This Fake "Birth Control on the Bottom" Yogurt Ad Is Perfect

January 23, 2013, 6:00 am

≫ Next: Sunshine's Gay Superhero Fantasy "Showering With Wine"

≪ Previous: Chatting With Tom Hooper and Eddie Redmayne About Les Mis

This fake commercial for "Birth Control on the Bottom" yogurt, starring Megan Amram, Retta, Rosa Salazar, Diane Mizota, Sonibert Rodriguez, Weird Al, and Laura Dziamba, is brilliant. [TheCut]

From Embroidery Poems' "Twitter Poems" contest. More details here. [TheRumpus]

That thing where you're 30 and daydream about being friends with the Obama girls. [TallWhitney]

To go with your Jackie Jormp-Jomp poster. [Flavorpill]

Here's Benedict Cumberbatch, aka Banjobox Tootlesnorts, as Wikileaks founder Julian Assange in the upcoming film The Fifth Estate. [Dlisted]

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [THR]

Meh bread ties. [ThisIsntHappiness]

Hey Sassyland! [TheClearlyDope]

Real talk. It's so cold in New York right now that people are putting rats in their pockets and using them as hand warmers. [LaughterKey]

See you later. [AfternoonSnoozeButton]

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Sunshine's Gay Superhero Fantasy "Showering With Wine"

January 23, 2013, 7:40 am

≫ Next: Jenna Lyons Is Retiring Michelle Obama's J. Crew Belt

≪ Previous: This Fake "Birth Control on the Bottom" Yogurt Ad Is Perfect

What if Batman and Superman were in love and went out on the town and got plastered? We suspect that Vancouver indie band Sunshine weren't being too literal when they came up with this superhero fantasy for "Showering With Wine," and only wanted to show a typical Halloween with a couple of cute boys. We're also not sure if anyone in the Canadian quintet actually appears in the video -- directed by Owen Ellis -- but we do know that their album is coming out in February and it includes collabs with members of The Raveonettes, New Pornographers, Morrissey and the New Values.

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Jenna Lyons Is Retiring Michelle Obama's J. Crew Belt

January 23, 2013, 9:00 am

≫ Next: The Pan Am at Milk & Honey

≪ Previous: Sunshine's Gay Superhero Fantasy "Showering With Wine"

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Jenna Lyons will retire certain J. Crew styles -- including a particular color of Lady Day coat that Malia wore and a belt Michelle wore -- "out of respect" for the first family having worn them. Something else to note: because the Obamas shop off the rack (like the rest of us), they don't actually help sales much, since their clothes are often on sale or a few seasons old. [via The Cut]

Iris Van Herpen's show was a) bananas, b) included looks that had been made using a 3D printer, and c) may serve as a jumping point for a few costumes in The Hunger Games.

Coach is considering moving into ready-to-wear. [via Fashionista]

The McQ campaign -- shot by David Sims -- features the creepy plastic masks the men wore at the AW '13 show. [via HypeBeast]

Meanwhile the new John Varvatos campaign features Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin and Gary Clark Jr. [via Design Scene]

Raf Simons will be designing costumes for Sigourney Weaver and Isabelle Huppert in their new film Body Art. Color us excited. [via The Cut]

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The Pan Am at Milk & Honey

January 23, 2013, 9:30 am

≫ Next: Get to Know Nashville-Based Musician Torres

≪ Previous: Jenna Lyons Is Retiring Michelle Obama's J. Crew Belt

The classic Cuban cocktail, El Presidente, calls for white rum, vermouth, Curaçao and grenadine, served up. But Cervantes Ramirez, bartender at Little Branch and Café Select, was not seduced by the combination. "How could I make it better?" he asked himself. By playing around with cachaça -- the heady Brazilian sugarcane spirit -- he found out.

First, Ramirez swapped the rum with newcomer cachaça Avuá's Amburana expression, named for the casks in which the liquid ages and deepens for up to two years. Nixing the cloying grenadine, then serving it on the rocks, yielded the exact results he craved: crisp, clean and crystalline with an understated ribbon of heat. "I like to keep things simple and elegant," he says.

The drink, now christened the Pan Am, is served at Milk & Honey's spacious new digs across from Madison Square Park. Sasha Petraske, the cocktail mecca's front man, is struck by the union of the Pan Am's "unusually sweet and slightly bitter ingredients." There are no menus to contemplate here, so the Pan Am makes for a confident prelude to a long evening under the spell of bartender's choice.

The Pan Am

2 oz. Avuá Amburana cachaça
½ oz. Curacao
¼ oz. dry vermouth
One dash orange bitters
Stir ingredients in a rocks glass; garnish with an orange twist.

