ARTS Pick: Mary Chapin Carpenter

On Sometimes Just the Sky, Mary Chapin Carpenter takes measure of her 30-year career through fresh renditions of songs from her original studio albums. Carpenter curated gems from her catalog that reflect her soul and trace the evolution of her songwriting, from award-winning country music to the intelligent folk-pop and orchestral collaborations that currently define […]

ARTS Pick: In the Forest, She Grew Fangs

Lucy knows about the sharpness of teeth and claws—years of high school torment have left her hollowed and unseen, even in the eyes of her concerned grandmother Ruth. After new friend Jenny rescues her from near-death, sudden dreams of howls and gore lead Lucy to a darkness she’s never known. Stephen Spotswood’s In the Forest, […]

ARTS Pick: Keith Urban

Keith Urban’s latest project, Graffiti U, is a versatile album, deeply rooted in the country music of his youth. While Urban is known for infusing guitar chops and hard rock into his music, this album stays stylistically true to the songs of Johnny Cash, Charley Pride, and Merle Haggard, which he discovered in his father’s record […]

ARTS Pick: moe.

Early to the jam band party, moe. rose quickly on the hippie festival circuit of the ’90s, firing up crowds with its intricate percussion and ripping guitar riffs. Three decades of touring and 24 albums later, the Buffalo, New York, quintet is still playing to massive audiences—in May, its 17th annual Summer Camp drew more […]

Arts Pick: Old School honors black educators everywhere

With Caruso Brown’s Old School, The Jefferson School African American Heritage Center gives a nod to Charlottesville’s black leaders, educators, and students. The play reflects Brown’s deep interest in Charlottesville’s black narrative and the lasting impact that these people, past and present, have had on the city. In the first act, an English teacher attempts to dissolve […]

Want a fun business trip? Become a wine importer

We’d imagine the life of a wine importer to be nothing but romance—all long nights, barrel laughs, and plates of beautiful food in good company. Turns out, we were wrong: It’s better than that. We asked Williams Corner Wine co-founder Nicolas Mestre to recount a recent wine-tasting trip to Spain. The CEO spends about 12 […]