Pride and 4th of July Guide 2019

ST. LOUIS’ GUIDE TO THINGS TO DO 06.28.19–07.04.19 • STLTODAY.COM/GO •

Party in the park! Citygarden turns 10

Page 26

Sam Harris of X Ambassadors has kept busy since band’s debut album Page 15 Oaked is sophisticated Soulard dining — sometimes to a fault Page 36

JOHNNY GILL

BRETT YOUNG

KEITH SWEAT

VERTICAL HORIZON

JULY FOURTH GUIDE FAIR ST. LOUIS AT THE GATEWAY ARCH, PLUS OTHER FESTIVALS AND FIREWORKS .8-PAGE PULLOUT STARTS ON PAGE 17.

ST. LOUIS PRIDEFEST GUIDE 50 years after Stonewall, celebration of LGBTQ equality turns 40 Page 6

TAYLOR DAYNE

MARTHA WASH

ICONA POP

06.28.19–07.04.19 ▼

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3

SATURDAY, JULY 6

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 July Fourth fireworks light the sky over Webster Groves in 2018.

Visit EnterpriseCenter.com for the complete upcoming events schedule.

Cover story From big blowouts to fireworks and low-key festivals, the St. Louis area has plenty of ways to have a blast this July Fourth. Page 17

Datebook Our critics pick the best events in the week ahead, including Brad Paisley at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, KeKe Wyatt at the Ready Room, Tower Grove Pride in Tower Grove Park and Shawn Mendes at Enterprise Center.

Plus, what to look forward to in the coming weeks. Page 4

Music & Clubs ON SALE TODAY AT NOON

Taylor Dayne says Pride events are “the best audience ever.” Page 7

“The Spy Behind Home Plate” presents a ballplayer who was one of a kind. Page 29

St. Louis blues-rocker Tony Campanella strikes his own chords on “Taking It to the Street.” Page 14

“The Fall of the American Empire” mixes comedy and deep thought — with mixed results. Page 30

X Ambassadors shine with sophomore album “Orion.” Page 15

In “Being Frank,” a comedy about cheating, cheap laughs overwhelm serious times. Page 30 Recently reviewed movies. Page 31

Al Holliday’s analog dreams came true with “All St. Louis Revue Vol. 1.” Page 16

Laura Dern is the best part of “Big Little Lies” right now. Page 32

Ticket Tracker. Page 25

TV Q&A. Page 33

See & Do

Fuel

Citygarden celebrates 10 years with three new sculptures and a party. Page 26 Recently reviewed theater. Page 26

Screens

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17

SATURDAY

Martha Wash, a St. Louis PrideFest headliner, is experimenting with different sounds on her upcoming album. Page 6

“Yesterday” doesn’t quite come together, but it’s almost impossible not to like. Page 27 “Annabelle Comes Home” could be best of the “Annabelle” trilogy. Page 28

Oaked is sophisticated Soulard dining, sometimes to a fault. Page 36 Recently reviewed restaurants. Page 38

ON THE COVER • Fair St. Louis spectators watch the air show from Gateway Arch National Park on July 4, 2018. Photo by David Carson, Post-Dispatch

SUNDAY, JULY 7

MONDAY, JULY 8

THURSDAY, JULY 18

Visit StifelTheatre.com for the complete upcoming events schedule.

EnterpriseCenter.com StLouisBlues.com StifelTheatre.com Enterprise Center Group Sales: 314-622-5454 | Stifel Theatre Group Sales: 314-499-7676

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GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

WHAT’S HOT AT STLTODAY.COM ➨ A rare blue lobster, the first resident at St. Louis Aquarium, greeted fans here last week. stltoday.com/go ➨ Show us how you rock the rainbow, and you could score a Pride pack from Shark Bar. stltoday.com/contests ➨ Help us pick the best beers, wines and spirits for our second annual Top Pours issue. stltoday.com/contests ➨ Plan for festivals, music, theater, road trips and more with our Summer Fun Guide. stltoday.com/summerfun

stltoday.com/go

P H O T O S : P O S T- D I S PAT C H F I L E ( F I R E W O R K S ) ; A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S ( WA S H ) ; H I L L A R Y L E V I N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( O A K E D )

SUNDAY

HERE’S WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS WEEK ▼

“PrideFest this weekend and Fair St. Louis next week!

I hope we can get a break from rain for a while.” •

“I’m a sucker for a great fireworks show.

Haven’t decided if I’ll head downtown or stay closer to home yet.” •

OUR TEAM Gabe Hartwig • Go! Magazine editor, 314-340-8353, ghartwig@post-dispatch.com Amy Bertrand • Post-Dispatch features editor, 314-340-8284, abertrand@post-dispatch.com Norma Klingsick • production editor, 314-340-8103, nklingsick@post-dispatch.com Gary Hairlson • photo editor, 314-340-8279, ghairlson@post-dispatch.com

“I am looking forward to watching fireworks ... somewhere!” •

Jon Naso • photo editor, 314-340-8775, jnaso@post-dispatch.com “Going to see the Tara Lynn Trio on Sunday at Wild Sun Winery!” •

Elaine Vydra • online news editor and audience development manager, 314-340-8917, evydra@post-dispatch.com Emily Tintera • event and sponsorship manager, 314-340-8510, etintera@post-dispatch.com Donna Bischoff • Post-Dispatch vice president of sales and marketing, 314-340-8529, dbischoff@post-dispatch.com

CONTRIBUTORS

“There’s an embarrassment of riches on tap, but I’m going with KeKe Wyatt on Friday at the Ready Room and Shawn Mendes on Sunday at Enterprise Center.” •

“It’s an all-day party for us on July 4, starting with the parade in Webster Groves and ending with fireworks in Ste. Genevieve.” •

Danielle Drake-Flam • features intern Ian Froeb • restaurant critic Valerie Schremp Hahn • feature writer Jane Henderson • book editor Hanna Holthaus • features intern Kevin C. Johnson • pop music critic Sarah Bryan Miller • classical music critic Daniel Neman • food writer Kayla Steinberg • features intern Aisha Sultan • feature writer Calvin Wilson • theater critic

MAY 20 – AUGUST 3

Summer Reading Club @ St. Louis County Library

CONTACT US Tell us about your events ae@post-dispatch.com • stltoday.com/events “I’m going to go see many different fireworks displays from one central spot.

Also selling beer for my neighborhood association at Fair St. Louis.” •

Advertise with us 314-340-8500 • stltoday.com/advertise “I’m planning to see ‘Fire Shut Up in My Bones’ a second time at Opera Theatre of St. Louis.” •

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Subscribe to us 314-340-8888 • stltoday.com/subscribe Write to us ae@post-dispatch.com Go! Magazine, St. Louis Post-Dispatch 900 N. Tucker Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63101

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Fun programs and activities for the whole family!

Learn more at www.slcl.org. @gostl

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COPYRIGHT 2019 • Go! Magazine is published Fridays by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Lee Enterprises. No part of Go! Magazine may be reproduced without prior written consent. For permissions requests, reprints, back issues and more information, call 314-340-8000, or visit STLTODAY.COM/CONTACT.

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06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

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STLTODAY.COM/EVENTS ▼

Digital comedy show 85 South is bringing it all to the stage. The trio of comedians DC Young Fly, Karlous Miller and Chico Bean visit Stifel Theatre this weekend. Miller also has his own gig coming up at Helium Comedy Club. BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

BEST BETS

SUNDAY Chicago WHEN 7:30 p.m. Sunday • WHERE Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard • HOW MUCH $50.50-$130.50 • MORE INFO 314-534-1111; metrotix.com

FRIDAY ‘The Bauhaus and Its Legacy’ WHEN Friday through Oct. 20; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. TuesdaySunday (10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday) • WHERE St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-721-0072; slam.org

Brad Paisley, Chris Lane, Riley Green WHEN 7:30 p.m. Friday • WHERE Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 14141 Riverport Drive, Maryland Heights • HOW MUCH $22-$88 • MORE INFO livenation.com

Summer touring staple Brad Paisley is back — and with a new single, “My Miracle.” “I can be a little ornery when it comes to writing love songs. I don’t typically put it all out there, but in this one I did,” he says of the song, written for his wife. “This is the most

Shawn Mendes, Alessia Cara WHEN 7:30 p.m. Sunday • WHERE Enterprise Center, 1401 Clark Avenue • HOW MUCH $26-$86 • MORE INFO ticketmaster.com.

Brad Paisley performs at the CMA Awards in 2018.

powerful statement I think I can make.” Paisley’s last album was “Love and War” (2017). BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

‘SLAM Underground: Identity’ WHEN 7-10 p.m. Friday • WHERE St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-721-0072; slam.org

The St. Louis Art Museum gets Pride weekend started with a “SLAM Underground” event celebrating identity. Hear Black Tulip Chorale’s tribute to the 50th anniversary of the

Stonewall uprising, make pronoun buttons, dance to music by DJ Hood Bunny and Middle Class Fashion, and sip a signature “Show Your ID” cocktail. BY

on reality television. And her voice is even bigger.

She’s back in St. Louis with her hits, along with songs from her latest album, “KeKe Covers,” which includes her GABE HARTWIG renditions KeKe Wyatt of “Love on Top,” “I’m WHEN 8 Going Down,” p.m. Friday “Diamonds • WHERE The KeKe Wyatt and Pearls,” Ready Room, 4195 “Diamonds” Manchester Avenue and, of course, “I • HOW MUCH $35-$45 • Will Always Love You.” MORE INFO eventbrite.com R&B singer KeKe Wyatt showed her big personality

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

SATURDAY Tower Grove Pride WHEN 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday • WHERE Tower Grove Park, South Grand Boulevard and Arsenal Street • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO towergrovepride.com

Tower Grove Pride started out modestly in 2012 as a street party with about 1,000 attendees. Over time, the grassroots, neighborhood-based LGBTQ Pride festival has grown into a sprawling event that moved last year into Tower Grove Park.

Three stages will showcase

entertainment all day, including drag shows, music, the St. Louis Lady Arm Wrestlers and a panel discussion. Vendors will serve food, drinks and more fun. Tower Grove Pride is produced by the nonprofit 50 Roses Foundation.

BY GABE HARTWIG

Outlaw Music Festival WHEN 2:30 p.m. Saturday • WHERE Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 14141 Riverport Drive, Maryland Heights • HOW MUCH $25-$200 • MORE INFO livenation.com

Willie Nelson headlines the Outlaw Music Festival,

a touring show that’s thriving in an era when destination music festivals are booming. “The second leg of the Outlaw Music Festival Tour with all my friends is going to be a blast,” Nelson says. Also on the tour are Phil Lesh & Friends, Alison Krauss, Old Crow Medicine Show and Dawes. BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

Shawn Mendes is firmly entrenched among today’s top male pop performers, a list that includes Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, Charlie Puth, Khalid, Sam Smith and various members of One Direction.

Mendes is headlining at stadiums and arenas, and his new No. 1 self-titled album includes “In the Blood” and much more.

He recently collaborated with Camila Cabello on the song “Senorita.” Opening for Mendes is Grammywinning singer Alessia Cara, whose latest album is “The Pains of Growing.”

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

85 South WHEN 7 p.m. Saturday • WHERE Stifel Theatre, 1400 Market Street • HOW MUCH $37-$52 with VIP available • MORE INFO ticketmaster.com

Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy

FAST FORWARD “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” July 8-16 at the Muny: The recent Broadway version of the classic fairy tale makes its Muny debut, under the direction of Marcia Milgrom Dodge • BrickUniverse Lego Fan Convention, July 13-14 at Greensfelder Complex in Queeny Park: Meet professional Lego artists from around the world, marvel at their creations and even build something for yourself • “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy,” July 19 on Art Hill: News team, assemble: The Art Hill Film Series continues with the wacky comedy about broadcast news in the 1970s • “Paul Gauguin: The Art of Invention,” July 21-Sept. 15 at the St. Louis Art Museum: A highlight of the summer is a 90-piece show of various pieces by the French artist, who did wood carvings, ceramics and prints 4

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

Find more events, and get your own events listed for free ➙ stltoday.com/events stltoday.com/go

P H O T O S : C H A R L E S S Y K E S , I N V I S I O N /A P ( B R A D PA I S L E Y ) ; PA R A M O U N T P I C T U R E S ( W I L L F E R R E L L ) ; C O U R T E S Y O F R O L L I N G O U T ( K E K E W YAT T )

The Bauhaus art school originated 100 years ago in Germany and lasted until Nazis shut it down in 1933.

The St. Louis Art Museum will mark the anniversary of the influential modernist movement, which embraced a unity of art and design, with an exhibit of objects from its collection, including works

by Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky. Along with paintings and prints will be furniture, metalwork, textiles and ceramics. A related video installation can be viewed in Gallery 301. BY JANE HENDERSON

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame act Chicago brings its classic pop and rock songs to the Fox Theatre. Regular visitors to St. Louis, Chicago is known for “You’re the Inspiration,” “If You Leave Me Now,” “Hard to Say I’m Sorry” and “Hard Habit to Break.” BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

Willie Nelson at the Peabody in 2018

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Go Wild With Missouri Natives

WEDNESDAY Robert Randolph & the Family Band WHEN 7 p.m. Wednesday • WHERE Atomic Cowboy Pavilion, 4140 Manchester Avenue • HOW MUCH $20-$55 • MORE INFO ticktweb.com

Robert Randolph & the Family Band, which performed at LouFest in 2017, proved it “Got Soul,” the title of its last album. Now the act is eyeing “Brighter Days.”

That’s the name of its new album, to be released in August. Randolph told the Post-Dispatch his music doesn’t belong in any category. “Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, they weren’t in a category. What do you call Willie Nelson? What do you really call the Isley Brothers? When people start pigeonholing into categories, it’s limiting.”

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

PHOTOS: JON GITCHOFF

THURSDAY ‘Smart, Funny and Black’ WHEN 8 p.m. Thursday • WHERE The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard • HOW MUCH $29.50-$44.50 • MORE INFO ticketmaster.com

It’s never the wrong time to bone up on black history, right? Comedian

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Shawn Mendes performs for a sold-out crowd at the Fox Theatre in 2016.

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Glory D Denied

VOTED #1 BEST GARDEN CENTER and actress Amanda Seales brings it to the forefront of her comedy tour, presented gameshow-style with audience participation. “It’s really a celebration disguised as a game show,” she says.

“We don’t just talk about black culture. We revive, we challenge, we critique, we laugh.” Seales recently premiered her debut HBO special “I Be Knowin’” and is also featured on HBO’s “Insecure.” Seales formerly was known as MTV VJ Amanda Diva.

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON

‘The Revolutionists’ WHEN Friday through July 14; performance times vary • WHERE The Marcelle, 3310 Samuel Shepard Drive • HOW MUCH $20-$40 • MORE INFO 314-534-1111; metrotix.com

Insight Theatre Company presents Lauren Gunderson’s comedy, set during the French Revolution and dealing with themes of art, feminism, violence and terrorism. Directed by Trish Brown. BY CALVIN WILSON

‘Grand Center Theatre Crawl’ WHEN 7-10 p.m. Friday; 2-5 p.m. and 7-10 p.m. Saturday • WHERE Various locations in Grand Center • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO stlpublicradio.org

About 20 local companies will provide a sampling of the St. Louis theater scene through short performances in venues around the Grand Center arts district. Among those scheduled to participate are the Midnight Company, SATE, St. Louis Actors’ Studio and Stray Dog Theatre. BY CALVIN WILSON

SUBSCRIBE TO THE OFFICIAL NEWS SOURCE OF THE ST. LOUIS CARDINALS STLtoday.com/subscribenow J O I N U S O N L I N E S T L T O D A Y. C O M / S P O R T S

SUNDAY • 06.23.2019 • D

ANOTHER CURTAIN CALL

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

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STLTODAY.COM/MUSIC

ST. LOUIS PRIDEFEST ▼

What’s kept Martha Wash going so long? ‘Insanity, honey’ ‘Queen of Clubland,’ known as an LGBTQ ally, is experimenting with different sounds on an upcoming album

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

M

artha Wash is a dance music pioneer, but she’s not so quick to answer to that title.

Known as the “Queen of Clubland,” Wash sealed her spot in music history in the early 1980s with the Weather Girls, the duo that also included Izora Armstead and gave us the immortal “It’s Raining Men.” kjohnson@post-dispatch.com

6

@kevincjohnson

Her voice became a staple, helping carry a number of hits to the top of the charts.

She demanded that everybody dance now on C+C Music Factory’s platinum-selling “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now).” And she belted the vocals on Black Box’s “Everybody Everybody,” “I Don’t Know Anybody Else” and “Strike It Up.” Deemed “unmarketable,” Wash’s vocals went uncredited. Skinnier model types replaced her in the music videos.

Determined not to be muted, Wash spoke up — loudly. As a result, legislation was en-

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

acted calling for proper credits on CDs and music videos.

“I was just trying to get my due,” Wash says. “That was really all. I was trying to let people know this was going on, and it wasn’t right. But I guess I can understand how others see it, and I accept it, especially with attorneys going to court and fighting for others as well.

“If you’re featured “I JUST WANT TO on the music, you have HAVE FUN WITH EVERYBODY, AND to be totally credited in writing.”

I WANT PEOPLE Wash feels she has TO ENJOY THE gotten her due. She MUSIC AND SING ultimately released her ALONG WITH own album, “Martha ME. HAVE FUN Wash” (1993), featurCELEBRATING ing “Carry On” and WHO YOU ARE “Runaround.”

