2018 Issue 30 Creative Loafing Charlotte

CLCLT.COM | SEPTEMBER. 13 - SEPTEMBER 19, 2018 VOL. 32, NO. 30

1 | DATE - DATE, 2015 | CLCLT.COM

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2 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

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CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 3

NCDOT TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING SEPT. 17 FOR THE PROPOSED EXTENSION OF MCKEE ROAD (S.R. 3440) IN MATTHEWS MECKLENBURG COUNTY TIP PROJECT NO. U-4713A

CREATIVE LOAFING IS PUBLISHED BY WOMACK NEWSPAPERS, INC. CHARLOTTE, NC 28206.

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STAFF

PUBLISHER • Charles A. Womack III publisher@yesweekly.com

The N.C. Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting regarding the proposed project to extend McKee Road (S.R. 3440) on new location from Pleasant Plains Road (S.R. 3448) to East John Street (S.R. 1009) at the recently realigned McKee Road (completed as Project U-4713B) in Matthews.

The meeting will take place on Monday, September 17 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Pleasant Plains Baptist Church Family Life Center located at 3316 Pleasant Plains Road in Matthews.

EDITOR • Ryan Pitkin rpitkin@clclt.com

EDITORIAL

ASSOCIATE EDITOR • Courtney Mihocik cmihocik@clclt.com FILM CRITIC • Matt Brunson mattonmovies@gmail.com THEATER CRITIC • Perry Tannenbaum perrytannenbaum@gmail.com

The purpose of this project is to improve east-west connectivity in the area, improve access to East John Street and Pleasant Plains Road, and promote community interconnectivity by providing an alternative route to the Charlotte Outer Loop (I-485).

The public may drop-in at any time during the meeting hours. NCDOT representatives will be available to answer questions and listen to comments regarding the project. The opportunity to submit comments will also be provided at the meeting or via phone, email, or mail by October 1, 2018. Comments received will be taken into consideration as the project develops. Please note that no formal presentation will be made.

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS • Erin Tracy-Blackwood, Allison Braden, Konata Edwards, Jeff Hahne, Vanessa Infanzon, Ari LeVaux, Kia O. Moore, Grey Revell, Dan Savage, Aerin Spruill, Sophie Whisant

ART/DESIGN

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

ADVERTISING

To place an ad, please call 704-522-8334.

SALES MANAGER Aaron Stamey • astamey@clclt.com

Project information and materials can be viewed as they become available online at https://www. ncdot.gov/news/public-meetings.

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Justin LaFrancois • jlafrancois@clclt.com Christos Kakouras • ckakouras@clclt.com ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Pat Moran • pmoran@clclt.com

For additional information, contact Sean Epperson, P.E., NCDOT Division 10 Project Team Lead, at 716 W Main Street, Albemarle, NC 28001, (704) 983-4400, or smepperson@ncdot.gov.

NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who wish to participate in this meeting. Anyone requiring special services should contact Caitlyn Ridge, P.E., Environmental Analysis Unit Public Involvement Officer, at ceridge1@ncdot.gov or (919) 707-6091 as early as possible so that arrangements can be made.

Persons who speak Spanish and do not speak English, or have a limited ability to read, speak or understand English, may receive interpretive services upon request prior to the meeting by calling 1-800-481-6494.

Aquellas personas que hablan español y no hablan inglés, o tienen limitaciones para leer, hablar o entender inglés, podrían recibir servicios de interpretación si los solicitan antes de la reunión llamando al 1-800-481-6494.

4 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 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:

12

The September 14 Alina Baraz show at The Underground is sold out, so if you want to get down at the dance party of the week, you better hit the internet. Or hit our Top 10 on page 12 for more cool ideas about what to do.

We put out weekly 8

NEWS&CULTURE NATURAL-BORN ORGANIZER Charlotte’s first certified KonMari consultant was made for this job

BY RYAN PITKIN

10

FOOD&DRINK TOWN OPENS DOORS TO COMMUNITY New west

Charlotte brewery starts pouring this month

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

12 14

TOP 10 THINGS TO DO THIS WEEK

MUSIC ON TO THE NEXT NOTE SideNote continues her progression

with new mixtape

BY RYAN PITKIN

19

16 SOUNDBOARD

FALL GUIDE 2018 More than 50 autumnal events, including sports, concerts, arts, food and festivals

23

ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT A PRESIDENCY WORTH MORE THAN PEANUTS Georgia-

born playwright reappraises Carter in the age of Trump

BY PERRY TANNENBAUM 25 ARTSPEAK: VISART’S MICKEY ABERMAN BY PAT MORAN

26

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 AND PHOTO

BY DANA VINDIGNI CLCLT.COM | SEPTEMBER. 13 - SEPTEMBER 19, 2018 VOL. 32, NO. 30

Website: www.clclt.com Facebook: /clclt Pinterest: @clclt Twitter: @cl_charlotte Instagram: @creativeloafingcharlotte YouTube: /qccreativeloafing

PHOTO BY JORA FRANTZIS 1 | DATE - DATE, 2015 | CLCLT.COM

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6 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

WHERE WE ALL REFUSE TO WEAR SOCKS. CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 7

NEWS

FEATURE

NATURAL-BORN ORGANIZER Charlotte’s first certified KonMari consultant was made for this job

BY RYAN PITKIN

S

HANNON HUNEYCUTT CAME here to do two things:

teach and organize.

As a little girl growing up in West Virginia, Huneycutt created an entire classroom in the basement of her parents’ mountain home. There weren’t many other kids around to fill the seats, but that was fine with her. She just needed the room.

“Instead of teaching, the whole time I was rearranging everything on my shelves,” she recalls. “Every day I would take all of my books and re-organize them. And I always liked writing, so I would copy them, and then organize them on my shelves. It was just something that for some reason I liked to do.”

Upon leaving college, Huneycutt fulfilled her dream of becoming a teacher, and taught for nine years. Seven years ago, when she had her first child, she left the profession and became a stay-at-home mom. Last year, as her youngest headed off to school, she began contemplating a return to the workforce.

She thought about what makes her happy, and her passion for organizing was the first thing that came to mind.

As she looked at the avenues she could take to become an organization consultant, her husband introduced her to Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying. In the book, Kondo explains an organizing method she created called the KonMari method, which has become internationally popular since the book’s publication in 2011.

While Huneycutt read the book, she implemented the method, which teaches one to go through each one of their belongings by category and discard anything that doesn’t “spark joy” in their heart.

The process aims not just to minimalize but to inspire an appreciation for the things one truly loves.

After reading the book, Huneycutt learned there was a process through which she could become a certified KonMari consultant. She began the six-step certification process in August 2017 and finished in July 2018.

In August, she launched her own business, Spark Joy Charlotte, becoming the first certified Konmari consultant in the city.

I first meet Huneycutt through an old journalist friend who was her first client.

My friend had recently left the field, but never thought she’d get rid of the countless 8 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHANNON HUNEYCUTT

Shannon Huneycutt reporter notebooks she kept as mementos.

Upon completing the process, the notebooks were gone, along with bags upon bags full of other belongings she had been holding on to for decades but without any real reason.

Just a month into Huneycutt’s new self-employment, she and I sit down at a Starbucks near her north Charlotte home to discuss why this method spoke to her and why her job can be as much about counseling as it is consulting.

Creative Loafing: How would you describe the KonMari method in your own words?

Shannon Huneycutt: The Konmari method really hones on the philosophy of not just getting rid of things — not just taking things and shuffling them around in your house and organizing them.

You can hire any organizer to come to your house and put things in a certain place.

The KonMari method, the whole philosophy is keeping those things that you love, and keeping those things that spark joy, and keeping those things that you’re actually going to use and are useful to you in your home, and then finding a home for all of those things within your home. Everything should have a place, and not just shoved into the back of a closet or shoved into drawers that you bought at IKEA. It’s a very spiritual process. It makes you think differently, too, about the way that you purchase new things. When you get ready to buy something for your house or yourself, you have to think, do I really like this? Am I going to buy this and use it once and then it’s just going to get shoved to the back of the closet because it doesn’t really make me happy?

So it’s a whole way of thinking about your home, your life and how to keep yourself happy in your life. Not just having things to have them. Everything should serve a purpose.

How did the KonMari method differ from other methods you had used?

I was already an organizer, but I think I did the traditional method of going by rooms.

You would see that your kitchen was a mess, so you would start putting your kitchen back in order. That’s not how [Marie Kondo] approaches it. Her method goes by categories instead of rooms. You go in a systematic order.

There’s five categories. You start with clothing. You would gather every clothing item from around the house — your shoes, your jackets, hats, what have you — and you would do that entire category first.

Then you would move on to books. You would do all the books from around the house.

Then you would move on to papers.

Gather all the papers. That’s everything — receipts and documents and certificates and manuals — anything that’s paper-based.

You collect it all. [The last two categories are Komono, or miscellaneous, and then sentimental objects.]

So by the time you’re done with all of this, each category, you will have done your whole house.

With papers, it seems there would be a ton of those that do the opposite of sparking joy, but that you can’t necessarily throw away.

Absolutely. When you get to papers, it’s not so much about sparking joy as much as finding out, “Do we need this? Why do we need this? And where can we put this?”

If you have a pending box, tackle that every single week, because your clutter will start building right back up with papers.

You’ve gone through the process with two clients during your certification process. Is it a drastically different experience every time you go through this with a different person?

It really is. One client was very laid back, clear up until the end when she had to go through her journals and things. She discarded like 40-something bags. It was incredible and she wasn’t emotional. It was amazing.

The other client was emotional from the beginning. I don’t know that she was ready to let go of anything. She was having some anxiety about the clothing category already at the very beginning. But once I spoke with her and we did two sessions together she eased up a bit, because I try to make it fun for them.

I’m pretty laidback myself, and I go in, and there are so many questions and so many things that we can really dig down deep into the root of. What do you need to make you happy in your home? What’s going to spark joy for you? Let’s figure that out together. So they were very different in that aspect.

This client I’m getting ready to sign on, she has already done the KonMari process by herself. She read the book and did the whole thing and now she feels like maybe she didn’t grasp what the full effect was because she feels like clutter and things are starting to build back up in her life and she’s not sure why. So she’s going to hire me to help her figure that out.

It sounds like a very personal process that goes beyond organizing.

A lot of the organizers that you hire, you may hire them to come into your home and they are at your house organizing while you’re at work. They go in there and they will make your things look beautiful with all these custom-made things or awesome shelves that you bought or beautiful baskets and things like that, and that’s great, but it’s just masking the clutter. It’s not really truly getting rid of the problem.

The problem is that you’re having these things in your house that you don’t even really want in there in the first place. So [the KonMari method] is not minimalist, it just focuses on keeping all the things that spark joy in your life and being able to discard things and let go of those things that you no longer need or no longer want. So the client is there with me. It is very personal. I am in every drawer, every cabinet. People tell me things that are just for me and are not shared with anybody. It’s a very personal connection that you’re making with your house along the way.

