Ego alone isn’t what makes Mr. West such a fascinating figure; any other schmo with a head his size would be scoffed and discarded as parody. There’s actually a certain degree of legitimacy that keeps his maniacal sense of self-importance from devolving into full-scale megalomania: that Kanye’s vision and production chops are currently unmatched in […]
black
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The cannabis justice system
Credit: Brad Gregg Black-and-white because some believe its medicinal benefits outweigh the stigma. Others want to nip that conversation in the bud. Green all over because Oklahomans both black and white use the drug at comparable rates. But — and here’s the punch line — black citizens in the state are arrested nearly three times […]
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Iron Man 3
So leaden are the jokes, so scattered is its focus, it threatens to court disaster. Then, against all odds, the movie rights itself to recapture that Marvel-ous spirit of the 2008 original. It’s almost as if Shane Black (directing for only the second time, and his first since 2005’s woefully underseen Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) […]
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Trading places
Between being a band, helping manage a record label/recording studio and maintaining a full-time day job, time management is crucial. Maybe that’s why Josh Griffin and Jonathan Eldridge — the two-man crew behind Oklahoma City blues-rock outfit The Trading Co. — have taken to writing songs and playing shows at the same time. “We’ve done […]
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Tony Romanello and the Black Jackets — Pleased to Meet Us
Sure, Romanello doesn’t have the gravitas of a Westerberg and Stinson, but he doesn’t need to. Those guys have already paved the road; let’s just let Tony and the Black Jackets drive on it. “The Way It Goes” is a good intro to the group, and a song I’m sure kills live, with its intonations […]
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Monster mash
The Phantom of the Opera7:30 p.m. Thursday Lon Chaney’s name is forever associated with 1925’s The Phantom of the Opera, and for good reason: It’s one of the great performances in silent films. I don’t care how old you are or how many times you’ve seen it: When Christine (Mary Philbin) unmasks the Phantom 38 […]
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Taddy Porter — Stay Golden
Grammy winner Mark Neill (the man behind The Black Keys’ Brothers) co-produced Stay Golden with Dave Cobb (Jamey Johnson, Shooter Jennings), and that firepower shows. Stay Golden isn’t fool’s gold. It’s the real deal. It begins with “Changes,” a brilliant, self-knowing nod to the group’s new direction that moves with a cocky walk. “The Gun” […]
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Zoning out
Residents of the targeted 20-block area had fought the rezoning application until the city’s turnabout late last week. Still, many residents in the predominantly African-American neighborhood believe the city will try again. J.J. Chambless, head of the city’s development services department, told Oklahoma Gazette that the rezoning application officially will be withdrawn when the Oklahoma […]
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Once you go Black …
Joe Lewis couldn’t have known that picking up a guitar to kill some time during a particularly boring shift at a pawn shop would make his life calling clear. In retrospect, however, it feels like fate. “It was just being bored. You start messing around with stuff, and it was pure chance,” he said. “I […]
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Tiger beat
Photo: Nathan Poppe It doesn’t take long following in someone else’s footsteps to want to step out on your own again. Oklahoma’s Beau Jennings literally has been retracing the footsteps of famed Okie humorist Will Rogers over the past few years for his passion project, the film The Verdigris: In Search of Will Rogers, all […]