Queen City Nerve - October 18, 2023

VOLUME 5, ISSUE 24; OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31; WWW.QCNERVE.COM

: c i s u M pook

ns s m g i S u r Dolla n new alb 20 out o pg.

Hitting

all the

haunts

Arts:

Professor ex plores the magical and the spiritual in new podcast pg. 10

Pg. 2 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

@Q UEEN CI T Y N ERV E W W W.Q CN ERV E.COM PUBLISHER JUSTIN LAFRANCOIS

jla fra n c oi s @ q c n erve.c om

EDITOR - IN - CHIEF RYAN PITKIN

rp i t k i n @ q c n erve.c om

DIGITAL MANAGER RAYNE ANTRIM

ra n t ri m @ q c n erve.c om

STAFF WRITERS PAT MORAN

p m ora n @ q c n erve.c om ANNIE KEOUGH

a k eoug h @ q c n erve.c om ART DIRECTOR AIDEN SIOBHAN

aiden@triad-city-beat.com

QUE E N CI T Y NE RV E W E LCOME S SUBMI SSI ONS OF ALL K I NDS. PLE ASE SE ND SUBMI SSI ONS OR STORY PI TCHE S TO I NFO@QCNE RV E .

COM. QUE E N CI T Y NE RV E I S PUBLI SHE D E V E RY O T HE R W E DNE SDAY BY NE RV E ME DIA PRODUCT I ONS LLC. QUE E N CI T Y NE RV E I S LOCAT E D I N H YGGE CO WORK I NG AT 93 3 LOUI SE AV E NUE , CHARLO T T E , NC, 28204 . F I RST I SSUE OF QUE E N CI T Y NE RV E F RE E . E ACH ADDI T I ONAL I SSUE $1.

AD SALES EXECUTIVE RENN WILSON

rw i ls on @ q c n erve.c om

COVER DESIGN BY: AIDEN SIOBHAN

TO PLACE AN ADVERTISEMENT EMAIL INFO@QCNERVE.COM

TABLE OF CONTENTS NEWS & OPINION

4 Undercover Republicans? by Annie Keough Local Democrats raise questions about CMS Unity slate

6 More Than a Mural by Ryan Pitkin

One of Mecklenburg’s oldest Black communities makes itself seen 8 Lifeline: Ten Cool Things To Do in Two Weeks

ARTS & CULTURE

10 The Magic Words by Dezanii Lewis

Local professor explores the supernatural side of religion with new podcast

12 Halloween Guide 2023 Hitting all the haunts

16 Finding a Motive by Bruce Brightly

Eric Mullis’ latest work is a collaboration of tech and human movement

MUSIC

18 Wynter’s Tale by Pat Moran

Soul violinist Emanuel Wynter drops stunning live album

20 Read the Signs by Ryan Pitkin

Dollar Signs drop new album full of folk tales ... but not folk music 22 Soundwave

FOOD & DRINK

How a pastry chef beat the odds to make miracles at South End’s Vicente Bistro

LIFESTYLE

26 Puzzles 28 Aerin It Out by Aerin Spruill 29 Horoscope 30 Savage Love Thanks to our contributors: Grant Baldwin, Aerin Spruill, Timothy DePeugh, Dezanii Lewis, Bruce Brightly, Rico Marcelo, Toby Shearer, Karie Simmons, Daniel Coston, Steven Pilker, Dylan Wachman, Lizeth Salazar-Klock and Dan Savage.

Pg. 3 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

24 The Tale of the Impossible Croissant

by Timothy Depeugh

NEWS & OPINION FEATURE

Is the CMS Unity slate “pulling a generally, that Democrats are going to win Mecklenburg County’s at-large elections, so they’ve concluded the Cotham”?

UNDERCOVER REPUBLICANS?

Local Democrats raise questions about CMS Unity slate

Pg. 4 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY ANNIE KEOUGH

School board elections during non-presidential election years aren’t always at the front of mind for the average voter — for those without children, even less so.

With three seats up for grabs in this year’s Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board of Education race, there may be some candidates who hope to take advantage of that apathy at a time when debates over COVID-19 measures, trans youth inclusivity and Black history in schools has led more people to seek power within the school district.

Due to the upcoming departures of CMS Board Chair Elyse Dashew and at-large representative Jennifer De La Jara, this year’s election, will see at least two new representatives on the board.

The third at-large rep, Lenora Shipp, is running for reelection. Early voting begins on Oct. 19.

There are currently 14 candidates registered to run for the three available seats, three of whom make up the CMS Unity slate, a trio of candidates who have claimed Democratic or unaffiliated backgrounds but are now facing questions about their apparent Republican support.

Carolina Forward, a nonpartisan, nonprofit policy organization in North Carolina, raised red flags early in October when they claimed that the candidates of the Unity Slate — comprised of Annette Albright, Claire Covington and Rev. Michael Johnson Jr. — are hiding their Republican backing.

Carolina Forward was the first group to report that all Unity candidates listed the same two Republican campaign treasurers, Joe Patton and Collin McMichael, in their candidacy filings, and all three have listed the same Raleigh PO box that was used by Ted Budd’s Senate campaign.

All three candidates also use Anedot, a Republican fundraising platform whose top vendors, according to money-tracking research group Open Secrets,

include The Lincoln Project, New Journey PAC and American Conservative Union — all right-wing political organizations.

Carolina Forward’s findings came from the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE) Campaign Finance reports, all of which are public information.

The site pulls up Campaign Finance Documents from any committee or candidate registered with NCSBE, an easy task for anyone willing to do it, and anyone who knows what they’re looking for.

While CMS board races are nonpartisan, leaving political affiliation off the ballot, some progressiveminded folks in Mecklenburg County believe the portrayal of the Unity slate as a left-leaning trio is an attempt by conservative operatives to install likeminded representatives in seats of power in a largely Democratic district.

It’s a plot that local Democrats are especially sensitive to just months after N.C. Rep. Tricia Cotham, having won her seat by running on a progressive platform, soon thereafter switched sides to the Republican Party, giving them a supermajority in the North Carolina General Assembly.

Even as a Democrat, Cotham held views largely shared by the GOP, including privatizing education dollars and voting for anti-immigration bill HB10 and anti-education bill HB17, pointed out current CMS Board member Jennifer De La Jara.

“I and others were not surprised when she finally changed over.”

De La Jara believes Cotham’s switch, however outrageous, was a gift to Democrats, serving as an opportunity for them to wake up, reevaluate their message and recognize the responsibility the Democratic Party has in putting forth their best candidates.

best way to carry forth their conservative message is According to CMS Unity’s website, the group’s by running under the unaffiliated or Democrat banner. mission is “to lead the necessary transformation, “Republicans have caught on that Democrats delivering a brighter future of hope and economic have not been paying attention and that it’s very success for all CMS students.” easy to say out loud that you are a Democrat,” De La “Through nonpartisan collaboration and the Jara said. backing of the business community, we will advocate Carolina Forward policy fellow Jordan Lopez for a return to time-tested educational approaches, agreed that as long as Republican organizations providing an apolitical classical education in a safe disguising themselves in nonpartisan races say the environment,” the site reads. right things, they can work their way into a school CMS Unity’s messaging expresses its goal to board seat, even if they hold ulterior motives. take politics out of education, and while De La Jara Rev. Michael Johnson Jr., the only registered admitted that such a goal has a lot of surface-level Democrat in the slate running alongside two appeal, it is extremely naive, she insisted. unaffiliated candidates, refuted Carolina Forward’s “Education, by default, is absolutely political post claiming CMS Unity’s Republican backing. for one reason alone: All of our policy and funding “As a first-time candidate, I wanted to ensure decisions are made by politicians,” De La Jara said.

I adhered to ALL campaign finance laws and “I agree we need to be less polarizing about it, regulations,” Johnson wrote in an email statement but to act like we want to take [politics] out signifies to Queen City Nerve. “My current treasurer came that people don’t understand what the core function recommended as his firm has worked on campaigns of the job is and why the politics actually matter.” for Republicans AND Democrats throughout the Annette Albright made headlines in June 2016 state.” after a video surfaced of a group of students Although it makes sense to Lopez that Unity Slate assaulting the then-CMS behavior modification candidates may have been advised to use Patton technician at Harding High School. and McMichael as treasurers, it still raises concerns, She said she was then let go after filing a workers’ he said. compensation claim and later sued the district.

“You’ve got to know who you’re working with …

Now, during her third attempt running for the when you’re running for office,” Lopez told Queen CMS board, Albright champions implementing City Nerve. “The firms you use, the treasurer you use, disciplinary models to prioritize the fight against the software you use for fundraising, it matters.” school violence.

Lopez said Democrats typically use ActBlue, a First-time candidates Claire Covington and Rev. campaign fundraising platform that specifically Michael Johnson Jr. are running on similar platforms, serves the Democratic party. advocating for improved academic outcomes.

“When you use the types of consultants, advisors Unity’s website condemns the current state of or platforms that are traditionally used by a party CMS, warning that a lack of drastic change will that has publicly and … verbally attacked public doom students to the same “terrible educational education, it will raise red flags,” he said. outcomes” the district has seen for decades.

CMS Unity treasurer McMichael’s firm, CM&Co. “It’s tailored to toe the line of the conservative LLC, has received nearly half a million dollars from message, trying not to be obvious about it,” De La Republican and unregistered PACs since 2017, Jara said of the Unity slate’s platform. “But it doesn’t according to Transparency USA. take much to uncover what’s hidden beneath that Johnson pointed out that approximately onelanguage is very much conservative views towards third of CMS schools are considered low-performing things.” and the Unity slate is looking to bring the necessary De La Jara said coded conservative language changes that will academically improve student presents a false dichotomy of choice. If CMS Unity is outcomes, increase their chances to enroll in higher for parents’ rights, that must mean the opposition education, find work following graduation or enlist is against it. in the armed services.

“All of that ends up becoming a great distraction “[Carolina Forward’s post] is nothing more than from the actual really important work of monitoring an attempt to smudge our name and character since student outcomes, which is what the school board they cannot refute the message and purpose of our does,” she said. platform,” Johnson told Queen City Nerve.

De La Jara warned that Republicans have figured out,

NEWS & OPINION FEATURE Albright and Covington did not respond to a request for comment on Carolina Forward’s findings.

Who is CMS Unity talking to?

If you want to take the time to look into candidates, Lopez suggests voters pay attention to who they are talking to and where they’re trying to get their money.

“If you look at their campaign finance report … there’s always that wink and a nod that, I think, campaign donations end up implying.”

Albright has received single $100 donations from multiple private citizens who regularly post conservative content in support of ultra-conservative groups like Moms for Liberty on social media. She’s also received a $100 campaign donation from Pat Cotham, longtime Democrat on the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners and Tricia Cotham’s mother.

Johnson also received a $200 donation from conservative reverend Marty McCarthy, who in 2000 set out to open a network of private “Classical Christian” schools that would be run on “Kingdom values” called the Regent Schools of the Carolinas Other than those few $100-$200 donations, the CMS Unity candidates have not received any significant donations from political action committees (PACS) or Republican organizations.

According to WFAE Ann Doss Helms’ Education newsletter, however, Albright said the Unity slate plans to seek endorsements together and admitted she is a member of the conservative PAC Success4CMS. Success4CMS surfaced during the local 2022 elections, showing support for a few candidates, namely District 6 incumbent Sean Strain, and publicly opposing other more progressive candidates.

As reported by WFAE, the group spent upwards of $19,000 on billboard advertising, with $7,800 directed at criticizing District 4 incumbent Carol

Sawyer’s role in keeping students in remote learning during the pandemic.

De La Jara said she is interested to see whether the group releases similarly divisive endorsement ads for the CMS Unity ticket as this year’s election nears.

Carolina Forward also raised suspicions against the Unity slate’s affiliation with Moms 4 Liberty (M4L), an anti-government organization branded an “extremist” group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Carolina Forward later removed M4L’s logo from its post in response to a report from the president of the Mecklenburg County chapter of M4L, Brooke Weiss, claiming they have nothing to do with the Unity slate.

While the organization does not publicly endorse CMS Unity, Weiss and Albright are friendly on social media, with Weiss commenting on a Jan. 18 Facebook post by Albright, “I sure am hoping you will throw your hat in the race this coming November.”

Early voting begins Thursday, Oct. 19 and ends Saturday, Nov. 4. General elections are on Nov. 7. Learn more at vote.mecknc. gov.

INFO@QCNERVE.COM

THE CMS UNITY SLATE (FROM LEFT): ANETTE ALBRIGHT, CLAIRE COVINGTON AND REV. MICHAEL JOHNSON. JR.

CAMPAIGN PHOTO

Pg. 5 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

District 2 candidate Juanrique Hall remains the local M4L chapter’s only publicly endorsed candidate.

Hall, a longtime coach at West Charlotte High School and violence interrupter in the Historic West End, recently partnered with Moms 4 Liberty to host a backpack drive.

Hall did not respond to Queen City Nerve’s request for comment on his affiliation with the organization.

None of the Unity Slate candidates have endorsements from the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party, which has thrown its support behind Lenora Shipp, Liz Monterrey and Monty Witherspoon.

While organizations and party structures can do a better job of educating voters on the databases and resources available to them, Lopez admitted the majority of people are not likely to dig through finance reports for school board candidates.

Organizations like Carolina Forward, however, try to fill that void.

Carolina Forward’s posts awoke thousands of viewers to the reality and importance of local elections.

“Most people don’t pay attention to school board elections,” the post read.

“That’s what they’re counting on.”

For De La Jara, the more engagement the better.

“We may not all ultimately agree,” she said, “but the fact that people are paying attention in a new way to local politics is, of course, a win for our community.”

It’s easy to let our eyes collectively wander to D.C. or Raleigh for the latest outrage or news cycle, she continued, “but we can’t take our eyes off the local government … because it really does matter.

NEWS & OPINION FEATURE

MORE THAN A MURAL

One of Mecklenburg’s oldest Black communities makes itself seen

Pg. 6 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY RYAN PITKIN

Standing in front of a veiled mural in front of the historic Torrence-Lytle School in Huntersville on Oct. 11, LaToya Rivers, chair of the Pottstown Heritage Group, addressed her neighbors about the importance of the occasion.

“I’ve been here 10 years, and throughout that 10 years and prior to that there’s never been a sign here to designate that this is historic land and how important it is for us to be recognized,” Rivers told more than two dozen folks who came to see the unveiling.

The community for which Rivers fights is called Pottstown, Huntersville’s first community built by and for African Americans. Officially named in 1909, the community began as a sparsely settled area of small farms and workers’ dwellings built by formerly enslaved people, with churches marking the general boundaries.

More than a century later, Pottstown continues to fight for respect as a majority Black neighborhood in its north Mecklenburg suburb. Rivers’ shirt on that Wednesday morning, matching with those of a handful of young people in attendance, read “Pottstown New Generation Against Gentrification.”

Rivers and other community members spent much of 2022 fighting against a planned development called Valea Village, a planned 150-home community on 30 acres of vacant land that borders Pottstown.

Community members protested the planned development, voicing concerns that it would result in displacement of elderly residents whose families had lived in the Pottstown neighborhood for generations.

In August 2022, thanks in large part to grassroots organizing within the Pottstown community, Mecklenburg County announced it would buy the land that had been slated for Valea Village and build a park there instead.

Art with heart

The Oct. 11 event at the corner of Holbrooks POTTSTOWN RESIDENTS AND MEMBERS OF SHE BUILT THIS CITY AT A MURAL UNVEILING. Road and Central Avenue was another celebration unity amongst neighbors and gaining trust that Queen City Nerve. “It becomes one of those things of progress in the fight against gentrification in a brighter future is ahead,” said Rachel Zwipf, where it may not be for its value and it may not be Pottstown, as the mural unveiling marked the end vice-chair of Pottstown Heritage Group. “Most in your best interest in the long term, but because of of a home-repair campaign that was carried out in importantly, it is empowering the community to that immediate need that you see you’re selling. And the neighborhood over the summer. come and be known that their voices matter and I think it’s a little predatory.”

“This mural will provide both cultural and that Pottstown is worth celebrating.”

Faustin emphasized that her organization historical value to identify the community for In addition to the sign, the two organizations does not specialize in critical home repair but in our neighbors coming in that live over the way placed a brightly painted bench in front of the mural job training, which means they have a different in Vermilion,” said Rivers, referencing an affluent for the children who wait for the school bus there. approach to the initiative than an organization like neighborhood farther down Holbrooks Road, “that Speaking at the unveiling, artist Lo’Vonia Parks Habitat for Humanity that works solely on home they know that we are here and we’re here to stay discussed how art plays a role in efforts like that of construction and repair. and that we have a voice and that it needs to be grassroots organizers in Pottstown in recent years by For that reason, she believes SBTC’s new aging-inheard and to come and get to know us and talk quoting Palmisano, her partner in the mural project. place home-repair initiative can bridge generational to us. Just don’t drive past and speed through the “My good friend Elizabeth once said that ‘art is gaps, involving folks of all ages and helping to not stop sign. Stop and be mindful of the community in the salve on the wound of gentrification,’” Parks said. only keep people in their homes but train young which you reside.”

“Art has the power to heal and within healing, it is people with valuable job skills.

The home-repair campaign saw Pottstown transformational — not transactional. Healing is “My dream is that She Built This City is offering Heritage Group partner with Charlotte-based priceless. If we refuse to tell all of our American history, free job training into a community, and in that job-training organization She Built This City we will leave our future confused and lost. Today is a community, Aunt Linda is in the job-training class, (SBTC) to make improvements to 10 homes in step among many before us in the right direction.”

Grandma Shirley is getting the critical home repair the small neighborhood, installing wheelchair done, and little Johnny is in one of our summer build ramps and pull-up bars for safety while making camps,” she said. electrical and plumbing repairs and other critical True community building “And so it’s like a whole economic ecosystem The Pottstown campaign was a pilot program of home improvements that will help ensure elderly of empowerment and upward mobility. And so residents have the opportunity to age in place at sorts for She Built This City, which hopes to carry out this work that we’re doing in Pottstown I believe similar campaigns in other neighborhoods where their longtime homes. has opened up my eyes to what you might call As a nod to the community’s identity and there is a need.

According to SBTC executive director LaToya Faustin, community-focused economic mobility … So I unity, SBTC and the Pottstown Heritage Group think we’ve stumbled across something that is going commissioned Pottstown’s first-ever community the organization will next work with residents in to be transformational for both the women that we mural, designed by Charlotte artists Lo’Vonia Parks Smithville, another historically Black community in train and the communities that we’re getting to and Elizabeth Palmisano to reflect the rich history northern Mecklenburg County (Cornelius) that was serve through this initiative.” of the community, incorporating feedback from founded by formerly enslaved people.

“When you are a senior living on your own Pottstown residents.

Visit qcnerve.com for the full interview with LaToya “Having a community mural that identifies the with lower resources and this is a familiar home, Faustin, executive director of She Built This City.

Pottstown community will preserve and celebrate you’ve had this home for generations and you are RPITKIN@QCNERVE.COM the heritage of the Pottstown Community, restoring overwhelmed by its upkeep, you have people calling you asking you to sell your house,” Faustin told PHOTO BY GRANT BALDWIN

Pg. 7 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

ongoing ONGOING 10/20-10/22 10/18-10/31 CHARLOTTE BLACK RESTAURANT CHRISTMAS MADE IN THE SOUTH Yes, this is our Halloween Guide, but maybe you’re WEEK

DERITA DAIRY BAR & GRILL (BLACK RESTAURANT WEEK) Photo by Karie Simmons

Charlotte​ ​Black ​Restaurant​ ​Week ​launched in 2017 with the goal of driving business to local Blackowned restaurants and the week-long event surpassed all expectations, eventually extending to two weeks, which began on Oct. 16 this year.

You’ve still got plenty of time to check out the specials, which consist of a $10 meal option, a $20 meal option and a two-party $40 meal option at participating restaurants like Cuzzo’s Cuisine, Derita Dairy Bar & Grill, Community Table Bistro, Mr. Seafood, Hip Hop Smoothies, TasteBuds Popcorn, Romeo’s Vegan Burger and Frozen Kups.

More: Prices vary; now through Oct. 29; locations vary; charlotteblackrestaurantweek.com

a bit more forward-looking. If you’re the type that started bumping “All I Want for Christmas Is You” as soon as the temps dropped below 60 degrees, make your way to Concord for this early Christmas event. Shop around for goods from fine artisans and craftspeople, from silk wearables, fabric bags, dichroic glass jewelry and other crafts to gourmet food, photography and a range of visual art. Bring the kids along for a visit with Santa, if they’re not too focused on what they’ll be wearing for Halloween.

More: $8; Oct. 20-22, times vary; Cabarrus Arena & Events Center, 4751 US Highway 49 N.; madeinthesouthshows.com CHRISTMAS MADE IN THE SOUTH Photo courtesy of Made in the South

Through Oct. 29

sat 10/21

Pg. 8 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

QUEEN CITY ZINE VEST

Having originally emerged amongst the sci-fi scene of the 1930s, zines would later come to popularity in the 1960s as a vehicle for social and political activism. They’ve since evolved to cover any number of topics and subcultures. Driven by a desire to foster a community of independent publishers and those that are passionate about publishing, Queen City Zine Fest celebrates self-published zines, comics, illustrations, chapbooks, small press editions and other self-published printed matter. “Our goal is to showcase DIY work and provide a platform for education and the exchange of ideas,” reads the website. Sponsored by I’ve Read It In Books, McColl Center and Jerry’s Artarama, this event is everything we love about independent publishing … and we know a little bit about independent publishing.

More: Free; Oct. 21, 11 a.m - 5 p.m.; McColl Center, 721 N. Tryon St.; queencityzinefest.com

10/20-10/22

SAT 10/21 EMERALD CITY KIKI BALL

The Carolina Chapter of the Artistic Haus of Telfar takes a classic from the 1970s, The Wiz, and mixes in a movement that was born in the 1980s: the LGBTQ+ Kiki ballroom community. Host Precious Basquiat leads attendees through the famed Motown Productions film with contests categorized as Poppy Love Perfume Co, Crows Scene, Dorothy Scene, Brand New Day and Emerald City. Cash prizes are up for grabs for each category as well as for Best Dressed, Best Hand Performance and other superlatives. There are so many ways to strut at this event, but you better work for the real money.

More: Free-$150; Oct. 21, 5:30 p.m.; QC Sound Stage, 3049 Scott Futrell Drive; tinyurl.com/ EmeraldCityKiki

sun 10/22

thurs10/26

EAST SIDE HOLIDAY

CLARITY ELEY, THE BLEUS, TECOBY HINES

East Side Holiday at Tommy’s Pub features 16 bands playing outside and inside the venerable venue. It’s a snapshot of Charlotte and the Carolinas’ explosive, eclectic music scene — near and far, new and old, ethereal and earthy. Veteran art punks It’s Snakes share the spotlight with Charlotte’s mercurial Mercury Dimes. Columbia’s psychedelic dark wavers Candy Coffins rub shoulders with Queen City cinematic sound sculptors Thousand Dollar Movie.

Local symphonic metal mavens Lilith Rising jostle with hometown hard-rock warriors Evergone. Plus Civil Strife, Bad Stars, Jackson Fig and more.

More: Free; Oct. 22, 1:15 p.m.; Tommy’s Pub, 3124 Eastway Dr.; facebook.com/tommyspub

Entwining dreamy melodies, tactile guitar grooves, trance-like harmonies and introspective lyrics, Clarity Eley weaves fresh yet eternal sound tapestries. Splitting her time between Charlotte and New York, Eley crafts soulful secular hymns that grapple with heartbreak betrayal and reflection.

Balancing soul, swing and sweet melodies, Charlotte R&B rapper/chanteuse The Bleus bewitches listeners with sensual hip-hop with a supple steely spine. Her spooky single “Spells” fights all manner of demons with perceptive lyrics and shivery grooves. With his EP Soul Sip, lyrical acrobat Tecoby Hines solidifies his standing as a rising insightful rapper.

More: $7; Oct. 26, 8 p.m.; Petra’s, 1919 Commonwealth Ave.; petrasbar.com

fri

10/27

sat 10/28

FUTURE LANGUAGES: BEO STRING SAYURBLAIRES, TOMBSTONE POETRY, QUARTET, DYLAN GILBERT GOOD TRAUMA, LEONARDOJOSV

When Dylan Gilbert set out to pursue a weave of electronic music and multimedia experiences, he told Queen City Nerve, “I wanted to do … something that had its own momentum, its own life.” In May, Pittsburgh’s BEO Quartet released its LP triggerLand, a cinematic journey drawing on classical compositions and contemporary experimentation. With Future Languages, these artists unleash a maelstrom of haunting melodies, compulsive rhythms, mysterious speech samples and mind-bending visuals to embody the future and create a new form of perception. At least that’s what we think they’re doing.

More: $34.50; Oct. 27, 8 p.m.; Booth Playhouse, 130 N. Tryon St.; blumenthalarts.org

Samhain — when the veil between worlds is thinnest and the autumn wheat is ready for threshing and witch-broom making. Bart’s Mart conjures a Halloween show with a dark harvest of spooky and shivery performances. With an uncanny cloud of swarming harmonics, coiling electronics and galloping beats, friendly trans-activists sayurblaires unleash a ritual of identity acceptance.

Noise-pop banshee-howlers Tombstone Poetry and Good Trauma’s distorted and confessional alternative folk rockers hail from the windswept wooded borderlands of Asheville. Leonardojosv, comprised of refugees fleeing Florida’s hellscape, plays its very first show.

More: $10; Oct. 28, 7 p.m.; Bart’s Mart, 3042 Eastway Drive; facebook.com/Bartsmart.clt

SAT 10/28

tues 10/31

VAPTOBERFEST

DOLLAR SIGNS, WALTER TEENAGE HALLOWEEN

ETC.,

Dollar Signs crank out rowdy punk-rock tunes with roaring guitars, jackhammer rhythms and rollicking shout-along choruses. In the past, the band’s songs have centered on the group’s tarnished heart of gold, but with latest LP Legend Tripping, produced for maximum emotional impact by Te’Jani, frontman Erik Button (check page 20 for the interview) and crew send a shiver through the bloodstream with songs about going back home and finding things twisted beyond comprehension. Call it darkened woodlands Blair Witch punk. This album release show features folk-surf rockers Walter Etc. and rousing indie-rock everymen-and-women Teenage Halloween.

More: $20; Oct. 31, 7:30 p.m.; Evening Muse, 3227 N. Davidson St.; eveningmuse.com

Pg. 9 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

No, this is not a festival for folks addicted to their Elf Bars. Uptown arts organization and venue VAPA Center hosts this annual open-air arts market featuring food trucks, live music and plenty of arts and crafts. The list of vendors hasn’t yet been released at the time of this writing, but years past have brought out some of Charlotte’s most renowned makers and artists. Created in 2021 by 10 anchor arts organizations to create a much– needed space for artists to create, practice, exhibit and perform following the closing of Spirit Square, VAPA Center has since become a hub for Charlotte’s creative community.

More: Free; Oct. 28, 1-5 p.m.; VAPA Center, 700 N. Tryon St.; tinyurl.com/VAPTOBER

ARTS FEATURE

THE MAGIC WORDS

Local professor explores the supernatural side of religion with new podcast

Pg. 10 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY DEZANII LEWIS

As the hot, Southern heat becomes the crisp air Some of the practices that the podcast will that signals the transition of seasons, it’s hard not explore include Wiccan practices, Hoodoo Rootwork, to think of all the things that go hand-in-hand with and the Lucumí religion, also known as Santeria, just fall, otherwise known as spooky season. to name a few.

While trick-or-treating, hayrides and horror Practitioners and experts will be featured to movie marathons are prominent features of October, speak on their respective concepts. there’s one theme that underscores it all: magic, “[We’re] looking at those practices as a way of witchcraft, sorcery and enchantment. understanding American cultural histories and Magic can mean different things to different another lens to look at different patterns that we’ve people. For many, it’s reserved for those fantastical seen in American history in relation to race and class worlds seen on screen, but for others, it’s not so and gender,” Freeman said. far removed. For Heather Freeman, its proximity There will also be some dabbling in true crime, as to our world is something she seeks to explore in one episode dives into the brutal 1928 murder of a her podcast Magic in the United States: 400 Years of Pennsylvania Dutch folk healer.

Magical Beliefs, Practices, and Cultural Conflicts.

The podcast, which explores spiritual and A not-so-distant history mysterious concepts throughout the country Freeman got the idea for this particular podcast starting from the 1600s to the present day, will during the pandemic, though her research for it launch on Oct. 24, with a new episode airing every began back in 2016 while working on a different Tuesday. project.

The podcast is about more than spooky stories, That’s when she began interviewing dozens of about witches, however. Freeman, a professor of academic experts and magic practitioners from digital media at UNC Charlotte, is using the medium around the world, even spending a month in to explore certain ideas that may not have always residency at the Museum for Witchcraft and Magic been considered magical but were rather rooted in in Boscastle, Cornwall, in 2018. tradition.

