UCLA can be a beautiful place in the Winter time.

My day usually begins at 6:00AM from the sweet sounds of a radio tuned to virtually no station. Yep, I hear the static “no station” sound at highest volume to wake my ass up. It works because I hate the sound and it can’t blend as a background music for my fantastic dreams.

I then eat breakfast and begin driving to school at around 7:30AM. Today, I got there at 9:00AM. Unfortunately with rain, people tend to drive at a “grandma’s pace”.

Driving on the 101 and 405 freeway every single day is the biggest waste of life on Earth! Every quarter I lose approximately 3 days of my life commuting to school (yeah, I calculated it!). So that’s 9 days every school year and 18 days after I’m done with UCLA. Yippie ki’ yay!

Now that I have successfully bored you with my daily dilemma, let’s continue this article.

When I arrive on campus, the first thing I always do is grab a coffee from Kerckhoff coffee house. Today, for the 199th time (I really haven’t been counting), I got to sit by an interesting person at the coffee house. She was a teacher assistant for an English professor. She had her lunch already bought, sitting on the opposite side of the table, to save a seat for someone else. As usual, I didn’t care … and I asked “Is this seat open?” She said, “Yes, but in 40 minutes I’m going to have students to speak to.” I said, “No problem, I’ll be out of here in 20 minutes!”

I proceeded to sit down with my small-in-a-medium-cup house coffee and spinach (popeye FTW!) & cheese lunch croissant. Before I continue… you’re probably wondering WTF I’m talking about with “small-in-a-medium-cup”.

Let’s go off on a quick tangent. From my experience, the small coffee cup’s at UCLA, and the lids made for them are defective. I, as well as many of my friends, have burned their beautiful hands while walking to class with a small coffee because the lid doesn’t fit it snugly enough. So what I do is always ask for a “small in a medium cup” house coffee. That way, you usually get more coffee, since they try to approximate how much a small in a medium cup of coffee is, and almost always screw up. I would say 90% of the time, my small coffee magically turns into a medium coffee! Just don’t ask room for cream!

Back to the woman.

She was quite attractive, very kind, and respectful. Unfortunately, the week before midterms, I always become quite bitter at life. I’m immensely sleep deprived and desperately am looking for a way to boost my energy throughout the day. However, I limit myself to 2 cups of coffee during a single day, so the rest of the day without coffee is a battle. After about 5 minutes I finished my croissant, I asked her, “Do you not have a lid on your small coffee because it spilled?” She said, “No, I just like drinking coffee without the lid”. Intrigued, I proceeded to tell her my method of buying small coffee at UCLA. She liked my advice!

The one thing that I found out about girls at UCLA (and probably in general) is that it’s easy to get them talking, but it’s hard to get them to continue talking. Especially at Kerckhoff, since they are almost always studying or are on their laptops. You also don’t want to sound like you’re interviewing them, but I end up always sounding like that, since I’m always interested in learning more about people! But if they don’t ask you any questions during the process, that’s usually a horrible sign. At least, in my opinion it is. It’s like driving on a one way street!

She asked me only one question… “What’s your major?” I said, “Psychology … hence my method of buying small coffee!” That made her laugh, but I realized this conversation wasn’t going anywhere. Don’t get me wrong though, I did get her vibes of interest towards me. However, I also had to get out of there since I needed to meet up with my own TA for my Research Methods class. The last thing I said was (and I say this to everyone I meet that I don’t ask for their phone number), “The one problem with UCLA is you see someone and never see them again. Hopefully, I’ll see you again!”

That’s the story of my daily life. It’s all the same. I must slow it down and make it different.

Maybe I should have asked for her phone number?

