We were really looking kind of hard for something to say about tonight’s show. Off With Their Heads is coming to the Golden West. We don’t have too much to say about them because we’re not very familiar with them. They’re a punk band on Epitaph so it’s like...

Terrible Feelings is a band. They’re from Sweden. This is what we imagine they look like when they play live. They sound like a cross between The Vicious and Siouxsie and the Banshees. They sound like this: There are more songs on their Soundcloud page. They’re playing with...

We’ve always been of the opinion that Mount Vernon’s City Cafe is as consistently good as it is underrated. So when we heard that their chef Chad Gauss was opening a new restaurant in Hampden we had pretty high hopes. New restaurants open up all the time. Hell, new restaurants open...

It used to be hard to discover new music. Back when underground music was, um, underground- hell, back when you could use the term ‘underground music’ without sounding like someone’s dad it took a lot to discover music that wasn’t on the radio. It usually involved...

This blog has been somewhat critical of food trucks in the past. In fact, as much as we like to cook and eat, we’re not keen on foodie culture as a whole. That’s still true. We still think that the food truck should belong to its working class provenance. Its modern reinvention by...

So, we guess we gotta go see Those Darlins tomorrow. We haven’t really got much choice in the matter. The show’s not gonna watch itself, as they say. It was a lot easier to stay home the last time they played at the Golden West. It wasn’t even that long ago- March 31 to be...

As Walter Sobchak once said: “Life does not stop and start at your convenience you miserable piece of shit.” Such is the case tonight when the Deleted Scenes show will start sometime after 10 whether it’s convenient for you or us or the rest of Baltimore or not. And for most...

One of the best things about living in Baltimore, and perhaps the major reason we love it so dearly, is the ability to go from something very highbrow and sophisticated to something decidedly lowbrow with absolutely no transition in between. That’s exactly how our night looks to be...

Most of you probably well remember the Great Hontroversy of December 2010, in which Denise Whiting trademarked the term “Hon” in various forms, and crowed about it in the media in an attempt to drum up publicity for her newly opened tacky souvenir shop, just in time for stocking...

We were sad to hear the news a few weeks ago that the Hexagon Space was closing. We’re sad to hear about any venue closing up, even if we don’t go there very often. Fletcher’s, The Supreme Imperial, even Hal Daddy’s; we may have gone there pretty seldom, but any venue...

No lie Baltimore, we’ve been craving a snowball lately. Like bad. Like a real one, that stains your teeth and tongue and comes in a giant styrofoam cup- none of that fake-ass Rita’s junk. We’ve yet to find one either. It’s still only May. Schools have been in and...

Sometimes you just want a six pack of Heineken. That’s a problem easily solved. Other times, all you need is a bottle of Beam. You can find that just about anywhere. Occasionally though, you need to go above and beyond. If you’re planning for a large party, stocking your bar from...

Part of the appeal of any neighborhood bar is being in a spot where “everybody knows your name,” but as we discussed in a previous post, a little anonymity can go a long way sometimes. There are times when a man wants a little solitude; not too much, just an hour or so to sit in...

We’ve talked before on this blog about the Baltimore phenomenon we’ve taken to calling Awesome Saturday. The movers and shakers and event planners in this town who plan things in advance all seem to zero in on the last Saturday of the month to book the really cool stuff, and at...

As you may already know, the Chop is no stranger to matters of style. Classic American fashion is one of the cornerstones of this blog. So when we heard word of a new men’s shop opening in Hampden, you can believe it raised our eyebrows pretty high. For too many years quality menswear...

Since word got out on Friday that Denise Whining trademarked the term Hon, the outcry against her corny, crummy restaurant and her slimy, anti-social business practices has been nearly universal, with some of the best writing on the topic coming from sources like The Sun’s editorial...

The Chop likes looking at art. Be it in a gallery, museum, private home, or on the street, we’re always interested in the way that art can make a space speak. Perhaps our favorite setting for seeing art though is not a chic opening or an austere museum, but in the marketplace. MICA is...

It’s the first weekend of Summer Baltimore! Or, as it were, the first weekend after the first weekend of unofficial summer. However you count it, outdoor movie season has officially arrived, and there are almost as many choices for free outdoor movies as there are for bar trivia. We were...

We’ve noticed something peculiar these last few months. Here at the Baltimore Chop, we keep track of local happenings and events pretty closely, and it seems to us that a pattern is beginning to emerge. Much as each week has a social ebb and flow to it, so do the months. And for the last...

Hey Baltimore, you can keep your fancy festivals and super exclusive microshows. Give us a good old fashioned DIY show any night of the week. In fact, give us one every night of the week. We had such a great time at Floristree last night, we’re heading right back out to Ruintown...

What’s that Baltimore? You hate Mondays and you worked really hard all day and those reports are due and that meeting was a snoozer and the intern is incompetent and all you want to do is flop down on the couch and eat chocolate Cheerios for dinner and pass out? Well, forget it. The Chop...

Remember when Married With Children used to come on every Sunday? And Roc? Don’t play, you know you all loved Roc. Remember when the Simpsons was really funny like 15 years ago? Yeah. That was cool. Unfortunately, Sunday TV isn’t what it used to be. While Cadinals vs. Brewers on...

Well, the Chop has been miserably sick with common cold this week, and as much as we wish it were so, all that Jim Beam and Ginger we drank at Opening Day yesterday is not exactly a curative elixir. So we’re going to be brief today. We’d like to tell you about all the very cool...

We think we got it now. It’s all starting to make sense. It’s the weekend now, right? Like that time when everybody knocks off work and goes to do fun stuff? That’s howcome you haven’t been around so much, huh? You were waiting for the weekend. Well it’s here, and...

We need to talk about Sundays Baltimore. You know, that time once a week when you’re caught between resting up from the better part of the weekend, putting off doing the laundry and changing the sheets, and a paralyzing fear of going back to work on Monday. You don’t plan anything,...

Hump day Baltimore. Whew! Bet you wish it would snow some more so you could get another day off, yeah? Well put your feet up. Take it easy. Eat yourself a nice dinner, get the laundry done, and maybe even take a nap. You’ve got plenty of time on your hands, cause the action tonight...

But now I see and know what is going on tonight. We’re keeping it low-key and heading up to Atomic Books for a reading of one of our old favorites, Dance of Days by Mark Andersen and Mark Jenkins. The Chop can clearly remember when the first edition was published by Soft Skull Press back...

So, we know we said we wanted to sit around, but we’re quickly remembering just how un-funny prime time television can be. Two and a Half Men? Gary Unmarried? The New Adventures of Old Christine? For fuck’s sake. What is funny is tonight’s Comics Without Filters show at the...

As you’re beginning to figure out, The Baltimore Chop is always on top of its game. We do what the hell we say we’re going to do, and when we say we’ll do it. Of course, our timing is always impeccable, and our attention to detail unimpeachable. So we’re very...