Monthly archives:October 2016

  • Album Review: Slothrust, "Everyone Else"

  • 8 years ago
  • Brooklyn's Slothrust will be releasing their second full length album later this week (October 28th) on Dangerbird Records, and if you're unfamiliar with this trio, it's time to give them a listen.  The new album titled, Everyone Else grabs you immediately with a surf rock instrumental track that makes you wonder what's coming next, and then you hear the melancholy vocal intro of track  two- "Like a Child Behind a Tombstone."  It's a slow build up into a guitar driven rocker with metaphors abound, and now you're hooked on lines like, "I think my face looks like glass, but my body feels plastic" and "I feel like a child hiding behind your tombstone." As impressed as I am with Wellbaum's eloquent lyrics, musically the band has great range. From the punk-esque, Violent Femme's like, edgey cut, "Trial and Error" to the bluesy "Horseshoe Crab" and the jazz influenced "The Last Time I saw My Horse," they achieve a range of music that isn't often heard from today's one trick pony, cookie-cutter bands.  And if you're into the more classic rock sound, "Mud"  takes you on quite a journey with a blues inspired intro, to a classic guitar driven, drum heavy rocker. Dare I reference the greatest of the greats Led Zeppelin? This is an album for music lovers who can appreciate the achievements of a band that's hitting it's stride and has the ability to capture the best of rock, jazz and blues on one album. --Frank Jackson You can see them live at Irving Plaza on Saturday, Oct[...]

  • Searching for a Forever Home

  • 8 years ago
  • The title of A Stray, a sharply observed and gracefully filmed drama written and directed by Musa Syeed, refers to its teenage protagonist, Adan, a refugee living in Minneapolis’s large Somali community, as well as his canine co-star, Laila, a soulful terrier he reluctantly befriends. Visually, the film is both naturalistic and artful, featuring beautifully framed scenes shot throughout the city.  A Stray seems to be a bittersweet valentine to Minneapolis, whose buildings, bridges, and landmarks (such as the iconic Pillsbury Best Flour sign) are featured prominently. In addition to its glimpses into Somali culture and the day-to-day lives of this particular refugee community, the film has a strong undercurrent of spirituality, with several scenes taking place in a mosque, and various prayers discussed and recited. The story concerns the headstrong Adan (Barkhad Abdirahman, one of the pirates in Captain Phillips), who is thrown out of his mother's place after she suspects him of stealing jewelry, then flees a temporary crash pad after getting on the nerves of his disreputable friends. Adan initially finds sanctuary in a mosque where a kindly imam lets him stay in exchange for cleaning up the place. Adan asks for advice and a prayer to help him stay out of trouble. He finds work at a restaurant through Faisal, one of the mosque's congregants, but loses the job when his car hits a dog en route to a food delivery. (The zealous Faisal is horrified when Adan brings the po[...]

  • Wearable Art: Michelle Obama Shines (Literally) In Rose Gold At Final State Dinner

  • 8 years ago
  • It's official. The Obamas will be vacating the White House soon. And at their last state dinner, the first lady Michelle Obama wowed the world with a custom, rose gold Atelier Versace gown, made with chainmail. President Barack Obama, and first lady Michelle Obama Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP/REX/Shutterstock This gorgeous number can now be added to a long list of stunners FLOTUS has worn over the years. And from Jason Wu to Vera Wang, Mrs. Obama has represented her country flawlessly decked out in memorable American-designed creations. She has also incorporated high fashion from international brands, including Versace. President Barack Obama, and first lady Michelle Obama Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP/REX/Shutterstock Donatella Versace says in a statement: "I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to dress the first lady of the United States Michelle Obama. Thank you, Michelle, for all of the things you have done for America and for the rest of the world, for the women in the United States and the rest of the world." As E! Online points out, rose gold is on trend thanks to Kylie Jenner's dyed rose gold hair, and actresses Blake Lively and Emilia Clarke's gown selections (coincidentally both by Versace) at the recent 2016 Emmy Awards. Blake Lively   David Fisher/REX/Shutterstock A final thought: Will Michelle Obama's stunning look serve as a hint to potential daring numbers a FLOTUS might wear in the future? Who knows. But one thing is certain: Firs[...]

