Vol. 1, No. 7 by Waco Weekly

11.13.13 - VOL. 1, NO. 6 - WACOWEEKLY.COM

contents

11.21-11.27

meet the team PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Chris Shepperd EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matt Shepperd BUSINESS MANAGER Leisha Shepperd MANAGING EDITOR Chris Zebo CREATIVE DIRECTOR Brittany Hicks ASST. CREATIVE DIRECTOR Bekah Skinner LAYOUT/DESIGN Sally Franckowiak WRITERS

Sara Gilmore Topher Hawkes Luke Murray Brandon Nowalk

Essentials:

Listen 3 Taste 7 Discover 8 Calendar 11 Play 12 Look 14

Exlusive Interview:

The Digital Age wraps up their latest tour with a stop here in their hometown of Waco.

INTERNS Kathleen Callison Claire Hand Chandler Hodo Olivia Montagna Cheyenne Mueller Catherine Neil Kaitlin Vickers Dani Wilkins

Waco Weekly is an independent, publication and is not affiliated with the city of Waco.

Taste

7 - Two hearty, healthy recipes that’ll warm your soul on the cooler nights without burning your budget.

Listen 4 - Lady Antebellum

Look 15 - Brandon gives

returns with their highly- a rundown of this week’s top 20 box anticipated album, office films. Golden. Will the 7-time Grammy Award winning group sweep the awards again? Read our review.

Opinions are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the editor, publisher or the newspaper staff. Waco Weekly is not liable for omissions, misprints or typographical errors. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the express consent of the publisher.

1st copy is FREE, additional copies are $0.50 each

LISTEN

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Casey James at Whiskey River By Chandler Hodo

Roger Creager at Wild West Waco By Luke Murray Roger Creager has been a pillar of Texas music for quite some time now. Making it seem effortless, Creager can throw out a chart-topper like yesterday’s news. His current single, “For You I Do”, has been sitting high on the red dirt charts since its early-summer release. With success like that, you almost wonder if they plan it that way. “We always hope for that type of success,” said Creager. “It wound up being our seventh number-one on the Texas charts. We also put out a video for the song, and it was the first time that CMT has ever played a video of mine. They play a handful of videos from independent Texas artists, but this is the first time they have ever done one of mine. It was kind of a milestone, in that respect.” The aforementioned video was shot in Steamboat Spring, Co. after last year’s MusicFest. You would figure between the snow, the music, and the liquid courage (of course) that the shoot must have been a blast, right? “Absolutely not,” said Creager. “It was freezing cold. It was the day after MusicFest, and we had been up partying for five nights, skiing for five days, drinking too much, eating too little, and staying awake too long. If you notice, in the video, all of us are wearing sunglasses. It was rough. It was freezing, early in the morning, and just a horrible combination.” Shooting a video in the midst of a frostbitten hangover might not be a party, but a Creager concert never disappoints. Catch Creager at Wild West Waco on November 23.

Country singer Casey James grew up in Cool, Texas just outside of DFW, where he learned to play guitar and sang before he talked. After playing in local bars and launching the Casey James band in 2008, James’ mom convinced him to audition for the ninth season of the hit TV show American Idol. After gaining a hefty fan base during the show’s preliminary round, James secured a spot in the top 24 and went on to finish the competition in 3rd place. Riding on the tails of his American Idol success, James signed with record label Sony Music Nashville. Instead of capitalizing on his TV fame, the young artist decided to take a breather before releasing his first album. James released his first single, “Let’s Don’t Call It A Night”, in 2011 when it peaked at #21 on country radio charts and sold more than 5,000 copies during its debut week. In March of 2012, James’ self-titled debut album hit the radio waves and landed at #2 on the Billboard Country Albums chart, selling over 14,000 copies its first week. It also scored spot #23 on the Billboard 200 chart with the help of the catchy sophomore single from the album, “Crying On A Suitcase”, which became an instant hit on country radio. James’ third and final single from the album, The Good Life, was released on April 1, 2013. The country artist went on tour with Sugarland in 2011 as their opening act and is now touring in support of his own album. He will perform at Whisky River in Waco on November 23 from 8-11pm. Tickets are $10.

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 3

By Luke Murray

Lady Antebellum Album: Golden

Release Date: November 11, 2013

Rating: Sounds Like: The Band Perry Keith Urban Little Big Town

Recommended Tracks

Within a few short years, Lady Antebellum went from up-and-comings to selling records achieving platinum status, sweeping every award show that the music industry could offer. Sure, some of that is timing, a lot of it is hard work, but the bare bones of it all is talent.

