For some reason there is now a weekly EV Grieve newsletter

Over the years, a few EVG readers have inquired about the availability of a subscription or newsletter to receive our stories directly. 

Back during Substack's heyday in 2020, we actually created an account… but we didn't do much more than that. 

Anyway, you can now sign up for a free weekly EVG newsletter here. For now, it's just a rundown with all the links and headlines from the past week. (Basically, it's the same thing as the Week in Grieview feature, but emailed straight to you.) 

We may eventually add a few (free) extras, and there are plenty of bells and whistles we could explore once we gain a better understanding of the platform. 

On that note — yes, we know there were a few gaffes in the first edition. We're working on it. Speaking of gaffes, there are TWO EVG accounts. Use EV Grieve's Newsletter. (We will deactivate the other one after exporting the email subscriptions.)

Hopefully, it'll be a convenient way to keep up with EVG. Thanks, as always, for reading.

Today (Sunday!) in Tompkins Square Park: WastexFest 5

Here's the lineup for WastexFest 5 today (Sunday), scheduled between 2-6 in Tompkins Square Park: 

• Blackout Shoppers — 2-2:25 

• Complete Fucker — 2:35-3 

• Angry Corpses — 3:10-3:40

• YDI — 3:50-4:20 

• Urban Waste — 4:30-5:10

• Fang — 5:20-6

Saturday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg 

Today in Tompkins Square Park... during one of the 7-8 downpours today...

Join author Ada Calhoun for an East Village AMA this afternoon

East Village native (and current resident!) Ada Calhoun is taking part in an AMA on Reddit (r/eastvillage) this afternoon from 2-4. 

Perhaps you can ask her about one of her books, including "St. Marks Is Dead" or her recently released (from February) first novel, "Crush." 

Find the AMA link here.

Saturday's opening shot

A sunrise view from Astor Place looking across Stuyvesant Street, the only street in Manhattan that runs true west to east. 

As for the weather, overcast and muggy, with showers and scattered thunderstorms this morning into the afternoon. 

As for the Belmont Stakes (at Saratoga again this year), the track is expected to be wet, perhaps even sloppy. Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty and Preakness Stakes victor Journalism meet again. Five weeks ago at Churchill Downs, Sovereignty edged out Journalism on a rain-soaked track in the Run for the Roses, as we cut-n-paste from elsewhere.

A band to know: Bec Lauder & the Noise

 

Last week, Bec Lauder & The Noise, a band said to be born in the East Village, released "Give It." The song — a rhythmic, retro-tinged pop track with a subtle funk groove — is the first single from their debut album, The Vessel, out Aug. 22.

As you'll see, the video was filmed on Astor Place, as well as along Third and Fourth avenues, and features dancers for the Brooklyn Nets. 

On May 11, during the first 2025 Show Brain show in Tompkins Square Park, we had a chance to see the band, featuring Bec Lauder (vocals/guitar/bass), Maggie Bishop (drums/vocals), and Soph Shreds (guitar/bass). 

Pics by Stacie Joy...

You can follow the band on Instragram for updates.

Tompkins Square Park hawklet watch continues

The Tompkins Square Park hawk chicks continue to GROOOW. 

Mark Hado shared these photos this week, with the top taken via an iPhone through 16 power binoculars. 

As hawk documentarian Goggla noted in her last post, the offspring "suddenly go from little fuzz balls to serious-looking raptors." 

See below! 

This is the first brood for Amelia, the resident female red-tailed hawk in Tomkins Square Park, and her new male companion, aka M2. (This marks Amelia's eighth season raising chicks in Tompkins. )

Meanwhile, the fledge watch continues. As always, check out Goggla's site for updates.

Friday's opening shot

From last evening on Avenue A near Seventh Street (thanks, Emily Quinn, for the photo!). 

We happened to walk by this morning and saw it ourselves... pretty damn green still — like, Jan. 2 green.

Just a little longer in the bag and it'll be fully toasted...

Thursday's parting shot

Photo by Roger Bultot 

The damaged Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtémoc has been docked at Pier 36 since its fatal collision with the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17. 

Early tomorrow morning, the New York City Emergency Management Department will coordinate a multi-agency operation to tow the ship from Pier 36 to the Brooklyn Navy Yard for repairs. 

Per the media advisory: 

This will be a tightly coordinated marine movement involving the United States Coast Guard, NYPD Harbor, NYC Mayor's Office of International Affairs, NYC Economic Development Corporation, NYC Ferry, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Government of Mexico, and private ferry and salvage partners. 

The East River will be closed between the Williamsburg Bridge and Manhattan Bridge from 6:45-8 a.m. Ferry service will be disrupted during this time, officials said.

