[RH Video] Chance the Rapper Closes Out Pitchfork Music Festival 2015
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Header by Vanessa Bly, video by J. Frank Visuals
It's been an amazing run for Chance, and his Sunday night-cap performance to close off Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 is just one of the many, many major highlights of his career. Even for just a moment, it felt like Chicagoans in attendance could come together and show support for one of its hometown heroes and ignore every ounce of negativity that has been afflicting the city.
If you couldn't make it out to Pitchfork this past weekend, check out this mini-video recap of Chance the Rapper's AMAZING Pitchfork set, shot and edited by J. Frank Visuals!
[RH Photos] Pitchfork Music Festival 2015
Photos by Vanessa Bly, recap by Vanessa Bly and Geoff Henao
Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 has come and gone! Despite the sometimes muddy, sometimes rainy, and sometimes scorching hot day (sometimes all in the same day), fun was to be had at Pitchfork this year. Admittedly, there was an overall sense of something missing from this year's festival. Nevertheless, Chicagoans were the highlight this year, anchored by Chance the Rapper's outstanding performance to close Pitchfork out. Check out our recaps and photos from the festival over the next few pages!
Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 - Day 1
CHVRCHES
CHVRCHES' performance at Pitchfork was the band's first in the United States since April, and you could sense the excitement and energy among the three. Notably, singer Lauren Mayberry's stage presence was at an all-time high as the crowd sang and danced along. Given this was my first time seeing CHVRCHES (outside of videos online), I didn't know what to expect, but I'm glad to say they were the perfect end to Day 1 of Pitchfork 2015. - Geoff Henao
RYLEY WALKER
Ryley Walker was a jam band that kicked off Pitchfork Music Festival 2015. Given their opener status, the crowd already at Pitchfork really vibed to their music. - Vanessa Bly
JESSICA PRATT
Jessica Pratt's performance was super chill... perhaps a bit too super chill. The crowd was still during her performance, which isn't what you'd typically find at a music festival. - Vanessa Bly
STEVE GUNN
Steve Gunn looked like he wasn't having too much fun during their set. Granted, musicians enter a different attitude and embody on-stage personas when performing, but his seriousness turned me off. - Vanessa Bly
MAC DEMARCO
Mac DeMarco's set was FUN! His gap-toothed smile was hilarious, and the crowd really responded to them. Overall, the best way to describe their set was just simple, great fun. - Vanessa Bly
PANDA BEAR
Panda Bear's sound transcends all musical interests - whether you love hip hop or swear by rock, Panda Bear's appeal is enough to bring all types of different people together. The crowd for his set was vibing extra hard to his music, despite his relatively chill beats. I'd love to catch him at a venue one day. - Geoff Henao
Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 - Day 2
SLEATER-KINNEY
Finally, Sleater-Kinney made their triumphant return to Chicago after a years-long hiatus. The band co-headlined Pitchfork's Day 2, supporting their latest album, No Cities to Love. Their performance made it seem like the band didn't take an extended break from one another as their set was tight and one of the major highlights of an otherwise dreary day ruined by the rain. - Geoff Henao
FUTURE BROWN
Future Brown's set was a lot different when compared to live performances I've become used to over the years. They're a production group, but brought out a plethora of guests to round out their set, including Lil Durk. The crowd was really into their set and weren't swayed when the rain began to pour down. - Vanessa Bly
EX HEX
Ex Hex's set was unfortunately cut short after a few songs due to the rain, which sucked because they were rocking the stage. Even as the rain began to downpour heavier, the crowd stuck around in hopes the band would return before the festival was officially postponed. - Vanessa Bly
SHAMIR