I had somebody contact me and they did not realize they had to be with me. So then they changed their mind because they work and this, that and the other, so they were kind of thinking I would come in and do it for them, but it’s not my things. I don’t know what makes you happy, and we have to discard first before you can truly put back everything that you love.

With all that discarding going on, is there an effort to reuse, recycle and/or donate what’s left behind?

It’s up to my client how they would like to discard their items. Most clients like to shred and recycle the papers, other items get donated to churches or Goodwill. I personally donated a lot of my teaching items and books to the school across the street from my neighborhood. If the items are really worn out or broken, clients typically just discard those to the trash bins.

What have you learned about yourself and your own style through your introduction to KonMari?

I am a very tidy person, but I can get lazy just like everybody else. Doing the KonMari method in the way that she has presented it makes it easier for me to go through the process versus going by room like I used to. Because if you go by room, you just sit there and you stare at everything. Where do I start? What do I even do? Where do I go next? And now with this method, it makes cleaning up easier because everything has a place.

Any KonMari-inspired pro tips for us overly cluttered folks that you’d like to close with?

Handle papers as they enter your house. I think the biggest problem is papers around the house. You’ve got mail coming in or, if you have children, you have all this stuff coming in from their school and things just start piling up. So I’ve noticed in all of my clients that I’ve had so far that papers are the most grueling part and everybody dreads it and the reason is because they’ve collected so many things over the years, they don’t know what to do with it.

RPITKIN@CLCLT.COM

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CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 9

FOOD

FEATURE

TOWN BREWING GRAND OPENING COMMUNITY BLOCK PARTY Free; October 13; Town Brewing Company, 800 Grandin Rd.; townbrewing.com

TOWN OPENS DOORS TO COMMUNITY New west Charlotte brewery starts pouring this month

BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

E

VEN IF YOU don’t like beer, Town Brewing hopes to help you discover your palate.

Operations manager Heather Wendrow and head brewer Brian Quinn are focused on educating the staff on beer styles and flavors to help those who come through the doors find a beer that they didn’t know they liked.

“When someone comes in here, we want our staff to be able to have a conversation with you and see what kind of flavors you like,” Wendrow said. “So you might not be into beer or know what you like yet, but going off of what you would say, that’s when we would start to approach it.”

Quinn agreed, stating that it can be intimidating for someone new to the craft beer scene to find something that they like other than typical mainstream pilsners.

“There’s a lot in craft beer. It’s a lot for somebody who’s new,” he said. “But [it’s helpful] if you have somebody there that has the knowledge and has the experience that can help to guide you down the path of finding something that’s for you.”

Through the Cicerone Certification Program, bartenders and servers will complete the first level of certification, a comprehensive overview on proper serving glassware, ABV, color and flavor of different brew styles. This will equip them to not only make thoughtful suggestions for those new to the beer scene, but also have informed conversations with the “beer nerds” of the community.

Town Brewing, which opens its doors to the public on September 28, followed by a blow-out grand opening bash on October 13, is also focused on being the neighborhood hangout in the FreeMoreWest area. The large and open space of the taproom, which includes a couple of couches and plenty of breathing room, is decorated less in an industrial-warehouse style and more like a cozy living room with warm wood accents and deep cerulean chair rail panel moulding.

“We definitely want to be that neighborhood spot, we really want to have a lot of regulars. We will be family-friendly,” Quinn said. “Obviously we want to focus on the beer, we’re gonna have some great beer, but beyond that we want to make an experience that pretty much anyone could enjoy … Everybody in the community, not just the beer drinkers and the beer nerds of 10 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

Brian Quinn (left) and Heather Wendrow with the new tap wall.

PHOTO BY COURTNEY MIHOCIK

“OBVIOUSLY WE WANT TO FOCUS ON THE BEER, WE’RE GONNA HAVE SOME GREAT BEER, BUT BEYOND THAT WE WANT TO MAKE AN EXPERIENCE THAT PRETTY MUCH ANYONE COULD ENJOY …

EVERYBODY IN THE COMMUNITY, NOT JUST THE BEER DRINKERS AND THE BEER NERDS OF THE COMMUNITY.” BRIAN QUINN, HEAD BREWER the community.”

This includes having housemade sodas and root beer on tap for underaged guests to enjoy, and Allen West, one of four Town Brewing owners, emphasized that the brewery will be a welcome spot not just for those looking for a beer, but those looking for a good time.

“We want to have people come have fun during the day, bring their family, play bocce ball, hang out outside,” West said. “That’s all part of the experience we want to build in.

Once we finish our patio, we think it’s really gonna be something special for this area and for Charlotte.”

The focus on community is not just to bring customers in the door, but also for philanthropic purposes. The grand opening in October will have a philanthropic focus, although owners and organizers won’t yet reveal which organization they’ll partner with.

What can be revealed about the grand opening, however, is the types of beer Town Brewing plans to serve. For October 13, Quinn landed on a champagne-esque, spritzy and high-gravity Belgian-style beer with American dry hops for a dry, champagne-like finish.

He said he has a long list of styles that he’s ready to roll out and each beer will be crafted to the highest quality.

He described a Citra- and Mosaic-hopped IPA, that he’s sure will be a crowd pleaser, as the style is one of the most popular in local breweries as of late.

On the other hand, Quinn is also in the

process of brewing a Belgian table beer that will include chamomile, grapefruit, lemon peel and some grains of paradise. Although it’s still warm out, Quinn said he also has a porter lined up, created with local malt and coffee from just down the road at Enderly Coffee Company.

While they don’t have any flagship beers picked out, Quinn said that they will let the community decide.

“My thinking is that I want to, early on, brew a pretty large variety and really explore the full spectrum of flavors and styles that are out there,” he said about his plans for a core brew lineup. “And then just see what resonates with the consumer, then really honing in on a few that are going to be our mainstays.”

The team hasn’t settled on names for any of their brews yet, but could only say that some of them would be a play on words of the Queen City’s history.

“We definitely want to have fun with a lot of the names, some of them will play off of Charlotte and Charlotte history,” Quinn said.

“But a lot of them will be ones that we find particularly amusing on any given week.”

History is important to the whole operation, as the owners of the brewery named the it after the Queen City’s original designation: Charlotte Town.

Along with West, co-owners George Sistrunk, Ric Morton and Mark Kutny are four homebrewing buddies that used to get together on the weekend to brew and drink beer.

Little by little, they increased their homebrewing operation to make it more commercial-level. One thing led to another, and they found themselves increasing from small-scale production to a 15-barrel system.

According to West, the group originally wanted a small and cheap warehouse in which to settle their operation, but after almost a decade of looking for the right spot, they found their location in the FreeMoreWest neighborhood. And they hope to add something to the growing area.

“We want to be part of the west side community, Wesley Heights and FreeMoreWest, the district there, we want to be part of that,” West said. “And that really informs everything that we do, including what the beer selection is.”

To West and the rest of the owners, that means having a diverse beer selection in which everyone can find something that they like.

Not wanting to quit their day jobs, the four decided to hire someone with professional brewing experience to produce the diverse beer program, and additional staff to handle day-to-day operations, but they still had their hands in the entire process of construction, design and staffing.

And it seems that Wendrow and Quinn were perfect additions to the team. Quinn has professional training in beer production with Siebel Institute and Doemens Academy in Munich, along with experience working in breweries stateside.

Wendrow, who moved to Charlotte the previous year, was at Dogfish Head Brewery in Delaware before she met Quinn in Charlotte. He was riding down the sidewalk on a scooter, wearing a retro Dogfish Head T-shirt when Quinn drove by and noticed the rarity of his shirt. She stopped and flagged him down, the two exchanged information and she was pulled on board.

For Wendrow, seeing everything come together is exciting, and she — along with Quinn — believe their location and atmosphere will draw crowds throughout the whole year. A fire pit, games and cushy leather couches round out the aspect that tie into the comfortable and inviting ambience.

“I feel like our atmosphere and our location is so key for us. It’s not even done yet but our outside and our inside, it’s comfy, it’s cozy. The outside piece when it’s all done is gonna be awesome for any time of year.

We’re gonna put a fire pit out there; it’s gonna be a place to come and hang out with whoever you’re with,” she said. “I look at it, and I think I would come here in a heartbeat even if I didn’t work here.”

They hope that the community helps make the cozy taproom a go-to hangout. And if someone discovers a new love for beer, all the better.

CMIHOCIK@CLCLT.COM

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 11

THURSDAY

13

STIMULUS: BALANCE What: What’s your muse? McColl Center’s Stimulus sessions give a literal answer to that mythical question by diving deep into what inspires artists to create and stimulates their imaginations. This session focuses on the line that many artists balance between their art work and other jobs — whether in academia, the hospitality industry or independent projects — and how that balance works its way into their art. The exhibit highlights three artists: Tom Stanley, Juan Logan and Antoine Williams.

When: 6:30-8 p.m.

Where: McColl Center for Art + Innovation, 721 N. Tryon St. More: Free. mccollcenter.org

12 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2019 | CLCLT.COM

FRIDAY

14 SOUL JUNCTION MUSIC FESTIVAL What: Can you feel it in your soul? Soul Junction is back for its third year of R&B, jazz and gospel goodness, including Friday performances from Vanessa Ferguson and Moonchild, hosted

by Chirl Girl. On Saturday, the heat kicks up when Quentin Talley hosts and performers like Harvey Cummings, Marcus Allen, The Queen’s Guard, Maimouna Youssef and Bilal. It’s like chicken soup for the ... well, you already know.

When: Sept. 14, 5-10 p.m.; Sept. 15, 3-10 p.m.

Where: Johnson C. Smith University, 100 Beatties Ford Road More: Free. souljunctionclt.com

THINGS TO DO

TOP TEN

Portugal. The Man TUESDAY

PHOTO COURTESY OF PORTUGAL. THE MAN

FRIDAY

14

FRIDAY

14

SATURDAY

15

ALINA BARAZ

QUIDDITCH CUP 2018

‘PERSPECTIVE’

What: With her breathy, seductive and slightly slurred vocals, Baraz sent ripples through the alt R&B scene in 2015 when she teamed with Danish producer Galimazias for her break out Urban Flora EP. Baraz’s 2018 follow-up The Color of You retains the sultry vibe and down-tempo electronica of Urban Flora but adds soul and a hint of lovers rock reggae to the mix.

With traction in the pop, dance and R&B lanes, she’s toured with Coldplay and played Coachella and Lollapalooza.

What: UNC Charlotte’s quidditch team is mounting their broomsticks for a magical weekend of soaring competition. Throughout the weekend, players get sorted into a house, visit Diagon Alley and test their might in a Triwizard Tournament. In all the fun, don’t forget to watch the teams match up and go head-to-head — or broom-to-broom — over who can catch the snitch first. Just make sure you don’t get too drunk on butterbeer.

