VHS tapes have been relics of the past for quite a while. Even DVDs are beginning to seem outdated as Blu-ray discs and other digital media grow in popularity.

Nonetheless, many undoubtedly remember the squeaky, shiny plastic of home Disney movies or the long VHS rewinding process after (and often before) the movie – and few will forget anytime soon.

Speculations concerning the death of VHS arose when Distribution Video and Audio ceased its production of VHS tapes last October, marking the end of an era in video technology. The company began in 1988 as a video supplier to major rental chains, and by the end of 2008, it reigned as the last VHS distributor in the United States.

Questions arise as to whether the end of VHS’s popularity is truly the final nail in its coffin. Though production in the United States has officially ended, many believe that the VHS format will continue to be a useful media tool for years to come.

“It totally revolutionized the whole concept of home entertainment,” said Jesse Drew, acting director of the technocultural studies department. “When the technology came out, it radically transformed people’s home lives in a way that will be appreciated for a long time to come.“

VHS stands for Video Home System, developed by JVC (Victory Company of Japan), and was first released in the United States in 1976. Early development met fierce competition with Sony’s Betamax format as each struggled to balance picture and audio quality with affordability and ease-of-use.

Moreover, the development and eventual standardization of VHS in the home recording market further strengthened home video recording itself, in conjunction with VCRs and video cameras.

“The ability to capture video is a very complex and technical task,” Drew said. “When they invented television, it wasn’t until the mid-‘60s that they even developed a way of capturing video. It’s not like recorded video has been around that long.“

Kristina Luo, a junior biochemistry major who works at the Hart Media Distribution Lab, said that professors and students continue to check out VHS tapes on a regular basis. According to Luo, some professors continue to record their lectures onto VHS tapes for students, made available through the lab.

“It depends on the class,” Luo said. “Some watch old Shakespeare movies or very old movies that are only available on VHS [tapes] that we have in our collection.“

Luo said out of the roughly 10,300 DVDs and VHS tapes in the lab’s collection, the VHS section makes up the majority. Moreover, the demand for videotapes and DVDs is about even in the lab.

Each media cabinet in most UC Davis classrooms contains VCRs, the primary player for VHS tapes.

But, unlike other older forms of media such as film or vinyl, the vulnerability of VHS tapes is a limiting factor. The life of a videotape is limited by time, repeated use and moving parts, all of which cause picture and sound quality to deteriorate.

“[There’s an] awful amount of material on VHS that’s going to disappear if the machines aren’t around to copy them,” Drew said. “The life of a tape is not forever – the tape starts to fall apart – it can be a real tragedy.“

Many other movie rental stores like Blockbuster Video no longer carry VHS tapes, and competition with legal and illegal downloading as well as online services like iTunes and Netflix further signal the long-established popularity of digital formatting.

Some attribute the everlasting nature of the format to the value of the older tapes. Large collections of VHS and their continued compatibility offer incentives to keep the tapes, at least for a few more years.

“We still find some demand for them,” said John Merchant, owner of 49‘er Video in Davis. “We continue to carry VHS for which we can’t find a DVD, and there are surprisingly still a lot of titles that have never been reissued [on] DVDs. Rather than to discontinue to offer those, we continue to maintain a pretty extensive inventory of them.“

Despite its inevitable extinction, Drew hopes that the VHS format will still be preserved.

“I hope they don’t phase them out for a while, because there is still so much tape on VHS,” Drew said. “It would eliminate your ability to [watch] a lot of stuff that’s not on DVD.“

JUSTIN T. HO can be reached at arts@theaggie.org. 

Hello, Dolly! is probably the musical that most of us have heard of but few have actually seen on stage. If this describes your experience with the musical, now is your chance to see the play performed locally by the Davis Musical Theatre Company.

The title character of Hello, Dolly! confesses time after time that she is a woman who loves to meddle in the lives of others. The famous matchmaking skill of Mrs. Dolly Gallagher-Levi, a widow from New York City, is only one of the ways she attempts to “help” her neighbors. Her helpless victims are the downtrodden Barnaby and Cornelius, oppressed by their menacing employer and both desperate to kiss a girl. Meanwhile, she decides that the same menacing employer, Mr. Vandergelder, would make a perfect second husband and is determined to bring this idea to fruition.

