Here’s What’s Popping Off This Fourth of July Weekend

The Macy’s fireworks may have permanently decamped to the Hudson, and the city’s slowly bleeding out to the Hamptons, so it might seem that Bedford + Bowery’s neighborhoods have nothing to offer for Independence Day weekend. Au contraire! Herewith, a round-up of events and on-goings to keep you celebrating our great nation through the weekend.

THURSDAY, JULY 4
For a pretty penny ($55!) you can gain access to pool deck at the King & Grove Hotel for sunbathing and an afternoon DJ set by Vacationer. Drinks not included, but at least they give you a towel.
160 North 12th Street, Williamsburg, | 718 218 7500 | 11am-9pm 
The Knockdown Center is technically in Queens but since it’s right over the border from Bushwick, we’ll go ahead and remind you that this former-glass-factory-turned-art-space is putting on a blowout featuring tunes by Endless Boogie and nibbles by Roberta’s.  Arrive early or risk snaking lines.
52-19 Flushing Avenue, Ridgewood | No phone | 8pm – 2am
To shake it up al fresco, flock towards the waterfront for Verboten’s Never Say Never party.  Expect a line-up of standout electronic D.J.’s including D.J. Sasha. Also, crowds. Get your tickets in advance.
North 11th Street at Kent Street, Williamsburg | No phone | 2pm – 10pm 
Electro not your scene?  Swap it out for a set by post-metal rockers Deafheaven, who scheduled a second show at 285 Kent for the Fourth after their Tuesday evening performance sold out almost immediately.
285 Kent Avenue, Williamsburg | No Phone | 10pm
Across the river, catch the rag-timey celebration of America’s yesteryear, Liberty Belle Extravaganza, which offers up swing and jazz bands, burlesque, and old-fashioned cocktails.  The party is split up between the Delancey and the Empire Hotel rooftop, with tickets granting entry to both. But don’t feel obliged to head uptown.
95 Delancey Street, Lower East Side | No phone | 5pm
FRIDAY, JULY 5
Get your grill on. Pick up a classic little Weber grill on wheels for $84 at Whisk, and start flipping burgers. (Outdoors, obviously.) Prefer to leave the ‘que’ing to the pros? Assemble yourself a top-notch DIY barbeque taste test, starting off in Williamsburg at Mable’s Smokehouse, heading over to BrisketTown, and ending up in the East Village for Mighty Quinn’s.
Work off your meal(s) at Home Sweet Home’s  dance party, where the beloved Jonathan Toubin sets up shop every Friday night. The DJ set wends its way through the decades of American music starting in the 1950s.
131 Chrystie St #1, Lower East Side, | 212-226-5708 | 10pm
To opt for a live set, head to Death by Audio for Speedy Ortiz, a Massachusetts-based group that blends Sadie Dupuis’s pop-like vocals with wild grunge guitar. They’ll perform with Roomrunner and California X for an evening chock-full of indie rock.
49 S. 2nd St, Williamsburg | No Phone | 8pm
SATURDAY, JULY 6
Hit the beach. Rockabus’s competitor, NYC Beach Bus, kicks off service from Williamsburg to Jacob Riis Park this weekend. The fare is $12 round-trip and surfboards ride free. Stop at Campbell Cheese and Grocery before you climb aboard, for a sack full of snacks and sandwiches. Or save your appetite for Rockaway, where there are new beach concessions and outdoor drinking spots.
Ride a wave all the way back to Manhattan for a screening of Point Break, the 1991 surf-crime classic starring Patrick Swayze’s hair, at Anthology Film Archives. If you want to spend the evening roaming the beach instead, never fear: it screens Sunday evening as well.
32 Second Avenue, East Village | 212-505-5181 | 6:30 pm
Keep the surf theme flowing into the night at Otto’s Shrunken Head.  It’s tiki drinks and gnarly tunes at this monthly surf rock band lineup run by a man who goes by “Unsteady Freddy.” Get there in time to catch the Nebulas, who’ll make you feel like you’re on the set of a 1960s beach flick.
538 E 14th Street, East Village | 212-228-2240 | 9pm
SUNDAY, JULY 7
Set sail on the high seas…or, maybe just the Bushwick Inlet.  Become a member of the North Brooklyn Boat Club and sign up for this Sunday’s easy kayak trip. You’ll push off in the late afternoon and paddle through the semi-secret nature reserve. If you’re lucky, you might spy egrets feeding among the greenery of the inter-tidal zone and the crumbling old waterfront infrastructure. The best part: your membership will keep you in maritime activities all summer.
49 Ash Street, Greenpoint | No Phone | 3pm
Wind down your weekend with a low-key show at Manhattan Inn Piano Bar, where breezy, lo-fi folk artist Jo Shornikow of Phosphorescent will perform as part of the venue’s free concert series. Her lull-a-bye sounds are the perfect way to end America’s birthday weekend.
632 Manhattan Avenue, Greenpoint | 718-383-0885 | 9pm
Erica Martin and Phillip Pantuso contributed reporting.