6 — Wednesday,January 4, 2016
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

There’s an acute heartbreak 

when something you love doesn’t 
receive the recognition you know 
it deserves. It’s a dagger in your 
overflowing heart. This year, that 
album was Pinegrove’s debut 
Cardinal, a refreshing blend of 
folky indie-rock that failed to 
reach the radar of most of Daily 
Music’s 
staff. 

As 
Pinegrove 

sing themselves: 
“How come every 
outcome’s such a 
comedown?”

Cardinal 
is 

a 
collection 

of eight songs 
which 
embody 

the 
art 
of 

emotional 
construction 
in 
music. 
It 

explores self-doubt, uncertainty 
and the search for a voice. It 
achieves tenderness in baring 
these emotions, and over the 
30-minute journey it fleshes 
them out through the dynamism 
in each individual track.

Pinegrove’s music is pure 

magic because it creates a sense 
of understanding, while feeling 
fresh and unfamiliar at the same 
time. The band and its music is 
a like brooding, misunderstood 
kid who you feel like you, and 
only you, completely understand 
— a poem personally written for 
your unraveling.

Pinegrove also knows exactly 

when to switch gears, uplifting 
with resounding bridges and 
coming 
down 
with 
tender 

melodies. The band is able to 
create 
imagery 
that’s 
vivid, 

but never fully tangible to the 
listener. It’s beauty comes from 
that feeling of unattainability, 
found in the music’s ambiguity.

Cardinal is full of these 

magical moments, where I was 
often completely consumed by 
the emotion the music translated. 
It’s 
shocking 
how 
perfectly 

their 
individual 
instruments 

and 
voices 
blend 

into 
harmony. 

Take “Aphasia,” for 
example: it climaxes 
with the pure gang 
vocals of “One day I 
won’t need your love 
/ one day I won’t 
define myself by the 
one I’m thinking 
of,” 
delivering 
a 

stunning 
desire 

for 
self-worth 
in 

the 
form 
of 
an 

emotional sucker punch that is 
entirely relatable, but sonically 
unfamiliar.

The 
band’s 
true 
charm 

comes from their ability to 
use their indie vibe to make 
the insecurities of emo music 
accessible. You would expect 
lyrics like “I saw your boyfriend 
at the Port Authority / it’s a sort 
of fucked up place” in a pop-
punk song, not on a country-
esque indie rock album. Cardinal 
is transcendent in that it’s bred 
from 
punk 
sensibilities 
and 

within the punk scene, but is still 
well received by pretty much 
anyone with functional hearing.

Examined with a critical 

ear, 
Cardinal 
becomes 
a 

wonderful bouquet of sounds. 

Twinkly guitars dance amongst 
underpinning rhythm chords, 
tempos falter and hasten on 
quick whims, all underneath 
lyricism 
that 
is 
sometimes 

cryptic, and sometimes blunt to 
the point of surprise.

“Cadmium,” a song inspired 

by “I Send You this Cadmium 
Red, ” a book of correspondence 
between artists John Berger 
and John Christie, discusses 
non-verbal expression and it’s 
inner turmoil, along with the 
difficulty of self-expression and 
its 
subsequent 
vulnerability. 

The album cover is also inspired 
by the book, and Pinegrove 
borrows heavily from its theme 
of 
communication 
through 

art. Evan Stephens Hall cries 
out on the chorus, “Say what 
it is / it’s so impossible / but if 
I just say what it is / it tends 
to sublimate away.” At once 
poetic 
and 
straightforward, 

Hall’s lyrics are relatable at 
the most personal level. Hall 
wants to better express himself 
in his art, a daunting task until 
accomplished.

On 
Cardinal, 
Pinegrove 

achieves some of the highest 
level of emotional expression 
in 
music 
today. 
Through 

expertly crafted composition, 
reverberating vocals and starkly 
human lyrics, Pinegrove finds 
their niche and makes their 
voices heard. Most impressively, 
the 
album 
transforms 
what 

might 
be 
surprising 
and 

meticulous music into some of 
the most approachable tunes 
of 2016. It’s an album that 
should’ve had everyone’s radar 
going haywire.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Run for Cover Records

Eenie-meenie-minnie-white boy

DOMINIC POLSINELLI

Daily Arts Writer

Don’t Sleep on Pinegrove

Damien Chazelle loves jazz. 

It would seem, after writing and 
directing three films dedicated 
to the music, it’s his entire life’s 
purpose to renew interest in 
the genre. First there was “Guy 
and Madeline on a Park Bench,” 
a 
grainy 
black-and-white 

musical, then his breakout 
film, “Whiplash,” a tale of 
an aspiring jazz drummer’s 
stunning 
descent 

into 
madness 

at 
the 
hands 

of 
a 
psychotic 

instructor. 
And 

now, there’s “La 
La Land,” a jazz 
musical and lovely 
throwback to the 
’40s and ’50s films 
of Gene Kelly, as 
well as the ’60s 
wave 
of 
French 

musicals. 
It’s 
a 

film so delightful 
— and with an 
ending 
sequence 

so spectacular — that it’s 
impossible to resist its grasp.

