In 2017, in the wake of the election of Donald Trump, women and allies converged on cities across the country for what turned out to be the largest mass protest in U.S. history, with an estimated one of every 100 Americans marching. In Iowa City, nearly 1,000 people marched.
Genevieve Trainor
Genevieve Trainor lives in Iowa City, Iowa. Passions include heavy music, hoppy beer, and hidden rooms.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
FilmScene’s HomeBrewFest is back, in a new venue
FilmScene is taking their fourth annual HomeBrewFest on the road. The event, which has in the past taken place at the theatre, is shifting venues to Big Grove Brewery & Taproom this year.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Magician and author Nate Staniforth returns to Iowa on a magical mystery book tour
Staniforth is about to return to Iowa City’s Englert Theatre on Feb. 3. The impetus is Here Is Real Magic, the book, released on Jan. 16, that chronicles his journey with magic and wonder, from his childhood in Ames through a trip to India that brought more questions than answers.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Traffic Death — Dead End
Let me start out by saying that it brings me so much joy that we have, here in Iowa, a label like Sump Pump Records, that continually releases top-notch metal records. They’re no one-trick pony; they release other genres all the time, including many albums that have been reviewed positively on this page. But someone there knows their heavy music, and I always feel a little rush of joy whenever I open an email or a package from Sump Pump, because I know it’s going to contain something kickass.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Pets With Human Names — Creature Comforts
Creature Comforts, the 2017 sophomore effort from Des Moines three-piece Pets With Human Names, is a tight, solid, confident rock and roll album. The band — Alex Nickeson, Andrew Pierson and Benton Schoenrock — recorded the 10 tracks at Flat Black Studios for a driven, polished disc that will make you want to throw it on repeat.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Music returns to the Sanctuary
This Saturday evening, the Sanctuary Pub makes its comeback as an Iowa City music venue — and it’s coming back strong. First on the bill for the bar, once known as a premier spot for jazz and blues music, is Iowa Blues Hall of Famer Robert “One-Man” Johnson, the same musician who played the Sanctuary’s very first show ever. Johnson was inducted into the Iowa Blues Hall of Fame in 2014.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Just announced: Buckethead at Gabe’s
With over 300 studio albums to his name, Brian Patrick Carroll — better known to guitar aficionados as Buckethead — is as prolific as he is proficient. He’s collaborated with a wild variety of talent, from poetry records with Viggo Mortensen to a stint with Les Claypool as Colonel Claypool’s Bucket of Bernie Brains to a brief time with Guns N’ Roses.
Posted inCommunity/News
Carriage rides and an indoor snowball fight promise warm fun at Coralville’s Winterfest
Every parent knows it: that wild look in the eyes of children of a certain age once the cold weather’s been around for a while. It’s a look that can generously be called “stir crazy.” Luckily, the city of Coralville has got you covered with its annual mid-winter, mostly indoor event WinterFest.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Flyover and Yoimono combine forces to bring you Good Vibes
Yoimono co-working community in Cedar Rapids (320 11th Ave SE, Suite 217) is kicking off 2018 with a joyous party designed, founding partner Will Lenzen Jr. said, to allow eastern Iowa creatives to “leave the drama of the world at the door.”
Posted inCommunity/News
Reality Bites series continues at the Cedar Rapids Public Library
Cedar Rapids Public Library is holding the second installment in their new Reality Bites series on Wednesday, Jan. 3. Interested patrons will be taking a deep dive into the 2016 documentary I Am Not Your Negro, which several attendees watched at the last session, in December.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
East coast grunge throwbacks Bucket take the stage at Gabe’s
Do yourself a favor and brave the cold on Wednesday night, Jan. 3 for a free show from Massachusetts-based, ’90s throwback, garage pop rockers Bucket.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Time still remains in 2017 for charitable giving
It is, many say, the season of giving. Filled with goodwill and grace from the wide array of winter holidays, and eager to meet the year-end deadline for tax purposes, people across the country use the final days of the year to dedicate financial resources to their favorite nonprofit arts and community organizations. But the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law on Dec. 22, makes this giving season even more significant.
