The Future Now - Hazy Orange Sunday

Hazy Orange Sunday is the debut LP from the Gainesville, FL trio The Future Now. Simple, understated, fun homegrown rock and roll music. The term homegrown is brutally apt, as the album was recorded in the comforts of a Gainesville living room. I have to say outright that for a living room debut record this is fantastic.

The Future Now produces a sound seeking to hearken back to a simpler era of rock, devoid of the overly technical riffs and blistering screams that come a dime a dozen today. Paradoxically, the throwback sound is actually like carving a new path in contemporary music. The sonic simplicity is a breath of fresh air, which should prove open to a wide variety of listeners. While not tremendously impressive in terms of instrumentation, Hazy Orange Sunday is full of entertaining, well written songs with pacing that makes the album spin freely over and over.

The album doesn't sound retro in the popular classic-rock revival way, The Future Now instead veers toward the more recent alternative music wave, drawing heavy comparisons to the surge of 1990s grunge bands. Don't let that invoke a Seattle plaid-laden image though, in between the lines these guys have as much Danzig or James Iha as Mark Arm. Suprisingly or not, little to no Peter Hammill influence can be found.

What doesn't work well for The Future Now is unimpressive production quality. Yes, it's great for a small band's album recorded at home, but it's not as deep or sonically impressive as it could be. As well, there is a simplicity to the instrumentation of the guitars that will be easily passed off by many as a lack of talent. While it doesn't hurt the music, it forces the band to rely on strong song writing and presence to captivate audiences. While the album is entertaining, bands like The Future Now usually rely heavily on live shows to bring their music to life for fans. Unfortunately, they seem to have day jobs, so they can't constantly tour. Though, it looks like they are playing shows throughout the Southeast US right now, with a schedule up on their Myspace page.

The best moments of the record emerge when the band gets heavier and more aggressive, as in the songs Ghost Cousins and Terrorarium. Working well also is the slower, more heartfelt sound of the floor tom driven A Necessary Fiction. The entire album passes the mark, with no instant-skip songs. More than listenable, the album is fun and easy to get into.
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The skinny:

• Pros: simple, fun, fuzzy rock and roll, easily accessible
• Cons: still green, no constant touring schedule

Make an Assessment:

• I like it. Check out the Myspace, go see them live, have a brew and chat them up (really nice guys). Pick up the LP at the SoundStudy Recordings shop.

Overall Review Score:

• Grade: B
• Score: 84%
• If it were a movie: ★★★★
• My Feelings: "What a sight to see, what a sound to hear!"

Umoja Orchestra at Common Grounds 4/24

Umoja Orchestra blew the roof off of Common Grounds this past Saturday night. The roughly 15 piece Gainesville-native latin/afro-cuban ensemble mingled some afro-cuban, dub, and traditional straight latin together with a youthful energy and pleasingly clean-cut hipster aesthetic to create a musical environment rife with positivity.

This group quickly becoming, if not already, a local favorite gathered a diverse audience. Teens, twenty-somethings, thirty-somethings, seniors, white, black, hispanic, and every other music appreciating demographic seemed to come out in droves to watch Umoja Orchestra go wild. Warming up slowly throughout, talented, pleasing music and a well-paced setlist had the crowd hot like wildfire by night's end, with a majority of the stereotypical head-bobbing crowd shaking their hips and moving their feet for the last few numbers.

Their sound can be raucous and blasty. Traditional old-fogey music elitists may be offended by a noisy presentation at times. However, the sound songwriting and instrumental abilities of the group drastically outweigh their noisy tangents. The sound tech in the booth may also have played a big role in balance issues and technical fault. My personal favorite thing about the Umoja Orchestra is their powerful aura of positivity, good energy, and fun. The band obviously enjoying themselves on stage really helped fuel the audience.

Umoja is embarking on an east-coast tour, up to Brooklyn and back down the coast. Dates can be found on their Myspace page as well as an audio taste of their music. Note, though, that this is the type of band best seen live, their recordings don't do their live performance proper justice.
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The skinny:
Pros: good energy, talented instrumentalists, fun
Cons: balance issues, improper sound-boothing, technical problems

Make an Assessment:
Go see the Umoja Orchestra if you can. They're a relatively low-profile, independent band, but their live show is fun and entertaining. They bring a taste of world-beat music not highly visible in our current mainstream youth culture that acts like a breath of fresh air for jaded ears.