Two Mexican Navy cadets, América Sánchez, 20, and Adal Jair Maldonado Marcos, 23, died, and 19 others were injured when the Cuauhtémoc struck the Brooklyn Bridge; 277 people were aboard at the time. 

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

Talking Heads celebrate 50 years with 'Killer' new video

Half a century after their live debut, Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer" gets an official music video. 

Last night, the band provided fans with a sneak peek of the clip from 195 Chrystie St. on the Lower East Side, a loft building that David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth, and Jerry Harrison lived in during the mid-1970s. 

The new video, directed by filmmaker (and Cooper Union grad) Mike Mills, stars Oscar-nominated actress Saoirse Ronan. 

Per Variety:

The video covers 13 days in the very repetitive life of a woman waking up and going to an unspecified job, where she experiences a range of emotions from indifference to sorrow to rage to, finally, a kind of peace — all of these moods going more or less unregistered by the other humans she interacts with.

   

On June 5, 1975, Talking Heads made their debut, opening for the Ramones at CBGB. We heard it was a pretty good show. 

"Psycho Killer" appeared on the band's first record, Talking Heads: 77.

Today in photos of the sky

As you may have noticed, the sky here today is a little milky/hazy/adjective of choice.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has issued an Air Quality Health Advisory until 11 tonight as ground-level ozone may approach or exceed unhealthy standards for a second straight day.

The haze is also attributed to smoke from the Canadian wildfires, according to published reports.

The hidden charms of a soon-to-sell loft building and the former home of Sixth Street Specials

Photos and reoorting by Stacie Joy

Top photo from March

Last week, Sixth Street Specials moved out of its home of 39 years at 703 E. Sixth St. 

The move to New Rochelle marks a new era for the business — as well as the four-story building between Avenue C and Avenue D. 

The building had been on the sales market, and as of May 14 (see below), it is now under contract with a yet-to-be-named buyer. The ask had been more than $4 million. 

Hugh Mackie, the owner of the motorcycle repair shop who also lived above with his family, decided to retire. He and his family relocated. (Mackie said previously that the current "landlord's been 100% cool with me.")

I was given access to the now-empty building — every floor except the third, where the door remained stubbornly locked despite my best efforts with the key. 

Each floor features a loft, and they are massive. What I saw was enough to stir both curiosity and a bit of envy.

According to Village Preservation, tax records show that a house was built at this location around 1855, replacing the shop and stables that had formerly occupied the lot. 

Here's more: 

The 1858 tax record describes the structure as four stories tall. The 1856 map labels this building as 'Piano Action Factory.' Although no permits were found prior to 1965, the current front facade likely dates to 1920-30s. In 1965 the building was altered by having its dumbwaiters, doors and bulkhead removed.

Vintage touches abound here. A double Fox Police Lock is still intact — a relic of security craftsmanship that's both rare and beautiful. Con Edison panels from another era line the wall alongside weathered AFA automatic fire alarms that haven't beeped in years.

We also spotted a lone piano in one of the spaces...   

At the top of the building, a half-door leads to the roof — watch your head! Even your intrepid, height-challenged reporter had to duck. 

But the climb (and duck) is worth it: a sprawling rooftop mural stretches across the surface, a splash of color crowning the building like a secret. (The KTM crew created the mural.)

You can't help but sigh at the potential. The place is under contract now, but for a few moments, it was ours to imagine.

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bridge Advisory Group (@bridgeadvisorygroup)

Macy’s Fireworks returning to the East Side, home of all things spectacular

Image via Macy's 

ICYMI: After a year abroad, the Macy's July 4th fireworks are returning to the East River. 

According to a city press release, the 49th edition of the fireworks will launch from the Brooklyn Bridge and four surrounding barges in the East River at the South Street Seaport. 

And if you want to get close to the live-viewing action: 

Additional details on public viewing locations, live broadcast details, and a city-sponsored lottery for free public viewing tickets will be announced in the coming weeks. 

With the East 10th Street pedestrian bridge closed and Greenway access limited up to Stuyvesant Cove, we're curious how congested the remaining open sections of East River Park might get during the fireworks.

Off the wall: Longtime 'Alphabet City' mural erased

After nearly 11 years as a colorful fixture on the southwest corner of Sixth Street and Avenue C, the "Alphabet City" mural is gone. 

A reader reports that on Monday, an anti-graffiti crew power-washed the artwork from the one-story RCN Cable building — a windowless structure as mysterious as it is nondescript. 

The creative mural of the alphabet letters was created by Brooklyn-based artists The Yok and Sheryo, who were then working for the Jersey City-based arts group Green Villain. 

It arrived in late 2014 (and with some controversy). 

Someone tagged the mural in August 2022 (it took eight years)... and it got worse from then on. 

Here in better days, via Carpe City...

We'll be curious to see what, if anything, shows up next.