Charry The Spring 2017 Final Edition Slayer, and the MIGOS, Godfather The Beatles, of Speed and Stevie: Metal Wonder How They’re Related? Hip-Hop’s Role Today: Carraway Weighs in on 2017’s Latest Releases The Velvet Underground: Leaders of a Sonic Revolution Disco Demolition Night Queen: White Romanticism of the 1960s and the Culmination of Racially The Rock Band of Charged Anxiety Against a Genre the 1970s TABLE OF CONTENTS Editor: Katherine Murtha - Layout: Cody Pearl & Allison Battinelli Page 3 - “Yellow Submarine: An Expression of the Sixties” by Emma Greenfield Page 5 - “The Velvet Underground: Influence of a Revolution” by Adam Siegel Page 7 - “Queen: The Rock Band of the 1970s” by Will Hein Page 9 - “The Demise of Disco” by Eric Zepeda Page 11 - “The Godfather of Speed Metal” by Dylan Millhouse Page 13 - “From the Cocoon to Kung Fu: Kendrick Lamar’s Development and Influence Over the Years” by Jack Ginsberg Page 15 - “The Evolution of MTV” by Sarah Kuhn Page 17 - “Stevie” by Grant van Inwegen Page 19 - “Why Hip-Hop?” by Julian Carraway Page 21 - “Rap’s #1 Family” by Collin Andrews 1 Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band had; the style some thought it had more redeeming qualities than of the movie stays true to at least part of the band’s others. Miller Francis, in an early 1969 article for message of the time. Great Speckled Bird, expresses the opinion that The plot maintains many ideals of the late the film was a poor representation of The Beatles, sixties. It was the age of hippies and the peak of inadequately showing what the band meant to anti-Vietnam War protests; music was seen as a the people of the sixties. He argues that the film- solution, a way of bringing people together. In makers took the songs at face-value, keeping them the film, Pepperland is plagued by a war, and The lighthearted and not at all delving into their deep- Beatles save the day with their tunes. In the scene er meanings. On the other hand, in a New York for “All You Need is Love,” John runs around huge Times article, Renata Alder expressed her feeling block letters that spell out “LOVE” – the “peace that the movie simply makes the viewer happy. It is and love” message of the sixties is clearly show- filled with strange images and amusing puns. Her cased. The Beatles played their final live concert in August 1966, and so they were unable to partic- ipate in the music festivals during the end of the decade. In a sense, Yellow Submarine was a way for The Beatles to participate and give their audi- ence a performance. The soundtrack, however, clearly displays The Beatles’ absence from the production, as only four Yellow Submarine: An Expression of the Sixties of the songs were new releases and none of them by Emma Greenfield were written for the movie. “Hey Bulldog,” “All Together Now,” “Only A Northern Song,” and “It’s All Too Much” were all pre-recorded but not Throughout their career, The Beatles continuously so it’s interesting that they completely relinquished chosen to be on any of the band’s albums. The rest put themselves into film. They released their first the reigns so soon after having total control. That of the songs were either on Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s movie, A Hard Day’s Night, in July of 1964 and being said, Magical Mystery Tour was the last mov- Lonely Hearts Club Band, Rubber Soul, or re- their final movie, Let It Be, in May 1970, a month ie that they seemed to have direct involvement in. leased earlier as singles. after the band broke up. All of their movies are Since The Beatles played such a small role in the It is hard to say if a song fits into the movie or not live action, featuring The Beatles themselves, the development of Yellow Submarine, the movie because so much of the plot was inspired by the exception being Yellow Submarine. cannot be viewed as a direct display of their own music. For example, the whole character of the The film, released in the United Kingdom in thoughts and beliefs. This absence prevents the Nowhere Man was inspired by the song. A lot of July 1968, is an animated adventure featuring viewer from assuming that everything presented in the songs, like “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,” The Beatles’ quest to save an underwater para- the film came from the band’s own imagination. get whole scenes depicting the lyrics. Arguably, dise, Pepperland. Pepperland is attacked by Blue While the film does not allow for a peek into The seven of the eleven reused songs clearly inspired Meanies who freeze its citizens, and The Beatles Beatles’ minds, it allows the viewer