Handel Resigns from Breast Cancer Charity
The anti-abortion politician who urged Susan G. Komen for the Cure to pull its funding from Planned Parenthood has resigned from the charity. Karen Handel, who was Komen’s vice president of public policy, submitted her resignation letter today, the Associated Press reported. Handel said she stands by her goal of ending grants to Planned Parenthood…
Freekbot
If a duo can qualify as a “supergroup,” then Freekbot is a legit local music supergroup. Freekbot features Freekbass (a.k.a. bassist/singer Chris Sherman of Funk crew Freekbass) and Tobotius (a.k.a. Tobe Donohue, producer and founder of world-renowned turntable crew Animal Crackers) in an Electronic duo configuration. The project has been the priority project of Sherman’s — while…
Natalie Wells
Some artists form in the womb and emerge ready to push their instrument's limits and in turn be pushed by them, using their childhoods as a proving ground for the brilliance to follow. That is not Cincinnati's Natalie Wells. Wells didn't touch a guitar until she was 18, but her natural gift and bluesy persona…
Bass Medicine, MIA, and Swimsuits
[HOT] Let the Rhythm Help ’Em Thumping Hip Hop bass isn’t just for annoying your neighbors anymore. Thanks to science, it’s now become a useful tool in the medical field. AllHipHop.com reported that researchers at Purdue University created “a new miniature medical sensor” implanted in the body that gets power from low-end bass sounds (kinda…
Publisher’s Threat to President Tests Free Speech
Atlanta publisher Andrew B. Adler’s “kill Obama” column challenges my “fight-words-with-words” standard response to vicious publications and speech. It never should have been published. No, he’s not a racist, anti-Semitic crank or advocate of sex among boys, clerics and coaches. Sick as they are, I wouldn’t muzzle them so long as they are willing to…
Winter Inspiration
I’m writing this on a January afternoon and there’s a bright blue, cloudless sky outside. Weird, but in a good way, right? I never would have expected anything but grey snow during this time of year, but with the sun shining I feel energetic and inspired. I recently spoke with Louis Snowden, co-owner of Fresh…
WNKU’s ‘Studio 89’ Show Returns
After a year off in 2011, the great live music/interview program Studio 89 on Northern Kentucky's WNKU (89.7 FM; wnku.org) returns this Monday. The season kicks off with Hadden Sayers, a Texas-born/now Columbus-based Blues artist, and this year's series once again features a mix of local, regional and national artists who represent the variety of…
Prop 8 Ruled Unconstitutional
In a long-awaited decision, a federal appeals court today declared that California's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that a lower court judge correctly interpreted the U.S. Constitution and Supreme Court precedents when he declared in 2010 that Proposition 8 was a violation of the civil…
Local Orgs Can Host Free Choir Games Performances
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard the buzz about the World Choir Games, which will feature 20,000 participants from across the globe representing cultural singing traditions and some serious musical expertise competing right here in Cincinnati. So, this July, it’s going to be the summer of song in Cincinnati, thanks to the…
‘Bot Rockin’ Beats
If a duo can qualify as a “supergroup,” then Freekbot is a legit local music supergroup. Freekbot features Freekbass (a.k.a. bassist/singer Chris Sherman of Funk crew Freekbass) and Tobotius (a.k.a. Tobe Donohue, producer and founder of world-renowned turntable crew Animal Crackers) in an Electronic duo configuration. The project has been the priority project of Sherman’s…
Forging His Own Path
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth in a series of profiles on the four new members elected to Cincinnati City Council. For some people, City Councilman Christopher Smitherman is Cincinnati’s wakeup call for change. Smitherman’s election to council in November proved not only that independent candidates can get elected, but that city residents wanted someone…
Breeding Ground
W e’ve got three ‘02-model females,” the auctioneer began. A seated crowd of bonnets and wide-brim hats peered down into the auction pit, where three small white dogs stood on a rug-covered table. A teenage boy held each one in place. In lots 73-75, three Bichon Frises registered under the names Mandy, Crystal, and Pebbles…
