People from Brooklyn don’t mess around. And Williamsburg may be known more as hipster central, but it’s for good reason: so many great artists and musicians flocking to one part of New York City seeking community and collaboration. And Franz Nicolay might be considered the chief collaborator; he’s been a member of the Hold Steady, he founded a musicians’ collective called Anti-Social Music and now he’s a touring member of Against Me! and working on releasing Luck & Courage, a new solo album.

We recently caught Nicolay long enough to have him answer a few questions about what it’s like to be a musician in Williamsburg, where to get the best huevos rancheros and why he has Dennis Rodman’s autograph. Read on!

What’s your town’s nickname?
It’s got so many, none of them any good.

What’s your nickname for your town?
Home. Somehow, even though I’ve never lived in any one place for more than two years at a stretch. But I’ve lived in so many neighborhoods now that somehow I have even more emotional ownership of the borough than if I’d just plopped down in Williamsburg ten years ago. (Actually, I spent the year in Jersey City last year and loved it. Don’t tell.)

Why do you live there?
It’s ruined me for any other city. If I leave, it’ll have to be back to the country. It keeps you working, that’s for sure.

Did you grow up there? If not, what brought you there?
No, I grew up in a blinking-red-light crossroads of about 900 people up in New Hampshire. Picturesque, but not the place for an ambitious young wannabe-musician. New York was as far away psychologically as I could get without getting too far physically. Just in case, you know.

What’s the weirdest thing that has ever happened to you there?
Maybe not the weirdest, but the first thing that popped into my mind was being at the beach down at Fort Tilden last summer when this great mass of white, stinking… stuff washed up. It must have been twenty feet across, like an abandoned parachute, dotted with scavenging seagulls. We realized it was the weeks-old rotting corpse of what must have been an enormous sea turtle.

I also got Dennis Rodman’s autograph in Washington Square Park, on a piece of score paper, within a month of arriving here when I was 18. “Oh, is this what it’s going to be like?”

What is your favorite local attraction (monument, park, etc)?
I know this is trite, but Coney Island. In the winter, though. I did a few records at Don Fury’s old place on Surf Ave., all of them in January, and it’s great walking down the boardwalk on those grey days when everything is boarded up and no-one’s out except a few old Russian men, sitting by themselves and staring out at the sea.

What is your favorite local event or festival?
I never know when they’re going to happen, but every once in a while I wake up and hear a brass band outside my window. I think, “Ah, today is the day, finally, when a brass band will follow me everywhere.” But no, it’s one of the Catholic church parades that you get in Hispanic or Italian neighborhoods, for the Holy Virgin of Yo No Se Donde, with a statue on shoulders and hymns I’ve never heard.

What is the best time of year to be there?
Spring, of course. That first day when everyone convinces themselves it’s warm, and the tank-top fairy blesses all the girls.

Who is your favorite local celebrity?
Steve Trimboli at Goodbye Blue Monday. I keep a mental notebook of his wit and wisdom. “I used to be all sensitive and shit when I was an artist. Now I’m not an artist anymore, so I’m just a touchy motherfucker.”

Where is the best place to drink and what’s their specialty or happy hour?
In my current neighborhood, it’s the Canal Bar, a sturdy Gowanus dive with a backyard, a pool table, and a popcorn machine. So cheap ya don’t need specials.

Who has the best jukebox (and what’s in it)?
You know, you can get too clever with a jukebox. Best to stick with the core necessities: Thin Lizzy, Willie Nelson, Motörhead. Everyone always says “Hi-Fi” or one of these massive mp3 jukeboxes, but you end up with some lonely guy spending 20 minutes flipping through all the endless possibilities and then putting on some Dirty Projectors deep cut and you’re just thinking, “Really? Can’t you just put on ‘Ace of Spades’ and be done with it?” I always thought the old Sweetwater Tavern (RIP) jukebox had it just right. Pick one thing that you want the bar to be about — punk, metal, country, whatever; but ONE thing — and give the bartenders absolute veto power. Also, they had my band in there and that was the first time that’d happened!

