Be aware of that thick-eyebrowed red bird, because that “anger might be contagious”

Study breaks are especially valuable during finals week. A relaxing and well-spent study break can increase productivity and prepare one to end a turbulent quarter with high spirits. Here’s a suggestion: how about taking a two hour study break to watch the new Angry Birds movie downtown and to get some ice cream with friends afterward?

Originally a video game designed by Finnish company Rovio Entertainment in 2009, the thick-eyebrowed birds soon gained tremendous popularity with people of all ages. Directed by Clay Kaytis and Fergal Reilly, the Angry Birds film was released on May 20, just in time to bring some fun to the summer.

In the film, the flightless birds live in an isolated utopian island for birds — Bird Island.  They are so civilized that attending anger management classes is the most severe punishment one can get. They are true lovers of peace, well, except one. Red, the red-feathered, ill-tempered bird, never fits into this harmonic bird society. Always offensive and rude to others, Red, unsurprisingly, is “sentenced” to attend anger management classes.

Being different isn’t always easy, and Red doesn’t have any friends. When the village is in danger, Red proves his strength and becomes a superhero, making him less of an outsider. As I was watching, I admired this irascible little bird, because he was able to maintain his uniqueness despite pressure from those around him. Further, even though he was unpopular in the community, he still loved and protected his village passionately.

Red’s classmates at the anger management class are as idiosyncratic as Red. They all have the characteristics that are unwelcomed at Bird Island, such as impatience, anger and “explosion,” as one of his classmates can literally blow up. Despite their seemingly unpopular status, they turn out to be helpful and important in fighting against the pigs that endanger the community. I found this to be interesting; people often make judgements based on superficial impressions instead of thinking thoroughly and gaining a more profound understanding of the person. This movie shows that bad people may have good sides that others often overlook.

The plot is fairly straightforward, funny and stereotypical for a children’s animated film. The idea of birds fighting against green pigs is novel and interesting. There are some levels of satire, such as when it is revealed that the statuesque Judge is not as majestic as he appears to be and the well-respected Mighty Eagle turns out not as “mighty” as once thought. Some people even believe the movie is a commentary on the immigration crisis in Europe, but this should be left to your own interpretation.

For me, the highlight of the movie was the heart-melting little newborn birds. The vivid animation of these birds was quite stunning and I loved how cute they were. I heard many audience members “ooh” and “aww” at the sight of their big, innocent eyes, especially at the moment when one tiny and fluffy baby bird mistakenly calls Red “daddy.”

If you are looking for an animated movie that combines action, comedy and adorable baby birds, don’t miss out on Angry Birds.

WRITTEN BY: Betty Wu – arts@theaggie.org

Understanding League of Legends and its popularity

Although League of Legends is commonly referred to as LoL, the acronym for laugh out loud, the game is no laughing matter. League of Legends is such a popular game, especially on college campuses, that a lot of people have heard the name, but most still don’t know how to play or understand why the game is so big.

LoL is an online multiplayer computer game developed by Riot games; it is free and anyone can download it here and start playing. People can play solo and be matched with others around their same skill level, or invite their friends to join their teams. Teams of five players are assembled and players are taken to a lobby where they can select their characters, called champions, and strategize and choose roles in the lobby chat room. Each team is then assigned a side of the map.

Players push down the three lanes heading toward the other team’s nexus, which must be destroyed in order to win the game. In each lane, there are turrets and computer-controlled minions that shoot or attack players on the opposite team. Players must kill enemy minions, fight the other team’s champions and destroy the enemy turrets before they can destroy the enemy team’s nexus. Between the three lanes, there is also a jungle interspersed with monsters.

Andie Tonnu, a fourth-year psychology and graphic design double major, as well as the president of the League of Legends club at UC Davis, said that game can be compared to capture the flag.

League of Legends, as well as e-sports in general, are increasing rapidly in popularity. This fall, UC Irvine will launch an e-sports initiative, the first of its kind at a public research university. The initiative will create a state-of-the-art gaming center on campus, a stage for competitions as well as a live webcasting studio, and as many as 10 academic scholarships for students on the team.

The game is also popular on the UC Davis campus, with the League club drawing novice and experienced players alike. However, for newer players (such as myself), all of the characters, builds, roles and even terminology can be utterly overwhelming to learn.

“I suggest new players check out Reddit for help, as well as meet other LoL players. New players can also read the new player guide, the General Strategy Guide: LoL Essentials,” said Eva Tran, a third-year managerial economics major.

The club hosts tournaments, has gaming socials on campus and online and has LoL trivia nights. There is also a tutoring program for LoL developed by Andrew Linaac, who learned the game through a similar program and wanted to promote socialization in the club and help people get better at LoL.