Being in a musical, especially one as well-known and campy as Hello, Dolly!, is the perfect opportunity for any actor to act completely over-the-top. Only half the cast really went for it.

As Dolly Levi, actress Mary Young seems well suited to the role and obviously enjoyed herself onstage, but her singing severely lacked strength. Then again, Dolly singing in silence could be attributed to the overpowering orchestra, to which many a cast member seemed to fall victim.

The real efficacy of the play lay in the male leads, each with their own individual approach. Ebullient and energetic, David Holmes as Cornelius brought to the stage rapid dialogue and physical expression. Steve Isaacson’s portrayal of Horace Vandergelder as somewhat of a crotchety old man worked well, mainly because he nailed the character vocalization. Overall, there was great commitment from the men.

For working on the budget of a small community theater, the cast and crew did well with what they had. The community theater enthusiasm made up for all the show’s little quirks. The play may seem a bit outdated to today’s college students, but sometimes seeing something so different from what we’re used to is half the fun.

LAURA KROEGER can be reached at arts@theaggie.org. 

Rating: 2/5

Defiance‘s plot is simple: Three brothers lead a group of Jewish people out of rural Belarus and into the forest in order to save them from sure death by German Nazis. On paper, it has all the makings of a well-rounded, convincing film: It’s set during World War II, its protagonists are Jewish rebels struggling to survive and it includes the star power of Daniel Craig to push it forward. On film, however, Defiance falls flat.

Edward Zwick, the director and co-screenwriter, can’t figure out how to make viewers care about the characters‘ struggles. He tries close-up shots of Craig’s striking blue eyes but ends up with only vacuous beauty. He tries to buy our sympathy with brotherly love but instead creates mere caricatures of familial relationships. And that’s pretty much all we’re left with – caricatures. Zwick’s dialogue is forced and awkward and the cinematography is as drab as a made-for-TV movie.

The plot never violates any conventions either. It’s a little disappointing, too – one would think a movie that is so radical at its core, a movie about Jewish men killing Nazis, would buck Hollywood tradition here and there. Not so. Defiance is as predictable as a Walt Disney film in its conflicts and, even more unfortunately, its resolutions.

There are, however, a few notable sequences. Zwick, at one point, cleverly switches back and forth between shots of a traditional Jewish wedding and the Russian Army raiding a Nazi convoy. It’s convincing and proves to be an interesting parallel. Later in the film, the Jewish refugees capture a German soldier and beat him to death while claiming revenge for their murdered families. It’s melodramatic and plays out like one of those team-building sequences from a family film – the scene when everyone forgets their differences and joins the team. Except in this case, it’s a bunch of people viciously killing a Nazi. For some reason, it just doesn’t work. And neither does Defiance.

ZACK FREDERICK can be reached at arts@theaggie.org. 

It should be no news to you that we‘re in a state of economic crisis, so I won’t elaborate any further.

I will say, however, is that such times have really put my life into a whole new perspective. A poor college student‘s diet has helped me shed the baby fat, rising gas prices have helped me “go green” and my fashion choices as a “recessionista“ (read: Consignment/thrift store shopping) have changed my wardrobe for the better.

One burgeoning concern I do have, though, is entering the dismal job market after graduation, a.k.a. The Future.

Still, even in these tough times, I try to keep a positive outlook that I’ll get a good job after I graduate this June – you know, besides the fact that I have no clue what I want to do, the fact that I haven’t saved up any money in preparation for The Future or that my degree in linguistics will probably be as useful to me as a degree in English.

With these factors in mind, I’ve decided to take the opportunity to take a big change of course in my career path: When I grow up, I want to be a cult classic.

Before you cast off my career goals as the mere product of a silly little girl‘s hopes and dreams, I must say that I‘ve taken a very sensible approach to my ambitions. Of course, I realize now that any work experience I’ve gained at The Aggie or having a relatively decent GPA probably won’t help me climb the ladder toward cult classic-dom, so I’ve taken the time to outline a list of possible requirements to gaining my own cult following. Other than fame, talent and loyal fans, it really doesn’t seem too unfeasible.

