As you may know by now, this semester has a lot to do with celebrating the 2000s for we Student Activities folk. Mainly, this celebration began with deciding the Coffeehouse theme, and as the semester moves on we are mirroring this theme throughout our events.

We all have our own image of what 2000s pop culture means, but there is a lot about the decade you might not remember. To start, here are some comparative facts between 2000 and 2009:

2000*:

Average cost of new house – $134,150.00

Average income per year – $40,343.00

Gallon of gas – $1.26

Movie ticket – $5.39

U.S. postage stamp – $0.33

Loaf of bread – $1.72

Dozen eggs – $0.89

2009**:

Average cost of new house – $232,880.00

Average income per year – $39,423.00

Gallon of gas – $2.73

Movie ticket – $7.50

U.S. postage stamp – $0.42 cents

Loaf of bread – $1.77

Dozen eggs – $1.34

What we wouldn’t do for gas to be $1.26 again – that is the question. Obviously, costs were increasing throughout the decade, yet somehow the average income per year decreased a bit. Sounds like a pickle to be in, America!

Here are a few other notable events from the 2000s:

• If there is a single day that is defined as important in the 2000s, it is September 11, 2001, which was the date of the worst terrorist attack in world history. The day shaped not only the decade of the 2000s, but also history for the rest of time.
• The first iPod was released by Apple on October 23, 2001, revolutionizing the way we listen to music forever.
• Facebook.com was launched on February 4, 2004, changing the way people communicate.
• Barack Obama was elected as the nation’s first black president of the United States on November 4, 2008.

As you can remember, 2000-2009 are years that had a profound impact on life as we live it today. When it comes to pop culture from the decade, there is a lot to cover. But we want to leave that to you. Start thinking now about what you want to be remembered about the 2000s, and bring those ideas (in audition or video submission form) to Coffeehouse Tryouts from February 20-24. If you need musical inspiration, you can follow us on Spotify (libertysa) to see our 2000s playlist. We’ll see you soon, Coffeehouse!

*http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/2000.html

** http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/2009.html

On that blustery, ill-fated day, one we all know as Thursday, October 27^th, America’s most overlooked app was shut down. That’s right – Twitter announced that Vine would be closing, over with, “done for”, as some say. The sad, harsh reality is that we have to decide right now how to feel – indifferent, cheated, left wanting more? Or do we as Vine-users feel as though the old saying is true: all good things really should come to an end?

The app, launched on January 24, 2013, quickly attracted many, causing it to acquire 200 million users in just under three years. Some of Liberty’s very own, such as Caleb Natale (whose fame was catapulted from this Drake vine), Jake Holland, and Steven Honaker have achieved “Vine fame”, creating Vines that hundreds of thousands of people are still following. The app has been known to not only create laughter, but also to create relationships, bonding people over their ability to make the most of the six seconds they have to make people chuckle. The three aforementioned “Viners” are often featured in Vines together, showcasing the relationships that can blossom from comical collaboration.

Vine has been a creative outlet for many, redefining the power of the short video forever. It truly is sad to see the app go its own way. But for now, we will reminisce on the good ole days and continue to watch this. If you have time today in your “busy” schedule, it might be sort of therapeutical to reflect on some of Vine’s best moments, and to remember some of the best times we “did it for the Vine”.

What do you think about Vine shutting down?

I don’t understand it.

That’s the phrase that came to mind as I listened to “22 (Over Soon)”, the first song on Bon Iver’s new album 22, A Million. After eagerly pressing play on the opening track, my enthusiastic attitude towards listening to this album slowly turned into confusion, and then frustration. I wanted to get it – to understand. And in this quick moment, I felt as though I couldn’t.

After listening to and appreciating Justin Vernon and his band known as Bon Iver for years, I found myself having high (possibly unreachable) expectations for 22, A Million. The band’s albums For Emma, Forever Ago (2007) and Bon Iver (2011) both intrigued and made sense to me as I listened from beginning to end. With 22, A Million, I had to dig a little deeper.

It’s easy to hear an album like 22, A Million and feel the necessity for instant connection. While this was not something I experienced from listening to the first half of the album, this does not mean that I couldn’t relate to it by the end. Instead, it means that the album must be peered into like a pair of eyes that mean the most to you – it must be treated gently for the fragile soul that it is, and it must be preserved and discussed in order to relate to it. An album of this weight should be pulled apart and examined and considered.

