Onstage: Trailer Park Boys: Community Service Variety Show
"Who in this park, or even in the whole world, doesn't have problems? Who doesn't have a drink too many times once in a while and maybe even winds up passed out in their own driveway, pissing themselves?" says Jim Lahey. "Who doesn't have a puff from time-to-time? And who doesn't have problems with the…
Onstage: Welcome Home: The Waddie Welcome Story
A man in Savannah, Ga., with cerebral palsy (barely able to move or speak) became influential in his desire to live independently with the support of his community. His story became a popular book, now reinvented for the stage by Cincinnati playwright Catie O’Keefe. She was recruited by Nikki Booker, a student at Starfire University,…
Event: Appalachian Festival
Instead of giving your mom some boring necklace or a vase full of flowers this weekend, how about taking her to the “region’s most popular spring festival” for Mother’s Day? The 43rd annual Appalachian Festival is a three-day event that celebrates and helps raise awareness of Appalachian culture. The heritage is alive and well here…
Event: 4EG Square
Four Entertainment Group (4EG) takes over Fountain Square where you can visit all nine venues in one night: no cabs, no cover, just one big party. aliveOne, Keystone Hyde Park, Keystone Covington, The Lackman, The Stand, Mount Adams Pavilion, The Righteous Room, The Sandbar and Tap & Go will all be present with specialty cocktails,…
Art: Past is Prologue
Located on West 15th in Over-the-Rhine, HARVEST is one of Cincinnati’s newest non-commercial art spaces. Established this year with the mission of promoting emerging local and regional artists, this Friday the gallery presents Past is Prologue, a show of abstract drawing, painting and sculpture by six 2012 graduates of the Art Academy of Cincinnati. Organized…
Art: Francis Upritchard: A Long Wait
Francis Upritchard, a London-based, New Zealand-born artist who uses brightly colored painted clay to create small, fantastical sculptural figures, calls her creations “holy fools.” Beginning with Friday night's opening, her show at downtown's Contemporary Arts Center — A Long Wait — will combine existing, older work with new pieces. Upritchard showed at the 2009 Venice Biennale…
Comedy: Uncle Larry Reeb
Everyone could use the advice of a trusted uncle, but sometimes you have to settle for a guy like “Uncle” Larry Reeb. The upside, though, is that he’s hilarious. “My style is kind of one-liners like the old guys like Rodney Dangerfield,” he explains, “but I’m more twisted and a little sicker than that. That…
Cincinnati vs. The World 5.09.12
Vogue magazine has banned too-skinny models, adding that it will no longer knowingly work with models under the age of 16 or who appear to have an eating disorder. WORLD +1 A squatter in a vacated Evanston home cranked up the heat, racking up a $1,500 utility bill for the absent owners. CINCINNATI -2 Research…
Seau’s Death Demonstrates Conflicted Reality of Football
In 1905, under the threat of outlawing the game of football, president Theodore Roosevelt brought together the top football coaches in the country to try to find a way to make the game safer. Roosevelt was a fan and reportedly didn’t really want to shut down the game, but the number of deaths attributed to…
MCA, Beyonce and Jay-Z
[HOT] R.I.P. MCA The massive outpouring of grief online after news that Beastie Boy Adam Yauch had died May 4 was a great gauge of the Beasties’ widespread influence and impact. It also showed that the Beasties were truly a “group.” Blogs and TV shows looking for the perfect “MCA song” to play in tribute…
This Date in Music History: May 8
On this date in 1990, singer/songwriter Tom Waits won a lawsuit against Frito-Lay. Waits sued the company claiming they approached him about using one of his songs in a commercial; when he declined, they found a soundalike to sing a tune very similar to Waits' "Step Right Up." He was awarded almost $2.5 million and…
Afghan Whigs’ First Show in 13 Years Announced
The Afghan Whigs' upcoming live reunion shows have generally been in Europe, largely at festivals, save a couple of U.S. shows (in New York City and at Lollapalooza in Chicago and All Tomorrow's Parties in Jersey). Today it was announced that the group's official first show back after 13 years will take place later this…
Ready, Steady, Go!
