Ram Reverb: “Out of the Garden” by Tancred
Joshua Buck Contributing Writer We have entered a golden era of female guitarists. Last year saw new releases from Colleen Green, Courtney Barnett and Waxahatchee — just to name a few — all of whom are reviving and evolving that iconic mid 90s sound of Juliana Hatfield and PJ Harvey. With the release of “Out […]
The ink just dried on Ink’s spring release
In honor of the release of their spring issue, student-run alternative fashion and culture publication Ink Magazine held a launch party at the Camel on April 16, which featured performances from Richmond-based electronic hip hop group B.ckwards Haus Ops and “art rock” band Toward Space. Volume eight, issue two of the bi-annual magazine features articles […]
Ram Reverb: Babymetal
This week’s album is the epitome of a “Wait! Just give it a chance!” project. Babymetal is a Japanese idol pop group comprised of three teenage girls. They also happen to be backed by a legitimate heavy metal band, and then just for for fun they throw in some highly choreographed dance routines and a […]
The French Film Festival returns with more than just baguettes
Joshua Buck Contributing Writer The French Film Festival, renowned for being the largest French film festival in the United States, returned to Richmond last weekend for its 24th installment and showcased a variety of acclaimed films and exclusive events. It began with pre-festival screening of the 1971 “Out 1” from “New Wave” director Jacques Rivette, […]
RAM REVERB: Charlie XCX “Vroom Vroom”
In pop music, there are rare moments when a vocalist and a producer create something so cohesive, that they become almost inextricable from each other. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland. With the release of the Vroom Vroom EP, Charli XCX and Sophie have thrown their names into the ring. They have also […]
New VCU course offers cultural insight into RVA
A student living in Richmond, it isn’t always easy to keep up with the happenings around the city as concerts, festivals, gallery openings and more seem to take place every single day. This is what inspired VCU’s Cultural Passport course, created by John Freyer and Jill Ware of the Cross Disciplinary Media department in VCUarts […]
Conversation for the Nation: Kendrick & Beyonce
On a purely artistic level, Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy performance almost felt like a preemptive reaction to the night’s awards. Kendrick brazenly displayed his greatness, with the whole world watching, on an evening where that greatness would go largely unrewarded. In an era when music award show moments tend to generate attention based on throwing shade […]
“The Life of Pablo” By Kanye West
For the next couple hundred words, I’m going to set aside the incendiary and alarming behavior that West has exhibited over the last couple weeks, because stripped of this, “The Life of Pablo” is a fascinating example of art in flux. West has repeatedly referred to himself as this generation’s Walt Disney, which would make […]
Ram Reverb: “Leave Me Alone” by Hinds
On their debut full length, “Leave Me Alone,” Spanish rock quartet Hinds bring surf rock back into the garage and successfully capitalizes on the buzz built up from their breakthrough EP last year. Known for their breezy live sets, Hinds manages to successfully bring a stunning level of spontaneity into the studio. There’s a real […]
VCU alum makes splash at Google
Local artist and 2009 VCU alum Richie Pope has been on a roll lately, illustrating two Google Doodles earlier this year and publishing illustrations in The New York Times, The Atlantic and The New Yorker. Pope said he discovered his love of artistic storytelling early. Growing up, his mother didn’t buy him many comics, so […]