Hey Amy
What are the GGBB doing this weekend?
Wild At Heart
The Boomtown Rats are coming to mind today
as I don't want to think about Monday.
Had a tough weekend finding out one of the few jobs I was counting on to keep me in the area fell through as the manager was told he can't hire any external help for a couple of months which does me no good having a July 31st deadline. Of course, if an office is short staffed, how can one hire internally to meet that demand? I am still waiting to hear from some other prospects but another week has gone by and my gut is telling me that I might be moving back to Rochester, NY after next month. part of me is thinking of everything I will be missing including my radio show, all the organizations that I have built relationships with in the area and all my friends. I am not sure I can put up with moving back to an area where I'll be living at home with my parents again and living the type of life I want despite how much I love them and miss being near them. I keep my fingers crossed I'll be here in Detroit in August, but I'm not sure that will happen.
In the meantime, let's start with something fun! That being the release of the new Harold Ramis film "Year One" starring Jack Black and Michael Cera who play Zed the hunter and Oh the gatherer. Things aren't going well for them in their village when Zed eats the forbidden fruit from The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and becomes banished from the tribe. Oh decides to go with him on a journey past the mountains (the fabled end of the world) where they encounter Cain and Abel (David Cross and Paul Rudd) and Abraham (Hank Azaria). In their journey, Zed and Oh also notice the girls from their former tribe they wanted to "lay with" (Maya and Eema) have been enslaved and they head to Sodom to save them. The movie offers some funny moments courtesy of Cera but others seem to fall almost flat (i.e. - Oliver Platt as the High Priest as he tries to make moves on Oh or Azaria's Abraham as he explains why being circumsized is a good idea). This movie tends to feel more like the Life Of Brian with flashes of Stripes or Caddyshack which tends to make the film seem uneven at times. While not a smash success, there are enough funny moments to make this a film that is a good distraction from real life and will get a grade of B- from this critic.
I managed to get down to River Days once this year which capped an iffy weekend by being such a wonderful day outside, esp for a Father's Day. I always enjoy the Tall Ships when they are in port and I enjoyed Animal Magic, a great show by Mark Rosenthal as he shows off his collection of animals including a 25 ft python, a huge sloth which takes a peanut from his mouth and a cute little disappearing hedgehog. I also met my new friends David & Bianca who I met at the Red Bull Air Race and posed for some pictures down at Hart Plaza. They are from Germany and doing a special project about Detroit for their photography classes. It is just an honor being asked to pose and represnt Detroit, esp at a time when I find myself secretly saying goodbyes. At least, I know I have a place to stay whenever I go to Germany which is where my family is from. Well, the actual town is in what is currently Poland due to the moving of the border after the war but it is still Germany which to which I owe my history.
This weekend, sees a couple of fun festivals going on and let's start with Midsummer Nights In Midtown which has replaced the Detroit Festival of the Arts this year. On Thursday the 25th you can go to Wayne State to see the documentary "A Great Day In Harlem". The Academy Award nominated documentary tells the story behind the legendary August 1958 photograph of 57 of the world’s greatest jazz stars who snapped a picture that day that would live forever. Afterwards, you can listen to the sounds of the WSU Detroit Jazz Collective and Bad Plus which offers a mix of jazz and rock.
On Friday, the place to be is MOCAD which will have performances by LEMUR (League of Electronic Musical Urban Robots) and will perform with human beatboxer and vocal performance artist, Adam Matta.
It should be a fun experience to music lovers and they will be followed by the 10-piece Balkan brass band from NYC called Slavic Soul Party who deliver some very danceable music which combines Gypsy, East European, Mexican and Asian jazz and soul styles. Things end Saturday with the Canfield Street Party featuring The Lovell Sisters American roots music and the Hip Hop stylings of the Orishas. You can go to www.midsummernightsinmidtown.com for more information.
That being said, don't forget about the Star and Stripes Festival in downtown Mount Clemons which runs from Friday through Sunday. This festival has a great line up of talent and a lot of events for the whole family. National acts include the fun Morris Day & the Time on Friday, local rocker Uncle Kracker along with Saliva and Edgar Winter on Saturday and an edgy line up of Rock-N-Roll on Sunday with Ratt, LA Guns, King's X, Night Ranger and Dokken. This is one festival that seems stronger this year than last.
