Category Archives: Matthew_Donnelly
GO: Robert Randolph, Truckstop Honeymoon & Prince of Darkness Top Weekend’s Don’t Miss List
Stay at home, light a fire, and grab a good book? Oh, hell no! Man up and get out of your jammies… it’ll be worth it, I promise.
Friday, January 21, 2011
*Robert Randolph and the Family Band – Liberty Hall in Lawrence
If you’ve never seen Robert Randolph before, what the hell is wrong with you?
Roberto wails away on the pedal steel (and other guitars), bringing southern blues, funk, soul, and gospel to the needy. His high energy shows can get even the Lawrenc-iest hipster shaking their thang.
Donnelly: SKC Ticket Sales Booming; USMNT coming to KC?
Sometimes it’s hard to keep a secret. Especially when that secret will probably put hundreds of thousands of dollars into your pocket and offer the kind of pub money can’t buy…
So why bother, right?
In a recent interview with MLSSoccer.com, Sporting KC president Robb Heineman made some interesting comments about the business side of the club, including what seemed to be an unintentional slip-up indicating that the US Men’s National Team will be playing a game at the new stadium in June as part of the Gold Cup.
But first, the business stuff…
Go: ACBs, Tech N9ne & Ida McBeth Top This Weekend’s Don’t Miss List
If you know what’s good for you, you will do as I say…
Starting with tonight, Friday, January 14, 2011
The ACBs and the Kinteks – 8th Street Tap Room in Lawrence
Dirty, crowded basement? Check. Cheap drinks? Check. A local band that has been steadily building some indie buzz? Check.
Ever since performing at the December Noise for Toys benefit with the Noise FM and Cowboy Indian Bear, I’ve been looking forward to catching the ACBs again. Definitely a must see.
Donnelly: Sporting KC Surprises With SuperDraft Pick, Harrington Signs
I’ll be honest, I did not see that coming.
Neither did any of the so-called experts, insiders, or bloggers. Even CJ Sapong, Sporting Kansas City’s first round pick in the MLS SuperDraft, was surprised when his name was called as the 10th overall pick:
“I was surprised. Coming into the combine I was just trying to get drafted…”
Donnelly: Dumptruck Butterlips at the Jackpot Saloon, January 7, 2011
OK, let’s do a little mind experiment. First, think of any kind of conveyance… Got it?
Now, think of a condiment/ topping you would put on food.
Finally, think of a part of the human body. Put them all together and what did you come up with? Mine is Rickshaw Salsagroin. So that’s what we’ll call our band, Rickshaw Salsagroin. Pretty catchy, eh? I can see it now: “Did you catch that Salsagroin show last week? It was epic!”
I’m assuming this is exactly how the Lawrence based folk/soul/grass outfit Dumptruck Butterlips decided on their weird-ass moniker…
GO: Matthew Donnelly Tells You Where To, Uh, Go
Where to go and who you will see and hear while you’re there. In other words, my top music picks for the weekend of January 7-9th.
Try these:
Friday, January 7th
Dumptruck Butterlips at the Jackpot Saloon in Lawrence – Don’t let the catchy name fool you. These “bedroom bluegrass” artists are known for their live shows, and were recently invited to perform at Yonder Mountain String Band’s Harvest Music Festival.
Donnelly: Sporting Kansas City Prepares for Yet Another Draft
It’s that time of year…again.
Sporting Kansas City announced recently that its first day of training will be January 25th, here in KC, before heading to the desert for a couple of stints at a training facility in the Phoenix area. While in Phoenix, SKC will play several exhibitions against other MLS teams, as they have in the past, while getting ready for their March 19th opener in LA versus Chivas USA.
With luck the roster will be finalized by the time training begins on the 25th. Still unsigned is outside defender Michael Harrington, who had a breakout season last year. The word is that the team has put the ball in Harrington’s and his agent’s court, with SKC brass simply waiting for a decision. It sounds to me like things may be getting (or have already gotten) somewhat contentious.
Donnelly: Jimmy Conrad Packs His Bags, Musical Draft Picks & Gold Cup
Well, it’s official.
As expected, Jimmy Conrad will not be among the Sporting Kansas City players who unveil the new stadium next season. Conrad was selected in the second round of the MLS re-entry draft by Chivas USA. Chivas is now required to offer him a legitimate contract, but if no agreement is reached, they still hold the right of first refusal on Conrad.
Donnelly: World Cup 2022, How Gay it Ain’t
Don’t ask, don’t tell…
Recently, FIFA chief Sepp Blatter floated the possibility of holding the 2022 World Cup in January, since the summertime temperatures in Qatar routinely exceed 110 degrees.
Is it just me, or should this have been a consideration before FIFA decided to award Qatar the Cup?
Moving the World Cup to January would wreak havoc with most leagues around the world, which generally play from fall to spring.
Now for the prickly part of the deal.
Donnelly: Noise for Toys at the Bottleneck – December 11, 2010
What can warm even the coldest, darkest of hearts on a nasty Kansas winter night?
OK, booze, yes. Though that wasn’t the answer I was looking for. Does watching college girls in mini skirts and high heels make the sub-arctic trudge through the snow worthwhile? Probably, but you’re still missing the point.