“I like reading a lot of different things,” she “It’s basically looking at the history of magical said. “In 2016, I was reading about both the early and spiritual magical practices in the United States,” modern witch trials and scholarship that was more Freeman, who is a professor of Digital Media at UNC recent about those [trials]. And then also, I’m really Charlotte, told Queen City Nerve. “I have to put big interested in technology. So I was reading about quotes around ‘magic’ because a big part of the social bots, which, in 2016, was the hot topic.” series is even asking the question, ‘What is magic?’”

A social bot refers to an algorithm set in place Nor does the podcast waste it’s time trying to by social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter, prove the unprovable. to create fake accounts that may participate in “We’re sort of looking at magic and magical and potentially sway a particular conversation. religious practices, spiritual practices, in terms of Oftentimes, their participation is harmful. They’re what people do and not worry so much about what pretty commonplace now, and are more easily people believe,” she continues. “It’s certainly not spotted than in 2016, but at the time they were getting into what’s real. I can’t answer that.” critical in spreading misinformation.

HEATHER FREEMAN

“I started to see this poetic parallel between the witch hunts [of the 1600s] and the social bot in terms of how they infiltrated a community and caused havoc,” she said.

That parallel inspired Freeman’s work on a feature film called Familiar Shapes. The project, however, fell victim to COVID-19 and aired as a podcast in 2020 instead.

Freeman used four years worth of research and interviews with more than 30 international scholars in fields like history, computer science and religious studies to dig into disinformation campaigns of history and today, finding parallels between what happens on Facebook today and the witch hunts of the 1600s.

“The pandemic hit and my funding got frozen, and we were all in lockdown. We all know how that went,” Freeman said. “But I needed to get that project done by the end of 2020. So I pivoted like a lot of people, and I just converted it to a podcast.”

The topic only became more timely with the onset of COVID-19, as people began to spend more time online, where disinformation and conspiracy theories proliferated and became more popular.

A short animated film version of Familiar Shapes was eventually released in 2021.

After she completed that project, Freeman was

PHOTO BY TOBY SHEARER

inspired to explore spiritual practices more deeply.

“I started thinking about, what did I really want to do a deliberate podcast about?” she said. “And over the pandemic, I got to meet online all these amazing people all over the world, all over the US, who were magical practitioners of different practices. I was fascinated by just how different these practices were, the plurality of them, how hidden they all are … And so I started thinking about, ‘Well, this could be a really interesting way of exploring those dynamics through this lens of magic.’”

She began to consider the diversity of the magic practitioners she had come across during her studies — many of whom represented a range of different economic backgrounds, racial and gender identities, class identities, etc.

“It really spans the gamut. So I started putting together a proposal for a podcast series to do this project looking at magic in the United States,” she recalled. “There’s tons of podcasts about witchcraft, about ceremonial magic, and then also about religious practices that get called magic. But historically, calling these practices magic is a racist pejorative.”

Freeman said exploring why certain practices get called magic while the word “religion” is reserved for more mainstream practices is at the heart of her podcast.

ARTS FEATURE “This question of ‘What is religion?’ is really challenging,” she said. “If most people understand religion as one of these major monotheisms, they’re missing a lot.”

Lifting the veil

don’t, it’s because you either aren’t paying attention or because those people haven’t felt safe enough around you to let you in on the secret.”

Mooney was drawn to appear on the podcast due to the lack of religious literacy and scholarly discussion she’s seen surrounding the topic.

“Not very many scholars study and write about magic,” she said. “There’s still a bit of a taboo in place in wider academic communities for people perceived as being on the ‘fringe,’ and with so much concern about the academic job market and the competitiveness of graduate programs and tenuretrack jobs, it’s still a big risk to be ‘the magic guy.’”

She has seen the topic discussed more openly in recent years, however, both in academic circles and in the public realm.

“The general public are always curious about magic, witches, ghosts, and other things that seem supernatural, scary, or weird,” she said. “I’m also a practitioner of magic myself and the fact that I’m both an insider and a scholar grants me a level of nuance and care that I think appeals to general readers and listeners.”

For her, there is no clear distinction to describe what is magic or religion.

“Historically, ‘magic’ has been something of a dumping ground for those peoples, practices, and traditions that are simply non-normative, marginalized, or misunderstood,” she said. “We call things magic when we don’t like or don’t trust them.”

For Davis, it’s more of a blend of the two.

“To me, these parts of who I am are a blend of religion and magic,” he said. “Many of them require devotion to spirits and to God, for the power of the tradition to be able to properly manifest. Other times, needs in my personal life or in the community around me, require me to do magic to alleviate or resolve very practical issues.”

He emphasizes that a practitioner in modern times needs to be effective, getting results while following clearly defined tradition.

“The difference for me is that the devotional/ religious aspects are more about my personal relationship with Spirit, while the sorcerous side is more about getting things done and helping others in their life situations,” he said. “Religion also by the nature of the word requires you to bind yourself to a community and its ideas, whereas sorcery has a more quid pro quo orientation.”

Considering that, for many Americans, anything outside of the predominant religions is considered magic — and usually considered such with a stigma attached — Freeman, Mooney, and Davis all hope this podcast will encourage an open dialogue.

“I think people need to see that there has never been one narrative, including in spirituality, religion, and occultism,” Davis said. “Hearing all the different ideologies also educates people on the reality that all American folk magical practices have their character largely based on what the people who practice it had to go through to make it here.”

ARTWORK BY HEATHER FREEMAN

INFO@QCNERVE.COM

Pg. 11 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

Because Magic in the United States seeks to explore religious literacy and what is recognized as “magic,” Freeman showcases a diverse range of practices to help highlight the similarities between what is considered religion and what is considered magic.

“Most Americans can’t really name that many religions,” she said. “We name Christianity. There’s Islam. There’s Buddhism and Judaism. Those are sort of the big four that people can think of off the top of their head. But there’s hundreds, if not thousands, of religions in the US.” Freeman enlists the help of several practitioners for the podcast, including Rev. Dr. Aaron Davis, an ordained Christian minister of the United Church of Christ denomination and consecrated Bishop of The Renewal Church.

Davis, who grew up in National Baptist and AME Zion denominations, is now a Santero and priest of Chango within the Lucumi Orisha tradition.

“I think this project is important because there is a lot of ignorance and misinformation out there about indigenous practices generally, but especially American folk magical practices,” he told Queen City Nerve.

“I think more people need to know that this country has its own beautiful magical traditions that exemplify the best of what it means to be American in America — especially in this time where our country and world seems to be getting more divided by the day.”

David is featured on the first episode of the podcast, to be released Oct. 24.

Freeman also speaks with Thorn Mooney, a PhD candidate at UNC Chapel Hill who has a Masters in religious studies.

Mooney authored the book Traditional Wicca: A Seeker’s Guide.

“The world is full of magic,” she said. “The idea that it’s only people on the fringe engaging in these traditions is completely false, and it’s important to me that we create more understanding and compassion around the people who engage in them.

“You know witches. You know magicians. You “WHAT IS YOUR NAME 03” (2023) IS PART OF A LARGER SERIES CALLED ÖCCANE. know polytheists,” she continued. “If you think you

He pointed out that life in America has always been hard for a majority of folks, and since that is not going to change due to technological advances, he hopes rooting the study of magic in history can help give it context for folks who may not otherwise see the bigger picture.

“Whether it was the harsh weathers of rural Pennsylvania threatening a Powwower’s livestock or a slave working the roots to destroy a slavemaster’s sexual desires for her prepubescent daughter, the harsh conditions of early American life shaped our folk magical traditions,” he continues. “I really hope that people are more encouraged to be inclusive and open-minded in their thinking and behaviors.

Spiritual practice should make us more open, not more closed.”

Mooney said she’d like to see people come to a realization about what they consider to be strange and what practices have been normalized.

“Magic is as much about creative expression as it is anything else, and it enriches the lives of the people who practice it,” she said. “If it’s weird — and, okay, sometimes it’s weird — it’s not any weirder than what mainstream religions are up to when you look at them critically.”

Freeman, who grew up in an atheist household, wants to teach people that it can be a fun experience to talk to people about their religious experiences without having to proselytize or evangelize.

“It’s a way of sharing your lived experience, and so it’s a little bit sad sometimes that we’re surrounded by such amazing facets of cultural heritage and we don’t talk about them,” she said.

As far as what she considers to be magic, Freeman doesn’t have a concrete answer and, for that matter, neither do we.

“It’s one of those things like, every day, every episode I edit, my definition of it changes,” she said.

“I think the word ‘religion’ is a political category for sure, and as a society, we look at magic as something antithetical to religion. I don’t think that’s really fair to magic, but I think that’s what happens from the practitioner standpoint.”

But, as she’s said from the beginning, the goal was never to define magic.

Ultimately, the goal is to make the world a better place.

“If I can help people hold open a little bit more space for those conversations in their lives, that will ultimately help religious literacy broadly, and that’ll just make us, I think, a more equitable society, a more open-minded society.”

ARTS FEATURE

HALLOWEEN GUIDE 2023 Let’s get spooky

We are well into October and you should have long had your costume picked out by now. So let’s give you a reason to wear it.

Beyond the Grave Tour

A staple in Charlotte’s spooky scene, this tour explores the most historically haunted places in the Queen City.

More: $13-$15; ongoing; times vary; Uptown Charlotte; 201 N. Tryon St.; carolinahistoryandhaunts. com

A Halloween Reading Party

Snack of treats, drinks, and appetizers while waiting for your intuitive reading through the medium Chantelle.

More: $35; Oct. 20; 8-11 p.m.; A Secret Garden Wellness Studio; 5237 Albemarle Road, Suite 213; asecretgarden.org

‘Trick or Treat’

Eddie Weinbauer, a metalhead teen who is bullied at school, looks to his heavy metal superstar idol, Sammi Curr, for guidance. Watch the classic 1980s COURTESY OF CRF horror film by Charles Martin Smith to get in the HALLOWEEN DAZE AND SPOOKY KNIGHTS AT CAROLINA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL. Halloween spirit. karaoke, dance floors and more.

More: $8; Oct. 20-24; times vary; The Halloween Cocktail Class Independent Picture House; 4237 Raleigh St; Learn how to create the perfect Halloween cocktail More: Free; 8 p.m.-2 a.m.; The Hamilton Event menu for your spooky parties from professional Spaces; 820 Hamilton St.,; tinyurl.com/ independentpicturehouse.org HODLWEENCLT mixologists. Costumes are encouraged.

More: $45; Oct. 21; 3-4 p.m.; Thigs Cocktail Bar; Criss Cross Mangosauce: El Día de 21234 Catawba Ave., Cornelius; Buff Faye’s ‘Rocky Horror’ Drag Brunch los Muertos thigscocktailbar.com Do the time warp again with Buff Faye and her Learn about the many traditions that make up the Divas for an amazing drag brunch with family and fall season in Latin American cultures — specifically friends. Every brunch includes giving back to the HODLWEEN Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. local community.

More: $3-$5; Oct. 21; 11 a.m.-noon; Charlotte Museum Get into the Halloween spirit by exploring more More: $35; Oct. 22; 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; Dilworth of History; 3500 Shamrock Drive; charlottemuseum.org than five rooms that each hold unique experiences like readings & fortune, speakeasies, magicians, Neighborhood Grille; 911 E. Morehead St.; tinyurl. com/BuffFayeRockyHorror

Baran Dance Fright Night

Pg. 12 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

Baran Dance celebrates its one-year anniversary as a nonprofit with small bites, a cash bar, spooky tunes by Sweat Transfer and pop-up performances by company members.

More: $20-$100; Oct. 25, 6-9 p.m.; The Long Room, 1111 Central Ave., Suite 230; baran.dance

Fall Fest

An event for all ages to come dressed in their best costumes to play fun games and play in the skatepark. Registration is required.

More: Free; Oct. 26; 6-7:30 p.m.; Naomi Drenan Rec Center; 750 Beal St.; tinyurl.com/NaomiFallFest

ADULTS ONLY HALLOWEEN PARTY AT MONSTER MINI GOLF.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MMG

ARTS FEATURE Ghouls Night Out Terrarium Workshop

More: $12; Oct. 27-28, times vary; The Milestone, 3400 Tuckaseegee Road; themilestone.club

Have a fun, spooky-themed photoshoot with pumpkin heads (provided by photographer Lizeth Salazar-Klock) for new memories captured on camera.

More: $10-$15; Oct. 28-30; times vary; Hornets Nest Park; 6301 Beatties Ford Road; tinyurl.com/SpookyPhotoShoot

BOOllantyne

Build your own spooky terrarium from scratch, with decor included.

More: $26; Oct. 26; 6:30-8 p.m.; PlantHouse; 2452 Park Road, Unit D; tinyurl.com/GhoulsNightOutCLT

SPOOKY Pups Paints & Pints

Let’s Get Spooky Photoshoot

The perfect event for families and children to enjoy a children’s costume contest and an art scavenger hunt with food trucks and beverages available onsite.

More: $10; Oct. 27; 5-7:30 p.m.; Ballantyne’s Backyard; 11115 Upper Ave.; goballantyne.com

Halloween Daze and Spooky Knights

For this themed night, you can ask the talented artists to paint your favorite pup as a ghost, goblin, Frankenstein, or otherworldly beast. Registration is Halloween Silent Disco Dance as a witch, vampire, or even your required.

More: $50; Oct. 26; 6-8 p.m.; Skiptown; 222 favorite superhero with songs covering various genres and a dash of spooky Rampart St.; skiptown.io tunes. Costumes are encouraged, but not required.

Love at First Laugh Halloween More: $10-$15; Oct. 27; 7:30-11:30 p.m.; PHOTO COURTESY OF CHH Edition BEYOND THE GRAVE TOUR Hi-Wire Brewing; 340 W. Tremont Ave., A singles mixer event paired with a comedy dating Suite 140; hiwirebrewing.com/charlotte show hosted by Max Summers. Costumes are highly encouraged.

Horroween Bar Crawl LIVE! More: Free; Oct. 26; 7-10 p.m.; Common Gothic Noir: A Hallows’ Eve Dance Be part of Charlotte’s original Halloween Bar Market South End; 235 W. Tremont Ave.; Revue Crawl in your favorite costumes with themed commonmarketisgood.com Experience a suspenseful night of 1940s-inspired drinks, costume contests, horror through aerial performances, pole dancing, live music, after-parties Halloween Fiasco burlesque performances, chair dancers and more. and exclusive deals and The Milestone’s annual two-night Halloween party More: $30; Oct. 27; 7 p.m.; Petty Thieves Brewing discounts at participating features local artists covering (and dressing up as) Co.; 413 Dalton Ave., Suite B; pettythievesbrewing. bars.

