Prime Time for The After Hours: This month, the Harrisburg-based band releases its first full-length album

September 28, 2023 | by Skye Leppo

Photo courtesy of The After Hours.

The timing was right for The After Hours to embrace a reality that was a long time coming.

The four-piece, who have been playing together under the moniker since September 2021, have been making a name for themselves regionally over the last two years, though their relationships as musicians go back much further than that.

Vocalist Jordan Trevino, 34, who also joins the band on drums, bass and guitar, and guitarist Sean Saman, 37 (who you’ll also hear on keyboards and bass) were both longtime members of the former Harrisburg band, Hot Jam Factory. Multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Elena Rossetto was briefly a member of Hot Jam Factory in 2020, but, as many musicians felt the pangs of the global pandemic, touring—and Hot Jam Factory’s time as a band—came to a grinding halt.

This clean slate opened up a new world of opportunity, though. Trevino, Saman and Rossetto were excited about another sound that they’d started exploring and felt committed to a “singular direction and vision of what this vision and project could be,” thus beginning a new era as The After Hours, Trevino said. Gordon Lauffer, 25, has since started working with the band on drums.

When listening to a few of the band’s dreamier, synth-heavy melodies, one can appreciate the different members’ shared efforts to create emotional, vibe-y moments. Combined, their individual talents create a rich, atmospheric sound that feels very current, with a hint of New Wave nostalgia.

The group’s first full-length album, “Late Night Social,” comes out Friday, Oct.13, and includes 11 original tracks. If you want to catch the band performing songs from the album live, you’ll have two chances to do so that weekend.

The After Hours’ Album Release Party hits the Stage on Herr at H*MAC at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 13, and the band will play at Choctoberfest at ChocolateTown Square Park in downtown Hershey on Oct. 14, sometime between 4 and 6 p.m.

I caught up with the band one evening in August at Trevino’s house while members were having an “art night,” adding the finishing touches to some album artwork as well as conceptualizing some props and storylines for upcoming music videos.

TheBurg: How did the band come to be?

Jordan Trevino: We had Hot Jam Factory for so long… This [The After Hours] is a jumping-off point to do more centered works. We released two songs, “Back Here Again” and “Anytime,” and then retouched them up, this time as The After Hours, and released them under this name as our first two singles.

TheBurg: How long have you been working on “Late Night Social?” Can you talk about the recording process?

Trevino: It’s a lot of themes. Lyrically, moving into this album, we as The After Hours really wanted to get back to emotionally based writing. We were getting really intrigued by concept—bigger, grander ideas. … We just kept talking about chasing a lot of vibes with it, setting atmospheres, and after the fact, there are a lot of themes of change and time, and connecting, whether it’s people reconnecting or slowly growing apart, pursuing romantically or whatever. It’s kind of, at least for me, these different snapshots of different stories in a night.

Sean Saman: We record with Jason Shaffer at Full Tilt Recording in Mechanicsburg… he’s sort of our unspoken sixth member.

Trevino: This is the first album [where] we’ve really recorded most of the base tracks ourselves and took everything to Jason, for mixing, mastering and overlaying. We’ve worked with him for about 10 years. … We recorded all the basic stuff at our place, and then we recorded some violin and saxophone stuff at Jason’s studio.

TheBurg: Who does most of the songwriting for the band?

Trevino: Elena joined (Hot Jam Factory) to mostly sing and do some auxiliary, and then got really good at bass during COVID and started writing bass lines. Sean’s been leading the soundscape in most of the songs, written the drum parts, guitar parts and everything.

Elena Rossetto: We’re all multi-instrumentalists; we all do a lot. And Gordon’s on drums! Though it’s a matter of time before I’m hopping on your drum kit.

Gordon Lauffer: Please do!

Trevino: I do most of the lyrics, but it’s a big bouncing off of each other process, a lot of, ‘what do you think?’ I come up with a starting point for the melody, and Elena will help steer the melody a lot, harmonize—it’s a playful process. … I’ll be asking everyone: are you sure about this line? Do you like it more if it’s phrased this way?”

Saman: Then I come through and fix the typos. (Whole group laughs.)

Trevino: I feel like it started when Sean and I lived together. Most of the time, we played together so we’d be writing, heavily collaborative. Elena came in and fit that so well because she’s naturally gifted at picking up instruments and very creative, talented with melody. It’s made this really nice structure where we chime in on what everyone is doing.

Rossetto: When we are live, we perform what we know best and tend to switch instruments depending on what we’re playing live.