Do you play music there? If so, where is your favorite place to play?
I like the little places with a vibe — Jalopy in Red Hook, Barbès, Union Pool‘s back room, and especially Goodbye Blue Monday out in Bushwick. I want to see the whites of their eyes.

Does where you live influence your music?
Of course. The thing about New York as a musician is that there are so many people doing so many different kinds of music that it would take an active effort to sequester yourself in only one genre, even if you wanted to. So you end up playing punk rock with someone who plays Balkan music with someone who plays standards with someone who plays with Bang on a Can with someone who makes their on instruments for someone who developed the most amazing MIDI controller.

What is your favorite place to see live music and what was your favorite show there?
Barbès, definitely. It’s a rare place that you can just go without knowing the calendar and trust that there’ll be something cool happening.

What is your favorite local band?
Tim Fite. He looks like an overgrown Tintin figurine and just put out the best protest record I’ve heard about the financial crisis and economic inequality. It’s called Under The Table Tennis. Frankly I’ve only heard two protest records about the last few years. Makes me wonder what all those anarcho-leftist bands are doing with their time. The capitalist implosion of their dreams, happening under their noses!

What is your favorite diner or restaurant and what is their best dish?
Grand Morelos is a 24-hour Mexican diner on Grand Street at the corner of Graham. I don’t think I’ve ever ordered anything there except huevos rancheros and a Corona, and I’ve been there hundreds of times. Equally good at 4:30 am and 2 pm.

What is your favorite record store and what was your best find there?
Anything that’s curated. If I’m looking for a specific record, I’ll order it online; so the best record stores are the ones where I trust I can wander around and find something I didn’t know existed, like Downtown Music Gallery or Other Music. Especially bizarre ethnographic or reissue music compilations, like the Secret Museum of Mankind or Archeophone releases.

What is your favorite local publication (alternative weekly, zine, website or blog)?
Scratchbomb blog, for music, sports, comedy, bile, and frustration. Superlefty has great personal essays.

What is your favorite local shop?
It’s not exactly a shop, but Proteus Gowanus is a building nearby that’s a museum of the neighborhood, art gallery, reading room, workspace, craft store… worth stopping in.

If you could live anywhere else, where would that be?
Like I said, New York ruined me for other cities. Unless it was a really different species of city, like New Orleans, though that’s for later, when I’m done with life and just want to sort of fade out. I don’t know if it’s the heat or the 24-hour bars but that place can look like a black hole of ambition. And I’m on this soapbox about artists moving to Detroit: you can buy houses — houses! — for $10,000. In a picturesquely ruined city with a deep history. Everyone who’s been doing the West Philly or Baltimore thing in the last ten years should look to Detroit. The only difference, I guess, is that Philly and Baltimore have art schools, hence art school kids. But I’m telling you, when that Detroit scene resurgence comes in ten years, it’s gonna be massive.

Write me about it, I’ll be living in Montana.

Artist: Instiga
Song: “Mariachi”

If you don’t remember Instiga, our favorite band from São Paulo, Brazil, you are missing out. Great indie pop, unique South American flavor. And if you want to know more about them, we conveniently have an interview with them in Issue 19, which you can back order! Huzzah!

That might weird some of you out, but my guess is that the true Arab Strap fans in the house — most of whom already are aware of their reissues coming out on Chemikal Underground — wouldn’t mind the amusement. Not to mention a chance at winning said box set of reissues, an iPod, or their entire catalog.

So, if you are inclined to watch Aidan be his weird-ass self on camera, as well as earn the chance at a few of those prizes, enter their Twitter contest.

And if that’s not good enough for you, perhaps you should back-order Ghettoblaster issue #17 for an interview with Arab Strap’s own Mike Ladd or check out a few mp3s below:

Arab Strap – The First Big Weekend (from “The Week Never Starts Round Here”)
Arab Strap – Packs Of Three (from “Philophobia”)
Arab Strap – Daughters of Darkness (previously unreleased!)

Time for another Stomping Grounds, folks! This time we’re exploring the home of Prisoners, garage rock heroes from Cleveland, Ohio.

