Cover Story
‘For the heads’: An oral history of EXAT, Detroit’s legendary ’90s experimental and ambient techno night at Zoot’s Coffeehouse
Detroit’s underground dance events of the ’90s are justly storied — but one of the decade’s most consistently attended and long-term impactful was small, insider-heavy, and not intended for dancing at all. EXAT — Experimental and Ambient Techno — ran every Monday night at the legendary Zoot’s Coffeehouse. Founded in late 1992 by Dan Solomon,…
Detroit sculptor Austen Brantley to build statue honoring late Tuskegee Airman Alexander Jefferson
Detroit’s own Tuskegee Airman Alexander Jefferson is being honored with a statue of his likeness in Rouge Park. After a month-long search for an artist worthy of the task, the Detroit office of Arts, Culture, and Entrepreneurship chose local sculptor Austen Brantley to build the monument. It’s a full circle moment — a Black Detroiter…
Detroit looks for a new way to fund ShotSpotter after outrage over using COVID-19 funds
For the third time in three weeks, the Detroit City Council on Tuesday postponed a vote to expand a controversial surveillance technology for the police department. The council voted 6-3 to delay a vote until next week. Last week, a majority of the council members said they don’t support using COVID-19 relief funds to pay…
Best CBD Oil for Anxiety: Bestsellers of 2022
Around 40 million adults—19.1% of the population—experience anxiety disorders in the United States every year. Anxiety symptoms can affect your daily tasks and even derail any professional or personal goals you have. And when not treated, anxiety can cause complex risks to health and lifestyle. CBD oils and tinctures are becoming increasingly popular for their…
Moratorium proposed on new cannabis grower licenses to address plummeting prices in Michigan
Lobbyists for Michigan’s largest cannabis operations are calling on lawmakers to impose a moratorium on new growers to help prevent prices from continuing to plummet in the recreational market. The proposed moratorium would prevent the Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency (CRA) from approving new grower licenses. Prices for legal cannabis have hit all-time lows in Michigan,…
Consumer advisory issued for produce from Michigan farm using ‘raw human waste’ as fertilizer
A consumer advisory warning has been issued for produce from Michigan-based Kuntry Gardens, which the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) says was found using “raw, untreated human waste” as fertilizer on its farm in Homer. The department is now advising consumers not to eat any of the farm’s products, and impacted produce…
Attorneys from Grand Rapids helped ‘The Onion’ create quite possibly the funniest legal document of all time
The humor website The Onion filed an amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday in defense of the very concept of parody, and perhaps as no surprise, the legal document is a hilariously meta must-read. The 18-page filing contains plenty of the searing satire the Chicago-based news website is known for, opening with…
Detroit’s Pink Panties Pizza delivers weed-infused pies that will knock you on your ass
When I first heard about Pink Panties Pizza, a Detroit-based THC-infused pizza delivery service, I thought it was fake. But it is, indeed, very real. A delivery driver handed me a box with “warning, this pizza got weed in it… good weed…” written on it. A cartoon pizza on the box wearing panties, fishnet stockings,…
New Tudor Dixon ad could be an ‘SNL’ skit gone bad
A new Tudor Dixon ad is so cringe-worthy that we had to double check to make sure it wasn’t a parody. The video features a group of leather-clad bikers complaining about COVID-19 restrictions, rising gas prices, and abortion rights. “Hey, have you seen the TV ads with the governor talking about the great things she’s…
Cartier gifts Detroit artists with a new pair of Buffs
This article was updated with a statement from Cartier. Cartier frames are to Detroit what Timberland boots are to New York. They’re a part of Detroit culture, and one could say an essential Motor City status symbol. In 2019, Kash Doll gifted Big Sean a pair of Cartier glasses, Big Gretch found herself offered a…
What the heck is Yooperlite? You can find out at the Greater Detroit Gem & Mineral Show
The 77th Greater Detroit Gem, Mineral & Fossil Show is this weekend, and one of the rocks taking the spotlight is called Yooperlite. You’re probably asking what the heck is Yooperlite, and whether it’s a real thing or just a made-up name. Technically, it’s a real thing with a made-up name. Yooperlites were discovered on…
New restaurant Symposia opens in Detroit’s Greektown
A new fine-dining restaurant called Symposia is opening in Greektown’s Atheneum Suite Hotel and Conference Center. The Mediterranean-inspired spot is owned and operated by the Papas family, the people also behind Greektown’s Pegasus Taverna, A Bar, Mosaic, and Santorini Estiatorio. “Since we opened Mosaic and Santorini Estiatorio, we’ve been eager to introduce another restaurant concept…
