buzz magazine: february 27, 2015

Champaign-Urbana’s community magazine FREE

2 buzz February 27- March 5, 2015

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FOOD & DRINK

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MUSIC

BEAUTIFIEDIpek Firats

If you’re constantly looking for new ways to change up your beauty regime, check out Firats’s column, where she discusses her tried and true methods.

SOPHIE'SCHOICE

07A TALE OF TWO AUSTINS 4/5

I TOOK HER FOR SUSHI...Sakanaya's chef shows us a slice of the raw action

CALENDARYour personal guide to this week's local events

EDITOR’S NOTETYLER DURGAN

IN THIS ISSUE

ROAR!ROAR!

10

SETTLING THE SCOREChristine Pallon

Whether you rooted for The Grand Budapest Hotel’s score or not, the Academy tends to pick some of the year’s most groundbreaking soundtracks for the Oscars. However, underrated gems are still rampant, and the soundtrack to Heathers is no exception.

50 THOUGHTS ON 50 SHADESDavid Robertson

The mommy-porn sensation, sadistically gripping the nation, has waltzed its way onto the silver screen, and according to David, the results aren’t pretty.

COOKING WITH WINEPaul Angellilo

In this article, fi nd tasty ways to use all those half drunk bottles of wine you have laying around (aside from just drinking it, which is equally delicious). The recipes featured here use red or white wine to add depth of fl avor to multiple dishes.

COMEDY GIRLS IN A COMEDY WORLDbuzz A&E Staff

If you missed out on their Soma performance on Feb. 25, check out the girls of the Champaign-Urbana comedy world's interview.

Local charter bus company Suburban Express has been having a rough time with their public image lately. As if to remind people that they sue their own customers and are generally shitty, they launched a public smear campaign against the student-run satire magazine, The Black Sheep, after they received Sheepie awards for "who has terrorized the UIUC campus most?" and "worst way to get home." For our Interview Issue, I caught up with that publication's Editor-in-chief, Tex Mex.

Tyler: Could you summarize everything that happened between the Sheepies and today's press conference?

Tex: Well, not much, to be honest. We've con-tinuously tried to send the awards to Suburban Express, but they keep getting sent back to us. It's been disheartening, to say the least. We put a lot of construction paper and non-toxic glue in those awards.

Tyler: Suburban Express owner Dennis Toeppen responded pretty negatively to his Sheepie. To what do you attribute his poor attitude?

Tex: I think it might be because Suburban Ex-press didn't win <em>enough</em> Sheepies. Which, I agree, there were a few snubs. I was sur-prised they didn't nab "Best Restaurant" myself.

Tyler: If Dennis were with us right now, what would you say to him?

Tex: Congratulations on the Sheepie awards!Tyler: What has been the impact of Dennis's

response on the Black Sheep staff? Do you need a hug?

Tex: Spirits, all in all, have been pretty down in the dumps. The only real "losers" of the Sheep-ies have been our feelings. We're always open to hugs. C'mere, you!

February 27- March 5, 2015 buzz 3

»PARKS AND REC FINALEIn what can only be described as :') the final episode of Parks and Recreation provided a practically perfect ending for

the show. Equal parts heartwarming and bitter-sweet, the series finale gave each member of the Pawnee Parks Department the future they deserve—even ol' Garry/Jerry/Terry/Larry. I'll miss each of these carefully-crafted characters and their personalities, but at least I'll always have (my roommate's) Netflix. After watching season three of House of Cards in approximately 13 consecutive hours, I'll have plenty of time to re-watch all of Parks and Rec. Well, except for the first season. We don't talk about that one.

HEADS UP!

LIKE ESTHER HWANGCopy Chief

LIKES, GRIPES & YIKES

BUZZ COMMUNITY STAFF

COVER DESIGN Katie GearyEDITOR IN CHIEF Tyler Durgan

MANAGING EDITOR Kaitlin PennART DIRECTOR Katie GearyCOPY CHIEF Esther Hwang

PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Diana DiggsIMAGE EDITOR Kaitlin Penn

PHOTOGRAPHERS Lauren AguirreDESIGNERS Elyce Heffez, Jill Martin

MUSIC EDITOR Sean NeumannFOOD & DRINK EDITOR Paul AngelilloMOVIES & TV EDITOR Ash Valentine

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Anwen ParrottCOMMUNITY EDITOR Carly Gubbins

ONLINE EDITOR Bryce DornDISTRIBUTION Brandi and Steve Wills

ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR Deb SosnowskiPUBLISHER Lilyan J. Levant

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Illinois administration, faculty or students.