More: $15-$40; Oct. 27-28; icons of the music scene, from Cosmic Twynk’s take com hours vary; locations vary; on System of a Down (Night One) to Anchor Detail’s barcrawllive.com take on The Cars (Night Two).

Halloween Pop-Up Bar

COURTESY OF BCL

Fairwood Frightfest

Dance the night away with a live DJ set, scary drink specials, and a costume contest for a spooktacular evening.

More: Free; Oct. 28; 4 p.m.-2 a.m.; The Fairwood 226; 226 Fairwood Ave.; tinyurl.com/FairwoodFright

Be part of Whiskey Warehouse’s first-ever Halloween pop-up bar. Matthews Costumes are highly encouraged, and Playhouse Haunted reservations are not required.

Trail More: Free; Oct. 28; 7 p.m.-midnight; For its five-year anniversary, Single Barrel Room; 1221 The Plaza; Matthews Playhouse is tinyurl.com/WhiskeyPopUp ramping up the spooks and scares with even darker Adults Only Halloween takes on Brothers Grimms’ fairy tales. There will be Party Sink your teeth into blacklight mini- food trucks, a bouncy golf, free bowling, exploring the laser house, trunk-or-treat and more activities. Costumes maze, arcade games, and more.

More: $10; Oct. 27; 8 p.m.-midnight; are greatly encouraged.

Monster Mini Golf Charlotte; 230 More: $10; Oct. 27-29; E W.T. Harris Blvd; tinyurl.com/ 5-10 p.m.; Matthews Community Center; 100 E. MATTHEWS PLAYHOUSE HAUNTED TRAIL TAKES PLACE OCT. 28.

MonsterMiniGolfCLT McDowell St., Matthews; matthewsplayhouse.com

COURTESY MP

Pg. 13 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

HORROWEEN BAR CRAWL LIVE! OCT. 27-28.

Experience spooky medieval times with treasure hunts, trick-or-treating, turkey legs, costumes galore, and more at the Carolina Renaissance Festival.

More: $32, kids free; Oct. 28-29; 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; Carolina Renaissance Festival; 16445 Poplar Tent Road; carolina.renfestinfo.com/

ARTS FEATURE Halloween Vogue Ball

For newcomers and seasoned voguers alike, experience the magic in the thrilling atmosphere of self-expression and witness the fierce competition in your spectacular costumes.

More: $5-$15; Oct. 28; 8 p.m.-midnight; Grimes Lounge, Johnson C. Smith University; 100 Beatties Ford Road; tinyurl.com/HalloweenVogue

Full Moon Comedy

Cassette Rewind’s Annual Back in Time Halloween Bash

Cassette Rewind, which calls itself the “ultimate authentic ’80s experience,” hosts its annual Halloween party at Amos’.

More: $15-$28; Oct. 28, 8 p.m.; Amos’ Southend, 1423 S. Tryon St.; amossouthend.com

Witness comedians using the powers of the full Boo Bash 2023 moon to give you the funniest night of your life with Billed as the best costume contest in stand-up, music, sketches, videos and more.

Charlotte, Boo Bash offers up $1,800 in More: $10; Oct. 28; 8 p.m.; Visart Video; cash prizes.

3104 Eastway Drive; visartvideo.org More: $12; Oct. 28, 7 p.m.; Coyote Joe’s, 4621 Wilkinson Blvd.; coyote-joes.com

Nightmare on Church Street

Enjoy karaoke and drinks while dressing up in your favorite costume, the best of which will receive a prize.

More: $7; Oct. 28; 10 p.m.-12:30 a.m.; Queen City Grounds; 644 N. Church St.; tinyurl.com/NightmareonChurch

Sorry Papi Halloween Tour

Calling all brujas. It’s time to get spooky at the biggest all-girl party in the world.

More: $25 and up; Oct. 28, 10 p.m.; The CASSETTE REWIND PERFORMS AT AMOS’ SOUTHEND ON OCT. 28.

Fillmore, 820 Hamilton St.; fillmorenc.com

COURTESY OF AMOS’ SOUTHEND

Howl-o-ween

Celebrate Halloween with your pets while wearing costumes, playing games and enjoying treats.

More: Free; Oct. 29; noon-5 p.m.; Urban District Market; 2315 North Davidson Street, #300; tinyurl. com/HowlOWeenUDM

Harry Potter Watch Party

Enjoy movie-themed cocktails while watching with friends in your favorite house’s colors.

More: Free; Oct. 30; 7 p.m.-midnight; Single Barrel Room; 1221 The Plaza Charlotte; tinyurl.com/ mt2m8rth

Pg. 14 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

Haunted Harbor

Snug Harbor’s annual Halloween party featuring music from Lofidels, Pleasure House, La Brava, Poontanglers, will be rocking the night away.

More: $13-15; Oct. 31; 8 p.m.; Snug Harbor; 1228 Gordon St.; snugrock.com

Petrafied Halloween Bash

SPOOKY PHOTO SHOOTS WILL BE HELD AT HORNETS NEST PARK OCT. 28-30.

PHOTOS BY LIZETH SALAZAR-KLOCK

Petra’s is back with their annual Halloween party featuring live music from HNY WLSN, Lil Skritt, Florecienta and DJ Monsterpiece. There will be a $100 cash prize for the costume contest at midnight.

More: $7-$10; Oct. 31; 8 p.m.; Petra’s; 1919 Commonwealth Ave; petrasbar.com

HORROWEEN BAR CRAWL LIVE!

PHOTO COURTESY OF MATTHEWS PLAYHOUSE

Pg. 15 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

MATTHEWS PLAYHOUSE HAUNTED TRAIL

PHOTO COURTESY OF BCL

ARTS FEATURE

FINDING A MOTIVE Eric Mullis’ latest work is a collaboration of tech and human movement

Pg. 16 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY BRUCE BRIGHTLY

2022. This involved linking dancers in motion capture suits to projectors, transformed their movements into patterns of moving images that were then projected on the massive white walls of Goodyear.

After this initial exploration, Mullis began to think about next steps. How could this work be extended, expanded and expounded upon?

Spending a lot of time at Camp North End thanks to his work with Goodyear Arts, Mullis was no stranger to the behemoth that is the Ford Building, a former auto manufacturing plant on the sprawling campus.

This vast space is begging to be filled with performances, and local directors and choreographers have been eager to work there. Of course, working in the Ford Building poses its own challenges.

In a recent conversation with Mullis, he somewhat ruefully acknowledged, “The Ford building is always the strongest character in any performance you stage there,” and that once he had settled on creating the next phase of his work in the expansive environment, he’d have to go back to the drawing board and reimagine how audience, artists and technology would collide at the site.

During a year of experimentation, he developed the final form of Motive Forces, collaborating with the space itself, creating a work in which technology is in conversation with the human body, but also with the array of perspective and scale at play in the Ford Building.

Mullis has discovered that this new version of Motive Forces required an expanded notion of what technology is. Describing the mix of high and low tech that the show employs, Mullis said, “There will be motion-capture suits and infrared cameras, interactive projections, but also flashlights and work

In the 17th century, French engineer, inventor a group of performance artists who were active and landscape designer Salomon De Caus published in the late aughts, introducing Charlotte to such a work on automata entitled The relations of motive powerhouse choreographers as Sarah Ingel, Ash forces with various machines as useful as they are Williams and Caitlyn Swett before transmogrifying pleasing. At the time, automata — early versions into an astonishing spectrum of other projects of what we’d call robots today — were all the rage, ranging from Ingel’s Ladyfest, William’s work in a must have in all the royal courts of Europe. They reproductive rights and prison abolition, and Swett’s delighted and confounded with their seemingly experiments with biofeedback and sound art. independent agency, and the often uncanny Mullis started with Triptych as more of a appearance of animate life they possessed. musician, but, having grown up doing martial arts, There was also a whiff of the carnival about embodied practice is second nature to him. The them, with observers looking to discover the source blending of the corporeal and the cerebral, and the of movement, certain there must be a person hidden ethics at play in such operations has been central to inside. — and in the case of famous chess-playing his work as long as he’s been dancing. automata The Mechanical Turk, they would have So it makes sense that Mullis would be interested been correct. in and au courant with current and controversial Those early experiments were a part of a larger conversations around using technology to extend movement in history, an explosion of technology agency. Mullis has been working in the realm of that has led us to the present day and our ever more dance technology for the last three years, specifically automated systems of production and leisure. And using different hardware and software to amplify while most of us play the role of carnival gawkers — in dancer’s movement by giving them control over awe of the advances, lost in the illusions that come with light and sound. them — there are contemporary avatars of Salomon A Knight Foundation tech grant allowed Mullis De Caus asking questions and conducting experiments to purchase motion capture suits for this work, and in the arena where humans and technology do our little so the first seed of Motive Forces was born with a dance of collaboration and dependency. small experimental performance at Goodyear Arts in One such person lives and works in Charlotte, and has created a dance performance based on the work of De Caus. On Nov. 1-2, local audiences can view Motive Forces, a dance work created by Eric Mullis.

As an interdisciplinary artist, Mullis wears many hats. He’s a director at Goodyear Arts, a percussionist in the band The Fastest Steed on Earth, a dancer and dance maker with an MFA in Choreography from the University of WisconsinMilwaukee who regularly performs and presents internationally. Oh yeah, he’s also a Fulbright fellow and Doctor of Philosophy who in addition to running the Philosophy program at Queens University has published extensively on the intersection of philosophy and dance.

Mullis has been making dance work steeped in the philosophical tradition ever since his days working with Triptych Collective, ERIC MULLIS’ MOTIVE FORCES WILL BE PERFORMED AT THE FORD BUILDING IN CAMP NORTH END ON NOV. 1-2.

lights; those are technologies too, just simpler. So all of those things are in conversation with each other.”

Additionally, Mullis has expanded the ensemble of performers involved. The group of dancers includes Mullis himself as well as Joy Davis, Mattie Badget, Gavin Stewart, Mikaela Laxton and Taylor Railton, with regular musical collaborator Brent Bagwell of Ghost Trees contributing a score.

Describing how technology as a tool and concept informed the creation of the work, Mullis said, “This isn’t a gimmick. The movement wasn’t made for the technology I’m using, it can stand alone on its own. At the same time the movement was created in conversation with technology.”

What does that mean? Mullis continued, “The movement was made independent of the technology but the piece was constructed using a technological approach to choreography. For instance, there is a pretty big section of movement where the dancers improvised on camera, that footage was then cut up and scrambled and then given back to the dancers to learn.”

This technique and its introduction of chance into the process has more than a little in common with one of Mullis’ artistic heroes, Merce Cunningham.

Cunningham and his partner John Cage famously performed experiments in performance collage and the use of chance operations at Black Mountain College in the mid-20th century.

Black Mountain College has become a sort of artistic place of pilgrimage for Mullis, having performed at (Re)Happening several times and even getting married on the campus.

And so there is an interesting continuity at play here, akin to the developing relationship between humans and technology that has been both blessing and curse since humans first harnessed fire all the way to today’s debates over the ethics of artificial intelligence. In creating and performing Motive Forces, Mullis and company are a part of a lineage of creators examining and reevaluating the tools at their disposal for making art.

It is exactly this engagement, this confrontation with technology, that reinforces the work’s humanity. Ultimately this work is about humans — how humans make their way through the world and how technology at its most basic is about extending human agency in the material world.

Motive Forces runs Nov. 1-2 from 7:308:30pm in the Ford Building at Camp North End. Tickets are $15 cash or Venmo.

PHOTO BY STEVEN PILKER

INFO@QCNERVE.COM

Pg. 17 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

MUSIC FEATURE

WYNTER’S TALE

Soul violinist Emanuel Wynter drops stunning live album

Pg. 18 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY PAT MORAN

There’s a moment in “From Orbit,” the title track His playing hits an outer edge as well, unleashing from Emanuel Wynter’s new live album, where the corkscrewing bagpipe skirls and screech owl vocalist/violinist and his ace band slip gravity’s screams. grasp — and celebrate that feeling. Nimble bass, “I say that my music is R&B,”Wynter says. “I mean, pile-driving drums and trilling keyboards trace a it isn’t and it is. There are definitely rock influences in cross-stitch groove, creating a space for Wynter’s my sound. [It’s the] intersection between rock and playful and romantic vocals to soar. soul.”

“Weightless infatuation/ While we’re dancing on Wynter’s vocals provide much of that soul. They Saturn’s rings/ Won’t take for granted the times we are inviting and upbeat yet they contain a soupcon made/ Laid it all down by Jupiter again...” of grit, an underlying gravitas that brings the band’s Is Wynter remembering and cherishing a brief jazzy/psychedelic/shoegaze/R&B explorations affair and casting his tale among a fanciful star field? down to earth. For all of Wynter’s adventurous The imagery may be cosmic, but the conviction in excursions, home seems to be the final destination Wynter’s fine grained, melodic voice is down to for “From Orbit.” earth.

One of the most powerful emotions expressed “I’m free falling from orbit/ Streaking through the by the song is the flood of feelings unleashed by a night sky/ I’m on my way home, back home … It ain’t homecoming. Perhaps that’s why the album was easy coming down...” recorded live at The Evening Muse, which has been “[It’s] a song about feeling very happy …[with] a kind of professional home for Wynter. emotional euphoria ,” Wynter tells Queen City Nerve.

“I love the Evening Muse,” says Wynter, who “Having that moment and coming down from it, but debuted his first release, “Cosmos,” at the iconic still being happy, knowing that it’s coming again.” NoDa club. “It’s the first place I ever did a full band On From Orbit, Wynter’s sophomore album that show. I wanted it to be the place where I recorded drops Oct. 20, his ebullient yet grounded songs my first live album.” embrace a broad emotional spectrum. Love, loss, To reference an album by singer-songwriter Bob nostalgia and imagination all jostle for a fleeting yet Dylan, with From Orbit, Emanuel Wynter is bringing joyous moment in the spotlight. The music that acts it all back home. as jewelers’ settings for these gemstone melodies is similarly diverse yet coherent.