For your run-of-the-mill renowned artist, the key to instant fame was death of the artist. For someone who wants her own cult following, the key is to be short-lived, then resurrected.

After high DVD sales of “Family Guy,“ the formerly defunct television show got itself back on Fox. In a similar situation, the sci-fi show “Firefly” only had one season, but DVD sales were so popular that the series was followed up by the movie “Serenity.” Despite low ratings during its original run on Fox, there are currently talks of an “Arrested Development“ movie (sans George Michael, I hear). Basically, you‘ve got to make the people demand more.

Another crucial step to achieving cult status is relative mainstream obscurity, because it’s important to be selective and stuff. Wikipedia defines a cult figure as having a highly devoted but relatively small group of fans.

In other words, let the fans do all the work for you! As you can see, my work ethic is strong and my standards are set high. This is probably because my parents have always taught me that I can go the distance, reach for the stars and so on. I refuse to settle for the whole “15 minutes of fame“ garbage or even measly sleeper hit recognition.

One more thing to remember is to maintain artistic integrity – don’t let the industry control you if you’re ever asked for things like “versatility” or “inventiveness,” because the beauty of having a cult following is that fans like you for being yourself. Think of figures like Chuck Norris, Samuel L. Jackson or Christopher Walken who have made quite a comfortable living for themselves by playing themselves.

I just hope that if I’m lucky enough, I’ll be able to reach the “so-bad-it’s-good” prestige.

RACHEL FILIPINAS wants you to continue with the feedback, any at all. She would also like to wish her mother a happy 45th birthday, even though her mom probably doesn’t read her columns. Rachel can be reached at rmfilipinas@ucdavis.edu. 

Artist: Andrew Bird

Album: Noble Beast

Label: Fat Possum Records

Rating: 5

While some musicians may consider a guitar solo here and there, Andrew Bird prefers to whistle.

And since he’s whistling, consider me blown away. His newest album, Noble Beast, channels everything he learned from being a classical violinist, jazz musician and starving rock star into one comprehensive and diverse piece. He may start a song out with some beautiful overlapping string number he learned back at Northwestern University – but he sure as hell won’t end it that way.

Take the song “Souverian,” which begins with Bird’s signature upbeat whistled melody, but evolves into a heartbreaking and chilling hymn. The chorus repeats in each different section of the song with the same lyrics: “Birds will sing / still my lover won’t return to me / You promise spring / But still my love won’t return to me.”

While I initially disliked the mismatched chorus, it grew on me once I listened to those lyrics. At that point, I couldn’t imagine why anyone would leave Andrew Bird.

The only song I didn’t like was “Nomenclature,” which seemed scattered and slightly hasty. But even so, it was part of a showcase of the many different sounds, styles and melodies Bird explores throughout the album.

Noble Beast seems more polished than his past works, Armchair Apocrypha and The Mysterious Production of Eggs. It’s almost as if he took the ghosts of his past songs and brought them back to life in a really slammin‘ body. The vocals in “Masterswarm” and “Anoanimal” are more operatic in valor, but still sound sweet with the delicate strings in accompaniment. As a whole, it’s clear that Noble Beast is the product of Bird’s most careful and refined efforts.

Noble Beast will be released Jan. 20.

Give these tracks a listen: “Oh No,” “Effigy”

For fans of: Peter Bjorn & John, Sufjan Stevens, Radiohead

– Lauren Steussy

Last week, UC Davis students lined up to audition for one of the world’s most renowned contemporary dance choreographers.

John Jasperse is the winter quarter UC Davis Granada Artist-in-Residence. He has been choreographer/artistic director of the John Jasperse Company New York for the last 3 decades and has received numerous grants, fellowships and awards, including a New York Dance and Performance “Bessie” Award.

Anticipation, adrenaline and nervous energy surged through the bodies of each hopeful dancer during last week’s audition. Masters of Fine Arts acting candidate Anne Reeder, who was among the lucky dancers who were cast, said the dance combinations asked of everyone were incredibly challenging.