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Get to Know Nashville-Based Musician Torres

January 23, 2013, 11:15 am

≫ Next: Art, Beer, Deals: Moves Brooklyn's New Wednesday Night Happy Hour

≪ Previous: The Pan Am at Milk & Honey

When the quietly devastating track "Honey" by Nashville singer/songwriter Torres (real name Mackenzie Scott) emerged from the Internet ether a few weeks back, it was readily apparent that Scott's talent contradicted any notions of contemporary American folk music being boring. Throughout the course of the song, Scott's voice transforms from a broken whisper to a defiant howl and back again, her electric guitar slowly devouring any silence with stormy crescendos and snarling distortion and her lyrics painting vivid pictures of crippling isolation and the resignation that emerges in the wake of lost love. It's a slow-motion train wreck of a song, flaming out in dissolving memories and overwhelming remorse. At one point, Scott knows the song is fleeting and about to escape her grasp when she warns "What ghost crawled inside my guitar? / Don't move, just stay right where you are."

Undoubtedly, "Honey" marks the emergence of a new voice to watch (or listen to) in the Nashville scene. With a self-titled debut album released yesterday, the 22-year old -- and recent college graduate -- showcases her hair-raising voice, forest-leveling guitar work and emotionally obliterating lyrics on her first LP. We caught up with Scott as she was beginning to prepare her band for a national tour in support of her first album.

Did you grow up in Nashville and has the city been a big influence on your music?
I'm originally from Macon, Georgia, which is about an hourish south of Atlanta. I came to Nashville in 2009 for college and I've been here ever since. Nashville itself helped me hone in on the sound I wanted, and the community here has certainly been the best thing for me. There are people here I have been able to befriend and look up to in the industry but as far as my "sound" goes, my influence has come from a lot of different places and people.

Do you think Nashville is a good incubator for aspiring musicians?
I would say so. There's a pretty good mix. You can find just about any kind of music you want in Nashville. Obviously you've got the music row / country scene, which is kind of what Nashville is known for, but then you have the lesser-known music scenes like the acoustic folk scene and a really good punk scene and a really good rock scene that's more underground.

What scene do you think you fit into?
I've hopped around since being here. I started playing in the acoustic scene, folk music, Americana, so I was playing more coffee shop-type places early in my career, which was good for me. My sound has evolved since being in Nashville -- its more electric guitar-based, and I'm playing with a full band now. I still tend to hop around so I don't really consider myself a part of one of the music scenes in particular. But, you know, I definitely enjoy going to house shows and seeing some crazy punk band that I've never heard of.

When did you first start writing and performing music?
I taught myself how to play the guitar when I was in high school, when I was 16 or 17. Up until that point, I had written -- I'm a writer, I like to write short stories and poetry -- but when I started playing the guitar, that's when I started writing songs and I had my instrument to be the base for that stuff. But I didn't start performing until I came to Nashville in '09. It took a little while because it's really hard when you first come to Nashville. There's so much music and it's so hard to get people to pay attention. It took me a long time. There's still a lot of venues in Nashville that I still haven't gotten to play and I am by no means "in" yet. It's a tough town to break. I've been performing for about three years now.

What music made you want to be a musician?
I would say first and foremost Brandi Carlisle. I got into her records my first year of college. She's probably my hero of sorts. I tend to get stuck on a musician and don't really branch out a lot. I get really obsessive about my music and I will listen to one artist for a year or two, and then I'll have a new one. Brandi was the person that I listened to forever and more recently I've been on a giant St. Vincent kick.

Listen to "Honey"

Your family ended up getting you a Gibson 355 electric guitar last Christmas and you said things really came into focus for you when you started playing your music on an electric guitar. What changed for you?
Well, I think that when I was playing more with an acoustic guitar, the thing that was missing was the "teeth" -- the electric guitar seems a little more dynamic to me. You have a range of things you can do with it. You can be really subdued with it and then it can get loud, and it can be a monster. There's more of a choice there. One of the grievances about being a singer-songwriter is that people talk during your shows, and sometimes you have people talking over you, and it can be frustrating to have that happen. When you plug in an electric guitar, people tend to quiet down and listen a little more. I appreciate being able to get really loud with it, and messy if I want to. It gives me more freedom with what I am able to do with my vocals. Especially when I'm playing a dirtier guitar, with pedals and distortion and everything, it allows me to scream a little more if I want to, which I love doing.

"Come to Terms" is the only song on the album with an acoustic guitar. Why did you pick that song to play acoustic?
That's a good question -- I debated over that. I was worried at first that it might seem a little bit inconsistent, if I did that one song on the acoustic and nothing else. I thought it was a good break and I love the way that the riff on "Come to Terms" sounds on the acoustic. I think it's a lot warmer song. Playing it live, I bounce back-and-forth between playing it on the acoustic and playing it on the electric. More than anything, it was a choice that I made in the moment, and it just happened to be that choice.