© ILLINI MEDIA COMPANY 2015

ANNOYING Q & (WHAT WE WISH WE SAID) A

BUZZ STAFF

TALK TO BUZZ

KRANNERT CENTERFR FEB 27 »

7:30PM The Hot Sardines: Speakeasy Nights // Marquee

7:30PM The Merry Widow // Lyric Theatre @ Illinois

7:30PM UI Chamber Orchestra // School of Music

SA FEB 28 »

6:30PM Dessert and Conversation: The Merry Widow // Lyric Theatre @ Illinois

7:30PM The Hot Sardines: Speakeasy Nights // Marquee

7:30PM The Merry Widow // Lyric Theatre @ Illinois

7:30PM State Symphony Orchestra of México // Marquee

SU MAR 1 »

2PM Dessert and Conversation: The Merry Widow // Lyric Theatre @ Illinois

3PM The Merry Widow // Lyric Theatre @ Illinois

MO MAR 2 »

7:30PM Holocaust and Memory: The Power of the Intimate Story in Our Search for Meaning // Marquee and the Interdisciplinary Program for Research in the Humanities

TU MAR 3 »

5:30PM Innovation Celebration 2015 // Marquee, the Champaign County Economic Development Corporation, Parkland College, and the University of Illinois

6PM Krannert Center Student Association General Meeting

WE MAR 4 »

7:30PM UI Philharmonia // School of Music

TH MAR 5 »

5PM Krannert Uncorked with Hi Ho Buffalo, western rock // Marquee

5PM The Nile and African Identity // Marquee

7:30PM ’Tis Pity She’s a Whore // Illinois Theatre

FR MAR 6 »

7:30PM Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra: Music of the Heartland 7:30PM The Nile Project: Music of the Nile // Marquee

7:30PM ’Tis Pity She’s a Whore // Illinois Theatre

SPONSORS MAKE IT HAPPEN. THANK YOU.

Nosh, shop, uncork: KrannertCenter.com/StayAwhileDISCOVERMORE!

In honor of our Interview Issue, the buzz Com-munity staff has compiled a list of our least-favor-ite interview questions (or just worst questions ever asked) and the answers we wished we could (or did) give.

Enjoy the list—while the memories of awkward introductions and embarrassing interviews flash before your eyes.

If you were a crayola, what color would you be? Why? "Black because its the color of my soul."

Do you believe in big foot? "Are you five?"How would your friends describe you? "Trust me;

after last weekend, you don’t want to know." When was a time you failed? What did you learn

from this? "Uh, I never fail..."Where do you see yourself in ten years? "Any-

where but here."Who do you identify with more: Tom or Jerry?

"Spike."“Which band is better: The Beatles or Led Zep-

pelin?” Apples to oranges, bro.“If you had to shatter glass, how would you do

it?” I’m sorry, what?“Oh, you’re an English major? (uncomfortably

long pause) So, you want to be a teacher?” (begin plotting revenge)

»FREE WINE FROM WORKThe half-drunk (drank?), open bottles from wine tastings are the real MVP.

LIKE DIANA DIGGSPhotography Editor

»EXTENSION CORDSSo I go into buzz today and sit down at a computer, usual stuff. My phone was dying so I decided to plug it in... but I guess I accidentally flipped

the switch on the extension cord, turning all the computers off. Way to go me

GRIPE ALYSSA SPARACINODesigner

»PROFESSORSFact. My professors > yours. Cliche as it may be, when I grow up, I do want to be like my professors. This week, they

have proven to me that they truly do care about their students, and more than just design and their research, which I suppose I already knew. I cannot possibly put into words how grateful I am for my professors. How can you not ap-preciate professors who put in extra time to help an invested student? Turns out a little hard work pays off. Cheers!

LIKE JILLIAN MARTINDesigner


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Q&A: AUSTIN MCCANN, GENERAL MANAGER AT THE ART THEATER CO-OP

ALEX WEN AND ASH VALENTINE

Thanks to the Art Theater Co-op, screenings of limited release, older cult classics and more obscure fi lms are available to the residents of Champaign-Urbana. As general manager of the Art, Austin McCann ensures the one-room the-ater features both the nostalgic and the new. He talked to buzz about his personal experiences with art, his fondness for the less critically-acclaimed and the conversations provoked by fi lms.buzz: How did you get involved with the Art? Austin McCann: I moved to Urbana from Florida when I was 24 to do community media work; I wanted to be working with arts and media to cre-ate social justice. I worked with the Independent Media Center in Urbana, with really interesting arts and social change projects like the School for Designing Society. I coordinated some experi-mental music events. Throughout all this, I’d come see fi lms at the Art. When the projects started to die down, I came in one night in 2012 to see Moonrise Kingdom and noticed they were looking for a general manager. I applied, got the job and have been here ever since. buzz: How did you get into fi lm? AC: When I was growing up, I remember my fi rst disagreements with friends about movies. The Baz Luhrmann fi lm Moulin Rouge, for example, which I couldn’t stand, and then Spielberg’s AI,

which was trashed by mainstream critics and my friends too—but I was deeply moved by it, and still think it’s Spielberg’s most intellectu-ally daring fi lm. Disagreement is a great starting point for critical thought. I was in high school and started checking out silent fi lms from the library, and watched everything I could get my hands on: classic art house fi lms, horror, silent fi lms, Mel Brooks, whatever. buzz: Could you elaborate on your work in social justice and radical media? AC: I did art since I was a kid. A lot of visual art but mostly theatre, and I went to an arts program in high school. During that fi rst Bush term, I just started feeling a real moral opposition to every-thing. Things aren’t so good now, but it was like a nightmare at that time—2001, 2002. I started to see art as this domain of freedom and hon-esty, where I could respond to everything that was happening. buzz: Let’s chat more about the power and cultural position of art fi lm in particular. AC: It’s an economic question for me, principally, like who do we want to have power and resources, on the fi lmmaking front as well as exhibition. Ob-viously, I’m in league with independent theaters against megaplexes, and I believe in independent artistic voices against studio-made projects, even

