Campus Circle Newspaper Vol. 19 Issue 9

2 | Campus Circle [ MARCH 4 - MARCH 10 ’09 ]

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For more information, e-mail [email protected].

inner circle

[ MARCH 4 - MARCH 10 ’09 ] Campus Circle | 3

March 4 - March 10, 2009 • Vol. 19 Issue 9

Editor-in-ChiefJessica Koslow

[email protected]

Managing EditorYuri Shimoda

[email protected]

Film EditorJessica Koslow

[email protected]

Art DirectorAlance Ward

Editorial InternsChristopher Agutos, Gina Quattrochi,

Marvin Vasquez, Farnaz Youshei

Contributing Writers

Robert Axelrod, John Barundia, Jonathan

Bautts, Sarah Bennett, China Bialos,

Bourbon With Brendan, Zach Bourque,

Michael Buzzelli, Erica Carter, Richard

Castaneda, Nick Day, Natasha Desianto,

Jennifer Driessen, Noah Galuten, Erik

Hayden, Josh Herman, Zach Hines, Joe

Horton, Devon Klug, Jonathan Knell, Lucia,

Ebony March, Jason R. Martinez, Angela

Matano, Ryan McWhorter, Frederick

Mintchell, Victoria Moore, Samantha

Ofole, Brien Overly, Polites, Bonnie

Priever, Sasha Perl-Raver, Parimal M. Rohit,

Dov Rudnick, Mike Sebastian, Henry

Senecal, Doug Simpson, Amy Sommer,

David Tobin, John Tron, TJ Webber, Kevin

Wierzbicki, Candice Winters

Contributing Artists &PhotographersEmmanuelle Troy

ADVERTISINGSean Bello

[email protected]

Joy [email protected]

Ronit [email protected]

Calendar EditorFrederick Mintchell

Campus Circle newspaper is published47 times a year and is available free at40 schools and over 800 retail locations

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INSIDE

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16 21

cont

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4 WOODEN NICKELS4 CAMPUS NEWS

FILM6 MISS MARCHA Road Trip, Playmates and Hef ... oh my!

10 PHOEBE IN WONDERLANDExamines the Ups and Downs of Growing Pains

6 PROJECTIONS8 SCREEN SHOTS8 REVIEWS10 DVD DISH

MUSIC16 AS I LAY DYINGInfluential Grammy-Nominated Rockers

16 CD REVIEWS17 MUSIC REPORT17 FREQUENCY18 LIVE SHOW REVIEW18 DOOR SERVICE19 SPIN CYCLE21 DVD REVIEW

SPORTS20 THE SPORTS WANDERER20 DODGERS 41120 L.A. HOOPLA21 WCC WOMEN’S BBALL 21 BIG WEST MEN’S BBALL

INNER CIRCLE2 FASHION10113 CHEAP EATS13 ON THE MENU13 THE NORMANDIE FILES14 BEAUTY BEAT14 EXHIBITIONS14 FUN FOR LESS15 GAMES & GADGETS15 TV TIME19 L.A. FACES21 CURTAIN CALL22 MUSICALS22 THE ART OF LOVE22 THE BAR EXAM23 THE 10 SPOT

COVER: Zach Cregger and Trevor Moore in Miss MarchCredit: Courtesy of Fox Searchlight PicturesInset Photo Credit: Bob Fila/Chicago Tribune/MCT


WHAT’S IN A WORD?After all,President Obama had over 6,000 in his

speech to Congress last week, led by 30 appearancesof the words “economy” or “economic.” On paper,that’s .005 percent of his speech.

But can anyone who watched the 52-minuteaddress say they weren’t the dominant words ofthe night? On a grand stage like the State of theUnion, or, in Obama’s case, the semantically-differentiated, nominally less-official “State of theNation,” words matter. And they always have.

Last week, the New York Times ran a table ofthe most commonly used words in famous firstState of the Unions – Franklin Roosevelt in 1934,Richard Nixon in 1970, Ronald Reagan in 1982,Bill Clinton in 1993, George Bush’s similar “Stateof the Nation” in 2001 – and compared them withObama’s oratorical battle against widespreadfinancial fear. The results paint a picture of themoment, a snapshot not necessarily encom-passing of the times but surprisingly prophetic ofthe ultimate legacy of that government.

In 1934, Roosevelt’s word tallies rankremarkably low on the list of buzzwords of today.Even faced with a deepening Great Depression,“economy/economic” appears just three times,while “recovery” and “government” are tied forthe most appearances at seven apiece.

Both FDR’s perhaps gilded historical repu-

tation and deservedly-lauded calm demeanor areon display, as “school” and “jobs” don’t appear, buthe keeps mentions of a “crisis” to just two. Lastweek, Obama went to that c-word 11 times.

Nixon scores a whopping 22 lip-flappers ofthe “world,” epitomizing his shift from campaignand first-year exaltations of the “great, silentmajority” and the overwhelming necessity fordomestic reform after the supposed madness of’60s social upheaval. Matters of the “world” werenearly double the appearances of other popularwords (“responsibility” comes in at nine) andserve as a prescient harbinger of Nixon’s historicalimpact – foreign policy triumphs while cutting aswath of irresponsible moral leadership.

Reagan, too, cements the good and bad of hislegacy in his first speech. Exactly 30 occasions of“government” coupled with 25 “taxes” marks theGipper’s halcyon ascent to modern conservatismnirvana in our time. His other, less commendableworks are on display too: one mention of schools,one mention of health care, five times as manymentions of “taxes” than “deficit” or “debt.”

Clinton, whom historian David McCullough,National Review editor Rich Lowry and Clinton’sfirst Secretary of Labor Robert Reich all publiclydescribe as wanting to please everyone, tries to doexactly that in 1993 when he hits all the keywords inrapid-fire succession. Take 23 “economies” plus 29“deficits,” 24 “jobs” plus 28 “taxes,” add 18 “worlds”

and 18 “health cares” to 25 “invests” and 26 “cuts”and 25 “governments” and what do you get? Theonly president in history to win two terms with lessthan 50 percent of the vote and leave office with jobapproval poll numbers in the stratospheric mid-60s:a president forever haunted by a popularity thatnever fully translated into like power.

George W. Bush may be the only presidenton this list whose speech doesn’t mesh with hisultimate legacy. His first major congressionaladdress, delivered seven months before theattacks of Sept. 11, takes a Reaganite stance with27 “taxes” and 19 “governments.” Delivering onhis campaign promises to demand fiscalresponsibility and establish bipartisanship underthe arms of the Uniter, there is not a singlemention of Iraq, Afghanistan or “enemies.”

But Bush would soon become the Decider,and his speeches would forget these mainstays andfavor others: “terror” got a single mention in 2001;one year later the t-word found 36 mentions in anhour-long address, averaging better than oneappearance every two minutes. As hisadministration prepared to bequeath the largestdeficit in American history,any talk of the “budget”dropped from 26 in 2001 to three in 2008.

So will the power of words, the historicalharbingers uttered by presidents in their first stepson the big stage, hold firm in the Obamaadministration? In an ailing financial system, canwe expect 30 more “economies” each year? Willwe ever get more than 2009’s solitary mention of“growth?” Will his speech at the end of one termor two be able to squeeze in a few more “hopes?”

That remains to be seen, but I personally takesolace in the fact that President Obama may be theonly commander-in-chief in history to include thewarning,“nobody messes with Joe,”to both houses ofCongress and six justices of the Supreme Court.

I’ll assume he’s talking about Vice PresidentBiden, but don’t mess with me. Just in case.

DEVIL IN THE DETAILS:The Words of Presidential Addresses

wooden nickels | BY JOE HOR TON

UCLA presents “The Last Daysof Judas Iscariot”March 4-14 @ UCLA’s Little Theater in Macgowan Hall

Attorneys argue whether the betrayer ofJesus Christ should be admitted into heavenin this satirical courtroom drama by StephenAdly Giurgis, directed by M.F.A. candidateRichard Martinez.

event pickBobMarley.com

In honor of Bob Marley’s 64thbirthday on Feb. 6, Playing For Changedebuted their version of Marley’s timelessclassic “One Love” as a five-minute videofeaturing Keb’ Mo and Spain’s ManuChao playing with 35 incredible musicalartists. Check it out!

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Treat Yourself to LuLu’s SweetsEven though Valentine’s Day is 11 months

away, there are tons of other holidays when yoursweetie deserves some sweets. Or how aboutsending your mom Milk Chocolate Peanut ButterPretzels for Mother’s Day or your dad MilkChocolate Covered Marshmallow Squares forFather’s Day? Then there are the midnightmunchies when you’re up studying late and youjust need a sugar fix to finish the last page of yourpaper.

Visit lulusweets.com and view the extensive,mouth-watering menu of all natural, homemadedelights. In addition to the blissful taste is theincredibly cute packaging available for gifts. –J.K.

Raise Money for USC’s GayLesbian Transgender Assembly

Now through May 1 when you use yourRalphs Card part of the proceeds will go to the GayLesbian Transgender Community at USC’scampus if you register online. All you have to do isgo to the Ralphs Web site (ralphs.com), registeryour card as a new customer, edit your communitycontribution program information and choose theLGBT resource. Why not put your grocery moneytowards a good cause?

Submit Crazy Videos or Photos tobe Aired Before March Madness

Coke Zero and NCAA Basketball havepartnered up to challenge their fans before MarchMadness kicks off. College fans can submit videosand photos of their “craziest acts” totastethemadness.com.

The craziest ones will be shown on CBS right

before March Madness tip-off. Inspired by DukeUniversity’s Cameron Crazies, CBS basketballanalyst Seth Davis teamed up with Coke Zero todevise the challenge. Winners will be selected rightbefore the championship, airing April 6.

Callooh! Callay!Now through May 16 you can check out USC

Library’s Wonderland Award at the DohenyMemorial Library. Entries from previous years ofthe Wonderland Award, which reflect theimaginative range of Lewis Carroll, are on display.The collection includes Carroll’s logic puzzles,nonsense poetry, photography, “The Hunting ofthe Snark” and of course, the Alice in Wonderlandbooks.

If you happen to be a USC student, you canenter the Wonderland competition, whichencourages students to explore Carroll’simaginative compilation of work and be inspiredto create something of your own. Submissions areonly limited by the imagination and can includeanything from essays, poems, performance pieces,video games, animation, visual artwork, music,digital compositions and films.

The deadline is April 1, and the first place prizeis $2,000! Join the USC Libraries WonderlandAward Facebook group for more information.

The President’s Ball at UCLAUCLA Library presents the President’s Ball

Saturday, March 7. Learn vintage ballroom dancemoves from the Presidents’ eras, i.e. from GeorgeWashington’s days to Abraham Lincoln’s. 8 p.m.-11:45 p.m. Free. RSVP [email protected].

campus news | B Y G I N A Q U A T T R O C H I

ZACH CREGGER AND TREVORMoore, the creative guys behind “TheWhitest Kids U’Know” comedy sketchon the IFC channel, bring you MissMarch, with a sexy, fun Playboy bunnytheme. Many of the cast memberscompare the film to an updatedAmerican Pie.

Sara Jean Underwood, 2007Playmate of the Year, and a featuredplayer in the film, states,“Sex sells, andPlayboy is a definite attention grabber.People aren’t afraid to push theenvelope. Zach and Trevor did it, Hefdid it ... the film will reach andentertain audiences for its shock valueand non-conformist style!”

Both Underwood and RaquelAlessi, the other female lead (playingCindi, a goodie goodie “dork” in highschool who later becomes a Playboycenterfold herself), considered Zachand Trevor their “buddies”

throughout the filming process.“They treated me like a friend,

never a sex object, and cared about myopinions on scenes and dialogue,” saysAlessi.

Cregger and Moore had a similargoal for their film: “Not to make itseem oversexed, offensive or mean-spirited, but rather surefire, non-stopfun and excitement!”

One enticing draw of the film isan inside, intimate look at the goings-on in the world-renowned PlayboyMansion, complete with the play-mates, grottos and Hugh Hefnerhimself! Although the original intentwas not to involve the authenticPlayboy, fearing some restrictions oncreative freedom, in the end, it wasmore credible to film at the actualmansion, with genuine (rather thanfake) personalities involved in theproduction.

After a test screening, the twodirectors decided to change anoriginal theme – at first, Moore’scharacter hits on an older Playmate.When the scenario was revised,Underwood, in her 20s, auditionedand her cute, bubbly, fun personalanded her the role.

Underwood has some scene-stealing moments in the film, as sheholds her adorable dog, Puddles, andTucker (Moore) flirts with her, bringsher a drink, wins her over and takesher dog for all the other girls to gushover.

Alessi, a cute, loveable, talentedactress (the younger version of EvaMendes in Ghost Rider), describes hercharacter Cindi as “an all Americansweet innocent high school girl whowants to have sex with her boyfriendEugene [Cregger] on prom night.”

But, things happen, and Eugenefalls into a coma for four years. Lifegoes on, and Cindi ends up modelingfor Playboy and generously footingEugene’s medical bills.

Alessi’s agent found her to be“perfect for the role” and arranged anaudition, and “that’s how it allhappened.” Alessi rose to the challengeof making her character, as she says, a“more dimensional woman, with

many hats – a girlfriend, daughter,playmate, not a tart or some kind ofloose girl.”

She herself once posed for Maximand found the opportunity a chancefor her to have some fun, and one ofthe many different stepping stones to anice career. Her personal favoritecelebrity role model is Sarah JessicaParker, who she describes, as a supertalented actress in both comedic andserious dramedy roles.

“She’s got integrity,” Alessi says,“keeps true to herself and won’t take

her clothes off on camera, keepinglimits and boundaries intact.”

Alessi and Underwood both agreethat despite the film’s externalraunchiness and distasteful jokes forshock value, they are determined notto get caught up in the sex symbol,pin-up stereotype.

As Hugh Hefner states in the film,“There’s an inner bunny in everywoman!”

Miss March releases in theatersMarch 13.

