Cover Story
Welcome to Loserville
What do a failed summer music festival, a city agency notorious for harassment, theft and killing kittens, and hordes of hapless politicians have in common? Why they’re all losers, of course! Reflecting on the past 12 months, LEO staffers uncovered countless contenders for this year’s list of failures, flops and fiascos. So as to not…
In the shadow of the puppy palace
After a tumultuous construction period delayed its opening by nearly a year, Louisville Metro Animal Services’ new 10,000-square-foot adoption center was finally unveiled last week. Located at 3516 Newburg Road, the state-of-the-art facility — dubbed “Animal House” by employees — concentrates LMAS’ adoption services under one roof in an attempt to take the burden off…
The Grape Escape: More mixing up white blends
Last week, I recommended a white wine from southern France that demonstrated the merits of blending white grape varieties to achieve a tasty mix that went beyond where either could go alone. This week, let’s try another reasonably priced dry white blend from the same neck of the woods. I’m recommending another bottling from France’s…
Culture: Podcasts You Might Be Missing
Remember a few decades ago, when it was proclaimed far and wide that radio was dead? OK, certain readers might not be old enough to remember decades back. But trust me, radio was said to be dead in the water. Make that the airwaves. “Video Killed the Radio Star,” after all. TV was going to…
Knee-deep in America’s political breeding program
I’m currently re-reading one of the greatest treatises on government, leadership, control and power ever written. It is not among the usual suspects — Sun Tzu, Machiavelli, Hobbes or Plato. I’m re-engaging (with renewed awe) Frank Herbert’s “God Emperor of Dune.” It is highly instructive. In the backdrop of the entire “Dune” series are efforts…
Art: Uncovering secrets of the everyday
It comes as no surprise that 2002 National Poet Laureate Billy Collins, known for his warm, accessible, finely crafted poems, is a fan of Mary Phelan’s paintings. Now on display at the Cressman Center for Visual Art, Phelan’s M.A. thesis exhibit, titled “Uncovering Secrets of the Urbanscape,” is imbued with the same authentic, unsentimental reverence…
Bar Belle: The tumultuous 21
Look who’s joining the party. Taylor Swift turned 21 on Monday, and I was hoping to buy her first shot — chilled Southern Comfort, of course. But I bet she’s going straight for the tequila, or perhaps the Jager. Rookie mistakes. Twenty-one is a year of exploration with no guidebook. How much is too much?…
Video TapeWorm
THIS WEEK’S TWIN PEEKS: ’TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS 1974; $19.95, UR All the residents of Trundleville — human and mouse — are stunned when their letters to Santa are returned unopened. You may find it hard to believe, but this perennial holiday favorite — most polls put it No. 2 behind “Rudolph” — has…
Wake
Jubalson, the Louisville trio of singer and guitarist Brian Ott, drummer Phil Turner and singer Emily DeZarn, have turned in a four-song debut EP of acoustic-driven work. Steady backbeats propel the bulk of these songs, keeping the band’s energy constant and the mood laid-back. “Wake in the Wind” is a paean to departed friends, whose…
Staffpicks
Dec. 16-18 Jamie Kaler The Improv Fourth Street Live www.improvlouisville.com $17; various times Born and raised in New Hampshire, Jamie Kaler went west to be a comedian, but ended up a naval officer, which he now refers to as his “first world tour.” Realizing “Top Gun” was more fun as a movie than as real…
Jerry’s kids
If soothing tensions with the Metro Council is a top priority for Mayor-elect Greg Fischer, appointing former council president-turned-state Rep. Ron Weston, D-Louisville, as a special assistant had political observers perplexed. Last week, Fischer unveiled his first eight staff appointments, saying the group represents “significant change” coming to Metro government. While council members were quick…
Theater: Pandora finds pleasure in ‘Measure’
‘Measure for Pleasure’ Presented by Pandora Productions. Directed by Michael J. Drury. Continues through Dec. 19 at Actors Theatre of Louisville, 316 W. Main St. For tickets and more information, call 216-5502 or visit www.pandoraprods.org. Pandora Productions has a history of pushing the envelope, of breaking with the traditions that hold other theater companies back.…
Bundled up
