Selected West Side Events – Thursday, Jun. 20, 2013
For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”, and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For D-I-Y NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.
Matuto
These engaging Brazilian forró rockers borrow from jazz and funk in their lively sets. They took that alchemy through West Africa as recent participants of the State Department’s American Music Abroad diplomacy program. The band celebrates the release of a new album, “The Devil and the Diamond” (Motema-NYT).
David Rubinstein Atrium, Lincoln Center
at 7 p.m. / FREE
atrium.lincolncenter.org
American Ballet Theater*
“Of all the roles in the classical repertory, there are few that test a ballerina’s technical strength and dramatic range like Odette/Odile in “Swan Lake.” (Burke-NYT)
Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center
at 7:30 p.m. / $20 to $245.
212-362-6000 / abt.org
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN
Veteran guitar grandmaster JOHN McLAUGHLIN has earned a place in the top echelon of the six-string pantheon.
His virtuosity has been on display in a number of divergent settings throughout his celebrated career, beginning in the early 1960s as the electric guitarist for Georgie Fame’s rocking Blue Flames.
The veteran guitar aficionado celebrates his 70th birthday year with the announcement of Now Here This (Abstract Logix) as he ups-the-ante even further with greater fire, finesse and freewheeling interplay with his latest group, The 4th Dimension.
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village
at 8 and 10:30 p.m., $55 cover at tables. $35 at the bar, $5 min.
475-8592 / bluenote.net
David Murray Infinite Quartet
A new David Murray “joint”—in his case, a combination of project, band and album—is always a welcome event, and his Infinite Quartet (with pianist Marc Cary, bassist Jaribu Shahid and drummer Nasheet Waits) is up to the tenor saxophonist’s customary high standards. Mr. Murray, with the World Saxophone Quartet and other groups, was among the first to combine postmodern jazz with R&B, and the mixture bears remarkable fruit in the new “Be My Monster Love.” One of Mr. Murray’s most song-driven projects, “Monster Love” showcases emerging jazz-soul singer Gregory Porter and the well-known Macy Gray in some of the most impressive vocal tracks that either has recorded. Mr. Porter’s vocals here (“Army of the Faithful,” “About the Children,” “Hope Is a Thing”) are highly spiritual, whereas Ms. Gray (who will be appearing with Mr. Murray this week) gets to sing “Be My Monster Love”—”Be my wolfman / I’m your catwoman!” (WSJ)
Sub Culture Arts Underground
45 Bleecker St., (212) 533-5470
Savion Glover*
“The renowned tap dancer and rhythmic genius returns to the Joyce Theater with “STePz,” in which he and his ensemble explore the give-and-take between embracing tradition and radically breaking with it. While the musical selections may be recognizable, the movement they inspire may prove more surprising.” (Burke-NYT)
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea
at 8 p.m., $10 to $59.
242-0800 / joyce.org
Mark Turner Quartet*
The tenor and soprano saxophonist Mark Turner has often been reluctant to step out front as a bandleader — his main outlet of late has been Fly, a collective trio — but he’s making a move with this quartet, which has just recorded an album for the ECM label. Given the graceful compression and streamlined erudition of his playing, it’ll be good to hear him up front, playing new music with a pianoless band featuring Avishai Cohen on trumpet, Joe Martin on bass and Marcus Gilmore on drums.” (Chinen-NYT)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Street
at 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. / $25 cover, with a one-drink minimum.
(212) 255-4037 / villagevanguard.com
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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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A PremierPub + 3 Good Eating places / Midtown West
Russian Vodka Room
265 W 52nd st (btw 7th/8th ave)
Sure, you could travel to Minsk or even Brighton Beach, for an authentic Russian experience, but why bother. On those days when you feel you must wash down your dish of kasha with a few glasses of icy, cold vodka, the Russian Vodka Room will definitely satisfy your urge.
From the outside this place looks a bit drab, and with no windows, a bit mysterious. Midtown tourists walk right by on their way to see “Jersey Boys”, just down the block.
Those in the know enter a secret hideaway, a dimly lit front room with soft jazz playing – a perfect spot for an illicit late-night rendezvous, or maybe a meet-up with your Russian spy handler, but that’s later in the evening. Early in the evening the large U-shaped bar fills with the after work happy hour crowd, a group made very happy by the much reduced prices.
Their website says: “Welcome Comrades”. Of course, this welcome focuses on dozens of different vodkas, including their own special infusions, which marinate in giant, clear glass jugs visible around the room. The large vodka martinis ensure that you won’t confuse this place with your mother’s Russian Tea Room.
But man does not live by vodka alone. Eat some food, especially the tapa like appetizers. Be decadent and try the cheese blintzes with chocolate, or try a main dish like beef stroganoff with kasha.
Your best bet is to go on a night when the piano man is playing. This guy, who looks like he has eaten a lot of those cheese blintzes, plays five nights a week from 7 to 12 (no Mondays and Thursdays). When the piano man is playing American pop tunes, and you are at the crowded, dimly lit bar testing the horseradish infused vodka, that’s when the RVR shines.
It’s the kind of place where the noise gets louder and the crowd gets happier as the night goes on. I’m generally a beer guy, but I like to come here with a group of friends. We find a table in the back room; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).
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Website: http://www.russianvodkaroom.com/
Phone #: 212-307-5835
Hours: 4pm-2am; Fri-Sun closes 4am (that could be trouble)
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day
$4 shots infused vodka (2oz), $5 cosmos; $4 czech draft beer
Music: FR-SU; TU-WE / 7pm-12am
Subway: #1 to 50th St.
Walk 2 blk N. on B’way to 52nd St.; 1 blk W. to RVR
Confusingly, the Russian Samovar is right across the street, on the S. side of 52nd St.
The RVR, your destination, is on the N. side of 52nd St.
Update: music some nights includes a sax player with a younger, trimmer piano man.
NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide 