Arts - The Spectrum

Big Sean is set to headline Fall Fest on Sept. 12, alongside Jeremih, Isaiah Rashad and Tink.

ARTS

Big Sean, another hip-hop Fall Fest, to cost nearly half of SA Entertainment budget

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | Sep. 1, 2015

The Student Association spent nearly half of its 2015-16 entertainment budget on the mix of hip-hop and R&B talent for Fall Fest this year. One hundred and sixty-three thousand dollars was spent of SA’s allotted $390,000 for entertainment. The genre of Fall Fest, rap-themed for the fourth year in a row, is a widely- debated topic among the student body.

ARTS

The grapevine: A comprehensive of Buffalo’s weekly concerts

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | Sep. 1, 2015

The grapevine is a weekly concert comprehensive seeking to bring all the latest and greatest Buffalo concerts to your fingertips. In this week’s installment, a diverse lineup of groups graces the local scene. From the pop icons One Direction to the underground electronica kings Ratatat, Buffalo has a concert for everyone. Celebrate (or lament) the return of school by going downtown for one of these great concerts.

Big Sean (pictured) will be one of the artists for Fall Fest on Sept. 12.

ARTS

An in-depth look at the Fall Fest artists

By KENNETH KASHIF THOMAS | Sep. 1, 2015

There were varied reactions when the lineup for the 2015 Fall Fest was announced at the end of August. There was excitement for Big Sean, confusion for Tink (not the singer Tank) and mixed emotions for Jeremih. There’s a lot to learn about these artists, from the larger-than-life Big Sean to the newcomer Tink.

Isaiah Rashad (pictured) will perform at Fall Fest on Sept. 12 along with Big Sean, Jeremih and Tink.

ARTS

Isaiah Rashad to perform along with Big Sean, Jeremih and Tink at UB Fall Fest

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | Aug. 25, 2015

Rashad is a hip-hop artist signed to Top Dawg Entertainment – the label that represents last year’s Fall Fest headliner, Schoolboy Q.

Big Sean will headline Fall Fest on Sept. 12. Student were vocal with their opinions of SA's Fall Fest lineup on Twitter Thursday night.

ARTS

Twitter reactions: UB Fall Fest lineup announcement

By Tom Dinki | Aug. 21, 2015

Reactions on social media were mixed for the first two announcements of Tink and Jeremih, but there seemed to be mostly praise for the announcement of headliner Big Sean.

Big Sean will headline Fall Fest on Sept. 12.

ARTS

Big Sean to headline UB Fall Fest, hip-hop genre continues streak

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | Aug. 20, 2015

The Student Association announced Thursday that rapper Big Sean will headline this year's Fall Fest on Sept. 12.

T.I. took the stage at Fall Fest 2014, co-headlining the concert in front of a crowd of more than 8,000.

ARTS

UB 2015 Fall Fest set for Sept. 12, lineup to be announced throughout day

By Tom Dinki | Aug. 20, 2015

The Student Association has announced that this year's Fall Fest will be held on Saturday Sept. 12 and that the organization will announce the lineup throughout the day.

Young the Giant frontman Sameer Gadhia performs at last year’s Spring Fest on May 2. The Student Association went with an alternative theme for the concert.

ARTS

UB Fall and Spring Fests: the breakdown

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | July 20, 2015

Who pays for the concerts? What kinds of artists is UB able to bring in? And most importantly, who is going to perform this year?

Weird Al Yankovic performs at the Verizon Center in 2010. Weird brought his performance - and stormtroopers - to UB Wednesday night.

ARTS

Weird Al and his one-of-a-kind cosmos rock UB

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | July 18, 2015

And Weird Al, a pure entertainer, pulled all the stops for his Buffalo show Wednesday night at UB’s Center for the Arts.

ARTS

Summer 2015 hip-hop albums to look forward to

By JAMES BATTLE | July 6, 2015

This summer has already seen some anticipated hip-hop albums released, but there's still some upcoming albums - with release dates set and some just rumored - to look forward to.

Jaime Catania stands in Record Theatre, a place he visits each week to expand his record collection. Amongst his social circle Jamie Catania is synonymous with jacebeats - his stage and company name. Catania has invested thousands of dollars in branding himself over the past eight years, ensuring people have a face to put with the name behind the beats he produces.

