William Van Meter
My all time favorite band The Fall is releasing their new record, Ersatz GB, on Monday. I'm going to buy it at midnight on Amazon. Their last two records have been amazing, a lot of electronics and heavy metal guitars. A standout track from their last record, "Your Future Our Clutter," has this lyrical gem from singer Mark E. Smith: "I watched 'Murder She Wrote,' at least five times in my life/ The cast deserved to die."
Mike Berlin
Kathy Griffin in the New York Comedy Festival. I cannot wait to see which bits of cultural detritus the flaming provocateur chooses to skewer in her set at Carnegie Hall this Saturday night. I'm hoping for some Kardashian, some Cain, and, naturally, some Chelsea in the mix. Also, her show is called "Tired Hooker"--need I say more?
Jerry Portwood
I didn't get to Karen O's opera, but I'm making it to Nico Muhly's Dark Sisters, about a polygamist Mormon sect, on Saturday. Stephen Karam wrote the libretto, and I was so impressed by his Sons of the Prophet play, I'd like to see how his Muhly collaboration pans out. I'm also catching Standing on Ceremony for a Saturday matinee so it will be a day of theatrical investigations once again.
Adam Rathe
I can't wait for the opening of NurtureArt's new gallery space, which will host its first exhibit beginning tonight. It's called "Re-Telling," and I am especially psyched because it includes work by Becca Albee who is an awesome artist but was also in Excuse 17, which was my favorite band when I was a teenager and the inspiration for my very first AOL screen name.
Also, I am going to Philadelphia to visit friends, and I couldn't be more excited to tear into the Smoked Coconut Club at Memphis Tap Room. It's a vegan club sandwich with smoked coconut in place of bacon and it's one of the best sandwiches I've ever had the pleasure of demolishing. Finally, Sunday night remains a pleasure thanks to the continued like of Homeland, the show where Claire Danes plays a CIA agent and is actually remarkably bad-ass, though not quite so much as costar Mandy Patinkin's beard.
Raef Harrison
I'm definitely not going to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather, but will sit in a theater for J.Edgar and/or Immortals. I may might also try for last minute tickets to Kathy Griffin or Sarah Silverman at the New York Comedy Festival on Saturday.
Max Berlinger
I went to the Woodbury Commons in New Jersey last weekend, and I think it may just be my new favorite place on Earth. It's an hour bus ride from Manhattan's Port Authority and has a bunch of great shops with older seasons' stuff at HUGE discounts. There's everything from Ralph Lauren and J. Crew to higher end labels like YSL, Prada, and Balenciega. I got two winter coats and a sweater for an undisclosed amount of money, but was certainly more reasonable than you'd expect. The food court is nasty, but in the disgusting/good way that mall food courts should be.
Justin Ocean
I'll be heading to Chicago on Sunday for the grand opening of the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel, the Euro chain's first property in the US. Just north of Millennium Park it's occupying 18 out of 86 floors of the crazy-ass cool Aqua high-rise, which has undulating balconies that create a wavy pattern over its glass facade, kinda like Ghery's giganto 8 Spruce Street tower at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge. (Fun fact: it's also the tallest skyscraper in the world to be lead designed by a woman, Jeanne Gang.) It's also my first time in the Windy City as an adult so looking forward to checking out the Midwestern boys in bars and the food scene. Longman & Eagle and a hot dog with all the fixin's here I come!