What: Caroline Calouche & Company is stepping things up, no stairs necessary. The troupe has been working hard in preparation for Perspective, Charlotte’s first aerial wall dance, in which dancers perform on the walls of the Mint Museum’s main staircase while suspended 85 feet in the air. The performance is in conjunction with the museum’s grand reopening and the debut of Lumisonica, an interactive light-and-sound installation on the grand staircase.

When: 10 a.m.

Where: Rural Hill, 4431 Neck Rd., Huntersville More: $25 and up; facebook.com/charlottequidditch

When: Sept. 15, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; Sept.

16, 1-2 p.m.; on the hours Where: Mint Museum Uptown, 500 S. Tryon St. More: Free. mintmuseum.org

When: 8 p.m.

Where: The Underground, 820 Hamilton St. More: Sold Out. fillmorenc.com

Reese Witherspoon WEDNESDAY

Maimouna Youssef FRIDAY

Pumpkin Fest 2018 SATURDAY

NEWS ARTS FOOD MUSIC ODDS

COURTESY OF SOUL JUNCTION CLT

SATURDAY

15

PHOTO COURTESY OF SYCAMORE BREWING

PHOTO COURTESY OF BLUMENTHAL ARTS

SATURDAY

15

PUMPKIN FEST 2018

TOSCO MUSIC PARTY

What: Who cares if it’s still hot as hell outside, the people want their pumpkin beers and they want them now! This event sounds as if it belongs in our Fall Guide but actually still lands in the summer.

You can get an autumnal preview with a tap list of seasonal beers, including Sycamore fave Gourd Have Mercy. Jam out to live music from bands like Beggars Clan and Urban Soil on two stages while snacking out on food from trucks like Baltimore Crab Cake Company and OooWee BBQ.

What: Tosco Music Party celebrates three decades of making beautiful music with a powerhouse bill topped by Gypsy Jazz guitar virtuoso Stephane Wrembel.

Wrembel applies the genre’s syncopated swing to everything from pop to free jazz. Charlotte’s own Mercury Carter, an astounding soulful vocalist who’s drawn comparisons to Prince and Queen’s Freddie Mercury, rounds out the bill. After Carter graced the cover of CL, he earned accolades at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival.

When: Noon - 10 p.m.

Where: Sycamore Brewing, 2161 Hawkins St. More: Free. sycamorebrew.com

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: Knight Theater, 430 S. Tryon St. More: $13 and up. toscomusic.org

SUNDAY

16

AUSTIN PIAZZOLLA QUINTET What: Drawing on the nuevo tango movement spearheaded by the late Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla, this Texas-based quintet plays a mix of tango classics and originals that touch on jazz, chamber music and South American folk songs. APQ founder and violinist James Anderson says that tango, like jazz, truly comes alive when it’s played for an audience. The quintet has the chops and the interplay to bring the necessary fire to this genre.

When: 7 p.m.

Where: Evening Muse, 3227 N. Davidson St. More: $10-12. eveningmuse.com

TUESDAY

18

PORTUGAL. THE MAN What: You’ve heard “Feel It Still,” all over the radio, or you’ve seen Aaron Paul dancing to it on a treadmill in that overplayed Vitamin Water commercial.

Portugal. The Man’s lead singer, John Baldwin Gourley, balances high vocals with a low, driving bassline. From their first release, Waiter: “You Vultures!” to their latest, Woodstock, the band’s sound has developed and grown, both through the maturity of lyrics and complexities of sounds.

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: CMCU, 1000 NC Music Factory Blvd.

More: $27.50 and up; amphitheatercharlotte.org

WEDNESDAY

19

REESE WITHERSPOON: WHISKEY IN A TEACUP What: Listen to actress and producer Reese Witherspoon regale the audience with personal stories of growing up in the South. With the release of Whiskey in a Teacup, Witherspoon’s book of anecdotes, recipes, design tips and cocktails, she has now added author to her list of titles and talents. We got a copy of the book in our office, and it’s almost as cute as she is. Now we know that she takes her whiskey in a teacup, but we wonder if she stirs it ... with her spoon.

When: 7:30 Where: Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon Street More: Sold out; blumenthalarts.org

CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 13

FEATURE

MUSIC

BUSH FEST $10; Oct. 6, 6-11 p.m.; The Shed Ampitheater, 600 E. Sugar Creek Road; tinyurl.com/BushFestCLT

ON TO THE NEXT NOTE SideNote continues her progression with upcoming mixtape RYAN PITKIN

A

S AUTUMN MILLNER and

Summer Windham sit together in a Creative Loafing conference room on a Friday afternoon, it’s easy to imagine what it must have looked like in the Spanish class they met in during sophomore year at East Mecklenburg High School in 2006.

The two have just finished a photo shoot for the cover of this year’s Fall Guide, and they’re giggling together as they recall how they were sort-of-kind-of enemies during freshman year, cutting off and correcting each other between laughs. Of course, the faux rivalry was over a boy.

The story is something straight out of Mean Girls: Windham was seeing a boy who was also rumored to have a crush on Millner.

Word eventually got around to Windham, which led to rumors that Windham was upset with Millner.

“So I was like, ‘Well why doesn’t she come talk to me about it then?’” Millner recalls, laughing. “And so we would just stare at each other during lunch.”

Windham insists she knew nothing of the drama, all she knew is she was being sideeyed by a fellow freshman in the cafeteria.

“She would just be mean-mugging me,” says Windham, playing the victim. “I was just like, ‘I don’t know even know you. I think you’re beautiful. Why are you looking at me?

Whatever.’”

Despite the rocky start, the two finally had a chance to speak to each other as sophomores in Spanish class and quickly became close friends. They lived like sisters for a summer, during which Millner had her own bed in Windham’s room. They even learned that they shared an extended family, as Windham’s uncle had fathered a child with Millner’s cousin.

Fast forward a dozen years: Windham, a hip-hop artist who performs as SideNote, and Millner, known locally as singer Autumn Rainwater, are key parts of a burgeoning hiphop and R&B scene here in Charlotte. The two recently played together during a female talent showcase at Snug Harbor called For The Love of She, and will share a bill again for the upcoming Bush Fest at the Shed Ampitheater on Oct. 6.

It will be Windham’s third festival of the year — on April 21, she played the New Era Music Fest in north Charlotte, then the BOOM Charlotte festival in Plaza Midwood the next day.

14 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PHOTO BY DANA VINDIGNI

Autumn Millner (left) and Summer Windham have fun with the cover shoot.

PHOTO BY DAREMEN J.

“I JUST KIND OF GOT OUT OF MY HEAD AND TOOK A STEP BACK AND SAID, ‘WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SAY? HOW DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL?’” SUMMER “SIDENOTE” WINDHAM She looks back fondly on the trial by festival fire.

“That weekend, I was like, ‘OK, here it goes.

Let’s see how you like this,’” she says. “But it was a lot of fun. I like that larger scale. I love the bigger stage, being able to use the stage a little more. The feeling of it is just bigger and it makes me feel better about my set.”

Windham’s momentum has only been growing toward bigger things since last year’s release of her debut album, MR. The project was a follow up on her first release, a mixtape called Pass the Ketchup, which she dropped in 2014.

Before all that, Windham was just a kid listening to hip-hop in the kitchen with her mom, Willetta Wallace, a diehard hip-hop head who worshipped Eric B. & Rakim, Run DMC, Slick Rick and the like. Wallace’s cousin Bobby would make beats for her to rap to, and

even though those raps never made it out of the kitchen, they inspired her daughter.

“She would be in the kitchen blasting those beats and running her verses and I would just see her, and it always made me happy,” Windham says. “Hip-hop was just always in the house. My mom showered me with hip-hop.”

Throughout her childhood and after graduating high school, Windham stuck to poetry over rap. She wrote as Poet Free, and recorded a project called The Relationship with producer Marc Mangra, who would later produce “Seep” on MR. The Relationship featured Windham’s spoken word over beats by Mangra, and despite the next logical step, Windham stayed away from making hip-hop for a while.

“I was a poet. I always wanted to rap, but I was just like, ‘I’m not like everybody else.’

Why did I think like that?” Windham asks to nobody in particular, although Millner immediately answers.

“I really don’t know,” Millner says, shaking her head as if disturbed by all the time Windham lost by doubting herself. “But I sat there through all of this.”

Eventually, Windham began writing raps here and there, just messing around, spitting bars for friends. Then she finally decided to lay down a verse on the record.

In 2010, Windham joined Millner, local poet Sir Abstraxxx and others on a remix of Pete Rock and CL Smooth’s “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.).” Windham says she recently heard the song, though she refuses to link me to it, because it still makes her cringe.

“The first line is like, ‘Take that out, I can’t understand you with that dick in your mouth,’” Windham recalls, while Millner laughs hysterically. “That was my first line and I’m like, ‘Whhhhyyyyyy was I that person?’”

She kept at it, and eventually was able to smooth out those rough edges, but it wasn’t easy.

“When I wrote poetry, it just flowed out.

Melodies flowed out, too, but for me I was so stuck in writing that I was forcing it. It was hard to me,” Windham says. “And then it just kind of made sense. I just kind of got out of my head and took a step back and said, ‘What do you want to say? How do you want people to feel? How do you want to feel when you’re done with this?’ And I just got to a point where I don’t force it anymore.”

One of Windham’s coworkers at the time, Thomas Sizemore, started bringing her to shows at Snug Harbor, where she met up with other members of the Spooky Cozy Collective, which included Sizemore’s Dinner Rabbits, Hectorina, Bless These Sounds Under the City, Katya Harrell and others.

Windham’s first performance as SideNote was with the Spooky Cozy Collective at their

PHOTO BY DAREMEN J.

home base, The Shouse, aka The Shithouse, a home the collective used to throw house parties in near Manifest Discs in southwest Charlotte.

Windham felt at home among the lava lamps and mannequins in The Shouse basement.

“It was very intimate, but there were a lot of people there for the basement not being that big,” she recalls. “But it was very awesome and it was very welcoming.”

One of Windham’s earlier recordings as SideNote was a song called “Business” with Hectorina and Dinner Rabbits. The song is a perfect preview to Windham’s laid-back, old-school flow, the inspirations of her favorite group, A Tribe Called Quest, apparent throughout as she rides the beat of the band behind her.

She only improved on that flow as she practiced it perfectly over the more traditional hip-hop beats featured on Pass the Ketchup, and then continued to round it out on MR, which featured a little more singing, another passion of Windham’s.

“I think Summer’s style is mellow but it’s strong,” says Millner. “It definitely has that hip-hop undertone always, but even when she’s singing, it’s the perfect contrast of soft and delicate, but hard.”

Fans will get a peek at any new progression by the end of this month when Windham drops her newest single, “Unavailable,” produced by local producer AMWA, or A Man With Antlers, who collaborated on local rapper Phaze Gawd’s latest project, Dark Dreams.

Windham has already filmed the visuals for the song, and plans to drop those along with the single in preparation for Bush Fest, where she will join with the new collective she’s been collaborating with over the last year.