Downtown Better Off Now Golden

Track Listing:

Get to Me Goodbye Town Nothin’ Like the First Time Downtown Better Off Now It Ain’t Pretty Can’t Stand the Rain Golden Long Teenage Goodbye All for Love Better Man Generation Away

From “Need You Now” to “American Honey”, Lady Antebellum achieved the ideal balance between the vocals of Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley and the instrumentation of Dave Haywood, resulting in seven Grammy awards within three years (five in 2011 alone). For their fourth album (not including their Christmas record), the trio has released 15 brand new tracks and some bonus live and acoustic versions of three previous chart-toppers. From first chord to last, Haywood and the band bring listeners in with a mixture of upbeat melodies and drawn-out powerballads, preaching the gospel of Music City in songs about hard goodbyes, self-reflection, love, and even a little rain.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

pg 4 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

Lady Gaga

“Artpop”

Release Date: Nov. 11, 2013 We aren’t afraid to admit that Gaga creeps us out most of the time. From meat dresses to disco sticks, the pop anti-diva embodies the definition of cray. That being said, at the end of the day, making music is a lot about making money, and with sold out shows and chart-topping hits—Gaga has that covered. Her newest album, ARTPOP, showcases yet another chapter of her Bad Romance novel. From psychedelic beats to electronic riffs, the album is all Gaga with some hip-hop thrown into the mix, featuring duets with R. Kelly and T.I. One thing we know, Gaga was born this way and she won’t change for anyone, and there isn’t much change from this album compared to the last—including the album’s co-producer, DJ White Shadow, who was instrumental on Born This Way. Recommended Tracks: Do What U Want, Gypsy

Less Than Jake

“See the Light”

Release Date: Nov. 12, 2013 With more than 20 years in the industry, you would think that a group would have a little more prominence in the biz than these guys (assuming that all their past recordings are as good as this one). In other words, we aren’t long-standing fans of their work, but if it’s all been as good as this release, then we’re curious as to why no one told us about them. Thirteen tracks round out See the Light, an album that is similar to some modern boy bands in a lot of ways, thankfully lacking the glaring, overtly tight jeans. Besides the alternating tempos and solid vocal work, we’re big fans of the brass incorporation within the album (trombone and sax being most obvious, among others). Recommended Tracks: Do the Man, American Idle

Passafire

“Vines”

Release Date: Nov. 12, 2013 Technically, these guys have been around for a while—Vines being their fifth studio endeavor—but their music is far underrated in our opinion. Passafire combines rock and reggae into a unique fusion that puts a new twist on a familiar sound. With rock guitar riffs and bass lines shaken up with a little island flavor, their easy-going style and lyricism makes this 13-track release more than a jam album. It’s a great record to play when you’re in the mood to get down alone in your living room or with friends at a chill party. Recommended Tracks: Earthquake, Man of Wishes wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 5

LISTEN

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Leopold & His Fiction

By Dani Wilkins

It’s the old time, black and white, crackly quality of the band that makes you think you’re in another era, transported back to a 1940’s circus sideshow, watching a barehanded, leotard-clad boxer get some licks on a guitar. Maybe it’s the handlebar mustache of front man Daniel James, or the combination of garage rock, psychedelic festival music, and glitter rock that keep audiences transfixed. What sprung from collaborations made on the road while touring, James found a common vision with the people who played with him along the way. From San Fran to Austin, to LA and beyond, Austin-based Leopold and his Fiction have an infectious energy and showmanship. If you’re a first-timer to a Leopold show, don’t be shy. Perfectly raspy vocals and a minimalist but precise drum kit hold the group together and encourage dancing. Get ready for showmanship and revelry; there will be plenty. Once the group slows down in a set, don’t expect the energy to drop out of the room. Each song seems to have a stripped-down, organic sound that keeps you singing, or, at the very least, swaying along. L&HF will play at True Love on November 22 with TheBeans. For more information about the band and to purchase tickets, visit leopoldandhisfiction.com.

pg 6 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

The Rocketboys Highlight Lineup at Common Grounds By Chandler Hodo

Air Review: Friday, November 22, 2013 Doors open at 7:30pm and show begins at 8pm. General admission is $5, all ages welcome. Set Times: Air Review (9:35 PM), Lomelda (8:40 PM), Jameson McGregor (8:00 PM)

a new album, Build Away, in 2012. The album release was a success, spawning almost 150 shows with the likes of Twenty-One Pilots, Relient K, The Almost, and The Mowgli’s. The band has performed at Austin City Limits, South by Southwest, and Next Big Nashville.

