Entertainment: Multimedia Belt

'The Gondoliers' an unpleasant ride for audience
By Sarah Desantis
January 29, 2012 - 3:31am
Review: SU Opera Theatre's production suffers from maturation and casting issues.

Decades of practice and patience lead to greatness--at least for some of the world’s most renowned opera singers, who often wait until their 30s, 40s or even 50s, before their voices mature to a perfect timbre.

Going into The Gondoliers, I kept this in mind.

Bluegrass virtuosos wow Westcott with craft
By Leah Harrison
January 23, 2012 - 8:24am
Greensky Bluegrass, a Michigan bluegrass quintet, fuses jam band-like influences into their unique style of newgrass music.

Greensky Bluegrass appears relaxed, almost listless, on stage. But the ear contradicts the eye as soon as their fingers pluck the first strings. In a show of careful craftsmanship, the youthful Michigan outfit served up a sonic smorgasbord Sunday evening at the Westcott Theater.

Plug In Stereo electrifies intimate Funk 'N Waffles crowd
By Brandon Weight
January 21, 2012 - 12:42am
Portland singer-songwriter Trevor Dahl's solo act Plug In Stereo encourages crowd participation and sing-a-longs during his performance Friday night.

Trevor Dahl, lacking a female lead for one of his popular songs, “Oh Darling,” called on the audience to fill in for the bright, acoustic profession of teenage love.

Dahl, better known by the name of his solo act, Plug In Stereo, had the audience swooning and chiming in alongside his fingerpicked riffs. 

On the second day of a tour to promote its two-week old EP, The Patience, Plug In Stereo performed with The Scene Aesthetic and Romance on a Rocketship at Funk ‘N Waffles Friday evening. 

The women's world of comedy
By Pamela Masin
December 20, 2011 - 9:25am
Several campus humor groups, including Zamboni Revolution, has helped shape the new culture of the female comedienne.

Jenna Race walks quickly down a short flight of steps and heads straight toward the right side of the wooden floor raised just a few inches off the ground. The floor is mostly used as a platform for students to easily see their professor as he or she teaches in Kittridge Auditorium in Huntington Beard Crouse Hall. But on Nov. 12 at 8 p.m., when Race walks out, that bland wooden floor becomes a bright stage.

SU Idol runner-up steals the show
By Pete Wayner
December 15, 2011 - 4:49pm
With spiked hair and a hint of Mississippi mellow in his voice, grad student Brian Brister snagged second place and the crowd’s affection in the SU Idol competition.

Brian Brister hails from Mississippi where he attended William Carey University for mass communication and music. When he’s done at Newhouse, Brister says on his website he will pursue a career in fashion photography. The NewsHouse caught up with Brian to get an insider’s look at where he got those pipes.

Bandersnatch series opens with swagger
By Sam Napolitan
November 10, 2011 - 3:38pm
Review: Rapper Lil B spread peace and love at his Schine Underground performance Wednesday night.

Rapper Lil B is a god. Not a benevolent god or even a furious god, but the Based God.

“There’s only one Based God. There will never be another me,” he said before launching into stream of consciousness freestyle at his November 9 Schine Underground performance at Syracuse University. The show was the first for University Union’s Bandersnatch Music Series this semester.

Born Brendan McCartney, Lil B grew up in Berkeley, Calif.

"I think California is a great place if you wanna say this is me,” he said. “I got flowers growing out of my butt. Don’t judge me.”

The Kronos Quartet concludes its weeklong residency with a concert
By Veronica Magan
November 10, 2011 - 3:03pm
The string quartet employed cutting-edge technology and experimentation at the Setnor Auditorium Wednesday night.

As part of a weeklong residency, the Kronos Quartet offered an exhilarating presentation at Syracuse University Wednesday.

SU professor Theo Cateforis, offered a preview before the presentation. He reviewed the quartet’s 30-year history and shared his personal memories with Kronos. He said he remembered when he first discovered the ensemble, hearing their performance of Jimi Hendrix’s "Purple Haze" in 1986.

“Kronos Quartet’s career can simply be called visionary,” Cateforis said.

Noisey College Tour splits the difference
By Josh Breeden
November 2, 2011 - 5:05pm
Review: Kreayshawn phones it in while Neon Indian brings the heat to Goldstein Auditorium Tuesday night.

The Noisey College Tour show at Goldstein Auditorium last night was composed of two distinct halves. One left me energized, even excited. The other left me questioning drug-testing procedures at Columbia Records.

“I’ve drastically underestimated Justin Bieber.”

This thought rattled around my brain throughout the entirety of Kreayshawn’s opening set. Forty minutes of the viral video-goddess’s flimsy, crotch-grabbing hip-hop made Bieber’s pre-pubescent swoons sound like something off Revolver.

Amos Lee survives Westcott
By Erin Carson
October 29, 2011 - 2:19pm
Review: A rowdy crowd filled The Westcott Theater Friday night to see the folk singer.

Only so many artists can say “the last time I was here, was in ‘07 with the Bob Dylan tour.” And one of those artists is Philadelphia soul/folk singer Amos Lee.

After four years, Lee returned to Syracuse Friday night at The Westcott Theater, this time with singer/songwriter Pieta Brown.

Rachael Yamagata strolls through Ithaca
By Chris Baker
October 28, 2011 - 3:35pm
Review: The singer/songwriter returns to the stage after a three-year absence.

As the year’s first snow fell in Ithaca Thursday night, Rachael Yamagata stood on the sidewalk outside Delilah’s Lounge smoking a cigarette.

“Is it always this cold up here?” she asked. “It’s cold inside, it’s cold outside. It’s cold everywhere.”