AND THE LOVE “I was happy about YOU HAVE FOR that — excited,” she OTHER PEOPLE.” says. “I remember MARTHA WASH saying to myself, ‘OK, this is music I’m putMORE PRIDEFEST ting out under my own EVENTS name.’ I was very happy Find a schedule about that — about the of this weekend’s songs we put on it and events. Page 13 the producers we used.”

Wash, 65, is still releasing new music, though she points out that many of her peers have moved on.

“I just keep it moving, and I’m glad to be here,” she says, attributing her longevity to “insanity, honey.”

“I’m crazy to be doing this,” she says. “I’d thought about quitting probably two or three times in my career. But then I asked myself, ‘What else am I going to do instead?’ And as you can see, I’m still singing.”

Since “Martha Wash,” she has only released one album, “Something Good” (2013). It had been suggested to her that she may have been branded a troublemaker, but she dismisses that notion.

“Am I the only person in the history of music to sue somebody?

Really?”

She says the music industry wasn’t knocking on her door after “Martha Wash,” partially because restructuring at the label left her out in the cold.

But she kept working, even forming her own label, Purple Rose Records, to release her own music. Her album “Something Good” was more of a pop effort.

“I wanted to change it up,” Wash says.

“Everybody knows me for singing dance music, which is easy. I want to be able to do any kind of music I want. I never wanted to be put in just one genre of music. Let me experiment. I’m no longer hampered by the major-label thing saying, ‘You have to do this kind of music.’”

Now Wash is working on an album that she hopes to release by the end of the year.

“It’ll be different — a little blues, a little R&B, a little psychedelic. Think of a ’60stype groove. It’s a little gumbo.”

She’s also releasing songs such as “Show Some Love” and “Don’t Stop Me Now” with First Ladies of Disco, a trio that also includes Linda Clifford and Norma Jean Wright (formerly of Chic). They’re performing shows, including Pride month events, and are contemplating an album.

Wash will perform Sunday at St. Louis PrideFest, where fans can expect to hear her belting the songs she’s known for — Weather Girls favorites, songs from her solo era and hits on which she initially was hidden.

“I just want to have fun with everybody, and I want people to enjoy the music and sing along with me,” she says. “Have fun celebrating who you are and the love you have for other people.”

Wash became known as an LGBTQ ally long ago, singing background for the late Sylvester.

Performing at Pride events over the years, she says she’s noticed more families in the audience. At a recent festival in suburban Connecticut, “I was looking at the children and they were having so much fun,” she says. “I was thinking to myself, ‘That’s the next generation of LGBT people and allies — people who are not gay but grew up in gay households.”

WHAT Martha Wash at St. Louis PrideFest • WHEN 4:45 p.m.

Sunday • WHERE Soldiers Memorial, 1315 Chestnut Street • HOW MUCH Free; $5 donation requested • MORE INFO pridestl.org

Martha Wash performs at the 65th Tony Awards in 2011 in New York.

stltoday.com/go

P H O T O S : C O U R T E S Y O F M A R S H AWA S H . C O M ; J E F F C H R I S T E N S E N , A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S ( T O N Y S )

▼

Taylor Dayne

TAYLOR DAYNE’S BIGGEST HITS

ST. LOUIS PRIDEFEST ▼

Taylor Dayne: ‘My LGBT community is the most loyal and supportive’

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

PHOTO: SARAH CONARD

P

op-dance singer Taylor Dayne has performed for countless audiences since bursting through in 1988 with “Tell It to My Heart.” But she does have a favorite audience: fans at Pride month events.

“They’re the best audience ever,” she says. “Everybody is there to be together, and when they’re there, it’s complete joy.

Everyone is there to share that moment.

“It’s a very uplifting event, whether I’m playing a small club or I’m in front of 50,000 people. My LGBT community is the most loyal and supportive.”

Dayne headlines St. Louis PrideFest on Sunday. She also performed at the event in 2013.

“Nothing gives me greater joy than going to different cities and being a part of this tradition

from community to community, city to city, and singing,” she says. “I’ve been in the business three decades and seen how people come together and seen families grow.”

Over time, she says, she’s seen change in the LGBTQ community, “from parades to awareness to marriage to raising families to surrogacy, which has been a part of my own quest to have a family, though mine was for different reasons.”

(Using a surrogate, Dayne became a mother of twins in 2002. She also has an older daughter.)

Her bookings at Pride festivals came about naturally. Since the beginning of her career, when she was breaking through on the dance music scene, it was, “you’re playing this gay club tonight and this lesbian club tomorrow night,” Dayne says.

She’s currently rolling out dates for

kjohnson@post-dispatch.com

stltoday.com/go

“Prove Your Love” (1988) • “Whenever I look at that video, I cringe. How did I let the director talk me into that freakin’ jacket? Between the jacket and the earrings, it was one big ’80s ‘forget it.’”

“Tell It to My Heart” (1988) • “It’s one of those iconic songs that changed the game and brings people so much joy. People know where they were when they first heard it, how they were, and they can stop and sing it at any age.

It’s a classic, and I’m forever grateful for it.”

“Love Will Lead You Back” (1989) • “From the moment I heard it as a demo to the moment I recorded it, I knew it was a very special song. It means so much to so many people. Performing it live never gets old.

For my show, it’s the full-circle song, the last encore that makes everything make sense. It has so many meanings for so many people.”

“Heart of Stone” (1989) • “The beautiful thing about it is I’d never performed it live, but now I’m doing it.”

“I’ll Always Love You” (1988) • “It was the game changer when it came to vocals. This ballad really changed everything. The nominations came in.” her 30th-anniversary tour, delivering a set of nonstop hits.

“I’m giving the people the voice they’ve grown to love and support all these years and songs they know and can sing along to,” she says.

Her hit list includes “Tell It to My Heart,” “Prove Your Love” and “Love Will Lead You Back.” A new single, “Love Without,” is a collaboration with Los Angeles producer Avedon. She’s not in album mode right now, choosing instead to release singles whenever she wants.

“It was time to put out a banger,” she says of the new song.

“I’m always in support of my dance legs.”

Dayne’s recently released memoir, “Tell It to My Heart — How I Lost My S#T, Conquered My Fear and Found My Heart,” details

stltoday.com/blender

everything from her modest beginnings to becoming a hit pop star to choosing to become a single mother. Her story also includes her experiences with sexual misconduct in the music industry.

The idea for the memoir came together as her 30th anniversary approached. Her 2016 TED Talk helped put some of the pieces together.

She describes the book as raw and honest, delivering the good, the bad and ugly.

“It’s not just about the voice,” she says.

“It’s not just about the song, or being recognized for hair extensions. It was time for me to tell the story, and I was ready for it.”

WHAT Taylor Dayne at St. Louis PrideFest • WHEN 5:30 p.m. Sunday • WHERE Soldiers Memorial, 1315 Chestnut Street • HOW MUCH Free; $5 donation requested • MORE INFO pridestl.org

@kevincjohnson

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SATURDAY 7/6

THURSDAY 7/11

SUNDAY 8/11

FRIDAY 9/6

SATURDAY 11/2

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PRIDE NIGHT at Busch Stadium VS

Friday, July 26 @ 7:15 Pride St. Louis and the St. Louis Cardinals are partnering to present the 3rd Annual Pride Night at Busch Stadium! With the purchase of a special Theme Ticket, fans will receive a Cardinals rainbow tank top.

Come early for a pre-game party in Budweiser Terrace!

A portion of each ticket sold will be donated to the Wash U chapter of Athlete Ally, which educates athletes at all levels, changes sport policy, and advocates for LGBTQ rights.

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW AT

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11

130 Americans die every day from an

OPIOID OVERDOSE

Overdoses don’t have to be fatal https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/epidemic/index.html

For information about treatment, naloxone, or other resources visit mohopeproject.org 12

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Members of the St. Louis Balloon Brigade march down Market Street during the 2018 PrideFest parade.

ST. LOUIS PRIDEFEST SCHEDULE ▼

Soldiers Memorial downtown once again is the setting for Pride St. Louis’ celebration of LGBTQ equality, which this year celebrates its 40th anniversary. It’s also the 50th anniversary of riots at the historic Stonewall Inn in New York City, which sparked the modern movement for LGBT rights. An interactive exhibit by the LGBT History Project will commemorate both anniversaries.

The festival is free to attend, but a $5 donation will be accepted. Find more information at pridestl.org.

SATURDAY 11 a.m. • Festival opens; military wreath ceremony (Soldiers Memorial Military Museum) 1 p.m. • Emcees Trixie LaRue and Tassandra Crush (Main stage) 1:15 p.m. • Pride Idol winner (Main stage) 1:30 p.m. • Pride Idol finalists (Main stage) 1:50 p.m. • CHARIS (Main stage)

P H O T O : J . B . F O R B E S , P O S T- D I S PAT C H

2 p.m. • Emcees Kyra Banks and Vincent Debeaute (Local stage) 2:20 p.m. • Gateway Men’s Chorus (Main stage); Paula Douglas (Local stage)

5 p.m. • St. Louis drag revue (Main stage); Jen Norman (Local stage) 5:50 p.m. • Dinah Jane (Main stage) 6:30 p.m. • Icona Pop (Main stage) 7 p.m. • Festival closes

SUNDAY 10 a.m. • Interfaith service (Main stage) 11 a.m. • Festival opens 11:15 a.m. • Hands Across Market Street ceremony (Market Street outside City Hall) Noon • Grand Pride Parade, with Metro Trans Umbrella Group and St. Louis Metro Transgender community as grand marshals (Market Street, from Eighth to 18th streets) 2 p.m. • Emcees Sable Sinclair, Tumara Mahorning and Julie Tristan (Main stage); emcee Ming Lee (Local stage) 2:10 p.m. • One Way Traffic (Local stage) 2:15 p.m. • Dignitaries (Main stage) 2:50 p.m. • Divas of the Grove (Main stage) 3:25 p.m. • All Mixed Up (Main stage); Josh Zuckerman (Local stage) 4:05 p.m. • Brian Justin Crum (Main stage) 4:35 p.m. • Esintrik (Local stage)

2:50 p.m. • Pride royalty revue (Main stage)

4:45 p.m. • Martha Wash (Main stage)

3:40 p.m. • Chel (Main stage)

5:15 p.m. • Amanda Hughley (Local stage)

3:50 p.m. • Glimmer (Local stage)

5:30 p.m. • Taylor Dayne (Main stage)

4:20 p.m. • Angelica Vila (Main stage)

6 p.m. • Festival closes

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Tony Campanella strikes new chords with his first solo album Veteran of the St. Louis music scene tells his life story and pays tribute to legends on ‘Taking It to the Street’

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

ony Campanella’s newest album, “Taking It to the Street,” was a longer time coming than most.

The St. Louis blues-rocker has been on the scene for more than two decades; he and his band are well-known locally. Before that, he was noted for his work with Tommy Bankhead as well as the Sliders. He has opened for acts such as Koko Taylor, Shemeika Copeland, John Mayall, Robin Trower, Deep Purple, Etta James and Kenny Wayne Shepherd.

But Campanella had never put out an album on his own.

Back in the 1990s, he was part of bands that released albums. Those efforts, he says, were mostly “somebody with a studio in the basement who said, ‘Hey, wanna go record something?’ And we did. It was fine, but it

T

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14

wasn’t professionally produced.”

That changed with “Taking It to the Street,” Campanella’s debut album. The title track, written by his friend and fellow blues rocker Mike Zito, tells the story of how Campanella got where he is.

“It’s where I came from and where I am now,” he says. “Now I had the opportunity to make a record and finally get this music to bigger audiences. It was a chance for me to record some original stuff.”

The album also lets him pay tribute to musicians from his past — those whose records he listened to and learned from and even the ones he got a chance to perform with.

In addition to Bankhead, Campanella has played with local legends including Henry Townsend and Bennie Smith.

The new album includes seven original tunes and four covers, including Albert King’s “Finger on the Trigger,” a song an

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“IT’S WHERE I CAME FROM AND WHERE I AM NOW. ... IT WAS A CHANCE FOR ME TO RECORD SOME ORIGINAL STUFF.” TONY CAMPANELLA

uncle turned him onto long ago, and other songs he has been playing for years in clubs.

The album is released by Gulf Coast Records, co-founded by Zito. The new label also includes Billy Price and Albert Castiglia. Zito produced the album, and Campanella says working with the former Royal Southern Brotherhood guitarist was a great experience.

“We had a limited amount of time to get a lot of stuff done, and he kept us focused so we could get in and get the best out of the moment we had,” Campanella says.

Campanella brought original songs to Zito, whose critiques made the material even stronger.

“He was able to say, ‘I like what you have here, but what if we did this at this point instead?’ He was able to make these little tweaks to the material that brought out what I had in my head,” he says. “He kept us on task and never in a mean way.”

While gigging in front of a live audience is second nature to Campanella, recording an album definitely wasn’t.

“It was completely foreign to me,” he says. “It wasn’t like playing live in a club, though most of the stuff we recorded was pretty live. It was definitely a different vibe.

There was a lot more structure to it. But having the chance to work with Mike as a producer for my first experience, I don’t know if I could have had a better experience.”

This weekend, Campanella opens for fellow blues rocker Jeremiah Johnson at the Atomic Cowboy Pavilion. They’ve done a few shows together, including the Guitar Madness event in December with John McVey. “We had a blast,” he says. “The crowd was great and made us feel warm and welcome. We said we should do another show.”

Campanella adds that Johnson is “a great player and a great performer. We do things that are similar but different enough to draw from each other’s audiences.”

Campanella’s became interested in the guitar as an 11-year-old, when an uncle gave him an old Stella acoustic guitar.

“He never played it — it was just lying around,” he says. “I picked it up and was banging on it, and he said if I wanted it, I could have it.”

He bought new guitar strings at a GrandPa Pidgeon’s discount store along with a guitar book. Campanella had three uncles who were into music and introduced him to sounds he wouldn’t have heard on his own — old blues acts such as Albert King and Albert Collins.

“I was a suburban white kid,” Campanella says. “Nobody I knew was listening to this. I didn’t know how to play it then, but I could feel it. That’s what moved me.”

His uncles had friends who were musicians, and they’d let the young Campanella hang with them, “set up my crappy guitar and amp with them. I got to put a visual on what I was hearing, and I got a little better. I still sucked, but I got better.”

After watching Stevie Ray Vaughan on an episode of “Austin City Limits,” Campanella was hooked and knew what he wanted to do. (He’s part of the annual Vaughan tribute at the Pageant.) By his 20s, he was playing with some of St. Louis’ finest blues acts, including Bankhead, the first local legend he got to jam with.

“We played together quite a bit, and he taught me a lot about what not to play and when to play,” he says. “Playing with those guys was an education. It wasn’t just about the music but where the music came from.

I could never experience it myself, but I could understand the experience a little more.

“I got to understand why the blues is the blues. It’s very fortunate I got to play with them while they were still here.”

WHAT Jeremiah Johnson, Tony Campanella • WHEN 7 p.m.

Friday • WHERE Atomic Cowboy Pavilion, 4140 Manchester Avenue • HOW MUCH $12 • MORE INFO ticketweb.com

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PHOTO: COURTESY OF GULF COAST RECORDS

Tony Campanella

PHOTOS: LAUREN KALLEN (X AMBASSADORS); COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP (ALBUM COVER)

From left: Adam Levin, Casey Harris and Sam Harris of X Ambassadors

X Ambassadors shine with sophomore album ‘ORION’ After failed attempts, the rock band fronted by Sam Harris finally released a follow-up to its 2015 album, ‘VHS’

BY KAYLA STEINBERG | ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

S

ince the 2015 release of X Ambassadors’ debut full-length album “VHS,” lead singer Sam Harris has piled on jobs.

He wrote and produced eight songs on the “Game of Thrones”-inspired soundtrack “For the Throne,” released in April.

He co-wrote three songs on Lizzo’s new album, “Cuz I Love You,” including its eponymous track.

And he toured the globe with his X Ambassadors bandmates — keyboardist Casey

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Harris, drummer Adam Levin and guitarist Noah Feldshuh — all while making music on the side.

But Harris, 30, has been feeling pressure to top “VHS,” and it’s taken the Ithaca, N.Y.-based rock band years to release a sophomore album. Failed attempts finally gave way to “Orion,” which dropped June 14.

The album is intimate. Its tracks explore the evolving relationship between Sam and Casey Harris, his brother. The title and opening track, “Hey Child,” commemorate a big milestone for Casey Harris, who welcomed his first child in November.

“It’s been hard putting the record out because it is so personal,” Sam Harris says.

“But when I write these songs with the band and when we’re coming up with these lyrics that really are “ORION” by X true and personal Ambassadors and raw ..., it feels so good. It’s like a high getting that weight off my chest talking about things in my life.”

Behind the catchy melody and upbeat tempo of the album’s final track, “Hold You Down,” lies the story of the two brothers.

The song’s video, released the same day as “Orion,” opens with Sam Harris guiding his blind brother toward a piano, where they perform the song. Home video of them playing together as children is interspersed.

Other songs share different, equally personal stories. Perhaps the most vulnerable is “I Don’t Know How to Pray,” which opens with a Hebrew blessing and segues

into Sam Harris singing about prayer and concludes with a conversation between the brothers about personal identity.

