Arts - The Daily Cardinal

Legend’s jazzy and energetic Christmas tunes feature a mix of standard and original compositions.

ARTS

John Legend brings yuletide cheer early with ‘A Legendary Christmas’

By Carl Zabat | Nov. 1, 2018

Christmas music is an exhaustingly crowded niche of popular music. Countless artists have attempted to have a place in the Christmas canon, yet it always feels like you hear the same 10 songs over and over for two months straight. With timeless holiday classics such as Elvis Presley, Bing Crosby and Mariah Carey, hearing that John Legend was releasing his own Christmas album made me worry — would he be able to hold a candle in the already-packed genre?

ARTS

Lake Street Dive compels audience with soulful, fun music

By Allison Garfield | Nov. 1, 2018

What do you get when you combine powerhouse lead vocals, a smooth jazz vibe and a rock n’ roll beat?

Lauv's magnetic stage presence combined with his obvious love for performing electrified the theater and gave the audience a diverse show filled with fast-paced moments and slow ballads.

ARTS

Lauv brings down-to-earth atmosphere to The Sylvee

By Megan Bratland | Oct. 31, 2018

The Sylvee was washed with blue light and smoke as it came alive with the dynamic rhythms of Lauv last Friday night. His magnetic stage presence combined with his obvious love for performing electrified the theater and gave the audience a show filled with fast-paced moments, slow ballads and occasional times of laughter.

“Halloween” doesn’t rely solely on over-the-top gore to punctuate its terror in the minds of the audience; the viewer is left at the mercy of the filmmakers — much the same as the victims being terrorized on screen.

ARTS

A return to the basics makes ‘Halloween’ fresh, scary

By John Everman | Oct. 30, 2018

The Boogeyman is back! The latest installment of the remarkably everlasting “Halloween” franchise was released into theaters on Friday, Oct. 19.

Netflix’s new docu-series “Haunted” is more than just ghost stories reenacted to bring them to life for the audience.

ARTS

‘Haunted’ on Netflix is the perfect show for the spooky holiday season

By John Everman | Oct. 30, 2018

For some, the possibility of paranormal or supernatural occurrences is simply an impossibility. But for many Americans and people all over the world, encounters with unknown entities are more than just tale; these encounters are very real. Netflix’s new docu-series “Haunted” is more than just ghost stories reenacted to bring them to life for the audience.

"Rocky Horror" is a legacy, a cultural monument and a beacon for anyone who feels outcasted.

ARTS

Velvet Darkness carries on cultural legacy of ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’

By Emma Hellmer | Oct. 29, 2018

“The Rocky Horror Picture Show” is more than an objectively bad movie-musical from the ‘70s to the Madison-based shadow cast at Velvet Darkness; it’s a legacy, a cultural monument and a beacon for anyone who feels outcasted. The director of the group, Lantry, has been involved with Velvet Darkness for over 25 years.

Greta Van Fleet performed at the Sylvee earlier this month. The band will be returning to Madison on June 4, 2019 at the Breese Stevens Field.

ARTS

New Greta Van Fleet album tries too hard to imitate something much older, much better

By Savannah McHugh | Oct. 27, 2018

I will begin this review with a disclaimer: I’d never listened to Greta Van Fleet before I heard this album. I was going into it with an open mind — music-savvy friends had shown me snippets of singles the band had released over the past couple years, and I wasn’t interested in knowing them any better. I came upon Anthem of the Peaceful Army hoping to have my mind changed.

Despite Yachty’s growing fame and network, he has fallen deep into a hole of predictability and monotony with his latest record.

ARTS

Lil Yachty proves ‘nuthin’ on his new record

By Molly Carmichael | Oct. 26, 2018

Last Friday, Lil Yachty released his third album titled Nuthin’ 2 Prove. The young, Atlanta-born artist found mainstream popularity through social media in 2016 with his hit “Minnesota” and feature on D.R.A.M.’s hit party song “Broccoli.” Dubbing himself as a “bubblegum trap” artist, Yachty’s first mixtape Lil Boat was received well by the internet, who loved his high, auto-tuned voice and pop-infused hip-hop style. A member of Quality Control Music record label, Yachty has various peers with more established fan bases, such as Migos and Cardi B, as well as upcoming rappers like Lil Baby.

Camden Ebert (above) and Jack Gammie played the young brother and sister, who said almost nothing during the show and yet delivered some of the strongest performances of the night.

ARTS

‘Six Characters in Search of an Author’ is self-referential delight

By Emma Hellmer | Oct. 25, 2018

Performances of University Theatre’s personalized version of Luigi Pirandello’s haunting play “Six Characters in Search of an Author” will be held through Oct.

ARTS

Bon Iver, Baldwin rally Wisconsinites to vote, support ‘all human lives’

By Sammy Gibbons | Oct. 21, 2018

Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon left the Sylvee stage following their fundraising performance Saturday saying “On, Wisconsin” in a hinting tone, like what he actually wanted to say was “you better get out and vote, Wisconsin.”

