AltWeeklies Wire
The Best and Worst Songs to Strip Tonew
In her funny, creepy sad Candy Girl, Oscar-winning Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody writes (correctly) that R. Kelly's "Remix to Ignition" is the best song to strip to, sitting atop the No. 1 position with a cluster she calls "any hip-swiveling R&B fuckjam."
Philadelphia Weekly |
Brian McManus |
08-04-2008 |
Music
What Passes for Medical Care at Denver's Downtown Jail Can be Costly and Even Fatalnew
Cancer patient Tim Thomason didn't think he could feel any worse. His Denver jailers showed that he could.
Westword |
Alan Prendergast |
08-04-2008 |
Crime & Justice
The Interconnected Humanity of 'The Edge of Heaven' Edges on Clichenew
Is it just me, or is "the inevitable, tragic interconnectedness of all humankind" currently in danger of replacing "wise-cracking hitmen" as the most overworked arthouse cliche of our time?
Philadelphia Weekly |
Sean Burns |
08-04-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Fatih Akin, The Edge of Heaven
Why Do Books Like 'Zombie Haiku' Exist?new
Here's how I imagine it happened: Zombie author/Ohio youth pastor Ryan Mecum said to his friends, over nachos, "What kind of haiku would you write if you were a zombie?"
Philadelphia Weekly |
Liz Spikol |
08-04-2008 |
Poetry
Tickle Me Pink's Melancholy Receptionnew
It was well nigh impossible to judge this recording objectively on its release date due to the startling death of bassist Johnny Schou.
G Unit's Played Out Gangsta Rapnew
Five years ago, the smashing aggressiveness of "Straight Outta Southside" would have offset its lack of originality.
Former LA County Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi Talks About Prosecuting the Presidentnew
The man who put Charles Manson on Death Row would do the same to George W. Bush, as detailed in his new book, The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder. "I'll leave it up to a jury as to the punishment, but it could be the death penalty," he said.
Pasadena Weekly |
Joe Piasecki |
08-04-2008 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Master of Markets: Expert Scavenger Ron Slattery Shares (Some of) His Secretsnew
Slattery makes his living by scouring Chicago-area flea markets and reselling his purchases, directly or online, to prop companies, auction houses, and collectors.
Chicago Reader |
Anne Ford |
08-04-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping, vintage, Chicago, auctions, junk, eBay, antiques, estate sales, flea markets, garage sales, Ron Slattery
A Seattle Company Tries to Prove That Playing its Games Improves Your Mental Statenew
Is sitting on your ass and staring at the screen on your phone the gateway to greater alertness and contentment? PopCap Games says yes. With a staff of 180, it's one of the heavy hitters in the $2.25 billion-a-year casual-games industry.
Seattle Weekly |
Jesse Froehling |
08-04-2008 |
Video Games
Velva's Multimedia Geekfest Bends More than Circuitsnew
Velva's work displays both a geek's love for technology and for tearing technology up and making something else out of it. That something in this case is songs that pile up glitchy beats, circuit-bent-toy sounds, eight-bit-video-game noises, and customized analog synth guitars (including the "space axe" and "guitari").
Chicago Reader |
Miles Raymer |
08-04-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Why Was Obama's Wailing Wall Display Treated as Sacred?new
What bothers me is how we understand prayer in this culture and how that understanding enables a presidential candidate to use prayer as a political tool, as both symbol and action, when it is neither.
NOW Magazine |
Jacob Scheier |
08-04-2008 |
Commentary
That’s Exploi-tainment: Review of Pineapple Express
Pineapple Express takes a funny but unfocused stroll through 1970s cinema.
Salt Lake City Weekly |
Scott Renshaw |
08-04-2008 |
Reviews
'Chris & Don: A Love Story': A May-December Gay Romancenew
Nowhere in this fine, quiet, richly-sourced documentary is the phrase "gay marriage" ever uttered.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian Miller |
08-04-2008 |
Reviews
Rep. Jim McDermott Seems to be Skating to 11th Termnew
Despite predictions that Washington state's new top-two primary -- which allows two candidates to progress to the general election regardless of party affiliation -- might spell trouble for McDermott, Seattle's 10-term incumbent congressman still lacks a serious challenger for his 2008 run.
Seattle Weekly |
Aimee Curl |
08-04-2008 |
Politics
'American Teen': The YouTube Generation Gets the Movie It Deservesnew
Director Nanette Burstein is so intent here on making a nonfiction version of The Breakfast Club that she erases every trace of documentary convention for most of this pleasing but ultimately unconvincing film.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian Miller |
08-04-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: American Teen, Nanette Burstein
