Articles
by Jack Brown | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Cinemadope, Columns, Film, Music, Newsletter
“Wimps and Wanna-Be’s need not apply!” That was the tagline of a print ad announcing an open audition for “FIERCE Male Dancers” who wanted to earn a spot on Madonna’s controversial, ground-breaking Blond Ambition Tour in 1990. It would have been a dream job for any...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 18, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage, Stagestruck
Cymbeline is one of Shakespeare’s “romances,” those late works in which comedy blends with tragedy and the endings are neither strewn with corpses nor aclang with wedding bells, but suffused with poignancy and forgiveness. The Tempest is the most popular...
by Jennifer Levesque | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter
Cinematic Pop Music Boston/Western Mass’ Eddie Japan combines that feel good ‘60s pop with a splash of ‘80s alternative new wave that’s a blast. In 2013, Eddie Japan won Boston’s ultra cool Rock ‘n’ Roll Rumble, and picked up a Boston Music Award for “Live...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 19, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Stage, Stagestruck
“Oh dear, the Wicked Witch is coming!” cried the Mayor of Munchkin City. “In that case,” responded Good Witch Glinda, “I’ve got to go.” “But why?” asked Dorothy, who was just starting to get used to not being in Kansas anymore. “Because she and I can’t be onstage at...
by Lena Wilson | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Film, Stream Queen
When Queen released their music video for “Bohemian Rhapsody” back in the ‘70s, it’s doubtful they thought the medium would ever become as quintessential as it has today. In this millennium of viral content and streaming video, music videos have become an artist’s...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Review, Wellness
Yes, I had cooked with herbs before, or I thought I had. But the first lesson that Conway author Brittany Wood Nickerson’s Recipes from the Herbalist’s Kitchen (just out from Storey Publishing in North Adams www.storey.com) taught me is that my prior forays in cooking...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The V-Spot
Hi Yana, My partner and I have different sex drives. I could have sex four to six times a week, while he feels more comfortable with about two. In the beginning, we had a lot of sex and I was ecstatic thinking that our sex drives were more matched. Now, not so much. I...
by Warren Johnston | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The Pour Man
Mont Gravet, a light, refreshing, low-alcohol white wine, is perfect for drinking on warm summer evenings. It also has the added enjoyment of being a wine of discovery, one from an unfamiliar region, made from a grape that gets little attention and that I know little...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Leisure, Newsletter, Wellness
The Harry Potter books and films have inspired many real world spillovers, including real-life wizarding schools and online quizzes that determine your magical house. But among the more surprisingly widespread are the leagues that have sprouted up to play the magical...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, News, News of the Weird
A man and woman dressed as Batman characters were shot by police while having sex in an Australian nightclub. The man, dressed as the Joker, was shot in the stomach after police mistook his fake gun for a real one. The woman was dressed as Harley Quinn, and was shot...
by From Our Readers | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Letters from our Readers, News, Newsletter
Iron Horse Entertainment Group Under Fire Several readers took issue with what they perceived as a lack of interest in the local music scene from IHEG in the comments section and on Facebook in last week’s cover story, “Behind the Music,” July 13-19, 2017. Here are a...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Between the Lines, News
Western Massachusetts advocacy groups know that there are many in immigrant communities living in fear of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and arrests, and over the course of this year have been working to do something about it — particularly in light...
by Christin Howard | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, News
“Everyone thinks of Massachusetts as such a liberal place, but I don’t think they realize how big the stigma is even here.” Those words were spoken by Alice, who will begin her third year at the University of Massachusetts Amherst this fall. Now 21, Alice chose...
by Rob Brezsny | Jul 17, 2017 | Articles, Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): The Greek word philokalia is translated as the “love of the beautiful, the exalted, the excellent.” I propose that we make it your keyword for the next three weeks — the theme you keep at the forefront of your awareness everywhere you go....
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 15, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Stage, Stagestruck
In her “Detroit Trilogy” of plays, Dominique Morisseau looks at black lives in that once-vibrant city through the lens of three distinct eras and groups of people. Paradise Blue takes place in a 1949 jazz club in the city’s historic Black Bottom district, which is...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 14, 2017 | Articles
The Mary Jane Jones blends vintage soul, jazz, and blues together with heavy horns, intricate guitar-work, and vocals that transport you back in time to a dimly lit speakeasy. The group performed for Valley Advocate Sessions LIVE on the front lawn of the Daily...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 13, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Stage, Stagestruck
Think of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead as fan fiction – Tom Stoppard’s contribution to the “greatest-play-ever-written” phenomenon. That is, Hamlet. In fact, though they were written centuries apart (around 1599 and 1966, respectively), the two make a...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 13, 2017 | Articles, News, Newsletter
The Harry Potter books and films have inspired many real world spillovers, including real-life wizarding schools and online quizzes that determine your magical house. But among the more surprisingly widespread are the leagues that have sprouted up to play the magical...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 12, 2017 | Articles
The Mary Jane Jones is vintage soul, blues, and jazz with heavy horns. The band played at LIVE set on the front lawn of the Daily Hampshire Gazette and the full performance will be released this Friday on July 14. Until then, here’s a teaser for the The Mary...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 11, 2017 | Articles, News, Newsletter
When he was 15 years old in 1976, Niberd Abdalla immigrated to the United States from Iraq fleeing persecution due to his family’s Kurdish heritage and democratic activism. He’s lived as an undocumented person in the United States for the past 41 years and has...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 11, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage, Stagestruck
The KO Festival of Performance opened last weekend, kicking off a diverse five-week season clustered around the theme “Tactics for Trying Times.” First up was Jimmy & Lorraine, written by Talvin Wilks and developed with Hartford’s HartBeat Ensemble. The playwright...
by Jack Brown | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Newsletter
At the risk of sounding impossibly out-of-touch, let me tell you something: I sure do miss Dialing for Dollars. That syndicated TV program — in which an afternoon movie was chopped into a few hundred pieces, allowing host George Allen to pick a number out of the area...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Music, News, Newsletter
For years the Iron Horse Entertainment Group with its quintet of venues — Pearl Street Nightclub, The Calvin, The Basement, The Iron Horse Music Hall, and Mountain Park — reigned over the Pioneer Valley music scene. IHEG’s rule has irked some people. Frustration with...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Review, Stage, Stagestruck
There’s a disclaimer of sorts in Jack Neary’s director’s note for The Foreigner, New Century Theatre’s season opener, playing through this weekend in its temporary digs at PVPA, the area’s performing arts high school in South Hadley. In it, Neary acknowledges that...
by Chris Goudreau | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Between the Lines, News
In the small Berkshire County town of Sandisfield, there’s a battle being waged over public lands and environmental concerns stemming from a natural gas pipeline being installed in Otis State Forest. More than 30 protesters have been arrested this year for trespassing...
by Hunter Styles | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Newsletter, The Beerhunter
Don’t let the name of their new Westfield brewery fool you — Mark Avery and Rich DeSousa aren’t preparing to quit their day jobs. But the two friends and business partners are still opening up every spare hour, every day they can, to get Two Weeks Notice Brewing...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Review
Thirteen of America’s presidents gather for a summit. They listen as Thomas Jefferson explains this new majesty before them — a giant, wonderfully fluffy chocolate-glazed doughnut with rainbow sprinkles. Teddy Roosevelt gathers his jacket at the hip judging the round...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter, Stage
Get your Scot on at the 24th annual Glasgow Lands Scottish Festival Saturday at Look Park in Northampton. The day-long event is jammed with all things Celtic and “tidy” (that’s Scottish slang for excellent). The day will feature Scottish music, athletic feats of...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, News, News of the Weird
Last week we got the surprising news that longtime News of the Weird feature writer Chuck Shepherd is retiring! Like, very surprising, because we had no idea this was coming. BUT, the Advocate is all about weird news, so we’re going to keep it going ourselves! Without...
by Naila Moreira | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Down to Earth, News
We’re in the middle of a national crisis of public life. The idea that we can make life better by sharing our collective wealth (money and natural resources) and brainpower (science, engineering, literature and the arts) is under threat. In a recent article for Salon,...
