Monday, January 26, 2015

Conor Oberst

When I think of sad, famous white boys with guitars, the first man that pops into my head is the legendary Conor Oberst. Establishing himself as a musician as a shy, nerdy 13 year old, he released his first album, Water, in 1993, which included 12 tracks. One of those 12 tracks was Ouija, probably the most well known song of that album. 
Throughout Conor's teenage years, he developed many bands, including The Faint (1994-1995), Commander Venus (1994-1998), The Magnetas (1996), and Park Ave. (1996). However his most well known band is Bright Eyes, formed in 1995 and has extended all the way to the present, where they released their last album, the People's Key, in 2011.
Their most well known song by far, is First Day of My Life, probably one of the best and emotional love songs from the 2000's. 


I was introduced to Bright Eyes as an angry pre-teen who was new to being social, interacting with boys, experimenting with music genres, and the like. My sister and I were driving to Iowa City to visit my uncle and she put in a CD with Bright Eyes' At the Bottom of Everything. The song was different from others', starting out with a very odd story of a plane crash, and then transitioning to an angry acoustic song questioning the values of our society (We must memorize nine numbers and deny we have a soul/And in this endless race for property and privilege to be one/we must run we must run we must run). After experiencing the song, I slowly became an avid fan. For a long time, all I listened to was Bright Eyes' 2005 I'm Wide Awake It's Morning album. Conor's breathy and scratchy voice, brilliant lyrics, and sad heart made the teenage "fan girl" inside of me melt. I was harboring a serious rock star crush. In 8th grade, I often watched interviews with Oberst and his band. He was asked many questions about his band, his origins, and his inspirations; but was also asked about God, his spirituality, and his views on the world. 

Oberst was raised in a Catholic family and went to a Catholic school, however as he grew up, his beliefs began to change and through his lyrics it is obvious that he no longer indentifies as a Catholic, and points out the many issues with Jesus and monotheism (See: Four Winds and Shell Games). In an interview, when asked if God was real, he explained that God is not some celestial being in the sky, but rather everything we are surrounded by. God is what we have inside us and what is also around us. Ridiculous as it seems, but those words helped me grasp a greater understanding of my personal faith and spirituality.

In essence, Conor's poetry and lyrics speak to many people on a level many other singers and writers can't portray, and that is why Conor Oberst is a very important and very valued musician in my life, as I've grown up with his lyrics, and his music has certainly helped me get through the many perils of being a middle and high schooler; and his lyrics will continue to speak to me and shape me as a person.

Monday, January 19, 2015

Living On One Dollar


We've all been taught what being the poorest of the poor and what people living in poverty must face, what their everyday challenges are, and how they must find a source of income, but do we really know what it feels like? Or how we would have to deal with such a lifestyle? Well four American college students take on that challenge by moving to a rural Guatemala village for two months, and living on only a dollar a day. But because most villagers in Guatemala are paid sporadically, and they knew they would be going through with this for 56 days, they put in slips with numbers on a hat that would add up to 56 dollars. So some days they would be able to draw a 0 dollars, and other days they would be able to draw 9 dollars.


As economic majors focusing on international development, they came into the country with the assumption that they knew what they were doing, and that they would find easy answers when it comes to dealing with poverty. While there, they experienced extreme hunger, unsanitary conditions, and parasites. And no, they weren't able to find easy answers to the situation of poverty. But while there, they met people with extraordinary stories. There was a woman who wanted to be a nurse, but couldn't because she was too poor to and dropped out of school, there was a generous man they met who shared his story of living in poverty and how he was able to survive and be a little well off than others, and there was a little boy who was forced to drop out of elementary school to work so his family could survive.

This movie was definitely an eye-opener. It showed us the struggles of living impoverished, how difficult of a situation it is, what can be done to alleviate the poverty, and how people were able to get out of poverty.

An interesting concept they showed in the film was a bank that gave out loans without the question of income, identity, and other factors. If one walked in needing a loan, then they would get it, and the benefits of this institution were mighty. People were able to start a businesses with the loan, they were able to buy crucial things they needed for their households and families, and even be able to go back to school. 

This film highlights the struggles of millions of people, and reminds us how lucky we are despite what we might not have. Most importantly, it is an inspiring and empowering documentary that shows us what everyday people can do for others and the world.



Neutral Milk Hotel


"What kind of band name is that?" You may think to yourself. Jeff Mangum, lead singer and face of the band, admitted that he had no idea, and that the name had been around ever since he could remember.

Neutral Milk Hotel is known to be quite a mysterious musical group. After being active during around 1989-1999 with various names, they vanished off the face of the Earth, and only recently have begun to resurface after deciding to tour in 2013, and are touring again this year, in which they'll be stopping in Iowa City on April 27th, where I'll be seeing them (You can look at ticket info here).

Neutral Milk Hotel's first releases were the Hype City Soudtrack in 1993 and Everything Is in 1995. Their last most well known, and my personal favorite album, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, was released in 1998, and the band disintegrated a few months later, after Jeff Mangum admitted he grew tired of constant touring and interviews.

