Conor Battles

‘Time Takes a Cigarette:’ Remembering 40 years of David Bowie

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 8, 2016

This review was originally published in the February 2016 print edition of The Lancer Spirit. The writer Conor Battles, 2015-16 editor-in-chief, was recently awarded a 1st place Gold Circle award from...

James Blake spins melodic melancholy on ‘The Colour in Anything’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 13, 2016

There's nothing wrong with tragic storytelling, the problem is that there's simply too much of it. Seventeen tracks, seven of them crossing the five-minute mark, is a lot of music to take in. James Blake may not sound like anyone else with his eclectic blend of electronic, ambient and R&B, but that sound barely evolves over the hour-plus runtime of 'The Colour in Anything.' The album begins to drone on, melting into the background far more than Blake intended.

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Radiohead mix ambiance, emotion on ‘A Moon Shaped Pool’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 12, 2016

A Moon Shaped Pool, the long-awaited ninth LP from the British experimental rock quintet, traces its roots through the band's thirty-year history: "Burn the Witch," its lead single and manic, bubbling beating heart, was first worked on during the 2000 sessions for that year's acclaimed Kid A. The orchestral post-rock of closer "True Love Waits" was debuted as a tender, folk-flavored dirge in 1995.

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Submit your content for the Lancer Spirit Senior Edition

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 12, 2016

The Senior Edition of the Lancer Spirit is one of this publication's most popular traditions. Photos, stories and other memories are commemorated in print as a last gift to the graduating Class of 2016. To...

Death Grips astound, confuse with ‘Bottomless Pit’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 6, 2016

That's not to say Bottomless Pit is a mellow affair. It's about as mellow as a bad acid trip while skydiving; from the impossibly fast black metal-accented drums that spring to life fifteen seconds into the album's opener, "Giving Bad People Good Ideas," to the post-apocalyptic, overdriven drone of the eponymous closer. Bottomless Pit is what would blare over the blown-out, sand-caked stereo in Mad Max's Interceptor, and to hear its second single debut on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 Radio show earlier this week is as jarring and unexpected as it is hilarious.

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‘Lemonade’ a cinematic concept album

Beyonce's second "visual" album is grandiose yet contained

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 4, 2016

While the rallying cry of "Formation" is left for bonus track (or end credits) territory, its visceral sound and empowering message is felt in ripples throughout the rest of Lemonade. This is pop music untethered; an organic fusion of pop, rap, electronic, R&B, and even rock elements. Her choice in collaborators is top-notch, as evidenced by contributions from everyone from The Weeknd to James Blake to Kendrick Lamar. The dancehall-esque pulse of "Sorry" stands in sharp contrast to the gutsy blues of Jack White duet "Don't Hurt Yourself," yet the dissonance lends itself to cohesion.

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Jason Coburn’s keys to success

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 4, 2016

“I do what I do for myself,” Coburn said. “I’m not so interested in building a fanbase or anything. I think that people are starting to lose track of the fun in music, but I’m trying to keep that alive and keep myself from going down a similar path. I’m a huge admirer of [Nirvana drummer/Foo Fighters frontman] Dave Grohl, because he takes that idea of fun to its extreme.”

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Drake underwhelms with ‘Views’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | May 3, 2016

Ultimately, Views falls short of greatness. Drake has portrayed this release as his evolution; an expansion on his signature sound that would propel him towards legend status. It's reflected in the album's cover - Drake, solitary and sullen above the rest of the world, poised to strike from atop the CN Tower. In the end, though, Views is enjoyable, but more of the same.

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Don’t need your help: The unlikely resurgence of cassette culture

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 31, 2016

Even back when they were all the rage, it was hard to explain what made cassettes popular. Quality-wise, they were terrible. The ultrathin, wiry spools of tape could tear, knot, or burn out with ease. But they were cheap, and they were portable. As such, the cassette tape ruled. It has lain dormant since the advent of the compact disc, but with the popularity of vinyl, what's to stop a slowly-growing movement of entrepreneurs and self-starting indie outfits from mounting a tape comeback?

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Commentary: The nebulous possibilities of virtual reality

VR has gone from sci-fi dream to (expensive) reality. Now what?

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 24, 2016

The simple truth is that the layman - that is, the average consumer that hasn't spent the last few years playing around with Oculus devkits and browsing industry forums - knows next to nothing about the raw technical differences between, say, Google Cardboard and Samsung's Gear VR. The idea that a typical consumer would so readily drop several hundred dollars on something they know so little about is more than a little absurd, and is VR's biggest problem going forward to mainstream use.