B etween bodies, equipment and ephemera, we’re packed tightly into The Ready Stance’s rehearsal space, possibly a converted coal cellar in the basement of guitarist/vocalist Wes Pence’s beautiful old Newport home. The eclectic Indie Pop quartet — Pence, vocalist/guitarist Chase Johnston, bassist Randy Cheek and drummer Eric Moreton — cranks out a tune that unwinds…
Street Art Meets Street Food at Longworth Hall
The rise of Cincinnati food trucks came not without a fair share of growing pains. City Council initially didn’t know what to make of their burgeoning popularity or how to fold them gently into the existing business arc without annoying owners of established downtown eateries. Once the trucks were given designated parking spots, most controversy…
Morning News and Stuff
City Council is considering increasing cab fares prior to the World Choir Games in July as part of an overhaul of the city’s taxi industry. During a Rules and Government Operations Committee meeting Monday, Councilman Wendell Young described the industry as having little regulation and often undesirable experiences, The Enquirer reports. Council last spring removed…
The Sobriety Diary
I once felt as if I had perfected the chemical alchemy needed for me to write with some success. I won’t disclose the exact contents of my proprietary blend, seeing as I may yet trademark it, but one might assume that my equivalent of liquid courage is not the healthiest of cocktails. Now that I…
Opposites Attract
I ’m obsessed with the title of Thunder-Sky Inc.’s latest show, Reverse Psychology. The name, a play on two artists’ opposite aesthetics and themes, doesn’t work for me — or does it? Should I be celebrating differences, or searching for similarities? I don’t know what to think, and I think that’s the intent. The term…
Dope Body
Baltimore Noise Punk foursome Dope Body introduced itself to the Indie Rock world with the donkey punch that was last year’s Nupping, the band’s first full-length. A chaotic barrage of guitar harmonics, muscular drum/bass pummeling and howling vocals combine in Dope Body’s assault, resulting in something that sounds like The Jesus Lizard jacked up on…
The All-American Rejects
Calling all recently dumped Cincinnatians! The All-American Rejects are coming to town and they know just how you feel. Let the musical therapy begin. The Rejects’ first big hit, 2003’s “Swing Swing,” was also the first of many post-break-up songs by The Rejects. Two years later, in 2005, Top 40 radio stations blew up with…
Art: Autocomplete: A Collaborative Coloring Book Exhibit
Coming together through art. For Autocomplete, Visionaries and Voices artists collaborated with members from the community and beyond with a special twist. A V+V artist drew up a black-and-white image, and then another artist filled in the image with his/her choice of colors. The result is two visions converging to create a unified theme and…
Event: This American Life Live
Could anyone not enjoy This American Life with Ira Glass? The weekly, true storytelling public radio show with its quirky, adorable host has something for everyone — timely topics, laugh-out-loud (or cry-out-loud) anecdotes, thoughtful insight. This Thursday, Ira and Co. will present a live show at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts in New…
Music: The Spring Standards
Indie Folk trio The Spring Standards consists of three longtime friends who knock out harmonies as if they were related and have been singing together since birth. James Cleare, Heather Robb and James Smith formed the band in the Delaware Valley during their teens, but moved to Brooklyn to launch their career. The Standards’ 2008…
Strange Arrangement
The seeds of Chicago quartet Strange Arrangement were planted in 1996, when the members were still in high school. By the end of high school, the band was solidified, but the members headed to Iowa to study at the School for Music Vocation, an improv/Jazz theory/composition school founded by Phil Mattson, a Grammy-nominated educator/musician/arranger. The…
Local H
Long before Jack and Meg White made it fashionable, Scott Lucas and Joe Daniels made serious waves as Indie Rock duo Local H. Lucas and Daniels began playing in Zion, Ill., in 1987, and launched Local H three years later with original bassist Matt Garcia. After Garcia’s 1993 departure, the pair decided against a replacement;…
Shearwater with St. Vincent
Flora and fauna have long been Jonathan Meiburg's most beloved fixations. The leader of the Austin-based Shearwater has populated his work with natural imagery of all kinds — especially birds. The band name (which comes from a species of seabird) and the 2004 and 2008 albums Winged Life and Rook are also tributes. From a…
2012 Best of Taste Awards Announced
The "Best of Taste" awards — a precursor to the Taste of Cincinnati food fest later this month — were doled out today. Eighty dishes from 30 restaurants were served to judges — "celebrities, foodies and the epicurious" — and they awarded the Crab and Shrimp Dumpling with Noodle from Arloi Dee Thai Bistro the…
