Inside Beat 09-10-2009

INSIDEBEAT SEPTEMBER 10, 2009 • Vol. 27, No. 2

THE WEEKLY ENTERTAINMENT MAGAZINE OF THE DAILY TARGUM

2009 TV PREVIEW

We look at this year’s new shows and find that, besides Glee and a few others, there isn’t much to sing about.

September 10, 2009

Column • Fashion

The Power of Fashion FASHION EDITOR

Have you ever had the experience of seeing a hideous sweater (something that seemed way out of style) and felt disgusted, only to find out two minutes later it’s from the fall runway of Dolce and Gabbana? Suddenly, the next words to come out of your mouth are, “Oh my god! I love it!” Well, that reaction is typical in the fashion world — a world in which designers have the ability to dictate the trends. Top designers like John Galliano, Oscar De La Renta and Versace have the creative flexibility to influence what we will want to wear; however, fashion’s elite should never take this power lightly. It’s a lot of responsibility to be a leader in fashion. What if vomit

green (a color you obviously hate) was next season’s must have? Would you wear it?

The truth is, you probably would! And while you may be thinking, “vomit green would never be in fashion,” try to remember the spectrum of colors that have been considered trends in the past, some that are even coming back this fall. For example, neon and highlighter pink, orange, yellow and green are some of the hottest — and brightest — looks this season. But it wasn’t long ago I remember looking at pictures from the early ’90s and laughing at the vibrant green oversized T-shirt my mother dressed me in. Now, if headed to the mall, you’ll be sure to see that same shirt in American Apparel.

Designers are constantly bringing back the looks we thought had died in the

’70s, ’80s and ’90s. A perfect example is shoulder pads. First to appear in the 1940s and made classic in the ’80s, it is now currently inching its way back into the mainstream as runway models’ shoulders slowly inflate; let’s just hope the hair doesn’t inflate as well. High-end designers like Fendi, new designers like Elizabeth and James and low-end brands like Topshop have also suppor ted the pads, especially in street wear. Within the past year, girls all over the countr y have been wearing their tights, long strapped mini purses and their slightly oversized shoulder-pad-blazers.

Along with designers’ power to bring back the old, many are also attempting some originality for the future — recently even crossing gender boundaries. In the last

A BIG NIGHT OUT ON THE TOWN

BY MICHAEL MALVASIO FASHION EDITOR

Stores will stay open to 11 p.m. tonight with the hopes of making a profit after months of hardships.

The fashion industry employs 175,000 New Yorkers and pays out almost $10 billion in wages.

The effort is also aimed at promoting charity. All T-shirts sold bearing the “Fashion’s Night Out” logo will benefit the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Tonight will also involve a citywide clothing drive. People are asked to bring new or slightly used clothes to locations all around New York. The clothes will then be distributed to about 20 AIDS-related charities.

For more information, log onto fashionsnightout.com.

Anna Wintour and Michael Kors sign shirts at Macy’s (9001 Queens Blvd., Queens)

6 p.m.

Vogue’s Hamish Bowles will be singing at the Juicy Couture flagship store while models on skateboards serve food (650 Fifth Ave.)

7 p.m.

Lord and Taylor showcases men from the 2010 FDNY calendar; guests receive autographed copies with a purchase of more than $50 (424 Fifth Ave.)

8 p.m.

Kate Hudson signs autographs at Stella McCartney (429 West 14th St.)

9 p.m.

Justin Timberlake celebrates his line, William Rast, at Saks (611 Fifth Ave.)

COURTESY OF FASHION’S NIGHT OUT

Anna Wintour will be making her way out to the borough of Queens tonight — a very unlikely location for the queen of fashion.

But what’s even more unlikely is the store she’s headed too. Wintour and friend Michael Kors will be signing T-shirts at Macy’s in an attempt to encourage people to shop. It’s all part of Fashion’s Night Out, an idea initiated by Vogue in collaboration with The Council of Fashion Designers of America, NYC & Company and the city of New York to stimulate the fashion industry and bring people back into retail stores.

