The South Kansas City Chamber of Commerce dispatched a letter to Kansas City Mayor Sly James earlier this week to complain that its members were concerned about the city’s contemplation of a higher minimum wage. Vickie Wolgast, president of the South Kansas City Chamber, laid out common business-centric consequences to minimum-wage increases that she’s hearing about from her members: •…
If you think air guitar is for nerds, that’s fine. Stay away from RecordBar Saturday night, when the 2015 U.S. Air Guitar Championship’s Kanas City qualifier takes place. The rest of us know the truth: Airness is real. Some people have it, and some don’t. Saturday, we’ll watch as local air-guitar heroes and heroines shred their imaginary instruments in the…
A battle of Missouri will take place this weekend in Major League Baseball. With both the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals in first place of their respective divisions, the two teams will square off for a three-game series at Kauffman Stadium. Between the local interest and the early season success for these two teams, Royals vs Cardinals tickets…
There will be a culinary debut of a new product tomorrow night at The Pitch’s annual Taste of Kansas City food-and-drink event: Hungry Monkey Party Bites will be introducing a new flavor, Kansas City Barbecue Popcorn. “We’ll also be serving our award-winning wedding cake popcorn, our all-natural garlic toast popcorn, and our Bad Boy garlic and cheese popcorn,” says Hungry…
Scott Kalwei hasn’t signed the lease for 1715 Main Street yet — he thinks he’ll be closing the deal with building owner Dick Snow by the end of this week — but when he does, he hopes the deal leads KC to Ruins. The Ruins being the name of the venue he plans to open in August, in place of…
Thursday, May 21New Belgium Clips preparty tapping, with Whiskey Barrel Aged Belgian Salted Choco-late Stout on Nitro, at Riot Room (4048 Broadway), 4 p.m. New Belgium Clips preparty tapping, with Transatlantique Kriek, at the Foundry (4057 Pennsylvania), 4 p.m. New Belgium Clips Beer and Film Tour, with Film Noir Milk Stout, La Folie, Transatlantique Kriek and more, at Theis Park…
A year ago, Paige Unger-Cline was riding high as one of Kansas City’s best-known bartenders. The head of the drinks program at the iconic American Restaurant had impeccable credentials: In 2013, while bartender at Extra Virgin, she won the 2013 Paris of the Plains Bartending Competition, and went on to compete nationally. Last April, she defended her crown at Speed Rack…
It will be a British invasion in Kansas City next month. The Rolling Stones will make a stop at Arrowhead Stadium on June 27 and have enlisted the help of British superstar Ed Sheeran to open the show. It will be the iconic group’s 10th gig along its 15-show Zip Code Tour, which continues through mid-July. The Kansas City gig…
Name: Preston Lauderdale Occupation: DJ, carpenter Hometown: Kansas City Current neighborhood: Gladstone What I do: I’m a drywall contractor and DJ. I spend a lot of time spinning for Internet radio stations, comic/anime/My Little Pony conventions, and I build stuff. What’s your addiction? Electronic music, Baileys and coffee, and anime What’s your game? Annoying Englishmen and Life What’s your drink?…
Much like the Disney theme-park attraction that supplies its name and inspiration, Tomorrowland is best described as a big pile of something. Here’s what I believe I know about the movie: George Clooney, in grizzled Walter Matthau mode, plays a bitter inventor who has been stuck on Earth ever since being banished for some reason from the titular place, a…
Judith G. Levy has for a while now centered her art on uproarious fictions, rendered in believably deadpan ways. But for her new “Family Memoir” series — part of La Esquina’s latest group exhibition, Disturbances in the Field — she has hewed closer to reality. A reality still bent by the habits of storytelling, particularly the intimate storytelling native to…
Kodascope Be honest: You probably don’t dance enough. Luckily, Kodascope — a newish local funk-and-soul collective — is here for you. The six-piece has been making music since last summer, and Saturday at the Brick, the group releases a loud and thoroughly fun six-song EP. For the most part, the self-titled release sounds like Talking Heads crashed noggin-first into David…
People tend to use the term legend with a certain looseness these days, but when it comes to Marilyn Maye, the title fits. Maye appeared on Johnny Carson’s The Tonight Show more than any other guest — 76 times. The singer, now in her 80s, still commands the stage with a veteran’s savvy and a kid’s energy. She builds a rapport…
The last few years have been rough for Surfer Blood. In March 2012, frontman John Paul Pitts was arrested for domestic battery, and though he was cleared of all charges, the incident hung over the release of the band’s second album and major-label debut, Pythons. Sales were disappointing, and Warner Bros. Records dropped the band. Surfer Blood regrouped, and now…
The three members of Monzie Leo & the Big Sky — lead singer and guitarist Monzie Leo Brummett, banjoist Derek Long and fiddler Brett Grady — have their own secret language. When we meet on a Tuesday night in Lawrence, the three are wearing similar denim vests, ornamented with various patches and pins, arranged in what they tell me is…
We live by a simple maxim: There’s a wide world of booze out there, and life is too short not to enjoy some of the more interesting spirits lining the shelves. Some people get tripped up on where to start. Or they can’t admit that they don’t know what, say, mezcal is or how to enjoy it. So here are…
Mick Foley knows how to reinvent himself. Professional wrestling’s hardcore legend did just that in the ring, developing characters that ranged from barbed-wire-bat-wielding Cactus Jack to the lovable Mankind, who wore his tube-sock tag-team partner, Mr. Socko, on his arm. Now, he has done it again. Outside the ring, Mrs. Foley’s Baby Boy has found success as a New York…
Last month, The Pitch examined the mounting problems at Metropolitan Community College (“Fizz Ed,” April 29). Those problems include a decline in the number of applicants; a mass exodus of faculty, staff and high-ranking administrators; a plunge in morale among those still employed in the district; and the erosion of the long-held system of shared governance among faculty and leadership….
For as long as Kansas City officials have worked behind the scenes to develop a plan for a major convention hotel, conventional thinking held that the city would commit a huge helping of taxpayer money to make the deal happen. Credit is due to City Hall leaders, who last week announced plans for an 800-room Hyatt near Bartle Hall that…
As if we needed more reasons to go see the Rolling Stones when the legendary rock band stops at Arrowhead Stadium in June, Ed Sheeran – Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter and noted BFF of Taylor Swift – has just been announced as the show opener. Get there early on Saturday, June 27. Details here. Get your tickets here. Categories: News Tags:…
