YES! Weekly - September 8, 2021

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ParticiPate in research Dr. Blair Wisco, a clinical psychologist at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, is currently recruiting participants for a research study. This research study examines emotional and physical reactions to memories of extremely stressful or traumatic experiences. In order to participate, you must be 18 years old or older and must be able to read and write in English. If you are interested in participating, first you will be asked to complete screening questions online or over the phone to see whether or not you are eligible for the study. If you are eligible, you will be invited to participate in the study, which involves five visits to Dr. Wisco’s lab on UNCG’s campus within two weeks. During the first lab visit (3 hours), you will be asked to complete an interview and fill out questionnaires about your emotions and life experiences. You will then wear a portable cardiac monitor under your clothes and to complete questionnaires on a tablet computer outside the lab on three separate days (30-minute set-up per day, plus time spent completing questionnaires). In the last lab visit (2 hours), you will be hooked up to a similar monitor in the lab and be asked to listen to audio-recorded scripts describing personal past experiences. If you participate in these procedures, you will be compensated $150 for your time. If you are interested in this research participation opportunity, please email copelab@uncg.edu to learn more and receive the screening questionnaire.

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SEPTEMBER 8-14, 2021 VOLUME 17, NUMBER 36

5500 Adams Farm Lane Suite 204 Greensboro, NC 27407 Office 336-316-1231 Fax 336-316-1930

FOLKIN’ AROUND

Publisher CHARLES A. WOMACK III publisher@yesweekly.com

The NORTH CAROLINA FOLK FESTIVAL is back in the flesh, and looking to bring folks to downtown Greensboro for a free three-day music festival Sept.10-12. “We’re thrilled to be able to return to hosting an in-person festival that will provide a welcoming, celebratory environment for all members of our Greensboro and North Carolina community to enjoy,” said Amy Grossmann, President and CEO of the North Carolina Folk Festival.

EDITORIAL Editor CHANEL DAVIS chanel@yesweekly.com YES! Writers IAN MCDOWELL MARK BURGER

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You just have to accept at the outset that you won’t be able to do it all. The GREENSBORO FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL is held annually, the last week of August. It provides a great opportunity to get acquainted with a lot that’s out there, but it’s just too big to cover it all - too many trucks, too many menu selections, too many people in line ordering. So you have to make choices...

6 Beginning Friday, the RiverRun International Film Festival’s virtual theater will offer the feature documentary LIFE IN THE SACRIFICE ZONE, which will be available through September 24, 2021. Tickets are $12 and can be purchased online at https:// riverrunfilm.com/.

7 I’ve always had a strong affection for the ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE because we were both created at the same time. On May 8, 1953, commissioner Jim Weaver officially opened the first ACC office and made history...

11 A movie about a killer pair of blue jeans had better be played for laughs, and director/co-writer Elza Kephart’s bloodsoaked SLAXX is not without its inspired gags.

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Family Properties of North Carolina is attempting to EVICT 18 IMMIGRANT FAMILIES who have raised their children and grandchildren in Jamison Homes Mobile Park on Greensboro’s quiet Hiatt Street. Some residents say they were told to get out only months after their landlord sold them their trailers, which they spent their savings renovating.

15 Winston-Salem continues to celebrate arts and technology with the annual Industry BLOCK PARTY hosted by Mixxer Makerspace. The block party is free for anyone of all ages to attend, with the presence of over a hundred art and crafts vendors that include Bows and Whistles Design, Broken Glass Designs, and more.

20 CACTUS BLACK, a three-piece outlaw outfit from Winston (by fictional way of New Mexico) blows into the Gas Hill Drinking Room for an album release show with theEyebrows on Sept. 10. “The Marrow of Our Truth,” is the latest in their line of stories and songs that tread water in rock, indie, on the banks of outlaw country, to chronicle life’s dust and deserts for the fictional fugitive Cactus Black.

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DISTRIBUTION JANICE GANTT ANDREW WOMACK We at YES! Weekly realize that the interest of our readers goes well beyond the boundaries of the Piedmont Triad. Therefore we are dedicated to informing and entertaining with thought-provoking, debate-spurring, in-depth investigative news stories and features of local, national and international scope, and opinion grounded in reason, as well as providing the most comprehensive entertainment and arts coverage in the Triad. YES! Weekly welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however YES! Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. YES! Weekly is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1.00. Copyright 2021 Womack Newspapers, Inc.

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Sturgill Simpson

Tedeschi Trucks Fireside Live

Melissa Etheridge

Mavis Staples

Margo Price

LeAnn Rimes

JOHNNYSWIM

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Shawn Colvin

Gangstagrass

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and many more performers!

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EAT IT!

Greensboro Food Truck Festival

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BY JOHN BATCHELOR

ou just have to accept at the outset that you won’t be able to do it all.

The Greensboro Food Truck Festival is held annually, the last week of August. It provides a great opportunity to get acquainted with a lot that’s out there, but it’s just too big to cover it all - too many trucks, too many menu selections, too many people in line ordering. So you have to make choices, and those choices are best made in advance. If you just start walking down the street and sampling whatever looks interesting, you’ll never get to where you should have gone.

Develop a strategy.

Go to the website (greensborofoodtruckfestivals.com) and determine in advance which trucks will be participating. Decide which looks most interesting to you. Locate them on the provided map.

When you arrive, go to the ones you chose first. Then, if you have time left over, start wandering and sampling.

This year, 38 “savory” vendors, i.e., those serving sandwiches, pizza, vegetables, and/or specialty items that would be considered main courses for dinner; 15 sweets or dessert trucks; plus several strategically located wine and/or beer tents, were situated in six designated zones along three blocked downtown streets.

I had a particular reason for visiting this year - I was looking for trucks that neighbors and I might invite to a fall block party, so I concentrated on those that are based in Greensboro or close by. I

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have been a judge for the North Carolina Food Truck Championship (held in July in Randleman), so I was already familiar with some of the participants.

Herewith, some highlights from a Sunday afternoon (August 29).

Baconessence (baconessence.com), Burlington: As you might gather from the name, this truck is about bacon, with various concoctions featuring Neuske’s brand bacon (a superior product!). I got the Pimiento Melt - homemade extra sharp Pimiento cheese on grilled flatbread with a slice of extra thick-cut Applewood smoked bacon, plus soft-cooked onions and a sweet Jalapeno red pepper jelly. It’s a killer, super rich with great flavors from the pimiento cheese and bacon, accented by the spicy-hot-sweet jelly.

Other samples of interesting menu offerings: Blackened Pork Chop over Applewood smoked bacon stir fry rice and a spicy-sweet glaze; Grilled Flatbread BLT with 3 strips of thick Applewood smoked bacon, plus organic mesclun greens, mayonnaise, and Roma tomato.

Ethio Indi Ye Kraze Vegan (facebook. com/EthioIndi, yekrazevegan.square.site), Greensboro: I was not expecting a vegan food truck, and I was concerned that dinner would be vegetable deficient, so this was a must try. The Spicy Cheese Burger is not, of course, made from meat. The patty is firm, made, I am guessing, from mashed chickpeas. It doesn’t taste like hamburger, and it shouldn’t, but it is palatable. Condiments are homemade vegan mayo, homemade spicy sauce (I don’t know what it is, but it’s red), homemade slaw, Daiya vegan cheese, pickles, and tomato. I really liked the Fried Okra- crisp with fried onions.

I wanted Pakoras, but they were out. I would get Fried Mushrooms on another visit.

WEST COAST WANDERER SHRIMP QUESADILLA

BACONESSENCE PIMIENTO MELT Ghassan’s (ghassans.com), Greensboro, has been a local staple for decades.

Its lengthy tenure is testimony to its strong following. On this occasion, I got the Gyro Pita “The Greek” - slices of blended lamb and beef, with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber-yogurt sauce. I also am a fan of their Chicken Shawarma Pita “The Middle Eats”- shawarma spiced chicken, Lebanese pickles, radish sumac salad, and garlic sauce; and Falafel Pita “The Vegan” - falafel (made from chickpeas) and fava bean patties, hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, Lebanese pickles, pickled turnips, tahini sauce, and fresh parsley.

