UPDATE: Tickets for the "Fast Times" screening are available here exclusively. Craig Renaud tells me they're selling briskly. So get em while they're hot.

I'm about to go to a "Purchase Your Pass Party" for the Little Rock Film Festival, where there will be discounted beer and networking. I guess they had that idea before they came up with this one: On Tuesday, they'll be a preview of the festival at Riverdale 10, highlighted by a screening of one of the greatest cinematic achievements ever, "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," followed by a Q&A with Judge Reinhold that Times contributor Derek Jenkins will moderate. 7:30 p.m. With an after-party at Crush.

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Shoes optional tonight at MacArthur Park.

FRIDAY, MAY 9

At White Water, Mac Sledge shares a bill with established local pros Sean Rock and The Toltecs, 9 p.m., $5.

The Weekend Theater double-bill of "Brundibar" and "Contact with the Enemy" continues, though without matinees, 7:30 p.m., $14-$18.

The Red Hot and Cool Jazz series celebrates “The Great Jazzmen of the Era” at Wildwood Park for the Arts, 7 p.m., $25.

The final Battle of the Bands installment slugs it out at Counterpoint, 11 p.m., $5.

The Chippendales do what they do at Markham 801, $15 adv., $20 at the door.

SATURDAY, MAY 10

You can't sleep til noon and still get good produce at the farmers markets in the River Market (7 a.m.-3 p.m.) and Fifth and Main in North Little Rock (7 a.m. to noon).

The Venus Mission deliver a sexy set of tunes at Revolution, 9 p.m., $7. 

A localized Blues and Jazz Festival celebrating the Barrow Neighborhood Association will feature The “On Call Band” and William Staggers at West End Park, noon-6:30 p.m., free.

For hip-hop fans, Arkansas Times Musicians Showcase semi-finalists 4x4 Crew hosts “The Let Out Party,” which includes a video shoot and top local DJs, at Markham 801, 10:30 p.m., $10.

Indoor gridiron warriors Arkansas Twisters take on Oklahoma City at Alltel Arena, 7 p.m., $11-$28. It's Indiana Jones night. If you dress up like Indy, you'll get $2 off admission. What a deal.

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JOSH RITTER
9 p.m., Revolution, $10 adv., $12 d.o.s.

Critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Josh Ritter makes his Revolution debut with an all-ages show on his “Small Town USA” tour, following the release of his latest record, “The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter.” The album has received widespread critical acclaim and Ritter also has been named by Entertainment Weekly among its Top 10 artists to watch. Songs such as “The Dogs of Whoever,” pay true, yet subtle, homage to Bob Dylan, with musically reserved verses followed by a 3-2-1 blastoff breaking wide open into a heavier chorus, supported by a rock-bottom rhythm section, piano included, and strong backing vocal accompaniment. Expect electric and acoustic pianos, organs, guitars, vibraphone and percussion galore, along with acoustic, electric and double bass, and, of course, drums. Baton Rouge natives the Benjy Davis Project open.

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THE BRAVERY
9 p.m., Juanita's. $15 adv., $18 d.o.s.

It's not too often Little Rock lands a buzz band, or at least not a buzz band that's been anointed by the mainstream press — not yet popular enough to land magazine covers, but familiar to Rolling Stone readers. So young rockers, take note: The Bravery, not too long ago picked as “New York's Official Next Big Thing” by the Village Voice and, today, with a current top-10 single in Billboard's “Modern Rock” chart, comes to town in support of its latest, “The Sun and the Moon Complete,” on which the band continues its move away from the new-wave revival that lifted it to prominence to a more mainstream rock sound. Still, don't be surprised if you catch a whiff of the Cure. Buzzworthy, too: Modern rockers Fiction Plane, featuring Joe Sumner (AKA Sting's son) on bass and vocals and Bear Colony, a Little Rock based-indie group getting national attention, open the show.

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HAYES CARLL
9 p.m., Sticky Fingerz. $10 adv., $12 d.o.s.

A Houston native and Hendrix alum, singer/songwriter Hayes Carll has made Arkansas a home away from home throughout his near decade of performing. He plays in Little Rock every couple of months, named his second, highly acclaimed album “Little Rock” and, on his latest, “Trouble in Mind,” he's got a song called “Bad Liver and Broken Heart,” that opens with “Arkansas, my head hurts.” You can bet that gets the crowd whooping. It's also probably a pretty safe bet that the crowd that comes out to see Carll — typically large — will have swollen. Since “Trouble in Mind” came out last month on the Universal subsidiary Lost Highway, Carll has picked up rave reviews everywhere from Entertainment Weekly to Billboard magazine. Corb Lund, an Alberta, Canada, folk-singer with a name made for touring with Hayes Carll, opens the show with music from his latest album, a theme album full of songs about horses and war. LM.

