Trevor Ariza Defying Gravity One Dunk at a Time

I want to tell you how good Trevor Ariza is.

At 6’8″, Ariza can stand up against the league’s best small forwards, shooting guards, and some of the smaller power forwards; he needs to put on some more weight if he wants to be competitive at the 4 position, but I think that would have an adverse affect on his game. His defense has gotten better, even since last season, where he saw limited play. Ariza keeps his hands in passing lanes, doesn’t “take off” a single possession, and has more hustle by himself than most teams have with all their players combined.

He’s Scottie Pippen meets Shawn Kemp, and a sprinkle on top of Clyde The Glide Drexler.

What prompted this article though, was a single play in Thursday night’s ass whooping of the Phoenix Suns. This impressed me more than any hustle play, any big time block, huge three, or smooth layout that he’s put up this season. Ariza caught an outlet pass, outran all the Suns, but got fouled while going up for the lay-up. The play was seemingly harmless, but Ariza was taken down relatively hard and fell to the ground.

Do you know what happened next?

He fucking sprung back up to his feet in a flash, to get ready to shoot his free throws. I mean, he seriously got up faster than you see wide receivers blast off the line of scrimmage.

If you’re unfamiliar with basketball, or sports that involve personal fouls (i.e.: soccer, hockey, football, etc) then you might not realize why this is worthy of it’s own article, or even worthy of praise. The sad fact is that many times, players will try to sell the foul, no matter what sport, but chiefly basketball and soccer. That is to say, they make the foul (or alleged foul) painfully obvious to the referee / umpire, to try and persuade them to blow their whistle.

Ariza Hustling for a Loose Ball

Take this from a big time sports fan: I cannot begin to tell you how fucking over that shit I am. I’m seriously sick and tired of our athletes acting like giant pussies when someone breathes on them hard. Grow a pair of balls; play like men that love their sport and get paid damn good money to do it too.

Watching Ariza’s reaction to the foul just raised his stock with me. Not only is he a phenomenal athlete that will have many more years of good basketball to come, he gives 150% every time he’s on the court, but he also understands the key to competition – sportsmanship and class. There are few players that have impressed me as much this season as Ariza, and I can say without a doubt that the Los Angeles Lakers and their head coach, Phil Jackson, are lucky to have him wearing their colors.

Do not lose this guy – he’s got franchise player written all over him.

Emo Kid. Unacceptable

The original title for this was going to be “When Is It Not Okay to Be Emo,” but then I realized if I started writing that, I would never finish. Why do I bring this subject up? Well, simply because emo teens are entirely too prevalent, and if they’re allowed to breed, then we’ll have emo adults… The world simply is not ready for that.

So, what is emo, and why is it okay to have a hatred for people who describe themselves as such? Well, according to the miracle that is Wikipedia, emo was originally a genre of music, an offshoot of punk. And if it stayed that way, it would’ve been fine. But what we have now is more than a genre of music; it’s an entire subculture.

And that’s not bad in itself. Every generation has subcultures, but they seem to be getting progressively worse. When I was a young boy, the in thing was grunge. That subculture promoted laziness, drugs, a love of flannel, and good music.

As a teenager, I got to see the proliferation of the goth. And while goth music might not be much better than emo music, the goth kids seemed to keep to themselves. I think they even hated everyone else. Plus, if looking at a bunch of teenagers wearing all black with white painted faces doesn’t make you laugh, then I don’t think you’d be able to convince me that you have a sense of humor.

Emo, on the other hand, is really a thing of evil. It’s a subculture that promotes whiny children, stupid haircuts, terrible music, and depression. Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t care that the little kids are depressed. I’m just afraid that when they grow up, they’ll be the acquaintance that you just wish was never born. The one that never shuts up about how their depression and how they want to cut themselves to fix the pain.

But the worst part is, they have no follow through. Emo children talk about how they want to cut themselves or kill themselves or do any of a thousand things in their self-hatred, but they never do it. The goth kids followed through with their piercings. The grunge kids are still smoking pot and don’t have jobs. The emo kid is just a whiner.

But even still, the entire subculture shouldn’t be dismissed. It is okay to be emotional, it is okay to be sad, and it’s even okay to whine…sometimes. So when is it okay to be emo? There are four instances that I can think of.

