Tune-Yards, an American musical group that started in 2006, produces some of the most unique sounds you will ever hear. Merill Garbus, the percussionist and mastermind behind the group, and Nate Brenner, the bassist and ukuleleist, combine their talents to create a sound of wonderful, cathartic chaos. If you have been following me on The Lamron, you will know my specialty is shedding light on underrated music—and this week is no different. Read along as I attempt to explain (because, let’s be real, sometimes words do no justice to the complexities of music) what makes this band so special.

If you are an avid TikTok watcher or a rare enjoyer of Netflix originals, you have probably seen Uglies (2024) popping up quite a few times over the past weeks. Uglies (2024), starring Joey King, Kieth Powers, and Chase Strokes, takes place in a futuristic dystopia where beauty standards are more directly enforced on teens. We follow Tally YoungBlood, one of the many teens awaiting the beauty procedure mandated on teens’ sixteenth birthday, as she puts her cosmetic surgery on hold to retrieve her missing friend.

Have you, like myself, ever wanted to get into classical literature staples like the 13th-century Dante Alligheri’s The Divine Comedy, the 16th-century classics of Shakespeare, or the 8th-century classic of Homer’s—The Iliad and The Odyssey?

In a world where the anime space is centered around the objectification of women, it can be hard to find a new series or movie that shows the beauty of femininity without being overly sexual. Thankfully, the incredible Hayao Miyazaki, one of Studio Ghibli’s founders, produces anime films with a realistic portrayal of women—one of the many reasons his movies have solidified themselves as timeless masterpieces.

“BookTok” is a community of people using the popular social media app TikTok to discuss topics surrounding books and literature. Over the past couple of years, discourse regarding the dangers of BookTok has risen. Some of the critiques voiced online about BookTok include its recommendation of books that are not “intellectually stimulating,” its support of simplistic tropes, and how promoting cartoony covers with adult content—which can be misleading to children—is harmful.

Music originating from or being made by artists in Britain has been mainstream in the United States for quite some time now. We all are familiar with the fact that The Beatles dominated the late ‘60s and ‘70s, and the Brit-pop groups of the nineties, like Radiohead and Coldplay, have broken into our collective consciousness. British acts have successfully cemented their place in the American music scene. Where might there be a place for the British rock band Everything Everything?

Dark comedy is a genre I find criminally underrated. Who does not want to laugh at the absurdity of a tragic situation—like when a killer attempts to hide a body and is interrupted by their own surprise party? Even as a horror-lover, I agree that sometimes my mood craves something less gritty. Dark comedy offers those intriguing, thrilling elements with a bit of reprieve in the mix as well.

In light of the recent passing of film legend, the great James Earl Jones (Jan. 17, 1931-Sept. 9, 2024), a man who devoted his life to the craft of film and entertainment, it is only fitting to comment on how his memory is honored through the perpetuation of his likeness and voice, largely for corporate gain. The implications of this direction in the entertainment industry are still emerging, but they reveal an appalling and severe disservice to performers and artists.

If you have been keeping up with Geneseo events, you may be aware of the anticipated arrival of Ross Lynch—the man of your childhood—at this year's SpringFest! While the actor/singer has made his mark on our Disney channel screens, some may be wondering where Lynch has traveled with his music since. Is he still in R5, the 2009 pop band entirely made of the Lynch siblings? Or has he gone solo, preparing to perform alone with merely a microphone and guitar?

The 2005 rival of the hit television show Doctor Who (2005) recently celebrated its 19-year anniversary by announcing season 14—comically titled “Season One!” Trailers and teasers previewed flashy storylines, vibrant costumes, and a stacked set of guest stars this March. At the end of the month, the official Doctor Who social media accounts released teasers, including titles for the eight episodes to come.

This past Wednesday, May 1, we received the final episode of the Star Wars animated series The Bad Batch (2021-24). While the show’s first two seasons were great, especially season two, this final season of the series had a lot riding on it, and fortunately for us fans, it didn't disappoint!

Welcome back to the Halo series retrospective! Those of you who missed the first part of this article can find it on The Lamron’s website! Now, we recommence with one of the most beloved prequel games ever released: Halo Reach (2010). 

Last week, the world witnessed the release of Challengers (2024), a new film directed by Luca Guadagnimo, best known for his work on Bones And All (2022) and Call Me By Your Name (2017). The movie follows a group of three tennis superstars: Tashi Duncan, played by Zendaya; Art Donaldson, played by Mike Faist; and the former college star Patrick Zweig, played by Josh O’Connor. When Art’s tennis Career is not going well, Tashi sets him up for a low-stakes challenger match, causing him to racket against Patrick, Tashi’s former lover and Art’s former best friend. Did I mention the three are in a fifteen-year-long love triangle? 

In the last several years, the production powerhouse A24 has made itself a household name through its unique, unusual, and downright maddening approach to plots following the “typical story.” Though this company has produced several less-than-noteworthy creations, we’re here to show you that their highs outweigh their lows tenfold—so let's get started! 

The dawn of the American New Wave in the late 1960s brought new voices, classics, and storytelling techniques. Many of these have stood the test of time and have been utilized by generations of filmmakers since. Easily, the most popular of these methods is the “needle drop,” a practice that uses a pop song from any given era of music to help tell the story through diegetic or non-diegetic means. Needle drop saw its surge coinciding with the American New Wave as more filmmakers began utilizing it, making the practice streamlined into three categories. 

Clipping (stylized as clipping.) is an experimental hip-hop trio consisting of two producers, William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes, with main vocalist/rapper Daveed Diggs. You might know the latter due to his involvement in the famous musical Hamilton (2020), where he played Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson. Nevertheless, that does not pertain to their music, where they try to experiment with strange hip-hop beats paired with Diggs’ normal rapping style.