REVIEW: together PANGEA

Angela Gosselin Leave a comment

together Pangea delivered an exceptionally lively set last Friday at the Blind Pig, one that brought house show energy to a space that I’ve never seen so animated. The space itself was packed with fans ranging from loyal front-row occupants to casual enjoyers at the back– an impressive feat given the downpour happening that night. Cue the show itself, as the openers preceding together PANGEA were Sad Park and Skating Polly. I didn’t catch Sad Park (though I’m sure their work is worth a listen), but I was able to see the last few songs of Skating Polly and thought they were excellent. Accessing Riot Grrrl sounds with creative vocals and a dynamic stage presence, this band is definitely one I’ll be tuning into a lot more from here on out. The crowd clearly has similar sentiments, as it bopped and moved as one to the punk ensemble.

 

In terms of the main act, together PANGEA played a fantastic show. Playing a wide range of their discography, there was a clear control over the energy of the room as their set would effortlessly move between more intense, pit-stirring hits like “Badillac” and more popular rock in their newest songs. They also shifted the tone to a questionable “country” label, playing a personal favorite song of mine, “Love & Alcohol.” The change in tone and tempo was welcomed by the crowd, as the frontman’s voice had a chance to shine in this number.

 

That said, the moments where the set picked up were a blast, too. The pit was exhilarating and countless members of the crowd managed to crowdsurf during the set. It was a bit wild, but in the most perfect way. It was easy to see the band feeding off of the crowd’s energy as they stuck around for an encore, taking their time to really enjoy playing their instruments and show off their musical talents. In moments between songs or during solos, you could tell from the looks exchanged between band members that they still loved performing live, even after touring and making music as long as they have.

 

I highly recommend catching any of these bands on tour, in Ann Arbor or elsewhere, as their shows have the kind of quality that wake you up and remind you why live music is an experience like no other.

REVIEW: Lorde: The Solar Power Tour – Detroit

allychoi 1 Comment

After a week of rain and snow, the sun launched its revival just in time for the first week of Lorde’s Solar Power Tour. 

This was her second show in four years, and man was she in good shape. From the live vocals that went off without a hitch, to her insane range, the two-hour experience in Masonic Temple Theater felt surreal. Lorde’s groovy dancing and laid-back body language made the whole thing feel like a casual jam session between friends – the perfect space to let loose and feel the stress of the semester fall off of my shoulders. An encouraging hurrah before finals kicked in; a celebration in anticipation for summer right around the corner.

My seat was perched up in the nosebleeds – the literal last row in the house – so high up that I could physically touch the peeling ceiling with my fingertips if I just reached up. I somewhat mourned the state of my view, especially upon seeing the GA pit get showered in confetti during Solar Power. But thanks to the intimate size of the theater, I could see Lorde with perfect clarity.

Thoroughly exhausted from staying up late in the sewing studio to finish the top for my concert outfit, I took a quick nap after the opener, Remi Wolf, finished her set. Lorde is one of my favorite artists, but I wasn’t feeling nerves, excitement, anything. It didn’t hit me until the house went pitch-black, her silhouette appeared, and I felt all my tiredness detox itself from my body as a beast awakened within. I was up on my feet and screaming at the top of my lungs like everyone else before I even registered that I had woken up from my nap. 

The emotions were running high this Tuesday night.

As Lorde crooned the opening song, Leader of a New Regime, I burst out bawling, unprovoked. I continued to nurse a tissue in one hand, and shakily record in the other during Ribs, and blew my nose through the chorus of Liability. 

The mood boosted when the band started to pump out the vivid strums of Mood Ring and psychedelic colors filtered through the set and on screen. Harder hits like Perfect Places, Supercut, and Green Light had everyone jumping like the place was one giant house party. 

There was such good energy in the venue. You could tell that everyone in the intimate audience (Lorde’s idea) were big fans who genuinely loved her so much. The noise in the crowd was no joke. With every body screaming to the best of its ability, I felt twinges of pain deep in my ears. They started ringing at one point, as if my eardrums were creating reverberations in attempts to shield themselves. Several scream-worthy moments included Lorde’s two outfit changes – one where she disrobed directly on stage (behind a piece of the set that kept a spotlight on her silhouette) during the Secrets From a Girl interlude. Her adorable dancing – where she kinda punches the air and wiggles around (but makes it look good) – also raised hoots. Finally, the finale. I had scoped out the setlist ahead of time to mentally prepare (and last minute memorize some lyrics) but the encore song, Team, was unexpected. See, this song and I go waaay back. In 2013, my family would blast it on the car ride to school, light up when it came up on the radio. The derailing intro that repeats the lyrics “send the call out” fades out in a rhythm that makes the order actually sound like “the call out send,” which my family always jokingly mis-sang as “the cold Allison,” during the height of my emo middle school years. To hear the wholehearted chorus of a few thousand people singing “and you know, we’re on each other’s team,” followed by Lorde flouncing away with a cute skip off stage, left me reeling.

We drove back from Detroit with sore throats, sleepy and sated, hugging overpriced merch in the back seats.

REVIEW: That Brown Show 2022

IseeUsee Leave a comment

This weekend, I attended That Brown Show 2022. It is an event put together by a team made up of different members of brown cultural groups. These groups include a classical music team, classical dance groups, contemporary fusion groups and many more. Every year they come together to put One. Grand. Show. 

