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spooky-albums
Arts

Weekender: Hallowed tunes for All Hallow's month

Studies have shown that listening to classical music spurs the brain to release dopamine, putting the listener into a heightened emotional state, and thus able to better absorb information. So, why sacrifice getting into the spirit of October when you can “feed two birds with one scone” and do so while you study? Here’s a playlist of some of the spookiest classical tunes to help you get started.




AmVamp76_Cv1_5f0fa77ec36865.02640096
Arts

American Vampire 1976 #1 has some bite

A comic’s first issue is typically many things, a jumping-on point for new readers, a reintroduction for veterans to the canon and maybe a chance to establish a new status quo in a concise manner. The first issue of Scott Snyder’s “American Vampire 1976” has inherited this unique problem, but manages to accomplish all the stated goals all while Rafael Albuquerque’s art (and Dave McCaig’s coloring) gives every panel a spark of life.




ATLA-LOK
Television

'Avatar' and 'Korra': The 2020 cultural juggernauts

Considering that “Avatar” first debuted over 15 years ago, it hardly seems the candidate to make such a strong comeback as (technically) a children’s show. However, “Avatar’s” newfound popularity –– as well as “Korra,” its sequel/spinoff series –– proves not only their mastery of TV storytelling, but their timelessness and relevance of cultural commentary.


boys-in-the-band
Arts

'Boys in the Band' is back in town

A lot has changed since the mid-20th century, but "Boys in the Band" (2020) reminds us that some struggles remain universal for gay men. With clear roots in performance, and an all-star, all-gay cast to boot, the movie has garnered a lot of attention. But does it deliver?


on-the-big-screen
Columns

On the big screen: 'Ava'

Ava was the most popular movie on Apple TV in its opening weekend, but you should save yourself the seven dollars. Cliché after cliché leads you through a story that only gets more absurd, leaving you unsatisfied and frankly wondering how filmmakers can mess up movies so badly. I watched this movie so that you didn’t have to.



Maeves-Music-Mondays
Columns

Maeve’s Music Mondays: Nigerian Afrobeats hits different

But what is the Afrobeats genre, specifically to Nigeria? As an extension of the earlier Afrobeat style (yes, the presence of the “s” is a distinction), it features lots of the same influences of jazz, funk, highlife and traditional Nigerian Fuji music. However, it has also drawn from more current pop music and techno, reaching a larger dance club audience and rising in popularity. 









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Columns

Keep the Cameras Rolling: The distribution dilemma

What happens when an immovable object meets an unstoppable force? Thus is the state of movies in 2020. It’s difficult to understate how profound an effect COVID-19 has had on the film industry; after a historic year in 2019, with Disney alone producing several, billion-dollar movies, major theater chains are now struggling just to stay in business.