Final Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Trailer

The new trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is online now. Let the squealing commence.

This is the final trailer for the upcoming film adaptation of the sixth book in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Those who have read it know that this Harry Potter book is probably the darkest of the series, and it could be compared to another "the bad guys seem to be winning" sequel, The Empire Strikes Back.

From this trailer and the previous two, we can gather the dark look and tone that director David Yates has chosen for his film adaptation of Half-Blood Prince. Unlike the previous five films, including Yates' previous film, The Order of the Phoenix, this Harry Potter film employs a darker, more muted color pallete.

The wobbly bridge also looks especially wobbly, the room of requirement looks great, and the climax looks incredible. I believe this may very well be the best adaptation of a Harry Potter film yet. Let us hope that the tone translates throughout the entire film. A brief synopsis of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince can be found here, via the film's website.

Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was. Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching. Together they work to find the key to unlock Voldemort’s defenses and, to this end, Dumbledore recruits his old friend and colleague, the well-connected and unsuspecting bon vivant Professor Horace Slughorn, whom he believes holds crucial information. Meanwhile, the students are under attack from a very different adversary as teenage hormones rage across the ramparts. Harry finds himself more and more drawn to Ginny, but so is Dean Thomas. And Lavender Brown has decided that Ron is the one for her, only she hadn’t counted on Romilda Vane’s chocolates! And then there’s Hermione, simmering with jealously but determined not to show her feelings. As romance blossoms, one student remains aloof. He is determined to make his mark, albeit a dark one. Love is in the air, but tragedy lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same again.

Dan Deacon in New Orleans

Dan Deacon is coming to New Orleans at Tulane University on Monday, April 13 2009. And you should be there. If you do not know who Dan Deacon is, then stop reading this and start reading this. His new record Bromst was released a few weeks ago, and it is one of the best records of the year. Bromst combines lush electronic arrangements with interesting beats and a bevvy of backing instruments. "Red F" and "Snookered" are just two of the outstanding tracks that Dan Deacon had provided for his faithful followers on Bromst.

Anyways, Dan and his Bromst band are touring the country in a school bus that has been converted to run on vegetable oil. It is as awesome as it sounds. In an effort to keep costs down and recycling up, Dan is asking folks coming out to his concerts to bring some vegetable oil by his show in exchange for a +1 on the guest list. His full request can be read here, via Pitchfork

hello,

the school tour bus the 20 of us are riding in runs on veggie oil. we need help gathering that oil to fuel our bus. if anyone can bring at least 5 gallons of waste veggie oil to one of the shows we will put you on the guest list. it is easily found behind almost all restaurants.

if the oil looks dark and full of crud we can't use it. the lighter the color and the less viscous the better. if you can bring us CLEAN and filtered oil we can put you + 1 on the list.

an easy way to filter the oil would be to stretch a tight sheet or t-shirt over a bucket and pour the oil into the bucket through the sheet to get all the gunk out. a slower way, but better way, would be to tie one of the pant legs of jeans into a tight knot and hang that over a bucket and pour the oil into the jeans, and clean oil will slowly pass into the bucket.

to arrange the grease for list swap you can call geoff at 862-266-6130. call or text him. he is our oil master. the more oil the better. we have enough storage for 100 gallons of oil. if you can get us 30 gallons we'll cook you dinner on the bus (we have a little kitchen and many great cooks).

please repost this to anywhere you think it might help. thanks you!

dan deacon

Not only is this a good cause, it's a great show. Consider bringing yours to Tulane when you come over to the show on Monday. Listen to "Build Voice" from Dan Deacon's new record, Bromst, via Nasty Panda.

Ratatat in New Orleans at House of Blues

Everyone's favorite guitar-synth duo Ratatat are returning to New Orleans for a show at the House of Blues. Tickets are still available at the door, and Ratatat are a guaranteed good time. Last year's LP3 made most top ten lists, so I am not only one hyping this show. So put on your dancing shoes, and get ready to climb aboard the Ratatat railway. Check below for a sample of their sound.

"Hey, Stella!," It's The Tennessee Williams Festival

Tennessee Williams' 1947 New Orleans masterpiece "A Streetcar Named Desire" remains an important piece of popular theater 50 years after its first performance. Streetcar is also the play that inspired the literati of New Orleans to organize a festival honoring Tennessee Williams. The Tennessee Williams Festival has attracted writers, actors, students, and play goers to New Orleans since its inception years ago, and this year's festival was the biggest and best yet.

One of the most popular events is the "Stella" screaming contest, during which, 25 participants gather in the heart of the French Quarter and get the opportunity to yell out Stanley Kowlaski's famous exclamation, "Hey, Stella!" While the role is probably best known for Brando, Williams' Stanley is dynamic enough for any festival-goer to find a new way to scream out to the Stella stand-in perched on a balcony on one of the famed Pontalba apartments in the French Quarter.

Each entrant competes by calling " "Stella!" (or "Stanley!") three times. Loudness counts, but contestants should also portray Stanley’s angst and emotion. Finalists selected in the outdoor portion of the contest compete on the main stage of Le Petit Theatre for the grand prize.

For the past several years, the French Quarter contest has grown in size, and the quality of the competition has also improved.

This year's competitors, not all of whom were from New Orleans, ranged in age and approach, but all of them yelled for Stella with intensity and passion. It was a fun and interesting way to successfully close this year's Tennessee Williams Festival. It was also just one more reason why you should come and visit New Orleans, one of the most interesting cities on Earth. Below is one "unique" performance that attendees were treated to.

Google Gmail Autopilot

While checking my Gmail this morning, I noticed the most fantastic new feature. It is called "Autopilot" and it allows Gmail to draft automatic Gmail responses to all of your pesky emails. As they explain it how Autopilot works:

The more Gmail messages Autopilot can sample, the better. With fewer than 100 messages, there may not be enough data to calibrate Autopilot effectively. You can adjust tone, typo propensity, and preferred punctuation from the Autopilot tab under Settings.

This is another brilliant time management tool from Gmail and the folks at Google. For more information, check the terms to find out more about it.