Style Weekly - Richmond, VA local news, arts, and events., Style Weekly

McDonnell: Amend Ultrasound Bill

Scott Bass — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Under pressure, governor seeks amendments to controversial bill. by Scott Bass It's official: Gov. Bob McDonnell reverses position and is now seeking amendments to controversial legislation requiring "transvaginal ultrasounds" prior to abortion procedures. After McDonnell huddled with GOP lawmakers Tuesday night, the amendments are an attempt to defuse a growing national debate over Virginia's alleged insensitivity to women.…

The Score

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:23:00 -0500

+5 The season's first significant snow lands on Richmond, making a big splash before quickly fading away. It was the Newt Gingrich of snowfalls.…

Wanted: One Musical, Meadow-Fresh Burglar?

Melissa Scott Sinclair — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

February has been a strange month for Richmond's thieves. by Melissa Scott Sinclair Richmond's thieves are fairly predictable. Most of the time, they steal iPods, GPS devices, video games, firearms, jewelry and cash, according to the Richmond Police Department's theft reports.…

Fighting Jamesons at the National

Andrew Cothern — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Friday, Feb. 24 by Andrew Cothern Since 2010, Virginia Beach rockers the Fighting Jamesons have delivered traditional Celtic music performed in an aggressive and energetic style. The group has shared the stage with similar Irish rock acts such as Dropkick Murphys and Young Dubliners and, in November, released its self-titled debut album, which is full of songs informed by drunken good times — all of them ready-made for high-energy dancing.…

Now Hear This

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

New music reviews: Black Girls, Wendy Rene, Slika and more. Black Girls, "Hell Dragon" (Worthless Junk) Aptly titled, the second full-length from local band Black Girls is a fiery, basement-blues-breathing, glitter-spittin' beast of glam pop that's poised to incinerate the ennui of indie music.…

After-Dinner Mint: The Mealy Politics of 11%

Scott Bass — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

by Scott Bass As a construction contractor, business had all but dried up. And Hugh Mosher just couldn't take it anymore.…

Punch Drunk

Jack Lauterback — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Jack and the Cooler by Jack Lauterback In an effort to better understand an overlooked yet integral cog in the restaurant industry machine, I sit down with Joe Kang -- a longtime, some might say “beloved” doorman and bouncer at Shockoe Slip bar Cha Cha’s Cantina. Jack: Your first question to me when I asked you whether I could profile you was, “Will a profile in Style Weekly get me laid?” Is that correct?…

Dog Eat Dog

David Timberline — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

A scintillating brotherly battle plays out in Sycamore Rouge's "Topdog/Underdog." by David Timberline A tantalizingly easy pace characterizes the drama as it unfolds in "Topdog/Underdog," playing at Petersburg's Sycamore Rouge. You may be unsure where this two-person powerhouse production is headed at the end of Act 1; you'll be amazed by how far it's gone by the time the final curtain falls.…

Culture Shock

Melissa Scott Sinclair — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Virginia's legislature veers right on abortion, leaving Democrats scrambling. by Melissa Scott Sinclair Rachel Maddow seems positively gleeful. It's Feb. 14, and the Virginia House of Delegates has just passed the controversial "personhood" bill to grant embryos legal status as people — without amending the bill to protect legal contraception.…

Bluegrass Marathon Jam at the Glen Allen Cultural Arts Center

Andrew Cothern — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Saturday, Feb. 25 by Andrew Cothern A benefit for the Richmond Fisher House, a home for families of veterans receiving medical care, the Bluegrass Marathon Jam will feature 12 hours of bluegrass music from top regional bands. Participating are Copper Ridge, East of Afton, Highway 249, River City Band, the Cary Street Ramblers, the Slack Family and Some Assembly Required.…

Straight Outta Chester

Rich Griset — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

With three groups on the rise, Chesterfield County becomes a hip-hop hotbed. by Rich Griset Chesterfield County might evoke thoughts of rolling suburbs and strip-mall developments. But at least one group wants it to be known for something else: hip-hop.…

Murder Suspect Collared in Courthouse

Melissa Scott Sinclair — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

by Melissa Scott Sinclair It was the last place they expected to spot him. But there he was — sitting in traffic court at the John Marshall Courthouse in downtown Richmond.…

