New Arthouse Cinema Opens Today in Akron
Reportedly the first new cinema in downtown Akron in 30 years, the Nightlife lays claim to some serious bragging rights. According to its owners, it’s the only micro-cinema in Northeast Ohio. Located at 30 North High Street, it only has 50 seats but it’s got a brand-new Christie digital cinema projector and an 8.1 surround…
T-Minus 25 Days ’til Training Camp: Johnny Manziel Parties with Justin Bieber
Johnny’s making headlines again this week, and not for making videos about his large stacks of money. No, Johnny’s got a new hobby, it seems, and one that’s even more questionable in our humble opinion. T-minus 25 days ’til training camp.
Kyrie Irving Celebrated His $90 Million New Contract With Some Late Night Dancing
Kyrie Irving agreed to a max contract — five years, $90 million — with your Cleveland Cavaliers last night. Around 5 a.m., he celebrated with some dancing. Hey, at least Justin Bieber was nowhere to be found, Cleveland. (Hat tip to SB Nation.) //instagram.com/p/p6KypzxRza
‘Ohio on Tap,’ New Pub Devoted to Ohio Craft Beer, Makes Debut
The inaugural issue of Ohio on Tap, a new publication devoted to Ohio craft beer and breweries, has just been released. A joint venture between the Ohio Craft Brewers Association and Great Lakes Publishing, the glossy publication is an indispensable guide for craft beer lovers. “We are up to 99 breweries in Ohio, and there…
New Rock Hall Exhibit Celebrates Contemporary Artists
Dan Auerbach’s tip jar, hat and amp The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum has just opened a new exhibit devoted to acts that are popular today. Former Akronites the Black Keys, now one of the biggest rock acts in the world, figure prominently. Artifacts on display include the outfit Lady Gaga wore…
Crowdfunding the Original Craft Beer
McAuliffe This morning, Cleveland-based Renee DeLuca launched a “CrowdBrewed” page, which will fund the resurrection of New Albion Brewing Company’s iconic American ale. Chip-ins will be accepted until Aug. 14; DeLuca is hoping to raise $75,000 to contract-brew the original recipe and, ideally, set New Albion Porter and New Albion Stout in the company’s sightlines.…
Terrific Photo Gallery of Lakewood High School’s ‘Old Building,’ Set for Demolition Later This Year
reddit/kheeley There’s nothing like the eerie environs of long-abandoned school buildings. reddit user kheeley posted a really terrific photo gallery of Lakewood High School’s “Old Building” last night. The Lakewood School District is embarking on a $100 million demolition and construction project, which includes three elementary school buildings (Lincoln, Grant and Roosevelt) and the easternmost,…
Dispatch from Cleveland Resident Lisa Square, Navy Master-at-Arms 2nd Class
Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Cory Asato/Released Master-at-Arms 2nd Class Lisa Square, Naval Base Kitsap’s 2013 Junior Sailor of the Year and a Cleveland native, checks her military working dog’s temperature while as part of the first inaugural Navy Region Northwest MWD Competition at Naval Base Kitsap. Lisa Square, Navy master-at-arms and Cleveland native, earned…
Remembering Bobby Womack
Cleveland’s own Bobby Womack passed away over the weekend at the age of 70. We’ve read plenty of words since that sad news hit, but we’re partial to this eulogy from GQ. Do read it. Listen to some Womack while you do. You won’t be sorry. If Womack had been blessed with a perfect instrument…
Pic: Just a Shirtless Dad With a Rifle and His Kids Walking in Medina
Medina’s been a flashpoint of sorts for open carry and CCW folks. There have been marches and demonstrations and this, the odd sight of a shirtless dude in flip flops packing a rifle on his back towing along his two daughters. This pic hit the front page of Reddit last week (there are some details…
Akron Beacon Journal to Initiate Paywall on Ohio.com
Starting tomorrow, the Akron Beacon Journal’s web affiliate Ohio.com will kick start its web membership model (i.e. PAYWALL) which will allow readers to view only seven articles per month free of charge. After that threshold, readers can opt to purchase an online only subscription ($11/month) or go whole-hog and become print subscribers, which will include a digital membership ($19.50/month…
