Year-end lists from the staffers at Mission Creek.
A.C. Hawley
A.C. Hawley is around town. He rides a red bike. If you need him, he's reachable.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Show Preview: Times New Viking, November 30th
Times New Viking w/ Solid Attitude | 9 PM | The Mill | $8, 21+ On the 30th of November, the Mill will be receiving a rather noisy guest in the form of Times New Viking. Hailing from Columbus, OH, the trio has been burning the country down for the past few years, playing their […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Show Preview: Ghostface Killah at Blue Moose, Nov. 3
Nov. 3 | 7:00 p.m. One of the most popular rappers in the game right now, Ghostface Killah is an original member of the Wu-Tang Clan. Known well for his off-kilter, stream-of-consciousness flow which can shift from topics as extreme as dealing drugs to his diabetes as well as his straight love of wallabies (the […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
It’s About the Process
Perhaps more than any other arts festival, WiP is a thoroughly community affair. Along with being open to submissions from all of the artists in the city and taking place in community spaces such as Public Space ONE and the Iowa City Senior Center, WiP emphasizes audience participation by being, itself, a workshop.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Let's Whisper – Keep A Secret?
Dana and Colin make up Let’s Whisper. They have released a teaser EP with some material that points to the future. It is a splendid piece of listening, one that will show you what the American indie pop underground is all about in the 2010s.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
It’s Just Another Manic Monday
Mondays are always busy. Someone decided to make it busier in an awesome way by putting on three quality shows on the same night. This is a guide to navigating the options.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Show Preview: Matt Alber @ The Englert 8/18
On the 18th, singer-songwriter Matt Alber will bring his skillful arrangements and soulful voice to Iowa City. Although he’s got a life story well suited for an ABC Movie of the Week (growing up in Black St. Louis, finding his voice in the gospel choir, moving to San Francisco, finding himself as a gay man, becoming successful, etc.), the music does not let any of this on.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Summer Recaps
If you’ve been keeping up with the struggle that has been my summer sound, I think you might need to do something better with your time. I mean, I’m glad you’re reading this and all, but there’s this awesome place called outside. Even I venture out there from time to time…to go to the bar.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The Struggle For The Summer Sound
I was talking with a friend of mine about a week or so ago about Real Estate. If you are not familiar, they played PS1 last year along with releasing one of the great albums of 2009. He was lamenting the fact that there had not been any new material from the Real Estate/Ducktails music organization…
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Show Preview: Cheyenne Marie Mize @ The Mill
Filtering through my email one day, I found a press package for a young lady named Cheyenne Marie Mize who is currently on tour to support her debut album Before Lately. While she has street cred from working with Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Mize has to be able to stand up on her own. One cannot ride the coattails of a more famous star to get ahead…
Posted inArts & Entertainment
A Sales Pitch for Lightning Bolt @ Gabe's
The Lightning Bolt show on Wednesday is more than just a simple show. It’s an opportunity to see one of the most powerful bands on the face of the planet. Two men named Brian making so much noise and sending people into a frenzy. This show goes beyond performance and into the realm of a spiritual experience. I will try to explain why.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Dan Sartain, Lives
In the early 2000s, as many remember, there was much ballyhoo given to the return of real rock-n-roll. This was not represented in bands like Queens of the Stone Age, but bare bones garage rock bands like The Hives and The White Stripes. While these bands are awesome, they were only the headliners. As with any movement, there is always a subset that does not necessarily make it to mainstream attention, much to their detriment. While, in most situations, this would suggest that they were not as important (read: good), Birmingham, AL- based Dan Sartain serves as a very real exception to this rule.
