The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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Why we need h3h3
SINGLE REVIEW
This February has been the
time to be alive for indie rock/
emo/shoe-
gaze lovers
everywhere.
All of the
sad boys are
crawling
out of their
introverted
online per-
sonas and
are tweeting
“#blessed.”
The space goth girls are
emerging from their black
holes as they develop into
their fan-girl alter egos. And
this can all be blamed on the
fact that not only has the lo-fi
band Teen Suicide released a
single, but their fellow emo/
indie cross friends, Pity Sex,
have released a new song as
well.
Titled “Burden You,” Pity
Sex’s new single does exactly
that. Britty Drake’s soft voice
cocoons your entire thought
process and the only thing
you can pay attention to is the
music. The band attempts to
pull off a shoegaze grunge
sound and they do it so well
with simple yet meaningful
lyrics combined with dirty-
sounding bass lines all laced
with some spacey guitar rifts.
The lyrics in “Burden You”
are delivered softly, but they
slowly creep into your head
and create a tunnel connect-
ing to your heart. Britty Drake
sings about young love and
inside the simple lyrics she
gives you everything you’ve
ever wanted. She addresses
unrequited love, confusion,
regret and the want to feel
wanted in a way that’s not
extremely cliche. Drake sings
in a way that feels personal,
like she’s whispering in your
ear. Hearing her sing the lyr-
ics “I’ll always think of your
lips when I’m moving mine
against his. I wanna know, I
wanna know that I’m running
in your mind also, don’t let me
go,” puts your heart in your
stomach and fills your lungs
with flowers.
“Burden You” creates a
sadness that never felt so
good.
- SELENA AGUILERA
Ethan and
Hila Klein are
relationship goals
By JACOB RICH
Senior Arts Editor
They met on Birthright.
He was a Jewish-American kid
with a quick sense of humor and
a bit of a belly. She was a charm-
ing, shy Israeli taking a week off
of her required military service.
They didn’t hook up, but they hit
it off — they spent the whole week
of their trip talking and laughing.
When he got back to the United
States, an e-mail from her was
waiting for him. A year later, she
left her homeland to be with him
in the sunny city of Santa Cruz,
and they’ve been inseparable ever
since.
Now, eight years later, Ethan
and Hila Klein are YouTube’s ris-
ing power couple. H3h3Produc-
tions, their comedy channel, has
nearly 1 million subscribers and
over 100 million video views,
about a quarter of which (accord-
ing to SocialBlade) happened in
the last month. To say their work
is blowing up would be a huge
understatement. Lately, their new
videos have been routinely voted
to the number one position on
Reddit’s video aggregate site r/
videos, while more and more big
YouTubers are giving the couple
shout-outs on Twitter and on their
own channels.
It’s almost impossible to sum-
marize
what
h3h3Productions
videos are generally like. In recent
months, they’ve been all over the
place, from elaborately edited
“.exe” videos to rants to comedy
essays to skits. I guess you could
think of them as somewhere
between Adult Swim’s “Tim and
Eric” and “Mystery Science The-
ater 3000” — irreverent, surreal
and charmingly lo-fi.
But what really put h3h3Pro-
ductions on the map were their
“reaction” videos. On first glance,
they just look like any other video
response on YouTube — Hila holds
the camera, while Ethan talks into
it as he buffers through a video. But
h3h3Productions is much more
than just an exploitative commen-
tary on popular videos. Their reac-
tions blur the lines between satire
and skit, comedy and tragedy. The
second their catchy ’80s-tinged
intro song ends, you know you’re
in for genius improvisation and
weird, uncomfortable video edit-
ing. It’s avant-garde digital com-
edy at its most bizarre.
The reaction videos started in
2013 when Ethan saw “Girls who
Read,” a pretentious video slam
poem making the rounds on Red-
dit.
The poem, presented by a
chubby British guy, posits the
author as a classy gentleman who
prefers a woman’s intellect to
her “tits or ass” — well, as long as
they’re drop-dead gorgeous like
the actress in the video. Ethan was
infuriated by the poem’s hypoc-
risy. I have to agree — that video
sucks. It’s a stunning example of
male superficiality and the double
standards set for women.
