As if your dance card isn’t already booked solid with shopping mayhem, visiting kinfolk and leafing through the L.L. Bean catalog, The Citizen hereby offers a rundown of save-the-dates for this year’s holiday season. Topping the list, of course, is the annual Chapel Hill-Carrboro Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 11 from 10 a.m. to noon.

Look for The Heelraiser, Santa, doggie drill teams and plenty of marching musicians. The route runs through downtown Chapel Hill and Carrboro, offering plenty of room to set up camp and enjoy some hometown fun. This year, the entire parade will be broadcast on The People’s Channel.
Winter’s coming…
December is for the birds
When it comes to bird watching, the winter season has a few things going for it, mainly visibility and variety.
For the avid birder to the curious beginner, it’s prime time, a season when waves of species make their way through the Piedmont.
Your guide to the week ahead (mostly because we don’t trust you to figure out this far in advance).
Tues – 12/7
- Yonhimbe / Hunnie Bunnies / Ski Mask / Pretty Birds That Kill @ The Nightlight – $5
Wed – 12/8
- Crooked Fingers / Cotton Jones / Mount Moriah @ Local 506 – $12
Thurs – 12/9
- The Great Cover Up @ King’s Barcade – $TBA
- Stroke It, Noel: A Fully Orchestrated Performance of Big Star’s Third Album @ Cat’s Cradle – $17 adv / $20 day of the show
Fri – 12/10
- Stroke It, Noel: A Fully Orchestrated Performance of Big Star’s Third Album @ Cat’s Cradle – $17 adv / $20 day of the show
- Pipe / Caltrop @ The Nightlight – $5
- Cantwell, Gomez and Jordan / The Mighty Contact / Jews and Catholics @ The Pinhook – $TBA
- The Great Cover Up @ King’s Barcade – $TBA
Sat – 12/11
- Kooley High / Carlitta Durand / King Mez / HaLo @ The Pour House – $6 adv / $9 at the door
- Carolina Chocolate Drops / The Low Anthem @ Lincoln Theatre – $18 adv / $20 day of the show
- American Aquarium / Luego @ Motorco – $TBA
- The Great Cover Up @ King’s Barcade – $TBA
Sun – 12/12
- Music Trivia @ Local 506 – $FREE!
- Relient K (acoustic) / Sherwood / Deas Veil @ Cat’s Cradle – $15 adv / $18 day of the show
Anywhere else?
Conjuring a What-If world
By Vicky Dickson
“I feel children’s fiction is the most important fiction written,†says John Claude Bemis, “and the most entertaining.â€
On their new record, The Kudzu Ranch, Southern Culture on the Skids revels in the swampy barrage of country, rockabilly, surf rock that’s been their calling card from the start (aka all the way back to 1983!). Rick Miller, Dave Hartman, and Mary Huff trot out all the old styles while imbuing them with a little edge and a lot of humor and showing off all the ways the band’s grown. They sing of bone dry dirt, busy roads, bad boys, and neighbors burning trash. There’s also, appropriately, a track about pig pickin’ and if you mosey on down to the Cat’s Cradle this Saturday, Dec. 4, you can join the band at a holiday pig pickin’ to support the Carrboro Food Pantry.
And now just the five filthiest question this side of the mason-dixon:
1. If your band were a fried food, what would it be?
3 pieces of fried catfish with raw onion on white bread on a paper plate on a picnic table in a square cinder block building. (Catfish Sandwich, Archibald’s #2 , Tuscaloosa, Alabama.)
2. When was the moment you thought you’d made it?
When I quit the day job in 1992 – my proudest career moment to date!
3. Describe your typical band practice.
Practice usually goes like this.
- somebody is late.
- talk or argue for a while – doesn’t matter which.
- rehearse the songs we screwed up last at the last gig
- make some coffee or tea (our practices depend on caffeine more than alcohol)
- run thru a set list till we are bored (Mary likes to check her email at this time)
- jam really loud for a while on a riff or a song.
- tell each other not to forget what we just played “cause it was really good”.
- try to play it again but realize we forgot it but there was some other stuff we just played “that was really good too”.
- go home – come back tomorrow and do it again cause “practice makes perfect”.
4. What/who might be a few inspirations or influences that would surprise people?
Belly dancing records!!
