The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: entertainment

  • Entertainment for all

    Entertainment for all

    By | Andre Hascall

    One Man’s vision to form a comedy show of five artists, became the Peat Moss Variety Soiree that features many acts. Live at the Eagle House in Eureka, November 30th at 7pm.

    Peat Moss, 28, is a Business Finance major at HSU and works at the Northcoast Horticulture Supply. When he isn’t at working on school work or at NHS, Moss is working on comedy and his show.

    “My grades are affected but I am invested in this show,” Moss said. “Eureka needs it, t brings a lot of culture that the area needs.”

    Moss got his feet wet in the comedy scene in February 2017. He was unsure of doing a comedy show but one of his co-workers wanted him to try it out. That coworker goes by the stage name ‘Dr. Foxmeat’.

    Dr. Foxmeat would perform at open mic nights at the Palm Lounge in the Eureka Inn, every Wednesday night for some time. That open mic night is better know as ‘Open Mikey’. It was and is ran by an HSU Alumni who was also on the Lumberjack news team, his stage name is Nando Molina.

    “Nando gave me my first start at Open Mikey,” Moss said. “He is a paragon of comedy in the area, and we are happy to include him in our November show.”

    Open Mikey has been going on for the last five years, and Moss was lucky enough to perform there in February and a couple times afterward.

    “My first time out I had the jitters bad, but after a few jokes i was good… and by April and May I was in the full swing of things,” Moss said. ” Open Mikey provides comedians with the time to work on routines, its important and Nando provides it.”

    Other than providing the venue and time for comedians to perform. Nando Molina also provides somewhat of a mentor role to those that perform at open mikey.

    “I respect him, when he says its good stuff that’s when I know its good,” Moss said. ” I would compare him to Lorne Michaels from Saturday Night Live.”

    Moss originally set out to create a comedy show of 5 comedians. “A lot of top quality talents wanted to volunteer.” Moss said. With that it became more than a comedy show, with the addition of burlesque dancers, a magician, a band and more.

    “I didn’t put this show together, this show put itself together,” Moss said. “People try to put something like this together and fail, I was trying to make a comedy show and wound up making a Eureka Cirque du Soleil.”

    The band had a huge contribution to the group of performers. They go by the name ‘Black Eyed Susan’ and their lead singer is named Alicia Czech. Before this year, Czech hadn’t performed music in ten years.

    “She has amazing vocals”, Moss said. “The kill it every time they are on stage and they are one of the biggest parts of the show.”

    Black Eyed Susan does covers for songs by musicians such as, Tracy Chapman, Amanda Palmer, The Dressin dolls and more.

    One of the acts involves a mix of burlesque and comedy. That is provided by comedian Megan D’arcy. D’arcy truly is a jack of all trades, being a hair stylist for the group, as well was performing.

    “Her first act she got on a mans lap and asked him how much he thought she had weighed,” Moss said.

    Burlesque is an art form where someone disrobes to a song that is meaningful. And is an empowering aspect of the lives of those that have it as a hobby.

    “It is a big part of these girls lives, they don’t even expect pay because they love their hobby so much,” Moss said. “These girls are down to earth and possibly the nicest people I’ve ever worked with.”

    Adding to that variety a bit more is Marciano the Magnificent. His role is as the magician of the group, but his act calls for a few jokes as well.

    “Marciano also volunteered, to do magic at the show,” Moss said. “He’s got a great slight of hand, he’s funny and can entertain a crowd.”

    This is not the first show put on by Moss, yet this show has some different aspects from the rest.

    “All or past shows have sold out so far,” Moss said. “This will be our biggest event.”

    More information is available at https://peat-moss.weebly.com/

    Tickets available online at https://peat-moss-show.brownpapertickets.com/

  • Scary Science

    Scary Science

    By | Juan Herrera

    Haunted houses are scary enough, throw in moving objects and you have a whole new ballgame.

    The Kinetic Sculpture Lab hosted their Haunted Kinetic Lab of Horrors to the Arcata community to give them a pre-scare for Halloween. The Horror Lab consists of a maze of many different projects created by the Kinetic Sculpture team. They are not only terrifying but also move to make the sculptures even scarier. This event has been going since 2009 and always takes place a few days before Halloween as well as the day of. At the event the Dead Drops, a music band, will be live performing as well as a free barbecue for people who survive the lab. This year the event took place on the corner of 8th and N St. in Arcata on Oct. 26-28 and Oct. 31 from 7 p.m. to midnight. If your a fan of haunted houses, go on down and see if you can survive.

  • Andrew Bird-Essence of place

    Andrew Bird-Essence of place

    By | Michelle N. Meyer

    Andrew Bird takes the audience on a journey to places far beyond the reach of the concert hall. For a night, we are here experiencing these places and their essence- in their entirety. In a dazzling and dynamic dance of sounds, film, moving topography, and light displays, Bird immerses his audience in a transcendental experience that is effortlessly nostalgic.

    Before the performance began, seats are quickly filled, and murmurs were promptly hushed. A deafening silence fell over the entire venue, no beat was to be missed. Only the sound of Andrew Bird’s footsteps were heard as Bird makes a hushed entrance onto the stage.

    Bird bent down to pick up his violin, then placed it carefully underneath the base of his chin. All the lights went black. For a moment, there was nothingness. Then the sooth, serendipitous sounds of a violin rang out.

    “I felt healthier as I was listening,” HSU student, Andrew Heise said.

