Archives: April 2022

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Music

Photos: alt-J at Cable Dahmer Arena

Archana Sundar,

alt-J. // Photo by Archana Sundar alt-J with Portugal, The Man Cable Dahmer Arena Thursday, April 7 On Thursday, danceable indie rockers alt-J hit the Cable Dahmer Arena with openers Portugal, The Man. Touring in support of their fourth studio album, The Dream, alt-J played a solid half of the new record, while also digging into their back catalog and…

The streetcar line, which currently ends at Union Station, will have a new terminus at UMKC (51st and Brookside) once construction is complete. // Photo by Savannah Hawley
News

Streetcar groundbreaking ceremony kickstarts expansion construction

Commuters will be able to ride the expanded streetcar line in 2025 after security testing is completed.
Savannah Hawley,

In a ceremony today, the city broke ground on the streetcar extension project, which is expected to be complete by 2025. // Photo by Savannah Hawley Kansas City broke ground on the $351 million streetcar extension project today at an 11 a.m ceremony. The 3.5-mile extension will bring the line to 51st Street and Brookside Boulevard at UMKC—past its original…
Politics

No signs of support for Greitens in Missouri county where abuse charges will be heard

Vicky Hartzler, Billy Long and Mark McCloskey made Senate pitches at Boone County Lincoln Day dinner.
Rudi Keller,

Yard signs for GOP Senate candidates greet Republicans attending Boone County Lincoln Days Friday in Columbia. // Photo by Rudi Keller/Missouri Independent COLUMBIA – A smattering of giggles greeted the name of former Gov. Eric Greitens Friday evening when emcee Branden Rathert called for the U.S. Senate candidates invited to speak at Boone County Republican Lincoln Days to come forward….

Capitol Harkness
Politics

Missouri caseworkers ‘drowning’ as Children’s Division plagued by staff shortages

The Department of Social Services has seen rapid turnover at both the levels of top leadership and caseworkers.
Tessa Weinberg,

Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City. // Creative Commons photo by Lee Harkness/Flikr The new director of the Department of Social Services’ Children’s Division painted a grim picture Tuesday of an atrophying child welfare department that is facing severe staffing shortages and leaving remaining caseworkers overwhelmed. Darrell Missey, the director of the Children’s Division, told lawmakers on the Joint Committee on…

Everything Everywhere All At Once 225111
Movies

Everything Everywhere All at Once will warm your heart and break your brain

Multiverses. Hot dog fingers. In this movie, it’s all relative.
Adrian Torres,

Everything Everywhere All at Once. // Courtesy of A24 Every year, dozens of films attempt to tell us what it means to be human. Most of them either fall into self-seriousness or mistake meandering for genuine insight. For so seemingly universal a topic, it’s difficult for many filmmakers to get right.  If the sublimely trippy Everything Everywhere All at Once…
Music

Girl Talk’s Gregg Gillis talks new album, tour, and biomedical lab work

Brock Wilbur,

Gregg Gillis. // Photo by Joey Kennedy Girl Talk’s Night Ripper is one of those albums where, if it hit you just the right way on your first listen, it fundamentally changed how you perceived music, and remix culture as a whole. Since 2005, Pittsburgh, PA’s Gregg Gillis has operated under the DJ stage name of Girl Talk. The young musician…
Culture

Streetwise podcast chills hard with songstress Dia Jane, celebrates fashion’s boundaries

THE PITCH STAFF,

Photo by Amy Schaffer This week on the Streetwise podcast we talk about keeping Michael at Bay, enjoy a reading of Tyler Schneider’s piece on KC’s fashion world, bop to The Creature Comforts’ track “Skyline,” and interview Dia Jane about her musical work in Baby and the Brain and elsewhere. Happy Two Year Anniversary To Nick’s Music Corner! Follow him on…

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Music

Photos: Ben Folds at Liberty Hall

Chris Ortiz,

Ben Folds at Liberty Hall, April 6, 2022. // Photo by Chris Ortiz Ben Folds with Lizzie Weber Liberty Hall Wednesday, April 6 On Wednesday night, Ben Folds took to the stage of Liberty Hall with his piano to deliver an hour and a half set of tunes covering his entire catalog, including songs stretching back to his time with…