–Paymon Jalali
Fisting Mondays 4-6 PM

We all know The Knife as the Swedish electronic duo of Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olaf Dreijer who have astounded listeners with their enigmatic sound on tracks such as “Heartbeats” and “Silent Shout” and their new experimental album Tomorrow, in a Year is nothing short of breathtaking. The Knife collaborated with Danish theatre group Hotel pro Forma, Mt. Sims and Planningtorock to create an opera based on the research of Charles Darwin and his book “On The Origin of Species.” Now being a science nerd, I definitely geeked out a little when I heard about the inspiration. I found this description from The Knife’s website particularly entertaining: “These 90 minutes span the life of the earth, from the earliest geology, amoebas and insects, passing the dinosaurs, arriving at man, maybe looking further on. And they tell the story of Darwin and his ability to upset the established order and wrestle the ownership of creation from God.”

The first track to be released entitled “Colouring of Pigeons” is in my opinion, a small masterpiece that has a noticeable development or “evolution” as one could put it, over the course of its 11 minutes.  The piece begins with what sounds like a primordial rhythm/chant and progresses into a melodic ballad carried by Karin’s unmistakable voice before  ending with the strikingly beautiful vocals of an opera singer. The momentum of this track is astounding and will have listeners hooked from beginning to end.  As if one needed any further proof of The Knife’s originality, this album demonstrates what a true art form blending musical genres can be with awe-inspiring results.

The full version of Tomorrow, in a Year is now streaming online at the Knife’s official website and is available for pre-order which includes an instant download. If you are a fan of The Knife this album will not disappoint!

- Allie Chavez
Erotic Thriller, Wednesdays 8 -10pm

Mid-term season is here!! And for those of you that need a little time off, guess what? The Fowler Museum at UCLA is a great place to distract yourself from all that stressful business that comes with tests, writing and what not. On January 31st a new Exhibition called ” X-voto” opened showcasing the retablos of Mexican artist, David Mecalco. So for those of you who do not know what a retablo is, basically a piece of wood in which art is painted into as a form of gratitude to the saints, in this case his art is dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe. The really cool thing about these retablos however is the fact that it depicts paintings inspired by the people of the barrios or neighborhoods were Mecalco grew up in Mexico. Personally my favorite piece of art was one of two men who were partners, and while holding hands thank the Virgin Mary for allowing them to be happy in their relationship. Although it sounds controversial having two gay men thanking the virgin for allowing them to share a relationship, this is not the most controversial retablo at the exhibition. If you are into colors, and into art that depicts real life, this is definitely the expo for you! According to the Fowler Museum Website “Fowler in Focus: X-Voto—The Retablo-Inspired Art of David Mecalco” will be on view in the Fowler in Focus gallery, the central space within the long-term exhibition “Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives.” So stop by the Fowler museum, IT’S FREE!! And it’s open Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
Thursday until 8 p.m, so for sure there is a time for everyone to visit this great exhibition. So next time when you are 1) Procrastinating, 2) Bored or 3) just want to enjoy a great time looking at art, walk to the Fowler Museum located right next to the Jans steps and check out this show!

– Maria
The next Episode Thursday 2-4pm

LOVE FOOD?   Then you should definitely look into trying the KOGI TRUCK.  The Kogi Truck is a food truck that serves Korean BBQ in the form of meixcan food.  They have spicy pork quesadilla, short rib tacoes, grilled chicken burrito . . .and other specialty dishes.  This truck is not your typical food truck it travels through So Cal and only stays in one locations for one day during a specific time frame.  They have four trucks and you can see where and when they will be at on their website.

I ate their last night for the first time and it was pretty good.  I got 2 tacos and 1 burrito.  Taco’s are $2 each, burrito $5.  Word of advice if you get a taco definitely buy 2 because they tiny, about the size of softball.  I preferred the spicy pork over the short ribs, they were definitely more flavorful . . .  but don’t take my word for it, I’m definitely not a professional food critique so check it out for youself  http://kogibbq.com/ and most likely when they take your order they will spell your name in weird way.  I went with a bunch of friends and the easiest names became some strange spelling EVEN when they spelled out the name for them.  I went from Dianna to Dojana (it was a good laugh).

