Whole Lotta Heart
H eart singer Ann Wilson has a simple philosophy these days about how she and sister Nancy Wilson should go about their career. “At this point in our career, at this point in our creative life, there’s no point at all in not doing exactly what we feel like doing,” she says. The Wilson sisters…
The Beard Whisperers
T he founders/organizers of the annual Whispering Beard Folk Festival in Friendship, Ind., (about 50 miles west of Cincinnati), seem to like nicknames. A quick scan of the festival’s website (whisperingbeard.com) reveals that Matt Wabnitz claims the handle “Buffalo,” while co-founder Matt Williams’ go-by is “Katfish.” A logical assumption would be that the two Matts…
Work Hard, Play Hard, Get Better
W iz Khalifa seems all too aware that music has long had its share of one-hit wonders and that Hip Hop seems to be a genre in which fans are always looking for the next big thing. That’s one reason why last year’s release of his highly anticipated second major-label album, O.N.I.F.C., was pushed back…
Trouble and Triumph
T he National’s move from just another Brooklyn, N.Y., Indie band to internationally known purveyors of sophisticated Chamber Rock is complete. The band’s five members, all products of suburban Cincinnati, are now at the back-end of their thirties. They’ve released five increasingly well-received albums and have played just about every music festival imaginable. They’ve lent…
Summertime Blues? Open Your Ears!
We are two weeks into summer and there have been plenty of great musical events already. But, thanks in part to the growing number of venues hosting larger concerts in the area, there’s still a lifetime of shows to come this hot season. Greater Cincinnati’s general growth, particularly in the Downtown/Over-the-Rhine area, has changed the…
REVIEW: Animal Circles’ ‘Eva Lee’
In the late ’70s, Punk Rock and New Wave were blossoming in New York City. But those genre tags were just a convenient labeling device, a catch-all that didn’t take into consideration all of the varied influences artists were bringing with them under that umbrella of Punk or New Wave. Bands would drag things like…
Matt Pond
Matt Pond is back, but without the PA. Pond’s new album, The Lives Inside the Lines of Your Hand, has been referred to as a solo work, but that seems unnecessary. There’s still an impressive line-up backing him, which has always been the case. Back before he disassociated himself from the PA, Matt Pond PA…
Richard Thompson with Bob Dylan, Wilco and My Morning Jacket
British Folk/Rock legend Richard Thompson could certainly qualify as being a man of few words when it comes to interviews. And when he's sequestered in his Woodstock, N.Y., acoustic guitar and songwriting camp, Frets and Refrains, where cellphone coverage is almost non-existent and email exchanges are the lone method of communication, the words come at…
Ohio Drops in Ranking of Highway Conditions
An annual report on the nation’s highways found Ohio’s rank among states has dropped from No. 13 to No. 25 over three years, despite improvement throughout the nation as a whole. The 20th “Annual Highway Report” released by the Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank, looked at state-by-state road conditions and cost effectiveness, putting North…
Morning News and Stuff
Councilman Chris Seelbach and other local leaders are calling on Congress to rework the Voting Rights Act following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down key provisions. Supporters of the Voting Rights Act argue it’s necessary to prevent discrimination and protect people’s right to vote, while critics call it an outdated measure from the…
John Mayer
In case you missed the pink memo plastered on our website for weeks: John Mayer is coming to town. In the last several years, Mayer has undergone two throat surgeries. The first medically induced silence came at the perfect time for Mayer — just after he stuffed his foot in his mouth after a slew…
The Spring Standards
When hearing about bands made up of musicians in their twenties and thirties, it is not unusual to hear a phrase along the lines of, “Our parents had an awesome record collection.” Such is the case with The Spring Standards. The Indie Folk Rock trio, featuring Heather Robb, James Cleare and James Smith, dug deep…
Free Shakespeare in the Park Tour Returns
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company continues its summer tradition of Shakespeare in the Park as the free series returns for the seventh year this August. Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be showcased in parks around the Greater Cincinnati area and Northern Kentucky Aug. 3-30. CSC Ensemble Member Nicholas Rose is directing the classic…
Maybe ‘Seinfeld’ Saved My Life
