Commissioners need to climb this hill For the past several months, County Attorney Joe Connolly and the Board of Commissioners have suggested to concerned Buncombe County residents that it would be difficult and time-consuming to impose a temporary development moratorium. Municipal development moratoriums have been legally and successfully used to deal with a variety of … Read more
Just because something is legal, does that make it right? That’s a question voters may want to ask about this year’s judicial candidates. And the answer may come in the form of deeds, not words. On the one hand, a slew of influential special-interest groups flood judges’ mailboxes with questionnaires aimed at praising or pummeling … Read more
These are the new wolves of Madison County — human predators far more dangerous than their iconic ancestors. Oral history has it that Hershel Porshia’s grandfather, an immigrant from France, killed the last wolf in Madison County more than a century ago near Big Bald Mountain. The animals whose lupine cries still haunt many of … Read more
All of the films below are in competition unless otherwise noted After The Storm Saturday, 2:15 – 4 p.m. Lord Auditorium at Pack Memorial Library Sunday, 2:15 – 4 p.m. Fine Arts Theatre – upperWorld Premiere (4 minutes) In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, this film is intended to challenge American viewers to remember who … Read more
Canadian invasion: Broken Social Scene prove that everything is bigger in the land of the maple leaf. Leave it to the rock trivia geeks to determine the average life expectancy of a rock band with an 18-member roster, but smart money says it’s a lot shorter than Broken Social Scene’s current 7-year run. Bands much … Read more
Chain-linked with the big guy upstairs: After a high-profile bout with booze and drugs, still-too-young-to-run-for-president blues prodigy Johnny Lang saw the light and was welcomed into the Christian-music fold. There’s a certain predictable trajectory to the life of a blues musician. It goes something like this: Start young, cut a deal with the devil, release … Read more
The Infamous Angel of the clothes lines: Iris DeMent may be a country music trailblazer, but some feel she missed an even greater calling as a laundress. Okay, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Iris DeMent is the greatest country singer to come along in the last 15 years. And … Read more
Inside, outside, upside down: Nina Hole’s “Upside Downtown” is a remarkable work about the definitions of shape, surface and the symbolic function of vessels. Western North Carolina, with its rich history of architecture and ceramics, has a unique opportunity to explore the connections between the two forms: The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design in … Read more
SeepeopleS spelled backwards is SelpoepeeS Love them or hate them, the jam-techno-experimental-rock-whatever band SeepeopleS are one of the most critically recognized groups to call Asheville home (after the stealthy and elusive Reigning Sound, of course). Fronted by Will “I appear to play everything from which sound can be made” Bradford, the band recently announced that … Read more
