One (very small) step toward a smaller Cleveland City Council?
For years, our civic leaders have been discussing the possibility of reducing the number of seats on the Cleveland City Council. The body now stands at a fat 21 members, but seeing as how it does less work than an ODOT highway crew, many believe that it’s unwise to keep paying that many people $70,000…
Mic Check: DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist at HOB
DJ Shadow takes to the tables Thursday at the House of Blues. DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist’s “The Hard Sell” tour isn’t about the turntablists’ latest albums. So don’t go expecting to hear songs from Shadow’s 2006’s boring The Outsider, or his landmark Endtroducing … from 1996, or whatever Chemist, who’s better live anyway, has…
Money Where Your Mouth Is: Babylon A Go Go
Catch some of Cleveland’s finest indie-rock bands at this weekend’s Woodchuck Fest. Click the video above for a righteous video of the super-hot rock duo Mr. Gnome, and read on to learn about Babylon A Go Go, and why they say you need to see the show. — DX Ferris
The Midwest Teen Sex Show: Changing Sex Ed, One Bucket of Lube at a Time
Remember the good old days, when high school sex education consisted of plastic ovaries and condoms on bananas? Kids these days have it way better. The Midwest Teen Sex Show is an online show designed to educate teens about sex, run by a trio from Illinois and Wisconsin. And for once, this sex education speaks…
Dear LeBron: Look out for the Weirdos!
This blog is best read while listening to Portland’s own, the Decemberists: Dear LeBron, C-notes would like to wish you the very best in tonight’s outing against the Portland Blazers. But please be careful. Portland is a sneaky place. The men in this idyllic outpost of socialism dress like women. And the women dress like…
Blog Launches “Sexiest Reporter in Greater Cleveland” Contest
WKYC’s Maureen Kyle is among the finalists for Cleveland’s Sexiest Reporter. Who’s your hottest? Earlier this month, local blog Political Science 216 announced it was holding a contest to crown the Sexiest Reporter in Greater Cleveland, because what else would a political blog write about during an election year? Now, we know what you’re thinking…
Celebrate ‘Year of the Rat’ in Cleveland’s Asiatown
For followers of the Chinese zodiac, the Year of the Rat arrives on February 7. To usher in the Year 4076, many area Chinese restaurants will be hosting traditional celebrations during the next week or two, including the Lion Dance, an acrobatic, highly ritualized call-down for good fortune, complete with firecrackers, lettuces, and costumed dancers.…
Diversion of the Day: Two Weeks Till Summer
Pitchers and catchers report to spring training on February 14th this year. With that spectacular date just 14 days away, we’ll help you dream of limp hot dogs and crisp, overpriced beer in the bleachers – all the trappings of a Wahoo summer — with this clip from the best movie ever made in history,…
For $500, you can see Don Cheadle in Shaker Heights tonight
Don Cheadle wants to party with you and your checkbook. There are some perks to living in a state known for determining national elections. Or maybe there are just perks to living close to people who actually have money. You decide. Case in point: Tonight, Oscar-nominated actor Don Cheadle will be at a fundraiser in…
Homeless Tip of the Day: How to Popsicle-Stick a Parking Meter
Not sure if you noticed, but the economy ain’t exactly booming around here. Most every Clevelander without his own game show or shoe deal is a day-trip to MGM Grand Detroit away from losing everything. With this in mind, we present this very helpful tip from a friendly local homeless man. Thank us when you’re…
Hey Jealousy: In Cleveland, Belichick’s a Bum
What makes Belichick great? For Clevelanders, the answer is the pretty boy behind center. With former Browns coach Bill Belichick now in the Super Bowl, and endless space to fill before the game is played on Sunday, many have taken a stab at determining what’s made the Patriots’ patriarch one of the best coaches of…
Mic Check: Killswitch Engage at HOB Tuesday
Killswitch Engage shred through House of Blues tonight. There’s subtlety and texture to Killswitch Engage’s music that you just don’t find in many other metal bands. Credit singer Howard Jones, who not only has the whole screaming thing down, but is also quite adept at, well, singing. On its latest CD, 2006’s As Daylight Dies,…
Jim Brown’s Swipe at Tiger Woods: Another Curious Move by the King of Ironic Moralizing
For someone with a highly checkered past, and for someone who has benefited from the public’s willingness to forgive (again and again), Jim Brown sure has some stones in calling out Tiger Woods and Kelly Tilghman. Tilghman is the Golf Channel anchor who suggested that to stop Tiger Woods, players on the PGA Tour should…
Feagler: Stimulus package is for sissies
Today’s topic: George Bush’s planned economic stimulus I was at the coffee shop, and the guys all agree: This economic stimulus is an under the table tugjob for the weak. Why, back in my day, we didn’t get stimulated by the government. If you needed cash, you were a vagrant, and the police had a…
Slideshow: Band of Horses in Cleveland
Walter Novak captured Band of Horses in action at the Beachland Friday. Friday’s Band of Horses show at the Beachland was sold out. But thankfully the Beachland staff mistook Scene music editor Michael Gallucci and photographer Walter Novak as Guys With Important Stuff To Do, and let them both partake in the evening’s festivities. Gallucci…
