Baltimore Magazine: Robert McClintock vs. Artscape

[Image courtesy of RobertMcClintock.com]

Baltimore artist Robert McClintock—most famous for his portraits of dogs and local landmarks—won’t be at Artscape this weekend, and he’s encouraging others to skip the event, too. Through Twitter and e-mail blasts, the artist has suggested locals “opt out” of the art and music festival.

McClintock said the idea comes from his inability to pass the event’s juried application process last year, despite his participation from 2001 to 2010.

“Yes, I’m bitter that I didn’t get into Artscape,” said McClintock in a phone interview. “I’m a local artist promoting the city, and people look for me there.”

Artscape’s organizers aren’t worried about McClintock’s suggestion to skip the event. “The point of Artscape is to foster artists, and if that [campaign] helps him as an artist to sell art, then at the end of the day we wish him all the best,” said Tracy Baskerville, communications director at Baltimore Office of Promotion of the Arts.

McClintock didn’t apply this year, instead choosing to opt out of the festival. He feels Artscape is forgetting its roots in an effort to become nationally recognized. “They invite people from around the country to come here when I think it should be a Baltimore-based event supporting Baltimore artists,” he said.

Baskerville attributes the increasing number of regional and national artists to the event’s popularity. “As Artscape’s reputation has grown, more artists from around the nation want to participate,” said Bakersville of the specific markets McClintock’s work falls under. She pointed out that Artscape’s performing arts are still largely local groups.

McClintock’s offering an alternative to the event at his Fells Point gallery, where he’ll be giving away free signed and framed mini-prints (if you spend $45 first, according to the gallery’s Facebook page).

After getting some backlash from a customer, according to The Baltimore Sun, and some not-so-nice comments on Twitter, McClintock has softened his campaign.

“Not everybody in the world goes to Artscape,” he said “If you don’t want to watch the Super Bowl you can watch Gone with the Wind on another channel. It’s something else to do."

—This post was written by editorial summer intern Rebecca Kirkman
 
Read it at Baltimore magazine.

Baltimore Magazine: Can beer tasting at The Wine Market

When we think can beers, we usually think Natty Boh or Miller Lite. But there's more to cans than mass-produced light lagers, and we tried them ourselves last night at Wine Market Bistro's can beer tasting.
In a room nestled off of the Locust Point restaurant's main dining area, 13 canned beers sat in a line along a makeshift bar on one end of the room. With so many choices, we grabbed our tumblers and decided to work our way from left to right.

The event was casual, with no formal introduction of the beers, but we got a chance to chat with The Wine Market's owner, Chris Spann, and beer manager, Brendan Kirlin, with each refill.

We were first offered a generous three-ounce pour of Blanche de Bruxelles, a coriander and orange peel infused witbier from Belgium. The only imported beer, it gave a special authority to the idea of canned beer—if a Belgian brewery established in 1876 cans its beer, why not everyone?

One thing to note: Many craft beer enthusiasts dislike cans because of the aluminum taste drinking from the can adds to the beer's flavor. This was thoughtfully avoided because our samples were poured into glasses. And that’s what you should do anyway with a good beer—pour it into a glass.

We overheard a lot of home-brewing conversation from the crowd of about 50 people standing around tables, but not everyone is a beer expert, and the hosts were happy to explain the types of beers available. Small menus listing the cans, and tasting notes for each, were scattered on the tables with pens included so we could keep track of the beers.

There were a wide range of styles, from 21st Amendment's light and fruity wheat beer Hell or High Watermelon to Oskar Blues’s dark and chocolaty Scottish strong ale Old Chub. Of course, Resurrection, the local favorite from Brewer's Art, made the list as well.

The best part—because The Wine Market is part-bistro and part-shop—was grabbing a six-pack of our favorites to take home on the way out.

—Rebecca Kirkman, Baltimore magazine intern 
[Image by Rebecca Kirkman]

See the story in Baltimore magazine.

