CD exchange: Neil Young for president. What’s that, you say? Neil Young is Canadian! So Neil Young couldn’t be the leader of our fair democracy, but at least, we can muse, “What would Neil Young do?” With his newest release, Living in War, one can certainly formulate a solid hypothesis. The protest album unleashes Young’s […]
Marissa Monson
Marissa Monson, former Illinois Times staff member, recently received her master’s degree in journalism from the University of Illinois.
Posted inMusic
Vinyl Static
Shows-a-Go-Go! Before Law and Order: SVU slapped a badge on Ice-T’s chest, the rapper had Tipper Gore hyperventilating. An original of gang-sta rap and former member of heavy-metal outfit Body Count, Ice-T penned such anti-establishment rhymes as “New Jack Hustler” while attracting the attention of the second lady’s pet censorship project, Parents Music Resource Center. […]
Posted inMusic
Vinyl Static
SHOWS-A-GO-GO! The band is big, and the sound is bigger — if only the Abstract Giants could get a break. The eight-member Chicago-based hip-hop band is well known around Chicago’s established scene, but hasn’t gained much buzz outside the Windy City. It’s too bad. The Giants have the originality of the early Roots; their bass […]
Posted inMusic
Vinyl Static
CD EXCHANGE: You weren’t the only disgruntled Springfield inhabitant who tore the shrink wrap off Illinois, Sufjan Stevens’ ode to the Land of Lincoln, only to find that the sole track representing the capital city is a measly 47-second interlude titled “A Short Reprise for Mary Todd, Who Went Insane for Very Good Reasons.” Not […]
Posted inMusic
Music notes
SHOWS A-GO-GO! You will like the Boss Martians, because Steven Van Zandt likes the Boss Martians. The Seattle foursome won the coveted “Coolest Song of the Year” on Little Steven’s Underground Garage, Van Zandt’s Internet-broadcast radio show, in 2003. The Martians play garage rock, but if they’ve learned anything from the school of Little Steven, […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Choice art
New York art doesn’t pop up in Springfield too often, but thanks to a biannual fundraiser hosted by Planned Parenthood Springfield, locals get a chance to see and buy a range of works from a renowned Big Apple gallery. PPS’s Art Auction is a large affair boasting 200 framed-and-matted art works, courtesy of New York […]
Posted inArts & Culture
A kiss is still a kiss
Don’t call Diana Son’s 1998 play Stop Kiss a political piece. It’s a love story. The first time Missy Thibodeaux-Thompson, assistant professor of theater at Illinois College, read the last scene of Stop Kiss, she gasped. Since that moment three years ago, she has wanted to direct the play. This Friday, she gets her chance […]
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Growing underground
To roll down MacArthur Boulevard toward the lively interchange of Wabash and Stanford avenues is to forget that Wabash Curve ever existed. The four-lane intersection offers a gateway for drivers from the east to the commercial district on the west and presents a shortcut to Interstate 55. Chances are, even the neighbors living near the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Taking action
Molly Schlich frequently travels from her home in Springfield to theaters in Champaign, Decatur, and St. Louis to see independent films. But for the next few months Schlich will be able to sink into a seat at a hometown theater for a series of under-the-radar films at a festival she began hosting 15 years ago. […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Shaping trash into treasure
One person’s trash is another’s treasure, and Dick Oglesby, 76, has taken the old saying to heart by creating a holiday display consisting of old jewelry donated by the women of Oak Terrace Active Retirement Community, where he also lives. “In June, I asked the activities director to ask the ladies if they had any […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Decking the Hall
The Springfield Art Association opens its inaugural Holiday Hall Exhibition and Sale this weekend. The event marks a departure from the themes of past holiday exhibitions in favor of a fine-crafts sale for shoppers. Typically SAA’s juried exhibits draw works from artists all over the Midwest, but for the Holiday Hall, the SAA chose the […]
Posted inNews
Bringing the word
The dimly lit performance hall pulses with a quiet beat. Men and women wearing their best “I just can’t help looking cool” attire make their way around the room — walking, talking, moving with the rhythm. At each table, a single candle illuminates the faces around it, and in this light, everyone looks good. This […]
