Month: August 2008

  • Spark It Up!

    As activists on the West Side get the shake down from the cops, and St. Paul frets and fusses over last minute preparations at RNC ground zero; Downtown Minneapolis geared up to show its artistic flair at Spark24! What is Spark24 you ask? Well, if you haven’t been living under a rock for the past…

  • Cocinero Karimi at the Bedlam Theatre

    Okay, here’s a quick tip for foodies: the "The Cooking Show Con Mero Cocinero Karimi," playing this weekend and next at the Bedlam Theatre is very, very funny. I saw the show last year when Robert Karimi performed it at Pangea World Theater. I won’t spoil the fun by giving away too many details (actually,…

  • Chris Koza is Optimistic and Doesn't Care Who Knows It

    Chris Koza is the kind of man who gives cigarettes to homeless people. In person and in his music he is wantonly candid and authentic. Koza and his four-piece band happily loll at mid tempo, blending roots music, twang and a heavy dose of pop to create a giddy sound so large it breaks the…

  • Tots, Blood, and a Broken Jaw

    Yesterday, I went to the State Fair with my dad, who is my all-time favorite person to go to the Fair with. Going to the Fair with my dad is like going to Vegas with Paul Rudd’s character in the movie Knocked Up. Except, instead of ingesting hallucinogens and risking pinkeye, we ingest epic quantities…

  • The Rake's Secrets to Surviving the RNC

    As you’re well aware, this week the Twin Cities plays host to one of the biggest political extravaganzas known to man: The Republican National Convention. The chaos that will surely descend on our fair cities will be met with more Minnesota-brand arts and culture than you can shake a stick at, as well as thousands…

  • A Pair of Jedi Masters Become One With the Force

    "I feel a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced." Obi-Wan might as well have been talking about last night’s call by Hillary Clinton to nominate Barack Obama by acclamation. Even as cheers rang throughout the assembled DNC crowd, through the MPR broadcast…