The BBQ is Dead. Viva La BBQ!

Ohhhh, sigh…. four months of free barbecue & mellow buzz action has now come to a close. So sad. Last Wednesday marked Finger On The Pulse’s final Summer BBQ Blow Out at the Hope Lounge in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

From May through August ‘09, come rain or shine, brothers Greg & Darin Bresnitz provided the neighborhood with the mellowest mid-week lurk in town. Friends + FREE BBQ + free beer + legendary chefs + good tunes + free Incase products. Everybody just lazin’ around with full bellies…. Summery Wednesday nights at an indoor/outdoor lounge…. Sounds pretty good. And now, sniffle… sniffle, it is over.

Here’s what Greg Bresnitz had to say about the final BBQ (note—the reference to 250 people eating “pork belly” makes his email recap an instant Incase blog classic).

“We had great weather and one of the best turnouts for the final BBQ. 250 people came through and ate more pork belly than was humanly possible. The Dap-Kings spun throughout the night and kept the crowd moving with deep soul cuts. People grabbed up the Incase products as soon as they came in and were showing them off to each other. It was a great night.” —Greg

Thanks again to the Bresnitz Brothers, no doubt Incase & FOTP will cook up another Music & Food series again together quite soon. Stay tuned.

Finger On The Pulse BBQ #3

Upon reading Greg Bresnitz’s email recapping this past Wednesday’s Incase-sponsored Summer BBQ Blowout #3, I’ve decided we’re not gonna bother trying to explain. Sounds too hectic, too fun and way too wet. Here it is straight from Greg’s Finger On The Pulse fingers to you:

“It was a monsoon the entire day through the night. Despite that we had people standing in line in buckets waiting for Sam Mason’s food (Head Chef at Tailor). We sold out in an hour and half, the fasted of any BBQ. I guess Tailor and a recession really gets people to sacrifice comfort for amazing food. Sorry for the delay, we are painting the apartment.”

My favorite part of his email is that last bit about “painting the apartment.” In the relatively short span of nine days, Brothers Greg & Darin Bresnitz have successfully managed to party like wild manimals at Pitchfork in Chicago, play records at Swimming With Sharks in LA, and produce a BBQ during a monsoon in Brooklyn. Now they’re painting the interior of their new TV studio/professional kitchen/production office/dance party loft apartment. Of course. If you attended the BBQ, kudos for braving the weather. Chef Mason’s food is plenty worth it.

BBQ #4 happens at the Hope Lounge on Wednesday, August 26th. This will be the final BBQ of the series (and possibly your last chance this summer to lurk/score free Incase Slider Cases for iPhone & iPod). Take a zillion! Pass ‘em around.

Until then, please enjoy Nicky Digital’s photos of the BBQ series.

Summer BBQ Blowout #3 Announcement

Incase & Finger On The Pulse Presents:
Summer BBQ Blowout # 3
with Chef Sam Mason & Harlem Shakes
July 29th @ Hope Lounge
10 Hope Street, Brooklyn, NY
7-11PM

For some reason, this year, summer feels like it is flying by. Hard to believe Incase and Finger On The Pulse are already on our 3rd BBQ Blowout. Does anyone else out there feel like the season’s already halfway over? But doesn’t it also kinda feel like it hasn’t even really begun yet? Weird. Fortunately for the good citizens of Brooklyn, all signs suggest this month’s Finger On The Pulse BBQ will be amazing. Not, like, faux-amazing. Rather, actually amazing. As in, it just might kick summer into full swing.

Here’s why:

1. Entrance to the BBQ is free!
2. Sam Mason! Just $5 bucks gets you a heaping pile of BBQ created by brilliant chef Sam Mason, host of Dinner With The Band, and one of our favorite people. Mason is a seriously gifted chef. Ask anyone who scarfed down Mason’s BBQ at last year’s event, you’ll remember your BBQ experience for many, many years to come. Not kidding! Search high & low, far & wide— we guarantee this will be the best $5 meal in town.
3. We’ve asked The Harlem Shakes to DJ. This means more likely than not, your ears will be as happy as your taste buds.
4. The Hope Lounge has a good vibe. Not corny and not uncomfortable. Go there and relax.
5. And last but not least, in addition to all that nice stuff above, Incase will be doling out boat loads of free Slider Cases for your iPods & iPhones. Piles and piles of Slider Cases. In a veritable cornucopia of vibrant colors. Take as many as you like. They look good and work wonders.

For an evening mid-week lurk sesh, it doesn’t get much better than this. Guaranteed to be easy-breezy, inexpensive, and terrifyingly filling.

