Leisure

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

Leisure

Critical Voices: The Fray, Scars & Stories

Isaac Slade, the lead singer of the Fray, claims that Scars & Stories, the group’s latest release, embodies a “more aggressive” lyrical approach to their music. This might seem strange, given that the group is known for its roots in Christian rock. And while the lyrics do sound more emotionally charged than those in albums past, the band’s continued use of piano as the lead instrument diminishes the potential effect of their newly powerful verses. In spite of this loss of lyrical potential, this new album is the Fray’s most successful LP to date.

By February 9, 2012

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Critical Voices: Dierks Bentley, Home

Amid Dierks Bentley’s newest tracks, the country star’s daughter makes an unexpected yet heartwarming appearance on his latest album, Home. Taken from a voicemail left by his three-year-old daughter for her touring father, the clip features her singing a verse of “Thinking of You” along with an acoustic guitar. Well known for his party songs, Bentley’s inclusion of his daughter in this album points to a turn toward family life in the artist’s career.

By February 9, 2012

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Sparking Infatuation with The Bi(g) Life

“A Wilde man once said, ‘A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.’” Spoken with sincerity, this line guides The Bi(g) Life, featuring two dreamers who share with the audience their identities and individual visions of the world as they grapple with the heavy social issues of sexuality and body image.

By February 2, 2012

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Kabombing fine dining

If you were to try one of Red Fire Grill Kabob’s signature dishes at an event, or somewhere outside of their M St. shop, you might enjoy it. Sure, it is not a gourmet kabob, but for a chain restaurant, the food is decent, and maybe even enjoyable. The basmati rice is well seasoned, and the fresh baked bread complements the chicken, beef and lamb kabobs—which sadly give the impression of being overcooked and reheated—nicely.

By February 2, 2012

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Caught defenseless against the dark arts

Although Daniel Radcliffe’s brooding face graces posters for The Woman in Black, viewers hoping to find Harry Potter magic in the film are setting themselves up for sore disappointment—the only essence of Hogwarts to be gotten from this film is its foggy intro and outro. But if you’ve been hankering for a creepy, British haunted house film that will give you more than two jumps, then The Woman in Black will deliver. Like Paranormal Activity, it is the kind of film to see with an easily frightened friend and a bag of well-buttered popcorn. And although its trailer sells the movie as a nuanced, psychological thriller, the film is simple, spooky, and fun. Going in with horror movie expectations rather than high hopes for Radcliffe’s budding career will leave you satisfied instead of disgruntled.

By February 2, 2012

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Picasso masterfully maneuvers his pencil

According to his mother, Pablo Picasso’s first word was “piz,” a shortening of the Spanish word for “pencil.” And although his legacy is as the co-founder of cubism and creator of such groundbreaking paintings as “Guernica,” a new exhibit of his work at the National Gallery of Art demonstrates his power with that most basic of artistic tools. “Picasso’s Drawings, 1890-1921: Reinventing Tradition,” on display through May 6, explores the evolution of the artist’s style as he instigated the rise of a revolutionary movement.

By February 2, 2012

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Blast that Box: The old me’s dead and gone

Every rapper’s favorite tagline seems to be that the game is always changing. However, I doubt 1988 Ice Cube, having just released the massively influential album Straight Outta Compton, would ever have believed that he would go on to create family fodder like the 2005 kiddie roadtrip film Are We There Yet? In the 24 years since his N.W.A. classic, Ice Cube underwent the amazing development from gangsta rapper to cuddly movie father figure.

By February 2, 2012

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God Mode: Doppel-gamers

Ever since arcade games first started sucking down people’s quarters, video games have allowed players to create alternate identities. But we’ve come a long way since Pac-Man limited your digital persona to three letters on a scoreboard.

By February 2, 2012

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Critical Voices: Gotye, Making Mirrors

The Belgian-born Australian singer, songwriter, and musician Wouter De Backer goes by Gotye, the French translation of his name. Yet despite his adopted Frenchness, the multi-talented artist is immensely popular down under, and Making Mirrors, the singer’s recently released third album, was voted the number one album by listeners of Triple J, Australia’s renowned radio station. With a soulful, ‘60s-style pop vibe featuring simple, poignant lyrics accompanied by a diverse amalgam of instruments—from trumpets and wineglasses to guitars and bells—this album is a standout, and a breath of fresh air, in the current pop scene.

By February 2, 2012

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Critical Voices: Lana Del Rey, Born to Die

While Lana Del Rey has been incessantly assaulted by a hailstorm of criticism since the release of her single “Video Games,” most of the insults have had little to do with the quality of the rising pop star’s music. Despite being accurately described as spoiled, contrived, and dead inside—or perhaps as a direct result of these qualities—Del Rey has released an album that is far more refined than her debut LP, A.K.A. Lizzy Grant, and more enjoyable than her critics are willing to admit.

