Reviews: From Labor Day and Beyond

Hamtramck Labor Day Festival

This seems like forever ago, now that 90-degree weather is long gone.  This was our first Labor Day festival and it was fun.  Everyone warned us that it would be smaller than usual because it lacked some of the funding from past years, but I thought they managed to pull it off.

We checked out both the day and evening crowds.  Stopped in to Jean's on Campau for some daytime drinks, karaoke, and got the privilege of seeing Jell-O shots in syringes selling like hot cakes.  We included some random pictures from the day. If they seem blurry, it was because my fingers were drunk.

Toxie & Swimsuit at Lo & Behold Records, September 4th

This was a cool little show in Hamtramck on a Tuesday night.  When I say little, I'm talking an audience of 15 people, including some passer bys that stopped to enjoy the music.

It was sort of like watching a show in your living room, if the living was outside in a grass lot.  Both bands were good, it was one of those unique events where I was really glad I got myself up off the couch, brown bagged a beer, and ventured out.

MOCAD Vision in a Cornfield Opening Party, September 7th

Don't get me wrong.  I like the MOCAD.  I have been there before, enjoyed some delicious Anthology coffee, and love the space.  Reading the presser for the event, I was excited about having some drinks and checking out the new art.  However, the execution wasn't great.

The event calendar in the website stated that the opening showing was free from 7 to 9, then $6 after 9 for a musical performance.  We arrived around 7:30 to a pretty busy event.  At the door they were just asking for $6 from everyone coming in the door.  I mentioned that we would be leaving before the music, so they let us in free.  No big deal, but I am sure there were lots of people that paid for the concert that left well before it began.

They had a cash bar set up, so we made our way from the entrance to get a beer.  We walked into the actual exhibit and looked around for about 5 minutes before event staff informed us that there were no drinks allowed in the exhibit and no photography.  Again, no big deal I guess, but they should have informed us when we were purchasing them that we could only drink them in the bar area.  More people ended up sitting in the bar area, where no art was displayed, than people actually looking at the art.

Not to say it was not fun, but it could have been a bit more organized and those issues should have been avoided.  It was supposed to be a party, but did not quite feel like one.

The Future Laureates at Magic Stick, September 7th

Behold Danny, the nicest guy in rock n roll! Checked out his band, the Future Laureates, at the Magic Stick. I could tell he was a nice guy when corresponding by email, and I was able to pick him out of a group of people just by his demeanor.  The Future Laureates play an upbeat version of poppy, happy rock.  You know the style, it's a very Midwest version. Good guys, good times.

Blues Control at Jumbo's Bar, September 7th

Jumbo's is pretty awesome.  This was our first time there. I was honestly shocked that there was nobody sitting at the bar smoking when we walked in, it's that kind of place.  I mean that as a compliment.  The place was packed.

Blues Control is mostly instrumental, possibly some improv going on. Plenty of trippy lights to complete the package.  I enjoyed it, great band to watch at a bar at 1:30 in the morning.

Detroit Lions Opening Game, September 9th

Figured we would throw in some pictures from the Lions Seahawks game.  It was our first time in Ford Field. Nice place to watch a game.  If anybody has any tickets they want to give me, I promise I'll cheer as loudly as I can for the Lions.

Blue Tractor BBQ & Brewery, September 13th

Our first restaurant review and our first trip to Ann Arbor.  I was very pleased with the items we had from the Blue Tractor.  We tried several sides like baked beans, Mac n cheese, slaw, and a great salad.

The reason for the event was the opening of their new bar and brewery in the basement, Mash. We sampled the IPA, the pilsner, and a fantastic beer cocktail involving bourbon.  The space is really nice and could work for any kind of dinner, from casual to formal. 

DIA Inside/Out Bike Tour, September 16th

When presented with the opportunity to go on a 13 mile bike ride around Detroit at 8am on a Sunday morning, I must admit I almost balked.  I'm really glad I didn't.  The weather was perfect and the roughly 125 participants were more enthusiastic than they should have been. Probably not a hangover in the group.  We visited about 13 of the outdoor exhibits that were replicas of original works housed at the DIA.  There were also live performances of spoken word poetry and violinists. The group stopped at each location for 10 minutes or so to get a description of the artwork. These bike tours are a great way to see the city.  If you are nervous about riding in Detroit, just know it really is a good biking city.  Sure, there are some potholes and glass, but that just makes it more of an adventure.  The next big event at the DIA is the Faberge´ Collection, which is sure to be amazing. Tickets are on sale now. 

Eastern Market After Dark, September 20th

Here are some pictures from the Eastern Market event that was part of the Detroit Design Festival. Stopped in the Red Bull Gallery, Signal Return, Omnicorp, and a fashion show in Shed 2.  I get the feeling that the neighborhood is slowly becoming more of an all hours experience rather than just a daytime stop on Saturdays, which will make it a more desirable place to live.  We brought out of town guests, and they were just blown away.