2018 Issue 46 Creative Loafing Charlotte by Creative Loafing Charlotte

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 VOL. 31, NO. 46

1 | DATE - DATE, 2015 | CLCLT.COM

2 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

LOVES CHILDREN

&OTHER PETS...

RECYCLE ME, PLEASE (Only after youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re done reading me)

FOR DINNER

NEED A PET SITTER? ADVERTISE WITH A CREATIVE LOAFING CLASSIFIEDS AD! email pmoran@clclt.com CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 3

CREATIVE LOAFING IS PUBLISHED BY WOMACK NEWSPAPERS, INC. CHARLOTTE, NC 28206. OFFICE: 704-522-8334 WWW.CLCLT.COM FACEBOOK: /CLCLT TWITTER: @CL_CHARLOTTE INSTAGRAM: @CREATIVELOAFINGCHARLOTTE

STAFF

PUBLISHER • Charles A. Womack III publisher@yesweekly.com EDITOR • Mark Kemp mkemp@clclt.com

EDITORIAL

NEWS EDITOR • Ryan Pitkin rpitkin@clclt.com FILM CRITIC • Matt Brunson mattonmovies@gmail.com THEATER CRITIC • Perry Tannenbaum perrytannenbaum@gmail.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS • Erin Tracy-Blackwood, Allison Braden, Catherine Brown, Konata Edwards, Jeff Hahne, Vanessa Infanzon, Alison Leininger, Ari LeVaux, Kia O. Moore, Grey Revell, Dan Savage, Debra Renee Seth, Aerin Spruill,

ART/DESIGN

ART DIRECTOR • Dana Vindigni dvindigni@clclt.com CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS • Justin Driscoll, Brian Twitty, Zach Nesmith

ADVERTISING

To place an ad, please call 704-522-8334. SALES MANAGER Aaron Stamey • astamey@clclt.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Candice Andrews • candrews@clclt.com Melissa Rustemov • mrustemov@clclt.com ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Pat Moran • pmoran@clclt.com

Creative Loafing © is published by CL, LLC 1000 NC Music Factory Blvd., Suite C-2, Charlotte, NC 28206. Periodicals Postage Paid at Charlotte, NC. Creative Loafing welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however Creative Loafing assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. Creative Loafing is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1. Copyright 2015 Womack Newspapers, Inc. CREATIVE LOAFING IS PRINTED ON A 90% RECYCLED STOCK. IT MAY BE RECYCLED FURTHER; PLEASE DO YOUR PART.

A MEMBER OF:

4 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

ARTWORK BY KENNY NGUYEN.

The layered paintings of Kenny Nguyen will be on display during ‘Interbeing,’ an exhibit that opens at Sozo Gallery on Friday, January 5.

We put out weekly 8

NEWS&CULTURE PUTTING OUT THE FLAMES The Charlotte Fire Department looks to transition from a controversial year

BY TATE ROBERTS 6 EDITOR’S NOTE BY MARK KEMP 7 THE BLOTTER BY RYAN PITKIN 10 NEWS OF THE WEIRD

FOOD&DRINK IN THE WEEDS More college students are graduating into less opportunity than ever

BY ERIKA JACOBS

16 18

15 NEW MEXICAN STYLE CHILI BY ARI LEVAUX

TOP 10 THINGS TO DO THIS WEEK

MUSIC MADE FOR TV Artist Vice creates stadium-ready alt-rock for the soundtrack of your youth

BY MARK KEMP 19 MUSIC MAKER: BRIO BY RYAN PITKIN 20 SOUNDBOARD

ARTS&ENT FLAMING REDHEAD TORCHES RED PRIEST Charlotte Symphony teams with punk violinist

BY PERRY TANNENBAUM

ODDS&ENDS 26 NIGHTLIFE BY AERIN SPRUILL 27 CROSSWORD 28 SAVAGE LOVE BY DAN SAVAGE 30 SALOME’S STARS

GO TO CLCLT.COM FOR VIDEOS, PODCASTS AND MORE!

COVER DESIGN BY DANA VINDIGNI

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 VOL. 31, NO. 46

Website: www.clclt.com Facebook: /clclt Pinterest: @clclt Twitter: @cl_charlotte Instagram: @creativeloafingcharlotte YouTube: /qccreativeloafing 1 | DATE - DATE, 2015 | CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 5

NEWS

EDITOR’S NOTE

ENGAGE OR FACE RESISTANCE Former Mayor Anthony Foxx offers some real talk BY MARK KEMP

WE SPENT 2017 at CL focused on Charlotte Foxx recounted earlier eras, when Charlotte — its strengths as well as its weaknesses — was at the vanguard of desegregation and and not concerning ourselves or you with not insecure about showing its warts. He what those outside of the city think of us. name-checked powerful people who made It’s good to know Anthony Foxx, our former sacrifices to make the city more inclusive — mayor and the former U.S. Secretary of attorney Julius Chambers, who argued the U.S. Supreme Court case for school busing, Transportation, is of the same mind. On the first day of 2018, I watched a and C.D. Spangler, the wealthy school board video of a talk Foxx gave last month at chair who sent his kids to West Charlotte the Community Building Initiative’s 20th High School to show that, as Foxx said, “if annual stakeholders breakfast. CBI, for those one of the richest people in all America could not aware, is the nonprofit organization send his daughters to a formerly all-black established in 1997 to work towards racial high school, then other people could, too.” Foxx offered a personal anecdote about a and ethnic inclusion in Charlotte. frightening police encounter he had as Foxx did not mince words on a teenager in the 1980s — a story what he believes the city needs familiar to any African American to do in order to overcome growing up here or elsewhere. the problems that came If we are not willing to hold a to a head with the mirror to ourselves, he said, September 2016 uprising then we invite resistance. and that changed the “I know what people conversation in this city feel about the criminal throughout last year. justice system and its “Charlotte needs unfairness specifically to to stop worrying about African Americans,” he said. what the world thinks of “I understood it as mayor. And it,” Foxx said. “We need to MARK KEMP I understood it when I watched focus more on what we think our city on fire in September 2016.” of ourselves.” But Foxx didn’t just criticize our The former mayor was alluding to our longtime collective desire to be seen as collective denial. He also offered solutions, a so-called world class city — like Atlanta or shining a light on several people who are working New York or name-your-larger-city-of-choice. hard for change right now, and enumerating When I first moved back home to North some of the policies he himself initiated as Carolina from New York in 2002, I remember a city councilman and mayor — such as his thinking how odd it was that Charlotteans work on improving access for residents of the were so insistent on letting me know how Beatties Ford Road corridor, despite hypocrisy perfect the city is: We have art! We have from those who shunned it while supporting a culture! We have great restaurants! We have bridge over I-485 in Ballantyne. As our recent city elections showed, so many things to do! The comments seemed downright Shakespearian — “The lady doth Charlotte must begin acknowledging that we are not a community for affluent older white protest too much, methinks.” At the time, I found it amusingly quaint. males only. “We’re Asian, we’re Latino, we’re men and women, we’re straight, we’re gay, It’s no longer amusing. It’s time to stop it. Foxx agrees. “And I say this because when we’re lesbian, we’re transgender, we’re queer, a community’s reputation is so fragile, it we’re rich, we’re middle class, we’re poor, almost by definition makes protest the most we’re urban and suburban and rural,” Fox told effective way to gain action,” he said. “If the CBI gathering. “We’re all of these things.” The former mayor also talked about a trip you’re so worried about what the rest of the world thinks about you, you’re asking for he made to Africa. He had visited a site there where slaves were once put on ships bound for protest instead of engaged dialogue.” He pointed to a recent Harvard study the Americas. “It’s easy to say that these things showing Charlotte’s low ranking in economic don’t matter anymore or that this history is mobility. “Why did it take Harvard University disconnected from where we are today,” he said. to tell us that we have an income mobility “And then I look at Ferguson and Staten Island challenge? Where has our conscience been? and Baltimore and even here in Charlotte and in And why did those who [have been] telling us Charlottesville — history is still with us. “But we’re not confined to it,” Foxx added. to focus on this issue for years and years and “We can rise above it. But it is only by looking years — why were they not heard?” The ugly truth is that, for many, Charlotte at it in the mirror and understanding how is not the postcard-perfect city we’ve tried to we’ve gotten to where we are and how much show the world it is. And it’s OK to say so. farther we have to go.” 6 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

NEWS

BLOTTER

BY RYAN PITKIN

NO SERVICE Sometimes you just want to throw your phone against a wall when it’s acting up, and sometimes other people want to do it for you. A 55-year-old woman in Uptown fell victim to the latter last week, and she’s out an $800 phone. It’s unclear why the incident happened — whether there was an argument that preceded it or whether the suspect simply wanted to smash something — but the victim reported that she was standing on South Tryon Street at around 11 p.m. one night when the suspect suddenly turned and approached the victim, took her phone from her hand and threw it against the side of a brick building, smashing the screen to pieces.

RETURN TO SENDER Police responded to an assault with a deadly taco call at Taco Bell last week after a customer became irate with the service staff that there and took matter into — then out of — his own hands. A call came in at around 10 p.m. one night asking officers to respond to the Taco Bell on Sugar Creek Road stating that an angry customer from the drive-thru line threw his bag of food through the window. Things could have gotten more serious from there, since the man left his car and tried to enter the building, but luckily they were closed for the night. He then kicked the glass door, shattering it and doing $350 in damage, before leaving the scene. MOTHERLY LOVE Never bite the hand that feeds you, but if it’s the hand that you’ve raised from the time that hand was born, chomp away. That was one woman’s take on things when she assaulted her own daughter in the Belmont neighborhood last week, and on the day after Christmas, of all days. According to the report, police responded to a call in which a 36-year-old woman reported being bitten multiple times by the suspect and had visible signs of injury. Police quickly found that the suspect was the victim’s mother, and the two had lived together for 17 of the last 18 years. SWEET NECTAR A man in the Newell area of north Charlotte must have been mighty thirsty last week, as he risked a long prison sentence for a small bottle of orange juice. An employee at Dollar General told police that the suspect entered the store at around 1 p.m. one day last week and pointed a gun at him, demanding an orange juice. He got away, and that must have been a damn good celebratory sip once he got to safety. MOTORBOAT A Mountain Island Lake man

is probably kicking himself that he didn’t take his boat out of the water for the winter after it was burglarized on one recent afternoon. The thief must have figured they wouldn’t be bothered, since it’s safe to say nobody would be using the boat in late December, and they

were right. The victim recently found that, at some point between November 23 and December 23, someone made off with the $1,000 Yamaha motor that was attached to his 14-foot jon boat.

SABOTAGE With the recent cold temperatures, it’s a good idea to let the faucets drip overnight to stop your pipes from freezing, but if someone’s has shoved a piece of wood into said pipe, it probably wont make much difference. That’s what happened at one man’s home in the Ardrey Kell area of south Charlotte last week. The 48-year-old victim told police that he woke up on the day after Christmas to find that his water wasn’t running correctly, only to investigate further and find that someone had shoved a wooden block into his water pipe below the house, doing $180 in damage. TRIPPY Police responded to the 901 Place

apartments on Forty Niner Avenue near UNC Charlotte recently to find the most college report of a break-in one could find. According to the report, a 20-year-old woman and her roommate said that someone broke into their apartment at some point during the week while they were both out of town for Christmas and stole two items: a vacuum cleaner and a lava lamp.

THE HUMANITY Sometimes we like

to recognize the good when it pops up in police reports, as rarely as it happens. Staff with Habitat for Humanity lived up to the company’s name recently after finding a homeless person sleeping in a home they were building for another family in need. According to the police report, the man was found sleeping in a home under construction in west Charlotte. When Habitat for Humanity, which owned the home, was contacted, they refused to press charges, stating that the suspect was just trying to get warm three days after Christmas.

