The FTL Collective would like to thank everyone who helped make our 1 year anniversary party last Saturday so amazing. It’s kind of risky to recite a list of everyone we want to thank because we’re bound to forget someone, but we’re going to do it anyway.
Thanks to the people behind The Bubble for letting us throw our birthday bash at your space. That includes everyone from the door people to the bartenders to the people that helped set up and clean up. Thanks to Manifest Test Subject, Lavola, Ryan Alexander, Retrocities, Brady Newbill, The Goddamn Hustle, and Travalonia for the great performances. Thanks to all the artists who showcased their incredible work at our party: Ari Justin Rothenberg, Luzalma Gonzalez, Rachel DeJohn, Laura Atria, and South Florida Camera Club members Danny Hammontree, Tracy Mendy, Nancy Goldwin, Jayne Villamizar, Lauren Britz. Thanks to Frank for cooking up some delicious food on the grill. Thanks to Kimber Kirton (Penelope Lane Photography) for bringing her zany photo booth. Thanks to Green Room for donating some delicious bottles of vodka for the party. Thanks to every single person that attended the party. It really meant a lot to us to see everyone out there. And thanks to everyone who has taken the time to check out our website over the past year. We appreciate all of our readers, even the ones that couldn’t make it this past Saturday.
If you weren’t able to make it, here are some tunes from some of the bands that performed. Enjoy.
Manifest Test Subject – Castle Crashers
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/17093680″]
The Goddamn Hustle – Bodies
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/16067493″]
Ryan Alexander – Catacombs & Caves (acoustic)
Retrocities – City Nights and Written By Machinery (live @ Propaganda)
With the emergence of FAT Village art walks, Digital Love Thursdays, The Bubble, various artist collectives, the opening of Laser Wolf, downtown music fests, and the food truck invasion, there’s no doubt that Fort Lauderdale’s local scene is on the rise. That doesn’t mean we should be complacent; there’s always room for more venues and events for artists, musicians, and local foodies to showcase their craft. Thanks to the incredible support of the people behind Revolution and the stronghold of regulars for Digital Love, the new-ish downtown venue Green Room will now become a destination for local art and music lovers through the weekend, not just Thursday nights. Starting this Saturday, May 28th, the Green Room will introduce Gallery Saturdays. Below is the official press release:
Green Room Gallery Night Grand Opening
Art and music collide this Memorial Day weekend at Fort Lauderdale’s hottest new lounge, Green Room, the newest addition to the Revolution-America’s Backyard complex. On May 28th, Green Room kicks off its newest night, Gallery Saturdays, which will take place every Saturday night. Each month Green Room will feature a variety of local artists in the lounge’s loft area, which has been transformed into a sleek, new gallery space. The grand opening will feature Fort Lauderdale’s most sought after artists- Sean Murdock, Laura Atria, Laura Marie Peterson, Solé Del Real, Gina Bentivegna, and John Bernasconi. Eye and ear candy abound at the lounge’s grand opening! In addition to art displayed in the gallery, the grand opening event will include a live and gallery art exhibition by Gina Bentivegna, video installations by Ana Perez, delicious treats from CloudNine Cupcakes, and a fashion show by famed Fort Lauderdale designer, McLaine O. as well as a sultry burlesque show by The Reckless Dames. Local band, Pretty Please will be performing live and later, DJs Andie Sweetswirl and MIG will provide the soundtrack for the night.
Drink specials include $2 PBR, $5 shots of Jack Daniels and a special on craft beers.
Admission: Free
If you couldn’t tell already, I’m very excited about everything that’s happening at Green Room. This blog was formed to promote all kinds of local art, music, and businesses — now with Gallery Saturdays, we’ll get all that every weekend. Come out this Saturday and check out the event for yourself. With this many creative types merging in one space, it’s sure to be a great time. RSVP to mig@ftlcollective.com for FREE CHAMPAGNE from 9-11. Hope to see you out there.