The owner of West Coast Wanderer (facebook.com/westcoastwandererllc), Greensboro, must really get around. The website and truck logo read, “From CA to CO to NV to NC (home!) I’ve always wanted to open a food truck and share my love of flavor! I’m so happy to say I’ve achieved my dream and can now share with others!”

The Shrimp Quesadilla turned out to be my favorite sample of the day. A pleasantly crisp shell held jumbo (really!) deveined shrimp, not overcooked, white cheddar and Monterrey Jack cheeses, sliced avocado, pico de gallo, and spicy mayonnaise.

A special compliment to this truckwhen you order, they give you a pager. Everywhere else I went, you just had to stand around on a hot day, often within the blast zone of gas or diesel generators, waiting for somebody to yell out your name or number, which you might or might not be able to hear.

Given the wait time for orders, sampling these trucks took well over two hours.

Other Greensboro based trucks that I would have visited include Hickory Tree Barbecue (hickorytreebbq.com), Home Slice Pizza and Subs (facebook. com/HomeslicePizzaAndSubs), Jamaica Coast Catering (facebook. com/jccfoodtruck), King Queen Haitian (facebook.com/kingqueen.haitian. cuisine), Off The Hook (facebook.com/

ETHIO INDI BURGER AND OKRA offthehook336), Porter House Burger Truck (facebook.com/PorterHouseBurgerTruck), Rockaway Express (facebook. com/Rockaway-Express), Sidewalk Café (facebook.com/(Sidewalk-Café), and Smokiin Mac (facebook.com/ smokiinmac); plus Fresh Catch Seafood Shack (facebook.com/FreshCatchSeafoodShack), from High Point, as well as Pinkor’s Delights (facebook.com/ PinKors-delights) from Asheboro.

I was surprised at the number of trucks from Raleigh and Durham, some of which I recognized from Championship rounds in the past. Of these, most notable in my estimation is Baozi (baozifoodtruck.com) They serve Korean dumplings, filled with slow-roasted pork, beef, or chicken. Unique in my experience, displaying flavor and level of preparation that is truly special. I would consider tracking this truck down from time to time!

I noted some of the highest sanitation ratings I have ever seen posted on these trucks. Perhaps this is a function of smaller spaces to clean, in addition to real care and attention. Whatever, it’s a welcome sign!

One final reflection- based on these and other experiences, the core elements of most food truck cuisine seem to be fat, salt, and sugar. If you are among the many who consider those the essential three food groups, you can live a happy (but probably not long) life in this context.

Otherwise, you might want to eat a salad in advance! !

JOHN BATCHELOR has been writing about eating and drinking since 1981. Over a thousand of his articles have been published. He is also author of two travel/ cookbooks: Chefs of the Coast: Restaurants and Recipes from the North Carolina Coast, and Chefs of the Mountains: Restaurants and Recipes from Western North Carolina.

Contact him at john.e.batchelor@gmail.com or see his blog, johnbatchelordiningandtravel.blogspot.com.

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RiverRun brings latest virtual screening to Life

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eginning Friday, the RiverRun International Film Festival’s virtual theater will offer the feature documentary Life in the Sacrifice Zone, which will be Mark Burger available through September 24, 2021.

Tickets are $12 and Contributor can be purchased online at https:// riverrunfilm.com/.

The film, which marks the feature debut for Winston-Salem filmmaker Chad Nance, explores a predominantly African-American community in rural North Carolina battling systematic racism and one of the world’s largest energy companies following a series of environmental disasters, racist behavior by local officials, and mysterious medical issues — all of which goaded the community into action.

Collectively fed up with sacrificing their land and lives to the pollution created by the state’s largest coal-fired electric plant, the community was united in forcing the biggest coal ash clean-up in the nation’s history.

Life in the Sacrifice Zone is being presented as part of the RiverRun festival’s “RiverRun Rewind” screening series, which was inaugurated following this year’s festival as a way of providing audiences the opportunity to see RiverRun films they might have missed during the festival or to share films they particularly enjoyed with other film buffs from around the country.

“RiverRun Rewind has quickly become a great way for us to continue to bring great films to our audiences after the festival itself,” said Marry Dossinger, RiverRun program manager. “Life in the Sacrifice Zone is a thoughtful, wonderfully done piece and we are even more honored to show it because it was made by such a talented hometown filmmaker in Chad Nance.”

“We began RiverRun Rewind as a way to offer encore screenings in our virtual theater of some of the films of the past festival,” explained Rob Davis, RiverRun executive director. “We began in August with a narrative feature, The Desiring, which was written and co-produced by Winston-Salem native Graham Pritz Bennett and filmed entirely in WinstonSalem. For September, we’re featuring a documentary, which has strong local and regional ties, In the Sacrifice Zone is from Winston-Salem filmmaker Chad Nance

and the movement which is the topic in the film took place in a neighboring county.”

Thus far, added Davis, “our virtual screenings are holding steady, and we are pleased to be able to continue offering films in this format. We’ve found it has expanded our audience base beyond the (Piedmont) Triad, and we hope some of these new audience members will travel to experience a more normal festival

when we are able to do that again, hopefully for our 2022 event.”

Speaking of which, submissions for the 2022 RiverRun International Film Festival opened September 1st and, within 24 hours, 70 admissions were received.

The 24th annual RiverRun International Film Festival is scheduled to take place April 21—April 30, 2022. The official RiverRun website is https://riverrunfilm. com/. !

Getting to the Heart of the matter Legendary Comics, which was founded in 2010 as an offshoot of Hollywood’s production company Legendary Pictures, has earned considerable kudos for its movie tie-ins, including Godzilla, King Kong, Pacific Rim, and Pokéman: Detective Pikachu, to name a few.

Legendary’s latest graphic novel, The Heart Hunter (160 pages, $19.99 retail) — written by Mickey George with artwork by V. Gagnon — is not related to or spun off from a feature film, but could easily launch a franchise of its own. It’s an elaborate, action-packed fantasy that creates its own mythology yet bears distinct allegorical elements to current social trends and attitudes.

The setting is Envecor, a cursed island where the inhabitants wear their hearts outside their bodies and are immortal. This isn’t as attractive as it sounds since they cannot change or have children until their YES! WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 8-14, 2021

find their soul mate, which permits them to leave the island and live normal lives.

Some of the island’s inhabitants, however, prefer to remain immortal, and procure the services of “Heart Hunters,” vigilante-type operatives who seek out and kill their soul mates so that they may live indefinitely, and free of all emotional responsibility.

One such “Heart Hunter” is Psyche, who has been hired by the island’s king to kill his soulmate. Yet as she proceeds about her task, Psyche begins to re-evaluate her status and to contemplate what her existence might be like were she to learn to trust and love another.

For aficionados of fantasy, The Heart Hunter certainly delivers the requisite action and adventure as befits the genre — yet it also examines the emotions of its complicated, often tortured characters.

The Heart Hunter marks the graphic novel

debut for noted writer/illustrator Mickey George, who is currently working on her LGBTQ+ steam-punk web-comic The King of Trouble.

In an interview with Amy Ratcliffe of Nerdist.com, George explained that “The Heart Hunter was unique for me in that the concept of it came before the characters.

The premise of the novel has never changed for me, but once I put the characters in, they gained more life and personality, and the story shifted to accommodate their decisions as they became more real. There’s one story happening on the surface, and underneath that is a labyrinth of abstract lessons and feelings.”

The official Legendary Comics website is https://www.legendary.com/comics/. !

See Mark BURGER’s reviews of current movies on Burgervideo.com. © 2021, Mark Burger.

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we play basketball! Speaking of which, the competition was so great among the four North Carolina schools, that the ACC even held an annual “Big 4” tournament from 1971 to 1981. Of course, the “Big 4”, like the ACC tournament, was always held at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Sure there were periodic rumblings from non-Big 4 schools who felt like they were outsiders, but only South Carolina acted on its paranoia and left the conference in 1971 (Maryland eventually pulled out in 2014). The ACC’s second commissioner, Bob James waited eight years before admitting Georgia Tech to the conference, and while many fans missed the heated competition with South Carolina, the Yellow Jackets proved a good fit for at least restoring the league of eight.

