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(05/24/05 4:00am)
BRIDGEWATER-The baseball team's weekend at the ECAC tournament pretty much summed up their inconsistency this season. The No. 8-seeded Judges first exploded offensively and routed top-seeded Bridgewater State College 15-7 Friday. They then got locked into a late-inning defensive battle ending in a 5-4, 10-inning semifinal loss Saturday to the tournament's eventual champion, Endicott College. The Gulls topped Babson College 4-3 to take the ECAC New England title in a game immediately after both teams came off extra-inning semifinal wins. After baseball coach Pete Varney added two games against Suffolk University to the Judges' schedule in an effort to strengthen their NCAA tournament bid chances, the Judges lost both, and made the ECAC New England tournament as the last seed. Brandeis finished the season with a 20-17 record."If I knew the answer to" why the team has been inconsistent this season, "I'd be worth a million bucks," Coach Pete Varney said.Team captain B.J. Belair '05 agreed that it's hard to pinpoint the source of the team's troubles. "Sometimes that's just baseball," he said.Bryan Lambert '05 pitched almost four innings of relief and gave up three runs against the Gulls on Saturday, though none were earned. The fifth-year senior and perennial Brandeis athlete was forced to end his career on a sour note, giving up the game-winning run on a single by Endicott junior pitcher Matt Bishop in the bottom of the tenth inning. The Judges did not score in the final three innings and Bishop dominated, giving up seven hits in the complete game in addition to driving in the game-winning run."We faced a great pitcher today," center fielder Chris Navis '05 said. "We got a good game from [rookie pitcher] Tyler [Robinson] and [Lambert] came in and they just got some hits that fell in."The left-handed Robinson pitched a solid game for Brandeis Saturday against Endicott, allowing only two earned runs with seven strikeouts in five 5 2/3 innings.He repeatedly brought himself out of jams with inning-ending strikeouts and solid infield defense in the sixth inning before loading the bases after a wild pitch and a walk, giving way for Lambert. The first Endicott batter he faced drove in a run with a line-drive single. The next grounded out to second to end the inning. Lambert was in control for most of his relief work and struck out four batters, but late-game errors hurt Brandeis.The Judges' game against Endicott starkly contrasted the one Brandeis played against Bridgewater the day before. The Judges exploded for 15 runs, shelling Bridgewater junior Aidan Powers for 10 hits and four home runs.Brandeis' bats started slowly, but the team sent Powers packing with a six-hit, five-run fourth inning that brought the score to 6-2. The Bears battled back with their own five-run inning in the seventh when they finally broke through steady ace Tim Dunphy '06. Lambert came on and immediately got out of the inning by forcing Bridgewater rookie Steve Smith into a double play. "[Dunphy] throws away from batters and a little slower, and [Lambert] comes in throwing fastballs that [players] just can't keep up with," center field Chris Navis '05 said.Lambert shut out the Bears in just under three innings on the mound, but he had the run support that was noticeably absent during the semifinal game. Every starter had at least one hit, while Jeff Bourdon '07 and Belair and Lambert each had three RBIs."We might have played our best game the entire year," Navis said.The Judges are losing nine players to graduation-most notably Lambert, Belair and Navis-who have been a significant part of the Judges' defensive efforts this season, while also putting up solid numbers at the plate. But the team has an abundance of young pitchers and offensive juggernauts like Bourdon and Zach Golden '06, as well as ace Dunphy who will return next year."I think they'll do great," Belair said. "They have a great core of talented kids. They should have high hopes for next year.
(03/22/05 5:00am)
Two Brandeis swimmers were suspended at the NCAA championships last weekend for "violating team rules," according to a University press release. Coach James Zotz pulled Chris Pai '07 and Leon Rosefigura '07 from the tournament, leaving veteran Matt Christian '05 as the sole Brandeis swimmer at the event at Hope College in Holland, Mich.Though the specifics of Rosefigura and Pai's suspension have not been made public, Christian said that he was in his hotel room on Thursday night when he smelled marijuana coming through the bathroom vent that connected to Pai and Rosefigura's room. Christian alerted Zotz, who immediately suspended the two from the meet. The two had already swam in the opening day of competition, but were kept out of the meet on Friday before being sent home early on Saturday."They've made some real bad decisions during this past year," Zotz said. "I think they're finally cognizant of the decisions they've made and how they've affected the team.""It's disappointing," Pai said. "The whole reason I was there was to compete, and not being able to compete was bad for the school and bad for me."Pai said he was also disappointed that Christian intervened in the situation."I would expect more from a teammate, but I do understand where he's coming from," Pai said. "I feel that teammates shouldn't turn in other teammates, but I don't blame him."Rosefigura, as well as the team's captains, declined to comment on the incident.University disciplinary action is still pending, but the incident put Rosefigura and Pai's future with the team in question while also bringing to light significant conflicts that have plagued the team this season.It is very unlikely that the two will swim with the Judges next season, and Pai says his return at any time is doubtful."I don't want to swim anymore, not at Brandeis at least," Pai said. "I think it'd just be best for the team. I know we haven't really gotten along and I just think that would be the best thing. I don't think the team always appreciated me the way they should." Christian thinks their departure would ultimately benefit the team. "The two of them being there was an honor, and they threw that honor down the drain," Christian said. "It just proves that they just didn't care. They didn't want to be there."Pai has been one the Judges' elite swimmers since coming to Brandeis, but both his and Rosefigura's short time on the team has been marred by personal conflicts and disciplinary problems. Pai and Rosefigura have been involved in multiple physical confrontations with other students, including several baseball players, and have faced disciplinary action for drug and alcohol violations on several occasions, according to Christian and other swimmers. But equally concerning for some team members is a perceived lack of respect for the rest of the team by Pai and Rosefigura. Christian says that their disciplinary problems extended to the rest of the team, and blames them for fostering a destructive atmosphere."From the beginning, their attitudes were impossible to deal with," Christian said. "They had no respect for authority. Unfortunately, the two of them were like an infectious disease. Once they infected other people and got people to come to their side and see their distorted image of everything, they started turning people against the team."Christian pointed to this season as an example, citing times on road trips when the two convinced other swimmers to go out drinking in violation of an agreement the entire team made pledging not to drink from the start of the season until the UAA championships.Zotz, meanwhile, has maintained support for his players, while also expressing a desire to move forward in a constructive manner."I've not given up on them as individuals," Zotz said. "I remain confident that they'll turn things around for themselves."Zotz has been unflappable in his support for Pai and Rosefigura and his desire to protect their privacy, but he acknowledges the rift in the team."It's been a tough year for the men's team and there are issues within the team that are still not resolved," Zotz said. "But we're moving forward in a positive direction.
