11.06.13 - VOL. 1, NO. 5 - WACOWEEKLY.COM
contents
11.07-11.13
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
Feature Story:
4
Waco’s new spirit is alive and thriving downtown, and the future of the city is in your hands.
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 - Pumpkin rolls are an ideal fall dessert that packages all that’s great about the season into one sweet treat.
Listen 4 - Arcade Fire’s highly
anticipated new album, Reflektor, is like 13 Arcade Fires in one.
Look 15 - Brandon gives a rundown of this week’s top 20 box office films.
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.
Waco Weekly P.O. Box 2004 Waco, TX 76703 ph: 832.594.7677 | @wacoweekly © Copyright 2013 Campus Press LP
1st copy is FREE, additional copies are $0.50 each
LISTEN
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Baylor Artist Series Presents:
Lawrence Brownlee By Dani Wilkins
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:
By Chris Zebo
PENNY AND SPARROW
Andy Baxter and Kyle Jahnke perform together as a 2-piece folk duo called Penny and Sparrow. The two met in Austin while sharing a room in a bohemian, “giant, old 5-bedroom (think Animal House)” that they shared with up to 11 other roommates at a time. The crowded house made for close quarters and also allowed for creative endeavors to germinate among the house’s artsy residents. “We all considered each other brothers,” says Baxter, “we all did Younglife one way or another, and we all went to school in Austin.” Andy and Kyle were influenced by some of the best in underground folk, such as The Swell Season, and by some of folk’s mainstream luminaries, Bon Iver and Mumford and Sons. However, they didn’t really congeal into a performance outfit until, ironically, both were out of the house and Andy was married. “The days in that house were incredible though,” reflects Baxter, “and in the event that you need proof of how close all the fellas who came in and outta that house were, both Kyle and myself had over a dozen groomsmen.” We caught up with Andy and Kyle last week to learn more about their music and the inspiration behind their fanfavorite song “Creature”. MW: Where did the name Penny and Sparrow come from? Kyle: Andy and I lived in the same room with one other guy, our good friend Jake (who happens to be brilliantly creative and a writer of excellent short stories and poetry). Creativity was a big deal in our little hovel, so we all read each other’s stories, heard each other’s songs, listened to book recommendations we gave one another, etc. Thus, when the time came to play our first show and people were wondering what we were called as a band, we thought to ourselves, “Oh [expletive], we have a couple songs and no name.” So we remembered Jake’s blog storehouse of great stories which was called “Penny&Sparrow” and we asked to borrow it. We haven’t given it back yet. MW: If you were to describe your music to someone who’s never seen or heard you, how would you describe it? Andy: I would go to “I Heart Video” in Austin and I would rent them the movie Once. Then I would watch them watch it. Then, afterward, we would discuss how gorgeous lyrics and
emotive art is good for the soul. We would cry together and realize that we’re better people for having watched it. Then I would dry my own tears and say, “That’s what we’re going for musically.” MW: Tenboom is your first full length. When you’re writing music together, do you trade off writing lyrics, music, etc.? What does that process look like behind the scenes? Kyle: It’s honestly a pretty exact split. It mostly goes like this: Kyle; 95% of melody line & instrumentation Andy; 95% of lyrics There are two exceptions that prove the rule: “Bones”; 100% Kyle “Duet”; 100% Andy MW: Your song, “Creature”, has become a kind of under-theradar hit for fans. What’s the song’s backstory? Andy: That song came from this short story: “When it woke up, it was still groggy. It was the way things normally were, regardless of how much rest it had gotten. There must be something in us creatures, it thought, that causes this. Almost like waking up was an inconvenience that was wrestled with until the day’s tasks beckoned loud enough or the ability to return, peacefully, to the place it had just left was stolen. It wondered if sleep was so attractive because it was nothing short of being completely reliant. This thought robbed the creature of its first hour of that morning’s existence. It chased the act of sleep around in it’s imagination until finally deciding that it had to be true. Sleep was both necessary and splendid because it was, in itself, the only time the creature was completely devoid of control over itself and utterly at the mercy of it’s creator. It liked this idea a great deal, and decided then and there that sleep was now to be more respected than it ever had been.” You and I are at our most humble when we sleep. It’s the only time of day we don’t try and claim credit for stuff we couldn’t possibly manage—like our pulses, breaths, or staying alive while sleeping. The song is about humility, which somebody said was “the accurate representation of one’s self.” We like that quote and agree.