First, if you’re being tortured, it’s okay to be emo. If someone is actually waterboarding you, you can whine. If someone is trying to electrocute your testicles, you can be depressed. If someone is forcing you to listen to Hanson…you can say that you want to kill yourself. We’ll forgive you for that, because no one would want to be in any of those situations. But as soon as those situations have passed, you lose your right to be emo.

Acceptable Time To Be Emo

Second, if something truly disastrous has occurred, we’ll let that pass too. Let’s say your house burnt down, a tree fell on your car, and your significant other left you for a goth kid. If that happens, you can be emo. At least you have a real reason to whine. It’s not like your mom didn’t buy you the iPhone you wanted, or that the car your dad got for your birthday was the wrong color. If something happens that’s so bad that you need medication to forget about the pain, you can dress in black and part your hair to the side. Unless the drugs are really good, then it’s still not okay.

Third, if you are making a lot of money off of it…you can be emo. In this light, My Chemical Romance isn’t actually a shitty band. They’re just pretending to be that terrible so they can make money. And that’s okay. In this economy, we’ll forgive you for that too. However, this does not extend to encouraging the subculture. You are not allowed to glorify the emo subculture in any way. Ever.

The last reason it’s okay to be emo is if you’re a fourteen year old girl. Why fourteen? Because thirteen is the first year of being a teenager, and that’s an adjustment period. If we let girls be emo then, they might think the entirety of their teenage years should be filled with depression and bad music. Instead, we’ll let them experience a year of being a teenager, then if they’re so inclined they can be emo for a year. Hopefully, giving them that time to reflect will make them realize that there are better things in life. Why only girls? Simply put, boys aren’t adorable enough to get away with being whiny.

So, when is it not okay to be emo? The rest of the time. Seriously.

 

It’s midnight, you’re already trashed hell, and all you could ask of this precious, godforsaken world is a Chimichanga. No problem. Head to the Farmers Market on the corner of West 3rd and Fairfax. There’s this authentic style cantina called Loteria, where Chef Jimmy has “tested and perfected” the art of the utterly delicious Mexican cuisine. How about some hot sauce with that? At Light My Fire, a pantry full of hundreds of internationally recognized condiments are at your compulsive, little fingertips. 

It’s really composed of nothing more than 50 or so shacks, side by side, under harsh fluorescent lighting, without room for the luxury of personal space, but the quality of food is damn excellent. 

Traditionally, regulars head to this international house of delicacies between the hours of 10 p.m. and midnight, prime time to meet a truly diverse and down right weird crowd.

If you’re not in the mood for dinner and a show, then take your cutie for a fun, mid-afternoon date, where she can sample foods from all kinds of foreign countries. From a girl’s perspective, you’d earn a couple more “good boyfriend” points.

But let me tell you, after a day of shopping Fairfax, all a couple of girls could ever want is a hearty meal. So, if it’s just a Saturday afternoon with the girls, after you’ve spent your rent money, head over and spend your last few pennies.  There’s a classic ice cream parlor, way in the back, serving anything from soft serve to mint chocolate to caramel creme. Yummy and so worth it!

Now, I can’t stress enough how much there is to do at the Grove and the Farmers Market. There’s literally an event held every month and, the cool part is, everyone in the community gets really involved. It’s great when you’ve lost hope in the geniality of people in L.A.

There’s the Gilmore car show, held the first Saturday in June, which is really great to go with a male family member. Your little  brother will be endowed to you for years to come if you show him the hundreds of vintage and classic cars.

The Fall festival is more for the kid in all of us. A classic-style pumpkin patch and face-painting will make you see Halloween like you used to before reality hit, before you became an “adult.”<

There’s a mall attached to the market called the Grove, filled with overly-pricey shops, like M. Fredric and Anthropologie, of course. Come Winter, they like to whip out the old fifty-foot Christmas tree to really muster up some holiday spirit in everyone. This means it’s time for carolers to congregate from one end of the mall to the other. It’s really entertaining to watch that poor guy who’s forced into singing along when he clearly has a million things to do before Christmas Eve.

