ARTS Pick: Phil Vassar
With wistful country vocals propelling his chart-smashing hits, snatching hearts is Phil Vassar’s game. Before signing his own recording contract and landing 10 original songs at No. 1, Vassar penned hits for Tim McGraw, Alan Jackson, and Jo Dee Messina, among others. His recent induction into the Virginia Music Hall of Fame is another step […]
ARTS Pick: Charlie Ballantine Trio
Charlottesville Jazz Society kicks off its concert season with guitarist Charlie Ballantine and his trio. Ballantine’s music pays homage to his childhood in the Midwest through a unique melding of folk and jazz. Among his influences are some of the greatest jazz, rock, and pop musicians of the ’60s and ’70s, and his latest release, […]
ARTS Pick: Gold Connections
Gold Connections’ upcoming EP, Like A Shadow (due in March), benefits from the camaraderie that Will Marsh found with his touring bandmates while on the road last year. Going into the studio with familiar players allowed Marsh to move past his former indie-rock associations and forge a path of his own musical volition on songs […]
In brief: Killed bills, uneasy homage, big checks and more
Dead or alive The General Assembly has been in session two weeks, and it is whittling down the more than 2,000 bills legislators filed. Here are some bills that have survived so far—and others that were DOA. Alive An in-state tuition bill for undocumented students made it out of the Senate Education Committee January 8 […]
ARTS Pick: Panic! at the Disco
From the old-time fan favorite “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” to the latest platinum single “High Hopes,” Panic! at the Disco serves up another album full of soaring vocals and punk-tinged brass orchestrations. Pray for the Wicked is the sixth record by the emo pop forefathers whose tumultuous membership finds frontman Brendon Urie as the […]
Whopping donation: $120 million funds UVA’s new School of Data Science
By Jonathan Haynes Jaffray Woodriff, who made a fortune using data science in the investment world, has bestowed upon his alma mater its largest donation ever to create a School of Data Science. It will build on the university’s existing Institute of Data Science, which was created with a $10 million donation from Woodriff in 2014. […]
ARTS Pick: Peter and the Wolf
The award-winning Charlottesville High School Orchestra String Ensemble breaks out of an academic setting to put a new twist on a classic fairy tale. Directed by Laura Mulligan Thomas (right), the ensemble’s rendition of Sergei Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf is accompanied by narration from filmmaker and author Jamie Bernstein (daughter of the legendary Leonard […]
ARTS Pick: Wild Rose
Girl Choir is distortion driven. The Chuggernauts opt for a punk-rock pirate vibe. And while The Unholy Four strives for old-school hard rock, Wild Rose keeps it modern as a quartet. Expect a blend of grit and tenderness when punk rock meets punk ‘n’ roll during an evening with these four local bands. Friday, January […]
ARTS Pick: King Tuff
Kyle Thomas, known by his moniker King Tuff, hit rock bottom last year—and it was exactly what he needed. With his most recent album The Other, he’s traded in his “party monster” persona for an authentic, vulnerable musician who refuses to stick to one particular sound. His sax lessons come through when he veers into […]
ARTS Pick: Oldest Sea
Haunting vocals paired with gentle guitar strumming define Sam Marandola’s solo project Oldest Sea. There’s no need for heavy rhythms on her self-released LP Sage Burner—it showcases just how effective pure instrumentation paired with melancholy vocals can be. With Winterweeds, Brandon Morsberger, and The Big Drum In The Sky Religion, fingerpicking blues and psychedelic also […]
Beyond the statues: Councilor’s book explores Confederate monument backlash
By Jonathan Haynes City Councilor Wes Bellamy sat down for a revelatory interview at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center January 10 to promote his new book, Monumental: It Was Never About a Statue. The title alludes to the former vice-mayor’s push to remove Confederate monuments from Charlottesville parks, and the racist backlash it […]
In brief: Irruptive species, councilor liability, hazing incredulity and more
New birds on the block A red-breasted nuthatch in central Virginia? You gotta be kidding! Turns out that an unusually large number of irruptive bird species—or species that normally breed in northern boreal forests and sometimes migrate south when their food supply runs out—are wintering in our neck of the woods this year, according to […]
ARTS Pick: Caitlin Canty
Caitlin Canty is a weaver—and her threads are folk, blues, and country music. Loyal to no genre, Canty creates listening experiences with her 1930s Recording King guitar, while her “casually devastating” vocals shape dark poetry into dreamy alternative folk tunes. The young but wise songstress’ latest release, Motel Bouquet, features fiddler Stuart Duncan and vocalist […]
ARTS Pick: Kieran Kane and Rayna Gellert
