I don't know about you, but I miss the Pool Parties. It's how I used to spend my summer Sundays: beer, food, free music, good vibes: what more do you want? Unfortunately, the parties are no more after JellyNYC failed to reach an agreement with the East River Alliance to return to the Williamsburg Waterfront for the third consecutive summer. (Crikes, has it been that long since they left McCarren?) Now, the only thing you'll find down there are a bunch of overpriced Ticketmaster concerts.
So, when I heard local download blog RCRD_LBL was hosting a free party on the boardwalk out in Rockaway Beach yesterday, I decided to take a ride and check it out. They got kind of a late start, but I managed to catch openers Friends and Kingdom, who had the mixed hipster-local crowd up and dancing at Rockaway Beach Club, which serves everything from Thai and Turkish food, to pitchers of sangria and Babycakes. And, while they might not have had dodgeball or Slip 'n Slide, they did have a mile of white sand beach mere steps from the stage.
Speaking of the Pool Parties, it just so happens that Jelly has also set up camp in Rockaway this summer at the Aviator Sports Complex, just across the Gil Hodges Bridge from Ft. Tilden. They're calling it: Rockbeach. The website is pretty weak; go here for some more spotty details. Looks like there might be another one this Sunday. Maybe.
More pics on the photo page.