For full disclosure, I (Mig) help put together nights for Green Room. Regardless, I promise you that my excitement is very genuine and not just to get heads in the door. It’s indisputable that this weekly event/venue will be a great addition to the arts scene in Ft Lauderdale.
Well, we got spoiled last weekend, so we’re due for a slight letdown the following week. This Thursday kicks ass, but Friday and especially Saturday aren’t overly packed with activity. Luckily, we managed to scrounge together a couple of note-worthy events for your weekend. Here’s where you might find us this weekend:
Thursday
Twilight Notes & Freedom Art have put together a great lineup of exhibiting photographers for this month’s Dialect at Brew Himmarshee. You know the drill by now — lots of art, a handful of chill DJs, craft beer specials, and a large gathering of some of South Florida’s most creative types. All the specific details can be found on the Facebook event page. Make sure to check out yesterday’s interview with the mega talented Danny Hammontree, one of Thursday’s exhibiting photographers. Party is from 8:30 to 12:30 at downtown Brew, 209 SW 2nd Ave Fort Lauderdale, FL.
The limited edition silk-screen poster by Jose E Lopez of Freedom Art. Available for purchase at Thursday's Dialect at Brew Himmarshee..
Just a block away from Dialect, Digital Love hosts Depressed Buttons, the side project of 3 members of popular group the Faint. Signed to Diplo’s record label Mad Decent, these guys are sure to please the crowd with their electro laden remixes and originals. There’s a cover of $14, but readers of the FTL Collective can get in for free. RSVP to mig@ftlcollective.com to get on the guestlist for FREE entry into tonights soiree.
Friday
An Evening Of Experimental Music at the Arts And Culture Center Of Hollywood sounds really interesting. There is a slew of participating artists (the list can be found here) and unconventional music by fsik huvnx, Pocket of Lollipops, Richard Vergez, and Susan Telemetry. The event starts and ends early (6pm-9pm), so it’s a good idea to start your Friday night here. Admission is free for members, $10 for non-members. It’s located at 1650 Harrison St., Hollywood, FL.
It’s a hardcore music throwdown at Rocketown. The 2 day event is called Bringing It Back For The Kids at Rocketownand features some heavy hitters such as Terror, Casey Jones, Evergreen Terrace, Stick To Your Guns, and Shai Hulud. Only want to go one day? Here are the set times for all the bands. Bands start at 6pm. Single day tickets are $20. Rocketown is located at 371 S Federal Hwy, Pompano Beach, FL.
Saturday
Wait…free entry, free massages, free cupcakes, free drinks, free live music, and free-to-view art. That’s exactly what’s happening at the closing of the month-long Earth Day Fest at 1310 Gallerey in the Sail Boat Bend Artists Loft (1310 SW 2nd Ct, Ft Lauderdale, FL) from 7pm – 11pm.
Next door, the minor leaguers from the Palm Beach Cardinals and Tampa Yankees face off for an epic Florida State League battle. First pitch at 6:30.
Sunday
I got nothing. Lay off me!
In addition to this weekend preview, make sure to also check out South Florida Music Obsessed for Lauren’s weekly listing of music events in all of South Florida. Despite covering a lot outside of our metro area, she does a great job with her local only Around Town posts.
We’re often subjected to crossing county lines to witness quality, massive local lineups (i.e. Zit Fest, Lake Worth It Festival, Respectable Street yearly anniversary party, Death To The Sun, Sweatstock, to name a few). I’m not complaining- I’m more than happy to make the drive to Miami or Palm Beach to support South Florida’s burgeoning music and arts scene. It’s just kind of nice to have a high caliber, local music event in our own backyard every once in awhile. like the one we’ll be experiencing tomorrow. Well, thanks to the people at Revolution and Poor House, we finally have our own epic gathering of quality South Florida bands, the SW 3rd Avenue Music Festival (WARNING: don’t judge this event by its mundane name). With 25 bands on 5 stages with overlapping set times, 1 skateboard half pipe, and a handful DJs, you’ll have a lot of tough decisions to make in regards to what to see. Note: 4 of the 5 stages are FREE, Revolution’s stage where Nonpoint is headlining costs $11.