Wells to the Wall
S ome guitarists form in the womb and emerge ready to push their instrument’s limits and in turn be pushed by them, using their childhoods as a proving ground for the brilliance to follow. That is not Cincinnati’s Natalie Wells. Wells wasn’t particularly musical and didn’t touch a guitar until she was 18. In fact,…
Q&A with Freekbot
Freekbot features Freekbass (a.k.a. bassist/singer Chris Sherman of Funk crew Freekbass) and Tobotius (a.k.a. Tobe Donohue, producer and founder of world-renowned turntable crew Animal Crackers) in an Electronica/Dance/Groove duo configuration.Freekbot makes its Cincy debut at The Mad Frog in Corryville this Saturday. Showtime is 9 p.m. and admission is $10. MC/DJ Firecat 451 opens the…
Experimental Investigations
M anifest Creative Research Gallery and Drawing Center’s latest exhibition is the work of Travis Townsend in The Love Boat (abandoned), which is presented in conjunction with Out of the Gray, a group showing of works made using graphite. Townsend’s work is in the first room of the gallery, while the group show is…
Morning News and Stuff
Even though he has criticized super PACs in the past, President Obama has decided he will allow a pro-Democratic one to assist him in his reelection bid. Priorities USA Action, a super PAC founded by two former White House aides, will help Obama counter the deluge of money being raised by GOP groups during the…
Squeeze the Day for Feb. 7
Music Tonight: This Friday and Saturday, the Cincy Blues Society is presenting its annual Winter Blues Fest in its new location — four venues (the old Harry's Pizza space, the old R&B Cafe spot, The Drinkery and Below Zero) in Over-the-Rhine (after several years in Northern Kentucky). If you want to get in the mood,…
Pit Bulls in Cincinnati
Anyone who knows me well will tell you that I’m an avid dog-lover. I’ve owned dogs from the time I was a young teen, and I’ve loved every moment of it. There’s something about our canine companions that just warms my heart. Their wagging tails, their wet noses, the way they’re always happy to see…
Art: Findlay Market – Heart of the City
The Museum Center's almost-secret gallery (the Ruthven gallery, in the basement, near the Children's Museum) breaks out with interesting exhibitions pretty regularly. Findlay Market – Heart of the City is now on display with all the stuff you never knew about the oldest public market in Ohio (founded 1855) and might not guess, given its…
Film: Chico & Rita
For all the romantics pining away from great duets of film and music, Cincinnati World Cinema presents Best Animated Feature nominee Chico & Rita, the tale of a pair of star-crossed musicians with a soundtrack by Cuban bandleader Bebo Valdés featuring classic tunes from Thelonius Monk, Dizzy Gillespie and Cole Porter. Combine 2008 Best Foreign…
Event: World Sound Healing Day
The New Thought Unity Center in Walnut Hills continues its tradition of celebrating Valentine’s Day by participating in a global sound event. Enjoy an evening of harmonious music and audience vocal toning led by Rev. Frieda Hughes. Cincinnati musicians include Ron Esposito serving as emcee and playing crystal bowls, Pat Kelly on keyboards, Baoku Moses…
Art: The Pure Lands
Around the world and throughout history cultures have viewed visual art as a conduit between earthly and divine realms, often revering images as literal incarnations of the hallowed. In India it is called “darshan,” in the Greek Orthodox tradition it is “metastoicheiosis.” In The Pure Lands, Louisville artist Shawna Khalily’s spectacular woodcuts — on view…
Music: Joshua P. James
Joshua P. James’ songs could have been written yesterday or 60 years ago. With a tight, blazing rhythm section, those songs are let loose with a modern energy, free of gimmickry or signs of traditional Country tourism. The trio sells their soulful, gritty take with a straight-from-the-gut delivery, the early Folk/Country/Blues sound oozing forth effortlessly.…
Dance: Exhale Dance Tribe’s Vinyl Rewind
VINYL reWIND, billed as a lively, entertaining and thoughtful one-night-only program by this Cincinnati-based company, reprises recent short dance works to evocative vinyl hits like “These Arms of Mine,” “Sea of Love,” “A Little Help From My Friends,” plus a world premiere to the Beatles’ “Help!” Each is designed to showcase young love and its…