Songs to learn and sing One moment Curt Keys’ shimmering keyboards Growing up in New York, Wynter had a lot of are ethereal, the next they are grounded yet rolling opportunities to encounter music, yet credits his gospel organ. Victor Payton-Webber’s bass growls mother, Seranne, for imbuing him with a love of and prowls like a big cat before traipsing sprightly music. around the beat. Justin Allen’s elastic drumming “She did a really good job of exposing me to ranges from jazzy hissing hi-hats to a full on hard- things,” he says. “We would see different productions rock stomp. of concerts at the Lincoln Center. I saw Wynton Speaking of rock, Nero Tindal IV’s guitar can kick Marsalis there.” back with shimmering harp-like glissandos before Despite marquee names like Marsalis, Wynter unleashing coruscating runs that streak crackling says he was inspired to pick up a violin after seeing contrails of feedback. Wynter’s violin — which his cousin perform with the instrument at a recital. has enlivened projects by 9daytrip, Sticks & Stones At the age of 6, Wynter enrolled in a violin class at and other local bands — harkens to Stéphane Alexander Robinson School on the Upper West Side.

Grappelli’s gypsy-jazz bowing and Vassar Clements’ When he changed schools to be closer to his home rapid-fire bluegrass fiddling. in the Bronx, Wynter continued his training with

EMANUEL WYNTER (FAR RIGHT) PERFORMS AT EVENING MUSE.

private lessons.

In 2007, Wynter’s family moved to Charlotte.

Despite the culture shock involved with experiencing a scarcity of subways and seeing cows grazing from the window of his school bus, Wynter gradually acclimated to life in the Queen City. One bright spot was JazzArts Charlotte and its JazzArts Academy, currently at the VAPA Center in Uptown.

When he was in first grade in New York, Wynter was exposed to the Suzuki method. Created by Japanese violinist Shinichi Suzuki, the Suzuki method creates an environment for learning music that is patterned after the linguistic environment of acquiring a language. Using listening, imitation, and repetition, the method posits that most people can learn to play an instrument as if it were their native tongue.

Wynter says he enjoyed the Suzuki method with its emphasis on ear training. That training came in handy when Wynter ventured beyond classical music in high school and started listening to and playing contemporary styles like blues, rock and jazz.

“JazzArts … opened my eyes to playing things that aren’t written,” Wynter says. “Whether you’re

PHOTO BY DANIEL COSTON

improvising [or] coming up with your own melodies, they really laid it out for me. It was an awesome program.”

Learning ensemble playing was also a big benefit from studying at JazzArts, Wynter says. He credits the program with teaching him what he calls “sonic literature.”

“If you think of music like literature … you get vocabulary from it,” Wynter says.

For instance, by studying the work of jazz violinist Regina Carter, Wynter says he learned musical grammar — a player’s respective note choices, inflection and playing.

“That can inform me as a string player [about] my options, that maybe I haven’t thought about before listening to her,” Wynter says.

Songwriting was sparked gradually for Wynter, first by writing verses for fun when he was in high school. After that, he attended UNC Greensboro to study interior architecture. In college, Wynter hung out with a group of friends who would freestyle regularly.

“We used to share poetry with each other,” Wynter remembers. “It helped me develop my pen, but I wasn’t sharing.”

MUSIC FEATURE

got off the stage because the band hadn’t played keyboards flutter and hover like a UFO as Tindal’s “Iced Coffee” could break the evening’s ethereal spidery streamers of guitar streak across the soundscape. spell.

As chugging bass charges into the fray, its Given the album’s focus on all new original material, Wynter’s fans may be confused that the clear this version rocks hard, with an unhinged band chose to record two covers as part of the set. pinwheeling electric guitar ripping through spectral “The cover songs that we played — I wanted keyboard washes at warp speed.

“The way that we do ‘Electric Feel’ is cool and them to fit. I wanted them to make sense,” Wynter says. unique,” Wynter says. “It simmers and it’s spacey and A cover of contemporary blues-rock guitarist Gary psychedelic. Then it gets big and high energy.”

It’s a testament to Wynter and his band that they Clark Jr.’s “You Saved Me” fits because Clark is one of can take on such a popular and iconic song and Wynter’s favorite artists. “[Clark] has this big, heavy and aggressive blues- make it their own.

Wynter hopes that listeners to From Orbit come rock sound, but he also has strong hip-hop and soul away with a sense that life is fleeting, and we all influences in his music,” Wynter says.

As he describes Clark’s sound and its emotional should strive to live in the moment. He feels that the influence on the listener, it echoes what many say album is no less introspective than These Past Two about Wynter’s own sound. “It’s like floating through Years — with one distinct difference.

“The big thing people will notice is that I’m outer space. It’s rock, it’s soulful, and gorgeous.”

Perhaps the most surprising cover is an ethereal coming into myself,” Wynter says. “I think I’m better yet hard-rocking take on MGMT’s “Electric Feel.” able to get across what I want to get across. I know Wynter’s version starts softly like a field recording. what I want to sound like, and I’m better able to get Payton-Webber’s pulsing bass, Allen’s clicking and that sound. As far as the Emanuel Wynter dreamy hissing percussion and plucked pizzicato strings references [to] astronomy, they’re still in there, but there’s also a lot more energy.” gradually grow in volume.

As Wynter’s emotive, wistful vocals tumble out, PMORAN@QCNERVE.COM you feel he’s singing from the heart. Then, Keys’

Pg. 19 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

Wynter couldn’t get out of his head.

“I don’t really have one firm process,”Wynter says. “[Each song] is different, and I think it’s exciting Even though school was in Greensboro, Wynter because it’s not uniform, it’s not the same every developed his live performance chops playing time.” downstate in Charlotte. Soon he started getting gigs In addition to romantic love, an overriding theme in the Queen City, and he regularly attended open throughout the album is nostalgia. It imbues the mics, particularly at The Evening Muse. front-porch swing of “Last Year’s Avenue” and its This led to Wynter becoming a hired gun, playing front and center in the genre jumping soul jazz of with bands like All of a Kind, where he met bassist “These Walls.”

All Pat Hulsey and late drummer Antonio “Animal” “In the [realm of] nostalgia there is wanting to go Brown. When Hulsey decamped for Sticks & Stones back, but there is also the understanding [that] you and Brown joined 9daytrip, Wynter started playing have to move forward,” Wynter says. with those two bands. In December 2016, Wynter In that regard, From Orbit, is all about moving dropped out of college and started doing music ahead. At the beginning of 2022, it had been 2 full-time. By 2017, he started singing for 9daytrip, years since Wynter had put out any new music, gradually gaining confidence in his vocal abilities. and he was writing songs for a completely different “I didn’t write ‘Cosmos’ until September in 2017,” studio project. To get the new songs on their feet, Wynter says. “That was the first song I had written Wynter started playing them with his band, which with the intention of putting it out.” had evolved into its current lineup of guitarist It wasn’t until the summer of 2018, however, that Nero Tindal IV, keyboardist Curt Keys, bassist Victor Wynter played the song live for the first time at The Payton-Webber and drummer Justin Allen.

Evening Muse.

“I felt what we were doing live was really cool; the band was hitting its stride,” Wynter says. “All those guys know each other. They’ve all played with A songwriter turns to his muse With crystalline jazz guitar, a warmly embracing each other outside of playing with me, so there’s funk groove and Wynter’s smooth neo-soul vocals, chemistry between them.”

Wynter realized that he was excited for people “Cosmos” is a limpid and swaying slow dance that charts a course for the violinist and songwriter’s to see and hear the band live. The realization encouraged Wynter to draw inspiration from the subsequent career: “In the cosmos, we’re dancing/ In harmony/ I’ll take live albums he loved so well, John Mayer’s Live at the Nokia Theater and John Legend’s Live at S.O.B.’s from no steps for granted/ But all the time I need...”

“From the moment I wrote ‘Cosmos’ I wanted back when he still went by John Stephens. to get a band together so I can play this stuff live,” “I [have] a deep admiration for the magic that’s in live albums when the band gets together and plays Wynter says.

Soon he had written enough material to put out in front of people,” Wynter says. “There’s energy there that is incredible and it can’t be replicated in a debut album.

“I was getting some opportunities to play [the the studio.”

Wynter also felt he had grown as an artist, singer songs] solo, but I really wanted to get a band and player — and he wanted to showcase that. together,” Wynter recalls.

His first full band show came in July 2019 at The As much as Wynter was proud of his old material, he wanted to show people that he was going Evening Muse.

In February 2020, Wynter and his band released somewhere, and not trapped in a past defined by These Past Two Years. The romantic yet introspective “Cosmos.”

From Orbit showcases 10 tracks, eight of which collection of eight songs included “Cosmos” as well are new originals, recorded live on Feb. 9, 2023. as the sunny and sashaying “Iced Coffee,” one of Unlike some live albums, which collect tracks from the friendliest and most vulnerable come-ons ever several shows, the album is a document of one gig recorded.

“Just tryna shake this mood I’m in/ I just need a on a particular winter’s evening at The Muse.

“The technical logistics of getting things recorded, little help, baby/ Turn it all around just with a grin/ I it’s easier to do it all at one place,” Wynter says.”So, like caramel in my iced coffee...”

There was no single working method for writing we had a few rehearsals to get everything together, the album’s material, Wynter says. For instance, and it ended up being a really beautiful night.”

Not even the fan who accosted Wynter after he “Iced Coffee” began as an earworm melody that

MUSIC FEATURE

READ THE SIGNS

Dollar Signs drop new album full of folk tales ... but not folk music

BY RYAN PITKIN

Pg. 20 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

In the song “Nuclear Family,” the penultimate track on local pop-punk band Dollar Signs’ new album Legend Tripping, frontman Erik Button tells the story of the 1961 Goldsboro B-52 crash, in which a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress carrying two 3.8-megaton Mark 39 nuclear bombs broke up in mid-air, dropping its nuclear payload in the process.

“We could have been beachfront,” Button screams in the refrain, and it’s hard to tell if it’s a wish or a warning.

The story encapsulates the theme of the album quite well — a mix of local folk tales, macabre horror and anti-nostalgia for rural North Carolina, where Button grew up in Burlington.

The album drops on Oct. 27, with an album release show and costume party scheduled for Halloween night at The Evening Muse.

In the lead-up, we caught up with Button to chat about the new project, the band’s first since leaving their record label and going independent through crowdfunding.

Queen City Nerve: This album does have an undeniable theme from the jump, one of anti-nostalgia and going home only to not recognize the people or things there — or not want to. What was the inspiration for that?

Erik Button: Well, it kind of came about from the fact that we recorded our last album literally five days before the COVID shutdown started. And when that started, I was like, “Okay, well, shit, what do I do for songwriting?” Because I didn’t really want to write a COVID record and do that route. But also my writing style is very diary-based. It’s usually just about whatever I’m experiencing at the time. So I was like, “Okay, well, if I can’t do that, what else is there?”

And so as the pandemic kind of got deeper into it, I started seeing the political perspectives of people I went to high school with change or certain people in my family become more radicalized. And so it kind of shifted my perspective. I was like, “What if I wrote a hometown record?” which is a pretty classic,

cliche pop-punk thing to write about, but instead of wanting to write about, “Oh, I want to escape my hometown,” like what 19-year-old pop punk bands write about, I was like, “What about a record from the perspective of someone in their 30s coming back to their hometown and kind of trying to reckon with their memory of a place versus the reality of that place?”

Were you physically back there or were you just sort of watching from afar?

It was kind of a mixture of watching from afar or when I would see my family. But yeah, a lot of it, especially at that time, kind of everything happened over the internet because that’s just how everyone experienced the world.

to talk about, but it just kind of gave me a backdrop.

So that’s why there’s so much horror imagery or references to either odd historic events that happened in North Carolina or folk tales and that kind of thing. It was a good way just because folklore is often used to simplify and explain history or the dangers of a thing or a place. So I thought it was an interesting way to explore nostalgia and memory in that way where you basically start with something that’s already partially or wholly not true.

You recorded in Boone. What brought you there?

My parents got a little place in the mountains that me and my now-wife would go to and we would kind of like work remotely there, and it was a good place to write songs because it frees you of distractions and because everyone was super busy, we kind of wrote this record altogether in these small chunks at a different mountain house, where we would essentially go up there and stay for four or five days and just work on these demos that I had written.

It was a really fun way to work because it was very distraction-free and we could kind of stay

on a schedule. So when it came to recording, the guy who typically records our music couldn’t do it because he now lives in New York, and so we were like, “Well, why don’t we just use our know-how and just record it in the same house that we wrote the record in,” which made it feel very cohesive. We ended up working crazy long hours, but it didn’t feel nearly as stressful.

Local musician and producer Te’Jani produced the album with you all in Boone. How did his input shape the album, if at all?

It honestly was very cool. He has a background in engineering; he’s engineered a lot of hip-hop and kind of started in the EDM and electronica music world, and has recorded a bunch of stuff for solo singer/songwriters. He’s very good at crafting any kind of sound we want, particularly when it came to the piano or anything specific like that.

He really just has a pretty deep wealth of knowledge and it paired pretty nicely because we also got the record post-mixed by our friend Rick Johnson, who has a studio in Michigan. He is kind of the opposite end of the spectrum, which is he’s very good at putting things on tape and he has a lot of

So would you call this more of a concept album than your past stuff?

Definitely.

When I started writing this record, obviously being from the South and wanting to talk about history, it gets very complicated very quickly in a way that I wasn’t sure if I was totally equipped to get into systemic forms of racism and things like that. I’ve always had a mild interest in folklore and kind of like this alternative style of history. And so I felt like that was a cool way to give me a lexicon to be able to explore and talk about the things I want DOLLAR SIGNS (FROM LEFT): LUKE GUNN, TOMMY MCPHAIL, ERIK BUTTON, ARION CHAMBERLAIN, AND DYLAN WACHMAN.

PHOTO BY DYLAN WACHMAN

MUSIC FEATURE

Pg. 21 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

didn’t want to do that. And so after leaving our last label, we were like, “Well, if we’re going to put it out this year, we should probably put it out as close analog equipment from the 1970s. So I felt like we to Halloween as we possibly can,” which I’m really really got a full spectrum of people’s expertise and excited about. It was only stressful because I got we took advantage of it. married [in early October], so planning a wedding and a record release in the same month was How would you describe the ways that your certainly a big decision for me. sound has evolved as a band on this new project?