Although the FTLC staff plans on mingling at every stage at some point, we’ve compiled a list of 12, what we think, must-see performances this Friday. New Times did a great post covering music for all the acts on their Green Room stage.Click here to stream audio from Lavola, The New, Plains, Young Circles, The Dewars, and John Ralston. We’ve provided the rest.
THE 12 MUST-SEE BANDS AT THE SW 3RD AVE MUSIC FESTIVAL:
Seriously, how the hell can we possibly attend all the great events in Broward this weekend? Here’s the lineup. Choose wisely.
THURSDAY
Digital Love hosts an incredible doubleheader tonight: Miami’s emerging Panic Bomber and the sophisticated punk rock duo Pocket Of Lollipops. Check out the sidebar for some Panic Bomber tunes and our latest compilation (track #8) for a Pocket Of Lollipops ditty. Normally, Digital Love has no cover, but tonight it’s $10. Luckily, if you mention “Mig” at the door you get in for FREE. Also, if you’re a regular on Thursdays you’ll get in for FREE. Party starts at 10 at the Green Room.
Laser Wolf has a excellent lineup tonight. Unfortunately, it overlaps the above mentioned Green Room party, but it’s our local bloggers duty to mention it: Live performances by Travalonia, Chris Horgan, Pretty Please, and Atlanta garage rockers Carnivores. No cover.
FRIDAY
Based on past reviews and word-of-mouth, this Friday’s Mai-Kai dance party is not to be missed. Popular vinyl DJs Sensitive Side, James Brown’s Sweat, and Mikey Ramirez will be spinning everything from funk, soul, and punk. Last go around, the party was over capacity, but no worries, the place has taken the initiative to fix the overflow problem by opening another section of the restaurant. Party starts at 9pm and ends at 2am with a happy hour running from 10 to midnight. No cover.
SATURDAY
Your weekend headliner, IWAN’s The Bubble’s 2nd Birthday Bash, is a can’t-miss event. Just in case you haven’t dropped by the artsy warehouse, the New Times sufficiently described the venuein their post about this event. The Bubble’s grand opening 2 years ago was a contributing factor in my interest in FTL’s burgeoning arts scene, and by default, a contributing factor in starting this Broward-focused blog. It’s a place worth celebrating. Come out and party at one of (if not the best) place for creative types to get together in our city. The massive band lineup includes Alexander, Dooms De Pop, Pretty Please, Radar-vs-Wolf, Low Visibility, Raffa Jo (of Raffa & Rainer), Rob Elba (of the Holy Terrors and Hearing Damage), Travalonia, Brady Newbill, Black Weather Shaman, and Loxahatchee Sinners Union. In addition to all the live music, there will be tons of local art and goodies. There will also be a mysterious “fun booth” by Penelope Lane Photography and indie tunes by Andie Sweetswirl and myself throughout the night. Bands start at 6pm. $5 cover, plus another $5 for an all-you-can-drink keg cup. The warehouse is located at 810 NE 4th Ave, FTL.
I’m not sure why the warehouses don’t get together and plan their parties so they don’t overlap, but SWARM is having a big bash at the same time as the Bubble. If for some reason, you hate me and want to disregard my above suggestion, this party should be great as well. Performances by K-the-i??? (do I have that right?), Stereo 13, Verble, and Sully. There will also be tons of art, DJs spinning, skateboard demos, and a prize wheel. Party starts at 9pm. This warehouse is located at 500 SW 21st Terrace, FTL.
If you don’t like basketball and skipped all the great nightlife on Saturday night, wake up early and support Mothers Against Drunk Driving by joining their walk/run at Huizenga Park. Details on the official MADD website.
SATURDAY
