Arts

Arts

WEEKENDER: Religion in cisgender women’s and gender minority music

By Maeve Hagerty | October 19

“I’m not scared of god / I’m scared he was gone all along,” rising alternative artist Ethel Cain sings on the title track of her 2021 EP “Inbred.” The critical and popular success of Cain’s recent debut album “Preacher’s Daughter” (2022) landed her song “American Teenager” a spot on Barack Obama’s 2022 playlist and cemented her as a rising star of the indie/alternative music scene. But Hayden Anhedönia, who uses the stage name Ethel Cain, is only one singer within an increasingly popular phenomenon of cisgender women and gender minority artists producing music which deals directly and indirectly with themes of religious belief and trauma. They explore the manner in which Christianity specifically has influenced their lives and their music, with the result being something unexpected: The music resonates with a whole community of people whose relationships with their faith may not have always been easy.

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Columns

The Power of the Pen: What happens with the delays?

By Odessa Gaines | October 19

Although the writers’ strike has come to an end, its lingering effects, as well as the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors’ strike, have caused many delays in television and movies. The strikes have not only caused delays in writers’ rooms, but also on sets and in promotional activities. By going on strike, the actors agreed to walk out of their current projects per SAG guidelines. As such, the cast of “Barbie” (2023) cut their promotional tour short on July 14 when the strike officially began.  

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Arts

‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour’ brings the cultural phenomenon to local theaters

By Shannon Murphy | October 19

For those who fell victim to the infamous Ticketmaster fiasco or simply want to relive one of the best nights of a Swifitie’s life, “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” (2023) has made it possible to see the singer and her enthralling masterpiece of a concert up close and personal. The stadium tour itself had an unprecedented cultural impact. More than half of U.S. adults consider themselves fans of Taylor Swift, according to a Morning Consult survey, with 16% of adults describing themselves as “avid” fans of the singer-songwriter, so it’s no surprise that the U.S. leg of the Eras Tour sparked a media frenzy. The demand for tickets was likely spiked in part by a collective yearning for live entertainment as it is Swift’s first post-pandemic tour. It is also her first tour after the 2018 Reputation Stadium Tour, since which she has released four albums: “Lover” (2019), “Folklore” (2020), “Evermore” (2020) and “Midnights” (2022). In the movie, Swift jokes about the stylistic range of these albums, claiming that people asked her if she would include all of them in her upcoming tour, making the concert “three-and-a-half-hours long.” Her response? “Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m going to do.” Swift’s concert is over three hours and 15 minutes and encompasses songs from nine out of her ten studio albums, while the film stands at two hours and 48 minutes.

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Arts

Maisie Peters ends her ‘Good Witch’ album tour with birthdays, inflatable letters, charisma

By Abbie Klein | October 17

“The Good Witch” (2023), Maisie Peters’ sophomore album, is catchy enough to make anyone want to get dumped just to have an excuse to listen to it on repeat. It’s the kind of music that could motivate even the most sullen person to get up and dance, and Peters’ live performance of the album did not disappoint. Maisie Peters concluded the first leg of her international tour, The Good Witch Comes To North America, with a sold out show at Roadrunner on Wednesday, Oct. 11. The 23-year-old, U.K.-based pop singer-songwriter has only been active for about seven years but already has a robust discography, opened for Ed Sheeran and now a No. 1 album on the U.K. Billboard under her belt.

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Arts

‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods’ embraces old age

By Odessa Gaines | October 17

Fourteen years after the release of “The Last Olympian” (2009), Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood are back for another quest — getting Percy into college. The book takes place after the events of the spin-off series “The Heroes of Olympus” (2010–14), and Percy and his friends are ready to move into the mortal world and live normal lives. Unfortunately for the half-bloods, Zeus has not let go of his vendetta against Percy, and this time it risks Percy’s future.

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Columns

Tok the Talk: Ruby Franke, the reality behind family vlogging channels

By Annika Pillai | October 17

Ruby Franke probably would not have seen the lights of superstardom, at least in the world of YouTubing, if it wasn’t for the major influx of family vlogging channels in the 2010s –– oh, and of course, the six children she paraded across the face of the internet, ignominiously, for years. Perhaps the strangest concave curve of the last decade is the rapid rise and painfully slow fall of family vlogging channels. For better or for worse, it’s hard to argue that there wasn’t a huge audience supporting family channels, including “The ACE Family,” “Bratayley” and “The LaBrant Fam.”

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Music

Próxima Parada’s Nick Larson opens up ahead of Wednesday’s show

By Matthew Winkler | October 16

One of the “next stops” of Próxima Parada will be at Brighton Music Hall in Boston this coming Wednesday. The band, based in San Luis Obispo, Calif., had a boost in success after their 2019 song “Musta Been a Ghost” went viral on TikTok in December of 2022. The band, whose name means “next stop” in Spanish and Portuguese, delights in bringing their uplifting and groovy vibes all over the country.

