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Entertainment

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Eels' latest offers eclectic pop

Whoever said pop music is all bad obviously hasn't heard the Eels. With a keen ear for upbeat music and an obvious appreciation for all things musical, Eels mastermind "E," or Mark Oliver Everett, has made a name for himself in the alternative rock scene by trying a bit of everything while keeping it simple enough for the audience not to get lost. The Eels' latest effort, "Shootenanny!" is the kind of eclectic rock album we haven't seen since Ween's 1994 classic "Chocolate and Cheese." Although "Shootenanny!" does not trump Ween's weirdness, the album's ability to evoke comparisons to Morphine, Tom Petty, the Smashing Pumpkins and Beck, to name a few, allows it to stand on its own as a solid album through and through. The album's opening track sets the collective piece up nicely.

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Art, brew take center stage

Amy Davis
May 29, 2003

Lansing - The distinct aroma of beer and chalk lingered in the air throughout the crowd of art enthusiasts as they sifted through hundreds of nude portraits. The Center for the Arts hosted "Bare Minimum," a fund-raising exhibit for the Lansing Art Gallery Tuesday night.

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'Italian Job' well done

Lindsay Weiskittel
May 29, 2003

Be prepared to see the ultimate heist - even if its a little predictable. "The Italian Job" could be pegged as another "Ocean's Eleven" without the stellar cast, but its humor and action are far better.

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Carrey a divine intervention in 'Bruce'

Lindsay Weiskittel
May 22, 2003

He can walk on water, part his soup like the Red Sea and potty-train his dog. Yep, it's God in the form of Jim Carrey, and his performance makes this movie come alive. Carrey portrays Bruce Nolan, a local TV reporter in Buffalo, N.Y., best recognized for the humorous spin he puts in his human interest stories.

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Cold's third album an unremarkable, predictable release

In "Kill the Music Industry," the final track on their recent release, "Year of the Spider," Cold bites the hand that feeds the five-piece band. Sound-clips of gunfire are followed by a wickedly crunching guitar riff as vocalist Scooter Ward repeatedly growls "Sick of all this monotony/kill the (expletive) music industry." And Ward has a good point.

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Author offers outsider perspective

Lindsay Weiskittel
May 21, 2003

Every once in a while we are able to indulge ourselves in an entire collection of short stories where our feet seem to fit perfectly in a character's shoes and we become lost in the story's words.ZZ Packer's "Drinking Coffee Elsewhere" urges the reader to take a part of the story and feel empathy toward each character in the amazing eight-short story depiction of the African American experience.

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Bad movies good for summer

What is it about summer movies that allows us to suspend disbelief and snootiness? All year round we are slammed with crappy movies such as the insipid likes of "Darkness Falls," "How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days" and "Basic." We bitch and moan about how bad Hollywood has gotten and yet, as soon as summer hits us, we flock to theaters, ready to consume any mindless drivel we can. And for some reason it's a great time.

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Open all night

There's something special about 24-hour diners that can't be matched in any other atmosphere.It's a magnet for the strange, for those trying to get away from the confines of their homes and more often than not, a bizarre ritual for an intoxicated crowd that is trying to sober up before crawling home to bed.Late-night munchies only scratch the surface where caffeine is king.Some come for the endless cup of coffee.

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Local bands jam to benefit kids

Park, recreation and tourism resources junior Brady Cannon wants to put guitars and drumsticks into the hands of Lansing children.A benefit concert to raise money for the Lansing School District after-school music program is being held at 7:30 p.m.

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Tracking the tunnels

Megan Frye
April 23, 2003

While most people can navigate campus as the crow flies, Bill McCreary knows his way around as the mole digs. McCreary worked maintenance on the miles of steam tunnels under MSU for 15 years and knows how to make his way from Hubbard Hall to the Red Cedar River - underground. "They're pretty good-sized tunnels, most of them you can get through all right," the 76-year-old Lansing resident said.

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Habitat hosts folk fund-raiser

Since folk music often tells the tough stories of common people, a folk concert to raise money for building homes could be fitting.Grammy award-winning Riders in the Sky are playing a benefit concert Thursday at 7:30 p.m.