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*! . 5!29 s 6/,5 - % . O 27 Dedicated to Free Times founder Richard H. Siegel (1935-1993) and Scene founder Richard Kabat Group Publisher Chris Keating

CONTENTS

Publisher Andrew Zelman Associate Publisher Angela Nagal

Upfront

Editor Vince Grzegorek Editorial Managing Editor Eric Sandy Music Editor Jeff Niesel Senior Writer Sam Allard Staff Writer Brett Zelman Web Editor Laura Morrison Dining Editor Douglas Trattner Stage Editor Christine Howey Visual Arts Writers Dott von Schneider Copy Editor Elaine Cicora Intern Lawrence Neil

7

Cleveland’s police union wages another rhetorical war on the consent decree after an ofďŹ cer is ďŹ red for killing an unarmed suspect

Advertising Senior Multimedia Account Executive John Crobar, Shayne Rose Multimedia Account Executive Kiara Davis Events and Marketing Coordinator Maggie Lilac

Feature

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The Comics Issue

Creative Services Production Manager Steve Miluch Layout Editor/Graphic Designer Christine Hahn Staff Photographer Emanuel Wallace

'ET /UT

Business Sales Assistant/Receptionist Megan Stimac Controller Kristy Dotson

All the best things to do in Cleveland this ďŹ rst week of the new year

Circulation Circulation Director Don Kriss Euclid Media Group Chief Executive OfďŹ cer Andrew Zelman Chief Operating OfďŹ cers Chris Keating, Michael Wagner VP Digital Services Stacy Volhein Digital Operations Coordinator Jaime Monzon

Film

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Our undeniably correct ranking of the 10 best ďŹ lms of 2017

www.euclidmediagroup.com National Advertising Voice Media Group 1-800-278-9866, voicemediagroup.com Cleveland Scene 737 Bolivar Rd, #4100 Cleveland, OH 44115 www.clevescene.com Phone 216-241-7550 Retail & ClassiďŹ ed Fax 216-241-6275 Editoral Fax 216-802-7212 E-mail scene@clevescene.com

Dining

29

Fred Eaglesmith will be at the Beachland Tavern on Friday

What happened to the pastry chef? Plus new owners for Bialy’s Bagels

Cleveland Scene Magazine is published every week by Euclid Media Group.

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All editorial, advertising, and business correspondence should be mailed to the address listed above.

Subscriptions $150 (1 yr); $ 80 (6 mos.) Send name, address and zip code with check or money order to the address listed above with the title ‘Attn: Subscription Department’

-USIC

A look back at the best shows of 2017, the best shows to catch this week, and more

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UPFRONT

THIS WEEK

CLEVELAND POLICE OFFICER Alan Buford, a 21-year veteran of the force, was fired last week by the city in connection with a March 19, 2015, incident in which Buford shot and killed 18-yearold Brandon Jones, a suspect in the robbery of an eastside grocery store.

Buford was indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury in September 2016 on one count of negligent homicide. After a three-day bench trial in July 2017, during which Buford’s partner testified that lethal force wasn’t necessary during the interaction, Buford was acquitted by Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Michael Sliwinski. (Sliwinski lost his bid for re-election in November in no small part because his opponent, Michael Nelson, who was accused of rape in the final weeks before polls closed, had campaigned on Sliwinski’s decision in the case.)

Nevertheless, Cleveland dismissed the officer today after an internal investigation.

“After the adjudication of the criminal case, an administrative review of the incident was completed and the findings presented to the Director of Public Safety who conducted a predisciplinary hearing. After the pre-disciplinary hearing, Director of Public Safety Michael McGrath found that Patrol Officer Alan Buford did violate the Cleveland Division of Police Use of Force Policy by using force greater than what was necessary during the incident,” a statement read.

Jones’ family, which has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Buford and the city, supported the city’s decision to cut ties with

Photo by Sam Allard

BUFORD AXED, CPPA CONTINUES RHETORICAL CRUSADE AGAINST CONSENT DECREE

Buford.

“I think it certainly validates what we’ve been saying all along — that Officer Buford didn’t have to shoot Brandon. It’s a step toward accountability,” Paul Cristallo, the family’s attorney, told Cleveland. com.

But the process is far from over.

A grievance has already been filed on Buford’s behalf by the Cleveland police union, whose lawyer “guaranteed” he’d get his job back. The Black Shield, the union that represents African-American officers, also said they’d fight to get Buford back on the force.

The full statement from the CPPA and its outgoing union president Steve Loomis: “In yet another unwarranted attack on its police officers, the City of Cleveland has discharged Patrol Officer Alan Buford effective today.

Officer Buford has 21 years of dedicated service to the citizens of Cleveland. The March 19, 2015 incident for which Officer Buford has been discharged was also the subject of a misdemeanor trial.

Officer Buford was acquitted of all the charges against

him — demonstrating that he acted within the appropriate legal standards governing officer conduct. Apparently, the City believes it is somehow fair and just to fire an officer who was acting within the limits required by law. The CPPA vehemently disagrees that there is anything fair or just about this discharge. The CPPA is convinced that this discharge is motivated entirely by other considerations such as pending civil litigation and to appease the Department of Justice. The suffering

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Destination Cleveland seeking volunteers to welcome travelers at Hopkins and at “Cleveland” signs around town with tourist tips.

Knowledge of Mall Guy’s favorite local hangouts encouraged but not required.

Amazon says Echo Dot was the best selling gift of the 2017 holiday season thanks partially to Armond Budish, who used Q Deal’s “Reserve Fund A” to purchase 23,328 of them, three for every full-time county employee.

Lance Mason’s law license suspended indefinitely for violent assault on his wife in 2014. When Mason asked Ohio Supreme Court for “second chance,” the court responded: “What do you think this is, Cleveland?”

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of Officer Buford and his family is nothing compared to checking off the boxes in the consent decree.” — Vince Grzegorek

CONSENT DECREE TO BE CHANGED FOR INTERNAL AFFAIRS HIRING? Speaking of the Consent Decree, the United States Department of Justice and the City of Cleveland filed a joint motion in U.S. District Court last week. It asked Judge Solomon Oliver to amend the settlement. The motion requested that the Consent Decree’s language be changed to allow for the hiring of a current or former law enforcement officer to lead the police department’s Internal Affairs Unit.

“This modification is necessary,” reads the motion, “to permit the Division to hire a qualified civilian to oversee the Division’s Internal Affairs Unit and to begin implementing the reforms to the Unit that are required by the [Consent Decree]. The Monitoring Team has reviewed and agrees with this proposed modification.”

Though former Cleveland police employees would still be prohibited from holding the position, the changed language would permit the hiring of a former county prosecutor and assistant U.S. attorney, whom the city has its sights on.

As described in the motion, the city made multiple attempts to fill the Internal Affairs position in 2016 and 2017, but after interviewing qualified candidates, it remained unfilled — “none of the candidates were suitable.”

— Sam Allard

EXCITING YEAR FOR CUYAHOGA COUNTY DEPT. OF CORRECTIONS

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On Oct. 26, 2017, a Cuyahoga County jail corrections officer named Martice Campbell struck an inmate with a closed fist twice while the inmate, who posed no threat, was sitting at a table.

That’s according to a disciplinary letter from the county’s human resources department on Dec. 12 to Campbell informing him he’d been fired.

Few additional details are

available, other than a note that once the inmate was on the floor, Campbell stood over him in a threatening manner. The incident was caught on video and Campbell admitted to the assault during the course of the internal investigation.

The dismissal caps an ignominious year for the county corrections department. 2017 saw an officer arrested and convicted for dealing drugs off duty, an officer prosecuted for illegally using a police database to stalk his ex-wife and her boyfriend, supervisors disciplined for improper investigations into alleged use of force complaints, officers disciplined for bringing jail issues to the attention of local media, a steady stream of inmate/inmate and inmate/guard altercations, and a persistent problem of smuggled contraband, including drugs, making its way into cells.

—Grzegorek

DIGIT WIDGET 2 Degrees Fahrenheit, the projected low temperature on Jan 1. 2018, in Cleveland, Ohio. Highs aren’t expected to creep back into the 20s until Jan. 7.

40,000 Cleveland Public Power customers on the west side who were without power for several hours on Dec. 26, due to a fire at a West 41st Street substation.

$936 MILLION Loans with little to no interest, many of which don’t need to be paid back at all, made by the Ohio EPA in 2017 to improve water quality throughout the state.

12.5 Percent of Solon’s population that is of Asian descent, according to census data. It’s the highest percentage of any city in Northeast Ohio and second only to Dublin statewide.

Illustration by John G.

city councilman Joe Jones, who replaces Terrell Pruitt in Ward 1; Kevin Bishop, who replaces Zack Reed in Ward 2; activist Basheer Jones, who replaces T.J. Dow in Ward 7; county councilman Anthony Hairston, who replaces Jeff Johnson in Ward 10; and Jasmin Santana, the city’s ďŹ rst Hispanic councilwoman, who replaces Brian Cummins in Ward 14. — Allard

HAPPY NEW YEAR, FRANK!

INDICTMENTS FOR LARISSA RODRIGUEZ, MOM WHO ALLEGEDLY KILLED 5-YEAR-OLD SON

As of this posting, only three Tweets have whipped out #Jackson4thTerm, the hashtag suggested by the city’s communications folks to promote and discuss Mayor Frank Jackson’s “historic fourth inauguration ceremony� on Jan. 2.

