Almost one year later, Peekaso isn't nearly as frantic. He's still Raheem DeVaughn's art director, and he still paints live on stage when DeVaughn performs. But he doesn't run around as much, partially because the soul singer has slowed his tour schedule to work on his fourth studio album. Peekaso still paints each Tuesday at the Up and Up Open Mic. At this week's, he executed an intricate portrait of a young Michael Jackson.

Peekaso says he is exercising patience these days, slowing down the speed by which he paints, and using different brushes to accentuate his work. In years past, Peekaso applied his colors with squeeze tubes and blended them any way he could. Now, he uses more refined brushes to highlight the details of his subjects' faces. "I'm staying true to what I believe in, but it has a whole new feel to it, more raw emotion," he says. "It's new to me again."

Given his popularity here, it's hard to believe that Peekaso's show at Lamont Bishop Gallery this weekend is his first solo exhibit in the area. He says the show features 100 paintings, some of which were completed within the past month. You'll see a piece made from Roc-A-Wear clothing fabric, a portrait of Kurt Cobain, and some artwork inspired by Peekaso's young daughter. "I have a lot of supporters out there, so this gives them a chance to see me in a different light," Peekaso says.

A reception on Saturday begins at 7:30 p.m. Lamont Bishop Gallery is at 1314 9th St. NW.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

The lowbrow KFC Double Down made one of the highbrow New York Times' 2010 lists.

Morning, all. Well, it's a slow time of year–seems like time kind of stops around the holidays. There wasn't even a new episode of Top Chef All-Stars on last night. Regardless, let's see what's going on in the world of arts and entertainment.

Legendary jazz pianist and longtime D.C. resident Billy Taylor died yesterday of a heart attack at age 89. Our own Michael J. West nominated Taylor as the District's second-best jazz musician, after Duke Ellington, in the Washington City Paper's 2009 best-of issue.

Yet more Michael Jackson news. The defense for Conrad Murphy, the doctor accused of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death, will argue that Jackson actually killed himself. What do you think will go down as the biggest premature death in pop music history: Jackson's or Elvis? Discuss.

You know what the end of the year means: lists galore. The best, the most influential, the whatever superlative you can think of for 2010 lists. Folks like Tom Ford, Carey Mulligan, and Alber Elbaz make Vogue's "impact" list; Four Loko, incest at Columbia, and the KFC Double Down are among the items on the New York Times' "what New Yorkers talked about" list and my colleague Jonathan L. Fischer puts acts like America Hearts, Tabi Bonney, Dave Nada, and Carolyn Malichi on his best local songs list. Keep an eye out on the blog for Louis Jacobson's most memorable images later today.

My friend Morgan Klein is a brilliant kook. Check it out.

In the deluxe CD reissue of Michael Jackson's "Thriller," there are some extra tracks appended. These are making-of interviews with Quincy Jones and Rod Temperton.

Morgan became obsessed with the tone and feel of these interviews. So he memorized them line for line.

Yes, you read correctly. Line for line. With cadence matched exactly.

So, check this out: Quincy is in the LEFT speaker and Morgan is in the RIGHT!

And the Rod Temperton is even more hilarious.

I don't even know why it's funny. All it is a near-exact mirror performance. But it IS funny. I listen to this and I giggle my ass off and I am reminded why I love Morgan.

You only WISH your friends were this crazy and amazing.

You are free to share.

- c

Here's the post. I confess that I have no idea who Morgan Klein is. But the recordings indeed are kinda hilarious. I recommend listening to them in headphones, but stereo speakers with extreme separation might be even better.

The files can be downloaded as mp3s: Jones/Klein | Temperton/Klein

Below, we review another movie from the ongoing All Roads Film Festival. Check back here all weekend for reviews of films showing on Saturday and Sunday.

Taika Cohen, the New Zealand-born director who got lauded by Variety as one of "ten new directors" to watch, brings us a  film about coming of age and Michael Jackson—but without a hint of irony or creepiness. Boy, the film's protagonist, is an 11-year-old Maori whose deadbeat dad left him and his little brother years ago. His favorite musician is Michael Jackson (it's 1984), and his main concerns involve impressing girls with his moonwalking and trying to take care of the household when the adults are away. That he's been abandoned is obvious, but Boy is convinced his father will return one day and take him to a Michael Jackson concert. True to his fantasizing, he does. But instead of being the iconic father-hero of his dreams, Boy's father (played by Cohen himself) is a total nightmare. The world of Boy is colorful and captivating, with the New Zealand scenery brightening each shot, regardless of the film's frequent tension. You grow to root for Boy, whose precociousness and wry humor doesn't hide the fact that he's only 11, and no matter how bright or fantastical his imagination may make his surroundings, reality will every now and then come crashing down.

Boy shows tonight at 7 p.m. at the National Geographic Museum as part of the All Roads Film Festival. $8-$10.