THE INHUMANITY In a less wholesome construction story than the one told above, a local company whose job it is to hire out skilled laborers made a couple year-end discoveries last week about dishonest employees, one much more so than the other. Someone in accounting at Tradesmen International was probably going through the books and tying up all the financial loose ends for the year last week when they found some ends that were loose to the point of fraying. The company reported two of its employees for embezzling money by claiming to have worked hours that they didn’t actually work. While one employee faked $640 worth of work, his more ambitious coworker faked his way to $5,255. That sort of effort is worth a raise. All stories are pulled from police reports at CMPD headquarters. Suspects are innocent until proven guilty. BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 7

NEWS

FEATURE

PUTTING OUT THE FLAMES The Charlotte Fire Department looks to transition from a controversial year BY TATE ROBERTS

ALKING THROUGH the newly constructed, technologically advanced Charlotte Fire Department headquarters just north of Uptown, one would hardly notice that it’s a department in transition — one might even say a department at a defining point in its storied history. The department is coming off a most turbulent year, during which high-ranking officials faced accusations of discrimination and the department found itself at the wrong end of a $1.5 million wrongful termination settlement. Both incidents led, in part, to the resignation of former chief Jon Hannon, who 8 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

had been with the department 38 years and served as chief for 10. Now, current CFD Chief Pete Key says the department will spend 2018 being more proactive than ever to encourage more diversity in recruiting, while improving communication among a department that has reportedly suffered from remarkably low morale. According to Key, who was named as the city’s first African American chief in August following Hannon’s retirement, those efforts include community outreach aimed to encourage more women and minority recruits to pursue a career in firefighting.

“What we’re trying to do today is consistently stay where we need to stay to parallel the demographics of the city of Charlotte in regards to diversity,” Key says. Considering where the department stands now, that’s going to take some work. According to 2017 CFD data, 78 percent of the department’s employees are white males. African American males make up 12 percent, white females make up 6 percent and other demographics make up 2 percent or below. Those percentages account for all active employees in the department — including logistics, communications and others. By comparison, Charlotte — with a

population of around 842,000 people — is made up of about 42 percent white people, less than half of those being men, according to 2016 U.S. Census data. The city is 35 percent black and 14 percent Hispanic. All other races make up less than 7 percent. Though Key isn’t pleased with the fire department’s diversity statistics, he is optimistic about what if can achieve moving forward, he says. Key points out that, although he’d like to see the department’s diversity numbers “parallel” the city’s demographics, that doesn’t mean the CFD will want to limit its Latinx recruits to just 14 percent, or anything of that

nature. “Really, I don’t like to use numbers, I’m just wanting to bring the numbers up,” he says. For Captain Dennis Gist, diversity can be a matter of public safety when it comes to trust in the community, or even just the ability to speak the same language while out on a call in a hectic situation. It also allows community members to see doors open up for their own future. “When people and younger kids see reflections of their race, gender or economic status in public servants, they feel as though they’re represented and it gives them the confidence that they, too, can do the job,” Gist says. So how does the department go about getting to that point? Key says CFD will continue its relationships with the city through schools, churches and community events. The department has worked with area colleges like Johnson C. Smith University and done outreach during CIAA events, but it has also kept a presence in elementary schools advocating fire safety while reminding kids to stay out of trouble if they ever want to join the department. Key says CFD is looking for “stellar” candidates who don’t have blemishes on their record. Finding those candidates requires years-long dedication and outreach. CFD offers three programs for kids in school: one for males, one for females and one high school internship. By engaging with young adults through these programs, Key believes the department is growing its own recruits. Camp Ignite, for example, invites young girls to camp out at the CFD Fire Training Academy for a week, going through handson training that includes search-and-rescue techniques, rappelling, ladders and more. The camp is free, which increases accessibility and hopefully helps inspire young girls of all demographics to pursue a career in firefighting.

LOOKING BACK, the CFD has a compelling history that parallels its home in the New South. It was organized in 1875 under four distinct fire companies, two of which were established by Charlotte’s African American community. “Slave owners during these times were requested to allow their slaves to participate in firefighting activities prior to the 1875 formation of the CFD,” reads a historical article on the city’s website. In 142 years, CFD has grown from serving 1,000 people in 1.68 square miles to serving more than 840,000 in 305 square miles. Key joined the department in 1977, just 10 years after the first African American firefighter, Hazel E. Erwin, was hired. Key graduated the academy with the most diverse class the department had ever seen at the time, standing alongside 25 other African American males. He started on the back of a fire truck, then worked his way through the ranks until he was voted interim chief this year. Then and today, Key says he doesn’t look at firefighting as just any job. “It’s a career, it’s a vocation, it’s calling,” he says. Key says he believes the CFD is the best department in the South, but over the last year its reputation has taken a beating. In May, the city paid former CFD fire investigator Crystal Eschert $1.5 million after a jury agreed she was fired for raising safety questions about the construction of the building on North Graham Street where she would be working. The city’s defense claimed that Eschert was fired for a 2014 Facebook

post in which she implied that the victims of police shootings are “thug[s] and worthless to society.” Then, in June, WSOC released a scathing report after receiving letters from minority and female employees alleging they were being purposefully held back from potential promotion within the department. In the letters, employees claimed the department “operated under a system of nepotism” and that then-Chief Jon Hannan had “set progress and diversity back 30 years,” WSOC reported. According to the WSOC report, of 565 candidates for captain promotions within the CFD in the last six years, just 61 were women and minorities. Of those, 15 were promoted. During the first Charlotte City Council meeting following the WSOC report, Linda Lockhart, the depatment’s first African American female firefighter, addressed the council about inequities within the CFD. Lockhart had come out of retirement to join the department as a storekeeper. She pointed out that a white male who had just started in her same position was making her same salary, despite the fact she had been doing that job for seven years. “I want you to know that they are going to fire me or harass me,” Lockhart told council members, implying that she would face consequences for going public. In August, Hannan retired following these controversies as well as reports of low morale in the department. Despite the rough year, Key says he doesn’t believe the department’s reputation was tarnished. He says morale will improve, and he believes it already has. “Morale is like a roller coaster, it’s up and down.” Key says. “Listening to motivate is the best thing you can do in regard to morale, then keeping the lines of communication wide open ... making sure you’re talking back to people. So we’ve got to have effective communication.” On December 4, the department held its yearly written test portion of its application process. Key says he was pleased with the diverse turnout, although numbers regarding the potential incoming class were not available. Key believes the fire department is on the right track to getting where it needs to be but it is constant work. As with much work being done at the department, however, this work is of particular importance, Key says. “Most of all it’s the right thing to do,” he says of working to diversify the CFD. “In this day and time, we’ve got to have an inclusive environment. We’ve got to show people that we care. We’re in houses all over the city. I mean all socioeconomics — rich side, poor side. Everyone has challenges, but every one of us, we’re the same. In spite of all of our differences, we are all the same.” At the moment, though, things in the department don’t look the same, and as Key points out, it’s a years-long process to cultivate new classes of recruits. Camp Ignite, for example, was launched in 2015, so it will be some time before its first class even has the opportunity to apply For the coming year, though, Key will continue pushing the importance of community outreach and communicating with the firefighters he’s already got. Because as he’s learned over the last year, sometimes all the fire safety knowledge in the world can’t keep you out of hot water.

“What we’re trying to do today is consistently stay where we need to stay to parallel the demographics of the city of Charlotte in regards to diversity.” -PETE KEY, CHIEF, CHARLOTTE FIRE DEPARTMENT

BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 9

NEWS

NEWS OF THE WERID

ALL-AMERICAN WEIRDOS Two American tourists, Joseph Dasilva, 38, and Travis Dasilva, 36, of San Diego, were arrested in Bangkok, Thailand, on Nov. 28 and detained in an immigration detention center after they posted a “butt-selfie” on Instagram, taken in front of the Buddhist temple Wat Arun, or Temple of the Dawn. The pair’s Instagram account, traveling_butts, showcased their hindquarters at tourist sites around the world, but it was deleted shortly after the arrests. District police chief Jaruphat Thongkomol told Reuters that the two would also be fined for a similar photo at a different temple. BUT WHY? In Birmingham, England,

renowned 53-year-old surgeon Simon Bramhall pleaded guilty on Dec. 13 to branding his initials onto human livers using an argon beam during transplant surgeries. A colleague first noticed the initials “S.B.” in 2013 on an organ during a follow-up surgery, which sparked an investigation, the Guardian reported. Bramhall resigned in 2014 and acknowledged that marking his patients’ livers had been a mistake. But former patient Tracy Scriven of Dyrham, Wiltshire, told the Birmingham Mail that he should be reinstated. “Is it really that bad? I wouldn’t have cared if he did it to me. The man saved my life.”

INEPT SANTA MOVES Jesse Berube, 32,

of Rocklin, California, tried using a favorite trick of Old St. Nick — but he got stuck in the chimney of a Citrus Heights business he was trying to rob on Dec. 13 and had to call police for help. ABC News reported that Sacramento firefighters responded and used special equipment to free Berube, who now faces one count of burglary.

your delicious weekly alternative news source

10 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

THE CHECK’S IN THE MAIL Lorette

Taylor of Burlington, Ontario, Canada, responsible for meting out her family’s inheritance after her father’s death sent a bank draft last February to her brother, Louis Paul Hebert, for $846,648.46 via UPS. Hebert waited at his local UPS store for the check to arrive — but nothing came in. “I came back in the evening. Nothing shows up,” he told the CBC. UPS could trace the package only to its distribution center north of Toronto, so along with an apology for Hebert’s inconvenience, UPS refunded the $32 shipping fee. Taylor’s bank, TD Canada Trust, initially assured her the check would be canceled, but two days later refused to issue a new draft until Taylor signed an indemnity agreement making her and her heirs liable for life should the original check be cashed. Not only that, the bank then asked her to put up collateral against the new bank draft, but that request was later recalled. Finally, 10 months after the whole ordeal began, the bank released the money, and Hebert, at press time in December, was making the 273-mile drive to pick up the check in person.

AWESOME! An unnamed newborn boy underwent surgery at the Scientific Research Institute of Pediatrics in Baku, Azerbaijan, to remove a small remainder of a parasitic twin that had attached itself to the baby’s back: a penis. Gunduz Agayev, head of the institute’s neonatology department, reported to Metro News in December that the baby “has a normal sexual organ where it is supposed to be” and “the penis on the back ... has been surgically removed.” The newborn was not traumatized by the surgery and is already at home with his parents, the doctor said. CHANNELING MIKE TYSON British model Chloe Hammond, 27, also known as Chloe Rebelle, succumbed to a fit of road rage on March 19 when Julie Holloway, 56, tapped on her car window to ask her to stop using her phone while driving in traffic in London. Metro News reports that Hammond responded by parking her Audi TT and then “came out of nowhere” toward Holloway, kicking her in the stomach, grabbing Holloway’s hair and biting off a piece of her ear. Holloway, bloodied and disturbed, didn’t realize part of her ear was missing until someone “picked it up off the floor.” In October, Hammond was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm with intent in Southwark Crown Court, and on Dec. 18, a judge sentenced her to five years in jail. INEXPLICABLE Don’t you ever just want to get away? An unnamed man in Catherine Way, Batheaston, England, started digging a “very deep” hole in his yard weeks ago, but caused a neighborhood disruption when he climbed into the hole on Dec. 12 and refused to come out. Neighbor Dominic Denny told the Bath Chronicle that “it started at about 4 a.m. ... when there was a lot of shouting and screaming coming from the house opposite me. The young man’s family was outside trying to get him back in the house.” Emergency responders from a variety of services converged on the scene, even bringing a crane to lower into the hole to retrieve the man. A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset police later reported that the incident was resolved and “the man got out of the hole of his own accord.” SPECIAL DELIVERY! An employee at a TCBY yogurt shop in Matthews, North Carolina, got a surprise while opening three packages delivered to the store — filled with $220,000 worth of marijuana. Upon further investigation, the store told WSOC-TV, the packages had been delivered mistakenly and were meant for a P.O. Box at the postal store next door. While the origin of the packages is still unknown, the drugs and the recipient’s information have been turned over to police, who report that no arrests have been made. QUESTIONABLE

JUDGMENT The Mirror reports that a flight attendant with Urumqi Air in China has been suspended

after a co-worker captured her on video eating from in-flight meals meant for passengers. In the video, a line of open meals is on a shelf in front of the female attendant, who samples from at least two of them with a spoon. The airline said in a statement that the meals were leftovers not handed out to passengers, and it was launching a full investigation.