    Bird began his performance with songs such as “Down Under The Hyperion Bridge” and “Gypsy Moth”, from his newest album, part of his Echolocations Solo Series- Echolocations: River, which released Oct. 6.

    Part of Bird’s Echolocations Solo Series are each recorded at an individual location and feature site specific pieces. These unique locations allow for sound quality that is not easily, or at all replaceable in a studio setting. In addition to the recordings, the works are also accompanied by film of that location.

    Bird recorded the eight track instrumental LP, Echolocations: River, while wading ankle deep in the Los Angeles River underneath the Glendale Hyperion Bridge.

    Echolocations: River:

    1 The Cormorants

    2 Ellipses

    3 Lazuli Bunting

    4 Gypsy Moth

    5 Black-Crowned Night-Heron

    6 Down Under the Hyperion Bridge

    7 Dear Killdear

    8 The Green Heron

    The second portion of the performance included songs from his first album in the Echolocations Solo Series, Echolocations: Canyon. Echolocations: Canyon is an instrumental album recorded inside Coyote Gulch in Utah.

    During the performance, film was shown of Bird as he meandered down the winding, hollow corridors of the canyon.

    Echolocations: Canyon:

    1 Sweep the Field

    2 Groping the Dark

    3 Rising Water

    4 Antrozous

    5 The Return of Yawny

    6 Before the Germans Came

    7 The Canyon Wants to Hear C Sharp

    The Illinois born, L.A. based film-score composer, multi-instrumentalist and lyricist, Andrew Bird, picked up his violin at the ripe age of four and promptly began immersing himself in classical composition. As a teen, Bird found an interest in early jazz, country blues, and gypsy music. Soon the sounds of his violin began to drift and morph into something unique to himself.

    “The Violin didn’t have to be in an orchestral setting,” Jett Hagerty, a fellow violinist and HSU student, said.

    While Birds main instrument is the violin, he also plays guitar, glockenspiel, and has supposedly refined the art of whistling.

    Before pursuing a solo career in ’97, Bird was also a member of the bands Squirrel Nut Zipper and Bowl Of Fire. Since perusing his solo career, Bird has released 12 albums.

    For the final portion of the performance, Bird was accompanied by bassist, Michael Lewis and drummer Abraham Rounds.

    Rounds is a multi-instrumentalist that hails from Sydney, Australia. He started playing drums when he was just one year old. Rounds, now 25 and currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Currently, he is a member of his musical mentors Meshell Ndegeocello’s band. In addition, he has also recorded and toured with artists such as Seal, Trevor Horn, Justin Stanley, My Brightest Diamond, Susanna Hoffs, Doyle Bramhall II, and Andrew Bird.

    Rounds says he began playing with Bird last year.

    “He saw me playing with another artist called My Brightest Diamond,” Round said. “[Bird] reached out to me by email when he needed a drummer.”

    Before Rounds began playing with Bird, he said that he didn’t know any of his music. So far Round described the experience of working with Bird has been pretty.

    “It’s a good crew and a good bunch of people,” Round said.

    The Van Duzer marks the last stop on the band’s tour and they have a 600-mile drive ahead of them. Yet, in his last few moments in Humboldt County, Rounds said that he feels great to be here amidst the sounds of the redwoods.

    ANDREW BIRD LIVE

    October 12—Los Angeles, CA—Zebulon

    October 13—Mesa, AZ—Mesa Arts Center

    October 14—Santa Barbara, CA—Campbell Hall

    October 16—San Luis Obispo, CA—Christopher Cohan Center

    October 18—San Francisco, CA—SFJAZZ, Miner Auditorium

    October 19—San Francisco, CA—SFJAZZ, Miner Auditorium

    October 20—Stanford, CA—Bing Concert Hall

    October 22—Davis, CA—Mondavi Center

    October 23—Arcata, CA—Van Duzer Theatre

    December 8—Nashville, TN—Downtown Presbyterian Church*

    December 9—Nashville, TN—Downtown Presbyterian Church*

    December 11—Chicago, IL—Fourth Presbyterian Church*

    December 12—Chicago, IL—Fourth Presbyterian Church*

    December 13—Chicago, IL—Fourth Presbyterian Church*

    December 14—Chicago, IL—Fourth Presbyterian Church*

    * Gezelligheid Performance

  • Make the most of it

    Make the most of it

    Businesses in Arcata close up shop too early, leaving some of us bored and frustrated with the same limited options when we’re done for the day. Affordable dining and entertainment options are especially slim pickings.

    A good deal of local businesses should consider staying open longer. This would not only satisfy the demands of a revolving demographic, namely HSU students, but closing early is missed opportunity for more sales. In addition, the extended hours would ultimately do its part by enhancing the quality of life in our small college town.

    Let’s be honest, though. The most positive reaction this editorial will get out of readers is a nod of approval. Further, business owners will not go out of their way to accommodate a marginalized complaint, nor will businesses pop up to supply a relatively weak demand. This is not reverse psychology; this is the reality of where we live.

    Here’s the thing, we’re all on the same boat. In some respects, you knew what you were signing up for when you decided to be a Lumberjack. Humboldt is not known for a bustling nightlife, cultural diversity or a wide variety of cheap eats to name a few. We clearly don’t have a wealth of options compared to Los Angeles or New York City.

