AltWeeklies Wire
Modest Mouse's Latest Compilation is a Surprisingly Solid Offeringnew
No One's First and You're Next is a collection of b-sides and singles that didn't quite make it onto a LP. But the songs aren't just mere outtakes. Included with a couple of new tracks are full re-recordings of the previously shelved tracks, making the album feel far from a group of oddities thrown together.
Every Wildfire Brings its Own Financial Storm With Itnew
"California has developed a 'seven points of light' agreement that says if anybody breaks a fire, the departments will send resources," says Cal Fire spokesman Mike Mohler. Yet with so little money to burn, it's hard not to wonder who's getting stuck with the mounting bill.
Good Times Santa Cruz |
Jessica Lussenhop |
08-21-2009 |
Disasters
At Least Four North Carolina Dems Hope to Unseat Sen. Richard Burr in 2010new
Any of them has a good chance to win next year's Democratic primary, but whether they can beat Burr depends on the amount of money the candidates raise, the national sentiment toward Dems and the cachet the Democratic nominee carries, not only in the state's progressive locales, but in more conservative regions in the mountains and down east.
A New Program by Slow Food USA Seeks to Improve School Lunchesnew
As school starts again for students over the next few weeks, the time is right to demand a school-lunch program that benefits kids rather than one that gives agribusiness a place to dump its surplus, publicly subsidized commodities.
Metro Silicon Valley |
Stett Holbrook |
08-21-2009 |
Food+Drink
Quentin Tarantino Upends War Movies with 'Inglourious Basterds'new
Here in cinema form is an essay about Tarantino's mutual fascination with and distaste for the war film. And even if he's a voracious film watcher, he can tell the difference between the passionate but low-budget Samuel Fuller dramas of universal dehumanization and the boring-ass patriotic gore-opera represented by Zoller's film Nation's Pride.
Metro Silicon Valley |
Richard von Busack |
08-21-2009 |
Reviews
Justin Townes Earle's Solitary Americananew
"I always refer to my music as an experiment in Southern American music," he explains. His third release, 2009's Midnight at the Movies, touches on a range of styles spanning country blues and rollicking honky-tonk to plaintive ballads and finger-picking rock.
Shepherd Express |
Harry Cherkinian |
08-21-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Quentin Tarantino Serves Up Hitler's Head in 'Inglourious Basterds'new
Inglourious Basterds has next to nothing to do with Jews, Nazis or World War II, though Winston Churchill has a funny cameo and Joseph Goebbels a minor, if crucial, role as a twisted auteur of nationalist cinema. It's a highly entertaining, graphically bloody and woozily romantic romp.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
08-21-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Quentin Tarantino Talks About Rewriting the Spaghetti Western With a Side of Sour Krautsnew
Here's the thing about interviewing Quentin Tarantino: His need to talk about movies is irrepressible. His insatiable hunger dominates the conversation, and his knowledge of and fascination with the work of other filmmakers are as intense and intimate as his reflections on his own career.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
08-20-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'The Time Traveler's Wife' Keeps a Light Onnew
This romance is based on a popular novel in which the comings and goings of a time traveler wreak havoc on his marriage.
Austin Chronicle |
Kimberley Jones |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
'Tetro' Aspires to Opera but Plays Like a Power Balladnew
Francis Ford Coppola's latest is by no means as tragically ambitious as Youth Without Youth, thus it makes much less of a mess when it collapses under its own weight as Youth Without Youth does. In fact, what hampers Tetro is not its surfeit of ideas and narrative impenetrability but, rather, its insufficiency of thematic hooks and dramatic content.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
'Shorts' Offers Postmodern Fun for the Kidsnew
A magic wishing rock becomes the undoing of an entire community in this appealing new kids romp from Robert Rodriguez.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
'Post Grad' Doesn't Make the Gradenew
Bland to the point of pointlessness, Post Grad follows the inane highs and lows of a perky young optimist.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: Post Grad, Vicky Jenson
'Ponyo' Is a Fabulous Fish Storynew
In this animated adventure by the Japanese master Hayao Miyazaki, a 5-year-old boy forms a friendship with a goldfish princess who longs to be human.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
'Paper Heart' Is No Candy Valentinenew
Ultra-introverted mumblenerd comedian Charlene Yi shines in this faux documentary that problematically blurs the line between staged, improvised, and "real" events.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
Rewriting the War in 'Inglourious Basterds'new
In this World War II movie, Quentin Tarantino weaves together multiple storylines that coalesce into a literally explosive finale that daringly rewrites history.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
08-20-2009 |
Reviews
