When faced with a day like today, you might suddenly feel obliged to tick off the major events of the past year, reflect on what you’ve learned, and be grateful that you’ve managed to make it through (so far– we’ve still got several hours left to go). But if you’re anything like us, you’ll need a little help in navigating the haze standing between you and crystal clear recollection. Hence, a great way to say goodbye to 2015: our end times listicle in which we relive our 20 most popular posts of this past year.
#20
(Photo by Frank Mastropolo)
De Robertis Caffé closed in the East Village. (While the news technically broke in 2014, it wasn’t surprising that shock regarding the disappearance of a 110- year-old Italian pastry and coffee shop and neighborhood institution would take a while to wear off.) [11.14.2014]
We also collected memories from regulars for a brief De Robertis’ oral history. [12.1.2014]
#19
Alig back in 2014 (Photo by Amy Lombard)
Michael Alig was released from prison last year, and with the help of an “enthusiastic booster” (Alex Mitow of LESpace) we were able to see how the former club kid spent at least some of his time in prison through an exhibition showing some of the more than 200 paintings Alig created while locked up. [5.15.2015]
This year, we also saw Michael Alig starring as a ‘club kid zombie’ in the Vamp Bikers Trilogy. [12.14.2015]
#18
Multitalented artist/actor/poet/musician Saul Williams (Holler If Ya Hear Me) talks MartyrLoserKing, NYU, and how he aims to inspire others to create art through his own work. [9.10.2015]
#17
Kathleen Hanna manhandling a motorcycle on a photo shoot (Courtesy of Kathleen Hanna, Bikini Kill, and the Fales Library & Special Collections, New York University)
Our first round of Riot Grrrl archival digging turned up some pretty sick stuff too. [12.16.2013]
(Via New York Theatre Workshop)
Earlier this fall, Bowie premiered his new short film at Nitehawk. [11.13.2015]
Later that summer, we heard from Korine–an ex-New Yorker spending some time in the city to celebrate the Kids anniversary– on how he feels about his former home (e.g. “I don’t really know what it stands for anymore”). [8.5.2015]
(Photo by Nicole Disser)
(Via “High Maintenance”)
We trust you also read our definitive guide to ordering weed politely. If not, get to it. You could be making some huge mistakes and you might not even know it, man. [3.21.2014]
(Photo via Facebook)
While Williamsburg DIY music venues disappeared in numbers this year, we also saw the appearance of a brand new DIY “comedy gallery.” [10.14.2015]
(Renderings via Williamsburg Hotel)
(Photo by Nicole Disser)
Needless to say, neighbors were not happy and the story has continued to evolve since representatives of the developers and one co-owner of the old NuHart plastics building tried to explain their reasoning behind allowing the rave to move forward. [11.3.2015]
(Illustration of photo by Elizabeth Flock.)
We followed up with the mysterious Cat Hair Pill dealers to try and unravel the regular yarn ball of weird. [6.17.2015]
(Photo by Nicole Disser)
An unseen image of Kurt Cobain at home featured in the film “Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck” (© The End of Music, LLC/ Courtesy HBO)
(Photos via John Walber)
(Photo by Erik Foss)
(Photo: Craig Johnston)