Urban Jacksonville

The Decemberists were the featured band September 29th at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre. It was a Tuesday, so there was not as much of a showing as expected for such an acclaimed band. Still, the audience was mostly made up of those who knew the songs, and were truly excited to be there.

The opening band was Laura Veirs and The Hall of Flames. The Hall of Flames was pleasantly matched with The Decemberists. They had a playful manner on stage and Laura Veirs has a voice with pure intents, curiosity, imagination, and an unjaded take on the world. If you are a fan of The Decemberists, I recommend you check them out.

When The Decemberists played, it felt very much like the audience was being taken on some sort of crazy time hopping trip. The songs unfolded like the scenes in a Victorian play, the music was reminiscent of ancient folk songs from as far back as the time of Gaels and Celts, and much of the singing could have been straight out of Woodstock.

This was entirely appropriate given that the concert’s set list was The Hazards of Love album played in order. The album is a story concocted by Colin Meloy, the lead singer, to play on the timeless theme of star crossed lovers so often found in the folk songs he has become connected to over the last several years.

Colin Meloy, sang for both the hero, William, and the villain, simply known as The Rake. Becky Stark played the heroine and William’s true love, Margaret. Shara Worden played the Queen, the adoptive nature mother of William.

credit: Audrey Keith

Impressively, The Decemberists started on time at 8:30 PM, which is atypical of most concerts. The band made a dramatic entrance on stage. The spell was broken, however, when Jenny Conlee’s organ playing stopped momentarily and Colin Meloy apologized for what he termed a “train wreck.”

Jenny Conlee’s response was “Can we just skip the intro and start with the first song?” This laid back attitude was quickly forgotten as soon as the breathtaking first notes of The Hazards of Love 1 were played.

Becky Stark was captivating, before she even began to sing. She was so very much in character and reminiscent of the silent film star Mary Pickford who so often portrayed damsels and waifs. Her voice was clear and delicate. She was perfect for the part of Margaret.

Shara Worden was definitely an audience favorite as soon as her low, sexy, throaty voice called out over the microphone. She was ideal as the Queen with an immensely earthy, wise, and seductive performance. Becky Stark and Shara Worden put even America’s most famous divas to shame with their voices.

The story played out beautifully and emotionally. Inevitably, Margaret and William died for love. The audience stood, clapped, and cheered enthusiastically as the band exited the stage.

Unexpectedly, the band rushed back on stage in less than a minute. Colin Meloy explained that he had just learned that St. Augustine had a curfew and he wanted to make sure that he could cram as much music in that night so that everyone could go home happy.

This is what separates The Decemberists apart from so many other big names. They don’t play to enjoy the limelight so much as to enjoy entertaining and pleasing their fans. They kept mostly to their upbeat songs and even jokingly played what Meloy termed the worst song he had ever written, Dracula’s Daughter. Then, Meloy decided to play O Valencia instead, fearing that audience members would call up their radio stations and demand to hear Dracula’s Daughter.

The band left and then rushed back on again as the cheering audience was contemplating how best to exit the theater. This time, he returned with Becky Stark and Shara Worden who sang their enthusiastic rendition of Heart’s Crazy On You that had the audience crying out in gratitude. All in all, this was an incredibly successful concert despite the small show of fans. Hopefully, North Florida will get another chance to see this amazing band.

I had a few typos. Thanks to Tony for pointing out I spelled the owners name wrong and got the cross streets wrong.

I normally leave the food reviews to Jacksonville Confidential, but I was lucky enough to have dinner at Orsay Friday night for the soft opening. It was a good experience so I wanted to relay it to you.

When we first walked in, I noticed it smelled like fish, but after I saw the fresh fish case, it kinda made sense to me. After 10 minutes or so I didn’t notice it for the rest of the night. That was the last questionable experience I would have for the rest of the night.

Service
Our service was pretty awesome. I didn’t catch her name, but she was helpful and courteous. We never felt rushed, even when Orsay began filling up. (Our reservations were for 7:15). She also waited until we were finished with each of our courses before clearing and bringing out the next course.

Drinks
They have an awesome selection of specialty mixed drinks, along with a full bar, bottled beer and an extensive wine list. Travis, Jeanne, my wife and I tried 6 of the 12 or so drinks. They were all great, my favorites were the Strawberry Fields and the Cloudy Day.

Food
We had a limited menu to select from but everything I tried was good. That would be the cheese plate, halibut, steak frite, scallops, french fries, the haricots verts salad (green beans) and the banana bread pudding. Orsay was also very accommodating to Travis, who’s vegan, and adapted a dish for him. I heard him say it was pretty awesome. Also the portions were surprisingly big, not what I expected. I’d say too much after eating the bread that came with dinner and the cheese plate.

