Dec 15-21, 2009

Dec 15-21, 2009 / Vol. 23 / No. 42

Infected crap flows into Irwin Creek

The county announced that around 47,000 gallons of wastewater containing bacteria, viruses and other disease-causing agents was released into Irwin Creek over the weekend. An equipment malfunction at the Irwin Creek sewage plant resulted in the wastewater not going through ultraviolet disinfection for seven minutes. The Observer is reporting that this event means the water…

John Grooms

Live review: Overmountain Men, 2013 Wolves, Ken Will Morton

2013 Wolves, Overmountain Men, Ken Will Morton Thirsty Beaver Dec. 19, 2009 The Deal: I’m not exactly sure who the headliner here would be — Ken Will Morton opened up the night, Overmountain Men packed the place for their set, 2013 Wolves entertained a new set of patrons for their closing set. Maybe a co-headlining…

Jeff Hahne

Senate health bill: Why did they bother?

David Axelrod, one of Pres. Obama’s leading advisers,  went on Meet The Press yesterday and defended the administration against accusations by progressives that health care reform has been watered down beyond recognition through compromises.  The criticism from liberals has been intense, particularly after the White House “compromised” with (caved in to) Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Aetna)…

John Grooms

Gift Guide: The sneakerhead

For some gift ideas for the sneakerhead, I asked Black Sheep owner Josh Frazier and Niche owner Bobby Webster to help me out. Seeing as I’m currently wearing black flats with colored zippers along the side, I couldn’t really come up with anything on my own. Josh’s list • Vans Era Navy Suede or Black…

Kimberly Lawson

Special Christmas Stupid Thing of the Week

OK, they meant well, I guess. But a New Zealand church’s Christmas season attempt to “challenge stereotypes about the way Jesus was conceived” wound up pissing off everybody involved. The St. Matthew-in-the-City Anglican church in Auckland erected, if that’s the right word, a billboard showing an unhappy Joseph lying in bed beside Mary, with the…

John Grooms

Sale of the day: Paul Simon for Women

You’ve only got 6 days left for holiday shopping, so get moving. Here are some deals from Paul Simon for Women, located in Myers Park. Evening wear: 30 percent off Selected Nina McLemore styles: 25 percent off Fall sportswear: 30 percent off 1033 Providence Road 704-333-6139

Kimberly Lawson

Ho anthems of the decade (2000-2004)

It’s come time again for people to make trivial lists counting down everything of the past decade. The best and worse moments, things we’ll always remember … You know, that kinda crap. Well, I’d be remiss if I didn’t count down some of the Ho Anthems of the past decade because if I’ve learned anything…

Mike McCray

Tonight’s Top 5, 12/18/09

Here’s a list of the top five nightlife-related events going down tonight, Dec. 18, as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • The “Original” Naughty Xmas Party at Luna Lounge • Buff Faye FA, LA, LA, Labulous Holifaye Drag Dinner at Hartigan’s • Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest at Town Tavern • Alloy: The Extra-Special…

Kimberly Lawson

Bo White

alias: Sir Hank passion: “Promoting shows, playing and recording music.” inspiration: “John Divola, fun times.” favorite color: “Yauhaus yellow” current city: Charlotte plug: Yardwork, myspace.com/yardworknc Kinnikinnik, kinnikinnikrecords.com To see more photos by Jasiatic, visit www.createtressphotography.blogspot.com

Jasiatic

Give McCain some credit

Let’s give credit where credit is due. This time credit goes to Pres. Obama’s opponent in the 2008 election, Sen. John McCain, as well as to Sen. Maria Cantwell, a liberal Democrat from Washington. These two unlikely allies are co-sponsoring a bill that would restore the Glass-Steagall Act (aka the Banking Act of 1933). If…

John Grooms

Sale of the day: Circa

Now through Dec. 22, Circa will give you 30 percent off your total purchase. (Excluding sale merchandise) 8145 Ardrey Kell Road, Suite 101 704-845-0433

Kimberly Lawson

‘Hold’ music could be so hot

Don’t you hate this? “Due to unusually high call volume, blah blah blah …” depending on how bad you want your wireless interent to work or that shiny piece of crap on QVC that grandma is dying for, chances are you’ll wait it out. Usually jazzy and upbeat, hold music is the country cousin of…

