Dana Reinoos

Heartland

admin — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0000

Former Final Fantasy mastermind Owen Pallett’s voice is one of my favorites in music right now. On Heartland’s opening song, “Midnight Directives,” it floats alongside the violin lines, reaching high and stretching across the track, taking it in beautiful directions that both fit and conflict beautifully with the insistent drums and electronic elements. The song ends abruptly, and the next, “Keep the Dog Quiet,” begins as abruptly, with a staccato string line and quiet maraca accompaniment.

Heartland is noisier and more electronic than any previous Final Fantasy album, which makes sense given the experimental nature of the project. Pallett wrote Heartland as an opera about a peasant named Lewis, who is ordered by his God (named Owen, no less) to lead a revolt. Pallett posted all the lyrics to Heartland online in October 2009, giving fans months to pour over the poetry of the words before hearing them set to music.

The girl-group inspired melody in “Lewis Takes Action” directly conflicts with the violence in the lyrics: “I took No-Face by his beak and broke his jaw, he’ll never speak again.” “The Great Elsewhere” is a beautiful song that ends in a crisis of faith about “the indifferences of the Storyteller.” Heartland is not only beautiful to listen to, but a joy to unfold and interpret the world Pallett has created in this album.

The album ends with a question: “What Do You Think Will Happen Now?” Pallett absolutely succeeds at keeping the listener thoroughly engaged, but always with that question of marvelous uncertainty. If you like your indie music literary and elusive, Heartland is a challenge and a delight.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, April 8th 2010

Fabric 50

admin — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 08:00:00 +0000

By Martyn

Fabric Records

The ever-prolific Fabric series returns with this effort from Dutch producer Martyn. Known for his work in dubstep, the mix starts out perfectly with Hudson Mohawke’s incredibly funky song “Joy Fantastic.” Martyn follows it up with two more drum-heavy tracks designed to get you dancing, and by the end of Nubian Mindz’s “Bossa Boogie,” which has an insanely catchy synth line, I was fully committed to dancing hard to this album.

Many of the tracks have a sound distinctly influenced by African and South American rhythms, like the two Zomby tracks, “Little Miss Naughty” especially. But even as Martyn looks to many places for influence, all of the tracks have a common theme of looking to the future to find new ways to make people dance, and perhaps more importantly, always be interesting to listen to.

Martyn’s track mixing is impeccable, as I hardly noticed when one track ended and the next began because of his subtle and masterful mixes. The songs all bring something different to the album, but they blend to create a perfectly curated mix that is a must have for your Saturday night play list.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, April 7th 2010

Gotta Dance

admin — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 00:01:00 +0000

Directed by Dori Berinstein

Dramatic Forces

Gotta Dance opens with a scene of an energetic NBA game, with all the halftime mascot antics and acrobatic dance routines we’ve come to expect. But the New Jersey Nets are trying out something different this year. We see the feet of a group learning a dance routine, with the instructor telling them not to slap their butts because it’s a family show, and there’s one thing that makes this new hip-hop dance troupe different from any we’ve seen before: they are all over sixty years old.

We come to know the members of the team as they learn fairly complicated routines and tackle their insecurities being a dance group comprised of senior citizens. They’re not professional dancers; they are just people who love to dance, and want to share that love with each other and with audiences. It’s affirming to see people, who many would not expect to succeed at such an undertaking, tackle their insecurities and pull off the routine wonderfully. The sheer athleticism it takes to do the routines is really astonishing. As someone a fraction of most of these people’s ages, I doubt I could do the routines half as well. Plus, seeing someone’s grandma brush her shoulders off and raise the roof to Jay-Z’s “Show Me What You Got” is quite a sight.

But Gotta Dance isn’t just entertaining for the adorable factor. Betsy, stage name Betty, was already in a hip-hop dance class before joining the squad, and commends hip-hop as “for the masses.” She says she learned how to cut loose through the music and just dance. Betsy even brings hip-hop to a group of children in order to teach them about self-esteem and not putting each other down. Seeing old ladies teaching young kids hip-hop dance steps is cute, but it also says something about how we can use pop culture as a way to reach across generations and find common ground.