LEAST COMPETENT CRIMINALS Israel

Perez Rangel, 38, of Santa Ana, California, raised suspicions begging for money at a service station to put gas in the 2015 Ferrari 458 Spider he was driving on Nov. 1. The $300,000 car was in rough shape, according to the Los Angeles Times, with cracked fins, emblems torn from the body and vomit caked on the side. When Santa Ana police arrived, Rangel ran away, but he was caught nearby hiding in bushes. Car owner Susan Friedman of Laguna Beach had left the Ferrari at a Costa Mesa service center in October, where it was stolen, and surveillance video confirmed it was Rangel who nicked the hot rod. Luckily for Friedman, her insurance company cut her a check and she replaced the Ferrari with a 2018 Lamborghini Huracan. “I love it,” she said.

WAIT, WHAT? Visitors to South Korea for

the Winter Olympics may want to make a side trip to Haesindang Park near the coastal town of Sinnam. The park, also known as Penis Park, opened to the public in 2007 and was dedicated to the memory of a virgin bride-tobe left behind by her fisherman fiance. Locals told the Mirror that after being abandoned, the bride was swept out to sea and drowned, causing fish to leave the area. Now her spirit can only be soothed by the sight of male genitalia. The park features nearly 300 erect phallus statues, and about 12,000 visitors take in the titillating sights each year, most of them women.

WE ARE NOT ALONE The Stardust Ranch in Rainbow Valley, Arizona, has a lot to offer potential buyers: Just an hour west of Phoenix, the property boasts a 3,500-square-foot home with a pool, 10 acres, barns, a gated entry ... and two portals to another dimension: one at the back of the property, and one in the fireplace. Owner John Edmonds and his wife bought the property, now listed at $5 million, 20 years ago to run a horse rescue, but he says he’s killed more than a dozen extraterrestrials on the property (using a samurai sword) and has suffered many injuries in his encounters with them. Edmonds told KPNX TV in October that aliens tried to abduct his wife: “They actually levitated her out of the bed in the master chamber and carried her into the parking lot and tried to draw her up into the craft.” (She won’t enter the room anymore.) Listing agent Kimberly Gero notes: “This isn’t the type of property that you can just place in the MLS and wait for a buyer to come along.” COPYRIGHT 2017 ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 11

FOOD

COVERSTORY

IN THE WEEDS More college students are graduating into less opportunity than ever BY ERIKA JACOBS

S MANDY SMART stands behind the bar, a printer buzzes nearby, informing her that more drink orders are up. The orders come from the servers on the floor, but the cocktails are her responsibility. She reaches for the ticket, and a customer calls for her attention. He asks about the drink specials. Halfway through her answer, the printer buzzes again. While the picky customer makes his decision, Smart glances at the ticket: an Old-Fashioned. She drops an orange slice into the bottom of a tall, stainless steel shaker. After adding a dash of bitters and simple syrup, she begins muddling the ingredients into the bottom of the cup. “One.. two.. three.. four.. five.. six..,” she counts steadily to herself as she pours in whiskey. She adds ice and shakes vigorously until the mixture is ready to be strained into a rocks glass with a single, large ice cube. “Just give me your favorite IPA,” the impatient customer interrupts. Smart, 24, always dreamed of having a job where she was dealing with people, but this isn’t quite what she had in mind. There are many like Smart in the workforce: young, college-educated wannabe professionals who get stuck in the service industry — often in restaurants and bars — working jobs that don’t require a degree because they pay better and are easier to come by than the entry-level positions they went to school for. Charlotte residents Jon Rhodes and Addie Toscano are two others who have taken different paths but found themselves in similar situations to Smart. Although the sales jobs Smart has applied for are closer to her field of study than bartending, taking one of those positions would be a risk she literally can’t afford. “Right now, I make twice as much bartending as I would in a sales job. I can’t afford to pay my bills at $12 an hour,” she says. “I don’t want to be bartending, but I have to. I feel stuck.” Dr. Jaime Bochantin, a communications professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte who studies generational differences in the workplace, says the number of millennial college graduates like Smart who are struggling to find a suitable job with their degree has increased in recent years because of the resurgence of college enrollment during the Great Recession. According to Bochantin, in 2011 the pressure to become more competitive in a workforce that had few available jobs led to 12 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

As more Americans graduate college [above] with higher amounts of debt, entry level positions have become more scarce.

= MEN 2.3 million adults enrolling in college. As a result, today’s college graduates now compete against individuals who have experience younger generations do not have. With an estimated 3 million graduates expected to enter the workforce in the spring of 2018, the competition will only intensify, she said. Nearly 35 percent of people 25 and older now have at least a bachelor’s degree. That’s the highest the number has ever been. Only about 20 percent of people in that same age group had degrees in 1990. The value of a master’s degree has become equivalent to what a bachelor’s degree once was, raising expectations for students who want to be competitive in their careers. Smart, under pressure from her parents and peers, enrolled in college before she even knew what career she wanted. Now, she spends her days applying for jobs and working late hours as both a server and bartender. She anticipated that what she now calls “just a piece of paper” that she earned after four years at UNC Charlotte would land her the job and financial security her elders had assured her of. “I knew I wanted to make a lot of money, and my dad was in business, so I wanted to follow in his footsteps,” Smart said. “My goal was to get through college with good grades, graduate and get a job I could work my way up in.”

= WOMEN

During her junior year of college, Smart finally decided to focus on business marketing in hopes that she would eventually find a job as an event coordinator. Since graduation, however, she has only been offered sales positions at companies like Red Ventures, where she says a lot of her former classmates are miserable. Smart struggled to find a well-paying, entry-level job because of her lack of experience. “I applied for so many jobs and the only positions I would get callbacks for were ones that didn’t even require a degree,” she said. “It was discouraging.” Since she graduated nearly two years ago, Smart has yet to maintain a position in her field of study, despite her persistent job searching. She applies for at least two jobs a week and hopes bartending will help her network into a new job by connecting her with someone who can get her where she wants to be. Smart’s feeling of discouragement hasn’t left her. “I think society expects you to graduate high school, then pushes you to go to college when you’re not ready,” she said. If she could do it over, Smart said she would have waited until she was ready to decide her future. Smart’s lack of experience is a common challenge for the younger generation of graduates now entering the workforce,

GRAPH COURTESY OF STATISTA

according to Bochantin. While obtaining a bachelor’s degree was once an advantage, Bochantin believes undergraduate education is not going to cut it anymore. “It’s a double-edged sword because they won’t give you a job without experience, but you can’t get experience without a job,” Bochantin explained. However, Bochantin said she believes internship programs solve this problem because they provide students with experience and increase their chances of landing a full-time job by 20 percent.

THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT Jon Rhodes

did. Unfortunately, internships do not solve all the problems facing graduates entering the workforce. Rhodes, a 27-year-old North Charleston native turned Charlottean, discovered his passion for culinary arts as early as high school. He forked out the money for tuition and committed to Johnson & Wales University, confident that the financial burden of attending one of the top culinary art schools would pay off. Like many other recent graduates, Rhodes anticipated that the time and money he dedicated to his degree would result in a job. He was in for a big surprise. Rhodes graduated from Johnson & Wales in 2012 with an associate’s degree in culinary arts and a bachelor’s in food and beverage management. Five years later, he’s still paying off loans for a tuition that cost him more than the $43,000 he now averages in a single year.

After graduation, his unpaid internship at a hotel turned into a full-time, paid position. “I loved the job itself because I got to do something new every day, I got to meet cool people and they offered great benefits,” Rhodes said. “But, I was only making $10.50 an hour. It wasn’t worth it.” Rhodes has worked a bevy of jobs trying to get his foot in the door, with or without the help of a degree. He’s worked as a line cook, server, bartender and restaurant manager. Although restaurant management gave him experience he needed, it did not compensate for the high stress and low salary. “I was busting my ass and barely making it,” he said. “I went back to bartending because I was making more money, had more free time and had less stress.” While bartending last year, a teaching job fell into Rhodes’ lap. His old high school needed a new culinary arts instructor — a position he was more than qualified to fill. “I was nervous at first because this was ‘the real thing’ for me, and I had never imagined teaching what I love to kids that were only 10 years younger than me,” Rhodes explained. “It ended up being the best job I could’ve imagined.” After a year of building relationships with his students at what he thought was a dream job, the financial burden of the pay cut he took for the gig became too much to bear. “I was making more bartending than on a teaching salary,” he said. “I felt like my dreams were crushed and that I let my students down.” CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 13

PHOTO BY RYAN PITKIN

“I was making more bartending than on a teaching salary. I felt like my dreams were crushed and that I let my students down.”

would in a sales job ... I don’t want to be

-JON RHODES

-MANDY SMART

FOOD

COVERSTORY

He was forced back into bartending and restaurant management — both positions that don’t even require the college education he had paid so dearly for. “Knowing what I know now, I honestly think I would’ve pursued radiology and kept culinary arts as a passion on the side,” Rhodes said. He loves what he does and makes enough money to support himself, but his income is not enough to provide for anybody else. He said it’s preventing him from starting a family and moving forward with his life. Looking back, Rhodes is disappointed that he has not reaped better rewards from his top-notch education. When people ask him what he does for a living, he hates telling them. After all the time he has put into the industry — sometimes working 16-hour days, six days a week — and the more than $140,000 he spent on tuition, Rhodes said he wants to have a job he can brag about instead of a job that wastes his college degree. The immense student loan is not a problem that Rhodes faces alone, especially as job competition is forcing students to go to school even longer. This rising student loan debt is why graduates like Smart and Rhodes end up settling for and maintaining jobs that 14 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

do not require a degree. According to the Pew Research Center, 21 percent of adults ages 25 to 39 that have student loan debt and at least a bachelor’s degree are working more than one job. While student loans are a reasonable investment if they ultimately lead to a higher income, the increasing standards of educational attainment necessary to be competitive in the job market is causing graduates to spend significantly more time paying off debt — and forcing graduates like Rhodes to reevaluate the cost of his investment. And there are countless Charlotteans out there like him, racked with debt and doubt, wondering what could have been.

SINCE ADDIE TOSCANO was a child, she

dreamed of having a career in the medical field. “The human body always interested me. I wanted to be able to fix it,” she said. Before beginning her career as a nurse, Toscano, now 38, spent time in the military so she could pursue college without the financial burden of tuition. She was later medically discharged because of a knee injury, and after spending six months in rehab, she moved back to Charlotte where she earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing at UNC Charlotte.

“I make twice as much bartending as I bartending, but I have to. I feel stuck.”

“I spent over a year working in the trauma center at [Carolinas Medical Center], but it weighs very heavily you,” Toscano said. “A lot of people don’t last long in that department. There’s a lot of death and it got to be too much.” She decided to take a break. Toscano planned on using her time off to decide on another nursing department where she could pursue work. However, she began making more money as a bartender than she was making as a nurse salary. Her new job had a flexible schedule, and eventually she was promoted to bar manager. “Did I ever think my career would be restaurant management instead of nursing? Never,” Toscano said. “With me being a single mom, it just worked better.” Toscano decided to make the best of her new opportunity, and chose to go back to school in hopes that it would give her the knowledge she needed to one day open her own restaurant. She took academic classes in business and restaurant management at UNC Charlotte, as well as Continuing Education courses in mixology, cicerone and sommelier. “I didn’t need to go back to school. You can learn all of that just by being in a restaurant, but it takes a lot of time and I wanted to take the extra step,” Toscano said. “Managing for other people and running their restaurants

makes me realize that I know how to do this, and I want to do this for myself.” The value Toscano ultimately placed on the educational experience over the simple attainment of a degree is something Bochantin thinks is critical for college students. The emphasis being placed on a degree as a “means to an end” is causing students to enroll in college for the wrong reasons. According to the Economic Policy Institute, more than 43 percent of minimum wage workers have at least some college education. With so many college-educated adults slipping through the cracks, it is not hard to imagine why many in this generation of students are reconsidering the value of a degree. While the “piece of paper” may no longer be enough, once the focus of college is back on education there is hope for other generations of students, according to Bochantin. For now, Toscano manages someone else’s business while waiting to get approved for her own small business loan. Rhodes is still in the industry and sells banana puddings on the side for his friend’s food truck. As for Smart — for the time being she will just be waiting for that buzz to tell her what drink to make. BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM

MORSEL

FOOD

HOT DAMN! Cook up some chile — New Mexican-style BY ARI LEVAUX

HEN

YOUR

PARTNER

asks you to make a meal for a work potluck, and you’re a food writer, a certain kind of pressure is on. Especially when it’s not just any meal, but red chile, culturally appropriated from New Mexico, where we started our family, where it was always sunny. By “chile” we don’t mean the South American nation, or the tomatoey bean stew which is spelled “chili” but could be called “spiced beans ’n burger.” Chile is the word used by the Mexican descendants of those who first domesticated the wild chiltepin plant, and by the New Mexicans who took on the horticultural species, and created its own chile-based cuisine. “Chili,” meanwhile, is the version of the word used for what a Midwestern cook would serve alongside seven-layer salad. Red chile is a way of saying ripe chile pepper. Pretty much any pepper will turn red eventually. In New Mexico, a pepper’s development is closely monitored, because different stages of maturity have different culinary purposes. The fleshy, immature green pods are fire-roasted and referred to as green chile, while the mature red pods are dried, and then either ground into powder or stored whole — often in the form of a hanging ristra. The red chile I make for my wife’s potluck would be red chile the stew, as opposed to red chile the sauce. The difference between sauce and stew can be little more than meat and veggies, like potatoes, cooked separately and then added to the sauce. But please, no beans. A perfect red chile sauce can be made with no more than onions or garlic, butter, salt and dried red chile. Stock helps, as does bacon. Some people use flour or ground pumpkin seeds to thicken. Though simple to make, it’s even easier to screw up, apparently, even if you don’t add beans. A few potlucks ago I added chipotle powder to my red chile, because I was low on red chile powder. You really can’t skimp on chile powder. I know that. And I know the best red chile comes from northern New Mexico. The northern pods are smaller, with thinner skins, and are grown primarily to be red chile, which is much more practical to store through the winter than green. Many valleys and pueblos in northern New Mexico have their own chile varieties that have grown accustomed to the specific local conditions. For that caliber of red chile, the raw ingredient would be a game changer in my red chile the sauce. Dried chipotle powder was a game changer too, but in the wrong way.

I can’t entirely blame my failed red chile on the powder, as that was merely one of many red chile fails involved. After adding the chipotle I quickly panicked, adding olives and dried corn to make the dish less selfconsciously authentic but still regional, while grossly overcooking it. A guy from Albuquerque claimed my chile was passable, and when I heard that, I lost all respect for him. It was just an embarrassment for everyone involved. So the next time a staff party rolled around, my wife didn’t ask me to make chile. She just issued a general request for me to make...something. When I announced I’d be making red chile, she asked me if I was sure about that.

THIS TIME I used plain red chile powder from the store, careful to avoid the imposters that also contain spices. I stayed away from chipotle and other nonsense and kept it simple, and it was much improved. But still, I wasn’t back to my glory days, she admitted. It was fine, but not exciting. It needed more butter, she offered. Perhaps I was trying too hard. On a hunch, I searched the bowels of a packed-away box and unearthed a package of Chimayo Traditions brand mild red chile powder. The town of Chimayo has the name recognition as the capitol of New Mexican red chile, but there are many, many other farms in the region producing comparable red chile varieties, such as Santa Cruz, Escondido, Alcalde and San Felipe, all named after their places. I tasted of the Chimayo powder and felt like I’d entered an oasis of color after living in black and white. Straight away I made a batch of red chile the sauce, and it was glorious, with flavor that was at once earthy and sunny. I wanted to drink it. Assuming you can get your hands on some good, northern New Mexican red chile — and I know you can on the innerwebs — here is how to make a proper red chile sauce with it. If you have access to whole pods, pull off the stem ends, pour out the seeds, dig out the membranes, and let them soak in warm water, or preferably stock. After an hour or so, puree the pods, and some of the water, in a food processor, until turns into a delightful ethereal chile soufflé. Assuming you’re working with powder, add four tablespoons chile powder to a pint jar or similar sized vessel, and fill with water, or preferably chicken or beef stock. Stir and let sit. Prepare the pan with fat and aromatics. For the fat, I like a combination of bacon and butter, with olive oil as necessary. My wife

would have me replace the bacon with more butter, but I... I can’t. Science is science, after all. Either way, about three tablespoons. For the aromatics, either a quarter of an onion or clove of garlic, minced, but not both. Garlic needs much less time, onions need to cook slowly for a while. Powdered garlic and onion can also be used, believe it or not, for a smooth and tasty finish. At this point, many people would stir in a teaspoon of flour and make a roux in the pan that you can brown for a second and then add the chile water. Ground pumpkin seeds are a rootsy alternative to flour. I skip the thickener altogether, and simply add the chile water and carefully thicken it on the stovetop.

Keep in on low heat, being careful not to let it scald. It will sweeten as it thickens, and develop a bright tanginess, but if you overcook the chile it will turn bitter, so be careful. Start tasting it, seasoning with salt and oregano, preferably Mexican oregano, and perhaps garlic powder. Extra butter, in this case, is a seasoning as well. For an extrasmooth finish, pour the chile through a screen to filter out the lumps. To enjoy the red chile in the New Mexican tradition, serve with the likes of enchiladas, tamales, beans, burgers and fries. In other words, anything. BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 15

THURSDAY

DRUGSTORE GHOST What: Back home in Charlotte after a jaunt through Southeast Asia, Jordan Minor (aka Drugstore Ghost) brings his gentle psychedelic sounds to Petra’s on a bill with prolific Charlotte music man Dylan Gilbert, who’s released six solo albums and a shit-ton more with local bands including Something Jed and Hectorina. For a little extra umph, they’ve added bluesy folk-rock singer-songwriter Matt Phillips, from Carrboro. Expect lots of shimmery music to meditate (or hallucinate) to. When: 9 p.m. Where: Petra’s, 1919 Commonwealth Ave. More: $7. petrasbar.com

16 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

THURSDAY

STRAY CAT AND DEAD FLOWERS SIDESHOW What: Like a leering carnival barker on a moonlit midway, The Milestone presents not one, but two sideshow acts! Philadelphiabased Dead Flowers and local miscreants Stray Cat both take their names from Rolling Stones songs. Is there some arcane magical reason for this, or do both simply share a certain sympathy for the devil? Fire performances, a soupcon of fetish and a triple sword-swallow by Stray Cat’s Secoria are on the bill. When: 9 p.m. Where: The Milestone, 3400 Tuckaseegee Road More: $5-7. themilestone.club

THINGS TO DO

TOP TEN

African Children’s Choir FRIDAY

PHOTO COURTESY OF ACC

FRIDAY

INTERBEING

ANIMAL HOUSE

What: Thich Nhat Hanh is a 91-year-old Vietnamese monk and peace activist who coined the term “interbeing” to describe the interconnectedness of the universe, meaning that one is part of the web of life, not isolated. The term inspired this exhibit, featuring the works of Kenny Nguyen, a Charlotte artist and Vietnamese immigrant. Nguyen’s multi-layered paintings symbolize his own intertwined experiences being lost in an unfamiliar environment.

What: Charlotte finally has a cat café to compliment its handful of dog bars, so what better time to host a national juried exhibition centered on the critters in our lives? Capitalizing on America’s love affair with cats, dogs, marmosets and more, Ciel Gallery’s Animal House features art in any medium, as long as it focuses on animals. Prizes include honorable mentions, as well as a $500 Best in Show Award. The exhibition, judged by N.C. artist Elizabeth Bradford, runs through January 27.

When: 4:30-6:30 p.m.; exhibit runs through Jan. 31 Where: Sozo Gallery, 214 N. Tryon St. More: Free. sozogallery.net

When: 6 p.m. Where: Ciel Gallery, 128 E. Park Ave. More: Free. cielcharlotte.com

FRIDAY

AFRICAN CHILDREN’S CHOIR What: No time like the beginning of a new year to have your heart melted by incredibly cute and talented kids. The African Children’s Choir, known for their extrordinary voices, will sing and dance to traditional spirituals when they appear in Mint Hill this week for a program benefitting Music for Life, a Christian organization that helps educate kids in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Nigeria and other African countries. When: 7 p.m. Where: Arlington Baptist Church, 9801 Arlington Church Rd., Mint Hill More: Donations. africanchildrenschoir.com

Texture FRIDAY

NEWS ARTS FOOD MUSIC ODDS

Dollhands FRIDAY

Stray Cat Sideshow THURSDAY PHOTO COURTESY OF CLTEXTILES

FRIDAY

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN SPECTRE, NIGHT EDGE PHOTOGRAPHY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

PHOTO BY CAITI MASON

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

TEXTURES

DOLLHANDS

TWELFTH NIGHT

SCHOOL OF ROCK

SWIM IN THE WILD

What: Normally, an event celebrating fiber and textiles would be more Country Living than Creative Loafing, but we’re psyched to check out the work of some of the folks working with the newly formed CLTextiles group, which includes artists who are educators and makers, traditional and experimental, established and novice, and all-around diverse both in experience and in work. This isn’t your grandma’s knitting circle.

What: The guitars lurch from spidery and stinging to a dust ball of distortion. The bass is rubbery and pogoing. The clattery drums seem to be on loan from Swedish psych rockers Dungen, and Eric Smeal’s vocals sound like they were recorded in a closet four doors down the hallway. All of which means that garage rockers Dollhands are awesome, reeling out so many hooks amid the squall that you’ll trip. The trio gets extra points for this call to action: “Throw away your decorative flower pot!”

What: It doesn’t seem much fun for anyone to have been a settler in the Backcountry, let alone a slave brought there against their will or the Native American pushed out of their home, but this CMoH event will celebrate the finer points of the last night of Christmas for settlers. The event includes live music, colonial party games, hot apple cider, Twelfth Night cake and a candlelight tour of the Hezekiah Alexander house. Remember, after Twelfth Night, it was back to toil and turmoil, so enjoy yourself.

What: Not to be confused with the amazing (and real) work being done by School of Rock Charlotte, this touring stage play is based on the 2003 film starring Jack Black, and features all of the original songs from the big screen with 14 new tunes by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It’s hailed as the first musical to feature a kids’ rock band playing live instruments on stage, but we’ve been watching the local SoR kids do that for years.

What: What do you get when you mix silvery strummed ukulele, soaring choruses of massed male voices and rippling guitars that build until they reach a noisy-yet-stilljangly plateau? According to Swim in the Wild, it’s called “adventure alternative,” a phrase they coined to describe their sound. Actually, it’s not a bad descriptor. Founded by brothers Michael and Steven Hall, the Charlotte quintet exudes an open and sunny nice-guy vibe, but then they sneak up on you with loud, experimental rock touches.

When: 10 p.m. Where: Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St. More: $5. snugrock.com

When: 5-7:30 p.m. Where: Charlotte Museum of History, 3500 Shamrock Drive More: Free. charlottemuseum.org

When: 7-10 p.m.; exhibit runs through Jan. 26 Where: C3 Lab, 2525 Distribution St. More: Free. facebook.com/ CLTextile/

When: Jan. 9, 8 p.m.; dates through Jan. 14 Where: Ovens Auditorium, 2700 E. Independence Blvd. More: $25 and up. ovensauditorium.com

When: 9 p.m. Where: Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St. More: $2. snugrock.com

Check CLCLT.com for episode 24 of our Local Vibes podcast, the first of 2018, featuring CLT rapper/producer Brio discussing the release of his debut album, LITEBLEU. CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 17

FEATURE

MUSIC

MADE FOR TV Artist Vice creates stadium-ready alt-rock for the soundtrack of your youth BY MARK KEMP

LAME IT ON Dawson’s Creek.

