AltWeeklies Wire
Lil Jon Talks 'Crunk Rock,' Pitbull and Fine Winenew
Don't make the mistake of thinking rapper/producer/all-around Svengali Lil Jon is a buffoon. The man behind the blinding grills and creatively shocking lyrical allusions to sex is a shrewd businessman and songwriter who swirls the winds of pop into his own entertainment hurricane.
Miami New Times |
Arielle Castillo |
09-28-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Did an Army-Issue Antimalarial Drug Drive a Solider to Suicide?new
Criticism of the military's use of Lariam has continued to build since John Torres' death. "If it predisposes you to paranoia, anger, psychosis, is it appropriate to expose a company of people with automatic weapons?" army doctor Remington Nevin wonders.
Chicago Reader |
Kari Lydersen |
09-28-2009 |
War
Animated Cartoon: Obamanomics 101
Obama says we're losing fewer jobs. Because, of course, there are fewer jobs left to lost.
Just Ask John Keats: Love Happensnew
Jane Campion's Bright Star, about the love affair between the tubercular poet John Keats and girl-next-door Fanny Brawne, recasts the old stanza in chaste but voluptuous terms.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
09-26-2009 |
Reviews
The Dead Freeway Society: The Strange History of Portland's Unbuilt Roadsnew
While other American cities have built, built, built, Portland's freeway history is boom and bust: massive road projects were planned, mapped, and sold as progress by one generation, then killed by another.
The Portland Mercury |
Sarah Mirk |
09-25-2009 |
Transportation
A Year Late, L.A. Tries to Uninvite its Unvetted Pot Shopsnew
The Los Angeles City Council now faces one of its potentially most expensive legal battles ever, a war over medical pot that could draw in shady drug dealers, serious medical-marijuana activists, gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown -- and even U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
L.A. Weekly |
Daniel Heimpel |
09-25-2009 |
Drugs
TV on the Radio's Kyp Malone Finds Himself With Solo Projectnew
With a lion's mane of hair concealing his head and face, Kyp Malone is easily the most recognizable unrecognizable member of TV on the Radio. He also comes across as the most reserved of the five-piece, which isn't to imply that Malone has nothing to say. Quite the contrary.
The Portland Mercury |
Mark Lore |
09-25-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Disgrace' Faces the Facts of Post-Apartheid South Africanew
This film adaptation of J.M. Coetzee's brilliant 1999 novel looks the chaos and hatred of postapartheid South Africa squarely in the face, probing the terrible fallout from white denial and pride without patronizing blacks by caricaturing them as noble victims.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
09-25-2009 |
Reviews
Audrey Tautou Flexes Her Acting Muscles as Fashion Icon Coco Chanelnew
Her new movie, Coco Before Chanel, is an elegant little black dress of a movie, simple but complex. At the center is Tautou as young Gabrielle Chanel, before the revolutionary menswear-inspired haute couture, before the fully articulated philosophy of pared down, practical luxury.
L.A. Weekly |
Gendy Alimurung |
09-25-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Road to Somewhere: David Byrne's Energizing 'Bicycle Diaries'new
The underlying message here is that while bicycling may be a political movement, it can also be liberating and fun at the same time. I'm hoping Byrne's book now heralds bicycling's offbeat entry into the American mainstream, just as his wacky persona hit the big time thanks to our parents' taste in pop music.
The Portland Mercury |
Matt Davis |
09-25-2009 |
Nonfiction
The Tricks in 'The Burning Plain' are as Tired as its Mopey Charactersnew
These people and timelines are all tied together under big themes of utmost gravitas, and a strong cast delivers compelling characters whose lives are interesting enough to maintain reasonable curiosity. But these cards have simply been played far too many times, and to far more powerful effect; Plain can't help but look a bit pale in comparison.
The Portland Mercury |
Marjorie Skinner |
09-25-2009 |
Reviews
VIP FTW! Bands are Using VIP Packages to Give Fans More Bang for Their Bucknew
As the music industry struggles to (re)invent itself, more touring bands are tapping a new revenue source: themselves. From European cult bands to arena-size superstars, premium-package ticket deals are an increasingly popular part of the concert-business model.
Riverfront Times |
D.X. Ferris |
09-25-2009 |
Music
Some Claim Their Encounters With Aliens are Too Close for Comfortnew
"These UFOs are not being reported out of nowhere. On the National UFO Reporting Website, there are hundreds and hundreds of reports of UFO sightings, from every state in the Union since the 1930s," Elaine Douglass, Utah state director of Mutual UFO Network, says. "They are always flying around. What are they doing? They are picking people up,"
Salt Lake City Weekly |
Carolyn Campbell |
09-25-2009 |
Culture
Ken Burns Worships America's Spiritual Resource in His Latest Docnew
His PBS 12-hour epic The National Parks: America's Best Idea is a selective chronicle of the evolution of the National Parks system and the changing roles protected lands have played in American culture since Congress validated Yosemite in 1864.
Boston Phoenix |
Clif Garboden |
09-24-2009 |
TV
Bookstores Fight Back With Instant Paperbacksnew
Battered booksellers have a secret weapon that they hope will continue to lure customers into their stores. Would you believe it's a machine that can print up a fresh new paperback copy from a menu of 3.6 million books?
Boston Phoenix |
Ethan Gilsdorf |
09-24-2009 |
Books
