Sunday, January 9, 2011

Downtown Saturday Night Preview

This preview was originally posted on the City of Iowa City Summer of the Arts website 7/19/2010.

Downtown Saturday Night presented by the Downtown Association of Iowa City returns to the Weatherdance Stage, right outside the Iowa City Sheraton Hotel, this Saturday night at 6:30 with performances from William Elliot Whitmore and The New Bodies.

Hailing from a horse farm along the banks of the mighty Mississippi River, William Elliott Whitmore has developed an intense love and spiritual understanding of the land, which he flawlessly conveys through all of his records. With live performances that will leave one completely stunned in silence, and albums full of songs from the heart and the heartland. Whitmore is one of the most interesting contributions to today's diverse collection of musical ingenuity.

Natives of Des Moines, The New Bodies play a brand of Rock that blends punk sensibilities and a strong alternative influence with catchy hooks. These guys are the real deal!

Make sure to follow us on Facebook (Click Here) and Twitter (Click Here) for updates on this week's festival.

MidwestOne Bank Free Movie Series presents The Dark Knight Preview

Preview originally posted on the City of Iowa City Summer of the Arts website 7/6/2010

The MidwestOne Free Movie Series continues this weekend with a presentation of the 2008 blockbuster The Dark Knight at sun down on the Pentacrest.

Director Christopher Nolan's second film in the rebooted Batman franchise follows the caped crusader (Christian Bale) as he works to put an end to Gotham City's crime syndicate with the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and newly appointed D.A. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart). However, their progress is thwarted when a new criminal called the Joker (the late Heath Ledger, in an Oscar-winning performance) whose crimes cause widespread panic and chaos for Gotham's citizens. Together, the three must work together to stop The Joker and find a way to give Gotham both the hero it needs, and the one it deserves.

While The Dark Knight is widely considered to be the greatest super hero film ever made, parents should know the film is rated PG-13 for "intense sequences of violence and some menace." Some children may also find the Joker character to be frightening.

Make sure to follow us on Facebook (Click Here) and Twitter (Click Here) for updates on this week's festival.

2010 Toyota-Scion of Iowa City Jazz Festival Previews

All previews posted on the City of Iowa City Summer of the Arts website under each respective events web page 6/28/2010.

Friday Night Concert Series page:

There is no Friday Night Concert Series this week due to our weekend long, Toyota/Scion of Iowa City Jazz Festival, which kicks off its 20th anniversary this Friday at 4:30 with the United Jazz Ensemble

Composed of students from both Iowa City and West High Schools, this eighteen-piece band will open the show on the Miller Lite Main Stage. For seventeen years this program has immersed students in jazz and built a strong bond between the two programs.

Also taking the Miller Lite Main Stage this Friday night is U.S. Army Blues, the premier jazz ensemble of the U.S Army. This eighteen-piece band his a standard at government locales including The White House and the State Department. The band works hard to preserve the music of big band legends such as Count Bassie, Duke Ellington and Woody Herman.

Make sure to follow Summer of the Arts on Facebook here and Twitter here for important updates leading and information leading up to this weeks festival.

Downtown Saturday Night page:

There is no Downtown Saturday Night this weekend due to our weekend long Toyota/Scion of Iowa City Jazz Festival which continues all day Saturday.

The festivities continue into the evening as Gabriel Espinosa takes the Miller Light Main Stage at 6 p.m. A native of Merida, Mexico, Espinosa will play from his most recent work, "From Yucatan and Rio" which is best described as a beautiful blend of rhythmic, lyrical horns and affecting vocals.

Capping off the evening, 2010 Jazz Journalist Association winner for Best Trombonist, Rosswell Rudd and his Trombone Tribe will grace the Miller Light Main Stage at 8 p.m. This 5 member group is known for their eclectic influences which range from Kurt Weill to Eastern European gypsy brass bands and their ability to get even the most stubborn of crowds on their feet.

Make sure to follow us on Facebook (Click Here) and Twitter (Click Here) for updates on this week's festival.

City of Iowa City Summer of the Arts 20th Anniversary Celebration Concert Preview

Originally posted on The city of Iowa City Summer of the Arts website 5/24/2010

The Friday Night Concert Series celebrates twenty years of free local music this Friday night at 6:30 PM at the Weatherdance Fountain Stage in the Ped Mall, right outside the Iowa City Sheraton Hotel.

Join us for a delicious dinner of pulled pork sandwiches, a choice of baked beans or pasta salad and a cookie prepared by Mama's Deli and served on a commemorative 20th Year Celebration Frisbee Plate all for just $8.00 per person!

This week’s reunion show is jam packed with musical talent, featuring David Zollo and The Body Electric, Shame Train and Iowa City's very own Dave Moore.

Dave Zollo began playing the piano at four years old and found his sound after he discovered his father's eclectic record collection. In his formative early teens, he would entertain his parents house parties with Ray Charles and Huey "Piano" Smith Covers. Since then Zollo and his band, The Body Electric tour the Midwest fusing the likes of The Rolling Stones and Country Rock and released three records.

Created in 2000 by lead singer and songwriter, Sam Knutson, Shame Train has dealt with personel changes that helped shape the band into the rockin' ensemble they are today. Sometimes referred to as "real country" or "roots rock," this group of close, musical veterans thrives on sharing their creativity with the Iowa City community.

Upon moving to Iowa City, musician Dave Moore settled into the local music scene both quickly and easily. Moore is known for keeping his musical collaborations specifically Iowan but still manages to gather national recognition, having appeared on NPR's A Prairie Home Companion, All Things Considered, World Cafe, and Live from the Mountain Stage.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

iPod Playlist: Awesomly tragic songs

Originally published in The Daily Iowan 12/17/2010

The relationship between the song and its listener is subjective, but many songs pertain to specific experiences in our lives — especially when they deal with tragedy. However, only a select few still resonate. Here are a few that resonate particularly strongly.