Losing the Gamecocks was a blow to ACC purists, but the real insult came in the decade between 2004 and 2014 when commissioner John Swofford allowed seven more schools to join the conference. In came Boston College, Notre Dame, Miami, Virginia Tech, Pitt, Louisville, and Syracuse, and out went the character and traditions of the ACC. Suddenly the Greensboro Coliseum

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could care less about the Gate City, or the history and traditions of the ACC. The good news is if anyone can save what’s left of the real ACC, it’s Nancy Vaughan.

The bad news is I’m afraid the handwriting is already on the moving van walls.

As far as I’m concerned, the ACC hasn’t been the ACC for nearly 20 years, so I suppose one more nail in the coffin won’t make much difference. Still, I hope I’m wrong about Mr. Phillips, but I can’t help thinking that what my parents were doing in 1953, is being done to Greensboro in 2021. !

JIM LONGWORTH is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15).

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wasn’t big enough and accessible enough to suit our new interlopers, so the ACC tournament was held at rotating venues including in Atlanta, D.C., and New York City. Not so gradually, our little regional family had morphed into a major corporation. But, hey, at least the conference office and its 50 employees would still remain in Greensboro, right? Maybe not.

Earlier this year, Jim Phillips took over as ACC commissioner, and by late last month, he had hired Newmark, a Texasbased real estate advisory firm, to help him decide where the conference headquarters should be located. That means sometime soon, Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan and a team of hand-picked ambassadors will have to do a dog and pony show for some guys from Texas who

CHOW DOWN TOWN SEPT. 13-19

DINE IN TAKE OUT

’ve always had a strong affection for the Atlantic Coast Conference because we were both created at the same time. On May 8, 1953, commissioner Jim Weaver Jim Longworth officially opened the first ACC office and made history, while Longworth my parents officially at Large closed their bedroom door and made me. Eighteen years later I left high school, and the University of South Carolina left the ACC. It marked the beginning of a great journey for me and the beginning of the end for the real ACC. Sixty-eight years ago, the ACC was comprised of eight schools: UNC, North Carolina State, Duke, Wake Forest, Clemson, Maryland, Virginia, and South Carolina. Granted, none of the league’s football teams were national powerhouses in those days, but oh my, could

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Beware the blue jeans

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movie about a killer pair of blue jeans had better be played for laughs, and director/co-writer Elza Kephart’s bloodsoaked Slaxx is not Mark Burger without its inspired gags.

Contributor With a speedy running time of under 80 minutes and the action confined to a trendy clothing store, Slaxx prattles along in reasonably watchable agreeable fashion for genre buffs and gore hounds in a loose mood.

The store’s staff, including rookie clerk

Libby (likable Romane Denis), have been tasked with setting up one of its big promotions, to introduce Super Shapers jeans to customers. Made on the cheap, but costing far more, these form-fitting jeans are expected to be the hottest-selling item of the season.

Too bad, then, that they’ve been manufactured under strictly corrupt standards — despite advertisements to the contrary — using third-world sweatshop practices.

Is it any wonder that a pair would become possessed by a vengeful spirit?

That the store is in overnight lockdown proves predictably fateful — and fatal — as the rampaging blue jeans begin making mincemeat (literally) out of the staff. Unctuous manager Craig (Brett Donahue) is desperate to avoid a panic, or bad publicity, but as the bodies pile up his best-laid plans for cover-up go awry. (It’s

no surprise what eventually befalls Craig.)

The special effects are sometimes inventive and sometimes laughable — it is a pair of killer jeans, after all — but Kephart doesn’t skimp on the blood. But there’s the nagging feeling that the concept might have been better served in a shorter, tighter format, perhaps as part of an anthology.

The elements of black comedy are, to say the least, consistently obvious, and the characters tend to be unlikable, with the exception of Libby and cynical co-worker Shruti (newcomer Sehar Bhojani), so it’s hard to muster much interest beyond seeing how violently they die. The film’s downbeat ending is also something of a drawback, but Slaxx is likely on track toward cult status.

— Slaxx is available on VOD, digital HD, and on DVD from RLJE Films ($27.97 retail). !

Jurassic Hunt: Dinosaur jamboree Small Business Spotlight

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The purveyors — as opposed to creators — of Jurassic Hunt evidently believe that audiences starved for big-screen dinosaur action will watch anything involving dinosaurs, in lieu of waiting for Jurassic World: Dominion, which isn’t due for theatrical release until next year.

Even by the lowest standards, Jurassic Hunt ranks pretty low. There’s a difference between fun junk and amateurish junk, and this film qualifies entirely for the second category. The CGI special effects are hardly up to par with the original Jurassic Park — which was released 28 years ago, in 1993 — and don’t even compare to the low-rent “heights” of the Roger Corman rip-off Carnosaur (also ‘93).

The no-impact narrative follows a band of macho morons on a weekend excursion to hunt dinosaurs, ostensibly under the watchful eye of transparently corrupt park manager Lindon (Joston Theney), who boasts that the rich and wealthy are lining up to participate. But given that the first night out several hunters are slaughtered indicates that repeat business may be a problem.

Echoing Sigourney Weaver’s break-

out role in the original Alien (1979), Courtney Loggins makes her feature debut as the token, toughtalking Parker, the only female hunter on this dire excursion. She’s attractive enough and displays enough hints of talent to hope she’ll go on to bigger and (much) better things, and Theney is nothing if not lively as the resident heavy. Give them points for trying, against insurmountable obstacles.

The combination of cheesy special effects, dopey dialogue (courtesy screenwriters Jacoby Bancroft and Jeffrey Giles), and sluggish direction by editor/producer Hank Braxtan (whose credits include the 2018 rip-off Snake Outta Compton) is a lethal one. Jurassic Hunt isn’t even good for unintentional laughs, and its 84-minute running time seems much longer. Better to wait for the real thing when Jurassic World: Dominion opens.

- Jurassic Hunt is available on-demand, on Amazon Prime Video, on Google Play, and DVD from LionsGate Home Entertainment ($19.98). !

See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies on Burgervideo.com. © 2021, Mark Burger.

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SATURDAY BLOCK PARTIES CONCERTS HELD ON SATURDAY AFTERNOONS PRIOR TO ROCKERS HOME GAMES Gatewood Avenue | 4-6pm

PRESENTED BY

FOOD ∙ BEVERAGES ∙ MUSIC ∙ INFLATABLES

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CAROLINA IGNITION AUGUST 28

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[NEWS OF THE WEIRD] AWESOME!

Chuck Shepherd

Cows summering in the mountains of Switzerland have to find their way to lower elevations as winter comes on, but among one herd, about 10 cows were injured and couldn’t hoof it down safely.

So in late August,

farmers arranged for them to be harnessed and flown by helicopter to terrain more accessible to conventional transportation, Sky News reported. The cows were held in a mesh harness, and farmers grabbed ropes to guide them down.

Farmer Jonas Arnold noted, “I didn’t ask a cow how it feels after such a flight, as it couldn’t answer, but ... it was only a short, calm flight.” The cows are scheduled to participate in the annual cow parade at Urnerboden, Switzerland.

BRIGHT IDEA

Yves de Mbella, a television personality on NCI in Ivory Coast, was convicted on Sept. 1 of glorifying rape after he invited a convicted rapist on his prime-time show to demonstrate how he plied his crimes, using a mannequin as his victim.

CNN reported that the segment, during which de Mbella helped the rapist adjust the mannequin and asked if his victims “enjoyed it,” aired on Aug. 30. De Mbella, who was fined about $3,600, apologized for the demonstration, saying he was trying to “raise awareness.”

COMPELLING EXPLANATION

Jonathan George, 31, of Norwalk, Ohio, told police on Aug. 30 that his dog, Lula, shot herself while bringing him his gun, Fox8-TV reported. “Said his dog shot itself and he trained the dog to bring a gun to him,” said police Capt. Jim Fulton. “The dog had the gun in its mouth when it went off accidentally.” But officers didn’t believe that story; Fulton said George’s blood alcohol content was 1.7, about twice the legal limit for driving, and that he “shouldn’t be drinking and handling firearms, bottom line.” George later admitted that he’d been trying to unload the gun when he shot the dog in the jaw.

