Buzz Magazine: Oct. 23, 2003

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YOU’VE GOT SOMETHING ON YOUW TAIWL | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

Win Great Prizes!

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DVD Player Best Martini

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Best Bar

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Oct. 23-29, 2003

$100 Gift Certificate

Best Overall Restaurant

Best Retro Store

Best Place To Take Kids

Best Burger

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Brunch for 2 Package

Lunch for 2 Package

Best Park

Breakfast for 2

Best Spot For People Watching

Best Art Gallery

Best Place For A First Date

Best Theater Troupe

Best Wine Selection

PLUS:

Best Concert Venue

Best Steak

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Antiques save man from alcohol (page 4) Aroma exhibit features art of mentally ill (page 7) MUSIC

(20) $5 Gift Certificates Illini Union Bookstore (25) $5 Gift Certificates Panera (10) Gift Certificates for 1 Drink Green Street Coffee House (20) Gift Certificates for 1 Drink Smoothie King (5) Gift Certificates for 1 Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake Courier Cafe (20) Free tickets to buzz Film Festival buzz

Don’t call it chick rock (page 13) CALENDAR

Blockheads a party for everyone (page 14)

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FILM & TV

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Texas gets massacred (page 22)

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Mail or drop entry at buzz, 57 E. Green, Champaign (or drop entry at University YMCA) or fill out form online at www.readbuzz.com

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BE THERE OR BE SQUARE | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

AND ANOTHER THING...

Film Festival at The Virginia Theatre Nov. 17 and 18

The Graduate (1967)

The Last Picture Show (1971)

Raging Bull (1980)

Easy Rider (1969)

105 minutes Directed by Mike Nichols Starring Anne Bancroft Dustin Hoffman Katharine Ross William Daniels

118 minutes Directed by Peter Bogdanovich Starring Timothy Bottoms Jeff Bridges Cybill Shepherd Ellen Burstyn

129 minutes Directed by Martin Scorsese Starring Robert De Niro Cathy Moriarty Joe Pesci Frank Vincent

94 minutes Directed by Dennis Hopper Starring Dennis Hopper Peter Fonda Jack Nicholson Phil Spector

Nov. 17

The Graduate (1967) 9 p.m. The Last Picture Show (1971) 11:15 p.m. BONUS FILM 6:30 p.m.

Nov. 18

Raging Bull (1980) 9:30 p.m. Easy Rider (1969) 7 p.m.

TICKETS On sale now at The Virginia Theatre 203 W. Park Avenue in Champaign 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday or call The Virginia Theatre at 3569063. $5 per movie $20 for all five movies

Bonus Film

At 11:15 p.m. we will play a bonus movie, choose among these five films

Bonnie and Clyde (1967) Chinatown (1974) A Clockwork Orange (1971) The French Connection (1971) Midnight Cowboy (1969) e-mail your vote to filmfestival@readbuzz.com or visit our Web

Free Festival Pass for the first 20 people to vote

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buzz OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | THAT’S HOW YOU DO IT, THAT’S HOW YOU HAVE A BIRTHDAY.

Television takes a new twist

BY MICHAEL COULTER | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

I

’ve mentioned in this column before that I don’t have much patience for television.

Most of the shows cater to the lowest common denominator and the commercials follow suit. I can watch sports and a couple of other shows, but that’s about it. I’d rather just see a movie, or better yet, see how many beers I can drink. TV scares me. Clive Barnes once said that “television is the first truly democratic culture—the first culture available to everybody and entirely governed by what people want. The most terrifying thing is what people want.”

That said, my dislike of television in no way affects my desire to produce TV shows for others to watch. I’ve had a few ideas that should have worked. I came up with (years ago) the title Morty, the Golfin’ Dolphin. However, it was hard to come up with anything besides the title. I made it a little farther with another idea, an entire premise.

James Earl Jones owns a barbecue store in Seattle where he sings the praises of Jesus while cooking the meat. Tyne Daley is a psychic who works for the police. They fall in love and solve crimes. Boring premise, maybe, but the title and trailer are wonderful.

I think the idea could work, mostly because I love seeing Tyne Daley in a turban, but I’m ditching that idea and all the other ones for a show I think could really do some damage, literally and figuratively.

We’re at a strange crossroad in America and I believe we should take advantage of it.

Two people are meeting at this crossroad and it’d be a shame if we didn’t get these crazy kids together. There’s Rush Limbaugh, a racist pill-popping talker who loves bringing attention to himself at the expense of others. Also, at this crossroad is Courtney Love, a pill-popping borderline “star” who loves bringing attention to herself no matter what the scenario. They are two self-important junkies at the end of their rope. This is television I could bring myself to watch.

Since they’re both strong-willed, I would imagine it would take a court order to get them in the same room, so first, let’s make sure it happens. Both Rush and Courtney get their drug sentences suspended if they agree to go on my show, titled A Rush of Love. It’ll only be

[

13 episodes, 13 weeks, so that’s gotta be better than a jail sentence.

The first show will focus on Courtney. The camera will follow her as she tries to stay out of jail and also keep custody of her daughter.

It’ll be sort of a “Lifetime Movie of the Week meets Trainspotting.” She can be all drunk and drugged and shout obscenities at the camera while holding her poor child on her hip, cigarette dangling from her mouth, surgically enhanced body gleefully exposed at all points.

She will feign tears and claim sobriety at opportune moments, just like always. It shouldn’t take the audience long to understand, and possibly follow in, the footsteps of Kurt Cobain.

The second show will feature Rush. It can be a sort of Life on the Road, like Charles Kuralt used to do. Rush can be in a Winnebago pointing out some of the parking lots where he’s purchased his “prescription” medicine. All the while he can spout off about whatever he wants, so long as he keeps throwing back the “hillbilly heroin.”

See, this is the key to the series. It e n c o u r a g e s Courtney and Rush’s drug use for the first two shows.

Get ready for the third episode though. In this one they are locked in a steel cage surrounded by an audience and each given a microphone and no pills whatsoever. They get to detox and try to win the crowd over at the same time.

Here’s the special little kicker though. The entire audience is deaf, but the contestants don’t know. It’ll be frustrating for them when no one listens, just like it is for us when we do listen. Maybe they fall in love, maybe they don’t. Hopefully, they manage to kill, or at least maim, each other. It’s a win/win situation. We get to experience human suffering, sometimes our own. Rush and Courtney get to detox. We can see which thing each is addicted to more, pills or attention. By the last episode, everyone will be so annoyed they won’t even tune in to see what happens to Rush and Courtney, something they probably should have done from the start. buzz

I don't have much patience for television. Most of the shows cater to the lowest common denominator and the commercials follow suit. . . I'd rather just see a movie, or better yet, see how many beers I can drink.

[

DirtyTalk

Katia, I swallow...

My birthday was on Friday and none of my lovely ladies came to visit me...I'm sad :*( Jack- who says missing someone is like sleeping on hardwood floors...maybe some people enjoy a flat hard sleeping place!!!!

Dear Jacob, Happy birthday, and thank you for shakin that A$$, in your birthday suit for me, in your bed.

YOU CAN STICK YOUR P IN MY DITTY ANY NIGHT OF THE WEEK. 2 in the PINK 1 in the STINK! hey teeni - may be smokey but b*tch still run!!

Hey DI-GIVE US BACK THE SHOUTOUTS!!!

Nobody likes this wannabe page.

Katie, CJ isn't who you think he is. Don't fall for his sweet talk. Be careful cuz he hurt 7 of us.

Look for the truth, not his lies. Truth is sweeter than the sting of years of lies.

Juds, I hope you are happy being cold and lonely now that your sweet talk doesn't work on any of us. hey frankie, I want to light your wick!!

Pittelkow--- Congrats on Homecoming Court!

You're a Queen in my book!

Jacob - I'm a sure thing! Don't be shy, go for it!

SWEET “DIRTY” TALKS ARE FREE. To submit your message go to www.readbuzz.com and click on the Sweet Talk link.

Leave out last names and phone numbers because we (and probably you!) could get in big fat trouble for printing them.

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GET IN TOUCH WITH THE SUPERNATURAL | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): I confess to have fallen prey to a sin that has become widespread: overusing the term "sacred." To my credit, I haven't sunk to the vulgar depths of New Age hucksters who offer workshops in "sacred e-mail marketing" or "sacred dog-walking." But still, I want to be more spare in invoking the term so that on those rare occasions when I do, you will be appropriately awed. Like now, for instance. I predict you will soon be roused to reverence by a visitation that fits the description given by Phil Cousineau in his book, The Art of Pilgrimage: "If you aren't trembling as you approach the sacred, it isn't the real thing.

The sacred, in its various guises as holy ground, art, or knowledge, evokes emotion and commotion."

Yep. It’s that time of year again!!!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Taurus William Henry Seward was the U.S. Secretary of State in the 1860s.Though his career included many notable achievements, he is best known for buying Alaska from Russia. His contemporaries thought this was a batty idea -- Alaska was regarded as a frozen wasteland -- and referred to it as "Seward's Folly." Ultimately, his determination to follow his dream in the face of ridicule proved to be an act of brave genius. For 2.5 cents an acre, he added a rich land that now composes one-fifth of the entire United States. I predict that you, Taurus, will soon have a chance to pull off your own version of Seward's Folly.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Trial and error should be your main strategy these days. It's your best hope for generating reliable information. As you grope and stumble, keep in mind the following thoughts from philosopher Robert Anton Wilson. "These are the batting averages of the best hitters in baseball history: Ty Cobb: .366; Rogers Hornsby: .358; Joe Jackson: .356. Since an average of .333 means a player did not get a hit two out of every three times he batted, these champions made an out more often than they got a hit. Most professional players do much worse.

Moral of the story: Unless you're a brain champion equal to these baseball champions, you're probably wrong close to two out of three times."

9 Taylor, Downtown Champaign

355•WEED

buzz

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Even if you're in love and happy with your partner, this is a perfect moment to ask for even more from your relationship. And if there is room for improvement in the way your love life is unfolding, it's an even more perfect moment.

To launch the intimacy revolution, try this. After taking a bath and while still naked, write down the worst things that have happened to you because of being in love. Burn this document in the flame of a white candle while chanting the words "I am letting go of past disasters." Then dab cinnamon on your forehead, chest, and genitals while murmuring this: "I deserve to be in love with a lover who brings out the best in me -- a lover who inspires me to be in love with everything alive."

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): We're all pretty ignorant about how our bodies work. Do you even know where your pancreas and spleen are, let alone what they do? Can you describe what happens to the air you inhale once it enters your lungs? Have you ever taken the trouble to study and experiment in order to discern what diet is best for your unique physiology? Do you know how much sleep you need to be highly alert and psychologically healthy?

This is a favorable astrological time to deepen your understanding of your body's mysteries.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I've been staring at my astrological charts for hours trying to determine where your head is at. The best I can figure out is that you're off the map . . . between the worlds . . . beyond the boundaries. Sorry I 'm not able to be more specific. I guess you're pretty much on your own for now. I can at least tell you about the powers that this kind of outsider position usually confers: 1. sharper-than-usual intuition about the future; 2. a knack for making unexpected connections you didn't realize you needed; 3. an unpredictability that makes you attractive to people who can help draw out and clarify your unconscious desires.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "Dear Rob: Your horoscopes tickle me in just the right place: wherever the opposite of my funny bone is. It's like you're following me around, but not like a creepy stalker -- more like a kindly and slightly frazzled guardian angel, giving me the odd nudge to avoid doing something stupid, suggesting when I should duck, and rousing the part of me that's ready to give up. Thank you thank you thank you. - Appreciative Libra" Dear Appreciative: Somehow you knew that it's a perfect time to express your gratitude to those who have helped and inspired you. Saying thanks right now will be a kind of prayer that works better than begging for what you lack. It will have the mysterious effect of attracting to you even more goodies.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): You're on the verge of tapping into a huge reservoir of fresh, starting-over energy. To aid you in capitalizing on this gift, I offer you Ellen Kort's poem, "Advice to Beginners." Begin. Keep on beginning. Nibble on everything. Pull up anchors.Sit close to the god of night.Lie still in a stream and breathe water. Climb to the top of the highest tree until you come to the branch where the blue heron sleeps. Eat poems for breakfast. Lick the mountain's bare shoulder. Measure the color of days around your mother's death. Put your hands over your face and listen to what they tell you. Swim with the sea turtle into the moon. Drink wild geranium tea. Run naked in the rain.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): "Modern woman's premenstrual crankiness is not just a physical syndrome," writes Clarissa Pinkola Estes in her book Women Who Run With the Wolves, "but is

equally attributable to her being thwarted in her need to take enough time to revivify and renew herself." I would add my belief that men get cranky as often as women, and for the same reason: There are no ritually sanctified time-outs built into our crazy-making schedules. None of us has the slack necessary to avoid periodic meltdowns.This is a crucial point you cannot afford to ignore, Sagittarius.You're overdue for a sabbatical from your routine.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You're emotionally healthy right now. Your mental hygiene is as good as it's possible to be. Here's a great way to celebrate: Share the wealth; commit vivid acts of generosity. Be discriminating about where you bestow your blessings, though. Since you can't help and save everyone, concentrate your attention on high-functioning people who will in turn multiply your gifts as they help and save others.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A few years ago a group of smartass nerds hosted a jokey International Conference on Mad Science. They called for the submission of papers on topics like "tampering with the life-sustaining forces of the Universe," "exceeding the limitations of the human body via grotesque metamorphoses," and "ill-advised dabbling with supernatural intelligences." I hereby protest their slanderous satire.The eccentric yet often brilliant experiments of the Aquarian tribe suggest that some forms of mad science result in good and beautiful works. And it is a perfect astrological moment for you to prove me right. You're poised to collaborate ingeniously with the lifesustaining forces of the universe, transcend limitations through graceful metamorphoses, and enjoy useful communications with supernatural intelligences.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The last six weeks have been brought to you by BeerCoffee, the elixir that both relaxes your defenses and pumps up your ambition. You've been the perfect poster child for this amazing product -- a dramatic example of what happens when a sensitive soul mellows out and gets excited at the same time. The good folks at BeerCoffee thank you for your excellent role modeling, and wish you well during the next phase of your development, when you'll be exploring the opportunities that have been blasted open by your paradoxical brilliance.

✍ HOMEWORK:

Write a page of praise about a person you don't want anything from. Let me see it, please: www.freewillastrology.com.

Rob Brezsny's Free Will ☎ Astrology beautyandtruth @ f r e e w i l l a s t r o l o g y. c o m 415.459.7209(v)• 415.457.3769 http://www.freewillastrology. com P.O. Box 798 San Anselmo, CA 94979

CROSSWORD PUZZLE (ANSWERS ON 16) ACROSS 1 Gorged oneself, infor-

mally

8 Agitated 15 “The flavor can’t be

matched because only ___ knows the secret” (old slogan) 16 Not anywhere 17 Clothing store spinoff 18 Dishonest 19 Greek symbol of mourning 20 Race climax 22 It’s heard before “gee” 23 Football Hall-ofFamer Ronnie 25 Large, hairy creatures 26 Swiss section 27 Washed-out 29 Quebecer’s vote 30 City built on ancient Thebes 31 ___ Cup (snack item) 33 Hair shirt occasion 35 Abbr. on a class schedule 37 Bob and weave 38 Boardwalk sights 40 Niobe, e.g.

43 Bedevil 44 It lands at Landvetter

46 “Wrong!”

47 “Sword ___ oath, and

oaths must have their course”: Shak.

48 Chesebrough-Pond’s product 50 Narrowly defeats 51 Visage feature 52 Like a Bentley that’s ready to go 54 Rio Treaty implementer: Abbr.

55 Fo’c’sle feature 57 Writer Huffington 59 Wasn’t quite on schedule 60 Begin 61 Sauna user, e.g.

62 “Star Wars” figure DOWN 1 Rawboned 2 Shade of pink 3 Armchair quarterback’s reading, maybe 4 Relative of “Oh, no!”

5 Detective, at times 6 Light ___ 7 Press secretary under Ford 8 Prone

9 “___ Room”

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(2001 chil15 dren’s book) 17 10 Each 11 Road cau19 tion 23 12 Resent, say 13 Antarctic 27 sight 14 Western 31 timber 21 Feature of many a Corvette 24 Treaty sub43 ject 47 26 “The Count of Monte 51 Cristo” setting 55 28 Not yet proficient with 59 30 Filled 61 32 Stop: Abbr.

34 Impatient cry 36 Brad, e.g.

38 Judge’s citation 39 Attack, with “into” 41 What un crucigrama is in 42 Actor ___ Brazzi of “South Pacific”

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COMMUNIT Y

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Q&A with Urbana mayor Area performers give voice to marginalized social groups MUSIC

Strokes strike again

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CALENDAR

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FILM & TV

Dada plays Highdive The true story behind one of Hollywood’s deadliest killers

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editor’snote

W

hat defines horror? Are people more terrified of Jason Voorhees, the hockeymask wearing psycho from the Friday the 13th series, or Dr. Hannibal Lecter, the cannibalistic genius?

These questions will be haunting all of us, at least those of us who love Halloween, as we attempt to plan what movies will frighten us this season. Some will go with the traditional Nightmare on Elm Street films or Michael Myers movies. But some of us will be adventurous; some of us will want a real scare.

Take The Exorcist, for example. Although the film seems almost fictional, it’s loosely based on a true story. The idea behind this story of a horribly tortured girl makes the film that much scarier because we get the feeling that it could happen to any of us.

That’s why two stories found in this week’s film section, the review of Capturing the Friedmans and the “Ed Gein” article, sound more blood-curdling than most.

First, Capturing the Friedmans shows a side of life most people do not want to believe— molestation of children. The movie explores the case of Arnold and David Friedman, a father and son pair who allegedly raped young boys in their basement. As the movie documents this case, it leaves the viewer with no clearly defined ending—the viewer does not know if the Friedman men actually committed the heinous acts. This indefiniteness makes viewers even more terrified because they do not know what

will happen; they do not know if justice will be served or if officials prosecuted wrongly.

Yet, even the horror one would experience during the Friedmans does not compare to the collective terror Ed Gein has inspired in a number of films ranging from Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Silence of the Lambs. Gein’s disgusting and unbelievable behaviors gave birth to the modern serial killer, picking up where Jack the Ripper left off. Of course, knowledge of the stories’ veracity conjures more chills in people.

His seemingly indifferent attitude toward killing also makes people shiver. How can someone treat human life with so little dignity, audiences will wonder.

What draws us to these real horror movies?

What makes these films spine-chilling? Is it our society’s desire for the weird, the extraordinary? Or is it our society’s desire for a good scare?

Personally, I think people want to know what exists out there; people want to know what they may face in life, what their children may face in life.

Why do people read the newspaper every day? Why were people so fascinated with the D.C. Sniper and with Jeffrey Dahmer?

Our culture also thirsts for the knowledge of how these evil creatures have been created, how they have been brought to life from most likely innocent individuals. It’s the curiosity to find out where people messed up their children along the way.

But why should we ask all these important sociological questions? Maybe people just want to be scared. Maybe people just want to have a good time.

And, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s time for Halloween. It’s time to take pleasure in being terrified again.

—TR

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WHEN YOU ARE STREAKING THE QUAD AT 9 A.M. | OCTOBER 9-15, 2003 buzz

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Volume 1, Number 34 COVER DESIGN | Lauren Hoopes

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53 Model Parkinson 56 1970’s grp. whose

symbol was a sevenheaded serpent 58 ___ Antiqua

Editor-in-chief Tom Rybarczyk Art Director Meaghan Dee Copy Chief Erin Green Arts Katie Richardson Music Brian Mertz Entertainment Jason Cantone Calendar Marissa Monson Assistant Music Editor Jacob Dittmer Calendar Coordinators Lauren Smith, Cassie Conner, Erin Scottberg Photography Adam Young, Suzanne Sitrick, Brian Mertz, Bakeela Watson Copy Editors Jen Hubert, Suzanne Sitrick Designers Adam Obendorf, Carol Mudra, Jason Cantone, Marissa Monson Production Manager Theon Smith Editorial Adviser Elliot Kolkovich Sales Manager Lindsey Benton Marketing/Distribution Melissa Schleicher, Maria Erickson Publisher Mary Cory All editorial questions or letters to the editor should be sent to buzz@readbuzz.com or 244-9898 or buzz, 1001 S. Wright St., Champaign, Ill., 61820.

Buzz magazine is a student-run publication of Illini Media Company and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the University of Illinois administration, faculty or students.

Copyright Illini Media Company 2003

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OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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Antiques bring local man to life

BY BETH ROGERS | STAFF WRITER

B

ob Swisher brings back the dead. From houses slated for the wrecking ball, from garage sales selling treasures for pennies, from auction houses and flea markets, Bob is saving history, one piece at a time. With a practiced eye, he sees beneath the paint, the rust, the chips and dents in the objects he finds at these places—all the way down to the original curving iron swirls of a doorknob, the shiny brass of the hinge or the delicate grain of the wood.

For hours, he works on his objects, polishing, scraping, painting, stripping, varnishing, in a storage room crammed with other masterpieces waiting patiently for Bob to rescue them. Sitting on a stool in front of his slanted drawing board, itself a relic from his days as a graphic designer in the 1950s, Bob, 72, works magic on artifacts while watching basketball games on the tiny television.

“Collecting is really a disease,” says Bob, a big man, ruddy-faced with silver hair and a smile and laugh that crinkles his light hazel eyes. “It’s something beautiful. Restoring is like seeing something come alive.”

Bob Swisher is a collector. He has surrounded himself with treasures, objects that whisper stories of family, tradition and history to him as he wipes off each layer of grime. He is a survivor, believing that antiques give him a purpose in life, a reason to quit drinking. Every day, Bob goes on a quest.

For years, Bob has collected the items in his house, creating a cozy oasis of golden wood.

Every wall displays some oddity. Beside the front doorway is an antique child’s coffin with an oblong glass window in its front. Bob had it fitted with shelves and now displays old glass bottles in it because his wife, Betty, 60, would not let him hang it in the kitchen.

By the dining room table are family h e i r looms—a

set of cobalt blue china, plates and bowls and cups that are such a rich translucent blue it’s like staring into the night sky. The fine glassware emits a tiny, echoing ping when flicked with a finger.

He makes each new object a part of his heritage through the work he puts into it. A curving mirror in a carved wooden frame that dates from the mid-nineteenth century hangs in the hallway near his bedroom. When Bob removed the piece of cardboard attached to the back, he found three signatures on the wood beneath it: the names of L. L. Hamill, who bought the mirror in 1898, Gus Hrankerirll, who restored it the same year, and D.E. Meyers, who remounted it in 1952.

“It’d be kind of neat to be a part of history like that,” he says.

So he signed his name. Bob Swisher, 1987.

The ceiling of the dining room is pressed tin painted a warm bronze color. Bob purchased it along the Fox River at a garage sale about 15 years ago. He sandblasted and rust-proofed it and then coated it with three layers of 1957 Ford paint.

Over the fireplace is a mantle that Rork Swisher, one of Bob’s four sons, built while in high school woodshop. When the mantle celebrates its 100th birthday in another 78 years, Bob says, it too will be an antique. Of Bob’s four sons, Rork and his brother Brit caught the antique fever after going to antique auctions as children.

“Rork would always get a fast gavel,” he says. “I think the auctioneers would be impressed that such a little kid would bid. So if somebody in the back would bellyache, ‘Hey, I woulda paid more!’ the auctioneers would tell ‘em, ‘You shoulda got your hand up faster!’”

Bob’s happiest memories are of heading off into the sunset on the weekend with his sons and their friend

Danny Peterson when they were in high school and college. Danny and Rork would usually wait patiently until the end of the auction, when tables of less popular items—splintered footstools, rusted brackets, cheap flower vases and other odds and ends—would be up for cheap grabs.

One Sunday morning at an auction, Rork got two tables, strewn with bits and pieces, for only $20. After sanding, stripping the peeling paint, varnishing and painting, the boys held another garage sale—as they did almost every month with the things they got at auction—and made more than $300.

“I think it’s sad when people tell me that their kids don’t want any of their stuff,” Bob says, of fellow collectors. “They spent years collecting and nobody appreciates how much they cherished what they collected, if it’s poker chips or chamber pots or car parts. I’ll be happy knowing that at least Rork or Brit will keep some things after I’m gone.”

Bob sells glass and hardware at Victorian House in Mahomet, some of which are Depression glass leftover from his mother’s huge collection. Depression glass was commonly given away in cereal boxes and at gas stations with a fill up. Nowadays, many pieces have become rare and valuable. Bob owns at least 4,000 pieces.

“Now people know what it’s worth and they’re saving it,” says Bob. “So it’s not so easy to find a cup or a saucer for a dime like I used to.”

Back in his living room, across from the fireplace, the room opens up into a new addition that Bob and Betty designed so they would have more space to display their antiques. The two steps that lead down to the extra room were once a beam in the ceiling of the Davenport Hall Annex on Matthew Street in Champaign. Bob

DEADLINE: 2 p.m. Monday for the next Thursday’s edition.

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Bob Swisher takes a breather in an antique lawn chair.

paid $50 for the slab of wood which, after gracing the hall for 85 years, was dumped outside by a contractor, left to rot in the winter snow.

On the wall beside the steps is more wood, not ordinary paneling, but yardsticks—inches marching across the wall in black relief. Across the room is a stuffed pig with “Swisher” written on its body in black. Betty’s touches are all over the rooms, from the candles on the tables to the family made quilts displayed on a rack: one is made of shiny champagne-colored silk salvaged from the lining of fur coats, the other a bright multicolored blanket made from men’s neckties.

Bob takes credit for bringing many of Betty’s raw materials home.

“When I see something I want, I just go after it,” he says, grinning at his wife. “Best thing that ever happened to her.”

“Oh, maybe,” says Betty, rolling her eyes and smiling back.

They found each other late in life, marrying when Bob was 62 and Betty 50.

“You should have seen the place when I got here,” she

000 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900

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After going through a fire, a window frame from a church in Gary, IN was restored by Bob Swisher.

PHOTOGRAPHS | ADAM YOUNG

classified

OCTOBER 9-15, 2003 | I KNOW WE SELL A LOT OF THINGS BUT WE WILL NOT SELL YOUR BABY BROTHER

Employment 000 HELP WANTED | Full Time

TUTORING Do better writing. Hire a writing tutor.

351-9840.

Express Personnel Services 217.355.8500 101 Devonshire Dr., Champaign

HELP WANTED | Part Time

FREE ESTIMATES: Tree trimming, Topping, Removal, Stump Grinding.

384-5010.

Apartments

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

Exact Extraction. Carpet & upholstery cleaning. Free estimates. 6883101.

Announcements800

Belly dance classes for beginners.

Aaminah Surayyah Dance Collectives. 351-5429.

400

OFF-CAMPUS APARTMENTS Unfurnished

BUSINESS SERVICES

CLEANING

Efficiency rooms on campus $250-$310, all utilities paid. 3676626

JOHN SMITH PROPERTY MANAGEMENT www.johnsmithproperties.com (217)384-6930 “believe the hype”

100

Le Therapeutic Massage. Day/ Evening/ Weekend, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Only by appointment. 344-8879.

ROOMS

CAMPUS APARTMENTS Furnished

Make money taking online surveys. Great opportunities for students. Earn $10-125 for taking surveys. Earn $25-$250 for focus groups. Visit www.ezmoney4students.com.

Services

Yes I know you got it from your great aunt and it means the world but its time to share the love. Let us help you find it a good home.

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Urbana Golf & Country Club. Wait staff and bartending positions available. Please call 217-344-8670.

Other Rentals 500

800 W. Church, C 2 BR’s centrally located near transportation. Apartments now available.

No pets. $450/mo. 352-8540 days, 355-4608 pm/wknd. www.faronproperties.com Brand new luxury 1, 2, 3, bedroom apartments available in Champaign.

Call Manchester Property Management at 359-0248 for an appointment.

Bejeweled idol from Taiwan. Rumored to bring luck to all who call it theirs!

buzz classifieds SOMEONE might want it.

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film & tv

CUBA GOODING JR.’S MOVIE SHOULD HAVE A NEW TITLE. RIGHT, MERTZ? | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

Drive-thru Reviews

24

10/22/03

CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS ★★★★ DAVID AND ARNOLD FRIEDMAN More than just a documentary, this film explores the world of a New York family that is accused of bringing boys into the basement for computer classes and then sexually abusing them. A fascinating documentary.(Jason Cantone) Now showing at Boardman’s Art Theatre

GOOD BOY! ★★★ MATTHEW BRODERICK AND BRITTANY MURPHY An alien dog talks to kids. Simply amazing. Watch Matthew Broderick’s career sink even further. (Arthur Mitchell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

HOUSE OF THE DEAD

no stars

JONATHAN CHERRY AND CLINT HOWARD A group of ecstacy-loving kids sail out to an island and find zombies.This film opens with the line “It was a nightmare”and that describes the film perfectly. (Paul Wagner) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

KILL BILL: VOLUME ONE ★★★★ UMA THURMAN AND DAVID CARRADINE Kill Bill is raw entertainment that packs brains with its brawn.

That is because Tarantino is an expert at drawing feeling from his killers, robbers and sociopaths. In Kill Bill, Tarantino revisits his penchant for characters who have experienced past—and specifically, childhood—trauma, again hitting the mark with brave situational dichotomy.(Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

LOST IN TRANSLATION ★★★★ BILL MURRAY AND SCARLETT JOHANSSON Bill Murray finds a relationship with a younger woman in this intelligent film set in Japan and directed by Sofia Coppola.

The enigmatic serenity of Lost in Translation confounds and astonishes while it simultaneously embraces and rejects convention. The link between Bob and Charlotte feels a touch familiar but, more importantly, perfectly natural. (Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

MYSTIC RIVER ★★★★ KEVIN BACON AND SEAN PENN Three childhood friends are united after one loses his daughter. Expect brilliant performances. This story goes beyond the usual crime thriller and is filled with some brilliant performances expected to be honored with Oscars. (Andrew Vecelas) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

OUT OF TIME ★★★ DENZEL WASHINGTON AND SANAA LATHAN Denzel Washington, fresh from his Oscar-winning performance in Training Day and his lead role in the crappy John Q., portrays a cop framed for a heinous crime in this film, which uses a little-used genre effectively to provide an interesting and suspenseful thriller. (Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

RUNAWAY JURY ★★★ DUSTIN HOFFMAN AND GENE HACKMAN Based upon the best selling John Grisham novel, this story was originally about tobacco farms, but becomes a tale of guns. Featuring two of the greatest actors alive, this film is exactly what a summer beach novel is good for: a lot of fun, provided that you suspend disbelief. (Jason Cantone) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

THE RUNDOWN ★★★ THE ROCK AND SEANN WILLIAM SCOTT The Rundown is pure entertainment, plain and simple.It’s hard to lump it into one genre as it reaches into action, adventure and comedy in order to come up with an exhilarating and fun combination that will leave audiences more than satisfied.

(Aaron Leach) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

THE SCHOOL OF ROCK ★★★★ JACK BLACK AND JOAN CUSACK Jack Black plays a rock star who bottoms out and becomes a teacher at a prep school in this smart film from director Richard Linklater, who also made Waking Life. (Matt Mitchell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

SEABISCUIT ★★★★ TOBEY MAGUIRE, JEFF BRIDGES AND CHRIS COOPER The Seabiscuit phenomenon was one of the most captivating in United States history and this film does it justice.

(Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy.

SECONDHAND LIONS ★★★★

and werewolves. Look for great action sequences and a dark tone similar to The Matrix. And then there’s also Kate Beckinsale in all leather to watch for. (Jason Cantone) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy.

VERONICA GUERIN ★★ CATE BLANCHETT AND BRENDA FRICKER Cate Blanchett plays real life journalist Veronica Guerin wonderfully, the film needs to focus more on her actions and less on her long lectures to help save Ireland. (Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly

OPENING THIS WEEKEND BEYOND BORDERS

ANGELINA JOLIE AND CLIVE OWEN Beyond Borders is an epic tale of the turbulent romance between two star-crossed lovers set against the backdrop of warn-torn Africa. But what’s truly turbulent is whether or not the Oscar committee will demand their Oscar back from Jolie after those terrible Tomb Raider movies. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy

RADIO

CUBA GOODING JR. AND ED HARRIS Cuba Gooding Jr. does his best to give a performance that will make his critics less likely to demand that he give back his Oscar after horrendous films such as Snow Dogs. Watch him play up mental retardation here. The Oscar committee has a lot of Oscars to rescind this weekend. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy this weekend

SCARY MOVIE 3

CHARLIE SHEEN AND DENISE RICHARDS Despite crop circles, videotapes and a Michael Jackson impersonator, I have a feeling this masterpiece will be overlooked come Oscar season. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy this weekend

WONDERLAND

VAL KILMER AND LISA KUDROW Remember how great Boogie Nights was? Well, remove all of the good parts and you might get Wonderland, the story behind porn star John Holmes and the murders that took place around him. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly this weekend

SAVOY 16 Route 45 & Burwash Ave. $5.50 Kids all shows

(217)

355-FILM

$5.75 DAILY Matinees til 6pm & Seniors $6.25 Late Shows Fri & Sat $6.25 Students $7.25 Evenings Mon - Thurs No passes DIGITAL STEREO Unlimited Free Drink Refills & .25¢ Corn Refills

Stadium Seating Gives YOU An Unobstructed View All Rocking Chairs

SHOWTIMES 10/24 - 10/30 SCARY MOVIE 3 (PG-13) 3 PRINTS / 3 SCREENS

1:00, 1:25, 1:50, 3:00, 3:25, 3:50, 5:00, 5:35, 5:50, 7:00, 7:35, 7:50, 9:00, 9:30, 9:50 FRI/SAT LS 11:00, 11:20, 11:50 RADIO (PG) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS 12:45, 1:00, 2:55, 3:10, 5:05, 5:20, 7:15, 7:30, 9:25, 9:40 FRI/SAT LS 11:35, 11:50 BEYOND BORDERS (R) 12:55, 3:55, 6:30, 9:05 FRI/SAT LS 11:40 RUNAWAY JURY (PG-13) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS STADIUM SEATING 1:45, 2:25, 4:15, 6:45, 7:30, 9:15 FRI/SAT LS 11:45 THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (R) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS STADIUM SEATING

12:10, 1:20, 2:05, 3:30, 4:00, 5:25, 5:55, 7:20, 7:50, 9:20, 9:50 FRI/SAT LS 11:20, 11:50 MYSTIC RIVER (R) STADIUM SEATING 1:20, 4:00, 6:40, 9:20 FRI/SAT LS 12:00 INTOLERABLE CRUELTY (PG-13) 5:30, 7:35, 9:40 FRI/SAT LS 11:45 KILL BILL, VOLUME 1 (R) STADIUM SEATING 1:05, 3:15, 5:35, 7:55, 10:00 FRI/SAT LS 12:10 GOOD BOY! (PG) 1:20, 3:20, 5:20, 7:20 THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD (R)FRI/SAT LS 11:50 SCHOOL OF ROCK (PG-13) 12:55, 3:10, 5:25, 7:40, 9:55 FRI/SAT LS 12:10 OUT OF TIME (PG-13) 9:10 FRI/SAT LS 11:20 UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN (PG-13) 12:10, 2:30, 4:50, 7:10, 9:30

LOST IN TRANSLATION (R) STADIUM SEATING 12:45, 5:20, 9:55 FRI/SAT LS 12:05

SECONDHAND LIONS (PG) 1:10, 3:20

COUPON

20OZ.DRINK

with $2.50 purchase of 46oz. bag of buttery popcorn

one per ad @ Savoy 16 Exp. Dec. 2003 "DI"

BEST DEAL in eNewsletter at www.savoy16.com

www.savoy16.com

buzz

community

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

says, still smiling. “There was no room at all.

