Spring/Summer 11 Trends...Are you Team Ballet or Team Burlesque?

I blame Nathalie Portman and Christina Aguilera for this one... a couple of dance movies and what do you know? Designers turn to tulle and lace with a vengeance. There hasn't been dance inspired clothing like this since The Red Shoes plie'd onto the silver screen back in the day...

I can’t figure out whether to be on Team Ballet or Team Burlesque...

The Joy Formidable Announce Spring Tour Dates

Welsh band The Joy Formidable have announced US tour dates. New York is one of the cities they'll be playing. They're scheduled to be at Webster Hall on Friday, April 29 so mark your calendars. Complete list of dates are at the bottom of the post.

The band will be releasing their self-produced album The Big Roar on March 15 in the US via Canvasback/Atlantic Records. The album was released in the UK on January 24. Check out the video for "Austere" below. The single that is out now.

The Joy Formidable are on the verge of releasing their new album, The Big Roar, on March 15 via Canvasback/Atlantic Records. In the UK, the album will be released on January 24. The Big Roar comes two years after The Joy Formidable released their debut album in February of 2009, the indie-rock explosion of A Balloon Called Moaning, which SPIN magazine named one of the 10 Best Records You Might Have Missed in 2010. The band has since tightened their focus and loosened their sound, allowing for the choruses to be more anthemic and the colossal rush of guitars and melodic hooks to stand out in their jaw-dropping splendor. NME praised the band and album, calling lead-singer Ritzy Bryan "rock's new heroine," and proclaiming The Big Roar "an LP that ultimately delivers on every count on the four years of promise leading up to it-primarily in its gutsy, chest-swelling brilliance."

Tour Dates

• 3/22 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
• 3/24 Durham, NC @ Coffeehouse @ Duke Univ.
• 3/25 Washington DC @ Black Cat
• 3/26 Albany, NY @ Valentines
• 3/28 Providence, RI @ The Met
• 3/29 Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
• 3/30 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
• 3/31 Princton, NJ @ Terrace Club @ Princeton Univ.
• 4/1 Harrisburg, PA @ The Abbey
• 4/2 Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
• 4/4 Columbus, OH @ The Basement
• 4/5 Chicago , IL @ Lincoln Hall
• 4/6 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
• 4/8 Denver, CO @ Larimier Lounge
• 4/9 Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
• 4/11 Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studio
• 4/12 Seattle, WA @ Crocodile
• 4/14 San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill
• 4/16 Indio, CA @ Coachella
• 4/19 Phoenix, AZ @ Rhythm Room
• 4/20 Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
• 4/22 St Louis, MO @ Luminary Arts Center
• 4/23 Kansas City, MO @ Riot Room
• 4/26 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
• 4/27 Pittsburgh, PA @ The Smiling Moose
• 4/29 New York, NY @ Webster Hall

For more quirky ramblings, drop by Quirky NY Chick.

Sneak Preview: DJ Dell’s ‘In The Beginning Mix’ – Feb ’11

Sneak Preview: DJ Dell’s ‘In The Beginning Mix’.MP3 – Feb ’11

Yo! - As we near our first event for HOUSE@MONROE, it’s great that we already have over 30 confirmed on our Facebook Events Page. Please invite your friends and let’s make this an event to remember!

To get in the mood, feel free to stream/download DJ Dell’s ‘In The Beginning‘ mix. A selection of electro, old skool and funky house tunes, perfectly mixed for your pleasure

Take an hour out – stick on your headphones – and relax! Or, head to the gym and work-out to this - it WILL keep you going… Whatever you do – Enjoy!

The Stepford Wife's Workout Essentials...

Coming up to my 3rd year in Stepford you'd think one might grow accustomed to the foibles of the local inhabitants..

Wifus Stepfordicus is a truly strange breed, not to be confused with the aspirational lesser spotted New Jersey House Wifus, or indeed the more brazen, well documented New York House Wifus... The Stepford Wife spends her day preening and primping, toying and tittilating until the hunter gatherer Prep Man returns with his spoils.

As part of the daily ritual the gym/bikram yoga/personal trainer comes only second to the initial hit of caffeine obtained from Starbucks/LPQ/Insert local french pattiserie of choice. But as the winter months draw in, it's the plumage of the Stepford Wife that begins to decree her standing in the community.

A NJ wife might be happy to spend her morning ritual clad in a Juicy Couture track suit, the Stepford Wife however, is mostly seen in Lululemon - the 'wicking friendly' sports attire that ensures this creature does not look like she's actually breaking a sweat during the observance of calorie burning. In addition, as the frigid weather closes in, full fur seems to be the only accessory of choice to transport this fragile species from one heated leisure facility to another.

This reporter also spotted a power walker in full length fur only yesterday striding through the picket fenced neighborhood, complete with fur ear muffs.... only in Stepford!