And of course, there’s live music by shitty bands every Thursday and Friday nights for when your date bailed and you have nowhere else to go. It’s kind of fun watching the middle-aged couples dance and sing along to the classics.

Fourth of July at this mall is madness. I don’t recommend it, unless you’re networked and get some kind of special treatment. It’s probably the busiest plot of land on the Fourth of July in West L.A.

I guarantee you, you won’t leave this place without seeing some sort of celebrity, or at least a has-been. I’ve seen everyone from David Spade, to Lily Allen during the release of her first album Alright, Still, and I even spotted Jake Gyllenhall at dinner with Reese Witherspoon. Just an incentive to head over there.

So, good food, great people-watching, and obnoxious bands, this place has it all; it’s so versatile! Chances are, your parents and grandparents remember this place too. It’s the market’s 75th anniversary this year. No need to cram in impromptu plans this Mother’s Day, take ‘em to eat!

This place has got some history!

It’s rare that an album can come along and make me cry from laughter. The last one I can think of was one by Adam Sandler that my friend Noah and I used to listen to.

But then, a comedic blessing in the form of Andy Samberg and his crew called The Lonely Island is given to us. These are the boys who brought us Dick in a Box, Ras Trent, and of course Lazy Sunday, via hilarious Saturday Night Live shorts.

The songs have been created by The Lonely Island since 2005. The core group is comprised of Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone; all of whom hail from Berkeley, California. Currently however, New York is their base of operations for The Lonely Island. The Lonely Island showcases many filmmakers, singers, and comedians, who showcase most of their work on their website, www.thelonelyisland.com.

Recently, the boys have gotten together and actually produced an album, comprised of SNL shorts, and other songs not aired on television, called Incredibad. And let me be clear, this album is pure genius, and honestly a bit surprising at the quality of the production value.

Also surprising is the list of celebrity appearances there are on the album. I was cracking up on most of the songs, which is for the most part a parody of hip hop music. I love hip hop and everything, but this album is hilarious. With guests like Jack Black, Norah Jones, E-40, Justin Timberlake, T-Pain, and most surprisingly Natalie Portman; there isn’t a whole lot that can go wrong. But let’s talk about favorites.

First off, is track 3, Jizz in My Pants, which highlights the troubles of meeting beautiful women, and being a sensitive man in the mix, being unable to stop themselves from jizzing their pants.

Track 5 is called Sax Man, and features Tenacious D’s Jack Black. The song is about a sax man from the state of Tennessee. Jack Black is giving praise to the apparent genius of the sax man. Too bad he sucks ass, and barely plays anything. Jack Black gets pissed after multiple failed attempts to play anything. I cried when Jack Black whispers “What the ffffuck are you doing?” This shit was hilarious.

Lazy Sunday, the 6^th track, is probably one of the better known songs by the group, which is a rap song about Andy Samberg and Chris Parnell preparing to go see the Chronicles of Narnia. I’ll admit, the lyrics were absolutely genius. “Throw the snacks in a bag and I’m Ghost like Swayze!”

The 10^th track, Like a Boss, probably has the best hip hop parody value of the album. It’s about Andy Samberg’s productivity interview at work as a supervisor at his office. A bittersweet track.

Track 12, Dreamgirl, threw me off with how good the production value was. Plus, when you have Norah Jones singing the chorus, you can’t believe the song is about how ugly the ideal dreamgirls of the crew are. Funny shit indeed.

I’m really surprised Andy Samberg didn’t get shot over making track 13, Ras Trent. The song is about a white Rasta named Ras Trent, and his life as a Rastafarian. The best part is the heavy use of Rasta terms like ‘baldhead’, ‘hotstepper’, ‘bombaclaat’ and ‘rudeboy’.

Dick in a Box, the 14^th track, features Justin Timberlake in a 90’s style R&B song. The song is about the importance of the woman in your life, and to get her a real gift this year that she will cherish forever. A dick in a box. I might give mama Blanco one for Kwanzaa next year if she’s lucky. The song even gives directions to successfully deliver this special gift.

The shocking track of the album however, is track 18, Natalie’s Rap, which features the once wholesome Natalie Portman. This bitch went crazy, talking about how she doesn’t give a fuck and drinks all night till she pukes. Apparently all the kids looking up to her can suck her dick while they’re at it.

