Words by Jason Lee
We all been there (right…right?!?) where you been with a sig-o for a period of time and despite things being hunky-dory you start yearning for some ch-ch-ch-changes (not to mention being just plain lazy when it comes to meeting your partner’s “needs”) and of course yr pretty thing is smart enough to pick up on the vibes which may help explain why they been such a queen bitch lately…
…then lo’ and behold one morning you wake up to find a Dear Johnnie letter stapled to your forehead (seriously you oughta ease up on the Everclear and no we don’t mean the ‘90s alt-rock hitmakers) saying they’ve run off with the insurance claims adjuster who they first met years ago on the Craigslist Casual Encounters board and suddenly it dawns upon your newly awakened consciousness how good you had it for how long and also how much you took it for granted but only now that it’s too late…
…which is just what yr gonna feel like if independent live music venue and Bushwick, Brooklyn cultural mainstay Our Wicked Lady goes under and leaves you high and dry cuz here again once again we’re talkin’ about a fine girl you been takin’ for granrted but she ain’t gonna stick around forever if you don’t start showing your love and appreciation by hitting up some of the many badass musical showcases and other events booked there on the regular solely for your pleasure…
videos by Bands Do BK
…and you’re gonna seriously miss that sweet, sweet rooftop with the retractable roof and the summer breeze wafting through your chest hair not to mention the intimate digs downstairs where all kinds of kewl shiz happens on the regular like karaoke and open jams hosted by the Brooklyn Drum Collective…
…and hey btw in case you haven’t noticed there’s been a cascading series of local closures of venues lately not seen since the darkest days of Covid that feels like it’s potentially reaching a point-of-no-return tipping point much like a polar ice cap that can’t be magically restored once it’s melted away and gone…
…cuz guess what times are hard and getting harder still but still if we don’t look out for our long-standing institutions during said hard times with great vigilance things can always get worse still like how the high price of eggs in a solipsistic society can lead inexorably to the dismantling of the administrative state not to mention the continued erosion of democracy and an ever-growing void to be filled almost without fail by a motley assortment of opportunists, charlatans, scumbags…
…and while New York City is rightly fabled for bouncing back from crises time and again and recreating itself anew in the process tho’ never without substantial pain inflicted on those most vulnerable plus one never knows when the city will at last reach the end of its allotted ninety-nine lives and slide into the abyss so why even tempt fate…
…and like they say “think locally, act hyper-locally” so one good place to start would be hitting some of the great shows and other entertainment put on by OWL (and other grass roots local venues) like the all-weekend benefit show happening this Sat & Sun (February 1st and 2nd) or the annual Winter Madness Battle Of The Bands scheduled thhe two following weekends or in other words no shortage of chances to catch overstuffed musical showcases featuring cream-of-the-crop original music from NYC which is a pretty groovy way to battle the forces of darkness…
…so in other yeah time to step up and do your part cuz otherwise you may as well look into life on Mars or in Poughkeepsie if yr just gonna let everything go to shit on this planet and in this city should you continue to treat Mother Earth and Lady Liberty like handmaidens and whores and heck do it outta pure self-interest if for no other reason which should be a win-win in the long run and in the short run you can get started by Saving Wicked Lady!