Your performance of "Honey" is very emotional and intense. Would you mind walking me through the genesis of "Honey" and how that performance came to be on the record?
I did write that song on an acoustic guitar in my bedroom but in my head I always heard it the way it came out on the record. I knew that in the studio I wanted "Honey" to just blow up. I wanted it to explode at the end. And I wanted it to be very messy. It did evolve a little bit from its beginnings but that's what I always intended the song to sound like.

How autobiographical is your music? Are these characters you're singing about or are you writing about yourself?
It's all there -- I'm all there. I wish I were better at writing about characters [but] I tend to be really in my head when I'm writing songs. And it's catharsis for me to just get it out. It's all me...as devastating as that may be.

What are your favorite themes to visit over and over again in your music?
Isolation is a big one. I really played a lot with the idea of being left behind, in a sense. Whether that means romantically -- falling in love with someone who doesn't love you back -- or maybe not being understood by a family member. Anything that makes one feel isolated.

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Art, Beer, Deals: Moves Brooklyn's New Wednesday Night Happy Hour

January 23, 2013, 12:35 pm

≫ Next: Juergen Teller's New Show and More...

≪ Previous: Get to Know Nashville-Based Musician Torres

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After a brief closing, wacky Brooklyn "concept store" Moves re-opens remodeled tonight. Turner Williams, Jr.'s paintings will be on the walls and free beer will be on tap. The weekly happy hours will take place every Wednesday going forward with different artwork, 20% discounts each week and live music the first Wednesday of every month.

Moves Brooklyn
419 Graham Ave,
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(646) 504-0658

(Photo via movesbrooklyn on Instagram)

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Juergen Teller's New Show and More...

January 23, 2013, 2:20 pm

≫ Next: Calling All Bushwick Singles...

≪ Previous: Art, Beer, Deals: Moves Brooklyn's New Wednesday Night Happy Hour

1. Started working on list of "Top Ten Epilepsy-Inducing Videos" but (almost) had a seizure while watching this one by Digitalism. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

2. Lolcats of the Middle Ages. (Detail of a miniature of mice laying siege to a castle defended by a cat; from a Book of Hours, England, c. 1320-1330, Harley MS 6563, f. 72r.)

3. It's back! One of our fave party spots, 88 Palace (88 East Broadway, 2nd floor), returns with a new monthly "Dark Disco" soiree starting February 9. DJs on the night: Jacques Greene, Martyn, Morri$ (if there was an "s" in PAPER, we'd use a dollar sign too) and DKDS. Will there be dim sum? Maybe. And, don't forget, the year of the snake starts the next day.

4. Float on. New series of cool car photos by Renaud Marion.

5. Juergen Teller just opened a new photo show called "WOO" at London's ICA this week. It's his first solo exhibit in the UK in ten years and will be on view until March 17. (Image: Juergen Teller, from the series 'Irene im Wald', 2012)

6. Ghe20 G0th1k -- with Venus X, $hayne, TotalFreedom, Brenmar, MikeQ, Chinky and many more fab creatures of the night -- take over both floors at Santos (96 Lafayette Street) this Friday, January 25, Advance tickets are here.

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Calling All Bushwick Singles...

January 23, 2013, 2:45 pm

≫ Next: NeNe Leakes Gets a Striptease On Ellen

≪ Previous: Juergen Teller's New Show and More...

If you've found that your McKibben Loft unit is too spacious for a solo occupancy, that an entire Roberta's pizza is too much food for one, or that it's a bummer to go to the Trip House single, then consider heading over tonight to The Ho_se for some Bushwick-style speed dating. Hosted by Alaina Stamatis -- she of Witness the Fitness jogging tours -- and Nathan Whipple of LITE JAZZ, the event boasts that it'll be your "pre-Valentines Day last chance at love in your zip or one of the adjacent zips before youre stuck spending the 14th w your bitch ass frenz."

We got a hold of Stamatis who told us that, unlike the kind of speed dating your weird Uncle Marty-with-the-clammy-hands used to do, this will be "very free-form." She added, "I'm having people read love stories -- anything love-themed -- and at the end of every song that our DJ plays, I'm going to force people to talk to people they don't already know. But I don't want to make things super uncomfortable or say that only boys and girls have to date." So, basically, if you want to meet a bunch of like-minded folk (i.e. people that party in Bushwick on a Wednesday night), this sounds like it could be a great, non-threatening space to do it in.