And there was a hole in the floor with a ladder right here”—she stomps her sneakered foot beside the dining room table—“that led down into this tiny kitchen with a double-burner stove and a half-size refrigerator!”

“Yep,” Bob agrees, “that was all I needed to get by.”

You might say antiques saved Bob’s life. As a younger man, Bob drank a case of beer and a fifth of gin a day. His health was in shambles. In his 30s, Bob acknowledges that he was a bad father and an even worse husband.

He let his work as a graphic designer go to hell. Old friends crossed the street when they saw him coming.

“I finally quit drinking when I was 39,” he says, “because I was in such bad shape that I wouldn’t have made it to 40.”

After joining Alcoholics Anonymous, he realized he had to fill his life with something more meaningful than weekly meetings, so he turned back to his childhood hobby to fill his spare time.

“The average drunk is smarter than the average person because he only thinks on where the next drink is coming from,” he says. “He concentrates only on that one thing. Antiques are like that because you concentrate on the hunt.

The difference is that when you buy an antique, you have something valuable to show for it.”

He could not get a job in Champaign because of his reputation, but eventually, he was able to finance and run a small graphic design business, Anvil Press. Less than two years later, he started another firm, Abana Press. He retired 10

years ago, but kept going with antiques.

“It’s getting to the point where, if I get anything else, somethin’ will have to go,” he says.

But that doesn’t stop him from looking.

On one recent spring day, morning came dry and cool with winds rustling the brittle weeds along the country road as Bob’s red Oldsmobile van, coated with dust and road salt, zips along to Farmer City. Bob and Betty are on their way to the town’s annual antiques show. They say they’re only going to look, but they’ve brought the van just in case. Blue Ridge High School is filled with strange items: A long, high-backed bench from an old schoolhouse, its seat worn smooth and white from use, tables of ceramic bowls, ballpoint pens, costume jewelry, tin milk jugs, lace-edged handkerchiefs, salt and pepper shakers, doll heads, sepia-toned portraits of unknown men and women, yellowing paperbacks, ruffle-edged Carnival glass bowls in garish iridescent orange and purple, rows and rows of Depression glass. Betty pauses before a Sharon-patterned Depression glass butter dish.

“I can come down on that for you, if you like,” the dealer says.

Betty consults the book she’s brought with her, Gene Florence’s Depression Glass and More. The piece is worth $27.50, but the dealer is asking $35.

“How much would you go down?”

“Thirty.”

“No thanks,” Betty says, passing on to the next dealer.

Bob and Betty will have to worry about profits a lot more now that Betty is retiring from her

ROBERT DUVALL AND MICHAEL CAINE Two old men, who might have been successful bank robbers in the 1920s, take custody of their nephew. Melodramatic story, tears and laughter ensure and manipulate your emotions, but make you love every second. (Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

JESSICA BIEL AND MIKE VOGEL While on a drug run to Mexico, a bunch of people pick up a bloodied hitchhiker who has been attacked by someone or something. The movie substitutes screams and gore for the careful artistry that is present in the original, only to create the same formula that moviegoers have seen a hundred times before and are frankly quite tired of. (Aaron Leach) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

Boardman’s

Art Theatre

TONIGHT starting at 10pm at the Highdive...

The first 50 people to hand the buzz bee their completed survey for C-U’s Finest will get a pass for FREE ENTRY into the Highdive!

126 W. Church St. Champaign, IL

Official site w/trailer: http://www.capturingthefriedmans.com/main.html

R, directed by the king of horror cinema, Italy’s Dario Argento.

Runs 92 minutes, presented in HPS-4000/DD. Midnight Friday and Saturday, October 24 & 25. All tickets are just $5.00!

Enjoy the midnight madness.

Meet our horror hostess, Gorelixia, before the show, and win prizes!

Midnight horror films series information: http://www.lixonline.com/new_page_16.htm

BOARDMAN’S THEATRES www.BoardmansTheatres.com 1-800-BEST PLACE (800-237-8752) 217/355-0068 eTickets/reserved seats: www.BoardmansArtTheatre.com

storage unit built into a wall in his addition that was once part of a house on the corner of Oregon and Gregory Streets. He has put a different handle on each drawer. All are brass, small loops just big enough to fit a finger into, some backed by shiny yellow medallions and others pointed fleur-de-lis dark with age.

“I don’t think anybody else has a set of drawers like that,” he beams.

In the months to come, after Betty retires, the couple plans to roam the United States, visiting their far-flung children and antiquing. They’re not sure if they can make a financial go of it that way, but Bob’s not asking much, just enough to pay the bills and enjoy his passion.

“I consider this really cherished time, since I quit drinking,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of these thirty-two extra years.” buzz

TODAY from 12-2pm on the Quad...

The first 13 people to hand the buzz bee their completed survey for C-U’s Finest will win a pair of tickets to the Illini Homecoming football game or Illini Women’s basketball game on 10/30!

KATE BECKINSALE AND SCOTT SPEEDMAN Werewolves, vampires and humans, oh my! This Romeo and Juliet tale pits love against an eternal war between vampires

Daily at 4:30 p.m., 7:00 p.m., & 9:30 p.m., matinees on Sat/Sun at 2:00 p.m.

job as a secretary for the Urbana School district.

Bob’s all-consuming passion is going to become their sole livelihood, but they aren’t sure they’ll be able to make a living at it. Bob sometimes spends as much restoring a lamp or a piece of furniture as he makes selling it.

“Seems like every time I sell something and get a little ahead, I buy something or start a new project and set us back all over again,” says Bob, unapologetic.

He turns to the next table and spots a set of four oblong brass drawer pulls with ivy-andvine scrollwork in the center, dulled from fingerprints and the faint green tint of corrosion.

In 32 years of collecting, Bob has never seen handles like these. He can’t resist and buys them all for $8. Bob loves hardware.

Back at his home, he points out a 13-drawer

Find the bee today and win great prizes!

UNDERWORLD ★

ONE WEEK ONLY, not rated, runs 107 minutes, flat, presented in HPS-4000/DD.

Cattail kitchen-wear sold door to door by the Sears and Roebuck company in the 1930's.the bar.

bee

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★

Thursday night specials: $1 domestic bottles $2 Corona bottles $3 Red Bull and Vodka

Featured DJ’s: DJ Resonate DJ Bozak

5

3:41 PM

Page 1

community

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Q & A

TodSatterthwaite

What is the last movie you saw and what was your opinion of it?

Lost in Translation. I thought it was really good.

T

od Satterthwaite serves as Mayor of Urbana.

He is 49 years old and unmarried.

Originally from Pittsburgh, he moved to Urbana in 1961. His hobbies include running, canoeing and kayaking. Personable and downto-earth, Mayor Satterthwaite is a reflection of the city of he governs.

Do you see any clear differences between Champaign and Urbana?

Yes, I do. It takes a little while to figure it out.

Urbana is smaller, less business-oriented, and more liberal. For instance, we spend more, percentage wise, on social service funding.

It’s the little things like that. Both are good communities with a high standard of living.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is now the governor of California. Your opinion on the situation?

I don’t know. It seems like a real circus to me.

But maybe that’s what California wants.

What is one thing you would still like to accomplish in your life?

For my life personally, more travel. I’d like to experience more people and cultures. I worked in the Peace Corps in Granada for a few years and would like to do something like that again.

What did you do last night?

Worked at a business my sister and I own in Kickapoo renting out canoes and kayaks, then came home, had a beer, and watched the World Series.

I am new to the Urbana area. Give me a onesentence description of the city.

Home of the University of Illinois, where you’ll find good neighborhoods, schools and parks.

What is your favorite board game?

Trivial Pursuit.

Do you have any favorite spots in the area?

Running in Crystal Lake Park and Busey Woods.

What achievement are you most proud of in life so far?

Living by good community and ethical values. To me, it’s more how you live than what you do in life.

Where do you see the city of Urbana in 10 years?

I’d like to see progress on trying to implement our downtown plan. One thing that’s been a strategy in residential development is downtown development. I’d like to see some investors take a chance on buildings with commercial space on the first few floors and apartments or condos on the upper floors.

Downtown development has been a concern for 20 years, but the emphasis changes. Right now we are focused on creating a nice urban environment in downtown Urbana.

Who will you be voting for in the next presidential election?

I will NOT be voting for Bush, I’ll tell you that right now. I think he’s been a disaster.

moviereview

MYSTIC RIVER ★★★★

BY ANDREW VECELAS | STAFF WRITER

C

film & tv

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | SEAN PENN WAS GOOD, BUT BILL MURRAY WAS BETTER.

lint Eastwood’s classic Unforgiven tells the story of a retired gunfighter who must face up to the violent past he regrets. The overall sense is that he cannot escape what has happened before, because he is still very much the product of those actions. Mystic River, Eastwood’s latest directorial effort, covers some of the same ground, portraying three characters forever molded by a tragedy in the past. It has the structure of a suspense film, but the approach of a character study. Either way, it’s the best film Eastwood has directed in years.

The lives of friends are forever altered when one is abducted off of the street and molested for four days in a basement before escaping. As adults, Jimmy (Sean Penn), Dave (Tim Robbins) and Sean (Kevin Bacon) have drifted apart, but are suddenly forced back into each other’s lives after the murder of Jimmy’s daughter. Sean is the lead investigator on the case and Dave’s past may or may not make him a leading suspect. All the while, Jimmy grieves over the loss of his oldest daughter and threatens to return to

a criminal past to avenge her death.

The plot never differs much from what would be expected in a typical mystery/suspense movie, but Mystic River distinguishes itself because it focuses less on the circumstances of the two tragedies and more on how the characters feel the effects. The three men are simultaneously reminded of their connection to the past while trying to deal with the problems of the present. The script by Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential) focuses intently on the characters and their interactions, but never bogs down much before advancing the action.

Eastwood also directs with an eye to the characters, allowing them to act brilliantly while the camera just observes. The direction isn’t flashy in any way; most of the film’s effect comes from its cast and story, not creative camera tricks.

A script so heavy on characterization demands a capable cast, and luckily the film is blessed with a very talented cast. Penn gives his most accomplished performance since Dead Man Walking and is deserving of an Oscar nomination. His scenes carry the most emotional power in the movie, and he is able to suggest the danger in Jimmy’s character along with the despair. Many of Penn’s scenes essentially revolve around Jimmy’s anguish over his daughter’s murder, and Penn is so intense in these scenes that when Jimmy threatens to return to his violent and criminal ways, it doesn’t come as a surprise at all.

Robbins forges a nice counterpart to Penn, making Dave rather flat emotionally, but also suggesting that much more lurks beneath the surface. Robbins is no stranger to playing this

iqu

e , S ho p w i

MYSTIC RIVER | SEAN PENN kind of character, and he is able to subtly suggest what is happening inside of Dave without necessarily saying it. Bacon performs well even though he is given less to work with—Sean is reluctant to believe his old friend could be responsible for a gruesome crime, and is willing to look anywhere else to find answers. Also a standout is Marcia Gay Harden as Dave’s wife Celeste. She comes off as initially trusting of her husband, but as the plot unfolds, she gradually becomes more and more suspicious of his connection to the murder.

Mystic River comes as a sort of slap in the face of modern suspense movies. Its style is very down-to-earth, without any gimmicks or illogical plot twists. Instead, it works by manipulating the mood and characters for maximum effect. Moviegoers who are looking for a deep, rewarding film experience can’t do much better than this. Mystic River is nothing short of riveting—the kind of film that stays with the viewer long after the house lights come up.

Did you know we have... funky retro items, barware, SHAG greeting cards/calendars, vintage clothes, records, bookcases, and desks?!?

9 E. University Ave, Champaign furniturelounge@sbcglobal.net 352-5150

Sun-Tues Wed-Sat 12-4:30pm 11-5:30pm

NECK PAIN RELIEF 107 n. walnut, Downtown Champaign m-th fri sat sun

10:30-5:30 10:30-9 10:30-5 11-4

Fine contemporary designs in •Clothing •Accessories •Jewelry •Shoes

Make a Difference Drive October 13-24, 2003

Without Drugs... chiropractic health care honors the body’s ability to heal itself, FREE EXAM naturally! If you are suffering & X-RAY (IF NEEDED) from reoccuring NEW PATIENTS neck pain, ONLY please call for an appointment!

We encourage agencies, offices, and companies to help us collect these much-needed items and deliver them to any drop off sites no later than: Friday October 24 at 5:00 p.m. call Teri McCarthy at 352-5151

COVERED BY STUDENT INSURANCE

CALL 352-9899 (24 Hr. Answering Service) SNELL

CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC 1802 Woodfield Dr., Savoy

2 Blocks North of Savoy 16 Dr. Joseph Snell...Your First Choice in Health Care!

NOW OPEN

s!

How do you see the relationship between the University and the city?

The University is a huge benefit, but it also presents a lot of challenges. Our largest employer is tax-exempt. That can present a challenge in how we pay for things. We did a study a few years back and found that about 75 percent of buildings in Urbana are taxexempt. This can create challenges when coordinating with the University.

Do you have any requests of the students of the University in order to help improve Urbana?

I live a block and half off of Lincoln Avenue.

On weekends, house parties can get a little crazy. I’d encourage students living in residential neighborhoods to realize that some of the people around them with families and jobs live by different schedules.

buzz

U th

What is your favorite thing about C-U? The University influence is a big thing. It influences the park district, neighborhoods and just about everything else. The University demands a high quality of service and life.

buzz

Be U n

6

10/22/03

WARNER BROS PICTURES

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ITEMS NEEDED: Questions: • Travel-size Shampoo, Soap, and Toothpaste • Toothbrushes • Razors • Lotions • Diapers (Infant to Adult), Baby Wipes • Tissue • Crayons, Colored Markers • Pencils, Pens • Coloring Books, Construction Paper • Spiral Notebooks • Glue • Folders • New Socks and Underwear (For All Ages)

DROP-OFF SITES:

• Bresnan Meeting Center • Daily Illini Office • Family Service Center • Illini Radio Group Office • Illini Union Bookstore • Office of Volunteer Programs (277 Illini Union) This event is being held to assist human service agencies in Champaign County, with the support of several groups including Central High School Student Council, the Religious Workers Association, and the Religious Leaders for Community Care.

• Parkland College’s Child Development Center • Phillips Recreation Center • Schnucks Stores • United Way of Champaign County • University YMCA

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film & tv

IT’S A BLOODY LITTLE STORY. | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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Ed Gein: A man who collected corpses Warning: The following story is based upon actual criminal events that took place in Wisconsin in the 1950s. Due to its graphic nature, reader discretion is advised.

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magine sitting down for a quick meal in Ed Gein’s dilapidated Wisconsin farmhouse. He serves you some soup in a bowl and asks you to sit in a homemade chair. Things feel uncomfortable and there’s that feeling of terror in the air that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand on end. Then suddenly, your worst nightmare becomes a reality.

The funny looking soup bowl is the top of a human skull, the armchair is coated in human flesh and not only is the belt he’s wearing made out of human nipples, but his suit is made entirely of human flesh. Those were among the grotesque artifacts found by police in Ed Gein’s home in 1957, along with the headless, butchered body of the local deputy’s mother.

The sick story of serial killer Ed Gein is the stuff movies are made of, which is why many horror writers have stolen parts of his life for movies as often as he stole female genitalia from buried women in the local graveyard.

When transvestite Buffalo Bill shocked audi-

moviereview

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★

BY AARON LEACH | STAFF WRITER

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f it’s not broken, then don’t try to fix it.

Apparently no one ever bothered to tell director Marcus Nispel this age-old bit of wisdom.

Nispel makes his big-screen directorial debut, having only directed music videos, with the remake of the 1974 Tobe Hooper horror classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. “Massacre” is a truly appropriate word for what Nispel has done to the good name of the original horrific masterpiece.

One of the true tests of any good horror film is the test of time. In the current age of cinematic re-releases (Star Wars, E.T., Alien), it is beyond all human comprehension why The Texas Chainsaw Massacre needed to be remade in the first place. The original more than withstands the criticisms of new generations and continues to scare the bejeezus out of those lucky enough to see it time and time again. The answer to the “why” lies directly under the

ences in The Silence of the Lambs with his suit made entirely of sliced-up women, author Thomas Harris got his inspiration from Gein’s notorious deeds. But the film that threw Gein’s macabre melodrama into the spotlight was Tobe Hooper’s 1974 horror classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

T h e Te x a s C h a i n s a w Massacre and its new Michael Bay-produced reincarnation both boast the phrase “based on actual events” as if there was a chainsaw-wielding, facially disfigured recluse out for blood. There wasn’t.

Instead, Leatherface (aptly named because he wore the human skin of his victims as a mask) emerged from both Hooper’s knowledge of Gein’s deeds and his own horrific childhood daydreams.

Gein’s childhood began in LaCrosse, Wi s .

His mother preached the Bible and forced her two boys to live according to

her strictmorals. Although she scolded them and ran the family without any respect for their alcoholic father, Gein loved his mother with a passion seen in Robert Bloch’s novel Psycho, which b e c a m e Hitchcock’s horror masterpiece and was based on Gein’s life.

When his brother insulted their abusive mother, he mysteriously died of suffocation shortly after. And when his mother died, Gein looked to bizarre hobbies in order to keep himself entertained: reading obituaries and then digging up the women and peeling

credit for executive producer Michael Bay (Pearl Harbor). With his name associated, all forms of cinematic rhyme and reason go swiftly out the door.

But moving on, everything that was fresh and innovative about the original is nowhere to be seen in this film. This version does manage to hold some of the basic story elements intact.

A group of 20-something kids, this time on their way back from a drug run in Mexico, drive through desolate Travis County, Texas, and pick up a hitchhiker. Here the story really begins to stray from the original.

After the hitchhiker shoots herself, the group feels obligated to find the police and get the whole situation sorted out. Unfortunately, the group happens to run into Leatherface, a chainsaw-wielding psycho who skins his victims and wears them like a mask. Leatherface is aided by his entire family, who look like a bunch straight out of Deliverance. That is pretty much where the similarities end. Even the classic unsettling ending of the original is changed for the remake.

The problem with this film is that it is simply boring. The originality of Hooper’s film came from the unexpected and bizarre turns that his script took—also that everything happened in such a rapidly jolting fashion that viewers never had time to exhale. Part of the creepy mystery of the original is that the audience never really knows why Leatherface does what he does or even what is really going on at all. It kept viewers tense and on edge for the entire

duration of the film. Here, Nispel tries to explain Leatherface’s motivation as though that is somehow going to build sympathy for someone who enjoys mutilating people. Everything about Nispel’s film is recycled. There is nothing different about this movie from any other horror film that stars a bunch of stupid youngsters.

The sad thing is, with all of this laughable behavior happening on-screen, Nispel expects viewers to take it seriously.

The film, however, is not completely unwatchable. The performance given by Jessica Biel as the film’s heroine does add some nice range to the young actress’ portfolio. R. Lee Ermey does a fantastically sadistic rendition of his drill sergeant from Full Metal Jacket to create a character that is even scarier than Leatherface.

While some of the photography does manage to capture some of the subdued grittiness of the original, it pales in comparison to the 16mm authenticity that makes Hooper’s film seem all too real.

After hacking and slashing away at the original screenplay, it is clear that Marcus Nispel is not interested in telling any sort of story or giving any sort of social commentary. The movie substitutes screams and gore for the careful artistry that is present in the original, only to create the same formula that moviegoers have seen a hundred times before and are frankly quite tired of. Even those who have not seen the original will not find anything to keep their attention in this movie.

Save money—rent the original.

off their skin so he could wear it.

But his desire for collecting human flesh soon spiraled out of control, as he began to collect severed heads and bottle them as if they were shrunken heads put out on display on Halloween to scare children. And then young girls started to disappear. After more than a day of silence in police custody, Gein began to recount how he murdered the deputy’s mother and where he got the body parts that filled his house just as they did in the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre film.

With Gein in custody (soon to be sent to a mental hospital) and the police digging up more bodies by the day around his Wisconsin farm, the community and media began to exorcise the nightmare Gein had made a waking reality through laughter and humiliation.

Songs were written turning Gein’s atrocious deeds into folk ballads. In one, written by Lawrence P. Jones and to the tune of The Beverly Hillbillies’ theme, he writes, “Come and listen to my story ‘bout a man named Ed/ Had an old farmhouse with a great big shed/ Then one day his mama up and died/ So he skinned the old gal and he tanned her hide.”

Through movies and music, the tale of Ed Gein and his obsession for human flesh will forever be etched into the public’s consciousness.

Aroma exhibits hope through art

BY NIK GALLICCHIO | STAFF WRITER

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PHOTO COURTESY OF NIK GALLICCHIO

BY JASON CANTONE | ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

One of the many pieces of art featured at Aroma and created by a gifted artist with a mental disability.

Tommy G’s

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arts

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | LET’S BEE FRIENDS, AND THERE’S A BUZZ LOGO ON IT!

ental Awareness Week is in October and it is currently being celebrated by the Aroma Cafe, 118 N. Neil St., Champaign.

Artwork abounds in the cozy bistro—artwork made by people who suffer from schizophrenia and depression. The National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression supports a volunteer corporation called NARSAD Artworks. This enterprise displays and sells sophisticated artwork, and all the proceeds go to scientific research.

One of NARSAD Artworks’ goals is to make the public more aware of the incorrect stigma these mental illnesses are connected with. This artwork proves that people who suffer can still lead fully productive and content lives while dealing with their inner turmoil. The founders of NARSAD Artworks—Patsy and Hal Hollister—found that their daughter, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1978, was helped by the simple act of creating art. Thus, in 1990, NARSAD Artworks was born. This venture has only grown since, owing its success to purchases as well as donations.

The collection of pieces at Aroma is called “Sunshine from Darkness,” and appears until the end of October. The pieces look like they could belong in a museum. “It adds to the atmosphere,” commented Victor, a graduate student at the University of Illinois. The artwork does indeed lend richness to the coffee house experience.

Next to the pieces are little placards that provide information about the artists. A painting called “Solitary” makes use of shadows. In it, there is a dark man in a corner absconded by the darkness. Light filters through what at first seems to be a window, and plays along the ground. Upon closer observation, however, the window turns out to be metal bars, and it seems as though this man is in a prison.

The artist of this piece, Mark Bishop, is active in many creative endeavors, such as theater, music, writing and filmmaking. One of his pastimes is to get on a Greyhound bus and draw the faces of other passengers. “I try to express myself through my art,” Bishop said. “In a way, my art is like a signature—it expresses who I am.” It is interesting to take this into account when looking at the loneliness of the man in the shadows in “Solitary.”

One of the most moving pieces—”Friend”

by Brad Petznik—shows a face that is disconnected from a body. The image is obstructed

by hundreds of flecks, like peach-colored rain. You cannot clearly see what is behind the flecks—there are too many obstacles in the way to distinguish what lies underneath.

Lack of clarity is evident in the work, and one can tell how this piece reflected the artist’s life. Petznik led a normal life—he had three siblings, played football and guitar, and even had a newspaper route. When he was 14, however, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and later on, that was compounded with manic-depression.

The fight to remain living a normal life was a daily struggle. According to the little information given about him, creating art was cathartic for him. He’d taken classes at a nearby local college. In 1997, he was hospitalized after a relapse caused by his sudden refusal to take his medication. Three days after he was released, he committed suicide.

The exhibit gives one a sense of the inner workings of a schizophrenic mind—hope and turmoil all rolled into one. It is worth checking out and stewing over while sipping on a beverage or even while puffing on one of Aroma’s signature cigars. buzz

NARSAD Exhibit lasts until Oct. 31. Aroma Cafe is located at 118 N Neil Street in Champaign. They can be reached at 356-3200.

Bar and Grill

featuring food by Foudini’s

Fri., Rocktober 24 FREE FOOD FRIDAYS! 5-7 PM featuring Billy Galt & Ed O’Hara - free food, no cover!

Renegade - 10 PM The best southern rock band around, period.

Sat., Rocktober 25 Maurice &the Mindset Motown - R & B - Classic Rock. This is a great party band featuring the intriguingly unique “Zen Drum”!

FREE MUSIC no cover weekdays!

Every Tuesday Will Roger’s Acoustic Night Plus $2 Tuesdays - two dollar drafts,cans, dom. Bottles, well drinks, order of wings, basket-o-spuds, chips-n-salsa.

Every Wednesday Kilborn Alley Thursdays - Pool Tourney, Cash Prizes, 7 PM Coming in Rocktober

31 - Will Rogers Halloween costume contest!

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www.tommygs.com

Giving a voice to the unheard

BY BEKEELA WATSON | STAFF WRITER

topics per semester and strives to study the social issue completely in order to understand In any community, many of us share issues it, rather than being reactionary. If an issue is that generally are not talked about. To help performed too soon, some possible angles to study it from may not address this problem, have arisen yet.

Inner Voices was cre“We tend to leave ated in 1995. Inner members of society Voices (also known as out when looking at Social Issues Theater) social issues, so when is a theater ensemble doing research, we try sponsored by McKinley to encompass the Health Center’s counHayley Smith, technical director views of everyone,” seling center and the said program director Department of Theater.

Lisa Fay. The goal of Social “Social Issues Theater Issues Theater is to offer a venue for issues to be discussed and to is interesting because it is art that reflects our life,” increase awareness. Every performance is fol- said technical director Hayley Smith.

Body image is the subject of their upcomlowed by a facilitated discussion on the topic that was presented. The ensemble performs at ing performance, “Freeze, Body Police.” They the Armory Free Theater initially and then highlight topics such as eating disorders, selftours selected University of Illinois residence image and media depictions versus real life.

In one scene, there are several ladies in a halls.

The issues to examine are chosen with input checkout line at a grocery store. They all take from McKinley and are often ongoing. Social turns looking at a woman on the cover of the Issues Theater presents approximately four magazine and they comment on how she

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Social Issues Theater is interesting because it is art that reflects our life.

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looks nothing like them and how their everyday experiences have no commonalities. Then they discuss how the media perpetuates stereotypes such as “blondes are dumb” and “Asians are smart.”

What makes this unique is that these are perceptions that the common woman has when looking at images in the media, but they are hardly ever shared aloud. The scene was created in order to Social Issues Theater performs pieces concerning marginalized make the audience considsocial groups. er everyday issues and to make them aware of the fact that they are not about acting and playwriting. There is also a alone in that consideration. As Kate Conrath facilitators’ class to teach how to lead the conafter the performances. asserted, “I like performing in Inner Voices versation because it deals with real issues—things that Furthermore, the interaction with the audience is intended to create a healthy social really happen.”

Social Issues Theater is a course at the environment. “The discussions are just as University, offered under Theater 300. important as the actual performance, and art Enrollment is audition-based and there are no connects people,” commented actress prerequisites. Students are cast on a case-by- Elizabeth Andrejasich.

Inner Voices’ first performances of “Freeze, case basis. However, it is suggested that a student take Theater 358/Women’s Studies Body Police” are Oct. 24 and 25 at the Armory 358 prior to auditioning in order to learn Free Theatre at 8:00 p.m. buzz

PHOTO | BAKEELA WATSON

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NO! THAT DOESN’T LOOK ANYTHING LIKE A TEAPOT! | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

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film & tv

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | CAPTURE THOSE FRIEDMANS.

ARTIST’S CORNER

BY KATIE RICHARDSON | ARTS EDITOR

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group piece for the senior concert in May as part of my graduation requirements. Somehow, I have two jobs, but that’s only because I like to be insanely busy. I keep thinking that one of these days I’ll just pop. I saw my friends this weekend for the first time in about a month, and my fiancé and I have one night a week scheduled to see each other.

I had danced ballet for 12 years before coming here, but I knew that I would never have the body or technique required to be a professional ballet dancer. I had had small tastes of modern dance in my training and had enjoyed what I’d experienced so I thought, “Why not try this?” I didn’t enjoy any subject in school as much as I enjoyed dancing. I don’t think I knew what I was getting into then, but I am definitely happy with my choice.

What sacrifices have you made in order to pursue your goal?

What would you like to do after you graduate?

Time is the first thing that pops in my mind because I don’t really have any.Since freshmen year here I have had classes everyday from 9-5. In addition, I have rehearsals almost every night, and this year I’m working on a

I have ideas. It seems that so many dancers really want to go to New York and perform, but that has never really appealed to me. I do not plan on being a professional modern dancer, although I would not say ‘no’ to a

PHOTO | ADAM YOUNG

egan Kinder is a senior in Modern Dance at the University of Illinois. She currently works at IllinoisIndiana Sea Grant College Program located in the National Soybean Research Laboratory, they provide information, publications and educational products concerning invasive water species. She is a Student Communications Assistant there, and also works in the Deli at Schnucks. However, improvisation and contact improvisations are currently her passions. Improvisation is most easily described as dance that is choreographed/performed in the moment. Contact improvisation is; improvising, lifting and moving another body through space. As a dancer she expresses herself through her body, therefore her grace, composure, and elegance are precious traits that are very evident to anyone who meets her.

Into the Woods

Why did you choose dance as a major?

The cast and crew have been working to create a fantastic production, practicing five to six nights a week from 7 to 11 p.m. Although this is a major time commitment, everyone involved is enjoying the time spent.

Zager said that he chose this play because he

BY SUZANNE SITRICK | STAFF WRITER wanted something challenging for the students trap on your seat belts and get ready to ride in terms of musicality. Furthermore, while preInto the Woods in this Sondheim/Lapine vious plays have had fewer female roles, this musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm. show was also picked because it has many “The audience will be taken on an emotionally large, well-written roles for women.

“Every rehearsal is so much fun,” said and visually stimulating journey,” said director University of Illinois graduate student Leslie Ann James Zager.

Handelman, who plays Cinderella.

“We have such a blast. It is such a treat to work with James.”

The set for this show is intricate and imaginative.

University graduate student and scene d e s i g n e r Samuel Flint said that he researched other 20th century productions in order to create a classic fairy tale look, drawing on the original premises from back when The production crew worked extensively on the set of Into the Woods.

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performance opportunity should it come!! I am more interested in dance improvisation and contact improvisation as an art form, and would like to pursue and perform this area further. I am currently exploring the Seattle area as improvisation is practiced widely there; plus Seattle is beautiful!! I may not get out there for another couple of years. I am getting married at the end of this year. My fiancé and I are going to apply for a job at a resort down in Mahoe Bay in the British Virgin Islands. We would like to work there as volunteers possibly in late summer 2004.

After that I’m either going to cosmetology school or get licensed in massage therapy.

And then, who knows?

What was one of your favorite pieces and why?

Jennifer Zyrkowski’s senior piece last year was certainly one my favorites. She was absolutely amazing. I had never before worked with someone who was able to create such a perfect synthesis between her choreography and the dancers’ impulses. She was not precious with her material, and she knew when an idea or section of the piece was not working as well as it could. It was the first piece where I felt involved both as a dancer and a person. I was allowed to have emotions and thoughts, and not just perform the choreography step-by-step.

fairy tales could be scary and violent.

“For the set we were going for very large. In Act 1 we used translucent fabric for the trees so that the light shines through. It is more cartoonlike, which contributes to why we get a happy ending,” said Flint. “For Act 2 we replace the trees so that (the set) becomes more real. The silhouette is maintained so that the audience is aware that it is the same woods.”

The Krannert Center and the Department of Theater have worked together toward the same goal in producing this show, said Flint. Krannert has a union crew that build the sets, but students in practicum work on it too, Flint said.

The audience is in for a treat with this performance. Zager calls it sort of Shakespearean. “It is on a grand scale. It is a huge epic play,” Zager said. “I think the audience will be surprised, because the play is set in (the) Russian folk period so the characters have a unique, Russian peasant look.”

University graduate student Lanny Warkentien, stage manager, feels that the best part of the production is that the director took a much darker look at the show, and so it is more truthful to the story.

“It is more interesting to see the characters that we think we know going through some real issues,” Warkentien said. “It is a brilliant score and a great story. People will see some things in this version that they have never seen before.”

Into the Woods, which opens Oct. 23, is not recommended for young children. buzz

moviereview

VERONICA GUERIN ★★

BY MATT PAIS | LEAD REVIEWER

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erious issues lead to serious movies, and issues don’t get much more serious than the drug problem that crippled Dublin, Ireland, in the early to mid-1990s. As shown in Veronica Guerin, director Joel Schumacher’s over-the-top ode to the reallife journalist, used needles lined neighborhood streets and drug lords issued beatings that could be heard from the outside of buildings. In the midst of this pervasive problem was Guerin (Cate Blanchett), an investigative reporter for the Sunday Independent—known across Ireland for her brave, confrontational approach to local stories.

This type of film practically writes itself, but writers Carol Doyle and Mary Agnes Donoghue don’t have much faith in the inspiration of Guerin’s mission. She was a selfless do-gooder—a patriot taking action when the local police force looked the other way and the

moviereview

CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS ★★★★

BY JASON CANTONE | ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

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rnold and David Friedman were a normal father and son pair. Arnold won teaching awards for his scientific prowess at a Long Island school. David worked as a party clown and was a model student. That all changed when both men were accused of taking turns raping young boys in their basement.

Watching Capturing the Friedmans isn’t like watching any other documentary. It doesn’t just show you what’s going on with the Friedman family. Instead, it throws viewers into a gripping tale of family destruction that feels no different than watching a semi crash into cars on an expressway. You know everything is going to fall apart into total disaster, but you can’t do anything but sit and watch it all unfold.

No one would have guessed that the brown paper-covered packages that would enter the home and go directly to Arnold’s office were filled with child pornography. And when the child pornography and child molestation charges start to surface, the community is rightfully outraged, making viewers wonder if their

townspeople could only watch their children succumb to heroin. This heroine put her story ahead of herself and her family, persisting against violent opposition that would keep Erin Brockovich awake at night.

But Veronica Guerin won’t let Veronica Guerin just speak through her noble actions. For most of this tiresome, moralizing melodrama, Guerin parades around town lecturing the elected officials and weaseling information out of John “The Coach” Traynor (Ciaran Hinds), a lowend criminal who may or may not be doublecrossing her.

Blanchett gives a fierce, defiant performance, but Guerin appears pretentiously determined throughout the simplistic screenplay. At every possible opportunity, she tells cops and newspapermen, “We’re on the same side,” but even that self-righteous assertion falls short of truthful resonance. For all of her fearless perseverance, Guerin’s actions are equally irrational and unnecessarily dangerous.

Though based on a true story (which sometimes doesn’t mean much in movie language), Veronica Guerin is too polished to succeed as a convincingly dirty depiction of social evil run wild. The drug dealers are standard goons, uttering clichéd threats between outbursts of violence spurned by revenge, and the film’s quieter characters are even less convincing.

Irish lawmen, as well as Guerin’s family members, only exist to provide base-level resistance to her undying drive to expose the country’s biggest unpublicized problem. Even when a own neighbors could be hiding secrets as dark as the Friedmans’ or worse, even darker ones.

Director Andrew Jarecki’s masterpiece cuts close to the family because it didn’t start out as a documentary about child molestation. He began filming a short about the party entertainment group where David served as Top Clown.

But then David began to lead Jarecki into his family life by hinting at a dark secret that would soon be exposed to the community.

