Riverfront Times - December 9, 2015 by Chava Communications

DECEMBER 9–15, 2015 I VOLUME 39 I NUMBER 49

ONE MORE FOR THE ROAD Saying goodbye to the 34 Club — a storied dive bar that’s still not ready to pour its last libation by KEVIN KORINEK

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THE LEDE

PHOTO BY THEO WELLING

“My grandpa lived on a farm, so I collected crystal, quartz and geodes, and stuff like that there. Then as I grew older my dad was a jeweler, so I kinda grew up in the jewelry industry. I really liked a lot of raw materials — not only the fascinating stuff. So I started collecting different materials, and I really like to shop too, so I needed an outlet to sell the stuff that I buy. So that’s kinda what I got going on now.” —JOE BILL WITH HIS COMPANY HEADSTACHE COLLECTABLES AT THE SHOW ME SNAKES, REPTILE AND EXOTICS SHOW ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6.

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RIVERFRONT TIMES

TABLE OF CONTENTS FEATURE

13. One More for the Road

Saying goodbye to the 34 Club — a storied dive bar that’s still not ready to pour its last libation Written by

KEVIN KORINEK Cover by

ERIC FRAZIER

NEWS

CULTURE

DINING

MUSIC

The Lede

Calendar

Your friend or neighbor, captured on camera

Seven days worth of great stuff to see and do

First Person

A Shallow 3-D

Waze could be the app we need, argues Sarah Fenske

Wim Wenders’ Every Thing Will Be Fine feels empty

Keno to the Rescue

Could the lotto game be a way around the city’s looming smoking ban?

Altar Egos

Hero journalists expose pedophile priests in Spotlight

Hardy Boys

Tom Hardy doubles up in Legend

No Fault in These Stars

A rave for Peter and the Starcatcher, now at the Rep

A Winning Pair

Superior performances drive the Actors’ Studio’s Gin Game 6

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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Hipster Heaven

Cheryl Baehr takes her fried chicken with a side of irony at Byrd & Barrel

Chef Chat

KT Ayers is one part crazy cat lady, one part brilliant young chef

First Look

Dixon’s Smoke Co. brings classic ’cue to midtown

Food News

Frankly Sausages hits the road

Dining Guide

Where to eat right now in the Gateway City

45 Revolutions

Matt Harnish celebrates his 45th with a quirky compilation

The Sword Is Heavy

The latest from these Texans sounds more like ZZ Top than Black Sabbath

Homespun

Tommy Halloran’s Guerrilla Swing: State Streets

Out Every Night

The best concerts in St. Louis every night of the week

This Just In

This week’s new concert announcements

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IT’S TIME TO TELL

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NEWS

A Novel Plan to Fight the Smoking Ban

ob Hiscox, owner of the Bastille bar in Soulard, is no stranger to fighting the powers that be. A few years go, the city’s historic preservation committee set out to stop him from installing solar panels on his roof, as they supposedly weren’t in keeping with the neighborhood’s historic character. Hiscox represented himself at the hearing — and won. Now Hiscox is revving up to challenge the city’s smoking ban. And he has a novel legal theory that just might work. The city’s ban, which is set to go into effect January 1, 2016, forbids smoking from all bars, with exceptions for two entities: the private Missouri Athletic Club, and casinos (there’s only one casino within city limits, but the ban also exempts any future ones to be built). But the language in the bill refers not to casinos, but “casino gaming areas” — “the area of a state-licensed gambling facility where gaming is allowed.” Hiscox is convinced his bar qualifies. That’s because the Bastille, like 98 other St. Louis bars, participates in the Missouri Lottery’s keno program. Doing so means getting a state license — one that requires a $50,000 bond and a $50 annual fee. The lion’s share of proceeds from keno games are then remitted to the state lottery. That, Hiscox says, makes the Bastille a gaming establishment. And that means he too gets an exception. Come January 1, city health inspectors may ticket him for allowing smoking, he says. But he’s ready to fight any citation he receives. “I’m not hiring lawyers,” he Continued on pg 10

Avoiding traffic jams is a free download away — but we’ve all got to be in this together.

[FIRST PERSON]

WAZE COULD CHANGE YOUR LIFE

ou know that SNL skit about the Californians? Those absurd accents, that obsession with directions? (“Stuart! You can’t take the 405! It’ll be totally JAMMED!”) That was my life for three years when I lived in Los Angeles, and that’s where I fell in love with Waze. It couldn’t help me with the accents, but the directions? Waze had the directions down. Waze is a traffic app. It works like a GPS, guiding you from Point A to Point B — only there’s a huge twist. Using real-time data, Waze steers you around the traffic. If the 405 is totally jammed (and in LA, it’s always jammed), Waze sends you onto side streets, and not necessarily the ones

that even veteran drivers would think of using. You might make a dozen turns, but you also end up outsmarting the traffic jam. In LA, where it was not uncommon to spend an hour driving five miles, it was a lifesaver. I moved to St. Louis almost exactly one year ago, and I assumed Waze and I were finished. I was living in Lafayette Square and working downtown — traffic? What was traffic? Then I took a job working in the Loop, which was not only under construction, but maddeningly positioned from my home. Did I take I-64 to Skinker? Or I-64 to Forest Park, through those surface streets in the CWE — and then north to Delmar? Or maybe Forest Park all the way to Big Bend, to avoid the trolley construction shitshow? After a few weeks of wondering and cursing, I remembered Waze — and once again, my course was set, even if my route did change a little bit every day. riverfronttimes.com

But then I started to notice something. Waze is not as good in St. Louis as it was in LA. Oh, sure, it finds me some shortcuts, and on days when eastbound I-64 is backed up as I’m racing home to relieve the babysitter, I know it’s going to find me the shortest route, even if I’m making ten zillion turns down side streets to do it. But it’s not quite as perceptive to the subtle changes in daily traffic patterns as it used to be in Los Angeles. The problem, I realized, is that not enough St. Louisans are using Waze. More than any other traffic app, Waze is dependent on its users. It figures out which streets to send you on based on how fast other drivers are moving — or, in the case of the 405, not moving. And beyond that, it relies on user-generated info. Report an accident with a click of your smartphone, and Waze reroutes everyone

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

Continued on pg 11

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If a bar has keno it ought to qualify as a gaming establishment, one bar owner says.

FIGHT THE BAN Continued from pg 9

Avoiding traffic jams is a free download away — but we’ve all got to be in this together.

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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says. “I’ll represent myself again. And I will win.” When the city signed off on a smoking ban six years ago, January 2016 surely seemed a long way away. But with the day of reckoning now close at hand, the exceptions that may have seemed like a speedy compromise back in 2010 now seem likely to create major headaches, at a minimum. Bars in the city are livid that St. Louis County will still allow smoking within its smaller bars. They’re also livid that the ban isn’t universal — if the athletic club and the casino get a pass, they question, why not them? It’s not just Hiscox. Bill Hannegan, president of Keep St. Louis Free, has been coordinating with a group of bars that aims to mount a similar a legal challenge. They’ve raised enough money to hire a lawyer. “We are still hoping the City will accommodate small bars like they did the Missouri Athletic Club by delaying imposition until the casino exemption is over, but we have raised enough money and we are moving ahead,” Hannegan tells the RFT. Hiscox plans to be a bit more passive. Rather than file a suit now, he says he’ll keep the ashtrays out, in essence daring

“We are still hoping the City will acommodate small bars like they did the Missouri Athletic Club and by delaying imposition until the casino exemption is over.” the city to cite him. He’s not even sure they’ll get around to it. “All kidding aside, the city health department has 2,600 accounts and 12 inspectors,” he says. “There’s no way they can get to everybody.” Hiscox is not himself a smoker. (Raised Mormon, he doesn’t even drink.) But the unfairness rankles him. “You want all the casinos to smoke, but not anybody else? That’s not right,” he says. He adds, “I just want my people to not have to go outside to smoke and freeze their asses off!” – Sarah Fenske

WAZE Continued from pg 9 else around it. It’s part of the fun of the app: When those drivers confirm that they see what you reported, you get a little thank-you note. “Seven Wazers thanked you for your report,” it tells you, and you find yourself sitting up a little straighter. Over time, in fact, you start to get a warm-and-fuzzy feeling alien to most drivers...the idea that we’re all in this together. As, really, we are. With Waze, even when you’re not making formal reports, you’re helping out — just by having the app on your phone, Waze knows where you’re driving and how fast you’re moving. That helps the app know where to route other people. Et voila! Everyone gets to move a little bit faster just because you’re out on the road. But back to St. Louis for a moment. In LA, as the company explained to me a few weeks ago, there were 1.7 million of us generating data. In St. Louis, there are just 60,000. I saw a bit of how this translated about a month ago, when lightning struck a light pole on I-64 and it was shut down just ahead of my morning commute. No one, apparently, had reported it to Waze, and none of those 60,000 local users were stuck in the resulting jam, and so the app had no idea about the scale of the problem. It kept trying to route me onto the highway as I cursed at it. (“No, WAZE! Not I-64! Not Forest Park either!”) At this point, we St. Louis Wazers just don’t have the critical mass to solve these problems. There’s a solution here, and I realize that using this column to urge you toward it might seem like an abuse of my bully pulpit. But that’s the thing about Waze. Use it a little bit, and you start to realize that just by being selfish, you are helping others. By getting to your destination as fast as you can, you are generating data that helps others also enjoy a faster commute. What feels like pure selfishness is actually altruism. And isn’t that the real American dream? As it turns out, though, this isn’t about you and me. This could also be about St. Louis. Waze has a new free program that helps cities, and even entire states. Launched in October 2014, Connected Citizens creates a free data exchange between government entities and Waze. Waze lets cities use its data — a treasure trove of real-world traffic information — even as those cities can use Waze to get the word out about sudden closures or rerouted roadways.

LA, Boston, and the Iowa Department of Transportation have all signed on. They’re using the data to solve problems they didn’t even know existed. Boston, for example, realized via data from Waze that double-parked cars had become a huge problem, says Waze’s Meghan Kelleher. Using cops on bikes and Waze data, the authorities issued thousands of “movealong” citations. The problem cleared up in a jiffy. Now, St. Louis is never going to have the traffic problems of LA or Boston. (That’s one reason I moved here.) But think of all the little quality-of-life

issues that real-time data might help with, from those lights on Lindell that are timed exactly wrong to the way traffic always backs up heading southbound on Jefferson during evening rush hour. If we all joined Waze, and St. Louis city leaders took advantage of the offer to join the Connected Citizen Program, we could actually solve stuff like that. Imagine that! Oh, and get this. Waze also lets drivers report when they’ve spotted a police officer. And let’s face it: Even though St. Louis doesn’t have a major traffic problem, we have had real problems with cops using drivers

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as a revenue stream. If Waze started giving us real-time warnings, we wouldn’t need legislative action to reform these money-grubbing municipalities. We could do it ourselves, one report at a time. So come on, St. Louis, it’s time to download that app. Your city needs you. Your fellow drivers need you. I need you. And I’ll be there for you, too, I swear. The next time there’s a hazard blocking Skinker, I’m all about reporting it. No need to thank me, either — it’s literally the least I could do. – Sarah Fenske

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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ONE MORE FOR THE ROAD

Saying goodbye to the 34 Club — a storied dive bar that’s still not ready to pour its last libation

W r i t t e n b y K E V I N KO R I N E K P h o t o s b y E R I C F R A Z I E R

“It’s changed quite a bit over the years, and most of the originals are dead. But the philosophy remains the same. We’re family.”

here are a lot of great stories that come from a good bar. And it stands to reason that the older a bar is, the more stories it has — stories that come from the patrons who frequent it and from the bartenders who serve them. It becomes a storytelling nation of sorts. At some point, people don’t even remember what happened. They just remember the stories they’ve told about it. The 34 Club, located at 34 North Euclid Avenue in the Central West End, has been in operation since 1941, passing hands from owner to owner for the better half of a century. To put that into perspective, in the year the bar opened, Duke Ellington recorded “Take the A Train,” the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and Stan Musial made his debut with the St. Louis Cardinals. Seventy-five years isn’t a long time for a church to be standing,

but it’s a hell of a record for your local tavern. The 34 Club wears its years with pride. “We could tell you some good stories,” says current owner Tom Bergman, “but you know, we’d have to change the names to protect the innocent.” It’s one of the oldest, continually operating drinking establishments in St. Louis city — and should probably be registered by the Landmarks Association of St. Louis. But as we are reminded so often in this country, memories and history count for shit. Though the wheels of progress turn slowly in St. Louis, we are still more apt to start over and bulldoze antiquity rather than let it age gracefully, much less venerate it. In August, the Koman Group announced it had purchased the 31st block of Euclid Avenue, with plans to renovate the entire space by leveling the current structure and building a high-rise condo. On December 31, the 34 Club will pour its last drink.

