here is this week's blog post - Bill
Wild Bill Ketelhut provides the "blog" to this anti-blog
He has a radio program on WXOU out of Oakland University
Wild At Heart
Sorry fans for not getting on this sooner but I had a horrific day at work yesterday and then had to take off early for the Lily Allen show. For those interested, I interviewed her opening band, Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head, and will air that on Saturday morning on my show between 8-10AM on WXOU 88.3FM or www.wxou.org .
For those not familiar, they are a Seattle based band which sound like they should be from Athens (esp having a few Pylon fans in the band). The band was formed by Luke Smith and Shaun Libman, who met while attending The Center School, an arts-based college prepatory school in Seattle and the name was made up during a class project and just stuck when they decided to form a band. I did ask and they said that Mrs Portman knows about the band and likes the CD so hopefully their will be no lawsuits in their future. I will also have Joe Plambeck & Joe Mitchell from the Ringwald Theatre talking about their new production of “Killer
Joe” and hopefully Sacha Gervasi, director of “Anvil! The Story Of Anvil”.
Also, taking with Liam from NPSH, he is also a Devo fan and saw them at SXSW. This got me to look them up, and guess what I learned. Devo has announced a new album in the fall which will be there first since 1990’s “Smooth Noodle Maps”. Devo is best known for the iconic song “Whip It” as well as “Jocko Homo” and there cool version of the Rolling Stones “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction”. I saw them a few years back in Cleveland and it was an incredible show featuring tear-away costumes and hundreds of bouncing super-balls. This is one group I would love to see again!
Also in music news, Yvonne Taylor, PETA's special projects manager, sent a request to the Pet Shop Boys asking them to rename themselves the Rescue Shelter Boys to draw attention to the plight of animals raised in pet shops. They have declined but admitted it is an issue worth talking about.
If you want a movie that might be nostalgic if you ever working a boring summer at a theme park, you can try out ”Adventureland”. James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) just graduated from Oberlin College and plans on going to Europe when his parents tell him they are unable to help him out financially. To make money, he takes a job at the local amusement park, Adventureland, and finds himself dealing with belligerent customers and annoying kids. Things start looking up when he starts a relationship with his coworker Em Lewin (Kristen Stewart) though it is a complicated by her having casual sex with a married coworker. Of course things work out eventually and the film has a few fun moments esp provided by Bill Hader as the manager of the Park. Not a bad film though this might be a matinee film. It reminds me a lot of the more average teen romances of the 1970’s & 80’s. The best part is the soundtrack with tracks by Big Star, Lou Reed, the Cure, Husker Du and the Replacements among many other cool 80’s groups. My grade is a C.
I heard the news that the True Colors Tour is going to revamp itself this summer due to the state of the economy so stay tuned for updates here. In other news, Cyndi Lauper is making a guest appearances on the season finale of NBC’s ‘30 Rock’ and will appear next year in one of my favorite shows, ‘Bones’ on FOX.
I am a big fan of the Cranbrook Institute of Science and I wanted to let people know that on Apr 18th, Detroit Public Television will be holding a free event for children called “Cyberchase: Wind-O-Rama”. This is a dedicated to all things related to wind and weather and is geared towards children ages 6-12. They can also meet Digit and watch a new episode of Cyberchase. To register for the event, call 248-305-3891 or email Sarah Kittle at skittle@dptv.org .
Star Trek fans get ready for this new IMAX announcement at the Detroit Science Center.
You can online to their website www.detroitsciencecenter.org and purchase advance tickets to see the new Star Trek film at the DSC which opens May 8th. Get tickets now so you can get that first screening and go to a prelaunch party the day before. You can also use this as your excuse to check out that wonderful exhibit “Star Trek: The Exhibition” with props from the TV series and films including my favorite part, the portal from “The City On The Edge Of Forever”.
I heard the word that the Andiamo Celebrity Showroom is helping to give back to the Detroit community by giving out “free” concert tickets for their upcoming The Guess Who concerts. The Guess Who have 2 performances coming up on Friday, April 17, 2009. They are @ 7:00 P.M. & 10:30 P.M and Andiamo is making a limited number of tickets for the 10:30 P.M. show available thru the Andiamo Celebrity Showroom Ticket office.
The tickets can be picked up at the location or by calling and making a $10 donation to the Capuchin Soup Kitchen of Detroit. You can call the Tickets office at 586-268-3200 to make your donations and snag your complimentary tickets.
So how did you spend your Easter? After a nice dinner at Mongolian Barbecue, I figured nothing says Easter quite like seeing a play about murder and mayhem in a small Texas town complete with a nude scene with one of the sexiest actresses in Detroit. That is the new Ringwald production of “Killer Joe” (not to be confused by the young Jimmy Osmond album) which was written by Tracy Letts (the same guy who wrote “Bug” which is still my favorite Ringwald production). This production carries the same vibe as we see a story of desperation in a small Texas town. Faced with gambling debts, a plot is put forth by a young man to convince his father they should hire a killer to knock off his mother for her insurance policy. They decide to do the deed and call in a detective known as Killer Joe to pull off the murder. However, unable to meet the demand for money up front, they settle on a retainer which puts a harsh twist on the story. As the plot moves along, Killer Joe Cooper (Joel Mitchell) becomes a common site at the household as he has fallen for the youngest sibling, the sexy Christa Coulter, which rubs the son the wrong way.
This is a wonderful story about the dysfunction of a family and it is fascinating to see how the family members see one another. The play has some real sexual tension and some nice twists which make it one of those must see plays, esp for those who like their theatre to be a bit more daring and complex than the Lion King (no offense Simba). My grade is an A.
You know you are a part of the Detroit landscape when the homeless downtown know you by name!
Now for concert updates. In the upcoming week, you will have a couple of opportunities to see singer/actor Mandy Patinkin (best known to me as Inigo Montoya in ‘The Princess Bride’ with the famous line - "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die") and Patti LuPone (known for her Tony award for Evita and numerous theatrical and movie roles). This should be a great evening! On Thurs 16th, the All-American Rejects will be performing at Meadowbrook and while they are OK, I recommend the opening band, Shiny Toy Guns! Fri 17th will be exciting with the wonderful Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus Three playing at the Magic Bag (saw him 2 years ago and it was one of the best shows of the year). Sun 19th will be a good day to be in Ann Arbor to watch either Ray LaMontagne (the enigmatic Jessica Lea Mayfield will be opening) @ The Michigan Theatre or Brian Vander Ark (of Verve Pipe fame) at the Ark.
I hope I didn’t forget anything and happy belated Easter
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