Music Tonight: Burlesque-A-Pades with Brian Newman
Local Jazz fans who keep an eye on the clubs for young players coming out of University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music no doubt remember trumpeter Brian Newman in the late ’90s/early ’00s. A Cleveland native, Newman ultimately landed in New York City after graduation and started working. He’s been there over a decade now.…
This Date in Music History: May 7
On this date in 1967, Floridian Psychedelic Folk band Pearls Before Swine (a precursor to contemporary so-called "Freak Folk") began the three-day sessions for its debut album, One Nation Underground. The album would become a moderate success, selling nearly a quarter of a million copies. One of the album's tracks, "(Oh Dear) Miss Morse," was…
Morning News and Stuff
Plans to put a culture tax in front of voters have been put on hold due to a potential conflict with a Cincinnati Zoo tax renewal levy that will be on the 2013 ballot. Backers of the culture tax — a 0.25 percentage-point sales tax increase that would raise $30 million annually — fear that…
Marvel Hulk Smashes the Competition with ‘The Avengers’
This week is a busy one for comic book movies. With The Avengers opening up today, all the attention has been on Marvel Comics. But, not to be outdone, DC Comics and Warner Bros. released a new trailer to The Dark Knight Rises. On top of that, it is Free Comic Book Day on Saturday.…
The Dukes Are Dead Talk Entry Into Theatre World
The first time lead singer of The Dukes Are Dead, Lucas Frazier, eagerly told me about his band, in between puffs of a hastily smoked cigarette while on a quick break from the coffee shop where we both worked, I’m pretty sure I said, “Aw! That’s so cute.” Three years and a lot of hard…
Gawker’s Fox Mole Swipes a Book Deal
Surprise, surprise: Former no-name Joe Muto, who first became a web sensation when he debuted as Gawker's anonymous Fox Mole, has reportedly snagged a book deal. Muto, a former associate producer for Fox News' Bill O'Reilly Show, didn't last long as Gawker's elite, home-page columnist, dubbed the 'Fox Mole.' In fact, Muto only managed to…
Celebrate Adam “MCA” Yauch’s Life at Mayday Tonight
By now, thanks to Facebook mostly, most of you have heard that one third of the legendary Hip Hop trio Beastie Boys — Adam "MCA" Yauch — died this morning in New York City after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 47 years old and leaves behind a legacy to be proud of, with…
Your Weekend To Do List: 5/4-5/6
In addition to Cinco de Mayo and Derby Day, the next couple days bring a ton of events and activities. Saddle up, grab some tequila and get out there this weekend! Essex Studios blossom this weekend for the galleries’ spring Art Walk, BLOOM. The space has been transformed with a thousand origami flowers, yarn gardens…
Zanesville Animals Returned to Widow Today
Fifty-six. That's how many exotic animals Terry Thompson of Zanesville, Ohio set free last October from his home, just before he committed suicide. Today, only five of the animals from Terry's menagerie survive: a spotted leopard, a black leopard, a brown bear and two Celebes macaques (primates). Today, those five will return to the care…
Stage Door: Back For More
If this week’s theater offerings sound familiar, it’s because we’ve seen some of these shows (or their inspirations). The best choice, for my money, is Keith Glover’s Thunder Knocking on the Door at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, a revival of sorts from 1999 — but thoroughly and creatively reimagined for the final mainstage…
Morning News and Stuff
Sen. Rob Portman is sitting on more cash than nearly all of his GOP colleagues in the Senate, despite the fact that he’s not up for re-election until 2016. There has been widespread speculation that Portman is a Republican vice presidential candidate, and only three Senators have more money on-hand than his Promoting Our Republican…
Comedy: Hardcore Comedy Tour
The two biggest things in comic Mike Cody’s life are probably wrestling and comedy. Cody, the winner of last year’s Funniest Person in Cincinnati contest, is on the bill for the Cincinnati stop of the Hardcore Comedy Tour. The show stars former WWE Champion and New York Times bestselling author Mick Foley. Also on the…
Foxy Shazam Singer Co-Stars in New Dee Snider Vid
Entertainment Weekly's website recently debuted a bizarre music video for Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider's cover of "Mack the Knife." The clip features Eric Nally, singer for internationally renowned, Cincy born-and-bred hard rockers Foxy Shazam, as a nerded-up emcee introducing Snider before a less-than-enthused small crowd. The song is from Snider's album of covers, Dee…
“Cincinnati Songwriter Round” Starts Tonight
Tone House Music, the much-needed new music store in Northside, hosts the first of what is scheduled to be a really cool weekly happening at the shop. The "Cincinnati Songwriter Round" will be an every-Thursday event featuring some of the top singer/songwriters in the area performing intimate "in-the-round" shows together, trading off songs and stories.…
