Live review: Weedeater, ASG, Pig Mountain, Manchovy
Quartet of bands bring forth the sludgy goodness.
Blu-ray Picks: Thelma & Miss Celie
Strong women coping in abusive societies are the focus in two new Blu-ray releases.
Shooting jolts local strip joint Club 124
Once again, people just can’t go out and get a lapdance without bullets flying around.
Loft 1523, 2/18/11
Loft 1523 hosted Tease, a ladies night, on Friday. Photos by Jeaumane McIntosh
N.C. GOP: Taxpayers should fund beach jetties for the rich
Looks like The Who had it wrong: the new boss isn’t same as the old boss; he’s worse. At least in North Carolina. The new Republican majority in the General Assembly came in with budget guns a-blazin’, threatening to cut off money for already-underfunded services for the poor, and wreck the state’s public schools (not…
NAACP prez vows to keep fighting in the Q.C.
He aims to end racial disparity in the Charlotte community.
GOP works to block coal ash regulation
More arsenic, please.
Do you resemble this monkey?
Here fatty, fatty, fatty.
Dear Abby … err, Brittney
The blind leading the blind: Dating advice from Brittney.
Best bets in Charlotte comedy, Feb. 21-27
Here are a few of the best places to find comedy events in Charlotte this week.
C’mon Son looks at Grammys
Ed Lover gives his opinions on the recent awards show.
Charlotte Talks … about the Oscars
Local reviewers offer their picks on WFAE show.
Bartender’s Ball @ Blake Hotel, 2/20/11
The 10th annual Bartender’s Ball was held Sunday, Feb. 20 at the Blake Hotel.
Riedel wine tasting
During the tasting Riedel explained how the shape of glassware affects the aroma and taste of wine, passed along a few wine tricks and tips, and demonstrated how to use his newest “Eve” decanter.
Neighborhood Theatre, 2/19/11
The Neighborhood Theatre had a sold out crowd Saturday night for the Latin American Coalition’s Second Annual ‘A Night in Rio.’
Today’s Top 5: Monday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Banana pudding conquered
Smooth and creamy homemade vanilla bean pudding makes for yummy banana pudding.
Today’s Top(less) 5: Monday
Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date.
Not sure what Bartenders Ball is about?
A sneak preview into what kind of shenanigans will be going down on Sunday at the Blake.
Happy birthday, Breakfast Club!
The only 80s club in Charlotte celebrates 8 years this weekend.
Barney’s Version worth hearing
Paul Giamatti is excellent in decades-spanning saga.
Unknown: Neeson Maxima
Actor flexes his muscles in satisfying thriller.
10-in-10 CD reviews
Each Friday, we review 10 recently released CDs in 10 words each.
N.C. study: “homegrown terrorism” threat exaggerated
If you have mice in your house, you want to get rid of them, since, otherwise, they’ll get in your food supply, shred things to use in making nests, and crap all over the place. They are a potentially destructive nuisance, and it’s a good idea to do something about them: call an exterminator, put…
The Avett’s Grammys surge
Just got this in a press release: Following their performance on this year’s Grammy Awards broadcast, The Avett Brothers sold 23,000 singles withing the show’s broadcast. Immediately following the live Grammy telecast, The Avett Brothers topped the iTunes Top Songs and Top Album chart. The band also reached “volcanic” status on Google searches as well…
Concert announcement: The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips will perform at The Fillmore Charlotte on May 17. Tickets go on sale on Feb. 25.
Theater review: Sweeney Todd
A meaty Sweeney at CPCC.
Live review: Slash
Former Guns N Roses guitarist hits Charlotte for final headlining show on current tour.
This weekend’s nightlife events (Feb. 18-20)
For you lucky folks who have Monday off for Presidents’ Day — and those of you who don’t but will still party hard anyway — here are some nightlife events going on this weekend.