(03/22/05 5:00am)
Queens of the Stone AgeLullabies to Paralyze on Interscope RecordsB-After the breakthrough success of 2002's Songs for the Deaf and last year's departure of founding bassist Nick Oliveri, singer and guitarist Josh Homme scrapped together an eclectic group of musicians for Queens of the Stone Age's newest album.Lullabies to Paralyze attempts to combine the musical ideas of the group's first three albums. The standout track is "Tangled up in Plaid," in which an exquisite, hard-rocking riff offers a perfect backdrop for Homme's haunting lyrics. It captures the best aspect of the band's stoner-rock aesthetic: a pounding set of complex instrumentals as vast as the California deserts where the band first developed their signature sound.The rest of the album is fairly hit-or-miss. "Little Sister," the first single, offers a fast-paced guitar-and-drum arrangement built around some speedy cowbell reverberations. "Broken Box" is a sort of sequel of sorts to the band's 2003 hit, "Go with the Flow."While Lullabies to Paralyze propels Queens of the Stone Age into a new realm of stoner rock, the album lacks one key factor in their once-flawless formula: Oliveri. The lazy and elementary bass work by replacement Alain Jones is simply inferior to Oliveri's. -Leor Galilmatt pond PAWinter Songs EPon Altitude RecordsBMatthew Pond is not your typical indie rocker. Then again, neither is his group matt pond PA. On their new EP, Winter Songs, the band includes a cellist, a violinist and a couple of bassists. With its soothing sound, the smooth and melodic EP not only expands on last year's Emblems album, but also serves as a good introduction to the band, which plays with Lincoln Conspiracy at Cholmondeley's this Thursday.Channeling an appealing pop-folk sound, Winter Songs finds Pond and company cooking up seven tracks-several excellent originals and some covers-on the subject of, well, winter. In "Snow Day," the first track, cellist Eve Miller and drummer Dan Crowell's soulful combination of rhythmic and saccharine tones flirts perfectly with Pond's moving, melancholy vocals. Yet the group's other originals-all short instrumental tracks-pale in comparison.The covers are another story. Richard and Linda Thompson's "I Want To See the Bright Lights Tonight" receives the best treatment; Miller fills the song with a mesmerizing panache. With its sweet melodies and vocal harmonies, an interesting version of "In an Aeroplane over the Sea"-originally by '90s indie rock heroes Neutral Milk Hotel-plays well, too.Even with snow melting and winter fading (hopefully) into memory, matt pond PA's short and sweet Winter Songs should give fans a fair indication of what to expect this week when the band comes to campus.-Leor Galil
(03/08/05 5:00am)
The men's and women's swimming teams placed second at the New England Division-II-III Championships at Bentley College on Feb. 18-20. Both the men and the women finished behind Division-II Bentley College though the men were just two points short of first place.Three men's swimmers finished the season in qualifying position for the NCAA championships. Swimmers who rank in the top 18 of every event each year qualify and also earn the right to swim in two other events at nationals. Matt Christian '05 qualified for nationals in the 400-yard individual medley, Chris Pai '07 qualified in the 100-yard freestyle and Leonard Rosefigura '07 qualified in the 200-yard freestyle.Christian won three individual events and four relays, earning Swimmer-of-the-Meet honors at Bentley. "I am extremely proud of the way both teams performed at the New England championships," Coach James Zotz said. "We had a great effort from the team and some outstanding individual performances."The women's team was anchored by Charlotte Rea's '08 strong performance in the diving competition. Rea won the one-meter event with a score of 337.25 and came in second in the three-meter competition with a score of 336.10. Rea tallied points for the Judges in the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 50-yard freestyle individual, where she came in second and eighth place respectively."[Rea] had a great meet and the whole team is very proud of her," Sharon Makowsky '06 said.Makowsky won the 400-yard individual medley in 4:47.97 and the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:12.54. She also placed third in the 100-yard butterfly. The men's team had several individual stars at the New England Championships, led by Christian. Christian won a total of seven events and set five Bentley and three Brandeis records in the process. This will be Christian's first year competing in the NCAA championships."It's very exciting," Christian said. "It's always been a goal of mine. It's such an honor to compete at the national level."The Judges had five other individual winners at Bentley. Pai, who was Swimmer-of-the-Meet at the New England Championships last year, won three events for the Judges. Pai captured victories in the 50-yard freestyle in 21.68 seconds, the 50-yard butterfly in 23.70 seconds and the 100-yard individual medley with a time of 54.25. Rosefigura won the 100- yard freestyle in 48.26 seconds.The NCAA Championships will be held on March 17 at Hope College in Michigan.
(02/15/05 5:00am)
My name is Matt B., and I am a recovering Facebook addict. It is strange to think that only five months ago this fad hit our campus. It is embarrassing to think about all the hours I and countless others wasted using the Web site. What's worst of all is that it has taken me until now to recognize my addiction and take steps to recover.It all started one sunny day in September. The Justice had just published an article about the site, but I actually heard about it through the grapevine. Having been here for only a few weeks, I still felt sort of out of place, and had not yet experienced the awkward falling apart with high school friends. "You mean there's a place on the Internet I can keep in contact with my friends from home? Sweet!" When I got back to my room I instantly logged on. "Oh boy," I thought, "This is going to be so cool!" I created a profile, and five minutes later made the first of many revisions. I spent at least 45 minutes that day looking for all my friends at other colleges. Because there were maybe 30 schools on the network, I didn't find many of the people I was looking for.Later on, I logged back in. It was official: I was hooked. I changed my profile for the third time in one hour. Bummed that I couldn't find many of my friends, I decided to broaden my search to acquaintances. My list of "Facebook friends"-the ones you don't talk to and only have on your list because you haven't the heart to reject them-increased.Over the next week, the number of my friends on Facebook increased from a disappointing 10 to a relatively satisfactory 37. I spent countless minutes every day poring over people's profiles, fine-tuning mine and trying to discover any friends of friends who attended Brandeis, in hopes of meeting more people here. Always the competitive guy, I looked to see how many friends my fellow first-years had, jealous when they had more, and smug when they had less. I had even sunk to the point of reading the profiles of my friends' friends.By mid-October, my addiction had spiraled out of control. I noticed that some people here had created make-believe profiles. I wanted in. "Hmm, I'm at Brandeis," I said to myself, "What could I do that's funny?" I submitted a fake Brandeis e-mail account to the registration page and the profile for The Lord God was born. Basking in my own cleverness, I set to work entering humorous personal information:AOL Instant Messenger screen name: olmanindaskyLocation: heavenBirthday: the beginningJob: smiting the wicked and creating the worldHobby: making bad things happen to good peopleArmed with two Facebook profiles, I spent valuable time every day looking for people to "befriend," sometimes approaching them with both my real and false profiles. Once the Facebook groups were formed, I spent even more time joining some and creating others. The groups devoted to Iron Chef, In-N-Out and Napoleon Dynamite are my creations.But one day in December, I had an epiphany. The Facebook really accomplished nothing. Poking people, changing their walls, looking at their personal information and watching their photos change every few weeks all amounted to nothing. I wasn't talking to these people. All the Facebook was doing was serving as a constant reminder that I had fallen out with many of my friends from home, and that there were even more people who I really didn't care about but didn't dislike either. I finally realized what I had always known, but had chosen to repress: The Facebook is quite lame.Since my revelation, I have weaned myself off the Facebook. Just a few weeks ago, I dismantled my false profile. I apologize deeply to everyone who thought The Lord God was their friend. I know the apology cannot compensate for the pain the truth may have caused, but I hope you find consolation in the fact that I think it was pathetic to create a fake Facebook profile.Why, then, if for all intents and purposes I haven't looked at the Facebook in weeks do I call myself a recovering addict? Simple: Addiction is a lifelong disease. I just hope my story was able to save some of you. Remember, friends don't let friends use the Facebook.
(02/15/05 5:00am)
The men's and women's swimming and diving teams competed at the UAA Championships in Chicago last weekend, and despite their low finishes, both teams enjoyed a host of excellent individual performances. The men finished fifth out of eight teams with 415 points and the women finished seventh out of eight teams for the second consecutive year with 219.5 points.The four-day competition, which began last Wednesday and ended on Saturday, was the only competition in which the Judges competed against the rest of the conference."In the UAA we're in the big pond with the big fish," Coach Jim Zotz said. "This meet was the most competitive and the biggest competition. We didn't finish as high as we wanted to but I thought that, across the board, our performances were outstanding."On the men's side, Chris Pai '07 claimed his second and third UAA titles, winning the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 46.27 seconds and taking the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 21.12 seconds. Pai's time for the 50-yard freestyle re-set his own school record and set a new University of Chicago facility record.Matt Christian '05 also broke his own school record in the 100-yard breaststroke, clocking in at 58.37 seconds. Christian also qualified for the NCAA championships in the 100-yard breaststroke, the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard backstroke."It's a big relief and a big accomplishment to do that, and I feel very proud to represent Brandeis in that way," Christian said. "I hope that it pushes other people to aspire for those times they needed to make it to nationals, to work harder and hopefully they're not just going to do it for themselves, but they'll do it for Brandeis too."The women were not as successful in qualifying for the championship meet. Sharon Makowsky '06 had the best performance of the meet for the Judges. Makowsky qualified for the finals in the 200-yard butterfly, made the consolation finals in the 400-yard individual medley and also made the finals for the 500-yard freestyle, setting school records in the latter two events.Charlotte Rea '08 also had a solid performance for the Judges in the diving competition. Rea finished fifth in the one-meter diving competition on the first day with a score of 338.30. "Regardless of [the women's team] finishing seventh out of eight teams, as a team the success is in having individuals swimming their best performances," Zotz said. "That's really our goal and we got that from a lot of people."The team will now head to nearby Bentley College for the New England Division II and III Championships on Friday. The men are defending their victory in that competition, while the women are aiming to improve on their third-place finish last year. "As a team this is a meet that we all really work toward all season," Makowsky said. "In general, I think everyone did really well, put in a lot of effort. The men's and women's teams had a lot of personal bests and it was just a great meet where we could all rally behind each other and support each other.