“The idea is to get out there and celebrate the fashion, promote the retail apparel industry and help restore consumer confidence and boost the economy,” said Edward Hogikyan, vice president of marketing at NYC & Company, to Adweek. Thirteen other fashion capitals around the world are involved, including Paris, New Dehli, London, Tokyo and Milan.

In New York, more than 800 stores in all five boroughs will be hosting events, from high-end boutiques like Dior to low-end shoe suppliers like Payless. These events, including celebrity signings and live performances, require no invitations and are completely open to the public.

couple of seasons, good ol’ Mr. Jacobs has basically been pushing a dress for men (a kilt, to be exact). And while it may sound extreme, I have this strange feeling I will be purchasing a kilt three to five years from now. By then, Marc will have found some new crazy trend — maybe some stilettos to match? — but he will have already changed the minds of many fashion-conscious men on showing some leg.

Regardless of whether this information is new to you, the truth remains that a select few hold the power in fashion. It’s considered a fashion taboo to question powerhouse fashion designers. Sure they have their critics, but the trends have to come from somewhere, and without them, the herds of fashion lovers who follow would certainly be lost.

5 p.m.

schedule

BY MICHAEL MALVASIO

rant

Page 2 • Inside Beat

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EDITORIAL BOARD M ARGARET D ARIAS ..................................................... EDITOR T OM W RIGHT -P IERSANTI ................................ ASSOCIATE EDITOR A DRIENNE V OGT ......................... COPY EDITOR JASON STIVES.......................................MUSIC EDITOR MICHAEL MALVASIO.......................FASHION EDITOR D AN B RACAGLIA ............. PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR EMILY SCHACHTMAN.............................FILM EDITOR TOM WRIGHT-PIERSANTI..........................TV EDITOR THIS WEEK’S CONTRIBUTORS TO INSIDE BEAT : Michael Bachmann, Chris Raymond Campbell, Theo Jones, Marc Mance, Nidhi Saraiya, Avi Scher.

Cover photo courtesy of Fox Television.

Books • Film

September 10, 2009

Inside Beat • Page 3

Booking The Future

BY NIDHI SARAIYA BOOKS EDITOR

Imagine someday walking through a library, seeing people reading books, magazines, newspapers and even giant textbooks all through a small, rectangular sheet of plastic. Amazon’s e-text reader, the Kindle, has the potential to do just that. Amazon has already released three different Kindles within two years, with each new and improved version coming closer to replacing and superseding traditional print literature. But even with all its features, can a Kindle truly substitute good ol’ paper and ink?

The Kindle DX, the newest Kindle released in June 2009, certainly tries to outdo its print counterparts. It has a large screen spanning 9.7 inches diagonally, but is lightweight and thin, weighing only 18.9 ounces and measuring 1/3 inch thick. It can read text aloud with its text-to-speech fea-

ture, rotates so that text and pictures can be viewed in portrait or landscape, has a built-in dictionary, and can hold up to 3,500 books, publications, and personal documents. Also, it can play MP3 music files, has a simple web browser and can connect to an iPhone or iPod Touch. Best of all, the Kindle DX can download any of the over 300,000 books available in the Kindle library in about a minute using 3G wireless.

For all its flashy elements, there are some things that the Kindle DX could improve upon.

Despite offering numerous newspapers and magazines and bestselling books, users are limited to the Kindle library in their choice of literature. Most college textbooks and reference books are currently unavailable, so Kindles will not be lightening backpack loads any time soon. Even though Kindle books are usually available cheaper than paper-printed copies, there is no way to resell

those books to others from Kindle to Kindle. The Kindle DX does not offer users free e-text versions of the print literature they already own, so users would have to buy them again. Finally, the approximate 3.3 gigabytes of storage cannot be expanded, so users may have difficulty storing all their texts, music files and personal documents.

Are Kindles really the books of the future? Not quite. Given the current limitations of content, price and storage, it would not make sense for users to download every book they want to read onto their Kindles. Libraries and bookstores will still be useful places for getting copies of huge research books, obscure, out-of-print texts and quick one-time reads. But having portable collections of our favorite books, newspapers and magazines that only weigh about a pound, help protect the environment and never get dirty does not sound like a bad future at all.