Dubbed by peers as the “godfather of Americana music,” singer-songwriter Kieran Kane’s roots-oriented bluegrass blends seamlessly with Rayna Gellert’s Appalachian-inspired fiddle playing to form a groovy twist on traditional folk music. The duo released its first album, The Ledges, in 2017, and for its follow-up due in March, listeners can expect more of Gellert’s sultry […]
ARTS Pick: Cora Harvey Armstrong
A popular performer who’s lovingly referred to as the queen of Virginia gospel music, Cora Harvey Armstrong makes every day feel like Sunday. Her songwriting is inspired by her poet grandfather while her mother’s turntable, stacked with Mahalia Jackson and Clara Ward Singers records, influenced her musical style. Fifty years later, Harvey continues to keep […]
ARTS Pick: Mitchell Tenpenny
Nashville native Mitchell Tenpenny writes stories about where he comes from as he navigates the musical landscape that established his love for creating personal connections onstage. The star football player turned country musician’s soulful, edgy vocals combined with his acoustic guitar-playing reflect his influences, which vary from Dustin Lynch and Lynyrd Skynyrd to Michael Jackson. […]
In brief: Out of business, second wettest, medically deficient and more
Knock, knock. Who’s [not] there? Sears. Sweethaus. Performance Bicycle. And Brown’s Cleaners, just to name a few recent local closings that left community members shocked, and in at least one case, without their clothes. The closing of Sears at Fashion Square Mall heralds the demise of one of America’s most iconic retailers, known for its mail-order […]
First Fridays: January 4
By Sabrina Moreno If you ask Kelly Lonergan, he’s not a figure painter. The figures he paints on 48 by 60 inch canvas—a scale that excites him—are slightly awkward, clunky. But to him, that’s the best part. It gives them a sense of personality for viewers to cling and relate to. In his show “And […]
ARTS Pick: Beleza
He was finger-picking in the name of classical guitar and Spanish flamenco in Brazil. She was hitting the keys with her jazzy-blues tones along the East Coast. It’s a modern-day musical romance that culminated in the formation of the band Beleza (above) as well as the duo’s marriage. With the fusing of funk and blues, […]
ARTS Pick: New Year, New Vibes Part 3
Lady Sag, as in Sagittarius, doesn’t follow the average hip-hop path. She’s all about the signs, branching out, and alternating between gospel, ballads, and country songs. As one of 10 featured local artists in New Year, New Vibes with Bam Bam, Sav, Tae Da God, and Tavi, Lady Sag says we can look forward to […]
ARTS Pick: Little Ozzy
His middle part is nearly as symmetrical as the real Ozzy Osbourne’s—and with the signature circular sunglasses and a feature in Rolling Stone, Lin Doak, the 4’8″ frontman of Little Ozzy (right), is well on his way to inheriting the crown from the original Prince of Darkness. Little Ozzy’s gained the attention of the original […]
ARTS Pick: Vivian Leva and Riley Calcagno
Vivian Leva and Riley Calcagno (left) push back against the mainstream with a fiddle roots revivalist twist. The duo has spent years honing their rhythmic craft. From Leva’s folk music-filled upbringing in Appalachia, and being one of Rolling Stone Country’s “10 New Artists You Need to Know,” to Calcagno’s years spent fine-tuning his chops on […]
In brief: DMV’s court order, Brown’s abrupt closing, Murray’s lump of coal and more
Driver’s license suspensions under siege A federal judge granted a preliminary injunction December 21 and ordered Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Richard Holcomb to reinstate the driver’s licenses of three plaintiffs who automatically lost their licenses when they were unable to pay court costs and fines. The judge said they are likely to prevail in […]
Come together: Revised UVA speech policy earns high marks
By Jonathan Haynes Despite the controversy over the University of Virginia’s revisions to its right-to-assemble policies, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has awarded the university its highest free speech rating. FIRE, a group that defends the constitutional rights of students and faculty in higher ed, ranked UVA as a “green-light” university, along with […]
About Last Year: Looking back at 2018 — Photos
As much as we love words, it’s the photographs–and our incredibly talented team of freelance photographers–that really make our stories sing. Here is just a handful of the images that were captured this year.
About last year: Looking back at 2018 — News
By Lisa Provence and Samantha Baars Most of the biggest stories we followed this year were fallout from 2017: both the direct effects of the Unite the Right rally, with its continuing arrests and trials, and the continued furor over monuments, free speech, and present-day inequities as our city grapples with its full history. Martial […]
About last year: Looking back at 2018 — Arts
By Tami Keaveny and Erin O’Hare In May, before her opening of “Megan Elizabeth Read: Recent Works in Oil,” at McGuffey’s Sarah B. Smith Gallery, Read told us: “You know, if you stare long enough at anyone, you can fall in love with them.” But it was the viewer who became smitten with Read’s hyperrealistic […]