Hila grabbed her camera and
got to work.
“Now look at this chubby little
hunk here,” Ethan says, pointing
to an overweight girl in the cor-
ner of the video’s frame. “If she’s
over there reading books, I bet he’s
not making this poetic little video
about her. I bet she could be smart
as fuck. No, he chooses the CUTE
girl who reads.”
Since then, the couple has
applied their unique formula to
dozens of cringe-worthy, obnox-
ious and toxic targets on You-
Tube. They were among the first
to point out the bizarre, embar-
rassing eccentricities of recording
artist DJ Khaled, the exploitative
immorality of YouTube’s “urban
pranksters” and the uncomfort-
able sexual overtones of the oh-so-
fake “kissing prank.”
Ethan and Hila’s videos each
have an unmistakable look to
them, thanks to the couple’s
unique and outrageous style.
They’ve
become
somewhat
famous for their thrift-shop cou-
ture — beanie caps, turtlenecks,
sunglasses and what Ethan calls
the “Chub ‘n’ Tuck” (the act of
tucking high-waisted sweatpants
under one’s gut) are all essential
aspects of the charming h3h3Pro-
ductions aesthetic. Further amp-
ing up the couple’s lovable style
is Hila’s art, which is often on
display in the background of the
reactions.
Her
neon-drenched
surrealist brushstrokes fit in per-
fectly with their offbeat dress.
The
first
h3h3Productions
video I saw was “The Tai Lopez
Conspiracy,” an absolutely savage
comedic takedown of the “here in
my garage” guy (you know the ad,
he’s the get-rich-quick salesman
that shows you his Lamborghini
and lectures you on the impor-
tance of “KNAWledge”).
The video was a rollercoaster
of emotions to say the very least.
It started out simple enough,
with Ethan taking jabs at Lopez’s
meme-worthy speech patterns.
This wouldn’t be nearly as funny
if Ethan didn’t have the per-
fect satirical tone. While many
of h3h3Productions’s reactions
are certainly condemning, they
almost never feel mean-spirited.
It’s a testament to the guy’s come-
dic instincts that he can toe the
line of, in his own words, “Goo-
fin’ and Gaffin’ ” on others’ videos
without resorting to bullying.
Soon, things got crazy. Sud-
denly, Ethan was convulsing on
his chair like in “2001: A Space
Odyssey” while frightening, clum-
sily edited fake ads of Lopez’s face
surrounded Ethan’s and a bright
yellow “TRIGGERED” sign rose
from the bottom of the screen. I
laughed so hard I almost dropped
my laptop.
But then, the tone changed
again. After some quick Google
sleuthing, Ethan was able to reveal
that Lopez’s luxurious Hollywood
Hills mansion wasn’t, in fact,
owned by Lopez at all — it was a
short-term rental, easily available
for cheap film shoots via a website.
All of a sudden, Ethan’s video felt
more like muckraking journalism
rather than a bizarro-comedy.
Of late, it seems like h3h3Pro-
ductions’ videos have taken on
this journalistic role more often.
As cheesy as it sounds, Ethan and
Hila have almost become Inter-
net detectives. They certainly
haven’t removed themselves from
comedy, but exposing shady busi-
ness practices, dumb clickbait
and harmful, obnoxious “pranks”
has become an essential aspect of
their videos. In 2016, their most
popular videos have been on their
very public feud with SoFloAnto-
nio, a profiteer who illegally steals
other creators’ YouTube and Vine
videos and uploading them onto
his ultra-popular Facebook page,
“SoFlo.” One of h3h3Produc-
tions’ SoFlo videos even features
a straight-up investigative inter-
view between Ethan and a content
creator whose video Antonio stole
and profited off.
This, and Ethan’s rant about the
terrible business practices of the
litigious Fine Brothers have pro-
vided tent poles under which You-
Tube’s creators can stand together
— their anti-corporation, pro-cre-
ator rhetoric has clearly resonated
with the Internet.