Opinion: Detroit is at a crossroads about safety and surveillance, City Council must choose the right path
On Tuesday, Oct. 4, Detroit City Council will meet for the third time to decide whether to use $7 million dollars in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) COVID-19 relief funding to expand the controversial gunshot detection technology ShotSpotter. Members of Detroit City Council have twice delayed a vote that, if passed, would install more gunshot…
Laith Al-Saadi: ‘It’s time we stopped putting people in cages for using a plant’
For Laith Al-Saadi this is the best of times, it is the worst of times. One of southeast Michigan’s best-known and hardest-working musicians, the Ann Arbor native will combine his annual pre-COVID birthday bash with a performance at 5:15 p.m. Saturday during the second CannaJam Festival at Riverside Park near Ypsilanti. “This is the first…
Activists are calling on Wayne State University to demand its vendors stop donating to political extremists
Activists are urging the Wayne State University Board of Governors to pass a measure that calls on companies that do business with the school to stop contributing to political candidates who are undermining democracy. The idea is to discourage companies from donating to political candidates who push for restrictions on voting and spread lies about…
Iran’s regime must be held accountable — by Iranians themselves
The Iranian government is one of the world’s most repressive autocracies. It uses religion as a cudgel to repress freedom of speech, thought, dress, and opportunity. And one of its tricks is framing any dissent as an attack from anti-Muslim elements abroad, rather than the organic movements for freedom they truly represent. On Sept. 16,…
Detroiter starts nonprofit A Girl Like Me to help other teen moms
Tyra Moore remembers all too well what it was like to be pregnant at 14. At first, she tried to ignore the pregnancy signs and symptoms, but months later, she couldn’t deny the feeling any longer, and began to feel small kicks in her stomach. During that time, Moore had only told two people her…
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is considered the best spot for fall colors in the country — and we’re not surprised
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is the best place to take in the changing autumn leaves in the country. And we’re not just saying that because we’re from here. The U.P. topped the USA Today list of fall foliage viewing destinations for 2022. “Just about the entire Upper Peninsula puts on a display of fall color that…
Election tampering and an alleged prank call from Trump: The top 10 Metro Times headlines
This week, the hot topic in Detroit was ShotSpotter, and our readers were interested in what’s happening with the city with the surveillance technology. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell also claimed that former President Donald Trump prank called her in a new book by reporter Maggie Haberman that chronicles Trump’s presidency, set for release on Oct. 4.…
Letters to the editor: How do you say ‘How rude!’ in French?
We received the following email in response to last week’s review of Detroit’s Bar Pigalle restaurant. Is that a serious article? How in the hell do you write a review of a restaurant without mentioning the chef? Have y’all ever done this before? I know staffing is tough these days… especially for washed up has…
Popular cannabis seed bank in Jackson will soon be employee-owned with a co-op for customers
Seed Cellar, the state’s largest cannabis seed bank, will soon be employee-owned with plans to launch a co-op for customers. Owner Roger Maufort plans to turn over the Jackson-based business to his four employees at the beginning of next year. Seed Cellar, at 1620 E. Michigan Ave., will also launch a co-op for customers, who…
Youth pastor sentenced to 13 years in prison for sexual abuse involving Michigan Christian camp
A former youth pastor from New York was sentenced in federal court in St. Louis today to more than 13 years in prison for two felonies stemming from his crossing state lines to engage in a sexual act with a person under 16. In 2013 when Jesse Vargas was 29, he had sexual contact with…
‘Van Gogh in America’ opens at Detroit Institute of Arts on Sunday
A century ago, the Detroit Institute of Arts was way ahead of the curve when it became the first U.S. museum to purchase a painting by Vincent Van Gogh. That was his 1887 “Self-Portrait,” a 13.75-inch by 10.5-inch oil painting made several years before the painter would die by suicide. The museum paid $4,200 for…
City of Detroit begins demolishing a portion of the sprawling, storied Packard Plant
The city of Detroit is demolishing a two-block portion of the storied and sprawling Packard Plant on Thursday after the negligent owner failed to do it himself. The $1.6 million emergency demolition is taking place on a section of the long-abandoned auto plant that is next to an operating business, Display Group, north of Grand…
What happens if Republicans reclaim the U.S. House in November?
