Mill Creek Project Completed
Earlier this month Ohioans agree to continue the Clean Ohio Conservation Fund project and one of the programs funded by that program just wrapped up here in Cincinnati.—- “This fall, Mill Creek Restoration Project (MCRP) completed work on a major streambank and floodplain restoration program designed to protect Mill Creek water quality and aquatic habitat…
Music: JJ Grey and Mofro
JJ Grey was born, and remains, a true Southern gentleman whose passion is rooted with a certain intensity, whose passion stems from a certain soil. This passion translates from soil to song and stage as “front porch Soul; gritty Funk and juke joint romps to contemplative Country Soul and blistering (Rock).” As Grey mans the…
Events: Antonio Adams Fundraiser
Antonio Adams, one of the founding artists of Visionaries & Voices, along with his mother, three brothers and sister, lost their home and everything they own in a fire on Oct. 24. Visionaries & Voices is a “non-profit organization that provides artistic and cultural opportunities for artists with disabilities.” In order to help the Adams…
Sports: UC Bearcat Football
The UC Bearcat football team has taken care of its Big East business and is two wins away from winning the league and millions of dollars and playing in one of the nation’s four most-heralded postseason games. The biggest game of the season — thanks to the ‘Cats beating West Virginia and Louisville the past…
Events: Diwali
Also known as “the Festival of Lights,” Diwali is celebrated by several religions in Eastern culture including Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. It’s best known in Hinduism, however, where it commemorates the homecoming of Lord Rama after a 14-year exile in the deep forest and his victory over the evil demon-king Ravana. According to one Hindu…
Comedy: Rajiv Satyal
Procter & Gamble is known worldwide as a producer of soap, healthcare products and … comedians? Yes, you can add Fairfield-native Rajiv Satyal to the list of former- P&G employees turned comics. That list also includes, of course, national headliners Josh Sneed and Greg Warren. Satyal, though, is moving up fast. He’s been in Los…
Music: Hot Night of Gypsy Jazz
So what exactly does a “Hot Night of Gypsy Jazz” entail? It involves a sultry and spirited strings performance by a dream team of players. Internationally acclaimed finger-style guitarist Richard Smith joins Academy of Country Music Fiddler of the Year Stuart Duncan with accomplished studio musicians Pat Bergeson (guitar) and Charlie Chadwick (bass) in the…
Onstage: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
They say what goes around comes around. I’m never quite certain how to interpret that piece of wisdom, but it does seem that this 1961 musical — which won the Tony Award and the Drama Critics Circle award for Broadway’s best musical, plus the Pulitzer Prize for drama — is suddenly timely again, 47 years…
Dance: Chippendales
Everyone knows about the Chippendales — the entertaining male revue that offers partying women a night of fabulous fantasy, singing and dancing by charming men who strip all the way down to a thin bulge-covered thong. Those of us with experience providing the service (hey, tuition rates are tough on young dudes from Colerain) must…
Art: Faculty Exhibition at OSU’s Urban Arts Space
Hopefully many art lovers from Cincinnati are already making plans to get up to Columbus to see the truly astounding show of Andy Warhol’s work at the Wexner Center. If you’re planning such an excursion before Jan. 10, make sure to leave time to drive just a short bit into downtown Columbus to visit Ohio…
Events: Balluminaria
Setting fire to gas usually isn’t the kind of thing your local fire department wants to see happen, but when that kind of flame lights up a hot-air balloon, people come from miles around to watch the spectacle. On Saturday (“weather date” for Sunday) the Balluminaria Festival will features a dozen hot-air balloons glowing in…
Art: The Alternative Field Guide at the Lloyd Library
Although it’s highly specialized, the Lloyd Library continues to find ways for non-specialists to engage with their collection. In July, book artist Kate Kern served as artist-in-residence at the Lloyd Library, funded by a grant from the Ohio Arts Council. The library invited local educators, scientists, students, artists, librarians and others to take part in…
Music: The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir
Elia Einhorn got a lesson in music journalism with the release of his first album under the banner of the Scotland Yard Gospel Choir six years ago. The Welsh born/Chicago reared singer/songwriter found some interesting feedback in a local review. “One critic here in Chicago, who I had idolized and loved his column, hated it…
Dance: Phildanco
Philadanco, also known formally as Philadelphia Dance Company, stands out as one of the country’s top primarily African-American modern dance ensembles. This weekend, Contemporary Dance Theater brings Philadanco’s powerhouse performers to the Aronoff Center for a pair of shows. Being a repertory company — one that performs works by various choreographers rather than by a…
Music: Ingrid Michaelson
Singer/songwriter and New York native Ingrid Michaelson is yet another success story tied to the phenomenal rise of MySpace and proof of the new adage that television is the new radio. A mere two years ago, Michaelson posted a handful of her ukulele-friendly tunes on her freshly minted MySpace page and quickly attracted fans who…
Music: Gregory and the Hawk
When multi-instrumentalist and native New Yorker Meredith Godreau first began performing live, she conceived the moniker Gregory and the Hawk as a way of disguising her singer/songwriter status and avoiding those inevitable associations. By the time Godreau eventually assembled an actual band and played the Brooklyn show where she was “discovered” by FatCat Records, she…
Holiday: An Old Fashioned Holiday Floral Show
Santa Claus is coming to town, and he’s delivering flowers to all the good little boys and girls. This year the Krohn Conservatory is celebrating 75 years of their Holiday Floral Show with An Old Fashioned Holiday. Designed by landscape-extraordinaire Tim Young, this season’s winter wonderland reflects the amazing history of Cincinnati through Young’s replications…
Christmas Inspiration from a Stick and a Cardboard Box
Late last week, a rather amusing story made the rounds in the mainstream media: the humble wooden stick had been inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame. Usually such stories are tossed out there into the news to give people a lighthearted moment in between more intense and often downbeat stories, but this story…
The Comet’s Anniversary
I was there so it must have been cool. Pictures of Me or the Moon by the talented Paul Coors.
Selling Obama
I've been amused by the ads and notices running in The Enquirer lately promoting increased availability of the Nov. 5 Enquirer featuring the front page announcing that Barack Obama had won the presidency. Apparently they've had to go back and reprint more copies of that issue due to local folks' interest in having the paper…
Cop Cars and Fire Trucks
“The City of Covington, in an effort to continue its focus on public safety, took delivery of more than $1 million in new fire trucks and police cruisers and SUVs. The purchases are part of a comprehensive five-year capital improvement budget plan adopted by the Covington Board of City Commissioners.”—- So says a press release…
Monday Wellness Roundup
Personal Health NYT: Medical tourism expands in South Korea. WSJ Health Blog: Investigating shady ties between colleges and health insurers. Cincinnati Enquirer: Health events this week.—- Environment Live Green Cincinnati: Green lifestyle events. Science Friday: Jane Goodall on chimps, humanity and the future of Earth. Personal Finance Five Cent Nickel: Discussion of Obama's possible $1000…
Getting It Right on Election Coverage
Credulity does not suit journalists or our audiences. We’ve moved from believing something because “I read it in the paper” to “I heard it on the radio” to “I saw it on the Internet.” It’s never so dangerous as when a comment or story is credible. It makes sense. It’s the kind of thing that…
Brian Kelly Tried To Ruin My Night … Again
It happened again. This time it didn’t include cat chasing or yelling in the streets at 3 a.m., but Brian Kelly’s outrageous head coaching decisions yesterday threatened to ruin a perfectly good Friday night, just like they did last Saturday.—- Every week that UC wins brings it that much closer to winning the Big East…
Cat Blog
You know what sucks? Dayton. You know what doesn’t suck? Freaky-looking cats. Here are a few shots from The Dayton Cat Fanciers' 52nd annual cat show:—-
Friday Movie Roundup: Eternal Neuorsis of Charlie Kaufman’s Mind
According to The New York Times recent “Holiday Movies” calendar, 12 films are scheduled to open in New York City today. In contrast, just two new films are set play in a Cincinnati movie house: Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York and the latest Bond flick, Quantum of Solace. —- A quick scan of the NYC…
