I had a blast hosting Savage Lovecast Live at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts. Audience members submitted questions before the show, and I consumed a large pot edible right after the curtain went up and then raced to give as much decent sex advice as I could before it took effect. Here are some of the questions I didn’t…
If there’s a shady way to do a simple thing, you know you can depend on former Navy Seal and part-time stuntman Eric Greitens to find it.Missouri’s action-figure governor has assiduously copied some of President Donald Trump’s most effective plays, especially when it comes to advancing a deeply cynical personal brand. Both demagogues rely on a confrontational persona — and…
Morgan Dameron — a writer-producer-director triple threat whose Different Flowers screened at April’s KC Film Fest and opens theatrically this weekend — has already made a name for herself. Or, more precisely, she has lent her name to an intergalactic blockbuster.J.J. Abrams named heroic pilot Poe Dameron (played by Oscar Isaac) after her in his Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Abrams,…
Kansas City rapper Sahvannes has gone through a bit of a transformation in the past several months. Many of his earlier songs were cheery, psychedelic raps about art and introspection. In his latest string of singles, however, things have grown darker.“Trust Issues” is an aggressive, trunk-rattling banger about suspicions swirling in Sahvannes’ head while the gun is on his hip….
One logical, dystopian culmination of this politics-as-entertainment age would be to do away with human policy makers altogether and replace them with actual pop-culture artifacts. Rather than voting for, say, Kid Rock, in the future we will elect that song where he takes a nasty shit all over “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Werewolves of London.” Instead of Clint Eastwood running…
Polarizing singer-songwriter Lana del Rey released the newest of her four albums, Lust for Life, over the summer, to the highest praise for any of her moody, gauzy music. A 24-date stadium tour, named “LA to the Moon,” was just announced, with Kansas City’s Sprint Center securing the third stop on Tuesday, January 9. Jhene Aiko will be supporting. Snag tickets…
Loyal fans may argue over which Weeknd album so far is the best, but last year’s Starboy is astronomically more ambitious than what Canadian pop-R&B star Abel Tesfaye had issued to that point. Having made his commercial breakthrough in 2015, with singles from Beauty Behind the Madness, Tesfaye (who records as the Weeknd) has further honed his sound. The new album is his sleekest yet, propelled…
A hungry crowd literally denied it was raining last night out of love for Sylvan Esso, the alluring two-piece dance-and-noise-pop act out of Durham, North Carolina. She asked if it was, and the crowd emphatically said no, even as it indeed drizzled, beckoning her to keep playing.”Come on,” singer Amelia Meath said with a laugh. “It’s raining a little bit.”…
She moved out to Los Angeles over a decade ago, but prior to that, Heidi Gardner grew up in Kansas City, graduating from the local all-girls high school Notre Dame de Sion’s class of 2001. Yesterday, news broke that Gardner is one of three new cast members joining Saturday Night Live for its upcoming season, which premieres this Saturday, September…
A warm breeze carries the scent of fresh garden herbs — oregano, sweet basil. The sun is shining so brightly on a nearby row of tomatoes that they look ready to burst on the vine. In the distance, just beyond wild and rambling green hills, white lines of snow form zigzag patterns atop grand mountain peaks.Maybe someday you’ll make it…
Monday, September 25Cinder Block Brewery (110 East 18th Avenue, North KC) celebrates four years in business today with the beginning of a week of special tappings and events. Today, enjoy $3 year-round beers. Tuesday brings the release of Cinder Block’s champagne cider and some free trivia. Wednesday there’s a new specialty IPA, or you can try the cranberry gose, before…
It’s been 16 years since Hadacol’s second and final album, All In Your Head. The band broke up shortly after its release, and it never really got the attention its predecessor, Better Than This, did. Since then, the band’s lead singer and guitarist, Fred Wickham, hasn’t exactly been absent from music — he plays with classic country cover band Kasey…
GorillazWith Vince Staples and Danny BrownFriday, September 22The Sprint CenterDamon Albarn, the Blur frontman who moonlights as the primary composer for Gorillaz, gave fans at the Sprint Center two thumbs up last night and then committed the classic rookie blunder pretty much everyone expects by now: He shouted that this was Gorillaz’ “first time in Kansas!”It was indeed the maiden…
“You don’t need to be cruel,” a mother admonishes early in A Lie of the Mind, the 1985 Sam Shepard play now onstage at the Kansas City Actors Theatre. “This whole thing is cruel,” her son fires back.As theses go, that’s as good as any. The bulk of the show takes place in the rural Northwest, where two families struggle…
Dear Dan: I am a 35-year-old straight guy. I met a nice lady through the normal methods, and we hit it off and have grown closer. I think we are both considering “taking it to the next level.” We are on the same intellectual wavelength, enjoy the same social experiences and have a lot of fun together. So what could be…
Let me dispense with the obvious: If you have any bookish preteens in your life, you should stop reading this review and take them to Between the Lines, the energetic and stunningly mounted pop musical now playing at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre. The world premiere, based on books by Jodi Picoult and her daughter, Samantha van Leer, has given…
The streetcar might not be sailing through midtown (yet), but property owners are nevertheless jacking up rents as if they can hear its bell dinging in the distance. That bell hath tolled for Urban Mining. The vintage market — a much-loved destination for antiques, furniture, midcentury art, and more — will pack up and move out of its current space,…
Running the green-painted asphalt, Mick Spearman is alone, but not for long. Defenders are catching up behind him.He jumps. Slam.The evening’s first basketball game belongs to Spearman’s team. Hoops at Night in Oak Park is for young people who live nearby, though others drive in from surrounding neighborhoods. Games are fast, and the play — layups like Spearman’s — is…
The funniest news story of last week was about Ted Cruz being a horny boy who likes MILF porn tweets. It was funny because Cruz’s family-values routine is so hollow and phony it almost demands that you ponder what kind of sick shit he’s getting into late at night in front of the ol’ keyboard. The most interesting thing about…