But even after all these audible gems, I can’t help but stress the importance of track 4, I’m on a Boat. T-Pain sings backup, and helps tell the story of when Andy Samberg wins a boat ride for 3 on a baller ass yacht with T-Pain and Akiva. Meanwhile, the crew talks shit about Jorma stuck at home, while simultaneously telling us the tight shit they do while on the boat. Drinking Santana Champagne (yes Carlos Santana endorses champagne), swim trunks and flippy floppies, and fucking mermaids to name a few. This will easily be on my hit singles of 2009 list.

As a bonus, I want to give you a link to the hit video behind the genius of The Lonely Island’s music. I give you…I’m on a Boat. Gigantic shout out to mama Blanco for letting me know about the latter video. I try and start my day by watching this video. Enjoy it.

Until next time my friends.

~Flak

Eden Lake (directed by James Watkins) is a damn good horror movie, but unfortunately will probably get lost amongst the pile of awful horror movies that get released here in America. Of all the movie genres, I’d say horror movies probably have the toughest time pleasing an audience. It has to invoke such a specific emotion in you that when it doesn’t invoke that emotion, the movie inherently becomes a pointless exercise in gore effects, lighting, and sound mixing. But when horror movies do make you feel that sense of fear and does hit all the right notes, it can be a great roller coaster ride. Eden Lake is a fantastic example of the latter.

The plot of the movie is simple enough. It’s about a young couple named Jenny (played by Kelly Reilly) and Steve (played by Michael Fassbender) camping at Eden Lake, where they encounter a mischievous gang of teenagers. Almost immediately the trouble begins when Steve asks the teens to turn their music down. Of course the gang doesn’t take too kindly to his request and one confrontation leads to another, which leads to another, which leads to another, till eventually things get deadly and lives start getting lost. Without getting too much into spoilers Jenny and Steve eventually get chased by this gang of assholes through the woods, and that’s where the horror/fun begin.

Not the vacation she had in mind.

The characters in the movie are interesting for the most part. Initially, the kids seem pretty non-threatening: they start off looking like a misguided group of hooligans, but by the end they seem like a gang of homicidal maniacs. You as the audience don’t learn too much about them but that unknowing really adds to the fright factor. Since the main focus of the movie is on Steve and Jenny, it’s good they are likable enough that you as the audience actually want them to survive. Do they survive? Do they die? I won’t spoil that. But the ending, whether you like it or not, will definitely get your heart pounding.

Don't let this one pass you by

The scares in this movie feel very genuine and real. It’s not overtly gory and it’s not overtly atmospheric. It hits all the right notes at all the right times and paces the movie very nicely for maximum tension. It’s only about eighty minutes long but by the end of that final minute you’ll feel exhausted. Just believe me when I say these kids are down right rotten, and Jenny and Steve end up in some harrowing situations. I’ll admit there was one moment that made me want to scream at Jenny, but the rest of the movie was good enough that I was able to over look it.

Eden Lake is a great example of what actually makes a horror movie scary. Although the movie is definitely not for the squeamish, it’s not just wall to wall gore and deaths. It’s also not a movie that relies solely on creepy atmosphere and dim lighting, even though the atmosphere is creepy. Instead it’s a movie that relies on scary situations and people’s reactions to those situations. The thing I like most about this movie is the characters react to their situations in believable ways. I guess what I’m getting at is that Eden Lake feels like a movie that could actually happen, and that is what makes it so scary.

My advice, if you have any sort of interest in horror movies, then watch Eden Lake. It’s a shining example of why I like the genre so much.

My score, 7.5/10.

How is it that Japanese folks are always so ahead of us all the freaking time?  Toyota, Sushi, Octopus porn, and now this?  Gaki is Japan‘s answer to America’s jackass, except more demented and with subtitles!  It’s Johnny Knoxville meets Mr. Miyagi.

