Bang-Up Weekend pt. 1

On saturday night the lovely wife, our homeboy, and I went to El Arepazo for dinner. It has got to be one of the best and most authentic latin restaurants I have been to in town. The joint is great! They offer food hailing from Venezuela, Argentina, and Cuba. I must say, the cuisine and the service are impeccable. The wife and I have hit them up every so often since they opened, and I feel they have trimmed all the fat from the early days. (Although there wasn't much to begin with) The interior is more inviting, and the level of efficiency has increased. In short, El Arepazo is located on Gay street in Pearl alley downtown, and they are seriously on point. Check 'em out so they stay open!
Anyway, we were headed to the restaurant, and while walking we saw lots of people hanging out, and there was a d.j./m.c. combo called the LabRats. (Avant Hip-Hop) They sounded decent, and I was glad to finally get to hear them. I had been hearing about their shows around town, and I had a desire to see them, but the fates deemed it not the right time prior to now. We had to inch past a B-Boy break dancing, and I ran into a really cool client of mine who d.j's and produces hip-hop music. We stopped and chatted for a while and because he was apparently hip to what was going on, he filled us in. Basically, the ROY G. BIV gallery, and Greater Columbus Arts Council produced the idea of Edmund Gaisie. This idea was an art festival called Streetspace. Gaisie, along with other artists (Ashley Puckett, Steph Davidson, Craig Dransfield, Klutch, and Ali Calis) intent on promoting urban growth, and cultural enrichment here in the city participated in the installation of a graffiti/sculptural mural in Pearl Alley. The project began last week and the unveiling was tonight. The mural was part of a festival of art and urban culture that went on all day saturday. (12-10p.m.) As I said, the Lab Rats were there, but earlier the Rackets, Brainbow, Camu and Flip The Early Riser performed differing genres of music made to shake the ass of the savage beast. I feel very privileged to have been able to experience Streetspace, and look forward to the next festival/installation in the (I hope) near future.
Just a few reminders:
Check out El Arapazo
Look up the Lab Rats and Edmund Gaisie
And finally, log on to Streetspace.com (and don't forget the links)
I did, and I am now a much much better person for it...
Awright, that may be pushing it, but I can say that because of my research, I honestly feel I'm getting back in the cultural/artistic loop.
More on my weekend activities tomorrow.
Peace.