I’m in a bathroom in Highland Park at 11 p.m. on a Friday night. The walls are painted deep red, and the room is lit almost exclusively by prayer candles. Pictures of Jesus line the walls, including one shadowbox image backlit by a single bulb. A black toilet looms in the corner, directly opposite a […]
Dan Ray
Dan Ray (she/her) is a journalist, musician, model and 1994 Aquarius. You can connect with her through IG (@heyimdanray) or by emailing her at heyimdanray@gmail.com.
Posted inFood & Drink
LV Recommends: Daisy Chain Coffee in the East Village boasts delicious drinks and curious decor
I don’t normally write reviews at the place I’m reviewing, but I’m glad I decided to write in Daisy Chain Coffee today. Owner Daniel Bosman greets customers as they pop in, showing them his new coffee grinder. The fig tree behind me rustles as a breeze comes through the open door, and I hear the […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Coffee Cats in Valley Junction, Iowa’s first cat cafe, has homed more than 1,600 felines
After 40 years as a mental health counselor, Mary Jankowski wanted to do something different, but wasn’t sure what. Then she saw an article about a cat cafe and thought it looked fun. So she partnered with the Animal Rescue League of Iowa and, in the summer of 2020, opened Coffee Cats, the first cat […]
Posted inFood & Drink
LV Recommends: The Cave DSM is a purveyor of natural wine, fancy snacks and some of the city’s best live music
I you want to feel like you’re doing something bougie while still on a budget, go chill at The Cave DSM. Situated at the very edge of downtown in a small building so nondescript you’d miss it if you weren’t looking for it (I nearly did), The Cave is a wine bar that might also […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Greg Wheeler and the Poly Mall Cops are ready to make a ‘wall of music’ at Wooly’s with Deerhoof
The name Greg Wheeler and the Poly Mall Cops comes partly from an inside joke. In Kansas City, frontman Wheeler and bassist Jill McLain-Meister came across a group of three people living together who always wore security guard outfits and jokingly named them the “poly mall cops.” But the name also reflects the multiple drummers […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Joe Tripp on his trio of Des Moines restaurants, (accidentally) making gluten-free fried chicken and where the next Basic Bird may roost
If you Google “best restaurants in Des Moines,” you’ll be hard-pressed to find a list that doesn’t include Harbinger. The vegetable-forward, small-plate restaurant co-owned by husband-and-wife duo Joe and Alex Tripp has been a fine dining destination since it opened in 2017. In 2022, the duo opened Windsor Heights’ Little Brother, a breakfast-centric joint with […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Dave Helmer — ‘Such a Clown’
Such a Clown by Dave Helmer Looking at the cover art for Dave Helmer’s Such a Clown, I’ll be honest — I was expecting some trite country rock at best and an Insane Clown Posse knock-off at worst. What I found instead as I listened through was myself writing a plot outline for Paddington 4: […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
‘If I don’t stick up for the drag queens, who’s gonna stick up for me?’: a Q&A with James McMurtry ahead of his sold-out Iowa City show
On tour promoting his latest album, The Horses and the Hounds, James McMurtry made headlines for wearing a dress. During his encore at a Nashville show in May, the 61-year-old Americana singer-songwriter donned a red dress while singing his 2002 track, “Red Dress.” He chose the outfit in protest of Tennessee’s recent anti-drag legislation, and […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The first Greenbelt Music Festival kicked off summer with banjos, brews, music and Mummies
May 19 and 20 marked Clive’s inaugural Greenbelt Music Festival, a (mostly) bluegrass-focused fest held at the Horizon Events Center. Shockingly well done — especially for a new event — Greenbelt drew several thousand attendees during its two-day span. Five dollars from every ticket sold was donated to the Clive Community Foundation, which will use […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: EleanorGrace — ‘Dream About A Cowboy’
On her debut album Dream About a Cowboy, there’s a quiet strength to EleanorGrace’s voice, like Reba McEntire and Billie Eilish had a baby that’s singing through Taylor Swift’s Fearless. At only 19 years old, EleanorGrace (EG) has created a work of art with influences spanning decades and genres. The album opener, “Daydreams,” is an […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Exchange students from Ukraine, Romania partner with Raygun to support women artists
Ana-Maria Petcu wants there to be more women in art. But first, she wants the women who are already in art to receive the recognition they deserve. At the Raygun store in Des Moines on March 25, Petcu — a 12th grade foreign exchange student at Valley High School in West Des Moines who is […]