The game is 24 hour tag.  The assignment is simple. Stay in a confined gymnasium with four other contestants/teammates and survive.  A black costumed super villain “it” or “chaser” appears sporadically from random hiding places armed with weapons in tow and basically starts chasing the contestants and attacking them once they’re caught.  It’s no painless beating either.  He really rails on them in true villain fashion with moves like the “scorpion death lock, fly swatter, and thai kick,” and only stops when a bell is sound.  The bell ringer apparently decides when the victims have have been sufficiently ass kicked. These guys are freaked out and rolling on the floor squirming in pain.  I’m in disbelief. It’s only been 3 minutes.   How are we going to survive the next 23.9 hours?

Not even 5 minutes into the show, and these contestants are already deeply regretting signing up for this one night of terror inducing tag.  2 hours later, some of these guys are crying and sacrificing each other, “lord of the flies” style.  One uses his teammate as a human shield. It’s awful and hilarious at the same time.  You can’t help but empathize with both the shield and the shielder, because honestly, you would do the same.
The funniest parts are when the guys are freaking out in anticipation of the black villain “it”, so they’re all incredibly jumpy and keep on making false starts to start running for their lives. This occurs throughout the entire duration of the show, which kept me laughing the entire duration, because its quite evident that these players sare incapable of relaxing, not even when they’re eating… They discuss how they must eat with their shoes on, just in case they have to run from the “chaser”.

Every so often, a shirtless policeman named Hashimoto comes out with food and comic messages for the young gents, as well as some cruel punishments. For instance, he wouldn’t give them dinner until they all admitted that they were “pieces of scum.”

The real entertainment is listening to these guys banter while waiting for the black masked devils.   And their strategies of defense are equally entertaining, as they each try to shirk responsibility and put each other in harm’s way— of course– politely. It still is Japan after all.  And when no one volunteers to be the sacrificial lamb, a game of rock, paper, scissors does the trick.

Gaki producer Mr. Otomo gloats:

“For the crew, 24 hour TAG series is really a 48-hour series. By the end of the shoot, the crew is completely exhausted and can’t even remember how they have gotten home.”

I can’t even imagine how they survive the day, let alone, get home.

Gaki features tons of other wildly entertaining exploits of human cruelty and weirdness as well.  With names like Golf Club Assault Battle, Chili Bean Paste Smearing Battle, and the beautifully choreographed Champagne Ass Catch Battle, you’re sure to never be BORED when tuned onto this show.

What is it about guys getting beat up in costumes that is so alluring to our senses?  Whatever it is, the brilliant producers at Gaki keep on hitting the amusing jackpot.  And the violence is real, folks… it’s none of the Hollywood green screen crap.  You know how I know? Because when you really get hurt, things get ugly. Your face writhes in pain. Real tears do not not resemble Natalie Portman’s on screen tears.  There’s a doctor on duty too, just in case things get a bit too rowdy.

So folks, it’s about time to stop reading about Gaki, and actually check it out.  Thankfully, you don’t have to be japanese to enjoy sadism of the hilarious 20-minute sort, just click here, and drop me an “arigato” some time.  If you do, you might just score some cool swag that I’ve been informed is for our massive readership!  So if you’re interested in acquiring FREE things other than air, heartbreak, and a bad case of diarrhea, let us know!

Note: There are subtitles, if you’re one of those people who actually want to understand what’s happening on screen.  If you go to hulu.com/gaki can click on cc: you can select English and that will set you up to watch.

The battle of Alberta, as the Canucks call it, sees the Calgary Flames at the Edmonton Oilers, in Rexall Place. Flames are looking to strengthen the lead in their division, while the Oilers are still clinging to the 8th and final spot in the playoff race. In net for the Flames is Miikka Kiprusoff, who has faced more shots than any other goaltender this season, and he’ll be facing off against Dwayne Roloson. I love watching two Canadian teams square off, because there is so much damn intensity.

First Period

Dwayne Roloson was the key to this period. He was a fucking brick wall in net, stopping what seemed like one timer after one timer from the stick of Mike Cammalleri. As much as Roloson dominated, I really can’t stand the way he handles the puck – he’s clumsy and makes bad decisions. The Flames could not match the physical play of the Oilers, so instead they beat them in speed to the puck, especially with their consistent forecheck. Young players should take some notes on the Flames forecheck, because they always bothered the Oilers’ defensemen, deep in their own zone, making it difficult to get the puck into neutral ice.

