Recent Contributions from Dan Goldstein

Test Spin: Atmosphere

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 -0400

One of the best things about the hip-hop duo Atmosphere is how articulate rapper Slug is. One of the worst things about When Life Gives You Lemons is how an army of overpowering instrumentals, led by louder-than-necessary snapping snare drums, negates whatever advantages clear vocals usually bring to an Atmosphere track.

With the music out in front of the vocals, otherwise noteworthy beats grow mundane, rarely changing, which further diminishes the listening experience. Adding to the monotony of the album, most songs carry a dark, ominous tone; songs simply mesh into each other. The album lacks strong distinction among the individual tracks.

Events of Interest

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Arts Events Around the Ivies

• Brown’s imPulse Dance Company will perform its 5th Annual Spring Show, Chaos Theory, tomorrow at Alumnae Hall. The dancing and choreography is straight from the students, which will make for an exciting event. The chaos will ensue at 6 p.m.

• Tomorrow at 8 p.m. Greg Graffin, lead singer of punk rock band Bad Religion, who received a Ph.D from Cornell, will speak, answer questions and perform acoustic guitar at Harvard’s Memorial Church. Harvard is presenting Graffin with the 2008 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural Humanism. Go support a Cornell alum and check this out tomorrow.

Cornell Origami: It's All in the Folds

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Roses and lilies in full bloom; bears, frogs and various birds relaxing, taking in their surroundings, standing still as I walked past. I did not fully comprehend the incredible variety of forms a single piece of paper could take until I walked into the Willard Straight Art Gallery last week for a visit with Cornell’s Origami Club.

“It’s paper,” said Andrew Yongvanich ’09. “Being able to fold it into such elaborate figures is amazing.”

Events of Interest

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Arts Events Around Upstate New York:

• Interested in supporting a good cause? Does going to what ESPN and Playboy Magazine agree is the “classiest party in the Ivy League” tickle your fancy? Then head on over to 777 Stewart Ave, home of Alpha Delta Phi, tonight for some friendly gambling, music and dancing, all in support of the Family & Children’s Services of Ithaca. Tickets can be purchased at Willard Straight Box Office. Class is in session at 9:30 p.m.

• Tonight is “Orange Night Live: Best of Campus Comedy Night” at Syracuse University. Two of the school’s top improv comedy groups, Zamboni Revolution and Woo Hoo Comedy, will be producing laughs in the Panasci Lounge of the Schine Student Center. Get your first dose of the best medicine at 8 p.m.

It's All Up in the Air

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

I always thought it was difficult to juggle a bunch of different classes, a part time job and my work here at The Sun. Then I walked into the Noyes multipurpose room a week ago and saw people juggling clubs, balls and rings. That, I discovered, is much harder. You wouldn’t know, though, by looking at the faces of the members of Cornell’s Juggling Club.

“As a club, we’re pretty laid back,” explained club president Gregory Billing ‘08.

According to Billing, the club always welcomes new members or anyone at all interested in what they do every Friday.

“If you want to come and sit and watch us for an hour and a half,” he said with a smile, “you’re more than welcome.

Events of Interest

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Arts Events in Upstate New York:

• Are you ready to get fired up? Three furnaces and an Ice Pyrotechnic Performance will be included in Binghamton’s all-day Invitational Iron Pouring event today. Between the sculptures and the pyrotechnic show, this event is the epitome of arts and entertainment.

• David Frumkin and George Kobas, who play the violin, mandolin, two guitars and a slide guitar between the two of them, will visit Ithaca this weekend. The duo will be at Danby Town Hall, located at 1830 Danby Rd (96B), from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. They will perform their unique renditions of jazz classics as well as a number or their own compositions.

Events Calendar

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Arts Events Around the Ivies:

• This weekend, you have not just one, not two, but three chances to see Harvard’s “CityStep's Live at 25!” dance show. CityStep is an organization that provides creative expression activities for Cambridge’s youth. The show’s dances will be choreographed and performed by the kids in the CityStep program. Come watch and listen to Cambridge’s finest on Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. and later that night at 7 p.m.

Events of Interest

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Arts Events Around Upstate New York:

• The University of Rochester’s Students’ Association will host a celebration of art and music today at Station 55. 15 bands and performers are on the set to play at ArtAwake as visitors admire the artwork of over 70 different painters, photographers, sculptors and other artists. The event is slated to start at 4 p.m. and end at 2 a.m. Food will be served as well.