    However, the LoCo Lowdown is a good source of local events. HSU hosts big acts on campus year-round, sometimes for free. If you don’t feel like cooking, Stars Hamburgers or La Chiquita Taqueria offers hearty, delicious and affordable meals within reasonable hours of operation throughout the week. Don’t take granted of Humboldt’s abundance of hiking trails, swimming holes and other outdoor activities. The point is, there are ways around the limitations of what Humboldt has to offer. Make the most of what’s in front of you.

  • The Shadow Gallery

    The Shadow Gallery

    Opening a video store in 2017 may seem like a joke, but a new video store, Shadow Gallery, opened in Old Town Eureka on April 1. After the recent closing of the Eureka Figueiredo’s and the Arcata Spotlight, it is hard to believe that a new video store would open. With all the streaming websites, it seems there is no need for a physical store. For a weird and rural place like Humboldt County, owner Harley Demarest doesn’t believe so.

    “We have crappy Internet,” Demarest said. “Streaming isn’t for everybody and a lot of growers don’t have wireless Internet, so they buy movies to bring up in the hills.”

    The Shadow Gallery is more than just a video store. Entering inside is like going in a organized garage of memorabilia. There is a diverse collection of books, comic book issues, graphic novel anthologies, vinyl records, band shirts, and video games for Sega Dreamcast to Xbox 360. There is a small section of the store dedicated for gaming. A shelf of various vintage gaming consoles sits next to a TV in front of a couch. Customers can’t check out consoles, but they are welcome to ask to play a game on the consoles in store. There is a large amount of collectable figures, vintage movie posters, collectible Lego sets and other memorabilia throughout the store. The majority of the items are from Demarest’s personal collection.

    “It’s been an ongoing collection for about 10 years,” Demarest said. “About three to four years ago, I reached a tipping point in my collection. I had to decide to either sell it or just go further with it.”

    The idea of owning a video store, or possibly a comic book store, has been bumping around Demarest’s head for the last 10 years. He created a GoFundMe page to see people’s reactions to the idea of opening a video store and received a lot of support. With help from his friends, they slowly moved Demarest’s collection into the new store. Since the grand opening, the store had steady traffic. On the sunny Friday afternoon, several people came in. Two older women entered and looked at the band shirts. A group of adults went straight to the video game section and one woman bought a figurine from the popular video game, Starcraft. Many more walked in and browsed the diverse movie selection, that varied from B-rated horror, popular anime shows, essential Criterion film, TV shows and much more in VHS, DVD and Blu-Ray. When talking about movies, Demarest suggested several movies.

    “Have you seen ‘Attack the Block’?” he said. “It’s John Boyega, before ‘The Force Awakens’, and it pretty much started his career,”

    He also suggested “Gentleman Bronco,” a comedy that featured one of his favorite actors Sam Rockwell.

    “If I had an employee’s pick section, those two have to be it,” he said.

    To check out anything from the store, there are two options for customer membership. The first is the video club, much like other video stores. It costs $3 for a two-day new release or $1 to check out previously released movies for seven days. The second option is a library membership. Varying from $10 a month or $150 a year, a customer would be allotted a specific number of points as currency to check out a limited amount of media. For example, a $10 membership would allow the customer 10 points. Each media is worth a number of points, from one-point comic issues to five-point DVDs and Blu-Rays. The $10 membership will allot the customer to rent two movies at one time and those 10 points are used. Once the movies are returned, those points are returned to the customer and can be used on other media, like the games or books. This can be used until the month membership is over. This format of membership limits the amount of media that can be checked out and limit potential loss.

    There are many plans for the future of The Shadow Gallery. Demarest, who is a comic book artist, wants to get art supplies to rent out from pencils to easels. This would hopefully open the store as an art collective, where people can work and share their artwork. He also hopes to host future game nights, both Tetris tournaments and Magic games.

    The Shadow Gallery is at 214 E St. in Eureka and open 7 days a week 12-9 p.m. For further questions, call (707) 273-5250.

  • “13 Reasons Why” review

    “13 Reasons Why” review

    By Liam Olson

    The first two episodes of “13 Reasons Why”, “Tape 1, Sides A and B” are a strong and well done start to the story of high schooler Hannah Baker. What makes this show so great is the diverse cast of characters, well thought-out plot, and emotional and convincing acting. “Tape 1, Sides A and B” is so heart wrenching and intriguing, it will keep audiences pressing play to find out each reason why.

    The Netflix show “13 Reasons Why” was released on March 31. The show is adapted from the young adult book, “13 Reasons Why” which was written by Jay Asher. The show was created by Brian Yorkey and the first two episodes were directed by Tom McCarthy. Another well-known public figure who had a hand in the making of the show is Selena Gomez as an executive producer.

    The show’s engaging and thorough plot is one of the many reasons this show is so great. The show follows along each of Hannah’s reasons for committing suicide, but shows some of them out of order causing some differentiation from the book. Furthermore, while the book only goes into the tapes and each reason why Hannah ended her life, the show expands beyond that. It explains how the characters are reacting to Hannah’s suicide, such as her parents searching for the reasons Hannah ended her life and her friend’s interactions with people who are on the tapes Hannah left behind.