For Taste of the NFL, Baricelli’s Paul Minnillo is Bringing Dessert
Cleveland won’t be entirely without representation when Super Bowl XLII festivities kick off in Phoenix this weekend. Cleveland chef-restaurateur Paul Minnillo, of Little Italy’s Baricelli Inn, (2203 Cornell Rd., 216-791-6500) will be making his 17th appearance at the event, as part of the annual Taste of the NFL dinner, scheduled for Saturday February 2. One…
Diversion of the Day: Demetri Martin, Ohio-bound
Will Ferrell’s FunnyorDie/Semi-Pro/college comedy tour, a cross promotional event of epic proportions, rolls through Ohio next week. Ferrell and his comedic crew — Zach Galifinakis, Demetri Martin, and Nick Swardson — play OSU’s Schottenstein Center on February 6. You can get tickets here. Or, if you don’t feel like driving to Columbus, you can just…
What is Akron doing about its gang problem? Nothing, it seems
A caller left us a voicemail with his take on who’s truly responsible for the fact that no one’s been convicted for Shawrica Lester’s murder, thanks to death threats made against witnesses [“Stop Snitchin’, January 23]. His verdict: It’s those damn politicians’ fault. He accuses everyone from councilmen to judges of neglecting the severity of…
Judge Peter Sikora is the last guy you’d think would be promoting marriage
As a Cuyahoga County juvenile court judge, Peter Sikora has a front row seat to the downside of marriage – or at least procreation. His days are filled with abused and neglected kids, custody battles, and wannabe thugs who shoot each other for reasons scant to nonexistent. His job, one might argue, is a 40-hour-a-week…
Recalling Danny Green and a violent Cleveland
A call in response to “Cleveland is Getting Better,” January 23 I’m 74. I live in Lakewood now, born and raised on the East Side of Cleveland. This brought back memories. Lord almighty, it’s been 50 years since I’ve been at the Harbor Inn. I didn’t know it still existed. What I liked about [the…
This Just In: Cleveland Concert News
Oh, Canada: Avril Lavigne stands on the Wolstein stage for thee, on March 26th. This week, Scene has 33 new shows to announce, hot off the presses, for no additional money down, one night only. We’ve got jumbles of jazz, including a two-night stand from the always-popular Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express. Classic rock heads get…
Anderson Varejao’s half-court obsession
Could the king of flop be turning a little weird? After missing the first several weeks of the season with an injured sense of self-worth, Cavs forward Anderson Varejao is back – and he’s making an impact on more than just wig sales. Following a lengthy contract stand-off, the floppy-haired flopper is averaging career highs…
Tobogganing at Mill Stream: Cedar Point got nothing on this
If you’re out of Paxil and looking for a way to kill the frigid January blues, try the tobogganing chutes at the Mill Stream Run Reservation in Strongsville. This Cool Runnings–style ride has been around for 40 years, and it’s still ridiculously wholesome fun for the whole family. For just $8, you can rent a…
Imitation isn’t always the best form of flattery
Dan Savage, whose nationally syndicated sex column “Savage Love” appears in this rag every week, seems to have created a legion of imitators – no one more so than Claudia Lonow, the former sex writer for the New York Press. When she launched her column, Lonow decided to simply lift questions from Savage Love to…
Joe P. Tone: One of the Better American Sportswriters
Scene Managing Editor Joe P. Tone received an honorable mention in Houghton-Mifflin’s Best American Sports Writing 2007 for his story “Man on Fire” [October 6, 2006]. The piece is a profile of Jeff Rotsky, a millionaire who moonlights as a high school football coach. There are a ton of Best Whatever books in a number…
Picks of the Week: Howlies, Saltimbanco, Mambazo, and Metal!
Cirque du Soleil’s Saltimbanco wows the Wolstein on Tuesday. Every Monday, Scene calendar editor Cris Glaser provides a random but reliable sampling of things to do in the week ahead. For more options, log onto Scene’s entertainment page. And check back Friday for C-Notes’ Picks of the Week. Monday: Florida’s the Howlies truck in smoke…
Live from Cleveland: Band of Horses at the Beachland
As frontmen go, Ben Bridwell is pretty unassuming. The Band of Horses singer and guitarist spent the first couple songs of Friday’s sold-out concert at the Beachland Ballroom sitting down, while the rest of the group – expanded to a sextet on this tour – stood stoically in place. Bridwell eventually got rid of the…
Living the Dream, One Pulled Hammy at a Time
As the Jake — ahem, Progessive Field — screw that, it’s the Jake — lies cold and vacant, beaming its sterile logo out to drivers on Carnegie Avenue, 120 tribe fans made their way down to Winter Haven, Florida, over the weekend to test their base running prowess at fantasy camp. …
Dining Out on Valentine’s Day? Book a Table Now. Or Better Yet: Stay Home
Typically one of the busiest nights of the year for restaurant going — a fact that accounts for its nickname in the biz as “amateur night” — Valentine’s Day falls on a Thursday this year, which guarantees that even the humblest boîte will be filled to overflowing. Predictably, then, it’s already too late to snag…
Diversion of the Day: Classic Carl Monday! Oh My!
In the wake of Gus Garcia-Roberts’ recent special report on Carol Monday’s going soft, I present to you some old-school Carl — like 1989 old. In this classic I-Team report, Carl busts a Cleveland cop playing softball on duty. His hidden cameras catch the “RoboCops'” clean-up hitter changing out of his police uni and into…
Scarlett Johansson, Tom Waits, and a New CD
Scarlett Johansson may or may not be able to sing. We may or may not care. We like gravel-voiced singer-songwriter Tom Waits. We like buxomly Lost in Translation star Scarlett Johansson. So Anywhere I Lay My Head, a new CD in which the actress sings 10 Waits songs, sounds like a no-brainer. The album comes…
Patty Griffin and Friends Rock the Allen
Last night’s Three Girls and Their Buddy tour stop at the Allen Theatre was as close as you might get to an intimate evening at home with your favorite folksy, guitar-rockin’, singer-songwriters. Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin, and Buddy Miller sat in a row under quiet stage lights and took turns strumming their hearts…
Mic Check: Cobra Starship at the Grog Shop on Friday
Cobra Starship plays the Grog tonight. Cobra Starship started as a one-off project for Midtown frontman Gabe Saporta, who was recruited to pen a song for the movie Snakes on a Plane. At the time, buzz was huge for the flick, which was about, among absolutely no other things, snakes on a plane. Once it…
Police couldn’t convict an Akron gang member, but the schools have
It appears that no one wants anything to do with Earl Davis, one of six V-Not gang members who were charged with the murder of Shawrica Lester [“No Snitching,” January 23]. Last November, the charges against Davis were dropped after witnesses refused to testify against him, thanks to death threats they received from the gange.…
Tomorrow: Ol’ School Hip-Hop at Touch
Mick Boogie captains the ship of hip-hop debauchery Saturday at Touch. If you haven’t been to this party yet, you might believe LeBron is some type of French pastry. The every-last-Saturday “Classic Hip Hop Extravaganza” in the shoebox basement of Touch Supper Club (2710 Lorain Ave; 216.631.5200), spun by Mick Boogie and Terry Urban, is…
Picks of the Weekend: crazy Dutch dancers, nude models, and breakfast for dinner
Every Friday, Scene calendar editor Cris Glaser provides a random but reliable sampling of things to do this weekend. For more options, log onto entertainment.clevescene.com. And check back Monday for C-Notes’ Picks of the Week. Friday: Dutch dance troupe ISH sets the Allen Theater stage (1519 Euclid Ave.) on fire this weekend with two hour-long…
Uni Talk: Laundry Expert Paul Lukas on Cleveland’s Uniforms
With recent talk about the Browns changing uniforms, I figured it was time to consult a true expert in the field. I sent a query to Paul Lukas, who writes the Uni Watch column for Page 2 on ESPN.com and runs the Uni Watch blog. He’s been writing about the laundry and equipment of athletes…
Where Have You Gone, Carl Monday?
Has Carl gone soft? Will Cleveland survive? What’s happened to Carl Monday lately? The “Dean of Cleveland Investigative Reporters” has made a career out of a trenchcoat, a microphone wielded like a baton, and the ingratiating persistence of a frantic chihuahua. His specialty: turning petty stupidity or lewdness — like, say, cranking it in a…
Restaurant of the Weekend: ThornCreek Winery, in Aurora
Every week, Scene food critic Elaine Cicora assesses the upcoming weekend and picks one restaurant she thinks best fits the bill. This week: ThornCreek Winery, in Aurora. We still have fond, circa-1985 memories of 99-cent spaghetti night at the old Dankorona Winery in Aurora, a bare-bones spot with all the upscale elegance of cousin Vinnie’s…
Diversion(s) of the Day: Hash, Nash, and … the Cure!
It’s Choose Your Own Adventure Day on this glorious Friday, a diversion for every mood. Had a rough week? Take a cue from Chris Tucker and Ice Cube, who’ve long had Fridays down to a science. Bored, with nothing on tonight’s agenda? Track down last-minute tickets to tonight’s Cavs-Suns game, and to warm up, watch…
Untitled
With all the trouble on Wall Street, I like to diversify my portfolio as much as possible – durable goods, technology, some pharmaceutical companies, and right-handed relievers. Yeah, that’s right. You can invest money in baseball players. A company called Real Sports Investment sells shares of players’ future earnings, and their latest offering is Randy…
Money Where Your Mouth Is: Shadows Force
Once a week, C-Notes turns the keyboard over to a band and lets its designated representative explain why you should spend some time with them this weekend. This week: Erie classic-rockers Shadows Force.
O’Brien Factor: Stop panicking over the stock market, silly people!
We read Kevin O’Brien so you don’t have to … Column: Forget clear, dispassionate thought; it’s a panic party, and you’re invited January 23, 2008 Topic: All the TV guys and the money elite are freaking out about the fall in the stock market. Silly little people, thinks Kevin. Kevin’s Sanity Level Today: 4 percent…
Don’t bet the dog: Eli Manning is jinxed
Official ruling from the booth: Abby McGrew, Eli Manning’s wife-to-be, is not jinxed Maybe it’s not Jessica Simpson’s fault after all. Right before the Giants playoff game last Sunday, Eli Manning issued a request to his fiancée, Abby McGrew. Though temperatures were supposed to reach -12 degrees with the wind chill, could she please just…
Westboro Baptist Church to protest Heath Ledger’s funeral
The fine people at the Westboro Baptist Church are into protesting funerals, as Jesus would have wanted. As soon as the news of Heath Ledger’s untimely death broke, the tabloids and celebrity gossip sites swelled with every take on the actor’s overdose, from the mournful to the sensational. TMZ went so far as to actually…
Cleveland State kicks off program exclusively for vets
Last summer, we introduced you to Cleveland State’s wild plan to help returning veterans get a college education. For returning soldiers accustomed to a homecoming full of frustration — waiting months for an appointment at the VA hospital, or years for a disability claim to be denied — this was a novel idea. The college…
Chicago Tribune discovers Cleveland’s dining scene
If you ever had your doubts, now there’s proof that Cleveland cuisine ranks up there in the culinary world. Last week, The Chicago Tribune – unofficial motto: Covering the only city in the Midwest that matters — deigned to write an entire article celebrating the Cleveland culinary scene. Of course, the paper couldn’t resist titling…
White Williams: Real Nerd of Rock Nerd?
