TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE 5
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arts & features
HOROSCOPES Because the stars know things we don't.
Aries (March 21-April 19)
Todor is a 7
Aries (March 21- April 15)
Today is a 7
Choose personal time and post-
pone a public outing or travel.
Work within the rules. Follow a
hunch. Don't plan to do it all
yourself. You're gaining authority
today and tomorrow.
Taurus (April 20-May 20)
Today is a 6
pace
New directions beckon. Use what you've kept hidden. Don't go shopping until the check clears. Review your priorities. A moment of disagreement could slow the
Gemini (May 21-June 20)
Today is a 6
Group participation wins results today and tomorrow. Things don't always go as expected. Begin planning a trip (but don't take off yet). Be willing to compromise. Don't antagonize your partner.
Cancer (June 21-July 22)
Today is a 7
There's more work arriving. Consider accepting more responsibility today and tomorrow. Base a gamble on experience. Don't choose the most difficult path or discuss plans. Reserve strength. Play with friends and family.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)
Today is a 7
Today and tomorrow are great for travel. With discipline and planning, you can go anywhere. A new direction beckons. Use what you've just learned. Keep alternate routes in mind, just in case. Study your destination.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)
Today is a 7
Take disciplined action regarding family finances and advance farther than expected today and tomorrow. Study your hunch... it could work. Sign papers and file them. Compare new features. Don't talk about it. Get moving.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)
Today is an 8
You can do anything you set your mind to. Listen to your partner.
Collaboration brings fruitful results today and tomorrow.
Learn from a strong leader. Put your back into it.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)
Today is a 6
Today is a 6
A new project demands attention today and tomorrow. Talk doesn't go far...action's required. Apply discipline to time management this week, and rely on your schedule. A bonus is available. You're the stabilizing influence.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)
Today is a 7
Assert your opinion without clashing with an authority figure. This requires an attitude adjustment. The practical can also be comfortable. Love is the priority today and tomorrow.
Practice something you're passionate about. Emotional release provides freedom.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)
Today in a 7
Imagine a firm foundation.
Strengthen your household infrastructure. Take on a project with enthusiasm. Quiet determination gets it done. A disruption or surprise distracts... stay flexible.
Follow an expert's advice, and prepare for a party.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)
Today is an 8
TODAY is an 8
You have a knack for putting words together today and to-morrow. Write but don't publish.
Study and research. Embrace a new phase in leadership.
Discover a lost treasure in the process. Don't let financial constraints stop you.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
Todav is an 8
The next two days are good for making money. Assume responsibility. A loved one offers support. Act on what you hear. Keep watching for openings. Not all directions progress. Persistent action gets results.
Speakeasy opens in downtown Lawrence
MARISSA KAUFMANN
@MarissaUDK
Lawrence's newest business has an official address—7 E. Seventh St.—but you won't find it on Google maps. The restaurant and bar is also a speakeasy, appropriately named John Brown's Underground. Brain power and personal intuition serve as prerequisites to setting foot in the front door.
The search for John Brown's Underground, a place for "cocktails, food and freedom," is made more difficult with no indication of the restaurant in sight, aside from a black awning atop the stairs that leads to the restaurant.
The location was strategically placed underground, creating a sense of discovery for any patron that finds it. Owner Scott Elliot would not have it any other way.
"It (is) true speakeasy fashion to put a bar where a bar was not supposed to be," Elliot said.
Along with no sign, you will not be able to find John Brown's Underground on the Internet or in any advertisement. Elliot said the restaurant is going old school.
Eliot's goal is for customers to receive a personal invitation. In the digital age, this unique concept might seem foreign and outdated.
"100 percent word of mouth," he said.
Students seem more intrigued by the retro restaurant. Hannah Hall, a senior from Lawrence, said she thinks it would be an interesting experience and sounds like a unique addition to Lawrence because no place like it currently exists.
However, Tim Bengtson, a professor of journalism at the University, does not see the appeal or the magic in this old-fashioned concept, but admits it is sometimes strategic in business to go left when everyone else goes right.
Elliot said he found inspiration through traveling across the United States. His inspiration for John Brown's Underground came from
restaurants such as East Side Showroom in Austin, Texas, Raines Law Room in New York City and Manifesto in Kansas City, Mo. He said no place is more accepting than Lawrence.
"When America was growing and budding, food was not chemicals. Everything was authentic," he said.
This authenticity is reflected in the restaurant's food, drinks and service. All ingredients are grown from the restaurant's garden and every drink is hand crafted by the bartender. The drink menu features unique cocktails such as Pimm's Cup, The Abbey, Rob Roy, Mint Julep, Sazerac and a Prohibition punch.
"It was beautiful. It was very moorish."
Lawrence's new speakeasy. John Brown's Underground, has no signs and advertises only by word of mouth.
PAUL SCOTT French professor
"It was beautiful. It was very moorish," Scott said. "Moorish is a British expression meaning something you crave and want more of it. It's kind of addictive, so you call it moorish."
Paul Scott, a professor of French at the University, chose a Pisco Sour, which is made of pisco, lime and egg whites. A Pisco Sour is a drink commonly found in Chile or Venezuela, Scott said. He has also tried the daily special, a Pistachio Cello, an inspired twist on the classic Limoncello.
The restaurant opened two weeks ago, and has doubled its sales during the second week, Elliot said.
ANNA WENNER/KANSAN
John Brown's Underground opens everyday at noon for lunch and stays open until midnight Sunday through Wednesday, and until 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.
Edited by Ben Carroll
ΔNNA WFNNFR/KANSAN
John Brown's Underground is open every day at noon for lunch. As well as food, they serve a variety of cocktails.
Dark comedy focuses on music, mental illness
Dark indie comedy "Frank" offers one of the funniest, most articulate examinations of weird music-makers in film — the pretentious sort who have a strange creative process, a unique image/brand and a sound that straddles the line between artistic achievement and noise. Here, it centers on a mysterious musician wearing a giant fake head. But underneath the eccentric humor, it also effectively tackles the theme of mental illness and the toll it can take on artists.
MAGNOLIA PICTURES
After the keyboardist of avant-garde band "The Soronprfbis" tries to drown himself, manager Don (Scoot McNairy) recruits unassuming Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) to fill the spot. Jon works a boring job and tries composing pop tunes in his free time they're all crap), yet he eagerly jumps on the opportunity, only to find himself moving to an isolated cabin with the extremely odd band members to work on their new album.
The frontman, Frank (Michael Fassbender), proves to be a musical mad genius. He is uncommonly kind, employs unusual methods and is overflowing with creative talent, although he wears a big fat papier-mache head at all times. Clara (Maggie Gyllenhaal) plays
the theremin, always seems angry and despises Jon from the start, while Don used to have sex with mannequins instead of real women, and the drummer (François Civil) and guitarist (Carla Azar) only speak French.
Fresh-faced Jon doesn't fit in well, although he does build a following for "The Soronprfs" with his blog and social media posts. The tremendously clever first half explores the idiosyncrasies of the group to hysterical effect, particularly during montages with his blog writing voiced over footage of ambient noise collection, aggressive team-building exercises, physical fights between members and more.
The music practices are comical at first, sounding like
cacophonous noises clashing together. But when we see them performing in earnest, their music echoes the atmospheric and lyrical complexity of something like a fuzzier, more out-there Pink Floyd with flavors of The Flaming Lips.
Fassbender happens to have a commanding singing voice that drives the grandiose sound, although in his quieter, sillier songs he exhibits a wonderful buoyancy. Frank himself also surprises, seeming like a total enigma at first but revealing his soft, open and supremely enthusiastic persona behind the huge painted face.
The second half takes "The Soronprfs" to the Austin music festival South by Southwest, where Jon finally
feels like he fits in but the others do not. In an attempt to be more accessible, Frank creates his "most likable song ever," a hilarious, ridiculous, speedy pop tune. It poignantly becomes clear how fragile and troubled a soul the gentle Frank is as he begins cracking under the pressure, while the mental illness aspect of the story, handled with little seriousness previously, suddenly plucks at the heartstrings and makes a worthwhile statement.
Fassbender has quickly established himself as one of the best working dramatic actors over the past five years, which makes this darkly comic performance wildly different from anything he's done before, a sublime joy. The transformation of Gleeson as
the everyman throughout the film gives viewers a relatable point of reference among such strange characters and eventually more sympathy with those outsiders than with him.
Despite being a bit bizarre, "Frank" is the kind of special treat that rarely comes around but should be cherished when it does. It's an extraordinary dark comedy that features not only a talented performer outside of his comfort zone, but also has something to say and delivers in an original way with a distinct voice. And for anyone who's ever been a part of a band led by one main creative individual, this nails that dynamic so spot-on it's a must-see.
- Edited by Miranda Davis
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