There are seven music festivals happening in Pittsburgh this weekend
The weather is cooling (kind of), which means festival season is coming to a draw. But apparently nobody told Pittsburgh. This weekend features music festivals for every kind of music lover, from blues to jam band, from family-friendly to “probably leave the kids at home.” Here’s a breakdown of the seven music festivals happening in…
Pittsburgh Grooveline: Dance parties at Spirit, Thrival, and more (Sept. 19-25)
Each week, the Pittsburgh City Paper compiles a list of Pittsburgh dance parties for you and your crew to bust loose to the best bangers, EDM, pop hits, and more. (All events are 21 and over unless otherwise stated.) Fri., Sept. 20 Innovating Bass Thrival Music Festival After-Party at Metropolitan Club. 11 p.m.-2 a.m. 25…
350° Bakery makes the jump from wholesale to its own home in the South Side Slopes
For years, 350° Bakery was just Barb Reale and Janie Crawford, cooking their goods out of the kitchen at Piper’s Pub. This weekend, 350° Bakery got a home of its own. Reale and Crawford have been baking together for years. The two are middle school friends who both moved to Pittsburgh for college. Neither of them studied…
Pa. state Senator Mike Folmer resigns following child porn possession charges
Late last night, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro (D-Montgomery) announced charges against state Sen. Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon) for child porn possession. Republican state Senate leaders announced today that Folmer issued his letter of resignation, which they accepted. “We are sickened and disturbed by the charges brought against Mike Folmer yesterday. We have reviewed the the…
Mon Wharf Switchback earns ‘Outstanding Highway Engineering’ award
Pittsburghers are no strangers to the downsides of hills and steep slopes, but a recently constructed slope in Downtown is actually a cause for celebration. The Mon Wharf Switchback has won the American Society of Highway Engineers award for “Outstanding Highway Engineering.” (A “switchback” is a ramp designed with 180° turns to navigate terrains with…
Commonwealth Prevention Alliance focuses this year’s Recovery Month campaign on “difference-makers”
Portrayals of addiction in media often focus on the struggles and tragedy of addiction, but for its 2019 Recovery Month campaign, the Commonwealth Prevention Alliance (CPA) chose to highlight those who have made an impact in their community. The theme: “Anyone can make a difference.” CPA is a nonprofit organization that provides support and resources…
Weekly Food Truck Schedule: Sept. 18-24
Are you tired of tracking down food trucks? Welcome to the Pittsburgh City Paper food truck roundup, where we do the hard work for you. Each week, we’re compiling a list of city trucks and their schedules. (For the most up-to-date schedule, visit each truck’s website.) AFRICAN Kilimanjaro Flavour @kilimanjaro_flavour Wednesday: Bellevue Farmers Market. 34…
CNN anchor Van Jones, Rep. Ed Gainey advocate probation reform in East Liberty
Pennsylvania has the second-highest rate of people on probation and/or parole of any state in the U.S., according to 2018 statistics from the Prison Policy Initiative. In Pennsylvania, there are 2,220 people on probation and/or parole for every 100,000 residents. Only Georgia has higher rates. Nearly half of the entire population under correctional control in…
Illustrated food, fashion, and drink tour of the South Side
Gabriella’s Gourmet First stop: coffee. Put some pep in your (possibly hungover) step with a caffeine boost from this mom-and-pop joint. 301 E. Carson St., South Side The Color Park Feeling awake? Channel that energy into a brisk morning stroll to one of Pittsburgh’s most vibrant community spots, The Color Park. The once-grey portion of…
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust announces details of second annual Bookish in the ‘Burgh
