Arts: Page 307
Behold Old Yeller
America’s favorite hot-tempered comedian and social critic Lewis Black returns to Eugene Oct. 30 and he’s madder than ever, in a clever, “LMFAO” sort of way. EW caught up with Black to yell about everything from voter suppression and being a socialist to Oregon’s efforts to legalize recreational marijuana and the downfalls of the 21st century. Under Black’s flame, no topic, politician or village idiot walks away unscathed. To read the full interview, visit eugeneweekly.com. Continue reading
She’s A Maniac!
Catching up with the star of Flashdance: The Musical, coming to the Hult
The 1983 film Flashdance shook up American culture. Racy and sweet, the movie defined fashion at the time, introduced what seemed like very new, edgy street dance, and taught a generation of young women how to take their bras off underneath their sweatshirts. Based on the phenomenally successful film, Flashdance: The Musical adapts to the stage the story of Alex Owens, a welder by day and bar dancer by night, who has big dreams of one day becoming a professional ballet dancer. Continue reading
Citizens United
Let us now praise the British ensemble cast, for it is a thing of beauty and magic. The current example of this cinematic alchemy is on display in Pride, in which the likes of Bill Nighy and Imelda Staunton share the screen with a whole handful of fresh young faces. Nighy stands tall and reserved; Staunton is a loving force of nature, the polar opposite of her best-known role as Harry Potter’s Dolores Umbridge. But if this movie has a star, it’s the American-born Ben Schnetzer, who plays activist Mark Ashton with a compelling mix of charisma and anger. Continue reading
Que Sera Sera
Katie Goodman looks the part of the cool kid next door, but she’s a bona fide nerd. Her song “Storm’s End” is a Game of Thrones reference, as revealed in a recent “Ask Me Anything” Q&A on Reddit. “When we made that song, I thought it sounded like an evil surf song, which would be perfect for the Ironborn,” Goodman writes. In the Reddit session, Goodman also tells a fan who’s a physicist that she has a physics education masters and “wrote a physics-related love song called ‘Space Time.’” Continue reading
Old Friends
I’ve never been to Austin, Texas, or Athens, Georgia. But one day I hope to, and when I do I think the music of Alejandro Escovedo and Peter Buck — two musicians closely associated with these cities — will soundtrack my trip. Alejandro Escovedo embodies Austin’s reputation as the indie-est of indie music havens. Building a career around a Texan take on punk-edged three-chord bar rock, Escovedo is a rock ‘n’ roll survivor with a loyal following, a songwriter whose work recalls greats like Dave Alvin or Elvis Costello. Continue reading
Scary Sounds
From Pipe Screams to a mausoleum concert, music that will give you goose bumps
What’s all that orange and black we’re seeing everywhere these days? Could it be … Beavers? No, it signals something even scarier: tubas! The brass wind instruments and other annual Halloween happenings are now invading Eugene music stages. Continue reading
Purveyors of dark folk, O’Death
Purveyors of dark folk, O’Death, were shacking up in Brooklyn and playing frenetic Americana stomp before either made hipsters drool. You may know them from their ethereal 2011 hit “Bugs,” but now you’ll remember them for the band’s haunting and beautiful fourth album, Out of Hands We Go, released in early October. “We wanted to explore a grittier sound but continue on this path of doing melodic music,” lead singer and guitarist Greg Jamie tells EW. Continue reading
Art at the Watershed
After a long career in psychotherapy and philosophy, Amy Isler Gibson switched gears in April 2012 and opened The Gallery at the Watershed, which features some of the most important contemporary art in Lane County. Gibson’s artist roster is full of seasoned pros like Bill Brewer, Abbas Darabi, Wesley Hurd and sculptor Randy Ortiz. Now, she and a board of directors have started a nonprofit foundation to educate the community about engaging with the arts with classes such as “Composition Through the Eyes of an Artist” and “The Powers of Visual Art. Continue reading
The Growlers live at WOW Hall [10.14.14]