Minus his coattails and crisp white bowtie, you’d think Lawrence Brownlee was a dapper family man, with his charming, bright smile and even brighter eyes. You wouldn’t realize the man standing before you is acclaimed as one of today’s foremost exponents of the bel canto tenor repertory and one of the highest in-demand artists in the world. Ohio born and Indiana educated, Brownlee had a musical childhood playing trumpet, guitar, and drums. He also sang Gospel music in church. Brownlee became a star on the international circuit after performing in nearly every major theater in the world. His professional debut in 2002 as Almaviva in Rossini’s The Barber of Seville is one of his most famous and recognizable roles. Both in intimate and larger settings, Brownlee’s vocal warmth is soothing yet exhilarating. He regularly performs in up to 5 languages and carries on the tradition of English spirituals. Whether featured in a live setting, or on CD, the tranquil lushness of his voice is easily translatable. He is a recipient of both the 2006 Marian Anderson and Richard Tucker Awards, a feat never before achieved by any artist in the same year, and he’s achieved numerous other accolades. Brownlee will be featured in Baylor’s School of Music Distinguished Artist Series on Thursday, November 7, beginning at 7:30pm in Jones Concert Hall. Tickets for this Distinguished Artist Series concert are now available online at baylor.edu/ music or in person at the Baylor University School of Music box office.
the scoop WHAT: LAWRENCE BROWNLEE WHERE: WACO HALL WHEN: NOV. 7 - 7:30 PM
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 3
By Luke Murray
Arcade Fire Album: Reflektor
Release Date: October 28, 2013
Rating: Sounds Like: LCD Soundsystem David Bowie Animal Collective
Track Listing:
DISC 1: Reflektor We Exist Flashbulb Eyes Here Comes the Night Time Normal Person You Already Know Joan of Arc DISC 2: Here Comes the Night Time II Awful Sound It’s Never Over Porno Afterlife Supersymmetry
If one thing can be said of Arcade Fire it’s that the group from Montreal never wears the same hat twice. On Reflektor, the band’s fourth fulllength (double album) released last week, AF wears 50 hats. You’ll hear a kaleidoscope of influences make appearances like celebrity cameos; the proto-hipster dancyness of LCD Soundsystem (understandably, since frontman James Murphy produced the album); an 80s nostalgia a la New Order and The Cure; post-Kid-A-Radiohead digital soundscapes; David Bowie in spirit; Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young (singer Win Butler’s voice can bear an uncanny resemblance to both singers at times); and even Arcade Fire. That last band, however, is hard to pin down lately, with each album successively revamping the group’s sound (AF has even performed shows recently under the pseudonym The Reflektors). Afro-Caribbean percussion, disco, pop punk, electronica, and rock all clamor together on Reflektor like hordes of fans shoulder-to-shoulder at one of the band’s sold-out performances. For some listeners, Reflektor’s hyperbolic ambition might be its Achilles heel; for others, it’ll be Christmas early—like having 13 different Arcade Fires all in one release. For the AF devoted (and we mean the Church of Arcade Fire), Reflektor might be a slight letdown. For those fans who regard Funeral as a masterpiece testament of indie music’s upraised fist to the establishment, Reflektor’s sometimes lighter subject matter and flippant playfulness might downplay the mainstream-indies as false prophets. But singer Win Butler’s penchant for pathos still makes notable guest appearances on tracks such as “We Exist” and “Normal Person.” The album certainly has its share of catchy earworms, too (most addictive are “We Exist” and “Here Comes the Night Time”), and for audiophiles, Murphy’s mixdown is masterly.