Changes in Ohio Medicaid Coming Next January
In yet another effort to save tax dollars and fill holes in the state budget, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and his health care advisers will streamline the state’s Medicaid system by altering the availability to care plans and condensing care regions. There are currently 38 health plans and 10 regions in the state of Ohio,…
This Date in Music History: May 3
On this date in 1972, Les Harvey — guitarist for the Scottish band (which many believed would become huge) Stone the Crows — died on stage when he was electrocuted by a microphone. He reportedly died when he touched the (probably) ungrounded mic and his guitar at the same time during soundcheck (with what many…
Your Thursday To Do List
Alice Skirtz will discuss and sign her new book Econocide: Elimination of the Urban Poor today at Findlay Market’s Skirtz & Johnson. The book looks at how Cincinnati “has used legislation and the administration of public policy to serve the ends of privatizing public assets and displacing people who are perceived as undesirable because they…
Marley (Review)
Why does Bob Marley — the man and his music — still resonant more than 30 years after his death? That’s a question director Kevin MacDonald tries to unpack in this straightforwardly rendered, often fascinating documentary about the Reggae legend. MacDonald, known for both his fiction (The Last King of Scotland, State of Play) and…
UC Grad Founds The Dayton Beer Company
Cincinnati has a rich brewing history, plain and simple. And if you haven’t been living in a hole for the past couple of years you know that. So it should be of no surprise that someone would take a piece of that history back home with them. That’s exactly what 25-year-old Daytonite and founder of…
Morning News and Stuff
City Council on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a measure that will offer benefits to domestic partners of city employees. The measure was introduced by Councilman Chris Seelbach and passed 8-1, the lone “no” vote coming from Charlie Winburn. Seelbach told The Enquirer that domestic partner benefits not only affect same-sex couples, but are also applicable to…
Feist Talks About CAC’s ‘Spectacle’
Singer/songwriter Leslie Feist (best known for her hit "1, 2, 3") was in town April 9 to discuss her work in the music video world at the Contemporary Arts Center downtown. Her appearance with director Martin de Thurah (who directed her clip for "The Bad in Each Other") was a part of the programming related…
New Book Criticizes OTR’s Development
A social worker that has written a new book criticizing Cincinnati’s development efforts in Over-the-Rhine will conduct a book signing Thursday. Alice Skirtz, a Cincinnati native, is the author of Econocide: Elimination of the Urban Poor. She will host a book signing from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at Skirtz & Johnston bakery at Findlay Market, 113…
Review: Loudon Wainwright III’s ‘Older Than My Old Man Now’
Loudon Wainwright III could very easily have slid into the where-are-they-now realm of celebrity obscurity if he had allowed himself to be swallowed up by the one-hit wonderment of “Dead Skunk” in 1972. Although most people at the time only knew him for that ubiquitous single, Wainwright was confident that he had plenty of other…
Zoo Babies Are Here!
May is an awesome month for so many reasons. It's Bike Month, the sun's out, the mangoes are getting better and sundresses are officially acceptable attire. Most importantly, perhaps, the whole month of May is "Zoo Babies" month at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. And as much fun as it is to unproductively scroll…
Q&A with Rise Against
Rise Against is the epitome of Punk Rock in this era. They are as far from the status quo from society as bands get, yet record for a major label. Part of the group's mission is to promote progressive issues, both socially and politically. Rise Against recently released its sixth album, Endgame, which features the…
City, State Move Forward With Same-Sex Rights
Cincinnati inched closer to equality after moving forward Monday with a measure that would allow city employees in same-sex and other partnerships to receive health insurance benefits. With a push by Chris Seelbach, the first openly gay councilman in Cincinnati, the measure passed the finance committee with the support of all council members except Charlie…
This Date in Music History: May 2
On this date in 1967, Capitol Records officially announced that The Beach Boys' album Smile would not be released. The recording sessions for the album were tense due to Brian Wilson's depression, drug use, paranoia and the pressure he felt, plus the inner turmoil within the group. Wilson was also reportedly creatively stymied after being…
Your Wednesday To Do List
Last night’s Reds opener against the Cubs was postponed due to that nasty storm, so Bronson Arroyo and Chicago's Jeff Samardzija will face off tonight at 7:10 p.m. A makeup game for last night has not been announced yet. If you’re downtown for the game or just hanging out, stop by the Moerlein Lager House…