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Iggy Pop and Josh Homme merge art-rock with Detroit punk on ‘Post Pop Depression’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 14, 2016

Taking in the bold new sonic directions that Iggy Pop has taken his decades-honed sound in is a heady task. It's a puzzling trend, considering the relative success the reunited Stooges have had in the last half decade, but in an odd way, it suits Iggy. He embraces his elder-statesemanhood with all the grace the man responsible for "I Wanna Be Your Dog" can muster, and Josh Homme is the perfect muse for Iggy to experiment on/with.

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‘Painting With’ an enjoyable experiment in retrofuturism

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 3, 2016

Painting With is one of Animal Collective's most accessible releases, with tracks like the sublime reggae-accented "Floridada" or the sitcom ode "Golden Gals" being among their most danceable and radio-friendly songs. That isn't to say AnCo has lost their edge; Painting With remains singularly abstract and ofttimes inscrutable.

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The Best of 2015

Conor Battles, Isaac Owens, and Cristian Flores | February 29, 2016

After a series of heated debates and cutthroat confrontations, the Lancer Spirit staff has finally come to a conclusion of what is the best entertainment had to offer in 2015. Here are our top ten choices...

Top Music of 2015

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | February 29, 2016

In a year full of albums focused on social change and global, universal concepts, Earl Sweatshirt kept the door locked and the shutters closed. The Odd Future expat followed up 2013’s acclaimed Doris with a moody, atmospheric collection of lo-fi beats and grimy, distortedly grotesque verses; a warped funhouse mirror’s view of the artist rather than outright introspection. I Don’t Like S**t, I Don’t Go Outside is a sparse, focused effort that distills the pathos of the 21-year-old through moody, atmospheric production and intensely personal bars. IDLSIDGO is a snapshot of a subculture in disarray; twentysomethings everywhere can wake up and smell the smoke.

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Top Movies of 2015

Isaac Owens and Conor Battles | February 29, 2016

Ridley Scott’s adaptation of Andy Weir’s sci-fi yarn about a marooned astronaut manages to combine grounded, realistic science with pulse-pounding action and endearing characters. In a role that mostly consists of explaining plot points to a camera, Matt Damon engrosses the audience in his captivating and frequently funny performance. Being no stranger to the sci-fi genre, Scott delivers one of his most lighthearted yet intense space epics in recent memory. Resurrecting what was one of history's worst summer blockbuster seasons, The Martian was just what the industry was looking for. With its incredible visuals and visionary storytelling, it is one of the most exciting and satisfying blockbusters of the year.

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Top Games of 2015

Cristian Flores, Conor Battles, and Isaac Owens | February 29, 2016

Another massive open world game of complete destruction and shenanigans is Just Cause 3. Actually Just Cause 3 is currently the game with the largest open world map in any RPG and to be honest the amount of destruction and creativity and the amount of different things you can actually do in this game is almost endless. Yet it seems the biggest issue with this game is that the story itself doesn’t really hold most people enough to keep them constantly playing.

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Kanye West’s “album of the life” discordant, triumphant

'The Life of Pablo' lives up to its lengthy release schedule. Mostly.

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | February 15, 2016

'The Life of Pablo' lacks the distinct, unifying sound that underpins past releases. Rather, West takes up a more abstract, harder-to-define sonic palate, blending orchestral gospel, murky R&B, and trap-influenced beats to create a sound as unique as it is derivative. Kanye trades in his unabashed sense of perfectionism for a distinctly broader brush, and The Life of Pablo can feel more than a little disjointed at times. There are soaring, anthemic moments on 'TLOP' that fit in well on an album once known, briefly, as 'So Help Me God,' and there are goofier, mindless moments befitting an album formerly known as 'SWISH.'

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Anderson .Paak defies genre on ‘Malibu’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | February 1, 2016

Malibu is that rare album where the opening track is easily the best on the record, but don't let that turn you off; just about every track on Malibu is exquisitely crafted and utterly enjoyable. The lush, summery production, courtesy of living legends like Madlib and 9th Wonder, is some of the tightest .Paak has ever boasted, merging West Coast classicism with boom-bap and chipmunk soul. Simply put, Malibu was made to be bumped in low riders down Rosecrans Avenue and danced to at a vogue night club with equal aplomb. There is nary a dull moment over its 61 minutes.

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Rihanna underwhelms with long-awaited 8th release

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | February 1, 2016

Rihanna barely feels like the star of her own album. The production, from heavyweights like Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, and Timbaland, is more multifaceted and interesting than the uninspired vocals laid over them. The roster of guest features, from SZA on opener "Considerations" to Drake on "Work," outshine Rihanna herself in their performances.

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Jesu, Sun Kil Moon collab a disappointing miss

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | January 25, 2016

There are a few moments on Jesu/Sun Kil Moon where that erratic blend manages to converge. Tracks like "Father's Day" and "America's Most Wanted Mark Kozelek and John Dillinger" are undeniably solid, and the differing styles of Jesu and Kozelek manage to combine to a greater sum, but such moments are few and far between over the album's daunting eighty minutes.

