Here is the post Labor day blog, one day late as promised:) - Wild Bill
Bill Kettelhut provides the "blog" to this anti-blogHe has a radio program on WXOU out of Oakland University
Wild At Heart
Wild At Heart
Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!
I spent 1 day at Jazz Fest and 2 days at Arts Beats & Eats taking in some really cool performances like Emily Rose (saw her twice – once at ABE and once at Jacoby’s). Her ABE performance was one of her best and she is quickly becoming my favorite local artist. At Jacoby’s (which has good onion soup BTW) she had sugar cookies which the fans could decorate themselves. Just a nice touch! The best of Friday’s Jazz Fest included the b-bop stylings of Esperanza Spalding on bass, the New Orleans jazz-funk-rock group Bonerama and Stratospheerius who is led by electric violinist/vocalist Joe Deninzon. These groups provided the energy of the 1st full day of the festival.
Arts Beats & Eats was enjoyable with national acts Chaka Khan and Puddle Of Mudd. I have seen a lot of the local bands at event but I found a couple of locals who deserve special mention. I have already mentioned Emily Rose doing a great set where she played some of her original material as well as covers by Billie Holiday, Leonard Cohen and the Violent Femmes. She even brought some members of the audience on stage to play along with her on some songs. The other band Sunday which impressed me is the Questions though I only heard 1 song, it had a great garage sound to it and wished they either a) played longer or B) didn’t start early. This is one band I want to see again and soon. On Monday, it was the blues playing of Paul Miles who had a little bit of a Keb Mo sound and was just nice listening on a sunny morning.
I also got into a little trouble down at Arts Beats & Eats. Now I am a Republican (I actually worked on Reagan’s campaign) though I hate Bush and haven’t made up my mind yet on McCain. I ended up getting into an argument with one of the guys at their table (I think he thought I was a Democrat or just stupid - not sure which - anyway, he was just plain rude). Anyway, I was trying to address some of my concerns about the way the campaign was going and he basically only wanted to ignore me. So as I was listening to one of the bands, I came up with the idea to invite both the Republican and Democrats on my show on Sept 4th to debate why we should vote for their candidate. Both sounded hopeful (even when I saw them the next day), so between 8-8:30AM this Thursday, we'll find out who will show up and who doesn't. If they both show, it should be a fun show. Tune in to find out what happens!!!
Once again, that is between 8-10AM on Thursday, Sept 4th on WXOU 88.3FM or online at www.wxou.org. I hope that both sides show up and can put forth a good effort so I can make up my mind who I want to support.
One thing I want to support is a new movie coming out by Neil LaBute called ‘Lakeview Terrace’. I recently sat in on a round table with Neil LaBute to talk about his new movie. LaBute is known for making films about controversial subjects (In The Company Of Men being a good example) while maintaining sharp realistic dialogue. This film is no exception! LaBute says it is hard to find the backing for such "message" films in today’s market but this property was brought to him as a thriller and the subject matter gets brought out by having Jackson attached. He says that anyone could play a hard-nosed cop (he brought up Tommy Lee Jones for example) but Jackson really brings the race issue into the front.
With someone like Jones you wouldn’t get the racial edge the movie has. Samuel Jackson plays a LAPD officer who is a strict single parent and is the type of officer who has a tendency to get reviewed for complaints but protected by a strong boss (think Hill Street Blues). He patrols the neighborhood which brings some comfort to his neighbors but a newlywed young couple (Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington) has just moved in next door. It soon becomes apparent that Jackson has a problem with their interracial relationship and things become strained. LaBute brings in some nice tension and doesn't make some of the tactics obvious. Did Jackson sabotage the air conditioning unit or was it coincidence? We don't know and that helps make this work so well, along with some of the tension of a married couple whose relationship might not be so perfect. The couple must overcome their neighbor and their own insecurities when things start go too far. A nice thriller by LaBute and it is currently my top film of the year. Grade: A!!
Also, this Thursday morning on my show, I will be talking to the people bringing Indian Ocean to the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center on Sept 20th.
They are a contemporary Indo-rock fusion band and the show will support the Isha Foundation. Tune in and find out how to win tickets. I’ll catch you all later.