he 34 Club is a veritable crawl space. An attic within an attic. A forgotten speakeasy where the password no longer carries any meaning. The smell of dust and cockroach dander pervade throughout, and crossing the threshold is a commitment to stepping backward in time — you can feel the clock hands slow to a crawl. The bartenders sling manhattans overflowing with whiskey and a dash of water. The bathroom is a squatter’s prison: The only complement is a lock; the only luxury is that it works. It’s a wind-down for most, a wind-up for some, but it’s been a hiding place for anyone in the city looking to not be found. It’s not pristine or pretentious. It’s dark, drab and perpetually filled with the smog of a thousand cigarettes, having escaped the smoking ban thanks to its diminutive square footage and lack of food. And if you walk in thinking there’s a big pint with your name on it, think again. There are no taps, Continued on pg 14

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THE 34 CLUB Continued from pg 13

Bar manager Mike Mullen, far right, shares a laugh with patrons J.T. Kolesa and Alex McClure.

no collection of craft beers. Bottled Stag and Miller High Life reign supreme — and they’re not drinking them ironically here. Cocktails are cheap and built to last. Bartender Sean Brennan will ask what you’re drinking, but not because he gives a shit. And if he doesn’t like what you’re drinking, he’ll make you something else. “Get the fuck outta here,” he’ll slur, in a throaty, half-Irish rasp. You can’t be thin-skinned and drink here. When the bartenders finish with their shift, they pour themselves a stiff one and take a seat on the civilian side, never even stepping outside for a break. Talk about loving where you work. Steve Smith used to be a regular here, long before he opened the Royale. “I always dug the suits rubbing elbows with the regular working man at this bar, which is not common enough,” he writes in an email. “The older regulars in the

neighborhood really make it worth the trip. They would cuss, joke and drink with the best of them.” Trinkets and minutiae collected over the years adorn the walls: pictures of The Odd Couple, the Rat Pack, old photographs. To inquire about their significance is a lost cause. Bar manager Mike Mullen shrugs unknowingly. “Most of it is just crap and cobwebs. That’s what holds it together,” he laughs.

n the 1940s and 1950s, the 34 Club was a destination bar. A glitzy hotspot not far from the hustle and bustle of Gaslight Square — and a bar beloved by the city’s power brokers to boot. Union bosses, police captains and aldermen all came to strike deals and indulge in the nightlife. Celebrities would stay at the Chase Park Plaza Hotel and hop over to the bar for a drink. Among the names thrown around, you hear Carol Channing,

Joey Bishop, Dean Martin, Miles Davis. No one who experienced those evenings is still alive to comment, but the stories keep getting repeated anyway. And when the legend becomes fact, you’d be a fool not to print the legend. Primarily a cop hangout for several decades after that, the 34 Club started expanding its clientele after Tom Bergman took ownership in 2003. A former cop himself, Bergman isn’t quick to start talking but once he gets warmed up, he takes great pleasure in recalling the bar’s glorious past. He punctuates his anecdotes with “you can’t make this stuff up” and “it is what it is.” His laugh starts hoarse, like he’s gasping for oxygen, before transforming into a barrelhouse roar. You can tell he has laughed a lot in here. “We knew with the way things were going, they were probably going to take a wrecking ball to this thing,” he admits. “With all the new developments, though, my real concern is that you gotta keep the West End a little weird — this was always the cutting-edge neighborhood for years!” Of the bar, he says, “You kind of become a family, albeit a dysfunctional family.” Bergman updated some of the flooring and lighting, but admits that he did little to enhance the bar’s appearance. “When I first bought it, I tried to wash off all the nicotine from the walls and it was just coming down in a river, you know. I just figured it was its own varnish-shellac on there, maybe we better leave it,” he laughs. The lighting may have improved, but the shadows that lurk never seem to dissipate, even in the light of day. But that’s the thing. This was always a dark bar, he says. “It wasn’t very inviting from the street. I think a lot of women would be wary of coming in here, but that was kind of the allure; this was a place that people always came to hide.” One unique feature is that the bar is accessible through the back door in the alley, which led to many a secret rendezvous. “I had an inspector here and he said, ‘Yeah, I used to come in here and drink in the ’60s. I was married, but I’d come here and meet my girlfriend.’ He said the great thing about this bar was that one could come in the front door and one could come in the back door and no one would see you go into the place together. That’s what’s so neat about this place.” But the crowd isn’t always adulterers and ne’er-do-wells. The true

Above: Like many of his clients, owner Tom Bergman is himself a former cop. Below: Though the bar is beloved, drinking here is not for the thin-skinned.

“It wasn’t very inviting from the street. I think a lot of women would be wary of coming in here, but that was kind of the allure; this was a place that people always came to hide.” allure of the 34 Club is in its egalitarian nature — a complete deconstruction of class walls. “The one thing I’ve noticed since I’ve bought this place, we started getting younger people here, and I think that, for a lot of them, it was kind of an eye opener — their notion of a bar was a TGI Fridays,” he says. “You come in a place like this and somebody actually talks to you, engages you, and you could really see how people were freaked out about that. But people come in here now and embrace it. You could be sitting next to a millionaire from Lindell and a nurse that just got off work and then you got a homeless person in the corner, you got an architect who’s a drag queen on

the weekends. It’s neat, you know? I think it takes the comfort zone away. But that’s just a good neighborhood tavern. It is what it is.” Mike Mullen stands behind the bar, wiping down the counter and restocking the cooler with bottles of Busch, his gray hair cropped short and thin. He’s only been managing 34 Club for five years, but has been a long-time staple in the neighborhood, having run his own restaurant on Sarah Street called Southern Belle, where the Block now resides. His laugh is distinctive, like it’s being dragged across gravel, but that doesn’t stop him from releasing it often. On the subject of maintaining the Central West End’s signature highriverfronttimes.com

low culture, Mullen backs up Bergman fervently. “You walk into some of these new places in the West End and you’re just like, ‘What the fuck is this, Valley of the Dolls?’ They’re all a bunch of plastic-looking people, everyone looks the fucking same. Then you walk in here and you see everything. This is like walking into the bar at Star Wars after going into Sub Zero,” he laughs. The location is one reasons for the diverse clientele, Bergman posits — the bar is just one block from Barnes-Jewish Hospital, where life and death hang in the balance every day. “I remember I had a lady come in and order a double-vodka, and she just downed it,” he recalls. “And

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THE 34 CLUB Continued from pg 15 I asked her, ‘Bad day?’ and she said, ‘One of the worst days of my life.’ And then she paid her tab and left. I mean, you never know in this place. “Being so close to the hospital, we’ve had people coming in here who had relatives dying or in treatments, and this was one of the places where people could just come and drink and smoke and get away.” he adds. “So you start to know those people, and some of them keep in touch with us. We have students who have graduated, lawyers, writ-

ers, just everybody. It is what it is, you know, let’s face it. Not too many bars are like this anymore.” The Koman Group is not the only developer changing the core character of the Central West End. In 2014, Mills Properties purchased the 25 block of Euclid, just north of the 34 Club, where a Whole Foods, a parking garage and expensive condos are currently under construction. (Heading farther north on Euclid, Straub’s Market has already finished renovations in a quest to stay competitive.) And though both companies have extensive real estate portfolios, Mills Properties received

an estimated $10 million in tax increment financing, better known as a TIF, while Koman Group acquired an estimated $6 million. TIFs are a controversial way for taxpayers to subsidize development. In essence, the city agrees to hand over future tax revenues to developers in exchange for their work “improving” a property. Though originally designed to entice construction in “blighted” areas, across the country, TIFs are being used in upscale neighborhoods like the Central West End — and developers often threaten to pull out of an area if they can’t get such

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subsidies. A critic of such deals in general, the Show-Me Institute has questioned the Koman Group’s Central West End TIF in particular. “TIF is almost certainly unjustified in the case of the Koman Group’s proposal,” Joseph Miller writes on the institute’s website. “The areas in question are not blighted in any way.” In fact, the subsidized projects are pushing out longstanding businesses. Shortly after the Koman Group announced its purchase in August, Bergman was given orders to clear out by the end of the year, with no offer to stay as part of the new development. The block has also been home to Tip Top Cleaners for 30 years and a hair salon. The salon has already shuttered its doors; the dry cleaner, too, is slated to close at year’s end. Despite being forced out with no discussion, Tip Top owner Bob Mach says he was initially upset, but not with the Koman Group. He cites that old chestnut, “Business is business.” Neither does Bergman blame the developers. Kris Kleindienst, co-owner of Left Bank Books, the neighborhood’s independent book store, is a little more on the fence. “It’s a failure of imagination,” she says. “I wish there could be some creativity — could 34 Club stay as part of the new development, for example. That sort of thing tends to not happen, and it’s unfortunate when local businesses that have been here a long time and made the neighborhood what it is are so easily disposable.” She adds, “I just wish there was a more cohesive vision for local businesses because they are better for the economy, they do create jobs, and they make a neighborhood more interesting. Personally, I don’t want to live in a shopping mall.”

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he bartenders at the 34 Club are their own clientele. Jack Rinaldi is 84 and a long-time bartender in the neighborhood. He spent his 21st birthday at the 34 Club — in 1968. “It was a lot of beatniks and hippies everywhere back then,” he recalls. “The neighborhood was all rentals, and now it’s all condos.” The 34 Club’s newest bartender, Lynn Rinker, might be the most au courant person here with a halfshaved head and pin-up-style tattoos. “Who’s playing this sleepy fucking music?” she complains about “Take Five” on the jukebox. (Spoiler alert: it’s me. They don’t Continued on pg 18

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THE 34 CLUB Continued from pg 16 play enough jazz in bars anymore. ) But Mullen is probably the most outspoken proponent of keeping the bar open. “This place has been here for 75 fucking years, and they’re just gonna tear it down. Who does that?” he laments. “The neighborhood is changing so dramatically now, there’s really not a whole lot of mom-and-pop places left around here anymore.” The late, great Anita Andell, who died of cancer in 2014, got the RFT’s nod for Best Bartender in 2011. It was an honor she wore with pride, even though many regulars questioned how such a cantankerous person could have possibly won such an award. Bergman and Mullen recall Andell with humor. “She could be nice to you if you were nice to her, but if you fucked with her, she would drop a house on you,” laughs Mullen. He takes another drag of his Camel. “She was one of my best friends.” John Daniels, owner of Wicke Auto Services Body Co., might be the bar’s oldest living patron. Now 87, he entered the 34 Club for his first drink when he was 15. “I started coming here in 1945,” he says. He’s sitting at the bar on a late Tuesday afternoon, just before the daytime game shows air, a cigarette in hand and a big glass of scotch within reach. “They used to have people come in and play jazz, play piano and raise hell. Forrest Tucker came in here once, and I remember having a drink with him. A beautiful woman dancer, whatever her name, she came in here. So many people,” he recalls fondly. “There was a fellow on the East Side named Buster Wortman ... he used to bring his friends and clients here and have drinks and so forth.” (“Clients” may be putting it nicely; Wortman was a Depression-era bootlegger and gangster. In time, he would come to run East St. Louis’ gambling syndicate.) Daniels’ displeasure with the Central West End’s trajectory is evident. “I can’t say I’m crazy about all the developments here. I don’t want to lose the atmosphere we’ve had here for years and years,” he says. But nothing is ever the same as it used to be, he admits. “I think it’s another thing that happens when time moves on. I don’t like to see it closing, but there’s no choice.” Another long-time patron, Evelyn Baker, is famous in her own right. In 18

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Above: “Most of it is just crap and cobwebs,” bar manager Mike Mullen says of the trinkets the bar has collected over the years. Below: Lynn Rinker is the 34 Club’s newest bartender.

“This place has been here for 75 fucking years, and they’re just gonna tear it down. Who does that?”

1983, she was named the first black female circuit judge in the history of St. Louis. “Finest circuit in the state,” she smiles with a long drag on a cigarette before stamping it out in a plastic ashtray. “And the most productive,” she adds. In 2000, Baker found herself at the center of a controversial decision to keep November polls open until 10 p.m. during the Presidential election, thanks to the apparent mishandling of voter lists by the election committee. And though she served for 25 years and has only been retired for 8, she’s been coming into the 34 Club for half a lifetime. “The people are real,” she says approvingly. “We look after each other, we’ve got each other’s backs.

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It’s changed quite a bit over the years, and most of the originals are dead. But the philosophy remains the same. We’re family.” She adds, “It’s where I met my late husband.” She pauses to slowly light another cigarette. “I’ve seen kids grow up. I’ve seen second and third generations of families come in. It’s an interesting place.” Ned Bowdern is another regular and quite a storyteller in his own right. “There’s a lot of ghosts in this room,” he says. By chance, he reconnected with a grade-school sweetheart at the 34 Club and the two have been together ever since. They call her Betty Bandstand — reference to her days spent as a teenager, dancing on American

Bandstand with Dick Clark. He recounts an age-old story that never loses its charm. “Jimmy Nieders was a mountie and used to come here and park his horse behind the bar and have a drink while on duty,” he explains. “So, one week he went on vacation and one his fellow cops took his horse out to give it some exercise. The horse was like on autopilot or something — first thing he does, he takes the cop right to the bar. Nieders gets back from vacation, walks in and says, ‘I got screwed by my horse!’” Everyone sitting at the bar has heard the punch line before, but they still erupt in laughter. “Jimmy Nieders, hell of a guy,” Bowdern Continued on pg 20 says.