White Williams: Bona fide dork? Lots of new-school rockers claim they’re nerds. Look at emo: The whole damn genre’s filled with kids who not only got their asses kicked regularly in high school; they were proud of it! Besides, gullible girls are attracted to sensitive, nerdy types (look at Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz.) So…
Mic Check: Band of Horses at the Beachland on Friday
Band of Horses plays the Beachland tomorrow night. Band of Horses made one of our favorite albums of 2007, Cease to Begin. In essence, it’s about frontman Ben Bridwell’s move back home to South Carolina from Seattle. It has to do with family, a girl, and getting his head straight. It’s an often complex and…
Diversion of the Day: The Hills girls check out Iraq
OK, so they’re a little overdressed for Baghdad … Today’s excuse to put off work for just a few more minutes comes courtesy of the humor web site McSweeneys and Wendy Molyneux, a board-certified weirdo who occasionally writes for the site. Molyneux, who recently published a book, penned one of my favorite McSweeneys pieces a…
It’s Freezing. You’re Hungry. It’s Time You Met the Souper Market
If you don’t already know, now is as good as any time to learn about the region’s best source for soup — Matt Moore’s Souper Market, the homegrown Ohio City soup shop (2528 Lorain Avenue, 216-737-SOUP) that recently added a second location in the heart of Lakewood (14809 Detroit Avenue, 216-712-7292). Moore and his staffers…
To Ward Off Cimperman, Kucinich Makes Plea for Help
Early this morning, Dennis Kucinich channeled his inner-evangelist and released the above impassioned plea for cash. The once untouchable congressman apparently is feeling the heat from Councilman Joe Cimperman, his chief congressional foe. In a race Kucinich used to sleep-walk through, he’s practically begging for $1,000. Presuming you don’t speak Kucinichese — sadly, we accidentally…
After Cleveland Show, Even Mayor Jackson Agrees: Wyclef For President
Wyclef went where few HOB performers have gone before: the balcony. Wyclef Jean went bacchanal last night at Cleveland’s House of Blues, challenging the record for the most arm-raising in the venue’s history, previously held by Ozomatli and the Roots. The former Fugees frontman and master collaborator displayed another of his many incarnations: the Grand…
Former Brown Felix Wright: The NFL’s Pension System is Broken
On the heels of “Forgotten Forefathers,” Gus Garcia-Roberts’ recent story about former football players struggling to get acces to the NFL’s pension and disability payouts, I spoke recently ol’ No. 22 for the Cleveland Browns – Felix Wright. I called Wright to talk about an event he’s doing on February 12th and 13th, when he’ll…
LeBron’s Yankees Shoe is So Last Week; On the Other Hand, LeBron’s Ohio State Shoe …
Next up for LeBron: an OSU shoe. As we predicted six days ago in our post about LeBron’s new Yankees-inspired Nike kicks, the pinstriped shit hath hit the fan, as evidenced by a growing list of comments left on yesterday’s Cleveland.com story. The PD even devoted almost an entire page in today’s paper to reproducing…
Mic Check: Patty Griffin at the Allen on Thursday
Patty Griffin joins Emmylou Harris at the Allen on Thursday. Patty Griffin has been making records since 1996, but it wasn’t until last year’s Children Running Through that she really found her voice. She’s always been a terrific songwriter. Her songs have been covered by everybody from Emmylou Harris to Kelly Clarkson to the Dixie…
High School Rock-Off Rocks On
Live Nation has announced the finalists from round three of the 12th Annual Tri-C High School Rock-Off. Three more bands will move on the battle of the bands’ Final Exam, to be held Saturday, February 2 at House of Blues (308 Euclid Ave., 216-523-2583): The new finalists are Funk You (from Western Reserve HS and…
This Just In, Part Deux: Cleveland Concerts
Five breaking shows to report: If you like new bands playing tried and true classics, you’re in luck. And if you’re not, here’s a steaming plate of the emo-rock-pop-punk thing for ya. — D.X. Ferris All Time Low/the Rocket Summer/the Matches/Sonny/Forever the Sickest Kids: The Alternative Press Tour, Fri., May 2, 6 p.m., $13.50. House…
Huckabee the frontrunner for Jesus’ endorsement
Jesus and Chuck Norris were at the gym, and they both agree: Huckabee’s in the lead. As the presidential primaries heat up, you, the undecided voter, are probably asking yourself the only question that really needs asking before casting your ballot: Who would Jesus vote for? To help you along, Miami New Times, our sister…
Diversion of the Day: On MLK Day, Bill Clinton Had a Dream …
Today’s YouTube Life Lesson comes courtesy of Bill Clinton, who proves that even former presidents need their full eight hours. If you haven’t seen it yet, this should make you feel way better about nodding off in your cubicle this afternoon.
Something’s amiss with the Summit Republican Party’s finances
Alex Arshinkoff claims he loaned his party $75,000, but there’s no record of it. When Scott Sigel made his presentation before the Summit County Board of Elections, he thought he was just doing his job. For five years, Sigel, a Republican-appointed board employee, had been in charge of filing and auditing campaign finance reports. But…
It’s National Pie Day. That Means Free Pie.