(11/09/04 5:00am)
The Brandeis men's soccer team closed out their regular season in style on Saturday with a 2-1 win over New York University.Coming off of a tough 2-0 loss to Carnegie Mellon, the Judges came out strong, scoring the only goal of the first half. Charles Goodhue '06 scored on a breakaway in the 36th minute off of a pass from David Spear '07. In the 76th minute, the Judges struck again when Shelton Stewart '06 converted a free kick. Stewart's goal gave him a team-leading nine for the season. With five minutes remaining in regulation, NYU's Anthony Trillo scored, ruining Jake Knoll's '08 shutout and bringing the score to 2-1, where it would stay for the remainder of the game. Brandeis was outshot by NYU 14-9 and Knoll finished the game with eight saves. The win brought the Judges' record to 9-10, 3-4 in the UAA conference.Coach Mike Coven was impressed with his team's play on Saturday, happy to see the team generate some offense."We controlled the ball and we dominated play," Coven said, "The difference is this time we scored a few goals. I'm happy with the way we played." Those "few goals" had been the problem for the team this season; every loss the team accumulated had been by a difference of only one or two goals. Coven said that although the 9-10 record is disappointing, he was happy with the season, especially considering that they faced one of the most difficult schedules in the country.Scott Zacharoff '07 agreed that the record is disappointing."We lost a handful of games by mistakes that we should not have committed in the first place," Zacharoff said. It was very important for the team that they ended the season the right way. "Thinking that we might not make the playoffs, we wanted to get a win for ourselves," Zacharoff said, "We wanted to get a win going into next season."The prospects are bright for next season. The team will lose several seniors, but has a strong young core returning. The Judges will miss seniors Matt Kaplan, Mike Pio, Tim Shannon, Brian Bisceglia-Kane, Joe Jorge and Jim Puritz, but have much to be excited about. Knoll is returning, hopefully for an injury free season. The Judges' scoring duo of Stewart and Yuval Ezer '07 will continue to mesh."We will have a large number of players who have experienced the college level of play," Zacharoff said."We have the potential to be one of the best teams in the country," Coven said.
(11/02/04 5:00am)
The cross country teams fought through a depleted roster and nagging injuries to capture fifth and sixth place for the men's and women's sides respectively at this Saturday's UAA championships in Rochester, N.Y. Dan Crespin '05 and Matt Griego '05 helped their team bring home the highest ranking in four years, with Crespin taking second place by running an impressive 26:18.6 over eight kilometers and Griego nabbing ninth with a time of 26:41.3. Their commanding performances were helped out by formidable efforts from Tim Condon '08, who finished fifth among first-year runners.The women's side also ran an excellent race, being narrowly edged out for fifth by the University of Rochester. Megan Bisceglia '07 and Sarah Romain '06 led the team, garnering 22nd and 23rd places respectively with Romain coming in six seconds behind Bisceglia's time of 26:18.6. "I'm proud of all of them," Evans said. "They haven't done a lot of training recently, but they really fought the whole way." This is only the second time the squads have posted a team score this season, but there has already been improvement. Evans is pleased but is looking for more progress, citing health problems and a small roster for not being able to achieve quite what he had hoped for so far this season. "On the men's side we just don't have enough people so we came down to a real small squad," Evans said. Evans also pointed to the loss of all-American Ryan Parker '06 as a set-back. "He would have given us a little depth and so that left us kind of short," Evans said.Evan hopes future recruiting efforts will help bolster his strong core of runners, and allow for inevitable injuries and illness like those sustained by Peter Vigneron '07, Aaron Skolnik '05 and other teammates. Vigneron's absence weakened the men's side, depriving them of a runner Evans anticipated being in the top three at UAAs. "The next two years are going to be vital [in] that we get more recruits and really build the program up," Evans said.The women's side boasts a very young team, mostly first-years and sophomores, which gives Evans great confidence for the future"When they get a little bit older and a little stronger and get more people on the team we'll start moving up the ladder in the UAA," Evans said.For now, Evans is hoping for the team to perform better that last year in the regionals on Nov. 13."Hopefully we'll have a couple people qualify for nationals, especially on the men's side," Evans said.
(10/26/04 4:00am)
They had endured their toughest stretch of the season, but their spirit was not trampled. The Judges came out strong against visiting Springfield College on Wednesday and came away with a 2-0 win over the Pride. Joe Jorge '05 and Yuval Ezer '06 both scored goals for Brandeis. Matt Kaplan '05 had two saves for his first shutout of the year. The Judges snapped a four-game losing streak and rose to 7-9 on the season.After four losses in a row, the team was ready for offensive action against the Pride at Gordon Field. The Pride faced an onslaught of Brandeis attacks, as the Judges registered a season high 22 shots in the game. Ezer scored a beautiful game-clinching goal in the 71st minute. ..It was a three-person effort as midfielder Jim Puritz '05 sent the ball flying itnto the corner where Adam Gutman '08 crossed it in front of the net. Ezer scored the goal by taking Gutman's pass and heading it past the goalie, raising the score to 2-0. Ezer has seven goals and nine assists on the season, good for a team-leading 23 points.Coach Mike Coven recently moved star forward Shelton Stewart '06 to the defensive back sweeper position, hoping to solidify the defense. A member of the Jamaican national team and seventh on Brandeis' all time scoring list, Stewart was originally a defensive back with his national team, but has become a prolific scorer at Brandeis. By moving Stewart to defensive back, Coven was able to move Joe Jorge '05 to midfielder, giving the Judges more height in the middle of the field. "[Stewart's] been magnificent at sweeper," Coven said. "With [Stewart] at sweeper, we can attack from the back of the field, and with [Jorge] at midfield we win more balls in the middle of the field."The move paid off, as earlier in the game Jorge lined up and shot, launching the ball past the goalie and directly into the right corner of the net to put the Judges up 1-0. It was the first goal of the season for Jorge, who spends most of his time leading the defense. Charles Goodhue '06 and Ezer took assists on the play. The Judges have had time off since dispatching the Pride and will need it in their upcoming UAA competition. The Judges host Emory University on Friday at 1:30 p.m. before hosting Carnegie Mellon University on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. Both teams are nationally ranked. The Judges need to win all three of their remaining conference games in order to finish above .500 in the UAA. The Judges had hopes of making the NCAA tournament earlier in the season, but the four game losing streak buried those hopes."We dug ourselves into a pretty big hole by losing to some teams early on in the season that we shouldn't have lost to," Coven said.While an NCAA tournament berth is no longer likely, a winning UAA record could earn the Judges an at large bid to the ECAC tournament. "This team deserves to play in a tournament," Coven said. "I've never given up on this team, they've never given up on themselves. Everybody on the team knows how good we are.
(10/19/04 4:00am)
The Brandeis Cross Country teams overcame a muddy course to grab 5th place for the men and 10th for the women in Saturday's Twin Brook Invitational in Cumberland, Maine. Dan Crespin '05 and Matt Griego '05 led the team with impressive performances which won them 3rd and 6th places, respectively. "It showed that Dan and Matt can run with all the top people in the region," coach John Evans said. "A lot of good people were running in the race and they showed that they can compete with anyone." Evans expects Crespin and Griego to place in the top ten at the Regional Championships coming up in four weeks. Sarah Romain '06 and Talia Langman '08 also brought in good times helping the women's side trounce Babson and Georgia College. Unlike the 5K courses in the past, Cumberland is a 6K run for the women. Romain felt the additional kilometer had little effect "We were all ready for the extra distance and I think it went pretty well." Romain said.This meet, which marked the first event in which Brandeis qualified for team scores, provided a very good litmus test for the team to asses its standing. Evans was pleased with the results saying the team is right where he expected them to be.The good showing is particularly poignant because the Cumberland course is where Regionals, which has been Evans' focus from the start, will be held in four weeks. "Bringing most of the team together for this meet was important," Romain explained, "because it will give us a little bit more experience with the course and hopefully let us perform very well there, where it counts."Evans is optimistic about the team's upcoming race at Regionals. "It's a tough course," Evans said. "But I think it kind of suits what we want, it suits our team. When we put the full team up we'll do very well."Though four of the team's focal runners, Aaron Skolnik '05, Peter Vigneron '07, Megan Bisceglia '07 and Camille Stevens -Rumann '07, did not compete this weekend, both sides proved they have a strong core and the potential to be a formidable match in the UAAs and the Regionals. Evans, who has been confident in his team from the start, received an extra boost from Griego's stellar performance. Griego, who won an UAA individual medal at the Cross Country Championships his freshman year, has suffered through the last two years. "This is the first time since I've been here [that he has been able to get] back to that level," Evans said. "He ran a really good race and hopefully he'll continue that for the rest of the year."Both the men's and women's sides have been plagued by injury and illness all season. However, the Judges have been fighting through the injuries and are hoping to be in top form for the last two competitions of the year. Having the team together for the first time at a meet was truly helpful to the team's morale."Getting back and being with the team and getting to have our pre-race chat is what makes it all worth it to stick through the injuries," Romain said.Evans is secure in his expectations for UAA Championships, which will be held on Oct. 30 in Rochester, New York. "If we can get everybody there healthy, I think we will be right up with the front," Evans said.