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Above: One of the 34 Club’s many quirks: It’s accessible through a front door as well as a back door in the alley. Below: The staff hopes people can make it in for one last drink before it’s closed for good.

THE 34 CLUB Continued from pg 18 There’s a framed picture of a priest above the door leading out to the street. “That’s my uncle,” says Bowdern. The priest’s name is William Bowdern. He assisted in a supernatural event that would later become a blockbuster movie. “Ever see The Exorcist?” Bowdern asks, pointing up at the photo. “That’s the guy.” Brennan had asked Bowdern if they could hang the photo in the bar, annointing the famous priest the patron saint of the 34 Club. “And I thought, you know, he’d probably get a kick out of that. He had a great sense of humor,” Bowdern says. Prompting the question: “The guy who performed the exorcism had a great sense of humor?”

ergman doesn’t want to just close the doors and be done with it. He’s been trying to work out a lease with another nearby property owner. But so far, his luck is coming up short, as several have already turned him down. No one seems to want a collection of heavy drinkers and old smokers, no matter how cheerful. Even an empty space across the street, owned by Keat Properties, has declined to rent to the venerable old dive. “They said they weren’t interested in us setting up shop over there. They said they wanted a na-

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tional chain,” Bergman says, flummoxed. “My assumption is that they were thinking there would be some stability in that, but I don’t know how much more stable we could be than a bar that’s been here for 75 years. Qdoba was over there, but didn’t last, so you see how that worked out.” But Bergman remains optimistic about reopening somewhere else in the neighborhood. ‘’We’ll be new and improved, and we’ll keep on rolling. Squeeze another couple of decades out of the old girl,” he says, looking fondly up at the walls, like she’s an old ship about to be dismantled. “I’m totally invested in keeping it going, absolutely. I think people would follow us. You can’t go down to Drunken Monkey or whatever they’re calling it this week and act like you can here. I mean, let’s be honest. They’ll tell your ass to leave, that’s the sad reality. This is more of

a saloon than anything.” Someone puts money in the digital jukebox and Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” starts playing. One of the patrons calls out, “Jack, how about one more and then I’m gonna get the hell outta here.” He downs a shot and saunters out into the street. “I would love for people to come in before we close and get one last drink here,” Mullen says. While Bergman searches frantically for new digs, the staff is planning one last blowout for their final day on New Year’s Eve — and all of St. Louis is invited. So before the 34 Club closes her doors one last time, belly up to the bar and be a part of the history that’s kept the place alive. You just might hear a few good stories. Or better yet, you might become part of one. Promises Bergman, “We’re gonna have one hell of a send-off party.”n

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[REVIEW]

Hipster Heaven Byrd & Barrel does fried chicken with a dose of irony Written by

CHERYL BAEHR

Byrd & Barrel

3422 South Jefferson Avenue; 314-8759998. Mon.-Sun. 11 a.m.-11 p.m.

painting hangs on one of the walls in Byrd & Barrel’s tiny dining room, depicting an epic battle between man and chicken. It’s a dystopian futuristic scene, as giant, brawny birds, heavily armed and decked in space suits, engage in a standoff with military-clad humans — and the chickens are clearly winning. I can’t help but see Byrd & Barrel owner Bob Brazell as one of those chickens. After spending a year and a half as executive chef at Revel Kitchen (formerly Athlete Eats), his new venture seems less like a change in direction and more like the kind of culinary meltdown that comes after months cooking for gluten-free paleo types and house-brewing kombucha. Cauli-rice? I’ve got it right here, mother clucker! Brazell insists this is not the case. As he came up in some of the city’s top kitchens over the years (Monarch, Niche), the St. Louis native dreamt of a place of his own — a casual comfort-food spot, or in his words, the type of food that people want to eat. That dream found its reality when the Popeyes near the corner of Jefferson and Cherokee became available. Brazell left Revel Kitchen in August 2014 and got to work repurposing the former fast-food restaurant into a homegrown homage to the fried bird. After what seemed like an eternity to those eagerly awaiting a taste, Byrd & Barrel opened its doors in September. As befitting a former Popeyes, Byrd & Barrel has a tiny interior, with just three banquettes and a

The “Tickled Pickle”: Served like haute cuisine, it’s actually a hot-dog-stuffed pickle breaded like a corn dog. | Mabel Suen

One need only consider the restaurant’s signature sandwich, the “Mother Clucker,” to see Brazell’s penchant for trashy-chic. handful of stools around a narrow wall counter. The bar sits in place of the original order counter and takes up the bulk of the restaurant’s real estate. The space, though, is utterly transformed. Walls are painted black with green accents, and windows stretch around three sides

of the building. Out front, barrels from 4 Hands Brewing Co. section off a large part of the parking lot, creating a surprisingly inviting patio, while Brazell has retained Popeyes drive-through window so that passersby can grab their chicken on the quick. Then there’s the black-painted toilet, repurposed as an ashtray, that sits outside within full view of the dining room — perhaps a middle finger to culinary political correctness à la Duchamp? Actually, it seems more like an expression of south-city hipster irony, as does much of Byrd & Barrel’s menu. A clever coworker calls it “boho-faux-hobo” — it’s basically a tongue-in-cheek appropriation of white-trash culture, dialed up to the point that we know Brazell is in on the joke and not just serving, well, Popeyes. One need only consider the restaurant’s signature sandwich, the “Mother Clucker,” to see Brazell’s penchant for trashy-chic. A gargantuan piece of boneless fried chicken is placed on a sesame bun, riverfronttimes.com

then coated with molten Provel cheese sauce (think albino CheezWhiz), caramelized onions and pepper jelly. And he doesn’t stop there — to kick the sandwich up to eleven, Brazell garnishes the bird with Red Hot Riplets potato chips. Unless you are looking for excess, the chips and Provel are unnecessary, transforming a flavorful chicken sandwich into a novelty — but that’s exactly what Brazell is going for. The “Tickled Pickle,” on the other hand, is a novelty that turns out to be legitimately good. Brazell hollows out a gargantuan dill pickle, stuffs it with a hot dog, coats it in cornmeal batter and dunks it in the deep-fryer. This edible phallic symbol is then given the presentation one would expect at a fine-dining establishment: sliced into equal discs and fanned out on a plate that is decorated with spiced mustard and hot peppers. It’s ironic, yes, but also delicious: The acid from the dill pickle cuts through the richness of the hot dog and Continued on pg 36

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BYRD & BARREL Continued from pg 35

Fresh Pressed Sandwiches Homemade Soups : Served like haute cuisine, it’s actually a hot-dog-stuffed pickle breaded like a corn dog. | Mabel Suen Wood Fire Pizza Local Beer • Local Wine IceProvel Cream • Snacks then coated with molten

cheese sauce (think albino CheezWhiz), caramelized onions and pepper jelly. And he doesn’t stop there — to kick the sandwich up to eleven, Brazell garnishes the bird with Red Hot Riplets potato Thank you, St. Louis! chips. Unless you are looking for BEST COMFORT FOOD - Reader’s Choice 2015 excess, the chips and Provel are unnecessary, transforming a fla- EAST TOWER GROVE BEST DELI/SANDWICH SHOP vorful chicken sandwich into a Open 11 a.m. - 8 p.m. - Editor’s Pick 2015 novelty — but that’s exactly what 3101 Arsenal Brazell is going for. The “Tickled Pickle,” on the other hand, is a novelty that turns out to be legitimately good. Brazell hollows out a gargantuan dill pickle, stuffs it with a hot dog, coats it in cornmeal batter and dunks it in the deep-fryer. This edible phallic symbol is then given the presentation one would expect at a fine-dining establishment: sliced into equal discs and fanned out on a plate that is decorated with spiced mustard and hot peppers. It’s ironic, yes, but also delicious: The acid from the dill pickle cuts through the richness of the hot dog and Continued on pg 36

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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cornbread, resulting in a shockingly well-balanced, enjoyable dish. Byrd & Barrel shines brightest on its signature offering, the fried chicken. Brazell soaks the bird in a seasoned buttermilk brine for three to four days, coats it in heavy batter and cooks it in a pressure fryer. The dark-brown breading is thick and crunchy, generously flecked with chile flakes, and subtly sweet; it’s like Nashville hot chicken, only dehydrated into a dry rub. The breading surrounds searing hot and juicy meat, which comes either as a traditional bone-in, skin-on fried half-bird or as handmade white- or dark-meat nuggets. Both are standouts, even in this city’s close-to-oversaturated fried-chicken market. Chicken wings also benefit from a similarly seasoned dry rub. Unfortunately they were overly smoky, which prevented the other flavors from shining through. The “South Side Poutine” appetizer had the same problem — pulled smoked chicken smothered in smoked mushroom gravy made me feel like I was eating the delicate, cheese-curd-topped potato croquettes in front of a roaring campfire. Byrd & Barrel offers a handful of more upscale entrées — a way

for Brazell to remind us that his talent goes beyond fried chicken and beer. The “Chicken and the Egg” is the lovechild of chicken and dumplings and pasta carbonara. Creamy gnudi, or ricotta dumplings, are smothered in chicken-thigh confit and cubes of bacon, then drizzled with raw egg yolk. The heat from the gnudi and chicken cooks the egg yolk, transforming it into a rich glaze. Basil-chile flakes give a small hint of spice to this decadent plate. Brazell’s take on curry would be at home on any Thai restaurant menu in town. Instead of rice, he tosses barley risotto in fiery, lemongrass-scented red curry and accents it with spiced cauliflower, carrots, cashew pieces and small versions of the restaurant’s chicken nuggets. It’s a worthy entrée if you can handle dining with beads of sweat on your forehead. At its heart, though, Byrd & Barrel is a fried-chicken and bourbon restaurant. And while this town certainly has enough of those, Brazell doesn’t seem to care. He has put in his time in hallowed culinary halls and in the healthfood niche, doing his part to fuel clean living. Now it’s his moment to give all of us the bird. n Byrd & Barrel “South Side Poutine”...................... $8 “Mother Clucker” ........................... $9 Buttermilk fried chicken ............... $12

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CHERYL BAEHR

SARAH FENSKE

Ayers took a break from the kitchen to share her thoughts on the St. Louis food and beverage scene, her commitment to good dental hygiene and why her mamma will always be her food crush. What is one thing people don’t know about you that you wish they did? That when they speak with condescension or affectation, I am definitely going to make fun of them later. One hundred percent chance. What daily ritual is non-negotiable for you? I have a whole involved, timeconsuming dental-hygiene routine that would probably seem pretty OCD to the casual observer. But we use our mouths a lot, so I try to take care of mine. If you could have any superpower, what would it be? How awesome would it be

aron McFarlane and Joe Dixon had good union jobs pouring concrete. But they weren’t satisfied. Like so many food lovers, they dreamed of opening a business of their own. They wanted to start a food truck. While they were researching that idea, they happened upon a space on Forest Park, just west of the Saint Louis University campus in midtown. Jimmy John’s was moving on, and they realized they could get a lease. “We decided to take it to the next level,” says McFarlane. The result, Dixon Smoke Co. (3664 Forest Park Avenue, 314-8334161), opened its doors for the first time one week ago. The business partners are serving up classic barbecue — plates and sandwiches heaping with pulled pork, brisket, pulled chicken, rib tips, burnt ends or some combination thereof. Plates come with two sides and sandwiches with one. And while those plates also come with two slices of white bread, like they do it in Texas, McFarlane and Dixon aren’t aiming to do their barbecue Texas-style or or even Kansas City-style. “We want to represent Missouri,” McFarlane says. “Everyone wants to say they’re doing it Memphis-style, or this or that. The rubs we have, we created right here in St. Louis. We want to rep St. Louis and St. Louis-style barbecue.” The space is no-frills, with exposed brick walls and a handful of booths along them. There’s a bar facing the kitchen; you walk up to the attached counter to order or sit at it to eat — but alcohol is not served. Like most barbecue joints, Dixon’s doesn’t intend to keep late hours — they’ll close between 3 and 6 p.m., depending on when they run out.