By February 2, 2012

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Leibovitz journeys from Lennon to landscapes

If there’s one talent that photographer Annie Leibovitz is known for, it’s capturing the essence of celebrity. Her daring portraits of famed figures from John Lennon and Yoko Ono to a very pregnant Demi Moore are nothing short of iconic, imbued with a raw intimacy that lays these stars bare in more ways than one. The living legend has shot countless covers for such magazines as Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair, and has become a household name for her dramatic yet personal portraits.

By January 26, 2012

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Neeson’s on Team Jacob

The odd phenomenon of Liam Neeson as an action franchise star doesn’t quite make sense, but it is undeniably fun to watch. He assailed his victims with both brawn and brogue in 2008’s Taken, and continues this rampage in his latest flick, The Grey. Directed by Joe Carnahan (The A-Team), The Grey is a survival thriller that builds steadily before ultimately falling flat, proving there are limits to the novelty of Neeson as a bona fide ass kicker.

By January 26, 2012

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Pie Sisters grab a slice of M Street

There’s only one word fit to describe Pie Sisters: Adorable. Everything about M Street’s newest bakery, from its tale of sisterly success to the miniature “cuppy” pies on display inside the store, is nothing short of gooey and cute.

By January 26, 2012

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Even Burr would duel you for these burgers

It’s 3 a.m. on a Monday morning, and you’ve got a perfectly understandable craving for sushi, a burger, and some chocolate chip pancakes. While this hankering may have seemed unattainable in the past, it can now be easily fulfilled at any time of day, any day of the year, and all thanks to the man on the ten-dollar bill.

By January 26, 2012

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Box Office, Baby! Trailer trash pollutes cinema

Watching a crowd walk out of a movie theater provides an instant litmus test for a film’s success. Groups of friends usually huddle together to debate a film’s merits, except in those rare occasions when a movie leaves them speechless—imagine the scene after a premier of 2001: A Space Odyssey or Apocalypse Now. Regardless, there should a knee-jerk reaction; you watch a film, and you judge it. Recently, though, the process has been reversed: people watch trailers over and over on the internet and pass judgment on a film before they’ve seen the real thing. As a trailer addict myself, I’ve found myself enjoying movies less and less recently. Going to a movie just seems like setting myself up for an inevitable disappointment.

By January 26, 2012

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Trash Talk: Monochromatic matchmaking

For better or for worse, America is hooked on The Bachelor. The long-running matchmaking experiment, which brings together one handsome young single man and 32 neurotic women in the hopes of fostering matrimonial bliss, has proven one of the most successful franchises in the history of reality TV. With age-defying host Chris Harrison in tow, the show’s team has figured out the perfect formula of exotic destinations, outlandish dates, and emotionally unstable—and often intoxicated—bachelorettes to create a phenomenon that continues to thrive despite its meager nuptial success rate. Nevertheless, The Bachelor strikes a chord with viewers because, at its heart, it presents America with an idyllic image of true love (at least while the cameras are rolling) that in some small way mirrors all of our hopes for our own fairytale endings.

By January 26, 2012

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Critical Voices:Human Again, Ingrid Michaelson

Known for her straightforward and light-hearted lyrics—including “I’d buy you Rogaine, when you start losing all your hair”—Ingrid Michaelson reveals a new side of her music in her latest release, Human Again. Aptly titled, Human Again keeps with the nature of her honest lyrics while experimenting more musically than she has in previous albums. Though the album resonates with a sound that is distinctly “Ingrid,” Michaelson moves away from her typically ukulele-driven melodies and toward more serious and emotional ballads that reflect the depth—and the limits—of her repertoire.

By January 26, 2012

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Critical Voices: Emotional Traffic, Tim McGraw

After a 19-year relationship, Tim McGraw and Curb Records are finally parting ways. The record label recently lost its bitter two-year legal battle with the country star, leaving Emotional Traffic the last McGraw album it will release. Unfortunately, the LP falls slightly short of the success that most fans expected.

By January 26, 2012

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Critical Voices: Cloud Nothings, Attack on Memory

On Cloud Nothings’ first two albums, Turning On and Cloud Nothings, Dylan Baldi’s band was saddled with the classifier “lo-fi pop,” a term that wasn’t really inaccurate but didn’t quite do justice to the band’s unique sound. It’s true that most of Baldi’s songs were hummable two-and-a-half minute jams coated in a reverby distortion haze or blazed-out, melodic mumblers. Even so, there was a kinetic anger behind the endless progression of catchy bridges and hooks. It was Wavves via the Pixies via No Age. “Lo-fi,” sure, but there was something deeper going on than “pop.”

By January 19, 2012

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Critical Voices: Bombay Bicycle Club, A Different Kind of Fix

Despite their young career, the members of the Bombay Bicycle Club have proven themselves worthy of recognition through a rapid-fire series of successful indie albums. Their latest release, A Different Kind of Fix, follows 2010’s Flaws and 2009’s I Had the Blues But I Shook Them Loose, both of which reached the top fifty on the UK Albums Chart. Thankfully, Fix lives up to the standards set by both the band’s previous successes.

By January 19, 2012