Cover Story
The Year in Local Muisc
May 2011 The Tucson Kitchen Musicians Association presents the 26th annual Tucson Folk Festival, featuring more than 100 acts, including dozens of local performers and national headliner Tony Furtado. Twenty-five local musicians participate in the Tucson Rock Lottery, in which they form bands by drawing names out of a hat, write songs and perform them…
Paul Cunningham Wants More MMJ Dispensary Restrictions
Tucson’s Ward 2 City Councilman Paul Cunningham has called for a city zoning ordinance change that would tighten the leash on planned medical marijuana dispensaries. Cunningham, whose judgement came into question a few months ago when he got drunk in Cali and temporarily lost the ability to STFU, wants to extend the dispensary setback from…
Get RAW at Plush on Thursday
RAW: Tucson provides an eclectic mix of artists with a place to showcase their unique talents and originality—and to be noticed by a larger audience. The next RAW event will take place on Thursday, Sept. 27, at Plush. Each event includes a short independent film, a musical performance, a fashion show, an art gallery, performance…
2012 TAMMIES Winners List
THE BIG STUFF Band/Entertainer of the Year LeeAnne Savage (R): 28.7 percent Runners up: 2. Silver Thread Trio (C): 25.5 percent 3. Brian Lopez (C): 16 percent 4. Ryanhood (R): 11.9 percent 5. Broken Romeo (R): 9 percent 6. Lenguas Largas (C): 8.7 percent Up-and-Comers: Boreas (C, R): 24.7 percent Runners up: 2. Saint Maybe…
Watch the Skies: Space Shuttle Endeavour To Pass Over Tucson in Gabby’s Honor
NASA/Robert Markowitz Keep your eyes peeled for the Space Shuttle Endeavour: It will be passing over Tucson on its way to retirement in sunny California. ABC News reports: The space shuttle Endeavour is on a 2,700 mile cross-country trip — so you had to wonder if it couldn’t make one small detour. Especially at the…
Bruce Babbitt Endorses Nancy Young Wright in County Supes Race
Democrat Nancy Young Wright, who is facing Republican Ally “Hot Mess” Miller in the race to replace Ann Day on the Pima County Board of Supervisors, has landed a high-profile endorsement: Bruce Babbitt, the former Arizona governor and Clinton administration’s secretary of the Interior Department. The press release from the Wright campaign: Former Arizona Governor…
Beer and Chocolate: You Know You Want To
Do beer and chocolate go together? If it’s a delicious pint of Borderlands Brewing Company’s Noche Dulce Porter, with its sweet perfume of vanilla, and the chocolate of local company Monkey Flower Chocolates, you bet your sweet ass they do. From the Borderlands Brewery Facebook page: Two words: Chocolate & Beer. That’s right, we’re getting…
Fast and Furious: “Scathing Report” Released by Inspector General
The Inspector General’s long-awaited report on the ATF’s Fast and Furious operation is out. The New York Times reports: In a scathing report, the inspector general, Michael Horowitz, laid primary blame on what he portrayed as a dysfunctional and poorly supervised group of Arizona-based federal prosecutors and agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms…
Cochise Sheriff Dever Dies In Car Crash; Arizona Responds
Cochise County Sheriff Larry Dever died in a car crash near Williams, Ariz. last night. He was 60 years old. From the Sierra Vista Herald: Coconino County law enforcement was initially contacted about the accident at 6:40 p.m. Tuesday when a caller reported a single-vehicle rollover accident on Forest Service Road 109, about two miles…
Leaving The Gym For The Circus
When I go to the gym, I usually just flail body parts around and assume that something is being exercised. Hoping for a more engaging workout, I tried an aerial silks class at Tucson Circus Arts. If you’ve ever been to the All Souls Procession, you’ve seen the Tucson Circus Arts performance troupe, Flam Chen,…
Food, Art and Drag
And when I say “drag” I’m not talking about race cars people. The Food, Art and Drag Show at Dinnerware Artspace from 5 to 9 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 20, combines food by some of Tucson’s favorite food trucks; art by Nikki Welch, Smith Barney and Neil Collins; and a live drag show hosted by Rosada…
Explore A Huge, Huge World In Today’s XKCD
xkcd.com XKCD creator Randall Munroe is no stranger to huge, detailed, humorous comics — but today’s takes the cake. Entitled “Click and Drag,” the image of the comic’s bottom panel will move as you drag it, not unlike browsing on, say, Google Maps. And, like Google Maps, the image seemingly goes on forever — underground…
Romney Reaction: Barber and McSally Discuss the 47 Percent
As the fallout from Mitt Romney’s comments at a closed-door fundraiser continues today, the candidates for the Congressional District 2 seat weighed in with their reaction to the Republican presidential nominee’s comments about the 47 percent of Americans who do not pay income taxes. Republican Martha McSally, who hopes to unseat newly elected Congressman Ron…
The 1702 Digital Beer Menu
Best idea I’ve heard of a while when it comes to enhancing the beer-drinking experience. Rock on 1702, you never cease to impress.