Overall Review Score:
Grade: A
Score: 97%
If it were a movie: ★★★★★
My Feelings: "I think I just baile'd with a seventy year-old man."

La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant

La Fiesta Mexican restaurant is a staple of Gainesville dining. My family and I have regularly visited La Fiesta since I was young enough to pull off L.A. Lights with dignity.

Back then there was only one location, tucked away off of Newberry Rd., behind the La Quinta Inn, in the Service Merchandise strip mall.

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A couple of years ago they opened another location next to I-75 on 39th Ave.

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Both locations serve great food of the stereotypical Mexican-American variety. Free chips and salsa start things off, always a bonus at Mexican restaurants. The chips are usually pretty fresh, and the salsa is fantastic. I have heard arguments made about whether the salsa is laced with some sort of addictive agent, it's good enough to be suspicious at very least.

Their menu is fairly large, filled with exactly what you would expect at a Gainesville Mexican restaurant. There are numerous varieties of burritos, tacos, enchiladas, chimichangas, fajitas, flautas, quesadillas, and a handful combinations. In addition, there are regularly interesting specials and there's a section of chef's specialties as well. Prices are cheap, ranging from about $7-$13 per plate (or combination). There are also a la carte options for next to nothing. I've had a dinner for three for less than $25. That's no small feat anymore.

Illustrating the American identity of the restaurant, dishes are mild on the spicy-level by defualt, you have to ask specifically if you want something to be hot. Also, there is an absence of many traditional Mexican foods like sopes, mole dishes, and lengua as a protein option. However, their menu has something that most Mexican-American restaurants are lacking, a dedicated vegetarian section.

My fallback item has recently become the vegetarian chimichanga. A veggie chimichanga with peppers, mushrooms, onions, etc. deep fried and smothered in queso sauce, served with rice and beans. I highly recommend trying something off of the veggie menu because most of those items come with veggies that aren't found in the standard meat dishes. If you're a meatetarian I suggest trying the shredded beef as your protein. It far surpasses the boring ground beef or chicken. The shredded chimichanga is a good way to go, but I'm admittedly partial to all things chimi.

The service has always been quick at La Fiesta. Most of the front-of-house staff is young, many UF or high school students. They're generally friendly and accommodating, but always running around at full speed so don't expect a dinner-show. Occasionally a large party will hold the kitchen up a bit, particularly on weeknights, but I've never had to wait more than 20 minutes to be served. Plus, they'll keep the free chips and salsa coming so you don't starve.

There isn't anything to say about the ambiance of either location. There are some stereotypical Mexican sombreros, portraits, a skirt or two, and a handful of red, white, and green flags around. It's obviously not a Disney effort, but pleasingly simple.
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The skinny:
* Pros: cheap, good selection, veggie section, fast, tasty!
* Cons: generally pretty heavy/greasy, not authentically Mexican

Make an Assessment:
With cheap tasty food abound there is little reason to squabble. I highly recommend either La Fiesta location for a good Mexican-Amercian meal. Many Gainesville residents insist that the original location is the only true La Fiesta, but I score both with passing grades. I would never make the claim that any establishment is the "best x, y, or z" in Gainesville, but I will say that La Fiesta is my standby above all others for Mexican food.

Overall Review Score:
* Grade: A
* Score: 95%
* If it were a movie: ★★★★★
* My Feelings: "La Fiesta es el primero restaurante por comiendo la cena y bebiendo las margaritas muy bonita y  búsquedando por putas gordas y hablando el espanol muy guapo! Wait, that doesn't sound quite right, right?"

Little Jake Mitchell and The Soul Searchers - Common Grounds 4/09

I just returned home from the Please Peace Me show at Common Grounds tonight, featuring live music, peace, love, and some student activist tabling. It was a good time all around, even despite the wallet drain of drinking beer at clubs.

The highlight of the evening was without a doubt Little Jake Mitchell and The Soul Searchers (Facebook, myspace). This R&B group brings the noise, and keeps it funky. I can't say that I've seen a solid Soul act in a long while, so I was happily surprised.

This Gainesville based 8-piece brought bluesy, funky, legit soul to Common Grounds, the likes of which I didn't know existed in our small town. They seemed like a fun-loving, high energy, motley bunch of guys brought together by the groove. I am really curious to see these guys perform again, as they may be my new favorite current Gainesville band.

You can check them out next weekend (Sunday, April 18th) at the 5th Ave. Arts Festival. The festival will be going Saturday and Sunday so come out and enjoy some real Gainesville culture, but be sure to catch Little Jake.

