The cursed Studio B, a constant nuisance to neighbors in the past, has been opening and closing since the day it opened! At least, it seems that way with the help of rampant rumors. Brooklyn Vegan reported on the latest from the Greenpoint club/rumor factory, saying "word is that Brooklyn mostly-dance club Studio B is really closing this time—by the end of July." Their website currently lists events through July 12th, and an upcoming 2 Live Crew show on July 25th is being moved from the venue. We've contacted Studio B for a statement but have not heard back yet; last time around they told us: "Studio B is not closed and will be open at least until the beginning of February for sure. Mid February the decision will be made to weather or not the club will keeps its doors open." Raise your hand if you care either way! more ›

Who can keep up with all these Studio B rumors! Last we heard the Greenpoint venue was definitely, maybe closing forever-ish. Then on December 23rd, creative director Chris Love (if that is his real name) emailed us that "Studio B is not closed and will be open at least until the beginning of February for sure. Mid February the decision will be made to weather [sic] or not the club will keeps its doors open." And now NYMag is reporting that promoter Dave P, and his partner Josh Houtkin are taking over by managing, running, and booking the joint. Houtkin declared, “We both feel this is the best club in New York.” Har har. He really said that! Other things neighbors can look forward to: regular shows and parties coming in March, the illegal rooftop finally getting legalized and fully opening, and patrons under 21 allowed to partake in all the festivities. It's like it died and came back three times as powerful! more ›

Owner of the now shuttered Luna Lounge, Rob Sacher, has spoken out about the closing. As the space transforms into the new Knitting Factory (which is moving over from Manhattan), he explains: "I was unable to get enough shows on a regular basis. I still own the name Luna Lounge and am interested in finding another space in which to work with bands. In the meantime, I will soon be opening a new bar called The Satellite Lounge on Havemeyer Street in Williamsburg." The new space holds up to 75 people, and will not have live music (but allegedly will have a jukebox). Meanwhile, over in Greenpoint Studio B has put up notice on their website that they are "not closing," however in an email they told us they "will be open at least until the beginning of February for sure. Mid February the decision will be made to whether or not the club will keeps its doors open." more ›

With Studio B going through so much drama this year, it wasn't surprising to hear it may be closing in 2009. The venue has finally gotten back to us with some more details, and here's the latest, straight from the source: "Studio B is not closed and will be open at least until the beginning of February for sure. Mid February the decision will be made to weather [sic] or not the club will keeps its doors open. The NYE event has been selling advanced tickets pretty steadily, so it looks like its gonna be a good one!" But, but...most of their events have been moved to other venues, and their calendar only has one event listed for all of January. Maybe the deejay lineup on New Year's Eve can help drown out that death rattle for a little longer. more ›

The other day we caught wind that Studio B in Greenpoint is on the market, but now we've received an email from JD Productions (who put on events there) stating: "It is with deep regret that we have to announce that the owner of Studio B has decided to close it's doors effective immediately." IMMEDIATELY! Okay, composure. Mr. John Davis's email continues: "It seems that after a great start, the club had struggled to keep promoters and develop their nights quickly enough. By the time I had put the Sunday Shoutin! event together, it was clear that the club was in deep trouble. I did make an attempt to buy the space from the owner but his asking price was completely unrealistic. This is the second time in 6 months he has suddenly closed the club and in doing so has damaged his reputation amongst patrons and promoters." Studio B is keeping mum at the moment, but if they ever return our request for a comment we'll update the post. For now, just remember the good times. UPDATE: Mr. Davis sent out an email seconds ago stating "due to contractual agreements Studio B will be operating this Saturday and also for NYE and New Years Day, after which time it will cease operations. Sorry for any confusion but the club just informed me of these updates." So like three more shows, then closed forever! more ›