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pg 4 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
••••••
Reflektor Here Comes the Night Time It’s Never Over
LISTEN
Recommended Tracks
Eminem
“The Marshall Mathers LP2”
Release Date: Nov. 5, 2013 Drake preaches about starting from the bottom on his rise to fame, but his buddy Marshall Mathers might be a step or two wiser on the subject. Everyone knows the story of the poor boy from Detroit who made his way up through the rap game to eventually become, arguably, one of the greatest rhyme-gods of all time. Who’s the real Slim Shady? He’s a legend, and of course he’s back to steal the charts and emasculate all of the wannabes who’ve sullied the radio. The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is 21 tracks of rhyme, rhythm, and the unmatchable precision that’s trademark Eminem. We’re still trying to grasp the idea of an album coming off raw yet polished, but Em is ahead of the game. He’s paired up with Dr. Dre again for a suite of hard-hitting beats, sarcastic wit, cutting wordplay, and a surfeit of celebrity jabs. Recommended Tracks: The Monster, Rap God
Thomas Rhett
“It Goes Like This”
Release Date: Oct. 29, 2013 Most country music noobs would say that Thomas Rhett is a new kid on the block. They’d only be partially right—It Goes Like This is Rhett’s debut album. But the young Georgia native has been penning chart-toppers for several years. His most popular singles—“Beer With Jesus” and “It Goes Like This” (both included on the album)—are classics in the making, and he’s also one of the songwriting masterminds behind several tracks by Jason Aldean, Lee Brice, and Florida Georgia Line, among others. Being that he’s also the son of famous singer/songwriter Rhett Akins, it’s easy to say that music is stitched into his genes. Much of that songwriting brilliance comes through on his album, complete with 12 tracks of gritty lyricism on subjects ranging from confessions and keggers to pick-up lines. Recommended Tracks: Make Me Wanna, It Goes Like This
Chris Tomlin
“Burning Lights”
Release Date: Jan 8, 2013 Winning a Grammy is no small feat; doing it as a contemporary Christian artist puts it in a whole different ballpark. Evangelical albums get very little love from charts and radios, and having the tenacity to break barriers is what separates the yielding from the chosen. Tomlin, a native Texan, has broken records in concert attendance, album sales (with 4 golds and a platinum release), award nominations, and now Burning Lights has debuted an album at Number 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart— becoming only the fourth contemporary Christian album to achieve that benchmark. Burning Lights, his twelfth solo album, is 12 tracks of fret-progressions that strike similarities to the likes of Coldplay and U2. His faith-driven messages are anything but mundane—you wouldn’t expect less, with adrenaline-pumping soul, rich poprock fusions, and even a piano ballad for good measure. Recommended Tracks: Burning Lights, White Flag wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • p 5
PLAY
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Waco Symphony: JOHN SHARPE BY DANI WILKINS
Regarded as some of the greatest concert music performances in Central Texas, the Waco Symphony Orchestra continually highlights the greats, showcasing local artists and hosting special events. This special show is perfect example: On Saturday, November 9 at 7:30pm, principal cellist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, John Sharp will return home to Waco. Sharp will perform a special concert in Waco Hall on Baylor campus.
Hayes Carll at Common Grounds Hayes Carll is a 37-year-old Americana artist who has performed in honkytonks, bars, and festivals across the nation. Born in Houston, Carll traveled to Conway, Arkansas to attend Hendrix College and earn his degree in history before returning to the Lone Star State. Carll spent the first of his post-college years playing in bars and at parties across the coastline in Crystal Beach before recording his first album, Flowers and Liquor, in 2002. Following the debut record, Carll was voted “Best New Artist of 2002” by the Houston Post. His second album, Little Rock, was recorded on Carll’s own label, Highway 87, which became the first self-owned label with a song that topped the Americana charts. Since the release of his third and fourth studio albums, Carll has toured with his band, the Gulf Coast Orchestra, and performed at country bars, rock clubs, and notable venues like Bonnaroo, SXSW, Stones Fest, and NXNE. Many of his songs were even featured on the 2010 blockbuster drama, Country Strong.
Beginning at the age of 10, Sharp began to play cello in the local school system and started private lessons at 13. Following a year at SMU, Sharp enrolled at Julliard where he earned a master’s degree. He appeared twice as a soloist with the Julliard orchestra, including the New York Premiere of Rorem’s Remembering Tommy. Appointed principal cello of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the 1986-87 season at the age of 27, and only 4 years out of Julliard, Sharp was among the youngest players ever to be given a CSO principal chair. Prior to his membership there, he was a member of several premiere orchestras in the Northeast.
