Even now, especially now, there is time for art and culture. Friday night I went to Zellerbach to watch Gamelan Sekar Jaya perform a piece called Kawit Legong: Prince Karna's Dream about the birth of the sacred Legong Bidadari masked dance. A literally and figuratively divine mix of Balinese music, shadow puppets, and dance, Kawit Legong comes to a climax when the dance is used to fight the forces of darkness and restore balance to the world. I was tremendously moved, though I smiled ruefully when I thought of the ravers I know who feel they're doing something similar when they drop ecstasy and dance all night.

When I got home I spaced out in front of Fantasia 2000 for a while. It was not as impressive on my wee TV as when I first saw it three years ago on the Metreon IMAX screen, and given a choice I prefer the original Fantasia over this one any day. I remember admitting to a friend that on the big screen the Resphighi sequence had stirred my emotions, which led him to address an email "To the girl who cries at whales." The final animation set to Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite" just makes me think that Hayao Miyazaki could have done it much better. Ah well, the music is still beautiful.

I so enjoyed myself at the Trouble party at Amnesia last month that I decided to make another foray there Saturday night. Quite fortuitously, Golden Shoulders were playing live on KALX during my drive over (they have two local shows coming up in May, stay tuned!). It was Trouble's one-year anniversary, and they were celebrating with a Dancehall Devastation Dance-a-thon edition. It was officially way too packed to boogie at all, but meriko and Russell and I found a corner and grooved to the aggro beats from the likes of Tomas and Tigerbeat6's Cex. I'm really starting to fall in love with that bar.

And now, my brief summary of the Oscars (what I saw of them anyway): Michael Moore is the man, but you should already know that. Diane Lane wins my award for goddess of the night. Gael García Bernal and Adrien Brody, you are now officially in the pantheon as well. Can someone pay Adrien to kiss me like that? In fact, it wouldn't necessarily have to be Adrien...

Gamelan Sekar Jaya
Fantasia 2000
Golden Shoulders
Tomas Tigerbeat6