Apr 7-14, 2009

Apr 7-14, 2009 / Vol. 23 / No. 6

Ben Folds deepens musical layers via a capella

Ben Folds is set to release a new greatest-hits album, titled Ben Folds Presents: University A Capella on April 28. It was recorded with college a capella groups. Read more in the Paste Magazine article below. A new kind of greatest-hits record Ben Folds returns with an entourage—they intonate their voices at breathtaking levels, overlapping…

Anita Overcash

Concert announcement

Gov’t Mule will perform at the new Charlotte Fillmore on July 24. This is the first show that has been announced for the new venue. Pre-sale tickets go on sale at noon on April 14 through mule.net. Tickets go on sale to the public on April 18 through livenation.com.

Jeff Hahne

Viva unlimited travel to Cuba!

The White House announced today that President Obama has instructed his administration to take steps to ease travel restrictions for Americans who want to visit Cuba. Immediate action is being taken to allow unlimited travel and money transfers by Cuban Americans to families on the island. The professed reason for making the changes is, of…

John Grooms

New Milestone site

Check out the new Milestone Web site. It looks like it’s a little easier to get through than the last one. Nicely done!

Jeff Hahne

Disturbed live

Disturbed The latest incarnation of the band’s Music As a Weapon Tour – it’s the fourth one – will bring a whole helluva lot of metal to Charlotte. The band will share the main stage with Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil and Chimaira. The second stage will be taken over by Suicide Silence, Spineshank, Bury Your…

Carlton Hargro

The Wack List: April 13

Five people, places and things we really ain’t digging today. • Starbucks for closing probably the cutest store in Charlotte • Assholes reluctant to take Wall Street jobs due to proposed salary caps • Pirates • Banks who raised interest rates and fees after taking bailout money — and that includes Charlotte’s own Bank of…

Carlton Hargro

Today’s Top(less) 5: Monday

Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Apr. 13, 2009— as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Open mic night at Tilt. • Stay home and experiment with lubes from the Red Door. •…

Mustang Sally, Mayor of Bang Town

Co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons dies

Co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, Dave Arneson has died. Read more in The Charlotte Observer article below. Dave Arneson, one of the co-creators of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy game and a pioneer of role-playing entertainment, died after a two-year battle with cancer, his family said Thursday. He was 61. Arneson’s daughter, Malia Weinhagen of…

Anita Overcash

Welcome back, CompUSA

Proof that the dead can rise again. The once-bankrupt electronics store is opening dozens of new stores (mostly in Florida), and operating with a new plan: Copy part of what made the Apple (AAPL) store successful. Read more at BusinessInsider.com.

Kimberly Lawson

Finding Blis in Uptown

Blis Gift Boutique is kind of hard to find. I managed to stumble upon it in Founders Hall last week when I was wandering around a hallway I thought I wasn’t supposed to be down. Although tucked away in a corner of the upper level of Founders Hall, there’s much to look at in this…

Kimberly Lawson

Tweet of the Day

Today’s Tweet of the Day once again goes to ?uestlove of The Roots: “headed to my abusive gf’s place of business to give her some more money….and when i say abusive gf i mean Sprint”

Jeff Hahne

Pancakes in a can?

Not a Campbell’s Soup can either … a whipped cream can. “Would you like me to spray you some more pancakes?” Just doesn’t sound right. Lost cast member Jorge Garcia blogs about his discovery of organic pancakes in a can at a Whole Foods. Read about it here.

Kimberly Lawson

Today’s Top(less) 5: Friday

Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Apr. 10, 2009— as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • White Chocolate at The Big Chill. • After work Rendezvous at Ruth Chris. • $4-$1-$1 Friday. •…

Mustang Sally, Mayor of Bang Town

Blackfinn, 4/9/09

Uptown’s Blackfinn celebrated Easter by throwing a Pastel Party with an Easter egg hunt and an appearance by the Easter bunny himself Thursday night. Photos by Priscilla Tsai.