Speaking of leaving the label, you all ran quite Well, this record definitely has the most space in a successful Kickstarter campaign to help fund it. I feel like all the rest of our records kind of come this record. Tell me about that. much more from punk sensibilities of just like, say Yeah, so we left our label in December of last year, it as quickly as you can and get out, whereas this and we were like, okay, I mean, technically, we could record we took a lot more influence from Bruce fund the record ourselves, but barely. So we’re like, Springsteen or 1970s rock ‘n’ roll bands like Big Star, “Okay, well, we’ll try the Kickstarter thing,” and we where we’re like, “Okay, well, actually, let’s just let set out a pretty modest goal for a record recording, the guitar solo play out,” which is a thing we’ve which was $12,000, which would just basically be never really done before. So it really led to the enough for the physical stuff of it and the recording. record sounding a lot bigger. And to me, this feels But we ended up raising that in one day, and raised like a rock ‘n’ roll record more than like a basement $26,000 in the end, which really gave us a lot more punk record, which is funny and ironic because we room to be able to do music videos and get an actual recorded it in a basement.

PR rep and just kind of doing anything that we want to do with it, which was pretty incredible, the What inspired the horror aspect of it? Was that amount of support we got for it. due to your experience during the pandemic?

Or was it not that deep and just something You guys were recording a video when I you wanted to play with? reached out. Do you have a timeline for any The pandemic really got me thinking about a lot. visuals that are coming with the release?

And for some reason, just the way my brain works is, Yeah, that video is supposed to come out on [Oct.] like, if I feel stressed, the way I relax has always been 25th. So we’re putting out a video for our song “Old watching scary movies — either, like, more modern Time’s Sake,” which is the third song on the record, stuff or a lot of schlocky B movies from the ’60s, ’70s and we basically got two new friends of ours who and ’80s. So in the background of all of the stress kind of approached us wanting to do a music video from the pandemic, it definitely put horror kind of in — Eric Bader and Stephen Venezia, who’ve done a the front of my brain more. I’ve always been a huge lot of music video stuff. Eric has shot music videos fan of it, but I kind of feel like this was a way for me for Panic at the Disco and Fallout Boy, and they to figure out a different way to write songs. just moved to Charlotte and kind of found us, and I mean, when I first started working on the so they were like, “Oh, if you want to do a video record, there’s probably five or six songs that I just together.” So we jumped at that, especially with me kind of threw away because I felt like it either was doing wedding planning. I didn’t really have time to too close to what we used to do or it was too far out do it myself, and so they are doing it. The video is there in horror references. And so I was kind of trying just kind of a slasher film in the style of, like, 1970s to find the middle balance of it, where it’s like it still Italian horror, and it looks really cool. I’m excited for feels accessible and if you don’t know exactly what everyone to see it.

I’m talking about it doesn’t really matter — that’s what I was going for — but also, if you want to And I assume the Halloween album release Google shit about the lyrics of our record, it would show will not just be any old gig? Costumes be fun for you to do. encouraged?

Oh yeah. We’ve done a lot of themed shows in the Did you feel pressure to drop around past, and we haven’t done it in a while, so we’re like, Halloween thanks to the horror vibes?

“Well, we’re having it on Halloween, let’s decorate it The worst thing about being on a label is the up and do it big.” fact that you record a record and then you have to RPITKIN@QCNERVE.COM wait sometimes up to a year to put it out. And I just

Pg. 22 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 18

ROCK/PUNK/METAL Clem Snide w/ Jeffrey Williams (Evening Muse) Vicious Blade w/ Nemesis, Neverfall, Night Attack (The Milestone) HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Arsena w/ Tamra Simone & the Finnas, TiffanyJ, EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE Confluence: Mercury Carter w/ Tre.Charles, Søelle (Stage Door Theater) Vadim Kolpakov, Maritzaida (Stage Door POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Theater) Malinda (Amos’ Southend) Confluence: Natalie Carr w/ Sorry, Peach, Nathan Reneé Rapp (The Fillmore) Kam, Lynnsea (Petra’s) Del Water Gap (The Underground) SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Simple Sole (Goldie’s) FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20 EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE Confluence: Of Good Nature w/ Dane Page, Jay ROCK/PUNK/METAL Emarosa w/ The Dangerous Summer, First And D Jones, Jason Scavone Band (Neighborhood Forever (Amos’ Southend) Theatre) The Lenny Federal Band (Comet Grill) Confluence: Eddie the Obsidian, Parallel Lines, Welcome to the Family Fest (The Milestone) Once Below Joy (Starlight on 22nd) Mom Rock w/ Cassettiquette, The Phantom Confluence: Late Night Special w/ Carolina Friends (Petra’s) Vibes, Lisa De Novo Band, Lawn Friends (Visulite The 1975 (Snug Harbor) Theatre) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA LATIN/WORLD/REGGAE Chase McDaniel (Coyote Joe’s) Son Rompe Pera w/ Human Pippi (Snug Harbor) Griffin William Sherry w/ Tall Tall Trees (Evening OPEN MIC Muse) Singer/Songwriter Open Mic (The Rooster) David Taylor & The Tallboys w/ Fo Daniels (Evening Muse) Thirsty Horses w/ Elliot Morgan (Goldie’s) THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19 JAZZ/BLUES ROCK/PUNK/METAL Dante Fowler w/ Unheard Project (Camp North The Bones of J.R. Jones w/ Jarrod Dickenson End) (Evening Muse) Gena Chambers (Middle C Jazz) Late Night Special w/ Bourbon Sons (Goldie’s) David Brown (The Rooster) Fight from Within w/ Exitwounds, Sanctuaries, POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Bunker Hill Bloodbath, Alpha Strain (The SOOHAN w/ Doppelgänger, Poetic (Crown Milestone) Station) Aqualads (Tommy’s Pub) CloZee (The Fillmore) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Deep Fried Disco (Snug Harbor) The Steel Woods w/ Zach Top (Amos’ Southend) Home Room w/ Dark Adaptation Sashimi, Gone Gone Beyond w/ Laura Elliot Bassarid (Tommy’s Pub) (Neighborhood Theatre) SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Cougar Mountain Boys w/ Trace Casanova, Tides Neal Carter (Birdsong Brewing) Hotel Band, Mason Cole (The Rooster) CLASSICAL/INSTRUMENTAL Confluence: Nathan Davis w/ Aaron Chance Charlotte Symphony: Chopin’s Piano Concerto Wilson, Featherpocket, Sycamore Bones No. 2 (Knight Theater) (Visulite Theatre) EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Queen City Jam Session (Neghborhood Theatre) Tia Durant (Middle C Jazz) COVER BANDS Confluence: Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon w/ Jeremy’s Ten (Pearl Jam tribute) (Visulite Jooselord, Mason Parker, Royal City Lif, Tukool Theatre) Tiff, Tiffani D (Snug Harbor) JAZZ/BLUES Harvey Cummings Project w/ Emmanuel Wynter SATURDAY, OCTOBER 21 (Middle C Jazz) ROCK/PUNK/METAL SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Hunter’s Travesty (Comet Grill) Ben Mignogna (Comet Grill)

CAIN (Ovens Auditorium) CLASSICAL/INSTRUMENTAL Charlotte Symphony: Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 (Knight Theater) LATIN/WORLD/REGGAE Café Tacvba w/ Wonderfox (The Fillmore) Siddharta (The Underground) EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE Without the Numbers w/ Square Roots (Goldie’s) Queen City Jam Session (Neghborhood Theatre) Welcome to the Family Fest (The Milestone) OPEN MIC Scars Remain w/ Strike the Tower, Dovecage, Super Sunday Open Mic (Starlight on 22nd) Fifty Flies, Nova Omega (The Milestone) ZETA w/ The Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir, Mindvac (Snug Harbor) MONDAY, OCTOBER 23 HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B ROCK/PUNK/METAL Curt Keyz w/ Taylor Kelly (Evening Muse) To Forget w/ Phantom Bay, youoncewere (Snug Shankai and the Goonie Tunez w/ Kozmazuul Harbor) (Starlight on 22nd) John Mayer w/ JP Saxe (Spectrum Center) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA JAZZ/BLUES Jo Dee Messina (The Fillmore) The Bill Hanna Legacy Jazz Session (Petra’s) Bob Fleming & Cambria Iron Co w/ The Deeds, COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Aluminum 6 (Petra’s) Charlotte Bluegrass Mondays (Smokey Joe’s Cafe SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC & Bar) Greg Steinfeld (Primal Brewery) OPEN MIC JAZZ BLUES Find Your Muse Open Mic feat. Braydon Curry Veronica Swift (Middle C Jazz) (Evening Muse) CLASSICAL/INSTRUMENTAL Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestras Fall Concert (Knight Theater) TUESDAY, OCTOBER 24 Charlotte Symphony: Chopin’s Piano Concerto ROCK/PUNK/METAL No. 2 (Knight Theater) George Thorogood & The Destroyers (Knight FUNK/JAM BANDS Theater) Spilly Cave w/ Barefoot Modern (Evening Muse) Red Rocking Chair (Comet Grill) EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE Bob Log III w/ King Cackle, Ryan Lockhart (The Queen City Jam Session (Neghborhood Theatre) Milestone) HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B LATIN/WORLD/REGGAE Noname (The Underground) Maluma (Spectrum Center) SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC COVER BANDS Spencer Rush (Goldie’s) Rattle and Hum (U2 tribute) w/ Hello L’80’s COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA (Amos’ Southend) Gatlin w/ Bel (Neighborhood Theatre) The Dirty Doors (Visulite Theatre) Tim Holehouse w/ Condition Oakland, Sweet Anne Marie (Tommy’s Pub) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ SUNDAY, OCTOBER 22 ROCK/PUNK/METAL Lost Cargo: Tiki Social Party Welcome to the Family Fest (The Milestone) OPEN MIC Pink Skull Garden w/ Scaredy Cat (Skylark Social Open Mic Night feat. The Smokin J’s (Smokey Club) Joe’s Cafe & Bar) East Side Holiday (Tommy’s Pub) JAZZ/BLUES Omari & the Hellhounds (Comet Grill) WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 25 Colin Williams (Middle C Jazz) ROCK/PUNK/METAL SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Polaris (The Underground) Kyle Cummings w/ Delta Fire (Goldie’s) Big Backyard w/ Ogbert the Nerd, Kerosene Christy Snow Band (The Rooster) Heights, Common Sage, Middletooth (The POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Milestone) Chappell Roan (The Underground) Grocer w/ Flannelmouth, Drook (Snug Harbor) GOSPEL/CHRISTIAN/RELIGIOUS Warpark (Tommy’s Pub)

JAZZ/BLUES Omari & the Hellhounds (Comet Grill) Tony Hightower (Middle C Jazz) LATIN/WORLD/REGGAE Romeo Santos (Spectrum Center) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Kitchen Dwellers w/ Fireside Dwellers (Visulite Theatre)

MONDAY, OCTOBER 30

ROCK/PUNK/METAL Free Throw (The Underground) Lucero w/ Jason Boland & the Stragglers (Neighborhood Theatre) JAZZ/BLUES The Bill Hanna Legacy Jazz Session (Petra’s) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Charlotte Bluegrass Mondays (Smokey Joe’s Cafe & Bar) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Twin Tribes w/ Bootblacks, Secret Shame (Snug Harbor) OPEN MIC Find Your Muse Open Mic feat. Katie Alling (Evening Muse)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31

ROCK/PUNK/METAL Red Rocking Chair (Comet Grill) Dollar Signs w/ Walter Etc., Teenage Halloween (Evening Muse) Dragonforce (Eveing Muse) RAATMA w/ Awakebutstillinbed, Like Roses, Peach Rings, sayurblaires (The Milestone) HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Bezz Believe Halloween Party (The Rooster) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Jeremy Zucker (The Fillmore) DJ Skid: Emo Halloween Night (Goldie’s) Petrafied Halloween Bash feat. HNY WLSN, Lil Skritt, Florecienta (Petra’s) Haunted Harbor Halloween Party (Snug Harbor) SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Fred Heintz (Goldie’s) OPEN MIC Open Mic Night feat. The Smokin J’s (Smokey Joe’s Cafe & Bar) VISIT QCNERVE.COM FOR THE FULL SOUNDWAVE LISTING.

Pg. 23 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

CLASSICAL/INSTRUMENTAL COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Cody Fry (Knight Theater) Margo Cilker w/ Humbird (Evening Muse) Beo String Quartet w/ Dylan Gilbert (Booth S.G. Goodman w/ She Returns From War Playhouse) (Neighborhood Theatre) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC The Brook & The Bluff (The Underground) Dugi B (Goldie’s) OPEN MIC EXPERIMENTAL/MIXED-GENRE Singer/Songwriter Open Mic (The Rooster) QUAD w/ Glad Rags, Mauve Angeles (Petra’s) Variety Open Mic (Starlight on 22nd) COVER BANDS Funk of Ohio (Middle C Jazz) SATURDAY, OCTOBER 28 ROCK/PUNK/METAL Norman Culture (Comet Grill) THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26 Chris Taylor & the Rumor w/ Brett Milstead ROCK/PUNK/METAL (Goldie’s) Tommy DeCarlo Jr. w/ Jay Hoff (Goldie’s) Halloween Fiasco Night (The Milestone) Falling Through April w/ Reign of Z, Dovecage Nicotine dolls w/ Abbie Roper (Neighborhood (The Milestone) Theatre) JAZZ/BLUES Meltt w/ Whistler, Kismet Kind (Petra’s) Patt & Sara Jazzy Jam (Tommy’s Pub) The Recall Band w/ Nickel City Duo (Primal FUNK/JAM BANDS Brewery) Lettuce (The Fillmore) Carolina Headbangers Ball (THe Rooser) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ LATIN/WORLD/REGGAE Shiprocked! (Snug Harbor) Romeo Santos (Spectrum Center) COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Jason Eady (Evening Muse) Joe Firstman w/ Cordovas (Evening Muse) Tania Elizabeth & Rachael Davis (Neighborhood Noah Reid (The Underground) Theatre) JAZZ/BLUES SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Jackiem Joyner (Middle C Jazz) Josh Daniel (Comet Grill) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ René LaVice w/ BroMosapien, Undehfined, COVER BANDS Joneses (Crown Station) Java Band (Middle C Jazz) Erin & The Wildfire w/ Courtney Lynn & Quinn The Grass Is Dead (Grateful Dead tribute) w/ (Evening Muse) Josh Daniel (Visulite Theatre) Sorry Papi Halloween Tour All Girls Party (The Fillmore) Family Video w/ Lil Skritt, Controller, Bad Pills FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27 (Starlight on 22nd) ROCK/PUNK/METAL COVER BANDS The Lenny Federal Band (Comet Grill) Cassette Rewind’s Back in Time Halloween Bash Jam Garden w/ Caleb Davis (Goldie’s) (Amos’ Southend) Halloween Fiasco (The Milestone) Runaway Gin (Phish tribute) (Visulite Theatre) Tyer Ramsey (Neighborhood Theatre) Telepathetics w/ Blaakhol, Dr. Blood’s Orgy of Gore (Snug Harbor) JAZZ/BLUES SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29 Jackiem Joyner (Middle C Jazz) ROCK/PUNK/METAL HIP-HOP/SOUL/R&B Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Tae & The Neighborly w/ Elora Dash (Camp Brigade (The Fillmore) North End) True Lilith w/ Free Friends, Danvers, The Violet 3NT Halloween Show (The Rooster) Exploit, Neptune Flyer (The Milestone) Genesis Owusu w/ Enumclaw (Visulite Theatre) EvilLeaf w/ Luurch, Grave Next Door, Skull COUNTRY/FOLK/AMERICANA Servant (The Rooster) Nicholas Jamerson & The Morning Jays w/ SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Sam Burchfield $ The Scoundrels, Justin Clyde J. Birchfield Duo (Goldie’s) Williams (Amos’ Southend) POP/DANCE/ELECTRONIC/DJ Happy Landing w/ Low Groves (Evening Muse) Hazy Sunday (Petra’s) Erin Viancourt (Evening Muse) Beatfreaq (Starlight on 22nd)

FOOD & DRINK FEATURE

THE TALE OF THE IMPOSSIBLE CROISSANT

How a pastry chef beat the odds to make miracles at South End’s Vicente Bistro

Pg. 24 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY TIMOTHY DEPEUGH

Sam Chappelle and his husband Yerman Carrasquero own Vicente Bistro in South End, where they make — right here in Charlotte, North Carolina, more than 4,000 miles from Paris — the best croissants in the world.