COURTESY OF AMAZON.COM

6

summer movies you may have missed

Sleep Dealer

BY EMILY SCHACHTMAN FILM EDITOR

In a dystopian future, where a wall to keep Mexican migrants out of the U.S. has finally been constructed, a desperate Mexican young man illegally plugs into a universal network to become a “virtual laborer.” Director Alex Rivera interestingly blends both the consequences of xenophobia with the vulnerability confronting Internet users.

Many people don’t know much about boxing and Mike Tyson — other than he was the guy who bit off someone’s ear. This documentary from James Toback may change that. The splashy trailer shows a repentant Tyson narrating his own life while seeming both self-aware of his own failings and still tragically full of the hubris that led him astray.

In a summer filled with undeniably huge blockbusters like Transformers II: Revenge of the Fallen and The Hangover, a lot of smaller films fell through the cracks. Many of these only ever showed in New York and Los Angeles, and the ones that did make it to suburban movie theaters often ran for only a few weeks. With that in mind, here are some of the summer movies that may be worth renting this winter.

Away We Go T h i r s t

Directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road), this is a bittersweet story that stars Maya Rudolph (Saturday Night Live) as a parentless pregnant artist and John Krasinksi (The Office) as her good-natured but somewhat clueless partner. While seeking a new place to live among the hometowns of their friends and family, they learn what it is they really want for their new life.

The latest from Chan-wook Park (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy) may be a vampire movie, but Twilight it is not. The movie follows a priest who generously volunteers for an experimental vaccine. When the injection weakens him, he receives an infected blood transfusion that leaves him as a vampire. The film then follows his physical, psychological and spiritual fall from grace. Those familiar with Park’s work know that he is not afraid to go there, and this time is no exception.

In the Loop

Tyson ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF ALLMOVIEPHOTO.COM

Moon The starring character — Sam Rockwell (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Matchstick Men) — drew me in to Moon. The premise, from director Duncan Jones, sealed the deal. Without giving anything away, Rockwell is working a one-man job as a miner on the moon when his satellite breaks. He leaves his living quarters to fix it, but he discovers he is not alone...

Mixing American and British ensemble casts and both countries’ respective comedic sensibilities, this is a very dry but hilariously detailed political satire filmed in the mockumentary style. A bumbling British politician (Tom Hollander, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Pride and Prejudice) accidentally lets slip during an interview that war in the Middle East is “unforeseeable,” and a public relations nightmare ensues. The movie also features James Gandolfini and Anna Chlumsky (My Girl).

T

2009 TV

he new TV season is fast approaching, and each network is offering up some drama, some comedy and a few shows that seem a whole lot like shows that are already on TV. There’s just too much out there to cover here, so Inside Beat has chosen the three most talked about shows from each network, and we’re letting you know which ones to watch, which to DVR and which ones you should skip altogether.

Watch it now Record for later Change the channel

Community

(Sept. 17; Thursdays, 9:30) The Soup host Joel McHale helms this promising series about a group of misfits who form a study group for their community college class. McHale’s snark should feel right at home as a disgraced big-time attorney who now must slum around a senile Chevy Chase and the rest of his underachieving posse. Community looks poised to fit nicely in NBC’s prestigious Thursday night comedy lineup.

Mercy

(Sept. 23; Wednesdays, 8) After recently losing Scrubs and ER, NBC was without hospital-related programming for the first time in a while. But they changed that quickly when they introduced Mercy, a hospital drama that focuses on three nurses. Early reviews advise viewers to skip, but you might want to tune in for a bit of nostalgia – Harriet the Spy herself, Michelle Trachtenberg, plays one of the leads.

Parenthood

(Replacing Mercy in Spring) This new dramedy, penned by Friday Night Lights creator Jason Katims and produced

by Ron Howard, has the names behind the camera and in front (Peter Kraus, Six Feet Under) to earn it some TV cred. As for the show itself, previews paint it as a gently funny yet emotionally raw look at parenthood in multiple stages. If the show can match the realistic family drama that FNL nails so perfectly, expect good things.

