The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
Tuesday, January 20, 2015 — 5

‘Broad City’ back

By KAREN HUA

Daily TV/New Media Editor

Abbi and Ilana hit 
career high in new 
season premiere

We’ve been counting down (four 

and three and two and one) since 
last season, and Comedy Central’s 
best 
gal-pals 

stride are final-
ly back! Abbi 
and Ilana have 
returned 
with 

their crop-tops 
high and heads 
held even high-
er, with their 
sweat 
stains 

large and their 
personalities 
even greater so.

Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer 

(“High and Dry”) have brought 
along Seth Rogen (“The Inter-
view”) for their sophomore sea-
son premiere, in what is one of the 
finest written episodes since the 
series’ conception (and quite possi-
bly one of the best written sitcoms 
of the year).

The show opens with Abbi and 

her new boy toy, Stacy (Rogen), 
amid a horrendous urban heat 
wave that causes Stacy to pass out 
mid-climax. Abbi, in her awkward 
glory, proceeds to finish – but ret-
rospectively wonders if that makes 
her a rapist the next day. To rem-
edy her wrongs, she decides that 
her janky apartment needs an air 
conditioner, so she drags Ilana 
along to Bed, Bath & Beyond where 
she shimmies and handshakes 
with employees who know her on 
a first-name basis. Unfortunately, 
the pair avert their eyes for just a 
moment, and the AC they’ve pur-
chased is stolen in an instant. Ilana 
proposes they return to her NYU 
dorm in alumni fashion, and take 
the AC that should be rightfully 
theirs. Of course, they classically 
get sidetracked on their mission – 
but they end up positively asserting 
their alumni influence on today’s 
youth by encouraging the inno-
cent, unsuspecting dorm residents 
to hit up a bong together. While 
higher than the empire state, Abbi 
makes out with one of the boys, 
who reveals he is (yikes) actually a 

visiting high school student.

“Broad City” ’s setting is nothing 

new, nor the premise anything rev-
olutionary – simply two post-grad 
girls stumbling aimlessly around 
New York City. However, the show 
centers on two characters who 
stray the most radically from any 
archetypes – and who believe that 
not only the show, but the universe 
revolves around them.

If the show’s first season had 

one flaw, it’s that Abbi and Ilana’s 
experience is so singular and can 
be hard to relate to. They had no 
greater ambitions beyond immedi-
ate gratification – no career goals, 
no infatuations beyond fleeting 
crushes, no fucks to give about 
anything significant. However, this 
is the one show where these some-
what pathetic, dispassionate (but 
oh, so passionate) characters are so 
endearing, even with every cringe-
worthy adventure of debauchery.

As an audience, we have been 

wired to see characters always in 
pursuit of “the dream job” or “the 
dream girl.” Abbi and Ilana just 
want an AC – but in their minds, 
this endeavor is anything but triv-
ial. It is we who must learn to not be 
surprised about their questionable 
life choices – not them who must 
adjust to the responsibilities of the 
real world.

These two women are the 

polar opposite to the “glamor-
ous,” “graceful,” “size zero” female 
standards that are seen on televi-
sion continuously. Their character 
development (or lack thereof) lies 
in immediate pleasures. Even pro-
gressing from pilot to sophomore 
season, neither Abbi nor Ilana have 
matured – evidenced especially 
when they retort with insults like: 
“Maybe your dad should’ve pulled 
out!” They do not attempt to pres-
ent the audience with any bullshit 
quasi-poignant lessons about living 
lives as twenty-somethings. They 
do not attempt to mask any inad-
equacies, and they do not attempt 
to present a façade to obscure any 
imperfections. They just are, and 
that is the most refreshing thing.

We have defaulted to expecting 

force-fed “morals” from television, 
that when the only lesson Abbi and 
Ilana hand us is the reassurance 
that our decision-making skills are 
not nearly as fucked up as theirs. 
We’re caught off guard. Jacobson 
and Glazer do nothing more than 

tell a story purely for comedy – no 
ulterior intentions, no instillations 
of lessons that are supposed to 
make us “better human beings.” 
They entertain just to entertain – a 
concept quite scarce on television. 