The first thing that can be said about this album is that Justin Vernon is not afraid of experimentation – the album takes a drastic turn from what his other albums sound like. The first five seconds of “22 (Over Soon)” sound like a buzz – a constant, never-ending buzz that you cannot push away from your mind, no matter how much you want it to leave. Instead of allowing the buzz to be pushed away, Vernon manipulates it and adds to it, changing its value and casting it to the background along with other soft sounds that come along with it, causing only his voice to be noticed and heard as he repeats “It might be over soon”.

These five words are repeated seven times throughout “22, Over Soon”, each time sounding completely different from the time before. This phrase seems to be the theme of the album – a feeling of uneasiness and almost a bit of anxiety is threaded through each song with perfection. It feels as though the listener is hanging onto every word Vernon sings, waiting for what sound or word will come next. Everything that the listener feels can be tied into the five aforementioned words – “it might be over soon”. The anxiety and uneasiness that can come with the ending of something is deeply transfused into every song on 22, A Million.

From the beginning to the end of the album, Vernon expresses this same uneasiness. In the album’s closing song “00000 Million”, he repeats the words “worry” and “wander” in regard to time and days. Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic remarks that “00000 Million” is a “melody that sounds inspired by American folk standards—hints of “Kumbaya,” maybe—while delivering some of the most legible lyrics of his career, reflections on straying from the obvious path in life.” Straying, worrying and wander are all words that reverberate out of this album with strength.

When it comes to understanding the album, as a listener I feel as though I’ve barely scratched the surface. While this could be looked at as a negative listening experience, it is instead one that can also be looked at as a growing experience. This album requires an eager listener to not just take it at face value – instead, it must be searched.

And as a believer in Bon Iver and his honest yet strangely ambiguous lyrics, this is what I’ll do – I’ll continue to search this album with the belief that there could be great value in what I find.

If you are anything like me, you’ve probably been praying for the day fall break begins because, let’s be honest, school can be really tough! The idea of fall break is always so exciting until you realize that you have nothing planned and you are probably just going to go home and binge watch One Tree Hill on Netflix.

But let’s get real for a second…that’s pretty lame! This blog post is here to help you have an adventurous fall break and avoid going to your grandparents’ house. Grab some friends, pull your money together and hit the road!

Lynchburg! 

Lynchburg has so much to offer, but we often take this beautiful city for granted. Let me tell you about some of my favorite spots around town to provide you with the perfect day’s itinerary!

Start your day off with some brunch (because nobody wants to wake up before 10 a.m.) at Market at Main downtown. After brunch, I recommend taking a walk on the Blackwater Creek trails that run by the James River.

Next, it’s probably time for another cup of coffee (am I right?) or tea, if you’re into that kind of thing. For the tea lovers, I recommend Karma Tea. It’s new and was recommended to me by another local business owner in downtown Lynchburg. For the coffee lovers, I am a HUGE fan of the Colombian blend at The Muse, though I might be a little biased because we hand that out at our coffee promo tables. Another great place is Nomad Coffee Co. The cool part about them is that you never know where they are, so check out their Instagram (@nomadcoffeecompany) and see where they are posted for the day!

Is it time for lunch yet? Let me tell you about a cute little spot that is a must! Farm Basket is hidden along the Blackwater Creek and connected to a little shop. Grab some good food, do a little shopping and then appreciate the view.

A couple places that you have to check out before dinner are Peaks View Park and Irvington Spring Farm – because what’s better than parks and flowers? Grab a blanket to lie out at the park or go pick some flowers at the farm.

Whenever my friends and I are trying to think of a place to eat, we always end up picking Rivermont Pizza. RP has, in my opinion, some of the best pizza in Lynchburg and the atmosphere is the best place for a night with friends. End your night at Maylynn’s Creamery with my personal favorite treat – a vanilla cone covered in Fruity Pebbles!

Charlottesville

I love Charlottesville, and so does everyone else. There is so much to do in Charlottesville – you could spend your entire fall break there and have a blast! Since it is fall, there are a lot of apple orchards where you can pick apples, grab some cider donuts and taste delicious hot apple cider.