I love Shamir's personality when he performs, but I don't think he brought it for his Pitchfork set; I was really looking forward to it, actually. "This is me on the regular," he sings, but I was hoping he'd bring more than just the regular. - Vanessa Bly
Pitchfork Music Festival 2015 - Day 3
CHANCE THE RAPPER
What can be said about Chance's set? It means a lot for a Chicagoan to close out Pitchfork alone, but Chance brought everything he had to commemorate the event. Backed by The Social Experiment, Chance ran through all of the hits during his night cap, and surprised the crowd by bringing out gospel singer Kirk Franklin! It felt like, for just one moment, the entire city was united together during his set, and it's moments like these that both Chicagoans and music fans alike can truly appreciate. - Vanessa Bly
RUN THE JEWELS
As a surprise to nobody, Run the Jewels' set was wild and fucking crazy. It's hard not to truly enjoy yourselves while Killer Mike and El-P are on stage. They even brought out Rage Against the Machine's Zach de la Rocha, which put the crowd into even more of a frenzy. Rappers take note: RTJ's sets are exactly what you ought to strive for when fleshing out your live performances. - Vanessa Bly
FREDDIE GIBBS AND MADLIB
DOPE! The crowd was wild for Freddie Gibbs and Madlib's set, rapping along to every one of Freddie Gibbs' lyrics. By my count, a large number of the crowd waited nearly three hours for their set, and their patience was truly rewarded. - Vanessa Bly
WAXAHATCHEE
Waxahatchee were cute and fun, and a great start for Pitchfork's final day. I definitely need an indie-rock fix, and they I (and the crowd!) loved what they had to offer. - Vanessa Bly
COURTNEY BARNETT
Courtney Barnett's style of rock and roll was super cool and infectious. The crowd was made up of dedicated fans that not only loved her, but sang along to every song. I just might find myself learning all of her songs for the next time she's in Chicago. - Vanessa Bly
JAMIE XX
Jamie XX's set was wild and nothing what I expected. The crowd went berserk for them, and even partook in some crowd surfing. Can you believe that, crowd surfing during a DJ's set?! That alone should be enough to summarize Jamie XX. - Vanessa Bly
Riot Fest Chicago 2015 Day Lineups Available
The day lineup for Riot Fest Chicago 2015 is now available! You can find out which artists are playing on which day so you can begin to tentatively prepare your schedules. In addition, Riot Fest will be releasing single day passes, VIP passes, and 2-day passes on Thursday, July 23rd at 10am CT here. In addition, Groupon is currently running a special pre-sale on single day passes for $69.98 here.
Check out the day lineups below!
FRIDAY
No Doubt, Faith No More, Motörhead, Ice Cube & Special Guests (performing Straight Outta Compton Remix), Alkaline Trio, Coheed and Cambria, Flogging Molly, Slightly Stoopid, Thrice, Dirty Heads, Anthrax, Eagles of Death Metal, Against Me!, Bayside, MEST, Atreyu, Lee Scratch Perry, The Expendables, Living Colour, Fishbone, Death, Mariachi El Bronx, Civ, Every Time I Die, Real Friends, 88 Fingers Louie, Mustard Plug, Into It. Over It., Post Malone with FKI, Chef’Special, Marmozets, Barb Wire Dolls, The Coathangers, Prayers, Speedy Ortiz, White Mystery, Main Attrakionz, Ground Up, Skinny Lister, Alex Wiley, Heems, Psalm One, Dreamers, Faulkner
SATURDAY
System of a Down, Iggy Pop, Rancid (performing …And Out Come The Wolves), Billy Idol, Taking Back Sunday, Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Drive Like Jehu, Merle Haggard, Alexisonfire, The Academy Is… (performing Almost Here), The Lawrence Arms, Echo & the Bunnymen, Bootsy Collins’ Rubber Band, The Damned, Pennywise, The Devil Wears Prada, Mayday Parade, Babes in Toyland, Desaparecidos, The Joy Formidable, The Dead Milkmen, FIDLAR, Millencolin, American Nightmare, Swervedriver, GWAR, Lifetime, Joyce Manor, The Movielife, Steve Ignorant and Paranoid Visions, The Dear Hunter, The Ataris, Modern Life Is War (performing Witness), Fit For Rivals, Flatfoot 56, Teenage Bottlerocket, Chon, Counterpunch, Direct Hit!, Dirty Fences, Sleep On It, The Brokedowns, Meat Wave, Elway, Indian Handcrafts, PEARS, Gateway Drugs, Clowns