though sometimes indie stuff is terrible and a big studio project might be good. But in aesthetic terms, I like when a movie gives space for the viewer to engage in a conversation with it. At this moment, at least, I think it’s important that we spend time deconstructing our idea of what the cinema is supposed to be. Like, when we showed the really beautiful Studio Ghibli fi lm The Tale of Princess Kaguya at the Art, I went through some of the critics blurbs on Rotten Tomatoes for market-ing material. One critic mentioned how beautiful the fi lm was, but said that the slow pace would be a problem for children. "Says who?" I asked! I don’t have anything against fast cinema—there are lots of great “fast” fi lms, from Whiplash to Guardians of the Galaxy to all kinds of experimental stuff, like Godard. I just didn’t like the idea that this critic was saying how someone would (should) experience the fi lm, especially children, who re-ally need to be getting a solid critical education in media right now. But I don’t feel entirely gloomy: 2014 was a huge year for art house cinema. Look at some of the titles we opened this year: Whip-lash, Boyhood, Birdman, Grand Budapest Hotel, In-side Llewyn Davis, Ida, Snowpiercer, Under the Skin, Citizenfour. Those weren’t little movies. They had big audiences and a sizable cultural footprint.

Used with permission from Austin McCann


GROWING UP WITH MUSIC

ELIAS J. TRACY

HEADING into March, Wir Können has already had a productive year.

The band has gone on a weeklong tour through-out the eastern United States in January while also maintaining a strong presence locally in Central Il-linois. The band will be playing at Error Records in downtown Urbana this Sunday with Looming, one of the biggest bands from their hometown of Spring-fi eld, Ill. Now with two thirds of the band attending the University of Illinois, Wir Können is fresh to the Champaign-Urbana music scene and already mak-ing their mark. buzz caught up with frontman Austin Connelly before their show Sunday.buzz: What does Wir Können mean to you?Austin Connelly: Well, Wir Können was the fi rst band I ever did electric—that I ever started taking seriously. It was my transition from just playing to a group of friends to playing to people I didn’t know.buzz: What inspired that change?AC: What inspired it was just seeing the deeper meaning in what I was playing, instead of just seeing what I was playing as a song. It’s more of something that I can actually relate to other than just a bunch of stories. buzz: What does the name mean?AC: It’s German for “we can.” buzz: Why that?AC: Oh boy. Basically, I was in a relationship that was going through some turmoil and “we can” was supposed to be a sense of positivity that we can get through whatever we’re going through. But now it’s just a general sense of positivity for me. buzz: Is that also a change between Wir Können and other bands you were in?AC: Yeah, actually. A lot of the songs I wrote be-fore Wir Können were very dark and questioning things I don’t necessarily question now. buzz: Where do you see Wir Können going?

AC: I’m not entirely sure. Right now I’m just go-ing with the fl ow of things. I would hope that we would be able to grow into something a little bit bigger than ourselves. I am currently in the pro-cess of writing a full-length, which we are going to be working during the summer. Hopefully that’ll do a little bit, even though it doesn’t really matter if it does or not. I’m not sure where I see it going, but wherever it goes, it’s okay by me. buzz: Back to positivity in your music. In what ways has that affected your life?AC: It’s helped me develop a deeper meaning with music in general. It helps me refl ect on where I was, say, a year ago as opposed to now. Basically, what Wir Können has done, for me at least, has taken something that was supposed to be sort of a side thing and made itself grow into a much bigger concept of sorts. It’s helped me grow as a person and it’s helped me see things that I would’ve never even thought of seeing. buzz: Can you elaborate on how it’s helped you grow as a person?AC: Well, I can totally look back on things before and think, “I defi nitely wasn’t where I am now.” I can just see the growth. I look back on the songs I wrote two years ago, when we fi rst started and think, “Wow, I was really trying to look edgy.” One of the fi rst lyrics that I wrote was, “I’m sitting in a fi eld with a beer in my hands and a smoke in my mouth.” And if that doesn’t sound like a regular 16 year-old writing lyr-ics just to sound cool, then I have no fucking clue. buzz: And now?AC: It’s more of me trying to write things that I don’t want to put down in just words. buzz: Two-thirds of the band live in CU, while you’re in Bloomington-Normal. How does that work?AC: We practice whenever we can, borrowing from whoever will let us. We make it work. I don’t know if we’re necessarily allowed to practice at Mitch

(Baker) and Mario’s (Cannemela) anymore because the last time that happened we had the cops called on us. But usually when we’re in separate places we either go to Bloomington-Normal or Champaign-Urbana to practice. If need be we go to Bloomington-Normal and we practice at Kyle Rotta’s house, and if we’re on break or I am on break and they are just in Springfi eld, we just practice at South Town Studios.buzz: How long have you known Mario and Mitch?AC: I’ve known them ever since I started going to shows back in Springfi eld.buzz: Springfi eld has quite the music scene.AC: The music scene in Springfi eld—South Town and Black Sheep, Dumb Records, all that—is ba-sically a second home to me. The way I’ve seen it blossom over the past couple of years has been amazing. Back when I started going to shows, it was just Black Sheep and even then they were starting to blow up in ways. I entered the scene when things were just starting to get good, and I watched all of these big ideas form, so to speak. The fi rst Black

Sheep Fest was when the quote, unquote idea for my fi rst band, “Austin and Austin” formed. Basically the scene back in Springfi eld is the most—and this is just coming from me because I am from there, I can understand how people can feel differently—for me, it is the most accepting of spaces and the most encouraging of spaces that I’ve seen. Everyone is very, very friendly toward one another and willing to help each other work toward something that is bigger than themselves.buzz: If you didn’t come up in Springfi eld, how would things be different for you as a musician?AC: I don’t know if I would’ve been as involved if I wasn’t from the scene in Springfi eld. If that wasn’t where I came from I’m not sure if I would be in the place I am now, today, because the community in Springfi eld has defi nitely changed my aspect on everything and has encouraged me to take this a little bit more seriously and to want to keep going instead of just playing every now and then and learning tabs.

Used with permission from Wir Konnen


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THE MAN BEHIND THE MURALSEREN FRANCO

HIS work has colored various buildings in the CU community, but now he’s packed his

car and taken his work across the country. buzz talks to local artist and University of Illinois grad Langston Allston about cruising the country and his thoughts on racial and social injustice.

buzz: Are you traveling for art-related purposes? Can you tell us about that? What projects do you have planned in the future? Langston Allston: I’m traveling for a lot of reasons, but in my life, things always seem to turn out to be art-related. I fi nished up a long project with the Uni-

versity in January, and I didn’t have any fi rm plans in or around Champaign-Urbana until March, so I fi gured it would be fun to duck out on the worst part of the Midwestern winter and see the country. I’ve moved through a lot of different projects in the past year and, I had a lot of paint leftover, so I packed it all into the trunk of my car and drove west. I’m kind of just couch surfi ng across the Southwest and West Coast with a trunk full of paint and seeing what type of opportunities I can fi nd. It’s been a wild trip so far. Driving cross-country is something I’ve never done before, and it’s a very different way to experi-ence the U.S.; you end up seeing a lot of weird shit

that people kind of tuck away and don’t discuss too much. I drove down 800 miles of two-lane roads in Kansas and Oklahoma, through really strange oil and natural gas country because I missed my interstate exit one night. I went to a bar dug into a pit in the ground that was off of a road made by a man with a tractor and some clay on a mesa in New Mexico. I spent some really productive time in an awesome print shop that happened to be in an old railroad warehouse surrounded by old, decaying trucks and barbed wire. You see lots of the inexpli-cable sub-cultures that make up the country when you drive, so I’ve been having a really cool time just bouncing around and getting into trouble. Coming from the Midwest, all of these super isolated spaces are kind of foreign to me, and it’s been awesome to get to spend a little time in them and see how they work and see how other people are living. Right now I’m in LA: no one has a job, everyone has a Maserati and you can smoke weed in the street, so that’s a whole new experience, too. buzz: A lot of your work refl ects your thoughts on society’s perceptions of race and class. What was your inspiration and thought process for the work here in CU?LA: My work is a refl ection of some of the social issues I see. I think there is starting to be a really productive and honest conversation about how race continues to play a dramatic role in people’s lives across the nation—especially in the six months since Mike Brown was killed—and the voice coming from St. Louis has become so organized and power-ful. Those issues may seem distant, but they exist in CU just as much as anywhere else. I remember going to the spot where Kiwane Carrington was killed here in Champaign with my dad the night af-ter it happened. I think that’s when the severity of racism happening at an institutional level really hit home for me and moved from being an academic idea to a hard reality. The cop (who) shot that kid, a 15 year-old trying to enter his own home in our town,

got hundreds of thousands of dollars. Finding a way to bring those issues forward, and at the very least provoke conversation and honest critical thinking, is something I’m passionate about pursing in my work.

Actually, this past year I’ve done a lot of traveling that has really brought me closer to these issues. I was in East St. Louis working with the University in October, and I just happened to be the same time there was some truly massive city wide action hap-pening in St. Louis. Going to Ferguson and being a part of the demonstrations in Shaw and at SLU in October were some of the most powerful experi-ences I’ve had, and that’s had a big impact on my life, both in art and beyond. I also happened to be in New York delivering a few paintings in November when the decision not to indict Darren Wilson came out and I was out in the street with thousands of people then too. Seeing Manhattan shut down by demonstrations and marching down the FDR high-way was pretty insane. These experiences have kind of made me aware of the scale of people’s outrage and discontent. Especially in New York, there was a really mixed group of people marching—white people, black people, old people, young people—all wanting to see something done to hold the system accountable for this pattern of violence we’re seeing brought to light now. buzz: Which aspects of your life and personality can we see displayed in your artwork?LA: I try to bring all of that stuff together when I’m making art. These bizarre experiences I have on the road (or even just on the street in Urbana, plenty of weird shit happens at home), these issues of social justice and racial injustice that I want to see addressed on a broader scale and the media I con-sume, which is pretty diverse. My work changes all the time because of that. When I’m working on smaller scale stuff, I just want to pack in as many ideas and as much information as possible and really present a complete thought. Continue reading on page 15

Langston Allston's work on the ceiling of Exile on Main St. Champaign, IL. Photo by Alyssa Abay


SOPHIE IS SWELLMARIAH SCHAEFER

URBANA-BASED comic book art-ist and illustra-

tor Sophie McMahan has a lot going for her. Af-ter receiving her bachelor’s degree in Art History from Rutgers University in New Jersey, she began taking drawing classes at Parkland College. Since then, she has been doing her own thing, which she fi nds to be very fun. Today, McMahan has an alternative comic book called You Were Swell and creates illustrations inspired by the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. Her products have appeared on web-sites such as HelloGiggles.com, and McMahan’s work will be featured on the March 2015 issue of Nylon Magazine.

buzz: What drew you to the culture of the 1940s and ’50s?

