The king of pop no longer graces the corner of 18th and Troost. Alexander Austin, also known as "Mural Man," painted a tribute to Michael Jackson after his death in 2009. We spoke to Austin about how his mural no longer exists, and what happened to it:
"First of all, thanks for the interest and thanks to The Pitch for following my work over the years. The mural was painted as a tribute to MJ after I had heard of his passing. Words cannot express the magnitude and the sheer genius of his work, and the millions of people he touched all over the world.
By now, you should have beaten your throbbing hangover into submission, cringed over your drunken text messages and remembered (well, sort of) where you were in those first few precious moments of 2011. I was judging the Donkey Gong Show over at RecordBar, wearing David Wayne Reed's fake clip-on tie and making Labyrinth references behind a podium. (Nice.) Where were you?
RIP, Club NRG. Del Hedgepath has officially sold the nightspot and all of the memories tied to it -- the pissing contests off the roof, the alleged rape of a clubber, the bloodying of a patron at the hands of a bouncer, the reported cocaine after parties, and the booty shootings, to name a few memorable moments from the club's past.
Hedgepath, who in September was accused of slapping a patron, was required to sell the club and cut all ties with new management because of the club's naughtiness.
There's nothing like a good old ball-busting roast to get a party started. Billy Belzer -- who's been a member of Mongol Beach Party, New Amsterdams, The Ssion and Uncle Tupelo member -- is hosting a multi-media show at the RecordBar on December 17. Here's the skinny:
I'm hosting a show at Kansas City's RecordBar that will benefit Kansas City Free Health Clinic's HIV Testing programs. The show's theme is a 'roast' of myself in which i play with my current bands The Sleazebeats and Mary Fortune. The Master (Mistress) of ceremonies is Shannon Michaelski who also sings in SSION and is entrusted, for the evening, with busting my chops between musical sets. There will be special guests, power point presentations, local celebrities and costume changes. FUN!
We haven't heard anything from the Beautiful Bodies for a while -- since about 2008, actually. Today, Alicia Solo and co. are streaming its newest track on Myspace. The song is a more streamlined, modern stab at rock than the band's, erm, Yeah Yeah Yeah-like sound on Touch Me (But If Only You Knew How). The track is called "You're A Risk," and it finds Solo sounding far more like Hayley Williams than Karen O this time around, don't you agree? Stream it on the band's Myspace, here.
Scene & Heard -- wherein local music scene makers give you the lowdown on the soundtrack to their lives.
Danny Spence, aka Spence, recently released his Planet Pluto album. In addition, Spence also recently graduated from the University of Kansas. So, he's a man with a lot to celebrate.
He also DJ'd with the Unknown Souldier at Harbour Lights last night, and despite all the excitement of an album release, graduation, and rocking the decks, he still found time to put together this mix, which runs the gamut from Beach House to Sam Cooke.
Download Spence's new album, Planet Pluto (right click, Usershare).
Scene & Heard -- wherein local music scene makers give you the lowdown on the soundtrack to their lives.
Ian Sotomayor is the best beer-slinger in Lawrence, providing Free State Brewery customers with perfectly pulled pints. In addition, he can be found rocking area clubs as DJ Proof. This is a man who knows what gets a party started, so for this week's Scene & Heard, Sotomayor lists eight songs he likes to play out. These are dance floor killers, guaranteed to get a party started right.
If you like what you hear, DJ Proof is spinning on the Replay patio on Friday, May 21.
Scene & Heard -- wherein local music scene makers give you the lowdown on the soundtrack to their lives.
The Architects' frontman Brandon Phillips is a man who knows his rock and roll. In his time with that band, and its forerunner, the Gadjits, he's been all over the country dozens of times, seeing more bands in one summer than most of you will see in your entire life.
It's that experience which had us tap him for this week's Scene & Heard. He even made us "two mixes with separate and distinct purposes," one of which is for waking up, and the other for more...salacious reasons. Dirty reasons. Reasons in which ladies take off their clothes.
The Architects play tomorrow night at the Jackpot with All Leather and the Beautiful Bodies.
Scene & Heard -- wherein local music scene makers give you the lowdown on the soundtrack to their lives.
Robert Moore is the quintessential man about town. He hosts Sonic Spectrum on 96.5 the Buzz from 6:00-8:00 p.m. each and every Saturday night. In addition, you can frequently find him DJing at Fred P. Otts on the Plaza, hosting Sonic Spectrum music trivia at the Record Bar, and running Oxblood Records with Megan Hamilton. As a man who knows his music inside and out, we had him compile a list of tunes that currently have the attention of his rather busy ears.
Along with his wife, KPR's Laura Lorson, Kelly Corcoran is the owner of Love Garden. The store -- a downtown Lawrence staple for over 15 years -- is frequently mentioned as one of the country's best record stores, or so I hear each and every time I'm talking records with folks around the country.
Since this Saturday is Record Store Day, we felt it fairly appropriate to have the owner of actual, honest-to-goodness record store make us this week's playlist. Corcoran made us what is the most epic one to date, saying only, "Sorry, I do this for a living, ya know..."
Dewey's Pizza (in Ohio and St. Louis), crust is doughy and light, toppings are amazing,…
Pappadeaux, Whataburger, Raising Cane's, Krystals
Portillos, Goodtimes burgers from Denver, Maggianos,
Chovy's Italian from Meadville, PA!
Is there going to be a parade?
Which out-of-town restaurant would you lobby to bring to KC?
The Gaf has closed in Waldo
DelHi Soul Food Buffet closes in KCK
OSHA orders reinstatement of Wolf Creek whistle-blower
Kanrocksas single-day tickets now on sale
KC Pride Festival 2013? Yes, it's still on
Police leave Union Station after suspicious package found
The Pitch's Questionnaire with T2 creative director Travis Schlitter