Archives: October 2020

Streetwise podcast shines a light on horror director Jill Sixx, music from The Freedom Affair

Today on Streetwise from The Pitch we discuss a dog escape artist, check out The Freedom Affair’s track “Move On”, and Nick chats with film director Jill Sixx about The Stylist. Streetwise is hosted by Brock Wilbur, editor in chief of The Pitch. Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify. Subscribe to the Streetwise newsletter, a weekly meditation on Kansas City news and events. Thanks to Jason Beers for…

Remembering Steve Phillips of The Elders, who passed away this week

Phillips on stage at the annual Hoolie in 2018. // Photo by Jim Nimmo On Wednesday, Kansas City lost a musical hero. One of his friends and fans, Jim Nimmo, shares with us his memories of Steve Phillips, and what it was like to document him over a decade. I went on Facebook Wednesday morning and the first post on…

Apparition “Spookeasy” returns to Big Rip Brewery

Serving up spooky cocktails at Apparition. // Photo courtesy of Apparition Last year, North Kansas Citians were spooked, scared, and delighted by the premier of spookeasy Apparition. The pop-up cocktail bar gave attendees a peek of what we hope might be the afterlife, complete with pumpkins, skulls, and delicious and elaborate cocktails. Apparition disappeared a few days after Halloween, perhaps…

Win tickets to the digital world premiere of Blumhouse’s thriller The Lie

There’s a lot of yelling in The Lie. // Courtesy Amazon Studios All month long, we’re giving away tickets to the digital premiere of a new series of Blumhouse original movies. Amazon Prime Video’s “Welcome To The Blumhouse” is a program of eight unsettling, genre movies produced by Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Television and Amazon Studios. The Lie, Black Box, Nocturnes,…

Time is a poignant and deeply personal condemnation of American mass incarceration

Time. // Courtesy Amazon Studios In 2019, an estimated 1,435,500 people were serving time in American prisons—but, despite mainstream conversations around the racism and dehumanization embedded within the country’s prison-industrial complex becoming more and more common, such a huge number is tough to wrap your head around. After all, since our incarcerated population is virtually invisible from society, by design…

Socially distanced music festival “Sound of Kansas City” set for memorial lawn on October 18

Local musician, DJ, and trivia host, Max James has a big dream for Kansas City. He wants to create a rehearsal studio for musicians, devoid of distractions or irritable neighbors who don’t enjoy saxophone solos at 3 AM. A place that would recapture the nostalgic feeling of sitting in the band room after school, practicing and chatting with like-minded artists….

Missouri ranks near last in a study of school reopening safety

Photo by Jeswin Thomas on Unsplash In a recent study conducted by the survey website WalletHub.com, it found that the Missouri school system ranked 44 out of 50 in the safest states for schools to reopen. With students going back to class amid a pandemic, classrooms are now online, in person, or a hybrid of both. However, with in-person classes…

KC Tenants, ACLU suing Jackson County circuit and judge David M. Byrn

The ACLU and ACLU of Missouri filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of KC Tenants on Wednesday, challenging the Jackson County Circuit Court and the presiding judge David M. Byrn. They’re challenging the administrative order that claims to implement the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s nationwide eviction moratorium, but still permits eviction cases to move forward in violation of…

Letter from the Editor: Ahh-Oooooo, werewolves of Kansas

Left to right: Brock Wilbur as Rocketeer, Mother, and his sister as a hotdog. // Photo by Tom Wilbur Growing up, I fucking hated The Wolf. In my quiet neighborhood in Salina, Kansas, the bane of each Halloween season was the moment of truth when I would come to face-to-face with my arch-nemesis. And what a fearsome foe I had…

Savage Love: Roger That

Illustration by Jack Raybuck Dear Dan: I’m a thirty-something gay man married to a thirty-something gay man. For almost two years, we’ve been seeing another pair of married gay men around our age. They were our first experience with any sexual or romantic interaction outside of our relationship. The first six months were hot and heavy. We were together constantly…