IF YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF TAKAHIKOIimura, it’s time to change that.

The Japanese experimental filmmaker is oneof the medium’s trans-Pacific pioneers andthrough a 10-day, citywide, multi-venue retro-spective of his most influential shorts, his infiniteinfluence on cinema will be explored. Althoughthe events started last week, there are still five daysof screenings across the greater L.A. area, all ofwhich Iimura will be attending.

Inspired by both early-century FrenchSurrealists and the underground film movementhere in America, Iimura started messing aroundwith the camera in the 1960s and, as Japan’s loneavant-garde filmmaker at the time, his work toyedwith notions of sexuality, absurdism, abstractismand “taboo-breaking joyousness.” Today, Iimurastill presses boundaries by combining film, digitaltext and computer graphics with his alreadyforward thinking.

Today, UC Irvine will play host to twoprograms of shorts, one matinee (featuring worksfrom the ’80s) and one evening (of early

conceptual videos and “Film Poem” excerpts).And tomorrow, USC is conducting an afternoonworkshop and presentation with the man himselffollowed by a screening of works from the late ’60sand early ’70s.

On Sunday, organizers LA Filmforum willhost an evening of Iimura’s more recent works atthe Egyptian Theatre. And Monday at REDCAT,his explorations of time in film will be screened.

Part home movie and part art projects,Iimura’s powerful shorts are not only experimentswith form, but also attempts at modifying the filmitself. With titles like This Is A Camera WhichShoots This and One Frame Duration, the highlyinfluential filmmaker’s unprecedented retro-spective is sure to inspire old and new fans alike.

For more information, visit takaiimura.com.

TAKAHIKO IIMURA CITYWIDERETROSPECTIVE

B Y S A R A H B E N N E T T

Now-March 9 @ Various Locations

B Y B O N N I E P R I E V E R

FILM IN LOS ANGELESMARCH 4 - MARCH 10, 2009 • VOL. 19 ISSUE 9 • campusc i rc le .com

MISS MARCHPlayboys Have More Fun

projections | essential film events

(l to r) Trevor Moore, Zach Cregger, Raquel Alessi and Craig Robinson in Miss March

Fran

k M

asi

Ayers Rock from Takahiko Iimura’s A Rock in the Light

THIS FILM IS RATED R. RESTRICTED. Under 17 Requires Accompanying Parent Or Adult Guardian.Please note: Passes received through this promotion do not guarantee you a seat at the theatre. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, except for members of the reviewing press. Theatre is overbooked toensure a full house. No admittance once screening has begun. All federal, state and local regulations apply. A recipient of tickets assumes any and all risks related to use of ticket, and accepts any restrictions requiredby ticket provider. Overture Films, Campus Circle and their affiliates accept no responsibility or liability in connection with any loss or accident incurred in connection with use of a prize. Tickets cannot be exchanged,transferred or redeemed for cash, in whole or in part. We are not responsible if, for any reason, winner is unable to use his/her ticket in whole or in part. Not responsible for lost, delayed or misdirected entries. All federal and local taxes are the responsibility of the winner. Void where prohibited by law. No purchase necessary. Participating sponsors, their employees and family members and their agencies are not eligible. NO PHONE CALLS!

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12(Sony Pictures Classics)

First, there was 12 Angry Men.Then there was MTV’s take called “12Angry Viewers.” Now, the tale of adozen very individual jurors gets itsnewest makeover in the movie 12.

This iteration of the story is set inmodern-day Russia. A young Chechenman (played by Apti Magamaev)stands accused of a violent crime andsits in prison awaiting his fate. Thesuspect was orphaned during theRussian conflict with Chechnya – noone knows the extent of the horribleand ugly things he’s seen.

His future is being decided by anengineer, a foreman, a cab driver, anelderly Jewish man, a transit worker, atelevision producer, a surgeon and atraveling actor, to name a few. As themen sit down to confer and deliberate,each is convinced of the suspect’s guilt– except for one lone juror.

That man digs in his heels andsticks to his convictions. He re-enactskey points in testimony that wouldappear to implicate the suspect and, inthe process, manages to poke somerather large holes in the prosecution’scase.

This story was first brought to thebig screen in the United States by theincomparable director Sidney Lumet.12, however, is the passion project ofdirector Nikita Mikhalkov. He steersthe action on a clear and captivatingcourse into the human psyche.Grade: B+

—Ebony March12 releases in select theaters March 6.

An American Affair(Screen Media)

Cameron Bright (X-Men: The LastStand) comes alive onscreen as ateenage boy with a serious love ofcougars in An American Affair. In thefilm, his character, Adam, develops amassive crush on his saucy blonde

neighbor, Catherine, played byGretchen Mol.

Catherine’s got ties to John F.Kennedy’s administration – specialties (wink, nudge). As her past unfoldsand feelings develop, none of theseWashington, D.C. dwellers will ever bethe same.

Mol and Bright have amazingchemistry with each other. Brightseems to be able to hold his ownagainst the weight of many ofHollywood’s most talented ladies (ashe did opposite Nicole Kidman inBirth). Other cast members like“Entourage”’s Perrey Reeves andformer “ER” star Noah Wyle are alsocaptivating to watch.

Another compelling character isthe period of American history inwhich the story is based. Sure, therehave been a number of recent projectsset in the 1960s (such as Bobby) butgiven current political events, thereturn to this era is a fascinating one.

An American Affair – while not asriveting as a movie like The Reader – isa complex and wonderful display ofcinema and certainly worth a trip tothe theater.Grade: B-

—Ebony MarchAn American Affair releases in selecttheaters March 6.

Everlasting Moments(IFC)

Everlasting Moments tells the taleof Maria Larsson, a housewifeimprisoned by her duties as a motherand by the infidelity and alcoholism ofher lousy, abusive husband. WhenMaria finds a camera she won in alottery years before, she beginsdocumenting the moments andpeople in her life.

With the help of local photo-grapher Sebastian Pedersen, theworking class mother transcends herpoverty and unhappiness by trans-

forming her kitchen into a dark roomand her life into a photo album. Mariais not overly invested with therevolutionary contraption, but ratherher impressive capacity to incorporatethe new with the old allows her to liveeach day in splendid realization.

Her gift for seeing the majestic ineveryday life is translated onto thepictures she takes. A tabby cat, herchildren playing, potted plants – hermuse is life’s vibrant ordinariness thatis immortalized by her work.

The master craftsmanship ofdirector Jan Troell guides an assiduousview of the bourgeoning plight offamilies at the turn of the 20thcentury. As a filmmaker, Troellseamlessly develops an enthrallingpicture and garners brave per-formances from his actors.

The film is heavily invested inrealism, though it addresses theescapes and deviations that create themoments you remember forever. It isa small accomplishment for Sweden,one that resonates with an audience… despite the subtitles.Grade: B+

—Candice WintersEverlasting Moments releases in selecttheaters March 6.

Harvard Beats Yale 29-29(Kino International)

Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 is acaptivating and nostalgic look at oneof college footballs most enduringgames. Director Kevin Raffertydelivers a truly involving sports story,told with a combination of personalstories and archival footage of thegame in question.

The central caveat is this: Harvardand Yale both enter the gameundefeated, though Yale is clearlythought of as the better team and theyare expected to win the game.

The story takes place in 1968 andis delivered as a play-by-play accountby the men that played in the game.Their memories aren’t always correct,though they are always very frank andvery forthright in their recollections.

As well, not all of their stories arespecifically about the game. Raffertyallows the men to digress and in doingso, his film becomes something of anoral time capsule. Topics range fromVietnam to birth control and politicsto comic strips.

Harvard team member Tommy

film notes | reviews Comics-Inspired Triumphs on DVD

1) Batman 2) American Splendor3) Superman (1978)4) Office Space5) Batman: Mask of the Phantasm6) X-Men 27) “Smallville”8) “Wonder Woman”9) “Super Friends”10) Sin City

—Angela Matano

«

CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

Got Another Clue?The Hasbro board game fallout continues. Gore Verbinski (Pirates of the

Caribbean films) is intending to direct another live-action film of the popularboard game,“Clue.” I say “another” because those of us born in the ’80s can’thelp but remember the first film version of Clue released in 1985 that starredTim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean and Madeline Kahn.

I used to watch that film all the time when I was a kid, and it still holdsup as a fun slapstick comedy. I suppose it’s better to call this project a“reenvisioning” rather than a “remake,” because it’s very unlikely that they’regoing to do anything remotely similar to the story of the first film.

The board game had an interchangeable story every time you played it,so I guess the same could be said for film versions. I’m not sure how set instone this project is, but if it must be done, I think Verbinski is the best guy todo it.

Verbinski is one of those directors like Chistopher Nolan and DarrenAronofsky who does a great job bridging the gap between artistry andcommercialism. His work on the Pirates films was masterful, and if he doesthis Clue movie, it’ll probably be awesome.

He’s supposed to direct a live-action film of the video game “BioShock,”which I hope he does first, but who knows? As unpredictable as the businessis, he may end up scrapping both projects and doing a small little movieabout friendship.

Michel Gondry Sees Green (Hornet) Here’s something that’s got me excited. Remember Seth Rogen’s The

Green Hornet project that he wrote and was going to star in? It looks likethere’s a very good chance that Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of theSpotless Mind, Be Kind Rewind) is going to direct it.

I think this has the potential to be two scoops of awesome. There’snothing better than giving a very artistic independent film director acommercial script and a big budget.

Originally, Stephen Chow (Kung Fu Hustle) had signed on to not onlydirect but to also play Kato, the Green Hornet’s kung fu sidekick. However, hedropped out to direct but still remained attached to play Kato.

When I originally heard that Rogen had written the script and was goingto star in it, my feelings were mixed like a lot of people. But some of the bestfilms evoked mixed feelings when they were first announced, and I love whenactors play characters you’d never expect them to.

Rogen’s reputation is as a comedy writer, and the vibe of the project feelslike it’s going to have a lot of comedy in it, but you know what? So what. Somuch crap is being pumped out these days, and at the very least this projectsounds like it could be really cool.

Gondry is one of the most interesting visual filmmakers in the business. Ifeel like when directors who generally tend to be artsy and independent get agood piece of material that is artistic and has commercial appeal, we get thebest films. I’ve been waiting for Gondry to break into the mainstream, andthis may be it.

I would love to Seth Rogen play this character differently than how he isin the Judd Apatow comedy stuff. He looked kinda slim at the Oscars lastweek, which means he’s probably getting into shape so the audience canbelieve he can kick peoples’ asses.

Send feedback to [email protected].

screen shots | B Y Z A C H H I N E S film

Gretchen Mol stars as Catherine in An American Affair.

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IN LOS ANGELES

Lee Jones (yes, the actor) puts it rathereloquently. “Ideas were flying likebullets,” he says.

As entertaining as the game is, it isthe personal recollections that makethis a uniquely entertaining docu-mentary. Even the title for this one isentertaining. Obviously, Harvarddoesn’t “beat” Yale. The final score is29-29, so the teams end the game in atie.

The difference is that Harvard wasnever expected to come out ahead inthis game. Yale was supposed to be theodds on favorite to win. Instead,Harvard played tit for tat and Yale leftwithout the victory that they felt theyhad coming. Harvard’s victory hasmuch more to do with the humanspirit prevailing in the face ofadversity than with a technicalaccumulation of points.Grade: A

—Nick DayHarvard Beats Yale 29-29 releases inselect theaters March 6.

Shuttle(Truly Indie)

Mel (Peyton List) and Jules(Cameron Goodman) are best friendswho just flew home from their

weekend vacation in Mexico. Sickfrom the plane ride and homewardbound, the girls are stranded late atnight on an ominous rain-drenchedsidewalk.

Luckily, a shuttle driver (TonyCurran) is very keen on taking themhome for a discounted price. In anunforeseen twist, the friendly driver isnot so friendly after all! Who wouldhave seen it coming, but the friends, aswell as two guys they pick up at theairport, are kidnapped and forced tocooperate as the night goes on andevents turn fatal.

To keep the ending somewhat amystery, Mel and Jules are “sold” intoa fate that is a relatively taboo subject

in most media and cinematic coveragewith the exception of like-minded,mainstream thriller-horror-teensuspense flicks.

I’m trying desperately to remainvague on the off chance that a readeris interested in seeing this film.Through the blood, guts and flat tires,the film has one thing I liked: anending that’s atypical of films withinthe genre.

Though the camera work isuninspired, the acting is subpar andthe plot spirals into careless writing,the ending leaves you questioning theethics of American business, especiallyin the current state of the economy.Grade: C-

—Candice WintersShuttle releases in select theatersMarch 6.


WestsideVidiots (302 Pico Blvd., Santa

Monica): Arguably the greatestselection in Los Angeles, withplenty of hard-to-find titles –many that have never beenreleased on DVD.

CineFile (11280 Santa MonicaBlvd., West Los Angeles): With agreat location, next door to theNuart Theatre, it features some ofthe most idiosyncratic genresections of any video store. Plus,some great T-shirts featuring thenames of director’s done in bandlogos.

HollywoodRocket Video (726 N. La Brea

Ave.): right across the street fromPink’s! Mmm … chili dog and amovie.

The ValleyEddie Brandt’s Saturday

Matinee (5006 Vineland Ave.):Located in North Hollywood, it’sthe best film resource over the hill.

HAVE YOU SEEN?Classic/obscure/overlooked

films to catch at your local videostore:

PrimerIf you’re digging the time

traveling storyline on this season of“Lost,” check out this micro-budget Sundance film fromwriter/director/producer/starShane Carruth. Two inventorfriends accidentally build a timemachine. It may be the mostintelligent, provocative time travelmovie ever made.

The NinthConfiguration/Fat City

You may have recognized theactor playing George Bush’sminister in W. – then again youmight not have. It’s none otherthan Stacey Keach, a criminallyunderappreciated actor and star ofthese two neglected classics.