5. What did you want to be when you grew up? (How did that work out?)
I wanted to be a farmer like my Grandfather and Uncle but my family told me it was hard to make a living being a farmer – so I decided to become a musician and I love my job!
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Join Southern Culture on the Skids at the Cat’s Cradle this Saturday, December 4th for an old fashioned pig pinkin’. And, by all means, give Rick a high five when you see him!
Mon – 11/29
- Ben Kweller / Julia Nunes @ Cat’s Cradle – $16 adv / $18 day of the show
Tues – 11/30
- Dan Melchior und das Menace / Fabulous Diamonds / Pigeons @ The Nightlight – $5 adv / $7 day of the show
- An Evening with Wreckless Eric & Amy Rigby @ Motorco – $10
- Minus the Bear / Tim Kasher (of Cursive) @ Lincoln Theatre – $20
Wed – 12/1
- Old Time Jam! @ The Nightlight – $FREE!
- Andy Hull & Kevin Devine @ Cat’s Cradle – $11 adv / $13 day of the show
- Open Mic! @ Broad Street Cafe – $FREE!
Thurs – 12/2
- 919 Noise Showcase: Weather Glover / Electric Cactus & Weather Machine / Boat Burning @ The Nightlight – $5
- Dexter Romweber @ The Cave – $TBA (late show)
- HearNC Music Video Festival with Billy Sugarfix / Bibia Ellison @ Cat’s Cradle – $10 adv / $12 day of the show
- The Great Band Swap with The Pneurotics / Pink Flag / Brett Harris / Dry Heathens @ The Pinhook – $TBA (proceeds benefit Friends with Benefits)
Fri – 12/3
- Lost in the Trees / Veelee @ Motorco – $TBA
- North Elementary / Gray Young / Wages @ The Nightlight – $6
- Steep Canyon Rangers / Mandolin Orange @ Cat’s Cradle – $12
- The Small Ponds @ King’s Barcade – $TBA
- The Great Band Swap with Joy in Red / Juan Huevos / Billy Sugarfix / Antibubbles@ The Pinhook – $TBA (proceeds benefit Friends with Benefits)
Sat – 12/4
- Rock’n’Shop Market @ Motorco – $5 (12-6 pm!)
- Bonnie “Prince” Billy & The Cairo Gang @ Duke’s Reynolds Theater – $38 / $32 / $5 for Duke Students
- Spider Bags / Bellafea / Whatever Brains @Local 506 – $FREE!
- Holiday Pig Pickin’ with Southern Culture on the Skids / The Forty Fives / Pnche Gringo @ Cat’s Cradle – $12 adv / $14 day of the show (proceeds benefit the Carrboro Food Pantry)
- American Aquarium / House of Fools / Crowfield @ The Pour House – $8 adv / $10 at the door
- Holy Ghost Tent Revival / Cabinet / Nick and The Babes @ Lincoln Theatre – $6 adv / 8 day of the show
- Xiu Xiu (experimental set) / DJ Skull Vomit / Cheezface / The Ex-Monkeys @ The Nightlight – $5
- Birds & Arrows / Lizzy Ross Band @ The Arts Center in Carrboro – $11 adv / $13 day of the show / $9 for members
- The Great Band Swap with Cassis Orange / Hog / Embarrassing Fruits / Mosadi Music @ The Pinhook – $TBA (proceeds benefit Friends with Benefits)
Sun – 12/5
- South Carolina Broadcasters / The Blackberry Bushes @ The Pinhook – $TBA
Anywhere else?
Trust me, there are more things than Turkey Day going on this week.
Mon – 11/22
- Junip (Jose Gonzales, Elias Araya, Tobias Winterkorn) / Sharon Van Etten @ Cat’s Cradle – $15
- Gentle Robot / Lost Trail @ The Nightlight – $3
Tues – 11/23
- Kurt Vile and the Violators / Purling Hiss / Old Bricks @ King’s Barcade – $10 adv / $12 day of the show
- Alex Cuba @ Berkeley Café – $12 adv / $15 day of the show
Wed – 11/24
- Tim Kasher / Darren Hanlon @ Local 506 – $10 adv / $12 day of the show
- David Dondero / The Moaners / Salt to Bitters @ The Cave – $TBA
- Glam Rock Dance Party @ Motorco – $FREE!
Thurs – 11/25
- Thanksgiving Open Jam and Potluck @ The Cave – $FREE!