Cougar Town

(Sept. 23; Wednesdays, 9:30) Don’t let the incredibly awful name fool you – this new comedy, from Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence, shows some promise. Courteney Cox has received critical praise for her role as Jules Cobb, a recent divorcée who goes back on the hunt for a man.

FlashFoward

(Sept. 24; Thursdays, 8) It’s being called the next Lost (which is odd, considering Lost isn’t quite done yet). A mysterious global event causes everyone on Earth to spend two minutes watching their lives six months in the future. When the flash ends, many are dead and those alive begin to wonder if what they saw will come true. I’m getting chills just thinking about it.

Modern Family

(Sept. 23; Wednesdays, 9) ABC has had a few quirky, smart family comedies in recent fall lineups, and very few work. But TV Guide has said that this might be the most laugh-out-loud series of the new season, so hopes are high. The show is filmed mockumentary-style and will follow the trials and tribulations of everyday family life.

Glee

(Sept. 9; Wednesday, 9) High School Musical goes primetime. Glee, which Fox premiered in the spring behind a They did it again; those maniacal geniuses at The CW have brought back yet another ‘90s big episode of American Idol, had people buzzing with its catchy harmonies and loads of sexy California drama. This time it’s Melrose Place, and yet again a group of sexy youngsters heart. The show still needs to prove that its characters are strong enough to warrant watchwill share an apartment complex. But this time, there’s a twist – murder. ing, though – and if that whole singing thing can stay fresh after a few episodes.

Melrose Place (Sept. 8; Tuesdays, 9)

The Vampire Diaries

(Sept. 10; Thursdays, 8) Someone at The CW must have realized there were about 30 million rabid Twilight fans out there not old enough to watch HBO’s True Blood. The Vampire Diaries promises sexy high school vampires, forbidden lust and loads of brooding. Sounds familiar, right? Sigh… sometimes I pine for the days when teenage angst didn’t automatically warrant the involvement of the undead.

The Beautiful Life

The Cleveland Show

(Sept. 27; Sundays, 8:30) Family Guy finally earned a spinoff, but the choice character is a bit odd. Cleveland, neighbor of the Griffins, moves back to Virginia to be with his high school sweetheart. The cast is rounded out by a new family, some neighbors and a talking bear. Fox is so confident that you guys (college kids) will turn out in droves to support it that the show has been signed on for a second season before the first even started. But with Family Guy getting weaker every week in the writing department and an annoying, one-dimensional character fronting this new show, prospects for hilarity are bleak.

(Sept. 16; Wednesdays, 9) One problem with The CW is that all their shows look exactly like Gossip Girl. TBL is no different. Mischa Barton leads an upsettingly pretty cast of models who share a glitzy co(Sept. 18; Fridays, 8) ed NYC loft. Expect lots of sex, swooshing-over-the-city cameras and expensive parties Michael Strahan stars in a new comedy about—wait, is that right? Michael Strahan, the you’ll never get to go to. former New York Giants defensive end who holds the NFL single-season sack record? Wow. Good look with that, Mike.

Brothers

Accidentally On Purpose

(Sept. 21; Mondays, 8:30) Jenna Elfman stars as a cougar who “accidentally” gets pregnant with a younger man’s baby, then acts overly quirky as her attractive friends throw zings back and forth.

NCIS: Los Angeles

(Sept. 22; Tuesdays, 9) Another spinoff for CBS – this time, it’s a spinoff of NCIS (which was originally a spinoff of JAG). The sexy, thrilling crime drama won’t just see an update in location, though. The new iteration is fronted by the promising duo of Chris O’Donnell (Batman & Robin) and LL Cool J.

The Good Wife

COURTESY OF FOX TELEVISION

Fox is hoping to transform Family Guy’s resurgance in popularity among young viewers into success for its new spinoff series, The Cleveland Show.

(Sept. 22; Tuesdays, 10) Ripped from the headlines: A politician's sex scandal gets him thrown in jail, and his wife (Juliana Marguiles, ER) is left to clean up his mess and take over the family. She joins a law firm, and the rest is exactly like every other CBS procedural drama you see on your parents’ DVR.

