I've been discovering a lot of great new songs lately from both mainstream and indie artists alike. As I occasionally have done in the past here on this blog, I wanted to share some of these tracks with all of you fellow music lovers out there. Give the tracks below a listen and let me know what you think! I would also love to hear what you've been listening to as well, so feel free to comment with your own favorites.
The Japanese House - Clean:
A recent artist that I had the pleasure of discovering is The Japanese House, the solo project of English musician Amber Bain. I've only just started listening to her music, but from the dreamy, electronic indie sound of "Clean" I'd certainly say she's one to watch.
Phoenix - J-Boy:
Although I will always associate the band Phoenix with the atmospheric, new wave sound of their hit "1901," their recent single "J-Boy" delivers an infectious injection of groovy energy. It's a bit different from their old style, but I'm really starting to appreciate their musical divergence.
Bishop Briggs - Hi-Lo (Hollow):
Another English musician to check out is Bishop Briggs. Completely by chance I stumbled on her 2017 single "Hi-Lo (Hollow)" and was blown away at the vocals that she delivers on this track. If you haven't heard it yet, it is absolutely worth a listen.
Lorde - Perfect Places:
Lorde's "Perfect Places" was a song that slowly grew on me over time. After my first listen I can't say it was a favorite, but something about this song's chorus is so incredibly catchy. Now I find myself listening to it quite a bit. I would say that so far it's my favorite single from Lorde's upcoming album Melodrama.
VÉRITÉ - Saint:
I've been a fan of solo artist VÉRITÉ for some time now, and she never fails to deliver when she releases a new song. This trend continued with "Saint," taken from her debut album that's due to be released on June 23. If you haven't heard of VÉRITÉ yet, then I'd recommend giving her songs a listen.
Saturday, June 10, 2017
Saturday, June 3, 2017
The Best YA Books that Tackle Heavy Topics
I read a fair share of young adult books and often find myself being drawn to the ones where the author addresses some pretty intense issues. The subject matter of these books can range from depression and other mental illnesses to school shootings, and although sometimes difficult to read I think that books like these can provide important insight when tactfully written. I have compiled a list in no particular order featuring some of my favorite books that achieve this. They all manage to shed light on a difficult topic while maintaining a certain level of sensitivity and humanness to the characters dealing with these burdens.
Jumping Off Swings
Jo Knowles
Although I read this book several years ago, Jumping Off Swings has managed to stay with me ever since. This novel deals with teen pregnancy and ultimately how it can have a huge affect on more than just one person. What Knowles does brilliantly here is tell the story from the perspective of four different teenagers, all dealing with their own lives and problems. It opens readers up to the fact that what looks like a personal issue can have a greater impact than is initially believed.
The Last Time We Say Goodbye
Cynthia Hand
The Last Time We Say Goodbye is a touching story of a young girl grappling with the recent suicide of her brother. This novel gives a refreshing perspective on the topic of suicide by putting readers in the shoes of someone deeply affected by its aftermath. Cynthia Hand does a superb job of illustrating the transformation of the main character as she slowly begins to embrace the healing process after a family tragedy.
Clean
Amy Reed
Amy Reed's young adult novel Clean dives into the topic of addiction, following a group of teenagers as they all undergo treatment at the same rehab center. Told from the point of view of multiple characters, the story shows how five seemingly disparate teens can find common ground and help each other to overcome their addictions.
If I Was Your Girl
Meredith Russo
If I Was Your Girl is a beautifully crafted story that follows a teenage girl as she tries to find a place for herself. Having been biologically born a boy, she moves to her father's small and largely religious town in the attempts to escape her troubled past and create a new identity as a female. This is a novel that goes beyond simply being a book with a transgender protagonist. Russo creates a very relatable main character that anyone can empathize with on her journey through adolescence.
