[New Releases] I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness "Fear Is On Our Side"I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness—"Fear Is On Our Side" (Secretly Canadian 2006) Growing up on the cerebral goth-psych-shoegaze side of 4AD, "Pornography"-era Cure, "Hey Day"-era Church, and Echo & the Bunnymen ("Ocean Rain"), ILYBICD take me back to …
[New Releases] Mint "Magnetism"Mint—"Magnetism" (Funzalo 2006) Belgian indie-pop rockers Mint recorded their second album in Richmond, Va., with John Morand (Sparklehorse, Cracker). Their first U.S. release, "Magnetism," has fresh, emotional pop that can evoke Fountains of Wayne, Belle & Sebastian or Grandaddy, while …
[New Releases] Arctic Monkeys "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not"Arctic Monkeys—"Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (Domino 2006) England's Arctic Monkeys set the UK record for the fastest-selling debut album of all time. It's high-energy, hard-drinking, thick English accent, punk-inspired rock for fans of Franz Ferdinand, …
[New Releases] The Concretes "In Colour"The Concretes—"In Colour" (Astralwerks 2006) The melodic Swedish indie-pop octet is that '60s Ronettes style, candy-coated Phil Spector Motown to watch clouds and shimmy to—great if you dig early Belle & Sebastian, Mazzy Star, Opal or the Cardigans. Overall, it's …
[New Releases] Placebo "Meds"Placebo—"Meds" (Astralwerks 2006) Over the past 10 years, Placebo has become one of the top-selling British arena rockers for the UK's Marilyn Manson/Pumpkins set. Their powerful electro-alt-rock, genre-defying sounds have kept them out of the superstar mainstream U.S., with the …
[Wine] Winely WanderingsYou know, sometimes subjects for this wine article don't come easily. I mean, after a while, what's left to write about? But when it comes down to it, does there always have to be one single theme or subject assigned …
Passing The BarThere's a day in your life when staring at a rope swing hanging from a tree limb, you are content just to watch others fling themselves with glee off the bank and into the cool creek below.
Marshmallow MayhemI grew up cooking, and I am happy to say that over the course of my 30 some odd years of life, I have had few food-related injuries. I have rarely cut myself in the kitchen, even when shucking oysters …
Lobbying Plan A Joke?For more than two weeks, city lobbyist Marcus Ward effectively ducked council members seeking to question him on his plan to attain $29 million from Washington.
New Sports Arena on the WayMississippi Headhunters team owner Greg Disotell got the go-ahead from the Jackson City Council Tuesday to begin pooling $40 million for the construction of an enclosed sports arena to host minor-league football, as well as other entertainment events.
New York Times Honors JFP EditorJackson Free Press contributing editor Casey Parks got a delightful shock last week when New York Times columnist Nick Kristof called to offer her a coveted slot as his "traveling companion" on a 10-day trip to Africa—to New Guinea, Cameroon …
Fantasy IslandDevelopers are cheering and environmentalists are jeering as the Lefleur Lakes ("Two Lakes") project gains momentum, helped along by political support from men like Mayor Frank Melton and Gov. Haley Barbour, who seem poised to rubberstamp the development despite concerns …
Hands Off My KodachromeI took Daphne Nabors on a field trip to the Fondren Beverage Emporium to see what kind of soda this local photographer would pick out and how that would that might give me insight to her artistic psyche. She picked …
Decrypting Da VinciWhen New England novelist Dan Brown sat down in 2003 to write "The Da Vinci Code," he probably never guessed that in less than three years his controversial thriller would sell more than 60 million copies and be translated into …