Carll’s most recent album, KMAG YOYO (& Other American Stories), was released in 2011 and features a dozen songs that have spawned countless hits and accolades. The album, with a military acronym title that stands for “Kiss My Ass Guys, You’re on Your Own,” was the Americana Music Association’s #1 album and received critical acclaim from Rolling Stone, SPIN, and the New York Times. “Another Like You,” a popular track on KMAG YOYO, won Carll the American Songwriter’s #1 song of 2011 award. Carll will be performing at Common Grounds in Waco on Saturday, November 9, 2013. Doors open at 8pm and the show will begin at 8:30pm. For ticket purchases and more information, visit http://www.ticketfly.com/event/384743-hayes-carll-waco/
Sharp is also a professor of cello at Roosevelt University and coaches the cello section of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. He also plays a very rare cello made by Joseph Guarnerius in 1694. Tickets can be purchased at wacosymphony.com. pg 6 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
the scoop WHAT: HAYES CARLL WHERE: COMMON GROUNDS WHEN: NOV. 9 - 8:30 PM
TASTE
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Bring on the thanksgiving festivities
Pumpkin Rolls
Cheap Eats Easy to Make and Easy on Your Green
By Chandler Hodo
As October comes to a close and Thanksgiving looms on the horizon, fall recipes reach a fever pitch. Pumpkin rolls are ideal desserts that package all that’s great about the season (nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and of course pumpkin). The cake-based roll with a cream cheese filling can be served right out of the oven, or it can frozen and saved for when guests stop in for the holidays. Cook time: 15 minutes Servings: 10 Ingredients: • 2 large eggs • 1 cup sugar • 2/3 can of pumpkin • 1 teaspoon lemon juice • ¾ cup all-purpose flower • 1 teaspoon baking powder • 2 teaspoons cinnamon • 1 teaspoon ginger • ½ teaspoon nutmeg • ½ teaspoon salt Filling: • 8 ounces Cream cheese, softened • 4 tablespoons Butter, softened • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract Preparation: 1.) In a large bowl, combine eggs and sugar by beating with an electric mixer until thick and light yellow in color. Add pumpkin and lemon juice, mixing until blended.
2.) In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Add to egg mixture, mixing well. 3.) Spread batter into greased and waxedpaper lined 10-by-15-inch jelly-roll pan. Bake at 350 ° for 15 minutes. 4.) Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes. Place cake on a clean tea towel sprinkled liberally with powdered sugar. Cool for 10 minutes longer, then roll cake up in towel and set aside. 5.) While the cake is cooling in towel, prepare filling. Beat together cream cheese and butter; stir in powdered sugar and vanilla and blend until smooth. 6.) Unroll and evenly spread filling over cake. Re-roll cake (without the towel) and wrap in plastic wrap. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Slice before serving.
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 7
#WACOTOWN BY SARA GILMORE
Waco: a city of boundless potential, waiting to be realized. Residents of our beloved work-in-progress continually ride the fence between committing to make Waco cool and defaulting to seek their “better food and fun” needs in larger cities like Austin and Dallas. With this reality in mind, a handful of Wacoans finally started asking themselves, “What if we didn’t leave town every weekend for something ‘more interesting’ and made Waco interesting instead?” And so the #Wacotown initiative was born. Maybe it started with Mike Trozzo’s Wacotown mural on the corner of Franklin and Fourth, but Trozzo is quick to defer the credit away from himself and call it “a community project.” Like all things that end up flourishing and bearing fruit, it started with a seed: a thought that “Maybe we don’t invest in this place enough, and So without going into detail on the individuals involved, since they prefer maybe if we did, it could really thrive.” Then a mural went up on a wall to remain anonymous, allow me to answer your questions about this that highlighted the one thing we know everyone in Waco can agree to “tasteful tagging” of sorts that you may be noticing around town. Is love: the fact that a Heisman trophy belongs to a Baylor Bear. #Wacotown real, or is it some social media pushed ideal that may be trending on instagram but isn’t actually taking root? So it started with civic art; an otherwise ugly wall made aesthetically pleasing and meaningful. The growing culture of affection towards Waco The answer is yes. Yes, it’s real. Yes, it’s beginning to trend. And yes, may be proof that Oscar Wilde was right when he said, “Life imitates art unless the community buys in, it will not truly take root. far more than art imitates life.”
The idea that maybe Wacotown really is “Oh so special” began to buzz around the downtown area, and it became the heart of locals participating in other downtown regular events, such as the Farmer’s Market, which turns two years old next weekend, and First Fridays, which are gaining momentum as a downtown tradition. Four months ago, a handful of #Wacotown gurus gathered some friends and decided that, in tandem with First Fridays, they would have a potluck dinner downtown. The location changes every month, and the group sends out messages the day before the first Friday of each month to let people know about it. I got an invite this past Friday night, and I’ll be honest, I was a little skeptical about the seemingly exclusive nature of the dinner party. Why hadn’t I heard much of it before? Who’s really in charge? Why do I feel like some sort of Jay Gatsby character should be hiding in the balcony of the Hippodrome Theater (where this month’s dinner was held), looking down on all the lucky attendees of this swanky, Kinfolk-esque potluck? Then I sat down at the table and I watched as 40 or 50 people sat next to total strangers and got to know their neighbors. I shared one long table with successful businesspeople, PhD students, social workers, artists, baristas, stay-at-home moms, a pastor —all gathering to share a meal pg 8 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
with one thing in common: a love for our city. The inspiration behind the potluck comes from a 1911 photo of a “Prosperity Banquet” that stretched from Austin Ave. to Franklin Ave. on South Fifth Street. Eventually, the group wants to see all of downtown Waco out in the street, having dinner together, once a month on First Friday. I remember, at some point, someone asked who was in charge. And when one guy pointed to another, who responded with a boyish grin, “Nobody, really. That’s the beauty of it,” I realized that maybe that’s the point— empowering the people of Waco to take initiative. So maybe we just need more people to believe in it. People like Anthem Studios, bringing life to the Praetorian building, or Dichotomy Coffee & Spirits, doing a build-out that might take more time and money but is adding genuine character to the aesthetic of downtown. Dive in, people. This is your city for the making. If you do nothing else, save the date of the first Friday of next month and plan on going to participate in all that downtown Waco has to offer. And who knows, maybe we’ll get word of where the mysterious potluck dinner is and give you a heads up.