Lula is recovering from her injuries but lost an eye in the shooting; George was charged with cruelty to animals and two other misdemeanors.

THE WAY THE WORLD WORKS

In one neighborhood in south St. Louis, the century-old brick stormwater sewer system works in a most alarming way: When heavy rain falls, the street “explodes,” with water charging up through any cracks and manholes it can find.

Fox2-TV reported that on Aug. 30, resident Sacha Heath recorded video of the phenomenon and posted it to Twitter.

“You hear the manholes kind of trembling and you hear the water exploding and it sounds like steam, and then chunks of asphalt are flying in the air,” Heath said. “Obviously, you don’t want asphalt chunks flying into the bottom of your car.” But the Metropolitan Sewer District doesn’t find it unusual: Sean Hadley of the MSD deadpanned that “the water’s gotta go somewhere. That’s what the system is designed to do — for it to pop the manhole covers so that the water can come out and it’s not popping in people’s basements. That’s what you don’t want to happen.”

INEXPLICABLE

— Kimberly Dawn Maxwell, 41, of Ashland, Kentucky, is treading water at the

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Western Regional Jail in Barboursville, West Virginia, after a puzzling incident on Aug. 27, WCHS-TV reported. As a dad and his two kids enjoyed a picnic at Harris Riverfront Park in Huntington, West Virginia, Maxwell, who was a stranger to them, came to sit at their picnic table. The dad reported that she was mumbling to herself, and he believed she might be under the influence, so he packed up lunch and directed the kids away from her. But as they walked, Maxwell ran up behind the 5-year-old boy and threw him in the Ohio River. A bystander who witnessed the incident jumped in and saved the boy before Maxwell also jumped into the river. When police arrived, she told them, “This is international waters. Police cannot do anything to me.” When the deputy asked her to come talk to him, she responded, “That is not going to happen.” A rescue boat finally plucked Maxwell from the water and she was evaluated at a hospital before being moved to the jail.

— After 20 years in operation, a roller coaster in the Fuji-Q Highland Park amusement park in Fujiyoshida, Japan, has been shut down because at least six riders over the last 10 months or so have suffered broken bones while riding. The Do-Dodonpa is famous for accelerating from 0 to 112 mph in just 1.56 seconds, Vice News reported. Four of the casualties involved broken necks or backs. After suspending the coaster, the park and Sansei Technologies, which manufactured the ride, inspected it to see if they could determine the cause of the injuries, but they came to no conclusions.

UPDATE

In December 2020, News of the Weird reported on the unusual union between Kazakhstani body builder and selfdescribed “sexy maniac” Yuri Tolochko and his new wife, Margo, a blow-up doll.

That relationship has since gone south, but Tolochko has found a new object of his affection: a metal ashtray that he procured from a nightclub. In fact, the Mirror reported, Tolochko plans to have the ashtray outfitted with a vagina so they can consummate their love. After a photo shoot with the ashtray, Tolochko, a pansexual, said, “I wanted to touch it again, smell it. I love its brutal scent, the touch of metal on my skin. I also like that it has a story, that it’s not new, that it has served many people and continues to serve them.” !

© 2021 Chuck Shepherd. Universal Press Syndicate.

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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[KING Crossword]

[weeKly sudoKu]

visiting the isle of wit

ACROSS

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Excited pointer’s cry Diner Pink pencil tip Siblings who compose legal orders?

Spacek of film Dude’s prom duds

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From Randolph County - For Randolph County

∙ Lifelong Randolph County resident ∙ 12 years experience in BOTH civil and criminal law ∙ Track-record of service in both the community and church ∙ Vice-President Judicial District 19B Bar ∙ Chairman of the Judicial District 19B Indigent Defense Committee ∙ Father and husband ∙ Committed to follow the Constitution as written and uphold the rule of law

www.TaylorBrowneforJudge.com * Paid for by the Committee to Elect Taylor Browne

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Folking around: The NC Folk Festival returns

T

he North Carolina Folk Festival is back in the flesh, and looking to bring folks to downtown Greensboro for a free three-day music festival Sept. 10-12.

Katei Cranford “We’re thrilled to be able to return to hosting an in-person Contributor festival that will provide a welcoming, celebratory environment for all members of our Greensboro and North Carolina community to enjoy,” said Amy Grossmann, President and CEO of the North Carolina Folk Festival. “Thanks to the support of our presenting sponsor, Towne Bank, and our close partnerships with Guilford County and the City of Greensboro, we will present a festival that our performers, staff, supporters, and audiences will be able to safely enjoy.”

Continuing the legacy of the National Folk Festival, which ran from 2015 to 2017, the 2021 NC Folk Festival takes a cue from the more regionally-focused, virtual festival in 2020; and features a new layout, curated programming, an NC Makers Marketplace; and the “Not Your Average Folk” contest—a sweepstake for a spot on the bill.

The Greensboro Cultural Center, at 200 N. Davie St., will continue serving as a landmark at the center of the festival site, which sees 35 acts spread over four main stages: the Towne Bank Stage at LeBauer Park, Lawn Stage (at Bellemeade and North Greene Streets), the Lee Wrangler Stage will be on the site of the former CityStage (at Davie Street and Friendly Avenue). And new for 2021, the Old Courthouse Stage, will be on West Market Street, near John Wesley Way and the West Market Street Church. The #DGSO Stage (presented in partnership with Downtown Greensboro, Inc.) will be at South Elm Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive on Saturday.

To help folks keep up with what the folk is going on, organizers have developed an official mobile app, which allows users to build their own daily schedule; and provides information on the lineup, vendor info, audience contests, updates, and more.

“We’re excited to grow the partnerships we’ve developed over the years with the artists and organizations in our community that share our commitment to honoring and celebrating diverse cultural traditions YES! WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 8-14, 2021

through music and dance,” Grossmann said of the specialty bills curated by Greensboro-based hip-hop artist Demeanor, the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society, the North Carolina Folklife Institute and the Center for Cultural Vibrancy. “Through these partnerships, we proudly share our stages to feature legendary and up-andcoming performers who are exemplars of tradition, creativity, and innovation in their respective fields.”

Justin “Demeanor” Harrington, an Americana award-nominated artist and twotime performer at the NC Folk Fest, will host the “North Carolina Hip-Hop: Rap is Folk” showcase on Saturday at the Towne Bank Stage and a series of workshops at Center City Park on Saturday and Sunday.

With a banjo in hand, Harrington “bridges the gap between contemporary and traditional cultural music,” while engaging in story-telling and cultural connection. “Love and passion for Black American music traditions run deep in my blood,” Harrington said. “ And to have an opportunity to share this music—and this movement—with my city is really special.”

Seeking innovations beyond genre and industry, Harrington will debut songs from his album, along with a live looping set using his banjo and laptop. “I did it for the first time at the Newport Folk Festival, and it feels so good to bring it home.”

A co-founder of the Haus of Lacks collective in Greensboro and TEDx speaker, Harrington is excited to continue his work as a “culture bearer;” and curate a rap program for the festival he considers a family affair.

“My first time at the festival I performed with my aunt (Rhiannon Giddens), the second time was virtually with people I care deeply about,” he said, “and this year I get to bring my peers onstage. This is the first time there’s been rap programming at a Folk Festival in America, and I’m honored to be able to do this with people I respect and cherish.”

Among those people are Los Angeles transplant GATECITYCRAIG, KembeX from Illinois, and Greensboro rappers: Lovey the Don, Chris Meadows, and Antion Scales.

“When I say ‘Rap is Folk,’ I’m not just talking about music,” Harrington noted.

“The ways Black artforms have been boxed-in and commodified has left a hole in our communities,” he explained. “The misinformation and miseducation have been systematic. We have the space and tools to challenge ideas of supremacy and segregation within our industry. And this year we get to celebrate each other; and set forth a new precedent.”

Scales, a Greensboro artist who doesn’t rap so much as he “sells advice,” agreed.

“Too often people misconstrue the messages, the meaning and the storytelling behind rap and hip hop,” he said. “With this being my first time performing at the festival, I’m overly excited to show those who are unfamiliar the vulnerability, the skill, and the transparency it takes to do what we rappers do.”

