Going Hollywood: Fluid Changes Labels; Songs Remain the Same

Jae-Ha Kim

It wasn’t just its homebase that differentiated Fluid from its Sub Pop label mates.  It was, according to guitarist James Clower, a matter of attention – or lack thereof. “I don’t want it to sound like I’ve got sour grapes, because I don’t really,” Clower says.  “But (Seattle’s) Sub Pop (Records) kind of blew us off because we lived in Denver and all its other bands lived there.  They didn’t want to have to deal with us.  That’s one of the reasons why we decided to switch labels.”

An Excess Of Hype For INXS: Aussie Band Packs ’em In On Tour of Small Clubs

Jae-Ha Kim

“In a sense, we do take mischievous pleasure doing what we’re doing,” said vocalist Michael Hutchence. “But we’re not trying to tease our fans, really, because this (club tour) is part of an ongoing world tour. We’ll be back. Why we chose to play in clubs for our first trek of our U.S. tour is really quite simple. It was time for us to get back to the basics, which meant getting back into the clubs we started our careers in.

Carl Reiner Gets Risque: Sexy Book Takes Funny Look at Marriage ’90s Style

Jae-Ha Kim

“All Kinds of Love” isn’t the “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” that’s for sure. When Carl Reiner created the classic ’60s TV series, his married couple – Rob and Laura Petrie – weren’t allowed to sleep together in the same bed, much less dally with next-door neighbor Milly.

Geldof Booms Into Town // He’d Rather Play His Music Than Discuss It

Jae-Ha Kim

Bob Geldof is a hard sell. He is 40 and says he feels it, though he doesn’t look much different from when he was a young punk in the ’70s band the Boomtown Rats. Tall and gangly, he is charismatic on stage – defiant in conversation. He is quick to laugh, but the Irishman makes it clear he doesn’t suffer fools.

`Cannibal’ Show Revels In Warped Wackiness

Jae-Ha Kim

A man has sex with a hamburger. A drug addict accidentally snorts a line of cremated body. A woman makes love to office equipment. A man gets nuked in a microwave. Welcome to “Cannibal Cheerleaders on Crack,” where blood flies and vomit flows – theater’s own little freak show. Regardless of taste, Chicagoans are eating “Cannibals” up. The grossly wacky socio-political comedy celebrates its second anniversary Sunday at the Torso Theatre. (It debuted Nov. 14, 1990.) The plot is less important than the farcical mayhem.

Social Misfits No More

Jae-Ha Kim

He’s got a name that sounds like Elliott Ness’ punk cousin and a look that’s half Elvis, half mechanic.  Mike Ness is Social Distortion’s singer, songwriter and mouthpiece.  The music industry’s indifference almost made the medium-core punk band disappear.  But 13 years after its inception, the California group is finally enjoying  success, thanks to radio’s acceptance of its latest album, “Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell.”

By Any Other Name: John Wesley Harding Would Be As Talented

Jae-Ha Kim

He took his stage name from a Bob Dylan album almost as old as he is and nicks his album titles from Frank Capra movies.  So where’s John Wesley Harding’s originality?  In his music. An acerbically witty songwriter who sings folk-style rock songs, Harding is touring with a group of musicians who he refuses to Christian with a band name.  Catch him and them when they perform tomorrow at the Metro.

“The Last of the Mohicans”

Jae-Ha Kim

The Last of the Mohicans is as much a love story as it is a tale of how the West was won — by some people, that is, the poor Mohicans not being among them. Set in 1757, during the American colonial wars between the English and French settlers of North America, the movie stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Hawkeye, a frontiersman who agrees to escort Clara (Madeleine Stowe) and her sister to the fort where their British-officer father awaits them.

James (Rolling Stone review)

Jae-Ha Kim

The British rock group James understands that simplicity can be an elegantly powerful tool in concert. On its first tour of the United States, the seven-man band played an exquisitely stripped-down show in Chicago, proving that while the hype machine may be turned on full gear, the group is more than capable of living up to any hyperbole thrust upon it.

Axl Rose a fugitive after show canceled

Jae-Ha Kim

Rowdy heavy metal rocker Axl Rose cancelled a concert at the Rosemont Horizon and skipped town to escape the long arms of persecuting prosecutors, a representative for the singer says. Leaving thousands of fans waiting outside the Rosemont Horizon, Rose’s band, Guns N’ Roses, canceled a Friday night show half an hour before doors were to open so that Rose could avoid being served with misdemeanor arrest warrants for his alleged role in a Missouri riot last year.