THE UNTITLED MAGAZINE
THE REBEL ISSUE
“The REBEL Issue” brings together a cast of true originals including fashion mavericks, rising stars of entertainment, cultural game changers, art activists, and political revolutionaries. “The REBEL Issue” presents eight covers featuring Bella Thorne, Pussy Riot, Taylor Momsen, Tinashe, Anna Delvey, Grace VanderWaal, Lottie Moss, and Madeline Brewer. The issue’s coinciding exhibition will display the work of over 30 international contemporary artists who, through photography, painting, sculpture, drawing, digital art, fiber art, and mixed media, give their original, boundary-pushing takes on what it means to be a rebel in our contemporary world.
THE INNOVATE ISSUE
“What does 'innovate' mean to you?” That is the question we put forth to all of our incredibly talented artists and creatives featured in the INNOVATE Issue. In the midst of a challenging time as we grapple with the effects of a global pandemic, it feels especially pertinent to showcase the groundbreaking work being produced by such a diverse group of individuals. The INNOVATE Issue serves as a celebration of pioneering creativity, dedicated to those who persist in their artistic endeavors against all odds and bring into the world something new and inspirational for us to see, hear, and experience.
TASTEMAKERS MAGAZINE
As its premier music magazine, Tastemakers Magazine exists to give Northeastern students a voice in the music industry and help members develop their craft. Publishing four issues a year, producing its semi-annual Tastemakers Presents concert series, and actively involved in the Northeastern and Boston communities, Tastemakers offers a wide variety of unique learning experiences for its members.
ISSUES 51 - 56
As Editor-in-Chief, I partnered with everyone from our 35-40 staff writers to our editors and designers to ensure every written word was polished to a mirror shine, and every visual clearly aligned with our brand voice. Every piece of content went through me in some capacity before publication, and I edited roughly 75% of total features on a plethora of music topics.
IN DEFENSE OF: ARTPOP BY LADY GAGA
"From the opening vocal bars of “Aura,” the hotly anticipated ARTPOP definitively ushered in a new Lady Gaga. It was a Gaga that was no longer here to make a name for herself – she had been doing that and more since her humble 2009 days when she was known essentially by a singular platinum blonde aesthetic – and a Gaga that was ready to start taking that inevitable step in any burgeoning pop superstar’s career: the experimental phase. It was also a Gaga that disappointed critics and fans alike, even the diehard little monsters."
ALBUM REVIEW: AVRIL LAVIGNE - HEAD ABOVE WATER
"Avril Lavigne has a specific pattern with her releases: for every album at her quintessentially flamboyant, bratty, pop-punk best like debut /Let Go/ or 2007’s /The Best Damn Thing/, there is a follow-up showcasing Avril’s moody, introspective side (2004’s /Under My Skin/ and 2011’s /Goodbye Lullaby/ respectively). With /Head Above Water/, Avril Lavigne’s sixth studio effort, she demonstrates that cadence for the third time, following up 2013’s carefree, glitchy, power-pop /Avril Lavigne/ with a more sullen look at her last half decade."
THE IMPORTANCE OF DRAG MUSIC - COVER STORY
"There are many things that lie at the heart of international drag culture. Surely the epitome of the drag philosophy is sisterhood, LGBTQ love, and a community of self-professed freaks who ban together to entertain with a bold statement of gender fuckery. Drag is an inherently political statement, a proud announcement of nonconformity to the status quo of traditional roles of gender, sex, race, and everything in between, and one of the many things that drives the community and binds its members together is the music within it."
SHOW REVIEW: GARBAGE @ HOUSE OF BLUES 10.23.18
"To me, one of the many markers of a good performer is the ability to switch that performance persona on and off on a dime; to transition effortlessly from anything from a bombastic, brooding, or enigmatic ball of energy, to, for lack of a better phrase, their normal human self. A good performer knows their own style, how to manipulate it on stage and in the studio, and how to use it to endear themselves to an audience. Both Garbage and opener Rituals of Mine showcased a mastery of this skill in vastly different ways at the House of Blues on the 23rd of last month, making for one of the most immersive shows I have experienced in some time."
ALBUM REVIEW: EMINEM - KAMIKAZE
"I usually have a definable gut reaction of either love or hate to new Eminem albums. Often those reactions manifest as uncompromising admiration or searing criticism for one reason or another, like the coherent messages and self-awareness of The Eminem Show or the mystifying lack of hard-hitting hooks on last year’s Revival. 2018’s Kamikaze, however, has flipped my thinking. My instinctive reaction is conflicted; I waffle on whether to be impressed with Em’s characteristically unbeatable flow and precision on songs like “Lucky You,” or to feel exasperated and put off by just how tired and out of touch he comes across on the ego-stroking “Not Alike.” So I am forced to decide if Kamikaze is what fans actually deserved in place of Revival or simply another LP in a growing line of attempts to stay afloat the swamps of obsolescence to hold on to the last drops of public notoriety he has left."
ALBUM REVIEW: SETH GLIER - BIRDS
"It’s hard to be derivative without also being generic. Furthermore, it’s hard to be original without also being derivative, as oxymoronic as that sounds. Inspiration is a cautious concept, and one that needs to be handled with care when crafting something as personal as an LP. I could list a plethora of artists that Massachusetts-born singer-songwriter Seth Glier likely takes inspiration from (and likely will in the coming paragraphs), but ultimately it would get me nowhere in trying to pin down his newest full-length album Birds. No, Seth Glier does not solely rely on his influences to dictate his sonic choices;, he has enough emotion to do that for him."
ALBUM REVIEW: LIGHTS - SKIN&EARTH
"Lights, aka Valarie Poxleitner has a habit of releasing albums that I initially dismiss, until she releases an acoustic companion LP that I love, causing me to go back to the original and listen with newfound appreciation and adoration. Abrasive songs like "Flux and Flow" and the more timid "Suspension" (from 2011's Siberia) were lost on me until their acoustic counterparts showed me how dynamic and layered the originals were, and subsequently had me hooked. Similarly, the far more subtle and ambient versions of "Head Cold" and Running With the Boys" (From 2014's Little Machines) showed me the true emotion and depth of the original tunes, which I initially found boring and generic. With Skin&Earth, Lights' fourth full-length album, this pattern repeats itself yet again, but unfortunately an acoustic version has yet to be released, currently leaving me with a lukewarm feeling."