Before ending this brief review/plug I'll also give due recognition to Heavy Petty. I'm not a fan of cover bands in general, but every once in a while a group comes together right, and that's what Heavy Petty had going tonight. They definitely had fun, and the crowd was really digging them. I'll be busting out Damn the Torpedoes tomorrow along with my dusty soul/funk catalogue.
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The skinny:
* Pros: great music
* Cons: expensive drinks

 Make an Assessment:
*This review needs no assessment or scores, just go see Little Jake and the Soul Searchers and kick it with a tasty groove.

Overall Review Scores:
see above assessment
* My Feelings: "If you feel good say 'yeah!'--'yeeeeaaaaahhhhh!'"

Silver Dragon Chenese Restaurant

If you grew up in NW Gainesville there is a good chance that you ate at Golden Lights at some point in time. I've heard mixed opinions over the years, but it was my family's favorite casual Chinese restaurant until it closed. Many residents were surely as heartbroken as my family was when we learned of their closing a couple years ago. I've even heard tales of farewell feasts in those final days of cheap and delicious fried rice and chow fun. Well, worry not Gainesville, the Golden Lights proprietors are back with a new establishment right around the corner. It may not be pure gold, the owners have grown humble and downsized by a precious metal, but the Silver Dragon is here, so get it on.

I've visited the Silver Dragon twice now, and I've been pleased overall. For those who never experienced Golden Lights, the fare is straightforward Chinese-American. There are a few chef's specialties and loads of platters (realistically at least 50) with the standard Chinese-American food formula. You can imagine any type of meat, then add a handful of random veggies, then slather it in white/brown/peanut/almond/honey/orange/spicy/fish sauce and place it on top of rice or noodles. If it's done right, Voilà! Instant delicious.

My first visit to Silver Dragon disappointed me overall. I was expecting to walk into Golden Lights, transported magically from the building that is now The Flying Biscuit, on NW 16th and 43rd, into the building that used to be Moraghot Thai, on NW 39th about 1/2 mi. west of 43rd. There was no such magical transportation. The Silver Dragon instantly looks and feels more cheap, generic, and boring than Golden Lights did. They've managed to keep a nice aesthetic of stereotypical Chinese decoration (it's obviously a Chinese restaurant and not a gastropub), but the overall ambiance is somewhat lacking. I will give them aesthetic bonus points for having family children playing, doing homework, and being very cute in a corner booth. The restaurant is clearly a family affair, and that makes any small business just a tiny bit better in my personal opinion.

Who cares about what the new location looks like though? What's the food like? The food is certainly the most important part, and I give my stamp of approval here. The prices are good. With main dishes ranging from $6-$20 there is a good option for any budget. Both times I've gone I've ended up taking at least half of my dinner home, which means if I get a $8 dish and it feeds me twice I'm really paying $4 per meal. That's the kind of math I'm a huge fan of. Also, there is a stereotype about Chinese-American cuisine, let's say, "unbinding" one's lower GI tract. I've never had an unpleasant visceral experience after eating at Golden Lights or Silver Dragon. Whatever ingredients they use are relatively stomach-friendly. I can't say that all of the food tastes perfect, which I'll weigh more heavily on in a moment, but most of what I've tried so far is above average. I'll break my experience down by course:

Drinks:
The only thing I've tried is their (hot) tea because it's a must-have. The same ridiculously hot metal teapot that you've seen a thousand other times at a thousand other Chinese restaurants is presented steeping a very simple and soothing Oolong. The tea service is also helped by cute tiny teacups that I always fill endlessly from that magic metal pot, leaving only a pile of empty sugar packets behind.

Appetizers/Soups:
Silver Dragon does good crispy noodles. Try them with either mustard or duck sauce, both are good. Their egg rolls are almost a perfect reproduction from Golden Lights, crispy and flavorful. They are good but not mind-blowing. The spring rolls are totally average, tasty but skippable. There is some type of pork dumpling that is very good. I'm inclined to say they are fried but I can't remember completely, I only remember liking them a lot. The egg drop soup is homemade and better than a mix, but really only filler, again nothing special. It's almost always the case, but the crab rangoon is delicious and highly recommended to anyone that likes cream cheese.