Continued on pg 40

T Ayers, the new executive chef at Schlafly Bottleworks (7260 Southwest Avenue, 314-241-2337), got her first professional cooking gig at the age of five. “I made a chocolate layer cake. Mom certainly tutored me, but I made one for my preschool graduation and we sold the other one at our restaurant.” “Our restaurant” was Riddle’s Restaurant, near the corner of Hanley and Natural Bridge Roads, which her parents opened when she was in preschool. “I grew up in the kitchen,” Ayers recalls. “As soon as I was tall enough to reach the counter, I was cooking.” Her parents started paying her when she was fourteen, and she continued to learn the ins and outs of the business as she came of age. Though she briefly studied anthropology at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Ayers knew that she was destined for the kitchen. She left college and partnered with her parents to move the restaurant to the Delmar Loop and rename it Riddle’s Penultimate. Eventually, she bought her parents out and took over the operations on her own. Ayers is not comfortable discussing Riddle’s demise, saying only that it is too painful to talk about. She admits, however, that she has grown as a cook in the years that have passed since the restaurant’s closure. “I worked at Annie Gunn’s for two years and learned so much there,” Ayers explains. “I also got a chance to work for the Purple Martin and am so proud of what we all did there.” Her résumé also includes a gig in restaurant con38

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KT Ayers of Schlafly Bottleworks. | Mabel Suen

sulting and a brief stint at the midtown Mexican restaurant Lücha. Still, she feels like she has been in limbo for some time. “I feel like I was bouncing around,” Ayers says. The veteran chef wasn’t looking for job when the Schlafly offer came. “Some of the people at Schlafly are family friends,” she says. “I would just go in for lunch and hang out. A conversation just started. Now, it feels like I have finally come home.” Ayers will roll out a new menu that uses more beer in the cooking process and emphasizes the brewery’s commitment to sustainability. “I have a really good ‘in’ with local produce,” Ayers says, laughing, and then admits: “It’s my dad. He is a produce purveyor and works with small farms and all things local. Dad has his finger on the pulse of what’s in season, so that’s helpful. But really, I am just happy to be working with him again.”

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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KT AYERS Continued from pg 38 to have that Bewitched thing, where you can freeze the whole room into suspended animation, go monkey with something, and then, snap, return to life as we know it? I could do so much with that. What is the most positive thing in food, wine or cocktails that you’ve noticed in St. Louis over the past year? I’ve seen a lot of creativity and playfulness incorporating interesting liqueurs and cordials in cooking lately. Chefs are no longer content to just cook with table wines these days. A little spritz of a slightly esoteric brandy or digestif opens up some really fun possibilities, and I enjoy that trend quite a bit. Who is your St. Louis food crush? My mother, Paula Ayers, is no longer in the restaurant industry. (She put in a solid few decades, though.) But she still does wonderful, creative things in the kitchen, that always let the high quality of the ingredients shine. Her food always looks pretty, too, which matters. She cooks clean, and has never taken a shortcut in her life. I gotta give it to my mama — that’s her superpower. If you weren’t working in the restaurant business, what would you be doing? I’m already a part-time crazy cat lady. If I only worked 40 hours a week, I might really end up on one of those intervention shows. It could totally get out of hand. Name an ingredient never allowed in your kitchen. Easy. Imitation maple syrup or “flavoring” — I can’t abide the stuff. It turns everything it touches into a knockoff fast-food breakfast sandwich or something. It’s not good in anything. What is your after-work hangout? My god-sister and I live very close. Whenever our schedules permit, you can find us with a fire in the fire pit, wine flowing, and the music cranked. Good clean American fun! What’s your food or beverage guilty pleasure? Guilty indeed! Frito’s Honey BBQ Twists. I don’t know what the deal is, but those things are my Kryptonite. I just steer clear of them, because I have no willpower n against them. 40

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Find Frankly Sausages outside of Maryland Heights’ Six Mile Bridge.

Frankly Sausages Pairs with Brewery

t. Louis chef Bill Cawthon and his wife Jamie are bringing a new food truck to the streets of greater St. Louis. Frankly Sausages, a gourmet sausage truck, isn’t just for people on the go (or following the truck on Twitter): The Cawthons have formed a partnership with Six Mile Bridge Beer in Maryland Heights to serve food to the brewery’s patrons. Thursdays through Saturdays, Six Mile Bridge customers will be able to order Frankly Sausages’ food from their servers and have their food delivered directly to them— without even having to go outside and interact with the truck. Think of Frankly Sausages as a mobile kitchen rather than a truck that happens to be parked outside. “We are literally an external kitchen for Six Mile, and they are our internal dining space,” Jamie Cawthon explains. “We’ll be focused on our partnership with Six Mile for the first month or so, and then we’ll also be doing more events around the city.” A St. Louis native, Bill Cawthon has worked in the restaurant business for more than five years, including under Los Angeles executive chef Vic Casanova. In LA, he was the opening sous chef at Gusto, named one of the city’s top restaurants by L.A. Weekly, and in St. Louis he served as chef de cuisine at Gerard Craft’s Pastaria and Cardwell’s at the Plaza.

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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When Bill Cawthon decided he was ready to branch out on his own, he recognized a hole in the St. Louis culinary scene. St. Louis has plenty of fried-chicken and barbecue restaurants, but not so much in the way of gourmet sausages. “St. Louis is all about simple concepts done really well, and Bill knew he could do that with sausages,” Jamie Cawthon says. The couple considered opening a brick-and-mortar location and even had investors lined up, but Bill Cawthon decided that a food truck was the way to go. “A food truck gives us the opportunity to sell really high quality ingredients at an affordable price point,” Jamie Cawthon

says. “Where else in St. Louis are you going to get a lamb sausage for $8.50? You’re not.” Frankly Sausages makes nearly everything from scratch and will offer six sausages – three classics and three specials – made of pork, chicken or lamb. One of the $7 classics, the “Six Mile Bridge Session IPA Beer Brat,” is served with sauerkraut and coarse ground mustard. An $8.50 lamb sausage, “Mary’s Little Lamb,” is topped with grilled red onion, feta cheese and oregano. Hand-cut fries are also on offer in two sizes, with six dipping sauces. Among the sauce options are chipotle, rosemary kalamata and pesto. — Joshua K. Connelly

DIXON Continued from pg 38 Co-owner Joe Dixon serves as the pitmaster. A St. Louis native, he grew up in the restaurant business — his mom owned a place called Charlie’s, in Berkeley. He’s proud of the ’cue he’s smoking — “all wood,” he notes (he uses both cherry and oak) — right there onsite at the restaurant. “I was out there at one this morning,” he says. As for McFarlane, he’s a military brat, but he went to high school here and considers himself more or less a native. He has joined in the front of the house by his brother, Aaron, who’s a friendly presence behind the counter.

The partners are open to suggestions and make it a point to solicit them from their guests. But no matter what people recommend, they’re not going to get too wild and crazy. Perhaps the most out-of-the-box option on the menu at this point is the “Super Food Cole Slaw,” which features kale in addition to cabbage. (It’s good!) But they also offer a standard slaw for people who like to keep it old-school. It is, at heart, that kind of place. “We’re sticking to the classics,” n Aaron McFarlane says.

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33 Wine Shop & Tasting Bar 1913 Park Avenue; 314-231-9463

Though unassuming and simple from the outside, 33 Wine Shop & Tasting Bar provides outstanding hospitality, more than 700 wines and one of the best beer lists in the city. The result is a relaxing yet engaging opportunity to sip, contemplate or just plain drink your vino. Though lacking a full menu, there’s a nice array of cheese, cured meats and crackers to hold you over. Pricing is great, with bottles marked up just $9 over 33’s very competitive “take home” prices (it is a wine shop, too), which makes it a great place to go big on a specialty bottle. The oftrotating draft selection, along with the list of bottled brew, highlights great beers both American and imported, many of which are rarely available on tap locally. $$-$$$

Eleven Eleven Mississippi 1111 Mississippi Avenue; 314-241-9999

One of the most popular restaurants on the square (though, technically, it’s a few blocks away), Eleven Eleven Mississippi is the perfect spot for a dinner party or an intimate dinner date for two. The restaurant bills itself as a “Wine Country Bistro,” and the wine list is up to the challenge along with a menu featuring variations on casual Northern Italian and California fare. Wild boar is a house specialty — that’s right, wild boar. The soft lighting and graceful décor helps create an intimate atmosphere to ensure things go well on that first date. $$$

Baileys’ Chocolate Bar 1915 Park Avenue; 314-241-8100

Located in the heart of the Square, Baileys’ Chocolate Bar serves up some of the city’s best desserts and cocktails, in addition to a small but stellar selection of savory offerings. Thanks to its dim lighting and the rich browns and reds that dominate the interior, Baileys’ Chocolate Bar is deservedly known as one of the city’s most romantic spots. Selections range from classic desserts like crème brûlée and Baileys’ strawberry sundae to more contemporary creations like its vegan banana split made with strawberry sorbet, as well as a variety of

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housemade ice creams and truffles. Savory offerings include sandwiches, salads and pizzettas, and a sizeable selection of fine cheeses. The bar serves up a bevy of beers, wines, spirits and specialty cocktails — your sweet tooth will thank you. $-$$

Element

1419 Carroll Street; 314-241-1674 Element serves up hearty rustic American food in a beautifully restored historic brick building. The two-story, warmly rich space is filled with glass and wood and features an open kitchen in the lower-level restaurant area so that every table feels like a chef’s table. The top floor offers small plates and a gorgeous full bar in an urban-chic lounge area. Both levels offer outdoor seating with stunning views of downtown St. Louis. Notable dishes include a pork-belly small plate — so creamy it is almost spreadable — served with tangy blue-cheese mousse, plums, French prunes and walnuts. The short-rib large plate is equally decadent, the meat falling apart with the slightest prodding of a fork. Served with a rich sweet-potato ale, rutabaga and Swiss chard, the short ribs are tailor-made for a chilly day. The wine list is small but thoughtful, the beer list features local craft selections and the bartenders are up to the challenge of customizing a craft cocktail based on a mood. $$$

Planter’s House

1000 Mississippi Avenue; 314-696-2603 Finally, master mixologist Ted Kilgore gets a house of his own with Planter’s House. This Lafayette Square temple to mixology is a showroom for Kilgore and company’s (his wife, Jamie, and business partner, Ted Charak) inspired cocktail artistry. Drinks run the gamut from the approachable “Planter’s House Punch” to the esoteric wormwood-laden “Unusual Suspect.” The joint is, first and foremost, a cocktail room, but it features an inspired food menu. The poutine is magnificent — thick, red-wine pork gravy covers a platter of fried and smashed fingerling potatoes. Or try the duck burger, a mammoth mix of ground duck, pork and bacon served open-face on a pumpernickel bun with Gouda and a fried duck egg. It’s quite possibly the perfect way to soak up all of that booze. $$-$$$

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MUSIC

St. Louis mainstay Matt Harnish, performing with Bunnygrunt. | Theo Welling

45 Revolutions Bunnygrunt’s Matt Harnish celebrates four and a half decades on Earth with a quirky compilation EP Written by

MIKE APPELSTEIN Matt Harnish 45th Birthday Celebration Tuesday, December 15, 9 p.m. San Loo, 3211 Cherokee Street. Free. 314-696-2888.

he generation gap isn’t what it used to be. Just ask surviving members of the indie-rock scene of the 1980s and 1990s. Most of them are either closing in on AARP eligibility or are already there. Yet even as members of that generation have gotten mar-

ried, started families and settled into middle age, many have remained involved in music. Artists such as Mary Timony, Bob Mould, Dinosaur Jr. and the Mountain Goats have not only stayed active well into their forties and fifties, but are currently making some of their best-ever music. So why not celebrate reaching that milestone while you’ve still got some of your memory and health? That is exactly what St. Louis mainstay Matt Harnish, best known as Bunnygrunt’s guitarist and vocalist, is planning. Except for a couple of years in the mid-aughts, Bunnygrunt has existed continuously for more than twenty years. This summer, the band released a new album, Bunnygrunt Vol. 4, and toured the UK. Harnish is also a DJ, label owner, concert promoter, record-store clerk and occasional journalist. He remains one of the most enthusiastic and active members of the St. Louis music scene. Harnish turned 45 not too long ago. He will observe this milestone on December 15 with a compilation

seven-inch (at 45 rpm, with nine songs total — four on one side and five on the other, each 45 seconds long) and a show at San Loo. We were curious about what keeps him interested after all this time. RFT Music: Why a 45th birthday party? Other than an excuse to release a single, that is. Matt Harnish: It’s a nice number. It has lots of good connotations: records, guns, malt liquor. A few of my friends have thrown “45 only” DJ parties for their 45th birthdays, so I figured the only logical upgrade would be to convince people to record 45-second songs to release on a 45 for my 45th. It’s a little late, as my actual birthday was in October, but whatever. I blame Record Store Day for all delays. You’ve been playing music since your twenties. How have you changed as a musician or songwriter over these past few decades? What are some lessons you’ve learned that you didn’t know when you were starting out? I’ve never been one for writing “grand statements” in my songs riverfronttimes.com

— except for that one somewhat subtly anti-RFT song I wrote — so lyrically I haven’t changed all that much. I stopped worrying about my guitar playing after [Eric] Von Damage joined on drums and Karen [Ried] took on bass full time. I knew I had a rock-solid rhythm section that would carry whatever I did, so my style has gotten a little looser, as I didn’t have to cover as much ground. That’s more situation than age-related, though. I guess I’ve heard a lot of different kinds of music since the Grunt started, so some influences have probably slipped in there somewhere, but that’s the music critic’s job to notice that or not. If I could have told young me one thing, I would have magically appeared at that practice Karen and I had immediately after we fired our bass player in 1995 and said, “Just continue on as a two-piece. You’ll be the first White Stripes.” Do you get self-conscious about being older? Be honest: Do you feel old at shows?