–Dianna
UrbanRootsRadio Saturday 10-12pm

Tune in from 12-2 on Tuesday to a special show dedicated completely to Lucent L’amour, coming up this Saturday!! We will be playing music by the artists, talking to a few special guests on air as well as GIVING AWAY a PAIR OF TICKETS to this awesome event! Make sure to tune in!

For more information on the event check this out!

2-6-10
1) During the ‘09 offseason the Los Angeles Lakers decided not to re-sign Trevor Ariza and instead they signed Ron Artest to a moderately lucrative contract. As of this writing, 4 months into the ‘09-’10 season, that move looks wrong. The Lakers are still the best team in the NBA and should at least make it to the NBA Finals as long as Kobe Bryant stays healthy (which is a long shot at this point) but they could really use the younger, quicker, more versatile Ariza on their team. Artest is not as advertised, he’s lost a step in his defensive quickness and he’s very unorthodox offensively which means he doesn’t fit well into the ‘triangle’ offense L.A. runs. It was thought when they signed him he could adapt to the offensive scheme because of his b-ball I.Q. but that has yet to happen not to mention he came into the season out of shape(rumor is he’s been partying waaay to much) Ariza could have been a corner stone of a player for the Lakers, a nice 1-2 punch with Kobe Bryant and even take over the role of being the #1 option once KB retires in about 5 years. Trevor can play 4 of the 5 positions on the offensive side of the court and as the season moves along for L.A. its becoming apparent that a #2 consistent scoring wing man is needed because Kobe is physically being run down and who knows if he will make it through the playoff season

2) If you didn’t believe it before you have to believe it now…the Los Angeles Clippers are officially cursed for a lifetime and they’ll never win a NBA championship unless they change ownership-move out of L.A.-and set up shop in a completely different arena. The season ending injury to their star rookie pick Blake Griffin cemented this fact for me; Griffin played a total of 6 preseason games before he sidelined with knee surgery. The only team with worse injury luck is the Portland Trail Blazers…over the last 4 decades the Trail Blazers have drafted 3 franchise type centers (Bill Walton, Sam Bowie, Greg Oden-3 yrs. ago) out of college and each time the much hyped center has eventually succomb to the pressure of consistent knee ailments and subpar play on the court (Bill Walton is the only center who had a semi-decent Portland career, he at least delivered a championship). Memo the Portland front office, stay away from big men in the foreseeable future and concentrate on power forwards and point guards–you’ll have better luck with that. Btw, as of this writing rumor has it that the Clipper brass r n serious negotiations to bring in Isiah Thomas (yes that Isiah, he of Piston fame and Knick disaster) and give him the title of Coach, GM and President–lets hope that rumor is an early april fool’s joke and the Clippers don’t really bring in Isisah. If they do they can forget about keeping their ever declining fanbase…all 52 fans will jump ’ship’ and promptly walk across the arena to the Laker shop and buy themselves a #24 jersey

3) I wrote about this a full 2 and a half seasons ago but during the playoff Celtic championship run a few years ago they had a early-’thrilling’ roundmatch up with the Atlanta Hawks that went the full 7 games. The Celtics ended up winning the series by blowing out the Hawks in game 7 but I said it then and is really apparent today, that series breathed life back into that Atlanta Hawk organization and since then they have been a powerhouse competitor in the eastern conference…look for them to make some real noise in the playoffs this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals–look out Lebron James….!

4) I think its time for Kobe Bryant to check his ego at the Staples Center door and sit out a few games so he can heal his battered body. He’s fighting through injuries to continue to play and eventually he’s going to get to a point where his body will force him to sit out and it could be for a significant time

DJ JokerPace
JokerPace Radio Hour (Sat.’s Noon-2pm)

As promised, from the UCLA Radio Sports Team here is the recipe for the Blue Cheese Potato Chips. This recipe was inspired by Cap City Diner in Columbus, OH. Yes, it sounds crazy at first, but it’s a tasty Super Bowl snack.