(10/19/04 4:00am)
Coaches usually like having a more difficult schedule. It comes with accolades and recognition regardless of wins and losses. Coach Mike Coven says he's happy his team plays one of the hardest schedules in the country, but it's hard to understand his logic at the moment.The Judges endured their hardest week of the season, losing three straight games on the road, all to nationally-ranked opponents. The Judges lost to host Washington University of St. Louis (no. 26) on Sunday after dropping games to the University of Chicago (no. 12) on Friday, and Wheaton College (no. 7) Wednesday. The Judges have lost four games in a row, dropping to 6-9 for the season, 1-3 in the UAA. Needing to win all four games left in the season to finish above .500, the Judges hopes for the NCAA tournament are as good as lost. The Judges will likely need to win out to have a chance at an ECAC tournatment bid.It was a forgettable close to a disastrous week for the Judges on Sunday as they finished out their road trip with a 1-0 loss to Washington University. It was the fifth shutout loss suffered by the Judges this season as the Judges managed only three shots the entire game. The Bears scored the only goalof the game five minutes in when Rob Weeks scored on a header off a cross pass from John Horky. Judges goalkeeper Matt Kaplan '05 made three saves in the loss. Mike Pio '05 had the only shot on goal for the Judges who have endured scoring woes for weeks. "We're playing the best soccer I've had a Brandeis team play in four or five years," Coven said. We just can't seem to score."Before taking on the Bears the Judges were looking for their second conference win against the University of Chicago on Friday. The Maroons are ranked 14th in the country and the Judges found out why. Pio scored the only goal the Maroons had allowed in six games, but it was not enough as the Judges fell again, 2-1. Yuval Ezer '06 and Scott Zacharoff '07 each had two shots, but Maroon goalkeeper Keith Crum had six saves to send the Judges away with the loss. Chicago outshot the Judges 18-12 for the game.It was more of the same in the Judges first game of their road trip. The Judge took 11 shots but never found the back of the net as they dropped another shutout, this time at the hands of Wheaton College, 1-0 last Wednesday. Ranked no. 7 nationally and riding a 10 game unbeaten streak into Wednesday's game, the Lyons posted the lone goal in the 33rd minute. The Judges struggled throughout the game offensively and faced a 12-3 shot deficit at halftime.The Judges turned it up a notch in the second half, as the offense was able to sustain the attack in Wheaton territory for most of the half. The Judges had eight shots and five corner kicks in the second half, but never converted. The team had a couple good scoring opportunities early in the second half but was unable to convert. Brandeis had one more chance to send the game to overtime with a corner kick with five seconds remaining, but a header by Ezer sailed over the crossbar."We dominated most of the game," Coven said. "We missed goals by fractions of an inch."The Judges begin the closing stretch of their season when they host Springfield College tomorrow at 3 p.m. The Judges then have the rest of the week off before finishing up their conference schedule with games against Emory, Carnegie Mellon and NYU. Despite the challenges the Judges have faced, Coven is forever confident in his players. "I have a tremendous amount of confidence in these guys," Coven said. "They work hard, they never give up. They stand by each other and off the field. These guys deserve to win. It's unfortunate we have this horrendous record because it's deceiving. We're a great soccer team.""We lose focus for only a few minutes each game and that's where we lose," Zacharoff said. "Physically we're there, mentally we're not. We're easily capable of winning the rest of our UAA games if we play 90 minutes of soccer.
(05/25/04 4:00am)
All That RemainsThis Darkened HeartOn Prosthetic Records Grade: ACreeping in the shadows behind well-known hardcore and metal groups such as Shadows Fall, Killswitch Engage and Every Time I Die, comes All That Remains, a band that is as good at what they do as any of their more popular contemporaries. Their connection to Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall doesn't end with simply being in the same genre, as lead vocalist of All That Remains, Philip Labonte, also fronted for Shadows Fall before his departure in 1998. In addition, their sophomore release off Prosthetic Records, This Darkened Heart, is produced by Adam D. of Killswitch Engage. Since their debut disc Behind Silence and Solitude, All that Remains has reintroduced themselves with new guitarist Mike Martin and new bassist Matt Deis. Oli Herbert on guitars and Mike Bartlett behind the kit round out the band's lineup. This Darkened Heart, which debuted in early 2004, opens with a melodic acoustic guitar line that lulls the listener into a tranquil mood. This short-lived bliss is then shrewdly interrupted by a shredding hardcore riff teamed with harmonious guitar, putting the listener in an entirely different but equally enjoyable place. This first track, entitled "Death in My Arms," is musically one of the best on the album. The track features no melodic vocals but rather all metal screams, roars and shrieks. The melody, however, is supplied by the music itself, which utilizes a variety of harmonizing guitars and catchy licks to keep the listener's attention despite the gruff vocals. Track two is one of the more harmonic and hook-oriented songs on the album and as a result turns out to be their first single. Titled "The Deepest Gray," this track delves into a mixture of metal riffs, hardcore screams, and for the first time, melodic vocals. At this point, Philip Labonte's range is displayed for the first time and the listener can conclude that All That Remains is more than just a mediocre metal outfit. As a whole, the album features unbelievable guitar solos, complicated musical structures, and some of the best guitar work I've heard in a while. Track three, "Vicious Betrayal," is another example of a song with limited vocal melody but guitar lines that propel the song forward and satiate a listener's need for elation. "Focus Shall Not Fail" is the title of track five and is my favorite on the disc. This song has by far the best hook line on the album, echoing "Fear not at all my focus shall not fail/I shall not fall and nor shall I despair." The song is a hopeful anthem insisting that one can succeed as long as one is focused and hard working. "I find not distractions live life of single mind/and failure is not inherent for I will have what's mine/ I'll struggle and sacrifice should I find value there/I'll not be scorned by failure/ I'll not relent." This positive lyrical content is not the norm on this album however, as most other songs focus more on themes of betrayal, anger and personal anguish. Another track that incorporates the aforementioned dark themes but also includes a rise against attitude is "For Salvation," the eighth track on the album and also one the best. "Wallow in darkness/and everlasting pain/this signals defiance/to bring forth mankind's gain/this nation's compliance/to what is fed to them/may lead to disaster/ unless a change is made." This song is the best example of one that mixes both melodic and catchy guitar riffs with a broad vocal range that includes a harmonious hook line. Dueling guitars roar in the background as Labonte sings "Now pride is our enemy/for salvation this we must believe." The ten song album is wrapped up by the title track "This Darkened Heart," one of the darker and harder songs on the already dark and hard album. "Now rise again for this darkened heart/it bleeds fast for all my family/now rise again for this darkened heart/it bleeds fast for all humanity" roars Labonte, noticeably angry at the world order. Although this song lacks a solid hook line, it is well placed as the last song on the album. By the time the listener reaches this track, he has already become acquainted with the vicious sound that the band portrays. This song becomes the track in which to project all your anger before being whipped back into the real world of tranquility and saneness. Overall, This Darkened Heart is a must-listen for any real hardcore or metal fan. For those listeners who are into music that may incorporate some screaming but relies mostly on melody, such as fans of screamo and hardcore punk, I'd also suggest giving this record at least a cursory spin. If you do not fall into one of those categories I'd suggest you stay away from this album and stick with your pop punk, nu-metal,or contemporary rock groups. This album is not for the casual listener or for enjoyment at high school parties. It is, however, a beautiful example of artwork that may only appeal to a niche audience. As an enthusiast of this niche, I give the album a solid A.
