Speaking as the owner of a new puppy, I can say definitively that a dog is both more and less annoying than the average person. Year of the Dog makes much the same point with its pack of uncontrollable pooches, including a cute beagle that rips into the wrong bag of treats and thereby makes an early widow of…
Seven years ago this week, I wrote about one of the worst dinners of my life. I had eaten at the Zebra Room in the old Holiday Inn Citi Centre during the sad, waning days of a 1925 hotel that had once been kind of glamorous (“Aladdin Needs a Genie,” April 27, 2000). Before the hotel at 1215 Wyandotte finally…
A couple of months ago, a man wearing a hooded jacket robbed the Brookside branch of Commerce Bank on a Saturday morning. Less than half an hour later, two police officers found the robber calmly sipping a cold brew and finishing his salad in the back booth at Domo Sushi & Grill, 10 yards or so from the bank…
Shadows Fall’s success has vindicated two marginalized groups: white dudes with dreadlocks and metal vocalists who can carry a tune. Singer Brian Fair, whose serpentine ropes of hair churn in a stylish spiral during solos, alternates between gruff shouts and clear choruses. Shadows Fall has mastered the alchemy involved in mixing metalcore’s aggressive and accessible elements, balancing colossal hooks with…
Once described by The Village Voice as “James Brown gone berserk,” Bad Brains frontman H.R. (“Hunting Rod”) is an enigmatic rasta personality fueled by the legendary D.C. hardcore scene. His solo efforts for SST Records embraced reggae of a mellower sort than the punk mashups that made Bad Brains a cult favorite, infusing funky tracks with Jah shout-outs and human-rights…
Thanks to three North vs. South music festivals in Lawrence, the pipeline of under-the-radar Austin, Texas, acts coming to the area is busier than ever. Youngmond Grand has already made multiple trips north, but the tuneful outfit is going full force this time around with four shows in three days. Trafficking in dancey, synthed-out indie pop and sumptuous sing-alongs, the…
Calling Umbrellas a budget traveler’s Death Cab for Cutie sells the Oklahoma indie-pop act a bit short. But the comparison has its merits. Scott Windsor sings in a high, thin voice that recalls Ben Gibbard’s. (Yes, it sounds good live.) Windsor’s lyrics lack some of Gibbard’s poetic potency but are not without their own charm. On “Crooked,” Windsor sizes up…
Ever heard of fishing for ravers? It’s when you hook a glow stick to the line of a fishing pole, cast it into a crowd of unsuspecting, hippy-flipping rave kids and reel it in when one of ’em reaches for the fluorescent bait. Then you watch the bug-eyed social butterflies give chase. Converted clubbers can get even more post-PLUR nostalgia…
The Web has been good to DJ Z-Trip. With only 2,000 copies pressed, his genre-bending needlework (alongside DJ P) on Uneasy Listening has earned him a massive fanbase through file sharing. To keep his karma (and copyright lawyers) in check, he posts the majority of his hard-to-find recordings online for free consumption. Put your bandwidth to the test at his…
“The Beginning” by Namelessnumberheadman, from Wires Reply (Capitol): If Namelessnumberheadman were from Venus, would they feed us with a spoon? It’s a question that must be asked. It’s the question Paul Westerberg asked of Alex Chilton in his homage to the power-pop deity who fronted Big Star, produced a few songs by the Replacements and had a knack for songwriting…
“Clown” by the Ssion, from Fool’s Gold: Cody Critcheloe had a dream: to make the gayest record ever. To realize his dream, the Kentucky-born Kansas City Art Institute grad and ringleader of art-punk collective the Ssion enlisted friend Ashley Miller, a sarong-wearing weirdo who, when he’s not barefoot, might be seen wearing furry flip-flops made from a pair of Ugg…
During a late-night jaunt to Sidekicks, the gay cowboy bar on Main, we were standing around with Research Assistants Scott and Shawn when, suddenly, Scott leaned in. “Oh, my God,” he muttered. “Remember that guy I was telling you about? The one who got into a fight with his boyfriend at Outabounds because of you? He’s here!” Cue the western…
