Speaking of changes and selling out, Sugar Ray is a poster band for conformity. As soon as their pop and hip-hop summer classic "Fly" gained them some attention back in 1997, the group abandoned their punk, hard-core past in favor of sure-fire, crowd-pleasing, sugar-coated pop. Their latest album, "In the Pursuit of Leisure," follows the band's pattern of taking no chances.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Lansing - The Old Town Poetry Series wrapped up its spring season by hosting "An Evening of Poetry" Wednesday night at the Creole Gallery, 1218 Turner St.
When the Beastie Boys exploded onto the scene with the 1986 "License to Ill," their staying power was questionable.
I'm in danger now. Extreme danger. It's not my fault, either. It's my job here at The State News. You might scoff.
Sine Die, pronounced "sign-e-dye," is a term describing the last day of a two-year session when legislation goes unsigned in Congress.
In the lobby outside the Union Ballroom on Wednesday night, fans of the band,
The lineup for this summer's weeklong Common Ground Festival is almost complete. Festival officials announced Thursday blues guitarist Jonny Lang as the seventh act.
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.
Detroit continues to make a name for itself in the realm of hip-hop as it hosts the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit this Saturday.
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.
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.
It's that time of year again. Time to dismiss being a nonsensical layabout, put away the whiskey and turn my attention to the books.
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.