People Lose Their Minds Over Dr Pepper Facebook Ad
Dr Pepper It’s (not exactly) official, people will lose their minds over anything on the internet. Case-in-point: The nearly 7,000(!) comments on a recent Dr Pepper ad, seen above. Apparently, a number of folks whose beliefs run counter to the theory of evolution are deeply, deeply offended — and willing to say so in front…
Critter of the Week: Meet Fred!
Fred – #735019 — 28 Years Old — Moluccan Cockatoo — Male This is Fred, a boisterous bird with personality galore. Surrendered when he started attacking the young children in the family, Fred is now in need of an avian-experienced owner prepared to commit to a lifetime of patience, love and care. Although he’s a…
Louisiana Bluesman Tab Benoit To Rock Rialto Tonight
If that video hasn’t convinced you to check out Tab Benoit tonight at the Rialto Theatre, there’s very little hope for you as a blues fan. Benoit, whose song “Shelter Me” is the theme for the Discovery Channel show “Sons of Guns”, is more than just a great bluesman — he’s also the founder of…
Romney’s “47 Percent” Likely To Give Him 96 Electoral Votes
From the Washington Post, via Tax Foundation. By now you’ve surely seen the video of Mitt Romney claiming that 47 percent of the nation are more concerned about government handouts than taking control of their own lives. (If not, we’ve got you covered here.) Well, there’s a fun fact there that Romney overlooked: He’s more…
‘Taco Wars’ Is Coming to Tucson
I’ve been corresponding with a Canadian writer and producer who tells me that a show called Taco Wars is coming to Tucson to film an episode. The show will pit three taco shops against each other to pick what the judges think is the best taco in Tucson. Sounds like it could be a pretty…
North Fattoria Italiana Opens Tomorrow
North Fattoria Italiana, the new incarnation of NoRTH at La Encantada at 2995 E. Skyline Road, opens tomorrow, Wednesday, Sept. 19. And while it will be located in the same building and have almost the same name, officials with Fox Restaurant Concepts, who own and operate the place, say the new eatery is a “complete…
Romney Behind Closed Doors
Mother Jones has the story behind a collection of video shorts of Mitt Romney talking to donors at a private fundraiser. From Mother Jones: During a private fundraiser earlier this year, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney told a small group of wealthy contributors what he truly thinks of all the voters who support President Barack…
Casa Video, One Doc At A Time: ‘One Day in September’
The Summer 2012 Olympics ended more than a month ago. But, recently I read an article about one of the survivors of the attack on the Israeli team at the 1972 Olympics in Munich on CNN. His name is Shaul Ladany, and he expressed great disappointment at the fact that the IOC president Jacques Rogge…
New York Times Profiles TUSD’s Attempt To Rebuild Trust With Hispanic Students
The New York Times popped in this weekend to give a national focus on the Tucson Unified School District’s attempts to rebuild and refocus the resources that were scattered about when it dropped the Mexican-American studies program last year. From the New York Times: Meanwhile, at the district’s central offices, Maria Figueroa was busy sifting…
Today In Missed Opportunities: Jim Henson and Douglas Adams Almost Make Magic Happen
As a nerdy man-child (read: blogger) my heart breaks at the thought that I could have spent part of my childhood being encouraged to use computers by the creators of both Kermit the Frog and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. “Jim Henson’s Red Book,” a project by The Jim Henson Company Archives that curates…
