The UWM Post

On October 4 highly esteemed filmmakers Charles Burnett, Kevin Jerome Everson and Iverson White collected for a panel discussion entitled “The Vérité Impulse in the films of Burnett, Everson and White.” It was hosted in a quiet 4th floor room at the Kenilworth Square East building to an audience of about 50, and was moderated by Professor Portia Cobb of the UWM Community Media Project, a division of the film department in the Peck School of the Arts. The three cinematic masters came together to discuss several topics, including the debunking or qualifying of “cinema vérité” (a form of documentary filmmaking), authenticating tales to a highly skeptical white audience and directing actors.

For thousands of years musicians have relied upon the songs of their forefathers to follow and emulate. The story of American popular music is one that spans centuries and continents, tracing its roots likewise to the boroughs of Western Europe as the plains of Western Africa. Historically, American folk and blues players have strayed little from their respective Appalachian or Mississippi Delta roots, and the style and subject matter of even newly penned songs remain consistent with those traditional songs of antiquity.

As many of you may know, one hundred meters underneath the border of France and Switzerland, 111 international scientists and engineers have been attempting to find an explanation for the make-up of the universe by conducting the most expensive science experiment in history.

Ben Folds has just released his latest album, Way to Normal, still following his own defined version of “normal”. The 42 year old released the piano and guitar infused album to the public on September 30th, for which the store-released version consisted of twelve full length songs; the iTunes release includes five additional video versions of the songs “Kylie From Connecticut”, “The Frown Song”, “Errant Dog”, “Cologne”, and “Effington”. Way to Normal has been much awaited, since his sophomore album (Songs for Silverman) came out in 2005.

In the technology game, typically something new and exciting happens everyday. At conventions, conferences and meetings, innovations and new ideas are presented, ideas that shape our world to make life easier (or more frustrating, depending on how you look at it). Take Apple for example. I always thought that the iPod would be just be another simple audio player that would replace CD players, but somehow it’s now become a phone, multimedia player and mobile internet. Technological evolution at it’s best.

Conventional isn’t the first word that comes to mind when attempting to describe Philadelphia’s bizarrely visual act Man Man.

There are tons of diets out there today, but do any of them really work? I don’t believe in diets, I believe in a healthy lifestyle that involves healthy eating and exercise. That’s not to say you have to give up your favorite food, I’m just saying that you probably can’t eat your favorite food every day, unless you have an undying love for broccoli.

Bill Maher is no stranger to controversy. The host of "Real Time With Bill Maher" angered many a few years ago when he quipped that instead of a memorial, we should eredct a "Why They Hate Us" pavilion at Ground Zero. His new film, "Religulous," a look at the fanatical nature of religion. is no exception. The documentary opened Oct. 3, and already has sparked protests and boycotts from the religious right.

My fellow readers, in my second article to the Post, I described the Mars Volta’s “The Bedlam in Goliath” was “a maniacal juggernaut.” After much reflection, I revoke that title and presently bestow it upon Pendulum, a worthy band that traveled to Milwaukee across the pond from their hometown of Perth (Western Australia) in search of eager fans.

Movement is this week’s theme, from the dial on your old AM/FM radio to the departure times for your flight to Anywhere.