Because Abbi and Ilana have 

no devotion to anything except 
each other, we see a raw relation-
ship unhindered by any other 
responsibilities in their lives. It’s 
quite revitalizing to see females 
who genuinely only care about 
each other (even if that may be 
at the expense of other cares). 
While they do include men in 
their plots, none of their decisions 
are actually inspired or provoked 
by them. Stacy may have been 
the inciting incident to ensure no 
other sexual partners pass out in 
the future, but Abbi is the only to 
come up with that solution, sug-
gested with input from no one 
else, and with no other support 
except from her gurrrrl, Ilana. 
Beyond their quirks, they have 
a feminism that makes them all-
powerful. The duo does not need 
complex plotlines or pseudo-
grandeur aspirations or air condi-
tioner. They have their friendship 
and that’s enough.

Nevertheless, Abbi and Ilana 

still inadvertently say something 
about how difficult living life in 
your 20s actually is, especially 
while trying to maintain finan-
cial and social stability in New 
York City. However, while other 
shows demonstrate this des-
peration to survive in this urban 
monster through drama and 
tears, Abbi and Ilana tear the city 
apart. They make the city their 
bitch simply because they are too 
immature (and too indifferent) to 
take adult problems seriously. 

While yelling at a cat in the 

final scene, in their fit of anger, 
they accidentally bump their sto-
len air conditioner out the win-
dow, crashing down to its death. 
Their toil was all for naught – but 
hey, are we surprised? Well, we 
shouldn’t be. Karma is a bitch, 
sometimes for no reason, and 
everything has come full circle. 
One thing is for sure: Abbi and 
Ilana will never fall prey to rou-
tine because the epitome of what 
they are is unpredictable – a qual-
ity that seems to be wearing thin 
in modern television. In their 
mundanity, there is hilarity.

Art in a changing 
cultural climate

COMMUNITY CULTURE COLUMN

T

wo masked gunmen 
stormed the offices of 
French satirical maga-

zine Charlie Hebdo on Jan. 7 and 
subsequently killed 12 employ-
ees, including four cartoonists, 
an economist, 
two police 
officers and the 
Editor-in-Chief 
of the publica-
tion. Eleven 
others at the 
scene were 
wounded dur-
ing the attack, 
some gravely. 
As a nation 
rocked under the aftershock 
of the worst terrorist attack in 
France since 1961, journalists 
and civilians, alike, took to their 
respective mediums of expres-
sion to declare the death of free 
speech by radical extremism. 
The attacks were in direct retali-
ation to the magazine’s cartoons, 
which showed the prophet 
Muhammad in compromising 
situations and satirized Islamic 
ideologies.

First and foremost, it should be 

noted that cartoons, as depicted 
on the covers of Charlie Hebdo, 
fall under a large umbrella of art, 
and should thus be subjected to 
the same standards other forms 
of art are granted when it comes 
to freedom of speech. Artists are 
guaranteed freedom of expres-
sion, except in cases of child por-
nography, threatening motives or 
a handful of other exceptions to 
the rule. 

As I write this column, I’m 

consistently struck by a moral 
dilemma. 
While 
I 
consider 

myself non-religious, in my heart 
I object to several of the Charlie 
Hebdo covers under scrutiny. 
The distortion of such an impor-
tant figure in such a prominent 
religion is offensive, and the 
repeated targeting of one spe-
cific religion by the publication 
strikes me as troublesome and 
xenophobic. However, above all 
these objections, I hold freedom 
of speech in the utmost regard, 
regardless of context. The rights 
laid out in the first amendment 
are undoubtedly the founda-
tion of democracy in any society, 
and we cannot begin to pick and 
choose when the freedom of 
speech is appropriate or not, 
especially in the world of politi-
cal art. It’s important to learn 
about art like Andres Serrano’s 
“Piss Christ” like I did in my 
AP U.S. Government class, not 
because it’s a particularly beau-
tiful or influential piece on its 
own, but because it’s a test of our 
nation’s ability to question norms 
— religious, political, what have 
you — without fear of govern-
ment persecution. 