    “13 Reasons Why” begins with Hannah’s friend, Clay Jensen, finding a package at his door full of cassette tapes and a map. Clay puts the first cassette tape into his parents’ cassette player and begins to listen. He is shocked to hear the voice of his friend Hannah Baker who ended her own life not long ago. The recording of Hannah tells Clay that the set of tapes contains the 13 people who influenced her decision to take her own life, one side for each person, and that everyone who is on these tapes must listen to all 13 tapes. Not only does each person have to listen to the tapes but they must pass it on to the person after them on the tapes. Also, if one person refuses to pass on the tapes or refuses to listen to them, then a person Hannah entrusted with a second set of the tapes will release them publicly. After hearing the instructions, Clay begins to follow the tapes and find out the answers to why his friend ended her life.

    One of the reasons that “13 Reasons Why” is such a powerful show is the fact that it brings awareness to issues such as bullying, suicide, and other issues that are prevalent in the dark side of high school social culture. In the first two episodes alone, the viewer learns that one of Hannah’s classmates cyber bullied her and that one of her close friends betrayed her and isolated Hannah from her peers. This is just the beginning to the bullying that Hannah Baker experienced.

    Another reason why the show is so amazing is the wide variety of characters throughout the show. Even though there are many characters within the show, it does an amazing job at introducing each character and gives the audience enough background and time to understand each character. Some of these characters include Hannah Baker’s grieving parents, played by Kate Walsh and Bryan d’Arcy James, Clay’s calm and collected friend Tony, played by Christian Navarro, and popular girl and Hannah’s former friend Jessica played by Alisha Boe.

    With so many actors and actresses in the show, all of them gave outstanding performances but it is best to focus on the performances of the actors who play two main characters, Clay and Hannah.

    Dylan Minnette does a phenomenal job of bringing Clay Jensen to life. He perfectly captures the lost and confused feelings that Clay has after finding out that he is one of the 13 reasons why Hannah chose to end her life. In one scene, Minnette was able to show the mixed emotions Clay was feeling while he was riding his bike listening to one of Hannah’s tapes.

    The one person who by far has an outstanding performance in the show is Katherine Langford as Hannah Baker. Langford marvelously narrates the tapes explaining the tragedy contained in each one. Not only that but she perfectly captures the emotions Hannah feels after being betrayed by her close friend.

    “13 Reasons Why”, “Tape 1, Sides A and B” are an amazing start to the tragic and heart wrenching story of Hannah Baker. With outstanding acting, interesting plot, and a wide variety of characters, “13 Reasons Why” will keep audiences wanting to press play to find out each reason.

  • Review: Time After Time

    Review: Time After Time

    By | Liam Olson

    The pilot episode of “Time After Time”, a new show on ABC, is a great introduction to the story of H.G. Wells’ pursuit to stop Jack the Ripper. Filled with lovable and interesting characters along with intriguing plot, the first episode shows promise for future episodes. Even though the show starts well it does have a few issues with rushing various points of plot.

    “Time After Time” first aired on March 5 on ABC. According to IMDb, the show is based off the 1979 book and movie of the same name. The book is written by Karl Alexander and within the same year was made into a movie which was directed by Nicholas Meyers. Marcos Siega directs the television version while Meyers, the director of the movie version, writes the teleplay. Kevin Williamson develops the show.

    The show begins in 19th century England where H.G. Wells is discussing his work with some of his colleagues. Around the same time, Jack the Ripper, also known as Dr. John Stevenson, murders a woman on his way over Wells’ home. After Stevenson arrives at Wells’ house, Wells shows Stevenson and his colleagues the time machine that he is building. Soon after, the police come to Wells’ house to do a search to investigate murder of the woman Stevenson killed earlier. The murder weapon is discovered in Stevenson’s bag and Stevenson uses Wells’ time machine to escape to the modern day. Wells follows Stevenson to the future to stop him and bring him back to past where justice will be served.

    Upon arriving in modern day, Wells is taken by the security guards of the museum in New York where his time machine is displayed. There he meets assistant curator, Jane Walker, who at first does not believe who Wells actually is but after Wells proves that he is from the past, Walker joins Wells quest to stop Jack the Ripper. In the first episode, Jack the Ripper begins his murderous rampage killing women at nightclubs. With the time machine as his advantage, Wells  is able to prevent some of the murders.

    Altogether the plot of the show is interesting but the plot points feel too rushed and forced in the first episode. Giving each point more time would add great character development and backstory to the main plot. It would be interesting to have spent more time in the 19th century learning more about Dr. Stevenson and why he became Jack the Ripper.

    Furthermore, the romance between Walker and Wells is introduced too early making their romantic chemistry seem forced and underdeveloped. The scene where Walker and Wells share a moment together in the moon exhibit seemed awkward and ungenuine.

    Another plot point that would make the first episode even better would to focus on the adjustment that Wells goes through to modern day. Providing more time on this would open up so many opportunities for comedic plot points. Not only that but it is hard to believe that Wells became so well adjusted to modern technology within a matter of days.

    Throughout the episode, all the actors gave performances that make the characters interesting and likable. The one who gives the best performance is Freddie Stroma as H.G. Wells. Stroma is amazing at making Wells a lovable character. He perfectly captures the intelligence and naiveté of Wells. He is able to show Wells as the brilliant writer and inventor while also showing that even the most intelligent people can get lost and need to learn more.

    Genesis Rodriguez does well at playing Jane Walker. Her characterization of Walker as a no-nonsense and driven person is a great addition to the show. She is the best person to play as the guide for the modern world for H.G. Wells.

    Finally, Josh Bowman gives an outstanding performance as Dr. John Stevenson or better known as Jack the Ripper. Bowman is able to perfectly capture the ruthlessness and violent nature of Jack the Ripper. In every scene with Bowman as Jack the Ripper the viewer can tell his malicious and intimidating presence.

    “Time After Time” shows promise with its lovable, interesting characters and intriguing plot. Although it has some issues, the pilot episode is sure to keep audiences wanting to see what the future holds for H.G. Wells and Jane Walker in “Time After Time”.

  • Queer Student Union vogues the night away

    Queer Student Union vogues the night away

    Humboldt’s QSU hosts a ball and cabaret paying homage to the transgender community.

    By | Alexandria Hasenstab

    A person wearing a grey fitted suit complete with a bowtie and five inch heels steps onto the runway. With their hair slicked back and a full beard made of glitter on their face, they begin their walk.

    Multicolored lights illuminate the room, but a spotlight keeps all eyes on the person on the runway. Every step is taken with a confident swing of the hips, until they misstep and trip off the end of the runway.

    Surprisingly, the person does not stumble but instead gracefully falls to the floor as the crowd cheers loudly.

    This move is part of a style of dance known as voguing. Although this dance was made famous by singer Madonna, it has roots in the transgender community.

    Humboldt State’s Queer Student Union payed homage to the transgender community with a ball and cabaret held in the KBR on Feb. 18.  

    David Ontiveros is the treasure of the Queer Student Union. Ontiveros wasn’t a performer but still decided to wear black thigh high boots and matching corset to the event. Ontiveros was one of many people who helped organize the event.

    “We want people to understand the importance of trans, queer people of color,” Ontiveros said. “They created the scene that we’re paying respects to, and they helped in creating the modern queer community.”  

    The event was a combination of runway and dancing competitions as well as performances from students, alumni and community members who support the Queer Student Union.

    Photo by Liam Olson

    From Left to right: The winner of the Queenest of the Queens: April Showers, Winner of Queerest of the Queers: Sadie Shellmire, winner of Kingest of the Kings: Aaron Space Museum.

    Ten-year-old Sadie Shellmire got her makeup done by one of the performers before going on stage to compete in the Queerest of the Queer runway challenge.

    “I feel good,” Shellmire said. “I’m looking fly, I’m looking beautiful, I’m looking fierce.”

    Shellmire won Queerest of the Queers by impressing the judges with her runway strut and voguing skills.

    “It’s important to have confidence to get up on stage,” Shellmire said. “If you don’t have enough confidence to get up on stage, you won’t have confidence to do anything. It’s like going in front of your family. They will applaud you no matter what happens, so what is there to be afraid of?”

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Queen Mantrikka Ho hosted the event. Mantrikka has been performing in drag for over 15 years. She feels that the Queer Student Union is an important group for young people to be involved with.

    “Especially in this day and age people need guidance, queer people need guidance, queer people of color specifically need guidance,” Mantrikka said.

    Mantrikka talks about how the queer community has been pressured to be palatable to the rest of the world. She thinks that needs to end.

    “I believe that queer culture has always been radical, and I think that we need to maintain the radicalness,” Mantrikka said.

    Mantrikka has been a performance artist for a large portion of her life, she said being on stage makes her feel cathartic.

    “How often do we get to go on stage and be our full genuine selves, a side of ourself that is really deep.”

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Drag Queen Rosa Mendoza is an HSU student on academic leave. Mendoza has only been performing in drag for six months, but already feels that it has a big societal impact.“It’s a fun way to break society’s norms,” Mendoza said. “It pushes on society’s rigid gender roles, which is my favorite part.”

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Wren Broekema struts down the runway during the Queerest of the Queer challenge.

    Broekema is president of Queer Student Union and the queer community building coordinator. Broekema planned the event to pay homage to the trans community, specifically trans people of color. “This event in particular is in response to the political climate,” Broekema said. “We also want to showcase queer people of color.”

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Dancer Sarah Lee is from a dance group called Les IllumiNaughty with her friend Kath Collom. The pair performed for the Cabaret portion of the event. This is their group’s fifth year performing for Queer Student Union events. Lee said that events like the one this past Friday, are very important for students to be involved in because it’s an enjoyable way for people from all walks of life to come together. “We can come together and play and be merry!” Lee said.

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Queen Ophelia Cox performs a burlesque piece during the cabaret portion of the event.

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Lady Sedusa is a local drag queen and performer. According to Sedusa the importance of events like the ball and cabaret is that it gives everyone a chance to step out of their comfort zone. “You don’t have to be white or black, straight or gay, skinny or thick, to perform,” Sedusa said.

    Photo by Liam Olson

    Drag King Hugh Johnson is an HSU Alumni who performed during the cabaret.“The idea is to raise awareness, giving credit to the people of color who created the queer community,” Johnson said. According to Johnson, the event is a tribute to the balls that were held within the queer community in New York City in the 1980s.

  • “Legion” review

    “Legion” review

    By | Liam Olson

    “Legion”, “Chapter 1” brilliantly introduces audiences to the world and mind of David Haller, one of the most powerful mutants in existence. With interesting and in depth characters, great acting to bring these characters to life, and unique story progression, “Legion” will make the viewer want to delve deeper into David’s mind.

    The first episode of “Legion” aired on FX on Feb. 8. Noah Hawley directed “Chapter 1” and also assisted in creating and writing the show. The show is based on the “Legion” comic book series which written and drawn by Chris Claremont and Bill Sienkiewicz.

