May 8-14, 2012

May 8-14, 2012 / Vol. 26 / No. 11

Cover Story

Mastodon is leading the New South’s creative Renaissance

Brendon Small remembers the first time he hung out with Mastodon, shortly before they toured together in 2009. “It was kind of what you’d expect from Mastodon,” he recalls of that night. He and guitarist Bill Kelliher are now close friends — he’s close to the whole band, actually — but back in '09, they…

Corbie Hill

This Crazy Horse should be put down

CRAZY HORSE ** DIRECTED BY Frederick Wiseman STARS Phillippe Decoufle, Ali Mahdavi Le Crazy Horse de Paris, the subject of Frederick Wiseman’s documentary Crazy Horse, first opened its doors in 1951 and since then has become perhaps the most famous nightclub of its type in the entire world. A cabaret that focuses on artistic nude…

Matt Brunson

Hope amidst despair in Burma

David Johnson looked fatigued sitting across the table at Starbucks. Only back in the country for three days, Johnson had returned from a several-thousand mile journey to the Burmese state of Kachin. There, nearly 75,000 ethnic Kachin people have been displaced from their homes by the army and live in squalid conditions in makeshift camps…

Michael J. Solender

Dark Shadows: Faulty Depp charge

DARK SHADOWS **1/2 DIRECTED BY Tim Burton STARS Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer My mother — God rest her soul — liked her celebrities sexy and larger than life: Tyrone Power, Burt Reynolds, Bobby Kennedy (this despite her being a lifelong Republican), Tom Jones and, above everyone else, blonde, blue-eyed, beautiful Robert Redford. And yet my…

Matt Brunson

They were loud, they were proud, they were the 99 percent

Uptown was a little nosier than usual today after nearly 600 protesters rallied around Bank of America’s headquarters, then the stadium, then old city hall, during the bank’s annual shareholder meeting. Activists from across the country came to speak out against the bank’s foreclosure practices and monetary support of the coal industry. Some took turns…

Ryan Pitkin

Inside the lion’s den at Bank of America

Bank of America sheltered its shareholders from protesters before and during the shareholder meeting, first with a temporary wall, then with a heavy security presence. The meeting itself was calm, at least until the very end when some shareholders, or their appointed proxies, conducted a “mic check” and then chanted as the audience filed out…

Rhiannon Fionn

Namaste, M.C.A.

What’s running through my mind comes through in my walk/ True feelings are shown from the way that I talk. — Beastie Boys, “Pass the Mic,” Check Your Head, 1992 Let me just say this, right off the bat: I am tired of penning tributes to pop stars who have died way too young. This…

Mark Kemp

Camelot, W.E. among new home entertainment titles

(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray and DVD.) CAMELOT (1967). This screen adaptation of the Broadway smash has just been released as a handsome Blu-ray Digibook, but such a pleasing package can’t camouflage the mediocre movie residing inside. Albeit more financially successful than many of the late-60’s…

Matt Brunson

The real mad men: Following the money behind TV political ads

May Day, Murdoch and the murder of Milly Dowler. What do they have to do with the 2012 U.S. general election? This year’s election will undoubtedly be the most expensive in U.S. history, with some projections topping $5 billion. Not only has the amount of spending increased, but its nature has as well, following the…

Amy Goodman

Item of the Week: Kamibashi dolls at FABO Cafe

In anticipation of the Democratic National Convention, FABO Café owner Amy Aussieker hopes to create a doll that looks like Jon Stewart. She’s been stalking the TV news funnyman for eight months. She has a Stewart shrine in FABO’s bathroom called Jon’s John. She’s even created a “Stalking Jon Stewart” campaign. Her mission? Get Stewart…

Allison Campbell

Sondheim’s elixir of love: Passion ignites

Beauty, adoration and orgasmic delight may be the most addictive natural aphrodisiacs, and at the beginning of Stephen Sondheim’s Passion, Giorgio seems to have it all in Clara. She’s beautiful, adores him (he’s a certified hunk himself), enjoys being with him, and, as the great Barry White would say, “Can’t get enough of your love,…

Perry Tannenbaum

Lineage Bridal’s hosts grand opening party

Retail isn’t exactly in abundance in Uptown, so for a storefront to focus on such a niche audience — well, I’m impressed. Formerly a Web-based business, Lineage Bridal is a bridal consignment boutique that’s recently opened up on McNinch Street. The shop will celebrate its grand opening on May 16 with a party at Roof…

