PULSE EDITOR: MONICA HANDE
I’ve got two tickets to ‘Paradiso’
■ When trying to woo a
member of the opposite sex,
the perfect date just might be
a cup of joe
By Mason West
Oregon Daily Emerald
Ah coffee — some might say it’s
the perfect date. It’s cheap and will
keep you awake in case anything
else happens.
When choosing a place to go get
coffee, there are a few obvious
choices.
Starbucks is
always
there; so is
Espresso
Roma. Allann Bros, never disap
points. However, for a date, Cafe
Paradiso provides the best atmos
phere.
Paradiso has couches, a very im
portant component in a successful
coffee spot. Anyone who has been
there has grown to love the worn
couches that sink to the verge of col
lapse when you sit on them. Sure,
Starbucks has couches, but the fact
that they lack the personality of use
doesn’t say “coffee house. ”
Let’s face it, the ambiance of a
good date spot is very important.
You need a place that can be inti
mate enough to have a good conver
sation, but at the same time public
enough so the intimacy doesn’t pass
that uncomfortable level. Of course,
this only applies to the early court
ing stages.
Another reason Paradiso wins out
over Starbucks is that it is a smaller
operation. You just don’t sound as
original when you ask someone out
to Starbucks. You could be losing
some major brownie points.
The biggest reason that Paradiso
takes the coffee cake is that it is the
coffee house with the most consis
tent entertainment. So, for the me
nial price of two coffees, you and
your date can take in a show.
The performances revolve
around a loose weekly formula,
from open mic on Tuesdays to vary
ing scheduled performers Thursdav
through Saturday.
The cheapest you can get away
with on the coffee-house date is a
small coffee for $1.30. The biggest
dent in the cash flow is the grande
mocha for $3.50 — still a modest
Album reviews in brief
“Breach,” The Wallflowers
(Interscope)
Talent apparently skips a generation
as Bob Dylan’s kid proves himself to
be gifted only in hisability to churn
out middle-age milquetoast music
while still a young man.
This brand of tasteful-to-a-fault, toe
tapping pop rock scores big with aging
boomers who loathe rap and even
now cringe at the mere mention of
-*. the wo rd “N irva na" yet stil I feel the
narcissistic urge to remain “hip."
(What, you thought Sheryl Crow’s pop
- ularity could be fully explained by
those cheekbones?)
It used to be that you had to go to Ve
gas to hear the previous generation’s
music being exhumed. Now Jakob Dy
lan picks up the tattered flag of the
Woodstock nation and plants it right
inyourfrontyard, pausing onlytobat
those paleblue eyesat the gathered
paparazzi. And if nine out of 10 ac
countants in a blind taste test couldn’t
tell the Wallflowers from Counting
Crows, wef I, they both sound great in
the Lexus, don’t they?
“Rancid,” Rancid
(Hellcat/Epitaph)
Rancid finally sticks a fork in those
pesky “Clash sound-alike” accusations
once and forall, thanks primarily to
the addition of the buzzsaw blur of
pure hardcore.
This particular brand of musical liber
ation comes at a small price, though,
as a couple of those hardcore tracks
whiz by in a monochromatic rush
without leaving much of an impres
sion. But it wouldn’t be a Rancid
record without some killer Engfish
football chanting choruses. And “Let
Me Go,” “Radio Havana” and the bril
liant, all-tuo-brief “Rwanda* will have
you pumping your fist and shouting
right along.
Just as importantly, Rancid remains
one of the best straight-up punk
bands on the planet. When they dive
into songs like “Antennas" and “Black
Derby jacket" the rallying slogan
“Punk’s not dead” suddenly starts
sounding quite believable*
“Anthology: Through The
Years,” Tom Petty (MCA)
Plenty of greatest hits packages that
come out for the holiday rush are slap*
dash eash*in maneuvers, but Tom Pet*
ty’s latest two-disc album actually
serves a fan-friendly purpose.
It's more comprehensive, and up-to
date, than his previous single-disc h its
compilation and way more affordable
than his mammoth boxed set. And by
liningup hit after hit after hit—from
“Breakdown" and “Listen To Her
Heart" through “The Waiting,” “Yer So
Bad" and “I Won’t Back Down”—it
makes a strong case for Petty the
artist. He hasn’t ever been exception
ally innovative and he basically traf
fics in three-minute car-rad io hits, but
very few folks have been able to stay
sharp for as long as he has.
“Beneath The Velvet Sun,”
Shawn Mullins (Columbia)
From the Aren’t Your 15 Minutes Up
Yet File: "Lullaby" boy Shawn Mullins
is back with this new album, which
has another dose of his loopy Tom
Waits-on-a-folk-funk-bender sound,
plus several world-weary heart-tug
gers for the overly dramatic “Dawson’s
Creek” set.
“Ultimate Collection,”
Aimee Mann (Hip-O)
Ever since the “Magnolia” soundtrack
blew up, everyone’s an Aimee Mann
fan. If you're just faking it, you can
brush up on your Mann history with
her “Ultimate Collection" compila
tion. It smartly packages up every
thing from her breakthrough hit
“Voices Carry” through a bunch of
songs from her overlooked classic “I’m
With Stupid” disc.
TMS Campus
price. But if you really want to date
on a tight budget, pick up a stamp
card by the cash register. For every
10 drinks you buy, you get one free.
So five dates later, you get one date
for half price.
Paradiso is located on 115 W.
Broadway. It is open Monday
though Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to
11 p.m., Friday and Saturday from
7:30 a.m. to midnight and 9 a.m. to 5
p.m. on Sunday.
Cafe Paradiso
Atmosphere: ★★★★☆
Where: 115 W. Broadway
Cost: $2.60 and up for two people
Romance factor: out of 5
This weekend’s music schedule:
Friday: Glenn David Zucker and guest
Saturday: Basic Assumption (acoustic
alternative)
Bead It!
o ® Beginning & Advanced
Beading
Classes
Stop by & check out
our class list or
visit our website:
hariequinbeads.com
arlequin
Beads & Jewelry
1016 Willamette ♦ 683-5903
ODE Classifieds
346-4343
0102971
Community
Center for the
Pertarmmg Arts
8th fit
Lincoln
■ Tonight ■
TomLandaandthe
Paperboys
Celtic / Uitin / Btnegrass
$11.50 ADVANCE, $13 at door, 8:00 pm
■ Friday ■
lolly MOfl 0 Release Party
wnuMotfl, That 1 Cuy
Heavy Rock
$8 door, 9:00 pm
■ Saturday ■
Kin? Black Acid
0 Release Party with Helio Sequence,
Mountain Con
Psychedelic Rock
$8 door, 9:00 pm
__ ■ Monday ■
The X-ecutioners,
Souls of Mischief,
Pep Love, The Chosen, Ol’Dominion,
D| Wicked, DIB-Mello
Hip-Hop
$1; advance, $16 door, 8:30 pm
All Ages Welcome • 687-2746
plVIenamins *
&BRElV£r,
A Place for Families & Friends
Delicious Pub Fare
Handcrafted Ales and Wines
East 19th Street Cafe
1485 E. 19th Street 342-4205
North Bank
22 Club Road 343-5622
High Street Brewery & Cafe
1243 High Street 345-4905
All food, ales and wines available to go
WWW.MCMENAMINS.COM
1
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