    From the beginning to the end of “Chapter 1”, reality and fantasy are hard to discern going back and forth between the mind and world of David Haller, played by Dan Stevens. However, the back and forth create pieces of the story that all come together at the end of the episode. Although some pieces of the first episode are to be connected later episodes, the parts that you are given generate interesting discussion with friends at the end of the episode.

    The plot of “Legion” begins in the mind of David Haller where you learn about the memories of his youth. In his youth, he slowly begins to realize his telekinetic powers until his breaking point during his college years where his powers came in at full capacity.

    After his breakdown,  he was admitted to a mental hospital where doctors misdiagnose him with schizophrenia, but in reality he is a powerful telepath that cannot handle his abilities. In the hospital, David spends his days in his daily routine with a fellow patient and friend Lenny, played by Aubrey Plaza. However, everything changes as soon as a mysterious new patient named Syd, played by Rachel Keller, arrives at the mental hospital and Danny immediately falls in love with her. Keller is able to show versatility in her acting by switching between the various sides of her character Syd with ease.

    For some viewers, the story of the hospital seems like the main plot, however, these are just the memories of Danny. The actual plot of the main story begins in an interrogation room. In the room, Danny is monitored and questioned by government agents to determine how much of a threat he actually is to the world.

    In the first episode alone, Stevens does a phenomenal job at bringing the character of David Haller to life. He conveys the instability and insanity that David’s character represents in fun and interesting ways. Plaza channels the laid back and oblivious characterization of Lenny. Plaza’s choice to play Lenny is a great change from the more comedic roles that she has played in the past such as April from the show “Parks and Recreation”.

    The show itself is well done, however, there is one issue that needs to be mentioned. The lighting was overbearing in some shots and, at some points, got in the way of the visuals. One example that stood out among the rest is the scene where Syd walks in on David’s group therapy session, in the background behind Syd there is lots of light that causes Syd’s face to not be visible. Due to the length of this scene, the light was so bright that it made it hard to look at the scene.

    “Chapter 1” of “Legion” is complex and intriguing. Through the unique and interesting characters and storytelling, audiences will want to delve deeper into the insane mind of David Haller.

  • Pokémon GO is still around trying to bring back users

    Pokémon GO is still around trying to bring back users

    Niantic releases 80 new Pokémon in attempt to bring users back

    By | Curran Daly

    Niantic released 80 new Pokémon into the popular Pokémon GO game on Feb. 16, adding 80 new cute reasons to get out and explore the local area.

    The update adds new Pokémon, evolutions, gameplay animations, berries, and wardrobe options. The game dominated the summer months, according an article on the Business of Apps website daily user numbers surpassed Netflix, Spotify, and Twitter on Android devices.

    User numbers declined after the initial release. The decrease in users mimicked the percentages lost by other apps. However, according to SurveyMonkey, the larger initial audience meant that a 25 percent decline would lead to the loss of 3.9 million weekly users. The new update has been viewed as an attempt to bring back former users and appease consistent users.

    Connor Austin, a junior religious studies major, played the game when it was first released but has deleted the game because of repetitive gameplay and problems with the app working on his phone.

    “I literally just re-downloaded it two minutes ago,” said Austin. “It was kinda the fulfillment of my dreams as a kid, going out and catching Pokémon and seeing other trainers, but once it started to dwindle it waned for me.”

    The game garnered a loyal following after its release. Some of the success was attributed to the games connection with fans who finally got to live out their childhood dreams of becoming a Pokémon trainer.

    The game centers on high interest locations, like Humboldt State’s campus, while neglecting more isolated areas.

    “It depends on where you live, because before I lived on campus I was living on Giuntoli, and like even though I played it kinda sucked because there was only Pidgeys or Rattatas for miles, but here on campus it’s great,” said Austin.

    The abundance of common Pokémon was an annoyance for users when the game was released. However, with the games new update, there are new low level Pokémon that have joined them as the ever present Pokémon.

    Julianne Updike, a senior communication major, is happy to see the new Pokémon as they revitalize the game that was becoming stale.

    “Having more Pokémon in the game than it did before, definitely makes it more fun again,” Updike said. “But I think once we get used to those ones it will get kind of boring again.”

    The release of new Pokémon has generated more interest in the game, but it will not keep users satisfied forever. Many fans of the game have been waiting for the introduction of player to player Pokémon trading to be introduced into the mobile game. Trading was a feature promised before the release of the game and its absence has frustrated some users.

    Along with trading, people are hoping that the game will go on to further mimic the original Pokémon games with features like in depth combat and being able to interact with the Pokémon.

    “I get that the technology is new for this type of game, but I think they could’ve added a more dynamic combat system because the way you fight now is just like da-da-da-da-da, just mindlessly tapping the screen, when in the actual Pokémon games so much more goes into battles,”said Austin. “If it could mirror that better that would be nice.”

    These changes would be a welcome addition to the game for Lucas Arnese, a junior art education major, who has been playing that game since being a part of the beta. To Arnese, the game is addicting and connects him to his childhood growing up with Pokémon.

    “My grandma used to play with me as a kid, she would play and fight with us, I played before I could read,” Arnese said. “Then once I could read I really started to get more into it. It’s kind of cool to know that I grew up with Pokémon.”

    Nostalgia is a major force behind people playing the game. Niantic is hoping that this nostalgia will keep the game relevant while they continue adding features to create a more complete and diverse game.

