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‘Decades Behind Bars’: A look into Kentucky prisons
[Ed. note: This is an excerpt of Gaye D. Holman’s book “Decades Behind Bars — A 20-year Conversation with Men in America’s Prisons.” The interviews with prisoners were conducted initially at Kentucky State Reformatory and the Luther Luckett Correctional Complex in Oldham County, with the follow-ups 20 years later across the state. We also interviewed…
10 things to do under $5 this week in Louisville (11/6)
MONDAY Tibetan Sand Mandala for Healing (Nov 6–11) Drepung Gomang Center for Engaging Compassion Donations | Times vary Watch as eight Tibetan Buddhist monks spend five days “meticulously and prayerfully” creating a sand mandala from grains of colored sand — millions of them. This mandala will be dedicated to “healing in our community, country and…
Photo Set: We went behind the scenes of Louisville Orchestra’s ‘The Greatest’
Last Friday, the night before the performance of the Louisville Orchestra’s “The Greatest: Muhammad Ali,” we hung out at the final dress rehearsal, taking behind-the-scenes photos. “The Greatest” was composed by Teddy Abrams, directed by Jubilant Sykes — who also performs — and featured Rhiannon Giddens (founding member of the Grammy-award winning band Carolina Chocolate Drops) and…
A Q&A with artist Martin Rollins
Martin Rollins (martinrollins.net) is one of the best-known artists in town, with a highly recognizable style. He’s also a teacher. Both of those jobs give him the right to stand on a soapbox and say, “People need to make a conscious effort to be in support of visual artists in the community. It’s very underserved.”…
5 Things To Do This Weekend in Louisville (11/3)
FRIDAY Take it easy, you got a busy weekend ahead of you. SATURDAY Eastern Conference Final: Louisville City FC vs New York Red Bull Louisville Slugger Field $16-$40 | 7:30 p.m. Think of the Eastern Conference Final of the USL like the Final Four of NCAA basketball. The winner of this match plays in the…
LEO Presents: Bird Zoo, live in studio
For the latest LEO Presents, our video series where we ask local musicians to stop by our studio to play three songs, Bird Zoo brings their sharp brand of live-band hip-hop, a project that’s full of energy, charisma and talent. Look for a new LEO Presents video every Friday, and watch every past episode of…
10 concerts you shouldn’t miss in November
Guns N’ Roses Friday, Nov. 3 KFC Yum Center The infamous, late-‘80s, hair-metal overlords have reformed with several core members for the first time in more than two decades, bringing their “Not In This Lifetime” tour to Louisville. Cory Branan Saturday, Nov. 4 Zanzabar A punk-influenced, country-leaning singer-songwriter, Corey Branan writes sharp and distinct songs…
LEO Podcast #57: Louisville Photo Biennial
Paul Paletti and Deborah Skaggs of the Louisville Photo Biennial stopped by the office to talk with contributing arts editor Jo Anne Triplett.
‘Decades Behind Bars,’ a Q&A with author Gaye Holman
[Editor’s Note: Below is a Q&A with Gaye D. Holman, author of “Decades Behind Bars: A 20-year Conversation With Men in America’s Prisons.” We also ran an excerpt of the book here.] The statistics are chilling. The U.S. has more than a quarter of the world’s prison population. The world’s. And most prison reform efforts haven’t…
Thorns & Roses: The Worst, Best & Most Absurd
CJ’s goes to back of class | Thorn A thorn to The Courier Journal for burying the lede, we can only presume, out of spite. LEO Weekly was first in the news media — and only so far — to publish details of greater Louisville’s bid to become Amazon’s second headquarters. The CJ wrote a…
Public art, skateboarding joining to give? New Albany’s skatepark new life, name
Art, history, community engagement, and cultural legacy are pillars of the Carnegie Center for Art & History, and they are also the key aspects driving the Carnegie Center’s most ambitious public art project to date, the New Albany Flow Park. This multi-year project aims to rehabilitate one of the area’s oldest public skateparks and turn…
Do you know Kentucky’s new Kim Davis in training?
