The endless summer is coming to an end, and with autumn comes our favorite fall media. Maybe you are a sweater weather enthusiast restarting “Gilmore Girls” for the 10th time, or you’re busting out fake teeth for “Scream.” Either way, the Arts Desk has you covered — whether you’re creating a new autumnal playlist or rewatching the comforting classics. Time to start stressing over what you’ll be for Halloween.
“Big Yellow Taxi” — Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell’s song “Big Yellow Taxi” is a commentary on the destruction of natural environments, and the lyrics describe a landscape that is eerily reminiscent of New York City. I prefer to take this song in jest rather than in seriousness — just to avoid climate anxiety — which allows me to laugh at the parallels between Mitchell’s lyrics and the visuals I see on my walk to class. Moments like “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot / With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin’ hot spot” and “They took all the trees, put ’em in a tree museum / And they charged the people a dollar and a half just to see ’em.” Whenever I miss my hometown full of changing leaves and small gardens, I’ll just remember Mitchell’s famous lyrics “Don’t it always seem to go / That you don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone?”
— Alexa Donovan, Arts Editor
“Palm Springs” (2020)
Like me, you may have spent the past months awaiting the return of sweater weather and only now wish your summer could last forever. If so, there’s no better way to finish your summer than with a film about a never-ending one. In “Palm Springs,” bridesmaid Sarah (Cristin Milioti) hits it off with Nyles (Andy Samberg), a guest at her sister’s beachy destination wedding. After ditching the reception with Nyles, Sarah wakes the next day to a wedding that has yet to happen, and discovers she’s been thrown into an infinite time loop where the wedding day is her present and future reality. Nyles has been stuck in the loop for an indeterminate amount of time and has given up hope of escaping. Their reinvigorated attempts to break out bring the two close, and inadvertently reveal truths about each other’s past actions, leading the two to question the implications of moving forward to see another day.
At times, “Palm Springs” is existential, even bordering on morbid. More than this, though, it’s hilarious, and the chemistry between Samberg and Milioti keeps the movie engaging. It’s brisk and feels like the cinematic equivalent of a beach read, but will prove itself just as comforting as the leaves begin to fall.
— Eleanor Jacobs, Music Editor
“September” — Daughtry
Autumn is reminiscent of my annual train back to Manhattan. The trees thin out and turn into skyscrapers. As I cultivate a playlist for the trip, Daughtry’s “September” always resurfaces. Off of the 2009 record “Leave This Town,” the growl of Chris Daughtry’s voice combines with hard-hitting riffs and a perfectly downbeat snare drum to create the perfect storm of melancholy. It captures the feeling of time going endlessly slow yet incredibly fast, something that college students know all too well.
As summer turns into fall, I’m always reminded of how fast the year seems to have gone by. The days are always long, and it’s hard to shake the looming dread that comes with new syllabi and schedules. Starting my junior year doesn’t really feel quite real, but following advice from lyrics of 2000s rock — “The years go by and time just seems to fly / But the memories remain” — has never failed me.
— Julia Diorio, Arts Editor
“Float Away” — Slaughter Beach, Dog
Encountering a Slaughter Beach, Dog fan in the Tri-State Area is just about as common as spotting a pigeon in your local park. The Philadelphia band’s indie folk songs about life where forests are lush and beaches are abundant show a clear admiration for its hometown and the surrounding states.
“Float Away,” from their 2023 album “Crying, Laughing, Waving, Smiling,” opens with a memory of skinny dipping in the Delaware River, quickly descending into a reflection of time-induced loss and the pains of nostalgia. As my geographic landscape changes with each year, so does my interpersonal one, leaving bittersweet memories collecting in my photo albums like dust. But the third verse’s lines “Maybe I’ll see her / In an old theater” remind me that it’s okay to miss the people I grew up with. Even if my circumstances and dreams take me away from my hometown, that feeling of community will always follow me.
— Dani Biondi, Film & TV Editor
“M Train” — Patti Smith
It is believed that Patti Smith is one of the greatest cross-platform artists, and her memoir, “M Train,” bolsters this reputation. Opening this novel is like stepping onto the M, referencing a New York City Subway line, as Smith leads us through her experiences as a musician, photographer and writer. She brings us to her favorite Greenwich Village cafe, which she goes to every morning to drink black coffee and write in her notebook. Her writing time travels fluidly between past and present. The reader follows Smith on her travels to Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul in Mexico and other destinations around the world before drifting back to her home cafe. Smith adds further texture to her memoir with her signature Polaroids. “M Train” allows the reader to peek into Smith’s creative mind, which isn’t restrained by any rules or linearity, and this is what makes her prose so captivating.
As the school year begins and assignments pile up, students’ minds begin to move a mile a minute as they attempt to stay afloat. Smith reminds us to slow down and truly perceive the world around us. If this is forgotten, our college years will fly by at the speed of a departing subway. As Smith puts it, “Nothing can be truly replicated. Not a love, not a jewel, not a single line.”
— Siobhán Minerva, Deputy Arts Editor
Contact the Arts desk at [email protected].