Joseph Fedrick, who performs as local rapper Seph Dot, founded The Bushes collective with Quan Peaks, aka Blk Doggy, who will perform at Bush Fest, and two others about a year and a half ago. Originally from Raleigh, Fedrick aims to make The Bushes a statewide coalition of creatives centered on positivity and open-mindedness.

Fedrick says Windham was one of the first

PHOTO BY DANA VINDIGNI

Summer Windham, aka SideNote artists he collaborated with after moving to Charlotte four years ago, and he still calls her his “spirit animal.” In October 2017, the two released “Palm Waves,” a languid hip-hop lullaby on which Windham sings the hook.

“When I first saw her, I thought she was totally amazing and she hasn’t let me down yet,” Fedrick says. “She continues to progress.

Even doing recent songs, she continues to push the envelope and approach things in a new way. I love to see her come out of her shell.”

After dropping the mixtape at the end of this year, Windham will focus on her next full-length, a dance album she wants to release in 2019. But before the dancing, she’ll be showing off that singing voice on her new mixtape, as she continues to expose her bevy of talents.

“I’m very excited about [singing more], because I’ve been really shy, but now I’m just kinda like, ‘You know what, I’m already here, so let’s do this,’” Windham says. “I did a lot more singing on MR than I usually do, but that was just kind of the tip of the iceberg.

Now it’s like, ‘OK y’all, I hope y’all are ready for what’s next.’”

We most certainly are.

RPITKIN@CLCLT.COM CLCLT.COM | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | 15

MUSIC

SOUNDBOARD SEPTEMBER 13 CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH Scholars Concert: Winners of the Plott and Millner Music Scholarships (Davidson College Tyler-Tallman Recital Hall, Davidson)

COUNTRY/FOLK 100th Summit Coffee Songwriter Showcase: Rick Spreitzer, Billy Jones, Rob McHale (Summit Coffee Co., Davidson) I’m With Her (Sara Watkins, Sarah Jarosz, and Aoife O’Donovan), Bother Brothers (McGlohon Theater) Malcolm Holcombe Record Release with special guest Jared Tyler (Evening Muse) Zac Brown Band, Mark O’Connor Band, Darrell Scott (PNC Music Pavilion)

DJ/ELECTRONIC Dende (Salud Cerveceria) DJ Karz (Tin Roof) Le Bang (Snug Harbor)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Lil Baby (The Fillmore)

POP/ROCK CBDB, Mardeen (Visulite Theatre) Dan Hubbard (U.S. National Whitewater Center) Departure at Alive After Five! (Rooftop 210) Los Tiki Phantoms w/ Aqualads (Snug Harbor) Moonwalker w/ City In The Lights (acoustic), Gardeners & Bergenline (Milestone) Music Bingo with Dr. Music (Heist Brewery) Nate Randall Band (RiRa Irish Pub) Shana Blake and Friends (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Thirsty Horses (Tin Roof)

SEPTEMBER 14 BLUES/ROOTS/INTERNATIONAL

DJ/ELECTRONIC DJ Jgood (RiRa Irish Pub) DJ Matt B (Tin Roof)

POP/ROCK Alina Baraz, Cautious Clay (The Underground) The Armory (Tin Roof) Big Daddy Love (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Blame the Youth, XOXOK, LAIRS (Petra’s) Eliot Bronson (Evening Muse) Eric Gales, Marvelous Funkshun (Neighborhood Theatre) Five for Fighting with String Quartet (McGlohon Theater) Glimpses,The Dirty LowDown & C. Bryant (Tommy’s Pub) Nevermind the Nirvana Tribute Band (Visulite Theatre) Pluto For Planet (RiRa Irish Pub) Reason Define w/ Harm, A Light Divided & Arborlea (Milestone) Trial By Fire (The Fillmore)

SEPTEMBER 15 CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH The Jazz Room: Janelle Reichman plays Benny Goodman (Stage Door Theater)

COUNTRY/FOLK Alan Jackson (Spectrum Center) Kasey Tyndall (Tin Roof) Wilson Fairchild (Don Gibson Theatre, Shelby)

DJ/ELECTRONIC

Sons of Paradise, Jah Will Band (Evening Muse)

Off White Party: DJ Tristan Jaxx (Visulite Theatre)

CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B

The Jazz Room: Janelle Reichman plays Benny Goodman (Stage Door Theater)

COUNTRY/FOLK Greyhounds (U.S. National Whitewater Center) Joe Lasher (Coyote Joe’s) The Lenny Federal Band (Comet Grill)

HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B 16 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

PLAYER MADE : An Ode To Southern Rap of All Eras (Snug Harbor) Soul Junction 2018: DJ DR, Brave, Vanessa Ferguson, ZOOCRÜ, Moonchild (Johnson C. Smith University)

Soul Junction 2018: That Guy Smitty, Curt Keyz, Queen’s Guard, Marcus Allen, Quentin Talley, Maimouna Youssef, Bilal(Johnson C. Smith University) Afro Pop CLT Vol. 25: DJ Kato, DJ STeel Wheel (Snug Harbor) Charlotte Funk Fest: Keith Sweat, Brandy, Plies, Juvenile, Raheem Devaughn, EU (Route 29 Pavilion, Concord)

SOUNDBOARD

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DJ/ELECTRONIC

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SEPTEMBER 18 CLASSICAL/JAZZ/SMOOTH Jesse Lamar Williams & The Menastree Jazz Jam (Evening Muse)

COUNTRY/FOLK Wild Rivers (Evening Muse) Red Rockin’ Chair (Comet Grill)

POP/ROCK Open Jam with the Smokin’ Js (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) Crunk Witch w/ Sext Message, 30 Year Sick

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SEPTEMBER 19 DJ/ELECTRONIC Cyclops Bar: Modern Heritage Weekly Mix Tape (Snug Harbor)

POP/ROCK Big Lo & B-Villainous w/ Jon Notty, R.D.I. (ReignDrop International), Martel Tha God (Milestone) Greg Laswell (Evening Muse) Niall Horan, Maren Morris (PNC Music Pavilion) Noah Gundersen, Harrison Whitford (Visulite Theatre) Quincey Blues (Smokey Joe’s Cafe,) September Residency: Grown Up Avenger Stuff, IAmDynamite, Warboys (Snug Harbor) Synchronicity: Charlotte’s International LipSyncing Contest (Booth Playhouse)

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presented by RETRO HORROR SERIES AT AYRSLEY GRAND CINEMAS Like the sequel that won’t stay dead, Ayrsley Grand Cinemas are back with a selection of classic creepshows to put a chill into the autumn air. Movies this year range from earlier favorites like Night of the Living Dead and Zombi 2, which play through the first week of horror screenings, to more modern flicks like The Craft and Buffy the Vampire Slayer from the ’90s.

When: September 21 – November 1 Where: Ayrsley Grand Cinemas, 9110 Kings Parade Blvd.

More: $5; ayrsleycinemas.com

FESTIVAL IN THE PARK Join in on a CLT tradition as Freedom Park hosts the 54th annual Festival in the Park, which features local artisans hawking their jewelry, paintings, woodwork, pottery, glasswork and more goods around the lake.

When: September 21-23 Where: Freedom Park, 1409 East Blvd.

More: Free; festivalinthepark.org

THE BLACK MECCA Arts, music and tech are just a taste of what you’ll find at the multi-faceted Black Mecca festival at Camp North End. Discover what Black Culture in America is about through activation and art and enjoy the musical stylings of local artists like Deniro Farrar, SiR and Cyanca to end the night.

When: Saturday, September 22 Where: Camp North End, 1824 Statesville Ave. More: $50 and up; tinyurl.com/ TheBlackMecca2018

CLT250 ANNIVERSARY PARTY An anniversary can’t pass us by without a proper museum-style party. Levine Museum is opening its doors to honor the Queen City’s past, present and future.

When: September 30 Where: Levine Museum of the New South, 200 E. 7th Street More: Free; museumofthenewsouth.org

PHOTO COURTESY OF MINT MUSEUM

partnered with local makeup artists, designers and performers to put on a show of browncentric culture and fashion.

When: October 6 Where: NoDa@28 Creative Arts Studio, 2424 N. Davidson Street More: $35 and up; tinyurl.com/ RockTheRunwayBrownGirlEdition

AFRICAN-PRINT FASHION NOW!

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW

This exhibit, subtitled “A Story of Taste, Globalization, and Style,” showcases a dynamic and diverse dress tradition and the fashion worlds that it inhabits. The boldlycolored cotton textile prints that have gained in popularity with Africa’s newest generation of couturiers is spreading across the world, and four women have curated a new exhibit that will be stopping through Charlotte for six months to help spark the inspiration of fashionistas in the New South.

When: October 7 opening; runs through April 28, 2019 Where: Mint Museum Randolph, 2730 Randolph Road More: $10-15; mintmuseum.org

You already know what it is. Dress in your best, your scariest or your weirdest and get ready for a raucous film viewing out in the Canvas backyard.

When: October 25 Where: Canvas Tattoo, 3012 N. Davidson St. More: Free; canvastattoos.com

THE GLOW Are you down for the Halloween aesthetic but not into having people jump at you with chainsaws from behind a wall? The Glow sets the scene with thousands of hand-carved jack-o’-lanterns, but none of the scary elements that come with other “haunted” tours and Halloween events. It’s really nothing but a good time, featuring fall treats and drinks and intricate themes and designs making for the perfrfect Insta photo opp.

When: October 4-28 Where: Carolina Rebellion Campground, 7301 Bruton Smith Blvd.

More: $35; theglowjackolantern.com/charlotte

ROCK THE RUNWAY BROWN GIRL EDITION Little Brown Girl Publishing is a local and minority-owned publishing company dedicated to telling inspiring stories and now they’re offering a visually inspiring event.

Representation matters in culture, so they

GUTS CHARLOTTE PUMPKIN CARVING CONTEST A seasonal way for Charlotte creatives to show folks what they can do with a vegetable and a knife. And if you’re not up for some friendly competition as an artist, you can still be a voter, because that’s where the real power lies. All proceeds benefits Make-A-Wish Foundation, and attendees can also check out the photo booth, or buy a pumpkin piece of art to take home if a picture’s not enough. Hell, there will even be folks on hand giving custom GUTS tattoos, if you really want to make things permanent.

When: October 27 Where: BB&T Ballpark, 324 S. Mint St. More: Free; facebook.com/gutscharlotte

RON WHITE They call him Tater Salad, and his son is Tater Tot. His past of drunken debauchery and dirty jokes aren’t behind him yet, as evident in his latest 2017 standup special. This year, Ron White takes the stage again to weave hilarious tales of his mishaps and deliver one-liners with a whiskey on the rocks in one hand and a cigar in the other.

When: November 3 Where: Ovens Auditorium, 2900 E. Independence Blvd.