All three Tweets have come from the City of Cleveland’s own account.

But Jackson, indeed, was to be sworn in Tuesday, the day after New Year’s, kicking off Year 13 of his longest-ever tenure. Jackson was re-elected by a landslide vote against councilman Zack Reed in November and will serve four more years.

Five new city councilpeople were also to be sworn in Tuesday: former

On the same day that Frank Jackson was inaugurated for the fourth time, 34-year-old Larissa Rodriguez was scheduled to be arraigned. Rodriguez was indicted by a grand jury last week on various counts related to the death of her 5-year-old son, Jordan, who was developmentally disabled, and whose remains were uncovered earlier this month.

The indictments, which included murder, abuse of a corpse, felonious assault and child endangering, accused Rodriguez of treating Jordan in a way that would “outrage reasonable sensibilities.�

Rodriguez had buried Jordan in

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the backyard of her home on West 80th Street, in the city’s DetroitShoreway neighborhood. OfďŹ cials began investigating when they were tipped off by the brother of Rodriguez’s boyfriend, who called from Pakistan.

The home, according to social workers, was in “deplorable� condition, and the four children who lived with Rodriguez were taken into emergency custody.

Rodriguez has received more than a dozen citations by county social services and even had two of her children removed from her custody in recent years. She is the mother of nine children and is currently pregnant with her 10th. — Allard

FIFTEEN CENTS, NOT DOLLARS, FOR MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS This week, Ohio’s minimumwage earners will get a slight pay bump. The $8.15 they currently make per hour will increase to $8.30, in accordance with a 2006 ballot initiative that requires wage adjustments in line with ination.

The 15-cent increase, for the record, is not at all what activists have been referring to when they’ve

Prospect Music

mentioned the “Fight for 15.â€? That ďŹ ght references the pursuit of a $15 minimum wage, an effort that was derailed by local elected leaders in 2016.

According to researchers at Policy Matters Ohio, the new adjustment, which affects about 146,000 workers, will generate more than $106 million in wages across the state. Nearly 500,000 other workers who earn slightly more than the minimum may also receive slight wage increases “as employers adjust to maintain pay scales.� “Next week’s raise will help poor working Ohioans, but $8.30 per hour still leaves a full-time worker about $3,000 short of the poverty line for a family of three,� said Michael Shields, a researcher with Policy Matters Ohio. “It’s time for Ohio to pass a state-level thoughtfully phased-in $15 per hour minimum wage.�

Tipped workers, whom employers are legally allowed to pay less than minimum wage, will also see a slight increase, but only of seven cents per hour. (Current minimum wage for tipped workers is $4.08 per hour.) — Allard

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THE 2018 COMICS ISSUE WE TURN THE CALENDAR HERE AT SCENE THIS WEEK THE SAME way we have for the past five years: with the Comics Issue. Helmed once again by the esteemed, multi-talented and tireless John G., it’s a celebration of the talented working comic artists in Cleveland, those who are carrying on the city’s long and storied tradition in panels and pushing it in new directions.

This year the assembled group — John G., of course, as well as Sequoia Bostick, Miguel C. Hernandez, Kate Atherton, Noelle Richard, and Jed Collins — are telling winter tales. From lessons learned in the midst of frigid temperatures and blustery snowstorms to lasting memories, from the O.C. to milkshakes, from ourselves at our worst to ourselves at our best, they blew us away and we’re sure you’ll feel the same. Happy new year, everyone, and happy winter.

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Wednesday Darts and $1 Sliders

Thursday OPEN MIC NITE hosted by comedian Gary Graham come share your talents all instruments and Genres are encouraged

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

GET OUT

everything you should do this week Photo courtesy of The Dan Lentino Management Group

WED

01/03

The Elvis Birthday Tribute returns to Playhouse Square.

See: Sunday

MUSIC

Chamber Music in the Galleries This monthly concert series at the Cleveland Museum of Art places young musicians from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Case Western Reserve University in the CMA galleries. Now in its sixth season, the series features “mixed programs of chamber music” for “a unique and intimate experience.” The performances often feature instruments from the museum’s keyboard collection.

Tonight’s concert begins at 6 and lasts for about an hour. Admission is free. (Jeff Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

COMEDY

Steve-O Unless you lived under a popcultural rock in the early 2000s, you know of the absolutely insane antics of Steve-O and the Jackass crew. Tonight, Steve-O brings his raunchy physical comedy to Hilarities for the first of several shows. The gig begins at 8, and performances continue through Sunday. Tickets are $27 to $30.

(Niesel) 2035 East Fourth St., 216-2417425, pickwickandfrolic.com.

BEER

Hoppin’ Frog Hoppy Hour Much like the Fat Head’s tasting room in Middleburg Heights, the Hoppin’ Frog tasting room in Akron is in a nondescript strip of storage facilities and warehouses.

But step inside and you’ll find a cozy space with a huge array of the brewery’s wonderful libations.

The place features “hoppy hour” every weekday from 3 to 7 p.m.

Tonight, the brewers visit the tasting room from 5 to 7 p.m.

While they don’t fill growlers, you can drink bottles on site or take ’em to go. The place also offers a “Hoppin’ Frog Rare & Vintage” list as well as a guest bottle list. And you can order from a limited food menu too. (Niesel) 1680-F Waterloo Rd., Akron, 234-525-3764, hoppinfrog.com/tasting-room.

POETRY

January Poetry Workshop Local poets Claire McMahon and Ray McNiece lead the monthly poetry workshop today at Visible Voice Books in Tremont. Guests are encouraged to bring a handful of poems to the event, which takes place from 6 to 8 p.m. It’s free.

(Niesel) 2258 Professor Ave., 216-961-0084, visiblevoicebooks.com.

SPOKEN WORD

Keep Talking Keep Talking is an exciting storytellers program where locals can share their real-life experiences on a theme. The series

served nine months in jail in the early ’90s. He successfully left that life behind, however, when he turned to comedy. He performed for the first time ever at Columbia University and hasn’t looked back.

His material often centers on subjects such as racism and social inequality. Capone has shared the stage with big-name comics such as Mike Epps and Tracy Morgan.

He performs tonight at 7:30 at the Improv and has shows scheduled at the club through Sunday.

Tickets are $20. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-696-IMPROV, clevelandimprov.com.

FILM

offers attendees the chance to grab a drink and a dog while listening to some of their Cleveland neighbors tell tall tales. The theme for tonight’s event is “Drama,” and the hosts are Adam Richard and Zachariah Durr. The program starts at 7:30 p.m. sharp at the Happy Dog. Admission is $5.

Want to be a storyteller at a future session? See details on the website.

(Niesel) 5801 Detroit Ave., 216-651-9474, happydogcleveland.com.

THU

01/04

FILM

BPM (Beats Per Minute) Directed by Robin Campillo and starring Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Arnaud Valois and Adèle Haene, BPM (Beats Per Minute) dramatizes the lives of several Parisian AIDS activists from the ’90s. Though it’s not based on a true story, Campillo and co-screenwriter Philippe Mangeot drew upon their personal experiences with ACT UP as they

developed the film. It makes its Cleveland premiere tonight at 8:10 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque; it screens again at 7 p.m. tomorrow. Tickets are $10, or $7 for members and students.

(Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

FOOD

White Dragon Noodle Bar at LBM Adam Bostwick (Cork and Cleaver, TV’s Chopped) and Colin Brown (Spring Bud Acres) will be on hand to serve up speciality noodle dishes from 4 p.m. to midnight tonight at LBM, the new Birdtown restaurant. Kathleen Sullivan (the Spotted Owl) and Dan Watson (Porco Lounge & Tiki Room) will also be on hand for what they’re calling “a Bladerunner cocktail experience.” (Niesel) 12301 Madison Ave., Lakewood, 216-712-4692, lbmbar.com.

COMEDY

Capone Comedian Derrick “Capone” Lee

Sylvio A strange indie flick directed

by Kentucker Adley and Albert Birney, Sylvio centers on a gorilla who works at a debt collection agency where he makes phone calls using a computer that verbalizes his typing. Sylvio doesn’t find the work fulfilling and hopes to take his talents to TV, where he wishes to put on puppet shows. The film makes its Cleveland debut tonight at 6:30 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, where it shows again tomorrow night at 9:45.

Tickets are $10, or $7 for members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu

FRI

01/05

FAMILY FUN

Disney on Ice Presents Dare to Dream In what’s become a tradition for this time of year, Disney on Ice storms into town to take over Quicken Loans for a 10-day period, sending the Cavs and Lake Erie | clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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GET OUT Monsters out on long road trips so parents can bring their toddlers and ’tweens to the arena for some family entertainment. This year, a cast of over 50 will be on hand.

Expect to see familiar figures such as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Disney princesses. There will be sing-alongs to songs from films such as Toy Story, Finding Nemo, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and more. Tonight’s performance begins at 7 and shows run through Jan. 14. Check the Q website for times. Tickets start at $15. (Niesel) 1 Center Ct., 216-420-2000, theqarena.com.