"Mega Man 11" is out now for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Switch.

ARTS

‘Mega Man 11’ sees the Blue Bomber in peak form

By Marty Forbeck | Oct. 21, 2018

In terms of classic video game platformers, Mega Man has always been the black sheep of the family. Actually, Sonic is the black sheep of the platformer family, but Mega Man is a close second. The Sonic comparison is fairly apt: Both series star edgy blue protagonists and have had an extremely hard time evolving. There are a lot of mechanics in the classic “Mega Man” games that don’t translate well to the modern day. Translating what once was to something new and special is difficult. Not every series can be Mario — popular in 2D, 3D and in every miscellaneous genre imaginable.

AJJ maintains a high consistency of lyrical despondency, ironic optimism and tactless candidness in their music. Above is Ben Gallaty, bassist for the band.

ARTS

AJJ, various folk-rock bands bring passionate music to Sett

By Christian Memmo | Oct. 20, 2018

If you’re in the know to any degree on the folk-punk-rock scene, last week’s performances at The Sett was the place to be.

The group's performance at the United Center was uplifting and encouraged self-love.

ARTS

BTS brings K-pop to Chicago

By Sierra Bychowski | Oct. 20, 2018

K-pop group BTS set Chicago on fire earlier this month at the United Center with their “Love Yourself” tour. The world tour, named after their album trilogy (Love Yourself: Her, Tear and Answer), is a continuum of their message urging fans to love themselves.

Proving to be a constantly enjoyable presence, Bill Hader without a doubt earned his Emmy for this show.

ARTS

‘Barry’ kills with great acting, story arc

By Joseph Marz | Oct. 18, 2018

With two acting Emmys under its belt and season two well under production, Bill Hader and Alec Berg’s “Barry” looks to be a promising addition to HBO’s ever-growing roster of quality television. Sitting down to view the show, it becomes easy to see why.

UW-Madison MFA alum Lauren Groff is the author behind this supernatural story.

ARTS

‘The Monsters of Templeton’ is a perfect novel for Halloween

By Madeline Peterson | Oct. 18, 2018

It’s getting to be that time of year. With the changing of the leaves and the ubiquitous presence of pumpkin-flavored drinks comes another important seasonal milestone: Halloween. If you want your reading list to reflect the supernatural vibes of the season, consider reading 2008’s “The Monsters of Templeton” by UW-Madison MFA alum Lauren Groff.

ARTS

‘Fresh Off the Boat’ is a sitcom with plenty of laughs, representation

By John Everman | Oct. 16, 2018

“Fresh Off the Boat” premiered its fifth season Oct. 5 on ABC, picking up right where the Huang family left off back in their mid-’90s Orlando, Florida suburb.

"Street Fighter" is one of the many fighting game franchises to make their way into mainstream culture.

ARTS

From cabinets to world championships: The rise of the fighting game genre

By Kyle Engels | Oct. 15, 2018

Imagine yourself in the early ‘90s. The World Wide Web is revolutionizing the way we communicate, the Cold War has finally ended and the Hubble Space Telescope has been cast off into space. Arcades are bustling as the popular social spot for teenagers and young adults, with a wide variety of different game cabinets for any type of player. However, one cabinet dominated every arcade with an unrelenting appeal: “Street Fighter II.” This single game propelled the stagnant fighting game genre it came from to new heights. The proof? Its $1.23 billion in revenue upon release.

With Trench, Twenty One Pilots have created a full-formed project with lots of replay value.

ARTS

Twenty One Pilots go in a more focused direction with ‘Trench’

By Carl Zabat | Oct. 13, 2018

Twenty One Pilots have walked on a tightrope for many years: Their sound is distinct, with Tyler Joseph’s recognizable rap flow and singing voice fusing perfectly to Josh Dun’s kinetic percussion, yet they draw from so many influences that it is hard to peg them down to one genre.

The cover band performed a variety of songs, ranging from today’s pop hits to classics like ‘60s soul and ‘80s rock.

ARTS

Rod Tuffcurls and The Bench Press give audience at Majestic the time of their life

By Kayla Huynh | Oct. 12, 2018

There are very few things in life that never seem to get old — one of them is the cover band Rod Tuffcurls and The Bench Press. In the four times that I’ve seen them perform, their set list has rarely changed, yet they somehow manage to always surprise me.

ARTS

Andy Grammer show is full of smiles, heartwarming positivity

By Elise Goldstein | Oct. 12, 2018

With hundreds of people out of their seats and dancing Tuesday night, the Barrymore Theatre was uplifted and roaring with cheer as purple, red and blue lights outlined the stage. Andy Grammer was performing on his “The Good Parts Tour,” which is raising money for breast cancer awareness in honor of his mother who passed away 10 years ago.