Remember, in 2012, when Green Day put out three albums within a six-month span? Uno, Dos, and Tre had a total of 37 songs, and it’s widely regarded as one of the band’s biggest blunders. Nonetheless, when you’ve been making music for over 20 years, you’re allowed to make a few ridiculous blunders. The band will talk about how releasing so much music in such a short time span was a large mistake. Drake should take note. Drake’s past three solo releases have all clocked in over an hour each, and none are bearable to listen to in a single sitting. Continue reading
Month: March 2017
The Belko Experiment (Dir. Greg McLean)
via Wikipedia.
What is the point of setting Battle Royale in an office building if you’re not going to utilize office supplies as murder weapons?
The Belko Experiment is very short-barely 90 minutes long. That’s because it is exactly what you saw in the trailer and nothing more is added. Everything you think is going to happen does. There is no attempt to add a plot twist or alteration to set this film apart from Battle Royale, The Hunger Games, Exam, Cube, Circle, Lord of the Flies, The Killing Room or the dozens of other films with similar ideas and better execution. This is not to say The Belko Experiment is a particularly bad film. It’s passable. But I take issue with this because “let’s put people in a life or death situation and see how they deal with it for the sake of social commentary or entertainment or whatever” has become a genre unto itself because it’s so watchable and easy to write. Even if the film isn’t particularly memorable, a premise like this one will always be attractive to audiences. There are two main reasons for this: the self-insert ‘murder without consequences’ prospect (e.g. “which of my coworkers would I kill in this type of situation?”), and the easily palatable social commentary that essentially writes itself. This is why we, as a culture, love post-apocalyptic stories. They are simple and straightforward and easy to analyze by considering it within the context of the world we live in currently. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love movies like Battle Royale and Circle for the very reasons I just listed. But The Belko Experiment did not do it for me.
Coffee Date: Bones Coffee Company-Chocolate Raspberry
Coffee Date is a column that features discussions of beverages stemming from leaves and beans. Whether you brew your own or need a hip barista pouring it in front of you, we’ve got you covered for brands to try at home, coffee shops with some personality, and what you should try or avoid from your regular coffee chains.
Besides a viral marketing campaign, the Bones Coffee Company’s largest draw is a series of interesting coffee flavors that aren’t immediately obvious. Despite a solid medium roast, it seemed like “Raspberry Chocolate” may have been an odd choice to follow with, but Bones does create a solid coffee blend with a distinct yet subtle flavor. Continue reading
Sorority Noise-You’re Not As _____ As You Think
When discussing Sorority Noise, there are two important things to remember: the first is Sorority Noise’s worst quality. Sorority Noise’s worst quality is easily their difficulty in writing soft and slow songs. The final two songs on Forgettable are the weakest on that album. “Fluorescent Black” and “Your Soft Blood” are terribly boring until they pick up, and even then, they’re not great. The two releases that Sorority Noise has made since the release of Joy, Departed are exclusively slow, soft songs, and neither is even worth listening to. It’s really a testament to how good Sorority Noise has gotten to show that their latest album You’re Not As _______ As You Think has six slow songs, and it’s their best yet. Continue reading
The Shins-Heartworms
For Heartworms being the first album The Shins have released in five years, it’s pretty boring. As a pretty avid Shins fan, I was excited to see what this album was about. I adore the album artwork, it’s got a 60’s illustration vibe and unfortunately, that is my favorite part of this album. It’s not that any of the songs are subjectively bad, but there isn’t anything new or attention grabbing. Continue reading
Black Kids-Rookie
Black Kids first and last full album came out in 2008 and while I was a big fan of them back at the beginning of high school I realized I hadn’t listened to their first album Partie Traumatic in full in at least seven years. As I sat down to re-familiarize myself with Partie Traumatic I got sucked back into the goofy upbeat dance world that Black Kids makes you a part of. Continue reading
Amy Schumer-The Leather Special
I love Amy Schumer, almost as much as I hate Amy Schumer. Actually, what I should say is: I love Amy Schumer, almost as much as I hate the idea of Amy Schumer. Despite being an immensely talented comic, Schumer has become everyone and their mother’s favorite comic. Schumer is no longer a club or theatre comic. She’s the type of comic that can probably sell out Madison Square Garden for the rest of her career. She’s entered the lexicon of Louis C.K., Chris Rock, and Eddie Murphy, but she’s also entering into the realm of Dane Cook. She’s still incredibly funny, but it appears her material has suffered a bit. She’s not as witty or clever as she was during Live at the Apollo or Cutting. Of course, that doesn’t mean she’s not funny. Continue reading
Get Out (Dir. Jordan Peele)
Jordan Peele’s Get Out would not have been green-lit in any year but this one. Had someone described the premise of this film to me a few years ago, I would not have believed them- that not only does this film exist, but that it is a tremendous hit both critically and commercially. And it’s a blessing, really, because if Get Out had been released two years ago it might have been more polarizing if it had even been released at all. The fact that a film with such a supposedly controversial premise has done so well is a testament both to how good this movie is and, very likely, due to the current political climate. It’s a daunting task to create a thought-provoking and genuinely scary film that can include humor sparingly and with purpose, but Jordan Peele has pulled it off.
Get Out is not a “horror comedy”. It is a horror film with moments of comic relief to keep the audience grounded. The humor in this film will come from one of two sources: the uncomfortable familiarity of upper middle class white culture, or Lil Rel Howery as audience surrogate Rod Williams. Rod’s job is to act as the voice of reason most horror movies are missing. See this movie in theatres while you can, because part of the experience is developing this camaraderie with the other viewers through Rod. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a movie that warranted applause at three separate scenes.
SPOILERS BELOW
Mike Birbiglia-Thank God For Jokes
Especially now, jokes are one of the most important things we’ve got. Whether the jokes come from a place of brutal honesty like Marc Maron or evil fiction like Anthony Jeselnik, it’s important to laugh. Mike Birbiglia’s new Thank God for Jokes discusses how important it is to make jokes with Birbiglia’s emotive honesty and deep thought. Birbiglia doesn’t fail to make you laugh, but there are moments that this special lags at a predictable pace.
Crystal Fairy-Crystal Fairy
Here’s to the fans of hard-rock , for today we have an album that promises to pave way to a new wave of the genre. It’s an album that debuts a unique combo of feminine power, deep angst, and sweet riffs that come together to show us a glimpse into the future of rock, while still keeping things simple. This album is: Crystal Fairy, by Crystal Fairy. Continue reading
Burger-A-Day 