“The Decibels and the Little Pills” by American Music Club, from The Golden Age (Merge): Big stars toast themselves with fine, leathery pinot noir and take care to report its soft notes of self-effacement. Big talents slam ripple, belch self-loathing and keep toiling. Mark Eitzel, founder and songwriter of American Music Club, isn’t a big star, and he’d rather smash…
When the trailer for Star Wars: Episode I first hit theaters, some fans bought tickets for the movie it was presented with, watched the trailer, and then walked out — essentially paying full price for a fraction of the final product. Superfans are happy to do that sort of thing — heck, I did it — but most recognize it’s…
Ghosts in blue jackets haunt Kansas City. In 1996, the Future Farmers of America announced that they were taking their annual convention to Louisville, Kentucky. The news arrived like a blow to the gut. Scrubbed and polite teenagers had gathered here since 1928, when dues were a dime. A Kansas City Star columnist called their departure “a dirty, rotten, crying…
Feature, “Gone Green,” April 10 Protect It Thanks for Carolyn Szczepanski’s profile of Bob Berkebile. Good reporting and well-written stories are keys to raising awareness. Media people have a huge responsibility for education on climate protection, and I’m glad to see your paper participates so regularly. Keith Winterhalter, Lenexa Feature, “Plastic Attack,” April 24 Bisphenol A for Autism? Thanks for…
Dear Readers: The paperback version of my book is in stores. Buy it! Now, on to the preguntas. Dear Mexican: Consider the similarities between my people, the Celtic Scots, and yours, the Hispanic Mexicans. Both trace roots back to Spain. We sailed north to the British Isles and mixed with the aboriginals to become the Scots; you sailed west to…
Now that a single gallon of gas costs nearly as much as a pack of cigarettes, a 12-ounce can of Red Bull or a box of Purina dog treats, friends of mine refuse to drive long distances to go out to eat. Even adventurous souls who didn’t think twice about traveling as far north as Liberty or way out south…
The lineup for this year’s Austin City Limits Festival (September 26-28) is now official, and among the performers is Conor Oberst, playing with his newly formed Mystic Valley Band. The project, which also includes Rilo Kiley drummer Jason Boesels and Oberst’s Team Love label artist Nik Freitas, premiered before unsuspecting concertgoers in Minneapolis over the winter. The crew quickly headed…
Since 1986, Steve Earle hasn’t pulled a punch. From his beginnings as a savior of country music to his current role as a folk singer championing the environment and other political causes, Earle has always presented himself as someone willing to risk the backlash of the public in order to stand up for what he believes is the truth. On…
“Dead and Gone,” by the Shaker Hoods: After more than a decade playing in Kansas City bands, Jon Freeman finally hit a wall. “I just had too many nights playing for five or 10 people,” says the inked-up singer and bassist, whose former bands include Go Kart, Larry, the Zippo Moment and Seconds From Disaster. So Freeman did what any…
For some artists, the grand gesture is most important. For others, the tiniest pencil line blazes a shiny path. New York artist Creighton Michael belongs in the latter category. Underlining his drawing agility, this painting, drawing and sculpture exhibition at the Belger Arts Center includes about 23 of Michael’s drawings, dating back to 1988. Unless the exhibition is a retrospective,…
Roy Corn had little hope of recovering his wedding ring when it slipped from his finger into a giant Dumpster of plastic bottles just before Christmas last year. But, like the old newspapers and aluminum cans, the gold band belonging to this 67-year-old Gladstone resident was successfully recycled. Here’s timeline proof that Mother Nature looks out for lovebirds. January 2006:…
Local astrologer and waitress Brenda G. Smith has definitely felt some negative cosmic influences on the economy and the restaurant scene lately. I can’t begin to keep all those planetary oppositions and trines straight. One thing I do know: Things are tough all over. A few weeks ago, I heard that chef Debbie Gold had shuttered her 40 Sardines restaurant…
Is it fair to complain about the absence of a miracle? For some 150 minutes, this question simmers beneath the Unicorn Theatre’s production of Brian Friel’s 1979 drama, The Faith Healer, a series of dense, demanding, half-hour monologues arguing that life — especially for those of a creative bent — is a brutal slog sporadically brightened by bursts of transcendence….
“Recipe” by the Innate Sounds Crew (vocals by Smoov Confusion, produced by Beatbroker), from Alpha (Innate Sounds): Bubbly beats. Synth washes. West Coast cool jazz. East Coast lyrical sensibilities. Android-wet-dream soundtracks. Crooning. Rapping. With the exception of one catchy party cut and two from the street level, the homogenously smooth new compilation CD from the Innate Sounds Crew, Alpha, put…