I’ve got a pair of Carhartt coveralls in the dryer right now. The triple-stitched, quilt-lined duck fabric was formerly the trademark Carhartt brown and is now a burnt mustard color with house paint highlights and brake fluid accents on the shoulders and elbows. The zipper will respond to tugging and authoritative force eventually. It’s very…
Nine lives, or more
Not even death, it seems, can keep the Stray Cat Blues Band from the stage. The group was formed in the late 1970s by Jimmy Brown, Greg Martin, Ricky Mason, Dickie Durlauf, Bruce Lively and Joey LaMont Gillispie, all of whom went on to other notable projects (100 Proof Blues, Bodeco, The Kentucky Headhunters, Hellfish…
Wild Ginger fills Metro’s space with sushi, Asian fusion
If you get out to the Pacific Northwest at all, you’re probably familiar with Wild Ginger, the regional restaurant phenomenon that has captured Seattle foodies’ attention with its Southeast Asian fusion cuisine. And if you do, your eyes may have popped wide open when the signs advertising a new spot called Wild Ginger went up…
Behold The Spirit
Good guitar players crop up everywhere in music today, so distinguishing the ones who truly stand out becomes a Herculean task. William Tyler is making that task a little bit easier. The Nashville guitar player’s string theories keep you either pleasantly off guard or pleasantly inspired. He opens with “Terrace of the Leper King,” a…
Sleep
It would be a surprise if he didn’t make collages as a kid. Another Seven Astronauts, the solo project of Lucky Pineapple and Invaders drummer J.C. Denison, is an adventurous journey stretching the limits of the phrase “sound collage.” Sleep follows his first homespun release, Lava, Water, Sky, Computer, and this time around, you can…
Theater: ‘Looking Glass Wars’ shines with solid cast
The Looking Glass Wars Produced by the Alley Theater in the Art Sanctuary space at The Pointe, 1205 E. Washington St. Directed by Scott Davis. Continues through Dec. 18. For tickets or more info, call 713-6178 or go to www.thealleytheater.org. An old saw compares making sausages with making laws, and warns that people of faint…
Hunger strike
More working families in the region are going hungry and making the tough choice between eating and paying bills. In 2009, Dare to Care served 192,000 people in the nonprofit’s service area, which includes Louisville Metro, six counties in Kentucky and five in Southern Indiana, an increase of 67 percent over the last four years.…
A gay letter to Santa
Hey Santa. It’s me, Pam. Look, I know we haven’t talked since I was a kid, and I never thanked you properly for that Walkman in the ’90s. Now that I am an adult and you and I are in, how shall I say it, different dimensions and everything, I know it might seem weird…
Inbox — Dec. 15, 2010
So-Called Censored For two days in a row, I heard a story on NPR about how the U.S. Department of Defense is the world’s largest consumer of fossil fuels and is exempt from having to deal with the pollution generated. Then, in classic damage-control mode, NPR rolled out a story featuring a spokesman from the…
Fire In My Bones: Raw, Rare And Otherworldly Gospel 1944-2007
No matter which deity you kneel to, this compilation transcends religion. Tompkins Square’s soundtrack covers one tumultuous historical roller coaster after another, beginning with the end of World War II, then taking us through Vietnam, the civil rights movement, both wars in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, not to mention Sept. 11, 2001. Each track sizzles…
Plugged In
Readers are strongly encouraged to call ahead to verify these listings. To get your club, comedian, musical act or karaoke listed, please send e-mail to mherron@leoweekly.com with PLUGGED IN in the subject line. The deadline is NOON THURSDAY the week before the show happens. We do not accept listings via social networking sites. Wed. Dec.…
Live at Eindhoven
This is Low’s way of torturing us until its new album, C’mon, arrives early next year. The free EP, which is being offered on the band’s website, contains live versions of four songs: “Monkey” and “Silver Rider,” from Low’s 2005 album, The Great Destroyer; and “July” and “Laser Beam,” from the 2001 masterpiece Things We…
Herringbone
You know how you grew up watching Saturday morning cartoons, bowl of hippie-friendly Cheerios (or awesome junk like Fruity Pebbles) in hand? Way Yes’ six-song EP is that ritual put to sound — playful vocals about crystal skull spoons and Indiana Jones with nods to the off-kilter relationship. “Cinnamon” is, on first listen, throwaway kindergarten…
