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by From Our Readers | Nov 22, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Letters from our Readers, News
Responses to Greenfield’s Safe City Ordinance In response to “Greenfield is now a Safe City: What’s next for the sanctuary movement?” published November 14-20. Thank you for your good coverage of this issue, and your ongoing good coverage of Greenfield. I think the...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 22, 2019 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Featured, News
In Mossel Bay, South Africa, a gin maker is infusing their alcoholic drinks with something that’s pretty crappy — elephant dung. The creators of Indlovu Gin thought of the idea after learning that elephants eat a well balanced meal of fruits and flowers, of which they...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 21, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Featured, Music, Staff Picks
The Leafies You Gave Me Album Release Concert // SATURDAY Writer by day, surrealist operatic musical powerhouse by night Chris Goudreau is one of the core members of The Leafies You Gave Me, a 10-piece music and drama group that prides itself on putting on a...
by Monte Belmonte | Nov 21, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Monte Belmonte Wines
At age 2, my grandfather emigrated from Bonito, Italy, on the good ship Colombo and docked in Ellis Island in 1922. He became a U.S. citizen the old fashioned way — by waiting in a relatively short line, getting deloused and having his name changed from Crescenzo to...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 20, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Valley Advocate editor Dave Eisenstadter and Hits 94.3 host Trumpy talk about the week’s weird news in a podcast version of the Valley Advocate’s Bizarro Briefs section. Hear about dung made into booze, a terrible anti-meth campaign, and a 43-year-old Twinkie. Listen...
by Peter Stilla | Nov 20, 2019 | Articles, Featured, News
When over the past several years states began to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes and then some of them for recreational use, many people from the Baby Boomer generation witnessed something they doubted they would ever see in their lifetimes. People who had...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Nov 20, 2019 | Articles, Between the Lines, Featured, News
There has rightly been much interest in the Democratic primary, both from voters and from potential candidates. By spring of this year, it became clear we had a record number of people running to be the one to take the dishonest, racist Trump out of the office of...
by Jack Brown | Nov 19, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Cinemadope, Columns, Featured
The mob movie is the shadowy reflection of the American Dream. Stories of success despite humble beginnings, of hardscrabble times and strong work ethics, of family bonds and the desire for a better life — all the usual tropes apply. What makes it work so well in the...
by Chris Goudreau | Nov 19, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Music, The CDs You Gave Me
Best Mann is the art rock and indie folk alter-ego of Nate Mondschein, who produced, composed, and performed all the instruments on his debut album, …And the Sky, released Oct. 25. …And the Sky by Best Mann There are so many musical layers on this 12-song...
by Chris Rohmann | Nov 19, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Columns, Featured, Review, Stage, Stagestruck
Nilaja Sun is, quite simply, the most exciting solo performer I’ve ever seen. She’s a small, wiry woman whose expansive presence fills a stage. Drawing on an astonishing talent for physical and vocal mimicry, her pieces are fully formed plays that bring to life a...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 18, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Javier Luengo-Garrido, coordinator of the Immigrant Protection Project for ACLU Massachusetts speaks about Greenfield’s recent city-wide vote to pass a Safe City Ordinance to uphold immigrant rights in the community of Greenfield. He also talks about what is...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Nov 18, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, The V-Spot
Good Morning, I’m a straight 30-year-old man with six kids. My wife and I only drink when my mother-in-law is watching the kids for the night. However there’s something we noticed when we’re drunk. I absolutely love everything about sex — it’s almost a passion of...
by Rob Brezsny | Nov 18, 2019 | Articles, Astrology, Featured
ARIES (March 21-April 19): “Beware of what disturbs the heart,” said Ibn Mas’ud, a companion of the prophet Mohammed. “If something unsettles your heart, then abandon it.” My wise Aries friend Artemisia has a different perspective. She advises, “Pay close attention to...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 15, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
Sam Crocker is a teen songwriter from Bernardston who plays introspective acoustic indie folk rock. Check out his Advocate Sessions performance in the video below. Interview with Sam Crocker:
by Advocate Staff | Nov 15, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Valley Advocate editor Dave Eisenstadter and Hits 94.3 host Trumpy talk about the week’s weird news in a podcast version of the Valley Advocate’s Bizarro Briefs section. Hear about New Jersey turkey attacks, a mac-and-cheese dry rub turkey recipe, and a gender reveal...