• Sara Bareilles headlines the 4th Annual Women in Music Concert at Syracuse University this weekend. The Goldstein Auditorium in the Schine Student Center will play host to a celebration of musical women, at Syracuse and beyond. Syracuse women will open for Bareilles, starting at 8 p.m. tomorrow.

Rocking out with Just About Music

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0400

When I arrived at the p (performance) space at the Just About Music (JAM) dorm, I was not met with the thumping drums and shredding guitar that I thought I would be. A handful of “jammies” were hanging out, talking, relaxing and waiting for Musiccom — the hall government over at JAM — to start. Three year JAM resident Bryan Sutermaster ’09 let me in the door, introduced me to the rest of his “jamily” and we talked for a minute or two before Musiccom began.

All Musiccom meetings start with community news. The group discussed everything from event planning to organizing the cords and wires in the p space. After community news and funding requests, next on the agenda was announcement of musical happenings.

Arts Events Around Upstate N.Y.

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• The Cazenovia Public Library will has an exhibition going on today, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. to benefit stray dogs in Todos Santos, Baja California Sur Mexico. Painter Randy Akers has a series of pieces titled “The Dogs of Todos Santos” that depicts stray dogs in the village. All proceeds from the sale of the paintings will go to The Refuge Animal Sanctuary. Come participate in the art of helping others.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• The Harvard South Asian Association will present Ghungroo 2008 this weekend. Over 150 undergraduates will grace the stage with a wide variety of talents including dancing, music, poetry and acting. The Agassiz Theatre has a show tonight at 7 p.m. and tomorrow at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Hurry up and get tickets because the Saturday evening show is already sold out!

• The Columbia Alumni Arts League will host a tour of the 2008 Whitney Biennial Exhibition this weekend. The Biennial Exhibition has become the Whitney Museum’s most popular attraction, displaying art from many genres and changing every year to comment on what art is at this point in time. The guided tour is from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.

Arts Events Around Upstate N.Y.

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Although aimed at children, the Greater Ithaca Activities Center’s annual Black History Month Talent Show should be fun for everyone. Talents will include, but are not limited to, singing, dancing, drumming and poetry readings. An informational session on safety is also on the agenda. If you have no talent and would like to admire those who do, be at the GIAC, located at 318 North Albany St. at 5 p.m. this evening.

• Pink Floyd tribute band Childhood’s End will be at Mac’s Bad Art Bar tonight at 10:30 p.m. Mac’s Bar Art Bar, located at 1799 Brewerton Road in Mattydale near Syracuse, will provide the band with an eight foot video screen, intelligent lights and other fun additives to enhance their performance.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Been a while since you’ve seen a puppet show? Head down to UPenn this weekend for a double feature of puppet movies as PhD candidate Jeehyun Lee discusses how puppets are used for imagery in contemporary art. Be at the Institute of Contemporary Art, located at 118 S. 36th Street, by 2 p.m. on Saturday. Get there any later and you might have to pull a few strings to get a good seat.

• Everybody get ready — the Intercollegiate Piano Festival is finally here! This Saturday at 3 p.m., musicians from Brown will join students from University of Rhode Island and perform compositions for both solo and ensemble piano. The newly renovated Grand Recital Hall is a great place to start your March on a musical note.

Rhythm and Rebellion at Appel

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Lights flashing, music blaring, people in motion — I knew I was in the right place. From the moment I walked into Appel Commons last Friday night, the members of Dance Dance Revolution Club were on the move, with the energy meter going through the roof.

The players’ feet were moving so quickly it was as though they were simply vibrating over the pads, not actually picking their feet up and placing them on the different arrows. In tag-team fashion, if one player jumped off the pad to take a break or tie a pair of sneakers, without hesitation, another would jump on and continue the song.

Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Need a little comedy in the horror movie that is prelim season? Tonight at 9 p.m. is Comedy Night at Monirae’s, located at 688 County Route 10 in Pennville. This collection of Central New York’s highest quality comics, followed by the Custom Taylor Band, are sure to turn that frown upside down.