Today is National Pie Day. But instead of partying our asses off, we’re hunkered over our keyboard, feeling confused. The problem? On the one hand, we don’t like to promote chain restaurants. (We figure they’ve got the bucks to buy their own ink, and prefer to spill ours on local joints hustling to make a…
Queer Sirs and Madams
Chicagoan and gay author Gregg Shapiro peddles his new book of poetry tonight, at Suspect Thoughts’ monthly Queerland Rocks meet-and-greet with regionally and nationally acclaimed gay, lesbian, and bisexual writers, rappers, and actors. The literary series is one in a string of “alternaqueer” theme nights that co-owners Greg Wharton and Ian Philips have cooked up…
Busta Rhymes and J Dilla
Boogie was undoubtedly king of the mixtape in ’07, but his latest may be his best yet. With a gold mine of original material — demos and outtakes produced by J Dilla and supplied by Busta from his personal vaults — Boogie has created one of the most focused and rewarding mixtapes ever. There are…
Stop Snitchin’
It’s past noon and Sandra Lester is still in her pajamas, a hot pink robe wound around her boundless curves, her eyes glassy from a year of sleeplessness. The crock-pot fills her dimly lit apartment with the smell of turkey as Lauryn Hill croons from a boombox. Nothing really matters at all, Sandra sings along.…
Boulevard Blues
From the third-floor window of his angular, Chicago-style walk-up, Jason Wright’s view is the kind real-estate fliers are made of. To the east he can see the downtown skyline. To the north, the white-capped waves of Lake Erie. And directly below lies a grid of freshly paved concrete streets, a daily reminder of his investment…
Veganomics
Blueberry waffles top the dinner menu tonight at Now That’s Class’ weekly Vegan Breakfast. Along with the $2 treat, barmaid Crystin’s meat- and dairy-free dishes include her $1.50 potatoes with onions and celery, a $3.50 biscuits-and-gravy combo, and the $3.50 McClass sandwich, made with “fake” sausage, eggs, and cheese. PETA will never go hungry. The…
Bad Boys in tights
Blame the leader of the Mark Morris Dance Group if Cleveland’s classical-music and ballet fans get a little rowdy tonight, when the 14-member troupe performs eclectic interpretations of works by Béla Bartók, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Robert Schumann. “Mark Morris is like Mick Jagger,” says Pam Young, executive director of Dance Cleveland. “He’s the bad-boy…
The Supersuckers
No one knows better than the Supersuckers that a great rock and roll concert looks, sounds, and smells a lot like Party Central. The Seattle-by-way-of-Tucson quartet boasts riff-rocking showmanship, a twisted sense of humor, and, in frontman Eddie Spaghetti, a playfully rebellious dude who channels a lot of early-punk appeal. Need proof? Check out the…
The Lawyers’ President
Though Dennis Kucinich likes to call himself the “workers’ president,” he’s quickly building a new reputation as the lawyers’ president. Over the past few weeks, he’s filed enough litigation to make Skippy from the yacht club envious. It began January 5, when ABC excluded him from its New Hampshire debate after deciding he wasn’t a…
For Sale: “Gold Mine”
Closed since January 10, Tremont’s upscale watering hole 806 Wine & Martini Bar is now on the market — sort of. Owner Tom Leneghan has had a prospective buyer running and leasing it for the past year, with an option to buy the five-year-old bar. But no sale’s gone through, and Leneghan is getting “a…
Magic Carpet Ride
Like a scene from E!’s pre-Oscar-night show, spotlights will illuminate the entrance to Anatomy as revelers in tuxes and gowns stride into the nightspot for the On the Red Carpet fund-raiser for Families With Food Allergies. Once inside, a bevy of Tommy Bahama Girls will pour $3 mojitos, cosmopolitans, and rum-and-Cokes while DJs Go and…
Ember Swift
Ember Swift recently returned from a three-month stay in Beijing, where she pursued two of her favorite things — music and Chinese culture. It was a much-needed break from a hectic touring schedule that’s kept the Canadian singer-songwriter busy since 1997. In that time, she formed her own record label, released nine albums, and managed…
Dirty Pictures
TOP PICK — Indie Sex (Genius Products) This two-disc DVD compiles a four-part miniseries about sex in the movies that aired on IFC last year. The former Mrs. Marilyn Manson, Dita Von Teese, hosts the roundup — which juggles talking heads (John Waters, Ally Sheedy) and film clips (Porky’s, Shortbus). Bonus materials include extended scenes…
Euclid Returns
Cleveland’s legendary Euclid Tavern (11629 Euclid Avenue) reopens this week with an inaugural set by the JiMiller Band on Friday, January 25. The University Circle bar was open from the 1940s through 2001. Longtime Clevelanders will find the renovated a facility dramatically improved. From the ’60s through the ’80s, the bar slid from a well-regarded…
Long on Shorts
Nearly 20 flicks that last no more than 12 minutes each will roll on the Kent Stage screen for tonight’s fifth annual Standing Rock International Film Festival. And the movies from as far as Australia and Italy rival their Hollywood-blockbuster counterparts. “You swear they’re done in some high-tech studio somewhere, and you find out it’s…
Cobra Starship
This emo supergroup started as a lark in 2006, back when the blogosphere had Snakes on a Plane fever. Gabe Saporta, frontman for New Jersey rockers Midtown, was recruited to pen a song for the movie. But the flick turned out to be an overhyped washout that couldn’t even muster enough energy to reach cult…
Cleveland Is Getting Better
You might say Wally Pisorn is intimate with violence. Born in the Slovenian Republic during World War II, his earliest memories are of occupation by the Italian army and the American bombs meant to dislodge it. When sirens carved the air, his mother would hustle her nine kids into a bunker. Dad was in the…
He’s Got Rhythm
The recent death of chess whiz and renowned egomaniac Bobby Fischer reminds us that genius, in any field of endeavor, often comes equipped with a heightened level of self-involvement. This is especially the case when that genius dares to reimagine traditional forms and conventions. The composer and pianist at the heart of George Gershwin Alone,…
Canadian Shakin’
Music critics have dubbed Nova Scotia fiddler Natalie MacMaster as one of the foremost ambassadors of spirited Celtic tunes. She’ll try to live up to the props tonight, when she takes the stage for the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Viva! music series at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. “My hope is to transport everyone…
Dan Deacon
Like his electro-spazz compatriot Girl Talk, Dan Deacon blurs the line between artist and audience. Actually, he obliterates it, gnashing it between two enameled synthesizers and spitting it into a carnival-like celebration of squealing flesh. In concert, Deacon employs sine-wave generators, vocoders, and a cornucopia of effects pedals, turning his nerdy vibes into an all-consuming…
Your Home Is Your Casa
Nearly 900 home-improvement vendors, 30 gardens in bloom, and three full-scale model homes greet homeowners and green thumbs alike for the start of this weekend’s Home & Garden Show. Playing up the show’s “Bella Italia” theme, organizers have also turned the I-X Center into a Roman piazza, complete with Italian cuisine, Mediterranean-inspired landscaping, and bocce-ball…
Sweepin’ the Tact Away