Polina Valérie Müller and Angelin Preljocaj direct Polina, a drama about a dancer (played

by Anastasia Shevtsova, a professional dancer who has

Liz Russo appropriately describes herself as a “single, 30-something, single, never married, childless, recovering alcoholic, 100lb losing, glutendairy-soy-egg free, cat owning

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Flanagan’s Wake No one knows grief and mourning like a Catholic, let alone an Irish Catholic. Now in its sixth year running in Cleveland, Flanagan’s Wake transports the audience to a wake in Ireland where villagers tell tales and sing songs for their dearly departed Flanagan. Finding the humor in life and death, the wake acts as a dark backdrop to an otherwise hilarious show in which alcohol fuels the humorous reminiscing. A sort of tragic Tony ’n’ Tina’s Wedding, the interactive and improvised show engages the entire audience as the guests are treated as the friends and family of the deceased. Tonight’s show starts at 8; Friday and Saturday night performances continue through April 28 at Kennedy’s Theatre on Playhouse Square. Tickets are $26.

(Patrick Stoops) 1501 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

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FAMILY FUN

Champions of Magic A U.K. sensation, Champions of Magic have played sold-out shows in London’s West End for years now. The ensemble of magicians performs a range of tricks, including mind reading and “traditional magic in a modern style.” The event promises to provide family friendly entertainment. Today’s show takes place at 3 p.m. at Connor Palace.

Tickets start at $19.99. (Niesel) 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

FILM

COMEDY

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FILM

01/06

In Search of Fellini Dayton native Nancy Cartwright (famous as the voice of Bart Simpson) directs In Search of Fellini, a semi-autobiographical film about an Ohio girl who goes to Italy to meet the esteemed director. The movie makes its Cleveland debut tonight at 9:05 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, where it screens again at 4 p.m. tomorrow. Tickets are $10, or $7 for Cinematheque members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

THEATER

Mix at CMA The first Friday of each month, the Cleveland Museum of Art hosts its popular Mix at CMA event. The museum stays open later than normal for the occasion.

Tonight’s theme is “Zodiac,” and the fun includes cosmic tunes and cocktails. Tarot card readers will be on hand, and tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door.

CMA members get in free. The entertainment runs from 6 to 10 p.m. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

SAT

1100 Rock and Roll Boulevard | rockhall.com/givelove performed with St. Petersburg’s Mariinsky Theatre) who leaves Russia to study in France with a noted choreographer (Juliette Binoche). The movie makes its local theatrical debut today at 1:45 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Tickets are $10, or $7 for CMA members. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

COMEDY

Liz Russo On her Facebook page, | clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

standup comedienne.” Russo regularly jokes about weight loss (she likes to say that edible underwear are made for skinny chicks) and dating (“my mom has given up on me,” she laughs.

“I still live in the Valley.”) She performs tonight and tomorrow night at 7 and 9:30 at the Hard Rock Rocksino at Northfield Park’s Club Velvet. Tickets are $10 and $15. (Niesel) 10705 Northfield Rd., Northfield, 330-908-7771, hrrocksinonorthfieldpark.com.

Trevor Noah Trevor Noah was a successful comic even before he became a contributor — and then took over as host — on The Daily Show. Last year, the comic debuted his ninth new comedy special, Afraid of the Dark, on Netflix. And David Paul Meyer’s award-winning documentary film, You Laugh But It’s True, tells the story of how Noah got his start doing standup in post-apartheid South Africa.

Noah does his thing tonight at 7 at the State Theatre. Tickets are $39.50 to $75. (Niesel) 1519 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

FILM

Pan’s Labyrinth Cleveland Cinemas’ Late Shift, a film series dedicated to nostalgic cult and camp cinema, has been a fixture at the local chain of theaters since 2006. The 2018 schedule continues tonight with Pan’s Labyrinth, the 2006 dark fantasy written and directed by Guillermo del Toro, and winner of three Academy Awards. Coming as it does after the recent release

of the critically acclaimed The Shape of Water, tonight’s screening provides a good chance for movie buffs to compare and contrast some of del Toro’s best works.

Pan’s Labyrinth screens tonight at 9:30 and midnight, and tomorrow night at 7 at the Cedar Lee Theatre. Tickets are $6. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas. com.

Theatre once again hosts a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the 1975 cult classic that still draws an exuberant, costumed crowd that likes to throw rice and dry toast at the screen, sing along to the tunes in the movie, and even get in a few steps of the “Time Warp.” Tickets are $9.50. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas.com.

FAMILY FUN

Resolution Run Organizers of this year’s Resolution Run, a 5-K which takes place today at 8 a.m. at Crocker Park, encourage participants to dress in white, black and gold.

Registrants should also include their 2018 resolutions during the registration process. Some of the best ones will be displayed on the course. Registration costs $25 in advance, $30 on the day of the race. (Niesel) hermescleveland.com.

FILM

Rocky Horror Picture Show It’s the first Saturday of the month, so you know what that means: Tonight the Cedar Lee

SUN

01/07

COMEDY

Cleveland Improv Jam The Angry Ladies of Improv has hosted the Cleveland Improv Jam for almost seven years now. A few years back, Scene described the show as “fierce, formidable and very funny.” The women have some serious experience too. Katie White-Sonby is an actress who’s performed at Clague Playhouse, Karamu and Kennedy’s Cabaret.

Marjorie Preston is an alumna of Something Dada and Rockwell 9 improvisational comedy troupes.

The event begins with a short-form

set of improv games, followed by a long-form improv set. It begins at 5 p.m. at Coffee Phix. Arrive early if you want to sign up and perform. Admission is free. (Niesel) 4485 Mayfield Rd., South Euclid, 216-381-5706, coffeephixcafe.com.

FILM

Dina A mentally challenged Philadelphia woman falls for a Walmart greeter with Asperger Syndrome in Dina, a film that won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at last year’s Sundance Film Festival. The film shows tonight at 6:30 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque. Tickets are $10, or $7 for Cinematheque members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

FAMILY FUN

The Elvis Birthday Celebration Ain’t no party like an Elvis Birthday party. If you’ve been to one of the annual shindigs held at Playhouse Square, you know just how much fun these shows are, as some of the world’s best Elvis impersonators convene to pay

tribute to the King, who would’ve turned 83 this year. This year, Shawn Klush, Ryan Pelton and Cody Ray Slaughter join longtime Presley back-up singers the Sweet Inspirations and the Fabulous Ambassadors. Special guests include the former members of JD Summer and the Stamps, including Donny Summer, Bill Baize, Ed Hill and Larry Strickland. The event takes place at 7 p.m. at Connor Palace and will feature more than two hours of live music and 50 of Presley’s songs. The tribute acts will even wear replicas of Presley’s outlandish outfits. Tickets start at $10. (Niesel) 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

FILM

The Paris Opera Swiss filmmaker Jean-Stéphane Bron, the guy who made 2010’s Cleveland vs. Wall Street, directs The Paris Opera, a behindthe-scenes look at the Paris Opera during a year marked by labor strikes, terrorist attacks and challenges within the organization. The film screens today at 1:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Tickets are $10,

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

23

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Deconstructing Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along Next month, Martin Friedman will direct Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along at Lakeland Civic Theatre. In advance of that production, Friedman will discuss the musical’s history and talk about how it flopped on Broadway after only 11 performances.

Music director Jordan Cooper and Lakeland cast members will be on hand to perform several songs from the play. The event begins at 7 p.m. at Nighttown. Tickets are $10. (Niesel) 12387 Cedar Rd., Cleveland Heights, 216-795-0550, nighttowncleveland.com.

Monday Night Trivia Do you have tons of obscure music knowledge? Are you a student of fast food menus and their nuanced histories? What say you about the geographic evolution of Scotch whisky? Tonight’s your chance to wow your friends, make yourself instantly more desirable to someone you’re newly dating, and hang with Cleveland’s headiest hipsters and hot dog lovers. It’s the Happy Dog Monday Night Trivia.

Starting at 8 p.m., expect themed rounds and general knowledge questions that seem considerably trickier than some of the other live trivia locales in town. Obviously, have a hot dog and a craft brew while you’re at it. And arrive early: Seats fill up fast. (Sam Allard) 5801 Detroit Ave., 216-651-9474, happydogcleveland.com.

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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how scientists, in principle, can connect a battery to metal electrodes that are positioned near a neuron to control sensations and behavior in humans. Heady stuff!

Admission is free. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-242-1250, musicboxcle.com.

Science Cafe The second Monday of each month, Music Box Supper Club hosts Science Cafe, an informal lecture series that brings scientists from throughout the region to the club to talk about science topics.

Tonight at 7, J. Thomas Mortimer, professor emeritus of biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University, will discuss

NIGHTLIFE

Drunken Spelling Bee You might scoff at the kids in the national spelling bee on ESPN, but can you do better? Tonight at 9 at the Grog Shop, you’ll get your shot as the club hosts a Drunken Spelling Bee. Sam Handwich (John K) and Buzzed Wallace will host; the fun take place tonight and every Tuesday in January.

Admission is free, and there will be drink specials and weekly prize packs. (Niesel) 2785 Euclid Hts. Blvd., 216-3215588, grogshop.gs.

FILM

Fiddler on the Roof Set in the Ukranian village of Anatevka, the film Fiddler on the Roof centers on Tevye, a poor milkman who struggles to support five unmarried daughters and a wife. His family troubles, however, become insignificant when the ruling regime turns against the Jews of Anatevka. The classic screens today at 7 p.m. at the Cedar Lee Theatre. Tickets are $6.

(Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas. com.

THEATER

Love Never Dies Set 10 years after the Phantom’s disappearance from the Paris Opera House, Love Never Dies, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, follows the Phantom after he’s escaped to a new life in New York, where he has found a home, even though he still longs for his one true love, Christine Daaé. The performance takes place tonight at 7:30 at the State Theatre, where shows continue through Jan. 28. Tickets are $29 to $109. (Niesel) 1519 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

Find more events @clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

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MOVIES THE BEST MOVIES OF 2017, ACCORDING TO SCENE

By Sam Allard BELOW, I’VE ASSEMBLED MY 10 favorite films of 2017, a task that should have been straightforward, given my rating system, but which nevertheless became an agonizing process of continual shuffling and reassessment.

