Cover Story
Focused on the future: Jecorey Arthur continues to steer 1200 ?in new directions
“What does it take / What are the stakes,” a group of middle-school kids harmonizes on the second floor of an unassuming building in Butchertown near Main Street, as Jecorey Arthur (aka 1200) plays keyboard behind them. It’s a few weeks before Forecastle, and Arthur — who kicks off the festival Friday with a 3…
Forecastle went safe with its lineup this year, and it paid off in attendance … plus some other notes about last weekend’s festival
No matter how you might feel about the dominance of summer festivals and the culture therein, they certainly satisfy a few thirsts for the average music fan. There’s the shared experience, of course, and jubilant, sensory-overload atmosphere, the opportunity for discovery and the realization that, if it’s hot enough, you actually sweat out all the…
A photo set of all three days of Forecastle 2016
Friday Saturday Sunday
10 cheap things to do this week in Louisville (7/18)
MONDAY Matt Hutchison & The Big ‘Gin and more! Mag Bar Free; 9 p.m. Singer/Songwriter Matt Hutchinson and his trio, The Big ‘Gin, are coming in all the way from Baltimore to play at Mag Bar on Monday with Louisville’s own “doom funk,” band, Dead Room Cult, as well as the Louisville-based indie-rock band, Grackle.…
The brilliance of Femi Kuti and a day of exceeded expectations: Four LEO writers recap day three of Forecastle
Michael: The good: Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Femi Kuti, Speedy Ortiz The bad: Ryan Adams The ugly: My hangover Pokemons caught: Like five rats, a Tangela with 210 CP As Sir Rob Thomas once sagely, pithily professed in “Smooth” by Santana, featuring Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20, “Man, it’s a hot one.” Because Forecastle is a…
Teddy Abrams’ Louisville shuffle, and our other favorite sets: Three LEO writers recap day two of Forecastle
Scott: My three favorite sets from Day Two: 1) I’m glad Forecastle brought back the *insert-local-musical-mastermind-who-can-organize-a-full-hour-of-an-ever-changing-supergroup* portion of the festival. Last year, it was Dr. Dundiff & Friends, which paired the hip-hop producer with 1200, JaLin Roze, Jim James, Shadowpact and a bunch of other great rappers. This year, it was Teddy Abrams and Friends,…
Bully, 1200 and a day of surprises: Five LEO writers recap day one of Forecastle
Lara: I was just trying to get out the door yesterday, when my neighbor showed up at the same threshold, asking about my lawn. He cradled a dirty weedwacker. A piece of grass stuck to his upper lip. I said, “OK, I’ll give you the money up front.” He perked up. “Cool. So you’re going…
5 things to do this weekend in Louisville (7/15)
FRIDAY Forecastle Waterfront Park $70-$400; Times vary You probably already know whether you’re going to this three-day music festival, but when it comes to things to do this weekend, nothing tops Forecastle. There will be nearly 60 bands and artists playing (including 1200, who is on LEO’s cover this week), so check out the lineup,…
10 Forecastle time conflicts, and who you should see
Friday 1200 (3 p.m.) vs. Black Pistol Fire (3 p.m.) Who they are: 1200 (aka Jecorey Arthur) is a Louisville hip-hop staple known for his versatile live performances, as he incorporates strings, choir and various other elements. Black Pistol fire is contemporary blues-rock band, a product of bands like The Black Keys and The White…
Lighting at the door: A Q&A with All Them Witches
All Them Witches have been called a lot of things before. Psychedelic, dark blues, folk, hard rock and alt-rock are some of the labels that have been attached to the Nashville band. The list goes on, diving into sub-genres, and, while all of them are applicable, none quite pinpoint the unique sound that All Them…
Trump, Hillary and liberal rednecks: A Q&A with WellRed Comedy
The WellRed Comedy tour is meant to defy expectations. Three stand-up comedians (Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester) are on a mission to prove that not all rednecks are conservatives, and not all rednecks are idiots. You might recognize Crowder from your Facebook feed where his series of web videos called “Liberal Redneck”…
A buff and beautiful Noah: We went to the Ark Encounter
Until last week, the strangest theme park attraction I ever visited was the Maelstrom ride in the Norway exhibit at Epcot in Walt Disney World. It featured the disembodied voice and eyes of Odin and ticked-off trolls toying with tourist-laden, flume-ride boats, which ended their adventure — of course, where else — next to an…
Thorns & Roses: The Worst & Best (7/13)
breaking white silence (Rose) Louisville SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice) wants white people to stand up for racial justice. “The silence of a majority of white people in the face of this daily horror sets up the atmosphere and the on-the-ground reality in which more black and brown bodies will be cut down by…
Sounds of the city: A conversation with Teddy Abrams
