issue 70 by debbie stoller

FOR WOMEN WITH SOMETHING TO GET OFF THEIR CHESTS

AUG/SEPT 2011 − VOLUME 70

Vera Farmiga on creating better roles for women

Roommate

Nightmares how to deal

8 Bangin’ DIY Nail Ideas (Put Tom Selleck’s face on your ﬁngers!)

ULTIMATE

FALL GUIDE

What to watch, read, wear, & rock out to this season

FEATURES [AUG/SEPT ’11]

66 62

Contents

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: FRANCES TULK-HART; YELENA BRYKSENKOVA; JENNY GAGE AND TOM BETTERTON; DAVID TORCH

52 41 41

THE BUST FALL PREVIEW A guided tour through

HIGH TIMES Screen siren Vera Farmiga is blazing

HELL HOUSE Learn to navigate roommate drama without losing your mind. By Rosemary Counter

MODERN NATURE Darling denim looks that will leave you begging for the blues. Photographed by Frances Tulk-Hart, styling by Galadriel Masterson

the girl-friendliest movies, television, and music of the season. By Jenni Miller, Erin DeJesus, and Jen Hazen a new trail as a daring director. By Jenni Miller

UNDER THE INFLUENCE Get fall’s mostwanted fashions for less. By Callie Watts and Kristina Uriegas-Reyes

ON THE COVER: VERA FARMIGA PHOTOGRAPHED BY JENNY GAGE AND TOM BETTERTON. STYLING: AMANDA ROSS @ THE WALL GROUP; HAIR: MIOK @ JUDY CASEY; MAKEUP: PATI DUBROFF @ THE WALL GROUP. DRESS: HAUTE HIPPIE.

// BUST / 3

CONTENTS

11 34

17 46 4 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

6 8

Editor’s Letter Dear BUST

Broadcast Actress Ahna O’Reilly takes us behind the scenes of The Help; Scarlett O’Hara turns 75; the Charlottesville Lady Arm Wrestlers muscle into our hearts; and more. 12 She-bonics Quotable quips from Maya Angelou, Aretha Franklin, Kristen Wiig, and Ellen Page. By Whitney Dwire 16 Hot Dates August and September events to remember. By Libby Zay 17 Boy du Jour Parks and Rec’s Adam Scott gets us hot. By Lisa Butterworth

Real Life Make your own dress form; stock your liquor cabinet with potent potables; get stoked on skillshares; and more. 22 Old School Mom’s Cheesecake. By Lisa Butterworth 23 Buy or DIY You’ll heart this creative nail art! By Fleury Rose and Callie Watts

Looks Fierce French style advice from artist Billie Martineau; designer Ashley Cheeks frocks on; philanthropic shopping with fashionABLE; and more. 36 BUST Test Kitchen Our interns rise to the task of testing face cleanser, hair serum, and a gel mask. 37 Good Stuff Accessorize your desk to look its best. By Stephanie J

Sex Files Questions for the Queen Dr. Carol Queen dishes the dirt to a sex-starved newlywed and a porn-curious co-ed. 88 One-Handed Read A Room With a View. By Sophie Kane

Columns 14 Pop Tart The attacks on Rebecca Black are wack. By Wendy McClure 20 News From a Broad Abercrombie & Fitch’s push-up problem. By Kara Buller 26 Eat Me Easy, yummy, veggie sushi! By Chef Rossi 30 Mother Superior Middle school madness. By Ayun Halliday 38 Around the World in 80 Girls Find vacation bliss in Minneapolis! By Rhena Tantisunthorn 95 X Games Why Are You Such a Dick? By Deb Amlen The BUST Guide 75 Music Reviews; including new releases from Beyoncé and Dolly! 79 Movies When Seeking Happily Ever After, The Whistleblower warns, Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. 81 Books Reviews; plus, the winner of Amber Tamblyn’s poetry contest is revealed! 80 91 96

Party Pics Flashes of brilliance from the BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair 2011! BUSTshop The Last Laugh There’s a little Tammy Pierce in all of us. By Esther Pearl Watson

FROM TOP: GLYNIS SELINA ARBAN; SPARKLY PONY; BRIGITTE SIRE

Regulars

EDITOR’S LETTER

AUG/SEPT 2011 – VOLUME 70

fall for it FOR WOMEN WITH SOMETHING TO GET OFF THEIR CHESTS

THIS IS THE third year that we’ve done a Fall Preview Issue—where we search high and low to bring you the most lady-friendly upcoming TV shows, movies, music releases, and fashion trends—but it’s the first time it’s been this easy. We gals are accustomed to getting short shrift in popular culture, but this fall, when it comes to network TV, at least, girls rule and boys drool. And by “girls,” I mean women, and by “rule” I mean that of the 39 new shows being offered by ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox, 22 focus on female characters. That’s 56 percent, bitches! In fact, it’s such a noticeable difference that the press has taken to calling 2011 “The Year of the Woman” (meaning that every prior year has been “The Year of the Man”?). Of course, just because there are lots of new shows about women doesn’t mean that there are lots of good shows about women, but this fall’s selections look pretty promising (page 46). Call it the Tina Fey factor or whatever, but it’s as if the TV network executives all woke up one morning and realized that there are millions of us Vaginal Americans out here, and we watch TV, too. Unfortunately, movie executives don’t seem to have gotten the memo, and, on the female front, most of their fall releases continue to be full of fail. Even in this post-Bridesmaids era, it’s difficult to find films in which women play roles other than the personality-free lust interest of the male protagonist, his nagging, sexless wife, or his nagging, sexless mother, but we managed to locate a few (page 42). If you’re as disturbed as I am about the crappy way women are often portrayed in films, you’ll be happy to know that we have a like-minded ally in this issue’s cover gal, Vera Farmiga. Tired of getting and rejecting scripts with lame-ass female roles, Farmiga finally took matters into her own hands, directing and starring in her latest film, Higher Ground. The movie won accolades at Sundance as well as here at BUST HQ (everyone in the office who was lucky enough to preview the flick said it was funny, feminist-y, and fantastic), and we were excited to have the opportunity to sit down with the angelic-faced star for some seriously smart girl talk (page 52). But while the movie industry is still behind the times and the TV biz is just starting to catch up, the music world has long had loads of lovely ladies on offer, as they do again this season. With such a wide variety of options, paring it down to a short list of our favorite upcoming releases wasn’t easy, but we did it (page 49). Of course, when it comes to fashion, everything is reversed. There, it’s all about us women, although unfortunately, it’s also frequently about our wallets and how to empty them. That’s why we took three of our favorite fall runway looks and found some great, affordable pieces to help you rock them without breaking the bank (page 58). And for even more fall inspiration, check out the cute clothes in this issue’s fashion story on page 66 (as I overheard a visiting stylist say, “We’re having a denim moment!!”). Lest you forget, autumn is for more than just sitting around on your butt, being entertained. It’s also the perfect time to get your DIY on, and we’ve got plenty of ideas to keep you busy, including how to make your own dress form (page 21), bling out your fingernails (page 23), make veggie sushi (page 26), and stock a liquor cabinet (page 28). But beware—the onset of fall means you’ll be spending more time indoors, and if you live with roommates, you’ll be seeing a lot of them. To make sure things at home are more swell-ish than hellish, don’t miss our story on dealing with room-hate (page 62). All that, plus an interview with the supercute Adam Scott and a steaming-hot OneHanded Read, should help keep you warm even as the weather gets cool. Enjoy! xoxoxo

Debbie

6 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Debbie Stoller CREATIVE DIRECTOR Laurie Henzel MANAGING EDITOR Emily Rems SENIOR EDITOR Lisa Butterworth SENIOR DESIGNER Erin Wengrovius CUSTOMER SERVICE + CRAFTY LADY Callie Watts BOOKS EDITOR Priya Jain ASSOCIATE MUSIC EDITOR Jen Hazen

PUBLISHERS Laurie Henzel & Debbie Stoller DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING + MARKETING Emily Andrews, 212.675.1707 x112, ads@bust.com SALES MANAGER: BUSTSHOP + MARKETPLACE Stephanie DiPisa, 917.442.8465, stephanied@bust.com EVENT + PROMOTIONS COORDINATOR Nikki Hung, 212.675.1707 x104, nikkihung@bust.com BOOKKEEPER Amy Moore, accounting@bust.com EDITORIAL INTERNS: Ariana Anderson, Erina Davidson, Grace Evans, Eileen Milman, Kate Senecal, Kristina Uriegas-Reyes, Jessica Wolford MARKETING INTERN: Samantha Peltz FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS Please email subscriptions@bust.com or call 866.220.6010 FOR BOOBTIQUE ORDERS Please email orders@bust.com WWW.BUST.COM ©2011 BUST, Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the permission of the publisher. The articles and advertising appearing within this publication reﬂect the opinions and attitudes of their respective authors and not necessarily those of the publisher or editors. Canada Post: Publications Mail Agreement #40612608 Canada returns to be sent to Bleuchip International, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2

DEAR BUST A HIGH-FIVE FOR JUNE/JULY Thank you so much for handing out pages of grrrl power in your June/Julyy ’11 issue. It was great to read about witch house (“The Craft”), which I d wasn’t really familiar with—it’s a sound I’ve been looking for. What I especiallyy dug was checking out all the fashion booty, and Sue Eggen’s outﬁt (“Fashion Nation”) inspired me to not give up my rocker-librarian style. Elysha Valerio via email

MERCH GIRLS MATTER I’m a 44-year-old riot grrrl who has been very pleased to see this important movement back in the spotlight. I was struck by a comment in your article about Amy Klein (“Revolution Girl Style, Again,” June/July ’11), which sent a positive message until the last heartbreaking quote in which she said she had formed a feminist collective to show that women in music could be more than “merch girls and groupies.” Having been a merch grrrl for many years, I took offense. Merch grrrls are a part of the production team that keeps your favorite band on the road. It takes marketing, sales, and accounting skills. Is that the same as a “groupie”? Not in anyone’s book, I hope! Mimi Reilly, St. Petersburg, FL

AND BEAUTY FOR ALL I really enjoy the types of products you review in your “Test Kitchen” column. Not only do you introduce me to new brands with all-natural ingredients, but the prices are also very reasonable and the interns are honest about their experiences. My disappointment, though, is that I am often left wondering what effect some of the skin and beauty products would have on a woman of color. Featuring products that apply to readers of all races/ethnicities more often will keep you standing out from the rest of the humdrum women’s mags that so often exclude women of color in product recommendations and reviews. Aviva Jaye via email

DROP THE HIP-HOP First, I’d like to say that BUST is one of my favorite magazines. As an African American woman, BUST is a magazine much more inclusive of me than most. So imagine my disappointment when I opened the April/May Food Issue to ﬁnd a feature on Russell Simmons (“Super Man”). Hip-hop represents the greatest market share of the misogyny that I experience in the world, given that black women are its main targets for denigration. And Simmons has been a constant denier, excuse-maker, and obfuscator when challenged about the misogyny in hip-hop music. Sharifa Freightman, Hayward, Ca.

OOPS, WE DID IT AGAIN In the story “Hot Dates” (June/July ’11), the location of the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend should have been listed as Las Vegas, NV.

Get it off your chest! Send feedback to: Letters, BUST Magazine, 18 West 27th Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10001. Email: letters@bust.com. Include your name, city, state, and email address. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

8 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

// BUST / 9

CONTRIBUTORS

BUST A MOVE!

Yelena Bryksenkova, who illustrated “Hell House,” studied illustration at the Maryland Institute College of Art and has been living and working in Baltimore since completing her BFA in 2010. She enjoys traveling to—or simply dreaming about—distant places and reflecting on the abundant loveliness of our world. A native of Saint Petersburg, Russia, Bryksenkova often turns to the painters and illustrators of her home country’s Silver Age for inspiration. Her favorite things include elephants, dashing historical men, fancy urns, folklore, Soviet cosmonauts and the vastness of outer space, Russian ballerinas, the melancholy of bygone days, and other romantic sentiments. Rosemary Counter, who wrote “Hell House,” is a Toronto-based writer and recovering bad roommate. Her refusal to share food, preference for right angles, and allergies ruined not one but two roommate set-ups. Counter now lives with her boyfriend and keeps the passive-aggression to a bare minimum. It’s only fair, since he forgave her for writing The Decadent Housewife, a lifestyle guide fit for Peggy Bundy. Between junkets and catnaps, she has also written for Elle Canada, Flare, and Chatelaine— but you can best find her at rosemarycounter.com.

BUST Magazine is now available for your iPad. Download our free app from the iTunes store to get access to our current and past issues. VISIT WWW.BUST.COM/APP

10 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Jenny Gage and Tom Betterton, who shot Vera Farmiga for our cover, are a couple whose collaborations in photography and ﬁlm have brought a seductive, cinematic aesthetic to their projects in the worlds of art, fashion, and advertising. Their editorial work has included stories for W, Vogue Nippon, Self Service, Vanity Fair, and Vogue Italia. They have collaborated on many advertising campaigns, including ones for Ralph Lauren, JC Penney, Estee Lauder, and Missoni. Gage was raised in Malibu, CA, and received her MFA in photography from Yale University. Betterton was raised in Lawrenceville, NJ, and studied art at Dartmouth College. They live in Brooklyn, NY. Kelly McClure, who interviewed Wild Flag for our “Fall Preview” feature, is BUST’s former associate music editor. She has since re-located to Olympia, WA, where she works as the promotions director/publicist for K Records. She has written for magazines and Web sites including the Chicago Reader, Vice, Thought Catalog, the Hairpin, and Collapse Board. She has eaten upwards of ﬁve million pizzas in her lifetime, has caused some sort of scandalous ruckus in each city she’s lived in, and spends a great deal of time writing, highlighting, and re-organizing a variety of lists.

NEWS

+ VIEWS

saved by the belle

STYLIST: DJUNA BEL; HAIR: AVIVA @ STARWORKS; MAKEUP: VANESSA SCALI @ TRACEY MATTINGLY; DRESS: RISTO

ACTRESS AHNA O’REILLY’S ROLE IN THE HELP IS PUTTING HER ON THE MAP “IT’S DEFINITELY THE biggest thing I’ve ever done,” says actress Ahna O’Reilly, referring to her turn as misguided young housewife Elizabeth Leefolt in the much-anticipated ﬁlm adaptation of Kathryn Stockett’s best-selling novel The Help (opening August 12). Unfolding in 1962 Mississippi, the plot is set into motion when Leefolt is convinced by her childhood friend Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard) to build a separate bathroom for her black maid Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) due to health concerns—“they carry different diseases,” Holbrook informs. This decision helps set off a tidal wave of unrest among the town’s previously silent caretakers and the results of this turmoil ultimately hit housewives like Leefolt where they live. “Probably a majority of women at that time weren’t like the Hilly character,” O’Reilly says, considering her complicated role. “But I feel like many people could have found themselves in Elizabeth’s position of being really young and trying hard to do the right thing, not knowing that she was doing the wrong thing.” »

PHOTOGRAPHED BY GLYNIS SELINA ARBAN

/ // BUST BUST// 11 11

broadcast Janney, and Cicely Tyson is a dream come true. And it was actually her costar Octavia Spencer—who gives a hilarious performance as maid Minny Jackson—who suggested O’Reilly audition for the film. (The two have been friends since co-starring in the aforementioned 2009 comedy Herpes Boy.) “Octavia said, ‘Ahna, you have to get on this,’” recalls O’Reilly. “‘There are so many good parts for women. I think you should keep your eye on Elizabeth.’” The child of a travel-writer father, O’Reilly grew up “all over Europe” and speaks French fluently. However, with the exception of a post-high school road trip with girlfriends, the American south was uncharted territory for her. Then while filming The Help in Greenwood, MS, she fell in love with the town. “I could really talk about it for hours,” she says. “It was like being at summer camp, only we’re making this amazing movie. There were barbecues and cookouts. It was really an amazing time.” [SABRINA FORD]

she-bonics OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES

Listen Up! N.Y.C. comedy writer Julie Klausner —whose memoir I Don’t Care About Your Band was recently optioned by HBO—is now hosting one of the funniest podcasts on the Interwebs. How Was Your Week? is a winning combo of Klausner’s personal musings and hilarious interviews with pop culture luminaries including Rachel Dratch, Neko Case, and Joan Rivers. You never know who’ll be next, so tune in at howwasyourweek.libsyn.com.

PHOTO: ARI SCOTT

Before The Help, O’Reilly was perhaps best known for being the girlfriend of actor James Franco, whom she recently split with after ﬁve years together. And though the 20-something doesn’t like to discuss her personal life, she does admit that it feels good to be making a name for herself. “It’s an amazing feeling after maybe not being taken totally seriously,” says O’Reilly. “It’s very exciting and gratifying to have something that I’m really proud of.” O’Reilly has known she wanted to be an actress since she was eight and joined a Bay Area regional theater group with her two younger sisters. “I did not grow up with TV,” she says, “so I really miss out on jokes about Saved by the Bell. I never have any idea what people are talking about!” After a series of small roles in big movies (like Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and big roles in small movies (like Herpes Boy), O’Reilly says being a part of The Help’s all-star cast that includes Emma Stone, Sissy Spacek, Allison

[COMPILED BY WHITNEY DWIRE]

“The sister bonds have been weakened. I tell young women that it’s not smart to put your ace girlfriends to the side because you have a man in your life. Like my mother would say, ‘Men come and go. But your women friends are always there for you.’ Even if you and he are together for 50 years, you still need your sisters.” Maya Angelou in Essence “I am going to rock this [size] 16. Sixteen probably sounds large to girls who wear 10s and 12s, but I love it, because it looks good on me.” Aretha Franklin in Elle

“When I did Hard Candy, which is a vigilante movie, I was constantly getting comments about the violence. Men would chuckle and say, ‘I don’t want to go anywhere near you!’ But every time you turn on the news women are being raped, murdered, and left in dumpsters. It’s the beginning of every Law & Order episode.” Ellen Page in BlackBook

12 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

PHOTO: PHOTOFEST

“[With Bridemaids] we wanted to write a movie that had a lot of funny women in it and to talk about female friendships and what happens as we get older and how those relationships sometimes change. It was important for us to give women an opportunity to be funny and real. It’s a challenge to ﬁnd roles for women these days that are comedic and not always the crazy lady that lives next door.” Kristen Wiig in Bullett

broadcast POP TART [BY WENDY MCCLURE]

black friday IT’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN FAME AND HATE THE FIRST THING I ever knew about Rebecca Black was that the whole world hated her—or at least the entire Internet. One day, out of curiosity, I’d clicked on her name in the list of trending topics on Twitter, and up came a constantly

ing singers. And, like most aspiring singers, especially young ones, it’s kind of a crappy effort. With its annoying use of autotune and lyrics dumber than a box of hair extensions, “Friday” wasn’t ready for prime time. Which is exactly why the song—and with it,

Imagine Rita Hayworth being discovered at a soda fountain only to then be immediately pelted with dog shit, and you’ll get a pretty good idea of how Rebecca Black became a household name. updating list of tweets that read like an international slam book page: “Rebecca Black OMG LAME!!!” and “rebecca black needs to die already” and “POR QUE REBECCA BLACK?” and dozens of other furious little missives. The second thing I learned about Rebecca Black was that she was only 13. She seems innocuous enough—a girl with a nice smile and a decent singing voice. So what the hell did she do to reap a gazillion megabytes of sheer contempt? She recorded a song and put the video up on YouTube, just like countless other aspir-

14 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Rebecca Black—lived quietly in a corner of the Internet with all the other awful songs. That is, until this March, when the “Friday” video went viral after Comedy Central made fun of it. Imagine Rita Hayworth being discovered at a soda fountain only to then be immediately pelted with dog shit, and you’ll get a pretty good idea of how Rebecca Black became a household name, with more than 100 million page views on YouTube. It’s a demented twist on the Hollywood dream, where the “it” factor is how much people can’t fucking stand you. Don’t get me wrong—hate can be a

beautiful thing, particularly when it comes to pop culture. The day I realized I despised the Journey power ballad my classmates were swooning over (“Open Arms,” ugh) was a formative moment in my young life. So much of our identities are forged by a searing dislike of the various songs, bands, shows, movies, and genres that represent whatever it is that we’re against. Loathing keeps you steadfast in the face of popular opinion and endless marketing. Yet there’s nothing even remotely individualistic about the hatred Rebecca Black inspires. It’s mass hate—a middle-school pack mentality multiplied by 100,000,000. Only a small portion of the animosity has anything to do with “Friday.” The rest is directed at Black herself—the kind of arbitrary criticisms that fuel a typical seventh-grade hatefest and denounce her as annoying, slutty, ugly, stupid, and full of herself. Of course, similar epithets are hurled at lots of young female celebrities, not just 13-yearolds. Rebecca Black, lucky gal, is both those things, and people hate her in order to be part of an anonymous horde where saying mean stuff has no consequences, a swarm that’s loud enough to be heard around the world. But hey, it’s all about the buzz, right? After all, the kid is famous now. Rebecca Black’s ragged-on-to-riches story might be an inevitable result of our increasingly hate-powered culture. As plenty of hip-hop songs will tell you, having “haters” is just as much a status symbol of fame as the bling and the Bentleys. And didn’t Paris Hilton savvily build a whole career out of being the girl we loved to hate? Only, Rebecca Black is no Paris. She’s just a middle-school girl. Of course, by now she’s also appeared on talk shows, has been called “a genius” by Lady Gaga, and is gracefully riding the wave of public sympathy—and great publicity—that followed the tide of disgust. An extremely fortunate reverse backlash that other fame-seekers will no doubt try to recreate. God help us when they do. Is Rebecca Black’s example teaching girls her age to stay strong and keep their heads held high through deluges of hate? Or are they learning that the swiftest route to popularity is to endure a gauntlet of bullies? Either way, I hate that our world has come to this.

ILLUSTRATED BY EMMA TRITHART

// BUST / 15

broadcast

hot dates

THINGS TO SEE, PEOPLE TO DO August 3 – 7

the scarlett letters

GONE WITH THE WIND’S FEISTY HEROINE ENDURES GLORIA STEINEM ONCE said that the image of Scarlett O’Hara squeezing herself into a whalebone corset was a perfect icon of female bondage. But Margaret Mitchell’s complex protagonist was more than a 16-inch waist. A woman trapped by her time—when, Mitchell wrote, “The man roared like a bull when a splinter was in his ﬁnger, and the woman mufﬂed the moans of childbirth, lest she disturb him”—Scarlett nevertheless transcended the world of reconstruction Georgia, becoming at various times a business owner, a man-hustler, a killer, an unwilling mother, and above all, a consummate survivor. Perhaps this is why she has inspired writers for so long. To celebrate the Pulitzer-winning novel’s 75th anniversary, we take a second look at the greeneyed vixen in her original story and the many sequels that followed.

