Bloomington

Pokey LaFarge Talks New Album, Lineup and Traveling the World

Pokey LaFarge has been on the road for a month. He sounds strangely serene -- his voice relaxed and dripping over the line like warm molasses over johnny cakes -- despite the winter rain currently killing his vibe in North Dakota. "I'm freezing my butt off," he laughs. It's the stretch between date ... More >>

The Best Concerts in St. Louis This Week: February 18 to 24

Here at RFT Music, so many shows come across our desks on a regular basis in the form of announcements, previews and reviews that things can get pretty darn redundant. So when we come across fun coincidences, like the photo of Man Man sporting some homemade D.R.I. swag above, we're a little too easi ... More >>

On with the Shue: Remembering the playwright who died in a 1985 plane crash but lives on in The Foreigner

KSDK Anchor Pat McGonigle Puts Tongue on Dried Reindeer Poop

A zoo in Bloomington, Illinois is selling ornaments made from genuine reindeer dump.  We know this because we saw it on KSDK Channel 5. The dump was lovingly harvested from the zoo's own reindeer -- not from those living in the North Pole. It has been dehydrated and painted, presumably to make ... More >>

Murder by Death

9 p.m. Monday, August 20. Plush, 3224 Locust Street.

Sleigh Bells and AraabMuzik Are Coming to the Pageant: Presale and Gift Card Giveaway Happening Now

Sleigh Bells and AraabMuzik have just announced a co-headlining fall 2012 tour, and it will stop at the Pageant (6161 Delmar Blvd) on October 28. Expect the loudness and riffage to have your ears ringing right through Halloween. Tickets go on sale this Friday at 5 p.m., unless you head over to the ... More >>

Illinois Prisons to Do Brunch, Not Lunch

Illinois Department of Corrections Chief Tony Godinez presented a plan to the Illinois House of Representatives yesterday that would save the state an estimated $2.5 million a year, according to the Bloomington Pantagraph. Just like your mom and your girlfriend, he's suggesting that the prisoners do ... More >>

Floyd Irons Out of Prison and Coaching Basketball

​Last we checked, legendary basketball coach Floyd Irons was serving a 12-month sentence in federal prison for mortgage fraud. Just prior to his 2008 sentencing, came even more bad news: The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) stripped the coach and Vashon High School of thr ... More >>

Gabe Kea, Son of Former Blues Player Ed Kea, Blazing His Own Comedic Path

Gabe Kea: "I'm not Canadian, I just do Canadian things." ​By the age of four, comic Gabe Kea got his first mention in The New York Times, but the occasion was no joke: His father, Dutch-born Blues defenseman Ed Kea, was being profiled. In 1983, Kea père had hit his head on the ice during a Blues ... More >>

William Shatner Gives Performance of His Life in State Farm PSA on Deep-Fried Turkey

This is without question one of the very best PSAs we've ever seen. Ever. Produced by State Farm Insurance (based in Bloomington, Illinois), it's got Shatner, deep fried turkey, allusions to The Lord of the Rings, lots of irony, faux fire. Something called a "dingle-dangle." We are not shitting you. ... More >>

The Mississippi River Music Festival Returns, With Music From Belleville And Beyond

​In 2006, Don Bailey closed Three-1-Three, his music club in downtown Belleville, leaving a hole in a once-vibrant live music scene. "I always enjoyed Belleville and the music scene, from Uncle Tupelo to Fragile Porcelain Mice," says Bailey. "I booked over 2000 bands at the 313 Club, and I not ... More >>

Population Center of United States Moves Southwest Through Missouri

A hundred years ago Bloomington, Indiana, had its time in the spotlight.​The 2010 U.S. Census is expected to show the mean center of the U.S. population continuing its southwestern slide across Missouri. One hundred years ago, the nation's population center was in Bloomington, Indiana, as evident ... More >>

Wash U Lady Bears Battle Their Way to D-3 Final Four

Washington University​Yeah, yeah, Mizzou and Illinois pussyfooted their way into the NCAA tournament, which gives area hoopsters another week to celebrate mediocrity. But if you're looking for a more legit reason to get your March Madness on this week, turn your attention toward another set of ... More >>

Wash. U Lady Bears Prepare to Defend National Title

Washington University​This weekend is a big one for college hoops. Arch Madness comes to town. The suddenly hot Saint Louis University team will attempt to win its fifth in a row. And perhaps most importantly, the Washington University Lady Bears will take their first step toward defending the ... More >>

Video: Cheap Trick's Bun E. Carlos Plays "Surrender" with Bottle Rockets and Marshall Crenshaw

On Wednesday night, we told you about Marshall Crenshaw and Bottle Rockets' killer cover of Cheap Trick's "Surrender." Well, last night at the Castle Theatre in Bloomington, Illinois, Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos sat in with the bands for that same cover. Video evidence, of course, has already ... More >>

Tour Diary, Day Two: The Incurables Open for Alejandro Escovedo in Cincinnati

In October, the Incurables had the opportunity to open several Midwest dates for Alejandro Escovedo. Guitarist/vocalist Jimmy Griffin agreed to keep a tour diary for A to Z. Here's the second installment; part one is here. All photos are from the Bloomington, Illinois, show. Stay tuned to A to Z for ... More >>

Tour Diary, Day One: The Incurables Opening for Alejandro Escovedo

Earlier in October, the Incurables had the opportunity to open several Midwest dates for Alejandro Escovedo. Guitarist/vocalist Jimmy Griffin agreed to keep a tour diary for A to Z. Here's the first installment. All photos are from the Bloomington, Indiana, show. Stay tuned to A to Z for more recaps ... More >>