The United States, as well 

as France and other Western 
countries, are seeing an influx 
of immigrants from all different 
parts of the world, all with dif-
ferent ideas of the limits of free 
speech. As globalization increas-
es, should satirical art change to 
accommodate the sensitivities of 
other cultures?

It comes without question that 

with 
increased 
globalization, 

cultural awareness is necessary. 
Every culture has its customs, 
quirks and taboos, and it’s our 
job as citizens of a global world 
to become aware to these quirks 
and develop sensitivity to cer-
tain topics considered rude or 
blasphemous, even if they may 
not appear so from our own cul-
tural 
experiences. 
However, 

art is meant to break rules and 
challenge social norms, and thus 
shouldn’t be held to the same 
standards as everyday interac-
tions. Art — real, textbook art — 
is supposed to incite something 
within us. We’re supposed to 
look at a piece and feel an emo-
tion, and that feeling could be 
happiness, sadness or anger. 
While there was obviously anger 
incited by the Charlie Hebdo 
cover (which reached the point 
of a terrorist attack), these ter-
rorists were radicals, and chang-
ing rules regarding freedom of 
speech in response will break 
down a complex system of West-
ern freedoms that entice immi-
grants to come to America or 
France in the first place. We must 
defend the sanctity of art at all 
costs, because artistic expression 
is the basis of human culture. 
The ability to critique our sur-
roundings, without fear of per-
secution or death, is the core of 
democratic freedom.

Davis is rereading the 

Constitution. To join, e-mail 

katjacqu@umich.edu. 

‘Girls in Peacetime’

By AMELIA ZAK

Daily Music Editor

My admittedly limited colle-

giate experiences have taught me 
that college bands are typically 
too immature and overeager to 
focus on cre-
ating one par-
ticular type of 
sound. Excited 
by the process 
and possibility 
of acceptance, 
young 
talents 

generally 
cre-

ate a scurried 
amalgamation 
of sounds that 
derive 
from 

their personal 
strengths 
or 

multiple mutual interests and 
inspirations. In the early ’90s, 
from the quiet, urban campus 
of Stow University in Glasgow, 
Scotland emerged a college band 
of this definition. An indescrib-
able collection of musicians – 
including the now famous Stuart 
Murdoch – were recognized by 
a music professor at Stow, Alan 
Rankine, who guided the young 
tribe into their first recording 
studio. 

Upon gaining more members 

and momentum, the fresh-faced 
band produced their first full-
length album at the college’s 
record label as Belle & Sebastian. 
The album, titled Tigermilk, was 
met with mild acclaim. Multiple 
albums followed with a couple 
subtractions and additions from 
the group, and the Scottish band 
entered the 21st century as a crit-
ically acclaimed indie band. Pur-
posely eccentric and traditionally 
adventurous, Belle & Sebastian 
has inspired the work of many: 
modern 
bands 
like 
Vampire 

Weekend, The Shins and Arcade 
Fire have created content filled 

with definitive strains of Belle 
& Sebastian’s influence. Wistful 
lyrics and pop music, or sad lyr-
ics with a quiet acoustic guitar, 
Belle & Sebastian has aged into a 
musical anomaly. Changing con-
stantly, and vaguely described 
as a “folk-pop” band, the group 
has never really been defined by 
anything certain. Although con-
taining the maturity and talent of 
an aged collection of musicians, 
Belle & Sebastian’s musical ran-
domness keeps the band as col-
legiate as ever. 

Ending a five-year hiatus the 

band took for equally random 
side projects, this well-awaited 
ninth album, Girls in Peacetime 
Want to Dance greets fans of new 
and old in a state of noticeable 
depression. 

