Matthew Collins

Leisure

Color School returns to D.C.

Washington, D.C. is not a town renowned for its art scene. Hardcore kids might proudly recount the days of Minor Threat, and Wale might slip a line about D.C. into some of his Chicago-indebted raps, but the city’s a haven for politicos and diplomats—artists usually go a bit farther up the coast. That being the case, many might be surprised to learn that our city gave birth to one of the most exciting styles of American studio art of the modern era: the Color School.

By December 9, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Daft Punk, Tron: Legacy

We’ve been waiting on a new Daft Punk album for a while now, and in late 2009, when the duo announced that they would be creating the soundtrack for the upcoming Tron: Legacy, it sounded like a match made in heaven. We would we have the first Daft Punk album in five years (!)

By December 9, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Back in high school, my precocious self had an idea. I was going to write—for Rolling Stone, no less!—an article on Kanye West and his role as “This Generation’s Beatles.” Although most aspects of the story make 2010 me cringe, I’ve got to hand it to myself: 14-year-old me sure had foresight.

By November 18, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Salem, King Night

This year’s buzziest new genre boasts the most ridiculous title the Internet genre-naming gods have ever bestowed (and that includes “purple” and “chillwave”): “witch house.” So named for its ethereal synths and ominous, DJ Screw-influenced beats, this new genre includes bands with names as ridiculous as oOoOO.

By October 7, 2010

Leisure

Look at this effing author

Twenty-seven-year-old Brooklyn author Tao Lin has been labeled a “hipster author” since his first book, a collection of poetry, was published in 2006. This (let’s be honest, slightly derogatory) pigeonholing was not completely unwarranted.

By September 2, 2010

Voices

Great Britain: Greatest Hits

It is a long-standing tradition that as a columnist studying abroad, I am permitted one column per semester to devote to the foreign land where I live. Since I used up all of my armchair sociology on essays for the Berkley Center, I’ve decided to take a slightly less self-indulgent route with this column. Having spent the past fortnight on a road trip around Britain with my uncle, I’m going to provide you with some more useful insight than “Why I think Catholics and Protestants still don’t get along in Glasgow.” I’m going to try my hand at travel writing.

By April 15, 2010

Voices

Post-irony is real, and so what?

What we’re left with today is often called “post-irony,” although the term does a poor job of describing the state of things. We now have a smarter form of irony, irony used as a scalpel as opposed to a mallet. And it makes sense—even if irony can no longer serve its original purpose, it’s become such an integral part of American culture that it has become subtly embedded in everyday use.

By March 4, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Toro y Moi, Causers of This

Plenty of words have been written about chillwave, but for Toro y Moi, I don’t mind adding some more. The band’s newest album, Causers of This, stands out in the midst of a chillwave hangover—or, given the saccharine hooks of Neon Indian, perhaps “despite all of my chillwave cavities” is a better metaphor.

By February 18, 2010

Voices

Some extremely inconvenient truths

It snowed a hell of a lot this week. Amid the record-breaking snowfalls, school closings, and panicking weathermen came the unfortunate but predictable conservative reaction that this kind of anomalous blizzard somehow debunks the theory of “global warming.” The argument—that rare instances of severe cold prove that temperatures are not in fact trending upwards over the long term—is seemingly raised after every dramatic winter storm.

By February 10, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Surfer Blood, Astro Coast

Surfer Blood sounds too “indie” to fill the Strokes’ shoes—that’s a spot best left for Free Energy—but they could be the Shins for a new generation.

By January 28, 2010