There’s a reason h3h3Produc-
tions has an enormous fan base,
their own thriving subreddit and
a Patreon pulling in nearly $5,000
a month. They represent a chal-
lenge to the status quo. They’re
changing the terms of what can
be done with YouTube comedy,
one video at a time. This is really
hilarious stuff, people. And by act-
ing as a last bastion for the ethical
creator, they’ve managed to rally
those who believe in YouTube as a
medium of quality entertainment.
The Internet is h3h3Productions’
oyster, and I can’t wait to see what
happens next.
MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW
As well known as FKA twigs
may be for visually striking,
otherworldly
music videos,
“Good to Love”
is remarkably
minimalist. It’s
just her, a bed
and a camera.
The degree
to which she
can stretch
this medium
speaks to the artistry of twigs,
not only as a singer and a dancer,
but as a director as well.
For its minimalism, twigs still
manages to bring an ethereal
quality to this video. The sheets
seem alive as they’re pulled and
tossed, and clever camerawork
blurs the line between skin and
cloth. It’s a powerful reflection
of her music, acutely preoc-
cupied with lust and love. Her
muses, however, are always
peripheral. “Good to Love” is
no doubt a plea to a lover, but
it’s twigs who is center stage.
Everything here is by her, for
her, of her. It’s a solo sex scene
on her own terms.
The most consuming part of
this video — and all of her videos
— is of course twigs herself, spe-
cifically her movements. They’re
startlingly deliberate, yet still
feel organic. She resembles a
marionette as she throws her-
self around with the sheets. As
the camera moves to her face,
we get a flush of deep emotion
with only a glance of the eyes.
The result is a video that says a
lot with a little. twigs might be
a “sweet little lover maker,” but
she has some big ideas.
- CHRISTIAN KENNEDY
A-
Good to
Love
FKA twigs
Young Turks
Thursday, February 25, 2016 — 3B
“The Graduate”
in this series, three daily arts writers in
varying states of mind do the same activity
and write about their experiences.
this week’s event:
Part 1: “The bathrooms down at the end of the hall,” I feel like this means something intense. Also s/o
to Ms. Robinson for fucking inventing the term MILF. MRS ROBINSON YOU’RE TRYING TO SEDUCE
ME. Every god damn line in this movie is beautiful. On a side note why do they make this pathetic dude
out to be a track star newspaper editor straight A student I’m not feeling like this man is all those things.
Part 2: Ben, you’ll never be young again. The one-liners in this film are changing. Every damn
line has a profound effect on the total course of my life. I’m just worried about my future.
Buzzed wonders how the filmmakers made this underwater diver scene and now
I’m questioning how they make any scene. Or anything. Ha. Hoffman just
walked into the hotel for an affair and it’s similarly life changing. Mrs.
Robinson is the kind of forward woman I need in my life. That
would definitely be life changing. Oh my god who is this
woman and does she actually exist. I need to date
older women. Not older like “oh she’s like
21” older like “she’s married with two
kids.” Wait that sounds a little
Freudian shit that was bad.
Part 3: I wonder if the same
situation played out in 2016 if it would
play out the same. Are we at a point in society
where we can accept a man having a casual
relationship with his girlfriend’s mother, have we finally
gotten to that point America? God. We need Bernie at a time
like this. Which brings me to the point that Bored pointed out — he
could have been an extra in this. The man was as young and able in 1967 as
he is in 2016. Wow.
Part 4: The vibe of the landlord in Berkeley is great. He’s probably the most stable
character in this movie, which must stand for something. And now Kate Moss just comes
in and screams her head off in the most terrifying shot I’ve seen in years. She sounds like she’s
dying but she really is just upset at something so small and insignificant as Dustin Hoffman having an
affair with her 45+ year old mother. That’s such a big deal. Children are starving in Africa dammit. And
now Hoffman wants to marry this poor girl. The emotional strain must be a lot, so I apologize to Kate.
But now she’s agreed to marry him so I guess that means it’s probably not that bad.
Part 5: This may be entirely unrelated to this movie, but every time I see this movie I want to move
somewhere west of Texas. That just seems like an entirely different style of living, an entirely new
atmosphere of life. Imagine waking up in Denver, Colorado. How would who I am and what I stand for
change. Coming for you, Denver.