Events: Cincy Winter Beerfest
This winter has been a warm one, but fickle weather is nothing new to Cincinnatians. What could be more familiar in these parts of town than the crazy weather? Our love of a good craft beer. Drink to the weather (or curse it if it finally snows this year) with a crisp beer at the…
Onstage: Don Giovanni
Mozart’s Don Giovanni has all the hallmarks of his legendary literary counterpart: a freewheeling hedonist and serial lover with 2,065 alleged amorous conquests copiously recorded by his servant Leporello. In the space of 24 hours, the Don kills a man, attempts a few more seductions and willingly faces eternal punishment rather than repent. CCM Professor…
Comedy: Chris Porter
There’s a basic theme to Chris Porter’s comedy. “I try to make it about society for the most part,” he explains. “I think people are rude. I talk about social etiquette, people not waiting for others to get out of an elevator. Stupid people, but not in a Bill Engvall way — people who didn’t…
Foxy Shazam Debuts New ‘I Like It’ Video
The boys of Cincinnati's Foxy Shazam have done it again. The group's stunning new video for "I Like It" from its new album, The Church of Rock and Roll, debuted today and it's another mind-blower. The band — which recently played a packed album release show at Covington's Madison Theater — plays Irving Plaza in…
ACLU, Archbishop Spar Over Birth Control
As Cincinnati Archbishop Dennis Schnurr and other Catholic officials speak out publicly against a new federal rule involving free birth control, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) defends the switch and says the criticism is misguided. Last month the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care…
Super Bowl Gets Bowled Over By Pop Music
Since our Morning News and Stuff writer hates football and refused to comment on the Super Bowl (not even the Puppy Bowl!), I thought I'd take a minute to discuss yesterday's huge game. Well, the music heard during the TV broadcast, anyway. While I'm not a huge Madonna fan (I love the idea of her…
I
I caught a tweet from Noam Pikelny (The Punch Brothers) the other night. It said the new Rascal Flatts song “Banjo” made him want to kill a small pet. While I tend to steer clear of anything involving Gary LeVox and the gang, I will listen to anything involving a banjo. So, I clicked on…
One Hundred Percent Renewable Energy in Cincinnati?
Today’s 1 p.m. meeting at City Hall could decide whether or not Cincinnati will be powered by 100 percent renewable energy as early as this summer. According to Urban Cincy, the approval could make Cincinnati “the largest city in the United States to have its energy supply come from 100 percent renewable resources,” and could…
Squeeze the Day for Feb. 6
Music Tonight: It's a slow live music night in Cincinnati, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of events worthy of your attendance. For example — if you haven't checked out the new Blue Wisp location at Seventh and Race street, tonight you can catch the club's Monday night Jazz Jam Session featuring local flutist/saxophonist…
Morning News and Stuff
Despite all of the incessant hype, there actually are other things going on in the world besides the Super Bowl. So, grab your beverage of choice, sit back and we’ll tell you about a few of them. (And we promise nary a mention of Tom Brady or Eli Manning. Well, after this paragraph, that is.)…
Dead Accounts (Review)
Critic's Pick Jack (Stephen Barker Turner) is feeling hungry in the way that many Cincinnatians will recognize: He craves our favorite local culinary indulgences — Graeter’s Ice Cream, Skyline Chili (especially cheese coneys) and LaRosa’s Pizza. He has abandoned New York City for his hometown, running away from his crumbling marriage and a banking disaster…
Collapse (Review)
Critic's Pick Allison Moore’s new play, Collapse, the current offering at Know Theatre, is quite literally a play for our anxious times. Its four characters are each driven by some form of anxiety unlikely in previous generations. Moore has tapped into the contemporary zeitgeist to write a story that, while full of zany, improbably humor,…
UC vs. DePaul Live Blog!
