WATCH: New Music Video from The National
Locally-bred Indie sensations The National posted a new music video on YouTube for "Think You Can Wait," the band's contribution to the soundtrack for the well-received film Win Win. It's a cool, moody tune from the band and the footage of the group members performing is excellent. But, while we understand why the clip is…
Music: Darren Hanlon
Here, in a nutshell, is a portrait of the contemporary singer/songwriter in the age of a dire global economy. Darren Hanlon, the young and smartly romantic Australian musician who headlines in Southgate House’s Parlour in support of his first American album, I Will Love You At All, is talking to me from Chapel Hill, N.C.,…
Events: SCPA Cincinnati’s Fur Ball
We’re all guilty of changing the channel when those heart-wrenching ASPCA commercials flash across the screen with Sarah McLachlan singing what could be the most depressing song ever written to images of neglected animals. Cut the guilt and do your part to keep Cincinnati's SPCA in the business of protecting our furry friends by attending…
Events: Vegan Wine and Chocolate Pairing
Did you know that some wines contain animal by-products? You might be surprised to know that a form of gelatin, extracted from fish, is used during the clarification process for some wines. But there are wine options out there that are totally animal by-product-free, for those of you in search of a conscientious way to…
Events: International Quilt Festival
Sink your needle and thread into the highly acclaimed International Quilt Festival Friday-Sunday at the Duke Energy Center (525 Elm St., Downtown). Dating back to 1974, this epic festival of quilt design has been known to attract more than 55,000 people from around the globe during its fall show in Houston. Be sure to fluff…
Art: Narrative Figuration at Weston Art Gallery
In the Weston Art Gallery’s new group exhibition Narrative Figuration, on display now, curator Daniel Brown assembles five talented local artists whose chosen mode is representational, figurative work. All five artists have studied at the University of Cincinnati (DAAP). Their work focuses on genre scenes, with a renewed interest in beauty. While much of the…
Peter Mayer’s Retrospective
Over the past 30 years, Peter Mayer has created an impressive body of music within the Cincinnati scene but has hardly enjoyed the rewards or reputation as his similarly vintaged peer group. He's succeeded on his own terms but he wouldn't mind a touch of recognition for his labors. "If I don't see some kind…
Events: Airwaves Kite Fest
It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s Kite Fest! Soaring through 330 acres of open air is one of kids' favorite pastimes. Shapes of dogs, cats, penguins, ducks and many other animals will float through the air in the celebration of kites. The warm April sky will be filled with bold colors, graceful figures and…
Events: 50-50-50 Beer Fest
Have you sampled all of the brews that Cin City has to offer? Want to try other states' best beers without leaving your hometown? If you answered “yes” to either of these questions then MOTR Pub (1345 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-381-6687) has just what you are looking for. MOTR's “Nearly 50 Kegs From Roughly 50…
Onstage: The Dragon
Know Theatre of Cincinnati is known for its fearless work and for partnering with other artists and companies. But I wish more of their work engaged me. Last season’s Angels in America, featuring several excellent local directors and actors, was a box-office success and last fall’s Skin Tight featured an experimental script — as much…
The Wonder Years
At first blush, Dan “Soupy” Campbell's lyrics and Charles Bukowski's poetry and prose have a whole lot of nothing in common. In The Wonder Years, Campbell backs up buoyant Melodic Hardcore/Pop Punk with defiantly upbeat verse, coping with trials, travels and tribulations by maintaining a silver lining mentality. Bukowski, on the other hand, was a…
Legends of Hip Hop Tour
This Friday perhaps nostalgic Hip Hop fans will go “Salt-N-Pepa’s here,” because they will be in Cincinnati, even if that’s also the Grammy-winning duo’s classic line from “Push It.” Cheryl James-Wray and Sandy Denton of Salt-N-Pepa headline the Legends of Hip Hop tour, coming to the Cintas Center with Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh and…
Art: Art Academy’s Biennial Outdoor Exhibition
The Art Academy of Cincinnati's Biennial Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition is in its 26th year at the Civic Garden Center (2715 Reading Road, Mount Auburn). Current and past students and faculty explore how sculpture can integrate into the springtime landscape. Many of the current students are producing large-scale sculptures for the first time and experimenting with…
Comedy: John Evans
“There have been many odd twists and turns over the last three years,” comedian John Evans says. The Tulsa native started doing stand-up 15 years ago in his hometown. From there he went to Minneapolis and finally Los Angeles. One of the big twists in that odyssey was getting married. “I didn’t think I’d get…
Art: The American Impressionists in the Garden
Impressionism and love of gardening serendipitously developed at the same time in the United States, 100 or so ago, resulting in such irresistible works as those on view at the Taft Museum of Art in The American Impressionists in the Garden through May 15. Flowers all but burst out of the canvas in paintings by…
Player’s Coach
Stories about real people dealing with real situations are an endangered species in a contemporary American moviemaking landscape dominated by lowest-common-denominator teen-oriented fare and creativity-deficient sequels, remakes and the like. Writer/director Tom McCarthy is doing his best to fight against this development. A Yale-trained actor, McCarthy turned to filmmaking in part because the types of…
Dialing In to Indianapolis’ Big New Show
While I’ve waxed positively about Cincinnati Art Museum’s recent exhibitions and programming, I’d be guilty of hometown parochialism if I failed to mention activities at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. It seems on a fast track, under director Maxwell Anderson, to becoming a museum of consistent national significance with its Design Arts shows, its innovative…
Music: The Wonder Years
At first blush, Dan “Soupy” Campbell's lyrics and Charles Bukowski's poetry and prose have a whole lot of nothing in common. In The Wonder Years, Campbell backs up buoyant Melodic Hardcore/Pop Punk with defiantly upbeat verse, coping with trials, travels and tribulations by maintaining a silver lining mentality. Bukowski, on the other hand, was a…
A Decade to Die For
The CincyPunk Fest has emerged as one of the most popular benefit concerts in the region, raising money for various charities since its inception a decade ago. For CincyPunk Fest 10, the event returns to Newport’s Southgate House this Saturday and Sunday under new management and with a lineup full of some of the top…
Onstage: The Handmaid’s Tale
Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel from 1985, The Handmaid’s Tale, tells a frightening story about a woman trapped in a not-too-distant future that seems even more real today than it did when the book was first published a quarter-century ago. A conservative overthrow of the U.S. government has created the Republic of Gilead, a theocracy in…
Darren Hanlon
Here, in a nutshell, is a portrait of the contemporary singer/songwriter in the age of a dire global economy. Darren Hanlon, the young and smartly romantic Australian musician who headlines in Southgate House’s Parlour in support of his first American album, I Will Love You At All, is talking to me from Chapel Hill, N.C.,…
Music: Legends of Hip Hop Tour
This Friday perhaps nostalgic Hip Hop fans will go “Salt-N-Pepa’s here,” because they will be in Cincinnati, even if that’s also the Grammy-winning duo’s classic line from “Push It.” Cheryl James-Wray and Sandy Denton of Salt-N-Pepa headline the Legends of Hip Hop tour, coming to the Cintas Center with Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh and…
Morning News and Stuff
President Barack Obama today called John Boehner into his office to talk shop, sports (“how about them Reds?”) and presumably the $12 billion Boehner wants to immediately cut from the budget and the imminent government shutdown that “liberals are clearly responsible for,” according to Rep. Joe Wilson, (R-S.C.). But a government shutdown would “jeopardize our…
Shake It Adds Foxy Shazam to RSD Lineup
The third annual Record Store Day, a celebration of independent record stores on April 16, is shaping up to be the biggest yet, with hundreds of special, limited-edition releases and in-store appearances around the country by some of the biggest names in music, from Jerry Lee Lewis to Foo Fighters. Northside’s Shake It Records has…
Reds Spank Brewers in Season-Opening Series