Medium bag traditional baked Kettle style chips
4 ounces Maytag Blue Cheese
8 ounces Alfredo sauce
1/2 cup chopped scallions

Spread the chips out over a baking sheet or on an oven safe plate. Drizzle alfredo over chips in layers as you stack the chips. Crumble blue cheese over top. Put in over for ~3 minutes. When sauce bubbles or chips start to turn color, remove instantly. Dump scallions on top and eat immediately.

For sauce: Buy a good store-made one you like, or make simply at home combining butter, cream and parmeggiano. Google a simple recipe.

This recipe is my apartment-mate’s. She says she got it from when she was in… middle school?

Note that I wrote “scones” in quotation marks. That’s because (in my world) these baked goods do not count as scones; they are biscuits of a sort. While I can’t deny their deliciousness, I do deny their qualification as scones. However, I know little to nothing about scones, and so I quote LeVar Burton of Reading Rainbow and warn: “But you don’t have to take my word for it”.

2 Cups (C.) all-purpose flour

1/2 C. oatmeal

1/2 C. sugar

3/4 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 C + 2 tbsp. cold(!) butter

3/4 C. Buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. (I folded in chocolate chips at this step at this step too.)

3. Using a pastry blender  (or 2 handy-dandy knives) cut in butter until mix is crumbly.

4. Add buttermilk and stir lightly until dough just comes together. It will be sticky and lumpy, but no worries. *Note: If you are lacking buttermilk in your fridge, it’s 1 tbsp. of lemon/vinegar to 1 cup of milk. Let the mix sit for 5-10 minutes before using. *

5. On lightly floured surface, pat the dough into 2 circles about 1″ thick. Cut into wedges and transfer onto a baking sheet.  (I tend to ignore the last part and just leave mine as circles. Then cut them up when they’re done.)

6. Bake for 16-18 minutes until lightly browned.

My oatless attempt.

– Ann
Intern

Rock supergroups don’t usually emerge from impromptu jams in Cabo San Lucas clubs, and for that matter,aren’t usually successes by their own merits. However, in Chickenfoot’s eponymous debut, we have a fully independent blues-rock hit spawned in the well-partied depths of Sammy Hagar’s (ex-Van Halen singer) Cabo Wabo Nightclub.

Consisting of Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony (ex-Van Halen), Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers) and Joe Satriani (solo artist), Chickenfoot dares combine some of the most well-known names in modern rock into one band. The four members played a series of jams at Hagar’s nightclub and made their live debut during one of Hagar’s solo shows. A short time later, the band was hard at work crafting “Chickenfoot.”

Conflicts of ego come between the members of many super-bands and the music usually suffers, but nothing of that sort is evident on the Chickenfoot album. Every track showcases the individual talents of each member inside the framework of heavy-hitting rock compositions. You can really feel the cohesion and chemistry between the musicians as their respective sounds combine to form an entirely new musical animal. That animal is an album full of fun, funky and emotive rock and roll that gets you rocking to the beat. All we need is to examine the component parts of the band, and then imagine the best possible combination of them.

Sammy Hagar was the charismatic frontman that helped Van Halen to its era of commercial success between ‘85 and ‘96 and he now lends his voice and fiery personality to the eleven songs on “Chickenfoot.” Ten of the songs were co-written by Hagar and Satriani, a power duo if there ever was one. Hagar’s voice and lyrics give so much life to the songs, one can’t help smiling at the energy. Hagar really shines on “Sexy Little Thing,” “Runnin’ Out” and “Down The Drain.”

And then there’s Joe Satriani. Since his 1987 hit album “Surfing With The Alien,” Satriani has been known as the preeminent guitar god, displaying prodigious talent on all of his 15 albums. Despite playing primarily instrumental music, Satriani jumps into the role of riff-master easily. His hooks areequally powerful and technically interesting; they are as fresh as they are heavy. Of course, Satriani has his fair share of solos on the album, each of which is perfect evidence of his technical virtuosity and impeccable taste. Satriani is killer on “Oh Yeah” and “Future In The Past.”

