Cover Story
Run for your life
Nicole McConnell drops off and picks up her two little boys at school every day. She makes her family dinner. She teaches at a local high school. By most accounts, she is the ideal suburban housewife from Matthews. But one day last August, McConnell grew weary of her “nice little vanilla life.” “It’s not like…
The Tontons at Evening Muse tonight (10/24/2012)
The new EP, Golden, closes on ukulele-driven jazz swing.
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files (Oct. 18 edition)
Golden Drive-By: A drive-by assault took place in west Charlotte last week, but not the kind you’d expect. A 36-year-old woman told police she was pumping gas at a Shell station when a white Ford van pulled up and threw urine at her before speeding away. Pen Mightier Than Sword: A 23-year-old man became a…
What I learned from my debate watch party
Who knew I was the one who needed a lesson in tolerance?
Halloween Countdown: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Month-long series offers one recommended horror flick a day up through Oct. 31.
Do before you die: Ride Indian outlaw style
Even better if you can ride for charity like local author Tamela Rich.
LOL: Comedy in the Q.C.
A roundup of CL‘s top picks for comedy shows in Charlotte this week.
Your guide to tonight’s third-party candidate debate
Third party candidates would like to become president of this great nation but are unwilling to tell the bald-face lies required to run on a major party ticket
Today’s Top 5: Tuesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Cactus Truck w/ Jeb Bishop at Snug Harbor tonight (10/23/2012)
The music comes at you with such unfettered ferocity that it’s a bit like being trampled by sound.
Alejandro Escovedo tonight at the Visulite Theatre (10/23/2012)
Escovedo belts out smart, seething lyrics over addictive grooves that cut deep into your brain.
Island adventure: San Miguel
Keep an eye out for Mitt Romney calling for millionaires to pay higher taxes. And, of course, Barack Obama demanding the repeal of Obamacare. While we’re at it, look for the Kardashians and Keith Richards to preach abstinence from sex and drugs, Jerry Bruckheimer to churn out quirky, independent dramedies and Rihanna to go country.…
Local Discovery: For the love of chin-chin
Edith Eekwem moved to North Carolina from Nigeria and found a way to reach people through her sweet, crunchy African treats.
A recovering alcoholic reflects on ‘Chilly Willy’s’ death
I, too, am William Major
Panthers’ GM out
Marty Hurney served as GM since 2002
Halloween Countdown: Spider Baby or, The Maddest Story Ever Told
Month-long series offers one recommended horror flick a day up through Oct. 31.
Russell Simmons gets populist and political in North Carolina
The hip-hop mogul visited Charlotte this weekend to support Obama
New Beer Shop: Good Bottle
New shop strives to be a place to enjoy a craft brew or mix and match your own six-pack to take home.
Chop Shop, 10/20/2012
Photos from the 10th Annual Sihk or Treat Halloween event.
Heist Brewery, 10/19/2012
Photos from NoDa brewery’s grand opening.
Halloween Countdown: Week 3 Recommendations
In the third wave of this October series, here are the films selected for pre-Halloween viewing.
Today’s Top 5: Monday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Gwar at Amos’ Southend tonight (10/22/2012)
The art-metal mavens have been up to the same tricks since the mid-1980s.
Aroma therapy: The Birth of Coffee
On a cool morning in the small Ethiopian town of Yirgacheffe, a farmer wrapped in a white cloth stands outside his thatched-roof hut. There’s no cup of coffee in his hands to jolt him awake, but he is surrounded by the fragrant plants that produce the berries which bear the “beans” from which we brew…
Bakeries on the rise
One of the chief complaints leveled against Charlotte by those relocating from the northeast has been the lack of cheap, good, European-styled bakeries, the kinds of bakeries established by turn-of-the-century immigrants in New York, Boston and Philadelphia. In fact, Charlotte has had a spotty history with bakeries: A generation ago, most Charlotteans bought baked goods…
Obamacare: Tell the story
In September, when I described how “Obamacare” had saved my life during bouts with bladder cancer, I expected a few emails. What I didn’t expect was nearly 40 heartfelt missives. Most readers were complimentary, and a substantial number of them were anxious for more information about my treatment program. Others had already used the dreaded,…
Halloween Countdown: Slither
Month-long series offers one recommended horror flick a day up through Oct. 31.
