Kira Music

Holy countercultural confluence! For the cause of fundraising for the defense of a trio of legally bound Arkansas headbangers--one of whom is currently on death row on the basis of hearsay testimony--Henry Rollins has resurrected the sacrosanct songs of his legendary former Los Angeles hardcore band Black Flag. Much as he first joined the popular Flag by jumping on stage and grabbing the microphone, Rollins here assigns lead vocals to a bewildering array of guests, including Iggy Pop, Dean Ween, Corey Taylor of Slipknot, Tom Araya of Slayer, Queens of the Stone Age, and Ice T. The Rollins Band convincingly serves as caustic backing band throughout. Protest music godfather Chuck D. of Public Enemy appears as well, though simply to introduce the album. Many of the singers, whether inspired by the cause itself or the muscular caliber of Black Flag's music, deliver the rebellious message with heartfelt intensity. Motorhead leader Lemmy's ripping version of "Thirsty and Miserable" is a stunning highlight, as is Hank Williams III's psychotic "No Values." Former Flag singers Keith Morris and Chuck Dukowski bring their veteran intensity, and Rollins himself shouts "My War," "TV Party," "Black Coffee," "Annihilate This Week," "Slip It In," and the title track. (Flag guitarist-lyricist Greg Ginn is notably absent, though his trademark clear Lucite guitar joins the West Memphis Three defendants on the cover artwork.) The participating musicians' anger and frustration over the West Memphis Three case, which has been detailed in HBO's Paradise Lost documentaries, is well matched with the giant fury of this band. --Ian Christe

This is the crux of the Flag. Their third album of 1984, it followed the schizophrenic Family Man, which found the band playing bone- crushing instrumentals on one side while Henry Rollins ranted spoken-word on the other. Slip put things back together with a hammer--with new bassist Kira Roessler striking the blow. This is music of real tension, and Rollins challenges guitarist Greg Ginn for the reins all the way through. His throat-ripping rasp may win out on "Wound Up," but Ginn is simply ferocious on "Black Coffee" and "My Ghetto." Suzanne Gardner's hilarious yet sexy cooings on the title track win her the "Donna Summer of Punk" Award. --Michael Ruby

Literary adaptations just don't get any better than director Joe Wright's 2005 version of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. The key word here is adaptation, because Wright and gifted screenwriter Deborah Moggach have taken liberties with Austen's classic novel that purists may find objectionable, but in this exquisite film their artistic decisions are entirely justified and exceptionally well executed. It's a more rural England that we see here, circa 1790 (as opposed to Austen's early 19th century), in which Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) is one of several sisters primed for marriage, with an anxious mother (Brenda Blethyn) only too desperate to see her daughters paired off with the finest, richest husbands available. Elizabeth is strong-willed and opinionated, but her head (not to mention her pride and prejudice) lead her heart astray when she meets the wealthy Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen), whose own sense of decency and discretion (not to mention his pride and prejudice) prevent him from expressing his mutual affection. They're clearly meant for each other, and as Knightley's performance lights up the screen (still young enough to be girlishly impertinent, yet wise beyond her 20 years), Austen's timeless romance yields yet another timeless adaptation, easily on par with the beloved BBC miniseries that has been embraced by millions since originally broadcast in 1995. Individual tastes will vary as to which version should be considered "definitive," but with a stellar supporting cast including Judi Dench and Donald Sutherland, this impeccable production achieves its own kind of perfection. --Jeff Shannon

One of the greatest love stories of all time, Pride & Prejudice, comes to the screen in a glorious new adaptation starring Keira Knightley. When Elizabeth Bennett (Knightley) meets the handsome Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), she believes he is the last man on earth she could ever marry. But as their lives become intertwined in an unexpected adventure, she finds herself captivated by the very person she swore to loathe for all eternity. Based on the beloved masterpiece by Jane Austen, it is the classic tale of love and misunderstanding that sparkles with romance, wit and emotional force. Critics are calling it "Exhilarating. A joy from start to finish" (Carina Chocano, Los Angeles Times).

A FATAL BUS ACCIDENT TIES THE SOULS OF FOUR STRANGERS TO THOMAS REILLY, WHO'S BORN AT THE EXACT TIME OF THE CRASH. ONCE THOMASIS GROWN UP, THE FOUR LEARN THEY EACH HAVE ONE CHANCE TO RESOLVETHE UNFINISHED BUSINESS IN THEIR LIVES. TO DO THIS, THEY NEED TOTEMPORARILY TAKE OVER HIS BODY AND THOMAS WILL NOT COOPERATE.

