In a tabloid-frenzy world, it is quite refreshing to see actors get publicity for working with non-profit organizations or support causes that are important to them. One such actress is Alexis Raben.
When she is not helping students at the Young Storytellers Foundation in Los Angeles, the Russian-born actress is making her comedic mark playing a sexy accented lesbian in the film, Miss March. Raben discusses her character, the hilarious script, and the one thing in common that she shares with The Whitest Kids U’ Know comedy troupe.
RG: Alright. …

Well, on top of all of our pessimistic views on music, and our often irreverent, though sometime enlightening interviews, we here at Racket want to continue branching out, offering each of our writers to select their top ten whatever and present it to the world. I will start us off:
Top Ten Reasons to Have Top Ten Lists
10. Ten’s a nice, metric number
9. If they’re good enough for Letterman, they’re good enough for me.
8. You don’t have to use real paragraphs.
7. Just because.
6. They are great filler. …

As a fledgling Twitter-er, I am just barely dipping my toes into the ocean of twits, twats, and tweeting. Honestly, the amount of unnecessary information available is almost astounding. Celebrities have shown to be the highest supplier of utterly pointless details. The number of intelligent people who truly care that Heidi Montag is headed (oh, dear god, no) to the studio has to be less than one percent. Including those who are a blind or in a coma. Now, telling us that she is not going to the studio, hopefully …

Tokyo!
Comme des Cinémas
9/10
Tokyo! lines up a dynamic set of directors – Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Leos Carax (The Lovers on the Bridge), and Bong Joon-ho (The Host)- each plating up their own dish in a trio of curious and inventive short films, and all of them shot in Tokyo. The distinctive styles each director provides makes for an interesting and provocative combo that delivers a satisfying package, keeping the bar raised high. With the exception of the weak ending to the last segment by Joon-Ho Bong, …

One single gets airplay on the radio (Locals Only on KROQ- ten pm on Sundays at 106.7 with Kat Corbett) and suddenly, Los Angeles is all abuzz with the sounds of “Sometime Around Midnight.” The addictive single from the Airborne Toxic Event has gotten them signed, sighted, and sold out- I had the pleasure of witnessing their act last week at the always-fun Glasshouse in Pomona.
The radio airplay definitely showed in the crowd that came out that evening- where usually I’d expect to see boys and girls with tight jeans …

I had one of those hometowns that are frequently used as locations in romantic comedies: quaint, low crime rate, boring. Everyone knows everyone, everyone knows of everything that goes down, and almost everything that goes down seems to be geared towards the upwardly mobile baby boomers. That is, until Hangar 24 Brewery came to Redlands.
I love microbreweries as it is, but Hangar 24 actually gives me that tinge of hometown pride- a feeling that there is pure deliciousness coming from the same place where I used to ditch classes. …

Matt and Kim
Hollywood Holt
Skully’s Music Diner
Friday, February 27, 2009
I strolled into Skully’s last night to find a DJ (DJ Skyler from the upcoming act, as I learned later) on stage mixing songs by Santogold and M.I.A. with classics like “It Takes Two” to an enthusiastic crowd of revelers. I arrived about an hour after music was scheduled to begin so I missed local openers Tin Armor, but that’s okay. I’ve seen them a number of times. After ordering a drink and scoping out the scene for a few I made …

Photo Atlas
Silently Provoke the Ghosts E.P.
6/10
The Photo Atlas seems to be on the verge of something unique, but hasn’t yet pushed hard enough. There is a load of talent present in this EP, but they sound as if they’re trying to please each widespread musical influence all at once. Their obvious influences happen to be a load of bands they’ve formerly shared stages with- music-wise there’s Reggie and the Full Effect, Motion City Soundtrack, Portugal the Man, and Appleseed Cast; vocals suggest Say Anything and Circa Survive. These guys have …

Monsters Vs. Aliens 3-D
DreamWorks Entertainment
3 /10

Despite what you would think Monsters vs. Aliens isn’t an epic battle-royale , down and dirty brawl, between space-beings and mutants like you might expect. Monsters vs. Aliens is not necessarily for kids, to the point it seems like they weren’t even the target audience. The jokes in the film were unfunny, the humor fell flat, and the action was not that “cool”. Sure, there’s fighting, but the action seems almost supplemental. The film is basically a 40 foot woman’s quest to not …

Going Green- what’s it all about? A ploy to make money? A hippie’s dreams come true? Don’t feel bad, even the most savvy of us get confused with all this green-washing. I hesitate to use the word since so much confusion and deceit seems associated with it.
Here’s some food for thought though- whether you believe in global warming or not, you can at least acknowledge the filth around you- in the gutters, at the beach, etc etc. It has to come from somewhere, right? And like it or not, …

The Ergs
That’s It, Bye
Don Giovanni Records
10/10
Add Jersey punks The Ergs to the list of bands I find out about far too late. The Fest staples finished up their run in November ’08, but left us with one last EP, That’s it, Bye. While a lot of bands are described as “blistering” or “burning” or any number of demolishing adverbs, The Ergs are just a solid band who released a solid EP-obituary. With “Anthem for a new Amanda,” they had me going back to it so I can scream along for …

Kinetic Stereokids
Kid Moves
Overdraft Recordings
7/10
The word eclectic was written for the Kinetic Stereokids. Despite getting little airplay from mainstream radio and television, the quintet has managed to earn a diverse following- and a huge one at that- with their experimental jams and avant-garde tracks. Their latest record Kid Moves finds them doing more of the same, combining elements of electronica, rap, and rock n’ roll to create an intense album that pushes the limits of musical appreciation. The result is an album that is challenges as well as entertains.
At first …

Goodbye, Etc
Last Gasp
With Last Gasp, the Philly-based trio Goodbye, Etc seemed to take inspiration from Green Day’s 1,039 Smoothed Out Slappy Hours , but they put a more positive and catchy twist on that style- it’s pretty smooth, upbeat, poppy, and melodic. It’s not bad, but along with the melody, these sugary tunes are simultaneously repetitive, simple, and empty- leaving a boring impression. I’m doubtful about today’s teenagers, but a 14-year-old me might be down with this. I imagine Last Gasp would be up on a shelf next to …

Irepress
Sol Eye Sea I
Translation Loss Records
8/10
Holy fuck. I’ve never been interested in words like “post-metal” or progressive anything, but Irepress (pronounced ear-press, apparently) is fucking rad. The band brings ambience into the realm of distortion and swirls around with some straight up crazy ass shit. From the glistening guitars that could easily be what John Frusciante hears when he’s tripping balls to the drums that swing from minimalistic to poly-rhythmic, Irepress is an ear-fuck. That is a good thing. It’s probably not br00tal enough for the Cradle of Filth or …

Rent – The Broadway Tour
Pantages Theatre Premiere
Friday February 27, 2009
8/10
It’s opening night on Hollywood Blvd and I’ve got a very apprehensive attitude towards what I’m about to see. Since the 2005 film rendition of Jonathan Larson’s Tony Award-winning musical, Rent has become a household name to music and movie lovers alike. I would even go as far to argue that no other musical has made quite a mainstream impact with its crossover to film since Randal Kleiser’s 1978 film rendition of Grease. The main question …

Automatic Drawing
Captain and the Sea
Unsigned
8/10
Few bands are as impressive as Automatic Drawing. Since the band’s inception in the mid 00’s, the unsigned act has gone from a relative unknown to one of the hottest groups that no one east of the Mississippi has heard of- and that’s only in the last two years. Their status as an “it” band assured, with their sophomore album Captain and the Sea they are out to solidify their place in the pantheon of up and coming indie rock bands. Judging by their spacey …