Halloween Countdown: Phenomena
Month-long series offers one recommended horror flick a day up through Oct. 31.
House on the Lake at Park Road Park today (10/20/2012)
The event will focus on “deep” house, which in itself contains many different dimensions.
Swans at Tremont Music Hall tonight (10/20/2012)
Reconstituted and renewed since 2010, the band now makes music that draws on its past while sounding like nothing they’ve done before.
Emotional scene in courtroom as Chris Radok’s murderer pleas guilty
Antoine Young was sentenced to life in prison without parol
Weekend Film Reviews: Alex Cross; Beauty Is Embarrassing
What’s new and covered in theaters.
Question the Queen City: The school teacher’s fountain
A plaque and fountain in Independence Park memorializes Lillian Arhelger, who plunged to her death trying to save a little girl
Pearls raises domestic violence awareness through art
The launch event features self-defense demos, artwork, dance classes and more.
QNotes blasts local elected officials who attended Day of Atonement
Editor Matt Comer asked city council members and others to condemn the Nation of Islam and its leader
Halloween Countdown: Horror Express
Month-long series offers one recommended horror flick a day up through Oct. 31.
Theater reviews: Baby the Musical and How I Learned to Drive
Both shows capture startling real-life scenarios.
‘Chilly Willy’ died Thursday evening
A familiar face among Charlotte’s homeless population is killed
Today’s Top 5: Friday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Apple Juice Kid at Chop Shop tonight (10/19/2012)
He’ll be taking the stage at Nappy Luv, a celebration culminating a week-long series of cultural events for Congo Week Charlotte.
‘Cure’-ated shopping
A true shopaholic knows the old saying is actually “A sale a day keeps the debt away.” Come on, they don’t call it retail therapy for nothing. Charlotte’s newest shopping website is taking appointments, or members, we should say. Sale Diem, a website similar to e-commerce favorites like Gilt and Fab.com, will launch this fall,…
Nova’s new pad
When I want freshly made, crusty and soft, local bread or a flaky croissant straight from the oven, I have two options: make it myself or make the drive to Plaza Midwood for a stop at Nova’s Bakery. Sure, I could purchase Nova’s goods at my local Harris Teeter, but there’s just something about getting…
A heavy Alex Cross to bear
ALEX CROSS *1/2 DIRECTED BY Rob Cohen STARS Tyler Perry, Matthew Fox Even with Tyler Perry essaying the title role in Alex Cross, don’t expect to see any Cross cross-dressing in this adaptation of one of the many thrillers penned by best-selling author James Patterson. While Perry has made the bulk of his considerable fortune…
Beauty Is Embarrassing: Wayne’s world
BEAUTY IS EMBARRASSING *** DIRECTED BY Neil Berkeley STARS Wayne White, Mimi Pond While there have been many documentaries about artists, Beauty Is Embarrassing, a look at the life and work of Wayne White, is probably closest in kindred spirit to Terry Zwigoff’s 1994 Crumb. In both movies, it’s made clear that these unusual men…
Sex, drugs and the underground: The Weeknd
During the last six weeks, I sent seven e-mails requesting an interview with The Weeknd. All of the messages were addressed to contact@the-weeknd.com, the one and only press contact listed on any of the Internet platforms associated with the Canadian R&B outfit. None of these e-mails met with a reply, a fact that won’t surprise…
Theater review: Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
There’s a lot to chew on in the CAST production.
Artists, musicians show support for Jennifer Roberts
“Because we don’t have the kind of money Robert Pittenger has, we have to find other ways of supporting Jennifer to equal measure.”
Recipe: Pumpkin Butterscotch Muffins
The muffins start with a chewy pumpkin dough with very little fat, but when you take a bite, you’ll grin.
Photo shoot: Halloween-inspired recycled fashion
Just in time for Halloween, we present quirky and colorful costumes made of items you would typically dispose of.
Election Notebook 2012: Surrogates start their engines in N.C. early voting race
Campaigning in Charlotte revs up as early voting begins
Sons, Malala, and the binders full of women
How to raise boys in a man’s world
Antoine Young arraignment scheduled for today
Young will enter a plea to the charges of murder in the case of former CL photographer Chris Radok
Suite, 10/17/2012
Photos from the Level Wednesdays Pink Party.
Opening Friday
What’s new in theaters this weekend.
