Photo Collage of the best three pieces of entertainment for this great week by Arts and Entertainment Editor Olivia Cusick.

  Hello! As the 2022 – 2023 Expressions Arts and Entertainment editor, I wanted to use the wonderful reporting team to reflect the media that students at San Luis Obispo High School enjoy.  In the modern age of technology, new media is constantly being created. The Expressions team is excited to give reviews on a few of these every week. Music, film, television, books, and any art form that students and staff want to discuss, are given a free space to do so.    You too can join the team for the Sunday Showcase! If you are passionate and want to talk about art, email me at [email protected].   I thoroughly hope you enjoy this edition of the Sunday Showcase!

The King of Hyperpop, Only Seventeen By reporter Lauren Weyel

  Glaive’s debut EP “cypress grove” is the epitome of Hyperpop. Even if students aren’t a fan of the niche genre, the maximalist production and catchy hooks will have them humming along after the first listen. Clocking in at 170 beats per minute and 101 seconds long, his hit song “astrid” sends listeners reeling through the five stages of song discovery: disgust, anger, stuck-in-your-head, reluctant relistening, and appreciation. The lyrics are clearly written by a teenage boy, often relying on angsty cliches yet still catchy and relatable: “I gave you everything I ever had, even my sweater / Saying that you better than my ex, but have you met her?”

Glaive is not a one hit wonder. The whole EP, while only 13 minutes and 37 seconds long, is packed with head-banging beats, memorable melodies and poetic angry mumbled lyrics. My personal favorite on the EP, “dnd”, is packed with manipulated drum kits and hard hitting bass. The comparatively sugary vocals float over the beats with four lines that are repeated four times in the two minutes and seventeen seconds of the song: “Put my phone on DND ’cause I don’t want nobody to call / I don’t wanna see all your texts, I don’t wanna see you at all / I got a BNB two miles away from the mall / Nobody gettin’ in ’cause I don’t care about y’all”

Since “cypress grove”, Glaive has moved away from the original assignment of creating the fastest beats possible and moved towards more expressive and impressive lyrics along with more accessible production. His collaboration with Ericdoa, an EP titled “then i’ll be happy”, as well as his sophomore EP “all dogs go to heaven” and the deluxe version “old dog, new tricks” stayed more or less true to his Hyperpop roots, but his newer releases have tapped into a more emotional side. He released a cover of the classic Death Cab for Cutie song “i will follow you into the dark” with Spotify Singles, which starts uncharacteristically slow with an acoustic guitar, a far cry from the overproduction of his earlier songs like “astrid”. However, as the song continues, it builds slowly into a loud and angry attack on the world, reminding listeners of his earlier releases like “hey hi hyd” or “physs”. His latest release “three wheels and it still drives!” has a similar effect with a tonal shift halfway through the song. It starts with calmer, emotional lyrics at the beginning, then has a complete shift into angrier words, a faster BPM, and louder and more electronic instruments. He displays his songwriting maturity by changing the lyrics of the chorus after the tonal shift (without changing the melody). Glaive’s music continues to develop and improve with every new release, but his first EP “cypress grove” will always be celebrated as a classic in the genre of Hyperpop.

Disappointed by Olivia Wilde’s “Don’t Worry Darling” by reporter Kennedy Beltram

  The trailer for “Don’t Worry Darling” has been flooding the social media platforms of San Luis Obispo High School students for weeks now. As soon as I saw the teaser for the movie, I was ecstatic. The concept seemed intriguing and the cast was stellar. Florence Pughe, Harry Styles, and Chris Pine are the main characters. 

  The trailer didn’t show much, which I liked. It’s a thriller, set in an old timey neighborhood where the main character slowly figures out things aren’t as they seem. I expected a slow but suspenseful reveal and huge plot twists as with most thrillers. 

  However, that is not what I experienced. The first hour was mainly set up with little to no action. When the action finally began, it was underwhelming and confusing. In thrillers and mysteries the plot moves along as tiny pieces of the puzzle are slowly revealed. In the end, it all comes together and the puzzle is revealed. 

  In “Don’t Worry Darling ”, random unnecessary pieces of information are revealed that in retrospect, don’t matter. Throughout the film, there are visions of ballerinas doing coordinated but unnerving dances. In the end when the mystery is unveiled, this is not explained. 

  The movie had a chance to take advantage of its talented cast and crew. Instead, it created a confusing, low suspense, and frankly boring film. 

  After months of buildup, including multiple scandals during the production as well as the premieres, “Don’t Worry Darling” left so much more to desire than was given. 

Convenience Store Woman” by Sayaka Murata

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Izzy’s Rating: ☆☆☆☆ ½ 

Length: 160 pages

Any warnings?: Strong language, misogyny, pretty light mentions of violence – they’re not graphic, they’re rather humorous but still shocking.

  I originally came across this book when I was looking for new books during “Women in Translation” Month in August. It had a really cute cover that attracted me and being that I came across it on TikTok and had it recommended to me by a close friend, I had to buy it. 

  The book, to briefly summarize, is about 36-year-old Keiko Furukawa, a woman who has worked at the Hiiromachi Station Smile Mart as a part-timer for 18 years. Always an outcast since she was young, she finally found a place to fit in. Through the store manual, she finally finds a way to conform to her peers. However, it seems like everyone else arounds her doesn’t approve of this job where she’s finally fitting in and where she’s happy that she has some sense of purpose. She’s never been in a relationship or had sex before and it doesn’t faze her at all. People think she should have grown out of the job she has. There’s some part about Keiko that needs “fixing”, since she isn’t married by now and has never had a job beyond this convenience store. But it shouldn’t matter if she’s content with it, right?

  Now, to my opinions – I made a specific annotation about my book about the times I suspected Keiko is neurodivergent. As a neurodivergent person, there were behaviors that some of my neurodivergent friends have also described them having when they were younger. 

  Then again, this isn’t confirmed. Call it a “headcanon” of mine. 

 However, it does seem canon, and a recurring topic with the author, that Keiko is asexual and has no desire for sex.

  It’s also, to my surprise, loosely based on the author’s 18-year tenure through several convenience stores. Murata said in an interview with the New York Times, “For me, when I was working as a college student, I was a very shy girl. But at the stores, I was instructed to raise my voice and talk in a loud friendly voice, so I became that kind of active and lively person in that circumstance.”

  One of the most strange, funny, endearing, and yet profound books I’ve ever read, “Convenience Store Woman” made its way into my heart, making a bold statement about society’s expectations about single people, society’s aversion from asexuality, and the embrace of the odd.

Source: nytimes.com