Even though, at first, the group members might prefer the cha-cha, they get pure joy out of letting go and just dancing. That joy is really infectious, and the confidence the members of the group, and even their teachers, gain through the experience is inspiring to see. As the elderly population in the United States steadily grows in number, Gotta Dance stands as a document of how this population is becoming involved in what’s thought of as youth culture. It gave me a warm fuzzy feeling, something that’s rare in today's films.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, April 4th 2010

Get Color

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:01:00 +0000

By Health

Lovepump United

In today’s huge hype musical landscape, it can be near impossible for a band with a successful first album to parlay that success into a long career. Health seem ready to beat the odds. Their sophomore album Get Color starts out with a bang: huge guitar riffs, whirring electronics, and almost shoegazey, wall of sound vocals coat “In Heat,” the album’s opener, in sound from top to bottom. This is a perfect album-opener: a great song that really paves the way for the next eight.

“Die Slow,” the next song and first single from the LA noise band’s follow-up to 2007’s breakthrough self-titled album, is equally engrossing. The song combines danceable drumbeats with the band’s signature monotone, evocative vocal style to create something both contemporary and new, but not gimmicky.

“Before Tigers,” my favorite track on the album, is almost unsettling, as it builds its non-melody around an insistent, persistent drumbeat that keeps the song on track, while the purposefully vague vocals and distorted guitar effects float in and out. That a song can seem so haphazard (in the best way possible) but clearly be so perfectly structured is a real testament to the band members’ talent.

If you like your noise rock a little less, um, noisy and a little more ethereal—but in a somehow danceable way—check out Get Color. Don’t let this intensely interesting, surprisingly listenable (for noise rock, that is) album fly under your radar.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, December 16th 2009

Ballads of Suburbia

admin — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 17:03:00 +0000

By Stephanie Kuehnert

MTV Books

It’s strange to find yourself feeling nostalgic about a time that you absolutely hated. I’m obviously not alone when I say that middle and high school weren’t the best times of my life; while I had friends and family that I cared about a lot and vice versa, everything else often seemed like a total mess. Looking back on it with a few years distance, I can say that I blew things out of proportion, overreacted, was irrational in my words and decisions. In short, I was your stereotypical teenage girl.

Stephanie Kuehnert’s second novel, Ballads of Suburbia, brought me right back to those heady, mid-90s days of endless troubles and tears. Kara has left her Illinois home for college in California, and comes back in Christmas 1999, wary about facing her demons, but knowing she has to. We get Kara’s story—one of teenage love, drugs, and intense pain—through flashbacks, as she remembers her past while visiting for the first time. There are some absolutely heartbreaking scenes, as Kara and her friends deal with hard drug use, depressive and suicidal thoughts, and domestic abuse: things we know teenagers deal with, but is rarely written as bluntly as in Kuehnert’s book.

The device that ties the book together is the titular collection of ballads (in the traditional sense, Kara is sure to assert, of a story-song) that Kara and her friends put together to exorcise their demons. Every main character in the novel writes their ballad, the story of something in their lives that made them who they are, for better or for worse, in a notebook. That Kara eventually is able to take the stories and make something wonderful out of them is a testament to the strength of the character, and the redemptive power of writing itself.

Kuehnert’s characters reside in Oak Park, a northern Chicago suburb, and an area that is familiar to Kuehnert, as she lives in a Chicago suburb and received her MFA from Columbia College. The familiarity and seemingly love/hate relationship with the area are obvious in the novel, as the setting is wonderfully described, from the park where Kara and her friends go to smoke and skate, to grungy basement parties, to the unbearable places Kara and her friends call home. The mid-90s setting and allusions to grunge and punk music endeared themselves to me, and produced that intense sense of nostalgia, especially when Kuehnert describes driving around with the music as loud as possible, screaming along to your favorite songs.

Although I never had quite the amount of trouble that Kara and her friends did, there is still a thread that binds us together, and made me appreciate the novel as both a reminder and a cautionary tale. Please note: the novel features somewhat graphic descriptions of drug use and self-mutilation that some might find triggering.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, December 13th 2009

Dispatches from Juvenile Hall: Fixing a Failing System

admin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:01:00 +0000

By John Aarons, Lisa Smith, Linda Wagner

Penguin Books

As depressing as they can often be, I’m generally interested in books on social justice issues. It’s essential to know the facts about issues before getting into a spirited debate about them. As an Urban Studies grad student, I’m especially interested in books on social justice as academic material, particularly ones on youth issues. Dispatches from Juvenile Hall engaged both the generally interest and the academically-minded parts of my brain—and it is a great read from either perspective.

Dispatches from Juvenile Hall gains most of its power from the narratives, which are told by their subjects in first person style with brief introductions and conclusions by the authors. We hear from the very people whose lives are most affected by the juvenile justice system: people who are still in the system and those who have been released who are willing to share their stories, as well as those who have spent their lives trying to help those on the inside. The authors, who have decades of experience in youth services work, present the narratives with little embellishment, which works well and are very effective. For someone who has never had firsthand experience with juvenile detention, their words are often brutal and shocking.

