Classic country music fans are going to be treated to previously unreleased Hank Williams material next month. Omnivore Recordings has re-mastered 24 tracks of previously unknown recordings from tapes found in the archives in Creston, Iowa, radio station KSIB-AM. Originally packaged in 15-minute radio segments, the tapes feature some classic
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Posted April 23, 2014in Sound Notes
Posted April 23, 2014in Book Review
Stop and smell the roses with Violet
Courtesy of Beaverdale Books “Vintage” by Susan Gloss William Morrow & Company $25.99 320 pp Violet is a young woman who owns Hourglass Vintage, a boutique in Madison, Wis. Early in the story, a customer comes in and disdainfully asks if all of the clothing is used. Violet replies by
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Posted April 23, 2014in Tech Talk
Innovations have high interest with low revenues
Innovation and disruption are the lifeblood of the tech industry. Innovation is the inventive process that has forced evolution onto countless industries. For instance, VHS replaced by DVDs, then Blu-rays, and now online streaming, with each step along the way disrupting the peaceful tech status quo preceding it. As exciting
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Posted April 23, 2014in Sound Circuit
Travelin’ Man finds home in DM
To quote the great musical philosopher Hedwig Schmidt: “My home is the road; the road, my home.” It’s a motto that Dan Tedesco knows better than most. The Chicago native has been touring — in one form or another — for most of his life, but the years 2012 and
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Posted April 23, 2014in Sound Check
The Pixies “Indie Cindy” Pixiesmusic There are two ways to look at “Indie Cindy.” You can compare it to the other alt-rock albums being released today, or you can compare it to The Pixies, an iconic American band that last released an album 23 years ago. If you choose to
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Posted April 23, 2014in Center Stage
‘Extremities’ raises questions of violence and victim blaming
Lately, downtown theater has broken through to a new level at the Social Club, but some of this year’s most exciting work took place out west. The Tallgrass Theater Company near Valley Junction has brought two radical challenges: “True West” was an edgy drama that alternated different actors in the
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Posted April 23, 2014in Sore Thumbs
‘KINECT SPORTS RIVALS’ (E10+) *** Microsoft Game Studios Xbox One A showcase for the Xbox One’s newest version of Kinect, “Sports Rivals” is a hodgepodge of different motion-controlled activities. As always, Kinect is an impressive piece of technology when it works, but in every collection of mini-games built for it,
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Posted April 23, 2014in The Sound
Children of the corn reunite
Read some of the out-of-town interviews with The Faint’s Todd Fink — and he’s recently done plenty of promoting of the band’s newest album, “Doom Abuse” — and you’ll quickly notice that they all start the same way: with a pleasant surprise that good music could come out of a
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Posted April 23, 2014in Your View
All I want to know is…
When does Terry Branstad go on television and talk about his dog “Checkers” and the Republican cloth coat? Bob Runge –Des Moines Gov’s hear no evil/see no evil response fails Branstad has stained the reputation of Iowa good government with the secret hush money payments scandal. He has failed
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Posted April 23, 2014in Food Dude
Eatery-A, the new star on Ingersoll
When I began writing about the Des Moines’ food scene in the 1980s, Ingersoll was dominated, west of Noah’s, by fast-food franchises and dive bars. A comeback began with the opening of Corner Café and accelerated with Zanzibar’s, Art House, Stam’s, Bistro Montage, Star Bar and Gusto. This week’s debut
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