LUCILLE BALL FESTIVAL OF COMEDY Whip out your red wig, crimson lipstick, and pumps! For three days, Lucille Ball lovers will descend on Jamestown, NY, to celebrate what would have been her 100th birthday with lots of laughter. Joan Rivers and Whitney Cummings will put on tribute shows to the Queen of Comedy, while tours of Lucy’s hometown will abound along with dinner shows, parades, and more. Lucy fans should visit lucy-desi.com for all the deets—and the rest of you got some ’splainin’ to do. Through August 21 LORNA SIMPSON: “GATHERED” Brooklyn-born artist Lorna Simpson’s new show juxtaposes hundreds of original and found vintage photos of African Americans in the 1950s with self-portraits featuring the same pose and costuming. “Linking the historical photographs with her staged responses creates a ﬁctionalized narrative in which the two characters appear to be linked across history in a shared identity or destiny.” The show is happening at the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art at the Brooklyn Museum (brooklynmuseum.org). Opening September 1

Scarlett, 1991 Alexandra Ripley’s Mitchell Foundation–endorsed sequel liberates Scarlett ’90s-style. She moves to Ireland, takes on a revolution, has a love child, and gets chummy with a medicine woman, stopping just short of joining a band and founding a ’zine in this blend of bodice ripper and riot grrrl. The Wind Done Gone, 2001 In Alice Randall’s unauthorized parody, Scarlett’s not just a woman in a man’s world, she’s a black woman in a white man’s world. But she doesn’t know that—her family is light enough to veil its ancestry in this subversive counter-narrative. The Winds of Tara, 2002 Katherine Pinotti’s unauthorized sequel features an overly emotional Scarlett, an illegitimate Catholic pregnancy, and enough italics for all the other books put together. Rhett Butler’s People, 2007 Donald McCaig’s authorized sequel tells Scarlett’s story from her third husband’s perspective. Predictably, she gets naked in a party mask and makes statements like, “Rhett’s authority was as delicious as it was hateful.” The real Scarlett wouldn’t give it up like that—she’d make him beg. [RACHEL DOVEY]

16 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

“LINEDRIVES AND LIPSTICK” “What’s wrong with the world when girls just will be boys?” asks a 1931 soap ad picturing a skirted blonde sliding into ﬁrst base. It’s just one of the objects on display in this exhibit that traces the untold story of women’s baseball in the WWII-era—a must-see for anyone who grew up watching A League of Their Own. The show has been traveling the country since 2008 and will be at the Wyoming State Museum through October 20 before continuing its tour of the U.S. For a full schedule, hit up eusa.org. September 22 – 25 FEMINIST THEORY AND MUSIC CONFERENCE Now in its 20th year, the Feminist Theory and Music Conference at Arizona State University’s School of Music will span the last week in September. A collaboration with the school’s Women and Gender Studies program, the conference will celebrate the past and current contributions of women in music and seek to advance feminist theory in music through recitals, performances, and discussions. Sound off at ftm11.events.asu.edu. [COMPILED BY LIBBY ZAY]

ILLUSTRATION: CLARE OWEN

Gone With the Wind, 1936 Bustles and ostrich plumes aside, Mitchell’s masterpiece isn’t about girlish frailty; the rub of this tragic love story lies in its heroine’s strength—her ability to run plantations, saw mills, and Southern gentry alike—but ultimate inability to master her own fate.

STYLIST: SAMANTHA BAKER; GROOMER: SYDNEY ZIBRAK @ WALL GROUP; BLAZER: JIL SANDER; SHIRT: PAUL SMITH; JEANS: JIL SANDER

BOY DU JOUR

great scott! PARKS AND REC’S ADAM SCOTT HEATS UP OUR SUMMER IN OUR IDIOT BROTHER “C’MON,” ADAM SCOTT says to me with an extremely skeptical look on his face, his head tilted and an eyebrow cocked. “Really?” I’m pretty sure I’ve just embarrassed the hell out of the ridiculously humble Parks and Recreation star by breaking the news that discerning BUST readers all over the country think he’s pretty damn crushworthy—a sex symbol for the thinking girl, if you will. “Well, I guess that’s better than the dumb girl’s sex symbol,” the low-key 38-year-old says before breaking into a self-effacing laugh. »

PHOTOGRAPHED BY BRIGITTE SIRE

/ // BUST BUST// 17 17

broadcast Dolly Joseph, aka the Schoolmarm, takes on Reagan Greenﬁeld, aka Tragedy Ann, at a CLAW bout

18 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

lean on me

THE CHARLOTTESVILLE LADY ARM WRESTLERS ANSWER A CALL TO ARMS CHEERING, SHOUTING, AND elbowing for space under a tent in a Charlottesville, VA, parking lot, 700 spectators are trying to keep their eyes on the match. But this isn’t your average sporting event—it’s a Charlottesville Lady Arm Wrestlers bout, and these fans are supporting women’s charities while urging their fave competitors on. It all started at a bar one night in the fall of 2007, when pals Jennifer Hoyt Tidwell, 39, and Jodie Plaisance, 41, decided to arm wrestle. Tidwell claims she “crushed [Plaisance] easily,” and Plaisance demanded a rematch. Their friends soon wanted to get in on the action, too, so a few months later the Charlottesville Lady Arm Wrestlers (CLAW) hosted its ﬁrst match. In the four years since, CLAW has grown to include 75 women who all adopt menacing pseudonyms and DIY costumes in much the same way roller derby girls do. At their quarterly matches, wrestlers with names like the Morton Assault Girl, Stiletto Southpaw, the Homewrecker, and Tragedy Ann arrive with costumed entourages who encourage onlookers to purchase “CLAWbucks” (one CLAWbuck for one dollar) to “bet” on the match. Then all the money raised— including cover charges, ringside seats, and T-shirt sales—goes to local women’s organizations such as Books Behind Bars (which provides books to women’s prisons) and SARA (The Sexual Assault Resource Agency). To date, CLAW has raised over $30,000, and with new chapters cropping up in New Orleans; Taos, NM; Chicago; Hudson Valley, NY; and San Francisco, that number is only expected to grow. “We’re raising money to support women and that’s what it’s all about,” says Plaisance. “It was just a silly idea, but it has made such a difference in our community, and now hopefully the nation.” For more info, visit clawville.org. [CELIA SHATZMAN]

PHOTO: BILLY HUNT

“I do notice that those who come up to say hello always tend to be smart, cool people who I would like to hang out with. They seem like they would be friends of mine,” he continues before reconsidering with a shake of his head. “The way I just said that made it sound like I’m fucking cool and all of my friends better be fucking cool or I’m not going to be friends with them. That is not what I meant.” It’s this kind of humility that is a big part of Scott’s appeal, which is in full effect in his new movie Our Idiot Brother (opening August 26). The sweet and hilarious film stars Scott’s real-life pal Paul Rudd as a down-on-his-luck slacker, and Zooey Deschanel, Elizabeth Banks, and Emily Mortimer as the three sisters whose lives he uproots. The release of Our Idiot Brother comes at a time when Scott, who plays Elizabeth Banks’ flirty neighbor, is just starting to enjoy some serious Hollywood cachet. Although he’s been in the acting biz for years, it was his role as the sarcastic star of the short-lived cult hit TV series Party Down in 2009 and 2010, coupled with his current gig as Leslie Knope’s forbidden love interest Ben Wyatt on Parks and Recreation, that finally garnered him the attention he deserves. “I always thought that, if it ever happened to me, it would feel like a warm embrace from the public,” he says about becoming a recognizable actor. “But weirdly, when I really started [getting recognized], all it felt like was that I had a disease on my face.” Starring on Parks has also given him the opportunity to work with some of comedy’s coolest women, including Amy Poehler. “Working with her is super fun,” he says. “She’s just a really warm, mellow, great person, so it really is a joy. I’m lucky I get to be on the show, but I’m also lucky I get to do a lot of my stuff with her.” As far as working with awesome ladies goes, Scott’s on a roll. His next project, Jennifer Westfeldt’s Friends With Kids (slated for release early next year), is the all-too-rare movie written and directed by a woman, something he’d like to see more of. “That’s hopefully changing,” he says, regarding the dearth of female directors in Hollywood. “But the business is primarily run by men, as many businesses are, and they have an unfair advantage. Women have a totally different perspective on life. They should be able to express it with as much frequency as men do.” [LISA BUTTERWORTH]

/ BUST / 19

broadcast NEWS FROM A BROAD [BY KARA BULLER]

itsy, bitsy, teeny, weeny ABERCROMBIE’S TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE BIKINI THIS JUST IN from the “How are they sexualizing our children now?” department: clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch recently found itself blasted by the blogosphere after releasing a line of padded, push-up bikini tops intended for

it offered thong underwear emblazoned with the ﬂirty messages “wink wink” and “eye candy” in young girls’ sizes. In response to this kind of disturbing cultural phenomena, the American Psychological Association started a task force analyzing

Abercrombie & Fitch recently found itself blasted by the blogosphere after releasing a line of padded, push-up bikini tops intended for girls as young as seven. girls as young as seven. Following a week of growing criticism, Abercrombie Kids changed the online product description, removing the words “padded” and “pushup” and replacing them with “triangle.” When that did not stop the noise, the next week they pulled the most objectionable item, the push-up top “Ashley,” from their site entirely. It seems the company may have a bad child-sexualizing habit. In 2002, the controversy-seeking clothier incurred similar parental wrath when

20 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

the sexualization of girls in America, and released a damning report in 2010. This sparked two congresswomen to initiate the Healthy Media for Youth Act, which is currently stuck in committee review. In the meantime, score one for the mommy bloggers.

LADY LOOKS LIKE A DUDE Intersex Olympians still have to outrun the IOC The International Olympic Committee

announced its new policy for addressing the issue of female athletes with hyperandrogenism, or the condition of having naturally occuring “excess” male hormones. The new rules do not create a bright line for determining how much testosterone is too much, but they do establish a fairer-minded procedure for addressing the ethical challenges created by intersexed competitors. Although the committee said her case had nothing to do with the new rules, they will come in handy should intersexed South African runner Caster Semenya run in the London 2012 Olympics. Under the new regulations, the suspicions of teammates or the media alone cannot trigger an investigation, but unusual test results for male sex traits, observed when a urine sample is collected, can. If a woman is determined to have too much of a real competitive advantage due to androgens, the medical experts will establish “conditions she needs to meet in order to return to competition.” What these conditions are remains to be established. Gender tests and all the awkwardness, humiliation, and heated emotions that come along with them have been around since shortly after women were ﬁrst permitted to compete in the Olympics over 100 years ago. Let’s hope the IOC can ﬁnd a way to be fair and compassionate to all competitors.

SAUSAGE FEST Ladies lose out at Lollapalooza Speaking of testing positive for excess testosterone, this year’s all-male Lollapalooza headliner list consists of Eminem, Muse, Coldplay, and the Foo Fighters. This isn’t the ﬁrst year for an all-male headliner list, but including second stages, there are 136 acts playing the concert series this August, and only 41 have even one woman in the band. This low-estrogen Lolla lineup comes on the heels of similar criticisms that the initial roster of performers for this year’s South by Southwest comedy stage was devoid entirely of women. What are we to do? Maybe it’s time to revive Ladyfest!

ILLUSTRATED BY KARA SCHLINDWEIN

Real Life body double MAKE A DIY DRESS FORM TO MEET ALL YOUR CLOTHES-FITTING NEEDS THE EASIEST AND most effective way to alter clothing or create your own pieces is by using a dress form. But the mannequin-like stands that let you see how a work in progress will look when worn can be crazy expensive and come in limited sizes. So why not grab your bestie and a roll of duct tape and make your own customized dress form? This DIY project is a cheap way to get the perfect ﬁt— not to mention it makes for a fun afternoon with a friend. »

PHOTOGRAPHED BY SARAH ANNE WARD

// BUST / 21

real life MATERIALS •

Good-quality duct tape

•

Gaffers tape (optional)

•

Old unwanted T-shirt

•

Scissors

•

Stufﬁng material (newspaper, fabric scraps, spray foam, packing peanuts, etc.)

•

Cardboard

•

Microphone stand (about $20, available at any music store)

•

A friend, because you can’t do this by yourself

1. Put on your T-shirt. It should be somewhat ﬁtted and long enough to cover your hips. Wear tights or leggings and your everyday bra. Now grab your friend so she can duct tape your upper body to create the main part of the form. Good posture is key—be sure to stand with your shoulders back and your chin up. Start by wrapping duct tape around your torso just under your bust, going around several times. Make it snug, but not so tight that you can’t breathe comfortably. Take a long piece of tape and attach it to the center of the tape around your torso, right between your boobs. Bring it over your right shoulder and down your back like a sash; attach it to the torso tape on your back below your left shoulder. Repeat for the other shoulder. This creates what looks

OLD SCHOOL mom’s

like a harness, or a criss-cross bra. Use a couple of long pieces of tape to build on the over-theshoulder lines, using the same starting point, but widening the “straps” to the left and right until you reach the edge of your shoulders and neck, without covering your actual boobs. The tape’s placement on the back can be less precise, just make sure you attach it to the torso tape. Then use shorter pieces of tape to ﬁll in the uncovered areas on the back, sides, and front from the bustline up, including your boobs. Always wrap the tape around the curves of your body, trying to keep it as smooth as possible. Fold the tape over the neckline of the T-shirt so that no fabric shows. Now, with arms slightly lifted, tape your sleeves to your desired length using a similar wrapping technique and following the curves of your shoulder and underarm. Use long pieces of tape to continue wrapping your torso until you hit your hips. 2. To make the shell extra strong and able to hold its shape better, repeat the taping process. (Tip: If you don’t like the look of duct tape, you can use gaffers tape for the second layer like on the form pictured.) 3. Now that you’re covered, have your friend cut through the tape and your shirt, straight down the middle of your back, being careful not to cut your bra. Slip off the form and

cheesecake

MY MOM HAS lived her whole life in the golden glow of Southern California, which may be why she has an eternally sunny disposition. She also has the world’s best laugh; it’s loud and contagious and ends with her saying, “Oooh, dear” as she wipes tears from her eyes. And boy, can she make a mean dessert. When I was little, she

22 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

tape it back together. Trim any excess fabric from the edges of the sleeves and the shirt’s bottom then fold tape over the edges to give your form a finished look. 4. Next, make covers for the form’s neck hole and armholes. Cut three pieces of cardboard just slightly larger than the three holes. Cover the pieces with duct tape (or gaffers tape). Slip the neck hole covering inside the form and tape it in place over the neck hole. Do the same with the armhole coverings. Then cut a piece of cardboard to fit the bottom of your form; cut a hole in the center just big enough for the stand to fit through. Cover the cardboard piece with duct or gaffers tape. 5. Now it’s time to stuff your form. Begin by stuffing the neck and shoulder area with bubble wrap or crumpled up newspaper. Once the neck and shoulders are stuffed, set your form on the mic stand; adjust it so that the form rests at your height. Continue stuffing around the stand, packing it tightly in every nook and cranny so that it’s very stiff and will keep its shape. 6. Without removing the form from the stand, finish it by covering the bottom. Cut a slit in the bottom cardboard piece from the center hole to the edge and slip it around the stand onto your form. Secure with tape. [TISH CHAMBERS]

worked evenings so I don’t have idyllic memories of helping her cook long, leisurely dinners. But I do remember her clanking around the kitchen at all hours of the night, because that’s when she did her baking. Which is fitting since her cheesecake is the stuff dreams are made of. It’s got a crispy graham cracker crust, a creamy nottoo-sweet filling, and her secret weapon: a tangy sour cream–based topping that seals the deal. Mix together 1½ cups of graham cracker crumbs, ½ cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. chopped nuts (I like pecans), 1 tsp. cinnamon, and ½ cup melted butter. Press into the bottom and sides of a springform or pie pan, and chill for one hour. In the meantime, combine 2½ 8 oz. packages of cream cheese, 1¼ cups sugar, and ½ tsp. salt in a stand mixer and beat on high for 10 minutes. Then add 4 beaten eggs, 1½ tsp. lemon juice, and 2 tsp. vanilla and beat for another minute. Pour this mixture into the chilled pie crust and bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees; let cool. While it’s cooling, make the topping by combining 2 Tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, and 1½ cups of sour cream. Spread evenly on top of the completely cooled cheesecake and pop it in the 325-degree oven for another 10 minutes. Eat it as is or top with canned cherry pie filling like Mom does. [LISA BUTTERWORTH]

MAKEUP AND HAIR: SPRING SUPER USING MAC; MODEL: ASHLEY STROUT; MANICURIST: FLEURY ROSE

BUY OR DIY

five finger discount TAKE MATTERS INTO YOUR OWN HANDS WITH A FRESH DIY MANI WHY WASTE TIME and money with a salon manicure when you can get your fingers bangin’ in the comfort of your own home? Here are two simple ideas for some dope lookin’ digits. »

PHOTOGRAPHED BY AMANDA BRUNS

// BUST / 23

real life

BUY OR DIY

Begin with a basic manicure. Remove any polish with nail polish remover and file nails to your desired shape. Apply cuticle oil and massage into nails and hands. Gently push back the cuticle on each finger with an orange wood stick. Wrap the tip of the orange wood stick in cotton, dip into polish remover, and wipe each nail clean of any oil. Apply one coat of Essie Ridge Filling Base Coat ($8, available at drugstores) on all nails. Continue with whichever design you want; it’s a good idea to practice the design on paper until you are comfortable using the thin nail polish brush. SWEET STRAWBERRY Apply two coats of Essie “Chastity” ($8, available at drugstores) to your nails, and let dry for two minutes. Use Art Club Nail Polish Striper in Green ($1.98, 8ty8beauty.com/nail art/art club.htm) to paint a thin line along the base of the cuticle on each nail (like a reverse French tip). Next create thin green leaves coming from this line by making small overlapping triangles of various heights and widths. For the seeds, use Art Club Nail Polish Striper in White ($1.98, 8ty8beauty.com/nail art/art club.htm) and make about eight tiny slashes on each nail. TOTALLY TRIBAL Apply two coats of Essie “Turquoise & Caicos” ($8, available at drugstores) to your nails and let dry for two minutes. Use Art Club Nail Polish Striper in White ($1.98, 8ty8beauty.com/nail art/art club.htm) to make a variety of patterns using short stripes that begin from the side of the nail and go toward the middle; start your design near the base of your nail, working toward the tip. Experiment with different stroke lengths and arrangements to create a custom look for each finger. Allow the polish to dry for two to three minutes, then gently apply one coat of Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat ($7.99, sallybeauty.com). It’s crucial to let each layer of polish dry completely so don’t rush your mani—turn on the TV and give yourself at least 15 minutes. [FLEURY ROSE AND CALLIE WATTS] For more nail inspiration check out fleuryrosenails.tumblr.com.

the mani cure THESE BUYS REALLY HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD

ALL HANDS ON DECK Set sail in handmade navy nails. The raised gold studs are sure to make a splash. ($15, soleilnail.etsy.com). LAZY SUNDAE These ice cream dreams can be customized to feature your favorite flavor in the perfect fit ($8, nevertoomuchglitter.etsy.com). MAGNUM, TOO FLY So much for private investigating; these Tom Selleck nails—a set of 20 in 10 different sizes—won’t exactly help you blend in. ($7.99, nailsandfashions.com). GAME ON These Pac-Man decals will have everyone wanting to bite your style. All you need to apply is water, clear polish, and a nail file—chew on that ($3.50, prettygirlygirl.com). HIGH-CLASS HIGH FIVES These handmade fakes from Japan are the pearl jam; sold by the size so they’ll be the perfect fit ($7.99, umekaho1014.etsy.com). AMAZING LACE You’ll be stuck on these Sally Hansen nail decals: just peel, smooth over your nails, and file into shape ($9.99, available at drugstores). [CALLIE WATTS]

24 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

PHOTO: SARAH ANNE WARD

From top to bottom:

// BUST / 25

real life

EAT ME [BY CHEF ROSSI]

steady rollin’ MAKING SUSHI ROLLS may seem like a complicated endeavor best left to professionals, but once you eliminate the ﬁsh factor, rolling up veggies in sushi rice and nori (dried seaweed) is ridiculously easy and totally freakin’ tasty. Start with short-grain sushi rice (1 cup will make about 6 or 7 sushi rolls). Rinse rice well with cold water, put in a pot, and add just a little more water than you have rice. Cover tightly and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat and cook until the water is absorbed. This will take a good 15 minutes. When the rice is done—you want it mushy and sticky—scoop into a bowl and drizzle with a shot or two of mirin (or mix a plop of sugar into a couple shots of rice wine vinegar and stir in). Leave a damp towel over the bowl until the rice cools enough to handle. Wrap a bamboo sushi roller with Saran Wrap (this will make the rolling process way easier), then place one sheet of

26 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

nori on it. Dip your fingers in water so the rice doesn’t stick to them and press your sushi rice as flat and evenly as you can over the bottom ¾ of the sheet, about ¼-inch thick. The best part about veggie sushi is that you can fill your rolls with just about anything. Here are some ideas: peeled beets (raw or roasted), peeled sweet potatoes (you can julienne them and quick fry or dust them in flour and quick fry), scallions, carrots, daikon (to pickle, bring 1 part water, 1 part vinegar, and ¼ cup sugar to a boil with a tablespoon each of peppercorns, coriander seeds, and mustard seeds then soak daikon slices in the mixture for at least an hour), cucumbers, red or yellow bell peppers, red onions, shitake mushrooms, asparagus (blanch it first), and avocado. Julienne or thinly slice the veggies and sprinkle any combo you want in a horizontal line across the roll about 1½ inches from the bottom of the rice. Feel

free to throw in anything else you think might taste good: cream cheese, jalapeno, marinated tofu, cilantro, mango, macadamia nuts, etc. For a spicy kick, mix some sriracha into mayo to taste and spread a couple spoonfuls onto the rice before you place the veggies. Now it’s time to roll. Pick up the bottom edge of the bamboo roller and start rolling it over the line of veggies. Tuck the edge of the nori down with your ﬁngers (so that you can continue rolling without getting the roller caught in the middle) and continue pressing and tightly rolling with the bamboo roller until you’ve created a complete cylinder with the nori. Moisten the edge with water to seal the roll. Use a sharp knife to cut each roll into 6 or 8 slices (it helps if the knife is wet). Serve with soy sauce, wasabi, and pickled ginger, or just mix a plop of wasabi paste and the juice of pickled ginger into a bowl of soy sauce and call it a day.

PHOTOGRAPHED BY SARAH ANNE WARD

PROP STYLIST: MAYA ROSSI; FOOD STYLIST: LAUREN LAPENNA

VEGGIE SUSHI MAKES A STELLAR SNACK

Tiny Bubbles Megan Saynisch kicks down some knowledge at Brooklyn Skillshare

sharing is caring

PHOTO: ALEX BAKER; ILLUSTRATION: ERIN WENGROVIUS

SKILLSHARES OFFER A NEW WAY TO GET YOUR LEARN ON BASED ON THE belief that knowledge is a right, not a luxury, foodies, crafters, and artists have been banding together to offer free or supercheap classes at events known as “skillshares.” Ranging from annual weekends to regular happenings, their name says it all: Have a skill? Share it. With workshops on everything from ballet to beekeeping to beer brewing, skillshares are popping up all across the nation, including Boston, which hosted the ﬁrst skillshare event in 2007 (bostonskillshare.org), Brooklyn (brooklynskillshare.tumblr.com), and Austin (skillshareaustin.org). But don’t fret if you aren’t near any of those places—Skillshare.com is an online network that allows anyone to post a class they’d like to teach in their city and connects them with folks who want to take it. And if you’re not one for classrooms, Web sites like OurGoods. org and PortlandSkillshare.com offer spaces for individuals looking to barter skills. Need a web design lesson? Trade it for a canning tutorial. Want to crochet? Offer up your knowledge of Spanish. Reaching well beyond what you might learn at a community college—Skillshare Austin has offered classes in tango, sex-toy making, and unicycle riding—skillshares prove that no matter what you want to learn, someone out there wants to teach you. [MARIA GAGLIANO]

I love soda, but I hate the waste, corporate consumerism, and high-fructose corn syrup that come with it. That’s why I think the SodaStream is a dream come true—the compact, easy-to-use appliance ($99.95, sodastreamusa. com) puts ﬁzz in water with the press of a button. Add one of their ﬂavors ($4.99 – $9.99 per bottle, I’m a fan of the Sparkling Natural Ginger Ale), or your own simple-syrup infusion to make a custom cooler. [LISA BUTTERWORTH]

spin cycle DECIMATE DIRTY LAUNDRY WITH DIY DETERGENT DOING LAUNDRY CAN be a drag, but you can make it a bit more thrilling by whipping up a batch of your own detergent. Not only is it supereasy to make, but it’s also ecofriendly, incredibly cheap (this recipe makes approximately 21⁄2 gallons for about $4), the cleaning power is just as good as store-bought, and you can even customize your aroma. Start by grating 2 cups of plain old unscented bar soap (about 11⁄2 bars). This step doubles as a biceps builder! But don’t worry, the hard part’s over. Next, bring 41⁄2 cups water to a boil, and stir in the soap until it’s dissolved. Immediately add some fresh herbs—I used 4 sprigs of lavender, but thyme or rosemary would be fab too—and 2 cups each of borax and washing soda (both are natural compounds, about $3 a box, and can be found at hardware stores and some groceries). Pour mixture into a pail with 2 gallons of water. Add 10 drops of an essential oil of your choice, such as bergamot, ylang-ylang, lemon, or eucalyptus. Let stand overnight, and then strain into a large plastic container or jars, discarding the herbs. Use about 1⁄2 cup per load of laundry. Your detergent will gel up, so stir or shake before each use. Happy washing! [MOLLY KINCAID]

// BUST / 27

real life WHISKEY: Rich in color and ﬂavor—which can span from smoky to ﬂoral—whiskey is a broad term for a range of spirits that are almost always aged in oak barrels (like rye, bourbon, and scotch). Its warm, bold taste is good for sipping by itself or in Prohibition-era drinks like Manhattans and sazeracs. Fave: Rittenhouse Rye.