The Way I Used To Be
Amber Smith
Amber Smith's debut novel The Way I Used To Be deftly addresses the topic of rape among young adult readers. The story follows the protagonist, Eden, through her high school years as she struggles to come to terms with a sexual assault from her brother's friend when she was younger. Smith illustrates the heartbraking inner turmoil of Eden as she attempts to navigate her life and find the strength to overcome the traumatic event from her past.
Jumping Off SwingsJo Knowles
Although I read this book several years ago, Jumping Off Swings has managed to stay with me ever since. This novel deals with teen pregnancy and ultimately how it can have a huge affect on more than just one person. What Knowles does brilliantly here is tell the story from the perspective of four different teenagers, all dealing with their own lives and problems. It opens readers up to the fact that what looks like a personal issue can have a greater impact than is initially believed.
The Last Time We Say GoodbyeCynthia Hand
The Last Time We Say Goodbye is a touching story of a young girl grappling with the recent suicide of her brother. This novel gives a refreshing perspective on the topic of suicide by putting readers in the shoes of someone deeply affected by its aftermath. Cynthia Hand does a superb job of illustrating the transformation of the main character as she slowly begins to embrace the healing process after a family tragedy.
CleanAmy Reed
Amy Reed's young adult novel Clean dives into the topic of addiction, following a group of teenagers as they all undergo treatment at the same rehab center. Told from the point of view of multiple characters, the story shows how five seemingly disparate teens can find common ground and help each other to overcome their addictions.
Meredith Russo
If I Was Your Girl is a beautifully crafted story that follows a teenage girl as she tries to find a place for herself. Having been biologically born a boy, she moves to her father's small and largely religious town in the attempts to escape her troubled past and create a new identity as a female. This is a novel that goes beyond simply being a book with a transgender protagonist. Russo creates a very relatable main character that anyone can empathize with on her journey through adolescence.
The Way I Used To BeAmber Smith
Amber Smith's debut novel The Way I Used To Be deftly addresses the topic of rape among young adult readers. The story follows the protagonist, Eden, through her high school years as she struggles to come to terms with a sexual assault from her brother's friend when she was younger. Smith illustrates the heartbraking inner turmoil of Eden as she attempts to navigate her life and find the strength to overcome the traumatic event from her past.
Saturday, May 6, 2017
Movie Review: Gifted
The 2017 drama Gifted, directed by Marc Webb and starring Chris Evans and Mckenna Grace, promises audiences a heartwarming story of the bond between an uncle and his young niece. After watching this film a couple of nights ago, I have a lot of mixed feelings and want to share my thoughts and opinions on it.
Gifted is about a mathematically genius girl, Mary, who is living with Frank, both her uncle and guardian since Mary's mother committed suicide. Frank wants to raise Mary as normally as possible, choosing to send her to a public school instead of a private school specifically for gifted students. Wanting Mary to fully embrace and develop her abilities, Evelyn, who is Frank's mother and Mary's grandmother, shows up seeking custody of Mary. This results in a court case that threatens to tear Mary away from Frank and break their strong bond with each other.
Despite having a promising synopsis that intrigued me, I found Gifted to be a rather disappointing film. My biggest criticism is just how slow the pacing seemed. This movie is not very long, with a running time of just over an hour and a half, but somehow the plot seemed to drag. As the film progressed, the courtroom scenes especially were quite tedious and forgettable. I also was letdown by a lot of the relationships between some of the characters, specifically between Frank and Bonnie, Mary's teacher at school. Their interactions felt awkward, and the relationship between their characters felt like it didn't really belong in the film and was simply added to lend an extra element to the story. A third factor that didn't work for me was the cliched scenes of Mary "being brilliant." So many movies featuring an intelligent lead character include unnecessary scenes simply added to show just how smart the protagonist is, and Gifted completely falls into this trap. I understand the motivation behind wanting to show Mary's mathematical intellect, but it got old very quickly when I was reminded of it again and again throughout the film.