Time for plan B? Things aren't looking so hot at Brooklyn club Studio B—Grub Street is reporting it's on the market "for $1 million and a $22,000-per-month rent." The club, based on Miami's Studio A, has been hitting roadblocks all along since opening in Greenpoint two years ago. But so far neighbor complaints, stop work orders, Miss Heather, and illegal rooftops haven't been able to shut the doors for good...until now? Promoter Justine D also shared her departure from the establishment in an email today, explaining: "I've been busy making the transition from STUDIO B to an amazing new venue called (LE) POISSON ROUGE." Currently their calendar runs through the end of January. more ›

Greenpoint's Studio B has allegedly been shut down; good news for some neighbors, bad news for some patrons. The Brooklyn Paper writes of its demise, saying it has "now been shut down by the Department of Buildings — but club lawyer Ken Fisher says the club has fixed whatever led to the failed inspection." No specifics have leaked, but the DoB shut the club down on July 31st, following the CB1 meeting that ended in a vote against the club's cabaret license. One local told the paper, “It’s gratifying to know we won’t have any problems for a while. But it’s not as if I’m wishing the club disappeared off the face of the earth forever. I look forward to see what’s going to happen next.” Probably not a popular opinion amongst most residents, who have been trying to shut the club down since it opened its doors in 2006. Meanwhile, Fisher says he's awaiting the DoB to re-inspect the establishment. more ›

Last night the Community Board panel voted against recommending a cabaret license for Studio B, something the club has lacked for years – not that that's stopped anyone inside from getting down. At the core of the club's problem are the neighbors, who are now getting as loud as Studio B's late night parties, while running wild with Footloose laws clenched in their fists. Amongst their complaints are the new roof deck, the trash, the noise and of course the dancing – the horrible, illicit, sinful dancing. This one time one of them saw a girl flash her breasts inside of the club on the dancefloor! more ›

Studio B has been met with some serious opposition in their Greenpoint neighborhood, and this week they'll be meeting with Community Board 1 to discuss their cabaret license, or lack thereof (they've been operating without one for two years). more ›

EVENT: It's another First Friday at The Bronx Museum, where there will be free beer, music and of course art. Tonight's a "New York City rock and roll extravaganza; a musical exploration of up and coming urban rock and roll superstars with The Bangers and Dragons of Zynth." more ›

Two years ago Studio B promised/threatened to bring Miami to Greenpoint, and for better or worse, the venue/club/bar has delivered ever since. Currently they're raising the bar by creating a palm tree adorned rooftop oasis -- and the neighbors are just thrilled. more ›

Add a koi pond, some palm trees and a wood patio to a New York roof, and you probably get to raise the drink prices by a few bucks (see: The Delancey). Add those things (minus the koi pond) to your Greenpoint venue, and maybe people will start going (see: Studio B). more ›

Well this was unexpected! Not afraid to wear a fur coat to the Natural History Museum, Kanye West made a surprise appearance at last Friday's Cool Kids/Kid Sister party. As Kid Sister was finishing up her set, Kanye jumped up on stage to throw in his part of their duet. He then stayed up there to play a short set of all his current hits. DJ A-Trak claimed it to be a last minute arrangement, getting thrown together by text messages that evening, and it was a well kept surprise. It certainly made the several long will call lines attendees were forced to wait in more tolerable in hindsight. (Pic by Justin Charles for Flavorpill, who hosted the event) more ›

THEATER: Blogging playwright Brooke Berman’s new satire, Hunting and Gathering, starts with a homage to all the apartments she’s occupied in New York – twenty in all. What follows is a story of “four interconnected New Yorkers and their thwarted attempts to find their place – without compromise. Jesse has his first date since his divorce, his ex-lover Ruth is living a fantasy, his brother Astor is the 'man with the van,' and Bess has a plan to come out on top.” Produced by Primary Stages, you can enrich your theatergoing experience with these Hunting and Gathering webisodes. – John Del Signore more ›

MOVIE: Every national election year reminds us of that part in The Dark Crystal where the hideous Skeksis systematically drain the Gelfling’s “essence” and drink it to increase their power. If you don’t know the scene we’re talking about, you need to go see it on the big screen tonight – a regular-sized TV monitor just doesn’t do Jim Henson’s creepy masterpiece justice. The one-night-only screening will be introduced by one of the film’s puppet makers, Cheryl Henson, daughter of Jim. She’ll be joined by Robbie Barnett, who operated some of the main Skeksis; the pair will sign merch after the screening. more ›