Nicole Atkins on Conan
Former Charlotte resident Nicole Atkins was on Conan last night to perform her song, “Cry Cry Cry,” from her new album, Mondo Amore. Now, if we could just get her back to the Q.C. …
Today’s Top 5: Friday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Halo, 2/17/11
Latin XTC was held at Halo Thursday night.
Today’s Top(less) 5: Friday
Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date.
Weekender, Feb. 18-20
Check out these events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area this weekend.
Poitier film series heats up
Oscar-winning murder-mystery will be screened this Saturday at the Main Library.
Theater review: Lunch at the Piccadilly
Theater review of Lunch at the Piccadilly at Festival Stage.
Where does Charlotte City Center Partners CEO Michael Smith get the nerve to tout importance of urban parks?
Yesterday, Charlotte City Center Partners CEO Michael Smith served up a hot, steaming dish of galling irony that should not go unreported and unremarked upon. Smith’s group, among other ideas, wants the county to spend $10 million to build Romare Bearden Park in Third Ward in time for the Democratic convention in 2012. Never mind…
Bill Bill James for copycat House Bill 28
Bill James has sown the seeds of his bigotry into our state’s legislative soil, and the unseasonably warm weather has brought forth the fruits of his narrow-minded labor.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library wants to hear from you (Fill out the damn survey!)
We have to get real about what we can and can’t afford, Charlotte.
More Ponzi schemes, one in Charlotte area
Yeah, yeah. It’s all about the Benjamins.
Congress doesn’t understand public’s enviromental concerns
Dear Congress: Try talking to ‘the people.’
Taste Test: Dessert crepes at Crepe Cellar
This smorgasbord sampling of dessert crepes had fellow patrons gawking.
Opening Friday
What’s new in theaters this weekend.
Soul singer Rhonda Thomas plays The House of Jazz Feb. 20
This one goes out to all you folks who complain that Charlotte never gets visits from cool soul artists …
Today’s Top 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top(less) 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date.
Committee examining Charlotte noise ordinance
Could proposed changes be the end of outdoor, live music at area restaurants and bars?
Like attracts like: Assholes attract assholes
The law of attraction convicts assholes.
Maximilian Riedel comes to Charlotte Feb. 18
Maximilian Riedel, of Riedel Crystal, will be in Charlotte this Friday, Feb. 18, for a comparative wine tasting at the Marriott Uptown.
Tremont Music Hall, 2/15/11
Glassjaw, an influential post-hardcore band from Long Island, NY, played Tremont Music Hall Tuesday, Feb. 15.
Michele Bachmann to spew her ‘Firehose of Crazy’ in Rock Hill
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), who opened last week’s Conservative Political Action Conference with a rousing speech filled with big words like “socialism,” is bringing her Firehose of Crazy to Rock Hill. Bachmann is thinking of running for president in 2012, so this week she’ll swing through South Carolina, one of the early presidential primary states.…
Go nude for the spring
A must-need shoe for spring and basically a staple for your wardrobe is a nude shoe.
Tonight’s Top 5, 02/16/11
The top five nightlife-related events going down tonight, Feb. 16, as chosen from the folks at Creative Loafing.
John Edwards could be charged soon
It’s about damn time.
Can the slow food movement save environmentalists?
Anything is possible.
Hearing about outdoor noise ordinance today
How would proposed changes affect the future of outdoor live music?
N.C. students say: Bullying makes you popular
This isn’t good, kids.
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top(less) 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date.
Gamer alert: Video Games Live
Charlotte Symphony presents Video Games Live at Ovens Auditorium.
New York Fashion Week Fall 2011: Betsey Johnson
Oh Monday, designer Betsey Johnson showcased her “He Loves Me/He Loves Me Not” fall collection.