In a similar vein, Atiba Berkley continues carrying the torch as President of the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society (and presenter of the Carolina Blues Festival), who partnered with the folk fest for a shared virtual experience in 2020. “In this unique time in America, the Blues speaks to the enduring legacies of American folk and pop-culture,” Berkely said. “Our 21stcentury presentations of Blues and Black Arts Culture are poised to provide healing, and inspire social dialogue.”

For 2021, they’ll present “Buckdance & Blues: Remembering Algia Mae Hinton and John Dee Holeman,” a tribute showcase from Tad Walters, Bob Margolin, and Lightnin’ Wells at the Towne Bank Stage on Saturday; and the Old Courthouse Stage on Sunday.

From carrying the torch to carrying the light, the North Carolina Folklife Institute and the Center for Cultural Vibrancy will

host “Carolina Gospel Sunday” all day on the Lawn Stage with Jalessa Cade, Mangum and Company, Cora Harvey Armstrong, the Gospel Stars of Greensboro, and the Legendary Ingramettes singing to the most high.

Beyond an extended curation, the 2021 NC Folk Festival looked to foster local connection through the “Not Your Average Folk” contest, a panel and voter-judged sweepstakes for local, independent artists.

Winners received an invitation to play the festival, with the grand prize including a recording session at Black Rabbit Audio in Greensboro.

“The pandemic has been a challenge to all of us for sure,” said Black Rabbit founder, Tom Troyer. “The amazing contest submissions emphasized that folk-arts are vital. And reassuring,” he continued, referencing the winners. “It all feels like a healing enterprise—the vibrancy of Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble and the deeply emotive sounds of Grand Shores proving the value of individual musical practice within the folk traditions. And that the folk ‘scene’ here is particularly fruitful.”

In first place, the Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble from Greensboro will open the Old Courthouse Stage on Saturday at noon with “soulful arrangements of Argentine tango standards and original compositions that create a dynamic tango and pan-Latin fusion.” Grand Shores, an Americana group with West-African instrumentation from Chapel Hill will play Saturday at Center City Park. And third-place winners, Jazz Xpressions featuring Lydia Salett Dudley, will be on the #DGSO stage on Saturday.

Beyond culture, the festival aims at educating and enriching audiences. A community jam presented by the UNCG Old-Time Ensemble will kick things off

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Molly Tuttle will perform at this year’s FolkFest. following opening remarks on Friday at the Lee Wrangler Stage. Exhibitions exploring “Flatpicking Traditions Across Three Continents” and “Fiddle Traditions: From the Highlands to the Plains,” will roll Saturday afternoon on the Lawn Stage.

Harrington will host a “foundsound beatmaking” workshop followed by a tutorial on DIY home recording, mixing, and mastering on Saturday at Center City Park. Sunday’s topics include radio-ready instrumentals and “Writing a 16: the lyricism of rap.”

Other workshops across the Sunday schedule include: a Women in Gospel workshop on the Lawn Stage, Yoga with Dancing Dogs Yoga of Greensboro and “Percussion: Building Block For Song” at the Towne Bank Stage; and a double-dose of South Indian Bharata Natyam from the Leela School of Dance, with an interactive experience followed by a stage performance to end the evening.

And while the 2021 festival makes a slightly more concerted effort to connect locally, the bill features a fair share of national artists. Nashville guitarist Molly Tuttle is on track to headline the Lee Wrangler Stage on Friday night, where things will get jazzy on Saturday with 14-time “Jazz Journalists Association’s Trombonist of the Year” Wycliffe Gordon. On Sunday, the big hair comes out with country tunes from The Malpass Brothers, a pair of rhinestoned siblings from Goldsboro intent on carrying on the traditional country twang to the Lee Wrangler Stage.

A jazzier sort of country from Austin’s Hot Club of Cowtown roped the spot before Tuttle on Friday evening. They’ll also follow Conjunto Guantánamo’s AfroCuban rhythms to close the Towne Bank Stage Saturday night. An NYC-based quarWWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

tet, Conjunto Guantánamo will “celebrate Cuban folklore as the spirit breathing life into its sound,” with sets all weekend across the Lawn, Towne Bank, and Lee Wrangler stages.

Meanwhile, New Orleans funk and hip-hop from Shamarr Allan and the Underdawgs will close the Lawn Stage on Friday, before pulling two sets on Saturday at the Old Courthouse and Lee Wrangler Stages. And the Mari Black Trio, a fiddleheavy Scottish bit from Boston, will also be on the Lee Wrangler Stage, with sets both Saturday and Sunday.

While national artists round the bill, the festival prides itself on bringing a “global flare,” from acts like Quraishi Roya, a world-renowned Afghan-American rubab player who’ll open the Towne Bank Stage on Saturday, before playing the Lawn Stage later in the afternoon; and returning to the Towne Bank Stage on Sunday.

Caique Vidal & Batuque an Afro-Brazilian band (from Salvador de Bahia by way of Greensboro), will open the Towne Bank Stage on Friday, close the Old Courthouse Stage on Saturday; and perform a special Oxente Brazilian Drumming session at the Lee Wrangler Stage earlier Saturday afternoon. Alsarah & The Nubatones will also be dancing into the night with their blend of East-African retro-pop, closing the Towne Bank Stage on Friday and the Lawn Stage on Saturday; with an afternoon set at the Lee Wrangler Stage earlier in the day.

Turning to NC-based artists, Javier Montano, an NC-native and young singersongwriter, will share music from his parents’ birthplaces in Mexico on Saturday at the Lawn and Old Courthouse stages.

Hard Drive, a “hard-driving aural modern traditional authentic millennial bluegrass

collective” will bring high-octane old-time to the Lawn Stage on Saturday before opening the Old Courthouse Stage on Sunday, followed by a set on the Lee Wrangler Stage that evening.

Dewey & Leslie Brown and The Carolina Gentlemen will ramble down the Old Courthouse twice on Saturday before they close out the festival on Sunday. A bluegrass “power couple,” Dewey spent 11 years as a fiddler in Ralph Stanley’s band, the Clinch Mountain Boys; and together they operate the Liberty Showcase Theater in Liberty.

In the spirit of tradition, Laurelyn Dossett’s “Songs of Hope and Justice” will ring from the Old Courthouse Stage Friday evening. Now in its sixth year at the festival, Dossett presents a musical menagerie of scholars, social justice workers, and songsters including: Jaki Shelton Green (Poet Laureate of North Carolina), Dr. Lalenja Harrington, Molly McGinn, Sam Frazier, Wendy Hickman, Desahwn Hickman, J. Scott Hinkle, George Sluppick, Alice Gerrard, Alex Bingham (from Hiss Golden Messenger), and Charly Lowry (from Dark Water Rising).

This writer conveys personal hopes that the NC Folk Festival regards justice with more than just lip service, and is finally acknowledging the murder of Marcus

Smith by officers of the Greensboro Police Department during the festival in 2018.

An Eventbrite page for the “Art of Mass Gatherings” training symposium hosted by the festival and Majestic Collaborations (a Colorado-based consulting firm), invites attendees to a demonstration in memory of Smith on Saturday afternoon.

But while the Greensboro Justice Coalition will be gathering at Government Plaza (110 Greene St.) on Saturday at 6 p.m. to lead a “March for Victims of Police Violence,” no other local organization, (including the NC Folk Festival) shared any information on the memorial listed on the Eventbrite page.

Festival organizers are, however, much more forthright regarding details for the 9/11 Remembrance Stair Climb Saturday morning at the Bellemeade Parking Deck (with the national anthem sung by Greensboro vocal ensemble Bel Canto) and a 9/11 memorial ceremony that afternoon on the #DGSO Stage, which will close with Greensboro funk group, Doby.

Get ready to get the folk down as the North Carolina Folk Festival returns Sept.

10-12 in downtown Greensboro. !

KATEI CRANFORD Is a Triad music nerd who —once again—is begging NC Folk Fest organizers to change the date to one that doesn’t compete with the Hopscotch Music Festival in Raleigh over the same weekend.

