Grand Central Magazine

Ekoostik Hookah: Much More Than Rock N' Roll

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Ekoostik Hookah, a very diverse rock-band, boasts a sound that is more than pleasing for all music lovers. Members of Ekoostik Hookah, Dave Katz, John Mullins, and Cliff Starbuck, tell Grand Central about their music, and how it became what it is today. Fans can catch their upcoming show on August 13th at the State Theater in Kalamazoo, Michigan, as part of the World Disc Golf Championship Association Conference.

Movie review: "Mongol"

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Though grand in scale, "Mongol" falls short on historical accuracy and actual plot, writes Marie Lascu about the film, which seeks to chronicle Genghis Khan's rise to power as emperor of the largest contiguous empire in history.

An interview with Meric Long of The Dodos

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Long believed to be a dead genre, folk appears to be making a comeback. And at the forefront of it is San Francisco band, The Dodos, who fuse it with a psych-pop sound to create something entirely unique. Ben LaMothe caught up with guitarist/vocalist Meric Long by phone while the band was in British Columbia to chat about the reason behind naming the band after an extinct bird, discovering that southern hospitality is real and his fondness for us Midwesterners.

It's a pillow! It's an alarm clock! It's a� chumby?

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Ever wonder what might happen if your alarm clock and pillow decided to have babies? The result would be a chumby. It looks like an alarm clock, but is soft and squishy like a pillow. Functionally, it is a dedicated widget viewer. Matt Hewitt breaks down what's good (and bad) about this pillow-like alarm clock-computer-Internet radio player.

Roving reporter: Days 1 and 2 at Rothbury Music Festival

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Michigan's answer to Lollapalooza, Rothbury Music Festival made its debut over the Fourth of July weekend in the tiny town of Rothbury, Mich. Headlining artists such as Snoop Dogg, the Dave Matthews Band and John Mayer, as well as a host of jam bands and indie rockers helped to carry out the festival with a bang. Roving reporter Neely Adkins covers the sights and sounds from the first two days at the Double JJ Ranch.

Roving reporter: Days 3 and 4 at Rothbury Music Festival

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Into the homestretch now, Rothbury Music Festival saw performances from some of the festival's bigger names with Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer and Colbie Caillat taking the stage. Roving reporter Neely Adkins wanders around, makes some new friends and reflects on the festival that was.

True life: I'm a fashion intern in London

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Studying abroad is becoming yet another requirement for a successful future not only in the minds of many college students throughout the country, but prospective employers as well. Ashley Karnowski, an apparel design student at Central Michigan University, knew this when she took off for an internship in London, U.K. For the past two months Karnowski has been finding out what it truly means to work in the fashion world, sewing mock-up after mock-up for spring and summer 2008 garments, steaming fabrics and running gowns to the likes of Uma Thurman.

An interview with Colbie Caillat

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The number of musicians that have been discovered via MySpace in recent years has skyrocketed, in accordance with the site's immense popularity. The latest addition to the hit parade is California native Colbie Caillat. Having started by simply posting her songs to her MySpace account, Caillat soon became MySpace's most popular unsigned singer in her genre for a stretch of four months. Caillat is set to perform at Michigan's first Rothbury festival, a four-day musical extravaganza that takes place at the Double JJ Ranch on July 6. Karlie Powell spoke to Caillat about her musical upbringing, songwriting methods and the MySpace phenomenon.

An interview with Patterson Hood of Drive-By Truckers

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The Drive-By Truckers have weathered all sorts of storms over the last year or two, most notably the departure of long-time member Jason Isbell. But the band is untiring, having toured twice since Isbell left, not to mention dropping a solid record," Brighter Than Creation's Dark," which was released in January. Among one of the many stops on their tour this summer, DBT comes to Michigan's Rothbury festival on July 4. Guitarist/singer Patterson Hood took some time during their current tour to talk with Mike Fuksman about summer festivals, producing other artists and dying onstage.

An interview with Filter's John Spiker

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Industrial rockers Filter will make their way to The Machine Shop in Flint on July 3. Their new album, "Anthems for the Damned," was released in May 2008 after six years of silence from lead singer and guitarist Richard Patrick. Patrick had written the songs in 2003, before he got involved with a side project, Army of Anyone, which delayed the production of "Anthems" until recently. Neely Adkins talks with bassist John Spiker about what it's like being new to the band, the new Filter album and his take on the state of the music world.

An interview with Finger Eleven's Rich Beddoe

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Canadian rock sensation Finger Eleven has cultivated a cult following in their home country, but it wasn't until the 2007 release of their single "Paralyzer" that they could amass a similar following in the States. Neely Adkins got a chance to chat with drummer Rich Beddoe about the massive success of the song, pop music in general, and playing shows with the likes of Fergie and T-Pain.

An interview with Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Suddenly Canada is the place to be if you're a band looking to make it big. First it was Calgary sisters Tegan & Sara, then Toronto indie pop group Stars. But by and large the place to be for Canadian music is Montreal. The Arcade Fire jumped to the forefront of the indie music world, and soon after Islands began to carve out their niche. Following suit is Wolf Parade, who released their newest album "At Mount Zoomer" on June 17. Ben LaMothe chatted with frontman Dan Boeckner about the new album, their relationship with Arcade Fire and how the band is preparing for the collapse of the music industry.

Incentives Bring Filmmakers to Michigan

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Western Michigan Film & Video Alliance is an ever-growing on-line community, considering Michigan's natural beauty is a filmmaker's dream. Representative of WMFVA, Chuck Peterson, explains how tax incentives could have a lasting impact on the filmmaking industry and hopefully, the economy of Michigan.

Web 2.0: The 'other' Web browsers

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Who cares if Internet Explorer and Firefox make up about 92 percent of the Internet browser market? Many people still use other browsers for their Internet needs. Matt Hewitt breaks down the best "other browsers" available with Flock 2.0, Safari and Opera 9.5.

An interview with Sage Francis

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Sage Francis has risen to the top of the "underground" hip-hop scene, earning the respect of legendary rapper Chuck D and being tapped to work on the soundtrack to an upcoming movie starring Edward Norton and Colin Farrell. Ben LaMothe chats with Francis about his involvement with PETA, why so many of his fans aren't traditional hip-hop fans and why he thinks presidential candidate Barack Obama is heaven-sent.

Web 2.0: Firefox, IE offer new and improved browsers

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

It seems Web browsers pop-up each day as the cyber world keeps expanding into the endless space that is modern technology. With so many to choose from, it's easy to get lost in it. Matt Hewitt gives a run down of the new features that can be found in the newest offerings of Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox.

An interview with Less Than Jake

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Less Than Jake, the seasoned pop ska sensation hailing from Florida is set to take Michigan ska fans by storm this summer as they make their second appearance on their Shout It Loud Tour at the Royal Oak Music Theater on July 1. Hillary Vandenberg spoke with founding member and drummer-vocalist Vinnie Fiorello about some of the bands most embarrassing on-stage moments and the significance of his tattoos.

An interview with Islands

Thu, 29 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500

When Islands frontman Nicholas Thorburn talks about the band's first album, "Return to the Sea," it's in the same way someone talks about an awkward cousin that everyone wishes would go away. Hoping to change course, Islands, an indie pop/rock group from Montreal, Canada, released their new album, "Arm's Way" on May 20. Ben LaMothe chats with Thorburn about the drastically different new album, why he doesn't like listening to "Return to the Sea" and how the band's live performance has changed.

Movie review: "The Forbidden Kingdom"