I can't say that Chris Evans' portrayal of Frank was particularly captivating, and although I enjoyed Octavia Spencer's character she probably had about five minutes of screen time. Truly the singular shining star of Gifted is Mckenna Grace, the actress who plays Mary. Even omitting her young age as a factor, she still managed to deliver a nuanced and believable performance that was a pleasure to watch.
My final stance on Gifted is that conceptually it was well thought out but the delivery fell very short of its potential. Because of this, the emotional connection to the characters that is needed to carry it as an engaging film is lost. If you are thinking about seeing Gifted, I would say that it is worth watching for Mckenna Grace's performance alone. However, as a whole this film is a mediocre blur that is likely to be forgotten as soon as viewers walk out of the theater.
Rating: PG-13
Gifted is about a mathematically genius girl, Mary, who is living with Frank, both her uncle and guardian since Mary's mother committed suicide. Frank wants to raise Mary as normally as possible, choosing to send her to a public school instead of a private school specifically for gifted students. Wanting Mary to fully embrace and develop her abilities, Evelyn, who is Frank's mother and Mary's grandmother, shows up seeking custody of Mary. This results in a court case that threatens to tear Mary away from Frank and break their strong bond with each other.
Despite having a promising synopsis that intrigued me, I found Gifted to be a rather disappointing film. My biggest criticism is just how slow the pacing seemed. This movie is not very long, with a running time of just over an hour and a half, but somehow the plot seemed to drag. As the film progressed, the courtroom scenes especially were quite tedious and forgettable. I also was letdown by a lot of the relationships between some of the characters, specifically between Frank and Bonnie, Mary's teacher at school. Their interactions felt awkward, and the relationship between their characters felt like it didn't really belong in the film and was simply added to lend an extra element to the story. A third factor that didn't work for me was the cliched scenes of Mary "being brilliant." So many movies featuring an intelligent lead character include unnecessary scenes simply added to show just how smart the protagonist is, and Gifted completely falls into this trap. I understand the motivation behind wanting to show Mary's mathematical intellect, but it got old very quickly when I was reminded of it again and again throughout the film.
I can't say that Chris Evans' portrayal of Frank was particularly captivating, and although I enjoyed Octavia Spencer's character she probably had about five minutes of screen time. Truly the singular shining star of Gifted is Mckenna Grace, the actress who plays Mary. Even omitting her young age as a factor, she still managed to deliver a nuanced and believable performance that was a pleasure to watch.
My final stance on Gifted is that conceptually it was well thought out but the delivery fell very short of its potential. Because of this, the emotional connection to the characters that is needed to carry it as an engaging film is lost. If you are thinking about seeing Gifted, I would say that it is worth watching for Mckenna Grace's performance alone. However, as a whole this film is a mediocre blur that is likely to be forgotten as soon as viewers walk out of the theater.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama
Run Time: 101 minutes
Release Date: April 7, 2017
My Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Wednesday, April 26, 2017
The Best Movie Soundtracks
Two things I love are watching movies and listening to music. So I guess it makes sense that I really love listening to motion picture soundtracks, and I really appreciate composers that understand how to convey the emotion of a film through the score. Lately I've been on a big soundtrack kick, listening to music from all kinds of movies. I decided to compile a short list of what I would consider to be some of the best soundtracks that I've heard. For the purposes of this list, I am looking at how much the music elevates the film overall. For example, I love the Inception soundtrack but I don't feel that it makes the movie significantly better. Inception is already an amazing film, regardless of the score. So here is my list, complete with a short blurb explaining what it is about each soundtrack that makes its respective film that much more of an experience.
Composer: Hans Zimmer
I love Hans Zimmer as a composer, but his soundtrack for Interstellar exceeded all my expectations. This film is already a solid motion picture, but the music turns it into a cinematic experience. Its soundtrack is essentially the pulse of Interstellar, deftly manipulating between emotional melodies and volcanic explosions of sound, punctuated by interludes that mimic the empty vastness of space. It is the composing abilities of Hans Zimmer that transform this film into something very special.