Sam and Casey Harris got their start in Ithaca and met Noah Feldshuh, the band’s former guitarist, in kindergarten. A decade later, when Sam Harris was a student at the New School, an NYC-based university, he heard that fellow student Adam Levin was a drummer; he slipped a demo from his high school band under Levin’s door.

“IT’S BEEN HARD After years of makPUTTING THE ing music together, RECORD OUT the band became ofBECAUSE IT IS ficial in 2009.

SO PERSONAL. ...

X Ambassadors IT’S LIKE A HIGH struck gold with GETTING THAT “VHS.” DoubleWEIGHT OFF MY platinum-selling CHEST TALKING single “Unsteady” ABOUT THINGS and platinum-plusIN MY LIFE.” selling single “RenSAM HARRIS egades” rocketed the band to fame, sending its members on an international tour that made them a global sensation — and put immense pressure on their sophomore album.

But in the struggle to follow “VHS,” the band has grown.

“Thematically, the first record dealt with a lot of things that personally I had been through as a young man and as a teenager,” Harris says. “This record really feels timely for me. It’s a bit more how we’ve all been feeling in the present moment rather than rehashing things from the past.”

The artwork for “Orion” is meaningful, too. Its black-and-yellow cover and Braille artwork allow Casey Harris, who was born blind and can best see high-color contrast, to connect with his band’s music in a way he couldn’t before.

The trio is performing its biggest hits and new material from “Orion” at a series of album release shows, including a concert Sunday at the Pageant. The band will be joined by alternative/indie singer Your Smith.

X Ambassadors cannot wait to come to St. Louis.

“The Pageant is one of my personal favorite places to play,” Harris says. “We’ve always had killer shows there.”

The band’s “Orion Tour” runs from Oct. 8 to Nov. 19. No St. Louis stops are scheduled for that one, but the band will visit nearby cities including Kansas City, Mo., and Nashville, Tenn.

WHAT X Ambassadors, Your Smith • WHEN 8 p.m. Sunday • WHERE The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard • HOW MUCH $25-$30 • MORE INFO ticketmaster.com

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THE BLENDER

▼

Al Holliday’s analog dreams finally come true Craigslist purchase helps the R&B artist make an album featuring a lineup of St. Louis performers

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

When an analog tape machine practically fell into Al Holliday‘s lap two years ago, the St. Louis singer and musician knew he couldn’t just let the piece of vintage equipment go unused.

“It planted a lot of seeds,” Holliday says.

He thought his R&B act, the East Side Rhythm Band, could sing backup for a selection of St. Louis artists, the way the Los Angeles-based Wrecking Crew did for numerous artists back in the day, recording on kjohnson@post-dispatch.com

16

an analog tape machine.

He’d been wanting the equipment forever, desiring the texture and warmth it provides over the “very sterile and unforgiving” nature of digital recording.

A friend told him the machines show up on Craigslist occasionally, and Holliday found one just a mile from his home. When he went to check it out, the machine didn’t work. The seller reduced the price, and Holliday rolled the dice and bought it.

He was able to repair the machine when he got it home.

“It was scary how it all happened,” Holliday says.

But it was scary good — what resulted is

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the new “All St. Louis Revue Vol. 1,” an ambitious album recorded by Holliday and his East Side Rhythm Band and produced by Holliday, JB Anderson and Zagk Gibbons.

The project was recorded live to analog tape over three sessions at Gaslight Studio.

The band plays the songs of St. Louis musicians Brian Owens (“When a Grown Man Cries”), Emily Wallace (“South City,” featuring Holliday), Roland Johnson (“Sweet Little Nothings,” featuring Paul Niehaus IV), Kenny DeShields (“Imagine”), Eugene Johnson (“Play One More”), Neil C. Luke (“How Long Can I Go On Like This?”), Big Mike Aguirre (“Free Yourself,” featuring Wallace), Tommy Halloran (“Easiest Thing in the World,” featuring Kari Liston) and the late Nathan Jatcko (“Bittersweet Home Chicago,” featuring Holliday).

“It was no small feat. It took a while to see how we were going to make this happen.

It sounded like a great idea, but it was easier said than done,” Holliday says.

The recordings took place over three days with three tunes recorded each day. All of the vocals and performances are live; there were only a few overdubs later.

Owens wrapped his part in 15 minutes and spent the rest of the time jamming with the band. Veteran player Roland Johnson

didn’t rehearse and “just showed up in his suit, got a drink and he was off to the races,” Holliday recalls.

The album is a mix of classic soul and R&B, along with some Americana, singersongwriter and jazz. “The thread that connects it all is all the songs were written in a very classic style. They’re all timeless, organic, universal songs that’ll still be good to sing in 100 years,” Holliday says. “We sought quality songs. It was a difficult decision to come up with the list. We wanted to cover a diversity of backgrounds and people while representing the best of St. Louis.”

DeShields’ “Imagine” is also featured on the new “The Kingdom Sessions” album, the Russ Mohr-led project with St. Louis artists. Though the song is the same, the arrangements aren’t.

“Their version version is the more contemporary version,” Holliday says. “Our version is more us, more live to the take.”

DeShields’ voice came out sounding distorted, and they decided to keep it that way.

“We could have re-recorded it and made it sound clean, but it had a certain feeling we couldn’t replicate. It was more gritty.”

“Bittersweet Home Chicago” was written

by Jatcko and is included here, performed

by Holliday, in his memory. Jatcko died in 2018 of suicide.

“It meant a lot for his family for us to do it,” Holliday says. “Nate didn’t sing on his song. It was always a female vocalist. It meant a lot to the family that a man sang it.

It was like Nate was singing it.”

Holliday recognizes he wasn’t able to include all of the best St. Louis artists on one album. But he says a second and third volume will bring more artists into the mix.

“All St. Louis Revue Vol. 1” — with the exception of a track or two — will not be available on streaming services. CDs, vinyl and downloads will be available.

“It’s a decision to avoid making an album and giving it away for free,” Holliday says.

“If we as artists, producers, believe in the value of music, we have to add value to it.

Tossing it for free into the digital world isn’t fair to the artists.”

The album will be celebrated Friday and Saturday at Off Broadway, with a different lineup each night.

Holliday decided two nights would better accommodate the musicians’ schedules.

“Some of them were available Friday; some were available Saturday,” he says. “We thought about Delmar Hall, but then said what if we did something more scaled back, more intimate and took our time.”

WHAT “All St. Louis Revue, Vol. 1” album release • WHEN 8 p.m.

Friday-Saturday • WHERE Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Avenue • HOW MUCH $10 nightly • MORE INFO offbroadwaystl.com

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PHOTO: COURTESY OF ROBERT ROHE

Al Holliday and the East Side Rhythm

8-PAGE PULLOUT SECTION ▼

JULY FOURTH GUIDE here are lots of ways to celebrate Independence Day in the St. Louis area. ★ The revelry downtown gets started Wednesday with Parade Town and continues into the weekend with America’s Birthday Parade and Fair St. Louis. Or you could choose something a bit more low-key, with more than 20 other festivals and fireworks displays nearby. ★ Here’s a guide to help you have a blast this Fourth of July.

T

FAIR ST. LOUIS • PAGES 19-22

P H O T O : D AV I D C A R S O N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( A R C H )

FIREWORKS AND FESTIVALS • PAGE 23

July Fourth fireworks over the Gateway Arch in 2013

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JULY FOURTH GUIDE Brett Young performs at the 52nd CMA Awards in 2018.

Brett Young is ready for ‘a big party’ at the Arch On his sophomore album, the country newcomer strives to set himself apart with authenticity

P H O T O : C H A R L E S S Y K E S , I N V I S I O N /A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

C

ountry music has been overrun by men the last several years, with a crop of on-fire newcomers pushing through.

Among them: Brett Young, who headlines Fair St. Louis on Thursday.

How do the newer bros even begin to stand apart?

“I don’t like to use the word ‘oversaturated,’ but in the solo male category, there’s a ton of new ones,” Young says. “I feel blessed and fortunate to be given this opportunity to be working. One thing I harp on all the time is authenticity. That’s one of kjohnson@post-dispatch.com

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the things that makes me different.”

The other thing, he says, is the time he spends on songs and stories. “Though there’s a huge shift toward the pop side of country, it doesn’t mean we want to abandon the story,” he says.

But Young doesn’t take credit for his breaking out beyond that. “My voice is recognizable. You know my voice when you turn on the radio. But I was born with that.

I can’t take credit for that.”

Keeping Young’s flame lit these days is his sophomore album, “Ticket to L.A.,” featuring the singles “Here Tonight” and “Catch.” It’s the follow-up to his 2017 selftitled debut.

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Young wanted to make sure the album was authentically him.

“The point of writing a song is to connect with the audience,” he says. “If it’s not authentic, it’s hard for them to connect.”

His songs were a bit darker before, but the new songs give way to more joy.

“During the first album, I was separated from my then-girlfriend, who is now my wife,” Young says. “You write about what you know and what you’re going through.

Then we got back together and married. My marriage was the biggest contributing factor to the joy. Also my career was taking off.

It was joy in general.

“Life was good, and that brings out a different type of song. That’s why there’s a different vibe. There are sad songs like ‘Used to Missin’ You,’ a sad breakup song though it doesn’t feel like it.”

Though the tone may be different this time, the idea remained to “get with (producer) Dann Huff and make sure every song, sounds like a Brett Young sound.”

One of Young’s goals on the album was to give fans a potential wedding song, as he did with “In Case You Didn’t Know” on his debut.

“I knew they were lofty goals that were hard to accomplish, but I think we accomplished them all, and it feels good,” he says.

“I wrote a bunch of songs I thought would be the follow-up to ‘In Case You Didn’t Know.’ But then I was pitched ‘Change Your Name,’ an outside song. I had to admit it was better “THE POINT than what I had written.

OF WRITING It’s already getting used for A SONG IS weddings. I got lucky with TO CONNECT that one.”

WITH THE On “Ticket to L.A.,” AUDIENCE. Young joins singer-songIF IT’S NOT writer Gavin DeGraw for AUTHENTIC, the song “Chapters.” The IT’S HARD collaboration shouldn’t FOR THEM TO come as a surprise to fans; CONNECT.” Young has always spoken BRETT YOUNG highly of DeGraw. The two met long before Young had a recording contract. “(DeGraw’s) ‘Chariot’ album (2003) took me from loving music to choosing it as a career,” he says. “He can sing anybody under the table. I got to meet him a long time ago at a show, and we become buddies.”

But he held off on a collaboration with DeGraw.

“I never wanted to mix business and pleasure, so I waited 10 years to make a song with him,” Young says. Originally, DeGraw was just co-writing on “Chapters” with Young, but “it wasn’t until the third verse that we saw it was both of our stories. I asked him to sing on it too.”

Country music staple Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum wrote on “Here Tonight,” the first single from “Ticket to L.A.” “Charles is one-of-a-kind. He’s extremely talented, a funny, goofy, generous guy. I joke with him all the time. And he definitely bullied his way into that writing session. He walked up and said, ‘You guys are writing?

I wanna write.’ He came in with an idea and already had a melody going.”

The album title is a nod to Young’s Southern California roots, and it’s also a song on the album.

Young’s new upbeat vibe should go over well during his Fair St. Louis performance.

“It’s a fun show, and we just rolled over a brand-new stage set and producer,” he says.

“We’ve got new covers, a new set list, songs we’ve never played before. July Fourth shows are a blast. It’s already a big party.”

Young will release his “The Acoustic Sessions” EP on Sept. 13, with “Here Tonight,” “Catch,” “Don’t Wanna Write This Song,” “Chapters” and “Ticket to L.A.” WHAT Brett Young at Fair St. Louis • WHEN 8:15 p.m.

Thursday • WHERE Gateway Arch National Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO fairsaintlouis.org

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JULY FOURTH GUIDE

Johnny Gill is changing the game for fans who are ‘hungry for real R&B’

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

V

eteran R&B singer Johnny Gill is still changing the game.

In 2014, Gill released the hit album “Game Changer” — with “This One’s For Me

and You,” featuring his New Edition group mates. The album was a Top 10 hit on Billboard’s R&B album chart.

Now the “My, My, My” singer, performing July 5 at Fair St. Louis, is gearing up for “Game Changer II,” preceded by a new single, “Soul of a Woman.”

Tiffany Haddish is the leading lady in the song’s video.

The new album — on Gill’s label, J. Skillz — doesn’t yet have a release date.

Ralph Tresvant, also of New Edition, is making a return, too, recording on J. Skillz.

Q • Why did you decide to do a sequel to “Game Changer”?

A • I’ve often said when you do a great movie, most of them have sequels. This album was hugely successful. My thought process was nobody does that in the music industry anymore.

We had Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter” albums, but it was rarely done.

When you have something great like that, even if you missed the first one, if you love the second one, you’ll come back to it. The first one was a masterpiece, and no matter what happens, it’ll be around for many years.

Q • Why do you think the album was so popular?

A • People are so hungry for real R&B music. When you listen to “This One Is for Me and You,” there’s nothing trendy about it. People understood every song and connected to them.

The proof was in the pudding. I didn’t know it would have that reaction. That was my “Thriller.”

Q • What can you say about “Game Changer II”?

A • I’m very close to finishing it. It’s the same, but what I did that was different is there’s a little more tempo on it, and it goes in a couple of different directions. But I didn’t compromise. I’m inspired by different music. It comes from an honest place. I’ve got something on there that feels like reggae, that feels like Latin, and a little hip-hop. But it’s all Johnny being Johnny. It just felt right. Then I have great songs like “That’s My Baby,” my tribute to Luther Vandross.

Q • Can you say a little more about “That’s My Baby”?

A • He was a great artist, a great friend and I miss him.

He taught me about painting a picture, how to tell a story in a song. He was the master in doing that, and it was an honor knowing him, and I continue to carry the torch.

Q • What’s “Soul of a Woman” all about?

A • The song is celebrating women like my mama, who is a strong woman. I’ve seen her struggle raising four boys and seeing the seeds she planted brings me to where I am today. It’s to my mother, but it’s to all mothers.

Q • How did Tiffany Haddish wind up in the video?

A • I’ve been knowing Tiffany for many years, from when she first got in the game. But I can’t take credit for it. Chris Spencer directed the video, and he thought it would be a great idea to see Tiffany in a different light.

Q • Will there be another full New Edition reunion with all the singers? (The group members don’t all get along, leading to other configurations of the singers, such as the recent RBRM, which includes Ronnie Devoe, Bobby Brown, Ricky Bell and Michael Bivins.)

A • Is there a God that sits on the throne? It’s absolutely possible. I believe God at some point will do what needs to be done to allow fans and the world to experience that at its best. But first God’s gotta break us down and rebuild us.

Q • Do you prefer the group thing or being solo at this point in your career?

A • I take the success God has given me and run with it.

It doesn’t matter which way it goes. The gift is not meant to be in one particular place.

It’s meant to be shared with the world in all forms.

Q • Of the other singers in the group, you’ve always seemed closest to Ralph. Is that true?

A • We bonded from the first time we met with the “Heart Break” album (1988).

Ever since, he’s been my little brother. He always said, “I look up to you,” and I try to teach all of them, lead by example.

But we all have different ways how we do business. That’s our biggest challenge.

WHAT Johnny Gill at Fair St. Louis • WHEN 6:30 p.m. July 5 • Where Gateway Arch National Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO fairsaintlouis.org

SEVEN SHOW SEASON TICKET PACKAGE ON SALE NOW

‘I don’t try to follow the trends’: Keith Sweat plays for keeps on new album

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

A

s one of the purveyors of the “new jack swing” movement of the late 1980s and early 1990s, R&B crooner Keith Sweat holds a special place in music history.

But his isn’t often the first name to come to mind when discussing the genre — artists including Guy, Bobby Brown, Al B. Sure!, Johnny Kemp, Tony!

Toni! Toné! and Wreckx-n-Effect.

“I think people slipped and hit their heads, but it’s all good,” says Sweat, who released his “Make It Last Forever” album in 1987 (featuring his No. 1 hit “I Want Her”), which “put him on the map.”

“I felt it was a great album — I didn’t know it would have the effect it had on so many people,” he says. “It felt like something different. The music had a little edge to it when it came out, and people gravitated toward it. But I didn’t think it would be what it was.”

Sweat has stayed afloat with a long string of hits including “Nobody,” “Twisted,” “I”ll Give All My Love to You,” “Right and a Wrong Way,” “How Deep Is Your Love” and “Make You Sweat.”

And he remains relevant, visiting St. Louis for headlining shows at Chaifetz Arena. He’s

PHOTO: JON GITCHOFF

Q&A ▼

JULY FOURTH GUIDE Keith Sweat performs as part of the Gateway Music Festival at Chaifetz Arenain 2015.

P H O T O : A S S O C I AT E D P R E S S

Johnny Gill performs in 2017 at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Gala in New York.

!

314-535-1700

!

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Fox Box Office

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still releasing new music, while younger artists keep the sound he helped create new, most notably Bruno Mars and his Grammy-winning “24K Magic” album.

“I’m not mad at anybody for having their season,” Sweat says. “Everybody has their time.

I had my time when I came out and was killing the game. He has his season, and after him there will be somebody else. I can’t be mad at what Bruno does. I can’t be mad at what Chris Brown does. The game done changed.”