SAUCY SIDEKICKS Now that you’ve got your liquors, you’ll need a few extras that will really stretch their cocktail capabilities. BITTERS are highly concentrated herbal alcoholic ﬂavorings—with at least one element that adds a bitter quality—best described as seasonings for cocktails. A dash or two will round out the ﬂavor in a variety of drinks. Faves: Bitterman’s Xocolatl Mole, Angostura.

that’s the spirit! EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO STOCK A KICKASS LIQUOR CABINET BEING ABLE TO whip up a delicious cocktail at home isn’t only convenient, it’s also way cheaper than drinking at a bar and is an excellent way to impress your libation-loving friends. But in order to pull off this classy act at a moment’s notice, you’ve got to start with a wellstocked liquor cabinet. Though the initial investment might be a tad pricey, once you’ve got this basic collection of booze—which you should store in a dark or low-lit area—and a few common accoutrements on hand, you’ll be well on your way to shaking or stirring just about any adult beverage your heart desires. Now, let’s have a drink!

STAPLE SPIRITS VODKA: Distilled from fermented grain (typically wheat, corn, or rye) and filtered through charcoal, vodka is colorless and flavorless, making it superversatile and perfect for infusing. Use it in cocktails where you want the flavors of the mixers to shine, like Bloody Marys or any drink with muddled fruit. Fave: Tito’s Handmade Vodka. GIN: This grain-distilled spirit is infused with botanicals like juniper berries, anise, lemon, and orange peel. Gin’s herbal hint adds complexity to simple classic drinks like martinis and gimlets. Fave: Hendricks.

28 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

RUM: Made from sugarcane that’s crushed, reduced to molasses, fermented, distilled, and then aged for at least two years in oak barrels, rum ranges from light (most versatile) to dark and spiced. Rum’s sweetness makes it ideal for tropical drinks like mojitos and daiquiris. Fave: Flor de Cana. TEQUILA: This liquor is made only in speciﬁc regions of Mexico by fermenting and distilling blue agave cactus sap; look for 100 percent agave tequila, which won’t be chock-full of artiﬁcial sweeteners. Tequila’s got a bit of a kick, which adds bite to margaritas and complements the spice in Bloody Marias. Fave: Partida.

VERMOUTH—fermented wine infused with herbs, roots, and spices—is either sweet (aka Italian) and red, or dry (aka French) and white. Like bitters, it adds complexity to cocktails, including Manhattans and martinis, but can also be drunk on its own as an aperitif before a meal. Faves: Campari, Carpano Antica. ORANGE LIQUEUR is a very sweet, orange peel–infused alcohol and is a necessary component for a proper margarita. It can also be drunk alone as an aperitif, or as a digestif following a meal. Faves: Cointreau, Grand Marnier.

ELIXIR MIXERS Keep a few limes on hand, along with mix-ins like seltzer, tonic water, ginger beer, and juice, and you’ll have a wealth of cocktails at the ready, including a Manhattan (whiskey plus sweet vermouth and bitters), gin and tonic (gin plus tonic and lime juice), dark and stormy (rum plus ginger beer and lime juice), margarita (tequila plus orange liqueur and lime juice), and martini (vodka plus dry vermouth). [KELLY CARÁMBULA]

PHOTOGRAPHED BY VICTORIA WALL HARRIS

PHOTO: DANIELLE ST. LAURENT

248 BROOME ST. NYC 10002 212-674-8383 www.fringeny.com www.fringeny.com/fringesocial/

// BUST / 29

real life MOTHER SUPERIOR [BY AYUN HALLIDAY]

mean girls MAKING IT THROUGH THE MISFORTUNES OF MIDDLE SCHOOL

30 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

impossible. I made it to the other side, scathed but not shattered. For the most part, I like who I’ve become, and can see how this long ago rejection helped shape me in not-bad ways. I also know that this sort of fable affords but minimal comfort to those still stuck in that lonely

Lately, I’ve been struggling with an impulse to wade into the thick of it in steel-toed ass kickers. pit where one ﬁghts to give the impression that deliberate barbs do not sting and lunching alone is no big deal. As a mother, I can offer moral support, but nothing resembling immediate triage. Such impotence was unthinkable in the sandbox. Now, the shovels are ﬂying along with the sand, and how ironic that a group of “nice” girls (with nice mothers) are the ones making me wish a more hands-on approach was possible. I’m sure they played nice once upon a time. These girls are not Heathers. They’re more like Emmas, intel-

pound the gaiety with an avalanche of photographic evidence. I suspect there’s a special humiliation in having your mom be the only person to like your status update. Truth be told, there are some other young ladies on whose walls I’d gladly write... with my steel-toed ass kickers. They know who they are, or presumably might, if they read this magazine. I’m sort of counting on them not to. Mostly I’m just counting down the days till middle school becomes a thing we can refer to in the past tense. In this, I am not alone.

ILLUSTRATION: AYUN HALLIDAY

BACK WHEN THE sandbox was my girl’s primary social arena, I favored a “let ’em work it out themselves” approach. I had read an article by some grandmother, or teacher maybe, or childless doctor—I forget what conferred her street cred, but her words made an impression. In her expert opinion, adults all too frequently misinterpret the group dynamics of children at play, rushing in to adjudicate a situation not in need of ﬁxing. Kids learn to navigate interpersonal relationships when they are allowed to actually navigate interpersonal relationships. The anxious mamas hovering—or as we now say, helicoptering—nearby could only screw things up. Made sense to me. Staying out of it was a comfortable ﬁt, temperamentally, especially since Inky was rarely at the center of any playground drama. Lately, however, I’ve been struggling with an impulse to wade into the thick of it in steel-toed ass kickers. This is partly attributable to the horror of having lived through it myself. My stock also plummeted in middle school, a decline so brutal and bewildering that recovery felt

ligent young ladies capable of good manners, whose parents probably discussed Pride and Prejudice on their ﬁrst dates. It’s funny. For all my bluff about ass kicking, when my unconscious ﬁnally granted me a dream in which vengeance was mine, I was snubbing the ringleader on the steps of the school. I even got to articulate why: “Sorry, Emma. I really don’t want to talk to you, knowing how you treat my daughter.” Ouch! This totally shamed her into realizing what an awful person she’d become, and all her friends were there to witness it. In real life, I haven’t had much experience putting deserving 13-year-old girls in their place, though a couple of the ones who bedeviled me all those years ago have since befriended me on Facebook. I appreciate their birthday greetings and their admiring comments on my photo albums, particularly the ones featuring my daughter, who is indeed beautiful. Thirty years of water beneath the bridge allows me to trust that they are sincere, possibly even jealous. Take a look at which one of us is closing in on 2,000 “friends” now, muthahfuckahs! Facebook can be a great reward for those of us old enough to wonder what ever became of all the folks we lost along the way. But thank God it didn’t exist when I was in middle school. Overhearing classmates chattering on about their in jokes, social hierarchies, and the many parties to which I’d not been invited was fun enough as it was. No need to com-

Looks Fas hi o n Nat i o n

Billie Martineau ARTIST • BROOKLYN, NY

Tell us about this outﬁt. The shirt is from France; it’s very old, maybe from the turn of the last century. My aunt gave it to me. The Hermès scarf that I’m wearing as a belt was a gift from my in-laws. I found the green shoes at a Salvation Army in Manhattan for $5.99. The wool trousers are from the same store where I found the shoes. They’re vintage Yves Saint Laurent, I paid about $7 for them. I like the idea of wearing pants; I think they are sexier than a dress, as they show the body more. What do you like about shopping secondhand? I really like the idea of constraint. I can’t control what I am going to ﬁnd [at thrift stores], and it forces me to be creative. Since you moved to New York from France several years ago, have you noticed fashion differences between the U.S. and your home country? It’s funny, here people tell me that there’s something about my style that is very French, but when I go back to France they say, “You’re so American.” [laughs] French people are more judgmental. In Paris, if you wear something kooky, people stare. But in N.Y.C. if you wear something crazy but fun you get a positive response. What’s your approach to style? As much as I like fashion, I don’t really know what’s going on in the world of fashion. I don’t follow designers or trends. I do read a few fashion blogs, just because I am curious, but I try to protect myself from all of that because I want to do my own thing. [TRICIA ROYAL]

PHOTOGRAPHED BY BY ANNA ELIZABETH WEINBERG THIESSEN

// BUST / 31

looks

FASHIONISTA

Ashley Cheeks in her studio

LOOKBOOK PHOTOS: OLIVIA FRØLICH; MODEL: SUPERCUTE’S RACHEL TRACHTENBURG

how sweet it is FALL IN LOVE WITH ASHLEY CHEEKS’ CHARMING LINE IT’S OKAY MY DEAR STEP INTO THE mind of designer Ashley Cheeks, 26, and you’ll find a world where storybook endings, French films, and a dose of southern romanticism influence the clothes she loves to create. “I design for the young at heart,” Cheeks says, “[for the girl] who can still wear ribbons in her hair or bows on her clothes, but who looks more feminine and sexy rather than childish.” The Louisiana-born, Brooklyn-based designer, who named her line It’s Okay My Dear after a lullaby her mom sang to her as a child, uses silks, cottons, and vintage fabrics to make whimsical, ruffled pieces including delicate rompers in playful prints, ballerina-style dresses made of peachy silk chiffon, and lampshade skirts in sky-blue organza. “Basically,” she says, “I want to make fairy tale clothes that people can wear in real life...without looking like a crazy person.” [KRISTINA URIEGAS-REYES]

32 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

PHOTOGRAPHED BY VICTORIA WALL HARRIS

// BUST / 33

looks

BOOTY CALL [BY CALLIE WATTS]

HANGING ON YOUR EVERY WORD La di da di, now the literati can decorate for a party. Hang this handcrafted mobile and let guests read you like an open book. With plenty of tomes to choose from, you’ll have no problem ﬁnding a favorite ($72, theshophouse.etsy.com).

DEATH BECOMES HER

CANVAS ENVY

Let this hauntingly awesome T-shirt mini dress cast a spell on you. It’s supersoft, so wearing it will become a ritual ($34, deathtraitors.com).

You may carry the world on your shoulders, but this heavy-duty, eco-friendly purse made from salvaged material means enviro-guilt is one less thing you have to tote around ($192, forestbound.com).

THE SNOT AND THE WHALE

WHO SAID PRINT IS DEAD? Get all puffed up in this handmade jumper and start turning heads (£62.00, weareallinone. bigcartel.com). 34 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

PHOTOS: ALEX BAKER

Shoot it out your blowhole! If you’re feeling under the weather, this handmade wooden baby beluga is sure to cheer you up ($39.99, sparklypony.com).

// BUST / 35

looks

life-saving { scarves

A piece from fashionABLE's fall collection [Top right] Mesula, a fashionABLE weaver

Buy a beautiful, hand-woven scarf from fashionABLE, and not only are you getting a boss seasonal accessory, but you’re also helping to create sustainable jobs for women in Africa. The nonproﬁt employs poverty-stricken Ethiopian women, many of whom had formerly turned to prostitution, and each simple piece ($22 – $38, livefashionable. com) comes with a handwritten note from the weaver.

solemates I’m head over heels for the fall collection from my favorite fashion collaboration: Bass Loves Rachel Antonoff. The classic shoe line pairs perfectly with the designer’s sweet, vintageinspired style, and the result is a handful of adorable leather loafers, plaid oxfords, velvet booties, and girly rain boots ($109 – $149, bassshoes.com). Perfect for adding a little prep to your step. [LISA BUTTERWORTH]

test kitchen THEIR PRODUCTS, OUR INTERNS

Aubrey Organics NuSyle Organic Hair-Smoothing Serum, $21, aubrey-organics.com

GloTherapeutics Soothing Gel Mask, $32, gloprofessional.com

Yes to Blueberries, Smoothing Daily Cleanser, $9.99, yestocarrots.com

JESSICA :

36 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

KRISTINA :

KATE:

This cleanser was a godsend as my skin tends to get extra greasy and dirt-clogged in the hot summer months. Its gentle formula deep cleaned without being too harsh and it had an extra yummy fragrance.

I thought this face wash would smell more fruity and feel more scrubby, but once I washed it off, my face felt totally smooth! I also liked that it didn’t dry out my skin like other cleansers I’ve tried.

This stuff smelled amazing! It was like some delicious blueberry, lemon, and vanilla concoction that washed makeup off really easily and left my face feeling clean but not dry. It was fantastic.

When I got an unfortunate sunburn on a recent vacation this mask totally saved me. It helped calm my freaked-out skin, and prevented peeling as it moisturized and soothed my flambéed face.

Applying and removing masks seems a bit tedious sometimes, so the fact that you literally massage this one into your skin rather than rinsing it off was perfect. No muss, no fuss, and my skin deﬁnitely felt less irritated and more moisturized.

This product was great. I had a crazy sunburn when I tried it, and the mask was really soothing and cool. It smelled awesome, and after leaving it on for 10 minutes you just rub the remainder into your skin— totally convenient and luxurious.

This serum was helpful after a day of sun and swimming when my hair was dry and frizzy. It worked wonders on returning my tresses to their natural silky and straight state. Just be careful not to use too much.

I loved this stuff! I had never used hair serum before so I didn’t realize how awesome it is. It gave my locks all those natural oils that washing strips away so instead of weird frizziness, I got workable, shiny hair.

This serum was lighter than I expected, but it still left my superﬁne hair looking weighed down and a little dirty. I did, however, use it to deep condition before washing it out, and that made my mane magically soft and pretty.

GOOD STUFF [BY STEPHANIE J.]

1. 3.

5. 7. 6.

10.

11.

12.

straighten up MAKE YOUR DESK ADORABLE WITH THESE ORGANIZATIONAL ACCESSORIES 1. GLOBE BANK CARD BY PIE BIRD PRESS, $4.50, FELTANDWIRESHOP.COM. 2. PENCIL CUP BY SUSY JACK, $9.50, SUSYJACK.BIGCARTEL.COM. 3. NOTEBOOK BY SARAH PINTO, $12, SEEJANEWORK. COM. 4. I WILL ACHIEVE MY GOALS CLIPBOARD BY DECOY LAB, $34, DECOYLAB.ETSY.COM. 5. BLACK AT SYMBOL BY EDIE’S LAB, $33, EDIESLAB.ETSY.COM. 6. STENO NOTEPAD BY FIELD NOTES, $10, NEEDSUPPLY.COM. 7. WOOD BLOCK PERPETUAL CALENDAR BY PAPER TRAIL, $35, PAPERTRAILRHINEBECK.COM. 8. ADMIT ONE TRAY BY FISHS EDDY, $7.95, FISHSEDDY.COM. 9. TOOLS HOLDER DESK ORGANIZER BY CRAFTING CINDY, $59, LESSANDMORE.ETSY.COM. 10. SPLASH OF COLOR CLOCK BY KARLSSON, $39.99, MODCLOTH.COM. 11. LOVE PAPERWEIGHT BY JONATHAN ADLER, $38, JONATHANADLER.COM. 12. “DON’T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF” PRINT BY HAYLEY & LUCAS, £20, KEEPCALMGALLERY.COM.

// BUST / 37

looks

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 GIRLS [#51] “You're gonna make it after all”

The City of Lakes is lookin' great

Peep the art on Grafﬁti Street

minneapolis, minnesota IS THIS CHARMING CITY A MIDWESTERN GEM? YOU BETCHA! [BY RHENA TANTISUNTHORN]

38 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

IF YOU THINK Minneapolis is little more than part of Midwestern ﬂyover territory, well, you couldn’t be more wrong. In fact, thanks to its vibrant food, art, fashion, and music scenes, not to mention its gorgeous outdoor areas, the City of Lakes is quickly becoming the Portland of the Midwest. Sure, Minneapolis is known for its long, harsh winters (the average low in January is four degrees Fahrenheit—four!), but visit during July or August and you’ll experience what us locals live for: the gorgeous months we call “spring, summer, and fall.” Here’s the inside scoop on this dynamic, oft-overlooked town where the best of Minnesota nice meets big-city culture, where progressive politics beat out Midwestern conservatism, and where the arts, indie businesses, and local foods abound. You don’t need a car to get around Minneapolis. The light rail system is clean, cheap, and charming. Or you can rent a Nice Ride bike on street corners all over town for as little as $1.50 an hour. With 46 miles of bicycle lanes and 84 miles of offstreet paths, this town is very biped friendly. If the weather’s nice, hit the Greenway, a 5½-mile long former railroad corridor in south Minneapolis with bicycling and walking trails, and stop for a snack at the Midtown Global Market (920 E Lake St.), one

DIY dames at Crafty Planet

of the brightest jewels in Minneapolis’ food crown. The many local vendors at this indoor bazaar can satisfy any culinary craving—East African, Middle Eastern, Italian, Mexican (the tortas at Manny’s are amazing)—and also feature gift items from all over the world. If you find yourself still hungry, continue east on the Greenway to Matt’s Bar (3500 Cedar Ave. S) and grab a Jucy Lucy cheeseburger (the cheese is inside the burger). Or for truly local eats, check out the Birchwood Café (3311 E 25th St.), which sources ingredients from nearby farmers (one of the huge benefits of living in an urban area in the heart of American farmland). The savory waffle topped with a fried egg, lardons, and seasonal chutney is reason enough to hop off your bike. Then fight your food coma with a locally roasted cup of joe at the airy and spacious Peace Coffee (3262 Minnehaha Ave.). When you’re all biked out, head uptown. It’s actually south of downtown, but don’t let the disorienting nomenclature discourage you from visiting one of the liveliest parts of the city. Start at Cliché (2403 Lyndale Ave. S), a cute boutique featuring local designers and pieces from affordable lines like Tulle and Covet. Further south, the Design Collective (1311 W 26th St.) sells an ever-changing array of retro skirts, edgy blouses,

PHOTOGRAPHED BY TONY NELSON

Nice Ride's nice rides at the Birchwood Café

Design Collective's locally made goods

Peace Coffee pours a perfect cup

Munch a torta from Manny's

kitschy jewelry, and charming hats made by Minneapolis folks. Swing by Intermedia Arts (2822 Lyndale Ave. S), a gallery and community-building organization, for a glimpse into the Minneapolis arts scene; check the calendar for B-Girl Be, their annual celebration of women in hip-hop. Begin your nighttime ventures with inexpensive drinks and greasy Chinese food at the Red Dragon (2116 Lyndale Ave. S), where the restaurant/bar’s infamous Wondrous Punch will land you ﬂat on your butt. Then grab a stool at dive-y local veteran’s hangout James Ballentine VFW Post 246 (2916 Lyndale Ave. S), which features cheap taps, pull-tabs, and some of the best karaoke in town. Or sample local brews on the outdoor patio at the slightly classier Herkimer Pub and Brewery (2922 Lyndale Ave. S) next door. In the morning, head downtown to experience the area that, rumor has it, inspired Lipps Inc.’s disco hit, “Funkytown.” It’s also where TV’s quintessential career gal Mary Tyler Moore lived her groundbreakingly single life, so be sure to stop by her iconic hat-throwing statue (corner of 7th St. S and Nicollet Mall) for a super BUST-y photo op. From mid-April

Fun times at First Avenue

Shop for thrifty threads at Cliché

through mid-November, you can check out Minneapolis’ biggest farmers’ market (312 East Lyndale Ave. N). Grab a snack from one of the stands or get a sit-down lunch at nearby charming café Moose and Sadie’s (212 3rd Ave. N #107). Deﬁnitely save room for a baked good from their case. Walk off your meal with a stroll along the beautiful nearby Stone Arch Bridge over the Mississippi River, where you can soak up views of the city. Continue your adventure in nearby Northeast—or “Nordeast” as some say in homage to the eastern Europeans who ﬁrst populated this now hipster part of town. For a little cheap pampering, look no further than the Aveda Institute (400 Central Ave. SE) where future estheticians, cosmetologists, and massage therapists give discounted spa treatments (from $15 – $55) using Aveda’s earth-friendly products (produced right in Minnesota). A visit to this ’hood requires a pilgrimage to Crafty Planet (2833 Johnson St. NE), a wall-to-wall extravaganza of yarn, fabric, wool, rickrack, buttons, books, and other supplies that will leave a DIY gal breathless. Then tuck into some comfort food made from local ingredients at Brasa (600 E. Hen-

nepin Ave.), where you can enjoy a familystyle meal of slow-roasted pork, spicy collared greens, cheesy grits, and sweet-savory cornbread with honey butter. Imbibe at Nye’s Polonaise Room (112 East Hennepin Ave.), a kitschy, banquette-filled bar with live music every night and a polka band on the weekends. Then head back downtown to catch a show at the legendary First Avenue (701 First Ave.). The venue is Prince’s old haunt and was the location for many of Purple Rain’s club scenes, so feel free to re-enact your favorite moments from the 1984 epic. No trip to Minneapolis would be complete without a trek to one of its many, many lakes. Make Isles Bun and Coffee (1424 West 28th St.) your first stop of the morning for a luscious cinnamon roll before continuing on to Lake Calhoun, Lake Harriet, and Lake of the Isles, a chain of lakes that provide the perfect setting for a walk, a run, a picnic, or some canoeing or ice skating depending on the season. Whether you visit in the warmer months, or during one of our famously brutal winters, there is plenty of fun to be had in Minneapolis—you’ll never want to fly over without stopping again.

// BUST / 39

the

FALL PREVIEW A ROUNDUP OF THE SEASON’S MOST BUST-WORTHY MOVIES, TELEVISION, AND MUSIC WHERE WOMEN ARE FRONT AND CENTER

MOVIES BY JENNI MILLER // TELEVISION BY ERIN DEJESUS // MUSIC BY JEN HAZEN

// BUST / 41

MOVIES

COLOMBIANA Directed by Olivier Megaton August 26

ONE DAY Directed by Lone Scherﬁg • August 19 (Focus Features)

An Education’s Lone Scherﬁg returns with another heart-tugging tale, this time based on the hugely popular novel One Day by David Nicholls. Dexter (Jim Sturgess) and Emma (Anne Hathaway) meet after a night of post-graduation carousing on July 15, 1988. Although the two nearly end up in bed together, instead of becoming lovers, they begin a strange, funny,

and occasionally heartbreaking friendship. Dex is an upper-class guy used to having the world served to him on a platter, and Em is not as privileged or as enamored of the good life. One Day checks in with them every few years on July 15 as their lives take divergent paths. Is this a When Harry Met Sally sitch? You’ll have to watch to ﬁnd out.

MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE Directed by Sean Durkin • October 7 (Fox Searchlight) Martha Marcy May Marlene showed up at Sundance this year and slapped ﬁlmgoers in the face with Elizabeth Olsen’s ﬁerce performance. Olsen (younger sister of the famous twins) was dubbed the “it” girl of the fest for her portrayal of a young woman struggling to adjust to life after leaving a cult. Sarah Paulson and Hugh Dancy co-star as Martha’s estranged sister and brother-in-law who take her in despite her increasingly bizarre and hostile behavior. John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone) also appears, as the cult’s Charles Manson–esque leader, guitar and all. MMMM is creepy and intense, with sharp editing illustrating Martha’s psychological trauma that fuses her past with her present.

42 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Jean-Luc Godard famously said, “All you need to make a movie is a girl and a gun,” and few people know that better than Luc Besson. Besson, who co-wrote the screenplay for Colombiana, wrote and directed such classic badass lady flicks as La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional, and The Fifth Element. While girls with guns are big-time box office draws (see also: Salt, KickAss, Hanna), Colombiana is the first action film in a long time to star a woman of color. Zoe Saldana took on the legendary role of Uhura in Star Trek and wowed us in Avatar as a blue cat-like alien, but this is her first starring role. No doubt she will give us our action fix as Cataleya Restrepo, a killer-for-hire who’s out to avenge the deaths of her parents.

ONE DAY PHOTO: GILES KEYTE; COLOMBIANA PHOTO: HBO; MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE PHOTO: JODY LEE LIPES

(TriStar Pictures)

LITTLE BIRDS PHOTO: MILLENIUM ENTERTAINMENT; TWILIGHT: BREAKING DAWN PHOTO: SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT; IRON LADY PHOTO: ALEX BAILEY/PATHE PRODUCTIONS LTD/THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY

MOVIES

THE IRON LADY Directed by Phyllida Lloyd December 16 (The Weinstein Company)

LITTLE BIRDS Directed by Elgin James • October 14 (Millenium Entertainment)

Being 15 is a bitch, especially for Lily and Alison, two girls living on the edge of California’s Salton Sea in this drama starring Kaboom’s Juno Temple and young TV vet Kay Panabaker. Lily’s champing at the bit to escape their rinky-dink town in the decrepit desert, and when three skater dudes from L.A. show up, she decides it’s high time

she and her friend take a trip to the big city. Needless to say, Lily’s devil-may-care attitude gets them into trouble in the City of Angels. Writer/director Elgin James’ life on the streets informed this tale that was cooked up in the Sundance Labs, where directors like teen expert Catherine Hardwicke mentored him.

The last time director Phyllida Lloyd and Meryl Streep joined forces, the result was Mamma Mia!, a sunny, feel-good musical that proved Streep can do anything twice as well as anyone else. This time around, Streep is taking on a much more serious role as Margaret Thatcher, the groundbreaking former prime minister of the U.K. Despite all those angry punk songs about her, Thatcher is a pivotal ﬁgure in history, especially when it comes to women in power. Streep, naturally, is already being talked about as an Oscar nom, and the esteemed Jim Broadbent is playing her husband, Denis. And for those Buffy fans among us, Anthony Head plays one of Thatcher’s government buddies, Geoffrey Howe.

TWILIGHT: BREAKING DAWN Directed by Bill Condon November 18 (Summit Entertainment) Bella and Edward finally get it on in Breaking Dawn. That is the first and foremost thing you need to know. They make the sparkly beast with two backs, and the result is a psychic fetus. It is psychic, you guys. We’re all waiting on pins and needles to find out if the gory birth scene from the book made it onto the big screen, although survey says probably not. Either way, Twi-hards everywhere will be there opening night, clutching bags of popcorn to their collective bosom.

// BUST / 43

MOVIES

Women in Tehran live under incredibly strict rules, but your characters ﬁnd ways to party, rebel, and make out, just like teenagers everywhere. Do you think people will be surprised by the Iran they see in Circumstance? Boosheri: There’s a huge difference in Iran between your outer life and your inner life. Women are not veiled inside the home. If you go to an Iranian party, there’s loud music and dancing until three in the morning. Iranians are joyful people. There are Iranian rock groups performing in basements, and female rappers. But it’s a huge risk. Concerts and fashion shows and parties take months of secretive planning. Young people in Iran are willing to take that risk to keep a sense of normalcy and culture and art.

UNVEILED NIKOHL BOOSHERI AND SARAH KAZEMY, STARS OF THE IRANIAN DRAMA CIRCUMSTANCE, EXPLORE WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A GIRL IN A HIDDEN WORLD BY PHOEBE MAGEE

N CIRCUMSTANCE, A lush and powerful ode to female friendship set in Tehran, best friends Atafeh and Shireen—played by first-time film actresses Nikohl Boosheri and Sarah Kazemy—live a rambunctious secret life exploring Iran’s underground party scene. But when Atafeh’s brother returns from rehab a much more conservative man, his newfound religious zeal threatens to take over all their lives. The film, which opens in August, won

44 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

this year’s Audience Award at Sundance—in large part due to Boosheri’s and Kazemy’s sensitive (and sensual) performances. To make the movie, Iranian-American ﬁlmmaker Maryam Keshavarz had to venture far from the source. Because Iranian religious law is so restrictive, she shot the ﬁlm in Lebanon, and because no Iranian woman could risk acting in it without legal and social repercussions, she searched the world for two leads who could convincingly play

Were you taking a risk yourselves by being in this film? Kazemy: Definitely. We knew from the very beginning that after shooting this, we would never be able to go to Iran unless things change. It’s a risk to show something that powerful people there don’t want you to show. Boosheri: There’s never been an honest story told like this: first, about the youth in Iran, and second, about women doing basic things like taking off their head scarves at home, showing their hair, exploring their sexuality…it’s never been done. So Maryam is really brave. When I read the script, my first thought was, Oh, my God, how am I going to explain this to my mother? Your characters both have some pretty sexy scenes. Boosheri: I know it’s very sexy, but compared to a lot of movies, the love scenes are very tame. Sensuality is more powerful than sexuality. And love is our characters’ most powerful gesture of protest.

PHOTOGRAPHED BY ALIYA NAUMOFF

STYLIST: HALEY WOLLENS; MAKEUP: LISA AHARON AT KATE RYAN INC USING MAC COSMETICS; HAIR: MARCOS DIAZ FOR ION STUDIO USING REDKEN PRODUCT; LOCATION: SUTRA LOUNGE NYC

women growing up under the veil. After hosting auditions in seven cities, Keshavarz found Boosheri, the 22-year-old Canadian daughter of Iranian parents, and cast her as the rebellious Atafeh. The half-Iranian, half-French Kazemy, 23, was studying law in Paris when she read for, and landed, the role of Atafeh’s BFF, Shireen. Here, the two actresses talk love, friendship, freedom, and becoming Iranian.

MOVIES

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Directed by David Fincher December 21

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN PHOTO: OSCILLOSCOPE PICTURES; CAROL CHANNING: LARGER THAN LIFE PHOTO: JAMES ZIELINSKI

(Sony) At first, Lisbeth Salander fans were ready to riot in the streets at the thought of an English-language remake of this famous Swedish film. But with David Fincher at the helm and fabulously sulky photos of its star, Rooney Mara, circulating, well, color us curious. Plus, screenwriter Steven Zaillian will be tackling the adaptation, and hello, he wrote Schindler’s List and Gangs of New York. So, yeah, we’re getting excited. And although his character Mikael isn’t supposed to be hunky, Daniel Craig will no doubt smolder as the do-gooder journalist and Lothario. Noomi Rapace will always have a place in our hearts as the tiny, pierced tempest in the original film series, but her American counterpart could be great as well.

IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY Directed by Angelina Jolie December 23

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN Directed by Lynne Ramsay • December (Oscilloscope) In this upcoming drama, Tilda Swinton stars as Eva, a woman whose suburban home life is shattered when her son Kevin (Ezra Miller) goes on a Columbine-like rampage. In the wake of the attack, she feels helpless, disgusted, ambivalent, and guilt-ridden over her sociopathic spawn, and reaches out to her estranged husband (John C. Reilly). The audience sees Eva’s memories of better times juxta-

posed with the present, all peppered with disturbing indicators of the terrible things to come. Kevin is based on the award-winning novel by (female) author Lionel Shriver. And director Lynne Ramsay (Ratcatcher, Morvern Callar) has crafted a distinctly creepy story that brilliantly showcases Swinton. Making the project even more sinister, Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead is in charge of the score.

(Film District) Angelina Jolie, is there nothing you cannot do?! Jolie wrote and directed this international drama set during the Bosnian War, and the production has been chockfull o’ drama so far, with protests erupting around initial rumors that it would be about a love affair between a Muslim Bosnian woman and her Serbian attacker. Jolie has since denied these reports, and the ﬁlm’s release is on track for December. So if you need to get away from the family over the holidays for a quick and relaxing ﬁlm about the Bosnian War, here’s your chance!

CAROL CHANNING: LARGER THAN LIFE Directed by Dori Berinstein Premiere date and distributor TBA Comic actress Carol Channing’s joie de vivre is captured impeccably in this intimate documentary covering both her astonishing professional history on Broadway and in the movies and her surprising love life. In one unforgettable scene, this incredibly buoyant 90-year-old takes us on a tour of old Broadway and is stopped by a cadre of young dancers who fawn over her. The footage of the living legend on stage and ﬁlm is a revelation, as are the countless interviews with her colleagues and fans. (Holla, Bruce Vilanch!) But at the tender heart of this doc is Channing’s recent marriage to her long-lost love, Harry Kullijian, a dapper man who obviously adores her. As do we.

// BUST / 45

TELEVISION TELEVISION UP ALL NIGHT Wednesdays 8 p.m. (NBC)

NEW GIRL Tuesdays 9 p.m. (Fox)

The quirkily enchanting Zooey Deschanel is the New Girl in Fox’s fall lineup, playing Jessica Day, a gal on the rebound whose—surprise!—quirky charms affect the lives of her three new male roommates. The lighthearted sitcom, which comes from screenwriter Eliza46 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

beth Meriweather (No Strings Attached), refreshingly inserts an awkward young woman at the center of a Friends format while borrowing heavily from the Tiny Fey canon— Deschanel’s character is like Liz Lemon Lite, social faux pas, pratfalls, and all.

NEW GIRL PHOTO: ISABELLA VOSMIKOVA/FOX; UP ALL NIGHT PHOTO: TRAE PATTON/NBC

Christina Applegate and Will Arnett pair up to play television’s coolest (and most sleep-deprived) parents in Up All Night, a clever sitcom written by Saturday Night Live’s Emily Spivey and produced by Lorne Michaels. In a twist on the usual baby-makes-three formula, Arnett’s character is the stay-at-home dad to Applegate’s successful working mom, and her ofﬁce interactions garner extra laughs thanks to the reliably hilarious Maya Rudolph, who gets major air time as Applegate’s wacky boss. Never before has a potty-mouthed approach to parenting felt so endearing.

TELEVISION

2 BROKE GIRLS Mondays 8:30 p.m. (CBS) It’s a hackneyed premise: two young women from different backgrounds (one a Paris Hilton– like former socialite, one a gumsmacking, sarcastic, “smart girl”) randomly become roommates in Brooklyn, wait tables at Williamsburg’s most spacious and well-lit diner, and struggle to make it in the big city. But 2 Broke Girls, with Nick & Norah’s Kat Dennings as the sardonic anti-hipster, shows some promise. The script is a collaboration between comic Whitney Cummings and Sex and the City creator Michael Patrick King, who’s successfully portrayed authentic female friendships in the past.

PAN AM PAN AM PHOTO: PATRICK HARBRON/ABC; RINGER PHOTO: CW; 2 BROKE GIRLS PHOTO: MONTY BRINTON/CBS

Sundays 10 p.m. (ABC)

The chic swagger of the Mad Men era comes to network prime time with Pan Am, a stylized look at the “glamorous” life of airline stewardesses in the 1960s. The ﬂirty, breezy preview highlights the more appealing aspects of the

jet-setting ’60s lifestyle (possibly making for some guiltypleasure soapy viewing), but the addition of Christina Ricci to the cast should hopefully keep things grounded, à la Pan Am’s retro inspiration.

RINGER Tuesdays 9 p.m. (CW) Sarah Michelle Gellar makes her return to television (ﬁnally!), pulling double duty as a troubled woman who steals the identity of her estranged (and now deceased) twin in the CW’s Ringer. The dark, dramatic thriller uses ﬂashbacks to allow past mysteries to rise to the surface, including why both sisters—one seeking revenge, one seeking redemption—have bounties on their heads.

// BUST / 47

TELEVISION

SMASH Mondays 10 p.m., midseason (NBC)

(NBC) The underrated Maria Bello steps into some big shoes—Dame Helen Mirren’s, to be exact—in the American reboot of Prime Suspect, a procedural cop drama with an ass-kicking female detective front and center. For eight seasons on the U.K.’s ITV network, Mirren’s Detective Jane Tennison asserted her presence in a sexist all-male police force; the NBC version follows Bello’s Jane Timoney, an N.Y.C. detective who counts Aidan Quinn among her less-than-enthused co-workers. Unlike other TV law-enforcement dramas, Prime Suspect acknowledges the existence of the behind-the-scenes boys’ club—and allows Bello the opportunity to take it down.

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS Night and time TBA (BBC) Exciting news, sweeties! Patsy and Edina are back. The comedy geniuses behind the legendary British comedy series Absolutely Fabulous, Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley, are reviving their outrageous characters for a three-episode AbFab run slated for sometime this fall. The miniseries marks the ﬁrst glimpse of the hilariously self-destructive duo since 2005, and though times have changed, some things remain the same. Early buzz suggests the ladies will bring their usual hedonistic tendencies and un-PC observations to a culture that’s since endured an extravagant royal wedding, the emergence of Ke$ha, and the invention of cupcake-ﬂavored vodka.

48 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

MUST-WATCH DOCS Gloria Steinem, the spokeswoman for modern-day feminism, gets the documentary treatment in HBO’s Gloria: In Her Own Words, which paints a vivid picture of the movement’s struggles (premieres August 15 at 9 p.m.). Under PBS’ POV purview, ﬁlmmaker Ramona Diaz’s The Learning chronicles one school year in the lives of four recent Filipino immigrants, all women recruited speciﬁcally to teach in innercity Baltimore (premieres September 20 at 10 p.m.). And in mid-October, Oprah Winfrey’s OWN network debuts the very moving documentary Miss Representation, by director Jennifer Siebel Newsom, which explores the derogatory messages the media sends out about women (especially those in power), and how these messages affect young viewers, both male and female. Don’t miss it.

PRIME SUSPECT PHOTO: PATRICK HARBRON/NBC; SMASH PHOTO: WILL HART/NBC: GLORIA: IN HER OWN WORDS PHOTO: HBO

PRIME SUSPECT Thursdays 10 p.m.

Cynics have dubbed NBC’s Smash a kind of “Glee for adults,” but this highly anticipated drama, which provides a ﬁctional behind-thescenes look at the making of a Broadway show, feels decidedly more epic. American Idol alum Katherine McPhee stars as a talented unknown auditioning for a musical about Marilyn Monroe. Her main competition comes in the form of an experienced bombshell, played by stage veteran Megan Hilty (expect some soaring musical numbers, all written speciﬁcally for Smash). Debra Messing and Anjelica Huston round out the cast as the show’s lyricist and producer; the only negative is having to wait until midseason for this debut.

MUSIC Excitement for Wild Flag built up long before anything was recorded. Have you ever been in a situation like that before? Timony: No, it’s pretty unusual. I don’t think any of us expected the amount of people showing up to shows and stuff. I feel pretty lucky. The footage of your live shows on YouTube really makes it seem like you’re all having so much fun. Was it like that from the beginning, or did the chemistry develop over time? Timony: I was surprised to ﬁnd how well the live energy worked with everybody. I’ve never been a live-performer type, but those guys really are, so I’m learning from them. Brownstein: I think it developed from touring. The four of us have a natural chemistry, but in terms of ﬁguring out stage dynamics, that takes time and practice. You have to learn how to be a band.

FLY GIRLS WITH A RIOT GRRRL PEDIGREE AND GROWING NOTORIETY, WILD FLAG IS DISHING OUT THE HOTTEST RELEASE OF THE SEASON BY KELLY MCCLURE

ILD FLAG, THE Portland/D.C.– based band comprised of pop-punk royalty Janet Weiss and Carrie Brownstein (both formerly of Sleater-Kinney), Mary Timony (Helium), and Rebecca Cole (the Minders), began as Brownstein’s creative urge a year ago. Since then, that urge has grown into a full-ﬂedged phenomenon, with legions of fans hotly anticipating the release of their debut album in September. This ardor has been fueled mainly by the group’s electrifying live performances at high-proﬁle fests like SXSW, but given Brownstein’s busy schedule, it’s amazing she’s been

PHOTOGRAPHED BY DAVID TORCH

seen in public at all. Offstage, she’s been writing hilarious sketches for the second season of Portlandia (aka the IFC show that helped forever link Oregon with bird crafts). Thankfully, however, music still comes ﬁrst for all these ladies, who in their 30s and 40s have mastered a new style of psychedelic guitar rock that stands apart from anything they’ve done in their previous bands. Wild Flag is superslick and superinspirational, but don’t call them a supergroup—they hate that. Recently, I talked to Timony [second from right] and Brownstein [far left] on the phone, and this is what they had to say about letting their Wild Flag ﬂy.

Every interview I’ve seen so far with you guys uses the term “supergroup” to describe you. How do you feel about that? Timony: I don’t think we’d say that about ourselves, because it’s not like we’re in the Traveling Wilburys or something, but I guess it’s a little bit different to have four women our age coming together to form a band. It’s not something you see all the time. Brownstein: To call us a supergroup really waters down the term “supergroup.” A supergroup should encompass people who have sold millions of records, and we’ve sold nothing. We wanted to tour and play small venues before recording the album, to weed out the people who were just interested in us based on our previous bands. We want to build an audience just for Wild Flag. Carrie, now that Portlandia has reached a certain level of popularity, do people bring you birds at shows? Brownstein: There have deﬁnitely been some people who have yelled out, “Put a bird on it!” during shows, but what I get more is people who come up and point out bird tattoos. Somehow I’ve become, like, a de facto bird expert. I guess I need to brush up on my ornithology so I can actually identify the birds. That’s my next career.

// BUST / 49

MUSIC

GRACE JONES Hurricane On Sale September 6

Ghostbird On Sale August 30 (Brushﬁre/Monotone)

Malaysian singer, songwriter, and guitarist Zee Avi (aka Izyan Alirahman) isn’t even 30 years old, and yet her mature voice seems to hail from a bygone era. Think smooth, jazzy vocals reminiscent of Billie Holiday set to folk-pop tinged with an easy-going island cadence—and a ukulele! Avi was discovered when she posted a song to YouTube that was heard by a member of the Raconteurs. Now she’s putting out albums. I love these kinds of stories, don’t you? Avi’s sophomore release, Ghostbird, offers more freespirited, lazy-day vibes that are perfect for chilling out with a cocktail or ﬁve.

([PIAS] America) It has been 22 years since singer/ actor/model/gay icon Grace Jones released an album in the U.S. But the Jamaican-born queen of androgyny is back, with both Hurricane and a bonus dub version of the entire album, Hurricane V2 (In Dub). Always testing boundaries, Jones attacks some tracks with a growl and others with her trademark ultraloud, husky monotone. Released overseas in 2008, Hurricane’s tracks “Williams’ Blood” and “Corporate Cannibal” became big hits in the U.K. And these odd hybrids of dub, dancehall, electro, metal, and reggae fused by Jones’ cool-as-hell vocals are sure to be loved by Stateside fans, too.

ASA Beautiful Imperfection On Sale September 6 (Naïve) Based in Nigeria and France, Bukola “Asa” Elemide skillfully crafts a unique musical mix of ’60s soul, pop, and reggae on her sophomore album, Beautiful Imperfection. Whether she’s singing in English or Yoruban, Asa’s smoldering vocals weave the genres together beautifully, creating ultracatchy melodies that get into your head and stay there. And when she huskily croons about love and life on the track “Why Can’t We,” she’s like a friend giving sage, albeit simple, advice: “Why not live this life/While you’re still young and still OK?/’Cause life is short/Do what you can today.”

50 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

ST. VINCENT Strange Mercy On Sale September 13 (4AD) After the huge success of her ﬁrst two albums—2007’s Marry Me and 2009’s Actor— singer/ songwriter St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) is back with another round of fractured tales. Born in Tulsa, OK, the artist certainly has a knack for mingling crystal-clear vocals with emotionally cloudy lyrics, hinting at a creeping madness beneath a calm surface. Strange Mercy uses a variety of instruments—fuzzy guitars, R&B horns, moog synths, violin—to guide the listener through Clark’s roller coaster of emotions. Each song is decorated with her beautifully sad stoicism and concealed under the guise of a perfectly wrapped gift.

ZEE AVI PHOTO: BRUSHFIRE RECORDS; ASA PHOTO: JB MONDINO/NAÏVE; GRACE JONES PHOTO: [PIAS] AMERICA; ST. VINCENT PHOTO: SHORE FIRE MEDIA

ZEE AVI

MUSIC

ZOLA JESUS Conatus On Sale October 4 (Sacred Bones)

DUM DUM GIRLS

DUM DUM GIRLS PHOTO: SHAWN BRACKBILL; ZOLA JESUS PHOTO: ANGEL CEBALLOS

Only in Dreams • On Sale September 27 (Sub Pop) What began as the one-lady garage-rock act of Kristin Gundred, aka Dee Dee [pictured], has evolved into a quartet best known for its blissed-out, buzz-saw pop. On the Dum Dum Girls’ second full-length, Only in Dreams, expect a fuller, richer, more sophisticated sound. Yes, garage rock can be sophisticated. The L.A./ N.Y.C.–based band’s recent EP He Gets Me High set the stage for it—more slick and reﬁned than their ﬁrst album, I Will Be. But even with their evolving maturity and experience, the DDGs will never abandon that fuzzed-out guitar sound accompanied by beautifully layered girl-group harmonies.

LADYTRON Gravity the Seducer • On Sale September 13 (Nettwerk) It’s hard to believe that British quartet Ladytron has been making synthed-out electronic bliss since 1999. And yet these vets still reign supreme in the electropop scene. Their upcoming full-length release Gravity the Seducer is taking a slightly different direction and the changes are brilliant. Band member Daniel Hunt refers to the album’s sound as a more melodic and ethereal “baroque ’n’ roll.” What’s that? No idea. But listen to the record’s ﬁrst single, “White Elephants,” and you’ll get one. While the haunting chill of Helen Marnie and Mira Aroyo’s vocals remain, the music feels lighter, with an air of Broadcast-like ’60s pop. It’s lovely. More, please.

Zola Jesus (aka Nika Roza Danilova) may be pint-sized, but the Russian American singer/ songwriter’s classically trained pipes emit a huge, gorgeous sound that can leave a room of hundreds mesmerized. I saw these magical powers in action at one of her recent shows, and the lady is like a whirling dervish furiously spinning around on stage as she howls out these crazy high notes. It’s amazing. Expect more goth/industrial/ electronica-tinged drama from ZJ’s third full-length album. Her most recent release, an EP titled Stridulum II, introduced dancier tracks like “Poor Animal,” but don’t expect Zola Jesus to get all Katy Perry on us. She’s too dark, mysterious, and enchanting.