True to Cleveland’s blue-collar roots, Prisoners rock out with all the garage energy of teenage glory: noises crashing and colliding in mid-air in that chaotic, don’t-give-a-fuck kind of way that always sounds so good. We got a chance to ask Jason Look, guitarist and vocalist, a bit about what it’s like to live in the rock ‘n’ roll capital of the world. Read on to find out where to get the best burrito, and why Jason has a shirt that used to belong to Will Rigby.

What’s your town’s nickname?
The Forest City.

What’s your nickname for your town?
We just call it Cleveland.

Why do you live there?
Because it is cheap.

What is your favorite local attraction (monument, park, etc)?
The West Side Market.

What is your favorite local event/festival?
The Orange Jubilee.

What is the best time of year to be there?
The springtime is a real treat.

Who is your favorite local celebrity/personality?
Dick Goddard.

Where is the best place to drink and what’s their specialty or happy hour?
The Euclid Tavern. Never crowded and cheap beer.

Who has the best jukebox (and what’s in it)?
The Grog Shop. It has Bee Thousand by Guided By Voices.

What is your favorite place to see live music and what was your favorite show there?
The Happy Dog. Saw Bill Fox there this year.

What is your favorite local band?
Coffinberry.

What is your favorite diner or restaurant and what is their best dish?
Chilli Peppers. Excellent burritos.

What is your favorite record store and what was your best find there?
Blue Arrow Records. A dB’s t-shirt that used to be Will Rigby’s.

What is your favorite local publication (alternative weekly, zine, website or blog)?
The Free Times.

What is your favorite local shop?
Value World.

AMEN

Ahhh, finally the spring heat has subsided and summer has people lazy in the shade sipping blood orange margaritas.  It also means that most working DJs are out working the festival circuits.  Which generally means that whatever is going to be the summer hit has already been released and the 12″ tap starts to squeeze shut and releases drip out.

However, Klute just put out Music for Prophet and ASC finally dropped Nothing is Certain in early July.  Both albums vie for top spots on the Juno bestsellers chart. And not much more in the way of good beats on the top of that list right now.

Icicle‘s Xylophobia is out on promo on Shogun Audio, a flash in the pan, been wanting a release of that one for a while.

Anyway, d&b as a genre has its summer persona and it’s all out in smooth vibe style.  Let’s check out the Juno catalog in our journey through C:

Notable Releases:

None.

Here’s one that was so cheeky with rave piano stabs and air horns and every other kitchen sink: Nuclear Warhead by Callide. I just had to throw it up here.

This page was full of Jump-Up, which I’m not a fan of anyway.  There was one record that actually had a black and white photo of the artist on the center sticker, which is kind of funny. And very home grown, which is maybe something I do like about Jump Up.  They still keep their very insular ways of presenting the music, but unfortunately it’s the predominant sound available in record bins.

Oh what the heck, here’s some pics from the d&b bin at just about every mid-level underground record shop:

Prestige – LIFE

Camo – Lost Heaven

Camo & Krooked – The Escape

Camo & Krooked – The Big Rush

Camo & Krooked – Play It

That last one is a good summer vibe tune, but with a mean Casablanca vocal snippet.  The Big Rush owes a debt to Body Rock but is still pretty fun.

And now on to some bad news…

For those who can’t identify the above female, that is none other than Mary Ann Hobbs.  She is smoking hot, as much of a music nerd as you are, a BBC 1 radio host and maybe one of the reasons that you heard Burial or saw The Office.  Meaning that aside from every electronic music guy (or girl) wanting to be Calvin to her Hobbs, she has been as close to being our John Peel as anyone these days.

British heritage aside, MAH was the host of the Breezeblock, an experimental show on BBC radio 1 the likes of Squarepusher would send exclusive mixes in to while Mrs. Mary would catch the planet up on some of the best music not many had heard.

Sadly she will now be the former host of the Experimental program at Radio 1 as of September 8th.  Taking off the shoes as one of the most beloved tastemakers on the planet, Mary will be taking a teaching job at a local university.  Check her Myspace or the internets for her official statement.

