jt juice 4/704

By Journal Times staff

Tuesday, April 6, 2004 11:00 PM CDT

Encouraging ...

Here are the first two sentences of a Reuters' review of Tarantino's sequel: "`Kill Bill-Vol. 2' puts to shame doubts entertained about aesthetic strategies or structural imbalance provoked by `Kill Bill-Vol. 1.'

"Now that the entirety of Quentin Tarantino's epic revenge melodrama is on view, `Kill Bill' emerges as a brilliant, invigorating work, one to muse over for years to come."

- Dustin, 4/6/04, 10:15 a.m.

Cobain Nirvana fans held a vigil for Kurt Cobain on Monday, the 10-year anniversary of the singer's suicide. Don't get me wrong, I loved everything Nirvana stood for at the height of their popularity. They were bona fide anti-heroes that "old" people just couldn't get. Plus, they played up that whole self-involved teen angst thing that comes with high school.

But in retrospect, Nirvana wasn't about Cobain. He was an ego-maniac drug addict who choreographed his life to get on the radio and MTV - not some principled, underground artist. At least Dave Grohl realized what he was, a rock star, and lived as such. Cobain believed he was some sort of savior and then crumbled under this self-imposed weight. It's too bad, because he was a wildly talented performer who may have been able to save popular music from the malaise it fell into with the vacuum of his death.

- Dustin, 4/6/04, 10:44 p.m.

IKEA Its Kind & Easy Atmosphere is what makes IKEA the coolest place to shop. Their low prices are the biggest draw to this huge bright blue building. However, the fact that the great quality and cool looks are included in the price is a HUGE bonus! If you haven't heard about the no-so-newest phenomenon, check out www.ikea-usa.com for a sneak preview.

The Web site does not do the store justice. So, one weekend take a day and drive down to Schaumburg, Ill., where you can experience IKEA for yourself. Their four floors of merchandise is pretty contemporary, a restaurant on the top floor serves made-to-order meals for dirt cheap (a spinach salad for $3). Perhaps you'll spend an hour or two, OR THREE, in the wall art area, mixing and matching hundreds of combinations of frames, prints and other odd ideas. Living room furniture, mattresses, lightning, silverware, towel racks, closet organizers, fabrics, plants, you name it, they have it.

IKEA, it's the big blue building on 1800 E. McConnor Parkway in Schaumburg. Call (847) 969-9700 for directions. They're open every day but Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and Easter Sunday. Take a day and go. Trust me, you'll need a whole day.

- Domenica, 4/7/04, 4:18 p.m.

JT Juice is a weblog-style compilation of Journal Times staff members' opinions on popular culture. It appears on the Entertainment page.

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