After we were done eating Jon Insetta, the owner, came over to ask about our experience. Word up! Orsay is good stuff. Check it out at Park and Dancy. More Photos by Jeanne Ciasullo.

 

Nobody throws a birthday party better than an art museum and nobody celebrates birthdays harder than cake makers.

Last Friday night I attended the celebration of MOCA Jacksonville’s fifth anniversary downtown.  If you caught the previous post about this event, I mentioned that I would be assisting Chef Katie Dumphy of Tasteful Creations for the evening.  I did just that.  And ate a lot of cake, too.

Set-up was from 4 to 6 Friday afternoon.  Of course it was pouring, but five of us arrived at the loading dock of the museum and managed to get everything inside with no problems.  I went upstairs with boxes of cake and saw other chefs working on their masterpieces.  I felt like I was at a Food Network Challenge.  It was excellent.

After set-up, I went home and got ready for the party.  I was able to bring two friends to also assist the chef, so we arrived back at the museum at 7:30.  It had been completely transformed. 

Hors d’oereves  were being served downstairs and there was a dj and dance floor on the upper level.  A station had been setup for guests to create their own party hat and decorate sugar cookies.  Upstairs was full of people mingling and admiring cakes.  All 12 of the cakes featured were complete masterpieces.

I loved all of the cakes, but my particular favorite (besides Chef Katie’s) was done by the chefs at Etiquette of Chocolate.  Coincidentally, I had just gone to Etiquette of Chocolate with my family a couple nights before the event to check out the shop and meet the chefs. 

The Etiquette of Chocolate cake is pictured below.  Each level of the cake was dedicated to a different artist.  The artist’s name was written on the layer next to his design.  Of the five layers, my favorites were Warhol and Murakami.  The cake was a true piece of art.

Chef Katie’s cake was a contemporary abstract design.  It was well executed and very colorful.  The cake was chocolate with cheesecake swirls.  It was the most delicious cake that I tasted all night.

The evening concluded with the awards ceremony followed by some song requests I was dying to hear and dancing.  By midnight we were all packed up and ready to go.  I had a most excellent time and recommend the party next year!

Here’s to five years for the MOCA downtown!  Cheers!

 

If you missed viewing Inside the Circle Sunday night, you missed a great documentary, great break dancing and a great drum line.  And it all took place inside the Florida Theatre.

I sat around reading most of the afternoon and watching the looming clouds that never opened up until I left for the Festival; at which point, the sky fell in. 

I parked, quickly ran into the theatre and found a seat upstairs next to a B-Boy team that had more energy than anyone should ever have on a Sunday evening.  Their clapping and screaming got me fired up about the film, though, and it was especially entertaining when any one of the boys would see someone they knew on screen or when Florida was mentioned.

The film was well executed and entertaining.  I love learning about interesting sub-cultures and the way they exist.  Watching the lives of B-Boys on screen was revelatory mostly because it removed me from everyday living and threw me into another social scene.  I came away with so much knowledge about a facet of life that I knew nothing about.

Marcy Garriott is my new favorite person.  She is the director and producer of Inside the Circle.  She and members of the film answered questions from the audience.  Garriott is a slender blonde with a soccer-mom type appearance, a far stretch from her B-Boy counterparts on stage.  When asked how she came to be involved in the B-Boy scene, she stated that she found it fascinating and began to follow competitions.  She was slowly accepted by Romeo of B-Boy City (an organization that holds competitions) who agreed to be a part of the documentary.

The film and question and answer period were followed up by an introduction to the Theatre’s Plan B.  Originally, a street party was to be held but because of the rain, the party was moved indoors.  As this was being explained, a drum line started in the downstairs lobby and the audience moved out.  I was able to look over the balcony and get a couple shots. 

When I started down the stairs, a group of teenagers had created their own B-Boy circle complete with moms taking pictures and boys taking turns.  I stood around and watched for a bit and then headed downstairs.  The Theatre had turned into a massive dance party.  The drum line was getting down, the B-Boys were getting down, the old people were getting down and I was trying to take as many pictures as possible.  I apologize for the bad views though, I’m pretty short.

This year marks my third Film Festival attendance and I have to say it just keeps getting better.  Jacksonville is lucky to have such an awesome event.  The Florida Theatre, as usual, is a gracious host and throws a fun party.  If you couldn’t get out to any events this year, make sure to do so next year.  You won’t be disappointed.

 

Last night was an incredibly fulfilling Art Walk, which (for me) joined the ranks of previously great Art Walks such as the Munny Show and the Black Kids set at Burrito Gallery.  I’m not sure exactly how many people were out last night, but the crowd seemed larger than usual.

After work, a few friends met up at my place and we walked over to the Landing for the boat tour.  It was a little after 6 p.m. so we happened to catch the tour while the sun was setting.  It was awesome!   