Arthur Magazine
When my ex-boyfriend lived with me, he got a subscription to Arthur Magazine. I had never heard of this magazine before Adam, but judging from the cover, I thought it seemed like a real new-age hippie kind of thing. I was right. It is. And it just keeps coming to my house because he never…
Athletes Are Funny
Athletes and coaches consistently fill reporters’ notebooks with clichés and figures of speech, politicized and politically correct jargon that means nothing except that he or she respects the fans, the game and the opponent. There are also players and coaches who consistently run their mouths, firing off arguments and declarations that distract their teammates and…
Events: Brink Music Showcase
On Saturday, many of Greater Cincinnati’s newest musical acts will be on hand for the eighth annual Brink New Music Showcase, scattered throughout the Southgate House. Brink is a sister event to the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards music program, the ceremony for which takes place Nov. 23 at the Emery Theatre in Over-the-Rhine (go to cea.citybeat.com…
Events: Cincinnati Entertainment Awards
The lineup of performers for this year's Cincinnati Entertainment Awards music program Nov. 23 has been confirmed. Opening the show will be Bootsy Collins, who is heading up a band of King vets (including his brother Catfish) to pay tribute to the late, great James Brown (it'll be so cool to see Bootsy actually playing…
Event: Longshots at Longworths
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's new Young Professional Leadership Council is hosting a fundraisers at Longworths in Mount Adams from 8-11 p.m. Nov. 14. A $10 cover gets you in the door and drink specials like $2 domestic beers and $3 wine and well drinks. Chips, dips and wings will be provided. Play games to win…
Covington Carbon Monoxide
City Ordinances in Covington, KY require every residential rental property in the city to be equipped with “at least one approved carbon monoxide alarm in operating condition within 15 feet of every room that is used for sleeping purposes.”—- According to an e-update newsletter distributed by the City of Covington, the owner of the property…
Rip Off, Artists
I hate when hard working people get ripped off. These kind of injustices can range from phishing scams to pickpockets, insurance companies' denying claims by any means necessary to bank CEO’s using bailout cash for beer money. It’s heart breaking to hear the stories of identity theft leaving people broke and in perpetual debt, or…
Stage Door: ‘Love’ in the Time of Recession
What with the economy sputtering and lots of people fretting about how to make ends meet, it's possible that you're thinking theater is a luxury you can't afford. I'd like to suggest that we need a bit of art and perspective more than ever at times like this, but I know that affording it can…
Where Have You Gone, Nicolas Cage?
Dear Nicolas Cage, Why do you suck now? —- Last night, while flipping through the 200 channels on my new Direct TV HD receiver, I came across Wild at Heart. Being about five years since my last exposure, I almost forgot how insane that movie is. Not insane in a bad way, insane in a…
The Brass Ass
So it’s almost the weekend again, which means what? A bar? A party? Ehhhh. Sometimes that gets old and you need a little extra something-something in your weekend. I know I do. Last weekend my friend and I got really bored at the Northside Tavern (I think that was because everyone we knew was at…
God’s Man in Texas (Review)
David Rambo’s 1999 play God’s Man in Texas takes a savage, albeit occasionally comic look at industrialized Christianity and at mega-churches that operate less on a foundation of faith than on the rock-solid egos of their heaven-hawking pastors. It’s not a great play, but it’s a very good one. It’s episodic to an extreme, and…
Our Town (Review)
Its universality, its simplicity and its immediacy are among the good reasons why, in 1938, Thornton Wilder’s Our Town won him the second of his three Pulitzer Prizes. They’re the same reasons why, during the 70 subsequent years, it has been one of the most frequently produced American plays, from most of America’s high schools…
Cincinnati Entertainment Awards on WOXY.com
Our pal Joe Long, a DJ on locally-based, globally renowned Indie station woxy.com (and operator of the great music blog, Each Note Secure), did a special edition of the station's "Local Lixx" show recently. The episode featured a ton of local bands that are nominated for Cincinnati Entertainment Awards this year. What was especially cool…
Let the Giving Begin!