to see how fans certain scenes that made some sense in the larger are called on to save the town. The movie features viewed the band. The production team consisted context of the movie. On the other hand, only two their difficulties while traveling to Pepperland from of people who experienced the sixties, and they of the four songs released for the movie had scenes Liverpool in the Yellow Submarine. Once reaching created the movie with their own idea of what The devoted to them, and only the scene for “Hey Bull- Pepperland, they use music to unfreeze everyone. Beatles and their music represented. While the review suggests that perhaps Yellow Submarine dog” went with the rest of the plot. The fact that Beatles songs are played throughout the movie, and movie may not accurately represent what the band was not meant to be a good movie, it was meant to a bigger percentage of the re-released songs actu- most of the scenes are clearly inspired by certain believed, it is a good representation of how people bring joy. ally contributed to the plot than the new releases songs. saw the band. Yellow Submarine is clearly distinct from The suggests that the filmmakers were more inspired by Despite being a large part of their previous The film is psychedelic, filled with bright, flash- Beatles’ past films, as the band had little input. The The Beatles’ previous songs; they liked the songs movies, the Beatles themselves were hardly involved ing colors and moving patterns. The filmmakers movie may not encompass all of the band’s strong that were presented to the world and enjoyed by in the production of the film. They did not give in- experiment by combining real-life pictures with beliefs, but by remaining lighthearted, it is inclusive the band’s audience, not the ones that were reject- structions regarding the plot, and they did not even animations, like in the tour of England during for people of all ages. By having outsiders control ed by the band. voice themselves. It was the first film in which The “Eleanor Rigby.” The mix of reality and halluci- the entire film, it became a way of seeing how the Ultimately, the movie got mixed reviews. Crit- Beatles themselves did not actually star. They di- nations pulls the viewer into the world of drugs, people viewed The Beatles, not how The Beatles ics thought it was an unremarkable film, though rected their previous movie, Magical Mystery Tour, just as The Beatles’ then most recent album, Sgt. viewed themselves. 2 3 Not all greatness is recognized during its hour only did the band open the doors to more lyric of actual production. The Velvet Underground experimentation, they also pioneered the simple The Velvet Underground: has become an archetype for an artist that only musical style of the punk era. In “Heroin”, for ex- becomes recognized for its influence only after its ample, the guitarist only plays two chords the entire time has passed. The band’s premier and most song. The Velvet Underground had a “deceptive Influence of a Revolution popular album, “The Velvet Underground and simplicity of songs: a handful of notes and indelible Nico” reached a measly 171st on the pop charts. riffs as a foundation for stories”. This style went on The band was rarely ever played on the radio, and to become an essential characteristic of punk rock, the only popularity they really achieved was from a rock and roll style that was more about an angry by Adam Siegel their manager, artist Andy Warhol. However, their message than it was about musical complexity. lack of acknowledgment in the past has been made Aside from their musical style, The Velvet up for by the recognition that they were one of the Underground also had a particular aesthetic that most influential bands of the 1960’s, and that their set a trend for future rock acts to follow. The band music and aesthetic paved the way for new waves chose not to conform to the matching uniform of alternative bands basically since their creation. theme of 1960’s rock bands like the Beatles. This The Velvet Underground’s simple and frank mu- seems on the surface like an insignificant change. sic and their unpolished exterior became the new However, wearing whatever they wanted and not epitome of rock and roll. matching were precursors that led to the flashy and The first innovation of The Velvet Under- ridiculous outfits of the 1970’s and 1980’s. Without ground that jumps out is the reality of their music. the simple leather and t-shirts of The Velvet Un- Yes, their lyrics were incredibly vulgar for the time, derground, there never would have been the spiky an openly depicted sex and drug abuse.