this life is more than ordinary.

Feeling Nostalgic

 Back in June of 2007 I moved to NYC with nothing but a gigantic duffel bag and my laptop. I had just taken over a sublet with my college roommate and a mutual friend in midtown Manhattan and had to wait 3 days until I got a bed. My room had no windows and it was hot as hell, especially because summer was just starting to take over. I was unemployed and my savings was depleting by the hour. People (still!) say I was crazy to move here without a job but I knew that it didn’t matter where I worked as long as I was part of the greatest city in the world.  I proceeded to make a full time job out of job hunting. I was constantly refreshing Craigslist to jump on any new opportunity that arose. I stumbled on a writing/studio internship at The Deli NYC that was unpaid but sounded right up my alley. I met with the editor in Park Slope the next day and we hit it off immediately.

I was given my first assignment and surprised myself at how easily it came to me. I thought to myself, I could really make a living doing this! Unfortunately, the time came where I had to legitimately make some money to support my social life and pay rent and I had to get my priorities straight. Part of the deal was that I had to work 10 hours per week at The Deli’s partner recording studio in Chelsea labeling Cd’s and other mundane tasks. I had decided that working unpaid was simply not an option and had to temporarily give up my passion to focus on making money.

I am still actively freelancing all over New York City and even had a paid gig for a now defunct magazine in Nashville, but it has become more of a hobby until somebody starts paying me for my work.

I still consider this first (albeit small) assignment one of my best and I wanted to post it online to keep my inspiration strong.

The modern power duo Boy/Girl have been dubbed ‘messy but stripped down’ and ‘spazzy but straightforward’. But this complex non-complexity is what Brooklyn’s Eric Stiner and Jersey City’s Lisa Cusack are bringing to NYC’s indie scene. The supposed unpredictable ‘spazzy’ behavior keeps you guessing what could possibly be next.  The song “Rorshack” off their latest EP “Secret Secret Secret Singles” sounds like distorted chaos but there is definitely a method for their madness that is too appealing to ignore.  With Stiner’s dark yet eccentrically sexual vocals and Cusack’s parade all across the drum set, these two know how to rock the eclectic electric that is No Wave Noise Rock.  Boy/Girl takes the stage on July 10th at Cakeshop, 152 Ludlow St in NYC between Stanton and Rivington. 

    -Jennifer Hein / The Deli NYC