Full color, glossy annual reports and newsletters and invitations to fund raisers have begun to flow through the mail in earnest. The annual race to access charitable feelings has commenced. It actually started before Halloween, but who’s counting? One e-mail request has combined the best of public radio and a critical cause many people are…
Local-ish MTV: The Raconteurs
For your viewing pleasure, the new video from The Raconteurs, featuring Cincy boys Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler, "Old Enough": —-
Hump Day Happening
Need something to do tonight? How about resisting empire building?—- The University of Cincinnati is bringing together a group of people for a discussion called “Resisting Empire. “Resisting Empire comes to the tri-state, where the struggle against the current direction of U.S. foreign policy will take center stage,” says a press release about the event.…
Bortz: Opposing Duke Deal is ‘Moronic’
A Cincinnati official who supports a deal negotiated by the city manager to accept a Duke Energy rate hike in exchange for getting $7 million from the company for a proposed streetcar system says it would have been “fiscally moronic” for the city not to accept it.—- This week’s issue of CityBeat features an article…
Rookwood Bar & Restaurant (Review)
Critic's Pick There have been several reincarnations of the Rookwood restaurant, but this time they might have gotten the karma right. It’s a solid serendipity of setting, menu and price point, a welcome addition to the heart of Cincinnati. Anybody who has read more than one of my dining articles knows that I’m a center-city…
The NFL Is Awash in Parity at the Halfway Mark, but Is Everyone Equally Medicore?
The NFL is the league that gave us “parity” as its compelling vision of the future, without telling us that part of parity isn’t really parity but the perception of parity. So the NFL might not really be so even, though it seems that way, which is enough to throw the playoff race wide open…
H.M.S. Pinafore (Review)
Gilbert and Sullivan’s 19th-century comic operas require a light touch. When done well, they can be a delightful blend of whimsical exuberance and lighthearted satire. Cincinnati Music Theatre’s production of H.M.S. Pinafore, directed by Rick Kramer, has a modicum of these qualities, but not enough. The production’s heavy-handedness is not enough to sink the ship;…
Take My Dogs, Please!
This past week has left me feeling pretty politically apathetic. I mean, I like Barack Obama and all — why doesn’t Spell Check know his name yet? — but voting for him instead of writing in Hillary Clinton wasn’t enough to really connect me with this whole “change” movement. I didn’t spread his message door-to-door…
Shedding Light on a Deal
Some Cincinnati officials are angrily alleging that the city manager went behind their backs and approved a deal with Duke Energy to raise gas and electric rates in exchange for the city getting $7 million that will help pay for the proposed streetcar system. City Manager Milton Dohoney Jr. sent a memo to city council…
Oh My God with Noctaluca, Buckra, Others
Oh My God’s triumphant appearance at the MidPoint Music Festival six weeks ago was more than merely a great gig by a renowned Chicago band with a fervent Queen City following. It was a celebration of survival, the first Cincinnati show by the keyboards/bass/drums trio since their near fatal van collision in 2007 (ironically on…
Taz Lebanese & Greek Cuisine (Lunch Review)
I’m always up for trying a new Mediterranean joint, even if it is a bit of a drive. Taz Lebanese & Greek Cuisine (8950 Governors Way, Mason, 513-774- 7600) is right smack in the middle of the Fields Ertle insanity in a building that used to house Fazoli’s. The owners haven’t changed much about the…
Traveling Salesmen
It’s been demonstrated time and again that the Warped Tour provides great exposure for Modern Rock bands. My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy and the All-American Rejects are among the bands whose stints on Warped served as a springboard to major success. It turns out that even groups that never step foot on the stages…
To Cover the Arts or Not
The world of arts journalism is shrinking. Driven by editors and publishers who think more about the bottom line than about great journalism, daily newspapers — long the traditional medium for arts criticism — are providing less and less coverage. In Cincinnati, a lot of changes have occurred: One daily paper is gone, and the…