A few of my favorite restaurants in Charlottesville are Citizen Burger, where you can get delectable burgers made with locally-farmed meat, Himalayan Fusion for all the Indian food lovers, and of course, the always amazing Mellow Mushroom. All of these places have amazing food but completely different atmospheres. I love the diversity that Charlottesville offers – from its variety in food to its never-ending list of activities to take part in, there is always something new to try. I promise you will not regret a trip out there!

I hope you see that you don’t have to go far to have a Fall Break filled with exploration and good food. I’m off to Asheville, NC with my best friend for the weekend. We’ll be staying in a hostel, trying new food and doing a lot of shopping. Hope you all have the best fall break!

It’s Freshman Move-In Week. The Student Activities crew has been working tirelessly for the better part of August to make sure all the events planned run smoothly for the freshly minted incoming students. We start the usual first day of move-in routine with a lawn promotion out on the Commons lawn. My stomach is a little upset, but nothing is going to stop me on one of the most hectic weekends of the year. We finish promotion and transition into Bingo Night. At this point my stomach is hurting pretty bad, but obviously I’m super tough, so I keep on working, not trying to think about it too much. By the middle of Bingo Night I’m on the phone with my mother asking if I should go to the hospital because I’m pretty sure I have appendicitis. It just so happens that my parents are in town dropping off my younger brother so they pick me up and take me to the Emergency Room.

The next two hours in the ER weren’t the most pleasant, but I was extremely lucky to have my parents and girlfriend there with me. Long story short, I get evaluated, scanned and diagnosed with appendicitis and it only took about 7 hours! By the time I went to bed the next morning around 5 AM , I was pretty fed up with the whole process leading up to that point, but knowing I was about to have surgery in a few hours made it seem like I was home free. So of course nothing made me happier than when I get out of surgery and the surgeon tells me that they found another infection while doing the procedure and I would have to stay in the hospital for one, maybe two more days as a result. “Great, a couple more days in prison,” I think to myself. After half a week I was finally released and free to do whatever I wanted, mostly. Reflecting back on the time spent in the hospital now, I could not be more thankful.

Four days is a long time when sitting in a hospital room not doing anything besides watching TV. I was ready to start banging my head off the wall because I was so bored, but my parents, girlfriend and friends that all spent time with me kept me sane. I found myself thinking over and over again, “I’m so thankful my parents are here”, “I’m so thankful Mer is here”, “I’m so thankful Jake, Erin, Cale and Kay are here”. As my strength improved I continued saying things I was thankful for, such as “I’m so thankful I can walk”, “I’m so thankful I can go to the bathroom by myself”, “I’m so glad I can eat solid food”. Being in the hospital for that short time made me actually thankful. I put emphasis on “actually” because I feel like it is so easy to fall into the routine of thinking that you are thankful for various things when you aren’t actually thankful. Before my surgery I would say I was thankful for things so often to the point that I wasn’t even thinking about what I was actually saying. I had fallen into this pattern of artificial thankfulness.

I am thankful that I had to spend time in the hospital because it forced me out of this pattern. Having surgery made me slow down and remember why I am so incredibly thankful for everything I have in my life. It is so easy to let everything going on in life completely take over the majority of our thoughts and daily lives, but it is crucial to slow down every once in a while and ask ourselves why we are thankful for things so that we don’t fall into that same routine, thoughtlessly and senselessly saying we are thankful. We can say we are thankful for so many things, but we find out what we are actually thankful for when we slow down from our insanely busy lives and ask ourselves “Why?”

Slow down. Pause for a moment. Take a break when life is crazy. Remember everything you have and ask yourself, “Why am I thankful?” ‘Tis the season, after all.

In her recent post in First Things, Dr. Karen Prior offers her perspective on the ways Christians tend to approach entertainment, which amount to either nonparticipation or “mindless consumption”. Going to either extreme, she argues, is nearly equally problematic because either approach can be idolatrous. Mindless consumption idolizes the entertainment, or perhaps even the entertainer; rejection and/or abstention can turn such behavior itself into an idol. For her, the better way to approach contemporary entertainment, and therefore the broader culture that produces it, is through what could be described as discerning delight: a balanced approach that is thoughtful and careful in selecting what is consumed, while also being able to experience true delight in both how and why it is consumed. An approach rooted in true delight is in contrast to what she describes as the “acedia”, or carelessness, that characterizes the viewing habits of far too many people, Christian or not.