Everyone knows helium-voiced Snuggle, the fabric-softener bear so ickily adorable, he makes you want to fwow up. But you can put your thoughts of teddy-bear mayhem aside, because there are two stuffed clones in town that look and sound just like Snuggle, but have the cold and devious soul of Hannibal Lecter. Meet the Bad…
Hog Heaven
At this weekend’s Cycle World International Motorcycle Show, the makers of BMWs and Harley-Davidsons all but let you ride one of the 600 models of hogs on display. “It’s not a look-at-the-pretty-bikes show,” says spokesman Dave Scott. “You can get on the bike, you can put your wife on the back, your girlfriend, or your…
Killswitch Engage
Boston metal monsters Killswitch Engage tear through their latest CD, 2006’s As Daylight Dies, like they have just one night to right some unnamed wrong. Singer Howard Jones loads up on melodic howls that transport the band to a tuneful territory most of its contemporaries stay far, far away from. A pair of guitarists pull…
Nude Awakening
A little T&A has become standard fare on the runways of New York, Paris, and Milan. But photographer Joe Katonka takes it a few steps further by exposing bare-breasted goddesses in fishnet stockings in his new exhibit, The Other Side. The collection of more than 20 digital snaps took him a year to assemble. “It’s…
Homeward Bound
Ben Bridwell, frontman for the indie-rock trio Band of Horses, needed a change. His group’s debut, Everything All the Time, came from nowhere to become one of 2006’s most lauded albums. Combining jam-band aesthetics, guitar heroics, and occasionally vague lyrics about hopelessness, the album split the minor differences among Neil Young, Built to Spill, and…
Deputy on Duty
Georgia roots-rocker Zach Deputy is a big guy with an equally big sound you’ll hear tonight, when he duets with percussionist and childhood buddy Paul Kearns in Cleveland. But on his latest tour from his Savannah base to Montreal and back, the gregarious guitarist and harmonica player can’t seem to pinpoint the musical style with…
Happy Apple
Happy Apple’s biggest problem — seven albums and 10-plus years into its career — is sustaining excellence. Although it’s still a pretty abstract combo, the Minneapolis jazz group infuses its latest album, Happy Apple Back on Top, with genuine warmth and heart. Listen especially to the more tender tunes, which make up nearly half the…
Pain Thrillers
When the Professional Bull Riders Tour stops in Canton this weekend, it’s okay to root for the mammoth bovines over the dudes going along for the bumpy ride. Even the competitors say so. “Whether they stay on the bull or not, they’ll probably get thrown in the end. Everybody wants to see the wreck, but…
Freak Out!
Interstate 71 is a mere jaunt compared to its coast-to-coast sisters, I-80 and I-90. Hell, the winding slab of concrete is only 346 miles long. That said, I-71 remains the spine of the Buckeye State. Beginning south of the Mason-Dixon Line, in Louisville, Kentucky, it snakes its way northeast, across the Ohio River and through…
Ménage à Quatre
Billboard once called Emmylou Harris a “genre-transcending pathfinder.” Tonight, the legendary roots rocker’s path winds into Playhouse Square on her Three Girls and Their Buddy tour. Harris will take turns onstage with fellow musical storytellers Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, and Buddy Miller in a tribute to their collaborations over the years. Harris is also hawking…
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
It’s probably safe to assume that the first-ever musical instrument was the human voice. Even before folks started banging sticks on stones, like prehistoric Keith Moons, they were “oohing” and “aahing” with some semblance of melody. Millions of years later, the voice remains the most honest way of expressing emotions. Besides, it’s universal: No matter…
When Life Gives You Empty Seats . . .
Singer-guitarist Christopher Bell is used to snoozing in his car or pigging out on gas-station and rest-stop cuisine while crisscrossing the country on tour. It’s not a glorious life, and it’s even more of a bummer when Bell shows up at a coffee shop or house party to find a lukewarm audience. But his tour…
Happy Ending
Patty Griffin’s soprano slices into Children Running Through like a church bell at midnight. Her rich timbre bleeds deep nuance into the grooves, conveying hope, solace, and rebirth amid much heartache and disappointment. It’s bittersweet, without a doubt. Griffin sings with such power and emotion, it’s hard not to be moved — whether by “Trapeze”‘s…
First & Jenn
Fresh off her victory in a cooking contest on foodie Rachael Ray’s talk show, Cuyahoga Falls floral designer Jenn Thomas will whip up her award-winning lasagna burgers at RemodelOhio, which opens today at the I-X Center. She’ll also explain that she favors cooking any high-carb dish with loads of cheese. “To me, cooking is fun…
Our top DVD picks scheduled for release this week:
America! The Complete Series (RHI) Barney Miller: The Complete Second Season (Sony) Best Actress Collection (Fox) Best Picture Academy Award Winners Collection (Fox) Blonde Ambition (Sony) Butterfly Collectors (Koch Vision) The Catherine Cookson Anthology (Koch Vision) ER: The Complete Eighth Season (Warner Bros.) The Game Plan (Disney) Hawaii Five-O: The Third Season (Paramount) Inside the…
Turn to Stone
The Cycle of Life, a sculpture on the campus of Gilmour Academy in Gates Mills, is Thomas Turkaly’s favorite of his late father’s artworks. And the six-figure piece representing the family’s lineage adds another layer of meaning to the new exhibit The Life of a Sculptor: Joseph Turkaly, which is on display through the end…
Old Dog, New Tricks
Bow Wow released his first album, 2000’s Beware of Dog, when he was just 13 years old. He’s since evolved into an elder statesman of hip-pop. Last month, the 20-year-old rapper released Face Off, his sixth CD — a collaboration with another former teen star, Omarion, who used to sing with B2K — and his…
Cirque-ing for a Living
Cirque du Soleil music director Benoit Martin won’t complain about the two-show-a-day schedule he’s maintained for more than two years. At 26, he’s just grateful for gigging in the popular troupe he’s followed since he was a tween in his native Montreal. “You have to get used to the traveling. Of course, by the second…
Fat Comic Standing
Lavell Crawford admits he’s one of “two fat brothers” on the BET network. Just don’t mistake him for the other overweight black comic, Bruce Bruce. “I’m so sick of people getting us mixed up. I ain’t got nothing against him. But damn! That ain’t me,” says Crawford, who’s in town for a six-show run in…
Super, Thanks for Asking
Confessions of a Superhero (Arts Alliance) As one of those quoted on the package (“A more beautiful documentary you’re unlikely to find”), I can only reiterate my earlier praise: Matt Ogens’ doc, about mortals dressed as superheroes trolling Hollywood Boulevard for tourists’ loose change, is stunning to look at — the proverbial visual feast, best…
Gone 4-Ishing
Since zig-zagging across the U.S. and Canada on three prior tours, ISH founder Marco Gerris has pinpointed the major difference between North American audiences and those in his adopted Holland: They “have bigger mouths.” He’s expecting another raucous reception tonight, when his 12-member street-art dance troupe, in their 4-ISH tour, shakes up Playhouse Square as…
Capsule reviews of current area theater presentations.