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 9
DISCOVER
••••••
Q&A
5 minutes with Andy Anzollitto - Deuxtone By Sara Gilmore
Two months ago, an addition was made to the Wacotown mural on the corner of Franklin and Fourth, counting down each month until kickoff in the new Baylor football stadium. Each month a different artist is designing the number on the wall. The one thing each of those artists has in common is that Waco is, in some way, a part of his or her story. The number 10 just went up on the wall this week, and this month’s artist is Andy Anzollitto, Baylor grad and local graphic designer, and one half of Deuxtone, a design and illustration firm here in Waco. We caught up with Andy this week to give you some insight to the man behind the masterpiece. Waco Weekly: Were you always an artist growing up? Describe your journey to deciding "this is what I want to do with my life." Andy Anzollitto: Growing up I was always drawing. I loved comics, particularly Calvin & Hobbes. As a kid, it was my dream to be a syndicated cartoonist – to open up a Sunday paper and see my strips in color. As I grew older, I got my hands on a copy of Photoshop. That's when I think I saw an opportunity to exercise creativity in a functional way. A way in which I could support myself and control my future. WW: Tell us about Deuxtone, and how you and Tanner Freeman got connected and started working together. AA: At the end of my Senior year at Baylor, I had received a forwarded
email from Tanner asking if any students or faculty were interested in starting an AIGA (a professional graphic design organization) chapter in Waco. At this point I was flirting with the idea of staying in Waco after graduating. We met over gyros and fries and decided that trying to start an AIGA chapter was too much, but we should go on a road trip instead. So a few weeks after meeting one another, we were on the road out to Arkansas with our friends Rob and Harrison. That trip is where the idea of Tanner and I working together really took roots, friends together working. Logistically, we didn't formally become Deuxtone for another six or so months later. WW: PS, how long ago did you graduate from Baylor? How long have you been doing the Deuxtone thing — did that start while you were still in school? AA: I graduated from Baylor in 2012. Year of the Bear! Tanner and I have been working together as Deuxtone for almost a year now. WW: What is one of your favorite projects you've done recently or are currently working on? AA: I really enjoy most projects I've worked on. At Deuxtone, we make it a point to work with people who are as passionate about what they do as we are about what we do. This makes it easy for me to get stoked on work and feel really invested in my clients' dreams. Currently, I am wrapping up some stuff for Dichotomy Coffee & Spirits which has been a true joy. They have really trusted us with shaping their graphic identity and expanding on that. Lots of good times on that one. WW: OK, let's talk about the Wacotown wall. You're doing the number 10. What was your inspiration behind it? Did you get to pick your number? AA: I did get to pick. 10's a big number for Baylor folk. When Mike gave me a choice, and one of the options was 10, I felt there wasn't much discussion to be had on that. In terms of inspiration, I could try to spin you some story about some deep ideas, but my goal was really just to make something beautiful and unique. I hope I did that. WW: Is there any deeper meaning for you, to getting to be a part of the Wacotown initiative by designing a part of the countdown mural? AA: To think of Wacotown as a wall would be to cut the idea short. For me, Wacotown is the idea of a community choosing to define itself. Waco has a long and storied history, and for the latter part of it, the community has let other people define who we are. Forget that. Forget any negative connotation someone else assigns to us. Choose your future and claim it. That is what Wacotown is for me. And the wall — the wall is just the business card. WW: What might we find you doing in your spare time here in Waco when you're not in your studio making masterpieces? AA: My girlfriend and I play a lot of Rummy, which is an old man's card game. I also spend a lot of time eating Chinese food and watching movies. Preferably at the same time.
pg 10 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
SATURDAY
SATURDAY
SATURDAY
Hayes Carll makes a stop at Common Grounds for his latest tour.