Keach stars alongside a youngJeff Bridges as two down on theirluck boxers in Fat City, directed byJohn Huston. The NinthConfiguration is a black comedy setin an abandoned castle, whichserves as an insane asylum forVietnam veterans. The humoreventually gives way, revealing anexistential thriller underneath – a

one-of-a-kind film from theauthor of The Exorcist.

Angel HeartMickey Rourke is everybody’s

favorite comeback story this year.Check him out in his heyday. AngelHeart is an atmosphericmetaphysical mysterymasquerading as a noir, set againstthe backdrop of New Orleansvoodoo culture. It co-stars RobertDe Niro and Lisa Bonet.

Where The BuffaloRoam

What Just Happened wasn’tproducer Art Linson’s first forayinto the creative end offilmmaking. He directed thisHunter S. Thompson comedy,which stars Bill Murray as thelegendary gonzo journalist andPeter Boyle as his lawyer (looselybased on Oscar Zeta Acosta, thereal life Dr. Gonzo).

Nobody’s FoolThe late, great Paul Newman

starred as the cantankerous butlovable Sully Sullivan in thisadaptation of Richard Russo’snovel, directed by Robert Benton(The Late Show). Newman alsolater starred in the miniseriesadaptation of Russo’s PulitzerPrize-winning Empire Falls. BruceWillis and Melanie Griffith alsostar.

TargetsNot too excited for yet another

re-tooling of a stale franchise (i.e.Friday the 13th)? Check out PeterBogdanovich’s first film, Targets,which is still shocking and timely,exploring the meaning of horror inthe modern world.

You can feel the vibrancy of ayoung filmmaker at work, turningwhat began as a Roger Cormanschlock work into art. Watch theextra features for the full story!

“The Prisoner”Recently deceased actor

Patrick McGoohan, king of the1960s British spy genre, was thebrains and face behind this trippyseries. McGoohan is a special agentwho upon resigning is takenprisoner, awakening in a creepilyidyllic village full of brainwashedprisoners where everyone is anumber.

dvd dish | BY MIKE SEBASTIANfilm

THERE’S A GOOD REASON WHYFelicity Huffman doesn’t like LewisCarroll’s children’s novel Alice’sAdventures in Wonderland: It scares thecrap out of her.

“Ironically enough, Alice inWonderland makes my palms sweat,”admits Huffman. “It just makes me sonervous and scared. I don’t like thechaos in it.”

She may not venture down therabbit hole any time soon, but theOscar-nominated actress is starring ina film that is a textual enlightenment ofCarroll’s overtly absurd classic,translated and channeled fromfantastical prose into modern cir-cumstance.

Phoebe in Wonderland stars thetalented Elle Fanning as PhoebeLichten, a precocious, temperamental,imaginative girl who is unable tounderstand the boundaries placedupon her by a rule-happy world.Whenshe is selected to play Alice in a gradeschool production of “Alice inWonderland,” Phoebe becomesimmersed in the whimsical make-believe world in which she is the star.

On stage, she is invincible. It is herreal-life afflictions that cause her to

retreat into a land of wondrouscreatures and people.

“This is a world where everythingis opposite, where rules are broken,where everything is topsy-turvy,”explains writer-director Daniel Barnz.“And of course, that would be excitingfor her.”

When voices in her head convinceher to jump off high platforms and spitat fellow students, Phoebe’s behaviorspirals out of her control. She alonecan burst through the looking glass ofwhat is real and what is not.

Fanning lights up the screen andshines the entire 96 minutes. Shedelves completely into a difficultsubject that, you would think, is toodark and deep for someone her age.Take that, Dakota!

“The minute you see Elle, you loveElle. So I saw Elle, and I loved Elle,”coos Huffman about her young costar.“Daniel [Barnz] did a smart thing ofshooting the intense scenes near theend of the whole process, so we had somany days of playing cards and doingthis and doing that. Life really was animprovisation.”

“She has this real sense of innerlight,” continues Barnz about Fanning.

“She has this innate sense of hope-fulness and optimism. Every day was acontinued revelation. She never had abad day.”

However easy Fanning makes itlook, Huffman admits that portrayingthe mother of a child with a disabilitybrought difficulty and (surprise) morefear.

“When you live with a certain setof circumstances for 10, 12, 14 hours,you tend to carry them home withyou. With [her character, Hillary], Iwas more frightened than I usually am,and I’m pretty frightened all the time. Icarried a lot of fear around with me.”

The moral of Barnz’s cinematicwork of reali-fantasy? Barnz says hewants to portray a child “battlingconformity and breaking rules,” butHuffman has another theory.

“When your children are specialand unique, it comes with its own setof challenges, possibly pain andpossibly loneliness. So it’s thatconundrum. The world says, ‘Be thesame! Be the same!’ You have to say‘No, no, no. She’s a special flower.’”

Phoebe in Wonderland releases in selecttheaters March 6.

film notes | reviews

Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?March 6 @ Silent Movie Theatre

Some say “Yernt”; others,“Yarnt.” When I watch WhateverHappened to Baby Jane?, I sit,

giggling – waiting for the momentrecollected by designer IsaacMizrahi in the documentaryUnzipped when Bette Davis’ BabyJane utters this word during anangry psychotic episode directedtoward her sister Blanche (playedby Joan Crawford). You’ll get thejoke when you see the film. 7:15p.m. —Ebony March

staff pick

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8«

PHOEBE INWONDERLANDHuffman and Fanning Retreat Down,Down, Down the Rabbit Hole.B Y C A N D I C E W I N T E R S

HEY, REMEMBER STORES?Yes, Netflix is convenient. They have a wide selection, and

you can be lazy about when you get around towatching/returning.

But isn’t it great to have stores with an even betterselection to browse, where you can pick the brains of themovie geek staff? Be thankful that you live in a city that hasthese valuable resources and get out and support them,because they won’t be around if you don’t.

Elle Fanning in Phoebe in Wonderland

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THIS FILM IS RATED R. RESTRICTED. Under 17 Requires Accompanying Parent Or Adult Guardian.Please note that passes will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last. Passes received through this promotion do not guarantee you a seat at the theatre. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, except formembers of the reviewing press. Theatre is overbooked to ensure a full house. No admittance once screening has begun. All federal, state and local regulations apply. A recipient of tickets assumes any and all risks related to use of ticket, and accepts any restrictions required by ticket provider. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, Campus Circle and their affiliates accept no responsibility or liability in connection with any loss or accident incurredin connection with use of a prize. Tickets cannot be exchanged, transferred or redeemed for cash, in whole or in part. We are not responsible if, for any reason, recipient is unable to use his/her ticket in whole or in part. All federal and localtaxes are the responsibility of the winner. Void where prohibited by law. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Participating sponsors, their employees and family members and their agencies are not eligible. NO PHONE CALLS!

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Kurt Loder, MTVKurt Loder, MTV

Jeremy Smith, AIN’T IT COOL NEWSJeremy Smith, AIN’T IT COOL NEWS

H. Scott Jolley, VANITY FAIRH. Scott Jolley, VANITY FAIR

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μ HOLLYWOOD ArcLight Cinemas at the Dome 323/464-4226 4 hours validatedparking -$2

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μ CENTURY CITY AMC Century 15 310/289-4AMC 3 hrs free parking. Additional 2 hr parking $3.00 with AMC validation.

μ WEST LOS ANGELES The Landmark at W. Pico & Westwood 310/281-8233 www.landmarktheatres.com FREE PARKING

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∂ UNIVERSAL CITY CityWalk Stadium 19 with IMAX 800/FANDANGO #707 MOVIE PARKING REBATE $5 General Parking Rebate At Box Office With MovieTicket Purchase (Excludes Preferred & Valet)

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STARTS FRIDAY, MARCH 6


the normandie files

IT’S 8 A.M. ON SATURDAY MORNINGand Andrew W.K. is full blast in the car stereo.White-undershirt chants of “Let’s get a partygoing,” swirl around our overstuffed backpacksand cans of Starbucks Doubleshots as if wecould pull onto the soft shoulder and crack akeg for him and his crew.

But the hoodie I’m wearing says it’s too cold to party, and the mist ofmorning has been following us since we slid down the Grapevine. It hoversover the miles of empty fields surrounding our concrete strip of highway,hiding California’s Central Valley under a winter veil of dream sequencevisual effects and taunting my summer road trip dreams.

Twelve hours ago I got home from a grueling midterm week, calledmy best friend and begged her to sweep me away. It’s not very often I havethe weekend off work, and nothing beats ignoring collegiate responsibilitylike relapsing into high school-era escapist traditions.

“Like old times, please,” I said, referring to our former habit of takingadvantage of the hot months (and her parents’ gas card) by drivinganywhere west of the Rockies for a good concert. “I need it.”

Throwing warm clothes, my camera and a pair of earmuffs into mybackpack (and leaving the textbooks, lecture notes and incomplete essaysat home), I thought about our destination: San Francisco. I’d been therebefore, but watching people puke in the street and then make out whilewandering somewhere in the Sunset District on New Years Eve ’02 doesn’tcount. Neither does driving straight from Los Angeles to a show at thePound before turning around and driving home again.

This time, my best friend’s dad, a San Francisco transplant-turned-local, who departed but left such a mark that he is still considered a local,was going to be our tour guide. He had driven up for an art sale in MarinCounty and offered to meet us in the city for the day.

She picked me up from my Friday night graveyard shift, and we hitthe road with no regrets. We shuffled our iPod songs, stopped only to buymore gasoline and caffeine and by 11:30 p.m., we were sitting in traffic onthe Bay Bridge antsy to get to the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market before allthe organic eggplants and spring salad mixes started to look gross.

Her dad met us there, and we were whisked away to a day on thetown. Flying up hills like a veteran taxi driver (and with no respect forstop signs and pedestrians), her father crisscrossed the city for an hourand a half, double parking in front of every famous pizza place to grabtheir specialty (usually garlic-covered) slice, which we had to chow downbefore stopping at the next one.

We went to Golden Gate Park, got offered every kind of drugimaginable walking by a drum circle on “hippie hill,” hopped on the lastcarousel ride of the day and managed to make it to the de Young Museumwith enough time to sneak past the guards and scope the Yves SaintLaurent and Andy Warhol exhibits.

We ate authentic Italian food at his favorite North Beach restaurant,drank the most perfect shot of espresso at the coffee shop where he first metmy friend’s mom and got overeager hugs from all the business owners.

After her dad returned to the great unknown of Marin County, wetopped off our day with a stop by Bottom of the Hill to watch our friend’sband open for Murder By Death (show sold out, bought one ticket on acraigslist whim), a few drinks in the Mission District on Valencia Avenue(with a friend I almost forgot moved up there last year), a late-night run toTaqueria Cancun (best bean and cheese burrito) and a room at the RodewayInn (with Carrot Top’s Chairman of the Board on TV as we lulled to sleep).

What partying we lacked at 8 a.m., we made up for with a full day in theCity by the Bay. We might not be in high school anymore, and theresponsibilities in our lives are very real (rent, ugh), but once in a while, it’sOK to play hooky, skip a night’s sleep, fill up the tank and see how far it willtake you, to eat more garlic pizza than your Italian blood knows what to dowith and explore a new city as if you don’t have one to go back to. It’s notsummer yet, but go on, make Andrew W.K. proud.

Send feedback to [email protected].

B Y S A R A H B E N N E T T

Sarah Bennett

inner circle

PARTY HARDCaffeine, Interstate 5 andBay Area Pizza

We all know breakfast is the mostimportant meal of the day, and here inLos Angeles it’s a veritable pastime.There are so many options. How is anAngeleno to know who reignssupreme in the Battle Royale of(Turkey) Bacon and Eggs? I offeryou two contenders …

In the Breakfast Death Matchof Deliciousness we have one ol’faithful and one spry up n’ comer:Vivian’s in Studio City (10968Ventura Blvd.) and Square Onein Los Feliz (4854 Fountain Ave.)are going head-to-head with thetwo best breakfast dishes I’vefound in Los Angeles thus far.

In this corner: Vivian’s, asmall, family-run restaurant in aconverted house on VenturaBoulevard. Because this is LosAngeles, the family that runs ithappens to include the chick whostarred in “The King of Queens,” butdon’t be blinded by the klieg lights; it’squaint, homey and wonderful. Theyalso happen to make the best bananapancakes you’ll ever eat.

In the other corner: Square One, acozy brunch beacon stashed behindthe big, scary, sanitarium lookingScientology building on Fountain andL. Ron Hubbard (creeeeepy!) whereyou will find the greatest eggs benedictever to dazzle your taste buds.

At Vivian’s, you are presented witha plate … you think. The truth is, youcan barely see your plate because it’sbeen overtaken by the Banana Pancake

Heaven awaiting you.The pancakes are perfectly golden,

fluffy and light. Caramelized on thebottom of each cake are ripe, succulentrounds of banana. Not chunks. Not

something mushed up to give “bananaflavor.” Bananas that were sliced off theway Chiquita herself assigned and putto a hot griddle to allow the naturalsugars to dance and shimmy their wayto warm, sweet perfection.

There’s also butter, which is meantto be slathered across each plate-sizedcake; rich and creamy and slightlysalty. And then comes the syrup.Normally, I’m a Vermont Maple Girl.But this is Vivian’s and they keep itriggity-real with the Log Cabin and, Igotta tell ya, I was suspicious at first,but it works!!! Ohhh, how it works!

Plus, they bring you a full squeezebottle and no one looks twice as you

decorate each new bite with a littlemore. The result is a sweet, salty,buttery, syrupy, banana-y party in yourmouth.

Square One takes a slightly higherflatulent route. (When you order theirbrioche French Toast, amazing but adifferent story for a different day, youget Vermont maple syrup. It’s all just astyle choice.) Here we meet SmokedSalmon Eggs Benedict.

Let’s start at the bottom and workour way up, shall we? Served next to abed of farm fresh mixed greens, lightlydressed in a balsamic vinaigrette, aretwo potato pancakes. Each is hot,crispy and fresh out of the oil filled

with crunch and salted just right.Nestled atop the potato

pancakes is house cured smokedsalmon. I could write an entiresonnet to this smoked salmon. It’salmost like sashimi, so shockinglyfresh and buttery you can cut itwith a spoon. It would make Zabarblush with shame. It’s simply thegreatest smoked salmon you willever have.

Happily resting above thesalmon are two poached eggs thatwere pulled from their water bathat the precise moment to maintainegg white doneness (Is thereanything grosser than an under-

cooked egg white jiggling on yourplate?) and still get the right yolk gush.

The hollandaise adorning the eggsis divine and rich but, the piece deresistance, is the ground red pepper ontop that gives the whole dish fire, biteand sizzle. The ensuing result is acrispy, succulent, salty, creamy, spicy,yolky, party in your mouth.

So which is the victor? For me toonly name one would be like Sophie’sChoice, and I could never be so cruel.Mama loves both her babies.

So I leave the final answer to you,dear reader. Make a weekend of it andlet me know.

Until then, the battle rages on.

EVER IN OLD TOWN PASADENA?Then stop by Fred’s Mexican Café,especially on a Wednesday night.

The restaurant, located on thecorner of Colorado Boulevard andArroyo Parkway, once again welcomesCollege Night on Wednesdays, and itdefinitely is necessary to attend ifyou’re looking for a fine dish and aparty scene.

College Night has a $3 covercharge with a college ID and $5without one. It has a DJ, a dance floorand doesn’t end until 2 a.m. However,the best thing about it is that it offers$1 drinks.

The café’s specialty margarita andother tequila-related drinks are musts.Other cocktails are also $1, such as a

simple rum and coke.The DJ plays music from R&B to

’80s, rap to hip-hop and even a well-desired Gipsy Kings tune. The dancingfloor becomes highly spirited andattractive.

If arriving early to simply dine,then you can choose from a variety ofoptions ranging from chicken, steakand seafood. The kitchen closes at 10p.m.

Start with some Chicken Chinga-deras as an appetizer. They containblack beans, rice, chicken and pico degallo. It is the perfect appetizer beforeordering a main dish.

Shrimp and cheeseburger tacosare available, and they are fabulous.The shrimp taco is sautéed in garlic

butter with tomatillo, cheese andshredded cheese, while thecheeseburger taco is prepared withseasoned ground beef and fries rolledinto a tortilla. Both come with a side ofrice and black beans, which are madeto perfection.

Chicken and steak quesadillas arealso on the menu, among a variety ofother options.

Best of all: extraordinary friendlybar and table customer service.

For more information, call (626) 304-9955 or visit fredsmexicancafe.com.

FRED’S MEXICAN CAFÉ119 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena

BREAKFAST BATTLE ROYALE

cheap eats | B Y S A S H A P E R L - R A V E R

on the menu | B Y M A R V I N G . VA S Q U E Z

Square One’s Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict

Mar

vin

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THERE ARE TWO FACTIONS THAThave battled for my money since I wasold enough to make any. That’s my“want” of fun stuff like gadgets, thelatest music releases and new clothesversus my needs (like going to thedentist and paying my bills).

For many years, my wants foughtthe battle and won – with myresponsibilities falling by the wayside.(I’ve got the cavities and bad credit toprove it.)

Since I know I’ll never be perfectand probably won’t change mycovetous ways, I’ve learned how totake care of what I need at a fraction ofthe cost – without scrimping onquality. This knowledge has freed meto do a lot of the things that I want

without having to save mercilessly inthe process.

Looking for an inexpensive way topay for that root canal or filling? Lookno further. The UCLA School ofDentistry (323 S. Lincoln Blvd.,Venice; 310-392-4103) offers a cost-effective alternative to dental care forthose who aren’t lucky enough to haveinsurance. Students do the legwork,with a qualified instructor alwaysnearby to assist and keep the sessionsrunning smoothly.

You may wind up spending moretime here than at a working dentist’soffice (you are, after all, participatingin someone’s education so student-teacher pow-wows are inevitable).However, UCLA is an internationally

recognized university with animpressive roster of graduates. Safetyand precision will be first andforemost.

Nature and the economy neverseem to be in sync. Thank goodnessfor the good people over at the LosAngeles Free Clinic (8405 BeverlyBlvd., Los Angeles; 323-653-8622). Geteverything from a yearly physical toSTD tests to counseling.

Just a word to the wise: Althoughyou have the option of walking in on awhim, you could be there all day if youdo. So make an appointment andarrive early.

Switching gears … For those in

fun for less | B Y E B O N Y M A R C H

WANT TO/NEED TOCare at a Fraction of the Cost

«

CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

beauty beat

IT WAS A COLD AND RAINY DAY WHEN I ARRIVED AT WILLOWSpa just off of Santa Monica Boulevard. The traffic had been horrid,and I was filled to the brim with anger and hostility for my fellow L.A.drivers.

Yet the moment I passed through the bamboo gate and entered thefront garden, a sudden and palpable shift of energy was felt deep in mycore. A gentle waterfall trickled alongside the stone path as it led to thefront door of an old craftsmen home, a relic of old Santa Monica.

Inside two young women dressed completely in black met me. Themeeting room was filled with sweet, exotic aromas. In a short time, Iwas led through the house to a dressing room and handed a pair ofwhite garments.

Next, I met Julie, my “technician.” In moments she had my feet in awooden tub of warm water and rose petals.

I was served a small glass of Akatsuki, an enzyme elixir made fromover 400 fermented fruits. It had a syrupy texture and was very sweet.After a brief, yet luxurious foot and leg massage, I was guided to theroom where I would take the enzyme bath.

“Did you bring a bathing suit?” Julie asked.“Uh, no,” I replied.Not to worry, I was supplied with a pair of black disposable

underwear, which was more like a string bikini made of soft paper. The“bath” I was to lay in was in fact a mass of dark earth, two smolderingpiles of hot mulch composed of Juniper wood shavings, rice bran andvegetable enzymes.

Supposedly, I spent only 20 minutes in the tub, but it felt like a greatvast expanse of time that I lay buried in that sweet dirt. Julie wouldcome by every few moments to gently wipe the sweat from my browand offer me a straw to sip on water.

The experience was transfixing, a miraculous state of tranquilitylulled me into a deep peaceful reverie. In the shower afterwards, I couldnot help but smile. Alas, the treatment culminated with a 20-minuteThai massage.

Whatever bitterness I had felt earlier towards my fellow man wasbut a distant memory as I stepped back onto a busy Santa MonicaBoulevard, ready to love again once more.

For more information, call (310) 453-9004 or visit willowspa.com.

B Y D O V R U D N I C K

inner circle

WILLOW SPA3127 Santa Monica Blvd.,Santa Monica

AFTER THE SUCCESSof the first “Your ArtOpening” event, BoredLAand SCribes-Free Readhave decided to haveanother one on March 7.Stop by the Ragazzi Roomto see the freshest of thefresh artwork by yourpeers, including painting,photography, live art byBen Jay and T-shirts andcrafts by Ben Oprstu.

This time aroundthere’s a theme, “Under-water is Where the ActionIs,” so expect a lot of

serene, psychedelic, pro-found stuff. There will alsobe tons of live music tokeep you entertained, in-cluding Alex Pfender ofOregon, Alex Alkana of SealBeach, Aijia Guttman ofHollywood, Chris Olson ofBurbank, Shannon Inouyeof Burbank and DJiSHOWMYSELF, whocurrently has a residency atTemporary Spaces.

BoredLA is a Web siterun by local students who

try to make sure you know what’sgoing on in Los Angeles before ithappens (and ideally what’s cheap, funand interesting). When you’re bored,you should be able to hit up the siteand find some inspiration, whetherit’s a local event, restaurant, craft ideaor merely a rant or rave about our city.

SCribes is a USC group that meetsweekly to free read – poems, essays,short stories, whatever. It’s all aboutsharing your work and appreciatingthat of others.

Lorna Alkana, creative writingstudent, founder of SCribes, andmember of the BoredLA team, is thebrainchild behind “Your Art Op-ening,”combining the artistic forces ofBoredLA and SCribes to create agrassroots art show. The event isabout making the unknown artistknown, so come and enjoy somecoffee and treats from the RagazziRoom, go next door for some wineand tapas deals at Bacaro L.A., beexposed to some killer art and comeback next time with your ownsubmissions!

Ragazzi Room is located at 2316 S.Union Ave, Los Angeles. For moreinformation, visit boredla.com.

BOREDLA/SCRIBES-FREE READ PRESENT:‘YOUR ART OPENING’March 7 @ Ragazzi Room

exhibitions | B Y G I N A Q U A T T R O C H I

Susannah Crowley sings about mochi ice cream in an acoustic set.

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Hannah Kim sits pretty with the Palaver robot, selling themagazines for $5 each.

Artwork by Taylor Brechtel on display at the Ragazzi Room

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desperate need of quick and affordable car care,try L.A. Radiator & Automotive (6216 SantaMonica Blvd., Los Angeles; 323-462-2121). Stevethe mechanic is not only honest, but the mangives a fair price on even the most intenserepairs. The turnaround is also great consideringhis lot is often packed with customers.

Now that you’ve squared away life’snecessities, it’s time to have a little fun. Take thatwad of dough burning a hole in yourpocket and use it toward amembership on eMusic.com. Thisrival to iTunes is offering I-don’t-know-how-many promotionalfree music downloads to drumup business.

Recently, Isigned up for theservice, received 50 freedownloads to joinand got another 25 forrecommending afriend who started amembership as well.The best thing abouteMusic is that it catersto the indie musiccrowd, is Mac and

PC-friendly and sells songs way cheaper than thelarger marquee services.

However, if you’re someone looking to makea wise investment with your newly pocketedsavings, why not do a little begging. And no – Idon’t mean to mom and dad.

Cyberbeggar.org is a cool Web site thatgives anyone the opportunity to receive

charity from generous people around theworld. After a small set-up fee (around

$45), you can place requests toreceive donations for

anything your heartdesires. Beg formoney to buy theequipment nee-ded to start a

band or to take atrip to Europe.

Make sure you’vegot a Paypal account, th-

ough. There are a lot oftricksters out there who willtry to lure you into phonycheck scams by completing

transactions through WesternUnion without the security ofPaypal.


THE WAY THAT ENTERTAINMENT ISgoing this year, 2009 seems to be shaping intothe year of Halloween. January saw the remakeof My Bloody Valentine then February broughtback our dear pal Jason Voorhees in theremake of Friday the 13th. On the gamingfront,“Resident Evil 5” is still the big talk of thetown, while other games like the Wii release of“Dead Rising” continue the horror trend.

While survival horror games – like“Resident Evil” and “Silent Hill” – derive fearfrom the need to run like hell to stay alive,there is another style ofhorror games out there.This second type – the“horror-themed” game –takes other genres and slapson a thick layer of bloodand gore. This last monthhas seen the release of twohorror-themed games, butthe questions arise whetherthese games are legitimatelyscary, and if not, whetherthey should be.

By its very title, youwould expect “F.E.A.R. 2 –Project Origin” to beunbelievably scary. Con-sidering that you are nowpart of a squad that has to fight off countlessReplica soldiers while dealing with the horriblevisions, destruction and abominations sent byan even more powerful and angry Alma, thereis reason to be freaked out. All of the originalgame’s sudden flashes of hallucinatoryviolence and spooky sightings of the creepy

little girl are back and daring you to play withthe lights off.

That said, “F.E.A.R. 2” is still just a first-person shooter with some cool paranormaleffects. Sure, the occasional blown-opencorpse is likely to give the average audiencemember the creeps, but if you are used toblowing the heads off of your buddies’ bodies,a few gore-drenched skeletons are not going tobe enough to scare you. It all ultimately comesdown to whether you choose to get into thegame enough to be scared or to just see it as an

extremely entertaining,unique FPS.

“House of the Dead:Overkill,” on the otherhand, seems very intent ontaking any of the classichorror out of this incar-nation of the series. Unlikeprevious, arcade-based in-stallations of the ongoingbattle between the AMSand the walking dead,“Overkill”’s shift to anAmerican developer bringswith it a whole new look.

This game – a prequelto the whole saga – is donein 1970s grindhouse style,

complete with washed-out video, ridiculousamounts of blood and a cast of characters thatinclude a playboy cop, a by-the-book detectiveand a stripper that is out for revenge. In short,they took the cheesiness of the original gamesand replaced it with intentional cheesiness.

Is it scary? Probably not in the Jason way,

but cheesy gore-fests have never really goneout of style. We still love to see two-dimensional characters use wide arsenals tofend off hordes of the undead in theaters, and“Overkill” does a masterful job of translatingthe pure dumb joy of these films into thegaming world.

If you want to feel a bit more into “Houseof the Dead: Overkill,” you may want toconsider the Wii Rumble Blaster fromDreamGear. This gun with a detachable basefor your Nunchuk includes a rumble featureand LED lights whenever the trigger is pulled.The really nice feature for this gun, though, isa second trigger on the grip that can press theA button when pulled.

The Rumble Blaster was built with a largearea for controller attachments, which can leadto the controller falling out of alignment,especially when shaken, but all in all, the coolfeatures and rubberized grip make it a goodaccessory for the Wii.

HORROR MEETS GUNSFear is in the mind of the gamer.

games and gadgets | B Y J O N A T H A N K N E L L SCARLETLADYSALOON

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(310) 391-90795411 SEPULVEDA BLVD. CULVER CITY

inner circle

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CHEMISTRYDoes the duo in “Castle” have enough?

B Y Y U R I S H I M O D A

Mulder and Scully had it. So didAngel and Buffy.

Jim and Pam definitely have it. As doBones and Seeley.

Shows like “The X-Files” and “Bones,”that rely on the chemistry of their leads –specifically relationships between theopposite sexes that are heavy with sexualtension – are present throughout TV’shistory. The latest example of this triedand true formula is “Castle.”