Jasmine, the subject of the book’s opening narrative, began using meth when she was eleven years old. A pattern of drug use, incarceration, and running away from home began from there. Michael, now a tattoo artist in South Carolina, was kicked out of his home at sixteen because his mother felt he was old enough to be a man. As a homeless teen, police generally ignored him, until he was apprehended for felony stealing. Stephanie, a high school guidance counselor and former juvenile probation officer, tells stories about the at-risk youth she worked with in both jobs, and stresses the importance of early detection of warning signs that a teen is in trouble.

Dispatches from Juvenile Hall isn’t just a collection of personal stories; there is also a section on how the system can be fixed. It includes a fascinating (if brief) history of juvenile justice in the United States and an analysis of what the authors believe does and does not work when working with juvenile offenders. Clearly, given the rates of juvenile incarceration, the hard-on-crime position currently taken by the juvenile justice system doesn’t deter crime. This is not to say the authors suggest being “soft” on crime; in fact, they argue it’s better to be “smart on crime.”

The authors suggest a blend of corrections reforms—like separating low-, medium-, and high-risk offenders and using cognitive behavioral strategies and gender-specific services—and rehabilitative treatments, and suggest that there can (and should) be a lively, fact-based debate about the United States’ attitude toward juvenile justice. Dispatches from Juvenile Hall is a thoughtful, intelligent, affecting piece of that debate.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, November 29th 2009

Allbums

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 23:46:00 +0000

By Jeans Team

Louisville Records

Jeans Team started life as a Berlin-based video art performance group, but they soon evolved into making electronic music for the masses. On Allbums, a collection of their best songs and previously unreleased material, I got a chance to sample almost ten years of Jeans Team’s IDM that is as suitable for the club as for dancing by yourself in your bedroom.

“Faul 2” stars out the sampler with a very good, almost minimal beat, with Kraftwerk-esque vocal samples in the background and calm German vocals. It’s clear from this track that Kraftwerk is an influence on Jeans Team, but they’re not copying the German masters, either. This is something different, something very contemporary while still understanding the history of electronic music. On “Baby 3,” a funky bass and '70s funk guitar lick start the song, and blend with synthesizer beats and an array of different little noises to make a quietly funky little dance song that stays in your head long after it’s over.

“Keine Melodien,” the best song on the sampler, has a pumping groove throughout that definitely made me want to get up and dance. I couldn’t understand the literal meaning of the German lyrics, but when the talk-singing turns into a yell, the song gets intense in a way that you don’t need to understand the words. I could definitely see dancing like crazy to this song at a party.

Thanks to Allbums, I discovered not only another band to put on my party playlists, but one to search out for everyday listens. The spirit of Kraftwerk is alive and well in Jeans Team, but they’re giving the legends a run for their money when it comes to pure dancing grooves.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, May 28th 2009

Sew Everything Workshop

admin — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:25:00 +0000

By Diana Rupp

Workman Publishing Company

Handicrafts have made an incredible resurgence in the past few years; everyone I know (and their mama) knits or crochets. There are plenty of hip, modern knitting and crocheting books to go along with the trend, to show people things they actually might want to make. Sewing has come a long way as well, but unlike the other crafts, books for modern young women who want to sew their own clothes are few and far between (not considering books about reconstructing old clothes, of which there are lots of great ones). Thankfully, Diana Rupp, founder of the Make Workshop in Manhattan, has come out with _Sew Everything Work_shop, a one-stop-shop for those beginning sewers who want to learn everything they need to know, as well as more advanced sewers who want project ideas.

The first half of the book is aimed at getting beginners completely comfortable with all the sewing terms and skills needed to make anything. Sections on how to choose (and then get acquainted with) the right sewing machine, basic sewing skills (from threading your machine and stitching your first seam to more advanced skills like inserting a zipper and making buttonholes), to choosing the right fabric for your project are all essential for the beginning sewer, or to give the experienced sewer a refresher course for things you might have forgotten.

The rest of the book is given over to projects, and Rupp really goes all out with the amount and quality of things you can sew from the book. Four sections - clothing, accessories, home, and gifts - with easily identifiable difficulty levels, from very easy to advanced beginner, include projects like Cuddle-Up Cardigan, Tender is the Nightie, Naughty Secretary Skirt, Tokyo Tie Bag, and Handy No-Frills Apron. Some projects are described in the book, but eight projects come with multi-sized patterns, which Rupp explains how to use. Speaking of sizing, Rupp’s guidelines for S-M-L are fair, and she even tells you how to enlarge or shrink a pattern, if need be. Word to the wise, though, the guidelines for the sizes are true, so don’t be afraid to alter a pattern to your body.

