BY DERRIK J. LANG / Associated Press

LOS ANGELES » “American Idol” viewers could be in for a serious case of deja vu if Phillip Phillips wins on the Fox talent contest’s 11th season finale next week.

Phillip Phillips. (Courtesy Fox)

While the soulful strummer from Leesburg, Ga., has certainly proved he can be a risk-taking showman by transforming songs like Usher’s “U Got It Bad” into searing acoustic covers, a victory for the 21-year-old would prove something that everyone has suspected for a while: “Idol” voters prefer humble Caucasian heartthrobs over, well, anyone else.

Since he first caught the judges’ — and America’s — attention with growly renditions of Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson hits at his audition, Phillips has seamlessly moved up the ranks, never appearing as one of the show’s low-vote getters. That can’t be said of his two final challengers — sassy 16-year-old Jessica Sanchez and booming 20-year-old Joshua Ledet.

And folks just seem to like Phillips, who has comfortably filled this season’s reluctant heartthrob role. He’s been silly, constantly flashing funny faces at the camera. He’s been rebellious: When Tommy Hilfiger advised him not to wear grey on stage, he donned two shades of it. He’s been sexy, even melting Ryan Seacrest’s girlfriend.

Then there’s the humility: Asked if he’s confident of claiming “Idol” glory, Phillips said backstage last week, “Oh, gosh, no, I’m never confident. … I’m so nervous when I get up there on stage. Josh and Jessica … they’re so much better at singing than I am.”

It’s also impossible to ignore the fact that the bluesy Phillips bears a striking resemblance to the past four champions.

While the musical styles of David Cook, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Scotty McCreery and Phillips are varied, they’re each young Caucasian male guitar players, or as they’ve become known by many “Idol” devotees: WGWGs — white guys with guitars. There hasn’t been a female or non-white winner since Jordin Sparks bested Blake Lewis in 2007.

Lyndsey Parker, who writes Yahoo’s “Reality Rocks” blog, blames the lack of diversity on block text voting among younger viewers and the introduction of contestants playing their own instruments four years ago in season seven.

Parker believes a bigger focus on instrument-playing singers, who tend to be more male than female, helped past winners like Allen and Cook ascend to the “Idol” throne with similarly masterful rearrangements of song choices, while text voting allowed obsessive fans — namely, eager young women — to tap, tap, tap their favorites to the top of the pack.

“I think people are wondering if girls or, frankly, people of color should just go audition for ‘The Voice’ and ‘The X Factor’ instead because ‘Idol’ has become a closed door if you’re not a Caucasian guy who plays folky rock or country music,” said Parker. “I know some people will be outraged if Phillip wins. That’s unfair to him, but that’s the reality.”

Phillips’ besting Sanchez, who has Filipino and Latino heritage, or Ledet, an African-American gospel singer, could prove problematic for “Idol,” a contest that has always prided itself on the fact that any singer in America — be it the girl next door, teen mom down the street or even a prematurely grey-haired Southern gentleman — could capture the “Idol” title.

“I think if Phillip Phillips wins season 11, then as ‘Idol’ fans, we kind of have to collectively shrug our shoulders and say, ‘It’s clear as day. You don’t have to be the best singer. You just have to be a cute white straight guy that appeals to a lot of the voting demographic,’” said Michael Slezak, a senior editor at TVLine.com who writes about “Idol.”

Parker and Slezak agreed that Phillips has been outperformed by other finalists for several rounds. His low point came two weeks ago when he failed to reach the high notes on The Zombies’ “Time of the Season” and ditched the melody on The Box Tops’ “The Letter.” However, viewers wouldn’t gather that from the judges, who always pour praise on Phillips.

“I appreciate that die, sink or swim, you will still be yourself. I love it,” judge Jennifer Lopez beamed to Phillips three weeks ago after he performed the Dave Matthews tune “The Stone.” ”It was a pretty song, but I feel it was too artsy, not right for this point in the competition. I need you to do songs that are going to get you on that last show, so you can win.”

While he lacks the balladeering prowess of Sanchez and Ledet, and critics have called him a clone of Dave Matthews, Phillips’ silly personality and musical certainty have seemingly made up for any vocal deficiencies he has in the eyes of voters. Matthews himself joked to New York magazine that perhaps he can retire and Phillips “can take over my band.”

Slezak is less optimistic. He thinks if Phillips wins, he’ll be a redux of DeWyze, the least successful “Idol” in the show’s history. (DeWyze’s post-”Idol” album, “Live It Up,” sold just 39,000 copies when it debuted.) Besides a fondness for gritty vocals, they both share blue-collar backgrounds. DeWyze worked in a paint store. Phillips helped out in his family’s pawn shop.

“‘Idol’ could desperately use another winner on the charts,” said Slezak. “What makes it a must-watch show is the contestants you’re voting for today end up playing on the radio and selling out concerts tomorrow. ‘Idol’ doesn’t need another winner who sells 40,000 copies and gets dropped by their label. What’s the point in watching if that’s the end result?”
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AP Television Writer Lynn Elber contributed to this report.

BY NEKESA MUMBI MOODY / Associated Press

NEW YORK » Bobby Brown said it took him a long time to come out with a new album because he’s spent so much time trying to get his life on track.

Bobby Brown, former husband of the late Whitney Houston, performs with New Edition in Uncasville, Conn. on Feb. 18. (Associated Press)

Now on tour with bandmates New Edition with plans for a Father’s Day concert at the Blaisdell Arena, Brown said he’s ready to return to his solo career with the album “Masterpiece,” due out June 5.

“It’s what I’ve been through throughout my life, and just trying to heal myself through my music,” the 43-year-old singer said in a recent interview.

“Masterpiece” is Brown’s first album in 14 years. He was a multiplatinum star with New Edition and later developed his solo career. But his well-documented battle with drugs and his legal woes led to his musical decline. His turbulent marriage to Whitney Houston further eroded his image.

In a recent interview with the “Today” show’s Matt Lauer, Brown denied that he got his late ex-wife addicted to drugs. Houston’s career was derailed by her drug use, which came to the public’s attention during her marriage to Brown. The superstar drowned in February in Beverly Hills, Calif.; her death was complicated by heart disease and cocaine use, according to authorities.

“The Matt Lauer interview was just for me to clear the air about what everyone was feeling about my ex-wife’s death,” Brown said.

Although he was arrested for DUI in March, Brown insisted he has been drug-free for more than seven years. He said his attempt to get his life in order is part of the reason why the album took so long to make.

“When you’re working on yourself, you have to really concentrate on working on yourself and it takes a back seat to what you want to do and what I’m gonna do,” he said.

Brown said “Masterpiece,” which he started working on last year, is “the best album I’ve done so far.

“But I’m going to do better in the near future,” he said. “I just want to get back to what I do, which is entertainment, and this is the start to me getting back to what I want to do.”

Brown is engaged to his manager, Alicia Etheridge, with whom he has a young son. He also has other older children, including 19-year-old Bobbi Kristina, his only child with Houston.

Brown said he and Etheridge plan a private wedding — which will take place in Hawaii in June, according to TMZ.com — and described his life as content.

“I’m happy right now in my life, I’m comfortable with who I am,” he said. “It’s just better.”
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Nekesa Mumbi Moody is the AP’s music writer. Follow her on Twitter.

