When the Michigan State Spartans square off against the Ohio State Buckeyes this Saturday in the Big Ten Championship game, there will be a lot on the line. And I’m not just talking about winning the Big Ten — obviously that’s the first and foremost important part of Saturday’s game. You see, I’m talking about the peripheral aspects. The things that could be determining factors for both team’s post-season hopes. Though nothing in college football is ever a certainty (all in thanks to a little thing called the BCS), the outcome of Saturday’s game makes what will happen next for both teams damn near a certainty. As the situation stands, barring any more craziness — I don’t think this coming weekend can get any crazier than last weekend — Ohio State is in line to play in the National Championship game; they’re currently No. 2 in the BCS standings behind Florida State. Auburn and Alabama are a close third and fourth, respectively, but since they both have one loss apiece, undefeated Ohio State and Florida State are the favorites. Though the Buckeyes might not have the strength of schedule that an Alabama or… (Enter any SEC team) has, an undefeated […]

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This Saturday, December 7, Trinosophes will host the Nakatani Gong Orchestra. The band features Tatsuya Nakatani, Dave Shettler, Marko Novachcoff, Jay Rowe, Joel Peterson, Josh Ferrel, Clara Hardie, James Baljo, Clem Fortuna and others. The venue says, “Every time Tatsuya comes to town it’s an event, but this time the virtuoso percussionist has put together his most ambitious ensemble yet. The first time he assembled his Nakatani Gong Orchestra, we were instructed to provide non-musicians mostly- “teacher, baker, artist, scientist- all are good” was the request. This time out he has expanded the size of NGO and is using a full line-up of musicians with backgrounds in bowing things- strings or otherwise.” Doors are at 8pm, suggested cover is $10. The following night, Sunday, December 8, Dave Bixby fronts a band also featuring Matthew Smith, Dave Shettler, Greg Beyer, and Bill Corrigan. “Having grown-up outside Grand Rapids, Dave Bixby first became involved in music around the 60′s Michigan folk and garage-rock scenes. By the end of the decade, he had a religious conversion and began making acoustic concept records that were religious in theme, but incongruently dark and lonesome sounding. His late 60‘s/early 70‘s releases, Ode to Quetzcoatl and Harbinger’s […]

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The 11th annual Home for the Holidaze songwriter showcase and charity drive will be held at the Corktown Tavern on December 20. The show starts at 9, and cover is $6, or $5 if you bring a can of food. Performing that night will be Patrick Davy, Don “Doop” Duprie, Alison Lewis, Emily Rose, Matt Dmits, and Jackie Stahl. According to Static Records, “The donations and proceeds from the event go towards purchasing food and winter clothing items that is distributed to the homeless thru our selected charity, Outcry Youth & Street Ministry. Brother Joe Hicks has been helping the homeless and youth in Detroit for over a decade. His nights are spent on the streets of downtown helping those less fortunate with the donations he receives. Find out more here. “Pet food donations are also collected each year and donated to a non-profit animal rescue shelter. Hater Kitty Rescue Army (www.HaterKitty.com) is a local cat rescue group who takes care of strays, gets them health checked, and places them in forever homes.” Follow @City_Slang

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1) Apparently if you somehow strap a camera to the back of a bald eagle it makes for some amazing footage. (Co.Create) 2) What do you do if the wrong number sends you a photo? Here are some of the best responses. (Distractify) 3) Let’s do the Time Warp again: here’s 10 photo mockups of what Detroit could look like in the future. (Huffington Post) 4) I wish church was really like this: drum ‘n’ bass mashed up with Gospel sounds, and looks, like the most fun you can possibly have. (YouTube) 5) Not really their worst performance, but screwing with the audio on this Kings of Leon video makes for one of the funniest YouTube videos we’ve ever seen. (YouTube) 6) This Batman golf cart could be yours for $17,500. (Gizmodo) 7) According to Transparency International, the most corrupt countries of 2013 were Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia. The least corrupt were the Scandanavian countries and New Zealand. The U.S. ranked 19. (NPR) 8) New book compiles some of the best, most awkward holiday family photos. (NPR) 9) The irony is too much for me: Walmart selling ripped off prints of controversial street artist Banksy’s ‘Detsroy Capitalism.’ It would surprise […]

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This is interesting. Nuclear Blast usually puts out records by extreme metal bands like Sepultura and Kreator, but this self-titled debut from Austin’s Scorpion Child recalls the proto-metal of Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, as well as the contemporary psychedelic blues rock of the Black Crowes. The band formed in 2006, so the guys took their pretty time getting the album out there, but it has absolutely been worth the wait. The opening “Kings Highway” sees front man Aryn Jonathan Black take his larynx for a test drive, stretch it out, and never let up. The man has a Bon Scott-like holler that is both adrenalin-filled and emotive. The musicianship is sludgy yet intricate, always powerful and unrelenting. The songs are huge too – it’s not hard to imagine all of these songs getting on mainstream rock radio in the not-too-distant future and becoming classic rock standards soon afterwards.

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Dear readers, We know times are tough. A recent study showed 46.2 million U.S. citizens are poor. And that’s after our recession was declared over. That means, as Americans, we’re putting off that new car or home, delaying vacations, spending less time with our families and loved ones and spending more time toiling or looking for work. The picture in our fair city isn’t much rosier either, with a local unemployment rate hovering stubbornly around 11 percent. And even those of us fortunate enough to be prosperous almost certainly have some nagging need that remains unmet. It’s enough to make a person, even a proud person, ask for a little help, isn’t it? The good news is that it’s the time of year to ask a certain jolly fellow who lives at the North Pole for gifts, and you don’t have to be knee-high to ask. In fact, we have connections with the big guy: He’s a dedicated Metro Times reader. So here’s the deal: You send us that letter asking for that new truck, split-level pad, vacation in Tahiti or randy boy-toy, and we’ll print it. All we ask is your age, gender and city of residence (that way […]

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