The Visitor (Anchor Bay)
Richard Jenkins should work more …or at least be in more films like The Visitor, a compelling but sometimes preachy look at the hot-button issue of immigration and deportation. Jenkins plays Walter Vale, a college professor in Connecticut who travels to New York City to present a paper on economic issues in foreign nations —…
Proud of ACORN/Unhappy with Covington Voting
Proud of ACORN ACORN, one of the nation’s largest community organizing groups, has been in the mainstream of community organizing for 38 years — with more than 400,000 members. ACORN has repeatedly stood with working families to make stronger, safer and more just communities. They’ve made a positive impact and instilled hope with commitment, sincerity…
CityBeat, You’re the Best!
Dear CityBeat, I’m writing to extend my sincere appreciation for your support during this campaign. When Michelle and I undertook this journey more than 21 months ago, we knew that we had to have your help in order for this movement to succeed. Our campaign singled out Hamilton County as a shameful loss for Sen.…
Turnbull ACs (Profile)
The Turnbull ACs have been called a lot of things and they think every one of them is pretty funny. As the quartet prepares for a practice on the eve of a studio session at WOXY.com, frontman Dan Mecher and drummer Brian Penick laugh as they recount the mangled pronunciations that have been inflicted on…
Synecdoche, New York (Review)
It’s useful to know two things going into Charlie Kaufman’s head-trip of a movie, Synecdoche, New York. “Synecdoche” is a literary term, referring to the part being representative of the whole — as in “Times Square is New York City.” Also, Kaufman as a television and film writer — from Chris Elliott’s Get a Life!…
Aesthetic Comfort (Review)
Critic's Pick Ryan McGinness’ exhibition of new paintings, Aesthetic Comfort, creates an optical second reality in the Vance-Waddell Gallery at the Cincinnati Art Museum. Lights are turned off; heavy, dark curtains hang in the doorway; black lights shine onto the wood panels and bring everything painted there to life. It’s a little disconcerting, looking into…
De-criminalizing Victims
If someone holds a gun to your head and forces you to rob a bank, you’re not held responsible for the crime. You had no choice if you wanted to stay alive. Since that standard makes sense, it seems reasonable that someone forced into prostitution because of a threat to her life or the lives…
Be! Progressive! B! E! Progressive!
I don´t need to be the one to tell you that it’s been a pretty rough week for a lot of people. This whole "getting a candidate we actually wanted and voted for" elected as the next president of the United States has left millions upon millions of us — except the rich assholes who…
Beaufort (Kino)
The most recent nominees for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film were a head-scratching bunch. Picked from a year packed with high-profile, accolades-rich films from abroad, the Oscar shortlist was oddly devoid of such features, instead spotlighting a handful of obscurities mostly unseen stateside. The nominations set industry insiders, critics and film-nuts aflutter.…
Lit: Tom Moon at Joseph-Beth
When Tom Moon, author of the new 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die, makes a personal appearance, he expects people to come to argue. “It’s most fun when people come loaded for bear — ‘Why isn’t Billy Joel on your list!’ ” he says, by way of example, during a telephone interview from his…
Mallory Might Go, Singleton Says No
Every election has repercussions, and not just the obvious ones like new policies set by new politicians. Whenever an incumbent politician moves up the ladder to a new office — local to state or state to federal — a round of musical chairs typically ensues. This time, it might involve Cincinnati’s mayor. As CityBeat’s blog…
Back on the Brink
As someone (me) once said (last year), a local music scene is only as good as its new artists. This Saturday, many of Greater Cincinnati’s newest musical acts will be on hand for the eighth annual Brink New Music Showcase, scattered throughout the Southgate House. Brink is a sister-event to the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards’ music…
Best Week Ever!