by Our Readers | Nov 15, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Letters from our Readers, News
What you can do about the climate crisis I just called Congress about the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act. energyinnovationact.org. I think it is the best hope for getting us to stop putting carbon in the air! You might also night check out Citizens Climate...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 14, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Avery Sharpe, a jazz musician and historian, has produced an album called “400: An African American Musical Portrait,” which he and his band will perform at UMass later this month. He speaks with editor Dave Eisenstadter about his music and interest in...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 14, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Featured, Music, Staff Picks
Ona Canoa EP Release Show at the Shea Theater // SATURDAY Advocate Sessions alumni and folk trio Ona Canoa will be releasing their first record this Saturday, a debut extended play (EP) titled “Good Dream.” With that milestone in the bag, they’ll be celebrating the...
by Jennifer Levesque | Nov 14, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Music, Valley Show Girl
A couple months ago, I was going through the Fall/Winter Fine Arts Center booklet, checking out the upcoming events at UMass. When I started reading the description to the Jen Shyu: Nine Doors performance, I was highly intrigued. I soon after acquired tickets for the...
by Luis Fieldman | Nov 13, 2019 | Articles, Featured, News
After last week’s election, Greenfield joins Amherst, Easthampton, Holyoke, Northampton, and Springfield as communities in Western Mass that have rules that limit cooperation of city employees with federal immigration enforcement. A ballot question in favor of...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Nov 13, 2019 | Articles, Between the Lines, Featured, News
One of the first ways I got connected to Western Mass was through the vibrant contra dance community that continues to exist here. When I first stumbled on contra dance in 2002 in southwestern New Hampshire where I grew up, most agreed that some of the best dancing to...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 13, 2019 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Featured, News
Thanksgiving revolt Just as Americans get ready to tuck into their annual Thanksgiving meal, wild turkeys in a New Jersey town are counterattacking. Residents in the aptly named Toms River (a male turkey is called a tom) are reportedly being terrorized by the large...
by Chris Rohmann | Nov 12, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Columns, Featured, Review, Stage, Stagestruck
This weekend and next, Valley colleges present a fall cornucopia of performances – a culture clash at Amherst, a gamer fantasy at Mount Holyoke, and the Valley premiere of a national dance piece at Smith. First up is Peace in the Home, this Thursday to Saturday...
by Hunter Styles | Nov 12, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, The Beerhunter
You never see the best things coming. In 1998, economist Paul Krugman predicted that by 2005, it would “become clear that the Internet’s impact on the economy has been no greater than the fax machine’s.” Today I am happy to report, from the supercomputer in my pocket,...
by Jack Brown | Nov 12, 2019 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Featured
The Twilight Zone was always a show that got better after it ended. At its best, the science fiction/fantasy/horror of the series did its strongest work in the minds of viewers left dumbstruck by a twist ending or unexpected detail that upended everything that had...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Nov 11, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, The V-Spot
Hi Yana, I’m a 32-year-old straight cis man and I was recently involved in a nasty bike accident resulting in injury and permanent erectile dysfunction. I can no longer get or maintain an erection even with the aid of injections, Viagra, pumps, etc. I enjoy giving...
by Rob Brezsny | Nov 11, 2019 | Articles, Astrology, Featured
ARIES (March 21-April 19): If there are any potential Aries heroes or leaders or saviors out there, the coming weeks will be a favorable time for you to fully bloom and assert your practical magnificence. The lessons you have learned while improvising workable...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 11, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
The Tommy Filiault Trio plays bluesy party rock ‘n’ roll. Check out the band’s performance in the video below. Interview with Tommy Filiault Trio:
by From Our Readers | Nov 8, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Letters from our Readers
How do we get to Medicare for All? Medicare for all is certainly the best plan which is why other developed nations have it. There are four sizable expenses that private insurance has to pay that Medicare does not. 1.) Lobbying Congress and making contributions to...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 7, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Featured, Music, Staff Picks
Lilith of the Valley: Sea of Change // SATURDAY “Lilith of the Valley,” a music series celebrating female artists, musicians, and business owners in the Pioneer Valley (presented by PRIA Music Marketing), returns for its sixth series this Saturday at Bishop’s Lounge...
