Cover Stories
Saying Goodbye: Notable 2013 Obituaries
Of mice and men Douglas Engelbart Jan. 30, 1925-July 2, 2013 Early computer pioneer invented the first computer mouse In 1950, Douglas Engelbart had a good career: He was employed by the NACA Ames Laboratory, the precursor to NASA, where he worked on wind tunnels and other feats of engineering. He liked to hike and…
Metro Times Readers’ Letters To Santa
The holidays are a fertile time for high hopes. Perhaps there are a few material objects that could bring us joy, or maybe we’d just like a few things to break our way as the year draws to a close — and some help from a certain jolly fella is as good a way to…
On Politics, Champagne, and Ilitch
Political Ranting re: “Christmas Is for the Rich”; [Politics and Prejudices; Dec. 25-31, 2013] Dear Editor: It breaks my heart that so many children are living in poverty, but what hurts me more is that the liberal agenda fueling this situation is still being perpetuated. Even though, after 40 years of social engineering by our…
AlterNet’s Top 10 Right-Wing Jaw-Droppers
America’s right wing is a national embarrassment. On any given day, you can find its leaders spouting racism, pretending poverty doesn’t exist, mocking the idea that climate change is a serious problem, or attempting to restrict the fundamental rights of women. Here are some of AlterNet’s most popular and outrageous stories about the right from…
MT Staff Top 10 Albums of 2013
Album of the Year | Danny Brown Old The votes have been counted and the results are in. The 2013 Metro Times Album of the Year is Danny Brown’s Old, and now we’re feverishly assembling a trophy with a little gold joint on top. In all seriousness, Brown fully deserves this. He’s had a tremendous…
Reviews of The High Strung, George Morris and Silent Lions
The High Strung I, Anybody New Fortune The High Strung is beyond rougher-hewn, rambunctious rock — leave that for the wayward ramblers still on the south side of 30. They chart into more epic waters here, sounding particularly attuned with one another and somewhat enlightened. They’re musing on heavier concepts, like what lies “beyond the…
Domino Effect in Marijuana Decriminalization
One of the most interesting stories I’ve read this past year is that of the Lykovs, a Russian family that lived off the land in the Siberian wilderness for more than 40 years before they were discovered in late 1978. Smithsonian magazine did a big story on them last winter, and versions of it have…
Wishing For Winter Classic Every Day
Last night, as I was driving south on Woodward Avenue through Highland Park, there was an eerie, heavenly glow hovering near downtown. Bigger than the searchlights used to beckon patrons to strip clubs and haunted houses, way brighter than the world’s biggest big box parking lot. I kept driving past where I was originally headed…
Rock City Eatery
Rock City Eatery 11411 Joseph Campau, Hamtramck 248-633-3072 facebook.com/rockcityeatery Handicap accessible Sandwiches & mains: $6-$12 Sides & desserts: $3-$7 Open noon-3 p.m. & 4 p.m.-midnight Monday-Thursday; noon-3 p.m. & 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday; 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Saturday. It only makes sense that a chef who names his business “Rock City” would have a punk rock…
2013 Film Releases In Review
’Tis the season to make year-end lists, and far be it for me to Scrooge out on my responsibilities. And while I have my faves (listed dutifully below), it might be a tad more interesting to explore some of the year’s cinematic trends and thematic triumphs. Near-misses, almost-rans and abject failures are often worthier of…
Lessenberry’s 2014 Michigan Predictions
HAPPY NEW YEAR, comrades! If you don’t see any political commercials during whatever football game you watch next, enjoy it while it lasts. This is, after all, an election year. Every state official has to face the voters, from Gov. Rick Snyder right down to the most craven timeserver in the state legislature. Within weeks…
Bettye LaVette Comes To AntiFreeze Blues Fest
Bettye LaVette made her first record at age 16 — she’s now 67 — and is the first to point out that her career hasn’t been one of glamour and outrageous fortune. This R&B singer has fought and scraped for every little bit of success she’s had, most of which has come her way only…
I’m Morbidly Obese And Never Dated
Q: I’m a 34-year-old straight female. I am morbidly obese and have been for most of my life. I have never dated. I’ve been on a couple of dates, and only when I asked the guy out. From reading your columns and books, I am aware that some men are attracted to fat women. But since…
Lest we forget: locals we lost in 2013
By Michael Jackman and Brett Callwood Bootsey X When Bootsey X, real name Robert Mulrooney, died after a four-year struggle with brain cancer in November at the age of 59, he left a huge hole in the Detroit rock ’n’ roll scene. Best known as the leader of his own band, Bootsey X & the…
12th Man Report: Lions’ loss improves draft prospects
With the conclusion of the 2013 NFL regular season, the first 20 spots in the 2014 draft have now been decided. The Lions, who are all too familiar with a pick inside the top 10, again, find themselves one of the lucky (though actually unlucky) teams with an early pick. Coming into this past Sunday’s…
