Cover Story
Selling out moonshine
A syrupy-slow twang, the kind that takes its sweet time to draw out vowels, answers the phone. “Moonshiiine Marketers.” The man on the line is Andy Jordan. Five months ago he and his wife, Debi Dupuis, founded Moonshine Marketers in Robinsville, a mountain town with a population of about 620 in western North Carolina. The…
Today’s Top 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top 5: Monday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Widowspeak at Visulite Theatre tonight (7/3/13)
A creep factor clings to the duo’s narcotic pop-Americana.
The Hot Gates at Snug Harbor tonight (6/29/13)
Led by Charlotte-based musician Jason Scavone, the band offers listeners an opportunity to experience the sounds of commercial pop/rock, with a sort of intimacy that’s often lost in the mainstream.
There Was A Time: Rock & Roll in the 1960s in Charlotte, and North Carolina Book Release Party at the Neighborhood Theatre tonight (6/28/13)
Book release party featuring live artists from 1960s Charlotte, and the regional, music scene.
Gladys Knight at Belk Theater tonight (6/27/13)
Seven-time Grammy winner mixes candid storytelling with a musical journey through doo-wop, R&B, soul, MOR and jazz standards.
The Loudermilks at The Chop Shop tonight (6/27/13)
Local band has upheld the fine tradition of conquering life’s bullshit by taming it in songs that resonate down the years.
Atlas Road Crew at the Evening Muse tonight (6/27/13)
Atlas Road Crew is a quintet of young rockers exploring its love of ’70s rock.
This week’s SketchCrowd (June 26)
Should you eat that bacon?
Hard Times, Lifeforce, Stoker among new home entertainment titles
(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray and DVD.) THE CALL (2013). There’s something cheerfully stupid about thrillers like The Call, wherein a protagonist who’s seemingly as brilliant as Sherlock Holmes eventually becomes as dim-witted as Forrest Gump. In this case, that would be Jordan Turner (Halle Berry),…
Today’s Top 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
CD review: Mestre Esquilo’s Toque O Tambor
At a recent exhibit opening for Brazilian photographer Pedro Lobo, Mestre Esquilo and his Charlotte capoeira students mesmerized a large crowd with a physically demanding display of the Afro-Brazilian tradition. The multidisciplinary blend of dance and martial arts movement, chanting and polyrhythm, is a full sensory experience rooted in the history of both the African…
Savage soundbites
Tired of trashy beach reads? Then you might want to dive into the latest book from author and sex columnist Dan Savage. Titled American Savage: Insights, Slights, and Fights On Faith, Sex, Love, and Politics, the book was released at the tail end of May and has already been tagged one of the best books…
Live review: Dave Chappelle
After selling out three shows, it was clear that Charlotte was ready to see the comedian’s big comeback.
Now Showing: Best of Charlotte’s CITY LIFE readers ballot
From now through July 7, our CITY LIFE category will be live for you to cast your votes.
Today’s Top 5: Monday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
100-proof primer
Most bar books with cocktail recipes are, um, rather straight up: Just tell me how to make it. What naturalist and garden writer Amy Stewart spins in The Drunken Botanist: The Plants that Create the World’s Great Drinks is a bit of history, myth-debunking and gardening woven with some science to produce a read as…
NoDajito: A winning witbier
A seasonal brew at NoDa Brewing has recently elevated itself beyond the pale ale, selling out almost immediately.
Weekend Film Reviews: Monsters University; World War Z; The Kings of Summer; The East; The Bling Ring; and more
What’s new and covered in movie theaters.
Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files (June 20)
Wanker: While most flashers in the Charlotte area like to show women naughty bits and run off after a couple of seconds, a man in east Charlotte took it to another level. The man approached a 32-year-old woman near a hotel on Sugar Creek Road and allegedly began masturbating in front of her. After a…
Theater review: The Divine Sister
When you don’t have the playwright starring in the title role of Charles Busch’s newest parody, The Divine Sister, you’re bound to get a treatment of the script that is radically different from the original 2011 off-Broadway production. With Busch cross-dressing to portray the Mother Superior at St. Veronica’s Convent – who was ace reporter…
North Carolina gunman shoots four
One outside of a law firm and three others near a Walmart
Monsters University: Passing without honors
MONSTERS UNIVERSITY *** DIRECTED BY Dan Scanlon STARS Billy Crystal, John Goodman The Roman Empire fell. So did the Berlin Wall. It was only natural, then, that Pixar Animation Studios would eventually tumble as well. Clearly, the golden age of Pixar has conclusively ended. Starting with its inaugural feature-length production Toy Story in 1995 and…
World War Z sporadically comes to life
WORLD WAR Z **1/2 DIRECTED BY Marc Forster STARS Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos Because this new century has given birth to a startling number of grade-A zombie flicks, it’s only natural to worry that such familiarity will reduce World War Z to the level of a World War Zzzzz. That’s not the case, thanks largely…
The Kings of Summer: It rules
THE KINGS OF SUMMER ***1/2 DIRECTED BY Jordan Vogt-Roberts STARS Nick Robinson, Gabriel Basso Coming-of-age tales are generally a dime a dozen, but here’s one pretty much guaranteed to make viewers feel like a million bucks. A big-screen breakthrough for both writer Chris Galletta and director Jordan Vogt-Roberts, The Kings of Summer centers on two…
The East: A screening worth occupying
THE EAST *** DIRECTED BY Zal Batmanglij STARS Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsgård Brit Marling is one of those acquired indie tastes, like Greta Gerwig (Frances Ha, Damsels in Distress) and Mark Duplass (Your Sister’s Sister, Safety Not Guaranteed), who tends to leave viewers undecided as to their actual merits. Strolling through projects with a blank…
The Bling Ring: Youth gone wild
THE BLING RING **1/2 DIRECTED BY Sofia Coppola STARS Emma Watson, Katie Chang Writer-director Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring is ostensibly a look at the real-life group of teens who got away with burglarizing celebrities’ homes for almost an entire year before being caught, but the true takeaway from this viewing experience is that Paris…
3 questions with food blogger Dianna Nicolas
For food blogger Dianna Nicolas, burgers are not just the occasional-cookout food; they are an art form. Growing up on her family’s traditional Caribbean food, Nicolas didn’t have the experienced burger lifestyle that she has now. It wasn’t until she was in her teens that she even had her first burger from McDonald’s, and soon…
Question the Queen City: When an elephant roamed Charlotte
Vicki escaped from the Airport Amusement Park – evading several traps to catch her – in the ’50s
Today’s Top 5: Friday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Today’s Top 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Pimp my screening
Studio Movie Grill will host special screening of documentary about pimp-cum-author Iceberg Slim.
Opening Friday
What’s new in theaters this week.
Featured Cocktail: Wild Berry Mojito
“The Wild Berry Mojito is a spin on the traditional mojito,” says head mixologist Mark Childers.
Rosco Bandana finds strength in numbers
Just a couple of years ago, if you were living in Gulfport, Miss., and playing original music, your best bet to make money was to simply get out of town. Most venues in town — including a good number of casinos — look for cover bands to entertain the crowds. But determination plus success in…
Rebirth Brass Band embodies New Orleans spirit
Just after the halfway point on Rebirth of New Orleans, the most recent album from the Rebirth Brass Band, there’s a moment that encapsulates the outfit’s indomitable spirit. Across six suave minutes, “What Goes Around Comes Around” moves from slinky sax and trumpet solos to raucous horn salvos set to lively Latin rhythms. At the…
Weekly horoscope (June 20-26)
Cancer The Crab (June 20-July 21): Jupiter in your sign will lighten any load, renew your sense of optimism and reinforce your self esteem. Help and cooperation of others will be more available to you, especially if you make your requests in person. The spiritual dimension of your life will improve and travel or education…
Kermit Gosnell used by both sides of abortion debate
I first found out about the Kermit Gosnell trial on Facebook. One of my Christian friends posted about it, outraged about the lack of media attention the Philadelphia provider of late-term abortions was receiving. I did some research on the case and found horrific stories of babies born alive before having their spinal cords snipped,…
The NSA in ADD Nation
Here’s what we’ve found out recently, thanks to The Guardian, The Washington Post, and NSA leaker Edward Snowden: The National Security Administration (NSA) has set up an electronic dragnet that sweeps up information on nearly all Americans. They do it by scooping up the content and data from every phone call made in the U.S.,…
Bonnaroo 2013 – The musical highlights and lowlights
A look back at some of the best, and worst, the festival had to offer.
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Letters to the Editor (June 20 edition)
Happy Pride! As a new member of the Charlotte community, having moved to the area only several months ago, I have been pleasantly surprised by all the progressive activism and open dialogue here. When I was out to lunch with a few friends last week, the conversation turned to reproductive rights, and one of my…
CD review: Colin Stetson’s New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light
For the uninitiated, Colin Stetson’s a hard sell. He’s not especially linear, there’s no backbeat and it’s mostly a variety of saxes howling from alto to bass. But Stetson can certainly play. He’s currently known for performing with Arcade Fire and Bon Iver. This is his third and final recording of his song cycle trilogy,…
Complete list of Best of Charlotte Readers’ Categories
CITY LIFE Local Hero Best Activist (Individual or Group) Best Local Charity Best Support Group Best Member of Local Government Best Use of Tax Money Best Local Athlete Best Museum Best Area to Live In Charlotte Best Place to Get Back to Nature Best Place to People-Watch Best Radio Personality Best Radio Show Best Local…
