INsite Atlanta March 2015 Issue

MARCH 2015

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EARS ✦ 2 Y 3 2 ✦ 92

INSITEATLANTA.COM

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VOL. 23, NO. 8 FREE

March Madness Preview

' s y t t a P St.

y a D

e d i u G

Dave Barry Gilbert Gottfried Jason Alexander Harlem Globetrotters

EXPERIENCE THE

PHENOMENON

APRIL 7-12 FoxTheatre.org/BlueMan 855-285-8499

PG 2 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

CONTENTS • MARCH 2015 • VOLUME 23, NO. 8 Prem World

Atlanta’s

iere

Entertainment Monthly

INTERVIEWS 06 Kodo 06 Blue Man Group 12 Laughing Skull 13 Better Call Saul 15 Dave Barry 15 Harlem Globetrotters 16 Jason Alexander 19 Dr. M Sanjayan 20 The Real McKenzies 20 Jeff Rosenstock

15

FEATURES

15

08 09 10 11 21 22

March Madness Dining Atlanta’s Best Wings St. Patrick’s Day Irish Pub Recipes Travel to Greece March Madness Preview

COLUMNS 04 04 05 07 13 14 17 17 17 18 19

Around Town On A Dime Events On Tap Under The Lights Station Control Movie Reviews Track Suits Favorite Things Home Releases Album Reviews Road Warriors

A gothic murder mystery set against the haunting music of Appalachian shape note song.

16

19

www.insiteatlanta.com STAFF LISTING Publisher Stephen Miller steve@insiteatlanta.com Managing Editor Bret Love bret@insiteatlanta.com Art Director / Web Design Nick Tipton nick@insiteatlanta.com Sports Editor DeMarco Williams demarco@insiteatlanta.com Local Events Editor Marci Miller marci@insiteatlanta.com Music Editor Lee Valentine Smith lee@insiteatlanta.com

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Contributing Writers / Interns: Jon Latham, Ryan Loftis, Rodney Hill, Alex S. Morrison, Steve Warren, Dave Cohen, Jennifer Williams, Matt Connor, Ed Morales, Sacha Dzuba, David Weinthal, Benjamin Carr, Kalena Smith, Justin Patterson, John Moore, Amanda Miles, Patrick Flanary, Ian Coverdale MAILING ADDRESS P.O. Box 76483 Atlanta, GA 30358 WEBSITE • insiteatlanta.com ADVERTISING INFORMATION (404) 308-5119 • ads@insiteatlanta.com Editorial content of INsite is the opinion of each writer and is not necessarily the opinion of INsite, its staff, or its advertisers. INsite does not knowingly accept false or misleading advertising or editorial content, nor do the publisher or editors of INsite assume responsibility should such advertising or editorial appear. No content, i.e., articles, graphics, designs and information (any and all) in this publication may be reproduced in any manner without written permission from publisher.

© Copyright 2015, Be Bop Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Check out our St. Patty’s Day Guide on page 10!

MARCH 2015

1992 ✦ 2

INSITEATLAN TA.COM

15 3 YEARS ✦ 20

Ticketass as low

$25

VOL. 23, NO. 8 FREE

March 27–April 19

March Madness Preview

Patty's Day St.

Guide

Dave Barry Gilbert Gottfried Jason Alexander Harlem Globetrotters

Tickets @ 404.733.5000 alliancetheatre.org/edwardfoote Groups 404.733.4690

Series on the Hertz Stage

By Atlanta’s own Phillip DePoy Directed by Chris Coleman

Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs

insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 3

Around Town NOW PLAYING

MARCH 9 - 15

Fernbank Museum IMAX Theatre

Inman Park

Humpback Whales

Highlighted Upcoming Events and Performances

Inman Park Restaurant Week

Two-time Academy Award nominated director Greg MacGillivray (The Living Sea, Dolphins, Everest) brings its legendary giant-screen storytelling to one of the most enormous and vastly fascinating creatures on earth. Humpback Whales is an immersive ocean adventure that invites audiences to dive head-first into the mysterious realm of these 55-foot, 50-ton aquatic mammals.

Once feared as monsters, and very nearly hunted to extinction, today humpbacks are in the midst of a slow but remarkable recovery. Visit fernbankmuseum.org

MARCH 7

Atlanta Symphony Gala Woodruff Arts Center

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra will host its fifth annual Symphony Gala on Saturday, March 7. The evening will include a performance by Broadway star, comedian and actor Jason Alexander with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Proceeds benefit the Orchestra and its education and community engagement programs. Single concert tickets start at $25.00. Additional details about the Symphony Gala and the ticket packages are available at aso.org/gala.

Inman Park is one of the hottest neighborhoods in Atlanta and becoming a major culinary destination. The area is filled with restaurants and pubs offering American, Southern, European and ethnic cuisine.

Each of the thirteen participating restaurants will offer a three-course tiered menu at $15, $25 and $35. Participating restaurants are: Barcelona Wine Bar, Fritti, Il Localino, Kevin Rathbun Steak, North Highland Pub, The Wrecking Bar, The Albert, The Brasserie at Parish, The Luminary, Pure Taqueria, Rathbun’s, Sotto Sotto, and Wisteria. Visit inmanparkrestaurantweek.com

MARCH 12

American Craft Council Show Cobb Galleria Centre

Marking the beginning of the spring arts season, the American Craft Council Show will feature more than 225 of the nation’s most respected craft artists who will exhibit and sell their latest one-of-a-kind handmade jewelry, furniture, clothing, home decor and more. As the Southeast’s largest indoor juried craft show, artists are selected through a rigorous process to ensure admission of the highest quality work. To purchase tickets, visit craftcouncil.org/atlanta.

MARCH 14

Cirque Alfonse presents Timber!

The Rialto Center for the Arts

Timber! is a joyous, off-the-beaten-path celebration of a snow-bound lumberjack

family. Blending circus and aerial acrobatics with theatre, dance, live traditional music and folklore, Cirque Alfonse transports you to an exhilarating world of loggers, musicians and traditional Québec life. This young (and heavily bearded) troupe juggles, dances, and tosses logs amid violins, cracking whips, and flying axes. With a group comprised of professional acrobats, dancers, an ex-skiing champion, and authentic Québec folk musicians, Cirque Alfonse’s Timber! is a rollicking party in the woods! Visit rialtocenter.org

MARCH 22

Publix Georgia Marathon

Dad's Garage Theatre Company's BaconFest is back at The Masquerade's Music Park for a bigger and better festival with more than 2,250 pounds of bacon. BaconFest is all about the three B's: beer, bands and bacon. Listen to live local bands, play hilarious carnival games manned by the best improvisers in the city, enjoy troughs upon troughs of cold beer and sizzlin' bacon, and more. No pets are allowed. This event is rain or shine. Visit dadsgarage.com

APRIL 2

The Honeycutters

The Ferst Center for the Arts

Centennial Olympic Park

With over 17,000 registered participants in its first year, the Publix Georgia Marathon & Half Marathon was one of the largest inaugural marathon combo races in history. This years race winds through some of the most noteworthy Atlanta neighborhoods including Piedmont Park. Start and finish are at Centennial Park. To register online visit georgiamarathon.com.

MARCH 28 BaconFest

The Masquerade Music Park

The Honeycutters are an original country roots band from Asheville, NC. Organically grown around the songs of lead singer Amanda Anne Platt, the band has gained an audience that has stretched far beyond their mountain home. This concert will be performed in the Ferst Center's outdoor amphitheatre on the campus of Georgia Tech. This free show takes place Thursday, April 2 at noon. Visit ferstcenter.org

Atlanta Film Festival Games of Thrones Sunday, March 29 atlantafilmfestival.com

EVENTS HAPPENING FOR SMALL CHANGE IN ATLANTA

Know of a low cost event happening? Event@AtlantaOnADime.com

By Marci Miller

COLLEGE DAYS DISCOUNT

Month of February, 50% off Tickets Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga tnaqua.org/college-days College students, faculty and staff can take advantage of special savings throughout the month of February at the Tennessee Aquarium, IMAX 3D eater and River Gorge Explorer. e Aquarium’s College Days Discount offers college students, facATLANTA FAIR ulty and staff5half-price admission to all Now – April three attractions.

three-day Emory Jazz Fest. OtherofJazz Fest The Phoenix Flies: A Celebration Living shows with paid admission include Irvin Landmarks 2003 byJazz The Atlanta Mayfield andwas thecreated New in Orleans OrPreservation Center as a way to celebrate the chestra on February 7 and Regina Carter 25th of the dramatic rescue of13. the with theanniversary Gary Motley Trio on February

Fox Theatre, an event that changed Atlanta’s preservation outlook forever.

This year, the list HERITAGE WINTER CLASSICS: includes Piedmont Park, Atlanta JULES & THE GENTS Beltline, APEX Museum, Civil War15, Atlanta Walking Tour, Sunday, February 4:30pm – 6:30pm, MargaretSandy Mitchell House, $5 MLK Heritage Springs perWalking Personand Birth Home Tours, Druid Hills, Grant Park, Castleberry heritagesandysprings.org Hill and much more. All tours are free.

Heritage Winter Classics concert seMonday – Friday: Gates open at 5 pm e ries will conclude with jazz group Jules & Saturday & Sunday: Gates open 1 PM the Gents performing a selection of jazz UNIVERSOUL CIRCUS Admission: $3.00 Monday – Thursday songs from the 20's-60's. Atlanta resident February 4 – March 1 $5.00 Friday, Saturday Matinee 1 pm - Julie Stein leads the group which integrates The Green Lot at Turner Field 5Tickets pm, &start Sunday, $8.00 Saturday 5 pm jazz standards from the greats like Louis at $20; Discounts Available -universoulcircus.com 10 pm, Individual ride tickets $1.25 Armstrong, Miles Davis, Antonio Jobim, Benny Goodman, Coltrane and more.

Unlimited Ride Armbands $25.00 UniverSoul Turner Fieldconnects – Graywith Lot progressive, upwardly mobile, urban pop cultures from RAG-O-RAMA DOLLAR SALE atlantafair.com around a stellar For overthe 25world years, with the Atlanta Fairproduction at Turner that blends circus arts, theater and music.

Field has been bringing the thrills, excitement It’s fresh, cool and hip approach to live famand sounds of the Midway to Georgia residents. ily entertainment has earned it a coveted What was once only a dream of three carnivalspot as one of Ticketmaster’s top ten most loving brothers from Southeastern Kentucky requested family attractions.

Little 5 PTS - February 21 & 22 Sandy Springs - February 28 & March 1 ragorama.com

Get ready for Rag-O-Rama's biggest sale of the year, e Dollar Sale! Shoppers never has blossomed into one of the largest inner city know what they will find for $1.00. Rag-Ofairs thatPARK the Southeastern FREE DAY United States offers. Rama carries current, classic, and vintage styles, men's & women's clothing and acFebruary 14-16, 2015, FREE cessories, one-of-a-kind and much ATLANTA SCIENCEitems FESTIVAL Local national parks nationwide PHOENIX FLIES “CITYWIDE more.

Shoppers can buy, sell or trade genMarch 21 – 28, nps.gov/findapark/feefreeparks.htm CELEBRATION OF LIVING tly Pricing used items.

Salebytakes place during the varies location Visit one of Georgia’s national parks for final two weekends this month.

LANDMARKS” Various Locations around free during President’s March 7 - 22, Free Weekend. ParticiMetro Atlanta pating parks include Chattahoochee River BLACK HISTORY PARADE Various Landmarks Around the City atlantasciencefestival.org National Recreation Area, Chickamauga February 28, 12:00pm – 5pm,isFREE phoenixflies.org The Atlanta Science Festival a week-long and Chattanooga National Military Park, Historic MLK/Sweet Auburn District Cumberland Island National Seashore, Fort PG 4 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com Frederica National Monument and Fort blackhistorymonthparade.com Pulaski National Monument. e Black History Month Parade celebrates

celebration of local science and technology.

Curious people of all ages will explore the science and technology in our region and see how science is connected to all parts of our lives in a variety of hands-on activities, facility tours, presentations, and performances throughout the metro Atlanta region. The Festival culminates in the free, family-friendly EXPLORATION EXPO - an interactive day of demos, handson activities, and stage shows at Centennial Olympic Park.

MODEL TRAIN SHOW

March 14 – 15, 2015, Saturday: 10am – 5pm & Sunday: 10am – 4pm Admission: $10 Adults Kids 12 and under are Free Cobb Galleria Centre themodeltrainshow.com

This is the Southeast’s premier train show featuring six operating model railroads, including a special railroad that kids can run.

There will be over 260 tables of model train dealers, door prizes, raffle layout, white elephant table and more.

2015 EASTER EGG HUNT

Saturday, March 28, 10am – 12pm Free, Governor’s Mansion mansion.georgia.gov/2015-easteregg-hunt

First Lady of Georgia Sandra Deal will host the 13th annual Easter egg hunt at the Georgia Governor’s Mansion. Activities will include photos with the Governor, the First Lady and the Easter Bunny, cupcake and egg decorating stations, face painting, a story book station, Clifford the Big Red Dog, the Easter egg roll, a moonwalk, a herd of Chick-fil-la cows, and, of course, the Easter egg hunt. Families wishing to attend must RSVP by e-mail only to mansionevents@georgia.gov beginning Monday, March 9, at 8:00 a.m.

ATLANTA FILM FESTIVAL– GAME OF THRONES

Sunday, March 29 at 7:30pm, Free The Fox Theatre atlantafilmfestival.com

For the third year, Home Box Office (HBO) will partner with the 39th Annual Atlanta Film Festival (ATLFF) and the Fabulous Fox Theatre to provide attendees with a sneak preview of “Game of Thrones.” Festival attendees are invited to see the first episode from the hit show’s upcoming fifth season two weeks before it airs on HBO on Sunday, April 12. The screening will close out the 10day festival and attendees are encouraged to dress in their best “Game of Thrones” attire to compete for prizes.

On Tap this Month MAJOR EVENTS COMING TO ATLANTA

March 7: Philips Arena; March 14: Gwinnett

HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS

e iconic Harlem Globetrotters are coming to town with their unrivaled family show, featuring some of the greatest athletes on the planet. With incredible ball handling wizardry, amazing rim-rattling dunks and trick shots, side-splitting comedy and unequaled oncourt fan interaction, this must-see event is guaranteed to entertain the whole family – creating memories that will last a lifetime. Visit harlemglobetrotters.com

March 13: Fox Theatre

JOHN MELLANCAMP roughout his career, John Mellencamp has had to fight, whether it was for the right to record under his own name or for respect as an artist. Of course, he never made it easy on himself. Mellencamp began his career in the late '70s as a Bruce Springsteen clone called Johnny Cougar. As his career progressed, his music became more distinctive, developing into a Stonesy blend of hard rock and folk-rock. Visit foxtheatre.org

March 21: Atlantic Station

BEER CARNIVAL

is year’s Beer Carnival takes place Saturday, March 21 from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm. Drawing thousands of fans each year, the 6th Annual Beer Carnival features a giant tent and outdoor areas for patrons to explore more than 100 types of beers including traditional favorites, premium craft beers and an assortment of seasonal and favorite craft brews from near and far. For general admission and VIP tickets visit beercarnival.com

March 24: Philips Arena

ARIANA GRANDE

A teen television star turned pop diva, Ariana Grande is blessed with powerful vocals that belie her petite frame. Grande stands out from many of her peers, and her Babyface-produced 2013 debut "Yours Truly" underscored her debt to '90s soul. Even so, her music is flexible enough to incorporate hip-hop and EDM, as heard on her 2014 smash hit single "Problem," featuring Iggy Azalea. Visit philipsarena.com

March 25 - 29: Various Venues

LAUGHING SKULL COMEDY FESTIVAL

March 25 - 29: Georgia World Congress Center

ATLANTA INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW

The Nearly New Thrit Shop On the world wide web: nearlynewshopatl.com e Magazine sit

Best of Atlanta

On Facebook: Junior League of Atlanta’s Nearly New Shop On Twitter: NearlyNewATL

’s

Not only is the Atlanta International Auto Show the largest annual consumer event held annually at the GWCC, it is also one of the nation’s great auto shows, attracting many of the world’s major automotive manufacturers during its five day run. ere will be over 400 new and preproduction vehicles on display on the 400,000 square foot show floor. is event takes place in the C Building of the GWCC. Visit goautoshow.com

St. Patrick’s Day Sale Tuesday, March 17

IN

e 6th Annual Laughing Skull Comedy Festival returns with 72 professional comedians competing against one another for the 2015 Comedy Festival crown. More than 400 comedians submitted to be in the festival, and you get to see the top 72. is event takes place at various locations, including Eddie's Attic, Smith's Olde Bar, Laughing Skull Lounge, Atlanta Improv and more. Visit laughingskullcomedyfestival.com

2014

WINNER!

2927 North Druid Hills Rd Atlanta, GA 30329 insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 5

MUSIC

THUNDER OF THE GODS

Kodo Brings the Ancient Mystery of Japanese Music to the Masses

BY BRET LOVE

M

Buddhism. Various Buddhism schools had their own style of taiko drum. Those religious rituals were popularized in the medieval era, and taiko developed and spread as a performing art in rural and urban festivals.

The taiko in the ensemble form, using multiple taiko as Kodo performs today started just a half century ago.

AKING THEIR DEBUT AT THE Berlin Festival in 1981, Kodo is based on Japan’s Sado Island.

They’ve since given over 5500 performances in 46 countries worldwide under the theme of “One Earth,” using music as a universal language through which they connect their culture with others Spending about a third I’ve read that these drums have mythological of the year touring overseas, Kodo’s worldorigins in Japanese folklore. Can you tell us renowned performances truly transcend that story? borders, genres and time.

