As 2011 comes to an end, we are taking a look back at some of our favorite posts of the year by our guest editors.
The Ladybug Transistor formed in Brooklyn in 1995, and frontman Gary Olson has been the band’s sole constant member. Clutching Stems (Merge) is the group’s seventh album and the first to be made following the 2007 asthma-related death of drummer San Fadyl. Since, the band’s lineup has solidified behind Olson, featuring Kyle Forester, Julia Rydholm, Mark Dzula, Eric Farber and Michael O’Neill. The Ladybug Transistor will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new Q&A with Olson.
Julia Rydholm: The outer loop of Prospect Park is where I organize my thoughts, settle my mind, catch up on a call, catch up with a friend, get some fresh air or get some good ideas. I live a few blocks away from this majestic metropolitan meadow and aim there any day I find the time. Though the park was designed by the self-same architects of Central Park (Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux), this green space has a decidedly less rigidly curated feel of its Manhattan predecessor. Prospect Park feels more organic, free range and forest preservey. People jog, cycle, picnic, play games, stroll, bird watch, play music, snooze, ice skate, sled, get married, buy produce—and despite all the buzz of activity, it never feels overrun or overwhelming. There’s a wonderfully anchored, Pacific pace and heart to this space. The overgrown greenery next to landmark structures and arches lends an enormous sense of history and import to the acreage, hearkening back to its days as a village green. Strolling within its confines often makes me feel like I am upstate rather than minutes from downtown.
Video after the jump.