If you can't serve alcohol, serve Comcast (image via DCist).

Good morning, D.C.! City schools started up yesterday: How's it feel to say goodbye to summer and get back on that education grind? Godspeed to all Teach for America instructors, really.

The Howard Theatre turned 100 to much fanfare this weekend. Yesterday, the Comcast commercial starring everyone's favorite independent cafe without a liquor license dropped. Aaron Morrissey finds it mind-blowing. I am totally in the camp that believes Stu Davenport needed to make some money somehow, if not through the sale of local wine in 100 percent post-consumer recycled bottles.

We Love DC did us the benefit of livetweeting the most recent episode of Top Chef DC. Dare I say that they're much funnier than the show itself? Not surprising, given our acceptance that this is where reality TV comes to die.

Also on WLD is a breakdown between the Big Evil Business Improvement Districts and everyone's favorite novelty lunch item: FOOD TRUCKS. Perhaps that's fodder better suited for our own Young & Hungry, but if the BIDs get their way, the angry tweets about the lobster truck's line might fall by the wayside. And I count those as quality entertainment.

You know what else I count as quality entertainment? The sheer idiocy of the Tea Partiers. As they prepare to descend on us this weekend, they've provided a handy guide to our city that effectively blew up Twitter with its ignorance. DCist and Mike Madden here on City Desk address some crucial points. Between Glenn Beck and Al Sharpton, the Mall on Saturday will be true live theatre/reality TV/real-time absurdity, if you're looking for it.

Over here, we reaffirm that Rumsfeld's chillin' made Kalorama a creepy place to live (and state on the record that his security detail was into Adam Sandler movies). And, after Ted Leo totally fucked with us, we approach local theater from various angles.

I leave you with this stunning announcement: The temperature in the District isn't supposed to crack 90 this week. This is obviously a sign that you should kick it on your back porch and blast some MJ. Have a good Tuesday, everybody.

Michael Jackson sums up the true believer's attitude with his 1979 classic, "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough." MJ never goes out of style, and in the wake of his passing least year, the near-universal appeal of his music has only become more evident. Bump this discofied pop groove and see if you don't feel like you're floating on an August breeze.

Whether you just really love Office Space, or Snoop has always been your dog(g), it's no crime to show a little West Coast love now and then. Snoop doesn't leave you guessing, in "Gin & Juice" he straight-up tells you how laid back he is, and Dre's slick production backs it up with one of the sliest basslines around. Feel free to enjoy a cocktail of your own choosing and just chill.

If you're really going to enjoy the last bits of summer in D.C., you've got to bust out some go-go. There are plenty of great locals to choose from, but you can't go wrong with Chuck Brown. I suggest turning up "Block Party" on your stereo, and you know, if you're feeling sociable, it's not too late to throw one. When you grill out this Saturday, just be sure to head down to 9:30 Club afterward to celebrate Chuck Brown's birthday and hear go-go the way it ought to be heard: live.

Sam Kass, assistant chef at the White House

Morning, readers. It's gonna be another hot one. Remember your sunscreen!

Michael Jackson died a year ago tomorrow, and a Northeast family has immortalized him by turning their house into a shrine. Um, no accounting for taste, I guess.

Fans of Southern rock, rejoice: the Allman Brothers' Greg Allman successfully underwent liver transplant surgery and said he's "feeling pretty good" in a statement. Here's to many more years of "Ramblin' Man" and "Jessica" performances at a state fair near you.

OK, let's get to it: You know the morning wouldn't be complete without a discussion of last night's Top Chef. Sam Kass, assistant chef at the White House, was the show's guest judge. Kass, a Kelly Slater-lookalike, was named one of People's 100 Most Beautiful People last year and has got to go down as one of the hottest guest judges in Top Chef history. Anyway, back to the food. For the quickfire challenge, the cheftestants were charged with making a bi-partisandwich: They divided into pairs and were given a half hour to make sandwiches while wearing a double apron and working with only one hand. Angelo and Kenny were in the top two again, working with Tracey and Ed, respectively. Angelo and Tracey ultimately won for their Asian-style fish sandwich with Angelo's "liquid love" sauce. When Kass and Padma approached the winning pair and asked how it was working with each other, Angelo said, "I feel like I'm working with my twin sister." Kass responded, "Obviously not identical." Ouch. Burn.

For the elimination challenge, the cheftestants divided into teams of four and headed over to Alice Deal Middle School in Upper Northwest. They made healthy lunches for 50 kids on a budget of $130 per team, or $2.60 per child–the budget that public schools have to work with for their lunch programs. Angelo and Tracey, as winners of the quickfire, chose to work with Kenny and Ed. "I think there's definitely some strategy," Kenny said. "If for whatever reason we end up in the bottom, I now have a 50 percent chance of going home instead of a 25 percent chance," noting Angelo's and Tracey's immunity. Despite the fact that the judges likes Tracey's chicken burger and Kenny's bread pudding, end up in the bottom they did, for a meal that lacked balance and nutritional value–largely because of Angelo's "vegetable" contribution, a tiny piece of celery topped with peanut butter mousse and served on a cookie.