“La La Land” is set in 

Hollywood over the course 
of one year as two struggling 
artists — Mia Dolan (Emma 
Stone, “Birdman”), an actress, 
and Sebastian Wilder (Ryan 
Gosling, “The Nice Guys”), a 
jazz pianist — repeatedly cross 
paths and fall in love. Chazelle’s 
Hollywood is a bottleneck 
of talent. The opening of the 
film is a technically audacious 
dance number on the jammed 
Los Angeles Freeway, with 
aspiring 
singers, 
actors, 

writers 
and 
everyone 
in 

between 
literally 
jumping 

out of their cars at rapidly 
changing opportunities. Mia 
and Sebastian are consumed by 
their own troubles; Mia never 
finds 
success 
in 
auditions, 

while Sebastian wants to revive 
his beloved genre by opening 
a jazz club, but doesn’t have a 
steady job. The duo’s mutual 
commiseration over their craft 
blossoms into love.

The middle third of the film 

meanders through Mia and 
Sebastian’s romance as their 
relationship starts to strain. 
The music dies out as Sebastian 
goes on the road with a band 
started by an old friend, Keith, 
played by distinguished R&B 
artist John Legend, and the 
film begins to feel a bit slow. But 
on second viewing, the middle 
segment plays more as an 
eloquent rubato, hastening and 
slowing to fit the narrative’s 
needs. The film doesn’t drag; 

it’s 
deliberate. 

Nothing 
is 

particularly 
unnecessary (in 
fact, if anything 
I wanted to see 
more of Mia’s 
struggles 
to 

launch her one-
woman 
show), 

and with acting 
as 
sublime 
as 

that 
by 
Stone 

and Gosling, it’s 
pretty hard to 

feel bored.

Chazelle’s 

writing 
is 

excellent, taking 
the 
film 
from 

tenderness 
to 

the 
heights 

of 
comedy 
in 

mere 
minutes, 

if not seconds. 
The characters, 
especially 
the 

secondary 
and 
tertiary 

characters, 
are 

fully 
developed 

within 
a 
line 

or two, but all 
are 
endlessly 

complex. 
As 

for 
Mia 
and 

Sebastian, 
there’s a bit of an 
imbalance; 
the 

film may begin 
with Mia, and we may see the 
world through her eyes, but 
Sebastian is given more of an 
opportunity to share his craft. 
We see him play constantly, 
even an entire performance (of 

a phenomenal song written and 
performed by Legend) with 
The Messengers, Keith’s band, 
while Mia’s one-woman show 
is omitted.

Chazelle 
shot 
the 
film 

in 
Cinemascope, 
a 
grand 

widescreen 
technology 

predominant 
in 
the 
1950s, 

when Hollywood churned out 
large-scale epics one after 
the other. It’s a great idea in 
“La La Land,” a film that has 
a fair amount of spectacle, 
but 
even 
more 
intimacy. 

These characters dream in 
Cinemascope. 
Mia 
sleeps 

under a giant poster of Ingrid 
Bergman. Sebastian plans to 
name his jazz club “Chicken on 
a Stick” after Charlie Parker’s 
favorite meal, and he collects 
the overlooked artifacts that 
dotted his idols’ lives.

Like the film’s rose-colored 

vision of jazz, the film industry 
is in great jeopardy. The mid-
range budget film is dying and 
streaming and television are 

both supplanting 
the theater. But 
“La La Land” may 
be its saving grace, 
or at least a herald 
of things to come. 
“La 
La 
Land” 

is 
a 
film 
that 

demands 
to 
be 

seen, and reseen 
and 
reseen, 
in 

the theater, with 
bright 
primary 

reds 
and 
blues 

highlighted 
by 

Linus Sandgren’s 
(“Joy”) 
soaring 

cinematography, 
and an exquisite 
soundtrack 
by 
Chazelle’s 

college 
friend 

Justin 
Hurwitz 

(“Whiplash”). 
Hurwitz’s music, 
like 
the 
couple 

dancing 
around 

a Foucault pendulum twirling 
in a wonderful sequence in 
Griffith Observatory, swings 
between two poles, or two 
souls, endlessly in love.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Summit Entertainment

I’m crying again just looking at this

DANIEL HENSEL

Daily Film Editor

Jazz in a city of stars brings Damien Chazelle’s masterpiece to life

“La La Land” presents a dazzling 
musical for the new millennium

FILM REVIEW

The “Star Wars” revival is 

in full-force, but for many, the 
Force never died. Last year, fans 
were bestowed with “The Force 
Awakens,” one of the best films 
in the series since “Return of 
the Jedi.” With Episodes VIII 
and IX still to come, along with 
Han Solo and Boba Fett spin-
off movies, fans can anticipate 
lots of entertaining content. 
Although some feel anxious 
about the new movies mostly 
due to the lackluster prequel 
trilogy, it seems the world 
is in for a future filled with 
intergalactic 
bliss. 
“Rogue 

One” is the beginning of what 
could be a supply of satisfying 
Star Wars anthology movies.