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Culture

Overland Park Starbucks employees go on strike

Fantasia Wesley,

OP Starbucks Strike, notifying caffeine lovers to buy coffee elsewhere. // Snapshot from The Greater Kansas City Labor Beacon Starbucks workers at 75th and I-35 in Overland Park went on strike Wednesday, April 6 after management was called out for “union busting.” If you’re wondering why Starbucks workers are unionizing, check out our stories from Liz Cook around collective action,…

Ambulance
Movies

Ambulance is Michael Bay’s latest less-than-subtle assault on the senses

Watch every cop car in the world burst into flames through the lens of a camera falling from a helicopter!
Michael Cripe,

Jake Gyllenhaal’s Danny Sharp hijacks an ambulance. // Courtesy Universal Pictures. Michael Bay has been the processed-meat factory of the movie industry for the last 20 years. Transformers, Bad Boys, 13 Hours, and the majority of his directing catalog might as well be the same school lunch slop served over and over again, bringing Action and… little else. Ambulance, Bay’s…

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Culture

Creature Feature: Carmen, Diamond, and Precious are absolute gems

THE PITCH STAFF,

Diamond and Precious are priceless. // Courtesy Scott Poore and Great Plains SPCA This week’s “Creature Feature” is all thanks to the help of Scott Poore of Mission Driven. Diamond and Precious are sister pups. Diamond is an eight-year-old Beligian Malinois, and Precious is a two-year-old hound mix. The duo came to Great Plains SPCA after their loving owner passed away…

University of Kansas KU parade Jayhawks basketball
Culture, Sports

Jayhawks parade in Lawrence to celebrate 2022 NCAA win this Sunday

The University of Kansas event begins at 2 p.m.
Michael Cripe,

Promotional imagery for the Jayhawks parade. // Courtesy University of Kansas The University of Kansas is sending the Jayhawks off with flying colors during a 2022 NCAA championship parade celebration this weekend. The event begins Sunday, April 11 at 2 p.m. and brings the KU’s Spirit Squads, band, and basketball team to Lawrence’s beloved Massachusetts Street, spanning from 6th Street…

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Culture

Big Read 2022 kicks off with poet Joy Harjo

Fantasia Wesley,

A photo of Joy Harjo. // Photo by Karen Kuehn Haskell Indian Nations University will team with the Kansas City Public Library and the Kansas City Indian Center for the Big Read 2022 event Thursday, April 14, honoring acclaimed author and U.S. Poet Laureate, Joy Harjo. Celebrating Native American literature by exploring history and culture through poetry, Harj0 will showcase her…

Kansas City Current Theme Nights 2022
Sports

Kansas City Current 2022 theme night schedule promises special home games for fans

Theme nights kick off with a Mother's Day home game May 8.
Michael Cripe,

The Kansas City Current’s theme nights for 2022 are set. // Courtesy Kansas City Current The Kansas City Current’s 2022 home game theme nights are set and spell out a year of variety for soccer fans at Children’s Mercy Park. Theme nights span from May 8 to September 25, each bringing a different special showcase for fans to take part…

Santana
Music

Carlos Santana on ‘the light, spirit, and soul in every one of us’

Nick Spacek,

Carlos Santana. Musician Carlos Santana is absolutely legendary. Whether it’s the classic albums recorded in the late ’60s and early ’70s that yielded perennial radio staples like “Black Magic Woman” and “Evil Ways,” or the now meme-worthy “Smooth” from 1999’s Supernatural, Santana’s musical appeal spans decades and generations. However, when we spoke by phone with Santana one morning from his…

The Actor Lead Shot By George Muncey
Music

alt-J’s Gus Unger-Hamilton on fashion grifting, Ian Fleming, and the imminent specter of death

alt-J and Portugal the Man play Cable-Dahmer Arena April 7.
Thomas White,

Alt-J from left to right: Thom Sonny Green, Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton. // Photo by George Muncie alt-J is a genre-bending alternative rock band that was founded in the UK by four friends at Leeds University. More complex than you’d realize at first blush, even the band’s name has layers. Technically their name is the Greek symbol delta , which…