Sweat’s newest entry in the game is appropriately titled “Playing for Keeps.”

“I’m doing Keith Sweat today, Keith Sweat 2018, 2019, 2020,” he says. “I wasn’t trying to do anything but put out good, quality music. I don’t try to follow the trends of what everybody else is doing.”

The music industry may have changed and interests are different, but he says he’s staying true to himself. He describes the new album as a mix of classic Sweat and contemporary Sweat.

“Nowadays there’s certain things you can say on a record,” he says. “Everybody is cursing; I keep it grown and sexy. I’m not trying to offend my core audience. But I still try to have a younger audience gravitate to my music. I try

“I’M NOT TRYING TO OFFEND MY CORE AUDIENCE. BUT I STILL TRY TO HAVE A YOUNGER AUDIENCE GRAVITATE TO MY MUSIC. I TRY TO FIND THAT MIDDLE GROUND.” KEITH SWEAT

to find that middle ground between those people who’ve always been listening to me and bringing new people to what I already do.”

Sweat says it’s easy for him to attract and keep new audiences; he has the looks and swag he had when he was younger. “They look at me, and they don’t see me as someone who came out in the ’80s and ’90s. They can relate to me.”

While his music is edgier than when he started, he says, it hasn’t changed dramatically.

Special guests on the new album include Teddy Riley, K-Ci and Akon. “A lot of them are my friends,” he says. “I wanted certain people on the record, and it wasn’t like I was reaching out to people I don’t know. They were just a phone call away.”

Another friend, though not on the album, is singer Johnny Gill; they were once in R&B supergroup LSG with the late Gerald Levert. Gill is also performing at Fair St. Louis, right before Sweat’s set.

Any chance they could reunite onstage?

“We always do stuff together.

That’s my man. That’s family.”

WHAT Keith Sweat at Fair St. Louis • WHEN 8:15 p.m. July 5 • WHERE Gateway Arch National Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO fairsaintlouis.org

SWAP FOR ONE OF THESE WICKED ESCAPE TO MARGARITAVILLE STOMP JERSEY BOYS CIRQUE DREAMS HOLIDAZE RENT 20 TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR RIVERDANCE 06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

21

JULY FOURTH GUIDE Matt Scannell (front) and Vertical Horizon

BY KEVIN C. JOHNSON | POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC

ertical Horizon’s breakthrough album “Everything You Want” just turned 20, a milestone the band acknowledged with a tweet.

The rock band has opted not to embark on a tour playing the album in its entirety. That’s what some acts do when a key album

V

FAIR ST. LOUIS SCHEDULE ▼

9:55 p.m. • Fireworks 10 p.m. • Parade Town closes

Wednesday, July 3

Thursday, July 4

America’s Biggest Birthday Parade kicks off with music, food, drinks and family fun at Parade Town at Kiener Plaza downtown. The event is free to attend. Find more info at americasbirthdayparade. com/paradetown.

July Fourth downtown begins with America’s Birthday Parade (aka the VP Parade), produced by the Veiled Prophet Organization. This year’s theme is “We the People!,” represented by 14 marching bands and 21 floats, plus helium balloons and other entries. The parade steps off on Market Street at 20th and continues east to Broadway. And it’s not just for St. Louisans to enjoy anymore; the parade is broadcast live to more than 50 television markets nationwide. Find more info at americasbirthdayparade.com.

4 p.m. • Parade Town opens; music and cornhole tournament 5:30 p.m. • Golden Knights parachute show 6:05 p.m. • Dave Glover Band 7:30 p.m. • Jake’s Leg 8:30 p.m. • Balloon glow 8:50 p.m. • Jake’s Leg

22

hits a special anniversary mark.

Instead, Vertical Horizon, which performs July 6 at Fair St. Louis, will incorporate songs from “Everything You Want” into its usual set while also touring with its latest album, “The Lost Mile.”

Lead singer Matt Scannell says the band leans heavily on “Everything You Want” in concert, but there are a couple of songs that aren’t played

7:30 a.m. • America’s Birthday 5K (Soldiers Memorial) 9:30 a.m. • 137th America’s Birthday Parade (Market Street)

as often. “We contemplated playing the whole record, but at this point, we’ll try to highlight tracks we haven’t played much,” he says. “We’ll be talking about the record, for sure.”

And how could the band not talk about “Everything You Want” at this time?

The 1999 album flipped everything for the band, which had been struggling. Vertical Horizon had independently released two minor albums, “There and Back Again” (1992) and “Running on Ice” (1995).

Scannell began writing the album in 1997 and 1998 in New York City. “I didn’t have any money. And when you’re

Saturday, July 6

After the parade, Fair St. Louis gets started at Gateway Arch National Park. Due to flooding on Leonor K. Sullivan Boulevard on the riverfront, the fair footprint now extends west to portions of Memorial Drive, Fourth Street and Market Street. Entry is free, with various concessions available for sale on the grounds. Find more info at fairsaintlouis.org.

Performance Team (Festival Zone); Randy Houser (Main stage)

4 p.m. • Fair St. Louis opens

4:15 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone)

Noon • Fair St. Louis opens

4:30 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone)

4:30 p.m. • Salute to the Troops (Main stage)

5 p.m. • Air show (Over Mississippi River)

5 p.m. • Air show (Over Mississippi River)

6:30 p.m. • Johnny Gill (Main stage); Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone)

6:30 p.m. • Vertical Horizon (Main stage); Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone)

8:15 p.m. • Keith Sweat (Main stage)

8:15 p.m. • The Flaming Lips (Main stage)

9:35 p.m. • Fireworks (Over Mississippi River)

9:35 p.m. • Fireworks (Over Mississippi River)

12:30 p.m. • Air show (Over Mississippi River) 2 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone) 4:30 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone) 5 p.m. • Air show (Over Mississippi River) 6:30 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

8:15 p.m. • Brett Young (Main stage) 9:35 p.m. • Fireworks (Over Mississippi River)

Friday, July 5

Noon • Fair St. Louis opens

He wasn’t confident those were the songs that would break through. But he was at least hopeful.

And the band will always embrace those songs.

“I’ve met a lot of artists along the way who are tired of playing their hits, begrudgingly starting up the good ol’ standard with ‘Here you go, I know you wanna hear this.’ I learned very early on not to put a song on a record you don’t love. You have to love it so much you’ll play it 10,000 times before you kick the bucket.

“I believe in these songs 100 percent, and they truly came from my heart. There’s no manufactured emotions, no ‘we need to do this to sound like this other band doing this other thing.’ Songwriting is an inherently selfish thing. I just want to fix the things inside of me that are broken.”

While Vertical Horizon spent a lot of time indulging its rock side, “The Lost Mile,” featuring “I’m Gonna Save You,” evokes less obvious influences, bands such as Depeche Mode, New Order and the Cure.

“I love that music,” Scannell says. “That wasn’t a part of our sound.”

He wrote the majority of “The Lost Mile” on the keyboards, and he says making the album was a joyous experience.

That’s because he was in a happier place than he’d been in decades, he says. He fell in love and surrounded himself with positive people.

“I’d sought out misery to stay inspired to write songs.

I felt, in order to write a good song, I needed to be sad. I don’t feel that way anymore.”

“This record is in a pretty positive place,” Scannell says.

“It’s probably a little more of a self-indulgent record. It’s a little longer, and I don’t have a record label trying to get us to do things a certain way.

“I love the album, and it’s where my heart is now. I’m already working on the new album.”

But first up is Fair St. Louis, where Vertical Horizon will perform just before the Flaming Lips.

“We’ve never played with the Flaming Lips,” Scannell says. “We have so much respect for them.

“It’s an absolute thrill to be back in St. Louis. We have dear friends who live there, and we want to get to the Hill and get toasted ravioli. We’re going to honor our servicemen and women with our performance.”

WHAT Vertical Horizon at Fair St. Louis • WHEN 6:30 p.m. July 6 • WHERE Gateway Arch National Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO fairsaintlouis.org

America’s Birthday Parade makes its way down Market Street in 2018.

12:30 p.m. • Air show (Over Mississippi River) 2 p.m. • Purina Pro Plan Performance Team (Festival Zone)

stltoday.com/go

P H O T O S : C O U R T E S Y O F T H E A R T I S T ( V E R T I C A L H O R I Z O N ) ; C R I S T I N A M . F L E T E S , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( PA R A D E )

Vertical Horizon still gives fans everything they want — and more

in New York City and you don’t have a lot of money, it’s a tough place to live. It wasn’t desperate times, but there was a desperation to it, and we were trying to raise the profile of the band, get into people’s lives. But how do you do that?

“You try to write a No. 1 song.”

“Everything You Want,” the band’s first album on a major label, delivered not only the smash title track but also “You’re a God,” “We Are” and “Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning).” The album sold more than 2 million copies, and songs from the album landed in “Alias,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Bruce Almighty.”

“It changed my life — changed the band members’ lives,” Scannell says. “To say I’m grateful for the record doesn’t even cut it. It encouraged us to continue on our journey — and flash-forward to today: It’s still supporting me. It’s a record that still provides for me and helps me live my life. I get goosebumps just thinking about this group of songs resonating at such a level.”

The songs resonated, he says, because they were pure, and he was really coming into himself as a songwriter. More than 100 songs were written for the album before he settled on the tracks that made the final cut.

JULY FOURTH GUIDE Spectators watch fireworks over the Clark Bridge on July 3, 2018, in Alton.

OTHER FIREWORKS AND FESTIVALS ▼

Alton Fireworks Spectacular

P H O T O : L A U R I E S K R I VA N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H

WHEN 5 p.m. July 3 (fireworks around 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Great Central Lumber lot, 35 Ridge Street, Alton (moved from Liberty Bank Alton Amphitheater due to flooding) • HOW MUCH Free; $25 VIP • MORE INFO 1-800-258-6645; visitalton.com

8979; unionmochamber.org

Edwardsville Independence Day Celebration WHEN 5 p.m. June 29 (fireworks at dusk) • WHERE American Legion, 58 South State Route 157, Edwardsville • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 618-656-9774

Chesterfield Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration

Ellisville Independence Day Festival

WHEN 6:30-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Chesterfield Mall, 291 Chesterfield Mall Drive, Chesterfield • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636537-4000; chesterfield.mo.us

WHEN 6-10:30 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Bluebird Park, 225 Kiefer Creek Road, Ellisville • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636-227-9660; ellisville.mo.us

City of Union Fireworks

Eureka Independence Day Celebration

WHEN 5-10 p.m. July 3 (fireworks at 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Veterans Memorial Park, 600 Progress Parkway, Union • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636-583-

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WHEN 7-10 p.m. July 4 • WHERE Lions Park, 340 Bald Hill Road, Eureka • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636-938-5233; eureka.mo.us

Fair St. Louis WHEN Noon-10 p.m. July 4, 4 p.m.-10 p.m. July 5, noon-10 p.m.

July 6 (fireworks at 9:35 p.m. nightly) • WHERE Gateway Arch National Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO fairsaintlouis.org

Ferguson Fourth of July WHEN 10 a.m.-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.) • WHERE January-Wabash Park, 501 North Florissant Road, Ferguson • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-521-4661; fergusoncity.com

Fireworks in Grafton WHEN 9 p.m. July 6 • WHERE Grafton Riverfront, Front Street, Grafton • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 618-7867000; enjoygrafton.com

Fireworks in Hazelwood WHEN 9 a.m.-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.) • WHERE White Birch Park, 1186 Teson

Road, Hazelwood • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-7310980; hazelwoodmo.org

Benton Street, Granite City • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 1-618877-3059; park.granitecity.com

Fourth of July in Florissant

J.B. Blast at Jefferson Barracks

WHEN 6-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.) • WHERE James J. Eagan Center, 1 James J. Eagan Drive, Florissant Valley Park, Florissant • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-921-5700; flovalleynews.com

WHEN 7-10 p.m. July 3 (fireworks at 9 p.m.) • WHERE Veterans Memorial Amphitheater, 255 Grant Road, Jefferson Barracks Park • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-615-4386; stlouisco.com

Godfrey Family Fun Fest With Fireworks

Jerseyville Fireworks

WHEN 5-9:30 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.) • WHERE Robert E. Glazebrook Community Park, 1401 Stamper Lane, Godfrey • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 1-800-466-1483; godfreyil.org

Granite City Patriots in the Park WHEN 6-10 p.m. July 2, 1-10 p.m.

July 3, 1-11 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.), 1-10 p.m. July 5, 1-11 p.m.

July 6 • WHERE Wilson Park, 2900

WHEN 9:15-10 p.m. July 4 • WHERE Jersey County Fairgrounds, 101 West Fairground Avenue, Jerseyville • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 1-618-498-3312; visitalton.com

July Fourth Fest WHEN 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. July 3-6 (fireworks at 9:05 p.m. July 3-5 and 10:05 p.m. July 6) • WHERE Six Flags St. Louis, 4900 Six Flags Road, Eureka • HOW MUCH Ticket prices vary • MORE INFO 636938-5300; sixflags.com/stlouis

Kirkwood Freedom Festival WHEN 7-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at dusk) • WHERE Kirkwood Park, 111 South Geyer Road, Kirkwood • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314-822-5855; kirkwoodmo.org

Manchester July Fourth Party WHEN 6-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks around 9 p.m.) • WHERE Paul A. Schroeder Park, 359 Old Meramec Station Road, Manchester • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636227-1385; manchestermo.gov

O’Fallon Heritage & Freedom Fest WHEN 4-10 p.m. July 2, 4-11 p.m.

July 3 (fireworks at 10:15 p.m.), noon-10 p.m. July 4 (fireworks at 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Ozzie Smith Sports Complex, 900 T.R. Hughes Boulevard, O’Fallon, Mo. • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636-3795614; heritageandfreedomfest.com

St. Charles Riverfest WHEN Fourth of July Parade is 10 a.m. July 4 at North Main and Second streets; Riverfest is 5-11 p.m. Aug. 30, noon-11 p.m.

Aug. 31 (fireworks at 9:20 p.m.), rescheduled due to flooding • WHERE Frontier Park, 222 South Riverside Drive, St. Charles • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636946-7776; discoverstcharles.com

St. Louis Regional Airport Fireworks WHEN 9:21 p.m. June 30 • WHERE St. Louis Regional Airport, 8 Terminal Drive, Bethalto • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO visitalton.com

Village of Twin Oaks Fireworks and Concert in the Park WHEN 7-10 p.m. July 3 (fireworks at 9:15 p.m.) • WHERE Twin Oaks Park, 199 Ann Avenue, Ballwin • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO vil.twin-oaks.mo.us

Webster Groves Community Days WHEN 5-11 p.m. July 3, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. July 4 (parade at 10 a.m., fireworks at 9:30 p.m.), 5-11 p.m. July 5, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. July 6 (fireworks at 9:30 p.m.) • WHERE Memorial Park, 33 East Glendale Road, Webster Groves • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 314963-5600; webstergroves.org

Wentzville Liberty Fest WHEN Noon-9 p.m. July 4 (parade at 10 a.m., fireworks at 9:05 p.m.) • WHERE Progress Park, 968 Meyer Road, Wentzville • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO 636-332-9236; wentzvillemo.org

BY DANIELLE DRAKE-FLAM

Watch for updates on weather-related event cancellations. stltoday.com

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

23

LET’S CELEBRATE FAIR SAINT LOUIS RETURNS TO THE ARCH

JULY 4

JULY 5

JULY 6

Boeing Air Shows

Boeing Air Show

Boeing Air Shows

STAGE

STAGE

STAGE

Randy Houser

Johnny Gill

Vertical Horizon

BRETT YOUNG

KEITH SWEAT

THE FLAMING LIPS

Edward Jones Fireworks Show

Edward Jones Fireworks Show

Edward Jones Fireworks Show

FAIRSAINTLOUIS.ORG 24

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

stltoday.com/go

SEEN ON THE SCENE ▼

CARRIE UNDERWOOD • JUNE 18 • ENTERPRISE CENTER 1 Jessica Lawlor (left) and Sophia Nehr, both of St. Peters 2 From left: Abagail, Katie, Angela and Emma Brennan of Springfield, Mo. 3 Nikki Buehrle (left) of O’Fallon, Mo., and Mindy Davila of Overland 4 From left: Jessica, Grace and Greg Ledwon of Ballwin 5 Lauren Simpson and Mel Paytes, both of Racine, Wis. 6 From left: Danielle and Leighton Lee and Kayla and Angie Boyer, all of High Ridge “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC • JUNE 22 • FOX THEATRE 7 Blythe Lee Brown and Lucas Wells, both of Mount Vernon, Ill. 8 From left: Lucas, Brian and Riley Derickson of St. Louis 9 Evan Durmeyer and Jen Otto, both of St. Louis 10 From left: Fred, Freddie, Emily and Aidan Coste of St. Louis 11 James and Sarah Hrabak of Springfield, Ill. 12 Scott and Joan Finley of St. Louis

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

TICKET TRACKER ▼

Blueberry Hill Duck Room ticketmaster.com • Hot Snakes, Des Demonas, 8 p.m.

Sept. 8, $23-$27.

• Leslie Stevens, 8 p.m. Sept. 15, $12-$15.

• Becca Mancari, 8 p.m. Sept. 29, $12.

Delmar Hall ticketmaster.com • Reignwolf, King Nun, 8 p.m.

Aug. 23, $15.