Mike McCray

Tonight: Launch party for Skirt Sports Kendell Kollection

Charlotte designer Jackie McFee has partnered with Skirt Sports to create the Kendall Kollection Athletic Apparel, and it’s launching just in time for the holidays. Head out to Asana Activewear this evening (from 5 p.m.-8 p.m.) for the launch party, complete with adult beverages, snacks and discounts. 3920 Sharon Road 704-366-8020 http://charlotte.asanaactivewear.com

Kimberly Lawson

Sale of the day: Manifest

Manifest has some holiday deals going down. Buy 2, get 1 free on all used CD, DVD, games and vinyl. Buy 1 and get 1 50 percent off all regularly priced DVD and Blu-Ray. 6239 South Blvd. 704-552-8448 www.manifestdisc.com

Kimberly Lawson

Lieberman at least as bad as Berlusconi

It’s funny how inspiring it can be to read the news — sometimes from stories that at first glance seem unrelated. For instance, you might pick up the paper or tune in CNN, and see that Sen. Joe Lieberman (AKA Sen. Droopy Dog) continues to be a pest of biblical proportions. This time, the former…

John Grooms

Canadian paper on Charlotte’s woes

Canada’s leading newspaper, Toronto’s Globe and Mail, published a story today titled “Charlotte: The town that Bank of America took down.” It’s the kind of story that drives Uptown boosters and Chamber cheerleaders absolutely nuts — so it’s definitely worth a read. The story tells the familiar tale of the formerly super-cocky Charlotte business community…

John Grooms

Wanted: Musicians… but where to find them?

With the help of Charlotte venues and the Carolina Live Music Society my band, Actual Proof, has gotten some steam and has been regularly playing shows in the Southeast. This has us tickled because we’re able to write and perform music for music lovers who celebrate live music. But it turns out that our keyboard…

Eric Mullis

Raf

alias: Hodge passion: “Knowledge.” inspiration: “Immortality.” favorite sneaker: “Converse All Star” current city: Fayettville plug: Mafmaddix.com To see more photos by Jasiatic, visit www.createtressphotography.blogspot.com

Jasiatic

Final Charlotte Warehouse Sale of the year

Check out the final Charlotte Warehouse Sale of the year this week. Take 75 to 90 percent off the retail price of seasonal and nonseasonal ladies and children’s apparel. (By the way, they don’t accept checks. You need to pay with cash or credit cards. If you are paying with a credit card, the minimum…

Kimberly Lawson

Tonight: Fifi’s Fine Resale’s Diva Night

Sip on a little something and shop the low-priced goodies, from 6:30 p.m.-9 p.m. at Fifi’s Fine Resale during their monthly Diva Night. Tonight’s guests include Allison Boswell with Roden+Field and jeweler Maureen Boone. If nothing else, get a gift card — they’re 10 percent off. 8301-7 Magnolia Estates Drive, Cornelius 704-892-7070 www.fifislkn.com

Kimberly Lawson

Today’s Top 5: Tuesday

Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Dec. 15, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Holly Golightly and The Brokeoffs at Snug Harbor • Tony Tone at Lake Norman Comedy Zone • A Rockapella Holiday at McGlohon Theatre • A Collection of…

Anita Overcash

PARTY: Dixie Tavern’s Ugly Holiday Sweater Contest

Most folks have experienced the unfortunate event of receiving a horrid holiday sweater as a gift. It’s enough to leave you wondering just how you got on the naughty list, or on a list even lower than naughty, since you got this instead of a lump of coal. But, for those of you who felt…

Anita Overcash

CD review: Sugar Glyder’s Poor Baby Zebra

The Deal: Local quartet Sugar Glyder independently releases its sophomore album, Poor Baby Zebra, over the summer, amidst consistent touring. The Good: It’s been a big year for the Charlotte band, which has played roughly 100 shows this year, including an opening spot for Silversun Pickups at their Fillmore gig in town. It was probably…

Jeff Hahne

ARTS: Two Local Lefty Authors book release event

Tonight, The Evening Muse — which typically features concerts as its main attractions — will pay respect to literature during its “Two Local Lefty Authors” book release event. Pat MacEnulty, author of Picara and Creative Loafing’s own John Grooms, author of Deliver Us From Weasels, will read and discuss from their latest books. Music (it…

Anita Overcash

CL presents upcoming concerts (Dec. 16-21)

