The lights have been raised and the curtains have been drawn. The costumes have been hung up and the musicians have packed their instruments away. The hundreds of congratulations flowers sit in vases,...
There are a couple things that Netflix is known for: canceling fantastic TV shows, creating some of the most influential media to date, and making an absurd amount of money off of their subscription. But...
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.”
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.
'Sleep Cycle,' Deakin’s first solo album after his departure from experimental-pop group Animal Collective, is a psychedelic freak-folk-accented trip into the hazy, ethereal memories of Dibb’s past. With the exception of Tim Dewit who plays drums on “Footy”, 'Sleep Cycle' is a solitary self-reflection into Deakin’s worrying thoughts and emotions surrounding his future.
