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Reviews

New Rihanna album proves to be unique and notable

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By Emma Shultz

On January 28, Rihanna released the album, “Anti.”

This album is unlike anything pop fans have seen from Rihanna. In fact, one does not even have to be a pop fan to enjoy this artful album.

January 27, the day before the release of “Anti,” the single entitled “Work,” featuring Drake, was released and instantly played on popular radio stations. The song is one of the most fast-paced on the album, incorporating  pop-like melodies and lyrics. “Work” is enough to get anyone on their feet, including Jennifer Lopez during her appearance on the Jimmy Fallon Show which blew up on social media.  

Another notable song on the album is “Desperado,” which seems to deal with a breakup. The lyrics, “Once I’m gone, ain’t no coming back,” and, “There ain’t nothing here for me anymore,” show that Rihanna is expressing feelings of leaving something or someone behind. This song describes the journey she is going on to find herself. “Desperado” includes percussion-like rhythms and amazing vocals which tie the song together.

An impressive song is “Higher,” in which Rihanna shows off her stunning vocal range and abilities. With lyrics like, “‘I love you’ is the only thing that’s in my mind,” this song is one of the most romantic and fun on the album, although this song is definitely about the music and the feelings of the listener rather than the lyrics.

Lastly, the song “Love On the Brain” features simple chord progressions and a 50’s inspired style. The song has been compared to the work of Amy Winehouse and showcases Rihanna’s ability to change music styles with every song while still putting together a cohesive album. “Love On the Brain” is yet another love song on “Anti,” which is implied by the title. The song describes a true love, “And I tried to buy your pretty heart, but the price too high.”

The album, “Anti,” is more soulful and musical than many other things that fans have heard from her so far. The interpretive album truly expresses her feelings from the music. This album could be listened to without knowing the lyrics, and the listener would get the same effect.  

Feature, Reviews

Discount app appeals to young and old crowd

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    While playing different apps, searching through various websites and watching TV, people are bombarded with unnecessary advertisements and commercials. One recurring ad that seems directed towards the older generation is Groupon.

   When hearing “Groupon,” someone usually thinks of “coupon,” and this is exactly correct. Those little papers snipped out of newspapers and magazines that parents or grandparents hoard before they go to any store or restaurant are soon to be outdated.

     With this over-advertised Groupon, a new level of discounts is underway. The modernized coupons are not only geared towards adults, which is also taking the aspect of coupons to accelerated heights.

    Groupon is an app/website that almost stands as a middleman between a customer and the service or product on the other side. The site may promote restaurants and stores in one’s community or even advertise products from around the globe.

    Groupon has the ability to usher people to try out various places and products, and the enterprise earns a commission whenever they successfully refer a customer.

    This new type of app is able to provide consumers with discounts on nearly everything. Opportunities exist such as a percent off a meal at a restaurant or money off of jewelry, clothes, books, entertainment, beauty products, electronics and tickets.

    The variety of discounts available has appealed to many college students and teenagers that enjoy shopping online but do not like to spend much money.

    Groupon almost poses as the cheap Amazon, and by cheap, that means low prices.

    This new enterprise is fabulous for customers but is also beneficial for businesses. Even though the site sells items for discounted prices, the sales bring more attention to a company or product. People will be more willing to try a product for less expense; therefore, those people are more likely to return again for full price.

    Personally, I have purchased a few items off of Groupon, and my results were very positive.

    I bought a HP laptop for $149 that was originally priced over $300. The computer was refurbished, yet I may not have been able to find such a great deal else where. The laptop runs well and is in perfect condition.

    Next, I bought a teeth whitener kit. The kit with the bleaching solution and the little LED light has been a hot item in the past year or two. With an original price of $199, I snagged a kit for $9.99. I used this product once already, and the results were just as it promised for $190 cheaper than others but whiter teeth for.

    I have ordered a few other items from Groupon, and each one has been more than satisfactory. I intend on continuing my use of the app into college, so I do not have to spend too much money on anything.

    Offers expire frequently, so the app has an efficient way of making consumers act quickly with their purchases.

    The whole dynamic of the app is beneficial for each entity involved: old customers, young shoppers, business owners and the entire enterprise.

    Give Groupon a try the next time there is a craving for food, clothing or experiences. Well, just as long as there is NOT a wad of cash burning a hole in a pocket: the user would not need to spend all of that money.