by Rob Brezsny | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): It’s not your birthday, but I feel like you need to get presents. The astrological omens agree with me. In fact, they suggest you should show people this horoscope to motivate them to do the right thing and shower you with practical...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Letters from our Readers, News
Independent Media for the Win During this past presidential election season mainstream media focused their cameras on an empty podium waiting for Donald Trump to give a speech. They could have broadcast images of Bernie Sanders giving his message to the people but...
by Jennifer Levesque | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Music, Newsletter, Review, Review, Valley Show Girl
I hear the sound of jazz in the parking lot as I walk towards New City Brewery in Easthampton last Thursday night. People are gathered in the patio area enjoying the music while also enjoying the summer night air. Inside, the old factory building with exposed beams,...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The V-Spot
I recently started going out with this girl, but it already feels like we are magnets to one another (both inside and outside of the bedroom). But the last time we had sex an issue came up that broke up that magnet-like feeling for me. I’m someone who really wants to...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jul 7, 2017 | Articles, News, Newsletter
A religious pilgrimage is taking place to oppose fossil fuel use in New England. Members of the New England Yearly Meeting, a group made up of Quakers from the six New England states, plan to walk 60 to 70 miles the week of July 9 from Schiller Station power plant in...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 7, 2017 | Articles
Brickabrack is a indie garage rock/pop band with a lot of grunge attitude. The band draws its inspiration from popular culture with song names such as “The Abe Vigoda Birthday Bash” and “Tina Fey,” which are featured on their debut album Irrelevant Thoughts released...
by Will Meyer | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Basemental, Columns, Music, Newsletter, Review, Review
Tundrastomper, an explosive, chaotic, and notey rock band, formed about 10 years ago when Skyler Lloyd, Sam Brivic, Andrew Jones, and Max Goldstein were teenagers — about 13 years old each. They grew up in a town in Westchester, New York, called Ardsley. I looked it...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter
Before the sounds of mic checks and inflating balloons echo over the Greenfield Community College verdant field to signal the start of Green River Fest next weekend (July 14-16), this Friday (July 7) Sun Parade and Twisted Pine will give the Valley a taste of the the...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 5, 2017 | Articles, Newsletter
Brickabrack is an indie basement rock band with plenty of grunge rock attitude. The local trio played a set on the Valley Advocate Sessions stage and the full performance will be released this Friday on July 7. Until then, here’s a teaser for Brickabrack. Can’t...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Music, News, Newsletter
On July 14, attendees of the Green River Festival will get a taste of the future of music in the Valley. The Next Wave Stage will feature a five-band concert with local bands with members ages 18 and younger. As a bonus, anyone 18 and under gets into the festival for...
by Jack Brown | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Film, Newsletter
In film, there have always been levels of stardom. There are those stars whose wattage is measured in tooth whiteness, and whose films are expected to earn many millions based more or less on their mere presence — your Pitts, your Cruises, your Lawrences. Then there...
by Advocate Staff | Jul 5, 2017 | Advocate Chat, Articles, News, News of the Weird
The Advocate Chat is a recurring series where the Valley Advocate staff talks about a topic on their minds. The text below has been lightly edited. dave.eisen (Managing Editor Dave Eisenstadter): Last week we got the surprising news that longtime News of the Weird...
by Amanda Drane | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Third Eye Roaming, Wellness
Ah, farts. Can’t live with ’em and can’t live without passing ’em. When I started this column nearly two years ago, I knew that at some point I would have to broach the issue of passing gas in yoga class. It’s an endless point of fascination for folks who don’t do...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter
Woman of Rock Lexi Weege has picked up on how solo female acts are received: they’re objectified, controlled, censored, and restrained — but you won’t see any of that at a Weege show or hear it in her music. She’s punk AF in that way. Weege’s...
by Blaise Majkowski | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Blaise's Bad Movie Guide, Columns, Film, Newsletter, Review
For Father’s Day, I was treated to a screening of the new Wonder Woman movie. My daughter summed it up well: It was better than good, but not great. What I cannot understand is the fever this movie has generated. Women-only showings? Were there any women-only showings...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter, Stage
Do You Represent the Lollipop Guild? After more than 70 years since the film’s release (and more than 100 since the book’s), is there any more magic to be wrung from The Wizard of Oz? PaintBox Theatre has answered this jaded question with a resounding,...