Before that iconic teen TV series of the late 1990s and early 2000s snuck songs by ultra-cool artists like Anna Waronker, Tanya Donally and the Wedding Present onto its soundtracks, fans of so-called alternative rock had to listen to hip college radio stations or MTV’s 120 Minutes, or read underground music magazines, or surf the fledgling internet for interesting new sounds. Dawson’s Creek was a game-changer, and after its success, every TV series looking for youth appeal began hiring Hollywood’s hippest music supervisors to stack their soundtracks with obscure — or obscuresounding — music. “We had songs on Road Rules, The Real World…,” Alex Stewart, the 32-year-old singer and guitarist for the Charlotte band Artist Vice, begins. He’s speaking about his previous bands Hot Vegas and The Air Station, both fronted by singer Andrew Palmer and also including Stewart’s current band mates, bassist Joshua Geddings, 34, and drummer Austin Eller, 32. “… and Teen Mom, and Keeping up with the Kardashians,” Eller interjects. “And the latest was I Am Cait on the E Channel.” The three musicians are sitting around a table at Heist Brewery in NoDa, nursing beers and talking about their earlier bands as well as Artist Vice, their new trio without Palmer. Fronted by Stewart, whose high, delicate vocals give the band its distinctive ethereal vibe, Artist Vice will unveil its debut EP, Jot It Down Get It Out , during an album-release show at the Evening Muse on Saturday, January 6. Artist Vice is your quintessential alt-rock band of the current millennium. Drawing inspiration from later-period alternativerock acts like the Killers, Muse, Jimmy Eat World and Foo Fighters, the trio is a far cry from such late-’80s and early-’90s outfits as the Pixies, Breeders, Nirvana or even Green Day — bands that ushered punk-inspired rock into the mainstream and became known as “alternatives” to then-mainstream acts like Motley Crue and Guns ’N Roses. The biggest difference between bands that call themselves “alternative rock” today and those that gave the music its “alternative” tag is perspective. For example, you wouldn’t have caught an early alternative rock band describing itself as “a stadium-ready alt-rock trio.” The description itself would have been a contradiction in 18 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Artist Vice in the middle of the road: Austin Eller (from left), Alex Stewart and Joshua Geddings.

“WHY LIMIT YOUR DREAMS TO LITTLE CLUBS?” — ARTIST VICE DRUMMER AUSTIN ELLER terms. And yet that’s exactly how Artist Vice describes itself on its Bandcamp page. But times have changed. In the prestreaming years, language that would have come off sounding like a “sell-out” just means today that the musicians would like to get paid rather than have to pay to play. “This past year we’ve been playing all these open mics,” Stewart says. “I mean, we’re paying to play, and that sucks. We feel like we’re ready for more than that.” “We’ve put in hundreds and hundreds of shows touring with our previous bands,” Giddens adds. “We’ve toured from Miami to Kansas to Canada.” “And every time we’ve played an open mic in the past year, we get such a great response,” Stewart continues. “People are like, ‘Whoa! That sounds so much bigger than what you’d expected from a trio at an open mic.’ So we’re like, yeah, we have a big, sort of epic sound. We’re ready for a stadium.” Besides, adds Eller, “Why limit your dreams to little clubs?”

ARTIST VICE’S BIG SOUND actually

sounds better than most of the bands they cite as influences. The power-pop punch of the new EP’s opening song, “First Impressions,” and the swirling, dream-pop melody, quirky

whistling and vaguely “Be My Baby”-esque drum part on “Cleared for Landing” make for a strong, one-two punch of sweet, seductive pop-rock. Not all of the tracks on the Jot It Down Get It Out are as strong as those two, but there’s potential in Artist Vice’s music that feels ready to be tapped and served up to audiences small or large. “Sonically, my favorite song on the EP is ‘Cleared for Landing,’” Stewart says. “It just came together really easily, and then once I brought it to Josh, he had this great bass line for it.” “And that whistle is very catchy, too,” Eller adds. Giddens’ favorite is “First Impressions,” he says, because of its message. “It’s about community,” he says. “It’s about getting along with people no matter what your race or your religion or your views are. That one really strikes a note for me.” He and Eller first met Stewart in 2003, when Stewart came to see Hot Vegas play at Tremont Music Hall. The guitarist had just arrived from Satellite Beach, Florida, to run track and field at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he majored in religious studies. Giddens, originally from Taylorsville, and Eller, from North Wilkesboro, had recently joined up with Palmer, who not

only fronted Hot Vegas, but also wrote all of the band’s material. “It was really his band,” Giddens says. From 2003 to 2006, Hot Vegas released three albums — The Reverse Forward, This One’s For Desire and Migration — before calling it quits in 2007. Three years later, Palmer brought the band members back together again for a final hurrah as The Air Station, which released The Human Condition, produced by James Paul Wisner (Dashboard Confessional, Paramore), in 2010. In addition to the TV shows that Stewart and Eller had mentioned earlier, Hot Vegas’ songs also made their way onto the soundtracks of MTV’s Cheyenne and the Oxygen Channel’s Bad Girls Club. But while the exposure those shows offered was nice, the band members didn’t see any payoff. “Most of it went to Andrew, because he had most of the creative control. He basically reinvested the money into the band,” Stewart says. “And that made sense. It was fair. He definitely had more of the pie than any of us.” Stewart laughs. “I was just like, ‘Hey, look — we’re on MTV!’” He gets serious again. “But we’re super proud of what we did with those bands,” Stewart says. Although Giddens, Eller and Stewart

MUSIC

MUSICMAKER

IT TAKES TIME Brio releases debut album after four years of fine-tuning BY RYAN PITKIN

Eller, Geddings and Stewart looking cool. eventually decided to move on from Hot Vegas and The Air Station, they still have a good relationship with their former band leader Palmer. “He’s a great friend,” says Eller. The feeling is mutual. “I bought a copy of the [Artist Vice] EP,” Palmer says by email. “I think it is pretty cool.” Palmer says he enjoyed working with Stewart in his previous bands. “I always liked what he brought to the table,” he says. “ I have a lot of respect for him as a musician, and more importantly as a person.” Giddens, Eller and Stewart had never thought about reforming as a trio without Palmer, but a chance meeting at a concert in late 2015 brought them back together again. Giddens had moved to Florida after he left The Air Station, but eventually came back and decided to go check out an Incubus concert. He was driving into the massive lots at the PNC Music Pavilion when he looked into the car next to him. “I pulled in and there was Alex — right beside me,” Giddens remembers. “Out of all the thousands of cars there, he ended up parking right next to me. So we hung out all that night and I said, ‘Hey, you want to go to the Panthers game?” Stewart said yes and brought Eller along with him. The two had been messing around a little on some music, but nothing serious. “So we just started spitballing ideas,” Stewart says. “Since we’d all played music together before, Austin and I were like, ‘Hey Josh, we have this song — why don’t you play it with us?’ It just kind of clicked from there.” The three started rehearsing, writing songs and eventually went into Bomb House Recording Studio in Morganton with the idea of stripping everything back down to the basics — no big-name producers, no fancy production tricks. They decided to produce the EP themselves. “You know, there are producers like Steve Albini [Big Black, Pixies, Nirvana], who just

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ARTIST VICE

ARTIST VICE W/LAURA RABELL 7:30 p.m. Saturday, January 6. $8-$10. The Evening Muse, 3227 N Davidson St. eveningmuse.com.

go into the studio, turn the equipment on and let the band do their thing,” Stewart says. “And then there are producers who basically change your songs. We wanted to just produce this one by ourselves.” “We knew what we wanted to do, so why have someone else do it?” Eller adds. Now that the EP is done, the three are looking forward to unleashing it on local fans at the Muse, and they’ll be bringing along a friend, the Nashville-based singersongwriter and former Charlotte resident Laura Rabell, to open the show. “Laura’s a longtime friend of my wife,” Stewart says. “She even sang at our wedding. She’s incredibly talented. So when we were lining up this show, we were like, ‘Hey, come play with us.’ She does this countryAmericana, singer-songwriter-type stuff, so you’ll get a real variety of music at this show.” Rabell was thrilled to be invited back to her old stomping grounds. “It has been a joy for [Alex and I] to watch each other evolve musically over the years, and I have never seem him more confident and passionate than when recording and performing with Artist Vice,” Rebell says. “I’m honored that they have included me and my band to join the bill.” The experience might be a little like watching an episode of Dawson’s Creek — a little Americana for the pensive scenes followed by juiced-up alt-rock for the dramatic crecendo and grand finale. MKEMP@CLCLT.COM

WHEN I LAST sat down with Brio in July 2015, he was just about ready to release his debut album, LITEBLEU. Even then, Brio talked about the patience he practiced in taking two years to record and fine-tune the new album throughout his time living in Atlanta and then moving to back to his hometown of Charlotte. He was not understating his patience. Now, a full 17 months later, LITEBLEU is finally out, but it’s just two days old. As we sit in Midnight Diner, he laughs with his buddy J. Reid, a local designer, about the number of times he was “just about” ready to put the album out over the last year. “He can vouch for this,” Brio says, laughing and pointing at J.Reid, who’s finishing off a veggie burger next to him in the booth. “I had so many other dates lined up. ‘We’re doing it this week, naw, we’re doing it that week.’ Even at the beginning of the new year [2017], we had a whole rollout planned, but with it not going the way that I wanted it to, it damaged my vision for it. I said, ‘Fuck that.’” Now that his debut is finally on the streets, we took the opportunity to look back on the process and forward to 2018. Creative Loafing: How does it feel now that you’ve got this thing out? Brio: For real man, I feel like, really elated, just relieved that it’s out. It feels a little vulnerable, but it’s still real at the same time. I’ve just been so eager for this moment, for it to come out and to share it with everybody. I finally moved past that step of getting over the reasons for not putting it out, and just being like, “Yo, it’s time to drop it.” With that gap of anticipation, you can just feel the release of that energy, and I’m just literally sitting with it and trying to be calm in that. What sound were you going for with LITEBLEU? This is a real personal sound in a way, but it puts you into a mood where it really makes you focus. It can be taken either way: It can be taken lightly or it can be taken as a deep subject. My focus is speaking through the life perspective, speaking through a spiritual perspective, where it can be both sides of the coin, however you want to take it. And you produced every song on the album, so you were able to create the theme of the album from scratch. Sonically speaking, it’s real ambient, letting the sounds use imbalance with the aggravation that I’m speaking with, and

Brio.

PHOTO BY CAREY J. KING

BRIO, JAH-MONTE, INDIGO JO Free. Jan. 4, 9:50-11:50 p.m.; Crown Station Coffee House and Pub, 3629 N. Davidson St. crownstationpub.com

just letting that paint a whole trance-like, hypnotic-type state, but at the same time, bring you to into a focus. I’m a writer. I’ve been a writer first, but when I grew more into noticing that the music is my purpose and passion, and speaking that message, then production really became the backbone. I’m a sucker for the drums. The drums are what I feel like is the focus of things. And really I just love sounds at the end of the day, being able to utilize that alongside your voice and let them mesh with that. How did your move back to Charlotte play a role in the creation of this album? I love that everything is still remaining very original and very authentic. It’s never shied away from my hometown sound at all. It’s such a specific sound that’s coming from this environment here, growing up here. With everybody else in this community — people in my squad, people everywhere else that we’re cool with — it’s like Charlotte’s specific sound that you hear in this area. That’s so powerful. Being able to get those different influences from such a melting pot in this city is so beneficial to how we’re really about to make this shake in the future. How have you watched it already start to shake since you’ve moved back a year and a half ago? To me, the city is really moving toward one effort to get to a place where they want to truly floss it, but it takes a lot more work and it takes a lot more input at the same time. I’ve definitely been seeing such a growth; the homie Elevator [Jay] always doing his thing at Snug Harbor, all the shows from all these different people, Deniro [Farrar] going off, and even the homie Nige Hood, everybody is working together with a community aspect. Check out LITEBLEU at soundcloud.com/ brioankh/sets/litebleu and visit clclt.com to hear Brio as a guest on our ‘Local Vibes’ podcast. RPITKIN@CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 19

MUSIC

SOUNDBOARD JANUARY 4

JANUARY 6

COUNTRY/FOLK

CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH

Open Mic with Lisa De Novo (Temple Mojo Growler Shop, Matthews)

Jazzology (Comet Grill)

DJ/ELECTRONIC Le Bang (Snug Harbor)

POP/ROCK Open Mic at Studio 13 (Studio 13, Cornelius) Drugstore Ghost, Matt Phillips, Dylan Gilbert (Petra’s) Ether, Dead Flowers Sideshow, Stray Cat Sideshow, Severed Fingers, Smelly Felly (Milestone) Karaoke (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Open Mic for Musicians (Crown Station Coffeehouse and Pub) Shana Blake and Friends (Smokey Joe’s Cafe)

DJ/ELECTRONIC DJ RWonz (RiRa Irish Pub) Off the Wall: Best of the 80s V.13 + Slow Wine Edition (Petra’s) Tilted DJ Saturday’s: DJ Tookie (Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery)

POP/ROCK

Charlotte Symphony: Vivaldi Four Seasons (Belk Theater)