Jerry Seinfeld’s web series, “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,” is back on the Internet this summer with new episodes and I’m glad. The title implies exactly what the series is all about, the shows are relatively short and they’re funny. It’s a treat watching them. When I think about it, Seinfeld and I have a…
Morning News and Stuff
Following approval from the Republican-controlled General Assembly earlier in the week, Gov. John Kasich last night signed a $62 billion two-year state budget that makes sweeping changes to taxes and takes numerous anti-abortion measures. On the tax front, Policy Matters Ohio previously criticized the mix of income tax cuts and property and sales tax hikes…
State Budget Rejects Medicaid Expansion
Despite strong backing from Republican Gov. John Kasich, the Medicaid expansion didn’t make it into the final version of the two-year state budget passed by the Republican-controlled General Assembly on Thursday. Col Owens, co-convener of the Southwest Ohio Medicaid Expansion Coalition, calls the expansion’s failure a disappointment, but he says he remains optimistic the expansion…
State Budget’s Education Increases Fall Short of Past Funding
Compared to the previous budget, the two-year state budget passed by the Republican-controlled General Assembly Thursday increased school funding by $700 million. But the funding is still $515 million less than Ohio schools received in 2009. The result: Cincinnati Public Schools will receive $15 million less in state funding than it did in 2009, joining…
Q&A with The Eli Young Band’s Chris Thompson
The Eli Young Band brings a taste of Red Dirt music to the forefront of Country music. The band has an upbeat and distinct sound that has caught on quickly on a national scale. EYB saw mild success through the years touring on Jet Black and Jealous and hit a major stride with its most…
Attorney General Releases Human Trafficking Report
New data released today in the first annual Human Trafficking Statistics Report, compiled by the state’s Human Trafficking Commission, provides reports on human trafficking investigations conducted by local law enforcement agencies across the state. Ohio’s Safe Harbor Law, also known as House Bill 262, was passed June 27 last year to combat Ohio’s human trafficking…
Music Tonight: MidPoint Indie Summer
Tonight's free MidPoint Indie Summer concert on Fountain Square has an element of contemporary local music heritage … and lots of ear-grabbing melody. The show is being headlined by psychodots, one of the most popular (and locally influential) original bands to ever call Cincinnati home. Check the Pop/Rock trio's website here and a clip of…
Morning News and Stuff
The Republican-controlled Ohio General Assembly yesterday passed its state budget for the next two years, and Gov. John Kasich is expected to sign the bill this weekend. Part of the budget is a tax plan that would cut income taxes but raise sales and property taxes in a way that Policy Matters Ohio, a left-leaning…
Stage Door: Wrapping Up Summer
Well, the big show that's on the way will be fireworks next week, of course. That means that most theaters are wrapping up early summer productions. But you still have a chance to see The Hound of the Baskervilles at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. It's a daffy take on a Sherlock Holmes mystery. In truth, it…
State Budget to Limit Access to Abortion
Republican state legislators are using the two-year state budget to pass sweeping anti-abortion measures — and they’re proud to admit it. The goal is “to maintain the sanctity of human life,” says Michael Dittoe, spokesperson for Ohio House Republicans. Most recently, the House-Senate conference committee, which put the final touches to the state budget, tacked…
CityBeat Wins Mad Awards
CityBeat writers, editors and designers received a variety of awards at last night's Society of Professional Journalists Cincinnati chapter awards banquet and hall of fame induction ceremony. During an event that ended with our designers DRINKING TOO MUCH WINE, BREAKING THEIR SHOES AND RIDING HOME IN THE TINY SEATS IN PICKUP TRUCKS, CityBeat was recognized…
Report: State Budget Tax Plan Favors Wealthy
An analysis released June 26 found Ohio’s top 1 percent would get the biggest breaks from the tax plan included in the final version of the two-year state budget, while the state’s poorest would pay more under the plan. The analysis, conducted by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy for public policy think tank…
Music Tonight: Kings of the Mic and More
The cross-country “Kings of the Mic” tour is technically an old-school Hip Hop exhibition, but the packaging of these particular artists — most of whom have been and remain vital and relevant today — makes it much more than just a 21st century version of an “oldies” revue. And the fact that the three headlining…
Planned Parenthood Offering Free HIV Testing Today
