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Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Music Matrimony releases 'See the Light' video
Posted By Jeff Hahne on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 5:14 PM
Charlotte alt-folk outfit Matrimony released a video for the song "See the Light" from its upcoming Columbia Records album, Montibello Memories. The video was filmed at the Chop Shop during Matrimony's show there in November 2013. The band's next area concert will take place on May 30 at the Neighborhood Theatre. The album is due out on May 6.
News Vegan deemed 'too political' for Fort Mill Earth Day celebration
Posted By Ryan Pitkin on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 4:25 PM
Editor's note: This is not a spoof of an Onion article. This actually happened in Fort Mill.
Each generation faces its own civil rights battles. Will women be allowed to vote? Will diners serve blacks food with the general population? Will lawmakers recognize same-sex marriage? Will vegans ever be treated as equals?
Fort Mill vegan Karen Norman said a local greenway was less than thrilled after she pitched an idea to serve samples of vegan pizza, cookies, sausage and other snacks to partygoers at a yearly Earth Day Celebration.
The 56-year-old owner of The Painted Parrot, an art studio, has worked with neighboring Anne Springs Close Greenway in the past during fall festivals, where she helped children paint pumpkins and such, but when she presented her idea to serve vegan samples and show a video linking veganism to conservation she realized the organizers had a beef.
Norman was given the cold shoulder as soon as she tried to explain why the project would fit into the event's theme of conservation, preservation and preservation. Mina MacDonald, events and volunteer coordinator at ASC Greenway, told Norman that organizers thought her booth would be too political and might offend some meat eaters.
Music The 12 worst band names of the last 10 years
Posted By Jeff Hahne on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 2:32 PM
There may not be many truly amazing band names, but there sure are plenty of terrible ones. In order to narrow it down, here's our list of the 12 worst names by bands which formed in the last 10 years:
- Drew Reynolds
- Perfect Pussy
A$ap Rocky - Aesop Rock has been around since 1996. A$ap Rocky? No, Aesop Rock.
The Band Perry - I'm glad they threw "The Band" in there. I was starting to think it's a trio of mahjong players.
Bro Safari - Dubstep got enough "Bro-step" teasing before this group came along.
Chance the Rapper - Because you wouldn't want to get him confused with Chance the Circus Clown.
News First Drip (4/22/14): UNC whistleblower resigns, McDonald's posts lower sales, more
Posted By Ana McKenzie on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 11:00 AM
Early reports indicate the General Assembly won't approve across-the-board teachers pay raises in the short session due to a lack of funds. But have they looked everywhere? We argue there's a couch cushion that's gone unturned: the $82 million or so the state gives in private school college tuition.
Mary Willingham, the former learning specialist for athletes and UNC Chapel Hill who exposed academic fraud, has announced she will resign at the end of the semester. She made the decision after an hour-long meeting with the school's chancellor. "She confirmed her resignation in a short email to The News & Observer but said she could not provide details until she posts grades for her students and talks to her attorneys and the university's human resources staff."
The Supreme Court has sided with voters in Michigan, who opted to exclude race preference from the state's public university admissions process. Though the court has decided differently in similar cases - such as one in June concerning the University of Texas - this case came down to whether voters can prohibit affirmative action programs.
McDonald's continues to suffer from the effects of higher beef costs, fewer customers and pressure from its minimum-wage employes to pay more. Following a two-year trend, the fast-food chain has posted low quarterly earnings, bringing in 1.7 perfect fewer sales in such time.
Arts / Today's Top Five Today's Top 5: Tuesday
Posted By Anita Overcash on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 9:23 AM
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, April 22, 2014 as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.
* PostSecret the Show at Booth Playhouse
* Sustainability Awards + Earth Day Celebration at UNC Charlotte Center City
* Meet the Brewers Charlotte Tap Takeover at VBGB
* Charlotte Knights vs. Durham Bulls at BB&T Ballpark
* WFAE's Public Conversations: What's In Our Water? at Wells Fargo Atrium
News / Opinion General Assembly, look under every cushion before abandoning teacher raises
Posted By Andria Krewson on Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 9:00 AM
As the state tries to figure out how to give teachers raises, one pot of money often gets overlooked: the $82 million or so that N.C. grants to private colleges to help in-state students pay tuition. It hasn't been on the radar - much less on the table - as a potential source of teacher pay. It should be.