For more information, head over to the party's Facebook HERE.

The Ho_se, 28 Lawton St #1, Brooklyn NY

Above: That is Zane. He may be attending the party if his band finishes their Shea Stadium gig in time.

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NeNe Leakes Gets a Striptease On Ellen

January 24, 2013, 6:30 am

≫ Next: Dog Couture, Our New Favorite Thing

≪ Previous: Calling All Bushwick Singles...

Ellen surprised NeNe Leakes with an impromptu on-air bachelorette party complete with some boxer-brief-wearing strippers. It's a pretty special moment. [via Ellen]

Ryan Bates was also named "Most Thoughtful Member of the Class of 2004." [via Pleated Jeans]

Pucker up! [via Rrrick]

So, so, soothing. [via Coin Farts]

Here's the 'Lebowski High School Yearbook.' [via Vulture]

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Guinea pig perm. [via Bunny Food]

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Flavorwire has a neat little round-up of 20 business cards belonging to famous people.

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Kanye was seen out and about at Paris Fashion Week wearing this red mask. Because of course he was. [via Buzzfeed]

Baby sloth with a stuffed giraffe! [via Reddit]

Try not to have a seizure looking at this -- then you'll really be fucked. [via Coin Farts]

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Dog Couture, Our New Favorite Thing

January 24, 2013, 9:13 am

≫ Next: Gerlan Jeans Is Popping Up On the LES

≪ Previous: NeNe Leakes Gets a Striptease On Ellen

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Behold: preview pictures from a new book by photog Paul Nathan called Couture Dogs of New York, which comes out February 1st. The poodle in the gown is the best. [via Fashionista]

Vanity Fair is trying to make its Best Dressed List more interesting -- let's be honest, it's kind of a snore -- by letting two normal people be on the list. All you have to do is submit photos of your stylish self by clicking here. Good luck. [via The Cut]

If you've ever wanted to see the adorable Hudson Kroenig modeling a Choupette t-shirt and sweater, this Chanel ad is for you. [via Fashionista]

So Thom Yorke is clearly going to give us nightmares in the next issue of Dazed & Confused. [via Selectism]

Kate Hudson will be designing "a lineup of looks inspired by her red-carpet style, reinterpreted for everyday occasions" for Ann Taylor, which should hit stores in May. [via The Cut]

We like the new Benetton campaign, which features Alek Wek, Lea T., Charlotte Free, Elettra Wiedemann -- who talks about mistakes she make in her twenties -- and more. [via Fashionista]

H&M is going to hold its own runway show during Paris Fashion Week! We're kind of excited. [via fashionologie]

Holy shit -- Alasdair Mclellan shot Edie Campbell at Musée d'Orsay for 032c magazine. We wish the shoot hadn't been called Approaches to the History of Art (we groaned) but it's still amazing. [via It's Nice That]

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Gerlan Jeans Is Popping Up On the LES

January 24, 2013, 10:15 am

≫ Next: Drum, DJ, and Film Duets This Weekend in NYC

≪ Previous: Dog Couture, Our New Favorite Thing

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Fans of Minnie Mouse-meets-Riot Grrrl brand Gerlan Jeans will be psyched to hear that the label is setting up camp in the LES this Saturday for a 7-hour pop-up shop. The store, located at 47 Orchard St. (between Hester & Grand), will feature 75% fall/winter 2012 merch, limited edition re-issues from their archives, runway samples, one-offs and even some free swag with purchase. (We also hear they'll be serving "alien confections and tea," FYI -- but will they have any slime dresses?) To get a better sense of what's literally in store, check out these amazing photos PAPER's Rebecca Smeyne shot at the brand's show during this past fashion week.

Gerlan Jeans Pop-Up, 47 Ochard St., Saturday, January 26, noon-7 p.m.

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Drum, DJ, and Film Duets This Weekend in NYC

January 24, 2013, 10:30 am

≫ Next: Up in the (Super-Trippy) Club With Foals

≪ Previous: Gerlan Jeans Is Popping Up On the LES

Thursday, January 24

Film: Echoes of Silence/Hallelujah the Hills at Film Forum

Two films for the price of one. In Adolfas Mekas's 1963 comedy Hallelujah the Hills, two actresses play the same woman pursued by two different men through different genre-parody scenarios. The dialogue-free vignettes in Peter Emmanuel Goldman's 1967 Echoes of Silence follow lovelorn beatniks through Greenwich Village and Times Square.

Film Forum, 209 West Houston Street, (212) 727-8110. $12.50. Hallelujah the Hills (82 min., 35 mm) screens 1:00, 4:05, and 7:20; Echoes of Silence (74 min., 16 mm) screens 2:40 and 5:45.