You might remember Barren and Metcalfe counties Family Court Judge W. Mitchell Nance from earlier this year, when he attempted to recuse himself from any adoption proceedings involving LGBTQ people. His proposed order would have required LGBTQ people to notify the court ahead of time that they were seeking an adoption so they could be…
The good, the bad, the insane: Guns N’ Roses’ career arc explained in five songs
Before Guns N’ Roses brings its reunion tour to the KFC Yum Center, we looked through all of their studio material, finding reflections of their career arc. Here’s a brief history of the band’s highs and lows as mirrored by five songs, including one that launched them into the limelight, one that rightfully pissed people…
Sonic Breakdown: The Deloreans — ‘Big Sur’
[Editor’s Note: Sonic Breakdown is a LEO column that deconstructs a single song from a Louisville band.] After a failed attempt to see Big Sur in 2012, Deloreans frontman Jeremy Perry expressed his disappointment by writing a song. And while even he admits that songs about the Golden State are a dime a dozen, his…
Gwar talks Gallagher, Kathy Griffin and Dave Brockie
With two and a half decades of some of the most gleefully heinous metal tomfoolery under their belt, Gwar has no end in sight. Touring on Blood of Gods, their most recent album, and the first after the 2014 death of vocalist Oderus Urungus, the band has continued to do what they do best —…
Two outstanding plays tackle race
It used to be that February — Black History Month — served as a convenient chronological opportunity for events and artistic works with a focus on race relations in America. It was, for instance, one of the few times a year that an American president might think to mention that, “Frederick Douglass is an example…
Comic Book Reviews: ‘Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica’ and ‘Batman: White Knight’
‘Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica’ No. 1 Writers Marc Andreyko and Paul Dini; Artist Laura Braga Review by Krystal Moore, Great Escape Louisville Betty and Veronica appear in Archie Comics in various incarnations. In this book, they’re snarky mean girls taking every chance to belittle or embarrass the other. When they’re both on…
Comedian Nathan Timmel: ‘I remain evil, but in a good way’
“Comedian. Author. Idiot.” That is how comedian Nathan Timmel describes himself. Timmel is an unrepentant, former class clown whose comedy is dark and sarcastic with, according to him, a few “high-brow poop and fart jokes.” He has recorded five albums and performed before military audiences nine times, including in Iraq and Afghanistan. He wrote two…
The House-Made Tale
Almost anyone who enjoys dining out has a whole range of places they enjoy, from fast food chains to casual, stand-alone restaurants to, if cash flow permits, the occasional splurge at a high-end, fine dining establishment. If you’re a reasonable person, your expectations of what gets brought into each restaurant pre-made, versus what’s made from…
Showing the city’s best sides
Empowered women empower women, and I’ve been lucky to be surrounded by some of the best since I was a young tyke. My friend Morgan and I have known each other since we were 7 and getting red cards on the soccer field in Goshen, Kentucky. Not much has changed, really, save maybe an evolved…
Cat fight! Against the Grain vs. Upland
I normally ignore press releases, but sometimes you get a dandy, such as the one I received recently from Against the Grain Brewery regarding an IPA brew-off with Upland Brewing Co. of Bloomington, Indiana. Actually, both breweries agreed to brew their version of a double IPA, both of which are called Overcompensation Double IPA, both…
Savage Love: Degrading Games
Q: I am a pretty handsome gay (I have been told) and I am dating a gorgeous man. I am 34, and he is 31. I am bottom only, and he is top only — so it’s a good match. He seems sincerely interested in me and we are talking about being together. But here…
Louisville is #MeToo
After Naomi Tutu spoke at the IdeaFestival in 2009, she wrote “Amandla!” for power in my copy of her book about her father, Desmond Tutu. We talked briefly about how to empower women and girls, and she suggested getting involved in women lawyer’s organizations globally and locally. Not everyone holds women lawyers in such high…
The year of handsy men
It isn’t just that Louisville Metro Councilman Dan Johnson is alleged to be a man who can’t keep his pants up or his hands to himself, it is that he’s from a lineage of bad male behavior that includes being handsy, rapey and always, especially if you’re a white guy… getting another chance. Johnson is…
LEO exclusive: A deeper look at the area’s Amazon headquarters proposal
So you say you want more info on the Amazon headquarters proposal that the Louisville area submitted? Can’t find other news reports on it? Awww… Well, we believe you have a right to know what your government is offering Amazon (on your behalf). To be honest, you paid for the proposal, so actually it’s yours,…