Diplo headlines a "brand launch" party for M Nightclub on Thursday, May 17. (Courtesy photo)

BY DERIN DEREGO / Special to the Star-Advertiser

There seems to be a plethora of individuals delving into the DJing realm lately. It seems like every time I see party pics on celebrity gossip websites, there’s a new starlet taking to the turntables.

Perhaps it started when Lindsay Lohan was dating Samantha Ronson, or when musicians like Tommy Lee thought they could expand their repertoire to include beat mixing as a talent. Whatever the case, I’m not sure how I feel about this influx. Its one thing to get the newest DJ software and mix music for fun, but an entirely different thing to refer to yourself as a DJ.

Personally, I think the term DJ is similar to the word “model” — if you don’t make a living doing it, then you aren’t one.

This trend has been happening for quite some time, but my mental needle came to a screeching halt when I heard Paris Hilton is going to DJ at the Pop Music Festival in Miami next month. She has obviously been bitten by the DJ bug because of her proximity to the scene (boyfriend DJ Afrojack played here last November and Miss Hilton was front and center on the stage,rocking out). I’m anxious to see how she does and will reserve judgment for the time being.

One DJ who is sure to put on an amazing show is Diplo, who returns to Hawaii for his second appearance in less than a year when the Philadelphia native headlines the “brand launch” party for the M (formerly The Standard) on Thursday. Rumor has it there was a bidding war between several Honolulu venues to secure the jet-setting mixer, who just wrapped shows in southeast Asia. Words can’t describe how excited I am to see Diplo play in a traditional nightclub. To date, I’ve only caught him at superclubs like XS in Las Vegas, where he has a Monday night residency, and festivals like last year’s “Love Fest.”

Its seems like this is the week for real celebrity DJs in Honolulu, because Thursday also features an appearance by Red Bull DJ Jesse Marco at Addiction Nightclub. If you saw the party flick “Project X,” Jesse was the party puppeteer behind the turntables. The 22-year-old, who is in town for private gigs around the island, is definitely on the fast track to DJ stardom and I’m sure we’ll be hearing about this kid for a while.

With a Thursday that epic, Friday is shaping up to be a little quiet in comparison. My plan is head out to Ko Olina just before sunset to enjoy the Hawaii Wine and Food Festival’s “Grand Tasting,” a fashion, wine and food celebration. The event starts and 6 p.m. and will be a nice (early) change of pace, with representatives from a variety of wineries and restaurants and a fashion show by Valerie Joseph.

The scene at Ko Olina during last year's Hawaii Wine and Food Festival "Grand Tasting." (Star-Advertiser File)

Saturday seems to have been in the making for quite some time. I heard Morrissey was going to play a show here at beginning of the year. It baffles me that the time has already arrived. He is slated to take the stage at Kakaako Amphitheater early in the evening, and from all accounts should put on an awesome show under the stars.

Having not been a huge alternative fan growing up I’m not familiar with a lot of his music. This is compounded by the fact that it’s been 20 years since he was last in Hawaii. I have, however, heard from some trustworthy individuals that he puts on an amazing show.

After the concert, I’m planning on heading to Japengo for “Capital,” the weekly dance party hosted by Potent Productions and Tantriq Entertainment. The music is always great, as is the food.

Sundays are usually pretty mellow, but summer is upon us and that means an increase in daytime options. This Sunday, Young’s Market senior director of special events and promotions Christa Wittmier has organized a service industry boat party aboard the new Waikiki Ocean Club. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s a large barge that sits a few hundred yards offshore and offers a ton of fun water activities including jet skiing, kayaking, a giant water trampoline and more. It should be a great close to the first of many fun-in-the-sun summer weekends!

Next week, I’ll dish on the must-do events for Memorial Day weekend and give my take on this year’s summer concert lineup, including the amazing new location for this year’s “Love Festival.” The DJ lineup hasn’t been announced yet, but I’m pretty sure it won’t include pseudo-celebrities with time on their hands!
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When he’s not out and about at the hottest parties and other events in Honolulu, Derin “Dare” Derego works as an account executive at a local radio station group. Reach him via email at derinderego@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter.

The Shins perform during the first weekend of the 2012 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Saturday, April 14. (Associated Press)

BY TODD MARTENS / Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES » The 2012 summer festival season has barely just begun, but on Thursday, Goldenvoice will begin selling tickets to the 2013 edition of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, once again slated to be held over two consecutive April weekends in the desert city of Indio, Calif. The Thursday morning on-sale will allow participants to partake in the seven-month payment plan.

The just-completed 2012 editions of Coachella brought about 80,000 ticket-buyers per weekend to Indio. Coachella next year will take place over the weekends of April 12 and April 19, 2013. The dual 2012 weekends largely sold out in advance.

While the lineup has yet to be announced, new for 2013 is an increase in ticket prices. A three-day general admission wristband will sell for the all-inclusive price of $349. That total includes any added service fees. A weekend pass during the 2012 presale came to about $315, once fees were factored in, meaning this is a general admission price hike of $34.

There are a host of options to bring that cost even higher, however, including $399 for a ticket and shuttle combo, and $799 for the VIP experience. The latter option comes with a more significant price hike, as a 2012 VIP ticket sold for $661 plus fees, which brought the total to about $710.

Car camping will sell for $85, and those who opt to drive can spring for a $150 VIP parking pass, which provides for a pain-free exit. Remaining tickets will go on sale once the lineup is announced, typically near the start of the new year. When passes went on sale last summer, they were priced at $269 (plus service fees), and the non-presale wristbands were priced at $285 (plus service fees).

Coachella is considered the start of the annual summer festival season and has positioned itself as one of the premier music events in the country. It’s also a little more costly than some of its competitors. Lollapalooza in Chicago, for instance, sold three-day passes in 2012 for $230, while four-day tickets to Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tenn., are currently going for $259.50, plus fees.

"Battleship" director Peter Berg behind the camera while on set in Hawaii earlier this year. (Associated Press)

BY REBECCA KEEGAN / Los Angeles Times

ABOARD THE USS SPRUANCE » On a clear, windless morning in January, director Peter Berg climbed from a U.S. Navy helicopter onto the deck of this 9,200-ton destroyer steaming north off the coast of San Diego and hurried to the bridge to meet the ship’s commanding officer, Tate Westbrook.

“I was told you’d know your way around one of these about as well as I do,” Westbrook said to Berg as the director toured the vessel, taking in its torpedo tubes, sonar systems and the compact quarters for 300 sailors.

Berg, 50, has spent a good chunk of his life around the military, first as the son of a Marine who was an avid Naval historian, then while embedded with Navy SEALs in Iraq to research a film and most recently as the director of the naval board game-inspired action movie “Battleship,” which opens in U.S. theaters on Friday, May 18.

As any child who has ever sunk an opponent’s plastic submarine can attest, Battleship is a simple, grid-style guessing game, with no narrative arc or characters. But Berg and screenwriter brothers Erich and Jon Hoeber have injected a fleet of story lines and personalities into “Battleship” the movie, in which the Navy becomes embroiled in combat with some mysterious, otherworldly vessels. Earth’s best defense is some very shiny ships and its most attractive people — Taylor Kitsch (of Berg’s long-running TV drama “Friday Night Lights” and the recent box-office dud “John Carter”) plays Alex Hopper, a hotheaded Navy officer; Alexander Skarsgard is Hopper’s better-behaved older brother; and Brooklyn Decker is Hopper’s physical therapist girlfriend, who tends to wounded veterans.