P H O T O S : J O N G I T C H O F F ( S E E N O N T H E S C E N E ) ; C O U R T E S Y O F T H E A R T I S T ( B I G B A D V O O D O O D A D D Y ) ; M AT T S AY L E S / I N V I S I O N /A P ( C E C E W I N A N S )

• Falling Fences “Songwriters Hell” EP release, 8 p.m.

Sept. 6, $12-$15.

• Edwin McCain, 8 p.m. Nov. 5, $30-$35.

Event Center at River City Casino ticketmaster.com • Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, 8 p.m. Aug. 2, $20, on sale at 10 a.m. Friday.

Fubar etix.com • Agnostic Front “Victims in Pain” 35th anniversary tour, Prong, 8 p.m.

Sept. 18, $20-$22, on sale at 10 a.m. Friday.

The Pageant ticketmaster.com • “Victorious Sky Tour” with Skillet and Alter Bridge, Dirty Honey, 7 p.m.

Oct. 14, $39.50$59.50, on sale at 10 a.m. Friday.

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• Hobo Johnson & the Lovemakers, 8 p.m. Nov. 22, $30$32.50, on sale at 10 a.m. Friday.

The Ready Room eventbrite.com • Pink Sweat$, 8 p.m.

Sept. 13, $15-$18.

Touhill Performing Arts Center touhill.org • America’s 50th Anniversary Tour, 8 p.m. Sept.

20, $37-$109.

• CeCe Winans, 8 p.m.

Sept. 27, $23-$85.

• “Richard Marx: An Acoustic Evening of Love Songs,” 8 p.m.

Feb. 8, $30$89.

CeCe Winans

Find more photos from these events and more around town, and order photo reprints and keepsake merchandise: stltoday.com/photos

stltoday.com/go

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

25

▼

RECENTLY REVIEWED THEATER ▼

‘The Boy From Oz’

“Love vs Money”

“Unzip the Earth”

“Moonrise.east.may”

Citygarden turns 10 with new sculptures and a party A birthday party will celebrate the installation of three new pieces in the downtown sculpture park

BY KAYLA STEINBERG | ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

W

hen Citygarden turns 10 years old next week, its community celebration will kick summer birthday parties up a notch.

The downtown sculpture garden recently welcomed three new sculptures, and an event Monday features jazz/hip-hop artist and trombonist DJ Nune, cookies and a Bubble Bus. In the summer heat, Citygarden is a magnet.

Kids splash in its pools and waterfalls while downtown workers and tourists meander among its sculptures.

The park has attracted visitors of all ages for the past decade. Its array of art — quirky cwilson@post-dispatch.com

26

@calvinwilsonstl

pieces including giant white rabbits and a headless figure wearing a pink suit — and urban setting make it a perfect destination for lunch or a nighttime stroll.

“It brings together people from every segment of society, and it does so in a way that they enjoy,” says Paul Wagman, spokesman for the Gateway Foundation. The nonprofit’s mission is to develop St. Louis culture through art and urban design. Citygarden is its biggest project — it funds, develops and operates the free sculpture garden.

The foundation organized and sponsored the garden’s three spring additions. “Unzip the Earth,” created by Canadian artist Floyd Elzinga, features a large brick zipper with a stainless-steel pull that appears to unzip the grass. The piece was unveiled April 4 on the park’s south lawn, near Eighth Street. The

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

installation is temporary; it will be removed in the fall.

A month later, the garden added “Love vs Money,” a permanent piece. An imaginary figure, nicknamed I.F. by Los Angeles artist Kaï, holds a heart-shaped balloon in its left hand and a bag of money in its right hand.

The sculpture stands on the roof of Kaldi’s Coffee, overlooking the waterfall below.

A sculpture Wagman describes as “the man in the moon” rounds out the trio of new additions. The temporary installation, titled “Moonrise.east.may,” is a smiling face encased in a moon. It’s part of a larger work: New York artist Ugo Rondinone designed 12 masks, each representing a different month of the year, with the mask in Citygarden representing May. Added June 6,“Moonrise.east.may” is stationed near the video wall west of Ninth Street.

The sculptures were selected by the Gateway Foundation, which searches the world for pieces of art. Its board must agree unanimously on a sculpture before purchasing it.

Citygarden was a project long in the making. A master plan for downtown St. Louis was developed in 1999, and a decade later, the sculpture garden opened. Now 10 years after that, two blocks of Market Street that once sat empty are filled with nearly 30 eye-catching sculptures from around the globe.

Rotating temporary sculptures like “Unzip the Earth” and “Moonrise.east.may” allow the Gateway Foundation to spruce up the garden while retaining green space. When they’re removed from Citygarden, the temporary sculptures are often placed in other spots around the city. The foundation has installed 27 sculptures across St. Louis and St. Louis County so far, with the newest titled “Steve Wondering if He Could Actually Walk” at the Sheldon Concert Hall & Art Galleries.

In 2011, Citygarden won the Urban Land Institute’s Amanda Burden Urban Open Space Award. The honor was accompanied by a $10,000 prize, used to fund other projects such as grants for local arts institutions.

Wagman hopes the birthday party will renew St. Louisans’ interest in the garden.

“It’s an important attraction that’s worth celebrating,” he says. “The Gateway Foundation is marking that celebration in its typical fashion: to give again to the community by placing these three new sculptures in the garden.”

Lunchtime musical performances continue from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Wednesdays, and free yoga sessions are at 8 a.m. Saturdays, through August.

WHAT Citygarden 10th anniversary • WHEN 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday • WHERE Citygarden, 801 Market Street • HOW MUCH Free • MORE INFO citygardenstl.org

WHEN Through Sunday • WHERE Stages St. Louis, Robert G. Reim Theatre, Kirkwood Civic Center, 111 South Geyer Road • HOW MUCH $25-$65 • MORE INFO stagesstlouis.org

David Elder is spectacular as singersongwriter Peter Allen in this thrilling jukebox musical presented by Stages St. Louis. With Caitlyn Caughell and Michele Ragusa. Directed

by Michael Hamilton.

BY CALVIN WILSON

‘The Coronation of Poppea’

$40-$60 • MORE INFO 314534-1111; metrotix.com

Inspired by the controversy surrounding an early 20th-century play that depicted a lesbian romance, Paula Vogel’s “Indecent” is a tribute to the power of theater: wonderfully acted, imaginatively staged and excitingly of the moment. The Max & Louie production is directed by Joanne Gordon. BY CALVIN WILSON

‘The Marriage of Figaro’ WHEN Through Saturday • WHERE Loretto-Hilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves • HOW MUCH $25-$139 • MORE INFO 314961-0644; opera-stl.org

Monteverdi’s “The Coronation of Poppea” represents the triumph of vice over virtue, as the beautiful, ambitious Poppea sets her cap for a crown. Opera Theatre of St. Louis presents an unusually effective update by director Tim Albery. Emily Fons is Poppea, Benton Ryan is Nero, and a fine cast backs them up. BY

Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” is one of the greatest operas ever written, a profound work with both great comedy and great humanity.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ fine production is directed by Mark Lamos and conducted by Christopher Allen, with sopranos Monica Dewey and Susannah Biller as Susanna and the Countess, respectively; bass-baritone Aubrey Allicock as Figaro, baritone Theo Hoffman as the Count and mezzosoprano Samantha Gossard as Cherubino.

SARAH BRYAN MILLER

BY SARAH BRYAN MILLER

‘Fire Shut Up in My Bones’

Verdi’s ‘Rigoletto’

WHEN Through Friday • WHERE Loretto-Hilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves • HOW MUCH $25-$139 • MORE INFO 314961-0644; opera-stl.org

WHEN Through Saturday • WHERE Loretto-Hilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves • HOW MUCH $25-$139 • MORE INFO 314961-0644; opera-stl.org

Like his first opera, “Champion,” composer Terence Blanchard’s jazz-infused “Fire Shut Up in My Bones” takes on a true story of trauma and reconciliation.

The notably strong, all African American cast is led by four superb singers: soprano Julia Bullock, bass-baritone Davóne Tines, soprano Karen Slack and tenor Chaz-men Williams-Ali. James Robinson directs; William Long conducts.

WHEN Through Sunday • WHERE Loretto-Hilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves • HOW MUCH $25-$139 • MORE INFO 314961-0644; opera-stl.org

Giuseppe Verdi’s “Rigoletto” is one of the standards of the operatic repertoire. The production at Opera Theatre of St. Louis has a superb cast, including the fine English baritone Roland Wood in the title role, soprano So Young Park as his doomed daughter Gilda and tenor Joshua Wheeker as the Duke. Roberto Kalb conducts idiomatically; Bruno Ravella is the imaginative director.

BY SARAH BRYAN MILLER

BY SARAH BRYAN MILLER

‘Indecent’ WHEN Through Sunday • WHERE The Grandel, 3610 Grandel Square • HOW MUCH

Find more performances in our calendar, and add your own group’s upcoming events. stltoday.com/events

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P H O T O S : K AY L A S T E I N B E R G , P O S T- D I S PAT C H

STLTODAY.COM/ARTS

Himesh Patel in “Yesterday”

‘Yesterday’ is a stretch, but it’s nearly impossible not to like High-concept, high-pressure, high-stakes film banks on the premise that the Beatles never existed ★★½

BY KATIE WALSH | TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

anny Boyle and Richard Curtis’ “Yesterday” requires its viewers to take quite a few leaps of faith. First, you have to wholeheartedly buy into the rule that, categorically, the best songs ever written are by the Beatles. They’re great songs, to be sure. But in “Yesterday,” they are revelatory, tear-jerking, Best Songs Ever, no matter the context or who is singing them.

It’s very high stakes, but then again, most everything about “Yesterday” is high stakes.

This heightened high-concept magical dramedy presents the idea that a weird elec-

PHOTO: UNIVERSAL PICTURES

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trical blip/solar flare causes electricity all over the world to go out, while simultaneously wiping our collective consciousness clean of all traces of The Beatles. Jack (Himesh Patel), a struggling pub musician and busker, is at that moment hit by a bus (thank goodness he’s wearing a helmet), totaling his teeth and his bike tire. But somehow, his memory of the Beatles remains magically intact. He discovers the quirk when, as a get-well gift, his pals give him a guitar. And because “a great guitar deserves a great song,” he plays a few bars of the Beatles’ “Yesterday,” absolutely flooring his friends, who wonder when and how he wrote the tune.

Jack’s the only person in the world who

remembers the band (or so it seems). And so, through a series of jogs in the rain clutching his forehead, he ultimately decides to capitalize on it, sending his career into overdrive. His trajectory to the top is aided by Ed Sheeran, who is apparently now the world’s best songwriter (in this timeline, Oasis does not exist, but the Rolling Stones do), and his manager, Deborah (Kate McKinnon), hears Jack’s crooning and sees dollar signs.

Written by Jack Barth and Richard Curtis, the king of the British rom-com (“Love Actually,” “Four Weddings and Funeral,” “About Time”), “Yesterday” is a love story disguised as a high-concept music film. Jack has friend-zoned his best mate, Ellie (Lily James), and through the Beatles’ music and his journey to global superstardom and back, he learns what’s really important in life. But with Curtisian flair, Jack can’t just tell Ellie — he needs to make a grand gesture that puts her in a high-pressure situation: How about the Wembley Stadium Jumbotron for a declaration of love?

Everything in the film is high: high concept, high pressure, high stakes, and it often

feels bizarrely forced. Nothing makes any sense and is never explained. No one has any memory of Coca-Cola or cigarettes for some reason, either. The script wobbles underneath its own weight, but Boyle distracts from the issues with his feverish direction, characteristically throwing everything at the screen and bringing his signature sense of visual dynamism, filled with movement, light and color.

The songs? Great, of course. The story?

Strange at best. The characters and aesthetic?

Aces. Everyone on screen is just so likable (even McKinnon, playing the villain), especially the earnest, open Patel, in a star-making heartthrob turn featuring his crystal-clear singing voice. “Yesterday” is just so expertly directed by Boyle and perfectly cast that it’s almost impossible not to like. (Joel Fry is a standout as Jack’s roadie.)

Even if this modern fairy tale doesn’t hold up on close inspection, Boyle does his best to make sure the ride is enjoyable.

WHAT “Yesterday” • RUN TIME 1:56 • RATING PG-13 • CONTENT Suggestive content and language

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Latest ‘Annabelle’ sequel could be the best of the trilogy ‘Annabelle Comes Home’ dives into the case history of real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren ★★½

BY KATIE WALSH | TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

n a summer of sequels, third and fourth films in a series have to prove the worthiness of their existence, and some this season haven’t risen to the top. But while it’s easy to scoff at another killer doll film in the Conjuring Universe, the spooky franchise is stealthily successful and always steadily consistent. “Annabelle Comes Home,” the third “Annabelle” film, which marks the directorial debut of writer Gary Dauberman, could actually be the best in the trilogy.

Dauberman has penned the scripts for all three “Annabelle” movies, as well as

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screenplays for “The Nun” and the 2017 reboot of “It.” He’s an obvious choice to take on “Annabelle Comes Home,” which dives deep into the case history of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) through an ingenious conceit. While Ed and Lorraine head out on assignment, their daughter, Judy (Mckenna Grace), remains at home with her babysitter, Mary Ellen (Madison Iseman), whose meddling friend Daniela (Katie Sarife) makes her way into the room of cursed and haunted objects the Warrens keep under lock and key.

Daniela’s objective is to find closure with the spirit of her dead father, but she’s not

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

ready to face the menacing Annabelle.

Although Judy warns her against it, it’s too late. And when Daniela unleashes Annabelle, she unleashes just about every evil spirit contained in the room: a werewolf, a haunted wedding gown, a ferryman who shepherds spirits to another realm.

The cursed room is a smart device to get a glimpse of the Warrens’ deep case history — a tribute to their long and remarkable career in paranormal investigation, written by Dauberman and original “The Conjuring” director James Wan, who clearly know their work inside and out. The tribute is aptly timed, as the real Lorraine passed away in April.

“Annabelle Comes Home” is a torch passing to a new generation, featuring Grace as daughter Judy, gifted with similar clairvoyant powers as her mother. The 13-year-old Grace is an uncommonly mature actor for her age, and the film would not be as compelling without such a strong actor in this role (though the “Annabelle” films have always offered platforms for excellent performances by young actresses).

But to call her a “scream queen” would be a misnomer. Grace knows when silence and stillness are far more effective than hysteria, and she portrays Judy as a girl who has seen more than she should in her young life.

“Annabelle Comes Home” maintains the Conjuring Universe’s style and aesthetic of extraordinarily long camera takes and the 1970s look in costume and production design. In what is essentially a haunted house film, Dauberman creates an atmosphere of incredible tension as the three young women (and a courtly young neighbor, Bob, played by Michael Cimino) tangle with various spirits, ghosts and ghouls. Dauberman’s control over the camera and mastery of suspense are impressive, especially for a first-time director. But the film is strung too tightly, rarely breaking bad, denying the cathartic chaos we crave. Strangely, “Annabelle Comes Home” needs more jump scares — or maybe this jaded critic has just seen it all by now.

WHAT “Annabelle Comes Home” • RUN TIME 1:46 • RATING R • CONTENT Horror violence and terror

★ Skip it ★ ★ So-so ★ ★ ★ Good ★stltoday.com/go ★ ★ ★ Excellent

P H O T O : AT O M I C M O N S T E R / N E W L I N E C I N E M A

Katie Sarife (right) in “Annabelle Comes Home”

Moe Berg, shown in Switzerland, in “The Spy Behind Home Plate”

‘Spy Behind Home Plate’ presents a brainy ballplayer Aviva Kempner’s documentary profiles the one-of-a-kind Moe Berg, who worked as a spy during WWII

PHOTO: MTUCKMAN MEDIA , COURTESY OF LINDA MCCARTHY

BY KENNETH TURAN | LOS ANGELES TIMES

hey don’t make baseball players like Moe Berg anymore.

Judging by Aviva Kempner’s authoritative and engrossing documentary “The Spy Behind Home Plate,” they likely never did.

Known as“the brainiest man in baseball,” Berg spoke numerous languages, studied Sanskrit at the Sorbonne and during his 15 years in the major leagues liked to travel with a suitcase full of newspapers, books and magazines.

Berg somehow found time to get a law degree at Columbia and, though not especially gregarious, had an intriguing mixture of friends and acquaintances, including Ian Fleming, Albert Einstein and Chico Marx of the Marx Brothers. He was, said sometime roommate Dom DiMaggio, “a very complicated individual.”

And none of that touches on the most

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compelling part of Berg’s story, his tenure as a significant World War II spy for the OSS, the precursor to the CIA, someone who was given both a weapon and a cyanide pill before one particularly arduous assignment.

Berg’s exploits have attracted media attention before, including Nicholas Dawidoff’s nonfiction book “The Catcher Was a Spy” and the Paul Rudd-starring dramatic film that it inspired.

But Kempner, whose previous docs include “The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg” and “Rosenwald,” has done an exceptional job of assembling her sources.

First off, she has personally interviewed anyone who might know anything about Berg, including veteran sportswriters Ira Berkow and Larry Merchant, Los Angeles Angels manager Brad Ausmus and former baseball commissioner Bud Selig.

Berg’s spying activities bring us authors Thomas Powers and David Ignatius as well as playwright Michael Frayn,whose“Copenha-

gen”covers related territory.When key subjects are dead,everyone from Walter“Big Train” Johnson to German scientist Werner Heisenberg,descendants are put on camera.