(04/27/04 4:00am)
Among the talented ranks of student performers on campus, sits the largely unrecognized lead singer and guitarist of The State, Aron Glennon '04. Along with his bandmates, Glennon is working hard to establish The State in the local rock scene, and on a national level in the near future. As one of 100 bands from around the world picked to perform at the esteemed International New York Music Festival at Madison Square Garden, he will hopefully have a chance to do just that.Hailing from a small town in New Hampshire, Glennon formed the band with his high school buddies Kyle Needham (guitar and keyboard), Bill Lord (guitar and keyboard) and Matt Plouffe (drums). They later added bassist Sean Philbrick, whom they met and hit it off with in a bar this past July.A physics major at Brandeis, Glennon started playing music his senior year in high school, but didn't consider it a career choice until he became more passionate about music in college. "Only in college did I have the free time to play more and write more. Now it just seems like the only place I want to be."Juggling music with his studies can often be a challenge, but Glennon has managed to do it for the past four years. Before this year, he wasn't as serious about his band becoming anything more than a hobby, so he was able to work out a system of doing homework during the week, and playing music during the weekend. Lately, though music and the band have taken up much more of his time, due to the effort to advance the band entirely through self-promotion. Since the band is relatively inexperienced in regards to the music business, promotional work is difficult and time consuming. "Because we are new at it, we don't take shortcuts we now realized we should have." Luckily, Glennon is a second semester senior who has already been accepted to graduate school. Glennon has had little professional musical training. While attending the University of California at Santa Barbara before to transfering to Brandeis last year, he took one semester of voice lessons. He also took one music theory class at Brandeis. Glennon taught himself how to play guitar because he wanted to be able to play Radiohead songs. "I started learning through [Radiohead] songs and through that I developed an understanding of chord progression, melodies, harmonies and whatnot. Soon after that I started writing my own stuff," Glennon said.Since all of his bandmates remain in Hampton, N.H., Glennon must commute back and forth between Hampton and Waltham to practice. He gets around the lack of practice time by making tapes of the music he writes and allows the rest of the band to add in their respective parts.The State has performed in several local venues in New Hampshire and the Boston area, including a few appearances on campus. Although they have performed in such notable venues as Harper's Ferry in Boston, The State focuses on playing in locals bars and venues in their home state because they need to make money to produce and promote their demo.Glennon describes their music as "very Bend's era Radiohead, before they got all experimental.... it very much straight ahead rock, kind of like Brit-pop." He also says he is influenced by bands like Nirvana and The Beatles, but he mainly draws his inspiration from Radiohead because he feels that "if you want to help music progress, you have to be influenced by the people [like Radiohead] who are pushing boundaries."As with most young musicians, Glennon draws most of his inspiration for songs from his "uncanny bad luck with women." He considers music "to be an emotional release, a kind of therapy in a way." While most of his songs stem from relationships gone sour or lack thereof, he doesn't worry that he will run out of material in the future. "When I actually do find someone and get married and have kids and I am happy in that respect, my music will probably go a little more political. Only because there is always stuff that needs to change," he said.Glennon feels that his band's music has developed and matured immensely in the short time that they have been together. At the start, each member was nervous of criticism from the others and was afraid to try different things. "Now we are getting a little more comfortable in our own skins. I think we are taking more risks," Glennon said. In their earlier stages, the band's main goal was to churn out songs without regard to product. Currently, they have worked toward refining their sound. "We have done a lot of stuff with new songs-we are adding parts, we are constantly changing and its a really organic process."After hearing about the New York Music Festival, Glennon researched it further and quickly sent in a demo tape. After hearing that they were one of the few bands chosen to display their talent, Glennon and his bandmates were ecstatic. The festival, founded last year, will give the band a chance to expose themselves to record executives from major labels such as Sony Music and Virgin Records. Glennon wants The State to get a record deal, but he is not getting his hopes up. "You need to be realistic. I guess my main goal right now is just to get contacts because I am moving to New York next year to try and pursue a career [in music]," he said. Regardless, Glennon plans to continue his education in music technology at New York University next year.After gracing the stage at Madison Square Garden, The State will return to the area for a special appearance at the Midnight Buffet at Brandeis on May 3.
(04/20/04 4:00am)
With the madness of March behind us and the hangovers receding throughout Connecticut, it's time to look forward to the rest of the NBA season. While one cannot dispute the drama that comes with one-and-done elimination, the 7-game series of the NBA playoffs yield the better team without fail is a long, drawn-out chess match between two coaches at the highest level, tinkering and fine-tuning their troops every game until one team comes out on top. This is basketball at its highest level of skill and athleticism.There are individual awards to give out and a champion to be crowned. Here's a look at how things may turn out.MVP: Kevin GarnettGarnett should have won the award last year and should certainly top Tim Duncan in the voting this year. He is without a doubt the best and most versatile player in the league but he has also turned into a leader. He set the tone for the Minnesota Timberwolves after the team brought in Latrell Spreewell and Sam Cassell, and the team has followed his lead to the best record in the NBA. With the Timberwolves poised to finally escape the first round, Garnett has to be the most valuable player.Rookie of the Year: Carmelo AnthonyWhile Lebron James is almost certain to win, Anthony is the more deserving player. With the Nuggets floundering towards the end of the season, Melo took Denver on his back and lifted them into the playoffs. Anthony averaged 25 points over the last seven games of the season, hitting big shot after big shot. Not only did Anthony lead his team to more wins than James, he did it in the Midwest divison, the best division in basketball.Coach of the Year: Jerry SloanTalk around the league is that Memphis' Hubie Brown will win the award, but no coach has done more with less than Utah's Sloan. Sloan lost two Hall of Famers in Karl Malone and John Stockton who had been the foundation of his team for almost two decades, yet still had high expectations. Even after losing lead scorer Matt Harpring early in the season, the Jazz used stifling defense and constant effort to fall only one game short of the playoffs. People said the Jazz wouldn't win 20 games. They won 42.Defensive Player of the Year: Ron ArtestThere is no better perimeter defender in the game. Artest has the quickness to defend small guards, the strength to body up bigger, small forwards and the heart to think he can stop anybody. His vast collection of flagrant and technical fouls denied him the award last year, but a much more controlled Artest is the game's best defender this year.Sixth Man of the Year: Manu GinobiliThe Spurs swingman could easily start, but comes off the bench to give San Antonio the quickness and athleticism that is sometimes lacking in the backcourt.Most Improved Player: Michael ReddThe quick release lefty came from nowhere to gain the first all-star selection of his career, while leading the overachieving Bucks to the playoffs.Executive of the Year: Joe DumarsThe Pistons GM not only acquired an all-star in Rasheed Wallace while giving up practically nothing, he actually cleared cap room with the trade.Eastern Conference Champion: Detroit PistonsDefense wins in the playoffs, and no one in the East plays it better than the Pistons. Detroit has the size upfront with Ben Wallace and Rasheed Wallace to take on any frontcourt, and coach Larry Brown is one of the best defensive coaches of all time. Their no superstar system leads to excellent ball movement and stifling defense. The Indiana Pacers will push the Pistons for the conference title, but with a match up so close, the edge goes to the better coach. Rick Carlisle has done great with the Pacers, but Brown is a Hall of Famer. New Jersey will fight valiantly in its quest for a third straight conference title, but the Nets are not as solid defensively as they have been in past years. With Detroit and Indiana both stronger up front, the Nets will face an early exit.Western Conference Champion: San Antonio SpursAll the powers in the Western Conference got significantly better during the off-season except the Spurs, but the fact of the matter is that coach Greg Popovich's system works. If you watch the Spurs play, you see five guys constantly moving their feet, pressuring the passing lanes, contesting shots and helping each other out. Defense wins championships and the Spurs play a heck of a lot of it. Tim Duncan is a proven winner. Tony Parker has gotten incredibly efficient running Popovich's system. Ginobili seems to sense what the Spurs need on any given night and fills the box score accordingly. The Lakers are stacked in talent but have not shown that they can step up and stop teams defensively. Ditto for the Kings who hoped to slip into the finals unnoticed. The Spurs are the team with championship swagger and the defense to back it up.NBA Champion: San Antonio SpursThe Eastern conference has failed to yield a champion since Michael Jordan left Chicago and will come up short again. But with the Pistons sporting an intimidating front line and the Spurs worn down by their crusade through the West, Detroit should challenge San Antonio more than enough to provide the first very closely matched NBA finals since the Spurs won their first title in 1999. It will be a great match up with mentor Larry Brown coaching against former student Greg Popovich, but in the end the student will leave the master. The Spurs will win game seven in San Antonio, clinching their second straight title. When all is said and done, the Lakers and Spurs will have combined for the last six championships.
(03/16/04 5:00am)
WBRS hosted and broadcasted free live music twice last week from the Shapiro Campus Center, with a full-band performance on Wednesday evening's The Joint program and an acoustic one on Friday afternoon's Coffeehouse. Local musicians Dana Mier and Matt McCluskey played sets, and although both performances were lightly attended, they both showcased two vastly different singer/songwriters.Boston native Mier played Wednesday's show with her band, promoting her recent album Reflection with an hour-long set. Alternating between simple, acoustic folk songs and rhythm-driven pop/rock, Mier sang with the strong range of Jewel and the girlishness of Lisa Loeb, her band frequently throwing back to mid-90s alternative rock. With no more than a handful of fans in attendance, the show felt more like a jam session or rehearsal, the band members standing in a circle and facing each other as they played. "We're going to start out with an acoustic-y song," Meir announced as the band began with Reflection's title track, the first of several numbers combining drum-driven melodies with Mier's folk sensibility. During those first few songs, which also included "One Time More" and "My Mind Says," drummer Eric Kelly seemed too loud for his band mates, his thundering style often overpowering guitarist Andy Rooney's riffs and solos.Though bland at times, Mier at least displayed her versatility well, especially while playing "Perfect." To use Mier's term, it was a light-hearted "ditty," exploring themes of love and independence. Although juvenile, Mier balanced the innocence of lighter songs like "Perfect" with the angst and empowerment of a set of distortion-laden songs. With "Deny My Heart," her personal favorite, she was transformed from Lisa Loeb to Patti Smith. As she continued with the defiant "If Only If" and "Built You," this proved to be the most exciting portion of the show. However, the band seemed to wear its influences on its sleeve again. The most indicative of this vice were several of Rooney's E-Bow solos, none of which would have sounded out of place on The Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream or any other album from the mid-90s canon.Wisely winding down the show with a couple of ballads, Mier changed themes one last time with the grateful "Faith," written the day after the catastrophic fire during a Great White concert in Westwarwick,R.I., a show she nearly attended. And portraying a different strength, she contemplated heartbreak with the closer, "Down for Loving You," capping off a slightly inconsistent, yet eclectic performance for WBRS.Playing acoustically two days later, Matt McCluskey opened like Nick Drake, barely plucking his guitar as he explored the higher octaves of his vocal range. "Why don't we go where we know we should go?" he asked in the second song, delightfully mirroring the Britpop of early Oasis and The Charlatans. Yet the performance soon fell short, never quite hitting the stride set by his opening numbers. Most unfortunately, McCluskey seemed to favor a gravelly post-Nirvana growl over the nearly angelic voice he used in early songs. Even though a few glimmers of an original singer/songwriter occasionally shone through, he largely conformed to the norms of modern hard rock, albeit acoustically. As a result, the set was mostly boring, and even passers-by grabbing a free bagel consistently left several minutes after walking into the room. He explained that many of the songs had been written for a band that had never gotten off the ground, accounting for much of the set's awkwardness. Accordingly, songs like "Life's Hopeful Hands" and "A Better Way" seemed as out of place, as they were unoriginal, burdened further by forced lyrics like "Your heart ain't worth much when it's stashed beneath your bed." Yet, McCluskey's set was not without merit, and even excluding his opening songs, there were a few memorable moments. He innocently entertained boyhood memories in "Firefly," and impressively played a rapid arpeggiated guitar hook in "Purple, Green and Blue." Introduced as a new song, "7 a.m. Sidewalk Serenade" was a traditional folk song in the vein of Simon and Garfunkel, interestingly changing tempos throughout the song as McCluskey whistled between verses. He thanked WBRS for having him, closing after an hour with "Tearing a Hole in the Sky.