I grade movies on a 25-point scale: five points for script; five for acting; five for technical elements; five for aesthetic elements; and five for something I call “style points” which amounts to a personal bonus.

The majority of the movies I saw in 2017 were scored in the 12 to 18 point range, basically B and C grade territory. No film achieved a perfect 25 this year.

I have not yet seen the following, for the record: Downsizing, The Greatest Showman, Ferdinand, The Florida Project, The Square, Suburbicon, Happy Death Day, Ingrid Goes West, Good Time, and I, Tonya.

The following films earned 20 out of 25 points: Mother!, Logan, It Comes at Night, Battle of the Sexes, and Wonder Woman.

These films earned 21 out of 25 points and just missed the Top 10: Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Stronger, Phantom Thread, and The Shape of Water.

AND HERE IS MY TOP 10.

10. Frantz (My rating: 21/25, Metascore: 73) Dir. by Francois Ozon; starring Pierre Niney, Paula Beer Young German actress Paula Beer is a revelation in this devious, soft-spoken drama from Francois Ozon ( Swimming Pool, In the House). In the aftermath of WWI, a grieving German woman mourns the death of her fi ance.

A mysterious Frenchman comes to town. It’s a black-and-white, under-the-radar gem that keeps you guessing at every turn. It also concludes with one of the best kisses I’ve ever seen on screen.

9. Baby Driver (My rating: 21/25, Metascore: 86) Dir. by Edgar Wright; starring Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Kevin Spacey Though the fanfare has quieted

26

somewhat in light of Kevin Spacey’s sexual misconduct allegations, this sonic boom of a heist film was the early summer’s surprise smash hit.

The script sizzles like bacon and cracks like a whip in perfect time with a pulsing soundtrack. Even without the expertly staged car chases — just as fun (and way more plausible) than the ones in The Fate of the Furious — this movie would be a livewire. It leaps off the screen.

8. Raw (My rating: 21/25, Metascore: 81) Dir. by Julia Ducournau; starring Garance Marillier, Ella Rumpf If you can stomach it, Raw is one of the more forceful comingof-age films in recent memory.

The press focused on its viscera — viewers walked out in disgust on the festival circuit — because, well, it chronicles a young French veterinary student who stumbles upon an addiction to human flesh.

But the story is rich in metaphor and striking in its portrayals of sisterhood, aberrance, hazing, sex and fear. Though less publicized, Raw is every bit as scorching a cinematic debut as Jordan Peele’s Get Out.

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

7. I, Daniel Blake (My rating: 21/25, Metascore: 78) Dir. by Ken Loach; starring Dave Johns, Hayley Squires A painstaking illustration of the inefficiency and inhumanity of government bureaucracy, as seen through the lives of a 59-year-old carpenter and a young single mom who become friends as they seek benefits in Scotland. Searing scene work from the director of 2006’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley.

6. Dunkirk (My rating: 22/25, Metascore: 94) Dir. by Christopher Nolan; starring Fionn Whitehead, Mark Rylance, Tom Hardy Christopher Nolan strikes again with this crisp and exhilarating WWII drama. On an IMAX screen, the harried Allied evacuation of Dunkirk beach is brought to huge and vivid life. With limited dialogue, the genius of the script lies not in the characters but in the various time signatures. Three concurrent narratives — land, air and sea — each frenzied and heart-rending in its own way, converge upon a stirring climax from different starting points. It’s yet another innovation from the

narrative maestro who gave us Memento.

5. Get Out (My rating: 22/25, Metascore: 84) Dir. by Jordan Peele; starring Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams Easily the best and most original premise of the year, this horrorcomedy from Jordan Peele (of Key & Peele fame) exploded onto the scene in February and will fi nish the year in the box office’s Top 15, ahead of installments from the Pirates, Transformers and Cars franchises — no small feat. Peele’s film is a biting social commentary with pitch-perfect supporting performances surrounding Daniel Kaluuya, playing a young black photographer who discovers, to his horror, a form of racism neither he nor we have ever seen before.

4. Wind River (My rating: 22/25, Metascore: 73) Dir. by Taylor Sheridan; starring Jeremy Renner, Ashley Olsen Taylor Sheridan, who wrote the scripts for both 2015’s Sicario and last year’s Hell or High Water, now seems to be Hollywood’s authoritative voice on crime dramas in the American West. This

INVITES YOU AND A GUEST TO AN OUT OF THIS WORLD CINEMATIC EVENT

alternately haunting and gripping neo-Western murder mystery follows a tracker and an FBI agent (Renner and Olsen) as they investigate the death of a native woman on a Wyoming reservation. Rural (and in particular, native) poverty is deftly and unblinkingly represented, as is the elevated threat of sexual assault for native women. The self-propelled narrative is as emotionally charged as The Snowman wasn’t. A brilliantly staged standoff at an oil outpost is in contention for the year’s best scene.

3. Blade Runner 2049 (My rating: 23/25, Metascore: 81) Dir. by Denis Villeneuve; starring Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Arnas This sequel that no one asked for or expected is nevertheless the year’s most visually arresting cinematic experience. Its colors, its textures, its locations, its tech: All of it amounts to a more vibrant, more interesting, more unique and more fully realized world than just about every other half-baked dystopia or turgid space opera that viewers get each year. (It leaves the accomplished Last Jedi in the dust.) With a script as dark and mercurial as Blade Runner (1982), this cyberpunk noir epic both honors and vigorously builds upon its predecessor.

2. War for the Planet of the Apes (My rating: 23/25, Metascore: 82) Dir. by Matt Reeves; starring Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson The conventional award-season wisdom is that the Best Actor Oscar is Gary Oldman’s to lose (for his turn

as Winston Churchill in The Darkest Hour). But I’m here to stump, loud and often, for Andy Serkis, for his mastery as Caesar, the simian protagonist of the thrilling Apes trilogy. This third (and hopefully final) installment takes the franchise’s visual effects to new, staggering heights. Furthermore, its terrifying vision of radical ideology and violent prejudice couldn’t be more resonant in today’s political climate.

War is a monumental capstone that manages to eclipse 2014’s fantastic Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and is anchored, once again, by Serkis’ careerdefining lead performance.

1. Lady Bird (My rating: 24/25, Metascore 94) Dir. by Greta Gerwig; starring Saoirse Ronan, Laura Metcalf Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actress, Supporting Actress: If Lady Bird doesn’t win all five Oscars — and it’s a long-shot, I know — it should most certainly be the front-runner in many of those categories. Greta Gerwig has wowed audiences nationwide with this marvelous place-based coming-of-age film. Its script bristles with literary intensity as it renders a volatile relationship between a teenage daughter and her mom with more clairvoyance and painful accuracy than anything I’ve ever seen. The attention to detail, and Gerwig’s affection for her characters and her hometown, is joyously evident in every scene. A triumph.

sallard@clevescene.com t@scenesallard

THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 2018 30 &,1(0$5. 67521*69,//( For your chance to win an admit-two pass to this special one-night event, send an email to ALIENTRUSIONCLE@GMAIL.COM. To be entered in the ticket drawing, please put “CLEVELAND SCENE” in the email subject heading.

No purchase necessary while supplies last. Passes will be emailed to the winner and must be exchanged at the box office. Passes are valid for one admission at the pre-specified theatre until fifteen minutes before show time. Tickets cannot be exchanged, transferred or redeemed for cash, in whole or in part. Void where prohibited by law. While supplies last. Winners chosen at random. Odds of winning depends on total number of entries.

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EAT WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PASTRY CHEF? Why restaurants have taken the easy way out with breads and dessert, and why that trend might be changing IN THE NOT-TOO-DISTANT PAST, every great restaurant meal began with a basket of warm, house-baked bread and was capped off by a sweet, elegant flourish, both of which sprang forth from the hands of a skilled inhouse pastry chef. These days, that bread and dessert more than likely began life as a frozen product that arrived on the back of a truck, says Ben Bebenroth, chef and owner of Spice Kitchen, Spice Catering, and Spice Acres farm.

“Probably 90 percent of Cleveland restaurants are using premade products,” he estimates. “It’s a position that you can easily cut up, reassign and reallocate your spend as opposed to spending it on a talented, dedicated professional. I don’t think it’s a craft that’s as highly prized anymore because there are easy workarounds.”

Those workarounds, he reports, range from using frozen par-baked breads and Sysco brand cakes and pies to simply relying on local businesses who do it for a living. Thanks to bakeries like Stone Oven, On the Rise, and Blackbird, ice cream shops like Mitchell’s and Mason’s Creamery, and a whole host of cottage dessert providers, restaurant owners manage to cobble together an employee-free solution to their sweet and savory pastry needs.

Unlike most of his colleagues, Bebenroth does happen to employ a full-time pastry chef. Emily Marin grinds the ancient grains that go into the long-fermented breads, she bakes English muffins from scratch for weekend brunch, she makes the tartlet shells that are filled and passed at bucolic Plated Landscape dinners, and she crafts the attractive plated desserts that are served at the farm-totable restaurant in Detroit Shoreway.

Thanks to his multi-faceted enterprise, Bebenroth is able to justify and subsidize the added expense.