Arizona GOP: Turn doctors into immigration cops
Republican state lawmakers in Arizona are proposing a law that would require hospitals to check whether a patient is in the country illegally. It’s as if they woke up one morning and thought, “What can we do to make Arizona more of a police state? Let’s see, we already make our cops stop people and…
Night review: Auction of Love at Whisky River
Ace and TJ from KISS 95.1 hosted a charity event at Whisky River, Friday, Feb. 11
Sue Myrick’s chief of Islamophobia, Hal Weatherman, is quitting
Soon we’ll find out whether Rep. Sue Myrick needs a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows. Myrick’s longtime chief of staff, Hal Weatherman, is leaving to become communications and marketing director for Act! For America, a radical Islamophobic group in Pensacola, Fla. AFA is led by one Brigitte Gabriel, who grew up in…
‘Claims Department’ checks up on Gov. Perdue
Free the facts.
Put that diet soda down!
Stop drinking chemicals.
Charlotte gas prices going down? Nope.
A couple years ago, we would have lost our minds if gas prices were $3.13 …
Allure, 2/11/11
Ssshh, the sensual poetry and jazz event, was held at Allure on Friday, Feb. 11.
Who, what and wear at The Grammys
There was some absolute ridiculousness upon the red carpet and of course some knock-outs.
Night Review: Reggae at the Lake, featuring Jah Creation
Roots reggae in Cornelius? We checked it out and here’s what we thought …
Art + abuse = The People Pleaser?
Local artist Joshua “Blue” Hainey challenged this notion with a new performan
2011 Bonnaroo lineup released
Official lineup released Tuesday at noon.
This week’s new releases (2/15/2010)
Here’s a quick rundown of the new releases hitting stores this week: Bright Eyes The People’s Key Cowboy Junkies Demons Drive-By Truckers Go-Go Boots PJ Harvey Let England Shake Rev Theory Justice
Tonight’s Top 5, 02/15/11
The top five nightlife-related events going down tonight, Feb. 15, as chosen from the folks at Creative Loafing.
Flogging Molly tonight (2-15-2011)
Irish influence with an upbeat mix.
Today’s Top 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top(less) 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events to get you hot and bothered with or without a date.
Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files
Good Night Spoiled: Police responded to a local Walgreens after a woman was caught shoplifting. Employees told officers that a woman came in the store and started placing things in her purse. When she was confronted, security found that the woman had tried to steal shampoo, socks, bubble bath, two different kinds of K-Y Jelly,…
Airport insecurity
What exactly can you sneak past airport security screeners these days? In North Carolina, the last six months have provided some interesting answers. A prosthetic breast? No. A cancer survivor who’d had a mastectomy was recently groped to tears by Transportation Security Administration screeners at Charlotte Douglas International after her false breast showed up on…
What is the Eiffel Tower, actually?
OK, so what’s up with the Eiffel Tower? I mean what is it, actually? — Snowboardsweety1 A shallow individual might venture that it’s a tower named after a guy called Eiffel. (I don’t mean to give short shrift to the possibility of a Ms. Eiffel, but female tower-builders weren’t numerous in 19th-century France.) And in…
3 questions with Evan Micek, line cook
As a child, Charlotte-born Evan Micek spent some time in Irmo, SC; there, he attended the Okra Strut, a local festival celebrating the Southern staple. So began the stirrings of his love affair with all things local. After graduating from Providence High, he tinkered with the IT field but found his calling in the culinary…
Weekly horoscope (Feb. 16-22)
Pisces The Fish (Feb. 18-March 19) Focus intently on that which gives you spiritual uplifting during this period. You are in need of healing on some level, whether emotional or physical. Stay alert this week. You will encounter a casual acquaintance who may accidentally offer the information you really need to take the next step.…
A look at the current state of recycling in Mecklenburg County
Charlotte’s recycling practices have evolved quite a bit since the first bins were distributed in the 1980s — and so, too, has citizen involvement. Today, the county works with Casella Waste Systems Inc., which operates under the name FCR Recycling in Mecklenburg County. The firm runs the county’s refurbished, multi-million dollar Metrolina Recycling Facility,…
