Articles by Sam Sessa

7:32 AM CDT, March 20, 2013

Q&A: Sunni Gilliam of Teavolve

Sunni Gilliam does, in fact, know how to read the tea leaves.

9:33 AM CST, February 4, 2013

The Ravens won this Super Bowl for Baltimore, for all of us

"Baltimore!"

6:12 AM CST, February 7, 2013

FROM SUN MAGAZINE

Q&A with Rodney Henry of Dangerously Delicious Pies

They call him the Ramblin' Pie Man, and he lives up to the name.

9:39 AM CST, December 28, 2012

Ravens bar of the week: Abbey Burger Bistro

When it opened a few years ago, the Abbey Burger Bistro was the first restaurant in Federal Hill to offer upscale burgers with odd meats. (Wild boar, anyone?) But it quickly became a neighborhood favorite of Ravens fans and the post-college set.

6:04 AM CST, December 26, 2012

R&B/soul band the Bellevederes shares the covers

If the Bellevederes isn't Baltimore's best soul/R&B band — and it just might be — it's certainly the biggest.

6:44 AM CST, November 16, 2012

From Sun Magazine: Q&A: BMA director Doreen Bolger

A large drawing hangs behind Doreen Bolger's desk, dripping with the words "Forward in all directions."

2:21 PM CDT, October 25, 2012

Jam fans flock to Pigeons Playing Ping Pong

When the Bridge, the biggest band on Baltimore's jam scene, split up last Thanksgiving, live-music fans wondered who would fill the void.

9:27 AM CST, November 23, 2012

Ravens bar of the week: Blue Agave

A Ravens game in a Mexican restaurant?

8:01 AM CDT, September 14, 2012

Ravens bar of the week: Cowboys & Rednecks

If you're searching for gameday atmosphere in Federal Hill but looking to avoid the foot traffic of the Mother's Purple Patio, check out its relatively new neighbor, Cowboys & Rednecks Pub.

4:27 PM CDT, September 5, 2012

Baltimore's Mobtown Moon reinterprets 'Dark Side of the Moon'

For decades, music fans have obsessed over Pink Floyd's 1973 masterpiece, "Dark Side of the Moon." It's used as an unofficial soundtrack for "The Wizard of Oz" and performed by countless cover bands. There's a reggae version and even an 8-bit version that would be at home on a Nintendo game.

11:25 AM CDT, September 5, 2012

From Sun Magazine: Q&A: Orioles manager Buck Showalter

Buck Showalter means business.

7:04 PM CDT, September 7, 2012

Thrill Jockey, instrumental for Baltimore's music scene, celebrates 20 years

About six years ago, the Baltimore rock band Arbouretum played at a club in Chicago for an audience of almost no one.

6:34 AM CDT, May 31, 2012

Nelly's Echo keeps it simple

It's hard to keep Nelson Emokpae down. The Baltimore singer/songwriter, who leads the band Nelly's Echo, is perpetually upbeat — both in person and in song.

6:11 AM CDT, March 22, 2012

From Sun Magazine: Q&A with Prime Rib owner Buzz Beler

In the more than 45 years since the Prime Rib opened, precious little has changed at the iconic midtown restaurant.

5:54 AM CDT, July 6, 2012

From Sun Magazine: Frederick H. Bealefeld III Q&A

After five years as Baltimore's police commissioner — five years of sleepless nights, crime scenes and news conferences —Frederick H. Bealefeld III was ready to unplug.

5:56 AM CDT, March 29, 2012

Singer ellen cherry strips down for new solo piano album

In 2009, Baltimore singer/songwriter ellen cherry was temporarily sidelined with a nasty throat infection.

6:48 PM CDT, September 7, 2012

'Rock and Roll' takes Height to new peaks

In the past few years, Height, aka Dan Keech, has become the biggest white rapper in Baltimore — both musically and physically (he's a pretty large guy, hence the name). He has a plodding, deliberate cadence that begs a closer listen. You might call him the anti-Busta Rhymes.

2:43 PM CDT, May 17, 2012

Preakness 2012: Frequently asked questions

What time is the Preakness Stakes run?

5:48 AM CST, February 8, 2012

From Sun Magazine: The Baltimore Love Project had a hitch

Michael Owen has spent a lot of time around love — even as he began to lose his faith in it.

November 17, 2011

Jessica Lea Mayfield: Wise beyond her years

Jessica Lea Mayfield has packed a lot of living into her 22 years.

2:55 PM CDT, September 22, 2011

Ravens bar of the week: Mother's

When it comes to Federal Hill Ravens bars, there's Mother's and there's everybody else.

10:14 AM CDT, September 16, 2011

Ravens bar of the Week: Padonia Station

With the Ravens out of town this weekend, many fans will be firmly planted on comfy couches, watching the action on their giant flat screen TVs.

September 10, 2011

Ravens bar of the week: Don't Know Tavern

Yes, the name is a little silly, in an Abbott and Costello kind of way.

5:47 AM CDT, July 22, 2011

From Sun Magazine: Behind the wheel with Baltimore Grand Prix's Jay Davidson

Jay Davidson is, admittedly, no gear-head.

4:08 PM CDT, April 27, 2011

Princess-to-be Kate Middleton has Maryland family ties

Soon-to-be princess Kate Middleton has a few prominent Marylanders — and American celebrities — in her family tree.

3:50 PM CDT, July 14, 2011

Interview: G. Love returns to his roots

When G. Love started tossing around ideas for his new album, he found himself revisiting his roots as a young blues lover kicking around Philadelphia.

7:19 PM CDT, April 28, 2011

Liquor board to shut down Tiki Barge in July

The liquor board Thursday suspended Tiki Barge's license for the month of July — peak season for the floating South Baltimore bar — for disturbing the peace and misleading statements from the bar's lawyer, according to liquor board chairman Stephan Fogleman.

April 16, 2009

Meet the Band: Laura Baron

Hometown Bethesda

5:11 PM CDT, April 26, 2011

Federal Hill bars increasingly under fire from neighbors

In Federal Hill, the bars are growing — expanding into adjacent buildings and drawing more rowdy crowds than ever — but so are the complaints from the neighborhood.

1:26 PM CDT, May 12, 2011

Rodney to the rescue

Two years ago, Ocean City debuted a sunny, slightly absurd ad campaign starring a lifeguard named Rodney, who "rescued" people from their daily lives and whisked them away to the beach.

July 23, 2009

Trio of music legends gives a little-known band a big leg up

For six years, the Wiyos ground out a living on the road, playing hundreds of shows in the U.S. and abroad.

2:46 PM CDT, July 22, 2010

A look back at Baltimore's best and worst clubs

Baltimore might never be a club-going city like New York, Miami — or even Washington.

3:13 PM CDT, April 15, 2011

Cassettes make an unlikely comeback in Baltimore

Every morning for the past eight months, Nicole Mazarakis wakes up, rolls out of bed and puts on music.

4:28 PM CDT, March 18, 2011

Getting Baltimore in tune with Austin

It's Thursday afternoon, and downtown is awash in live music. Guitar solos shriek through the air, and the crisp snap of snare drums echoes from inside live music clubs. Hundreds of bands are crammed into every nook and cranny, vying to impress the tens of thousands of music lovers and industry folks who swarm the streets.

July 12, 2009

All the bells, whistles and 111 bikes

Brian Sacawa and Erik Spangler see themselves as sound guerrillas.

6:30 PM CDT, April 30, 2011

Never really apart thanks to Facebook, young alumni are skipping reunions

Rebecca Miller's five-year high school reunion seemed dead on arrival.