Arts

Brian Eno delivers compelling, fresh music in latest album, 'Lux'

If you are only going to play one chord for 20 minutes, you should probably choose wisely. This has always been one of the toughest aspects of ambient music: it demands a kind of resiliency in the ideas it tries to portray. Nothing can be more boring than a bad ambient song, or more hypnotic and immersive than a good one. It can often take a few listens just to decide just which a particular track is, but that opinion often feels set in stone after it's made. Thankfully, Brian Eno's latest album, "Lux," is great and deserving of similar praise to his most?lauded albums from the '70s and '80s.

Iconic DiFranco thrills Boston audience

Folk icon AniDiFranco performed to a moderately packed but extremely enthusiastic house at the Wilbur Theater on Nov. 13. Pearl and the Beard gave an inspired opening packed with powerful harmonies and cameos from quirky instruments like the glockenspiel and the melodica. The band has toured numerous times with DiFranco and it's obvious why she keeps asking them back - if Pearl and the Beard's latest album, "Killing the Darlings" (2011), is nice on an iPod, then it's mesmerizing live.

Concert Review | The Who resurrect 'Quadrophenia' at Boston's TD Garden

When The Who announced earlier this year that it was going to embark on a tour performing its classic album "Quadrophenia" (1973), some may have assumed this band was merely coasting on its previous successes. But from the opening song on Nov. 16 at TD Garden, it was evident that The Who was not just taking the easy way out. The 39?year?old"Quadrophenia," filled with intricate parts and demanding vocal lines, is a difficult album for any group to perform in its entirety, let alone for a band whose two principle members are nearing the age of 70. The Who was faced with quite a challenge on this tour, but Friday's triumphant concert proved that the legendary band can still deliver an incredible and inspiring performance.

Elizabeth Landers | Campus Chic Report

Perhaps one of the most glamorous products of fashion, easily disseminated to far corners of the globe, is fashion photography. Major magazines with deep pockets like Vogue and Harper's Bazaar have travelled the world, shooting editorials in Peru or along the Great Wall of China. The idea of going on?location inspires envy as copy editors and stylists, used to working in the confines of a metropolitan area, dream of exotic spots and a little relaxation. The result: richly textured shots with a local, authentic flavor. You can't fake that. Unfortunately, however, this is not the norm for most fashion shoots, whether they are editorial or commercial. Oftentimes, the main components required of a fashion shoot are a lot of stamina and long 12?hour days on your feet to create the perfect Target advertisement or Ralph Lauren perfume ad.

'Skyfall' proves validity of Bond franchise's 50 years of enduring popularity

Interview | Sam Mendes

Weekender | 'Pink Power!' author shares life story, political experiences

At 21 years old, Jamie Lober, then an ambitious senior at Indiana University, did the unthinkable: she ran for mayor of her college town of Bloomington, Ind. During her campaign, Lober emphasized her experience working with the city government, businesses and schools, as well has her role as a student and community organizer for non?profits. Despite her impressive resume of civil service, Lober lost the election to the incumbent. Yet, a loss at the polls could not and did not stop Jamie Lober because she had something on her side driving her onward: pink power.

Theater Preview | 'A Man of No Importance' explores charged topics

"This is a show that Tufts [theater] should be doing," said director Reza Mirsajadi in regard to Terrence McNally's "A Man of No Importance." Accordingly, Torn Ticket II, Tufts' student?run musical theater group, is performing the piece for its fall production. The musical centers on the life of Alfie Byrne (freshman Andrew Prensky), a bus conductor living in Dublin during the 1960s. How will the story of a middle?aged Irishman, set nearly half a century ago, engage Tufts students when "A Man of No Importance" plays this weekend?

Mae Humiston & Sara Gardner |Let's Talk About Food

We have arrived, boys and girls, at the end of the food system line - or have we? We started in production, stopped along the way at distribution and consumption and are now here, at disposal. Disposal in the industrial food model ends in the landfill. Our food waste, comprised of expired supermarket goods, production byproducts and student leftovers among other things, largely gets thrown away. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well, only for so long. The problem with the one?way track of the industrial food model is that there are only so many resources in our world. One of the main resources under depletion is topsoil, and when what is taken from the soil - nutrients, minerals, etc. - does not return, the soil quickly fades from a vibrant miniature ecosystem to sterile dirt. And things don't really like growing in sterile dirt.

Interview | Anand Wilder

Music Review | 'Tinsel and Lights' blends Christmas with indie pop

Most holiday music is known for its conventional use of sounds: Bells, whistles, choirs that could rival heavenly cherubs, a bit of jazz and maybe even a crooner or two are to be expected. But this holiday season, English pop veteran Tracey Thorn presents listeners with a contemporary sound that has the potential to delight young adult listeners without compromising the traditional spirit of the holiday season.

Megan Clark | Where's the Craic?

My Left Foot" (1989) tells the story of Christy Brown, an Irish writer and artist with cerebral palsy. The film stars Daniel Day?Lewis and Brenda Fricker and was directed and co?written by Jim Sheridan, who also directed "In the Name of the Father" (1993).

Interview | Dan Deacon

TV Review | Humor, horror continue in season two of 'American Horror Story'

Ryan Murphy's "American Horror Story" has gained a reputation for amping up the terror, laughs and thrills. Now in its second season, the show is back with still more hilarious insanity.

Concert Review | Ben Gibbard delivers captivating solo performance at Somerville Theatre

Ben Gibbard, frontman for both Death Cab for Cutie and The Postal Service, stopped by the Somerville Theatre on Sunday, Nov. 4 to promote his new solo album "Former Lives."

Joe Stile | BASSic

To the delight of fans around the world, The Weeknd's new song, "Valerie," hit airwaves this week. It serves as the closing track for his sinister mixtape, "Thursday," which is part of his three?part debut album, "Trilogy" (2012).

Film Review | Despite rough edges, 'Flight' takes off

Robert Zemeckis' "Flight" initially appears to be ripped from the headlines, a story parallel to that of pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger's heroics during his emergency landing on the icy Hudson River in 2009. "Flight" might well have turned into a melodramatic feel?good movie by replicating the "Miracle on the Hudson," but writer John Gatins and director Zemeckis provide the audience with an experience far richer than one which might be derived from the simple replication of an uplifting news story.

Theater Review | Anachronisms abound in 'Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson'

Spielberg's 'Lincoln' exposes the man behind the legend

Opera Review | BLO's 'Madama Butterfly' production soars despite flaws

Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" opens with Lieutenant Pinkerton of the American Navy is surveying the home he has just purchased for himself and his 15?year?old bride. Perched high atop a stony mountain in Japan, the building is small - Pinkerton himself calls it a "house of cards" - and it overlooks the sea.