Sean Moeller’s debut poetry collection Plain Clothes Hamburglar (Rejection Letters Press) is a tightly compressed collection of vignettes that are laden with beat, location and nostalgia to create an anthemic volume of poems that, despite their playful dressing, ask to be taken seriously. Divided into sections by ingredients in a hamburger (bun, pickles and onions, […]
Arts & Entertainment
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Joytrip — ‘Leaving State’
Leaving things never has a natural conclusion. Leaving things means unresolved relationships, passion projects and bucket lists. And maybe, just maybe, that place, or person, or thing left behind is incomplete now. Maybe, the feeling is mutual. And maybe indie folk band Joytrip is leaving state, like their album title suggests, or maybe they are […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
This weekend in Iowa: a new museum dedicated to burlesque opens in Davenport, The Soul Rebels bring their New Orleans sound to DSM and more
Established 2001 | Always free! Even though, after the holiday, this seems like the most Monday of Friday’s, we still have a slew of events to share in today’s Weekender. MC Animosity and an all-star University of Iowa music ensemble hit up Gabe’s in Iowa City. Soulcage celebrates their debut album release (which dropped today) […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: Riverside serves ‘Romeo & Juliet’ straight up for their 40th Free Summer Shakespeare show
The mini Globe Theatre in Iowa City’s Lower City Park reopened grander than ever on Friday, July 13 for the premiere of Riverside’s 40th Free Shakespeare show and 25th season on the festival stage.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: GooD Cal-El — ‘Buried Talents’
Buried Talents by GooD Cal-El Spirituality in hip hop comes in many forms, far from the image of clean language and repackaged praise music the idea conjures in my brain. Killah Priest, Brother Ali, Lupe Fiasco, Yasiin Bey, Chance the Rapper, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole have all spit religious bars over beats while balancing […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Juneteenth 2025 events in eastern and central Iowa
Juneteenth is this Thursday, June 19, and there will be commemorations, celebrations, forums and other events marking the historic holiday in Iowa both on and around the day. Here are 20 events worth checking out. Iowa City area Monday-Friday, June 16-20, Juneteenth 2025 presented by The Black Voices Project, South District Market parking lot Thursday, […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: The Shining Realm — ‘Talismandala’
Talismandala by Shining Realm “Welcome to the Hallucination we call Home,” beckons a calm, steady voice in its echoes and layers of slithering percussion and Eastern-influenced stringed instrument tapestries. Where is home? Well, at least for these 40-odd minutes, that home is the Shining Realm — both an Iowa psychedelic supergroup and a state of […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The pair of artists behind Des Moines’ Pride murals, Cat Rocketship and Dani Awesome, have a colorful love story
Artists Cat Rocketship and Dani Awesome have created some big, head-turning work together: massive rainbow murals in the East Village and Historic Valley Junction; human-sized Iowa wildlife painted along a bike trail in West Des Moines; pop-up art markets and a pair of Etsy shops with over 7,000 sales of original prints, stickers, jewelry and […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: The music was choice at Mr. Softheart’s last xBk show, though one band wouldn’t stop blowing smoke
Is it defiance or stupidity that makes something stand out as a rebellious act? Regardless of what you believe, one thing is for certain: that was the most cigarettes I have ever seen smoked within the walls of xBk. On May 14 at 7 p.m., xBk welcomed Des Moines locals Mr. Softheart, alongside supporting acts […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
This weekend in Iowa: pop, rock and all that jazz
Established 2001 | Always free! It’s a swinging summer weekend in our reader regions; Rhythms at Riverfront Crossings hosts the P.T.A. Organ Trio in Iowa City, Des Moines Jazz Center Hall of Famer Gabriel Espinosa appears in Cedar Rapids for an exclusive performance, and Anthony Orji & Co. play Noce in Des Moines. Jazz not […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Lady Revel — ‘Slow Burn’
Lady Revel has matured but will never grow old. With their sophomore album Slow Burn, the self-proclaimed Midwestern indie rock band trades the open-hearted urgency of their 2023 debut for something wiser, softer and more emotionally nuanced. It’s the kind of record that doesn’t ask for attention but earns it, layer by layer. With 11 […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Tank tops, Pitt stops and the top five movies you’ve gotta see in local theaters this June
Hey folks, welcome back to Little Big Screen: On the Big, Big Screen, where film columnist Benjamin McElroy recommends five screenings happening at Iowa’s independent movie theaters. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Directed by Steven Spielberg The last time E.T. was in the headlines, a self-described ufologist had presented his unlicensed likeness to Mexico’s Congress. Now, […]