“If we didn’t have the additional revenue streams, there would be no fucking way we could do it,” he says.

But we can’t pin the decline of the in-house pastry chef solely on the backs of parsimonious restaurant owners. If you want to know why so many restaurants began ditching their highly skilled pastry chefs in the first place, simply look in the mirror

Photo by Barney Taxel

By Douglas Trattner

Emily Marin, Spice Kitchen

and ask yourself what you’d like for dessert.

“Unfortunately, when it comes to desserts, people just want you to play the hits,” says Ange Lupica, an industrious pastry professional who splits her time between Cleveland Bagel and Sweet Tooth Confections, her own wholesale sweets business. “If, at the end of the day, your customers are only asking for cheesecake, brownie, cookie, pie … do you really need to pay someone to do that?”

In what might seem an odd contradiction of spirit, the very same diner who just devoured a progressive meal of fried chicken livers with wildberry compote followed by braised heirloom pork belly garnished with foraged chanterelles will demonstrate no such pluck when it comes to dessert. For him or her, the time for bravery has passed and only a slice of old-fashioned apple pie will do, thank you very much.

“I think that desserts are so deeply rooted with childhood foods that you’re always competing with these amazing things that they had as a child,” Lupica proposes. “We are competing with Grandma’s pies. They want the purest form of what they remember and they want us to make it just like that.”

For restaurants that hope to stand out from the crowd, premade pastry from a third-party provider will never suffice, regardless of how

much care and attention went into crafting them. If the restaurant down the block can purchase the very same desserts, how in the world will that practice differentiate you from your competitors?

“Every restaurant has a vibe, a personality, and the pastry should correspond with that, otherwise it’s really disjointed,” explains Summer Genetti, Lola’s pastry chef for the past five years. “At the restaurant we try to take classic American flavors that you might have grown up with but present them in a more sophisticated and refined way that is sometimes cheeky but always delicious, comforting and something you’re really going to enjoy.”

Although she was referring specifically to the dessert program, Genetti’s description would be equally accurate with respect to the savory side of things, proving her point about symmetry of character. What is a beef cheek pierogi, after all, if not a classic American flavor presented in a more sophisticated and refined way?

Genetti might be Cleveland’s best hope when it comes to the future of the local pastry chef. Unlike numerous doubting Thomases, she believes that the worst is behind us and the future is looking very sweet indeed.

“The pastry chef is starting to come back,” she says. “People are becoming more interested in artisan breads, more interested in single-origin

chocolates ... . While pastry jobs have been slower to manifest themselves, artisan bakeries, patisseries, chocolaterias and even legit doughnut shops are becoming more prolific, and that is only a good thing for the pastry community at large.”

Genetti sees it as a long game, one in which both pastry chefs and diners play equal and equally important parts.

“My hope is that if I do everything to the best of my abilities, then somebody is going to come in, who maybe didn’t understand what a pastry chef and plated desserts are all about, and will leave with a higher appreciation of those things and will then demand better, which will then make everyone else have to rise up and address it and hire someone to make desserts,” she argues.

Along those same lines, Lupica sees the process as a two-way street, one that requires a solid foundation of trust.

“We need to give our customers more credit and our customers need to trust us, because we can do more than just brownies and cookies and cheesecake,” she urges. “If you’re going out and spending money and having this whole experience, then let us give it to you all the way to the end.”

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner | clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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JEWS HAVE A WORD TO DESCRIBE the preordained meeting of two individuals. It’s beshert, and the Yiddish term usually is reserved for the ancient practice of matchmaking.

But its use with respect to the recent sale of Bialy’s Bagels is inescapable.

There had been murmurings that the long-time owners of Bialy’s Bagels (2267 Warrensville Ctr. Rd., 216-371-1088) had been on the hunt for a suitable buyer, a terrifying proposition for fans of this 50-yearold institution. The year was 1966 when Terry Skolnick, a New York transplant, opened up his iconic bagel store in University Heights, a neighborhood chosen for its proximity to Jewish customers. For decades, the shop has been operated

by Skolnick’s daughter and son-inlaw Ellen and Mark Osolin, but the time had come for them to switch gears.

For the past six years, twin sisters Rachel and Sarah Gross have been on a mission of their own to open a Cleveland bagel shop.

Inspired by time spent at their uncle’s bagel shop in North Carolina, the women have been looking for the ideal location for what would become Buster’s Bagels, a tribute to an older brother who passed away in 2003.

Along the way, the pair launched Clover Road Cream Cheese, a gourmet product that could be found at North Union Farmer’s Markets around town.

Thanks to a little bit of tennis court gossip, the women learned that the owners of Bialy’s were trying to sell. A months-long negotiation culminated with a sale of the business, an outcome that can only be described as beshert for a pair of sisters who were born on Bushnell Road, just feet from the fragrant bagel shop.

“We used to come here in our strollers every week,” says Rachel, her bagel earrings swinging with every word.

Since the sale, the Grosses have been working alongside Ellen and Mark to ensure a seamless transition both with respect to the business end of things as well as the chewy side. Also easing the changeover

is a rock-solid staff of longtime employees, adds Sarah.

“Some have been here for 20 years and they’re not going anywhere,” she promises.

The distinguished shop’s stockin-trade is the classic New York-style water bagel. Fresh, malty dough is made seven days a week and allowed to ferment overnight. The bagels are shaped, quickly boiled in water and baked. Bialy’s sells approximately 20 varieties, including the classic and quickly vanishing onion-topped bialy, but the best seller by a wide margin is the mish-mosh, the orthodox name for what is often labeled an “everything” bagel.

These bagels land at nearby coffee shops and restaurants like Jack’s Deli and Corky and Lenny’s, but also large institutions like area hospitals and universities. Admirers of the bagels should see no changes with respect to the quality of the product, but one might soon see an expansion of the offerings.

“We have the blessings of the previous owners to expand the options here, so we’re really excited about that,” says Rachel, citing toasted bagels, bagels with schmears, and breakfast sandwiches as likely options. “Especially since Bruegger’s Bagels closed at Cedar and Green, we have gotten a lot of requests for mish-mosh bagels toasted with cream cheese.”

A new display case that merges all bagel styles into one tall case, and tightened up hours of operation (5:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily) are also on order.

As for Ellen and Mark Osolin, the passing of the torch to the Gross sisters is the best possible outcome.

“We are thrilled to pass the business to born-and-bred Cleveland sisters,” notes Ellen. “We wish them nothing but success in the future.

We hope all our customers will continue to support Bialy’s, and hope they will bring in some new customers as well.”

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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MUSIC A VERY GOOD YEAR

could’ve performed a solo show and pulled it off. But with Reynolds, a virtuoso player who picked at his instrument all night long with remarkable precision and skill, he had more than enough musical ammunition to make the concert a memorable one. (Niesel)

A look back at some of the best concerts of 2017

Chance the Rapper May 19 Blossom If God’s will was to dampen the mood of Chance the Rapper’s show at the Blossom Music Center with a messy bout of rain, it wasn’t enough to deter the showman, or his legion of young followers, from staying positive throughout the gig. In fact, the rapper’s Christian faith seemed to stoke the fire that ignited his exuberant performance, though it shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise to anybody who has heard Coloring Book, the artist’s latest mix-tape, whose spiritually steeped songs factored largely into the 80-minute set. (Jacob DeSmit) Eric Church Feb. 24 Quicken Loans Arena Cut from the same musical cloth as classic rockers such as Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty, country singer-guitarist Eric Church writes narrative-based songs about the American experience.

And like those aforementioned rock icons, he tours and records with a killer band that can bring those narratives to life. His Eric Church Band capably alternates between hard rocking anthems and tender ballads, incorporating banjo, organ and mandolin along the way. Church

Photo by Joe Kleon

AFTER A PERIOD WHEN IT seemed as if the biggest tours skipped town, 2017 found major acts returning to the city.

Hall of Famers such as U2, Green Day, Tom Petty, Roger Waters, Patti Smith and Red Hot Chili Peppers put on stellar performances while eventual Hall of Famers such as Chance the Rapper and Jay-Z delivered memorable concerts as well.

Here’s a look back at some of the year’s best concerts.

Green Day performing at Blossom.

& Co. were in terrific form at the Q as their Holdin’ My Own tour stopped in town. Playing an epic three-hour set (with a 20-minute intermission) that featured nearly 40 songs, Church had members of the capacity crowd, which he said was the tour’s largest audience to date, on their feet for the entire gig. (Jeff Niesel) Dead & Co. June 28 Blossom All the talk about this show revolved around guitarist John Mayer, sure, but it’s gotta be said that often enough keys man Jeff Chimenti stole the show. When he took the lead, it was terrific, but his most vital talents lie in the flourishes, the washes that take the hand of a particular jam segment and push it further. The highlight, no doubt, was “Truckin’,” which featured a spellbinding jam that dissolved into roving, spacey melodies. (Eric Sandy) Green Day Aug. 21 Blossom Seeing a Green Day concert in 2017, one might assume pop-punk’s elder statesmen, founding members Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt who formed the band just over three decades ago, have lost a step when it comes to putting on a show. That assumption proves to be far from the truth, as many who witnessed the enthralling, two-and-a-half-hour set

the group performed to a maxedout crowd at Blossom Music Center.

