In The Mix
The Rock takes in
isle actionTHREE MONTHS AFTER headlining the return of World Wrestling Entertainment to the islands, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is back in town to film the movie formerly known as "Helldorado."
Flanked by his body double, the Rock sat ringside at the Blaisdell for last week's "Universal Combat Challenge," taking in the action being taped for pay-per-view broadcast around the world. One of the combatants even asked to pose with the People's Champ during a post-fight interview to the delight of the crowd.
Johnson was also spotted later in the evening at Pipeline Cafe where, according to people at the club, he was courteous to fans and even signed a few autographs. I wonder if he took advantage of the $1 drinks on special that night, too ...
IT'S TOO BAD the late Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole couldn't be here to enjoy this milestone: Five years after his death, his album "Facing Future" is the first full-length album from Hawaii ever to be certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album was the first released on IZ's label Big Boy Records, and has earned him fans like Dean Koontz, Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Paul Simon.
Amazingly, "Facing Future" has remained on the Billboard World Music Chart for the past 177 weeks and shows no signs of fading away anytime soon. Let's hope more Hawaiian music fans from around the world discover IZ's music and push sales over 1 million, earning him platinum status ...
THE NEXT MONTH or so brings a number of quality concerts to World Cafe. You can thank Nikki Robinson and the nice folks at Goldenvoice for bringing down Bad Religion during the first half of October, followed by Unwritten Law and Goldfinger on Oct. 25 and 30, respectively.
More than 20 years have passed since their self-titled debut album was released, and Brian Baker, Jay Bentley, Greg Graffin, Brett Gurewitz, Greg Heston and Brooks Wackerman continue to turn out new material. Their latest album, "The Process of Belief," was released in January. The band arrives for their Oct. 10 show after playing four dates next week in Japan.
Tickets for Bad Religion are $20; doors open at 6 p.m. for the all-ages show. Call 526-4400 to order by phone, or visit www.goldenvoice.com ...
In the Mix drops Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Star-Bulletin.
Contact Jason Genegabus at jason@starbulletin.com.