You’re living your everyday, nobody life, resigned and unsatisfied in equal measure. Nothing is close to the way you dreamed it would be, but mostly things are OK. Mostly. Then you get an unexpected second shot at greatness, at the higher things you were meant to do. Someone recognizes the gift in you, your true nobility, your capacity for glory,…
Hospital Ships Lonely Twin (Graveface) Hospital Ships’ sophomore album begins with a simple, vulnerable plea: “Open up the door and let me in.” That vulnerability winds through Lonely Twin, and bandleader Jordan Geiger seems born to sell it. Despite being recorded at five different studios, Lonely Twin is a much more cohesive work than 2008’s Oh, Ramona. It retains the bedroom-pop…
Americana outfit the Wilders are back with their 10th album, The Wilders. It sees the quartet expanding their gaze sonically while remaining true to the roots music that has defined them for the past 15 years. We recently caught up with guitarist Ike Sheldon to talk about the evolution of the band’s sound. The Pitch: What’s new on this new…
The project that Jim Button calls Continents has included a variety of lineups since he started it in 2008. On Friday, at the Riot Room, Button will be joined by Casey Burge on bass and Rusty Scott on drums. Over drinks at McCoy’s on a recent Monday, he says the current trio is the most stable incarnation of the group…
When Conan O’Brien was ousted from The Tonight Show early last year, he tapped into a groundswell of support. Overnight, O’Brien went from a funny distraction to a modern folk hero. For the 20-somethings who make up the teeming nation that is Team Coco, O’Brien’s axing was an instant metaphor for the afflictions of their disaffected generation: the threat of…
Transformers: Dark of the Moon begins with actual footage of the first lunar landing, and for those five minutes, you can see the joy and astonishment of everyone watching Neil Armstrong hop down that ladder onto the moon’s surface. Just look at Walter Cronkite’s face. The archetypal newsman’s expression cracks with giddiness at what has just been accomplished. The people…
I would be surprised to learn of a better investigative reporter ever than Jack Cashill,” writes an admirer on the conservative news site World Net Daily. A reader of the liberal blog Wonkette is less impressed: “Whoever is in charge of Jack Cashill’s medications needs to up the dosage.” The most fearsome or the most disturbed journalist in America —…
Titus Andronicus Not since the Replacements has a band hit on the powerful nexus of punk music and rock music as convincingly as Titus Andronicus does. A bold person might also suggest that these Jersey dudes are improving on the model. The ‘Mats were content to play the role of lovable losers. But Titus Andronicus is swinging for the fences…
Restaurant cuisine in the United States has become so cross-pollinated over the past half-century that it seems perfectly natural for Fiesta Azteca to sell corn dogs and for My Big Fat Greek Restaurant to serve fettuccine Alfredo alongside its souvlaki and spanakopita. The restaurant business has always taken a cue from Fats Waller: “Find out what they like and how…
Chai Shai, the combination cafe and Pakistani grocery store at 59th Street and Holmes in the Rockhill Ridge neighborhood, celebrated its one-year anniversary last weekend with a special menu of grilled meats, prepared on a barbecue grill on the restaurant’s outdoor patio. The feedback was so enthusiastic for the featured menu — bihari beef kebabs, lamb roti skewers, chicken tikka,…
There have been long-simmering tensions between the owners of Jack Gage American Tavern and Gregory McGee Company LLC, the owner of the building at 5031 Main, including lawsuits. So it was probably only a matter of time before the restaurant would be closed. The question was … when? Last Friday, the shoe dropped, and a “closed” sign was taped to…
This is really cool. University of Kansas Libraries has uploaded detailed maps created by the Sandborn Map Company in the 1800s of 241 cities. It’s like Google Maps from 1860. The maps were originally made for insurance companies, but the university says now they can be used to study the state’s history. Categories: News Tags: history, old maps
Darrel Wright Jr. was shot in the head and killed last September at the Express Mart at 7007 Longview Road. Ten months later, authorities believe they know who killed Wright. Kevin Watson, 36, was charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action, the Star reported. Wright, 29, was found dead outside of the convenience store around 11 p.m. on September…
Sonic Spectrum tribute to the Beach Boys was at RecordBar last night. I was out of town, cursing my luck for missing what sounded like a great party. I sent photographer Forester Michael out to the festivities in my stead, and his photos confirm my suspicion that I always miss all the most-fun stuff, all the time, no matter what….
It’s not the end of the world as we know it. An asteroid is going to come within about 7,600 miles of Earth around noon today, but the Washington Post reported that it won’t hit Earth, much to the chagrin of wackos wearing the sandwich boards across the country (and probably also to doomsday prophet Harold Camping). So bust out…
We may be what we eat, but we don’t often get the chance to see everything we eat all at once. Graphic-design student Lauren Manning created 40 infographics (maps, charts and photo collages) to represent the 982 meals she ate in 2010 (h/t Inclined to Create). As part of her thesis project on visual communication, the New York City student…
By Elgin Smith Del the Funky Homosapien wrapped up his current tour at the Riot Room Saturday. He treated a jampacked house to an evening of fresh rhymes, oddball beats and bizarre lyrics, reminding everyone there that there really isn’t anyone in hip-hop like Del. Categories: Music Tags: del the funky homosapien
%{}% Arnoldo Bazan’s half-baked revenge plot on the owner of Mi Ranchito has ended with Bazan going to federal prison for 10 years. Bazan hatched a plot with his girlfriend, Yini De La Torre, who was a waitress at the restaurant, to poison the salsa at the Lenexa Mexican restaurant and serve it to customers. Bazan, with De La Torre’s…
Chef Craig Adcock is projecting that his cake business, Jude’s Rum Cakes, will grow by 1,500 percent this year. So for those who want to get into the food business, the things he has learned over the past four years are worth reading. Last week, Adcock talked about why all his guests get cheese and how he got into the…
By April Fleming Not everyone can resurrect their favorite band for their birthday, but not all of us are Robert Moore. On Saturday, the radio host celebrated the eighth anniversary of his beloved radio show, Sonic Spectrum, by bringing together a sweet blend of local pop and rock acts, the crown jewel being the reunited (and feeling quite good) Golden…
Now for some good news: More than 400 dogs and cats that were made homeless by the EF5 tornado were adopted in just the first day of the Joplin pet adopt-a-thon. Check out the ASPCA’s video (although the music is godawful). If you’re still looking for a pet, check out the Joplin Humane Society’s website. H/t: The Turner Report, which…
Just as the waters of the fountains of Kansas City ebb and flow, one beverage company appears poised for a comeback locally. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that Fitz’s Root Beer founder Michael Alter has bought back the company he sold in 1999 and is looking to Kansas City to help get his soda brand back on track. Categories: Dining,…
My mom always told me that no good could come from smoking crack with a stranger who I picked up at a gas station at 3 a.m. Mom was right. Last Thursday morning, Clyde Rideout allegedly invited a 32-year-old woman he met at a BP gas station on Independence Avenue to smoke crack cocaine in his room at the Admiral…
