2 THE SECTION OPENING HEADER ACT JUNE 22-29, 2022 STAFF follow us ONLINE www.goeasternoregon.com TWITTER twitter.com/GoEasternOregon FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/ goeasternoregon INSTAGRAM www.instagram.com/ goeasternoregon contact us RAISING THE CURTAIN ON THIS WEEK’S ISSUE What we’re into Robicheaux I like to think that newspa- per reporters are a little bit like detectives. Like detectives, we interview people to get at the truth, follow paper trails to see where the facts may lead us and view the world with a certain amount of jaded skepticism. (Un- like detectives, fortunately for us, we almost never get shot at.) That’s probably one reason I enjoy a good mystery yarn. One of my favorite mystery writers is James Lee Burke. I’ve read all 23 of Burke’s Dave Robicheaux novels — some more than once — and I hope he’ll give us a few more before he’s through. Robicheaux is an ex-New Orleans cop-turned- sheriff’s detective in a small Louisiana town, where he en- counters no shortage of myster- ies to unravel. A deeply conflicted hero tor- mented by alcoholism, a penchant for violence and ghosts out of the past (both personal and histori- cal), Robicheaux is redeemed by a bedrock decency and an unwav- ering commitment to justice as he navigates a Deep South culture that is still defined by old racial divisions and class structures even as it struggles with all the challenges of modern living. What elevates these books above the ordinary, however, are Burke’s tremendous gifts as a writer. His lyrical prose brings the Louisiana bayous to life with vivid descriptions that draw on all five senses as his troubled hero grap- ples with themes of individual sin, collective guilt and personal redemption that are way above a detective’s pay grade. If you’re looking for an engag- ing literary mystery, James Lee Burke is your man. — BENNETT HALL, EDITOR, BLUE MOUNTAIN EAGLE Lisa Britton Go! Editor editor@goeasternoregon.com 541-406-5274 New releases Sarah Smith Foals, ‘Life is Yours’ Calendar Coordinator calendar@goeasternoregon.com SUBMIT NEWS Submit your event information by Monday for publication the following week (two weeks in advance is even better!). Go! Magazine is published Wednesdays in the  Wallowa County Chieftain and Blue Mountain Eagle. It publishes Thursdays in The Observer, Baker City Herald and East Oregonian. ADVERTISING AND SUBSCRIPTIONS Baker City Herald 541-523-3673 The Observer 541-963-3161 East Oregonian 541-276-2211 Wallowa County Chieftain 541-426-4567 Blue Mountain Eagle 541-575-0710 Hermiston Herald 541-567-6457 Indie-pop art rockers Foals gave us more than enough to process with their last offering. Now they seem to want us to dance. And dance we must. The upbeat, very funky and always brilliantly layered, 11-track “Life Is Yours” captures a band between clouds, the perfect slice of summer fun. Look no further than “2001,” an infectious track of disco- smeared funk, and “2AM,” a propulsive ode to not going home alone. In 2019, the British band gave us not one but two albums in its “Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost” double album, sepa- rated by seven months. It was complex, socially conscious stuff, with exits buried under- ground, dead foxes, burning hedges and rain. Now the sun is out. “I’ve packed my bags/I’ve found new ground,” frontman Yannis Philippakis sings. Escapism may be the word as Foals look back on parties and recreational drug-fueled gatherings, a clear reaction to lockdowns and isolation. “’I’ve been waiting all day inside/Wait- ing for a summer sky/When we run wild,” Philippakis sings. Having shed two members, Foals — now a three-piece with multi-instrumentalist Philippa- kis, drummer Jack Bevan and guitarist and keyboardist Jimmy Smith — oddly don’t sound like they’ve lost 40% of their sound. They’ve tapped several differ- ent producers this time and a varied, addictive take on the upbeat has been achieved. The second half is positively dance hall psychedelic, with “Wild Green” a synth-led ode to spring, and “The Sound” almost veering into dubstep. “Under the Radar” has Philippakis’ voice heavily synthesized in an ’80s New Wave song skeleton and ends with his falsetto soaring. The shimmering “Crest of the Waves” sounds like it was birthed in a ray of sunshine. Philippakis says he’s waiting in the warm waves of the Caribbe- an, and isn’t it time we paddled out to meet him? — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS