Cover Story
Official Selection
Lapfuls of scalding McDonald’s coffee, alligators in doublewides and the sudden appearance of planet Earth’s identical twin describe just part of Louisville’s contribution to next week’s Sundance Festival in Park City, Utah. The country’s best-known celebration of independent film will screen a number of shorts, features, documentaries and animation that all claim Derby City roots.…
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. Jan.…
The Grape Escape: Logging your wine ‘life list’
I spotted a hilariously bizarre line of bathroom graffiti years ago at an eatery along an interstate highway somewhere in Wyoming. It read, “Roger Tory Peterson never saw a prothonotary warbler.” But what does this have to do with wine? Simple: It’s my view that wine appreciation is just as much a hobby as, well,…
Voice box
As reunions go, the Guided by Voices’ 1990s lineup sounded sloppy in the beginning, then quickly transformed into the force of magical shambolism fans have come to expect and, it turns out, even cry over. Principal songwriter Robert Pollard talks about that, current likes, and personal goals for the new decade. Now on a brief…
Sixth & Jefferson
If anything came close to spoiling Mayor Greg Fischer’s inaugural week it was the ongoing troubles at the city’s animal control agency. Over the past week, a growing number of employees at Louisville Metro Animal Services have come forward to complain about worsening conditions in the department under Interim Director Wayne Zelinsky, who took over…
Theater: Second City makes fun of the ’Ville
It Takes a ’Ville! Presented by Second City and Actors Theatre of Louisville. Directed by Mick Napier. Continues through Feb. 6. For tickets or more information, call 584-1205 or visit www.actorstheatre.org. Actors Theatre and Second City’s production of “It Takes a ’Ville!” is probably one of the most anticipated shows this year — I mean,…
FEMA camp is for kids
I’ve been running around like a peckerweed for what seems like an age and haven’t had time to consider the new year, let alone write about it until now. So, the first decade of the second Christian millennium is over. Looking ahead, my primary resolution is that I swear I won’t be late anymore ……
Staffpicks
Jan. 12-14 ‘The Tens’ Actors Theatre 316 W. Main St. ? 584-1205 Free; 7:30 p.m. It’s like YouTube for the stage, which is especially useful with the ongoing shortening of attention spans. I don’t know if there will be cats or double rainbows or if anyone’s going to whip their hair back and forth, but…
Art: The shape of things
Architect Mies van der Rohe’s trademark philosophy was “less is more.” That contradictory statement summed up the thinking in design during the 20th century. In other words, less is modern. The Speed Art Museum’s exhibition “Modern in the Making: Design 1900-2000” takes us on a timeline tour from Art Deco and Bauhaus through Mid-Century Modern…
Verdugo Hills
Originally from Okinawa but a globetrotter for much of the last several years, former Berklee College of Music student Caroline Lufkin has finally settled in Los Angeles and made her West Coast record. Named for the mountain range overlooking parts of the city, Lufkin’s third record is a batch of mini-symphonies neck-deep in a pool…
Bar Belle: Beer worship
Tattered and torn, weak and worn, I stumbled into the Holy Grale on a cold January Saturday night, and I was saved. The new Highlands bar is situated in a building that used to be a church … and a hot dog restaurant. Opened by the same folks who own the Louisville Beer Store, the…
Inbox — Jan. 12, 2011
Grading Jerry Jerry Abramson is an A+ person, we can all agree. Grading his 21 years as mayor brings to mind dining out in Montreal during my first trip to Canada in 1989. Describing Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, my dinner companion said: “He’s so articulate, charming and glib that he makes us proud for the…
Video TapeWorm
THIS WEEK’S TWIN PEEKS: LOVE KITTENS: FOUR SEXY CLASSICS FROM THE ’60s 2010; $49.95, UR During the ’50s and ’60s, American films that contained even a flash of nudity were considered “porn,” and neighborhood theaters refused to show them. The exceptions were “art films,” suggestively titled Euro imports that played at upscale “arthouse” theaters. This…
Jazz resurgence
Adding to the weekly throwdowns by VAMP at Germantown’s Nachbar and nightly performances at Varanese in Clifton, two more venues are doing their part to keep jazz thriving in Louisville. In the East Market Street building that formerly housed Primo, Mozz Mozzarella Bar & Enoteca is hosting regular appearances by Carly Johnson, Todd Hildreth, Jason…
What’s so gay about it?
When I was in high school, people didn’t say “That’s so gay” instead of “I think that is stupid.” Maybe because back then, the issue of being gay wasn’t something that was talked about all that much. Being gay was more something you hid about yourself, or that you were hidden from, especially as…
Hammerheads a Swan Street tradition
For nearly 80 years, this basement space in Germantown has been home to some sort of bar or eatery. Most recently, it was a popular hipster hangout and vegan café called the Swan Dive, which sadly closed its doors in October. In its place comes the equally charming (and carnivore-friendly) Hammerheads. Specializing in smoked meats…
Follow the money
Gilles Meloche, the former director of Louisville Metro Animal Services who resigned in 2009 amid allegations of animal torture, sexual harassment, misappropriation of animals, and inhumane conditions at the agency’s 3705 Manslick Road shelter, received more than $10,000 in unemployment insurance compensation from the city last year, according to records obtained by LEO Weekly. The…
In the Cool of the Day
In the Cool of the Day comes out this year, but it could have easily been released in the 1920s, from the often traditional lyrics to the barebones folk and gospel arrangements. There’s plenty of walking double-bass, acoustic strumming and fiddle fills, but very little that stimulates. “In the Cool of the Day” is a…
Valhalla Dancehall
If there’s a Mercury Prize for toiling in unsavory conditions, many an independent act could compete, but British Sea Power would win. The 18-month recording process surrounding their fourth creation, on northwestern Scotland’s Isle of Skye, was a lesson in forbearance: battles with mice, frigid temperatures, wind and the tunnel vision that often accompanies isolation.…
Content
After a ’90s reunion produced two forgettable albums, the GO4 nucleus of guitarist Andy Gill and vocalist Jon King returns with its first new material in 16 years. Much of the album recalls U2’s efforts to be both punk and danceable, sans arrogant posturing, Messiah complex or excess studio polish. Content seems a focused attempt…
