Local favorite Mason’s Case will be the headlining act tonight at Rick’s American Cafe for the first time in the band’s young musical career. And its members couldn’t be more excited. “We’ve been waiting for it for a while,” lead guitarist Jason Lantz said.
By BILL WARD For The State News Despite a few missteps, including its cumbersome title, “What’s the Worst That Could Happen?” is a comedy that provides enough laughs and quirky characters to hold your interest until the end. Billionaire media mogul Max Fairbanks (Danny Devito) manages to turn the tables on a smooth-talking thief, Kevin Caffery (Martin Lawrence), catching him in a bungled robbery attempt at Max’s supposedly vacant summer mansion and stealing the thief’s own ring. The ring was a gift from Kevin’s almost-too-understanding British love interest Amber (Carmen Ejogo), who digs Kevin despite his fishy occupation.
Gorillaz Gorillaz (Virgin Records) With the vocal support of Damon Albarn, the lead singer of Blur, Gorillaz is the hip-hop, electronic, Cuban, reggae and punk version of the British-pop band.
When Kurt Cobain wrote “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” he probably didn’t imagine his song would be in a Hollywood musical.
Various artists Morricone RMX (Reprise Records) In this tribute to movie composer Ennio Morricone, artists from around the electronic music genre have remixed Morricone’s scores and the result is an interesting mix of Morricone’s classic 1960s music, and the newer, techno-inspired remixes found on “Morricone RMX.” Morricone has recently worked on film scores like “Mission to Mars” and “Bulworth,” although neither of these films are featured on the CD.
Binocular Binocular (Maverick) Binocular produced, sang, wrote, performed and recorded his self-titled debut album by himself in his New York City apartment.
Most films that arrive in theaters aren’t worth watching there. No one wants to pay $7.50 for a film that ends badly, has weak characters and bad directing.
Smoother Chasing the Dragon (EMI Music Canada) The press release for Smoother cites the Canadian band’s influences as Beck, Blink 182, Daft Punk and Weezer - and, in fact, the sounds of all these artists can be heard on Smoother’s “Chasing the Dragon.” The CD is an odd combination of so many different musical sounds that it’s even accessible to people who are die-hard fans of specific bands. “Rock Her Like a Lion,” the fourth track, is reminiscent of Blink 182 - a punky love song with catchy lyrics.
Odd as it may sound, Jennifer Lopez is too famous to be an actress. Most Hollywood stars want all the publicity they can get, but it’s not always beneficial to their careers - or their acting roles. Lopez has overexposed herself - appearing on magazine covers, MTV music videos, and a very public breakup with P.
Detroit Rock City will be Electronic City this weekend as the streets of downtown will be trampled by dancing feet at the 2001 Detroit Electronic Music Festival.As one of the largest free festivals in the world, more than 1.5 million people from the suburbs of Detroit and around the globe flooded downtown last year.
“Pearl Harbor” is like “Titanic” on testosterone. Just like James Cameron’s film, “Pearl Harbor” is a disaster movie - but not just any disaster movie.
When thinking about addictions, drug and alcohol dependencies usually come to mind. But not for Sue William Silverman - her addiction was sex.
Staind Break the Cycle (Flip Records/Elektra) Sounding a lot like Metallica, Korn and many others before them, Staind’s new album, “Break the Cycle,” should be called “Break the Eardrums.” Staind just added itself to the long list of heavy metal/hard-core bands.
Various Artists Shrek Soundtrack (Dreamworks Records) With any movie release nowadays, there’s usually a soundtrack close behind.
An animated feature-length film doesn’t always get the credit it most often deserves. Many times, cartoon movies are brushed aside as trivial and childish - but anyone who subscribes to this obviously hasn’t seen “Shrek.” Mike Myers, best known for being a “Saturday Night Live” cast member and star of the “Austin Powers” films, does an outrageously hilarious job as the voice of the title character.
East Lansing will be inundated with pirouettes, pointe shoes and dancers this weekend, as more than 300 people take part in the Regional Dance America/Mid-States Dancing Into the Millennium Festival. The three-day festival will include students from 12 dance companies in the Midwest and feature three performances at the Wharton Center.
Only the best of the best will be displayed at the 38th Annual East Lansing Art Festival on Saturday and Sunday.
East Lansing resident Lisa Bennett has been listening to the Philadelphia-based one-man band Atom and His Package for more than two years and has even traveled to Arkansas to see him perform. But Bennett didn’t have to travel very far for her third Atom and His Package concert Monday night. Multi-talented Adam Goren made his third visit to East Lansing on Monday, supporting his new album by playing at a local house party. “I’m really glad he’s out there being a guiding light for fun-loving nerds out there,” Bennett said. Goren performs with his guitar and his “package,” a music sequencer, from which most of his backup music is produced.
Depeche Mode Exciter (Reprise Records) Depeche Mode is just what modern music needs.
R.E.M. Reveal (Warner Bros. Records) Michael Stipe should quit whining.