Ringo Starr Brings Message of Peace and Love to Jacobs Pavilion
Joe Kleon “I’m going to see my fourth favorite Beatle,” said one fan on her way to last night’s Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band concert at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica. Her remark didn’t come off as an insult, but it did speak to the fact that Starr certainly doesn’t represent the Liverpool band’s legacy…
Iron & Wine Thrives in Intimate Setting at Kent Stage
Aaron Mendelsohn With a packed Kent Stage audience hanging on his every word, Sam Beam and his four piece band, otherwise known as Iron & Wine, worked through songs from his decade long catalog last night, making the intimate show feel like a memorable living room performance. Iron & Wine has been stopping in Northeast…
CityWide Street Sale Takes Over Lakewood this Weekend
#171596504 / gettyimages.com Thrifty local shoppers jonesin’ for solid summer bargains are in luck: The fifth annual CityWide Street Sale is taking over Lakewood this weekend, and nearly 200 vendors are participating. Expect dozens of Detroit Avenue shops spilling out onto the sidewalks, offering up steals on everything from seasonal wines, to summer scents, and…
Video: Cavs Introduce Andrew Wiggins as “Mitchell Wiggins”
This from today’s introductory press conference. Go Bulls! Wait. Cavs!
Former Clevelander to Play Special Concert at Root Café in July
A former Clevelander who holds a degree in music composition from Cleveland State University and played with the noisy free jazz band Birth, Jeremy Bleich moved to Santa Fe in 2005 where composes and teaches. A renowned jazz basssit, he has performed on the oud (the Arabic lute) at the Ramadan festival in Tusla, Turkey…
Scene Podcast: World Cup, Johnny Manziel, Cavs Draft, and More Sports
This week, host Craig Lyndall is joined by Mike James, host of the Defend Cleveland podcast, to talk sports, sports and more sports World Cup soccer in wake of the U.S. moving on to the round of 16! Johnny Manziel! Cavs draft! And more. Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes here. Download directly here. Or…
Tech Talk: Tim Hayes’s Cardboard Helicopter Embodies an Industrial Renaissance
Tech Talk is a weekly series that explores the people behind startup companies in the Cleveland area. Cleveland was once part of a region where manufacturing flourished. From the ‘20s to the ‘60s, companies like Ford, Eaton, and TRW produced components for cars on a massive scale, while industrial equipment makers like Dravo Wellman and…
Transformers Reboot is a Big-budget Blunder
The Transformers series isn’t exactly what you’d call highbrow entertainment. Rival toy robots fight each other in computer-generated battle scenes while members of the overzealous American military try to figure out where they fit into the equation. It’s a formula that’s worked wonders, turning the franchise into one of the biggest of all time. Transformers:…
Adega, the High-Profile Restaurant at The 9, has Announced its Executive Chef
Adega, the feature restaurant at The 9, the high-end hotel and residence complex in the former Ameritrust buildings, has announced its executive chef. Eddie Tancredi, selected as the 2013 Chef of the Year by the American Culinary Federation, has come on board as that restaurant’s top chef. At just 30 years old, Tancredi already has…
Cavaliers Select Andrew Wiggins No. 1 in 2014 NBA Draft
The Cavaliers selected Kansas SG/SF Andrew Wiggins with the first overall pick of the 2014 NBA draft Thurday night. After endless speculation about a front-office/ownership split between Wiggins and Jabari Parker (who went No. 2, as projected, to the Milwaukee Bucks) and a storm of trade rumors which picked up momentum yesterday afternoon, the Cavs…
10 Things Going on in Cleveland this Weekend (June 27 – 29)
Lots to keep us city folk busy this weekend, including the 35th annual Tri-C JazzFest, the crafty and colorful Waterloo Arts Fest, and Cleveland Pride, as well as a handful of hotly anticipated concerts with performances by Bruno Mars, Ringo Starr, and others. Have fun out there.
