The Wake

I’m in an auditorium and 25% of the students are sleeping, 25% are sudokuing The Minnesota Daily and roughly half the room appears to be either paying attention or staring blankly into space. 10% of students look like they’re taking notes. Personally, I’m on my laptop, writing this introductory paragraph and wishing I were somewhere far, far away. What happened to that college education I was promised in high school?This particular class is Intro to Psychology – and it is the cause of an overwhelming urge to take what little money and self-respect I have and leave the college forever. This and the majority of the other intro classes available at the University of Minnesota are the product of a new trend in education and society: a collective acceptance of laziness and a uniformed …

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Irony is tricky. Often cited but rarely understood, it is a modern day conversation-killer that has the power to make you sound both stupid and pretentious. The difficulty starts with the many definitions of the word. Beginning with Socrates who “knew nothing,” continuing through Shakespeare with Roman (dramatic) irony, and finally into the all-encompassing cosmic irony, the word has proven its resiliency until now. Plagued my constant misuse and misappropriation, we might be witnessing the death of the word in the worst expansion in (ironic) history. Two weeks ago I was wandering Dinkytown, meeting my new neighbors, and enjoying a Friday night shirking school responsibilities when “irony” crossed my path. I met Colby, a round cheese, wearing Chuck Taylors, Rivers Cuomo brand eyewear, and a well-worn sweatshirt that read Fall Out Boy. Being …

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Tegan and Sara - The Con

To tell you the truth I’m not sure which one is Tegan, or for that matter who Sara is. Yes, I have seen some captioned picture of them being all cute and stuff, but I still can’t identify their voices as unique entities. However, when the twins join together in their pseudo-harmonies, I become mystified as to why it sounds so good. On their fourth full-length album, The Con, the sisters’ Quin early output of Lilith Fair rock and 80s wannabe riffs is a distant memory. Their sound has been expanded and refined with some outstanding production and the best writing of their career.

Produced by Death Cab for Cutie’s Christopher Walla, …

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