(03/09/04 5:00am)
When I enter the room at the Ritz Carlton Kevin Smith, lord of geek aesthetic, is sitting casually on the floor. The window is open both to let in a gentle breeze and to let his cigarette smoke waft outside. Smith is wearing black-rimmed glasses, while smoking at an impressive rate. He is wearing a bowling shirt embroidered with the name of his daughter-Harley Quinn. He has a tattoo that reads "Jenny" below his wrist, and seems relaxed, comfortable and mellow. justArts: You must meet, like, 50 people a day.Kevin Smith: I meet some people man, I do.JA: Hey, that's cool though, you know?KS: It's all right. The city part is cool because, like, flying to different people is cool. I haven't been to Boston in like two years so it was nice to come back.JA: [Do] you like Boston?KS: I do, I do like Boston. I got such a place in my heart for it because they were so kind to Chasing Amy, and kinder to Good Will Hunting, of course.JA: First off, I thought Jersey Girl was great.KS: Thanks, man.JA: I really thought you tried something different.KS: It's the audience that you're used to, and then to suddenly turn around and be like here's something that's p---y soft. Thankfully the fan base is what it is, and there are people that are, like, big fans of Chasing Amy, but not all Jay and Bob guys. But you know that 13- or 14-year-old Jay and Bob guys are gonna lose. You have the older Jay and Bob guys who can go either way and are, like, "Jay and Bob are funny" or " can watch something a little more serious too," or the hardcore younger ones. Yeah, they're probably gonna feel like I turned my back on them and they're the ones most vocal on the Internet. They're like "You fucking sellout!" and I'm like, "Come back in 10 years and tell me if you feel the same way."JA: This is your most personal movie to date?KS: Very much so. Actually, this and Chasing Amy are pretty neck and neck. But this one wins out because I actually have a kid, whereas I never fell in love with a lesbian. But then my wife is still alive, so they're probably neck and neck.JA: Do you think you could have written the movie before having a child?KS: I don't think so. I mean, it wouldn't have occurred to me because, like, what do I know about fucking kids? I don't know anything about a seven-year-old. The germ of the idea was there because I had a kid. It came from that thought that a lot of first-time fathers have: Sooner or later it's like, "what if my wife died and I was left to do this by myself?" which is a very selfish-guy thing to think. But it came from a nice place and I couldn't have had that thought without a kid.JA: Do you foresee any more movies to come up this vein?KS: I can't imagine I'd ever do another family flick until Harley's a teenager and I gotta work some of that shit out. You know, when she's rebellious and fucking everything that walks and I'm just like, "I'm gonna make a movie about it." Up until now I think I've said everything I could possibly say about fatherhood. JA: Compared to the other scripts, was Jersey Girl a lot harder to write?KS: This stuff actually comes more naturally than the stoner humor because I'm not a stoner but I am a kind of mushy melodramatic person who likes the Terms Of Endearment kind of pictures. So it was much easier to write. This was kind of the direction I was headed with Chasing Amy at one point, but when I was writing Chasing Amy I was like "This is totally touchy feely and I'd totally alienate anyone who likes Clerks." I gotta throw in Jay and Bob and boom. Jay and Bob wind up in the movie. And they do a great job in the movie-it's a fun scene and they serve their purpose-but, to me, it always represented a chicken-shit move cause it's me going "I don't trust myself and I don't trust the audience to go with something more emotional that isn't so hell-bent on making you laugh." So this time was about committing and saying "I'm gonna pick a direction and stay with it."JA: I feel like in this movie you picked a direction and let the characters speak for themselves.KS: It's about the characters, really, and what little plot there is, is almost unimportant and secondary to what they're saying or how they're relating to one another. JA: Speaking of great acting, this is Ben Affleck's best acting recently, especially after his last few films.KS: Right, right. What was the last three, one was Gigli, one was Paycheck and one was ... Oh, Daredevil? You're coming down for Daredevil? He was an excellent Matt Murdock, dude, he really was. Do you know the comics? He did a good job.JA: Would you ever direct someone else's film?KS: No, no I'm not good at that. I don't think I could realize someone else's script. That, to me, would be the definition of selling out, which is something I get charged with all the fucking time. Anytime you make a movie that's a little different than last time its like "you're fucking selling out," but me directing someone else's script would be. The closest I ever came-and this wasn't close at all-was on Good Will Hunting. [Smith was an executive producer on the 1997 film, written by Affleck and Matt Damon]. When we brought that onto Miramax they were like "do you want to direct it?" And I was like I would love to because I love the script, but you know what? I'm not gonna do it justice. You should find a guy who will do it justice because I would constantly refer to the two guys who wrote it. I don't see myself so much as a director as a writer.JA: Everyone got behind you and gave such great performances in Jersey Girl.KS: The only difference between me and a first-timer is that some people are like, "Well now, he must know what he's doing, he's done it six times." But I'm still the same person as when I made the first one, and that's still the same guy who thinks, "I hope they don't fucking see through this fucking charade." I'm not a director. So when they put themselves in your hand you feel awesome. There's trust there and I'm like, awesome. And they believe I'm leading them in the right direction 'cause you never know. You hope you're doing it right and you hope you're leading them in the right direction. That's why you look at terrible movies and you're like, "How does that happen?" It's because those dudes really thought they were making a good movie. So every time I'm like, what if I'm that guy this time? There's always that flying around in the front of your mind when you're shooting. So thankfully the actors don't sniff it out, you know. I imagine if Affleck smelled fear, he'd be like, "Fuck it, I'll lead the show," 'cause you know, he's the dude who ran from the asteroid. So, if you give him a little room he might take over.JA: Where'd you find Raquel [Castro, who plays Gertie Trinke]?KS: She's the gooey little center of our movie. We got her through Avi Kaufmann who's a casting director in New York who's really great at finding kid actors. She found the kid from Searching for Bobby Fischer [Max Poneranc] and she found the kid from Sixth Sense [Haley Joel Osment]. And the typical story is like, "We saw a thousand kids and this one rose to the top." We didn't. We saw about 80 girls from the East and the West Coasts. Raquel walked into the room, and we're like, oh shit-she looks like [Jennifer] Lopez! And at that point, it hadn't occurred to me to cast somebody who looked like one of their onscreen parents because I'm really not a visual person. I don't think visually even when I'm writing or when I'm directing. So it never occurred to me. So I'm sitting here and I'm like, "[Producer Scott] Mosier, we should hire her because she looks like Jennifer." And Mosier is like, "What are you talking about?" and I was like "Wouldn't it be cool if we hired somebody that looked like one of the onscreen parents?" And he's like "Well, dude, that's a foregone conclusion." and I'm like "Really? I guess you're right." JA: Well, I mean you got a seven-year-old who has to be in these scenes and deliver these lines.KS: Like in the beginning, she's a seven-year-old girl, and you're like, "At the end of this scene you've got to hug Ben and give him a little kiss on the cheek." And she's like "Eww he's a boy. I don't wanna kiss him!" You never have to deal with that with adult actresses. Maybe with Affleck sometimes, but generally they get it. But with her you got to get past the cootie stage and tell her, "Look, you're pretending. Nobody thinks you're in love with him." So, about half way through the shoot I was with her, and we developed this shorthand where it was easier to do shit like that. But in the beginning it was like, "How do you talk to a seven-year-old?" Not to mention you can't smoke on set as much because there's a kid there, and that's a big part of my process. And you can't curse as much, because there's a kid there. Like I curse in front of my kid, but that's my kid and that's my choice, and I get to do it. I can't curse in front of someone else's kid. So you rein it in a little bit. Not much, but a little bit and those things add up. But thankfully in the middle of the shoot we developed a short hand where it worked, where we got to a place I could direct to her and not drop to her level but I could relate to a seven-year-old. I mean I'm 33 and I could relate to a seven-year-old. It took a little bit.JA: I know your next project will be great.KS: God bless the Internet, dude. I love it, and I fucking despise it. They announced Green Hornet and I was just like they'll dig it, the fan base will dig it cause they know. They know that like this is the movie I've kind of been working toward more or less. Sure enough 98 percent of people dug it. JA: Is it going to be an action movie with a lot more script, a lot more heart than we're used to?KS: It's gonna be an action movie with no action. Where dudes just sit around and talk about action. No, if I made it 10 years ago, that's what it would've been; two dudes sitting on a counter talking about shit that was happening off-camera. There will definitely be more dialogue in this than some of the other comic book movies, though I thought X2 did a good job at juggling the action and the character stuff. Character is what I'm most interested in. Green Hornet will have action, great fights, we'll get a great stunt coordinator a great fight chorographer, but to me my job is kind of like I wanna make people care about Bret Reid more than the Green Hornet and far more than the villain. That's what happens when you watch a comic book movie. You'd rather watch a movie called The Joker than Batman cause the Joker is a far more interesting character in that first movie. So it's like, make the guy who puts on the mask interesting and then everything will fall in place because then they'll care about him when he puts on the mask and goes and beats the shit outta bad guys.