Priscilla Tsai

New stores coming to SouthPark

As if SouthPark didn’t have a whole lot of retail going on already. At least Madewell (a retailer of women’s apparel, shoes and accessories) is something we haven’t seen before. SouthPark mall is adding several stores beginning this summer — Francesca’s Collections, Madewell, M·A·C Cosmetics, Pure Denim, Journeys and Bakers. Read more at the Charlotte…

Kimberly Lawson

Sale of the day: Friday

With the Masters golf tournament going down in my hometown of Augusta right now, here’s today’s sale of the day, at The Players Loft. All womens golf apparel is 45 percent off and all womens golf shoes are 30 percent off.  These include the high-end Walter Genuin.  Also, all in stock tennis and golf apparel…

Kimberly Lawson

Upcoming: Easter pictures and store discounts

Peek-A-Boo Couture, Charlotte’s Premier Children’s Clothier, will be doing a special promotion on Saturday, April 11 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. They’ll have a photographer on site to take Easter pictures (3qty. 4×6’s and a free sitting session) for only $14.99.  They are also doing a discount Easter Egg Hunt where various eggs will be placed…

Kimberly Lawson

Stamps of The Simpsons

Get the latest information on postal stamps of The Simpsons, which are set to be released on May 7. Read more in the article on E Online below. Monty Burns, eat your heart out. Certain to make the rest of Springfield’s denizens jealous, the U.S. Postal Service today unveiled 44-cent first-class stamps of The Simpsons.…

Anita Overcash

Courtney Love is upset

15 years ago yesterday, Kurt Cobain was found dead in his Seattle home. Ironically, in today’s news, Courtney Love – who was married to Cobain and who has been targeted by some folks at possibly having something to do with his death – is claiming that she has lost millions of dollars, left to her…

Anita Overcash

Tweet of the Day

This one comes from ?uestlove of The Roots: “dont get me wrong. i love my fanbase like no other. but when yall down 5 beers the last hour of a dj gig? yall be scaring the SHIT outta me”

Jeff Hahne

Oops, she did it again…

Brittney Spears ended her Vancouver concert by telling concert-goers, “Don’t smoke weed. Rock out with your cocks out. Peace, motherfuckers!” \\\\\\\\\\

Jeff Hahne

Today Top(less) 5: Thursday

Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Apr. 9, 2009— as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Learn to break dance. • Emerald Isle Thirsty Thursday. • Masterworks From New Orleans. • Top Notch…

Mustang Sally, Mayor of Bang Town

Remastered Beatles’ albums set for release

Digitally remastered versions of The Beatles’ studio albums are set for release on Sept. 9, 2009. Read more  in the Rolling Stone magazine article below. On September 9, 2009, after a nearly 22-year wait, digitally remastered versions of all of the Beatles studio albums will be released, a press release has confirmed. Each album will…

Anita Overcash

Remastered Beatles’ albums set for release

Digitally remastered versions of The Beatles’ studio albums are set for release on Sept. 9, 2009. Read more  in the Rolling Stone magazine article below. On September 9, 2009, after a nearly 22-year wait, digitally remastered versions of all of the Beatles studio albums will be released, a press release has confirmed. Each album will…

Anita Overcash

Do you need a headshot?

Hey models, entertainers, people who just like looking at yourselves … Charlotte Vibe Photography is having a special on headshots or portraits: $50. Click here for more information.

Kimberly Lawson

24 years for sex slaver is ‘too severe’? Please.

Jorge Flores-Rojas was sentenced to 24 years in prison for running what amounts to a sex slavery ring. He admitted to, and was convicted of, bringing women as young as 16 from various Latin American countries to the U.S., where he forced them to work as prostitutes, often making them have sex with up to…

John Grooms

Calling Flo Rida?

Musicians do a lot to get their name out to an audience these days, sometimes a little too much. Florida rapper Flo Rida has made a desperate attempt to really reach his fans. He’s made his cell phone number (305-528-2786) public, so they can give him a jingle. Read more about it in the CNN…

Anita Overcash

Concert announcement

Just saw it posted at Neighborhood Theatre’s Web site — Les Claypool on May 26. Tickets on sale on April 11 — $25 in advance, $30 day of show and $40 for VIP.

Jeff Hahne

Tweet of the day

It’s about time to kick off a new blog feature. This one’s going to happen whenever I find something good. It’s the Tweet of the Day from Twitter. Today’s is from Trent Reznor who still attacks Chris Cornell, but then posted this last night: trent_reznor Also have a touch of the dreaded GGIDWTBLJMC (Good God…

Jeff Hahne

Business is (kinda) good for pawn shops

One woman, selling her son’s Wii at a South Boulevard pawn shop, said she felt she had to sell the boy’s game to raise funds to pay her rent. She hopes she’ll be able to keep up the payments but says she isn’t sure. “My son is going to try to make some money this…

Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman

Sex news round up: April 8

Here’s a sampling of the sex headlines floating around the Internet today. Canadian sex tourist jailed in Arizona. Man sentenced to 24 years for running sex ring. Ex cop claims oral sex with coke head girlfriend caused his positive drug test. Blow job by porn star=revocation of pilot’s license. Porno teacher get a public defender.

