A group of local entrepreneurs is banding together to promote a new and existing street and craft markets in Asheville. Organizers hope the effort to promote affordable, locally made arts and crafts will draw shoppers and tourists while supporting emerging artists and others struggling during the current recession. Craft works: A group of Asheville entrepreneurs … Read more
In a special meeting May 28, URTV’s board of directors unanimously approved new bylaws that concentrate more power in the board’s hands while keeping the current membership structure intact. Revised: URTV Parliamentarian Bob Horn clarifies part of the new bylaws while board President Jerry Young looks on. Originally, the proposed bylaws would have done away … Read more
Some 200 people—including uniformed soldiers, patch-wearing vets, Boy and Girl Scouts and assorted civilians—gathered at Memorial Stadium above McCormick Field on May 25 for the Asheville/Buncombe Memorial Day ceremony. The sixth annual observation was also notable for the dedication of a veterans memorial on the site after a years-long and sometimes troubled effort by city … Read more
Never underestimate the weather. Sure, the French Broad River crested a tad above flood stage on May 27 at Blantyre, near Brevard. Yes, May has brought us more than 8 inches of rain (that’s nearly a record, twice what’s been typical since 1971, and definitely greater than 2008’s paltry 0.81 inches, according to the National … Read more
While local singer/songwriter Josh Blake is enthusiastic Big Money Band (the feel-good folk-rock departure from his regular stint with hip-hop collective GFE), he's sometimes lukewarm about the group's name. What was meant in the spirit of fun, he worries, “might give people the wrong impression about why we play music.” Branching out: Josh Blake also … Read more
"I like cryptic stuff," says Don Howland. "I've always gravitated towards the obscure. And it's not just the obscurity of it I like. It's what makes it great, but still obscure. I don't think you lose the spirit of what makes rock and roll good when you stay obscure." A cult figure’s cult figure: Don … Read more
Upon starting as A&E editor in August, we put the call out to readers to tell us what they’d like more of in the Xpress arts section. “More theatre reviews” was a frequent answer. The prospect was complicated somewhat by print deadlines and short runs — that is, could we print a quality review in … Read more
It’s hard to be an art aficionado in Asheville without acknowledging the historical significance that craft-making and folk art traditions have on the creative work produced in this region. Western Carolina University recently launched an expansive Web site documenting the the Southern Highlands Craft Revival Movement of the 1890s through the 1940s. The site is … Read more
Let’s get one thing clear from the start: Cara Oshiver is selling poles. Pole-dancing poles. Portable pole-dancing poles. Cara Oshiver When the 30-year-old walked into the Mountain Xpress offices recently looking for someone to tell her story, though, it was her sincerity more than her sales pitch that grabbed our attention. Oshiver wants nothing less … Read more
Editor’s note: The new Grand Bohemian Hotel’s restaurant is intended to inspire the eater’s inner Victorian-era hunter. In that spirit, we felt it was only appropriate to review the Red Stag Grill in the style favored by the 19th century armed explorers who regaled their readers with tales of high adventures. Flavor: European-leaning carnivorous Ambiance: … Read more
