Particle politics

There’s an eerie turn in every counter-culture arts movement where those who sought to foment a rebellion find that, in order to keep its ideals alive, they must create some form of establishment. Two turntables and a Mike Figgis film: Paul Miller takes multimedia to a whole new level. Urban art on alley walls gives […]

Culture Watch

Cashing In On The Down-Home Murder Ballad On Christmas Day, 1929, Stokes County tobacco farmer Charlie Lawson gunned down his wife and seven of their eight children. (The oldest, Arthur, wasn’t home.) He then killed himself, his only explanation for this horrific crime being a handwritten note found in his coat pocket: “Blame no one […]

Culture watch

Out? Wolfe. In? Dykeman. Last December, noted local author Wilma Dykeman died at 86 due to complications from a fractured hip. In books like The Tall Woman, Dykeman memorably documented the flawed-yet-resonant lives of mountain people. She was also an early conservationist, as recognized by the influence of her 1955 book The French Broad. No […]

Xpress Asks: What are your plans for the weekend?

It’s the weekend, and for most of us that means a guilt-free chance to get out an have some fun. Normally, we here in the Xpress A&E department would be busy trying to convince you to head out to a show, performer or event that we like. But, this weekend, we thought we’d switch it up a little and ask what performances you are excited about seeing before the work-week grind starts up again on Monday.

Does WNC Magazine have what it takes?

Go to most tourist-friendly cities in the U.S., and at almost every imaginable outlet you’ll find a high-end, glossy, advertisement-packed magazine showcasing the area’s “best” restaurants, theaters, businesses, stores and events. And yet, for all of the tourist money driving Asheville’s economy, the city has proven to be remarkably infertile soil for glossy tourist-oriented magazines. Will Asheville’s newest magazine make the cut?

Culture Watch

“Black Sedan” Vies For CMT Prize Country Music Television recently accepted a video by local bluegrass band Buncombe Turnpike for its “Music City Madness” contest. Buncombe Turnpike’s video for their song “Black Sedan” was selected out of 600 entries and will compete with 64 finalists. Should they win the multi-round elimination contest, the band will […]

Asheville Police launch graffiti crackdown

In Asheville, graffiti is a either a bane or a boon, depending on your perspective. Some see it as a serious problem, a symptom of urban decay. To others, it’s means for self-expression, a form of so-called “urban art.” For many local businesses and residents, graffiti is just a nuisance crime that brings an unwelcome cleanup bill — and one that the local police give a fairly low priority to. Until now, that is.

Culture Watch

Vanishing Hopes There are few local projects I’ve found myself as conflicted about covering as local author Randy Moser’s forthcoming book, The Vanished Messenger (1195 Press). On the one hand, the book seems to be a rambling, semi-mystical, extraordinarily vague pseudo memoir and coming-of-age story that refers to itself in a press release as “invoking […]

Skating back to Africa

Few areas of the world have suffered more over the last couple of centuries than the continent of Africa. It’s been plundered for gold, diamonds and oil. Slave-trade-fueled tribal conflicts, colonialism and brutal dictatorships have successively exploited many of its countries. The population has been ravaged by malnutrition, warfare and, more recently, an unchecked AIDS […]

Culture Watch

Battle Of The Badly Named Bands Earlier this month, the “multi-genre video music competition” Web site Music Nation began the initial phase of their current contest, featuring the grand prize of a recording deal with Epic Records (a division of Sony BMG), a performance on the syndicated Clear Channel radio show “Stripped” and a one-year […]