Capsule reviews of films playing the week of Feb. 16
ANOTHER YEAR A character in a 70s movie — Gene Hackman’s private eye in Night Moves, if we’re pointing fingers — opined that watching an Eric Rohmer film is like watching paint dry. I imagine similar charges have been lobbed against the oeuvre of British writer-director Mike Leigh, whose idea of an action sequence is…
Cl previews upcoming concerts (Feb. 16-22)
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16 DEICIDE Raining unrelenting death metal onto the heaving mass of flailing fists and hair in the pit, lead growler/bassist Glen Benton and Deicide leave no rafters or walls unshaken, no ears or bodies unbruised with their merciless bombast. Over two decades of angst hasn’t slowed ole Satan-loving Benton. Their new album is…
Conviction, Get Low among new home entertainment releases
CONVICTION (2010). This relates the true-life tale of Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank), who spends close to two decades trying to prove the innocence of her brother Kenny (Sam Rockwell). Charged with murder, Kenny’s serving a life sentence thanks in no small part to the efforts of a humorless police officer (Melissa Leo) and the…
Anthony Foxx talks DNC, more
Serving at the helm of the city as it prepares to host the 2012 Democratic National Convention, it appears that Mayor Anthony Foxx is hitting his stride. Creative Loafing caught up with him just after the Queen City’s youngest head honcho learned that Charlotte won the bid. Check out what he had to say about…
Egypt’s youth will not be silenced
“In memoriam, Christoph Probst, Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl” reads the banner at the top of Kareem Amer’s popular Egyptian dissident blog. “Beheaded on Feb. 22, 1943, for daring to say no to Hitler, and yes to freedom and justice for all.” The young blogger’s banner recalls the courageous group of anti-Nazi pamphleteers who called themselves…
The Film Issue: The Light Factory’s Linnea Beyer
Forget about Brando, Bogart or Bobby De Niro: Linnea Beyer’s favorite actor of all time is Dolph Lundgren. OK, not really. But as I met with The Light Factory’s film honcho for lunch last week, I stated that I might make up that fact just to help with any necessary transitions in the story. Beyer…
Nightlife profile: Kerrie Clayton
Kerrie Clayton is like a caramel salted brownie: amazingly sweet but salty in a way that complements the overall treat. She is a total bad ass who will get rowdy if you piss her off then adorably frolic away like it’s no big deal. Along with her radically awesome personality, she is a highly motivated…
MUSIC: Delfeayo Marsalis at Knight Theater
Is 2011 Charlotte’s “Year of Marsalis”? First, saxophonist Branford Marsalis came to town for a rare show at Petra’s. And now, tonight, trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis (the brother of Branford and Wynton) is hitting town to conduct his “theatrical jazz production” Sweet Thunder: Duke and Shak. The show, which features music by Delfeayo’s jazz octet and…
The Film Issue: Meet the folks who saved VisArt
New Year’s Eve 2010 didn’t feel like a day of celebration at VisArt Video, the DVD and video rental shop on 7th Street. The store was set to close forever because its owners, Clay Evans and Andrea Kubachko, were getting out of the movie-rental business. Store manager Gina “Twiggy” Cerniglia and the employees wanted to…
Jim White finds his balance at last
If authenticity is roots music’s holy grail (and white whale), nowhere is the grail holier than here in the South. This is the regional patch where the music was born in the crucible of sin (see Robert Johnson’s blues) and salvation (see the Carter Family’s country gospel), and those two DNA strains still course through…
THEATER: In The Heights at Belk Theater
It’s time to hippety-hop around the melting pot block as In The Heights springs its New York-flavored love on the Q.C. The latest in Blumenthal’s Broadway Light Series, this Tony award-winning musical tells the emotionally inspiring tale of two families — residents of Manhattan’s ethnic Washington Heights community — struggling, but damned and determined to…
The Film Issue: Charlotte film pioneer Dennis Darrell’s legacy lives on
