A little background for those unfamiliar with Benji Hughes: The Charlotte-based singer resembles a husky Duane Allman, sporting huge sunglasses, wavy hair that hangs halfway down his back and a beard that’s nearly as long. He sings in a deep baritone, reminiscent of The Magnetic Fields’ Stephin Merritt, writes pop-friendly rock songs with an emphasis on partying and has a habit of shedding his clothes during live shows.
Equality NC kicked off its efforts to defeat Amendment One — which would ban legal recognition of same-sex relationships — with staffer Jen Jones running through downtown as part of the statewide Race to the Ballot campaign. The newly opened Asheville office will be the organization’s headquarters for organizing in the Western part of the state.
(Photo by Bill Rhodes)
So there they were bright and early announcing this year’s Oscar nominees to an unseen audience. There must have been an audience, though, because there was some unseemly whooping over the nominations for Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (I’m sure there was a good reason for this). And, no, I did not get up for this, I just happened to be up at the time. Now, the guessing and the kvetching begins—not to mention the studio shilling, which has already begun with the TV ads. Lotsa fun.