Eager to showcase its ships in front of the taxpayers who pay for them, the U.S. Navy cooperated enthusiastically with the film, providing access to five destroyers and hundreds of real sailors. But with that access came a quandary for Berg: how to shoot a movie starring America’s seaborne military branch without being too American for the foreign filmgoers who typically constitute well over half of an action movie’s audience.

Director Peter Berg, right, poses with actress Brooklyn Decker and actor Taylor Kitsch during a press conference to promote their movie "Battleship" in South Korea last month. (Associated Press)

“I did not want ‘Battleship’ to be perceived as an American war film,” said Berg. “I wanted to do everything I could to make the film accessible to a global audience. It felt like bringing an alien component to the film would help take the American jingoism out of it and let it be something that felt more summer-ish and more adventurous.”

Berg’s background positioned him well to walk the line between portraying the Navy authentically and pleasing Universal Pictures, the studio that financed the $211-million action film with an eye toward building a franchise.

Growing up in New York City, Berg was a captive participant in his father’s maritime hobby, dragged along on family trips to Naval museums and sailing excursions. He majored in dramatic arts at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., where he roomed with future William Morris Endeavor agent and co-chief executive Ari Emmanuel, who still represents him; both moved to Los Angeles after graduation to start working in Hollywood.

Berg’s career has taken unlikely turns, among TV and film and directing and acting, but the through-line is his hyper-masculine projects, often produced with surprising sensitivity. Catering truck and production assistant gigs eventually yielded to acting roles, which made use of Berg’s athleticism and cocksure attitude — he starred as a G.I. in the 1992 World War II drama “A Midnight Clear,” a drug-dealing ski instructor in “Aspen Extreme” and a hockey-playing doctor on the TV medical drama “Chicago Hope.”

As a writer and director, Berg continued to gravitate toward sports and testosterone, developing “Friday Night Lights,” the 2004 film and the TV show about the high stakes of high school football in Texas, and directing “The Kingdom” in 2007, a thriller about a murder investigation in Saudi Arabia, and “Hancock,” the Will Smith superhero movie, in 2008.

“I somewhere along the way became fascinated with exploring characters who are willing to put themselves into violent situations, whether it’s football, hockey, boxing, being a cop, being a soldier,” Berg said. “There’s not a lot of people who are willing to put themselves into those situations, and I’m inspired by people who do. It’s not about who’s the toughest physically, it’s about who’s willing to last. I have a fire inside for that. I haven’t found at this point in my life something that inspires me more. Maybe in five years it’ll be a romantic comedy.”

Berg’s next film after “Hancock” was to be an even more adrenalized subject — an adaptation of “Lone Survivor,” a harrowing 2007 memoir by Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, the only member of his team to survive a 2005 ambush in Afghanistan. As research for the project, Berg embedded for a month with Navy SEALs in western Iraq — where he said he witnessed another deadly operation — and conducted dozens of interviews with SEALs and their families.

“Some people live and breathe Hollywood and hate to leave it,” said Berg’s producing partner Sarah Aubrey. “Pete is the opposite. He’s a genuinely curious person about things outside of our business. He approaches any group, whether it’s the Navy or a group of high school football coaches who are at the top of their game, with this open, honest enthusiasm and he listens a lot.”

“Lone Survivor” didn’t look like a crowd pleaser in 2009 — war-on-terrorism movies, including Berg’s own “The Kingdom,” had largely disappointed at the box office — and Universal asked Berg to first take on a project with more obvious commercial potential, “Battleship.” (Though it’s centered on the Navy and features many real-life veterans, “Battleship” makes no reference to the U.S. military’s recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.)

"Battleship" director Peter Berg, second from right, and the rest of the cast promote the movie in Japan before it opened there last month. (Associated Press)

Following on the other Hasbro toy-inspired film franchises “Transformers” and “G.I. Joe,” the idea of a “Battleship” movie was met early on with some hoots of derision — James Cameron, for one, called relying on board games for stories a sign of Hollywood’s “desperation.” In many ways, however, Berg and his team were starting from scratch with this intellectual property, with no back story to draw upon. Battleship, first sold as a board game by Milton Bradley in 1967, has evolved into computer, video and cellphone app variations but remains essentially a guessing game.

“The game is so simple and so random,” Berg said. “It was a creative balance to try to figure out how can we reference the game in a way that answers some of our critics a bit.”

Berg met with a game psychiatrist about Battleship’s appeal for players, learning that much of it came from the way opponents slowly reveal themselves to each other.

“You don’t know who I am, I don’t know who you are and through the course of the game we discover each other,” Berg said. “There’s something addictive that happens when you find me. The next hook is, as soon as you find me, your goal is to kill me as brutally and ruthlessly and as quickly as possible.”

To duplicate the blind reveal element of the game, Berg added a plot line in which the Navy loses its traditional tracking methods of radar and sonar and must rely instead on tsunami detection buoys — equipped with beacons and positioned in a grid-like fashion — to find the enemy ships.

Another early puzzle was how to incorporate an actual battleship into the film — the modern Navy no longer relies on battleships to slug it out on the open ocean, instead deploying the smaller destroyers to protect its aircraft carriers. By a twist of luck, the USS Missouri, which is permanently docked in Pearl Harbor as a museum, was to be moved for repairs and Berg would have an opportunity to film it on the open sea in early 2010. The filmmakers crafted a third-act battle sequence that would require the old ship and cast Navy veterans in Hawaii — some in their 90s — to help save the world.

The film’s production took place in Hawaii, at a military rehab facility in San Antonio and on soundstages in Louisiana throughout much of 2010. While filming in Pearl Harbor, where 2,400 Americans were killed by Japanese fighters 71 years ago, another ship had caught Berg’s eye.

“There was a Japanese warship tied up next to an American warship,” Berg said. “I was just sitting there staring in shock at the Japanese flag and the American flag side by side. I didn’t realize the extent of the cooperation between our militaries. My grandfather would roll in his grave if he could see it.”

The awareness that two former enemies had become so close militarily inspired Berg to add the character played by Asano — the Johnny Depp of Japan — who steps into a leadership role during the alien attack. The casting has helped the film find its audience internationally: “Battleship,” which had its world premiere in Tokyo last month, has grossed more than $170 million abroad.

REVIEW BY WAYNE PARRY / Associated Press

On his debut album three years ago, Adam Lambert was fresh off a runner-up “American Idol” finish, and eager to show off his amazing vocal range. The result was an all-things-to-everyone album ranging from classic rock crunch to hip-hop heat, with an over-the-top ballad or two thrown in.

‘Trespassing’ Adam Lambert (RCA/19)

On “Trespassing,” his second studio album, Lambert narrows the focus to profitable dance pop (though the hyper-emotional ballads still force their way in). The result is a more consistent but less-gratifying sophomore offering.

It kicks off with a roar on the title track, co-written with Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes. “Trespassing” employs a drill team stomp-and-clap intro backing up chanting lyrics, propelled by a booming bass line and drum beat very reminiscent of Queen’s “Another One Bites The Dust.” That’s entirely appropriate as Lambert may or may not still wind up succeeding Freddy Mercury in the 1970s and ’80s supergroup.

“Cuckoo” leans heavily on synthesizer and a pounding beat, and seems destined to become a dance club favorite this summer, along with “Kickin’ In,” a Prince soundalike that deals with the feeling of getting drunk.

“Shady” features assists from Nile Rodgers and Sam Sparro, and the next single, “Never Close Our Eyes” was co-written by Bruno Mars, featuring a flamenco guitar over a dance club beat.

“Pop That Lock” has a groove that would be at home on an LMFAO album, and “Outlaws Of Love” is another of Lambert’s heartfelt declarations that as long as love is real, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks of it.

“Underneath” is another one of those trademark Adam Lambert performance pieces, drenched in emotion and vocal gymnastics that would be perfectly suited to the Broadway stage. But Lambert has the talent to pull it off: Simply put, this guy probably has the best voice of any pop star working today. Even on less-than-stellar material, his soaring voice that then swoops down to a whisper can take your breath away.

If dance music or the club scene is your thing, then you’ll love most of this album. But if you like Adam Lambert the Renaissance Man as shown in his debut, you might be left wishing for a bit more vairiety.

The Gym Class Heroes will headline a concert at The Republik on Aug. 24. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 18. (Courtesy photo)

BY JASON GENEGABUS / jason@staradvertiser.com

A number of local promoters are gearing up for the summer concert season, as evidenced by a flurry of show announcements this week.

First up is comedian Mike Epps’ return to Hawaii for shows at the Blaisdell Concert Hall on June 29 and the Maui Arts and Cultural Center on June 30. Both performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. and are being promoted by Tom Moffatt.

Mike Epps returns to Hawaii in June for two performances on Oahu and Maui. (Courtesy photo)

Tickets for the Oahu show are $45, $55 and $65, and will go on sale at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 19, at the Blaisdell Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets and online at www.ticketmaster.com. The Maui date adds an additional $25 ticket option, with tickets available to the public by phone at 808-242-7469 and online at www.mauiarts.org starting Saturday, May 26.

As Epps makes his way from Oahu to Maui, rapper DMX will arrive on Oahu the same weekend for his Hawaii concert debut on June 30 at the Blaisdell Concert Hall. Mainland-based promoters appear to be working with local radio station Power 104.3 to execute this event, with tickets going on sale to the public on Saturday, May 19, at www.ticketmaster.com.

The next big weekend to mark on your calendar is Friday, Aug. 24, and Saturday, Aug. 25, as the Gym Class Heroes and Musiq Soulchild fly into town for a pair of shows.

The Gym Class Heroes will headline at The Republik, BAMP Project’s new event venue located in the former O Lounge space on Kapiolani Blvd. that is set to open next month. The group continues to ride a wave of success from their monster 2011 hit, “Stereo Hearts,” which has sold more than 3,000,000 copies since its release.

Tickets for the Friday, Aug. 24 concert go on sale to the general public at 9 a.m. Friday, May 18 (fan club members can purchase pre-sale tickets now), priced at $31 general admission and $65 VIP (plus fees; prices go up $5 on the day of show). Tickets are available at all Local Motion stores, the UH-Manoa Campus Center, all military ITT and MWR offices, or online at www.groovetickets.com or www.bampproject.com.

On Saturday, Aug. 25, DIGS Hawaii, Architechs Hawaii and Tantriq Entertainment present “Soul Sessions, Volume 2: Laugh Now, Cry Later” with sets by R&B crooner Musiq Soulchild and stand-up comedian Donnell Rawlings. Tickets will go on sale Friday, May 25, at the Blaisdell Box Office and online at www.ticketmaster.com, although prices have yet to be announced.
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Jason Genegabus is Entertainment Editor/Online at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and has covered the local nightlife, music, bar and entertainment scenes since 2001. Contact him via email at jason@staradvertiser.com.

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Joe White (Terry O'Quinn), Chin Ho (Daniel Dae Kim) and McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) are in hot pursuit of a shooter who guns down one of their own on the second season finale of "Hawaii Five-0." (Courtesy CBS)

BY WENDIE BURBRIDGE / Special to the Star-Advertiser

So much for an easy summer. I thought for sure, once I knew the secret of Shelburne, and was secure with the knowledge that McGarrett and the team were happily reunited, healthy, and happy, I could survive the summer hiatus with calm nerves and sleep-filled nights. If you are laughing as you read this, then you know why my anxiety-free summer is now a thing of the past.

“Hawaii Five-0” is pretty famous for its cliffhangers, and as far as their season enders go — both left me, what’s the word Alex O’Loughlin might use, oh yes, gobsmacked. Season one ended with the team torn apart, and season two ended with too many shocks to keep me on an even keel the rest of this week.

“The Shelburne Slam,” I want to call it. Because, wow — who knew right?

Death in the family is a pretty heady title for a season finale. It does not bode well, and however you look at it, it pretty much means someone is going to, well, die. But die in what way? Will it be a more figurative death than we perhaps expected? Sorry, I tend to wax poetic when the word death is mentioned. Perhaps I’ve read too many English lit books for my own good.

McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) runs for cover when an explosion rocks HPD headquarters during the season finale of "Hawaii Five-0." (Courtesy CBS)

For a season ender, “Ua Hala” or “Death in the Family” does not disappoint on many levels, but it does leave us wishing three months of hiatus will pass by with super SEAL speed.

For this season’s finale, writers Peter M. Lenkov, Paul Zbyszewski, and Elwood Reid wanted to surpass what they did in 2011. And with the cliffhangers they left us with, we’ll be debating the fate of Chin Ho’s Malia, Danno and Rachel’s “relationship,” as well as his joint custody of Gracie, Steve’s Shelburne revelation, and of course, Kono’s ability to swim in duct tape cuffs, all summer long. But like Danno said, “There is no ‘my own’ in a friendship — your problems become my problems,” and for the Five-0 Team, I have no doubt they will work together to help each other and not leave each other “on their own.”

In Hawaiian, “Ua Hala” means “passed away,” according to Hawaiian language expert Ilihia Gionson. That’s why the hala lei is usually reserved for occasions of passing from one part of life to another — graduations, retirements, and yes, funerals. I might say “Death In The Family” is something like “Ua Hala Ka ‘Ohana,” or “a relative has passed.” But Gionson said “Ua Hala” is not totally wrong to use for the title, especially if someone is going to pass on.

And right away we get the literal meaning of the title, with Capt. Fryer (Tom Sizemore) ambushed, shot and killed. Then Max (Masi Oka) is shot and more people are put in danger when HPD headquarters is blown up. McGarrett is shot — thankfully, he is wearing body armor and survives without injury — and it gets even more serious when members of the Five-0 family are kidnapped and put into dire predicaments.

About halfway through the episode, I wondered who wasn’t going to be put in grave danger. There were so many twists and turns, I almost felt like the whole show was a car chase and my television was the vehicle. A couple of crashes, a few wrong turns, major issues flying at my windshield. I needed someone to slam on the brakes. Which of course, didn’t happen until the very end of the episode.

But what an ending to an interesting sophomore season! McGarrett and Danno were in fine form with their trademark banter, and when McGarrett told Joe White (Terry O’Quinn) he had to call Danno before they left for Japan or “(Danno) would never speak to me again,” it was more classic Five-0 bromantic humor. Joe’s retort of “is that a good thing or a bad thing?” was perfect, and we have to like him for saving the day for Max.

Scott Caan and Alex O'Loughlin enjoy a break between scenes during the filming of the second season finale of "Hawaii Five-0." (Courtesy CBS)

I loved the scene with Danno and Gracie, which confirmed for me what makes Danno such an appealing character — his great love for his daughter. His obviously conflicted love for her mother also makes for good drama. Scott Caan was in fine daddy form in this episode, and while I’m glad he is not as tortured as he was last season, I like how his internal conflicts have kept his character interesting.

Alex O’Loughlin also showed us a range of emotion, between his frustration with Joe, his anger at losing Fryer, which made him take a huge risk to take out the female shooter — and then the almost boyish confusion at finding out who Shelburne had been all along, was just beautiful acting without too many words. You could see it all on his face, and knew exactly what he was thinking and feeling in his eyes.

Daniel Dae Kim got quite a bit of action tonight, not only did we get to see several tender moments with Chin Ho and his relatively new wife, Malia (Reiko Aylesworth), but the scene between Chin and Frank Delano (William Baldwin) was palpably frustrating. I wanted to reach through my television and manhandle Delano myself. And the pain and anguish of having to make a “Sophie’s Choice” was brilliantly desperate. If next season the team doesn’t hunt down Delano and throw him in a shark cage and leave him there, I’ll start the email campaign myself.

But the pure evil in this episode had to be Karl Herlinger, credited only as “Toothpick,” based on his penchant for chewing on his own moniker, who created more mayhem and pain for the Five-0 Team. The look he gave Kono at the start of the episode foreshadowed the beginning of the creeps he gave me the rest of the night. It was great to see a different kind of bad guy, one who was calculating more than physical. Most of the bad guys we’ve had in the past rely on their physicality and weaponry, to get the villain job done.

Even the woman who shot Fryer, Hilary Chaver (Taylor Cole), used her very large gun to get what she wanted, yet all the while it was Toothpick who seemed to be pulling the strings. Even though he was the muscle behind the mastermind plan of Delano, he was still menacing and a perfect bad guy for the season-ending episode.

Overall, this was an explosive and revealing episode that left me scared and nervous for the team. It definitely will have me anxious for the start of season three, which of course is what every good season finale should do — leave us wanting for more.

Redux Side Note:

I hope you all got to read about local boy and season finale mayhem-maker, Karl Herlinger in Mike Gordon’s “Outtakes” in Sunday’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s. You can read about Herlinger’s rise from being a regular Kailua boy to becoming a favorite television villain. Hopefully, we’ll get to see more of Herlinger’s character in season three. Be sure to put “Outtakes” on your required Sunday morning reading list, as Gordon not only covers “Hawaii Five-0,” but also all television and film projects happening in Hawaii.

“Five-0″ PR rep Erika Kauffman also sent out a special Monday morning surprise — an exclusive “Mahalo” video of Alex O’Loughlin, Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim, and Grace Park thanking all of the fans for their support of season two.

While it probably won’t keep us satiated during the summer hiatus, it definitely was a nice treat for the fans.

Speaking of the hiatus, last summer the “Five-0 Redux” continued, and this year will be no different. I’ll be talking with guest actors from the show and traveling to other filming spots to show you more about Hawaii, our culture, and our people. The show might be on vacation, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be waiting impatiently for season three to start. I’ll try to keep us occupied until the show returns to television in September.

Until then, be there, aloha.
———
Wendie Burbridge is a published writer, playwright and a teacher of literature and fiction writing at Kamehameha Schools-Kapālama. Reach her on Facebook and on Twitter.

An orderly exit from the police building, please. Is that too much to ask? (Courtesy CBS)

BY BURL BURLINGAME / bburlingame@staradvertiser.com

A muscular, ominous opener that is completely ludicrous. The H50 squaddies go about their quiet private lives — Kono surfing, Chin Ho kissing the bride goodbye, Danno brooding over a custody notice, McG doing the John Travolta Saturday-Night-Fever swagger while making big-body — as they’re captured on paparazzi images. The shutter snaps sound like gunshots, and that’s on purpose. McG, Mr. Situational Awareness, fails to notice that Old Joe is glowering at him from 10 feet away.

The Bad Lieutenant played by Tom Sizemore is hoodwinked by a fake police alert. Bad Lieutenant winds up in a Kakaako alley with no backup and there’s what appears to be a corpse. But it’s a department store dummy with a big GOODBYE! sign tacked to its chest. Was I not supposed to laugh out loud here? Bad Lieutenant figures out this means Not Good. Then a slim person with a hoodie sidles up behind him — either a woman or a Project Runway contestant under there — and bangity bang-bang! Bad Lieutenant gets the Startled Face Obligatory Fade-To-Credit Shot. And he’s make-die-dead.

And so, kids, gather around the campfire and listen up: Thus beginneth H50.2.2.23, “Ua Hala,” Hawaiian for “Jeez, finally! Now can CBS air ‘Flashpoint’ reruns so we can see what delicate hothouse flowers Canadian SWAT teams are?”

Old Joe pops into McG’s office just so he can tease McG about Shell Burn (I still don’t know if Shell Burn is a person, a code word, a location, a dessert topping or what) and promises that now that Wo Fat is in the graybar hotel, he can come clean about Shell Burn. McG looks properly dubious, but alas, he gets word that Bad Lieutenant is T-U.

Tom Sizemore isn’t too good at playing a corpse. Bad Lieutenant died with his eyes open, now they’re closed. The H50 squaddies dither around with powder burns and such and reconstruct the shooting — Bad Lieutenant’s gun is just lying there, waiting for McG to sniff it — and MdMax notices a trail of blood splashes, like breadcrumbs, leading away. He follows it and gets gutshot for his initiative. “We need an ambulance — now!” shrieks Old Joe, and Kono seems to think that’s a good idea.

Everyone else runs around Kakaako, shooting at random. Random being the person who swiped the police car.

Police car is being chased by civvy vehicles through Kakaako, nice touch, even though it’s described as “heading over the Pali,” and then it ducks into the “police” parking lot, and the H50 squaddies dash out of the parking lot and , through the magic of editing, into the old News Building on the other end of Kakaako. Fun seeing my old workspace turned into a cheesy set. Everyone runs around like their genitals are on fire, waving weapons. A woman is squatting in the hall, and McG, being both sexist and oblivious, chats her up before dashing away. She’s the shooter, dude.

He figures it out, only because MdMax gasps it out to Old Joe. H50 pokes around the building — man, this is the worst-policed police station in the world, what a mess — and McG sees that the building’s natural gas pipe has been disconnected and so all the police run screaming outside before the big digital fireball explosion occurs. It’s too bad the explosion didn’t take Thurston Twigg-Smith’s crappy art collection up with it.

Hyped-up jumpy footage of hospital trauma unit, police wounded everywhere. Danno concludes that the perp has a grudge against police. That sound you hear is my palm striking my forehead. Chin Ho is sitting there with his shirt off — the better to show off his pecs and his thousand-stitch belt — and Mrs. Chin Ho, who’s a doctor if you recall, bustles in so she can mommy-fret over him. It’s cute. Reiko Aylesworth is adorable.