After a successful pilot year, Bookish in the ‘Burgh, Pittsburgh’s free teen literature festival, returns for a second year on March 27-28, 2020. Yesterday, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust shared the details of the forthcoming event at an announcement party in the Trust Arts Education Center. 2020’s Bookish in the ‘Burgh will take place over two days…
James Gallery finds beauty in the unusual with Pretty Ugly art exhibition
A new exhibit at James Gallery in West End Village takes aim at standards of beauty and ugliness in the art world and beyond. Pretty Ugly, opening Fri., Sept. 20, was inspired by the work of local artist Tom Megalis, whose work made a strong impression on James Gallery director Paul Cicozi with his “energetic, expressive, and unpredictable…
Concert Announcements: Green Day, Little Big Town, Hanson, and more
Stay up-to-date with your favorite artists and musicians coming to Pittsburgh. Each week, Pittsburgh City Paper will bring you the most recent concert announcements so you never miss a show. Rock Green Day, Fall Out Boy, Weezer. Sat., Aug. 15, 2020. PNC Park, North Side. JJ Wilde. Sat., Nov. 9. The Smiling Moose, South Side.…
Byron Nash wades into adventurous unknown territory with his new Harrison Wargo-produced project
As if he hadn’t given the world enough already, we can thank Paul McCartney for bringing together Byron Nash and Harrison Wargo. The two Pittsburgh musicians met after being paired in the same group at Pittsburgh Plays McCartney, the concert series founded by Josh Bakaitus (Live Nation) and Punchline drummer Cory Muro. The rest of…
Lynn Cullen Live – 9/17/19
Video Archive Sean Spicer on Dancing with the Stars is the first topic Lynn and Susan are talking about today. On a more serious note they are discussing the drone attack on Saudi Arabia, The New York Times coverage of the Kavanaugh accusations, Elizabeth Warren’s anti-corruption plan, and the Israel election going on now. Audio…
Carnegie Library introduces new bookmarks to help find books on sensitive topics without having to ask a librarian
The primary goal of any library is to provide access to information, and to make that information easy to find for patrons. A new feature being tested at the Carnegie Library Main branch hopes to reduce a barrier people might face when researching sensitive topics. A few weeks ago, the library introduced bookmarks that list…
The Head and the Heart’s Josiah Johnson talks addiction, recovery, and his new solo career
Six months ahead of The Head and the Heart’s third studio album, Signs of Light, was released, the band announced that Josiah Johnson, singer, frontman and co-founder of the indie-folk group, would be taking a hiatus. Johnson was struggling with addiction and needed time to focus on his recovery and mental health. “That felt good…
Arcade Comedy Theater delivers a fun-filled laugh riot with Bubble Boy: The Musical
There’s a part in Bubble Boy: The Musical where my husband laughed so hard that he started to choke (don’t worry, he’s fine). If that wasn’t enough of an endorsement, the danger of dying from laughter is just one of the few charms of this musical based on the 2001 film. Directed by Don DiGiulio, the…
AJ McLean rules, and other conclusions from Backstreet Boys’ show at PPG Paints Arena
Backstreet Boys played PPG Paints Arena on Saturday for their DNA World Tour, delivering a mammoth, yet surprisingly svelte 33-song set list. There were costume changes and music videos and playful banter and each Boy had solo time on stage. It was my first BSB show. Here are some things I learned. 1. The new…
Bar that takes pride in catering to non-drinkers bolsters its mocktail menu
On the last page of the menu at Mixtape, there’s a half-page set aside for non-alcoholic drinks. The Garfield bar doesn’t fill up the page with the typical choices of sodas and non-alcoholic beer; there are seven intricate, craft drinks, all made without booze. Spirit-free cocktails, aka mocktails, are becoming more popular in the bar…
Company blamed for Three Rivers Regatta cancellation has filed for bankruptcy