The chemistry is definitely intriguingbetween the main characters, two totalopposites: successful mystery authorRichard Castle (Nathan Fillion, “Firefly”)and aggressive NYPD detective KateBeckett (newcomer Stana Katic). When akiller starts copying scenes from Castle’snovels, he and Beckett work together tocatch the murderer. The pair does so wellthat they continue on to more unusualcases.

Will the hint of a spark between theduo burst into a hit or will it quietlysmolder away? Stay tuned.

“Castle” premiers March 9 and airsMondays at 10 p.m. on ABC.

t.v. time

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ONE WOULD BE HARD PRESSEDto argue that the members of As I LayDying don’t shred really friggin’ hardwhen they play. Science has donestudies confirming they do.

For as intense of a performance asthey give, it could easily be extrapolatedthat the band members bring that same“go big or go home” attitude to everyaspect of their lives. Pull the San Diegonatives away from their second homeon the stage, however, and they’ll showthemselves to be … kind of boring.

In a scene that often feelsdominated by rock star clichés ofexcess, be it an excess either ofdebauchery or soapboxing, maybeboring isn’t such a bad thing, though.When they aren’t busy melting thecollective faces of audiences, the bandmembers can usually be found withgirlfriends and wives or bro-ing outwith whichever other bands they’ve hitthe road with and sometimes theoccasional journalist.

“Even though we’re not that old, Ithink we’re one of the more seasonedbands,”says guitarist Nick Hipa.“Otherdudes are out here going crazy, and wejust keep it mellow. That stuff isfleeting, I just like hanging out with my

friends, watching bands that I love.”Having grown into their roles as

quintessential main stage headliners,the band has had ample oppor-tunities to indulge in hedonism, butHipa and his band mates have moreimportant things to do with theirtime. And if the ever lengtheningpress schedules and lines of fans atwaiting to see the band play or getsomething signed by them are anyindication, the fivesome likely don’thave the time or energy left to get intotoo much trouble even if they wantedto.

With the release of their lastalbum, An Ocean Between Us, now ayear and a half under the belts, Hipa,bassist Josh Gilbert, singer TimLambesis, drummer Jordan Mancinoand fellow guitarist Phil Sgrosso areconfident their latest effort wouldn’twarrant any less.

“We wanted to make a diversealbum that encompassed all sorts ofelements of things we like in metaland not make it a straightforwardmelodic metal album withbreakdowns,” says Hipa. “I couldn’treally listen to [Shadows Are Security]the whole way through without

getting burnt out on it. I thought itwas cool because it was more of aconcept album, but I wanted to createsomething that was an interestinglisten the whole way through.”

Taking a more inclusive approachto writing, fully utilizing the variedspectrum of influences each of theband members brings to the table,proved to be the secret to success.

“This was a more completesongwriting process. Before, it wasmostly Phil and Tim, and I was therefor a lot of it, but it wasn’t as band-oriented as it was on this album.”

And as Hipa reveals, pullingtogether as a unit couldn’t have beenmore integral at that point.

“We had lost [former bassist ClintNorris] and were stressing because wedidn’t know who was going toproduce our album or who was goingto be our new bass player,” he says.

On a more personal level, hecontinues,“I had a ridiculously roughend of the year. We were right in themiddle of recording the album, I hada birthday, my grandpa died, mygirlfriend of seven years broke upwith me, and it all happened at once.It was a very emotional time for me,and I played a lot of guitar duringthat. I feel like a lot of things Ibrought to the table during that timeperiod were very moody and when Ihear certain things, I still rememberhow I felt when I wrote it.”

Feigning an exaggerated emointonation for effect, he adds, “Itsounds so cheesy and cliché, but itwas like, ‘this is all I have.’”

To his credit, at least he can laughabout it now, given that his outletproved to be as cathartic as wasnecessary. But even knowing theimpact playing music has had onhim, Hipa still finds himself a bit inawe when finding others relate to hisband’s work similarly.

“When you meet someone thattells you that, it’s powerful,” he says offans expressing their emotionalattachment to certain songs. “They’reTim’s lyrics, but we’re all together inone accord with everything the bandis about. I can’t believe or understandthat our band could mean that muchto kids. That’s one of the mostrewarding parts of being in this band,because we’re not a bunch of dudeswho just want to hook up with chicksand party every night. There’s a lotbehind everything we do, and it’s coolto think that our band matters to kidsand is something positive.”

Along with that, of course, comethe fans inspired in their own musicalpursuits by the band’s music, whichHipa admits is equally as strange forhim still.

“When we do signings, kids willsay ‘You guys are a huge influence onour band,’ and I’m very vocal aboutsaying ‘I’m not that sweet, you need tocheck out this and this…’” he says.“Listening to certain metal guitarplayers, they said, ‘If you really wantto hear what a good guitar playersounds like, listen to these people,’and that’s how I got into differentclassical and jazz guitar players. That’show it is for musicians though, unlessyou’re a jerk, you don’t reallyrecognize yourself as being sweet.”

Quick to deflect attention awayfrom himself, Hipa’s ability to staygrounded becomes easier to tracewhen he talks about his family.

“There are two quotes that Irepeat to myself often that come fromtwo different schools of thought, onefrom each of my grandfathers. MyIrish grandfather always told megrowing up to never stop aspiring.Then there’s my Hawaiian grand-father, who always told me, don’tsweat the small stuff. It used to botherme so much, but there are so manythings in life you can get bent overthat just aren’t worth it.”

With a big laugh, Hipa closeswith his own all too appropriatewords of guidance, ready to imparton his future offspring.

“I’m going to tell my grandkids tokeep it brutal.”

For more information, visitasilaydying.com.

Life Lessons

Crooked XSelf-titled(EMI)

Crooked X really didn’t have togo through a “paying dues” stage toget where they are. They took achance and sent a demo tape to atalent competition organized byCBS’s “Early Show,” and there’s been

no looking back since.The band was quickly signed and

sent to Sweden where they opened forKiss with 35,000 people in at-tendance. All this happened over thecourse of nine months!

It shows you how hungry fans arefor good old hard rock because that’swhat Crooked X plays: no frills, kick-

ass rock and roll. And they’ve learnedfrom the masters; you can easily hearthe influences from song to song:Aerosmith, Metallica, White Zombie,Alice in Chains. Nothing new, but itsure feels good!Grade: B

—Kevin WierzbickiCrooked X is currently available.

Danny GreenWith You in Mind(Pacific Coast Jazz)

Green is a pianist from SanDiego who’s participated in theCalifornia Brazil Camp for the pastfew years, and he’s adept at infusing

Horace Andy & Ashley BeedleInspiration Information, Vol. 2(Strut)

Horace Andy and AshleyBeedle are two names fromcompletely different musicalproperties.

Andy, a reggae artist witha career dating back to theearly ’70s has released count-less solo albums. But his mostnoticeable performance was aguest appearance on a MassiveAttack track.

Beedle on the other handis known for being a part ofthe famed electronic group X-Press 2 and for his numerousremixes. Together they joinforces to create a conceptualalbum, fusing reggae andelectronic music.

Though the concept ofInspiration Information isnovel, none of the tracks seemto have that sparkle, keeping itrepetitive and cliché. Seri-ously, how many songs canthere be about Zion?

The highlight of thealbum is their cover of theRolling Stone’s “Angie,” anabsolutely delightful versionof the classic. Followers ofAndy most likely won’t bedisappointed, but Beedle fansmight wonder what’s goingon.Grade: C-

—Ryan McWhorterInspiration Information iscurrently available.

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music 101 | artist feature

AS I LAY DYING

cd reviewsM A K I N G TH E G R A D E :A EXC E PTI O N A L

B WO RTH W H I L E

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M. WardMarch 4 @ The Music Box

Though our Him is seeminglysans his She, musical jack of all tradesMatt Ward is equally as awesomewithout his fairer sometimes-half.With that usual flair for old-fashionedfolk rock we’ve come to expect from

him, Ward continues toeffortlessly be very modernand progressive in hisexecution.

Effectively capturingthe soulful essence of amusical era most of usmight not have any grasp of,Ward still manages to pushthe envelope in terms ofmaking his brand of indietechnically intricate andmemorable without havingto appeal to a lowest com-mon denominator.

Jimmy Eat WorldMarch 5 @ Club Nokia

Let’s be honest here, regardless ofwhatever generational demographicyou associate yourself with, JimmyEat World has at some point writtenthe anthem of your youth and earlyadulthood. Regardless of what albumyou jumped on board with – and let’s

be honest again, we’re all on thisbandwagon – there’s one song fromthat JEW era that’s your jam.

Jimmy Eat World is just one ofthose bands that, even if you don’tparticularly love their latest work,they’re never actually disappointing,and they’ll never fail to bring out yournostalgic side.

BigelfMarch 5 @ Key Club

Would anyone care to join me atthis show in telling this God-awfulband to stop making music? Thatalone has gotta be worth the price ofadmission. Bitch about money being“pure evil” or whatever all you want,being a Dollar-Tree-generic-brandRob Zombie is never OK.

Automatic LoveletterMarch 6 @ Knitting Factory

You might think to yourself,“Jeez, Brien, you pick a lot of girl-

fronted rock bands to feature inFrequency, surely you’re a littleover it by now.” To which I say, “Ha!Mere mortals! Thou art weak-willed if thou cannot stomachmore flowery, riff-laden girlpop!”

There’s also malevolentlycrackling lightning in thebackground. Maybe a giant laserbeam or other miscellaneousWMD of some kind. I haven’tentirely fleshed it out yet.

Point being, you’d be wrong. Atleast this time, because theseTampa kids are making someawesome rock and roll that, thoughsimilar in structure, is very muchan aural departure from what youthink you know of girl-fronted-rock. Emotive as only a woman canbe, frontwoman Juliet Simmsunderlines her vocal honesty with agritty rawness that shows shemeans business behind the mic.Lucky you, Florida, you’ve man-aged to stall the impending wrath Ipledged back in the summer of’07.

frequency | essential concerts | B Y B R I E N O V E R LY

his music with South American flair.On “Baiao Pra Voce” Green’s

rapid-paced piano melody dances toa Latin rhythm delicately tapped outby drummer Dylan Savage andpercussionist Allan Phillips. Thelengthy “Para Chano” is more subtleas it floats in and out of a Latinmood.

Green musically visits Europetoo; his melodica playing mingleswith Tripp Sprague’s sax work onthe Mediterranean bounce of“Doctor Pasta,” a tune that couldeasily be turned into a reggaenumber should Green get an islandurge. “Panic Nap” has a verycontinental vibe when Green again

picks up the melodica, but thesong’s complexion changes when heswitches to the Rhodes organ andduring brief but intense bass anddrum solos.Grade: B

—Kevin WierzbickiWith You in Mind is currentlyavailable.

Molly JensonMaybe Tomorrow(Bully! Pulpit/ Nettwerk)

On Maybe Tomorrow, 29-year-old singer-songwriter Molly Jensonreminds us why patience is indeed avirtue. Her tried persistence in the

music business is celebrated bythis long-awaited moment, theopportunity to release her firstCD. Jenson’s single, “Give ItTime,” masterfully blendsfolksy, coffee-shop vocals witha pop rock sound that is bothinspiring and relevant.

Across 13 tracks, Jenson’svoice is supported by thegentle keys of a piano, stringyguitar chords and airy back-ground acoustics, which oftenfade into a unique pulsatingeffect that is as interesting as itis haunting. Perhaps what ismost refreshing about Jenson’swork isn’t this multi-layeredsound, but a true honesty thatis present in her lyrics.

With songs like “Wait forYou Here” and the title-track“Maybe Tomorrow” she singsof a hopeful optimism. “Thewind will have blown my way,”she croons. Indeed, she’sreaching for the stars.Grade: A

—Christopher AgutosMaybe Tomorrow is currentlyavailable.

Lou ReedBerlin: Live at St. Ann’sWarehouse(Matador)

Long time fans of theoften-sullen Mr. Reed knowthat his personal depressionand frustration played out ingrand fashion in his 1973recording, Berlin. Looselysummarized, the album tellsthe story of a couple of speedfreaks trying to hold ittogether through all thehorrors that come with aserious drug dependency –physical abuse, sexual de-pravity and attempted suicideamong them.

The song cycle touched anerve with critics who to thisday proclaim Berlin to beReed’s finest work. Reedhowever, was so emotionallywracked when he wrote thesongs that for years he refusedto have anything to do withthem and never performedany of Berlin’s songs live until

music

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Def Jam Turns 25Def Jam Records is turning 25

this year, and after a quarter centuryof turning out hits from the likes ofL.L. Cool J, Slick Rick, Rihanna,Kanye West, Jay-Z and Young Jeezy,the label is not about to sit back andrest on its laurels.

Def Jam head honcho L.A. Reidoverflows with excitement when hethinks about what’s still to come.

“From a personal standpoint Ican say that Def Jam had tre-mendous meaning and significancein my own career as a musician,producer and independent labelhead, long before I actually arrived atthese offices five years ago. Let’scelebrate the next 25 years of DefJam right now!”

A deluxe four-LP set called DefJam 25 will get the party started. DefJam 25 Vol. 1: DJ Bring That Back(2008-1997) will feature a dozen cutsfrom artists like Foxy Brown,Ludacris, DMX and Ashanti whileVol. 2 (1996-1984) will dig outgolden oldies from Public Enemy,Redman, 3rd Bass and Oran JuiceJones. The limited-edition vinyldrops April 18 in conjunction withRecord Store Day.

The Return ofSuperchunk

It’s been a long time since we lastheard from beloved DIY darlingsSuperchunk; 2001 to be exact. Thegroup is preparing material for a newalbum, but in the meantime they’rereleasing a sort of odds-and-sods EP

called Leaves in the Gutter.Singer Mac McCaughan explains,

“Some of these songs are newer thanothers, but we kind of felt like if we’regoing to get to work on a new albumwe need to clear the decks of thesesongs first. A couple of them I reallylike, but they already feel like they’refrom another era and wouldn’t fit on a

new album anyway.”The five-song EP contains two

versions of “Learned to Surf,” and youmay hear the song live whenSuperchunk plays Coachella April 18.Leaves in the Gutter will be availablefor you to listen to as you drive toIndio; it drops on April 7 throughMerge Records.

