February 29, 2008

The Set List Would Like to Take Four Years Off

A lot of crap happens every four years: Presidential elections, summer Olympiads, the World Cup, Dustin Diamond gets laid... Leap Day.

Today we celebrate all things February 29 by presenting the best of the weekend's must-do events, along with a famous person born on Leap Day—and how many actual birthdays he or she has had (or would have had by now, were he or she alive).

Read on, after the jump...

Friday

Clutch, Murder By Death, Maylene, the Sons of Disaster, Hex Machine: Remmington's Downtown, Cover TBA, 7 p.m.
Five bands in one show? Damn straight. Clutch is the clincher—the national group has tongues a-wagging... Read more »

Posted on Friday, February 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1)

February 29, 2008

Leap Day catch-up

It's with a bit of self-loathing that we apologize for being completely absent on the GO Blog yesterday—we were working, honestly. To make it up to you, we've got several tidbits to throw your way.

• We attended Media Day at Hammons Field, and this season is shaping up to be a great one! We noshed on some of the new eats you'll see in 2008. Well, noshed isn't the word... We'll give you a fuller preview in the March 12 issue of GO, but for now we'll just say the Walking Taco is brilliant (not THAT walking taco)!

• Voting is now open for the GO Music Awards! We're still getting in touch with our Best Band... Read more »

Posted on Friday, February 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 27, 2008

GOnection: Take Two

We admit it, we panicked. Last Thursday morning the weather was looking pretty scary and we called off GOnection. Of course then it all cleared up and nothing happened the rest of the day. Springfield Public Schools was right for a change. Please accept our apologies for being pansies, and join us this week instead. Same place, Big Whiskey’s, same time, 5:30–7:30. And same awesome line-up of sponsors-handing-out-free-stuff: Miller Chill, Springfield Cardinals and Hawaiian Sun Tanning.  
 
Later that night you should head over to Tommy Leo’s to check out The Ben Miller Band, a group you might just see on our GO Music Awards ballot (in the issue hitting stands tonight). They’ll start playing at 9 p.m. There is a $5 cover.
 Read more »

Posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 26, 2008

Missives from Steve: Chapter 3

Here at the GO Blog, we've recently taken to posting a choice paragraph from the weekly newsletters of Snorty Horse Saloon owner Steve Greene, partly to let you know what's up at the Snorty Horse, but mostly because they're funny as hell.

Steve's opinion of stylish jeans, after the jump.

Lucky for me, Christmas came, and my sweet mom got me two pairs of jeans.  But these were not your ordinary Wrangler blue jeans in which I was used too.  These were fancy jeans!  I guess they fit O.K. and at least I can still wear them with my boots.  The only problem is that the zipper is very short, doesn't sound like much, but it makes it very difficult to go pee.  You have to be very careful not to catch "bobo"... Read more »

Posted on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2)

February 25, 2008

Special awards update

Look what we found in our morning mail: award nominations for GO and 417 magazines. More after the jump.

 Five award nominations for our magazines in this year's Ranly Awards contest. Held at Mizzou, the Ranlys are Missouri's magazine awards (and newsletters, websites, etc.). They're named for Don Ranly, former Mizzou magazine chair and Kenny Rogers lookalike.

Congratulations to Whitaker Publishing!

The judges for [Missouri Association of Publications]'s Ranly Publications Contest have selected your entries
as one of the finalists for the below categories of Consumer - Less than
25,000 Circulation!

Best Magazine Issue - 417 magazine
Best Writing - GO magazine
Best Design - 417... Read more »

Posted on Monday, February 25, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 25, 2008

Your Monday (political) blog roundup

Because Super Tuesday was, like, three Tuesdays ago.

• Ron Davis thinks Sen. John McCain's campaign might be having a bit of trouble grasping the power of the Internets. Chatter 

• Ralph Nader may find his 2008 reception a bit more chilly than years past. The 2 Dollar Bill

• Jason Wert did a great job covering the Ozarks New Energy Conference, with an emphasis on the talking heads. Life of Jason

Matt Lemmon, editor

Posted on Monday, February 25, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 22, 2008

The Set List: The "Best Of" the Weekend

It's a big weekend for The Set List, as Sunday marks the pennicle of the Whitaker Publishing year: The 2008 Best of 417 Party. Lots of our favorite restaurants and bars will be in attendance, and so will we—likely with a rack of our Sex Issue getting disapproving looks from more refined patrons, but c'est la vie.

But there are a lot of other things going on, too: A rundown follows after the jump. 

Friday

Satchmo! Remembered, Hammons Hall, $12, 7:30 p.m.
The Missouri State music program presents this tribute to Louis Armstrong, which is sure to be the best bargain of the night, per dollar, hands down (most Hammons shows are... Read more »

Posted on Friday, February 22, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 22, 2008

Springfield reality TV update

Stock may be down in the once-bullish Springfield reality TV market, but yesterday was a comeback of sorts, at least for the singers: Not only did two 417-landers make it to American Idols's final 20: Jason Yeager, a Branson peformer, and Asia'h Epperson of Joplin. We're home to 10 percent of the country's increasingly marginal amateur talent pool! Yay for us!

We also got an interesting call from Springfield Brewing Company honcho Kevin Mackey. On March 21-22, 4 Jax, the dynamic cover band once fronted by Star Search winner Jake Simpson, will play a reuinion weekend March 21-22 at Brew Co. The downtown pub/restaurant was 4 Jax's home base in the early 'aughts; they played there almost every week if my college-addled brain remembers correctly. Then, in... Read more »

Posted on Friday, February 22, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 21, 2008

Winter is a filthy, repressive whore* (GOnection postponed)

Due to Old Man Winter's revolting sense of humor (Three ice episodes this year? What gives?), we've decided to cancel postpone tonight's GOnection at Big Whiskey's. We'll reconvene (along with the Springfield Cardinals, Hawiian Sun and Miller Chill, natch) in the same place at the same time NEXT Thursday, February 28.

Now, we have to go. Louie's tailfeathers are sticking together.

Matt Lemmon, editor

* Winter the season, not to be confused with 2007 Sexy & Single winner/friend of the magazine Winter Skelton

Posted on Thursday, February 21, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2)

February 20, 2008

Missives from Steve: Chapter 2

Here at the GO Blog, we've recently taken to posting a choice paragraph from the weekly newsletters of Snorty Horse Saloon owner Steve Greene, partly to let you know what's up at the Snorty Horse, but mostly because they're funny as hell.

Find out how Steve fared at the Sertoma Chili Cookoff (hint: not well) after the jump. 

"Saturday was a bitch.  Got up at 5:30 A.M. and had to run a bunch of errands before I got to the Cook off.  So I was late as usual but a big thanks to the Scorpion Choppers for taking the cooking tasks over and whipping up some damn good Chili.  There is a whole bunch of things that happened from now until close that I can't really talk about other then I had several toast to Johnny... Read more »

Posted on Wednesday, February 20, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1)