Arts - The Spectrum

ARTS

Radiohead Returns

By Luke Hammill | Feb. 23, 2011

Artist: Radiohead Album: The King of Limbs Release Date: Feb. 18 Label: [self-released] Grade: B When Radiohead announced early last week that it was digitally releasing The King of Limbs, its first album since 2007's In Rainbows, the following Saturday, the music world exploded with excitement. When the album surprisingly dropped a day early last Friday, that excitement went in about 1,000 different directions, depending on the listener.

ARTS

A Week in Ink: Issue No. 17

By NICOLAS PINO | Feb. 22, 2011

Brightest Day No. 20 The Brightest Day story arc marches forward with a regular turf war, as the Atlantean king's crew will square off against Black Manta and the Xebel soldiers in a rumble that will rock Earth's oceans. Thankfully for the sea-dwelling community, Aquaman's four-man squad has enough power to force the invaders back to their extra-dimensional portal located in the Bermuda Triangle.

ARTS

A Night of Robust Comedy and Life Lessons

By VILONA TRACHTENBERG | Feb. 21, 2011

Last Comic Standing finalist Ralphie May took to the stage at the Center for the Arts Thursday night with a staggering three-hour set. The night opened with the antics of May's wife, Lahna Turner.

ARTS

Shea's Makes Room for an Ogre on its Stage

By ABNIEKAMP | Feb. 21, 2011

Buffalo, make way ? an ogre is coming to town. The Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation story of the unlikely hero, Shrek the Ogre, traveling to a faraway kingdom to rescue Princess Fiona, is being performed live at the end of this month, as Shrek the Musical is set for eight performances at Shea's Performing Arts Center starting Tuesday and running through Sunday. On his rescue journey, Shrek is accompanied by a donkey whose desire for Shrek's friendship is nothing but annoying.

ARTS

A Week in Ink

By NICOLAS PINO | Feb. 17, 2011

The Flash No. 9: The Road to Flashpoint After Barry Allen's recent stint with the world's future police, life has slowed down; well, as much as possible for a police-scientist superhero that runs at nearly the speed of light. Allen's life, however, will quickly shift back into high gear, as the death of Central City's up-and-coming junior superhero, Elastic Kid, will test the police scientist's investigation skills to the max. With one of comics' most well known authors at the helm of the series, Geoff Johns has, over the past few months, done something amazing for the Scarlet Speedster and reimagined the Flash's existence within the DC universe.

ARTS

"A Culture of Rhythm, Diversity, and Joy"

By VILONA TRACHTENBERG | Feb. 17, 2011

Despite the absence of Nick Cannon, Drumline Live still managed to bring the noise and the swagger. The Center for the Arts hosted Drumline Live Wednesday night, as an audience of hundreds watched 40 musicians and dancers from several colleges of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities perform their way through African-American musical history. Drumline is a masterful and multi-faceted show that traces the origins of African-American culture.

ARTS

Rotten to the Post-Hardcore

By EDWARD BENOIT | Feb. 17, 2011

Artist: A Skylit Drive Album: Identity on Fire Label: Fearless Release Date: Feb. 15 Grade: D+ Boring, repetitive, and, above all, generic, A Skylit Drive have failed to find themselves on their new album, Identity on Fire. The fact that Identity on Fire is the band's third album in four years might lead some to conclude that A Skylit Drive is fairly prolific.

ARTS

A Clandestine Gem

By EDWARD BENOIT | Feb. 15, 2011

Artist: Clandestine Album: The Invalid Label: Nightmare Records Release Date: Feb. 15 Grade: A- Sporting a name that can simultaneously describe its underhanded subversion of about a half-dozen musical genres and allude to its virtually nonexistent coverage in mainstream musical publications, Clandestine is a band that desperately needs to be heard. Hailing from Los Angeles and fronted by versatile vocalist June Park, the band tackles everything from pop rock to alternative metal to progressive music in its debut full-length album, The Invalid. If Clandestine's name can be taken as a comment of sorts about the band, then the title of the album's first track, "Fearless," can be taken as a mission statement.