Saman: We do it strategically—what’s the energy of the songs, and who has what instruments, and what makes it flow the best?

TheBurg: What songs did you have the most fun recording?

Saman: To be fair, I had a lot of fun recording all of the parts and all of the songs.

Rossetto: We used a theremin in the song, “My Type,” and Jordan had a lot of fun playing that.

Trevino: It was super fun.

Saman: During COVID I bought a marimba, so I put that in “Back Here Again.”

Trevino: “Me & My Girl” is pretty special. They all were special, but we recorded vibraphone, cello and violins while working on that song, and [from the song’s] finished written [form] and then in the studio, it was such a different song. That one still surprises me, just hearing some of the fun orchestration stuff we did. “In A Little While” is a song where a lot of things that were just played in the recording process ended up sticking. We used some extreme effects and had fun with a lot of sounds, but I remember thinking, “This will never make it to the album,” and it’s definitely making it to the album.

Saman: That’s one that I really enjoy playing live.

For more information on The After Hours, visit the band’s page on Spotify.

You can catch the band live at their “Late Night Social” album release party at Stage on Herr at H*MAC at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 13. For more details for that show, visit www.harrisburgarts.com

The Q&A has been edited for brevity and clarity.

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Selling Memories: The Rummagers opens in Harrisburg with collectibles, unique finds

September 28, 2023 | by Maddie Gittens

Nipsey & Krista Harper

What do a cat clock, a bright pink jumpsuit and an E.T. figurine have in common?

They’re all among the many unique treasures to be found at Harrisburg’s newest vintage shop, The Rummagers.

Those items are just a few of the many, many… many toys, clothes, vinyl records and other collectibles that husband and wife duo Krista Harper and Nipsey, of Harrisburg, have hunted and curated over the years.

In 2019, the pair decided to make their hobby a business and opened The Rummagers, starting out by vending at nearby antique shops. Most recently, the business sold items in Funky Finds & Grinds in Lemoyne.

However, in mid-September, The Rummagers took the leap and opened their own shop. At their store, located on the 1400-block of N. 3rd St., they offer their one-of-a-kind-finds in Harrisburg.

“It’s our space, and we can finally do it the way we’ve always wanted to,” Harper said. “It feels fantastic.”

Harper has been collecting since she was young—her family always loved hunting down a good deal. The same goes for Nipsey, the longtime radio host of “The People’s Morning Show” on 105.7, The X. When he’s not on the air, he’s thrifting, and his collection has been growing for years.

“We’ve been collecting all our lives,” he said. “So, we didn’t necessarily have to go out and find a bunch of inventory because we had it.”

The pair believes that anyone can walk into their shop and find something of interest, whether it’s a nostalgic toy or item from their childhood, a baseball card or unique piece of clothing or home decor.

The whole idea behind The Rummagers is to save things from eras past, recycle them and give them new life, they explained. Harper and Nipsey love the idea of saving castaway treasures from the landfill.

“We want to make sure those eras aren’t lost,” Harper said. “We rummage so you don’t have to.”

Nipsey pointed out a pack of New Kids on The Block trading cards, as he talked about the feeling of nostalgia engrained in their business.

“It’s a lot of selling memories,” he said. “There’s a lot of people saying, ‘I didn’t know I even wanted this.’”

And while it can sometimes be hard for the pair to part with pieces of their collections, they love seeing the look on a customer’s face when something catches their eye. Although, Harper has been known to keep Michael Jackson-related finds for herself, she said with a laugh.

The pair feels that their new shop will bring a unique shopping option to the neighborhood. But outside of that, they also plan to immerse themselves in the community, showcasing local artists’ work in their shop each month and participating in events like 3rd in the Burg.

“Our biggest goal is being part of the local community,” Harper said. “This community really rallies around local businesses, and we are excited to be part of that.”

The Rummagers is located at 1419 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.therummagers.com.

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Deal with the Devil: This month, “The Exorcist” haunts Harrisburg

September 28, 2023 | by Rachel Landon

Photo by Anela Bence-Selkowitz

For over half a century, William Peter Blatty’s novel, “The Exorcist,” and its subsequent film progeny have frightened and inspired horror lovers.

Now, during the 50th anniversary of the original movie release, the most infamous story of faith and fear comes to Harrisburg to thrill audiences in a brand new stage production.

This new adaptation, set to have its East Coast premiere at Open Stage this month, was penned by John Pielmeier, who is best known for the award-winning play and movie, “Agnes of God.” Producing artistic director Stuart Landon directs the production at Open Stage.

