Sweet Summer Sounds by the Sea

The second round of the Seaport Summer Concert Series aimed to be the quintessential NY summer experience.
From the moment you exit the Fulton Street station, something is a little different is in the air.  Maybe it’s the energy of that area.  Maybe it’s the impending rainstorm as clouds gather ahead.  Maybe it’s the cool incessant breeze, a rarity in New York, that cuts through the humidity.  Altogether, it seems like the weather and the city, along with Chase’s help, have gathered together on the bottom of Manhattan with one goal:  Support the Seaport District’s push to be a cultural hub.

The Seaport District motto, emblazoned on welcome banners, is “a vibrant oasis in the heart of downtown.”  And indeed, on Wednesday, August 3rd, the Seaport lived up to that name with its second installment of the Seaport Concert Series, part of the Seaport Summer 17.  With support from Chase Sapphire, Seaport Food Lab, Belvedere Vodka, and local businesses, the Seaport transformed into a summer “oasis” in Downtown Manhattan.

When you think of summer, what do you think of?  Lemonade?  Surfing?  Lawn games? Cocktails? Beer? Food? A summer soundtrack?  Hot dogs?  No matter what, the Seaport had you covered.  From corn hole, to a self-pour beer stand courtesy of Clinton Hall, to a surfboard photo station, to the Big Gay Ice Cream shop, to the neon face paint concert-goers liberally added to their outfits, to the jumbo Jenga in the Chase Sapphire lounge, to the Frose offered “on tap” at the Garden bar, the Seaport experience brought the delights and luxuries of summer right into downtown.  And throughout it all, a curated list of artists from Glassnote Records provided an upbeat summer soundtrack.  

As for the hot dogs, well, guests brought their cute dogs to the show, including a pair of enormous huskies that threatened upstage the concert.  (I guess the dire wolves DO travel south of the Wall).

The afternoon’s soundtrack that floated through the summer air was provided by snny, Baio, and Robert DeLong, providing an eclectic and happy bed of electronic music over the summer activities.  Baio, completely cool in his sunglasses, noted that the audience was a “true delight,” though, their delight seemed to be in the whole experience: enjoying the activities and drinks, with a live soundtrack to boot.  During Robert Delong’s set, the headliner and final set of the evening, the rain that had been gathering for the last few hours began to fall.  Some donned orange Seaport ponchos; others opted to just let the rain wash away their face paint.  His music pulsated through the stormy air as he took to the drums as well as to the electronics.  When you can’t tell whether drums are thunder, or whether stage light flashes are lightning, that summer air, summer storm, and summer experience seem to blend.

In the future, the Seaport hopes that when you think of summer, you also think of their free shows and fun accompaniments.  And with this Seaport Summer event on August 3rd, and the upcoming Seaport District revitalization efforts, that reality is not too far off.

Featured image provided by LaForce.