    Woody Sundberg, a junior English major, thinks that the game will be able to outlive previous apps like Temple Run and Angry Birds. Pokémon Go’s use of location and augmented reality makes the game stand out, which Sundberg believes will help the longevity of the game.

    “It helps you explore areas and go places you’ve never been before and otherwise wouldn’t end up at like the murals in Eureka or the Arcata marsh at sunset,” Sundberg said.

  • Word on the Street: Pokemon GO

    Word on the Street: Pokemon GO

    Why do you think Pokemon GO is losing popularity?

    By Domanique Crawford

    Photo by Domanique Crawford

    Kairos Pacheco, Ecological restoration- “I already realize that when I am texting on my phone I am zoned in and not paying attention to the world around me. I don’t really like it [Pokemon Go] for that specific reason. people are just zoned out not paying attention to anyone else.”

    Photo by Domanique Crawford

    Steven Ramirez, Major Recreational  Physical Therapy- “It was really popular in the beginning. I played it a lot because my friends did, but now I only play every once in awhile because of the new generation. I might play twice a week.”

    Photo by Domanique Crawford

    Jake Ma, Business Major-  “Right now it [Pokemon Go] is losing popularity because after like two weeks of the release of the pokemon Go people are not playing because Pokemon go takes up too much battery on the phone. And also, they updated Pokemon Go and nobody liked the update, so people stopped playing.”

    Photo by Domanique Crawford

    William Nitzsche, major Environmental Resources Engineering- “Pokémon Go is just not my cup of tea.” “If it was Pokémon Go on a DS it would probably be more popular.”

  • Nudity Trumps popularity

    The 4th Annual Mr. Humboldt Pageant delivers a night to remember

    (more…)

  • Announcing the 89th Academy Awards

    Announcing the 89th Academy Awards

    The nominees for the 89th Academy Awards have been released. There are nine titles nominated for the Best Picture category.

    The Best Picture nominees are strong this year, including “Hacksaw Ridge”, a movie about a WWII US army medic, and “Hidden Figures”, a historic drama about the African American female mathematicians that put astronaut John Glenn into space. Other nominated films include “Moonlight”, a unique coming of age story, and there is possibility of a modern day musical, titled “La La Land”,  winning best picture.

    “La La Land” has 14 nominations, tying with “All About Eve” and “Titanic” for the record of the most Oscar nominations. It has two nominations in the category for Best Original Song.

    This year, “Arrival” and “Moonlight” both have eight nominations. Both are unique films in their own respect. “Arrival” is an intelligent sci-fi film about communicating, not fighting, with aliens. While “Moonlight” follows the journey of a young African American individual. The movie shows emotions with subtlety and compassion.

    A few of these oscar nominated films are still in theatres. You can catch them while they’re still playing. If you missed any of these films on the big screen, Richard’s Goat Tavern is featuring several nominated films in their miniplex.

  • Q&A with “Bread Talk’s” Sandwich Kid

    Q&A with “Bread Talk’s” Sandwich Kid

    By|Bryan Donoghue

    Albert Bernales in the studio to record a Bread Talk.

    Sandwiched between school and life, Albert Bernales makes time to record podcast’s on his talk show called “Bread Talk”. Topics range anywhere from  food to money, encompassing the word “bread”. Before the interview, Bernales, the host of Bread Talk, sat me down and made me a grilled cheese sandwich with my favorite type of bread, sweet Hawaiian rolls. Bernales made “Bread Talk” because he wanted to create a show of his own. Using it as a creative outlet, his voice now goes out to the Humboldt community.

    Q: To start us off, what’s your name and major?

    A: My name is Albert Bernales, my alias for Bread Talks is “Sandwich Kid”. I’m a business major with an economics minor.

    Q: What’s your favorite type of bread and why?

    A: It would probably be sourdough, because as you dip it in soups, it tastes really good. Not all things are going to be sweet, there will be some sour things that will happen. I think sourdough represents life.

    Q: So you could be the “Sourdough Sandwich Kid”. Why did you decide to make a podcast and call it “Bread Talk”?

    A: I decided to make a podcast just for fun. I was listening to people like Jimmy Fallon and all those late night talk shows. They kind of inspired me, because they’re just talking to somebody, but it’s still really fun and interesting. That’s one reason why, and as soon as I started listening to podcasts, I realized “this is pretty easy, I can do this”. I called it Bread Talks because it grabs your attention. I’m pretty interested in business, but it lets me talk about other things. I can just pull up some articles I’m interested in and talk about them.

    Q: What is Bread Talk? Do you talk about bread, money, or everything in between?

    A: Definitely about all things bread, like the physical bread we have here, this sweet Hawaiian bread. It also goes into money, that’s where the business aspect of this podcast comes in. A lot of rappers inspired me, like E-40. He said, “I choose to get money, I’m stuck to this bread,” in his song “Choices”. Definitely talk about the rap culture and community, since they tend to rap about money, and stuff, like bread. But there’s definitely another meaning, such as bread as in food, because I love food and cooking as well.

    Q: Food and money seem to be two universally appreciated topics. Everyone wants to talk about,  and listen into both of these subjects. In your fifth podcast, one topic you were talking about was the change in iPhone headphones from the iPhone 6 to the iPhone 7, and how that’s affecting people today. Which subject does that fall under?

    A: That’s pretty business related. They took a risk in their products, and I think people need to take more bold risks. It’s really appreciated for when they take those risks. It takes a lot of guts to do that.

