Preview: A DIY CLIMATE JUSTICE BENEFIT CONCERT at the Gowanus dredgers boathouse
Spring has sprung in the city that never sleeps, and gigs are popping up like so many blooming flowers (or allergy-provoking trees, as it were). And just like that, we’re previewing one more show less than one week away on April 24 at Gowanus Dredgers’ Boathouse!
With performances by Lumberob, Blanket Approval, Outer Shapes, and Arlo Indigo, co-presented by Brooklyn locals The Eel Pit Zine & Booking and Collective Scream Benefit Concert Series, this not-for-profit gig was put together in honor of Earth Day and in the interest of climate justice.
All ticket proceeds will be split evenly and donated to Gowanus Dredgers and UPROSE, two organizations at the forefront of environmental protection and advocacy in Brooklyn (Gowanus and Sunset Park, respectively).
We chatted with some of the artists and the mind behind Eel Pit about caring for the environment, the artistic climate here in NYC, and why creating and tending space, for music and otherwise, matters.
You can find a running playlist of local artists that interviewees shout out in their responses here!
“The Gowanus Dredgers’ mission to take a Superfund site and turn it into a space for healing and joy for both people and planet is a blueprint towards a more hopeful future.”
Outer Shapes by Zaffira Medici
OUTER SHAPES is a queer alt duo whose motto, “FEEL ALL YOUR FEELINGS,” is difficult to resist when you put yourself in their world of genre-blending, chaotic, melodic alt pop. Recent album FORWARD BACKWARD brings listeners through the lens of relapse and the mixed bag of pain and sorrow that comes with it.
Lumberob by Joanne Leah insta: @twofacedkitten
Rob Erickson is LUMBEROB is a dadaist vocalist electro skank synth slop live looping purist, a genre-unhinged project that began in Austin, TX in 1999. The long-awaited debut LP came out in 2022 and mixed experimental noise, psychedelic pop, and his mastery of vocal looping, that he’s been cultivating since before looping was a genre. LUMBEROB plays music for puppies, fancy bouncing… his live shows are legendary. Joined on Friday by Catherine McRae on noise fiddle & with finnie on drums. His previous bands include ADULT RODEO. He has performed and toured extensively with JAD FAIR.
Arlo Indigo
ARLO INDIGO is a Brooklyn-based band with roots in Palmer, Alaska, whose country-tinged indie folk rock is on full display on upcoming album, Normalized Cringe, out May 19th on vinyl via VLVT HEART RECORDS.
“Tech and authoritarians want us to stay isolated but live music brings people and ideas together. ”
BLANKET APPROVAL, a groovy indie rock band from NYC, recently released their debut album Heartbreak City after a chance-inspiration and songwriting credit on “Robot Voices” off of alt duo Twenty One Pilot’s latest album. The band has been releasing music and playing shows throughout the city and east coast since early 2022 and blend disco grooves with alt rock riffs and sing-along indie pop.
“Gowanus Dredgers and Uprose are doing the vital work that is required for all dwellers of earth to have a just future. We’re happy to do what we can to help both orgs thrive at a time when so much is being put at risk.”
Eel Pit zine/booking founder Sofia Pipolo is an eyewitness to the buzzing scene around Brooklyn, whose countless live music events, pop-ups and zine fairs have served as a welcome home to artists and art fans of all kinds.
“Amongst the concrete and buildings, NYC still has pockets of feral, biodiverse nature I am inspired by. Dredgers and UPROSE see that. They know we are guardians of that rich, diverse natural world in the city and, like The Eel Pit and Collective Scream, organize community spaces for us to create, thrive, and connect with all the silly creatures around us.”
COME OUT TO GOWANUS DREDGERS BOATHOUSE FRIDAY, APRIL 24!
MUSIC @ 6PM!
Tickets Available Here: