Scene

TV star-turned-rocker makes stop at AU

Jared Leto, best known for his role on TV's "My So-Called Life," and his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, played a SUB-sponsored concert in the Tavern Saturday. Approximately 300 students attended the show, according to SUB Director Eric Friedlander. "Leto really went out of his way to get invovled with the crowd," Friedlander said.

Hometown hero shakes up the Cat despite illness

The strangest part of discovering Ted Leo is realizing that he never cried out to be found. Nothing about his music or work ethic has really ever suggested anything overly self-promotional. He just puts his nose to the grindstone and doesn't worry about image.

Spring fling

Valentine's Day came and went, and nearly everyone found themselves complaining about either having someone boring or having no one at all. With 11 months to prepare for the next Hallmark-sponsored day of self-depreciation, make some time to go out with someone fresh to do something new.

Let the rhythm hit 'em: classic hip-hop

With this column, we want to reintroduce anyone who cares to listen to the fun, truly introspective and downright funky music that is real hip-hop music. Therefore, we are bringing you our classic hip-hop picks, records that embody the sound and expand the scope of hip-hop in amazing ways.

Sushi: a treat much treasured

In the '80s, Americans had several things to count on. Ronald Reagan. BMWs. The overwhelmingly huge trend of sushi consumption. As cult rock band The Bogmen sang in their song "Suddenly," "Back home I use that for fertilizer." Nevertheless, as the oldest of us undergraduates were likely born in 1983, our comprehension of this American bastardization of a trend may be lacking.

New Circus Club clowns around campus

CLUB PROFILE: The AU Circus Club. Meets Mondays and Thursdays at 5 p.m. on the quad. They can be found on the quad every Monday and Thursday at 5 p.m., painting each other's faces a variety of colors, juggling beanbags and sometimes even trying to unicycle.

'Smoking' film a sharp satire on lobbying world

"Thank You For Smoking" is less about mocking Big Tobacco and the smarmy, white-teethed suits responsible for spreading its cancer sticks and more about mocking the whole culture of lobbying. As students living and putting up with the ups, downs, ins and outs of Washington, D.

Married musical 'mates' make crowd dance, swoon

Saturday night at the State Theatre in Falls Church, Va., indie pop duo Mates of State charmed a youthful suburban audience (and its parents) with the band's signature spunk, charisma and adoration for one another. Mates of State was preceded by two opening acts, Hail Social and Maria Taylor (of Azure Ray and Now It's Overhead fame).

The hit list

1. The Spinto Band This is a true AU alum success story. Class of 2005-er Nick Krill co-leads this band of buds (based in Delaware) in their attempt to destroy and rebuild pop music in their own image. They're now on tour with latest big thing #2,135, U.K.

Comic

Spring brings cheap alternatives to pricey D.C.

At this most stressful time of the spring, with Spring Break a distant memory and summer a mere speck at the end of a harrowingly long tunnel, it helps to be reminded that there's life - and hope - off campus. In fact, there's even a little bit of hope on campus.

Go! Team's nostalgia energizes audience

Retro doesn't go as far as it used to in music nowadays. The overabundance of bands who are content with simply repackaging musical archetypes for unsuspecting audiences has taken credibility away from forward-minded musicians looking to the past for inspiration.

Music notes

Isis "Panopticon" (Ipecac) Sounds like: Neurosis' artsy little brother. A- For almost a decade, post-metal/prog act Isis has been tearing up the post hardcore and metalcore scene with their unique style of metal, one that cannot be confined to words. In short, Isis has it all.

Spring road trip prompts rediscovery and inspiration

Time seems so endless yet passes so quickly. Like the poet Ovid wrote, "Tempis Fugit" - time flies. Before college, time didn't seem to matter as much. It wasn't my concern; all I had to do was fill in the hours that weren't predetermined, fleetingly wasting them away with topical analgesics for my mind.

Atypical family drama has tears, awkward music

In the past three years, there's been an increase in indie movies with main characters that need to "find themselves" - see "Garden State" and "Lost in Translation." In "Winter Passing," writer-director Adam Rapp puts on his own spin, basing the movie around family love rather than oddball or quirky love.

Cast fails to launch laughs

Before beginning, it's important to note that this review comes from an anti-Matthew McConaughey perspective. He's not that hot and he's not that talented, so America should just get over him. That being said, an open mind was kept during the screening of this movie.

Unsatisfying antics sour documentary on champion DJ

"Ten years, two turntables, one mixer." Herein lies the heart of a Montreal-bred DJ's life as the youngest world champion record mixer. "Sunglasses is a Must" is a documentary feature that compiles home video footage of DJ A-Trak as he pushes his way into the hip-hop limelight.