Car Talk with McG and Danno. Seems like a long time since we saw them do this last, doesn’t it? They speculate about the Lady Perp and Danno gets a phone call about custody issues, and he and McG wax flatulent about friendship and sharing and feelings and openness. They’re such ladies when it comes to this stuff.

In H50 HQ, some calls Lady Perp a “ghost” and moments later, Magic Table, reaching into the ether, I guess, provides an identity, and the person has supposedly been dead for five years. They all gape at Magic Table, jaws open. I like the way Chin Ho “throws” and image off the table onto a vertical screen — it goes vvvvvviiip! like a short-circuit arc — but it makes me wonder why they have to do that every week. They need to trade in Magic Table for Magic Wall Hanging.

Lady Perp busts into a vet’s office (not like in veteran), whacks the receptionist and pistol-whips the doctor into aiding her. Yep, she got wounded by Bad Lieutenant. Lady Perp is played by the double-crossing secret agent from “The Event” last year, and the actress still is in need of volumizing shampoo.

Magic Table tells H50 that Lady Perp was supposedly killed in a high-speed chase with her bank-robbin’ partner, like Bonnie and Clyde, and that the officers on the scene were Bad Lieutenant and his former partner, now in jail — this is from a dimly remembered former episode — and he’s played by one of the many Baldwin brothers. “I was there when the techs bagged the barbeque!” he boasts, and I love the Spillaine-ness of that line.

Baldwin Brother shuffles back to his cell, creepily telling McG and Danno to remind him to Kono.

Gorgeous aerial shots of Tripler Army Medical Center, where MdMax is being treated. He’s a vet? (Not like in veterinarian.) Old Joe is waiting at bedside for MdMax to come around, and when he does, Old Joe is startled when MdMax tells him Lady Perp was wounded. I guess no one else at the Kakaako crime scene NOTICED THE TRAIL OF BLOOD. Kamekona the Shrimp Guy barges in for his amusing cameo, and I wonder how the shrimp bar at Sizzler does on Monday nights.

Lady Perp guns down the vet (as in veterinarian) as soon as she’s stitched up, and calls someone who seems to be an accomplice of sorts, but he’s not much help. H50 figures out that she’s at the pet clinic, and they close in and — bangity bang bang bang! Lots of shooting and jumping around. Lady Perp has a fancy and rather huge gun hidden in her handbag, but, alas, it’s a single-shot bolt action. You want Uzi-spray power in these shootout situations.

McG guns down Lady Perp. The pets are yapping but untouched. H50 doesn’t want PETA hassling them.

McG is such a badass that he uses a MicroSoft laptop, and we know this because the establishing shot is a close-up of the MS logo. I’ll bet he’s Binging. But all if forgotten when Old Joe shambles in and dangles the spectre of Shell Burn in front of McG. They decide to blow town to get to Shell Burn. McG tries to call Danno to say goodbye, but Danno’s at the Amelia Earhart lookout on Diamond Head Road doing a daddy thing with his little girl.

Kono goes home to her south shore valley cottage, and Lady Perp’s pockmarked accomplice is eyeballing her.

What’s this? Chin Ho’s taking custody of Baldwin Brother from Halawa jail in the middle of the night? And … oh, it’s because Kono has been kidnapped. It apparently happened during the Channing Tatum male-stripper movie commercial, and true to form, we find out what is happening in H50′s plot by spoken exposition.

Baldwin Brother has not only kidnapped Kono, he’s snatched Mrs. Dr. Chin Ho as well. “Why!!!???” wails Chin Ho, “Why are you doing this to me???!!!” and the dialogue really needs intrabang punctuation. But we know why this is happening. It’s because there are still ten minutes left in the episode.

Baldwin Brother is still steamed that he did jail time while Chin Ho didn’t (oh yeah, when Kono was pretending to be a dirty cop last year) and never mind that Chin Ho was innocent. Baldwin Brother gives Chin Ho a Sophie’s choice; he can save the Missus, or his Cuz, but not both. This calls for absolute freaked-outdom by the normally impassive Chin Ho.

He opts for Mrs. Dr. Chin Ho and finds her wounded and babbling at home. Baldwin Brother tells Pockmark to push Kono in the water offshore. Do they not know she’s a surfer and can swim?

Dateline, Suruga Bay, Japan, and the image accurately captures the perfection of Mount Fuji in the distance. This is H50 “Japan” however, and the palm trees are festooned with fishing nets. Does Old Joe actually use the term “shibai”?

And McG opens the door of the little fishing shack and mutters the name of the only relative he has that hasn’t been mentioned in the last two years.

And that’s it, kids. The campfire is burning low, and it’s time to hit the sleeping bags. Don’t stay awake trying to figure it out. It’s episodic TV, and they make this stuff up as they go along. Cliffhangers were invented solely so you’d tune in next season and see how they wrap up the awful situations the characters have been placed in. It’s what they call self-fulfilling prophecy, except that the game is rigged.

The embers are darkening and as the smoke curls upward, dancing, it gives shape to dreams. That’s really what it’s all about. Dreams. They’re selling dreams.

Sleep well, dream your own dreams, not ones that have been handed you.

See you in the morning.

Maybe.
———
Burl Burlingame covers film and television for the Pulse. Follow him on Twitter.

‘Bloom’

Beach House

“Bloom” is a record of expansiveness and growth, but there’s also a sense of restraint at work, too. The work presented here feels completely effortless and organic, as though the songs simply unspooled themselves.

There’s not one blemish on the entire record, and the group has matured to a point where they don’t feel that they have to ride a certain feel or emotion for a good five minutes: the members of Beach House have learned and realized the delectability of the foundational nature of a great verse followed by an astounding and astonishing chorus. Its impact is one that is profoundly mesmerizing.

“Bloom” should be to the year 2012 what “Loveless” was to 1991, or “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” was to 2002, or “Funeral” was to 2004: a landmark release.

— Zachary Houle, PopMatters.com

‘The Only Place’

Best Coast

When the word first got out that Best Coast was working with uber-producer Jon Brion for its sophomore effort “The Only Place,” more than a few eyebrows were raised over the incongruous pairing of the L.A. duo’s flaky lo-fi approach and the symphonic-pop impresario’s slick aesthetic.

But really, anyone who’s been tracking the stratospheric rise of Bethany Cosentino shouldn’t have been surprised, since making a big pop statement would be the final bullet point to tick off a to-do list of attention-grabbing moves that’s been growing since Best Coast’s charming 2010 debut “Crazy for You” bubbled up from the underground and into the mainstream.

— Arnold Pan, PopMatters.com

‘Rize of the Fenix’

Tenacious D

“Rize of the Fenix” is an attempt to attach Tenacious D to a new myth — that of the disgraced band emerging from failure and winning back its supremacy.

Six years is a long time to wait to respond to an embarrassing career step, but Tenacious D has traditionally moved at a slow pace, releasing only three albums in its 18-year tenure. So timing isn’t what makes “Rize of the Fenix” such a colossal disappointment. Tenacious D’s album number three fails to capture the comic energy of the band’s prior musical output and pales in comparison to other, much funnier rock music moments by the band’s contemporaries.

— Thomas Britt, PopMatters.com

‘Occupy This Album’

Various Artists

Containing 99 songs in its digital version and 78 in the physical CD release, “Occupy this Album” has something for everyone who wants to listen to the message of the movement. In this way, this musical kaleidoscope captures the very essence of Occupy: the diversity of its people, its desires, and its beliefs.

This may not be the mixtape to change all mixtapes, but it’s the mixtape for our time and place. It’s the sound of a hundred flowers blooming in your ears.

— Brice Ezell, PopMatters.com

Other notable releases this week:

» The Avengers, “The Avengers”
» Cornershop, “Urban Turban”
» Cribs, “In the Belly of the Brazen Bull”
» Godsmack, “Live & Inspired”
» Killer Mike, “R.A.P. Music”
» Adam Lambert, “Trespassing”
» Mewithoutyou, “Ten Stories”
» Willie Nelson, “Heroes”
» Pantera, “Vulgar Display of Power”
» John Pizzarelli, “Double Exposure”
» Lisa Marie Presley, “Storm & Grace”
» Santana, “Shape Shifter”
» Simian Mobile Disco, “Unpatterns”
» Tu Fawning, “A Monument”
» White Fence, “Family Perfume”
» Andre Williams & The Sadies, “Night & Day”
———
PopMatters is an international magazine of arts and culture. Find more PopMatters content at www.popmatters.com.

"The X Factor" judges, from left, L.A. Reid, Demi Lovato, Simon Cowell and Britney Spears attend the FOX network upfront presentation party on Monday in New York. (Associated Press)

BY DAVID BAUDER / Associated Press

NEW YORK » Britney Spears and Demi Lovato are joining the judging panel on “The X Factor” this fall, part of Fox’s effort to boost its underperforming music competition shows.

The network’s executives, in presenting next season’s schedule to advertisers on Monday, also promised changes for “American Idol.” While “Idol” remains Fox’s centerpiece, as it has been for the past decade, it has lost a quarter of its audience this year.

Fox is adding two new comedies and a drama in the fall, pumping new life into “Glee” by moving it to a new night with guest stars Kate Hudson and Sarah Jessica Parker and touting a midseason drama starring Kevin Bacon as “the new ’24.’”

The Spears announcement overshadowed the others. Despite weeks of rumors, it wasn’t official until she strode onto New York’s Beacon Theater stage wearing a white minidress, accompanied by show creator Simon Cowell and fellow judges Lovato and L.A. Reid.

“I’m so excited about the whole experience,” Spears said. “It’s going to be so much fun and different from anything I’ve ever done. I’m ready to find the true star.”

Lovato said she was “totally stoked” to join the cast.

They replace judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger, who were dispatched along with host Steve Jones after last fall’s debut season of the competition didn’t meet the creator’s inflated expectations.

“Not to be negative about the people leaving, but we just felt the mix could be more effective and more entertaining,” said Peter Rice, entertainment chairman for the Fox Networks Group.

Fox’s entertainment president, Kevin Reilly, also promised work on “American Idol” next season but didn’t specify anything.

“This year was a bigger drop-off than we anticipated,” Reilly said.

He said “Idol” made no changes from the previous year and there was little “urgency to view” at the beginning of the season. He said there was still a lot of life left in the franchise.

“Glee,” once a sensation, saw its viewership drop by 21 percent this season. It will move to Thursday nights and a comfortable 9 p.m. Eastern time slot following “The X Factor” in the fall. Reilly said the show is “poised for a creative renaissance” and has Hudson and Parker lined up for multi-episode guest slots.

Part of the reason Fox moved “Glee” is to make Tuesday a four-sitcom night, with two new shows joining “New Girl” and “Raising Hope.” Mindy Kaling, actress, producer and writer for “The Office,” creates and stars in “The Mindy Project,” a romantic comedy about a doctor looking for love. The other new comedy, “Ben and Kate,” is about a pair of odd couple siblings.

“We’ve been building comedy momentum on Tuesday, and we finally have the shows that have exactly the tone that we are looking for,” Reilly said.

The fall’s only new drama is “The Mob Doctor,” on Monday night, about a young doctor who has to pay off her family’s lifelong debt to the Chicago mob.

Reilly said Bacon’s hiring for the midseason drama “The Following” was the casting coup of the year. Bacon plays a former FBI agent asked to come back to work to chase a serial killer he had caught once before. The killer escaped from prison and has resumed a series of grisly murders.

Another comedy focused on a family, “The Goodwin Games,” is due at midseason and stars actor Scott Foley, of “Felicity” and “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Fox’s long-running drama “House” is ending its run this spring, and the network is cancelling high-profile dramas “Terra Nova” and “Alcatraz.”

Fox also has made changes to its long-running Saturday night lineup, where “COPS” won’t return until midseason. In the fall, Fox will present live sports events such as college football, Major League baseball and NASCAR races that night.

Sacha Baron Cohen, left, portrays Admiral General Aladeen and Ben Kingsley portrays Tamir in a scene from "The Dictator." (Courtesy Paramount Pictures)

REVIEW BY MICHAEL PHILLIPS / Chicago Tribune

For most of its quick and extremely dirty running time, the new Sacha Baron Cohen offender “The Dictator” wages war with itself, crude nonsense up against crude nonsense that’s really funny. Then comes the golden ticket, the speech of speeches, the scene in which the fictional North African dictator General Admiral Haffaz Aladeen addresses a gathering in New York City, recanting his barbarous ways with a heartfelt confessional.

You Americans don’t know how good you have it here, he states. Where he comes from, he says, the top one percent controls most of the wealth. Leaders can’t wait to wage war on the wrong country. And on and on he goes. The joke’s both predictable and familiar, yet it kills. At the “Dictator” screening Thursday night, the scene started out one way — scoring easy points with its target audience of liberals — but by the end, with Cohen finessing the loutish Supreme Leader’s spiel just so, the applause in the theater sounded positively bipartisan.

This was the old “Borat” stuff! And I wish director Larry Charles’ third outing with Cohen had more of it. It’s maddeningly uneven, though a step up from the wearying “Bruno.” Since “Borat,” something has happened to Charles’ comic technique: The way he films simple dialogue exchanges has grown weirdly artless and often mistimed (the editing is mighty hacky), halfway to Adam Sandler territory for broadness. I stuck with it, though, because Cohen at his best is both brazen and sly. As is “The Dictator.”

This one’s plottier than “Borat” or “Bruno,” for better or worse. When one of Aladeen’s doubles is assassinated, the leader’s longtime adviser (Ben Kingsley, looking a little uncomfortable) hatches a scheme involving a new double (also played by Cohen), a visit to the dreaded America and an unlikely romance with a vegan/feminist/Rush Limbaugh nightmare, played by Anna Faris. She’s game and a strong sparring partner for Cohen’s unending misogynist wisecracks.

Like Faris, Jason Mantzoukas lends valuable support, in the role of Aladeen’s former nuclear physicist presumed assassinated (by Aladeen). He turns up as one of countless refugees from Aladeen’s country, Wadiya, now living in the Manhattan subsection known as Little Wadiya.