Films by and about African-Americans (ones that don’t star Tyler “Madea” Perry) used to have a home in Charlotte — and that’s mostly due to the efforts of the late Dennis Darrell. Through his film promotion company, Reel Soul Cinema, Darrell (who died May 17, 2010) organized regular Q.C.-based screenings of black films that Hollywood…
CD REVIEW: Nicole Atkins’ Mondo Amore
THE DEAL: Three years after her debut album, former Charlotte resident Nicole Atkins releases her sophomore effort. THE GOOD: It’s been quite a while since the release of Neptune City, so the 10 tracks here are more than welcome to many fans’ ears. While that album was soaked with ’50s style soul, Mondo Amore takes…
FILM: Howl screening at Theatre Charlotte
That James Franco fellow sure seems to be everywhere these days. His Oscar-nominated drama 127 Hours is still playing in theaters. He’s set to co-host the Academy Awards ceremony with Anne Hathaway. And Charlotteans now have a chance to further catch him in action as the Charlotte Film Society brings Howl to town. The first…
Where to find it: A Cuban Sandwich
One of the foods most sought after by the people who relocated here from the Miami area is the Cuban sandwich. Recently with the increased popularity of all pressed sandwiches, the Cuban has made its way onto the menus of chain fast-casual restaurants. The ingredients of a Miami-styled Cuban sandwich must be authentic to achieve…
CD REVIEW: Tom Principato’s A Part of Me
THE DEAL: After nearly four decades of touring and recording, A Part of Me is the D.C.-based bluesman’s first outing featuring all original tunes. THE GOOD: Principato weaves everyman tales imbued with his guitar riffs in this collection of blues and blues-rockers. “Part of Me” is the lyrically strongest track that pours the regret and…
BENEFIT: 10th Annual Charlotte Bartenders Ball 2011
For those of you who are thirsty for the joys of inebriation comes the Charlotte Bartenders Ball. In its 10th year, the annual alcohol-friendly event includes an open bar with top-shelf liquors, a full line of beers, a dinner buffet (provided by The Mens Club) and entertainment. Just remember to be safe and don’t drive.…
The Film Issue: Charlotte film fan faves
The King’s Speech might be the Oscar frontrunner, but it was soundly silenced by many of Charlotte’s most visible film enthusiasts. That’s not to say the movie didn’t find favor among some of those polled, but none of the 12 folks who participated cited it among the very best of the year. However, in looking…
Auction: The Savannah Collection
Shelton Drum, owner of the local comic book shop Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find, is putting thousands of recently acquired, ultra-rare comics up for auction early next year. The titles — from publishers like DC, Charlton, Marvel and more — span from 1958 to the present and are valued at more than $1 million. The…
MUSIC: JP, INC. at Snug Harbor
The artist formerly known as Pleaseeasaur is still doing comedy records and is touring his new record of hypothetical theme songs and commercials backed by Comedy Central Records. Whether opening for DEVO or starring in a web series, JP has turned his 15 years in the comedy game into laughs internationally. Neil Hamburger, Face Fear…
Just Go With It: Slack & Decker
Adam Sandler’s latest catnip for knuckleheads, Just Go With It, is based on Cactus Flower, a farce that’s been the basis for a French play, a Broadway hit, and a motion picture starring Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman and Goldie Hawn in her Oscar-winning role. But here’s the thing: Not until I actually saw the words…
Seminar: The Actor’s Journey with Stanley Livingston
Stanley Livingston — best known for his role as “Chip Douglas” in the popular 1960s’ TV series, My Three Sons — is stopping by the Q.C. to help enlighten those in pursuit of acting careers. He’ll present two seminars (one for adults and the other for children), discussing important topics on life in the entertainment…
COMEDY: Tony Tone at The Comedy Zone Lake Norman
Comedian Tony Tone likes to do impressions. During his stand-up performances he typically shares his take on popular public and entertainment figures (from Bill Clinton to Chris Rock), as well as his own humorous experiences in everyday life. He’s also appeared on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam and BET’s Comicview. Check him out tonight at The…
The Eagle rarely soars
