It turns out Britney did not come to Brooklyn after all, but no one noticed, because there was enough going on at the Diesel 30th anniversary party, to keep attendees occupied and fed. The circus theme meant hot dogs, funnel cakes, cotton candy, popcorn, and midgets acting as centerpieces to the wraparound bars. A cavernous, makeshift circus tent / airplane hangar hybrid was built on Pier 3 of the Brooklyn waterfront, and Diesel managed to fill it with all kinds of circus freaks. The Britney rumor-mongering came when the invite promised "many more" guests, but that "many more" turned out to be current chart topper T.I. (isn't he on house arrest or something?), who played a fairly long set which segued into Franz Ferdinand's act (easily the longest of the night).

Hot Chip played earlier, eventually devolving into Chaka Kahn's backing band. Big news here is that M.I.A. is with child (daddy is fiancée Benjamin Brewer); her delicate condition wasn't initially obvious when she joined T.I. early to sing the chorus on her "Paper Planes" sampling "Swagger Like Us," but was impossible to miss when she returned later for her own short set with protégé Rye Rye in tow. N.E.R.D. aka Pharrell Williams joined M.I.A. on stage for a thrilling rendition of "Paper Planes," then took over for 15 minutes, which was acceptable because the bars dried out by then.

Photo: Kyle Dean Reinford