From election coverage to hurricane warnings, we try to make sense of the lunacy.
In Westwood, Ca., hundreds of UC students have organized a TBNYU-esque occupation at UCLA, protesting the likely approval of UC fee increase — UC students don’t pay tuition, but “fees” — to help the state overcome its absurd deficit.
About 50 students have taken over building Campbell Hall, where they have chained the doors shut and are wearing intimidating bandanas. Naturally, hundreds more (representing various UC campuses) have joined them outside the building, with picket signs and even more bandanas. Hm, this all sounds so familiar.
The group (with no distinct name) has released an audio statement encouraging students “who work two or three jobs while going to school” or for parents who will lose “the prospect of affordable education” to join in on the protest. Their only demand asks that state leadership find “other alternatives” besides increasing UC fees.
Thursday, November 19, 2009 16:09 - by Kenneth Hsu
Oh, MTV. The network that pretends it still likes music. In an attempt to remain “cool”, each year MTVu puts on The Woodie Awards, an awards show that recognizes breaking talent in the world of music. My experience at the Woodies was not a pleasant one overall, but it had its bright moments. I separate the night in my mind into two parts: the performances, and the presentations. The former was so infinitely better than the latter it’s actually comical. Due to a probable press embargo until they air, I can’t really yet say who won what, (and if you really want to know, I’m sure you can search Twitter), but suffice to say I was disappointed by most of the winners.
Let’s start with the positives. The opening performance of last night was Matt and Kim’s “Lessons Learned” with the help of some stripping back up singers (one of whom was my freshman year roommate!). This was a take on their amazing music video for the song. I will never quite understand how they keep those gigantic smiles on their faces for the entirety of every performance I’ve ever seen them do. It’s mind blowing.
Thursday, November 19, 2009 14:12 - by Samantha Moore
The It Came from Brooklyn concert series, also known as the “We’re hip, We’re with it Concert Series,” is the latest attempt from the Guggenheim to reimagine itself as more than just some dead guy’s architectural opus. And for $45 a ticket, what better place for Brooklyn’s Yeasayer to premiere their new single, “Ambling Alp?” (A song Entertainment writer Samantha Moore introduced Local readers to in a Tuesday Track installment).
A little more than a week after announcing their upcoming sophomore album Odd Blood, Yeasayer played the Guggenheim show and released the single “Ambling Alp” for free download on their website. Since then, two remixes have been released, both of which are on the released single available by digital download or on a limited edition 12”.
As for the songs, I heard the Memory Tapes remix first and as such I’ll begin there. In this remix, the better of the two, Memory Tapes takes the original and makes it into an inspirational message you can dance to. Memory Tapes dissects the Yeasayer song into three separate parts all to the refrain of “Stick up for yourself, son, / Never mind what anybody else done.” Each part of the Memory Tapes song takes a distinct sound from the original and highlights it for the dance floor.
Thursday, November 19, 2009 12:33 - by Andy OlloveVexing conservatives, pacifying liberals and clearly telling moderates to strap on a pair, the proposed Senate health care bill revealed last night is a favorably nuanced version of the House bill passed earlier this month to “save lives, save money and protect medicare,” in the words of majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV).
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the plan will cover 94% of Americans and cost $849 billion, which will reportedly reduce the number of uninsured by 31 million and the budget deficit by $127 billion in the first 10 years. The bill also allows States to pass legislation to opt out of the public option.
The proposed Senate bill also relaxes the stringent limitations imposed on abortion coverage by the Stupak Amendment. Federal funding for abortions remains forbidden, but women on the public option could conceivably receive insurance for abortions as long as the Secretary of Health and Human Services verifies that Federal money doesn’t contribute to the particular payment plan for it.