Music: Bueno (EP Release) at Shea Stadium

Bueno's Tumblr establishes them as historians of Staten Island punk rock, but you don't need a ferry ticket to access the mix of deadpan vocals and saxophone skronk on their new EP, Skinpop. Tonight they play a Brooklyn venue named after a Queens baseball field. With Mr. Dream and Yvette.

Shea Stadium, 20 Meadow Street, Brooklyn. 8 p.m. $8.

Party: Voices of Black at the Flat

T-shirt line Kaviar and Cigarettes hosts a night of ambient soul grooves from DJ duo Voices of Black.

The Flat, 308 Hooper Street, Brooklyn. 11 p.m. Free.

Friday, January 25

Lecture: Ian Svenonius at (le) poisson rouge

Punk intellectual Svenonius (Nation of Ulysses, Chain and the Gang, the Make-Up), reads from his new book, Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock & Roll Group.

(le) poisson rouge (gallery), 158 Bleecker Street, (212) 505-3474. 6 p.m. Free. 21+

Art: Strange Lens at AIRPLANE

This group show brings together Hilary Doyle's painting of urban detritus, Dan Herr's frenetic abstractions, and Mike Olin's childlike sketches.

AIRPLANE, 70 Jefferson Street. Open Sundays 1-6 p.m. through February 24. Opening reception tonight 7-10 p.m.

Music: Will Redman and Kevin Shea at the Kitchen

Two avant-garde drummers occupy the two floors of Jacob Kassay's installation Untitled (disambiguation). Guests are encouraged to come and go as they please.

The Kitchen, 512 West 19th Street, (212) 255-5793. 7-9 p.m. Free.

Saturday, January 26

Party: Dope Jams Closing

This Clinton Hill shrine to classic house shuts its doors on the seventh anniversary of its opening.

Dope Jams, 580 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, (718) 622-7997. 8 p.m. $20.

Music: Hunters at Dead Herring

Another Brooklyn venue shutting its door tonight is Williamsburg apartment-cum-club Dead Herring. Tonight's send-off show features four local acts: post-punk shriekers Hunters; garage-soul growlers the Immaculates; punk-pop footstompers Moonmen on the Moon, Man; and synth-noise droners Necking.

Dead Herring, 141 South 5th Street, Brooklyn. 9 p.m. $5

Music: Lordz of Brooklyn at the Studio at Webster Hall

When Lordz of Brooklyn formed 25 years ago, "Brooklyn bands" weren't a thing. Instead, the rappers paid tribute to the immigrant communities preserved on screen in films like Saturday Night Fever, a sample from which opens their 1995 debut album, All in the Family. Their next album, 2006's The Brooklyn Way, saw them dropping the borough from their name and adding live instruments.

The Studio at Webster Hall, 125 East 11th Street. 7 p.m. $15. Tickets here.

Art/Music: Iceage at Home Sweet Home

Scandinavian goth-punks Iceage helped put together tonight's exhibition at Lower East Side speakeasy Figure 19, including artwork by Will Boone, Anthony Pappalardo and Marisa Paternoster (Screaming Females). Tickets will be available for the band's sure to be packed show at downstairs dive Home Sweet Home, also featuring External Affair and Pharmakon.

Figure 19, 131 Chrystie Street. Exhibition and box office open at 6 p.m. Music starts at 10 p.m. $10

Sunday, January 27

Music: Peter Stampfel at Bowery Electric

Downtown anti-folk fixture Peter Stampfel has performed with Bob Dylan, Yo La Tengo, and Buckminster Fuller and many others in the fifty-plus years since he founded the Holy Modal Rounders. Tonight finds him on the same bill as drummer extraordinaire Greg "GDFX" Fox (Guardian Alien, Zs) in a benefit for Das Menace musician and cancer survivor Letha Melchior.

Bowery Electric, 327 Bowery, (212) 228-0228. 8 p.m. $15. 21+

Art: Postcards from the Edge at Sikkema Jenkins

This annual benefit for Visual AIDS exhibits over a thousand postcard-sized works by artists established and not, each priced at $85 and displayed anonymously.

Sikkema Jenkins Gallery, 530 West 22nd Street, (212) 929-2262. 12-4 p.m. $5 suggested admission.

Party: Brooklyn Nightlife Awards at Glasslands

An upstart rival to PAPER's Nightlife Awards, this celebration includes awards for "Best Food Truck" and "Best Reason to Leave Brooklyn." Murray Hill and Merrie Cherry host the ceremony, with performances by AB SOTO, Krystal Something-Something, Di Ba, Horrorchata, and Zebra Baby.