Anyone who drove down I-75 last week near St. Bernard probably thought to themselves, “You know what? The air smells really great now that Barack Obama has been elected president.” It just goes to show you the power of a liberal, progressive black man being elected to our nation’s highest office. Suddenly people think the…
The Dally Show
I have an issue with procrastination. It governs my life. It perennially serves me with a perpetual cocktail of nervousness, anxiety and frustration for seemingly infinite periods of time. In most instances, I fret over the idea of performing a task far longer than the task would actually take to complete. For example, I have…
Cheryl Renee and Them Bones
Keyboardist/vocalist Cheryl Renee’s live shows are high-energy evenings of bawdy, brassy Blues, and she's teamed up with Cincinnati mainstays Them Bones to offer a taste of her performing prowess on a recently released live CD of classic Blues covers. Renee’s musical travels over the decades have taken her from Cincinnati to a world tour with…
Obama’s Win Touches the World
BREDDENBERG, GERMANY – Germany has never looked so beautiful. It’s my third time here and fourth time overall in Europe. The fall colors fill the landscape, and the air is warmer than is typical this time of the year. I’m with my grandmother, who, along with her husband and my then-8-year-old father, emigrated from this…
Visions of Sugar Plums
PROVIDENIYA, RUSSIA — An annual outdoor concert and celebration here was mistaken by Alaskan authorities as a military operation, causing Gov. Sarah Palin to alert the Department of Homeland Security to “a well-organized collection of giant wooden warriors fiercely practicing formation changes and fighting.” An investigation into the threat found that the imposing figures and…
The Features with Turnbull ACs
It’s been a momentous four years since the postmodern New Wave blurt of The Features’ major label debut EP, The Beginning, and their first semi-full length album, Exhibit A. The band parted ways with Island, released a Christmas 7-inch and the Contrast EP and lost keyboardist Parrish Yaw. In the interim, the Features have picked…
Making the Old New Again
Jahaziel Minor’s senior exhibition at the Art Academy of Cincinnati last April presented something remarkably different from other recent undergraduate shows. It focused on one large painting and the nearly 20 preparatory drawings and oil paintings he made to develop the final canvas. Minor made the intensely detailed graphite studies and oil paintings from life…
My Bartender and Bar Politics
On a recent Monday afternoon downtown, I was walking up Garfield Place, getting reading to turn the corner on Vine Street. For the first time in several Mondays, I had time on my hands. I was heading to Madonna’s on Seventh Street to have a few drinks and to see Laura, my bartender. A voice…
Regular or Super: Views on Mies Van Der Rohe (Icarus Films)
In his life, which lasted from 1886-1969, architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was the architecture director of Germany’s Bauhaus, that bastion/think tank of artistic progressivism, and then — after getting away from the Nazis — he led U.S. architecture into the 20th century with his Chicago high rises, college buildings and New York’s iconic…
Old Dogs, New Tricks
You know the old saying about dogs that chase cars: What are they going to do with the car if they ever catch it? Last week Barack Obama caught a car. Hell, he caught every car in the country at the same time. By extension, all of us who supported Obama in his presidential bid…
Mid Week Wellness News
Cincinnati Enquirer: The Little Miami Scenic Trail needs $60k in bridge resurfacing to make it safer and prevent bike skids. Signs urging cyclists to walk across would be a lot cheaper. Is anyone reading this blog a part of the decision making process on this? Queen City Bike: Public discussion—Future of Transit in Greater Cincinnati…