Nishita: There is a story called Kodo returns to North America “Ame no Iwayato” in Japanese this year with their latest myth. The Sun Goddess production, Kodo One Earth SAT, MAR 28 Amaterasu was angered and Tour: Mystery. We recently had 8–10p.m. grieved by her brother Susanothe chance to interview two o’s destructive behavior and hid The Rialto members of the Kodo family, Taro herself behind the heavenly Rock Center Nishita and Eri Uchida, about the Cave. This threw the entire world rialtocenter.org history of Taiko drumming, its into darkness, which might be mythological origins in Japanese associated with an eclipse of folklore, the drummers’ intense the sun in ancient times. The training regimen, and what life is like on deities teamed up to bring back Amaterasu, remote Sado Island. the source of light, to the world. They did this by playing instruments, singing and dancing I know that the taiko drum can be traced outside of the Rock Cave, and one goddess back to at least the 6th century in Japan. started dancing on a overturned tub… much What can you tell me about the history of like playing a taiko. taiko?

Taro Nishita: As you may see in many parts What was the process you had to go through of the world, the taiko drum has been used in order to become a member of Kodo? as a form of long- distance communications, Uchida: I decided to go to the apprentice inspiration on battlefields, and in rituals center in Japan when I was 19 years old, since ancient times. The history of Japanese after I saw Kodo in Vancouver for the first drum is long. In the 6th century various time. You need to attend 2 years of Kodo’s musical instruments came to Japan, along apprenticeship program in Sado. There are with Buddhism from the continent. People 4 selection processes you must go through started using taiko in rituals of both Shinto MUSIC before you become a full member of Kodo. (the ancient Japanese animistic religion) and A year after you enter the apprenticeship

KODO

program, you graduate from the apprentice center and become a junior member of Kodo.

Then you are able to go on tour with the other members for a year. Finally there’s the last selection, when you have a chance become a full member. If you fail, you must go home.

You do not get a second chance.

Is there a sense of national pride in being an ambassador for Japanese culture?

Uchida: I do have a sense of being an ambassador for Japanese culture, just as Kodo has been a pioneer of Taiko. I was so touched when I saw 2000 Canadians being so enthusiastic for Kodo’s performance at a concert in Vancouver. However, I don’t want to end by merely introducing a Japanese culture. I want to share something in common with our audience as a human being.

Taiko drummers must be in remarkable physical condition. What is your daily training and rehearsal regimen like?

Uchida: I run or dance more instead of doing muscle training because the muscle I need to play taiko will grow the best from actually playing taiko. I do some core training to learn to use my body efficiently in order to be able to play for a long time.

For people who’ve never seen Kodo live before, what can they expect to see from Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery?

Uchida: Taiko can be enjoyed by anyone, just by listening and watching it live. You can even feel the definite vibrations of the drums through your skin. Our latest production, Mystery, features several different Japanese cultural traditions as well as comical scenes which can be enjoyed by people all ages.

I’ve heard Kodo’s home, Sado Island, is a beautiful tourist destination. Can you tell me a little about the island and a few things you recommend people should see and experience if they visit?

Uchida: Sado Island has a very defined weather, and its nature is breathtakingly beautiful. We have excellent natural water that bring us delicious rice and sake, which goes well with our seafood. I would recommend taking a drive out to the perimeter of the island. The oceanic scenery changes as you go, with signs of human habitat found here and there, and you will encounter all sorts of natural surprises. It’s only about 200 km around the coast, but you will not see the same scenery twice!

BLUE MAN GROUP IS BACK!

Q & A with Jesse Nolan Music Director, Drummer & Percussionist

BY MARCI MILLER

B

LUE MAN GROUP WILL THRILL AUDIENCES when it returns to the Fox Theatre April 7 – 12. Blue Man Group is a high-octane theatrical experience that combines comedy, music, and technology to produce a totally unique form of entertainment. In anticipation for their Atlanta engagement, Music Director Jess Nolan took time out to talk about the show.

How would you say the Blue Man Group music has changed over the years?

Our music is all-encompassing, with influences derived from nearly every corner of the planet and many historical periods and traditions. From the traditions of tribal drumming to classical music to modern pop and rock and roll, Blue Man Group combines these influences into a musical style that is uniquely our own. The music in our shows has evolved organically throughout the years, always seeking to enhance the story being told on stage by the Blue Men. Blue Man Group has been a big influence on many experimental performance artists. Who inspires you musically and visually?

Popular culture, music, art and technology have long been a source of influence for our shows.

Additionally, the traditions of clowning, miming, Vaudeville, improvisation and cultural mythology also play a part in the development of the Blue Man character and help to create a communal experience for both audience and performer. Many artistic references pop up in shows and some are more apparent than others. These references typically serve as a catalyst for both honest expression and, many times, satirical PG 6 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

spoofs. Some visual influences include the painting style of Jackson Pollock or Yves Klein, or specific works of art like Jasper John’s “Target.” Literature also serves as a source of inspiration, with nods (mostly satirical) to great works of the 20th century. These references, however, typically pop up in unique and unusual ways, often resulting in a thought-provoking or comical moment in our show that serves to emphasize the interaction between the Blue Men and/or the audience.

What are some of the biggest production and personal challenges when touring?

From a production standpoint, moving venues at a rate of one-to-three per week is perhaps one of our largest challenges for a show of this size. Unlike our stationary

shows which have the luxury of moving into a permanent space, the touring show must maintain flexibility in order to adapt to different size venues, April 7 – 12 stages, etc. Thankfully, the show is designed in such a The Fox Theatre way to make this possible.

FoxTheatre.org/ Both the technical aspects of BlueMan the production and the actual performance and content of the show are adaptable, depending on the capabilities and size of a particular venue. From a performance and content standpoint, the Blue Men and band members routinely make changes to the show to accommodate a particular venue. These include the addition or removal of music or show content, blocking changes, cue changes, etc. From a technical standpoint, props, scenery, stage spikes and other items all have a necessary flexibility. Our cast and crew of immensely talented individuals function as a collaborative group, solving problems together in a way that always has the aesthetic quality of our productions in mind. From a personal standpoint, there is certainly an element of fatigue that comes with the touring lifestyle, but at the same time, touring with a company like Blue Man Group is an incredibly rewarding and fun experience that has given me the opportunity to see the world and share the transcendent nature of our show with tens of thousands of people. Working beside some of the most gracious and talented musicians, technicians and performers has also been a highlight of my touring experience.

THE BLUE MAN GROUP

Under The Lights

Child Tickets*s

ON STAGE THIS MONTH

JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH

March 14 – 29 Alliance Theatre Box Office (404) 733-5000 AllianceTheatre.org/giantpeach Enter a young boy’s wild and surreal world of magic and adventure in this jazzy Broadwaystyle musical by Tony-nominated composers and lyricists Pasek and Paul. In James and the Giant Peach James is an English orphan imagines a bright future as he embarks on a journey in a larger-than-life enchanted peach. James’s companions are a zany ensemble of insects, portrayed by actors and by handheld puppets including the hysterically evil villains Spiker and Sponge. Children and adults alike will fall for the magical sweetness of a young boy on a whirlwind adventure to find his chosen family in this family-friendly musical. Recommended for ages 5+.

EDWARD FOOTE

March 27 - April 19 Alliance Theatre Hertz Stage Box Office (404) 733-5000 AllianceTheatre.org/edwardfoote

Edward Foote is a premier production by award winning playwright and author Phillip DePoy. The play is a Gothic murder mystery set to haunting Appalachian folk song. In Edward Foote a stranger comes to town looking terribly familiar to the residents of a tiny rugged Appalachian community in the 1930s. Could it be that Edward Foote, a drunken good-for-nothing father, has returned? A small community is forced to reveal its darkest secrets.

This world premiere noir features a captivating story told against the backdrop of shape note singing. “For quite some time now I’ve been interested in telling mythological narratives in new, unique ways,” said DePoy. “Ancient stories, like the one

retold in Edward Foote, are living right beside us every day.”

GRAND CONCOURSE

March 27- April 26 Horizon Theatre Tickets (404) 584-7450 HorizonTheatre.com

M u s ic a l

as low a

$ 20

Enter a young boy’s wild and surreal world of magic and adventure in this jazzy Broadwaystyle musical by Tony-nominated music and lyricists Pasek and Paul (A Christmas Story).

Shelley, a devoted manager of a church soup kitchen for the down-and-out, takes on a new volunteer, Emma, a rainbowhaired college student. This erratic teen searching for her purpose unexpectedly ignites and alters the kitchen and the lives of its regulars: leader-in-crisis Shelley, charming co-worker Oscar, and homeless eccentric Frog. Will volatile Emma be their ruin or salvation? A comic drama about faith, forgiveness, trust – and the pursuit of something resembling joy.

BLUE MAN GROUP

April 7 - 12 The Fox Theatre Tickets (855) 285-8499 FoxTheatre.org/blueman

Blue Man Group brings its high-octane theatrical experience back to Atlanta for their return to the Fox Theatre. The unique show creates experiences that defy categorization however it is best known for multimedia performances that feature three bald and blue characters who take the audience on a journey that is funny, intelligent and visually stunning. A live band, whose haunting tribal rhythms help drive the show to its climax, accompanies the Blue Men. There are nine Blue Men who run each show. To create their invigorating percussion they go through 40 drumheads, 20 cymbals and 45 drumsticks each week.

This year offers a new sound set and video design creating a high-impact experience.

March 21 is the alliance Theatre’s annual FaMiliEs centerstage Festival.

For more information, visit alliancetheatre.org/FaMiliEscenterstage

*adult tickets as low as $35

March 14–29

As a healthy young female

, you have the power to give the gift of life and love.

You can help a couple build the family they’ve dreamed of by donating your eggs...and receive $7,000 for doing it! Donation is completely confidential and health screening is provided at no charge. If you are a non-smoking female between the ages of 21 and 31 and are interested in more information about egg donation, please visit our website or e-mail us at

donor@ivf.com

Tickets @ 404.733.5000

alliancetheatre.org/giantpeach | Groups 404.733.4690 School day performances available With additional support provided by

Family series on the alliance stage Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs

insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 7

MARCH MADNESS Dining Guide

Where to get a bite with friends during the Basketball Tournament Hudson Grille

Baldinos Giant Jersey Subs

Six Atlanta Locations HudsonGrille.com

Hudson Grille is the perfect place to catch the game, to meet friends for a great meal, or enjoy drinks from one of their expansive bars. Favorites from the menu include their 1/2 pound hand-pattied burgers, steaks, craft sausages and brats as well as fresh seafood. Hudson Grille offers 50+ draft beers, party rooms and 360-degree views of HD TV's. During the tournament they are offering $3 pints and $11.95 pitchers of Budweiser, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra, $2 shorties and $2 beer specials.

Twin Peaks

3365 Piedmont Rd. Buckhead 404.961.8946 TwinPeaksRestaurant.com Twin Peak’s mountain lodge-style sports restaurant is becoming a Buckhead landmark, while the beautiful Twin Peaks girls create scenic views. Twin Peaks offers high-quality comfort food with a wide array of sandwiches and salads to choose from.

They have an extensive selection of draft beers served from 32 taps. This is a perfect place to sneak out of the office for a couple of hours during those early round games or after work and get together with friends.

80 Powers Ferry Rd. 770.321.1177 5697 Buford Hwy. 770.455.8570 baldinos.us

Meehan’s Irish Pub

Since 1975, Baldinos has been serving the best sub sandwich in the South. Their true New Jersey style subs can’t be beat. The rolls are baked in-store every day. Each sub is sliced fresh and made to order. Hot subs are grilled not nuked or pressed. And only the freshest produce is used. Salads, soups and delicious baked goods compliment a true value menu. Check out Baldinos $3.79 Daily Special during March with a different sub every day that will keep you coming back.

Chicago’s Nancy’s Midtown

265 Ponce De Leon #A 404.254.5103 NancysPizza.com

Chicago has some the best pizza in America and that great pizza can be found in

Specials

March Madness!

TAiLgATe HeADquArTers

Marietta 80 Powers Ferry Rd 770-321-1177 (closed Sundays)

Doraville 5697 Buford Hwy. 770-455-8570

MARCHOctOber MADNESS SpecialS BASKETBALL! $3.49 ALLGreat DAYSubs, Sandwiches,

Salads & Wings

Monday – baldinos Combination (#4) w/ your choice of side Tuesday – Turkey out with (#18) Lean Smoked Turkey & Cheese WE Wednesday – Itzza Meatball (#12) w/ choice of soup or side Deliver!

Thursday – The Grilled American – Grilled & Toasted!

Friday – Meatless Combo – Tuna (#10) Veg Stir Fry (#27) w/ side saTurday – Steak Out - Any Steak Sub Your Choice (#11, 13, or 19) Since (Mondays 1980sunday – Italian Special – (#15) w/ choice of soup or side

Carrying All The Tournament Action!

$7.95 LARGE Only) CHEESE PIZZA

Marietta: 80 Powers Ferry rd.

Doraville: 5697 Buford Hwy. (at Hwy 120, 1/4 mile east of Big Chicken) (1/4 mile outside i-285) 770-321-1177 770-455-8570

Just off I-85 @ Clairmont (Corner of Briarcliff & Clairmont)

3109 Briarcliff Rd. | 404-320-1258

PG 8 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

227 Sandy Springs Place 404.843.8058 D’town, Buckhead, Atlantic Station, Vinings MeehansSandysprings.com

specialize in NY Style pizza, which is thin in the middle and thick around the edges. You can get a large cheese pizza for just $12.75 or slice for $2.00. They have 11 subs on the menu for just $5.95 and lunch specials from $6.85. The Cheshire Bridge location has multiple screens and is offering $5 pitchers of PBR on Tuesdays; Trivia night. Johnny’s restaurants offer dine-in, take-out and delivery.

Stout Irish Pub

56 East Andrews Drive 404.869.1151 StoutIrishPub.com

Meehan’s is an authentic Irish eatery that offers a full menu of classic Irish dishes elevated to the gourmet level. Meehan’s Sandy Springs kitchen is lead by Executive Chef Stephen Welch. Originally from New Orlean’s he has given the menu here a cajun flair. This is a great place to meet up with friends during the tournament and make sure to come out on Saturday, March 14 for their Shamrock N’ Roll event.

Johnny’s NY Style Pizza

$3.79 baldinos.us

Midtown Atlanta at Chicago’s Nancy’s.

Their Ponce location has multiple TV screens and seats 70 inside and 25 on their patio. Besides great pizza they offer an assortment of sandwiches, appetizers, salads and coming this April Barbecue! See their ad on the Back Page for coupons offering $4 and $5 Off online orders. Nancy’s provides take-out and delivery to the area.

1810 Cheshire Bridge Rd. 404.874.8304 Multiple Locations at JohnnysPizza.com Johnny’s Pizza has come to be synonymous with great pizza and subs in Atlanta. They

Buckhead's Irish Pub has tons of flatscreen TV's, Golden Tee, Jukebox, Corn Hole and Darts. Their screens are normally tuned in to international football (soccer) weekend mornings but will be carrying all the tournament action in the afternoon and evenings. Stout offers a full premium bar along with wide selection of over 50 beers, dark ales, refreshing lagers and rich stouts on draft. Their menu offers great sliders, salads, starters and pub fare sandwiches like battered fish and award winning Reuben.

Mo’s Pizza

3109 Briarcliff Rd. 404.320.1258 MosPizza.com

Mo’s has been serving up great pizza in Atlanta for over 30 years! But the menu isn’t limited to pizza: sandwiches, subs, wings, nachos and salads ensure that anybody who comes here can find something they like.

Check for daily lunch and dinner specials.

Come to Mo’s this month and catch all the tournament action. They have a huge deck to hang out on and plenty of screens offering great views from any table. Mo’s is one of the longest running pizza joints in Atlanta, come in and see why they are one of the best.

The Elder Tree

469 Flat Shoals Ave. East Atlanta 404.658.6108 eldertreeatl.com

This European-style Irish pub is more than just a meeting place to watch English Premier League games. The Elder Tree is the home base for the Bayern Munich fan club and show all Bayern Munich matches. This month their giant screens will feature all the tournament action. Come meet up with coworkers and toss back a few pints at the bar.

Featuring 13 European beers on draft and great gastro fare in authentic Irish tradition.

Savage Pizza

484 Moreland Ave. 404.523.0500 115 Laredo Dr. 404.299.5799 savagepizza.com

This eclectic neighborhood restaurant is a favorite hangout among residents of Little 5 and Avondale Estates. They offer a wide variety of salads, subs, calzones and of course pizzas to choose from at affordable prices.

On their menu you'll find innovative homemade sauces, fresh dough and thoughtfully prepared dishes made from scratch every day. Savage offers lunch and dinner and delivery to the area. Both locations offer indoor and patio seating.

Park Tavern

500 10th St NE Piedmont Park ParkTavern.com 404.249.0001

Park Tavern has one of the best views in the city overlooking Piedmont Park and the Midtown Skyline. Their large patio offers plenty of table seating, private cabanas, fire pits, and TV's to catch your favorite teams in action. Park Tavern offers half-off Sushi nightly from 10pm - Midnight, 1/2 priced bottles of wine on Wednesday, and $1 Drafts when it rains Park Tavern pours!

Taste of the Month...WINGS! Hudson Grille

The Elder Tree

Hudson Grille jumbo wings come bone-in and boneless with original Anchor Bar Buffalo wing sauce. The boneless wings are tender, juicy, premium pieces of 100% chicken breast, lightly seasoned and fried. Also try their other flavors: Maker’s BBQ, Sweet and Spicy, Thai Ginger, Lemon-AKI, Jerk, Lemon-Pepper and Baked Chipotle Maple.

Wash down their wings with one of their 50+ draft beers. During the tournament they are offering $3 pints and $11.95 pitchers of Budweiser, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra!

This popular Irish pub in East Atlanta was recently voted as having the Best Pints in the city. In addition to their excellent gastro fare, they serve up some mean wings. Try their award winning house smoked wings. Choose from two great sauces: spicy honey bbq sauce and house made pepper sauce. Come in during the week for Trivia on Tuesday nights, Burger Wednesdays and Brunch on the weekends beginning at 9 am. The Elder Tree also caters. Call (404) 658-6108.

Hooters

25 Atlanta Locations TacoMac.com

13 Atlanta Locations Hooters.com

Taco Mac

In 1979 a couple of guys from Buffalo NY were driving down I-85 on their way to Florida and stopped in Atlanta.