(DeSmit) Jay-Z Nov. 19 Quicken Loans Arena There is an old adage suggesting that hip-hop is a young person’s game and that the pioneers and forefathers who paved the way for the new generation of upstarts should quietly make their way to the land of retirement. Jay- Z never got that memo. The empty stage was an instrument in itself, and Jay-Z played it well. During his most solemn and vulnerable moments, he stood still in the center with his head down, as he did when performing his heartfelt apology to his wife Beyonce on “4:44.” At other times, that same stage was his playground as he darted from side to side engaging with the audience singing along with the rapper word for word. (Emanuel Wallace) Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds June 14 Blossom “I love this building,” said singerguitarist Dave Matthews at the start of a nearly three-hour acoustic concert featuring him and guitarist Tim Reynolds. Matthews regularly comes to Blossom with his backing band but not often as an acoustic duo with Reynolds, the Dave Matthews Band guitarist who first encouraged him to start a band. An accomplished guitarist, Matthews

Midnight Oil Aug. 27 House of Blues One of rock’s more politically minded acts, Midnight Oil emerged from a 15-year hibernation earlier this year for a well-received world tour that included this House of Bues show. It’s no coincidence that the tour came at a time when farright movements have shaken the foundations of democracy in many countries, something that certainly wasn’t lost on the band. Before a capacity crowd, singer Peter Garrett, an activist who was once Australia’s minister for the environment, heritage and the arts, delivered a strong anti-Trump message while leading the band through an engaging two-set that dug deep into its extensive back catalog that dates back to the late 1970s. (Niesel) A Perfect Circle Nov. 18 Wolstein Center Even though A Perfect Circle singer James Maynard Keenan performed under dim lights that made it impossible to see his face, he still managed to have remarkable stage presence during this concert at the Wolstein Center. His ability to give a commanding performance from atop a small circular riser positioned at the middle of the stage was a testament to the sheer power of the Northeast Ohio native’s voice. Keenan, who alternately crooned and snarled, possesses a distinctive voice that has turned both APC and Tool, the hard rock band he also fronts, into commercial successes despite their experimental approaches. (Niesel) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers June 10 Quicken Loans Arena The evening’s 19-song setlist leaned heavily on two specific fan favorite albums, pulling four tracks from Tom Petty’s initial solo excursion, 1989’s Full Moon Fever and five more from its eventual followup, 1994’s Wildflowers. Playing what | clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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MUSIC Petty referred to as a “small set of songs” from Wildflowers, Petty and the Heartbreakers peeled off three tracks in a row from that record, which often had a beautifully stripped back feel. The title track, which has made a long overdue return to the setlist with this current tour, proved to be one of several nuggets of the night. The late singer-guitarist Petty strummed the opening chords on acoustic, with airy harmonies from the Webb Sisters, “our newest friends,” as he referred to Hattie and Charley Webb, who provided background vocals for the shows. (Matt Wardlaw) Red Hot Chili Peppers May 13 Quicken Loans Arena Early in their 100-minute set, Red Hot Chili Peppers singer Anthony Kiedis acknowledged the roar of the near-capacity crowd with a simple “thanks.” And then he paused and added “for everything.” The pause said plenty. It was as if Kiedis recognized how special it is that the veteran alternative rock act can still pack an arena with fans at this stage in its 30-plus-year career. The band’s mix of punk, funk and rock remains vibrant, and the group proved it still delivers a killer live show. (Niesel) Patti Smith March 12 State Theatre In 2015, singer and poet Patti Smith began playing her debut album Horses in its entirety to mark the disc’s 40th anniversary. For a variety of reasons, the tour never landed in Cleveland, one of the first cities outside of Smith’s New York home base to embrace the singer. This year, the Horses anniversary tour finally came to town. Smith didn’t disappoint, delivering a passionate performance that displayed the kind of raw intensity for which she’s known and showing the extent to which she remains a singular performer in the rock world. (Niesel) SZA Dec. 13 House of Blues For this sold-out show at House of Blues, SZA bounded off the momentum of her excellent openers.

In an oversized pink bubble jacket, a black crop top, camo overalls, and flowing locks, her stage presence was natural and brightly energetic, swaggering and vulnerable. She’d

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

arrived late on a flight and missed soundcheck, but hit her vocals strong, standing out as she riffed gorgeously to close out “Go Gina,” or sang 2014’s “Sobriety” a cappella.

Whether or not the political moment of trash men being drop-kicked out of positions of power was anywhere near the audience’s mind is tough to say. But without overreaching in interpretation, this felt like a crystallization, though fleeting, of part of what the other side of this era may look like. (Lawrence Neil) U2 July 1 FirstEnergy Stadium Plenty of rock and pop acts can capably rock an arena. Successfully engaging a stadium full of people is much trickier. Credit U2, who performed before a capacity crowd at FirstEnergy Stadium, for having mastered the art. These guys could run a clinic on how to properly execute a concert in an outdoor stadium. The rousing show had both highly intimate moments and overblown segments that featured immersive visuals and deafening acoustics. And it had purpose as the band offered a message of hope during the two-plus-hour performance, the last date of the summer leg of a U.S. tour to mark the 30th anniversary of the Joshua Tree album. (Niesel) Roger Waters Sept. 21 Quicken Loans Arena Given the anti-authoritarian themes that circulate through Pink Floyd’s music and founder Roger Waters’ solo albums, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Waters doesn’t support President Trump.

At his epic three-hour show before a near-capacity crowd at the Q, he directed some of his ire at the country’s arrogant leader during a visually arresting and provocative performance. As much as the show provided a commentary on war, corruption and false idols, Waters didn’t dwell on the negative.

Rather, toward the concert’s end, he congratulated fans for showing him so much devotion. He appeared truly touched by the ovation he received.

“In these troubled times, it is good to know not just in Cleveland, but throughout the country, there is so much love,” he said as he advocated “speaking our minds” in opposition to repressive governments. (Niesel and Joe Kleon)

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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MUSIC

Photo courtesy of Mister Moon

STRAIGHT OUTTA HURON COUNTY Indie rockers Mister Moon team up with singer-songwriter Emily Keener for Mahall’s gig

By Jeff Niesel A SELF-DESCRIBED “ECLECTIC alternative rock outfit,” the local band Mister Moon released a terrific new EP, Point One, last year. The disc opens with the droning “Waste,” an atmospheric tune that features hushed vocals. The Alt-J-like “Peer” benefits from perky synths and rattling percussion. Consisting of two drummers, two keyboardists and two guitars, the band plays sonically lush melodies.

When she was 14, local singer Emily Kenner put out a full-length, and in 2015 she released a fully produced EP. When the opportunity arose to audition for The Voice that same year, she decided to give it a go, even though she once publicly proclaimed she would never audition for a reality TV show. Keener wound up as one of the final 12 candidates on the show.

The two acts will share an upcoming bill at Mahall’s 20 Lanes, and Keener and the members of Mister Moon (Tommy Christian, Cory Boomer, Cory Webb and Seth Bain) talk about the upcoming show in this joint Q&A. The concert at Mahall’s takes place at 8 p.m. on Friday.

How did you all first meet?

Keener: We’re all from the same Huron County area.

Boomer: Cory Webb and I have both played with Emily on different occasions.

Keener: I was like 13 or 14, and it was when [the now defunct club] Dirtsandwich opened.

Boomer: It’s a venue in our hometown where lots of musicians met and mingled.

So has Mister Moon played with Emily?

Bain: This show at Mahall’s will be the

38

first one. The main headliner, Joshua Powell, is from Indianapolis. Emily knows him, and he needed an opener.

She recommended us. She knows us and threw our name in the hat. We’re happy to be doing it. We never played on the West Side proper.

Keener: I met Joshua on tour in Knoxville. We were playing a WDVX Blue Plate special. It’s a co-bill of songwriters that they have going on.

They do that daily at the Welcome Center in Knoxville. They have a little stage there. We kept in touch and since he was coming to town, I thought of these guys.

What do you consider your influences?

Keener: Two of my biggest inspirations are Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell. My dad played a lot of Simon and Garfunkel growing up. That was the prominent thing going on in my life. It wasn’t until later on that I connected to [Simon’s] solo stuff. I now really appreciate who is he as a writer.

I discovered Joni Mitchell at about the same time.

Christian: We all come from drastically different places for sure.

two drummers. If I could classify myself as a musician, it would just be as a rhythmic player. I don’t think any of us are solo guys. We thrive on working together. Cory Webb and I come from more of a pop orientation because of bands we played in. I grew up on the Beatles, and that transferred into modern pop like JR JR or Tame Impala.

What have been some of the 2017 highlights?

Keener: I released my last album in 2016. I was touring a little bit and experiencing different parts of the country and meeting inspiring musicians and songwriters who are getting me in gear for 2018, when I plan to release my next album. For the most part, writing is my No. 1 priority.

Lyricism is my focus. I recorded a bunch of demos and sang on other people’s tracks.

Webb: This is our first full year together. We put out an EP and a single. I think one of our main goals was to expand outward from our hometown. We played a lot in north-central Ohio, in Norwalk and Sandusky and close to home. That’s

MISTER MOON, EMILY KEENER, THE CHESTERTONS, JOSHUA POWELL & THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY 8 P.M., FRIDAY, JAN. 5, MAHALL’S 20 LANES, 13200 MADISON AVE., LAKEWOOD, 216-521-3280.

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I will drop Gorillaz and Radiohead and Queen and Pink Floyd. Those are bands that have a catalog that features a huge array of different sounds.

Genres are just as influential to us as different bands. We try to pull from genres that aren’t rock too. I like a lot of electronic music.