An ugly sweater contest? There you go. Getting a bit warmer…
(The Noise FM)
Donnelly: Cage the Elephant & Night the Buzz Stole X-Mas at Midland
I tried to weasel my way into the second tier where the plush couches, drink tables, and waitresses make me feel like I set up the show more important than the groundlings...
But a veteran usher was on to my act.
No worries.There wasn’t a bad seat in the house Monday for the first installment of 96.5’s the Night the Buzz Stole X-mas at the Midland by AMC.
Donnelly: KC Loses Out on World Cup…to Qatar?
It was announced last week that Russia will host the 2018 World Cup and Qatar (seriously) will host in 2022.
Russia beat out the likes of England, Netherlands/Belgium and Spain/Portugal, prompting some to wonder if the tallying of the votes was accidentally done “golf-style,” where the lowest score wins. Of course, allegations of corruption surfaced immediately following the announcement, prompting Russian officials there to reply, “In Russia, mob influenced corruption turns blind eye to you!”
Really though…
Who would want to sit around Portugal drinking wine, eating, and hanging out on their spectacular beaches anyway?
Donnelly: Jimmy Conrad & the Future of Sporting Kansas City
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Big changes ahead for Sporting Kansas City aka the Kansas City Wizards...
It was announced Friday that former face of the franchise, Jimmy Conrad, will be available in Wednesday’s re-entry draft. After being passed over by Vancouver and Portland in the expansion draft a week or two ago, Sporting KC did not offer him a new contract. Is SKC now slow-playing Jimmy, betting that other teams will not want to take a chance on an aging center back with a high salary no longer commensurate with his abilities?
I hope so.
Donnelly: Expansion Draft Paves Sporting Kansas City’s Way for Future
Ah, the road ahead…
The most intriguing question for Sporting Kansas City (Wizards) fans heading into last week’s MLS expansion draft seemed to be the fate of Jimmy Conrad.
The longtime central defender, captain, and face of the franchise was left conspicuously unprotected by SKC, and is currently not under contract heading into next season.
Here’s a simplified version of how the MLS expansion draft works:
Donnelly: Brandon Flowers at Liberty Hall
The frat boys were loud and drunken…
The gays were hugging and swaying. And the young kids were trying to score beers without getting caught.
Weird that what inspired all this was an American Idol style performance, complete with an awkward jump off the speaker stacks. I can hear the judges.
Paula: "You have such a great voice, but you need to let the audience see you having fun up there."
Randy: "Dog, you got pipes, dog. But you really need to engage the audience, look them in the eye."
Donnelly: Wolf Parade at the Granada
I’ll give you a topic: The Canadian indie-pop band Wolf Parade is comprised neither of wolves nor do they parade.
Discuss.
I probably would have been more entertained if there were a couple real-life wolves on stage, or at least a roadie with a wolf mask or something. That would have been entertaining.
Donnelly: Yonder Mountain String Band at Liberty Hall
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It was kind of a bummer when I walked into Liberty Hall at 8:00 p.m., the announced start time for Yonder Mountain String Band’s show on Friday the 13th.
A few dozen fans were staking their spots out up front, and the balcony was just barely starting to fill in a little.
Was Yonder losing its touch?
Were they not new (grass) enough anymore? Had they used up all that karma they generated with their relentless touring over the past decade, playing festivals and entertaining mountain folk and hippies alike? Was two nights in a row at Liberty Hall simply too much YMSB for Lawrence to handle?
Not a chance.
Donnelly: John Mellencamp at the Midland by AMC
Johnny Cougar. John Cougar. John Cougar Mellencamp. Now just John Mellencamp. Which one were we going to get?
I wanted the idealistic, chili dog suckin’, farmer lover. Not tonight.
“I’ve had some pretty stupid ideas that worked out,” said the grizzled band leader.
On Friday, nothing quite worked out for John Mellencamp (or the crowd) at the Midland by AMC. For starters, his opening band was an hour-long documentary.
Donnelly: Mayer Hawthorne & The County at the Bottleneck
If you don’t know who Mayer Hawthorne is then you’re probably not quite as hipster as you thought you were…
Come back when you get some tighter pants and maybe grow out that ironic mustache for good measure. Then maybe we can talk. Maybe.
It goes like this: a white kid from Detroit moves to L.A., starts spinning hip-hop records as DJ Haircut, then morphalizes into a porn-star-named soul singer called Mayer Hawthorne.
He meets Snoop Dogg and they like each other’s shit. DJ Jazzy Jeff remixes a few of his tracks. And Erykah Badu wants a piece of that, too.
So if you don’t know who Mayer Hawthorne is, you will soon.
Donnelly: Chicago Afrobeat Project at the Bottleneck
If I could hire a band to play my backyard on the sweatiest summer night, this would be it…
Girls would be dancing and twirling and drinking too much. Maracas would be shaking. I’d be smoking a Cuban cigar, making sure that the girls were drinking too much. And the Chicago Afrobeat Project would be cranking out tight funk, rock, jazz, and afro-cuban music.