PREGAME: Welcome to Fifth Third Arena everybody! We are gathered here today to witness a contest between the UC Bearcats and the DePaul Blue Demons. Let us take a moment to rejoice … Lance Stephenson's epic slam against DePaul two years ago. In fact, let's take a moment to watch Lance JAM IT IN THE…
Queen City Hoops
Two weeks ago it was UC that was on top of their game; not so anymore. The Bearcats have lost three straight and struggled mightily in Piscataway last Saturday. The Bearcats had a less than impressive shooting night at a 35 percent clip. The only exceptions were Dion Dixon and Yancy Gates, who went a…
Wenstrup Tops in Individual Donors
He might not be the incumbent, but Brad Wenstrup said details contained in the latest campaign finance reports show he has more grassroots support among the GOP faithful than U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Miami Township). Wenstrup is challenging Schmidt in the March 6 Republican primary for the right to be the party’s candidate for the…
Q&A with Fitz and the Tantrums
Alt/Funk/R&B/Rock crew Fitz and the Tantrums is one of hottest buzz bands in the land right now. The group’s debut record from last year, Pickin’ Up the Pieces, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseeker chart and its song “Money Grabber” became an activist anthem for the Occupy Wall Street movement across America. CityBeat spoke…
Komen Restores PP Funding
Despite its founder’s insistence Thursday that reaction had been mostly favorable, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure charity abruptly reversed course today and is restoring funding for Planned Parenthood. The Los Angeles Times reports Nancy G. Brinker, Komen's founder and CEO, said that the breast cancer foundation's decision to halt funding to providers who…
Are You Ready for Some Football (Songs)?!
Though the Super Bowl is taking place about 100 miles from Cincinnati, my guess is that most of us locals will be sitting on our couches, casually watching from the comfort of our own homes. If you're like me, you cringe at the cost of going to a hometown NFL game. The people at the…
Would You Drink (Recycled) Toilet Water?
I thought I could proudly say that the only time my mouth has ever come into contact with toilet water has been when one of my dogs manages to swipe me with a big, gross kiss when I’ve let down my guard. It’s never been pleasant, but I’ve survived. That may not be true for…
Morning News and Stuff
Now that the Jan. 31 filing deadline with the Federal Election Commission has come and gone, media outlets have had time to pour over the paperwork and discover how large a role “super PACs” are playing in this year’s presidential race. The short answer: Pretty large. The New York Times reports about 60 corporations and…
Squeeze the Day for Feb. 3
Music Tonight: It's a big night for local Reggae/Ska band The Pinstripes as the group celebrates the release of its phenomenal new full-length, I. CityBeat's Brian Baker and I both saw fit to profusely gush about the new release (Brian loves 'em so much, he also did the liner notes). In this week's installment of…
Stage Door
Each week in Stage Door, Rick Pender offers theater tips for the weekend, often with a few pieces of theater news. The Whipping Man is drawing big audiences for Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati. In fact, they’ve added several performances extending the closing date from Feb. 12 to Feb. 18. It’s the story of Simon, a…
The “Live Music in a Movie Theater” Experience
The men of Goat Rodeo Sessions played an entire world tour on Tuesday night. And not once did Yo-Yo Ma, Chris Thile, Stuart Duncan or Edgar Meyer let on that they were tired. That might have something to do with the fact that they never left Boston. Any time a band puts out a new…
Caspa
You rarely see a musician dabbling in sports — OK, Marvin Gaye did try out for the Detroit Lions — but it’s certainly not unusual to see an athlete turn to music. So it was with London Dubstep producer/DJ Gary McCann, more prominently known as Caspa. As a young man, a devastating shoulder injury ended…
Tebow, Islam and Bad Columnists
A recent plodding column by The Enquirer’s Krista Ramsey asked the red herring question in its headline, “So what if Tebow believes his audience is God?” Tebow, of course, refers to Tim Tebow, the quarterback for the Denver Broncos who has a tendency to dramatically kneel down on the gridiron, close his eyes and pray…
Music, Movies and the Not So Mundane
Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found via animal testing that zapping the testicles of rats with a therapeutic ultrasound machine can get rid of the germ cells used to produce sperm. "This caused rat sperm counts to fall far below the [equivalent] range seen in normal fertile men, and…
Lotus with Skeetones
If Bluegrass comes from Kentucky and Blues is from Memphis, where does Jam Band music come from? If you’re a Lotus fan, it comes from Indiana. Lotus formed at Goshen College in 1999 and quickly gained fans with their synth-y, electronic take on Jam. It’s that kind of attitude that has earned Lotus a Jammy…
I Shall Be Released: New Music Reviews
Sometimes I feel like that scene in Seinfeld where Newman talks himself into a state of bug-eyed crazy as he describes the endless stream of mail that the Post Office is forced to deal with every day. I feel his fictional pain as I look about the Bunker and realize the stacks keep stacking regardless…
Pros and Cons of Privatization
The push to privatize services traditionally provided by government is the focus of a community forum slated for next week. Since the Reagan era, privatization — or the outsourcing of public services to the private sector — has been touted as a way to make government more efficient and less costly. Critics, however, allege it…
Q&A with Anthrax
Anthrax are innovators of the sound of today’s Hard Rock and Metal landscape. The band recently released its 10th studio album, Worship Music, a return to the band’s early sound thanks to the re-emergence of lead vocalist Joey Belladonna. CityBeat caught up with Belladonna and guitarist Rob Caggiano before their show earlier this week in…
Komen Controversy Heats Up
The Susan. G Komen for the Cure foundation had the clout to monopolize the color pink to enhance their brand; now, it's showing off its political power and coming under serious fire for it. It's only been a few days since Susan G. Komen announced it would no longer be providing grants worth hundreds of…
Morning News and Stuff
The big news breaking the Internets is that Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the nation’s leading breast cancer charity, is pulling its grants from Planned Parenthood affiliates. The charity gave about $680,000 last year and $580,000 in 2010, which is mostly used to provide free breast exams for low-income women.—- Although Komen officials say…
Squeeze the Day for 2/2
Music Tonight: Increasingly popular Pop singer/songwriter Andy Grammer plays Oakley's 20th Century Theatre with guests Rachel Platten and Ryan Star (don't get your TV music contests mixed up — it's Ryan Star from Rock Star: Supernova, not Ryan Starr from American Idol). Last year was a breakthrough one for Grammer, whose single "Keep Your Head…
Are You Preggers? One Million Birth Control Packs Recalled
Pfizer tapped into women’s worst nightmares all around the country on Tuesday when it announced a recall on 1.4 million packages of birth control pills. Apparently, a packaging error on Lo/Ovral-28, Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol meant that the pills “may contain an inexact count of inert or active ingredient tablets and that the tablets may…
The Mouse
How the thing got into my apartment, I have no idea. All I know is that one afternoon I heard a rustling sound near the garbage can in my kitchen. Moving the can, I saw it run behind my stove. Real men don’t scream when they see such a thing, but I know I had…
New Edition
New Edition in town on Valentine’s Day? Babies will be made (hopefully after the concert). Inspired initially by the Jackson 5, New Edition’s “cute” early material (“Candy Girl,” “Cool It Now”) gave way to a more innovative sound that combined R&B and Hip Hop and helped pave the way for the still-influential New Jack Swing…
New Laws to Protect Housing Equality for LGBTs
The military’s infamous “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy has been repealed for over four months, outlawing exclusion and discrimination against LGBT populations in the military service. When seeking housing, however, LGBT populations across the country still face arbitrary prejudices and inequality. That’s why on Jan. 28, Shaun Donovan, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary, spoke…
Shit Cincinnatians Say
I guess it was only a matter of time. The Shit Girls Say viral phenomenon has sparked hundreds of knock-offs: Shit Black Guys Say, Shit Girls Say to Gay Guys, Shit Nobody Says are among my favorites. Now, we have our own. —- OK, not the funniest or most accurate sayings, but we'll take it.…