The one goal in the period came right after a penalty against the Flames, off a pretty give-and-go between Erik Cole and Shawn Horcoff. Cole got his 14th goal of the season, beating Kiprusoff top-shelf to the blocker side, getting the puck just inside the cross bar – pretty play all around.

Miikka Kiprusoff Sprawling Save

Second Period

Calgary brought a whole new level of offensive energy, including a tough break for Craig Conroy, who beat Roloson’s glove, but hit the crossbar. Jarome Iginla was relatively quiet for the Flames in the first period, but got himself in the middle of every rush when he was on the ice in the second. It was nice to see the Oilers starting to really test Kiprusoff after the Flames initial energy surge sizzled down.

With the increased aggressive attack from the Flames, it was inevitable that they were going to beat Roloson. With a little over three minutes in the period, Cory Sarich passes it to himself off the boards, gets the puck between the defenseman’s legs, and right on Iginla’s tape for an easy one-timer to tie this game up. Both goalies are playing a great game to keep this at only 1-1. Flames got another two golden scoring opportunities before the period was over, and even though the game is still tied going into the third, the momentum is now heavily in the Flames favor.

Third Period

Oilers catch the Flames off-guard, with Ales Hemsky scoring his 18th goal in just the second minute of the period. This was off another fantastic pass from Shawn Horcoff, and Hemsky had a quick release to beat Kiprusoff low on the blocker side. Erik Cole could have really broke this game open when he had a clean breakaway less than a minute after the Oilers first goal of the period, but he got held right before he could get the shot off. The Oilers could smell blood, and kept forcing Kiprusoff to make amazing saves to keep the Flames in this game. Then aside from the occasional big hit from the Oilers, it looked like they were on a penalty kill for the last ten minutes of the period. I really hated watching this from the Oilers because it made the game extremely one-sided as they played to protect the lead rather than win the game. The game seemed pretty much in the bank for the Oilers, but with 1:05 left in the game Matthew Lombardi ties up the game for the Flames beating Roloson above his left shoulder. We’re going into overtime, folks!

Overtime & Shootout

The overtime period was pretty uneventful, aside from one scoring chance for the Oilers and a big hit from Oilers’ Sheldon Souray which knocked the helmet off of Flames’ Adam Pardy. Then all of a sudden, with 5 seconds to go, Iginla passes to a WIDE OPEN Cammalleri, who gets robbed point-blank against Roloson. No idea how the Oilers let Cammalleri get this open, but Roloson saved the day for his team.

In the shootout, the Oilers shot themselves in the foot. First Sam Gagner just lost the puck, then Robert Nilsson AND Ales Hemsky got the puck poke-checked away. What a pathetic shootout from the Oilers, losing them the game 3-2 with the Flames’ Todd Bertuzzi scoring the only goal in the shootout.

It seemed like the Oilers never really came to play this game. There was little intensity from them, aside from their hard-hitting, and the Flames looked more like the team that urgently needed the win to stay in the playoff hunt. It was nice to see Jarome Iginla step up his game and get a much-needed goal. Dwayne Roloson was the only reason this game was close, because the Oilers did not deserve the one point they got from the game.

Exterior Lala's Argentine Grill

Lala’s Argentine Grill is a cozy Argentinian (duh!) restaurant located at 11935 Ventura Blvd. Studio City, CA 91604, and their telephone number is 818-623-4477. Usually when you hear “cozy”, it typically means small (i.e.: Redmanthatcould, your penis…it’s so…cozy), and that’s exactly what I mean with Lala’s. When I visited, it was on a Friday night at the Studio City location; they also have a 7229 Melrose Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90046 (telephone: 323-934-6838). The lovely Christina served us, who is pretty Asian girl that had to placate my brother Lenny during our meal, and even more so while we waited for our bill.

They offer valet parking at $3.50 a pop, and while street parking is kind of tough on the weekend, there’s still potential for it if you want to avoid the five spot (after tip) to the valet chimp. There’s covered outside seating, which probably would have been more comfortable since it didn’t look nearly as cramped as the inside seating. Not to say the inside seating was terrible, but you definitely hear what all the other tables are talking about.