Reviewing Simone Felice’s Strangers
Simone Felice, a founding member of the Felice Brothers and The Duke & the King, loves Bob Dylan. Hell, in “Molly-O!,” the opening track on Strangers, he even tops his hat to “Baby Blue.” But hey, if you’re going to borrow, borrow from the best. What he is, however, is a really great songwriter. The…
Solvent – I Dream of Wires Soundtrack
I Dream Of Wires Soundtrack Suction Jason Amm likely served as a gateway into electronic music for a good number of young listeners, releasing the analog-synthesizer centric odyssey of Apples + Synthesizers 10 years ago. From this producer’s post-techno visions—a blend of eerie drones, rhythmic blips and melodic 8-bit shushed sweeps—you could go back to the source…
Worst Movies of 2013
I’ve got a cool job, but there are many, many times when the film critic’s life becomes a struggle for survival against a soulless dream factory intent on crushing your mind and spirit. Mediocre, disposable movies are a weekly hazard, but truly bad movies leave a stain on everything they touch. And — oh, good…
City Slang: Grommet album launch
This Friday, December 27, the New Dodge Lounge in Hamtramck will host a CD launch party for returning hard rockers Grommet. According to the New Dodge’s Facebook page, “Grommet’s 5th album release show along with very special guests Velveteen Rabbit & Archaic Spatium with ILO & the kung fu lovers. Along with Don’t be afraid…
Lunchtime Links: Entitled teens whine about Christmas, your Communist horoscope and more
1) The Entitled Generation: These tweets from petulant teens whining about Christmas will make you fear for the upcoming generation. 2) “A new nonprofit organization called Write-A-House, located in Detroit, Michigan (which, earlier this year, became the largest city in the United States to file for and enter bankruptcy) has found something creative to do with…
What is THAT? – Oddities from the MT mailbox
Here’s the deal. Every day here at the Metro Times, our mail delivery includes CDs, books and all sorts of other promotional items. A lot of it we can use and review – local-interest music, DVDs, etc. But we also get a lot of weird and whacky items that just kinda build up. So that’s…
The Spirit of Mittenfest (plus – Q&A with Jamaican Queens)
http://www.mittenfest.org/lineup Jamaican Queens are one of 40 bands set to perform the annual 5-day music festival, Mittenfest, in Ypsilanti this weekend. Cover charges raise funds for non-profit expository writing education organization 826Michigan. For the full line up – click here. Jamaican Queens think that it’s a good time to not give a fuck about what…
Start Again: The Hard Lessons
Start What You Finished Gangplank Detroit rock trio The Hard Lessons have donned a lot of hats in their 10-year run, debuting with a charged post-garage soul and swagger, to an accelerated, punkier brand of pop. They’ve gone completely clean and catchy with cute indie-pop earworms and they’ve gone more psychedelic with heavily produced records.…
City Slang: Live yoga at the DSO
Sometimes, the weirdest stories are the best. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has announced that, as part of its wildly popular Mix @ the Max series, there will be a chamber music yoga class on Sunday, January 26 at 10 a.m. They say, “oga Shelter instructor and DSO Librarian Ethan Allen will lead the first ever…
12th Man Report: Home woes haunt Wings
Do you remember in 2012, when the Red Wings couldn’t be touched in the friendly confines of Joe Louis Arena? Literally, too — Detroit set the NHL record for consecutive home wins at 23 that season, a streak that went more than three and a half months. Which begs to question, what’s going on this…
Reviewing Jill Jack Celebrates the Holidays
Leave it to annual DMA winner Jill Jack to uncover the true spirit of Christmas. Rather than try to add a contemporary edge to these old standards, Jack has taken the traditional route, which in itself is an alternative move nowadays. Agghh, we’ve gone full circle. She does stray from time to time, and that’s…
Film Review: The Wolf of Wall Street
The Wolf of Wall Street | B+ Over the course of his much-celebrated career, Martin Scorsese has become the unofficial chronicler of the American thug. From Mean Streets to Goodfellas to Casino to Gangs of New York to The Departed, he has explored the sociopath’s interpretation of the American dream from a variety of angles.…
Metro Times Says Goodbye To Publisher Chris Sexson
As the final issue of 2013 is readied for press, it’s noteworthy to mention some of the changes Metro Times has experienced within the last year, including those at the top of the masthead as well as the publication being put on the block for sale. In my short tenure here, I’ve been astonished at…
Christie’s Appraises DIA’s Most Valuable Assets
It’s been widely reported how priceless the Detroit Institute of Art’s collection is, but several months after being tapped by Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr to appraise its collection’s cash value, Christie’s Appraisals has set a value to the city’s crown jewels. The New York-based auction house began working on its assessment toward the end of…