Sophie McMahan: I know my website says the ’40s and ’50s, but in the past few years it has also blossomed into the ’60s. The ’50s and ’60s are my main focus now. I guess I don’t fully know why I love (those eras) so much. From age 16 and on, I’ve been really obsessed with those eras and those styles and beauty. I love the beautiful tight hair from the ’40s and ’50s, and then I love the really big hair and crazy makeup from the ’60s. I just find it so visually beautiful and amazing, but it’s kind of silly, too, because it’s so over the top. But I love it. In the 1950s, there are so many photos of perfect advertisements where everyone is so happy, like the nuclear family. They tried so hard to present this image of prosperity and happiness but, in reality, that was actually a hard time for

a lot of people and there was so much hidden. People didn’t express their problems in order to represent this perfect image. I like distort-ing those perfect, happy images of the ‘50s because they’re just not real.buzz: Do you feel like your work is social com-mentary on the past, or do you use the past to comment on today’s world?SM: I guess it’s a mix of both. In part of my work, I draw all of the beautiful, idealized women with big hair and perfect fi gures and stuff. I’ve struggled with eating disorders and all kinds of horrible feel-ings about the way I looked, and it sort of con-trolled me for a long time. I don’t always have a purpose when I’m doing my work, but then when I see what I’ve done, I can kind of understand why I did it. I love drawing these beautiful women, but I also kind of like to make them weird in some way because I have a love-hate relationship with beauty. I fi nd it very damaging, the standards and pressures put on women, but at the same time I’m still drawn to it. Somehow it’s easier for me to use; I feel more comfortable drawing people from the past because it’s a little bit less personal that way. It’s the past, and it’s not me or not my friends or what’s going on now.buzz: You draw a lot of monsters. Are they in-spired by horror movies of that time?SM: I’m a huge horror movie fan, so I use the Crea-ture from the Black Lagoon a lot. He’s a very famous horror fi gure; there’s like three or four movies about the Creature from the Black Lagoon. I guess I just really love a lot of monsters and I’ve always kind of sympathized with them in a way because they’re often kind of misunderstood. They remind me of animals a little bit—the Creature from the Black Lagoon looks like an animal—and I love animals. I like to humanize monsters and also make them funny. I watch a lot of horror movies from back in the 1940s and ’50s all the way up to the ’80s and ’90s, so it’s defi nitely a passion of mine.

buzz: What are your inspirations? Do you look at products from the ’40s and ’50s to draw inspira-tion for your own work? SM: I use a lot of references for my art. I get really inspired by vintage advertisements. I’ve been col-lecting old magazines and old clippings from the ’50s and ’60s for years, so I often will look to those to fi nd information or to the Internet. tumblr is just full of incredible, beautiful and weird images. I often like to get inspired by an image and maybe use part of it as a reference but then totally turn it into my own piece. I’m very inspired by a lot of movies from those eras. There are several really amazing video companies that have salvaged all of these really ridiculous B movies from the ’50s and ’60s that are super campy and don’t make a lot of sense. Visually, they’re amazing because they have the women with the big hair and amaz-ing clothes and funny scenarios, so I get a lot of inspiration both from the printed media and video media of that time.buzz: Are there real people from that time period who inspire you, and how do they inspire you?SM: There are certain stars that I really love, Brigitte Bardot is one of my favorites. I’ve loved her look and her aura for a really long time. She has the classic sex kitten look. I have all of her movies and books about her, and she’s so much fun to watch. I love Jane Fonda in Barbarella, which is the similar kind of look with the really big hair and kind of funny outfi ts. There’s a fi lm-maker named Russ Meyer from that era; he actu-ally wrote a couple of movies with Roger Ebert that are super ridiculous. Beyond the Valley of the Dolls is probably the most famous one, but then there’s Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens. They have these amazing women again with the huge hair (who are) kind of badass and wild, and I’m so inspired by those. I love his movies, even though they are kind of crazy.Continue reading at www.readbuzz.com

Find artist Sophie McMahan's work on display at Pizza M. Urbana, IL. Photo by Diana Diggs


FULL A$$ OR NO A$$ AT ALL.


RAW GOODNESSSHRUTI SRIKUMAR

Used with permission from Sakanaya Restaurant

SINCE its debut in November 2013, Sakana-ya Restaurant has established a high

standard for refi ned, authentic Japanese cuisine in CU. Offering hungry university students a wide variety of mouthwatering dishes, Sakanaya has thrived in the otherwise hostile Green Street en-vironment. Unsurprisingly, the restaurant’s fi rst-rate performance hinges on the work of its excel-lent sushi chefs, among them Ricky Mechelke.

buzz: What made you become interested in be-ing a sushi chef, and how did you start learning to make sushi?

Ricky Mechelke: Well, I started right after high school as a hibachi chef but, at the same time, the restaurant that I worked at had a sushi bar. At that point, I started learning how to make rolls from the sushi bar chef, while simultaneously working as a hibachi chef. Eventually, I thought that mak-

ing sushi was a little bit more fun, so that’s why switched from being a hibachi chef to a sushi chef.

buzz: What brought you to Champaign?RM: I used to work at a restaurant in Wisconsin,

and one of the chefs there knew someone who worked over here. Eventually, he began working here and, later on Sakanaya needed more sushi chefs, so then the chef that I worked with in Wis-consin called me up and I came here to work. So, I guess that I was brought to Champaign about six months ago through a friend.

buzz: What would say is the most popular roll in Champaign-Urbana, as in which roll do you have to make most often?

RM: I would say that a lot of people like the OMG roll. We wrap it in tin foil, and it’s sent out on a plate that is set on fi re. A lot of the kids like the fi re, so a lot of those OMG rolls go out.

buzz: What is your personal favorite roll from

Sakanaya and why?RM: Hmm… That’s a hard question. I like the

Gold Rush. It is one of the trickiest rolls to make; it’s actually kind of annoying to make, but you know…I enjoy the challenge. Plus, it’s actually sprinkled with real gold leaf.

buzz: Can you tell me about the best sushi you’ve ever eaten?

RM: Well, I took a trip to New York once, and I got the chance to eat at Morimoto’s restaurant. That was really great; my girlfriend and I ended up spending around $200 for the both of us. When we were there, we ordered some nigiri and then we also had a tuna tartar appetizer, which was also really good.

buzz: What do you like most about your job?RM: I like the rush at the beginning. It kind of

pumps me up. I like being busy because it’s bet-ter than just standing around and doing nothing.

Usually around 5 p.m., the line here is pretty long, so that is exciting.

buzz: If you weren’t a sushi chef, what would you be?

RM: Well, prior to being a sushi chef, I was think-ing about being a teacher. I actually took a semes-ter at Marquette University for education. I wanted to be an English-as-a-second-language teacher.

buzz: If you had a signature roll named after you, what would be in it and why?

RM: Well, I like seared items. If I had a signature roll, I would probably include a lot of fresh foods. Also, I would probably add something citrusy along with something seared on top because making a good roll is about the texture and con-trast between the various ingredients.

Sakanaya is located at 403 E. Green St. in Champaign.


LEADING THE LIONHEARTED

JIMIN SHIM

Used with permission by We Are Lions

FOUNDED by recent University graduate David Schwartz, We Are Lions

is an artistic fundraising platform for people with disabilities that creates jobs and provides oppor-tunities for individuals to showcase their art. buzz speaks with CEO and founder Schwartz and mar-keting director Kevin McMahon to learn more.

buzz: Why did you choose to focus on and collaborate with people with disabilities and mental illnesses?

David Schwartz: My uncle is the most amazing person in the entire world. He’s extremely gen-erous; he’s funny and super quirky but, he has schizophrenia, and it’s hard for him to interact with other people. He just talks differently and acts differently and looks a little bit different, but he’s really not that different. There’s this negative stigma that exists and, I really wanted to change that, and I wanted other people to interact with my uncle and other people like him—even if it wasn’t necessarily an in-person encounter.

buzz: And why did you choose art as the main platform for achieving this?

Kevin McMahon: Because art is dope, and we feel art isn’t incorporated into the mainstream consciousness as much as it could or should be. Art’s been used to break down all sorts of barriers since the beginning of humanity. I’ve seen some super powerful interactions facilitated by the art we support, and I don’t think any other medium would have been as powerful.

buzz: How do you choose the artists that you work with?

KM: Combinations between hitting up artists that we think are awesome, getting approached by nonprofi ts and recommendations from peo-ple in our network. It’s amazing how technology has allowed us to form these relationships with people so far away. It gives me great hope for just how large-scale our impact will be.

DS: We usually feature artists who have some sort of unique style. Gabe Antunez, he’s 13 years-old and just a complete badass. There’s another guy, James Frye, who has a really cool pop-art, psychedelic type of style, and it’s so good.

buzz: What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned from this entire experience?

DS: Oh, tenacity. So many people like to tell you “no.” There are so many things that will get in the way, but the biggest thing that I’ve learned is to not get discouraged and to keep your enthusiasm. I view the world as this really cool changing agent where you’ve got to roll with the punches, keep going and give 110%. Especially in the disability world and in the art world, there are a lot of people that will say no, and it’s a matter of changing that. You’ve got to keep on keepin’ on.

KM: I’ve learned you should never assume what someone is or isn’t capable of. I’ve also learned about humor, humility and the power of com-munity. The interactions I’ve had with people in our network have been life changing; (they’ve) given me a much brighter view on the thread of

humanity we all share.buzz: What message do you want to be spread-

ing through this platform to your consumers, to the community and to the artists that you’re working with?

KM: That by purchasing something, you are making a difference. Your dollar goes to the dis-abled community in so many ways: employing people in production, employing artists, support-ing nonprofi ts, creating awareness. It’s hard to grasp just how much each purchase means. We want to show that this community is amazing. We want people talking about the art, about the people. Above all, we want people to understand that we can change the way things are for people with disabilities, and it starts with perception.

