5 Questions with Mindy Abovitz of Tom Tom Magazine
5 Questions With is a new series spotlighting some of Brooklyn’s most exciting and influential creatives. Mindy Abovitz has got a lot going on. Not only is she the one-woman founder of Tom Tom magazine, a publication devoted entirely to female drummers, she also logs considerable time behind the kit herself, playing in a half dozen bands — Taigaa and Hot Box, to name a few — while volunteering as a drum instructor at the Willie Mae Rock Camp For Girls and co-hosting Hit Like A Girl, the world’s only drumming contest made exclusively for women. Phew. We’re out of breath just listing it all, let alone living it. Despite it all, though, she still had the time to fill us in on a few of her favorite things. Check ’em out after the jump.
Name: Mindy Abovitz
Neighborhood: Greenpoint
Record you’ve listened to most in your life? Can, Tago Mago. This band and this album has been blowing my mind since I was a teenager. I can never get enough of it. And I should add that I was just introduced to Slint which is complimenting my Can obsession a lot.
Broolyn-based band to watch? TEEN. This all female group, made up of three sisters and friends kills it. I love watching them live playing on dream vintage synths hitting every harmony. They just played Prospect Park and we just interviewed them in the Summer Issue of Tom Tom.
Favorite place to go see a show? Cake Shop. I know Andy (owner) and played so many shows there when it first opened. I also worked sound there for a year or so and can’t help but feel nostalgic in every good way when I step in that club. I also love the vegan peanut butter bomb cake they sell.
Favorite Brooklyn bar? Alameda (Greenpoint). I live in Greenpoint and am enjoying the new bars cropping up every five feet on every block. Alameda feels like it belongs in LA and was once a swimming pool that is now drained out and serves fancy drinks. I like to go there and guess what type of job the folks that are drinking there have.
Favorite Drink? Bullet and Ginger. Can’t stop drinking this. Makes me feel like a child sometimes because the drink tastes like candy but come on! It tastes like CANDY! Why would I stop?!?!