BJÖRK Biophilia On Sale TBA (One Little Indian) We’ve waited four long years for a new Björk record, and this one’s gonna be an ass-kicker on so many levels. Biophilia, the Icelandic songstress’ seventh full-length LP, aims to merge music, nature, and technology. That seems like a daunting task, but this tiny lady is dreaming big with a “multimedia project” that was partly recorded on an iPad and will be released via a series of apps, thus becoming the world’s “ﬁrst app album.” With that wide-mouthed harmonic growl/howl, Björk will celebrate how sound and nature coexist, while exploring the universe— whether it’s a spec of an atom or the immense solar system.

// BUST / 51

52 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

high times You may know Vera Farmiga from her Oscar-nominated role in Up in the Air, but in Hollywood she’s also known for setting fire to sexist scripts. About to set screens ablaze with Higher Ground, which she both directed and stars in, she talks to us about fundamentalism, fame, and why it’s time for female filmmakers to unite

DRESS: HAUTE HIPPIE; STYLIST ASSISTANT: MICHELLE YOO

BY JENNI MILLER

PHOTOGRAPHED BY JENNY GAGE + TOM BETTERTON STYLED BY AMANDA ROSS AT THE WALL GROUP // HAIR BY MIOK AT JUDY CASEY MAKEUP BY PATI DUBROFF AT THE WALL GROUP

54 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

TRENCH: VERA'S OWN

ERA FARMIGA AND I are sitting together at a table 42 floors above New York City on a sunny spring day. Best known for her Academy Award–nominated performance as Alex in the 2009 film Up in the Air, the actress exudes a genuine warmth and earnestness that is a rarity on the ﬁlm-publicity circuit. Perhaps she’s so open because the movie she’s promoting, Higher Ground (debuting August 26), isn’t just a star vehicle for her—it’s also her directorial debut. As I set up my recording equipment, she sighs and smiles while idly tapping a tiny spoon on the table. “My daughter’s spoon,” she explains. The very deﬁnition of a working mother, Farmiga, 38, was actually pregnant with her daughter Gytta while directing Higher Ground, and her young son Fynn has a bit part in it. Making the whole project truly a family affair, her husband, Renn Hawkey (with whom she shares a home in upstate NY), stepped in as producer, and she even cast her little sister, Taissa Farmiga, as the younger version of her lead role. Higher Ground—which uses Carolynn Briggs’ 2003 book This Dark World: A Memoir of Salvation Found and Lost as a jumping-off point— is set in the ’60s through the ’80s and focuses on Corinne (Farmiga), a woman living in a small Christian community that combines a hippie ethos with a fundamentalist core. Corinne has been searching for some sort of spiritual connection since she was a child, and though she tries to find it in church and family, nothing seems to satisfy her yearnings. She derives great solace from her vibrant best friend Annika (Dagmara Dominczyk), but Corinne finds her marriage to her high-school sweetheart Ethan (Joshua Leonard) passionless and the strict church rules regarding women confusing and hypocritical. Ultimately, Higher Ground succeeds because it’s a powerful story that manages to treat the subject of

fundamentalist religion with both respect and humor. (In one unforgettable scene, the men of the church listen to instructional tapes on how to pleasure their wives with “Christ-like sex.”) Born in Clifton, NJ, to Ukrainian immigrant parents, Farmiga and her six siblings were raised in an ex-pat community that was so tight-knit and isolated, she didn’t learn to speak English until she was six. That didn’t stop her, however, from studying the performing arts and breaking into film in 1998’s Return to Paradise. Other supporting roles in movies like Autumn in New York (2000) and Dummy (2002) followed. But it wasn’t until she got her big break playing Irene, a blue-collar mom struggling with addiction in Debra Granik’s 2004 film Down to the Bone that critics and audiences were finally exposed to the full spectrum of her talent. (Granik, who went on to nab an Oscar nomination for Winter’s Bone last year, became a mentor for Farmiga and assisted her in the directing and editing of Higher Ground.) Since then, Farmiga’s made her name as a gritty, intelligent actor whose career bounces between edgy, independent fare and big studio films like The Departed and Source Code. As her career gained traction, she also became known for setting crappy, sexist scripts ablaze. In 2006, she told The New York Times Magazine, “I stack up all those crass female characters, all those utterly ordinary women, all those hundreds and hundreds of parts that have no substance or meaning, and turn them into a blazing pyre.… It’s really cathartic.… It’s my revenge on Hollywood insensitivity and greed. The ashes go to the compost. At least the scripts can finally help the world in some way.” Farmiga was headed to Africa soon after our interview to begin filming the CIA thriller Safe House with Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds. But before she took off on her latest adventure, she talked about family, fame, and finding her way in film. Did you direct Higher Ground because you’ve always wanted to direct, or were you frustrated with the roles you were being offered? I directed it because I had no choice. I felt it was a call to service. It wasn’t something I wanted to achieve. The idea was presented to me when I actually tried to remove myself from the project. I developed it, I was attached to it as an actress for several years, and I was drawn to it because it’s a story about growth and self-discovery and awakening. I developed it for several years with the writers, and it was the first time that I could be a part of that process. In the development process, my own personality, my own sense of humor, my own sensibility, my own ideas and perceptions entered the material. And given the subject matter, I wanted to make sure that tonally, the notes were going to be hit precisely and gently. Finally I felt that I had to seize the day. This thing was happening, it was larger than me or my intentions, and I just felt a conviction to follow it through.

Do you ever find yourself in the same position as Corrine? Are you looking for answers to the big questions religion presents? Who amongst us is not? You’d have to be inhuman to not, on some level, relate powerfully to this woman. The story to me is not about a woman who loses her faith. It’s about a woman who loses an impoverished faith, a destitute faith. She’s a woman who is yearning for intimacy in her relationship with God, whatever that means. She’s yearning for intimacy in all the relationships in her life, including with her husband, with her children, with her mom. And I think that sense of yearning is something that I absolutely relate to—the yearning to live passionately and authentically and genuinely. How do you physically make a movie while pregnant? Barely. Oftentimes with a lot of tears. It was agony, and the hormones of pregnancy are nuts. I had so much joy in executing it, but I didn’t always have the energy. I think the inspiration of working with the kinds of actors that I did was so rare I just treasured it. But that’s not to say I didn’t complain. My husband got the brunt of my complaining. But he also produced the film for me, so you’ll have to ask him how I really was. When I first saw Higher Ground at Sundance, I had no idea that your little sister was playing young Corinne, but her resemblance to you was uncanny. Did directing her bring up any sisterly issues? There’s 21 years between Taissa and myself. Same parents—she’s the runt of the litter. I think I have more authority over her than I do my other sisters who are closer in age, or siblings who are closer in age. She’s always taken cues from me, so that’s the nature of our relationship anyway. I’m obsessed with her, and have been obsessed with photographing her since she was a kid, because she has a transparency in her face. She has a magical face that’s capable of such emotion, and she’s just a good sport. She relied on me wholeheartedly—there weren’t any sister issues that came into question. Being in the film wasn’t something she wanted to achieve either; it just made sense genetically. Nepotism just seemed like it was appropriate in this situation. I didn’t read anybody else for the role. She reminds me a lot of myself when I was 16, and so she was the one. She’s very easy to direct, actually. But she’d never done anything like this before.

felt that I had to seize the day. “IThis thing was happening, it was larger than me or my intentions, and I felt a conviction to follow it through.

”

// BUST / 55

I know you. Where do I know you from? Were we in Girl Scouts together?’ And I say, ‘No, I’m in the film business.’

”

The theme of sisterhood and female friendship runs so deep in this film. But do you think the larger discussion about fundamentalist Christianity eclipses this thread? I don’t think so. I think it’s very palpable in the story. Corinne’s best friend, Annika, is a form of salvation for her. Annika is an example of how someone of profound faith can still be herself in a genuine way. Annika is the woman that Corinne wants to be. Do you think fundamentalist religion is inherently antifeminist? Not necessarily, no. I don’t think the true intent of religion or faith does that. I don’t think religion puts women in a box. I think we put each other in boxes. I think men put women in boxes. I think faith is designed to help you live a life of deeper meaning and purpose. Do you feel that you have a deeper understanding of the fundamentalist religious lifestyle now? To speak generally is hard to do, because Christianity varies so much from sect to sect. This film is about a very particular time and place, and is about what was happening socially within the feminist movement in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. I think people become frustrated with organized religion and go off and create their own form of that religion, and that’s why there are so many different denominations feuding within the Christian community. Jesus is at the center of all the different born-again and fundamental strains. But they’re so critical of each other, when at the core of it all, Jesus was a man who had some radical ideas and didn’t judge. What was so miraculous about this man was his empathy and his respect for all individuals. Do you wish you could stick with indie films, or do you feel you get momentum from the bigger films? It’s not necessarily that I aspire to do indie films; I just aspire to be inspired—inspired and challenged. And I want to have a good time. If I have to be away from my kids, it’d better be worthwhile, and I’d better have a generally good time. I’ve had the opportunity now to tell many different kinds of stories, so more and more I feel like if I choose a film, it’s for a good reason. Whether that

56 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

film will allow me to do more films where I don’t have to worry about the paycheck…then every film has a purpose in some way. But good stories are found in the independent world and in studio films, and it’s really luck of the draw. It’s whatever comes your way and whatever inspires you. How has your life changed insofar as fame and being recognized? How do you maneuver through life having a recognizable face while still retaining your privacy? I’m never recognized. Never. I live in upstate New York. People in my community knew me before I had any measure of success. So I am who I am to them. I think I look very different from role to role, and often just by virtue of that, I don’t think I’m recognized. Oftentimes I’ll be asked, “Did we go to school together? I know you. Where do I know you from? Were we in Girl Scouts together?” And I say, “No, I’m in the film business.” “Oh, what do you do?” “I’m an actress.” “Oh, what films have you been a part of?” And I say The Departed right away, because that’s usually the biggest one. “Who were you in The Departed?” That’s incredible. Actually, I get a big kick out of it, because I have a very normal lifestyle. No one ever recognizes me. And maybe it’s because I morph physically in films, whether it’s hair color or…I think I just have a face, too, that, depending on what angle it’s photographed from, is different. What kind of tips did Debra Granik give you for directing and navigating the industry from the director’s point of view? She looks at everything through a microscope. She’s very detailoriented; she finds God in the details. She’s not sentimental, and I think she steered me that way in the editing room, in terms of how to shape and condense the film. That was the hardest thing for me to do, turning it from a three-and-a-half-hour film into an hour-and-fifteen-minute film. She came up for a whole day and armed me with the courage to not be sentimental. Do you feel there’s a core of women who support each other professionally in the film industry? I think certainly there’s that sisterhood, and venues are there for us to encourage each other. But the way I plan on participating and embracing and encouraging women who I want to work with is to create opportunities—develop them myself, either as a producer or as a writer or as a director. That’s what actresses did in the ’30s. I’m often asked about the status of roles for women, and it’s a call to action, really. It’s not about waiting around for things to happen. It’s about simply being proactive and creating and developing those opportunities. We can finance films now, we can take those chances, we can unite, and it’s just a matter of buddying up and saying, “Let’s create those stories.” I ache to see more portrayals of female characters that I recognize in myself. B

DRESS: HAUTE HIPPIE

Oftentimes I’ll be asked, “‘Did we go to school together?

UNDER THE INFLUENCE WE TAKE FALL’S BEST RUNWAY TRENDS AND HELP YOU GET THE LOOKS FOR LESS

ARE YOU DROOLING over fall’s designer looks but unsure of how to take them to the streets without blowing your wad on a blouse? Fret no more. We take three of our favorite runway trends (and the inspiration behind them) and bite the style hard, offering items that are both wearable and affordable. Check out our take on the black-and-white palette and clean lines of Jason Wu’s menswear, inspired by

the many women, like Janelle Monáe, who rock a tailored pantsuit. We also interpret the dusty hues and farm-fresh florals of Rodarte’s collection, inspired by life on the prairie, at prices even Laura Ingalls Wilder could afford. Last, we take a cue from Marc Jacobs’ modern Victorian look featuring cameos, high collars, lace, and ruffles. Now you can have all the swagger of the runway without the giant price tag.

BY CALLIE WATTS AND KRISTINA URIEGAS-REYES

58 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

MENSWEAR

JANELLE MONÁE PHOTO: ANDREW ZAEH

INSPIRATION: JANELLE MONÁE

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: GRAY DOUBLE-BREASTED COAT BY TULLE, $103, TULLE4US.COM; BLACK COTTON BLAZER BY TOPSHOP, $100, TOPSHOP.COM; WOOL CAFÉ CAPRI PANTS BY J.CREW, $118, JCREW.COM; BLACK SATIN FRENCH BOWTIE BY HANDSOME AND LACE, $33.50, HANDSOMEANDLACE.ETSY.COM; HIGH FLYING HAIR BOW, $9, SHOPPLASTICLAND.COM; WHITE PYRAMID CLUTCH BY GLAM NOIR, $87.50, GLAMNOIR.COM; WHITE SHIRT WITH BLACK TRIM BY TOPSHOP, $80, TOPSHOP.COM; BLACK EXETER SHOES BY MATT BERNSON, $176, MATTBERNSON.COM; BLACK ALLEN LEATHER SKINNY BELT BY J.CREW, $34, JCREW.COM.

// // BUST BUST // 59 59

PRAIRIE

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: GINGER BREW DRESS BY HOLY CODI STUDIO, $99.99, MODCLOTH.COM; PONY VINTAGE CAMEO LOCKET NECKLACE BY RUN WILD HORSES, $26, RUNWILDHORSES.ETSY.COM; DETACHABLE PETER PAN COLLAR BY YEYE, $40, YEYE.ETSY.COM; FROLICKING THROUGH WILD FLOWERS PRINTED DRESS BY RUCHE, $48.99, SHOPRUCHE.COM; HEIRLOOM BOOT IN WALNUT BY NICOLE, $139, MUSTHAVESHOES.COM; CLASSIC BOXY BASKET BY TIPICO, $45, TIPICO.ETSY.COM; ALICE COLLAR NECKLACE BY CIAONINA, $25, CIAONINA.ETSY.COM; LUCKY SHOE RING BY VERAMEAT, $68, VERAMEAT.COM; GOLDEN TWIG HAIRPINS BY WOODLAND BELLE, $24, SHANALOGIC.COM.

60 / BUST // AUG/SEPT JUN/JUL

LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE PHOTO: PHOTOFEST

INSPIRATION: LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE

VICTORIAN

INSPIRATION: GREAT EXPECTATIONS

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: BLACK BURNOUT FLORAL BLOUSE BY HISTORICAL EMPORIUM, $74.95, HISTORICALEMPORIUM.COM; VICTORIAN MOURNING PURSE BY LIP SERVICE, $52, SHOPPLASTICLAND.COM; FOREST-GREEN PILLBOX HAT BY BEE SMITH MILLINERY, £85, ROKIT.CO.UK; SILHOUETTE FLASK BY WHIMSY AND INK, $22.99, SPOTTEDMOTH.COM; BLACK OPEN-TOE CUCKOO BOOT BY SEYCHELLES, $120, SEYCHELLESFOOTWEAR. COM; BLACKHEARTED BABYDOLL DRESS BY LIP SERVICE, $86, SHOPPLASTICLAND.COM; MAUDE BOOT BY BASS LOVES RACHEL ANTONOFF, $129, BASSSHOES.COM; TELEVISION CAMEO RING BY ANA ACCESSORIES INC, $9.99, MODCLOTH.COM; RED GATHERED SLIT-SIDE MAXI SKIRT BY TOPSHOP, $70, TOPSHOP.COM.

// // BUST BUST // 61 61

Is your roomie ruining your life? Here’s how to love your living situation without losing your friendship BY ROSEMARY COUNTER // ILLUSTRATED BY YELENA BRYKSENKOVA

INETY-EIGHT-YEAR-OLD Laura and her centenarian roommate Elizabeth took daily walks together at their Massachusetts nursing home. They ate lunch together every day. As their nurses turned out the lights, they heard the women saying, “Good night, I love you.” But one day Laura placed a table at the foot of her roommate’s bed, and Elizabeth said it blocked her route to the bathroom. When an aide moved the table, Laura grumbled that her roommate “might as well have the whole room.” Elizabeth complained that Laura was making her life “a living hell.” Things only got worse from there. Way worse: Elizabeth’s body was found with a plastic bag tied around her head. Laura was indicted on a charge of second-degree murder. It’s an extreme case of an all-too-familiar phenomenon— roomhate, and you know you know it. It goes like this: Girl A is buds with Girl B, and since they get along just fine and the economy is balls, pooling resources to upgrade their digs sounds like a good idea. (In fact, a recent Pew Research Center study found that thanks to the recession, women ages 18 – 29 are entering shared living situations at a rate five times that of young men.) It’ll all be very Romy-and-Michelle—they’ll share food and clothes, split the bills, and work out the kinks along the way. After all, when it comes to gal pals, what could go wrong? Lots, it seems. It begins with dirty dishes here, unpaid phone bills there. You borrow her J Brands without asking, her boyfriend charges porn to your cable. Soon you’re bitching to anyone who’ll listen, shivery vibes fill the air at home, and subtle eye rolling becomes the communication style of choice. So before you consider smothering her with a pillow, read on for the best advice for (and the worst examples of ) how to combat your roomhate head-on and keep your friendship intact.

62 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

FIND YOUR MATCH “I’ve always heard that good friends don’t necessarily make good roommates,” says Courtney*, who learned this the hard way after shacking up with her pal Belle. “I quickly discovered that Belle never washed her dishes or took out the trash, left the oven on while she was out, screamed commentary at any movie she was watching, left long pubic hairs all over the bathroom floor, and turned the heat up in the summer.” Courtney stuck it out through their year-long lease but knows now to be more careful when deciding who to cohabit with. According to her, when it comes to living situations, having similar expectations is more important than being buds. “Belle and I were great friends, but it turned out we had nothing in common as roommates,” she says. “Putting out an ad for a roommate outlining certain needs is much more effective than choosing a friend at random.” That’s why before you live together—and the before is key here—check out your potential roommate’s domestic habits, advises Alyson Mischel, a Los Angeles psychotherapist and life coach who specializes in roommate counseling. Make mental notes. How dirty or clean is she? How much does she drink? Does she like to cook big meals and make a mess in the kitchen? Do you? Though you might make great friends, an acquaintance or even a stranger may be a better match. PLAN FOR THE WORST When Maryann moved in with Kari, she assumed they would split expenses, but she assumed wrong. “Kari said if I wanted cable TV or a telephone, I should pay for it,” Maryann says. Her roommate pretended like she didn’t use them, often darting for the pow-

*Some names have been changed

// BUST / 63

er button and hiding as Maryann walked through the door. Ngaio can relate. She and Andrea were casual friends all through high school, so when Andrea landed at Ngaio’s university, they decided to save some money by sharing a lease. Their first clash was on move-in day. “She just assumed she’d be getting the good room,” says Ngaio. They’d quickly fallen for a brand-new oversize space but hadn’t thought to discuss whose bedroom was whose. “Typically I don’t care about that sort of thing, but she made a big deal about it, so I said it was fine.” It was not fine and the dispute had the pair off to a rocky start. According to Mischel, house expenses, room assignments, and stuff-sharing are exactly the kind of things that should be discussed prior to move-in day. And she suggests going one step further. “I’m a proponent of making an actual business plan,” she says. “Just like an attorney in a contract makes plans for any variable or possibility, when you enter into a lease with a roommate, you need to do the same thing. Like a prenup.” Smart roommates should abandon their delusions and get nitty-gritty with the details, creating an agreement that covers bills (who will pay what), cleaning (what chores need to be done and who will do them when), sharing (what’s off-limits and what you’ll buy together), and even how rooms and closets are to be divided (flip a coin? the one with the bigger room pays more rent?) before signing a lease. THE “OTHER” ROOMMATE When Chelsea moved in with a friend from work, she thought she’d won the roommate lottery: Heather was considerate, neat, and hardly ever there. But six months into their lease, Heather asked if her new boyfriend could crash with them for a week or so while he found a new place. “A month and a half into this situation, I was pissed,” says Chelsea. Heather had quit her job to spend more time with her boyfriend, and the two rarely left the house. “They ate all my food, never cleaned, made a bunch of calls on my cell phone using up all my minutes, and were there all the time hanging out and watching TV.” “The biggest complaint is always the ‘third roommate,’” says Mischel, and you need to speak up the moment this threesome isn’t working for you. “You say, ‘I understand you have a significant other but I need to be comfortable in my own home,’” Mischel suggests. Then make your requests reasonable and clear: mandatory shirts, a per-week limit on sleepovers, con-

64 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

tributing to the grocery fund. You might be surprised how a regular $50 donation to the fridge makes you much more lax with your milk. Or, if you’re the one with the significant other, you need to respect your roomie’s wishes and find an acceptable compromise. “I lived with a woman who was very socially conservative, especially about sex and men,” says Megan, a NY-based editor. “She had an overwrought fear that every man was little more than a potential rapist—even my shy, quiet then-boyfriend—and she couldn’t sleep well with one in the house. So we talked it out: he would sleep over no more than two days a week, and he wouldn’t have keys.” SEX AND PRIVACY—YOU NEED BOTH Dealing with one another’s sexcapades in such small quarters is always a challenge. “I respect everyone’s right to a sex life,” says Samantha, who still shudders to think of the year she shared a room in her college dorm. “What I did not respect, however, was my roommate’s logic that deemed it perfectly acceptable to bring a guy back to our room in the middle of the afternoon, whilst I was typing away at my desk with my back turned, and proceed to give her lucky friend a good ol’fashioned BJ.” Same awkward story for Alexandra, who was lucky enough to have a wall between her and her drunken roommate’s loud, late-night booty call on the very first night in their new apartment. “I could hear her saying, ‘My roommate’s home, shut up, shut the fuck up!’” Alexandra recalls, cringing. So she cranked the volume on her iPod—a godsend, she says—wishing she were the one who wouldn’t remember it in the morning. So how do two girls living under the same roof still manage to get their rocks off ? In addition to making use of earplugs and loud music like Samantha and Alexandra recommend, you can also invest in a white-noise machine, says Mischel. But probably most important is some perspective: when your roomie’s moanings have you seething, try to remember that with any luck, the tables will turn, and if you’ve dealt maturely with her kinks, she’s much more likely to return the favor. COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN Regardless of how much planning you’ve done, you can count on times when things will get sticky. And you’ll probably have a hard time saying anything about your roommate’s transgressions. “You really want to get along,” says University of Michigan psychologist Jennifer Crocker. “Since there’s a sense you can’t raise issues, you start doing things to convey you’re pissed without being direct.” Leilani lived with two friends, and all three were working and pursing various artistic endeavors. That meant odd hours, deadlines, and conflicting schedules—so forget about the chore wheel. Instead, they decided that each of them would be responsible for one room of the apartment: the bathroom, kitchen, and living room. It all worked fine until a “pretty wicked mold growth” in the bathroom had Leilani in an allergic huff.