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Realtor attempts to evict immigrant community Family Properties of North Carolina is attempting to evict 18 immigrant families who have raised their children and grandchildren in Jamison Homes Mobile Park on Greensboro’s quiet Hiatt Street. Some Ian McDowell residents say they were told to get out Contributor only months after their landlord sold them their trailers, which they spent their savings renovating.

“When we bought this trailer, it needed much work,” said Lorena Abarca to YES! Weekly via an interpreter. “I bought it from Lynne Anderson, the property manager, who says we had to move soon. If I had known, I would not have bought it. I’m the mother of three daughters and I’m alone with them. It would be very difficult for me to move, not only because I spent all my savings on the trailer, but because my children are in school at Lindley and Kaiser.”

Both Abarca and her neighbor Josue Chan said that moving a trailer costs between $6,000 and $12,000, and gets exponentially higher the further it has to go. Chan said he bought his trailer from Anderson last year, and spent three months and his remaining savings on remodeling it before moving in on February of this year.

Anderson told him and his neighbors they must leave in a July 2nd letter stating the property “has been sold to a developer.”

Neighbor Francisca González said she did a cost analysis, and that, between transportation, purchasing a lot, and hooking up power and water, moving would cost a minimum of $46,000, even if she found a place to move to.

Lynne Anderson, manager of Family Properties, reportedly told the News and Record that she has no choice but to sell the property, which originally belonged to her aunt, Shirley Todd Jamison. Anderson is both the property manager and executor of the estate.

According to an Aug. 25 article by Nancy McLaughlin, “Anderson said her aunt, who died recently, stipulated in her will that the property be sold and the proceeds divided among her grandchildren.”

Anderson’s aunt, Shirley Todd Jamison, died in March 2017. The News & Record obituary for Jamison lists no grandchildren or children among her survivors. This writer made multiple unsuccessful attempts at contacting Anderson about this discrepYES! WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 8-14, 2021

ancy. On Monday night, I received an email from Anderson’s sister Becky O’Hare stating “The will of Shirley Jamison leaves the money from the Mobile Home Park to be divided among her 15 grand nieces and nephews. Miss Jamison had no children.”

On July 12, Anderson sent the residents of the mobile home park a letter stating that those who owned their trailers had until “the end of September” to move them off the property and that those who leased their homes “must be out by August 30th.

North Carolina General Statute § 42-14.3 states that if a “manufactured home community” (the definition of which includes mobile home parks) contains five or more units, and the property is being converted to another use, the owner must give the residents “at least 180 days” to move their trailers. According to the News & Record, Jamison has extended her deadline to January 1st. 180 days from Aug. 1 would actually be January 28.

Slightly less than two months before Anderson told the residents they had to move, City of Greensboro Planning Department staff recommended the rezoning that made it possible for her to sell the property to its prospective developer, ORP (Owls Roost Partners) Companies at 7900 McCloud Road.

A zoning staff report issued by the city and dated May 17 recommended that 2510 Hiatt Street be rezoned from RM-18 (Residential Multi-family - 18) to CD-RM-26 (Conditional District – Residential Multifamily - 26) in response to a request by applicant Marc Isaacson for Allen, Jamison, and O’Hare LLC, which has the same phone number as Family Properties. The report stated that “68 notices were mailed to those property owners in the mailing area.”

None were sent to the residents facing displacement.

Sometime between May 17 and June 12, an English-only sign with the heading ZONING NOTICE was placed on the street outside the trailer park. It stated there would be a public hearing at 5:30 p.m. on June 21, 2021, but gave no explanation and no address. Multiple residents told YES! Weekly they thought this meant they were supposed to gather in front of the sign at that time and date.

At the June 21 zoning commission meeting, Planning Manager Mike Kirkman stated that the rezoning request had no opposition and was recommended by city staff.

The application was approved unanimously with no questions or discussion.

Luke Carter, Senior Planner for the City of Greensboro, told YES! Weekly in an Aug. 30 email that July 1 was the residents’ last

chance to oppose the rezoning.

“No appeal was submitted within 10 days. Since all City meetings are conducted virtually, people wishing to speak at Planning and Zoning Commission meetings must notify the Planning Department of their desire to speak. The Planning Department did not receive any requests to speak in opposition to this request.”

Multiple residents told me they had no inkling they were facing displacement until the Fourth of July weekend when they heard it from their neighbor Denisse Alcantara.

Alcantara, who speaks English, told me that when she went by the office of Family Properties to pay her rent, Anderson told her she was giving all the residents two months’ notice. “I asked if she wanted me to tell everyone else and she said ‘well, that would be nice, they would probably like to hear it from you rather than me.’ I told my parents and we all started spreading the word.”

Alcantara’s family has lived in the park for 15 years. “I don’t have to worry about somebody trying to break into my house or steal my car. Other trailer parks, you can’t leave your car unlocked. I can leave my windows down. I feel safe in this area. It’s hard nowadays, with Greensboro getting so violent.”

Another resident who would find it difficult to move is Meily Molina, a cancer patient and mother of four who has lived in the mobile home park for 14 years, who found out about the situation from her neighbors before she received a letter from Anderson.

“My 15-year-old is very worried,” she told me through an interpreter when I visited the park on August 28. “Both about losing our home and for me, as I’m not well. I’ve been on anti-depressants for 20 years, and last year, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I have finished my chemotherapy treatments, but the secondary effects are really taking a toll.”

It’s not just the old and sick who must deal with the fear of becoming homeless in a pandemic. Francine González, a senior in the International Baccalaureate Program at Grimsley High School told me that her grades have suffered.

“Not only my education but that of other kids here, too. If we were to move, there’s nothing available that’s close to Grimsley. If I move out of the district, they’ll allow me to go to Grimsley, because I’m IB, but it would be so much harder with everything further away. Not knowing where I’ll be in the next couple of months is so stressful. I’m losing sleep

and it’s much harder to focus in school.”

Francine is the daughter of Francisca González. “Lynne Anderson actually told us, why don’t you go find a lot where you can take your trailer to move, which shows how little she understands what it’s like to be poor,” said Francisca through an interpreter.

“If we have to put up all this money, we want to buy this land right here that we’re already on. We have told this in writing, and we are waiting for a response by Tuesday, August 31. She hasn’t replied yet, but we hope to hear from her by then.”

Anderson never responded to that letter, said Laura Garduño of Siembra, NC. On the evening of Aug. 31, Siembra issued the following statement.

Family Properties has on previous occasions refused to talk to their tenants who are coming to them in good faith willing to buy the property their mobile homes sit in. Family Properties claims the land that houses Jamison Mobile Park Homes has been sold but city property records show no transfer in ownership for the property located on 2510 Hiatt St. As of yesterday, tenants have continued to pay their rent directly to Family Properties.

The United Neighbors of Hiatt St. Mobile Homes Association is now appealing to Owls Roost Properties (ORP) to end contract negotiations with Family Properties and meet with United Neighbors of Hiatt St. before next Wednesday. The United Neighbors know ORP is a potential buyer because the company hired lawyer Mark Isaacson to apply for the property rezoning request back in May on behalf of Allison, Jamison, and O’Hare LLC., the company that holds Family Properties. Zoning commission staff recommendations failed to mention there would be at least 18 families that could be affected by the rezoning.

On August 28, three days before that statement was issued, several residents told me that they hoped their landlord would respond, and they would not have to appeal to the prospective buyer. Molina was less sanguine. After posing for a photo in front of her mobile home, she pointed to the uncut grass and several small trees.

“They have not been cutting the grass like they did before they sent us that letter.

But the day after we appealed to their office, they came and did markings on the trees that families have planted beside their homes, and said they are going to cut them down.” !

IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of.

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Second Industry Hill Block Party makes way this weekend Winston-Salem continues to celebrate arts and technology with the annual Industry Block Party hosted

by Mixxer Makerspace.

“The Industry Hill Block Party is a Naima Said celebration of Arts and EntrepreneurContributor ship, as well as a demonstration of how people that are very different from each other can collaborate in a way that lifts all of them up, a philosophy that Mixxer Community Makerspace is built on.

By working together, we amplify the work that all of us do, and create intersections for exciting things to happen,” said Alan Shelton, founder and executive director of Mixxer.

