Also this issue: Girl Party Two locals are trying to forge a new lesbian scene in Philly. -Meredith Broussard

March 20-26, 2003

music

icepack

by A.D. Amorosi

Clubland’s in a jam. Along with the Transit/Palmer Social stabbings headlining newscasts over the weekend (no! The guy with the ponytail fighting off cops wasn’t me, since y’all asked. I cut my hair ages ago), and many a French restaurant rumored to be feeling the heat from America’s Franco-banning, L&I’s crackdown on restaubars is nearing the fever pitch of NYC. Within a week, Adrenaline, Samba and The Khyber have been snagged for violations. While most are in stages of fixing the problems, it’s interesting to note (as Khyber owner Steve Simons did in the Inky) that special permits now necessitated by a city office that so often overlooked these problems in the past could preclude some clubs from reopening. At press time, The Khyber was expected to reopen on March 19. (It’s rumored Simons has wanted to sell the bar for a year. Will this push him closer?) Rob Cantagallo of TBTMO, whose Shoegazer Showdown at The Khyber got shuttered, jokes, "My night in the spotlight with potential to make millions from one gig and wouldn’t you know, the venue got inspected and apparently failed miserably. … What’s up with the man trying to keep me down? It’s ’cause I’m black, isn’t it?"

I hear, happily, that Marty Grims of Passerelle has taken over the Moshulu project with a scheduled May reopening and that Stephen Starr is doing the Continental on 18th Street with designer Shawn Hausman (The Standard in L.A., Chateau Marmont), plus a Stork Club-like restaurant (with Mediterranean flair) at Washington Square's N.W. Ayer art-deco building for September and a Morimoto-partnered restaurant in L.A. (rather than NYC). It also seems as if Doc Watson's may have a new owner within a month -- a man from Ohio. Isn't that a limerick? Roots pal Scott Storch has mad production credits on Lil’ Kim's new La Bella Mafia CD. Cuba Libre is planning an eight-day cultural exploration/mojito-thon in Cuba May 30-June 7. Cost? $2,800. CEC's "Flux" on March 21 features Philly's PIMA dance types in the first of a shared collaboration series (with Guillermo Brown's Silverbrown Dance) improv-grooving to an answering-machine-tape score by Michael Barker and Thomas Clark. Crooner Christian Josi -- managed by local legals Bernie Resnick and Lloyd Remick -- debuts his eponymous June Street-label CD this week. Cyoni Dharling, Paris Donato, Carl Michaels, Mark Pappas and Yan are the welcoming committee for March 22's mega jam, "The Verdict," (till 10 a.m.) starring International House Records head Judge Jules. Multimedia madness in Philly: If it wasn't enough that the U.K.'s Granada TV was at Prince Theater taping a new reality show (tossing old Brit hitmakers Spandau Ballet and Dollar into the snake pit of Sound of Philadelphia songs for a second career chance), NBC's Race to the Altar is in Philly March 24 and 25 looking for couples who want a dream wedding. Ugh. (www.lmnotv.com/ race/index.htm) WhoWhatWhere: O-Town at the bat mitzah for Ritz-Carlton co-owner Craig Spencer's daughter Arlie. Local author-turned-label-mogul Omar Tyree was at DENIM, celebrating his Hot Lava/Koch label. As The Urban Griot, he's also releasing his first CD, Rising Up, and a new book under his Mars Production deal with Simon & Schuster, One Crazy-A** Night. Robert Duvall may have eaten at Alma de Cuba while in town hyping Assassination Tango, but he enthused about his fave chef from Miami, now-Phillyite Guillermo Veloso from Cuba Libre. Loves those guava ribs. Promoting his Inner-City Games at Dave & Buster's, Arnold Schwarzenegger hung out with old pals Harry Jay Katz and his missus, Tracy. Dining Out for Life at Tangerine drew the highest politico/media quotient --- Gov. Ed Rendell, Lynne Abraham, PGN's Mark Segal and dozens more. Sebastian Bach, Carl Anderson and the entirety of the Jesus Christ Superstar cast partied post-opening at Valanni. If you spy Eddie Griffin, Delroy Lindo, Jamie Kennedy and Lorenz Tate, don't panic. They're just in town via Allied to hawk their new flicks. Wanna see a labor of love? Dig Eric Zimmerman's Philly punk discography, 1977-85, at www.geocities.com/loworb/. When Philly producer Robert Goodman shows up at the Independent Spirit Awards (airing on Bravo March 22), where he's nominated for The Stone Reader, check out his wife, Johanna. She'll be wearing a gown designed by Janice Martin Couture Evening Wear. Maria Cucciniello has left FashionWorks to join Neiman Marcus-Short Hills as public relations manager. Psydde D and Ira A's Hard Liquor Theater tackles "The Seven Deadly Sins" at Tritone on March 20. Goodbye Girl Friday -- the very buzziest of Manhattan's tough torch-tune trios and a Bobby Startup fave -- plays Bar Noir March 24 for new CD Mr. and Mrs.To benefit the Save the Sameric Theater project, there will be a screening of the Philly-filmed 1926 silent comedy The Show Off at International House on March 21. Happy b-day to designer K. Vaughn (who's off to Paris to collect ideas for those new scarves of his) and to Tony Goldman's Trust, which celebrates one year with a week full of festivities starting now.