Boy Scouts Of America Documents Show Child Abuse Cover-Up
Just as the black-eye from refusing to allow gays to participate in the Boy Scouts of America started to fade, the BSA takes another punch to their image: the Los Angeles Times has uncovered that the majority of sexual abuse cases over a 20 year period went unreported, while nearly 100 were actively suppressed by…
Today’s Lengthy Lunchtime Read: Esquire’s “Life Under Romneycare”
For those unfortunate souls (like me) who have not yet received their Esquire subscriptions this month, we’ve missed out on quite a bit already — for one, Chris Jones’s spectacular piece on Teller, of magic duo Penn & Teller and his quest to protect his greatest trick; for another, a cover feature on lauded actor/chair…
A Way-Cool Look at Curiosity’s Mars Landing
Filmmakers have been cleaning up the video of the Curiosity Mars Science Laboratory’s landing on Mars last month. Slate explains: In the weeks since we first saw the both dazzling and disappointing video of the Curiosity rover landing on Mars, space- and video-enthusiasts have spent hours upon hours trying to make it better. The original…
Your Monday Fusion-Food Update
It appears food truck MaFooCo, which closed down many months ago after a glorious run as one of Tucson’s most adored mobile food operations, is back in action. From the truck’s Facebook page: We couldn’t wait any longer Tucson, so here it is: MaFooCo is coming back very soon! We will post the details in…
Your Sunday Afternoon Read: A Father’s Worst Nightmare
“Edge Of The Abyss,” published in the Sydney Morning Herald’s Saturday edition, is an illustration of the challenges involved in keeping a family together when one of its youngest members has an incurable, potentially life-threatening condition (though the life in danger is not necessarily her own). An excerpt: Before Janni was born, we were given…
Political Roundtable: Flake-Carmona, Paton-Kirkpatrick, Greyhounds, Transportation Scandals, Downtown Revitalization & More
A contentious episode of Arizona Illustrated’s Political Roundtable, as Pima County Democratic Party chairman Jeff Rogers, Republican National Committeeman Bruce Ash and Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik unpack the U.S. Senate race between Jeff Flake and Richard Carmona, the congressional race between Jonathan Paton and Ann Kirkpatrick, a new ban on steroid shots for racing…
‘8: The Mormon Propostition’: A First Step At Tackling Casa Video’s Documentary Section
Casa Video’s documentary section is almost endless. Last time I was there, I spent close to an hour reading the synopses on the back of a ridiculous amount of DVD’s. Time flies when there are too many damn good options. I ended up choosing 8: The Mormon Proposition. In spirit of the upcoming presidential elections,…
U-Like Buffet Is Open
There’s a banner hanging outside of the new U-Like Buffet at 5101 N. Oracle Road that says the place is open. Not much else to report on this one, but I wanted to squeeze in this little food tidbit before everybody packed it in for the weekend. U-Like Buffet has another location on Wilmot Road.…
A Handy Map Of Anti-American Protests Around The World
As you may have heard, there’s been widespread rioting and protests in northern Africa and the middle east as a result of “Innocence of Muslims,” an inflammatory movie that mocks and insults the Muslim prophet Muhammad. This is a somewhat-regularly updated map of a number of protests that have occurred around the world, which includes…
Can You Survive on $4 of Food a Day?