For history buffs, the Bath City Heritage Area will showcase the period from 1890 to 1950 when Mount Clemens was the mineral bath capital of America and highlight its role in the development of Macomb County and will include a vintage fashion show among other events. Fireworks will be on Friday @ 10PM. For those who like tribute bands you can also check out Heartbreaker (Led Zeppelin) on Friday, Echoes of Pink Floyd on Saturday and Zooropa (U2) and Beatlemania on Sunday.
Other local bands of note include the Muggs, Polish Muslims, School Of Rock and Green Street. You can go to www.starsandstripesfest.com for complete line ups.
With all the festivals, it is hard to imagine that there are more wonderful events going on this week starting with Wednesday (6/24) night as you can go see punk rockers Rancid with Rise Against @ Fillmore, classic rock groups Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire @ Pine Knob (DTE), local favs The Decks @ the Blind Pig, Ha Ha Tonka with Sik Sik Nation @ Small's or rockers Girl In A Coma @ Pike Room (they are on Joan Jett's label so they must rock) plus you get to check out Miss Derringer who kills.
On Thursday (6/25), legendary punk rock group the Germs will be playing @ the Magic Stick while Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings play @ the Power Center in Ann Arbor and one of my favorite bands, The Church plays @ the Magic Bag. Friday (6/26) has Melissa Etheridge @ Motor City Casino, Leon Russell @ the Magic Bag, Citizen Smile with The Setup @ Pike Room, The Sea & Cake @ The Blind Pig and My Dear Disco @ Ingalls Mall in Ann Arbor.
For Saturday (6/27), I might recommend getting your 80's new wave on with the Regeneration Tour @ Meadowbrook with ABC, Cutting Crew, Heaven 17 and Wang Chung or the Fray with Jack's Mannequin @ Pine Knob or your blues/boogie woogie with Dr John @ the Magic Bag Saturday is also good for local Detroit rocking with the Gories and the Oblivians @ Majestic Theatre, Broadzilla @ the Elbow Room, the Amino Acids @ Northern Lights Lounge and Misty Lyn and the Big Beautiful @ Jacoby's.
Sunday is for new punk with the Offspring and Dropkick Murphy's @ Freedom Hill or rap/reggae with Rock The Bells @ Pine Knob with Common, Busta Rhymes, the Roots, Nas and Damien Marley.
Next Monday sees classic rock chicks Heart @ Pine Knob and legends Sonic Youth @ Royal oak Music Theatre. I hope I didn't leave anybody out.
Also, this weekend for film fans see the return of DWIFF (Detroit Windsor International Film Festival) to Wayne State starting June 25th with the movie "Street Boss" which is based on a true story from the book "With Honor and Purpose" by FBI agent Phil Kerby on his quest to bring down one of Detroit's most notorious mobsters, Tony Jack. Other movies that I am looking forward to include "The Rain" starring the late David Carradine in this epic tale of terror that follows three generations and one timeless curse set in the remote farming community of Perseverance and "Tales from the Catholic Church of Elvis!" about a Catholic schoolgirl growing up in Sin City, Las Vegas. Go to www.dwiff.org for more info and full schedules.
Lastly, I was disappointed to hear Bill Lambier stepped down as head coach and general manager of the Detroit Shock. Bill has lead the Shock to four Finals appearances with three titles to show for it. Having covered three finals for the Shock these last three years, I wanted to say I was surprised by at the press conferences last year, Bill admitted he felt he was standing in the way of Rick Mahorn (who has been promoted to head coach) and Cheryl Reeve (who has been promoted to assistant coach/general manager). I am surprised it happened during the season and not before but I hope Bill finds success at his next project which will hopefully be as head coach of an NBA team which I think he would excell at. People say that coaching the two genders is different, but Bill brought NBA style of play to the WNBA and has dealt with some real divergent personalities which should have gotten him prepared for their male counterparts. I feel the shock will miss lambier but mahorn is a good replacement. The next Shock home game is Sunday, June 28th when they take on the Monarchs. Part of the ticket proceeds go to the American Heart Association. The Shock are currently 3-5 on the season.
I have a feeling I am missing something but with such a busy week, that would not be surprising. have a safe week and I'll catch you next Monday.