The Ray Benich Band to Play Farewell Show at Beachland
Formerly of the Cleveland classic rock act Damnation of Adam Blessing, the group that released four albums on United Artist Records and still gets airplay on WNCX, self-described “old fart” Ray Benich has signed on for one final show. He’s recruited the Rick Ray Band’s Rick Ray and Krypton Monkeys’ drummer Jim Dudash to join…
Willoughby Police: A Freight Train Is Blocking Two Streets And Its Crew Has Stopped Working
Via the Willoughby Police Department Facebook page comes this head-scratcher of a story. There’s a freight train blocking two of the town’s streets, and it could be there a while because its crew left work. CSX reports they have train blocking Erie Rd & Pelton. Their crew has timed out on hours and unable to…
Jet Skis! Kayaks! Paddleboats! Oh My! Rock Hall Marina is Open for Business
@AerialCleveland The Rock & Dock, a transient marina which will serve day boaters and waterborne recreation enthusiasts as part of Cleveland’s hotly anticipated (though frustrating) Lakefront Development Plan, is now open for business. Mayor Frank Jackson cut the ribbon Wednesday with a team of councilmen and, presumably, maritime and development personalities. Grey and beige suits…
United Church of Christ Signs on as Gay Games Sponsor
This year, the ninth Gay Games will be played in Cleveland. And this year, for the first time, a religious denomination will be showcased as a major sponsor. The United Church of Christ, headquartered in Cleveland, recently announced its support for the event, which will take place in August. If the match seems unlikely, well,…
Cleveland and Dallas Named RNC Host City Finalists
Despite one Denver news station jumping the gun this morning, the Republican National Committee selected Cleveland and Dallas as the two finalists for the 2016 convention location. The news came as a bit of a surprise this afternoon, countering campaign “scuttlebutt,” as the PD’s Henry Gomez relayed. Regardless, the news is awesome for Cleveland, whose…
Red Wanting Blue Releases Clever Lyric Video for New Single
The Columbus-based indie rock act Red Wanting Blue has just released an incredibly clever lyric video for its new single “You Are My Las Vegas.” The songs lyrics are written on a series of post-it notes and then put on a variety of old album covers from the likes of Neil Diamond, Stevie Wonder, Nancy…
#WahooWatch: Protests in Arizona as Tribe Takes on Diamondbacks
Anti-Wahoo protesters gathered last night before the Indians v. Diamondbacks game at Chase Field in Phoenix. Organized by Kristy Blackhorse and the group Eradicating Offensive Native Mascotry, the protest was similar in tone and content to the opening day protests which have been a staple of Cleveland professional baseball for decades. Blackhorse’s sister is Amanda Blackhorse, who filed the…
Watch ‘Questionable Culture With Will Burge’ Live Right Here
Broadcasting live at noon from the Barley House on West Sixth, Questionable Culture With Will Burge. Today’s guests: Stipe Miocic! Bill Squire! Yes, last week’s show, if you were paying attention, was unfortunately squashed because of persistent technical difficulties. Those have been fixed (fingers crossed) and we’re ready to roll. Watch live below or watch…
Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle to Play Music Box Supper Club in Sept.