Every time I hear somebody busting on food stamp recipients I have to bite my lip. My family spent a good amount of time relying on aid like food stamps and other programs to survive when I was younger, and that was despite plenty of hard work by my parents. The worst of the criticism…
Help Iransara Tucson Raise Money To Aid Earthquake Victims
Last month, more than 300 people were killed and 3000 more injured in a series of earthquakes in the mountains of Western Iran, affecting Iranians as well as people within Azerbaijan and Armenia. Tonight, Iransara Tucson is holding a fundraiser in conjunction with St. Mark’s Presbyterian Church of Tucson to raise money to assist in…
Malaysian Car Wash Offered Free Sex With Every 10 Washes
Yeah, this definitely blows “free smoothie” punch cards out of the water. A Malaysian car wash recently got in trouble for its interesting customer loyalty cross-promotion — apparently, someone got the bright idea to offer free sexytimes at a local brothel to repeat customers who got their repeat customer cards punched ten times. From The…
Political Roundtable Tonight: Carmona vs. Flake, Paton vs. Kirkpatrick, Downtown Revitalization, Greyhound Dogs & More!
Tonight on Arizona Public Media’s Political Roundtable: Republican National Committeeman Bruce Ash, Pima County Democratic Party chairman Jeff Rogers and Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik talk about the latest in the U.S. Senate race between Republican Jeff Flake and Democrat Richard Carmona; the state of the congressional race between Republican Jonathan Paton and Democrat Ann…
Raids Close Tucson MMJ Collectives
Officers from the multi-agency Counter Narcotics Alliance swept into five Shop 420 certification centers, arresting 10 people, confiscating 14 pounds of the sticky and generally making a huge show of force right next door to Che’s Lounge and at three other Tucson addresses and one in Casa Grande, according to a Tucson Police news release.…
Coming Soon: Wild Garlic Grill
The short-lived Three and a Half Brothers Cafe at 2530 N. First Ave. has closed, but it looks like another restaurant is already readying to set up shop in the building. A liquor license application was filed last week for that location under the name Wild Garlic Grill. We’ve dug around for more information, including…
This Week In Tucson Bicycling
The streetcar isn’t running yet, but the tracks have been installed in many areas and have already been causing crashes. A local advocacy group launched a tool to help track the crashes being caused by the streetcar tracks. Learn more here. Tucson Unified School District students now have a healthy way to spend their fall…
An Excess of Adorable at the Reid Park Zoo
Reid Park Zoo The Internet is inundated by adorable animal photos, but Reid Park’s newest additions can compete with the cutest of them. Reid Park Zoo welcomed a newborn Grevy’s zebra on August 31. He went on display for the first time September 12 and is looking for a name! Mom and baby spent several…
US’s Cairo Embassy Notices Muslim Brotherhood’s English And Arabic Feeds Say Two Different Things
An already tense, sorrowful situation in North Africa has turned, well, a bit awkward. From Bloomberg BusinessWeek: The Muslim Brotherhood’s official English-language Twitter account @Ikwanweb reposted a message from the group’s deputy head, Khairat El-Shater, saying he was “relieved none of @USembassycairo staff was hurt” and expressing his desire that relations withstand the “turbulence” of…
Pima Community College Has Assembled A Committee To Find Its New Chancellor
Pima Community College has been without a chancellor since June 30, when Roy Flores stepped down from his position as a result of health concerns. Interm Chancellor Suzanne Miles has taken over in his absence, though she withdrew herself from permanent consideration; that happened not long after a Board of Governors meeting in which it…
CD2 Air War: Martha McSally Introduces Herself To Voters
We mentioned yesterday that Congressman Ron Barber was airing his first TV ad of the 2012 general elecion season. Today, his Republican challenger, Martha McSally, has debuted her first ad. It’s a positive spot that focuses on her experience in the Air Force as a combat pilot and her promise to provide leadership and bring…
Today In Tucson Spoken Word: ‘South Tucson / Sonoran Strange’ by Logan Philips
Logan Phillips – “South Tucson” / “Sonoran Strange (excerpt)” from dirtyverbs on Vimeo. If you’ve got 11 minutes to spare today, make sure to give a look at this performance by Logan “Dirtyverbs” Philips, a Southern Arizona native who gives a rousing bilingual performance on life on the South Side and in the Sonoran at…
Grijalva Believes That Latino Voters Will Send A “Very Big Wake-Up Call” This Season