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 16 Aram Shelton’s Fast Citizens The observant will note that the last time through the Fast Citizens flew under tenor saxophonist Keefe Jackson’s moniker. Jackson’s still on board, but his ceding of the marquee to alto sax man Shelton points directly to the Fast Citizens’ collective aesthetic. And that, in turn, infuses the…

MUSIC: Find Your Muse

Every once in a while, we like to remind people about Find Your Muse, a regular open mic night that goes on every Monday. Aside from having a featured band that plays a 30-minute set, you also never know who’s gonna show up and hit the stage — Ben Henry, Jimmy Brown, Jeremy Current and…

Jeff Hahne

CD Review: Them Crooked Vultures

The Deal: The latest “supergroup” combines the bass of Led Zeppelin in John Paul Jones, the guitar and vocals of Queens of the Stone Age in Josh Homme and drums of Nirvana in Dave Grohl. The Good: When I first heard about these three getting together, I was sweating in anticipation. The results are about…

Jeff Hahne

COMEDY: Ken Evans at Lake Norman Comedy Zone

Christmas is just around the corner, and most of us, could use a laugh. This is the time of year to be joyous, yet the stress of engaging in gift buying and awaiting the arrival of certain relatives can be overwhelming beyond belief. Good thing, comedian Ken Evans is in town tonight. Skedaddle over to…

Anita Overcash

CD Review: Coco Montoya’s The Essential Coco Montoya

The Deal: Blues guitarist’s older body of work still a standout after nearly a decade. The Good: Former drummer-turned-guitarist for Albert Collins, then for a decade with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Coco Montoya’s best cuts from the mid-’90s are showcased on this new compilation. One of the best blues rockers in the business, Montoya doesn’t get…

Grant Britt

SPECIAL EVENT: Holiday Lights at the Garden

At some point during the season, you’ve got to get out of the congested malls and department stores, to really enjoy the spirit of the holidays. At Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens’ Holiday Lights at the Garden, you can get back to nature while being surrounded by holiday displays with more than 600,000 lights and decorative…

Anita Overcash

What will a new mayor, city council mean for east Charlotte?

When Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx took the oath of office last week, he reiterated his desire to make the Queen City look good from every angle. That means no more crappy corridors in Foxx’s Charlotte, which is how former Mayor Pat McCrory described one area of the city — east Charlotte — two years ago.…

Cheris Hodges

The ugly future in Sweet Tooth No. 4

Sweet Tooth No. 4 Published by Vertigo (DC Comics). Story and art by Jeff Lemire. The Deal: Vertigo’s tale of an animal-human hybrid making his way across a ravaged future version of America keeps on keeping on. The Good: You know, it’s really easy to screw up a so-called “post apocalyptic” story. Honestly, those dour…

Carlton Hargro

A list of Merry Christmas music

OK, OK, OK, I’ll do it! To my surprise, a few people have asked me to “write something about Christmas music,” usually followed by “like you used to.” I’m happy to oblige. Longtime readers of CL will remember when we used to run an annual look-see of new Christmas albums. It was a kind of…

A one-on-one interview with author John Grooms

During his 17 years as editor of Creative Loafing, John Grooms was a man of many moods, a couple of them not fit for a PG-13 rating. But even when he was lighthearted, Grooms was passionately engaged in the politics and culture of Charlotte — with strong interests and opinions that extended nationally and globally.…

Perry Tannenbaum

Why The Princess and the Frog is no big deal

I think I’ve had enough of the hoopla surrounding the new Disney animated film The Princess and the Frog. But before I opine further, here’s a little background: For the first time in the company’s history, Disney has finally introduced a black princess as the lead in one of its features. The company that has…

Nsenga Burton

Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files

White Boy Wasted: Police were dispatched to a local convenience store in response to a robbery call for service. When they arrived, officers encountered two “extremely intoxicated” white males. When the officers told the subjects to leave, one of the men ran straight into traffic, just barely avoiding being hit by a car. The other…

Ryan Pitkin

The governor pulls a fast one

Well played, Bev. She even fooled me … and most of the media outlets across the state. That doesn’t happen too often, but Gov. Bev E. Perdue’s staff pulled a fast one in October, convincing much of the state that at least 20 child rapists, murderers and assorted violent inmates sentenced to life in prison…