• The Goldstein Auditorium in Syracuse’s Schine Student Center will host a night of dancing this weekend during the DanceWorks Annual Show. The performance, with its New York City theme, will run the gamut of dance styles, as it includes hip hop, tap and Bhangra, among others. All dancing shoes should be laced up by 8 p.m on Saturday.

Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Princeton’s Spring Dance Festival 2008 is the perfect opportunity for dance students to show their stuff. Berlind Theatre in McCarter Theatre Center will house a showcase of student dancing as well as student choreography. While the main performance is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, there is an additional performance at 8 p.m.

• Watch out! The Harvard Pops Orchestra presents “Pops Gone Wild: The Animal Concert!” this weekend. Music from dangerous movies such as Jurassic Park and Raiders of the Lost Ark as well as compositions by Stravinsky, Saint-Saen and Strauss. The animals are out of their cage at 8 p.m. on Saturday.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The best of the best in college a capella will be under one roof — Ithaca College’s Ford Hall — this weekend. The Mid-Atlantic quarterfinals of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella is on Saturday. While most of these groups probably cannot hold a candle to Cornell’s finest, it will probably be a cool competition to check out. The battle begins at 8 p.m.

Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Has the wait for the fourth Shrek movie become too painful? Was the best movie you’ve seen in the past few months Ratatouille? Animation-lovers unite! Susan Napier of Tufts University will be speaking at Princeton this afternoon about animation, its place in 21st-century culture and how it relates to the increase in virtual reality we see around us. If you’re reading this later than about noon, though, you might have to just draw yourself a picture of this event because there’s a chance you’ll be too late.

Whistle While You ... Shrimp

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Whose line is it anyway? I don’t know. But you can certainly ask any member of the Whistling Shrimp. The men and women of Cornell’s only all-improv comedy group always know what line comes next, even if they decided on it two seconds ago. As a part of my quest to join every single student organization on campus for at least a day (I’m almost there … kinda) I whistled with the Shrimp during one of their practices this past Monday.

Arts Events Around Upstate N.Y.

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Andrew McMahon, vocalist and pianist for Something Corporate, brings his side project, Jacks Mannequin to Rochester Institute of Technology’s Gordon Fieldhouse tonight. This piano rock band from Orange County will be ready to roll beginning at 8 p.m. If you are looking to have a good time tonight, put this on your schedule.

• This Saturday, head on over to the Onondaga Historical Association Museum, located at 321 Montgomery St. in Syracuse. The Exploring History with Art exhibit shows the changes in local transportation over the last two centuries. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., museum patrons can please their minds and their eyes with this artistic history lesson.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• At Howl: 4th Annual Celebration of Columbia’s Beats, the university will honor Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, two of the Beat Generation’s most widely- recognized personalities. Starting today at 3:30 p.m., Columbia will hold a panel discussion, student and alumni poetry readings, an exhibition in the Rare Book and Manuscript library and musical performances. Various events will take place in different locations across the Morningside campus, so bring your walking shoes.

Arts Events Upstate

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Looking to buy someone a gift? Head over to the Country Folk Art & Craft Show at Syracuse’s Empire Expo Center, NYS Fairgrounds tonight. Located at 581 State Fair Blvd., the Empire Expo Center will be filled with decorations for the home, great gifts and other interesting works of art. Crafts will be on display between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. so get going right now!

• I bet a lot of you could really use a good laugh right now. Well, go no further than to the University of Rochester’s Strong Auditorium tonight at 9 p.m. Emmy-nominated Demetri Martin will be performing stand up comedy. A contributor to both The Daily Show and Late Night With Conan O’Brien, Martin, who was also in an episode of The Flight of the Conchords, should produce a few laughs.

Arts Events in the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Wycliffe Gordon and Friends hit Columbia University’s Miller Theatre, located at Broadway and 116th, at 8 p.m. tomorrow night. Gordon’s friends include Jeremy pelt on trumpet, Rodney Green on drums and Cyrus Chestnut on piano. JazzTimes calls Gordon “a breath of fresh air,” so if the Ithaca air is too cold, head down to Columbia tomorrow to breathe in some jazz.