The story of “The Exorcist” follows Regan MacNeil (portrayed by Emily Reusswig in the Open Stage production), a young girl who begins to display unexplainable ailments and violent outbursts, which mystify her doctors. When modern medicine fails, the unexplainable can only be explained by one thing: demonic possession.

Regan’s desperate mother, movie star Chris MacNeil (Tara Herwig), seeks aid from a local priest, Damian Kerras (Jeff Luttermoser). Kerras faces a crisis of faith as he is haunted by the demon residing in Regan along with his own quiet and personal traumas. Together with exorcist Father Merrin (Ted Hanson), they face a relentless battle against a powerful, ancient evil.

In 1973, William Friedkin’s film adaptation of “The Exorcist” shook the world, earning two Academy Awards and the title of “the scariest movie ever made.” It amassed a staggering $193 million at the box office (equivalent to nearly $894 million in 2023) and remains one of the most successful horror films in history with a global franchise worth $1.1 billion. A new sequel, “The Exorcist: Believer,” starring Ellen Burstyn, reprising her role from the original film, arrives this month, serving as a direct sequel to the first film.

“We’re unleashing something truly extraordinary onto the stage,” said Landon. “This is not just a copycat of the movie—it’s a unique theatrical experience based on the original novel. The playwright has made some significant deviations from the film—driven by the practicality of stage design and performance—but audiences will find it just as beautiful and terrifying. I think this production will be unlike anything Harrisburg has seen before.”

Some of the most heart-stopping moments are crafted through sound, lighting and special effects, ensuring a visceral experience for the audience, which can expect to see the iconic and bloody visuals that earned “The Exorcist” its reputation. For those of you who have seen the movie: yes, even that one.

The cast also includes Tommy Dougherty, Brennen Dickerson, Josh Dorsheimer, Brian Schreffler, Chris Krahulec and Joellen Terranova. The production boasts special effects by Karen Ruch, Jen Kilander and Sammi Leigh Melville, with set and costume design by Landon, lighting design by Tristan Stasiulis, sound design by Josh Rhodes, and property design by Becky Arney, with Stacy Reck serving as production stage manager.

“The Exorcist” transcends modern horror, challenging audiences’ deepest beliefs and fears. Friedkin and Blatty’s goal with the original film was far more ambitious than making a scary movie. They aimed to make people “think about the concept of good and evil.”

Don’t miss your chance to experience “The Exorcist” live on stage this month, but be warned. This spine-chilling journey contains material that may shock and offend, so it’s not recommended for those under 18.

“The Exorcist” runs Oct. 7 to 31 at Open Stage, 25 N. Court St., Harrisburg. For more information and tickets, visit www.openstagehbg.com or call 717-232-6736.

UPCOMING EVENTS

At Open Stage
www.openstagehbg.com
717-232-6736

“The Exorcist”

The horror classic live on stage
Oct. 7 to 31

EFF Live!

Naughty readings of fanfics
Sunday, Oct. 8 at 7:30 p.m.

Black NewsBeat with Dr. Kimeka Campbell

Join us in the studio audience for an episode taping!
Oct 11 & 25 at 7:30 p.m.

“The Masque of the Red Death”

A horror rock concept experience
Oct. 19 to 22

Court Street Cabaret
Halloween Edition

Spooky songs from Broadway and beyond
Thursday, Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m.

Mrs. Kasha Davis
“There’s Always Room for a Cocktail”

The “RuPaul’s Drag Race” all-star comes to Harrisburg
Saturday, Nov. 4 at 7:30 p.m.

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Goal Mates: It’s early to rise, early to the bar for rabid fans of Premier League soccer

September 28, 2023 | by Jeff Falk

Fans at River Trail Brewing

Fans at Mr. G’s Sports Bar

What are you up to on your average Sunday morning?

If you’re like Cory Hulsizer, there’s a good chance you’re sitting at a bar, eyes glued to the TV, surrounded by some of your closest mates and cheering like a madman.

While you might be catching up on your sleep, Hulsizer is at Mr. G’s Sports Bar, which, for much of the year, opens early to accommodate the rabid, Harrisburg-area fans of Liverpool F.C., an English Premier League football (soccer) club.

Because of the time difference, matches typically air during the morning hours on Saturdays and Sundays.

“Community life and civic life is in doubt, simply because people don’t go out as groups as much as they used to,” said Hulsizer, 30, president of the Susquehanna Valley Official Liverpool Supporters’ Club. “It may be a bit quirky to support an English soccer club, but it brings people together. It’s just good for people to be together.”