NMH's last album, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, is probably one of the most bizarre albums out there. After Jeff Mangum was heavily inspired by The Diary of Anne Frank, he wrote the entire album about her and a remembrance to her life and happenings. Though it was never explicitly stated, it is heavily inferred throughout the album. It's one of those albums that doesn't involve your ears but also your creativity and your mind. The instruments found in this album are rather peculiar and don't like up; plucky guitars, bagpipes, accordions, harmonicas, and other odd instruments. Listening to the music takes you back to different point in time, especially Anne Frank era.

Mangum was known to be a crazy guy. Born and raised in Ruston, Louisiana, he was an unemployed twenty-something flitting from city to city all across the USA. Mangum often had night terrors, making him stay up, sometimes until morning writing songs to the "haunted ghosts" in his closet. After reading the Diary of Anne Frank, he was heavily consumed by the novel, and it affected him enough that he cried for days afterwards, and in an interview he stated that he would often have dreams about going in a time machine and saving Anne Frank.

And yet this crazy bizarre guy has had the ability to speak to so many peoples' souls, and is now (finally) going back on tour and letting a light be shone on him again, as he rightfully deserves-- and I'll be lucky enough to see him live.


Monday, January 12, 2015

Waste Land: Living Among Trash


Over break, I was able to make time to sit myself down and watch this inspiring documentary, Waste Land, about a Brazilian artist who moves to the slums of Brazil to make art-- out of trash. While there, he meets people with depressing, inspiring, and moving backgrounds.


This movie certainly gave me a lot of emotions: pity, sorrow, grief, but also hope. 

Despite Brazil's successful, yet costly World Cup this year, Brazil does go through many problems, such as it's violent favelas (AKA slums), and the rate at which it's citizens feel threatened by police

Brazil doesn't have an official recycling program, however there are many recycling programs for which the Brazilian government supports. Most of the material that is recycled comes from "waste pickers." Waste pickers are people who go through the trash and find recyclable material to collect to give it to companies to recycle them. While they work for a good cause, they are considered on the low spectrum of social status, often referred to as scavengers and garbage dwellers

This movie is set in the Rio de Janeiro's metropolitan landfill Jardim Grachamo, where they receive 7,000 tons of garbage daily. As collectors and waste pickers began to settle there in the 70's and 80's during Brazil's economic crisis, they established favelas to live there, where 13,000 people now live. 


Throughout the movie, a Brooklyn based artist Vik Muniz, goes back to his native country, Brazil, to merely make art out of trash, specifically portraits. However what he didn't expect was to really get to know the people behind these portraits. He interviews them, follows their everyday life, learns about their dreams, goals, and aspirations, as well as their past.

If you are in the mood for a movie that will inspire, uplift, and give you a reminder of how lucky you are, definitely watch this movie, it won't disappoint.


Saturday, January 10, 2015

#JesuisAhmed


A tragic event occurred Wednesday evening in Paris, France. Charlie Hebdo, a French satirical news magazine known for it's offensive and Islamophobic publications was gunned down by two armed men, killing 12 and injuring 10. They are linked to be radical extremists, as they screamed "Allahu Akbar!" while running out. Later on, the two men were identified, and the assumptions were right. They were two French Algerian men who were trained in Al-Qaeda, that branched from Yemen. These cowardly terrorists used Islam as a means to commit violence, even though one of the biggest sins in Islam is to commit murder. Muslims across the world had to go out of their way to condemn and apologize for these two terrorists' actions. But the question is why? What did us Muslims have to do with it? Why is it that when a self-proclaimed Muslim commits an act of terror, the entirety of the Muslim community (about 1.7 billion of us) are expected to stand up and say "this isn't us, this isn't what we do, and we're sorry about what these people did." These terrorists do not reflect us, they never did and they never will.
That day, the world justifiably mourned the victims of the attack. Peaceful demonstrations all around the world were held, with the slogan #JesuisCharlie, meaning I am Charlie in French, bringing pens, pencils, and markers to show their solidarity and protesting for the right of freedom of speech.

Times have been quite a nightmare for French Muslims, and all Muslims around the world in reaction to the attacks. Anti-Islamic crimes have blown up (quite literally) these past few days, mosques have been vandalized, a bomb exploded near a kebab shop in Paris, and powerful Islamaphobic and right-wing groups are using this tragedy to justify oppression towards already oppressed Muslims in France. A hashtag on Twitter even began to trend saying #KillAllMuslims.
However among the 12 people who were shot and killed people seem to forget the policeman who was the first to die serving his country, Ahmed Merabet, a French Muslim taken victim to the terrorists. 

We are not the two terrorists who committed the crimes against humanity, we are Ahmed Merabet, who defended a publication that criticized and ridiculed his faith. 
Ahmed Merabet must be remembered, he is who should to be the face of Muslims- not ISIS, not Al-Qaeda, or the Taliban, because he is what Islam stands for; respect and duty. 

“I do not agree with what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.” -Voltaire