TV Preview

By Tom Wright-Piersanti TV Editor

8:00 90210 9:00 Melrose Place, Sons of Anarchy

8:00 So You Think You Can Dance America's Next Top Model 9:00 Glee

8:00 Vampire Diaries 9:00 Supernatural

10:00 20/20

8:00 Cops 9:00 America's Most Wanted

COURTESY OF ABC TELEVISION

FlashForward, the latest sci-fi serial from ABC, is anticipated to be one of the best new shows this year. It has drawn comparisons to Lost because of its mysterious style.

8:00 One Tree Hill 9:00 Gossip Girl 10:00 The Jay Leno Show

8:00 8:00 The Biggest Loser Survivor: Samoa 9:00 The Beautiful Life

8:00 Bones SNL: Weekend Update Thursday 8:30 Parks and Rec. 9:00 Fringe The Office 9:30 Community 10:00 It’s Always Sunny

10:00 Crash

9:00 Curb Your Enthusiasm 9:30 Bored to Death

8:00 House Dancing with the Stars How I Met Your...

Heroes 8:30 Accidentally on Purpose 9:00 Big Bang Theory 10:00 CSI: Miami

8:00 NCIS 9:00 NCIS: Los Angeles 10:00 The Forgotten, The Good Wife

8:00 Mercy 9:00 Modern Family 9:30 Cougar Town 10:00 CSI: NY Eastwick

8:00 FlashForward 9:00 CSI Grey's Anatomy 10:00 The Mentalist

8:00 Ghost Whisperer Brothers Smallville Law & Order 9:00 Medium Dollhouse 10:00 Numbers

8:00 The Simpsons 8:30 The Cleveland Show 9:00 Family Guy Desperate Housewives 10:00 Cold Case Brothers & Sisters Dexter

9:00 Trauma 10:00 Lie to Me

8:00 Shark Tank 10:00 The Hills

8:00 Hank 8:30 The Middle

night-by-night

Editors’ Picks Monday 8:00 - How I Met Your Mother (CBS) *8:00 - Little People, Big World (TLC) 9:00 - Gossip Girl (CW) Tuesday 8:00 - V (ABC, November) 9:00 - Scrubs(ABC, midseason) 9:30 - Better Off Ted (ABC, midseason) Wednesday 8:00 - Parenthood (NBC, midseason) 9:00 - Glee (Fox) *9:00 - Modern Family (ABC) *9:30 - Cougar Town (ABC) 10:00 - South Park (Comedy Central) Thursday 8:00 - FlashForward (ABC) *8:00 - Vampire Diaries (CW) *8:30 - Parks and Recreation (NBC) 9:00 - The Office (NBC) 9:30 - Community / 30 Rock (midseason) 10:00 - It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX) Friday 9:00 - Friday Night Lights (DirecTV) Saturday

11:30 Saturday Night Live

Get off the couch and go somewhere nice.

Sunday 8:00 - The Simpsons (Fox) 9:00 - Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) 9:30 - Bored to Death (HBO)

* Denotes shows to record while others are on

10:00 Private Practice

9:00 MythBusters 10:00 South Park

8:00 Ugly Betty

8:00 Little People, Big World

9:30 30 Rock

9:00 Friday Night Lights

Page 6 • Inside Beat

September 10, 2009

Film

Inglourious Basterds

BY THEO JONES STAFF WRITER

It’s been talked about for the past seven years. When was Quentin Tarantino finally going to make his World War II movie? This rumored epic — a 1,500-plus page script that he’d been carrying around, which got burnt out on and delayed by making Kill Bill instead — was thought of by the industry to be nothing but a myth. Then we got a name: Inglourious Basterds.

After his homage to Westerns and Samurai films in Kill Bill, the public was finally going to get their hands on what Tarantino himself called “his masterpiece.” Many people put Pulp Fiction at the top of their list for Tarantino favorites; it’s even been voted the fifth best film of all time on IMDb. The question that really stood in front of Basterds was not if it was going to be a good film, but could it possibly beat Pulp Fiction?

Basterds is built and promoted as a vehicle for Brad Pitt, who

plays the memorable Lt. Aldo Raine, the leader of the eight Jewish soldiers who need to scalp 100 Nazis each. However, Tarantino says the film really belongs to the character Shoshanna (Mélanie Laurent), a young Jewish French girl whose vendetta is one of the storyline’s main driving forces.