In central PA, Liverpool fans are not alone in their commitment to Premier League soccer and the camaraderie it inspires.

Across the river, the Harrisburg Spurs, local fans of the Tottenham Hotspurs, are bellying up to the bar at Grateful Goat Brewing Co. in Camp Hill. Meanwhile, the Central PA Gooners, supporters of Arsenal FC, also claim space at Mr. G’s. In Lancaster County, another scrum of Liverpool fans gathers at River Trail Brewing in Marietta.

“Every fan says this about their sport, but soccer is a sport meant to be watched with other people,” said Hulsizer, of Mechanicsburg. “There’s just this social aspect to watching soccer. There’s just a community feel that makes the club make sense. Plus, there’s something about going to a bar at 10 a.m.”

Fortunately, George Giannaris, owner of Mr. G’s, is a big soccer fan himself.

“When they walk in, they’re decked out in full gear,” Giannaris said. “We’re very dedicated to the soccer fans of Harrisburg. We don’t let them down. We’re loyal to them, and they’re loyal to us.”

For Hulsizer, Mr. G’s is the perfect setting for Sunday morning soccer mayhem.

“You can tell when a bar is a soccer bar or just trying to show games,” he said. “From a financial point of view, we’re able to bring in customers. But the club doesn’t exist without the bar.”

According to Giannaris, the main motivation isn’t financial.

“We don’t do it for the money; we do it for the love of the game,” he said. “If there’s a soccer game, I don’t want to be home alone watching it. I want to be with other people. When we’re in there (the bar), we blend in with the rest of the crowd.”

Extra Layer

Famous as one of the finest soccer leagues in the world, the 20-member Premier League’s 10-month, 38-match season begins in August and concludes in May. It’s one of the few leagues anywhere that does not conduct playoffs at the conclusion of its regular season.

“It creates a full season of intensity,” said Hulsizer. “Every game matters, which means you hit the ground running with high stakes. Every game is a playoff game. I love it.”

The Susquehanna Valley Official Liverpool Supporters Club is in its infancy as an organization.

From modest and informal origins, the club officially became affiliated with Liverpool about a year ago, near the start of the 2022-23 Premier League season. Hulsizer said that about 50 official Liverpool supporters’ clubs exist throughout the United States, in places like Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., and New York.

“I consider myself a pretty self-controlled person, a rational guy,” Hulsizer said. “But there’s something that just turns on and turns off when I’m watching a game. There’s this build, and you can see them (the players) building this play. When that goal hits, it’s just delirium, and everybody’s on their feet going absolutely nuts.”

With an estimated fan base of 4 billion people, soccer is the most popular sport in the world. But competing with pursuits like American football, baseball, basketball and even hockey, soccer has struggled to gain a foothold in the United States.

The phenomenon may have been summed up best by podcasters Men in Blazers who said, “Soccer is America’s sport of the future since 1972.”

However, the tide may finally be turning, and you can witness it for yourself by dropping into Mr. G’s when, let’s be honest, the rest of the world thinks you should be in church or working on your weekend chore list. Just look for the guys wearing matching jerseys, downing a pint and letting loose a cheer (or a groan).

“I think soccer is definitely growing,” Hulsizer said. “It can feel a little isolating to be a Premiere League fan, as opposed to, say, an Eagles fan. It’s not mainstream. It’s almost like a secret club. But it’s like an extra layer of fun.”

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Flower and Song: “I Don’t Speak Spanish” and the poetry of truth

September 28, 2023 | by Francesca Amendolia

David Ramón Zayas with the cast and production team of “I Don’t Speak Spanish”

“We…tell a story begging the listener to say—and to feel—‘Yes, that’s the way it is, or at least that’s the way I feel it. You’re not as alone as you thought.’”

—John Steinbeck

This month, Gamut Theatre will host the world premiere of “I Don’t Speak Spanish,” a new work by local playwright David Ramón Zayas.

Each of the three acts of this work plunge the audience into a crucial moment in a family’s life—an uncomfortable dinner party in 2019 Lancaster, a brawl on an LA street in 1943, an impossible choice in south Texas in 1915. Behind all these moments is the long shadow of La Malinche—an enslaved woman who uncomfortably straddled languages and cultures during Cortés’ conquering of the Aztecs, a symbol of the constant and ongoing tension between conqueror and conquered.

It seems apt, considering “I Don’t Speak Spanish” is a play about turning points, as Zayas can pinpoint the exact moment of the project’s inception. Sometime in 2017, his brother called him and (without preamble) announced, “I’m sick of feeling like a fraud. I’m going to learn Spanish.”