Bain: The main common ground is that we’re rhythmic people. We have

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

our proving grounds. We’ve done a good job of that and saturated Ohio really well.

Bain: One of the big things for us is that we met people along the way who will help us in the future. Definitely down in Columbus and Cleveland, we want to establish who we are. The goal from here is to release something in the mid-spring. We want to go to the

East Coast and keep on doing it. We want to play shows in different places and more places.

Webb: I would say as seriously as we took it, it was a test run to see what we can do and what works good. We want to incorporate other things into Mister Moon. We have a clear picture of that.

Christian: It’s a rare thing for me to say, but I see us getting better. That’s why I’m still excited a year and a half later, or however long it’s been. We’re constantly writing new material.

What do you think of the local music scene?

Keener: I started out playing open mics. I met some musicians in Norwalk but hadn’t played there that often. Cleveland was the first place where I realized what a music scene could be. My first open mic was at the Winchester, and that was a cool experience. There were good songwriters there and encouraging people. There is support for younger artists trying to spread their wings and get their stuff out there.

Bain: I’m from the east suburbs, and I was playing in bands that were more in Emily’s scene. I was playing with people like Brent Kirby and Nate Jones and Rachel Brown. The music scene in Cleveland is great, and you have to find the right niche right now. In five years, it will pop even more. It’s tough and rough, and you have to be prepared for that stuff. When it pays off, it pays off a lot.

Boomer: Mister Moon is still finding its place in the scene. We’re still fresh to the scene. There are some great bands.

For more rock-oriented bands, there’s a bunch of bands. We like Punch Drunk Tagalongs and Village Bicycle. There are a lot of good bands.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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WED

01/03

10 X 3 Singer Songwriter Showcase hosted by Brent Kirby: 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

THU

01/04

Ekoostik Hookah: The grandfathers of Ohio’s expansive jam band scene — culturally and musically — have always maintained close ties to the Cleveland area. From 1991’s Under Full Sail to 2013’s sweetly groovin’ Brij, Ekoostik Hookah have kept their fire burning across time. Check out “Whiskey Woman” for a fine example of the hookahladen chops still hooked around each of the band’s compositional outings. Given the band’s personal history, rife with small shows and Hookahville festivals alike, every chance to be a part of the fun is a necessary diversion from life out there. (Eric Sandy) 7:30 p.m., $15$20. Odeon.

Bad Example: 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

Chris Hatton’s Musical Circus (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Jam Night with the Bad Boys of Blues: 9 p.m., free. Brothers Lounge.

Joey Nix Band/Breakers/Truman Freeman: 9 p.m., $5. Happy Dog. The Last Revel/Slocan Ramblers: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

Old Souls/Biitchseat/Curtail/ Shade: 9 p.m., free. Grog Shop.

FRI

01/05

Cowslingers/Lords of the Highway: Before breaking up in 2005, the Cowslingers had made a name for themselves as a prominent local cowpunk band with a huge fanbase. The group created its unique sound by drawing from Link Wray, the Cramps, Johnny Cash and Jason & the Scorchers.

Now, the band has announced the release of a new album, Real Big Rooster. Tonight’s show serves as a release party for the new disc.

The group hasn’t issued a new studio album since 2005’s Bullseye and has only played a handful of shows since 2005; during the last decade, singer Greg Miller and drummer Leo Walsh have devoted

Dorothy comes to the Beachland. See: Tuesday.

themselves to their band, Whiskey Daredevils. For the new album, the band recorded at Detroit’s Rust Belt Recording with frequent Whiskey Daredevil collaborator John Smerek. The Blasterslike “Cindy” features a walking bass line, twangy guitars and hiccupping vocals while the gritty “Waitin’” has more of a punk feel to it. All in all, the album represents a fine return to form.

(Jeff Niesel) 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Ballroom.

Bill Toms & Hard Rain (in the Supper Club): A mix of blues, soul and Americana, Good for My Soul, the latest effort from Bill Toms & Hard Rain features a collection of tunes that sound so familiar they could pass for standards. With its woozy horns and raspy vocals, “I’d Be a Rich Man Today” kicks off the album with a bang. Toms launched his career some 30 years ago as the lead guitarist in Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers, a regional sensation that has always had a strong following in Cleveland. (Niesel) 8 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

The Chestertons/Joshua Powell/ Emily Keener/Mister Moon (in the Locker Room): 8 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Fred Eaglesmith/Tif Ginn: 8 p.m., $20 ADV, $22 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

El Jordano Diablo 30th Birthday Bash with Bike Tuff/Guillotine/ Old Souls: 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

The Front: 9:30 p.m., $5. Brothers Lounge.

Hamilton Handshake/Cadaver Dogs/Dark Water Rebellion/ White Buffalo Woman/All is Harvest: 8 p.m., free. Grog Shop.

Holiday Hangover Featuring Tricky Dick & the Coverups/Old Skool/Pop Fiction/DJ Sparky B: 9 p.m., $13 ADV, $15 DOS. House of Blues.

Madison Crawl (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Songwriters in the Round: 8:30 p.m., $10. Nighttown.

Moss Stanley: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

Two Hands/Perfect Error/ Honeymoon: 9 p.m., $5. Happy Dog.

SAT

01/06

Travis “Moonchild” Haddix: A staple on the Cleveland blues scene — and in the American music circuit writ large — Travis “Moonchild” Haddix has always brought the heat to the stage. He also surround himself with great musicians — like a tight, tight brass section. What he has always done so well has been his steady merger of classic blues structures with smooth R&B-style singing.

He makes the blues accessible to anyone willing to listen and, inevitably, dance. And having been playing guitar since he was 7, the dude can tear it up quite nicely. He once told a music writer, “I am the best that I can be, and since no one else can be me, there’s none better.”

Right on. (Sandy) 8:30 p.m., $15.

Nighttown.

The Barcode: 9:30 p.m., $5. Brothers Lounge.

Black Naked Wings/Street Gurgler: 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

JiMiller Band – All Grateful Dead Show (in the Supper Club): 8 p.m., $10. Music Box Supper Club.

Macseal/Retirement Party/Floorvveed/ BADBADBADBADBAD/Deep Sigh (in the Locker Room): 7 p.m., $10.

Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

The Missing/Brave Girls/Mostly Ghosts/Mason Ochocki: 9 p.m., $5. Happy Dog. Punch Drunk Tagalongs/Automatic Orchids/Joe Risdon/The 815: 9 p.m., $5. Musica.

RAEL: The Music of Genesis: 8 p.m., $18 ADV, $22 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

Stimpy’s Revenge/Acrylic Groove/ Saint Lucius/Land of Panda: 8:30 p.m., $7 ADV, $10 DOS. Beachland Ballroom.

This Moment in Black History/ Bloody Show/Fringe Candidate/ Pig Flayer: 9 p.m., free. Grog Shop.

The Tufted Puffins/Womantra/ Rumbling Spires: 9 p.m., $8.

Beachland Tavern.

Jeff Varga (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m.

Brothers Lounge.

Vital Organs/MyTh and Company/ The Ballroom Charades/Austin Stambaugh: 8 p.m., $10. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

Wish You Were Here: 9 p.m., $18.50 ADV, $21 DOS. House of Blues.

SUN

01/07

Kate Voegele & Tyler Hilton/ Leslie DiNicola: You probably remember Tyler Hilton from his time on CW’s soapy One Tree Hill and also when he played Elvis in Walk the Line. These days, Hilton continues to dabble in acting, but he’s still an introspective singersongwriter at heart. He comes through Cleveland tonight with fellow musician and OTH co-star Kate Voegele, a hometown native who now lives in California. With her brand new single, “Shoot This Arrow,” Voegele has released a tune that speaks out against sexual harassment. She told Variety last month that the song is “for everyone who needs the courage and strength to speak up about what they’ve been through | clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

41

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(Laura Morrison) 7 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

Bro Dylan/The Lovelies/The Liars Revival/LexandZay: 8 p.m., free.

Grog Shop.

January Noise Lunch with Adam Holquist/Modular Moose/Kirsten Ban Drake/Max Hyde-Perry/ Vaccuum Tube AL/Sean Holt/ Man-009: 4 p.m., free. Now Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Class.

Ernie Krivda & the Generation Next Jazz Quartet: 7 p.m., $10.

Beachland Tavern.

Mike Petrone (in the Wine Bar): 5:30 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

MON

01/08

Skatch Anderssen Big Band: 8 p.m., $7. Brothers Lounge.

Blues Chronicles: 8:30 p.m., free.

Beachland Tavern.

Shit Show Karaoke: 10 p.m. B-Side Liquor Lounge & Arcade.

Velvet Voyage (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

TUE

01/09

August Burns Red/Born of Osiris/ Erra/Ocean Grove: 6:30 p.m., $23$33. House of Blues.

Dorothy: San Diego-born hard rock singer Dorothy Martin says she sang since she was a kid and found inspiration by sifting through her fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vinyl collection, listening to everything from Dolly Parton to Credence Clearwater, Janice Joplin and Pink Floyd. After moving to Los Angeles, she put together Dorothy in 2014, with the intention of making hard-rocking music that, as she has put it, metalheads like Beavis and Butthead would like. The band recently issued a bluesy new single, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Down to the Bottom,â&#x20AC;? and will put out a new studio release this year. Expect to hear plenty of unreleased tunes at tonightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s show. (Niesel) 8 p.m., $17$67. Beachland Ballroom.