Air Review After humble beginnings with band practices in a garage in Dallas, Air Review made it to the big leagues. Their 2011 hit, “America's Son”, was one of the most requested songs on 91.7 KXT in north Texas and later scored a spot on the station’s “Best Songs of 2011" list, right next to hefty names such as Adele and Coldplay. Air Review’s most recent work, a self-produced album called Low Wishes, was released on January 29, 2013. The band has been touring the nation, with numerous shows in the Lone Star in support of the record.

Courier Courier, an alternative rock band out of Austin, saw their music take off when they were featured on various TV shows in the past few years. In 2012, they were featured on hit CW TV shows, including Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl, and 90210. They were also featured on ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars and Jane By Design. After their debut on the Vampire Diaries, their song “Between” shot up the iTunes alternative charts and peaked at #52. The band’s new single, "Love is a Fire", is set to be released on the radio this summer. The song is from their upcoming sophomore album, which is produced by Tim Palmer who has worked with U2 and Pearl Jam.

Lomelda Founded in Waco in 2012, Lomelda is a 3-piece made up of members Hannah, Andrew and Zach who describe their music as “Sentimental Space Rock.” Jameson McGregor After spending his childhood in Tennessee, singer/songwriter Jameson McGregor moved to Waco. McGregor began singing indie rock during his freshman year of college and now plays for a band called The Gladsome Light at Waco University Baptist Church.

Tapajenga Tapajenga is an indie rock band from Austin. The band just released a digital album, Months Pass By, on their website (tapajenga. bandcamp.com). The album consists of four new songs and costs just $4.

The Rocketboys: Saturday, November 23, 2013 Doors open at 7:30pm and show begins at 8pm. General admission is $10. Set Times: The Rocketboys (9:20 PM), Courrier (8:40 PM), Tapajenga (8:00 PM) The Rocketboys The Rocketboys nearly called it quits when half of the band members decided to go in separate directions in 2011. In an attempt to save the indie rock band, the three remaining members released

AIR REVIEW

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 7

Exclusive Interview:

Mark Waldrop of The Digital Age By Sara Gilmore

DISCOVER

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It’s been a couple of years since David Crowder left Waco and the band named after him to join some members of his record label family in Atlanta. Four members from the band formed another group, The Digital Age, stayed in Waco, and are now wrapping up a tour in support of the band’s first full-length album released in August. The album, Evening:Morning, is a concept record that expresses the idea of divine creation and the sort of coming-of-age, identity-searching story of the band itself. In addition to recording an EP and a full length since Crowder left, the band has also built a studio just outside of downtown (Asterisk Sounds). We spent some time talking with lead singer and guitarist Mark Waldrop last week, and the band wraps up its tour right here at home, on Baylor’s campus this Friday night. Waco Weekly: Tell us about the transition from the David Crowder Band to where you are now. Mark Waldrop: The transition has actually been pretty cool for us. So the David Crowder Band was the worship band at a church here in Waco, University Baptist, since the year 2000, I guess. A couple of years ago, Crowder transitioned out of UBC over to Passion City in Atlanta where a couple of our label people, like Chris Tomlin, are. But the rest of us felt like we were supposed to stick around in Waco and kind of just do what we’ve been doing. So, really, The Digital Age is four of the six that made up the Crowder Band that said, “Hey, we’re gonna stick around in Waco.” So the transition has been cool, because there’s been a lot of things that have changed, but the mission is very similar. It’s funny because we always joke that it’s completely new but completely the same, which is kind of bizarre.

WW: Are you guys all still at UBC? MW: Yes. We try to play when we can, but we’ve been touring a lot. So I guess it’s less than it usually is. The David Crowder Band was the worship team at UBC, and now The Digital Age is a worship team at UBC, which is nice—because for the tenure of the David Crowder Band, we never actually got to just go to church. So one of the things we wanted to do with The Digital Age was create an environment where we could actually go to church. WW: What’s this tour like? Are you playing all churches or are there some other venues in the mix? MW: It’s been mostly churches; we’ve played some college

about being in a band. We could have gone with the David Crowderless Band, but we decided we should actually come up with a different name. The name actually came out of these conversations we were having about community, and how weird it is that all of a sudden when Jesus says “Love your neighbor,” community is all of a sudden not really proximity based. Your neighbor can be anyone who’s not necessarily in your local, everyday life. This is a cool age of people, where all of a sudden we’re so connected and we can talk to anyone in the world. For the Church, that’s a really special moment because all of a sudden we can connect with the global Church. WW: On Evening:Morning, there are a couple of songs that were written by other people, such as “All the Poor and Powerless” (All Sons & Daughters) and “Break Every Chain”

“I think being in Waco and running our own studio and just doing our own thing keeps us different, and we really enjoy that.” - MARK WALDROP, THE DIGITAL AGE campuses, we’ve done some clubs and some theaters, but I would say like 75 percent churches. You know, we’re a worship band, that’s what we do; we get rooms full of people to sing to God. So that naturally fits in churches. But it's really fun to get in spaces where we can create those environments in places where that doesn’t normally happen. WW: Where did the name The Digital Age come from? MW: (Laughing) Well, it’s actually the last available band name, if you can believe that. Picking a band name is the worst part

pg 8 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

(Jesus Culture). Why did you want to record those? MW: I think it’s kind of in our DNA as a worship band that every once in a while you feel when you connect with a song that it has a significance for the Church that you want to share. We felt that with Poor & Powerless and with Break Every Chain it’s kind of—again, not trying to link too many things to David Crowder Band—but with that band we heard “How He Loves” and thought, oh, this is a great song, we need to make sure more people know and sing this song. It’s kind of the same thing, it’s a weight you feel when you hear

MW: First of all, we just really love Waco. We all went to Baylor and have been here a long time, and we just really love it. There’s something weird about when you travel all over the world and then you come to Waco and you kind of have a sigh of relief like, “Ah, this feels like home.” It’s kind of hard to quantify something like that, but we just love it.

a song and go, “Wow that’s a really powerful song; we feel like more people should be singing this song.” WW: What’s your favorite song on Evening:Morning? MW: It’s probably a tie between “Captured” and “Believe”. “Captured” is the first song on the record, and it’s just a really happy song and really sets off the record on a good foot. And for me, it’s really a special song because it kind of talks about what our whole album talks about. It’s a concept album that kind of takes place from the evening to the morning, kind of going from uncertainty and darkness to kind of seeing God and light. So “Captured” kicks off the record and sets the tone, talking about reaching out in the darkness and knowing God’s there. For me, what’s special about that is we picked this sort of concept of a record about creation and going from this nothingness to something. It's kind of also our story as a band, so it’s cool to have this song to kick it off that really exclusively talks about those moments. My favorite line from that song is in the bridge when it says, “I’ve never felt more found than when I’m lost in you.” That’s kind of where we were in the transition with The Digital Age; we didn’t really know where we were going, we were so lost, but we knew we wanted to keep making music together and stay in Waco. And then “Believe” is the same way for me; it kind of came out of a conversation with some pastor friends and about how as a worship band we’re always trying to write all these new songs, but you have something like the Apostles' Creed that’s such an important document and an important message of faith for the church, and so as a band we started talking about that and thought, “Why don’t we just write a song based on the Apostles' Creed?”

WW: Tell us about your studio, Asterisk Sounds, here in town. MW: We run it when we’re not on the road and want to be doing something. The thing about being in a band is when you’re gone, you’re gone. You’re really busy. But when you’re home, you’re home; and you get kind of bored. Originally, we built it for us, just kind of as a home base. But as it got completed, we realized it’s a really cool space and we have some time on our hands, so kind of as a ministry tool we wanted to open it up and help some other people make some music. We’ve tracked about four or five full records, a handful of EPs, and then we’ve had a bunch of people come in and do just one or two songs. WW: Why, when you could pretty much do music anywhere, did you stick around Waco?

One of my favorite things to do outside of the band are going to Baylor games. And kind of our identity as a band is so ingrained in Baylor culture, and it would feel weird if we went somewhere else and tried to re-create that. And the other part of that is we just love being a band in a town that isn’t a huge city like Nashville. I think it creates a different sound, just because when you’re at a studio in Nashville, and you’re trying to write with all the Nashville people, there’s a specific sound. So it just makes us a little different, and I think being different in music is good. You don’t have to strive to be homogenous with the rest of your genre, and I think being in Waco and running our own studio and just doing our own thing keeps us different, and we really enjoy that. WW: What’s it like playing at home at Baylor? MW: Oh man, we’re so excited. We absolutely love it. It’s a weird feeling, cause it’s kind of a homecoming show; so you don’t want to take it too super seriously, you want to just have fun with it. But then you realize, “No, we gotta take it seriously.” But it’s kind of the last show of this tour, so it’s gonna feel really celebratory. We’re really super pumped about it, just to have all our friends and family come out and to kind of wrap things up at home is a really fun and cool thing to do. We’re really excited, especially right now. Baylor is electric right now, so it’s kind of fun to be back on campus. I’ve never seen Baylor as pumped up as it is right now.