To honor National HIV Testing Day — a day meant to raise awareness about the virus — Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio region is offering free HIV testing at three locations in the Cincinnati area. Free HIV testing is available today at from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Cincinnati's VA Medical Center (3200 Vine St.) and from…
Gabrielle Giffords to Appear in Northside 4th of July Parade
Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will appear in next week's Northside 4th of July Parade as part of a nationwide tour supporting responsible gun legislation, according to parade organizers. Giffords was scheduled to be in town on July 4 as part of a gun-violence prevention tour called The Rights and Responsibilities Tour, and her team…
Morning News and Stuff
The Hamilton County Jail charges its inmates a fee for incarceration, and a new report from the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio (ACLU) suggests the practice harms low-income inmates and raises little money for the county . CityBeat got an exclusive early look at the report, which scrutinized three counties for their pay-to-stay policies.…
Q&A: Red’s Anthony Armstrong
Red is a Christian Rock band that has ascended into the mainstream alongside Rock acts like Papa Roach and Korn. The band members let their faith creep into their music and their message, but do not let it define them. Earlier this year Red released its fourth studio album, Release the Panic. The album debuted…
City Council Approves Streetcar Budget Fixes
City Council today approved funding and accountability measures for the Cincinnati streetcar project, allowing the project to move forward. On Monday, the Budget and Finance Committee approved the measures, which CityBeat covered in further detail here. The funding ordinance closes the streetcar project's $17.4 million budget gap by issuing more debt and pulling funding from…
Curmudgeon Notes 6.26.2013
• I hope Nelson Mandela is alive and healing when you read this. He’s an old man with a persistent and probably lethal lung problem born from decades in prison. His colleagues in the ANC are preparing the country for his death and the news media are full of calls for prayer, admonitions against futile…
Local, State Leaders React to LGBT Rulings
The U.S. Supreme Court today struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in a ruling that effectively requires the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages for couples who reside in states where same-sex marriage is legal. The DOMA ruling also sets a powerful historical precedent by extending equal protection rights to gay and…
Jumblin’ Osbornes, Thrifty Thievery and Hova’s Phone Fail
Jumblin’ Osbornes President Barack Obama recently revealed a musical secret — his favorite R&B singer is Jeffrey Osborne. This we learned when, more than once, the Prez referred to British chancellor George Osborne as “Jeffrey” during a briefing at the G8 meetings. According to ft.com, Obama realized his error and said, “I’m sorry, man. I…
Mindbenders Series Brings Devilishly Twisted Features to the ‘Nati
All too often, contemporary American movies tease us with plot “twists” that offer little more than narrative gimmicks to momentarily distract us from the pedestrian nature of the business. Filmmaking is now, sadly, all about the bottom-line, dollars-and-cents of creating a product, marketing the hell out of it and reaping the expected box office receipts.…
The Newsroom
The Newsroom is at once a high-minded critique of what television news divisions have become (ratings-obsessed entities more concerned with the bottom line than with “speaking truth to stupid,” as one character puts it) and a wit-infused comedic drama with myriad romantic subplots (most of which come off as clunky rip-offs of the one that…
Medium Cool
Writer-director-cameraman Haskell Wexler’s groundbreaking quasi-documentary captures the mood of a nation at high anxiety — a nation increasingly ruptured over an unpopular war and a seemingly radical counter culture that was bleeding into the mainstream. It’s hard to envision, 44 years after its release, the impact Medium Cool had on its audience; a live performance from…
Morning News and Stuff
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act today in a broad ruling that requires the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages for couples who reside in a state where same-sex marriage is already legal. The ruling effectively extends equal protection rights to same-sex couples. For gay and lesbian Ohioans, that…
Theater on the Horizon
Several slots for the 2013-2014 season have been filled in by local theaters as the current season finishes. Rather than mapping out an entire season, Know Theatre announces plays as rights can be obtained. They’ve landed Lauren Gunderson’s Toil and Trouble (July 26-Aug. 24), which had its world premiere last November; this will be its…
BrownGrass and Other Outdoor Musical Delights