 

Reviews

Panic! At the Disco delights with upcoming album

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Panic! At the Disco’s anticipated album, “Death of a Bachelor,” is set to release January 15. Lead singer Brendon Urie began to release individual songs off of the record in April of 2015, and each one has provided a different sound that leaves one to wonder what the album will sound like as whole.

In 2013, Urie released “Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!” which consisted of a blend of alternative, pop and heavily autotuned music. The songs “This is Gospel” and “Miss Jackson” indirectly set the precedent for the album to come in 2016 with their amazing sound and consistent popularity. Other songs, such as “Casual Affair” and “Girl That You Love,” left me hoping whatever was to come would not sound as heavily auto tuned and lazy.

When the first single, “Hallelujah,” was released on April 20, 2015, the sound was similar to that of the alternative ballads on the previous album, which made my fear of a stereotypical pop sound dwindle down. At the time of the release, Urie and the rest of the band acknowledged the song very little. In comparison to the other songs released later, “Hallelujah” barely received any promotion or advertisement, and I cannot understand why.

“Hallelujah” possesses some of my favorite lyrics off the album so far, such as “I’m sitting pretty in my brand new scars, and you’ll never know if you don’t ever try again, so let’s try,” and the beats behind the lyrics instantly makes me want to dance. Urie presents the meaningful words in a way that makes the ballad sound more like a party song than a song to which you would ponder life, which is why I love this song so much.

“Death of a Bachelor” was the second song Urie choose to debut on Sept. 1, 2015. Although the release was not official as it was broadcasted on Beats 1 Radio and then not available on iTunes, Urie encouraged the download of the song even after the audio tracks on YouTube were removed for copyright reasons.

While “Hallelujah” provides me with some of my favorite lyrics, “Death of a Bachelor” possesses my favorite sound. Urie has stated he is heavily influenced by Frank Sinatra and wrote the song as a tribute to him as 2015 was the year of Sinatra’s 100th birthday. The background music, as well as Urie’s voice, has a definite Sinatra-type sound, and because I am also a fan of Sinatra’s music, I fell in love with the song.

A music video for “Death of a Bachelor” was released on Dec. 24, 2015 and also possesses the same vintage feeling the song does as the microphone looks like something out of the 1950s along with Urie’s outfit. The video consists solely of Urie singing on stage to an empty crowd in completely black and white, and the simplicity of the music video allows the music to be completely on the lyrics and sound, which is how this song deserves to be presented.

The third single, “Victorious,” was released shortly after “Death of a Bachelor” on Sept. 29, 2015, and initially, I was not sure how I felt about this song. The opening seconds consist of what sounds like children singing the chorus and then immediately jumps into fast paced lyrics filled with weird metaphors, such as “I’m a killing spree in white with eyes like broken Christmas lights.”

“Victorious” possesses a sound more alike songs played on the radio currently of which I am not an overly big fan. Really appreciating and getting into this song took me an insanely long time, and I mainly use it as a song to pump myself up or dance to while I struggle to understand the point of the metaphors.

Next in line was the Oct. 21, 2015 release of “Emperor’s New Clothes,” which came accompanied by the album announcement of which everyone was waiting, along with a really cool music video. Since the album release date came along with the song, the ballad definitely received the most promotion out of all of the singles released so far and rightfully so.

In juxtaposition with “Hallelujah,” the music video for “Emperor’s New Clothes” focused heavily on the underworld as viewers watched Urie change from a human being to a demon throughout the short song. The effects in the video were well put together, and the beginning included an interesting continuation of the “This is Gospel” video released Aug. 11, 2013.

“Emperor’s New Clothes” is the shortest on the album at a run time of 2:38, and I wish it was way longer. The lyrics in this song are amazing, and Urie’s normal experiments with his vocal range are extremely evident and really make this song pop. With words like “If it feels good, tastes good, it must be mine” and “I’m taking back the crown. I’m all dressed up and naked. I see what is mine and take it,” I immediately fell for this song almost as hard as I fell for “Hallelujah” six months prior. 

The fifth song released was “LA Devotee” on Nov. 26, 2015, and is about the love someone feels about moving to Los Angeles. Although not accompanied by an actual music video, the song came with a visualette featuring the bright and intricate colors of various places in California.

Urie sings the lyrics just as rapidly as he does in “Victorious,” but the imagery and comparisons in “LA Devotee” are way easier to understand and appreciate. The song sounds like a mixture of their 2013 album along with various other songs from albums released in the early 2000s, which hold some of the best songs of Panic! At the Disco’s entire career.

