Cult hero Amos performs unique, captivating show
There's truly nothing like a Tori Amos concert. Merit aside, her performances are not like any other's: Baroque, melodramatic, cathartic, call them what you will. At least they're unique.
Barlow's Sebadoh rises to the top
What happens when you cross hardcore punk ideals with an acoustic guitar, a crooning, sensitive songwriter and musical taste that covers just about every base? You get Sebadoh, one of the most talented and respected indie bands to almost achieve commercial success in years.
Springsteen proves worth at Hill show
Bruce Springsteen's latest album, "The Ghost Of Tom Joad," which he showcased at Hill Auditorium on Thursday night to exhilarating results, might as well be called "The Ghost Of Woodie Guthrie."
The Guthrie songs "Tom Joad" and "Deportee" bookended an intimate, mellow set filled with gritty folk narratives culled from the sparse, harrowing "Joad" and its sister album, 1982's "Nebraska," and studded with older favorites and stripped-down hits.
Flashy 'Basquiat' paints a mess
Originally a New York graffiti artist known as Samo, Jean Michel Basquiat lived a brief but eventful life that ended with a heroin overdose at the age of 27. Although for a short time Basquiat was the rage of the art world, he was tormented by the pressure and expectations placed upon him after he was discovered. The conflict that he faced is the focus of "Basquiat," Julian Schnabel's potentially intriguing yet distant new film about the painter.
Spader and friends take a detour in the crazy 'Valley'
Forget the unbelievable trailers that make "2 Days in the Valley" look like the wildest, most exciting film of the year. Forget the fact that comparisons between it and some John Travolta movie that Quentin Tarantino directed have already begun to surface. This movie is not that thrilling, and it sure isn't another "Pulp Fiction." Regardless, "2 Days" is still a fun feature from first-time film director John Herzfeld.
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