Homesick

Terone B. Green — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

No one can serve two masters. By his living arrangement of the last four years, City Councilman Doug Conner has made it clear which one he serves. by Terone B. Green An egregious violation of public trust appears to have occurred in Richmond. City Councilman Doug Conner, elected in 2007, has admitted to living outside the city limits, a potential violation of state law, despite the faith placed in him by the voters of the 9th District to responsibly and legally represent their interests.…

"Unhealed History"

The Rev. Ben Campbell — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

From segregation to suburban sprawl, why the past still haunts Richmond's future. by The Rev. Ben Campbell The following is an excerpt from the Rev. Ben Campbell's book, "Richmond's Unhealed History." The history of Richmond is the founding history of the nation.…

Political Chicken

Vernal Coleman — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

With eight months to go, candidates for School Board and City Council begin jockeying for position. by Vernal Coleman The political season is still in its gurgling, soft-headed infancy, but the field for November's citywide elections is taking shape. What do we know for sure?…

Black Girls at Kingdom

Andrew Cothern — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Friday, Feb. 24 by Andrew Cothern Richmond’s Black Girls have been quite busy the past year. Between a packed CD release party at the Camel for their new album, “Hell Dragon,” and preparing for a tour with indie rockers the Head and the Heart (Richmond is, of course, one of the stops), the band has gained fans and critical acclaim with its soul-infused indie rock.…

Regular Rotation

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Select cuts from the Style Weekly jukebox. "Goat's Eyes," Hot Lava (Bar None): They're baaack. One of Richmond's catchiest indie-rock acts returns from hiatus with a keyboard-driven fashion statement built on a relentless chorus about goat's eyes — or is it self-conscious youth?…

After Mayoral Reprimand, Tyler Hits Back

Vernal Coleman — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

by Vernal Coleman The tiff between Mayor Dwight Jones and City Councilman Bruce Tyler enters stage three: After being chastised by Jones for accusing a city official of "lying," Tyler offers something akin to proof. During a mid-January meeting of the Health, Human Services and Education Committee, Tyler said Doris Moseley, director of the Department of Social Services, wasn't telling the whole truth regarding payments to local day-care centers.…

The VCU Southern Film Festival

Andrew Cothern — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Feb. 24 and 25 by Andrew Cothern The Virginia Commonwealth University Southern Film Festival, now in its third year, was created to portray the various characteristics of the region onscreen. It also brings together films and commentary from the creators.…

Mummy Dearest

Julie Geen — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Unwrap the life of Ti-Ameny-Net at the University of Richmond. by Julie Geen While the passage of 3,000 years has obscured much about the life of the Egyptian woman named Ti-Ameny-Net, we know her mummy has been having quite the time since arriving on the campus of Richmond College in 1876. Her nomadic life includes a stint in the biology museum, a stay in a professor's living room and even time spent in a closet before becoming a focal point of the University of Richmond's ancient world gallery in the late '70s.…

Announcing the 2012 Shadrock Music Fest

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

A new music festival in the heart of Richmond. Saturday, April 28, Brown's Island. We're proud to mark the 30th anniversary of Style Weekly with an inaugural music celebration that we're unveiling across Central Virginia this week: The Shadrock Music Fest. For details, visit ShadrockMusicFest.com, and look for information on Thursday in our free RVA insiders' email newsletter, the Scoop.…

Short Order

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Downtown's newest is almost Tino’s He isn't superstitious, but Ted Santarella doesn't want to jinx a new downtown project by talking about it too soon. Still, he can't resist giving a few details because the new place is getting closer every day, and it will double his restaurant empire.…

Map of the Heart

Rich Griset — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Cadence's "August: Osage County" is intense and epic. by Rich Griset With "Lord of the Flies," "God of Carnage," "Macbeth" and "You Don't Know Me," we seem to be in the midst of a disturbing season in Richmond theater. Last weekend's openings of Sycamore Rouge's "Topdog/Underdog" and "August: Osage County" are no different.…

Ballot Deadline Looms for Jamie Radtke

Vernal Coleman — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

by Vernal Coleman Underdog candidates for U.S. Senate need your help. That's the message emanating from Jamie Radtke's campaign headquarters.…

Local X-Posure at the Canal Club

Andrew Cothern — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 04:00:00 -0500

Every Thursday, Feb. 23 through April 5 by Andrew Cothern It wouldn’t be out of line to say that the Richmond music scene has a nearly endless supply of talent. For the next two months, local radio station 102.1 the X will bring together some of the best local and unknown rock bands for Local X-Posure, a battle-of-the-bands showcase.…