It makes me kind of sentimental that she’s not going to be there every Wednesday night from September on.  I first started listening to the show while I was living in Japan when I could only get it by downloading it and ripping it to CD.  I would listen and it seemed that all the music that I loved and knew no one else did would be the exact type that she had a bead on every week.  There was this very sensual, breathy voice saying things like “drum and bass” and “exclusive dubplate” coming out of my speakers and it seemed like Mary could be your secret musical lover that would share all of your music tastes and very kindly educate you about what new beats were being built around the globe.

For those who have listened over the years, I trust you know where I’m coming from.  For those who have missed out, I’m sorry to say that there’ll never be another DJ on the airwaves like her.  Let’s just hope that she doesn’t leave the public sphere entirely for academia.

So it goes.

So if you want free jams from the likes of Titus Andronicus, Quasi and Frightened Rabbit, you better get on over to the Mixtape page before we kill #24 and give you the next round of awesome via mixtape #25.

The summer is hot and so is this print issue of Ghettoblaster! Sha-bang! It’s packed with all the best stuff we could dig up for you. Everything from Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek to Teenage Fanclub and Phosphorescent. Also: Konono No. 1, Cap’n Jazz, Little Brother, Walter Schreifels and a whole crapload more.

If we’ve intrigued you enough, why don’t you ask us to send you a copy? Or, perhaps, subscribe to get four of these bad boys every year? Just a thought.

Also, while we’re at it, head over to the In Print page if you are ever wanting to back-order any old issues. More amazing bathroom reading than you know what to do with.

After yet another brief hiatus, we are back in action, digging up the best new artists and asking them why they love where they live.

Tiffany Carter is stirring up her own special blend of soul from the self-proclaimed “most livable city in America,” otherwise known as St. Paul, Minnesota. Coming from the same stomping grounds as Prince leads to some high expectations, but you can rest assured she’s living up to them. Check out what Tiffany has to say about the other twin city.

What’s your town’s nickname?
Saint Peezy, STP or Da Pilla.

What’s your nickname for your town?
The Paul.

Why do you live there?
I was born here, and I want to be the one to put my city on. People know about Minneapolis, but they never hear about St. Paul.

What is your favorite local attraction (monument, park, etc)?
Harriet Island.

What is your favorite local event/festival?
Minnesota State Fair.

What is the best time of year to be there?
SUMMERTIME.

Who is your favorite local celebrity/personality?
Tiffany Carter. (chuckles)

Where is the best place to drink and what’s their specialty or happy hour?
Arnellia’s. They have the bomb chicken & fish combo!

Who has the best jukebox (and what’s in it)?
Willard’s Bar. They have a variety of old and new school R&B, soul, jazz, and 80s, and Tiffany Carter’s “Mama’s Baby.”

What is your favorite place to see live music and what was your favorite show there?
The Artists’ Quarters. I saw Bruce Henry.

What is your favorite local band?
Tiffany Carter of course.

What is your favorite diner or restaurant and what is their best dish?
Mickey’s Diner. Malted waffles!

What is your favorite record store and what was your best find there?
Cheapo’s. I found Will Downing & Gerald Albright’s Pleasures of the Night.

What is your favorite local publication (alternative weekly, zine, website or blog)?
City Pages.

What is your favorite local shop?
Tiffany’s Barber Shop.

But now the news has reached us that our Ohio heroes will be touring as well. Hear that faint squealing noise? That’s the sound of our collective electric joy rising up over the heat of summer.

From ActiveDayton.com:

Although no dates are confirmed, GBV will follow that reunion show with some United States dates. This will be Pollard’s first tour since the Boston Spaceships outing in 2008 and the first GBV shows since disbanding in 2004.

“I’m not sure this will end after this particular tour,” [Pollard] said. “But after this has run its course, that’s the end for Guided by Voices. My justification for even doing it was, we’re old, but we’re not completely feeble yet. We can still do it a little bit, so we better do this before that happens.”

We like to keep it local here at Ghettoblaster, which is why, every so often, we go out and talk to our favorite artists about their hometown and the things they love (or hate) about it.

