Cover Story
Suburban warfare in south Charlotte
Sunlight cuts through trees winter stripped to the bone months ago as Michael Kelley drives from his home to a field of grass just around the corner. Plump geese scatter as he parks his car on a barely discernible driveway that leads to nowhere. He points to his 12-year-old son, who waves hello from their…
Recipe: Vanilla Coke-Pulled Pork Nachos
How do you get people talking at a party? You put a bunch of melted cheese and pulled pork, put it on some chips, and shove it in their faces, that’s how.
Beer Bellies Unite: Craft Beer Crawl comes to South End
Six breweries host the South End Craft Beer Crawl from noon to midnight in honor of Charlotte’s 5th annual Craft Beer Week.
Theater review: Reasons to be Pretty
Garrison Keillor’s closing benediction over Lake Wobegon, “where all the children are above average,” and Ray Stevens’ best-forgotten “everything is beautiful in its own way” sprang to mind not very long after I began watching CAST’s new production of Neil LaBute’s Reasons to Be Pretty. Steph is demolishing her loving relationship with Greg because of…
McCrory: N.C. Utilities Commission (the one feds just subpoenaed) should decide who pays for coal-ash cleanup
Duke says customers should foot the $1 billion bill. McCrory says the Utilities Commission should decide.
March Matchness will help double the benefits for SNAP recipients
Local initiative will encourage healthy eating and local produce purchases.
First Drip (3/11/14): Chiquita merger won’t affect local jobs, good news for yogis, Fukushima three years later, more
The news you need to know today.
Today’s Top 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Bobcats-Hornets Week in Review: To be the (7th) best…
It seems more clear now than ever before what kind of team Charlotte can expect
Matrimony’s Columbia debut due May 6
“Montibello Memories” will expand on the band’s four-song EP released last year.
Railroad Earth to headline 2014 Drumstrong festival
Lost in the Trees, Chatham County Line, The Felice Brothers also performing in May.
Mountain Oasis Electronic Music Summit put “on hold”
Organizers site lack of success in putting the Asheville festival “on hold.”
Today’s Top 5: Monday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
First Drip (3/10/14): Duke says customers should pay for coal-ash cleanup, Adam Lanza was ‘evil,’ more
The news you need to know today.
Today’s Top 5: Sunday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top 5: Saturday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Bizarre crime from Charlotte police files (March 4)
Bye bye, baby: A man went to police last week after his child’s mother took “dropping the kid off” too literally. The man told officers that the suspect left his 1-year-old daughter unattended on his front porch for 20 minutes one night until he found her sitting there. Catfish: A 42-year-old woman filed a report…
Theater review: Evita
Musical brings glory into Belk Theater.
3 (free) things to do this weekend
Cheap things to do in the Q.C. this weekend.
300: Rise of an Empire: Eva destruction
300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE * DIRECTED BY Noam Murro STARS Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green The belated sequel to the 2007 international blockbuster 300, 300: Rise of an Empire is the sort of film that’s so monumentally awful, it effectively shuts down all critical reasoning and forces one to merely babble in clichés. In short,…
Today’s Top 5: Friday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Big List: St. Patrick’s Day 2014
Don’t forget to wear green during these rowdy shenanigans.
First Drip (3/7/14): Eastland Mall project on ‘life support,’ RIP Martin Nesbitt, more
The news you need to know today.
Who Run The World: Sandra Escobosa-Guynes
Maximizing the healing power of art and connection.
CD Review: Brain F≠’s Empty Set
About halfway through Empty Set, Brain F≠ issues a directive that might as well be this punk band’s mission statement: “Stop being so damn bored!” It’s one of two choruses on the title track, a nimble but burly blitz that’s infectious and unflinching. The line is shouted back and forth by Nick Goode and Elise…
CD Review: The Ravelers’ Ravel On
In their ’90s heyday, Charlotte’s The Ravelers crafted supple, muscular pop rock that merged R.E.M.’s Southern-comfort jangle, the electric minstrelsy of Jethro Tull and the rock-candy crunch of Cheap Trick. Yet, a well-received first LP and kudos from Sunset Strip svengali Kim Fowley weren’t enough to keep the Ravelers rambling. A follow-up LP was shelved,…
Heroes aren’t hard to find in new LEGO effort
Since 1997, 50 video games based on LEGO toys have been released. In 2001, Lego Creator: Harry Potter introduced games based on non-LEGO intellectual properties. Since then, LEGO has licensed several popular franchises for use in its video games, including Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean. Now, LEGO joins…
Photos: Front Row Charlotte, 3/5/14
This fashion event focuses on local businesses.
