The Memories are Mine
Notes: I dedicate this song to the victims of violence in the world, wherever they may live. I hope that one day, I'll never have to write a song like this. The Memories are Mine — Click Here to Listen 6/20/06 You may bomb the home where I was born Burn the fields I left…
News to Use
Support Medical Marijuana The U.S. House of Representatives might vote as early as next week on the 2006 Hinchey-Rohrabacher medical marijuana amendment, which would prevent the Justice Department and Drug Enforcement Administration from federally prosecuting state-authorized medical cannabis patients and their caregivers. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws urges citizens to contact…
Meaning of Independence
America's cities and towns will soon fill with parades, fireworks and barbecues. They will be celebrating the Fourth of July, the 230th birthday of America. But one hopes that the speeches will contain fewer bromides and more attention to exactly what is being celebrated. The Fourth of July is Independence Day, but America's leaders and…
News: Blue Collar, Green Future
Jared M. Holder Larry Fahn (left), past president of the National Sierra Club Board, and David Foster, national director of the Blue/Green Alliance, say labor unions and environmentalists have a common cause. One of the nation's largest labor unions is joining with the nation's largest grassroots environmental group to push a common political agenda…
Film: Noir, Revisited
Focus Features Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as Brendan, a teenage Humphrey Bogart of sorts, in Brick. First and foremost, Brick should be seen to witness the arrival of a gifted and imaginative new talent, director/writer Rian Johnson. His first feature is a dark, melancholy homage to film-noir movies and the hard-boiled detectives who starred in…
Living Out Loud: : I’ve Been Busy
Here I am on deadline and don't know what the hell to write about. The last several days have flown by and I haven't put any thought into this column whatsoever. Please understand. I've been busy — watching television. Well, not really television, but TV shows my 22-year-old son has downloaded and put on my…
Showbiz Players
Bunny Arsman Playwright Frank Wildhorn and director Bunny Arsman are collaborating on a production of The Civil War at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. Fresh off their ambitious staging of Urinetown, SHOWBIZ PLAYERS is undertaking a project that will be seen by thousands of people attending the Tall Stacks Music, Arts and Heritage…
Bad Refs Cast Doubt on Integrity of NBA and World Cup
Jerry Dowling The multi-billion dollar spectator sports business in America owes its profits chiefly to a pair of ideas embedded in the hearts of every fan. The first holds that the outcome of the game matters. The second stipulates that the games are fairly played and honestly won. The first is an illusion, as…
Troublemaker’s Journal
Over the past two months U.S authorities have accused several units of American soldiers of murder in Iraq, in one case a murder of women and children. Seven Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman face charges of premeditated murder of an Iraqi civilian. The U.S. Army in June charged three soldiers, members of the 101st…
News: Media by the Masses
Steve Carter-Novotni (L-R, front row): Shiloh and Shamir Maloney and Dani McClain and (back row, center) Obalaye Macharia discuss the media. Shiloh and Shamir Maloney say the theme of the 2006 Allied Media Conference (AMC), "From Truth to Power," resonated with them. They're MCs and members of Elementz youth center in the West End.…
Music: Monsters of Cock
Robert Padilla Though Ministry is considered Al Jourgensen's "main" band, for their current road trek, Jourgensen is bringing his manic "side project," Revolting Cocks. When you observe the liner photo of Al "Alien" Jourgensen on Cocked and Loaded, the new CD from Revolting Cocks, the first word that comes to your mind is not…
Desdemona
HOT Desdemona's Revenge This past weekend's three-day Indie music festival, Desdemona, at Sawyer Point, came at the end of a week that — if you paid attention to local media, especially The Enquirer — implied that Cincinnati was on its last legs as a viable "big city." With the census report indicating the city was…
Absolute Unity
We fear that if we come into hopelessness, only terrible or endless misery can be the outcome. This isn't to say that we should be hopeless, nor hopeful — for either type of hope implies the possibility of the other. Hope automatically implies the possibility of hopelessness. To think you're happy instantly taints, however subtly,…
