Leisure

Reviews and think pieces on music, movies, art, and theater.

Leisure

Plate of the Union: Let’s not put labels on it

In the broadest sense of the word, foodies are harmless. They’re just a group of people intensely curious about food. They flock to every new restaurant, they memorize José Andrés’ cookbook as though it were the Bible, and they scour farmers’ markets for heirloom varieties of little-known vegetables. Though doing such things may seem ridiculous, foodies are, in fact, nothing more than hobbyists.

By November 8, 2012

Leisure

A melodramatic Late Quartet hits all the wrong notes

The pursuit of perfection in art has its pitfalls; the pursuit of an audience’s emotional reaction through strained and overwrought soap-opera drama, however, should be avoided at all costs. In A Late Quartet, filmmaker Yaron Zilberman falls into this trap in spite of his unique subject matter and star-studded cast.

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Lez’hur ledger: Throwing Caution to the 65mph wind

Every apartment has the token roommate who flips out about natural disasters. Most people who like to be super- prepared and ready for any apocalyptic outcome, however, start calling for a retreat into Helm’s Deep at the first weather warning.

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Conference of the Birds soars to great heights at Folger

In the director’s notes for The Conference of the Birds, Aaron Posner describes his latest production at the Folger Elizabethean Theatre and his expectation for audience members: “It is an astonishing work, and, hopefully, unlike anything you have likely ever seen before.”

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Critical Voices: Meek Mill, Dreams & Nightmares

Mediocre production value meets overly ambitious lyrics in Meek Mill’s first major-label release, Dreams & Nightmares. Fittingly titled, this “meh” album forages into the oft-explored “I’m rich, now let’s reflect on how I used to be a drug pusher” theme.

By October 31, 2012

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Critical Voices: Flyleaf, New Horizons

At hardly over 36 minutes, New Horizons, the third studio album from Christian alt-rockers Flyleaf, is by far the band’s shortest to date. And if its diminutive length wasn’t enough to make listeners uneasy, the announcement of lead singer Lacey Sturm’s departure from the band just days before the LP’s release definitely did the trick. Fortunately, Sturm does not go out with a whimper; from explosive metal riffs to expertly crafted pop hooks, Horizons boasts an astounding level of power and emotion jammed into such a seemingly innocuous package.

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Idiot Box: Snape kills Dumbledore

It’s a trauma we’ve all experienced—you’re sitting on your couch, having just hit the “play” button on Netflix/Megavideo (R.I.P.)/whatever other illegal site you use, geared up for the season finale you’ve been dying to watch. Your roommate comes in, and glances at the screen. “Oh, is that Dexter? I couldn’t believe it when Trinity killed Rita!”

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Haute Mess: Get Frankenfabulous

Whether you forgot to order your Halloween costume on Amazon or your group costume fell through, have no fear —Julian and Neha are here.

By October 31, 2012

Leisure

Lichtenstein: A Retrospective redefines pop art at the NGA

In 1964, Life Magazine inquired of pop art icon Roy Lichtenstein, “Is he the worst artist in the U.S.?” While this question might seem both ironic and a moot point in the face of Lichtenstein: A Retrospective, the 15,000-square-foot exhibition now on display at the National Gallery, this query illuminates an important characteristic of Lichtenstein’s work: his uncanny ability to simultaneously “delight and outrage” in his mastery and innovation in the pop art genre.

By October 25, 2012

Leisure

Cloud Atlas passes by audiences without a silver lining

It seems Hollywood has taken the concept of past and future lives beyond the context of New Age spiritual beliefs and transferred it onto the big screen. In the overly ambitious Cloud Atlas, an epic conglomerate of stories spans 500 years and involves more characters than any reasonable person would care to count. Based on the acclaimed novel by David Mitchell, the genre-bending film involves six different plot lines that intertwine over centuries, which include a post-apocalyptic era and an Orwellian future-scape.

By October 25, 2012

Leisure

The Coupe is the perfect place to coop up with coffee

D.C.’s restaurant scene appears to have just about everything, ranging from free-range beef and specialty veggie burgers to cruelly prepared foie gras and cannibalistically raised chicken. Apart from the occasional IHOP or Denny’s, the city’s one overlooked attribute has been the dearth of 24-hour service in the area. Luckily, the creators of the Diner in Adams Morgan—one of the few non-chain restaurants of its kind—have provided a Columbia Heights-based sister restaurant that fills this terrible void.

