Our Evolving Wine Scene

It’s time to think about time, right? We stand on the cusp of a new year. Last year is already dust.  January is named after Janus, a Roman god depicted as having two faces, one that looks back, one that looks ahead, a god for entrances and exits, transitions and terminations, god of time itself.  Continue reading 

Do the Hustle

David O. Russell’s new film, American Hustle, is a shaggy, shambolic love story masquerading as a period crime drama. Loosely based on the ABSCAM operation of the late 1970s, the movie follows the exploits of a pair of charming con artists, Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), who end up getting popped by an ambitious FBI agent, Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), and thereby enlisted in a sting that seeks to bring down, among others, Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner), the mayor of Camden, N.J. Continue reading 

Travel by Crain

Singer-songwriter Samantha Crain

Samantha Crain

Singer-songwriter Samantha Crain decided to take a different tack with the creation of her most recent album, Kid Face, which came out in early 2013.  “I wanted to do something autobiographical,” Crain explains. “Most of my songwriting has been based on my love for stories and characters, even if some of those songs were based on things that have happened in my life. When I started writing this album, the first few songs were much more personal, so I decided to take the whole album in that direction.” Continue reading 

REVving Up

Psychobilly legend Reverend Horton Heat

Reverend Horton Heat

On Tuesday, Jan. 7, psychobilly legend Reverend Horton Heat arrives at WOW Hall to promote the band’s new album, REV. They’re here to preach the “Gospel of Rock and Roll,” and you’ll be sure to hear a few new songs, including, “Victory Lap,” “Smell of Gasoline” and “Let Me Teach You How to Eat.” But don’t expect a cooking lesson. Jim “Reverend Horton” Heath says, “That song is basically about sex.”  Continue reading 

The cool sounds and sights of 2014

American Luminosity, the Harvard Glee Club, Irish pipes and more

London Haydn Quartet

Classical music people are always fretting about how to keep the genre from declining along with its aging audience by getting hip to the 21st century. That means, at a minimum, doing what popular music, dance and theater have always done, and what classical musicians themselves did until the last few generations: perform the music of their own time, i.e., now. But sometimes it also means rethinking the presentation to suit today’s more visually oriented culture. A cool concert at the UO’s Beall Concert Hall Friday, Jan. 10, does both. Continue reading 

Arts Hound

First Friday ArtWalk opens 2014 with bright colors and natural themes. Hosted by arts writer and photographer Bob Keefer, the walk starts at 5:30 pm at The New Zone Gallery, which is hosting Natural Connections featuring the mixed-media art of David Race and Kathleen Howard Piper. Then to Urban Lumber for Wood Turnings Inspired by Nature, with the exquisite wooden bowls and plates of Tom Borener from Muse Woodcraft. The next stop is EW’s top pick: Do not miss the acrylic and oil paintings of Philomath-based artist Carolee Clark at Out On A Limb. Continue reading 

I Dream of Eugene

EW asked an assortment of community and socially involved folks to please tell us what they would dream of for Eugene. As we head into the New Year, what do people think we as a community should change, improve, build or renovate in our built and social environment? Continue reading