Alternative Champs, Bandway (Snug Harbor) Artist Vice with Laura Rabell (The Evening Muse) Falconheart (RiRa Irish Pub) Game Face (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Melodime, The Brevet, Millennial (Neighborhood Theatre) New Local Band (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Pluto for Planet (Tin Roof) Take The Fall, Wolves And Wolves And Wolves And Wolves, Messenger Doen (Milestone)

COUNTRY/FOLK

Wicked Powers (RiRa Irish Pub)

Chris Lane (Coyote Joe’s) The Lenny Federal Band (Comet Grill)

JANUARY 7

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B

DJ/ELECTRONIC

JANUARY 5 CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH

Electric Relaxation f. DJ Skillz (‘Stache House Bar & Lounge)

Bone Snugs-N-Harmony (Snug Harbor)

DJ/ELECTRONIC

Glimpses, Late Bloomer, Thunder Dreamer, Faye (Milestone) Omari and The Hellhounds (Comet Grill)

DJ Method (RiRa Irish Pub)

POP/ROCK Brandon Stiles (Tin Roof) Christy Snow Band, Tony Eltora (Evening Muse) Dollhands, Trunkweed, Dumb Doctors, Taxing (Snug Harbor) Flight Club, Chaser, Never Home, Skipper The Lion (Milestone) Jason Hausman & The Shallow Sea, Mirror Man (Evening Muse) Josh Morningstar, Leadville String Trio, Kris Atom (Petra’s) Ryan Trotti (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Vince Mckinley (Smokey Joe’s Cafe)

20 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Charlotte Symphony: Vivaldi Four Seasons (Belk Theater)

POP/ROCK

JANUARY 8 BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL January Blues Bash: Root2Music, Moses Jones (The Rabbit Hole)

POP/ROCK Music Bingo (Tin Roof) Music Trivia (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Find Your Muse Open Mic featuring Youth Model (Evening Muse) The Monday Night Allstars (Visulite) Open Mic with Lisa De Novo (Legion Brewing) Shannon Lee and Thomas Stainkamp Dueling

SOUNDBOARD Piano’s Night (Vinyl Pi, Huntersville)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B #MFGD Open Mic (Apostrophe Lounge) Knocturnal (Snug Harbor)

JANUARY 9 COUNTRY/FOLK Stout Pull 2018: Dylan Scott, Midland, Devin Dawson (Coyote Joe’s) Red Rockin’ Chair (Comet Grill) Open Mic hosted by Jarrid and Allen of Pursey Kerns (The Kilted Buffalo, Huntersville)

DJ/ELECTRONIC GLBL, Brut Beat, Lord Soul (Snug Harbor)

POP/ROCK Tuesday Night Jam w/ The Smokin’ Js (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Fools Generation, Psycho Hill, The Chroma Divide, Morganton (Milestone) School Of Rock (Ovens Auditorium, Charlotte)

JANUARY 10 HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Free Hookah Wednesdays Ladies Night (Kabob House, Persian Cuisine)

DJ/ELECTRONIC Karaoke with DJ Pucci Mane (Petra’s) Cyclops Bar: Modern Heritage Weekly Mix Tape (Snug Harbor)

COUNTRY/FOLK Ryanhood (Evening Muse) Open Mic/Open Jam (Comet Grill)

POP/ROCK January Residency: Swim in the Wild (Snug Harbor) Open Mic & Songwriter Workshop (Petra’s) The Business People, Jitsu, Emmet Drueding (Hattie’s Tap & Tavern) Jay Mathey Band (RiRa Irish Pub) Trivia & Karaoke Wednesdays (Tin Roof)

COMING SOON  The Stray Birds (January 12, Evening Muse) Plies (January 14, Fillmore)

Charlie Mars (January 19, Evening Muse) David Rawlings (January 19, Neighborhood Theatre) Tracy Lawrence (January 19, Coyote Joe’s) A Stained Glass Romance, Beshiba, Black Fleet, Abhorrent Deformity (January 19, Snug Harbor) Ultrafaux, Lon Eldridge (January 20, Evening Muse) They Might be Giants (January 21, Neighborhood Theatre) Royal Thunder, Backwoods Payback, Space Wizard (January 22, Milestone) Fiftywatt Freight Train (January 26, The Underground) Tim Barry, Laura Stevenson, Roger Harvey (January 26, Milestone) Donna the Buffalo (January 27, Neighborhood Theatre) Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (January 27, The Underground) Lana Del Ray (January 30, Spectrum Center) The Winter Sounds, Belle Adair (January 31, Evening Muse) Aimee Mann (January 31, McGlohon Theater) Lost Dog Street Band, Dead Cat (February 2, Evening Muse) Big Head Todd & The Monsters (February 2, Fillmore) Andrea Bocelli (February 9, Spectrum Center) Kid Rock(February 10, Spectrum Center) George Clinton & Parliament/Funkadelic (February 10, Fillmore) Fetty Wap (February 15, Fillmore) Molotov (February 22, Fillmore) John Nolan (of Taking Back Sunday), Andy Bilinski (February 23, Evening Muse) St. Vincent (March 1, Fillmore) Face 2 Face - Elton John & Billy Joel Tribute (March 2, Fillmore) Jorma Kaukonen (March 6, McGlohon Theater) Dropkick Murphys (March 9, Fillmore) Jeezy-The Cold Summer Tour (March 11, Fillmore) The English Beat (March 17, Fillmore) The Eagles (April 11, Spectrum Center) The Darkness (April 27, The Underground) Foreigner (July 4, PNC Music Pavilion) Sam Smith (July 6, Spectrum Center) Khalid (May 23, Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheare) Weezer, Pixies (July 25, PNC Music Pavilion)

❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

MUSIC

❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈ ❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈❈

THIS FRIDAY

CHRIS LANE LIMITED ADVANCE $15 ALL OTHERS $18 TUESDAY, JAN 9

STOUT PULL FEATURING

DYLAN SCOTT MIDLAND AND DEVIN DAWSON TICKETS ON SALE NOW $12

FRIDAY, JAN 19

TRACY LAWRENCE LIMITED ADVANCE $20 ALL OTHERS $23

SATURDAY, FEB 3

DIAMOND RIO LIMITED ADVANCE $18 ALL OTHERS $20

FRIDAY, FEB 9

THE CADILLAC THREE LIMITED ADVANCE $13 ALL OTHERS $15

SATURDAY, FEB 17

WALKER HAYES

LIMITED ADVANCE GA $12 ALL OTHER GA $15 . VIP $69

FRIDAY, MARCH 2

CODY JOHNSON

TICKETS ON SALE NOW $12 THURSDAY, MARCH 8

1/13 BOY NAMED BANJO 1/17 DOROTHY 2/6 G. LOVE AND SPECIAL SAUCE 1/19UNKNOWNHINSON 2/15 THE BLACK LILLIES 2/9 MR CARMACK 2/10 WHITE BUFFALO 2/28 BRETT DENNEN 3/4 BAND OF HEATHENS 3/8 DAVID ARCHULETA 3/13 COAST MODERN 3/25 ICON FOR HIRE 4/14 TOUBAB KREWE 4/20 The OLD 97s NEED DIRECTIONS? Check out our website at clclt.

com. CL online provides addresses, maps and directions from your location. Send us your concert listings: E-mail us at mkemp@clclt. com or fax it to 704-522-8088. We need the date, venue, band name and contact name and number. The deadline is each Wednesday, one week before publication.

K ANE BR OWN

GENERAL ADMISSION $25 VIP $99 TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

SOLD K ANE BR OWN FRIDAY, MARCH 9

GENERAL ADMISSION $25 OUT! VIP $99

SATURDAY, MARCH 24

LANCO

LIMITED ADVANCE $15 ALL OTHERS $18 ON SALE AT COYOTE JOES AND COYOTE-JOES.COM COYOTE JOE’S : 4621 WILKINSON BLVD

704-399-4946

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 21

ARTS

FEATURE

FLAMING REDHEAD TORCHES RED PRIEST Charlotte Symphony teams with punk violinist BY PERRY TANNENBAUM

Aisslinn Nosky.

22 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PHOTOS COURTESY OF AISSLINN NOSKY

VEN IN CHARLOTTE, the would-be crown of the New South, you occasionally hear the grumblings backstage — or in the boardrooms of our leading performing arts companies: “Our audiences are graying.” Who you gonna call? For Charlotte Symphony, this week’s startling answer is their guest soloist, Aisslinn Nosky, a redheaded violinist — sometimes fire-engine red, when the mood hits — who usually rocks a punk hairdo. A blatant appeal, you could say, to younger people who might otherwise be wary of a formal concertgoing experience or are just plain classical-averse. But that’s not even half of the Nosky story. Far from dolling up or dumbing down the music she plays, Nosky is highly regarded as one of today’s prime exponents of music from composers as varied as Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Philipp Telemann and Franz Joseph Haydn. Born in Canada, Nosky has strong ties to three of the most important groups in North America that specialize in this music. She’s a core member of the Toronto-based I FURIOSI Baroque Ensemble and the concertmaster at Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society. Her 10 years with the famed Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra culminated in the 2015-16 season when she toured as their featured soloist. Although Nosky will be playing a modern violin when she teams up this weekend for a concert showcasing works by Bach, Telemann and Mendelssohn — while headlining Vivaldi’s Four Seasons — she usually plays authentic period instruments when she performs and records with H+H or Tafelmusik. And she dismisses the notion that there’s some kind of disconnect between her punkish stage persona and her punctilious preservation of authentic practices. “I can see how on the surface it might strike some people as a jarring contradiction,” Nosky admits. “What our current audience may not know is that the idea of classical music being a highbrow/conservative art form was born entirely in the 19th century. “In the 18th century,” she says, “the star singers of the opera world and the most famous instrumental performers were treated like rock stars. One need only read contemporary accounts of audiences’ reactions to someone like the great opera star Farinelli to have a glimpse into the excitement and glamor which was a part of experiencing Western art music in the past.”

Many other classical musicians, conductors or academicians are on the record with similar observations about classical music’s less stuffy, more spontaneous past. Nosky separates herself from those laments by living that bygone spontaneity right now. Check out the I FURIOSI website if you have any doubts. Or watch Nosky rocking out on Bach with Tafelmusik in a YouTube video. There’s something unusual here: Nosky is not only playing with the ensemble, she’s directing it. And that’s the plan for this weekend at Belk Auditorium. In both the Bach Violin Concerto No. 1 and Four Seasons, Nosky will be soloing while leading the orchestra. Although the ensemble doesn’t figure to be as small as Tafelmusik’s, with 19 full-time members, you can count on Charlotte Symphony to field a smaller armada of musicians than the one that played Brahms and Beethoven back in November. Trimming the size of the ensemble performing Haydn and Mozart became a routine practice at Symphony during the aught decade, when Christof Perick wielded the baton as music director. But aside from Bach’s B Minor Mass (2002 and 2009), a Vivaldi Piccolo Concerto rearranged by and for percussionist Evelyn Glennie (2005), nothing written before Papa Haydn was presented at the Belk to Symphony’s Classics Series subscribers during those years. Curiously enough, that Vivaldi Piccolo Concerto was conducted by Christopher Warren-Green, five years before he took over as Symphony’s maestro for the 201011 season. So it figured that Warren-Green would be programming more baroque at the Belk than his predecessor. “Musicians of a symphony orchestra are expected to be extremely versatile and be able to juggle different musical styles,” says Calin Ovidiu Lupanu, Charlotte Symphony’s concertmaster since 2003. “We usually switch from a classical repertoire to a more jazzy or Broadway type of repertoire, from modern classical to baroque. “Especially with the arrival of Maestro Warren-Green in Charlotte, the number of baroque programs has increased,” Lupanu adds. “I am sure that Aisslinn will bring her own interpretation and expertise to the stage.” What might seem unusual — a concertmaster leading an orchestra while he or she plays the solos — is often the practice when performing Four Seasons, according to Lupanu. That didn’t happen the last time

“IN THE 18TH CENTURY, THE STAR SINGERS OF THE OPERA WORLD, AND THE MOST FAMOUS INSTRUMENTAL PERFORMERS, WERE TREATED LIKE ROCK STARS.” — AISSLINN NOSKY

Symphony presented Vivaldi’s most famous composition in early 2010. Lupanu would know. On that January night, with Michael Christie as guest conductor, Lupanu himself was the soloist. Nosky has a totally different perspective on compounding her instrumental work with conducting, reminding us that before the 19th century, concertmaster and director were interchangeable titles. “Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra was directed from the concertmaster’s chair by Jeanne Lamon,” Nosky recalls. “It never occurred to me that playing baroque and classical music needed to be done any other way. In fact, after a lot of research into the subject, I can say positively that the majority of orchestra music before the 20th [century] was directed by either the concertmaster or the keyboard player. People may forget that Vivaldi and Telemann and Bach initially achieved their enormous fame as performers!” Both concertmasters, Lupanu and Nosky, cite chamber music as central to their tastes and training, so both are comfortable in reduced-size ensembles where all the musicians must keep a sharp ear out to blend

PHOTO COURTESY OF AISSLINN NOSKY

and synchronize with their colleagues. Where the two seem to part company is in the outré flair that Nosky brings to the task. “In a culture that is geared towards young performers playing for an older audience,” Lupanu observes, “someone of Aisslinn’s quality can be extremely helpful in bringing more of the baroque and early music repertoire in the concert halls. And maybe having the younger audience attracted to this kind of music.” Nosky pushes back against the notion that her spiky hairdo is modeled on anybody else’s, whether Nigel Kennedy, Peter Sellars or — heck — Peter Pan. Or that it’s calculated to position her as a Pied Piper for a new generation of classical audiences. “All I can say is that my inspiration comes completely from what makes me feel comfortable when I perform,” Nosky says. ‘I couldn’t possibly try to look like or be anybody other than myself. If I did, I would not be true to myself. Or the music.” Nonetheless, when Nosky moves from Handel and Haydn to the music of Vivaldi, Aisslinn Nosky. SEE

REDHEAD P. 25 u CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 23

FOX

Hugh Jackman in ‘The Greatest Showman.’