And that’s probably the least kind thing you could say about them.

In my opinion, they are the Platonic ideal of the croissant. Other more quotidian varieties are mere shadows of the ones at Vicente — layered, golden, flaky, puffy — which exist as perfect and eternal in a realm forever outside the reach of other more quotidian bakers. With croissants, one should be able to smell the butter. At Vicente, you can smell it from down the block.

However, despite what some might argue — in particular Paula Deen, the silver-maned matron of Southern comfort for whom wisdom comes out in between mouthfuls of biscuits, seasoned with her trademark wit and aphorisms straight from the plantation — butter, our birthright, is at odds with Southern living. Conventional wisdom suggests that in Charlotte, croissants should not exist.

Indeed, thanks to the heat and humidity that take up shop for the majority of the year, we are not supposed to have nice pastries, let alone nice croissants, as when butter starts to melt it fails to remain in distinct layers. It will instead get absorbed into the dough, creating something brioche-like that doesn’t rise very well.

It’s against all odds, therefore, that Vicente’s croissants are such faultless exemplars.

Sam is 31 and is the closest thing any of us will ever get to meeting Dolly Parton’s character Truvy from Steel Magnolias in real life, but he is perpetually tired. The 3 a.m. bakery life will do that to anyone,

and it was a miracle I had even gotten him out to dinner in the first place.

“I would rather go to bed,” he had said to me one night, almost dismissively, and I had only asked him what kind of tacos he wanted for dinner; but there was more to it than that. He looked up from his hands, and the overhead lights of the taqueria made his glossy eyes look as though they were on fire.

Was his exhaustion due merely to waking up early everyday, or because he had committed himself to the impossible task of making croissants in the South?

“I had really wanted a space that was, like, light and bright and airy,” he said, “because most kitchens I’ve worked in are like dungeons.”

With Vicente, he got just that, but along with it, he and Yerman also got 18-foot-high windows that face northeast, blasting them and their butter all morning, even after installing heat-resistant films on the windows.

“And it still feels like we’re under a magnifying glass.”

To add insult to serious injury, shortly after Vicente opened in May 2023, their air-conditioner broke and the inside temperature would soar as high as 88 degrees. “That hot is really bad for croissants,” he said, “so we had to close because we couldn’t even, like, work in those conditions.”

But Sam had a solution.

Not for nothing, Sam Chappelle is one of the most brilliant people I have ever met. In Excel terms, he goes from Column A to Column ZZZ in a mere click.

He is hilarious, insightful and acutely attuned to both geopolitics and petty social drama.

A lot of that couldn’t be helped. Originally from Massachusetts and the child of STEM parents, he

SAM CHAPPELLE (LEFT) WITH HUSBAND YERMAN CARRASQUERO.

traveled the world with his family from a very young age. As a result, among other things, he is so preternaturally gifted with languages that he is indifferent to praise. “How on earth did you become so fluent in Spanish?” I had asked him.

“Oh whatever,” he had said. “My mom made me learn Italian when I was young, and they’re practically the same thing.”

Sam followed the family path into STEM after college — his brother is a biostatistician, and his sister works in mental health – taking jobs in finance in Chicago, mathing the days away. At some point, however, he saw a version of his life unfolding that would have ended far too soon.

“I just thought I would graduate college and get a good job, and that I would be happy,” he said.

The sight of my office security badge, which I had inadvertently left on for dinner, was enough to trigger him.

“The reason why I’m, like, vague and squirrelly about everything back then is that basically one day I just quit my job and stopped talking to a bunch of people who were, like, really very nice to me,” he said. “I had to.”

Sam escaped Chicago and started over from

PHOTO BY RICO MARCELO

scratch. He enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America, the California campus, and spent a summer internship in Argentina, where he worked for a caterer making pastries for embassies.

Somewhere later that summer in Buenos Aires, in between batches of diplomats (and other pastry puns), Sam met Yerman.

Pastry love

Yerman, 33, is tall, lanky, bespectacled — a cross between Harry Potter and Jimmy Olsen cosplaying as Clark Kent. When he greets customers at Vicente with a “Hello! How are you!” — less question than it is declaration — it’s because he genuinely wants to know.

An accountant by trade, Yerman left his home in Venezuela to go to Argentina for culinary school.

Not necessarily because he wanted to become a chef or anything, but because, as he likes to say, the situation in Venezuela is such that everyone goes somewhere else for something else. A week after starting classes, Yerman was back working as an accountant in Buenos Aires.

Around this time — Sept. 15, 2017, to be exact (“Of course I remember the exact day,” Yerman said)

FOOD & DRINK FEATURE — fate intervened in the form of a friend from Venezuela who happened to know a guy he thought Yerman should meet from a Tumblr page dedicated to snowboarding. (“As one does,” I had said to Sam later recounting this detail, to which he replied, “Duh, this was 2017, we didn’t have international texting; we had Tumblr.”)

Yerman met Sam for coffee and spent the rest of the day walking through the city, talking about family, friends and goals while searching for trinkets in Chinatown.

A week later, a second date. A year later, after Sam finished culinary school and returned to Argentina, the two moved in together — first in Mendoza, Argentina’s answer to Napa where Sam had gotten a pastry job, and then back in Buenos Aires, where fate once again intervened — this time in the form of the pandemic.

During quarantine, when the two could never venture more than 100 meters from their apartment for more than 30 minutes at a time while under the close watch of machine gun-armed guards, the two instead stayed inside and dreamed of life far away.

“Sam needed his own café,” Yerman said. “He loves the kitchen, he loves cooking. He made chocolate cake for my sister once, and everyone who saw the cake thought it was amazing! But all Sam could do was complain about the quality of ingredients in Argentina.”

Not just the ingredients, of course. “The economy, too,” Yerman said. “It’s difficult to start a business, buy a car or a house. I think Argentina is a beautiful country, but we never would have reached our goals there. Sam would never have his café.”

Which is how — conceived in the throes of the pandemic by Sam and Yerman as a way to escape and have the opportunity for the best life together, there in their quarantine apartment in Buenos Aires, along a street called Vicente Lopez — Vicente Bistro in South End came to be.

Sam Chappelle’s solution to the bistro’s temperature crisis involved complex and immutable laws of geometry.

“Once a STEM, always a STEM, am I right?” I asked, and he shot me a look of death.

The only way to beat the heat, as it were, was to invent an entirely new way to laminate the croissant dough.

“It’s geometry more than anything,” he said, “and it also helps to minimize waste, like how you cut out

INFO@QCNERVE.COM

Pg. 25 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

Southern croissants

the dough into the shapes you need.”

At Vicente, Sam has taught his team to cut and stack sections of dough, folding them together like pages in a book. When it was really hot, he explained, they started splitting up the dough and butter into a few pieces to start, stacking them from there which allowed them to do all of the lamination at one go, keeping the time the dough was exposed to the heat at a bare minimum.

“I certainly didn’t learn this in culinary school,” he said, “but this method is so efficient that we use it almost exclusively now.”

Such innovation and ingenuity in the face of insurmountable odds could also explain why Sam is always tired.

Yerman, for his part, has enough energy for them both. “I moved to the US for my husband,” he told me, and it’s impossible not to see the love in his eyes every time he turns around to watch Sam pull yet another tray of pastries out of the ovens. Yerman is Vicente’s business manager and accountant extraordinaire, charged with keeping track of the costs of the hundreds of pounds of butter they go through every week.

Because there are laws that govern the folds of croissants, you see, and even in Charlotte, North Carolina they must be followed.

The New Yorker, as is wont of the New Yorker, has even gone so far as to suggest the Universal Law of Croissants extends to a croissant’s shape. Croissants (née “crescent”) that are in the actual shape of a crescent tend to be made with margarine, oils or other substitute fats. A “straight” croissant is made of the real thing.

(To get Sam’s spin on a Southern “I do declare,” mention the British versions, which are flat, and commiserate how the British lost their right to an opinion back when they added cake frosting to hot dog buns and called it “iced fingers.”)

But at Vicente, they are very much the real buttered thing.

It seems that whether for life or for pastries, according to the Universe and to the New Yorkerreading French who exist within it, what it really all comes down to is butter.

I realized this that night with Sam at the taqueria, staring up at the overhead lights that made my dry eyes burn — when I imagined that I saw the narrative strands of this story coalescing — Sam, STEM, Yerman, Argentina, Tumblr, COVID-19, marriage and geometry — folding themselves together layer by layer into a croissant that’s just impossible to behold.

Pg. 26 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

LIFESTYLE PUZZLES

TRIVIA TEST

BY FIFI RODRIGUEZ

1. U.S. STATES: Which state is home to the Girl Scouts, founded by SUDOKU

BY LINDA THISTLE Juliette Gordon Low in 1912?

2. MOVIES: Which 1990s movie features a character named Jack Dawson?

3. ART: Who painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling?

4. ASTRONOMY: Which U.S. astronaut wrote his daughter’s initials on the moon?

5. GEOGRAPHY: What is the capital of Australia?

6. HISTORY: In which year was Korea divided into two occupation zones that would become North and South Korea?

7. U.S. PRESIDENTS: How many presidents were elected in the 1950s?

8. Which 20th-century novel features a character named Holden Caulfield?

9. TELEVISION: Queen Latifah stars in PLACE A NUMBER IN THE EMPTY BOXES IN SUCH A WAY THAT EACH ROW which 1990s TV sitcom?

ACROSS, EACH COLUMN DOWN AND EACH SMALL 9-BOX SQUARE CONTAINS 10. ANIMAL KINGDOM: What is the largest species of shark?

ALL OF THE NUMBERS ONE TO NINE.

CROSSWORD

©2023 King Feautres Syndicate, Inc. All rights reserved.

Pg. 27 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

SIX BELOW

©2023 King Feautres Syndicate, Inc. All rights reserved.

LIFESTYLE COLUMN

AERIN’ IT OUT

LOSING YOUR MOREHEAD A trip to a haunted cocktail pop-up in Uptown

Pg. 28 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

BY AERIN SPRUILL

“Babe, wanna do me a huge favor?”I asked the boyfriend with a pleading lilt Tuesday night after getting a gentle tap from the head honcho, Ryan Pitkin, via text reminding me my deadline for the Halloween guide was fast approaching.

“What’s that?” bae replied with a sigh.

“Will you please go with me to this haunted house pop-up thing on Morehead?”

Anyone who knows me knows that my obsession with scary movies isn’t reserved just for October; it’s yearround. My lullaby is “Time of the Season” by Zombies because The Conjuring is my favorite scary movie to fall asleep to. And last year, I donned a personal record four costumes for Halloween. But somehow, it’s taken over five years to get my boo to go with me to a haunted house. Two days later, my dream came true as we parked a block away from what used to be Morehead Tavern.

While standing in the doorway, watching two animatronic witches chattering in the window behind a string of purple and orange lights, I realized I’d been there before. And believe it or not, it was to see pop R&B singer Sammie, my childhood chocolate drop of a heartthrob, because a bestie had been sliding into his DMs! That’s a ghost story for another day, but, “I like the way you look at me…” (YouTube it) was def playing in my head, stuck on repeat for the rest of the night.

Even outside, I could tell the music vibrating the windows would be an added stressor that I hadn’t factored into my math for boo’s “favor” tolerance. I glanced to discern a sense of hesitation, but he reached for the door handle. We checked in, signed waivers (wait, should I be concerned?!) and confirmed the wait (20-25 minutes). I felt confident one drink would curb our impatience.

Normally, I wouldn’t order a cocktail at an event like this because the options floating around that media night were giving “sweet” with no discernible flavor profile. The bartender already had a look that said “Ya best be ready” as I snapped a pic of the QR code to review cocktails before ordering. Her “look” conjured a reaction from me that was less “Um, rude” and more “I can only imagine the pains of working a pop-up.”

“There’s one with vodka, one with tequila, and one with gin.” Yep, that tracks. I chose “Vampire’s Kiss” (with vodka) because I figured it would have cranberry juice.

Check. But I must say, the bubbly dry ice and gelatinous eyeball hidden beneath the cubes were a welcome “spooky” pizazz I needed to reconcile the wait time in the perceived quiet of the dimly lit “saloon” that overlooked

another DJ event downstairs.

At minute 45, Khia belt out, “My neck, my back, lick my pussy, and my crack” in the background. While a certified bop in my book, I was getting antsy enough to “go check” that we didn’t miss our turn. But that’s when the bartender alerted us that we were up.

We downed the rest of our drinks to get with the other threesome joining our party outside. That’s when our line leader, “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” clad in a skeleton onesie, prepped to usher us up the stairs to the haunted attraction.

Noticing the other three in our group were cousins (read: other Black folk) leading the charge, my apprehension of being chased back down said stairs dissipated. I thought back to my rewatch of A Haunted House the week prior, a parody of Paranormal Activity produced by Marlon Wayans.

“Black people don’t take nothin’ serious, I ain’t even scared no mo’,” I whispered to an unconvinced bae.

