This post was sponsored by Amply Media. Amply Media is only three-years-old, but they are already making big waves in Kansas City. The digital content network runs over 50 individual websites which generate over 1,000 articles per month for a dedicated audience totaling over 100 million subscribers. The company has more than doubled its revenue in the past year and…
311 / Dirty Heads with the Interrupters, Dreamers, and Bikini Trill Providence Medical Center Amphitheater Wednesday, July 11 Many moons since first I saw you — so goes the chorus to 311’s “All Mixed Up,” from the band’s self-titled 1995 smash album. The first concert I ever attended sans parents was 311 at the Bonner Springs amphitheater that in those days…
“An exhibition presented in Technicolor,” the wall text informs those who enter the current Vulpes Bastille show Cartoon Heaven, featuring works by Dan Ohm, Max Pond, and Stephen Proski. Here, across diverse styles and mediums, these three artists are engaging in a layered, thematically cohesive conversation — one studded with subtle influences from the animated world and familiar cartoon tropes. The…
We start out with a Harry & the Potters video, then we hit a hat trick of fantastic hip-hop featuring A’Sean, Zarin Micheal, and Cuee. And that’s only the halfway point of this month’s Cine Local. There’s also noise punk from Warm Bodies, garage rock from the Harrisonics, and dance-pop from Yes You Are. Enjoy. Harry & the Potters, “Where’s…
There’s that great scene in Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz where the Band’s Levon Helm is talking about how music flows together in the middle of America. “Bluegrass or country music, you know, if it comes down to that area, and if it mixes there with the rhythm and if it dances, then you’ve got a combination of all those…
Six years ago, on July 4, beloved Lawrence indie rockers Fourth of July played their final Lawrence show. Shortly thereafter, the band’s vocalist and guitarist Brendan Hangauer moved to California, where he continued making music under the name Empty Moon. Empty Moon was the title of Fourth of July’s final album, and it was under the Empty Moon aegis that…
Viktoria Gokun Under the moniker Umberto, former Kansas Citian Matt Hill has, over the course of four full-length LPs and numerous singles, made music that could accurately be described as soundtracks to horror films that exist only in Hill’s mind. (He’s also done actual film scores.) Hill lit out for Los Angeles in 2013, a few years after the Umberto…
Gina Pepitone On a muggy morning in early July, the Joe E. Amayo Argentine Community Center is deserted, save for a lone security guard. Tscher Mancks greets the man by name, and he waves us into the building. The doors lock behind us. We walk toward the gymnasium. It’s empty. “A few years ago — before they put the Metro…
Razer was raised in Cooter, MO, population 450. “Not a great place for a closeted gay kid to grow up,” he says.Kelcie McKenney The Missouri legislature recently wrapped up a session that was awful for — among others — women, LGBTQ Missourians, and Democrats. Greg Razer is two of those three. On a recent Saturday morning, he’s holding a…
Welcome back to the GalaK.C.! Kansas City is packed full of experiences, people, places, and things, and we need your help to locate and identify the best of the best. The Voting round runs August 5-30 where you will vote on the top selections in all 370+ categories. No bots, no ballot stuffing, no backdoor deals — just your favorite…
Riley Cowing Giant red lips hang on the wall outside poet Madison Mae Parker’s studio space at Charlotte Street Foundation. They’re framed by an artist’s statement of sorts, in Parker’s handwriting: “Poetry is a mouth, kiss open its language.” She calls these pieces “poetic sculpture.” Parker is fond of fusing her poetry with other forms, even when it’s uncomfortable. She’s…
Three sips into tonight’s first cocktail, and you wonder to yourself: Which KC celeb would be the best pick to share a drink with? Are you better matched with Paul Rudd, KC’s comedy darling, or, say, Janelle Monáe, the angelic voice of this town? We’re here to help answer exactly that, and give you the chance to win dozens of…