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Josh Brolin as George W. Bush

''I think history is going to be very tough on him. But that doesn't mean he isn't a great story. It's almost Capra-esque, the story of a guy who had very limited talents in life, except for the ability to sell himself. The fact that he had to overcome the shadow of his father and the weight of his family name — you have to admire his tenacity. There's almost an Andy Griffith quality to him, from A Face in the Crowd. If Fitzgerald were alive today, he might be writing about him. He's sort of a reverse Gatsby.''—Oliver Stone (via EW)

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Princes return.

There's almost too much happening this weekend. Here's an early look. You're going to have to prioritize.

FRIDAY

Hayes Carll at Sticky Fingerz, 9 p.m., $10 adv., $12 d.o.s. His latest, "Trouble in Mind," is getting glowing reviews. Yesterday, NPR ran a piece on him. Previously.

New Orleans' finest the Preservation Hall Jazz Band joins the ASO at Robinson, 8 p.m., $16-$70.

Modern rock standouts the Bravery are at Juanita's (with Fiction Plane, featuring Sting's son), 9 p.m., $15-$18.

Increasingly famous singer/songwriter Josh Ritter plays Revolution, 9 p.m., $10 adv., $12 d.o.s.

At White Water, Mac Sledge shares a bill with established local folk Sean Rock and The Toltecs, 9 p.m., $5.

SATURDAY

Blooms, a melange of art and culture and the outdoors, kicks off at Wildwood Park, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., $5-$35.

The American Princes, amidst their national tour, return home to play Rock 'n' Roar with the Friendly Friends, 7 p.m., $8.

Preservation Hall Jazz Band joins the ASO at Robinson again, 8 p.m., $16-$70.

Neo-soul up-and-comer Conya Doss is at Juanita's, 10 p.m., $20-$40.

Mop-haired good-time rockers J. Roddy Walston and the Business return to White Water, 9 p.m., $5. With Smoke Up Johnny, too.

SUNDAY

Carrie Underwood is Alltel and way sold out, 7:30 p.m., scalpers prices.

There's a Doo-Wop Celebration, at 3 and 7 p.m., at Robinson, featuring a handful of doo-wop favorites you'd probably be surprised to know are still alive, $55-$100.

 

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da da DA DA DA

Since our two regular movie critics, David Koon and Matt Reed, were super-amped for "Iron Man," and since reams of straightforward reviews have already been written, we decided to take it on discussion-style, a little more conversationally. This'll appear in Thursday's paper, but lest it be old news, I'ma go ahead and post it here. We give fair warning for spoilers.

Lindsey Millar: I know that we’ve all been anticipating "Iron Man" for months now, pouring over screencaps, sending each other links to new versions of the trailer and crossing off days our calendar. Anytime a studio teams a director with a relatively smart, offbeat track record (Favreau of "Swingers" fame) with a serious actor (Downey Jr.) and stupid-cool F/X tricks, my expectations get a little silly. But fellas, I gotta tell you, I wasn't really let down.

There's no question that "Iron Man" belongs in the pantheon with the first "Spiderman," "Batman Begins" and "The Flash" (joking). Are we all in agreement? Who deserves credit? Marvel Studios? Favreau? The writers and rewriters? Downey Jr.?

Matt Reed: I agree, this is one of the best superhero movies ever made, and Favreau and Downey and the writers deserve the lion's share of the credit. Downey was tailor-made for this sort of role. It's even better if you grew up with some of his comedies in the ’80s, like "The Pick-Up Artist." Smarmy guy with heart of gold stuff. In fact, that's "Iron Man" for me: "The Pick-Up Artist" with robot suits. And everyone knows that if there's anything better than picking up chicks, it's picking up chicks in a robot suit.

David Koon: You know, Matt, I've gotta disagree with you on RD Jr. being tailor-made for the role. The lovely part about great actors — Brando comes to mind, as does Johnny Depp — is that they have this uncanny ability to take on roles that have you scratching your head and then knock your friggin’ socks off. That was RD Jr. in Ironman. When I heard he was doing this, I honestly couldn't see him in the role. Now that he's done it, I can't see anybody else. Ditto on Christian Bale in "Batman Begins," and ditto on Ed Norton in "Incredible Hulk," which makes me think that one's going to rock as well.

Continue reading "Geek out: The inaugural editon of the Arkansas Times movie club" »

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The latest Oxford American — the first since the embezzlement drama — is on newsstands. Continuing a recent trend of releasing theme issues, this is the Home Issue.

Here's the teaser:

Dedicated to overturning the newsstand conventions of the genre, our Home Issue investigates the real places we live, tapping into the intimate relationships we have with our domestic spaces—how what we shape also shapes us. There is no place like home, especially in a dangerous economy, and our writers specify why, offering perspectives on the homeless and the homesick, the modern masterpieces you've not heard about, the highs and lows of home ownership, and the settings that exude our personal histories and innermost secrets.

