The Cannonballers- Colony House

Writtten By: Emma Dingus

“Cannonballers,” Colony House’s fourth album, while ambitious, ultimately makes a little splash. The album opens with “Landlocked Surf Rock” which is upbeat and will make you nostalgic for simpler times in the sun. However, it falls short in almost every other aspect, a common theme for the rest of this album. Many of the songs lack a depth to their lyrics and can feel very generic in their messages.

The album doesn’t have much to distinguish itself from the rest of the popular music being made today. But there are some redeeming qualities to this album. The band’s musical talent and versatility are showcased throughout the whole album. Two of my favorites from this album are “Everything” and “One of those Days.” Both of these songs are solid in almost all aspects and serve as a way for the band to show their writing abilities and versatility. Overall, you can see the effort put into “Cannonballers,” but much of it falls short.

Rating: 6.5/10

Desire, I Want To Turn Into You - Caroline Polachek

Written By: Ethan Dyrli

For the unfamiliar, meet Caroline Polachek, member of indie band Chairlift and a prolific songwriter, boasting songwriting credits for artists like Beyonce, Solange, Travis Scott, and Charli XCX. Her latest album, “Desire, I Want To Turn Into You,” is a must listen for 2023. Polachek taps into the best parts of modern pop, synth, drum and bass, combining them with an amalgamation of unique sounds to create a fresh listening experience.

No track on this record sounds the same, and yet they all gel together. Polacheck’s production is bold but intentional. Even the most surprising instrumentation finds its niche in this record, whether it’s the guitar on “Sunset” or the bagpipes on “Blood and Butter.” Tied together by Polachek’s sweet and modulating vocals, “Desire, I Want To Turn Into You” is a kind reminder of what is possible in a single album.

Rating 8/10

WRITTEN BY PJ RIDDELL DESIGN BY LILIANA MORA

one-room schoolhouse. Then there was a music building, but nowhere near as big [as the High Center].”

At “only 96 years old,” Sherk’s appearances on campus are like clockwork. But what makes returning so frequently worth it? One incentive is his love of research.

“I’m interested in research, so I started volunteering [at Messiah] at the archives, three days a week,” Sherk said. “I’ve been doing it for years.”

At nearly every Messiah basketball game at Hitchcock Arena, one seat is occupied by the same man - a man named Morris Sherk. Before Hitchcock, he faithfully showed up at Brubaker auditorium, and before that, it was Alumni Auditorium.

“I haven’t moved around much,” Sherk said of his consistent seating choice. “It’s up at the top, so I have a good view.”

In addition to a good view, the seat allows for interaction with students. For any student attempting to make their way past his top-row seat and up onto the indoor track, Sherk is always sure to jokingly ask if they have a ticket to enter.

“I enjoy humor,” Sherk said.

While his seating choice hasn’t changed much, the landscape of Messiah’s campus certainly has since Sherk was a student here from 1947 to 1949.

“The buildings, none of those buildings existed,” Sherk said. “There was Old Main, and then beside it there was a

Sherk’s love of research began as he spent a 33-year career locally as a ninth grade social studies teacher, while also authoring five books, publishing four. The unpublished book just so happens to be his autobiography, filled with memories of the places and people that came with his time spent at Messiah.

Of those memories, the most prevalent ones include a woman by the name of Janet Lehman, also a Messiah student, who would later become Sherk’s wife.

“She was a wonderful, wonderful woman,” Sherk said. “We met here at Messiah, and we were married in the old Alumni Auditorium.”

But time marches on. Sherk’s wife Janet passed away last spring, and the old Alumni Auditorium was demolished in 1972. Sherk’s memories of his wife, and his time as a student here, remain intact, and reason to keep coming back. Photos of his wife can still be found hanging on the walls of the archives today.

When not in the archives, Sherk spends his time on campus occupying that same seat in Hitchcock Arena when the basketball teams take the court - a constant in the midst of changes that come with the passing of time.

While Sherk has been retired now for longer than he was a teacher, loyal attendance at basketball games didn’t start just in retirement. He’s been in the stands since the men’s basketball program began in 1959, and the women’s program in 1979.

“I suppose [I’ve been coming] since they developed a varsity and started playing at other schools,” Sherk said. “I’ve been attending a long time.”

Current women’s basketball head coach Mike Miller can attest to Sherk’s constant support. Sherk and Miller both attended the same church for a time, and Miller recalls how Sherk and his church community supported the team when he was a player in the early 1980s.

“When my wife and I started attending church at Mechanicsburg Brethren in Christ in 1984…I realized he was in the gym watching me play as a player,” Miller said. “A lot of people from that church were invested in following Messiah men’s basketball.”

Sherk’s support of Messiah basketball isn’t random - he was a forward for Messiah’s varsity team himself during his days as a student.

“When I was [at Messiah], I played basketball, but at that time they didn’t have a varsity that played other schools,” Sherk said. “We would play other pickup teams and maybe some church teams. I enjoyed it, good exercise.”

While the game of college basketball has evolved since Sherk donned a Messiah jersey, his love of the sport, and support for Messiah, remains. The steady success of the women’s basketball team has been particularly impressive to Sherk, playing a big role in bringing him back game after game.

“They’re just good, they’re a good team,” Sherk said. “I just enjoy watching them…if they weren’t very good, maybe I wouldn’t keep coming.”

BASKETBALL

JANET

For Mike Miller, having the support of Sherk as both a player and now as a coach signifies not only their on-court success, but also the faith-focus of the program.

“It’s a tangible reminder that we’re more than just a basketball team, we represent Christ,” Miller said. “People like Morris and his friends, I think that’s why they have embraced us over the years… we need to continue to work hard in maintaining that concept of playing for Christ, and seeing people like Morris in the stands helps us do that.”