The film itself doesn’t belong to either of these characters, but rather, to the only character who interweaves both the Basterds and Shoshanna’s storylines: Standartenführer Hans Landa, aka “The Jew Hunter.” Christoph Waltz’s portrayal is perhaps not only one of the best characters to ever come out of a WWII film, but perhaps, the greatest creation to come out of Quentin Tarantino.

Waltz owns the film as Landa, the unequivocal villain who, surprisingly, becomes almost understood by the viewer through monologues and perhaps the best opening sequence in a film ever. Waltz is a surefire candidate for a Best Sup-

porting Actor nomination at all the major awards, along with making it worth your $10 to go see the film.

Tarantino takes everything he loves about Westerns, French New Wave and WWII-era propaganda and applies it to this film, even ripping directly from Jean-Luc Godard’s work when Shoshanna is on the screen. Writing-wise, this is definitely some of the best work that Tarantino has ever done. The characters truly have life; you sympathize with them, you feel with them, and most importantly, you understand all of them.

This isn’t a spoiler alert, but the very last line of the film is, “I think this is my masterpiece.” When it’s said and the end credits roll, Tarantino is almost teasing you.

He may think it’s his master work, and I’m inclined to agree. People may be biased for Pulp Fiction, but check back 10 years from now, see how Basterds stands to judgment, and you may find film critics arguing for years to come.

COURTESY OF ALLMOVIEPHOTO.COM

Quentin Tarantino | A

Big Points for Movie Scores

BY CHRIS RAYMOND CAMPBELL STAFF WRITER

It is difficult to pinpoint the particular characteristics of a good film because good movies are a careful mixture of both clearly visible work and the sort that goes on behind the scenes. Good acting and intuitive direction are very visible characteristics of great films, but cinematography, lighting, editing, set design and scouting, background research on the story, dialogue, and graphic generation are also integral parts of a movie.

A less visible, but no less perceivable, aspect of a film also contributes to a spectator’s enjoyment — the film’s score.

Since the inception of film as a form of art, it has been coupled with music. Silent films were often accompanied with a music track to please the ears while the eyes followed the action

on-screen. Hitchcock and Welles utilized music in their films to evoke the entire range of human emotion, from tranquility to tension; the classic theme from John Carpenter’s Halloween still evokes fear.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy would undoubtedly suffer without Howard Shore’s score, and who can forget the Cantina’s band on Tatooine in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope? I regrettably am reminded of Titanic every time I hear Celine Dion’s voice.

The coupling of sound and vision ties memories together in a way that preserves them longer than a solitary vision can exist, and also lends them more emotional gravity.

The work of a composer is indeed powerful. It lends a movie a

artists are finding time to score films instead of just releasing a song for the soundtrack. Jay-Z released American Gangster after his songs were dropped from the film of the same name in favor of a soundtrack more in sync with the film’s time period. Yo La Tengo composed the score for Adventureland. The new COURTESY OF ALLMOVIEPHOTO.COM Tron film will in all likelihood be composed by sense of gravitas that may not be expressed through visuals alone. It is the electronica duo Daft Punk, and not unusual to see a soundtrack to a the upcoming film adaptation of the film incorporating a mixture of pop- comic Jonah Hex will be scored by ular artists, spanning differing gen- Grammy-nominated heavy metal res. However, in certain cases, stalwarts Mastodon. While exciting, music and a film may be more inter- these scores also have the potential related. Pink Floyd’s The Wall to bring together conflicting agenserves as a precursor and useful ex- das and artistic visions.

Leaving aside the pressures of a ample as both a movie and an album. But beyond this capacity, major record label beating down

upon a band (which are very real and very powerful), when a band creates a record, it must be enjoyable on its own without a visual component. Sure, singles need the help of a music video, but a record in entirety is without film. And a film must be enjoyable in its own right as well. Do the pressures of a film producer and record company clash? Will the music that drives a pivotal scene in a film also reach the top of the Billboard Top 100?

Will the intertwining of the commercial film and music industries water down two already artistically dwindling fields?