“John warned us at the beginning of the audition that he was going to push us and start with challenging combinations just to get a feel for what kind of levels of dancers he had in the room,” Reeder said.

Jasperse described his new dance piece, which is yet to be titled, as examining “truth and lies and subjectivity between what’s apparently real and what’s not, what’s alive and what’s the truth.” He explained that modern-day social and political issues inspired him to play with the idea of belief systems and reasons we construct them.

This intensely conceptual aspect of Jasperse’s work was all the more reason that those auditioning needed to step up their game. Second-year MFA acting student Hope Mirlis felt the pressure of proving herself during the audition.

“Since I am primarily an actor, it was difficult for me to pick up the steps. His movements are not something that come naturally,” Mirlis said.

Junior theater and communication double major Mathew Escarsega said his audition consisted of re-creating a two to three minute dance combination.

“[Jasperse] really wanted to see if we could take direction well,” Escarsega said.

However, along with the challenges of meeting Jasperse’s standards, comes great growth.

“A chance to perform in a new work with a choreographer of John Jasperse’s caliber is a gift and an opportunity I may never have again,” Mirlis said.

Escarsega elaborated that he thought auditioning was a great opportunity for him, both to work with Jasperse and to try his hand at modern dance.

“This is a whole different realm for me, but it’s just something you have to try,” he said.

Jasperse equally expressed his enthusiasm for working with UC Davis.

“You encounter a support structure that really isn’t available as an independent artist, so it’s great to be able to access that,” Jasperse said.

Reeder said that she anticipates her experience working with Jasperse to be ultimately inspiring.

“He is creating this work with and for us. I think working with John is going to be unforgettable. He is so intelligent and talented, and I am honored to be able to work with him and watch him work.“

JULIA McCANDLESS can be reached at arts@theaggie.org. 

MUSIC

Far, Automatic Static, By Sunlight

Thursday, 7:30 p.m., $15

Empire Events Center in Sacramento

A brief look into the history of Sactown band Far: The band’s been around since 1992, they managed to escape the formulas of the “butthead-rock” genre popularized by Limp Bizkit in 1998 and they split in 1999. Ten years later, Far is back – most notably with their cover of Ginuwine’s hit R&B song “Pony.“

Th‘ Losin Streaks, The Rantouls, NoBunny, English Singles

Friday, 9 p.m

Luigi’s Fungarden in Sacramento

We’re already well into this digital age of technological gadgetry and other newfangled contraptions, but I can always appreciate a good throwback to remind me of a bygone era – especially if aforementioned throwback involves classic garage rock of the ‘60s, lots of high energy and, most importantly, men in tight clothing.

Nevada Backwards

Friday, 10 p.m., $3 to $5, 21

The G Street Pub

What does Nevada backwards spell, exactly? The answer is “adaven,” which the band defines as the blending of unconventional instruments and elements of rock ‘n‘ roll, country and funk to create fun, energetic music.

Mudlark

Saturday, 8 p.m.

Cloud Forest Café at 222 D St.

Besides offering a tasty cup of coffee (and other delicious beverages), Cloud Forest is also serving up an earthy blend of original and traditional music from this acoustic trio.

Black Mackerel, N.F.H., Konami Code

Saturday, 9 p.m., $5, 21

The Stag in Woodland

With lyrics like “My love is a whore” (in the song “Lovewhore“) and “sarcasm, booze, insanity and poop” amongst their list of musical influences, it’s pretty obvious that Sacramento trio Black Mackerel don’t take no guff – I mean, shit.

Secondhand Serenade, Meg & Dia, The White Tie Affair, Rookie of the Year

Sunday, 7:30 p.m., $18 in advance, $20 day of show

The Boardwalk in Orangevale

At first, I was quick to cast off Secondhand Serenade as another generic indie-acoustic-boy band act, but after a bit of research, I learned that they are a generic indie-acoustic-boy band act from Menlo Park! That basically changes everything, don’t you think?

Shark Toys, Fine Steps, GGreen, Aaron Brown

Sunday, 8 p.m.

