Artsweek

November 13, 2008

Theater & Dance’s ‘Reckless’ Isn’t Your Typical Holiday Play

By Stephanie Talavera

Murder, suicide by champagne, and insanity... doesn't exactly sound like the average Christmas-themed play. Unlike most holiday plays, which tend to be unusually sappy, Craig Lucas' "Reckless" is funny and entertaining.

November 13, 2008

The Lineup

By Staff

As part of its annual fund drive, KCSB-91.9 will present the Santa Barbara premiere of the Flaming Lips' 2008 feature film, "Christmas on Mars." The screening will be held in I.V. Theater this Saturday at 7 p.m., and adm...

November 6, 2008

California Girls

By Stephanie Leong

On Oct. 29, the University of Art Museum here at UCSB opened its doors on its most recent exhibition, California Biennal 2008, which will run through Mar. 1, 2009. The exhibition was mounted by the Orange County Museum o...

November 6, 2008

Jack’s Mannequin Delivers a Lively Performance in the Hub

By Sara Weitz

I always imagined Jack's Mannequin's fans to be just like the music: calm, cool and relaxed. I never would envision that they would be so intense that during the course of last Thursday evening's concert in the Hub I wou...

November 6, 2008

Missing Pieces **

By Darek Cioch Reporter

Clint Eastwood, the minimalist director who last brought us 2007's harrowing set of films, "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Letters From Iwo Jima," is a master at portraying the desperate individual caught in an unfortunate s...

November 6, 2008

Porntastic ****

By Artsweek Editor

"Zack and Miri Make a Porno" sees Kevin Smith doing lots of things that he has never done before -- moving out of his favored New Jersey locale and into a slightly different but equally industrial corner of the northeast...

November 6, 2008

From the Heart ***

By Steven Morris

Solo albums are a tricky thing. How does an artist "do their own thing" and manage to make a relevant and enjoyable record without sounding like an ego gone awry? Luckily for lead singer Tom Gabel of Against Me!, he's on...

November 6, 2008

Solar Meltdown ***

By Steven Morris

Irish rock group Snow Patrol is too often unfairly compared to Coldplay, but both bands are cut from the same cloth. Sensitive lead singer? Check. Striving for universal truths? Check. Over-done sentimentality and romant...

November 6, 2008

Lupe Fiasco To Raise Havoc Monday

By Artsweek Staff

It's an event many UCSB students have been waiting for: One of hip hop's most popular commercial artists infecting radio today, Lupe Fiasco, will be playing at UCSB's Thunderdome on Monday evening, in a concert sponsored...

November 6, 2008

They’re Here, They’re Queer: Outrageous!

By Artsweek Staff

Prop 8 might not have passed (thanks a lot, Central California), but Santa Barbara still knows how to have a gay old time. Tonight at UCSB's Multicultural Center, SB's annual LGBTQ film festival, Outrageous!, kicks off ...

October 30, 2008

The Boner Killers

By Amy Silverstein, Virginia Yapp, Sara Weitz, Darek Cioch Reporter

More likely than not, your first sex ed lesson didn't come from mommy and daddy or from your wrinkly fourth-grade teacher. Your parents sat you down in front of the boob tube and popped in a VHS while they went out to ha...

October 30, 2008

Great Mutations ***

By Aaron Harms

The futuristic "Repo! The Genetic Opera" hits some good notes, but never quite assembles itself into a coherent melody. I viewed "Repo!" during its advance screening at I.V. Theater last Wednesday. The film will hit thea...

October 30, 2008

A Worn-Out Story *

By Sara Weitz

The limp, generic police drama "Pride and Glory" can be seen as a second-rate sequel to James Gray's 2007 film, "We Own the Night." Despite the film's considerably talented cast, this overcooked thriller is a disappointm...

October 30, 2008

Funny Business

By Stephanie Leong

Upon entering the stage at the Arlington Theatre last Sunday evening, writer David Sedaris' sense of humor was instantly palpable; he is a short man, probably barely 5'6'', with a distinct, nuanced voice and disposition...

October 30, 2008

Androgynous Vamping ***

By Artsweek Editor

Skeletal Lamping is definitive proof that Of Montreal's Kevin Barnes has taken a dive off the deep end. The Athens, Ga. band takes its brand of freaky, psychedelic folk and infuses it with a sexual energy more reminiscen...

October 30, 2008

Back To Basics ***

By Virginia Yapp

Given the fact that it's been nearly a decade since alt-country troubadour Ryan Adams released the Gram Parsons-esque Heartbreaker, it seems somewhat strange that that album remains the impossibly high standard to which ...