Music Tonight: Vandaveer and More
Critically acclaimed Indie Folk act Vandaveer returns after a successful stop here last year at the MidPoint Music Festival. The Washington, D.C.-based group was formed in 2006 by mastermind Mark Charles Heidinger, who has roots that put him closer to the heart of Americana music (born in Ohio and raised in Kentucky). The band has…
Living Out Loud: Shades of Pale
It’s hard for me to really say when my eyesight started to go so horribly bad. I guess it was more or less a gradual thing, but during the spring of last year, it seemed to suddenly worsen. More and more, I was living in shades of pale. Those strong reading glasses weren’t helping much…
Morning News and Stuff
If you come from a large family, you might remember when older siblings would always get new clothes when you were a child and you'd get their hand-me downs. That's also been the situation at Paul Brown Stadium in the past, but Hamilton County commissioners are putting a stop to it. Because the county's Riverfront…
Cincinnati Among Worst for Smog, Soot Pollution
Cincinnati and Hamilton County fared poorly on a national list of places with polluted air that was released last week. The Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington metropolitan region ranked as the eighth-worst for air particle pollution, according to the American Lung Association. Meanwhile, Hamilton County was given an “F” grade for its number of high ozone days and a…
Cincinnati Chooses Green Energy Provider
After spending several weeks reviewing proposals from seven energy providers as part of Cincinnati’s initiative to power homes using energy aggregation, a decision was made April 26 — and it’s a green one. Cincinnati has selected First Energy Solutions (FES) as the city’s new electricity provider, which will make it the first major city in…
City Council Set to OK Same-Sex Benefits
Cincinnati City Council was posed to approve extending insurance benefits to the same-sex partners of city employees as this issue went to press. Council was set to vote May 2 on the plan, which was pushed by Councilman Chris Seelbach, the first openly gay person to serve on the group. An analysis indicates it would…
April 25-May 1: Worst Week Ever!
WEDNESDAY APRIL 25 Those of us who worry about always being poor can take solace in the fact that if you do somehow end up wealthy things get easier and easier, at least when it comes to the convenience associated with having your own caviar-creating fish in the neighborhood. The Enquirer reported today that Indian…
The Comedy Awards Highlight Hilarious Humans
It’s no secret that I’m a comedy fanatic. When selecting television bits to feature in this column, I’m constantly trying to balance out all the funny programs I love with dramas and other options. To me, comedy is like pizza — whether it’s simple or sophisticated, cheesy or over-the-top, there’s something for everyone and it’s…
Local Music Venue News
The local Roots music scene and its fans have a cool new music venue to check out. This Friday-Sunday is the grand opening of Plain Folk Café, a converted two-room schoolhouse (originally built in 1913) featuring coffee, beer, food and regular live music from area Folk, Bluegrass, Americana and acoustic acts. (They’ll also be selling…
Government’s Case Against Manning Has Scary Implications
A nagging question at the heart of the case against alleged WikiLeaks informant Bradley Manning is who, exactly, does the U.S. government want to keep from knowing its secrets. A military judge who is presiding over Manning’s court-martial told prosecutors April 26 that the government bears the burden of proof to show that the young…
Hit the Trails
A c ouple of years ago I was heading up William Howard Taft Road to Gilbert Avenue and was nearing the intersection in the left turn lane when a contractor’s van started tailgating me. The driver whaled on his horn for me to move. Now, seriously, this guy had a gas pedal and could go…
So You Want To Be A Cyclommuter?
T he light bulb that is Cincinnati’s cycling culture is shining brighter than ever as more people switch out steering wheels for handlebars for their morning and evening treks to and from work. The reasons are multitude: to keep in shape, save a hunk on gas, use green transportation or just to slip some fresh…
Bike Month Events!
More Bike Month articles from CityBeat: • So You Want to Be a Cyclommuter?: Bike advocates offer tips on making the most of your commute • Hit the Trails: Urban trails offer a safe haven from automobile traffic, but more are needed Bike Month Schedule: Bike Month Lunch Dealio11 a.m.-2 p.m. every weekday in MayPark…
Damsels in Distress (Review)
Whit Stillman’s much-anticipated Damsels in Distress — his first movie since 1998’s Last Days of Disco, and only his fourth after Metropolitan (1990) and Barcelona (1994) — arrives with the writer/director’s singular voice intact. Damsels is set on a campus of higher learning dubbed Seven Oaks U. that we’re told is “the last of the select…