C Street

When I think of shark toys, the first things that come to mind are either humans who don’t know how to swim or other aquatic wildlife that become victims of these misunderstood creatures. Then I gave lo-fi post-punk band Shark Toys a proper listen, and my life changed for the better. Also worth noting is static-y Folsom noisemakers GGreen, whose most recent music video features clips from one of my own favorite movies, 10 Things I Hate About You.

Polka Dot Dot Dot, Shelby Sifers, Oh Foot

Tuesday, 9 p.m., $3 to $5

Primary Concepts at 219 E St.

Folk lovers, if you are not yet familiar with Olympia-based label Bicycle Records (hint: They signed Kimya Dawson side project Antsy Pants), make it a point to acquaint yourselves. Featuring an assortment of banjo, harp, ukulele, guitar and handclaps, Polka Dot Dot Dot provides a charming medley of sweet and sometimes silly harmonies. Quips about cootie shots and other childhood games aside, Polka triple-D pose an even more profound question: Are there three polka dots, or does the polka go on forever?

AT THE MOVIES

Slumdog Millionaire

Now playing at the Varsity Theatre on Second Street

Interesting fact: This Golden Globe winner and Oscar contender was originally slated for a straight-to-DVD release! Does this mean that the newest installation of “Without A Paddle” isn’t nearly as terrible as commercials lead me to believe?

Choke

Wednesday, 8 p.m.

123 Science Lecture Hall

Chuck Palahniuk, yes. Anjelica Huston, yes. Sam Rockwell, yes. Free admission and a convenient on-campus venue? Even better!

ART / THEATER

subject/verb/object

On display now at the Design Museum

Artist and designer Simon Johnston investigates the nature of visible language, including issues of semantics and operation. A free opening talk and artist reception will take place Jan. 22 at 6:30 p.m. in Everson Hall.

Hello, Dolly!

Friday and Saturday, 8:15 p.m. and Sunday at 2:25 p.m., $18 general admission, $16 with a student ID

607 Pena Drive

Presented by the Davis Musical Theater Company, this musical tells the tale of a brassy widow named Dolly and all of her exploits as a meddling matchmaker.

RACHEL FILIPINAS can be reached at arts@theaggie.org. 

If you’re looking for a great action comedy, look no further than “24.” The series, told in real-time, features Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland), a practically invincible secret agent who can kill 10 men in about five seconds, disarm nuclear devices and even kidnap heads of state.

After a one-year hiatus due to the writer’s strike, the show’s seventh season returned Jan. 11. The premiere began where “24: Redemption,” a two-hour special that aired in November, ended. This time, the show is set in Washington, D.C. because terrorists were getting just as sick of Los Angeles as we were.

In this edition, the FBI enlists Jack to track down an old friend, Tony Almeida (Carlos Bernard). Tony died in a previous “24” season, but the show’s producers thought fans would like to see him return. It turns out that Tony was only dead “for 10 minutes,” but that isn’t even the most absurd twist in the premiere.

The undead Tony has betrayed the U.S. and is a leader in a terrorist cell aiming to hack the United States infrastructure. Apparently, a special “CLP device” allows terrorists to hijack Air Traffic Control, our water supply and our power grid. Maybe the U.S. should buy a better firewall.

The show’s side plot features just-elected President Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones), who must decide whether the U.S. should topple a genocidal African regime. To make matters worse, she must cope with her son’s recent suicide, which we soon learn wasn’t really a suicide. Perhaps the sub-plot wouldn’t have seemed as trite if Jones‘ delivery of her lines wasn’t so cliché.

“24“ was once a taut thriller, but it has descended into the realm of guilty pleasure. The characters have cookie cutter personalities, the plot is preposterous and there are so many twists and turns that nothing comes as a surprise anymore. The show lacks consistency, depth and direction.

Still, “24” does just enough to satisfy the appetites of hardcore fans. After all, most people watch to see Jack Bauer do what he does best: beat bad guys. Newcomers will appreciate the comedy of an indestructible super agent ready to conquer whatever task the whims of the writers dictate. But can Jack save “24” from another drop in ratings? Even he may be incapable of that.

PATRICK McCARTNEY can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.