They decided to stay and open up a restaurant that featured the great chicken wings they loved from home and the Taco Mac concept was born. Their buffalo wings have been an Atlanta favorite ever since.

Taco Mac wings are fresh, never frozen and offered in Signature, Boneless and Jumbo varieties.

BEST PIZZA! e Magazine sit

Best of Atlanta

’s

Many have tried to copy them but there is only one original. Hooters wings are fresh, never frozen and have been their signature menu item since the first Hooters opened in 1983. Hooters now offers 15 wing sauce varieties on boneless, traditional, naked or Daytona style wings. These delicious chunks of fresh chicken can’t be beat. Hooters is a great place to take in the tournament action.

469 Flat Shoals Ave. eldertreeatl.com

IN

6 Atlanta Locations HudsonGrille.com

Your Neighborhood Pizzeria!

2014

&

WINNER!

Multiple Atlanta Locations: www.JohnnysPizza.com insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 9

Saint

Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Saturday, March 14 12 - 1:30 PM stpatsparadeatlanta.com

Celebrate Georgia’s rich Irish heritage at the 133rd annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade!

The parade features floats, bands of every kind, military units, bagpipe & drum corps, thousands of children, Irish dancers, clowns, high tech firefighting equipment, police units, drill teams, dogs, horses, antique cars, and dignitaries from Ireland.

The Atlanta St. Patrick’s Parade begins at noon Saturday, March 14, Peachtree Street at Woodruff Arts Center, and proceeds down Peachtree ending at 5th street. For additional information, visit stpatsparadeatlanta.com.

Sham Rock N’ Roll

Saturday, March 14 Meehan’s Sandy Springs meehanssandysprings.com

St. Paddy’s Day is coming early this year!

On March 14, Meehan's Public House in Sandy Springs is teaming up with the St. Baldrick's Foundation for Childhood Cancer, and Radio 105.7 to bring you the fourth annual Sham Rock N’ Roll blast.

Beginning at noon, enjoy beer, drink spe-

Parades, Events and Festivals

cials and barbecue, as well as an opportunity to support St. Baldrick’s by shaving your head or donating to the foundation. Live music from Francisco Vidal, Angie Aparo and Ed Roland & the Sweet Tea Project begins at 5:30 p.m. Meehan’s Public House is setting a goal to raise $125,000 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation to benefit childhood cancer research.

Andrews District

Saturday, March 14 Buckhead andrewsdistrict.com

Join Power 96.1 & Andrews Entertainment District in celebration of everything Irish at the Saint Patrick’s Day Celebration Party hosted by Scotty K on Saturday, March 14th at 56 East Andrews Drive in Buckhead. The party kicks off with Kegs & Eggs in Stout Irish Sports Pub at 9:00am with festival doors opening at noon. Live music will be performed throughout the

2015

day with Jeremy Wayne Dean kicking off the festivities in the East Andrews Courtyard. Enjoy live performances by Garrison Blagg Band, The Dwight Raby Band, and headlining the festival is the 80s cover band, The Breakfast Club, from 10pm-12:30am in Andrews Upstairs.

Atlanta’s best DJs including DJ Huda Hudia and DJ Mixx Theory will be spinning music guests can dance to all night long. There will be drink and shot specials and a Bangers Eating Contest where the lucky winner will win a trip to Las Vegas.

Limerick Junction

Saturday, March 14 Virginia Highlands limerickjunction.com

Limerick Junction hosts the largest St. Patrick’s Day Party each year in Virginia-Highlands. This year will be no different as their outdoor festival begins at 2 pm.

Live music by Galen Crader, Sean Thomason, Barry Nelson and Van Morrison Tribute Band Street Choir. Enter a raffle to win a free trip to Ireland!

Park Tavern

Lucky Fest Saturday, March 7 Lepre*Con Saturday, March 14th

On Saturday, March 7 join thousands of loaded leprechauns and southern belles in tight green shirts for tons of green beer,

live music, DJ’s and outrageous fun.

Lucky Fest starts at 1 pm with music by Reuben’s Bell followed by Desire, Unzipt and Moby Dick with DJ’s spinning all night long.

On Saturday, March 14 A Social Mess presents Lepre*Con 2015 bringing their unique brand of madness to the Park Tavern. Multiple stages, multiple bands, and multiple DJs. Last year over 4,000 revelers came out so order tickets early.

On Saturday, March 28 be sure to come out for the Oyster Crawfish Festival featuring Cowboy Mouth. The Oyster Crawfish Festival combines the best oysters, crawfish, and your favorite beverages providing a day of music, food and entertainment. For more information on these events visit parktavern.com

The Elder Tree

Saturday, March 14 East Atlanta eldertreeatl.com

Come out to The Elder Tree for East Atlanta’s largest St. Patty’s Day celebration. This indoor / outdoor event begins at 2 pm and will go late into the night.

This year features Irish Dancers, Bag Pipers an Irish Band, food and drink specials all day featuring the Elder Tree’s house made corned beef, bangers & mash, cumberland pie and more.

East Atlanta’s Largest St. Patty’s Day Party!

Sat, March 14 • 2pm • Irish Dancers • Bag Pipers • Irish Band

• TRIVIA TUESDAYS Begins at 8pm

• Burger Wednesdays • Brunch Weekends Beginning at 9am

The Elder Tree Public House

469 Flat Shoals Ave. East Atl • www.eldertreeatl.com • 404-658-6108

The Only Thing We Over Look is the Park!

parktavern.com

Atlanta’s Best Patio!

-INsite, Jezebel

1/2 Off Sushi Nightly from 10pm–Midnight Wine Wednesday – 1/2 Priced Bottles of Wine • When It rains We Pour $1 Drafts!

PG 10 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

FOOD

IRISH PUB RECIPES

St. Patrick’s Day Festival

For St. Patrick’s Day

BY BRET LOVE

I

RISH PUB RECIPES MIGHT NOT BE the sort of thing you’d want to make at home every day, especially if you’re trying to follow a healthy diet. But on St. Patrick’s Day, everyone seems to like a wee taste of Ireland, and we’re no exception.

Nearly 40% of Georgians claim Irish heritage, with Atlanta ranking as the 7th largest “Irish city” in North America.

From the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade & Festival in downtown Atlanta to the even more massive celebration in Savannah, it seems like our home state goes crazy for shamrocks and shenanigans this time every March.

With loads of Irish pubs in the city, this year we turned to one of our personal favorites, Rí Rá Irish Pub, to get some traditional Irish Pub Recipes we could share with our readers. From classic fare like the Boxty Bites and Shepherd’s Pie to more modern Irish-American fusions such as the Guinness BBQ Burger, these dishes are virtually guaranteed to inspire an appreciation for Irish culture. Serve them up with some traditional Irish music on St. Patrick’s Day and you’ll have an enchanting taste of the Emerald Isle!

GUINNESS BBQ BURGER

INGREDIENTS: 2 pounds ground beef • 4 soft Kaiser Rolls • 4 leaf cleaned green leaf lettuce • 8 slices of ripened tomato • 8 slices of peeled red onion with the rings separated • 8 slices of yellow onion, with the rings separated and soaked in buttermilk • 1 cup flour • 3 cups canola oil • 4 slices of sharp cheddar cheese • 8 oz Guinness BBQ Sauce (recipe below) • 1 tsp olive oil GUINNESS BBQ SAUCE INGREDIENTS: 4oz Ketchup • 3oz Molasses • 1oz Guinness Stout • Dash of cumin • Dash of cayenne • Dash of chili powder • Dash of celery salt • Mix all ingredients together well and chill.

DIRECTIONS: Form the ground beef into 5” patties and season both sides with salt & pepper. • Heat a cast iron or heavy bottom pan with the olive oil until just smoking. • Place patties into pan and sear for 3 minutes on each side • Reduce heat slightly and finish cooking burgers to desired temp. • Heat the 3 cups of canola oil in a deep frying pan to 350 degrees. • Place the flour in a large bowl and dredge the buttermilk soaked rings through until well coated. • Shake of excess flour and drop rings into the hot oil in small batch’s turning them with tongs until golden crisp. • Remove from oil and drain well. • Place the cheese on top of the burgers 30 seconds before finished to melt.

GUINNESS BBQ BURGER

Saturday, March 14

Open Inside at Noon Outdoor Festival at 2pm LIVE MUSIC FEATURING: • Place the burger on the bottom of the bun, spoon the Guinness BBQ sauce over the cheese & top with 3-4 of the onion rings. • Lay the lettuce, tomato and red onion on the top side of the bun and serve open-faced.

SHEPHERD’S PIE

INGREDIENTS: 3 LB fresh ground lamb • 1 LB yellow onion diced • 4 Tbs AP Flour • 2 Tbs vegetable oil • 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary • 1 tsp chopped fresh parsley • 2 cups lamb stock (chicken stock can be substituted) • 2 cups frozen peas & carrots • 8 Idaho Potatoes; 1 cup milk • 4 Tbs butter PIE DIRECTIONS: Heat large pot with oil. • Add ground lamb and brown. • Drain off grease and add yellow onion. • Cook for 3-4 minutes. • Add the flour and cook out for 5-6 minutes. • Add the stock and mix well. • Bring to heat and let simmer for 10 minutes. • Add the chopped fresh herbs, peas and carrots. • Season to taste with salt and pepper.

TOPPING DIRECTIONS: Peel and dice washed potatoes. • Bring to boil in salted water. • When tender enough for a fork to pierce through, remove from heat and drain.

• Let the potatoes steam off until almost dry.

• Mix in bowl with milk and butter. • Season to taste with salt and pepper. • Pour the Pie mixture into a 9×9 baking dish. • Spread mashed potatoes over top and broil in oven for 3-4 minutes or until mashed potato on top is golden brown. • Serve family style with fresh bread, butter and cans of COLD Guinness for a great taste of Ireland!

Galen Crader • Sean Thomason • Barry Nelson Street Choir (Van Morrison Tribute) Carter Rude • Krotona & Radiomaj

ENTER TO WIN A FREE TRIP TO IRELAND! 822 N. Highland Avenue NE • Atlanta • (404) 874-7147

LimerickJunction.com

SPRING FESTIVALS Coming Next Month!

Call Steve for Advertising (404) 308-5119

SHEPHERD’S PIE, PHOTO BY HEIDI GELDHAUSER COURTESY RÍ RÁ IRISH PUB

insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 11

COMEDY

LAUGH-IN

Laughing Skull is the little Club that Roared (with Laughter)

BY LEE VALENTINE SMITH

it’s all good comedy, the best in the city.

OW IN ITS SIXTH YEAR, the Laughing Skull Comedy Festival embarks on its biggest incarnation yet. Sprawling out from the 80-seat home base of the Laughing Skull Lounge, tucked inside a comfy enclave behind the midtown Vortex restaurant, the festival stretches across town to Smith’s Olde Bar, Eddie’s Attic, The Improv, and the Hard Rock Cafe. With 72 scheduled comics and a few unadvertised special guests, the annual joke-fest is one of the best buys of the comedic season and a great way to sample the best new comics from across the country. Laughing Skull Comedy founder Marshall Chiles took a break to talk about this month’s impressive laugh fest.

You do a smaller scale version of these best of shows every month.

We do; it’s called “Best Of Atlanta” and it’s been a big success. It’s 12 local comedians doing their best stuff and people absolutely love it.

N

The Laughing Skull is the smallest comedy club in Atlanta, but it seems to be the most ambitious one.

Well, we do have a lot of ambition. We just keep thinking, “What can we do to make it bigger and better?” We’re not sitting on our hands, that’s for sure.

And this is definitely an aspiring festival.

Every year has gotten bigger and now we have Eddies Attic as a part of it, too.

Our goal this year is even better relations within the community and we’re really grown. We expect it to be the best festival year. Every year has been amazing, sort of a “how do we top this” challenge. This time, I think we’ve done it. But next year is gonna be even bigger, because now we have 72 comedians for the contest and next year, we want to take it up to an even 100 comics doing shows around town.

What is your ultimate goal for the event?

Ultimately, I’d like for it to be like the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland, which is basically, the entire city gets taken over and there are comedy shows everywhere.

Anybody that has a stage is putting comedy in it.

Tell us a bit about the contest that determines the participants.

We have about 400 comedians submit to be in the festival. And out of those 400, we watch all their videos and give them a grade, then we take the top 72. We have five categories that we judge them on: material, originality, delivery, stage presence and overall judges’ opinion.

So the top 72 of those come to town for these showcases and we use the same judging and scoring process, with some high-level industry people that serve as the judges for the event. The industry is coming here, because it’s my goal to make this the best comedy festival in the country, to see the new up and coming comics. This is where you come to see the best new acts. No other festival does that. The rest are all celebrity-driven. This festival isn’t about celebrity, it’s about comedy.

There’s a big difference.

Definitely. If you go to one of our shows and you see 12 comedians do their best 6 minutes, you’re getting a lot of comedy in one show. And PG 12 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

but up a couple weeks ago, it’s pretty much me. I’ve been working till midnight a few days a week and back at the desk by 8:30 the next day, because we’ve been wrapping up a film. It’s all in the can, as they say. But again, it’s worth it. I’m more involved this year than in the past, but it gives me a better idea of how to make it better. Our ultimate goal in this festival is we want it to be one of Atlanta’s biggest events. It’s about a fifth of the way to what I ultimately want it to be.

How did these shows originate?

We actually did it, at first, as a back-up plan for when somebody would have to cancel or reschedule. It happens. So we started these shows and people would ask Are you planning to expand into specials when we were gonna do it again. So ok, and DVDs? let’s just do it monthly. It sells out every Yes, the very next thing we’re looking month. And now we do a “Best Of Atlanta” at is to outfit the Lounge with cameras on Saturday at and equipment five p.m. and that to be able to also sells out. record anytime TH Now you can we want and do a come out early, “Laughing Skull watch a comedy Presents” series. show and then We actually have go to dinner a studio, called afterwards.

Laughing Skull MARCH 25–29 That’s starting to Studios, which catch on. is a production Various Locations company.

So the annual Our ultimate laughingskullcomedyfestival.com festival is goal is to be a a natural company that progression of the does specials “Best Of ” format. out of the Lounge for cable or DVD. Yes, every stage, everywhere you go, We’re wrapping up our first full-length you’re gonna see about 12 comedians per feature film right now. It’s called American show. And unlike the monthly shows, Dirtbags, americandirtbagfilm.com. We’ve these are the best from around the been using cameos from the acts who country. Consistently, people are telling come through the Lounge. We have Jen us that these are some of the best shows Kirkman, Jim Florentine, Jake Johannsen, they’ve ever seen. And it’s not three Emo Phillips, and about 12 cameos in all, comics in a 90 minute show, it’s 12, so including some of the cast of Archer. It’s there’s a lot more bang for your buck. It’s a basically a murder-comedy with all these win-win across the board. comics. Our cameos have over a million Twitter followers and if we’ve made a With all the venues and all the comics, film that’s good enough for the Sundance it must be a logistical nightmare, in Festival, and I think we have, then we some ways. know everything will come into play.

Yes, it is a bit of a logistical nightmare, That’s what we’re shooting for. but it’s totally worth it. That’s the other thing we do that It’s a good time to finally the other festivals utilize these great comic don’t do, we’re actors. making sure the It really is. You comedians are know, stand-up getting on one comedy is one or two shows of the most a night, every under-utilized night. resources in the How many entertainment people staff this industry. These event? comics come Typically, through and it’s about six or they say, “Hell seven people, yeah, I’ll

6 ANNUAL LAUGHING SKULL COMEDY FESTIVAL

MY ULTIMATE GOAL HAS ALWAYS BEEN, ‘WHATEVER IS BEST FOR COMEDY. do your film.” Because nobody ever offers them good film roles. I was talking to Jake Johansen about this and he goes, “Yeah, what happens is, a comic will get a TV show, based on them, but they don’t write it. So you’ve got five guys writing for you that don’t even know you.” We’re not just using their “brand.”

And since you also do stand-up comedy, you can definitely relate and give them the freedom to be themselves on screen.

What we’ve been doing is like this: “Ok, the purpose of this scene is this. The one line you need to get to, is this. However you get there, it’s up to you.” So we let them be them, you know? Like, Emo Phillips is a gun dealer and it’s hilarious.

Just let them be in the story and it’ll be even better. For me, my ultimate goal has always been, “Whatever is best for comedy.” We’re shooting with extremely hi-def cameras and we’re also shooting on 8 millimeter for flashback scenes and there’s also animation. We have two of the animators from [Adult Swim] working with us, too.

Is Atlanta the next big comedy scene?

We’ve worked really hard to build a comedy scene in Atlanta and now we’re past the tipping point. My goal was always to make Atlanta the best city in the southeast that comedians come to -- before they go to New York or Los Angeles. If you’re the best comic in Tampa, Florida or Charlotte, North Carolina, or Tennessee or wherever, come to Atlanta for a couple of years. You’ll get more stage time, then you can go to New York.

And that’s what’s been happening.

TV

TV

WHO YA GONNA CALL?

Better Call Saul: The Challenge of a Spin-Off for One of TV’s Most Critically Acclaimed Dramas

BY ALEX S. MORRISON

I

T IS A CHALLENGE TO SPIN-OFF a TV series. Especially when it is from one of the best shows of all time -Breaking Bad. After the failure of The Lone Gunmen (which he co-created) former X-Files writer/producer Vince Gilligan wasn’t deterred from putting his considerable muscle behind Better Call Saul and the show so far has been well received.

The series– a period piece initially set in 2002– focuses on the life of shady lawyer Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) before, during and after the events on Breaking Bad took place.

Co-produced by Gilligan and showrunner Peter Gould (who created the character of Saul), with two former BB writers among the production staff, the show was one of the Fall TV season’s most eagerly anticipated… until it was pushed to last month. Fortunately, the show has already been picked up by AMC for a second season.

Gilligan and Gould discuss what compelled them to create the show, what Breaking Bad characters will be making a return appearance and what future misdeeds we can expect from Saul.

In theory, we know where this story is going.

How limited are you by Breaking Bad and where Saul goes there?