I cannot answer the questions that I posit; only time will be able to tell. Will scores written by commercial bands catch on? Will their scores help or hurt films? Will it be a beautiful pairing or a disastrous failure? In the coming years, we shall see.

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September 10, 2009

Inside Beat • Page 7

Music

Ellipse | B+

COURTESY OF ROCKSTATION.IT

BY MARC MANCE STAFF WRITER

Vintage Vital

The sold-out crowd at PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel had waited all summer for this night.

It was the first show Blink-182 had played in New Jersey in five years, and the crowd was pumped and eager to rock out to the recently reunited trio playing their hearts out.

The lights were cut, and the first few notes of “Dumpweed” were met with a roar from the excited fans. The curtain dropped and out came Mark Hoppus, Tom DeLonge and Travis Barker from the darkness. The roar increased, drums kicked in and the audience went crazy. As the first song ended, the band wasted no time and jumped right into their singles “Feeling This,” “The Rock Show,”

and their breakthrough hit, “What’s My Age Again?” The crowd sang loudly along with every word.

The set list was a plethora of songs chosen from their wide discography, ranging from their debut Cheshire Cat to their most recent self-titled release. Blink-182 played all of their hits, which included “All The Small Things,” “First Date” and “Adam’s Song,” as well as other fan favorites like “Reckless Abandon” to please the hardcore Blink fans in the crowd.

In between songs, Mark and Tom would go back and forth with humorous banter, which included toilet jokes, F-bombs and tons of vulgar language to keep the crowd entertained between breathers.

Even despite the immature jokes, they stayed humble and thanked the crowd for all their support.

“Just to let you guys know,” Hoppus said, “that the New Jersey date was the first one to sell out on the tour. There are 19,000 of you.

Thank you, you mother f———” While quips like that showed they haven’t matured too much, the crowd seemed to love it.

Though they were sometimes off-key with the vocals, their undying energy and stage presence made up for it.

For the encore, Barker finally got to show off his skills with a drum solo. As he pounded the toms with lightning speed, he was propelled into the air with his kit while still playing. The crowd was awed by the flying solo, which was followed by two of their oldest songs, “Carousel” and “Dammit.”

Blink-182 left their mark on the crowd, showing that they are back to stay in the music game.

Black Monk Time

BY MICHAEL BACHMANN STAFF WRITER

The Monks, the self-described “antiBeatles,” released Black Monk Time in 1966 after they finished their service in the United States military. The avantgarde collective of five young G.I.’s is best known for its distinct style that had never been seen before.

The frenzied texture of sounds on Black Monk Time were due in large to its recording locale — West Germany. The music scene in West Germany was dull after the Beatles’ exodus to America, and The Monks took full artistic advantage of playing with new sounds in an area that was searching for new music, but had not established standards or boundaries for it.

The original release consisted of 12 tracks varied intensely in style, speed and influence. The spoken but upbeat intro of the opening track “Monk Time” from front man Gary Burger is perhaps the most loaded album intro ever known—“You know we don’t like the Army/What army/Who cares what army/Why do you kill all those kids over there in Vietnam?” In just a few sentences, Burger denounces the Vietnam War, the atomic bomb and even takes a jab at James Bond. Burger portrays perfectly in less than a minute the entire nature of the album and of the band as a whole — wacky but meaningful, outlandish but relevant. The combination of playful tunes with anti-war commentary had never been seen before. The lyrics themselves seem to jump from mood and topic so unbelievably abruptly. They switch from deep statements reflecting the overwhelmingly popular anti-war attitude of the era (“People kill, people will for you/ People run, ain’t it fun for you/ People go, to

their deaths for you”) to meaningless rhymes that seem to come from children’s songs (“Higgle-dy/Piggle-dy”).

Burger’s frantic outcries of “Stop it! Stop it!” and “It’s too loud!” are absolutely unforgettable, and serve to crank up the chaos of the album.

Musically, the purposeful use of guitar feedback was innovative for its time and was supposedly incorporated by Jimi Hendrix after hearing The Monks. The album itself has a sound that belongs solely to The Monks themselves — wailing vocals, frantic organ bits, use of an electric banjo, choppy starts-and-stops and a large focus on rhythm with bass and drums. These innovators would lay the very basic framework for many acts to follow, from the Doors to roots of punk rock.