- Punksgiving Feast @ Motorco – $TBA
- 2nd Annual Glam Rock Thanksgiving: Left Outlet / A Tin Djinn / iamDynamite @ Slim’s Downtown – $3
Fri – 11/26
- 10th Annual Post-Turkey Day Jam with Jon Shain, Will McFarlane, Sally Spring and Peter Holsapple / Birds and Arrows / New Town Drunks @ Cat’s Cradle – $10
- Morning Stars / Pinche Gringo @ The Cave – $TBA
- River City Ransom / Space Ghost Cowboys / Ramona Cordova @ Motorco – $FREE!
Sat – 11/27
- Filthy Bird @ King’s Barcade – $6
- L in Japanese Dance Party (21 and under) @ Local 506 – $8
- Give Thanks Reggae Fest with Da Gullah Rootz / Jah Creation / dub Addis / Anchants @ Cat’s Cradle – $8 adv / $12 day of the show
Sun – 11/28
- Bicket Gallery Spelling Bee @ King’s Barcade – $5 to enter / $3 to watch
Anywhere else?
For a time, Wendy Spitzer thought she’d play classical oboe for the rest of her life. The idea of that—symphonies, incessant practice, orchestras, audiences packed with the stilted and elderly—was enough to make her stop playing music pretty much altogether for about two years. After taking a little space to think it all over, she reemerged first as a bass player in a friend’s band and then as all out band-leader in her own outfit, Felix Obelix.
Mon – 11/15
- Spelling Bee (as in an actual bee, not a band) @ Motorco – $FREE!
Tues – 11/16
- Horse Feathers / Anais Mitchell @ Local 506 – $9 adv / $11 at the door
- Jared Bartman / Inspector 22 / Tonos @ The Nightlight – $FREE!
- John Lindsay / Wesley Wolfe / Bright Young Things @ Motorco – $7
- The Weepies / Carsie Blanton @ Lincoln Theatre – $18 adv / $20 day of the show
- The Autumn Defense / Sarah Guthrie / Johnny Irion @ The Casbah – 12 adv / $15 day of the show
Wed – 11/17
- Open Mic! @ Broad Street Cafe – $FREE!
Thurs – 11/18
- Dark Water Rising / Samantha Crain / Shawn Lubby @ The Pinhook – $TBA
- Azure Ray / James Husband / Dead Fingers @ The Arts Center in Carrboro – $12 adv / $14 day of the show
- Doug Keith / Anna Bullard / Patrick Phelan (of Luego) @ The Cave – $TBA (early show)
- Brendan Benson (of the Raconteurs) / The Posies / Aquaduct @ Cat’s Cradle – $18 adv / $20 day of the show
- The Spinns @ The Cave – $5 (late show)
- The Hackensaw Boys @ Berkeley Café – $10 adv / $12 day of the show
- Calico Haunts / Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas / Aaron Berg and the Heavy Love @ The Nightlight – $6
Fri – 11/19
- Future Islands / Lonnie Walker / Veelee / NAPS @ King’s Barcade – $8 adv / $10 day of the show
- Puritan Rodeo CD Release Party! with New Town Drunks / Twilighter / Gasoline Stove @ Local 506 – $5
- North Elementary / Gray Young / Jews and Catholics @ The Pinhook – $TBA
- Gmish @ Jessee’s – $FREE!
- Chadstock 2 BDay Party Throwdown @ The Nightlight – $TBA
- Luego / John Howie and the Sweethearts / Honored Guests @ Motorco – $5
Sat – 11/20
- Felix Obelix / Velvet Umbrella Orchestra and Chorus perform selections from Seamus Kennedy’s “All Hail the Comet – A Sci-Fi Pop Opera” @ The Nightlight – $TBA
- Butterflies CD Release Show! with The Strugglers / Erie Choir / Cassis Orange / Wes Phillips @ Cat’s Cradle – $FREE!
- I Was Totally Destroying It / Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun / Fan-Tan @ Local 506 – $FREE!
- The Allen Boys @ The Arts Center in Carrboro – $FREE!
- Schooner / The Huguenots / Wages @ The Pinhook – $TBA
- The Old Ceremony / The Tomahawks @ Motorco – $6
Sun – 11/21
- Doomtree ft. P.O.S. and Dessa @ Local 506 – $10 adv / $12 at the door
Anywhere else?