More: $46 and up; ovensauditorium.com

DÍA DE LOS MEURTOS Partnering with the Latin American Coalition, Levine Museum offers up its space for the family-friendly and ultracultural Día De Meurtos Festival. For those of you that don’t speak Spanish, it’s the Day of the Dead Festival. But this event will anything but dead, as it will feature music, altars, traditional Mexican holiday food and performances.

When: November 4 Where: Levine Museum of the New South, 200 E. 7th Street More: Free; museumofthenewsouth.org

HOME ALONE IN CONCERT It’s the quintessential holiday movie accompanied by Charlotte’s finest classical string and brass musicians.

The film will stream on a screen behind the orchestra as they perform John William’s original score to scene. For this symphony-film pairing, it’s better to bring the whole family. Don’t leave the kids home alone and unattended, no matter how well they can defend the homestead.

When: November 23-24 Where: Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon Street More: $22 and up; charlottesymphony.org

A CHARLIES BROWN CHRISTMAS LIVE The beloved Peanuts characters come to life on stage for the live performance of A Charlie Brown Christmas. If you’re desperate for a way to keep the kids entertained for one night during the upcoming fall season, this is your ticket.

Charlie, Lucy, Snoopy and the rest of the gang bring a magical night of kid-friendly fun.

When: December 16 Where: Ovens Auditorium, 2700 E. Independence Blvd.

More: $25 and up; ovensauditorium.com

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PHOTO BY DANA VINDIGNI

FATHER JOHN MISTY Pour him another drink and punch him in the face. You can call him Nancy. Indie folk singer/songwriter and producer Father John Misty is flowing through Charlotte and with his mellow voice paired to his emotion-provoking lyrics, it’s no wonder why he was nominated for a Grammy for best alternative music album for Pure Comedy. His background in producing albums and contributing to artists such as Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Kid Cudi lent a hand to help him win a Grammy for best recording package in 2018.

When: September 26 Where: the Fillmore, 820 Hamilton Street More: $32.50; fillmorenc.com

FLORENCE + THE MACHINE English indie rock band, Florence + The Machine made its way to the top charts with Florence Welch’s ethereal vocals and the soothing, high-pitched tones throughout debut studio album, Lungs.

Since, they’ve dropped three more and are still going strong with a highly supportive fan base. We’re sure the stars and moon will all be blown out for this arena show.

When: October 3 Where: Spectrum Center, 333 E. Trade Street More: $60 and up; spectrumcentercharlotte.com

BREAKING BENJAMIN Here is the show for all you grunge rock heads still out there. Get a taste of nostalgia for the hard rock band you listened to in early 2000s. After a short 4-year hiatus, Breaking Benjamin came back in 2014 to pick up where it left off, churning out more consistent material such as latest 2017 release, Ember.

When: October 3 Where: CMCU Ampitheatre, 1000 NC Music Factory Blvd More: $32.50 and up, amphitheatercharlotte. com

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presented by E. Independence Blvd.

More: $34 and up; ovensauditorium.com

CHRIS STAPLETON Autumn Rainwater (left) and SideNote

BUSH FEST What: Joining ranks with other local festivals like New Era Music Fest, which was held for the first time in April, and the third annual Soul Junction, coming this weekend, Bush Fest promises to continue the momentum building in the local scene.

Organized by the Bush Family collective — no, not that Bush family, thank God — this festival will bring together acts like SideNote (see this week’s cover story on page ??), Seph Dot, Blk Doggy and Nige Hood. Autumn Rainwater is also joining her homie SideNote, as she did on this week’s beautiful cover. We’re not going to beat around the Bush here, this fest is a breath of fresh air in a sea of mainstream shows this fall, and it’s the event we’re most looking forward to.

When: October 6 Where: 600 E. Sugar Creek Road More: $10; tinyurl.com/BushFestCLT

MAROON 5 Since the 2002 release of Songs About Jane, Maroon 5 and its lead singer, Adam Levine, has been extremely prolific. Although it’s not always rainbows and butterflies, the L.A.band-turned-international-superstars has been churning out pop/rock albums and filling up stadium theaters non-stop. If you miss them this time around, we’re sure they’ll be back soon to stay with us for one more night.

When: October 4 Where: Spectrum Center, 333 E. Trade Street More: $50 and up; spectrumcentercharlotte. com

A PARANORMAL EVENING WITH ALICE COOPER Get spooky with Alice Cooper. Enough said.

When: October 9 Where: Ovens Auditorium, 2700

In 2001, he showed up in Nashville to pursue his musical career, and four days later he was signed with Sea Gayle Music. Over 170 songs later, Chris Stapleton is on the upswing of his solo career, and his smash hit, “Tennessee Whiskey,” is one of the most well-known slow-dancing country songs drunk couples dance to in bars.

When: October 11 Where: PNC Music Pavilion, 707 Pavilion Blvd.

More: $90 and up; musicpavilioncharlotte. com

BREAKAWAY MUSIC FESTIVAL Saxophone king GRiZ and rap/hip-hop staple Whiz Khalifa headline this two-day fest of hip-hop, dance music and DJs. This multi-genre, multi-day and multi-act festival has a musical talent enjoyable by everyone.

Whether you like dirty bass, smooth funk or jumpy hip-hop, there’s something at Breakaway for you.

When: October 12-13 Where: AvidXchange Music Factory, 1000 NC Music Factory Blvd More: $55 and up; breakawaycharlotte. frontgatetickets.com

BLA/ALT MUSIC FESTIVAL The lack of black musicians headlining festivals across the country spurred BLA/ALT to put on a festival dedicated to showcasing local and national black talent. In its second year, it shows no sign of stopping. Right here in Charlotte, catch up-and-coming black musicians and national acts of superior artistry. It’s the alternative to the run-ofthe-mill festivals across the country, and supports black talent in Charlotte.

When: October 20 Where: Camp North End, 1824 Statesville Ave More: RSVP; bla-alt.com

METALLICA Thrash metal is not dead, and neither is Metallica. After hinting for a few years about

a North American tour, they finally delivered to anticipating fans. With 10 studio albums and nine Grammys altogether, this 37-yearold band is still kickin’.

When: October 22 Where: Spectrum Center, 333 E. Trade Street More: $145 and up; spectrumcentercharlotte. com

YOUNG THE GIANT It’s about time that Young The Giant came through the Queen City again. It’s no surprise that the indie rock band from California with silvertongue lyrics and upbeat — and undeniably catchy — melodies has singles on the alternative and rock charts in the US and Canada.

When: November 2 Where: The Fillmore, 820 Hamilton Street More: $29.50; fillmorenc.com

BOB DYLAN Come on, you know you don’t want to miss Bob Dylan. Since he’s practically knockin’ on heaven’s door, keep your eyes wide, the chance won’t come again to see the Nobel Prize for Literature winner. His music was the tracklist for the turmoil — and peace — of the 1960s, and boy, the times have changed. He’ll shake your windows and rattle the walls in Charlotte.

When: November 9 Where: Ovens Auditorium, 2700 E. Independence Blvd More: $62.50 and up; ovensauditorium.com

3OH!3 You can’t escape 2008. Put on your skinny ties and checkered Vans to stack them up just to knock them down. Entertainment group Emo Nite is bringing back everything you missed from the 2000s, highlighting the ultra-raunchy high-energy electronic pop duo, 3OH!3. With the iconic line, “Tell your boyfriend if he says he’s got beef / That I’m a vegetarian and I ain’t fuckin’ scared of him,” from “DONTTRUSTME,” they solidified a place on every high school nostalgia playlist.

When: November 23 Where: The Underground, 820 Hamilton Street More: $23; fillmorenc.com

presented by FLOW FEST Float on the river to USNWC for the inaugural Flow Fest, a day of yoga, kombucha, wine and mindfulness. In an outdoor setting, participate in a variety of calming exercises such as SUP and aerial yoga, but if you want something a little more fast-paced, there’s hiking and half marathons to sign up for. The afternoon will give way to kombucha and wine sampling while indiefolk band Trampled by Turtles will cap off the day of spiritual flow in the evening.

When: September 22 Where: U.S. National Whitewater Center, 5000 Whitewater Center Parkway More: Registration required for some events; usnwc.org

SIP AND STROLL ART, WINE & MUSIC FESTIVAL Wine. Art. Music. Uptown. What could be better than that? Get your fancy pants on and stroll around the Epicentre perusing art vendors, enjoying music and sipping on wine from over 40 vineyards. The 9th Annual Sip and Stroll festival will feature the finest wines and finest art available for direct purchase to satisfy your taste for the finer things in life.

When: September 28-29 Where: Rooftop 210, 210 E. Trade Street More: $30 and up; tinyurl. com/9AnnualSipStroll

TACO LUCHA FESTIVAL This day of beer, music and live luchadore wrestling is organized by yours truly, Creative Loafing. There’s over 150 craft brews to sample and 15 restaurants vying for the title of best taco in the Queen City. Come on down and cast your vote on site and let your voice be heard for best taco. To cap off the day of stuffing your face with tacos, will be live music from Judah & The Lion along with special guest all the way from the gangster’s paradise, Coolio.

When: September 29 Where: AdvidXchange Music Factory Festival Grounds, 817 Hamilton Street More: $29 and up; tacoluchafest.com

CUPCAKEFEST A celebration of everything cupcake! The

deliciously iced and baked mini-cakes take center stage for a sweet afternoon. Local bakeries will be competing for best cupcake and you can almost taste their dedication to creating the perfect sugary treat. And if you’ve got a serious sweet tooth, there’s cupcake eating competitions to join.

When: September 30 Where: Oasis Shriners, 604 Doug Mayes Place More: $5 and up; tinyurl.com/ CupcakeFestCLT

TASTE OF THE WORLD Tour the world’s cuisines without leaving Charlotte. Taste of the World is a part culinary tour, part treasure hunt, but all delicious. The journey begins when you board the tasting train and visit three surprise restaurants in the city, sampling cuisine from around the world. After your appetite for wordly fare is satisfied, the night ends with conversation over coffee and dessert.

When: October 3 Where: SMS Catering, 1764 Norland Rd. More: $49; tasteoftheworld2018.eventbrite. com

FALL FEST It’s BYOB time! Not bring your own beer, however. The always-exciting Build Your Own Boat competition is back again. Test your boat-building skills or just watch others attempt to float merrily down the channel in their hand-crafted vessels. As always, the morning starts off with a trail race and yoga classes and the evening is topped off with one of the center’s last musical shows of the season.

When: October 6 Where: U.S. National Whitewater Center, 5000 Whitewater Center Parkway More: Registration required for some events; usnwc.org

CHARLOTTE UNITE FESTIVAL It’s hosted at a brewery, but don’t let that make you think it’s not for the whole family.