It is carelessness that I would like to focus on here. As she clarifies, our un-caring in regard to entertainment can certainly be indiscriminate viewing, but it can also be “busy” viewing. Few Christians would argue for the appropriateness of partaking in any form entertainment regardless of content or purpose, but perhaps not as many would think of “busy” viewing the same way. After all, we are already at a point when just about everyone regardless of age is watching a lot of television, but younger people, especially college-aged young people, have made this the binge-watching generation. And if such a viewing habit is now commonplace (enough that “binge-watching” is an Oxford Online Dictionary term now), it is hard to imagine that there is much of a negative attitude toward it. Yet, nothing lends itself more to careless viewing than binge-watching.

In an article that fits nicely with Dr. Prior’s, writer Jim Pagels argues that binge-watching is counterproductive viewing perhaps most importantly because “episodes have their own integrity” and blurring them all together both diminishes that integrity and can impact the coherence of the story from season to season or even from beginning to end. If we truly want to care for and delight in our entertainment, then one of the best places to start is to treat the art we are viewing respectfully. Of course, part of this is our willingness to “get lost” in the story itself, but we also need to care to understand it, to see the individual parts in respect to the whole, and to do our best to both chew on and digest what we have seen. The one thing that all of this requires is time, and if we only want to devour what is in front of us, we will barely be able to appreciate what it is we are seeing. The analogy to food is apt here: when is binging ever positive in that respect? Also, the better the food, the less likely you are to devour it.

This is why delight is such an important value to highlight and repeat often. It is reminiscent of C.S. Lewis, who, in his work An Experiment in Criticism, talked about the various types of readers that exist. “The majority,” he says, “never read anything twice,” while those who truly care about a work “will read [it] ten, twenty, or thirty times during the course of their life.”** No one throws away a great work; on the contrary, a great work is revisited, with stories that carry us away, and characters that become almost like friends. Granted, even great television is not comparable to great literature, but the principle is still there, especially when you think of the throw-away nature of much entertainment today. Finding and delighting in excellent entertainment can provide both immediate and lasting rewards as long as we are willing to be patient with our viewing, apprehending and savoring both in part and in whole.

Friday, September 9th, was a big day for indie music – it welcomed the release of new albums from some of your favorite “groovy” bands such as The Head and the Heart, Grouplove, Wilco, Bastille and Local Natives. While all of these new albums have something to offer for every music-lover, Local Natives’ album “Sunlit Youth” brings a new voice to a seven-year-old band. This is not just another album for Local Natives – the album is a statement that rings true to many young people.

With themes of endless youth and undeniable cultural change, “Sunlit Youth” expresses a side of Local Natives that mirrors everything that the millennial generation is blamed for – that being mainly entitlement and a false sense of invincibility. Yet, behind the words that express invincibility, there seems to be a slight fear of the typical troubles that come being young.

Local Natives’ most played song on the album is “Fountain of Youth”, which might as well be their anthem. The song contains lyrics that defy the idea of any advice young people have been given in the past. As Taylor Rice, Kelcey Ayer and Ryan Hahn simultaneously sing out “We can do whatever we want / We can say whatever we need”, the feeling is that they strongly believe in these words.

The question becomes then, is this true? Can the youth of our generation actually do whatever we want and say whatever we need? The band goes on to sing “And if we don’t care / Then who cares? / We’ve been dreaming of you / Drinking from fountains of youth”. Is this actually the attitude that we have, and not only this, but is this attitude verifiable? And what kind of consequences come from a lifestyle of carelessness?

When it comes to the rebellion that is displayed in “Fountain of Youth”, it is clear that this is not the only theme that emerges from Sunlit Youth. In “Ellie Alice”, the lyrics “On the other side, will I be reminded? / Pain in youth / Counting up the cards for the time rewinded / Pain in youth” express not only the fear of pain, but also the pain itself that comes with being young. These lyrics, when placed beside the lyrics in Fountain of Youth, are honestly a bit confusing. It is easy to find yourself, as the listener, begging for more clarity from Local Natives as to what “youth” really means to them and how it should be dealt with. Yet, perhaps this actually mirrors our adolescence – it is a difficult time period to define in our lives, and do we truly ever know how to deal with it?