Kempner also arranged for use of interviews with some of Berg’s former baseball teammates as well as former CIA Director William E.Colby, all done by filmmakers Jerry Feldman and Neil Goldstein for a never-completed documentary.

Determined not to drown in talking heads, Kempner and her editor Barbara Ballow have made adroit use of both stock footage and Hollywood spy movies such as the Alan Laddstarring“O.S.S.” and Gary Cooper’s“Cloak and Dagger.”

Berg grew up in Newark,N.J.,the son of Jewish immigrants,and much to his father’s disgust,took to baseball early.He played undergraduate ball at Princeton,where the yearbook noted that he was“a Hebrew,” and he ended up playing for five clubs,including Brooklyn in the National League,and Chicago,Cleveland, Washington and Boston in the American.

Though he started as a shortstop,it was as a catcher that Berg found his stride,even writing an article for the Atlantic on the pitcher/catcher relationship in which he compared the catcher to“the Cerberus of baseball,” with eyes on everything.

Berg also caused a sensation when he appeared on the radio quiz show“Information Please,” a newspaper headline noting that this “walking encyclopedia startles radio fans as he

has Red Sox teammates.”

Most authorities agree that Berg likely engaged in espionage-type activities even prior to the war.When he accompanied players such as Babe Ruth and Lefty Grove on a goodwill tour of Japan in 1934,he donned a kimono (there are photos) and clandestinely filmed a panorama of the Tokyo skyline that may have ended up aiding Army Air Forces Gen.James H.Doolittle on his famous raid years later.

Once Berg was recruited for the newly formed OSS,his most famous assignment was to track down nuclear scientist Heisenberg,determine how far Germany had gotten in making an atomic bomb,and kill the man on the spot if he felt the danger was there.

Despite the bold nature of his exploits,Berg was apparently a difficult man to get a bead on.Photographs and brief newsreel footage show a completely serious,extraordinarily selfpossessed individual,someone who fit sports writer Shirley Povich’s description of being“a man apart,different from the others.”

Still,one has to agree with sports writer Merchant when he asks in genuine astonishment: “Has there ever been a professional athlete who had that kind of reach in his life? Can you make that up?”No,you can’t,and thanks go to filmmaker Kempner for putting all the pieces together in such a satisfying way.

WHAT “The Spy Behind Home Plate” • No star rating provided • RUN TIME 1:41 • RATING Not rated • CONTENT Nothing objectionable

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‘Fall of the American Empire’ mixes comedy and deep thought — with mixed results ★★

BY ANN HORNADAY | WASHINGTON POST

n 1986 the Quebec filmmaker Denys Arcand made “The Decline of the American Empire,” a talky ensemble comedy preoccupied with Canada’s descent into moral and political malaise.

With “The Barbarian Invasions,” in 2003, Arcand continued his cultural critique, focusing on the same group of academics and adulterers, who by this time were confronting mortality and a post-9/11 reality that had rendered their once-cherished ideologies utterly useless.

With “The Fall of the American Empire,” Arcand leaves the core characters of his previous films behind but not their concerns. Once again, the filmmaker strives to mix comedy and thoughtfulness — here with uneven success — to comment on a society in which almost every good, service and relationship has been corporatized and commodified and in which values have been reduced to their most cynically transactional. The film’s protagonist, Pierre-Paul (Alexandre Landry), is an idealistic philosophy graduate whose job as a UPS-like delivery man affords him a sunny, booklined apartment in Montreal.

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As “The Fall of the American Empire” opens, he is haranguing his girlfriend, a bank teller, about the intellectual poverty of novelists, philosophers and especially politicians.

Self-serious and ethically rigid, Pierre-Paul is the kind of fatuous but well-meaning hero that Joel McCrea might have played in a socially minded screwball comedy by Preston Sturges. And when he comes into an unexpected fortune after witnessing a crime, “The Fall of the American Empire” promises to turn into a classic caper flick, animated as much by vivid miscreants and improbable plot contrivances as by outrage at the obscene levels of corruption, inequality and greed currently infecting common life.

But if the film finds Arcand in justifiably high dudgeon and in firm command of the story’s swift pace, the tone is far more uneven, never quite achieving the comic liftoff that feels continually at hand. As in the recent French release “NonFiction,” the characters in “The Fall of the American Empire” are foils for the filmmaker’s anxieties about modern life, here having mostly to do with the hypocrisy of the financial and legal worlds, as well as his longtime bête noire, the

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

Canadian health bureaucracy: One petty criminal winds up in a hospital room that seems to be a jury-rigged broom closet.

That character happens to be black, as are all of the street-level hustlers and thieves in the film, a casting choice Arcand presumably made to point up the disparities of a racist criminal justice system but which often looks as if it’s perpetuating the very problem it illustrates. Perhaps the film’s most tiresome stereotype is a beautiful young woman named Camille (Maripier Morin), a hooker with a heart of gold who is endowed with just as weighty a brain.

When Pierre-Paul enjoys a gentle S&M scenario with Camille, while also quoting Plato’s dialogues, “The Fall of the American Empire” reaches peak eyeroll-inducing wish fulfillment. Floating in an unconvincing middle ground between realism and madcap fantasy, the film is at its best when Arcand is taking his potshots from a sly side angle.

Perhaps the biggest laugh comes early, when alert viewers will notice that a scruffy strip-mall shop used as a money-laundering front is called “Hollywood.”

Message received, Monsieur Arcand, and well played.

WHAT “The Fall of the American Empire” • RUN TIME 2:07 • RATING R • CONTENT Some strong violence, sexuality, nudity and crude language • Language In English and French with subtitles

In ‘Being Frank,’ a comedy about cheating, cheap laughs overwhelm serious times ★★

BY PAT PADUA | SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON POST

ou can’t choose your family. Or can you?

That’s the question raised by “Being Frank,” a domestic comedy by Miranda Bailey, whose directing credits include the documentary “The Pathological Optimist” and whose résumé as a producer boasts such quirky indie hits as “Swiss Army Man” and “The Diary of a Teenage Girl.” Unfortunately, in the filmmaker’s narrative-feature debut, she takes the theme of betrayal and turns it into fodder for a sitcom — and not a particularly funny one at that.

Philip (Logan Miller of “Love Simon”) is a high school senior who’s just been accepted by New York University and who is eager to escape his small town. But his father, Frank (comedian Jim Gaffigan), wants him to stay closer to home and attend an in-state school. On top of that, Frank doesn’t want his son to attend the lakeside festival where high schoolers gather for spring break.

Frank is an emotionally — and literally — distant father, taking frequent work trips in the course of his job as an executive at a ketchup plant

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(as the film gets underway, he tells his family that he’s off to Japan for three weeks).

Frustrated, Philip defies his father’s wishes and goes to the lake anyway, accompanied by his best friend, Lewis (Daniel Rashid). But after hitting on a cute girl named Kelly (Isabelle Phillips), Philip spots Frank nearby. To his horror, he learns that Dad has a second home, a second wife and a second family and that his crush is his half-sister.

What to do after such betrayal? In the absurd world of “Being Frank,” the natural response is extortion: Philip promises to keep his father’s secret, but only if Dad will send him to NYU. The game of deception that ensues is one that has fueled comedy for centuries: Frank tries to pass Philip off as the son of his best friend. And Kelly, feeling a connection to Philip, starts to pursue him romantically.

Such entanglements could have been the basis for an awkward black comedy, or maybe even an effective family drama. But the film — much like its ambivalent protagonist — never really picks a side, at least not convincingly. In what passes for irony, Frank and

Philip actually grow closer as they become co-conspirators, developing a relationship that becomes the film’s core strength (much more so than its elements of gross-out comedy, which include the character of Lewis’ halfnaked, bong-hitting uncle).

Gaffigan and Miller have a nice rapport as their bond develops, but their individual performances aren’t strong enough to overcome the film’s overall uneven tone.

Originally titled “You Can Choose Your Family,” an earlier version of the screenplay (by Glen Lakin, a story consultant on the TV series “Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu”) had been set in the present day.

But Bailey moved the action to the early 1990s: a time when her own father left her family, as the director explains in the film’s press notes.

That personal connection to the material comes through only intermittently, in the film’s more serious — and successful — moments.

The fact that Frank runs a ketchup company turns out to be oddly apt. “Being Frank” feels more like a condiment than a main dish.

There might be a decent movie somewhere under all this nonsense, but the cheap laughs overwhelm this “Frank’s” more subtle flavors.

WHAT “Being Frank” • RUN TIME 1:50 • RATING R • CONTENT Strong language, some sexual references and drug use

★ Skip it ★ ★ So-so ★ ★ ★ Good ★stltoday.com/go ★ ★ ★ Excellent

P H O T O S : VA N R O Y K O ( ‘ FA L L O F T H E A M E R I C A N E M P I R E ’ ) ; T H E F I L M A R C A D E ( ‘ B E I N G F R A N K ’ )

From left: Jim Gaffigan, Alex Karpovsky, and Logan Miller in “Being Frank”

Alexandre Landry and Maripier Morin in “The Fall of the American Empire”

ALSO IN THEATERS

Bonnie (voiced by Madeleine McGraw) with Forky (Tony Hale) in “Toy Story 4”

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‘Aladdin’ ★★ PG • 2:08 • Guy Ritchie,

who directs and is a coscreenwriter, has taken the 1992 film’s structure, added elements from the Broadway musical and made some nice script tweaks. Starring Will Smith, Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘Anna’ R • 1:58 • A beautiful young

woman lives a secret life as a top assassin. With Sasha Luss, Helen Mirren, Luke Evans, Cillian Murphy.

Written and directed by Luc Besson. Not reviewed.

LOS ANGELES TIMES

‘Avengers: Endgame’ ★★★★ PG-13 • 3:02 • The final movie

in Marvel’s Infinity Saga focuses on the efforts of Captain America (Chris Evans) and the remaining Avengers to rewind the effects of Thanos’ “Infinity War” snap. As high as the stakes are, “Endgame” is also a very funny movie.

WASHINGTON POST

‘Booksmart’ ★★★★

‘Dark Phoenix’ ★½

R • 1:42 • For her directorial

PG-13 • 1:53 • The directorial

debut, actress-turneddirector Olivia Wilde comes out swinging with not only one of the best movies of the year, but one of the best high school movies of all time. TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Breakthrough’ ★★½ PG • 1:50 • The remarkable

true story of St. Charles’ John Smith is a miraculous tale that could make a wonderful and inspirational 30-minute film. Instead, “Breakthrough” is more like an overlong — and bad — Lifetime movie.

Starring Chrissy Metz (“This Is Us”), Topher Grace and Marcel Ruiz. DANIEL NEMAN

‘Child’s Play’ ★★★ R • 1:28 • In this remake

PHOTO: PIXAR

of “Child’s Play” (1988), Chucky, the freckle-faced homicidal doll, still likes stabbing things. But he’s no longer possessed; he’s a cloud-connected, selflearning AI doll with wide powers. ASSOCIATED PRESS

debut of writer Simon Kinberg is the dud of all duds, a boring, flat film that doesn’t seem to even start before it’s over. With this final installment, the X-Men franchise goes out with a resounding thud.

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘The Dead Don’t Die’ ★½ R • 1:44 • The absurdism

wears gratingly thin in this zombie comedy, whose deadpan tone gives way to tiresome, grindingly repetitive inertia. WASHINGTON POST

‘A Dog’s Journey’ ★★½ PG • 1:48 • The second film

adapted from W. Bruce Cameron’s novels and a follow-up to “A Dog’s Purpose,” offers up an interesting, complex story into which we can sink our teeth. TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ ★★½ PG-13 • 2:11 • A sequel in the loosest possible sense, this Godzilla installment

stltoday.com/go ★ Skip it ★ ★ So-so ★ ★ ★ Good ★ ★ ★ ★ Excellent

requires minimal recall of just what went down in Tokyo and San Francisco back in 2014. Focus has shifted to a family of scientists who lived through the attack. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘The Hustle’ PG-13 • 1:43 • Anne Hathaway

and Rebel Wilson play con women who join forces for revenge. Written by Stanley Shapiro, Paul Henning, Dale Launer, Jac Schaeffer; story by Shapiro, Henning, Launer. Directed by Chris Addison. Not reviewed.

LOS ANGELES TIMES

‘The Intruder’ ONE-HALF STAR PG-13 • 1:42 • Cheesy thriller

stars Michael Ealy and Meagan Good as a young couple who discover there’s someone else inside their new dream home. WASHINGTON POST

‘John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum’ ★★★ R • 2:10 • Third installment — light on exposition but easily the best so far — picks up moments after “John Wick 2” ended, with

a $14 million bounty on our man John’s head, and everyone in Manhattan after him. Starring Keanu Reeves. CHICAGO TRIBUNE

‘Late Night’ ★★½ R • 1:42 • Emma Thompson

plays a Letterman-like latenight figure whose TV show is in jeopardy — until a new writer (Mindy Kaling, who also wrote the script) tries to shake things up and make the disengaged host more relevant. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘Ma’ ★★½ R • 1:39 • Octavia Spencer

turns in a brilliantly campy performance in an otherwise serviceable high school horror flick.

Directed by Tate Taylor.

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Men in Black: International’ ★★½ PG-13 • 1:54 • In what could

‘Little’ ★★★

otherwise be just another bland action comedy sprinkled with sci-fi, this “MIB” reboot has a few secret weapons stashed.

Directed by F. Gary Gray.

PG-13 • 1:48 • Marsai Martin,

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

the 14-year-old star of “Black-ish,” pitched, produced and stars in this hilarious, empowering movie that is like a reverse “Big.” Also starring Regina Hall and Issa Rae. TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Lost and Found’ NR • 1:32 • Irish anthology

film is a collection of seven interconnected stories set in and around a train station’s lost-and-found office. Written, directed by and starring Liam O’Mochain. Not reviewed.

‘Pavarotti’ ★★★ PG-13 • 1:54 • Ron Howard’s new documentary sticks mostly to the positives while skimming over the negatives of noted tenor Luciano Pavarotti’s life and career. Among the best moments are interviews with family members.

SARAH BRYAN MILLER

‘Pet Sematary’ ★★ R • 1:41 • The mean roads

and mangy cats of Stephen King’s 1983 novel are back from the dead in

Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer’s vividly acted, blandly condensed remake of Mary Lambert’s 1989 movie. ASSOCIATED PRESS

Pokémon Detective Pikachu’ ★½ PG • 1:44 • Film adaptations of video games have proved a dicey proposition in the past, and this one just feels like a money grab. You’ve played Pokémon Go? Call this one Pokémon Don’t Go. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘Poms’ ★★ PG-13 • 1:31 • Diane Keaton

stars as a woman in her 70s who, prompted by a dire cancer diagnosis, acts on a repressed dream of being a cheerleader. It’s “Bring It On” in a senior living facility — but less witty. TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Rocketman’ ★★½ R • 2:01 • Glittery Elton John biopic is a more-or-less true, authorized account but one that frequently breaks free of stubborn things like chronology and gravity. Starring Taron Egerton. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘The Secret Life of Pets 2’ ★★★ PG • 1:26 • If the sweet,

animated 2016 film “The Secret Life of Pets” was mostly for kids, its sequel might be for another segment of the audience altogether — whoever is buying the tickets. Featuring the voices of Kevin Hart, Eric Stonestreet, Lake Bell, Jenny Slate and Patton Oswalt. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘Shaft’ ★★½ R • 1:51 • Sequel embraces

the camp of its predecessors while adding a timely new depth: The generational and cultural differences between Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson) and his son, JJ (Jessie T. Usher), are largely about what it means to be a black man today. WASHINGTON POST

‘Toy Story 4’ ★★★

and heads to college — is a blast. ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘UglyDolls’ ★★ PG • 1:28 • Animated film

about outlandishly kooky dolls is flat and narratively bland — nothing more than a merchandising opportunity. The thin story is padded out with pop songs, and characters are voiced almost entirely by music superstars: Kelly Clarkson, Janelle Monáe, Nick Jonas, Blake Shelton, Pitbull.

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

‘Wonder Park’ ★★ PG • 1:25 • Animated

film takes place in an amusement park dreamed up by a mother and daughter who whisper ideas into the ear of a stuffed chimp. But all the movie’s wonder disappears when there’s an illness in the family.

G • 1:40 • Though the original

TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

trilogy was perfect, this fourth installment — in which Woody struggles to remain essential after his original owner, Andy, hands him and his toybox pals off

Use our calendar to find theaters and showtimes near you. stltoday.com/events

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

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She commanded attention in the first season, but writers give her even more to do in Season 2 Editor’s note: This discusses plot points from the first three episodes of “Big Little Lies” Season 2.

BY BETHONIE BUTLER | WASHINGTON POST

ill somebody give a woman a moment — to appreciate Laura Dern?

Dern is a standout presence on HBO’s “Big Little Lies,” which returned earlier this month for an unnecessary but immensely watchable second season. Her character, Renata Klein — a confident businesswoman with a mama bear approach to motherhood — seems tailor-made for the veteran actress, who specializes in a singular type of scenestealing hysteria.

