crowds or the greedy hands of ticket scalpers. This principle was demonstrated to especially pronounced effect earlier today, when Brooklyn venue The Bell House announced that he would be testing out an hour of new material tonight. Not just for one show, but three separate shows.

Three separate shows that have since sold out and infuriated people. Read More

By Foster Kamer 7/09/12 3:50pm

JAYSTOCK

treyjayz

All Jay-Z Everything: Barclays Center to Open with Three Jay-Z Concerts

Jay-Z might be from Brooklyn—and may season his songs with references to the borough liberally, not including his memorable Reasonable Doubt duet with The Notorious B.I.G., “Brooklyn’s Finest”—but does anybody remember the last time he played a proper concert there? Odds are, unless you’re an obsessive who tracks his every movement—or a Phish fan—you may not.

Fear not, though. The modest opening of the Barclays Center (the new home of the NBA’s Nets, of which, Jay-Z is an investor) will now shove this seemingly arbitrary but actually earth-shatteringly important query into irrelevance, as Jay-Z will not be playing one, or two, but three shows to open the new stadium, this September. Read More

By Foster Kamer 7/09/12 12:31pm

Things There Should Be Draconian Punishments For

broken-iphone-screen

Battle of the Bands (Who Hate Your iPhone): Should Concerts Outlaw Cell Phone Photos?

Unless you’re seeing a concert in a stadium, getting a good sight-line is hard enough as it stands: Unless you are tall-folk, you’re trying to see over the head of front-row tall folk. And if it’s not tall (or taller) folk—now that nearly everyone’s cell phone has a halfway decent camera affixed to it as a standard feature—it’s their phones. And if it’s not tall people’s phones, it’s everyone else’s phones. Because cell phones are now as standard a live music fixture as overpriced drinks and that high-pitched “eeeeeeeeee” sound of your hearing dying. And the desire to Instagram or Facebook or Tumblr a moment at a concert from one’s phone is—as going to pretty much any concert in 2012 will demonstrate—apparently insatiable. And we, as a people—or at least, the people of some respectably metropolitan cities—are better than that.

Or so one club would like to think. Read More

By Matt Chaban 10/07/11 11:49am

on the waterfront

The new site is the vacant lot at center. Looks like a real blast. (Bing Maps)

Skinny on the Dip: Williamsburg Pool Parties Moving to a Parking Lot

Things have been up and down ever since the renowned JellyNYC Pool Parties left the McCarren Pool and moved to the Williamsburg waterfront. Sure, the backdrop was nicer, but there have been money woes ever since. Senator Charles Schumer even had to come to the rescue two years ago to keep the party rocking.

The latest complaints come from the neighbors, who are fed up with all the unwashed masses streaming down the side streets of Williamsburg to get to the waterfront. The Open Space Alliance hopes it has a solution, according to The Brooklyn Paper, and JellyNYC will move the parties a few blocks north. Read More