A Hipster Haven Evolves on Broadway
Goodbye Blue Monday is not going to be what you expect. If there weren’t a certain elegance to the rusty junk outside the storefront, you wouldn’t really be able to tell the difference between it and any of the other junky places on this depressing stretch of Broadway.
Inside is a mega-high-ceilinged shop — to the left, some computers and the bar; to the right, an absolute clusterfuck of mismatched tables and chairs. Not in a bad way, mind you. But the scene is jarring. The walls are encrusted with paintings and a bunch of seemingly random objects.
At GBM, the official line is that everything is for sale. I asked about the chairs and tables, and I could practically see employee Drew’s brain shoot off a Homerian “D’oh!” “That’s the house furniture,” owner Steve Trimboli said. “Anything but that is for sale.” If you have ideas that you’re going to swipe something amazing and rare at GBM for a song, think again: Steve knows how much his stuff is worth. Classic 50s lamps that “you’re not gonna get” elsewhere, will cost you a few bills. But there’s something here for every budget, if not every taste, and you could spend $5 or $700 for an item.
This place doesn’t just have a show every single night, the shows consist of four separate acts! And just in case you thought you could saunter in and book your band any night you fancy, they’re not hurting for talent — they’re booked solid two months in advance. Steve told me a story about a metal band and a jazz band who played on the same night: the metal violinists played with the jazz band and later on, the jazz members played with the metal band. His somewhat freeform booking system makes for a truly eclectic mix of music each night.
This place is so indie, the coffee comes from an old Bunn behind the counter — “oh, let me put a fresh pot on.” The small coffee is a buck. Don’t expect it to be better than 7-11, not that that’s why you would come here. Drew offered me an espresso soda she fished from the door of a fridge much like one your dad might have in his garage. They are planning a kitchen at some point in the future, but for now, enjoy a rice krispie treat or a brownie. Alcohol is also served, including PBR for the hipsters. Is your jappy cousin in town? Worry not, they have prosecco.
A recurring theme with business owners in Bushwick is complaints about municipal red tape. A stamp for this, a certificate for that, an inspection next month. Steve’s experience has been no different, but I did notice that the city’s meddling fingers are noticeably absent from the “sculpture garden” in the back yard: a menacing tangle of rusty metal just barely out of the way of drunken patrons. Depending on your philosophy of life it’s either a tetanusy nightmare or a bohemian dream.
Steve ran a somewhat similar place called Scrap Bar in the East Village of the 80s. He has personally subsidized the operations of GBM since 2005, and this year it’s finally paying off. “I am breaking even for the first time in two years — the neighborhood is beginning to take hold.” Drew has noticed “a hell of a lot of new residents lately” — something we have all been noticing in Bushwick approaching the new school year. The shows draw 40-50 people a night, and there are always a few people in there drinking coffee and using the free wifi during the day.
 Steve at the computers |
 stage |
 bathroom decoupage |
 storefront |
Goodbye Blue Monday is sure to be an anchor in the newly assertive Bushwick hipster community in the years to come. Check it out while it’s cheap!
1087 Broadway between Lawton and Dodworth
September 18th, 2007 at 5:58 pm
I really like GBM, I went there a few weeks ago and spent about an hour reading and sipping a PBR. I ended up buying a couple used books, and the girl behind the counter was really nice and let me haggle for the price!
September 18th, 2007 at 6:56 pm
D’oh!!!
September 18th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
Matt, I guess you are declaring yourself a hipsters than. Sounds like a nice place to hang out, and surprisingly on Broadway, and can we assume in SoBu?
Guess it’s not the place to have high tea at.
Jeremy are you aware of any other entrepreneurs that are trying to get their business in bushwick, getting tangled in the red tape?
September 19th, 2007 at 10:21 am
i heart this place
September 19th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
Place blows
September 20th, 2007 at 4:09 am
Funny, I just came back from here and let me tell you it was crowded for a Wednesday night mind you!
But they usually do have really good acts on stage.
September 20th, 2007 at 9:19 am
The problem I always has with thisn place is that i found everything they sell to be junk basically….the records are in awful condition and are 99% bargain bin garbage…..the furniture is largely crap that most people wouldn’t want in there house. And I never found the staff to be very nice.
I guess the saving grace is that they have gigs.
Like most of the new businesses in Bushwick catering to the hipster crowd, they would benefit from some competition and if they were located in a hood with similar amenities, would probably not last very long.
September 21st, 2007 at 11:34 am
I think a lot of people come into the store expecting it to be shishi and have this antiseptic Williamsburg style. Unfortunately for them, this is really not a place for the whiny- its the daughter of Scrapbar in the Lower East Side, which was (duh) also filled with scrap metal sculptures. Chances are that the same people who hate on GBM would have complained about Scrapbar, but that didn’t stop it from being the last vestige of the punk scene and one of the biggest names in “Please Kill Me”.