Lyrics and themes aside, this album’s sound delivers something for everyone. The first album on the track, “Villainy”, is the kind of song that you want to shut your eyes and dance to in a slow, “far-out” kind of way. If you don’t understand what I mean by that, give it a listen and I promise that you will understand. The rest of the album follows suit, having hints of a jazzy feel. “Coins” and “Ellie Alice” showcase the slowed-down raw sound that Local Natives is not only capable of, but also excellent at executing.

Local Natives has received a great deal of support for their new album from sites such as NPR music, which describes the album as “perfectly capturing the zeitgeist of 2016 and the embracing of change this year demands”.  So what do you think? Has Local Natives encompassed what youth means for you through their lyrics or have they made you seek clarity on the subject more than ever before?

With NEEDTOBREATHE visiting us this fall (November 12th, see you there!), it’s important to take a few minutes to go over some highlights of their new album: Hard Love.

If you listened to Rivers in the Wasteland, NEEDTOBREATHE’s album prior to H A R D L O V E, you know that the album is pretty emotionally weighty. Songs such as “Difference Maker” and “Wasteland” show the heart behind the album, one that was joyful and lively, yet also full of real life lessons and deep thoughts.

H A R D L O V E follows suit, showing sides of positivity as well as thought-provoking songs. The album begins with an electronic/R&B feel in MOUNTAIN, Pt 1, which sets the tone for the upbeat pop vibe of the album (carried along by songs such as “Hard Love” and “When I Sing”). Along with the upbeat songs there are a few that are slowed down and a bit more reflective, such as “No Excuses” and “Be Here Long”.

NEEDTOBREATHE never fails at giving everyone what they want. Those who are romantics and want to hear a little bit more of a “lovey-dovey” song, put on “Let’s Stay Home Tonight” and you won’t be disappointed. When it comes to a more worship-style song, “Testify” is just that.

NEEDTOBREATHE’s sound is relatable to all. Leon of “The Musical Melting Pot” describes it well when he writes, “H A R D L O V E is a gamble, ambitious in scope and utterly immersive in its execution. This music would sound out of place in small venues, if the walls of such venues were capable of bearing its onslaught in the first place. On this album, NEEDTOBREATHE are an unstoppable sonic force.”

This album is one that deserves your listen, and if you like what you hear, grab your tickets to see them live at Liberty University on November 12!

June 24, 2016 marks a day that sparked a bit of a controversy in the Contemporary Christian Music (or CCM) realm – it was the day that Kings Kaleidoscope’s album “Beyond Control” was released, and also the day the word “explicit” appeared on a CCM album.

Hailing from Seattle, Washington, Kings Kaleidoscope claims their style as “an alternative rock hybrid band”. If you’ve listened to Kings Kaleidoscope in the past, you remember that the band is known for their reworking of hymns such as “Come Thou Fount” and “In Christ Alone”. They also have three albums besides “Beyond Control”, the first being released in 2011, and an EP called “Live in Focus” which came out in 2015.

“Beyond Control” is comprised of 13 songs, ranging from a jazzy opening entitled “A Resting Place (Intro)” to more of an alternative rock feel in “Enchanted”. Each song is obviously one to be sang to God, crying out words such as “Break me free to live enchanted!” and “Pray I find my peace, pray I slay the dragon”. Therefore, it obviously comes as a surprise to see the word “explicit” next to a song on the album, especially when the song is entitled “A Prayer”. Perhaps lead singer/songwriter Chad Gardner didn’t realize the implications of this bold word being on his album. Then again, maybe he did.

Amidst the controversy of “A Prayer”, Gardner sticks to his guns. In an interview on “Reel Gospel”, the lead singer states, “It barely feels like I wrote the song. One afternoon I was listening to the first part of that song and all the lyrics just appeared in this app I use on my phone to write lyrics. I bawled my eyes out, just feeling the Holy Spirit’s presence, just writing them down. Just thinking them. Once again, I even had to wait longer to record it, it was so heavy on me. The next day I was able to sing it through, twice. And I lost it both times singing it… It is the deepest fear of my soul and the deepest truth of my soul. That’s how it got written.”

