Terra Firma

Shrimp and Scallop risotto.
Veal Ravioli.

Octopus (foreground) and frog legs.

Terra Restaurant in Charlotte is tucked away in the 500 block of Providence Road next to the Starbucks. Seating maybe 40 people, this little gem has a neighborhood atmosphere that belies its sophisticated food menu and wine list. The vibe is one of family and friends as proprietor Thierry Garconnet greets all diners with a warm smile and handshake and usually a look of personal recognition if you have dined there even only once. His face is familiar, I recognized him from his years at Toscana in the South Park area. Our waiter on this occasion was another fellow who had been at Toscana. One cool thing about Terra is seeing all of the folks come in who seemingly live in the surrounding neighborhood and treat it as their neighborhood place for culinary delight. Truth be known, there are few restaurants in this country who will provide the diner with such a strong dining experience. The service is excellent and the food interesting and tasty. I would say it is French with an Italian influence. There is a "carpaccio of the day". On this occasion it was octopus. The extremely thinly sliced octopus bathed in a slightly flavored olive oil film accompanied by escarole and croutons. A sublime but delicious dish. There were frog legs, cut so the entire hindquarter was still joined. Cooked enough to be cooked but cooked slightly enough to be tender in a garlic butter sauce. Then sweetbreads and kidneys lightly breaded and fried with a rich cream sauce. Some vichysoisse was good but lacked the presence of leeks and flavor. As entrees we had a veal ravioli that was beautifully displayed and featured fresh pasta. A risotto with fresh mushrooms and perfectly cooked shrimp and scallops was flawless. Desserts such as mousse and tiramisu rounded out the gluttony. It was simply a beautiful evening for F's birthday and was an indulgent meal. In that we have been eating healthily (low cholesterol and sugar), we found that the meal was a little hard on the stomach but this was no reflection on the quality of the food but moreso on our evolved stomachs. Highly recommended: www.terracharlotte.com

Poontanglers-the greatest band name in CLT

Massive Bass.
Killer solos.

Mean ass vocals.

So, with a name like the Poontanglers, they simply had to be good. I mean to live up to such a name. And live up they did at Snug Harbor on July 3. These guys simply bring it with a very tight heavy metal sound. If I had to categorize it I would say Metallica with an alt.country twist but with very much a full on assault of massively thumping bass and drums, killer guitar riffs and a vocalist who has kind of the devil music scream down pat. The guy was especially cool in his kind of "Village People" cop hat with the band symbol (not unlike the anarchy symbol) as a badge. I particularly enjoyed watching the heavily tatooed bass player literally rip through one song after another with his foot propped up on the light table at the front of the stage. His energy seemed to propel the rest of the band to another level. See the link at the bottom of my page for a vid or check my youtube www.youtube.com/nosyfieldstone.

Helio Sequence

The energy of rock.
Guitar, drums and a computer.
Van ride home.

Bringing it.

The boys from Portland based band, Helio Sequence, got a bit of culture shock when they showed up for their gig at The World Famous Milestone Club in Charlotte on May 30. They had recently been touring with Keane, playing large venues and had been at Radio City Music Hall a couple of nights prior. The Milestone is in the heart of a tough section of Charlotte and the club portrays an even tougher image with a fenced in rutted parking lot and graffiti and sticker laced walls and interior. But behind that tough presence, the Milestone carries the soul of the hundreds of bands and thousands of fans who have passed through its doors since the early 1980's. Known as a place where bands such as REM played to 30 people shortly before going on to greater fame, it is easy to see that Helio Sequence might find itself in the same place. The guitar player told me when they arrived a band was warming up in the room, but basically nobody was there and they wondered whether or not they were in the right place. He marveled at having had the opportunity to play Radio City and seemed a little taken aback that he was here just a couple of nights later. Yet, shortly thereafter, the band from the Subpop label rocked a set of power pop that had the crowd bobbing its heads in unison. I don't know if this is called "shoe gazing" music and a rather drunk young lady was explaining to me that her fave band in this genre is "My Bloody Valentine". I thought she was talking about a movie. Anyway, with a guitar and drums and background sampling to fill out the sound, these guys did some songs that had a ring of familiarity. Though I don't listen to popular radio, preferring instead independent station WNCW 88.7, I can tell that this sound will dent the pop charts. So, anyway, be on the lookout for Helio Sequence. http://www.myspace.com/theheliosequence

Ultimate Optimist

Optimistically drumming himself into a frenzy.
With Fly at the Club.

We loaded up the van and went down to Charlotte. Had dinner at Ru'san's which is always excellent. A primarily japanese menu with about 600 choices. Afterwards on to the World Famous Milestone Club for a triple bill. Ran into Robert Childers, drummer for 2013 Wolves and the Overmountain Boys and formerly with David Childers and the Modern Don Juans. Robert was purchasing some cool pen and ink art from a guy at the club. Opening act was the "Ultimate Optimist", a drummer who used an ipod to start a sampling loop and then played over the loop very frenetically on the drums. It's great to see experimental music and who knows where this will head. Go to my youtube for a vid. The sound is a little distorted, but I have a new camera and am working out the kinks. Plus the Milestone was loud, as it should be. www.youtube.com/nosyfieldstone See the Ultimate Optimist at www.youtube.com/ultimateoptimist

Benji Hughes in Soho

A shop in Soho where Benji Hughes was heard.

Benji Hughes of Charlotte has a fine record out called "A Love Extreme". It received four stars from Rolling Stone and Benji has toured Europe with Jenny Lewis. And yet, in Charlotte, we can catch Benji at a club like Snug Harbor. While strolling through Soho on our New York trip, we popped into a trendy casual wear boutique. Imagine our excitement when we heard Benji Hughs on the piped in music, singing one of his many great songs, "So Well." Congratulations, Benji, and to those who haven't checked out his record, you need to. I have some of his vids up on my youtube, www.youtube.com/nosyfieldstone.