February 2009
22 posts
1 tag
Spanish Harlem Orchestra
A few years ago I got to see the SHO at the amazing Stern Grove festival in San Francisco. Stern Grove, which runs weekly in the summer, is typically a laidback picnic basket affair in the middle of a forested park south of the city. But this day I remember hundreds of people abandoning their checkerboard blankets in favor of an impromptu salsa dancefloor that was fashioned right by the stage.
...
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I heart competition
I was having lunch with my friend Chris last week, and we started talking about competition. It’s a topic I have spent a lot of time thinking about at all the companies that I have worked at.
From a strategic perspective, it makes sense to figure out what the right competitive set is, and how you differentiate from that set. I recommend spending time thinking through who or what the competition...
2 tags
Weather is Up.
I heart brooklyn. It is a never ending source of great things to do, places to eat and venues to drink. Last night was the latter. I got Weather Up on recommendation from Lindsay, who I can’t link to because she appears to have no online presence at all.
Weather Up is a speakeasy bar in Prospect Heights just below Atlantic. Not much going on in the hood (Although I am told that there are...
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Matisyahu
Sunday night completed the trio of live events for the weekend, when I got to see Matisyahu at The Bell House in Gowanus. Rather than watch my $10 oscar bet dwindle away on my rash Mickey Rourke gamble, I went out with friends to see a guy who’s live act has been recommended to me over and over.
I have been a huge dub fan for a long time and I was interested in what Matisyahu would bring...
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Try before you buy
Gavin and I had a long chat over the weekend about what really makes angels and VCs invest, and what it is that entrepreneurs can do to improve their chances of walking away with a check in hand.
Aside from the strength of your idea and pitch, obviously, we speculated that perhaps it mostly comes down to ‘luck’ - you get introduced by the right person, you pitch at just the right...
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Leo Nocentelli and Trombone Shorty
Saturday night was Leo Nocentelli at BB Kings. BB Kings is actually a way better venue than it gets credit for, and that its location suggests. I had never heard of Nocentelli before, but I went on the recommedation of a trusted source to see ‘arguably the greatest living guitarist’. He hails from New Orleans, was part of the legendary Meters set-up, and is steeped in southern blues...
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Dimitri Martin and Hannibal Burress
Had a great weekend of live events this last weekend - I’ll blog briefly about all of them today. The weirdest thing about two of the three shows was that I thought the supporting acts were way better than the main acts. Its not often that is the case. In all cases, I am posting the picture of the better performer.
On Friday night I saw Dimitri Martin at MHOW. He was great, as you would...
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Athena Andreadis
It is high time that I got around to posting about Athena. I have known Athena for a few years, through her equally lovely and talented sister, Eleni.
Athena has one of the best voices I have heard. She writes her own material and has had the opportunity to work with some of the best producers in the business. She brings a freshness to music that I have not experienced in some time.
She just...
2 tags
Monocle - a print and retail business!
I have been meaning to blog about Monocle for some time, by way of follow-up to my post on The Week from last month. The Monocle is already a year or so old, but the freshness of what it is trying to achieve feels up-to-the-minute now, and will do for some time.
Monocle, delivered 10 times per year, is a global affairs briefing for forward-thinking professionals. It has a pretty high cover...
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How's your news?
Sunday saw the second episode in a 6-part show called ‘How’s My News’, airing on MTV. What a great project, I am so pleased that it made it to air. The show features 5 roving reporters, all of whom met at a summer camp for adults with disabilities. We follow them on a road trip across the country, celeb-interviewing as they go.
The project was part-funded by the South Park...
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ACG Wildwood
I have a fascination with sneakers, born from a childhood spent in the music scene and from a year long spell working in cutting-edge marketing for adidas. I have 30 or so pairs right now, many of which I have never, and will never, wear.
For the longest time I was a die-hard adidas fan, but I have softened over the last couple of years as the quality of their heritage range has tailed right...
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Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings
After a decent day of Manhattan walking, I got to see Sharon Jones last night at the Nokia Theater. I have seen SJDK 9 times now over the last 4 years, and she is my favorite live act. She brings a crazy energy to the stage, and the Dap-Kings make the perfect laid back counterfoil.
Last night I have to say that she wasn’t on top form - she was having some obviously sound issues, and her...
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The best show on radio.
I have been spending some time in a new office over the last couple of days, and am pleased to have found an open DJ policy - everyone gets a turn controlling the music.
I’ll be pushing for reggae hour next week, which is the foundation of any fully functioning office, but in the mean time it has meant a chance to share Rob da Bank with new listeners.
Rob da Bank’s leftfield show...
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Three great tapas spots
Weirdly enough, my last 3 meals have all been in awesome small restaurants specializing in snack food. Even more weirdly, all 3 were really great.
I had lunch yesterday at Snack with my friend Vinay, who knows more about public and private market investing than anyone else I know. We had a great conversation about whether the financial crisis might spark a dramatic increase in crime in New...
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Dark was the Night
The Dark was the Night album is going to be huge when it hits the stores on 4AD next week.
Just an epic selection of bands lined up, and some classic tracks in the making already.
I recommend just pre-ordering it now. You’ll be buying it eitherway.
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Carlon at Arlene's
Carlon were out for the 2nd of the 3 night residency at Arlene’s Grocery last night, and were sounding great. The cool thing about Monday nights at Arlene’s is that it is live band karaoke night, which I was writing about yesterday, and that brings in a musically switched on crowd.
On both nights so far, Carlon’s music has definitely been well regarded and I am hoping that...
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Essentials - New York
Lots of people ask me when the head to a place I have lived for activity suggestions. I used to prepare these long emails with lots of suggestions that was more itinerary than it was ideas.
Instead, I just cut to my 3 favorite things to do in that town. I figure that there is a much better chance they might actually do them, and that they will still have time to do all the other things they...
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I have been thinking about the business of online dating a lot recently. As I said on twitter last week, it feels like online dating today is much like car rental 5 years ago. Multiple providers with very little differentiation serving a product an increasing number of people want and are prepared to pay for.
I have been keeping an eye out for a zipcar to come along and mix things up, and am...
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Surfing in Portugal
I want to post now and again about some places that I have been that I think are worth sharing. Sometimes you just stay in a place, eat a meal or have an experience that just warrants telling others people about.
Herdade de Matinha is the best place I know for kicking back in total seclusion. On the mostly undiscovered mid-coast of Portugal, you need a 4x4 just to make it along the track that...
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Live Nation (and ticketmaster)
Lots of talk about the proposed merger of LiveNation and Ticketmaster over the last few days. Its not hard to see why Ticketmaster would be interested in getting in closer to LiveNation, they have pulled off some impressive strategic moves over the last few years - most notably persuading huge artists to sign contracts with them. Its one thing to have recognized that the decline of recorded...
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Blogging Inc
Whether it be neighborhood bloggers writing on key local issues around your neighborhood, or domain-specific experts covering on the latest trends in technology, media or advertising, the role that blog content is playing in the way we digest news and information is undoubtedly increasing.
In my mind, it was these vertical-focused experts that precipitated this increase – people with valid and...
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Inauguration coverage
There was some really nice technology and creative work done around the US election this time around, not least the use of Perceptive Pixel technology in the election tracking process and the Photosynth project CNN delivered on inauguration day.
And then I found this really nice piece of creative work (hats off to James for the tip). Collected together in one place are the newspaper front pages...