Blue October. // photo credit Abel Longoria In our series No Skips, we sit down with an artist or band and go track-by-track through their latest release. For some of us, the banter in a concert where a song gets explained is our favorite thing in the world, and we’d just like to keep living in that. Every song has…
Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi v. Sporting KC on Saturday, April 13. // Photo by Jordan Hirsekorn Taylor Swift now has a case for second largest celebrity to impact Kansas City, after Sporting KC’s Saturday match against Inter Miami. Fans packed Arrowhead on Saturday evening in anticipation of watching one of the very best soccer players of all-time take on the…
Missouri National Guard soldiers assist in processing migrants who have crossed the Texas border from Mexico. (Photo courtesy of Missouri Governor’s Office) A bill dedicating $2.2 million to support deployment of Missouri National Guard soldiers and State Highway Patrol troopers to Texas for border security on Wednesday became the first bill sent this year to Gov. MIke Parson. In February,…
Queensryche. // photo by Andrew Dodderidge I do not frequent metal shows. And I do not frequent casino shows. But this past Friday was a night where the two collided. Taking I-435 on the way home, I was only able to think of these things to describe the entire experience: It was a seated show in a ballroom—which means no…
Back with their eighth record in 18 years, Lawrence-based country act The Roseline have firmly cemented their ground as the area’s own The Jayhawks with new record Keystone of the Heart. Formed in 2007, the five-piece is an even-keel mix of indie folk, Americana, and alt-country, although beginning just as an acoustic folk trio. And after making waves on the…
Kat King. // photo courtesy the artist We’re big fans of Kat King and her label, Manor Records, here at the Pitch, and it’s time to share another outing from them both. King released her latest EP, Domestic Bliss, on April 5, the first collection of songs since 2021’s Say What You Mean. The Pitch is excited to premiere the…
Pesto Chicken Panini at The Wise Guy // Photo by Sarah Sipple The Wise Guy It was because of Taylor Swift that I first heard about The Wise Guy. Let’s rewind. Taylor Swift was spotted with Travis Kelce, Brittany and Patrick Mahomes, and crew at Miracle a few times last November and December. Miracle is a chain of Christmas-themed pop-up…
311. // photo credit Chris Phelps Over the past 30 years, Omaha’s 311 have traded in reggae-laced grooves, hard rock riffs, and hip hop vibes to bring multiple generations together in the spirit of nodding your head and rocking the hell out. They’ve gone from underground heroes to alt-rock radio staples and just last month, saw themselves elevated to the…
The Bygones. // photo by Haley Mullenix The Bygones with the Wildwoods recordBar Friday, April 12 Friday night, I found myself walking into RecordBar here in KC where the indie-folk duo The Bygones that is made up of Joshua Lee Turner and Allison Young were set to play the eighth stop on their tour. I noticed as I walked up…
Waxahatchee. // photo credit Molly Matalon Kansas City’s own Katie Crutchfield, the lone member of indie rock act Waxahatchee, just recently released her sixth studio album under the moniker less than four weeks ago. Tigers Blood has been met with consensus critical praise, many claiming it to be the artist’s best work yet. Her five-week U.S. tour begins this Thursday,…
(From left to right) Wong, Maldonado, and Pham // Photo by Zoe Strohm Tintoretta Tattoo—a queer, P.O.C owned, tattoo shop, once native to the West Bottoms—has made its move to the Westside neighborhood, bringing along plans to do more than just tattoo. Seeing the status of the male-dominated tattoo world, owner and artist Ana Maldonado, also known as Ani Mal,…
Panda THC Chocolates // Photo by Sarah Sipple Edibles—or cannabis-infused foods, candy, or beverages—have come a long way from your neighbor’s mystery brownies or homemade gummies from a friend who ‘knows a guy.’ And while there is still a tremendous amount of inequality in the commercial cannabis industry to be rectified, we recognize the areas where regulation has had a…
LaRonna Lassiter Saunders, a civil rights advocate and attorney, flips through Tyesha McNair’s funeral book. Tyesha died in 2009 from domestic gun violence. (Rachel Mipro/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — LaTonya Boyd carries her daughter’s funeral book with her to a discussion of Kansas gun violence — a physical representation of a problem that has scarred many families, and one that has…
Kristen Thomas. // Photo by Nicole Bissey “Just drink a glass of wine or two. It’ll help you relax,” says the OB/GYN. “I can write you a script for the little blue pill if you want,” goes the urologist. Far too many patients are pushed toward solutions to their intimacy woes that are socially acceptable or pharmacologically aligned. But drinking…
Filmland Spirits Ryes of the Robots // Photo by Mike Dahlor It is not often in life that one finds the sequel to be as good as the original, much less better. In this case, it’s not really a sequel, but a second installment. If Filmland Spirits keeps this up, they are on their way to building a dynasty. Last…
Courtesy of Nathan Price Call him what you will—clothier, haberdasher, dresser of dudes—but Nathan Price is determined to get guys gussied up. Price is the co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Shepherd’s—a menswear brand founded in Kansas City. “Shepherd’s makes tailored garments for men, using only the highest-quality materials,” says Price. “And they’re made in European workshops that we’re proud…
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (photo submitted) Missouri had an embarrassing trip to the U.S. Supreme Court last month, and things have gone downhill from there. Murthy v. Missouri (formerly Missouri v. Biden), was filed in 2022 by our then-Attorney General Eric Schmitt and his Louisiana counterpart. They sued a slew of federal government agencies alleging that the agencies’ discussions…
Sasquatch Sunset. // Courtesy Bleecker Street Nature documentaries are such a bizarre feat of filmmaking. To capture the sheer amount of footage, without shattering the fourth wall and spoking the subjects, would be impressive enough on its own. That some Heisenbergian principle plays in and a narrative usually finds a way to emerge beyond the mere ebb and flow of…
Photo by Ken Howard for Lyric Opera of Kansas City Last year, Kansas City got a chance to witness the spectacle and scale of a new opera, based on Stephen King’s novel The Shining. Sharing a title with the book, the show adapts the directly from the 1977 horror novel, pulling narratives and character arcs that divert (at points sharply)…
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed two abortion bills and a measure criminalizing transgender health care for minors. House and Senate Republican leaders responded with promises to seek veto overrides when the full Legislature returned to Topeka on April 26. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly flexed a veto pen to reject bills Friday prohibiting gender-identity health care for…
Courtesy of RLJE Films and Shudder. Jaeden Martell and Maxwell Jenkins are no strangers to playing children (and now teenagers) growing up in harrowing settings. Martell’s star has been on the rise since his feature debut in 2014’s St. Vincent. Since then he’s been burdened with mysterious abilities in Midnight Special, terrorized by a killer clown in It and charged…
Off Ramp. // Courtesy Panic Fest This is part of our coverage of local horror/sci-fi’s biggest event of the year, Panic Fest 2024. For more from the fest, click here. What do you think of when you hear the term Juggalo? Does your brain flood with people in black and white face paint? Do you think of reckless gang-affiliated individuals,…
Anti-abortion advocates made multiple appearance at the Statehouse this legislative session, as lawmakers debated reproductive rights and funding for crisis pregnancy centers. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Limited by the state’s constitutional protection of abortion, Kansas anti-abortion lawmakers have funneled more money into a program encouraging women to give birth, among other such focused measures sent to the governor. The…
Courtesy Panic Fest This is part of our coverage of local horror/sci-fi’s biggest event of the year, Panic Fest 2024. For more from the fest, click here. A memorable twist, especially in an independent film, can often be the difference between a movie getting noticed or falling into total obscurity. It’s also a risk—plenty of movies try, but not every…