More than a family portrait, Capturing the Friedmans serves as a mystery of epic proportions: Was Arnold a man who enjoyed child pornography but would never act on those pedophiliac impulses? (He does admit to commiting a lewd act with a child, but never admitted to doing anything with the boys who took his computer class.) Viewers will be angry when hearing stories of how the young boys were sodomized in the dark basement, but viewers will be even angrier as the film comes to a close without providing any answers.

By its very nature, film is a subjective art.

Jarecki could have omitted views on either side of guilt or innocence to lead viewers to a definite conclusion. But he refuses to make it easy.

Jarecki allows contradictory interviews to smack together, as if to remind viewers that nothing has been completely settled.

When one policeman explains how the computer classes were a free-for-all of pedophilia, a young boy (a supposed victim) explains that he only said what he thought police wanted to hear and that he takes back any claim that he was anally raped by Mr. Friedman.

bullet is fired through Guerin’s house as a warning, her husband (Paul Ronan) only delivers a halfhearted attempt to dissuade her from her work.

Surprisingly enough, the film was produced

by Jerry Bruckheimer, and it’s an unpredictably activist and politically-driven outing for the king of explosions. Thankfully, his influence is minimal in Veronica Guerin, which hopefully suggests that the man behind overblown bombs such as Bad Boys II and Kangaroo Jack might start consistently using his power for good instead of evil.

But for a movie that tries to be important and provocative, Veronica Guerin feels overly exploitative in the depiction of Guerin’s fight against the local drug czars. Like a less ostentatious version of The Life of David Gale, Veronica Guerin fails to present itself, or its issues, objectively. Guerin was a recklessly noble reporter, fighting society when no one else would, but the film converts her story into a by-the-numbers tale of tragic martyrdom.

There are a few genuine scenes that appropriately reflect the disorder that existed in a city whose inept police force sat back and watched drug dealers (or pushers, as they’re called in Ireland) rise to power. Unfortunately, these are rare, popping up occasionally between the redundant thematic reiteration of Guerin’s lack of involvement in her son’s life (As he holds up a skateboard that he received for his birthday and Guerin asks him who got that for him, he says, “You and daddy.”)

TOUCHSTONE PICTURES

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PHOTO | SUZANNE SITRICK

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VERONICA GUERIN | CIARAN HINDS, CATE BLANCHETT The story of Veronica Guerin deserves a feature film adaptation far more than some other true-life events that have had the Hollywood treatment (Under the Tuscan Sun), but the journalist is owed a much more neutrally affecting tribute. From the widespread dangers of drug use to the daily risks of investigative journalism, Guerin exposed important societal elements in a previously apathetic environment.

But for all the intrinsically uplifting elements of this culturally significant story, Veronica Guerin just comes off as feeble and forced.

Guerin was a heroic woman of the people, but the film tries so hard to turn her into a classic movie character that her experiences lose exactly that: character.

C-UViews

TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★★★

GOOD MACHINE

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CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS | FAMILY PHOTO However sick it is, voyeurism is fascinating.

In less than two hours, viewers will have seen into the secret lives of an American family and have heard about the atrocities that could have been committed. They have entered a dark chapter of American suburbia that cuts deeper than American Beauty with its “Look closer” tagline ever could. That is because whether Arnold Friedman raped young boys, whether David Friedman raped his own brother or whether it’s all just made up, it’s really happening. This is America at its most disgusting and filmmaking at its most brilliant.

SCREEN REVIEW GUIDE

★★★★ ★★★ ★★ ★ no stars

Flawless Good Mediocre Bad Unwatchable

Chad Martin Rantoul

"One of the best scary movies I've seen in a while."

★★★★ Ed Stasheff Champaign

"Good acting, directing, cinematography and script."

RUNAWAY JURY ★★★ Thomasine Riney Champaign

"It had enough action to keep you interested."

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WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

ART-CLOSING

CHOCOLATE IN HEAT GROWING UP ARAB IN AMERICA A Play by Betty Shamieh Directed by Sam Gold Performed by Piter Fattouche and Betty Shamieh

CHOCOLATE IN HEAT is a set of five interlocking monologues infused with music and dance that take an irreverent look at love, sex, privilege, and the problems of growing up in between two cultures.

Monday, October 27 7:00 p.m.

Krannert Art Museum, Room 62 Following the performance, Shamieh will participate in a discussion of her work.

Sponsored by the Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities Co-sponsors: Office of the Chancellor, Center for Democracy in a Multiracial Society, International Programs and Studies, Women and Gender in Global Perspectives Program, Gender and Women’s Studies Program, Asian American Studies, Program in South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Kinesiology Department, Linguistics Department, College of Communications, Classics Department, East Asian Languages and Culture

"Remnants of Ritual: Selections from the Gelbard Collection of African Art" – The magnificent African art collection of David and Clifford Gelbard focuses on the cultural significance and aesthetic beauty of masks and sculptures - many of which were created for ceremonial and ritual purposes. This exhibition includes a wide array of objects and celebrates the durable, expressive essence of festivals, rites and coming-of-age ceremonies. On display at the Krannert Art Museum through Oct 26. 500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am-8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 “Through Larry Kanfer’s Lens: From Prariescapes to Cityscapes”-- The latest exhibit of photographic artwork by critically acclaimed fine-art photographic artist, Larry Kanfer, features "visually stunning Prairiescapes up to 8 feet wide. Contemplate the vast grandeur of America's heartland, with its rich traditions and seasonal cycles of the prairie, juxtaposed against images of Midwest cityscapes, highlighting intimate architectural details.

On display at the Lark Kanfer Gallery through Oct 24. 2503 S Neil, Champaign. Free and Open to the Public. Mon-Sat 10am-5:30pm. 398-2000. www.kanfer.com

THEATER LISTINGS Elysium on the Prairie, Live Action Roleplaying – Vampires stalk the city streets and struggle for dominance in a world of gothic horror. Create your own character and mingle with dozens of players who portray their own undead alter egos. Each session is another chapter in an ongoing story of triumph, tragedy and betrayal. Friday, “Vampire: The Masquerade” For more information visit: http://ww2.uiuc.edu/ro/elysium/intro.html. Check site for location, 7pm.

this week Th Oct 23 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15 Krasnoyarsk National Dance Company of Siberia 7pm, $15-$30 Sponsors: Ruth Smith Miller Margaret Frampton Shirley and Arthur Traugott

Fr Oct 24 Traffic Jam: The Delta Kings 5pm, free Creative Intersections Sponsor:

MIND BODY SPIRIT Sunday Zen Meditation Meeting – Prairie Zen Center, 515 S Prospect, Champaign, NW corner Prospect & Green, enter thru door from parking area. Introduction to Zen Sitting, 10 AM; Full Schedule: Service at 9 followed by sitting, Dharma Talk at 11 followed by tea until about 12 noon. Can arrive at any of above times, open to all, no experience needed, no cost. For info call 355-8835 or www.prairiezen.org Prairie Sangha for Mindfullness Meditation – Mon evenings from 7:30-9pm and monthly retreats on Sun. Theravadan (Vipassana) and Tibetan (Vjrayana & Dzogchen) meditation practice. Meets in Urbana. More information call or email Tom at 356-7413 or shayir@soltec.net. www.prairiesangha.org Clear Sky Zen Group – Meets on Thu evenings in the Geneva Room of the McKinley Foundation. Newcomers to meditation and people of all traditions and faiths are welcome – McKinley Foundation, 809 S Fifth St, 6:25-9pm Formerly-Fat Persons’ Support Group – Free social meeting every Saturday at 2pm at Aroma Cafe, 118 N Neil St, C. For more information contact Jessica Watson at 353-4934.

Artist’s Way Group – A 12-week adventure in recovering and celebrating our creative spirit. Wed, Sept 17-Dec 17 (no session Nov 26) from 5:45-7:15pm at McKinley Foundation (free parking). To register or for more information, contact Jo Pauly, MSW, Whole Life Coach at (217) 3377823 or jopauly@prairienet.org.

Season Sponsors

Patron Season Sponsors

CAROLE AND JERRY RINGER

BENEFIT Garnet Litherland Leukemia Fund – A benefit for The Ganret Litherland Leukemia Fund takes place at The Highdive on Oct 26. Line up is DJ Resonate and DJ Bozak at 8pm followed by The Blackouts, American Minor and The Mezzazinnes. Come out to help out a good cause and one of Champaign’s most beloved locals. Support Garnet and help offset the expenses incurred during treatment. $5 suggested donation at the door.

HALLOWEEN EVENTS In the Dark of Night – Oct 25 – A Storytelling Concert for Adults Tales of terror and the supernatural presented by storytellers Janice Del Negro, Dennis Frederick, and Dan Keding. A benefit for the Center for Children's Books Endowment. Tickets are $25, students tickets $5. Graduate School of Library and Information Science East Auditorium, 7:30pm

FILM FESTIVAL Teen Film Festival – Virginia Theatre Oct.24-26 Friday: Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 7pm Friday The 13th, 10pm Saturday: Billy Madison, 1pm Pretty In Pink, 4pm Breakfast Club, 7pm American Pie, 10pm Scream, midnight Sunday: Sixteen Candles, 1pm Dead Poets Society, 4pm Scary Movie, 7pm

krannert center

Into the Woods Dessert and Conversation 6:30pm, $5.50 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15

Sa Oct 25

UI Chamber Singers 7:30pm, $2-$5 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15

Su Oct 26 Joan Kwuon, violin 3pm, $5-$31 Sponsors: Elizabeth and Edwin Goldwasser Betty and David Lazarus Anonymous

Mo Oct 27 Into the Woods 10am, $5

Tu Oct 28 Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde 7:30pm, $6-$13

Th Oct 30 Wine Tasting 5pm, free Hear & Now 2003: Herbert Brün and His Co-conspirators 7:30pm, $2-$5 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15 Anton in Show Business 7:30pm, $6-$13

Some Krannert Center programs are supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Illinois Arts Council, and patron and corporate contributions.

Coporate Season Underwriters

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT THE IPRH AT 244-3344.

@

Out of Order Auditions – Oct 26 –open auditions for its 13th annual student production, Out of Order by Ray Cooney. Auditions will be held Oct 26 from 2-4 pm or Oct 27 from 6-8pm at the Parkland College Theatre.

Members of the community, Parkland students, and university students are encouraged to audition. The director, Josh Stewart, will be casting 6 males and 4 females over the age of 18. www.parkland.edu/theatre/audition.htm.

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KrannertCenter.com 217/333-6280 or 800/KCPATIX 217/333-9714 (TTY) 217/244-SHOW (Fax) 217/244-0549 (Groups) kran-tix@uiuc.edu Ticket Office Open 10am to 6pm daily; on days of performances open 10am through intermission.

355.1236 105 N. Market St. Downtown Champaign

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arts

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | IF EVER OH EVER A WIZ THERE WUZ...

A Master Remasters

BY SYD SLOBODNIK | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

W

hat’s truly remarkable about the Goodman Theatre’s present production of playwright Edward Albee’s 1998 The Play About the Baby is that it is not the work of a young, cutting-edge experimental writer, as it seems.

Albee was 70 when he wrote this play, and the play’s refreshing frankness while dealing with life’s lessons is powerfully satirical and cynically honest.

This odd expressionist play concerns a young couple in a symbolic Garden of Eden.

These nameless 20-year-olds are madly in love, and represent the idealism and naivete of youth. The play opens in an absurd fashion, with the couple seated in two chairs on an otherwise empty stage.

The very pregnant young woman exclaims, “I’m going to have my baby now!” and proceeds offstage. Noises of the woman’s delivery follow, ending with the cry of a newborn.

The woman returns to her chair on stage and sighs, “There!” But the audience never sees the baby. The young parents are rudely interrupted by a smartly dressed middle-aged couple. These elders represent wisdom and the cynical pessimism of a realistic view of life void of romantic illusions. The older man directly addresses the audience, asking questions about how we perceive reality, how we differentiate what’s real and what’s fake, and ultimately how we as human beings manage to make sense of our lives.

Albee’s central conflict focuses on the older couple’s attempt to convince the young pair that they are living a life of illusion, and, in fact, do not have a baby.

The average audience will need to work hard to decipher the meaning of some of the absurdities spewed by the elder couple; essentially Albee has remastered the core conflict of his 1963 play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

The Play About the Baby is far less naturalistic in its intent and is instead complemented by symbolic characters, modern language and sexual explicitness. The older pair exudes an aura that is bent on destroying the wedded bliss of the younger pair, in much the same way as Virginia’s middle-aged George and Martha emotionally demolish their young guests, Nick and Honey.

Under the skilled guest direction of Pam Mackinnon, all four cast members are appropriately effective. Julie Granata and Scott Antonucci play the naive couple with tenderness. Matt DeCaro and Linda Kimbrough are wickedly nasty as the mature couple. buzz

Chicago’s Goodman Theatre is located at 170 N. Dearborn and this fine production of The Play About the Baby runs until Nov. 2.

Oct 23-Nov 2 Stephen Sondheim James Lapine James Zager, director

INTO WOODS THE

Department of Theatre College of Fine and Applied Arts

For tickets 217/333-6280 KrannertCenter.com

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music

YANKEES V. MARLINS: THE BATTLE OF WHO COULD CARE LESS | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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Washington St, Urbana. Tue-Sat 1-5:30pm and scheduled studio sessions. 344-6955. www.creationartstudios.com

Coffee, cappuccino and rock ‘n’ roll

Country in the City – Antiques, Architectural, Gardening, Home Accessories. Custom designing available. 1104 E Washington St, Urbana. Thu-Sat 10am-5pm. 367-2367.

Framer's Market – Frame Designers since 1981. Current featured artists on display through Nov 17: Charlotte Brady, Barry Brehm, Lawerance Hamlin, Patrick Harness, Mary McDonald, Hua Nian, David Smith, Bill Stevens, Steve Stoerger and Bonnie Switzter. 807 W Springfield Ave, Champaign. Tue-Fri 9:30am-5:30pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 3517020.

Cafe Paradiso takes on the additional role of an all-ages venue

S

PHOTOS | COURTESY OF KAITO

oon there will be more than coffee served up at Cafe Paradiso in Urbana. Starting Wednesday, Oct. 29, Cafe Paradiso will regularly host all-ages concerts.

“It is something we had been talking about at meetings for a while, wanting to get it going, but we needed someone who wanted to do it and had the contacts to set it up,” said Melissa Fanella, owner of Cafe Paradiso.

The people who stepped up to help book bands were two local indie rock DJs. Meghan McCook (aka DJ Betty Rocker) and Seth Fein (aka 2ON2OUT) combined forces to come up with “2ON2OUT and Betty Rocker productions present.”

“We’re competing DJs on Monday nights,” Fein jokingly said about competing with an old friend. “We decided the only way to have a community that works is to take competition and turn it into camaraderie.”

McCook is also an employee at Paradiso.

Fein is a columnist for Buzz magazine.

Musical performances have taken place in Paradiso before, but they usually featured more acoustic acts and they were infrequent.

“We did it before when we first opened. It

was really cool back then and it created a very different atmosphere inside,” Fanella said.

While Champaign-Urbana has steadily seen its music scene grow over the past several years, the shortage of all-ages venues has been a consistent problem for the local scene.

Further compounding the allages problem was the May 8, 2003 closing of the Independent Media Center’s performance space. The space was closed due to fire code violations cited by the City of Urbana. Only the Channing Murray Foundation and the Illinois Disciples Foundation have been consistently hosting all-ages shows since the closing of the Independent Media Center’s performance space.

Fein, who grew up in Champaign-Urbana, remembers going to all-ages shows at venues like the Red Herring, the Channing Murray Foundation and the Courtyard Cafe.

“There was something very cool about being able to go to a show that wasn’t at the Assembly Hall,” Fein said. “And we are going to try and reach out to high school students that same way here.”

KAITO AT PARADISO Cafe Paradiso is setting its sights high in the indie rock world with its first performance on Oct. 29. In addition to Champaign music luminaries American Minor, Orphans and The Invisible, UK indie pop rockers KaitO will perform on Wednesday.This Brighton quartet formed in 1998 and has since performed all over the world and supported bands like Folk Implosion, Apples in Stereo, Death Cab for Cutie and Clinic. In return, they’ve gotten support from influential Radio 1 DJs John Peel and Steve Lamacq in England.

Stateside, their performance at the South By Southwest festival in 2003 earned them national praise from critics around the country. Combining punk with dance and pop rock elements, their lively stage shows are not to be missed.

Furniture Lounge – Specializing in mid-century modern furniture from the 1920s-1980s, retro, Danish modern, lighting, vintage stereo equipment and vinyl records. 9 E University, Champaign. 352-5150. Sun-Mon 12-4:30pm, Wed-Sat 11am-5:30pm.

Glass FX – New and Antique Stained Glass Windows, Lamps, and unique glass gifts. Gallery is free and open to the public. Interested in learning the art of Stained Glass?

Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Stained Glass Classes offered. 202 S First St, Champaign. Mon-Thu 10am5:30pm, Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 9am-4pm. 359-0048. www.glassfx.com.

PHOTO | BRIAN MERTZ

BY BRIAN MERTZ | MUSIC EDITOR

While Cafe Paradiso will actively try to help fill the all-ages concert gap, the Independent Media Center has been raising money for a new performance space through different benefit events.

One of those events will take place on Saturday at Blockheads, a block party on California Street in Urbana that will feature performances by Animate Objects, Orphans, The Invisible, Finga’ Lickin’, Pointed and Gabe Rosen.

The stage used at Blockheads will be used for Paradiso’s performances. Tables, chairs and booths will be cleared out of the way and the stage will be set up along the south wall of the building. Fanella estimates that capacity for performances will be around 125 people.

Cafe Paradiso will continue to serve coffee and food during performances. Paradiso is also looking into the possibility of serving alcohol.

“I think coffee at a show is an option that people want,” Fanella said.

“It will be good that people won’t necessarily have to be in a bar and that atmosphere to see a show,” McCook said. “I think we’ll attract a different crowd who goes to show for that atmosphere.”

McCook sees Paradiso as a different type of concert venue from bigger bars in downtown Champaign and even smaller places like the Channing Murray.

“It is definitely smaller, but I also think it is going to be more intimate,” McCook said.

Fein noted that Paradiso will also be able to accommodate many types of shows that many coffee shops can’t handle.

“It is a very versatile space,” Fein said.

“There is room for a punk show. There is the space for a large jazz show. We can have all kinds of shows in this environment.”

Paradiso is hoping to eventually have per-

formances once a week. An exact day of the week has not been set yet, but Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights are all being considered as options.

“A Friday or Saturday night setup would seem to fit well with an all-ages schedule,” McCook said.

The addition of music performances, especially non-acoustic acts, might disrupt many coffee house patrons that go for the atmosphere and a quiet place to study. But both Fanella and McCook do not worry about alienating their patrons.

“If it is on a Friday or Saturday our weekends are slow anyway,” Fanella said. “And if it is consistently on a Wednesday night, our customers will eventually know what to expect.”

“I think it will end up working really well because most of the people who study here would end up going to shows anyway,” McCook said. “Plus, if these are earlier shows from like 6 to 10 p.m. then people can still study after that.”

Fein noted that Paradiso’s space could also be used by people who wanted to independently book shows.

“If they are willing and able to put in the commitment to cover finances and promoting, then we want people who have ideas to bring them in so we can talk about doing a show,” Fein said.

McCook sees a bright future for shows at Paradiso.

“I think it will work really with the mood we have here,” McCook said. “We have creative people who work here and who frequent here. Now they can come in, see a show and still have one of the best cups of coffee in town.” buzz Cafe Paradiso is located at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Nevada Street in Urbana.

calendar

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com

Griggs Street Potters – Handmade functional and decorative pottery. 305 W Grigg St, Urbana. Mon-Fri 11am-4pm, or call for appointment. 344-8546.

Hill Street Gallery Inc. – Oil and watercolor paintings, hand painted T-shirts, handmade jewelry. 703 W Hill, Champaign. Sat 12-5pm or by appointment during the week. 359-0675.

International Galleries – Works from local artists including quilts by Nancy Summers. Lincoln Square Mall. Mon-Fri 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 12-5pm. 328-2254.

Larry Kanfer Gallery – University of Illinois images by photographic artist Larry Kanfer. Unique diploma frames and other UI gifts. Sepia Champaign-Urbana Collection also on display. Available now: 2004 Prairiescapes and University of Illinois calendars. 2503 S Neil, Champaign. Free and Open to the Public. Mon-Sat 10am-5:30pm. 3982000.www.kanfer.com LaPayne Photography – Specializes in panoramic photography up to 6 feet long of different subjects including sporting events, city skylines, national parks and University of Illinois scenes. Las Vegas Strip photo show coming soon. 816 Dennison Dr, Champaign. Mon-Fri 9am-4pm and by appointment. 356-8994.

Old Vic Art Gallery – Fine and original art, hand signed limited edition prints, works by local artists, art restoration, custom framing, and periodic shows by local artists. 11 E University, Champaign. Mon-Thu 11am-5:30pm, Sat 11am4:30pm. 355-8338.

Steeple Gallery – Vintage botanical and bird prints, antiques, framed limited edition prints. 102 E Lafayette St, Monticello. Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 762-2924. www.steeplegallery.com Verde Gallery & Verdant News and Coffee – Magazines, newspapers, coffee, beverages and fine pastries along with the Verde Fine Art Gallery. 17 E Taylor St, Champaign. Cafe hours: Mon-Sat 7am-10 pm; Gallery Hours: Tue-Sat 10am10pm. 366-3204. www.verdant-systems.com/Verde.htm Ziemer Gallery – Original paintings and limited edition prints by Larry Ziemer. Pottery, weavings, wood turning and glass works by other artists. Gallery visitors are welcome to sit, relax, listen to the music and just enjoy being surrounded by art. 210 W Washington, Monticello. Tue 10am-8pm, Wed-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 762-9786. www.ziemergallery.com

ART-OPENING “Trio” – Paintings by Dylan DeWitt and Milena Tiner and ceramics by Tyler Bergfield on display at the Springer Cultural Center through Nov 16. Opening reception featuring live music from Jordan Kaye Oct 24, 6-8pm. Artists’ talk, 7pm. This is a free event. Springer Cultural Center. 301 N. Randolph, Champaign. Gallery Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 12-5pm. 398-2376.

ART-ON VIEW NOW “Affixed” – Sixteen local artists display their work in a juried art show at High-Cross Studio through Oct 31. Entries

range from 3D work such as Goddess alters and original dolls to photomontage and torn paper collage art. 1001 High Cross Road, Urbana. Gallery hours: Tue-Sun10-4pm.

367-6345. spiritofsandra@hotmail.com “Bulbs” – Pastel and collage series from Deeana Love on display at High Cross Studio through Oct 31. 1001 High Cross Road, Urbana. Gallery hours: Tue-Sun 10-4pm. 367-6345. spiritofsandra@hotmail.com “Prints in Process” – A display of contemporary fine art prints on view at the Parkland Art Gallery through Oct 31.

Guest curated by Lawrence Hamlin, including work from Richard Dievenkorn, Grant Wood, Wayne Thiebaud and area native Christopher Brown. 115 E University, Champaign. Mon-Fri 10am-3pm and Mon-Thu evenings 68pm, Sat 12-2pm. 351-2485. Handicapped accessible and open and free to the public.

“Pink” – On display at Gallery Virtu Cooperative through Oct 31. A juried exhibition to benefit area women with who have suffered from breast cancer. 25 percent of sales will be used to fund art journal classes for breast cancer patients. Other work includes original fine art and crafts from member artists including jewelry, pottery, paintings, collages, hats, handbags and other textiles, sculptures and journals. The Gallery also offers workshops; a new schedule of classes is on the web site. 220 W Washington St, Monticello. Thu 12-4pm, Fri 12-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm. 7627790. www.galleryvirtu.org “Colors of Islam” – In conjunction with Islam Awareness Week, the Muslim Students Association is cosponsoring an art show at the Illini Union Art Gallery until Nov 3. 1401 W Green, Urbana. Open Every day 7am-10pm.

“First Annual Midwest Sequential Art Exhibition” – The Middle Room Gallery hosts an exhibition of comic and sequential art talent from the Midwest. Ranging in visual and narrative style from political to fantasy, from Japanese Manga to the familiar super-heroic conventions, this show will help shine a light on one of the most misunderstood and overlooked art forms today. Artists include Pam Bliss, Tim Broderick, Jacen Burrows, Darrin Drda, Brion Foulke, Hope Larson, Layla Lawler, Dirk Tiede, Dann Tincher, Charlie "Spike" Trotman. On View at the Middle Room Gallery through Oct 31. 218 W Main St, Urbana. http://www.gallery.ucimc.org/ “Whistler and Japonisme: Selections from the Permanent Collection” – Marking the 100th anniversary of James McNeill Whistler’s death, this exhibition highlights his works on paper and examines the influence that Japanese woodcuts had on his artistic technique. On display at the Krannert Art Museum through March 28, 2004.

500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 "Visualizing the Blues: Images of the American South, 1862-1999" – Every picture tells a story and this exhibition of more than 100 photographs of the Mississippi Delta region portrays a profoundly vivid narrative of life in the American South. These photographs, taken from the Civil War era through 1999, show the rhythms of life from this almost mythic region and powerfully document the sources of inspiration for the lyrics and melodies of Blues musicians. Among the photographers represented are Margaret Bourke-White, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, Andres Serrano and many others. On display at Krannert Art Museum through Nov 2.

500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 Featured Works XIII: "The Spirit of Mediterranean Pathos: The Early Work of Pierre Daura" – Pierre Daura (18961976) was a member of significant modern art movements in the early 20th century. This exhibition highlights a recent gift of works by Daura and explores the forms and colors of his paintings and drawings from about 1910 to the late 1930s. On display at Krannert Art Museum through Nov 2. 500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat. 9am5pm, Wed 9am-8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 “Separate and Unequal: Segregation and Three Generations of Black Response, 1870-1950.” – This exhibit highlights the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision of 1896, which legally sanctioned racial segregation in the United States until 1954 when the Supreme Court overturned Plessy in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. Materials from the Library's collections and archives highlight the historical period between these two landmark civil rights cases. Sponsored by the Office of the Chancellor, the Brown v. Board of Education Commemorative Committee and the University of Illinois Library. On view at the University of Illinois Main Library, first floor hallway, during library hours. 1408 W Gregory Drive, Urbana. Hours vary.

333-2290. http://www.oc.uiuc.edu/brown

traffic jam Friday, October 24 5pm A casual hour with free music in Krannert Center’s Lobby Bring your friends, bring your family Groove to the rockin’ blues and TGIF abandon of

The Delta Kings Interlude Bar and Intermezzo Café are open

A Creative Intersections event made possible with assistance from the News-Gazette

After the blues, enter the fantasy world of Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack (of the Beanstalk), princes, wolves, and witches Into the Woods

By Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine October 24 at 7:30pm 217/333-6280 800/KCPATIX KrannertCenter.com

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11/15 The Shins @ House of Blues 11/15 Qbert @ Metro 11/16 Fixx @ Abbey Pub 11/19 Fountains of Wayne @ The Vic 11/21 Anti-Flag, Rise Against @ Metro 11/22 Guided By Voices @ Abbey Pub 11/22 Cash Brothers @ Schubas 11/22 Tom Jones @ House of Blues 11/22 Alabama @ Allstate Arena 11/23 Guided By Voices @ Abbey Pub 11/23 Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs! @ Metro 11/23 Tom Jones @ House of Blues 11/24 Symphony X @ Metro 11/25 Jaguars @ House of Blues 11/25 Mindless Self Indulgence @ Metro 11/26 Mindless Self Indulgence @ Metro 11/16 OK Go @ Abbey Pub 11/28 Bollweevils @ Metro, all ages 11/29 Rocket from the Tombs @ Abbey Pub 11/29 Asylum Street Pranksters @ Schubas

DECEMBER 12/5 Donna The Buffalo @ Martyr’s 12/5 They Might Be Giants @ Vic, all ages 12/6 Autumn Defense @ Schubas 12/8 Fun Lovin’ Criminals @ Double Door 12/12 Atmosphere, Mr. Dibbs, Others @ Abbey Pub, 18 & over

C-UVENUES Assembly Hall First & Florida, Champaign, 333.5000 American Legion Post 24 705 W Bloomington Rd, Champaign, 356.5144 American Legion Post 71 107 N Broadway, Urbana, 367.3121 Barfly 120 N Neil, Champaign,352.9756 Barnes and Noble 51 E Marketview, Champaign, 355.2045 Boltini Lounge 211 N Neil, Champaign, 378.8001 Borders Books & Music 802 W Town Ctr, Champaign, 351.9011 The Brass Rail 15 E University, Champaign, 352.7512 Canopy Club (The Garden Grill) 708 S Goodwin, Urbana, 367.3140 C.O. Daniels 608 E Daniel, Champaign, 337.7411 Cosmopolitan Club 307 E John, Champaign, 367.3079 Courtyard Cafe Illini Union, 1401 W Green, Urbana, 333.4666 Cowboy Monkey 6 Taylor St, Champaign, 398.2688 Clybourne 706 S Sixth, Champaign, 383.1008 Curtis Orchard 3902 S Duncan Rd, Champaign, 359.5565 D.R. Diggers 604 S Country Fair Dr, Champaign, 356.0888 Embassy Tavern & Grill 114 S Race, Urbana, 384.9526 Esquire Lounge 106 N Walnut, Champaign, 398.5858 Fallon’s Ice House 703 N Prospect, Champaign, 398.5760 Fat City Saloon 505 S Chestnut, Champaign, 356.7100 The Great Impasta 114 W Church, Champaign, 359.7377 G.T.’s Western Bowl Francis Dr, Champaign, 359.1678 The Highdive 51 Main, Champaign, 359.4444 Huber’s 1312 W Church, Champaign, 352.0606 Illinois Disciples Foundation 610 E Springfield, Champaign, 352.8721 Independent Media Center 218 W Main St, Urbana, 344.8820 The Iron Post 120 S Race, Urbana, 337.7678 Joe’s Brewery 706 S Fifth, Champaign, 384.1790 Kam’s 618 E Daniel, Champaign, 328.1605 Krannert Art Museum 500 E Peabody, Champaign, 333.1861 Krannert Center for Performing Arts 500 S Goodwin, Urbana, Tickets: 333.6280, 800/KCPATIX La Casa Cultural Latina 1203 W Nevada, Urbana, 333.4950 Lava 1906 W Bradley, Champaign, 352.8714 Legends Bar & Grill 522 E Green, Champaign, 355.7674 Les’s Lounge

WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

buzz

403 N Coler, Urbana, 328.4000 Lincoln Castle 209 S Broadway, Urbana, 344.7720 Malibu Bay Lounge North Route 45, Urbana, 328.7415 Mike & Molly’s 105 N Market, Champaign, 355.1236 Mulligan’s 604 N Cunningham, Urbana, 367.5888 Murphy’s 604 E Green, Champaign, 352.7275 Neil Street Pub 1505 N Neil, Champaign, 359.1601 Boardman’s Art Theater 126 W Church, Champaign, 351.0068 The Office 214 W Main, Urbana, 344.7608 Parkland College 2400 W Bradley, Champaign, 351.2528 Phoenix 215 S Neil, Champaign, 355.7866 Pia’s of Rantoul Route 136 E, Rantoul, 893.8244 Pink House Routes 49 & 150, Ogden, 582.9997 The Rainbow Coffeehouse 1203 W Green, Urbana, 766.9500 Red Herring/Channing-Murray Foundation 1209 W Oregon, Urbana, 344.1176 Rose Bowl Tavern 106 N Race, Urbana, 367.7031 Springer Cultural Center 301 N Randolph, Champaign, 355.1406 Spurlock Museum 600 S Gregory, Urbana, 333.2360 Strawberry Fields Cafe 306 W Springfield, Urbana, 328.1655 Ten Thousand Villages 105 N Walnut, Champaign, 352.8938 TK Wendl’s 1901 S Highcross Rd, Urbana, 255.5328 Tommy G’s 123 S. Mattis Ave, Country Fair Shopping Center, 359.2177 Tonic 619 S Wright, Champaign, 356.6768 Two Main 2 Main, Champaign, 359.3148 University YMCA 1001 S Wright, Champaign, 344.0721 Verde/Verdant 17 E Taylor St, Champaign, 366.3204 Virginia Theatre 203 W Park Ave, Champaign, 356.9053 White Horse Inn 112 1/2 E Green, Champaign, 352.5945 Zorba’s 627 E Green, Champaign

CHICAGOVENUES House of Blues 329 N Dearborn, Chicago, 312.923.2000 The Bottom Lounge 3206 N Wilton, Chicago Congress Theatre 2135 N Milwaukee, 312.923.2000 Vic Theatre 3145 N Sheffield, Chicago, 773.472.0449 Metro 3730 N Clark St, Chicago, 773.549.0203 Elbo Room 2871 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago Park West 322 W Armitage, Chicago, 773.929.1322 Riviera Theatre 4746 N Racine at Lawerence, Chicago Allstate Arena 6920 N Mannheim Rd, Rosemont, 847.635.6601 Arie Crown Theatre 2300 S Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, 312.791.6000 UIC Pavilion 1150 W Harrison, Chicago, 312.413.5700 Schubas 3159 N Southport, Chicago, 773.525.2508 Martyrs 3855 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, 773.288.4545 Aragon 1106 W Lawerence, Chicago, 773.561.9500 Abbey Pub 3420 W Grace, Chicago, 773.478.4408 Fireside Bowl 2646 W Fullerton Ave, Chicago, 773.486.2700 Schubert Theatre 22 W Monroe, Chicago, 312.977.1700

ART LISTINGS Workshop – Register now to join artist-instructor Sandra Ahten for "Drawing More" a one day workshop held on Oct. 25th to inspire you to dust off your sketch pad. Call (217) 367-6345 or email spiritofsandra@hotmail.com to register. High Cross Studio. 1101 N High Cross Road.

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music

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | HOT BOD

CDReviews

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THE STROKES Room on fire RCA

★★★

BY LOGAN MOORE

Portraits – Award winning portrait artist Sandra Ahten is currently accepting commissions for portraits for holiday giving. Portraits are priced at an affordable range and professional exchange or barter may be accepted. For examples of work and a quote, contact Sandra Ahten at (217) 367-6345 or spiritofsandra@hotmail.com Creation Art Studio Art Classes for Children and Adults – All classes offer technical instruction and the exploration of materials through expressive, spontaneous art and experimentation. Independent studies of personal interests and ideas, dreams, etc. are expressed and developed through collage and assemblage art and through drawing, painting, sculpture and ceramics. Children meet once a week, Mon-Thu 3:30-5pm. Adolescents meet Fri 45:30pm. Adults meet Wed at 10am and Sat between 1:305:30pm for two or more hours. Create designs, a still life, portraits, landscapes and more. Open to beginners and advanced students. Adult Open Studio meets Tue 7-9pm.

Drop-ins welcome. Come with a friend. Call to make special arrangements for a group. CPDU's offered. For information, contact Jeannine Bestoso at 344-6955. Creation Art Studio is located at 1102 E Washington, Urbana. www.creationartstudios.com Join Artists and Workshops at Gallery Virtu – Gallery Virtu, an artist-owned cooperative, now invite applications from area artists. The Gallery also offers workshops for adults, teens and children in knitting, embroidery, photography, jewelry making, printmaking, papermaking, bookbinding and ribbon flowers. Gallery Virtu offers original works by the members including: jewelry, pottery, collages, sculptures, journals, hats, handbags and other textiles. For more information please call 762-7790, visit our web site at www.galleryvirtu.org, e-mail workshops@galleryvirtu.org or visit the gallery. Regular hours: Thu 12-4pm, Fri 12-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm. 220 W Washington Street in Monticello.