The Reds opened the 2011 season with a three-game spanking of the Milwaukee Brewers, a flawed team that was being pimped as much more than that by people who should know better. The Reds’ other so-called Central Division contenders, the St. Louis Cardinals, didn’t look much better than the Brewers, losing two of three to…
CAM Announces 4th Floor Award Winner
The Cincinnati Art Museum has announced the winner of its second biennial 4th Floor Award for regional contemporary artists — Darren Goodman of Waynesville, Ohio. He will receive $1,000 and a solo exhibition in the art museum’s Vance-Waddell Gallery this year from Sept. 17 through Nov. 27th. According to a museum press release issued today,…
The Handmaid’s Tale (Review)
Critic's Pick Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel from 1985, The Handmaid’s Tale, tells a frightening story about a woman trapped in a not-too-distant future that seems even more real today than it did when the book was first published a quarter-century ago. A conservative overthrow of the U.S. government has created the Republic of Gilead, a…
Blue-Collar Swag
Whenever Michael Leonard’s at a loss for words, he apologizes because he knows he’s a reticent talker. But during performances like his set opening for Method Man and Redman at Madison Theater, Leonard’s MC alter-ego, Vincent Vega, commands crowds. Named after John Travolta’s hit-man character from Pulp Fiction, Vega is a lion-heart behind the mic…
Narrative Figuration (Review)
Critic's Pick In the Weston Art Gallery’s new group exhibition Narrative Figuration, on display now through June 5, curator Daniel Brown assembles five talented local artists whose chosen mode is representational, figurative work. All five artists have studied at the University of Cincinnati (DAAP). Their work focuses on genre scenes, with a renewed interest in…
The Twilight Singers, DeVotchKa, Ben Ottewell, Drive-By Truckers and Bayside
During his tenure with Cincinnati’s beloved Afghan Whigs, Greg Dulli was so intent on burning his brand into the universe’s ass that he nearly imploded from the Herculean effort. Even in the band’s quietest moments, Dulli quivered with an intensity that was as terrifying as it was breathtaking, and with all of the standard excesses…
Hitting the Target
This year marks the 35th annual Humana Festival of New American Plays presented by Actors Theatre of Louisville. Every year this event draws the attention of theater professionals from across the nation and around the world. Six world premieres are offered in rolling repertory, an amazing feat made possible by Actors Theatre’s excellent physical complex…
Garbage Day
It’s not easy living in the Clifton Heights area. Landlords call all the time about the rent being in the mail on time but cease to exist the moment your dryer stops working. You have to remember to lock your car because the one night you forget, your entire center console and every bit of…
Morning News and Stuff
The residents of Xenia, Ohio took the streets today with a petition to stop Ohio’s union bill which was signed into law by Govenor John Kasich last Thursday. The petition will need more than 230,000 signatures by June 30 in order to get a referendum for Senate Bill 5 on the ballot in November.—- President…
New Seedy Seeds Video, Tribute Album
Indie Pop trio The Seedy Seeds are nearing the end of its first tour leg in support of the new album Verb Noun, which took the band coast-to-coast, wrapping up Friday in Columbus, Ohio. Local fans will have a few chances to see them in April — April 21 they do a free show at…
Best Of Cincinnati Winner Badges
If you or your business or organization was featured in the Best of Cincinnati issue that hit stands last week, please grab this badge to use on your website or Facebook page. Congratulations to all the winners in the issue.
Insidious (Review)
@font-face { font-family: “Times New Roman”; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: “Times New Roman”; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: “Times New Roman”; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Its marketing materials gloriously proclaim that Insidious comes “from the makers of Paranormal Activity and Saw,” which is certainly true. Director James…
Hop (Review)
@font-face { font-family: “Times New Roman”; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: “Times New Roman”; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: “Times New Roman”; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } After months of catching the same trailer for this Alvin & the Chipmunks-styled mix of animation and live action from Tim Hill…
Carson Daly Loves Cincinnati Music?