VINCE GILLIGAN: That’s a damn good question. It’s a challenge.

PETER GOULD: It reminds me a lot of when we started Season 5, and we had the machine gun in the trunk. We knew that that was the right image, at the beginning of Season 5, but we had no idea how the hell we were going to get there.

GILLIGAN: It’s a leap of faith, or stupidity, into the unknown. I thought it was going to be easy, going forward, because we know who this guy is.

But we didn’t really know who this guy was at all.

He was a really interesting supporting character.

We know where this guy is going. But we can’t in the first episode have him lose an arm or an eye or something like that.

Is there any chance of you bringing Gus back for this show?

GILLIGAN: There’s always a chance, yeah.

GOULD: These are all characters that we love.

There’s so much more to say about Gus, and we certainly love Giancarlo [Esposito]. Having said that, we’re trying to make something that stands on its own that has entertainment value, and that’s not just seeing a series of old favorites. It’s not the series equivalent of a clip show. So we’re trying to balance these things out.

You’ve already been picked up for an even longer second season of 13 episodes. How will you juggle that with Battle Creek?

GILLIGAN: Battle Creek is a show that I’m real proud of, from more of a spectator point of view. I don’t have as much to do with that show, in its current ongoing form, but I’ve seen the first episode and it’s really good. Luckily, I’m working with Peter who is very easy. We’re partners. We’re working 50/50 on this, and it’s an interesting experience for me. I’d like to be more of a delegator but I’m a bit of a control freak. It’s easier to let go with Peter because Peter created the character of Saul Goodman.

Peter created this wonderful character who we identified with, in the first season or two, as being someone we thought could bear the weight of a spin-off. I can only work on one thing at a time, so it’s going to be Peter, more and more, as the series progresses.

How far ahead of Breaking Bad does this story start?

GILLIGAN: It’s 2002. We never completely nailed down when Breaking Bad took place. We tried hard to not be too specific as to when it was, but now we have to be a little more specific than we’re comfortable with. It is, indeed, a period piece. I can’t believe it, myself. It feels like it was yesterday, but it was 12 years ago. And there is a certain amount of effort, and blood, sweat and tears that goes into making it as factual and related to the period as possible.

What can you say about the new characters?

GOULD: We have Michael McKean playing a character named Chuck, who is Saul’s brother.

We have these two comedy legends working together, which is exciting. He’s one of the main characters that we’ve introduced, and he’s just a tremendous performer. He’s just great, and he also answers questions about Spinal Tap. GILLIGAN: We also got Rhea Seehorn, who is a wonderful actress. She is just as cute as she can be, and is just a wonderful, funny actress, but also capable of a great deal of depth. She was a lot of fun to work with. And Michael Mando is an excellent young actor.

There have been some reports that the show may not following a complete linear narrative, and that it will jump back and forth in time, maybe having some action taking place during the events of Breaking Bad, or even after. Is that something you’re considering?

GILLIGAN: I think the best way to answer this and not get in trouble is that you saw from Breaking Bad that we like non-linear storytelling. We like jumping around in time.

I would definitely point you in the direction of anything that was possible on Breaking Bad, storytelling-wise, is possible on Better Call Saul.

It’s fun for us to be as non-linear as possible.

Station Control

CRIME DRAMAS ARE BACK With a Vengeance

BY BENJAMIN CARR

T

ELEVISION IS THE ONE PLACE where crime always pays, and this season has seen a glut of high quality programming about it. And, though HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER just left us with five different cliffhangers until the fall, other shows have just premiered to keep the suspense going week to week.

This month, ABC launches two new mystery dramas - SECRETS AND LIES on Sunday nights and AMERICAN CRIME on Thursdays. Both shows will explore a single murder case in their first seasons, different from the detective shows of old and their cases-of-the-week. Instead of the Columbo and Law & Order models, we’re finally getting shows that feel more like classics like Murder One and Twin Peaks.

SECRETS AND LIES take on a sensational, ripped-from-the-headlines case of child murder and tells it from the perspective of the chief suspect in the case. In the opening scene, Ben (Ryan Phillippe) discovers the body of his 7-year-old neighbor while out jogging in the woods near his house. Very soon afterward, Ben’s involvement in the boy’s murder comes under suspicion of a tough police detective named Cornell (Juliette Lewis). As the title of the show suggests, things are a good deal more complicated about the neighborhood than they seem. And the show keeps things interesting by not showing us whether the main character is guilty of the crime. The first episodes of the show feel like Gone Girl, and the twists packed into each episode have been compelling.

AMERICAN CRIME, written by John Ridley (12 Years a Slave) and starring Timothy

Hutton, Felicity Huffman and Regina King, explores the multiple facets of a racially charged hate crime and the fallout that comes when racial tensions motivate how a case is investigated and prosecuted. It feels daring that ABC would embrace such a show so soon after this summer’s events in Ferguson, but the results - airing after Scandal on Thursday nights - should prove fascinating.

Fans of detective shows have a new hero that they can watch as well. Amazon Prime recently premiered the entire first season of its excellent BOSCH, based upon the series of novels by Michael Connelly. LAPD Homicide Det. Harry Bosch (Lost’s Titus Welliver) has a reputation for being gruff, trigger-happy and breaking rules of investigation. In the opening moments of the new series, we see him break protocol, disobey his partner, chase down a suspect on foot and shoot the man to death - and it isn’t the first time such a thing has happened to him. Then the show breaks away from a case-of-the-week standard that you might find on TNT’s glut of detective procedurals. Instead, Bosch’s first season concentrates on the hunt for a serial killer after a 20-year-old crime scene is discovered by a dog seeking bones.

Netflix has returned with another season of HOUSE OF CARDS, featuring Kevin Spacey as a corrupt politician and murderer - who is now President of the United States. HBO is also bringing us another season of TRUE DETECTIVE in the coming months, and it will star Colin Farrell, Vince Vaughn and Rachel McAdams.

If art is supposed to reflect life, then all these crime shows make me worry about going outside. But, while I’m inside, at least there’s compelling stuff to watch on TV.

Secrets and LIes

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More info at www.cinemoms.com insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 13

FILM

INTO THE WILD Movie Reviews

Bear Grylls On Celebrities, Survival & Running Wild

from keeping myself alive. It’s definitely more challenging taking somebody Justin Peck?when Justinyou’re is a 25-year-old dancer who’s done nothing like this before.

You’ve got who gets the chance of a lifetime, to create the  of the outdoors as a boy. My parents and toone think for theminathe lotcompany’s of the time.2013 But winter it’s been new dance British auteur Mike Leigh (Secrets & Lies, grandparents took me backpacking in the exciting to be able to take these guys away.

Vera Drake)mountains is known for histodistinctive Appalachian and our rustic cabin season. He approaches his task with a Zenlike Icalm, love seeing come they’re so the them only hint of alive dramawhen comes from “kitchen sink realism” approach to filmmaking. on Lake Hartwell, where I learned to set up facing difficult terrain and big challenges, both the two-month countdown to the premiere.

Rooted in his background in the theatre (he camp, fish, start a fire (and cook on it), forage emotionally and physically.

It’s great helping The closest thing to a crisis comes when it’s started at the prestigious Academy of for wild berries and, most Royal importantly, respect people overcome that, wardrobe whether it’s a fear of discovered that Tiler’s is the same Dramatic Art),bounty his stylethat blends improvisation, the beauty and Mother Nature has heights orthesnake orbackdrop whatever(and it is.Taylor Swift’s color as stage intensive character study and months of to offer.

Grammy dress). Lighting tweaked, crisis rehearsal, all before he ever puts pen to On Running Wild With Bear Grylls, thepaper Were theyEven givenif you any just kindgooffor training averted. the dancing to begin sculpting his script.

British adventurer does the same thing beforehand to prepare them? you’ll feel shortchanged.

After an hour of Assome a result of this process, his films have with of the world’s biggest celebrities.

When ittocomes to training, weonly said,a few buildup the premiere we see provided roles Ben for some It’s thrillingcareer-defining to watch a nervous Stillerof “You’ve just gotoftothe bring two– things– a bigcalm brief excerpts dance and Justin’s England’s finest actors, including Gary Oldman rappelling down a mountain on Scotland’s Isle bag of fortitude and a big backpack full of reactions in the audience. There’s applause, Tima terrified Roth (Meantime), Janeconquering Horrocks his ofand Skye, Tom Arnold enthusiasm– and we’ll do the best when of course, but we don’t learn if the dance is a (Lifeofisheights Sweet)by and David Thewlis (Naked). fear traversing a tree over a 50we’re out there.or ” The fun thing for about it is If you career-maker career-ender Justin.

Mr.drop Turner a biopic of early 19th century foot in Oregon, and a boyish Zac Efron that they’re not too prepared, you know?

We loved Black Swan, this is its antithesis.

Britishtoartist Turner,inprovides a similar stoked see aJ.M.W. wild beaver the Catskills.

But wing it together, and you see them on camera –Steve Warren platform forthe Timothy Spallmore who isinteresting best-known what makes show even is learning and making mistakes, and that’s the in the as a supporting playerofinthese the Harry the rare,U.S. honest glimpse it offers stars real part of it. The only training I did with HUMAN CAPITAL (NR) Potter series.Spall’s Turnerbyisthe a bitchallenges of a hot of fun emotionally overwhelmed any of them was with Zac, because I wanted  mess, largely communicating pushing themselves to the limitininanimalistic some of the to Ifskydive withyou him.

So Itogave him some you think want write a screenplay, world’s beautiful wilderness areas. of gruntsmost and grumbles.

His brief outbursts training for a couple of hours the day don’t see Human Capital. It will showbefore. you Grylls– aare former British emotion largelyreservist limited in to the boyish love But arrived whatbeyond a greatthat, one everyone is like but else will just discourage Special later climbed for his Forces elderly(SAS) fatherwho and unbridled lust for with that fortitude and enthusiasm, andsoI said, you from trying because it sets the bar Everest and crossed the North Atlantic and his adoring housekeeper, whom he exploits “We’ll do it altogether. ” high. This Italian drama combines the the Passagewhen in anhe’s inflatable boat– forNorthwest his own pleasure not ignoring multiple storylines of Crash with the multiple recently spoke toThis us about theexterior show via cell her completely. brutish belies Of all the places you’ve been, what’s the place perspectives of Rashomon, interweaving its phone from a little cove off the south coast an artist of great emotional sensitivity, which that you connect with the most? of England. tales and revealing more of each as it follows we see externalized when his father dies and, Home! (Laughs) A lifetime of doing this has different cater-waiter cycling later, when he meets the widow Sophia Booth taught mecharacters. two things.AOne is that I do love the Where didBailey), the idea Running Wild come home from an event becomes a hit-and-run (Marion thefor landlady of the seaside adventure. I love being out there. It’s where from? know you did populartoepisodes Six months houseI on Chelsea he escapes increasingly Ivictim. come alive, and it’s earlier where ambitious I perform realtor at my offrequently Man Vs Wild with Will and DinoIdrives hiswildernesses daughter Serena her to as he falls fromFerrell royal favor. best. love the we’vetogone Jake Has this concept been the boyfriend’s house and thea youth’s father, AsGyllenhaal. the flawed-but-fascinating Turner, around the world, and meets it’s such privilege.

But germinating in your mind ever since?

Giovanni, whose hedge fund Dino wants to 57-year-old Spall (who deservedly won the going away a lot has also taught me the value Yes. Actor Thoseaward Man Vs shows [with guest in.You Carla, Giovanni’s is afamily, former Best at Wild Cannes) is nothing short ofinvest home. know, I’ve got wife, a lovely stars] have been very successful all the actress who wants to restore a crumbling of remarkable– a lovable loser youaround can’t help with three young boys. It’s the greatest driving world.

Once were done with that show, theater.

Serena’s a but root for.we Working hand-in-hand with the force when I’m upstepmother a mountainRoberta, or in a jungle– a we wanted to revisit this format.

We knew it psychologist, is pregnant with twins.

Their always-masterful Leigh, they craft an artistic shining light making me work hard to get out was a format worked and, me, external it’s just mildly interesting at first but draw portrait of a that complicated man for whose ofstories thereare in one piece. really fun because you get to know people and you in as the details are fleshed out in director ugliness fails to convey the exquisite beauty it’s such a good dynamic.

So itlies was exciting Paolo Virzi’s intricate from a novel by and vision of the world that within.

People look up to youscript as a survival expert. getting through all the health and safety–Bret hoops.

Human Capital wonwould 11 Love IsStephen there aAmidon. particular teacher that you Not a lot of it is planned, so that was quite Italianfor Academy Awards and was submitted for credit giving you the most survival a BALLET mountain422 for (PG) us to climb before we even an Oscar.

That it didn’t get nominated shows knowledge? started. what banner year 2014 wasfeel forlike foreign1/2 But NBC helped us through that, and Well,a to be honest, I don’t I’m a fought of those battles. languageexpert. films. When I started off doing Man Whata few if they shot a documentary and survival –Steve Warren nothing went wrong? That’s the basic problem Vs Wild, I felt like more of a survival expert You a lot dealing withhad withhave Ballet 422.of experience Director Jody Lee Lipes because I’d just left the military. That’s where I these harsh climates and wild places.

THE SALVATION (NR) skills. But the more rare access to the New York City BalletBut andis learned all of my survival it a lot of responsibility to take someone who this I’ve done, the more I realize that I’m the result is not only not revelatory but fails to of**** doesn’t have experience in dealing with these Kristian Levring mustbut be Danish of a lot of things, a masterforof very provide such basic information as, is principal a jack conditions?

John Every Ford, or Eastwood. little. dayatIleast meetClint better climbers,His better dancer Tiler Peck related to choreographer Yes, it’s a nightmare! When I’m on my amazing modern classic combines all the skydivers, better survivalists.

The thing about own I’ve got nothing to worry about apart me is that I’ll always work damn hard, I’ll

BY BRET LOVE

I

MRDEVELOPED TURNER MY LIFELONG LOVE

HUMAN CAPITAL PG 14 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

THE WILD IS VERY REVEALING. YOU GET TO KNOW PEOPLE IN A WAY THAT YOU NEVER DO OTHERWISE, BECAUSE THEY’RE UNCOVERED AND VULNERABLE. YOU GET TO KNOW THEIR STRUGGLES, THEIR DOUBTS, THEIR TRIUMPHS, THEIR HIGHS AND THEIR LOWS. elements of the westerns I grew up on, plus sex, unexpected twists and the contemporary relevance of an oil company being responsible for all the evils of frontier in 1871.

It always keep cheerful evenlife when it’s miserable, begins as a horror story about the immigrant and I always go for it. But as for the training, experience, with (Madsand Mikkelsen) 99% was from theJon’s military I learned a wife and son joining him in America aftera bunch as a kid with my dad, who’d been seven years apart and quickly falling victim commander and a climber and loved all thisto lawlessness and brutality. stuff. He’ll be turning in hisViolence grave ifnaturally I only escalates as each side takes revenge for what’s credit him with 1 percent… He’s about 50%! been to them.

But hedone taught me theDelarue love of (Jeffrey it, whichDean actually Morgan) his thugs are the enforcers for Big counts forand everything.

Oil in addition to having a personal stake; and he takes of histo widowed sister-in-law Have youadvantage had a chance take your boys on (Eva Green), who’s his perfect woman because any of these adventures?

Indians havetocut Jonathan Yes, I get do out thather thetongue. rest of the year, when Pryce plays theTV town’s mayoraround and undertaker, we don’t have cameras us. They who’s buying the off oil the love it!secretly Right now I’mup in aland littleforcove company. is donelooking quicklyatbut south coastJustice of England, allinjustice three takes bit longer.

There’s a miniseries’ worth boys, astark naked in the sea in the pouring of plotI’minsheltered the incredibly script, which rain. undereconomic a fallen tree, trying to lets move a leisurely pace keepthe outfilm of the rainatwhile talking to while you. But wrapping upThey in 92live minutes.

It’stheir a Danish/UK/ they love it. it. It’s in DNA, for South sure. African production but almost all the dialogue is in English.

–Steve Warren You’ve visited so many inhospitable places.

SERENA

Lest you miss the similarity, the dude in charge (Mark Duplass) is named Frank. He’s not exactly a mad scientist, but he’s put off marrying Wilde, the standout They lostZoe of a (Olivia lot of lives in that disaster, and init’sa become generallya weak cast) for three years to disease-ridden, crocodile-filled, focus on his work; least snake-filled place.so Sohe’s yes,atI’m notstupid, going to which metaphor for The Lazarus hurry makes back tohim thata one.

Effect. Anyway, the next experiment, with a dog named Rocky,being is more so even What is it about in successful; the wilderness that though Rocky’s behaving strangely, Frank and speaks to you personally?

Zoe take him homerevealing. from the You lab. get A crisis soon The wild is very to know leads to the first human trial, with predictable people in a way that you never do otherwise, good news/bad results.and Asvulnerable. the monster because they’renews uncovered reanimated human’s brainpower advances, that You get to know their struggles, their doubts, oftheir the triumphs, viewer retreats.

Muchand of the movie their highs their lows.isAnd aifdecent rehash ofinfamiliar with lots stuff happens the wild,themes, it’s unpredictable. ofThings darkness horror very filmmaker’s can –goa wrong quickly,best and (and I’ve got cheapest) friend; but the confusing ending a massive responsibility to keep these guys makes no sense, to prove there are some alive. But I love except that challenge. plots man was not meant to tamper with.

–Steve Warren What do you think it is that makes a celebrity want to do this kind of adventure?

KINGSMAN: SECRET SERVICE They’re notTHE doing it for the money, the  fame, or the exposure. These guys have all of OneThey thingdon’t that has baffled that. needalways to take risks.inAnd the Hollywood action truth of doing thismovies is that isit the is a shootouts risk. You’re It doesn’t going to the lookgood like guys you’reand notvillains. brave or strong, How do you nail down the places you want to between or whatever.

I thinkbetween it’s a testament the film in? (R) SERENA matter the distance the two to parties, 1/2 ideaprotagonist that peoplealways at heart love to challenge we try and pick diverse terrains. The Well, our demonstrates pinpoint themselves.