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‘Blackstar’ David Bowie’s perfect swan song

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | January 11, 2016

Why else would Blackstar reek so thoroughly of death? The jarring imagery of the album, from the dusty, bejeweled skeleton of a lost astronaut in the video for the ten-minute title track to the Biblical-epic-turned-musical-number of "Lazarus," explores death and decay in ways only one close to the end could. If, then, Blackstar is meant to be viewed as Bowie's mournful last goodbye, a reappraisal of its content and message is in order.

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Radio club to track Santa Claus

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 23, 2015

This year, the LHS Radio Club will continue its longstanding Christmas Eve tradition. WLLO-LP, the low-power FM radio station for the Londonderry School District, has participated in its annual Santa...

Jingle Bell Rock: A by-genre guide to holiday playlists

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 23, 2015

There is still a wide world of holiday music out there to pore through, making the prospect of individually hunting down the perfect string of songs for your holiday festivities more than a little daunting. Fortunately, we at the Lancer Spirit have done plenty of poring through the thousands upon thousands of Christmas songs out there to find some of the best tracks in each genre to flesh out the perfect holiday playlist.

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‘Force Awakens’ reinvigorates beloved franchise

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 21, 2015

Disney didn't have to do much for this film to be a success. The first new Star Wars movie in a decade, no matter if it's good or bad, will make more money than God. That much is more or less certain. But the aim is not to suck in as much cash as possible in one go - Disney has its eyes on a franchise. As such, the pressure on J.J. Abrams and co. to put out a product with staying power was astronomical. Fortunately, this movie has staying power in spades.

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Kid Cudi should stop making music

'Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven' chronicles Scott Mescudi's decline

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 7, 2015

'Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven' is a snapshot of an artist who wants desperately to be something he can never be, and it's made all the more disappointing because of just how talented Cudi can be with the right material.

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‘Poison Season’ an enjoyable tenth outing

Destroyer crafts a dreamy, ethereal pop symphony

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 3, 2015

Poison Season is an album that benefits from showing its age.

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Student journalists assemble for Free Spirit conference

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 1, 2015

The conference, spread out over five days, included seminars, workshops, and lectures.

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‘Garden of Delete’ a spacey, atmospheric experiment

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 30, 2015

The richness of Lopatin's sonic palate is unlike just about anything else this year. Manic, lightspeed synth; crushing, distorted bass; and sample work that sounds totally detached from its source material all converge to make something utterly foreign.

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Adele mounts a solid return to form

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 28, 2015

The last four years saw Adele raise her son, contemplate quitting the music industry altogether, and suffer from a heavy bout of writer's block that left her fearing creative bankruptcy, and all these outside forces invigorate the tracks on 25 with a plethora of new ways to approach her craft.

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ELO unexpectedly fresh 40 years later

'Alone in the Universe' a passable tribute to an iconic sound

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 16, 2015

The rest of the musical world may have caught up to what ELO was doing decades ago, but Lynne soldiers on, and the tracks on this album reflect his confidence.

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Leon Bridges revives soul on ‘Coming Home’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 10, 2015

'Coming Home' is ultimately a fantastic album, positively full of memorable tracks and audience-ready moments, but there is undeniably a lot of room to improve.

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Classic Review: Miles Davis – In a Silent Way (1969)

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | November 9, 2015

The early roots of 'Bitches Brew' can be found on 'In a Silent Way,' a mere year's time before the former would be released.

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LSO on Film: Drama club’s 10th annual ‘Haunted Woods’

For the past ten years, Londonderry High School's drama club has been the host of 'Haunted Woods,' a scare walk through the school's wooded areas. Here are highlights and interviews from the event.

Isaac Owens, Cristian Flores, and Conor Battles | October 31, 2015

Death Grips announces new album

'Bottomless Pit' revealed in the most Death Grips way possible

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 22, 2015

No release date was given for 'Bottomless Pit,' but given the sporadic habits of the group, it's hard to guess.

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Column: ‘Guitar Hero’ is ruining music games again

Plastic instruments are making a comeback, but not without Activision's caveats.

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 21, 2015

For music game fans, the genre that had lain dormant was springing into a new, glorious Age of Enlightenment. And then Activision showed up.

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‘Documentary 2’ keeps The Game afoot

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 20, 2015

When taken in separately, the two halves of 'The Documentary 2' combine to live up to its stellar predecessor

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Classic Review: Aphex Twin – ‘Selected Ambient Works 85-92’ (1992)

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 18, 2015

At the heart of 'Selected Ambient Works' is a sense of atmosphere that is unrivaled in electronic music of the era.

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Beach House surprise with second 2015 release

'Thank your Lucky Stars' not just 'Depression Cherry' rejects

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 16, 2015

It is made readily apparent that, in its own way, 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' is a very different beast from every Beach House album before it.

