Cover Story
Fresh winds
A new wind symphony is making its debut performance in Rochester, a historic place for wind ensembles.
Film Review: “Into the Woods”
Practically from birth, we’re taught by fairy tales that as long as we’re pure of heart (and determined enough) that there will come a day when all our wishes will come true; everybody gets their happy ending. Though experience tells us that is anything but the case, we like to comfort ourselves with these tales…
Film Review: “Big Eyes”
Told as its own sort of fairy tale (complete with storybook narration), Tim Burton’s “Big Eyes” brings an unusual story of artistic deception to the screen. In the late 50’s and early 60’s, Walter Keane’s (Christoph Waltz) kitschy paintings of sad, large-eyed waifs became wildly popular, bringing him fame and untold fortune when he had…
State’s Comcast-Time Warner merger review trudges on
The state’s decision on the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger will not be made by the end of the year as previously projected. Comcast and Time Warner have again agreed to grant state Department of Public Service staff additional time to review the proposed transaction, where Comcast would swallow-up Time Warner to create one cable mega-corporation…
Film Review: “Unbroken”
Aside from the obvious, universally known classics, now and then a particular book or movie qualifies as a necessary work, something not only entertaining but instructive, a useful addition to the culture’s knowledge of the world and itself. Although her “Seabiscuit,” which suggested that a racehorse led America out of the Great Depression, succeeded both…
Ho, ho, ho! Merry mayoral control!
Governor Andrew Cuomo may have given some Upstate mayors just the holiday present they were hoping for: you guessed it, mayoral control. In a recent letter from a Cuomo aide to the state’s top education leaders, Chancellor Merryl Tisch and outgoing SED Commissioner John King, Cuomo indicates that he wants fresh ideas to boost academic…
Feedback 12/24
We welcome your comments. Send them to themail@rochester-citynews.com, or post them on our website, rochestercitynewspaper.com, our Facebook page, or our Twitter feed, @roccitynews. Comments of fewer than 350 words have a greater chance of being published, and we do edit selections for publication in print. We don’t publish comments sent to other media. We need…
Savoring satire in Pittsford
Elaine Miller describes herself as a groupie. The celebrities she follows, though, are cartoonists who specialize in political satire. Miller has studied and analyzed political cartoons and the artists who create them for decades. The longtime Pittsford resident regularly attends their conventions, lovingly collects their work, and frequently lectures on the intrinsic value of political…
The legacy of New York’s fracking decision
New York’s long struggle with fracking is over, except that it isn’t. Next month, the State Department of Environmental Conservation will officially wrap up its review of high-volume hydraulic fracturing, the natural gas extraction technique under review since late 2008. The big news: it intends to prohibit high-volume fracking in New York, DEC Commissioner Joseph…
DINING REVIEW: Char Steak & Lounge
Char, the upscale steakhouse located in the recently remodeled Strathallan Hotel, and as the name implies, is all about wood-fire charred goodies and especially their steaks. For the skim-reading steak fanatics who want to know whether or not the steak was good, I’ll get it out of the way first: Yes, it was. With that…
COMEDY | Geva Comedy Improv
The year started with the Winter Olympics and it’s ending with hackers making movie theaters terrified to show “The Interview.” If you remember more about the past year than I do, then Geva Comedy Improv’s year-end show, “New Year’s Eve Comedy Spectacular,” may be for you. Take in some nostalgia and a healthy helping of…
Greener Grass Band
Rochester’s Greener Grass band rocks steady and rolls easy. It effortlessly blends elements of reggae, country, and blues, and swirls it into a heady blend of bonafied barroom rock ‘n’ roll. The music takes on a laid back casual tack despite its serious groove. It’s a flipped routine as if the music is playing the…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Lucky Dollar”
Grand Canyon Rescue Episode “Lucky Dollar” White Mule Records grandcanyonrescueepisode.com From depression-era bluegrass music to the sound of intrepid travelers and hobos, Grand Canyon Rescue Episode’s new record truly deserves the oft-abused and overused title Americana. The music on “Lucky Dollar” chugs along at a mighty locomotive clip. It’s the Dobro and banjo that keep…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Wave Upon Wave”
Jonathan Kreisberg “Wave Upon Wave” NFN Music jonathankreisberg.com From the bold opening chords of the title track of his new album, “Wave Upon Wave,” it’s clear that New York City guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg is out to set himself apart from the crowd. Kreisberg, who has paid his dues in the bands of Lee Konitz, Joe…
“The Man Who Came to Dinner”
Now being performed at Geva’s Nextstage through Saturday, December 27, “The Man Who Came to Dinner” comes to the stage courtesy of Rochester’s Screen Plays, a wonderfully creative theater group dedicated to performing classic American plays that were made iconic on film (in this case, the 1942 motion picture starring Bette Davis, Monty Woolley, and…
New Year’s Eve Events Guide
Comedy Geva Comedy Improv’s New Year’s Eve Comedy Spectacular! Live music, actors, comedy, champagne toast at midnight, and dance party after the 10:30 p.m. performance. Geva Theatre Center, 75 Woodbury Blvd. Shows at 7:30 & 10:30 p.m. $25. 232-4382. gevacomedyimprov.org. Guy Torry. The Comedy Club, 2235 Empire Blvd. Shows at 7:30 & 10 p.m. $15-$20.…
The ACA’s poison pill?
You are forgiven if you haven’t heard that the Affordable Care Act is headed back to the Supreme Court. After all, the court ruled on the constitutionality of the law in 2012. That should have been the end of it. But the ACA’s opponents are nothing if not relentless. This time, it is possible that…
REGGAE | Rising Lion
Rising Lion is a four-piece roots-rock reggae troupe bringing the good vibes up from Orlando. The band is touring off the high of its fourth album, “Changes,” released last year. A revolutionary spirit, along with uplifting messages, plants Rising Lion with classic anthems and familiar progressions that nod to the legend, Bob — while a…
SYNTHPOP | Sea Planes
Sea Planes, a Rochester-based trio project is echoing into the indie-pop-synth scene. Two years together and four singles on Bandcamp later, it’s starting to pulse. Listening through the band’s tracks, you might hear allusions to French electronic phenom M83. Well-layered harmonies, gunshot crash drums and reverberating-everything exalt Sea Planes’s sound into auditorium grandeur. Lyrics of…
JAZZ | Rick Holland Little Big Band
Before forming his own Little Big Band, flugelhorn and trumpet player Rick Holland paid his dues with the Louie Bellson Big Band, the Jimmy Dorsey Band, the Terry Gibbs Band, and others. Now he gets to call the tunes in a style more reminiscent of Gil Evans. The 10-piece, powerhouse ensemble specializes in works by…
JAZZ | Shared Genes
Ted Nicolosi is a virtuoso finger-style guitarist capable of playing such a remarkable number of parts simultaneously that you’ll swear he’s got three hands. When his dad, Sam Nicolosi, supplies the rhythm, Ted’s free to do even more dazzling fretwork. Together they are Shared Genes and whether they are re-creating the sounds of Acoustic Alchemy…
GRUNGE | Anchorage, Nebraska
They may not want you to know it but Anchorage, Nebraska, despite its loud and sleazy underpinnings, is a pop band. There are sweet melodies swimming in the grease. The kids, they call it grunge and that’s not at all an inaccurate assessment. The band is brash, bold, ballistic, and ballsy, and a classic example…
SOUL/BLUES | Johnny Rawls
Mississippi masher Johnny Rawls is blues for discriminating tastes that like their azure with a touch of soul. He has been the band leader for O.V. Wright and Little Johnny Taylor before venturing out on his own. He has been a four-time W.C. Handy Award nominee. Dig his silky soul stylings and jumpin’ rave-ups live…
HIP-HOP | Golden and Emmy
Hip-hop and R&B is often overlooked in Rochester, but local act Golden and Emmy — Angel Hagan and Emerald Wilcox — combine elements from both genres that makes music that is impossible to overlook. Musically their style is dominated by soulful R&B sounds, while lyrically the duo goes heavy, with lucid delivery and smooth, catchy…
COMEDY | Carmen Vallone
Rochester-native Carmen Vallone makes his return to town to perform at the Comedy Club on Sunday. With over 10 years of experience in comedy, Vallone has toured nationally and has appeared on several TV shows including NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and CBS’s “Comedy Night School.” Vallone’s style has been described as one that makes audiences…
ART | “Close to Home”
Gallery 96, which lies inside the comfort of a Greek Revival house on the Erie Canal, opened earlier this month in Pittsford, so it’s only fitting that part of the debut exhibit, “Close to Home,” features photographs of Pittsford and the Erie Canal, among other local treasures. Local photographer George Wallace is responsible for part…
SPECIAL EVENTS | Kwanzaa Events
Kwanzaa — the week-long celebration of African heritage, ancestry, and the seven core moral principles (or Nguzo Saba) — will take place Friday, December 26, through Thursday, January 1. Look for the following daily celebrations in Rochester, organized by the Rochester Kwanzaa Coalition. If we missed a major Kwanzaa event, let us know by leaving…