CBS News recently estimated that Republicans are on track to win 223 seats in the House in November. There’s a decent margin of error, enough that Democrats could hold onto a narrow majority or — more likely — Republicans could build a comfortable cushion, and the estimate would still be accurate. But assume it’s 223.…
Detroit Harvest Fest & Food Truck Rally brings fall fun to the Dequindre Cut this weekend
The autumn equinox has ushered in cooler weather and everything pumpkin spice, and this weekend the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy will celebrate it all. On Saturday and Sunday, the Dequindre Cut will be packed with food trucks, live music, a pumpkin patch for the kids, trick or treating, bouncy houses, ax throwing, a petting zoo, and…
Iconic Charles McGee mural displayed in downtown Detroit for a limited time
We have been blessed with another masterpiece by prolific Detroit artist Charles McGee in downtown Detroit. In partnership with Orange Barrel Media, Library Street Collective unveiled a new display of McGee’s 2011 Play Patterns II this week. It’s not the full-scale original piece, but a section of the painting is on the side of the…
Michigan election worker charged with tampering with primary election equipment
An election worker in Michigan has been charged with two felonies for allegedly using a flash drive to gain illegal access to a voting machine. James Donald Holkeboer is accused of inserting a USB drive into a computer containing confidential voter registration during the Aug. 2 primary election in Gaines Township in Kent County. “This…
Michigan body builder pleads guilty to assaulting officers during Jan. 6 insurrection
A Michigan body builder who posed for romance novels pleaded guilty to dragging an officer down the steps of the U.S. Capitol before using the base of a flagpole to assault other officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. Logan Barnhart, 41, of Holt, admitted he was part of a mob that assaulted officers at…
Secret concert series Sofar Sounds is still going strong in Detroit
You never know what you’re going to get at a Sofar Sounds concert. The evening could bring rappers, metal bands, country singers, or all three on the same night. That’s by design. The global secret concert series takes place at undisclosed locations that are only revealed 36 hours prior to the show, and you won’t…
Detroit’s QLine streetcars wrapped in Van Gogh art to promote DIA’s new exhibit
Detroit’s QLine is now urging its riders to “Gogh to the DIA.” The streetcars have been wrapped in that message along with images of the work of Vincent Van Gogh to promote the Detroit Institute of Arts’ new exhibition Van Gogh in America, which opens to the public on Sunday. “We are thrilled to partner…
Debbie Dingell claims Trump prank called her in new book
Shortly after she said she would vote to impeach former President Donald Trump in 2019, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan says she got a mysterious phone call. She had also recently condemned Trump for speaking ill of her late husband, U.S. Rep. John Dingell, at a rally. The caller claimed to be a reporter…
Westland’s Kung Fu Brothers Noodles and Dumplings is one of metro Detroit’s best new restaurants
On the day of my first trip to Kung Fu Brothers Dumplings and Noodles, I was reminded of the absurdity of the national food media. As I raved to friends about the hand-pulled noodles, soup dumplings, and “Chinese burritos” that Kung Fu Brothers does in Westland, The New York Times published its list of “50…
The accolades for U.K. rock band Wolf Alice are rolling in — but they’re not letting it get to their heads
In February, Wolf Alice took the BRIT Award for Group of the Year. A couple months earlier, the indie rock band was named Best Festival Headliner by the NME Awards. In June 2021, it released its third album, Blue Weekend, to universal acclaim, garnering a Mercury Prize nomination. It didn’t win that prestigious award given…