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

Continued on pg 46

RIVERFRONT TIMES

The ’Grunt, celebrating twenty years. | Theo Welling

HARNISH Continued from pg 45

St. Louis mainstay Matt Harnish, performing with Bunnygrunt. | Theo Welling — except for that one somewhat subtly anti-RFT song I wrote — so lyrically I haven’t changed all that much. I stopped worrying about my guitar playing after [Eric] Von Damage joined on drums and Karen [Ried] took on bass full time. I knew I had a rock-solid rhythm section that would carry whatever I did, so my style has gotten a little looser, as I didn’t have to cover as much ground. That’s more situation than age-related, though. I guess I’ve heard a lot of different kinds of music since the Grunt started, so some influences have probably slipped in there somewhere, but that’s the music critic’s job to notice that or not. If I could have told young me one thing, I would have magically appeared at that practice Karen and I had immediately after we fired our bass player in 1995 and said, “Just continue on as a two-piece. You’ll be the first White Stripes.” Do you get self-conscious about being older? Be honest: Do you feel old at shows? Continued on pg 46

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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Depends on the show. God bless Stephen Houldsworth for wading into the pit at Bonerville to take photos. I just don’t like getting run into as much as I used to, but that’s only at basement punk shows. When I’m at bigger indie-rock shows at the Pageant or Peabody or wherever, I wonder why everybody’s on their phone and looking bored. I like a little space around me and I like decent sound, so it’s nice that there are currently a lot of good rooms in St. Louis booking things I want to see. I don’t really network at shows, and I’ve never been really good at small talk, so I’ve always gotten a little bored between bands. Once the music starts, though, I don’t care about anything else happening in the room. How has the St. Louis music scene changed during your time as a participant? Our secret is finally getting out. There have been good bands in St. Louis ever since we started — and well before, of course — but they never seemed to go on tour until a few years ago. We were always bragging about Darling Little Jackhammer, Lydia’s Trumpet and the Volatiles back in the 1990s, but nobody in other cities ever knew what the hell we were talking about. Now everybody’s playing shows everywhere. There are starting to be solid show exchanges going on with bands in cities like Memphis, Minneapolis and Kansas City. Everybody is starting to figure out how weird and great our bands are. I couldn’t be happier about all of that.

Your life has changed over the past couple of years. You and Karen, your longest-running bandmate, both got married. You moved to Washington, Missouri, and Karen moved to Portland. How has Bunnygrunt adapted to it? We’re in a fallow period, for sure, but we’ve been there before. I’m as curious to see what happens next as anybody. Do you find yourself losing interest in new music? Or does your job in a record store ensure that you continue to keep up with new stuff? As far as bands that would be considered Bunnygrunt’s peers, I still mostly find out about new bands when we play shows with them. My favorite finds of 2015 were Mammoth Penguins, Witching Waves, Peaness and Threatmantics. All of them were bands we played with on our UK tour this past summer, none of whom I had ever heard of before seeing them live. As an individual, I am always happy to give something new a listen, but I don’t do research on new bands to stay current or whatever. If I hear something that hits me, it hits me. Why do you think so many have stayed involved in this music? Is there less of a stigma about playing indie-rock in one’s forties? I blame the baby boomers. They were the first generation to feel like they were allowed, expected or destined to “stay cool” for their whole lives, so that made everybody after them feel like it was OK to never bow out gracefully. They ruined it for everybody. We should have all gotten out years ago, except those of us who shouldn’t have. Gift of the Magi, man! n

B-SIDES

The Sword Is Mightier Texas metal masters the Sword return to St. Louis with their new album, High Country Written by

KEVIN KORINEK The Sword

9 p.m. Sunday, December 13. The Ready Room, 4195 Manchester Avenue. $18 to $20. 314-833-3929.

eavy is as heavy does. And few do heavy like Austin, Texas, metal quartet the Sword. For a metal band to be truly great, it has to contain an element of musicality that separates it from the pack. For all its posturing and attempts to stand apart from the mainstream, metal tends to stereotype itself very quickly. It’s way too easy to tune a guitar to drop-C, max out all the knobs on the pedalboard, purchase allblack clothing from the sales rack at Target and come up with the most evil-sounding name possible. But fitting a mold has never been a concern for the Sword. On its fifth studio release, August’s High Country, the band branches out even further from the sound it created with its 2006 debut. “We just wanted to do something a little bit different without turning people on their heads too much,” bassist Bryan Richie says. “We were just trying to do ‘us.’ Not trying to make a record for anyone but ourselves, but at the same time trying to expand on what we’ve done already. Nobody wanted to go through what we’ve already traveled — nobody wanted to make an Age of Winters 2.” Fans of the band have nothing to fear: The new album still relies on heavier-than-thou guitar riffs, mammoth in scope and expression, but with touches of sludgeblues and psychedelia added to the mix. Richie loves the end result; he is equally unfazed by its naysayers.

The Sword keeps it heavy. | Courtesy of Razor and Tie Publicity “For as much flak that this record has gotten for the change in direction, it’s not exactly a massive change in direction,” he argues. “I feel like we’ve definitely been foreshadowing the move we were going to make for quite a while with songs like ‘Maiden, Mother, Crone,’ and ‘Tres Brujas.’ Shit that was showing people tinges of things to come.” If the Sword’s aim was to zig when its fans expected a zag, High Country does just that. The El Camino groove of “Ghost Eye,” the road-trip ramble of “Turned to Dust” — for what it’s worth, this is very much a classically minded example of the genre, with equal measures stoner-metal ode and blues-rock ritual. Though Black Sabbath comparisons have always stalked the band, this iteration of the Sword sounds more like a backbreaking, lead-laden ZZ Top in rhythm, rock and tone. (Just

listen to “The Bees of Spring” and try to argue.) “That’s a pretty astute comparison,” Richie says. “I’m way more into that one than constantly getting compared to Sabbath, which I don’t think we sound like too much anymore.” And because the band members are such workhorses, they are already thinking ahead to the next record. “I think that’s a natural progression on how the industry works,” Richie explains. “When you finish a record you end up sitting on it for months before it’s even released, and that allows you to start putting your head in other thoughts, other places. We did some stuff in our downtime and recorded a lot of new tracks acoustically, so we’re gonna see if any of that has some sort of life in it.” An acoustic Sword album? You can almost hear the riffs already. riverfronttimes.com

“You may get that option!” Richie exclaims, his excitement palpable. “We pulled it off on this new record with ‘Silver Petals,’ so we’ll see where it goes. The acoustic version of ‘Seriously Mysterious’ is absolutely sick, man. I hope people get to hear that one, ’cause that came out something special.” In addition to prepping yet another new album, the members of the Sword are enthusiastic to be taking the music of High Country on the road. It’s been quite some time since the band last played St. Louis, but its members’ love of our city remains. “It’s gonna be fun, man, we’re really excited,” Richie says. “I really love that place by the Firebird, that delicious barbecue joint — Pappy’s. That’s the shit.” A metal band from Texas that loves St. Louis barbecue? What could be heavier than that? n

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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HOMESPUN

TOMMY HALLORAN’S GUERRILLA SWING State Streets facebook.com/guerrillaswing

s a young man, Tommy Halloran read the newspaper with a kind of morbid curiosity. Poring over the crime coverage in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Halloran noted that many of the people shot and killed in the city were found dead on the so-called “state streets,” the south-side byways that pick up east of Grand. Halloran had heard the fear-mongering that often attended references to those neighborhoods, and those memories stayed with him throughout his fifteen years of living in the area. “Through a wonderful, terrible twist of gentrification, I find myself living on a state street,” Halloran says. “When I moved to south city in 2002, I was smoking weed on the floor of my apartment, and I thought if I died, I would be reported as having been killed smoking weed on a state street in south city, not as a well-educated young man from the county.” Those realities were probably banging around his head somewhere as Halloran sat down to write what would become the title track to his group Guerrilla Swing’s new EP, State Streets. “We wanted to place this album geographically,” he says. “I live in south city and I wanted to write a song about living on the south side.” To accomplish this, Halloran took a slight detour from the breezy, pre-war jazz music he and his combo usually play. Where his earlier recordings nodded heavily in the direction of Django Reinhardt and his gyspy-jazz following, “State Streets” has the low rumble of a Tom Waits song, aided in part by Kristian Baarsvik’s baritone saxophone. Halloran’s voice, too, rests in the lower part of his raspy register as he sings of cruising around those streets — Utah, Texas, Wisconsin — with devil-may-care hedonism. The song’s amber-hued mood fits Halloran’s vision, which he says is meant to evoke the lights-on/last-call mood of 3 a.m.: “There’s that sort of existential nihilism that thrives in the night culture, and

that’s a legit response to living in south city,” he says. State Streets is a quick, six-song program (Halloran laughs that “it’s only as long as a sitcom”), but the band is able to make a compelling, romantic sketch of city life. An amicable split with his former drummer and bassist led to a replacement rhythm section that had to learn the songs on the fly. “I went with a new drummer, and I needed a new bass player about five days before I went into the studio,” says Halloran. “The looseness of it is a testament to the ‘guerrilla’ approach we took.” Those players — Andy Hainz on bass and Jharis Yokley on drums — mesh well with Halloran’s lithe guitar playing and Baarsvik’s chameleon-like sax lines. The quartet is comfortable moving from the smoky noir impressions on “Salvatore” to the peppy skateboarder’s ode “Song for My Longboard.” At times the “swing” in Guerrilla Swing is nominal; “Campari Kiss” has the dramatic rumble of bolero, thanks to romantic accordion and a martial snare pattern. That song in particular shows a new level of versatility for the group. Guerrilla Swing tends to operate as a quartet, but the few guest musicians who drop in on State Streets help add sometimes earthy, sometimes ethereal properties to these tunes. Local jazz lifer Adam Maness’ work on the Hammond organ for “This Is It” is more roller rink than Philly jazz club, but it fits the song’s bluebeat origins like a glove, especially as Baarsvik’s baritone sax mirrors the rhythm’s peppy upstrokes. Kristin Dennis has been pretty quiet since she dissolved her electro-pop act Née last year, but her backing vocals on the dreamy “Black Confetti” are other-worldly. Cocktail piano and brushed drums make a feather bed for Dennis’ soaring, wordless melody line, which slowly mutates, doubles and floats away as Halloran enumerates a south-city reverie. Public buses, police helicopters and Cadillac hearses occupy his mind, and some impending sense of doom seems to be tugging at his sleeve,

but Halloran sounds joyfully mired in the day-today of city living. As a set closer, “Black Confetti” is as lush and impressionistic as the opening title track is brash and gritty. “If it weren’t so pretty, I’d weep,” Halloran (and Dennis) sing as the song peters out. The listener may very well feel the same sentiment. State Streets is available now as a digital release and Halloran hopes to have a vinyl issue ready for the spring, even through he recognizes that “most people will listen on their cell phones and computers.” When asked why, as a regularly gigging musician, he felt the need to return to the studio and buck up for costly vinyl, Halloran draws a distinction between his restaurant and bar gigs, which mostly find him playing covers and standards, and his original work. “The gigs pay my bills,” says Halloran. “I sing a lot of songs I like but don’t have any personal importance to me.” For State Streets, at least, Halloran can play the part of the artist. “This is sort of my canvas, I guess,” he says. “When I record it’s because this is what I’m trying to say as an artist: ‘Hey, I’m a person. This is who I am, this is what I’m about.’” –Christian Schaeffer

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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DECEMBER

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1301 Olive Street, St. Louis, MO 63103 I 314.539.0347 14086 HARMONEE RFT AD.indd 1

11/12/15 3:30 PM

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Bowling the way it is now – FUN!

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Fresh!- Hip Hop - 9pm - $5 - (Ladies Free until 10pm)

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11 TH

Various Hands, Banditos, Logos - Rock - 8pm - $10

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12 TH

Hendrix/Clapton 1969 feat. Anthony Gomes- Rock 8:30pm - $20

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 15 TH

UPCOMING SHOWS: 12/13* A COMMON TIME CHRISTMAS 1/2

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Tickets available at Blueberry Hill (no service fees with cash) All Ticketmaster ticket centers • Ticketmaster.Com *All Ages shows: $2 minor surcharge at doors.

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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WED 12/23, FRI 12/25 & SUN 12/27

UPCOMING SHOWS 12.31 POKEY LAFARGE

2.17 GAELIC STORM

1.8 PATTON OSWALT

2.21 BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE

1.9 MEMORIES OF ELVIS

2.23 DROPKICK MURPHYS

1.16 STORY OF THE YEAR

2.24 HOODIE ALLEN

1.26 CITY AND COLOUR

2.25 DARK STAR ORCHESTRA

1.28 CARNAGE

2.28 GARY CLARK JR.

1.30 RAILROAD EARTH

2.29 LOGIC

2.4 BIG HEAD TODD & THE MONSTERS

3.4 METRIC

2.9 KEYS N KRATES

3.24 EXCISION

2.11 JIM JEFFERIES

4.10 UNDEROATH

2.12 STS9

4.22 ANDREW BIRD

2.13 MIKE STUD

6.8 LEON BRIDGES

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thepageant.com // 6161 delmar blvd. / St. Louis, MO 63112 // 314.726.6161

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

RIVERFRONT TIMES

OUT EVERY NIGHT

T H U R S D AY

Blackfoot Gypsies, the Maness Brothers, the

AUSTIN JONES: w/ Run 2 Cover 7 p.m., $14-$15.

berry Hill, 6504 Delmar Blvd., University City,

The Firebird, 2706 Olive St., St. Louis, 314-535-

314-727-4444.