SUNDAY
Modest Mouse, The Prodigy, Snoop Dogg (performing Doggystyle), Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, Tenacious D, L7, Stephen “Ragga” Marley, Kongos, Cypress Hill, Yelawolf, The Airborne Toxic Event, Manchester Orchestra, De La Soul, Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness, New Politics, Jimmy Cliff, Andrew W.K., Less Than Jake, The Thurston Moore Band, Morgan Heritage, Doomtree, Hum, Tarrus Riley, The Dwarves, Tommy Stinson, Kevin Devine, Jo Mersa, Alvvays, The White Buffalo, Black-Am-I, Skip Marley, Knuckle Puck, Jazz Cartier, Have Mercy, Superheaven, Foxing, Beach Slang, Cayetana, Blis, Northern Faces, Souvenirs, Skating Polly, Signals Midwest, Modern Chemistry, Tasha The Amazon, Foxtrott, Twin River, Indian School
Hulu is Considering Ad-Free Subscriptions
While Amazon and Netflix have been in the news lately for their exclusives, it feels like Hulu has stayed relatively quiet, save for their exclusive distribution for Seinfeld. In fact, I've spent more time watching various shows on Hulu than Netflix and Amazon combined over the past month. However, one thing I'll never be able to get over are Hulu's ads. Without fail, most will opt to wait for releases on Netflix rather than watch them earlier on Hulu with ads.
It's this mentality Hulu must combat in order to stay competitive with Netflix and Amazon. If rumors are to be true, the streaming company is ready to make the necessary adjustments. According to the Wall Street Journal, Hulu insiders revealed plans to explore ad-free subscriptions, perhaps timed for a fall release. The initiative, nicknamed internally as NOAH (no ads Hulu), is rumored to be in the $12 to $14 per month range. If true, their fees will be considerably more expensive than Netflix ($8/month) and Amazon ($99/year or $8.25/month), and slightly cheaper than HBO Now ($15/month).
Will a few extra dollars for ad-free Hulu content be enough to convince current and prospective Hulu subscribers? Personally, I would rather stick with the commercials or wait patiently for a Netflix release.
[Wall Street Journal via /Film]
Trailer for Alejandro G. Inarritu's The Revenant is Astounding
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What happens when you combine perennial fan-favorite Leonardo DiCaprio, Mad Max: Fury Road's Tom Hardy (who is a fan-favorite himself), and Academy Award-winning Alejandro G. Inarritu (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))? Hopefully, one of this year's best films, if this first teaser trailer is any indication of the final film.
The Revenant is inspired by the true events of Hugh Glass (DiCaprio), a frontiersman during the 19th Century that was left for dead by his hunting team following a bear attack. However, he still perseveres through the struggles... even after a betrayal by his close friend and confidant, John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy).
The trio of DiCaprio, Hardy, and Inarritu is enough to elevate the hype for The Revenant. It looks amazing, the aesthetic Inarritu established with Birdman is sound and in tact, and DiCaprio and Hardy of two of Hollywood's best actors. The wait for The Revenant will be a long one, as it receives a limited release on Christmas with a wider release on January 8, 2016.
[The Weekly Swarm] 7/13 - 7/19
Welcome to the latest installment of The Weekly Swarm! We had an amazing and eclectic week of content at Ruby Hornet last week, so if you missed out on anything, The Weekly Swarm is you solution! We shared our photos and recap from Erykah Badu's performance at this year's Taste of Chicago, wrote a memorial to Nintendo's late CEO, Satoru Iwata, recounted our visit to a Korean bathhouse, shared Marvel Comics' amazing hip hop variant covers, shared our photos from Melt-Banana's latest visit to Chicago, reviewed Amy, Ant-Man, Minions, Mr. Holmes, The Stanford Prison Experiment, Ted 2, and the latest episode of MTV's Scream, and shared an editorial on 33 1/3's latest books on Dead Kennedys, Devo, and Super Mario Bros.
You can find all of this and more in The Weekly Swarm!