Grammy Award winning singer-songwriters Shawn Colvin and Steve Earle are touring together this September on a jaunt they’ve dubbed “Songs and Stories, Together Onstage.” They’ll swap songs, sing a few duets and share some stories. Sounds like a good time. They’ll swing through town to play Music Box Supper Club at 8 p.m. on Saturday,…
Shawn Monday, Michael Schwartz Expand Their Restaurant Portfolio
With five restaurants and counting, chef Shawn Monday and business partner Michael Schwartz are enjoying a long and fruitful relationship. The two met while Monday was cooking at Hudson’s Downtown 140 and Schwartz sat down for dinner with his family. “We had a blast that night and Michael invited me to go golfing with him…
Destination Point: JazzFest Offers a New Approach Geared Toward Local Music Lovers
For the past 35 years, Cuyahoga Community College has curated world-class performances during JazzFest, and this year organizers are pulling out all the stops, making some incredible shifts in programming to bring it home as they make the event more about Cleveland. Last November, Tri-C announced the move of the festival from April to June.…
Prostitute Anonymous: Tales of the Street from a Former Cleveland Madame
The stolen merchandise was in the kitchen; the guns were on the couch. The whores were in one room and Danny was in another, cutting up thousands of dollars worth of cocaine. Typical Tuesday. Danny had rifles. He had Uzis. He had semi automatics. He had a fucking rocket launcher in there at one point.…
Looking Good, With Some Help: A Chat with the Woman you Ask for Fashion Help When You’ve Made a Mess of Your Closet
Some of us dress well, most of us don’t. Usually we just throw on whatever’s clean and in the closet, then head out the door, looking very much the same each day with little thought to our overarching sartorial decisions. Whether we’d like to admit it or not, we all could use some help. That’s…
Patio Guide: The Grille
About a half hour’s trip down I-71, tucked in amongst a suburban sprawl is The Grille. Boasting one of Northeast Ohio’s largest patios, there’s no need to worry about milling around in a stuffy and overcrowded bar at The Grille; instead, hang out at its full cabana bar, unwind and pretend — even if it’s…
Film Spotlight: Obvious Child
Perhaps the only thing worse than getting dumped is getting dumped by a guy who’s been cheating you on with your best friend. That’s what happens to Donna Stern (Jenny Slate) at the start of Obvious Child, a hit at this year’s Sundance Festival that makes its way to area theaters on Friday. The film…
Golden Streets of Paradise Delivers Promising Debut, ‘The Sun is Everything’
Golden Streets of Paradise The Sun is Everything (self-released) goldenstreetsofparadise.bandcamp.com This local duo featuring singer-guitarist Myk Porter and drummer/programmer Adam Boose only formed last year but this, its debut EP, shows great promise. That’s not a surprise given that the duo’s previous endeavors include well-received local acts such as Brandtson, Furnace St., and Swarm of…
Metal Band Lower 13 Shows Off Chops on ‘Reach an End’
Lower 13 Reach an End (self-released) facebook.com/lower13official Given the ever-shifting terrain of the local metal scene, it’s remarkable that this veteran local metal group that first formed in 2006 is still going strong. Recorded locally at Brainchild Recording Studio with producer Noah Buchanan (Solipsist, Arecibo), the band’s latest album is representative of the band’s approach.…
Dinner and a Show: New Music Venue Aims to Enhance the Cleveland Music Scene
Mike and Colleen Miller, the married couple (he’s the vice president and she’s the program director and president) behind Music Box Supper Club, the new club and restaurant that’s set to open on the West Bank of the Flats in August, just got some good news. The city approved their plans to put a tin…
Film Review of the Week: They Came Together
I had a friend in college who used to measure the quality of movies by a guesstimated jokes-per-minute ratio. All else being equal, he theorized, the more you laughed, the better. By that metric, They Came Together, a parodic rom-com from Shaker Heights native David Wain and the Stella sketch comedy gang, would be one…
Film Spotlight: Moonshine Kingdom
