Funeral left a nasty aftertaste. It was the sound of Canadian post-rock’s shoulda-beens puréed into slush. David Bowie was a fan, and a Grammy nomination and mainstream media adulation followed. Neon Bible retains Funeral’s overblown theatrics, shameless histronics and kitchen-sink instrumentation, but the Arcade Fire has moved on to new preoccupations – paranoia, evasion, escape and confinement, each explored at…
After the critical acclaim that was lauded upon Car Wheels on a Gravel Road almost a decade ago, Lucinda Williams appeared to have finally achieved her potential. But meandering, morose releases such as Essence (2001) and World Without Tears (2003) failed to deliver the kind of pop smarts and old-school country passion of her earlier work. West is both a…
If Norway has been a right bitch to Of Montreal’s Kevin Barnes, then America has surely been Sondre Leche’s femme fatale. Blessed with a poetic command of the English language that could make Cole Porter sweat, the 24-year-old Norwegian songwriter has yet to crack America’s VIP list, despite releasing three albums of sparkling, romantic pop to much hullabaloo in his…
Before Nike employed Aesop Rock and LCD Soundsystem to kick off its Original Run series on iTunes, Los Angeles native Steve Boyette, aka DJ Steveboy, was raising pulses with his own workout mixes. “My wife is a runner, former aerobics teacher and hardcore marathon trainer, and for years I’ve made run mixes for her,” Boyette tells us. As an afterthought,…
“Comin’ for You (w/ DJ Ataxic)” by Reach, from Joys, Disappointments and the In-Between: A couple of weeks ago, Stacy Smith stared death in the face. It made him very pensive. Smith, better known by his MC moniker, Reach, is afraid of flying. But he was about to board a flight to Atlanta to meet up and perform with…
Stately, plump Shannon Schlappi wears a Yankees ball cap because he likes winners. When he smiles, a gold tooth gleams in the back of his mouth. Last September, Schlappi’s label, Drama Club Records, based in Independence, Missouri, put out a masterful record of hopeful, melancholy pop that takes a seat at the retro cocktail lounge alongside ELO-style disco rock, early…
When Oliver Stumm of the New York label A Touch of Class Recordings first saw the Scissor Sisters perform in 2000, he saw something special. This isn’t a surprise now — over-the-top shows have helped the quintet become pals with Elton John and fill arenas in Australia — but back then, a Scissor Sisters gig wasn’t exactly the flamboyant…
Dear Mexican: As a kid, I grew up with Mexicans who stole things just to steal. As an adult, I see much of the same behavior from adult Mexicans and their children. And I don’t mean just the poor Mexicans. Why is it in their nature for Mexicans to steal? Larcenous Lester Dear Lester: The Chicano answer? Mexicans rob as…
Martin: “The Shaft,” February 22 Dirt Track Here’s hoping David Martin will keep up the great investigations! I look forward to the Pitch digging up the politicians’ secrets. Paul Cox, Kansas City, Missouri Feature: “The Bloodsucker of Valentine,” February 22 Plasma Screen I just read your article about the ZLB plasma donation center in midtown, and it disturbed me. My…
Hey, you, Bryan Busby! You and your crack weather team dominated an entire episode of Lost, which happens to be the only thing that makes me truly happy. Five minutes into the show, you came barrelin’ in with your oh-so-impressive Doppler displays and frequent, failed attempts to reach your remote comrades. If people are in imminent danger, I’m all for…
There’s nobody more concerned with illegals mucking up the white-breadness of Kansas than state Sen. Phil Journey. Recently, the Republican from Haysville warned his colleagues that “80,000 illegal criminal aliens, including convicted murderers, rapists, drug dealers and child molesters” roam American streets. “I submit that the crest of this wave of crime by illegal aliens is coming at Kansas.”…
The new Wright Thompson is no Wright Thompson. Thompson was The Kansas City Star’s sometimes hard-hitting feature sportswriter until he took a job last year for ESPN.com. His replacement, Bill Reiter, produced a front-page feature February 25 on Royals President Dan Glass that amounted to a wet, open-mouthed kiss. The flaws with the piece ran as deep as recent Royals…