Part 6: The movie’s over: (add spoiler here). The Sound of Silence again coming in and changing my
existence. And that last shot is so perfectly done that I think I am yet again: changed. Buzzed says it’s
about the banality of life and that alters the world for about the 20th time this evening. But it’s ok. After
this I can get some food.
-Daily Arts Writer
Here is a just a stream of thought: The beginning of this film
is so brilliant – it’s not really iconic as it is unnerving in a
really friendly way. Like, everyone is being so nice to
him but it’s terrifying. I never want to grow up.
This plastics line works so well.
I see so much of myself in Dustin Hoffman,
except the whole older-woman-seductress-
attraction part, but I guess it’s something to
aspire to.
The Robinsons’ mini-bar has a little orb that
says “BAR” on it, like I didn’t know it was a
bar. Come on!
This song that Mrs. Robinson plays is HOT.
“Did you know I was an alcoholic?” *Gasp*
“What?”
The iconic scene “are you trying to seduce me” is
the PERFECT scene for 1967. Braddock comes to the
conclusion that Mrs. Robinson is trying to seduce him, she
says she’s not, but of course she is. Mike Nichols must have
been slapped down a ton between “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” and
“The Graduate,” with studio folks telling him that he’s ruining film but NO he was transforming it.
Ben Braddock’s reactions to Mrs. Robinson in the whole initial interaction are priceless. He’s got
such a command on whimpers and little cries, it’s fantastic.
10 years before Darth Vader, we had Benjamin Braddock. His breathing during the scuba scene is
wonderful. It’s like he’s really heavily sighing with disdain at how dumb this gift is.
“Are you here for an affair, sir?” “Huh?” “The Singleman party?” “Ah yes”
Benjamin Braddock has got to be a stand-in for baby-boomers and just discovering how messed up
life is with his discovering how disastrous the Robinson family is—Mr. and Mrs. Robinson don’t sleep
together, they got married because she got pregnant, she got a degree in art but lost her interest, and,
of course, the whole Elaine plotline.
Fun fact: Katharine Ross is married to SAM ELLIOTT. I wish I were married to Sam Elliott.
Seems like such a cool dude. Oh, they’re making out, but she was just crying. Do you think Bernie
Sanders is an extra in this movie? This is not Berkeley. This is USC. Choose a less iconic building.
Richard Dreyfuss! I love Richard Dreyfuss. Elaine making moves! Part of me is doubtful that a
person like Dustin Hoffman could ever pull this all off and then part of me feels ashamed that I
would ever doubt Dustin Hoffman.
I love Dustin Hoffman.
This montage of Benjamin trying to find where the wedding will take place is so great, fueled by
that great Mrs. Robinson soundtrack.
And of course, THIS FINAL SCENE IS GLORIOUS. In the words of Baked, this is such a hippie
movie. They’re just flipping off authority and society. But of course, it ends with sadness. Oh well, we
all die.
- Daniel Hensel
This is the third night in a row I’ve gotten drunk, and
it’s the weekend before midterm week. My jewish parents
are rolling in their graves, but they’re still alive. Is it bad
for to get crossfaded for these? I hope not. This movie is
absolutely amazing. That intro sequence though. I’m really
feeling the existential ennui right now. Mrs. Robinson is
such a babe. We just looked it up, and this movie made
SO much fucking money. Dustin Hoffman is so fucking
perfectly awkward. How’d you even do this? God, four
loko qSA A bad choice. The single fame boob gets me every
time, so funny, “Oh jesus Christ.” I really want to stop
drinking this four loko. Anne Bancroft is like a soulless
husk. She reminds me of my exes badum chhhhhhhh
Whoops I just told Danny what’s going on in my
personal life. That’s okay, that guy’s alright. RUSHMORE
(that was the devin faraci style, fucking deal with it
EDITORS) totally ripped this part in the pool off. I want
to work for Vulture if you’re reading this, fucking give me
an internship you motherfuckers. Fyck you. This movie is
just like, human beings are disgusting. I’m embarrassed at
how drunk I am. Good thing we’re all going to die and life
has no point, the central thesis of this movie and my life.
-Daily Arts Writer
baked.buzzed.bored.
A-
Burden
You
Pity Sex
Run for Cover
Records