by From Our Readers | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Letters from our Readers, News, Newsletter
With Rep. Neal in Office, Who Needs a Republican? Thank you for the excellent article on Representative Richard Neal (“Can Rankled Rural Voters Dethrone Congressman Neal?” June 22-28, 2017). I remember when the state redrew our districts so that Northampton and...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, News
When Donald Trump was making his announcement about reversing steps his predecessor — Barack Obama — took in normalizing relationships with Cuba, Holyoke City Councilor Jossie Valentin had just returned home from a trip to the island to talk with women there....
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Columns, The V-Spot
Check out a video of Yana’s Q&A with the Valley Advocate. Hi Yana, I’m a bisexual woman in a LTR with another woman. My issue is that I’m super bashful when it comes to asking for what I want during sex. I’ve been partnered for a while now and even though...
by Warren Johnston | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Columns, The Pour Man
Vintners have been making dry, pink wine in Provence since 600 B.C., and they have gotten pretty good at it. In fact, the region’s winemakers would say that Cotes de Provence makes the best rosé in the world, and I agree that the crisp, bright wines are awfully good....
by Chuck Shepherd | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, News, News of the Weird, Newsletter
Editors Note: News of the Weird is ending, but we’ll be continuing the tradition at the Advocate, starting our own feature highlighting the oddities we find in the news. Watch for it next week! Weird News is forever, but this is my last “News of the Weird”...
by Rob Brezsny | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Astrology, Wellness
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Unless you were raised by a pack of feral raccoons or a fundamentalist cult, now is a perfect time to dive in to your second childhood. Is there a toy you wanted as a kid but never got? Buy it for yourself now! What were the delicious foods...
by Kristin Palpini | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Featured, Newsletter
Sticks and Stones II, the new exhibit at Hope & Feathers Framing and Gallery, is a contemplation of the very small and natural. The four artists contributing to this show meditated on things like pebbles, pieces of cloth, terra cotta, and textiles. The end result...
by Chris Rohmann | Jul 3, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Columns, Review, Stage, Stagestruck
Are we finally breaking through the color bar in American theater? Is the tokenism represented by theaters programming one “diverse” play during Black History Month giving way to broader representation and bolder casting choices? Judging from the area’s summer theater...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Jun 30, 2017 | Articles, Between the Lines, News, Newsletter
Four months ago, then-Advocate arts editor Hunter Styles wrote an excellent take-down of the hugely unpopular ad campaign trying to rebrand our region with the name “West Mass.” The heart of it was a list of questions about a dizzying, poorly-thought-out video...
by Advocate Staff | Jun 30, 2017 | Articles
EYES is a post-rock/experimental band that excels at creating poly-rhythmic soundscapes and walls of sound that are meditative and engaging. Check out the band’s full performance recorded on June 13 at the Valley Advocate Offices. BONUS: Interview with EYES Like...
by Chris Rohmann | Jun 30, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Stage, Stagestruck
Two shows now running in the Berkshires are rooted in the past but right up to the minute. Both Tireless, playing this week at Jacob’s Pillow, and Ragtime, at Barrington Stage through July 15, take their inspiration from the music of a bygone era while inviting us,...
by Chris Goudreau | Jun 29, 2017 | Articles, News
Over the last 20 years, medical education institutions across the nation have been phasing out the practicing of surgical procedures on live animals, but Baystate Medical Center in Springfield is bucking the trend and keeping it old school. The protest on June 29...
by Advocate Staff | Jun 28, 2017 | Articles, Newsletter
EYES is a post-rock band that excels at creating sonic soundscapes; walls of sound that are meditative and engaging. There are a lot of epic moments with EYES’ music that defy genre conventions. This local experimental quartet appeared on the Valley Advocate...
by Advocate Staff | Jun 27, 2017 | Articles, Arts, Get Out With Staff Picks, Newsletter
Giraffes? Giraffes! + More Math — Friday It’s a night of awesome math rock at Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center in Greenfield this Friday. Expect unusual time signatures, angular guitar lines, and sheer epic experimental forays into the boundaries of rock...
