Greener pastures

Local author Sallie Bissell returns to her Mary Crow series Sallie Bissell describes herself as a “flatland Southerner,” and you can hear it in her voice. But this Nashville native…

Asheville-based psychedelic indie pop rocker outfit The Tills arose from the ashes of its former, and apparently legally bound name, The Critters, in January after receiving a cease-and-desist phone call…

Asheville Earth Day celebrates sustainability and optimism “I think what’s really cool about Earth Day is that it can provide this umbrella for all the nonprofits in Asheville to come…

Asheville’s theater season heats up Provocative works and cutting-edge performance collectives are still making their presence felt — and in fact, the arrival of longer days and warmer temps means…

Slow Down Pictures is the third art show with a soundtrack created by former Xpress designer and artist Nathanael Roney, and musician J Seger (Emily Easterly, VA/MD). “For the first…

The Fox & Beggar Theater debuts with surreal circus experience Animalia “He breathes in the wet dawn through / his mottled skin, soaks in its vitality / until his old…

Earth Week events around Western North Carolina Save the shrews, celebrate the trees, take in a film and clean up a stream or two. For more ideas, visit Calendar and…

Portrait painter Benjamin Franklin Long IV is also a master of the “true fresco,” the technique used by Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel. Long has completed more than 15…

Local Afropop band Zansa has big news: Frontman Adama Dembele recently returned from a trip to his home country, Ivory Coast, where he performed at the weeklong MASA Festival, according…

Nickel Creek’s reunion tour stops in Asheville Five years ago, Nickel Creek — one of the most respected young acoustic bands in America — called it quits. Now, to celebrate…

Asheville takes on the beer cocktail On any given night in Asheville, people are mixing up their beer and booze, usually in the form of shots and chasers. But there’s…

The world of wine can be a bit pretentious. Honestly, when is the last time any of us had a boysenberry or a currant? Fortunately, Andy Hale of Metro Wines…

Strategies for dealing with picky eaters Most parents face the challenge of dealing with a picky eater at some point in their child’s life. As the mother of a 5-year-old…

Two new books sure to satisfy homebrewers and beer lovers I could say that Mike Karnowski’s book, Homebrew Beyond the Basics, is easily the best brewing book of the year.…

Early voting for the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners primary starts April 24 — just two days after Earth Day. The juxtaposition underscores the fundamental link between sustainability and politics.

The first group of students in Lenoir-Rhyne University’s new sustainability studies program may be small, but the fruits of their research might eventually have a big local impact. Based at…

The mission of Xpress’ first annual Get It! Guide is to provide locals and visitors with an introduction to the many ways we can engage and have a stake in…

Quietly, day after day, the dedicated staff at CMLC works to protect special open space lands for the public to enjoy. In 2013, the nonprofit had its biggest year ever,…

Over the last few months, I have observed an unsettling trend of people using the sides of trails as latrines. I, too, am an avid outdoors person and often spend…

I am writing to express my concern about a letter to the editor that was published in the Mountain Xpress on Wednesday, April 2 [”Had Enough of Stewart David’s Letters.”]. …

We locals are known for our strong opinions but we also have a culture of tolerance.  In fact, respect for others’ differences is what makes our area such a desirable…

We are very much in favor of a park in this place [Asheville city property along Haywood Road across from the Basilica of St. Lawrence]. It would accentuate the beautiful…

The circus is making its annual debut in Asheville, and I urge you to think twice before buying your ticket.  Although it looks like clean family fun in the ring,…