The first song of the album, 

“Nobody’s Empire,” tells the 
story of a boy getting tested and 
touched by doctors because he 
won’t leave his room. When 
interviewed by The Guardian, 
Murdoch described the open-
ing track as a testament to his 
daily struggle against myalgic 
encephalomyelitis, 
a 
chronic 

fatigue disorder causing constant 
emotional and physical stagna-
tion. The group’s lyrics dip in 
and out of Murdoch’s personal 
vat of human sadness consis-
tently throughout the album. 
The listener is then slipped into 
the taunting mind of a young girl 
named Allie who, in a song of 
the same title, is telling herself 
“When there are bombs in the 
Middle East / you want to hurt 
yourself / When there’s knives 
in the streets you want to end 
yourself.” More political than 
Belle & Sebastian has ever dared 
to be, the song tells the story of 
an anxious adolescent battling 
our violent world — all set to a 
happy-go-lucky beat and grow-
ing electric guitar sound. Here 

salutations should be adminis-
tered once again to the perfected 
randomness of Belle & Sebastian. 

Girls in Peacetime Want to 

Dance is deliciously synthesized. 
Upbeat and fun, “Enter Sylvia 
Plath” and “The Party Line” are 
cousins of a Fitz & the Tantrums 
dance number. “Enter Sylvia 
Plath” is an especially interest-
ing song; never before has music 
so synthesized or joyful held 
Sylvia Plath as the subject. And 
“The Party Line,” the first single 
off the album, is a Pet Shop Boys 
number that is sure to excite the 
crowds and reiterate the band’s 
relevance at their upcoming 
summer festival engagements, 
including Coachella and Bonna-
roo. 

Coffee-sipping, slow morning 

songs reminiscent of Dear Catas-
trophe Waitress and other early 
Belle & Sebastian reappears in 
tracks “The Power of Three” and 
“Ever Had a Little Faith.” Sarah 
Martin, the keyboardist and 
occasional vocalist of the band, 
tells an ironic and seemingly 
precious story in “The Power of 
Three.” Filled with references 
to the world of Sir Arthur Conan 
Doyle and the concern that 
“Everybody has their Moriarty,” 
the song is another reminder that 
time has not lessened the random 
genius of this clever little band. 

Idiosyncratic 
and 
overall 

upbeat, these Glaswegian musi-
cians have released a ninth 
album far better than most vet-
eran bands. Age and time haven’t 
lessened the talents of this mis-
matched group. Instead, they 
have made the band highly aware 
of its audience and the freedoms 
that those followers will contin-
ue to adore. This old indie band 
has the following of a popular 
college band, one that a univer-
sity will ardently support despite 
artistic strangeness.

Lupe’s stellar return

By KEN SELANDER

Daily Arts Writer

Scanning over my first casual, 

relaxed account of Lupe Fiasco’s 
Tetsuo 
& 

Youth , I noted 
that 
I 
didn’t 

hear any real 
“bangers” 
on 

the record. The 
length of the 
songs 
proved 

tiring 
and 

forgettable, the 
instrumentals 
seemed a bit out of place, but I 
still thought it was well produced 
on the whole, anyway. 

It wasn’t until my second time 

listening through with a more 
attentive ear that I realized 
how jaw-dropping this album 
is: I focused in on the lyrics 
and structure of each song and 
had my mind blown. “Mural” 
is a mesmerizing masterpiece, 
“Deliver” is filled with soul-
wrenching 
symbolism 
and 

“Prisoner 1 & 2” manages to 
take a cliché theme in rap and 
politics and repackage it in a 
new, exciting way (with maybe 
a little inspiration from skits in 
Kendrick’s good kid, m.A.A.d 
city). 

While 
completely 

unintentional, my own change 
of heart is a near perfect 
representation 
of 
the 
issues 

Lupe Fiasco has been facing as 
a rapper and artist throughout 
his career. He’s experienced 
resistance because his tracks 
don’t fit the mold for the music 
industry’s standard hit. Lupe 
often complains about the label 
interfering with his music. “Dots 
& Lines” calls out major labels 
for limiting his artistic voice and 
artists for selling their souls for 
money, directly telling listeners 
in a catchy chorus, “don’t sign.”