Glasslands Gallery, 289 Kent Avenue, Brooklyn. 9 p.m. $10. Free after-party at This 'n' That, 108 North 6th Street.

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Up in the (Super-Trippy) Club With Foals

January 24, 2013, 11:00 am

≫ Next: Drag Queen Merrie Cherry On the First Annual Brooklyn Nightlife Awards

≪ Previous: Drum, DJ, and Film Duets This Weekend in NYC

Foals' third album, Holy Fire, is out on February 11 and -- as we see in this clip -- if you can't get tickets to one of their concerts, just hang around for the free show outside. And if you do get in, be sure to check out the action in the ladies' room. Seriously, we wouldn't mind catching them live, as they've got a happy, danceable sound. But unfortunately for us, they're down in Australia this weekend for Big Day Out 2013. One more thing: Does it look like you need 3D glasses to get the full effect of this video? Somebody give it a go.

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Drag Queen Merrie Cherry On the First Annual Brooklyn Nightlife Awards

January 24, 2013, 11:45 am

≫ Next: Our Top 10 Picks For Puppybowl IX

≪ Previous: Up in the (Super-Trippy) Club With Foals

It's no secret that Brooklyn nightlife has taken off in the last decade. While we nervously await for Output to open on upper Wythe Ave. in Williamsburg -- and do our best not to take to the street with pitchforks and torches, shouting dystopic LCD Soundsystem lyrics -- there's still a flourishing DIY party culture on the east side of the East River. And drag queen Merrie Cherry wants you to celebrate it. She's gathered a whole slew of Kings County creative types -- from super well-established co-host Murray Hill to more underground performers like Di Ba and Horrorchata to local gay faves AB Soto and Leo Gugu -- to present the Brooklyn Nightlife Awards at Glasslands Gallery on Sunday. Ahead of the big event, we chatted with Cherry about what to expect from the queer-ish, "straight-friendly" awards ceremony and her thoughts on what sets Brooklyn nightlife apart.

What made you want to do this event and awards show now?
I've noticed that a lot of people [who go out in Brooklyn] don't know the same socially-active people that live in the borough and have parties. You don't really get that in Manhattan. In Manhattan, everyone really knows everyone in the party scene. That disconnect [in Brooklyn] bothered me and that's pretty much why I decided to do the Brooklyn Nightlife Awards -- to bring all the people that are working really hard [together]. We don't get paid as much as they do in Manhattan but we do it because we love it and it's the only thing we know. The other reason is that Brooklyn needs a spotlight. There are so many great things going on and people need to know [about them].

Why do you think Brooklyn nightlife doesn't get the same attention as that in Manhattan?
I think it's because it's new. It's been five years or less that things have been growing here. Manhattan has owned the spotlight and it's easy for people to say, "Oh, everything I need to know about is in Manhattan." It has nothing to do with who's better, or who's worse, or who's higher up. A well-known Manhattan promoter tried to come into Brooklyn to do a party and the management said no.

Are you willing to say which promoter?
I can't. But to me, that was a huge sign because that [promoter] has been written about multiple times and is very popular but the [Brooklyn] management didn't want what he wanted to bring to come here. I feel like when people are looking for a different energy they come to Brooklyn because we go hard here.

How long have you been in Brooklyn?
I've been in Brooklyn on-and-off for two years now. I was in Manhattan for a year and I ran right back to Brooklyn.

What do you think of Manhattan nightlife?
I am not anti-Manhattan. I love going into Manhattan when I have the chance, but every time I go, it's the people I know from Brooklyn that are hanging out with me. I feel like even when you go to parties in Manhattan where people are dressed to the nines and there are these creative party kids in crazy outfits, [those kids] are really from Brooklyn. Manhattan's starting to realize that they need to get those kids in to make their parties more interesting.

What's your favorite neighborhood in Brooklyn?
My favorite neighborhood right now is Williamsburg, only because that's where my bread and butter is coming from. That's where all my shows are but I live in Bushwick. There's a lot of energy there. I haven't put my finger on exactly what but there are so many creative people. It's really the next frontier after Williamsburg has been taken over by a lot of the "I can't afford Manhattan, but I still want a nice place to live" people. There's some great bars like Tandem and One Last Shag in Bed-Stuy but Williamsburg is where all the money is right now, so even if you live in Bushwick [or Bed-Stuy], you're still going into Williamsburg to party.

Do you think South Brooklyn nightlife is sleepier?
Yes. I don't know why that is. I used to say that that part of Brooklyn is where the hipsters go to grow up, so I think that maybe there's a little truth in that even though I always say it in jest. Maybe the people that are all about parties live in [North] Brooklyn. But I tried very hard to get people that work in South Brooklyn [to be a part of the Brooklyn Nightlife Awards].