Color Me Crazy 5K lights up Waco this Saturday.
The Waco Symphony presents John Sharpe.
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WEEKLY // EVENTS OF
NOVEMBER 07 - NOVEMEBER
13,
2013
FIND MORE AT: WWW.WACOWEEKLY.COM/CALENDAR
hailing from Dallas and showcases a choralcollective sound. They have rotated a cast of 15 songwriters and members since they hit the scene in 2008. Tickets are available at ticketf.ly/18glugD. COMMON GROUNDS 1123 S. 8th, Waco, Nov. 8, 2013 8:30 PM $7-10
SATURDAY 11/09
GREAT ZOO STAMPEDE KYLE PARK
THURSDAY 11/07
LAWRENCE BROWNLEE
Opera singer, Lawrence Brownlee, has become the most in-demand American tenor in the world in the bel canto repertoire. A star on the international scene, he has performed opposite leading ladies of contemporary opera, and lauded continually for the seemingly effortless beauty of his voice. Recently, Brownlee had the honor of opening the Mostly Mozart Festival in New
York with Louis Langrée and the Mostly Mozart Orchestra. JONES CONCERT HALL Baylor Campus, Nov. 7, 2013 7:30 PM
FRIDAY
11/08
Races include a timed 10K, a timed 5K, and a timed 1-mile fun run. Children under 12 years of age must be accompanied by an adult racer (no exceptions), and strollers are allowed. However, no bicycles or in-line skates are permitted. For the health of the animals and yours, pets are not allowed in the zoo, so leave the fuzzy friends at home. Early registration is $20 per race. Late registration begins November 6th and continues until the race day at $25 per race. CAMERON PARK ZOO 1701 N. 4th St., Waco, Nov. 9, 2013 7:00 AM
PENNYandSPARROW LIGHT AND LADDER Penny and Sparrow are Andy Baxter and Kyle Jahnke. Previously roommates, the duo makes music influenced by The Swell Season, Bon Iver, Mumford and Sons, and others. Fox and the Bird is a folk-pop band
L& L’s 2011 debut EP, See You See Me, was welcomed with high praise and received attention on indie stations around the U.S. The band’s first full-length album, This Is Not Your Pen (which is available now on iTunes), was
released on August 14, 2013. TINYP opened up a whole new avenue for L&L, as they recently supported the record with a Midwest U.S. radio interview and venue tour.TRUE LOVE 414 Franklin, Waco, Nov. 9, 2013 8:00 PM
MONDAY
VETERAN’S DAY PARADE
“Freedom Isn’t Free.” The Veteran’s Day Parade will pay respect to those that have fought for our freedom. The parade will be on the 11th of November at 11am on Austin Avenue 13th St and continue to 3rd St. The line up starts at 9:30am. If you’re interested in registering for the parade, the form is available online at mcva.webstarts.com DOWNTOWN WACO Nov. 11, 2013 11:00 PA
Have an event for our calendar? Submit it at
www.wacoweekly.com CALENDAR
Contact Us At 254.716.0973 or Info@deuxtone.com
11/11
••••••
WEEK
Design | Branding | Web
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 11
VETERAN’S DAY PARADE
BY CHANDLER HODO
The McLennan County Veterans Association is hosting the annual Veteran’s Day Parade in downtown Waco on the 11th day of the 11th month at the 11th hour (11/11/13). The event, which is open to the public, will feature more than 3,000 participants, including cheer squads and drill teams, bands, and a wide variety of floats by individuals, organizations, and local businesses. Some of the local groups participating in the parade include Cub Scout Troop 498, ROTC from various high schools in the area, barbershops, car dealerships, elementary school students, and even former prisoners of war. The parade honors war veterans living in Waco who served in WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Grenada, Desert Storm, Panama, Somalia, Bosnia, Afghanistan, and Iraq. It is an opportunity for the people of Waco to show their appreciation for veterans across the nation, specifically those in their hometown. Line-up for the parade begins at 9:30am and the parade will kick off at 11am. It will follow a route along Austin Avenue through downtown Waco. Those who can’t make it to the parade can watch it on WCCC-TV or online at wccc.tv.