DS: That you’re doing everything right in this world and that you’re here for a reason. I started and continued We Are Lions because of a few people—I do it for a lot of reasons—but there are people who have let other people’s negativity bring them down to the point that they’re not here with us today. What I want everybody to learn is that you belong in this world. There is a bright side to darkness and everybody is experiencing these struggles. And we’re here to showcase that. These struggles exist, it’s cool, everything will be all right and you should support because it’s just natural. We can buy things that are a little out there, and it’ll look cool and be supporting a community at the same time.

buzz: How often do you interact with the artists?

How would you describe the relationship between you and them?

KM: We interact with our organizations all the time. A lot of times over phone and email because our nonprofi t partners and artists are all over the globe; we just started a campaign in India. But we also host workshops where we get to interact with the artists, and we defi nitely pay regular visits to the local organizations we work with.

DS: I try not to make it super business-y. I talk to them about normal things, and there’s this guy at Project Onward who used to be a pimp and he’s just got these crazy stories, so I usually just let him talk and listen.

buzz: What does the future of We Are Lions look like for you?

DS: The goal is that anybody will be able to sign up and become a We Are Lions artist without having to go through me. I see myself moving not away from We Are Lions, but doing things to the point where it can sustain itself—it being all over the world and in different distribution networks. A foundation of We Are Lions is incorporating people with disabilities and mental illnesses into everyday life—into the “mainstream” society—and the way that we can do that is by putting their artwork and their selves into different distribution networks.

buzz: Describe We Are Lions in three words.DS: Life-changing art.KM: Life-changing. Wearable. Art. I think that

might have been cheating.


Leaning the Lionheart

EVERYFRIDAY

owWant to know where you can park, when you can park, and when payment is due?Visit our websites today for answersto these questions and more.www.urbanaillinois.us/parkingwww.ci.champaign.il.us/parking

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12 buzz February 27 - March 5, 2015

FEBRUARY 27- MARCH 5, 2015

• E-mail: send your notice to [email protected]

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENTSUMMER SESSIONS STAR T

MAY 18 AND JUNE 8.Start planning your summer now at harpercollege.edu/summer

SUMMER SESSIONS START

ELECTRIC WASTE ORCHESTRA: LECTURE-DEMO BY COLTEN JACKSON Friday, March 6; 7:30-9:30 p.m., indi go Artist Co-op; free

This talk will discuss opportunities to transform e-waste into physical instruments to control electronic music, open to kids and adults alike. Part of the Hatch Art Festival.

‘TIS PITY SHE’S A WHOREThursday, March 5-Saturday, March 7; 7:30 p.m., Krannert Center for the Performing Arts; $10-20

TRIVIA TUESDAY Tuesday, March 3; 7-9 p.m.Memphis on Main (55 E. Main St., Champaign); free

STAND UP COMEDY SHOWCASE Wednesday, March 4; 8-9:30 p.m. Memphis on Main; free

CHEAP SKATESWednesday, March 4; 7:30-9:30 p.m., UI Ice Arena (406 E. Armory, Champaign); $2 entry, $2 for rental skates

EUCHRE TOURNAMENTThursday, March 5; 7-10 p.m., Rose Bowl Tavern (106 N. Race St., Urbana); $5

DEVELOPING A HOME YOGA PROGRAMSunday, March 1; 1:30-3:30 p.m., 212 S. First St., Champaign; $25

Join Bev Hertle this Sunday to begin your home yoga practice that best fi ts you. The program is for beginning and more experienced yoga students. Register at [email protected] or heartsopening49.eventbrite.com.

THE NILE PROJECT: MUSIC OF THE NILE Friday, March 6; 7:30 p.m., Krannert Center for the Performing Arts; $10-24

Inspired by the Silk Road Project, Egyptian ethnomusicologist Mina Girgis and Ethiopian-American singer Meklit Hadero are accompanied by a slew of regional instruments and six vocalists singing in 11 languages in a performance you don’t want to miss.

MARKET MONDAY MENU AT BACAROMonday, March 2; 5-11 p.m.Bacaro (113 N. Walnut St., Champaign); $50

JAPAN HOUSE TEA CEREMONYThursday, March 5; 3-4 p.m., Japan House (2000 S. Lincoln Ave., Urbana); $8 per person.Reserve in advance.

KRANNERT UNCORKED WITH HI HO BUFFALOThursday, March 5; 5-7 p.m., Krannert Center Stage 5; free

“THE FEAR FACTOR OF GMO PLANTS”Friday, March 6; 7-8 p.m., William M. Staerkel Planetarium (2400 W. Bradley Ave., Champaign); $1

Hungry for some food for thought? Hear Ph.D. student and Institute for Genomic Biology researcher Lynnicia Massenburg tackle one of the food world’s most divisive topics: genetically modifi ed organisms. Don’t miss a great opportunity to sift through the facts and fi ction of a key issue in the global food supply.

A MOST VIOLENT YEAR Friday, Feb. 27 - Saturday, Feb. 28; 10 p.m., The Art Theater Co-op, Champaign

Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis) and Jessica Chastain (Interstellar) star in this crime drama set in 1980s New York. Upstart immigrant Abel Morales (Isaac) is trying to make a life for his family in a strange new land, but he’ll have to expand the family business during the years of New York’s worst violence, corruption and chaos. This gritty drama is written and directed by J.C. Chandor.