This was something the brothers had never discussed—the confusing weight of being a brown person with a Hispanic name who could not speak Spanish. Until that moment, Zayas had quietly assumed this—having others mistakenly assume his bilingualism and then be disappointed when that assumption proved false—was his own insecurity and not a shared experience. To learn otherwise, to unexpectedly discover he was not alone in feeling shame at not speaking Spanish, was not just liberating but invigorating.

So Zayas, who is Mexican American, started talking to other Latine people, and he quickly learned how many others felt similarly. It’s not an unusual story, parents creating an English-only household in an attempt to protect their children from the prejudice they had endured (and often continued to endure) due to their accents or lack of English-language fluency. He also began to research his family history, discovering (among other things) that his family didn’t so much immigrate to the United States as a changed border curved around the family’s home, and suddenly they were living in another country. Slowly, from his amorphous idea for a play that would explore language, race, identity and assimilation grew a concrete plot about three generations of a Mexican-suddenly-American family.

Zayas was already an experienced actor, playwright and director, but his earlier projects (a series of very successful “Choose Your Own Plays” co-written with Philip Mann, as well as adaptations of “Beowulf” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” among others) were all created for a specific performance goal. This new play was not just more personal but more substantive than his previous works—and it was not something he planned to direct or to act in (though since the universe loves to laugh at our well-laid plans, he is in fact doing both for this production).

“I wrote the play a younger version of myself needed to see,” said Zayas, adding that he suspected younger David might have avoided the play, and he hoped anyone feeling a similar discomfort would risk attending.

He himself had long feared he did not belong in the world of such stories, but as he researched philosophy and literature, he realized he had long been in good company, that generations of Latine writers had wrestled with the same struggles he was trying to articulate.

That said, he never worried that his play, increasingly filled with historical details about one family’s experiences, might not speak to a broad audience.

“I feel very strongly that specific stories told honestly will speak to everyone, even those with no connection to those exact experiences,” he said.

Audience reactions are proving him right.

In 2022, the Shakespeare Theatre Association conference hosted a staged reading of an earlier incarnation of “I Don’t Speak Spanish,” and that audience, despite not having a connection to the Spanish language, despite not being Latine, nonetheless expressed a strong connection to the characters and story. Zayas puts this down to the magic of specificity to get to the heart of human experience.

“When you’re clear and honest about a particular, personal experience, the core of the struggle speaks more clearly,” he said.

That struggle is a story told and retold throughout every corner of the United States, where people’s connections to their ancestors have been muddied by time or stolen outright by slavers, invaders and colonizers, where an immigrant’s language serves as both shackle and tether and breaking free of one demands severing the other. However, “I Don’t Speak Spanish” is also a very specific story, and that specificity gives it a compelling universality.

“I Don’t Speak Spanish” runs from Oct. 7 to 22 at Gamut Theatre, 15 N. 4th St., Harrisburg. For more information and tickets, please visit gamuttheatre.org/i-dont-speak-spanish.

UPCOMING EVENTS
At Gamut Theatre
www.gamuttheatre.org
717-238-4111

“I Don’t Speak Spanish”
By David Ramón Zayas

Oct. 7 to 22
Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.
Sundays at 2:30 p.m.

Popcorn Hat Players Present

“The Little Mermaid”
Oct. 7 at 1 p.m.

Popcorn Hat Players Present

“The Halloween Show”
Oct. 21, 28 at 1 p.m.

TMI Improv

Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

If you like what we do, please support our work. Become a Friend of TheBurg!

Food & Family: Green Ridge may have crossed the river, but the Lapp family remains committed to their products, their customers

September 28, 2023 | by Molly Pavlovich

Four days a week, David and Ruthie Lapp, and several of their six children—the lifeblood of Green Ridge Farm Market & Cafe—make the one-hour commute from the farmlands of Lancaster to their new storefront in Camp Hill.

They bring with them a deep appreciation for homegrown and homemade, passed down through generations, and fresh meats, vegetables and other fruits of their labor that keep customers coming back week after week.

“We don’t mind the drive because we know that we’re bringing people farm fresh and organic food that nourishes their bodies,” Ruthie said.

For more than a decade prior, the family sold its Green Ridge Acres Farm produce at the Broad Street Market in Harrisburg. However, hoping to grow their business and further cultivate their customer base, they transitioned to their new west shore location in July, which formerly housed the locally loved Healthy Grocer.

This change has given the Lapps the opportunity to expand not only in space but also in offerings.