KingsizeIf you’ve ever watched the CBS

comedy “Gary Unmarried,” you’veheard the music of Kingsize;that’s them playing theopening theme. But theL.A.-based quartet has a kitbag that’s, well, king size andthey’re about to release notone but two six-song EPs. Asingle called “Miss America”has been pulled from TheGood Fight, and AlisonEastwood, Clint’s daughter,has been tapped to shoot avideo for “Rabbits” from theother EP, The Bad Night.

Kingsize lead singer Jason ThomasGordon has a vocal style that remindsof Tom Petty, and the band rocks likethe Heartbreakers too.

Gordon says that making a big-sounding record was the idea.

“These are desperate times and alllocal music can muster is a whimper?I want to shout it from the rooftops!”

Both Kingsize EPs drop March 24,

and if you want to keep up with theband you’d better get them right away– they’re almost ready with a follow-up album.

Boomkat!Taryn Manning is just a little bit

busy. She’s promoting the summercollection of her clothing line BornUniqorn, working on a couple of filmsand developing a TV show basedaround the clothing line and hermusic career. That music career ofcourse includes the urban-flavoredpop that she makes with her brotherKellin as Boomkat.

Watch for the L.A. duo’s latestrelease A Million Trillion Stars March10.

music report | B Y K E V I N W I E R Z B I C K IAMOEBABESTSELLERS6400 SUNSET BLVD. (323) 245-6400

1) Lily Allen — It’s Not Me, It’s You2) Animal Collective — Merriweather Post Pavilion3) Madlib — Beat Konducta 5-64) Kings of Leon — Only By the Night5) Paul McCartney — Amoeba’s Secret6) Robert Plant & Alison Krauss — Raising Sand7) Soundtrack — Slumdog Millionaire8) Franz Ferdinand — Tonight: Franz Ferdinand9) Adele — 1910) Van Morrison — Astral Weeks Live11) The Lonely Island — Incredibad12) India.Arie — Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics13) Antony & the Johnsons — The Crying Light14) Radiohead — In Rainbows15) Bruce Springsteen — Working on a Dream16) MGMT — Oracular Spectacular17) Andrew Bird — Noble Beast18) Bon Iver — For Emma, Forever Ago19) Thom Yorke — Eraser Remixes20) The Bird & the Bee — Ray Guns Are Not

Just the Future

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Superchunk clear the deck with new EP.

M. Ward pushes the envelope of rock music.

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GrailsFeb. 21 @ Spaceland

My friend left Spaceland this last Saturdaybefore the Grails even started. So I was able toorder a coffee, sit in the back and let theseductive wall of sound that is the Grails seepinto my consciousness.

For about an hour and a half, I was treatedto a mostly melodic sort of rock ’n’ roll,peppered and spiced with synthesizers of sorts.

Some sharp guitar riffs and poignantdrumming confirmed that this was rock, butthere was no small talk from an ego-infestedfrontman, and the band from Portland, Ore.was able to instill the crowd of 50 or more witha collective calm.

There was a positive glow in the audienceafter the Grails completed their encore

performance, and Icouldn’t help but bereminded of a SigurRós show I attendedabout five years ago inSan Francisco as themellowed out butenthusiastic crowdresponded the waythey would to a niceafternoon play or asymphony orchestra –with warm applauseand a few cheers.

I would typify theGrails as part rock,part meditation music, part massage music – asit relaxed me to a point where I was thinking

only nice, positive thoughts as I left Silver Lake.—Geoffrey Altrocchi

live show reviewmusic

It’s 12:40 a.m. in Hollywood.There is still a small line to get in the club,

and I can hear the people in the back of linecomplaining to the left of me almost as clearlyas I can hear the words to the song the DJ’splaying to my right: “I want to live likecommon people; I want to do whatevercommon people do…”

Nice song – too bad the noisy peoplebitching about waiting in line are drowning itout.

Right now I wish the song were calledCOME ON PEOPLE, instead of “CommonPeople,” so they would quit bitching. Besides,the line to get in was a lot longer only minutesago, so they should just chill.

I, on the other hand, should really use therestroom. A few bottled waters and four hourssitting at this door make for one anxiousdoorman.

Plus, I enjoy walking throughthe crowded dance floor whenthere is good energy and a goodsong playing like this. Problem is Ican’t just walk to my office.

I know it’s really the bathroom,but it’s my fantasy, and in myfantasy I’m the boss and I call it myoffice. Also in my fantasy no onebitches inside or outside of theclub. There is always good energy,and a good song playing. I give thedoorman a raise … and his ownoffice.

Alas, I’m still here, still havingto go to the bathroom, and the onlything worse than trying to fantasizeat work is trying to fantasize whilehaving to go to the bathroom.

“Yo!” my co-worker Will yells

and surprises me.“The most gorgeous girl is onthe black couch. She’s been sitting there alonefor an hour.”

“Of course she’s sitting on the blackcouch,” I said.

this show in 2006 where he played the albumin order and in its entirety.

The live recording begins pretty muchthe same way as the studio version withReed sounding heartbroken as he sings thetitle song over a piano piece thatemphasizes the sadness. From there onthough things are different; Reed’s vocalsseem to relish the brokenness he portraysin songs like “How Do You Think it Feels”and “Men of Good Fortune,” and he giveshimself extra space (and volume) with hisguitar playing.

This recording packs a bigger punchthan the original not just because it is live,but also because of Reed’s much healthiermindset. Before he was miserable andsinging about misery; here he’s clearlyhaving a blast.Grade: A

—Kevin WierzbickiBerlin: Live at St. Ann’s Warehouse iscurrently available.

]Chris Robley & The Fear of HeightsMovie Theatre Haiku(Cutthroat Pop)

Portland, Ore.’s Chris Robley is a well-grounded indie rocker with a singer-songwriter mind. Robley’s third effort,Movie Theatre Haiku, has an Elliott Smithlikeness, including a heart-sufferingperspective with a poetic perceptiveness,which gives Robley’s songs an understandingand literate musical depth.

Movie Theatre Haiku is chock full ofeclectic arrangements that support Robley’sunguarded, alienated contemplations. Powerguitar-quickened “My Life in Film Festivals”and folktronica “Solipsist in Love” are bothdriven by lyrical regret. The anti-romantic“User-Friendly Guide to Change” meldsBeatles-esque pop with electronica elements,where guitars and beat-happy drums arebalanced by perforated horns.

The highlight is “Permanent Fixture of

Regret,” a smartly written picture ofdownturned self-loathing that links LoudonWainwright’s lyrical insights with Belle andSebastian’s melodic indie pop textures.Movie Theatre Haiku is an album of tensionand ambition that, like a William Faulknershort story, is best experienced with detailedand repeated inspection.Grade: B

—Doug SimpsonMovie Theatre Haiku is currently available.

door service | B Y P O L I T E S

cd reviews

FILLE EN NOIR, PART 1


Polit

es

Grails captivated Spaceland.

: Zak

Rile

s

UPCOMING IN-STORES at AMOEBA!All shows are FREE and ALL AGES!

For full calendar of events visit: AMOEBA.COM

NEKO CASECelebrating her new release Middle Cyclone — out now

on ANTI. Get a free poster with purchase of the CD (day of in-store only, while they last)!

AMOEBA AUCTION!Our host, Brently Heilbron, auctions everything from

rare and collectable memorabilia to wacky, off-beat promo items & more! 03/07 AUCTION ITEMS INCLUDE:

All proceeds benefit local and global relief efforts! As always, Amoeba will match your individual

donation up to $1,000!

AMOEBA.COM

Mondays in March, join us for weekly, music-related films, curated by Amoeba Music!

FREE movies! FREE Izze Soda! FREE popcorn from Snack Bar in the courtyard of Space15Twenty,

just up the street from Amoeba! See Amoeba.com for the full schedule of films!

1520 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028

Director and producer Ava Vernay will be attending to sign DVDs and answer questions. This Is The Life

South Central Los Angeles’ famed ‘90s Hip Hop venue The Good Life. Directed and produced by Ava Du Vernay.

The film features interviews with various members of Freestyle Fellowship, Project Blowed, Busdriver, Cut

Don’t miss the THIRD ANNUAL

AMOEBAART SHOW

at the Factory Party

in the Bay Area!For more info,

visit Amoeba.com


SATURDAY, MARCH 7

So Addicted 5-Year Anniversary Mirage Events Center, 5700 Paloma Ave., Los Angeles; addictedevents.infoAll ages/8 p.m./$30

If you’re into the electronic music culture and frequently attend shows, there’s a 99 percentchance you’ve heard at least one DJ drop Mickey Slim’s phenomenal remix of House of Pain’s“Jump Around.” Now you can see the man drop it himself along with all of his other famous cutsat his first L.A. appearance.

Joining him for this rare appearance is another remix phenom Dirty Funker, whose illegalremixes of Led Zeppelin and Nirvana (just to name a few) led him into the global spotlight. LazyRich, Thee-O, Jason Splat and tons of others will also be showing off their stuff, but again it’sreally all about Mickey Slim.

Fuck Yesss LAThe Glass House, 200 W. Second St., Pomona; theglasshouse.us All ages/7 p.m./$22

Yup, another great show at the Glass House; I’m telling you, I love this venue! On March 7,the Glass House extends its hours ’til 2 a.m. and welcomes all ages to party their arses off with ahandful of great DJs.

Rrrump, Eli Smith and We A.R.E. will start the night off, while Computer Club, Paparazziand Atlanta’s Le Castle Vania will close the night out in style. There will also be a photo booth byMagnum XL and video of the event by Oh Snap TV. Check it out!

—Ryan McWhorter

MONDAY, MARCH 9

Cut CopyThe Glass House, 200 W. Second St., Pomona;theglasshouse.us All ages/7 p.m./$22

Get a jump on the Henry FondaCrowd and be the first in LosAngeles to see Cut Copy in asignificantly smaller venue. TheAustralian trio’s In Ghost Colourswas one of the most remixedalbums of ’08, with tracksreworked by Boys Noize, Herculesand Love Affair, Moulinex andSebastiAn.

They also did some remixing oftheir own, creating a formula thatmakes Cut Copy appeal to both theindie and electronic scenes. On topof that Matt and Kim will getthings started along with yet another Cut Copy remixer Knightlife. Trust me andmake the 35-40 minute drive. It will be well worth the bragging rights.

spin cycle | l.a. dj culture

AMOEBA TOP 10Independent Local Artist Releases

6400 SUNSET BLVD. (323) 245-64001) Healamonster & Tarsier — Cupcake Cave2) The Binges — Self-titled3) Patti Smith & Lenny Kaye — February 10th 19714) Jon Brion — Meaningless5) Penny-Ante — Book #16) Jail Weddings — Somebody Lonely7) Psycho Realm — War Story Book 28) Devil Doll — Queen of Pain9) Quincy Coleman — Come Closer10) Flycat — Our Sign

M83March 7 @ Walt Disney Concert Hall

French shoegaze meets the L.A.Philharmonic: The pairing sounds likea fantasy that could only exist in KevinShields’ fantasyland. Well believe it. TheDisney Concert Hall plus three sets (LAPhilharmonic, M83 solo, M83 and LAPhilharmonic collaboration) equals theequivalent of you weeping to “Pretty inPink” for the first time.

—John Barundia

staff pick

music

l.a. faces | B Y B O N N I E P R I E V E R

GROWING UP AS PART OF THE MTVgeneration, Adrienne Bailon is more thanthrilled to be the fresh new face of MTV,hosting afternoon shows “Sex…with Momand Dad,” “Room Raiders”and “Parental Control” andvarious specials promotingcurrent and up-and-comingmusical artists.

A former Cheetah Girl,and quite involved in themusical world for manyyears, Bailon feels right athome in her latest gig and ishonored to welcome celebguests on her program, withwhom she has a naturalrapport and friendly banter.

Describing a recent seg-ment on her show, Bailonsays, “Ciara came in topromote her new album,Fantasy Ride [available April 7], and also hermusic video with Justin Timberlake. Sheadded insights on the program, ‘Sex…withMom and Dad,’ explaining how importantopen communication is for teens and

parents in today’s world.”Bailon is loving this stage of her career,

and reminisces on her own youth: “Being apart of the whole MTV generation, it’s such

an honor doing what I do.I grew up watching theshow, leaving school earlysome days to catch ‘TRL’in Times Square with allthe fans and postersoutside, and hoping to getpicked for a spot on theshow!”

Now, in the limelightherself, Bailon loves me-eting fans, both in personand interactively via Webcam.

Bailon’s personal favesinclude Beyoncé andKanye West. Being a partof this industry has always

been a dream of hers.Through hard work, motivation, wond-

erful internships and being at the right placeat the right time, Adrienne Bailon is nowliving her own dream.

ADRIENNE BAILON MTV’s New Sweetheart

MTV


l.a. hoopla | nba scoop

AFTER THE 48-12 LAKERS POUNDED THE 34-25 SUNS 132-106 at Staples Center Feb. 26, the team’s six-game win streak came to acrashing halt in Denver (39-20) Friday. The Lakers had a dismal 29.8shooting percentage; they ended up with only 79 points against theNuggets’ 90.

The Lakers’ Bench Mob failed to bring their normal energy to aid thefatigued starters. Instead, it was two of Denver’s reserves, J.R. Smith (22points) and Chris “the Birdman” Andersen (tied a career-high sevenblocks, 12 rebounds and 11 points), who shined.

You would have thought that the Lakers would have come out reallystrong on Sunday against the Suns in Phoenix to make up for the lessthan stellar showing against Denver. But no, the team was lethargic anddragging from tip-off.