Mustang Sally, Mayor of Bang Town

Liquidation sales at Wolf Camera shops

Soon, you won’t be able to find a Ritz Camera Centers-owned store in Charlotte. Get out to the Wolf Cameras while you can during their liquidation sales. If it’s anything like the Circuit City closings, all the good stuff is going to go early. The Maryland-based camera retailer will cease operation of its Wolf Camera…

Kimberly Lawson

The Wack List: April 8

Five people, places and things we really ain’t digging today. • Talk of disbanding the CMS Equity Committee. The advisory group was created to identify racial disparities within Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. And since racism is a live and well, we probably should keep the committee in place. • Diet books • Horse-drawn carriages. PETA claims that…

Carlton Hargro

Sale of the day: Tuesday

Today’s sale of the day is from your favorite adult store Adam & Eve. Buy 2 DVDs and get 1 free! Mention the print ad in this week’s Creative Loafing and take 10 percent off your purchase! 5309 Independence Blvd. Suite F 704-567-5515

Kimberly Lawson

Curt Holman

Curt Holman began writing for Creative Loafing in 1993 with a review of the final episode of Cheers as the first entry of his weekly television column, “TV on the Edge.” He became a staff writer in 2001 and writes about film, theater and a wide variety of arts and entertainment. He has written for…

Web Editor

Details on XX MERGE announced

To mark its anniversary of 20 years in the music biz, the Chapel Hill-based Merge Records is doin’ it big with XX MERGE, a five-day music festival from July 22-26, to be held for four nights at the Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, NC and for one night at Memorial Hall in Chapel Hill, NC on…

Anita Overcash

Save money on groceries with Amazon today

I’ve always been on Amazon to buy books, CDs, things of that nature. Imagine my surprise to find Dealhack’s Deal of the Day from Amazon in the section of groceries. Save $25 off Quaker, Lay’s, Rice a Roni, & More Who’d have known?

Kimberly Lawson

Cold Stone will brew up coffee now (and who doesn’t?)

I remember when Dairy Queen came out with their Moo-Lattes. And now Cold Stone is joining the band wagon. Le sigh. From Nation’s Restaurant News: Each blended drink is finished with whipped topping and decorative sweets, from raspberry to caramel. The drinks also are available in “light” versions, which are made with skim milk and…

Kimberly Lawson

Drug traffickers like Abercrombie?

What are Mexican drug lords wearing nowadays? From Shop Talk (Reuters): Vicente Carrillo Leyva, a suspected Mexican drug trafficker, was hauled in front of the cameras last week after his arrest — wearing a natty white track suit with the Abercrombie logo prominently displayed on his chest.  The accused leader of the Juarez cartel was…

Kimberly Lawson

Lingerie finally catches up with the times

When it comes to sexy bedroom attire, you often have your traditional lace, corsets and flowery embroidery — nothing modern or contemporary here. JCReport.com highlights two new lines that offer “modern creations that don’t sacrifice femininity or sex appeal.”  Read the full story here. If vintage isn’t a part of your day wear, why should…

Kimberly Lawson

This week’s new releases (4/7/2009)

Here’s a quick rundown of some of the new albums hitting stores today: Bat for Lashes Two Suns Grateful Dead To Terrapin: May 28, 1977 Hartford, CT Jadakiss The Last Kiss Lady Sovereign Jigsaw Bob Mould Life and Times Rascal Flatts Unstoppable James Taylor Other Covers Neil Young Fork in the Road

Jeff Hahne

WTF? Bank of America pays U.S. $713M in dividends

In some rare good banking news, the Boston Business Journal reported: The board at Bank of America Corp. has authorized the payment of $713 million in dividends to the U.S. government under the Troubled Asset Relief Program. A few billion more and the company may actually pay off its TARP loan. Read the rest of…

Carlton Hargro

News on N.C. Dance Theatre’s future performances

Check out the latest news on N.C. Dance Theatre’s 2009-10 season and upcoming performances in uptown’s new Knight Theater, located at South Tryon Street and First Street. Read the Charlotte Observer article below. N.C. Dance Theatre’s 2009-10 season will include its first performances in uptown’s new Knight Theater and a visit to the Kennedy Center…

