Cover Story
Frontier Ruckus makes sense of their present tense with latest album ‘On the Northline’
For the first time, possibly ever, Matthew Milia is actually thinking about the future. Or at least the present. “Something I love about getting older,” says the Detroit-based singer-songwriter, “is that you start to become longer-sighted about the bigger picture of the arc of your life.” The cofounder of indie rock band Frontier Ruckus is…
Ethan Coen teams up with wife Tricia Cooke for road trip comedy ‘Drive-Away Dolls’
One of the many pleasures — and occasional frustrations — of the Coen Brothers is their predictable unpredictability. From the outset of their career — which began with the markedly dissimilar (and remarkably accomplished) quartet of Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Miller’s Crossing, and Barton Fink — Joel and Ethan Coen have refused to conform to…
House of Dank Set to Open 10th Retail Location, Marking the Start to a New Chapter in the States Capital
LANSING, Michigan – House of Dank’s newest recreational cannabis dispensary is set to open next month in Lansing. It will be open daily from 9am to 10pm, this location welcomes individuals aged 21 and older with a valid photo ID for an exceptional cannabis shopping experience. Located at 2905 N East St, Lansing, MI 48906,…
Mary Sheffield teams up with Skilla Baby for gun buyback and expungement fair
Detroit rapper Skilla Baby took to Instagram on Monday to announce he would be partnering with City Council President Mary Sheffield and Judge Tenisha Yancey for a gun buyback event this weekend. The event, which will be held from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24 at The Icon in Detroit, will also consist of…
Marrow Detroit Provisions to open first location in the suburbs
Marrow, the beloved butcher shop and eatery located in Detroit’s West Village neighborhood, is soon opening its first location outside of the city. Anticipated to open doors in the spring, the new Marrow Detroit Provisions storefront will find its home at 283 Hamilton Row in Birmingham. “Our products were so well-received at the Birmingham Farmer’s…
Dearborn mayor makes stirring case for ‘uncommitted’ vote in Democratic primary
Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, a Democrat who served two terms in the state house, was an enthusiastic supporter of President Biden for most of his first term. Then the bombs began dropping in Gaza, killing more than 28,000 people since October. Like many of his Muslim and Arab-American neighbors, many of whom voted for Biden…
Basketball event honors aspiring Detroit rapper whose career was cut short by gun violence
On July 12, 2023 Brandon Allen and DeLisa Glaspie received news no parent ever wants to hear: their son Khalil Amari Allen, 18, was killed in a shooting on Detroit’s westside. “He was on his way to get some food and he was involved in a drive-by shooting,” his father Brandon Allen says. “He was…
Detroit R&B artists to perform at inaugural Fireside Lovefest
Detroit-based entertainment event production company Code x Rosella is preparing to host its inaugural R&B festival, Fireside Lovefest. The group’s mission is to open doors for local artists, and this event is centered specifically on providing a platform for R&B musicians to reach audiences outside of their own. Happening not too long after Valentine’s Day,…
Khana is hosting its first-ever five-course pop-up dinner at Frame
Detroit food pop-up Khana has been slinging Pakistani-inspired food around the city since 2018 but has never hosted a full-fledged multi-course dinner until now. On Friday, Khana will be taking over Hazel Park’s Frame with a “Modern Pakistani Dinner Party” by owner and chef Maryam Khan. Khana is coming off a run on Food Network’s…
Sponge’s Vinnie Dombroski celebrates Edo Ramen House’s sixth anniversary with acoustic set
Royal Oak’s Edo Ramen House is celebrating its sixth anniversary with a little help from some friends. The ramen hangout will host an acoustic performance from Vinnie Dombroski (Sponge, the Orbitsuns, Crud), who will play a mix of covers and originals, with art on display from other members of metro Detroit’s extended rock ’n’ roll…
Dwindling Great Lakes ice cover highlights troubling trend
The Great Lakes region has experienced record low ice cover this winter, and scientists said it is important to keep an eye on the warming trends. Ice cover on the Great Lakes is currently at just 2.9% of the surface area, compared with the historical average of 38% for this time of year. Ayumi Fujisaki-Manome,…
Lapointe: Watch out, Detroit. Sore loser Donald Trump is watching you.