Queen City Unity and NoDa Brewing are coming together to bring the diverse city together. With activities for kids, good brews

AYRSLEY FALL FEST

HOLA FESTIVAL

PHOTO COURTESY OF NORSAN MEDIA

In its seventh year, the Hola Festival highlights and celebrates the culture, music, arts and cuisine of Hispanic heritage. Countries across Latin America will proudly represent the authentic items and musical instruments. Whether you’re looking to learn more about your heritage or celebrate cultural diversity and support the Hispanic communities in Charlotte, you won’t be disappointed with the Hola Festival.

When: October 6 Where: N. Tryon Street More: Free; holacharlottefestival.com

on tap and food from different cultures, you’ll be hard-pressed to find something that doesn’t unite your love for the community and your love for family fun.

When: October 6 Where: NoDa Brewing, 2921 N. Tryon Street More: RSVP; tinyurl.com/ CharlotteUNITEFestival

GRILLED CHEESE FESTIVAL Get cheesy with it at the Charlotte Grilled Cheese Festival. Let your taste buds relish in the creative takes on the simple American staple food and vote for which local restaurant makes the best grilled cheese in Charlotte.

When you’re not stuffing your face with cheesy goodness, there are vendors and live music to keep you entertained all day.

When: October 13 Where: Slate Charlotte; 1441 S. Tryon St. More: $20 and up; charlottegrilledcheesefestival.com

Eat, shop, drink and enjoy a day of music and family fun. Local vendors are setting up shop to offer the fruits of their craft such as homegoods, clothes and food alongside local breweries serving their best brews of the season. With live music and petting zoos available for the kids to experience, make sure Ayrsley Fall Fest is on your list of autumn events to get the holiday season started.

When: October 13 Where: Piedmont Social House, 2135 Ayrsley Town Blvd.

More: Free; ayrsleyfallfest.com

THANKSGIVING DAY PARADE Gobble gobble, motherfuckers. Before you shove your face with light or dark meat, don’t forget about the Southeast’s largest Thanksgiving day parade. Balloons larger than your extended family will take to the skies on North Tryon and thousands of Charlotteans will line the streets to see them pass. Join the fun or sit at home gorging on pumpkin pie, unable to move and watch on T.V. with the family.

When: November 22 Where: Uptown Charlotte More: Free; novanthealththanksgivingdayparade.com

CHARLOTTE TAKES THE CAKE It’s the official 250th anniversary of the Queen City. Across Charlotte, residents will be gathering to celebrate the history, heritage and progress of our town during sponsored events on this day. We won’t give you a list of the exact events, just look up from your phone and go in the direction of whatever looks fun.

When: December 3 Where: Everywhere More: Free; clt250.com

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presented by CHARLOTTE HORNETS This season marks the 30th anniversary of the Charlotte Hornets — not the 30th season, remember we missed a few — and there hasn’t been a whole lot of progress made in that time. Zero championships. Zero conference titles. Zero division titles. Zero MVPs. The team has only made the playoffs three times in the last 15 years, and never made it past the first round in that time. But hey, there’s a new coach.

Preseason September 28: Boston Celtics, 7:30 p.m.

October 2: Miami Heat, 7 p.m.

October 8: Chicago Bulls, 7 p.m.

Regular Season October 17: Milwaukee Bucks, 7 p.m.

October 26: Chicago Bulls, 7 p.m.

October 30: Miami Heat, 7 p.m.

November 1: Oklahoma City Thunder, 7 p.m.

November 3: Cleveland Cavaliers, 7 p.m.

November 6: Atlanta Hawks, 7 p.m.

November 17: 76ers, 7 p.m.

November 19: Boston Celtics, 7 p.m.

November 21: Indiana Pacers, 7 p.m.

November 26: Milwaukee Bucks, 7 p.m.

November 28: Atlanta Hawks, 7 p.m.

November 30: Utah Jazz, 7 p.m.

December 2: New Orleans Pelicans, 5 p.m.

December 7: Denver Nuggets, 7 p.m.

December 8: Chicago Bulls, 7 p.m.

December 12: Detroit Pistons, 7 p.m.

December 14: New York Knicks, 7 p.m.

December 15: Los Angeles Lakers, 7 p.m.

December 19: Cleveland Cavaliers, 7 p.m.

December 21: Detroit Pistons, 7 p.m.

Where: Spectrum Center, 333 E. Trade St. Cost: Ticket prices not yet listed More: nba.com/hornets

PHOTO BY MELISSA MELVIN-RODRIGUEZ

CAROLINA PANTHERS Everybody’s got a reason to boycott the NFL these days. Maybe you’re the type who stopped watching because people started kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police brutality and you believed it was about somethiing else.

Maybe you’re not watching because you do support it and you’re sickened that Colin Kaepernick still doesn’t have a job. Maybe you’re on a whole other level and you’ve already burned your best pair of sneakers and shot through your TV because you saw a Nike ad. In that case, good luck. We can’t even keep up anymore. Here’s the Panthers home games.

September 23: Cincinnati Bengals, 1 p.m.

October 7: New York Giants, 1 p.m.

October 28: Baltimore Ravens, 1 p.m.

November 4: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1 p.m.

November 25: Seattle Seahawks, 1 p.m.

December 17: New Orleans Saints, 8:15 p.m.

December 23: Atlanta Falcons, 1 p.m.

Where: Bank of America Stadium, 800 S. Mint St. Cost: $69 and up.

More: panthers.com

CHARLOTTE CHECKERS The Checkers have always been a great way to spend an evening, but ever since they returned to the historic-but-renovated Bojangles Coliseum in 2015, games have been that much more fun to watch. Damn near every night is a special promo night, so be sure to check for more info on

22 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

the website.

October 19: Hershey Bears, 7 p.m.

October 20: Hershey Bears, 6 p.m.

November 2: Providence Bruins, 7 p.m.

November 3: Providence Bruins, 6 p.m.

November 20: Belleville Senators, 7 p.m.

November 21: Belleville Senators, 7 p.m.

November 24: Laval Rocket, 6 p.m.

November 25: Laval Rocket, 1 p.m.

December 13: Hartford Wolfpack, 7 p.m.

December 15: Hartford Wolfpack, 6 p.m.

Where: Bojangles’ Coliseum, 2700 E. Independence Blvd.

Cost: $18.50 and up.

More: gocheckers.com

LET’S GO RACIN’ September 28: Bojangles’ Qualifying An evening of knockout qualifying that sets the stage for the Bank of America Roval 400. The night also includes the Better Half Dash, in which the ladies of NASCAR duel in a 25-lap Bandolero charity race while their significant others coach from the pits.

When: 7 p.m.

Cost: $13 and up.

September 30: Bank of America Roval 400 This is the big one. The playoff hunt heats up as the weather cools down, and this race at NASCAR’s home track will make or break a few drivers’ championship dreams. That’s not even to mention that history will be made as the drivers hit the Roval, the first road course to host a race in the history of the NASCAR playoffs.

When: 2 p.m.

Cost: $52.50 and up. $10 for kids.

More: charlottemotorspeedway.com

ARTS

FEATURE

CONFIDENCE (AND THE SPEECH) $25-32; Oct. 13, 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 14-15, 8 p.m.; Duke Energy Theater, 345 N. College St.; blumenthalarts.org

A PRESIDENCY WORTH MORE THAN PEANUTS Georgia-born playwright reappraises Carter in the age of Trump PERRY TANNENBAUM

O

CEANS

ARE

RISING.

California keeps burning.

Women are still facing stalkers, abusers, detractors and depressed wages. Innocent black people are beaten and shot in the back by rogue cops — or point blank by vigilantes. Wouldn’t it be great to be led by a president who cares? While Obama nostalgia and Hillary regrets may be keenest at the moment, all other past commandersin-chief and presidential hopefuls — except maybe Bush 43 — seem more palatable alternatives than the racist boor who now sits so empty-headedly at his empty Oval Office desk.

Even Jimmy Carter? Why yes, says playwright Susan Lambert Hatem, whose Confidence (and The Speech) premieres at Duke Energy Theater on Sept. 7. Growing up in Decatur, Georgia, a three-hour drive from the famed Plains presidential peanut farm, Hatem has been fascinated by the Carter presidency and his exceptional postpresidency since childhood. Her impulse to revisit Carter began before the 2016 election.

Among Carter’s signature achievements were establishing the Departments of Education and Energy and successfully bringing Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian president Anwar Sadat together to the peace table for the Camp David Accords.

Hatem has made a pilgrimage to attend Carter’s Sunday preaching at his Plains church and has extensively researched the record.

“He appointed more women justices and more minority justices than all previous administrations — put together,” she points

PHOTO BY LYRICAL PHOTOGRAPHY/CHARLOTTE’S The cast of ‘Confidence’ [left to right]: Maxwell Greger, Paul OFF-BROADWAY Gibson, Josephine Hall, Nathaniel Gillespie, Greg Paroff and Berry Newkirk.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CHARLOTTE’S OFF-BROADWAY

out. “Carter paved the way to something.

There is no Obama presidency without Carter’s presidency. His administration never dropped a bomb. Never started a war. Eight American soldiers were killed on his watch.”

Hatem not only examines the lead up to Carter’s “Crisis of Confidence” speech in 1979, she flips the script with her narrative structure. Young Jonathan Rollins approaches 60-year-old college professor Cynthia Cooper, a former Carter aide, and asks her to recall the leadup to the “Crisis of Confidence” speech.

Cooper consents — on condition that Young Jonathan plays Young Cynthia in the retelling. Professor Cooper will play President Carter.

Why? Because Hatem is not just interested in how history is made. She’s concerned with who gets to make it. Set in 2019, when President Hillary would presumably declare her candidacy for a second term, Confidence (and The Speech) would be a look back at how we began to evolve toward this landmark of feminist progress.

And then came the shock of Election Night, 2016.

“After the 2016 election — I didn’t know what to do,” Hatem admits. “I had to put the play down for a bit. I couldn’t work on it. I didn’t know how the play would make any sense any more. Then January 2017 was the Woman’s March, and I was re-inspired.

The all-woman production team [left to right]: Susan Lambert, Anne Lambert, Brenna Skinnon, Ramsey Lyric and Jackie Hohenstein.

I knew I had to finish it. So many women were stepping up. So many LGBTQ activists.

So many black women and men. So many voices were rising. I wrote a new ending — a cathartic ending to me. An ending that I think will excite some, and confuse others.

It is purposefully somewhat ambiguous ... and not.”

The road from re-inspiration to this week’s Charlotte premiere ran through Hatem’s sister, Anne Lambert, who already had two significant production projects in the works during 2017. Last summer, she was on the producing team at Children’s Theatre of Charlotte that presented a staged reading of Bend in the Road, a musical adaption of the beloved Anne of

Green Gables. Then in late fall, Lambert’s own company, Charlotte’s Off-Broadway, presented a fully professional local premiere of Richard Greenberg’s Three Days of Rain.

Lambert had co-founded the all-female Chickspeare theatre troupe at a local brewery 20 years ago, so her sister’s gender-bending concept was right up her alley. Confidence was one of six plays that were read at Camp North End this past winter as part of the Charlotte’s Off-Broadway “Page to Stage 2018” series. Of the six works read scriptin-hand from February through March, Hatem’s will mark the third to receive a full production.