OLD FOX ROADFriday, Feb. 27; 7 p.m.Etc. Coffeehouse; free

MIKE ADAMS AT HIS HONEST WEIGHTFriday, Feb. 27; 9 p.m.Mike 'N' Molly’s; $7

THE FIGHTS W/ SUN STEREO Friday, Feb. 27; 10 p.m., Cowboy Monkey; $5

The Fights perform at Cowboy Monkey alongside CU mainstays Sun Stereo. The alt-country Fights are coming off their most productive year, releasing Off Your Horse, regarded as the town’s best record in 2014.

BOBBY LANE’S SKETCHBOOKSaturday, Feb. 28; 7:30 p.m.The Institute 4 Creativity; $5

THE '92S W/ CHURCH BOOTYSaturday, Feb. 28; 9 p.m.Mike 'N' Molly’s; $7

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LAUGHING @ UNOT W/ U - BUZZ

-February 27- March 5, 2015 buzz 15

by Matt Jones “Solve Like a Pirate”--and sound like one, too. JONESIN’

Across1 Cavatappi and capellini7 Poe title word10 Rejections13 Detach, in a way14 “Free Willy” creature15 Decide (for)16 The color of believing

you can fl y?18 Dead heat19 Airline since 194820 Drags21 Stood23 Flag thrower24 Extreme25 Not often27 Garfi eld’s call when

Jon has fallen?30 Come from behind33 “Get away, stranger!”

(from a cat)34 “Transformers”

director Michael35 “Y” wearers36 Hit38 Harrowing

39 Meadow sound40 Epps of “Resurrection”41 Feeling of insecurity42 Creature surrounded

by bamboo and other trees?

46 Bathroom buildup47 1963 Paul Newman

movie48 “___ with Lovin’”

(McDonald’s promo of February 2015)

51 Free-for-all52 Utah city54 Formally give up55 Mean Amin56 Food advertised

with the line: “Keep on Truckin’... and Snackin’”?

59 Took a chair60 Story61 It’s west of the Urals62 Muddy home63 Word before Spice or

Navy64 Turns back to 00000

Down1 Less contaminated2 Foot holder3 Wheat amount4 Driving money5 “You’ve Got Mail”

company6 1970s space station7 Media packet8 “Riunite on ___, Riunite

so nice”9 Comb challenges10 Comfortably sized11 Confl icts in China12 Instructions part14 Nonprofi t’s URL suffi x17 Knowledgeable sort22 Like unmatched socks24 Make onion rings26 Apart from that27 Ice Bucket Challenge

cause, for short28 Bird sound29 Turgenev’s turndown30 2000s sitcom set in

Texas

31 Worried by32 It’s no asset36 “Peter Pan” role37 Tears for Fears hit

redone for “Donnie Darko”

38 Evidence with a twist?40 Demand that

someone will41 Hit the plus button43 “Bravissimo!’44 Throat clearing sound45 Three or fi ve, but not

threeve48 Gunpowder

alternative49 Expert50 Positive feedback51 Word before any U.S.

state53 Wish you could take

back54 Lightning McQueen’s

movie57 Ironman Ripken58 Maestro’s signal

Stumped? Find the solutions in the Classifi eds pages.

Continued from page 6

buzz: Why graffi ti? Why is graffi ti such a signifi cant style for you? LA: Actually, that thought process is what I love the most and what I hate the most about graf-fi ti and outdoor work in general. I’ve been lucky enough to catch some trains in New Mexico, and it’s a lot of fun to push out pieces really fast off the top of your head and put them out in the world (or really just out in El Paso, but what-ever). It’s frustrating though because if some-thing is visible for a long time, especially given how much I see my personal work developing, it doesn’t always represent your skill or your ideas to the fullest extent. I always feel pressure to make more walls happen because of that. I’m almost never satisfi ed with a piece after I walk away from it, so there’s a lot of motivation for me to put newer, fresher pieces out in the world. There are lots of other things I love about graffi ti too. I’m hardly what I would call a true writer, I just paint stuff I like and I don’t really make the effort to get up and stay up that a lot of my peers do. That mentality has a constant kind of manic energy to it that I think brings something really cool and unique to art. After going through the painting program here, I found that a lot of art-ists are getting caught up in the academic navel gazing that happens in the gallery setting or in

the school setting, and that doesn’t happen for people who really write graffi ti. I saw a boxcar yesterday that just said “CHUG” on it, top to bottom, just straight black and white letters. It didn’t mean anything; it’s just the name that guy writes. There was no artsy bullshit—it just said “CHUG,” and it was fucking awesome all by itself. I love that stuff. buzz: What do you want your audience to take away from your artwork?LA: I want my audience to come to my work with some understanding of my political views and my personal views and some of the back-ground as to where that stuff is coming from, but I also want them to come away from it say-ing, “Damn that looks really cool; I like how that looks.” I grew up reading comic books and in comic books, a great story was not a great story unless it had great art in it. Not like Da Vinci paintings all inside it, but art that was just really cool and really exciting to look at. I want my audience to have the same energy that I had seeing Cable shoot semi-truck sized holes in bad guys reading X-Force when I was 12 and then I want them to say, “Damn, I wish that Cable could shoot a semi-truck sized hole through systemic injustice and structurally en-forced poverty in the United States.”


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