    Q: Where do you record?

    A: First time we recorded in an actual studio in Gist Hall, but for the second and third time we got a headphone microphone that comes with the iPhone and put it on top of an empty water bottle, and spoke into the bottle. We literally had no options for episode 2-4. You can hear the difference on Soundcloud, it’s either really loud and clear, or not.

    Q: Is Soundcloud the main media outlet you use to put out your podcasts?

    A: Yeah, definitely, it’s the first thing that popped up to me, and it’s a great way to get your voice out there.

    Q: And Bread Talk is a continuing series. You have your own following of listeners.

    A: Definitely always shout out to the listeners, we love them. We at Bread Talk definitely have come a long way, from a recording standpoint, from iPhone microphones, to studio microphones, and I now record on the library microphone. So, shout out to the digital media lab too. They have all the snowball microphones I use. I can just plug it into the computer and record a podcast whenever I need to.

    Q: When does the new Bread Talk come out?

    A: It was originally supposed to come out every single week, but we were really busy, so it eventually became every month. Then every month became every couple of months. But I have extra podcasts stored on my laptop, I just have to add the intro music and I’ll be able to upload it. For the show, I made the intro music Entertainment Tonight, but on a keyboard.

    Q: You still have a few episodes in a storage vault, but they’re ready to come out?

    A: We have number 2, but that’s a lost episode, since we don’t know where to find it. It was on my friends flash drive but I didn’t get the file. But since it’s a lost episode, let the idea of it marinate in your mind for how good it’s going to be. This is a comedy type of show, you know. It is super spontaneous, you don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t even know what’s going to happen in the next Bread Talk.

    Q: It’s really interesting that you decided to take that approach.

    A: I have an article here to highlight the next Bread Talk actually. Here’s the teaser, it’s about a “master pickle tester.” Basically, there’s a person who eats pickles for a living to determine the quality. That’s the article that I chose to talk about in the next podcast.

    Q: You have plenty of guests on your show, but in terms of subject matter, is it just being spontaneous? How do you prepare before for what questions you’d want to ask?

    A: Definitely, in my head, I find an interesting topic. So I go on the internet, and find a couple of articles that are interesting. We’ll talk about it, and do an analysis on that article. For the questions that I ask, they’re typically solid but typically the same through every episode. And at the end, I have quick fire questions, where it’s like fill in the blank. I switch those up every single episode.

    Q: I noticed you have your Bread Talks listed by number, but some are also categorized by words, how do you come up with these?

    A: They are the focus, and central theme of each episode. Like the one that’s under “ninja—no income, no job”, that originated from a friend of mine who works on these with me. He had a finance class, and ninja was a term they discussed. So I asked if he just wanted to leave it as Bread Talk Number 5, and he said to add ninja.

    Q: Ninjas and economics together, that’s an unusual combination. Do you know what ninja means?

    A: Ninja pretty much means no job, or no assets. So pretty much if you don’t have any money, you won’t have a job or anything valuable. And vise versa.

    Q: You have a sandwich, or just any meal that involves bread with your guests before or during an interview. For my last question, a spontaneous one on my part, why do you eat with your guests along with the bread talk?

    A: Well I try to always have bread. This is Bread Talk after all. You’re going to want some bread, and eat it with your guests. That’s a true Bread Talk.

  • A review on “Tickled”

    A review on “Tickled”

    When I first read about “Tickled” on a random online movie list, it sounded so unusual that I knew I had to see it. What I didn’t know when I bought my tickets at the Richard’s Goat Tavern’s Miniplex was that the film is a strange conspiracy thriller about a fetish.

    David Farrier, a journalist from New Zealand, is the director of the film. Farrier usually covers lighter stories. He has interviewed young Justin Bieber, Trent Reznor and has made a small documentary about the national anthem of his home country.

    Farrier came across a video on Facebook about competitive endurance tickling. The video featured men in Adidas jerseys tickling a clothed man strapped to a repurposed doctor’s chair. He is then shown being tickled with an electric toothbrush in slow motion.

    Farrier immediately messaged the tickling talent agency responsible for the video, requesting an interview in hopes of procuring the next great story. However, he was quickly met with homophobic slurs and a request to stay away from the company and its participants. He later received multiple lawsuits and threats. This only fueled Farrier’s curiosity about the history of tickling fetish videos and who the talent agency truly was.

    Lawyers from the tickling talent agency were aggressive and told Farrier that he could not film them in the New Zealand airport even though it was legal. The only person who was willing to talk about the tickling industry seemed to be mildly off-putting.

    The documentary doesn’t necessarily focus on the people being tickled because it was very difficult to find interviews of the participants due to their fear of their mysterious bosses.

    Many of the participants responded to the tickling talent agency’s ads in hopes for quick cash and paid travel expenses. However, these people were later humiliated and threatened in their outside lives by the same company who hired them, similar to the threats and lawsuits Farrier received from the tickling talent agency. One ex-participant, a former high school football coach, was threatened by the tickling talent agency to have his tickling videos sent to his family and his workplace. The tickling agency later sent the video to the school the man was working at anyway, causing him to lose his job.

    Seeing this movie in a full theatre of about 20 people highlighted the audience’s reactions to each twist of the film.

    “Tickled” is the perfect movie to show your friends if you’re looking for something a bit different with hints of thrill, peculiarness, comedy, and uncomfortableness.