After the Three Rivers Regatta was abruptly canceled this August, officials put the blame on the event-management group in charge of organizing it all, Pittsburgh-based LionHeart Event Group. “The blame is solely with LionHeart. Other vendors were ready to proceed,” said Three Rivers Regatta board member Charles Scholz at the festival cancellation announcement on Aug. 1.…
Lynn Cullen Live – 9/16/19
Video Archive Lynn has a guest on the second half of the show today. She will be talking to Paul Fireman about the upcoming What’s the Point? .5K Run/Walk. It will be held on Saturday at Westinghouse Park. Before he gets here however, she is going to talk about some of the major stories going…
Pylon Pics: Rudolph takes reins to Steelers sleigh in loss
The Pittsburgh Steelers lose home opener, and starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, to the Seattle Seahawks, 26-28
VIDEO: Friday the 13th flash tattoo as chosen by our readers
Earlier this week, readers were given the chance to pick which design our events and sponsorship manager Blake Lewis got tattooed on his leg. The winner? The plague doctor. On Friday morning, as the line wrapped around the corner on Smithfield Street in Downtown, Pittsburgh Tattoo Company released a second flash sheet which included an illuminati…
Giant Eagle is urging customers not to open carry firearms in its stores
As the debate rages in Washington, D.C. over how gun laws should be reformed, many large corporations are weighing in and urging action. Credit card giant Visa publicly urged Congress to enact expanded background checks and “red flag” laws that remove guns from people who may present dangers to others. Large retailers such as Aldi,…
Over the last year, 7,000 Pennsylvanians have lost health insurance
Health care is a major concern for candidates and constituents in the 2020 election, especially in a battleground state like Pennsylvania. A recent study from Public Policy Polling finds health care is a key issue for 69 percent of voters in Arizona, Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Texas — all of which are considered to be…
Now Playing: Weekly Pittsburgh film roundup, Sept. 13-19
There are so many ways to watch things these days, but watching a movie on the big screen is still the best form, so to help keep track of what’s playing, every Friday, Pittsburgh City Paper will compile a round-up of new releases and second-run films playing around the city. This only covers films that…
New Music Friday: Releases from Frame and Mantle, Swiss Army, and more
Frame and Mantle – Lost Under Nighttime Sky Frame and Mantle dropped its debut album, Lost Under Nighttime Sky, fittingly on Friday the 13th (which is also a full moon). The 10-track album was produced with the help of Matt Very, a Pittsburgh-based producer who has worked on releases from local acts such as Code Orange,…
In Slanted, the remarkable, strange story of a bandname, the first amendment, and a Supreme Court ruling
Life on the road for a touring musician is hard enough without dealing with a high-profile Supreme Court case, but that’s the reality Simon Tam faced on and off for almost a decade. The case centered on his band name, The Slants, which was chosen by Tam in 2006 as a reference to and acknowledgment…
Memory and Mourning tour at Frick Pittsburgh looks at death in the Gilded Age
Everybody dies, and during some eras, death played out differently than it does now. On Tue., Sept. 17, the Frick Pittsburgh will examine one such era with Memory and Mourning: Death in the Gilded Age, a tour exploring period-specific grief. Created to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of the museum’s namesake, industrialist Henry…
Why Port Authority wants to consolidate some bus stops
This week, Port Authority of Allegheny County announced a new effort to remove bus stops. At first, this might seem bad for bus riders, but in practice, this move should actually improve the riding experience for everyone who uses a bus. Port Authority CEO Katherine Kelleman explained in a press release how removing bus stops…
City Paper Live – 9/13/19
City Paper’s Amanda Waltz hosts Sally Wiggin to talk about recovery, including National Recovery Month, Pittsburgh’s Recovery Walk, and Sally’s own struggles with addiction.