These guysinhave all reached Isle ofhave Skyetoinwonder Scotlandwhy is just barren andthe You a movie with aim, getting the sniper the shoulder or top of their profession, we all have that windswept, cold and So we contrasted stars of last year’s tworainy. top boxoffice hits is hitting the asshole in thebut forehead; but when inside: If our lives ormatter our family’s that with the hotarthouse deserts and dramatic rock getting a limited release, but you ityearning comes the baddie, it doesn’t if he’s lives300 were the line, have I gotmisses what faces of Utah. for If somebody has aCooper real wish to won’t wonder long. Bradley got killsreally to hisoncredit, he generally it takes toIt’s survive?

Almost all ofWhere’s these guys go somewhere, weopening pick that.

Butand really, it’s all his holds a rifle in the scene Jennifer target. frustrating as hell. the said one of the Sadly, best bits was having space about diversity andproves the challenging terrain.

Lawrence quickly herself the equal damn balance? there’s little relief in and time to think lifeService, and howa movie lucky they of any man, but Serena is neither American Kingsman: Theabout Secret where have been.

The outdoors does that.

It creates Has there been a place you’ve traveled that Sniper nor Hunger Games. It’s a soapy mercenaries miss wildly, bespoke suit shops bonds between people it gives uslairs space was so incredibly difficult thatdirector, you have no Shakespearean tragedy whose double as entryways to and underground to breathe.

At the end it, allshields. of them hadand a desire toBier go back?

Susanne made some good films in her and umbrellas serve asofbody Oh, smile on their face and a light in psycho their eyes that Probably the black swamps Sumatra, native Denmark but has done of something there’s Samuel L. Jackson as this tech moneywhose can’t buy.

Fame doesn’t doto it.be Drugs where in theAmerica. tsunami hit in 2001Serena and decimated rotten (Actually was genius inspirations appear a ’94 don’t do it.

Booze doesn’t do it.

It’s the power amostly big part of the island.

It’s just this stinking, filmed in the Czech Republic but it’s Russell Simmons and a ’04 Steve Jobs. To of the wild, and I’ve seen it a(Kick-Ass, ton in people. black, rotting with all ofstory theseabout set in the U.S.)swamp, The underlying director Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men crocodiles feeding vs. off corrupt the 6500business human corpses. First Class) credit, though, it really does seem environmentalism practices is quickly buried under love, lust, like he sought out to create a cool Bondjealousy and murder, made as boring as they meets-Kill Bill kind of world where promising can be. George Pemberton (Cooper) owns youngsters like Eggsy (Taron Egerton) are a financially shaky lumber business in North recruited by agents named Harry Hart (Colin Carolina’s Smoky Mountains, and despite the Firth) to become the next generation of Depression he’s living high on the log. His snazzy-dressed, exploding pen-toting heroes. life improves momentarily with a love-atBut the movie is just never poised enough first-sight marriage to Serena (Lawrence), to earn such a tag. A couple of crazy fight who comes from a Colorado lumber family sequences show potential, but after the fifth and knows the business, even though she gunshot to the head (by the eagle-eyed good was orphaned as a child. Before you can yell guy, of course), it feels heavy handed. There’s “Timber!” she turns into Lady Macbeth, having a moment where a newly trained Eggsy is men eliminate real and perceived threats to about to save a damsel but the scene is ruined George’s business. The stars may be incapable by a dumb anal-sex reference. And then of giving bad performances but this is as close there’s Sam Jack. We don’t know what’s more as they’ll ever come. annoying about his character, the ridiculous –Steve Warren lisp he has or the Y2K-approved wardrobe he’s wearing. The super-silly Kingsman shoots THE LAZARUS EFFECT (PG-13) for a lot—coolness, campiness, franchise1/2 worthiness—but like the case is with most of The Lazarus Effect opens with a failed the guys with guns here, it simply misses the attempt to revive a dead pig. Frankenstein isn’t mark way too often. exactly a pig but I can’t resist a good metaphor.

–DeMarco Williams

BOOKS

SPORTS

DAVE’S WORLD

Dave Barry Reveals How to Live Right & Find Happiness

BY BRET LOVE

“P

teenage girls?

Move to a place that has no boys. Pluto, for example. I realize Pluto has no oxygen, but the lack of boys more than compensates for that.

ULITZER PRIZE-WINNING humorist” isn’t an accolade you hear every day. And the fact that the only guy I know who’s earned it also As the child of Baby Boomers, I found your happens to occasionally play in a band called insight into your generation fascinating.

The Rock Bottom Remainders (a.k.a. a book How do you think Gen X and Millennials that doesn’t sell) with celebrated authors such stack up against Boomers and the as Stephen King, Amy Tan, Mitch Albom Greatest Generation? and Matt Groening makes Dave Barry all the We had better music. But you guys have more interesting.

MUCH better teeth.

The New York-bred son of a Presbyterian minister made a name for himself as a Your essay on the insanity of soccer fanatics syndicated humor columnist for the Miami got me wondering if there was anything Herald, where he began working in 1983. He you’re that passionate about? won the Pulitzer Prize for I’m pretty fond of beer.

Commentary five years later, for “his consistently I read on Twitter that the effective use of humor as Rock Bottom Remainders a device for presenting have a Tucson gig coming fresh insights into serious up in March. When concerns.” did you guys get back Barry has dabbled in together, and what do Hollywood: His books you enjoy about having Dave Barry Turns 40 and the band as a creative Dave Barry’s Greatest outlet?

Hits were adapted into It’s fun hanging out the CBS sitcom Dave’s with other authors and World (which starred discussing literary topics Night Court’s Harry such as: What chord Anderson and ran from are we supposed to be 1993 to 1997), and his playing? What song 1999 novel Big Trouble are we supposed to be was turned into a film playing? Where did the starring Tim Allen and audience go? Should we Rene Russo. stop playing?

But he’s best known for his writing, cranking EVERYTHING WILL GET MUCH Humor’s not really known out more than 25 nonWORSE. TRUST ME. for winning major awards fiction books and 14 novels, very often. How did including a popular series of children’s books winning the Pulitzer Prize change your life co-written with Ridley Pearson (which serve and career, or did it? Where do you keep the as prequels to Peter Pan). Rumor has it Walt Pulitzer Prize now?

Disney Pictures will have a live-action film It didn’t change my life all that drastically, adaptation in production soon, directed by except for a few hours during which I Gary Ross (The Hunger Games). wondered if winning a Pulitzer meant I head In his latest book of essays, Live Right and to start writing thoughtful, insightful columns.

Find Happiness (Although Beer is Much (Answer: No.) I lost my Pulitzer Prize for Faster), Barry tackles the usual broad range of several years, so now my wife keeps it in a safe topics. There’s his feelings of inadequacy when place that I don’t know about. (Really.) he meets the studly David Beckham (“You will never hear a high-school girl say about a You’ve had your work made into various boy, in a dreamy voice, ‘He’s so sarcastic!’”); movies and TV shows over the years. What taking his daughter Sophie to get her learner’s are your thoughts on working with/in permit (“So you’re about to start driving!

Hollywood?

How exciting! I’m going to kill myself.”); and It’s very rewarding once you understand that the insanity of Vladimir Putin (“He stares at no matter what you write for movie people, the camera with the expression of a man who they will tell you they love it, which means relaxes by strangling small furry animals”). they hate it.

Barry recently took time out of his busy schedule to talk with us about embracing his After 30+ years of syndicated columns and inner geek, parenting teenage girls and where best-selling books, you must be filthy rich. he keeps his Pulitzer.

What keeps you motivated to keep writing at this stage in your life?

Was there a definitive moment when you A sincere desire to put my daughter through came to terms with your inner geek and college, assuming we can find one with no learned to embrace it? When did YOU “find boys. happiness”?

I started to be truly happy when the Miami Before we go, do you have any sagely words of Herald hired me to be a full-time humor wisdom for those of us just cresting the hill of columnist, and I realized I would never have middle age? to do anything useful or productive again.

Everything will get much worse. Trust me.

My daughter is 13, so we’re about to enter the whole dating/driving stage of life. Any advice you provide for us newbies to parenting

Appearing Friday, March 6 for an event with A Cappella Books at the Savannah College of Art & Design Show

HARLEM GLOBETROTTER Home Grown Moose Weekes

BY DAVE COHEN

W

HEN THE WORLD FAMOUS Harlem Globetrotters traveling basketball road show stops in Atlanta this month their roster will feature local product Moose Weekes, who played his high school basketball at Berkmar HS and is from Lilburn, Ga. After playing collegiately at Middle Tennessee State, Weekes is living his dream traveling the world with the Globetrotters. “I can’t think of another job where you can have such a great time doing what you love to do, while putting smiles on people’s faces every day.” Moose and the Globetrotters will do just that when they play the Washington Generals at Philips Arena March 7th and again at the Arena at Gwinnett Center on March 14th.

How exciting is this for you, being from the Atlanta area, to come back and play in front of the “home crowd?”

Oh man. I’m so excited. It’s been a long time. I’ve been waiting to get back home and I can’t tell you how excited I am. I went to school in Gwinnett County and played basketball all around Atlanta and I’m looking forward to seeing that home crowd and that energy that they normally bring.

playing competitive basketball with being an entertainer?

There are certain things that make players Globetrotters. We definitely have the certain character traits as goodwill ambassadors and we’re also known as the “Clown Princes of Basketball” so everyone comes in with a certain amount of showmanship already. It fits my personality so well that after crazy emphatic dunks I’m I WENT TO SCHOOL IN going to play a little bit more GWINNETT COUNTY AND to the crowd. We’re always PLAYED BASKETBALL ALL having fun interacting with AROUND ATLANTA AND the fans. That’s the beauty I’M LOOKING FORWARD of the Harlem Globetrotters TO SEEING THAT HOME game and the experience.

We get to interact with our CROWD AND THAT fans throughout the game ENERGY THAT THEY in ways that a lot of other NORMALLY BRING. sports don’t get to.

You played your college ball at Middle Tennessee State University. Just how does one go from Murfreesboro, Tennessee to becoming a Globetrotter?

You know, everybody’s got a different story on how they got to the Globetrotters. I had played in a charity game against some former Globetrotters and NBA players and I got the game MVP. We exchanged our contact information and they said “Hey man, you should be with us.” I got in touch with their director of player personnel and Globetrotter legend Lou Dunbar and the rest is history. I was a Berkmar Patriot and our colors were red, white and blue and I think it’s kind of fitting that I’m playing with my same number from high school, 45, in the red, white and blue, but now for the Harlem Globetrotters.

Each Globetrotter is known for a certain skill within the game.

Along with your big hair style, what should fans look for when you’re on the court?

That, my friend, hasn’t changed much since high school. I’ve been known as a high flying rim wrecker around Atlanta and I’m just throwing it down a little bit harder these days.

How do you balance

How have you enjoyed all the travel, domestically and internationally?

It’s truly a blessing. I’ve been to twentythree different countries now, to place I’ve never evened dreamed of. I love Australia.

I’ve been all over Europe, London, Tel Aviv, Israel, Bucharest, Romania, Istanbul. Those are some great places. I went to North Korea and that in itself is amazing. And I made it out too. (laughs) To see the smiles on the kid’s faces anywhere we go is just a blessing. Using basketball as an instrument to change lives in a positive way, I never thought the sport would allow me to some of the things that it does.

The Globetrotters are back playing their longtime rival and opponent, the Washington Generals. How has that been?

Yes, it’s the Washington Generals Revenge Tour.

We have not played them in about five years.

They’re actually the last team that beat us, in 1971.

insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 15

COMEDY

COMEDY

MR. SYMPHONIC DOMAIN FILTERLESS AND FEARLESS Jason Alexander Hosts ASO Gala Event Gottfried Says Whatever’s on His Mind

BY LEE VALENTINE SMITH

BY LEE VALENTINE SMITH

USY ENTERTAINER JASON Alexander will be forever known as his character George Costanza on Seinfeld, one of the most popular shows in the history of television. But before and during his run on that show, he maintained a hectic schedule of Broadway roles and live performances.

Currently prepping two new projects for television and readying for a trial run of “Other People’s Money” in the Hamptons, the outspoken comedic actor-singer-dancerpolitical activist spoke with INsite from New York about his upcoming performance with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

OR THE PAST 45 YEARS, GILBERT Gottfried has enjoyed an impressive career as a stand-up comic actor. Along the way, he’s appeared as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, hosted MTV segments, and found mass appeal as a voice-over artist in many animated projects, including Aladdin, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and as the original voice of the Aflac duck. A lifelong fan of classic TV and campy movies, Gottfried’s newest adventure is hosting The Amazing Colossal Podcast, featuring a series of in-depth interviews with many long-forgotten pop culture icons. Currently on tour and still riding high on his internet rendition of Fifty Shades Of Gray, the Brooklynborn comedian recently spoke with INsite.

F

B

You’re always juggling a number of projects, do you force yourself to stay busy?

Well, I was raised with that good, middleclass work ethic of going, “do something!” I’m blessed that, technically, I guess I don’t have to work again. But I went into this business because I enjoy it. So I do the things I do because I really like doing them and most of what I do these days very rewarding.

It’s very true! There’s a comfort level, I find, between me and audiences. Even though it’s not George up there in front of them, we’ve spent a lot of years in front of each other. It’s one of the most pleasant by-products of my particular success.

The used record bins and You Tube clips are filled with those “Golden Throats” performances by actors who definitely shouldn’t sing, but with you, there’s no novelty. This is the real thing.

Yes, and I have many of those albums, like Leonard Nimoy! My own pop album probably wouldn’t be a big seller, because I don’t think I’m a natural R&B singer, but I was a Broadway song and dance man, and that transfers beautifully into the symphony space.

When did you begin collaborating with symphonies?

It started about 18 years ago, from out of nowhere, the Boston Pops asked me to do an “Evening At Pops” show with them. I had a blast doing it, but I never really thought of myself as a “symphony singer,” so I didn’t pursue it. Then they asked me to do it again a couple of Can you give us a bit of a years ago. Then the Atlanta preview of your show with the Symphony was nice enough Symphony? to call and invite me down. I Well if you know my Broadway was supposed to do a couple career, I’ll do a little of that.

MARCH 7, 7:30P.M. of nights with them, several I do a little bit of rock and ASO Gala months ago, but it was during roll. Rock and roll with a pop their negotiation problems. orchestra; yes, they have to atlantasymphony.org Those concerts got cancelled get their “groove on” for that! and when the situation was Then there’s the big audience rectified, they said, ‘Well come do this!” participation number. The grand finale, is a medley of all the great Broadway roles that But this is very different than your “Jason everybody thinks were not right for me! The Alexander And His Hair” solo tour. That’s audience gets to decide whether the common just you and a pianist. wisdom is right or wrong.

Yes! For a symphony show, there is a good deal of humor, but it’s not a strictly comedic You’re known for your political activism. evening, but it is an awful good time.

What are you up to, in that arena?

Listen, I’m very political but I don’t want This isn’t the average pops show by to get into anybody’s personal politics, I’m any means. just glad we live in a country that has two Right. It’s a mix of comedy and parties with two profoundly passionate kinds some dramatic music; it’s a little bit of people trying to articulate policy. I think autobiographical, just to give it a throughthat’s healthy. A lot of organizations are line. And at some point, I even bring up seven getting involved with this, but the two that I’m lucky -- or unlucky, depending on your point most focused on now are called Rootstrikers of view -- members of the audience onstage (rootstrikers.org) and Mayday PAC (mayday. and they do a number with me, by gosh! us). Both are focused on getting campaign finance reform accomplished.

The good thing about a symphony crowd is they’re savvy and informed, it’s not like People will stop and listen to you, whereas you are starting from the ground up with they’d just tune out a politician. these people.

It’s true. People who are really working Yes! They’re a sophisticated and passionate in the trenches to affect change, often can’t audience. I had no idea I would enjoy it as get the real attention of the media or the much as I do. The spaces, these glorious halls, public. Then when a schmo like me shows are incredible and the audiences are delicious. up, all of a sudden the lights come on. I’m It’s just been one of the most unexpectedly not always fond of celebrities who become joyful kinds of performing I’ve been able to do. the spokesperson for something, when they may or may not be qualified to do it. But I do The familiarity of television must be a factor enjoy being a conduit to the people who you in the audience reaction. They know you should be listening to. So I tend to go to these already, and you’re almost a relative in things. It’s one of the only really positive uses a way. of “celebrity” that I know of.

JASON ALEXANDER

PG 16 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

and Boris Karloff’s daughter on. And Karloff’s daughter, she asked me if I would send an autographed picture to her granddaughter, who’s a fan of mine! I mean, imagine me, when I was a little kid, sitting in front of the TV, watching Frankenstein and The Mummy, I had no idea that Boris Karloff’s great grand-daughter would ever be a fan, of me!

How do you find these people? Do you have contacts at the old actor’s home?

I was originally gonna called the show, The Before It’s Too Late Show, but I was afraid it would be harder to get guests. “Do my show, because we think you’ll be dead in a week.” With this kind of show, we make a list of who we want to call, and then we have to keep crossing names off. Like, I found out there was this little girl, who was the niece or granddaughter of one of the heads of Universal, and she was in the original Dracula. Her MARCH 12–14 name was Carla Laemmle, and Improv I thought, “We had to have her theimrpoveatlanta.com on the show!” And of course, the next day, she died! 104 years old!

GILBERT GOTTFRIED

Your podcast is such a throwback to the old days of TV and movies.

It’s because I miss those old shows and movies. That’s the whole point of my podcasts.

What’s fun about it is, I get so many tweets and messages, saying things like, “I had no idea who you were speaking to, or the other names you were bringing up, so I looked up all these names.” I thought, “This is like a fun homework assignment!”

And you treat your subjects with respect.

There are people who may not know them, but they realize that they enjoy them, as they listen to the interview. Their careers are considered over, a lot of them, yet there are people listening to them, maybe for the first time, who genuinely enjoy hearing them.

Your show is like a new version of Fantasy Island or Love Boat, in a way.

