I'm on a mission to be more approachable. The rare, 20-second conversations at parties are really getting disheartening, especially when they end with, "You're blocking the keg."
Well, ladies and gentlemen, the time has finally come. In less than a week, Bush is out of office. Critics might allege that he destroyed our economy, started two wars and even failed to correctly pronounce the word nuclear on a regular basis. But he succeeded in one area-he is leaving the White House without a sex scandal on his record.
Singer-songwriter Rachel Goodrich isn't fond of planning ahead. She said her debut album, "Tinker Toys," had no direction whatsoever.
Here's a dirty little secret: The All-American Rejects have no backbone. But then neither do lobsters, and they're doing just fine. In "When the World Comes Down," the too-pretty Oklahoma natives pack all the punch of an aging Oscar de la Hoya, but when your clientele is teenage girls - text: omg! Gr8est band ever!!! - substance takes a back seat to confessions like, "There's a part of you that's still inside of me." If you can stomach the gratuitous fluff, the big melodies - "Another Heart Calls," "Believe" - go a long way toward quenching your sugar fix. It's when the guys use their sappy sound to vent ("Gives You Hell") that they run into trouble. Using strings, synths and pretty harmonies to convey pent-up anger? About as believable as Ben Stein the motivational speaker.
Because teens still shop at Hot Topic, skinny jeans are recession-proof and Pete Wentz is still the object of many tabloids, Fall Out Boy continues to release products under the this-ship-hasn't-sailed "emo" label. Is this an accurate description of the band's sound? Please. "Folie A Deux" reeks drama, from its meaty, disco-nicking first single "I Don't Care," to the ohh-ohh crammed "She's My Winona," right down to the pretentious song titles - file the song "Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes" under 10 Phrases More Preposterous Than "Folie A Deux." Thankfully, as evidenced by lyrics like "Nobody wants to hear you sing about tragedy," the boys are in on their own joke and pretty much insulated from backlash. Let those of us without tight pants cast the first stone.
Ah, winter break. Plenty of time to catch up with old friends, chill with the family, cozy up in front of the fireplace with hot cocoa and mess around with the new iPhone or Blackberry Storm. But while you'd think all of these things would keep you busy, your mind is still stuck on what's-her-name or 'the boy,' also known as your fall fling.
Axl Rose spent a fortune in litigation fees suing a guy who leaked these songs on the web. Ironic, right? If the Cornrowed One had released this thing on schedule, he could have sidestepped online piracy altogether. You can't have an "Internet leak" without the Internet.
The malls were packed, elaborate sale signs hung decoratively in store windows and anxious souls swarmed the racks searching for the perfect gifts to go under the tree, but nobody bought much. Despite the garland and 20-inch snowflakes, shoppers were in unprecedentedly low spirits this holiday season.
In a small village in El Salvador, one man has not left in 10 or 12 years. So much time has passed that he can't remember the last time he left. The nearest stream, which is barely a trickle, is a 10 minute hike over hills and poor health conditions prevent many people in the town of El Limon from leaving.
Bryan Poole, guitarist and singer for the indie-pop band Of Montreal, said the band recorded its latest album with the help of Georgie Fruit, a "64-year-old black she-male who's been in and out of prison a couple times."
How about some role play with your rap music? A technique long ago mastered by those cheeky Wu-Tang lads, the tempting habit of cramming one's album with scripted banter and wink-wink inside jokes occasionally sidetracks the Brothers Lindsey. Yet when Al and Krispy focus on the actual songs, the young duo confirm themselves as genre-bending hip-hop impresarios. "Bang! Bang!" would make a devastating TV on the Radio cut as it begins a Matrix-worthy techno rocker before exploding into electric, rhyme-heavy verses. Likewise, side one of "Remind Me" is an exercise in style-mashing precision, but when the half-assed skits creep in during the second half hour, one gets the sense that The Knux could be truly great if they could only consistently answer the classic actor question: What's my motivation?
There are categories of people you just shouldn't sleep with, ever.
Just as football season marks the beginning of fall, Thanksgiving weekend is the first glimmer that the semester is coming to a close. As the majority of UF students rush home to get some turkey, stuffing and tryptophan-induced sleep, a unique time in Gainesville nightlife starts to take hold.
It's that time again. The Florida air is getting chillier, the countdown to winter break is getting shorter and your mother's reminders of all the things you have to do when you get home are becoming a daily staple. No doubt the majority of you will have to attend some holiday function over your winter break, whether you want to or not, and I'm here to help you make sure that you look your best. Even if your dad's office party is so boring you are contemplating faking food poisoning, at least you'll look fabulous doing it.
Nobody gets away with more than children.
Suri, Apple and Shiloh were sitting in their apartment in Los Angeles and decided instead of waiting to become famous, they were going to do it on their own. The actress, producer and singer combined their talents and created a show to document their journey in L.A.
Right around Thanksgiving it begins to happen. As we mindlessly stuff ourselves with turkey, the world outside transforms in a majestic way; front lawns become biblical light shows, toy stores become parental battle grounds, and repetitive, peppy music infuses every store, car and restaurant in America. Behind all this snowy wonderment, Hollywood plays a sinister trick, and all over the country cliché, sentimental family films pop up like blemishes on the face of the movie industry. One of these blackheads, "Four Christmases," smiles at you while you writhe in pain and feel the urge to punch someone out of boredom.
The cover art of Valencia's "We All Need A Reason to Believe" features five guys striking contemplative poses in the middle of the desert, no doubt asking themselves, "How can we make our predictable emo shtick appeal to people with ears?" Unfortunately, this fleeting practical thought escaped into the cool evening air, and our skinny-jeaned friends promptly built a ceremonial bonfire to summon the spirit of Pete Wentz. Perhaps taking mushrooms with Vince and Ari would have been a more constructive wasteland endeavor because "Free," "Holiday," "Safe to Say," etc. prove that there are three certainties in life: death, taxes and the shameless pairing of soft, gut-wrenching bridges with loud, bombastic choruses. The sun can't set on this band fast enough.
Temptations disciple Raphael Saadiq just beat out 007 and ice cubes in a cool contest. His throwback style has more soul than a shoe factory. Soda fountains think this guy has retro down pat. You get the point - the man is fly, and on "The Way I See It," he channels a radiant, doo-wop-era rhythm and blues that tips a suede top hat to Berry Gordy and Phil Spector. "Keep Marchin'" reconnects with the effortless groove of early Motown classics, exuding a lighthearted confidence laced in tambourine percussion and backing falsetto. "Just One Kiss" pops with orchestral flourishes and female harmonies, but neither element matches the zeal of the show-stopping lead vocal. How does one account for Saadiq's silky delivery? Like satin pajamas and other sides of pillows, some things are naturally smooth.
From the first endearingly fragile a cappella notes of classic "The State I Am In," a bashful Stuart Murdoch symbolically declines an invitation from England's prying radio ears: No thanks, we're staying in today. You see, back in the mid-90's, Belle & Sebastian was the would-be prom queen still too shy and self-aware to realize her own beauty. "The BBC Sessions" dusts off a snapshot of the sleepy collective in their formative years, before Isobel Campbell fell for the bad boy, and when the singer nervously laughed at himself just in case you thought he was a joke. These tracks are unnervingly intimate, even for this band, and that's why this rare look-in is so special - because B&S, a bedroom act if there ever was one, was never meant for the light of day.
Solutions by The State News