The better gags in “The Dictator” move fast and get on with it, as when we hear a news announcer intone, “He did not know his mother, who died in childbirth,” while we see two or three seconds of footage of an armed guard smothering Aladeen’s mother with a pillow. (Harsh, but amusing). In contrast, when Aladeen’s clueless goat-herder double-swigs urine out of a pitcher and pours it, inadvertently, on Israeli council members … harsh but un-amusing. It’s not filmed correctly. Re-watch “Borat” sometime to see how fearless satirists get away with murder.

This movie’s more conventional. But it’s worth catching for Cohen’s brief shining Camelot moment at the podium.

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PHOTOS BY KAT WADE / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Photos from ‘Mother’s Day Lunch with the Stars’ at Bishop Museum on Sunday, May 13.

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PHOTOS BY KAT WADE / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Photos from the ‘Waipuna Mother’s Day Concert’ at the Hawaii Prince Hotel on Sunday, May 13.

The Intire Project. (Courtesy photo)

BY SABRINA VELAZQUEZ / Special to the Star-Advertiser

First things first — I am a sucker for the sound of a banjo. I can’t play one to save my life, so when I do hear someone who can, my ears instantly perk up.

Second, I am a sucker for an upright bass. Maybe this is something that carried over from my years of playing the violin in my high school orchestra. Not only is the resonance and tone of an upright bass incomparable but it is also not as common to see the instrument being used in contemporary music as it is often more convenient for musicians to transport and play an electric bass.

Finally, I am a sucker for a good voice, but who isn’t right? Maybe it’s just me, but I find myself listening to new music all the time, and when a song starts with a catchy arrangement and instrumentation I wait for the voice. It doesn’t have to be a perfect voice, but it has to have character, a good tone and be in key.

So you can imagine my reaction when I was scrolling through Facebook last week and I saw multiple postings of a video for a new song from local indie band The Intire Project. The song, called “Pacific” is a track from the band’s upcoming full-length album. A four-minute-and-29-second black and white video shows the band in Soul Sound Studios.

And what do I hear — and see? A banjo, an upright bass and lead singer Matty McIntire’s pitch-perfect voice. The trifecta! Seriously, it is pitch-perfect, as the band’s manager Brandon Apeles affirmed. McIntire can shell out lead vocal takes in the studio just as easy as he can breathe.

Okay, well maybe I am over polarizing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that was true.

The band released a five-track, self-titled EP last year that included the original trio. An EP that helped the band get an official nomination in the 2012 Na Hoku Hanohano Awards. With the new band lineup they went on to record “Blue Eyes,” currently available on the “Alternative HI” compilation from Mountain Apple Company. “Blue Eyes” is a delicate and heart-felt track that sounds like a mellow version of a Mumford and Sons meets Thom Yorke-style vocals.

Since signing with manager Apeles in January of this year, the band is now back at Soul Sound Studios with producer/engineer Shawn Livingston Moseley to work on a full-length album. You can even see Moseley in the video (around the 2:47 mark) grooving to the song and accentuating the drumbeats.

There is no firm date set for the LP release, but Apeles said it looks like sometime this summer. Keep your eyes and ears peeled, because if “Pacific” is any indication of what’s to come, I’d say the Intire Project will have a gem on their hands.

You can download “Pacific” for a limited time at www.theintireproject.com.

Want to see The Intire Project live? They’ll perform at “ARTafterDARK” at the Honolulu Museum of Art on May 25 with Sing the Body, Erika Elona Band, Jenna, Sean Cleland,
Mano Kane and Desert Sea. Admission is $10 (free for HMA members). Click here for more details about this month’s party and its “Rockfest” theme.
———
Sabrina Velazquez is a 2011 Na Hoku Hanohano Award-nominated singer/songwriter and self-proclaimed “music nerd” who was born and raised in Honolulu. Now based in Portland, Oregon, Velazquez posts every Monday on The Pulse.

2012 World Fireknife Champion Joseph Cadousteau performs at the Polynesian Cultural Center on Saturday, May 12. (Courtesy PCC)

BY JASON GENEGABUS / jason@staradvertiser.com

After four nights of competition at the Polynesian Cultural Center, Tahiti’s Joseph Cadousteau beat out defending champion Viavia “VJ” Tiumalu and four-time champion Mikaele Oloa to win the Senior Division of the 2012 World Fireknife Championship.

The win was the first ever for a Tahitian competitor — and Cadousteau even took it a step further when he and his partner, Micah Naruo, also won the Group Competition division of the contest.

“I’m so happy and honored to be named the winner in this 20th anniversary year of the World Fireknife Championship,” said Cadousteau, who finished in third place in 2008 and second place in 2006, 2009 and 2010. “It feels like a dream and I don’t want to wake up.”

According to PCC vice president of operations Logo Apelu, this year’s competition featured some of the most talented fireknife dancers ever. And for the first time, those unable to make it to Laie were able to watch the event live online.

“The best in the world were truly on display this week,” said Apelu. “We had a Cirque Du Soleil performer, multiple Disney performers and four past World Fireknife Champions all enter this year.”

The live stream was so successful, said PCC director of marketing Ray Magalei, that the venue now plans to broadcast “all of our cultural events” for online audiences.

2012 World Fireknife Championship third place finisher Viavia Tiumalu performs. (Courtesy PCC)

Senior Division

First Place: Joseph Cadousteau, 32, of Papeete, Tahiti
Second Place: Mikaele Oloa, 22, formerly of Florida who now lives in Waialua
Third Place: Viavia “VJ” Tiumalu, 20, of Orlando, Florida

Junior Pacific Division

Ages 6-11

First Place: KJ Ahloy, Laie, Hawaii
Second Place: Kekoa Lagunte, Waialua, Hawaii
Third Place: Jonathon Fiu, Kahuku, Hawaii

Ages 12-17

First Place: Preston Weber, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Second Place: Hale Motuakuaka, Aiea, Hawaii
Third Place: Achilles Tafiti, Laie, Hawaii

Group Competition

First Place: Joseph Cadousteau and Micah Naruo
Second Place: KJ Ahloy, Quest Ava, Malik Ava and Alex Galeai
Third Place: Chandae Ava, Aaliyah Ava and Jeralee Galeai

People’s Choice Award

Mikaele Oloa

Related Video:

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PHOTOS BY AARON YOSHINO / Special to the Star-Advertiser

MA’O Organic Farms and chef Ed Kenney partnered to host a fundraiser for the Waianae farm on Saturday, May 12. The event featured farm tours, a live auction, dinner and entertainment. Money raised from tickets to “Town Ma MA’O” will be used to fund youth scholarships and continue general operations at the farm.

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PHOTOS BY JOAH BULEY / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Vice Nightclub hosted “Smash: A Spring 2012 Graduation Massive” at Ward Centre on Saturday, May 12.

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PHOTOS BY KAT WADE / Special to the Star-Advertiser

After a ceremony at the Stan Sheriff Center on Saturday, May 12, new University of Hawaii at Manoa graduates headed to the university’s athletic fields to meet and greet with family and friends.

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PHOTOS BY AARON YOSHINO / Special to the Star-Advertiser

The Hyatt Regency Waikiki and Potent Productions hosted “Ignite,” a graduation celebration for the University of Hawaii, at Japengo and SWIM Bar at the hotel on Saturday, May 12. The party featured DJs Audissey, Flip and Mike D.