Men Without Hats
Newport, Ky., Punk group Hats Off has returned with its third effort, Accumulation, which gets the "CD release party" treatment this Friday at Top Cat's. The Wankers, F.R.A., Downhill Luke and 16 Piece Bucket are also on the bill. The band has bulked up their sound a bit with Accumulation. The former trio is now…
Diner: Perfect Pairing
The Napa Grille Go: 2444 Madison Road, Hyde Park Call: 513-871-9463 Hours: 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday, 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Closed Monday Prices: Moderate to expensive Payment: Accept major credit cards Red Meat Alternatives: Salads, seafood, a few vegetarian options and chicken Accessibility: Yes Grade: B I think it's a good idea to pair wine with food.…
20th International Sculpture Conference
Solway Gallery and tthe CAC Edward Mayer's "Maid and Urn" is currently on view at Carl Solway Gallery. I hope you didn't miss it, but if you did, here's the news flash: The 20th International Sculpture Conference was held right here in Cincinnati last week (see Jane Durrell's report on page 52). Several area…
Time for Cincinnati to Step Up
With the public outcry over last week's announcement that Cincinnati is losing population faster than any other major U.S. city, Mayor Mark Mallory's honeymoon is officially over. In office for almost seven months now, Mallory has been given a wide berth by city residents and the media alike to establish himself. During last year's campaign,…
Starting from Scratch
C. Matthew Hamby About 20 years ago, I taught myself how to scratch using a copy of Run-DMC's hit single "Jam Master Jay," one of a handful of songs from the time that acknowledged the DJ's pivotal role in Hip Hop music. You know how the song goes: "K-E-V are the letters of his…
Music: My ‘Demona
James McKenna The Stills Play to a packed crowd at Desdemona Desdemona Photo Gallery – Click Here On a purely selfish, personal level, the Desdemona music festival at Sawyer Point last weekend was perfect. I love music fests and regularly travel to other cities to see them. I also thoroughly enjoy local music fests, from…
Film: Hero Worship
Warner Bros. Entertainment He's baaack: Superman (Brandon Routh) saves yet another day. Richard Donner's original big-screen Superman (1978) remains one of the best comic book adaptations of the blockbuster age, fueled by a game cast who were as interested in the human aspects of its story as its elaborate action sequences (which now look…
Police Study: Morale Sucks
CityBeat Archive City Councilman John Cranley wants the city to hire 100 more police officers. One day after Cincinnati officials cited the study as the basis for hiring up to 100 police officers, a secret report on police deployment issues was publicly released June 20 — or at least portions of it were. City…
Upcoming Concert Reviews of Final Fantasy, Yonder Mountain String Band and More…
Team Clermont Final Fantasy Final Fantasy with Alex Lukashevsky Thursday · alchemize Montreal's Owen Pallett answers a largely unasked musical question: What if Paul McCartney had left The Beatles and subsequently used "Eleanor Rigby" and Scott Joplin and Gilbert & Sullivan and Kurt Weill and Mozart and Laurie Anderson and Frank Zappa and Stephen…
Time Travelogue
The AAA Travel Guide to Rome: Revised and Updated for the Year 49 A.D. Today's Roman Empire is recognized as mankind's most successful and advanced civilization to date. (Sorry, Egyptians!) And the city of Rome — center of government, culture, trade, learning and the thriving Christian persecution industry — offers out-of-town visitors the opportunity to…
Locals Only: : Eyes On Ken
Robert Stout Kool Ken Twenty-five years ago, Melle Mel put South Bronx's "jungle" on blast, pointing to blighted buildings, streets lined with broken glass pipes and burned out, depressed people. Melle Mel wasn't glorifying this side of the Big Apple, though. It appeared rotten, so viewers got "The Message." Current videos' aerial perspective of…
Music: The Rhythms of the ‘Roo
Keith Klenowski Bonnaroo Photo Gallery – Click Here Now in its fifth year, Bonnaroo has rapidly become the nation's most beloved, well-organized and wildly diverse music and arts festival. For four days every June the rolling green pastures of Manchester, Tenn., are transformed into a sprawling pre-fab city, complete with plumbing, commerce, bright lights, live…