Baltimore Magazine: Bachelor and Bachelorette casting comes to Locust Point

Last night, the ABC reality shows The Bachelor and The Bacheloretteheld an open casting call at The Greene Turtle in Locust Point. We sent one of our intrepid summer interns, Rebecca Kirkman, to cover the proceedings. This is her report: 

“I want to go all the way—his last rose,” says Jennifer Barnes, a young woman with tattoos and scarlet lipstick in a white bodycon dress. We’re standing about halfway up a winding line of glossy-lipped, shiny-haired girls which twists and turns through The Greene Turtle at McHenry Row in Locust Point, all vying for a spot on ABC’s reality dating juggernaut The Bachelor. Barnes fidgets a little with her purse and tells me how nervous she is. “I want to get a drink but I don’t want to lose my place in line,” she says. 

Overwhelmed waiters and bewildered patrons squeeze through a gap in the line, past a tan girl clutching a Bach-tini (cherry vodka, lemon-lime soda and a splash of grenadine) in one hand and a casting application in the other. It’s the first Baltimore casting call in The Bachelor history, and hundreds of Charm City singles showed up in everything from sexy cocktail dresses to jeans and T-shirts. After waiting for almost two hours, the love-seekers disappear in groups to be questioned on-camera about their hobbies and dating history. “I’m a huge Bachelor fan, like, obsessed” says Lisa Dannenberg, a blonde in a sundress, after her interview.

Outside girls sit and stand in clusters, checking their makeup and fanning themselves in the sticky 93-degree heat as they anxiously await their turns. Friends take shots at the bar to calm their nerves. Desperate not to seem desperate, everyone I talk to tries to downplay their presence—writing it off to nagging coworkers, living nearby, and even stumbling across the casting call on the way to get frozen yogurt. I overhear a young woman point to her friends and mischeviously say, “I tricked them into coming.”

The few guys in the crowd seem to be here more for the single girls than to find true love. One, with slickly parted hair and a pinstriped suit, yells to the bubbly, blonde bartender “I lied on my application!” Holding it up he reads “Do you drink alcoholic beverages? No!” And chuckles, “I hope I don’t get disqualified.”

No one has mentioned looking for love─It’s not even a question on the application. As she heads to her interview, a brunette teetering in sky-high heels dramatically flips her hair over her shoulder and proclaims to anyone listening,  “It’s time for my close up!”

Read it at Baltimore Magazine.

Baltimore Magazine: Drinks at Of Love and Regret

New gastropub Of Love and Regret, located in Brewer’s Hill, opened in March and is a collaboration between Stillwater Artinsal Ale’s Brian Strumke and Ted Stelzenmuller of Jack’s Bistro. We just had to try the winning combo of local beer and food powerhouses.

Located across the street from the Natty Boh Tower, the space once housed by Canton Station has an unassuming black door that leads into the pub’s long, narrow bar and dining room. Gleaming dark woods, brick walls, and tables lit by candles in mason jars contribute to the hip atmosphere—very Pacific Northwest. This place gets the vibe right without trying too hard.

A long chalkboard to one end of the room lists the 23 beers on tap, which include Stillwater Artisanal brews, imports, and other local beers like Sublimation by Brewer’s Art. Ranging from $7-9 for a 12-ounce poor, this place is on the higher end for Baltimore pubs, but the crowded bar proves patrons are happy to pay the price. Another note: We asked to sample one of the beers, but were told we could only purchase 6-ounce pours if we wanted to try them. Offering samples would be a great way for patrons to experiment before deciding on a particular brew.

But, Of Love and Regret’s knowledgeable bar and wait staff, all clad in black, did help us navigate the long tap list. The Baltimore-brewed Oliver’s Channel Crossing v5 was a refreshing U.K.- and Belgian-inspired golden mild ale served in a goblet. The stronger Emelisse Holland Oats, brewed in the Netherlands, was a smooth amber with hints of toasted oats and applestroop.

For $18, select picks off of the draft list are available to share in a 36-ounce pitcher. As our waitress delivered the carafe of locally brewed Cellar Door, a white sage infused wheat beer, she described it as “a step up from Blue Moon.” A complex and unique mix of spices, it was, as my friend put it, an “elevator ride” from the grocery store Belgian-style witbier, and the perfect summer drink.

We also tried a couple of the pub’s signature cocktails, our favorite being their rendition of a Boris Karloff cocktail (gin, elderflower liqueur, lime juice, simple syrup, and egg white) garnished with lime zest and black pepper. This gin fizz was executed perfectly, light and fruity with a foamy top.

Straying from drinks for a second, all of our food was delicious. Most unique, The Golden Burger, as the menu warns, actually is gold. Edible spray paint is used to achieve the effect, our waitress explained. (A full food review will appear in an upcoming issue).