Composer: Clint Mansell
Requiem For A Dream gets a lot of hype surrounding its dark and disturbing nature, unflinchingly depicting the downward spiral of addiction. But what should really be highlighted about this film is the soundtrack. Clint Mansell does an incredible job, producing a score that seesaws between the highs and lows of the characters. The perpetual pattern between raving club music and the film's signature devastating melody creates a jarring sound that makes this film's disturbing visuals that much more intense.
Composer: Disasterpeace
In my opinion It Follows is an incredibly underrated movie, and by far what I love about it most is the soundtrack. What makes this horror film so unnerving is the music. Disasterpeace somehow manages to capture every aspect of It Follows in the score, creating incredibly eerie acoustics complete with a distinct 80's vibe. To top it all off, the vehement volume of the soundtrack adds a lot to the disturbing feel of the film.
Composers: Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow
Subtle is perhaps the best way to describe the soundtrack of Ex Machina. I honestly didn't pay much attention to the music the first time I viewed it, but after re-watching this film I was surprised by how much the score bolstered the plot. The composers create a steady, futuristic-sounding rhythm that becomes the backbone of Ex Machina. Both soothing and unnerving at the same time, this contradictory score is truly what brings this film to life.
Composer: M83
As a longtime fan of musician M83, I was very excited to go see Oblivion when it was released. Although this film wasn't anything spectacular in most aspects, the music was truly incredible. M83 made Oblivion into a far superior film than it actually was. There's an undeniable otherworldly feeling that the score evokes, which fits perfectly with the apocalyptic setting of Oblivion. All of the emotion that this film delivers is amplified by its soundtrack, and it's one that I can listen to time and time again.
Friday, April 21, 2017
TV Series Review: 13 Reasons Why
Netflix's newly released series 13 Reasons Why, based on the young adult novel by Jay Asher, is certainly getting its fair share of hype. Despite disliking the book when I read it several years ago, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and give the show a watch to see if it would deliver the galvanizing drama that it promised. Upon finishing the first season of 13 Reasons Why several days ago, I wanted to share all of my thoughts and opinions about it here on my blog.
13 Reasons Why introduces the character of Clay, a high school student who is grappling with the recent suicide of his co-worker and classmate Hannah Baker. One day, he finds a box of tapes sitting outside his front door. Upon listening to them, Clay realizes that Hannah recorded them right before her suicide, outlining thirteen reasons why she killed herself and the people directly involved. As the show progresses, it becomes clear that there is much more to Hannah's suicide than anyone initially realized.
What really caught my attention while watching 13 Reasons Why is how unabashed the creators were depicting the myriad intense topics that this show addresses. I really appreciate how nothing was censored simply because this show is based on a young adult novel. Time and time again, screenwriters tend to get scared when dealing with teenage issues on camera. The most gritty elements are glossed over or often completely omitted simply for the sake of having a safer rating. 13 Reasons Why clearly brakes away from this, with its TV-MA rating as its stamp of approval. Although my feelings on the acting in 13 Reasons Why are mixed, there are some standout performances. I especially want to give praise to Alisha Boe and Miles Heizer, who played Jessica and Alex respectively. Justin Prentice perhaps deserves the greatest credit for his very believable portrayal of Bryce. The fact that I found his character to be detestable is a credit to how well Prentice's acting is in this show. A final point I want to make in support of 13 Reasons Why is just how great its soundtrack is. I was introduced to several new songs, and the creators of the show did a praiseworthy job of supporting each episode with music that always seemed to fit perfectly with the events of the storyline.
I do have several critiques of 13 Reasons Why though, with two main issues at the forefront. The first is involving the casting choices of Hannah Baker and her mother. There was a disconnect between Katherine Langford and her portrayal of Hannah Baker; I never felt like she truly got into the skin of Hannah. Because of this I wasn't able to develop any sort of emotional connection to Hannah throughout the entirety of the show. I also disliked Kate Walsh's portrayal of Olivia Baker, Hannah's mother. It seemed at times like she was overacting her grief, rendering her character nearly unbelievable. The other negative element of 13 Reasons Why is its writing, particularly with the lead character Clay. I found him to be the most uninteresting character of the entire show, and this ultimately created a somewhat dull storyline at certain points. This may partly be a fault of the book, but regardless it was a facet of 13 Reasons Why that I took notice of.