My boat was lead by one of the Riverkeeper’s staff, Michael, if I remember correctly.  He did an excellent job of answering questions and providing information about the St. John’s River.  He explained the issues surrounding the river and discussed the river’s water quality.  The ride was perfect, and seeing Jacksonville from the water was enlightening.  The city is lit up and booming from the middle of the river.

After the boat tour, we walked over to Burrito Gallery for fish tacos that never fail.  The restaurant was packed, per usual, but I did get to check out Martin Moore’s art up close and I really dig it.  Following dinner, we walked across to the old library to catch the artwork of another friend and I was pleasantly surprised to see a Capoeira team performing.  We walked to London Bridge, listened to some music and then headed toward Hemming Plaza.

Lackawanna Carriage Works was playing at Hemming Plaza so we listened to the band for a while and watched a drum circle, both of which were really, really entertaining.  One of my friends suggested we ride the skyrail, so we gathered up 50 cents each and rode to the Central Station, changed cars and rode to San Marco and back.  I was surprised to see a handful of people at each station.  The ride was nice, and I’m definitely going to use the skyrail the next time I’m heading toward San Marco.

I give everyone who contributed to the March ’08 Art Walk a big hand because it was perfect in every way.  Can’t wait til April!

All photos from Saturday’s show

The sentiment expressed in my headline is totally subjective to taste and musical preference. I’m no music expert, but I know what I like. I guess what I am trying to say is hey, there’s this local band called Antarctic and they fucking rock. I don’t normally throw expletives like that around on Monday morning, but they are really good.

Who is Antarctic? They are all instrumental. They four guys. They are lots of pedals. They put the bass player in the front. They don’t have a synth. They are a local Jacksonville band. I saw them Saturday night at Inertia along with Iron Eyes Cody, The Vultures and Dark Castle.

I heard about them a few weeks ago and that they were pretty good, so I was excited to see them, but nothing prepared me for what I heard and saw. It was an amazing musical explosion. Antarctic played their set in conjunction with another band, Dark Castle. They would play a song then throw it across the room for Dark Castle to play a song. I really wish they hadn’t. Not to take anything away from Dark Castle, but it broke to flow that Antarctic had going on.

I think had the same dumb look on my face as about 20 other people when Antarctic finished their first song. “Did we just hear that? Was Antarctic really that good?” The answer is a resounding yes. Don’t take my word for it. You can check them out in Jacksonville on December 14th (8pm) at Misdemeanor Manor w/ Alligator and The Sky Went Black. Then on February 20th (8pm) at TSI w/ Edie Sedgwick and Joe Lally. Also, I hear you can buy the Antarctic EP at Inertia for $5, but that’s just what I hear.

The Vultures

Iron Eyes Cody

Dark Castle

Photo compliments of Metro Jacksonville

I love Nicky G’s! So does everyone else. The community has chimed in, now I will.

I guess you can see how this review is going to go. Believe me though, it’s not all a sugar-coated, love-fest. To summarize: the food was amazing, the service needs some help.

I’ve been wanting to go to Nicky G’s ever since they opened last month and the Jags vs Saints game last Sunday provided the perfect excuse for ordering some take out. I ordered a medium cheese, medium chicken hawk (add spinach), wings (hot) and some garlic knots.

If you like your pizza thin with big, fat doughy crusts, then Nicky G’s is your joint. The pizza reminds me of pizza in New York or, of all places, Austin. I fell in love instantly with the fact that the pizza did not have cheese and grease overload.

I arrived to pick up my order and they forgot my garlic knots. Not a big deal since I wasn’t in a hurry. So I ordered a beer (which I ended up not having to pay for, bonus!) and took some time to absorb the atmosphere. I really like the interior. Open, clean, big TV’s, HUGE booths, although someone pointed out a potential issue with the booths. I could see myself hanging out there for the game or after a night at the bar.

As I was sitting and observing I could see things were a bit frantic. Which was weird because there weren’t that many people there. This concerned me, since I couldn’t imagine how frantic things would be if there were more people there. This illustrates the basic shortcoming of Nicky G’s: inexperience. If they can focus on the improving the customer experience and maintaining a high degree of customer service I think they could be very successful.

So you know I like the pizza. Their pizza’s are big, I mean huge. If you normally order a large, you’ll be good with a medium. The garlic knots were not the best I have had in this city. The wings are good, and I consider myself a wing fan or professional or whatever. The hot is hot as hell. Like my lips were burning hot. Like eat a wing every 10 minutes hot. I hear they have lots of wing sauces too. Angelo’s has better garlic knots, but since they never seem to answer their phone anymore, Nicky G’s is my new spot.

So all-in-all I was very happy with my Nicky G’s experience. I will continue to go there and monitor the service. I’ll keep ordering pizza beer and wings and I look forward to trying the Beer Buzz pizza. Thanks to the guy who was making my pizza who comped the beer. It was a good move and shows they are at least service oriented.