This year was the first That Brown 

Show since 2019 and the excitement was unreal. The event was in Michigan Theatre and the grand venue suited the level of the show very well. The line to enter the show extended out of the theatre because so many people wanted in! The audience was super engaged and it consisted of college students but also parents. The show had emcees who introduced the performances and we were taken on a ride. 

The event began with a very skilled and tasteful performance of Indian classical music. They played instruments I had never seen in real life before and they played them masterfully. The auditorium was saturated with the unique tones and sounds of music. The singing was very good too. Theirvoices were powerful when needed and sweet when needed. It was a beautiful performance and for sure an amazing way to introduce the audience to the show. 

After the mesmerizing opening act, the show went into dance performances. The classical dance performances were all stirring and the technique of the performers was great. Their outfits were very traditional and they commanded audiences’ attention well. There were also more modern, fusion dance styles. They had a ton of energy and the dancers were excited to perform. 

They were really creative too! They had

 funny gags in them (that I don’t want to spoil in case they happen next year) and

 really fun story telling elements. The dancers were so energetic and their presence so commanding that it was hard to look away! 

The teams also had videos of them to introduce themselves be

fore each performance and I thought it was so cool. The videos had their own story sometimes and it made the event that much more interesting.I am happy to see so many groups on campus with members that are excited to perform. In every groups’ video it was apparent that the members were frie

nds and enjoyed the whole process of putting together a show. I applaud all of them for their commitment to their art-be it dance, or classical music or singing. Their hardwork and skills were apparent. Hats off to Michigan Manzaat, Maize Mirchi, Michigan Mayuri, WolveRAAS, Michigan Taal, Michigan Sahānā Music & Dance! 

REVIEW: Everything Everywhere All at Once

IseeUsee 1 Comment

Stepping out of the theater after watching this movie was something else. It was a fresh take on existential movies and featured a lot of contemporary art. It’s hard to describe what Everything Everywhere All at Once is about because… it is about a lot of things. It was about family, the meaninglessness of life, adulthood, regrets, people with sausage fingers, and much more.

This movie was a sophisticated one. It delivered strong messages in a more ‘universal’ way. By that I mean, existential movies usually fall into contemplative, somber genres like film noir and the others but Everything Everywhere All at Once delivers these more complex thoughts about human existence through a family comedy of sorts. 

It is funny, it is emotional, it gives serious takeaways without taking itself too seriously and it does that through a careful display of techniques. This movie capitalizes on a lot of pop art and editing. It does not rely on a lot of cliches and uses unique art styles to deliver difficult to portray feelings like the kind a sci-fi movie about metaverses deals with. 

I believe what sets this movie, a sci-fi about metaverse, apart from other sci-fi metaverse movies is how wholesome it is. Sci-fi movies tend to be very plot-driven. The question they tackle is usually so many magnitudes above everyday life problems that they enter a league of their own where you can’t relate to the movie. It becomes more of an action movie at times. But Everything Everywhere All at Once takes a more delicate approach. 

The choice of a middle-aged Asian immigrant parent in America as a protagonist is strong enough to begin with. Her problems are realistic and she isn’t immediately thrown into the task of saving the world. She works through problems in human ways and overcomes problems like having a better relationship with her queer teen daughter. It’s a really fresh take on sci-fi and what all movies like this can offer. At times the warm family-oriented message can hold the movie back by becoming a little preachy but it is overall a good subversion of the genre. 

I loved this movie because of its creativity and how funny it was. It is the funniest sci-fi movie I’ve ever seen and I highly recommend everyone watches it to get a taste of what cool movies of our time look like!

REVIEW: Hair

Madison Krumins Leave a comment

 

The Department of Musical Theatre’s production of Hair was two and a half hours of some of the highest-caliber performance I have ever seen. The revolutionary “tribal love-rock musical” Hair is a powerhouse of a musical, anti-war and counterculture sentiment in its bones, filled with unapologetic depictions of drug use, sexuality, and even nudity. 

As an audience member, I was enthralled from the first moment all the way until the end. Every moment of the performance was perfectly crafted, the movement on the stage always dynamic and exciting. Each vocal performance was special in its own right, and I found myself with chills from the power of the cast’s collective voices multiple times, especially in the compelling final reprise, “Let the Sunshine In.” It’s hard to pick a favorite moment, but one fun visual that stood out to me was the song “Air,” performed flawlessly by Maggie Kuntz as Jeanie, while members of the Hair Tribe surrounded her with a cloud of bubbles from bubble guns. The majority of the second act, which centers on the visions of Claude’s hallucinogenic trip, was a stunning showcase of choreography, costuming, and striking lighting design. 

A flyer for the in-show Be-In, handed out during the performance

Hair, in my opinion, is an important musical. The director’s note at the beginning of the program asks audience members to consider, in response to questions about the “shocking” nature of the show, why the language and brief nudity on stage draws more attention and challenge than the thought of sending young people to war. Hair asks us to reconsider what we are told is “normal.” The Department of Musical Theatre worked in collaboration with a cultural sensitivity specialist, an intimacy director, and other experts to create this show, building an understanding of the musical and the topics it tackles, connecting it to today’s context and conversations.

My only wish is that I could have seen this more than once. This was an incredible last musical to see at the University of Michigan as a student supporting my peers. I could not be filled with more love for live theatre and the incredible talent and energy in the student productions here at this university.

 

Read more about SMTD’s production process for Hair in this Michigan Muse article.