0353.

CHRISTMAS WITH AMY GRANT AND MICHAEL W.

BERNIEMAN: w/ Alexis Tucci, Blight Future,

SMITH: 7 p.m., $30-$75. Scottrade Center, 1401

C-Sharp, Casper Webs, Haunter, Mad Ma-

Clark Ave., St. Louis, 314-241-1888.

dames, Mimi Le Uke, Moon Glampers, Ooze,

DJ PAIN: w/ Black Metaphor, the Trak Starz 9

Persh 7 p.m., $10. 2720 Cherokee Performing

p.m., $10-$15. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St. Louis,

Arts Center, 2720 Cherokee St, St. Louis, 314-

314-289-9050.

276-2700.

LAURA GREEN BLUES BAND: 10 p.m., $5. BB’s

GOLDEN PELICANS: w/ Bib, Wet Ones, Lumpy &

Jazz, Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis,

the Dumpers, Black Panties 9 p.m., $8. Blank

314-436-5222.

Space, 2847 Cherokee St., St. Louis.

LEROY JODIE PIERSON: 7 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz,

JINGLEFEST: w/ Sam Hunt, Tyler Farr 7 p.m.,

Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-

$35-$50. Family Arena, 2002 Arena Parkway, St

436-5222.

Charles, 636-896-4200.

MACABRE MESSENGER: w/ Love Kingsford,

JOE METZKA BAND: 8 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz, Blues

Banks and Cathedrals, Davis Wilton 8 p.m.,

& Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-436-

$10. The Firebird, 2706 Olive St., St. Louis,

5222.

314-535-0353.

THE NEIGHBOURHOOD: 8 p.m., $30-$35. The

RADKEY: w/ the Timmy’s, the Haddonfields 8

Pageant, 6161 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis, 314-726-

p.m., $10. The Demo, 4191 Manchester Ave, St.

6161.

Louis, 314-833-5532.

THE SERVICE: 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $15. Ferring

SCARLET TANAGER: w/ Miss Molly Simms Band,

Jazz Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave, St. Louis,

Search Parties 8 p.m., $10. Off Broadway, 3509

314-571-6000.

Lemp Ave., St. Louis, 314-773-3363.

WILL HOGE: w/ Devin Dawson 8 p.m., $15-$25.

STRANGEST TRIBE: w/ Misery Business, Tom

Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St. Louis, 314-

Joad & the Ghosts 8 p.m., $8-$10. Fubar, 3108

773-3363.

Locust St, St. Louis, 314-289-9050.

Wilderness, River Kittens 8 p.m., $10. Blue-

SUN STEREO: w/ Spatula 9 p.m., $5. The Bootleg,

F R I D AY

4140 Manchester Ave., St. Louis, 314-775-0775.

[CRITIC’S PICK]

Foxing.

FOXING RECORD RELEASE SHOW

BASSAMP & DANO: w/ the Spiders, the Kuhlies

VARIOUS HANDS: w/ Banditos, LOGOS 8 p.m.,

8 p.m. Saturday, December 12.

9 p.m., $5. Livery Company, 3211 Cherokee St.,

$10. Cicero’s, 6691 Delmar Blvd., University

St. Louis, 314-643-8758.

City, 314-862-0009.

The Firebird, 2706 Olive Street. $10 to $12. 314-535-0353.

BROTHER LEE & THE LEATHER JACKALS: w/

A VERY MANLEY CHRISTMAS: w/ Jim Manley’s

[CRITIC’S PICK]

YES WE CAN: A TRIBUTE TO ALLEN TOUSSAINT 8:30 p.m. Friday, December 11. Old Rock House, 1200 South Seventh Street. $10. 314-588-0505.

In the pantheon of New Orleans musical giants, Allen Toussaint is second only to Louis Armstrong. A chart-topping songwriter, visionary producer, consummate sideman and prolific recording artist, Toussaint helped birth New Orleans R&B, which is another way of saying he helped sire rock & roll. His legacy is not lost on a younger generation, whether in the hometown he never forsook or in St. Louis, whose music scene owes him mightily. “Yes We Can: A Tribute to Allen Toussaint” takes its name from one of Toussaint’s most socially conscious 52

RIVERFRONT TIMES

tunes and features some of this city’s heaviest rhythm & groove hitters: Funky Butt Brass Band, Al Holliday, Messy Jiverson and even Dr. Zhivegas, who is currently celebrating twenty years of dance-floor demolition. Can they all pull off a full night of Toussaint’s music? To paraphrase the maestro, great Goshamighty, they can can. Righteous Revenue: Proceeds from this tribute will support Toussaint’s charity, New Orleans Organization for Artists Against Homelessness and Hunger, and St. Louis’ education-focused nonprofit Play It Forward. –Roy Kasten

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

riverfronttimes.com

St. Louis’ Foxing is officially taking over the world. The Albatross, the group’s debut LP, landed in November 2013 and quickly attracted the attention of New York’s Triple Crown Records, perhaps best known as the label that introduced the world to emo darling Brand New. With Triple Crown’s backing, Foxing spent 2014 touring in support of bigger-name acts including Seahaven, the Hotelier, Modern Baseball and even the aforementioned Brand New, winning

over legions of fans along the way. This October the group released Dealer, its second LP, to massive and universal critical acclaim. At this point the sky is the limit, and Foxing will soon be one of St. Louis’ most famous modern musical exports. Get onboard the hype train now so you can brag to your friends later. Here’s the Deal: This show serves as the official release of Dealer. So Many Dynamos, Jr. Clooney and Choir Vandals will open. –Daniel Hill

Mad Brass & Rhythm 7:30 & 9:30 p.m.; Dec. 12,

CHARLES KELLEY: w/ Maren Morris 8 p.m., $31.

7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $25. Ferring Jazz Bistro, 3536

The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis,

Washington Ave, St. Louis, 314-571-6000.

314-726-6161.

S AT U R D AY

DAVID DEE & THE HOT TRACKS BAND: 10 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St.

ANTHONY GOMES: 8 p.m., $20-$25. Cicero’s, 6691

Louis, 314-436-5222.

Delmar Blvd., University City, 314-862-0009.

FIVEFOLD: w/ Isaiah James & the Chains, Ash-

BRILLZ: w/ Party Favor, Medusa 9 p.m., $20-

land, New Lingo 7 p.m., $8. The Ready Room,

$25. Old Rock House, 1200 S. 7th St., St. Louis,

4195 Manchester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-3929.

314-588-0505.

MOUNTAIN SPROUT: 9 p.m., $10-$12. Off Broad-

CAR SEAT HEADREST: 8 p.m., $10. The Demo,

way, 3509 Lemp Ave., St. Louis, 314-773-3363.

4191 Manchester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

STACY MITCHHART BAND: 10 p.m., $10. BB’s Jazz,

Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-

The Ready Room, 4195 Manchester Ave, St.

436-5222.

Louis, 314-833-3929.

TOM HALL: 7 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups,

TRIBUTE TO JOHN MAYER: 8 p.m., $15. Lux, 2619

700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-436-5222.

Washington Ave., St. Louis, 314-531-2920.

UNCLE PEN: A TRIBUTE TO OLD & IN THE WAY: 9

UNDER THE COVERS: w/ Tom Joad and the Ghost

p.m., $7. The Bootleg, 4140 Manchester Ave., St.

(As Rage Against the Machine), the Cinema

Louis, 314-775-0775.

Story, Ginzburg and the Former Me (As Coheed

A VERY MANLEY CHRISTMAS: w/ Jim Manley’s

and Cambria) 6 p.m., $5. The Demo, 4191 Man-

Mad Brass & Rhythm Dec. 11, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m.;

chester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $25. Ferring Jazz Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave, St. Louis, 314-571-6000.

M O N D AY

S U N D AY

KEITH MOYER BAND: 8 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz, Blues

BLUES SOCIETY IBC FUNDRAISER: w/ Kingdom

5222.

Brothers Band 3 p.m., $10. BB’s Jazz, Blues &

THE RESOUNDING: w/ the Langaleers, Gavin

Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-436-

McNutt 8 p.m., $8-$10. The Demo, 4191 Man-

5222.

chester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

A COMMON TIME CHRISTMAS: 5 p.m., $15. Blue-

SOULARD BLUES BAND: 9 p.m., $5. Broadway

berry Hill, 6504 Delmar Blvd., University City,

Oyster Bar, 736 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-

314-727-4444.

621-8811.

LOVE JONES “THE BAND”: 8 p.m., $10. BB’s Jazz,

UBIQUITOUS SYNERGY SEEKER: 8 p.m., $10-$13.

Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-

Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St. Louis, 314-

436-5222.

773-3363.

MONTANA OF 300: w/ Crook Costello, Dijon

T U E S D AY

Lavell, JSkillz, Cosmiic, Adeum 8 p.m., $20-$25. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St. Louis, 314-289-9050. THE SWORD: w/ Royal Thunder 9 p.m., $18-$20.

FIND ANY SHOW IN TOWN...

& Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-436-

HEARTIST: w/ XXI, Lo and Behold, From Myth

Continued on pg 54

[CRITIC’S PICK]

With our new and improved concert calendar! RFT’s online CAR SEATlistings HEADREST music are now sortable 8 p.m. December 12.price. You by Saturday, artist, venue and buy tickets directly The can Demo,even 4191 Manchester Avenue. $10. 314from our website—with 833-5532. more options on the way!

Car Seat Headrest.

PHOTOGRAPHER: TODD OWYOUNG BAND: SLEEPY KITTY

For artists who use their Bandcamp encourages media to avoid his earpage like a LiveJournal diary — a store- liest releases (“BECAUSE THEY’RE house of in-development songs with NOT VERY GOOD,” he implores in precious little editing — the eventual all caps). Teens revisits some of his move to a respected label could be earlier songs and offers re-recorded a good excuse to wipe the digital versions, though his grainy, hazy style slate, so to speak. Will Toledo, the of pile-on bedroom pop is still distinctly young man behind recent Matador- lo-fi and thrillingly melodic. signing Car Seat Headrest, has re- Standing Tall: NE-HI, a new young sisted this urge. All of his material, quartet from Chicago, will open the ten-plus albums from May 2010 to show with a pop-infected nervous this year’s Teens of Style, is available energy similar to the headliner. –Christian Schaeffer for streaming, though his bio strongly www.riverfronttimes.com/concerts/

R R PHOTOGRAPHER: TODD OWYOUNG BAND: SLEEPY KITTY

FIND ANY SHOW IN TOWN...

With our new and improved concert calendar! RFT’s online music listings are now sortable by artist, venue and price. You can even buy tickets directly from our website—with more options on the way! www.riverfronttimes.com/concerts/

riverfronttimes.com

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

RIVERFRONT TIMES

RED WHITE & BLUE

TNT CONCERTS Glass Designs

All-American

Smoke Shop Pipes • Vaporizers • Detox Locally Crafted Jewelry Locally Blown Glass Pipes New PAX 2 Herbal Vaporizer Gift Sets Custom Wraps by Cody

BALL 2016

Continued from pg 53

READERS CHOICE 2015

2015

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OPEN TIL 3 AM!

St. Louis, 314-977-5000. CANNIBAL CORPSE: W/ Obituary, Cryptopsy,

St. Louis, 314-289-9050.

Abysmal Dawn, Wed., Feb. 24, 7 p.m., $25. The

SLIM JESUS: w/ Less, Chris Grindz, Tha MC,

Ready Room, 4195 Manchester Ave, St. Louis,

NuffSaid & Adeum, Jizxle, Les Luger 7 p.m.,

314-833-3929.

$15. Cicero’s, 6691 Delmar Blvd., University

COMMON KINGS: W/ Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds,

City, 314-862-0009.

Sun., March 13, 8 p.m., $20. Blueberry Hill,

ST. LOUIS SOCIAL CLUB: 8 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz,

6504 Delmar Blvd., University City, 314-727-

Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-

4444.

436-5222.

EL TEN ELEVEN: Fri., March 4, 8 p.m., $12. The

PARTY HOTLINE 314-621-6700 ONLINE SALES

LACLEDES-LANDING.BIGDADDYSTL.COM 54

RIVERFRONT TIMES

Firebird, 2706 Olive St., St. Louis, 314-535-0353. EXOTYPE: W/ Like Monroe, Alice Alive, Sat., Jan.

ADAM LAMBERT: w/ Pentatonix, Rachel Platten

23, 6 p.m., $13-$15. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St.

7 p.m., $29.50-$89.50. Peabody Opera House,

Louis, 314-289-9050.