by Monte Belmonte | Nov 7, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Monte Belmonte Wines
I don’t know much about the real Johnny Appleseed but his mythology precedes him. I know he was born in Leominster, Mass., near the time of the American Revolution. And I know he was less interested in planting Macintosh to give to teachers as gifts as he was in...
by Steve Pfarrer | Nov 6, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Music, News
Bassist Avery Sharpe has been playing and composing music for years, touring and recording with jazz greats like McCoy Tyner, Dizzy Gillespie, Wynton Marsalis, Yusef Lateef, and Billy Taylor. As a composer, he’s written music not just for his own ensemble but for a...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Nov 6, 2019 | Articles, Between the Lines, Featured, News
Usually, we the journalists don’t like being the story. It’s much more comfortable reporting the news of events with which we’re not directly involved, but there are times it has been unavoidable. Over the past couple of years, the Advocate has been the subject of...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 6, 2019 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Featured, News
Fake Cop of the Week An eager North Carolina man was arrested for impersonating a cop during a police chase. In October, police pulled over a car in Wilson, N.C., searching for a possible murder suspect, but as police approached the vehicle it took off. A chase ensued...
by Luis Fieldman | Nov 5, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Wellness
On a typical day at the Holyoke Children’s Museum, there is a hustle and bustle as small children run around role-playing as police officers and firefighters, flashing lights from a replica ambulance and occasional dings coming from a small room with percussive...
by Jack Brown | Nov 5, 2019 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Featured
The sequel is a strange and fickle beast. For people on both sides of the box office, there is a great desire to see them do well; those studio bigwigs in their top hats and monocles love the allure of a built-in audience, and all the dollars they carry; we mere...
by Chris Rohmann | Nov 5, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Columns, Featured, Review, Stage, Stagestruck
Sometimes, in your darkest fantasies, when you’re struggling to process the latest outrage from this trumped-up president — you might just entertain visions of the regicides that feature in two Valley productions. One of them is about presidential assassins, the other...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 4, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Gena Mangiaratti accompanied a team of paranormal investigators to find ghosts in the Josiah Day House in West Springfield and wrote about it for our Halloween edition. Hear her thoughts on the paranormal and the individuals who seek out life beyond. Listen here: You...
by Rob Brezsny | Nov 4, 2019 | Articles, Astrology, Featured
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries psychologist James Hillman said we keep “our images and fantasies at arm’s length because they are so full of love.” They’re also quite flammable, he added. They are always on the verge of catching fire, metaphorically speaking. That’s...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Nov 4, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, The V-Spot
Hi Yana, Do you have any advice for still having awesome sex while pregnant? I’m currently in my sixth month of my pregnancy so I’m not carrying super huge yet but I know that could change so I’d like to be prepared. —Sexy at Six Months Dear Sexy at Six Months, Around...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 1, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
Snackbeard is a musical folk rock pirate for all ages with a beard made of snack foods. Check out Snackbeard the Pirate’s Advocate Sessions performance in the video below. Interview with Snackbeard:
by Our Readers | Nov 1, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Letters from our Readers, News
The state isn’t listening on the Route 9 bridge Are you aware the state is starting work on a two lane roundabout to replace the traffic lights at the bridge? While none of us like sitting at traffic lights, they do serve a purpose. Years ago there were public...
by Advocate Staff | Nov 1, 2019 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Featured, News
So You Want to be Scared? Visiting so-called “haunted houses” for Halloween is very popular, but if you want to get chills in two of them in particular, you’ll need to be medically cleared by a doctor and sign a 40-page waiver before you can go in. The McKamey Manor...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 31, 2019 | Articles, Arts, Featured, Music, Staff Picks
The Scary Jane Jones at Progression Brewing // THURSDAY On Halloween night, be prepared to lose your soul to The Scary Jane Jones, the All Hallows Eve alter ego of local vintage soul band The Mary Jane Jones, which is putting on a special spooky show of two sets at...
by Chris Goudreau | Oct 31, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Music, The CDs You Gave Me
Winterpills frontman Philip B. Price is set to release his next solo album on Nov. 8 titled “Bone Almanac,” which fuses haunting psychedelic-tinged folk rock and pop with lyrics that punch you in the gut when they’re not soothing what ails you across 14 songs. Drawing...
