MAY 2015
ENTERTAINMENT
17
THE UNION
Five music festivals to attend before you die BY DENNY BAO
Are you finally 18 years old and want to have an unforgettable experience? If you have money lying around, I recommend that you put it to good use by listening to music and making new friends at one of these music festivals. 1. Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2016 If you enjoy a variety of genres, Coachella is the ideal festival for you. It will take place next year from April 9 to April 11 and April 16 to April 18 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, which is located in the Inland Empire. This year, some of the festival’s most notable performers were Chet Faker, Drake, and Kaskade. 2. Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas 2015 If you religiously listen to elec-
tronic dance music (EDM), this is the festival for you. Taking place from June 19 to June 25 this yea The cheapest tickets go for approximately $430. With seven different stages playing music, carnival rides, art, and many other types of performers, you will not run out of stuff to do during your three-day experience. Most of the famous EDM producers perform at EDC every year; some performers are Alesso, Arty, and Calvin Harris. 3. The Warped Tour Labeled as the “largest traveling music festival in the United States,” the Warped Tour is catered to those who prefer alternative and punk rock music. The festival travels to Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA on June 20. Silverstein, Never Shout Never, and Pvris are slated to perform at the Mountain View show.
4. Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival 2015 If you don’t want to travel too far, you can go to Outside Lands at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California. The festival is scheduled from August 7 to August 9. Some of the more popular artists performing this year are Mumford & Sons, Porter Robinson, Kendrick Lamar, Sam Smith, and Axwell & Ingrosso. 5. Nocturnal Wonderland 2015 If you can’t get tickets for EDC Las Vegas, Nocturnal Wonderland isn’t much of a downgrade. It is scheduled from September 4 to September 6, 2015 in San Bernardino, California. Spend your Labor Day weekend camping and listening to a ton of EDM. The full lineup has not been announced yet, but it already looks promising with Armin van Buuren, Bassnectar, and Galantis scheduled to perform.
Abigail Ecal | THE UNION
MUSIC REVIEWS
TRUE COLORS by Zedd House
BY DIVYESH CHOTAI
Courtesy of Moviepilot.com
Above is a promotional poster for “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” The Avengers, composed of Thor, The Hulk, Ironman, Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Captain America, fight Ultron’s army. They are joined by Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.
‘Age of Ultron’ a worthy sequel to ‘Avengers’ A
BY AKSHAT DAS
“Avengers: The Age of Ultron,” recently debuted to the global office. “Age of Ultron” is the direct sequel to “The Avengers,” and features all of the main Avengers from the first film, as well as Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen, who starred as Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch respectively. Part of the beauty of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is in the fact that all of the movies and TV shows are intricately linked into each other. As such, Avengers 2 is able to begin with a bang from the get-go, instead of having to lead into the introduction of the cast. For the casual fan, “Age of Ultron” is a bit hard to follow along with, because Director Joss Whedon created the movie to cater to
the die-hard fans who have been tempting to obtain world peace in keeping up with the MCU. his own fashion, yet it is unclear It is difficult to single out a cen- how he develops these ideals. There tral plot from all of the storylines is no consistency in his motivations, presented in the movie, but per- and his resolve to end the Avengers haps the main plot revolves around seems to fluctuate as well. Tony Stark’s continuing emotional However, Whedon still deserves repercussions from the alien fall- massive amounts of credit because out at the end of the first Avengers of the way in which he manages to movie. Stark’s wariness of a second bring all the characters together possible alien invasion leads to and function so well in a way that him using the stone in Loki’s scep- only Whedon can. Based on the ter to create artificial intelligence quality of Avengers 2 and the way to bring peace to the world. it performed at the box office, However, this artificial intelliit is evident that the MCU has gence, named Ultron, literally no plans of slowing down its ends up developing a mind of growth. If the future MOVIE massive its own, and attempts to obmovies in the MCU continue REVIEW to be of such a high quality, tain world peace by eliminating the Avengers. and there is no indication that In my opinion, Ultron does not they won’t, there is no doubt that live up to his full potential as the people will continue churning out central villain. He claims to be at- in bunches to watch the movies.
