Faceshot: The Radical Sons

Formed in St. Louis and now based in New York, The Radical Sons consists of four young guys who play self-described “dumb rock ‘n roll.”  The guitarist, Nick Risler, also called it “grungy” in today’s interview.  Having toured this summer with three other bands, the Sons hit up major East Coast cities while driving in an extra large 1970s van sans air conditioning.  Staying with friends and sometimes sleeping in the van, the guys exposed people to their music, which Risler said is inspired by Dinosaur Junior and the Velvet Underground.

Together for two years now, the Sons are: singer/guitarist Ben Goldstein, 20; drummer Pat Shields, 18; guitarist Nick Risler, 20; and a yet-to-be-determined bassist.  The founding members, Ben, Pat and Nick were buddies in St. Louis who would skateboard around what they called “the loop” and were obsessed with epic NYC band, The Strokes.  The New York transplants are playing two shows this weekend on the Lower East Side (check out their MySpace for more info).

Halloween Shots

I’m having some technical difficulties, so the majority of these are small.  If you’d like to see the full size image, just shoot me an email.

Stairway to Heaven

Halloween Parade: Be in It!

Did you know that you can participate in the Village Halloween Parade?  Yep, all you have to do is show up in costume at the start of the parade route.  I’ll be walking as the Queen of Hearts with my friend, the Twister Board, so be on the look out for us if you’re in attendance.  Click here for more information on the parade, whether you want to watch or walk.

Site News: The Posts to Come

Greetings readers!  Being a student blogger is like a roller coaster ride, sometimes I’m slowly creeping up hill with plenty of time to conduct interviews for the site. Other times, I am speeding upside down with my hands flailing about out of control with school work and assignments.  But I’m making arrangements for some upcoming posts, and I wanted to whet your whistle with what may come.

This Friday night, I’ll be attending the Procession of the Ghouls at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  Saturday, I’ll hit up the Village Halloween Parade and have a photo entry of all the cool costumes.  Next week a post will be published about the hottest band performing on the Lower East Side.  And finally, I’m making arrangements to interview a New York based photographer. So keep being loyal. And don’t forget, if you want to subscribe to new posts, send an email to snapshots.nyc.tc@gmail.com

Placeshot: An International Pub Crawl

As the ice cubes clinked together in his to-go coffee, Tim the tour guide yelled to a group of young foreigners, “And in America, we tip our bartenders!” But he wasn’t berating them or taking out his foreign frustrations, Tim was actually giving out a list of advice to the crowd before he took them on his Upper West Side Pub Crawl. “You drink inside; you smoke outside,” he continued from his position atop a bench in the courtyard of the hostel.

The Crawl started a few years ago when Tim and a few other local bar owners were brainstorming a way to increase Tuesday night business.  They collectively thought of a bar hopping tour, but then didn’t know where to get the people.  That’s when one of the men realized the goldmine that sat just around the corner—Hostelling International, a primarily Youth Hostel that can hold more than six hundred non-New Yorkers.  The only thing required to stay there is some money and an out-of-state ID.

Tim approached the programming crew at the hostel, and “It took all of ten minutes for them to put a clipboard out for people to sign up for the crawl.” The rest, you might say, is history.  Now, Riley shows up to the lobby every Tuesday night at 9 o’clock and gives his spiel about American culture before heading out with what has ranged from two to 80 visitors.

The Pub Crawl is just one of many programs offered at the hostel, which sits on the corner of Amsterdam and 103^rd Street.  The building was built in 1883 to house the Association Residence for Respectable Aged Indigent Females and is a historic landmark.  It was designed by Richard Morris Hunt, a famous architect whose designs also include New York’s first apartment building and the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. In 1990, Hostelling International opened after the building had been vacant for some 20 years.

Faceshot: Felix Snow

Crouched over his accoustic guitar, his eyes are closed and a soft stream of vocals flows from his lips at the Life Cafe. Felix Snow is a young musician who aspires to do just what he is doing–playing music in New York. The Connecticut native came to New York to attend NYU, and he’s a student in the elite Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music. But his real passion is performing and recording music. “I’m not an academic by nature,” Snow said today in a Starbucks near Grammercy Park. “The connections and the people are what’s important.”

It all started when his dad bought Felix a drum set at age eleven. Now 19, the musician plays everything from the guitar to the sitar. His ecclectic mix of  inspirations includes Elliot Smith, the Grateful Dead, and the Velvet Underground. And he thinks “the hook” is the most important part of a song. That is, the part that makes you want to listen to it over and over again. “I want people to play my song again–two times, then three times,” Felix said of what he hopes for his music. 

Faceshot: The Mayor of Strawberry Fields

Gary’s peace train

Nestled in a tiny alcove off of Central Park West sits Strawberry Fields, 2.5 acres dedicated to the late John Lennon.  A mosaic of the word “Imagine” sits in the center and draws crowds from all over the world who photograph the rose-covered symbol. Daily, for the past eight years, Ayrton “Gary” Dos Santos has created what he calls a work of art in the form of a peace sign on the mosaic.  Gary, the so-called “Mayor of Strawberry Fields,” said of his work, “The people want peace, and they love what I do.” 

The forty-five year-old gets the petals from local florists and delis that are going to throw out the flowers.  He puts down a new peace sign every day and takes it up each night. Having used everything from roses and orchids to pumpkins (for Halloween) and cannabis leaves (for his own enjoyment) to create the mosaic’s peace sign, Gary started the tradition 16 years ago with his “Grateful Dead brother,” Robert. The two were playing a series of jokes on the park’s gamekeeper, who was hassling them about their unlawful rituals.  (They were living in a tent behind the Fields which was full of “oriental rugs, lounge chairs, beer, and pot.”) In response to the gamekeeper, Gary and Robert began bringing things from the street to the home of the mosaic.  Chairs, couches, and kitchen sinks were brought in as a part of the protest against authority.  “Finally,” Gary said, “Robert showed up with a big bag full of grass—I don’t know where he got it.”  The two then designed a peace sign out of the grass, which progressed into flowers and would become Gary’s staple.

Lost New York: a weekend of 400 years

If you do one thing this weekend, check out one of the many events happening as a part of the Lost New York, 1609-2009 conference. I’ll be there to see the 2 pm “Blogging the Apocalypse” panel to hear from some of the great New York bloggers. All events are free and open to the public.

Placeshot: New York on the Clock!

Public television station Thirteen has just premiered a new series of videos called New York on the Clock which profiles people who work in the city.   The first installment is on Coney Island Cyclone operator Jerry Menditto.  I recommend it for two reasons–one is that the 74-year-old is an adorable character with a very interesting life.  Secondly, this is one of the best visual depictions of Coney Island that I’ve seen.  The vantage points are many, and I truly feel like I am visiting the Cyclone thanks to the awesome cinematography.

Placeshot: Let’s Go Dutch!

In commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s first encounter with the Hudson River, there is a slew of interesting exhibits around the city about the Dutch colonization. I visited the exhibit “Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The Worlds of Henry Hudson” at the Museum of the City of New York last weekend. There were some interesting multimedia aspects that lend a great visual into how the city used to look.