Interior Lala's Argentin Grill

Lala’s is not exactly upscale – is there upscale in the San Fernando Valley? – but you definitely don’t want to show up in a t-shirt and jeans. There’s dark lighting with candles on the tables, and they have just a few paintings on the wall. I think they probably want your attention to be on cool wire art hanging from the ceiling. Our service was great, both from our waitress and the food wenches that helped her bring out the entrees.

Prices range from $15 – $35 an entree, and their menu is heavy on the meat dishes, with a wide variety of steaks. Our table ordered some appetizers, which left a little to be desired, so I didn’t even take note of what they were. The meat and potatoes of their menus is their meat and potatoes. I chowed down on the Angus steak, which came with a delicious red wine sauce and mashed potatoes. I definitely ordered my steak medium done, but it felt like medium-well; the mashed potatoes were decent – I’ve definitely had better – but they needed salt.

Angus Steak at Lala's Argentine Grill

All in all, it was a good night at Lala’s Argentine Grill. The pricing is reasonable, and the crowd is young – mainly 20s and 30s. Really easy to find the place, even if you aren’t a Valley native, and the $3.50 for valet is practically a deal by itself compared to $10 you’ll spend in an average Hollywood joint. Personally, my biggest complaint was the tight spacing inside. It was literally just a little bigger than some of those $1 Chinese food hole-in-the-walls, but I’m sure when it’s not as crowded during the week, it’s probably unnoticeable. Good place for a relatively inexpensive date.

And I’ll leave you with the obligatory video of the inside of this place. Yes, I know it’s dark, but didn’t I already mention that above???

I know I said I would do a couple other 2008 reviews, but my upcoming Coachella piece was enough, so silence yourself and read ahead.

It seems like it’s hard to find a good dance rock band these days, even for someone who lives so close to Los Angeles and Hollywood. I may not go to Club Moscow on Wednesdays or whatever, but it still shouldn’t be this hard to find something of quality to listen to. However, I still keep an eye out on an old favorite of mine, and this year, they delivered again. I’m of course talking about the latest from the boys from Glasgow, Scotland; Franz Ferdinand.

I know you’ve heard of them before, probably the hit Take Me Out from their self titled album back in 2004. Or maybe the huge club hit, that I still hear when I go out, Auf Achse from that same album. Lil Wayne sampled their song This Fire on the mix tape The Drought is Over Part 4 as well. But enough about all that nonsense, this review is on the bands 3^rd studio album, entitled Tonight: Franz Ferdinand.

To give you a little history, as I always do, the band is from Glasgow, Scotland. The band is named after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, who’s assassination pretty much made World War I pop off back in 1914. Their second single, Take Me Out, landed at number 3 on the British charts, which in turn earned them the same rank on the self titled album in 2005. The video for the song (which is absolutely badass by the way) also received high praise and acclaim for its strange Russian constructivist visual scheme.

The front man for Franz Ferdinand is Alex Kapranos, who also plays the lead guitar. Backing him up on vocals and guitar is Nick McCarthy, who also jumps on the keyboards from time to time. Bass guitar duty is done by Bob Hardy, with Paul Thomson on the drums and backing vocals. All four members were working on different bands before this bands inception, but created Franz in 2002. After two chart topping albums released two years in a row, then band took a break to spend some time creating their latest work of art. I feel like the wait was well worth it. Let’s talk about it.

Paul, Bob, Alex, and Nick

First, this is the kind of band that you love because you can pick it up so easily and enjoy it, without having to know the lyrics to make it entertaining. Because its dance rock, you can simply do just that, without worrying about the guy next to you in his Jetta trying to talk shit. The overall feel of the album for me is that it makes me want to strut down the street. It’s hard to explain, but I feel like this is the perfect type of music to make music videos to.

For instance, the first track, Ulysses has a simple but addictive beat, and when Alex comes in, you here him humming before the verse starts; in a way that lets you know that he is also feeling the groove of his own work.

The second track, Turn It On, feels to me like it would fit perfect in a Need for Speed or Midnight Club title, but I’m sad to report that the song is nowhere to be found in the videogame world. People who have played either series will get what I mean, so stop shaking your head at me. I’m making sense.

While track 6, Bite Hard, might be a little too fast to dance to, the energy in the instrumentals make it a key track on the album. With a particular nod to the synth used throughout the track.