(02/24/04 5:00am)
The Brandeis Swimming and Diving Team had a very positive close to a successful season this Sunday. While most Brandeis students were spending their break relaxing and doing practically nothing, the swimmers were away in Atlanta swimming in the UAA Championships (February 12-14) and across Waltham at the New England Championships (February 20-22).The UAA Championship Meet is the pinnacle of the Judges' season. The team has lighter practices so that it can explode off the blocks en route to their fastest times of the season. Brandeis historically finishes toward the bottom of the eight-team meet but the Judges hoped to improve upon two sixth place (male and female) finishes last season. The men's team more than exceeded expectations by finishing the meet in fourth place, only a small margin behind the third place finishers. The women's team unfortunately fell to seventh place this year, finishing ahead of only the University of Chicago. Hosts Emory Eagles easily won both the men's and women's meets, but the real story of this years' UAA Championship was the emergence of the Brandeis men's team as a serious force.Head coach Jim Zots, diving coach Jim Brainerd and assistant coach Chuck Batchelor were awarded "Coaching Staff of the Year" by the UAA. The male swimmers, guided by the consistency and leadership of their six seniors, and sparked by the exciting speed of their freshman class, broke Brandeis records in 13 out of the 23 swimming events at UAAs. (See chart for a complete list of record-breakers). Two male swimmers, Matt Christian '05 and Chris Pai '07 swam fast enough to qualify for the Division III National Championships held in March at Principia College, in Missouri. Christian qualified in the 200-yard Individual Medley and the 100 and 200-yard Backstroke while Pai qualified for the 100-yard butterfly and the 50 and 100 yard freestyle. Pai's first-place finish in the 50 freestyle was the first time a male Brandeis swimmer has ever placed first at a UAA swimming event. Pai also finished third in the 100 freestyle, with a time that was faster than the previous UAA record.The Brandeis women, despite their seventh place finish, also had a strong UAA meet. Most of the swimmers achieved season-high or personal-best times in all of their races. Alison Smizer '07, Sharon Makowsky '06, Sarah Evans '06 and tri-captain Jordan Rosefigura '04 broke the record for the 800-yard Freestyle Medley. The swimmers broke the oldest record in Brandeis swimming. Tri-captain Maya Marx '04 will also represent the women's team at Nationals this year by qualifying in the 100 and 200 yard Breaststroke and 200 yard Individual Medley.The Judges entered the New England Championships with high expectations coming off the highly successful UAA meet. The 13-team men's competition and 21-team women's competition was helf at Bentley College. The Brandeis men seemed to be on a higher level than any of the other teams, and they easily swam to a first place finish. The women also swam impressively, finishing in third place, only six points out of second. Zotz was again recognized as Men's Coach of the Year for leading the team to significant improvements (the team finished in fourth place last year). Chris Pai '07 received the award for Men's Swimmer of the Meet, breaking New England Championship records in all three events that he competed in (50 yard Freestyle, 50 yard Butterfly, 100 yard Butterfly). Tri-Captain Nick Dufresne '04 broke the New Englands record in the 200 yard breaststroke, and three Brandeis relay teams broke meet records. Other men's individual winners included Matt Christian '05 (100 Backstroke, 200 Backstroke, 200 IM) and Josh Storch '04 (100 Breaststroke).The Women's team swam a strong meet, but fell short to first place Bentley and second place UMass-Dartmouth.Maya Marx '04 broke her own record in the 100 yard breaststroke twice during the meet, first during preliminaries and then again during finals. Marx also won the 50 and 200 yard Breaststroke. Other women's team individual winners were tri-captain Jordan RoseFigura '04 (100 Butterfly) and Shira Friedman '04 (three-meter diving).The swimmers are now looking forward to more free time and less waking up at five in the morning for practice. This season was one of the best in years, and the last two meets were a great finish. "It was great to win the New England Championship and see everyone on the team perform so well." The team will bid farewell to six female swimmers and six male swimmers including Dufrense.Despite losing experience, this great performance will likely mean great things to come for the Brandeis University Swimming and Diving Team in the upcoming years.
(02/10/04 5:00am)
Beginning in 1852 with a race between Harvard and Yale, crew or rowing, is the oldest intercollegiate event in America. Today, the United States Rowing Association has over 30,000 members across the country. Crew's popularity has grown steadily over the years, especially among women, and Brandeis is no exception. One member of the varsity crew team stands out in particular: Sarah Robinson '07.Sarah sets the pace as the stroke seat for the women's boat."She is an awesome rower," teammate Sarah Passarelli '07 said. "She is tall and strong."Ian Sager '06, a member of the men's varsity crew, describes Robinson as a machine who is methodical and fun to watch."She makes it look effortless; she's a big part of the team already," Sager said.Sarah's abilities and immense presence on the team are even more impressive because she is a first year at Brandeis. However, this is not her first time rowing.Though most female rowers enter the sport in college, Robinson began rowing during her freshman year at Thomas Jefferson High School in Alexandria, Virginia. It is her extra four years of experience that makes Robinson as proficient as she is and an invaluable member of the women's team.Robinson helped the women's boat place 31st out of 51 in the Club Fours race at the Head of the Charles Regatta this fall. The Regatta is the largest two-day rowing event in the world, attracting boats from colleges and clubs around the globe. Robinson said that she and her teammates were excited about their ranking, noting that it was "one of the highest that Brandeis has [ever] had at the Charles." She described the race as an "interesting experience" praising her teammates for guiding her through her first head-race, which involves about 24 minutes of hard rowing compared to the 12 in spring races. Robinson's success and enthusiasm sets an example for both the novice and varsity teams."Sarah gives the novice girls someone to look up to and have pride in," Lindsay Vaceck '07 said. "She is the same age as most of us and yet she has progressed so far." But Robinson's strength can deceive some; Sager remarks that he "often forgets she is a freshman because she is one of the people everyone looks to for leadership-even the upperclassmen."Robinson's teammates say she has so much to offer as a rower and an individual. "Crew is very much a team sport and [Sarah] is part of the glue that holds us together," Passarelli said. Her coach, Matt Smith, describes Sarah as "the fastest girl Brandeis rowing has seen in a while," and that "she has the potential to make it to the national team by the time she graduates." "She is part of a class of girls," Smith said, "that looks like it will be very fast this year. Look to Sarah and her squad to do very well in the upcomming season."The crew team is incredibly dedicated and tight-knit, due in part to the rigorous training schedule. Varsity crew members devote over two hours a day to group workouts in addition to solo training. For Robinson, the hard work is worth it. She plans to remain on the team for the rest of her time at Brandeis and hopes to row as a single in an adult crew club after graduation. Robinson has no Olympic aspirations, despite the United States' success in the sport. U.S. Rowing is second only to track and field in the number of gold medals won at the Olympic games.For now, Robinson is looking forward to the spring season which will begin with the team's trip to Georgia over February break for intensive training. After that, look for Robinson and the team to be entering the New England Championships and the Nationals in Philadelphia. "The team is amazing," Robinson said. "They are great to work with. The effort they put into every practice and every piece is inspiring. They are great role models, this is certainly a step up from high school rowing."The crew pride is hard to miss. The team usually walks around campus wearing their varsity sweatshirts. Along with the spring season, the next battles they face are getting the team to be considered a varsity sport, rather than a club team, and reviving plans to build their own boathouse.