Rupp’s motto is “Make things with love and what you make will be loveable.” After reading Sew Everything Workshop, even someone who is convinced they could never make their own shirt or purse will be sewing with ease and panache. As a sewer with over a year of experience, I found Rupp’s book and project ideas equally useful; I made the Flouncy Tank Top and Tote-ally Awesome bag and love them both. I plan on using the book even more in the future, and I thank Rupp for finally making a sew-it-yourself book for the modern sewer.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, May 18th 2008

English Grammar Journal

admin — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 19:20:00 +0000

By Ex-Libris Anonymous

The first thing I wanted to do when I pulled this wonderful journal out of its envelope was practice my English skills. Well, not really, but the lovely vintage cover and whimsical page inserts from what seems like old English textbooks throughout the journal convinced me that I did. The blank pages just scream to be be written on, and the way the journal is put together makes that as convenient as possible. The journal is small enough to fit in my purse (although I do carry large bags), but the hard cover and spiral binding ensure that it’s easy enough to write in anywhere, from at home to on the bus to out on the town, if you so desire.

Not often does a journal come along that is so easy to use and also so good-looking, but Ex-Libris Anonymous has done a great job of combining the two. Not only that, but the journals are handmade, which really ensures their quality. Whether you’re writing your innermost thoughts, notes at work, or something creative, this journal is perfect for you.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, August 4th 2007

Fabriclive.33

admin — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 23:11:00 +0000

By Spank Rock

Fabric Records

Plenty of famous (and not so famous) DJs have contributed to the FabricLive series: James Lavelle, Jacques Lu Cont, Diplo and even the late John Peel. So Baltimore “dirty rap” superstars Spank Rock had a lot to live up to with their mix, the thirty-third in the series. And while other albums may have been better mixed, or contain more unknown tracks, there is almost no competition when it comes to plain old danceability.

Spank Rock are, by their own admission, all about the debauchery that comes with partying, so they know what they’re doing with a mix CD. The bring ultra-hip new electro and rap together with some of their own remixes and idols to make something really fresh. From more straightforward tracks like Daft Punk’s “Technologic” and Miss Kittin & The Hacker’s “Stock Exchange” to more oddball picks like Yes’ “Owner of a Lonely Heart” (you read that right) to some of their own remixes of bands like Best Fwends and Brazilian bangers Cansei de ser Sexy and Bonde Do Role, this album is pretty much a party in a cardboard sleeve. So if you’re looking for a dance mix that’s less Euro-house and more debaucherous and nasty (in the best way possible), check out Spank Rock’s FabricLive effort. It’ll make your booty shake, or you don’t have a pulse.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, June 2nd 2007

The Bridesmaid

admin — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 18:32:00 +0000

Directed by Claude Chabrol

First Run Features

Claude Chabrol is a grandfather of French cinema; he is one of the major figures of the French New Wave who is still making frequent, full-length films. Recently released in the US on DVD, Chabrol’s 2004 film, The Bridesmaid (La Demoiselle d’honneur), is a tightly wound thriller that has been compared to Hitchcock, and seems classic yet altogether contemporary.

Another Chabrol film based on a Ruth Rendell novel (the last was 1995’s La Ceremonie), the main plot revolves around Philippe (Benoit Magimel), whose sister gets married and has Senta (Laura Smet) in the wedding party as a titular bridesmaid. There is something instantly between the steady, responsible Philippe and the wild-child Senta, who, we learn, changes her name every six months and certainly has secrets in her past deeper than that. Philippe gives up his reliable persona when he meets Senta; he becomes obsessed with her, irresponsible with his duties and his family. Senta casts a spell on him; she does not seem like a fully realized character, however, and is instead everything that Philippe desires in his own life. In this way, Chabrol fails to fully develop the most fascinating aspect of his film: his femme fatale.