[RH Photos] Erykah Badu Headlines Taste of Chicago
Remembering Nintendo's Satoru Iwata, The CEO Who Made The World Smile
Highlights from San Diego Comic Con 2015
Girl in a Jimjilbang: Acting Natural Au Naturel in a Korean Bathhouse
New 33 1/3 Books on Devo, Dead Kennedys, and Super Mario Bros Are Criticism Done Right
Marvel Comics' Hip Hop Variant Covers
[RH Photos] Melt-Banana Returns to Chicago
[Review] Amy
Official First Look at DC's Suicide Squad
Hayao Miyazaki Making CG Short Film
Fantastic Four Flex Their Powers in Final Trailer
[Review] Ted 2
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler Reunite in Sisters Trailer
[Review] Minions
Amazon to Release Spike Lee's Chicago Film in Late 2015
[Weekly Netflix Fix] Mid-July 2015 Update
[Review] Ant-Man
John Francis Daley, Jonathan M. Goldstein to Write Spider-Man Reboot
[Review] Mr. Holmes
[Review] The Stanford Prison Experiment
[RH Photos] Erykah Badu Headlines Taste of Chicago
New 33 1/3 Books on Devo, Dead Kennedys, and Super Mario Bros Are Criticism Done Right
Marvel Comics' Hip Hop Variant Covers
[RH Photos] Melt-Banana Returns to Chicago
Top 12 Bands to See at Pitchfork Music Festival 2015
[Review] MTV's Scream: Wanna Play a Game?
[Weekly Netflix Fix] Mid-July 2015 Update
[Review] The Stanford Prison Experiment
This review was originally published as part of our Sundance Film Festival 2015 coverage. It is being re-posted to coincide with the film's limited theatrical release.
By now, most adults are familiar with the Stanford prison experiment. In 1971, a study was conducted to explore the psychological effects of prisoners and guards in a simulated prison. What resulted inevitably proved to be valuable information for psychology, but damaging to some of the participants. The Stanford Prison Experiment is a fictional take on the experiment that dramatizes the various conflicts that took place.
The Stanford Prison Experiment
Director: Kyle Patrick Alvarez
Rating: N/A
Release Date: January 26, 2015 (Sundance)
In 1971, Stanford Psychology professor Philip Zimbardo (Billy Crudup) compiles a group of volunteers to conduct his psychological study of the relationship between prisoners and guards. Left to police themselves, the guards quickly exploit their power and creating friction between the two factions. As the mistreatment continues, some of the prisoners, led by Prisoner 8612 (Ezra Miller), begin to revolt back against the guards, led by a "John Wayne-esque" guard (Michael Angarano). As the experiment devolves into a simulation and more of Zimbardo's colleagues leave the experiment, Zimbardo finds himself wholly captivated by the ensuing results. However, it isn't until Zimbardo's girlfriend (Olivia Thirlby) joins the experiment that he truly realizes his mistake and calls the proceedings off... but is it too late for some of the prisoners?
The Stanford Prison Experiment is rooted in its feelings of claustrophobia to characterize the discomfort the prisoners experience, whether they take place in the form of tight, close-up shots in both enclosed closets and open hallways. The suspense builds through the film as each prisoner slowly breaks from their psychological torture, yet The Stanford Prison Experiment never feels like there's anything truly at stake. The tension bubbles and boils, but it never really reaches the breaking point. Could this arguably have been a conscious decision to play with the film's theme of psychological torture? Perhaps, but I think that's giving the film too much credit.
Miller and Angarano shine as foils to one another, but considering the mostly anonymous nature of the experiment, no one really shines beyond the two. In fact, once Miller's character is released from the experiment, no one prisoner/actor steps up to fill the glaring hole in the film's conflict, allowing Angarano's antagonist to take over.
The Stanford Prison Experiment is a psychological suspense/thriller that ultimately doesn't pay off in the end. It doesn't help that the film is very slow moving and feels way too long. I can't express how great Miller and Angarano's performances are, but I'm not entirely sure plodding through the film is worth seeing them.
Top 12 Bands to See at Pitchfork Music Festival 2015
Once again, Pitchfork Music Festival has returned to Chicago's Union Park. The lineup is as eclectic as ever, featuring some of the music industry's top rappers and electronic artists. With help from Ruby Hornet contributor Vanessa Bly, we've come up with a list of the top 12 bands to see at Pitchfork this weekend. Take a look through the following pages!