“It’s not just for people who have played the game over the course of two or three years,” Linaac said. “It’s more or less of a welcoming entity in the club.”

Those in the program get paired with a tutor that will personally help them learn how to play League and improve their gameplay.

LoL has become prominent mostly because it is so ridiculously addictive. For example, I tried to play a match, died more than anyone else on my team and didn’t get even one kill…and I still played four more matches after that. With League, that sort of addictive fun never seems to wear off.

Andie Tonnu thinks that one of the reasons why people like the game at first and still like it enough to be playing years later is because the game is always changing.

“Even people who are brand new get really into it really fast and there are people who have been playing it for years that are still really into the game,” Tonnu said. “They’re always updating, changing the play style and the characters. It’s a very dynamic game, which keeps people coming back to it. There’s always something more to learn.”

The dynamic, ever-changing aspect of this game has also made it a popular e-sport to watch live.

“There are more people that watch the LoL world championship than the Super Bowl,” Tonnu said. “People don’t realize how big e-sports are until they really get into it.”

Another thing people don’t realize about e-sports is why players take the game so seriously — isn’t it just a game? But for League, players can play ranked matches in order to enter the game’s ranking system and move up in the tiers. Players that are in the top 200 in their server are in the Challenger tier and are likely to be sought out by company heads and sponsors.

Professionals play League with their teams, watch the matches replay videos, then strategize so that they can proceed to another match. It is a paid full-time job where players go to tournaments paid for by companies and sponsors. Andrew Linaac believes this possibility of making a career out of the game is what motivates many players to be so dedicated to getting better at LoL.

“Because there’s a chance for anyone to become professional, people want to take that seriously,” Linaac said. “They want [to be the] 22-year-old kids that are making so much bank playing a video game all day.”

League of Legends can be downloaded online and is free to play. For advice on how to play, see the r/summonerschool Subreddit, read the General Strategy Guide: LoL essentials or join the League of Legends club at UCD.

WRITTEN BY: Sofie Bates — arts@theaggie.org

A short collection of musicians at the forefront of soul

There’s a name for the genre of toe-tapping, horn dominant, on-point back-up vocals that comprise a feel good sound, and it’s even aptly titled. Soul music — a well-pieced mosaic of guitar-backed blues, jazz and funky rhythms — formulates a distinct flavor of sound, and it tastes a bit like open windows, an unbearable heat and road trips kept sane by a bag of sweet cherries from the vendor down the street.

And so, in lieu of the encroaching summer, here’s a few tracks that are bound to make you taste something.

“Bada Boom, Bada Bling” by Caleb Hawley

With references to both Beyonce and Hillary Clinton, a feminist message and an ironic music video to match, it’s hard to pinpoint just where this song goes right. The video, shot and recorded in one take, consists of Hawley — wearing nothing but a robe and a can of beer between his legs — and a room of only guys singing, “you’re gonna be my sugar mama if you wanna be my honey/Don’t want no woman with empty pockets.”

In an interview with CBS Minnesota, Hawley comments that “the song was very much about women running the world, you know, and so I thought what I wanted to do was have a bunch of musician dudes just hanging out…we’re not doing anything, but just playing music.” And that, in fact, might be where he went right.

But most of Hawley’s videos withhold the same energy and hilarity; check out his rendition of “Say My Name” by Destiny’s Child, featuring him mostly naked in a bathtub — guitar, bubble bath, shower cap and all.

“Come Home” by Ben L’Oncle Soul

Hailing from France, Benjamin Duterte has developed a sound that mimics his multi-language name; his songs, some in English, some in French and some in both, are solely determined by what he is feeling during the writing process. His first album, 2010’s self-titled Ben L’Oncle Soul, starts off with an intoxicating cover of The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army.” Off to a great start, he has since released one other album, Walk the Line, which includes highlights like his original track, “Come Home,” and cover of classic “Feeling Good.”

Besides, who’s more soulful than the artist whose name translates to “Ben The Uncle Soul”?

“Ain’t Necessary (The Prince)” by The Dip

        This nine-piece soul group from Seattle — who released their first EP on BandCamp, Won’t Be Coming Back, and also a more recent full-length, self-titled album in 2015 — have a horn section like no other, and a sound brimming with an energy that leaves listeners more than satiated. This track best embodies these qualities, but standout “State Line” similarly impresses. Though the song is built around lead singer Tom Eddy’s voice, it also boasts a deliciously smooth saxophone solo.

You can catch these guys this summer throughout the Bay Area, or even at The Torch Club in Sacramento this July.