  • AFP Film: A Hostage's Humanity

  • 8 years ago
  • The story of Theo Padnos, an American journalist captured in 2012 by the Nusra Front (Syrian branch of Al Qaeda), Theo Who Lived is not quite like other hostage accounts, of which there have (sadly) been many. Yes, David Schisgall’s documentary concerns an idealistic do-gooder who puts himself in danger and it includes the familiar details of captors who veer from friendly to cruel, as well as the grim specifics of interrogation and torture, of terrible deprivations and conditions. Theo Who Lived, however, consists almost entirely of Padnos reliving his ordeal by revisiting various locales of his 22-month captivity, as he narrates his story with good humor, even wit. A genial, often rather naïve-seeming sort, Padnos was a struggling writer from Vermont who thought he’d kick-start his journalism career by writing a story about Syrian refugees for The New Republic. In the film, he acknowledges being a lifelong risk taker, but also questions why he ever put himself in such a dangerous situation. He walks us through Antakya (Antioch), Turkey—a city where journalists, fighters and other interested parties gathered before crossing the border into Syria and shows us the house he shared with several roommates as well as the house where his kidnappers lived (and may still live). In Syria Padnos shows us the very room where he interviewed young men he thought we members of the Free Syrian Army, until they suddenly began beating him, declaring him their prisoner. Remarkably, he is ab[...]

  • AFP Music Interview: Slothrust

  • 8 years ago
  • We recently caught up with Brooklyn based band Slothrust, who are releasing their long awaited third album, Everyone Else on Dangerbird Records October 28th. 1)   Are you native New Yorker's or transplants? Will and I are from Boston and Kyle is from New Jersey. 2)   How would you describe your sound? Blues / jazz influenced rock music with a lot of dynamics and time signature changes ;) 3)   How has the crowd responded to the new music from Everyone Else? Crowds we have performed to have responded really positively to the new music. We are very excited to tour and share it with more people. 4)   Was there a particular story you wanted to tell or message you wanted to send with Everyone Else? There is not one story in particular that I am trying to tell with this record. Thematically, it deals a lot with water and dreams. I like thinking about different states of consciousness and things infinitely larger than the self. 5)   What do you enjoy most about touring and performing live? I like seeing new cities and the exchange of energy that happens between performers and difference audiences. 6)   Tell me about your creative process. Do you work remotely or do you go off to the woods to write together as a group? It's a combination of a lot of things. Generally songs come to me in pieces and we go about executing them in a variety of ways. In the past there hasn't been a particular formula for us. 7)   Where do you find your inspiration[...]

  • Wearable Art: This is why you need to know about Ann Lowe

  • 8 years ago
  • On September 24, the National African American Museum opened its doors to public. And while the museum's timed passes are sold out for the rest of the year,  it's still a great time to learn about what's currently on exhibit. And if you are wondering if there's a showcase at the museum that relates to the world of fashion, you're in luck. The museum will be showcasing a selection of Ann Lowe's dresses, and they are a must-see! Ann Lowe — a highly sought after designer in her day —  is the first world-renowned black designer who created dresses for socialites and brides. She created looks for families including the Auchinclosses, DuPonts, Kennedys, Posts, Rockefellers, and Roosevelts. She is also the first black designer to own a boutique on Madison Avenue. And her stunning creations were also sold at Henri Bendel, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Neiman Marcus. Pink satin and organza ball gown, designed by Ann Lowe, 1959, once owned by Patricia Penrose Schieffer, wife of CBS News' Bob Schieffer. Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane. Photo courtesy of NMAAHC Famously, Lowe designed Jacqueline Kennedy's wedding gown in 1953. Lowe crafted a dress made up of fifty yards of ivory silk taffeta for the Bouvier-Kennedy nuptials, and cost approximately $700  — roughly $13,000 factoring today's inflation, according to Racked's Danielle Kwateng-Clark . And as Kwateng-Clark deftly sums up, Lowe "did the impossible in the Jim Crow-era by making a name fo[...]