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 9

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TASTE

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Get the Goods:

hearty, not heavy Pasta Vegetable Soup & Apples Baked with Spiced Sugar

Cheap Eats Easy to Make and Easy on Your Green

By Cheyenne Mueller

When the Texas heat finally subsides and any type of cold front moves through the Lone Star, we tend to crave warm comfort foods to get us through the winter. But exactly what foods fall into this category? The definition of comfort food (yes, there is one) describes it as any food that provides a feeling of well being, often associated with childhood, home cooking, and warmth. This week’s Budget Belly features a healthier twist on these sometimes calorie-heavy favorites, two recipes that are inexpensive and easy to make.

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Hearty Pasta Vegetable Soup Ingredients: • 1 T. olive oil • 2 carrots, chopped • 1 large onion, finely chopped • 4 c. vegetable stock • 1, 14-ounce can chopped tomatoes • 7 ounces frozen mixed peas and beans • 8 ounces of fresh filled tortellini (we used spinach and ricotta) • handful of basil leaves (optional) • grated Parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), to serve Directions:

Apples Baked with Spiced Sugar Ingredients: • 6 green apples, halved horizontally • 2 T. sugar • 2 T. brown sugar • 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom • 1 stick of butter, cut into 12 pieces Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 325°. Grease a large baking dish. Place the apple, cut-side-up, in the dish. 2. Combine the sugar, brown sugar, and cardamom in a bowl. Sprinkle over the apple. Top each with a piece of butter.

1. Heat oil in a pan. Fry the carrots and onion for 5 minutes until they start to soften. Add the 3. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the apples stock and tomatoes, simmer for 10 minutes. Add are puffed, golden and caramelized. Cool for 5 the peas and beans at the 5-minute mark. minutes. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream. 2. Once vegetables are tender, stir in the pasta. Return to boil and simmer for 2 minutes until the pasta is cooked. Stir in the basil. Season, and then serve in bowls topped with a sprinkling of Parmesan.

pg 10 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

THURSDAY-SUNDAY

The Digital Age showcases their new album here at home.

Roger Creager is back in town at Wild West Waco.

Disney brings their 100 Years of Magic to the Extraco Events Center.

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WEEKLY // EVENTS OF

NOVEMBER 21 - NOVEMEBER

27,

2013

FIND MORE AT: WWW.WACOWEEKLY.COM/CALENDAR

album. TRUE LOVE 1826 Lake Shore, Waco, Nov. 22, 2013 10:00 PM

SATURDAY 11/23 FARMER’S MARKET

The Waco Downtown Farmers Market is a year-round riverside market located at 400 South University Parks Drive. Since November 2011, the Market has been and will continue to be open every Saturday from 9am to 1pm, featuring the best local agricultural producers and artisan vendors within 150-miles of Waco. DOWNTOWN WACO Nov. 23, 2013 9:00 AM

KYLE PARK

FRIDAY

11/22

1123 S. 8th, Waco, Nov. 22, 2013 8:30 PM $5-7

Air Review took three years of writing, rehearsing and recording in Irving to produce an album of 11 tracks, varied and distinct from each other. Lomelda is an indie band made up of Hannah, Andrew, and Zach who met in Waco and came together in 2012. Jameson McGregor is a 24-year-old singer/songwriter currently living in Waco. Tickets are available at cgwaco.ticketfly.com. COMMON GROUNDS

In December of 2010, drummer Brendan Hall brought together some friends for an informal jam session with the hopes of beginning a rock ‘n’ roll band…and his plan worked. The Beans started writing songs and performing around Houston in March 2011. By January of 2012, the Beans had finished recording a demo. Now, they are currently working on touring to promote their self-titled debut

AIR REVIEW

THE BEANS

ROGER CREAGER

Hailing from Corpus Christi, Creager became an aspiring country music singer at just six years old. He started chiming out tunes on the piano in the second grade before finally picking up a guitar when he was in high school. Fast forward a few years, at 41 years old and six albums into his career, Creager’s popularity continues to grow as he performs at sold-out venues across the state and beyond. Tickets are available online, and $10 in advance and $12 on the day of the show for 18+. WILD WEST WACO 115 Mary St., Waco, Nov. 23, 2013 8:00 PM

