ESSAY: The Summer of Our Discontent
By Tom Robotham November 5th will mark a special anniversary for me: Fifty years earlier on that date, I voted for the first time. I remember the moment vividly—and the sense of pride I felt as I closed the black curtain and flipped the lever next to the name Hugh...
ESSAY: A Moveable Feast
By Tom Robotham The first time I visited Paris, in 1999, I was smitten. Unfortunately, due to financial and time constraints, another 17 years would pass before I was able to return. Since then, I’ve tried to make up for lost time, visiting the city every chance I...
Take 5 with Ghent Pride Co-Chair Chris Reybrouck
Take 5 with Ghent Pride Co-Chair Chris Reybrouck By Jeff Maisey Tell us about your new role this year as Co-Chair of Ghent Pride. What goes into planning the event on Monday, June 17 at the Palace Shops in Ghent? I am honored to have been part of the founding...
Surprising Suffolk…Center
Suffolk Center’s new Outdoors @ The Center event space will host live music this summer on Thursdays. Photo courtesy of Suffolk Center. By Jeff Maisey “You can have it all in Surprising Suffolk.” That was the branding slogan televised and promoted on signage far...
ESSAY: What Kind of American Are You?
By Tom Robotham Last month, I saw Alex Garland’s much-discussed film Civil War. Since then, I’ve not been able to stop thinking about it. I don’t mean to imply that I think it’s a great movie. I continue to have mixed feelings about it. Nevertheless, the specter it...
TRAVEL: A Second Helping
(Lynn, Bruno, and Jeff at Chez Bruno in Dijon.) By Jeff Maisey In last month’s issue of Veer, I wrote solely about one of my favorite dining experiences in Paris, the majestically unique, warmly welcoming Au Vieux Paris d’Arcole. I was heartened by the response from...
Chrysler Museum Unveils New Logo
By Jeff Maisey The Chrysler Museum of Art has unveiled a smart, contemporary logo that by all appearances touches on a very 1970s-era retro vibe while also looking into the future. In a statement, the museum conveyed, “After a decade with the signature tower, the...
Troy Ketchmore Keeps Fighting to Clear his Name and Tame the Streets
By Joel Rubin It was 1995, and Troy Ketchmore was taking a birthday gift to his infant son who was living with the child’s mother and her new boyfriend at the time. With Troy were two “friends,” all of them armed but with no apparent intention of using the guns....
ESSAY: Leaving The Treehouse
By Tom Robotham For the last few weeks, I’ve been looking for a new apartment. It’s not that I’m unhappy with my current place. Not by a long shot. For 17 years, it has served me well. In the afternoons, on clear days, the living room is bathed in sunlight filtered by...
TRAVEL: The Best Ever
(An early evening glass of wine outside Au Vieux Paris. Photo by Lynn Hughes-Hailey.) By Jeff Maisey “How do you know about this place?” A distinguished looking gentleman in his 70s from California introduced to Lynn and I as the Doctor kept looking over his right...
Lynyrd Skynyrd: One More for the Road
By Jeff Maisey “Sorry for the delay getting to the phone, I have a new, little beach house and was doing stuff around here. I’ve already been to the hardware store.” I called Lynyrd Skynyrd singer Johnny Van Zant at his home on a July morning to discuss the band’s...
Beyond Monet
By Jim Roberts More than 50,000 people attended the “Beyond Van Gogh” immersive art exhibit in Virginia Beach in 2023, so it’s little surprise that the Virginia Arts Festival and Canada’s Paquin Entertainment Group are back this year with “Beyond Monet,” a celebration...
ART: Jackie Merritt’s Deep-Hearted Honesty
(“Talking Heads”) By Betsy DiJulio Jackie Merritt puts color where it doesn't exist. But where it most surely lives. Recently, as I perused some 20 of her portraits (and one still life)--rendered in chalk pastel, charcoal, and watercolor—I smiled to myself as I...
WAR Headlines Funk Fest
By Jeff Maisey Many of you know the classic hit songs from the band WAR — “Low Rider,” “The Cisco Kid,” “Summer,” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” What you may not recall is the musical crossover group from Southern California known for weaving elements funk, jazz,...
Come Sail Away with Styx and Foreigner
(Styx returns to Virginia Beach August 20. Photo by Jason Powell) By Jeff Maisey Styx keyboardist/singer Lawrence Gowan is marking his 25th anniversary with the classic rock band known for its many FM radio hit songs like “Come Sail Away,” “Blue Collar Man,”...