Robert Downey Jr. has never been more charming than in this comedy about a yuppie who is revisited in adulthood by the spirits of four people who had been his friends as a child. The ghosts (Kyra Sedgwick, Charles Grodin, Alfre Woodard, Tom Sizemore) all have unfinished business in this world before they can move on to the next, and Downey's character agrees to let them inhabit his body while they sort it all out. The appealing cast alone strongly recommends this movie, but Downey's remarkable facility for physical comedy--manifesting the personalities of his supernatural pals as they possess him--is a riot. Elisabeth Shue makes the best of her part as the hero's girlfriend; Leaving Las Vegas was still ahead of her, but one can see her talent straining to get out here. The DVD release has a widescreen presentation, production notes, theatrical trailer, biographies of the cast, closed captioning, an optional French soundtrack and Spanish subtitles, and Dolby sound. --Tom Keogh

John Travolta's should've-been-nominated-for-an-Oscar performance is the best reason to see this largely moving work, which is a little reminiscent of the novel Flowers for Algernon (basis for the film Charly). Travolta plays a mechanic who sees a bright light in the sky one night and wakes up the next morning a genius, hungry for knowledge and so smart he figures out national defense secrets in his own living room (and gets in hot water for it). The more interesting drama, however, is not with the government but with the character's longtime neighbors and friends, who come to reject him for being different. Robert Duvall gives a stirring performance as a doctor who has known the hero all his life, and Kyra Sedgwick is very good as an ambivalent love interest. If you missed this one in the theaters, then you haven't seen one of Travolta's best performances since his comeback. The DVD release presents a widescreen image, optional French soundtrack, optional Spanish subtitles, and theatrical trailer. --Tom Keogh

PHENOMENON - DVD Movie

Simple Cute This design of a girl her saxophone is perfect for any musical fan. The perfect gift Enjoy Music Tee, TShirt, Shirt. About our Dark T-Shirt: Look cool without breaking the bank. Our durable, high-quality, pre-shrunk 100% cotton t-shirt is what to wear when you want to go comfortably casual. Preshrunk, durable and guaranteed.5.6 oz. 100% cotton. Standard fit..

Simple Cute This design of a girl her mellophone is perfect for any musical fan. The perfect gift Enjoy Music Tee, TShirt, Shirt. About our Dark T-Shirt: Look cool without breaking the bank. Our durable, high-quality, pre-shrunk 100% cotton t-shirt is what to wear when you want to go comfortably casual. Preshrunk, durable and guaranteed.5.6 oz. 100% cotton. Standard fit..

When Barbie takes a breather, you can bet she does it in style, and that everything she touches will match her outfit--even an inflatable armchair! A sleeveless top with pink cotton bodice and transparent pink vinyl waist and shoulder panels shows off her minuscule waist. Pink print pedal pushers encase her legs to just below the knee. Pink sunglasses, earrings, ring, and platform sandals complete the outfit. The Sit In Style kit includes three sheets of reusable stickers, so Barbie can jazz up the look of her pink vinyl chair or the vinyl portion of her outfit. Included are Barbie's hairbrush, and a 2-inch diameter key ring that doubles as a portrait of Barbie. Barbie lovers can also collect Christie, Teresa, and Kira Sit In Style dolls-- so Barbie doesn't sit there all alone! --Ava Natov

Brown-haired Flower Power Barbie doll. Has long orange and oink patterned skirt with matching hat and pink halter top.

2007 Alan Merriam Prize presented by the Society for Ethnomusicology 2007 PEN/Beyond Margins Book Award FinalistWhen we think of African American popular music, our first thought is probably not of double-dutch: girls bouncing between two twirling ropes, keeping time to the tick-tat under their toes. But this book argues that the games black girls play —handclapping songs, cheers, and double-dutch jump rope—both reflect and inspire the principles of black popular musicmaking.The Games Black Girls Play illustrates how black musical styles are incorporated into the earliest games African American girls learn—how, in effect, these games contain the DNA of black music. Drawing on interviews, recordings of handclapping games and cheers, and her own observation and memories of gameplaying, Kyra D. Gaunt argues that black girls' games are connected to long traditions of African and African American musicmaking, and that they teach vital musical and social lessons that are carried into adulthood. In this celebration of playground poetry and childhood choreography, she uncovers the surprisingly rich contributions of girls’ play to black popular culture.

In this innovative and thought-provoking study, Kira Kosnick explores the landscape of Turkish-language broadcasting in Berlin. From 24-hour radio broadcasting in Turkish to programming on Germany's national public broadcasting and local public access channels, Germany's largest immigrant minority has made its presence felt in German media. Satellite dishes have appeared in migrant neighborhoods all over the city, giving viewers access to Kurdish channels and broadcasts from Turkey. Kosnick draws on interviews with producers, her own participation in production work, and analysis of programs to elaborate a new approach to "migrant media" in relation to the larger cultural and political spaces through which immigrant life is imagined and created.

He was twenty-nine years old and had recorded just eighty sessions when he died on New Year's Day 1953. Yet those songs—“Hey Good Lookin'," "Your Cheatin' Heart," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"-made Hank Williams the most influential country musician ever. He is the essential pre-Elvis performer, molding American music into a new art form, and creating descendants that range from Garth Brooks to Beck. But for all that his music reveals, we know remarkably little of the man himself. His formal interviews barely filled a page, and even those who claimed him as a friend admit they barely knew him. Hank Williams fans, devoted and avid, have been cherishing the same few Hank pictures and reminiscences for decades. Now this book will reveal a previously unseen wealth of photographs, letters, interviews, and the handwritten lyrics to twenty-nine newly discovered songs in a beautifully designed tribute. Arranged chronologically and enhanced by testimonials from Hank's family, friends, and the musicians he inspired, Hank Williams is a revelation.

Pinky Street: Kira Kira * Music Hour Japanese Format (NTSC-J). Box,package,