The Chronicle

It's that time of the year, when three months of tenting pays off, when Cameron Crazies are at their finest, when the two blues battle it out once and for all-at least for the regular season.

So simple. So to the point. Indeed, it is fun to do bad things.

Chuck Palahniuk belongs to a class of writers raised on film. His novels read at the same cadence of an easily-consumed blockbuster, rife with cleverness and gross-out humor.

In the midst of the afternoon sun-soaked gallery, an artwork entitled "Veronica's Desire" depicts an undeniably phallic-shaped purple flower that fills the frame of the image

Stephen Malkmus has been an incredibly influential figure in music since his legendary band Pavement's first album, Slanted and Enchanted, released in 1991.

As you may or may not have noticed -if you are an average Duke student I am going to bet on the latter-recess has unabashedly supported Barack "Hussein in the Membrane" Obama in this current presidential election.

Weighing in at a slim 1.3 ounces and available in nine different colors, the fourth generation of Apple's iPod nano ($149 for 8 GB and $199 for 16 GB) has secured its spot as the sleekest and prettiest of the bunch.

Located in Tuscany, Arezzo is often cited as the birthplace of the Italian renaissance, making it the perfect site to study art. Film/Video/Digital Associate Director Josh Gibson had that opportunity this summer.

In just over two months much of the class of 2008 will bid Durham and the rest of the Triangle farewell as Duke's newest alumni head off to new jobs and graduate schools across the country and beyond. Thankfully, however, there's still time to enjoy much of the area's most distinctive dining.

T.I. has swagger, and he's not going to let anyone forget it.

In a recent visit to Chapel Hill, while on the Funny Or Die Comedy Tour, Semi-Pro star Will Ferrell spoke with recess' Varun Lella about sports, growing up and future roles.

With the release of Young Jeezy's third studio album, The Recession, he has created a new species of musician

After a 27-year hiatus since their last collaboration, David Byrne and Brian Eno return with Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, which they dub an "electronic gospel" record that is sure to leave most yawning.

Sad you missed out on the short shorts and big hair of 1970s basketball? As evinced by Semi-Pro, you shouldn't be.

As the last remnants of summer fade into the chaos of midterms, Duke University Union's Joe College Day will offer students a chance to say goodbye to their laid-back days in style.

Robin Thicke's new album, Something Else, hardly reinvents the R&B genre. Instead, the 31-year-old singer is intent on bringing music back to the good ol' days of soul and funk.

I'll be honest. I really thought this movie would suck. I saw the title and rolled my eyes. When I read the plot synopsis, I sighed because I knew just what was headed my way-another flat, disappointing action flick that would leave me more frustrated than entertained.

It's a feeling many college students get: that hopeless, uninspired hole that opens up while staring at a blank document on a laptop screen. That feeling is how director Andrew Wagner begins his new film, Starting Out in the Evening, except Leonard Schiller exchanges a Red Bull for a cup of tea and a MacBook Pro for a typewriter.

With a reality show on MTV and the recent publicity on prime time (think "Gossip Girl") Shwayze is easy to write off as a rising corporate pop icon.

Vin Diesel is an actor with talent. But much like Ben Kingsley, he possesses a knack for taking on terrible roles.

"A piano's all I got/and I know that ain't a lot," Ben Folds laments wryly in "The Frown Song," the third song on Way to Normal, his first release in three years.

Chuck Klosterman may have taken up fiction, but even in his first novel he hasn't stopped being a critic.

In The House Bunny, Shelley (Anna Faris), a Playboy Bunny-turned-sorority house mother, is constantly labeled vapid. Her character is no match, however, for the vapidity of the film.

Erykah Badu has always been one to buck trends and create her own style, whether in her neo-soul music or audacious and colorful fashion choices. Her newest release, New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War, continues Badu's habit of defying expectations. The album, Badu's first release in five years, is the initial volume in a two (or perhaps three)part series in which Badu attempts to "talk for my race and my planet.

Pavement fans who never really got over the breakup can finally breathe a sigh of collective relief. Stephen Malkmus-the face that launched a thousand collaborations-has finally quieted the clamor of the hipster masses with his new album, Real Emotional Trash.

Kaboom, a comedy written by Michael Small, follows the misfortunes and mishaps of a big-time San Francisco con artist named Rodney.

When Jessica Laun graduated from Duke in 2005 with a major in music theory and composition, she found herself badgered by people asking "just what [she] was going to do with [her] degree."

The Black Crowes have always worn their influences on their sleeve, satisfied to echo the heavy roots rock of the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. Their newest release, Warpaint-the band's first studio album in seven years-has all the hallmarks of a rock album from the early 1970s: raspy vocals reminiscent of Rod Stewart and Mick Jagger courtesy of Chris Robinson, big distorted guitars by Rich Robinson and North Mississippi all-star Luther Dickinson, hammond organs, pedal steel and songs drawing from blues, soul, country, gospel and folk.

Actor-turned-magician Joshua Lozoff will soon offer Triangle audiences a chance to see some real mind-benders at Durham's Manbites Dog Theater on March 16.