I used to see those shows and they’d dig up these actors that you thought were dead! They’d appear in different roles and all of a sudden, you’d watch them and go, “Oh wait a second, they’re still good!”

You grew up as a fan of many of these guests and now you’re sitting and talking to them. It must be a surreal experience.

It certainly is. One show, I had Bela Legosi’s son

What’s next?

I started work on this animated movie called Animal Crackers. It’s not done yet, but I’m doing one of the characters, and Sylvester Stallone is doing one of the other voices. For those people who may be clamoring for the new Sylvester Stallone, Gilbert Gottfried teaming, this’ll be the one!

There’s an interesting duality to your career, kids know you from cartoons and yet, you can be totally filthy and hilarious on-stage.

I’ve always said that my career walks the tightrope in-between early morning children’s programming and hard-core porn.

But has that ever backfired on you?

(Laughs) Oh yes!! Obviously, it’s backfired a lot! But even when I’ve gotten in trouble and lost work and stuff, you know, it’s really like that old adage. “As long as they’re talking about you...” You know, when I got in trouble about the whole Aflac idiocy, it was like, in magazines, newspapers, radio and TV and the Internet, they were going, “Gilbert Gottfried’s career is now over.” You never hear, like those two guys, who replaced the original guys on Dukes Of Hazzard, their career is over.

You delved head-first into the Reality Show world with Celebrity Apprentice, Celebrity Wife-Swap, and Celebrity Cook-Off. To some people, that’s like an elephants’ graveyard, but some entertainers love it.

You know, it’s funny, I put off doing those shows for the longest time. I like acting in movies or just when they’ll call me to do a guest appearance in a sitcom, to be Joe The Plumber or whatever. After a while, it got to be like those old Shakespearian actors, “Oh these movies are just a passing fad.” I could ignore it, or I was trying to, but with “Reality TV,” that’s where some of TV is now.

Tell us a little about your live show.

I always find it uncomfortable to say what I’m talking about in my act. When I say what I’m talking about, I go, “Oh God, this isn’t funny at all!” I feel like, it’s bad enough the audience has to hear it, I certainly don’t want to listen to it! (laughs).

MERCHANDISE

OUR FAVORITE THINGS

BY BRET LOVE

I

T’S SEEMS CRAZY TO BE WRITING about Outdoor Recreation now, when we just had several inches of snow last week and nighttime temperatures are still dropping into the 20s. But on March 20 Spring will officially be sprung, days will get longer, and nature-lovers will make their way to Georgia’s ample green spaces for hiking, boating, camping EUREKA and more. Here are a few choice items we’ve found that can make a weekend in the great outdoors a little more comfortable:

TENTS

Weighing in at just over 18 pounds, the Jade Canyon 4 Tent from EAGLE CREEK EUREKA (EurekaTent. com) is not gonna top any serious backpacker’s musthave list. But with 64 sq ft of floor space, an interior height of 7 feet, fill mesh roof for ventilation and a cord port/media center that allows easy plug-in for BROOKS RANGE electronic devices, it’s the perfect 3-season, 4-person tent for families… The Longs Peak Fast Pitch Dome 4-person Tent from COLEMAN (Coleman. com) is a bit smaller, measuring 7’ by 7’ with a HOBIE POLARIZED center height of 4’11”. But it’s also just half the weight and about half the price of the Eureka model, making it an affordable alternative for campers on a budget…

The Ridgeline tent from WENZEL (Wenzelco. com) is more geared towards backpackers than ICEMULE COOLER drive-up campers. With 49 sq. ft of floor space and 50 inches of headspace, the 7.3-pound dome tent is light, compact and designed for easy set-up.

It’s a little too small for the 3 people it claims to hold, but at around $60 it’s one BURT’S BEES of the best economic tent options on the market.

BACKPACKS

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of EAGLE CREEK (shop.EagleCreek. com) luggage, but their new Deviate Travel Pack is equally impressive.

The 85L version includes a 70L main pack and a 15L clip-on day pack, which offers 5550 cubic inches of space and weighs a combined 4 lbs 5 oz– making it great for backpacking or carrying on a plane. It’s also ultra-light, customizable to your torso size and flexible, with a Check-In Fly that serves as a rain cover and transforms to a checkin duffel bag with lockable zipper… The Element 60 Pack from BLACK DIAMOND (BlackDiamondEquipment.com) is smaller and doesn’t have as many bells and whistles.

But it’s specifically designed for multiday backpackers, offering a streamlined waterproof design, major comfort (thanks to the reACTIV suspension system and an Open Air back panel for high-flow ventilation), and a floating top lid that converts to a lumbar pack for day hikes.

With internal organizer pockets, quick-

cinch side pockets, retractable trekking pole loop and sleeping pad straps, it’s a great pack for the price.

SLEEPING BAG

If you’re headed to the north Georgia mountains at this time of year, cold nights are par for the course. The Drift 30 Sleeping Bag from BROOKS RANGE (BrooksRange. com) effectively kills the chill, as it’s stuffed with 11.5oz of 850+ fill power down to keep your tootsies toasty even at 30 degrees.

Thanks to its soft 15d Nylon shell fabric, lightweight baffle netting, cloak hood design and ergonomic footbox, it’ll also keep you as comfortable as you are warm.

SUNGLASSES

Friends who know me know that I’m never found outdoors without my sunglasses, mostly due to my sensitive blue eyes. My favorite pair came from HOBIE POLARIZED (HobiePolarized.com), whose new Jaco shades look like something Tom Cruise would’ve sported in Top Gun, with shiny gold or gunmetal frames and grey polarized lenses that provide protection from harmful UVA, UVB and UVC rays… Though the name makes me shudder a little, the “Broseph” from KAVU (Kavu.com) is inarguably stylish, with a teakwood-like frame and medium brown polarized shatterproof polycarbonate lenses that make them perfect for a day out on the water fishing, boating or floating.

MISCELLANEOUS

One of the more ingenious ideas we’ve seen this year is the 30L Pro from ICEMULE COOLER (IceMuleCooler.com)– a big ol’ backpack for your beer (or food, if you prefer).

Designed for rugged outdoor adventure, the cooler measures 20” tall, 14” wide and 11” deep and will hold 24 cans plus ice. The TriFold DriTop System is designed with a foolproof seal to keep ice in and air out, and the PolarLayer insulation ensures the cooler’s contents stay cold for up to 24 hours…

The Freescape Camp Kitchen Kit from GERBER (GerberGear.com) is another clever idea that makes campsite cooking much easier. It contains two Santokuinspired chef’s knives and a cutting board with carrying handle, built-in ceramic sharpener and locking drawer for portability… BURT’S BEES (BurtsBees. com) is the one outdoor product we rarely leave home without: From lip balm and herbal insect repellant to Res-Q Ointment (for bug bites, scrapes and cuts), Poison Ivy soap and Miracle Salve (for dry hair and skin), it’s our favorite natural remedy for the physical challenges of spending time in the great outdoors.

MUSIC

FILM

TRACK SUITS 12 HOME RELEASES Mix It Up THE LATEST DVD, BLU RAY & VOD RELEASES

BY BLUE SULLIVAN

DJ J-MYX

“VIP Deep Dub Trap Tech Mix” Once the world record holder for the longest uninterrupted DJ set (close to three days, performed live in front of thousands of appropriately-agog onlookers in Thailand), J-Myx is much more than just a dry entry in a record book. Having seen him perform several times (a couple of them up-close thanks to his patience with my wide-eyed fandom), I can say that he isn’t just the best “unsung” DJ on the West Coast, he’s the best DJ I’ve ever seen, anywhere, full stop. No one can weave 100 seemingly-disparate tracks across myriad genres into the tightest, most mind bending 30 minutes you’ve ever shaken your ass to. This is his latest mix up on Soundcloud, and after a successful extended Asian tour, he’s returned to the US with the solemn promise to drop a new one every month. Start here, follow his page, and try to keep pace with the DJ Superstar EDM Needs Right Now. Check him out at: www.mixcloud.com/djjmyx/

TJDJ

“Quick Mix Vol.3 - Progressive/TechHouse” TJDJ will be no stranger to those who have kept up with this column (and those who haven’t kept, shame on you), curating some of the best music I’ve had the pleasure to write about over the last year. This prog/tech-house mix that he nonchalantly whipped in his spare time a few weeks ago is gorgeous, perfectly-sequenced and damned near perfect. Not yet a signature figure in the DC dance scene, these 31 minutes prove conclusively that the DC scene needs to get off its lazy arse and make this man the club headliner he was always meant to be.

Check him out at: www.mixcloud.com/TJDJ/ Retro Pick

SWERVEDRIVER

“Autodidact” Other than My Bloody Valentine, who basically shaped the “shoegazer” genre in its own towering image, no one in my lifetime has done beatific sheets of blissed-out noise better than Swervedriver. Unlike the aforementioned Glasgow titans, Swervedriver was never really chained to the ‘gazer template, incorporating punk, classic rock, prog, pop and hardcore into their immersive sound. “Autodidact” isn’t an old track. It’s actually from their joy-inducing brand new album (the first in 17 years), I Wasn’t Born To Lose You. But it’s a great entry-point to rediscover a back catalogue that should be a requirement for any proper enthusiast of motorblasted anthemic rocknf*ckingroll.

If you would like to hear this month’s tracks-and a few more great ones we didn’t have room to write about--check our “Track Suits Mix” at: mixcloud.com/tracksuits. Or follow me on twitter @bluesullivan1. (Special thanks to TJ Kenney and my super sibling Jody for their help curating this.)

BY BRET LOVE AND JOHN MOORE

Game of Thrones: The Complete Fourth Season Season 3’s “Red Wedding” may never be topped in terms of most memorable GoT episodes, but Season 4’s “Purple Wedding” certainly gave fans a thrilling moment of redemption.

Combining the second half of A Storm of Swords with parts of A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons, the season built dynamic intensity with finesse. The focus is on the Lannister family drama, but also includes Daenerys’ how-to-train-a-dragon troubles, Arya’s journey to reconnect with what little family she has left, and Wildling attack on the Black Watch. Can’t wait for Season 5!

Nurse Jackie: Season Six With each new season of this comedy/drama, Eddie Falco shows just how under-appreciated she was on The Sopranos. As a remarkably high-functioning, drug-addicted mother/ nurse, Falco plays calm, cool and collected like nobody’s business. Season 6 finds Jackie still struggling to keep her off-the-wagon addiction a secret from her co-workers, daughters and new cop boyfriend. The introduction of Jackie’s sponsor/friend Antoinette (Julie White), a recovering alcoholic, is a refreshing addition to the Showtime series’ already impressive cast.

Rye Coalition: The Story of the Hard Luck 5 It’s a surprisingly common story: Local band builds up a big following thanks to DIY recording and constant touring, gets signed by a major label and, before the album’s release, the record company implodes and the band goes back to obscurity. What makes the story of New Jersey’s Rye Coalition unique is that someone managed to film their entire trajectory, including signing with DreamWorks Records in 2003. The Story of the Hard Luck 5 would be a big bummer if the band wasn’t so damn practical, with a “shit happens” attitude about their fate.

Super Sentai Zyuranger: The Complete Series This cult classic was a trailblazer in the Tokusatsu genre– a Japanese term for liveaction shows/movies with lots of special effects, from Godzilla to Giant Robo. This 10-DVD set from Shout Factory compiles all 50 episodes of the original series, scenes from which were eventually used to create the American version of the show, which we now know as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. It’s a colorful, kitschy, action-packed throwback for kids who grew up in the early ‘90s, not to mention a great way to show kids just how weird and wacky television was in the early days of cable.

Whiplash My second favorite film of 2014, this artful drama is all about music and the madness that results from relentless pursuit of perfection.

J.K. Simmons more than earns his Best Supporting Actor Oscar as Terence Fletcher, the taskmaster conductor of the studio jazz band at New York’s prestigious Shaffer Conservatory. Miles Teller delivers a star making performance as his abused student, Andrew, who drives himself insane trying to live up to Flecther’s unrealistic expectations.

If you love movies and music, it’s an absolute must-see. insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 17

MUSIC

Album Reviews

REVIEWS BY BRET LOVE, LEE VALENTINE SMITH AND JOHN B. MOORE

JOSÉ GONZÁLEZ

Vestiges & Claws (Mute)

Third verse, same as the first.

José González was born in Sweden in 1978, two years after his academic psychologist father, mother and older sister escaped the military junta that seized power in their native Argentina. He started out playing in various hardcore punk bands, only to switch to a more stripped-down acoustic sound while working towards a PhD in Biochemistry at the University of Gothenburg. He does acoustic covers of bands ranging from Joy Division and Bronski Beat to Massive Attack, and his lyrics have been influenced by books from evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins and ethicist Peter Singer. In short, he’s not your typical folkie, although his hushed vocals and haunting melodies have earned frequent comparisons to indie icons such as Bon Iver and Iron & Wine.

Thanks to a detour during which he focused on his band, Junip, it’s been eight long years since the release of González’s second solo LP, In Our Nature. That album explored esoteric themes of evolution and naturalism, so it’s ironic that Vestiges & Claws finds his sound virtually unchanged by the passage of time. There’s still a strong Spanish classical influence to his percussive finger-picked guitar, a melancholy Nick Drake (circa Pink Moon) vibe to his vocals, and an eerily austere approach to the arrangements. In fact, the self-produced album is so pristine, pastoral and placid, it’s easy to imagine it being recorded in some remote Swedish forest, surrounded by snow. Nature imagery still abounds, as he sings of trudging trails along a creek and leaving footprints in the clay on the hypnotic opening track, “With the Ink of a Ghost”; of landscapes blurred by rain and mountains covered in snow on the tranquil “The Forest”; and old tracks leading out from the dark and up to the stars on the rhythmically propulsive “Leaf Off/The Cave.” And despite the addition of cello, flute and drums on various tracks here, González’s solo work still feels… well, solitary. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing: Because his seemingly simple lyrics address complex topics such as finding one’s place in the Universe, the inherent connectivity between human beings, and the beauty of this life we’re blessed to live, the fact that González’s music hasn’t changed much in the last eight years seems more of a comfort than a concern.

The world may be filled with war, disease and death, but Vestiges & Claws offers a refreshing reminder of the everyday marvels we all tend to overlook.

–Bret Love

BETTYE LAVETTE

Worthy (CherryRed Records)

She’s got a right to sing the blues.

Bettye LaVette may have been born and raised in Detroit, but her life is the stuff of which Delta PG 18 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

blues classics are made. She cut her first hit single in 1962 at age 16, and the Top 10 R&B hit led to a tour with future icons Ben E. King and Otis Redding. Ten years later, signed to Atco/ Atlantic, she was sent to Alabama to record her debut album with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section as her backing band. But the LP, Child of the Seventies, was never released. Despite charting minor R&B and disco hits and briefly signing to Epic and Motown Records, real fame and fortune continued to prove elusive. As recounted in her 2013 memoir, A Woman Like Me (which was optioned for movie right by Alicia Keys’ production company), LaVette’s lean years included bouncing from man to man while just barely scraping by. “My life has been lived in B-flat minor,” she recently told the Detroit News, recalling chasing hoodlums who stole her mink coat and being hung out of a window by a New York pimp. But it’s these rough ’n’ tumble experiences that lend an edge of grit and grime to the gravel-voiced singer’s sound, which recalls a bluesy Tina Turner at her most passionate. It’s these experiences that brought an empowered “I Will Survive” intensity to 2005’s I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise– the Joe Henry-produced album of cover songs written by women– which wound up on many critics’ year-end Top 10 lists. Without these experiences, who knows if LaVette would’ve had the intestinal fortitude to FINALLY become a star at the age of 59? Worthy reunites her with Henry, and the results are just as soulful and surprising as they were 10 years ago. Her take on Bob Dylan’s “Unbelievable” is virtually unrecognizable, jazzy and swinging with sass. The Rolling Stones’ “Complicated” rocks and rollicks with a bluesy beat, throbbing drums and saloon-style piano providing rhythmic counterpoint to LaVette’s nah-nah-yeah vocal strut. But it’s on torch ballads like Randall Bramblett’s “Where A Life Goes” that Miss Bettye’s at her best, effortlessly expressing the emotional complexity of a life that has seen more than its fair share of highs and lows. She’s still not rich, and she may never be true household name she truly deserves to be. But, on her latest album, the 69-year-old blues goddess proves that she is MUCH more than merely Worthy.

–Bret Love

Juliana Hatfield Three Whatever, My Love

(American Laundromat Records)

In the two decades since the previous Juliana Hatfield Three album, Hatfield has revisited her stints in the Lemonheads and Blake Babies, seminal acts in the Boston slacker world of alternative pop. Though she may have been a cover girl for ‘90s indifference, Hatfield is no slouch, and her combined catalog of work is quite impressive. Even Minor Alps, her recent collaborative effort with Matthew Caws was a major creative success, if not a

retail blockbuster. For this outing, the restless singer-songwriter has reformed her trio and the original line-up, including Todd Philips (drums) and Dean Fisher (bass) join her for a thoroughly enjoyable collection of her trademark moody ruminations. Offering no jarring stylistic curves, Whatever, My Love, co-produced by Hatfield with Tom Beaujour (Guided By Voices, Minor Alps), continues with many of her usual themes.

In fact, one of the albums many highlights is a reworking of her Minor Alps feature track, “I Don’t Know What to do With My Hands.”

Other standouts include the mature jangle of “Push Pins” and “Parking Lots,” marking a set of well-crafted tunes and distinct melodies.

For longtime fans, Whatever is a welcome return to the early ‘90s commercial-alt format, convincingly delivered with her usual sense of gauzy ennui, tempered by two decades of constant growth.