Full speed ahead on light-rail extension
The feds have agreed to chip in some cash for the project
Today’s Top 5: Thursday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
Indigo Girls at McGlohon Theater tonight (10/18/2012)
With the backing of a full band, Ray and Saliers are sure to put on a good show.
This week’s concert listings (Oct. 18-Oct. 24)
** Bullet points indicate CL’s critics’ picks** Thursday, Oct. 18 Blues/Roots/International Bayou Butch Lucas (Villa Antonio (Ballantyne)) Latin Thursdays (Dream Nightclub, Matthews) Richie Ray, Bobby Cruz (Label) Shana Blake Band (Tyber Creek Pub) Classical/Jazz/Smooth Beats and Keys (Encore Bistro and Bar) John Alexander (Blue Restaurant & Bar) Miss Tess & The Talkbacks, Thomas Bryan Eaton…
Erykah Badu Keeps on Moving, Like a Rolling Stone
Erykah Badu talks a lot about life’s perfect circles. She talks about the earth. She talks about wombs, about birth canals and about babies. Sometimes Badu talks about all this in between songs at her concerts, which are events, really. Her shows incorporate more than just her striking, iconic looks, sublime voice and the adventurous…
Oh, what a Fela
Fifteen years after his death, the world is just beginning to unpack the complex musical and social reverberations touched off by Nigerian master Fela Kuti, father of Afrobeat and troubled champion of civil justice. Once called a cross between James Brown and Che Guevara, Fela made music that’s just as provocative, dangerous, addictive and joyous…
Weekly horoscope (Oct. 18-24)
Libra The Scales (Sept. 22-Oct. 22)For any number of reasons, circumstances may leave you out of the social loop this week. Astrologically, this is a time for self-reflection and not self-condemnation. Having a quiet week is appropriate at this time. Don’t turn this into a negative belief about yourself. Take the time to be still…
Musical chairs at the White House: Opus
There are a couple of good reasons why playwright Michael Hollinger sets the climactic action of Opus in the White House. Replacing a member of an esteemed string quartet becomes more dramatic when the ensemble is already booked for a command performance in front of the president, with live TV cameras beaming the event to…
Battles, birds and a bust
(Console Me, Creative Loafing’s new electronic gaming column, will consist of previews, reviews and commentary penned by Charlotte writer Adam Frazier, a regular contributor to CL and the websites Geeks of Doom and Hollywood News.) Developed by SuperBot Entertainment, Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale is an upcoming crossover fighting game published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Similar…
Little Shop of Horrors, Prometheus, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? among new home entertainment titles
(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray and DVD.) ELLA ENCHANTED (2004). Freely adapted from the book by Gail Carson Levine but completely owing its body and soul to Shrek, this is yet another fractured fairy tale designed for kids living in a postmodern age. Anne Hathaway plays…
Heist Brewery’s ribbon-cutting/grand opening
Celebrate NoDa’s newest brew pub.
Free prime rib dinner at Earth Fare
Your eyes are not playing tricks on you.
Dining in the Dark opens eyes
A feast for the senses.
There’s something in our water
Well, almost
Up to snuff: Charlotte tech startups scene holds its own
M21 in Hong Kong, Affinity Lab in DC, Packard Place in CLT. We’re doing something right!
New talk about the future of Carolina Theatre
The historic site will hopefully be getting some love in the near future.
Champion of the poor, Paul Ryan stops by homeless shelter to wash clean dishes
Thankfully cameras were there to catch the absolutely selfless act
Today’s Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
James McMurtry brings his gritty, Texastentialist folk-rock to the Visulite (10/17)
The man Stephen King calls the “truest, fiercest songwriter of his generation” returns to Charlotte.
Charlotte Video Project: Dead Sea $crilla
From Sept. 11 through Sept. 15, Vibes will unveil 11 music-related videos.
Charlotte Video Project: Monday Night Allstars
From Sept. 11 through Sept. 15, Vibes will unveil 11 music-related videos.
Charlotte Video Project: Super Ape
From Sept. 11 through Sept. 15, Vibes will unveil 11 music-related videos.
Charlotte Video Project: Scowl Brow
From Sept. 11 through Sept. 15, Vibes will unveil 11 music-related videos.
Charlotte Video Project: Junior Astronomers
From Sept. 11 through Sept. 15, Vibes will unveil 11 music-related videos.