Art Classes at High Cross Studio – All classes are held at High Cross Studio in Urbana. 1101 N High Cross Road. Email or call for reservations and details. (217) 367-6345 or spiritofsandra@hotmail.com..

“Portrait Paintings with Oils” – This course will provide instruction in painting portraits from photographs. Paint a portrait of your loved one or yourself. Mon-Fri daytime

class and weekend workshop offered.

"Collage for the Soul" – Students will learn a variety of collage techniques, including photo and photocopy transfer, papermaking and manipulation, and frontage, while exploring a particular subject, such as a place, a memory, an experience or a relationship. No art-making experience necessary.

"Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" – For adults who have always wanted to learn to draw, but felt as if they lacked talent or confidence.

Other Classes:“Making Monoprints,”“Art With Intention” (Open Studio) – For information on these visit http://www.spiritofsandra.com and click on "classes," then e-mail or call for reservations.

ART GALLERIES & EXHIBITS Boneyard Pottery – Ceramic Art by Michael Schwegmann and more. 403 Water St, Champaign. Tue-Sat 11am-5pm.

355-5610.

Broken Oak Gallery – Local and national artists. Original art including photography, watercolors, pottery, oil paintings, colored pencil, woodturning and more. Refreshments served by the garden all day Saturday. 1865 N 1225 E Rd., White Heath. Thu-Sat 10am-4pm. 762-4907.

Cinema Galley – Local and regional artists including many University of Illinois and Parkland College faculty members. Currently on display through Nov 9:“Alpha and Omega” by Glen C. Davies. 120 W Main, Urbana. Tue-Sat 10am-4pm. Sun 1-5pm. 367-3711.

Cafe Kopi – Swimming oil paintings and various works from local artist Paula McCarty on display through Oct. 109 N Walnut, Champaign. Mon-Thu 7am-11pm, Fri-Sat 7am12pm, Sun 11am-8pm. 359-4266.

Creation Art Studios – Hosts a continuous and evolving display of works by students and associates of the studio.

Landscapes, florals, animal life and expressive art in various mediums by Jeannine Bestoso are also currently on display. For information, contact Jeannine Bestoso. 1102 E

All right friendly readers, we’re going to play a little game here, a little make believe if you will. Imagine for a moment that you, the hip, discerning music lover, are at a family reunion that you never really wanted to attend in the first place. This family reunion will represent the mainstream music press. The Strokes, as a group, are your rich cousin from New York whom you’ve never met, but have heard great things about from all the wrong relatives. Rolling Stone is sort of like your well-meaning, sweet, yet entirely senile grandmother. In the throes of Alzheimer’s, grandma loves all your relatives regardless of personal merit, just as long as they’re not too loud and remind her of someone her own age. Spin is sort of like your out-of-touch, wannabe hipster uncle. Despite his transparent sarcasm, the stench of desperation is all over him as everyone can sense that endorsing your “cool, young” cousin (The Strokes, stay with me kids) provides him with a sense that he himself is also cool, although everyone else knows better. So in essence, having never met your cousin, you already don’t like the bastard. Spending time with some rich twit who hangs out with your grandmother sounds about as much fun as a fucking hangover. You leave the family reunion to go have a smoke and bump into a nice fellow whom you have a pretty cool discussion with.You share a cigarette; you talk about the Velvet Underground. You don’t find out till later that the guy is your cousin, and truth be told, you kinda like him.

So it goes with The Strokes new album Room on Fire. Sure, you wanna hate it. I did too. I love to rip on guys endorsed by Rolling Stone. (Although no one more than John Mayer.) The Strokes are rich, hip, and come armed with the sort of British critical hyperbole, that makes other critics rethink their chosen profession. Fortunately,The Strokes are not the saviors of rock, just a very good band, and Room on Fire is just as catchy and addictive as Is This It? That is, of course, not what their detractors want to hear, but, believe me, I’m right and they’re all too busy listening to Godspeed You Black Emperor! to care what I have to say anyway. The music is what matters folks, and The Strokes have managed to piece together another album of very good guitar pop.

Room on Fire hits you right out of the gate. Hand claps, and a trademark one-note guitar attack give about 10 seconds of exposition before breaking into one of the catchiest, jangliest choruses on the album. Julian Casablancas hollers about “wanting to be forgotten” like some lovable drunken debutante. Though the attack may be a little tighter, The Strokes still sound like The Strokes, which is a good thing.

One suspects that no one is taking the British press less seriously than The Strokes themselves; no grand keyboard washes or lilting string sections here. They prefer to kick it like it’s 1979. “Automatic Stop” is all choppy reggae guitar and crooning before segueing into a crazy new-wave chorus replete with guitars done up like synthesizers. “12:51” drags the “guitar-esizer” back again for a solo on the chorus that I can only describe to you as something you’ll want to listen to again as soon as you hear it. Like The Cars. The farthest The Strokes ever stray outside of their comfort zone is the ersatz soul of “Under Control” which also happens to be one of the prettiest moments on the album.

Listen, if well-done guitar pop is not your thing, don’t bother with The Strokes. They don’t use more than two or three chords a song, they don’t draw from a large pool of musical resources, and they certainly aren’t anything you would describe as “cinematic”. The Strokes are not a great band. Great bands are influential not simply a product of their influences. The Strokes are simply a very good band, who have made another remarkably catchy album that’s pop without being incredibly retarded. So if you own and enjoy any albums by say, Guided by Voices or The New

Pornographers, there’s no reason you shouldn’t enjoy Room on Fire. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to hang out with all my new friends in the British music press industry and pretend to like the new album by The Datsuns.

Fri., Oct. 24 Hip Hop and R&B $2 well drinks $1 bottles no cover before 11 pm

SANYA N’KANTA Sanya N’Kanta Cash Hill Records

★★★★

BY BRIAN MERTZ There must be something in the water here in Champaign. Take a walk through downtown Champaign on a Thursday night and three out of the four people you meet will be musicians—at least it seems that way at times.

But the musicians in this town aren’t your stereotypical, acoustic guitar strumming, Lou Reed covering hacks.There is a whole lot of creativity and originality in this town, and Sanya N’Kanta’s self-titled album helps to prove the point that should be proven by now.

Garenne Sanya N’kanta Bigby’s songs have a familiar quality to them, but they never feel like rip-offs of their influences.

From start to finish, this is a mellow album with a minimal feel that uses rock, folk, hints of reggae and trip-hop as its musical bed. Sanya N’Kanta is not for blasting in your car, but more for reflective listening in your home.

Fans of true emo groups like Ida (and unlike Dashboard Confessional) will find similar musical solace in tracks like “Tomorrow,” which maintains its fragility while still employing driving acoustic guitar lines and the fuzz of electric feedback faintly resonating in the background. But lumping Sanya N’Kanta with other emo groups too narrowly limits the sounds on the album.

There are Depeche Mode and Massive Attack-esque moments (“Your Touch”), folk-alternative sounds (“Wash”) and even tiny traces of dance floor backbeat (“Break Down These Walls”). What is most impressive about this album is the sense of fearlessness that comes through. There is no fear in experimenting with layering different sounds and styles over one another. There is no fear to record an independent release that has no rocking anthem. There is no fear to follow a vision from start to finish. That by itself is refreshing.

Lyrically, Bigby does a good job of creating somber words to go with the mellow music. In “One Tear”Bigby sings,“What she calls love / I call addiction / She doesn’t get high / She’s been beat down too low.” It is a beautiful thing to hear an artist have their lyrics, their singing and their instruments all existing in harmony on every song.

After one listen, Sanya N’kanta’s album sounds very fresh.

Repeated listening shows that Bigby’s vocal range stays in the same pseudo-falsetto area for all 11 tracks. While it gives it a certain Elliot Smith type charm, more experimentation with the highs and lows in Bigby’s voice would match nicely with the experimentation in the instruments.

Who really knows why there are so many musicians in Champaign. But thank heavens that there is a lot of talent to go along with that drive to make music. Sanya N’kanta’s selftitled meticulous, mellow album adds another layer to the tapestry of varied sounds in Champaign and it is certainly worth picking up.

NEDELLE Republic of Two Kimchee Records

1906 W. Bradley Ave. • Champaign, IL 19 & up to Enter

Thurs., Oct. 23

In case you didn’t glean it from the title, Nedelle’s debut album is about love.

It’s a surprisingly difficult topic to pull off well, especially on a first record; one runs the risk of being cliché, ridiculous or even boring when singing songs about the most-used subject in music history.

Nedelle gets away with it because she keeps her lyrics simple and her melodies beautiful. The opening track on the record is “These Days,” a song that comes in at under a minute, but still manages to grab the listener’s attention (and no, it’s not an Alien Ant Farm cover).

The most striking thing about this album is the vocals.

Nedelle’s voice is unique and soulful, and the background harmonies are insistent and compliment her mellow singing well.

Nedelle is clearly both a romantic and a musician with a good sense of her jazz roots. It’s not surprising considering that she comes from a family of musicians—her mother is a piano player and her father was a jazz drummer.

Fri., Oct. 31

Living Boxing and Wet T-Shirt Contest $250 cash and prizes

X Crush Halloween Costume Party

The Aragon in Chicago

★★★★

BY LIZ MOZZOCCO

11

1106 W. Lawrence at Broadway

HALLOWEEN! Friday, October 31 7:00pm • All Ages An all-girl tribute to Bon Scott-era AD/DC

with special guest

Saturday, November 1

7:00pm • All Ages

with special guest TO BE ANNOUNCED High quality concert recordings available right after the show

Outlets

217-351-2626 or ticketmaster.com www.jamusa.com

A

PRODUCTION

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IS IT TIME FOR SLEEP YET? | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Republic of Two has a vintage sound reminiscent of 1950s soul and jazz that draws the listener in because it seems totally unintentional.

The title track stands out as being the most modern song on the album and details the desire to block out the rest of the world for the one you love. I must admit that I cringed the first time I heard Nedelle croon “I might end up alone, like at my high school dance.” But in the end even the most cynical listener succumbs to the charm of the female vocals and romantic strings.

It’s not all about contentment in love, though. Many of the songs on the record are about the more melancholy side of things, from “Let Me Explain,” an apology to the girl whose man the singer has just stolen, to “My Tendency,” which tells the familiar story of a person who falls in love too easily. And then there’s the slightly more obsessive “Possess Me,” which would have been way cooler if it was called “Hell No, You Don’t Own Me, Bitch,” but that’s an entirely different song for a different singer.

The album wraps up with the unexpected and pretty “Grow Willow Grow.” It’s an appropriate ending for a record that is both well-written and unique and appeals to the often repressed romantic in all of us.

BASEMENT JAXX Kish Kash Astralwerks

★★

BY BRIAN MERTZ Each of Basement Jaxx’s albums start out with a swooshing sound like a spaceship is landing on your eardrums as a woman breathily whispers, “Basement ... Jaxx ....” And for their previous two releases, Remedy and Rooty, what followed that whisper was groundbreaking dance music.

But on their third full-length album, Kish Kash, what follows are 11 mostly unremarkable tracks that feel destined to be forgotten in a few years time.

Basement Jaxx’s sound has always been hard to pin down.They’ve used house beats in some of their biggest hits (“Red Alert,” “Romeo” and “Rendez-Vous”), but there have always been dirty filters and choppy samples. Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe’s “punk house”sound has been often imitated since they finished up Remedy, but no one has done it as well as them. Kish Kash, though, may signal that the Jaxx’s gritty sound has become played out.

There are still some great singles on this album. Teaming up with underground UK MC Dizzee Rascal, the track “Lucky Star” will move feet in its original form and the inevitable remixes that will follow. The faint use of a Middle Eastern

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sample as Rascal’s rhymes play off the herky-jerky beats makes an infectious mess that should light up dance floors all over the world.

Unlike previous Jaxx releases, which maintained a certain level of quality throughout the course of the album, Kish Kash has some painfully boring low points.

The track “Supersonic” feels like the introduction of a song that builds to absolutely nothing over its five minutes.

The guest vocals of Meshell Ndegeocello are pretty on “Right Here’s The Spot,”but the beats sit right on the fence between danceable and electronic music to chill to—making the track fail because of its own indecision.

While Basement Jaxx have always used hints of electro in their music, it is that pretentious style of dance music for New York art school types that overpowers almost everything on Kish Kash.

The need to sound hip and with 2003’s dance genre du jour has eliminated the sense of humor and the bubbling fun that was present in all of Basement Jaxx’s past material, including their remixes. Want proof? Look to the punk-electroclash track “Cish Cash”to see just how uninviting it is compared to a tune like “Jus One Kiss” or even the intentionally abrasive “Where’s Your Head At?” Basement Jaxx, purely because of their talent, will always make albums that are above and beyond many of the millions of DJs and producers in the world of electronic music.

The simple fact that they are making full-length albums instead of just cranking out remixes and singles and packaging them together is worth a lot of praise in the world of electronic music.

Kish Kash is one of the best electronic albums of 2003. But that isn’t saying much considering that this has been a subpar year for dance music in general (due mainly to the resurgence of electro).

Kish Kash is probably the low point of Basement Jaxx’s impressive career. It doesn’t have the dancefloor magic of Remedy. And not once does Kish Kash have a trace of the humor and careless fun found on Rooty. The Jaxx have strayed from what they truly do best.

Here’s to hoping that after the next whispered “Basement Jaxx ...”the music that follows for their fourth album will have Simon and Felix back in their old mind-blowing form.

MUSIC REVIEW GUIDE

★★★★ ★★★ ★★ ★ no stars

Flawless Good Mediocre Bad Un-listenable

Picture this: You take a girl out to dinner. You pay for the meal.

Hours later she breaks your heart. Capturing all of the anger of this breakup scenario, Ben Folds loudly sings,“Give me my money back, give me my money back, you bitch.” The tone of the tune has the humor of hindsight, but the clever and accurate lyrics are ones that anyone going through a breakup will want to sing along with at the top of their lungs. It is one of the classic tunes from the album, Whatever and Ever, Amen. And for those of you looking for the somber, more self-loathing, wallowing in pity tunes, look for “Evaporated,” the song that wraps up this Ben Folds Five masterpiece.

2.“I’m Only Happy When it Rains” Garbage

Hard-edged guitars and Shirley Manson’s in your face vocals capture the intense emotions that can come during a breakup. The semi-ironic lyrics to the song (“You want to hear about my new obsession/I’m riding high upon a deep depression”) give off a “fuck it all” attitude that people adopt as a defense mechanism through the tough times. Celebrate your depression with this rock anthem.

CHARTS PARASOL RECORDS TOP 10 SELLERS 1. The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow (Sub Pop Records) 2. Poster Children - No More Songs About Sleep and Fire (A Hidden Agenda Record) 3. Yo La Tengo - Today Is The Day (Matador Records) 4. The Stills - Logic Will Break Your Heart (Vice Records) 5. Coco B’s/Eskimohunter Fast-Trak Holy Nova Symphony (Grand Theft Autumn Records) 6. Brighter "Singles: 1989-1992" (Matinée Recordings) 7. DJ Shadow - Live at ICA (Mind The Gap Records) 8. Belle And Sebastian - Dear Catastrophe Waitress (Rough Trade Records) 9. Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism (Barsuk Records) 10. Kingsbury Manx - Aztec Discipline (Overcoat Records)

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Bedroom Walls - I Saw You Coming Back to Me Celine Dion - 1 Fille & 4 Types Billy Ray Cyrus - The Other Side Joshua Bell - Romance of the Violin Bottle Rockets - Blue Sky Harry Connick, Jr. - Harry for the Holidays The Moody Blues - December Gerald Levert - A Stroke of Genius Steve Tyrell - This Guys in Love The Urinals - What Is Real and What Is Not Marty Goetz - Songs of Israel Motivo - Motivo Denali - The Instinct Hatebreed - The Rise of Brutality Erase Errata - At Crystal Palace

Next week: Top five cover songs. e-mail us at music@readbuzz.com

Irish Traditional Music Session hosted by fiddler Lisa Boucher – Mike 'n Molly's, 5pm, free Nickelback, Trapt, Three Days Grace – Assembly Hall, 7:30pm, $25.50 Flowers Jam – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA The Blues Jam hosted by Kilborn Alley – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $2 The Blackouts w/American Minor – The Highdive, 8pm, $5/donation a benefit organized by friends of Garnet Litherford

DJ Fresh Face DJ – Barfly, 9pm, free Blends by Otter – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, free Reel to Reel and the Wheels of Steel: Spicerack Movies with soundtrack provided by DJ Spinnerty and DJ Bozak – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1

Sure, it might be bordering on cliché these days considering how many times it has been used in sappy movie soundtracks and television shows.

However, the U2 refrain of “I can’t live, with or without you” still manages to capture the thoughts and feelings of some of the most difficult breakups. Toss in the fact that Bono has the ability to create absolute melancholy with his vocals, and you have one of those songs to have on endless repeat as you lie in bed all day.

4.“You Oughta Know” Alanis Morissette

As Alanis Morissette exploded onto the scene with Jagged Little Pill and her first single “You Oughta Know,” America had its hardcore woman rocker revolution. Alanis belts out her grievances with her former partner and she means it.

Previous female artists had not penetrated the mainstream with the same level of intense singing and songwriting and Alanis’ songs sound as though they were pulled from her diary. She exorcises her inner demons on this track and luckily connected with a large audience.

5.“Miss You” The Rolling Stones

You know after the “big” breakup that one’s thoughts are constantly preoccupied with how things went wrong and what could have been done to prevent it. When this happens we often forget our friends in our introverted state.

“Miss You” encapsulates this occurrence better than any other song as Mick Jagger sings, “Hey, what’s the matter man?/We’re gonna come around 12/With some Puerto Rican girl that’s just dying to meet you/We’re going to bring a case of wine/Hey, let’s go mess and fool around, you know, like we used to.”

Reader’s Top 5 1.“Screaming Infidelities” Dashboard Confessional 2.“No Sensitivity” Jimmy Eat World 3.“Never Meant” American Football 4.“Pretty Pathetic” Smoking Popes 5.“Left & Leaving” The Weakerthans Submitted by Jeff Glotfelty

COMEDY Spicy Clamato Improv Comedy – Courtyard Cafe, 9pm, free

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Latin Percussion Workshop – Bring an instrument if you have one – La Casa, 4pm

ON STAGE Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde – an intimate look at the trials that destroyed the most celebrated playwright of his time – 7:30pm, $6-13

WednesdayOctober29 LIVE MUSIC

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Joan Kwuon, violin – concerto soloist – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 3pm

DJ

Open Mic – Poetry/Spoken Word hosted by Illusion - The Canopy Club, 7pm, $2

Teen Film Festival – Sixteen Candles, 1pm, Dead Poets Society, 4pm, Scary Movie, 7pm – Virginia Theatre

MondayOctober27 LIVE MUSIC Openingbands.com Showcase: Lorenzo Goetz, Kate Hathaway Band, The Idle Hours – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $3 Papa M, EZ t, Water Between Continents – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $8

DJ 2ON2OUT – Barfly, 9pm, free Meghan McCann, Amy Couch – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, free

de Bono Improv Comedy – Courtyard Cafe, 9pm, free

MUSIC PERFORMANCES

ON STAGE Chocolate in Heat-Growing Up Arab in America – a set of five interlocking monologues infused with music and dance – Krannert Art Museum, Room 62, 7pm

TuesdayOctober28 LIVE MUSIC Verde Hootenanny – bluegrass jam – Verdant News & Coffee, 7pm, free Open Mic Night – Espresso Royale Caffe, 7:30pm, free The Jimmy Legs Practice – Senators Pub, 8pm, TBA Open Mic/Open Jam hosted by Tom Grassman – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $2 Will Rogers Acoustic Night – Tommy G’s, 9pm, free

DJ Drew Patterson (from 107.1) – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, free DJ Hoff – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1 NOX: DJ ZoZo, DJ Kannibal – The Highdive, 10pm, $2 Seduction by DJ Resonate – Barfly, 10pm, free

DANCING Latin Dance Night – salsa, some cha-cha, meringue and bachata; everyone is welcome – McKinley Foundation, 9:45pm

Come visit our free haunted house this weekend!

•Retail and rental costumes •Theatrical and clown makeup •Face painting supplies

Beth Davis Band – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Open Mic Night hosted by Brandon T. Washington – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $2 American Minor, The Orphans, KaitO – Cafe Paradiso, 811pm, all ages Kilborn Alley – Tommy G’s, 9pm, free

WORDS

Community Drum Circle – All levels welcome – Ten Thousand Villages, 7-9pm

3.“With or Without You” U2

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LIVE MUSIC

FILM

NEW RELEASES

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OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com

COMEDY

Breakup songs

1.“Song for the Dumped” Ben Folds Five

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DJ Chef Ra Reggae – Barfly, 9pm, free DJ Joel Spencer – Mike 'n Molly, 10pm, $1 Live DJ – C-Street, 9pm, no cover D-lo & Spinnerty – The Highdive, 10pm

CHICAGOSHOWS OCTOBER 10/23 Thin Lizzy @ Double Door 10/23 Broadcast, Iron and WIne @ Abbey Club 10/23 Puddle of Mudd @ House of Blues 10/23 India Arie @ The Vic 10/24 Guster @ Aragon 10/24 Cowboy Mouth, Cracker @ House of Blues 10/24 Aesop Rock @ Metro 10/24 Gov’t Mule, Chris Robinson @ The Vic 10/25 The Walkmen @ Double Door 10/25 Cameron McGill @ Schubas 10/25 Clem Snide @ Logan Square Auditorium 10/25 Particle @ Metro 10/25 Reo Speedwagon @ Star Plaza 10/26 Echo and the Bunnymen @ Metro 10/28 Spiritualized @ The Vic 10/28 Travis @ Riviera 10/29 Fuel @ House of Blues 10/29 American Analog Set @ Abbey Club, 18 & over 10/29 Lyle Lovett @ Chicago Theatre 10/29 Echo & The Bunnymen @ Metro 10/30 Alkaline Trio @ Aragon Ballroom 10/30 Belle & Sebastian @ Congress Theatre 10/30 Mojave 3 @ Abbey Pub 10/31 Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe @ House of Blues 10/31 North Mississippi Allstars, Grandaddy @ Congress Theater

NOVEMBER 11/1 Black Keys @ Abbey Club 11/1 Mya @ House of Blues 11/1 Emmylou Harris @ Symphony Center 11/1 Dirtbombs @ Double Door 11/2 Rza, Ghostface Killah @ House of Blues 11/2 Verbena @ Metro 11/5 Stars @ Schubas 11/6 Less Than Jake @ Riviera Theater 11/6 Maroon5 @ House of Blues 11/6 The Rapture @ Metro 11/6 Xiu Xiu @ Fireside Bowl 11/7 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy @ House of Blues 11/7 Ween @ The Vic 11/7 David Mead @ Schubas 11/7 Flickerstick @ Metro 11/7 Ferry Corsten & DJ Rap @ House of Blues 11/8 King Crimson @ Park West 11/8 Ween @ The Vic 11/8 Twilight Singers @ Double Door 11/8 Godsmack @ Aragon 11/7 Dropkick Murphys @ Congress Theater 11/9 King Crimson @ Park West 11/10 Billy Bragg, Nightwatchman, Lester Chambers @ Park West, all ages 11/12 Badly Drawn Boy @ Park West 11/13 Mike Doughty’s Band @ Double Door 11/13 Rickie Lee Jones @ Chicago Theatre

•Wigs, hats and accessories •Decorations galore!

•Strobes & Blacklights too.

101 E. University • FREE PARKING IN REAR • Mon-Fri: 10-9 Sat: 10-8 Sun: 12-6 • 351-5974

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LIVE JAZZ at s sen e elg yhem H a f Jef zz M $ 3 Ja 627 E. GREEN 344-0710

TONIGHT AT 9:30 $3.00 COVER

WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

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ThursdayOctober23 LIVE MUSIC U of I #3 Big Band – Iron Post, 7pm Lamonte Parsons Jazz Trio – Senators Pub, 8pm Solips, The Danger, Legs for Days, FeeD – Cowboy Monkey, 9pm, $4 Jeff Helgesen's Jazz Mayhem – Zorba's, 9:30, $3 Darkstar Orchestra – Grateful Dead cover band – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $15 One Night Stand – Iron Post, 10pm, TBA Darrin Drda – eclectic/folk – Aroma Cafe, 8-10pm

DJ DJ J-Phlip – Barfly, 9pm, free Live DJ – C-Street, 9pm, free Live DJ – Ruby’s, 9pm-1am, free DJ Orby – Joe’s Brewery, 11pm-2am, free DJ Resonate and DJ Bozak – The Highdive, 10pm, $5

ON STAGE Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A blood-thirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming?

They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

Krannert Center, 5pm, free

ON STAGE Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A blood-thirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming?

They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

FILM Teen Film Festival – Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 7pm, Friday The 13th, 10pm – Virginia Theatre

LECTURES E. J. Josey: The Impact of Brown vs Board of Education on Libraries – Room 213, Greg Hall, UIUC, 1pm

OTHER Islam Awareness Week – Friday Seminar: 'Challenges Facing Muslim Americans' – Central Illinois Mosque, 106 S Lincoln Ave, Urbana, 8:30pm University of Illinois Library Sale – Marshall Gallery, 9am3pm Homecoming Variety Show – Foellinger Auditorium, 511pm

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Girls Next Door & Rip Chords – female a cappella groups – Courtyard Cafe, 8pm, $3 Krasnoyarsk National Dance Company of Siberia – From a vast, harsh, arctic Russian landscape comes a lively, colorful folkloric dance company showing the indomitable spirit of the people of Siberia and revealing their cultural wealth – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 7pm Twelve Twenty Concert Series – Anonymous 5 Woodwind Quintet – Beckman Institute, 12:20-12:50pm

OTHER Islamic Awareness Week – Introduction to Islam. Get all your questions answered!' – 124 Burril Hall, 7pm University of Illinois Library Book Sale – Marshall Gallery, east foyer, main library, 9am-4pm

FridayOctober24 LIVE MUSIC The Bryan Holloway Somethin' – Cowboy Monkey, 5pm, free Jeff Helgesen Quintet – Iron Post, 5pm, TBA Homecoming Happy Hour: Finite Element – Kam's, 5pm, free Vans Off the Wall Club Tour: Sick of it All, The Unseen, August Premier, Western Waste, Destruction Made Simple – Courtyard Cafe, 7pm, $8 Gabe Rosen, Larry Gates – Embassy Tavern, 8:30pm, free Deconstructing Jim, Chrissy Dzioba – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Temple of Low Men, oh my god – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $5 Parkland Big Band – The Highdive, 5:30-7:30pm, $3 Reasonable Doubt – Uncle Buck’s, Mahomet, 8:30pm12:30am Happy Hour: Billy Galt and Ed O’Hara – Tommy G’s, 57pm, free Renegade – Tommy G’s, 10pm-2am, cover Phaze II – The Phoenix, 9pm

SaturdayOctober25 LIVE MUSIC Doug Hoekstra – Pages for All Ages, 7pm, free Dada, Nadafinga – The Highdive, 7:15pm, $12 Celebration Tour: Michael W. Smith, Mercy Me – Assembly Hall, 7:30pm, $28.50 G. Lee – Borders, 8pm, free Ballast, Rye Field Crane, TBA – hardcore - IDF, 8pm, $5 Candy Foster and Shades of Blue – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Deadbeats – Embassy Tavern, 9:30pm, free Roscoe Plush, Illini Contraband – The Canopy Club, 10pm, TBA Fotamana, Dan Darrah – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $3 Maurice and the Mindset – Tommy G’s, 10pm-2am, cover Blockheads California Street Block Party – bands, food, face painting, fun – 700 block of California, 3-9pm

DJ The Noiseboy, Todd Hunter, Jennifer Stewart, Jason Kwiatkowski – '80s spins – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1 DJ Tim Williams – The Highdive, 10:30pm, $5 Saturday Night at Wendl’s with DJ Brad – TK Wendl’s, 9pm-1am “G” Force DJ Chris – White Horse Inn, 9pm-1am DJ Hipster Sophisto – Barfly, 9pm, free

KARAOKE

“G” Force Karaoke & DJ – Lincoln Castle, 9pm-1am

MUSIC PERFORMANCES UI Chamber Singers –singing the Herbert Howells Requiem in memory of Harold Decker's career in the U of I Choral Department – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 7:30pm, $5

ON STAGE

DJ Bozak and DJ Mertz – Barfly, 10pm, free “G” Force DJ Chad – TK Wendl’s, 9pm-1am DJ Tim Williams – The Highdive, 10pm, $5

Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A bloodthirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming? They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

KARAOKE

FILM

DJ

“G” Force Karaoke and DJ – Lincoln Castle Lodge, 9pm1am

DANCING Ballroom Dancing – Non-smoking, cash bar – Regent Ballroom, 7:30-10:30pm, $7 Salsa Dancing – Non-smoking, cash bar; dress code: no blue jeans, tennis shoes or hats – Regent Ballroom, 11pm-1am, $4

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Traffic Jam: The Delta Kings – in conjunction with the Krannert Art Museum photo exhibit "Visualizing the Blues" (Sept. 5-Nov. 2), Krannert Center hosts a blues jam with Champaign's own roadhouse roots-rockers – Lobby,

Teen Film Festival – Billy Madison , 1pm, Pretty In Pink, 4pm, The Breakfast Club, 7pm, American Pie, 10pm, Scream, midnight, Virginia Theatre

OTHER African American Homecoming Comedy, Fashion and Freestyle – Foellinger Auditorium, noon-8pm Japan House Fall Open House – Japan House, 2000 S Lincoln Ave, 10am-4pm

buzz

music

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | MMMM ... TIME FOR DOS

The women of rock ‘n’ roll A note from Seth Fein: One of the reasons why I decided to write for Buzz was to offer the community a small place for opinions to be shared about the way music affects our lives. Because no person is an island, especially men who are 5 feet 7 inches tall, the Mendoza Music Line will begin having guest columnists on a regular basis.

It's very important to me for the whole community to be able to contribute to something that affects us all. Got something to say about the scene? E-mail me at sethfein@readbuzz.com. If we think it's good, consider it printed. Enjoy this week's column.

MENDOZA MUSIC LINE

BY LIZ MOZZOCCO | STAFF WRITER

A

few nights ago, I was sitting in a Champaign bar when I had a strange realization about the six other people at the table with me. They were all talking about music, and all of them were in some way involved in the music scene in town. None of this was particularly unusual, but as the bar started to clear out it occurred to me that there was a fundamental difference between myself and my companions; everyone else at the table was male.

It’s something that I’ve started to notice more and more recently. Anytime I hear a relevant music discussion taking place, I feel like I’m the only girl who’s interested in joining in.

Whenever I turn on the radio in my car, I hear mostly men’s voices. Every time I catch a glimpse of a woman on the cover of Rolling Stone I become more convinced that their editors have been brainwashed to believe they’re actually working for Maxim.

I’m very tempted to drag out an old argument on this topic: that there’s a double standard and many talented women get ignored by the mainstream music world because they just don’t look the part. But it’s easy enough to rip into Britney Spears (we all know that negative attention is 80 percent of the reason she’s famous); things get a little more complex when considering female artists who reside outside of the realm of teen pop. Take, for instance, Sheryl Crow, Jewel, Liz Phair or any biggername lady who showed up on the scene with a seeming amount of respectability.

Now, I should put in a disclaimer. I am not a fan of any of the above-mentioned artists, but I also don’t have any particular hatred for them (I reserve that kind of disgust at top 40 adult contemporary for everyone’s favorite Canadian goose, Celine Dion). However, despite my general lack of interest in people like Jewel and Sheryl Crow, I have noticed a somewhat disturbing trend in their careers.

[

It seems that, after you’ve had your first dose of big success in the music world, you’ve got to come up with a ploy to keep people listening. If these ladies’ careers are any indicator of what’s happening to female artists, there is only one way for girls in rock to stick around: put on some makeup, take off some clothes, and if that doesn’t do it, start singing mindlessly vulgar songs.

There might be some criticism, but you can fight it off by claiming to be provocative and sexually liberating, even if your songs suck and are more likely to be used as masturbation fantasy material than as anthems for women’s empowerment.

But perhaps the most disturbing thing that comes to mind whenever I start thinking about women in rock is that I can’t really think of that many in the first place. There are always those staples from an earlier era of Joni Mitchell, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin and so on. But when I try to think of women making great music right now, I have a relatively short list.

And it’s not just a disease of mainstream music; when talking to a talented local musician this week, I discovered that I wasn’t the only one who noticed the lack of estrogen in the rock scene. She mentioned that it was something she had an opinion about, too.

She talked about the danger that any woman taking the stage faces: getting branded as “chick-rock” (which, in case you didn’t pick up on the slightly snotty tone of that word, sucks).

Anyone who puts their music out there has to face all the prejudices of the audience they’re singing to, but women have something extra to prove—that they’re more than just the token female. It can be intimidating.

Chicks who like to rock have to stick together. If you like to play music, write about it or even just listen to it, don’t let the prestigious amounts of testosterone inherent in any given guitar solo discourage you, because honestly, when Lil’ Kim tells me that she and Christina Aguilera got my back, I sure as hell don’t feel reassured. buzz

[

Anytime I hear a relevant music discussion taking place, I feel like I’m the only girl who’s interested in joining in

Liz Mozzocco is a senior at the University of Illinois. She is also an on-air personality at WPGU, 107.1 The Planet.

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buzzpicks Dada returns to the stage

Blockheads-Knock your block off Remember when block parties were cool, and all the neighbors would bake their finest casseroles, and don’t forget pin the tail on the donkey. Well, the block party is back, but this isn’t your mother’s block party. With bands like Animate Objects (DJ Spinnerty’s side project), Orphans, The Invisible, Finga’ Lickin’, Pointed and Gabe Rosen, Blockheads has something for everyone. The School of Metaphysics will do dream interpretations and Lix will be doing Zombie face-painting on the spot.

The party will start at 3pm and run until 9pm, but stick around because after hours shows like Triple Whip, Solips and Idle Hours will be going on. Papa John’s will be on site selling food, and Cafe Pardiso will be selling coffee.

Blockheads, Saturday, 3-9pm, 700 block of California Street, Urbana

The Actors Academy is now offering

Its Miller Time at Fat City!

STAINED GLASS CLASSES

Acting Classes

6 Week Beginning Classes $75 Tuesdays, starting Oct. 28, 7-9:30pm Wednesdays, starting Oct. 29, 7-9:30 pm Thursdays, starting Oct. 30, 9-11:30 am Thursdays, starting Oct. 30, 7-9:30 pm

at the Virginia Theatre!

Register at the Bresnan Meeting Center 706 Kenwood Road, Champaign.

Questions: 356-9053

Dada has been described as “the Police of the ‘90s,” a lofty set of shoes to fill for the alternative pop trio. “Dizz Knee Land” made waves through press outfits around the country, and Dada’s first full-length album Puzzle was noticed by mainstream music listeners. Dada continued to make albums through the late ‘90s and chose to take an abrupt musical hiatus for nearly three and a half years. They are back and touring, making a stop at The Highdive Saturday at 7:30pm. As of yet, Dada has not returned to the studio as a trio, but keep your eyes open. Dada is back, and hopefully they will be around for a while.

