Monday, January 5, 2009
New Orleans Sports Scuttlebutt: 1/5
Posted by Alejandro de los Rios on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 7:27 PM
by Clay A. Smith
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The Utes turn the Tide on Bama, stealing the show as Johnson helps Utes get the last laugh. Now it appears that the 13-0 performance was no fluke. But unfortunately Non- B.C.S. teams will still face an uphill battle.
- After his near-record breaking season, Brees gets zero votes for M.V.P. Most likely because the Saints still failed to finish in the post-season. Even though the rookie class gave Saints high hopes, New Orleans must proceed with caution because defensive help will likely be available for the Saints this offseason, but it won't come cheaply.
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The NBA suspended Tyson Chandler for hitting Portland's Joel Przybillia. Przybillia was fined but the suspension kept Chandler out of the game against the Nuggets. The Nuggets Beat the Hornets even though the Hornets charged, but couldn't hold on.
Marigny Brasserie Chef Departs
Posted by Ian McNulty on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 7:26 PM
Daniel Esses, pictured, had his last night as chef at Marigny Brasserie yesterday. He left citing differences with the owners over the direction of the menu. Esses says he's now looking for new opportunities in the city.
The New York native cooked his way through New Orleans kitchens over the course of eight years, and he had a hand in forming the Savvy Gourmet back in the days when it was an itinerant cooking school.
Why Ozzy Osbourne is so broken now (possibly)
Posted by Alison Fensterstock on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 6:42 PM
Last month, a pair of researchers from the School of Risk and Safety Sciences at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, published findings indicating that headbanging might actually cause mild traumatic brain damage. (CNN's report above. I like the medical reporter's incredulous, "Silly me, I thought it was all the drugs they were doing," and also her demonstration of the technique.) The study noted that "Young people at heavy metal concerts often report being dazed and confused," but that "little formal injury research has been conducted into the worldwide phenomenon of headbanging." (Gee... really? And also... gee, really?) Considering the popularity of metal in the South, health-conscious New Orleanians planning to attend gigs like this week's Outlaw Order show or February's upcoming Motley Crue performance (dang it... why doesn't this blog software have an umlaut?) may wish, as the study advises, to practice restricting their headbanging to a less-than-75-degree range of motion. We're just saying.
Les Miles: Recruiter to the Stars
Posted by Alejandro de los Rios on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 1:42 PM
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Yet another reason why Nick Saban's 2009 is off to a bad start: Les Miles. Sure, LSU went 7–5 during the regular season (including a dismal 3–5 SEC record), but just look at how the Tigers finished their season compared to Alabama. First, a dominating win in the Chik-Fil-A Bowl (as compared to Alabama's embarrassment in the Sugar Bowl) and now it's looking like LSU is poised for a great 2009, leading the college football recruiting rankings.
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Now whether or not ESPN really needs Les Miles in order to recruit talent is still up for debate.
Why I’m Here, pt. 2: I Put My Sister In the Hospital
Posted by admin on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 2:46 AM
So yes, I put my sister in the hospital on my first night in Austin, where she and her husband recently bought a house, and I've come to job hunt. She rang-in the new year at St Joseph's. Man.My crazy electronic rock band was invited to play a big show at famous Austin rock club Emo’s for New Year’s Eve, opening for a badass 11-piece soul band called T-Bird and the Breaks. After eight years busting my telecaster playing shows in New Orleans, no one there asked us to play a New Years’ show. We got the show through our new booking agent, who also lives in Austin, because none of the hundreds of good booking agents in New Orleans ever stepped up (did y'all get that joke?).
And while I have no real desire to be a famous touring musician, I can’t say I don’t mind my art being as appreciated as it is here in Austin.I also can’t say I love Austin's glut of indy rock music. For instance, the popular Austin band White Denim? You couldn’t be trendier if you named yourself The iPod Kids, The Thick-Rimmed Eyeglasses, or The Urban Outfitters. Still, Austin is definitely more of a music town than New Orleans. I do respect OffBeat magazine, the purveyors of JazzFest, and other such musical institutions, but many of New Orleans' more original musicians are offended by the way those institutions push a wildly skewed/false picture of the scene in which we participate. I mean, Lil Wayne himself is very rarely credited by the local press as being a representative of New Orleans culture, though in reality he’s probably sold more records in his short career than Louis Armstrong did in all of the last century. And the reason Wayne isn't given this credit is because those powers-that-be haven't yet devised a way to attract tourists based on New Orleans’ rap music legacy. For now, modern day credit is given almost exclusively to artists who are as interested in attracting and extracting money from people who don’t live in the city, as they are being creative. Which is a totally unhealthy environment in which to make art.
Why I’m Here, pt. 1: A New Orleanian in Austin
Posted by admin on Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 2:11 AM
I told the owner of the New Orleans-themed restaurant I ate at today with my sister who just bought a house here in Austin, Texas, “New Orleans has made many of my dreams come true -- so long as those dream had nothing to do with money.” Not that I am money-obsessed. I drive a $500, 20-year-old Honda Civic. Cool. Fine. I have thusfar been willing to accept New Orleans’ abundant good vibes etc., in trade for stability. But I turn 35-years-old this Mardi Gras, and honestly would like to have a child soon, somehow. So I saved enough money to fix the upper control arms in my Honda (one of the wheels fell off on Royal last month; not the tire, but the entire wheel; thank god I wasn’t on the highway!) and I drove the dangerous distance to Austin to hunt jobs for the next two or so weeks.
I do not want to move away from New Orleans.