Renata was a supporting character last season, on the fringes of the show’s core friend group — Madeline (Reese Witherspoon), Celeste (Nicole Kidman) and Jane (Shailene Woodley) — but was brought deeper into the circle (along with Zoe Kravitz’s Bonnie) following the death of Celeste’s abusive husband, Perry (Alexander Skarsgård). The women are bonded by a dark secret: that Perry died not from a fall, as they let detectives believe, but from a fatal push delivered

by Bonnie after she witnessed him viciously attack Celeste.

Dern commanded attention in the first season, winning a Golden Globe and an Emmy for best supporting actress. Renata’s daughter, Amabella, was bullied at her elementary school, and she spent much of the season trying to get her child to open up about who was hurting her. The writers

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have given Dern even more to do in Season 2, which finds Renata’s husband, Gordon (Jeffrey Nordling), under investigation for insider trading. His crimes, which put his wife’s hard-earned fortune at risk, are kindling on top of the secret Renata must keep as part of the Monterey Five.

Renata is cutthroat and exacting, but Dern gets below the surface to explore what’s lingering behind her character’s ever-accessible wrath. Last season, we saw that Renata’s high-powered career often set her apart from many of the women in her luxurious, beachside community, a disconnect that caused rifts between her and several of the women with whom she now shares an uneasy, but treasured alliance. As Renata continues her perpetual battle to be seen and heard, she fights, ferociously, for her young daughter to be seen and heard. Meanwhile, Gordon’s legal troubles have exposed one of Renata’s deepest fears — that she will end up reliving the poverty of her childhood.

“I will NOT not be rich,” she screamed at her husband, through a prison speakerphone, in last week’s episode.

In some ways, Renata evokes the clumsily heroic protagonist of “Enlightened,” the critically acclaimed HBO drama Dern led for two seasons before its untimely cancellation in 2013. Dern played Amy Jellicoe, an executive whose on-the-job meltdown lands her in rehab and, upon her return to work, a low-level position that leads her to a more promising calling: whistleblower. The show’s tagline — “a woman on the verge of a nervous breakthrough” — is the perfect description of what Dern does best. Her characters may be prone to intense emotions, but they are never unwarranted. To write these women off as crazy is to miss the point.

Renata has emerged a definitive fanfavorite this season, particularly after confronting Gordon about endangering their wealthy lifestyle, as the couple drives down the highway. “Did I ever explain to you that I wanted more?” she asks Gordon, who tries to dismiss her concerns with ill-advised humor. Renata reminds him that the Tesla is her car — before promptly kicking him out.

Renata’s meme-worthy roadside freakout concluded with her putting her middle finger up through the Tesla’s sunroof and screaming: “Will somebody give a woman a moment?!”

Laura Dern in “Big Little Lies” on HBO.

PHOTO: JENNIFER CLASEN/HBO

Laura Dern is the best part of ‘Big Little Lies’ right now

She drove for a few feet before grudgingly pulling a U-turn and letting her husband back into the car. That doesn’t mean she’s let him off the hook.

In Sunday’s episode, Renata reiterated her intention to never not not be rich.

After a second-grade lesson on climate change sends an anxiety-ridden Amabella to the hospital, Renata explodes at her daughter’s teacher and principal, who reminds her that the school exists to serve all students, not just her daughter.

“You think because of this whole bankruptcy thing that the school thinks I don’t matter?” she seethes. “Please. I will be rich again. I will rise up. I will buy a ... polar bear for every kid in this school. And then, I will squish you like the bug that you are.” A few scenes later, she demands Gordon “sell his toys” when she finds him sitting in a room filled with video games and model trains. She appears to soften a bit when Gordon tells her she has recently been emotionally unavailable to him and their young daughter.

“There’s something going on with you,” he says.

“Correct, my husband put us in the poor house,” she retorts, before reminding him to sell his stuff.

Sunday’s episode also marked Renata’s brief but memorable on-screen introduction to the show’s newest character: Perry’s grieving mother, Mary Louise, played by none other than Meryl Streep. Dern’s ability to stand out is particularly impressive considering there’s no shortage of talent among her cast mates. That’s a credit both to Dern — and the complicated woman she plays on “Big Little Lies.”

“I think there’s a lot of room to really have deep empathy for her in moments where you really don’t expect to,” Dern recently told Vogue.

“And that’s what I love to do as an actor. It’s such a delicious opportunity.”

WHAT “Big Little Lies” • WHEN 8 p.m. Sundays • WHERE HBO • MORE INFO hbo.com/biglittlelies

VIEW THE TRAILER AT WWW.THEFALLOFTHEAMERICANEMPIRE.COM

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Q • “The Red Line” was so good. Why was it canceled?

A • CBS apparently lost faith in the much-praised series even before it went on the air as was indicated in the various descriptions of the show. It was initially announced simply as a drama when CBS unveiled its programming plans a year ago, suggesting it had a chance at a long run. But by the time CBS set an air date for the program, it called “The Red Line” an “event series,” which is another way of saying a limited run was planned.

That was underscored when CBS called it a “limited series” in April. The scheduling — two episodes a week for four weeks — also suggested the network wanted the show done quickly. The low ratings that followed seemed to validate that thinking, and the final episode wrapped enough plot to work as a series-ender. That was too bad, since the series proved worthy of more attention and time.

Q • When I search for information about the second season of “Instinct,” I get the answer the show is supposed to premiere June 16. That didn’t happen. Do you know anything different?

A • Here’s another case of changing minds at CBS. The Alan Cumming mystery was at first set to return June 16. Then CBS decided to give “The Good Fight” — the “Good Wife” sequel streaming on CBS All Access — some broadcast exposure.

That delayed the season premiere of “Instinct” until June 30. “The Good Fight,” by the way, is also worth a look. The network is airing the first season on Sunday nights (two episodes June 16 and 23, then one episode per Sunday), and you can find the three seasons to date on CBS All Access.

Q • I have long been interested in whether two of Bing Crosby’s four sons are still alive. I know two have passed, and Gary is one of those.

A • Let’s first clarify Bing’s seven children, six sons and a daughter. He had four sons — Gary (born in 1933), twins

Phillip and Dennis (1934) and Lindsay (1938) — with his first wife, Dixie. Lindsay died in 1989, Dennis in 1991, Gary in 1995 and Phillip in 2004. With his second wife, Kathryn, Bing had his other sons, Harry Jr. (born 1958) and Nathaniel (1961) as well as daughter Mary (1959). All are still with us.

Q • Is “Greenleaf” on OWN returning?

A • Yes. The drama about a family and its megachurch has been picked up for a fourth season on Oprah Winfrey’s network. Look for new episodes in August.

Q • I just started watching Season 1 of “The Crown.”

Was Queen Elizabeth’s husband really that rude and knew nothing on how to act?

A • If you were displeased with him in the first season, wait until you see the second.

A Washington Post fact-check in 2017 noted that the series is “factually inspired but dramatized for maximum Netflix pleasure.” At the same time, it summed up “verbal gaffes and occasional temper” by Philip, his wish that he could have stayed in the Navy, “real tension in the

marriage” and unconfirmed rumors of infidelity.

Q • Will they ever show “The Jazz Singer” with Neil Diamond?

A • These days a search for movies and TV shows can spread wide — to broadcast stations, cable/satellite services, digital downloads and streaming, or DVD/ Blu-ray/4K discs, and still some movies cannot be found. That may be because there’s a lack of demand for a title, it doesn’t fit with a programmer’s plan, there’s a rights problem, a financial deal could not be made, or a company is simply holding onto a title for its own use later. In the case of “The Jazz Singer,” it was released on DVD, and it’s on Amazon Prime Video and iTunes, so it can be found some places.

By the way, the 1980 “Jazz Singer” with Diamond is the fourth rendition of that tale, following Al Jolson’s 1927 version, Danny Thomas’s movie in 1952 and a made-for-TV production with Jerry Lewis in 1959.

BY RICH HELDENFELS, TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE Send questions to Rich Heldenfels, P.O. Box 417, Mogadore, OH 44260, or brenfels@gmail.com.

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

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One cover charge, 10+ bands Content by St. Louis Best Bridal

S

t. Louis Best Bridal’s Wedding Band Jam event offers a unique way for newly engaged couples to hear a variety of bands in one day.

Guests will enjoy live music from a minimum of 10 + different local bands – from full 6-piece reception bands to smaller ceremony and cocktail hour acoustic groups. Sample tunes from the following musicians for the cost of one cover charge.

ARVELL & COMPANY – full band Arvell & Company play an outstanding musical variety including hits from Motown, popular songs from the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s to current — everything from Frank Sinatra to Bruno Mars. This is a seasoned group of entertainers and musicians who can fulfill almost any musical request. Arvell & Company offers a 4-piece band up to a 16-piece band for a wide range of options to fit your entertainment needs. You name it, Arvell & Company can provide it.

variety of instruments and are an easy fit for different atmospheres and venues. If you are looking for a group with a variety of music, beautiful harmonies and a lot of heart, Duhart is the choice for your special day.

St. Louis area and beyond. Playing a variety of hits spanning from the ’50s to current hits, McLovin creates a memorable performance that will be the highlight of your event and remembered for years to come.

IT TAKES TWO – full band

MIDLIFE BAND – acoustic duo

It Takes Two is a 6-piece group including both female and male vocalists, two keyboard players, guitar, bass, drums, saxophone and trumpet. Due to the band member’s skill and versatility, they play over 2,000 songs, from cocktail and dinner music to high-energy dance music, the great dance hits of the ‘50s and ‘60s, Classic Rock and Motown, ‘70s and ‘80s Disco and Rock, ‘90s dance tunes, Island music, Country, Jazz Standards and even current hits. This interactive and charismatic band is guaranteed to exceed your expectations for your rehearsal dinner or wedding reception.

Midlife, the husband and wife acoustic duo of guitarist and vocalist Paul Hurst and lead vocalist Kristie Hurst has performed all across the St. Louis and Metro East since 2014.

They play a wide variety of music including Top-40 hits from the ‘60s through today, as well as pop, rock, country, folk, Americana, alternative and R&B.

JOHNNY CHASE – acoustic guitarist Johnny Chase is an artist who plays over 300 solo acoustic rock shows per year of all shapes and sizes. He has produced two albums of original songs with placements on hit TV shows HBO’s Entourage, Ellen Degeneres, Tyra, CW Now, MTV reality shows and more.

Johnny’s solo acoustic act is ideal for wedding ceremonies and cocktail hours and he can also DJ wedding receptions.

SOJOURN ROCS – full classic rock/ country band Sojourn Rocs is a wedding band that performs classic covers of country, rock-and-roll and current hits. Sojourn Rocs also provides emcee and recorded dinner service music as well as music during breaks. The band is happy to learn those special songs and dances with moms and dads and will travel to most any location of your choosing. If you want quality music, voices with three-part harmonies and a professional stage presence, Sojourn Rocs is the band for your special event.

THE MATT MCCALLIE ORCHESTRA – string quartet Arvell & Company. Photo provided by Arvell & Company

DIAMOND EMPIRE – full band The Diamond Empire band are live music experts, wedding enthusiasts and partystarters. They are a premium, customizable 3to 14-piece band specializing in high-energy, multi-genre music for festivals, weddings, corporate events and private functions at a reasonable price. They infuse every event with energy and fun and pride themselves on filling dance floors.

DUHART – acoustic duo Duhart is St. Louis’ beloved father-daughter band, performing acoustic versions of all of your favorite songs as well as original music.

Colleen Bunten and Dean Duhart play a 34

Whiskey Raccoons. Photo provided by Whiskey Raccoons

3-piece horn section to authentically perform all music styles. They’re also a one-stop provider with absolutely everything needed for weddings including live music for ceremonies and receptions, additional room lighting, ceremony sound systems, and wedding planning services.

Spectrum has more awards and reviews than any other band in St. Louis to make them the No.1 choice for fun entertainment and a guaranteed successful event!

WHISKEY RACCOONS – acoustic duo The Whiskey Raccoons are an acoustic Indie Country Folk Rock duet with original songs and the ability to cover hundreds of popular songs from the ‘60s to today in all genres. They have opened for the likes of Cassiddee Pope (winner of the voice), Claire Dunn (Nashville Country Music Star), Jackie Lee (Nashville Country Music Star) and more! The duo will learn new songs that are meaningful for the couple, emcee when needed, and make sure every couple feels like their wedding ceremony/ cocktail hour/reception/rehearsal dinner/etc., is representative of their love and vision.

Since 2012, The Matt McCallie Orchestra is your source for everything wedding music-related. Matt McCallie offers live bands, a string quartet, DJ/Emcee services, lights, sound and custom song arrangements and recordings. The Orchestra guarantees a music experience that you and your loved ones will forever cherish.

The Matt McCallie Orchestra. Photo provided by The Matt McCallie Orchestra

TIME: 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

MCLOVIN – full band

SPECTRUM BAND – full band

McLovin is St. Louis’ Premier Rock Poppin’, Country Rappin’, Soul Funkin’ groove machine that keeps the dance floor shakin’ all night long! Combined with diverse talent, multiple singers, unmatched energetic performances and a huge variety of songs, McLovin is one of the most sought-after party bands for weddings and private events in the Metro

Spectrum Band is a premier 9-piece dance band from Chesterfield, MO with over 20 years of experience in the music industry. Like their name indicates, they play a “spectrum” of Pop, Rock, Motown, Funk, Swing, Jazz, Country and Big Band. Spectrum is a fully-instrumented band with superior lead and background vocalists, 4-piece rhythm section and a powerful

VENUE: Delmar Hall (6133 Delmar Blvd, 63112)

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

DATE: Sunday, July 14, 2019

ATTENDANCE: 250 – 300 people expected!

TICKETS: $10 ($15 day of) Visit STLtoday.com/ourevents for ticket information. stltoday.com/go

SUNDAY FUNDAY! 12 BANDS FOR $10.

Find your wedding day music, get ideas and sample bites from local restaurants.

Wedding prep doesn’t get any better than this!

MUSIC BY: The Matt McCallie Orchestra Johnny Chase Duhart Midlife Band Whiskey Raccoons Anita Rosamond Band Arvell and Company Diamond Empire McLovin Spectrum Band Sojourn Rocs STL WEDDING BAND JAM Sunday, July 14 | noon - 6:00 p.m.

Delmar Hall

PURCHASE TICKETS TODAY:

STLtoday.com/ourevents

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06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

35

STLTODAY.COM/DINING

Scallops with risotto and grapefruit at Oaked, 1031 Lynch Street in Soulard

Oaked is sophisticated Soulard dining — sometimes to a fault The restaurant’s elegant platings too often obscure — or even cause — conceptual and structural flaws ★★

BY IAN FROEB | POST-DISPATCH RESTAURANT CRITIC

y coincidence, Oaked was the second upscale restaurant to open in Soulard this winter.

It debuted in February across Lynch Street from the Anheuser-Busch brewery and roughly a

B

ifroeb@post-dispatch.com

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mile south from where the team behind the popular Soulard restaurant and bar Molly’s unveiled 808 Maison in January.

808 Maison, where chef Jon Dreja is cooking excellent versions of classic French dishes, leans into Soulard’s scruffier side.

Both the decor and the furniture are a hodgepodge, the former charming, the lat-

stltoday.com/offthemenu

@ianfroeb

GO! MAGAZINE • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • 06.28.19-07.04.19

ter uncomfortable. There is the palpable sense, as you savor Dreja’s Marseille seafood stew, that you are but a short walk from a Smurf-colored shot and other choices you will regret.

Oaked presents a very different vision of a sophisticated Soulard restaurant circa 2019.

It strives to be an oasis in the often rollicking neighborhood — or, rather, to be many oases. Sip a cocktail at the handsome bar or by the piano in the first-floor lounge. Eat on the expansive patio, bar included, or in the second-floor dining room, which between its bric-a-brac and illustrated liquor posters registers as a sort of mashup of private club and French bistro. Store your own bottles of wine in a personal locker, and smoke a cigar on the second-floor deck.

This ambitious project is the first restaurant for founders Anne and John Cochran

and Venessa and Christoper Schwarz. The Cochrans and Schwarzes met as transplants to Soulard from the county and San Francisco, respectively. They loved living in the neighborhood but wanted a more sophisticated place to eat and drink wine.

As the Oaked origin story goes, over wine one evening the Cochrans and Venessa Schwarz (Christopher happened to be out of town) discussed in detail what such a sophisticated restaurant and bar would be like. The very next day, they learned that the building at 1031 Lynch that has housed several restaurants over the years (Lynch Street Bistro, Sage Urban American Grill and Fleur de Lillies among them) was available.

A version of this origin story is printed inside Oaked’s wine and spirits menu, though it now requires an asterisk: The stltoday.com/go ★ Fair ★ ★ Good ★ ★ ★ Excellent ★ ★ ★ ★ Extraordinary

P H O T O S : H I L L A R Y L E V I N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H

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Schwarzes are no longer involved in the restaurant’s day-to-day operations.

Wine is Oaked’s greatest asset. Wine director Denise Mueller, a star of the newer generation of St. Louis sommeliers, oversees the list, which favors France and Italy in the old world and California in the new.

The list isn’t deep — most vintages range from 2013 to 2017 — but almost all of the bottles are available by the glass, encouraging exploration. (As the restaurant’s name suggests, another highlight of Oaked’s beverage program is the selection of whiskey and single-malt Scotch.)