Anita Overcash

The Wack List: April 7

Five people, places and things we really ain’t digging today. • S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford, for his moronic plans to reject stimulus money … money that could reportedly save 700 jobs in the state’s school system. It’s amazing what some elected officials will do in the  name of politics. • Hey, I’m not the biggest…

Carlton Hargro

Today’s Top 5: Tuesday

Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, April 7, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Color Perspectives exhibition of new paintings by Paul Simon at Providence Gallery • Wueen City Comics Free Comedy Show at Alive • Reception and Gallery Talk for…

Anita Overcash

Today’s Top(less) 5: Tuesday

Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Apr. 7, 2009— as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Get your tap dancing lessons. • Get down brown Tuesday. • $2 dances begin at midnight. •…

Mustang Sally, Mayor of Bang Town

Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files

MJ: A 26-year-old female filed a police report after receiving some very odd calls. She said the same person has called her from three different numbers, and she has told him several times to stop calling. She said the suspect usually says that he is Michael Jackson and that he wants to be in her…

Ryan Pitkin

Horoscope for April 8-14, 2009

Aries The Ram: (March 20-April 19) During the early part of the week you have a disciplined attitude and want to complete well whatever tasks you are doing. There is positive energy around law, education and travel interests. Later in the week you may tire of giving your energy away. Plan a break. For All…

Vivian Carol

CD Review: Warsaw Village Band’s Infinity

The Deal: Here’s an imaginative cross between Rasputina, the B-52’s and Arctic Paradise compilations. Or, think Irish trad meets Carpathian call and response. Actually it’s Polish/Slavic soul with strong Irish, Klezmer and Scandinavian overtones. Some pop and hip-hop are even thrown in along with African and Eastern influences – think ragas – making for a…

Lew Herman

ART: Short Fictions by Cara Ober, featuring potter Barbara Chadwick-Bland

An exhibit that fuses the worldly contradictions with heartfelt poetry is an exhibit I can appreciate. Lark and Key Gallery presents Short Fictions by Cara Ober, featuring potter Barbara Chadwick-Bland. Ober finds beauty in all the wrong places. She seeks to see the world as it really is: gorgeous in contradiction, funny in absurd blather,…

Ciara Lilly

Slow it down: Police should take their own advice

Speed kills. At least, that’s what they claim. That’s why the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has had programs like Safe Speed, where officers set up vans with radar guns around town to catch speeders who are later mailed citations. So most drivers would be surprised to learn that a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer can spend his days…

Dangerous: Love! Valour! Valmont!

On some fairly slender evidence, you can confidently conclude that Queen City Theatre Company artistic director Glenn T. Griffin is obsessed with Les Liaisons Dangereuses. He directed it as an undergrad at UNC Charlotte and again as artistic director of Off-Tryon Theatre Company during their 2000-2001 season. Now Griffin is taking another pass at the…

Perry Tannenbaum

ART: Gentrify Me exhibition

Some of Charlotte’s funkiest artists banded together to mount an exhibition titled Gentrify Me at NoDa’s Dialect Gallery. As the name suggests, all the pieces in the show were created to dissect subjects like urban decay and gentrification — maladies that (for better or worse) have caused massive community transformations in cities across the country…

Carlton Hargro

All Beethoven is not created equal

At the All-Beethoven concert last Friday evening, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and maestro Christof Perick seemed bent on proving what we already knew: that all Beethoven is not created equal. Their fingers were on the scales, tipping the balance decisively away from Ludwig’s Symphony #8 and in favor of his Mass in C Major. Both of…

Perry Tannenbaum

U.S. Muslims still under siege

As President Barack Obama made his public appearance with Turkish President Abdullah Gul Monday as part of his first trip to a Muslim country, U.S. federal agents were preparing to arrest Youssef Megahed in Tampa, Fla. Just three days earlier, on Friday, a jury in a U.S. federal district court had acquitted him of charges…

Amy Goodman

Meet the mastermind behind Gentrify Me exhibit: Meika Fields

Meika Fields is a graduate student at Clemson University in Clemson, S.C. She has a background in art, community design, landscape and architecture. Keeping that in mind, it’s no surprise she’s also the mastermind behind Dialect Gallery’s newest exhibition titled Gentrify Me. The exhibition, which is a group art show featuring 11 artists (including Antoine…

Anita Overcash

Review of The Flash: Rebirth No. 1

The Flash: Rebirth No. 1 Published by DC Comics. Written by Geoff Johns. Pencilled by Ethan Van Sciver. The Deal: The second superhero to hold the mantle of the Flash — the one from the Silver Age of comics in the late 1950s — is back from the dead. And he’s getting the grand reintroduction…

Carlton Hargro

CL previews upcoming concerts (April 10-14)

FRIDAY, APRIL 10 Andy the Door Bum CD release The man in the Milestone booth – aka Andy Fenstermaker – delivers us another set of home-fried country rock that should, if history holds, shame most Americana troubadorks into just shutting the fuck up, please. Though we’ve only been privy to one MySpace cut – press…

What are the risks of heterosexual anal sex?