There are several subplots that also come to fruition within the main story, such as Philippe’s mother and her sleazy boyfriend, Philippe’s younger sister’s rebelliousness and Senta’s tango-dancing stepmother. None of these threads are woven together until the film’s final third, and even then, there are far fewer answers than questions. I did not feel as if I was watching a film with a definite plot and ending; instead, I was given scenes and impressions and made to put those ends together myself. This is a quality I normally love, but in a movie so full of suspense and mystery, I found myself wanting a little more. Chabrol is still going strong at almost eighty years old, and while this is a powerful effort, I only would have liked to see something more. What that something might have been is my own mystery.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, June 1st 2007

Woke Myself Up

admin — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 12:43:00 +0000

By Julie Doiron

Jagjaguwar

Julie Doiron has always been an artist that seems most at home in my headphones in the dead of winter or early Sunday morning, because of her sad lyrics and quiet melodies. On Woke Myself Up, Doiron’s first album since 2004’s Goodnight Nobody, she reunited with her first band, Eric’s Trip, who broke up over ten years ago. Working with these old friends must have given Doiron a sense of security because her lyrics are even more intensely personal than ever before.

I was jostled by “I Woke Myself Up,” the poppy, upbeat tune that opens the album, and that catchy tune is echoed again on “No More,” but on a closer listen, the lyrics are much more intimate and private than signified by the music. The second half of the album is more typical of Doiron’s solo work, with “You Look So Alive” and “The Wrong Guy” both more melancholy than the beginning of the album. Through all the tempo changes, however, one thing stays the same: Doiron’s beautiful, moving voice, which reminds me very much of Chan Marshall’s (of Cat Power). Her voice is utterly feminine, yet husky and deeply resonant. Fans of Doiron’s earlier work should cherish this reunion of her earlier days, and Woke Myself Up is very likely to reach out to a wider audience.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, March 15th 2007

Smut Perfume Oil Blend

admin — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 19:55:00 +0000

By Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab

I’ve heard so much from friends and acquaintances about Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab’s scented oils that I jumped at the chance to review one. They describe their scents on their website as intriguing, compelling blends with a dark, romantic Gothic tone, and I couldn’t agree more. "Smut," a limited edition scent, is musky and sweet, all at the same time. It’s a more masculine scent than I would normally wear, but I love it nonetheless. It really lives up to its name, as when I am wearing it, I feel inexplicably sexier, in a Victorian boudoir kind of way. The scent stays with you all day, and I would get wafts of it from time to time during the day. I recommend this scent highly for those looking to spice up their normal scent routines.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, March 8th 2007

Frozenstarpalace

admin — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 17:50:00 +0000

By Michelle Anthony

Merctwyn Records

As a Milwaukee girl, I was eagerly anticipating hearing Michelle Anthony’s second album, the mini-LP Frozenstarpalace. Anthony recorded it as a document of moving from Milwaukee, WI to Austin, TX, and has described it in interviews as having a “Milwaukee vibe,” despite having been recorded in Milwaukee, Austin, Chicago and Los Angeles. You might think that the record would be uneven, having been recorded at so many different times and places, but that’s not the case. Anthony’s claim that the album is a year-long song cycle is a good one, as some songs reflect the cold Wisconsin winter, and others are sunnier and poppier.

Anthony’s music reminds me a lot of Aimee Mann; both women are rock with a pop twist, and their voices are similar in emotion and depth. Anthony’s album is both sad and triumphant, a story of a woman in the middle of a life change. Fans of Aimee Mann, as well as Carole King and Bonnie Raitt, both of whom Anthony has also been compared to, would be wise to check out Anthony, a well-hidden treasure.

Written by: Dana Reinoos, February 28th 2007

Sexual Chocolate Lava Gloss

admin — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 13:10:00 +0000

By Kristine’s Shower

There has always been a certain dilemma around buying flavored lip gloss. On one hand, who doesn’t want their lips to taste like dessert, but on the other, who wants to seem like a pre-teen Bonne Bell fan? Kristine’s Shower has solved that dilemma with their delectable Lava Gloss. The flavor I tried was Sexual Chocolate, a somewhat silly name for a wonderful product. The gloss comes out through a roller top, but unlike most other roller glosses, Lava Gloss doesn’t leave your lips excessively shiny or sticky. Instead, it is enhanced with Vitamin E, so Lava Gloss hydrates and leaves your lips as smooth as any balm might. The gloss tastes and smells remarkably like chocolate brownies, so it’s a good thing that you can apply over and over again! When you turn the tube upside down, the two colors of the gloss flow against each other much like a lava lamp, thus the name. Kristine’s Shower’s Lava Gloss is a tasty, moisturizing, eye-catching little gloss, one that I can’t wait to taste more flavors of. It’s definitely recommended for those who want a little more flavor in their lip gloss!

Written by: Dana Reinoos, January 16th 2007