Dada, The Highdive, Saturday, 7:30pm

sign up online: www.glassfx.com

203 W. Park Avenue, Champaign

202 S. FIRST, Champaign

217 359 0048

For extra photos, check out readbuzz.com

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Page 1

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buzzpicks Dada returns to the stage

Blockheads-Knock your block off Remember when block parties were cool, and all the neighbors would bake their finest casseroles, and don’t forget pin the tail on the donkey. Well, the block party is back, but this isn’t your mother’s block party. With bands like Animate Objects (DJ Spinnerty’s side project), Orphans, The Invisible, Finga’ Lickin’, Pointed and Gabe Rosen, Blockheads has something for everyone. The School of Metaphysics will do dream interpretations and Lix will be doing Zombie face-painting on the spot.

The party will start at 3pm and run until 9pm, but stick around because after hours shows like Triple Whip, Solips and Idle Hours will be going on. Papa John’s will be on site selling food, and Cafe Pardiso will be selling coffee.

Blockheads, Saturday, 3-9pm, 700 block of California Street, Urbana

The Actors Academy is now offering

Its Miller Time at Fat City!

STAINED GLASS CLASSES

Acting Classes

6 Week Beginning Classes $75 Tuesdays, starting Oct. 28, 7-9:30pm Wednesdays, starting Oct. 29, 7-9:30 pm Thursdays, starting Oct. 30, 9-11:30 am Thursdays, starting Oct. 30, 7-9:30 pm

at the Virginia Theatre!

Register at the Bresnan Meeting Center 706 Kenwood Road, Champaign.

Questions: 356-9053

Dada has been described as “the Police of the ‘90s,” a lofty set of shoes to fill for the alternative pop trio. “Dizz Knee Land” made waves through press outfits around the country, and Dada’s first full-length album Puzzle was noticed by mainstream music listeners. Dada continued to make albums through the late ‘90s and chose to take an abrupt musical hiatus for nearly three and a half years. They are back and touring, making a stop at The Highdive Saturday at 7:30pm. As of yet, Dada has not returned to the studio as a trio, but keep your eyes open. Dada is back, and hopefully they will be around for a while.

Dada, The Highdive, Saturday, 7:30pm

sign up online: www.glassfx.com

203 W. Park Avenue, Champaign

202 S. FIRST, Champaign

217 359 0048

For extra photos, check out readbuzz.com

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LIVE JAZZ at s sen e elg yhem H a f Jef zz M $ 3 Ja 627 E. GREEN 344-0710

TONIGHT AT 9:30 $3.00 COVER

WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

CROSSWORD PUZZLE ON PAGE 26 A N G U L A R

T E A R O S E

N I N E R S

C A S E L A W

E S P N T H E M A G A Z I N E

A T O N C A F E K I D S L A S T Y E E N N S E S T W T F B A N A A T S N Q T F U E S I O N L A T E A T E R

T T O P

I N C L I N E D

N O R A S N O W

S A S I P S L L E A R S T H A

A S T I R P L A C E O O K E D P E F F D E L I L U X O R A N C E D G E E E P E R N O T S O N I P S D O A S I A N N A A R T O N N S O L O

ThursdayOctober23 LIVE MUSIC U of I #3 Big Band – Iron Post, 7pm Lamonte Parsons Jazz Trio – Senators Pub, 8pm Solips, The Danger, Legs for Days, FeeD – Cowboy Monkey, 9pm, $4 Jeff Helgesen's Jazz Mayhem – Zorba's, 9:30, $3 Darkstar Orchestra – Grateful Dead cover band – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $15 One Night Stand – Iron Post, 10pm, TBA Darrin Drda – eclectic/folk – Aroma Cafe, 8-10pm

DJ DJ J-Phlip – Barfly, 9pm, free Live DJ – C-Street, 9pm, free Live DJ – Ruby’s, 9pm-1am, free DJ Orby – Joe’s Brewery, 11pm-2am, free DJ Resonate and DJ Bozak – The Highdive, 10pm, $5

ON STAGE Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A blood-thirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming?

They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

Krannert Center, 5pm, free

ON STAGE Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A blood-thirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming?

They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

FILM Teen Film Festival – Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 7pm, Friday The 13th, 10pm – Virginia Theatre

LECTURES E. J. Josey: The Impact of Brown vs Board of Education on Libraries – Room 213, Greg Hall, UIUC, 1pm

OTHER Islam Awareness Week – Friday Seminar: 'Challenges Facing Muslim Americans' – Central Illinois Mosque, 106 S Lincoln Ave, Urbana, 8:30pm University of Illinois Library Sale – Marshall Gallery, 9am3pm Homecoming Variety Show – Foellinger Auditorium, 511pm

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Girls Next Door & Rip Chords – female a cappella groups – Courtyard Cafe, 8pm, $3 Krasnoyarsk National Dance Company of Siberia – From a vast, harsh, arctic Russian landscape comes a lively, colorful folkloric dance company showing the indomitable spirit of the people of Siberia and revealing their cultural wealth – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 7pm Twelve Twenty Concert Series – Anonymous 5 Woodwind Quintet – Beckman Institute, 12:20-12:50pm

OTHER Islamic Awareness Week – Introduction to Islam. Get all your questions answered!' – 124 Burril Hall, 7pm University of Illinois Library Book Sale – Marshall Gallery, east foyer, main library, 9am-4pm

FridayOctober24 LIVE MUSIC The Bryan Holloway Somethin' – Cowboy Monkey, 5pm, free Jeff Helgesen Quintet – Iron Post, 5pm, TBA Homecoming Happy Hour: Finite Element – Kam's, 5pm, free Vans Off the Wall Club Tour: Sick of it All, The Unseen, August Premier, Western Waste, Destruction Made Simple – Courtyard Cafe, 7pm, $8 Gabe Rosen, Larry Gates – Embassy Tavern, 8:30pm, free Deconstructing Jim, Chrissy Dzioba – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Temple of Low Men, oh my god – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $5 Parkland Big Band – The Highdive, 5:30-7:30pm, $3 Reasonable Doubt – Uncle Buck’s, Mahomet, 8:30pm12:30am Happy Hour: Billy Galt and Ed O’Hara – Tommy G’s, 57pm, free Renegade – Tommy G’s, 10pm-2am, cover Phaze II – The Phoenix, 9pm

SaturdayOctober25 LIVE MUSIC Doug Hoekstra – Pages for All Ages, 7pm, free Dada, Nadafinga – The Highdive, 7:15pm, $12 Celebration Tour: Michael W. Smith, Mercy Me – Assembly Hall, 7:30pm, $28.50 G. Lee – Borders, 8pm, free Ballast, Rye Field Crane, TBA – hardcore - IDF, 8pm, $5 Candy Foster and Shades of Blue – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Deadbeats – Embassy Tavern, 9:30pm, free Roscoe Plush, Illini Contraband – The Canopy Club, 10pm, TBA Fotamana, Dan Darrah – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $3 Maurice and the Mindset – Tommy G’s, 10pm-2am, cover Blockheads California Street Block Party – bands, food, face painting, fun – 700 block of California, 3-9pm

DJ The Noiseboy, Todd Hunter, Jennifer Stewart, Jason Kwiatkowski – '80s spins – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1 DJ Tim Williams – The Highdive, 10:30pm, $5 Saturday Night at Wendl’s with DJ Brad – TK Wendl’s, 9pm-1am “G” Force DJ Chris – White Horse Inn, 9pm-1am DJ Hipster Sophisto – Barfly, 9pm, free

KARAOKE

“G” Force Karaoke & DJ – Lincoln Castle, 9pm-1am

MUSIC PERFORMANCES UI Chamber Singers –singing the Herbert Howells Requiem in memory of Harold Decker's career in the U of I Choral Department – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 7:30pm, $5

ON STAGE

DJ Bozak and DJ Mertz – Barfly, 10pm, free “G” Force DJ Chad – TK Wendl’s, 9pm-1am DJ Tim Williams – The Highdive, 10pm, $5

Into the Woods – An ambivalent Cinderella? A bloodthirsty Little Red Riding Hood? A philandering Prince Charming? They're all among the cockeyed characters in this Sondheim/Lapine musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm – Colwell Playhouse, Krannert Center, 7:30pm

KARAOKE

FILM

DJ

“G” Force Karaoke and DJ – Lincoln Castle Lodge, 9pm1am

DANCING Ballroom Dancing – Non-smoking, cash bar – Regent Ballroom, 7:30-10:30pm, $7 Salsa Dancing – Non-smoking, cash bar; dress code: no blue jeans, tennis shoes or hats – Regent Ballroom, 11pm-1am, $4

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Traffic Jam: The Delta Kings – in conjunction with the Krannert Art Museum photo exhibit "Visualizing the Blues" (Sept. 5-Nov. 2), Krannert Center hosts a blues jam with Champaign's own roadhouse roots-rockers – Lobby,

Teen Film Festival – Billy Madison , 1pm, Pretty In Pink, 4pm, The Breakfast Club, 7pm, American Pie, 10pm, Scream, midnight, Virginia Theatre

OTHER African American Homecoming Comedy, Fashion and Freestyle – Foellinger Auditorium, noon-8pm Japan House Fall Open House – Japan House, 2000 S Lincoln Ave, 10am-4pm

buzz

music

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | MMMM ... TIME FOR DOS

The women of rock ‘n’ roll A note from Seth Fein: One of the reasons why I decided to write for Buzz was to offer the community a small place for opinions to be shared about the way music affects our lives. Because no person is an island, especially men who are 5 feet 7 inches tall, the Mendoza Music Line will begin having guest columnists on a regular basis.

It's very important to me for the whole community to be able to contribute to something that affects us all. Got something to say about the scene? E-mail me at sethfein@readbuzz.com. If we think it's good, consider it printed. Enjoy this week's column.

MENDOZA MUSIC LINE

BY LIZ MOZZOCCO | STAFF WRITER

A

few nights ago, I was sitting in a Champaign bar when I had a strange realization about the six other people at the table with me. They were all talking about music, and all of them were in some way involved in the music scene in town. None of this was particularly unusual, but as the bar started to clear out it occurred to me that there was a fundamental difference between myself and my companions; everyone else at the table was male.

It’s something that I’ve started to notice more and more recently. Anytime I hear a relevant music discussion taking place, I feel like I’m the only girl who’s interested in joining in.

Whenever I turn on the radio in my car, I hear mostly men’s voices. Every time I catch a glimpse of a woman on the cover of Rolling Stone I become more convinced that their editors have been brainwashed to believe they’re actually working for Maxim.

I’m very tempted to drag out an old argument on this topic: that there’s a double standard and many talented women get ignored by the mainstream music world because they just don’t look the part. But it’s easy enough to rip into Britney Spears (we all know that negative attention is 80 percent of the reason she’s famous); things get a little more complex when considering female artists who reside outside of the realm of teen pop. Take, for instance, Sheryl Crow, Jewel, Liz Phair or any biggername lady who showed up on the scene with a seeming amount of respectability.

Now, I should put in a disclaimer. I am not a fan of any of the above-mentioned artists, but I also don’t have any particular hatred for them (I reserve that kind of disgust at top 40 adult contemporary for everyone’s favorite Canadian goose, Celine Dion). However, despite my general lack of interest in people like Jewel and Sheryl Crow, I have noticed a somewhat disturbing trend in their careers.

[

It seems that, after you’ve had your first dose of big success in the music world, you’ve got to come up with a ploy to keep people listening. If these ladies’ careers are any indicator of what’s happening to female artists, there is only one way for girls in rock to stick around: put on some makeup, take off some clothes, and if that doesn’t do it, start singing mindlessly vulgar songs.

There might be some criticism, but you can fight it off by claiming to be provocative and sexually liberating, even if your songs suck and are more likely to be used as masturbation fantasy material than as anthems for women’s empowerment.

But perhaps the most disturbing thing that comes to mind whenever I start thinking about women in rock is that I can’t really think of that many in the first place. There are always those staples from an earlier era of Joni Mitchell, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin and so on. But when I try to think of women making great music right now, I have a relatively short list.

And it’s not just a disease of mainstream music; when talking to a talented local musician this week, I discovered that I wasn’t the only one who noticed the lack of estrogen in the rock scene. She mentioned that it was something she had an opinion about, too.

She talked about the danger that any woman taking the stage faces: getting branded as “chick-rock” (which, in case you didn’t pick up on the slightly snotty tone of that word, sucks).

Anyone who puts their music out there has to face all the prejudices of the audience they’re singing to, but women have something extra to prove—that they’re more than just the token female. It can be intimidating.

Chicks who like to rock have to stick together. If you like to play music, write about it or even just listen to it, don’t let the prestigious amounts of testosterone inherent in any given guitar solo discourage you, because honestly, when Lil’ Kim tells me that she and Christina Aguilera got my back, I sure as hell don’t feel reassured. buzz

[

Anytime I hear a relevant music discussion taking place, I feel like I’m the only girl who’s interested in joining in

Liz Mozzocco is a senior at the University of Illinois. She is also an on-air personality at WPGU, 107.1 The Planet.

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IS IT TIME FOR SLEEP YET? | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Republic of Two has a vintage sound reminiscent of 1950s soul and jazz that draws the listener in because it seems totally unintentional.

The title track stands out as being the most modern song on the album and details the desire to block out the rest of the world for the one you love. I must admit that I cringed the first time I heard Nedelle croon “I might end up alone, like at my high school dance.” But in the end even the most cynical listener succumbs to the charm of the female vocals and romantic strings.

It’s not all about contentment in love, though. Many of the songs on the record are about the more melancholy side of things, from “Let Me Explain,” an apology to the girl whose man the singer has just stolen, to “My Tendency,” which tells the familiar story of a person who falls in love too easily. And then there’s the slightly more obsessive “Possess Me,” which would have been way cooler if it was called “Hell No, You Don’t Own Me, Bitch,” but that’s an entirely different song for a different singer.

The album wraps up with the unexpected and pretty “Grow Willow Grow.” It’s an appropriate ending for a record that is both well-written and unique and appeals to the often repressed romantic in all of us.

BASEMENT JAXX Kish Kash Astralwerks

★★

BY BRIAN MERTZ Each of Basement Jaxx’s albums start out with a swooshing sound like a spaceship is landing on your eardrums as a woman breathily whispers, “Basement ... Jaxx ....” And for their previous two releases, Remedy and Rooty, what followed that whisper was groundbreaking dance music.

But on their third full-length album, Kish Kash, what follows are 11 mostly unremarkable tracks that feel destined to be forgotten in a few years time.

Basement Jaxx’s sound has always been hard to pin down.They’ve used house beats in some of their biggest hits (“Red Alert,” “Romeo” and “Rendez-Vous”), but there have always been dirty filters and choppy samples. Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe’s “punk house”sound has been often imitated since they finished up Remedy, but no one has done it as well as them. Kish Kash, though, may signal that the Jaxx’s gritty sound has become played out.

There are still some great singles on this album. Teaming up with underground UK MC Dizzee Rascal, the track “Lucky Star” will move feet in its original form and the inevitable remixes that will follow. The faint use of a Middle Eastern

TopFive

sample as Rascal’s rhymes play off the herky-jerky beats makes an infectious mess that should light up dance floors all over the world.

Unlike previous Jaxx releases, which maintained a certain level of quality throughout the course of the album, Kish Kash has some painfully boring low points.

The track “Supersonic” feels like the introduction of a song that builds to absolutely nothing over its five minutes.

The guest vocals of Meshell Ndegeocello are pretty on “Right Here’s The Spot,”but the beats sit right on the fence between danceable and electronic music to chill to—making the track fail because of its own indecision.

While Basement Jaxx have always used hints of electro in their music, it is that pretentious style of dance music for New York art school types that overpowers almost everything on Kish Kash.

The need to sound hip and with 2003’s dance genre du jour has eliminated the sense of humor and the bubbling fun that was present in all of Basement Jaxx’s past material, including their remixes. Want proof? Look to the punk-electroclash track “Cish Cash”to see just how uninviting it is compared to a tune like “Jus One Kiss” or even the intentionally abrasive “Where’s Your Head At?” Basement Jaxx, purely because of their talent, will always make albums that are above and beyond many of the millions of DJs and producers in the world of electronic music.

The simple fact that they are making full-length albums instead of just cranking out remixes and singles and packaging them together is worth a lot of praise in the world of electronic music.

Kish Kash is one of the best electronic albums of 2003. But that isn’t saying much considering that this has been a subpar year for dance music in general (due mainly to the resurgence of electro).

Kish Kash is probably the low point of Basement Jaxx’s impressive career. It doesn’t have the dancefloor magic of Remedy. And not once does Kish Kash have a trace of the humor and careless fun found on Rooty. The Jaxx have strayed from what they truly do best.

Here’s to hoping that after the next whispered “Basement Jaxx ...”the music that follows for their fourth album will have Simon and Felix back in their old mind-blowing form.

MUSIC REVIEW GUIDE

★★★★ ★★★ ★★ ★ no stars

Flawless Good Mediocre Bad Un-listenable

Picture this: You take a girl out to dinner. You pay for the meal.

Hours later she breaks your heart. Capturing all of the anger of this breakup scenario, Ben Folds loudly sings,“Give me my money back, give me my money back, you bitch.” The tone of the tune has the humor of hindsight, but the clever and accurate lyrics are ones that anyone going through a breakup will want to sing along with at the top of their lungs. It is one of the classic tunes from the album, Whatever and Ever, Amen. And for those of you looking for the somber, more self-loathing, wallowing in pity tunes, look for “Evaporated,” the song that wraps up this Ben Folds Five masterpiece.

2.“I’m Only Happy When it Rains” Garbage

Hard-edged guitars and Shirley Manson’s in your face vocals capture the intense emotions that can come during a breakup. The semi-ironic lyrics to the song (“You want to hear about my new obsession/I’m riding high upon a deep depression”) give off a “fuck it all” attitude that people adopt as a defense mechanism through the tough times. Celebrate your depression with this rock anthem.

CHARTS PARASOL RECORDS TOP 10 SELLERS 1. The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow (Sub Pop Records) 2. Poster Children - No More Songs About Sleep and Fire (A Hidden Agenda Record) 3. Yo La Tengo - Today Is The Day (Matador Records) 4. The Stills - Logic Will Break Your Heart (Vice Records) 5. Coco B’s/Eskimohunter Fast-Trak Holy Nova Symphony (Grand Theft Autumn Records) 6. Brighter "Singles: 1989-1992" (Matinée Recordings) 7. DJ Shadow - Live at ICA (Mind The Gap Records) 8. Belle And Sebastian - Dear Catastrophe Waitress (Rough Trade Records) 9. Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism (Barsuk Records) 10. Kingsbury Manx - Aztec Discipline (Overcoat Records)

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SundayOctober26

Bedroom Walls - I Saw You Coming Back to Me Celine Dion - 1 Fille & 4 Types Billy Ray Cyrus - The Other Side Joshua Bell - Romance of the Violin Bottle Rockets - Blue Sky Harry Connick, Jr. - Harry for the Holidays The Moody Blues - December Gerald Levert - A Stroke of Genius Steve Tyrell - This Guys in Love The Urinals - What Is Real and What Is Not Marty Goetz - Songs of Israel Motivo - Motivo Denali - The Instinct Hatebreed - The Rise of Brutality Erase Errata - At Crystal Palace

Next week: Top five cover songs. e-mail us at music@readbuzz.com

Irish Traditional Music Session hosted by fiddler Lisa Boucher – Mike 'n Molly's, 5pm, free Nickelback, Trapt, Three Days Grace – Assembly Hall, 7:30pm, $25.50 Flowers Jam – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA The Blues Jam hosted by Kilborn Alley – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $2 The Blackouts w/American Minor – The Highdive, 8pm, $5/donation a benefit organized by friends of Garnet Litherford

DJ Fresh Face DJ – Barfly, 9pm, free Blends by Otter – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, free Reel to Reel and the Wheels of Steel: Spicerack Movies with soundtrack provided by DJ Spinnerty and DJ Bozak – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1

Sure, it might be bordering on cliché these days considering how many times it has been used in sappy movie soundtracks and television shows.

However, the U2 refrain of “I can’t live, with or without you” still manages to capture the thoughts and feelings of some of the most difficult breakups. Toss in the fact that Bono has the ability to create absolute melancholy with his vocals, and you have one of those songs to have on endless repeat as you lie in bed all day.

4.“You Oughta Know” Alanis Morissette

As Alanis Morissette exploded onto the scene with Jagged Little Pill and her first single “You Oughta Know,” America had its hardcore woman rocker revolution. Alanis belts out her grievances with her former partner and she means it.

Previous female artists had not penetrated the mainstream with the same level of intense singing and songwriting and Alanis’ songs sound as though they were pulled from her diary. She exorcises her inner demons on this track and luckily connected with a large audience.

5.“Miss You” The Rolling Stones

You know after the “big” breakup that one’s thoughts are constantly preoccupied with how things went wrong and what could have been done to prevent it. When this happens we often forget our friends in our introverted state.

“Miss You” encapsulates this occurrence better than any other song as Mick Jagger sings, “Hey, what’s the matter man?/We’re gonna come around 12/With some Puerto Rican girl that’s just dying to meet you/We’re going to bring a case of wine/Hey, let’s go mess and fool around, you know, like we used to.”

Reader’s Top 5 1.“Screaming Infidelities” Dashboard Confessional 2.“No Sensitivity” Jimmy Eat World 3.“Never Meant” American Football 4.“Pretty Pathetic” Smoking Popes 5.“Left & Leaving” The Weakerthans Submitted by Jeff Glotfelty

COMEDY Spicy Clamato Improv Comedy – Courtyard Cafe, 9pm, free

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Latin Percussion Workshop – Bring an instrument if you have one – La Casa, 4pm

ON STAGE Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde – an intimate look at the trials that destroyed the most celebrated playwright of his time – 7:30pm, $6-13

WednesdayOctober29 LIVE MUSIC

MUSIC PERFORMANCES Joan Kwuon, violin – concerto soloist – Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center, 3pm

DJ

Open Mic – Poetry/Spoken Word hosted by Illusion - The Canopy Club, 7pm, $2

Teen Film Festival – Sixteen Candles, 1pm, Dead Poets Society, 4pm, Scary Movie, 7pm – Virginia Theatre

MondayOctober27 LIVE MUSIC Openingbands.com Showcase: Lorenzo Goetz, Kate Hathaway Band, The Idle Hours – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $3 Papa M, EZ t, Water Between Continents – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $8

DJ 2ON2OUT – Barfly, 9pm, free Meghan McCann, Amy Couch – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, free

de Bono Improv Comedy – Courtyard Cafe, 9pm, free

MUSIC PERFORMANCES

ON STAGE Chocolate in Heat-Growing Up Arab in America – a set of five interlocking monologues infused with music and dance – Krannert Art Museum, Room 62, 7pm

TuesdayOctober28 LIVE MUSIC Verde Hootenanny – bluegrass jam – Verdant News & Coffee, 7pm, free Open Mic Night – Espresso Royale Caffe, 7:30pm, free The Jimmy Legs Practice – Senators Pub, 8pm, TBA Open Mic/Open Jam hosted by Tom Grassman – The Canopy Club, 10pm, $2 Will Rogers Acoustic Night – Tommy G’s, 9pm, free

DJ Drew Patterson (from 107.1) – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, free DJ Hoff – Mike 'n Molly's, 10pm, $1 NOX: DJ ZoZo, DJ Kannibal – The Highdive, 10pm, $2 Seduction by DJ Resonate – Barfly, 10pm, free

DANCING Latin Dance Night – salsa, some cha-cha, meringue and bachata; everyone is welcome – McKinley Foundation, 9:45pm

Come visit our free haunted house this weekend!

•Retail and rental costumes •Theatrical and clown makeup •Face painting supplies

Beth Davis Band – Iron Post, 9pm, TBA Open Mic Night hosted by Brandon T. Washington – Cowboy Monkey, 10pm, $2 American Minor, The Orphans, KaitO – Cafe Paradiso, 811pm, all ages Kilborn Alley – Tommy G’s, 9pm, free

WORDS

Community Drum Circle – All levels welcome – Ten Thousand Villages, 7-9pm

3.“With or Without You” U2

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FILM

NEW RELEASES

calendar

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com

COMEDY

Breakup songs

1.“Song for the Dumped” Ben Folds Five

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DJ Chef Ra Reggae – Barfly, 9pm, free DJ Joel Spencer – Mike 'n Molly, 10pm, $1 Live DJ – C-Street, 9pm, no cover D-lo & Spinnerty – The Highdive, 10pm

CHICAGOSHOWS OCTOBER 10/23 Thin Lizzy @ Double Door 10/23 Broadcast, Iron and WIne @ Abbey Club 10/23 Puddle of Mudd @ House of Blues 10/23 India Arie @ The Vic 10/24 Guster @ Aragon 10/24 Cowboy Mouth, Cracker @ House of Blues 10/24 Aesop Rock @ Metro 10/24 Gov’t Mule, Chris Robinson @ The Vic 10/25 The Walkmen @ Double Door 10/25 Cameron McGill @ Schubas 10/25 Clem Snide @ Logan Square Auditorium 10/25 Particle @ Metro 10/25 Reo Speedwagon @ Star Plaza 10/26 Echo and the Bunnymen @ Metro 10/28 Spiritualized @ The Vic 10/28 Travis @ Riviera 10/29 Fuel @ House of Blues 10/29 American Analog Set @ Abbey Club, 18 & over 10/29 Lyle Lovett @ Chicago Theatre 10/29 Echo & The Bunnymen @ Metro 10/30 Alkaline Trio @ Aragon Ballroom 10/30 Belle & Sebastian @ Congress Theatre 10/30 Mojave 3 @ Abbey Pub 10/31 Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe @ House of Blues 10/31 North Mississippi Allstars, Grandaddy @ Congress Theater

NOVEMBER 11/1 Black Keys @ Abbey Club 11/1 Mya @ House of Blues 11/1 Emmylou Harris @ Symphony Center 11/1 Dirtbombs @ Double Door 11/2 Rza, Ghostface Killah @ House of Blues 11/2 Verbena @ Metro 11/5 Stars @ Schubas 11/6 Less Than Jake @ Riviera Theater 11/6 Maroon5 @ House of Blues 11/6 The Rapture @ Metro 11/6 Xiu Xiu @ Fireside Bowl 11/7 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy @ House of Blues 11/7 Ween @ The Vic 11/7 David Mead @ Schubas 11/7 Flickerstick @ Metro 11/7 Ferry Corsten & DJ Rap @ House of Blues 11/8 King Crimson @ Park West 11/8 Ween @ The Vic 11/8 Twilight Singers @ Double Door 11/8 Godsmack @ Aragon 11/7 Dropkick Murphys @ Congress Theater 11/9 King Crimson @ Park West 11/10 Billy Bragg, Nightwatchman, Lester Chambers @ Park West, all ages 11/12 Badly Drawn Boy @ Park West 11/13 Mike Doughty’s Band @ Double Door 11/13 Rickie Lee Jones @ Chicago Theatre

•Wigs, hats and accessories •Decorations galore!

•Strobes & Blacklights too.

101 E. University • FREE PARKING IN REAR • Mon-Fri: 10-9 Sat: 10-8 Sun: 12-6 • 351-5974

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11/15 The Shins @ House of Blues 11/15 Qbert @ Metro 11/16 Fixx @ Abbey Pub 11/19 Fountains of Wayne @ The Vic 11/21 Anti-Flag, Rise Against @ Metro 11/22 Guided By Voices @ Abbey Pub 11/22 Cash Brothers @ Schubas 11/22 Tom Jones @ House of Blues 11/22 Alabama @ Allstate Arena 11/23 Guided By Voices @ Abbey Pub 11/23 Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs! @ Metro 11/23 Tom Jones @ House of Blues 11/24 Symphony X @ Metro 11/25 Jaguars @ House of Blues 11/25 Mindless Self Indulgence @ Metro 11/26 Mindless Self Indulgence @ Metro 11/16 OK Go @ Abbey Pub 11/28 Bollweevils @ Metro, all ages 11/29 Rocket from the Tombs @ Abbey Pub 11/29 Asylum Street Pranksters @ Schubas

DECEMBER 12/5 Donna The Buffalo @ Martyr’s 12/5 They Might Be Giants @ Vic, all ages 12/6 Autumn Defense @ Schubas 12/8 Fun Lovin’ Criminals @ Double Door 12/12 Atmosphere, Mr. Dibbs, Others @ Abbey Pub, 18 & over

C-UVENUES Assembly Hall First & Florida, Champaign, 333.5000 American Legion Post 24 705 W Bloomington Rd, Champaign, 356.5144 American Legion Post 71 107 N Broadway, Urbana, 367.3121 Barfly 120 N Neil, Champaign,352.9756 Barnes and Noble 51 E Marketview, Champaign, 355.2045 Boltini Lounge 211 N Neil, Champaign, 378.8001 Borders Books & Music 802 W Town Ctr, Champaign, 351.9011 The Brass Rail 15 E University, Champaign, 352.7512 Canopy Club (The Garden Grill) 708 S Goodwin, Urbana, 367.3140 C.O. Daniels 608 E Daniel, Champaign, 337.7411 Cosmopolitan Club 307 E John, Champaign, 367.3079 Courtyard Cafe Illini Union, 1401 W Green, Urbana, 333.4666 Cowboy Monkey 6 Taylor St, Champaign, 398.2688 Clybourne 706 S Sixth, Champaign, 383.1008 Curtis Orchard 3902 S Duncan Rd, Champaign, 359.5565 D.R. Diggers 604 S Country Fair Dr, Champaign, 356.0888 Embassy Tavern & Grill 114 S Race, Urbana, 384.9526 Esquire Lounge 106 N Walnut, Champaign, 398.5858 Fallon’s Ice House 703 N Prospect, Champaign, 398.5760 Fat City Saloon 505 S Chestnut, Champaign, 356.7100 The Great Impasta 114 W Church, Champaign, 359.7377 G.T.’s Western Bowl Francis Dr, Champaign, 359.1678 The Highdive 51 Main, Champaign, 359.4444 Huber’s 1312 W Church, Champaign, 352.0606 Illinois Disciples Foundation 610 E Springfield, Champaign, 352.8721 Independent Media Center 218 W Main St, Urbana, 344.8820 The Iron Post 120 S Race, Urbana, 337.7678 Joe’s Brewery 706 S Fifth, Champaign, 384.1790 Kam’s 618 E Daniel, Champaign, 328.1605 Krannert Art Museum 500 E Peabody, Champaign, 333.1861 Krannert Center for Performing Arts 500 S Goodwin, Urbana, Tickets: 333.6280, 800/KCPATIX La Casa Cultural Latina 1203 W Nevada, Urbana, 333.4950 Lava 1906 W Bradley, Champaign, 352.8714 Legends Bar & Grill 522 E Green, Champaign, 355.7674 Les’s Lounge

WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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403 N Coler, Urbana, 328.4000 Lincoln Castle 209 S Broadway, Urbana, 344.7720 Malibu Bay Lounge North Route 45, Urbana, 328.7415 Mike & Molly’s 105 N Market, Champaign, 355.1236 Mulligan’s 604 N Cunningham, Urbana, 367.5888 Murphy’s 604 E Green, Champaign, 352.7275 Neil Street Pub 1505 N Neil, Champaign, 359.1601 Boardman’s Art Theater 126 W Church, Champaign, 351.0068 The Office 214 W Main, Urbana, 344.7608 Parkland College 2400 W Bradley, Champaign, 351.2528 Phoenix 215 S Neil, Champaign, 355.7866 Pia’s of Rantoul Route 136 E, Rantoul, 893.8244 Pink House Routes 49 & 150, Ogden, 582.9997 The Rainbow Coffeehouse 1203 W Green, Urbana, 766.9500 Red Herring/Channing-Murray Foundation 1209 W Oregon, Urbana, 344.1176 Rose Bowl Tavern 106 N Race, Urbana, 367.7031 Springer Cultural Center 301 N Randolph, Champaign, 355.1406 Spurlock Museum 600 S Gregory, Urbana, 333.2360 Strawberry Fields Cafe 306 W Springfield, Urbana, 328.1655 Ten Thousand Villages 105 N Walnut, Champaign, 352.8938 TK Wendl’s 1901 S Highcross Rd, Urbana, 255.5328 Tommy G’s 123 S. Mattis Ave, Country Fair Shopping Center, 359.2177 Tonic 619 S Wright, Champaign, 356.6768 Two Main 2 Main, Champaign, 359.3148 University YMCA 1001 S Wright, Champaign, 344.0721 Verde/Verdant 17 E Taylor St, Champaign, 366.3204 Virginia Theatre 203 W Park Ave, Champaign, 356.9053 White Horse Inn 112 1/2 E Green, Champaign, 352.5945 Zorba’s 627 E Green, Champaign

CHICAGOVENUES House of Blues 329 N Dearborn, Chicago, 312.923.2000 The Bottom Lounge 3206 N Wilton, Chicago Congress Theatre 2135 N Milwaukee, 312.923.2000 Vic Theatre 3145 N Sheffield, Chicago, 773.472.0449 Metro 3730 N Clark St, Chicago, 773.549.0203 Elbo Room 2871 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago Park West 322 W Armitage, Chicago, 773.929.1322 Riviera Theatre 4746 N Racine at Lawerence, Chicago Allstate Arena 6920 N Mannheim Rd, Rosemont, 847.635.6601 Arie Crown Theatre 2300 S Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, 312.791.6000 UIC Pavilion 1150 W Harrison, Chicago, 312.413.5700 Schubas 3159 N Southport, Chicago, 773.525.2508 Martyrs 3855 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, 773.288.4545 Aragon 1106 W Lawerence, Chicago, 773.561.9500 Abbey Pub 3420 W Grace, Chicago, 773.478.4408 Fireside Bowl 2646 W Fullerton Ave, Chicago, 773.486.2700 Schubert Theatre 22 W Monroe, Chicago, 312.977.1700

ART LISTINGS Workshop – Register now to join artist-instructor Sandra Ahten for "Drawing More" a one day workshop held on Oct. 25th to inspire you to dust off your sketch pad. Call (217) 367-6345 or email spiritofsandra@hotmail.com to register. High Cross Studio. 1101 N High Cross Road.

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music

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | HOT BOD

CDReviews

1023buzz1118

THE STROKES Room on fire RCA

★★★

BY LOGAN MOORE

Portraits – Award winning portrait artist Sandra Ahten is currently accepting commissions for portraits for holiday giving. Portraits are priced at an affordable range and professional exchange or barter may be accepted. For examples of work and a quote, contact Sandra Ahten at (217) 367-6345 or spiritofsandra@hotmail.com Creation Art Studio Art Classes for Children and Adults – All classes offer technical instruction and the exploration of materials through expressive, spontaneous art and experimentation. Independent studies of personal interests and ideas, dreams, etc. are expressed and developed through collage and assemblage art and through drawing, painting, sculpture and ceramics. Children meet once a week, Mon-Thu 3:30-5pm. Adolescents meet Fri 45:30pm. Adults meet Wed at 10am and Sat between 1:305:30pm for two or more hours. Create designs, a still life, portraits, landscapes and more. Open to beginners and advanced students. Adult Open Studio meets Tue 7-9pm.

Drop-ins welcome. Come with a friend. Call to make special arrangements for a group. CPDU's offered. For information, contact Jeannine Bestoso at 344-6955. Creation Art Studio is located at 1102 E Washington, Urbana. www.creationartstudios.com Join Artists and Workshops at Gallery Virtu – Gallery Virtu, an artist-owned cooperative, now invite applications from area artists. The Gallery also offers workshops for adults, teens and children in knitting, embroidery, photography, jewelry making, printmaking, papermaking, bookbinding and ribbon flowers. Gallery Virtu offers original works by the members including: jewelry, pottery, collages, sculptures, journals, hats, handbags and other textiles. For more information please call 762-7790, visit our web site at www.galleryvirtu.org, e-mail workshops@galleryvirtu.org or visit the gallery. Regular hours: Thu 12-4pm, Fri 12-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm. 220 W Washington Street in Monticello.

