Our good friend Vincent recently started working with the Tribeca Film Festival and invited us to curate our own night of music. Honestly, the older versions of the festival felt like exclusive industry events for pretentious filmmakers. But this year, they dropped the “Film” from their name and adopted a more inclusive approach, incorporating TV, panel talks, and, luckily for us, live music. This shift made curating a night at the Tribeca Music Lounge an exciting opportunity.
The music portion of the event was held at Baby’s All Right, one of our favorite Brooklyn venues. It’s a venue that books a variety of acts, from rappers and DJs to hardcore bands, always bringing together an eclectic crowd. This inclusive spirit resonated with us as we planned the show.
Wilson, Jenkem's intern, sporting a vintage Zero skull hat from the early 2000s.
We tasked our new intern, Wilson, with filming duties for the night. He’s finishing up college and is a master at finding vintage skate gear, like the Zero skull hat he’s wearing. It looks like it’s from 2003, but knowing Zero’s ever-changing image, it might be a 2019 throwback. To confirm its authenticity, we’d need to check for 20-year-old salt stains!
A crowd of people enjoying music at the Jenkem party during the Tribeca Music Lounge event.
While it might look like a slightly rowdy night at a Panera Bread, this is a shot from our party. This crowd of 20-somethings might discuss poetry, socialized medicine, or unwind with adult coloring books. But don’t underestimate them, or they might just break out Settlers of Catan and completely ignore you! The relaxed and intellectual atmosphere was a key part of the night’s vibe.
Been Stellar performing live at Baby's All Right during the Tribeca Music Lounge event.
Been Stellar opened the live music for the night, fresh off their first UK tour. They’re currently experiencing a surge in popularity, receiving praise from major music publications. If you haven’t heard of them yet, you likely will soon. At least, we hope so! Then you can look back at this and say, “Damn, Jenkem knows how to pick ’em!” Been Stellar’s performance set a high bar for the rest of the evening.
Attendees at the Jenkem Tribeca Music Lounge event, enjoying a change of pace with conversations beyond skateboarding.
While some faces may look like they’re waiting in line at the DMV, I swear the event was fun! Even if it wasn’t that fun, it was a refreshing change. There were fewer skaters and more people hoping to hear live music. The conversations shifted from skate tricks at Blue Park to Summer Fridays and the impact of inflation. Believe it or not, these mundane conversations offered a welcome break from constant thoughts about skating and whether Bobby Puleo will be upset about something soon.
Hyperlinks to various releases on Jenkem Recordings.
We rarely promote it, but we run a small record label called Jenkem Recordings with the help of our friend Mike Bloom. Here are a bunch of hyperlinks to music we’ve released. For this event, Mike tapped his friends in Blonder to headline the show. They had just finished touring with Porches, another New York staple. Maybe you’ll enjoy their music? If not, you’re just one click away from revisiting that Turnstile album. Showcasing Jenkem Recordings was an important part of the night.
A shot capturing the youthful rebellion and energy of the Jenkem music event at Tribeca Music Lounge.
Here’s an artsy shot indicative of youthful rebellion. The movement of the lights makes you feel like you just woke up tripping in Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Speaking of drugs, weed may finally be legal in New York, but this guitar strap still isn’t. The energy of the night was definitely captured in moments like these.
DJ Rahill spinning records at the Jenkem event, staying true to the art of analog DJing in New York.
Similar to how skaters cling to their VX1000s, New York-based DJ Rahill stays true to the art of DJing with physical records. Real music snobs can probably distinguish between analog and digital sounds. But, thanks to the open bar, I couldn’t tell the difference between the music and people shouting their drink orders. Rahill’s dedication to vinyl added a layer of authenticity to the event.
A selection of lyric-less albums often listened to while writing Jenkem articles.
If you’re like us, it’s hard to listen to music with lyrics when you’re writing. Since that’s what we mostly do, we listen to long, lyric-less albums that allow us to space out and enter a flow state. Many Jenkem articles are written while listening to a combination of Phillip Glass, Antonio Carlos Jobim, and random Fabriclive mixes. (And when Ian gets really stressed, he just listens to the Requiem on repeat.) These ambient soundscapes fuel much of our creative output.
Concluding image from the Jenkem Tribeca recap.
We know our site content has been a bit slow lately, but that’s because we’re working on two books, a collab clothing capsule, and trying to remember how to skateboard. Our next event is coming up on Sunday. It’s invite-only, but as a reward for reading to the end, DM us on IG and let us know you read this. You might get on the list. We appreciate our readers and hope to see you at future events!
P.S.: The last photo was taken by someone else, hence the lower quality.
Words by: James Lee
Photography: David Mitchell
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