Tuesday, Features Oct. 08, 2013 9 “Get to Know a Retriever” Rewa Kumar shares gems of positivity

By Brandon Foster what would you do with him/her? Staff Writer I would love to meet actor Alan Alda from the 1970s sitcom M*A*S*H. I think he would have What’s your name, major and year? a fountain of experience and knowledge to My name is Rewa Kumar, I’m a sophomore share, along with his amazing sense of humor. I majoring in modern languages and linguistics would probably just sit in a cafe and have a long, and minoring in Korean language. enriching conversation with him. Where are you from? What is your favorite pastime(s)? I am from Olney in Montgomery County; I am of Singaporean (maternal side) and Indian (paternal side) descent. • Playing video games • Watching movies Who do you admire and why? • Reading I admire people who convince me that the world • Dancing is a beautiful place. They are a constant reminder Where• Martial do artsyou want to spend your next of how great life is and how it is always changing, vacation? and that there are millions of opportunities for me to explore on this planet. WhatI want are to fly your to either thoughts Japan about or Korea. homecoming? What do you like most about UMBC? Homecoming makes me feel like the Fall I like the people at UMBC because they each season is actually here and I love that feeling. have different experiences, but we all have I think homecoming this year will be really fun something in common by being part of the and hopefully I’ll get to know more people on UMBC community. It makes me feel at home and campus! accepted. If you met Dr. Hrabowski, what would you What activities do you participate in on say to him? campus? “I’m so proud to be a UMBC student and I I am a treasurer for the Taiwanese Student Courtesy Rewa Kumar couldn’t have picked a better place to start living Association at UMBC. Rewa Kumar, sophomore modern language and linguistics life on my own.” major, discusses her thoughts about UMBC. Who is the celebrity you’d love to meet and [email protected]

Well said and just a rerun “The Finer Things” is an honest and uninspiring album

Max Robison time breakdowns, vocal breaks and guitar leads Staff Writer will resound with familiarity. Familiarity is not to be confused with staleness. Modern day pop punk is an incredibly trope- This album is well put together, it just doesn’t have filled genre. So much so that the fan base is equally anything to make it sound unique. devoted to promoting and satirizing their favorite The leads for “Deadly Conversation,” “Nothing’s bands. Wrong” and “Simple Existence” are all essentially You’ll certainly find this within just about any interchangeable. Even worse, all have been played genre of music. In pop punk, this is rooted with by dozens upon dozens of hometown pop punk how easy the sound is to pull off. The musicians bands (or in chart topping singles) over the years. simply have to stick to two ideals: high energy The record is not without its strong points. music and personal lyrics. The gist of “The Finer “Elevated” is probably the best song on the record, Things” sticks close to these ideals. starting things off with constantly shifting energy This is an extremely catchy record, and none of and a well written sense of direction. State Champs’ new album, “The Finer Things” has its strong points the songs ever deviate from a spirited and inspiring The song doesn’t break any ground, but it doesn’t but fails to stand out against other similar albums. sound. The 11 tracks serve as a reinforcement need to. Its just a shame State Champs didn’t try rather than a progression of the State Champs to make the album as a whole move towards this it seriously, or a record that will bring State Champs sound. sound. the recognition they want. The only real advancement is in how solid the If “The Finer Things” had the grit and impatience Over the course of multiple listens, there isn’t music is put together. This album has zero lag, no that “Elevated” did, the record would be improved anything that makes this album’s songs truly stand filler and rolls through the formula for each song in tenfold. out, even from one another. It is absolutely an a well-rehearsed fashion. State Champs definitely bring energy and enjoyable record, but nothing more. That being said, summarizing “The Finer earnestness with this record. No one will walk Things” is extremely easy: this is some of the most away from “The Finer Things” thinking the songs unoriginal music in pop punk. None of the songs aren’t catchy or well-written. This just isn’t the do anything that hasn’t been done before. The half- album that pop punk needs to make non-fans take [email protected].