Despite a third-quarter surge led by Kobe Bryant, who scored 17points in a four-minute span and ended up with 49 points and 11rebounds, the Lakers couldn’t pull it together and lost 118-111.

On Friday, the Lakers will host the 18-40 Timberwolves at Staplesbefore heading to Portland (36-22) March 9.

This week started surprisingly well for the 15-45 CLIPPERS. Thesquad hosted the 47-14 Celtics Feb. 25 and came through with a 91-93victory. Even though they are still missing Al Thornton and Chris Kaman,the team hustled against last year’s world champs.

Forward Zach Randolph led the team with 30 points and 12rebounds, while point guard Baron Davis tallied 16 points, sevenrebounds and five assists. Unfortunately, rookie Eric Gordon left the gamein the third quarter with a bruised left shoulder and is still on the injuredlist.

The Clippers could have really used Gordon’s athleticism and speedon Friday, as they traveled to Sacramento. Even with the return ofClippers forward Thornton, the Kings, who currently have the worstrecord in the league (13-48), sailed past the Clippers, winning 98-86.

The Clippers returned home to host 25-35 Charlotte on Saturdaynight.

Randolph had 33 points and nine rebounds, but it wasn’t enough tocontain the on-fire Emeka Okafor and newly acquired Raja Bell. TheBobcats won 100-95.

The Clippers will play 15-43 Memphis tonight, 25-36 IndianaSaturday and then face the top team in the east, Cleveland (45-12) March10 at Staples.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:ZACH RANDOLPH

Team: Clippers, No. 50; Position: Forward;Years Pro: 7

Randolph had two strong efforts this week. Hemade the final three points to cinch the Clipperswin against Boston, then had another solid

performanceagainst theBobcats onSaturday. AhealthyRandolph isinstrumentalto the team having a successfulremainder of the season.

All stats as of March 2.

inner circle

WIN SOME, LOSE SOMEMajor Highs and Lows This WeekB Y T J W E B B E R

Family Bigger ThanWorld

At least that is what Angel relieverBrian Fuentes is telling folks runningthe World Baseball Classic. Selected topitch for Team USA, Fuentes toldreporters he is returning to his homein Merced to deal with family matters,but may be available to join the squadif it advances beyond the first roundof play.

“I wanted to play, but the timingwas bad,” he told the LA Times.

Training camp for Team USAbegan this week in Florida. The firstround of the WBC will be in Torontofrom March 7-11.

If Team USA advances, thesecond round will be held in Miamifrom March 14-18. The final roundwill be held in Southern Californiaduring the final week of March.

Clippers Not BiggerThan Inconsistency

Hey, the Lakers and Clippers havesomething in common beyondsharing an arena and a city. Bothteams beat a strong Celtics team atStaples Center but could not handlethe lowly Kings in Sacramento. Oh,and both teams have home losses tothe younger Charlotte Bobcats.

Unfortunately for the Clippers, allthree games happened last week(compared to over a two month

stretch for the Lakers).After shocking thebasketball world with a93-91 victory over theCeltics Feb. 25, theClippers failed to capitalize two dayslater against Sacramento. To makematters worst, Los Angeles lost toCharlotte at home 24 hours later.

Only the Clippers could beat anelite squad one night and follow-upwith a loss to the team with theleague’s worst record one game later.Too bad the Clippers cannot ask theNBA for a weeklong leave of absenceto return home in order to attend tofamily matters.

Trojans need to be biggerthan losing streak.

The Trojans basketball squad isstarting to look a lot like the Pac-10version of the Clippers. Except, notonly is USC struggling to defeat itssuperior opponents, now they arestruggling against teams below themas well.

Case in point – the Trojans weredefeated in a battle of private schoolson Saturday, when Stanford, who wasjust 4-11 in conference play enteringthe game, cruised past USC, 75-63 inPalo Alto.

It was the Trojans’ third loss in arow and sixth in the last seven games.With the loss, USC has just an outside

chance to earn a berth inthe Big Dance. Unless theTrojans (16-12, 7-9) winthe upcoming Pac-10Tournament, the cardinal-and-gold will have to waituntil next season toparticipate in MarchMadness.

Bruins win bigdespite inconsistency.

Across town in Westwood, theBruins are not exactly knocking thesocks off the poll voters. After flirtingwith a top five ranking just a fewweeks ago, UCLA lost three of fourgames to nose-dive toward thebottom of the AP and Coaches’ Polls.

Of course, the Bruins hopedefeating Stanford and Californiamight regain them some momentumheading into March Madness. Afterdefeating the Golden Bears, 72-68,Saturday, No. 22 UCLA (22-7, 11-5)kept its Pac-10 title hopes alive. Withtwo games remaining, the Bruinsmust win both games and hopeconference-leader Washington (22-7,13-4) loses its final conference gameagainst Washington State in order forboth teams to share the Pac-10 title.

This week, the Bruins returnhome for the final two games againstboth Oregon schools. UCLA needs towin both games in order toguarantee at least the No. 2 seed inthe upcoming Pac-10 Tournament.Even bigger, the Bruins need to findsome consistency – otherwise, theywill not have much success in the BigDance.

Parimal M. Rohit

BLAME THE ECONOMY. BLAMEthe Dodgers. Blame agent Scott Boras.Blame Manny Ramirez.

Who is to blame for the inability tosign Ramirez of late?

Several scenarios deserve attention.The first one is the nation’s economiccrisis.

Since George W. Bush’s admin-istration led the States in its secondterm, the economy has gone to the dirt.The nation is still over a trillion dollarsin deficit. This has resulted, especiallythis off-season, in a vital decline inbaseball’s free agent market.

Only pitcher CC Sabathia andslugger Mark Teixeira have arguablysigned prominent contracts. However,the Yankees signed both, and they havethe reputation for overspending ontalent.

The Dodgers are the secondreason. Ramirez has always sought a

four-to-five-year deal worth at least$100 million. Thus far, the biggestcontract offer proposed to him hasbeen that of a two-year deal for $45million by Los Angeles, but withdeferred payments.

Who in this world wants towork and receive deferredpayments for the duties performed?Ramirez is interested in thecontract, but with no deferredpayments. The Dodgers should justgive it to him.

Agent Scott Boras is the thirdpossibility. Boras is unarguably thebest agent in baseball operations.Nonetheless, he is a hardheadedindividual who is difficult tonegotiate with at times, and he hasthe tendency to produce com-plexities in negotiation terms. Borasalways seeks three options: his way,his way and his way.

Finally, Ramirez is toblame for his unsignedstatus. Call it the Manny-being-Manny concept, or hisnegligence to accept the factthat there is a lack of moneydue to the recession. Ramirezshould just sign the contractoffered by the Dodgers.

After all, no other teamwould probably end up offering more.More importantly, no other city wouldhonor and be more receptive to himthan Los Angeles.

THE MANNY-BEING-MANNY CONCEPT

the sports wanderer | B Y P A R I M A L M . R O H I T

dodgers 411 | B Y M A R V I N G . VA S Q U E Z

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curtain call inner circle

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY,the West Coast Conference Women’sBasketball Tournament will be held ina neutral site: Las Vegas.

Gonzaga and Portland finished asthe No 1 and 2 seeded teams for thetourney, respectively. Gonzagafinished with 24-6 overall record and12-2 in conference play, whilePortland was 17-12 and 10-4,respectively. Both squads have firstand second round byes.

Two Southern California teams,Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount,finished in the third and fourth seeds,

respectively. Pepperdine (16-12, 9-5)and LMU (17-11, 7-7) have a firstround bye and will play Saturday, thesecond day of action.

The bottom four units of thebracket will see court competitionFriday. No. 5 seeded Saint Mary’s (11-18, 7-7) faces No. 8 seeded Santa Clara(3-26, 1-13) at noon. The contest willbe followed by No. 6 San Diego (16-12, 7-7) versus No. 7 San Francisco(7-21, 3-11).

Gonzaga, who conquered its fifthconsecutive WCC regular season title,is the heavy favorite to attain the

tourney championship crown. Juniorforward Heather Bowman leads theBulldogs, averaging 19.8 points and7.5 rebounds per game. Furthermore,sophomore guard Court Vanderslootis contributing 16.4 points a game.

However, Portland, Pepperdineand LMU are forces to be reckonedwith. Both Portland and Pepperdinewere the only teams who defeatedGonzaga in conference play. Thatalone should say a lot about bothgroups.

Nevertheless, the story truly lieswith LMU, a well-coached team thatis young and talented. A trio,composed of sophomore RenahyYoung, freshman Alex Cowling andsenior Cassady Moore, leads theattack for the Lions. Young (14.3),Cowling (13.7) and Moore (11.4) areaveraging double figures.

LMU is scheduled to play thewinner between Saint Mary’s andSanta Clara on Saturday at noon. TheWWC takes place March 6-9. Allgames will be played at OrleansArena, Las Vegas.

THE BIG WEST CONFERENCETournament for men’s basketball willbe held March 11-14 at the AnaheimConvention Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Cal State Northridge currentlyholds the No. 1 seed since it is in thelead of conference standings.

CSUN carries an overall record of14-12, while being 10-4 in BWCaction. Long Beach State (14-13, 9-5)and the University of Pacific (16-11,9-6) hold the second and third spots,respectively.

UC Riverside sits in fourth with asurprising mark of 16-11 overall and7-7 in conference play. TheHighlanders have come a long way toplace themselves where they are as ofnow.

In the 2006-07 season, the teamfinished 7-24 overall and 1-13 inBWC play, placing eighth for the year.Soon after, during the first full seasonunder then new head coach JimWooldridge, the Highlanders went 9-21 and 4-12 in 2007-08, placingseventh in the standings.

Change was needed. Change wasdesired. Change is what UCR receivedthis year.

Wooldridge has guided the squadinto capturing a comfortable recordboth overall and in conferencecompetition. If the season endedtoday, the Highlanders would have afirst round bye in the tournament.This would be quite significant for thegroup in order to rest their bodies for

one more day.Sophomore forward Kyle Austin

leads the Highlanders in scoring,averaging 17.2 points per game. JavonBorum and Aaron Scott follow at 9.7and 9.6 points, respectively.

Cal State Fullerton, UC Davis, UCIrvine, UC Santa Barbara and CalPoly close out the rest of thestandings, respectively.

It will be the ninth consecutiveseason in which the tournament isheld at the Anaheim ConventionCenter, located across from theDisneyland Resort.

The Championship Game will beMarch 14 at 1 p.m. Tickets start at$25. Fox Sports Network is scheduledto televise the contest.

WCC WOMEN & BWC MEN TOURNAMENTS

sports | B Y M A R V I N G . V A S Q U E Z

WHAT DO SAMUEL L. JACKSON,Princess Di, Slick Rick and the Beatleshave in common? They have all, in theirtime, donned a Kangol on their heads.

From the halls of BuckinghamPalace to the streets of Harlem andHollywood red carpets, the Kangol hasleft its mark as a symbol of edgysophistication. Launched in England in1938 as a maker of berets for the Britisharmy, Kangol established a reputationas purveyors of quality hats with atouch of style.

It was, however, an unexpectedendorsement that brought the brandworldwide attention. Beginning in thelate ’70s the burgeoning New York hip-

hop scene of B-boys, graffiti artists andrappers adopted the Kangol as theirofficial headgear.

It was a fad, which like hip-hopitself has never gone away. But for allthis time, Kangols have only beenavailable at certain retailers while thecompany itself was based in the UK.

That is why the opening of the newKangol store in Venice, the first ever toopen its doors on American soil, is sucha momentous occasion. The openingparty on Dec. 5 of last year provedworthy of the Kangol name, completewith DJs and an open bar.

The store itself is housed in an oldbeach bungalow on Abbot KinneyBoulevard with a large front yard (idealfor parties). You can’t miss it. It’s the onewith the five-foot sculpture of the letter K.

Three showrooms feature mul-tiple styles, from the classics to themost fresh designs. Included are aselection of fashion forward hats ofhigh quality made from bamboofabric, organic cotton and even sweetcorn. Limited edition designs from“The Godfather of Harajuku” HiroshiFujiwara are on display in the backroom. On the wall you’ll see photo-graphs of various hip-hop iconssporting their favorite Kangol. Thesealone are worth a visit.

Kangol will host an in-store eventMarch 6, 6 p.m.-10 p.m., with an openbar sponsored by Transphusion EnergyDrink and discounts on selected styles.For more information, call (310) 399-8444.

KANGOL1132 Abbot Kinney Blvd.,Venice

essential l.a. | B Y D O V R U D N I C Kmusic dvd review

ART SHULMAN JUST WILL NOT GO AWAY! THE PROLIFICauthor of this piece has had no less than four full-length plays producedin the San Fernando Valley in the past year. Add to that this, the second

production of“Misconceptions,” andyou have six Shulmanopportunities.

“Misconceptions” isseven one act plays:“Beggars,” “The Hole,”“Measuring,” “Pigeons,”“Toys,” “Waitress,”“Discussion After thePlay Reading” and“Graveside.”

The monologues farebetter than the two andthree-person plays here.“The Hole” and“Graveside” are the mosttouching thanks to DianeFrank’s finely measuredperformance in the

former and despite author Shulman’s clunky delivery in the latter.Nancy Van Iderstine is full of life in an excellent turn as an actress-waitress in “Waitress.”

Frank and Morry Schorr do alright in “Toys,” but the rest of theplays are silly excursions. Director credits are divided among Shulman,Wynn Marlow, Kaz Matamura, Stan Mazin and Kristina Lloyd.

The Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre is located at 10900Burbank Blvd, North Hollywood. For more information, visit lcgrt.com.

The Greak KatBeethoven’s Guitar Shred(MVD)

Whether the Great Kat is the newBeethoven, there is definitely astrange genius at work in this metalmasterpiece. This Juilliard-trainedviolinist puts her intensely fastfingers to new use playing some ofthe fastest shredding you’re evergoing to hear on both electric guitarand violin.