• Bruce Springsteen, “The River”

A pregnant girlfriend ends up in a loveless marriage. The Boss’s harmonica and swelling voice gets the room misty every time.

• Damien Rice, “The Blowers Daughter”

After I told a friend I was listening to Damien Rice, she asked me if my dog had died. Rice’s voice is heartbreaking as he sings about a loss he can’t bear.

• Coldplay, “The Scientist”

On one of his band’s simpler numbers, Chris Martin’s voice convinces listeners that a reboot may be the best medicine for a relationship gone south.

• Death Cab For Cutie, “Tiny Vessels”

This poor guy singing this track landed a hottie and spent a few weeks with her in California, only to realize he didn’t care about her.

• Eric Clapton, “Tears In Heaven”

Clapton wrote this song after the death of his 4-year-old son. Try not to shed a tear.

• Pearl Jam, “Last Kiss”

A classic song that is simple, yet true enough for Pearl Jam to do a cover that suits Vedder’s deep vocals.

• Pete Yorn, “Just Another”

Nothing is more tragic than disappointment, especially when it involves a romantic interest. Yorn’s brooding voice rings true with dejected frustration.

• U2, “One”

In the quintessential tragic romance, two people continue to get together only to hurt each other time after time.

• Roxy Music, “More Than This”

Partially because of its appearance in *Lost In Translation*, this track warns the listeners to do everything they can to avoid disappointment.

• Weezer, “Perfect Situation”

“Here’s the pitch / slow and straight / all I have to do is swing and I’m a hero / but I’m a zero” — the story of every awkwardly charming geek’s adolescence.

— by Tyler Lyon

Spotlight Iowa City: Cross-cultural man

Originally published in The Daily Iowan 12/16/2009

One of UI senior Paul Worrell’s fascinations lies in conflicting cultures living together. He observed such a divide firsthand in his hometown of Denison, Iowa, and the experience has forever shaped his interests in the world.

Worrell, 22, recalled the change his predominately white community went through when the Latino population amplified.

“During that time, my town faced a huge culture shock,” Worrell said. “Seeing that even though there’s not that much difference between people, I began to think about how different they were.”

Most recent data shows roughly 1,200 Latinos lived in Denison in 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 17.4 percent of its population. In comparison, approximately 3 percent of Iowa’s population was Latino that year.

The clashes and cooperation all piqued Worrell’s interest in conflicting cultures, influencing him to travel to South Africa twice. He will graduate this month with degrees in journalism and international studies and a minor in French, which he hopes to use to pursue more worldly adventures.

Worrell first traveled to South Africa through the UI’s study-abroad program in the spring of 2008. He craved the cultural diversity and wanted to see the transitions the country had made since abolishing apartheid.

The semester abroad also led Worrell to develop an interest in traditional medicine — also known as ethno-medicine — and encouraged him to make the trip back to South Africa last summer to research.

Worrell said traditional medicine is very much a part of South Africa’s cultural conflicts — practitioners have more entrepreneurial freedoms, allowing them to market and sell their remedies more freely.

“It’s really fascinating to me — this old institution that’s being thrust into this modern world,” Worrell said. “You go to different places in South Africa, and it’s different because modern world hasn’t reached all.”

His traveling has moved some of those he’s encountered, including his professors. Worrell took Writing across Cultures with journalism Associate Professor Gigi Durham. She recommended him for a UI Student Government research grant to return to South Africa this past summer.

“Paul has an adventurous spirit that has impelled him to venture into places many people wouldn’t think to travel,” Durham said.

In addition to traveling, Worrell has also served as a reporter and newscaster on KRUI.

He plans to attend graduate school to focus on African studies but hopes to culminate his interests one day and write for a publication that will allow him to travel and learn more about other cultures. His dream is to work for National Geographic.

No matter where his journey takes him, Worrell is convinced he will return to South Africa.

“I’m certain I’ll go back,” he said.

Friday, January 7, 2011

2 Cents to Play: Submitted via Xbox Live

Originally published on The Daily Iowan Arts blog 11/20/2009

If you've been reading your friends Facebook updates or Tweets as of late, you may have noticed some were submitted "via Xbox Live." This is because the nations Xbox's got there biggest update since Micro$oft changed the menu interface. In this update, Xbox Live members can now use streamlined versions of Facebook, Twitter, and Last.FM (similar to Pandora) from their TV's.

I was skeptical about all this at first. Why would anyone use facebook on their Xbox when they can't chat, send private messages, write on peoples wall or play those stupid games? There are a couple of positives in this intergration. The first being you can view all your pictures in a slideshow on your TV which is awesome especially if you're rocking the flat panel. The other major benefit is you can now find your facebook friends who are also on Xbox Live which is great because very few xbox users can admit their friends list is compiled of all their real life friends.

Microsoft has also said users will be able to challenge their friends via facebook and post high scores. Being able to challenge my friend to shoot a 4 on the 5th at Spyglass in Tiger Woods has a lot of cool potential in a Jet Man sort of way.

Unfortunately I don't know if this will work to its fullest potential. I've already gotten some grief for updating my status on my Xbox. Im assuming gamers aren't going to "come out," so to speak, and admit they are avid online gamers. Are girls going to see this and be turned off by that cute kid from their class because he said put his thoughts on last nights "30 Rock" through their Xbox? I hope not as this update is intended to draw the casual social networking crowd to Microsoft's console but there will always be haters. We just have to keep our thumbs down.

- by Tyler Lyon
Xbox Live: Docholliday8706