Arts

Arts

Olivia Rodrigo discusses heartbreak that inspired ‘SOUR’ in documentary ‘driving home 2 u’

By Ryan Fairfield | April 7

The release of her single, “drivers license,” back in January 2021 launched Olivia Rodrigo into pop superstardom. With her follow-up singles “deja vu” (2021) and “good 4 u” (2021), Rodrigo proved to the world that she is more than just a Disney Channel child actress.Rodrigo continued to gain critical and popular appeal with the release of her debut album, “SOUR” (2021), which broke multiple streaming and charting records. Due to drama surrounding the album, as many of the songs seem to be about Rodrigo’s past relationship, Rodrigo kept a majority of the details of making the album quiet from the public.

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Columns

Micro-Trend of the Week: So you were wrong: A survival guide

By RaiAnn Bu | April 7

After seven weeks of hard-hitting fashion journalism, the well has run a bit dry. There’s nothing else to report on, a lull as the seasons transition. So instead, I have constructed a guide based on learned and lived experience on how to survive wasting your money. 

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Arts

Analyzing 'Dune' in light of the Oscars

By Carl Svahn | April 6

Fear is everywhere in Frank Herbert’s “Dune” (1965). It’s there when the members of House Atreides arrive at their new and hostile home, the desert planet Arrakis. It’s there when Paul Atreides, the protagonist of the book, questions what his role in said story will be. Most importantly, however, it surrounds the book and franchise itself. Though “Dune” is the best-selling sci-fi book of all time and has influenced other giants in the genre like George Lucas, William Gibson and Neal Stephenson, it carries a reputation as an overly complex and even boring story on its own, which has turned many a casual reader away.

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Columns

K-Weekly: BTS gives a stellar Grammy performance, again

By Odessa Gaines | April 5

BTS once again showed the world why it’s on top on Sunday night with its performance on the Grammy Awards stage. The seven-member boy band has seen overwhelming amounts of success since it debuted back in 2013, breaking records with regularity in South Korea and abroad. The band members are known not just for their comedic timing, good looks and charisma but for their beautiful lyrics, lifting vocals and mind-blowing dance moves.

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Arts

Peach Pit does right by fans at Boston performance

By Sadie Leite and Ellie Lester | April 5

On Friday, April 1,Peach Pit paid a visit to Boston’s Big Night Live for its 2022 tour celebrating the release of its third album, “From 2 to 3” (2022). With a loaded lineup packed with songs from all three projects, the band delivered a lively performance with plenty of fun hair flips and intense guitar solos — and a violin.

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Columns

A Compendium of Actors: The fate of female-led films at the Oscars

By Henry Chandonnet | April 5

The 2022 Oscar nominees for best actress represented five separate films, none of which received nominations for best picture. This was for myriad reasons, whether it be film quality, intended audience or rampant commercial misogyny. Nonetheless, it represents a broader issue of equity in the film industry: Actresses are either given bad movies to make the best of or great movies that aren’t allowed to grow.

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Arts

‘Our Flag Means Death’ sets sail with humor and heart

By Nate Hall | April 4

In the last few years, Taika Waititi has become popular for a distinct brand of comedy that mixes absurd humor with emotional depth, which is exemplified in “Thor: Ragnarok” (2017), “Jojo Rabbit” (2019) and “What We Do in the Shadows” (2019–). In his newest project, the HBO Max series “Our Flag Means Death” (2022–), Waititi’s comedic instincts as an actor are stronger than ever.

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Arts

10 years of 'The Hunger Games'

By Ryan Fairfield | April 4

The 2010s birthed dozens of book-to-movie adaptations, mainly based on young adult books. There was “Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief” (2010), “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones” (2013), “The Maze Runner” (2014), “Divergent” (2014) and many more. Of all of the popular adaptations, few have stood the test of time and most remain forgettable, with fans of the books remembering them as disappointing. Yet, one adaptation stands out among the rest as impactful and memorable, while also having garnered both critical and popular acclaim — “The Hunger Games” (2012–2015).

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Columns

The Art of Good Soup: Oh, ginger!

By Sadie Leite and Ellie Lester | April 4

This week we went home. A place that loves us and cares for us and sometimes does things to us like making us fall asleep in our friend’s bed across campus and walk home at five  in the morning because you swore you would just take a nap. No? Just Ellie? Anyways. 

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Arts

Putting a twist on ‘Cheaper by the Dozen’

By Odessa Gaines | March 31

In the year 2022, viewing audiences are intimately familiar with reboots, sequels and spinoffs of dearly loved TV shows and movies. By March of this year alone, Hulu released “How I Met Your Father” (2022–), Peacock released “Bel-Air” (2022–) and Disney+ has released “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” (2022–) and “Cheaper by the Dozen” (2022). 