This was definitely a risky move on Gardner’s part (and the whole band, for that matter). The use of one word on this album has the potential to push a lot of listeners away, yet this ultimatum didn’t scare Gardner away. When asked about the vision behind the song by Spirit You All, Gardner stated “I’d say, I’m not trying to change anyone’s mind about it or convince anyone of anything. I’m just trying to be honest and vulnerable. I think that’s important in art, and important as a Christian. If there’s any place that I can share my story and my testimony for what it really is, it should be the church at large. And that’s what I’m doing.”

So what does this mean for Christian music? Because of this being a relatively new development, it’s hard to tell right now what will be said about this situation or if much will be said at all. Kings Kaleidoscope doesn’t really fit the mold of the typical CCM band – they’re not exactly at the top of Christian radio’s Most Played list. Therefore, in the Christian realm, how much does this really matter?

To some, it really matters. The band tweeted on July 21st “Friends, @CreationFest has decided to no longer have us this year, hopefully we’ll get to sing these gospel songs another time…” Creation Festival, the largest Christian music festival in the nation, chose to uninvite Kings Kaleidoscope after “Beyond Control” was released. While they do not cite the profanity in “A Prayer” as their reasoning, it is assumed that this was the cause of the un-vitation. This situation shows that “A Prayer” is definitely causing some controversy, but as of now it’s hard to tell how much of a stir this is going to make in the CCM pot.

But if there is one thing that is going to stir the CCM pot, it should be the sound of “Beyond Control”. This album is charged with all sorts of different “feels” – electronic, rock, alternative, and just about everything that will make you take your Beats off, hand them to anyone around and say “Listen up!”. Kings Kaleidoscope makes the type of music that must be shared – they aren’t afraid to stand out, and this album is a perfect example of the risks they are willing to take. Timothy Yap of Hallels encapsulates the band’s music seamlessly by writing, “Kings Kaleidoscope can’t be explained. It can be heard. It can be felt. It can point us towards home.”

After seeing that Liberty University’s Instagram account posted a photo about our campus having plenty of room to catch Pokémon (and the 2,300+ likes on the photo), it is impossible to ignore the impact this game has taken as of late. And our 7,000-acre campus isn’t the only place booming with the excitement of little virtual creatures; in just a couple weeks, Pokémon Go has made an impact on places and people all over the world. Like every global trend, there are many advocates as well as nay-sayers, and this game has no lack on either side. In order to make a fully developed opinion on the game and what it means to indulge in playing it, it is important to look at both sides, taking into consideration everything Pokémon Go has created over the past week or so.

When it comes to the downsides of the game, you may have heard about the armed robbery in Missouri last week, where “Armed robbers used the game Pokémon Go to lure victims to an isolated trap.” You may also know about the complaints from places such as the Holocaust Museum, Arlington Cemetery, and Ground Zero due to the lack of respect the game represents on their honorable grounds. And these are factors that cannot be argued with – these instances and situations are uncalculated misuses of the game.

Yet, there is some good coming from the game as well. Vox recently published an article titled “Pokémon Go May be the Greatest Unintentional Health Fad Ever”. Whether or not this statement is true, there is undoubtedly an increase in exercise from our fellow Pokemon-playing US citizens over the past couple of weeks. Vox’s article includes tweets stating “Co-worker walked 7 miles on Saturday to catch Pokémon” and “Just walked at least 8km in the past 3 hours”. The game is definitely getting people on their feet, which is inarguably a positive feature.

So what can we conclude? With the facts in front of us (whether positive or negative), perhaps the best way to use the game is just like with anything else – in moderation. Whether the Pokémon creatures become your friends (that you can have a good time with but are also okay being away from for a little while) or your ultimate foes (that become your only focus) is really up to you.

Aside from whether or not it is beneficial to people, there is no argument that the game is ingenious – it combines nostalgia and our modern-day detachable devices, creating the perfect mixture for excitement and worldwide buzz. And in our society of needing to be ahead of everyone else, it promotes the kind of competitiveness that is causing people to go outside much more than they may have before. Therefore, there isn’t really an objective answer to the question: Is this a “good” game or not? The answer is different for everyone, and if the game is being used simply as a game and it isn’t taking over your life, then hey, go for it!

Yet, the question that remains is: Is it possible to play the game without it taking over your life?