Forecastle expands its imaginative programming this year with a performance by Louisville Orchestra conductor Teddy Abrams and what he calls “The Forecastle Symphony.” In Abrams’ short time here, he has made a point to extend the orchestra’s reach by collaborating with many artists from a variety of genres. Abrams said he and Forecastle founder, JK…
Stark and minimalistic: Catching up with ?Joan Shelley
Joan Shelley has a quiet grace that renders her immediately relatable. She seems somehow immune to pretense, replacing that with a sense of polite ease. That’s not to say that she lays it all out, but that every word she chooses is deliberate and well meant. Boredom had a hand in her relationship to music.…
Everything to hide: A Q&A with Sarah Jarosz
Sarah Jarosz is a soulful singer–songwriter from Wimberley, Texas, who embodies the best elements of bluegrass, blues, folk, country, pop and, sometimes, jazz. She is also a graduate of the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music. We recently caught up with Jarosz by phone to discuss her latest LP, Undercurrent, and the tour that brings…
Family matters: Talking with Femi Kuti
“Was I born to be my father?” Femi Kuti posed this question in the middle of piecing together what happened to his life between 1983 and 1986. His dad, the saxophone-playing, Nigerian government-damning father of Afrobeat and international star, Fela Ransome-Kuti, was imprisoned at one of the nation’s toughest, Kirikiri. It would not be the…
10 bands playing before 6 p.m. that you shouldn’t miss at Forecastle
FRIDAY Black Pistol Fire WFPK Port Stage 3 p.m. This rock duo will get your weekend started off right. With their high energy and upbeat tempo, you can’t help but dance along to their killer tunes. They draw inspiration from the decades of blues/rock practitioners, from Muddy Waters to The Black Keys. They are an…
Derby City Playwrights festival, outstanding
In a world where trends are born and flourish and are lost to memory within a few spins of a Facebook algorithm, it’s difficult to recognize a cultural watershed moment in real time. But it seems to me that the 1st Annual Derby City Playwrights New Play Festival is just that. To be clear: The…
Loomhouse weaving ?set to music
This is what weaving sounds like. Nestled among the trees in the Kenwood Hill neighborhood near Iroquois Park sits the late 19th-century structures of The Little Loomhouse. A fiber arts organization and foundation of the Kentucky master weaver Lou Tate (1906-79), it continues her legacy by offering weaving and spinning classes, summer camps and educational…
Yoga East, ‘you don’t have to be flexy and bendy’
Yoga East was founded in 1974 by Maja Trigg and incorporated as a non-profit educational organization in 1978. It has expanded over the years to include multiple locations, more teachers and more classes, but its philosophy and mission have remained the same: to make the benefits of traditional yoga available to all people in the…
Bawerchi, serious Indian cooking
First there was karma. Then there was khorma. And now I have a new favorite Indian restaurant. Here’s the karma: I recently accepted an invitation to enjoy an Iftar dinner, ending a day’s Ramadan fast, at the Westport Road mosque with a bunch of Muslim friends. I didn’t have my restaurant critic’s hat on, but…
This Ky Lady Ain’t Sorry
When fellow freelancer, Eli Keel, posted a photo on social media of the back label of Old 502 Winery’s “Kentucky Lady,” I have to admit, I felt the angry feminist rant welling within me. The labeling is clearly a marketing ploy supporting the notion that women: A) don’t know what they want when they enter…
Barbecued mutton and an english-style ale
There are few sights and scents that warm a dedicated carnivore’s heart like those of a giant pile of wood nestled next to cinder-block building from which the savory scents of wood smoke and cooking meat emanate. Summer is here, and that means picnic and dining tables piled with racks of ribs, plates of pulled…
Forecastle and bevin’s Six Flags Over Jesus university
Super excited about the Forecastle Festival, or what? You’re having a giraffe, aren’t you? About as exciting as being forced to watch baseball. What a relief. Normal service has been resumed. Forecastle is the greatest gathering of musical talent in Louisville’s history. The weather is going to be perfect, probably, and everyone is going to…
Je suis fatiguée
This murderous year, in what various news outlets have dubbed the “United States of Hate,” is killing our souls. I have seen more bloodshed online than I ever wished to see, via videos that automatically stream on social media, whether I click a link or don’t. I stayed awake into the wee hours July 8,…
White America, black america
A few weeks ago I had an editorial ready to go, but it was pulled because we had to write about the Pulse nightclub shootings. This last week feels like deja vu. More shootings. In times like these it’s always difficult to find the appropriate response. Often, it feels like the only right thing is…
Your Voice
On Welcome to Your Ark Park I had heard about the plans to build the Ark theme park! And the tax-exempt approval requested and approved. I will be interested to see how this is accepted by all Kentucky citizens [and] as a global tourist attraction. Please continue to inform [with] objective info, as LEO is…
