Artsweek

February 4, 2010

“Lost” Begins to Get Lost

By Courtney Schonfeld

What kind of a TV columnist would I be if I didn't dedicate a column to the return of "Lost"? Actually, I'm hoping with this article I'll have filled my "Lost" quota and won't have to bring up this dumb-ass show again, b...

February 4, 2010

The Ruins of “Rome” *

By Emelie Battaglia

Oh, Veronica Mars, how far you have fallen. You went from a sarcastic, witty teen detective to a flat, broken slapstick humorist. "When in Rome" just happens to be your latest sad attempt at moving beyond the small scree...

February 4, 2010

Artsweek’s Anticipated February LP Releases

By Lucas Villa

It's barely February, and 2010 is already shaping up to be a stellar year for new albums. January has already seen the arrival of pop it-girl Ke$ha's debut album, Animal, and the return of indie rocker group Vampire Week...

February 4, 2010

“World’s Greatest Dad”

By Hunter M. Daniels

So the Oscar nominations came in Tuesday. As usual, they were all for boring, safe, generic movies. Almost nothing edgy or off the beaten path made the cut. Just the same old, same old and Meryl Streep's 14th nomination....

February 4, 2010

Hard to Find Venue Is Back in Business

By Virginia Yapp

It might not look like much from the outside, but the Hard to Find Showspace is a local legend. Bigger than beloved venues like the Biko Co-op or the Pink Mailbox, the music venue run by brothers Josh and Tim Eymann will...

February 4, 2010

Word Farm Benefits Amateur Screenwriters

By Hunter M. Daniels

It was barely 9 a.m. on a Saturday, but the halls of the new Social Sciences and Media Studies building were abuzz with chatty students munching on cereal and pastries. Welcome to Word Farm.

January 28, 2010

Gauchos Storm SBIFF

By Virginia Yapp

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has always dedicated a portion of its programming to showcasing the talent of local filmmakers, and this year is no different. In fact, six short films made by UCSB students ...

January 28, 2010

“Chip” Off the Old Block ****

By Philippe Lazaro

A band that's put out a couple records and developed a solid fan base can usually take one of two seemingly contradictory paths -- consistency or musical evolution. Hot Chip's One Life Stand shows how a band can accompli...

January 28, 2010

Grupo de Rua @ Campbell

By Karen Urrutia

Creating a bold new voice for hip hop, Bruno Beltrão, artistic director of Grupo de Rua, transforms street dancing into a classical piece of dance theater that reflects a dancer's everyday life in Brazil.

January 28, 2010

“Legion” = Unholy Failure * 1/2

By Emelie Battaglia

The single redeeming value of "Legion" is that it only takes itself half seriously. Unfortunately, neither half really merits watching.

January 21, 2010

SBIFF 2010’s Feature Films

By Virginia Yapp

Featuring a whopping 196 films -- in addition to a slew of panels and tributes -- for its 25th anniversary, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival's 2010 lineup is more than a little bewildering. Fortunately for y...

January 21, 2010

This Spoon Isn’t So Sharp **

By Philippe Lazaro

Austin-based band Spoon has garnered a reputation for dependability, releasing solid album after solid album for the last 10 years or so. The band's last effort, 2007's bizarrely titled Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, was one of their m...

January 21, 2010

Obama vs. Rabid

By Courtney Schonfeld

You know what they say: Where there's smoke, there's fire. Or in the case of the last couple of weeks, where there's rain, there's drama. Let's take a look at the bad, the ugly and the "WHAT IS THIS??? I DON'T EVEN..." m...

January 21, 2010

“Eli” Doesn’t Rewrite the Book **

By Emelie Battaglia

Walking into the theater, I wasn't sure what to expect of the Hughes Brothers' latest flick. Of course, that may be the curse of January film drudge more than anything else, but "The Book of Eli" was surprisingly worth t...

January 14, 2010

Sonic Youth at the Wiltern

By Virginia Yapp

One more reason to hate tennis (as if you needed another one): Last September, the veteran experimental rockers of Sonic Youth announced they would be cancelling the remainder of the dates on their West Coast tour, inclu...

January 14, 2010

Weekend Delights Again ****

By Philippe Lazaro

Despite the backlash from its much-hyped debut album, the NY-based Vampire Weekend avoids showing any signs of a sophomore slump with its latest album, Contra. The foursome of Ivy-Leaguers preserves the same elements tha...