So yes, Goodbye Blue Monday might not have the hipster aesthetic you are looking for; the records might not be in top condition and its poorly lit and VERY dusty, but that’s why you always have the option of going to the brand-spaking new Williamsburg Hall! Or the Cake Shop!
And hell, if you’re in the neighborhood and want your own venue, please take a stab at it. I agree, there ISNT enough choices around here (especially food-wise).
But hey, if you do, maybe you can overcome your ill-will and come out to say hello- I can promise we’ll be supportive of what you’re trying to do.
September 21st, 2007 at 12:37 pm
Dude trust me I’m not being whiny….and please don’t lecture me about the “punk scene”. I have been involved in hardcore/ punk for about 15 years now….This place doesn’t exactly scream “punk” to me as much as it screams “we piled as much junk in this place as we could in an attempt to appear edgy and punk when in reality it just looks and feels shitty.
September 21st, 2007 at 7:05 pm
when did i say this is place is supposed to be punk? punk is back “there” with metal, hardcore, new wave , classic rock and doo-wop. dave, whatever you’re looking for you won’t find it here. you just don’t get it. the punk scene ended in the ’80’s. you were too young for the boat.
this place shitty?!you’re looking through angry… ah, brown eyes. lighten up. this is just a place for freeform music and not harsh characterizations, but if need to be that way, have at it davey boy
September 21st, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Stevey boy - guess what dickhead? i’m not that young, and punk rock exists right now even as we speak ,but you seem too clueless to know that. I guess I’m not surprised though. If you don’t know, then you just don’t know.
And guess what? I was responding to Drew not “Steve” unless you are the same person.
Any time you want to be educated about punk and hardcore you just let me know, ok?
I’ll tell you all about NYHC, DC stuff, California stuff, Gilman Street, Boston Straight Edge circa 1983 AND 1999. We can even talk about the Hardcore shows that happen right here in Bushwick on a weekly basis. If you see it with your own eyes will you still say it’s dead?
Maybe I can school you over weak coffee while sitting on half broken folding chairs at GBM.
September 21st, 2007 at 10:48 pm
Wow Davie, honey (well in so much as I am a dude)
you DO sound angry. Must really go well with your “punk” persona- excuse me, your “old, crusty punk” persona.
Let me take a gander at why you have such a shitty attitude towards one of the few establishments in Bushwick trying to cater to a younger crows: Steve- the owner of GBM, who responded to your last comment- probably kicked you out a couple months back for doing some shitty thing like bringing your own alcohol to an establishment that is NOT BYOB. Since then you’ve held a grudge because you are too scared to go back and try your luck again.
Sucks to be you, but isn’t it time you just took a deep breathe, got off the internet, and find somewhere new to attach yourself to?
-Drew
September 21st, 2007 at 11:08 pm
Drew - Nope, not at all. I walked there a few times from my apartment near the Montrose stop because I heard good things and frankly because, like you said, it’s one of the few places around of it’s kind. But seriously, I just thought it sucked. Kicked out? The only communication I ever had with anyone was getting scowled at for asking on the price of a book.
And by the way I’m not angry at all…I just don’t react well to being called “davey boy” by dickheads who don’t know what they are talking about.
And you mentioning me and “crusty,punk persona” in the same sentence just goes to show you how clueless you really are. I am far from crusty and don’t drink at all. I take it your understanding of “punk” is limited to some late 70’s stereotype of drunk dudes in a guttern sniffing glue?
September 21st, 2007 at 11:42 pm
yes - there’s still punk and hardcore shows - and doo wop is still being performed by people who never found anything new and the queers sure are punk for 1995. thanks for proving my point.
proving again, that you don’t get it. you disparage everything in this store, even the coffee, call me names….gee davey-man, when will it end?
thank god you’re not angry. i’d worry that it might have something to do with why you don’t drink.
September 22nd, 2007 at 2:01 am
one last thing, david - we DID hardcore here - sorry you missed them. all i got was kids smuggling in beers and others with half gallons of water, two reasons i stopped them. i have rent to pay. oh, and they sure were noisy.
we still do punk, but do me a favor - miss those shows, too.
and sorry if you were treated rudely. i probably know who it was and i released that person from my employ long ago.
be well and happy and forget you ever knew us.
September 24th, 2007 at 10:36 am
Drew and Steve, I don’t think David deserved this treatment. His criticisms weren’t nasty, but your responses are way too defensive. And the personal insults — I don’t see that as good for business.
September 24th, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Jeremy-
While I agree that personal flame wars might be getting a little out of hand- I refer you to my first post. There is nothing personal- nor even directed at David, so much as the general complaints I’d been hearing here and on the forums.
I’m not going to start a “who started it” fight, but I am going to say that this escalated quickly because remarks were made that were becoming personal and harmful to business before Steve ever got involved.