I Have Before Me a Remarkable Document Given to Me by a Young Lady From Rwanda — This small diamond of a play by Sonja Linden employs just two actors, but they convey a richly nuanced view of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Simon is a frustrated middle-aged poet who’s taken a job at a…
Sweet Howlmony
In just a half of a year, Atlanta’s Howlies have pooled together (established? built?) a devoted fan base of celebs and nobodys alike. Perhaps it’s their onstage acrobatics in the midst of smoke and flashing lights that have awed audiences. Maybe it’s their four-part “howlmonies” that keep their booking agent busy. Certainly, their ritual of…
Eels
Eels has always been a mixed bag. For more than a decade, the group has blended Todd Rundgren’s symphonic impulses with Sparklehorse’s bedroom pastiche, rounding it all out with a dose of Elliott Smith-style bittersweetness. It’s adored for these qualities overseas. In the U.S., however, it’s little more than a cult band that scored a…
Axes to Grind
There’s a point at which every fad overstays its welcome. Could it be that Guitar Hero is already just a sour note from being booed out of America’s living room? For evidence, look no further than the plethora of GH cash-in products hawked at this month’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the annual parade…
Susie Slapstick
Susie Essman is a rare breed of comedian. As a novice, she aspired to be as funny on TV as Lily Tomlin and Carol Burnett. Then someone “forced” her into winging her first stand-up bit. “I was like, ‘Wow! This is really cool,” says Essman, who’s in Cleveland this weekend for four shows. “I’d never…
Capsule reviews of current area art exhibitions.
NEW A Pretty Little Trick — This is the first show in The Sculpture Center’s 2008 Window to Sculpture Emerging Artist Series, a succession of exhibitions by young artists with Ohio connections. Here, Cleveland Heights native Lauren Kalman presents an ambitious installation — a self-described critique of gender stereotypes as well as media idealization of…
Let Them Make Cake
Any newlywed knows that a wedding cake is already a confectionary piece of art. But when you add artistic masterpieces like Klimt’s The Kiss to the mix, you get today’s Art of the Cake: A Wedding Cake Showcase. The competition challenges bakers from around the country to build cakes that duplicate famous artworks. Spectators then…
Cat Power
It’s easy to dismiss Cat Power’s covers-CD Jukebox as a record company’s lazy way of dealing with its artist’s latest bout of writer’s block. But any indie-rock hipster can tell you that head kitty Chan Marshall stuffs her live shows with other people’s songs. Anyway, she’s done this sorta thing before, back on 2000’s Covers…
The Pretenders
There’s no way this should be good. A vegan-kosher restaurant in a struggling Rust Belt city, owned by an absentee rock-and-roller? Can someone say “sitcom”? Yet thanks to stunning design and a heaping helping of culinary legerdemain, Akron’s new VegiTerranean — the pet project of Cuyahoga Falls native, animal-rights activist, and international rock star Chrissie…
Black on Black
In tonight’s Ohio premiere of Julius X, playwright Al Letson mixes the politics of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar with the violence leading to Malcolm X’s 1965 assassination to create a civil-rights fable set in 1960s Harlem. The drama depicts an African American activist who wants to break away from the Black Resistance movement, in which all…
Mother Yucker
Darrin Bates’ mom gets no respect tonight during his first-ever Giggly Wiggly comedy night at the gay nightspot Grid. The Cleveland funnyman swears she doesn’t care that she’s the brunt of his jokes, since he’s only telling the truth about her pot-smoking and an equally annoying addiction to the daily horoscope. “She says, ‘I want…
Earth to Earthlings
After heading the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s recycling program for four years, Nancy Hughes has plenty to say about how you can help Mother Earth. At today’s School of the Wilds: The Whole Recycling Story, she’ll recap her work as the program’s director of recycling and compost. “There’s always people out there that want to know…
Hello, Blue Roses
Don’t expect Dan Bejar’s latest project to sound anything like the music he makes with his other bands, Destroyer and the New Pornographers. While Bejar arranges the tunes, strums the guitar, and plays backup singer throughout The Portrait Is Finished and I Have Failed to Capture Your Beauty, Hello, Blue Roses is really a vehicle…
Official Bow Wow After-Party
Even if Bow Wow doesn’t show up at the after-party following his show at the Q — it’s an official party, but you never can tell — Omarion and Souljah Boy Tell’Em are scheduled to appear. And while Souljah may have a No. 1 single, an even better attraction — ‘cuz, let’s face it: she’s…
Head Trip
Never heard of the 1971 flick, A Safe Place? Not surprising. The drama in which Tuesday Weld meets a handsome Jack Nicholson and a bulbous Orson Welles in New York first came out in a handful of movie houses, then — poof! — disappeared off the radar screen, without even an eventual VHS or DVD…
Breaking! Kids Coming of Age at Sundance 2008!
