Critical Voices: Helmet, Seeing Eye Dog

Helmet is a band that has always broken the rules. When it formed in 1989 in New York City, Helmet was heavy and dissonant enough to win the fickle approval of the metal and post-hardcore scene, yet melodic enough to fit in with Seattle’s grunge rockers.

By Matthew Decker September 9, 2010

Leisure

Literary Tools: Stranger than “faction”

Glenn Beck is a man of many talents. He draws millions of people to their radios every day. He gets millions more to tune into his Fox News show. And he wrote a terrible novel that hit the stands this July and immediately jumped to the top of the New York Times Bestseller List.

By Chris Heller September 9, 2010

Leisure

Suffer for Fashion: The many styles of leadership

Does the suit make the man, or does the man make the suit? When it comes to our world leaders, I’d like to think that they’re the ones making their clothes look good, but too often a statesman in the wrong ensemble leaves constituents holding their noses on both sides of the isle.

By Keenan Timko September 9, 2010

Leisure

I now pronounce you Joe and Jane

In Oct. 2005, Elizabeth Grimm (GRD ’10) and Jacques Arsenault (COL ’01, GRD ’07) were married in Dahlgren Chapel. It was a beautiful, intimate ceremony with friends and family, followed by a reception in Copely Formal Lounge. As the night wore on, a group of uninvited guests joined the party.

By Brendan Baumgardner September 2, 2010

Leisure

How Gandhi got her groove back

The music on Rhythm & Culture’s new compilation, The Sound of Rhythm and Culture, would be hard to locate in a big box record store like Best Buy or Wal-Mart. Would you look under Electronic or World?

By Nico Dodd September 2, 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 Matthew Collins September 2, 2010

Leisure

Animal Aussies

Drugs, guns, and bank robberies abound in Animal Kingdom. But don’t expect an action film. Animal Kingdom, the debut film from director David Michôd, is a slow-burning drama that just happens to involve action tropes.

By Chris Heller September 2, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Interpol, Interpol

Interviews with members of Interpol preceding the release of their self-titled fourth studio effort may have caused some confusion about the album’s sound. Frontman Paul Banks alluded to something grand and orchestral, while drummer Sam Fogarino saw the album as a reminiscent of their 2002, debut and fan favorite, Turn on The Bright Lights.

By James McGrory September 2, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Hostage Calm, Hostage Calm

Most album releases live and die around the blogosphere buzz they generate, so when Hostage Calm missed their July release date this summer, things looked grim.

By Matthew Decker September 2, 2010

Leisure

Rub Some Dirt on It: Not your grandma’s vaccine

In 2006, young women around the country were bombarded by TV commercials, billboards, and glossy magazine ads urging them to be “one less”—as in one less woman to contract human papillomavirus. The method? Gardasil, a new vaccine manufactured by Merck.

By Sadaf Qureshi September 2, 2010

Leisure

Warming Glow: Shut up, Ryan Seacrest

Georgetown, it’s time for a pop quiz. Take out a pen, eyes on your own paper—you know the drill. Your question is: Who won this year’s Emmy for Best Actor in a Comedy Series?

By Leigh Finnegan September 2, 2010

Leisure

20 years later, East German artists break through

A pair of inviting hands extends from a body, perched above a disordered sea of line and color. Close by, a man falls backwards, plunging downwards towards certain demise.

By Leigh Finnegan August 27, 2010

Leisure

Lez’hur ledger: The Dilophosaurus shall rise again

A summer road trip is one of the best ways to appreciate the beauty of our great nation. Long drives down lost highways offer snapshots of the ever-changing landscape—the vast Pine Barrens of New Jersey, the dreary bays of the Maryland coast, and the rolling Appalachian foothills all colored my most recent excursion, an outing to Natural Bridge, Virginia.

By Brendan Baumgardner August 27, 2010

Leisure

A whole lotta pasta

Carmine’s D.C., the newest location of the New York-based Italian eatery, seats almost 700. That’s more than any other restaurant in D.C., and it was packed at lunch hour this Tuesday. Since there’s nothing particularly adventurous on the menu that could lure such crowds, the number of patrons is surprising.

By Matt Kerwin August 27, 2010

Leisure

Piranha pandemonium

Piranha 3D does not suck, and that is already a lot more than most people would ask of it. Of course, as a remake of a ‘70s horror comedy, Piranha 3D lacks any real plot or character development, opting instead to spend 89 minutes reveling in delightfully graphic carnage and terrifyingly large breasts, all presented in gloriously tacky 3D.

By Brendan Baumgardner August 27, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: The Sword, Warp Riders

Since their 2003 debut, Age of Winters, The Sword has gained a reputation as the loudest band in Austin, Texas, and with its new sci-fi concept album Warp Riders the band reminds its fans why it earned that reputation.

By Nico Dodd August 27, 2010

Leisure

Critical Voices: Ra Ra Riot, The Orchard

Nobody ever cuts poor Ra Ra Riot a break. Although only four years old, the band has already been signed and subsequently parted ways with their label, V2 Records, and suffered through the mysterious death of drummer John Pike in 2007.

By Matthew Decker August 27, 2010

Leisure

Literary Tools: Over 100 million doorstops sold

Stephen King has called him “a terrible writer.” Patrick Anderson of Washington Post thinks he is the “absolute pits, the lowest common denominator of cynical, skuzzy, assembly-line writing.”

By James McGrory August 27, 2010

Leisure

Suffer for Fashion: Getting dressed to impress

This Wednesday, dear freshmen, will be your first day of college classes ever. Totally exciting, I know. Aside from athletes and legacies (kidding!), it’s assumed that you all have the SAT scores, experience with leadership-oriented extracurriculars, the intellectual vigor to thrive during the four years of challenging academics that await.

By Keenan Timko August 27, 2010

Leisure

Lez’hur Ledger: Get those kids off my lawn

Getting out of bed on a weekday is always hard for me, but this Sunday it was almost impossible. I was hung-over, sure, but with The Roots, John Legend, and Sting playing for the Climate Rally on the National Mall, I found my inner strength. Plus, it was free.

By Nico Dodd April 29, 2010