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The power of suggestion
Melissa Vandenberg, “Come Undone,” 2012. Image courtesy of beta pictoris gallery. Despite their apparent differences, two new exhibitions at Second Avenue’s beta pictoris gallery – opening on Tuesday,...
View ArticleGlorious phantoms
“…a glorious Phantom may Burst to illumine our tempestuous day.” – Percy Bysshe Shelley, “England in 1819” When the Romantic poet Percy Shelley wrote “England in 1819,” the young radical was reeling —...
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For art’s sake
Avondale Sound engineer Brad Timko. Photo by David Garrett. Brad Timko is a craftsman. An audio engineer, Timko has been the sole proprietor of Avondale Sound — where he labors over a massive console...
View ArticleThe great debate
Last week’s Community story on local sound engineers and producers, “For Art’s Sake,” left a ton of great material on the cutting-room floor. This music feature picks up on one key issue that was...
View ArticleFunny Valentines
On the evening of Friday, Feb. 14, the Bottletree will host Romantically Challenged, a throwback to the ruffled shirts, leisure suits and single entendres of The Dating Game’s heyday. The event will...
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Honest hearts
The Lyric Theatre is one of the cornerstones of the revitalization of Birmingham, and for good reason. Formerly one of the more successful and beloved venues on the vaudeville circuit in the early...
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The agony and the ecstasy
Eugene Delacroix, “Christ on the Sea of Galilee,” 1854. Image courtesy of the BMA. Roughly every 18 months, the Birmingham Museum of Art (BMA) has a ticketed exhibition. In 2012, they put on a genuine...
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The long way home
Photo by David Garrett. Spencer Overton knows what he’s talking about. The homebrew manager at Hop City Birmingham is a walking encyclopedia of beer knowledge who can speak authoritatively on every...
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Riches and wonders
John Darnielle and Peter Hughes, the current touring version of the Mountain Goats. Image courtesy of Merge Records. John Darnielle is an artist who needs no introduction among fans of indie folk...
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Gentrification: Birmingham’s future?
Photo by David Garrett. Birmingham is on the rise. The city’s unusually large – and perhaps unprecedented – amount of positive national publicity in 2013 began on New Year’s Day, when Kate Maxwell of...
View ArticleAurora Borealis
Once a fabled “lost land” between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the imaginary continent of Lemuria existed mainly in the imaginations of Victorian and Edwardian authors, leading to it being...
View ArticleReadymade reprise
Despite what some people may have told you – namely, this very writer in this very newspaper, who momentarily forgot the subtle difference between June and July – Birmingham’s own Peytones are...
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Discovering Birmingham
Trying to create a comprehensive preview of this weekend’s Secret Stages festival downtown – in a span of a little over 900 words, no less – is a fool’s errand. Even reduced from the sprawling affairs...
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America sings out
Melissa Vandenberg, “Disorderly Conduct.” Image courtesy of beta pictoris gallery. Although things have changed a lot in this more egalitarian age, works on paper have traditionally had a little less...
View ArticleThe short happy lives of Drew Price
Drew Price makes weird music. Catchy music, cathartic music, evocative music, but weird music all the same. The Oak Mountain native will be performing as Drew Price’s Bermuda Triangle, supported by...
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Sixty seconds of panic
Do you remember the clammy palms, fruitlessly firing synapses and abject terror of elementary school spelling bees with fondness? Do you want to support the Desert Island Supply Co. (DISCO), a...
View ArticleRedemption songs
Carolyn Maull came from a good family. Her parents were well educated — her father, a college professor, also waited tables at the Club — and active in the community, including church. When Carolyn...
View ArticleCalling all locals
Our music culture is changing. Where once it was only possible for absolute top-of-the-line acts like Carnival Season to cut a record in Birmingham, now a band can go to any number of local,...
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Inconvenient truths
The myriad figurines of The Hate Project. Photo by Audrey Davis. Amid the panoply of commemorations for the 50th anniversary of Birmingham’s pivotal Civil Rights year, 1963, it’s easy to believe that...
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A sense of wonder
Photo courtesy of Marcus Turner. In October of 2010, a message was found painted in white on the south side of the Highland Avenue overpass: “YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL.” The street art campaign drew some ire...
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