Love in this club: glitter, friendship, and financial revenge in Hustlers
There is a scene in the 2015 stock market crash movie The Big Short in which a hedge fund manager is explaining to a stripper mid-dance why her many home loans are faulty and will soon start to cost a lot more money. The scene is designed to make the stripper look financially illiterate and…
Study says renewable energy power plants will overtake natural-gas plants by 2035
Natural gas is a behemoth in Pennsylvania in terms of production, consumption, and electricity generation. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, natural gas is the top form of energy consumption in the state, and about 40 percent of electricity in Pennsylvania is generated from natural gas, just behind nuclear energy. Nationwide, natural gas is…
Concert photos: Caroline Rose and GREAT TIME at Club Cafe
Caroline Rose’s second album, LONER, is darkly comedic. She sings about money, an unfaithful lover, a friend’s accidental pregnancy, misogyny, loneliness, and death, all while packaging those heavier topics up with a sprightly, angsty-pop sound. “Sometimes sad songs just need a cocktail,” says Rose. Rose brought her musical concoctions to Club Cafe On Wed., Sept. 11…
An Evening with Gov’t Mule at Roxian Theatre, Sept. 20
The members of Gov’t Mule never lost sight of where they began. During a break from The Allman Brothers Band in 1994, Haynes and original bassist Allen Woody formed Gov’t Mule with drummer Matt Abts, with whom Haynes played alongside in the Dickey Betts Band. Confidently merging rock, blues, jazz, and funk, the trio carved…
How to celebrate Friday the 13th around Pittsburgh
Only once or twice a year does the 13th day of the month fall on a Friday, but when it does, you can be sure there are people celebrating the spooky day. To help map out your day, City Paper has compiled a round-up of the spookiest concerts, tattoo events, and parties on this haunting day.…
Enter to win tickets for Slippery When Wet — The Ultimate Bon Jovi Tribute at the Roxian Theatre Sept. 21
Slippery When Wet – The Ultimate Bon Jovi Tribute was formed in 2003 by Jason Morey after answering many inquiries of “Are you Jon Bon Jovi?”(Most notably, comedian Dave Chappelle invited Jason backstage following one of his comedy shows thinking that he was the New Jersey icon.) It was then that Jason knew he had…
Pittsburgh music veteran turns album into two-night multimedia production at The Oaks Theater
Two Pittsburgh staples are coming together to produce a new “collaborative multi-genre experience” at The Oaks Theater. Playwright Amy Hartman and singer-songwriter John Vento (formerly head of the Nied’s Hotel Band) teamed up to make a stage version of Vento’s latest album, Love, Lust and Other Wreckage. The musical of the same name plays for two nights, Sept.…
Celebrate Friday the 13th by picking our Events and Sponsorship Manager’s new tattoo
Tomorrow is Friday the 13th, when tattoo-loving folks all over town will swarm local tattoo shops for what’s become a new tradition on the spooky holiday: getting a cheap tattoo. Pittsburgh Tattoo & Piercing, located Downtown at 103 Smithfield Street, is offering walk-in $40 tattoos and $20 piercings starting at noon tomorrow. To celebrate the…
Lynn Cullen Live – 9/12/19
Video Archive There is another debate tonight. Lynn is talking about that as well as, Ed Rendell’s opinion piece in the Washington Post about Elizabeth Warren. Then there are the newest iPhone design reactions. People are freaking out about the camera lens because of trypophobia, a fear of clusters of small holes. Audio Only Archive…
Pittsburgh City Paper staff highlights their must-see events
DANCE The World As We Know It by Lisa Cunningham Watching Corningworks’ artistic director, choreographer, and dancer Beth Corning perform on stage is like observing an artist paint a picture. She is as breathtaking in creativity as she is in movement. Five nationally and internationally acclaimed female dance soloists join Corning for The World As…
100 plays, parties, movies, concerts, and events to spice up your fall
STAGE 1. One-Man Star Wars Trilogy One man — Canadian actor and “uber geek” Charles Ross — tells the entire Star Wars trilogy in 60 minutes … BY HIMSELF. And he does this with no costumes, props, or sets. May the force be with him. Thu., Sept. 12-Sun., Sept. 29. Pittsburgh CLO at Greer Cabaret…
Lynn Cullen Live – 9/11/19
Video Archive Ryan Deto will be joining Lynn in the second half of the show, but first she is talking about a the latest Dana Milbank piece in The Washington Post. In this article Milbank talks about the Bureau of Land Management, and how it is being relocated in order to essentially dismantle the department.…
What you need to know if you want to be a museum’s director of publishing
