GREAT TUNES, TIMELESS VENUE
As I strolled down Flushing Avenue in Queens last weekend, what was once a dry, hot summer afternoon quickly turned into a full-blown rainstorm. While pulling out my umbrella, I wondered to myself what would happen to this year’s Out in the Streets Festival — I hoped to myself that it would not get cancelled. I was intrigued by the festival, and excited to see what it was all about. After bearing through the storm, I finally arrived at The Vander Ende-Onderdonk House, the festival’s location in Ridgewood. New York City’s oldest Dutch Colonial house was arguably a peculiar site for a music festival, but the atypical location was exactly what made it significant. The show was set up in the backyard, complete with a variety of tents that each represented a different aspect of the arts.
SATURDAY 07/16/16 – QUEENS, NEW YORK
The small, intimate setting under the main tent made for the perfect listening experience; each band was able to entertain a crowd of no more than fifty. In turn, audience members were able to enjoy each set up close, no matter where they were standing.
I arrived just in time to catch Brooklyn-based post-punk band Future Punx—having seen the group perform twice before, I was already accustomed to their extra terrestrial sound. The Punx attracted the largest crowd of the afternoon with their spooky melodies, and their performance was a borderline out-of-body experience. What I love most about this band is their creation of a new genre: “post-wave.” A cross between post-punk and new-wave, it sounds just like my mom’s warped New Order record in the best way possible.