‘Grace and Frankie’ a heartwarming show B+ BY ANTHONY TSENG
“Grace and Frankie,” another Netflix original, has an interesting premise: Grace (Jane Fonda) and Frankie (Lily Tomlin) find out their husbands, Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sol (Sam Waterston) respectively, are having a secret affair and plan to get married. Grace and Frankie must deal with the aftermath of this revelation and the subsequent divorces. These two women are not on the best of terms, but this experience brings them closer together. This journey follows the lives of all four characters along with their children as they deal with this shocking affair. Yet, the show tackles these complex issues — infidelity, homosex-
uality, family, and friendship tion and doubt the validity — in a more light-hearted manof it. The children are pillars ner due to the comedic nature of support for their mothers, of the show. At its heart, “Grace TV-SERIES though, and they gradually REVIEW come to support their fathers and Frankie” is about family and the intricate relationships too. between each family member. Since the show is a comedy, it The relationship between Robert is expected to be funny — and it and Sol is also portrayed very well. was. I laughed a lot while watching After having to hide their affair for this show. Grace and Frankie have years, the two men are finally free amazing chemistry together, and to move in together. They find out, their friendship is a source of a lot however, that love is not perfect; of a laughs. Their obvious differtheir romanticized idea of what ences and clashing personalities their lives would be like is ultimate- further emphasize how unlikely ly untrue. their friendship is, but it somehow The children are unable to fully still works. comprehend how this whole thing All in all, I am excited to see what is possible: their fathers are in love direction the show will take in the with each other. The children do second season. The cast works well not just blindly accept their fathers’ together, and it is a genuinely funny relationship; instead, they ques- and heartwarming show.
B-
Zedd’s “True Colors” is his second full-length release album. Although many considered him to be a pioneer in progressive house, mainly due to the immense success of past singles such as “Clarity” and “Stay the Night,” it seems that Zedd’s formula for success is starting to languish. In other words, his technique becomes predictable as one advances through the album. Nearly each song is filled with tedious aggressive builds contrived with vocals from a wide assortment of guest singers until an aural apogee is reached. The tone is repeatedly the same, regardless of whether the lyrics are romantic or desolate. Nevertheless, the first “True Colors” single, “I Want You to Know” featuring Selena Gomez, scores Zedd a hit to keep his chart success running. Amidst his fading colors, Zedd manages to whip up tracks like “Transmission” with rapper Logic and “Beautiful Now” with singer Jon Bellion to spur nonstop adrenaline rushes that pays off. Overall, Zedd’s sophomore slump shouldn’t discourage you from listening to this album. Zedd does a splendid job of combining his influences from pop and electronic music, as well as an all-star cast to fill in the gaps of hiccups from unvaried tracks. Along with other dance music released this season, expect songs from “True Colors” to permeate airwaves this summer.
KINDRED
by Passion Pit Indie Pop BY TERRA WALLS
D
Passion Pit’s third studio album, “Kindred,” is a disappointment. It may have been frontman Michael Angelakos’s intent to lace this album with more personal reflection about his bipolar disorder and his loved ones, but the creativity of the previous albums, “Gossamer” and “Manners,” seems left behind. Almost every track on this album sounds similar to the one before. Angelakos attempts to pay a kind musical tribute to his wife with “Lifted Up (1985)” and “Whole Life Story.” Although both songs are heartfelt efforts, the true meaning behind both songs are easily overlooked because of their fast paces. The only unique and bearable track is “Where the Sky Hangs,” a song that gives off good vibes using upbeat melodies and personal lyrics about Angelako’s experiences with the upsides of his disorder. The lengthy title of the song “My Brother Taught Me How To Swim” might demonstrate how the song is longer than the average attention span of the listener. There’s no need to hear more than 20 seconds of the song because the weight of the powerful lyrics is soon overpowered, turning the track into a jumbled shrill sounding mess. As a whole, “Kindred” shoved heavy lyrics and fast paced jingles, missing the original aim of the intimate writing. It would be an understatement to say that there is way too much going on in each song.