$10,000 fine and an apology were not enough. Fred Ferrell, the Missouri Department of Agriculture director who told a state worker that he wanted to see her in a wet-T-shirt contest, was forced to resign last week when his appalling behavior made the papers. The Highway Patrol investigated Ferrell last year, after an assistant to the state veterinarian, Heather…
As returns came in on the night of the February 27 mayoral primary, former Jackson County Executive Katheryn Shields was nursing a Crown and club soda at the bar Governor Stumpy’s, a bar in Brookside, taking the edge off her 11th-place finish. Twelve hours later, Shields was snacking on a banana at a workshop packed with city and county…
Iraq war veteran Alexis Janicki paces the wrought-iron fence surrounding the White House, plotting. Beyond it sprawls the manicured fairway of the north lawn, interrupted by a large, sputtering fountain. Beyond that is his target: President George W. Bush. It’s October 14, 2006, and in the gray chill of the late afternoon, the unreasonableness of forcing a meeting with…
Pittsburgh Penguins owner Mario Lemieux held a press conference Wednesday morning to announce that his team would be stepping up negotiations with Kansas City officials. But later, in the same press conference, Lemieux reiterated his interest in staying in Pittsburgh and said that “Kansas City reeks of sewage” and playing hockey there “would be like starting a cricket team in…
An appeals court judge on Tuesday afternoon overturned a ruling that had barred the Pitch and The Kansas City Star from publishing stories about potential violations of federal pollution regulations by the Kansas City, Kansas, Board of Public Utilities. Missouri Court of Appeals Judge Patricia Breckenridge ruled in favor of the papers Tuesday, ordering Judge Kelly Moorhouse to “vacate and…
Kansas City rockabillies the Rumblejetts are now in round 3 of a CMT.com video contest. Having defeated Chris Taylor and the Custom Taylor Band and Josh Haynie (those pathetic fucking losers I hate them! just kidding, I have no idea who they are), the ‘Jetts are now up against a person called Aubrey Howell, who is actually three people —…
Our buddies at the Riverfront Times posted a fascinating entry on their StLog about how webcasters like St. Louis-based 3wK are getting screwed (again) by royalties legislation. Lots of good links. In other news from across the state… man booty! If you haven’t seen the video for “What What (In the Butt),” you need to. As the fine StLog reports…
Friday night, Mac Lethal texted me and said “Joe Good quit.” I replied, “Quit what?” Mac said: “Everything.” I didn’t believe Mac at first, thinking he was pulling a prank or maybe kicking off some kind of publicity stunt for his and Joe’s label, Black Clover. However, in the ensuing text conversation, Mac sounded sincere, saying “I wouldn’t tell you…
Yesterday, my second podcast went up. You can download it via iTunes here, or go to Pitch.com and click the link under the blurb under the Wayward Blog logo. Either way, you have to have iTunes. For now. This’ll be my last podcast until the beginning of April. With SXSW around the corner, March is going to be hectic, and…
Want some awesome news? Alright, go to the Meat Puppets’ official MySpace page. Look where it says “Record Label.” Now look to the right. Do you see that? Do you see that!? It’s official — Anodyne Records, a homegrown KC label, has signed the legendary cult band, which you may remember from their ’90s hit “Backwater” (strangely, the original video’s…
The Board of Public Utilities in Kansas City, Kansas, may be liable for thousands of dollars in fines for failing to comply with anti-pollution regulations, according to a confidential document obtained by the Pitch. The document was prepared November 16, 2004, by lawyer Stanley A. Reigel. It weighs the pros and cons of admitting to the Environmental Protection Agency that…
Bratz: Fashion Pixiez (Lions Gate) Conversations With God (Fox) Cool It Carol (Image) Deep Red (Blue Underground) Dreamland (Image) Filmation’s Ghostbusters (Brentwood) George Carlin: Life Is Worth Losing (MPI) Journey to the End of the Night (First Look) Little Einsteins: The Legend of the Golden Pyramid (Disney) Hawaii, Oslo (Film Movement) The Heart of the Game (Miramax) Hundra (Subversive) The…