ARTS

Inside the mind of up-and-coming Buffalo producer jacebeats

By JORDAN OSCAR | June 25, 2015

UB's Jamie Catania has been producing music for almost a decade, storing hundreds of beats in his “vault” and putting a select few on his SoundCloud under the stage name ‘jacebeats.’

ARTS

Ride the wave: Surf album review

By JAMES BATTLE | June 12, 2015

Album: Surf Artist: Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment Release Date: May 28 Grade: A+ Social media erupted the night of May 28, harkening the release of Chance the Rapper’s album, Surf. There was only one problem: it wasn’t his album. Technically, Surf is an album from Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment, a Chicago-based band that produces a unique blend of live instrumentation. The quartet is made up of Chance the Rapper, Peter Cottontale, Nate Fox and Donnie Trumpet.

ARTS

2015 Summer movie guide

By JAMES BATTLE | June 10, 2015

Summer is the season known for beaches, barbecues and blockbusters. Summertime blockbusters coming to a theater near you give the chance to get out of the sun and into some air conditioning while keeping up with the hottest new releases in cinema. So get into your car and drive your way to the nearest theater to catch a few of this summer’s most anticipated movies.

Slug Christ’s style of rapping is similar to that of Tyler, the Creator and Three 6 Mafia’s tracks, with dark undertones and a unique beat.

ARTS

Slug Christ shows Atlanta is more than just trap

By ALEX PENNINGTON | May 7, 2015

Awful Records is a collective of beat makers, rappers and singers who all write and produce their own music. From graphic design to directing, to mixing and mastering their own tracks, Awful Records maintains a do-it-yourself mentality that is seen in their approach to music and heard in the songs they make. Slug Christ is one of the more unconventional members of the collective and his music combines the playful spirituality of Lil B with the dark undertones of Tyler, the Creator and Three 6 Mafia.

ARTS

Painting it all in UB's CFA

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL | May 3, 2015

Now, when visitors and students walk through the hallways of the CFA, they come face to face with multiple iridescent murals, painted larger than life, adorning the previously all-white walls. Students are painting the building as their final project for ART 307 Lab: Thematic Drawing.

ARTS

Spring Fest: an alternative affair with Young the Giant, Banks, more

By BRIAN WINDSCHITL and TORI ROSEMAN | May 3, 2015

Spring Fest 2015, hosted by the undergraduate Student Association, featured Young the Giant, Banks, Bear Hands, In the Valley Below and The Royal Tongues. The event was open to the public but free to UB undergraduates who pay the $94.75 semesterly mandatory student activity fee.

Passion Pit’s latest album puts the group’s emotions on the backburner as it opens with more pop-driven tracks.

ARTS

Musical therapy: Passion Pit’s Kindred

By GRACE TRIMPER | Apr. 30, 2015

Passion Pit has risen from the ashes. The group’s new music has traded sadness for optimism, showing strength and hope through happier lyrical themes such as friends, family, love and good times.

The members of Blur reunite to create an album that combines the strengths of each member, specifically of the lead singer’s techno-computerized style he created with the group Gorillaz.

ARTS

A Perfect Combination: Blur cements its legacy with The Magic Whip

By ALEX PENNINGTON | Apr. 30, 2015

Blur’s first album in 12 years, The Magic Whip, shows the band taking a more sparse and minimalist direction than its late ’90s work. Blur is known for its role in the Britpop scene in the early ’90s alongside bands like Oasis, Placebo and The Spice Girls.

Akram Shibly represented Buffalo at the SUNYWide Film Festival this weekend, taking home an honorable mention for his film Heal the World.

ARTS

SUNY Film Festival awards UB student with honorable mention

By REUBEN WOLF | Apr. 28, 2015

Akram Shibly, a senior media studies major, received an honorable mention at SUNYWide Student Film Festival for his film Heal the World.

On his newest project Barter 6, Young Thug continues to rely on the elements of his music that made him popular - overarching, catchy melodies and hooks - at the expense of his album’s overall lyricism.

ARTS

Young Thug: choosing melodies over mincing words in Barter 6

By ALEX PENNINGTON | Apr. 26, 2015

Young Thug's album Barter 6 was released on April 16 after months of controversy from the album’s original title, which was Carter 6. Young Thug, instead of focusing on lyricism, makes the melodies the focal point of his music.