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Column

Micro-Trend of the Week: 'I'M SCREAMING'

By RaiAnn Bu | March 31

In recent marketing and advertising trends, there has been a shift from high production value to an intentionally unpolished bid for authenticity. Ads have become sponsored hauls: an ordinary girl following the familiar template and vernacular of another haul video, seemingly devoid of a secondary motive to sell you a product, or a Twitter screenshot posted on Instagram captioned with “I’M DYING” or “THIS IS SO CUTE,” followed by pictures of some trendy piece of jewelry.In the caption is a much too convenient link to the item and a sheepish #ad hiding in the corner.

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Arts

Charli XCX's "Crash" channels the joyous irony of dance pop

By Henry Chandonnet | March 30

Charli XCX has entered her dance pop sellout era. This may read as scathing or critical, but the act is intentional. In a combination of joyous reflection and deep irony, Charli XCX reclaims her pop sound and takes the pop music market head-on. The result is her fifth studio album and eighth long-form project, “Crash” (2022). The album is a sonic trip and is sure to be a club classic. “Crash” brings back the Charli XCX we know and love, returning to the iconic pop sound but with a new aura of reclamation and free-spirited nature. In short, Charli XCX is free. She can be a self-actualized sellout, so long as she wants to. 

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Columns

K-Weekly: What’s in your K-pop album?

By Odessa Gaines | March 30

One small difference I feel goes overlooked in the K-pop community is, to put it simply, the albums. And by this, I mean the actual, physical album that you can purchase from a store, or — more likely — Amazon.

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Arts

Oak + Fort Refined: Sustainable clothing in Boston

By RaiAnn Bu | March 29

Oak Refined by Oak + Fort opened on March 25 in the Prudential Center in Boston, demonstrating sustainable fashion holistically through the decor of the store, clothing materials and company transparency. 

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Columns

A Compendium of Actors: Ana de Armas, the actress and the image

By Henry Chandonnet | March 29

The 2020–21 season was gearing up to be the breakout of Ana de Armas. After gaining critical acclaim for her leading performance in “Knives Out” (2019), de Armas hit a career jackpot: a Marilyn Monroe biopic, an erotic thriller with Ben Affleck and even a starring role as the newest Bond girl. This is, of course, until almost all of those films were delayed in release with the pandemic or even off-loaded to streaming services. So what happened to Ana de Armas? Is she the burgeoning star of acting that we all thought, or has she just created a strong media narrative for herself?

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Arts

Weekender: Alt-pop hot rod Dayglow runs the bedroom pop world

By Megan Szostak and Michael Friedman | March 17

For alt-pop sensation Sloan Struble, aka “Dayglow,” everything is ‘fair game’ when it comes to making music. The 22-year-oldsinging, songwriting and producing triple threat propelled to virality as a teenager with the release of his debut album “Fuzzybrain” (2018) and has amassed nearly 7.3 million monthly listeners on Spotify since then. Infectious melodies and colorful harmonies seem to pour out of Struble’s (not-so) fuzzy brain and will soon spill onto the Academic Quad in a highly anticipated performance at the university’s Spring Fling concert.

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Arts

Domee Shi’s 'Turning Red' is a significant Pixar addition

By Ryan Fairfield | March 17

Pixar has become one of the most renowned animation studios of the modern day. Pixar has continuously pushed the boundaries of animation; however, they have been criticized for their lack of diversity. Out of their 25 films, few have centered on female protagonists, and Pixar had only once before featured an Asian lead. With their most recent film, “Turning Red” (2022), Pixar finally brings representation to a community that has been frequently underrepresented in both Pixar and Disney films while also bringing much-needed female representation behind the camera.

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Columns

Micro-Trend of the Week: He was a punk; she did ballet

By RaiAnn Bu | March 17

The ballet platform has become one of the most coveted new shoes of the season, featured on the runway by designers such as Simone Rocha, Miu Miu, Comme des Garçons and Cecilie Bahnsen. The style has surely begun to make its way into the closet of TikTok influencers, capitalizing off of the ephemerality of the trend. However, this does not discount the history and creativity of asking what would have happened if she didn’t say ‘see u l8ter boi.’

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Arts

Peach Pit's ‘From 2 to 3’ is sweet and thoughtful

By Ellie Lester | March 16

Peach Pit, the Vancouver-born quartet, released its third album, “From 2 to 3” (2022) on March 4. The Alternative/Indie group delivers yet another well-balanced combination of playful guitar riffs and thoughtful lyrics. Its latest project is hardly shocking but reliably good. 

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Arts

'The Gilded Age' provides a joyously simple viewing experience

By Henry Chandonnet | March 16

The period piece is a fundamental staple within modern media. It’s riveting to be transported back to another age, to see the flourishes of the lifestyles and to identify the predecessors to our modern actions. Still, the genre’s impact would be fairly minimal without the contributions of a leading figure, creating the landscape and driving a television empire: Julian Fellowes. Fellowes created the iconic “Downton Abbey” (2010–15), a British historical melodrama that received widespread critical acclaim and a cult following. Fellowes returns to the television scene with “The Gilded Age” (2022–), bringing the same period allure to a new American setting. The new series may not have a broader significance to the culture or community ideals, but it succeeds in providing what “Downton Abbey” provided for so many: simple, enjoyable television. 

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