Welcome to Cornell, Kids

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0500

According to what I’ve been reading in The Sun, the number of high schoolers applying to Cornell is up … way up. With this in mind, I became a member of the Cornell University Ambassadors … for one hour. This past Tuesday I went to one of the Ambassadors’ bi-weekly meetings to see what the Ambassadors do, who the Ambassadors are and what it is about the people that interact with prospective students that is causing our application rates to skyrocket.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• Are you looking through your albums on Facebook, wishing you could relive that New Year’s Eve party you went to? Here’s your second chance: ring in the Chinese New Year at the Penn Museum this weekend. The University of Pennsylvania will usher in the Year of the Rat with a day choc full of music, dance performances, children’s activities, storytelling, arts and crafts, martial arts and a Lion Dance parade. Festivities at the Penn Museum, located at 3260 South Street, will begin at 10:19 a.m.

Arts Events Around Upstate N.Y.

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0500

• For all those High School Musical fans out there afraid to admit their obsession, this weekend there will be a way for you to give in to your desire without fear of humiliation from all your friends here at Cornell. Run away to Syracuse, where The War Memorial At Oncenter located at 515 Montgomery St. is hosting Disney’s High School Musical – The Ice Tour. The tour hits Syracuse on Sunday and the magic starts at 7 p.m.

• Duke Robillard and his band will be at the Center for the Arts, located at 72 South Main St. in Homer this weekend. After winning five “Best Blues Guitarist” awards from The Blues Music Awards, this guitarist, singer and songwriter has been nominated for a record sixth award. Saturday night’s show starts at 8 p.m.; doors open at 7 p.m.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

• People often celebrate a musical artist or group who has stayed relevant and popular over multiple decades. This is quite a difficult feat to accomplish. But what about a group that has been around for over 500 years? Formed in 1498, the Vienna Boys Chior comes to Ithaca tonight. Come down to the State Theatre, located at 109 W. State St. at 7:30.

• Feeling fancy? SUNY Oswego’s Student Association Programming Board presents “Formal evening: ‘A Night at the Ellington.’” Starting tonight at 9, the Sheldon Hall Ballroom will be the setting for dancing, hors d’oeuvres and formal attire. The Oswego Jazz Project performs.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

• The Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert and Sullivan Players are giving you two chances to see Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Mikado (or The Town of Titipu)” at Harvard this weekend. The play, which was arguably the most popular of their works, will be shown tonight and tomorrow afternoon. Tonight is the “creative black tie opening” at 8, while tomorrow will be a “milk & cookies matinee” at 2 p.m. Both showings will take place in Agassiz Theatre at 10 Garden St. in Cambridge.

Roaming the Hill

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

I was always a big collector when I was younger. Basketball cards, Pokémon cards — you name it. My beloved collections, however, were not as unique as the Wilder Brain Collection housed in Uris Hall. When I visited the brain collection this week, I learned about science, history, Cornell and why my collection of pogs from elementary school was not as cool as I thought it was.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

• Have you ever been in that situation where you’re with a group of friends, and you’re having a tough time picking an activity for the night? One friend wants music, another friend wants storytelling and yet another is in the mood for some comedy. Wouldn’t it be easier if Billy Delaney provided all three in one show this weekend? Well, hit up the Blue Frog Café, on Main St. in Cortland tomorrow night at 8, and your diverse group of friends will be satisfied.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

• Forget anything you ever learned in the formal education setting. You can find everything you’ve ever wanted to know on stage this Saturday at Syracuse University. The Black Box Theatre presents The Meaning of Life and Other Useless Pieces of Information. The play, by a 2004 SU drama graduate, questions whether there is more to life than what we see. Be ready to start pondering at 8 p.m.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

• I’d say the worst part of growing up is that nobody reads to you before you go to sleep anymore. Well, we can all head to the Harlem Vintage at 2235 Frederick Douglas Blvd. near Columbia University tonight for a long overdue bedtime story. Between 7:30 and 9:30 there will be a reception and a reading of Nelle Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird as a part of a month long celebration of the novel.