THEATER: The salty, electric dynamo that is Elaine Stritch shows no sign of waning – about to turn 83-years-young, the show biz legend has kicked off 2008 with a reprise of her Tony-winning cabaret show. Backed by a six-piece band and performed in two acts for a dining audience at the newly restored Café Carlyle, Elaine Stritch at Liberty, co-written with the New Yorker’s John Lahr, is a hilarious, old-fashioned ride through star-studded post-war Broadway, bursting with stories from her roles in such legendary productions as Company, Bus Stop, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The Times raves: “Every story in her arsenal of seamlessly stitched personal anecdotes is illustrated with body language that erupts like lightning out of words spoken in the gravelly voice of a tough old dame with a tender heart. Because she has the gift of gab, this loudmouthed life of the party could go on forever.” It’s an expensive night, but worth it. Dining reservations are almost booked through the end of the run on Jan 19th, but they do accept walk-ins for the bar seating. – John Del Signore more ›

Where, like last year, we recap the biggest stories from the New York music scene of the year. more ›

Aside from a reanimated corpse Beatles reunion, there is not another dormant band in the world that could cause more excitement getting back together than Led Zeppelin. So, for the first time in 19 years, with Jason Bonham in for his late father behind the drums and the rest of the original pieces in place, the band picked up where they left off, playing a Greatest-Hits set to a beyond sold out O2 arena in London earlier this week. The band sounded remarkably on point for a group of guys who hadn't appeared on stage in two decades, seeming to having a total blast playing with each other. To the surprise of nearly everyone, they even dusted off Stairway to Heaven and gave it a go, putting every miserable bar band for the last 30 years to shame. Will they do it again? Maybe come stateside, play a couple nights at the Garden? Time will tell. In the meantime, check out the many clips on youtube (before they all get taken down.) (pic via positivelypurple's Flickr) more ›

EVENT: Into anime? It's your lucky weekend, the New York Anime Festival is in town! There will be previews, screenings and panels galore. Check out their website for more details. All Weekend // Jacob Javits Convention Center [655 W 34th St] // $30 day pass, $55 weekend pass SHOP: FIT and the Design Mavens come together for a 3 day shopstravaganza. Tons of designers we're not cool enough to have ever heard of will be... more ›

ART: Tonight a group of artists take what one would normally put in the paper shredder, and look at it in a whole new light. The Dotted Line "presents work that assumes the form of official documents ubiquitous to everyday life. The participating artists seek to imbue these commonplace documents with new meaning and to consider the implications of those moments when we are asked to sign along a dotted line." Open through December 21st.... more ›

We're sure to take a bunch of flack about this, but bear with us for a sec. Maroon 5? Not so bad. In fact, at least judging by the first two singles off their latest album, they've moved past the tasteless soccer-mom rock into a legitimately perverted cocaine-sex territory (Exhibit 1: Their amazingly over the top video for 'Wake Up Call'). And that's a good thing. Combine that with a clever SNL/Samberg cameo on Iran So Far and an arena debut at MSG this week with Kanye West coming out as a surprise guest, we're officially impressed. Watch out. (pic via Jen DeRosa's Flickr) more ›

After several months of playing massive festivals around the world, The original blog-band returns home. And you know, just because blogs don't follow these fellas' every move anymore doesn't mean that the DIY posterboys aren't still out there selling out clubs and supporting their sophomore album. They played a few local shows this week and their ever-improving live act was tight and on point at the Music Hall of Williamsburg and Gramercy Theater (where Natalie Portman turned up to catch their set). These two shows kick off a good old fashioned cross-country club tour with Elvis Perkins and Deerland, which will wind back up here for 2 more sold out concerts at Bowery and Studio B in November. While they stuck to a set of already released songs this week, we hope maybe we'll hear reports of some new songs on this tour. Seems like they’re about due. We shall see. (pic via Tomiffy's flickr) more ›