(02/10/04 5:00am)
The Brandeis men's basketball team (6-12, 3-6 UAA) is on a winning streak, turning it up a notch with back to back wins over Emory University, and a win on Sunday against Case Western Reserve University. Despite a disappointing start to the season in which the team went 3-12, the Judges retain a positive outlook and are hoping to ride this momentum through what is arguably the toughest stretch in their schedule. Brandeis overcame a six-point halftime deficit on Friday to defeat Emory University for the second consecutive time. The Judges trailed by as many as nine points in the second half before a 17-4 run over the final 4:24 gave Brandeis a decisive 10 point victory 82-72. The action went back and forth for most of the first half as neither team could seem to hold a lead over the first 14 minutes of play. Emory looked to take control after a layup by junior Chace Fawcet pushed the Eagles' lead to 12 with 1:48 left in the half. Brandeis forward Bryan Lambert '04 answered with a huge three-pointer for the Judges, cutting the lead to nine. Brandeis then forced two straight turnovers, and Scott Green '05 made Emory pay with a strong take to the basket that resulted in a three-point play to end the half with a momentum swing for Brandeis, now down only six. The change of fortune did not seem to help the Judges starting off the second half as Emory countered a Green layup with an 11-3 run and pushed the lead back to 11 at 58-47. Brandeis managed to come roaring back, holding the Eagles scoreless over the next five minutes and tying the game with 8:57 left on the clock. This was the first of four ties and five lead changes in the second half. With 6:34 remaining in the game, Brandeis grabbed its first lead since midway through the first half on a Lambert three-point play. The teams traded baskets over the next four possessions before a turnover by Stu Pradia '05 and two free-throws from Eagle sophomore Justin Zale gave Emory the edge at 68-65. Brandeis then went on a tear, holding Emory to just one field goal the rest of the game while pouring in 17 total points in less than five minutes. Good defense by the Judges and bad shooting by the Eagels sealed the Eagles fate they shot just 1-8 from the field over that span and just 32.3 percent in the whole second half. Conversely, Brandeis' hot shooting in the second half (59.3 percent) sparked the victory and its 58.5 percent for the game was a season high. The Judges also stepped up their rebounding overcoming, a 17-8 disadvantage on the boards at the half to even it up at 30 for the game. The Judges still need to cut down on their turnovers (they had 19) if they hope to compete with Amherst and Rochester next week. Lambert led a balanced scoring attack for Brandeis, scoring 24 points and snagging a game-high 10 rebounds. Greg Kristoff '04 had a big game off the bench scoring 14 points and hitting all four of his field goal attempts and both of his three-point attempts in only 18 minutes of action. Green also scored in double digits, putting in 12 points and along with Kristoff, led the team with only one turnover. Glenn Wright '05 and Omri Ayalon '04 also contributed solid scoring efforts, putting up 13 and 10 points respectively. Pradia led the Judges in assists with a career-high 13. Chase Fawsett had a career night for Emory as Brandeis defenders seemed unwilling to step out and guard his barrage of mid-range jumpers en route to 31 points and seven rebounds. Junior Rashawn Allen was the only other Eagle in double digits with 12 points as Brandeis was able to shut down Emory's other big guns. Despite his big 26 point game against the Judges last week, junior Clayton Fuller was held to just eight points and was hassled by Brandeis defenders all game, turning the ball over seven times. Brandeis continued its clutch performances on Sunday morning, beating Case Western Reserve University 83-73. In similar fashion to the win against Emory on Friday, the Judges trailed by as many as 10 in the first half and were down for most of the second before a late 17-2 run sealed the victory and a third straight UAA victory, the first three game UAA win streak since the 1995-96 season.Lambert led the Judges once again with 21 points and 12 rebounds, his fourth straight double-double. Ben Bosanac '04 was hot from behind the arc, shaking off a recent shooting slump and hitting 4-6 from downtown, scoring 15 points. "I have been struggling with making jump shots," Bosanac said. "But my teammates and the coaches have continued to give me positive feedback and sometimes you have to shoot yourself out of a slump." Kristoff had another solid game off the bench also shooting four of six from deep for 14 total points. Pradia broke double figures with 10 points and dished out a game-high seven assists while "Mr. Consistency" Ayalon had 12 points. Sophomore Carson Oren had a game-high 24 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 8-15 from the field to lead Case Western. Freshman Matt Cannon and sophomore Funso Lafe also both reached double-digits for the Spartans scoring 11 and 10 points respectively. The loss dropped Case Western's record to 4-16 (2-7 UAA).Brandeis will host third-ranked Amherst College today before traveling to Rochester on Friday to play the top-ranked Yellowjackets. Although the Judges have a difficult week ahead, last week's victories have given them some much-needed confidence. "It feels great to win some big conference games," Lambert said. "Our confidence increases everyday because we continue to improve. Everyone has worked hard to turn around our season and personally God has continued to help me and provide strength.
(01/27/04 5:00am)
The Brandeis University Swimming and Diving Team bounced back from their disappointing losses to MIT and Tufts last week by convincingly defeating Clark University on Wednesday and Worcester Polytechnic Institute on Saturday. The men's team beat Clark 134-103 and WPI 127-102. The women's team won by a score of 132-59 over Clark and 120-103 over WPI. These victories closed out a very impressive regular season for the Brandeis swimmers, as the men's team finished with a record of 8-3. The women were not far behind, with a regular season record of 7-4.Wednesday night, the Judges traveled to Worcester to swim at Clark University, and they never gave the Cougars a chance to get within striking distance. Brandeis dominated all aspects of the meet, coming away with an easy victory. Alison Smizer '07 was impressive for the women's team, winning three events, the 100 yard individual medley, 500 yard freestyle, and 100-yard breaststroke. Elana Kaufman '06, who is from Worcester, did not disappoint the hometown crowd, by winning the 1000-yard freestyle. Other female Judges winners were Sarah Evans '06 (100 free), Sharon Makowsky '06 (200 free), and Jordan RoseFigura '04 (100 backstroke). The men had seven different winners at Clark, with Nick Pai '05 winning two races, the 500-yard freestyle and 100 yard butterfly. The winners for the men's team also included Dan Levin '04 (50 free), Todd Berman '07 (100 free), Nick Dufresne '04 (200 free), Josiah Spurr '07 (1000 free), Ross Gercenstein '06 (100 backstroke), and Noah Rachlin '05 (100 individual medley).Saturday, the WPI Engineers visited the Linsey Pool at Brandeis for the Judges' last home meet of the season. Before the meet, Coach Jim Zotz spoke, and all thirteen senior team members were honored with flowers and balloons. The male seniors are Jeremiah Cohen (captain), Dufresne (captain), Dan Levin (captain), Josh Storch, Adam Wald, and James Yeaton. The seniors on the women's team are Shira Friedman, Lisa Goodman (manager), Maya Marx (captain), Jordan RoseFigura (captain), Paula Schreiber (captain), Lili Weinstein, and Robin Zebrowitz.The meet against WPI was another easy victory for the Judges, as both the men's and women's teams controlled the meet, even as a number of swimmers were trying out events they usually do not swim. The men's team won 10 events, with James Yeaton '04 winning two events, both the required and optional one-meter diving. Hal Grossman '07 beat his own Brandeis record in the 1000-yard freestyle, swimming the race in 10:16.34. The other first place finishers for the men were Leon RoseFigura '07 (200 free), Rachlin (200 butterfly), Chris Pai '07 (100 free), Matt Christian '05 (200 backstroke), Levin (500 free), Dufresne (200 breaststroke), and the relay team of Levin, Christian, Lev Davidson '06, and Gercenstein (400 free relay). The women's team also won 10 events for the meet. Like Yeaton for the men, Shira Friedman '04 won both the required and optional diving events. RoseFigura also won two races, the 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard butterfly. Winners for the women's team included Lalin Anik '06 (50 free), Robin Zebrowitz '04 (200 individual medley), Makowsky (100-yard freestyle), Kaufman (500 free), Maya Marx '04 (200 breaststroke), and the all-senior relay team of RoseFigura, Lili Weinstein '04, Zebrowitz, and Marx (400 free relay).These impressive victories helped to build confidence as the Judges head into the UAA Championship meet, which begins on February 11th, at Emory University in Atlanta. The team hopes to improve on their finishes from last year, where both men and women placed sixth out of eight teams. The UAA is an extremely competitive conference for swimming and diving, but this year, the Judges hope to be among the best. At the championship, look for a number of Brandeis records to be broken, as every year, team members swim their fastest during the UAAs.
