‘Toni Erdmann’ is an ode to family
German writer-director Maren Ade earned a Palme d’Or nomination at the Cannes Film Festival for Toni Erdmann, which triggered explosive buzz and immediately catapulted the film into the rarefied air of one of the best foreign language films of 2016. It’s an Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Film. That might seem somewhat surprising when…
Morning News: Minority, women-owned businesses getting more city contracts; lawsuit over CPD District 5 HQ; Portman wavering on Trump nominee
Good morning all. Let’s talk news, shall we? The proportion of city contracts going to businesses owned by minorities is up, Mayor John Cranley announced yesterday. Upon taking office, Cranley set a goal that 15 percent of the city’s contracts would go to those businesses — a mark the city surpassed last year, tapping minority-owned…
The Green Derby celebrates its 70th anniversary with classic comfort dishes and great cocktails
When you think of Cincinnati-area restaurants with a long history, places such as Arnold’s (opened as a bar in 1861), Mecklenburg Gardens (1865) and the Greyhound Tavern (1921) may come to mind. Newport’s Green Derby hasn’t been around quite that long, but its establishment in 1947 does make it one of the granddaddies of local…
Cincinnati Entertainment Awards to return in November
The 20th-annivesary edition of CityBeat’s annual program celebrating Cincinnati’s original music scene, the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards (or CEAs), will take place in late November. The event had been moved to January to separate it from the MidPoint Music Festival, which CityBeat also owned and operated for several years. With MPMF changing ownership to MEMI for…
LISTEN: Injecting Strangers Say Bye (For Now) with ‘Dyin’ to Be Born’ EP
The great Cincinnati AltRock foursome Injecting Strangers has decided to go on what it is calling an “indefinite hiatus,” though the prospects of any activity in the immediate future don’t look good. The band has had an excellent run over the past few years, boasting one of the best live shows in town and releasing…
Minimum Gauge: Would it even be weird anymore if Moby was the one who saved America?
HOT: Last Night a DJ Saved Our Lives? With the way the Trump administration is going, would it even be weird if an EDM legend was the person to bring the whole thing down? Electronic musician Moby drew a lot of attention when he posted on social media about several things he says he learned…
Morning News: Sen. Brown touts Brent Spence replacement; WNKU sold; top Trump official resigns
Good morning all. I heard it’s some holiday or another, but I’m not sure which one. Probably not that important. Anyway, here’s some news today. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown yesterday paid a visit to the Queen City to talk about the Brent Spence Bridge, a major shipping route that carries I-75 across the Ohio River.…
An SMU student covered UC’s biggest game of the year for The Enquirer
ESPN called it the American Athletic Conference’s “Game of the Year,” and Sunday’s matchup between the No. 25 SMU Mustangs and the No. 11 UC Bearcats in Dallas drew glitterati like former president George W. Bush and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. It was the kind of hard-fought contest that has defined the schools’ battle…
Morning News: Cranley announces endorsements; protester interupts Wenstrup speech; Mandel taps Trumpers for Senate campaign
Hello all. Hope your weekend was fantastic and you got out to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather (thanks climate change!) I spent a good portion of my Saturday at an outdoor beer garden eating copious amounts of goettawurst and pretzels at something called Mustard Club, so I’m good now. But now it’s Monday and there’s…
2017 Best of Cincinnati Celebration
Wednesday, March 29 6 p.m.-9 p.m. The Phoenix Tickets on sale now: goo.gl/KA5P5x Join CityBeat for our annual Best of Cincinnati© Celebration on March 29, sponsored by Old 502 Winery & Event Enterprises and BowTie Cause. Enjoy entertainment and get your fill from more than 30 of your favorite area food and drink vendors. The…
Josh Mandel’s Trump Twitter impersonation is a preview of a wild Senate campaign
Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel has gotten a lot more vocal of late. Perhaps it’s his attempt to work his way out from under the shadow of another, more famous Mandel. Maybe the staunch conservative has just caught a case of Trump fever. The most likely explanation, however, is the campaign for Senate he announced in…
Stage Door: Ghosts, Spirits and Spirited Theater
I doubt that a “spirit photographer” would be taken seriously these days, what with Photoshop and the ability to manipulate images digitally. But back in the 1860s, photography was a new, mysterious art form — so it’s not a big surprise that some people believed a camera could capture images of dead people who had…
Morning News: City, county to begin meetings on Western Hills Viaduct; state lawmakers propose photos on foodstamp cards; federal court swats down Trump’s immigration executive order
Hey all. It’s Friday! It’s supposed to be kind of warm this weekend! This is all great news. Until we’re free from the shackles of work for a couple days, here’s some probably more important but less exciting news. Just about every Cincinnati City Council meeting, members speed through approval of mayoral and city manager…
Your Weekend To Do List (Feb. 10-12)