Congressman Raul Grijalva, running against Gabrielle Saucedo Mercer in this year’s race for Arizona’s new Congressional District 3, blogged about the forthcoming impact of Latino voters in this upcoming election. His belief, he writes, is that Latinos are going to make their presence felt this year because they value substance over style. From TheHill.com: Consider…
T Q&A
Bead-maker Margaret Zinser has carried a torch for Beads of Courage since 2008, when she organized the first Bead Challenge at the Sonoran Glass School (633 W. 18th St.). Local bead artists will hit the torches from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 15, to make beads for the Tucson-based nonprofit, which supports children…
Weekly Wide Web
We live in the future. I can confidently say this, because a friend in Spain has, practically instantly, sent me audio files from a band that I would have never otherwise heard, from a machine that connects to a worldwide network wirelessly. I can also say this because I carry a 2 1/2-by-5-inch rectangle of…
Baby Steps
The medical-marijuana wheels are turning ever so slowly, creeping along at a pitiful snail’s pace, leaving a bit of confusion about where exactly we are headed. Events in Cali and Arizona seem on the surface to be good news—but might not be in the end. HERE AT HOME The Arizona Department of Health Services posted…
Successful Shows
Motherhood is common to women, but the specific experiences involved in being a mother—or mother figure—are as varied as moms and their offspring. Yet there are universal aspects of motherhood, and that’s why we can appreciate the cavalcade of mothers currently parading their stories onstage at the Invisible Theatre. Motherhood Out Loud is a fairly…
Now Showing at Home
Titanic (Blu-ray); 30 Rock: Season 6; Holy Flying Circus (Blu-ray)
Police Dispatch
A “queen” confuses a convenience store for Target; a homeless man holds a TV captive
Gabler vs. Gabler
It’s a double-Hedda! Two Heddas are running in repertory at Beowulf Alley Theatre as the first offerings of the season: Henrik Ibsen’s classic Hedda Gabler, and Jeff Whitty’s The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, a contemporary riff on the iconic character. The conjunction of the two shows is a clever idea, and while the execution…
Noshing Around
A new look for NoRTH; big changes at the Co-op; and Greek restaurants aplenty!
Media Watch
KQTH CHANGES LINEUP, SLOGAN KQTH FM 104.1 has finally gotten around to doing what most radio stations do when they hire a second local talent: place said local talent in the afternoon-drive slot. The conservative-talk station last week transitioned James T. Harris from his 10 a.m.-to-noon broadcast time to 3 to 6 p.m., weekday afternoons.…
Editor’s Note
It’s time to offer some answers to your questions and comments, some of which I didn’t even need to make up: • Another cover typo last week? WTF? Yeah, yeah, we messed up again, and I am mortified by that. I sincerely apologize. Really. • These damn cover typos are evidence that the goddamn media…
Taste of Asia
Driving through Oro Valley, you can’t help but notice the glut of chain restaurants that line Oracle Road. By the time you get to Rancho Vistoso Boulevard, you almost feel like you’ll never find a locally owned restaurant of any sort. But then you come across Grain River Asian Bistro. This restaurant offers a wide…
Art of the Artist
When Louise Serpa was just coming into her own as a rodeo photographer, she called on Ted DeGrazia. The year was 1966. Serpa was 41. DeGrazia was 57, and far more famous. He had been profiled in National Geographic and other national media, and when UNICEF picked one of his designs for a Christmas card,…
Where He Needs To Be
It’s 2012, and famously dreadlocked punk-rock frontman Keith Morris hasn’t slowed down one bit. And he still has a lot to say. “I’ve never had a schedule this full and busy in all of my years of doing this,” Morris said during a recent phone interview. “I’m (almost) 57, and it feels great.” What’s keeping…
Our Progressive Days
In front of the old neoclassical courthouse in Prescott, there’s a life-size statue of William “Buckey” O’Neill. Miner, lawman, journalist, politician and adventurer, O’Neill was a popular and colorful presence during the state’s Territorial era. He’s remembered today mostly for dying in Cuba while fighting with Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. A plaque on…
Danehy
Conclusions I reached during the two weeks of conventions: • There is not an American alive who could beat Bill Clinton in an election. There aren’t a whole lot of dead ones, either, although I think a Ronald Reagan-Bill Clinton race would be entertaining as all hell. Clinton took Romney and Ryan and the entire…
Soundbites
Wilco returns; Maná comes back to Tucson; MEOWmeow Productions plans a “Ho-Down!”; and much more!