Behind it all is Chad Smith, known for his membership in the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Though the Chickenfoot record is a rock and roll effort, Smith still brings the funk, giving the tracks their own swing and flair. Like Satriani, he’s playing a different part then he’s used to, but really shines in the role. He is a truly solid rock drummer and drives the album with driving funk-inflected beats.

Not least is Michael Anthony, also of Van Halen, who completes the band’s rhythm section. His solid playing keeps every song grounded and fills out the sonic spectrum. Anthony also stands out with his signature backup vocals. His vocals behind Hagar’s were what made Van Halen sound like Van Halen, and that power is not lost on this album. The lyrics have a special texture when harmonized by Anthony.

These musicians are more than a supergroup, they’re an actual band, a single, cohesive unit that sounds comfortable and organic. Of course, the professionalism of the members does not go unnoticed, the album sounds crisp and well-rehearsed (partly due to producer Andy Johns [Led Zeppelin, Van Halen]); the track credited to all four members. “Down The Drain” was recorded in only one take. Basically, the album is a head-banging blues-rock monster that is carnally satisfying, regardless of the listener’ s genre preference. I rate the album a 4.7/5, the ballads “My Kinda Girl” and “LearningTo Fall” are weaker than the other tracks, but are halfway redeemed by the super-cool heat-sensitive ink used to print the CD sleeve (it changes color when you touch it).

Hey! If you’re going to a Super Bowl party this Sunday and you know nothing to very little about the professional sport of football, do us all a favor and be very very quiet and go hang in the kitchen with the ladies, the annoying dog and the owner of the house your partying at who’s simultaneously trying to figure out who clogged up the basement toilet while also door buzzing some body in through the front building gate.

Basically what I’m saying is “SHUT THE **CK UP”! Shut up and don’t say a word until halftime and even at that point, you want to keep your non-football talk simple and easy. “Hey, how you feeling? Is your team winning?” Response: “Yes…bye.” That the should be the extent of a conversation that involves a hardcore NFL fan and a somewhat casual party-goer that just happens to be at the party cause he felt compelled to be doing something everybody else is doing.

No real NFL/Super Bowl fan wants to be zoned in on the 1st quarter of the game while answering questions from a sports novice about which player is which (”is that Clayton Manning wearing #12″?) and how many points does one touchdown constitute when Peyton Manning is in position to drive his Colts into the red zone and possibly score the first touchdown of the game.

The real tip here is if you are a hardcore NFL fan and you truly want to focus on the game, stay home, invite 2 or 3 (no more than that) of your truest football friends over–light up the ol’ Wide-Flat Screen TV and watch the Super Bowl in NFL Bliss. This way you can focus, drink and yell at the screen without some ‘American Idol lovin’ Douchebag looking at you all crazy and telling you to “pipe it down a bit, its just a game, its no big deal”. That type of guy will be littered all over Super Bowl parties this Sunday from California to Maine and sometimes they will travel in packs to S.B. parties; these type of people should be eliminated from all sporting activities/viewings, period!

This is more than just a game, this is the final and biggest game of the season for the NFL and we Americans are celebrating like we’re entitled to each and every year and that’s wit National Holiday reverence. After the Super Bowl all NFL fans will go into a hibernation/detox/withdrawal that’s not a pretty sight to see; believe me, I’m in the early stages of it right now–I’m sweating like a pig 24 hours a day, sleeping only 3 hours at night and I”m losing weight rapidly…somebody please mail me a 6 pack of PBR, couple boxes of Bratwurst and a number 1 fan foam finger so I can start my recovery.

I’m already looking forward to the April 24th Draft.