Those who tuned in to see Cincinnati faves The Greenhornes on NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly last night (Friday) got a little extra local music bonus. Local Indie/Dance/Rock crew Walk the Moon was also featured on the show in an interview segment filmed at South By Southwest last month (The Greenhornes performance footage was…
Friday Movie Roundup: Ohio Gangsters Edition
I've yet to see any of the four opening films this week, which makes evaluating their merits kind of tough. But I can say that after three months of largely uninspiring fare we're finally beginning to get some intriguing movie-house options.—- Source Code, which contributing writer Scott Renshaw seemed to like despite its flaws, comes…
Source Code (Review)
Yes, there's a certain validity to the pitch-meeting shorthand that would describe this science-fiction thriller as "Groundhog Day meets Quantum Leap,” but that doesn't detract from what it manages to do right. Jake Gyllenhaal plays Capt. Colter Stevens, a military pilot who awakens disoriented in the middle of a strange experiment: He has been transported…
Morning News Stuff
After losing his congressional seat after a single term, Steve Driehaus has decided to go back to Africa where he served in the Peace Corps about 20 years ago. Driehaus, who hasn’t ruled out a return to politics, has taken over as director of HIV and AIDS education in the South African nation of Swaziland.…
Morning News Stuff
Governor John Kasich’s budget reportedly exempts all construction projects at state colleges and universities funded through grants from the Ohio Department of Development, which will apparently not save taxpayers any money, according to Dennis Duffey of the Ohio State Building Trades Council. “Studies show that the public ends up paying as much or more because the…
Charter Uninvolved with Simpson’s Dem Nod
A Charter Committee leader says the group wasn't aware that one of its endorsed candidates — who also happens to be a Charter board member — was seeking the Democratic Party's endorsement. But Charter chairwoman Dawn Denno said Yvette Simpson, the board member who's running for Cincinnati City Council this fall, won't have to give…
Cincy Brass Funks Up Opening Day Float
Who's that brass-heavy ensemble on CityBeat's float in today's Opening Day parade? It's none other than The Cincy Brass, relative newcomers who present unique, N'awlins-style parade-band versions of traditional tunes and more modern Pop hits by the likes of Kanye West, Lady Gaga and others. Below you can check out a clip of the crew's…
Underneath Cincinnati Screening Tonight
Underneath Cincinnati has undergone a number of behind-the-scenes changes in its 10 years of existence (members of the Southern Ohio Film Association now guide it), but its mission has largely remained the same — to showcase and support area independent filmmakers.—- Underneath's latest screening (7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Esquire Theatre) features five short films, including…
Clifton Heights Music Festival Full Lineup
Friday and Saturday, the bi-annual Clifton Heights Music Festival returns to the clubs, bars and restaurants around the University of Cincinnati. The fourth installment is the biggest CHMF yet, with over 80 acts performing everything from Rock, Pop and Indie to Comedy, Hip Hop, Reggae and much more. The fest has become the best way…
Shake It Offers New Wussy, Talib for RSD
Nationally recognized as one of the best record stores in the Midwest, it makes sense that Northside’s Shake It Records would go all out on the forthcoming global Record Store Day (April 16). Besides offering many of the limited-edition RSD exclusives being released by everyone from Blitzen Trapper, Yeasayer and Built to Spill to Television…
Walnut Street Grill (Review)
T here are people who don’t like surprises. That’s not a failing, it’s just the way they are. And that’s OK. Recently, these folks haven’t liked downtown dining because of too many unknowns — too much ethnic food or too much fancy stuff. If they came downtown to go to the Aronoff Center, for example,…
Jonpaul Smith’s Consumer Trends
V isitors to the Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center’s annual exhibition The Art of Food, which is up now through April 15, have come to expect a particular brand of art — that which is made from or inspired by food. So, at first glance, the woven paper constructions of Jonpaul Smith come as a…
Wild Talents (Profile)
S tudying E.T.s and paranormal oddities was all in a day’s work for Charles Fort, a writer/researcher who developed a cult following. In 1932, Fort coined the phrase “wild talents,” referring to eerie psychic and mental abilities. Named after the book by the same name, in this same supernatural vein, local band Wild Talents breathes…
Tokenism, Double Standards Mar Endorsement Process
Once upon a time, I wrote a column about some behind-the-scenes local political machinations that exemplified why so many people are cynical and apathetic about elections. More specifically, it was three years ago and involved a deal sought by Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune , a Democrat, so he could run unopposed for reelection (“We…
Riverfront Redux?