EVENT: The American Opera Project has taken on...baseball? Tonight they present Baseball Through The Eye of the Artist. You'll catch some scenes from Daniel Sonenberg's opera-under-development The Summer King. And stick around for Bang The Drum Slowly, "the acclaimed 1973 baseball film that marked the beginning of Robert DeNiro's illustrious film career." more ›

MOVIE: The new Hairspray has set up special Sing-A-Long screenings! They begin nationwide today, and there will be three right here in New York. If you don't like rowdy theaters, skip this one! more ›

We've never handed our tickets to the door guy at a show before and been asked if we wanted to get a table and buy a bottle. But this, I suppose, is what you get when you go see a show on 16th street and 10th ave. Our experience at the new High Line Ballroom felt as if we were living the opening scene of a Law and Order episode, where at any second some over-tanned I-banker would come stumbling out of the bathroom covered in blood as everybody runs towards the exit. The thumping music, the blinding lights and this lingering sense of false superiority reeked of a disaster, but the ambiance aside, both Spankrock and Ghostface put on one hell of a show. Each act managed to cram as many people as possible on the stage, all rocking and flopping about to the music. Even fellow Wu-Tanger RZA came up briefly at the mic for a brief cameo. Live hip-hop shows are often a mixed bag for us, but while this one started out a bit sketch, it ended with a huge bang. (pic via Gaelenh's Flickr) more ›

We're smack dab in the middle of Bike Month, and today the Bicycle Film Festival kicks off. more ›

FESTIVAL: The New York Ukulele Festival has arrived. The weekend includes: "nonstop Ukulele Fun! Concerts, Vendors, Workshops, Jams! 40,000 Square Feet, Two Concert Stages! FREE BEER ALL WEEKEND. FREE UKULELE DOOR PRIZES AT EVERY CONCERT!!” more ›

Yes, when they played their own set on Saturday night at Studio B, Of Montreal pretty much ran through the same shtick they did a month earlier at Irving Plaza. Nothing wrong with that, however, as that set was just about the best show we've been to all year and we were more than happy to re-experience it. But this show, was not entirely about Of Montreal. It was about the fans. In particular, the fans with the BAC to get up on stage and sing karaoke standards with Kevin Barnes and friends playing backup. And believe it or not, It was an almost entirely enjoyable experience. Fluxblog has a nice write-up and links to YouTube videos of most renditions. (Recommended: Aquaman and The Rudd/Wain Experience.) more ›

THEATER: You’ve got just three more weekends to experience one of the wildest and most entertaining late-night theater extravaganzas to hit New York this century. The Curse of the Mystic Renaldo The defies description – what begins as a fake silent movie (ostensibly unearthed during the construction of 3 Legged Dog’s sleek new theater center) quickly dashes off in countless delirious directions at once: There’s live rock, hilarious vaudevillian slapstick, both high and low art, free popcorn, free regular and light beer, side-splitting ribaldry and, above all, the virtuoso performance of Aldo Perez, the show’s charismatic creator. (Not to take anything away from his equally brilliant co-stars Jenny Lee Mitchell and Richard Ginocchio.) See it now so you’ll have time to catch it again before it closes. - John Del Signore more ›

We here at the Gothamist Arts & Entertainment World Headquarters may disagree on what to think about Patrick Wolf, but there is a solidifying consensus that his performance at Hiro last night (his first NYC appearance in 4 years) was not too great. Our growing frustration with Hiro Ballroom is only magnified by how impressive their booking has been of late. For the first three quarters of the short set, the sound was grating. Nothing mixed together, vocals either came in too strong or not at all, and the intricate instrumentation on stage was impossible to decipher. It wasn't until the final song of the set, The Magic Position, where everything came together correctly, but by then the damage has been done. One of the saddest side effects of the closings of the many different downtown rock clubs is that the acts that should normally be playing in them are now getting gobbled up by larger, non-music venues where the concert attendee is considered an afterthought. Every time we have to suffer through a set at a place like Hiro, Annex or R&R, our anticipated longing for places like Sin-e and Tonic grows more and more. more ›