DJ JokerPace
JokerPace Radio Hour (Sat.’s Noon-2pm)

Beyonce collecting award at the 2010 Grammys

Sunday night’s Grammys were a big night for many artists, but there is no question that it was a night for the ladies. Beyonce set a new record for the female winning the most Grammys in one night after collecting a staggering six trophies, including Song of the Year and Best R&B Song for “Single Ladies” and Best Contemporary R&B Album for “I Am…Sasha Fierce.” Predictably, Lady Gaga had three outfit changes; unpredictably, she only won two awards out of her five nominations. Taylor Swift won four Grammys including Album of the Year for “Fearless,” making her the youngest artist ever to win the Album of the Year award. Tension stirred in the audience as Beyonce and Lady Gaga gave Swift looks of disappointment and unapproval as she collected her award.

Kings of Leon came out strong winning four Grammys for their hit song “Use Somebody,” including Record of the Year, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group. Jay-Z won Best Rap Solo Performance for his album “D.O.A.” while Eminem won Best Rap Album for “Relapse.”

Other notable winners include Black Eyed Peas’ “The E.N.D.” for Best Pop Vocal Album, Phoenix’s “Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix” for Best Alternative Music Album, Green Day’s “21^st Century Breakdown” for Best Rock Album, and the soundtrack for “Slumdog Millionaire” as Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media.

This year’s performances trumped all previous years’ with unusual duets. Lady Gaga and Elton John kicked off the event together singing a medley of Gaga’s “Speechless” and John’s “Your Song.” Taylor Swift and Stevie Nicks also had a duet, with both struggling to hit the high notes throughout the performance. Eminem, Lil Wayne, and Drake also performed with Travis Barker a highly censored medley of “Forever” and “Drop the World.”

This year’s Grammys was a huge success. Ratings skyrocketed to 35% higher than last year. Promoters will have their work cut out for them next year; it will be tough to out-do the triumph that was the 2010 Grammys.

– Taylor Rohrbaugh
Latin Flavors, Fridays 8-10

It’s been awhile since the release of Vampire Weekend’s latest album, “Contra”, and I have to admit I wasn’t too crazy about the album at first, but a few listens in and I was hooked.   VW took it’s greatest elements from it’s previous  albums (catchy lyrics, upbeat tempos, and stellar vocals), used and abused them, and created something truly magnificent.

If you’ve ever attended a VW concert many of the songs on here will be familiar.  I remember first hearing the songs “White Sky” and “Giant” and fell in love, however I was a bit skeptical how they carry that energy they had on stage into the studio.  Although there stage presence and ability to make you dance like you never have before didn’t quite make it on the recordings, they still did a great job carrying creating a unique ablum while continuing to keep the original listeners happy.

The album begins with a track titled “Horchata” which uses an odd, but incredible mix of marimbas, synthesizers, and their signature African beats.  Next up we have “White Sky” with it’s crisp guitar and simple, yet elegant bassline and the appropriately titled “Holiday”, an upbeat track that can’t help but make you smile.  After we hear “California English”, which is almost ironically titled considering it’s taseful use of autotune (something some artists may never achieve).  Other notable tracks include “Cousins”, “Giving up the Gun”, and “I Think Ur a Contra”.

It’s difficult to compare it to their previous album considering they offer different things to the table.  The self-titled album was so great because it gave us something brand new.  “Contra” takes what they had before, perfects it, and makes it a bit more palatable to those who may not have enjoyed VW first album.  I would say they not only beat the sophomore slump many amazing artists fall victim to, but have actually created an album that is arguably better.

Overall I would give the album a 4.5/5, only because the album’s intensity does level off in the last few tracks.  If you aren’t completely hooked on the first listen, give it a few more chances and I guarantee  it will be some of the best tunes you’ve heard in awhile (hence the late-ish review).

You can check them out at:
The Fox Theater in Pomona on April 14th (Sold Out)

Coachella Music Festival on April 16th

Seriously if you get a chance check them out… their live shows are one not to miss!

– Brian
Electronic Frequencies – Wed 10PM-2AM

Come on down to Rubio’s in the Ackerman food court this Thursday, February 4th to participate in UCLAradio.com’s Baja-themed fundraiser! Enjoy a delicious fish taco knowing you are also supporting the radio station! Plus, you get staffing points for participating! It’ll be just like being transported to a fiesta in México, only better. Much better.