What are the risks of anal sex if the partners are heterosexual and monogamous? Could one contract some disease? And if so, how bad is it? — guerita2kool Anal sex, eh? Well, I suppose anything beats another round of Gilmore Girls reruns. But let’s get one basic concept on the table right away. While there’s…

Cecil Adams

Chain wine lists offer some glimmers of hope

Although many foodies deny it, we all eat at chains, occasionally … in dark times … perhaps forced when the in-laws visit. I confess an occasional hankering for the divine Saucy Shrimp at Bonefish Grill or the crack-laced lettuce wraps at PF Chang’s. I need a drink to drown my guilty pleasures, but one thing…

Taylor Eason

Capsule film reviews playing the week of April 8

Current Releases ADVENTURELAND Our multiplexes need another period coming-of-age flick about as much as the nation needs another banking industry bailout, yet Adventureland proves to be a modest surprise. For that, thank the efforts of a talented ensemble and a screenplay that mostly steers clear of the usual gross-out gags that have come to define…

Matt Brunson

Local Music Showcase set for April 11

A local music showcase will be held on April 11 at the Visulite Theatre. The event — dubbed simply Charlotte’s Local Music Showcase — is being organized by local musician Taylor Boucher as a way to get musicians, promoters, publicists, critics and just about anyone else who is musically involved all under one roof. The…

Jeff Hahne

MUSIC: Death Cab for Cutie

The Washington indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie — who will visit Davidson College’s Belk Arena on April 9 — may have lost a couple of fans in recent years, but for the most part they probably made up for it in gains. With the 2008 release of Narrow Stairs — its sixth studio…

Anita Overcash

Two Gerard Depardieu imports among new DVD releases

DANTON (1983). In its Jan. 4, 1982, issue, Time selected Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa as its Man of the Year, and almost exactly one year later – upon its Jan. 12, 1983, release in France – Polish director Andrzej Wajda’s Danton likewise paid tribute to the political activist (Walesa’s Nobel Peace Prize would come…

Matt Brunson

The Ryan Moats debacle

By now, most of you have heard the sad details surrounding the case of NFL player Ryan Moats. While rushing to the hospital with his wife to say goodbye to his dying mother-in-law, he drove through a red light near the entrance of Baylor Regional Medical Center. Moats was quickly stopped in the parking lot…

Nsenga Burton

THEATER: No Exit

Do you ever sit and find yourself questioning the past, the present, the future or other parts of your life in general? Well, imagine if someone locked you in a room with “no exit” to contemplate these thoughts. In Jean Paul Sartre’s play, No Exit, three characters are thrown together in a room by a…

Anita Overcash

Observe and Report: Watch and retort

Observe and Report, N.C. writer-director Jody Hill’s sophomore effort following the no-budget, no-laughs farce The Foot Fist Way, valiantly tries to combine the twisted trappings of a black comedy with the more accepted slapstick shenanigans of a mainstream outing. It’s extremely difficult to synchronize these approaches into one fluid viewing experience — Terry Zwigoff largely…

Matt Brunson

Sunshine Cleaning features some bright spots

Sunshine Cleaning’s ads trumpet that it’s “from the producers of Little Miss Sunshine,” and like that Oscar-winning hit, it often belies its cheery title by exploring the darkness that descends on the lives of decent, ordinary people just trying to get ahead. Yet while it may not be as sharply written as its predecessor, it…

Matt Brunson

Baseball books for the ages

It’s spring, and somewhere, someone is oiling up an old baseball glove and getting limbered up for some practice swings. Baseball season is here at last, and we’re here to help you pick out good baseball books. Some help is probably needed, too, since for every good book about baseball, there are approximately 17 lousy…

CD Review: Chris Cornell’s Scream

The Deal: One of the most recognizable voices in rock tries his hands at a cross-genre amalgam. The Good: Let me get this out of the way – I don’t care if he’s singing the phone book, Chris Cornell simply has one of the most amazing voices in music. The former Soundgarden and Audioslave front…

Jeff Hahne

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