C incinnati sports fans are justifiably skeptical of their teams’ yearly promises of greatness. Our recent sports history has left many with a “believe it when we see it” philosophy when it comes to local teams’ on-field success. The Bengals and the University of Cincinnati’s football team recently have offered brief glimmers of hope, but…
Bob Seger
There are several Bob Segers and, as a Michigan native, I have been privy to most of them. I bought the early Bob Seger System singles (being too young for his work with The Decibels, The Town Criers, The Omens and The Last Heard); “Heavy Music,” “2 2=?,” “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man,” “Lucifer” and “Noah” were…
The Best Is Yet to Come
In the mail and on the Internet, the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is all over my ass. This started about six years ago when they learned that I had turned 50. Since then, their communication has been constant. The AARP wants me to be a member. They want to give me insurance coverage,…
Julie Francis [Owner, Nectar Restaurant]
No one is happier to see signs of spring than locavore chef Julie Francis, chef and owner of Nectar (1000 Delta Ave., Mount Lookout; 513-929-0525). She’s anticipating the growing season the way most of us wait for Santa Claus, with visions of sugar snap peas dancing through her head. Right now, Julie’s serving Turner Farms…
After Setback, City Mulls Smaller Streetcar System
W hile hopes appeared to dim last week for Cincinnati’s long-planned streetcar system due to a series of legislative setbacks, local leaders say the project is far from dead. “With any large project, I always preface anything by saying that it’s always a very long process and there are always obstacles,” says Vice Mayor Roxanne…
Fest Scales New Heights
The biannual Clifton Heights Music Festival returns this weekend for its fourth edition, taking over seven venues around the University of Cincinnati for two days of diverse, quality local music. Launched a year and half ago, the fest has become the best all-local musical showcase in town, growing from 35 acts to this year’s 80-plus…
Kill the Irishman (Review)
A n old-school crime wave has quietly swept through theaters. Last year saw the release of the Red Riding Trilogy , the Mesrine one-two punch and the thrilling marathon of Carlos . Each of these films tackled not just run-of-the-mill criminals but also epic and sweeping portraits of crime and the times; the particular day…
March 23-29: Worst Week Ever!
WEDNESDAY MARCH 23 Rep. Steve Chabot today returned from the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba and wasted no time in telling members of the press that his brief visit qualified him to assert that during the nine years the facility has been opened there have been no instances of torture against individuals held there.…
From Punk to Page
P eter Frampton, Cincinnati’s resident Classic Rock star, better watch his step this Sunday — Cheetah Chrome is coming to town. Chrome, the explosively thrashing guitarist/songwriter with the key American Punk band the Dead Boys, will be at the Comet in Northside at 3:30 p.m. on that day as part of the unusual, trend-setting Cleveland…
John Pepper and Duke Customers
[WINNER] JOHN PEPPER: The former Procter & Gamble chairman and CEO donated a “sizable gift” toward retiring $47 million in construction debt at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the Business Courier reported. Also, Pepper — who currently is board chairman at Walt Disney Co. — signed guarantees so the troubled facility could receive $1.3…
The Thousand Day Civil Wars
J ust over two years ago, Joy Williams and John Paul White were maintaining separate and fairly successful solo careers. Williams had been singing since her teenage years, had a number of hits in the Inspirational (i.e. Christian) genre and scored a number of Dove Award nominations, but had tired of the category’s constraints and…
Eat Lunch, Save the World
I will be the first to admit that I am not the most eco-friendly person out there. I am terrible about recycling and I am constantly reminded about my eco failures by my closest friends. Therefore, when I heard about Greek To Me Prassino (630 Madison Ave., Covington, 859-291-4976), I knew that my broad carbon…
moe.
Two decades ago, a group of musical buddies thrown together randomly at the University of Buffalo coalesced into a swinging little band called Five Guys Named Moe, which morphed, for a thankfully brief week, into Haggis before settling on the simple name moe. (with a quick detour to the moe. guitar army, but that was…
Four Lions (Review)
Is terrorism funny? Are Islamic jihadists bent on destroying Western culture a laugh-riot? Not normally, but in British filmmaker and writer Christopher Morris’ Four Lions, they are dangerously hysterical. The black comedy follows a group of inept, wannabe terrorists who are determined to find glory as suicide bombers. After being kicked out of a Pakistani…
Ed Stern Lays Out Season No. 20
Not many theaters have been led by an artistic director for more than a decade. The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park has had Ed Stern as its producing artistic director for nearly two. He’ll end his run in June 2012, completing his 20th season. Stern recently announced the shows for his final season at the…
Jake Speed’s Big Folkin’ Opening Day Party
Tomorrow (Thursday) marks the first Cincinnati Reds’ Opening Day in some time where fans actually have cause to be realistically optimistic about the team’s chances of going deep into the playoffs come the end of the season. If you’re planning on going all out for Opening Day, a good place to start your reveling is…
