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Scorpion King promises cheap, easy excitement
The summer movie season is officially kicking off this weekend with the hype monster “The Scorpion King” hitting theaters nationwide.
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Pop culture 101
After semesters full of typical, boring college requirements like math, history or English, some could only dream of taking a Dave Matthews Band class - for credit. And as colleges and universities continue to vary the kind of electives students can take, the subject matter gets even quirkier. Oberlin College in Ohio offered the Dave Matthews Band class this semester, along with classes analyzing the television show “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and the films of Harrison Ford. The classes are offered through Oberlin’s Experimental College, also known as ExCo, launched in 1968 to allow instructors, students and community members the opportunity to teach others about unconventional topics. “I was looking at some old course catalogs from the early ’70s and there were schools everywhere like this,” said Oberlin sophomore Tessa Shanks, an ExCo office assistant.
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Calliope to release new album
Space pop band Calliope will have a CD release party for its fourth full-length album, “Braille” on Saturday at Mac’s Bar, 2700 E.
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Spartan Dischords concert marks 20th anniversary
The Spartan Dischords, an all-male a cappella group, will celebrate its 20th anniversary today. The show begins at 8 p.m.
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Film critic ends reign, reflects on life, movies
It’s hard to believe that I’ve been writing movie reviews for nearly a year now. For almost a full year I’ve been writing both serious commentary and dirty jokes about actors, actresses, writers and directors, and I’ve been lucky enough to be able to get some of it in the paper. Some people have no idea who I am, and some people think I suck.
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4-H exhibit opens Sunday at MSU museum
The MSU Museum is celebrating more than 100 years of 4-H, with an exhibit opening Sunday called “Head-heart-hands-health,” which is the founding philosophy of teaching rural youth canning and corn growing. Over the decades, 4-H club has grown in membership by recruiting children from all over Michigan.
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Event to honor Earth Day in E.L.
Environmental groups and live music will highlight the annual Earth Day Celebration 1-5 p.m Sunday at the Ann Street Plaza, on the corner of M.A.C.
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Girls Against Boys perform at Union
Take advantage of a rare chance to see one of the most underrated bands out there Sunday at the Union Ballroom, when Jade Tree recording artists Girls Against Boys will perform. The New York-based band released several albums and EP’s on independent record labels such as Adult Swim and Touch and Go, before releasing “Freak*on*ica” on Geffen Records in 1998. Girls Against Boys will release its seventh full-length, “You Can’t Fight What You Can’t See” on May 14. The band also contributed a track on “A Means To An End: The Music of Joy Division,” and is featured on many movie soundtracks including “Clerks,” “Mallrats” and “subUrbia.” The band made a cameo appearance in the motion picture “200 Cigarettes” and scored most of the recent film, “Series 7.” Girls Against Boys has a sound unlike any other, mixing swaggering vocals with a thick, bass-driven rock.
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Groovatron to play at Harpers
Nick Ferrer doesn’t look at any gig he performs with his band, Groovatron, as too small or minuscule. “If two people come out to a show, that’s two more people we have with us that have heard our music,” the guitarist and vocalist said.
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Mars disc is far out
Listening to “No City Fun” is more than just great music, it’s a blurry and surreal expedition. From beginning to end, each song is driven by a relatively simple string pattern, and in the background a country guitar reveals itself and adds to the overall dreary mood. A lot of bands try to tackle this feat, but only a few succeed with precise songwriting.
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Weekend guide
Friday • Breslin Center presents “Wayne Brady and Friends” 8 p.m. at Breslin Center.
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Ultimate Fights stinks no more than expected
Are you one of those people who thinks stories and plots just get in the way of movies, but are tired of watching porn?
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To hear good music, dig deeper than MTV
This past Sunday, I regained my faith in the taste of music enthusiasts. It was in the Union Ballroom, during the phenomenal sold-out performance of The White Stripes, when I realized people really do appreciate honest art. Meg and Jack White, of The White Stripes, played a type of rock ‘n’ roll that isn’t anything like too many of the current mainstream rock acts, if you can call Creed a modern rock act.
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Mothers Day to open at BoarsHead
With May around the corner, many families will gather in honor of their mothers. But not all gatherings are going to be happy and peaceful, evident in a BoarsHead Theater production of “Mothers Day.” This is the North American premiere of “Mother’s Day,” and playwright Jeff Baron said he’s also produced this play in Australia, Paris and Athens.
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Waynes World
From his antics on the ABC weekly prime-time show “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” it seems Wayne Brady was born for the cameras. And whether singing, dancing or just prancing around on the stage, many fans of the improv comedy show think he outshines co-stars Colin Mochrie and Ryan Stiles. Brady will bring his traveling comedy show, “Wayne Brady and Friends,” to Breslin Center at 8 p.m.
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Frailty a smart, tense thriller
Have you ever noticed that only people in small, backwoods towns ever see aliens or demons? Is it the fresh air that does it?
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Goo Goo Dolls much anticipated album is easily confused with earlier recordings
Writing a follow-up to a highly successful record must be quite a feat. Not only does the artist have the pressure of writing more hits that will remind its fans that it can still write really good songs, but it has the task of proving to harsh critics that it has staying power. I’m one of the critics who was quite skeptical about the newest by the Goo Goo Dolls.
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Moth rocks with Provisions
What can you say about a band that just plain rocks? Each song on Moth’s third record couldn’t have been done better. Hailing from Ohio, the same state that spawned Nine Inch Nails, Devo and The Breeders, Moth contributes a solid major label debut by molding generous portions of geek rock in with some dark and satisfying love songs, such as “Lovers Quarrel,” one of the album’s best. Brad Stenz’s gritty vocals glide along the same horizon as U2’s Bono, and even occasionally slightly hints at Jeremy Enigk of the now defunct Sunny Day Real Estate. The music somehow manages to incorporate punk rock angst with a tint of spunk by nailing each song’s theme, whether it be bittersweet, relaxed or carefree. A decent number of songs on the record sound like they were written for radio airplay.
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Chick flick Sweetest Thing fails to deliver
You’ve gotta love the weather right now. In just a matter of days, I’ve been drunk and outside several times.
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Wharton, MSU Department of Theatre release schedules
All theater lovers get ready for the MSU Department of Theatre and Wharton Center’s 2002-03 season lineup, which has a diverse selection of performances mixed in with a few world premieres. Wharton kicks off its 20th Anniversary Encore Season with the production “Riverdance,” famous for its skilled Irish dancers.