The influence of The Monks may extend past their less-than stellar mainstream success or their humble record sales — their onstage presence was even cutting edge for the over-the-top decade that was the ’60s. Always dressed in full monk robes, sporting nooses as neckties and even getting traditional monk tonsure haircuts, The Monks were innovators of the eccentric stage-persona, which would later be picked up and perfected by acts like David Bowie and Prince.

Black Monk Time remains an underground classic, never striking mainstream success but still a classic in its own right. The album tempers rage and youthful frustration with a bit of humor and oddity. It was an attempt to raise questions, with no serious expectation of answers — The Monks opus amongst the ongoing war, the transformation of social values and the drug-saturated hippie madness that characterized the ’60s.

BY AVI SCHER STAFF WRITER

It has been four years since Grammy-nominated singer Imogen Heap released a solo album, and for fans of the British multi-instrumentalist, it was well worth the wait. Debuting at number five on the Billboard Top 200, this record may match the commercial success of her previous album, Speak for Yourself, which had songs prominently featured everywhere from The OC to SNL to Apple commercials. Ellipse showcases Heap doing what she does best — multilayered vocals mixed with synthesized beats that create ethereal music destined for popularity. “Wait It Out” poses the ques-

tion, “Where do we go from here?” and the answer is: everywhere.

From the birds chirping in the minimalist “Little Bird” to the radio- and soundtrack-destined love song “Swoon,” Heap visits every venue for her unmistakable sound. Conversely, Heap explores her darker side in the second half of the album with tracks such as “2-1,” reminding us “things are not always what they seem.” This is showcased on the stunning piano piece “Canvas” where Heap steps away from the electronic sound that has made her famous before closing with the spectacular “Half Life.” While some may be disappointed in the lack of progress that Heap has made, it goes without saying that she has undoubtedly perfected her current craft.

Boys Like Girls Love Drunk | B-

BY JASON STIVES MUSIC EDITOR

The trouble with breaking through as an artist to the mainstream public is the pressure to conform to a new audience. Boys Like Girls, the emo pop quartet from Boston, made waves when they gained exposure from their 2005 self-titled debut album, producing the hit singles “The Great Escape” and “Heroine.” After touring relentlessly for the album and appearing on every teen media outlet in the world, the band has returned with their sophomore release, Love Drunk. Unlike their first release, which played easily as the soundtrack to many first dates, the band doesn’t care too much for the girls on this album, sounding off lyrics about getting over that special someone and wanting nothing to do with them.

The trade-off on the subject matter pays off with harder tracks with thumping back beats that escaped the easygoing and dreamy sound of their previous effort. The first two tracks, “Heading For A Heart Heartbreak” and “Love Drunk” are potential Top 40 hits with catchy choruses and hooks that no emo pop band could possibly imagine. The tracks show a

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I mo gen Heap

more mature writing style than before, as the four-year difference between this release and the first has seen a band grow as a collective songwriting unit.

The downside of the album is that it is devoid of a real sound.

While they had before been easily identifiable with a new pop mentality, the constant touring and countless appearances leading up to the release of Love Drunk have seemingly gotten to them. The album as a whole almost comes off as a factory-branded release, complete with the hallmarks of cookiecutter productions such as the use of drum machines and auto tune in many of the vocal tracks from lead singer Martin Johnson. As strong as the first track is, “Heartbreak” could easily be a Jonas Brothers song, showing the descent backwards for the band to fit to a younger crowd. While the fan base for a band such as Boys Like Girls doesn’t normally exceed past college students, they have almost pigeonholed themselves for future releases. Although a song like “Two is Better Than One” may be a very good ballad, it is muted by the presence of current country pop darling Taylor Swift, making the band more radio-friendly than experimental.

Love Drunk benefits from progression songwriting-wise, but with expectations always high for a band’s second album, there is almost something left to be desired for a third album. Maybe next time they will return back to their humble beginnings instead of to the Radio Disney crowd.