moe. and Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country
Tie-dye shirts, vibrant bandanas, flowing skirts, and the glow of golden sunshine blessing an East River rooftop. This was the scene attracting an eclectic collection of country buffs and deadheads alike on a summer’s afternoon at New York’s infamous Pier 17 Rooftop stage. With the Brooklyn Bridge peaking through the backdrop, the vibes fit the music perfectly. moe. and Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country channeled the rhythm, the excitement, and of course, the groove.
Big Something
From uncharted backroads to the urban pulse of NYC, there’s nothing quite like multi-genre rock bands from the south bringing new sounds to the ole’ Brooklyn homestead to charge up the northern herd. Friday nights during the summer at Brooklyn Made just hit different. Fans came from all over to groove to the six-headed jam beast from North Carolina, Big Something, as they neared the end of their unbelievable 60 show tour with The Reis Brothers. The Headspace Tour, promoting their latest album Headspace, has been going on since December and has featured a musically cataclysmic reawakening of exploration that dives into untouched genres and shifts focus from outer space to inner space, touching on topics like mental health and more.
Maddy O’Neal + Late Night Radio
Typically, when a room shakes as you enter it, you might think something’s wrong. Maybe it’s an aftershock of the infamous NYC earthquake that happened a few weeks ago. Maybe it’s construction or the subway. Or maybe, it’s just the weekend bassheads lifting their existential anxiety with a thunderous live sonic melee attack from Late Night Radio and Maddy O’Neal.
Reuben Dreiblatt
Meet Reuben, an eclectic producer and talent manager who orchestrates specially curated events across New York City. With an innate flair for seamlessly blending comedy and music, Reuben crafts experiences that tantalize the senses and ignite the imagination. At the heart of Reuben’s work lies his unyielding passion for diversity and innovation. From underground comedy clubs to rock music venues, he scours the city’s bustling scene for hidden gems, seeking out talents that defy conventions and captivate audiences with their unique acts.
Kitchen Dwellers
In a musician’s world, years of different genre iterations make originality difficult to achieve, but through authentic self-expression, embracing imperfections, exploring diverse influences, and experimentation, artists come alive and bring brand new styles and spirit to songs. This is exactly what Kitchen Dwellers brought to Brooklyn Bowl on Saturday night as they continued their North American Tour to promote their new album, Seven Devils. The EP toggles between the current human experience and the trajectory of self-realization, acceptance, and accountability found within the story of Dante’s Inferno, making for some enlightening interpretation and incredible live performances.
Spin Doctors
It’s not every day you get the pleasure of seeing a multi-platinum, Billboard Top 100, heat-seeking rock group. However, it was Brooklyn Bowl’s lucky night, where the critically acclaimed Spin Doctors put on a vintage home-town throwdown with. Formed in New York City in the late 1980s, the band gained mainstream success in the early 90s with their debut album Pocket Full of Kryptonite. The record was a commercial success propelled by hit singles like “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong” and “Two Princes,” a song you may recognize from several movies and TV shows from the 90s and 2000s. The crowd was packed with everyone from old jam heads to staunch and prideful New Yorkers who were ready for a night of radio wave flashbacks.
Mayer Hawthorne
Chulita Vinyl Club was spinning classic dance pop hits as audience members awaited Mayer Hawthorne, a Motown Grammy nominated disconaut. Mayer began his musical journey as a hip-hop DJ in Detroit and began recording his own Motor City grooves to avoid paying fees for sampling other artists’ work. He played all the instruments on each of those tracks, recorded all his own vocals, and the rest is history. Ten studio albums later, he’s now touring for his latest album, For All Time – and back in Brooklyn ready to serenade us with luscious R&B tones and sweet melodies.
Eggy
Nothing says a balanced diet quite like eggs, gin, and a whole lotta jam. Jam heads and Phans alike packed into Brooklyn Bowl the weekend before Thanksgiving for a tri-state area hometown throwdown provided by local favorites Eggy and Stolen Gin. Walking into the Bowl, we could smell a blend of earthy notes and hints of patchouli carried mixing with the contagious energy of excitement, community, and intricate musical improvisations. It was neither band’s first performance at the venue this year, but it would most likely be both of their last, so the fans were pumped.
The Pharcyde
Celebrating over 30 years of hip-hop, funky fresh, old school hip-hop group, The Pharcyde, brought down the house at Brooklyn Bowl last Thursday, showing NYC how LA gets down. It’s been over 30 years since the group dropped their critically acclaimed debut album, Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde, and their 2023 world tour was a continued celebration of the LP, with shows performed by three of the four rappers: Fatlip, Slimkid3, & Imani. From laid-back, jazzy beats to playful lyrics and even freestyle dance, you could tell this was a group of seasoned entertainers ready to tear the roof off.
Eric Krasno & Friends
Thanksgiving came early at Brooklyn Bowl, where Eric Krasno and WhyHunger Amplified teamed up for a specially curated charity benefit concert that made sure no groover was left musically famished. Providing critical resources to support grassroots movements and fuel community solutions, WhyHunger is an incredible non-profit organization working to end hunger and advance human rights to nutritious food in the U.S. and around the world.