ARTS

Surveyor: An Exploration of Landscape

By VILONA TRACHTENBERG | Feb. 15, 2011

Poetry and modern art collide in a new and exciting exhibit at Buffalo's Albright-Knox Art Gallery. Albright-Knox curator Heather Pesanti, hopes to impact gallery viewers by capturing the essence of the Queen City in an innovative exhibit called Surveyor that opens on Friday.

ARTS

UB Art Gallery Evokes Spatial Consciousness

By AKARI IBURI | Feb. 15, 2011

With untrimmed images carefully and casually mounted to the walls of the Visual Studies Gallery in the Center For the Arts, the Mariev Robitaille & Karen Kirchhoff photography exhibition is no ordinary art installation.

ARTS

Dry Eyes for Bright Eyes

By AKARI IBURI | Feb. 15, 2011

Artist: Bright Eyes Album: The People's Key Label: Saddle Creek Records Release Date: Feb. 15 Grade: C+ It began like any other Bright Eyes album ? a unique sequence of sounds preceding a quiet guitar riff, topped with the distinct, haunting vocals of Conor Oberst. However, a blasting voice with an inaudible drawl may not be the best appetizer to ease listeners into The People's Key, the band's highly anticipated seventh studio album.

ARTS

For the Love of the Holiday

By James Twigg | Feb. 13, 2011

Love. It's funny how many different feelings that small four-letter word can evoke from us. It's intangible and indefinable, yet somehow we all know it when we feel it.

ARTS

The Everyday Holiday

By JAMESON BUTLER | Feb. 13, 2011

February is a drag; it's cold, it's dark, and we don't have any days off. Oh yeah, and the most absurd holiday of the year is upon us. The one day a year that makes card companies rejoice and males cringe with fear, Valentine's Day, is also in the month of February? in fact, it's today. I hope that this is not news to any of the current readers, and if so, good job screwing the pooch.

ARTS

Who Will Copy Cut Copy?

By ZACHARY BOURQUE | Feb. 10, 2011

Artist: Cut Copy Album: Zonoscope Label: Modular Recordings Release Date: Feb. 8 Grade: A Dance music freaks and indie-hipsters alike can rejoice over Aussie group Cut Copy's third studio album, Zonoscope.

ARTS

M?Ure of the Same

By EDWARD BENOIT | Feb. 8, 2011

Artist: Mot

ARTS

A Week in Ink: Issue No. 15

By NICOLAS PINO | Feb. 8, 2011

DC Universe Online Legends No. 1 Comics and games often go together like peanut butter and marshmallow fluff, but other times, not so much.

ARTS

Indie Games' Robotic Future

By NICOLAS PINO | Feb. 8, 2011

Angry winged rats and audiosurfing have occupied the indie gaming scene for far too long, but students and faculty here at UB have seen the future: robotic manservants. Take into account this backstory from a new online flash game called Robot Butler: in the grim darkness that is the future of human existence, humanity has become frail-minded and weak due to its mechanical minions.

ARTS

Indie Pop and Everything Else

By EDWARD BENOIT | Feb. 6, 2011

Artist: Hotel of the Laughing Tree Album: Terror and Everything After Label: Brookvale Records Release Date: Feb.

ARTS

Kotchy on Cloud Nine

By ZACHARY BOURQUE | Feb. 6, 2011

Artist: Kotchy Album: Two Label: Done Right Recordings Release Date: Feb. 1 Grade: B Brooklynite trip-hop producer Kotchy evokes an intriguing vitality in his uniquely titled second studio album, Two.

ARTS

"Jam Club Affiliated, Universe Shark Preys Music"

By Luke Hammill | Feb. 6, 2011

Frank Santora, 25, of Buffalo, has undergone a transformation of sorts. "Universe Shark will swallow you whole, and when they spit you out, you'll be something new," Santora said last Friday at DBGB on Allen Street, while local jam band Universe Shark prepared to take the stage. Thankfully, nobody was literally swallowed whole that night.