ARTS

FILM

AMERICAN IDLE Hugh Jackman stars in big-top flop BY MATT BRUNSON

ircus entrepreneur P.T. Barnum may have led a fascinating life, but you wouldn’t know it from The Greatest Showman (** out of four), a broad and broad-minded musical that’s closer to High School Musical than Freaks on the pop-culture scale. Some engaging if highly anachronistic songs provide the only pep in a big-budget production that was oddly entrusted to a director whose only previous credits were helming TV commercials and creating visual effects for little-seen pictures. That might explain why Michael Gracey’s staging of the musical numbers lacks flair, finesse or even spatial symmetry. As for the script by TV vet 24 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Jenny Bicks and Dreamgirls writer-director Bill Condon, it offers only pop psychology in its look at P.T. Barnum (Hugh Jackman) as a troubled overachiever and a politically correct framework that’s ultimately at odds with the more troubling aspects of its leading character and the time in which he lived. In this film’s fantasy world, prejudice is primarily practiced by a few burly drunks hovering around the edges — certainly, little exists in Barnum, presented here as a big-top patriarch whose wispy hints of bigotry vanish whenever one of his performers belts out another Top 40 wannabe. Zac Efron and Zendaya provide some forbidden teeny-bopper romance that further drags the picture down, while Michelle Williams is given precious little to do as

Barnum’s eternally patient wife. Jackman is aptly cast in the title role, and he would have been sensational in a darker, warts-and-all interpretation of the character. Instead, he’s asked merely to coast in a splashy but shallow picture that might as well have been called American Idle. CASTING FAMOUS ACTORS as famous historical figures often puts the performer at an extreme disadvantage, since it means they have to work twice as hard to put over the same feat of duplicity as less recognizable thespians tackling similarly iconic figures. Then-unknown Ben Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi? No problem. Anthony Hopkins as Alfred Hitchcock? Big problem. In that respect, casting Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill seems like a risky gamble, given that both are known commodities. But Oldman, an actor who — let’s not forget — has already portrayed such disparate personalities as Sid Vicious, Lee Harvey Oswald and Ludwig van Beethoven (to say nothing of such fictional mainstays as George

Smiley and Count Dracula), proves to be up to the task in Darkest Hour (*** out of four), a satisfying dramatization of Churchill’s fledgling days as the British Prime Minister. Even operating under pounds of makeup required to convert the actor into the rolypoly elocutionist, it’s easy to initially spot Oldman peeking out. Yet as the movie progresses, Oldman effectively buries himself in the role, aided by the efforts of director Joe Wright and scripter Anthony McCarten to convey the urgency at hand — namely, that Adolf Hitler has already begun his march through Europe, and Churchill must decide whether to fight the bastard (his choice) or negotiate a treaty that will hopefully leave England untouched by Nazi destruction (the choice of many of his peers). The historical highlights are on display: the dislike of Churchill by even those in his own party, the “miracle at Dunkirk” (also seen this year in not only Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk but also the sleeper pick Their Finest), and, of course, the famous speeches. The latter monologues truly allow Oldman to

ARTS

FEATURE

VIVALDI FOUR SEASONS 7:30 p.m. Friday, January 5, and Saturday, January 6. $43-up. Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon St. charlottesymphony.org.

REDHEAD

FOCUS FEATURES

Gary Oldman in ‘Darkest Hour.’

FROM P.23

her spiky red ’do inevitably takes on the tinge of an homage. Vivaldi, born in 1678 and ordained in 1703, was nicknamed the Red Priest because of his curly red locks. It’s uncertain how much red Nosky will be sporting onstage as she plays her concertos and leads Charlotte Symphony in a Sinfonia by Mendelssohn and a “Suite from Don Quixote” by Telemann. There’s a 2013 video of Nosky clad in red lapels when she played with an H+H quartet at Le Poisson Rouge in Greenwich Village. On second glance, maybe those silky lapels were fuchsia. One thing is certain: Just being herself, Nosky will surely be a redhead playing the Red Priest, often at a fiery clip. It will be interesting to see how many other punks show up. BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM

Christopher Plummer in ‘All the Money in the World.’ shine, delivering the words with such fervor and feeling that it quickly becomes clear that they elected the right man for the job. IT DIDN’T EXACTLY require all the money in the world, but Sony nevertheless had to cough up a sizable chunk of change to reshoot certain scenes in All the Money in the World (**1/2 out of four). Even with the decision coming less than two months before the film’s official release date, director Ridley Scott pulled it off, with Christopher Plummer effectively stepping in for the scandal-struck Kevin Spacey and co-stars Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg doing their part by returning to the filmic fold to redo their scenes. It’s an impressive example of Hollywood professionalism and efficiency — it’s just a shame the movie itself isn’t a bit more compelling. The real-life framework remains intact: Miserly J. Paul Getty (Plummer), the richest man in the world, refuses to pay the $17 million ransom when his 16-yearold grandson John Paul Getty III (Charlie

Calin Lupanu.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CALIN LUPANU

SONY

Plummer, no relation) is kidnapped while living in Italy. It’s a workable scenario, but the execution is often more arid and aloof than incisive and intriguing — worse, scripter David Scarpa (working from John Pierson’s 1995 book Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty) must have felt the need to somehow pump up the volume, since the story takes some ridiculously fanciful turns (particularly during the third act) that would have made more sense on a vintage episode of Walker: Texas Ranger. As Fletcher Chase, a former CIA agent who now serves as Getty’s hands-on advisor, Wahlberg is game but miscast — faring much better is Williams, who, as the kidnapped boy’s mom, brings conviction to what could easily have been a rote role. Still, it’s the last-minute replacement who saves the day — and the movie. Playing Getty as Scrooge writ large, Christopher Plummer delivers a superb performance, providing the part with the richness it requires.

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 25

Always FREE to listen and reply to ads!

ENDS

NIGHTLIFE

KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID New Year’s cheers in the Queen City

Playmates or soul mates, you’ll find them on MegaMates

WHO ARE YOU AFTER DARK?

Try FREE: 704-943-0057 More Local Numbers: 1-800-700-6666

redhotdateline.com 18+

Charlotte:

(980) 224-4667 www.megamates.com 18+

REAL PEOPLE REAL DESIRE REAL FUN.

Try FREE: 704-943-0050 More Local Numbers: 1-800-926-6000

Ahora español Livelinks.com 18+

26 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

FREE TRIAL

Discreet Chat Guy to Guy

980.224.4669

60 MINUTES FREE TRIAL

THE HOTTEST GAY CHATLINE

1-704-943-0051 More Local Numbers: 800-777-8000

www.guyspyvoice.com

Ahora en Español/18+

show before the year that was 2017 came “NEW YEAR, NEW ME.” That’s how to a close. the story goes, right? Every year we spend countless hours coming up with our New To make it even better, I was able to Year’s resolutions and every year we look pregame at the new Jackalope Jacks location back at how many resolutions we didn’t in Plaza Midwood. I’d gone to the spot the check off the list. night before, and when one of my friends At this point, it’s more interesting and mentioned having an extra ticket to see Of entertaining to see how hungover people will Good Nature right next door, I thought it’d be on New Year’s Day after committing to a be a good excuse to return before hiking to resolution like “drinking less.” AvidXchange Music Factory for the show. In years prior, I’ve fallen into the tourist In usual fashion, I was running late after trap of paying for an expensive New Year’s Eve shindig at a popular nightlife spot in the a solid start to the night, but thankfully, I Queen City. made it just in time to hear my favorite song, My first year here, it was Label Charlotte. “Ridin Solo.” My friends from college came to visit and The lights illuminated the crowd as we grabbed an Uber so late that we barely everyone screamed the chorus in harmony. I made it inside the venue in time for the may or may not have gotten distracted champagne toast. toward the end and opted for When the night was over, I chatting up a few familiar made the rookie mistake of faces on the patio, but still, thinking that getting an Uber would be a piece of the show was worth every cake. penny. After noting a fare When I left, I was estimate of over $200, even able to squeeze in we decided that we one more “show” while I should just wait out the waited on my Uber. surge. An hour later, Two guys, one playing the predicted fare hadn’t the trumpet and one wearing changed. AERIN SPRUILL a furry animal head playing the Fortunately, we were able to coordinate a ride with drums were camped out on the a private car service company for side of the street. The duo performed much cheaper and got home before frostbite covers for passersby who weren’t concerned set in. about getting home too soon. Their sound Last year, I paid for a table at one of my was infectious and put smiles on everyone’s favorite hookah spots. Don’t get it twisted, faces. I didn’t pay the outrageous prices you’re The next day, I made plans to watch the used to hearing about during holidays or Panthers game with my P.I.C. and decided special events around Charlotte. However, it secured a seat – what more can a girl in heels early on where I’d ring in the New Year – The ask for? But next thing you know, the venue Corner Pub. You know what they say…”If it was so packed strangers may as well have ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” been sitting on my lap. When the clock struck midnight, I had So this year, I decided to do things a everything I needed – my new squeeze and little different. No more glitz and glam, a couple of my closest friends. I must say, extravagant open bar tickets or broken for the first time in almost six years that resolutions before the clock struck midnight. I’ve been in Charlotte, I felt like I’d had a Instead, I opted for a weekend of late nights successful New Year’s celebration. with great friends and days filled with long naps. Who would’ve thought I wouldn’t have to In fact, the only major event I had on my spend a lot of money in the process? schedule was attending the Hippie Sabotage As I look ahead to 2018, the only concert. “resolution” I really have is to explore I’m not a huge fan of going to concerts, everything new that the Queen City has to especially when taxes and fees take a $20 offer. ticket up to $40. However, Hippie Sabotage New venues, new activities and new is one of my favorite EDM groups and if people. What Q.C. adventures do you have I wasn’t going to spend money on tickets in mind for the New Year? to a venue for a midnight New Year’s Day BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM smooch, then I might as well see a good

ENDS

FeeLing Lonely?