The DVD offers both originalsongs and metal versions of favoritestandards by Beethoven, Bach andPaganini, plus her amazing version of

“Flight of the Bumblebee.”As this is a DVD of metal videos, it goes without saying that some

classical music aficionados will be offended by this before they even seethe blood or torture-inspired videos. The material does get quiteoffensive, but if you’re easily shocked, metal probably isn’t your forte.Whether it is a good or bad thing, the DVD will be over before you reallyeven have time to figure out what you think of it.Grade: B+

—Jonathan KnellBeethoven’s Guitar Shred is currently available.

‘MISCONCEPTIONS’Now-March 29 @ The LonnyChapman Group Theatre

B Y R O B E R T A X E L R O D

Diane Frank in “Misconceptions”

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musical

A STRANGE AND INTERESTING PLANT GROWS AT MUSHNIK’SFlorists. Business booms, but at a deadly price in “Little Shop ofHorrors.” An evil, man-eating plant from outer space promises Seymour

Krelborn (Gabe Greenspan) everythinghe desires, including the love of his life,Audrey (Katie Scarlett); all he has to do isturn a few people into plant food.

The camp horror classic cummusical comedy is presented with adelightful twist; all of the actors areunder 18.

Scarlett is adorable, and she can beltout a tune. Her rendition of “SomewhereThat’s Green” is mellifluous. Greenspan

plays Seymour as a charming schlub. Doc Hayman may be too cute to bethe villainous Dr. Orin Scrivello, DDS, but his performance is darling.

It’s a fun musical with an enthusiastic cast. Drive out to thehinterlands of the valley, and plant yourself in a seat. It’s a cultivatingexperience.

Eclectic Company Theatre is located at 5312 Laurel Canyon Blvd., NorthHollywood. For more information, visit eclecticcompanytheatre.org.

EVERYONE IN ATTENDANCE AWAITED THE SHOW. EVERYONEseemed excited. And everyone went home happy after an electrifying

performance.This is what “Rent” offers its

audiences at the Pantages Theatre.Superb performances by the

entire cast cultivated a stage of laughs,sighs, smiles, drama and a variety ofsongs. “Rent” deals with a group ofstruggling musicians and artists inNew York who experience financialdilemmas and AIDS crises, amongother things.

Directed by Michael Greif, “Rent”stars Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp.However, the audience fell in lovewith what Angel Schunard, played byJustin Johnston, portrayed.

Angel represented both a manand a woman, and the rest of the castindicated that Angel was indeed adrag queen. His performance was

above par, and it flourished throughout the show.The musical elicited a standing ovation after the finale. After all,

the story and lyrics were astonishingly executed.

The Pantages Theatre is located at 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood.For more information, visit broadwayla.org.

inner circle

‘LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS’Now-March 15 @ EclecticCompany TheatreB Y M I K E B U Z Z E L L I

‘RENT’Now-March 8 @ Pantages TheatreB Y M A R V I N G . V A S Q U E Z

Dear Lucia,I met this girl online about two

years ago, but we have never met. Inthe past six months she has given mesigns of interest.

She calls me and wants to knowwhat I’m doing. She’ll talk to me onthe phone for hours even if she’stired.

She’s asked me countless times togo out with her for dinner/movie. Alot of this happened during thesummer until about November. Shedoesn’t really seem to care as muchanymore.

During Christmas I bought her apresent and flowers to show her howmuch I cared for her, but before Igave them to her, she told me sheloves her ex. This ex b/f wasphysically abusive and treats her likecrap.

She’s been acting really rude tome lately – one minute saying I’mafraid to meet her, the next it’s,“Don’t bother meeting me at all,”andthe next it’s “I LOVE MY EX B/F.”

Yes I told her I liked her, but she’sbeing really wishy-washy. Last nightshe called me back and talked to meon the phone for almost half an hour,but at the end she said,“Don’t call meanymore.”

I e-mailed her saying, “OK fine Iwill listen to you; your wish is mycommand. I won’t IM you, e-mailyou, text you, call you or anythingelse.” I fully cut contact with her forgood.

Did I do the right thing? What isher problem?

I’m not a nice guywho takes a girl’s crap ora bad boy who mistreatsa girl in harmful ways.I’m just a down-to-earthguy.

—P.B.Dear P.B..

Actually, yes you are anice guy who takes a girl’s“crap,” otherwise this would not havebeen going on for so long. However,being nice without being discerning isjust being foolish. As usual, theproblem with being a nice guy is thatyou don’t have strong boundaries.

If I understand your e-mailcorrectly, you haven’t even met thisgirl? You violated the first rule ofInternet dating, and it was alldownhill from there.

If the person is not willing tomeet with you within a reasonableamount of time after your first phoneconversation, get out! It usuallymeans they’re not that serious aboutmeeting you or they have someoneelse.

You also wonder what herproblem is. Who cares? You’re askingthat question because she rejectedyou and you wonder if there wassomething wrong with you thatwould lead her to do that. Did youever consider that she’s just a veryimmature girl who will constantlydrive you nuts with her mixedmessages?

How many red flags do you haveto see before you hit the road? Youdodged a bullet. Move on.

Dear Lucia,I met a lady, and we went out five

to six times. We kissed,hugged and touched.Yesterday she promised togo out with me, but shedid not show up and shedid not respond to my textmessages.

I received a call from aguy, her ex-boyfriend. Hetold me they are stillfriends, and I am de-stroying his relationship

with her. He wants me to stop seeingher.

I sent a text telling her whathappened, but she did not respond.What do you think?

—HowieDear Howie,

There is a quote that says, “Hewho is silent, agrees.”

She did not call you back todisagree with what her ex-boyfriendsaid. This woman is currently notinterested.

Move on, and if she comes back,make sure there are no ex-boyfriendslurking in the background.

Write to Lucia at theartoflove.net.

Read an excerpt from Lucia’sLessons of Love at lessonsoflove.net.

Listen to Lucia live every Sunday at3 p.m. PST on latalkradio.com.

Remember: Love inspires, empowers,uplifts and enlightens.

The Art of Love is sponsored byCougar Energy Drink.

the art of love | B Y L U C I A

Lucia

AH, THE FATHER’S OFFICEcolumn. It was inevitable.

Father’s Office represents analmost hush-hush cult following in theCity of Angels. I would argue that thevast amount of newcomers here havebeen taken by friends who aregenerous enough to share the secret.

And what is the secret you mightask? There is one item that must betasted by every resident of Los Angelesat some point in his/her existence here.And that one item is: the Office Burger.

This is the type of food item thatliterally haunts you in your sleep. Youtry it once, and you cannot get it out ofyour head. I think it essentially rewiresthe brain, spoiled that you have given itsuch an amazing substance.

Here’s the rundown. The burgerstarts with dry aged sirloin. Add thefollowing on top: caramelized onion,Applewood bacon compote, Gruyère,

Maytag Blue Cheese and arugula. Topall this off on a softFrench roll and there youhave it.

I am not going tofurther divulge thisburger. Consider it re-quired admission to livein this city. It’s that good.

The ambiance insideFather’s Office 2.0, a.k.a.the Culver City location,is hip and modern withjust a teensy bit ofpretentious, “I know how good I am”vibe. That’s OK. There is anothersmaller location in Santa Monica thatis the original founding building. Ittends to get quite crowded, so it feltnice to be able to stretch out a bit at the2.0 off Helms Avenue near SonyStudios.

While the burger is the real star

here, the beer selection is equallyfantastic. They have 30-plus beers ondraft with virtually every one foreign

to this somewhateducated beer drinker.

Confused? Ask thebartender for somerecommendations, andyou will be sure to havesomething special, for-eign and altogetherunique to complimentyour burger.

While the quirks ofFather’s Office areplentiful, i.e. the lack of a

single ketchup bottle for the tasty sweetpotato and shoestring fries, theseanomalies only add to the truly uniquenature of this establishment. F-Off is asAngeleno as it gets. Do yourself a favorand pay a visit.

For more information, call (310) 736-2224 or visit fathersoffice.com.

the bar exam | B Y Z A C H B O U R Q U E

FATHER’S OFFICE

Katie Scarlett and Gabe Greenspanin “Little Shop of Horrors”

Sher

ry L

ynn

3229 Helms Ave., Culver City

Zach BourqueMichael McElroy and Justin Johnston in “Rent”

Joan

Mar

cus


THURSDAY, MARCH 5

L.A. Comedy Shorts ’09 Film FestivalDowntown Independent, 251 South Main St.,Downtown; lacomedyshorts.com

This four-day celebration of comedicshort films features parties, industry panels, anawards event, celebrities and a screenplaycompetition. Through Sunday.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6

“Fringes-Margins-Borders”Highways Performance Space, 1651 18th St.,Santa Monica; highwaysperformance.org

This tour features the Los Angeles’ QueerExchange, plus several San Francisco artists. Fri &Sat, 8:30 p.m.; Sun, 3 p.m. $20/$15 for students.

SATURDAY, MARCH 7

ArtsDay L.A.UCLA Extension. 10995 Le Conte Ave., FourthFloor, Westwood; artsdayla.org

Attend sessions in Creative Writing,Design Communication Arts, EntertainmentStudies (Film, Television, Music), InteriorDesign, Landscape Architecture andScreenwriting. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. FREE.

L.A. County Irish FairFairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona;www2.la-irishfair.com

Irish music and dance performers, food,arts and crafts, parades, exhibits and aLeprechaun Kingdom. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. AlsoSunday. $16 a day; $26 for two-day pass.

Arts Tune-UpPlummer Park, 7377 Santa Monica Blvd.,West Hollywood; lacountyarts.org

Artists and small budget organizations canbenefit from expert advice and info on variousaspects of arts management. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. FREE.

New Russian Cinema Film FestivalJames Bridges Theater, UCLA’s Melnitz Hall,235 Charles E. Young Drive, East;moscow.ucla.edu

The U.S. premiere of Everybody Dies ButMe, the Camera d’Or winner at Cannes, aswell as Russian animation and documentaryshorts, art and music. Noon-8 p.m.

SUNDAY, MARCH 8

Hiphop 4 Peace: A Benefit For DarfurGrand Star Jazz Club, 943 Broadway,Downtown; myspace.com/hiphop4darfur

Live music, DJs and artwork; with allproceeds benefiting darfurpeace.org. 2 p.m.-8p.m. $5.

35th Annual Festival of the KiteRedondo Beach Pier, Torrance Blvd. & PCH;redondopier.com

Of course there are kites, but also a yo-yocompetition, martial arts demonstrations, livemusic, food and prizes. Noon-4 p.m. FREE.

MONDAY, MARCH 9

Afternoon Dining MenuBistro 31, 2900 31st St., Santa Monica;aicala.artinstitutes.edu/bistro31

Get an inexpensive gourmet lunchprepared by soon-to-graduate culinarystudents from the Art Institute of Los Angeleswith the most expensive menu item at only$7.95. Mon-Wed., 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMENWestwood Brewing Company, 1097 Glendon Ave., Los Angeles

Stop by and celebrate ! 80s cover bandNeurotic City (myspace.com/neuroticcity) performs at 10p.m. Complimentary promotional giveaways while supplieslast. WATCHMEN in theatres and IMAX 03.06.09watchmenmovie.com

the 10 spot | B Y F R E D E R I C K M I N T C H E L L

To submit an event forconsideration, e-mail

[email protected].{ }MedIUM

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FEASTthe

© 2009 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., ParamountPictures Corporation and Legendary Pictures. All RightsReserved. WATCHMEN and all related characters andelements are trademarks of and © DC Comics.

FOR ALL FESTIVAL INFO VISIT COACHELLA.COM

Paul McCartneyMorrissey Franz FerdinandLeonard Cohen Conor Oberst Beirut the Black Keys Girl TalkSilversun Pickups the Ting Tings the Crystal Method Ghostland Observatory Crystal Castles the Airborne Toxic Event

We Are Scientists N.A.S.A. Patton & Rahzel M. Ward the Presets the Hold Steady A Place to Bury Strangers

Felix da Housecat Buraka Som Sistema Ryan Bingham Bajofondo Peanut Butter Wolf Noah & the Whale White Lies

the Bug Alberta Cross Los Campesinos! Craze & Klever Molotov Switch Gui Boratto Steve Aoki the Aggrolites

Genghis Tron People Under the Stairs the Courteeners Cage the Elephant Dear and the Headlights

MysticValley Band

andthe

FRIDAY APRIL 17

The KillersAmy Winehouse Thievery Corporation

TV on the Radio Band of Horses Fleet Foxes MSTRKRFTMichael Franti & Spearhead Atmosphere Mastodon TRAV$DJ-AM Henry Rollins Crookers Jenny Lewis Turbonegro

Hercules and Love Affair Superchunk Glasvegas Dr. Dog Drive-By Truckers Booker T & the DBT’s Amanda Palmer

the Bloody Beetroots Surkin Para One (Live) Calexico Liars Junior Boys Zane Lowe Electric Touch Blitzen Trapper

Glass Candy James Morrison Bob Mould Band Drop the Lime Thenewno2 Gang Gang Dance

Billy Talent Ida Maria Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti Zizek Club Cloud Cult Tinariwen

SATURDAY APRIL 18

The CureMy Bloody Valentine Yeah Yeah Yeahs Throbbing Gristle Lupe Fiasco Paul Weller Peter Bjorn and John XAntony & the Johnsons Roni Size Reprazent Public Enemy Groove Armada Christopher Lawrence Paolo Nutini

Lykke Li the Kills Okkervil River M.A.N.D.Y. Clipse Sebastien Tellier Fucked Up Perry Farrell the Horrors

Late of the Pier K’naan Brian Jonestown Massacre Supermayer No Age Vivian Girls Shepard Fairey

Themselves Friendly Fires the Gaslight Anthem the Knux Mexican Institute of Sound

the Night Marchers Marshall Barnes

DJ Set

SUNDAY APRIL 19

Campus Circle Newspaper Vol. 19 Issue 9

Documents

Transcript of Campus Circle Newspaper Vol. 19 Issue 9