Art Classes at High Cross Studio – All classes are held at High Cross Studio in Urbana. 1101 N High Cross Road. Email or call for reservations and details. (217) 367-6345 or spiritofsandra@hotmail.com..

“Portrait Paintings with Oils” – This course will provide instruction in painting portraits from photographs. Paint a portrait of your loved one or yourself. Mon-Fri daytime

class and weekend workshop offered.

"Collage for the Soul" – Students will learn a variety of collage techniques, including photo and photocopy transfer, papermaking and manipulation, and frontage, while exploring a particular subject, such as a place, a memory, an experience or a relationship. No art-making experience necessary.

"Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" – For adults who have always wanted to learn to draw, but felt as if they lacked talent or confidence.

Other Classes:“Making Monoprints,”“Art With Intention” (Open Studio) – For information on these visit http://www.spiritofsandra.com and click on "classes," then e-mail or call for reservations.

ART GALLERIES & EXHIBITS Boneyard Pottery – Ceramic Art by Michael Schwegmann and more. 403 Water St, Champaign. Tue-Sat 11am-5pm.

355-5610.

Broken Oak Gallery – Local and national artists. Original art including photography, watercolors, pottery, oil paintings, colored pencil, woodturning and more. Refreshments served by the garden all day Saturday. 1865 N 1225 E Rd., White Heath. Thu-Sat 10am-4pm. 762-4907.

Cinema Galley – Local and regional artists including many University of Illinois and Parkland College faculty members. Currently on display through Nov 9:“Alpha and Omega” by Glen C. Davies. 120 W Main, Urbana. Tue-Sat 10am-4pm. Sun 1-5pm. 367-3711.

Cafe Kopi – Swimming oil paintings and various works from local artist Paula McCarty on display through Oct. 109 N Walnut, Champaign. Mon-Thu 7am-11pm, Fri-Sat 7am12pm, Sun 11am-8pm. 359-4266.

Creation Art Studios – Hosts a continuous and evolving display of works by students and associates of the studio.

Landscapes, florals, animal life and expressive art in various mediums by Jeannine Bestoso are also currently on display. For information, contact Jeannine Bestoso. 1102 E

All right friendly readers, we’re going to play a little game here, a little make believe if you will. Imagine for a moment that you, the hip, discerning music lover, are at a family reunion that you never really wanted to attend in the first place. This family reunion will represent the mainstream music press. The Strokes, as a group, are your rich cousin from New York whom you’ve never met, but have heard great things about from all the wrong relatives. Rolling Stone is sort of like your well-meaning, sweet, yet entirely senile grandmother. In the throes of Alzheimer’s, grandma loves all your relatives regardless of personal merit, just as long as they’re not too loud and remind her of someone her own age. Spin is sort of like your out-of-touch, wannabe hipster uncle. Despite his transparent sarcasm, the stench of desperation is all over him as everyone can sense that endorsing your “cool, young” cousin (The Strokes, stay with me kids) provides him with a sense that he himself is also cool, although everyone else knows better. So in essence, having never met your cousin, you already don’t like the bastard. Spending time with some rich twit who hangs out with your grandmother sounds about as much fun as a fucking hangover. You leave the family reunion to go have a smoke and bump into a nice fellow whom you have a pretty cool discussion with.You share a cigarette; you talk about the Velvet Underground. You don’t find out till later that the guy is your cousin, and truth be told, you kinda like him.

So it goes with The Strokes new album Room on Fire. Sure, you wanna hate it. I did too. I love to rip on guys endorsed by Rolling Stone. (Although no one more than John Mayer.) The Strokes are rich, hip, and come armed with the sort of British critical hyperbole, that makes other critics rethink their chosen profession. Fortunately,The Strokes are not the saviors of rock, just a very good band, and Room on Fire is just as catchy and addictive as Is This It? That is, of course, not what their detractors want to hear, but, believe me, I’m right and they’re all too busy listening to Godspeed You Black Emperor! to care what I have to say anyway. The music is what matters folks, and The Strokes have managed to piece together another album of very good guitar pop.

Room on Fire hits you right out of the gate. Hand claps, and a trademark one-note guitar attack give about 10 seconds of exposition before breaking into one of the catchiest, jangliest choruses on the album. Julian Casablancas hollers about “wanting to be forgotten” like some lovable drunken debutante. Though the attack may be a little tighter, The Strokes still sound like The Strokes, which is a good thing.

One suspects that no one is taking the British press less seriously than The Strokes themselves; no grand keyboard washes or lilting string sections here. They prefer to kick it like it’s 1979. “Automatic Stop” is all choppy reggae guitar and crooning before segueing into a crazy new-wave chorus replete with guitars done up like synthesizers. “12:51” drags the “guitar-esizer” back again for a solo on the chorus that I can only describe to you as something you’ll want to listen to again as soon as you hear it. Like The Cars. The farthest The Strokes ever stray outside of their comfort zone is the ersatz soul of “Under Control” which also happens to be one of the prettiest moments on the album.

Listen, if well-done guitar pop is not your thing, don’t bother with The Strokes. They don’t use more than two or three chords a song, they don’t draw from a large pool of musical resources, and they certainly aren’t anything you would describe as “cinematic”. The Strokes are not a great band. Great bands are influential not simply a product of their influences. The Strokes are simply a very good band, who have made another remarkably catchy album that’s pop without being incredibly retarded. So if you own and enjoy any albums by say, Guided by Voices or The New

Pornographers, there’s no reason you shouldn’t enjoy Room on Fire. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to hang out with all my new friends in the British music press industry and pretend to like the new album by The Datsuns.

Fri., Oct. 24 Hip Hop and R&B $2 well drinks $1 bottles no cover before 11 pm

SANYA N’KANTA Sanya N’Kanta Cash Hill Records

★★★★

BY BRIAN MERTZ There must be something in the water here in Champaign. Take a walk through downtown Champaign on a Thursday night and three out of the four people you meet will be musicians—at least it seems that way at times.

But the musicians in this town aren’t your stereotypical, acoustic guitar strumming, Lou Reed covering hacks.There is a whole lot of creativity and originality in this town, and Sanya N’Kanta’s self-titled album helps to prove the point that should be proven by now.

Garenne Sanya N’kanta Bigby’s songs have a familiar quality to them, but they never feel like rip-offs of their influences.

From start to finish, this is a mellow album with a minimal feel that uses rock, folk, hints of reggae and trip-hop as its musical bed. Sanya N’Kanta is not for blasting in your car, but more for reflective listening in your home.

Fans of true emo groups like Ida (and unlike Dashboard Confessional) will find similar musical solace in tracks like “Tomorrow,” which maintains its fragility while still employing driving acoustic guitar lines and the fuzz of electric feedback faintly resonating in the background. But lumping Sanya N’Kanta with other emo groups too narrowly limits the sounds on the album.

There are Depeche Mode and Massive Attack-esque moments (“Your Touch”), folk-alternative sounds (“Wash”) and even tiny traces of dance floor backbeat (“Break Down These Walls”). What is most impressive about this album is the sense of fearlessness that comes through. There is no fear in experimenting with layering different sounds and styles over one another. There is no fear to record an independent release that has no rocking anthem. There is no fear to follow a vision from start to finish. That by itself is refreshing.

Lyrically, Bigby does a good job of creating somber words to go with the mellow music. In “One Tear”Bigby sings,“What she calls love / I call addiction / She doesn’t get high / She’s been beat down too low.” It is a beautiful thing to hear an artist have their lyrics, their singing and their instruments all existing in harmony on every song.

After one listen, Sanya N’kanta’s album sounds very fresh.

Repeated listening shows that Bigby’s vocal range stays in the same pseudo-falsetto area for all 11 tracks. While it gives it a certain Elliot Smith type charm, more experimentation with the highs and lows in Bigby’s voice would match nicely with the experimentation in the instruments.

Who really knows why there are so many musicians in Champaign. But thank heavens that there is a lot of talent to go along with that drive to make music. Sanya N’kanta’s selftitled meticulous, mellow album adds another layer to the tapestry of varied sounds in Champaign and it is certainly worth picking up.

NEDELLE Republic of Two Kimchee Records

1906 W. Bradley Ave. • Champaign, IL 19 & up to Enter

Thurs., Oct. 23

In case you didn’t glean it from the title, Nedelle’s debut album is about love.

It’s a surprisingly difficult topic to pull off well, especially on a first record; one runs the risk of being cliché, ridiculous or even boring when singing songs about the most-used subject in music history.

Nedelle gets away with it because she keeps her lyrics simple and her melodies beautiful. The opening track on the record is “These Days,” a song that comes in at under a minute, but still manages to grab the listener’s attention (and no, it’s not an Alien Ant Farm cover).

The most striking thing about this album is the vocals.

Nedelle’s voice is unique and soulful, and the background harmonies are insistent and compliment her mellow singing well.

Nedelle is clearly both a romantic and a musician with a good sense of her jazz roots. It’s not surprising considering that she comes from a family of musicians—her mother is a piano player and her father was a jazz drummer.

Fri., Oct. 31

Living Boxing and Wet T-Shirt Contest $250 cash and prizes

X Crush Halloween Costume Party

The Aragon in Chicago

★★★★

BY LIZ MOZZOCCO

11

1106 W. Lawrence at Broadway

HALLOWEEN! Friday, October 31 7:00pm • All Ages An all-girl tribute to Bon Scott-era AD/DC

with special guest

Saturday, November 1

7:00pm • All Ages

with special guest TO BE ANNOUNCED High quality concert recordings available right after the show

Outlets

217-351-2626 or ticketmaster.com www.jamusa.com

A

PRODUCTION

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YANKEES V. MARLINS: THE BATTLE OF WHO COULD CARE LESS | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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Washington St, Urbana. Tue-Sat 1-5:30pm and scheduled studio sessions. 344-6955. www.creationartstudios.com

Coffee, cappuccino and rock ‘n’ roll

Country in the City – Antiques, Architectural, Gardening, Home Accessories. Custom designing available. 1104 E Washington St, Urbana. Thu-Sat 10am-5pm. 367-2367.

Framer's Market – Frame Designers since 1981. Current featured artists on display through Nov 17: Charlotte Brady, Barry Brehm, Lawerance Hamlin, Patrick Harness, Mary McDonald, Hua Nian, David Smith, Bill Stevens, Steve Stoerger and Bonnie Switzter. 807 W Springfield Ave, Champaign. Tue-Fri 9:30am-5:30pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 3517020.

Cafe Paradiso takes on the additional role of an all-ages venue

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PHOTOS | COURTESY OF KAITO

oon there will be more than coffee served up at Cafe Paradiso in Urbana. Starting Wednesday, Oct. 29, Cafe Paradiso will regularly host all-ages concerts.

“It is something we had been talking about at meetings for a while, wanting to get it going, but we needed someone who wanted to do it and had the contacts to set it up,” said Melissa Fanella, owner of Cafe Paradiso.

The people who stepped up to help book bands were two local indie rock DJs. Meghan McCook (aka DJ Betty Rocker) and Seth Fein (aka 2ON2OUT) combined forces to come up with “2ON2OUT and Betty Rocker productions present.”

“We’re competing DJs on Monday nights,” Fein jokingly said about competing with an old friend. “We decided the only way to have a community that works is to take competition and turn it into camaraderie.”

McCook is also an employee at Paradiso.

Fein is a columnist for Buzz magazine.

Musical performances have taken place in Paradiso before, but they usually featured more acoustic acts and they were infrequent.

“We did it before when we first opened. It

was really cool back then and it created a very different atmosphere inside,” Fanella said.

While Champaign-Urbana has steadily seen its music scene grow over the past several years, the shortage of all-ages venues has been a consistent problem for the local scene.

Further compounding the allages problem was the May 8, 2003 closing of the Independent Media Center’s performance space. The space was closed due to fire code violations cited by the City of Urbana. Only the Channing Murray Foundation and the Illinois Disciples Foundation have been consistently hosting all-ages shows since the closing of the Independent Media Center’s performance space.

Fein, who grew up in Champaign-Urbana, remembers going to all-ages shows at venues like the Red Herring, the Channing Murray Foundation and the Courtyard Cafe.

“There was something very cool about being able to go to a show that wasn’t at the Assembly Hall,” Fein said. “And we are going to try and reach out to high school students that same way here.”

KAITO AT PARADISO Cafe Paradiso is setting its sights high in the indie rock world with its first performance on Oct. 29. In addition to Champaign music luminaries American Minor, Orphans and The Invisible, UK indie pop rockers KaitO will perform on Wednesday.This Brighton quartet formed in 1998 and has since performed all over the world and supported bands like Folk Implosion, Apples in Stereo, Death Cab for Cutie and Clinic. In return, they’ve gotten support from influential Radio 1 DJs John Peel and Steve Lamacq in England.

Stateside, their performance at the South By Southwest festival in 2003 earned them national praise from critics around the country. Combining punk with dance and pop rock elements, their lively stage shows are not to be missed.

Furniture Lounge – Specializing in mid-century modern furniture from the 1920s-1980s, retro, Danish modern, lighting, vintage stereo equipment and vinyl records. 9 E University, Champaign. 352-5150. Sun-Mon 12-4:30pm, Wed-Sat 11am-5:30pm.

Glass FX – New and Antique Stained Glass Windows, Lamps, and unique glass gifts. Gallery is free and open to the public. Interested in learning the art of Stained Glass?

Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Stained Glass Classes offered. 202 S First St, Champaign. Mon-Thu 10am5:30pm, Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 9am-4pm. 359-0048. www.glassfx.com.

PHOTO | BRIAN MERTZ

BY BRIAN MERTZ | MUSIC EDITOR

While Cafe Paradiso will actively try to help fill the all-ages concert gap, the Independent Media Center has been raising money for a new performance space through different benefit events.

One of those events will take place on Saturday at Blockheads, a block party on California Street in Urbana that will feature performances by Animate Objects, Orphans, The Invisible, Finga’ Lickin’, Pointed and Gabe Rosen.

The stage used at Blockheads will be used for Paradiso’s performances. Tables, chairs and booths will be cleared out of the way and the stage will be set up along the south wall of the building. Fanella estimates that capacity for performances will be around 125 people.

Cafe Paradiso will continue to serve coffee and food during performances. Paradiso is also looking into the possibility of serving alcohol.

“I think coffee at a show is an option that people want,” Fanella said.

“It will be good that people won’t necessarily have to be in a bar and that atmosphere to see a show,” McCook said. “I think we’ll attract a different crowd who goes to show for that atmosphere.”

McCook sees Paradiso as a different type of concert venue from bigger bars in downtown Champaign and even smaller places like the Channing Murray.

“It is definitely smaller, but I also think it is going to be more intimate,” McCook said.

Fein noted that Paradiso will also be able to accommodate many types of shows that many coffee shops can’t handle.

“It is a very versatile space,” Fein said.

“There is room for a punk show. There is the space for a large jazz show. We can have all kinds of shows in this environment.”

Paradiso is hoping to eventually have per-

formances once a week. An exact day of the week has not been set yet, but Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights are all being considered as options.

“A Friday or Saturday night setup would seem to fit well with an all-ages schedule,” McCook said.

The addition of music performances, especially non-acoustic acts, might disrupt many coffee house patrons that go for the atmosphere and a quiet place to study. But both Fanella and McCook do not worry about alienating their patrons.

“If it is on a Friday or Saturday our weekends are slow anyway,” Fanella said. “And if it is consistently on a Wednesday night, our customers will eventually know what to expect.”

“I think it will end up working really well because most of the people who study here would end up going to shows anyway,” McCook said. “Plus, if these are earlier shows from like 6 to 10 p.m. then people can still study after that.”

Fein noted that Paradiso’s space could also be used by people who wanted to independently book shows.

“If they are willing and able to put in the commitment to cover finances and promoting, then we want people who have ideas to bring them in so we can talk about doing a show,” Fein said.

McCook sees a bright future for shows at Paradiso.

“I think it will work really with the mood we have here,” McCook said. “We have creative people who work here and who frequent here. Now they can come in, see a show and still have one of the best cups of coffee in town.” buzz Cafe Paradiso is located at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Nevada Street in Urbana.

calendar

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com

Griggs Street Potters – Handmade functional and decorative pottery. 305 W Grigg St, Urbana. Mon-Fri 11am-4pm, or call for appointment. 344-8546.

Hill Street Gallery Inc. – Oil and watercolor paintings, hand painted T-shirts, handmade jewelry. 703 W Hill, Champaign. Sat 12-5pm or by appointment during the week. 359-0675.

International Galleries – Works from local artists including quilts by Nancy Summers. Lincoln Square Mall. Mon-Fri 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 12-5pm. 328-2254.

Larry Kanfer Gallery – University of Illinois images by photographic artist Larry Kanfer. Unique diploma frames and other UI gifts. Sepia Champaign-Urbana Collection also on display. Available now: 2004 Prairiescapes and University of Illinois calendars. 2503 S Neil, Champaign. Free and Open to the Public. Mon-Sat 10am-5:30pm. 3982000.www.kanfer.com LaPayne Photography – Specializes in panoramic photography up to 6 feet long of different subjects including sporting events, city skylines, national parks and University of Illinois scenes. Las Vegas Strip photo show coming soon. 816 Dennison Dr, Champaign. Mon-Fri 9am-4pm and by appointment. 356-8994.

Old Vic Art Gallery – Fine and original art, hand signed limited edition prints, works by local artists, art restoration, custom framing, and periodic shows by local artists. 11 E University, Champaign. Mon-Thu 11am-5:30pm, Sat 11am4:30pm. 355-8338.

Steeple Gallery – Vintage botanical and bird prints, antiques, framed limited edition prints. 102 E Lafayette St, Monticello. Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 762-2924. www.steeplegallery.com Verde Gallery & Verdant News and Coffee – Magazines, newspapers, coffee, beverages and fine pastries along with the Verde Fine Art Gallery. 17 E Taylor St, Champaign. Cafe hours: Mon-Sat 7am-10 pm; Gallery Hours: Tue-Sat 10am10pm. 366-3204. www.verdant-systems.com/Verde.htm Ziemer Gallery – Original paintings and limited edition prints by Larry Ziemer. Pottery, weavings, wood turning and glass works by other artists. Gallery visitors are welcome to sit, relax, listen to the music and just enjoy being surrounded by art. 210 W Washington, Monticello. Tue 10am-8pm, Wed-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm. 762-9786. www.ziemergallery.com

ART-OPENING “Trio” – Paintings by Dylan DeWitt and Milena Tiner and ceramics by Tyler Bergfield on display at the Springer Cultural Center through Nov 16. Opening reception featuring live music from Jordan Kaye Oct 24, 6-8pm. Artists’ talk, 7pm. This is a free event. Springer Cultural Center. 301 N. Randolph, Champaign. Gallery Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 12-5pm. 398-2376.

ART-ON VIEW NOW “Affixed” – Sixteen local artists display their work in a juried art show at High-Cross Studio through Oct 31. Entries

range from 3D work such as Goddess alters and original dolls to photomontage and torn paper collage art. 1001 High Cross Road, Urbana. Gallery hours: Tue-Sun10-4pm.

367-6345. spiritofsandra@hotmail.com “Bulbs” – Pastel and collage series from Deeana Love on display at High Cross Studio through Oct 31. 1001 High Cross Road, Urbana. Gallery hours: Tue-Sun 10-4pm. 367-6345. spiritofsandra@hotmail.com “Prints in Process” – A display of contemporary fine art prints on view at the Parkland Art Gallery through Oct 31.

Guest curated by Lawrence Hamlin, including work from Richard Dievenkorn, Grant Wood, Wayne Thiebaud and area native Christopher Brown. 115 E University, Champaign. Mon-Fri 10am-3pm and Mon-Thu evenings 68pm, Sat 12-2pm. 351-2485. Handicapped accessible and open and free to the public.

“Pink” – On display at Gallery Virtu Cooperative through Oct 31. A juried exhibition to benefit area women with who have suffered from breast cancer. 25 percent of sales will be used to fund art journal classes for breast cancer patients. Other work includes original fine art and crafts from member artists including jewelry, pottery, paintings, collages, hats, handbags and other textiles, sculptures and journals. The Gallery also offers workshops; a new schedule of classes is on the web site. 220 W Washington St, Monticello. Thu 12-4pm, Fri 12-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm. 7627790. www.galleryvirtu.org “Colors of Islam” – In conjunction with Islam Awareness Week, the Muslim Students Association is cosponsoring an art show at the Illini Union Art Gallery until Nov 3. 1401 W Green, Urbana. Open Every day 7am-10pm.

“First Annual Midwest Sequential Art Exhibition” – The Middle Room Gallery hosts an exhibition of comic and sequential art talent from the Midwest. Ranging in visual and narrative style from political to fantasy, from Japanese Manga to the familiar super-heroic conventions, this show will help shine a light on one of the most misunderstood and overlooked art forms today. Artists include Pam Bliss, Tim Broderick, Jacen Burrows, Darrin Drda, Brion Foulke, Hope Larson, Layla Lawler, Dirk Tiede, Dann Tincher, Charlie "Spike" Trotman. On View at the Middle Room Gallery through Oct 31. 218 W Main St, Urbana. http://www.gallery.ucimc.org/ “Whistler and Japonisme: Selections from the Permanent Collection” – Marking the 100th anniversary of James McNeill Whistler’s death, this exhibition highlights his works on paper and examines the influence that Japanese woodcuts had on his artistic technique. On display at the Krannert Art Museum through March 28, 2004.

500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 "Visualizing the Blues: Images of the American South, 1862-1999" – Every picture tells a story and this exhibition of more than 100 photographs of the Mississippi Delta region portrays a profoundly vivid narrative of life in the American South. These photographs, taken from the Civil War era through 1999, show the rhythms of life from this almost mythic region and powerfully document the sources of inspiration for the lyrics and melodies of Blues musicians. Among the photographers represented are Margaret Bourke-White, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, Andres Serrano and many others. On display at Krannert Art Museum through Nov 2.

500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 Featured Works XIII: "The Spirit of Mediterranean Pathos: The Early Work of Pierre Daura" – Pierre Daura (18961976) was a member of significant modern art movements in the early 20th century. This exhibition highlights a recent gift of works by Daura and explores the forms and colors of his paintings and drawings from about 1910 to the late 1930s. On display at Krannert Art Museum through Nov 2. 500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat. 9am5pm, Wed 9am-8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 “Separate and Unequal: Segregation and Three Generations of Black Response, 1870-1950.” – This exhibit highlights the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision of 1896, which legally sanctioned racial segregation in the United States until 1954 when the Supreme Court overturned Plessy in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. Materials from the Library's collections and archives highlight the historical period between these two landmark civil rights cases. Sponsored by the Office of the Chancellor, the Brown v. Board of Education Commemorative Committee and the University of Illinois Library. On view at the University of Illinois Main Library, first floor hallway, during library hours. 1408 W Gregory Drive, Urbana. Hours vary.

333-2290. http://www.oc.uiuc.edu/brown

traffic jam Friday, October 24 5pm A casual hour with free music in Krannert Center’s Lobby Bring your friends, bring your family Groove to the rockin’ blues and TGIF abandon of

The Delta Kings Interlude Bar and Intermezzo Café are open

A Creative Intersections event made possible with assistance from the News-Gazette

After the blues, enter the fantasy world of Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack (of the Beanstalk), princes, wolves, and witches Into the Woods

By Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine October 24 at 7:30pm 217/333-6280 800/KCPATIX KrannertCenter.com

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WANT TO GET YOUR EVENT LISTED ON OUR CALENDAR? Send your listings to calendar@readbuzz.com | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

ART-CLOSING

CHOCOLATE IN HEAT GROWING UP ARAB IN AMERICA A Play by Betty Shamieh Directed by Sam Gold Performed by Piter Fattouche and Betty Shamieh

CHOCOLATE IN HEAT is a set of five interlocking monologues infused with music and dance that take an irreverent look at love, sex, privilege, and the problems of growing up in between two cultures.

Monday, October 27 7:00 p.m.

Krannert Art Museum, Room 62 Following the performance, Shamieh will participate in a discussion of her work.

Sponsored by the Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities Co-sponsors: Office of the Chancellor, Center for Democracy in a Multiracial Society, International Programs and Studies, Women and Gender in Global Perspectives Program, Gender and Women’s Studies Program, Asian American Studies, Program in South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Kinesiology Department, Linguistics Department, College of Communications, Classics Department, East Asian Languages and Culture

"Remnants of Ritual: Selections from the Gelbard Collection of African Art" – The magnificent African art collection of David and Clifford Gelbard focuses on the cultural significance and aesthetic beauty of masks and sculptures - many of which were created for ceremonial and ritual purposes. This exhibition includes a wide array of objects and celebrates the durable, expressive essence of festivals, rites and coming-of-age ceremonies. On display at the Krannert Art Museum through Oct 26. 500 E Peabody, Urbana. Tue, Thu-Sat 9am-5pm, Wed 9am-8pm, Sun 2-5pm. 333-1860. Suggested Donation: $3 “Through Larry Kanfer’s Lens: From Prariescapes to Cityscapes”-- The latest exhibit of photographic artwork by critically acclaimed fine-art photographic artist, Larry Kanfer, features "visually stunning Prairiescapes up to 8 feet wide. Contemplate the vast grandeur of America's heartland, with its rich traditions and seasonal cycles of the prairie, juxtaposed against images of Midwest cityscapes, highlighting intimate architectural details.

On display at the Lark Kanfer Gallery through Oct 24. 2503 S Neil, Champaign. Free and Open to the Public. Mon-Sat 10am-5:30pm. 398-2000. www.kanfer.com

THEATER LISTINGS Elysium on the Prairie, Live Action Roleplaying – Vampires stalk the city streets and struggle for dominance in a world of gothic horror. Create your own character and mingle with dozens of players who portray their own undead alter egos. Each session is another chapter in an ongoing story of triumph, tragedy and betrayal. Friday, “Vampire: The Masquerade” For more information visit: http://ww2.uiuc.edu/ro/elysium/intro.html. Check site for location, 7pm.

this week Th Oct 23 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15 Krasnoyarsk National Dance Company of Siberia 7pm, $15-$30 Sponsors: Ruth Smith Miller Margaret Frampton Shirley and Arthur Traugott

Fr Oct 24 Traffic Jam: The Delta Kings 5pm, free Creative Intersections Sponsor:

MIND BODY SPIRIT Sunday Zen Meditation Meeting – Prairie Zen Center, 515 S Prospect, Champaign, NW corner Prospect & Green, enter thru door from parking area. Introduction to Zen Sitting, 10 AM; Full Schedule: Service at 9 followed by sitting, Dharma Talk at 11 followed by tea until about 12 noon. Can arrive at any of above times, open to all, no experience needed, no cost. For info call 355-8835 or www.prairiezen.org Prairie Sangha for Mindfullness Meditation – Mon evenings from 7:30-9pm and monthly retreats on Sun. Theravadan (Vipassana) and Tibetan (Vjrayana & Dzogchen) meditation practice. Meets in Urbana. More information call or email Tom at 356-7413 or shayir@soltec.net. www.prairiesangha.org Clear Sky Zen Group – Meets on Thu evenings in the Geneva Room of the McKinley Foundation. Newcomers to meditation and people of all traditions and faiths are welcome – McKinley Foundation, 809 S Fifth St, 6:25-9pm Formerly-Fat Persons’ Support Group – Free social meeting every Saturday at 2pm at Aroma Cafe, 118 N Neil St, C. For more information contact Jessica Watson at 353-4934.

Artist’s Way Group – A 12-week adventure in recovering and celebrating our creative spirit. Wed, Sept 17-Dec 17 (no session Nov 26) from 5:45-7:15pm at McKinley Foundation (free parking). To register or for more information, contact Jo Pauly, MSW, Whole Life Coach at (217) 3377823 or jopauly@prairienet.org.

Season Sponsors

Patron Season Sponsors

CAROLE AND JERRY RINGER

BENEFIT Garnet Litherland Leukemia Fund – A benefit for The Ganret Litherland Leukemia Fund takes place at The Highdive on Oct 26. Line up is DJ Resonate and DJ Bozak at 8pm followed by The Blackouts, American Minor and The Mezzazinnes. Come out to help out a good cause and one of Champaign’s most beloved locals. Support Garnet and help offset the expenses incurred during treatment. $5 suggested donation at the door.

HALLOWEEN EVENTS In the Dark of Night – Oct 25 – A Storytelling Concert for Adults Tales of terror and the supernatural presented by storytellers Janice Del Negro, Dennis Frederick, and Dan Keding. A benefit for the Center for Children's Books Endowment. Tickets are $25, students tickets $5. Graduate School of Library and Information Science East Auditorium, 7:30pm

FILM FESTIVAL Teen Film Festival – Virginia Theatre Oct.24-26 Friday: Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 7pm Friday The 13th, 10pm Saturday: Billy Madison, 1pm Pretty In Pink, 4pm Breakfast Club, 7pm American Pie, 10pm Scream, midnight Sunday: Sixteen Candles, 1pm Dead Poets Society, 4pm Scary Movie, 7pm

krannert center

Into the Woods Dessert and Conversation 6:30pm, $5.50 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15

Sa Oct 25

UI Chamber Singers 7:30pm, $2-$5 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15

Su Oct 26 Joan Kwuon, violin 3pm, $5-$31 Sponsors: Elizabeth and Edwin Goldwasser Betty and David Lazarus Anonymous

Mo Oct 27 Into the Woods 10am, $5

Tu Oct 28 Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde 7:30pm, $6-$13

Th Oct 30 Wine Tasting 5pm, free Hear & Now 2003: Herbert Brün and His Co-conspirators 7:30pm, $2-$5 Into the Woods 7:30pm, $8-$15 Anton in Show Business 7:30pm, $6-$13

Some Krannert Center programs are supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Illinois Arts Council, and patron and corporate contributions.

Coporate Season Underwriters

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT THE IPRH AT 244-3344.

@

Out of Order Auditions – Oct 26 –open auditions for its 13th annual student production, Out of Order by Ray Cooney. Auditions will be held Oct 26 from 2-4 pm or Oct 27 from 6-8pm at the Parkland College Theatre.

Members of the community, Parkland students, and university students are encouraged to audition. The director, Josh Stewart, will be casting 6 males and 4 females over the age of 18. www.parkland.edu/theatre/audition.htm.

buzz

KrannertCenter.com 217/333-6280 or 800/KCPATIX 217/333-9714 (TTY) 217/244-SHOW (Fax) 217/244-0549 (Groups) kran-tix@uiuc.edu Ticket Office Open 10am to 6pm daily; on days of performances open 10am through intermission.

355.1236 105 N. Market St. Downtown Champaign

buzz

arts

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | IF EVER OH EVER A WIZ THERE WUZ...

A Master Remasters

BY SYD SLOBODNIK | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

W

hat’s truly remarkable about the Goodman Theatre’s present production of playwright Edward Albee’s 1998 The Play About the Baby is that it is not the work of a young, cutting-edge experimental writer, as it seems.

Albee was 70 when he wrote this play, and the play’s refreshing frankness while dealing with life’s lessons is powerfully satirical and cynically honest.

This odd expressionist play concerns a young couple in a symbolic Garden of Eden.

These nameless 20-year-olds are madly in love, and represent the idealism and naivete of youth. The play opens in an absurd fashion, with the couple seated in two chairs on an otherwise empty stage.

The very pregnant young woman exclaims, “I’m going to have my baby now!” and proceeds offstage. Noises of the woman’s delivery follow, ending with the cry of a newborn.

The woman returns to her chair on stage and sighs, “There!” But the audience never sees the baby. The young parents are rudely interrupted by a smartly dressed middle-aged couple. These elders represent wisdom and the cynical pessimism of a realistic view of life void of romantic illusions. The older man directly addresses the audience, asking questions about how we perceive reality, how we differentiate what’s real and what’s fake, and ultimately how we as human beings manage to make sense of our lives.

Albee’s central conflict focuses on the older couple’s attempt to convince the young pair that they are living a life of illusion, and, in fact, do not have a baby.

The average audience will need to work hard to decipher the meaning of some of the absurdities spewed by the elder couple; essentially Albee has remastered the core conflict of his 1963 play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

The Play About the Baby is far less naturalistic in its intent and is instead complemented by symbolic characters, modern language and sexual explicitness. The older pair exudes an aura that is bent on destroying the wedded bliss of the younger pair, in much the same way as Virginia’s middle-aged George and Martha emotionally demolish their young guests, Nick and Honey.

Under the skilled guest direction of Pam Mackinnon, all four cast members are appropriately effective. Julie Granata and Scott Antonucci play the naive couple with tenderness. Matt DeCaro and Linda Kimbrough are wickedly nasty as the mature couple. buzz

Chicago’s Goodman Theatre is located at 170 N. Dearborn and this fine production of The Play About the Baby runs until Nov. 2.

Oct 23-Nov 2 Stephen Sondheim James Lapine James Zager, director

INTO WOODS THE

Department of Theatre College of Fine and Applied Arts

For tickets 217/333-6280 KrannertCenter.com

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NO! THAT DOESN’T LOOK ANYTHING LIKE A TEAPOT! | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

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film & tv

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | CAPTURE THOSE FRIEDMANS.

ARTIST’S CORNER

BY KATIE RICHARDSON | ARTS EDITOR

R

group piece for the senior concert in May as part of my graduation requirements. Somehow, I have two jobs, but that’s only because I like to be insanely busy. I keep thinking that one of these days I’ll just pop. I saw my friends this weekend for the first time in about a month, and my fiancé and I have one night a week scheduled to see each other.

I had danced ballet for 12 years before coming here, but I knew that I would never have the body or technique required to be a professional ballet dancer. I had had small tastes of modern dance in my training and had enjoyed what I’d experienced so I thought, “Why not try this?” I didn’t enjoy any subject in school as much as I enjoyed dancing. I don’t think I knew what I was getting into then, but I am definitely happy with my choice.

What sacrifices have you made in order to pursue your goal?

What would you like to do after you graduate?

Time is the first thing that pops in my mind because I don’t really have any.Since freshmen year here I have had classes everyday from 9-5. In addition, I have rehearsals almost every night, and this year I’m working on a

I have ideas. It seems that so many dancers really want to go to New York and perform, but that has never really appealed to me. I do not plan on being a professional modern dancer, although I would not say ‘no’ to a

PHOTO | ADAM YOUNG

egan Kinder is a senior in Modern Dance at the University of Illinois. She currently works at IllinoisIndiana Sea Grant College Program located in the National Soybean Research Laboratory, they provide information, publications and educational products concerning invasive water species. She is a Student Communications Assistant there, and also works in the Deli at Schnucks. However, improvisation and contact improvisations are currently her passions. Improvisation is most easily described as dance that is choreographed/performed in the moment. Contact improvisation is; improvising, lifting and moving another body through space. As a dancer she expresses herself through her body, therefore her grace, composure, and elegance are precious traits that are very evident to anyone who meets her.

Into the Woods

Why did you choose dance as a major?

The cast and crew have been working to create a fantastic production, practicing five to six nights a week from 7 to 11 p.m. Although this is a major time commitment, everyone involved is enjoying the time spent.

Zager said that he chose this play because he

BY SUZANNE SITRICK | STAFF WRITER wanted something challenging for the students trap on your seat belts and get ready to ride in terms of musicality. Furthermore, while preInto the Woods in this Sondheim/Lapine vious plays have had fewer female roles, this musical deconstruction of the Brothers Grimm. show was also picked because it has many “The audience will be taken on an emotionally large, well-written roles for women.