CROSSWORD

SUMMING UP THE NEW YEAR ACROSS

1 -- law (computer industry rule) 7 WWII prez 10 Argus-eyed 15 Turn sharply 19 Haul in 20 Mendacity 21 Nerve 22 Caucus state 23 Luau libation 24 Hearth waste 25 Slight residue 26 Again 27 *Ad Council bloodhound 31 Et -- (plus more) 32 Roly-poly 33 “I knew it!” 34 Good tidbit 38 Colleague of Trotsky 40 *They don’t have qwerty layouts 46 Pen’s tip 48 String after Q 49 Have -- of hope 50 Gp. for fillers and drillers 51 *At a short distance 56 *Metro section manager 59 Deadeye’s skill 60 TCBY treats 61 Bloom holder 62 PC pictures 63 Fetus feeder 65 Kotter of TV 66 Juan’s “this” 68 Henry VIII’s third Catherine 69 *Tool whose teeth rotate 72 Costello and Holtz 76 Baseballer Slaughter 78 Brogan part 79 Sloping 81 Bacon piece 84 Gone 85 Antsy feeling 86 Color tone 87 *It may show acidity 90 *Divorcee in 1991 news 92 Min. segment 93 Segment 94 Suffix with 114-Down 95 Chargers linebacker Manti -96 *Yale, e.g.

102 Tips, as a cap 106 Chilling 107 Golfer Trevino 108 Batter 110 Taxi readout 111 What the double-digit Roman numerals at the starts of the answers to the starred clues add up to 118 Mud in a cup 121 Haikus, e.g. 122 22nd letter 123 Gooey camp treats 124 All tied up 125 Shul scroll 126 Be off 127 Unseat 128 Like paraffin 129 Lacking pity 130 Negatives 131 First phases

DOWN

1 Fox or ox 2 Prophesier 3 Derivation 4 Teaches new skills 5 Biblical twin 6 Rigidly formal 7 Thin-screen boob tube 8 Plate 9 Practice 10 Giant in train travel 11 Petty of film 12 Quiz’s kin 13 Paella base 14 Ticked (off) 15 Pfizer drug 16 Many eras 17 She bleats 18 Bitingly cold 28 In thing 29 Chin-wag 30 Native Nebraskan 35 Sister of Clio 36 Rider, e.g. 37 Old rulers 39 Jenna Bush, to Jeb 41 NBA and NRA, e.g. 42 Crusty roll 43 Big name in Art Deco 44 “We did it!” 45 “See you” 47 Wild horse 51 Cartoonist Al 52 Oscar winner Kedrova 53 Sharif of “Funny Girl”

54 No voters 55 On or about 56 Coup group 57 Morse “E” 58 “That’s what -- service!” 61 One paid to park cars 64 Sweet filling 65 Event invitee 66 Sup at home 67 Try to hit, as a fly 70 Snow-pure 71 Epic story 73 Aloha Stadium site 74 “One,” on a U.S. coin 75 Process unit 77 Coll. in Lower Manhattan 80 Filled up 81 Cow of ads 82 Kitchen filter 83 Burlesque dancer Lili 84 Llama locale 85 2004 Chevy debut 88 Mudbath site 89 “It” game 90 Feeling bliss 91 Vane locales 94 Freezes 97 Church chant 98 “Icky!” 99 Full of melting snow 100 Fiats 101 Spanish plural article 103 -- Islands (Danish chain) 104 Least limited 105 Has a feeling 109 Botch 112 Goes (for) 113 Blow a horn 114 Saving sort 115 Arab nation 116 Drusilla divorced him 117 Marvel mutants 118 Shul-goer 119 Gardner of “The Bribe” 120 Nettle

graB Your copy today

SOLUTION FOUND ON P. 30.

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 27

ENDS

SAVAGE LOVE

RUN ON Stepping out, grammatically and otherwise BY DAN SAVAGE I married my high-school sweetheart at 17, had a baby, together a few years, mental illness and subsequent infidelity led to things ending. My ex-husband remarried, divorced again, and is now in another LTR. I’m in a LTR for a decade with my current partner (CP), we have a few kids, and I’m so in love with him, it terrifies me. My ex frequently makes sexual remarks to me, low-key flirts. I feel an animal attraction in the moment. Whatever. I don’t want to be with him, my relationship with CP is solid AF, and I get amazing fucking at home from a man far more skilled. CP knows about ex-husband’s remarks and one actual physical advance. CP has offered to talk to my ex. I told him nah, I’ll deal with it and make it stop. I talked to my ex-husband today, and he said: “I’m sorry, it’s just teasing, I won’t make an actual move ever again, but you’re the only woman I ever just look at and get immediately hard for, and it’s only a few more years before our kid is fully grown and we don’t see each other anymore. So humor me because you know we both enjoy it.” And it’s true that I do enjoy it. But how harmful is it to engage in flirty banter without any touching, nudity, or worse? I hate having secrets, as I feel they are barriers to intimacy, but I’m a thirtysomething mom and it is so fucking unbearably sexy to be made to feel so desirable even after all that shit between us and it’ll never, ever happen because hell no am I sleeping with my ex-hubby, but knowing this man will never get a whiff of my pussy again but can’t help but beg for it with his eyes gives me a sense of power like I’ve never fucking felt before, but even so I don’t want to be a terrible person for hiding this from my CP because I don’t like having secrets from him, but this is just one that turns me on to no end but I should nip this in the bud and put a stop to it yesterday because it’s wrong, right? SECRET LONGINGS UTTERLY TITILLATING

I love a good run-on sentence — grammar fetishists are going to get off on diagramming that doozy you closed with — so I’m going to give it a shot, too: I don’t see the harm in enjoying your ex-husband’s flirtations so long as you’re certain you’ll never, ever take him up on his standing offer, but you are playing with fire here, SLUT, so pull on a pair of asbestos panties when you know you’ll be seeing your ex-hubby, and I don’t think you should feel bad about this secret because while honesty is great generally and 28 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

while the keeping of secrets is frowned upon by advice professionals reflexively, SLUT, a little mystery, a little distance, a little erotic autonomy keeps our sex lives with longterm partners hot — even monogamous relationships — so instead of seeing this secret as a barrier to intimacy, SLUT, remind yourself that the erotic charge you get from your ex-hubby — the way he makes you feel desirable — benefits your CP, because he’s the one who will be getting a big, fat whiff of your pussy when you get home and there’s nothing wrong with that, right?

the plug. Yes, antidepressants can be a libido killer. They can also be a dodge. If your girlfriend doesn’t regard the lack of sex as a problem and isn’t working on a fix — if she’s prioritizing partying with her bisexual bestie over talking to her doc and adjusting her meds, if she hasn’t offered you some sort of accommodation/outlet/work-around for the lack of sex — trust your gut and get out.

I’m a recently divorced woman with a high libido. Now that I’m single, I’ve come out as a kinkster. I quickly met someone who swept me off my feet — I’ve been with my girlfriend “J” for two smart, funny, sexy, proudly pervy, and years. Her best friend “M” is a gay man experienced in the BDSM scene — and she’s known since high school. M and I soon he declared himself as my Dom and have hung out many times. He seems cool, I assumed the sub role. This was hot as hell at first. I loved taking his but lately I’ve been wondering if orders, knowing how much my he and J are fucking behind subservience pleased him, my back. For starters, J and and surprising myself I rarely have sex anymore. with just how much pain Even a kiss on the cheek and humiliation I could happens less than once take. However, his a week. Meanwhile, fantasies quickly took J’s Facebook feed has a darker turn. When I pictures of M grabbing say I’m uncomfortable her tits outside of a with the extremely gay club in front of her transgressive territory sister. She told me he’s DAN SAVAGE he wants to explore, he spent the night in her says, “I’m your master and room, even though he lives you take my orders.” I think only a few miles away. I’ve also this is shitty form — the bottom recently found out that although M has a strong preference for men, he should always set the limits. When we’re considers himself bisexual. I understand in play, he says that I chose him as my that everyone loves tits, even if they’re top precisely because I wanted to see how not turned on by them, and gay men can far I could go and that it’s his job to push sleep with a girl and actually just… sleep. me out of my comfort zone. I think he’s I also know that her antidepressants twisting my words. Arguing over limits can kill sex drive. All three things at mid-scene makes us both frustrated and once feel like more than just coincidence, angry. I’m not in any physical danger, though. At the very least, the PDAs seem but his requests (if carried out) could disrespectful. At worst, I’m a blind fool ruin some of my existing relationships. who’s been replaced. Am I insecure or is Did I blow it by not giving him a list of my hard limits in advance of becoming his there something to these worries? YOU PICK THE ACRONYM I GOTTA GET TO WORK sub? Or is he just a shitty, inconsiderate top trying to take advantage of a novice? After play, he checks in to see if I’m okay, Your girlfriend’s best friend isn’t gay, which on the surface looks like great YPTAIGGTW, he’s bisexual — so, yeah, it’s form — aftercare and all — but this also entirely possible M is fucking your girlfriend, feels manipulative. How can I pull things since fucking girls is something bisexual back to where I’m comfortable? Do I run guys do and, according to one study, they’re from the scene — or just this guy? better at it. (Australian women who had been TIRED OF OVERREACHING FROM A SHITTY TOP with both bi and straight guys ranked their bi male partners as more attentive lovers, more emotionally available, and better dads, A top who reopens negotiations about limits according to the results of a study published and what’s on the BDSM menu during a scene in 2016.) But while we can’t know for sure — a time when the sub will feel tremendous whether M is fucking J, YPTAIGGTW, we pressure to, well, submit — is not a top you do know who she isn’t fucking: you. If the can trust. The same goes for a top who makes sex is rare and a kiss — on the cheek — is demands that, if obeyed, could ruin their a once-a-week occurrence, it’s time to pull sub’s relationships with family, friends, other

Meet sexy friends who really get your vibe...

Try FREE: 704-731-0113 More Local Numbers: 1-800-811-1633

vibeline.com 18+

NOW HIRING INTERNS. THE BRIGHTER, THE BETTER. EMAIL BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM

partners, etc. Run from this guy, TOOFAST, but not from the scene. There are better tops out there. Go find one. Listen to the Savage Lovecast everu week at savagelovecast.com; follow @fakedansavage on Twitter; mail@savagelove.net; go to ITMFA.org.

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 29

LILLY SPA

ENDS

SALOME’S STARS

704-392-8099 MON-SUN 9AM-11PM LOCATED NEAR THE AIRPORT EXIT 37 OFF I-85 WE ACCEPT ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS

SOUTH ON BEATTIES FORD ROAD THEN FIRST RIGHT ON MONTANA DRIVE (LOCATED 1/2 MILE ON THE LEFT | 714-G MONTANA DR)

SOLUTION TO THIS WEEK'S PUZZLE

WHERE WE ALL REFUSE TO WEAR SOCKS.

ARIES (March 21 to April 19) You might be hurt by a colleague’s harsh criticism. But don’t let it shake your confidence in what you’re trying to do. A more positive aspect starts to appear by week’s end. TAURUS (April 20

to May 20) You’re torn between your sensible self and the part of you that enjoys acquiring lovely things. Best advice: Wait for an end-of-month sale, and then buy something wonderful.

GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) Your artistic side has practical applications this week, such as redecorating your home or redesigning your personal stationery. Whatever you do, someone special will like it. CANCER (June 21 to

July 22) You could be drawn into a problem ‘twixt friends or family members. Best bet: Ask the questions that go to the heart of the matter, then get them all together for a group hug.

LEO (July 23 to August 22)

As much as you love being the center of attention, your big Lion’s heart impels you to share the spotlight with a colleague who helped you with that well-praised project.

VIRGO (August 23 to

September 22) Your eagerness to act on a challenge is wisely tempered early in the week by a lack of necessary information. Things begin to clear up during the weekend.

LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) A relationship you’d hoped would keep going seems to be going nowhere. Close it out and move on to a brighter romantic aspect just beginning to manifest itself. SCORPIO (October 23 to

November 21) Things don’t go completely as planned this week. But enjoy the surprises, even if you have to adjust your schedule. Some of them could be quite delightful.

SAGITTARIUS

(November 22 to December 21) Making choices is usually easy for straight-shooting Archers. But a new development could deflect your aim. Try to put off decisions until you know more.

CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) While part of you might prefer taking a more familiar path, let your more daring and -- admit it -- supercurious self see what the unexplored has to offer.

AQUARIUS

(January 20 to February 18) Those nasty types have slithered back under the rocks and present no more problems. Now’s the time to move ahead on that promising new relationship.

PISCES (February 19 to March 20) A new offer could clear up that lingering money problem. Also, a more confident attitude on your part might well help get that personal situation back on track.

BORN THIS WEEK You have a way of turning chaos into order. You’re also generous with your help for those who seek it. 30 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | 31

Even your grandma gets it.

32 | JAN. 4 - JAN. 10, 2018 | CLCLT.COM