“Rogue One” is essentially 

Episode 3.5; it takes place 
after the Jedi-genocide, but 
before 
the 
introduction 
of 

Luke 
Skywalker. 
Although 

most characters are new, there 
are some familiar faces. Darth 
Vader (voiced again by James 
Earl Jones ) and 
a 
realistic 
CGI 

version of Grand 
Moff Tarkin (Guy 
Henry 
“Harry 

Potter 
and 
the 

Deathly Hallows”) 
play minor roles 
in 
the 
story, 

though both have 
enough 
screen 

time 
to 
satisfy 

longtime 
fans. 

New protagonists 
Jyn 
Erso 

(Felicity 
Jones, 

“The Theory of 
Everything”) 
and 
Cassian 

Andor 
(Diego 
Luna, 
“Y 

Tu 
Mamá 
También”) 
act 

as 
multidimensional 
and 

convincing heroes to root for in 
their fight against the Empire. 
Alan Tudyk (“Zootopia”) voices 

K-2SO, 
an 
Imperial 
droid 

reprogrammed 
to 
fight 
for 

the rebels, who is one of the 

best 
additions 

to 
the 
“Star 

Wars” 
series. 

Like C-3PO, he 
balances intellect 
and 
cynicism 

perfectly, and his 
cheesy jokes and 
sassy 
remarks 

make K-2SO one 
of the funniest 
“Star 
Wars” 

characters 
to 

date.

Unlike 
other 

“Star 
Wars” 

movies, there is 
an 
overarching 

sense 
of 
doom 

and imminent failure. “Rogue 
One” shows a struggling Rebel 
Force that does not have the 
means to defend itself against 
enemy forces. Other movies in 
the series tend to have a sense 

of hope, even in situations 
least deserving of it. “Rogue 
One” shows glimpses of it, but 
remains the gloomiest in the 
series.

The story of 

“Rogue One” is 
complex while 
remaining 
coherent. 
Someone 
who 

has never seen 
a “Star Wars” 
movie 
could 

pick up the plot 
just 
as 
easily 

as 
a 
diehard 

fanatic, though 
the latter may 
find the minor 
nuances 
more 

enjoyable. 
Among 
the 

intense 
battle 

scenes and stunning settings, 
“Rogue 
One” 
challenges 

the idea that in the cosmic 
fight between good and evil, 

the line between right and 
wrong, is clear. The “good 
guys” in the movie are a group 
varying from Imperial pilots 
to 
reprogrammed 
Imperial 

droids 
and 

disobedient 
Rebel soldiers. 
“Rogue One” is 
the first “Star 
Wars” 
movie 

to show a two-
sided 
Rebel 

Force that is 
not strictly a 
representation 
of good.

“Rogue 

One” 
diverts 

enough 
from 

the 
typical 

“Star 
Wars” 

formula while 
remaining 

faithful to the tropes that 
make them so fun. Fans will 
be relieved that no Jar Jar 
Binks 
replicas 
or 
cringe-

worthy romantic subplots are 
introduced. 
Every 
addition 

is justified and fits into the 
“Star Wars” timeline perfectly. 
Still, since the movie is not 
a part of the main series, 
more could have been done to 
distinguish it from the others. 
This was a golden opportunity 
for director Gareth Edwards 
(“Godzilla”) 
to 
incorporate 

some unique cinematography 
and 
experimentation 
that 

would have made it clearer that 
“Rogue One” is just an addition 
to the series. In many ways, 
“Rogue One” plays it too safe. 
Nonetheless, the special effects 
provide a thrill.

“Rogue One” is certainly not 

the best “Star Wars” movie, but 
it’s a welcomed addition to the 
franchise. Diehard fans now 
have some material to keep 
them happy until the eighth 
installment is released in 2017. 
Until then, expectations are 
high for what’s to come. 

“One” is satisfyingly safe

WILL STEWART

Daily Arts Writer

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Walt Disney Studios

It’s like war, but in SPACE

A

“Rogue One”

Quality/Rave

Walt Disney 
Studio Motion 

Pictures

It seems the 
world is in 
for a future 
filled with 
intergalactic 

bliss. 

A

“La La Land”

Michigan 

Theater/Quality/

Rave

Summit 

Entertainment

The middle 

segment 

plays more as 
an eloquent 

rubato, 

hastening and 
slowing to fit 
the narrative’s 

needs.

Cardinal

Pinegrove

Run for 
Cover

ALBUM REVIEW