Horoscope for the week of Dec. 16-22, 2009

Sagittarius The Archer (Nov. 22-Dec. 20): You likely will experience delays in activities concerning the law, education, publishing and travel. If traveling, you may be going back to someplace where you have previously been. You may have to redo paperwork in order to accomplish the same thing in a different style or format. For All…

Vivian Carol

Gift recommendations for readers

If your holiday shopping list includes someone who loves to read, here are four widely varied books, all of them great reads — accessible, smart, and stylishly written — that should be welcome gifts. Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong by Terry Teachout (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 496 pages, $30). Louis Armstrong’s newest biographer, Terry Teachout,…

Latest Harry Potter film among new DVD reviews

THE HANGOVER (2009). One of this past summer’s biggest hits proved to be this headache-inducing effort in which soon-to-be-married Doug (Justin Bartha) heads to Las Vegas to enjoy a final blowout romp with henpecked Stu (Ed Helms), dimwitted Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and prickish Phil (Bradley Cooper). After waking up to discover that the husband-to-be is…

Matt Brunson

The Birth: A Bright light in Bethlehem

If you’ve wearied of holiday fare that extols the joy, the warmth, and the proliferating miraculous powers of Christmas — a new one sprouting up with each new tale and song — you might take special pleasure in the Starving Artist production of The Birth. Opening last Sunday at Actor’s Theatre, The Birth is a…

Perry Tannenbaum

The Princess and the Frog: Hop to it

Given the Disney studio’s recent disdain toward traditional hand-drawn animation, it’s sometimes hard to believe this was the company that over seven decades ago proved that toon flicks deserved to be on the big screen as much as their live-action counterparts. After all, the outfit with countless classics under its belt, some as recent as…

Matt Brunson

Capsule reviews for films playing the week of Dec. 16

THE BLIND SIDE Precious is different in that it allows an African-American character to tell her own story, never ceding the camera to anyone else and remaining the focal point throughout. The Blind Side is more typical of the sort of racially aware films Hollywood foists upon middle America, purportedly focusing on a black protagonist…

Matt Brunson

Invictus goes down in defeat

Clearly, there’s no shortage of stories to relate about Nelson Mandela. Why, then, did Clint Eastwood choose one that forces the celebrated leader to go MIA in his own saga? Second only to the upcoming Nine as the biggest disappointment of the holiday season, Invictus (** out of four) represents a rare misstep for the…

Matt Brunson

Copenhagan Climate Summit: The empire’s new clothes

COPENHAGEN — Denmark is the home of renowned children’s author Hans Christian Andersen. Copenhagen is dotted with historical spots where Andersen lived and wrote. “The Little Mermaid” was one of his most famous tales, published in 1837, along with “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” As the U.N. climate summit, called “COP 15,” enters its final week,…

Amy Goodman

Inexpensive finds at India Grocers and Zen International

It started with amchur. I need some for a chickpea salad, so I went to India Grocers in Pineville. On their spice aisle, I found bags of amchur (sometimes spelled amchoor), a light brown powder made from dried unripe green mangoes which adds acidity and tartness to a dish — the way lemon juice does.…

Tricia Childress

THEATER: Sister’s Christmas Catechism

This is your final week to catch performances of the comedy-driven and improv-oriented Sister’s Christmas Catechism at Booth Playhouse. Mary Zentmeyer, who starred in previous performances of Late Nite Catechism, is back with more twisted Sister action and pure wit, as she questions and relays her thoughts on a holiday mystery — what happened to…

Anita Overcash

Coming soon to Uptown

They say when one door closes, another door opens … and the same rings true for Charlotte nightlife. Cans is closing its doors on Jan. 3, but there are more new doors opening in Charlotte in December than there are closet doors with Cheetah Woods’ mistresses coming out of them. Let’s look at a few…

THEATER: A Broadway Christmas Carol

For three days, Dec. 18-20, Actors Scene Unseen is putting a spin on the classic Dickens tale, A Christmas Carol, with its performances of A Broadway Christmas Carol at Mint Museum of Art. In the production, song parodies from Broadway hits will be sung to reiterate the story in a funny, music-driven manner. This time…

Anita Overcash

Zach Deputy mashes up styles in unique way

Remember when you were little and people would sing “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” as a round, layering each vocal on top of each other in a constant fashion? Take that same principle, but with musical instruments and riffs overlapping and constantly replaying, and you have the basic idea of looping. There aren’t many musicians…

Jeff Hahne

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