–Lee Valentine Smith

Lilly Hiatt

Royal Blue (Normaltown Records)

Nashville-based Lilly Hiatt, daughter of respected singer-songwriter John Hiatt, has followed up 2013’s Let Down, with a brand new collection produced by Adam Landry (Deer Tick). Like her dad, Lilly has a unique voice, and a definite knack for compelling narratives. On her debut, her plumose accent was the singular focus, a solemn solitary showcase, framed in the shadows by subtle contributions from her band, the Dropped Ponies. Royal Blue, changes up the sound considerably, bringing the band out front, with a sonic layer of guitars and keys complimenting her plaintive delivery. It doesn’t stray too far from independent Americana, but the pop sheen makes the songs reverberate with a rich pop-informed gloss. This is Hiatt’s second album for Athens-based Normaltown Records, a division of Americana tastemaker New West and it’s as full of gritty story-songs as the best efforts from Jason Isbell, but nowhere near as stark or foreboding. Highlights include “Too Bad,” a song of incredible strength in the face of a lost love and the sly revenge talisman “Your Choice.” Echoing, but thankfully not imitating, her dad’s caustic humor is the rollicking “Jesus Would’ve Let Me Pick the Restaurant.”

–Lee Valentine Smith

Murder By Death

Big Dark Love (Bloodshot Records)

With their seventh album, the Indiana-based indie rock/folk/country band Murder By Death has managed to turn in their best collection of songs in their more than decade-long tenure.

That’s not to say their earlier efforts were weak – far from it – but on Big Dark Love, the five piece have written a nearly flawless record that blurs the line between haunting (“Big Dark Love”), beautiful (“Strange Eyes”) and at times bordering on optimism (“Last Thing”)… well, optimisticish. Adam Turla’s subtle, but emotive vocals blend perfectly with the slew of instruments he’s paired with (cello, mandolin, flugelhorn…) and the lyrics, though dark at times are pure poetry.

Of the 10 songs that make up Big Dark Love, there is not a single one that could be sacrificed to make the record stronger. Simply a great album from start to finish. A-

Steve Earle & The Dukes

Terraplane (New West) San Antonio’s Americana savior has flirted with the Blues throughout his three-decade career, but Terraplane marks his first complete baptism into the genre.

While a solid album from start to finish that still

sounds very much like an Earle record with his unhurried delivery and pick and strum guitar, the record will take some getting used to for those who don’t know their Blind Willie Johnson from their Blind Lemon Jefferson.

There aren’t too many out there who can seamlessly pull off the jump to Blues, but Earle manages to do it effortlessly on songs like “Ain’t Nobody’s Daddy Now,” a tune that dares you not to sing the chorus for hours after, or “Baby’s Just as Mean as Me,” a fantastic duet with Eleanor Whitmore.

It may take time for diehard Earle fans to warm up to this one, but its well worth it. B

Swingin’ Utters

Fistful of Hollow (Fat Wreck Chords)

Since getting back to work after a nearly decadelong hiatus, Santa Cruz’s Swingin’ Utters has been making up for lost time, churning out three albums in three years. Their latest, the 15-track Fistful of Hollow, is quite possibly their best since getting the band back together.

Though the record starts off with a pretty formulaic ‘90s punk track, “Alice,” the group quickly shifts into their stronger material, fast, melodic and unavoidably catchy. The inspired “Tell Them Told You So,” with its driving bass, surf guitars, is easily one of the band’s best songs in decades. That being said, there is hardly a weak song in the batch.

The music here is genuinely eclectic, all with a punk rock backbone, but vacillating between pop-punk and straight-ahead barroom rock, an ambitious album from veterans that could just have easily skated by on more of the same.

Rather, they experimented quite a bit and ended up with great results. Despite coming in at 15 tracks, the album is over all too soon. B

Taxes

It Never Ends (Breakup Records)

The debut EP from San Francisco indie noise pop five-piece has set the bar pretty damn high for their follow up.

Most of the seven songs off of It Never Ends catches a band carving out its own sound in an already eclectic Bay Area music scene.

The sometimes distorted, sometimes swirling guitars are constantly battling the keyboards here, but its Robby Cronholm’s vocals (formerly of the band Crumb) that manage to best both soaring above the noise. The Keyboardist Carmen Caruso sings back up on most of the songs, but it’s when she takes a larger role trading off vocals with Cronholm, on songs like “Your Other Left” and “Mulholland Drive,” that the band is at its best. One or two of the songs on the EP start to sound repetitive, but taken as a whole, the album is impressive. While there are snatches of early and mid ‘90s alt rock band influences that can be heard though out, Taxes’ overall sound is impressively original. Can’t wait to hear what’s next. B-

Road Warriors

This Month’s Hottest Shows

BY SACHA DZUBA

MARCH 14 – VÉRITÉ

The Masquerade Kelsey Byrne, aka Vérité, hit the indie-pop scene with a right-hook; her own brand of electro-dance music. You can hear shades of Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Ellie Goulding, and even Florence Welch; but what’s incredible is that Vérité blends aspects of all of these artists with her own unique style to create electro-pop on her own terms. Harmonizing vocals soar in layers with deep electronica, heavy bass, pulsing synth lines, velvety lead vocals, and euro-dance beats. “Strange Enough” was her first cut to hit the charts off of her EP Echo; which has debuted to a whirlwind of success. Don’t miss the emergence of this brilliant new artist.

MARCH 17 – THE CHURCH

Terminal West Hailing from Australia, The Church formed in 1980 and create a sound fusing aspects of alternative rock, prog, new wave, and neo-psychadelia. Interweaving shimmery guitar lines are iconic aspects of their uniquely ethereal sound. Their current line-up consists of singer and bass player Steve Kilbey, guitarist Peter Koppes, drummer Tim Powles, and the absence of long-time foil Marty Willson-Piper has brought in Ian Haug from multi-platinum band Powderfinger. Their newest album, Further/ Deeper, follows melancholy pop to modern heavy psychedelic rock, and gothic-progressive rock; as they explore revitalized musical territories. Countless detours have almost destroyed them dozen of times, and yet The Church has released 25 albums over their 35 years of exis-

tence; along with being inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Mutually committed to uncompromising and unparalleled music; break out your Sunday best, it’s time to go to The Church.

MARCH 19 & 20 – ATL COLLECTIVE PRESENTS: “SONGS OF LEONARD COHEN”

The Foundry/Eddie’s Attic Founded in 2009, David Berkeley and Micah Dalton brainstormed together to create unique musical events featuring collaborative and supportive groups of musicians. Both songwriters value classic full-length albums that beginning to end lead the listener on a musical journey.

The ATL Collective was born with the goal to bring together exclusive groups of local musicians to cover a classic album from start to finish. Having already successfully recreated Michael Jackson’s album Thriller and James Brown’s Funky Christmas along with countless others, the collective turn their consummate musicianship and creative minds to the classic album Songs of Leonard Cohen. Two dates only see the ATL collective performing in Athens on the 19th of March and then two shows at Eddie’s Attic the following day. Don’t miss this reinterpretation of a classic Leonard Cohen album by some of Atlanta’s finest and cleverest musicians; singular events not to be missed.

MARCH 21 – PENTATONIX

The Tabernacle Pentatonix rose to popularity through cleverly filmed and arranged acapella songs uploaded to youtube. They created incredible performances that secured a win of The Sing Off and have had millions of views online. This purely aca-

pella group has merged with current pop aesthetics. They create clever covers and medleys that showcase their consummate musicianship, vocals, and incredible ability to create engaging arrangements of popular songs and artists.

Beat-boxer and sometime cellist Kevin Olusola and super bass Avi, create a rich foundation; allowing Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, and Kirstie Maldonado to add their own incredible vocal abilities to create intricately layered music.

Check them out on youtube, especially their Daft Punk medley; and don’t miss these powerhouse talents live.

MARCH 25 – FLEETWOOD MAC

Philips Arena Fleetwood Mac is Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, John McVie, Christine McVie, and Mick Fleetwood; and they are all back together again.

These incredible musicians are all performing together for a night of classic hits and new music. Known for warm and incredible melodic harmonies, jangly rhythms, punctuated with virtuosic guitar flourishes; the reinvigorated line-up is working on new material. They recently added to their immense catalog with an EP of new material called Extended Play; their first new songs in a decade. Also, be sure to check out the remastered/expanded release of their best loved album, Rumors; in celebration of its 35th anniversary. This is an unforgettable night of classic rock and blues creations with the restored Rumors line-up. Join these legendary musicians, don’t miss the sublime and spectacular Fleetwood Mac!

MARCH 25 – DIE ANTWOORD

The Tabernacle Zef, zef, zef…you may well wonder what it means; Zef, the South African counterculture movement as defined by rapper Yolandi Visser, is “you’re poor but you’re fancy. You’re poor but you’re sexy, you’ve got style”. Die Antwoord is a South African band embracing the Zef style and merging hip hop/rap with pulsing rave electronica. The trio consists of MCs Yolandi

Penatonix

Visser and Ninja, along with DJ Hi-Tek and pushes our internet pop culture to absurdist extremes. They have a tongue-in-cheek deadpan style which has left most critics wondering if they are serious, satiric, or insulting; regardless, the showmanship, larger than life stage personas, famous Pink Floyd boxers, costume changes, seizure-like dancing, and shrill rap style of Yolandi and deep scowl of towering Ninja will not disappoint. Die Antwoord are coming Atlanta, prepare now; a frenzied live show with all the energy of punk rock/hardcore, including moshing, circle pits, freaky and creepy video imagery, ecstatic dancing, all to Die Antwoord’s booming rap-rave sound.

MARCH 25 – LÚNASA

Variety Playhouse Their name originating from ancient harvest festival Lughnasadh; Lúnasa are vibrant and powerful Celtic music at its finest. These master-musicians keep their heritage firmly in mind, reinvigorating traditional Irish music. Strongly influenced by Irish music of the 60’s and 70’s, their melodies closely follow the rhythm section of the band. Their most recent album, Lúnasa with the Rté Concert Orchestra, is a brilliant collaboration between classical orchestra and traditional irish musicians. Combinations of whistles, fiddle, double bass, and guitars blend into a rich and heady brew that will get your toes tapping, your head nodding; and suddenly you’re on your feet dancing.

TV

CONSERVATION SCIENTIST DR M SANJAYAN On PBS’s EARTH A New Wild

BY BRET LOVE

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planet, are all connected. Is that a fair assessment?

Yes, but I think that’s an assessment that a lot of other shows try to make. For me the key differentiator is just a variation– that humans are part of that picture. Any story of nature that doesn’t have humans within it in this day and age is an incomplete story.

BS’S NEW NATURE documentary series, EARTH A New Wild (which airs Wednesday nights at 10PM EST, on the PBS site and iTunes) follows host Dr M Sanjayan– former lead scientist for Nature Conservancy and current executive VP of Conservation International as he travels the world, examining the connections between When did you first come to the understanding mankind to the ecosystems in which we live.

From the Plains of Kenya and the United States, that humans are a key part in this puzzle, and that it needed to be spotlighted? to the forests of British Columbia and the About a decade ago, I was watching the Ecuadorian Amazon, to oceans spanning the filming of Planet Earth in India. They were globe, the show insists that we filming a scene of an Indian are all connected: As Nature ANY STORY OF NATURE rhino up north near Kaziranga fares, so does humanity. The THAT DOESN’T HAVE National Park. Behind the regularly reinforced moral there were probably of the story is that, by taking HUMANS WITHIN IT IN camera 1,000 villagers standing there. care of the planet on which THIS DAY AND AGE IS Every now and then, someone we all depend for food, water would stray into the camera AN INCOMPLETE STORY. and shelter, we’re taking care shot and someone would be of ourselves. sent off to shoo them away to keep the scene Sri Lanka-born Sanjayan, who earned a PhD pristine.

What was fascinating for me was not in biology and was recently selected by the the wildlife scene in front of the camera, but National Geographic Society for its Explorers what was going on behind it in terms of all these Council, is the perfect host. With EARTH people from the village who had gathered to A New Wild, he shows numerous examples watch this. I had this strong sense that if they of how, through responsible ecotourism and just flipped the camera around, they’d have a conservation initiatives, it is possible for pretty interesting story to tell as well. I stayed man and nature to co-habitate peacefully with me for well over a decade. and prosperously.

The central theme of Earth: The New Wild seems to be that we, all life forms on the

How did this show originally come together?

At the Jackson Wildlife Film Festival, I was sitting next to Dave Allen, who won the Best

Picture Award. He’s a phenomenal natural history storyteller and film producer. I talked about this idea to executives at Discovery, Animal Planet, PBS and National Geographic, and they all they all thought it was good. But they couldn’t see how it would work, because it’s complicated. Once I teamed up with Dave, the storytelling became potentate, because he could bring this complicated idea to life visually.

PBS said yes, with National Geographic as a production partner. PBS is the only company out there that’s willing to take that kind of risk, and they’re on a bit of a roll right now. So we hit the right moment, but it took so many years before we could start shooting. Sometimes you have to keep pushing until the stars align.

What new things did you learn from doing this project?

Every single story surprised me. I was surprised, not that the Warani in Amazon needed nature, but people in New York City and Bangladesh, the most densely populated parts of the planet, need it as well.

One of the more fascinating aspects of the show is this idea of quantifying “natural capital,” putting monetary value on a community’s natural resources. How does that work?

Today we have tools that can make valuations around key services like water and carbon.

The more difficult thing is to come up with values that are often unaccounted for, such as pollination or soil retention. If you just take

one value of nature, such as trees and how much carbon there is, you can create an offset for it and come up with a value. But the same tree also provides food and shelter, holds soil, retains water and creates pollination cycles. The challenge now is how do we move into bundling these services to measure the value of a forest?

The organization I work for, Conservation International, plays very heavily in this space.

In Botswana, for example, we’re creating tools that helps the government understand the real value of nature in terms of their GDP, which fluctuates between 50-80%. The reason for the huge range is that the science of this is less accurate the more services you try to bundle.

What’s next for you?

I am an ambassador for Disney Nature around their new film, Monkey Kingdom, and a portion of the first- week ticket sales will go towards forest conservation in Indonesia, Cambodia and Sri Lanka. We also want people to review Earth: A New Wild on iTunes because it makes a huge difference in how many people see it. insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 19

MUSIC

THE REAL MCKENZIES JEFF ROSENSTOCK’S Kilt-up for a New Album, Tour

BY JOHN B. MOORE

F

OR JUST OVER TWO DECADES now The Real McKenzies have been spreading their unique brand of Scotch/Canadian Celtic punk rock. Over the years, there have been a slew who have tried to ride their coattails, but most if not all fail to match the humor and energy of the original.

Now after a three year break and entirely made up of Canadians, The Real McKenzies are set to release a new record, Rats in the Burlap. INsite recently spoke with witty front man Paul McKenzie.

Life after Bomb the Music Industry

It was on Robbie Burns Day, almost exactly one year ago. I was making a delicious Burns supper for Kristiina, my friend Randy Bowman of the Enigmas, and Kristiina’s kids (my pals) Jett and Elina. It did not take long for us to discover that Bootsy loved haggis as much as the rest of us, and the neeps and tatties too. At that moment, I was inspired to write the song. Unfortunately, Bootsy went to the great pussy playground in the sky, during the recording of the album, no less. It’s a factual eulogy in the honor of the passing of a great haggis-lovin’ friend. Here’s to you Bootsy, wherever you are. Slainte and kippis.

What line-up changes have you had since This year marks 20 years since your first the last record? proper record. Do you plan on celebrating We have had a change of the guard since the anniversary in some way?

Westwinds. Since then, we have recruited As ANY recording artist will attest. After a totally Canadian crew. We now have the 20 years in this band, The most aggressively humourous Real McKenzies (I have OF COURSE WE WANT and accomplished musicians playing in bands in the history of the Real TO PLAY OUR FAN’S been since 1974) every day you McKenzies. I don’t have to tell MOST FAVORITE wake up is a celebration. you how difficult it is to be a SONG, ON ANY ONE Barring that, we’re touring, recording independent constantly celebrating; OF OUR LAST 19 band. Sometimes good men just our sailboat, riding ALBUMS, BUT ON THE sailing can’t take it anymore. We will motorcycles, or harassing be looking forward to touring OTHER HAND, WE ARE the rich, especially those with this new line-up, and TOURING OUR LATEST individuals with a sense seeing what goes. of entitlement. There are ALBUM. many ways to celebrate That leads in nicely to my being Scottish, Canadian, and gow-gous! next question. While on tour how do you balance playing fan favorites and adding There’s a biography of the band coming out. in new songs, so you aren’t playing the How did that come about? same stuff again and again?

It intrigues me that you ask such a This is a problem that has plagued us, question, for the answer is obvious. One, and many recording artists, since day start a gregarious, gloriously Scottishone. Of course we want to play our fan’s Canadian rock band. Two, record and tour most favorite song, on any one of our the hell out of it for over 20 years. Then, it’s last 19 albums, but on the other hand, only a matter of time before the raucous we are touring our latest album. Our antics, gregarious nature, and copious average set time is approx. 100 minutes, amounts of frosty malt beverages catch up not counting the encore. This gives us with themselves. Someone is bound to take 30 minutes to promote our latest album, notice, eventually. And that someone is with the remaining 60 to play songs from Chris Walter. our previous albums. Given the fact, that this is a new line-up, it is up to us to pick Do you have any more details on the book? and choose what will be played from our It will have a full-color cover, paperback previous albums in the rest of the set. pulp-style pages, words and numbers on Bearing in mind that the more songs we each page, and pictures in the middle. And teach the new line-up makes it easier to vary if you are lucky, an autograph from each the set, from night to night if need be. of the current bandmates, if you purchase one exclusively from The Real McKenzies For my own curiosity, was “Bootsy the merch booth. Otherwise, there’s no way in Haggis Eating Cat,” based on a real cat? hell you’ll ever stand a chance to procure Not only was he a real cat, but he was the an autographed copy, ye wee bastards. And dear friend of my gorgeous wife for 15 years. bast-ettes.

BY JOHN B. MOORE

A

S FAR AS 2014 WENT, IT WAS a pretty momentous year for Jeff Rosenstock: After eight years together, he finally ended his DIY music collective Bomb the Music Industry, he produced the widely-praised Smith Street Band record, Throw Me in the River and somehow managed to find the time to write and record his second solo album.

That record, We Cool?, is coming out this Spring on Side One Dummy, a new label for Rosenstock. In the meantime, he was cool enough to get on the phone recently and talk through all that’s been going on these past 12 months.

How tough was it to finally call it a day with Bomb the Music Industry?

