1. B-Sides

Strummin' with the Devil

B-Sides walks a Mean Street, is saved by the Apostlez.

By Shae Moseley and Keegan Hamilton

Published: November 14, 2007

The usual conflict among Van Halen fans in St. Louis is the age-old Dave vs. Sammy argument. But with the recent postponement of the band's show here — on top of years of inner-band...

2. Cafe

The Secret Is Out

Starrs is great for wine — and for dinner. Who knew?

By Ian Froeb

Published: November 14, 2007

Starrs might have had the least flashy opening of any area restaurant this year. Regular patrons of Bud Starr's spacious Richmond Heights wine shop and gourmet market probably knew...

3. Critics' Picks

John Mellencamp

7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 15. Scottrade Center, South 14th Street and Clark Avenue.

By Annie Zaleski

Published: November 14, 2007

At this point, you probably want to smash your TV the second the Chevy truck ad featuring John Mellencamp's "Our Country" flashes onscreen. But although the loping, back porch-twang...

4. Critics' Picks

Saturday Looks Good to Me

9 p.m. Saturday, November 17. The Bluebird, 2706 Olive Street.

By Christian Schaeffer

Published: November 14, 2007

Songwriter and guitarist Fred Thomas leads the rotating cast of Saturday Looks Good to Me, a band that supplements its low-key indie rock with touches of genteel Motown soul and a...

5. Critics' Picks

All That Remains

6 p.m. Sunday, November 18. Pop's, 1403 Mississippi Avenue, Sauget, Illinois.

By Ryan Wasoba

Published: November 14, 2007

In the first few seconds of an average All That Remains song, the harmonizing guitar riffage and machine-gun bass drum make you think you know what you're in for: metal. A few seconds...

6. Critics' Picks

Neil Young/Pegi Young

7:30 p.m. Sunday, November 18. The Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard.

By Roy Kasten

Published: November 14, 2007

The eternal enfant savant Neil Young calls Chrome Dreams II "a form based on some of my original recordings, with a large variety of songs, rather than one specific type of song,"...

7. Critics' Picks

Of Montreal

8 p.m. Monday, November 19. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard.

By Christian Schaeffer

Published: November 14, 2007

Longtime Of Montreal fans are probably still scratching their heads over the band's transformation from paisley-printed jangle-popsters to day-glo disco saviors. The about-face has...

8. Critics' Picks

Fishbone

7:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 21. City Museum, 701 North 15th Street.

By Ryan Wasoba

Published: November 14, 2007

Ska will never die, because Fishbone will never let it. Formed in 1979, the Los Angeles band has survived at least two waves of the genre and continues to tour and release records....

9. Critics' Picks

Treaty of Paris

7 p.m. Wednesday, November 21. 2 Cents Plain, 1114 Olive Street.

By Shae Moseley

Published: November 14, 2007

On "Why Am I Still Broke?" Treaty of Paris lead singer Mike Chorvat laments, "Where did all my money go/If I sold out long ago/Then why am I still broke?" — a catchy but perhaps...

10. Drink of the Week

2006 Black Opal Cabernet Merlot

Somewhere in the Caribbean

By Kristie McClanahan

Published: November 14, 2007

When the woman seated across from you at dinner reveals she's a nurse at a Supermax prison, you've got a couple options. You can look at her beatifically, voicing your admiration to...

11. Film

Badlands

Coen brothers transcend themselves with No Country for Old Men.

By Scott Foundas

Published: November 14, 2007

Hold still" — it's what the hunters say to the hunted in Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men. The first time we hear it, it's the out-of-work Vietnam vet Llewelyn Moss...

12. Columns

¡ASK A MEXICAN!

America: We're #2!

By Gustavo Arellano

Published: November 14, 2007

Dear Mexican: Is Lou Dobbs right when he says that close to 80 hospitals in California have been closed down because of the illegals, or is he lying? Cabrónes No Necesitamos Dear...

13. DVDish

Once Upon a Time

By Robert Wilonsky, Jim Ridley and Jordan Harper

Published: November 14, 2007

The Princess Bride: 20th Anniversary Edition (MGM) As far as anniversary-edition DVDs go, The Princess Bride is crushingly disappointing: no Rob Reiner commentary track, no outtakes,...

14. Film

Small Wonder

Mr. Magorium is far less fantastical than its title.

By Ella Taylor

Published: November 14, 2007

Midway through the amiable children's movie Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium comes a speech that writer-director Zach Helm probably has been saving for use ever since he discovered the...

15. Film

Short Takes

Published: November 14, 2007

Love in the Time of Cholera: This is easily — easily — the worst adaptation of a major novel by a Nobel Prize-winning author. Director Mike Newell (Harry Potter and the...

16. Game On

Shred Cred

You wanted the best — you got the best: Guitar Hero III.

By Chris Ward

Published: November 14, 2007

Show of hands: Has anyone not heard of Guitar Hero at this point? You sir, in the back row clutching the Ratt cassette — you're the only one? All right, pal, here's your recap:...

17. Homespun

Jon Hardy & the Public

Working in Love

By Christian Schaeffer

Published: November 14, 2007

Jon Hardy's voice is both strong and soft, which means he's able to belt out full-bodied declarations with vocals that are like the texture of warm, worn flannel. In places on Working...

18. Keep It Down

Double Cheeseburger

$2.49
QuikTrip
2851 Gravois Avenue

By Malcolm Gay

Published: November 14, 2007

Si Non Oscillas, Noli Tintinnare! Really, there's no better slogan to describe the party we've been having here in St. Louis ever since government researchers reported that overweight...

19. Music

Darkness on the Edge of Town

Nashville singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier embodies the word "intense." And that's a good thing.

By Roy Kasten

Published: November 14, 2007

Maybe it was when Lester Bangs marked James Taylor for death, or maybe when Bob Dylan found religion and damned to hell all the hipster song-strummers he sired, but at some point in...

20. News Real

Field of Screams

UMSL baseball coach Jim Brady's fevered battle with university officials has gone to extra innings.

By Chad Garrison

Published: November 14, 2007

University of Missouri-St. Louis baseball coach Jim Brady will not let it go. The nearly $2 million age-discrimination suit he won against the university this past February has done...