COLOR ME CRAZY
••••••
PLAY
BY DANI WILKINS
As the newest trend in 5K races, color runs are one of the most fun of them all. Gather up the gang for 3.1 miles of color madness and paint yourselves with food grade cornstarch mixed with cosmetic grade dyes. The whiter your clothes, the more your exercise art will show. Be sure to also don your favorite tutu, angel wings, crazy socks, and rainbow shorts for the ultimate race picture. The Color Me Crazy 5K is a race for all ages and all experience levels. If you’re not one of those race-running crazies yet, this race is the perfect starting line for wannabe runners. For all the 5K enthusiasts, Color Me Crazy is a great break from the competitive race circuit (this race isn’t timed). Register online at colormecrazy5k.com. $40 will supply you with an official race tee, race number, custom water bottle, sponsor goodies, and—most importantly—a color packet. The event will be held at Floyd Casey Stadium on the 9th of November with a 9am start time.
pg 12 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
By Cheyenne Mueller and Dani Wilkins
University Baptist Church is hosting an inaugural fundraiser called Made in Waco on November 9 from 10am-3pm. While produced to be a fundraiser for the church, Made in Waco’s greater purpose is to support local artisans. Over a span of six hours, the event strives to bring vendors to UBC to sell their goods and crafts to the public. The event will be held inside the UBC’s inner sanctuary, although the location could be subject to change depending on the number of vendors participating. There are 15+ vendors currently slated to be present at the event, displaying a wide variety of items. The church is planning on having a small concession stand, selling treats such as coffee and muffins, and the money made from concessions will go back to the church. Church member Holly Duke mentioned that the event would be a “good place for people to buy Christmas gifts and to support local businesses and artisans.” Made in Waco will be hosted on November 9 from 10am-3pm at the church’s 1701 Dutton Avenue location. There will be plenty of parking available. For more information, call 254.752.1401.
the scoop WHAT: BOY + KITE WHERE: TRUE LOVE WHEN: NOV. 2 - 8:00 PM
PLAY
Waco
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Made in
3 Apps You Won’t Regret Downloading By Luke Murray KETTLEBELL F.I.T. MORE…kettlebell? Absolutely. Kettlebell F.I.T. takes one of the most intimidating and underused pieces of equipment in the gym and builds intense and exciting workouts for every muscle group within your body. Whether you’re a beginner or training for the Crossfit Games, there’s a skill level just for you. Select your starting point, and begin. You only need one kettlebell to get started on your training journey through more than 200 exercises. A friendly user interface breaks down every workout by intensity, duration, and even muscles used via helpful videos, coaching, and technique tips—all geared to get you the most from your workout. The app also allows you to monitor progress and share your results with friends through direct/social media sharing. – $0.99 ON SALE FOR A LIMITED TIME ACTION MOVIE FX How much would you pay to have the ability to shoot cinemaquality action flicks right from your smart-phone? How about nothing? Action Movie FX gives users the ability to channel their inner Michael Bay right on their phone with stunning effects added right to HD video. Record yourself eating breakfast—when suddenly a meteor comes crashing through your kitchen. Or show your friends how you survived a robot attack on your way home from work. Wherever your creative mind takes you, Active Movie FX can make it come to life. Record video clips right on your phone and choose from a large selection of effects, including tornadoes, helicopter crashes, flash-floods, alien invasions, dragons, parasite attacks, fire fights, and all the sound effects you need to pair with each scene. The options are limitless as you create a Hollywood film right on your phone. – FREE DEAD TRIGGER 2 When The Walking Dead gets more viewers than the World Series and Sunday Night Football, you know you have a zombieaddiction on your hands. Zombies sell, and game makers are having a field day. The sequel to the breakout game that sold 23 million downloads worldwide has arrived, promising more stunning graphics and bonus features than ever before. Explore various worlds—everything from alleyways to mineshafts to the African desert—with copious amounts of over-the-top graphics that you have to see to believe. Also, the days of pushover zombies are gone; prepare for a more battle-ready embodiment of the disembodied, with hardcore bosses bewitched by the powers of the underworld. Stockpile your arsenal, earn your upgrades, and prepare to claim victory over the flesh-eating hoards. – FREE
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 13
- By Brandon Nowalk -
Ender’s Game THRILLER (PG-13)
12 Years a Slave DRAMA (R)
The only headlines about Ender’s Game revolve around source author Orson Scott Card’s virulent anti-gay comments, and no wonder. The movie is an unimaginative CGI bore next to Card’s dense young adult novel about an academy training young minds to find the next commander in the coming war against antlike aliens who attacked Earth fifty years ago. The casting scores high—True Grit’s Hailee Steinfeld as Ender’s friend Petra, Viola Davis as a psychologist—but chokes when it comes to the two leads, British Asa Butterfield, who tries mightily but isn’t vocally up to the task, and old Harrison Ford, who hasn’t been awake onscreen in decades. But the real problem is director Gavin Hood, whose take on the novel is basically point-andshoot. Condensed into lifelessness and illustrated in pixels, Ender’s Game only comes alive in the coda, so superficial that it takes a genocide for it to connect with audiences.