In conclusion, Netflix's 13 Reasons Why is a show that is not afraid to shine a light on many of the issues that plague our society, especially among young adults. For this I will give it a standing ovation. It's the delivery where things are a bit lacking. Between the stale lead character of Clay and my apathy towards Hannah, this show is rendered into a teen drama that doesn't particularly stand out from the numerous other shows available. If you're still on the fence about watching it or not, I would recommend at least giving the pilot episode a try. Even if it doesn't become your favorite TV show of all time, 13 Reasons Why certainly does a solid job of delivering a drama-packed mystery that is great to binge-watch.
Rating: TV-MA
13 Reasons Why introduces the character of Clay, a high school student who is grappling with the recent suicide of his co-worker and classmate Hannah Baker. One day, he finds a box of tapes sitting outside his front door. Upon listening to them, Clay realizes that Hannah recorded them right before her suicide, outlining thirteen reasons why she killed herself and the people directly involved. As the show progresses, it becomes clear that there is much more to Hannah's suicide than anyone initially realized.
What really caught my attention while watching 13 Reasons Why is how unabashed the creators were depicting the myriad intense topics that this show addresses. I really appreciate how nothing was censored simply because this show is based on a young adult novel. Time and time again, screenwriters tend to get scared when dealing with teenage issues on camera. The most gritty elements are glossed over or often completely omitted simply for the sake of having a safer rating. 13 Reasons Why clearly brakes away from this, with its TV-MA rating as its stamp of approval. Although my feelings on the acting in 13 Reasons Why are mixed, there are some standout performances. I especially want to give praise to Alisha Boe and Miles Heizer, who played Jessica and Alex respectively. Justin Prentice perhaps deserves the greatest credit for his very believable portrayal of Bryce. The fact that I found his character to be detestable is a credit to how well Prentice's acting is in this show. A final point I want to make in support of 13 Reasons Why is just how great its soundtrack is. I was introduced to several new songs, and the creators of the show did a praiseworthy job of supporting each episode with music that always seemed to fit perfectly with the events of the storyline.
I do have several critiques of 13 Reasons Why though, with two main issues at the forefront. The first is involving the casting choices of Hannah Baker and her mother. There was a disconnect between Katherine Langford and her portrayal of Hannah Baker; I never felt like she truly got into the skin of Hannah. Because of this I wasn't able to develop any sort of emotional connection to Hannah throughout the entirety of the show. I also disliked Kate Walsh's portrayal of Olivia Baker, Hannah's mother. It seemed at times like she was overacting her grief, rendering her character nearly unbelievable. The other negative element of 13 Reasons Why is its writing, particularly with the lead character Clay. I found him to be the most uninteresting character of the entire show, and this ultimately created a somewhat dull storyline at certain points. This may partly be a fault of the book, but regardless it was a facet of 13 Reasons Why that I took notice of.
In conclusion, Netflix's 13 Reasons Why is a show that is not afraid to shine a light on many of the issues that plague our society, especially among young adults. For this I will give it a standing ovation. It's the delivery where things are a bit lacking. Between the stale lead character of Clay and my apathy towards Hannah, this show is rendered into a teen drama that doesn't particularly stand out from the numerous other shows available. If you're still on the fence about watching it or not, I would recommend at least giving the pilot episode a try. Even if it doesn't become your favorite TV show of all time, 13 Reasons Why certainly does a solid job of delivering a drama-packed mystery that is great to binge-watch.
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Drama/Mystery
Seasons/Episodes: 1/13
Release Date: March 31, 2017
My Rating: ★★★☆☆
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