Icepack

Amorosi on the news, nightlife, gossip and bitchiness beats.

by A.D. Amorosi

With news that Wegman's grocery chain is opening a Collegeville shoppe with the first-ever pub (yes, liquor!) in an area supermarket, I rethunk my food-shopping anxiety. Suddenly my walnuts-only diet seemed OK if I could belly up to a bar with my nut sack. In the name of consolidation during this lousy economy, I thought, why shouldn't the 10th Street Ac-a-me get a leg (and a Hop Devil) up by letting its neighboring Pub on Passyunk East build a saloon stall? And why not let The Pom Pom Room in West Philly reinvent itself in the deli section of the nearby Pathmark? With that, I extend a laurel and hearty handshake to you, tony beer farters of Philly Beer Week 2009. More on that in CP's Beer section. But please respect on this week's other big convention: Don't piss on all the Bella Italia-themed finery at the Philadelphia Flower Show at the Convention Center. They wouldn't throw seeds in your Tröegs. Big ups to Di Bruno Bros. for taking a bite out of La Flower Show with foodstuffs throughout the event. Bigger ups to Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Danny DeVito for pouring (and probably drinking) limoncello March 7 at the Wine & Spirit Store's Bella Italia room at the Center.

► After having impressed The Roots crew with its opening slot for Dice Raw during last week's Future of Music Coalition's fundraising Web.illish.us event at Silk City, the trumpet-blaring Dave Ramsey's bunch o' jazzbos Drake win the honor of a residency — playing every fourth Thursday at Tritone starting this month.

► You'd think that after surviving a killer plane crash, Philly-born Adam Goldstein — DJ AM — wouldn't do something so stupid as open a rumored-for-June danz-boîte at the old Planet Hollywood space at Caesars Atlantic City. AC and the casinos are dying right now. Do something positive (and financially prudent) with your time on Earth, Goldstein.

► March 6 finds spooky David E. Williams celebrating the release of his first CD in five years, the confessional Every Missing Duck is a Duck Missed with Jerome Deppe, Lisa Sunshine and Lora Bloom at his Germ Bookstore.

► While Jena Serbu and Rogerio bros Buzz 'n' Chick — Sweetbreadstudios — get ready to finally un-spool their two-years-filming Eye of the Tiger, Thrill of the Fight in April, the crew behind the Drunken Spelling Bee have a new party game, CASH DANCE. It's a night of free-form dance competition hosted by ex-Flygirl Chrissy Modell with action-packed rounds of solo spins, the Wheel of Genres and a head-to-head dance-off at National Mechanics' Monday Night Club March 9. Taking a spin on the dancefloor as opener is merry wintry Snowstorm whose membership is also a part of Charles Cohen's Color Is Luxury. Hear how chilled they sound at myspace.com/fourfeetofsnow.

► If you loved the music to 1812 Productions' Cherry Bomb as much as I, go its composer's Web site — jamessugg.com — and hear the whole thing a-streaming. Just hit the tab with the bomb!

► There's a world of un-indie non-beardo locals you just don't know. Here are two. Fosterchild (Octane's Brian Quinn and Bob Pirylis) returned from a long U.S. tour to find themselves with a gig: LA Ink's Kat Von D's b-day bash at Bam Margera's The Note March 7. Kat picked the Fosters to play. Fuzion owner Joey Dougherty's band Cloning Einstein just scored a hit on Friday Morning Quarterback's adult-contemporary chart with its cover of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For."

► Know what we don't get in downtown Philly? Bloody girl roller derby (I don't mean that as if I'm speaking loik a Brit). Till now: Philthy Britches vs. Broad St. Butchers March 7 at 23rd St. Armory.

HALF OFF DEPOT

Why live life at full price?

► WHOWHATWHERE: Jeff Carter and a pack of Flyers came to WCL to see Sam Roberts' band. They stayed for hours after the gig drinking with the band and gave Sam a team jersey. Who would have thought hockey players could class a place up? Then there were several Basquiat/One Film players in town. While the film's producers and design staff (Randy Ostrow, Dan Leigh, John Dunn) hung at the Continental gossiping about Julian Schnabel's cast, Basquiat: A Quiet Killing in Art author Phoebe Hoban hit the Art Museum's Cezanne exhibit, Thievery Corporation at Electric Factory and the Gershman Y with Ruth Perlmutter.

► Philly's The Armchairs play brushed-denim smoked folk 'n' dusty funk like nobody's biz. And they're doing it March 8 at Johnny Brenda's with Jukebox the Ghost.

► On the way-down low: 247 Market — the Top Hat Club — comes from none-other-than Avram Hornik. Looks like a mix of lite-performance and DJ stuff to start.

► R.E. Brown's Sniveling Goat (still waiting for HBO to buy their Philly-freakshow shoots from the North Star for a series) and Beth B. start hosting The Binge and Yarn, a night of storytelling, on March 10 and every second Tuesday of the month at Bob and Barbara's. Sweet.

► The South Street reformation commences with March 15's First Sundays/Ides of March/St. Patty Parade. "We will have opened a gallery at 406 South with a co-op of artists who are creating a Relics of a Saint exhibit with each of them creating a human organ — and yes you're open to pun," says South's patron saint, Bill Curry. "Also by then 333 South will be filled by Sage and DaVinci Art's co-op and 243 South will house an outreach program by Esperanza Altamar of the Philadelphia Museum of Art." Ta' Bill.

(a_amorosi@citypaper.net)