THE ROCKETBOYS

For The Rocketboys, 2012 was a tumultuous journey. The band nearly called it quits when 3 members parted ways in early 2011. The remaining three members resuscitated the band, resulting in their new album, “Build Anyway.” Alternative band Courrier is a mix between OneRepublic and Snow Patrol, and have had songs on CW’s Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, as well as ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars. Tapajenga’s sounds channel Ray Lamontagne and José Gonzalez. Tickets are available at cgwaco.ticketfly.com. COMMON GROUNDS 1123 S. 8th, Waco, Nov. 23, 2013 8:30 PM $10-12

Have an event for our calendar? Submit it at www.wacoweekly.com CALENDAR

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WEEK

Design | Branding | Web

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 11

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Central Texas Turkey Trot at Cameron Park By Dani Wilkins You might as well get to runnin’ now (or at the least walking quickly) because, you know, come Thanksgiving Day, you’re not going to want to move. Thanks, tryptophan, for turkey coma! Join Altusa International for their 8th Annual Central Texas Turkey Trot on Saturday, November 23 for a 1K fun run/walk or for a 5K run. Besides door prizes that every participant will be eligible to win, if you trot quickly enough, there might be a sweet and savory prize at the finish line. For the overall male and female winner, you’ll receive a sweet $150 each. For the top three males and females in each age category, expect a frozen turkey, deluxe pumpkin pie, and meal coupons, respectively. Due to construction in Cameron Park, runners will trot along the river toward downtown Waco and then head back and run through a portion of Cameron Park. The finish line will be at Redwood Shelter. The route isn’t challenging, so don’t worry about tons of hills. The race will kick off 8:45am for the 1K fun run/walk and at 9am for the 5K run. Be sure to bring the whole family. All net proceeds will benefit two of the school libraries destroyed in the explosion in West, Texas. The proceeds will help replenish books and supplies that the libraries will need to become fully operational after the building is completed. Register online at signmeup.com/site/online-event-registration/94893 or by calling Susan Duecy at (254) 848-5528.

pg 12 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

PLAY

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3 Apps You Won’t Regret Downloading By Luke Murray

Disney on Ice By Dani Wilkins For over 100 years, Disney has fascinated children, adults, and the world with magic, charm, and unforgettable fairytales. For four days, Waco will be similarly enchanted. Join Disney on Ice, 100 Years of Magic as it makes its’ debut at the Extraco Events Center on November 21 -24. Watch as 65 Disney characters and 18 beloved stories come to life – all on ice skates. From quintessential Mickey Mouse and adorable Minnie to all of the princesses, from classics such as Pinocchio and Aladdin to new characters such as Buzz and Nemo—the whole gang will be there. But more than just characters, dazzling lights, and easily recognizable Disney tunes, the show is perfect for all ages, from little bitty ones to the kids at heart. For tickets, visit ticketmaster.com and search “100 Years of Magic Waco”.

the scoop WHAT: DISNEY ON ICE: 100 YEARS OF MAGIC WHERE: EXTRACO EVENTS CENTER WHEN: NOV. 21-24

POCKET The beauty of smartphones is their convenience and accessibility. In an instant-gratification-driven society, we want to have an entire universe worth of information at our disposal—we want it at our fingertips. Most smartphone users have come across a webpage, article, video, or important link and thought, “Should I bookmark this? Or should I just email myself the link, so I can read it later?” Here enters the brilliance of Pocket; giving you the ease of storing, accessing, and even sharing the most interesting things you could possibly find online. With a user-friendly interface built around simple organization, convenient layouts, and easy sharing, Pocket just made backtracking the web a whole lot easier. – FREE SUBSTITUTIONS We obsess over food, and that’s probably one of the reasons obesity has reached a belt-busting crisis nationwide. For a lot of people, food allergies, calorie content, or a simple distaste for some flavors and textures makes it difficult to enjoy certain meals. Substitutions has a very straightforward remedy to the issue, offering varieties of substitutions for almost any recipe you could think of. Whether you need to alter your pasta for a health reason or simply want to shake up the flavors in your flambé, Substitutions suggests flavor/low-calorie replacements for every ingredient you could cook up. With a menu that breaks down ingredients into everything ranging from low-cal to lowfat, gluten-free to nut-intolerance, and even ingredients that are good at relieving migraines, Substitutions is a must-have. – $0.99 MOVES Ever tried retracing your steps? How about remembering how long it took you to walk from work to the coffee shop? What about counting calories lost on those trips? No one has time for that. But Moves does. It uses the GPS in your phone to track your daily steps, making it much more convenient than a bracelet or step counter, and let’s be honest—you never take a step without your phone. This app monitors your daily movements, logging each step, and it coordinates statistics between activities. The built-in tracker keeps a tally on the time, distance, and routes you take while walking, running, and even cycling while it also logs your times at rest and picking up on details like when you’re at home or work. It later presents your daily routine in a storyline-like simulation, even keeping an estimated amount of calories you burned over the course of the day, week, and even month. – $1.99

