Album Review: Road To Ruin (1978)
Nelani Mejias The Ramones are an iconic band that greatly impacted the 1970s punk scene. With lead singer Joey, guitarist Johnny, bassist Dee Dee, and drummer Tommy, later replaced by Marky, they created albums such as “Road To Ruin” that shaped punk rock into what it is today. The original album, first released in 1978, had 13 songs. Then, in the re-produced Ed Stasium version, they added four other songs, most of which appear in the 1979 film “Rock N’ Roll High School,” which also featured the Ramones themselves. The additional songs were “I Want You Around,” “Rock N’ Roll High School,” “Blitzkrieg Bop/Teenage Lobotomy/California Sun/ Pinhead/She’s The One,” and lastly “Yea, Yea.” They were the perfect addition to an album that captured boredom, love, heartbreak, and simply what it felt like to be in high school. The first song, “I Just Want To Have Something To Do” and the seventh, “I Wanna Be Sedated” are anthems for what it feels like to be so bored you are desperate for anything to happen. For wanting to just escape to anywhere. For wanting to hop on a plane and go somewhere exciting or do anything at all. There are three songs on the album that are, put simply, love songs, however, they have a punk edge to them and the words aren’t cryptic. The songs, “Yea, Yea” and “She’s The One” have a similar vibe to their lyrics--raw with not much of an underlying meaning. That is pretty much punk rock as a genre, blunt, to the point, with a good beat that makes you want to jump around. The third song, “I Want You Around,” is softer and more romantic. Joey Ramone is telling whoever he’s singing to that he wants to be with them and doesn’t care what people say; he knows they will be good together. To go along with love, the band has a few songs that depict heartbreak and what it’s like when someone you know becomes a stranger. “Questioningly” portrays this perfectly as the song has the singer remembering a conversation with a past lover of his. He says, “Aren’t you someone I used to know and weren’t we lovers a long time ago?” The song tells a story of how you can be so weak for that one person. It talks about how seeing them again and having them want you back can just throw you off and make you question the whole relationship. The song continues to say, “What do you want to talk to me for? You should just let me walk by / memories make us cry.” The lyrics show how it hurts to remember how things were then, when now you are unsure of what would happen, if a relationship could work or not. The album also does a good job of describing the feeling of what it’s like to be in high school. The song, “Rock N’ Roll High School” is an obvious one. It basically talks about how you don’t really want to take things too seriously; you just want to have a good time. How teenagers want to create something really cool, with impact. How they worry about the future and don’t focus on the past. Another song about high school is “Bad Brain.” The beginning of the song goes, “I used to be an A student/ I never used to complain/ I use to be a truant/ but I’m still the same.” There are moments where things change and you become a different person for a little while. You are in the process of finding yourself and sometimes that feels more like you’ve become someone else. You may look in the mirror and see your face, but it’ll feel like another person's skin, like it doesn’t belong to you. Then, of course, there is overthinking when it feels like your own brain is betraying you. It’s acting as a “Bad Brain.” Although some may consider the Ramones’ music simple, it is relatable and has a good beat that you can always move to. The band has songs for every occasion, whether your mood is happy or sad. If you just want to tune out and groove for a while, the Ramones have got you covered. Tracklist
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Buy It or Bootleg It?
Movie Reviews by Sam Sims Date: 4/19 Movie Title: Shazam! Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Comedy, Action Director: David Sandberg Main Actors: Zachary Levi - Shazam! (Billy Batson as adult superhero), Asher Angel - Billy Batson, Jack Dylan - Grazer, Mark Strong - Doctor Sivana About: 14-year-old Billy Batson is chosen to unlock superhero powers by saying the name, “Shazam,” which transforms him into a caped adult with magical abilities. In the foster care system, Batson must balance his newly found powers and the unfamiliarity of family all while trying to stop the merciless Dr. Thaddeus Sivana from taking each away. Trailer Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uilJZZ_iVwY Rating out of 5 Stars: 4 Intended Audience: With a rating of PG-13, Shazam! is a movie catered towards young teenagers from ages 12 to about 17. For older teenagers, however, the movie may come off as too childish and unappealing. The audience also extends to adults with children of their own. They may find themselves laughing here or there and leaving fairly satisfied. I would not recommend an adult seeing this movie by themselves. It is most definitely a family event. Acting: The acting was believable. Levi, Angel, and Dylan carried out the light-hearted, quirky cadence of the movie well. I especially enjoyed Levi’s acting. Levi was challenged to make the audience believe he was a teenager appearing as a grown man. His giddiness at the different powers he discovered with Dylan allowed him to capture the excitement we see in all young people before it fades. He was not serious. He was just as awkward, inappropriate, self-centered, and irresponsible as any 14-year-old. I was impressed at how well he played the role. As I recognized Angel (Andi Mack) from Disney drama, I expected him to flourish as a troubled foster kid in Shazam! My expectations were met as he played emotions fairly well. It was a nice change of pace to see him having fun on screen. He has a serious, mature presence about him and he did his best to conceal that side of him in this film. I think he was able to cheat a bit in this film, though, because Levi played the adult version of him in the most fun scenes. Cinematography: The imagery in the movie was good. Much of its monsters and destruction were computer-generated. I found the scenes of people being killed or put in danger to be the most shocking and in turn, impressive. This ranged from a scientist turning into dust, someone being thrown out of the window of a skyscraper, another being eaten by a demon, a Ferris wheel falling over, and a bus falling from a bridge. The movie makers did their best to make the scenes realistic. The settings and relevance made the movie seem like it was actually happening in New York of 2019. Message of Movie: The message of the movie was sweet. To me, I took away a few important life lessons. The most prominent one was the necessity of family or at least, having a positive support system in our lives. The positive source we have in our lives can determine the kind of person we can turn out to be. Some people are strong enough to overcome the negativity at a young age by channeling it into good energy and resilience, while others are absorbed by it and allow it to destroy them. Another takeaway is that we all have a superhero—or villain—in us. With the right ingredients, they have the opportunity to come forward. One-Word Description and Explanation: Refreshing - The movie made me laugh. I found satisfaction in the plot and the message. Shazam! was a great mix of action, story, and humor. Everything was very fitting, from the acting to its takeaway to the intended audience. It was nice to see a light-hearted film on screen. Bootleg or Theatre? If you intend to go with your family, it is worth a movie ticket. If you only want to see it for a specific character or the superhero, I would bootleg it. Movie Title: Avengers: Endgame Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Comedy Director: Anthony and Joe Russo Main Actors: Chris Evans - Captain America, Robert Downey Jr. - Iron Man, Scarlett Johansson - Black Widow, Chris Hemsworth - Thor, Mark Ruffalo - Hulk, Tom Holland - Spider-Man, Josh Brolin - Thanos About: Trailer Link: Rating out of 5 Stars: Intended Audience: Acting: Cinematography: Message of Movie: Did Well/Poorly: One-Word Description and Explanation: Bootleg or Theatre? |