Ascending the stairs, the laughter I perceived as fearless slipped into uncertain chuckles as we entered what felt like an abyss of smoke. The claustrophobic fog clutched my throat, destabilizing my focus on the fear factor of “Unty” (aka Auntie). Clad in a ghostly hospital get-up and a wig/white-contact combo that rivaled Marvel’s Storm, Unty popped out of a rocking chair ready to clap-scare us with a folding fan and schizophrenic sass.

Yep, she got me, but Bae was unphased.

As we continued to every room for the next 15-ish minutes, I held one hand over my eyes and one over my mouth worried that Unty wouldn’t be too far behind. That’s when “Steven” came bounding toward us out of the corner of the room in a childlike crouched crawl. *Insert genuine scream* And that’s when Unty reminded us she was still there with another aggressive clap just shy of my right ear.

By the end of the haunted tour, I avoided Jeffrey Dahmer, an Ouija board, a baby eating an adult foot, and the targeted jest of Unty and Steve when they realized I was the weakest link. That’s when we were allowed to take a picture with our “scaremates.”

Disarmed and unsuspecting, Unty kicked ther hairiest leg across boo and placed it into my hands as she said in a husky, scratchy voice, “You know I got cobwebs on my pwussy,” and proceeded to “clap fan” her undergarments to pose for the picture.

It may not compare to your run-of-the-mill haunted house at Scarowinds or Kersey Valley, nor is it meant to, but it’s worth $20 for a spooky night out in QC proper.

INFO@QCNERVE.COM

LEARN MORE

E V O L .

Y A G EAT. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 23 BILLY SUNDAY CHARLOTTE 2-5 P.M.

Free Thanksgiving Dinner for LGBTQ+ Charlotte residents or anyone without a place to celebrate!

LIFESTYLE

HOROSCOPE

OCT. 18 - 24

2023 KING FEATURES SYND., INC.

PUZZLE ANSWERS

OCT. 25 - 31

ARIES (March 21 to April 19) Your moodier side might emerge this week. But the dark period should pass in time for the party-loving Lamb to go on a happy gambol with some very special people this weekend.

ARIES (March 21 to April 19) Some flashes of Aries ire might erupt as you confront an unusually bewildering situation. But you should be able to keep your temper under control as you work through it.

TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) Yet again, you show your skills at being able to indulge in your love of the arts this week while still taking care of practical matters, including some still-unfinished business matters.

TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) That marriage twixt the arts and practicality that Taureans excel at once again highlights your enjoyment for much of the week.

However, you need to watch any sudden urge to splurge.

GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) A potential change might be what you’ve been looking for. In any event, consider both the negative as well as the positive possibilities before making any sort of decision.

GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) Even with all the pluses apparently outweighing the minuses, you still might want to defer an important decision just to make sure you have all the facts that you need.

LEO (July 23 to August 22) You love being on center stage, and while you absolutely purr at the sound of all that praise, be careful not to take on too many commitments at the expense of time spent with loved ones.

LEO (July 23 to August 22) This could be a good time for all you Leos and Leonas in the spotlight to open up your generous Lion’s hearts and share the glory with those who helped you accomplish so much along the way.

VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) You might feel that you need to get involved in a matter concerning a friend or a relative. But while the issues appear to be cut and dried, they might not be. Get more facts before you act.

VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) Before investing time or money (or both) into a questionable matter, you might want to get advice from someone with expertise who knows these situations better than you do.

LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) A suggestion about a policy change could create heated reactions. Keep your mind open and resist joining in with naysayers unless they can show a real basis for their position.

LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) Be careful how you handle a workplace matter that seems out of place in the schedule you’ve prepared. Before you act in one way or another, find out who set it up and why.

SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) While potential career changes warrant your interest, don’t ignore your current job responsibilities. A personal relationship can also benefit from more of your attention.

SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) Your entertainment aspect is strong this week. Besides providing a wonderful break from everyday obligations, sharing fun times with others brings you closer to those you care for.

SUBSCRIBE CANCER (June 21 to July 22) Relationships continue to CANCER (June 21 to July 22) One or two problems might TO OUR dominate your aspect this week on a mostly positive threaten to derail smoothly running situations at work or level, with just a few problem areas that you need to at home. But a few well-placed words should help get NEWSLETTER smooth over. Also, try to be flexible about travel plans. things back on track quickly.

BIT.LY/NERVENEWSLETTER

Trivia Answers

6. 1945.

7. One -- Dwight Eisenhower.

8. “The Catcher in the Rye.” 9. “Living Single.”

10. The whale shark.

NOVEMBER 29 | BEST IN THE NEST DECEMBER 27 | NEW YEAR’S EVE GUIDE

1. Georgia.

2. “Titanic.”

3. Michelangelo.

4. Gene Cernan.

5. Canberra.

UPCOMING SPECIAL ISSUES

Pg. 29 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) Don’t guess at what the facts might be if you hope to make the SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) Having a best decision possible. The wisest course is to ask direct weekend fun fest? Your friend or relative who’s down in questions and act on the answers you receive. the emotional dumps could perk up if you find a way to include them in your plans.

CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) Your efforts involving that pesky problem should soon show positive CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) If you’re in one signs of being resolved. This should allow you to shift of those “Goat knows best” periods, you might want to some of your focus in another direction. ease up and try listening to what others have to say. You could learn something.

AQUARIUS (January 20 to February 18) While you might enjoy well-deserved praise for getting a difficult job AQUARIUS (January 20 to February 18) That new done, there’s no time to relax. A new challenge looms. challenge is getting closer, and you should be out there Expect support from a once-strong critic. now showing facts and figures that can help persuade potential allies to rally to your support. Good luck!

PISCES (February 19 to March 20) You still might have explaining to do regarding a recent decision, but support PISCES (February 19 to March 20) Getting a head start on grows as you continue to make your case. You might also holiday plans could help free up some time later to spend want to start making plans for the upcoming holidays. on other projects. Meanwhile, a colleague has some ideas that you might find worth discussing.

BORN THIS WEEK: You insist on making decisions based on facts, not on popular opinions. Have you ever BORN THIS WEEK: You are always there for others, but sometimes you need to be reminded that you need to be considered a career in science? there for yourself as well.

Get our community reporting delivered straight to your inbox every Mon., Wed. & Fri.

LIFESTYLE COLUMN

SAVAGE LOVE

ANIMAL URGES When triggers and kinks collide

BY DAN SAVAGE

I’ve been carrying a lot of guilt and shame for a long time. (I’m going to drop a quick content warning here for sexual abuse; some of your readers might want to skip my question.)

I am a victim of childhood sexual abuse. My abuser forced me to watch horrible zoophilia porn while they abused me again and again. This left me with an addiction to this kind of porn. I really don’t want to watch it anymore.

I hate it and I hate myself for watching it. I want to know how to stop watching it as it physically hurts me every time I do, but I was conditioned to enjoy it by an evil person.

This porn goes against all of my values, and I am so scared of anyone ever finding out. I’m still very young — not even 25 — and I want to know if there is any hope for breaking this habit and healing from this.

Any advice is appreciated. I’m sorry if this question is upsetting, but I had to ask someone.

I’m sick of feeling like a horrible person.

Pg. 30 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM

ABUSE WOUNDS FUCKING UP LIFE

I shared your question with someone who works with survivors of childhood sexual abuse —a recognized expert in the field, someone who has done extensive research into sexual abuse and trauma — and they were happy to answer your question, AWFUL. This expert wished to remain anonymous here, in my column, to avoid having their No. 1 return on Google be their appearance in my sex column.

Their request to remain anonymous was about me, AWFUL, it wasn’t about you.

“It’s not uncommon for child sexual abuse survivors to have some sort of additional exposure related to abuse or harm,” our highly credentialed expert (HCE) said.

“Whether nonconsensual pornographic content or environmental exposures (like substances) or zoophilia, people who harm children often use conditioning techniques such as the ones AWFUL describes, especially taboo or shameful things, as that makes it even more difficult for the victim to disclose the abuse.”

It is not uncommon for someone who is being sexually abused or assaulted to become physically aroused. This

kind of arousal is an involuntary bodily response; it is not a sign the victim has consented or is experiencing pleasure. The body is acting in self-defense to prevent additional injuries.

Even though this response is involuntary and not a sign of pleasure, repeated acts of abuse can create a powerful association.

“Exposures to content AWFUL describes can get linked with not only the abuse, but also the experience of arousal,” said HCE. “Which means, for people like AWFUL, sexual arousal can come with compulsive sexual experiences linked to these contents and exposures — and quite a bit of shame. Those feelings of shame, anxiety, and depression keep people isolated and away from people that can support them and help them heal.”

And with support, AWFUL, you can heal.

“There are several evidence-based therapeutic approaches that use cognitive and trauma-based approaches that can not only reduce feelings of shame, but also help to process emotions and trauma experiences,” said HCE. “These approaches help the brain process information and make new pathways for healthier intimacy experiences.”

A good therapist can help you unearth your own authentic desires. Your own erotic imagination — your own erotic personae — is in there somewhere, AWFUL, waiting to be freed.

Bear in mind that many people who weren’t subjected to sexual abuse are sometimes aroused — or even primarily aroused — by things that can seem, well, pretty fucked up to people who don’t share their sexual interests.

If you break the hold your abuser still has over you, AWFUL, there’s a chance you’ll find some mildly fucked up shit lurking underneath it. But it’ll be your shit, AWFUL, not the shit that was imposed on you.

It might not be hearts and flowers, it might not be the stuff of romance novels, but it will be yours. (And it could be hearts and flowers and romance novels — it sometimes is — but if it isn’t, don’t dismiss it as somehow or definitely tied to your trauma.)

“I want to assure AWFUL that both trauma and sex therapists are knowledgeable about the behaviors of people who commit harm against children, such as

unwanted sexual content exposure — and trauma and sex therapists understand the impact conditioning and exposure might have on arousal responses and compulsive/addictive behaviors,” said HCE. “AWFUL should look for a therapist that has experience in both trauma and sex therapy modalities. Someone trained in Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) would be a good place to start.”

You are not a terrible person — something terrible was done to you. You deserve help and sympathy and if you reach out to the right professionals, you’ll find it.

AASECT is a good place to start your search: aasect.org/ referral-directory Good luck.

You’re worried the boyfriend’s sweetness is a performance — just an act — and the cruel person he is with these older men is the real him. But couldn’t it just as easily be the opposite? Your boyfriend is a sweet and loving guy who, like a lot of people, gets off on pretending to be someone he’s not every once in a while.

In your boyfriend’s case, he gets off on pretending to be a pretty little asshole.

Look, I’m a gay guy who made it to his 50s — to and nearly through his 50s — and I know a lot of gay guys around my age, BUMMER; we’re a pretty resilient bunch.

Most of us have faced a lot worse than some trash-talking little twink who wants to sit on our dicks.

It’s sweet that you want to protect us from your boyfriend, BUMMER, but rest assured, we can take care of ourselves. And, as you’re a reader of my column, you have to know that there are guys out there who enjoy being degraded. Is there a chance some older man who wasn’t into being trash-talked by a hot twink put up with your boyfriend’s verbal abuse to get at his ass? Sure, that’s a possibility, BUMMER, but I’m guessing it was a learning experience for him — and maybe a sign he should hire next time — and not an emotionally devastating event he never recovered from.

And this particular older guy — the fugly-ass dude who’s coming to town — is a repeat customer. So, I think it’s safe to assume he likes it. Or maybe he’s decided that enduring your boyfriend’s abuse, which turns your boyfriend on, is a price of admission he’s willing to pay to get at (and in) your boyfriend’s ass.

If it makes you feel better, you could ask your boyfriend if this guy likes being treated this way. If the question stumps him — if it’s not a question your boyfriend ever thought to ask himself or any of the guys he treats like this — then your boyfriend might be a monster. (A lot of people thought Ted Bundy was a sweet guy.)

But I’ll betcha dildos to donuts that your boyfriend will respond with something like, “OMG, they love it!”

I’m also willing to betcha that if you scrolled all the way to the start of one of his chats with some old and ugly fuck, BUMMER, you’ll discover it opens with an exchange of “heys,” with the dialed-up-to-11 degrading dirty talk coming much later.

Finally, BUMMER, I don’t think your boyfriend is gonna start verbally abusing you when you get older. It’s far likelier that — when he’s an old and ugly fuck himself — he’ll be looking for younger men to treat him the way he used to treat older men. It’s the circle jerk of life.

P.S. I’m happy to get a group of my 50-something friends together to discuss this directly with you boyfriend, BUMMER, to make absolutely certain this is an act and that it’s all consensual. Give him my email address and tell him to put “hey u OLD AF and UGLY AF faggots” in the subject line. K, thanks, bye.

I’ve met a boy who seemed so sweet. We’re both gay and out, he’s in his mid-20s, I’m in my late 20s.

It’s been a year, we have a great and mostly vanilla sex life, and we successfully transitioned from FWBs to boyfriends. So far, so good.

He told me early on that he sometimes hooks up with older men. (Guys in their 50s and up.)

He says he doesn’t want to be with an older guy romantically and only wants a loving relationship with a guy close to his own age. I ultimately want an open relationship (and I think older guys are hot), so this wasn’t a dealbreaker for me. But at the time we talked, we weren’t hooking up with anyone else, and we agreed to check-in before either of us took that step.

He checked in with me over the weekend. This older guy he’s hooked up with a few times before is coming to town. I asked if I could see the guy and he opened their chat and handed me his phone.

The first shocker was how unattractive the guy was. He’s not some hot daddy. He’s a schlub.

But the real shock was the way my boyfriend talks to this guy (actual quote): “u are OLD AF and UGLY AF but good dick u can breed me but u will have to BEG faggot.” My boyfriend said the “hotness gap” turns him on and it was a power trip for him. I looked through some other chats (with his okay) and the other older guys he’s hooked up with were just as unattractive and his “flirting” was consistently cruel and demeaning. There’s no other way to describe it. The videos are even worse.

He’s very sweet to me, Dan, and he’s very hot (and he’s already met my mom!), so I don’t want to end things. But I find myself obsessing about whether the sweetness is just an act. Is this cruel side the real him? He says he’s never been sexually abused by an older man, so this isn’t some sort of fucked up revenge fantasy. Is he harming these men? And is he going to treat me like this when I Send your question to mailbox@savage.love; podcasts, columns and more at Savage.Love. get older?

BOYFRIEND’S UNCHARACTERISTIC MEANNESS MOTIVATES EVALUATING RELATIONSHIP

Pg. 31 OCTOBER 18 - OCTOBER 31, 2023 - QCNERVE.COM