By October 25, 2012

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Critical Voices: Titus Andronicus, Local Business

Titus Andronicus derives its name from a lesser-known Shakespeare play about bloodlust and revenge set in the final years of the Roman Empire. In keeping with this namesake, the indie-punk band never shies away from the themes of violence or aggression in their songwriting or production. Local Business, the outfit’s third album, is no different—it’s wonderfully frenetic.

By October 25, 2012

Leisure

Critical Voices: Taylor Swift, Red

Musicologists can at last sleep soundly knowing that the simmering debate over Taylor Swift’s genre has indisputably ended. Red, Swift’s fourth studio album, boasts powerful dubstep pulses, refreshingly mature themes, and a timid but not unwelcome push into instrumental experimentation, pointing to one unavoidable conclusion: the former teen country-pop star is growing up.

By October 25, 2012

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Plate of the Union: Pumpkins: Spiked and Spiced

“Life starts all over again when Starbucks starts selling pumpkin spice lattes in the fall and doesn’t fill the cup all the way to the brim on account of all that God-damned whipped cream, Daisy.”

By October 25, 2012

Leisure

You’ve got issues: Dear Emlyn, Put a sock in it

Dear Emlyn, So there’s this guy. I really like him, and he’s established in multiple ways that he likes me, but he’s failing to take our attracted-friends relationship any further. This weekend, he’s going to be dressing up for Halloween as a really slutty Scarecrow, with some of his friends going as slutty Tin Man and Lion. They also have a Dorothy, which is some other girl--a.k.a. not me. I feel really jealous that he’s not mine, and he’s going to be going around strutting his stuff and I can’t even be a part of their group. What do I do? —Unsexy Dorothy :(

By October 24, 2012

Leisure

Don’t be smashed while watching Ponsoldt’s Smashed

Heartbreak and alcoholism are placed in front of a crystal-clear lens in James Ponsoldt’s Smashed. All too real, Smashed follows Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s increasingly sober Kate as she comes to terms with her alcoholism at a pace that mirrors the arduous 12-step Alcoholics Anonymous program in which she enlists. Weaving together elements of a rom-com with those of a serious drama, the film operates on the wave of recent years’ sadcore comedies like 50/50 and Funny People. This fresh, composed film will have viewers reconvening with their own lives as they amble out of the cinema, saying, “Damn, I’m glad that’s not me.”

By October 18, 2012

Leisure

Mask & Bauble makes history with The History Boys

The most effective litmus test for a fantastic play is often the most basic. Every audience member responds differently, and many will walk away with few lasting impressions of the couple of hours they just spent in a darkened room, watching actors flit across the stage for their entertainment. It’s rare that someone walks away with anything more enduring from that experience - it’s only the greatest plays that have this effect, the ones worth remembering.

By October 18, 2012

Leisure

Bronx emulates N.Y. pizza in D.C.

New Yorkers take pizza seriously. Aware of this, Mike Cordero, a Bronx native, aims to introduce the D.C. area to the classic pizza he grew up with with his new restaurant, Bronx Pizza and Subs. Though part of an overcrowded pizza market in Clarendon, Bronx Pizza clings to its New York roots in everything it does, from the décor to the dough, proving to DMV residents why Domino’s just doesn’t cut it for the prize of a premium pie.

By October 18, 2012

Leisure

Critical Voices: ZZ Ward, Til The Casket Drops

“I wear a fedora to pay homage to those artists that inspired me,” explains L.A.-based singer-songwriter Zsuzsanna Ward. Growing up in the tranquil town of Roseburg, Ore., Ward was influenced by influenced by an eclectic group of artists, ranging from blues legends Big Mama Thornton and Muddy Waters to Jay-Z. As a result, Til The Casket Drops is a funky amalgamation of hip-hop-laced blues and soul that borders on perfection.

By October 18, 2012

Leisure

Critical Voices: K’naan, Country, God, Or The Girl

Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar rap of the struggle in Compton, Nas and Jay-Z speak of their incredible journeys growing up with nothing in the streets of New York, and Rick Ross illustrates his rough life as a modern-day hustling gangster. But not one of these prolific artists can touch rapper K’naan’s intriguing past. The creator of Country, God, or the Girl hails from Mogadishu, Somalia, where he lived through a bloody civil war.

By October 18, 2012