Kimberly Lawson

Event: 3rd Annual Carolina Art Soiree

This special exhibition features more than 30 regional artists, including Robert Langford (we’re digging his pictured abstract painting). Homeless folks from Urban Ministry Center’s ArtWorks945 program will showcase their works and Mike Lewis of JesusPainter Ministries is slated to paint live. Food and drink vendors and music are also provided. Proceeds raised from the event…

Anita Overcash

Latest discovery: Bijuju Accessories Boutique

“It’s always a beautiful day at Bijuju!” When a store goes the chipper route for its standard phone greeting, you know you can expect your shopping experience to err on the side of all things delightful. Opened last November in Blakeney shopping center, this is the first Bijuju store to grace Charlotte. The company, which…

Laura Camilo

Exhibit: Squared at McColl Center for Visual Art

Not only can you view new works in McColl Center for Visual Art’s Squared exhibit, but you can lend a hand in helping create something special. Artists Caitlin Masley and Injoo Whang (see her ink on paper at left) are currently showing their works. Whang is inviting visitors to contribute to her installation by drawing…

Anita Overcash

Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files (May 9)

Smoked Out: A 24-year-old woman called police last week after an unknown suspect damaged her vehicle but might have saved her life in the process. The woman told officers that someone broke into her car and rifled through the glove box. The suspect found a pack of cigarettes in the glove box, took each one…

Ryan Pitkin

Weekly horoscope (May 9-15)

Taurus The Bull (April 20-May 20) Your outlook is optimistic and encouraging to yourself and others this week. Romance and social life are high on the agenda. Your ruling planet, Venus, is turning retrograde at the end of the week. You likely will change your mind on purchases you thought you would make soon (see…

Vivian Carol

Where to find it: Free-range Liver

Liver has a tendency to be that proverbial line in the culinary sand. Many people can’t get over the yuck factor. Others are vehemently against the method of pumping grains and fat downs the throats of geese to obtain oversized livers (foie gras). However, a growing number of carnivores feel it is simply wrong to…

Tricia Childress

Veganomics: The top eight animal-free entrées in Charlotte

Vegans have a tough time navigating the restaurant scene in Charlotte. Unlike vegetarians, who don’t eat meat, vegans don’t eat any animal products at all. In other words: Please don’t pass the butter. Until fairly recently, vegans who wanted to dine out were pretty much restricted to ordering salads without cheese. Those days are over,…

Kelly Davis

The hectic eclectic: Esperanza Spalding

Esperanza Spalding had a melody in her head. She’d been thinking about it. She’d been humming it. She heard the piano and the strings — violin, cello, viola, bass. And she knew she had the right voice for it: one that can flutter, in a mere phrase, from the smoky elasticity of Billie Holliday to…

Mark Kemp

Boomer talks Duke Energy, Tim Newman and those damn liberals

It’s time for another thrill-a-minute episode of Ask Boomer With Attitude, brought to you live from Charlotte, where candidates are piling up “leftover campaign sign” fines as we speak. Dear BWA: Why do Duke Energy’s residential and small business customers pay more than double the rate paid by giant corporate energy gobblers? — Enough Of…

John Grooms

Calm before the storm during the Duke Energy shareholder meeting

With about one cop to every two protesters, it was clear that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department was preparing for the worst to happen outside of Duke Energy’s shareholder meeting on Thursday, May 3. It didn’t, as the 30 or so protesters remained relatively subdued, chanting and even greeting shareholders as they left the building. Policemen…

Rhiannon Fionn and Ryan Pitkin

Interview: Dontarius Clyburn

Charlotte native Dontarius Clyburn, 21, has come a long way in a short time. Designing for only a few years, he has already racked up an impressive list of accomplishments. He won Charlotte Seen’s Best Couture Design during the 2011 Charlotte Fashion Week, currently has a design on display at the Mint Museum on Randolph…

Alison Angel

Capsule reviews of films playing the week of May 9

AMERICAN REUNION Where all the sequels to 1999’s American Pie — 2001’s American Pie 2, 2003’s American Wedding and now American Reunion — go wrong is that none manage the balancing act between sweetness and seediness as well as the original film, instead tipping the scale toward the bawdy end to an unnecessary degree. And…

Matt Brunson

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