Organic seasonal produce remains stocked on the shelves from local and trusted suppliers, along with grass-fed dairy products and meats that were raised on the Lapps’ own farm, as well as various bulk items like baking ingredients, spices and snacks. The store’s Cup of Joy Café also serves hearty soups made from scratch, hot breakfast options, sandwiches, coffee and baked goods—a little something for everyone.

“When customers visited us at the Broad Street Market, they might get one or two things from us, but they’d shop around at other vendors, too,” Ruthie said. “But now, when they come here, they want to make it worth their trip. They’re going out of their way to shop with us and support our business.”

While Ruthie says that she and her family miss their fellow market vendors, she believes investing in her customers was well worth the leap of leaving. Many loyal shoppers have followed them from the east shore to the west shore and would devotedly choose grocery shopping at Green Ridge over supermarkets any day.

“I shop here every week,” said long-time customer Mark Silver, who had a full cart from his Saturday morning trip. “It’s a completely different pace than the typical grocery store experience.”

He praised both the food quality and the “friendly faces.”

“Not only do I know much of the Lapp family by name, but they make an effort to know their customers’ names, too,” he said. “Why wouldn’t I want to keep coming back?”

Place of Joy

Still early in their new venture, the Lapps have taken it day-to-day as they sharpen their store and its inner workings. But, as days turn into months, they’re eager to explore additional avenues that will allow them to further invest in their customers and family.

One of Ruthie and David’s sons recently bought a farm in Northumberland, and they hope to add a familial touchpoint by selling their produce at the market once it’s plentiful. Ruthie also sees potential in targeting new customers in other counties, even nearby metropolitan areas like Washington, D.C., which are close enough that an occasional trip to pick up an online order might be doable.

“Perhaps we’ll even have a farm day at some point, where we invite customers to our farm in Lancaster,” Ruthie said. “Children could gather eggs and families could get a closer look at country living—see where some of the items we sell come from.”

Customers like Silver are excited to watch the business grow and evolve too, from a stand at the Broad Street Market to whatever the future holds.

“I want to see them thrive, and I hope it remains something they enjoy doing together as a family,” Silver said. “When you walk into their store, it’s hard to deny that what they do comes from a place of joy.”

Green Ridge Farm Market & Café is located at 3800 Trindle Rd., Camp Hill. For more information, visit www.greenridgeacres.com.

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Musical Notes: Rocktober Arrives in Full Volume

September 28, 2023 | by Skye Leppo

Tie up your combat boots and get to the gig, because there’s no shortage of great shows to enjoy or stomp along to in central Pennsylvania this October. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” concert film will be available on the silver screen beginning Oct. 13 for those who didn’t catch the tour live, but there are many opportunities to soak in the live music experience IRL this fall.

DON’T MISS

105.7 The X Presents White Reaper, 10/2, XL Live

After a recommendation from a friend, I recently listened to a few songs by Louisville garage rockers White Reaper and was immediately sucked into the band’s slew of headbangers. Their glam rock sound and slick guitar work is basically a time machine into the ’80s, though I was even more impressed by their quasi-ballads like “Judy French.” The band is currently touring to promote their 2023 LP, “Asking For A Ride,” and they’ll hit the stage at XL Live on Oct. 2. I’ll break out my glitter eyeliner for this. Tickets available at www.xlhbg.com.

WORTH THE DRIVE

Kable House Presents S.G. Goodman, 10/30, Central Market York

Kable House has been booking incredible concerts in York for nearly a decade and simply does not get enough credit. If you’re a fan of great singer-songwriter discovery and intimate performances that make the hairs on your arms prickle up, this is for you. When S.G. Goodman opened for Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit at Riverfront Park this summer, I immediately added the artist to my radar to catch a full set at some point in the future. Goodman, who hails from Hickman, Ky., is playing at Central Market in York on Oct. 30 and has a hauntingly beautiful sound that will be a perfect fit into Halloween plans. Get tickets at www.kablehousepresents.com.

A TOUCH OF AVANT GARDE

The Wind Down Presents Radiator Hospital, 10/23, West Shore Theatre

Full disclosure that yours truly is on the organizing committee for this music series, but I’m so excited to share that The New Cumberland Collective’s Wind Down Series, presented by Neato Burrito, is bringing Philly indie darlings Radiator Hospital to West Shore Theatre on Oct. 23. For those of you who didn’t have “Cut Your Bangs” stuck in your head for all of the 2010s, “Something Wild” or “Fireworks” are great samples of the band’s finest work. Tickets will be available at www.westshoretheatre.org.