Record Review: Jay-Z

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

At the start of American Gangster, Jay-Z doesn’t seem himself. After a bit of listening, though, I question whether this was the decline of a legend, or a conscious decision. Listeners get the Jigga Man they know and love, along with some flows and styles they’re not really accustomed to.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• Ska-reggae group One Night Band, punk-ska band The Flatliners and ska-rockers The Robo-Buddies will be performing at 727 S. Crouse St. in Syracuse this Sunday. Three bands in one night — what’s the catch? The catch is that you have to try to convince your friends to go to a place called Funk n’ waffles. The concert starts at 6 p.m. on Sunday, and with three bands in once place, be ready for anything. The ska is the limit.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• The place to be this Saturday is the Penn Bookstore! Wait … did I just tell you to spend your weekend at a campus bookstore? This Saturday, UPenn is having a free concert in its bookstore. Folk Rock/Pop artist Jordan Lawhead will be performing from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. So hit the books!

• Everybody loves opera. It’s a scientific fact. Therefore, it is a must that everybody check out the Yale Opera tonight at 8. The group will be performing their show “Opera Scenes,” which includes scenes from a number of different operas. The audience will enjoy excerpts form Bellini’s “I Puritani” and Massenet’s “Don Quichotte,” among others. The show is at Morse Recital Hall in Sprague Memorial Hall, located at 470 College St. in New Haven.

Roaming the Hill

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0400

I walked into the Helen Newman Dance Studio last Sunday night, and the group was already in motion. Many were dancing; some were stretching; still others were just talking with their friends.

“We’re all passionate about break dancing,” said David Hoang ’08, president of Absolute Zero. “That’s why we come. That’s why we dance.”

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• If you think you’re too old to go trick-or-treating, perhaps you can find another way to celebrate Halloween this year. The Nextage at Geva Theatre Center, located at 75 Woodbury Blvd. in Rochester, is the place to be for those who are ready to move past big bags of candy. Tomorrow night at 10:30, Geva Comedy Improv will be performing its “Improv Slasher Movie.” Just make sure you don’t sit in the first three rows of the theater, which will be designated the “Splash Zone.”

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• Are you in a charitable mood? Yes? Well, then check out the “No Half Steppin' Charity Step Show” tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. Harvard’s Lowell Lecture Hall will house a showcase of several different step groups. Sponsored by the Harvard Society of Black Scientists and Engineers, the show will include stepping from Harvard’s own sophomore team, as well as groups from other colleges.

Roaming the Hill

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Everyone in the lounge at Noyes Community and Recreation Center was silent. All eyes focused on one person and nobody so much as flinched as they waited for his next move. In one slow, confident motion, the player picked up his pieces and placed them down in front of everyone. “P-I-M-P,” the wooden letters spelled out. As laughter crashed through the stillness, Mori Bellamy ’09, vice president of Cornell’s Scrabble Club, counted up his points and recorded his total on the scoreboard.

“We don’t take ourselves too seriously,” explained Treasurer Jenna Walker ’10 as she recalled that the mission of the club is simply, “to have people enjoy Scrabble.”

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• Tonight, Brown’s MacMillan Hall turns into a comedy club as sketch comedy group Out of Bounds puts on a performance they call “The Geriatric Show.” The show is named for the group’s claim that their comedy is “hip-breaking.” Whether that is a clever promotional tactic or a warning is to be determined. Either way, the laughter is slated to start at 9 p.m.

• Harvard plays Princeton in football this weekend. This is good for two reasons: 1) one team of those teams will move down in the Ivy rankings and 2) both the Harvard and Princeton Glee Clubs are performing in the same concert on Harvard’s campus. If that’s not an Arts Event Around the Ivies, I don’t know what is. The St. George’s Chapel Choir will join the two groups, starting at 8 p.m. tonight.

Arts Events Around Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• The Sam Kininger Band comes to Syracuse this weekend. Former Soulive Saxophonist Sam Kininger leads a band that plays experimental music fusing jazz, funk and r & b. The show, starting at 10 p.m. this Saturday will be in Syracuse’s Mezzanotte Cafe Bar at 658 N. Salina St.

• If you’ve skipped your last few trips to the gym, the only way to make up for lost work out time is by doing the twist. That’s right, Chubby Checker is coming to the Magic City Music Hall, located at 365 Harry L Dr. in Johnson City, near Binghamton. The doors open at 6 p.m. on Saturday, and the twisting starts at 8 p.m.

Record Review: Alex Kresovich '08

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Executive producer Alex Kresovich ’08 takes listeners on an emotional roller coaster with diverse board work and an appealing mix of vocal talents on The Crowned Prince. The album has everything from S-Caliber’s raw “Gears of War” with drums that sound like marching feet, guns and explosions in one, to KOD’s party approved “Chillin In It.”