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 13

- By Brandon Nowalk -

Dallas Buyers Club DRAMA (R)

Bad Grandpa COMEDY (R)

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In Bad Grandpa, Johnny Knoxville dresses up as an old man, although his face always looks like a mask next to real people. He teams up with an eight-year-old (Jackson Nicoll) for a cross-country road trip of bad behavior, such as Grandpa going to strip clubs and the kid wandering around looking for him. There’s a surprising amount of plot in this string of pranks. Grandpa’s wife has just died, and the boy’s mom is going to jail, so she drops the kid off with Grandpa in Nebraska and instructs him to get the kid to his father in North Carolina. But it’s never as funny or interesting when the stars are alone together, because they’re just performing for us and we’re in on the joke. It’s the passersby, the real people not in on the joke, who we’re dying to see get pranked. The pranks are funny, even though the trailer saps a few of their powers over us. But Bad Grandpa isn’t just a comedy of manners, outraging the people’s delicate sensibilities with Grandpa and son behaving improperly. Because the film is set on the route from Lincoln to Raleigh, it’s focused specifically on what some might call the heartland, and as such gives a tour of the kinds of people one might meet on that route. It’s remarkably diverse, and Knoxville’s Grandpa spends half his time praising the beauty of women whose body types aren’t often represented as beautiful on the big screen. Most of the movie has to do with the kid’s parents and grandpa being unfit guardians. Knoxville and Nicoll test the denizens of the heartland by, say, drinking beer together on a bench on a well-travelled sidewalk; no wonder the climax is set at a Toddlers and Tiaras type beauty pageant. Nicoll plays a pageant girl whose talent is an uproarious pole-dance set to “Cherry Pie”, and it’s one of the most provocative scenes of the year, shocking the pretense of child beauty pageants and throwing vulgarity in the pageant moms’ faces. The movie isn’t always so provocative, but that scene is worth the price of admission alone.

pg 14 • WACO WEEKLY • November 20, 2013 • wacoweekly.com

Matthew McConaughey’s rebirth as a character actor continues with this emaciated performance as a Dallas rodeo fly named Ron Woodroof who comes down with HIV and drinks and drugs himself into full-blown AIDS in the mid-‘80s. The doctors give him 30 days. Stigma separates him from his work, his friends, and even his home, so he winds up with pneumonia in a Mexican clinic. That’s where he gets the bright idea to start a buyers club, selling memberships to HIV/AIDS patients to a club that will give them free, FDA-unapproved treatments. His business partner is Jared Leto’s heart-breaking drag queen Rayon, but Ron is no softie. His bad behavior, including all manner of homophobic remarks and expressions, are good for some Archie Bunker laughs and then they start to turn sour. At last, someone has made a film about the true victims of the AIDS epidemic: gay-bashing straight men.

Blue is the Warmest Color DRAMA (NC-17)

Typically, the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the most prestigious film event in the world, is given to the director; but this year, the award was bestowed on the director and his two lead actresses. And no wonder. This story of a French high school girl, Adele, who discovers she’s attracted to women, thanks to a blue-haired college art chick. is a towering feat of performance, particularly for Adèle Exarchopoulos, who’s at the center of every scene. Its lengthy NC-17 sex scenes have drawn all the attention, but every scene is lived in and drawn out in this three-hour epic, spanning ten formative years. The first half is a triumphant bildungsroman as Adele talks art and philosophy with a potential boyfriend, her teacher, and eventually Emma while discovering herself. The second half goes into typical rom-dram territory, but with Exarchopoulos on screen, it’s sensational nonetheless.