Featuring Hal Crowther, Sarah M. Broom, Keith Pandolfi and Gaston Callum, Michael Donohue, Vivé Griffith, Jack Pendarvis, Michael Knight, Chris Bachelder, Dana Shavin, a star-studded team of contemporary architects led by Robert Ivy, Roy Blount, Jr., John T. Edge, and many others.

I've only had a chance to flip-through it and catch a bit in Marc Smirnoff's editor letter about misreading the embezzler's "essence," former Times staffer Warwick Sabin's steely publisher's photo and that sometimes Times contributor and OA editor at large Paul Reyes has a piece on the "life (and death by fire) of a historic home" here in Little Rock (1020 Rock St.) Below: a capsule preview of the article.

There's a fundraiser in Little Rock coming up on May 29. Details.

Continue reading "Still alive" »

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Brian Martin and the Circulators.

White Water hosts a powerhouse bill featuring hook-y, Americana-inflected pop-rockers Big Silver and Spa City's finest swingin' blues band, Brian Martin and the Circulators, 9 p.m., $5.

If you like your old-time a little zanier, Vino's hosts Fayetteville's Cletus Got Shot, who do a kind of unhinged psychobilly bluegrass, and local standbys the Damn Bullets, 8:30 p.m., $7.

The Big John Miller Band is at the Afterthought, 9 p.m., $7.

Zodiac Taurus is in effect at Revolution, with DJ Mea, Chaos, Ska-T and Zodiac Aries spin-off winners Blake Taylor and Jordy, 8 p.m.

Uglistick plays the Peabody's RiverTop party, 8 p.m., $5.

Improv Little Rock pits two teams against one another in “The Comedy Throwdown” at the Public Theatre, 10 p.m., $7.

If the rain goes away, the Travs continue their home stand against the Drillers, 7:10 p.m., $6-$10.

More.

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HURRICANE CHRIS/LIL JJ
8 p.m., the Village. $20 adv., $25 d.o.s. 

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Actors from 'Brundibar'

‘BRUNDIBAR'/‘CONTACT WITH THE ENEMY'
7:30 p.m., the Weekend Theater. $14-$18. 

The Weekend Theater concludes its 2007-2008 season with a World War II-themed double bill. The opera “Brundibar” was originally performed by the children of the Theresienstadt concentration camp in occupied Czechoslovakia, using only the instruments available to them at the camp. Reminiscent of “Hansel and Gretel,” the opera follows the travails of two fatherless children who're trying to earn money for their sick mother in a marketplace controlled by an evil organ grinder, Brundibar. The second half of the bill features “Contact with the Enemy,” a one-act play about two World War II vets who meet by chance in front of the Holocaust Museum and realize that they once knew each other, giving rise to conversations and recollections of long suppressed events. The double bill runs through May 18.

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‘RAMONA QUIMBY'
7 p.m., Arkansas Children's Theatre. $10-$14. 

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COOL SHOES
10 p.m., Downtown Music. $5. 

In the grand tradition of localizing popular culture that's given us Little Rock Star and Belvis the Black Elvis, local promoter/roustabout TJ Deeter offers up his version of “Club MTV” (which, of course, was modeled on “American Bandstand,” which, in turn, had its own Little Rock version, “Steve's Show”). As Deeter envisions it, Cool Shoes will bring dancing, jams, live performance, art and video together in a package that, when edited down, will make for a nifty webisode for his localistmagazine.com and his homeboy Rod Bryan's anthro.tv. Sadly, Deeter will not be filling the Downtown Julie Brown role. No one will. But back to the pressing matters: Friday night is all about dancing, to jams provided by Deeter and Casey Stuart, looking at cool art by Ike Plumlee and Cameron Holifield, and head nodding to a one-song live performance by Rockst*r, who'll be unveiling a new single. Deeter didn't see a need to extend a special invitation to folks to wear their spiffiest kicks. “Everyone already wears cool shoes.”

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Be warned. John Brandon's “Arkansas” (McSweeney's Rectangulars, $22, cloth) is not your Arkansas. Or any Arkansas rooted in history or geography or reality. In an online interview with identitytheory.com, the first-time novelist said that he likes to write about places he's only visited briefly. “Arkansas is a hard place to pin down,” he said, “so anything seems possible.”

There is, of course, a counter-argument easily made: Arkansas is not hard to pin down. It's a real place, where there are no hills, “cut off” or otherwise, in Union County, where you would never travel through Jonesboro heading north to Memphis, where Pine Bluff could never be described as “craggy.” For Brandon, these details are secondary. His Arkansas is somewhere cast apart and away, a stand-in for nowhere, an indistinct purgatory of a place, where someone could just as easily stay forever as leave tomorrow.

Get past that blurred approach — and rare specifics, like “Little Rock is a rotten maze”— though, and “Arkansas” is a fine read, an existential crime tale, more picaresque than noir, packed with tight prose, plenty of pathos and a plot that roils along.

Continue reading "'Arkansas' in review" »

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