SPOOKY SEASON THRILLS

There are a number of excellently timed sets happening this month to help you fully immerse into your most ghoulish music-loving self. Keep an eye on calendars at H*MAC, XL Live and Lovedrafts Brewing Co. in particular for some of the highlights of this category, including Raven Black (10/19, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.), Here Come the Mummies (10/20, XL Live), and Hallowemo Party, 10/28, H*MAC.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Fear, 10/5, H*MAC

Ashton Shepherd w/Little Rock, 10/5, West Shore Theatre

HU Presents JAWNY, 10/7, XL Live

Dinosaurs in Paris,10/8, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.

The Soap Girls, 10/12, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.

The After Hours’ Album Release Party for “Late Night Social,” 10/13, H*MAC

Badfish, 10/13, XL Live

Enter the Haggis, 10/13, The Englewood

Susquehanna Folk Music Society Presents Henry Koretzky & Kevin Neidig, 10/14, Beshore Hill Farm

September Mourning, 10/17, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.

HU Presents Gus Dapperton, 10/19, XL Live

The Reunion, a SWMF Gathering, 10/20 and 10/21, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.

Earshot, 10/22, Lovedrafts Brewing Co.

Susquehanna Folk Presents Julie Fowlis w/Seasons, 10/24, The Englewood

WXPN Welcomes Mary Chapin Carpenter & Shawn Colvin, 10/24, Appell Center for the Performing Arts

Big Gigantic, 10/26, H*MAC

Della Mae, 10/27, The Englewood

Spilly Cave, 10/28, H*MAC

Hallowemo Party, 10/28, H*MAC

HU Presents Paul Cauthen, 10/28, XL Live

If you like what we do, please support our work. Become a Friend of TheBurg!

Stable & Steady: Consistency, service are keys as small Harrisburg law firm marks its golden anniversary

September 28, 2023 | by Phyllis Zimmerman

The attorneys and staff of Wix, Wenger & Weidner

Fifty years after its founding, Wix, Wenger and Weidner has not strayed far from its roots.

The Harrisburg-based law firm started as a smaller, niche firm and remains that today.

“We’re not stretched too thinly,” said attorney Steven Wilds, who’s been with the firm for 40 years. “A lot of my clients are long-term, repeat clients. It shows a lot about the confidence they have in us.”

The firm’s main office in downtown Harrisburg employs five attorneys handling a “wide variety of civil matters with a strong emphasis on real estate, business and corporate law, community association law, estate planning and administration and litigation,” according to the firm. Most of the office’s litigation relates to real estate and commercial matters.

A branch office in Lower Paxton Township features two more attorneys who primarily practice personal injury law, medical malpractice and wills, estate planning and administration.

“Our clients get to know our attorneys and staff. Some of our paralegals have been here for 40 years,” said attorney David Getz, who began with the firm in March 1988. “It’s nice to have clients call here and have the same person answer the phone year after year.”

Wix, Wenger and Weidner was established in 1973 by attorneys Dick Wix and Tom Wenger, who both worked previously for other area firms. Likewise for attorney Dean Weidner, who became Wix and Wenger’s third name in 1975.

Wenger and Weidner have since retired but remain in close contact with the firm. Wix still practices as firm counsel in the areas of medical malpractice, personal injury, civil litigation and municipal law.

Weidner, of Mechanicsburg, retired in 2019 at age 75 after 44 years with the practice. His legal career began as a partner with Rhoads & Sinon of Harrisburg, but he later left for the “smaller firm,” where he could “share in the management,” he stated.

“I thought we had a good combination of values and people, and we provided quality service to our consumers,” Weidner said of the firm that still bears his name.

Weidner witnessed much change during his four-plus decades in the field, much due to the march of technology. These changes, though, haven’t always been for the best, he believes.

“The internet and emails are much less personal ways of dealing with people than what we did before technology came to rise,” he said. “I liked interacting with our clients and helping them solve problems.”

When Weidner first came into the practice, he remembers dictating business correspondence to a staff secretary, who then typed and mailed out his letters. By the tail end of his career, he found himself dictating into a recorder and typing his own letters, he recalled with a laugh.

For many years, Wix, Wenger and Weidner has used the motto, “Client Centric, Solution Driven,” to describe its approach to practicing law.

“That tagline is usually front and center on our business cards, logo, website, email signatures, etc.,” stated Getz, of Hampden Township. “Our motto fits in with about how we pride ourselves on being dealmakers, not deal-breakers. We keep our clients and their needs at the center of our practice, and we seek to find solutions to legal matters that our clients are facing.”