Save the date, we hope to see you there.

Finger On The Pulse BBQ #2

This past Wednesday night, Williamsburg’s Hope Lounge played host to Finger On The Pulse’s Summer BBQ Blowout #2. Here’s what party titan and FOTP honcho Greg Bresnitz had to say about it (via text, no less):

“Hey man, Here are the photos. The night was great. We had over 350 people come out and we were sold out in the first 90 minutes. Les Savy Fav killed and Tim [Harrington] closed with a set of early 2000s euro gay anthems. Thanks again for the support. Tonight was amazing. Now out drinking!” –Greg

Sure enough, the FOTP BBQ once again sounds like the neighborhood’s best lazy mid-week lurk. From now through August, every last Wednesday of the month, you can enjoy a heaping plate of $5 BBQ, guzzle and dance your ass off (for example, to euro-gay anthems care of luminaries like Les Savy Fav’s Tim Harrington & Seth Jabour).

And while you’re at it, use it as an opportunity to load up on free Incase products for your iPod or iPhone. Like, LOAD UP. Take five, take ten. Spread ‘em around. Snap one on your 3G and shove the rest down your damp pants; belly full, staggering, howling wildly into the night. The next event is July 29th, hope to see you there.

Bicycle Film Festival New York City Photos

Some photos by Amelia Shaw from last week’s Bicycle Film Festival in New York.

We’re sponsoring the Pittsburgh BFF next weekend July 2-4. So go see one of the films, and you might win one of our Messenger Bags.

2009 Bicycle Film Festival

Incase is excited to be a sponsor of this year’s Bicycle Film Festival.

The Bicycle Film Festival (BFF) is a celebration of bicycles through film, art and music. The events kick off this week in New York with a plethora of happenings. Check out John Prolly’s blog for more information.

During select stops of the festival, we’ll be giving away prizes from our Courier Collection to the winners of alleycat races and other activities, so be sure to get involved when the BFF comes to your city.

We’ll be posting updates as the festival treks across the world, so check back with us for continuing coverage.

Finger On The Pulse Summer BBQ Blow Out of 2009

From a purely gastro-intestinal standpoint, this post is kind of a big deal. Incase Music & Events is very happy to announce that after last year’s run of neighborhood-friendly, chef-curated bar-be-cue events, brothers Greg & Darin Bresnitz (a/k/a Finger On The Pulse) are once more firing up the grills for summer.

From now through August should you find yourself in Williamsburg with $5 bucks to burn and a hankerin’ for gourmet BBQ—do yourself a favor—GO TO ONE OF THESE EVENTS. Hosted every last Wednesday of the month by a cast of adventurous chefs, luminary DJs, and dubiously clad heavy petters, you’re guaranteed to experience at least four things:

1. You’ll stuff your face.
2. You’ll dance.
3. You’ll make new friends. And,
4. If you arrive early enough, you’ll walk with a small pile of Incase products for your iPod & iPhone.

The first BBQ kicks off next week, May 27th at the Hope Lounge.

For more info, follow Incase and Finger on the Pulse on MySpace.

Monster Track X Perspective

The tenth annual Monster Track Race theme this year was A Day in the Life of a NYC Messenger. Riders came from all over the US, Europe, and Japan to experience the exhilarating ride in NYC traffic. The checkpoints were all based on real life stops of a NYC messenger.

My favorite stop was Continuum Cycles because it is what I call the default location for the messengers I know. That’s where I know I can find the messengers who aren’t busy making deliveries. I love that the only rule is No Brakes and I love that the snow waited on the race to end!

More photos in this Flickr set.

Monster Track X This Weekend in NYC

The world’s illest outlaw alleycat race, Monster Track X, is being held this weekend in New York.

Friday 2/27

• Goldsprints Open Qualifier
• Rad Rides Hawt Hoopties Contest

Saturday 2/28

• Monster Track
• Goldsprints Finals

Sunday 3/1

• Sprints, Stunts & brunch

Finger on the Pulse Party Report

We teamed up with some of our favorite promoters Finger on the Pulse for a special Halloween edition of their monthly Brooklyn dance party, No Big Deal on Saturday, Nov 1.

The party took place at Death by Audio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. We screenprinted tote bags (to hold Halloween candy!) and danced to 80s-disco funk influenced electro bangers by Grum (in is U.S. debut).

We were super excited to have partnered once again with champion of indie designers, Love Brigade on the artwork for the totes… and it was KILLER. Leif, Snakes Say Hisss, and FOTP resident DJs rounded out the bill.