Christmas Is For The Rich
Well, I hope by the time you are reading this I will be snuggled under the tree, “… playing war games with that new Play Station 4 that I REALLY WANT, Mommy — I really do. “After all, you can get one on Amazon for only $797.96, plus shipping; and the games are barely $59.99…
Game-Changing Events Build Motown Momentum
It’s the end of the year — a time when people make assessments of the past and prognosticate on the future. Both of those things are encapsulated in the civic events taking plans as we move forward with political change. I find it promising that soon-to-be Mayor Mike Duggan has dug in and tapped some…
Metro Times Readers Sound Off
Equality for All? Dear Editor: When presidents of major universities, like at the University of Michigan, have salaries larger than President Obama’s — Mary Sue Coleman, who is paid more than $600,000 yearly, comes to mind, and students are locking themselves into thousands of dollars in loans to get a bachelor’s degree — we…
Firebird Tavern
Firebird Tavern 419 Monroe St., Detroit 313-782-4189 Appetizers: $4-$10 Sandwiches and salads: $8-$12 Hours: 11 a.m.-12 a.m. Monday-Wednesday, 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Thursday-Saturday, occasional Sundays with special events or games. Talk about having big shoes to fill: Formerly Marilyn’s on Monroe, the iconic name and pop-art portrait have given way to Firebird Tavern’s rising phoenix. Owners…
Wilson
The band Wilson is so nondescript that, when pushing play on a Bandcamp page, you could hear literally anything; the uninitiated won’t know what hit them. Wilson could be a solo R&B guy or an emo band. It could be a jazz cellist or a folk banjo dude, but no — oh no — the…
Holiday Music Reviews
The Surfchords Sea Sun Greetings Self-Released No! Sorry, but no. While it is possible to combine Christmas music with surf rock and a cheeky smile, and for the results to be great, this record from New York’s Surfchords is fucking diabolical. After listening to it, this writer literally wanted to stab Santa in the face…
Ralphe Armstrong
One of the most-asked questions about jazz bassist Ralphe Armstrong’s debut album, HomeBass, was why it took him so long to release it. Not that he hasn’t been busy. For years, Armstrong has been playing all over the world with such names as Aretha Franklin, Carlos Santana, John McLaughlin, Sting and James Carter, so it’s…
Film Review: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty | C+ Ben Stiller’s very, very loose adaptation and well-intentioned neutering of James Thurber’s witty two-page short story has all the hallmarks of a holiday hit. It’s doggedly inoffensive, frequently amusing and even, at times, quite clever. It wears its big budget on its sleeve, jetting us to various…
Film Review: Grudge Match
Grudge Match | D Sagging flesh collides with a flurry of drooping jowls in a desperate display of fading virility; and I’m speaking not just of the stars of the hopelessly unfunny Grudge Match, but of the clueless suits who green-lit it. The Baby Boom generation, the 800-pound gorilla of the last half-century, steadfastly refuses…
Film Review: Anchorman 2
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues | B Are you aware there is an Anchorman sequel? I seem to recall seeing something about it — every time I’ve turned on the television, thumbed through a magazine, crossed the street or thought about purchasing a Dodge vehicle. After an unprecedented media barrage, at long last comes…
2014 Detroit Sports Predictions
Like 99.9 percent of sports journalists, I have pretty much no business commenting about the on-field play of professional athletes. Most of us are lucky to touch our own toes, let alone punt, pass or kick a ball more than 10 yards. Yet, with that said, it’s been extremely hard not to be critical of…
Book Reviews: Dead Pig Collector and Batman Vol. 3
Dead Pig Collector by Warren Ellis $.99 | Kindle, Nook, Google Play Mister Sun runs a unique business. He’s a hired killer with an unusual skill and he heads to L.A. to get his latest job done. The key isn’t just in the kill; it’s how he disposes of the bodies. Dead Pig Collector does…
From Peeling Paint To Wearable Art
Jogging the Dequindre Cut one day, attorney Amy Peterson was struck by the beauty of a fallen chip of graffiti paint. Originally from Jamestown, N.Y., Peterson came to Detroit for her “dream job” by way of Boston after earning degrees from both the New England School of Law and Suffolk University’s MBA program. “The city’s…
Classic Savage Letter About The Clit
DEAR READERS: Sophia Wallace, the New York City-based conceptual artist behind the amazing Cliteracy project, was a guest on my podcast recently. (To hear our conversation, go to savagelovecast.com and look up Episode 371.) During our chat, Wallace told me that a column I wrote years ago about the importance of the clit had…
12th Man Report: Lions “lose” hope
Two weeks ago, the stage was set on Monday night for the Lions to defeat the Baltimore Ravens and move one win closer to a spot in the 2013 playoffs. Of course, they didn’t do that. But their hopes for the playoffs weren’t over yet. With a win this past weekend and a loss from…