Jacqueline, Amanda, Steven, and Tamesha also ended up in the bottom. Though the judges praised local Tamesha's salad, they took issue with Jacqueline's banana pudding (two lbs. of sugar!) and Amanda's sherry–yes, sherry–chicken. When the judges asked Amanda why she chose to braise her chicken in sherry for a roomful of kids, she responded, "I don't know, I like it." In the best line of the night, Gail responded, "I like a lot of things. I love vodka. I'm not cooking with it."

The judges then questioned Angelo's motives. "Would you have made that dish if you didn't have immunity?" Tom asked. "I can't answer that right now," Angelo responded. Um, what happened to that old standard of not caring about immunity, you're still out to cook ass and take names? While the cheftestants went back to the stew room as the judges deliberated, Angelo confessed to Tracey, "I don't like Kenny." Tom speculated that there was some gamesmanship going on with Angelo. Jacqueline, she of last week's grainy paté, ended up going home for her sugary pudding. And oh yeah, Kelly won for her carnitas tacos with homemade tortillas.

What'd you think of Angelo's behavior? Did Jacqueline deserve to go home, or did Amanda? Has Amanda emerged as a villain to rival Angelo? Was Kelly trying to take too much credit, or was her team just being overly sensitive?

Photo: locavorespirit.wordpress.com

*Cirque du Soleil announces it'll be making a Michael Jackson-themed show for next year's tour. The show may feature unreleased songs and remixes (though God only knows what the masks and makeup will look like.)

*Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert extend their contracts with Comedy Central through 2012 and 2013, respectively. Stewart and Colbert remaining on TV, Conan O'Brien back in November of this year... my faith in television comedy is restored.

*WaPo's Going Out Gurus report Sixth & I Historic Synagogue is adding a music venue in its downstairs area (literally called "Downstairs"), complete with cash bar. The venue won't be in full use until after the summer, but the soft launch is this week.

*Alan Cumming drops out of the Green Goblin role for the Spider-Man Broadway musical, further confirming my belief that Julie Taymor's long-awaited adaptation of the movie for the stage will either be amazing or suck really hard (...emphasis on the latter).

*With Sam Mendes out of the picture for the new James Bond movie, he's now reportedly in talks to direct the Oz The Great and Powerful movie, an offshoot of The Wizard of Oz stories. Robert Downey, Jr. is currently the first choice to play the Wizard. So. freaking. awesome.

*Legendary Gang Starr MC Keith "Guru" Elam loses his battle with cancer at the age of 43.

*Several Hispanic musicians including Shakira, Juanes, and Alejandro Sanz release a song and music video to raise awareness about Haiti entitled "Ay Haití!" (And it's much better than the "We Are the World" remake.)

*First things first: Pomplamoose's fantastic cover of Lady Gaga's "Telephone":

*Michel Gondry, best known for directing inimitable music videos for everyone from The Rolling Stones to Björk, puts himself on the line by going against the masses, saying that he is "not interested" in Lady Gaga. Gaga's newest release, "Telephone," is the latest in a stream of avant-garde music videos, but Gondry insists it's not his style. "The music to me is very expected," Gondry said in an interview with MovieLine. "I don't think there's anything in the tone or the melody that makes me say, 'Oh, there's something going on' ... But maybe it's considered high art just because of the way she dresses?"

*Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland says that the band members' wives are the reason Velvet Revolver split up. In a new interview with Details, Weiland attributes the downfall of the band to their significant others' involvement in business matters. (And all this time I thought it was the copious amounts of heroin that tore the band apart.)

*The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts Genesis and Iggy Pop and the Stooges. Iggy doesn't let the fact that he is in the Waldorf Astoria deter him from taking his shirt off. (In fact, I don't think Iggy lets anything deter him from taking his shirt off. Phil Collins manages to keep his clothes on, unfortunately.)

*Sony Music signs $250 million deal with the Michael Jackson estate for his entire catalogue and unreleased music. The new agreement keeps MJ on the label until 2017, eight years after his death.

*NBC's prime-time audiences rise after Jay Leno moves from his 10 o'clock spot. This further proves my very personal theory that happiness is wherever Leno is not.

*Film phenomenon Avatar will be milking audiences for all they're worth: Twentieth Century Fox announces that the first DVD release for the film won't include 3-D or special features...but that more extensive DVD editions are planned. Just once, I'd like to buy a movie and not to have to buy the next version of it only a month or two later so I can see all the intricate behind-the-scenes featurettes that were left out the first time around. (You hear me, 17 Again producers?)

*Tonight in City Lights: The Green House at E Street Cinema.