It was tough because it was a big part of the past eight years of my life and it was something I didn’t expect to be doing the whole time. Aside from whatever shitty shows we played at times in really small venues where people were being dicks, whatever problems we went through as a band, we were really lucky. And 90 percent of the time it felt like I won the fucking lottery.

I did this thing that was against everything that all other bands who had been successful did and it worked. We weren’t trying to do anything, so the fact that we got to tour and tour internationally and got to be a part of such a great community of bands like Andrew Jackson Jihad and Laura (Stevenson), The Sidekicks and Hop Along and Cheap Girls - all these bands are my favorite bands that are making music right now – so the fact that we got to be a part of that was amazing. Ending that I definitely became fearful that I was never going to see these people again, including the people in my band. We were all still friends when it ended.

That said, it wasn’t a big dramatic moment when we ended. I don’t think there was anything else Bomb the Music Industry could do that we hadn’t done before. It was cool to have finality. We ended in a way where we never had to compromise anything.

You mentioned Andrew Jackson Jihad. Were they responsible at all for you deciding to release your solo record on their new label, Side One? Well, they said a lot of nice things about Side One and we are friends, so I hope they said “Jeff’s an ok guy” when they were talking to Side One. But, not really. My buddy makes

PG 20 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

t-shirts (for the label) and he mentioned to someone at Side One that the demos I had for the new record were really good and they got in touch just as I was finished recording.

They asked to hear them and they liked them – we talked and they seemed cool and that was that.

It was definitely a heavy decision because I was either just going to do it myself or Mike Park was going to put it out on Asian Man; those are two options that I am super comfortable with. Mike was encouraging me to give something new a shot and it seemed like a cool thing to try because they’re a great label and have put out some really cool records this year. I’m happy to be a part of that group.

How did recording this one differ from your other solo record, I Look Like Shit? Did you approach it any differently?

I did this new record the same way I did I Look Like Shit, which was just a straight demo because that’s how I write songs and for whatever reason it ended up being a bigger thing and we recorded with Jack Shirley in the Bay Area. That was different than any record I have ever made; one, because I didn’t have to mix and engineer… to have that pressure off and just focus on music with everybody else was just awesome.

Stuff just sounds so great when you record from Jack. I think we come from similar places and share a lot of the same aesthetics.

It was cool to just plug in a guitar and have him do his thing.

I was excited to hear that you were producing the new Smith Street Band record. Were you hesitant at all to take on that role?

Well, we’ve toured with them twice and we’re family at this point. When they’re coming to America they know they can mail things to my house so it’s waiting for them when they get here, they can crash at my place to get over jetlag. It wasn’t weird at all… Honestly, doing that record completely changed my life. If I didn’t have the time to work with them on the record and think about things, I probably would have just gotten a job rather than getting to work on my own record.

Working with them in Australia, we were in the most amazing studio and Matt Voigt was engineering it and I was the “ideas guy.” It was just so amazing. I was so happy I did it. If there was any reluctance I had in doing this, it was “Oh Fuck, I hope I’m good enough.”

TRAVEL

A TALE OF TWO CITIES

Two very different experiences in Santorini, Greece

BY BRET LOVE

M

any have harbored romantic fantasies of island-hopping the classic Greece you typically see in guidebooks. Santorini, with its stunning coastline and striking blue-and-white domed churches, is the epitome of this Greek fantasy. My partner and I recently had the opportunity to visit and share our adventure.

Our first visit, with Adventure Life and Variety Cruises, began on wobbly footing (or should I say wobbly wheels). The weather was gorgeous, but winds were rough, preventing our 40-passenger sailing vessel The Galileo from crossing the Mediterranean to Mikonos, where we originally intended to catch a flight back to Athens for the conference the next day.

So instead, we had to take our luggage with us as we explored Santorini, and then catch a flight out later that night.

We must have looked hilarious to passers-by, awkwardly rolling our carryons and laptop bags along the cobblestone streets of Santorini’s capitol city, Fira, with the persistent clickety-clacking of wheels marking our every step. A shepherd passed by leading a long line of donkeys, who voiced their displeasure with occasional braying and an expulsion of excrement that suddenly gave our movements through the city a Frogger-like need for nimbleness.

The donkeys, moving slowly and stopping stubbornly, made their way 1,312 feet down the winding path to the bottom of the volcanic caldera atop which Fira is perched. There, they would wait to transport passengers disembarking from the stream of cruise ships that visit Santorini, which hovered in the harbor below like aquatic buzzards waiting for their turn to feast on a kill.

Sensing their impending invasion, we hastily began making our way through Fira, only to realize that our luggage (which was loaded for 16 days of travel) did not bode well for a casual stroll through a hilltop town spotted with stairs.

We quickly developed a routine: One of us stayed with the luggage while the other took the camera to snatch shots of the spectacular scenery. There were iconic domed churches with their signature bells and arches, colorful cafes wafting scents that made our mouths water and our stomachs grumble, and impossibly picturesque ocean views nearly everywhere you turned.

After trying to drag our luggage up a long flight of stairs, we gradually realized it just wasn’t worth it. It wasn’t even noon yet on what promised to be a long day in Santorini, and we were already sweaty and exhausted from our exertion.

So instead we gradually rolled our way towards the cathedral where we were scheduled to meet the rest of our group, found a quiet little cafe with incredible views of the coastline, ordered ourselves some sandwiches and Greek wine, and simply sat and watched the world pass by. Doing nothing felt both divine and gloriously self-indulgent.

A few hours later, a tour bus took our group across the island to the village of Oia, whose neoclassical white limepainted buildings are the epitome of

Cycladian Greek architecture. Fortunately, this time we were able to leave our luggage on the bus. Unfortunately, we only had an hour to explore before catching a ride to the airport.

With such limited time, Mary and I tried to lower our expectations and improvised a plan: No shopping, no stopping, no scenic patio drinking. Instead, we hastily wound our way through Oia’s narrow alleyways in search of “The Shot”– that iconic view of Santorini’s coastline that you see on postcards and on posters in practically every Greek restaurant in the world. We knew precisely what we were looking for, and we knew it had to be on the left-hand side of the main path (i.e. the coastal side), so it shouldn’t be that difficult to find, right?

WRONG. There were blue roofs practically everywhere we looked, but these were not the blue roofs we were looking for. We walked the entire length of Oia, but every path we found leading down the hill seemed to lead to a closed gate or a dead end. To make matters worse, the cruise ship passengers I mentioned were now starting to descend upon Oia in droves, leaving the alleyways cluttered with slow-moving tourists who seemed to have even less clue where they were going than we did.

With less than 10 minutes left before we had to meet our driver, I could see Mary’s face crumpling with disappointment, her eyes welling up with tears. “This was not my fantasy,” she confessed in frustration, and I felt uncharacteristically powerless to do anything about it. We’d stopped to ask for directions several times, but nobody in Oia seemed to know the spot we were looking for. Holding Mary tightly and trying to console her, I suggested that we call it a day.

As we stopped to take a few photos of the church pictured above, a young lady walked up the alleyway towards us with a huge smile on her face and said, “You have got to check out the view down there– it’s INCREDIBLE!!” I practically sprinted down the steps, past a false dead end, and around the corner to see one of the most impressive vistas I’ve ever been privileged to witness. There was no time to savor the moment, so we hurriedly snapped a few photos and left, heaving a huge sigh of relief…

A week later, on our second trip to Santorini, we were determined not to make the same mistake. Before our bus arrived in Oia, as the sun began its descent, I turned to our travel blogging friends and said, “Stick with us: We know the BEST place to see the sunset in Santorini!” We were off like rockets the second the bus stopped, running up stairs, down alleyways, and around the corner to see the remarkable sunset pictured here.

It couldn’t have been more different from our first Santorini experience: We knew precisely where we were going, there were virtually no other tourists around, and the sun was perfectly poised above the horizon, bathing the entire town of Oia in its radiant orange glow. The only thing brighter were the smiles on the faces of everyone in our little group.

Several of us had brought wine along for a toast at sunset, but of course nobody thought to bring a bottle opener. Our

buddy Christopher Staudinger drew cheers all around as he demonstrated how to open a wine bottle by putting it inside his boot and repeatedly slamming the heel against a wall, each time creating a loud “THWACK” that reverberated throughout the tiny village.

After the sun eventually set, we all made our way back to PitoGyros, a tiny little hole-in-the-wall restaurant that had some of the best gyros we sampled in Greece (which is saying a lot, because we ate A LOT). We all sat together on their outdoor patio in a little group, wolfing them down greedily, talking about what an amazing evening we’d had as we licked the succulent juices from our fingers.

In the end, the reality of our Santorini

experience was nothing like Mary’s fantasy. It wasn’t especially romantic or intimate, and we were surrounded by people we’d just met a few days before. But those few hours we spent in Oia ultimately wound up being one of our favorite memories from our 16 days in Greece– not in spite of those people, but because of them.

The lesson we learned is that sometimes in travel it’s best to just let go of any expectations, open yourself up to the possibilities, and embrace the unpredictability of exploration. Sometimes you may find yourself beating back a busload of buzzards, but eventually you may find your own flock and seek out space to soar.

insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 21

SPORTS

2015 NCAA Tournament Preview

BY DEMARCO WILLIAMS

K

ENTUCKY’S CONFERENCE road wins over the likes of South Carolina and Tennessee probably don’t impress you much at first glance, but considering how the home teams were playing their hearts out before feisty, sold-out crowds, the contests caught our attention. Every game that John Calipari’s crew played this year was like that; every night was essentially the other school’s Final Four. But it didn’t matter where the games were played, or if the opponent was Kansas or Columbia, Aaron Harrison, Willie Cauley-Stein and the rest of the Wildcats answered every call. Most pundits, us included, think Kentucky will carry on its streaking ways to the April 6 national title game in Indianapolis, giving the Cats their ninth championship.

If there’s any school in the land that can beat Kentucky, though, it’s one of these 26 teams. We’ll just ignore the fact that the Wildcats have already beaten four of them this season.

ARIZONA’S STANLEY JOHNSON

OHIO STATE’S D’ANGELO RUSSELL

games over 15 points since mid January) just needs to flex his pecs some in the postseason.

VILLANOVA

We understand the hesitation of getting behind the Cats — Villanova has made the Final Four only once since winning it all in 1985 — but there’s something especially crafty (Ryan Arcidiacono, Darrun Hilliard II) about this year’s bunch.

VIRGINIA

Malcolm Brogdon (13.7 ppg) might be the only Cavalier you know on the roster today, but by the time they outscrap and out-hustle teams on their way to an Elite Eight appearance, that will certainly change.

WEST VIRGINIA

The Mountaineers’ hobbled strut into March has as much to do with the team’s shaky shooting — the team is 287th nationally in field-goal percentage — as it does leading scorer Juwan Staten’s questionable left knee.

ARIZONA

While Duke’s Jahlil Okafor and Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell have dominated most of the “top freshman” conversations, young Wildcats forward Stanley Johnson has quietly averaged 14 and nearly seven boards a game.

DUKE

If the Devils are to recover from last year’s mess of a finish — Mercer shocked Duke 78-71 in the NCAA Tournament — they’re going to need Okafor to play like a future No. 1 draft pick and for Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow to keep up their unbelievable play for another month.

IOWA STATE

Virginia Commonwealth’s suffocating full-court press earns the “40 minutes of hell” tagline, so it only makes sense that we would call the Cyclones’ isolation offense “two halves of headache.”

KANSAS

Like a Will Smith film these days, you just never quite know what you’re going to get from the Jayhawks. Should Perry Ellis and Kelly Oubre Jr. play more like Ali than After Earth, Kansas can breeze into the Sweet 16.

LOUISVILLE

The Cardinals have the coach (Rick

WICHITA STATE Pitino) and offensive centerpiece (Montrezl Harrell) to make a run for their third Final Four in four seasons; we’re just not certain they have enough contributions from the bench (no one averages over 3 ppg).

MARYLAND

There aren’t a lot of people talking about the coaching job that Mark Turgeon’s doing in College Park. But we get the feeling that’ll change after the talented Terps school a few teams in the tournament.

NORTHERN IOWA

When we last looked, the Panthers had only lost twice since Christmas, including head-turning victories over Iowa and Wichita State. Consider Seth Tuttle, who’s leading the team in points, rebounds and assists, as the gift who keeps on giving.

Notre Dame Jerian Grant (16.9 ppg, 6.6 apg) is easily one of our favorite players in the country.

We do worry that big-game lights — Against Duke and Virginia, Grant was held to single digits — are too much for him sometimes, though.

OHIO STATE

Buckeyes star D’Angelo Russell has an effortless flow to his game that shows flashes of a young Dwyane Wade. Of course, if he had the killer instinct of a 19-year-old Kobe Bryant, Ohio State would be a much higher seed.

SMU

You can’t say enough about the job Larry Brown’s done down in Dallas. And truthfully, the only thing left to say about pint-sized guard Nic Moore (14.6 ppg, 5.4 apg) is that his talents are much taller than his 5-9 frame.

UTAH

Even though the Utes were on the wrong end of a late February nail-biter vs. Arizona, the game proved they had some fight. Leader Delon Wright (seven

NCAA TOP FOUR PICKS PG 22 • March 2015 • insiteatlanta.com

At press time, these Shockers were winners of 68 of their last 75 games. If the dynamic duo of Fred VanVleet (12.5 ppg) and Ron Baker (15.2 ppg) don’t lose the tenacity they’ve had all year, the wins will only keep piling up.

WISCONSIN

These Badgers terrorize you with length (seven-footer Frank Kaminsky), long-range shooting (Sam Dekker) and absolutely lethal defense (55.6% opponent shooting percentage, seventh best in NCAA).

FORGETTABLE FOUR

(big-name schools that may let you down)

ARKANSAS, BAYLOR, NORTH CAROLINA AND UCLA SNEAKY SIX

(If these teams get in, watch out)

BOISE STATE, DAVIDSON, GEORGIA STATE, MICHIGAN STATE, PROVIDENCE AND STEPHEN F. AUSTIN

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ShopStarship.com insiteatlanta.com • March 2015 • PG 23

Celebrate NATIONAL PANCAKE MONTH

Tuesdays:

$5 PITCHERS OF BEER (PBR Pitchers all week long)

AT THE FLYING BISCUIT CAFÉ

Tuesdays & Thursdays: TRIVIA

DAILY LUNCH SPECIALS FROM $6.85 CHESHIRE BRIDGE 1810 CHESHIRE BRIDGE RD. 404-874-8304 e Magazin sit

e

IN

WE DELIVER!

’s

Best of Atlanta

www.flyingbiscuit.com

2014

(after 5 PM)

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 7 Days a Week 7 AM — 10 PM

WINNER!

Candler Park 1655 McLendon Ave. 404.687.8888

Midtown 1001 Piedmont Ave. 404.874.8887

Cater your next event with flare!

404.849.2283

Thank You Atlanta!

Voted BEST in Atlanta

from the original Chin Chin Brookhaven team Celebrating 21 years in Brookhaven!

e Magazine sit

IN

Chin Chin Chinese Restaurant

’s

Best of Atlanta 2014

e Magazine sit

IN

WINNER!

’s

Best of Atlanta 2014

WINNER!

N. Decatur Plaza • 404.320.0101 Corner of N. Decatur & Clairmont

WATCH OUR OPEN KITCHEN & EXPERIENCE THE ART OF CHINESE COOKING!!

Midtown • 404.917.1100

3887 Peachtree Road, Buckhead/Brookhaven And Other Locations

East Cobb / Marietta 1255 Johnson Ferry Rd. Market Plaza • 678.996.0045

DELIVERY (LIMITED AREA, MIN. $10) / CARRY OUT / CATERING / FULL BAR SERVICE

404-816-2229 | www.ChinChinGA.com

2014 Best Chinese – INsite Magazine | 2001-2002 BestPaper Chinese by Atlanta Jewish Times readers 2009 Best Chinese-The Sunday 1998-2012 Best Chinese

by Creative Loafing 2001-2002 Best Chinese by Atlanta Jewish Times readers “Mouth-watering ChinBest ChinChinese spices things up.” –The Journal Constitution 1998-2012

by Creative LoafiAtlanta ng “Mouth-watering Chin Chin spices things up.”

–The Atlanta |Journal Constitution “Most Memorable Meal” –Where Atlanta Magazine 21/2 stars

by Knife & Fork

10th and Monroe

WE DO CATERING! HOURS FOR STORES: Mon–Sat: 11am–9:30pm Sun: 11am–9pm www. mediterraneangrill .com

Authentic Middle Eastern and Greek Cuisine Cooked Fresh to Order • Dine In / Carry Out

“Most Memorable Meal” –Where Atlanta Magazine - 21/2 stars–Knife & Fork

Open Daily for Lunch & Dinner • Dine In, Pick-up, Delivery ($12 minimum / limited area)

$3.00 Off

Any Medium or Large Specialty Pizza Not Valid with any other coupons

WWW.SAVAGEPIZZA.COM

Little Five Points • 484 Moreland Ave. (Next to L5P Pharmacy) • (404) 523-0500 Avonale Estates • 115 Laredo Dr. (Corner of Clarendon) • (404) 299-5799

SPRING BREAK HEADQUARTERS! Locally Blown Glass

Hand-blown Bubblers

Pax Vaporizer No. 7 Company electronic cigarettes

DETOX PRODUCTS

PIPES

POSTERS

SELF DEFENSE PRODUCTS

CIGARS & BODY CIGARETTES JEWELRY

e Magazine sit

Best of Atlanta

’s

ROSWELL: 710 Holcomb Br. Rd. #240 • 770-992-4485 SANDY SPRINGS: 6125 Roswell Rd. Suite 101A, 101B • 404-256-1116 ACWORTH: 3466 Cobb Pkwy Suite 120 • 770-974-5585 NEW LOCATION WOODSTOCK: 8265 Hwy 92 Suite 108 • 678-445-5550

IN

HOOKAHS Starting at $24.95

2014

WINNER!

ALL STORES OPEN 10A-2A EVERY DAY • WWW.SHOPSMOKE911.COM