“Every rehearsal is so much fun,” said and visually stimulating journey,” said director University of Illinois graduate student Leslie Ann James Zager.

Handelman, who plays Cinderella.

“We have such a blast. It is such a treat to work with James.”

The set for this show is intricate and imaginative.

University graduate student and scene d e s i g n e r Samuel Flint said that he researched other 20th century productions in order to create a classic fairy tale look, drawing on the original premises from back when The production crew worked extensively on the set of Into the Woods.

S

performance opportunity should it come!! I am more interested in dance improvisation and contact improvisation as an art form, and would like to pursue and perform this area further. I am currently exploring the Seattle area as improvisation is practiced widely there; plus Seattle is beautiful!! I may not get out there for another couple of years. I am getting married at the end of this year. My fiancé and I are going to apply for a job at a resort down in Mahoe Bay in the British Virgin Islands. We would like to work there as volunteers possibly in late summer 2004.

After that I’m either going to cosmetology school or get licensed in massage therapy.

And then, who knows?

What was one of your favorite pieces and why?

Jennifer Zyrkowski’s senior piece last year was certainly one my favorites. She was absolutely amazing. I had never before worked with someone who was able to create such a perfect synthesis between her choreography and the dancers’ impulses. She was not precious with her material, and she knew when an idea or section of the piece was not working as well as it could. It was the first piece where I felt involved both as a dancer and a person. I was allowed to have emotions and thoughts, and not just perform the choreography step-by-step.

fairy tales could be scary and violent.

“For the set we were going for very large. In Act 1 we used translucent fabric for the trees so that the light shines through. It is more cartoonlike, which contributes to why we get a happy ending,” said Flint. “For Act 2 we replace the trees so that (the set) becomes more real. The silhouette is maintained so that the audience is aware that it is the same woods.”

The Krannert Center and the Department of Theater have worked together toward the same goal in producing this show, said Flint. Krannert has a union crew that build the sets, but students in practicum work on it too, Flint said.

The audience is in for a treat with this performance. Zager calls it sort of Shakespearean. “It is on a grand scale. It is a huge epic play,” Zager said. “I think the audience will be surprised, because the play is set in (the) Russian folk period so the characters have a unique, Russian peasant look.”

University graduate student Lanny Warkentien, stage manager, feels that the best part of the production is that the director took a much darker look at the show, and so it is more truthful to the story.

“It is more interesting to see the characters that we think we know going through some real issues,” Warkentien said. “It is a brilliant score and a great story. People will see some things in this version that they have never seen before.”

Into the Woods, which opens Oct. 23, is not recommended for young children. buzz

moviereview

VERONICA GUERIN ★★

BY MATT PAIS | LEAD REVIEWER

S

erious issues lead to serious movies, and issues don’t get much more serious than the drug problem that crippled Dublin, Ireland, in the early to mid-1990s. As shown in Veronica Guerin, director Joel Schumacher’s over-the-top ode to the reallife journalist, used needles lined neighborhood streets and drug lords issued beatings that could be heard from the outside of buildings. In the midst of this pervasive problem was Guerin (Cate Blanchett), an investigative reporter for the Sunday Independent—known across Ireland for her brave, confrontational approach to local stories.

This type of film practically writes itself, but writers Carol Doyle and Mary Agnes Donoghue don’t have much faith in the inspiration of Guerin’s mission. She was a selfless do-gooder—a patriot taking action when the local police force looked the other way and the

moviereview

CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS ★★★★

BY JASON CANTONE | ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

A

rnold and David Friedman were a normal father and son pair. Arnold won teaching awards for his scientific prowess at a Long Island school. David worked as a party clown and was a model student. That all changed when both men were accused of taking turns raping young boys in their basement.

Watching Capturing the Friedmans isn’t like watching any other documentary. It doesn’t just show you what’s going on with the Friedman family. Instead, it throws viewers into a gripping tale of family destruction that feels no different than watching a semi crash into cars on an expressway. You know everything is going to fall apart into total disaster, but you can’t do anything but sit and watch it all unfold.

No one would have guessed that the brown paper-covered packages that would enter the home and go directly to Arnold’s office were filled with child pornography. And when the child pornography and child molestation charges start to surface, the community is rightfully outraged, making viewers wonder if their

townspeople could only watch their children succumb to heroin. This heroine put her story ahead of herself and her family, persisting against violent opposition that would keep Erin Brockovich awake at night.

But Veronica Guerin won’t let Veronica Guerin just speak through her noble actions. For most of this tiresome, moralizing melodrama, Guerin parades around town lecturing the elected officials and weaseling information out of John “The Coach” Traynor (Ciaran Hinds), a lowend criminal who may or may not be doublecrossing her.

Blanchett gives a fierce, defiant performance, but Guerin appears pretentiously determined throughout the simplistic screenplay. At every possible opportunity, she tells cops and newspapermen, “We’re on the same side,” but even that self-righteous assertion falls short of truthful resonance. For all of her fearless perseverance, Guerin’s actions are equally irrational and unnecessarily dangerous.

Though based on a true story (which sometimes doesn’t mean much in movie language), Veronica Guerin is too polished to succeed as a convincingly dirty depiction of social evil run wild. The drug dealers are standard goons, uttering clichéd threats between outbursts of violence spurned by revenge, and the film’s quieter characters are even less convincing.

Irish lawmen, as well as Guerin’s family members, only exist to provide base-level resistance to her undying drive to expose the country’s biggest unpublicized problem. Even when a own neighbors could be hiding secrets as dark as the Friedmans’ or worse, even darker ones.

Director Andrew Jarecki’s masterpiece cuts close to the family because it didn’t start out as a documentary about child molestation. He began filming a short about the party entertainment group where David served as Top Clown.

But then David began to lead Jarecki into his family life by hinting at a dark secret that would soon be exposed to the community.

More than a family portrait, Capturing the Friedmans serves as a mystery of epic proportions: Was Arnold a man who enjoyed child pornography but would never act on those pedophiliac impulses? (He does admit to commiting a lewd act with a child, but never admitted to doing anything with the boys who took his computer class.) Viewers will be angry when hearing stories of how the young boys were sodomized in the dark basement, but viewers will be even angrier as the film comes to a close without providing any answers.

By its very nature, film is a subjective art.

Jarecki could have omitted views on either side of guilt or innocence to lead viewers to a definite conclusion. But he refuses to make it easy.

Jarecki allows contradictory interviews to smack together, as if to remind viewers that nothing has been completely settled.

When one policeman explains how the computer classes were a free-for-all of pedophilia, a young boy (a supposed victim) explains that he only said what he thought police wanted to hear and that he takes back any claim that he was anally raped by Mr. Friedman.

bullet is fired through Guerin’s house as a warning, her husband (Paul Ronan) only delivers a halfhearted attempt to dissuade her from her work.

Surprisingly enough, the film was produced

by Jerry Bruckheimer, and it’s an unpredictably activist and politically-driven outing for the king of explosions. Thankfully, his influence is minimal in Veronica Guerin, which hopefully suggests that the man behind overblown bombs such as Bad Boys II and Kangaroo Jack might start consistently using his power for good instead of evil.

But for a movie that tries to be important and provocative, Veronica Guerin feels overly exploitative in the depiction of Guerin’s fight against the local drug czars. Like a less ostentatious version of The Life of David Gale, Veronica Guerin fails to present itself, or its issues, objectively. Guerin was a recklessly noble reporter, fighting society when no one else would, but the film converts her story into a by-the-numbers tale of tragic martyrdom.

There are a few genuine scenes that appropriately reflect the disorder that existed in a city whose inept police force sat back and watched drug dealers (or pushers, as they’re called in Ireland) rise to power. Unfortunately, these are rare, popping up occasionally between the redundant thematic reiteration of Guerin’s lack of involvement in her son’s life (As he holds up a skateboard that he received for his birthday and Guerin asks him who got that for him, he says, “You and daddy.”)

TOUCHSTONE PICTURES

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PHOTO | SUZANNE SITRICK

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VERONICA GUERIN | CIARAN HINDS, CATE BLANCHETT The story of Veronica Guerin deserves a feature film adaptation far more than some other true-life events that have had the Hollywood treatment (Under the Tuscan Sun), but the journalist is owed a much more neutrally affecting tribute. From the widespread dangers of drug use to the daily risks of investigative journalism, Guerin exposed important societal elements in a previously apathetic environment.

But for all the intrinsically uplifting elements of this culturally significant story, Veronica Guerin just comes off as feeble and forced.

Guerin was a heroic woman of the people, but the film tries so hard to turn her into a classic movie character that her experiences lose exactly that: character.

C-UViews

TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★★★

GOOD MACHINE

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CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS | FAMILY PHOTO However sick it is, voyeurism is fascinating.

In less than two hours, viewers will have seen into the secret lives of an American family and have heard about the atrocities that could have been committed. They have entered a dark chapter of American suburbia that cuts deeper than American Beauty with its “Look closer” tagline ever could. That is because whether Arnold Friedman raped young boys, whether David Friedman raped his own brother or whether it’s all just made up, it’s really happening. This is America at its most disgusting and filmmaking at its most brilliant.

SCREEN REVIEW GUIDE

★★★★ ★★★ ★★ ★ no stars

Flawless Good Mediocre Bad Unwatchable

Chad Martin Rantoul

"One of the best scary movies I've seen in a while."

★★★★ Ed Stasheff Champaign

"Good acting, directing, cinematography and script."

RUNAWAY JURY ★★★ Thomasine Riney Champaign

"It had enough action to keep you interested."

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film & tv

IT’S A BLOODY LITTLE STORY. | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

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Ed Gein: A man who collected corpses Warning: The following story is based upon actual criminal events that took place in Wisconsin in the 1950s. Due to its graphic nature, reader discretion is advised.

I

magine sitting down for a quick meal in Ed Gein’s dilapidated Wisconsin farmhouse. He serves you some soup in a bowl and asks you to sit in a homemade chair. Things feel uncomfortable and there’s that feeling of terror in the air that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand on end. Then suddenly, your worst nightmare becomes a reality.

The funny looking soup bowl is the top of a human skull, the armchair is coated in human flesh and not only is the belt he’s wearing made out of human nipples, but his suit is made entirely of human flesh. Those were among the grotesque artifacts found by police in Ed Gein’s home in 1957, along with the headless, butchered body of the local deputy’s mother.

The sick story of serial killer Ed Gein is the stuff movies are made of, which is why many horror writers have stolen parts of his life for movies as often as he stole female genitalia from buried women in the local graveyard.

When transvestite Buffalo Bill shocked audi-

moviereview

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★

BY AARON LEACH | STAFF WRITER

I

f it’s not broken, then don’t try to fix it.

Apparently no one ever bothered to tell director Marcus Nispel this age-old bit of wisdom.

Nispel makes his big-screen directorial debut, having only directed music videos, with the remake of the 1974 Tobe Hooper horror classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. “Massacre” is a truly appropriate word for what Nispel has done to the good name of the original horrific masterpiece.

One of the true tests of any good horror film is the test of time. In the current age of cinematic re-releases (Star Wars, E.T., Alien), it is beyond all human comprehension why The Texas Chainsaw Massacre needed to be remade in the first place. The original more than withstands the criticisms of new generations and continues to scare the bejeezus out of those lucky enough to see it time and time again. The answer to the “why” lies directly under the

ences in The Silence of the Lambs with his suit made entirely of sliced-up women, author Thomas Harris got his inspiration from Gein’s notorious deeds. But the film that threw Gein’s macabre melodrama into the spotlight was Tobe Hooper’s 1974 horror classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

T h e Te x a s C h a i n s a w Massacre and its new Michael Bay-produced reincarnation both boast the phrase “based on actual events” as if there was a chainsaw-wielding, facially disfigured recluse out for blood. There wasn’t.

Instead, Leatherface (aptly named because he wore the human skin of his victims as a mask) emerged from both Hooper’s knowledge of Gein’s deeds and his own horrific childhood daydreams.

Gein’s childhood began in LaCrosse, Wi s .

His mother preached the Bible and forced her two boys to live according to

her strictmorals. Although she scolded them and ran the family without any respect for their alcoholic father, Gein loved his mother with a passion seen in Robert Bloch’s novel Psycho, which b e c a m e Hitchcock’s horror masterpiece and was based on Gein’s life.

When his brother insulted their abusive mother, he mysteriously died of suffocation shortly after. And when his mother died, Gein looked to bizarre hobbies in order to keep himself entertained: reading obituaries and then digging up the women and peeling

credit for executive producer Michael Bay (Pearl Harbor). With his name associated, all forms of cinematic rhyme and reason go swiftly out the door.

But moving on, everything that was fresh and innovative about the original is nowhere to be seen in this film. This version does manage to hold some of the basic story elements intact.

A group of 20-something kids, this time on their way back from a drug run in Mexico, drive through desolate Travis County, Texas, and pick up a hitchhiker. Here the story really begins to stray from the original.

After the hitchhiker shoots herself, the group feels obligated to find the police and get the whole situation sorted out. Unfortunately, the group happens to run into Leatherface, a chainsaw-wielding psycho who skins his victims and wears them like a mask. Leatherface is aided by his entire family, who look like a bunch straight out of Deliverance. That is pretty much where the similarities end. Even the classic unsettling ending of the original is changed for the remake.

The problem with this film is that it is simply boring. The originality of Hooper’s film came from the unexpected and bizarre turns that his script took—also that everything happened in such a rapidly jolting fashion that viewers never had time to exhale. Part of the creepy mystery of the original is that the audience never really knows why Leatherface does what he does or even what is really going on at all. It kept viewers tense and on edge for the entire

duration of the film. Here, Nispel tries to explain Leatherface’s motivation as though that is somehow going to build sympathy for someone who enjoys mutilating people. Everything about Nispel’s film is recycled. There is nothing different about this movie from any other horror film that stars a bunch of stupid youngsters.

The sad thing is, with all of this laughable behavior happening on-screen, Nispel expects viewers to take it seriously.

The film, however, is not completely unwatchable. The performance given by Jessica Biel as the film’s heroine does add some nice range to the young actress’ portfolio. R. Lee Ermey does a fantastically sadistic rendition of his drill sergeant from Full Metal Jacket to create a character that is even scarier than Leatherface.

While some of the photography does manage to capture some of the subdued grittiness of the original, it pales in comparison to the 16mm authenticity that makes Hooper’s film seem all too real.

After hacking and slashing away at the original screenplay, it is clear that Marcus Nispel is not interested in telling any sort of story or giving any sort of social commentary. The movie substitutes screams and gore for the careful artistry that is present in the original, only to create the same formula that moviegoers have seen a hundred times before and are frankly quite tired of. Even those who have not seen the original will not find anything to keep their attention in this movie.

Save money—rent the original.

off their skin so he could wear it.

But his desire for collecting human flesh soon spiraled out of control, as he began to collect severed heads and bottle them as if they were shrunken heads put out on display on Halloween to scare children. And then young girls started to disappear. After more than a day of silence in police custody, Gein began to recount how he murdered the deputy’s mother and where he got the body parts that filled his house just as they did in the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre film.

With Gein in custody (soon to be sent to a mental hospital) and the police digging up more bodies by the day around his Wisconsin farm, the community and media began to exorcise the nightmare Gein had made a waking reality through laughter and humiliation.

Songs were written turning Gein’s atrocious deeds into folk ballads. In one, written by Lawrence P. Jones and to the tune of The Beverly Hillbillies’ theme, he writes, “Come and listen to my story ‘bout a man named Ed/ Had an old farmhouse with a great big shed/ Then one day his mama up and died/ So he skinned the old gal and he tanned her hide.”

Through movies and music, the tale of Ed Gein and his obsession for human flesh will forever be etched into the public’s consciousness.

Aroma exhibits hope through art

BY NIK GALLICCHIO | STAFF WRITER

M

PHOTO COURTESY OF NIK GALLICCHIO

BY JASON CANTONE | ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

One of the many pieces of art featured at Aroma and created by a gifted artist with a mental disability.

Tommy G’s

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arts

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | LET’S BEE FRIENDS, AND THERE’S A BUZZ LOGO ON IT!

ental Awareness Week is in October and it is currently being celebrated by the Aroma Cafe, 118 N. Neil St., Champaign.

Artwork abounds in the cozy bistro—artwork made by people who suffer from schizophrenia and depression. The National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression supports a volunteer corporation called NARSAD Artworks. This enterprise displays and sells sophisticated artwork, and all the proceeds go to scientific research.

One of NARSAD Artworks’ goals is to make the public more aware of the incorrect stigma these mental illnesses are connected with. This artwork proves that people who suffer can still lead fully productive and content lives while dealing with their inner turmoil. The founders of NARSAD Artworks—Patsy and Hal Hollister—found that their daughter, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1978, was helped by the simple act of creating art. Thus, in 1990, NARSAD Artworks was born. This venture has only grown since, owing its success to purchases as well as donations.

The collection of pieces at Aroma is called “Sunshine from Darkness,” and appears until the end of October. The pieces look like they could belong in a museum. “It adds to the atmosphere,” commented Victor, a graduate student at the University of Illinois. The artwork does indeed lend richness to the coffee house experience.

Next to the pieces are little placards that provide information about the artists. A painting called “Solitary” makes use of shadows. In it, there is a dark man in a corner absconded by the darkness. Light filters through what at first seems to be a window, and plays along the ground. Upon closer observation, however, the window turns out to be metal bars, and it seems as though this man is in a prison.

The artist of this piece, Mark Bishop, is active in many creative endeavors, such as theater, music, writing and filmmaking. One of his pastimes is to get on a Greyhound bus and draw the faces of other passengers. “I try to express myself through my art,” Bishop said. “In a way, my art is like a signature—it expresses who I am.” It is interesting to take this into account when looking at the loneliness of the man in the shadows in “Solitary.”

One of the most moving pieces—”Friend”

by Brad Petznik—shows a face that is disconnected from a body. The image is obstructed

by hundreds of flecks, like peach-colored rain. You cannot clearly see what is behind the flecks—there are too many obstacles in the way to distinguish what lies underneath.

Lack of clarity is evident in the work, and one can tell how this piece reflected the artist’s life. Petznik led a normal life—he had three siblings, played football and guitar, and even had a newspaper route. When he was 14, however, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and later on, that was compounded with manic-depression.

The fight to remain living a normal life was a daily struggle. According to the little information given about him, creating art was cathartic for him. He’d taken classes at a nearby local college. In 1997, he was hospitalized after a relapse caused by his sudden refusal to take his medication. Three days after he was released, he committed suicide.

The exhibit gives one a sense of the inner workings of a schizophrenic mind—hope and turmoil all rolled into one. It is worth checking out and stewing over while sipping on a beverage or even while puffing on one of Aroma’s signature cigars. buzz

NARSAD Exhibit lasts until Oct. 31. Aroma Cafe is located at 118 N Neil Street in Champaign. They can be reached at 356-3200.

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Giving a voice to the unheard

BY BEKEELA WATSON | STAFF WRITER

topics per semester and strives to study the social issue completely in order to understand In any community, many of us share issues it, rather than being reactionary. If an issue is that generally are not talked about. To help performed too soon, some possible angles to study it from may not address this problem, have arisen yet.

Inner Voices was cre“We tend to leave ated in 1995. Inner members of society Voices (also known as out when looking at Social Issues Theater) social issues, so when is a theater ensemble doing research, we try sponsored by McKinley to encompass the Health Center’s counHayley Smith, technical director views of everyone,” seling center and the said program director Department of Theater.

Lisa Fay. The goal of Social “Social Issues Theater Issues Theater is to offer a venue for issues to be discussed and to is interesting because it is art that reflects our life,” increase awareness. Every performance is fol- said technical director Hayley Smith.

Body image is the subject of their upcomlowed by a facilitated discussion on the topic that was presented. The ensemble performs at ing performance, “Freeze, Body Police.” They the Armory Free Theater initially and then highlight topics such as eating disorders, selftours selected University of Illinois residence image and media depictions versus real life.

In one scene, there are several ladies in a halls.

The issues to examine are chosen with input checkout line at a grocery store. They all take from McKinley and are often ongoing. Social turns looking at a woman on the cover of the Issues Theater presents approximately four magazine and they comment on how she

[

Social Issues Theater is interesting because it is art that reflects our life.

[

looks nothing like them and how their everyday experiences have no commonalities. Then they discuss how the media perpetuates stereotypes such as “blondes are dumb” and “Asians are smart.”

What makes this unique is that these are perceptions that the common woman has when looking at images in the media, but they are hardly ever shared aloud. The scene was created in order to Social Issues Theater performs pieces concerning marginalized make the audience considsocial groups. er everyday issues and to make them aware of the fact that they are not about acting and playwriting. There is also a alone in that consideration. As Kate Conrath facilitators’ class to teach how to lead the conafter the performances. asserted, “I like performing in Inner Voices versation because it deals with real issues—things that Furthermore, the interaction with the audience is intended to create a healthy social really happen.”

Social Issues Theater is a course at the environment. “The discussions are just as University, offered under Theater 300. important as the actual performance, and art Enrollment is audition-based and there are no connects people,” commented actress prerequisites. Students are cast on a case-by- Elizabeth Andrejasich.

Inner Voices’ first performances of “Freeze, case basis. However, it is suggested that a student take Theater 358/Women’s Studies Body Police” are Oct. 24 and 25 at the Armory 358 prior to auditioning in order to learn Free Theatre at 8:00 p.m. buzz

PHOTO | BAKEELA WATSON

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OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Q & A

TodSatterthwaite

What is the last movie you saw and what was your opinion of it?

Lost in Translation. I thought it was really good.

T

od Satterthwaite serves as Mayor of Urbana.

He is 49 years old and unmarried.

Originally from Pittsburgh, he moved to Urbana in 1961. His hobbies include running, canoeing and kayaking. Personable and downto-earth, Mayor Satterthwaite is a reflection of the city of he governs.

Do you see any clear differences between Champaign and Urbana?

Yes, I do. It takes a little while to figure it out.

Urbana is smaller, less business-oriented, and more liberal. For instance, we spend more, percentage wise, on social service funding.

It’s the little things like that. Both are good communities with a high standard of living.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is now the governor of California. Your opinion on the situation?

I don’t know. It seems like a real circus to me.

But maybe that’s what California wants.

What is one thing you would still like to accomplish in your life?

For my life personally, more travel. I’d like to experience more people and cultures. I worked in the Peace Corps in Granada for a few years and would like to do something like that again.

What did you do last night?

Worked at a business my sister and I own in Kickapoo renting out canoes and kayaks, then came home, had a beer, and watched the World Series.

I am new to the Urbana area. Give me a onesentence description of the city.

Home of the University of Illinois, where you’ll find good neighborhoods, schools and parks.

What is your favorite board game?

Trivial Pursuit.

Do you have any favorite spots in the area?

Running in Crystal Lake Park and Busey Woods.

What achievement are you most proud of in life so far?

Living by good community and ethical values. To me, it’s more how you live than what you do in life.

Where do you see the city of Urbana in 10 years?

I’d like to see progress on trying to implement our downtown plan. One thing that’s been a strategy in residential development is downtown development. I’d like to see some investors take a chance on buildings with commercial space on the first few floors and apartments or condos on the upper floors.

Downtown development has been a concern for 20 years, but the emphasis changes. Right now we are focused on creating a nice urban environment in downtown Urbana.

Who will you be voting for in the next presidential election?

I will NOT be voting for Bush, I’ll tell you that right now. I think he’s been a disaster.

moviereview

MYSTIC RIVER ★★★★

BY ANDREW VECELAS | STAFF WRITER

C

film & tv

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | SEAN PENN WAS GOOD, BUT BILL MURRAY WAS BETTER.

lint Eastwood’s classic Unforgiven tells the story of a retired gunfighter who must face up to the violent past he regrets. The overall sense is that he cannot escape what has happened before, because he is still very much the product of those actions. Mystic River, Eastwood’s latest directorial effort, covers some of the same ground, portraying three characters forever molded by a tragedy in the past. It has the structure of a suspense film, but the approach of a character study. Either way, it’s the best film Eastwood has directed in years.

The lives of friends are forever altered when one is abducted off of the street and molested for four days in a basement before escaping. As adults, Jimmy (Sean Penn), Dave (Tim Robbins) and Sean (Kevin Bacon) have drifted apart, but are suddenly forced back into each other’s lives after the murder of Jimmy’s daughter. Sean is the lead investigator on the case and Dave’s past may or may not make him a leading suspect. All the while, Jimmy grieves over the loss of his oldest daughter and threatens to return to

a criminal past to avenge her death.

The plot never differs much from what would be expected in a typical mystery/suspense movie, but Mystic River distinguishes itself because it focuses less on the circumstances of the two tragedies and more on how the characters feel the effects. The three men are simultaneously reminded of their connection to the past while trying to deal with the problems of the present. The script by Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential) focuses intently on the characters and their interactions, but never bogs down much before advancing the action.

Eastwood also directs with an eye to the characters, allowing them to act brilliantly while the camera just observes. The direction isn’t flashy in any way; most of the film’s effect comes from its cast and story, not creative camera tricks.

A script so heavy on characterization demands a capable cast, and luckily the film is blessed with a very talented cast. Penn gives his most accomplished performance since Dead Man Walking and is deserving of an Oscar nomination. His scenes carry the most emotional power in the movie, and he is able to suggest the danger in Jimmy’s character along with the despair. Many of Penn’s scenes essentially revolve around Jimmy’s anguish over his daughter’s murder, and Penn is so intense in these scenes that when Jimmy threatens to return to his violent and criminal ways, it doesn’t come as a surprise at all.

Robbins forges a nice counterpart to Penn, making Dave rather flat emotionally, but also suggesting that much more lurks beneath the surface. Robbins is no stranger to playing this

iqu

e , S ho p w i

MYSTIC RIVER | SEAN PENN kind of character, and he is able to subtly suggest what is happening inside of Dave without necessarily saying it. Bacon performs well even though he is given less to work with—Sean is reluctant to believe his old friend could be responsible for a gruesome crime, and is willing to look anywhere else to find answers. Also a standout is Marcia Gay Harden as Dave’s wife Celeste. She comes off as initially trusting of her husband, but as the plot unfolds, she gradually becomes more and more suspicious of his connection to the murder.

Mystic River comes as a sort of slap in the face of modern suspense movies. Its style is very down-to-earth, without any gimmicks or illogical plot twists. Instead, it works by manipulating the mood and characters for maximum effect. Moviegoers who are looking for a deep, rewarding film experience can’t do much better than this. Mystic River is nothing short of riveting—the kind of film that stays with the viewer long after the house lights come up.

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s!

How do you see the relationship between the University and the city?

The University is a huge benefit, but it also presents a lot of challenges. Our largest employer is tax-exempt. That can present a challenge in how we pay for things. We did a study a few years back and found that about 75 percent of buildings in Urbana are taxexempt. This can create challenges when coordinating with the University.

Do you have any requests of the students of the University in order to help improve Urbana?

I live a block and half off of Lincoln Avenue.

On weekends, house parties can get a little crazy. I’d encourage students living in residential neighborhoods to realize that some of the people around them with families and jobs live by different schedules.

buzz

U th

What is your favorite thing about C-U? The University influence is a big thing. It influences the park district, neighborhoods and just about everything else. The University demands a high quality of service and life.

buzz

Be U n

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WARNER BROS PICTURES

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ITEMS NEEDED: Questions: • Travel-size Shampoo, Soap, and Toothpaste • Toothbrushes • Razors • Lotions • Diapers (Infant to Adult), Baby Wipes • Tissue • Crayons, Colored Markers • Pencils, Pens • Coloring Books, Construction Paper • Spiral Notebooks • Glue • Folders • New Socks and Underwear (For All Ages)

DROP-OFF SITES:

• Bresnan Meeting Center • Daily Illini Office • Family Service Center • Illini Radio Group Office • Illini Union Bookstore • Office of Volunteer Programs (277 Illini Union) This event is being held to assist human service agencies in Champaign County, with the support of several groups including Central High School Student Council, the Religious Workers Association, and the Religious Leaders for Community Care.

• Parkland College’s Child Development Center • Phillips Recreation Center • Schnucks Stores • United Way of Champaign County • University YMCA

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CUBA GOODING JR.’S MOVIE SHOULD HAVE A NEW TITLE. RIGHT, MERTZ? | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

Drive-thru Reviews

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CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS ★★★★ DAVID AND ARNOLD FRIEDMAN More than just a documentary, this film explores the world of a New York family that is accused of bringing boys into the basement for computer classes and then sexually abusing them. A fascinating documentary.(Jason Cantone) Now showing at Boardman’s Art Theatre

GOOD BOY! ★★★ MATTHEW BRODERICK AND BRITTANY MURPHY An alien dog talks to kids. Simply amazing. Watch Matthew Broderick’s career sink even further. (Arthur Mitchell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

HOUSE OF THE DEAD

no stars

JONATHAN CHERRY AND CLINT HOWARD A group of ecstacy-loving kids sail out to an island and find zombies.This film opens with the line “It was a nightmare”and that describes the film perfectly. (Paul Wagner) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

KILL BILL: VOLUME ONE ★★★★ UMA THURMAN AND DAVID CARRADINE Kill Bill is raw entertainment that packs brains with its brawn.

That is because Tarantino is an expert at drawing feeling from his killers, robbers and sociopaths. In Kill Bill, Tarantino revisits his penchant for characters who have experienced past—and specifically, childhood—trauma, again hitting the mark with brave situational dichotomy.(Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

LOST IN TRANSLATION ★★★★ BILL MURRAY AND SCARLETT JOHANSSON Bill Murray finds a relationship with a younger woman in this intelligent film set in Japan and directed by Sofia Coppola.

The enigmatic serenity of Lost in Translation confounds and astonishes while it simultaneously embraces and rejects convention. The link between Bob and Charlotte feels a touch familiar but, more importantly, perfectly natural. (Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

MYSTIC RIVER ★★★★ KEVIN BACON AND SEAN PENN Three childhood friends are united after one loses his daughter. Expect brilliant performances. This story goes beyond the usual crime thriller and is filled with some brilliant performances expected to be honored with Oscars. (Andrew Vecelas) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

OUT OF TIME ★★★ DENZEL WASHINGTON AND SANAA LATHAN Denzel Washington, fresh from his Oscar-winning performance in Training Day and his lead role in the crappy John Q., portrays a cop framed for a heinous crime in this film, which uses a little-used genre effectively to provide an interesting and suspenseful thriller. (Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

RUNAWAY JURY ★★★ DUSTIN HOFFMAN AND GENE HACKMAN Based upon the best selling John Grisham novel, this story was originally about tobacco farms, but becomes a tale of guns. Featuring two of the greatest actors alive, this film is exactly what a summer beach novel is good for: a lot of fun, provided that you suspend disbelief. (Jason Cantone) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

THE RUNDOWN ★★★ THE ROCK AND SEANN WILLIAM SCOTT The Rundown is pure entertainment, plain and simple.It’s hard to lump it into one genre as it reaches into action, adventure and comedy in order to come up with an exhilarating and fun combination that will leave audiences more than satisfied.

(Aaron Leach) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

THE SCHOOL OF ROCK ★★★★ JACK BLACK AND JOAN CUSACK Jack Black plays a rock star who bottoms out and becomes a teacher at a prep school in this smart film from director Richard Linklater, who also made Waking Life. (Matt Mitchell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

SEABISCUIT ★★★★ TOBEY MAGUIRE, JEFF BRIDGES AND CHRIS COOPER The Seabiscuit phenomenon was one of the most captivating in United States history and this film does it justice.

(Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy.

SECONDHAND LIONS ★★★★

and werewolves. Look for great action sequences and a dark tone similar to The Matrix. And then there’s also Kate Beckinsale in all leather to watch for. (Jason Cantone) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy.

VERONICA GUERIN ★★ CATE BLANCHETT AND BRENDA FRICKER Cate Blanchett plays real life journalist Veronica Guerin wonderfully, the film needs to focus more on her actions and less on her long lectures to help save Ireland. (Matt Pais) Now showing at Beverly

OPENING THIS WEEKEND BEYOND BORDERS

ANGELINA JOLIE AND CLIVE OWEN Beyond Borders is an epic tale of the turbulent romance between two star-crossed lovers set against the backdrop of warn-torn Africa. But what’s truly turbulent is whether or not the Oscar committee will demand their Oscar back from Jolie after those terrible Tomb Raider movies. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy

RADIO

CUBA GOODING JR. AND ED HARRIS Cuba Gooding Jr. does his best to give a performance that will make his critics less likely to demand that he give back his Oscar after horrendous films such as Snow Dogs. Watch him play up mental retardation here. The Oscar committee has a lot of Oscars to rescind this weekend. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy this weekend

SCARY MOVIE 3

CHARLIE SHEEN AND DENISE RICHARDS Despite crop circles, videotapes and a Michael Jackson impersonator, I have a feeling this masterpiece will be overlooked come Oscar season. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly and Savoy this weekend

WONDERLAND

VAL KILMER AND LISA KUDROW Remember how great Boogie Nights was? Well, remove all of the good parts and you might get Wonderland, the story behind porn star John Holmes and the murders that took place around him. (Jason Cantone) Opening at Beverly this weekend

SAVOY 16 Route 45 & Burwash Ave. $5.50 Kids all shows

(217)

355-FILM

$5.75 DAILY Matinees til 6pm & Seniors $6.25 Late Shows Fri & Sat $6.25 Students $7.25 Evenings Mon - Thurs No passes DIGITAL STEREO Unlimited Free Drink Refills & .25¢ Corn Refills

Stadium Seating Gives YOU An Unobstructed View All Rocking Chairs

SHOWTIMES 10/24 - 10/30 SCARY MOVIE 3 (PG-13) 3 PRINTS / 3 SCREENS

1:00, 1:25, 1:50, 3:00, 3:25, 3:50, 5:00, 5:35, 5:50, 7:00, 7:35, 7:50, 9:00, 9:30, 9:50 FRI/SAT LS 11:00, 11:20, 11:50 RADIO (PG) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS 12:45, 1:00, 2:55, 3:10, 5:05, 5:20, 7:15, 7:30, 9:25, 9:40 FRI/SAT LS 11:35, 11:50 BEYOND BORDERS (R) 12:55, 3:55, 6:30, 9:05 FRI/SAT LS 11:40 RUNAWAY JURY (PG-13) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS STADIUM SEATING 1:45, 2:25, 4:15, 6:45, 7:30, 9:15 FRI/SAT LS 11:45 THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (R) 2 PRINTS / 2 SCREENS STADIUM SEATING

12:10, 1:20, 2:05, 3:30, 4:00, 5:25, 5:55, 7:20, 7:50, 9:20, 9:50 FRI/SAT LS 11:20, 11:50 MYSTIC RIVER (R) STADIUM SEATING 1:20, 4:00, 6:40, 9:20 FRI/SAT LS 12:00 INTOLERABLE CRUELTY (PG-13) 5:30, 7:35, 9:40 FRI/SAT LS 11:45 KILL BILL, VOLUME 1 (R) STADIUM SEATING 1:05, 3:15, 5:35, 7:55, 10:00 FRI/SAT LS 12:10 GOOD BOY! (PG) 1:20, 3:20, 5:20, 7:20 THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD (R)FRI/SAT LS 11:50 SCHOOL OF ROCK (PG-13) 12:55, 3:10, 5:25, 7:40, 9:55 FRI/SAT LS 12:10 OUT OF TIME (PG-13) 9:10 FRI/SAT LS 11:20 UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN (PG-13) 12:10, 2:30, 4:50, 7:10, 9:30

LOST IN TRANSLATION (R) STADIUM SEATING 12:45, 5:20, 9:55 FRI/SAT LS 12:05

SECONDHAND LIONS (PG) 1:10, 3:20

COUPON

20OZ.DRINK

with $2.50 purchase of 46oz. bag of buttery popcorn

one per ad @ Savoy 16 Exp. Dec. 2003 "DI"

BEST DEAL in eNewsletter at www.savoy16.com

www.savoy16.com

buzz

community

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

says, still smiling. “There was no room at all.