The bathroom wasn’t her responsibility. Rather than cleaning it herself or mentioning it politely, Leilani chose silent resentment and an eventual passive-aggressive email attack, which her roommate didn’t respond to kindly. “She said if it bothered me so much, why didn’t I just deal with it? And why did she always get the grossest jobs?” Then for the first time in weeks, her roommate cleaned the bathroom, from top to bottom, at 1 a.m. (Just guess whether she was stewing in rage the whole time.) The mold was gone, but so was their harmonious roommate relationship. At some point, angry midnight disinfections can start to feel normal. As can neurotic food labeling. After three months of roommatehood, Emilie, an otherwise-sane 27-year-old, found herself diligently writing her name in Sharpie on every single one of her eggs. “It would have been more appropriate to say, ‘I see you’ve been eating my eggs; maybe let’s share,’” she says. But amidst an advanced battle of roomhate, logic just won’t do. “I was already so nonsensically pissed off that I thought I just really didn’t want anyone eating my fucking eggs,” she says. “If there’s an issue, it’s far better to speak up about it, because the longer it goes unaddressed, the worse it’s going to get,” says Samantha, who wishes she’d had a conversation with her roommate immediately after the notorious afternoon-BJ situation. Because once you’re annoyed, each and every minor offense becomes an opportunity for subtle aggression, which women tend to opt for over confrontation. So if you’re a routine egg borrower, consider your actions and your roommate’s reactions as deliberate moves of passive aggression that can pile up fast. Before you know it, you’re both saying the I’m-not-really-fine “fine” when it’s blatantly obvious that the opposite is true. If the pseudo-fine’s happening to you, it’s time to take action. Call a roommate meeting to order, do it in public with martinis or a plate of nachos, and put your concerns—no matter how slight or grand—on the table. Take one issue at a time, keep the swear words to a minimum, and get fixing. If you’re sick of dirty dishes, then be honest and say so. If your neuroticism dictates nobody move your wet clothes to the dryer, drive that point home. “But you can’t be a stickler about everything,” says Mischel. “Pick your deal breakers, and focus on those.” KNOW WHEN TO CALL IT QUITS Jen, a 29-year-old book editor, was instantly drawn to Rita. “She seemed really cool, had a great job in finance, and was doing her degree at night like I was,” says Jen. “We hit it off immediately.” After a year of best-friendship, the pair decided to get a place together. That's when things got weird. First, Jen’s credit card was stolen (she thought she lost it). Next, her debit card was compromised (an unlucky coincidence, she figured). Then a mutual friend accused Rita of theft (Jen stood up for her). But things really got crazy two months into their lease when the superintendent called. “He said checks were missing from the mail,” Jen says. Rita had been

caught trying to cash them, and Jen would be charged with obstructing justice if she didn’t cooperate with the police. Following Rita’s arrest, Jen found Rita’s diary and read it. “Turns out, six months before we met, she’d been in jail,” she says. Jen also learned about Rita’s cocaine problem, her secret girlfriend, and her plans to pin an array of crimes on Jen. “You really think you know somebody, but when push comes to shove, I don’t know if anyone really knows anyone,” she says. The moral of the story? If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s probably a duck—and you don’t want a duck for a roommate. You can hope for the best and try your hardest, but stealing, lying, or her sleeping with your boyfriend are all reasons (to name just a few) to throw in the towel. Just like a romantic relationship, whether it’s a dramatic split or a slow divergence, there comes a time when a breakup is inevitable. For Robyn, whose roomhate of Kelly had progressed to the full-on silent treatment, that moment was a literal pile of shit. “I came home after a long day to find that the dogs had pooped in the living room. But since they were my dogs, Kelly was just sitting there, ignoring the shit,” says Robyn. The metaphor was not lost on her. Sure, it was her dogs’ poop, but had their living situation been amicable, Kelly would have disposed of it. So lest their friendship go down the toilet, Robyn laid it on the line via email. “I said I wanted to keep our friendship, but this was destroying it, and I needed her to move out.” Two icy months later, Kelly packed up and left. “She’s one of my best friends now,” says Robyn, “though we never speak of the dark year.” To carry out your breakup with the least amount of drama, Mischel says, “the best possible scenario is to wait until two months before the lease is up and tell a little white lie.” Since it’s already over, total honesty isn’t the best policy. Don’t say she’s a terrible person to live with and you hope her cat dies; just say you’ve decided to live alone or you want to move to a new location. And don’t pack up and disappear in the middle of the night. Instead, talk to the landlord for her and offer to help find a new roommate. Don’t break off all communication, says Robyn, as it’s very possible to be cured of your roomhate and repair your friendship. Just like a breakup with a significant other, you might hate her for a while and bitch to your friends about her faults, but if you want to, you can mend the relationship and maintain a great friendship—in separate dwellings. B

// BUST / 65

ON GEORGINA (LEFT): CAMEL HAT BY BAILEY OF HOLLYWOOD, BAILEYHATS. COM; BUTTON-DOWN SHIRT BY MADEWELL, MADEWELL. COM; JEANS BY DSQUARED2, SELECT SAKS FIFTH AVENUE STORES, 877551-7257 FOR LOCATIONS; BRACELETS BY PURA VIDA, PURAVIDABRACELETS.COM. ON VALERIA: CROPPED DENIM JACKET BY CHEAP MONDAY, SELECT SAKS FIFTH AVENUE STORES; SKIRT BY BOXING KITTEN, ANTHROPOLOGIE.COM.

66 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Cozy up in these cute looks that feature the season’s best denim styles

PHOTOGRAPHED BY FRANCES TULK-HART STYLED BY GALADRIEL MASTERSON AT FORD HAIR BY REBECCA PLYMATE AT SEE MAKEUP BY TAMAH KRINSKY AT SEE MODELS: GEORGINA AND VALERIA AT IMG

// BUST / 67

BLACK HAT BY DSQUARED2, SHOPBOP. COM; FEATHER NECKLACE BY FLAVIA CARDOSA, FOXANDTHISTLENYC. COM; STONE AND SKULL NECKLACE BY STELLA RAY, FOXANDTHISTLENYC. COM; CHAMBRAY DRESS BY STEVEN ALAN, STEVENALAN.COM. 68 / BUST // AUG/SEPT APR/MAY

ON GEORGINA (LEFT): FOLKLORE WRAP CARDIGAN BY LINE KNITWEAR, INTERMIXONLINE.COM; OVERSIZE TEE BY MIH-JEANS, MIH-JEANS.COM; JEANS BY VOLCOM, VOLCOM.COM; MOCCASINS BY CAMPER, CAMPER.COM. ON VALERIA: BLACK HAT BY DSQUARED2; FEATHER NECKLACE BY FLAVIA CARDOSA; STONE AND SKULL NECKLACE BY STELLA RAY; CHAMBRAY DRESS BY STEVEN ALAN; SOCKS BY HUE, HUE.COM; OXFORD LACEUPS BY DIEPPA RESTREPO, DIEPPARESTREPO.COM.

// BUST / 69

ON GEORGINA (LEFT): RED NYLON JACKET BY STEVEN ALAN; BOYFRIEND BUTTON-DOWN BY STEVEN ALAN; STRIPED SHIRT BY URBAN OUTFITTERS, URBANOUTFITTERS.COM; DENIM SHORTS BY TWENTY8TWELVE, TWENTY8TWELVE.COM; RIBBED SWEATER SOCKS BY SPRING AND CLIFTON, SPRINGANDCLIFTON. COM; RAIN BOOTS BY HUNTER, HUNTER-BOOT. COM. ON VALERIA: VINTAGE RAIN HAT FROM SCREAMING MIMI’S, SCREAMINGMIMIS.COM; GRAY SWEATER BY FRED PERRY, AUTHENTIC FRED PERRY, 212-260-4770; PLAID SHIRT BY FRED PERRY; JEANS BY QSD, QUIKSILVER.COM. OPPOSITE PAGE: FAUX-FUR COAT BY MARC BY MARC JACOBS, MARC JACOBS N.Y.C., 212-929-0304; 501 CUTOFFS BY LEVIS, URBANOUTFITTERS.COM.

ON VALERIE THIS PAGE: CKLACES BY AESA, NO6STORE.COM; JUMPSUIT BY MINA STONE, STEVENALAN.COM; SHOES BY ROBERT CLERGERIE, BARNEYS.COM; VINTAGE GLASSES, AMANDA’S OWN. ON GEORGINA OPPOSITE LEFT: CKLACES BY AESA, NO6STORE.COM; JUMPSUIT BY MINA STONE, STEVENALAN.COM; SHOES BY ROBERT CLERGERIE, BARNEYS.COM; VINTAGE GLASSES, AMVENALAN.COM; SHOES BY ROBERT CLERGERIE, BARNEYS.COM; VINTAGE GLASSES, AMANDA’S OWN.

70 / BUST // AUG/SEPT APR/MAY

ON VALERIE RIGHT: CKLACES BY AESA, NO6STORE.COM; JUMPSUIT BY MINA STONE, STEVENALAN.COM; SHOES B AESA, NO6STORE.COM; JUMPSUIT BY MINA STONE, STEVENALAN.COM; SHOES BY ROBERT CLERGERIE, BARNEYS.COM; VINTAGE GLASSES, AMANDA’S OWN.

// BUST / 71

TOP HAT FROM SCREAMING MIMI’S, SCREAMINGMIMIS.COM; BLUE DOVE SCARF BY MIH-JEANS, MIH-JEANS.COM; BLANKET BY BILLABONG, PACSUN.COM; JEANS BY BIG STAR, URBANOUTFITTERS.COM; SOCKS BY HUE; BOOTS BY SEYCHELLES, SEYCHELLESFOOTWEAR.COM.

72 / BUST // AUG/SEPT APR/MAY

FEATHER HEADPIECE BY EVIL PAWN JEWELRY BY FAITH EVANGELINE, EVILPAWNJEWELRY.COM; SILVER RABBIT CHARM NECKLACE BY KAREN WALKER, KARENWALKER.COM; LAVENDER TIE-DYE TEE BY KSUBI, KSUBI.COM.

// BUST / 73

74 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

the bust guide

MUSIC

BEYONCÉ 4

(Columbia) Once an artist becomes a superstar, the world loses count of just how many albums they’ve actually released. Beyoncé reminds us with the title of her latest LP. With mid-tempo melodies and heartfelt lyrics, Queen Bey returns with 4—a handful of ballads featuring tons of vocal gumption. 2008’s I Am…Sasha Fierce placed Beyoncé between two worlds— pensive diva and dancing queen (her alter-ego, Sasha Fierce). 4 is heavier on the diva, easy on the Sasha. Despite being happily married to Jay-Z, Beyoncé sings convincingly about loss and regret in relationships, letting loose emotionally on tracks like “I Miss You” and “Best Thing I Never Had.” Of course, 4 doesn’t lack in the female anthem department; every Beyoncé album has one. This time it’s “Run the World (Girls),” an aggressive femanifesto backed by stuttering drums and heavy chants. While it’s a huge contrast to the other 11 tracks on 4, it’s a necessary addition. [KATHY IANDOLI]

BRILLIANT COLORS Again and Again (Slumberland)

PHOTO: ALEX LAKE

Rolling waves, white sand, and golden rays—San Francisco’s Brilliant Colors is making me fall in love with summer all over again. The all-girl band of Jess Scott (guitarist/singer), Diane Anastasio (drums), and Michelle Hill (bass) may be inspired by post-punk, but you won’t ﬁnd any of the melancholy angst often associated with the descents of frustrated Brits. Whether shoegazing on “Back to the Tricks,” or fantasizing about past lovers on “Telephone Stories,” Brilliant Colors expertly delivers dreamy melodies, hazy guitars, and delicate drumming. While the tracks on Again and Again may sound like one continuous song, the album’s simplicity is quite cathartic. The result: a collection of fuzzy beats and soothing, otherworldly vocals reminiscent of lazy afternoons spent soaking up the sun. [STEPHANIE NOLASCO]

CLIFFIE SWAN Memories Come True (Drag City) Been troubled by the absence of Brooklyn’s

emmy the great VIRTUE (CAPITOL/PARLOPHONE) LONDON-BASED SINGER/SONGWRITER Emmy the Great, otherwise known as EmmaLee Moss, has a writer’s soul. She once claimed she’d love to move to the country like Beatrix Potter and live alone with her library and houseplants, a dream that definitely comes through on her new album Virtue. Moss has an incredible way with words, so it’s easy to overlook the beautiful arrangements backing up her poetic lyrics. On opener “Dinosaur Sex,” a quirky refrain that is at first funny turns into a meaningful, inspiring metaphor with the help of lilting guitars, percussion, and flute. “Exit Night/Juliet’s Theme,” a six-minute epic that channels Joni Mitchell by way of Shakespeare, begins as a quiet folk song that builds to a full-blown pop peak, then abruptly ends with a melancholy lullaby. Moss’ whimsical style echoes that of fellow folky ladies Joanna Newsom and Martha Wainwright, but her lyrics sometimes tend more toward the spiritual and abstract. She longs for a “Place where I’m gonna leave to/When all this questioning is through” on “North,” and on comparatively upbeat “Sylvia” asks, “If this is life/Why does it feel like I’m far away?” Occasionally her lyrics err too far on the side of twee, but her quavery voice—which is sweet with a hint of smokiness—firmly grounds her words in real emotion. Escaping to England’s Lake District with nothing but a stack of books isn’t a fantasy most of us can realize, but Emmy the Great’s charming tunes are a good alternative retreat. [ELIZA THOMPSON] // BUST / 75

the guide MUSIC retro-rock queens Lights? Then sidle up to Clifﬁe Swan, ladies, ’cause it’s the exact same band. Literally. Fresh from a name change (and with a seriously sharp new focus), Memories Come True takes the group’s signature Fleetwood Mac vibe to the next level of amazing—’70s guitars, languorous beats, hazy harmonies, and all. “Soft and Mean” (which sounds like it could be from Heart’s 1977 album Little Queen) and the sing-along “Full of Pain” create that late-summer road trip feeling formerly dominated by Mazzy Star. And the guitar theatrics of “California Baby” and the swaggering “Dream Chain” are pure Stevie Nicks and company. Even the more haunted songs like “Climb on Top” and

“Home” pulse with a sultry strut that’s perfect for the season’s heat-drenched dog days. So hit the open road, blast Memories Come True, and soak up the nostalgia. Clifﬁe Swan would have it no other way. [MOLLIE WELLS]

CORREATOWN Pleiades (Self-released) It’s impossible to listen to the opening seconds of Correatown’s Pleiades without feeling something, whether it’s hope, joy, melancholy, or despair. It’s those soaring, dramatic strings and girly vocals dripping in nostalgia set to a Phil Spector–inspired BOOM, boomboom cha drum beat—they’ll get you

{heavy rotation}

DOLLY PARTON Better Day (Dolly/Warner) HAS DOLLY PARTON made some deal with the devil? It seems like the only way to explain how, at age 65, her chirpy, birdbright voice hasn’t lost any of its magic. But the God-fearing Parton would probably prefer to say she’s been blessed. On Better Day, her follow-up to 2008’s beloved Backwoods Barbie, the icon spreads some folksy wisdom about love, commitment, her career, and bein’ country. “In the Meantime,” the lead track, is like audio Prozac—an admonishment to listeners to “drop that doomsday attitude” despite all the world’s gloom. The ﬁrst single, “Together You and I,” is a remake of her romantic 1974 tune of the same name, and the charmingly hokey “Country Is” sees her celebrating her roots, whether she’s drinking “champagne or chocolate milk.” Dolly—and her life of “grindstones and rhinestones”—is the Southern-fried real deal. [MOLLY SIMMS]

76 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

every time. Lead singer Angela Correa’s voice is a little Camera Obscura, a little Gigi, and a lot Azure Ray. The band’s lush instrumentation and terribly sincere balladry proves a song can be both gorgeous and heartbreaking at once. That’s probably what landed them a featured spot on Grey’s Anatomy. And while Pleiades occasionally veers into cheesy soundtrack territory, Correatown manages each time to pull it back with enchanting song structures and unexpected melodies. Warning: do not listen to this album after a breakup. It will tear your heart in two all over again. [ERIN GRIFFITH]

CSS La Liberación (V2/Cooperative/ Downtown) The electro new wave dance party led by leading lady Lovefoxxx is back! La Liberación, the third album from Brazilian quintet Cansei de Ser Sexy, still delivers the band’s trademark ass-shaking energy—Godzilla-sized beats, hot synths, and Lovefoxxx’s impeccable fluency in sailor mouth. But get your glow sticks out because there are more than a couple of raver moments and plenty of ’90s pastiche on this LP. “City Grrrl” is the thumping anthem of a teenage misfit/riot grrrl trying to break free from the ’burbs. “I wish I would dye my hair pink/Put on black lipstick/ No one would give a shit,” Lovefoxxx chants, dreaming of moving to the big city where “nothing hurts.” It’s totally Teen Beat, but it’s catchy as hell and definitely nails that young punk FTW attitude. A couple of songs on La Liberación take a break from the dance floor for more grown-up breakup ballads like the pulsing, piano-laced “You Could Have it All.” Then it’s right back to the ’90s with “Ruby’s Eyes”—Lovefoxxx’s Kim Gordon–inflected halfspoken vocals mix with whirling guitar feedback for a sound that’s a whole lot of lo-fi Sebadoh. [JEN HAZEN]

THE ETTES Wicked Will (Sympathy For the Record Industry) To call the Ettes rockabilly, garage, country, or punk would be slightly inaccurate. The Nashville-

based trio takes cues from each of those genres, but what results is greater than the sum of its parts, er, influences. You get it. On their fourth album, the band barrels through stripped down, rollicking, rock ’n’ roll songs—and I mean rock ’n’ roll in the most classic sense. Wicked Will is packed with heel-stomping, fist-pumping badassery—the kind best experienced in small, loud dive bars. Amid all the grittiness, lead singer Lindsay “Coco” Hames’ twangy voice cuts through, sounding a lot like Nancy Sinatra or Dusty Springfield with a little more sass. Meanwhile, the band takes cues from garage revivalists like Holly Golightly and the Dirtbombs. There’s bad-girl snarling, crunchy guitars, driving beats, and a healthy dose of Rolling Stones–style attitude delivered by a couple of vixenish, bouffant-sporting man-eaters. [ERIN GRIFFITH]

MARIANNE FAITHFULL Horses and High Heels (Naïve/Dramatico) Marianne Faithfull’s latest album Horses and High Heels has got to be one of the 64-year-old singer’s strongest efforts to date. Covers like the Gutter Twins’ “The Stations” prove that a folk-country-grunge groove fits Faithfull’s deep raspy vocals like a glove. Carole King and Gerry Goffin’s sparse arrangement “Goin’ Back,” (originally made famous by Dusty Springfield) finds the singer contributing some of her most vulnerable vocals yet. On the track “Why Did We Have to Part,” a pop song co-written by Faithfull, she sings, “Why did we have to part, my love?/Why couldn’t life just stay the same?” Is she referring to her legendary ’60s rock ’n’ roll romance with Mick Jagger? Only she knows for sure. But one thing is certain—Faithfull sounds happy and comfortable in her skin on Horses and High Heels. Long may she rock. [MICHAEL LEVINE]

THE FEATURES Wilderness (Serpents and Snakes) Compatriots of bigwigs Kings of Leon, the Features certainly proﬁle a bit confederate, but not aggressively so. They are from

MUSIC Nashville, after all, and Wilderness has ﬁghting spirit to spare. It’s woolly and appropriately rustic, but the ’60s keyboards give it a Deep Purple stomp that kicks down the walls of the log cabin. “Another One” could even be an FM radio staple, with its strutting ZZ Top beat and 38 Special melodies. “Golden Comb,” however, greases stadium boogie with dashes of agit-funk guitar and an extended unraveling psychedelic breakdown. When they slow things down, as on the sock-hop closer “Fats Domino,” the Features sound like a band that played before air conditioning was invented, all sweat and buzzing mosquitoes. It makes sense that they’re popular in the U.K., as Wilderness absolutely bleeds a kind of Americana ﬁltered back though the veins of Britblues cats like Jimmy Page and Ritchie Blackmore. [TOM FORGET]

ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER Last Summer (Merge) As one-half of the Fiery Furnaces, Eleanor Friedberger pairs up with her brother Matthew to craft sweetly glazed tracks about tropical Icelands and bitter teas. Her ﬁrst solo album, Last Summer, could be the analog answer to the Fiery Furnaces’ digital power-pop. It nods to the duo’s strong knack for storytelling, but with Eleanor riding alone, the results are lyric-driven tales about love on N.Y.C.’s East River. On Last Summer’s lead single “My Mistakes,” the rhythmic guitar riffs mixed with Eleanor’s cadence bear a sonic semblance to Rosanne Cash’s “Seven Year Ache.” Those non-ﬂuent in N.Y.C. geography may get lost in song titles like “Scenes from Bensonhurst” and “Roosevelt Island.” But you don’t have to cross 38th Street and 7th Avenue to understand the make-ups to break-ups of “One-Month Marathon” as Friedberger brazenly coos, “For my last ensemble I will be wearing nothing at all.” [KATHY IANDOLI]

JOLIE HOLLAND Pint of Blood (ANTI-) Jolie Holland’s enchanting warble is the kind of voice you can get lost in for

hours, contentedly floating between the upswings and low notes, relishing the drawn-out vowels of her emotive drawl. Her vivid, folktale-like storytelling is just icing on the Americana cake. Pint of Blood, the newly New York–based songbird’s fifth album, has a fuller sound than some of her past work, with guitars and drums and looped harmonies rounding out her eclectic style that hints at blues, folk, and rock. Pint kicks off with the languid “All Those Girls” and rolls right into “Remember,” a pretty uplifting number considering its violent lyrics: “It brings a smile to my lips/When I think of your fist/Narrowing in on and cracking his ribs.” But Holland’s at her best when her idiosyncratic voice takes center stage, like on the pared down, piano-driven “Tender Mirror,” and her closing cover of Townes Van Zandt’s “Rex’s Blues,” which turns his twangy tune into a sweetly haunting eulogy. [LISA BUTTERWORTH]

THE HORRORS Skying (XL) Have no fear, the Horrors are here! Skying, the Brit post-rock band’s third album is epic, psychedelic, and, well, more mature than previous releases. It’s certainly heavy on the synths and shoegaze-inspired guitars—think Echo & the Bunnymen, the Verve, and the Cure. The quintet’s trademark melancholy remains intact though, and the most noticeable sound is tall, lanky Faris Badwan’s low Bowie-esque voice. The album’s lyrics are quite beautiful and simple, especially on the oddly comforting, kinda romantic “Still Life.” More musical treats turn up on “Wild Eyed,” which incorporates bleating horns, while the lengthy “Moving Further Away” features laser-like synths à la Gary Numan. The Horrors are so grandiose that I can see them playing the soundtrack to my life if I were, say, sinking with the Titanic. [WHITNEY DWIRE]

LAS KELLIES Kellies (Fire) On their third album, Kellies, Buenos Aires–based band Las Kellies create a very eclectic mix of songs // BUST / 77

the guide MUSIC that somehow manages to blend harmoniously, and in pure head-bopping fashion. The trio rocks ’90s riot grrrl, surf-garage, and Gang of Four–style post-punk, all while singing in multiple languages. Favorites include: “Erase You,” an upbeat cover of influential early-’80s band ESG; “Suffisant,” a poppy, toe-tapping French number; “Bling Bling,” a funky, old school–raptinged tune; and “Dance the Seance,” a catchy song that adorably spells out “I l-o-v-e y-o-u” over and over again. And it will repeat in your mind over and over again, too. If you’re into bands like the Coathangers or just want more girls who rock in your life, check out this album. I definitely l-o-ve Las Kellies! [KRISTINA URIEGAS-REYES]