Top Ten in Books
1. A Wanted Man: A Jack Reacher Novel Lee Child, Delacorte ($28) 2. The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien, Ballantine ($8.99) 3. In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin Erik Larson, Broadway ($16) 4. A Storm of Swords: A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3 George R.R. Martin, Bantam…
Top Ten in Music
1. Cadillac Steakhouse Cadillac Steakhouse (self-released) 2. Off! First Four EPs (cassette) (Burger) 3. Al Foul Keep the Motor Running (self-released) 4. Mostly True: The West’s Most Popular Hobo Graffiti Magazine (book) Bill Daniel (Microcosm) 5. Justin Valdez Deuce-Seven Off Suit (Los Muertos) 6. The Deadbeats Kill the Hippies 10″ EP (Dangerhouse) 7. Buzzcocks Love…
Downing
Microsoft is doomed. I say this not just because of what I learned in a recent Vanity Fair article about the idiotic way the company has been run for the last decade—under CEO Steve Ballmer, management institutionalized the most productivity- and morale-destroying system imaginable, a mandatory bell-curve performance-rating system for the employees within every unit.…
Nine Questions
Wes McCanse is the guitar-player and producer for local electro-rockers … music video? Over the course of three full-length albums and several years, the band has received multiple accolades. Wes and … music video? have won TAMMIES for Best Electronic act for the past five years, have recorded with Fort Lowell Records, and have toured…
Her Latest Chapter
F. Scott Fitzgerald said there are no second acts in American lives, which is debatable. But there certainly can be multiple chapters. Singer-songwriter LeeAnne Savage’s career is a good example. A veteran of more than two decades in Tucson music, Savage took home the honors at this year’s Tucson Area Music Awards for Band/Entertainer of…
Live
I discovered It’s a Beautiful Day during a memorable mid-’80s weekend when a passing car nearly tore off my vehicle’s door as I impulsively stepped into the street to buy flowers from a cart. That weekend also saw my virgin viewing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. At some point, I asked a friend what…
Playing For Themselves
Boreas plays pop music, but with a secretly subversive twist. A strong background of formal musical training leads the band into what they call an “uncanny valley of pop music.” “We sound really close to music that people know, but there’s just something a little weird about it,” says singer-guitarist Sam Golden. The 2012 TAMMIES…
Foxygen: Take the Kids Off Broadway (Jagjaguwar)
Rarely is bedroom pop played with such hyperactive abandon. Foxygen, the duo of Sam France and Jonathan Rado, present a debut album that never sits still, careening wildly, even within individual songs, across a wide range of pop, rock and avant-garde influences. Imagine a way more off-kilter version of the band fun. But despite that…
Preponderance of Evidence
It took 2 1/2 years for Rose Hamway to get official confirmation of what she felt in her heart: She was doing the right thing by advocating for Tucson Unified School District special-education students. But that doesn’t mean the school psychologist feels fully vindicated. On Tuesday, Aug. 28, Hamway received formal findings by the U.S.…
Mailbag
What’s historic, anyhow?; Buddhists revolt!
City Week
Church and state?; Bugs on parade; Classic advice about strangers in play form; Culture, now available outdoors
The Skinny
Here’s your chance to weigh in on whether Arizona should expand health-care coverage for poor families … The air war has begun in Congressional District 1 … Goodbye, Wanda Shattuck … and so much more!