Entrees:
The selection in the dinner menu is impressive for such a small operation. They've added some pan-asian noodle bowl options (phở and the like) to their already extensive menu, and have kept some duck dishes available as well. My advice is to steer clear of the Vegetarian options if possible. The Buddha's Delight is a staple of Chinese-American cuisine and Silver Dragon's rendition left something to be desired. The meat dishes I've tried are all good. A few notes would be that the Almond Shrimp Ding (and most likely all Almond Ding dishes) is bland but the shrimp in it are abundant and awesome. The Beef with Chinese Black Mushrooms is great all around (the chef's special sauce is a typical savory brown sauce, but they do it well). A personal favorite of mine has always been Orange Chicken, and Silver Dragon pulls it off well.

Accompaniments:
Golden Lights always made a terrific fried rice. I don't know what has changed, but Silver Dragon's fried rice doesn't compare. Either the ingredients or the recipes have changed, and not for the better. Going along with the more pan-Asian side of the menu are a few pad thai options which both looked and smelled tasty, but I haven't tried any yet.
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The skinny:
* Pros: good value, friendly service, tasty, stomach friendly food
* Cons: nothing extremely impressive, hit-or-miss standard dishes, poor vegetarian showing

Make an Assessment:
Overall I don't want to be too critical of Silver Dragon because despite the few flubs I've experienced there my opinion of them is generally favorable. They are definitely my family's standard for casual Chinese in NW Gainesville. Some things should be done better, but they are without a doubt worth trying for dine-in or takeout. Don't be afraid to try something new or ask for recommendations, stay away from very veggie-heavy options, and drink the tea.

Overall Review Scores:
* Grade: B
* Score: 85%
* If it were a movie: ★★★½
* My Feelings: "Good food for a fair price and I don't even have to figure out how to pronounce Qing wen, xi shou jian zai na li? Awesome."

Haven Hospice

*I know I'm way too wordy. I'll mellow that out in time. If you don't want to read everything but want the gist of it, scroll straight down to the bottom section.

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For my first review, I'd like to start with a bang. However, there aren't many bangs in my life right now so I'm going slightly offbeat. This review is about Haven Hospice.

For those unfamiliar with end-of-life care, Hospice is a place that you go when you have a "life-limiting" illness, have a family member with a "life-limiting" illness, or want to be surrounded by old people who are ready to die. Hospice generally focuses on palliative care, and aims to keep people happy and ease the preparation for death for all survivors of the patients. Haven Hospice is a particular care center here in Gainesville. They have been charged with the task of helping our family, specifically my grandma.

I'll give Haven an "A" for the ease of getting into the program, and the value for the money. Bottom line, we all know heathcare is expensive. Between Medicare and whatever magic they use on insurance companies/medical equipment providers we haven't had to shell out one red cent yet (I think). Within one week of dealing with Haven we received an endless supply of medical equipment to help with my grandma's immobility. We've had appointments with nurses, a social worker, and a case manager all at home. Today she was admitted to the main care facility and she's had a doctor's attention as well.

The facility that she's in now is swanky. She's got a private room bigger than some of my friends' apartments. The room has two great views, a lot of comfortable furniture, and a huge bathroom with a shower bench that I'm jealous of. The whole place would get two thumbs up if not for a intermittent high-pitch noise from the central air unit that's incredibly annoying, and the fact that of about 46,000 pieces of art in the building approximately none of them are hung level.

So far they've done a great job of helping, and trying to keep my grandma comfortable. That being said, I'd like to complain. My beef so far with Haven has been a series of miscommunications that have led to annoyance. At least once we received the wrong equipment because Haven failed to communicate properly with their equipment suppliers. A couple of times we've been given conflicting information from different people at Haven. Just today at the Haven facility there was a miscommunication between staff members that led to issues with medication management, which is pretty vital for a hypertensive diabetic vitamin-deficient tinnitus sufferer. Again, nothing dangerous has happened, just a couple headaches for us.

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The skinny:

• Pros: Super friendly and attentive staff, work quickly, they've seen it all, cheap or free through medicare, swanky quarters, lots of home care
• Cons: Minor communication issues, they probably can't keep my grandma alive for the next 80 years

Make an Assessment:

• I would highly reccommend working with Haven Hospice for all of your end-of-life healthcare needs.  They'll treat you with respect and kindness whether you're a spry, dapper, 25 year-old boy or that boy's terminally ill grandma.

Overall Review Score (I haven't figured out how I want to do this yet):

• Grade: A
• Score: 93%
• If it were a movie: ★★★★½
• My Feelings: ☺

You get the idea.