As his campaign speech rambled well past an hour Saturday night in Waterford Township, former President Donald Trump finally uttered the welcome words “in conclusion,” as if it were the two-minute warning at a pro football game. But then the large, loud, orange-faced, yellow-haired demagogue suddenly veered off-script again, like a drunk driver on a…
A&E’s ‘James Brown: Say It Loud’ doc explores a complicated genius
One powerful takeaway from James Brown: Say It Loud, the extraordinary two-night, four-hour documentary premiering at 8 p.m. Monday Feb. 19 on A&E, is the tragically fleeting nature of fame and legacy. As the subtitle of Hour Two suggests, there was a time when James Brown was arguably “The Most Powerful Black Man in America.”…
Zeds Dead, Mersiv to headline GRIDLIFE Midwest fest
Michigan’s GRIDLIFE Midwest motorsports and music festival has announced the lineup for its 2024 edition, set for Friday, June 7-Sunday, June 9 at Gingerman Raceway in South Haven. The bass-heavy lineup features headliners Zeds Dead and Mersiv, with support acts including Tape B, Barely Alive, Eazybaked, G-REX, A Hundred Drums, a b2b set from SuperAve…
Warm winters a wet blanket for small ski slopes in northern Michigan
This coverage is made possible through a partnership with IPR and Grist, a nonprofit independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. It’s around 8 a.m. on an early February morning at Mt. Holiday, a small ski area in Traverse City. The rustic lodge overlooking the slopes is quiet.…
‘Blues For An Alabama Sky’ shows us the consequences of toxic friendships
Some people will drag you to hell if you let them. It doesn’t matter what you’ve been through together, how much you’ve done for them, or how much you love them — someone who is a black hole of destruction will swallow everyone in their path. It’s their nature. In Blues For An Alabama Sky,…
Macomb Prosecutor Lucido accused of ethics violation for photo with election fraudster
A county ethics board will soon review a complaint that alleges Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido violated a local election law by using his county property to promote a Republican candidate who was later charged with forging signatures on absentee ballot applications. Mark Brewer, the former chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, claims Lucido, a…
Election committee gives green light to recall of Highland Park mayor over skyrocketing water bills
The Wayne County Election Committee approved language Thursday for a campaign to recall Highland Park Mayor Glenda McDonald for allowing residents’ utility bills to skyrocket. Highland Park activist Robert Davis says he and recall supporters aren’t wasting time in collecting signatures to remove the first-term mayor. “Her days as mayor are numbered,” Davis tells Metro…
Col’s Place to move into former Inn Season cafe in Royal Oak
A wise man once said “every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” (That man was Dan Wilson, frontman of alternative rock band Semisonic.) In the case of Col’s Place, which closed its Madison Heights restaurant in October after more than 20 years in business, that new beginning comes from Royal Oak’s former Inn…
Metro Times endorses ‘uncommitted’ in 2024 presidential primary
All too often, generation after generation of disaffected voters in the U.S. feel forced to make a choice between the “lesser of two evils” in the November general election, unimpressed by the candidates that the establishment produces. That’s likely to be the case among many in the unlikely coalition that united to send Joe Biden…
Afro Nation is heading back to Detroit for a second year
In 2023 Detroit became the second U.S. city to host the international afrobeats festival Afro Nation. Organizers of the music and culture festival celebrating the African diaspora have announced they plan to return to Detroit for a second round in 2024. “Motor City we’re back!! Afro Nation is coming to Detroit this year for #AND2024!”…
Kitab Cafe and Bookstore is opening its Midtown location this weekend
Earlier this winter, we found out that Hamtramck’s Kitab Cafe would be opening a second location in Detroit’s former Avalon Bakery space. Now, the spot has announced it will hold a soft opening this Friday, Feb. 16. An Instagram post from Feb. 14 showcasing he inside of the new Midtown location says hours will be…
The lamb shanks are transcendent at Saj Alreef in Sterling Heights
Among my best experiences dining in Michigan was my initial trip to Sullaf, the venerable carryout Iraqi spot on Seven Mile Road just east of Woodward in Detroit’s old Chaldeantown neighborhood. I entered, looked a bit confused because there was no menu, and a gruff chef curtly asked me what I wanted.” “Is there a…
Elderly Detroit man freed after he was sentenced to life in prison at the age of 18
An elderly man who has been in prison since fatally stabbing a Detroit man in the chest during a 1965 robbery is being released as the result of a Michigan court ruling that changes how the state treats 18-year-olds convicted of murder. Ivory Thomas was resentenced Tuesday to 40 to 60 years in prison, which…
Words salad
Chowhound is a weekly column about what’s trending in Detroit food culture. Tips: eat@metrotimes.com. I’ve no meaty topic to devote an entire column to this week. Nibble on these tidbits instead: Asking for a friend: My lifelong buddy Bret and I met in kindergarten. We know each other well at this point. Food-wise, there’s nothing…
Free Will Astrology (Feb. 14-20)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Some stories don’t have a distinct and orderly beginning, middle, and end. At any one point, it may be hard to know where you are. Other tales have a clear beginning, middle, and end, but the parts occur out of order; maybe the middle happens first, then the end, followed by…