NIKKI LANE Walk of Shame (IAMSOUND) Most dread the glaring morning hours after a night of excess, but country chanteuse Nikki Lane embraces the aftermath by transforming it into a musical journey of lust, lying lovers, and no regrets. Her new LP, Walk of Shame, is no collection of honky-tonk ballads rehashing forgettable hookups. Rather, it’s a glimpse of how a hard-as-nails heroine uses her smooth, smoky vocals to sting those who’ve attempted to break her heart. On “Lies” Lane declares, “You’ve been talking ’bout things I don’t wanna know/Makes me wonder how I ever fell in love with you.” It’s a gut-punch anthem that— like a shot of whiskey—burns without warning. The singer may feel “as lonesome as a blue star in the sky,” but her willingness to expose her wounds on Walk of Shame without begging for a happily ever after is a divergence that is both welcome and long overdue. [STEPHANIE NOLASCO]

STEPHEN MALKMUS AND THE JICKS Mirror Trafﬁc (Matador) If slackers weren’t socially obligated to not care, they’d be freaking out about Stephen Malkmus’ latest opus, Mirror Trafﬁc, in which he collaborates with fellow ’90s uber-slacker-indie-posterboy-turnednot-so-indie-but-still-adored-produc78 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

er, Beck. Mirror Trafﬁc marks Malkmus’ ﬁfth album post-Pavement and yet it may be the most similar to his former band’s carefree style. In fact, opening track “Tigers” sounds more like a Crooked Rain B-side than the typical solo Malkmus guitar-a-thon anthem. Actually, the entire album sounds sonically lighter and simply more fun than Malkmus’ previous efforts. Other notable moments include the goofy and obscene “Senator,” the possibly Bradford Cox–inspired instrumental “Jumblegloss,” and the fuzzed-out guitar shredding of “Stick Figures in Love.” But the highlight is the slow burning “No One Is (As I Are Be)” during which Malkmus confesses to his indolent brethren, “I cannot do even one sit-up/Sit-ups are so bourgeois.” [PETER WENKER]

STEPHIN MERRITT Obscurities (Merge) Merritt fans, get stoked: the Magnetic Fields mastermind just unleashed one of the most irresistible rarities collections ever. Culled from hard-to-find comps and singles, plus Merritt’s work with the 6ths and Buffalo Rome, Obscurities unfolds like a time-worn treasure map of the prolific songwriter’s barely heard best. Songs like the 6ths’ shady synth-pop “Rot in the Sun” and Buffalo Rome’s hushed “Plant White Roses” offset summery Magnetic Fields jams “Beach-A-Boop-Boop” and “Take Ecstasy With Me.” And if that’s not enough, Merritt has also included a track from his Coraline audiobook score (“You Are Not My Mother and I Want to Go Home”), an unreleased 69 Love Songs outtake (“The Sun and the Sea and the Sky”), and several bits from the unfinished sci-fi musical/Lemony Snicket collab The Song From Venus. The whole thing feels like a sweet, meticulous mixtape from Mr. Merritt himself. Talk about a must-have album. [MOLLIE WELLS]

THE PACK A.D. Unpersons (Mint) In the admittedly small pantheon of modern garage-rock duos—the White Stripes, the Black Keys, the

Kills—none, to this point, have featured two women. Enter the Pack A.D., a Vancouver twosome looking to change that ratio. And like those other pairs, this band’s brand of rock ’n’ roll is stripped down to its raw core with guitarist/vocalist Becky Black playing the Jack White to Maya Miller’s Meg. Imitation is not necessarily a bad thing, particularly in the wake of the Stripes’ February break-up. The jittery “Haunt You” sounds like an Elephant cast-off; “Seasick”—which lowers the volume from, say, 11 to 10, proves the pair’s range, and “Unpersons” sounds a helluvalot more polished than anything White Stripes did three years in. On the blistering “Sirens,” Black’s coos ease the pain, while the bluesy shufﬂe “Pieces” bottles it perfectly. [DYLAN STABLEFORD]

THE RAPTURE In the Grace of Your Love (DFA) The Rapture hasn’t made a proper record in ﬁve years, but In the Grace of Your Love ﬁnds the group (now a trio featuring guitarist/vocalist Luke Jenner, multiinstrumentalist Gabriel Andruzzi, and drummer Vito Roccoforte) right back in the post-punk cut, churning out some brooding dance music with the help of Philippe Zdar, the producer behind Phoenix’s Grammy-winning Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. The synth-heavy album was recorded in Brooklyn and Paris, and bears the distinct markings of both. “Come Back to Me” is driven by what sounds like an accordion, and a melody plucked from a Parisian street; “Blue Bird” chugs along with echoed drums and wailing guitar familiar to anyone who has been to a warehouse party in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. In the Rapture’s post-apocalyptic world, the beats are bold and melodies euphoric, even when the lyrics are somewhat lacking (“I miss you/I miss you yeah” on “Miss You”). Some of the best parts of Grace are the free-jazz touches at the end of “Sail Away.” On the title track, a combo of elements—pulsating synths, Jenner’s faux-falsetto howl, and a throbbing, club-ready bassline—rise up. Heavenly. [DYLAN STABLEFORD]

RAZIKA Program 91 (Smalltown Supersound) Razika is my new favorite summer fun band. Outside of the obvious references to the Slits that this young, Norwegian reggae/sugarpop group garners, there’s something very refined and precise in the song structures on Program 91 that pays tribute to artists as diverse as Phil Spector and the Clash. Tracks sung in English are casually reminiscent of Caetano Veloso’s English-sung Tropicália from the late-’60s, lending a light sunshine-y sound to an album that was presumably recorded in a country with midnight sun. The best cuts are those sung in Razika’s native language, though. Drenched in reverb, “Aldri” sounds so ’60s girlgroup it could have come from a crate digger’s vault. The soft-spoken vocals and reggae background on “Eg Vetsje Riktig” recall some of the most refined pop hooks I’ve heard in awhile. Give it a year or two, and Razika will be scoring the next Tarantino flick. [APRIL WOLFE]

TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT A Tribute to the Queens of Noise: The Runaways (Main Man) When the Runaways drummer, Sandy West, passed away from cancer in 2006, people sat up, remembered they were fans, and pulled out their old vinyl—because you can’t take your rock legends for granted anymore. A movie was made, some interviews shed light on troubled dynamics, and this Runaways tribute album was created to recognize the legendary band while raising money for a worthy cause in Sandy’s name. The two-disc testament to proliﬁcity features some choice tracks—Shonen Knife lends measured pop greatness to “Black Leather,” Kittie metal-riffs on “Fantasies,” and the power team of Kathleen Hanna and Peaches synth-rock out on “Dead End Justice.” Reimagining of the songs from artists with more varied aesthetics would have been nice, but damn, the Hanna/Peaches combo knows how to have some fun with campy lyrics. Largely, though, the tribute just reminds us that nobody can do it like the Runaways. [APRIL WOLFE]

the guide Katie Holmes

Jacquie Boas

SEEKING HAPPILY EVER AFTER: One Generation’s Struggle to Redeﬁne the Fairytale Directed by Michelle Cove and Kerry David (Lionsgate)

DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK

PHOTOS COURTESY OF: CAROLYN JOHNS; SHEA PRODUCTIONS; ANDREI ALEXANDRU/SAMUEL GOLDWYN FILMS

Directed by Troy Nixey (FilmDistrict) Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, written and produced by Pan’s Labyrinth auteur Guillermo del Toro, puts a fresh spin on the little-kid-in-supernatural-danger horror story. The film’s protagonist, Sally, played by talented newcomer Bailee Madison, is a monster-plagued child of steel. True, Sally displays the kind of scary-movie courage that can inspire a peanut-gallery shout-out or two. (Hey, Sally! Don’t go in there! Why are you opening that?!) But in Madison’s capable, albeit small, hands, Sally’s boldness is conveyed as an aspect of her loneliness and mistrust of authority in a world where grown-ups get divorced and give you Adderall. In the past, del Toro has forged critical and artistic success by twisting fairy tales into darkly original stories that both frighten and instruct. But this is no Pan’s Labyrinth, lacking that film’s subtlety and complexity. This story does, however, share similar elements—like stunning visuals that blur the line between real and make-believe, and women who show sensitivity and strength in the face of danger. When Sally’s mother can’t keep up with the responsibilities of parenting, she ships her daughter out of L.A. to Rhode Island, to stay with her father Alex (Guy Pearce) and his girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes). Alex and Kim are restoring the Blackwood Mansion, which boasts a sweeping staircase, high ceilings, a mysterious history, a secret basement...and something supernatural that draws Sally in. Sally’s fear and isolation are met with distracted disbelief from her father, but she eventually finds an unlikely ally in Kim, who feels like an outsider herself. This relationship is made more genuine by Holmes’ performance, which is warm and free of typical horror-movie hysterics. And when she finally does let out her big scream, it’s a pretty fantastic one. I’ll admit that while watching Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, I also let out (at least) one of my own. [PHOEBE MAGEE]

What can you say about single ladies that Beyoncé hasn’t already? A lot, it turns out. In Seeking Happily Ever After—a new documentary being distributed via iTunes and On Demand/Pay-Per-View—co-directors Michelle Cove and Kerry David provide an intimate look at a rapidly growing population: single American women. There are now about four million never-married women in their 30s living in the United States—which means there are more single ladies now than in any other period in our history. Cove and David talked to hundreds of them. They also interviewed single men, economists, women’s

Rachel Weisz

THE WHISTLEBLOWER Written and directed by Larysa Kondracki (Samuel Goldwyn Films) Like any good political thriller, The Whistleblower is full of corrupt ofﬁcials and devious machinations, and has a tough-talkin’ protagonist unafraid to stand up to the bad guys. The twist here, though, is that the tough talker is a woman, ﬁghting for the rights and safety of other women—not exactly standard fare for mainstream thrillers.

MOVIES

studies scholars, a millionaire matchmaker, and little girls who want to be doctors and earn money, but also want to be beautiful and attract a spouse (“so you don’t have to invite your mom to live with you”). Their premise is that women have overcome great obstacles to be financially self-sufficient and successful, but are now faced with a struggle to redefine society’s expectations—and their own expectations, and their mothers’ expectations—about what it means to be happy. The result is a light-hearted film with a DIY aesthetic, but also a cohesive picture of a major societal shift. As one subject puts it, “there was a time when [a woman] needed [marriage] to be financially secure…I don’t know what you need it for anymore.” While single 30-somethings are now more visible in the media, this film still fills a needed gap by portraying real women who are neither desperately seeking a spouse, nor totally consumed by their careers. It profiles women like Jacquie Boas, whose self-aware, often poignant dating commentary provides much of the drama in the film. Whether Boas finds love or not is, in the end, entirely beside the point. And that makes Seeking Happily Ever After unique among films about single women. As Boas puts it, “In real life women can, and should, have several different happy endings in mind for themselves.” [PHOEBE MAGEE]

Based on the true story of an American police officer, the film follows Kathy Bolkovac (Rachel Weisz) as she begins her new job as a U.N. peacekeeper in Bosnia. She quickly learns that human trafficking is an immense problem in the region, but her coworkers respond to her concerns with indifference and outright annoyance. When one of her superiors, Madeleine Rees (Vanessa Redgrave), promotes her, Kathy uncovers a secret about the trafficking and its funding that makes her both a target and a threat. Rachel Weisz is amazing as Kathy, a fierce but likeable working mom who refuses to allow the rape, torture, and murder of young women sold into sex slavery. Suspenseful from the opening shot through the final minutes, director Larysa Kondracki and her co-writer Eilis Kirwan give their characters so much depth that the violence they experience becomes intensely real. And it’s the reality of the story that sticks with you long after the movie is over. [ELIZA THOMPSON] // BUST / 79

EVENT PICS BUST MAGAZINE CRAFTACULAR AND FOOD FAIR Softcup stocked the bathrooms with complimentary amenities

BUST’s Jessica Wolford passed out free copies of our Food Issue

James Beard Award–winning chef Gabrielle Hamilton signed her memoir

An early bird shopper browsed for jewelry with her free BUST Magazine goodie bag

This May’s BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair in New York City was our biggest spring event to date! We doubled the number of vendors to over 100 and included food artisans and trucks. Plus, the event took place for the ﬁrst time in SoHo, N.Y.C.’s shopping mecca!

80 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Eager attendees lined up for hours before the doors opened

More than 2,000 shoppers stopped by for oneof-a-kind crafts and yummy treats like meatball sliders and whoopie pies. Visit bust.com for full event coverage, including photo galleries and information on upcoming BUST Magazine Craftaculars.

“I can’t believe these are vegan!” Vegan Treats’ gorgeous cupcakes

PHOTOS: GABI PORTER AND KIM KU

Red Hook Lobster Pound’s truck served up their famous lobster rolls

the guide

BOOKS

LITPICK

SUGAR IN MY BOWL: Real Women Write About Real Sex EDITED BY ERICA JONG (ECCO) HOW LONG DOES it take for a chat between women to turn into confessions and questions about sex? For my friends and I, about two minutes. Reading Sugar In My Bowl is like having a juicy conversation with some of the most talented female writers publishing today. Each author approaches the subject of sex from her own angle. Gail Collins writes about how Catholic school—where she learned that “as soon as you started to get sexually excited, it was a mortal sin”—planted seeds for rebellion among her generation in the 1960s. Julie Klam’s six-year-old daughter asks why “boys have penises and girls just have fronts,” which elicits memories of the author’s own upbringing and sexual growth. J.A.K. Andres, too, muses on how to approach masturbation and genital discovery with her kindergarten-aged daughter so that she won’t either end up repressed or “the neighborhood tramp.” There are tales of teen sex, sex in marriage, sex outside of marriage, sex with cancer, sex as an octogenarian, sexual submission and dominance—yet all of these essays are by straight women, most of them from New York. Erica Jong mentions in her introduction having difficulty (in 2011?!) finding female writers willing to participate in a collection so overtly centered around sex, but it’s too bad she could not find even one gay voice. Still, what the collection lacks in diversity, it makes up for in quality. “Everyone wanted to talk about sex,” Min Jin Lee writes in her contribution, “and though the act passed momentarily, for good or for bad, the event was not forgettable.” [GINA MARIE VASOLI]

THE BOOK OF LIES By Mary Horlock (Harper Perennial) Set on the British isle of Guernsey, this corker of a debut novel features two narrators. One is a plucky, witty, extremely odd 15-year-old girl named Cat who’s recently lost her father, Emile, and who confesses to just having killed her best friend. The other is her dead uncle Charlie, whose decades-old audio recordings reveal his own act of betrayal, during the island’s Nazi occupation between 1940 and 1945, when his and Emile’s father died. For these two separate deaths, Charlie and Cat both blame only themselves. A major part of what makes the book successful is Cat’s compelling and darkly funny voice, which sometimes reveals moments of real softness; as is almost always the case with people who appear to be jerks, beneath her tough veneer is vulnerability, and it makes her appealing. Charlie’s story offers shocking details about Guernsey’s history during the occupation,

when foreign laborers were worked to death and the locals were reduced to eating their own pets. Despite this, the German occupiers aren’t depicted as innately terrible, just as the locals don’t come across as perfect, and it’s here—mining the gray area—where Horlock proves herself. Neither Cat’s nor Charlie’s original confession, about having committed murder, turns out to be the whole truth. They’re not lying, exactly, but The Book of Lies examines, through these multiple, layered angles, the intersection of truth and memory, facts and perception. [SARAH NORRIS]

EXTRA/ORDINARY: Craft and Contemporary Art Edited by Maria Elena Buszek (Duke University Press) The art world has traditionally held crafts at an arm’s length, dismissing them as hobbies, practical tasks, or, of course, “women’s work.” But thanks to the resurgence of craft arts in recent years, with everything from

letterpress to embroidery gaining new appreciation, crafts have insinuated their way into galleries and museums—and now, with Extra/Ordinary, they get their scholarly due. Noting that few art critics or scholars have explored the historical or conceptual signiﬁcance of craft in contemporary art, editor Maria Elena Buszek assembled this smart, sassy collection of essays. Anthea Black and Nicole Burisch’s essay, “Craft Hard Die Free: Radical Curatorial Strategies for Craftivism,” explores the juxtaposition of craft and serious social activism, looking at work such as the AIDS quilt and Marianne Jorgensen’s playful Pink Tank—which graces the cover of this book. Lacey Jane Roberts’ “Put Your Thing Down, Flip It, and Reverse It: Reimagining Craft Identities Using Tactics of Queer Theory” dissects the myriad connotations that craft work conjures and compares the reclamation of craft work to queer theory and identity. Complete with photographs of work by Ghada Amer, Yinka Shonibare, Clare Twomey, and more, the book also includes essays exploring

topics such as masculinity and craft work, quilt-making, the DIY movement, and contemporary ceramics. While the average reader may ﬁnd the essays too dense for casual investigation, Extra/Ordinary is bound to be a new classic for both academics and craft artists. [ANTONIA BLAIR]

GIRLS! GIRLS! GIRLS! IN CONTEMPORARY ART Edited by Catherine Grant and Lori Waxman (Intellect Ltd) Fun title! But there’s not much about actual girls here, just lots of heavy words about what they signify. This collection of essays aims to “expand the discourse on gender” by examining girlhood in work by a dozen or so contemporary female artists. All of these artists, predominantly photographers and videographers, deserve a wider audience for their thought-provoking images and stories of young women. While their art is feisty, transgressive, disturbing and funny, the ponderous tone and stale academic notions of these essays suck all the joy out of // BUST / 81

the guide

BOOKS

supernatural woman SHIVER YOUR TIMBERS WITH THESE FANTASY, SCI-FI, AND HORROR STORIES CHICKS KICK BUTT Edited by Rachel Caine and Kerrie L. Hughes (Tor) I’m not the vamps and werewolves type, but after reading Rachel Caine’s kick-off story about a couple of genies racing to save a planeload of innocents from terrorists, I was bitten. Caine and Hughes have compiled 13 original stories, and each one is ﬂesh-crawling, bloodsucking—and inspiring. From avenging, shape-shifting werecats to diva demon-slayers to vampires who kick ass while drunk off their asses, this book is full of strong, intelligent sheroes trying to do the right thing—and usually that means the bad guy suffers a slow, painful death. Fans of Rachel Vincent and Karen Chance will enjoy new stories from their established series, and genre newbies like myself will savor tales about supercool women kicking serious tail. You might want to sleep with a cross around your neck—or at least your nightlight on. [MICHELLE KEHM]

THE DREAMING SEX: Early Tales of Scientiﬁc Imagination by Women Edited by Mike Ashley (Peter Owen Publishers) If you thought that early sci-ﬁ literature was the exclusive domain of male progenitors like H.G. Wells and Robert Louis Stevenson, prepare to be pleasantly astonished. The stories in this volume are all by women writing at the turn of the last century. A Persian noblewoman visits an alternate universe where ladies rule and men are forced to go veiled in public; a man buys a made-to-order android wife, in an early foretaste of Blade Runner; crazed scientists run amok questing for supernatural powers; and mortals fall sway to terrifying forces. Although the title is less than ideal (don’t men dream too?), this stellar collection showcases the brilliant imagination of a heretofore neglected generation of female writers. [RENATE ROBERTSON]

FANTASTIC WOMEN: 18 Tales of the Surreal and the Sublime from Tin House Edited by Rob Spillman (Tin House Books) Feel like ﬂippin’ your shit a little? Fantastic Women features 18 short, dreamlike stories by 18 of the spookiest lady writers, including Miranda July, Sarah Shun-lien Bynum, and Lydia Davis. Glimpse into the psyche of a strong-minded vintage doll in Stacey Richter’s “The Doll Awakens”; spend your ﬁnal living moments stuffed, bound, and boiling in a pot of chicken broth in Alissa Nutting’s “Hot, Fast, and Sad”; check out Samantha Hunt’s “Beast” to learn what it’s really like to transform into a deer. Or, you know, read Rikki Ducornet’s “Dickmare,” just because it’s called “Dickmare.” In the intro, Joy Williams dares us to put a brave foot forward, writing, “The world we think we know doesn’t exist anyway. So don’t be careful. Read.” You’ll be so glad you did. [WHITNEY DWIRE] 82 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

the matter. There are some good pieces here—the best ask excellent questions about what it means for a female to be on both sides of the camera. Co-editor Catherine Grant’s contribution, “Baby Butches and Reluctant Lolitas,” examines Collier Schorr’s portraits of both girl and boy adolescents as stand-ins for the artist’s queer female identity. Lucy Soutter’s piece, “Dial P for Panties,” on photographers like Justine Kurland portraying private idylls for girls, questions the writer’s own response to what she initially saw as sexual objectiﬁcation, then acknowledges the work is much more about agency and desire. In almost all cases, however, the discussion is tame compared to what the artists are doing. While any attempt to address feminist matters in contemporary art is refreshing, it’s time for critics, art historians, and academics to catch up to the art-makers. Until that happens, go look at the art for yourself. [FRAN WILLING]

THE GIRL’S GUIDE TO HOMELESSNESS: A Memoir By Brianna Karp (Harlequin) In her early 20s, Brianna Karp had a pretty good life: she made $50,000 a year at a job she adored, owned a charming cottage in Orange County, and lived the way a young person with some disposable income should be living. Then the recession hit, and by early 2009, she’d lost her job and house. Unable to stay with her parents— strict Jehovah’s Witnesses who had physically and sexually abused her as a child—Karp suddenly found herself without any money and with only an old trailer of her father’s to stay in. The Girl’s Guide chronicles the ups and downs of the next year or so (Karp’s a little hazy on the timeline). Her highs are thrilling: there’s a whirlwind romance with a homeless activist, and she lands an internship at Elle magazine; and her lows are equally devastating: the dissolution of her relationship

leads to a case of hypothermia, and the kennel where she boards her beloved dog nearly starves him to death. Karp’s particularly resourceful nature (she learns trailers can park overnight at Wal-Mart, uses free Starbucks wi-fi, and gets $10-amonth gym passes for showering purposes) is fascinating to witness, and you’ll find yourself holding your breath and sighing with relief as she manages to find her way out of near-catastrophic situations. Part memoir, part instructional manual, and part rhapsody on the plight of the homeless and jobless, Karp’s story is a lively and engaging look into what it means to be homeless in America. [MOLLY LABELL]

IN THE SMALL KITCHEN: 100 Recipes from Our Year of Cooking in the Real World By Cara Eisenpress and Phoebe Lapine (William Morrow) In 2008, two best friends from N.Y.C.’s upper west side left the corporate world in favor of the blogosphere, where they made their mark with Big Girls, Small Kitchen, a super useful online resource for other 20-something home cooks. In the Small Kitchen is a clever companion to that blog: it tells the story of the girls’ transition—from full-time in an ofﬁce to full-time in a kitchen—through original recipes peppered with personal anecdotes. What’s neat is that the recipes mature as the writers do. Whet your unused pots and pans with a swiss chard frittata or Cara’s classic gooey grilled cheese; work your way up to a Sexy-Ugly onion tart or pork tenderloin with roasted fennel and cider jus. The book is organized conveniently by reasons to cook—Cooking for One, Cocktail Parties, Dating & Food—and offers thoughtful menus for any occasion, as well as tips on stocking a respectable (and doable) “quarter-life pantry.” The recipes are a cinch to follow and take into consideration the likelihood that your kitchen is cozy, your paycheck is small, you lug your groceries home on the subway,

boobtique

GET SMART

GLASSES NECKLACE

SMART WOMEN COFFEE MUG

SILHOUETTE JOURNAL

A portion of all proceeds are donated to the ямБght against breast cancer.

www.bustboobtique.com

// BUST / 83

the guide and you never really learned how to devein a shrimp. Whether you’re a seasoned cook or a girl who’s burned boiling water, this book will feed you, please you, and maybe even inspire you to take a little leap of your own. [JENNIFER CACICIO]