This time around, Lambert is wearing two hats: producing and directing. Hatem especially values her sister’s experience with dark Shakespearean plays — where the Chickspeare gender-bending wasn’t done for cheap laughs or sexual effect.

“What I’m trying to do is explore how the cross-gendering can reveal another layer to the play’s themes,” says Hatem. “That’s where Anne and her direction have been so great.”

The Lambert Sisters tapped Josephine Hall for the challenging roles of Professor Cooper and President Carter — in an unusual three-way FaceTime audition with the playwright in L.A., the producer in Charlotte, and their star in Greensboro. We haven’t seen Hall in a local production since she prowled Stonewall Street in Cougar: The Musical, the last of three Actor’s Theatre appearances during the 2014-15 season.

“I believe The Speech is a missed opportunity,” Hall says after living with it through months of study and rehearsals.

“Most people — not just Americans — don’t want to think too deeply or like to change their daily habits. Carter was asking for both. It’s really no wonder that most people chose the ‘all is well, just spend more’ approach offered by Reaganomics. It is very sad, however. I try to imagine a world where America had paid attention and led the world down a more sustainable path.”

BACKTALK@CLCLT.COM

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ARTS

ARTSPEAK

VISART’S NEW VISION Charlotte’s popular independent video store focuses on the future

PHOTO BY PAT MORAN

VisArt Video

BY PAT MORAN

MICKEY ABERMAN PARAPHRASES

Mark Twain when he looks at the ups and downs of owning Charlotte’s most beloved and hip video store VisArt Video.

“Reports of VisArt’s demise have been greatly exaggerated,” Aberman says with a chuckle. In fact, the independent video store, which stocks over 40,000 titles in categories including foreign, cult, documentary and mainstream films, is hosting its official relaunch on September 15 at its current location at 3104 Eastway Drive. VisArt will unveil its new screening room at a party featuring local films, music by Aberman’s band Tommy Nations and a special announcement about VisArt’s future.

That doesn’t mean that the shop hasn’t had a few near death experiences. Aberman, a local attorney, didn’t know Visart was slated for closing when he stopped by the store on New Year’s Eve 2010 to pick up a few movies to watch with his wife Linda.

“I walked in and there were people carrying armloads of movies out the door,” Aberman remembers. He learned that the store was liquidating its stock prior to going permanently dark. Aberman got the owner’s number then ducked into the children’s video section to place a call. He halted the video fire sale and bought the store on the spot.

“Then I had to call my wife and say, ‘Honey, you know how I was going to pick up a couple of movies? Well, I got a little more than that,’” Creative Loafing asked Aberman to pick up the VisArt story at its second moment of crisis, when the store moved from Elizabeth to Eastway in 2015.

Creative Loafing: What necessitated the move from Seventh Street to you current location?

Mickey Aberman: Parking was proving problematic at the old location and rents were going up a lot. It looked like the future was uncertain at that shopping center. We were offered a decent space at Eastway and Central, so we went for it. We lost a lot of our previous clientele. We didn’t market the move very well and then we lost our phones for three weeks.

People would see that the old storefront was dark, and if they called our number, they got a “no longer in service” message.

I think that fueled rumors that VisArt was deceased, but we picked up a good many new members. People started coming in saying, “Oh wow, I thought you were gone, and then I heard you were still in business.” Business has been picking up, particularly since Gina Stewart took over as store manager.

VISART VIDEO GRAND REOPENING Sept. 15; All day. VisArt Video, Eastway Square, 3104 Eastway Dr.; visartvideo.net

On September 15 you’re going to announce VisArt’s new direction. What can you tell us about that?

Gina and Briana brought to my attention what Scarecrow Video in Seattle has done in terms of becoming a non-profit and expanding its mission beyond passively being a video store.

They said we might want to look at doing something like that. I went onto the Scarecrow website and I saw what they were and what they were doing, and it looked remarkably like they had evolved from what VisArt was. I called Kate Barr who runs Scarecrow and she was very supportive of the possibility that we would follow their lead. We concluded that VisArt ought to be a non-profit.

Charlotte has a lot of organizations that support arts like painting, photography and music. The only organization that supports video and film is the Charlotte Film Society and they don’t have a physical center or a collection. We have some 40 odd physical copies of the movies [they have screened].

So while some society members only get to see a [Back Alley] film when they screen it, our members can rent the movie and take it home, or they can carry it into the screening room and watch it with their friends.

Plus, we’ve had people who want to volunteer. If you’re a regular for-profit business you can’t have volunteers, but non-profits can. So it made sense to relaunch VisArt as a non-profit. That’s what we’re doing on September 15. We’re going to celebrate with the relaunching of a reenergized VisArt as a non-profit and as a vibrant arts organization in Charlotte.

Will there be a special screening?

We’re going to show a film called Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation, which the Charlotte Film Society has screened before. It’s a fun movie that was made by a bunch of teenagers.

They decided they were going to do a sceneby-scene remake of Raiders of the Lost Ark. It’s incredible. We thought that would be a good movie to show because most of the world has seen Raiders of the Lost Ark. If people wandered in after the movie has started, they can pick up on where things are and what’s happening.

PMORAN@CLCLT.COM

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ENDS

LOVES CHILDREN

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weekend (or in the near future). Disclaimer: LAST YEAR, when Hurricane Maria hit don’t be surprised if you really have to wait the East Coast, I had plans to be on a Trolley for the future, because they’re most likely to Pub Charlotte crawl. No joke. However, I close in the event of a huge storm. went to IKEA first. I went to the retail rabbit Mac Tabby Cat Cafe: The purr-fect hole for two reasons: to procrastinate on place for cat lovers, this cat cafe is closed drinking and to eat some delectable Swedish on Mondays and Tuesdays, but 60-minute meatballs. reservations can be booked online for $12.

Throughout my stay at IKEA, multiple And while they take walk-ins, you’re not trolley goers called me to ask if I was guaranteed facetime with their kittos. Not going to make it, until I finally gave in. to mention, the cats you’ll be spending your #peerpressure. Little did I know that the time with are up for adoption! Maybe you’ll outskirts of the storm were already brushing find the newest member of your family while through Charlotte. Imagine my surprise you’re there. (Although, I must warn you, when almost everyone on the trolley had on this cat owner right here has been furious ponchos! Meanwhile, the only black girl with about her furniture ever since scooping my aquaphobic hair had nothing. feline friend off the street! *insert And if you haven’t heard of eye roll*) Trolley Pub Charlotte, you Lucky Dog Bark and should know it’s a pedalBrew: In one word, powered bar that can fit humongous. Lucky Dog up to 14 people. You’ve Bark and Brew is the only probably been stuck dog bar of its type in the behind one on North Charlotte area. It’s an Davidson Street cursing indoor/outdoor dog park at the fact that, for some complete with daycare, odd reason, Charlotteans overnight boarding, fullactually enjoy pedaling service baths and, how can around the Queen City I forget, a full-fledged sports AERIN SPRUILL while drinking their bar. They have three locations BYOB purchases. Go figure. so you don’t have to drive too far Nevertheless, my saving grace when it starts to hurricane. I’ve been a during that hurricane were the rain couple times with the P.I.C., a bulldog mom, flaps that our trolley conductor let down and I must say it’s the cleanest bar I’ve been before the ride ensued. to while surrounded by a herd of dogs.

A year later, here we are again in a The Dog Bar: The O.G. animal spot state of panic as Hurricane Florence makes in the Q.C., and the one place on this list I its way toward the Carolinas. There’s no would be shocked if it actually closes due bread, water or alcohol to be found in your to weather. A doggy dive bar, this NoDa local grocery store (trust me). Honestly, I’m spot used to be my jam. An old coworker starting to get a little nervous, because your and friend used to hang out there with girl does not like to be hungry. his beautiful platinum blonde pup, Luna, I’ve been receiving lengthy, cautionary everyday after work and I would meet him texts from my mom warning me and the up there and watch all the puppers run boyfriend about the impending doom: around. Not to mention, the drinks are super “By the way, in case you and your boo are cheap. Does it get much better than that?! not paying attention to the news they are (Don’t be surprised if the stench of wet dog projecting Charlotte to get a lot of rain and fills your nose when you enter, but it’s all a wind because of the hurricane. You might part of the experience.) want to stock up on necessities and food Obviously, there are plenty of other dogin case you lose power. Make sure you keep friendly spaces in the Charlotte area, like your cell phones fully charged too.” *insert breweries and patios, however, but the latter heavy helicopter parenting sigh* two on my list are each one-of-a-kind furry Meanwhile, I’m thinking about which friend locations. Also, check out Daily Mews bars are actually going to stay open so we can for another cat cafe location. all drink through the apocalypse. And that’s Tell me, where’s your favorite place to be when I had an amazing thought, “Why not entertained by animals in the Q.C.?! Share it be with cats or dogs when it’s raining cats with me at backtalk@clclt.com. And stay safe and dogs?!” in these streets when Hurricane Florence So I’ve compiled a short list of my fave hits! places to go where you’ll find cats or dogs this BACLTALK@CLCLT.COM

ENDS

FeeLing Lonely?

CROSSWORD

TECH COMPANY CLOSINGS ACROSS

1 No-elevator multistory building 7 Prefix with bar or belief 10 Long tales 15 Boo-boo 19 Consider identical 20 Go-between: Abbr.

21 Roping event 22 NCAA’s Bruins 23 Protection for many bank tellers 26 “-- cost ya!”

27 Closeout, e.g.

28 Preamble 29 Puzzler’s cry 30 Net vending 31 Kinnear of Hollywood 33 Reflections 36 Connecticut state song 41 Spanish bull 42 Actor Ed 43 Yoko of the avant-garde 44 Mall binge, maybe 48 Get a pic of 51 Wooden peg 52 “In a pickle,” e.g.

54 Part of ERA 55 “Bear” of the outback 56 Insignia 58 Three-section holder of bills 61 52, to Livy 62 Spanish surrealist 64 See 6-Down 65 Simpson judge Lance 66 Probe for 68 Journals 72 Really cries 76 Bass finale?

78 Notion, in Nancy 79 Yule song 81 Syllable after “oom” 82 Element like barium or radium 88 Hard but easily broken 90 Verse-writing, old-style 91 1940s pres.

92 Pricey hotel offering 94 Pact of the U.S., Can. and Mex. 95 University of Kentucky’s -- Arena 96 Some aria singers 98 Vintage auto inits.