The BrownGrass Festival returns to the charming small town of Rabbit Hash, Ky., this Saturday for its fourth annual event. BrownGrass is the brainchild of veteran local musician David Rhodes Brown and his fiancee Bobbi Kayser as a way to give back to publically funded Northern Kentucky radio mainstay WNKU (wnku.org), a “thank you” for…
Around the World in Eight Items or Less: Sweets
The “International Aisles” at chain supermarkets have evolved greatly over the past couple of decades. Though they probably vary depending on what part of the country you’re in, most I’ve seen play up the “international” flavor of the designated aisle with national flags and foods categorized by country. Amidst the taco and tortilla shells, rice,…
The Little Engine That Could
Against all the odds, naysaying and obstructionism it’s faced, Cincinnati’s streetcar project is moving forward. Not only is it receiving a necessary boost in financial support from City Council, but the project is also in line for another $5 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation. For Cincinnati, the project’s renewed stability should provide optimism…
Council Rejects Compromise on Sewer Projects
City Council on June 24 turned down a compromise between Cincinnati and Hamilton County that would have ended the county’s funding hold on sewer projects, which would have allowed the projects to move forward. The city and county will now have to rework the terms of the compromise or risk keeping mandated sewer projects unfunded.…
CAC’s Upcoming Season Has a Lot to Like — and Lick
If sometime early next year there is an outbreak of people madly, passionately licking the support poles inside Cincinnati buses, you’ll know Contemporary Arts Center’s upcoming Buildering: Misbehaving the City has had its desired effect. That show — the only group exhibition among the six (counting an UnMuseum installation) slated for the 2013-14 season —…
Report: Government “Megadeals” Fail to Produce Jobs
Ohio is No. 3 in the nation for “megadeals” — massive government subsidies to corporations that are meant to encourage in-state job creation — but a new report found many of the deals rarely produce the kind of jobs initially touted by public officials. Good Jobs First, a policy group dedicated to corporate and government…
Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Pride Parties
CINCINNATI PRIDE It’s spring 1973. In Cincinnati, the modern gay rights movement is in its infancy. Efforts are gaining momentum in the aftermath of the 1969 police raid of New York City gay bar The Stonewall, an act that sparked countless instances of protest and rebellion across the country. Bravely standing in the face of…
Streetcar Plan Moves Forward
City Council on June 24 approved increased funding along with additional accountability measures that will close a $17.4 million budget gap and keep the streetcar project on track. The increased funding, previously proposed by City Manager Milton Dohoney, will come from more issued debt and pulled funding from various capital projects, including infrastructure improvements around…
Cincinnati vs. The World 06.26.2013
Radical anti-abortion group Personhood Ohio tried fundraising for its cause — to outlaw all abortions — by selling assault rifles. CINCINNATI -2 A recent study found high levels of methane in Pennsylvania drinking water near the sites of fracking gas wells, which has some researchers worried the drilling technique might, as speculated, be harmful to…
Pura Vida PopUP Taqueria (Profile)
I f passion has a flavor, Jose Navales cooks some damn tasty food. Navales has the fervor that comes with being a convert — someone who has seen the light. He used to work for a restaurant supplier — you know, the ones who pull up in the alley and unload boxes of pre-fabricated pot…
The Slow Flight Skyward
W hether or not he realized it at the time, Erick Eiser committed to his future career — namely, as keyboardist/guitarist in New York City-based, Indie Rock-leaning four-piece The Dig — at the tender age of 17. Eiser, who comes from the Palm Springs, Calif., area, began his history with his future bandmates as he…
Get Out of Jail Fee
T he Hamilton County Jail charges its inmates a fee for incarceration, and a new report from the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio (ACLU) suggests the practice harms low-income inmates and raises little money for the county. The report, which CityBeat exclusively acquired from the ACLU prior to its official June 26 release, compares…
Michele Hobbs and Amanda Broughton
M ichele Hobbs and Amanda Broughton have been together for almost five years, married for two, and during this time they’ve accomplished everything they set out to do as a couple, including a romantic engagement, wedding in Provincetown, Mass.; opening an independent business; and having their twins. “We kind of had a track,” Hobbs says.…
Be More Awesome