Name: Matthew Newton, Churchill Work: Director of Publishing, Carnegie Museum of Art What do you do? I’m charged with working on all in-gallery texts, from introductory panels and section texts to wall labels, as well as any appropriate gallery guides or brochures for an exhibition. I’m also in charge of the book program, publishing one…
When educators who are supposed to be a child’s best advocate become barriers instead
My small head and big eyes barely saw over the huge round wooden table. My five-year-old limbs could not reach the ground. They dangled off the floor, ungrounded, swinging, floating — looking in desperation for an anchor. But like my words, they were untethered and unmoored. I was in the library on Carson Street to…
Squirrel Hill native’s Texas Flood: The Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan spans 30 years of research
Stevie Ray Vaughan was barely a teenager when he started playing for adults in roadhouses and clubs in his native Texas. Blues guitarist Albert King, notoriously particular about sharing stages with or praising musicians, recognized Vaughan as a sublime talent. Other musicians, including Jackson Browne, Dr. John, and Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, were gobsmacked…
A project that started as ‘fun cartoon porn’ has evolved into a thought-provoking movement
The first time I remember having images of my body drastically altered was right after my first wedding. As a gift, my husband’s mother had a couple of our wedding pictures airbrushed. I was shocked when the pictures came back – not because they were bad, they actually came out nicely – but because they…
Try the cozy, welcoming soul food of West Mifflin’s Walmart
Walmart is not generally known for culinary prestige. But at the superstore’s location in West Mifflin, this is changing, thanks to Adenah Bayoh and Elzadie “Zadie” B. Smith. Bayoh and Smith are the owners of Cornbread, a “farm to soul” restaurant that moved into the Pittsburgh Walmart in early July. The unexpected location for the…
Local rapper Linwood emphasizes the humanness of his music
Linwood thinks his name sounds odd. The Pittsburgh-based rapper and producer, born Linwood Lee Randolph Jr., is one of the rare solo artists that uses his real first name as his moniker. “I don’t have the most marketable name, it sounds weird,” says Randolph. “It rolls off the tongue weird. It sounds like an old…
Is Pittsburgh vulnerable to fracking-induced earthquakes?
When a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit northern Virginia in 2011, the Pittsburgh area felt the tremors. It shook not only some Pittsburgh buildings, but some residents’ psyches. As far as many were concerned, earthquakes didn’t seem like something that could happen in Pittsburgh. And while naturally occurring earthquakes in the United States are rare outside…
Un Poyo Rojo incorporates dance, comedy, and wrestling into an acrobatic show that defies stereotypes
A common stereotype of dance is that it’s a deeply serious art form, one that people can develop a strong distaste for based on concept alone. Randal Miller, director of dance programming at the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, hopes to change that perception with Un Poyo Rojo, a two-man show from Argentina that combines dance, comedy,…
The 412: wwoman’s music video is pleasurable and indulgent
The music video for wwoman’s new song “Chuchi,” which drops on Fri., Sept. 13, opens with the buzzing sound of neon, and a young girl standing outside of a supermarket. Once she enters and picks up a shopping basket, the dreamy, bedroom pop track kicks in, and viewers are transported into a shopping fantasy fueled…
Kenneth Aquiline uses own struggles with drug addiction and homelessness to help fellow veterans
Kenneth Aquiline doesn’t remember many of the times he had to be revived from a drug overdose, but he remembers the first. He recalls waking up in 2011 at his childhood home in Penn Hills, pinned to the ground in the front yard surrounded by paramedics and police officers. “I literally had no idea how…
Free Will Astrology
“Some are born in their place, some find it, some realize after long searching that the place they left is the one they have been searching for.”
Tigers Are Not Afraid attempts to depict the realities of the drug war in Mexico through fantasy
Within the first five minutes of the fantasy horror-drama Tigers Are Not Afraid, a young kid wields a handgun and there is a shooting that shuts down an elementary school. The two events happen independent of each other, but they’re both rooted in the violence spawned by the drug war in Mexico. The film follows…
PULLPROOF Studio highlights female and non-binary illustrators with Mirror, Mirror
At the Unblurred gallery crawl on Penn Avenue, PULLPROOF Studio opened Mirror, Mirror, a salon-style group exhibition featuring female and non-binary illustrators from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, and Kansas City. Run by a team of artists, the venue operates as a gallery in the front and as a membership-based workspace with a silkscreen printing facility in…