1400 Market St, St. Louis, 314-241-1888.

EZRA FURMAN: W/ Sleepy Kitty, Thu., April 7, 8

BIG RICH & THE RHYTHM RENEGADES: 7 p.m., $5.

p.m., $10. The Demo, 4191 Manchester Ave, St.

BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St.

Louis, 314-833-5532.

Louis, 314-436-5222.

FAIRWAY: W/ Jet Black Alley Cat, Life Lessons,

BOB “BUMBLE BEE” KAMOSKE: 8 p.m. Beale on

Sat., Jan. 2, 7 p.m., $3. The Demo, 4191 Man-

Broadway, 701 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-621-

chester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

7880.

JAMES MCMURTRY: Fri., March 25, 8 p.m., $22-

JUNIOR BROWN: 8 p.m., $20-$25. Old Rock

$27. The Sheldon, 3648 Washington Blvd., St.

House, 1200 S. 7th St., St. Louis, 314-588-0505.

Louis, 314-533-9900.

MATT WILSON’S CHRISTMAS TREE-O: 7:30 & 9:30

JOE FLETCHER: W/ Samuel Gregg, Mon., Dec. 28,

p.m.; Dec. 17, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m.; Dec. 18, 7:30

8 p.m., $10. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St.

& 9:30 p.m.; Dec. 19, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $30.

Louis, 314-773-3363.

Ferring Jazz Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave, St.

JON HARDY AND THE PUBLIC: Thu., Dec. 31, 8

Louis, 314-571-6000.

p.m., $15. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St.

MR. GNOME: 7 p.m., $10-$12. The Firebird, 2706

Louis, 314-773-3363.

Olive St., St. Louis, 314-535-0353.

LIFE ON MARS: W/ Murphy and the Death Rays,

SASHA FERRARI CD RELEASE: 7 p.m., $7. The

Without MF Order, Stinkbomb, Headed to the

Demo, 4191 Manchester Ave, St. Louis, 314-

Mud, Fri., Jan. 8, 8 p.m., $10. The Demo, 4191

833-5532.

Manchester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

THIRD SIGHT BAND: 10 p.m., $5. BB’s Jazz, Blues

LUEY V & FRIENDS: Sun., Dec. 27, 8 p.m., $5-$10.

& Soups, 700 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314-436-

Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St. Louis, 314-289-9050.

5222.

MIKE EPPS: W/ Rickey Smiley, Earthquake, Tony Rock, Cocoa Brown, Sat., April 16, 7 p.m.,

Thur. Dec. 10

8PM

St. Louis’ Own

Mike Zito and The Wheel CD Release Tour

Fri. Dec. 11

10PM

Aaron Kamm and the One Drops

VIP TABLE RESERVATIONS ARE NEW THIS YEAR

RESERVED SECTIONS FOR SMALL/LARGE GROUPS DEDICATED COCKTAIL/BOTTLE SERVICE CHOICE OF PREMIUM SPIRIT’S RIGHT ON THE TABLE

$56-$153. Chaifetz Arena, 1 S. Compton Ave.,

and Legend 6 p.m., $12. Fubar, 3108 Locust St,

W E D N E S D AY

Voted Best Smoke Shop

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND:

Sat. dec. 12

10PM

Jake’s Leg

wed. dec. 16 9:30PM The Voodoo Players Tribute to Soul Music

736 S Broadway St. Louis, MO 63102 (314) 621-8811

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

riverfronttimes.com

THIS JUST IN

$52-$125. Chaifetz Arena, 1 S. Compton Ave.,

AARON CARTER: Thu., March 3, 8 p.m., $17.50-

THE PETE AYRES BAND CHRISTMAS SHOW: W/

$20. Blueberry Hill, 6504 Delmar Blvd., Univer-

Naked Rock Fight, Kenny DeShields, Wed., Dec.

sity City, 314-727-4444.

23, 7 p.m., $10. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave.,

ALEX GRENIER TRIO: Fri., Feb. 12, 7 p.m., $10-

St. Louis, 314-773-3363.

$12. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St. Louis, 314-289-

RON WHITE: Sat., April 23, 7 p.m., $46.75-$56.75.

9050.

Peabody Opera House, 1400 Market St, St.

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE: W/ Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith,

Louis, 314-241-1888.

Tue., May 3, 8 p.m., $25-$27.50. The Pageant,

STREET FIGHTING BAND: Fri., Jan. 22, 8 p.m.; Sat.,

6161 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis, 314-726-6161.

Jan. 23, 8 p.m., $15. Old Rock House, 1200 S.

BASEMENT: W/ Turnstile, Defeater, Wed., April

7th St., St. Louis, 314-588-0505.

20, 8 p.m., $16-$19. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St.

THE GODDAMN GALLOWS: W/ the Devil’s Cut,

Louis, 314-289-9050.

Thu., Feb. 18, 8 p.m., $10-$12. The Demo, 4191

BEN MILLER BAND: Sun., Jan. 31, 8 p.m., $10-

Manchester Ave, St. Louis, 314-833-5532.

$12. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St. Louis,

THOR AXE: W/ Bug Chaser, Dracla, Sat., Dec. 26,

314-773-3363.

8 p.m., $10. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St.

BERNIE SANDERS 2016 FUNDRAISER: W/ Sleepy

Louis, 314-773-3363.

Kitty, Illphonics, the Feed, the Fog Lights, Sat.,

THOSE DARLINS: Thu., Jan. 28, 9 p.m., $12-$15.

Jan. 9, 8 p.m., $10. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp

Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Ave., St. Louis, 314-

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773-3363.

BILL LAURANCE GROUP: Thu., March 24, 7 p.m.,

TRIBE SOCIETY: W/ Karma Killers, Sun., Jan. 31,

$17-$25. Old Rock House, 1200 S. 7th St., St.

8 p.m., $8-$10. The Firebird, 2706 Olive St., St.

Louis, 314-588-0505.

Louis, 314-535-0353.

THE BLACK MARKET CLUB: Tue., Jan. 5, 7 p.m.,

WALE: Fri., Jan. 15, 7 p.m., $25. The Marquee

$10. Fubar, 3108 Locust St, St. Louis, 314-289-

Restaurant & Lounge, 1911 Locust St, St. Louis,

9050.

314-436-8889.

BLACKWATER ‘64 HOLIDAY SHOW: W/ Jailbox,

YONDER MOUNTAIN STRING BAND: W/ Horse-

Holy Posers, Sun., Dec. 27, 8 p.m., $7. Blue-

shoes and Hand Grenades, Sat., April 9, 7 p.m.,

berry Hill, 6504 Delmar Blvd., University City,

$25-$30. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Blvd., St.

314-727-4444.

Louis, 314-726-6161.

St. Louis, 314-977-5000.

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riverfronttimes.com

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

RIVERFRONT TIMES

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

riverfronttimes.com

SAVAGE LOVE Hard Work Hey Dan: I’m a 24-year-old gay male with few resources and no “marketable” skills. I live in an expensive city and struggle to make ends meet. Recently, someone on Grindr offered me $3,000 to have sex with him. He is homely and nearly three times my age, but he seems kind and respectful. It makes me sad to think the only way I can make money is prostituting myself, because my looks aren’t going to last forever. And let’s face it: Prostitution is an ugly and messy business, and it wouldn’t impress a potential future employer. Stressed Over Taking Elderly Man’s Payment To Eat Dick

I shared your letter with Dr. Eric Sprankle, an assistant professor of psychology at Minnesota State University and a licensed clinical psychologist. “This young man is distressed that he may have to resort to ‘prostituting himself,’ which suggests he, like most people, views sex work as the selling of one’s body or the selling of oneself,” said Dr. Sprankle, who tweets about sexual health, the rights of sex workers, and secularism @DrSprankle. But you wouldn’t be selling yourself or your body, SOTEMPTED, you

would be selling access to your body — temporary access — and whatever particular kind of sex you consented to have with this man in exchange for his money. “Sex work is the sale of a service,” said Dr. Sprankle. “The service may involve specific body parts that aren’t typically involved in most industries, but it is unequivocally a service labor industry. Just as massage therapists aren’t selling their hands or themselves when working out the kinks of some wealthy older client, sex workers are merely selling physical and emotional labor.” Massage therapists who hate seeing their occupation referenced in conversations about sex work — all those hardworking, never-jerking massage therapists — might wanna check their privilege. “Massage therapists have the privilege of not worrying about being shamed and shunned by friends,” said Dr. Sprankle, “and not worrying about being arrested for violating archaic laws.” You will have to worry about shame, stigma and arrest if you decide to go ahead with this, SOTEMPTED. “He will have to be selective about whom he shares his work experiences,” said Dr. Sprankle. “This could feel isolating and inauthentic.” I also shared your letter with a couple of guys who’ve actually

done sex work. “I was struck by the words SOTEMPTED used to describe sex work: ugly, messy, humiliating,” said Mike Crawford, a sex worker, sex-workers-rights activist and self-identified “cashsexual” who tweets @BringMeTheAx. “For many of us, it’s actually nothing like that. When you strip away the moralizing and misinformation, sex work is simply a job that provides a valuable service.” What about regrets? “It’s true that he could wind up regretting doing the paid-sex thing,” said Crawford. “Then again, there’s a chance of regret in almost any hookup. I’ve also met plenty of sex workers over the years who wish they had started sooner.” “I don’t regret it,” said Philip (not his real name), a reader who sent me a question about wanting to experience getting paid for sex and later took the plunge. “I felt like I was in the power position. And in the moment, it wasn’t distressing. Just be sure to negotiate everything in advance — what’s on the table and what’s not — and be very clear about expectations and limits.” Philip, who is bisexual, wound up being paid for sex by two guys. Both were older, both were more nervous than he was, and neither were lookers. “But you don’t really look,” said Philip. “You close your eyes, you

riverfronttimes.com

detach yourself from yourself — it is like meta-sex, like watching yourself having sex.” If your first experience goes well, pay close attention to your emotions and your health. If you don’t enjoy the actual work of sex work, or if you find it emotionally unpleasant or exhausting, stop doing sex work. It has to be said that there are plenty of people out there who regret doing sex work. But feelings of regret aren’t unique to sex work, and people who do regret doing sex work often cite the consequences of its illegality as chief among their regrets. One last piece of advice from Mike Crawford: “There is a pretty glaring red flag here: $3,000 is a really, really steep price for a single date. I’m not implying that SOTEMPTED isn’t worth it, but the old ‘if it sounds too good to be true’ adage definitely applies in sex work. Should he decide to do this, he needs to screen carefully before agreeing to meet in person. The safety resources on the Sex Workers Outreach Project website (swopusa.org) are a great place for him to learn how to do just that.” On the Lovecast, it’s the one-minute wonder show! Listen at savagelovecast.com. mail@savagelove.net @fakedansavage on Twitter

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

RIVERFRONT TIMES

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800 Health & Wellness 805 Registered Massage

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810 Health & Wellness General ARE YOU ADDICTED TO PAIN MEDICATIONS OR HEROIN? Suboxone can help. Covered by most insurance. Free & confidential assessments. Outpatient Services. Center Pointe Hospital 314-292-7323 or 800-3455407 763 S. New Ballas Rd, Ste. 310

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100 Employment 105 Career/Training/Schools THE OCEAN CORP. 10840 Rockley Road, Houston, Texas 77099. Train for a new career. *Underwater Welder. Commercial Diver. *NDT/Weld Inspector. Job Placement Assistance. Financial Aid avail for those who qualify 1.800.321.0298

AIRLINE CAREERS begin here – Get started by training as FAA certified Aviation Technician. Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 800-725-1563 (AAN CAN)

120 Drivers/Delivery/Courier ! Drivers Needed ASAP ! Requires Class E, B or A License. S Endorsement Helpful. Must be 25 yrs or older. Will Train. ABC/Checker Cab Co CALL NOW 314-725-9550

167 Restaurants/Hotels/Clubs

Rich & Charlie’s

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190 Business Opportunities Avon Full Time/Part Time, $15 Fee. Call Carla: 314-665-4585 For Appointment or Details Independent Avon Rep. PAID IN ADVANCE! Make $1000 A Week Mailing Brochures From Home! No Experience Required. Helping home workers since 2001! Genuine Opportunity. Start Immediately! www. TheIncomeHub.com (AAN CAN)

193 Employment Information CDL- A DRIVERS and Owner Operators: $1,000.00 sign on, Company/ Safety Bonuses. Home daily/ weekly. Regional runs. Great Benefits. 1-888-300-9935

400 Buy-Sell-Trade 420 Auto-Truck

BUYING JUNK CARS, TRUCKS & VANS 314-968-6555

CASH FOR CARS: Any Car/ Truck. Running or Not! Top Dollar Paid. We Come To You! Call For Instant Offer: 1-888-420-3808 www. cash4car.com (AAN CAN)

BUYING JUNK CARS, TRUCKS & VANS 314-968-6555

CASH FOR CARS: Any Car/ Truck. Running or Not! Top Dollar Paid. We Come To You! Call For Instant Offer: 1-888-420-3808 www. cash4car.com (AAN CAN)

500 Services 520 Financial Services Are you in BIG trouble with the IRS? Stop wage & bank levies, liens & audits, unfiled tax returns, payroll issues, & resolve tax debt FAST. Call 844-753-1317 (AAN CAN)

525 Legal Services

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Call Angela Jansen 314-645-5900 Bankruptcyshopstl.com The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely on advertising.