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Columns

Compost in the Daylight: A dead squirrel

By Sadie Leite | October 16

There’s a note on my phone and it’s titled “What’s Important.” I think every writer or young person who’s thought they’ve had a great idea has something similar. It’s tucked away on their phone or in a journal or on scraps of paper floating in an accessible area. Those pieces of words never get off that list though, so I thought it was time they did. Or at least mine did. Here are some of the things I’ve written down:

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Columns

I Can’t Think Straight: From the top

By Cole Reese | October 16

I’m gay. For anyone who has ever seen me in person, that’s probably not that much of a shocker. But even though I’ve been out since high school, there’s still a part of me that doesn’t feel right saying it. The part of me that hides itself deep down, protected by a flimsy fortress of blue nail polish from the Davis Square CVS and a Tinder account which I’ve deleted several times over.

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Arts

Arkells make space for crunchy 9-to-5 millennials

By Kate Beveridge | October 13

Arkells, a Canadian alt-rock band, made their way to the Paradise Rock Club on Oct. 3, where they were met by a hoard of flannel-donning 25–40-year-old fans. The band’s lineup featured lead singer Max Kerman on vocals and guitar, Mike DeAngelis on lead guitar and backup vocals, Nick Dika ...

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Arts

Carin León is a cowboy on fire at TD Garden

By Matthew Winkler | October 13

A hulking man dressed in all black, adorned with a cowboy hat and bandana, towered over TD Garden as his black motorcycle rocketed through the desert, placing him face to face with a lion on LED video walls. In the real world, flames rhythmically shot into the air, lighting a 20-piece ...

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Arts

WEEKENDER: Tufts Tamasha on working it, winning

By Ishaan Rajiv Rajabali | October 12

What does “Tamasha” mean? Ask a Hindi speaker, and they will probably define it as a commotion or a hullabaloo. But probe a little deeper, let it fall on your ears a couple times, and the word is suddenly much more. It can refer to a form of folk theater full of song and dance, or it could be excitement, or it could be loud, colorful bustle. In this pocket of Massachusetts, it applies to a Bollywood-hip-hop fusion dance team. Just like its namesake though, there’s a lot more to this team than “thumkas” and tasteless “jalebi baby” jokes.  

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Arts

University Chaplaincy welcomes President Kumar in celebration of faith, the arts

By Shannon Murphy | October 12

In honor of the inauguration of University President Sunil Kumar, the University Chaplaincy held a multifaith celebration on Oct. 4 in Goddard Chapel. The event included expressions of hospitality from each of the diverse faiths represented by the University Chaplaincy, musical performances from a capella groups Ladies of Essence and Shir Appeal and an art installation of welcoming messages from the Tufts community. 

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Arts

‘All vibes, no genre’: The music of Fall Fest

By Matthew Winkler | October 12

After initially being canceled due to rain, Fall Fest, the annual TUSC-organized fall event, enjoyed a successful run on Sept. 30th. In addition to food trucks and inflatable games, the annual Tufts tradition showcased live music from three Tufts bands and DJ MC Yusuf. The Daily spoke with junior Thomas Grant, TUSC concert coordinator, as well as student bands Free Money (formerly Systemic Flow), Sunnydaze and JAM about everything music at Fall Fest. 

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Columns

Confessions of a Cooking Fanatic: Double or nothing

By Elizabeth Foster | October 11

I find it hard to justify the time I’ve spent cooking if the food I’ve cooked cannot be spread out over multiple meals. This usually means doubling a recipe, or doubling the protein component and scaling everything else to preference.

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Theater

‘Fat Ham’ has a feast with Shakespeare at The Huntington

By Nate Hall | October 10

“Hamlet” is one of William Shakespeare’s most popular tragedies. At over 4,000 lines, it’s also his longest. But in the hands of playwright James Ijames, it turns into something completely different: a fast-paced, darkly comedic adaptation for the modern era that explores family, identity and toxic masculinity in an exciting way.

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Arts

WEEKENDER: Demi Lovato’s ‘Revamped’ and the trend of rerecording music

By Ryan Fairfield | October 5

When Demi Lovato released her album “HOLY FVCK” in Aug., 2022, she bid adieu to her traditional pop style and migrated to the world of rock. While embarking on a tour for the album, Lovato began to reimagine her older pop songs, performing rock covers of some of her classics like “Heart Attack” (2013) and “Cool for the Summer” (2015). The fans seemed to love the new rock versions of the songs, which inspired Lovato to record and release them in “Revamped” (2023).

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Arts

Ed Sheeran’s seventh studio album is an ode to mediocrity

By Abbie Klein | October 5

Ed Sheeran’s newest album, “Autumn Variations” (2023), is nothing special. In fact, the title is apt, since the album is just variations of his previous works (which he happens to be releasing in autumn) but without much panache and experimentation. That may have been Sheeran’s goal, but it doesn’t negate the album’s overall quality.

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Columns

The Power of the Pen: What did Reagan do?

By Odessa Gaines | October 5

While the writers strike of this year has recently come to an end, the actors are still on the picket lines fighting for better pay and protections from big studios. The constant fight in the entertainment industry for actors’ fair treatment has gone on for decades — all the way back to the ...

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Columns

Confessions of a Cooking Fanatic: Introduction

By Elizabeth Foster | October 4

I pride myself on cooking good food. I tell this to my family when I return from college and take over cooking a few dinners a week — tripling everything to account for my “lax-bro” brother and STILL having leftovers. I tell this to my manager when, during my corporate girl summer, he asked if my lunch was homemade (it was). I tell this to myself when I question if my grocery bill could be (should be) any lower for the week.

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