It’s a tricky business, casting the roles of Romans in period spectacles. It’s not that Americans are expecting actual Italians in these parts — on the contrary, with rare exception, we’ve long been conditioned to believe that Roman soldiers, emperors and the like sound best with British (or Australian) accents. We accepted Russell Crowe in…
Night and day in Tarradiddledom
It would be hasty and rash to name the current edition of The Tarradiddle Players, the traveling troubadour arm of Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, the very best Tarradiddle ever. Our local theatre scene is bestrewn with distinguished Tarradiddle alums. Even troupers who recently jumped off the Diddle caravan, Chaz Pofahl and Greta Marie Zandstra, have…
Book reviews: Haitin Noir, The Harvard Psychedelic Club
Haiti Noir edited by Edwidge Danticat (Akashic Books, 300 pages, $24.95 hardcover, $15.95 paper). One of our favorite new writers to emerge in the past decade is Haitian-born American Edwidge Danticat. The National Book Critics Circle Award and MacArthur “genius grant” winner’s elegant style and razor sharp imagination have won her a fast-growing following. In…
The Illusionist slight but charming
It only takes one viewing of 1958’s Mon Oncle or 1967’s Play Time to be convinced that writer-director-star Jacques Tati was one of the great screen comedians of the 20th century, a French filmmaker whose recurring cinematic character, the bumbling Monsieur Hulot, was as beloved in some quarters as Charlie Chaplin’s Little Tramp and Peter…
Seminar: The Actor’s Journey with Stanley Livingston
Stanley Livingston — best known for his role as “Chip Douglas” in the popular 1960s’ TV series, My Three Sons — is stopping by the Q.C. to help enlighten those in pursuit of acting careers. He’ll present a seminar today, discussing important topics on life in the entertainment biz. In addition, those in the audience…
A list of comic-movie reading material
If you watched this year’s Super Bowl (well, the commercials), then you — and more than 100 million other folks — probably know that this summer will be a big one for comic book movies. Not only are film adaptations for Captain America and Thor coming our way, but celluloid versions of Green Lantern, Cowboys…
The Company Men deserves a pink slip
THE COMPANY MEN ** DIRECTED BY John Wells STARS Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones Back in December, The Weinstein Company tentatively pushed The Company Men as a legitimate year-end award contender. Fortunately for the studio, it also had The King’s Speech in its corner to pick up the Oscar slack. After all, the topic tackled…
DANCE: Botanica
Contemporary dance company, Momix is known for making illusionists out of its dancers. In Botanica, the latest blossoming addition to its repertoire, it goes all natural. The multimedia show — choreographed by Moses Pendleton — stems around fantasy-styled puppets, music, props and costumes, in addition to a cast firmly rooted in complex moves. The plant-based…
Screening: Sidney Poitier
The Main Library’s Black History Month Film Series, showcasing movies starring the magnetic actor, continues with an airing of 1967’s Best Picture Oscar winner, In the Heat of the Night. This engrossing murder-mystery stars Poitier as Virgil Tibbs, a Philadelphia detective who reluctantly agrees to help redneck sheriff Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) solve a crime…
Sir Edmond Halley’s returns to its roots
All that existed before 1995 is quaintly called “old Charlotte,” since that seminal year brought such events as the first season of the Carolina Panthers and the performance of Angels in America to the city. Also in 1995, a small 70-seat British pub opened on the backside of Park Road Shopping Center. I wrote a…
Screening: Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench
This black-and-white film has been pegged as a musical shot in a quasi-documentary style, focusing on the relationship between a jazz musician (real-life trumpeter Jason Palmer) and a waitress (Desiree Garcia). It was nominated for a Gotham Award for Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You, so consider yourself lucky that Charlotte snagged…
New Rules (For local government)
City and county governments in Charlotte aren’t firing on all cylinders lately, so it’s a good time to issue some fresh directives for Battlestar Mecklenburg. So, with apologies to Bill Maher and his HBO show’s signature feature, here are some New Rules for Local & State Government: New rule: Big shots on the public payroll…