FRIDAY 10 MUSIC: LA NOURRITURE When Rhonda Juliano’s contract as artistic director with MUSE, Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir ended in July, she took inspiration from the word “fluidity” to form a new chorus — Fluidity, a Creative Choral Community for a Cause. Its debut concert, La nourriture, is this Friday evening at New Riff Distillery in…
Morning News: Can feds strip funding for sanctuary city status?; Cleveland federal judge: Trump’s comments call into question his legitimacy; KKK targets Ohio, other states
Here’s a quick news update for you today, which is apparently National Pizza Day. Celebrate responsibly. Can President Donald Trump’s administration strip federal infrastructure funding from sanctuary cities? And, after Cincinnati’s announcement that it’s such a city last week, will it feel the sting? Both questions are a bit unclear. Responding to a question via…
Love On the Brain
Booze & Food An Evening in Paris — Chef Nathan has crafted a special Valentine’s-themed menu featuring selections including petit plateau de mer, charcuterie et fromage, bistro steak et frites and more. A la carte menu also available. 5-9 p.m. $50 per person prix fixe. La Petite Pierre, 7800 Camargo Road, Madeira, lapetitepierre.com. BB Riverboats…
Love List 2017
CityBeat’s annual Love List introduces you to seven passionate Cincinnatians who have turned what they love into their lifestyles. These are portraits of people striving to celebrate life by pursuing a path that rejoices in kindness, creativity and, in some cases, the drive to make some really good wine. By focusing on why they love…
Melissa Lieb
Title: Owner of Swoon OTR Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love her: For providing comfy, ethically produced lingerie for all body types Swoon OTR, a new, upscale lingerie boutique in Over-the-Rhine, has a simple but salient mission: to offer Cincinnati women independent, ethically minded labels that complement bodies of all shapes and sizes. Helmed by Melissa Lieb, a graduate…
Phillip Eugene Smith aka Eugenius
Title: Rapper and musician Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love him: For his clear message: “Speak your mind in the face of adversity” “I stutter sometimes when I talk, but not when I’m on this mic,” begins the last track on Eugenius’ new album, Satsui no hado. It unfolds like a retreat after the relentlessly passionate and chaotic first six…
Kate MacDonald
Title: Owner and vintner behind Skeleton Root urban winery Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love her: She had a dream of creating a winery that would reconnect Cincinnati with its deep and fruitful winemaking heritage — and she quit her day job to make it real Kate MacDonald and her partner Josh Jackson, both in life and business, are searching…
Matt Distel
Title: Exhibitions Director, The Carnegie; co-owner, The Littlefield and Second Place Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love him: For his ongoing cultivation of the local art scene and for representing Cincinnati to the larger art world in ways that make us proud to be Midwestern Matt Distel has long been a champion of the local art scene. After graduating from Miami University…
Sky White
Title: Founder of Wendigo Tea Co. and keyboardist/pianist for on-hiatus local Rock band Foxy Shazam Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love him: For his infectiously kind and friendly personality — and his world-class tea business During an unseasonably warm January afternoon, burgeoning tea entrepreneur Sky White and I stroll through Washington Park conducting an interview. In the span of an hour…
Dan Korman
Title: Founder and owner of longtime green general store Park + Vine, which closed Jan. 15 Hometown: Cincinnati Why we love him: He’s a gentle, progressive, urban activist and an early pioneer of the new OTR Park + Vine, Over-the-Rhine’s green general store, closed last month just shy of 10 years of service. Owner and founder Dan Korman’s store…
Yuliya Bui
Title: Owner of Gia and the Blooms Hometown: Minsk, Belarus Why we love her: For channeling her passion into beautiful bouquets and delivering them for free Yuliya Bui loves life. It’s the first thing she says when asked to share the things she loves most, and it’s evident in just how much her life has already entailed. Ten years…
What a Week! Feb. 1-7
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 01 Law-abiding American citizens are being detained at airport terminals because of their nationality. A woman with zero public school experience was just confirmed to head the Department of Education. The U.S. president’s press secretary swallows giant wads of chewing gum every day. During a time when life could not seem more hopeless…
On Screen: ‘Julieta’
I remember my first encounter with Pedro Almodóvar, back when I was in college. I had read about Matador and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, but I hadn’t tracked those films down yet — the realities of the pre-streaming age. I recall the attention paid to his fascination with high camp and hyper-styled melodrama,…
Goodbye, ‘Girls’
Girls (Season Premiere, 10 p.m. Sunday, HBO) has been described as creator/writer/star Lena Dunham’s love letter to young women, to New York, to the millennial generation. But really, the dramedy is more of a diary entry than a valentine. It’s self-centered, personal to one specific (type of) person, plagued with over-sharing and superfluous details, simultaneously honest, hilarious…
Oscar-Nominated Short Docs Offer Truth, Drama