Hystwise shows his aptitude for metaphors on “My Autograph.” In the equally witty “Sneakers” he cleverly uses talk of footwear to refer to women — Hystwise claims “Some had to let ’em go/ They was on me too tight.”

Another highlight of the compilation is Estee Nack’s “El General.” Nack flows flawlessly over sluggish drums that will have heads nodding in extra slow motion.

Arts Events in Upstate NY

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• Jazz musician John Pizzarelli uses music to write a fan letter to Ol’ Blue Eyes in his “Dear Mr. Sinatra.” Pizzarelli is performing at the Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater at Mulroy Civic Center, located at 411 Montgomery Street in Syracuse tonight. While Frank Sinatra might not have been thinking about Ithaca when he wrote New York, New York, a Cornellian can dream, can’t he? Pizzarelli puts pen to pad (musically that is) at 8 p.m.

Arts Events Around the Ivies

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

• This Saturday closes the Galleries for Pixilerations [v.4], a showcase of digital media and interactive performance, minutes away from Brown in Providence. This is the fourth annual installment of a show featuring filmmakers, artists, musicians and other media craftspeople. The showcase takes place in two locations. Some works can be seen at the Rhode Island School of Design. Cornellians should not have trouble finding the second showcase building, The Space at Alice, which is located at 70 Eddy St.

Record Review: will.i.am

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

In his third solo effort, Songs About Girls, will.i.am gives us exactly what we have come to expect from the Black Eyed Peas front man. Unfortunately, that’s all he gives us.

As an individual entity, each funk infused and musically solid track is a treat for the ears. But after more than a dozen of these songs, listeners will find themselves searching for the light at the end of the tunnel.

Roaming the Hill

Dan Goldstein — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

So, I went to a concert Sunday evening. No, I wasn’t rocking out in Barton. I wasn’t jamming in State Theater. I listened to the chimes at McGraw Tower. The concert didn’t feature the typical soft, classical chime music I expected; they have a 2,500 song catalogue that includes the Beatles’ “In My Life” and Coldplay’s “Clocks.” As the tower filled with concertgoers, each with different tastes — and thus different requests — Head Chimesmaster Scott Silverstein ’08 turned to me and laughed, “I’m not going to play anything I originally intended to play.”

Record Review: 2 Pac

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

In the second installment of Nu Mixx Klazzics, 2 Pac’s thoughts and words are brought back to life with help from additional vocalists, new instrumental work and other extra additives. Classics “Hail Mary,” “2 Of Americaz Most Wanted” and “How Do U Want It,” each part of the original Nu Mixx track list, make their second appearances in the series.

The highlight of this collection is the new version of “What’z Ya Phone #,” originally from 1996’s All Eyez On Me. Pac’s lyrics come alive and are clearer than ever over a slower, almost Screw-like, beat. The discrepancy between the lethargic music and Pac’s hyped up lyrics make the listener really pay attention to everything he says.

Uncommonly Innocuous

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

The first track on Chicago rapper Common’s latest effort, Finding Forever introduces the soft, pleasant and jazzy sound that makes up a lion’s share of the record’s instrumental work and it is perfect. The music is well made and nice to listen to. But, too much of a good thing can have negative consequences.

For the most part, the similarity in the music of each track creates an effect that makes listeners feel like they are hearing one very long song, and not a diverse, musically compelling album. Except for a few stand out exceptions, very little of the material is successful in grabbing — let alone maintaining — attention.

Review: Red Gone Mild

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 01:00:00 -0400

Deckhead:

Daze reviews Redman’s latest

Body:

3 out of 5 Stars

Redman doesn’t quite deliver on his latest effort, Red Gone Wild. As a whole it is rather mundane, lacking memorable beats, lyrics and anything else. It isn’t bad. It just isn’t really good either. The problem is that there’s nothing to grab the listener’s attention.

Stepping Out of the Shadow

Dan Goldstein — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Body:

“It’s about to go down!” Those words begin Young Buck’s sophomore effort, Buck the World, and he couldn’t have been more accurate. For the next seventy minutes, G-Unit’s Dirty South ambassador launches a high intensity lyrical assault, which begs the question, “Who is the G-Unit general?”