1. Thor: The Dark World

A valuable mystical substance infects Jane (Natalie Portman), so Thor (Chris Hemsworth) brings her to Valhalla while dark elves conspire to retrieve the substance. Also starring Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, and Rene Russo. PG-13 (112 min.)

2. The Best Man Holiday In this sequel to 1999’s The Best Man, the cast of college friends reunites after 15 years to celebrate Christmas together, where the old jokes, romances, and hard feelings resurface. R (123 min.)

3. Last Vegas

Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Kevin Kline, and Morgan Freeman go to Las Vegas for a bachelor party in this fish-out-of-water comedy. Think The Hangover meets Grumpy Old Men.

4. Free Birds

Just in time for Thanksgiving, two turkeys get the bright idea to travel back in time and prevent turkey from becoming a holiday staple in this cartoon. Voice cast includes Owen Wilson and Amy Poehler. PG (91 min.)

5. Bad Grandpa

Johnny Knoxville gets out the old-age make-up to play an 86-year-old man taking his 8-year-old grandson across the country. Their goal? To prank an unsuspecting populace, like a cross between Borat and Jackass. R (92 min.)

6. Gravity

In this revolutionary 3-D rollercoaster, a space mission gone awry forces astronauts Sandra Bullock and George Clooney to fend for themselves among various space stations and to get back home. PG-13 (90 min.)

7. Ender’s Game

The director of X-Men Origins: Wolverine condenses and regurgitates Orson Scott Card’s compelling young adult novel about a boy genius advancing through strategy school in

order to destroy a potentially invading alien force. PG-13 (114 min.)

8. 12 Years as a Slave

The Toronto Film Festival winner by chic arthouse director Steve McQueen chronicles the abduction of a free northern black man (Chiwetel Ejiofur) and his enslavement for 12 years on southern plantations. R (133 min.)

9. Captain Phillips

Based on a true story, Tom Hanks stars as the captain of a U.S. ship transporting supplies to Kenya when his ship comes under attack by Somali pirates in this journalistic depiction of international institutions colliding. PG-13 (134 min.)

10. About Time

The latest English rom-com-drama from the writer-director of Love Actually is this story about a young man who learns he can time travel within his own life and the woman (Rachel McAdams) he falls in love with. R (123 min.)

11. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2

Our hero, Flint Lockwood, voiced by Bill Hader, leaves his job when he finds out the machine responsible for the original is still in operation, leading to another avalanche of foods crossed with animals. PG (95 min.)

12. Dallas Buyers Club

Matthew McConaughey plays a reallife Texan who was diagnosed HIVpositive and begins a ring to fasttrack meds not yet approved by the FDA by importing them from Mexico for HIV-positive Americans. Costarring Jennifer Garner, Jared Leto. R (117 min.)

13. All Is Lost

Robert Redford plays “Our Man,” a survivor of a shipwreck that leaves him stranded on a life raft with diminishing resources as he tries to get home. Directed by JC Chandor (Margin Call). PG-13 (106 min.)

14. Carrie

After getting picked on at school, a young outcast, Carrie, develops telekinetic superpowers. Then one of the girls feels guilty and gets her boyfriend to take Carrie to the prom; the rest is horror history. R (100 min.)

15. Enough Said

Julia Louis-Dreyfus befriends a hippie poet (Catherine Keener) and her exhusband James Gandolfini at the same party. Her relationships with each start to threaten each other. Her college-bound daughter only cranks up her emotions. PG-13 (93 min.)

16. The Book Thief

During World War II a young German girl who likes to steal books bonds with a Jewish refugee hiding from the Nazis in her parents’ basement. Geoffrey Rush stars as the family patriarch. PG-13 (131 min.)

17. Despicable Me 2

The heroic Anti-Villain League hires Steve Carell as a grumbling supervillain turned adoptive father to help fight a new supervillain. Featuring the voices of Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, and Russell Brand. PG (98 min.)

18. The Counselor

Michael Fassbender stars as a lawyer who gets involved in a cartel deal that goes wrong in this hard-bitten, star-studded neo-noir. Penelope Cruz, Cameron Diaz, Brad Pitt, and Javier Bardem co-star. R (117 min.)

19. Blue is the Warmest Color

The most recent film to win the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival is this story of a French teenager named Adele who falls for a local college student named Emma. NC-17 (179 min.)

20. Planes

Disney goes Pixar with a Cars-style take on a world of sentient planes. Dane Cook as a cropduster dreams of competing in a race around the world.. Brad Garret, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and John Cleese co-star. PG (91 min.)

wacoweekly.com • November 20, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 15