I n Cincinnati, it pays to be awesome. Just ask Colleen O’Connell, the city’s first The Awesome Foundation grant recipient. O’Connell devotes her spare time to concocting delectable dessert foods, catering specifically to those with allergies and dietary restrictions. She enjoys surprising people by bringing her baked goods to events she attends and distributing them…
JAC Stringer
J AC Stringer’s path to becoming your average fuchsia-haired twentysomething living, working and playing in Cincinnati has probably been a little bit different than yours. And that’s OK. JAC (all caps, to stand for his old initials) was born, physically, a woman. It took him a long time to realize that being a “woman” is…
Cortnie Owens
C ortnie Owens has come pretty far from her rural East Side upbringing. After choosing to remain closeted about her sexuality during her high school years, Owens escaped the countryside to pursue a lifestyle decidedly more urban. With platinum blonde hair and arms inked with red roses, her very presence oozes “out” and “proud.” And…
Rich Sherman
R ich Sherman is one of the founders of CNKY Scene (cnkyscene.com), a monthly magazine highlighting LGBTQ entertainment, nightlife, businesses and the allied community in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. Born in Iowa and raised in Minneapolis, Sherman moved to Cincinnati two years ago and began work on his publication. “I came out about 10 years…
Carolyn Peterson
I f there’s anything University of Cincinnati human sexuality professor Carolyn Peterson wants to give you — whether you’re in her classroom, her office or her home — it’s the gift of permission, of consent, to everyone, but especially to her students who identify as LGBTQ. Born and raised in the Cincinnati area, Peterson has…
Chris Seelbach
T here’s been a lot of recent progress in the local LGBTQ world, but Cincinnati still has a long way to go. And like many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals, City Councilman Chris Seelbach and his partner Craig Schultz have a skeptical sense of optimism about the city’s changing attitudes. Although the two men…
White House Down
Never before have I fielded as many questions about similar plotlines in movies released in the same year than with the recent two-fer of White House assaults. Sight unseen, it feels like White House Down has the edge in terms of brand recognition, because it directly references the location (rather than relying on the “Olympus”…
The Heat
The pearly white gates of Pitch Heaven opened up and pooped out the idea for The Heat. Don’t believe me? Where else would the utterly generic notion of matching Sandra Bullock (as a special agent of the FBI) with Melissa McCarthy’s rogue Boston detective come from, if not the magic factory of crazy dreams and…
Faces of Pride
In a nation where the constitutionality of the doublespeak-ly named Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was just struck down by the Supreme Court and grassroots activists are working to get the Freedom to Marry and Religious Freedom Amendment on the ballot in November to legalize same-sex marriage in Ohio, this year’s Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky…
Worst Week Ever!: June 19-25
WEDNESDAY JUNE 19 America has devolved into the kind of place where you can’t even plan a wedding featuring all black waiters to give it an old-timey plantation feel or use the N-word without the PC Police clapping the sirens to the top of their sedans and coming for you. The Food Network today canned…
Shield Laws Create Gray Areas
The press card is an overt system of government licensing. Not the plastic bauble on a nylon necklace that an employer provides and admits us to the newsroom. No, I’m talking about a press card issued by some government agency that says we’re real journalists who have the freedom to do what the First Amendment of…
Marriage, Right?
The Westboro Baptist Church — everyone’s favorite congregation of soldier funeral-picketing, homophobic bigots with idiotic signs — currently holds the web address, “godhatesfags.com,” which makes sense, because they hate gay people. And they’ll show up at pretty much any tragedy or human rights debate to blame death, disease and destruction on the existence of homosexuals.…
In the Land of Cotton
Dear Paula: I usually don’t get all off into addressing white people on behalf of anyone other than myself, but since black folks are talking about you only among ourselves it’s necessary to tell you what we’ve been whispering about behind the slave cabins and around the fire. It’s mostly on Facebook, but it’s our…
In the End, Dexter Keeps It in the Family
We’ve survived The Ice Truck Killer, The Skinner, Trinity, The Doomsday Killer and other non-nicknamed bad guys, and in this final season of Dexter (9 p.m. Sundays, Showtime) our leading man must make some serious decisions about his “dark passenger” now that he has truly damaged the one person who cared about him the most.…
