After years of playing music in cover bands (including the crazy-popular rockabilly group Meerkat Mobsters), Mark Mills decided to do it “his way” and proceeded to knock out a collection of classy, original songs fit for an Americana king. Recorded during the winter of 2015-16 in Nashville under the tutelage of producer Spike Jones and […]
Illinois Times
Posted inOpinion
Meet Glencore, rapacious global lord
Jim Hightower PHOTO BY LARRY D. MOORE The beatings of American workers (wage slashing, axed benefits, union busting, mass firings, offshored factories and brutish abuse of worker rights) have been increasing in frequency, intensity and scope – mostly ordered by CEOs in the posh, faraway headquarters of multi-tentacled global empires. Let’s meet one of the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
lincoln statues poem #4
lincoln statues poem #4 most of you are aware of thenumerous depictions in thisarea of our most famous sonthe volkmans even wrote abooklet with numbered photoswell there’s a new statue justdedicated in an impressive eventout on the university groundsconcealed beneath a blue veil tillthe ceremony’s proper momentthe sculptor stood modestly byduring the speeches portrayedis the young […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Bursting with Pride
Photo BY BRUCE RUSHTON Celebrate “the gayest day in central Illinois” by attending the sixth annual Springfield PrideFest on Saturday, May 21, from noon to 10 p.m., on Capitol Avenue between Fourth and Sixth streets. The free street festival contains something for everyone including a ribbon cutting ceremony, live music by some of Springfield’s most-loved […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
SOHO Music Festival
Photo COURTESY SOHO MUSIC FESTIVAL What started as a community outreach project in 2005 has grown to include a two-day outdoor street festival which features live music, vendors, food and kids’ activities plus a 10K walk/run and a PDGA-certified disc golf tournament. The 11th annual SOHO Music Festival will occur June 3-4 while the 10K […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
International Carillon Festival
This summer, attend a different kind of music festival, one without the high ticket prices, long lines, dirty facilities and drunks. Substitute the serenity of Washington Park, the company of friends and family, and five nights of al fresco music performed by five of the world’s most talented carillonneurs. By definition, a carillon is a […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Levitt AMP Jacksonville Music Series
Remember last year when we asked you to vote for Jacksonville in the Levitt AMP [Your City] Grant Award contest? Your votes paid off, as the city of Jacksonville was selected as one out of 15 finalists for a $25,000 grant to produce a free and family-friendly concert series in a neglected public space. All […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Bring on the bacon
On July 22 and 23, Downtown Springfield, Inc. and Isringhausen Imports plus other festival sponsors will transform downtown Springfield into a bacon-lovers paradise for the second year in a row during DSI’s Bacon Throwdown II. While the possibility of future food “Throwdown” events is strong, this is likely to be the last bacon-themed Throwdown, so […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Insane Inflatable 5K
This summer, get pumped for a wacky obstacle course unlike anything central Illinois has seen before. The Insane Inflatable 5K bounces into Centennial Park on Saturday, Aug. 6. Race waves begin at 8:30 a.m. and continue every 15 minutes through 11:30 a.m. The traveling race will land in 115 cities during its 2016 tour, 40 […]
Posted inMusic
Local likings
The LoveHogs slip into Brewhaus on Friday with Los Injectors and the Cold Stares. You hear a lot (or at least I do) about the burgeoning and flourishing Springfield music scene. People talk about how musicians play well together with excellent, diverse and progressing musicianship. This weekend especially seems to be jam-packed with some of […]
Posted inOpinion
Who says crime doesn’t pay?
Jim Hightower PHOTO BY LARRY D. MOORE Hey, can we all just stop complaining that our government coddles Wall Street’s big money-grubbing banks? Sure, they went belly-up and crashed our economy with their frauds, rigged casino games and raw greed. And, yes, the Bush and Obama regimes rushed to bail them out with trillions of […]
Posted inOpinion
Get out of the way
PHOTO BY ALAN SOLOMON/TNS With yet another poll showing plunging Downstate support for Gov. Bruce Rauner in a Republican district and the intense Republican freakout over Donald Trump’s impending presidential nomination and its impact on independent suburban women, there appears to be a growing feeling among Democrats, particularly in the Illinois Senate, that they need […]