This year, possibly moreso than in years past, Cincinnati World Cinema’s annual presentation of the Oscar-Nominated Short Documentaries shoulders a historic burden, beyond its mission to highlight education and culture by providing “the community with outstanding motion pictures that explore the human condition and celebrate cultural diversity.” As always, this aim syncs up with eligibility…
Fluidity: A New Choral Group with a Social Cause
When Rhonda Juliano’s contract as artistic director with MUSE, Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir ended in July, she took inspiration from the word “fluidity” to form a new chorus — Fluidity, a Creative Choral Community for a Cause. Its debut concert, La nourriture, is this Friday evening at New Riff Distillery in Newport. “I wanted to create…
French Jewelry and Art History
For its Bijoux Parisiens: French Jewelry from the Petit Palais, Paris exhibition that opens Saturday, the Taft Museum of Art is offering an obvious tie-in: macarons during three special Saturday afternoon tea services. But maybe it should also be renting those magnifying eyeglass loupes, some with LED lights, that jewelers and lapidarists wear to better see…
Jewelry and clothing designer Da’Mon Butler’s unconventional creations are gaining attention
If there’s a living example of the idiom that “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” it’s Da’Mon Butler. For about 17 years, Butler has lived in Cincinnati designing and selling jewelry and accessories, with some pieces made out of unorthodox materials. And he has lately expanded into clothing. Butler sells through his business, Nomad3176…
Sound Advice: STRFKR with Psychic Twin (Feb. 9)
STRFKR released four studio albums between 2008 and 2013, a flurry that established the Portland, Ore.-based band’s adventurous, dance-oriented Pop credentials alongside acts like Cut Copy and MGMT. The range of output likely surprised even founder and frontman Joshua Hodges — the band started as a side-project extension of his one-man outfit, Sexton Blake. Of…
Sound Advice: July Talk with Mona (Feb. 10)
Toronto rockers July Talk have been on a gradual but unstoppably steady climb since their formation in 2012. That year saw the initial release of the band’s self-titled debut album on Canadian indie label Sleepless Records; the album proved to have a lengthy shelf life. Coupled with the group’s intense and jubilant live show, July…
Sound Advice: Pop Evil with Red Sun Rising and Badflower (Feb. 12)
Given the struggle and tumult that Hard Rock quintet Pop Evil has endured to reach the level of success they’ve achieved, it might have been tempting fate just a little to name its most recent and best album Up. You know what they say about up — only one way to go from there. For…
New Brian Olive album set for late April release
Grammy-winning local musician/producer Brian Olive is gearing up for his latest solo album release, Living On Top, which is due April 28. A release party on that date has been announced for Over-the-Rhine’s Woodward Theater. Tickets for the show — also featuring Pop Empire and Royal Holland — are on sale now at cincyticket.com. CityBeat hosted the public premiere of…
Morning News: Judge denies Dennison demo pause; UC delays investigation into officers; OD deaths surge in suburbs
Hey Cincy. Let’s talk news for just a minute. Preservationists won’t get a two-week restraining order against the demolition of the Dennison Hotel building downtown, Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Lisa Allen ruled yesterday. After about an hour of testimony from attorneys representing downtown property owner Matt Wood and Columbia’s attorneys Fran Barrett and…
Spoon & Cellar: A New Spot for Steak and Wine
At the end of last year, restaurant Spoon & Cellar quietly opened inside the new Holiday Inn on Broadway Street downtown. Though typical hotel restaurants can be hit or miss, this one lands somewhere in the middle — especially in a city that holds its hotel cuisine to higher standards (see: Metropole at 21c, Orchids…
The Pickled Pig turns customers into fermented food fans, one pickled vegetable at a time
I didn’t get along with pickles. I didn’t like them; I didn’t trust them. I picked them off my burgers. I created tiny napkin walls between them and my french fries at restaurants. So when I first caught wind of local food fermenter The Pickled Pig, by name alone I chalked it up as edibles I…
Neighborhood groups are concerned about the final version of a big new development coming to northern OTR
It’s just a couple of gated fields right now, but the spot on the northwest corner of Liberty and Elm streets could set the tone for the future of Over-the-Rhine’s northern half. The so-called Liberty and Elm development proposed by downtown Cincinnati-based Source 3 Development would be a major change for the area and a…
Minimum Gauge: Despite right-wing claims, widespread Satanism, war averted after Lady Gaga Super Bowl show
HOT: Right Wing Goes Gaga Lady Gaga did a perfectly fine Super Bowl halftime show that seemed to troll right-wing critics by not including overt “political statements.” But before she even performed, NRATV, a propaganda outlet for the National Rifle Association, weighed in, saying that if Gaga went on an “anti-Trump tirade” it would mark…
Greensky Bluegrass mature as musicians and writers on latest album, ‘Shouted, Written Down & Quoted’
“Maturity” is a term some musicians prefer not to see associated with themselves or their bands. After all, music is considered a young person’s game, and youthful rebellion can be a big part of an artist’s image. But with the release of the sixth Greensky Bluegrass studio album, Shouted, Written Down & Quoted, mandolin player/singer…
