Sunday Night Karaoke at the Barbary. Why Not?

Not going to any shows Sunday night? Why not? Hate bands? Too cool for the scene? Well then, you are joyless and arrogant. Hey, I call em like I see em. But I’ll give you an alternative anyway, ya narcissistic hate filled son of a bitch because, damn it, I like your style. Ready for it? Karaoke! Underwhelmed? I get that a lot. But you’re not going to a show and you’re not allowed back in the bowling alley, so what else are you gonna do? That’s right, head to The Barbary for Sunday night karaoke.

It’s like going to a show except instead of paying for the opportunity to see people who are good at music, you don’t pay and are forced to see people who are bad at music. You can even be bad at music yourself if you want. At karaoke, YOU’RE in charge. It’s like pouring liquor on a choose your own adventure book and then screaming the lyrics to Ice Ice Baby at it (I don’t really understand what analogies are or how to use them)….Come to The Barbary and sing at me while I drink!

Also, there might be cake. No promises.

Friday Night! Pick Your Poison!

Sup beautiful babies?

Tonight, I provide you with two possible options for doin' the damn thang on a friday night.

First off is "NO TIGHT PANTS", a dance party at the Khyber's upstairs room, located on 2nd and Chestnut in Old City. Option two is cheap drinks at Handle Bar, a cheap little corner joint on Frankford and Wildey, directly between Johnny Brenda's and The Barbary in Fishtown.

In order to try to keep things fair here, let's play the pros and cons game.

Khyber:

PROS

• awesome 80's/90's r&b and hip-hop.

• Old City location assures plenty of other crap to do afterwards.

• cute chicks love goofy ass dance parties.

CONS

• dance parties at The Khyber tend to be loud as shit. Good luck striking up a conversation with anyone/keeping the fillings in your teeth from being rattled out.

• Old City location assures plenty of horrendous skanks that are somehow simultaneously overdressed and underdressed.

• crowded. i prefer to keep my drinks in my mouth, not on some dude's shirt.

Handle Bar:

PROS

• $1.50 domestic drafts from 9-12. $3 well drinks. Can't beat a deal.

• Smoking allowed inside.

• The lovely Sharon is bartending.

CONS

• Maybe you don't like drinking domestic brews out of a cup? I dunno.

• Smoking allowed inside.

• It is kind of a scummy dive bar with all manner of unsavory characters/maybe your dad shows up.

Really, I have little to no problem with aforementioned cons, having a predilection towards scummy scumhole bars and weird old people. So you see which way I'm leaning, however, there will be other deciding factors involved (i.e. if my whiny friend who I'm taking with whines too much about there not being enough glitter or whatever at Handle Bar.) but now you've got your heads up.

Can't wait to see you there, wherever there may be.

Weekend Events! 2/10 - 2/13

Hey kids, you like the punk rock, right? I have some show recommendations for the weekend, so put on your hoodies and chucks, and check out why you can't keep anything quiet on the internet.

Cobra Skulls, Luther, and Dirty Tactics at The Fire.

Cobra Skulls. Photos by Blake Larson

The only thing I love more than getting punched in the back of my head by a midget is a good show with fellow writer, Sean. In short, the Cobra Skulls played last night at The Fire and they killed it. Philly locals Dirty Tactics and Luther rounded out the show with massively impressive performances. Catch the full review, set list, and midget story after the jumpity jump jump.

Taco Tuesday Review 3: The Final Tacoing (alternate title: Tacopocolypse! (altnerate title B: Taco Taco Taco))

It has become startlingly clear that someone or something does not want this article to be completed. First, the final segment of Taco Tuesday Review was postponed for a week because apparently my girlfriend has too refined of a palette for a birthday dinner of one dollar tacos at a dive bar. Sorry, princess. That one I chalked up to life getting in the way of tacos. Thats gonna happen sometimes. I let it go. I kept my cool. But then, one week later, Barbarella ends their Taco Tuesday special without even telling me. Read on after the jump.

Friday Night at The Ox: NERRRRD ALERRRT!

Friday night at The Ox was jam packed for the Anamanaguchi show. X Hunters opened, followed by Good Luck and Slingshot Dakota. Where were you? Were you THERE? I specifically instructed you, my little darlings, to be there Friday night. Check out the full review after the jump.

I Decide Your Friday Night For You!

Hey kids! What are you doing tonight?

Really? That sounds dumb.

Anyway, I figured I'd swing in to save the day and make your decisions for you because you're like stupid little shit-babies.

I'm sorry. Mom always said i wasn't much one for first impressions. God I hate her. I just HATE HER, you know?!

ANYWAY.

The place to be tonight is the Good Luck show at The Ox. It's a five-minute walk from the Girard el stop, at 2nd and Oxford.

Good Luck somehow managed to creep up into my Top Ten list this year, and their spectacularly dynamic brand of pop-punk translates into one hell of a live act. Or so I have come to hear. But with supporting acts Anamanaguchi and The X Hunters, it should prove to be a boombastic evening.

A quick word on the openers: I never got into the whole "Nintendo-core" thing. Probably because I never had a nintendo, but also probably because "Nintendo-core" is the most insufferable name for a genre I've ever heard, accurate or not.

But having taken a quick ear-look at the two bands, I've gotta say. Should be a hell of a performance.

Anamanaguchi's fast-paced 8-bit style lends itself to some explosive showmanship, and The X Hunters' badass metal tribute to the music of Mega Man simply cannot not be fun to see live. I will not let it. If need be, i will storm the stage with a trashbag full of confetti and make it so. After all, we wanna see you there! Sean and I will be doing coverage on the evenings' events, and we need YOU to tell us how fucking right we were about how awesome that one thing was that happened, oh man, upon our next posting.

Show starts at 9, doors at 8. It's 8 bucks to get in, and we'll likely be having a few beers at El Bar before we head over.

So whaddya say shit-babies, you gonna take off your little poopoo diapers and slap on some ROCKIN' PANTS?! (no leather pants please, that's not cool.)