Coming up in less than two weeks on Saturday, February 13^th in downtown Los Angeles is the unique music and art festival known as Lucent L’amour, presented by The Do LaB.

In my blog last week (see here), I introduced you guys to this incredible festival featuring world renowned electronic musical acts, theatrical performances and some of the best muralists from the Los Angeles area painting murals live. The entire event is very interactive, allowing festival-goers to really sink into the experience rather than just simply standing in front of a stage watching artists play. But don’t get me wrong, with a lineup like this, you may opt to hang out by the main stages all night!

The lineup this year is packed with the best of the best in electronic party music. With acclaimed DJs like N.A.S.A., Bassnectar and Stanton Warriors headlining, this is clearly a can’t-miss-event. Last week, I talked about the DJ crew N.A.S.A., their incredible stage presence and appeal to even borderline electronic fans. Another headliner that is certainly worth your time is the English breakbeat duo known as Stanton Warriors. DJ Magazine has voted the duo one of the “50 Best Remixers of All-Time” as well as the “#1 Breaks DJ of All-Time”. They have gotten respect from artists across the globe, doing high profile remixes of songs by Missy Elliot, Gorillaz, Rye Rye, Fatboy Slim, Busta Rhymes and many more. The Stanton Warriors sell out arenas across Europe, and have been a consistent performer at festivals across the entire globe. Their music contains house, electronic, hip-hop and funk elements creating a very unique sound and leaving them unrivaled in the electronic music industry.

To go along with the music that all of us know and love, there is going to be art all over this festival. Last week I mentioned the huge art gallery as well as the live mural painting by The Mac and Retna…and even that is not all. Andrew Jones of conceptart.org will be there doing a live digital painting! Also just recently The Do LaB came up with the “Lightning in a Paintcan Project” where local artists will be painting large mural panels set up all over the venue with 100% used and recycled paint. All of the art pieces will be auctioned off with proceeds going to Sonic Muze, a non-profit organization.

And to top it all off its only a few miles away at the historic downtown Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium. For more information and to buy tickets go to www.lucentlamour.com. But wait! For all the students you can get a nice discount! Go to www.lucentlamour.com/student for more details on how to save $20.

But wait…it gets even better. Tune in to Mix-Ups and Mash-Ups this Sunday, February 7th from 4-6 pm to win a pair of tickets to the event!! And stay tuned to uclaradio.com for more information as we will give out another pair, maybe even TWO PAIRS during the week leading up to the event as well!

Don’t miss this fantastic event.

Malcolm Lee has been a real team leader and one of the go-to players on the UCLA basketball team this season. Expected to start at the two-guard position this season, Lee has done a fine job filling the void at point guard and has shown maturity on a team predominantly filled with underclassmen. This season he has had a strong offensive presence, averaging 12.7 points per game (second on the team) while involving teammates with 3.9 assists per game (also second on the team). The sophomore guard has been a steady force for the Bruins, and as the team begins to get on a roll, he will surely be one for fans to keep an eye on. I got the opportunity to speak with Malcolm about the season and how music impacts his performance in games:

What is your greatest UCLA moment so far?

ML: Beating the University of Washington Huskies on a buzzer beater by Mustafa [Abdul-Hamid] at home.

What are your goals for the team and yourself this season?

ML: Team goals are to win the Pac-10 and my personal goals are to stay healthy.

What are your future career goals?

ML: To be in the NBA.

How does music impact your sport/performance?

ML: Music allows me to stay focused and get away from reality.

What are a few songs you’ve been listening to lately?

ML:

Nas | If I Ruled the World

Nas | One Mic

Nas | If Heaven was a Mile Away

Nas | Hope

2Pac | Thugs Mansion

2Pac | Never Be Peace

2Pac | Me Against the World

Notorious B.I.G. | Juicy

I like to listen to songs that have deep messages and meanings in its lyrics before games. 2Pac, B.I.G. Nas, Jay-Z.