by Gena Mangiaratti | Oct 30, 2019 | Articles, Featured, News
Paranormal investigator Liette Casey speaks politely when she thinks she may be in the company of a spiritual presence, as she would if she were meeting a living person for the first time. Standing in the attic of the historical Josiah Day House in West Springfield,...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Oct 30, 2019 | Articles, Between the Lines, Featured, News
As we come upon Halloween, that night of frights, there’s a bill going through the Statehouse now that addresses real horrors with our prison system. As reported in Tuesday’s Daily Hampshire Gazette by writer Noor Adatia, Nia Reid-Patterson explained through tears...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 30, 2019 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Featured, Podcast
The Halloween edition of weird news with Dave and Trumpy. Valley Advocate editor Dave Eisenstadter and Hits 94.3 host Trumpy talk about the week’s weird news in a podcast version of the Valley Advocate’s Bizarro Briefs section. Hear about a scary house you don’t...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 29, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Advocate Associate Editor Chris Goudreau talks about his recent story speaking with young activists in the Valley dedicated to causes including gun control, homeless rights advocacy, and climate change. Listen here: You can hear more of the Valley Advocate’s podcasts...
by Jennifer Levesque | Oct 29, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, Music, Valley Show Girl
The 5th Queer Punk Drag night is just a week-ish away and it’s the biggest one yet says Tanya Pearson, the curator of these unique shows. I went to the first show back in February and it was one of the most satisfying shows I’ve been to in a while. “For me,” Pearson...
by Jack Brown | Oct 29, 2019 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Featured
As this issue of the Advocate hits the streets, October will just be starting to fold up its skeletons and plastic spiders to make way for the inflatable Santas. (Thanksgiving fan? Sorry, enjoy your single Thursday afternoon.) For many horror fans, it’s the end of...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Oct 28, 2019 | Articles, Columns, Featured, The V-Spot
Hi Yana! Long time listener, first time caller! I’ve been following your advice column and Instagram (@the_vspot) for a looooong time and I super appreciate everything you write about regarding communication, mindfulness, exploration, and everything in-between —...
by Rob Brezsny | Oct 28, 2019 | Articles, Astrology, Featured
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Do you have any skill in fulfilling the wishes and answering the prayers of your allies? Have you developed a capacity to tune in to what people want even when they themselves aren’t sure of what they want? Do you sometimes have a knack for...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 28, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
Hivebane is an acoustic hard rock trio from Springfield, MA, with soaring vocal harmonies. Check out the band’s Advocate Sessions performance in the video below. Interview with Hivebane:
by Connolly Ryan | Oct 25, 2019 | Articles, Featured
Once When We Were Crippled Once when we were crippled by too many options, we just weren’t ourselves, but were too frazzled to see it. Hobbled by the array of possibilities available, we staggered in circles regretting our surfeit of privilege. After torturous...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 24, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Anders Warringer performs eclectic acoustic originals with a side of absurdity. For the video recording of this session, as well as over 100 other sessions performances, go to sessions.valleyadvocate.com. Listen here: You can hear more of the Valley Advocate’s...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 24, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Staff Picks
LuxDeluxe at Abandoned Building Brewery // SATURDAY Some debate who was greater, the Stones or the Beatles? But for those who want a little taste of both, you can check out LuxDeluxe at their Halloween show at Abandoned Building. They’ve got the harmonies, bright but...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 24, 2019 | Articles, Featured, Podcast
Valley Advocate editor Dave Eisenstadter and Hits 94.3 host Trumpy talk about the week’s weird news in a podcast version of the Valley Advocate’s Bizarro Briefs section. Learn this week about a dead practical jokester, the global organization controlling yellow...
by Chris Goudreau | Oct 23, 2019 | Articles, Featured, News
With Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg testifying before the United States Congress in September and teenagers from Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, becoming leaders advocating for more rigid gun control laws following the 2018 shooting in...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Oct 23, 2019 | Articles, Between the Lines, Featured, News
Two years. That’s how long it’s been that Springfield resident Lucio Perez has been forced to live in sanctuary at the First Congregational Church in Amherst. Before taking the extraordinary step to escape an immoral deportation order — based on a minor charge that...