DAILYSESSION

By Amanda Farah – BushwickBK.com

When it was announced that Marissa Nadler was playing in Bushwick last week, almost as much buzz surrounded the venue as the artist. It was the first time many of us had heard of Envelope, a space that had held its first and only show in October. What led to further chattering was that the address of Envelope was only given to those who purchased tickets, and that those tickets were $30 — considered steep by “Bushwick standards.”

In a neighborhood with more DIY than licensed music venues, Envelope presents a new approach to the homegrown experience. Envelope hosts only one show a month, with a capacity for only 60 guests. The rest of the time, it operates as a recording studio. Shows have been booked for the next 10 months, but at the moment there are no plans to expand performances beyond the once-monthly showcases. [Read More]

Photo by Clayton Patterson – The Villager

Tompkins Square Park’s “Tent City,” partly seen above in the late 1980’s or early 1990’s, was a highly polarizing issue in the East Village. At times, the homeless settlement occupied as much as one-third of the entire park. [Read More]

By Bille Jam – NewYork Post

It was only 31 years ago that Gary Weis filmed his movie on South Bronx gang culture, 80 Blocks From Tiffany’s, but it seems like an eternity. “It was a whole different time and place. It was kind of like Dresden when I filmed there,” the director now says of the rubble-strewn, bombed-outlooking borough where he shot his gripping, gritty documentary in the summer of 1979.

It was Koch-era New York when the South Bronx, one of the poorest areas in the nation, was such a rundown destitute place that both Presidents Carter and Reagan traveled there for photo ops to exemplify the most striking symbol they could find of urban decay in America. It was also the time and place when the subways were covered in graffiti and when a new music and culture called hip-hop was taking root in the “Boogie Down” Bronx. [Read More]