Randy Newman, the legendary putdown/pick up artist, has been hoisting racist assclowns by their own petards since at least 1974’s “Rednecks.” Simply put, he’s better at bigotry than they are, and he doesn’t even mean it. Just in time for the holiday that shall mark the second coming of Barack Obama, aka election day, Newman is back with yet another poison pill for the haters, it’s called “I’m Dreaming” but instead of the ‘a white Christmas’ you might expect to follow such a declaration, he’s dreaming of a white president. Or more accurately, the character he plays in the song […]
EARLY WORD: There Will Be Blood
RELATED: Alpha Beta house is the oldest and most elite sorority in the world. Some of the most influential politicians, celebrities and scientists are Alpha Girl alumni. After performing long hidden rituals, some of the sisters suspect that their good fortune is tainted by demonic evil. They quickly realize firsthand that the consequences of their curiosity are much more gruesome than any of them could have possibly imagined. MORE
Why Philadelphia Will Be The Death Of Unions
PHILLY POST: Until last week, the pharmaceutical and biotech (read: big bucks) convention Interphex was in talks to bring its annual 10,000-person event to Philadelphia in 2014. According to Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau president and CEO Jack Ferguson, Interphex was looking at Philadelphia as a more inexpensive option than its 2013 destination, the Javits Center in Manhattan. If you’ve ever been to one of these big conventions, you know the setup: a giant room filled with exhibitor booths showcasing the latest in whatever it is that the convention is about. Exhibitors typically assemble their own displays. Naturally, this being […]
CONCERT REVIEW: The Afghan Whigs
Photo by PETE TROSHAK In the mid-90s, the Afghan Whigs made a name for themselves by releasing two critically acclaimed albums – Gentlemen and Black Love – each one a voodoo stew of Motown funk, unfaithful soul and post-grunge alt-rock. And live they could walk the walk with sweaty, frenetic and unpredictable shows that seamlessly weaved their own songs into an assortment of covers – everything from “Moon River” to “Purple Rain” and on some nights both. The Whigs have reunited, without an album to flog and with no agenda except to revive their noir-ish rock for fans new and […]
CINEMA: Time Bandits
Artwork by MARTIN ANSIN LOOPER (2012, directed by Rian Johnson, 118 minutes, U.S.) BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC Looper, the new sci-fi film by writer/director Rian Johnson (Brick, The Brothers Bloom) starts out with a fatal unforced error. It’s the make-up applied to the eyes, nose, and jaw of its star Joseph Gordon-Levitt, a ham-fisted stab at trying to make the actor resemble a younger version of Bruce Willis, who plays the same character in the film 30 years older. Right from the start this comes across as a preposterous and needlessly distracting decision. With the last Batman film and […]
CONCERT REVIEW: David Byrne & St. Vincent
Photo by MEREDITH KLEIBER David Byrne and St. Vincent (née Annie Clark) took the stage in Upper Darby last night looking and sounding like one part New Orleans brass band, one part modern dance ensemble, and one part polished art-rock duo. They paired kinetic, meticulously choreographed stage movement with an impeccably rendered selection of songs spanning both Byrne’s and Clark’s solo careers, as well as Love This Giant, their new joint album. A roaring, brass-filled rendition of the Talking Heads “This Must Be the Place” towards the beginning of the set brought the crowd to their feet and dancing along […]
HOPE RESTORED: Local Low-Income Mom Forgoes Family Pizza Night, Sends $15 To Obama Along With Heartfelt Letter, Gets Thank You Call From POTUS
Dear President Obama, I’m writing to tell you about the $15 my family just donated to your 2012 campaign. It was $15. That’s really all we could give. My husband Steve is currently a student at Temple University. Since starting his degree, three years ago, we’ve been living considerably below the poverty level (I keep forgetting which percent … does it matter?). But we aren’t complaining. Two healthy daughters; dusty, well-travelled backpacks in the basement; a house full of memories—a future full of hope. We’re the lucky ones. So—we’re currently “poor on money—rich in life” (as we like to […]
SAMUEL JACKSON: Wake The F*** Up, People!
YAHOO: The three-minute, 30-second ad, sponsored by the Jewish Council for Education and Research, is a play on the reading Jackson did last year of the satirical “children’s book” Go the F*** to Sleep, which quickly went viral. Adam Mansbach, who wrote the book, also penned the script for the video (set to dramatic, kid-action-filmesque music), which follows a young girl as she goes from room to room of her house, attempting to reenergize her jaded family into taking part in the Obama campaign this time around like they did four years ago. As the girl in the video […]
FROM THE VAULT: Hello Darkness My Old Friend
Artwork by ADAM GREELEY BY JONATHAN VALANIA FOR PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY: Near the end of The Royal Tenenbaums, Wes Anderson’s storybook cinematic fable of wasted potential, the character of Richie, a disgraced world-class tennis player with a dark secret, looks soulfully into the bathroom mirror. It’s impossible to say what he’s thinking–he looks scared, confused, angry, on the verge. A tensely strummed acoustic guitar spirals in the background, accompanying a hushed, faintly ominous vocal. It’s Elliott Smith’s “Needle in the Hay.” Richie picks up a scissors and methodically, if crudely, crops his shoulder-length tresses down to the scalp. He lathers up […]
ARTSY: Turd Blossom
“Karl Rove” by Mark Brodzik
JAZZER: Oh, Sugar, Sugar
BY ZIVIT SHLANK JAZZ CORRESPONDENT Sun Ra was famously quoted as saying, “I’m not a prophet. I’m a destiny-changer… the best thing to do is change things if you’ve got the power.” There’s no doubt his wisdom and musical vision left an indelible impression on many, including author, educator, musician, and former Village Voice writer Greg Tate. He, along with bassist Jared Nickerson, founded Burnt Sugar: The Arkestra Chamber in 1999. This eclectic, sprawling ensemble features a cast of musicians ranging in size from 13 to 35 members, who Tate refers to as “known Irish fiddlers, AACM refugees, Afro-punk […]
SPORTO: It Was Nice While It Lasted
JOE WARMINSKY: Excuse me if the following statement sounds greedy or petty or obnoxious, because it’s really about a deeper, almost spiritual level of dismay: It’s horrible knowing that Philadelphia’s current streak of National League East titles will end at five. My feelings have almost nothing to do with the Nats, so you Washington fans can just step off for a minute. The pain is really about the Atlanta Braves. Like so many things that matter socially or psychologically in sports, the hurt goes back many years, to the Braves team that won 11 straight division titles from 1995 to […]
CONTEST: Win Tix To See The Afghan Whigs Tonite!
WIKIPEDIA: The Afghan Whigs are an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, originally active from 1986 to 2001. They have since reformed. At their peak, the group – with core members Greg Dulli (vocals, rhythm guitar), Rick McCollum (lead guitar), and John Curley (bass), as well as various drummers (including Steve Earle and Michael Horrigan) – evolved into one of the leading groups of ‘90s alternative rock, rising up around the grunge movement but ultimately transcending it. Evolving from a garage punk band in the vein of the Replacements, Dinosaur Jr., and Mudhoney to a literate, soul-inflected post-punk quartet, […]