The Des Moines Music Coalition made its initial lineup announcement for 80/35 this week, and it included headliners The Decemberists and Nas. Also among the bands announced were Lotus, Wolf Parade, The Black Lips, Jeff Austin Band, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, Craig Finn, Lizzo, Colleen Green, as
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Sound Notes
April 06, 2016 by justin
in The Sound
Straight outta flatbush
As far as the rap persona goes, Flatbush Zombies are a bit of an outlier. The idea of getting high is nothing new to hip-hop. But while the Zombies still rap about getting high, its drug(s) of choice are more pharmacological in nature: molly, mushrooms and acid, all of which
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Featured Story, Homepage Cover Story, Political Mercury
Grassley says guns OK on Republican convention floor
U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, tells Political Mercury he’s leading efforts on a bill that would allow delegates to carry firearms into the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, in July. Ohio is an open-carry state, but Quicken Loans Arena, the convention venue, prohibits firearms. Asked if attendees should be able to take guns into
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Civic Skinny, Featured Story
Four good men: Ward Reynoldson, Dick Jacobson, Joe Garagiola and Bob Hudson
Ward Reynoldson For the past 40 years or so, I have kept a small picture of Ward Reynoldson on my desk at home. It was taken at a picnic at his home outside Osceola when he was Chief Justice of the Iowa Supreme Court. In the picture, he is
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Your View
Will Bill’s sex scandals hurt Hillary Clinton?
The answer is no. Why? People don’t care if public figures are exposed for doing what the electorate is doing without the accompanying publicity. Right-wing fundamentalists are willing to publicize such things. They ignore it when their own kind gets involved in similar activities. I love the quote from four-time
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Featured Story, Locker Room
Fast and furriest
Think of physical education class back in grade school when the teacher would have you sprint back and forth to see who was the fastest in the class. If you can remember that, get ready for flyball — a relay race for dogs and their humans. This Saturday, Skidmarkz
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Rap Sheet
Two of a kind
Twista, 42, was arrested hours before a performance in Indiana for possession of marijuana on March 25. Twista, known for his 20-year rap career, was one of three passengers arrested following a routine traffic stop that led to the charge. Twista was released from the Indiana jail at 4
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Sound Check
Weezer “Weezer” (The White Album) Crush Music There was a point when Weezer set the bar too high for itself with the back-to-back thunderbolts of “Pinkerton” and the self-titled release that has colloquially become known as The Blue Album. Since then, the band has released an unbroken string of albums
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April 06, 2016 by justin
in Featured Story, On the Move
Hy-Vee buys the former K’s Merchandise
Hy-Vee has bought the vacant 81,936 square-foot building in Urbandale that used to be K’s Merchandise. The grocery store chain bought the building at 3303 86th St. earlier this month and paid $3.6 million. The plan is to transform the old building into an employee training facility and a
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Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! God save Iowa and our Honorable Courts
The “Oyez” cry — a French/Middle English version of “Hear Ye!” — is heard at the start of U.S. Supreme Court sessions, but it could well serve as an announcement in Iowa courts because, Lord knows, the Iowa judiciary merits and needs all the saving it can get. By many
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