IT LOOKED DIFFERENT ON THE MODEL: Epic Tales of Impending Shame and Infamy By Laurie Notaro (Villard) The creator of Idiot Girls’ Action Adventure Club returns with another cackle-worthy collection, and this time her chosen theme is adjusting to life in Eugene, OR. While her tales of fighting with freesample hoarders at the local Trader Joe’s and being banned from the post office and from her neighbor’s holiday shindigs do amuse, the funniest anecdotes aren’t about her new hometown so much as the challenges of being Laurie anywhere. The opening essay, in which she struggles in a dressing room to bust out of a too-small top, had me busting a gut (“How can you be trapped in a goddamned shirt?” she asks herself. “It’s not a coal mine. It’s not an elevator. It’s cotton. The fabric of our lives!”), as did “Please Don’t Call China” (which begins “Dear Whoever Has My iPhone”). And her description of Ambien Laurie, the “raw monkey form” of herself who leaves snack-food wrappers in her bed and puts picks like Precious on her Netflix queue, is a hoot and a half. But the strongest pieces here focus on her family, particularly her mother (who often forwards her fear-inducing emails) and her nephew (don’t miss his cute pic in the back). More than just extended jokes, these essays have heart as well as humor and offer resounding, satisfying endings. They’re complete ensembles—model-worthy, even. [PAULA SEVENBERGEN]

KINK: A Straight Girl’s Investigation By Stephanie Clifford-Smith (Allen & Unwin) Australian author Stephanie Clifford84 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

Smith was inspired to write Kink after she and a girlfriend had a conversation about their very “vanilla” sex lives, wondering at how those with kinkier proclivities found each other. Taking the question beyond the rhetorical, Clifford-Smith places a personals ad in a small paper in Sydney, seeking those who have “unusual” sexual interests. What follows in Kink is a series of conversations with Australians who engage in different sexual behaviors, primarily BDSM related. She follows one subject to a series of sessions with dominatrixes and eventually attends BDSM parties on her own, where she is introduced to such fetishists as adult babies. Wisely, Clifford-Smith does not stick solely to personal stories; she also does historical research, and every other chapter offers some sort of context on the history of these sexual practices. In one compelling section she references several ancient Egyptian poems depicting female sexual domination to suggest that women have expressed sexual dominance over men since the beginning of human existence. As a food writer by day, CliffordSmith gives the impression of being naive about kinkier sexual practices, which is mostly an asset to her accounts, as she is not inﬂuenced by prior experience. However, her research seems to lead only to those she can write off as bizarre weirdos, and she herself does not change. In the end, Kink is a compelling read, particularly when she attempts to understand the psychology behind fetishes. [ADRIENNE URBANSKI]

MY BEAUTIFUL GENOME: Discovering Our Genetic Future, One Quirk at a Time By Lone Frank (Oneworld) Lone Frank takes readers on an acronym-heavy tour of the complex world of consumer genetics in My Beautiful Genome. Hoping to understand the role that DNA plays in her health (depression runs in the family) and her personality (she’s highly sensitive), Frank cheerfully offers up blood, saliva, and cheek swabs in exchange for a

AMBER TAMBLYN’S POETRY CORNER BACK IN APRIL, in honor of National Poetry Month, I created a poetry competition together with Buzznet.com and BUST. After reading hundreds of inspiring submissions, I chose the following winner, which I think best embodies not only what it means to be a poet, but also how a poem gets written. I also picked two runners up, whose work will appear on Bust.com. Enjoy! [AMBER TAMBLYN] WE ALL BEGIN SOMEWHERE i kept myself drunk for days, wrote profound ideas on the back of a mcdonalds napkin whose integrity was brought into question when the ink started to bleed through and my thoughts seemed suddenly suspicious. i began to resent rorschach deeply. so i ﬂed to the streets, again, slept in parked cars that weren’t mine, and tossed back china whites at slam poetry events. i staggered up to the microphone, where a spotlight fell on me like new-morning sunlight. i wept hysterically, and everyone applauded. it was a very real thing for them to see. [CHELSEA COMEAU]

more intimate understanding of her genes. It turns out that companies with futuristic names like 23andMe and deCODEme are happy to provide an individual with a personal gene profile (and accompanying disease risk assessment) for only a few hundred dollars and some spit. Unfortunately, following Frank as she uncovers her genetic heritage is mostly a bore, bursting as her story is with scientific data and technical jargon. When fearless guinea pig Frank does insert herself into the story it’s to tell the reader how genetically gifted she is—so gifted that a coworker keeps urging her to couple with him and produce a child. The joke turns sci-fi when Frank agrees to have their DNA tested for romantic compatibility by the dating company GenePartner (the result: they’re a perfect match—which is theoretically good news for Frank as “scientific matching” is said to increase the likelihood of “satisfying sex”).

No doubt, genetics are the future, but those interested in preparing for this brave genomic frontier are better off exploring sites like 23andMe.com and ScientiﬁcMatch.com than reading about Frank’s singular experiences. [ERICA WETTER]

ONCE UPON A RIVER: A Novel By Bonnie Jo Campbell (Norton) Bonnie Jo Campbell’s bio reads like that of a modern-day folk heroine. She hitchhiked across the U.S. and Canada, traveled with Ringling Brothers, and led adventure tours in Eastern Europe. Today, she lives outside Kalamazoo, MI, practices kobudo weapons training—and writes award-winning ﬁction. Fittingly, in her second novel, Campbell introduces a character as formidable as herself—Margo Crane, a beautiful and independent

BOOKS 16-year-old girl growing up in late1970s rural Michigan, in a village named for and dominated by her cousins, the Murrays. Margo, whose mother left after chaﬁng in Murrayville’s claustrophobic environment, idolizes Annie Oakley and spends the bulk of her time on the Stark River. When a series of violent acts leaves the girl fatherless, she sets off in a small teak boat in search of her lost mother. Though Margo has the wilderness survival skills to look after herself, she’s still an emotionally vulnerable teen, and takes up with a succession of older men. Variously called Nymph, Wolf Child, and River Spirit by the males in her life, she ﬁnally asks: “Why do guys always want to make a girl into something other than she is?” Her dawning self-awareness is every bit the journey that her waterborne voyage is, and though the character bristles at labels, it can’t be an accident that Campbell gave her tale a classic fairy-tale-style title. Margo’s adventure has the larger-than-life feel of a legend. [CAROLYN JURIS]

THE PUMPKIN EATER By Penelope Mortimer (NYRB Classics) Set in 1960s London, The Pumpkin Eater tells the story of Mrs. Armitage, mother to an absurd number of children and wife of a successful screenwriter. Lost between domestic disillusionment, maternal impotence, and a lonely marriage, Mrs. Armitage—we never learn her ﬁrst name—is the archetypal desperate housewife. Thanks to her husband James’ excessive income, the domestic duties that once deﬁned her now belong to the hired help. She discovers that her husband is cheating on her, tries therapy and medication to handle the betrayal, and attempts to persuade James that having another baby will make them both happy. What follows is a brave and bold literary take on abortion, considering the novel’s original publication date was 1962. The Pumpkin Eater is no less relatable or readable today, thanks

mostly to satisfyingly sparse prose and easy dialogue between Mr. and Mrs. Armitage. Though the dynamics of marriage might have changed since the initial publication of the novel, their conversations are ﬁlled with the same sarcasm, lies, urgency, and desperation spoken by any two people struggling to be in a relationship. Quickly paced, both moving and absurd, Mrs. Armitage’s story is dark and desperate, but Mortimer’s writing will effortlessly pull you into the giddy and frenzied narrative. [GRACE EVANS]

SALVAGE THE BONES By Jesmyn Ward (Bloomsbury) Jesmyn Ward’s second novel follows Esch and her three brothers as Hurricane Katrina looms over their rural town of Bois Sauvage, MS. A tender but tough girl, Esch is more concerned about her crush’s cold shoulder than the looming storm. But Esch has a good reason: she’s 14 and just found

out she’s pregnant with his child. Esch’s account of life in the Gulf Coast as a member of an impoverished, black family, reads like a series of diary entries. As the storm brews, she relays her family’s dayto-day activities: one brother is struggling to raise a litter of pit bull puppies while another competes for a basketball scholarship. Only the readers know what devastation Katrina will actually deliver. Salvage the Bones is a novel that will make readers wince at times and tear up at others. Ward gives voice to the forgotten families of the Gulf Coast through lyrical imagery and the type of uncensored authenticity that can only be delivered through the eyes of a child. The book is sometimes unsettling, such as when the family watches a snarling dogfight, but in the end it is a true testament to the realities of rural poverty. Once the storm hits, you’ll find yourself tearing through the book and finishing it with a better sense of Katrina’s impact. [LIBBY ZAY]

// BUST / 85

sex ﬁles

questions for the queen DR. CAROL QUEEN TELLS YOU EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT SEX BUT WERE WAITING FOR SOMEONE ELSE TO ASK

One of the many indications that media and pop culture gender bias isn’t gone: the notion that guys want it more than women. A woman whose needs aren’t being erotically met by her partner can feel a little crazy; it can be a terrible blow to self-esteem, and even put a relationship in real jeopardy. There are many reasons his ardor may have cooled. Sometimes the constant togetherness and intimacy of a live-in relationship wears down the spark of difference that can fan sexual flames. (Sartre and de Beauvoir lived in separate houses, you know.) You may be more outgoing in your communication style; he maybe less verbal, and feel overwhelmed (maybe even attacked) when you raise the issue. Some guys, not confident about their ability to please a partner, shut down or turn their attentions elsewhere. He may have sexual desires that he is not yet willing to share with you—an interest in BDSM, maybe, or cross-dressing. He may be really afraid that you’ll get pregnant. He might be depressed or experiencing some other sort of health issue. He might be an abuse survivor. He may be masturbating and sidelining his desire to have other kinds of sex. He may have lost his libido because of stress. I know, it’s a bit overwhelming, but that’s life and love; many things can affect desire. And yes, it is very common for initial lust to cool down, but all gone in two years? You didn’t sign up for this. The next step is to ask yourself what you want to do about it. Counseling? You might benefit from it even if he won’t go. Open relationship? These aren’t easy to maintain, though some people are bohemian enough to do it. Skip sex? That option pretty much never gets my vote. Is he a stellar partner in all other ways? Then perhaps he’s worth putting in real effort for, but it sounds like you may need to do some heavy lifting to uncover his unspoken motivations and create a relationship with him that satisfies.

86 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

I’m a freshman in college, and I’ve just started watching porn, but so much of it seems degrading to women. I would like female-friendly, heterosexual, feminist porn to watch. Is there such a thing? The Horny Feminist

Oh my goodness, yes! There are femalefriendly sex stores in a few cities around the U.S (including Good Vibrations in the Bay Area and Brookline, MA; Early to Bed in Chicago; Babeland in N.Y.C. and Seattle; and A Woman’s Touch in Madison and Milwaukee) and many carry a curated collection of porn. If you live near one, you can ask the well-informed staff for help in making your selection. But what if you don’t? Most of the stores have Web sites as well, which should give you an idea about movies to download, stream, or purchase. The best resource for reading up on these films—and a great starter list for your home collection—is the Feminist Porn Awards Web site (goodforher.com/feminist_porn_awards). You should know, though, that some women-made porn is as rough and tough as most guy-made porn, because that’s simply what inspires some of us. If that style doesn’t pique your interest, here are four specific filmmaker suggestions to get you started. Candida Royalle’s Femme Productions has been making movies for over 20 years for women who don’t like lack of focus on female satisfaction or attitudes of disrespect toward women, which are still fairly prevalent in mainstream porn. Jennifer Lyon Bell and Erika Lust each make movies that women can watch with pleasure; Bell is an American-born woman living in Amsterdam and Lust is based in Spain, and each brings a certain Eurosophistication, in very different ways, to her terrific movies. Finally, many women adore the work of Tony Comstock, who makes sexually explicit documentaries about couples; he doesn’t think of them as porn, but they are very sexy indeed, not to mention smart and moving. Happy viewing! May you find nothing that makes you want to fast-forward.

Carol Car ol Que Queen en is a staf sstaff tafff sexologist sexolog sexo logist ist at Go Good od Vibrations. Vibrat Vib ration ionss. Got a sex or relationship question you need answered? Post it at www.bust.com/sex

ILLUSTRATION: MARCELLUS HALL

My husband and I have been married for two years and we’re on completely different pages when it comes to sex. We started out hot and heavy and things have cooled down, as is only natural, but it’s as if the ﬁre is completely gone for him. I’ve spoken to him many times about how I feel but it’s as if he doesn’t care. The media is always telling us that men are sex-crazed; being constantly turned down makes me feel like there’s something wrong with me. Is it normal for men to lose interest in sex after they get married? From I Do To He Doesn’t

sex ﬁles ONE-HANDED READ

a room with a view A GAL’S WORK TRIP TURNS VOYEURISTIC [BY SOPHIE KANE] SETTLING ONTO THE barstool, I ﬁnally al-

lowed myself to relax. After seven hours of meetings—with very successful results—I was feeling exultant and exhausted. When the bartender pushed a mojito toward me, I nodded thanks. Sweet, sharp, icy—this is a damn good bar in a damn good hotel, I reflected. I glanced around the dimly lit room. On a sofa, all long legs and perfectly defined arms, was a young man, perhaps 22. He was talking to two women who were gazing at him with unashamed lust. The boy was undoubtedly beautiful—and clearly unaware of the effect he was having on the women—but a little too young, and certainly too pretty, for my taste. Still, he was glorious to watch as he leaned back on the sofa and slowly stretched, dragging his T-shirt up to reveal a torso like a Greek sculpture, with just a fine trail of blond hair below the navel. I grinned and turned back to my drink. Glancing up, I saw the bartender staring at me with a half-smile playing on his lips. I think he’d seen me watching the boy. The bartender’s more my type, I thought to myself—a bit rough around the edges, with slightly graying stubble and a wolfish look in his eyes. He was probably in his late 30s, but he looked like he’d seen life, and then some. Sipping my drink, I felt a delicious tingle of anticipation growing in my stomach. I was away from my home city, and my clients had left the hotel. I was free to do whatever I wanted. But what did I want? A one-night stand? It wasn’t really a sex-with-a-stranger itch that needed scratching tonight. I wanted something a little more daring, a little more unusual. But what? The bartender seemed to have his own ideas. Checking his watch, he took off his apron. A few minutes later, he passed it to the woman taking over his shift and walked slowly from the bar, keeping his eyes on me, but not coming toward me. I watched as he moved lazily across the room, breaking eye contact with me to glance from left to right at the people

88 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

he passed. He assessed them like a lion sizing up its prey—women in short skirts with glossy heels, men in expensive shirts. Finally he reached the table where the young man I’d been watching earlier was sitting. The bartender paused and the boy looked up at him. My breath caught in my throat as the two stared at each other for longer than seemed appropriate. The bartender leaned down and said something to the boy. I saw a look of surprise and indecision flash across his face, and then he stood up—to dismayed looks from the girls—and followed the older man to the bar, right next to where I was sitting. “Claudine,” the bartender said to the woman behind the bar. “A cherry margarita for this beautiful boy.” I noticed that his accent was European, Italian perhaps. The woman smiled, nodded, and started to mix. Looking over at me to make sure I was watching, the bartender raised his hand to the back of the boy’s neck and started to massage it. The boy blushed, making him look all the more angelic, but then seemed to relax. I watched as his blue eyes glazed over in pleasure at the older man’s fingers stroking and caressing him. The drink arrived in front of him and he sipped it shyly. For the next 10 minutes I watched, transfixed, as the bartender slowly ran his hands all over the boy’s back, reaching forward to stroke his hipbones and occasionally brushing his lips against the back of the boy’s neck. The two were shielded from the rest of the bar by my body and a convenient pillar. Apart from me, only Claudine could see, and she seemed unfazed by the overtly erotic display. The boy, however, was flushed and panting. His drink sat on the counter, forgotten. And I was as wet and horny as if the bartender had been touching me. Being allowed to watch—encouraged to watch—the two hot men pressed against each other, the powerful caresses of the bartender, the beautiful younger man’s unmistakable bulge growing in his jeans, was making me

unbearably turned on. Just as I started to rub my thighs together in helpless arousal, the older man looked up at me. “You have a room here?” I nodded, wordless, and stepped down from my barstool. Without stopping to think about it, I gestured for the men to follow me and headed for the lobby. We entered the mirror-lined elevator together. As soon as the doors slid shut, the bartender pressed the young man against the wall and started to kiss him violently, cupping his face and then groping his chest. The boy moaned through the kisses and began to grind his hips against the man. My whole body ﬂushed with heat and lust, and I involuntarily started to rub my hand against my pussy through my dress. I could feel how soaked my undies were through the thin fabric, and see the hard nubs of my nipples straining against the silk. The elevator stopped, and we all stood quickly upright. When we reached my room, my heart was hammering as I unlocked the door. The bartender took the boy’s hand and led him in, taking him straight to the bed. I locked the door and followed them, pulling an armchair over to the foot of the bed. I didn’t feel at all like an undesired third wheel. Clearly, both men were enjoying putting on a show for me, kissing and undressing in full view of their audience, getting pleasure out of pleasuring each other and turning me on at the same time. Feeling brave, I spread my legs apart and rested my feet on the bed. The younger boy watched as I started to wank myself through my panties. The bartender took off the boy’s jeans and boxers to reveal a raging erection, the tip glistening with precum. He wrapped his ﬁst around the younger man’s cock and, agonizingly slowly, started to slide his hand up and down. The man’s other hand was stroking the boy’s hard chest, pinching his nipples and making him gasp. The boy and I started to pant at the same time. I was barely touching my clit,

desperately trying to delay my orgasm so I could get more out of the show. The bartender, noticing that we were both losing control, slowed down and gently pushed the young man over onto his side. One hand went down to cup the man’s beautiful sculpted ass, and the other reached to his wallet on the bedside table for a condom. He took his boxers off and held eye contact with me as he rolled the lube-coated rubber over his swollen cock. My legs were splayed, my panties now pushed to one side. I almost felt that he was preparing to fuck the two of us at once. The bartender spat on his ﬁngers and pushed them between the other man’s ass cheeks, rubbing him gently. The boy was moaning uncontrollably, rocking his hips and arching his back ready to be penetrated. One hand was on his own cock, pulling on it slowly, and his eyes were closed in blissful anticipation. Lying down behind the man, the bartender started to rub the head of his cock teasingly against his asshole, smearing the saliva and the condom’s lube around as the boy shuddered in pleasure and desire. “You

90 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

want it, yeah?” he asked. The boy nodded vigorously. “Yeah, yes, I want it…please.” The bartender smiled and started to push his cock slowly into the man, groaning as it slid deeper. At the same time, I put the tips of four fingers at my slick entrance and started to push them inside. The younger man stared at my pussy being stretched wide by my fingers and jerked himself as the bartender slowly pumped in and out of his ass. The pleasure of watching and being watched at the same time was delicious. I started to roll my thumb over my clit and moan in time with the men. The younger man was gasping as the older held his hips to fuck him harder. “Yeah, oh God, that’s it, fuck me, fuck me, yeah. I’m gonna, I’m gonna, I’m coming, I’m…” The man’s words trailed off into a loud moan as his cock twitched in his fist and began shooting cum onto the

sheets. Fucking myself with my fingers and working my clit, I built up to the edge of my orgasm as the bartender, grunting, pumped his cock faster into the other man. Finally, he threw his head back and growled in ecstasy, holding still deep inside the beautiful boy as he came. The sight pushed me over the edge, and I cried out as my pussy started to spasm around my fingers, my clit pulsing in warm waves of pleasure. We all lay in blissful silence for a while, and then the bartender, holding the condom at the base, withdrew his cock gently from the man and kissed him on the shoulder. He looked at me and grinned. “I’ll send someone up to change the sheets, shall I? So sorry to have inconvenienced you.” Still trembling from the aftershock of my orgasm, I laughed weakly. “It’s fine. Really. It was a pleasure. It really was.”

BUST (ISSN 1089-4713), No. 70, Aug/Sept, 2011. BUST is published bi-monthly in Feb/Mar, Apr/May, June/July, Aug/Sept, Oct/Nov, and Dec/Jan by BUST, Inc. 18 West 27th Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY, 10001. Printed in the U.S.A. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing ofﬁces. Subscription prices, payable in U.S. funds, are $19.95 for one year (6 issues). Additional postage: In Canada add $10 per year, and in all other foreign countries add $20 per year. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to BUST, P.O. BOX 16775, NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA, 91615.

The

shop

Your go-to section for all things indie, alternative, and cool...

CLOTHING

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION EMAIL STEPHANIED@BUST.COM OR CALL 917.442.8465

// BUST / 91

92 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

CLOTHING

CRAFT

EDUCATION

HOME GOODS

JEWELRY

VISIT WWW.BUST.COM/BUSTSHOP FOR STORE LINKS

JEWELRY

PERSONAL CARE

PUBLISHING

SEX

WEB SERVICES

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION EMAIL STEPHANIED@BUST.COM OR CALL 917.442.8465

// BUST / 93

MARKETPLACE

94 / BUST // AUG/SEPT

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION EMAIL STEPHANIED@BUST.COM OR CALL 917.442.8465

X GAMES [BY DEB AMLEN]

why are you such a dick?

70. Like some ancient inscriptions 71. Samples 72. Rests 73. Command to Rover

Down

Across 1. Mini bike’s cousin 6. Instrument played by Hole’s Shawn Dailey 10. Margaret Atwood’s A Handmaid’s ___ 14. Nitrogen compound 15. Whodunit board game 16. American ___ 17. Civil rights org. 18. * Penis, slangily

ANSWERS TO “NOT SO HARD!” FROM THE JUN/JUL ‘11 ISSUE. FOR ANSWERS TO THIS ISSUE’S PUZZLE, SEE NEXT ISSUE OF BUST.

20. Embrace 22. Greek portico 23. The Wizard of Oz studio 24. Playa, in olden days 26. Designer of Dolly Girl fashion brand 28. * Penis, slangily 32. 29-Down’s band, the ___ Pornographers 33. Leave in, as text 34. Absorb, as gravy 38. Barely manages, with “out” 40. Buttinsky 43. Cleopatra backdrop 44. “Too bad, ___” (“You had your chance!”) 46. Coffee choice 48. Cultural org. 49. * Penis, slangily 53. “Hips Don’t Lie” singer 56. Order to a broker 57. “You betcha!” 58. Chows down 60. Like Serbs and Croats 64. * Penis, slangily 67. ___ acid 68. Dutch cheese 69. Dubai dignitary

1. Locks in a zoo? 2. Arab League member 3. “La Vie en Rose” singer 4. Concert finale 5. Arranges strategically, as troops 6. Abbr. on top of some emails 7. “What a shame!” 8. Go for the bronze 9. Spiritual Arizona locale 10. ___-tac-toe 11. Julie & Julia actress Amy ___ 12. It gets Uma Thurman started 13. Fragrant resin 19. Americans, to Brits 21. Songs for two 25. I Dream of Jeannie actress Barbara 27. Long, long time 28. Some 47-Downs 29. “Middle Cyclone” singer ___ Case 30. Farm females 31. Bite-the-bullet type 35. “F**kin’ Perfect” singer 36. 1997 Fonda role 37. Kind of moss 39. Big bag 41. Big name in newspaper publishing 42. Netanyahu’s predecessor 45. Towels off 47. Bucks 50. Bloviates 51. Japanese floor covering 52. Zip it 53. Comic Wanda 54. Model Klum 55. Songwriters’ org. 59. Hissy fit 61. Hollywood crosser 62. Flower genus Glox___ 63. Penis, slangily, or what is spelled by the first letters of the starred clues 65. U.K. distances 66. AMA members

// BUST / 95

the last laugh [BY ESTHER PEARL WATSON]

96 / BUST // AUG/SEPT