“Wish I Knew You” by The Revivalists

Hailing from New Orleans, this track by the roots rock group has the necessary jazzy horns and blues influence to classify it as soul, but goes above and beyond with its catchy chorus, which sounds like something from an older (and better) Maroon 5 album. With a heavier rock influence than their other tracks, their earlier releases more prominently reflect their New Orleans’ influence.

Tracks like “Soulfight” — with a jazzy piano intro that seamlessly leads into the first introduction of vocalist, David Shaw’s voice — and “When I’m Able” are more indicative of the soul influence from this early work.

“Let’s Stay Together” by William Bolton

Interestingly, the soulful sound of Bolton’s music is really only found in this track. As primarily an experimental hip-hop/R&B artist, he still manages to successfully fuse the two. This track is the best example of this — with soul playing at the forefront and hip-hop only taking shape in his rhythmic verses — whereas in his other tracks, it can be found in reverse. Despite this, the soulful backup vocals in this track are an impressive testament to his diverse sound, as well as his willingness to experiment.

“Satisfy Me” by Anderson East

On tour as an opener for Chris Staples, East has only begun his inevitable rise to well-deserved recognition. With the idyllic raspy, soulful voice for his tracks, which are held up by the funk-infused keyboard-horn combination, his lyrics are similarly hard-hitting. As he half-grunts half-belts, “It’s gonna take more to satisfy me,” you really do have to wonder if he “has a Ph.D. in TLC.”

Other noteworthy tracks: “What You Don’t Do – Tom Misch Remix” by Lianne La Havas, “Play Around” by Lawrence, “Upside Down” by Goldford, “Wait for the Moment” by Vulfpeck

Written by: Ally Overbay — arts@theaggie.org

Come witness the third and final performance of the engaging Outside the Lines dance series.

The UC Davis Theatre and Dance Department will be showcasing its third and final performance of the Outside the Lines dance series from June 2 to 4, continuing the theme of inviting audiences to take part in the dancers’ and collaborators’ unique perspectives.

Olivia Schlanger, a second-year theatre and dance and psychology double major, has participated in the series as a dancer and choreographer, and discusses what makes the Outside the Lines series so unique. 

Schlanger notes how choreographing for Outside the Lines 3 was “exceptionally special,” as she did not begin with a theme in mind, and instead, simply began creating movement, and at a later point, explored the idea of omitting music from her dance all together to create an element of depth.

“Now, my movement has intention and meaning even though there isn’t a theme behind the piece,” Schlanger said.

A part of her unique choreographing process also included “lots of staring at the empty studio space, trying to imagine what would look best on the bodies [she] was working with.”

Schlanger also discusses the differences between the three performances in the Outside the Lines series. The first performance in December was rehearsal-based and included a conversation between David Grenke (Chair and Professor of the Theatre and Dance Department), the choreographers and the audience. Outside the Lines 2 further explored the dancers’ choreography process and again invited the audience to engage in a conversation with the performers with a talk-back discussion after the show. The third and final performance, Outside the Lines 3 will feature performances by guest artists Robert Kleinendorst and Parisa Khobdeh from the prestigious Paul Taylor Dance Company and will also include an interesting talk-back with all of the dancers and choreographers. The audience will have an opportunity to ask about the work and artists’ inspiration, giving the audience a glimpse into the creative process.

Tracy Carr, a 2016 UC Davis graduate with a double major in theatre and dance and communication, talked about how this event has given students the opportunity to choreograph, direct, work with peers and make executive decisions that allow them to showcase their personal work and growth. Working on this performance has also been a learning experience for the UC Davis grad.

“This performance, I am working with a 26 person cast and it has changed how I utilize space and bodies. I have had to create distance between characters while the stage is completely full,” Carr said. 

This third part of the Outside the Lines dance series is different than its predecessors yet also continues to explore similar elements, tying all three performances together.

“The theme of the performance changes over time, and the choreographers also change. The setup of the performance is similar if not identical, and for each series, the choreographers are guided down the same path that previous choreographers have gone,” Carr said.

Lauren Galier, a fourth-year dramatic arts and communication major, has also participated in the previous Outside the Lines performances and believes that the show is special due to the range of styles that the students and staff bring to each performance.

“Working in and on Outside the Lines is extremely different from any other performance I’ve been in or choreographed for. The students really get to explore their movement and reach new heights with it in this setting. Having talk-backs included in this type of performance is really great too. It helps include the audience more in the choreographic process that took place,” Galier said.

Catch this engaging dance performance from June 2 to 4 at 8 p.m. in Wright Hall’s Main Theatre. The suggested donation is $5. Please visit the Facebook event page for more information.

Written by: Pari Sagafi – arts@theaggie.org