Milton Horwitz, 32, a recent alum of the CSU film program, and Ryan Forte, 21, a current senior, hopped on an airplane to L.A. a few hours after they’d finished the final edits on their movie Moonshine Kingdom. They’d made some DVD screeners and intended to pitch their low-budget action flick to studio executives at…
Band of the Week: Cities & Coasts
Meet the Band: Nathan Hedges (vocals, guitarist), Michael Gould (drums), Jimmy Weaver (bass, vocals), Sam Getz (guitar, vocals), Anthony Zaro (vocals, percussion) making the scene: In 2007, Hedges was signed to a small Virginia label and released a solo album. He met Welshly Arms’ Michael Gould when he needed to put a backing band together,…
Bird is the Word: Natural Tweets Abound in the Mystifying, Chilling and Flawed A Map of Virtue by Convergence-Continuum
When a play involves a lot of one particular element, such as the birds in A Map of Virtue now at convergence-continuum, the temptation is to employ many ornithological references and puns to spice up a review. However, that would do cheesy disservice to this play by Erin Courtney, which is often lyrical, chilling and…
Phish Gets Adventurous on ‘Fuego’
Phish Fuego (Jemp/ATO) phish.com Thirty years into one of the most successful rock ‘n’ roll endeavors ever, four nerds from Vermont are dropping yet another bold statement album. Following a mind-blowing fall 2013 tour and a stunning New Year’s Eve run in NYC, the release of Fuego distills the best parts of contemporary Phish. Take…
Local Indie Rockers the Lost Ways Sound Stellar on ‘Beneath the Stars’
The Lost Ways Beneath the Stars (self-released) thelostways.bandcamp.com Formerly of the Revelers and Sleepykid, veteran local singer-guitarist Andrej Cuturic has a keen ear for rootsy indie rock melodies. And this new band featuring bassist Matt Charboneau, drummer Tony Cross and guitarist Nick Cross really clicks here. It’s a winning combo. The guys can stretch out…
Right Hand Man: A Brief History of Ray Shepardson’s Work, as Told by his Friend Weldon Carpenter
Weldon Carpenter has thousands of photos of Cleveland theaters from over the years, going way back to the early 20th century and to distant corners of imagination. His Lakewood home is decorated with memorabilia from long ago. He’s seen the initial rise (through his historical research), the fall (through his preservation work alongside Ray Shepardson)…
Local Rockers Sergio from Rio Sound All Grown Up on ‘Maturation by Association’
Sergio from Rio Maturation by Association (self-released) sergiofromrio.bandcamp.com The guys in this unassuming pop rock band sound a bit like Incubus on this new album, featuring soft vocals and songs that quickly shift from loud to quiet. “Spaces,” for example, thrives on buzzing guitars and call-and-response vocals. “The Country” has a bit of twang to…
Starr Power: Ringo Starr Talks about Performing with McCartney and his Latest All-Starr Band
Most rock stars give you 15 to 20 minutes on the phone. Not Ringo Starr. His publicist granted us a mere five minutes. But we’re grateful for the chance to talk to Starr, the former Beatles drummer who’s coming to town this week with his All-Starr band which features Steve Lukather, Richard Page, Gregg Rolie,…
Also on Stage
thoroughly Modern millie Marked by large casts of enthusiastic and mostly young performers, summer stock should be a high-energy, refreshing treat. Mercury Summer Stock has this particular theatrical subcategory nailed, as they have for some years now. And their production of Thoroughly Modern Millie is an unabashed treat from start to finish. Featuring some fine voices…
From Jamaica, with Love: Ocho Rios Dishes up Authentic, Mouth-Watering Jamaican in South Collinwood
Cleveland has a handful of decent Jamaican restaurants — and they all seem to stick to the same playbook. They tend to be located on the fringes of neighborhoods, taking advantage of cheap rents and ample street parking. They are almost exclusively carry-out operations with few if any tables and about as much ambiance as…
Colonel Knowledge: J.D. Wilkes and the Dirt Daubers Try to Put the Edge Back in Roots Music
We don’t profess to know what it takes to become a bona fide Kentucky colonel but we’ll take Dirt Daubers’ singer J.D. Wilkes at his word when he says you must have done “something that in some way reflects positively on the state of Kentucky.” A few years back, Wilkes was nominated and subsequently crowned…
