MichiganDaily.com

Arts Stories for 10-13-2000

Gig at the blind pig, you dig?

College bands are like hangovers: They're raging one minute and they're gone the next. Which means that Ann Arbor's Smokestack, jamming strong after a solid year together, is like a tequila nausea that just keeps getting more intense with time

Local band Smokestack jams on Saturday, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise to groove down on Sunday

If you lose one of the five senses, the remaining four become heightened. Just ask Robert Bradley - the blind vocalist may not be able to see, but his ears work just fine. And Bradley will be the first to tell you that he knows good music when he hears it.

Japanese author appears at Borders

Kazuo Ishiguro is quick to make sure that his latest novel, "When We Were Orphans," isn't confused with works of the post-war detective genre, which encompasses the work of Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers. "I don't think it's accurate to say I've been influenced by them ... (this novel) is more of a nod to them."

TV's 'Coach' returns in 'The District'

CBS has found a winner with its new drama that primarily focuses on cleaning up the streets of Washington DC. "The District" stars Craig T. Nelson ("Coach") as Jack Mannion, a police chief brought in from New Jersey by Deputy Mayor Marianne Mitchell (Jayne Brook, "Chicago Hope") to cut crime in the city by half. He is accompanied by his "Director of Public Affairs," Nick Pierce (Justin Thoroux) who helps the tell-it-like-it-is Mannion handle the press.

ABC's Friday night bolstered

"The Trouble With Normal" and "Madigan Men,"ABC's rookie comedies on the revamped "TGIF" lineup, might have made me laugh. Fortunately, the overblown laugh tracks did that for me, so I just sat back and watched the two shows rival Norm MacDonald's TGIF show for sheer stupidity.

Flaming Lips smack into Detroit

The Flaming Lips want you to spend your Friday the 13th with them. Back in Detroit supporting last year's unforgettable The Soft Bulletin, these rock veterans are planning to bring Halloween a bit early this year-on the year's second spookiest day.

Nearly perfect ten: 'Best in Show'

From the comic tradition of "This is Spinal Tap" and "Waiting for Guffman," writer-director-actor Christopher Guest brings us the equally funny "Best in Show." Guest's trilogy of mockumentaries are all sharp satires that combine improvisation with wit. "Best in Show," is no exception. It is the story of the prestigious Mayflower Dog Show in Philadelphia and the dog owners/handlers who make it there.

'C.S.I.' delivers nothing more than standard forensic fare

Crime Scene Investigation, "C.S.I." for short, is CBS's new drama airing in that wasteland of TV, Friday nights, from 9-10pm.

'Fugitive' doesn't find its 'Wings'

Don't you hate when this happens? You come back from your house after a nice jog, only to find your wife murdered by a strange man. You grab the man by the arm to stop him, but his prosthetic arm falls off.

10-13-2000