Being a bass player, the funky licks on track 7, What She Came For, made this one of my favorites. This track felt a little more like something you would have heard on one of the bands previous albums; which is not a bad thing, and more of a welcome nostalgia.

Track 8, Live Alone, is one of the tracks that I believe truly defined the feel that the band was looking for. The synth and bass, and drums are heavy on this one, making it a shoe in for a sexy track for the club DJ’s. The chorus is catchy and easy (too many jokes I could make here), letting you sing along the second time around when the chorus hits.

My favorite track this time around though, is track 10 Lucid Dreams; for a few reasons. First, the instrumentals do a glorious job of paint the scene to match the song’s name. Second, the first 40 seconds of the song seems to have an almost an old western vibe to it, which I didn’t expect. After that, the beat kicks off, which is very club worthy. At about 4:47, the beat drops away and there is a crazy digital solo that made me get up and shuffle around the room in a funky manner. This leads us to the end of the track on a lighter note, which again leads to the quieter tracks Dream Again, and Katherine Kiss Me.

To bring it home, I think that Franz Ferdinand went in the right direction. Critics are saying that this is their best album yet, and Alex himself even says that this album is the dance album they have wanted to make for a long time. It doesn’t feel rushed, and doesn’t overstay its welcome while you listen to it. Add this one to your collection if you want something funky to bump at parties. Expect to hear a few of these tracks in the scene clubs all around Los Angeles. Franz Ferdinand brought us another album with hits that we can put on when we want to get groovy. Next time you are thinking about what to listen to in the evening to get the blood going, make the choice, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand.

Until next time,

~Flak

With the Los Angeles Lakers coming to town, you knew you’d be in for an exciting show against the home Golden State Warriors. The Lakers have the highest team scoring average in the league, and the Warriors are right behind them at number two. Don Nelson, Warriors head coach and second overall in total victories is sitting on career win 1,299, and it would be great to see him hit the 1,300 mark on his home court.

It was really fun to see all the up and down play right off the bat. Lakers started going into Luke Walton in the post, and kept going back to Walton throughout the game whenever he was defended by a smaller man. Shortly into the game, it felt like a college atmosphere, with the Warriors fans getting really pumped up, and even the present Lakers fans could be heard. Both teams benches were pivotal in this game, as Corey Maggette threw up 24 points for the Warriors, while Trevor Ariza and Josh Powell came up big for the Lakers. Maggette reminds me a hell of a lot of LeBron James with his physical body and ability to get to the hoop at will. For such an existing first half, Kobe Bryant was relatively quiet for the Lakers, but Pau Gasol was solid from the start. Going into half time, the Lakers gave up the most points of any of their first halves this season – 68.

Kobe Bryant Covered Like a Glove

Stephen Jackson and Jamal Crawford were huge for the Warriors, with Crawford putting up 23 points on just 10 shot attempts. The Warriors lead going into the second half, and were shooting lights out. But would it hold up when the end-of-game pressure would come up? Both teams were playing with high emotion, and lots of spirit – it’s refreshing seeing the young Warriors playing with so much talent and a TON of heart. But as suspected, all of the Warriors easy buckets in the first half started coming up short at the end of the third, and they were really struggling to keep up in the fourth.

Going into the fourth, Don Nelson had a court-side interview saying that to beat the Lakers, you have to play four strong quarters or you don’t win. And he was right because even though the Warriors looked phenomenal through three, they just collapsed at the end. Lamar Odom was started to get under the skin of the Warriors front line (when they had a front line on the court, that is), and kept pushing the right buttons against the less-experienced players. Odom quietly had 22 points and 7 assists, but down the stretch it was the play of Ariza and Bryant that pulled the Lakers away.

Bryant Avoiding the Charge to take the Blocking Foul

Ariza hit two clutch three-pointers back-to-back, and Kobe had flashes of his usual greatness at the end. Aside from a beautiful 360 two-hand dunk on a breakaway, Kobe’s main highlights were two amazing blocks. The Lakers finished the game strong, with their highest scoring quarter of the game, finishing it at 129-121. Don Nelson will have to wait another game for career win 1,300 which will likely not be that far away.