Today, Getz said that he works with second- and third-generation descendants of his original clients. Wilds, of Susquehanna Township, said that he experiences the same. Likewise, staff change is infrequent, which also appeals to the firm’s long-term clients.

“People just come and stay here,” Getz said.

Wix, Wenger & Weidner is located at 508 N. 2nd St., Harrisburg, and at 4705 Duke St., Harrisburg (Lower Paxton Township). For more information, visit wwwpalaw.com.

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A Proactive Approach to Keeping Our Community Healthy

September 28, 2023 | by Todd Shamash

Todd Shamash

At Capital Blue Cross, we are committed to going the extra mile to serve the greater Harrisburg region as well as our customers across the country. And that means more than simply contributing to local organizations or sponsoring events. We strive to listen to concerns and look for solutions, especially when it comes to healthcare.

Take, for instance, one of the most common concerns of healthcare consumers: the ever-rising cost of prescription drugs.

Capital Blue Cross has taken bold steps to help ensure people can afford the medications they need to be healthy and, in some cases, stay alive.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 9 million Americans cite high costs as a reason they fail to take their prescribed medications, even though skipping or delaying doses can worsen health conditions and make them costlier to manage.

Earlier this year, Capital launched a program to help eligible members reduce out-of-pocket costs for expensive specialty drugs they need, like those for rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn’s Disease.

Within just three months after we started this effort, we had helped participating employer groups that have Capital drug coverage save about $4.5 million and cut eligible individual drug out-of-pocket costs by about $3,000 per person. That averages out to about $1,000 in individual savings every month!

And that’s just one approach Capital has taken to fight rising drug costs.

We also are the first insurer in the nation to work directly with Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs—a new company started by billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban to offer some of the most commonly used prescription drugs at the lowest possible price. By allowing our members to use their Capital ID cards at Cost Plus Drugs’ online pharmacy, we’ve helped some people cut their out-of-pocket drug costs by as much as 40%.

We have taken the same aggressive approach to combatting one of the most common and costly diseases: diabetes.

About one-third of Americans will develop diabetes sometime in their lifetime—a chronic disease can cause severe health problems, damage vital organs and shorten life expectancy. The harm diabetes does to America’s collective health is matched by the financial toll it takes. The disease costs the U.S. nearly $330 billion a year.

Capital is the first Pennsylvania health insurer to offer a unique program that works to reverse type 2 diabetes through a well-formulated diet that works to regulate blood sugar in place of costly medications. We also offer a separate program that helps our members reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and helps those with types 1 or 2 manage their disease.

Our efforts to fight the diabetes epidemic are paying off for members and employers:

Capital members using our diabetes control program collectively lost more than 26,000 pounds last year.
Capital members using our diabetes reversal program saw their A1c levels drop by more than a full point on average in just the first 90 days. Higher A1c levels are linked to diabetes complications.
On average, Capital members were able to reduce prescription medications by about 45% in the first 90 days of using the diabetes reversal strategy.
Combined, our diabetes control programs already have helped Capital customers save nearly $6 million collectively, and an average engaged member can save $1,800 to $2,000 annually.

Using innovative strategies like these to proactively address healthcare challenges is beneficial not just to individuals, but to entire communities. When we help reduce the costs of care and keep people healthy, it gives their families and friends peace of mind, saves money, and contributes to a healthier, more productive community.

That’s what we mean at Capital Blue Cross by going the extra mile—and we’ll keep going every day to ensure the Harrisburg region remains a great place for our members, our dedicated employees and everyone who calls this area home.

Todd Shamash is president and CEO of Capital Blue Cross. For more information, visit www.thinkcapitalbluecross.com.

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A Single School: Cathedral Education Center completes renovation, opens to students

September 28, 2023 | by TheBurg Editor

Back in May 2021, the Diocese of Harrisburg broke ground on an ambitious project.

It planned a top-to-bottom renovation of the 70-year-old Catholic Elementary School on Liberty Street, plus the renovation of the even older (112-year-old) Shanahan Center on North Street.

In addition, the two buildings, which had always been separated, would be joined together by a new connector and entryway.

When done, the diocese would be able to consolidate its two elementary schools at this single location.

After a successful fundraising campaign and two years of construction, the project, led by Harrisburg-based JEM Group, is now complete. Beginning this semester, students from pre-K through eighth grade attend school at this single location.

We thought our readers would like to see the interior of the new Cathedral Education Center, home of the unified Catholic Elementary School, located just behind St. Patrick Cathedral. For more information, visit www.hbgdiocese.org/catholic-schools.

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