Personal Injury, Workers Comp, DWI, Traffic 314-621-0500

ATTORNEY BRUCE E. HOPSON

The choice of a lawyer is an important decision & should not be based solely on advertising.

530 Misc. Services WANTS TO purchase minerals and other oil & gas interests. Send details to P.O. Box 13557, Denver, Co 80201

537 Adoptions PREGNANT? THINKING OF ADOPTION? Talk with caring agency specializing in matching Birthmothers with Families Nationwide. LIVING EXPENSES PAID. Call 24/7 Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions. 866-4136293. Void in Illinois/New Mexico/Indiana (AAN CAN)

600 Music

ST. JOHN $495-$595 314-423-3106 Special! 1BR.$495 & 2BR.$595. Near 170 & St.Charles Rock Rd

300 Rentals

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385 Room for Rent MIDTOWN $125-$135/Wk 314-306-3716 Fully furn, all utils inc.+extras, near Metro. Singles. Leave message

CARONDELET-PARK! $575 314-309-2043 2 bedroom, appliances included, central heat/air, nice hardwood floors, w/d hookups, snow removal included, recent updates! rs-stl.com RG4GA

310 Roommate Services ALL AREAS ROOMMATES.COM. Lonely? Bored? Broke? Find the perfect roommate to complement your personality and lifestyle at Roommates.com! (AAN CAN)

315 Condos/Townhomes/Duplexes for Rent SOUTH-CITY $695 314-223-8067 1/2 Off Dec. Rent! Spacious 2BR, 2BA townhouse, spiral staircase, ceiling fans, D/W, disposal, fridge & stove , full bsmnt, W/D hkups, off st prkg

317 Apartments for Rent CARONDELET-PARK! $575 314-309-2043 2 bedroom, appliances included, central heat/air, nice hardwood floors, w/d hookups, snow removal included, recent updates! rs-stl.com RG4GA DOWNTOWN Cityside-Apts 314-231-6806 Bring in ad & application fee waived! Gated prkng, onsite laundry. Controlled access bldgs, pool, fitness, business ctr. Pets welcome

LAFAYETTE-SQUARE $685 314-968-5035 2030 Lafayette: 2BR/1BA, appls, C/A, Hdwd Fl MAPLEWOOD! $475 314-309-2043 Recently updated 1 bedroom, central heat/air, loaded kitchen w/dishwasher, newer carpet, ceiling fans, ready now! rs-stl. com RG4F8 NORTH-CITY! $375 314-309-2043 1-2 bedroom, central air, hardwood floors, enclosed porch, off street parking, recently updated! rs-stl.com RG4F4

320 Houses for Rent

LAFAYETTE-SQUARE $685 314-968-5035 2030 Lafayette: 2BR/1BA, appls, C/A, Hdwd Fl

NORTH ST. LOUIS COUNTY 314-579-1201 or 636-939-3808 2, 3 & 4BR homes for rent. eatonproperties.com. Sec. 8 welcome

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NORTH-CITY! $385 314-309-2043 Private house, central heat/air, fenced yard, kitchen appliances, tile floors, no app fee or credit check! rs-stl.com RG4GN

NORTH-CITY! $375 314-309-2043 1-2 bedroom, central air, hardwood floors, enclosed porch, off street parking, recently updated! rs-stl.com RG4F4

NORTH-CITY! $650 314-423-3522 Remodeled 3-4 bed, 1.5 bath house, walk-out basement, central heat/air, fenced yard, all appliances, short term lease, ready now! rs-stl.com RG30G

OVERLAND/ST-ANN $535-$575 314-995-1912 Near 170, 64, 70, 270. Great loc. Clean, safe, quiet 1 & 2BRs, garage

SOULARD $800 314-724-8842 Spacious 2nd flr 2BR, old world charm, hdwd flrs, yard, frplcs, off st prk, no C/A, nonsmoking bldg, storage. nprent@aol.com SOULARD! $585 314-309-2043 Newly Updated! 1 bedroom townhouse, nice kitchen with dishwasher, newer carpet, central heat/air, pets allowed, off street parking! rs-stl.com RG4F9 SOULARD/LASALLE-PARK $750 703-926-8281 1200 sq ft 2BR 1 1/2 BA 1st flr apt, high ceilings thru out, all amenities inc W/D, ceramic tile in kitch, hdwd flrs, nice quiet neighborhd on dead end street. 1 person occupancy. No pets. SOUTH CITY

$400-$850 314-7714222 Many different units www.stlrr.com 1-3 BR, no credit no problem SOUTH ST. LOUIS CITY 314-579-1201 or 636-939-3808 1, 2 & 3 BR apts for rent. www.eatonproperties.com. Sec. 8 welcome

SOUTH-CITY

P.O. Box 545 • Malden, MO 63863 • 1.888.276.3860 • www.smtds.com

HAMPTON! $515 314-309-2043 All-electric 1 bedroom, central heat/air, kitchen appliances, newer carpet, close to shop & dine, off street parking! rs-stl. com RG4GB

BEVO-MILL $795 636-230-0068 4157 Wilmington: 1+BR, 1 BA, hardwood floors, C/A/heat, W/D inc, fenced yard, garage w/opener

MUSICIANS Do you have a band? We have bookings. Call (314)781-6612 for information Mon-Fri, 10:00-4:30

SOUTHERN MISSOURI TRUCK DRIVING SCHOOL

DOWNTOWN Cityside-Apts 314-231-6806 Bring in ad & application fee waived! Gated prkng, onsite laundry. Controlled access bldgs, pool, fitness, business ctr. Pets welcome

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RICHMOND-HEIGHTS $525-$565 (Special) 314-995-1912 1 MONTH FREE! 1BR, all elec off Big Bend, Metrolink, 40, 44, Clayton

MUSICIANS Do you have a band? We have bookings. Call (314)781-6612 for information Mon-Fri, 10:00-4:30

www.LiveInTheGrove.com

SOUTH-CITY $130/wk+$130-security 314-277-8117 Room for rent. Everything furnished. Internet Access.

610 Musicians Services

MUSICIANS AVAILABLE Do you need musicians? A Band? A String Quartet? Call the Musicians Association of St. Louis (314)781-6612, M-F, 10:00-4:30

WESTPORT/LINDBERGH/PAGE $525-$575 314-995-1912 1 mo FREE! 1BR ($525) & 2BR ($575 specials) Clean, safe, quiet. Patio, laundry, great landlord! Nice Area near I-64, 270, 170, 70 or Clayton

$400

314-277-0204

3333 Lawn: range, fridge, A/C. Avail. late Dec. SOUTH-CITY $425 314-776-6429 2504 California. 1BR, C/A, Appliances inc.,Ceiling fans. A Must See!! SOUTH-CITY $495 314-402-2621 5020 Mardel: Nice 1BR, 1st Flr, Hdwd Flrs, AC, W/D Hkups. Credit check required. SOUTH-CITY $575 314-968-5035 Newly Renovated, 1BR 1BA, 3850 Park Ave Located directly behind Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital. Less than 1 mile from SLU. New Kit. Appls & Cabinets, C/A, Coin Lndry, Off-St. Pkg, CATV wired & carpet. Park Property Developers LLC

SKINKER! $550 314-309-2043 Redone 2 bed house, full basement, central heat/air, hardwood floors, ceiling fans, all appliances, recent updates! rs-stl.com RG4GP SOUTH-CITY! $545 314-309-2043 Redone 2 bedroom house, big basement, central heat/air, thermal windows, fenced yard w/deck, ceiling fans, pets ok! rs-stl.com RG4GO SOUTH-CITY! $650 314-309-2043 Updated 2 bedroom house, full basement, central heat/air, garage, fenced yard, appliances included, off street parking! rs-stl.com RG4GR SOUTH-CITY! $795 314-309-2043 Stylish 3 bedroom house, walk-out basement, central heat/ air, nice hardwood floors, fenced yard, loaded kitchen, recent upgrades! rs-stl.com RG4GU ST-ANN! $700 314-309-2043 Neat & clean 2 bedroom house, garage, newer carpet, fenced yard, plenty of storage, off street parking, available now! rs-stl. com RG4GT UNIVERSITY-CITY! $650 314-309-2043 Remodeled 2 bedroom house on quiet street, central air, full basement, large back yard, off street parking! rs-stl.com RG4GQ SOUTH-CITY! $795 314-309-2043 Stylish 3 bedroom house, walk-out basement, central heat/ air, nice hardwood floors, fenced yard, loaded kitchen, recent upgrades! rs-stl.com RG4GU ST-ANN! $700 314-309-2043 Neat & clean 2 bedroom house, garage, newer carpet, fenced yard, plenty of storage, off street parking, available now! rs-stl. com RG4GT

575

SOUTH-CITY 314-504-6797 37XX Chippewa: 3 rms, 1BR. all elec exc. heat. C/A, appls, at bus stop

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SOUTH-CITY! $425 314-309-2043 Only $200 deposit! 1 bedroom, kitchen appliances, hardwood floors, pets allowed, central heat/air, first floor!! rs-stl.com RG4F7

$45-$50 thousand the 1st year, great benefits, call SMTDS, Financial assistance available if you qualify. Free living quarters. 6 students max per class. 4 wks. 192 hours.

ST. CHARLES COUNTY 314-579-1201 or 636-939-3808 1 & 2 BR apts for rent. www.eatonproperties.com. Sec. 8 welcome

• More driving time than any other school in the state •

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DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

RIVERFRONT TIMES

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HOLIDAY SHOPPING! 10am-6pm Daily

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MUSIC RECORD SHOP

Looking to sell or trade your metal, punk, rap or rock LP collection. Call us.

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Taking Orders For Christmas

JERKED TURKEYS!

MAKE MONEY BY MAKING A DIFFERENCE. Donate at Octapharma Plasma today.

8780 Pershall Road Hazelwood, MO 63042 • 314-524-9015 Must be 18-64 years old with valid ID, proof of social security number and current residence postmarked within 30 days. Information at octapharmaplasma.com.

NEW DONORS EARN UP TO $250 FOR THE FIRST FIVE DONATIONS

Ultimate Massage by

Summer! SWEDISH & DEEP TISSUE FULL BODY MASSAGE Daily 10 AM-5PM

South County Lemay Area

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HOLIDAY SHOPPING! 10am-6pm Daily

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MUSIC RECORD SHOP

Looking to sell or trade your metal, punk, rap or rock LP collection. Call us.

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Call DePalm Tree (314) 432-5171

Taking Orders For Christmas

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DATING MADE EASY... LOCAL SINGLES! Listen & Reply FREE! 314-739-7777 FREE PROMO CODE: 9512 Telemates

Call DePalm Tree (314) 432-5171 6666666666666666

EarthCircleRecycling.com - 314-664-1450

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Join the RFT Email lists for an inside look on Concert listings, ticket sales, events & more! www.Riverfronttimes.com to sign up

EarthCircleRecycling.com - 314-664-1450

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Made You Look!

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Earth Circle’s mission is to creatively assist businesses and residents with their recycling efforts while providing the friendliest and most reliable service in the area. Call Today!

Get the Attention of our 461,000+ Readers Call 314-754-5940 for More Info

PAINLESS TATTOO REMOVAL SEE OUR AD ON PAGE 20 OR CALL 866-626-8346

Made You Look!

TATTOO REGRET?

Personal Injury, Workers Comp, DWI, Traffic 314-621-0500

ATTORNEY BRUCE E. HOPSON

Get the Attention of our 461,000+ Readers Call 314-754-5940 for More Info

PAINLESS TATTOO REMOVAL SEE OUR AD ON PAGE 20 OR CALL 866-626-8346 Personal Injury, Workers Comp, DWI, Traffic 314-621-0500

The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely on advertising.

ATTORNEY BRUCE E. HOPSON

South City Scooters

Great Selection of Scooters! Sales & Service. @ the corner of Connecticut & Morgan Ford. 314.664.2737

The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely on advertising.

www.LiveInTheGrove.com

South City Scooters

Great Selection of Scooters! Sales & Service. @ the corner of Connecticut & Morgan Ford. 314.664.2737

For safe, easy & effective laser tattoo removal,

Call Today!

314.275.7300 | www.PaddaInstitute.com Padda Institute, Center for Aesthetic and Laser Medicine 12401 Olive Boulevard, Suite 100, Creve Coeur, MO 63141

Haitian Queen

Mature therapist that knows what the mind & body needs. Relax in a Warm, Cozy New Atmosphere! Guaranteed to leave you with a smile! 6am-Midnight In /Out Calls 24/7! Availble in Downtown St. Louis to West County areas.

636-449-6421 60

RIVERFRONT TIMES

DECEMBER 9-15, 2015

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