The Drugstore’s closing has sent 26 artists scrambling for studio space.Chase Castor Not so very long ago, Davin Watne and his bandmates in the garage-soul act Thee Devotion rented the entire upstairs floor of a Crossroads building for $100 a month. The year was 2008. Downstairs was Posterworx, a digital printing company at 1523 Oak. Posterworx’s owners, John and…
Farina is hosting a wine dinner with celebrated winemaker Dan Petroski on Thursday night.Zach Bauman Thursday, July 11 Celebrated winemaker Dan Petroski (Larkmead Vineyards and Massican Winery) will be on hand at tonight’s specialty wine dinner at Farina (19 West 19th Street). Using Petroski’s wines as his inspiration, chef Michael Smith will present a six-course meal, with dishes including chicken-fried…
Kevin Willmott From June 1 through August 25, the Nelson will be exhibiting 30 Americans, a look at the American experience told from the perspectives of 30 African American artists, including Kerry James, Kehinde Wiley, Kara Walker, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and more. Fresh off his Academy Award (Best Adapted Screenplay) for BlacKkKlansman, screenwriter and University of Kansas professor Kevin Willmott will…
Memories… Last year, Scott Tucker was sentenced to 16 years in prison for stealing billions of dollars from customers through deceptive payday lending practices. Here at The Pitch, we’ve been writing about Tucker and his various Kansas City associates since all the way back in 2013. Tucker is now loathed at a national level, though, thanks to the 2018 Netflix documentary…
Peter May’s. Since 1928!April Fleming In the old days, KC’s Northeast neighborhood — roughly: Cliff Drive to Truman Road, the Paseo (now MLK) to Blue River — was made up of immigrants of the Italians, Irish, and Jewish variety. These days, it’s even more diverse, with Mexican, Ethiopian, Central American, Sudanese, and Vietnamese immigrants added to the rich cultural stew….
Welcome to July 2019. Several galleries are taking a lull due to the summertime. But never fear, many are soldiering on through these vacation-laden months. Get your fix for new visual arts at the exhibitions below. Is This Thing Working? Front/Space Need a palate cleanser after the rah-rah hyperpatriotism of Independence Day? Check out this site-specific installation that seeks to…
Fireworks and other vaguely patriotic diversions: How to spend Independence Day 2019. Booms and Blooms at Powell Gardens Powell Gardens, fireworks start at dusk Fourth of July Celebration Worlds of Fun, all day Hot Country Nights with Travis Marvin KC Live! Block, 6 p.m. Hot Import Nights Arrowhead Stadium, July 6 KC Riverfest Berkley Riverfront Park, 3-10 p.m. Royals vs….
Bill CallahanHanly Banks It’s fitting that Bill Callahan should do a library gig. The artist formerly known as Smog is one of the most interesting lyricists of the past 20 years. Like the great literary minimalists, Callahan carries a simple toolbox — a wooden baritone, straightforward language, naturalist scenes, a guitar — with which he carves out spectacular beauty. I started…
Cuco, the internet’s Everyman.Aaron Rhodes Cuco — real name Omar Banos — is a 21-year-old, first-generation Mexican-American musician whose star began to rise in 2016 after some lo-fi originals and a guitar cover of Santo & Johnny’s “Sleepwalk” found an audience on Twitter and SoundCloud. The labels came knocking, but Cuco continued to release new material independently while growing a rabid fanbase…
Aaron Rhodes A’Sean Everette walks across a parking lot toward a playground outside the Greenleaf Apartments in Northeast Kansas City. “A lot of shit I talk about comes from reminiscing on this place,” Everette says. “I got a lot of stories from this motherfucker.” He points at the drab, white one-story apartment building where he once lived. He used to…
Kaldi’s Coffee After six years in business, the Kaldi’s Coffee on the edge of the Power and Light District, at 1201 Main, closed for good last Friday, June 28. “We are fully committed to Kansas City and are currently seeking a new space to be able to provide a full service Kaldi’s experience, including kitchen operations,” a sign on the…
Courtesy Free State Brewing Company Tuesday, July 2 Out in Lawrence, Free State Brewing Company (636 Massachusetts Street) is marking the release of its excellent Garden Party beer — a lager flavored with cucumber, basil, and juniper berries — with an ice cream social. From 4–6 p.m., pick up a pint of Garden Party (or one of Free State’s Garden…