New EP From a Pomegranate
Isaac Joel of local acclaimed Indie Pop band Pomegranates has issued a compelling new EP titled Back to Bassics. Written and recorded with just bass guitar and vocals, the EP's six tracks are melodic, ambient and psychedelic, at times encased in hovering atmospherics but also often defiantly minimalistic and sparse. It's a thoroughly engaging collection…
Clooney Gives Local Shout-outs on Bravo
George Clooney was featured on Inside the Actor's Studio with James Lipton Tuesday night. The local hero talked about growing up in Kentucky, making it in Los Angeles and many of his famed performances on the oft-spoofed show. There were plenty of local mentions throughout the interview. Clooney briefly talked about his time at Augusta…
Minor Leagues’ ‘North College Hill’ LP Out Now
Yesterday, Cincinnati Indie Pop/Rock band The Minor Leagues dropped their latest album via longtime label Datawaslost (based in Chicago). The release — the group's sixth full-length — is another in the band's string of "concept albums." Titled North College Hill (after the local neighborhood), singer/frontman Ben Walpole says the theme is "all about where I…
Bonus Porkopolis This Week
Oops! Sorry everyone, due to a mistake by our printers, this week’s issue of CityBeat has two page 5s and no page 6. Did somebody say they wanted MORE KEVIN OSBORNE or was there an uprising AGAINST MARK FLANIGAN?!? Anyway, enjoy your double dose of Pork this week, and go here to read Mark Flanigan’s…
Morning News and Stuff
Mitt Romney won a sizable victory in Tuesday’s Florida primary, capturing 46.4 percent of the vote to Newt Gingrich’s 31.9 percent. In all, Romney got 240,548 more votes than the ex-House Speaker. “The size and breadth of Romney’s win provide the first real evidence that he has the potential to coalesce a party that has…
Squeeze the Day for 2/1
Music Tonight: If you like your American Roots music with a modern, progressive edge, type "Stanley's Pub" into your GPS system and follow it to the Columbia-Tusculum-area club where local Bluegrass/Folk/Roots/Jazz/Blues/Etc. fusionaires The Tadcasters begin their "Artist of the Month" residency tonight. The band plays a free show at the club every Wednesday this month…
Alicia Reece and Rebecca Heimlich
[WINNER] ALICIA REECE : The state representative from Bond Hill has introduced a bill that would reduce the number of reasons for making voters cast provisional ballots and also clarifies that election officials will be held responsible for errors instead of blaming voters. Reece pushed the bill after the 2010 race for Hamilton County Juvenile…
1%
I had done it a thousand times. Jumped in their car, drove through the tunnel, turned right out of it and then right into the underground parking lot. I did it for those who arrived late, or those who didn’t want to deal with the fans. I did it this time as I always did,…
Greg Cook: ‘The Prince Who Never Became King’
Before Kenyon Martin’s leg snapped in Memphis, before Ken Griffey Jr. was hobbled running around third in a spring training game and before Carson Palmer met Kimo von Oelhoffen, the injury that led to a million “what ifs” in Cincinnati was Greg Cook’s golden right shoulder. Cook, the former Bengal and Bearcat quarterback, died last…
Jan. 25-31: Worst Week Ever!
WEDNESDAY JAN. 25 During tonight’s State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama proposed that high school students be required to stay in school until they are 18, no matter how many grades they fail. According to the Department of Education, Obama intends this planned reform as “encouragement” to the 30 states that don’t currently…
Heed Jefferson and Stand Up Against Corporations
O ne way or another, it’s going to get done. It’s got to if we want to preserve any semblance of a functioning democracy in our nation. “It” is overturning the U.S. Supreme Court’s dreadful Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission ruling. The decision, which marked its second anniversary last month, undid nearly a century’s…
Gingrinch, Facebook and the Super Bowl
[HOT] Rockers Get Newt-ered Newt Gingrinch has commandeered the bafflingly popular trend of conservative politicians using songs in their campaigns by musicians who would rather have their music soundtrack snuff films. First, British Funk/Rock group The Heavy found out its hit “How You Like Me Now?” was used at a Florida rally for the GOP…