There are a lot of members of the LGBT community involved with the Brooklyn Nightlife Awards. Should we be calling it the Brooklyn Gay Nightlife Awards?
I wanted to make sure that it was LGBT and straight-friendly as well. Whenever I talk to people about it, I say this is for the LGBT, queer community and the people that love us. 'Cause straight people come to my parties all the time and I love them and I feel like it's not a party unless it's everyone.

Ab Soto, Horrorchata, Di Ba, Leo Gugu, Zebra Baby, Krystal Something-Something are all performing. Tell me what to expect.
So Di Ba is actually a burlesque performer and she's part of Backspace, which is an ensemble with Krystal Something-Something and Charmin Ultra. It's just going to be Di Ba performing [from that group]. I wanted a hip-hop performer, I wanted at least one or two drag queens, I wanted a burlesque performer and I wanted a pop-y performer just to make it all around different. So it's going to be shows, shows and more shows, honey.

And what about the after party?
There's an after party at This n' That where the shows will continue. We're gonna have a live band play and a few drag performances and I'm looking into trying to get Thorgy Thor to try to host the party because I'm gonna be done after that. And I'm really excited about Murray Hill. The fact that Murray Hill is even doing this with me is a huge honor and proves I'm doing something right. I can remember being a wee lad and seeing him on access television in California and just being in awe of him.

The Brooklyn Nightlife Awards at Glasslands Gallery, 289 Kent Ave., Williamsburg, Sunday, January 27 at 8pm; $10. Visit their website for more info.

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Our Top 10 Picks For Puppybowl IX

January 24, 2013, 12:45 pm

≫ Next: Lake Bell's Secret Obsession

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Rejoice, Puppy Bowl IX -- which airs on Animal Planet at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 3 -- is baaaack. This year features another super-cute all-star team of adoptable puppies, the legendary kitten half-time show and, wait for it .... hedgehog cheerleaders! (Why are you trying to make our hearts explode, Animal Planet?) A list of this year's contenders has been released, and let's just say, it'll be close this year. The full list is really long, so to help with your betting pool we've compiled our top ten favorite little players from starting lineup! One word: Gunther.

Name: Agatha
Breed: Miniature Pinscher
Agatha looks like she's got moxie and we like it (her adoption agency says that she "loves to be the center of attention.") No pooping on the 50-yard-line for Agatha. She'll take everyone down with her steely gaze.

Name: Juniper
Breed: Great Pyrenees
What a mug! Juniper's gaze tells us that 1) She thinks she's better than you (and is right); 2) She's tripping the light fantastic on Beggin' Strips secretly laced by Agatha and 3) She is picturing one of the hedgehog cheerleaders on a platter with an apple in its mouth. According to her adoption agency, she's "both a lover AND a fighter." She's totally gonna get DQ'd for not playing by the rules.

Name: Harry
Breed: Chocolate Dachshund Smooth
Harry looks completely gentle and timid in this picture, but apparently he's a "lovable little terror!" He's not in it for the win. He's in it for the chaos.

Name: Althea
Breed: Australian Shepherd/Catahoula Mix
We love Althea's name and she's adorable, but we gotta say we're on the fence about this one. Her agency says she loves to "snuggle" and we could totally see her taking a mid-game nap. But then again, she's a sheep dog and an inherent herder and might very well dominate on the field. Though we take her for more a good side-kick team-player type, she just might make Rookie of the Year.

Name: Butterscotch
Breed: Puerto Rican Sato
Butterscotch was rescued from a beach called 'Dead Dog Beach,' so the Puppy Bowl is probably a real walk in the park for her. (Side note: 'Dead Dog Beach' is where Donald Trump will marry his next wife in a beautiful cliff-side ceremony officiated by a dead dog.) Butterscotch also looks like she's going to cut a bitch if she doesn't win. We may have to put all of our money on her.

Name: Arlo
Breed: Labrador Retriever/Collie Mix
We don't know much about little Arlo except that he's from South Carolina, but he looks like he has a gentle demeanor and would just love it if you cupped his head in your hands and kissed him while cooing "who's my whittle wuv bug" in a creepy baby voice. His soft side might not make for great puppy football antics, but this blog says that South Carolina's football team has been kicking ass lately, so maybe he'll be great by osmosis.

Name: Aurora
Breed: Siberian Husky/Retriever Mix
Oh god, Aurora is giving us heart palpitations. Look at that eager face! According to her adoption agency she also "loves toys" and likes to "play, play play." She'll definitely give everyone a run for their money, but maybe she's a tad too eager and energetic to be the winner of Puppy Bowl. Girl just wants it too much.