Desmond Jones/The Catâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Meow: 9 p.m., $7. Beachland Tavern.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene 42

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

SATURDAY, JANUARY 6 8:00PM

MOISES BORGES BRAZILIAN JAZZ

TUESDAY, JANUARY 9 7:30PM

DAN ZOLA ORCHESTRA FRIDAY, JANUARY 12 8:30PM

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By Jeff Niesel MEET THE BAND: Fred Eaglesmith (vocals, guitar) INSPIRED BY ELVIS: Often compared to the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Joe El, Steve Earle, John Prine, Robert Earl Keen and Bob Dylan, veteran singersongwriter Fred Eaglesmith grew up on a farm in southern Ontario. He started writing songs and playing guitar when he was a teenager. “I saw Elvis on television, and that was it,” he says. “I just decided that was what I was going to do.” At the time he recorded his 1980 debut album, he worked as a high-pressure washer.

He’d work all day and then record his album at night. Daniel Lanois, an upand-coming studio engineer who’d go on to work with U2, tracked the disc.

“We made that whole record in seven or eight days,” says Eaglesmith as he recalls how he often hitchhiked to the studio because his truck would break down on the way there.

CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR: Back in the ’90s when Eaglesmith first came to the States, he would joke that he had saved seats for his fanatical Fredheads who followed him from Canada but often couldn’t get across the border.

“The joke was that in all these years of following me, they never showed up,” he says. “A big magazine interviewed me one time. I told him this story about the Fredheads and that they had Airstreams. All of a sudden after that article came out, these people started calling themselves Fredheads.

At one club, a guy pulled up to a show in an Airstream and said he was a

Fredhead. It got kinda creepy and weird.”

WHY YOU SHOULD HEAR HIM: Now 60, Eaglesmith says he intended to make an album that reflected his age. “I wanted to make a record that sounded like I was 60 years old,” he says of his latest release, Standard. “My friends make records that sound like a hair transplant. I don’t want to do that.

Rock ’n’ roll is a young person’s game, though it’s an old person’s game now because young people don’t want to participate. I listened to the vinyl version of Standard the other day and realized I did what I wanted to do.”

Songs such as the bluesy “Flames” and the brittle ballad “Jenny Smith” come off as evocative, narrative-based tunes that show off Eaglesmith’s remarkable lyrical abilities. “It was a troubled record and a hard one to make,” he says. “My wife came down into the basement one day and hip-checked me into the corner and told me she wanted to work on it.

Unbeknownst to us, she had these natural abilities for doing this. It immediately came together.”

WHERE YOU CAN HEAR HIM: fredeaglesmith.com.

WHERE YOU CAN SEE HIM: Fred Eaglesmith performs with Tif Ginn at 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 5, at the Beachland Tavern.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

Rocky Horror Picture Show Sat., Jan. 20

Texas Troubadours Sun., Mar. 4

The Zombies

Sat., Mar. 24

Wrestling Legends Live- Comedy - Karaoke Thu., Feb. 8

Uriah Heep Sat., Mar. 3

The Dixie Dreggs

No Sleep Podcast

Dawn of the Dreggs Tour

Sat., Mar. 10

Fri., Mar. 23

Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder

Karla Bonoff

Sun., Mar. 25

JUST ANNOUNCED

Fri., Apr. 6

Brian Henke

& Michael Kelsey Fri., Apr. 20

ALL SHOWS AT THE KENT STAGE UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED Tickets available at www.kentstage.org or 877-987-6487 GMK [w cw i {{ © a{ B e~ JJHJF

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

43

C-NOTES

Photo courtesy of Brent Kirby

HEADING SOUTH Singer-songwriter Brent Kirby takes his showcasing talents to Akron

By Jeff Niesel

OFF ONE FREE ANY10% DVD, GAME OR VHS

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44

| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

LOCAL SINGER-SONGWRITER Brent Kirby began his 10 x 3 Songwriter/Band Showcase in June of 2011. Modeled after the showcases Kirby had played in Nashville when he lived there, the weekly event that takes place at Brothers Lounge has been a hit.

In the past six years, some 1,500 individual acts have performed their songs.

“This is about original music,” Kirby writes in a press release announcing the showcase’s expansion to Jilly’s Music Room in Akron. “There has been a huge investment in sports, food, and breweries, but music has not found the same level of support. It’s time for that to happen in Northeast Ohio.”

At each showcase, 10 performers play three songs each; two are required to be original, and the third can be an original or cover.

“It’s a performance opportunity, a place to try new songs, invite others onstage, and create some musical moments that are the whole reason us musicians write and play,” says Kirby. “Over the years, I have seen relationships made at the 10 x 3 between musicians and supporters that have spilled over into other aspects of what people do. It’s about connecting people, which is why I think the Akron/Cleveland kinship is so important.”

Kirby will host the Akron 10 x 3 on the first and third Wednesdays, while local songwriters Jason

Meyers and Ray Flanagan will trade off hosting the Cleveland 10 x 3.

The first show at Jilly’s will take place on Jan. 3 with Kirby as the host.

ATLAS GENIUS TO HEADLINE THIS YEAR’S BRITE WINTER An alternative rock band out of Adelaide, South Australia, Atlas Genius will headline the annual Brite Winter Festival that takes place on Saturday, Feb. 24, on the West Bank of the Flats.

Other notable acts include local bands Seafair, Obnox, Herzog, Freshproduce and Mourning [A] BLKstar.

More than 40 bands will perform on six indoor and outdoor stages, and assorted vendors will be on hand as well.

The annual winter music and arts festival began a few years back in the Flats near what is now Merwin’s Wharf.

Organizers had to learn a few hard lessons — the event took place in the midst of a blizzard in Year 1 — before they were able to turn it into the well-oiled machine it has become.

The following years, Brite Winter took place in Ohio City before moving to its current location in 2016, where it had drawn capacity crowds.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

SAVAGE LOVE RUNNERS

By Dan Savage Dear Dan, I’ve been with my girlfriend “J” for two years. Her best friend “M” is a gay man she’s known since high school.

M and I have hung out many times.

He seems cool, but lately I’ve been wondering if he and J are fucking behind my back. For starters, J and I rarely have sex anymore. Even a kiss on the cheek happens less than once a week. Meanwhile, J’s Facebook feed has pictures of M grabbing her tits outside of a gay club in front of her sister. She told me he’s spent the night in her room, even though he lives only a few miles away. I’ve also recently found out that although M has a strong preference for men, he considers himself bisexual. I understand that everyone loves tits, even if they’re not turned on by them, and gay men can sleep with a girl and actually just … sleep. I also know that her antidepressants can kill sex drive. All three things at once feel like more than just coincidence, though.

At the very least, the PDAs seem disrespectful. At worst, I’m a blind fool who’s been replaced. Am I insecure or is there something to these worries?

— You Pick The Acronym I Gotta Get To Work Your girlfriend’s best friend isn’t gay, YPTAIGGTW, he’s bisexual — so, yeah, it’s entirely possible M is fucking your girlfriend, since fucking girls is something bisexual guys do and, according to one study, they’re better at it. (Australian women who had been with both bi and straight guys ranked their bi male partners as more attentive lovers, more emotionally available, and better dads, according to the results of a study published in 2016.) But while we can’t know for sure whether M is fucking J, YPTAIGGTW, we do know who she isn’t fucking: you. If the sex is rare and a kiss — on the cheek — is a oncea-week occurrence, it’s time to pull the plug. Yes, antidepressants can be a libido killer. They can also be a dodge.

If your girlfriend doesn’t regard the lack of sex as a problem and isn’t working on a fix — if she’s prioritizing partying with her bisexual bestie over talking to her doc and adjusting her meds, if she hasn’t offered you some sort of accommodation/outlet/workaround for the lack of sex — trust your gut and get out.

Dear Dan, I’m a recently divorced woman with a high libido. Now that I’m single, I’ve come out as a kinkster. I quickly met someone who swept me off my feet — smart, funny, sexy, proudly pervy, and experienced in the BDSM scene — and soon he declared himself as my Dom and I assumed the sub role. This was hot as hell at first. I loved taking his orders, knowing how much my subservience pleased him, and surprising myself with just how much pain and humiliation I could take. However, his fantasies quickly took a darker turn. When I say I’m uncomfortable with the extremely transgressive territory he wants to explore, he says, “I’m your master and you take my orders.” I think this is shitty form — the bottom should always set the limits. When we’re in play, he says that I chose him as my top precisely because I wanted to see how far I could go and that it’s his job to push me out of my comfort zone. I think he’s twisting my words.

Arguing over limits mid-scene makes us both frustrated and angry. I’m not in any physical danger, but his requests (if carried out) could ruin some of my existing relationships.

Did I blow it by not giving him a list of my hard limits in advance of becoming his sub? Or is he just a shitty, inconsiderate top trying to take advantage of a novice? After play, he checks in to see if I’m okay, which on the surface looks like great form — aftercare and all — but this also feels manipulative. How can I pull things back to where I’m comfortable? Do I run from the scene, or just this guy?

— Tired Of Overreaching From A Shitty Top A top who reopens negotiations about limits and what’s on the BDSM menu during a scene — a time when the sub will feel tremendous pressure to, well, submit — is not a top you can trust. The same goes for a top who makes demands that, if obeyed, could ruin their sub’s relationships with family, friends, other partners, etc.

Run from this guy, TOOFAST, but not from the scene. There are better tops out there. Go find one.

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

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| clevescene.com | January 3 - 9, 2018

47

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