We’ll be back soon to taste more of the constantly changing drafts, and maybe—if we dare—venture into the list of 30 bottles, which are separated into dry and crisp, sweet and sour, and strong and dark sections.

—Rebecca Kirkman, Baltimore magazine intern 

Read the piece at Baltimore Magazine.

Urbanite Baltimore: Sounding Off

Baltimore instrumental band The Water on their new album, Scandals and Animals

by Rebecca Kirkman

Sitting side by side on barstools at Federal Hill's Idle Hour, Dan Cohan and James Klink collect a stack of Natty Boh bottle caps, adding new ones to the pile as they solve the puzzles together. One, with an image of an axe and a mug, stumps them. "At some bars they throw out the caps before they give you the beer," says Cohan, "but I like solving them." Taking disjointed pieces and putting them together as a whole makes puzzles challenging. But it's also what makes them fun to solve—you have to see the bigger picture as it's formed by all the parts. Cohan and Klink face the same challenge when they write music together.

Baltimore natives Cohan and Klink, both 29, make up The Water, a cinematic band that uses loops and extensive layering to create a rich, full sound despite only having two members. The band's first album, Scandals and Animals, was recorded at Baltimore's Mobtown Studios and released in January by Scenic Route Records.

Friends since kindergarten, Cohan and Klink have always lived within a mile of each other. In a high school band they began experimenting with piecing different parts together and layering sound. "We started being gizmo-centric, with all sorts of pedals," says Klink. During the past five years playing together as The Water, they have worked out the kinks and become comfortable with who they are as a two-piece, says Cohan.

click to enlarge

It shows in Scandals and Animals. The album's deliberately crafted melodies move from quiet lows to driving crescendos, building a wave of sound that arcs with the buildup of drums and power chords and crashes to a lull of quiet reverb guitar. The album lacks vocals, but the duo's emotional songwriting expresses different moods through the complex and overlapping tangles of rhythm and melody.

"We basically play four people's worth of parts," says Klink, explaining how he creates the bass with the keyboard, loops it, and plays melody on guitar, while Cohan loops his drum beat and adds rhythm guitar. "We want to do things other people do but arrive at that destination in a cool way," says Cohan.

Figuring out how to achieve a full-band sound with only two people has taken some time. But the evolution has improved their songwriting, says Alex Champagne of Scenic Route Records, who helped record Scandals and Animals. "They've really tightened their sound over the years," he says, noting The Water stays true to its roots through its growth.

Mat Leffler-Schulman, who produced the album with Champagne at Mobtown Studios, agrees. "They've grown as a band. They are in this situation where they're doing instrumental music and telling a story, but telling a story with note intervals instead of words," he says. "They are so much more focused in their articulation in this record.

"There's something so emotive about what they do. It looks like two dudes standing on stage and then boom, there's this gigantic sound," Leffler-Schulman continues. "If you don't feel something, you're lifeless and dead."

For Cohan and Klink, recording Scandals and Animals in the studio was difficult. "It's really fucking hard. It's like the difference between acting on stage and acting in the movies," says Cohan. "You can't build momentum."

click to enlarge

Champagne and Leffler-Schulman worked with the duo to record the album in a way that worked for them. The two played in the same room together, but their amps were isolated in separate rooms for recording. "They were really concerned about getting things done right," says Champagne. "If a loop got messed up it meant we had to start over again."

Or, as Cohan puts it: "If I don't hit the pedal at the exact right moment, the song's fucked."

By the time they finish their beers, Klink has figured out the bottle cap rebus that stumped them earlier. It's Natty Boh cap 198: "Don't act so smug." But that's not something the band needs to worry about. The Water isn't trying to get big; the duo just want to continue doing what they're doing.

"I love playing music in front of people, whether it's at the Windup Space in front of fifteen or at the Ottobar in front of two hundred," says Cohan. "Maybe you get your drinks paid for, maybe you get a few bucks from door admission—it's not about that. For us, we enjoy playing shows around Baltimore and being a Baltimore band."

See The Water July 22 at the Windup Space for a Scenic Route Records showcase with Joseph Mulhollen, The Manly Deeds (Dan Cohan's other band), and A Cat Called Cricket.

Read at Urbanite.