“Ave Maria” by The Life and Times, from The Magician: Anyone who knows Allen Epley knows that he’s a dude with a mad productive streak. The 38-year-old songwriter has spent the past 15 years fronting two of Kansas City’s most successful bands — Shiner and the Life and Times. He has taken both groups to the ends of the Earth…
Dear Mexican: I was recently helping a friend search for a lost pet, and everywhere we turned, there were wabs making a hellish din with a leaf blower. We watched one guy spend 45 minutes blowing a stamp-sized yard and a single-lane driveway; I could’ve raked the space twice in that time with a pocket comb. My friend was curious…
Martin: “The Queen,” March 29 Barnes Burning Regarding Mayor Kay Barnes’ legacy, I’d like to reflect on areas in which she has affected me, a downtown worker and owner of a two-bedroom bungalow in Brookside. During Mayor Barnes’ tenure: (A) My place of employment was forced to leave the excellent location where it had done business for 47 years to…
Hey, you, stupid mom. You had the cutest little girl of about 3 in the backseat of your green Ford Taurus on Third Street in Lee’s Summit on a recent Tuesday. I was the concerned mom in the burgundy Escort wagon behind you at the light. How do I know she was so cute? Because your dumb ass did not…
The Kansas City, Missouri, Parks Department is thinking about building a new ice rink, even though it hasn’t been long since the Penguins treated us like a strung-along lover, only to screw its wife right in front of us. Now, you sourpuss-types might remark that there’s no hope anywhere on the horizon of another NHL hockey team occupying the…
Following Jason Whitlock’s recent performance on Oprah, the show has apparently decided to make regular guests out of columnists from The Kansas City Star. The Department of Burnt Ends has received a bootlegged copy of a taped show that hasn’t run yet. Here’s a transcript. Oprah: Ladies, ladies, please. Our guests today are columnists for The Kansas City Star. They…
Some people in Denver really didn’t want Mark Funkhouser to become the next mayor of Kansas City. Alvin Brooks, Funkhouser’s rival, banked more than $22,000 in contributions from engineers, lawyers and financiers based in and around Denver. Brooks’ donors included MWH, a Colorado consulting firm that we’ve paid handsomely over the past few years to run Kansas City, Missouri’s…
Katheryn Shields and Phil Cardarella claim that they’re victims of “political terrorism.” They claim that their federal indictment for mortgage fraud is part of a “political witch hunt” being conducted by the Justice Department with the Bush administration’s blessing. And they claim that they can prove the conspiracy — against not only them but other fellow Democratic elected officials and…
When it comes to marriage, a danger sign might be when the husband says, “I’ve always been attracted to craziness.” Another possible warning: The bride is 32, the groom, 17. Or when your relationship makes the pages of The National Enquirer — that could mean trouble. But Heidi Van Pelt has never been conventional. Her parents divorced when she was…
%{}%It came over the wires today that the Chiefs are sending Dante Hall to the STL Rams in exchange for a fifth-round pick in this weekend’s draft, to which I say, “Why are you trying to tear my baby boy away from me?!?” Ladies, you can have the big and strapping Tony Gonzales. With all due respect, he just…
I auditioned for Deal or No Deal yesterday. Six hours of standing in line got me 20 seconds in front of a casting director, two sore feet and an empty stomach (I skipped lunch). The sad truth is, I really wanted on the game show. Seriously. Before I even knew about the audition, I put “aspiring Deal or No…
Local singer-songwriter Barclay Martin is best known around town as the dude who sounds like James Taylor and looks like Orlando Bloom with a tan. He’s played places like PotPie and Bar Natasha, and last night I caught him at JP Wine Bar and Coffee House. This time with a full band. Erin McGrane and Barclay Martin shake their…