Tucson’s First Family of Music
No lifetime achievement award seems more appropriate than this year’s Tucson Area Music Awards Hall of Fame recognition of singer Linda Ronstadt and her grandfather, Federico Ronstadt. We all know Linda Ronstadt as the superstar country-rock artist who branched out to do everything from American standards with Nelson Riddle to a pair of mariachi ranchera…
AmoChip Dabney: Not Out of Words (Microchip)
For anyone familiar with AmoChip Dabney’s various stage personas, this all-instrumental improvisational suite for piano is probably the last thing you’d expect to hear. A multi-instrumentalist excelling on saxophones, keyboards and bass, Dabney is the consummate pro. His work has garnered two Grammy nominations, and his high-energy sax-playing is always in high demand. To say…
Fuzzy Obfuscations
From Jim DeGrood’s lips tumbled the banter of a wily bureaucratic operator, a talent that included pirouetting around questions for minutes on end. And so the transportation services director for the Regional Transportation Authority dipped and twirled for a packed house on Aug. 30 as a citizens’ task force met to ponder plans to widen…
Guest Commentary
The Tucson Education Association has officially announced which candidates it is endorsing in this year’s Tucson Unified School District governing-board race: It has endorsed two candidates, Cam Juarez and Kristel Foster, out of 12 contenders. The problem is that there are actually three seats up for grabs, not two. Yet the TEA leadership decided it…
The xx: Coexist (Young Turks)
When Jamie Smith said late last year that the new xx album would be heavily influenced by club music, I’m not sure anyone anticipated the sound of Coexist. While club music calls to mind propulsive dance beats and crushing layers of synths, those are nowhere to be found on Coexist. The album’s first impression is…
Welcome to ‘Algiers’
When it came time to record a new Calexico record, Joey Burns and John Convertino decided they needed to get out of town. They had started work on the album in Tucson nearly a year ago, but life kept interfering, with a steady stream of distractions and interruptions. So on the advice of producer Craig…
Top Ten in Movies
1. The Hunger Games Lionsgate 2. Battleship Universal 3. The Five Year-Engagement Universal 4. Safe Lionsgate 5. The Dictator Paramount 6. Dexter: Season 6 (Discs 1 and 2) Showtime/Paramount 7. The Lucky One Warner Bros. 8. Bernie Millennium 9. Dexter: Season 6 (Discs 3 and 4) Showtime/Paramount 10. Sons of Anarchy: Season 4 20th Century…
Ask a Mexican!
Dear Mexican: Is it just me, or has what to call our friends from south of the border become a partisan issue? While taking in both political conventions over the last couple of weeks, I’ve noticed that Republicans invariably use the word “Hispanics,” while Democrats are far more likely to say “Latino/a.” What gives? Is…
At Closing Time
As soon as Nancy Duron saw the clothes her son was wearing, she knew exactly what Anthony Duron had planned for the evening. “He had that pair of slacks he wore to go to Pearl,” Duron said, referring to a now-renamed nightclub on Wetmore Road. “He liked going there. But the dress code, you had…
Truly Terrible
At a critical juncture in Branded, an imaginary dragon, representing a healthy vegetarian fast-food restaurant, emerges from its egg and attacks the imaginary amorphous clowns that represent a leading burger chain. Roughly 15 minutes before that, a cow was slaughtered by a marketing whiz-kid as part of a ritual sacrifice. Welcome to the imaginations of…
An Evening With Adam
From The Man Show to Loveline, Carolla has been slinging comedy since the 1990s. Now known for his record-breaking podcast, The Adam Carolla Show, Carolla will be leaving his podcast partners-in-crime, Alison Rosen and Bald Bryan, at home in favor of an eclectic evening of solo comedy. “It’s a combination, sort of: one-man show meets…
Overstuffed!
I’m OK with a film telling a story within a story—you know, those movies where a narrator in the present day reads from a book, and we see his story play out. The Princess Bride totally rocked that format. But when you go to a story within a story within a story … well, you…
Streetcar Tracks on Congress Street
Jim Nintzel It’s been a long summer for Congress Street regulars, but it appears as though the end of the streetcar construction—and those chain-link fences—may be near. The new tracks are starting to be laid down.