Name: Marta
Breed: Schnauzer/Beagle Mix
We took Marta for a pageant pup. What can we say? She's got the lewk. But she "loves to wrestle with bigger dogs," so bring it gurl.

Name: Daisy
Breed: Yorkshire Terrier
Daisy is definitely the underdog in this race. She's spunky, she's clearly got drive and she also likes to "wrestle with her two brothers." Hold Daisy's earrings, Marta is going down.

Name: Gunther
Breed: Pit Bull/ Hound Mix
Gunther is totally that dog with the intimidating, tough-guy exterior who's a softy on the inside. That said, Gunther seems like he has seen some STUFF. He's obviously a fighter, survivor and apparently he's "amazingly quiet" and a really good cuddler. Our prediction: He will stealthily take down all opponents, win the game, snuggle with the ref, and then, after the game, stare off into the sunset while leaning against his pick up, the only car left in the Puppy Bowl Arena lot, while taking slow pulls from a flask.

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Lake Bell's Secret Obsession

January 24, 2013, 1:45 pm

≫ Next: The New Coen Brothers Movie Is Full of Crazy Actors + A Cat

≪ Previous: Our Top 10 Picks For Puppybowl IX

Lake Bell has always been obsessed with accents. The actress confesses, "I did in fact carry around a tape recorder around with me and accost strangers who had cool accents." It was this interest that led her to create In a World..., a film she wrote, directed, and starred in about a broke vocal coach who aspires to break into the voiceover industry, despite having a competitive father known as the most famous movie trailer voiceover artist in the biz. "The voiceover industry and that whole world is fascinating to me" she tells us at Sundance, where her film is screening, before revealing that her curiosity with voices began, in fact, when she was a child. "My parents lived in different states [when I was growing up]," she says. "My mom was in Florida and my dad in New York, so I got to fly around as an unaccompanied minor every other weekend...I would love to stop in Atlanta just so I had the chance to coerce [flight attendants] to do the safety announcements," she says. "So you know I was really lobbying for this job for a long time."

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The New Coen Brothers Movie Is Full of Crazy Actors + A Cat

January 24, 2013, 2:29 pm

≫ Next: Matt Damon Took Over Jimmy Kimmel Live and It Was Awesome

≪ Previous: Lake Bell's Secret Obsession

The new Coen Brothers movie Inside Llewyn Davis is basically everything we've ever dreamed of in a trailer, all in one place. The movie explores the Greenwich Village music scene in the early-Dylan era through the eyes of Llewyn, an aspiring folk singer. Oscar Isaac plays the titular character and Carey Mulligan -- who's clearly his ex -- spits out some pretty funny and biting one-liners. We also get some good insults from John Goodman. And that cat! Oh, and did we mention that Adam Driver, Alex Karpovsky, and Justin Timberlake are also in it? The movie comes out on February 8th and you bet we'll be there.

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Matt Damon Took Over Jimmy Kimmel Live and It Was Awesome

January 25, 2013, 6:30 am

≫ Next: The Complicated History of Underworld's "Born Slippy"

≪ Previous: The New Coen Brothers Movie Is Full of Crazy Actors + A Cat

Matt Damon took over Jimmy Kimmel Live last night, duct-taping Kimmel to a chair and torturing him with appearances from various celebrities who were there to make fun of him, including his ex, Sarah Silverman. Highlight: Silverman talking about what it was like to date Kimmel in the clip above. More clips here.

WNYC's map of the most popular dog names in New York City by neighborhood. PAPER field trip to the random pocket of Queens that's home to tons of dogs named Lucas? [100yearsoflolitude]

Emergency glitter. [TastefullyOffensive]

Cool guy cacti. [Erectionate]

When we're not making one of these four faces, we're thinking about making one of these four faces. [RoboShark]

The Internet does not like you like that. :( [KimJongChill]

Jumping the birthday cake. [TheClearlyDope]

Support your local Slothronaut. [Reddit]

Only the best butt. [TastefullyOffensive]

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The Complicated History of Underworld's "Born Slippy"

January 25, 2013, 7:00 am

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≪ Previous: Matt Damon Took Over Jimmy Kimmel Live and It Was Awesome

Oh boy, this song's got a complicated history. In fact, it's title is actually "Born Slippy.NUXX." You probably recognize it from Danny Boyle's film Trainspotting, but Underworld first released it in 1995 as the b-side to an instrumental track called "Born Slippy" -- the ".NUXX" suffix was randomly added to the mix by a computer, so they left it. After this version was used in the film, it became a big, world-wide hit, reaching #2 on the UK pop charts in July 1996. And what's a "born slippy"? It was the name of a greyhound taken from a racing form.

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