Based on the memoir of free black northerner Solomon Northup, 12 Years a Slave is receiving much deserved credit as a corrective to a history of black servitude portrayed in film and in popular history. Northup’s kidnapping, enslavement, and rescue is not a pit stop on a white person’s road to self-betterment. This is a movie about national blackhood, populated by rebellious Northup, collaborator mistresses, slaves who have never known freedom and can’t even imagine a better life, white property owners, relatively benevolent whites, and abolitionists. Simply for the movie’s clear-eyed depiction of the bloody institution that built the south, it stands as a landmark. But the revolution of 12 Years a Slave stops there. Oh, it has its moments, and star Chiwetel Ejiofur (Kinky Boots, Children of Men) roars with the bluntest lines in the screenplay. Director Steve McQueen has flashes of radical genius, like a shot through a bellowing paddle and a close-up on a blazing furnace. They’re familiar objects that are given terrifying new perspectives, searing images of American industry and its dark power. Another creative interlude sees a pow-wow between slaves and Native Americans, the combined powers of dominated subcultures leading to nothing more than a dinner. Then there are scenes like the long take of Ejiofur lost in thought. At one point he locks eyes with the camera, refuses to back down from the confrontation, and then keeps going. That’s the kind of new-clothes artiness you’d expect from McQueen based on his previous features Hunger and Shame. His work is about the physical—a hunger strike’s toll on the body, a sex addict compelled by his body, and now the gore of domination—psychological moments like that are pure surface. McQueen’s also known for long, unbroken shots, which are again the foundation of his style. A tour through Paul Giamatti’s house with slaves for sale lining the walls and a climactic whipping scene convey presence in space, the camera hanging on every word from the powerful white masters. 12 Years a Slave isn’t a great film, but it’s a great story on film. Maybe that’s enough.
pg 14 • WACO WEEKLY • November 6, 2013 • wacoweekly.com
Computer Chess INDIE
With apologies to Machete’s Robert Rodriguez, it isn’t often we get to spotlight great Texas filmmakers; but Austin transplants such as Andrew Bujalski are making the Lone Star a vital center for not only great music but great film. His latest is Computer Chess, shot in Austin and set at an ‘80s chess tournament about a bunch of grad students and programmers competing to find the best computer chess program. On the surface it’s a humdrum, found-footage deal, a credit to amateur actors such as Patrick Riester and cult-film critic Gerald Peary who nail the everyday awkwardness of interaction. Beneath the surface is a roiling sea of anxieties—the ability of artificial intelligence to replicate human behavior, the potential coding of human socialization into data— all suggested by Bujalski’s trippy aesthetic, a (mostly) black-andwhite analog video with moments of profound surrealism that cement this film as one of the year’s best.
1. 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.)
2. 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.)
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. 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.)
6. 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.)
7. 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.)
8. 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.)
9. 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.)
10. Escape Plan
In this high-concept action flick, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger team up to escape from a dangerous, off-the-grid, maximum-security prison that puts all the prisoners in clear glass boxes on stilts. R (116 min.)
11. 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.)
12. 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.)
13. 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.)
14. All Is Lost
stranded on a life raft with diminishing resources as he tries to get home. Directed by JC Chandor (Margin Call). PG-13 (106 min.)
15. Insidious: Chapter 2
Patrick Wilson may have gotten his son back from the demonic spirit world, but is it really his son? And why are the demons so intent on possessing him? Rose Byrne co-stars. PG-13 (105 min.)
16. 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.)
17. We’re the Millers
A road trip comedy about a bunch of outcasts playing an all-American family (Jason Sudeikis as dealer dad, Jennifer Aniston as stripper mom) to sneak into Mexico and retrieve a marijuana package for a quick buck. R (110 min.)
18. Prisoners
When the daughters of two neighboring families are kidnapped on Thanksgiving, the parents take matters into their own hands, even as the police investigate in this starstudded drama (Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal). R (153 min.)
19. Rush
Beefy Chris Hemsworth squares off with brainy Daniel Bruehl through the ‘70s as they compete in races across the globe. The only thing is, as an opening monologue tells us, there’s a tragedy in their future. R (123 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.)
Robert Redford plays “Our Man,” a survivor of a shipwreck that leaves him
wacoweekly.com • November 6, 2013 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 15