“How does this compare to other film festivals, like Cannes?” asked an inquisitive woman seated next to me at a screening on the first Saturday morning of this year’s Sundance Film Festival. I pondered the question for a moment, then replied that I was pretty sure you would never see a filmmaker in Cannes introduce…
Valley Whirl
Even when there’s no snow on the ground, it’s pretty safe to say that it’s impossible to see all 33,000 acres of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park in a day. That’s why the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s hour-and-45-minute tour on the Cabin Fever Express lets riders sit in the warmth of a railcar and take…
Youssou N’Dour
African singer Youssou N’Dour is big among pop stars who care about global warming and such things. He’s famously recorded with Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon, and Sting during his 20-year career. N’Dour’s latest album heads to the desert for inspiration, incorporating acoustic guitars, shuffling percussion, and lots of wide-open spaces. His last CD, 2004’s Egypt,…
Budapest Blue
You can’t tell from the outside, but Budpest Blue is a cool little Ohio City hang, be it for happy hour, warming up for a show, or a quiet date night. Decked out in seven shades of blue — a friendly bar staff can list them all — the bar has a cool digital jukebox…
Thrash of the Titans
Droid pairs up with fellow headbangers Ill Nino, Torne, and Bobaflex tonight as their Guerilla Carnival Tour bulldozes into Cleveland for sets of punishing heavy metal. Call it an encore of the thrashing guitars and spewed lyrics heard last year on their Family Values Tour. “We are excited to get back out on the road,”…
Charles in Charge
Charles Haislah dusts off his cocktail-mixing talents tonight as he competes in the Battle of Celebrity Bartenders. The 34-year-old board member of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Center of Greater Cleveland will try to raise money for the agency by peddling his specialty Cadillac margaritas, with Grand Marnier liqueur, Cuervo Gold tequila, triple sec,…
Guitar Hero
For someone who was named one of the top 100 guitarists ever by Musician magazine, Kim Simmonds remains low-key about his talents. The only original member left in the British blues band Savoy Brown, he also strung together a series of acoustic-guitar solo albums. Then it hit him: He wasn’t really good at it. “It…
Josh Turner
Baby-faced Turner looks nothing like he sounds. He has the most booming bass in country music, a rumble so low it literally shakes rooms. On his third album of old-school honky-tonk, Turner once again pays tribute to his twangy heroes with a set of songs that fills every available space with banjos, mandolins, and pedal…
You Kill Me
Regarding the irrelevance of Untraceable: First of all, torture is so 2007, and just because this drab little thriller imagines itself a “critique of violence” doesn’t make it any less superfluous. Second of all, untraceable? Ha! You wish. While it’s true that the villain of our tale, a precocious psychopath hosting real-time snuff videos on…
Bush Whacking
Former Stray Cat Lee Rocker swings into Cleveland tonight for a concert of twangy Americana rock pulled from his new album, Black Cat Bone. The lyrics on the 10-track disc both target the mundane (like sitting on a tour bus) and tackle the big issues, like the Iraq war. “Sold Us Down the River,” needless…
Way Out of Africa
Mud-caked footprints and fur-lined sketches describe the rhino’s plight in Africa during today’s 7 p.m. opening reception of Judith Brandon’s second Gordon Square exhibit, Black & Blue. But unlike her debut at 1point618 Gallery (in 2006), the 20-piece display doesn’t feature the creatures under dark skies or in desolate habitats. Instead, it depicts them in…
Rod & Peel
Nothing screams “hot rod” like the General Lee as it bathes in all its Dukes of Hazzard movie glory this weekend at the 2008 Canton Hot Road Show. The famed two-door muscle car will also share the spotlight with an arena full of roadsters, from a ’32 Chevy and ’37 Ford coupe to an assortment…
Joshua Goldberg
Double Murder Suicide is an unspeakably tasteless concept album about the death of the WWE’s Chris Benoit, who killed his wife, son, and himself in June 2007. And it’s a must-listen if you’re even remotely interested in professional wrestling — which, like heavy metal, ballet, and coffee, is an admittedly acquired taste. Goldberg is a…
Protect the Legacy
Jonathan Demme, who directed Tom Hanks to an Oscar as the AIDS-afflicted lawyer in Philadelphia, may be the most well-meaning filmmaker in Hollywood. Jimmy Carter is certainly the most well-meaning ex-president in recent American history. And so Demme’s documentary, Jimmy Carter Man From Plains, has no shortage of good intentions. In fact, running over two…
Interest Due
“Who Killed Cleveland?,” August 29, 2007 Feds should turn their gaze to corrupt lenders: Until recently, I was an underwriter for a subprime mortgage company that is about to close. It seems that most media outlets and government officials feign ignorance about the underlying cause of the problem. There is either a tendency to blame…
Gospel Truth
More than 150 singers and instrumentalists from the Cleveland School of the Arts keep in tune with the city’s top musicians from the Cleveland Institute of Music at the 17th annual Black Heritage Concert. The program will range from beloved spirituals and Hebrew psalms to a German requiem. “We’ve seen them wow audiences around the…