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Column: Does authenticity matter in art?

The Internet levels the playing field for music unlike ever before

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 13, 2015

The evolution of the ego in a world where identity loses meaning has given way to a scene that both repulses and feeds off image.

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‘New Bermuda’ a worthy Deafhaven followup

Metal's most divisive band ups the ante after acclaimed 'Sunbather'

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 5, 2015

The San Francisco quintet takes inspiration from a wide variety of other genres, from shoegaze to post-rock, culminating in a finished product that has metal fans fiercely divided on their place in the scene.

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Classic Review – The Microphones: ‘The Glow, Pt. 2’ (2001)

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 28, 2015

At once a radical experiment in loud-quiet-loud dynamics and an intensely personal exploration of the self, The Glow, Pt. 2 stands out well over a decade past its release as a landmark in indie music.

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Student council cancels Homecoming dance

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 18, 2015

The LHS student council announced today that the Homecoming dance scheduled for Saturday, September 19th will be cancelled. The announcement came only a day before the dance was slated to take place,...

Welcome to Lancer Spirit Online!

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 17, 2015

Hello and welcome to Lancer Spirit Online! This website will be the best, most current platform for the Londonderry High School community to see up-to-date news, sports, opinions, and more. Our site...

Beach House refine dream-pop on ‘Depression Cherry’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 3, 2015

The dreamy, charmingly retro sound that the duo has slowly molded over the years is at its most infectious on 'Depression Cherry.'

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It’s a mad, mad, mad, mad world

'Fury Road' reinvigorates summer action

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 3, 2015

The impeccable storytelling, huge cast of unique characters, and spectacularly over-the-top setpieces all come together to make a movie unlike anything else in this crowded summer movie season.

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Vince Staples brings the past to life on ‘Summertime ’06’

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 2, 2015

'Summertime ’06' is the rare double LP that not only retains its quality through both discs, but manages to feel short.

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Thundercat’s ‘The Beyond’ a short, funky trip

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | August 5, 2015

From the reserved, low-and-slow churn of "Song for the Dead" to the relentlessly upbeat, poppy "Them Changes," Thundercat lets the groove do the talking.

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Classic Review 8/5/15: Godspeed You! Black Emperor – ‘Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven’

Evaluating a post-rock landmark

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | August 5, 2015

Godspeed You! Black Emperor is perhaps the foremost post-rock band in the roughly two decades the subgenre has existed.

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‘Honeybear’ an irony-soaked Americana sampler

Father John Misty scores one of the strongest releases of 2015

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | August 5, 2015

Tillman builds on the bluesy indie rock trappings of his debut as Father John, 2012's Fear Fun, incorporating country, jazz and folk to make what is essentially a hipster's revisionist history of American popular music.

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Death Grips makes incendiary debut in Boston

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | July 27, 2015

Death Grips played one of the loudest, most visceral shows in the history of the Paradise.

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Kamasi Washington takes jazz through time on The Epic

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | July 27, 2015

Over its indelible three hours, The Epic manages to live up to its name in both sheer scope and quality.

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Mac Demarco keeps it simple with Another One

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | July 26, 2015

Mac Demarco's Another One is a satisfying followup to 2014's acclaimed Salad Days that helps to cement the 25-year old as indie rock's consummate court jester.

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‘Cherry Bomb’ fizzles

Tyler, the Creator's latest suffers from poor mixing, bland songwriting

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | April 15, 2015

A sizable roster of guest features is a new wrinkle to Tyler’s tried formula, and it does add quite a bit to the album, but it has the unfortunate effect of making his own work pale in comparison.

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Press Play 3/29/15: Lords of the Game

A Death Grips 'postmortem'

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 29, 2015

From the start, Death Grips has been about much more than the music.

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‘To Pimp a Butterfly’ an eclectic masterpiece

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | March 27, 2015

'good kid, m.A.A.d. city' was straight West Coast hip-hop; 'To Pimp a Butterfly' is 'Bitches Brew' by way of 'Maggot Brain' by way of 'All Eyez on Me.'

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Press Play 12/22/15: The Beauty of ‘Benji’

Examining Sun Kil Moon's tragic opus

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | December 22, 2014

There is no individual moment that stands out on Benji. It is an album that must be taken in full to appreciate.

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FlyLo’s ‘You’re Dead!’ a trippy voyage

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | October 27, 2014

'You’re Dead!' explores death of all kinds, delving primarily into what follows over the long, strange trip of the afterlife.

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Press Play 9/24/14: In Defense of ‘Destiny’

Why Bungie's latest matters more than you think it does

Conor Battles, Editor-in-Chief, Arts & Entertainments Editor | September 24, 2014

While perhaps not quite as revolutionary as Bungie had envisioned, Destiny is one of the sleekest, most enjoyable shooters to hit consoles in quite some time.

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