The block party is free for anyone of all ages to attend, with the presence of over a hundred art and crafts vendors that include Bows and Whistles Design, Broken Glass Designs, and Dew You Boutique, and Catbird Art and Events. There will also be food trucks present that include Brash Brownies, Creole Concessions, Pacific Rim Cuisine, Lelo’s Lemonade and Italian Ice, PinKors Delight, and Old South Kettle Corn.

“Each neighboring business will have fun activities at their locations. Breweries nearby will also have live music present throughout the day,” Shelton said.

Mixxer aims to provide entertainment throughout the day for the whole community to join in on but named their block party “Night of Fire” because of their iron furnace event taking place that evening.

“We will be firing up a Melter we had brought in to melt a ton of cast iron.

Those who attend will have to wear sunglasses while the white-hot molten metal will be flowing to create beautiful works of art. Sparks will fly when the furnace fires up at 6 p.m., and as the sun sets, we’ll light up Industry Hill with 2 tons of molten iron, Fire Dancers, and a DJ. We’ll be pouring that iron into molds made by cast iron artists from all over the region, and into molds carved by your WinstonSalem neighbors. You can carve your sand mold at Mixxer between August 9 and September 11, at our building,” Shelton said.

Mixxer’s block party continues to make its mark as a creative collective from the art community itself.

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“Our first event happened back in 2019, and it was kind of an accident,” Shelton said. “One of our employees was friends with people from the Krankies Crab Fair at Innovations Quarter that takes place in December, where people go to buy gifts for their families for the holidays. The Fair wanted to do a summertime show, so we decided we would have the Fair in our backyard. Once our neighbors heard about it, they wanted to do something special too, then the word got around the neighborhood and it ended up turning into a block party.”

Mixxer originally planned on holding the event in 2020 and earlier this year but due to Covid, they pushed the date back.

“Traditionally we planned on having this year’s event in June, but since Covid’s numbers were still rising, we pushed it to September to give us more time to prepare for the block party. We advise those who attend to mask up and maintain a safe distance from others to ensure a fun yet safe environment,” Shelton said.

Though the event takes place once a year to showcase talent and hard work, Mixxer prides itself on its ability to continuously provide experiences and opportunities to other artists in the field of technology.

“This is a day to celebrate, to teach, to continue forming connections regardless of your different walks of life,” Shelton said. “That is why we started Mixxer in the first place. Back in 2014, my New Year’s resolution was to have a place just

like this, a place where I had access to workspace and technology to help me further my learning and finish my projects.

So, I went to my community and asked if we could have a place like this. By January 2018, we raised enough money to open the doors and we hope to continue letting people in.”

Mixxer’s Industry Hill Block Party will take place September 11, 2021, from noon

to 9 p.m. at the Winston-Salem Junction building along 9th St. The event is sponsored by Agile City, Downtown WinstonSalem, Equilibrium Impact Ventures, and A.S Garland Marketing and PR. For more information, check out https://wsmixxer.org/ironart/. !

NAIMA SAID is a 22 year old UNCG theatre graduate and host of Heeere’sNeeNee Horror Movie Podcast.

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Cactus Black brings “the Marrow of Our Truth” to the Gas Hill Drinking Room

C

actus Black, a threepiece outlaw outfit from Winston (by fictional way of New Mexico) blows into the Gas Hill Drinking Room for an album release Katei Cranford show with the-Eyebrows on Sept. 10.

“The Marrow of Contributor Our Truth,” is the latest in their line of stories and songs that tread water in rock, indie, on the banks of outlaw country, to chronicle life’s dust and deserts for the fictional fugitive Cactus Black.

“Sometimes we’re loud, sometimes we’re quiet, sometimes the drummer plays the accordion,” said Mike “Cactus Black” Tyson, who levies the character, blending a dark and heavy sort of folksy into a frontman persona. “When I first started writing Cactus songs, I imagined it as a whole. It was about this outlaw, drifter named Clay Blackwell who basically turned to the darkside and became Cactus Black,” he explained. “The songs were in Black’s voice—especially for the first record—and we just adopted it.“ The trio casts their own set of characters rounded by Randy Heck (bassist, Mike Bright) and Sunday the Drifter (drummer, Matt Pickard). And while rumors of their desert formation are many, the three actually got together after Tyson answered an ad on Craigslist in 2012. “I remember the ad had perfect punctuation, was very articulate and quite specific—which was quite rare on Craigslist.” That band became Tusker, a standard “American whiskey rock band” of “equal parts moonshine, internal combustion, beer, tattoos, gun powder, frontier spirit, and beards.”

Focusing on that frontier spirit, Tyson shared a few “Cactus” songs with the group, who decided to create the incarnation they carry today. “That’s how Cactus Black was born,” Tyson said.

According to legend, however, Black’s upbringing was a bit more rough-and-tumble: a barmaid single-mother and saloon covers from the likes of Hank Williams and Johnny Cash; with age and experience bringing a taste for Nick Cave and Tom Waits, while YES! WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 8-14, 2021

love of story-telling woven that transcends from records to the stage.

“At shows, we’d tell people we were from Las Cruces, New Mexico, and ask for places to crash and just try to play up the personas,” Tyson said. “We like to bring a little lightness while up there singing murder ballads.” A stuffed coyote, Gato, often comes along for the ride. “The bassist found him in a basement and started dragging around to shows.

It’s like. Yes, we’re singing songs about the devil and shooting people in the desert, but we also don’t take ourselves too seriously.”

They do, however, take their craft seriously—working with Jamie King to record their first album, “Las Cruces,” in 2013, as well as the latest: “The Marrow of Our Truth,” (their third LP) thanks to a grant from the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. “I truly believe this record would never have been made if it was not for that grant,” Tyson said. “We had most of the album written, but Covid was just starting to hit and I had a kiddo on the way, so there was a lot of uncertainty, but it gave us that push.”

And with that push, “the Marrow of Our Truth” takes a slightly new sonic direction, adding extra guitarwork and guest artists—a noted departure from the 2018 “No Accomplice” EP, which serves ”an ode to isolation,” with a lone guitar and singular voice.

All three boys are back on Marrow, with extra guitars, fiddle, and trombone to “give the songs a little more texture compared to previous records,” Tyson noted. “We also brought in a couple guests, which we hadn’t done before. All in all, we just wanted to play around with instrumentation that we hadn’t been able to explore in past recordings and try and give the songs a little more flavor.”

Meant as neither a prequel nor sequel to their catalog, story-wise, the album’s overall flavor sheds light on different chapters in the Black compendium—offering a tale of orphaned brothers and what follows a bank robbery gone wrong. “I see all three records standing on their own,” Tyson

PHOTO BY TUCKER THARPE

explained, likening it to the Fargo television series. “They’ve got common themes.

And while each season—or record—lives within their own world, you always know you’re watching Fargo. Each of our records is intended to take you somewhere, but it might not connect directly to the next one.”

Meanwhile, Marrow itself was written to be absorbed as a whole.

“It’s a big ask in this day and age,” Tyson admitted with a Pink Floyd reference.

“Another Brick in the Wall is a great song on its own,” he said, “but hearing it in the context of ‘The Wall,’ as a whole, takes it to a different level. We’re obviously not Pink Floyd, but that’s the kind of world we’re seeking to create.” The sentiment echoes in acts of a similar vein: Murder By Death,

a chilled-out Protomen, or even Rasputina (sans-cellos).

They’ll perform Marrow in its entirety at the upcoming show, complete with guest artists like fiddler Sam Weiss. “It’s been nearly two years since we’ve played live,” Tyson said, “so we’re excited to be back on the stage.”

Gato will be there. Along with theEyebrows, a “Pixies meet Melvins” trio from Charlotte, as Cactus Black celebrates the release of “The Marrow of Our Truth” on Sept. 10 at the Gas Hill Drinking Room in Winston-Salem. !

KATEI CRANFORD Is a Triad music nerd who hosts Katei’s “Thursday Tour Report” on WUAG 103.1fm.