His tracks are often double 

or even triple the length of an 
average song – “Chopper” alone 
runs for 9.5 minutes. It’s hard to 
get radio play with records that 
long. Furthermore, it seems that 
most people don’t want to have 
to think so deeply about their 
music. Lupe’s lyrics and rhyme 
schemes are so intricate you have 
to listen over and over again just 
to get a basic understanding of a 
track. I could listen to “Mural” or 
“Adoration of the Magi” for a day 
straight and still not discover all 
that the songs have to offer.

Listening to “Prisoner 1 & 2,” 

which has numerous references 
to Maya Angelou’s famous “I 
Know Why the Caged Bird 
Sings,” I could not help but 
directly contrast the soulful, 
meticulous track to Gucci Mane’s 
mixtape The State vs. Radric 
Davis II: The Caged Bird Sings. 
And how entirely different the 
two are. 

Artists 
like 
Waka 
Flocka 

Flame and Gucci Mane don’t care 
to make complex or highly lyrical 
music (Waka has been quoted in 
an interview with Noisey saying 
just this of himself). The recent 
rise of rappers like Migos and 
Young Thug reinforces the fact 
that many consumers don’t care 
for the complex, multilayered 
works 
of 
art 
that 
Lupe 

produces. I can’t understand 
any words except “lifestyle” 
and “beginning” in Rich Gang’s 
“Lifestyle (ft. Young Thug, Rich 
Homie Quan)” and it landed at 
number 16 on the Billboard Hot 
100. This trend certainly can’t 
be good for Lupe’s record sale 
prospects.

“Chopper” 
on 
Tetsuo 
& 

Youth serves to address those 
who propagate and imitate the 
lifestyle of gangster rappers, 
even 
referencing 
Waka 
and 

Brick Squad. The song’s simple 
chorus 
and 
bridge 
parodies 

the simplicity of such records, 
and is a powerful satire of the 

“hood rich” lifestyle with talk 
of “Filet Mignon with my food 
stamps.” The lines “Sayin’ free 
they guys like I’m dirty / With a 
clean record but I’m cursed / To 
make a half a million off a verse,” 
encompass so much in so few 
lines.

I’d argue that Lupe fell off for 

a good while, The Cool being the 
last album where he was true to 
himself. Probably, in an attempt 
to compromise with industry 
pressures, his talents stagnated 
thereafter. He’s been open about 
his conflict with music labels over 
control of his music in the past 
with songs like “Dumb It Down,” 
and again addresses the issue of a 
certain recognition coupled with 
distaste for his artsy fartsy style 
in the opening lines of “Adoration 
of the Magi” on Tetsuo & Youth. 
“Blur My Hands” is a lovely 
example of his creative ability, 
taking something as rude and 
indecent as flicking someone off 
and making it a creative, non-
vulgar song addressing those 
who embody any of the criticism 
he receives. 

In any event, Lupe’s back. 
Tetsuo & Youth is mostly 

amazing, but I don’t feel the 
instrumentals “Summer,” “Fall” 
and “Winter” mesh with the 
tracks musically, and the same 
for the banjo intro and outro 
to “Dots & Lines.” My personal 
dislike for artists who sacrifice 
pleasurable music or practicality 
to be artsy definitely factors into 
my opinion – can you say Yeezus? 
– but Lupe’s ability to implement 
such depth and still produce an 
enjoyable album from a purely 
pleasure based lens overrides 
this. I don’t know if Tetsuo & 
Youthwill sell, but I’m sold on it. 

A+

Broad City

Season 2 
Premiere

Comedy Central

Wednesdays 

at 10:30 p.m.

A-

Girls in 
Peacetime 
Want to 
Dance

Belle & 
Sebastian

Matador

ALBUM REVIEW

ALBUM REVIEW

KATHLEEN 

DAVIS

A-

Tetsuo & 
Youth

Lupe Fiasco

Atlantic Records

ATLANTIC RECORDS

Eat, pray, Lupe.

His tracks don’t 

fit the norm.

TV REVIEW