The N.C. Legislative Tuition Grant program began in 1975, when baby boomers headed to college, to provide tuition grants to N.C. undergraduates attending approved private state institutions. That money benefits Queens University, Davidson College, Johnson C. Smith University and Johnson and Wales University, among other schools. The school that has benefited the most from the tuition grant in recent years? Campbell University. A school that benefits that you might not have heard of? University of Mount Olive.
Monday, April 21, 2014
Music First notes (4/21/14): Bieber won't be deported, more
Posted By Jeff Hahne on Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 11:41 AM
Editor's Note: First Notes is a weekly update of recent noteworthy happenings in the world of music.
* The White House received a petition with more than 250,000 signatures, asking for Justin Bieber to be deported. Officials basically refused to answer it. So, for now, we're stuck with him.
* Last week, rapper Andre Johnson, who goes by the name Christ Bearer, hacked off his, um, johnson with a serrated steak knife before leaping out a second-story window. New reports say Johnson, who survived, was on PCP at the time of the incident. If you were wondering, attempts to reattach his genitals were unsuccessful.
Arts / Today's Top Five Today's Top 5: Monday
Posted By Anita Overcash on Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 11:19 AM
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, April 21, 2014 as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.
* All You Can Bowl at Strike City
* Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band at Roux
* Dyngus Day Charlotte at Red Fez Shrine Club
* Trivia at Sir Edmond Halley's
* Find Your Muse Open Mic featuring Tristan Omand at The Evening Muse
News First Drip (4/21/14): Early voting begins Thursday, food truck vendors upset over new proposal, more
Posted By Ana McKenzie on Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 9:48 AM
Mecklenburg County will offer more locations than ever - more required by the law, even - to vote early, which begins Thursday. "'Voters have shown in the past that they appreciate early voting," said Mecklenburg Elections Director Michael Dickerson. 'And we've got some really good races here.' Mecklenburg will offer more than six times as many early voting hours as it did in the 2010 primary." Cabarrus, Gaston, Iredell and Union counties have also expanded their early voting hours, while 38 rural counties have asked they be reduced.
While food trucks continue to boom in Charlotte, a proposed restriction would limit how many times vendors can sell from a location, which some say will hurt business. A public hearing for the proposal, which is still in its early stages, is scheduled for June 16. City Council is expected to vote on the measure July 21.
Kraft has recalled 96,000 packages of hot dogs that it says are mislabeled. The Classic Wieners may instead contain Classic Cheese Dogs, which could be bad news for anyone with a lactose sensitivity.
A 16-year-old boy miraculously survived a flight from Hawaii to California in which he traveled in the wheel well of an airplane. He was mostly unconscious for the five-and-a-half hour flight, during which temperatures got as low as 80 degrees below zero. Upon arrival, he was treated for a lack of oxygen. The story reminds us of a Charlotte boy who attempted the same thing in 2011, but wasn't quite as lucky.
Joss Whedon, the film director known for surprises, released his latest film online the same day it premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Soon after directing the Avengers, which pulled $1.5 billion at the box office, Whedon took to his home to film an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing over a weekend.
Music / Live Reviews Live review: Rising Appalachia, Visulite Theatre (4/19/2014)
Posted By Michael Walsh on Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 9:36 AM
Rising Appalachia
Visulite Theatre
April 19, 2014
"Y'all are a small but mighty fierce crowd," Rising Appalachia's Leah Smith told the exuberant audience in the half-packed hall, the crowd's enthusiasm undimmed by a dismal rainy Saturday night. "You're five times louder than our last few crowds who were five times bigger."
With that, Leah and younger sister Chloe, backed by guitarist/bassist David Brown and pan-cultural percussionist Biko Casini, launched into a funky, swaying and syncopated take on the proto-folk-and-blues nugget "St. James Infirmary." With Brown's rubbery upright walking bass and Casini's late-night jazz djembre,there was a lot going on onstage, including an artist seated stage right painting a sprawling canvas.
With two brief opening acts including a fiery dread-locked poet and Kevin "Kalimba Man" Smith's virtuoso turn on amplified African thumb piano, Rising Appalachia's arts-and-poetry-inclusive stage show resembled an alt-carnival crossed with a slice of Asheville street performance. (The Smith sisters are former Asheville residents who currently dwell in New Orleans.)
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