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Visit yesweekly.com and click on calendar to list your event online. home grown muSic Scene | compiled by Austin Kindley

ASHEBORO

Four SaintS BrEwing

218 South Fayetteville St. | 336.610.3722 www.foursaintsbrewing.com Sep 11: william nesmith

CHARlOttE

CMCu aMphithEatrE former Uptown Amphitheatre 820 Hamilton St | 704.549.5555 www.livenation.com Sep 14: trippie redd

thE FillMorE

1000 NC Music Factory Blvd | 704.916.8970 www.livenation.com Sep 8: girls gotta Eat Sep 9: watsky Sep 9: theory of a Deadman Sep 12: Colony house Sep 15: Jack harlow w/ Babyface ray and Mavi Sep 16: Between the Buried and Me

pnC MuSiC pavilion 707 Pavilion Blvd | 704.549.1292 www.livenation.com Sep 8: Maroon 5 Sep 10: the Black Crowes Sep 11: lil Baby w/ lil Durk Sep 13: Judas priest

SpECtruM CEntEr

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ClEmmOnS

villagE SquarE tap houSE

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Carolina ThEaTrE

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GrEEnSBoro ColiSEUm 1921 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400 www.greensborocoliseum.com Sep 18: dan + Shay

liTTlE BroThEr BrEWinG

348 South Elm St | 336.510.9678 www.facebook.com/littlebrotherbrew Sep 9: nC Comedy Festival

PiEdmonT hall

2411 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400 www.greensborocoliseum.com Sep 18: Big head Tood and the monsters

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high point

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PlanK STrEET TavErn 138 Church Ave | 336.991.5016 www.facebook.com/plankstreettavern Sep 11: acoustic Fusion

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BUll’S TavErn

408 West 4th St | 336.331.3431 www.bullswsnc.com Wednesdays: Karaoke

BUrKE STrEET PUB 1110 Burke St | 336.750.0097 www.burkestreetpub.com Tuesdays: Trivia

Earl’S

121 West 9th Street | 336.448.0018 www.earlsws.com Sep 10: Wagon load of Trouble Sep 11: aaron hamm & The Big river Band

Fiddlin’ FiSh BrEWinG ComPanY 772 Trade St | 336.999.8945 www.fiddlinfish.com Sep 17: anne & The moonlighters

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midWaY mUSiC hall

638 W 4th St | 336.777.3348 www.foothillsbrewing.com mondays: Trivia in the Tasting room Tuesdays: Trivia at Footnote!

Sep 8: Colin Cutlet Sep 12: Sunday Jazz

3801 Rock Quarry Rd | 919.821.4111 www.livenation.com Sep 10: lil Baby w/ lil durk Sep 11: Shake Your money maker Sep 15: maroon 5

11141 Old US Hwy 52, Suite 10 | 336.793.4218 www.facebook.com/midwaymusichallandeventcenter Wednesdays: line dancing w/ denise Sep 8: Brett Tolley and Friends Sep 10: oldskool Sep 11: Sidekix Sep 12: Part Time Party Time Band

linColn ThEaTrE

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CCU mUSiC ParK aT WalnUT CrEEK

126 E. Cabarrus St | 919.831.6400 www.lincolntheatre.com Sep 10: mustache The Band Sep 11: mo lowda & The humble w/ little Bird Sep 14: Yung Bleu

rEd haT amPhiThEaTEr 500 S McDowell St | 919.996.8800 www.redhatamphitheater.com Sep 12: lord huron w/ allison Ponthier Sep 14: Judas Priest Sep 15: Trippie redd

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1400 Edwards Mill Rd | 919.861.2300 www.thepncarena.com Sep 10-11: luke Combs Sep 17: Katt Williams

ThE liBErTY ShoWCaSE ThEaTEr 101 S. Fayetteville St | 336.622.3844 www.TheLibertyShowcase.com Sep 10: Jimmy Fortune Sep 11: The drifters review ft. nature-Blu

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last call

[THE ADVICE GODDESS] love • sex • dating • marriage • questions

WII ARE NOT AMUSED

During quarantine, my boyfriend started spending two or three hours a night playing video games.

Not only do I think this is unhealthy (since video games Amy Alkon apparently lead to violence and psychoAdvice logical problems), Goddess but I think gaming has become a coping mechanism/escape tool for him. How can I get him to stop? — Annoyed Claiming gaming causes violence is like claiming white wine causes stabbings.

(Give somebody a sip of Chardonnay and before you know it, they’ll be dealing meth and then arrested, convicted, and shanking somebody in prison.)

There’s been a lot of “moral panic” over video gaming. A moral panic is a mass overreaction to some behavior, art form, or group of people, driven by the fear that it poses a threat to society’s values and the social order. Examples include rock lyrics said to be corrupting teenagers and the belief in the 1980s that satanic cults were running nursery schools. About the latter, Margaret Talbot explained in The New York Times Magazine that day care worker/”Devil-worshippers” were supposedly “raping and sodomizing children, practicing ritual sacrifice, shedding their clothes, drinking blood and eating feces, all unnoticed by parents, neighbors and the authorities.”

It’s easy to succumb to a moral panic.

Though we like to see ourselves as careful, rational thinkers, when we’re afraid, we engage in reasoning that’s better described as “emotioning.” This makes us prone to believe “if it bleeds, it leads” news stories that report “research says” video games are addictive, lead to social isolation, and cause those who play them to become violent or more violent.

These media reports aren’t lies per se, but the product of reporters understandably unable to parse scientific methodology — usually because they were reporting on celebrities or City Hall until, like, Tuesday, when they got assigned to the science beat. They have no chops to critically analyze studies that, for example, claim video gaming turns normal teens into violent teens: like, if you let a kid play shoot-em-up games, he’s supposedly more likely to take to a campus bell tower with an AR-15.

Reporters inexperienced in covering science typically chronicle the findings of just one (possibly flawed) study — without reviewing the body of research on gaming (dozens or even hundreds of studies). If they did this, they would see “the emerging picture from the research literature,” summed up by psychologist Pete Etchells, who studies the psychological and behavioral effects of playing video games: “Video games don’t appear to have a meaningful impact on aggressive behaviour, and certainly aren’t the root cause of mass acts of societal violence.”

So, what about studies that claim otherwise? Experimental psychologists Andrew Przybylski and Amy Orben explain that this research is largely “riddled with methodological errors” — errors so major they change the conclusion of a study. (And whaddaya know, the error-driven conclusion is typically the newsmeaty “Lock up

answers [CROSSWORD] crossword on page 11

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your kid’s Nintendo, lady, or you’re gonna be putting your house up for bail.”)

That said, you aren’t wrong that video games can be a “coping mechanism”: thinking and/or behavior we deploy to manage stressful situations and painful emotions. Coping mechanisms themselves — whether going for a run, taking a bath, or engaging in a couple hours of Mortal Kombat — are not bad.

On the other hand, if your boyfriend is at risk of losing his job because he can’t stop gaming or burglarizes the neighbors to buy a bunch of new games, well, that reflects what Przybylski and Orben call “problematic gaming.” However, they explain that this afflicts only a “small subset” of gamers, and it’s likely driven by underlying problems such as anxiety and depression.

In other words, problematic gaming is a symptom, not the problem itself.

By the way, contrary to the tired ‘80s/’90s stereotype of video games played by an isolated loser in the basement, online gaming connects gamers around the globe. Gamers make friends and are part of a community. (Best of all, in the virtual world, nobody’s breathing on anybody, so gamers’ friendships are

immune to lockdowns.) And though there’s a widespread assumption that gaming causes social awkwardness, it often opens up a social world for the sort of person who’d rather RVSP to be put to death than go make small talk face to face at a party.

Now, maybe you are so anti-video game that your relationship just won’t fly anymore. But consider whether it’s actually your boyfriend’s gaming that’s bothering you — or whether you’re longing for more attention than he’s been giving you. If it’s the latter, chances are the answer is not just time spent but quality time: being really present and affectionate when you’re together. Tell him what you need, and see whether he’s up for providing it. It’s understandably upsetting to have serious competition for your boyfriend’s attention — whether it’s from another woman or the 26 druids he has to gun down before dinner. !

GOT A PROBLEM? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave., #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email AdviceAmy@aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com). Follow her on Twitter @amyalkon. Order her latest “science-help” book, Unf*ckology: A Field Guide to Living with Guts and Confidence. ©2021 Amy Alkon. Distributed by Creators.Com.

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