Twelve Things To Do This Weekend: September 17-19

Dan ZettwochA late 2009 RFT cover featuring KSHE mascot Sweet Meat.​Summer's not over yet! There's still one more week (more or less) to enjoy the last gasps of carefree fun and outdoor hangs. Here are twelve good bets for the weekend -- of course, on top of the events we've already covered he ... More >>

PLAY:stl Fest Kicks Off Tomorrow Night at Cicero's

​The fourth annual PLAY:stl Fest starts tomorrow night with a kickoff party at Cicero's featuring Chicago indie rockers (and last year's big draw), Owen. This year's showcase follows the same formula as previous festivals: 100 bands, 3 days and cheap as all get out -- $20 for a three-day wrist ... More >>

Show Review Setlist: Gaslight Anthem, Chamberlain and Tim Barry at Pop's, July 16, 2010

Nigel CraneThe Gaslight Anthem​New Jersey's Gaslight Anthem has made great strides in the past few years. It's gone from trekking around the country in a beat-up van, to cruising in style in a full-blown tour bus. It's gone from moving modest units on a small punk label (XOXO Records), to cra ... More >>

It's Not Too Late to Plan for Bloomsday!

Image source​It's rare that a classic of world literature is set on one particular calendar date. Maybe that's why June 16, the day on which James Joyce's Ulysses is set (1904 edition), also known as "Bloomsday" has achieved such immortality. Well, that and its main character Leopold Bloom spe ... More >>

Review: Murder by Death, Ha Ha Tonka and Linfinity Turn Off Broadway Into a Sweatbox, Wednesday, March 31

Robyn Grimes​Before the encore, Adam Turla, singer and guitarist for Murder by Death, predicted fame for the band in another 40 years, at roughly the same rate as Bo Diddley. It's just that sort of humbled reckoning that kept the crowd rowdy and the room toasty at Off Broadway, where the band ... More >>

Screw March Madness, Illinois State University Already Has a Circus

Besides its wealth of political scandals and the appearance of its former governor on a TV reality show. Illinois has yet another reason to be proud of itself: Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal is the home of Gamma Phi Circus, the nation's older collegiate circus. (There's only one oth ... More >>

Conversation Killer: The Pantagraph of Bloomington, IL Suspends Reader Comments

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackcustard/ / CC BY-SA 2.0​Another year, another push-back against the Interweb's free-for-all ethos: the Pantagraph over in Bloomington, Illinois just executed a weekend cooling-off period during which comments on local stories were suspended. To justify the move, e ... More >>

Tonight! Murder By Death with the Hibernauts at Off Broadway

Feeling macabre and like dancing tonight? Head to Off Broadway and check out Bloomington, Indiana's Murder By Death. Roy Kasten said this: Bloomington, Indiana's Murder By Death overcomes aesthetic absurdity -- picture the Crash Test Dummies employing cellos to transform a barn dance into a sl ... More >>

Murder By Death

8:30 p.m. Thursday, May 7. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Avenue.

FoodWire: Some J. Buck's No Longer J. Buck's

I've received a couple of reader e-mails noting the strange goings-on at some of the area's J. Buck's: signage disappearing, menus without the restaurant's name. This article from the Belleville News-Democrat does a nice job of summing up what's happening: The Clayton and downtown J. Buck's will re ... More >>

Prizzy Prizzy Please

8 p.m. Friday, January 16. Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center, 3301 Lemp Avenue.

The Hold Steady at the Gargoyle, April 6. Why Yes, the Alcohol-Free St. Louis Venue.

The Hold Steady is known for its songs about drinking in bars, among other things. So of course the Brooklyn band is playing the Gargoyle on April 6, according to Blurt. Why yes, the NO-BOOZE venue in town. Metrotix link live, buy tickets now.So, who's trekking to Bloomington or Urbana instead? I do ... More >>

Mizzou: You're so Gay

Columbia, Missouri, University of Missouri, Mizzou, Out Traveler, Gay-Friendly College Towns

The Coke Dares

9 p.m. Sunday, May 11. Bluebird, 2706 Olive Street

Early Day Miners

9 p.m. Friday, February 8. The Bluebird, 2706 Olive Street.

St. Louis 2008 shows: Dan Deacon, Early Day Miners, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Health

Murder By Death/ Reverend Horton Heat

7 p.m. Saturday, August 18. Pop's, 1403 Mississippi Avenue, Sauget, Illinois

Defiance, Ohio

8 p.m. Tuesday, March 6. Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center (3301 Lemp Avenue).

Pulitzer's Gain

Some say Pulitzer Inc.'s sale to Lee Enterprises blew in quicker than a shotgun wedding. Others saw it coming a mile away.

Steal the Crumbs

Some so-called friends pay tribute to Uncle Tupelo

The Mary Janes

Thursday, December 4; Off Broadway

The Accidental Actress

Linda Stephens comes full circle with My Fair Lady

John Wilkes Booze

Tuesday, July 22; Way Out Club

Embarrassment of Riches

If you can't find a show to go to this weekend, it's your own damn fault

Gravy Train

The latest St. Louisan to hop aboard the reality-TV juggernaut sees nothing but green

Grand Illusion

The hometowners of Grand Ulena insist they're not a local band

Mary Janes with Larissa Dalle

Friday, July 20; Frederick's Music Lounge.

Ticket to Ride

Local discs make waves with national-caliber samplers

Panoply Academy Corps of Engineers with the Vogue

Saturday, Aug. 26; Centro Sociale

Space Case

Witnesses testify in the mystery of the Metro East UFO

WHAT? YOU THINK SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH CITY HALL?

St. Louis holds onto its old things -- including the 1914 city charter

Sweet Janes

Listening Post