For this edition of Stomping Grounds, we introduce Matthew Milia of Frontier Ruckus, who is a born and bred Michigander that calls Detroit home but also spends much of his time throughout the rest of Michigan. If you haven’t heard Frontier Ruckus’s unique brand of folk, you should take a moment and check them out. But for now, read on to hear all about the best of Michigan, from Detroit to Ann Arbor to Ypsilanti.

What’s your town’s nickname?
Well, they call Detroit the “D”. I believe they call Pontiac — the town I really live closest to — “Yak Town”. And Ann Arbor, where we also spend a lot of time, is known as A2, or A2.

What’s your nickname for your town?
Orion Town! It’s my large and vague umbrella term for all of sprawling Southeastern Michigan: Metro Detroit, Ann Arbor, etc.

Why do you live there?
It’s where I’ve lived my entire life. It’s the world where I most feel like a physical extension of the landscape, having memorized all of its contents throughout a young lifetime. Every fixture in the vast and sprawling locality brings me boundless memory and profound emotion. I get blissfully lost in its folds and aging infrastructure.

What is your favorite local attraction (monument, park, etc)?
I love driving down to Belle Isle around dusk. It’s a little island of abandoned aquariums, picnic lawns, and amusements in the Detroit River, between the city and Windsor, Canada. It can be incredibly peaceful, yet with an awesome element of danger vestigial from teenage drives. I remember going to Belle Isle as a child with my father for the Detroit Grand Prix, when they turned the winding Sunday-drive roads into a race-car track and hordes of people filled up the place. Now it is desolate and calm in the evening, amid the shadily parked cars and drug deals, with amazing views of the Ambassador Bridge, the Renaissance Center, the Canadian casinos, and other illuminated marvels of the modern world. I love the great spacious weedy expanses found within the urban confinements of Detroit — such as the wonderful State Fairgrounds off Woodward that have a ghostly sort of absence, my grandparents in fact buried in the Greek section of the vast cemetery directly across the road.

What is your favorite local event/festival?
Mittenfest — a local music festival put on by 826 Michigan in Ypsilanti every Christmas to raise money toward youth literacy.

What is the best time of year to be there?
Whatever the season happens to be! It is the height of spring at the moment — so gorgeous. The green leaves flickering with sun and breeze, the lilacs stinking up the air with perfume.

Who is your favorite local celebrity/personality?
I don’t know, really. Jeff Daniels? I do like occasionally seeing newscasters and weathermen eating dinners with attractive women in fancy restaurants.

Where is the best place to drink and what’s their specialty or happy hour?
The Elbow Room in Ypsilanti. Andy Garris, the owner, is its specialty. He is an exuberant and generous character who will see to it that each night is stranger or wilder than the last.

Who has the best jukebox (and what’s in it)?
Nostalgically, the jukebox at the Peanut Barrel in East Lansing is probably the one I’ve elicited the most pleasure from, though it has its hits and misses. Many guilty pleasures have been shamelessly belted along to by a warm and fuzzy public there.

What is your favorite place to see live music and what was your favorite show there?
Fond memories point my mind to the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor or Macs Bar in Lansing. Seeing Jeff Mangum/Neutral Milk Hotel play “Engine” in the middle of the audience at the Pike Room in Pontiac was probably the most special performance.

What is your favorite local band?
Chris Bathgate is one of my favorite songwriters/performers in the area. His music has done much for us.

What is your favorite diner or restaurant and what is their best dish?
Fleetwood Diner in Ann Arbor — the Gyro Hippie Breakfast.

What is your favorite record store and what was your best find there?
Flat, Black, and Circular in East Lansing is a wonderful institution. Some rare Beach Boys, pedal steel records, etc. Solo Records in Royal Oak — lots of Neil Young, Motown, etc.

What is your favorite local publication (alternative weekly, zine, website or blog)?
Metro Times or Real Detroit if you’re looking for something to do or volumes of sexy advertisements.

What is your favorite local shop?
Lost and Found in Royal Oak is clothing store/magnet that has been sucking me and my money back continually since high school.