Getting in a Brazilian Groove
By Jerome Langston “John Toomey and I met Nate Najar through a mutual friend, Chuck Redd, who's been down here and played with us,” says Jimmy Masters, a highly regarded jazz bassist, during a recent phone chat about the long running jazz series that he curates at the...
Two Nights to Smile and Dance with Beres Hammond
By Jim Morrison Beres Hammond grew up the ninth of 10 children in Jamaica listening to his father's jazz and soul records, artists like Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. But ska was the sound of the moment on the island inevitably slipping into his style when he started...
New Music Reviews
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard “Le Risqué” Australian psych-rock pilots King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard just dropped a bomb of a first single from their upcoming record “Flight b741”. The new single “Le Risque” is a fun straight forward boogie number that...
ART: Modeled Reality
(Anthropocene Reliquary: ebonized ash, crushed coal, found bone, digital image) By Betsy DiJulio I look at my work as a distillate of experience. Life events, travel, relationships, politics and dreams all condense to varying degrees into my sculpture. I synthesize,...
Films That Move – 2024 Premieres
(Renata Sheppard) By Montague Gammon III Big art coming out of the small town of Cape Charles has made this erstwhile ferry boat stop on Virginia’s Eastern Shore known from Los Angeles to New York, at film festivals across the USA and as far flung as Ireland and Hong...
Neptune Festival preparing for back-to-back beer and wine festivals
By Jim Roberts The small staff at the Virginia Beach Neptune Festival is gearing up for a number of large events the last weekend in September: the Neptune Festival Art & Craft Show, the 49th Annual Boardwalk Weekend, and the Neptune Festival Grand Parade, among...
Filibuster bourbon
By Marisa Marsey Heading to Derby Day, my fancy races to mint juleps and the bourbon that braces them. (Of course, my fancy races to bourbon many a day, anyway). A good bet for those juleps – if you want to stay true to Virginia while toasting Kentucky – is...
Return of The Belvedere
By Marisa Marsey Were you as ecstatic as I when you heard that the beloved Belvedere Coffee Shop & Diner was being resurrected in the spanking new Moxy Hotel at the Oceanfront? If you possess any VaBeachVa history, I’m guessing that’s a resounding, fist-pumping...
Afterglow Brewing Shines in Norfolk’s Railyard District
(Josh Evans and Jeff Hartline. Photo by Diane Catanzaro.) By Diane Catanzaro and Chris Jones Here’s some exciting news for beer lovers! Norfolk’s newest brewery held their Grand Opening the weekend of July 8. Afterglow Brewing is now open for business at The Railyard...
Winning Big with Aloha State of Mind
(Matt Topping enjoys the taste of success — and Hawaii — at COVA Brewing Company.) By Jeff Maisey It’s a big deal to win an award — gold, silver or bronze — at the World Beer Cup competition. For a brewery to garner consecutive golds for the same entry is nothing...
Dogs Come First at Pups and Pints
(Wasserhund craft beers are to bark for at Pups & Pints in Virginia Beach.) By Marisa Marsey Woof, woof! Arf! Bark! Bark! That’s Sheepish Onyx, my seven-month-old Mini Sheepadoodle, tail wagging in prestissimo tempo because she’s at Pups and Pints. I’d better turn...
New Realm Expands Virginia Beach Capacity
By Jeff Maisey In 2018, New Realm Brewing Company acquired the gigantic, short-lived brewing facility of San Diego-based Green Flash Brewing Co. in Virginia Beach. The brewing capacity at that time was 40,000 barrels/year. New Realm had only recently opened its...
La Patrona Taqueria is All About The Food
By Betsy DiJulio In a landscape dotted with mostly fungible Mexican restaurants, Taqueria La Patrona is a welcome respite for the hungry traveler, even if you just traveled from down the street, even if you crave far more than tacos, and even if you subscribe to an...
Veteran-Owned Chesapeake Bay Pedal Club is Back on the Water for 2023
(A fun day on the Inlet. Photo courtesy of Chesapeake Bay Pedal Club) By Dana Nichols It’s hard to miss the lively turquoise and lime green paddle boat cruising Rudee Inlet: the vibe is energetic, music is playing, passengers are smiling or dancing — sometimes in...
Run For The Roads
(Blackened yellowfin tuna over cauliflower rice risotto, spinach, citrus gremolata and orange hoisin served up at The Roads Bistro. Courtesy photo.) By Marisa Marsey Michael Baldwin, who recently opened The Roads Bistro, radiates joy. Even over the phone, you sense...
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