And there was a hole in the floor with a ladder right here”—she stomps her sneakered foot beside the dining room table—“that led down into this tiny kitchen with a double-burner stove and a half-size refrigerator!”

“Yep,” Bob agrees, “that was all I needed to get by.”

You might say antiques saved Bob’s life. As a younger man, Bob drank a case of beer and a fifth of gin a day. His health was in shambles. In his 30s, Bob acknowledges that he was a bad father and an even worse husband.

He let his work as a graphic designer go to hell. Old friends crossed the street when they saw him coming.

“I finally quit drinking when I was 39,” he says, “because I was in such bad shape that I wouldn’t have made it to 40.”

After joining Alcoholics Anonymous, he realized he had to fill his life with something more meaningful than weekly meetings, so he turned back to his childhood hobby to fill his spare time.

“The average drunk is smarter than the average person because he only thinks on where the next drink is coming from,” he says. “He concentrates only on that one thing. Antiques are like that because you concentrate on the hunt.

The difference is that when you buy an antique, you have something valuable to show for it.”

He could not get a job in Champaign because of his reputation, but eventually, he was able to finance and run a small graphic design business, Anvil Press. Less than two years later, he started another firm, Abana Press. He retired 10

years ago, but kept going with antiques.

“It’s getting to the point where, if I get anything else, somethin’ will have to go,” he says.

But that doesn’t stop him from looking.

On one recent spring day, morning came dry and cool with winds rustling the brittle weeds along the country road as Bob’s red Oldsmobile van, coated with dust and road salt, zips along to Farmer City. Bob and Betty are on their way to the town’s annual antiques show. They say they’re only going to look, but they’ve brought the van just in case. Blue Ridge High School is filled with strange items: A long, high-backed bench from an old schoolhouse, its seat worn smooth and white from use, tables of ceramic bowls, ballpoint pens, costume jewelry, tin milk jugs, lace-edged handkerchiefs, salt and pepper shakers, doll heads, sepia-toned portraits of unknown men and women, yellowing paperbacks, ruffle-edged Carnival glass bowls in garish iridescent orange and purple, rows and rows of Depression glass. Betty pauses before a Sharon-patterned Depression glass butter dish.

“I can come down on that for you, if you like,” the dealer says.

Betty consults the book she’s brought with her, Gene Florence’s Depression Glass and More. The piece is worth $27.50, but the dealer is asking $35.

“How much would you go down?”

“Thirty.”

“No thanks,” Betty says, passing on to the next dealer.

Bob and Betty will have to worry about profits a lot more now that Betty is retiring from her

ROBERT DUVALL AND MICHAEL CAINE Two old men, who might have been successful bank robbers in the 1920s, take custody of their nephew. Melodramatic story, tears and laughter ensure and manipulate your emotions, but make you love every second. (Andrew Crewell) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

JESSICA BIEL AND MIKE VOGEL While on a drug run to Mexico, a bunch of people pick up a bloodied hitchhiker who has been attacked by someone or something. The movie substitutes screams and gore for the careful artistry that is present in the original, only to create the same formula that moviegoers have seen a hundred times before and are frankly quite tired of. (Aaron Leach) Now showing at Beverly and Savoy

Boardman’s

Art Theatre

TONIGHT starting at 10pm at the Highdive...

The first 50 people to hand the buzz bee their completed survey for C-U’s Finest will get a pass for FREE ENTRY into the Highdive!

126 W. Church St. Champaign, IL

Official site w/trailer: http://www.capturingthefriedmans.com/main.html

R, directed by the king of horror cinema, Italy’s Dario Argento.

Runs 92 minutes, presented in HPS-4000/DD. Midnight Friday and Saturday, October 24 & 25. All tickets are just $5.00!

Enjoy the midnight madness.

Meet our horror hostess, Gorelixia, before the show, and win prizes!

Midnight horror films series information: http://www.lixonline.com/new_page_16.htm

BOARDMAN’S THEATRES www.BoardmansTheatres.com 1-800-BEST PLACE (800-237-8752) 217/355-0068 eTickets/reserved seats: www.BoardmansArtTheatre.com

storage unit built into a wall in his addition that was once part of a house on the corner of Oregon and Gregory Streets. He has put a different handle on each drawer. All are brass, small loops just big enough to fit a finger into, some backed by shiny yellow medallions and others pointed fleur-de-lis dark with age.

“I don’t think anybody else has a set of drawers like that,” he beams.

In the months to come, after Betty retires, the couple plans to roam the United States, visiting their far-flung children and antiquing. They’re not sure if they can make a financial go of it that way, but Bob’s not asking much, just enough to pay the bills and enjoy his passion.

“I consider this really cherished time, since I quit drinking,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of these thirty-two extra years.” buzz

TODAY from 12-2pm on the Quad...

The first 13 people to hand the buzz bee their completed survey for C-U’s Finest will win a pair of tickets to the Illini Homecoming football game or Illini Women’s basketball game on 10/30!

KATE BECKINSALE AND SCOTT SPEEDMAN Werewolves, vampires and humans, oh my! This Romeo and Juliet tale pits love against an eternal war between vampires

Daily at 4:30 p.m., 7:00 p.m., & 9:30 p.m., matinees on Sat/Sun at 2:00 p.m.

job as a secretary for the Urbana School district.

Bob’s all-consuming passion is going to become their sole livelihood, but they aren’t sure they’ll be able to make a living at it. Bob sometimes spends as much restoring a lamp or a piece of furniture as he makes selling it.

“Seems like every time I sell something and get a little ahead, I buy something or start a new project and set us back all over again,” says Bob, unapologetic.

He turns to the next table and spots a set of four oblong brass drawer pulls with ivy-andvine scrollwork in the center, dulled from fingerprints and the faint green tint of corrosion.

In 32 years of collecting, Bob has never seen handles like these. He can’t resist and buys them all for $8. Bob loves hardware.

Back at his home, he points out a 13-drawer

Find the bee today and win great prizes!

UNDERWORLD ★

ONE WEEK ONLY, not rated, runs 107 minutes, flat, presented in HPS-4000/DD.

Cattail kitchen-wear sold door to door by the Sears and Roebuck company in the 1930's.the bar.

bee

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE ★

Thursday night specials: $1 domestic bottles $2 Corona bottles $3 Red Bull and Vodka

Featured DJ’s: DJ Resonate DJ Bozak

5

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buzz

community

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

buzz

PHONE: 217/337-8337

Antiques bring local man to life

BY BETH ROGERS | STAFF WRITER

B

ob Swisher brings back the dead. From houses slated for the wrecking ball, from garage sales selling treasures for pennies, from auction houses and flea markets, Bob is saving history, one piece at a time. With a practiced eye, he sees beneath the paint, the rust, the chips and dents in the objects he finds at these places—all the way down to the original curving iron swirls of a doorknob, the shiny brass of the hinge or the delicate grain of the wood.

For hours, he works on his objects, polishing, scraping, painting, stripping, varnishing, in a storage room crammed with other masterpieces waiting patiently for Bob to rescue them. Sitting on a stool in front of his slanted drawing board, itself a relic from his days as a graphic designer in the 1950s, Bob, 72, works magic on artifacts while watching basketball games on the tiny television.

“Collecting is really a disease,” says Bob, a big man, ruddy-faced with silver hair and a smile and laugh that crinkles his light hazel eyes. “It’s something beautiful. Restoring is like seeing something come alive.”

Bob Swisher is a collector. He has surrounded himself with treasures, objects that whisper stories of family, tradition and history to him as he wipes off each layer of grime. He is a survivor, believing that antiques give him a purpose in life, a reason to quit drinking. Every day, Bob goes on a quest.

For years, Bob has collected the items in his house, creating a cozy oasis of golden wood.

Every wall displays some oddity. Beside the front doorway is an antique child’s coffin with an oblong glass window in its front. Bob had it fitted with shelves and now displays old glass bottles in it because his wife, Betty, 60, would not let him hang it in the kitchen.

By the dining room table are family h e i r looms—a

set of cobalt blue china, plates and bowls and cups that are such a rich translucent blue it’s like staring into the night sky. The fine glassware emits a tiny, echoing ping when flicked with a finger.

He makes each new object a part of his heritage through the work he puts into it. A curving mirror in a carved wooden frame that dates from the mid-nineteenth century hangs in the hallway near his bedroom. When Bob removed the piece of cardboard attached to the back, he found three signatures on the wood beneath it: the names of L. L. Hamill, who bought the mirror in 1898, Gus Hrankerirll, who restored it the same year, and D.E. Meyers, who remounted it in 1952.

“It’d be kind of neat to be a part of history like that,” he says.

So he signed his name. Bob Swisher, 1987.

The ceiling of the dining room is pressed tin painted a warm bronze color. Bob purchased it along the Fox River at a garage sale about 15 years ago. He sandblasted and rust-proofed it and then coated it with three layers of 1957 Ford paint.

Over the fireplace is a mantle that Rork Swisher, one of Bob’s four sons, built while in high school woodshop. When the mantle celebrates its 100th birthday in another 78 years, Bob says, it too will be an antique. Of Bob’s four sons, Rork and his brother Brit caught the antique fever after going to antique auctions as children.

“Rork would always get a fast gavel,” he says. “I think the auctioneers would be impressed that such a little kid would bid. So if somebody in the back would bellyache, ‘Hey, I woulda paid more!’ the auctioneers would tell ‘em, ‘You shoulda got your hand up faster!’”

Bob’s happiest memories are of heading off into the sunset on the weekend with his sons and their friend

Danny Peterson when they were in high school and college. Danny and Rork would usually wait patiently until the end of the auction, when tables of less popular items—splintered footstools, rusted brackets, cheap flower vases and other odds and ends—would be up for cheap grabs.

One Sunday morning at an auction, Rork got two tables, strewn with bits and pieces, for only $20. After sanding, stripping the peeling paint, varnishing and painting, the boys held another garage sale—as they did almost every month with the things they got at auction—and made more than $300.

“I think it’s sad when people tell me that their kids don’t want any of their stuff,” Bob says, of fellow collectors. “They spent years collecting and nobody appreciates how much they cherished what they collected, if it’s poker chips or chamber pots or car parts. I’ll be happy knowing that at least Rork or Brit will keep some things after I’m gone.”

Bob sells glass and hardware at Victorian House in Mahomet, some of which are Depression glass leftover from his mother’s huge collection. Depression glass was commonly given away in cereal boxes and at gas stations with a fill up. Nowadays, many pieces have become rare and valuable. Bob owns at least 4,000 pieces.

“Now people know what it’s worth and they’re saving it,” says Bob. “So it’s not so easy to find a cup or a saucer for a dime like I used to.”

Back in his living room, across from the fireplace, the room opens up into a new addition that Bob and Betty designed so they would have more space to display their antiques. The two steps that lead down to the extra room were once a beam in the ceiling of the Davenport Hall Annex on Matthew Street in Champaign. Bob

DEADLINE: 2 p.m. Monday for the next Thursday’s edition.

INDEX Employment Services Merchandise Transportation Apartments Other Housing/Rent Real Estate for Sale Things To Do Announcements Personals

Bob Swisher takes a breather in an antique lawn chair.

paid $50 for the slab of wood which, after gracing the hall for 85 years, was dumped outside by a contractor, left to rot in the winter snow.

On the wall beside the steps is more wood, not ordinary paneling, but yardsticks—inches marching across the wall in black relief. Across the room is a stuffed pig with “Swisher” written on its body in black. Betty’s touches are all over the rooms, from the candles on the tables to the family made quilts displayed on a rack: one is made of shiny champagne-colored silk salvaged from the lining of fur coats, the other a bright multicolored blanket made from men’s neckties.

Bob takes credit for bringing many of Betty’s raw materials home.

“When I see something I want, I just go after it,” he says, grinning at his wife. “Best thing that ever happened to her.”

“Oh, maybe,” says Betty, rolling her eyes and smiling back.

They found each other late in life, marrying when Bob was 62 and Betty 50.

“You should have seen the place when I got here,” she

000 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900

• PLEASE CHECK YOUR AD! Report errors immediately by calling 337-8337. We cannot be responsible for more than one day’s incorrect insertion if you do not notify us of the error by 2 pm on the day of the first insertion.

• All advertising is subject to the approval of the publisher. The Daily Illini shall have the right to revise, reject or cancel, in whole or in part, any advertisement, at any time.

• All employment advertising in this newspaper is subject to the City of Champaign Human Rights Ordinance and similar state and local laws, making it illegal for any person to cause to be published any advertisement which expresses limitation, specification or discrimination as to race, color, mental handicap, personal appearance, sexual orientation, family responsibilities, political affiliation, prior arrest or conviction record, source of income, or the fact that such person is a student.

• Specification in employment classifications are made only where such factors are bonafide occupational qualifications necessary for employment.

• All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968, and similar state and local laws which make it illegal for any person to cause to be published any advertisement relating to the transfer, sale, rental, or lease of any housing which expresses limitation, specifications or discrimination as to race, color, creed, class, national origin, religion, sex, age, marital status, physical or mental handicap, personal appearance, sexual oientation, family responsibilities, political affiliation, or the fact that such person is a student.

• This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate that is in violation of the law. Our readers are informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal oppportunity basis.

DEADLINE:

2 p.m. Monday for the next Thursday’s edition.

RATES: Billed rate: 25¢/word Paid-in-Advance: 34¢/word Photo Sellers 30 words or less + photo: $5 per issue Garage Sales 30 words in both Thursday’s buzz and Friday’s Daily Illini!! $10. If it rains, your next date is free.

Action Ads • 20 words, run any 5 days (in buzz or The Daily Illini), $14 • 10 words, run any 5 days (in buzz or The Daily Illini), $7 • add a photo to an action ad, $10

After going through a fire, a window frame from a church in Gary, IN was restored by Bob Swisher.

PHOTOGRAPHS | ADAM YOUNG

classified

OCTOBER 9-15, 2003 | I KNOW WE SELL A LOT OF THINGS BUT WE WILL NOT SELL YOUR BABY BROTHER

Employment 000 HELP WANTED | Full Time

TUTORING Do better writing. Hire a writing tutor.

351-9840.

Express Personnel Services 217.355.8500 101 Devonshire Dr., Champaign

HELP WANTED | Part Time

FREE ESTIMATES: Tree trimming, Topping, Removal, Stump Grinding.

384-5010.

Apartments

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

Exact Extraction. Carpet & upholstery cleaning. Free estimates. 6883101.

Announcements800

Belly dance classes for beginners.

Aaminah Surayyah Dance Collectives. 351-5429.

400

OFF-CAMPUS APARTMENTS Unfurnished

BUSINESS SERVICES

CLEANING

Efficiency rooms on campus $250-$310, all utilities paid. 3676626

JOHN SMITH PROPERTY MANAGEMENT www.johnsmithproperties.com (217)384-6930 “believe the hype”

100

Le Therapeutic Massage. Day/ Evening/ Weekend, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Only by appointment. 344-8879.

ROOMS

CAMPUS APARTMENTS Furnished

Make money taking online surveys. Great opportunities for students. Earn $10-125 for taking surveys. Earn $25-$250 for focus groups. Visit www.ezmoney4students.com.

Services

Yes I know you got it from your great aunt and it means the world but its time to share the love. Let us help you find it a good home.

Call buzz classifieds 337-8337

MEETINGS

LAWN CARE

Urbana Golf & Country Club. Wait staff and bartending positions available. Please call 217-344-8670.

Other Rentals 500

800 W. Church, C 2 BR’s centrally located near transportation. Apartments now available.

No pets. $450/mo. 352-8540 days, 355-4608 pm/wknd. www.faronproperties.com Brand new luxury 1, 2, 3, bedroom apartments available in Champaign.

Call Manchester Property Management at 359-0248 for an appointment.

Bejeweled idol from Taiwan. Rumored to bring luck to all who call it theirs!

buzz classifieds SOMEONE might want it.

(217)337-8337

Placing your ad in buzz is as easy as 1-2-3!

Step 1: Choose your deal

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Mail this form with payment to: buzz classifieds 57 E. Green, Champaign, IL 61820 or bring it into our office at that address or at the DI @ the YMCA 1001 S. Wright St. Champaign, IL 61820

1023buzz0326

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odds & end

GET IN TOUCH WITH THE SUPERNATURAL | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): I confess to have fallen prey to a sin that has become widespread: overusing the term "sacred." To my credit, I haven't sunk to the vulgar depths of New Age hucksters who offer workshops in "sacred e-mail marketing" or "sacred dog-walking." But still, I want to be more spare in invoking the term so that on those rare occasions when I do, you will be appropriately awed. Like now, for instance. I predict you will soon be roused to reverence by a visitation that fits the description given by Phil Cousineau in his book, The Art of Pilgrimage: "If you aren't trembling as you approach the sacred, it isn't the real thing.

The sacred, in its various guises as holy ground, art, or knowledge, evokes emotion and commotion."

Yep. It’s that time of year again!!!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Taurus William Henry Seward was the U.S. Secretary of State in the 1860s.Though his career included many notable achievements, he is best known for buying Alaska from Russia. His contemporaries thought this was a batty idea -- Alaska was regarded as a frozen wasteland -- and referred to it as "Seward's Folly." Ultimately, his determination to follow his dream in the face of ridicule proved to be an act of brave genius. For 2.5 cents an acre, he added a rich land that now composes one-fifth of the entire United States. I predict that you, Taurus, will soon have a chance to pull off your own version of Seward's Folly.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Trial and error should be your main strategy these days. It's your best hope for generating reliable information. As you grope and stumble, keep in mind the following thoughts from philosopher Robert Anton Wilson. "These are the batting averages of the best hitters in baseball history: Ty Cobb: .366; Rogers Hornsby: .358; Joe Jackson: .356. Since an average of .333 means a player did not get a hit two out of every three times he batted, these champions made an out more often than they got a hit. Most professional players do much worse.

Moral of the story: Unless you're a brain champion equal to these baseball champions, you're probably wrong close to two out of three times."

9 Taylor, Downtown Champaign

355•WEED

buzz

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Even if you're in love and happy with your partner, this is a perfect moment to ask for even more from your relationship. And if there is room for improvement in the way your love life is unfolding, it's an even more perfect moment.

To launch the intimacy revolution, try this. After taking a bath and while still naked, write down the worst things that have happened to you because of being in love. Burn this document in the flame of a white candle while chanting the words "I am letting go of past disasters." Then dab cinnamon on your forehead, chest, and genitals while murmuring this: "I deserve to be in love with a lover who brings out the best in me -- a lover who inspires me to be in love with everything alive."

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): We're all pretty ignorant about how our bodies work. Do you even know where your pancreas and spleen are, let alone what they do? Can you describe what happens to the air you inhale once it enters your lungs? Have you ever taken the trouble to study and experiment in order to discern what diet is best for your unique physiology? Do you know how much sleep you need to be highly alert and psychologically healthy?

This is a favorable astrological time to deepen your understanding of your body's mysteries.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I've been staring at my astrological charts for hours trying to determine where your head is at. The best I can figure out is that you're off the map . . . between the worlds . . . beyond the boundaries. Sorry I 'm not able to be more specific. I guess you're pretty much on your own for now. I can at least tell you about the powers that this kind of outsider position usually confers: 1. sharper-than-usual intuition about the future; 2. a knack for making unexpected connections you didn't realize you needed; 3. an unpredictability that makes you attractive to people who can help draw out and clarify your unconscious desires.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "Dear Rob: Your horoscopes tickle me in just the right place: wherever the opposite of my funny bone is. It's like you're following me around, but not like a creepy stalker -- more like a kindly and slightly frazzled guardian angel, giving me the odd nudge to avoid doing something stupid, suggesting when I should duck, and rousing the part of me that's ready to give up. Thank you thank you thank you. - Appreciative Libra" Dear Appreciative: Somehow you knew that it's a perfect time to express your gratitude to those who have helped and inspired you. Saying thanks right now will be a kind of prayer that works better than begging for what you lack. It will have the mysterious effect of attracting to you even more goodies.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): You're on the verge of tapping into a huge reservoir of fresh, starting-over energy. To aid you in capitalizing on this gift, I offer you Ellen Kort's poem, "Advice to Beginners." Begin. Keep on beginning. Nibble on everything. Pull up anchors.Sit close to the god of night.Lie still in a stream and breathe water. Climb to the top of the highest tree until you come to the branch where the blue heron sleeps. Eat poems for breakfast. Lick the mountain's bare shoulder. Measure the color of days around your mother's death. Put your hands over your face and listen to what they tell you. Swim with the sea turtle into the moon. Drink wild geranium tea. Run naked in the rain.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): "Modern woman's premenstrual crankiness is not just a physical syndrome," writes Clarissa Pinkola Estes in her book Women Who Run With the Wolves, "but is

equally attributable to her being thwarted in her need to take enough time to revivify and renew herself." I would add my belief that men get cranky as often as women, and for the same reason: There are no ritually sanctified time-outs built into our crazy-making schedules. None of us has the slack necessary to avoid periodic meltdowns.This is a crucial point you cannot afford to ignore, Sagittarius.You're overdue for a sabbatical from your routine.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You're emotionally healthy right now. Your mental hygiene is as good as it's possible to be. Here's a great way to celebrate: Share the wealth; commit vivid acts of generosity. Be discriminating about where you bestow your blessings, though. Since you can't help and save everyone, concentrate your attention on high-functioning people who will in turn multiply your gifts as they help and save others.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A few years ago a group of smartass nerds hosted a jokey International Conference on Mad Science. They called for the submission of papers on topics like "tampering with the life-sustaining forces of the Universe," "exceeding the limitations of the human body via grotesque metamorphoses," and "ill-advised dabbling with supernatural intelligences." I hereby protest their slanderous satire.The eccentric yet often brilliant experiments of the Aquarian tribe suggest that some forms of mad science result in good and beautiful works. And it is a perfect astrological moment for you to prove me right. You're poised to collaborate ingeniously with the lifesustaining forces of the universe, transcend limitations through graceful metamorphoses, and enjoy useful communications with supernatural intelligences.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The last six weeks have been brought to you by BeerCoffee, the elixir that both relaxes your defenses and pumps up your ambition. You've been the perfect poster child for this amazing product -- a dramatic example of what happens when a sensitive soul mellows out and gets excited at the same time. The good folks at BeerCoffee thank you for your excellent role modeling, and wish you well during the next phase of your development, when you'll be exploring the opportunities that have been blasted open by your paradoxical brilliance.

✍ HOMEWORK:

Write a page of praise about a person you don't want anything from. Let me see it, please: www.freewillastrology.com.

Rob Brezsny's Free Will ☎ Astrology beautyandtruth @ f r e e w i l l a s t r o l o g y. c o m 415.459.7209(v)• 415.457.3769 http://www.freewillastrology. com P.O. Box 798 San Anselmo, CA 94979

CROSSWORD PUZZLE (ANSWERS ON 16) ACROSS 1 Gorged oneself, infor-

mally

8 Agitated 15 “The flavor can’t be

matched because only ___ knows the secret” (old slogan) 16 Not anywhere 17 Clothing store spinoff 18 Dishonest 19 Greek symbol of mourning 20 Race climax 22 It’s heard before “gee” 23 Football Hall-ofFamer Ronnie 25 Large, hairy creatures 26 Swiss section 27 Washed-out 29 Quebecer’s vote 30 City built on ancient Thebes 31 ___ Cup (snack item) 33 Hair shirt occasion 35 Abbr. on a class schedule 37 Bob and weave 38 Boardwalk sights 40 Niobe, e.g.

43 Bedevil 44 It lands at Landvetter

46 “Wrong!”

47 “Sword ___ oath, and

oaths must have their course”: Shak.

48 Chesebrough-Pond’s product 50 Narrowly defeats 51 Visage feature 52 Like a Bentley that’s ready to go 54 Rio Treaty implementer: Abbr.

55 Fo’c’sle feature 57 Writer Huffington 59 Wasn’t quite on schedule 60 Begin 61 Sauna user, e.g.

62 “Star Wars” figure DOWN 1 Rawboned 2 Shade of pink 3 Armchair quarterback’s reading, maybe 4 Relative of “Oh, no!”

5 Detective, at times 6 Light ___ 7 Press secretary under Ford 8 Prone

9 “___ Room”

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(2001 chil15 dren’s book) 17 10 Each 11 Road cau19 tion 23 12 Resent, say 13 Antarctic 27 sight 14 Western 31 timber 21 Feature of many a Corvette 24 Treaty sub43 ject 47 26 “The Count of Monte 51 Cristo” setting 55 28 Not yet proficient with 59 30 Filled 61 32 Stop: Abbr.

34 Impatient cry 36 Brad, e.g.

38 Judge’s citation 39 Attack, with “into” 41 What un crucigrama is in 42 Actor ___ Brazzi of “South Pacific”

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Dada plays Highdive The true story behind one of Hollywood’s deadliest killers

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editor’snote

W

hat defines horror? Are people more terrified of Jason Voorhees, the hockeymask wearing psycho from the Friday the 13th series, or Dr. Hannibal Lecter, the cannibalistic genius?

These questions will be haunting all of us, at least those of us who love Halloween, as we attempt to plan what movies will frighten us this season. Some will go with the traditional Nightmare on Elm Street films or Michael Myers movies. But some of us will be adventurous; some of us will want a real scare.

Take The Exorcist, for example. Although the film seems almost fictional, it’s loosely based on a true story. The idea behind this story of a horribly tortured girl makes the film that much scarier because we get the feeling that it could happen to any of us.

That’s why two stories found in this week’s film section, the review of Capturing the Friedmans and the “Ed Gein” article, sound more blood-curdling than most.

First, Capturing the Friedmans shows a side of life most people do not want to believe— molestation of children. The movie explores the case of Arnold and David Friedman, a father and son pair who allegedly raped young boys in their basement. As the movie documents this case, it leaves the viewer with no clearly defined ending—the viewer does not know if the Friedman men actually committed the heinous acts. This indefiniteness makes viewers even more terrified because they do not know what

will happen; they do not know if justice will be served or if officials prosecuted wrongly.

Yet, even the horror one would experience during the Friedmans does not compare to the collective terror Ed Gein has inspired in a number of films ranging from Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Silence of the Lambs. Gein’s disgusting and unbelievable behaviors gave birth to the modern serial killer, picking up where Jack the Ripper left off. Of course, knowledge of the stories’ veracity conjures more chills in people.

His seemingly indifferent attitude toward killing also makes people shiver. How can someone treat human life with so little dignity, audiences will wonder.

What draws us to these real horror movies?

What makes these films spine-chilling? Is it our society’s desire for the weird, the extraordinary? Or is it our society’s desire for a good scare?

Personally, I think people want to know what exists out there; people want to know what they may face in life, what their children may face in life.

Why do people read the newspaper every day? Why were people so fascinated with the D.C. Sniper and with Jeffrey Dahmer?

Our culture also thirsts for the knowledge of how these evil creatures have been created, how they have been brought to life from most likely innocent individuals. It’s the curiosity to find out where people messed up their children along the way.

But why should we ask all these important sociological questions? Maybe people just want to be scared. Maybe people just want to have a good time.

And, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s time for Halloween. It’s time to take pleasure in being terrified again.

—TR

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WHEN YOU ARE STREAKING THE QUAD AT 9 A.M. | OCTOBER 9-15, 2003 buzz

OCTOBER 23-29, 2003

Volume 1, Number 34 COVER DESIGN | Lauren Hoopes

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53 Model Parkinson 56 1970’s grp. whose

symbol was a sevenheaded serpent 58 ___ Antiqua

Editor-in-chief Tom Rybarczyk Art Director Meaghan Dee Copy Chief Erin Green Arts Katie Richardson Music Brian Mertz Entertainment Jason Cantone Calendar Marissa Monson Assistant Music Editor Jacob Dittmer Calendar Coordinators Lauren Smith, Cassie Conner, Erin Scottberg Photography Adam Young, Suzanne Sitrick, Brian Mertz, Bakeela Watson Copy Editors Jen Hubert, Suzanne Sitrick Designers Adam Obendorf, Carol Mudra, Jason Cantone, Marissa Monson Production Manager Theon Smith Editorial Adviser Elliot Kolkovich Sales Manager Lindsey Benton Marketing/Distribution Melissa Schleicher, Maria Erickson Publisher Mary Cory All editorial questions or letters to the editor should be sent to buzz@readbuzz.com or 244-9898 or buzz, 1001 S. Wright St., Champaign, Ill., 61820.

Buzz magazine is a student-run publication of Illini Media Company and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the University of Illinois administration, faculty or students.

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BE THERE OR BE SQUARE | OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 buzz

AND ANOTHER THING...

Film Festival at The Virginia Theatre Nov. 17 and 18

The Graduate (1967)

The Last Picture Show (1971)

Raging Bull (1980)

Easy Rider (1969)

105 minutes Directed by Mike Nichols Starring Anne Bancroft Dustin Hoffman Katharine Ross William Daniels

118 minutes Directed by Peter Bogdanovich Starring Timothy Bottoms Jeff Bridges Cybill Shepherd Ellen Burstyn

129 minutes Directed by Martin Scorsese Starring Robert De Niro Cathy Moriarty Joe Pesci Frank Vincent

94 minutes Directed by Dennis Hopper Starring Dennis Hopper Peter Fonda Jack Nicholson Phil Spector

Nov. 17

The Graduate (1967) 9 p.m. The Last Picture Show (1971) 11:15 p.m. BONUS FILM 6:30 p.m.

Nov. 18

Raging Bull (1980) 9:30 p.m. Easy Rider (1969) 7 p.m.

TICKETS On sale now at The Virginia Theatre 203 W. Park Avenue in Champaign 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday or call The Virginia Theatre at 3569063. $5 per movie $20 for all five movies

Bonus Film

At 11:15 p.m. we will play a bonus movie, choose among these five films

Bonnie and Clyde (1967) Chinatown (1974) A Clockwork Orange (1971) The French Connection (1971) Midnight Cowboy (1969) e-mail your vote to filmfestival@readbuzz.com or visit our Web

Free Festival Pass for the first 20 people to vote

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buzz OCTOBER 23-29, 2003 | THAT’S HOW YOU DO IT, THAT’S HOW YOU HAVE A BIRTHDAY.

Television takes a new twist

BY MICHAEL COULTER | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

I

’ve mentioned in this column before that I don’t have much patience for television.

Most of the shows cater to the lowest common denominator and the commercials follow suit. I can watch sports and a couple of other shows, but that’s about it. I’d rather just see a movie, or better yet, see how many beers I can drink. TV scares me. Clive Barnes once said that “television is the first truly democratic culture—the first culture available to everybody and entirely governed by what people want. The most terrifying thing is what people want.”

That said, my dislike of television in no way affects my desire to produce TV shows for others to watch. I’ve had a few ideas that should have worked. I came up with (years ago) the title Morty, the Golfin’ Dolphin. However, it was hard to come up with anything besides the title. I made it a little farther with another idea, an entire premise.

James Earl Jones owns a barbecue store in Seattle where he sings the praises of Jesus while cooking the meat. Tyne Daley is a psychic who works for the police. They fall in love and solve crimes. Boring premise, maybe, but the title and trailer are wonderful.

I think the idea could work, mostly because I love seeing Tyne Daley in a turban, but I’m ditching that idea and all the other ones for a show I think could really do some damage, literally and figuratively.

We’re at a strange crossroad in America and I believe we should take advantage of it.

Two people are meeting at this crossroad and it’d be a shame if we didn’t get these crazy kids together. There’s Rush Limbaugh, a racist pill-popping talker who loves bringing attention to himself at the expense of others. Also, at this crossroad is Courtney Love, a pill-popping borderline “star” who loves bringing attention to herself no matter what the scenario. They are two self-important junkies at the end of their rope. This is television I could bring myself to watch.

Since they’re both strong-willed, I would imagine it would take a court order to get them in the same room, so first, let’s make sure it happens. Both Rush and Courtney get their drug sentences suspended if they agree to go on my show, titled A Rush of Love. It’ll only be

[

13 episodes, 13 weeks, so that’s gotta be better than a jail sentence.

The first show will focus on Courtney. The camera will follow her as she tries to stay out of jail and also keep custody of her daughter.

It’ll be sort of a “Lifetime Movie of the Week meets Trainspotting.” She can be all drunk and drugged and shout obscenities at the camera while holding her poor child on her hip, cigarette dangling from her mouth, surgically enhanced body gleefully exposed at all points.

She will feign tears and claim sobriety at opportune moments, just like always. It shouldn’t take the audience long to understand, and possibly follow in, the footsteps of Kurt Cobain.

The second show will feature Rush. It can be a sort of Life on the Road, like Charles Kuralt used to do. Rush can be in a Winnebago pointing out some of the parking lots where he’s purchased his “prescription” medicine. All the while he can spout off about whatever he wants, so long as he keeps throwing back the “hillbilly heroin.”

See, this is the key to the series. It e n c o u r a g e s Courtney and Rush’s drug use for the first two shows.

Get ready for the third episode though. In this one they are locked in a steel cage surrounded by an audience and each given a microphone and no pills whatsoever. They get to detox and try to win the crowd over at the same time.

Here’s the special little kicker though. The entire audience is deaf, but the contestants don’t know. It’ll be frustrating for them when no one listens, just like it is for us when we do listen. Maybe they fall in love, maybe they don’t. Hopefully, they manage to kill, or at least maim, each other. It’s a win/win situation. We get to experience human suffering, sometimes our own. Rush and Courtney get to detox. We can see which thing each is addicted to more, pills or attention. By the last episode, everyone will be so annoyed they won’t even tune in to see what happens to Rush and Courtney, something they probably should have done from the start. buzz

I don't have much patience for television. Most of the shows cater to the lowest common denominator and the commercials follow suit. . . I'd rather just see a movie, or better yet, see how many beers I can drink.

[

DirtyTalk

Katia, I swallow...

My birthday was on Friday and none of my lovely ladies came to visit me...I'm sad :*( Jack- who says missing someone is like sleeping on hardwood floors...maybe some people enjoy a flat hard sleeping place!!!!

Dear Jacob, Happy birthday, and thank you for shakin that A$$, in your birthday suit for me, in your bed.

YOU CAN STICK YOUR P IN MY DITTY ANY NIGHT OF THE WEEK. 2 in the PINK 1 in the STINK! hey teeni - may be smokey but b*tch still run!!

Hey DI-GIVE US BACK THE SHOUTOUTS!!!

Nobody likes this wannabe page.

Katie, CJ isn't who you think he is. Don't fall for his sweet talk. Be careful cuz he hurt 7 of us.

Look for the truth, not his lies. Truth is sweeter than the sting of years of lies.

Juds, I hope you are happy being cold and lonely now that your sweet talk doesn't work on any of us. hey frankie, I want to light your wick!!

Pittelkow--- Congrats on Homecoming Court!

You're a Queen in my book!

Jacob - I'm a sure thing! Don't be shy, go for it!

SWEET “DIRTY” TALKS ARE FREE. To submit your message go to www.readbuzz.com and click on the Sweet Talk link.

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