BE A BROADWAY BABY
We're still a ways off from seeing Broadway shows in Spokane, but a new program gives theater fans a chance to see the best of the best, right now, while supporting our local Best of Broadway series. A BroadacwayHD subscription, ranging from three months ($27) to a year ($99), offers access to a range of recorded shows, from musicals to dramas, ballet performances to concerts from Lincoln Center. Viewable via app or online, the shows could fill that spot in your soul needing a little live entertainment. And if you order from the special link broadwayhd.com/p/best-of-broadway, you'll support local Broadway producers WestCoast Entertainment, too. (DAN NAILEN)
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Novelist Kazuo Ishiguro is a master of withholding, from the plot twist he reveals halfway through Never Let Me Go to the isolation he inflicts on the lonely butler at the heart of his masterpiece The Remains of the Day. The Nobel Prize winner is back with Klara and the Sun, and it's another intriguing slow burner, set in a world populated by lifelike robots that follow their owners' orders. Our narrator, Klara, is a so-called Artificial Friend, chosen by a sickly little girl and her overprotective mother, and we follow Klara as she acclimates to the world of human emotions and learns a secret about her adoptive family that's as sinister as it is tragic. (NATHAN WEINBENDER)
A TRUE BONUS
Waxahatchee's Saint Cloud album was one of my favorites of 2020, and to celebrate its one-year anniversary, Katie Crutchfield recently added three killer covers that you can hear on Spotify (look for Saint Cloud +3) or your digital outlet of choice. Hearing Crutchfield lend her voice to Lucinda Williams' "Fruits of My Labor," Dolly Parton's "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" and Bruce Springsteen's "Streets of Philadelphia" is a real treat. (DAN NAILEN)
SO FRESH, SO PINK
Brick West Brewing Co. recently debuted a new spring seasonal. The Pink Boots IPA, a collaboration with neighbors Whistle Punk Brewing, is brewed with a hop blend from the Pink Boots Society — a national organization that provides resources and education for women in the brewing industry. The 2021 blend features Cashmere, Ahtanum, Citra, Loral and Sabro hops from Yakima. Proceeds from the Brick West and Whistle Punk version of the beer will also be donated to the Jonah Project, a local nonprofit that advocates for survivors of human trafficking. (DEREK HARRISON)
THIS WEEK'S PLAYLIST
There's noteworthy new music arriving in stores and online April 23. To wit:
TODD SNIDER, First Agnostic Church of Hope and Wonder. The witty wordsmith is back in fine funky form.
ART D'ECCO, In Standard Definition. If joyful retro glam is your jam, jump on this set by the analog-obsessed Canadian.
DINOSAUR JR., Swept It Into Space. The trio's been on a hot streak with recent releases, and you can bet right now their Knitting Factory show next February will be the loudest of 2022. (DAN NAILEN)
