Although he was still recording, for the past few years Aesop Rock shied away from headlining his own albums. But with the 2012 release of Skelethon and a recent appearance at Coachella, Aesop has returned full-force. The tenor of his furious rhymes and flow is a throwback to the rap of ’90s groups like Mobb […]
Phil Busse
Phil Busse has done his tour of duty with alt-weeklies, starting in 1992 right after graduation from Middlebury College as the first environmental beat reporter for San Francisco Weekly. After a brief detour through the University of Oregon School of Law, Phil returned to writing as the first Managing Editor for Portland Mercury. In 2006, he started the Media Institute for Social Change in Portland, through which he continues to host a summer program teaching college students to produce documentaries.
Until he was 25 or so, Phil thought that he would be a spy, and took scuba lessons to prepare, and learned to drive a motorcycle and an 18-wheeler. Perhaps, then, it is unsurprising that his favorite holiday is the Fourth of July (he loves blowing stuff up). He feels at home with Joseph Conrad's fictional characters.
Posted inCulture
Water on The Brain
Four great movies about a dry topic
It is impossible to understate the primary role water has played in shaping world history, whether it is Lewis and Clark crisscrossing the western U.S. by river, or recognizing how cities and towns have been settled by gathering around rivers, lakes and other water sources. Perhaps the most violent expression of the centrality of water […]
Posted inCulture
Class IV Horror Films
Don’t Say Hollywood Didn’t Warn You
In last fall’s beautiful Life of Pi, the main character is stranded on a raft with a cranky tiger. The story, adapted faithfully from the fantastically written novel of the same name, asks many questions about religion and kindness—but, really, the nagging question for Hollywood is: Why must every movie with a raft or canoe […]
Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides
Is Your Toilet Running?
Better go and catch it!
A little more than a decade ago, 150 or so miles south by southwest from Bend, one of the most heated battles over water rights in contemporary American history exploded. For years, ranchers and farmers in the Klamath Basin had squared off against environmentalists who believed that the rivers tumbling through the area should be […]
Posted inCulture
Wheels Keep Spinning
On the Road Takes the High Road
Over the decades, if not instantly after the book’s publication, "On The Road" has been lionized as a canon of wild life; it is, after all, the lightning rod for the Beat Generation, pulling together an emerging bebop jazz scene, reckless youth and casual sexual encounters. The driving force of that story is a tale […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Brat Pack Lunch Box
What the Breakfast Club is eating
With Molly Ringwald in town this week, we thought it was a great time to catch up with the Breakfast Club, and ask where they eat when they visit Bend. Andy (a bag of chips, chocolate cookies, three sandwiches, milk, a banana and an apple): I actually prefer New York City Sub (1075 NW Newport […]
Posted inNews
The Truly Greatest Generation
Molly Ringwald Speaks For Us!
Toward the end of The Breakfast Club, Dick Vernon, the no-nonsense assistant principal, is in one of the high school’s back rooms powwowing with the very Zen janitor, Carl. It is one of the few scenes in the Breakfast Club that doesn’t include the collection of iconic misfits who have been “sentenced” to a legendary […]
Posted inCulture
Evil Dead Remake is Gory
But nothing cult-worthy here
In 1981, Evil Dead was released and capped a golden era of gore films, which had started eight years earlier with the release of Exorcist. It may be difficult to believe now—after those original films have been obscured by their ridiculous sequels—but The Exorcist was nominated for 10 Academy Awards in 1973, including Best Picture, […]
Posted inCulture
Forget the Sequels and Go to the Source
With the disappointing remake of Evil Dead, stay home, roll back the clock to the Golden Era of horror films, forget that these films spawned any sequels and stream one of the originals. It is easy to forget that The Exorcist (1973) isn’t actually just about heads twisting 360 degrees and vomit splatter, but actually […]