My favorite part of the song is definitely the way the lyrics, “I wouldn’t change you. I wouldn’t ever try to make you leave,” sound all around. The background music changes to a pleasing deep trombone/tuba sound that immediately puts me in a better mood. In fact, the entire song is a mood-lifter and every time it appears on my Spotify or phone shuffle, I want to stop everything I am doing and just lose myself in the music.

“Don’t Threaten Me With a Good Time” was the sixth song released on Dec. 31, 2015 and is probably the song that sounds the most different compared to the others. Fast-paced lyrics seem to be the way Urie wants to present the words because yet again, I am left trying to figure out what the entire verse said in 45 seconds.

Unlike the others on the album, this song does not have a music video or a visualette to go along with it. This makes sense to me as I am not completely sure how you could design a video for this song, considering it holds the same type of message as “Victorious,” which already has a music video. I do like this song more than I liked “Victorious,” though as it holds more of a rock type sound I am not used to hearing from Panic! At the Disco.

Lyrics, “I’m not as think as you drunk I am,” define the song completely and have become the most popular set of words I have seen edited onto pictures or used in “memes” on social media the past week and a half. They also define the partying lifestyle Urie portrays himself living quite often along with bringing up past events he has broadcasted such as the “Drunk History of Fall Out Boy” video that debuted on YouTube in 2013.

Panic! At the Disco has managed to release six of the 11 songs on the new album coming out next week, leaving many to believe the album may debut a few days earlier than Jan. 15. The sound and subject of lyrics coming from Urie and the rest of the band is changing slowly but surely, and I am excited to see what is to come for the remaining five songs and any records to come.

Entertainment, Reviews

Divergent movie series disappoints fans

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“One choice can transform you. One choice can destroy you. One choice will define you” encompasses an entire series of books in three simple sentences.

Veronica Roth’s Divergent series has been popular since her first book, Divergent, came out in 2011. This New York Times Bestselling Author continued on the legacy of the main character Tris Prior with two other books: Insurgent in 2012 and Allegiant in 2013.

This famous series drew in many teens and adults with its dystopian world, action-packed moments and a love story unlike any other. The premise surrounds a futuristic Chicago in which society is divided into five factions. As each person enters adulthood, he/she must choose a faction and commit to that group for life.

This was the first complete series I have ever read in its entirety, and I did so in a matter of months. I was so intrigued with the storyline and identified with Tris while reading. Since the first two books are narrated by Tris, I was able to make a personal connection to her struggles to find her true identity and her growing love for Four.

Allegiant, the last book, is very unique: the narration switches from Tris to Four, also known as Tobias, from chapter to chapter. Alternating the narration allows the reader to see inside Tobias’ mind, see what he sees and truly get a true sense of how he feels about Tris.

With the creation of this captivating series, Hollywood soon grabbed a hold of the books and ran.

The first book’s movie was released in 2014. Shailene Woodley plays Tris in the film, and I think she fits the role perfectly. Each actor that played the characters from the books seemed to be picked well; however, the film did not do the novels justice.

Divergent the movie is closer to the complete storyline of the first book than is the second movie, Insurgent, to its original book. The first film left out a few main characters that are key to advancing the plot in the other books. I believe one of the major book characters, Uriah, made a quick cameo in the films, but maybe the actor just fit the description in the book because I do not recollect hearing his name on screen.

The films make the situation seem like writers never read the other two books before making the first movie. They neglected to realize the whole story line would need to change completely if they left certain roles out. The ending to Divergent was altered as well, meaning the entirety of the second and third films would not match their books.

Although the alterations have enraged many fans, the movies are exceptionally well done on their own. Each movie is nicely developed, and the acting is up to par. The movie writers exploited the romance bit of the novels which did make the movies more appealing to a wide audience.  

As March 10 approaches, many people may be rushing to finish the exhilarating Divergent book series. On this date, the last book’s movie Allegiant will be released. There is no doubt the movie will not match its book. No rush is needed. 

Although I would suggest seeing both the movies or the books, I do not advise rushing the read the series just to see the movies: disappointment is sure to trump the preconceived excitement. The best advice I can give to someone who is intrigued by both media forms is to watch the movies first then read the books; however, choosing one form over the other will preserve the authenticity of the love for the series, for whichever version of the series one chooses.