Foreign Correspondent, Rocky: Heavyweight Collection among new home entertainment titles
(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray and DVD.) FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT (1940). After he had made a number of classics in his native Britain, Hollywood finally got around to importing Alfred Hitchcock to contribute to its own film heritage. He came charging out of the gate with two…
Justice Department closes its civil rights investigation into Hollywood couple traffic stop in S.C.
Think twice before entering the Palmetto State with those tea bags.
Today’s Top 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Dan River coal-ash spill claims its latest victims
Dead mussels and clams are piling up on at least 20 miles of the river’s bank.
Opening Friday
What’s new in theaters this weekend.
Avett Brothers perform on the Tonight Show
Concord band plays “Skin and Bones.”
First Drip (3/6/14): CIAA vs. Speed Street, additional Obamacare changes, more
The news you need to know today.
Weekly horoscope (March 6-12)
For All Signs: Mars, known to the ancients as the god of war, turned retrograde on March 1 and remains until May 19. Historically, those who draw a sword or attempt to expand power during these periods eventually find it turned against themselves. In our personal lives we are well advised to avoid extending our…
Lucero’s punk, soul and rock ‘n’ roll
The name could belong to a bunch of metal headbangers, a mariachi band or, more interestingly, a combination of the two. But when Lucero guitarist Brian Venable revealed his band’s name to his grandmother for the first time, she was sure he’d traded away his immortal soul. “You just named your band the devil,” she…
CIAA tournament stays in Charlotte – cue the mixed reactions
It’s only the largest annual tourism event in the city.
Notorious tribute party grows even B.I.G.ger
A. King Allah, the man behind two of Charlotte’s most beloved golden age hip-hop parties, Off the Wall and Memory Lane, is solidifying his rep as a boom bap apostle with “Francis: The Notorious B.I.G. Tribute Vol. 3” day party. He risked life and limb (on the phone while driving) to break down why with…
Live review: Shovels & Rope, Visulite Theatre (3/4/2014)
Hurray for the Riff Raff offers stellar opening set in front of sold-out crowd.
The Pull List (3/5/13): Magneto breaks bad again
Plus, Starlight to shine bright.
Video highlights from CIAA weekend
World Star Hip-Hop releases video of Rick Ross and more.
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
First Drip (3/5/14): Union County school board approves controversial redistricting plan, e-cigs, more
The news you need to know today.
Local Love: Melanie and Cedrice
Name of the couple: Melanie Stroud and Cedrice BrownDate of wedding: Dec. 17, 2013The venue: KingsPark ApartmentsHow many people attended: 9 When you know it’s right, it’s right. One Tuesday, Melanie Stroud and her fiance Cedrice Brown stopped in at Kingspark Apartments on Charlotte’s west side to see if the complex had any availability. The…
Sweet and raw eco-friendly cake alternatives
While a Google image search for “green wedding desserts” still yields all things Kermit-colored, “green” wedding features are becoming fixtures, and the demand for eco-friendly treat options is on the rise in Charlotte. Beverly McLaughlin is one of the local vendors feeding the frenzy. She started Beverly’s Gourmet Foods (www.beverlysgourmetfoods.com) seven years ago, but began…
Not your mama’s chapel
Whilst popping bottles at the club, one rarely thinks, Yes, this is where I shall wed. But it’s 2014, and with enough imagination, couples are finding they can marry just about anywhere — from their favorite Friday night hot spot to the most popular local brewery. Here are some unique venues couples have used to…
CL theater critic finds shelter on Broadway
Sliding around on ice and slush, walking through the Great White Way in bone-chilling wind and snow, parking more than a quarter of a mile from my mom’s front door, and needing to excavate my car three times anyhow — with tools unsuited for the purpose — had one beneficial side effect. On this year’s…