99 Adept 100 Conflicted 102 Arbitrary security inspection

105 Collection for the Red Cross, say 110 Shrewd 111 Keno cousin 112 Water, in Nancy 113 Tweaks text 115 Unbox, e.g.

119 Napoleonic exile locale 120 2014 Kentucky Derby winner 124 Pennant, e.g.

125 From Tehran or Tabriz 126 Elegant shade tree 127 1991 horror film sequel subtitled “The Awakening” 128 “Rent” actor Diggs 129 Pastis base 130 South Korea’s Kim --jung 131 Tech giant whose name can precede nine words in this puzzle

DOWN

1 Attic sights 2 Watery color 3 Abatement 4 Frilly green 5 Rugged truck, in brief 6 With 64-Across, snookums or sweetie, say 7 Real nice 8 “-- it!” (outfield call) 9 Extra entryway for bad weather 10 Physicist’s work unit 11 Diametrically opposite 12 Sun Valley’s state 13 Romero or Franck 14 “Help me!”

15 Parts of many rock songs 16 Eight-sided 17 Stan’s pal in old films 18 Drops 24 -- -a-terre 25 Kitchen wrap 30 Genre of rock 31 Coagulated 32 Fam. member 34 High- -- graphics 35 Suffix with favor or zinc 36 Mountaintop melodies 37 Societal breakdown 38 Tyro, slangily 39 “The Spy Who Loved Me” actor Richard 40 Getting the job done 45 Brochure or blurb, maybe 46 Settle from the bench

47 Terminus 49 Stein drink 50 Too glib 52 Skye, e.g.

53 Babysitters, e.g.

55 “Krazy --” 57 Cuban patriot Jose 59 Terrif 60 Less naive 63 Most frigid 67 Compact SUV model 69 “-- a Nightingale” 70 Singer Chris 71 Basketball’s Bryant 73 Select 74 Like Latvia or Lithuania 75 Sword cover 77 Duplicitous 80 Actor Hal 82 Mo. with Arbor Day 83 Reed of rock 84 Held off 85 Flyers’ gp.

86 Blushed 87 Hurried, quaintly 89 “Sharknado” actress Reid 93 Occurred gradually 96 House pest 97 Mysore “Mr.” 99 Ending of enzymes 101 Los del -- (“Macarena” duo) 103 Chevy debut of 2004 104 Plateau’s kin 105 Rock fissure 106 Shout out, colloquially 107 Hanker 108 -- Lama 109 Devastates 114 Visiting H’wood, say 115 Black-and-white cookie 116 Atari classic 117 Jannings of “Quo Vadis” 118 “54” actress Campbell 120 U.S. org. with moles 121 Archaic “Curses!”

122 Machine part 123 Gp. with a copay

graB Your copy today

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ENDS

SAVAGE LOVE

GAY AND LONELY Everybody needs somebody sometimes

BY DAN SAVAGE I am a gay man in my late 50s and have never been in a relationship. I am so lonely, and the painful emptiness I feel is becoming absolutely unbearable. In my early 20s, I hooked up off and on, but it never developed into anything. I have always told myself that’s okay; I’m not a people person or a relationship kind of guy. I have a few lesbian friends but no male friends. I have social anxiety and can’t go to bars or clubs. When hookup apps were introduced, I used them infrequently. Now I go totally unnoticed or am quickly ghosted once I reveal my age. Most nonwork days, my only interactions are with people in the service industry. I am well-groomed, employed, a homeowner and always nice to people. I go to a therapist and take antidepressants. However, this painful loneliness, depression, aging, and feeling unnoticed seem to be getting the best of me. I cry often and would really like it all to end. Any advice?

LONELY AGING GAY

“In the very short term, LAG needs to tell his therapist about the suicidal ideation,” said Michael Hobbes. “In the longer term, well, that’s going to take a bit more to unpack.”

Hobbes is a reporter for HuffPost and recently wrote a mini-book-length piece titled “Together Alone: The Epidemic of Gay Loneliness.” During his research, Hobbes found that, despite growing legal and social acceptance, a worrying percentage of gay men still struggle with depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation.

Loneliness, Hobbes explained to me, is an evolutionary adaptation, a mechanism that prompts us humans — members of a highly social species — to seek contact and connection with others, the kind of connections that improve our odds of survival.

“But there’s a difference between being alone and being lonely,” said Hobbes. “Being alone is an objective, measurable phenomenon: You don’t have very many social contacts.

Being lonely, on the other hand, is subjective: You feel alone, even when you’re with other people. This is why advice like ‘Join a club!’ or ‘Chat with your waitress!’ doesn’t help lonely people.”

The most effective way to address loneliness, according to Hobbes’s research, is to confront it directly.

“LAG may just need to get more out of the relationships he already has,” said Hobbes.

“He has a job, friends, a therapist, a life.

This doesn’t mean that his perceptions are unfounded — our society is terrible to its elders in general and its LGBTQ elders in 28 | SEPT. 13 - SEPT. 19, 2018 | CLCLT.COM

particular — but there may be opportunities in his life for intimacy that he’s not tapping into. Acquaintances LAG hasn’t checked in on for a while. Random cool cousins LAG never got to know. Volunteering gigs you fell out of.

It’s easier to reanimate old friendships than to start from scratch.”

Another recommendation: Seek out other lonely guys — and there are lots of them out there.

“LAG isn’t the only gay guy who has aged out of the bar scene — so have I — and struggles to find sex and companionship away from alcohol and right swipes,” said Hobbes. “His therapist should know of some good support groups.”

And if your therapist doesn’t know of any good support groups — or if you don’t feel comfortable telling your therapist how miserable you are, or if you’ve told your therapist everything and they haven’t been able to help — find a new therapist.

the statistics,” said Hobbes. “Finding a soul mate is largely out of our control. Whether you allow your lack of a soul mate to make you bitter, desperate, or contemptuous is.

So be happy for the young jerks coupling up and settling down. Learn to take rejection gracefully — the way you want it from the dudes you’re turning down — and when you go on a date, start with the specificity of the person sitting across from you, not what you need from him. He could be your Disney prince, sure. But he could also be your museum buddy or your podcast cohost or your afternoon 69er or something you haven’t even thought of yet.”

I am a 55-year-old gay male.

I am hugely overweight and have not had much experience with men.

I go on a variety of websites trying to make contact with people. However, if anyone says anything remotely I’m a 40-something gay complimentary about male. I’m single and cannot DAN SAVAGE me, I panic and run. get a date or even a hookup.

A compliment about my I’m short, overweight, average physical appearance? I looking and bald. I see others, shut down the profile. I don’t gay and straight, having long-term like being like this. I just believe in relationships, getting engaged, getting being honest. And if I’m honest, I’m ugly. married, and it makes me sad and The face, even behind a big-ass beard, is jealous. Some of them are jerks — and just not acceptable. I have tried therapy, if them, why not me? Here’s the part and it does nothing. How do I get past that’s hard to admit: I know something being ugly and go out and get laid? is wrong with me, but I don’t know what UNAPPEALING GIANT LOSER YEARNS it is or how to fix it. I’m alone and I’m lonely. I know your advice can be brutal, Dan, but what do I have to lose?

ALONE AND FADING

“AAF said to be brutal, so I’m going to start there: You might not ever meet anyone,” said Hobbes. “At every age, in every study, gay men are less likely to be partnered, cohabiting, or married than our straight and lesbian counterparts. Maybe we’re damaged, maybe we’re all saving ourselves for a Hemsworth, but spending our adult lives and twilight years without a romantic partner is a real possibility. It just is.”

And it’s not just gay men. In Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone, sociologist Eric Klinenberg unpacked this remarkable statistic: More than 50 percent of adult Americans are single and live alone, up from 22 percent in 1950.

Some are unhappy about living alone, but it seemed that most — at least according to Klinenberg’s research — are content.

“Maybe there is something wrong with AAF, but maybe he’s just on the unlucky side of

You say you’re ugly, UGLY, but there are some people who disagree with you — the people who compliment you on your appearance, for instance.

“I’m not sure I even believe in the word ‘ugly’ anymore,” said Hobbes. “No matter what you look like, some percentage of the population will be attracted to you. Maybe it’s 95 percent or maybe it’s 5 percent, but they are out there.

When you find them, do two things: First, believe them. Second, shut up about it.”

In other words: Just because you wouldn’t want to sleep with you, UGLY, that doesn’t mean no one wants to sleep with you.

“I remember reading an interview with Stephen Fry, where he said that when he first started out as an actor, people would come up to him and say, ‘You were so great in that play!’ and his first response would be, ‘No, I was terrible,’” said Hobbes. “He thought he was being modest, but what he was really doing, he realized later, was being argumentative. Eventually, he started to just say ‘Thank you.’”

Hobbes thinks you should try to be like Fry, a big dude with a cute husband: “The next time someone tells him they’re into big dudes with beards, don’t argue, don’t panic, and don’t hesitate. Just say ‘Thank you’ and let the conversation move on.”

Follow Michael Hobbes on Twitter @ RottenInDenmark and listen to his podcast You’re Wrong About..., available on iTunes.

On the Lovecast: Wait—why can’t gay men donate blood? savagelovecast.com. mail@savagelove.net; @fakedansavage on Twitter; ITMFA.org

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ARIES

(March 21 to April 19) The changing season br ings new experiences as well as challenges for the everadventurous Aries. Your social life expands, as do the opportunities at your workplace.

TAURUS

(April 20 to May 20) That recent period of uncertainty has passed. You now can now feel more confident about making decisions, especially those that relate to an important personal relationship.

GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) Although you might be faced with a number of tasks on your to-do list, try to take time out to enjoy the arts.

Music, especially, can be soothing to the sensitive soul of a Gemini.

CANCER (June 21 to

July 22) A disagreement with a colleague or friend is best resolved with open and frank discussion. Trying to force the other party to see things your way is bound to backfire.

LEO (July 23 to August 22) That Leonine pride might be ruffled by a colleague’s challenge to one of your pet ideas. But stop growling and listen. You could learn something that will work to your advantage.

VIRGO (August 23 to

September 22) Someone in authority might decide to select you as a candidate for a project that carries more responsibilities. Be prepared to show why you’re the right choice for the job.

LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) That new workplace problem should be dealt with as soon as possible.

Leaving it unresolved for too long could lead to an even more unsettling and time-consuming situation.

SCORPIO (October 23 to

November 21) You might have to do some fancy juggling to keep both your work responsibilities and personal obligations on track. But ultimately, you’ll work it all out, as you always do.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) You might hear some upsetting things about a situation in your life.

But don’t be swayed by talk. Demand proof before making any decisions on the matter.

CAPRICORN (December

22 to January 19) Don’t risk depleting those precious energy levels by taking on more tasks than you can realistically handle.

Also, remember to ask for help when you need it.

AQUARIUS

(January 20 to February 18) It might be difficult for the Aquarian who is used to giving advice to take counsel when offered. But it’s a good idea to listen to what trusted friends feel you should know.

PISCES (February 19 to March 20) Things might be a little unsettled as you move through a period of reassessment. But once you get your priorities sorted out, you should be ready to tackle an important decision.

BORN THIS WEEK: You’re able to achieve a happy balance in your productive life by never feeling overwhelmed or underappreciated.

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