Continue…
‘Tis the season for music snobs to compile annoyingly exhaustive “best of the year” lists, with tons of tracks/bands we’ve never heard of. But this year is different. As the end of the 00’s (has anyone come up with a decent nickname yet for the past ten years?) approaches, we’re seeing not only best of the year lists, but best of the decade. Pitchfork, Paste Magazine, and the Onion’s AV Club have all put ‘em out.
For those feeling a bit inferior and ignorant after this browbeating, we’ve enlisted the help of the internet to put together the top three web apps that expand your musical horizons in a gentle, non-patronizing way. If you decide you want some Jack Black-style (see above) tough love, though, allow me to steer you in Pitchfork’s direction. Continue…
Thursday, November 19, 2009 11:06 - by Jake MooreIn case you’ve been living under a rock, part two of the Twilight Saga, New Moon, premieres tonight at midnight. I’m doing my duty as a good Entertainment Editor and braving the inevitable line of hysterical fangirls to see the movie at the AMC Loews Village on 3rd ave at 12:15am. I want to witness for myself who exactly in NYC is willing to buy tickets two weeks in advance for a midnight showing of this generation’s Harry Potter. (See what I did there? I pretended I don’t actually like Twilight and that this is all some big editorial sacrifice. Heh.) I can’t be the only NYU student unironically excited for this premiere (or can I…?). Let this serve as a warning, though: anyone who lives at Third North or Alumni should probably avoid walking by the 3rd avenue cinema for fear of having your ear drums exploded by the excited shrieks of 13-year-old girls.
In the spirit of teenage fandom, below is a clip from SNL mocking Twilight, starring Taylor Swift.
It has been a rough year and a half for anyone investing in the stock market. Although Wall Street is showing some signs of life (even as unemployment is looking is bleak as ever), the pain is only just starting to subside. College endowments across the country took a beating during the recession, forcing layoffs, hiring and pay freezes, and service cuts.
The downturn was certainly not kind to NYU. As we speak, the reengineering efforts are trimming budgets and staff across the University in order to offset some of the damage to the university’s finances.
Bloomberg reported earlier this month that in the Fiscal Year 2009 (ending June 30th) the NYU endowment shrank by 12% to $2.2 billion, down from $2.49 billion. You might be surprised to know that this is very encouraging news. Continue…
Thursday, November 19, 2009 10:14 - by Charlie EisenhoodOf all of the impressive and talented people to attend our fine university, Lady Gaga is undoubtedly the weirdest… but also the most currently buzzworthy. Popcrunch uncovered this video of Gaga performing at a lowly ol’ NYU talent show back in 2005. I can’t tell where it was filmed from the footage, but let us know if you have an idea.
UPDATE: It seems this performance was from Ultraviolet Live. See their 2005 Facebook group (with a Gaga mention) here. Thanks to commenter Meb Byrne for the heads up.
Thursday, November 19, 2009 9:28 - by Jessica Roy
Is Facebook about to jump the shark? Is the world’s new favorite past time heading for the shady alleys that make up MySpace and LiveJournal’s 1990s giffable weirdness? It seems like only yesterday I was freaking out with joy when Mark Zuckerberg opened up his world of stalking to high schoolers, and my sister called me from GW to tell me I’m not in college so I shouldn’t be friending her.
Five or so years later we have non-stop news feeds, branded fan pages and an average 16-year-old with over 1,600 tagged pictures. The popular trade pub AdWeek decided to bring the topic up this Monday in an article titled, “ Is Facebook Getting Uncool for 18-24s?”
AdWeek’s Steve McClellan cited a comScore report that said, “as it has gained a broader audience, the older teens and twenty somethings that drove Facebook’s initial popularity are using it less.” The other anti-Book report was from giant WPP’s Mindshare that said, the “group is reevaluating the site’s worth as a tool for developing friendships. Lastly, Huw Griffiths from Interpublic Group’s Universal McCann said, “when you start getting friended by your grandmother, I think that’s when it starts to lose its cool.”
Thursday, November 19, 2009 9:17 - by Natan Edelsburg
Loading ...
