Walk outside and take a deep breath. That’s the smell of our city, set to broil. After months of breathing the aromas of melting blacktop and hot garbage, it’s only fitting that five15 gallery’s “What Smells So Bad?” will be up for the most miserable summer month. The olfactory-inspired group…
Shortly after graduating from film school, I took a part-time job as the assistant to a successful movie and television director who told me I’d be handling a mix of personal and professional responsibilities. Not long after, I was put to work maintaining the good humor of the tenants at…
Resurrecting the Champ is a great movie about journalism — maybe the best there ever was — because Resurrecting the Champ is mind-erasingly boring. It’s a solid story about the newspaper business — specifically, about how a well-intentioned writer occasionally makes a mistake totally by accident, a mistake that is…
Every time I pass them, I’m reminded of Italy. Their Tuscan-inspired curves and Venetian-centric palette bring to mind my favorite Italian village, Burano, known as “The Island Where the Rainbow Fell” because of its brightly colored, jammed-together old villas. But these villas aren’t in Italy, and the only rainbow they…
The first worthwhile online-compatible game for the Wii has finally arrived. And in at least one way, Mario Strikers Charged is just like real soccer: Sometimes it scores, and sometimes it’s just a kick in the balls. The sequel to Super Mario Strikers, Mario Strikers Charged continues the Nintendo tradition…
The Lives of Others (Sony) Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s film, easily the best of last year, exists on many levels: as tragedy, dark comedy, and love story — not between a man and a woman, but between two seemingly opposite men bound by the same damnation. On the one hand…
“I picked it up, sat down on my couch, and didn’t put it down until I finished.” A pint of Cherry Garcia? No; Random House editor Michelle Frey is referring to Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature, whose high school heroine is plunged into a science-versus-faith controversy. Arizona author…
While you’ve been avoiding anything near Central Avenue and Camelback Road because of the maddening light-rail construction and your inability to drive like Batman, a slew of new shops have been opening under the radar. Unless you’re an inside-tip-havin’ hipster, that is. If you are, then you already know about…
Back in the day, before Arizona Center became a life-size ingrown toenail, the area in and around the entertainment destination was home to a killer 3-on-3 hoop-´em-up tourney. Friday-night dunk contests showcased cats like T-Wax, a shorty doo-wop Spud Webb-type who wowed capacity crowds with air-defying slams, while Saturdays and…
Will the real art enthusiasts please stand up? In other words, all you hipsters who use First Friday as an excuse to drink on the street, please remain seated and feel free to resume flat-ironing your hair. Prepare to huff some serious paint fumes during the Seventh Letter Crew Pacific…
The Modern Groove Assembly and DJ Brazilia put on this slamming shindig featuring nu jazz, broken beat music, and soulful deep house. Guest musicians scheduled to appear include: September 5: DJ Theory September 26: Sy Smith with Modern Groove Assembly October 17: Daz I Kue & Karl Injex Present “The…
Now that you’ve attended an entire week of class, you have a burning jones for a break, huh? Here’s a perfect way to play hooky: ASU Art Museum is featuring Sean Duffy’s epic turntable installation “The Grove” during its Welcome Back Party and Sean Duffy Artist Reception. Tue., Aug. 28,…
Contrary to prevailing opinion, being a full-time socialite is hard work. The trick? Make it look as effortless as the Hiltons, Lohans, and Tara Reids of the world. One of the most demanding obligations of the professional socialite is to look flawless — we’re talkin’ paparazzi-ready — all the time…
There’s a good chance that you’ll hear D’Angelo’s soul classics “Brown Sugar” and “Untitled” — songs that dude made seven to 12 freaking years ago — during Brown Sugar Sunday, a loungy event featuring $4 Hennessys, $3 wells and wine, and bangin’ R&B tunes. Man, D, when are you gonna…
What do Angelina Jolie, hair-metal bands, and frat boys have in common? A perverse love of video games? Warm. A secret stash of black nail polish? Getting warmer. A whole lotta love for tattoos? You got it, bro. Once the purview of Maori tribesmen, pirates, and sailors on leave, tattoos…
We were a-driving down the road a piece the other day when we were struck by an image of a dying Phoenix — a town that existed before various Gestapo-esque organizations (read: HOAs) and hoity-toity developers done cleaned the place right up, a more sparsely populated outpost once filled with…
Everyone knows that closets are for skeletons, hiding one’s true sexual preference, and — oh, yeah — clothes. Retro Wednesday encourages you to sport your finest junk-hugging, boob-encasing, cotton-poly blends. What you do about your skeletons and sexuality is none of our damn business. Karamba features three huge rooms, each…
Anyone who dares to wring some fun out of Alan Jay Lerner’s “How Could You Believe Me When I Said I Loved You When You Know I’ve Been a Liar All My Life?” is taking a real risk, but if anyone can do it, it’s likely that Theatre Artists Studio…
The ladies of the Trés Gay Cabaret Comedy Show freely admit to “committing comedy crimes the last Sunday of every month,” but we think the real felony here is not hitting up the zGirl Club to see hilarious gay comics riff about relationships, bad haircuts, and being overweight. Since zGirl…
Does the NFL preseason really matter? No, according to San Diego Chargers superstar halfback LaDainian “LT” Tomlinson, who, during a recent sideline interview, admitted that he isn’t going to play a down until regular-season action. Yes, according to us, because our hometown Arizona Cardinals aren’t the playoff-caliber San Diego Chargers…
Long before she was “discovered” at age 11, singer/songwriter Shannon Curfman had plans to become rich, but she wasn’t dreaming of fast cars or big houses. “I wanted to be a doctor, because they made money,” Curfman, now 20, tells New Times. “And I knew to buy all of the…
Glendale’s Cerreta Candy Company not only sells fruits and nuts, French mint truffles, and peanut brittle, but also chocolate bars. Mmm, chocolate bars. Check out the family-owned biz during 30-minute guided tours of the store and its sugary delights. Self-guided video tours are also available during normal business hours. Mondays-Fridays,…