Stephan Ledbetter, formerly the corporate executive chef for the Gamlin Restaurant Group (Gamlin Whiskey House, Sub Zero Vodka Bar, 1764 Public House), leads Oaked’s kitchen. Assisting him is Carl Hazel, a veteran of Gamlin Whiskey House, the Scottish Arms, Eleven Eleven Mississippi, and West End Grill and Pub. At its best the kitchen dispatches gorgeously plated food in the contemporary, seasonal mode.

The tomato salad ($12) with feta and basil is a study in tomato textures and flavors: raw and pickled, a jam and a gel. Dots of basil oil and a dusting of pistachio powder enliven a silken soup of celery-root puree and coconut milk ($9). For textural contrast there is a celery-root crisp and bits of apple poached in white wine and simple syrup.

A standout main course delivers three plump scallops ($24) gorgeously browned and served with grapefruit and chimichurri over risotto. The grapefruit does the necessary work of electrifying the buttery richness of the scallops and risotto. As for the chimichurri, it looks vivid against the scallops, but it didn’t register as brilliantly as chimichurri should.

The chimichurri is a small (and in the context of its dish moot) example of a larger problem that bedevils Oaked: elegant platings that too often obscure — or even cause — conceptual and structural flaws.

Even more beautiful on the plate than the scallops is a piece of salmon ($23), crisp skin and tender flesh, atop a painterly arrangement of spring: white asparagus, crispy spinach, fava beans and a spinach veloute. Beautiful, but the flavors are subtle, verging on timid — until you come upon the same poached-apple preparation from the soup. Here, with few competing flavors, its sweetness is jarring against the salmon. A sea bass dish from the previous menu iteration (the restaurant switched during the course of my visits) fared better with more direct flavors of green asparagus, snap pea and shishito peppers accenting the fish.

Smoked trout cakes ($13) on a bed of quinoa is visually striking but is an odd juxtaposition of soft and grainy textures.

Mussels ($14) arrive as an abundance of stltoday.com/go

Smoked trout cakes served on quinoa at Oaked

shells peeking over the lip of a conical bowl, but their coconut-miso broth shot through with green garlic and lemon grass is trapped in the bowl’s narrow base until you have already worked your way through several of the bivalves.

A 10-ounce strip steak ($33) with dollops of melting foie-gras butter should have been a can’t-miss indulgence, but the effect was dulled by a dense, underseasoned pave of potato and celery root as well as roasted Brussels sprouts that needed some more time in the oven to develop a fully browned flavor. For meaty comfort, I much preferred another dish from the previous menu, gnudi with pork in a broth based on the pork’s braising liquid.

A simple serving of Mexican-style street corn ($6), aioli-slicked and chile-dusted, wasn’t my favorite dish here, but I appreciated the unaffected presentation and having to get my hands dirty. It lets a little air and messy life into Oaked’s sophistication. It suggests Oaked’s oasis could be more than a mirage.

The 10-ounce strip steak at Oaked

WHERE Oaked, 1031 Lynch Street • MORE INFO 314-305-7517; oakedstl.com • MENU Contemporary American fare • HOURS Dinner Wednesday-Sunday (patio open noon-midnight Saturday and Sunday)

06.28.19-07.04.19 • ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH • GO! MAGAZINE

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1764 Public House ★½ WHERE 39 North Euclid Avenue • MORE INFO 314-405-8221; 1764pub.com • MENU Upscale St. Louis- and New Orleans-influenced fare • HOURS Dinner daily, breakfast and lunch MondayFriday, brunch Saturday-Sunday

58Hundred ★★ WHERE 5800 Southwest Avenue • MORE INFO 314-279-5799; 58hundred.com • MENU Bar-andgrill, comfort-food fare • HOURS Dinner Monday-Saturday, lunch Monday-Friday (closed Sunday)

808 Maison ★★★ WHERE 808 Geyer Avenue • MORE INFO 314-594-4505; 808maison.com • MENU Classic French fare • HOURS Dinner Wednesday-Saturday

Bakers & Hale ★★½ WHERE 7120 Montclaire Avenue, Godfrey • MORE INFO 618-4339748; bakershale.com • MENU Seasonal American fare, with pizza, tacos and more • HOURS Dinner daily, lunch Monday-Saturday, brunch Sunday (closed Tuesday)

Balkan Treat Box ★★★ WHERE 8103 Big Bend Boulevard, Webster Groves • MORE INFO 314-733-5700; balkantreatbox. com • MENU Bosnian, Turkish and other Balkan-inspired fare • HOURS 11 a.m.-3 p.m. (or until sold out) Wednesday-Sunday

The Benevolent King ★★★ WHERE 7268 Manchester Road, Maplewood • MORE INFO 314-8990440; thebenevolentking.com • MENU Moroccan-inspired cuisine • HOURS Dinner Tuesday-Saturday

Billie-Jean ★★★½ WHERE 7610 Wydown Boulevard, Clayton • MORE INFO 314-7978484; billiejeanstl.com • MENU Contemporary American and Southeast Asian cuisine • HOURS Dinner Tuesday-Saturday

The Boathouse at Forest Park ★★ WHERE 6101 Government Drive, Forest Park • MORE INFO 314366-1555; boathousestl.com • MENU Sandwiches, flatbread pizzas and more casual American fare • HOURS Dinner daily, lunch Monday-Saturday, brunch Sunday

Brasswell ★★ WHERE Rockwell Beer Co., 1320 South Vandeventer Avenue • MORE INFO 314-256-1657; rockwellbeer.

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com • MENU Burgers, beer brats, chicken sandwiches and fries • HOURS 11 a.m.-10 p.m. TuesdayThursday, 11 a.m.-midnight FridaySaturday, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday

Brick River Cider Co. ★★ WHERE 2000 Washington Avenue • MORE INFO 314-224-5046; brickrivercider.com • MENU Brewpub fare and cider made on site • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday, brunch Sunday (closed Monday)

Pizza Head ★★ WHERE 3196 South Grand Boulevard • MORE INFO 314266-5400; pizzaheadstl.com • MENU New York-style pizza by the slice or whole pie • Hours Lunch Tuesday-Saturday, dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)

Carnivore ★★ WHERE 5257 Shaw Avenue • MORE INFO 314-449-6328; carnivore-stl.com • MENU Steaks, with Italian-American dishes • HOURS Dinner Tuesday-Saturday, brunch Saturday and Sunday

Polite Society ★★★ WHERE 1923 Park Avenue • MORE INFO 314-325-2553; politesocietystl. com • MENU Contemporary and classic bistro fare • HOURS Dinner daily, brunch Saturday-Sunday

The Chocolate Pig ★★ WHERE 4220 Duncan Avenue • MORE INFO 314-272-3230; thechocolatepig.com • MENU Gastropub fare and an extensive dessert program • HOURS Lunch and dinner MondaySaturday (closed Sunday)

Cibare Italian Kitchen ★½ WHERE 777 River City Casino Boulevard • MORE INFO 314388-3777; www.rivercity.com/ dining/cibare-italian-kitchen • MENU Pasta, pizza and more Italian fare • HOURS Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily

Cinder House ★★★ WHERE Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis, 999 North Second Street • MORE INFO 314-881-5759; cinderhousestl.com • MENU Brazilian dishes and wood-grilled meats • HOURS Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily

Club Taco ★½ WHERE 200 North Kirkwood Road, Kirkwood • MORE INFO 314-858-1488; clubtacostl.com • MENU Tacos with a variety of fillings drawn from various cuisines • HOURS Lunch and dinner daily

Cocina Latina ★★½ WHERE 508 North Euclid Avenue • MORE INFO 314-696-2294; facebook.com/cocinaslatina • MENU Peruvian and other South American fare • HOURS Lunch and dinner TuesdaySunday (closed Monday)

Cork & Barrel Chophouse ★½ WHERE 7337 Mexico Road, St. Peters • MORE INFO 636-387-7030; corkandbarrel.com • MENU Steaks, chops and pizza • HOURS Lunch and dinner daily, brunch Sunday

Pie Guy Pizza ★★ WHERE 4189 Manchester Avenue • MORE INFO 314-899-0444; pieguystl.com • MENU New York-style pizza • HOURS 4:30 p.m.-midnight Tuesday-Thursday, 4:30 p.m.-3:30 a.m. Friday, noon-3:30 a.m. Saturday

Sardella ★★★½ The Curry Club ★★ WHERE 1635 Clarkson Road, Chesterfield • MORE INFO 636778-7777; stlcurryclub.com • MENU Southern Indian fare in a fast-casual setting • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday

Elmwood ★★★ WHERE 2704 Sutton Boulevard, Maplewood • MORE INFO 314261-4708; elmwoodstl.com • MENU Contemporary American fare from a coal-fired kitchen • HOURS Dinner Tuesday-Saturday

The Frisco Barroom ★★½ WHERE 8110 Big Bend Boulevard, Webster Groves • MORE INFO 314-455-1090; thefriscostl. com • MENU Classic pub fare • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)

Grand Tavern ★★ WHERE 626 North Grand Boulevard • MORE INFO 314-405-3399; grandtavernstl.com • MENU Contemporary American fare • HOURS Dinner and breakfast daily, lunch Monday-Friday, brunch Saturday-Sunday

Hamilton’s Urban Steakhouse & Bourbon Bar ★★½ WHERE 2101 Chouteau Avenue • MORE INFO 314-241-2333; hamiltonsteak.com • MENU Steaks and other chops • HOURS Dinner Tuesday-Saturday (closed Sunday and Monday)

Han Lao ★★½ WHERE 1250 Strassner Drive, Brentwood • MORE INFO 314932-1354; hanlaostl.com • MENU

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Lao and Thai cuisine • HOURS Lunch and dinner MondaySaturday (closed Sunday)

Hugo’s Pizzeria ★★½ WHERE 3135 Olive Street • MORE INFO 314-896-4846; hugospizzeria.com • MENU Pizzas both conventional and creative • Hours Lunch and dinner daily

Iron Barley High Hog Ridge ★★½ WHERE 3367 High Ridge Boulevard, High Ridge • MORE INFO 636-6719911; ironbarleyshighhogridge. com • MENU Hearty comfort fare • HOURS Lunch and dinner TuesdaySaturday (closed Sunday-Monday)

J. Devoti Trattoria ★★★ WHERE 5100 Daggett Avenue • MORE INFO 314-7735553; jdevoti.com • MENU Contemporary American fare, with Italian influences • HOURS Dinner Wednesday-Saturday (closed Sunday-Tuesday)

J. Smugs GastroPit ★★½ WHERE 2130 Macklind Avenue • MORE INFO 314-499-7488; jsmugsgastropit.com • MENU Barbecue, including pork ribs and beef brisket • HOURS 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, noon-7 p.m. Sunday

Jerk Soul ★★½ WHERE 2016 Salisbury Street • MORE INFO 314-601-3871; facebook.com/jerksoulstl • MENU Jerk chicken and more Caribbean fare • HOURS Noon-8 p.m. Sunday-Friday (carryout only; closed Saturday)

Kalbi Taco Shack ★★

Monday-Saturday (closed Sunday)

WHERE 2301 Cherokee Street • MORE INFO 314-240-5544; kalbitacoshack.com • MENU Korean-Mexican fusion • HOURS 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday

Majeed Mediterranean Restaurant ★★

Knead Bakehouse + Provisions ★★½ WHERE 3467 Hampton Avenue • MORE INFO 314-376-4361; kneadbakehouse.com • MENU Breakfast and lunch fare • HOURS 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

Tuesday-Friday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

Saturday- Sunday (closed Monday)

L’Acadiane ★½ WHERE 1915 Park Avenue • MORE INFO 314-875-0108; lacadiane.com • MENU Creole- and Cajun-inspired fare • HOURS Lunch WednesdayFriday, dinner Wednesday-Sunday (closed Monday-Tuesday)

Like Home French Cafe & Pastry ★★½ WHERE 3855 Lindell Boulevard • MORE INFO 314-319-0099; likehomestl.com • MENU French cafe fare and pastries • HOURS 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Sunday (closed Monday-Tuesday)

Liliana’s Italian Kitchen ★★ WHERE 11836 Tesson Ferry Road • MORE INFO 314-729-1800; lilianasitalinakitchen.com • MENU Pizza, pasta and sandwiches • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday, closed Monday

Louie ★★★ WHERE 706 DeMun Avenue, Clayton • MORE INFO 314-3008188; louiedemun.com • MENU Rustic Italian fare • HOURS Dinner

WHERE 4658 Gravois Avenue • MORE INFO 314-282-0981; facebook.com/majeed mediterraneanrestaurant • MENU Syrian cuisine • HOURS Lunch and dinner daily

The Midwestern Eat & Drink ★★½ WHERE 900 Spruce Street • MORE INFO 314-696-2573; midwesternstl. com • MENU Barbecue, plus burgers, toasts and more • HOURS Lunch and dinner daily (closed Tuesday except during major sporting events and concerts)

Morning Glory Diner ★★ WHERE 2609 Cherokee Street • MORE INFO No listed phone number • MENU Classic American diner fare • HOURS 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday

Nippon Tei ★★★ WHERE 14025 Manchester Road • MORE INFO 636-386-8999; nippon. teistl.com • MENU Sushi and other traditional Japanese fare • HOURS Lunch Tuesday-Friday, dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)

Pangea ★★½ WHERE 3245 Rue Royale, St. Charles • MORE INFO 636757-3579; pangeaworldfusion. com • MENU Contemporary bistro fare with global accents • HOURS Dinner daily, brunch Sunday (closed Tuesday)

Sultan Mediterranean Restaurant ★★★ WHERE 4200 Manchester Avenue • MORE INFO 314-390-2020 • MENU A wide range of Mediterranean and Levantine dishes • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday

The Taco & Ice Cream Joint ★★½ WHERE 2738 Cherokee Street • MORE INFO 314224-5799; facebook.com/ tacoandicecreamjoint • MENU Tacos and other taqueria fare, ice cream and popsicles • HOURS 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday

Thai Table ★★ WHERE 7403 Manchester Road, Maplewood • MORE INFO 314-4496919; thaitablestl.com • MENU Thai cuisine • HOURS Lunch and dinner daily (closed Tuesday)

Union 30 ★½

WHERE 7734 Forsyth Boulevard, Clayton • MORE INFO 314-7737755; sardellastl.com • MENU Contemporary fare with Italian and Californian influences • HOURS Dinner daily, breakfast and lunch Monday-Friday

WHERE Hotel St. Louis, 705 Olive Street • MORE INFO 314-241-4300; hotelsaintlouis.com/union30 • MENU Casual, contemporary American fare • HOURS Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily

Savage ★★★½

Vicia ★★★★

WHERE 2655 Ann Avenue • MORE INFO 314-354-8488; savagestl. com • MENU Often-changing tasting menus of local ingredients • HOURS Dinner ThursdaySunday (open at noon for drinks and limited a-la-carte menu)

WHERE 4260 Forest Park Avenue • MORE INFO 314-553-9239; viciarestaurant.com • MENU Modern, progressive cuisine with an emphasis on vegetables • HOURS Lunch Monday-Friday, dinner Tuesday-Saturday

Simba Ugandan Restaurant ★★ WHERE 8531 Olive Boulevard, University City • MORE INFO 314-475-5630; facebook.com/ simbaugandanrestaurant • MENU Traditional Ugandan fare • HOURS Lunch buffet and dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)

Sister Cities Cajun ★★½ WHERE 3550 South Broadway • MORE INFO 314-405-0447; sistercitiescajun.com • MENU Gumbo, po’boys and more • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Saturday, brunch Sunday (closed Monday)

The Stellar Hog ★★ WHERE 5623 Leona Street • MORE INFO 314-481-8448; thestellarhog. com • MENU Barbecue featuring beef brisket and pork ribs • HOURS 11 a.m.-9 p.m. ThursdaySaturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday (closed Monday-Wednesday)

VP Square ★★½ WHERE 3611 Juniata Street • MORE INFO 314-833-4838; facebook.com/vpsquarestl • MENU Pan-Asian cuisine, including Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese dishes • HOURS Lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)

The Wood Shack ★★½ WHERE 1862 South 10th Street • MORE INFO 314-833-4770; thewoodshacksoulard.com • MENU Sandwiches featuring smoked meats • HOURS 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday, 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m.

Saturday (closed Sunday-Monday)

Yellowbelly ★★½ WHERE 4659 Lindell Boulevard • MORE INFO yellowbellystl.com • MENU Seafood and rum-focused cocktails • HOURS Dinner daily, lunch Wednesday-Sunday

BY IAN FROEB

The Stone Turtle ★★ WHERE 6355 Clayton Avenue • MORE INFO 314-349-1933; stoneturtlestl.com • MENU Gastropub fare • HOURS Lunch Monday-Saturday, dinner daily, brunch Sunday (closed Tuesday)

Search Ian Froeb’s STL 100, our critic’s interactive restaurant guide. stltoday.com/stl100

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120 W Jefferson Ave Kirkwood, MO 63122 (314) 821-0877

Valid Monday thru Thursday only. With purchase of an adult dinner entree and a beverage. Kids meal up to a $9/= value per entrée. No Cash Value. Must present paper coupon. Cannot combine with any other offers.

One coupon per order ONLY. Dine In Only.

Expires 7/31/19.

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SHOGUN - Fairview Heights, IL 314 Fountain Parkway, • 618-628-3500 159 & Fountain Parkway.

SHOGUN - South County 10550 Baptist Church Rd • 314-842-8889 Lindbergh & Baptist Church Rd

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