Culture

Culture

Sol de la Noche on top in band battle

Fin Martinez | February 27

At ASUNM Student Special Events’ “Fight for Fiestas,” Latin/reggae crossover band Sol de la Noche battled against four other musical acts and came out on top, securing their spot as a headliner at this spring’s Fiestas. Sol de la Noche consists of percussionist Oscar Gamboa, drummer Ryan Rael, bassist Diego Flores, guitarist and vocalist Diego Manrique, and trumpet player Jose Chicas, all of whom are music majors at UNM.

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Culture

'Spin' dance show features diversity

Lauren Marvin and Moriah Carty | February 26

Six choreographers and 32 dancers are bringing a diverse set of flamenco and contemporary pieces to the stage during the annual faculty dance show. Donna Jewell, artistic director for SPIN, said out of the 12 years she has taught dance at UNM, this year’s show is the most diverse. This is in part because of the diversity within the dance department, she said. “The dance program at UNM is very unique because it has a flamenco concentration and a contemporary dance concentration,” Jewell said.

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Culture

Review: Best picture winner flaunts industry's vanity

Graham Gentz | February 26

On Sunday, the 87th Academy Awards rained down their judgment on all moviedom for 2014. The Oscars have long been criticized as being out of touch for everything from the masturbatory glitz to the selection of each actual award. None receive more attention and examination than the politically-driven selection of the highly coveted Best Picture. I was fairly excited to see “Birdman,” which stars Michael Keaton, take the top spot. It seemed surreal and cerebral and looked to be filled with many long takes, but I failed to anticipate the rather shallow message the movie expounded, which explains its political selection by the voters of the Academy Awards.

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Culture

Q&A: 'Voice' singer rolls into town

Lauren Marvin | February 26

Luke Wade’s story is not terribly unique: growing up in a small town, dreaming of a life on the stage and struggling through injuries and setbacks, but the viewers of singing competition “The Voice” seemed to think his singing was unique. After battling his way to the top eight contenders, Wade continues his passion, touring with his band No Civilians. The Daily Lobo asked Wade about his childhood, what he learned from his time during “The Voice” and living on the road.

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Culture

Staged stunts by Black Student Union discuss racism

Lauren Marvin | February 25

Often times social norms prevent discussions about controversial issues, but one UNM student organization is pulling back the veil and talking about racism through social experiments. The Black Student Union staged experimentsmodeled after popular TV show “What Would You Do?” by creating a scenario where actors of different genders and races argued in a public place about race.

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Culture

Five & Why: What Lobos love with Monica Daniels

Skylar Griego | February 25

One of the great things about movies is the memories tied with them. Viewers are never too old to go back and reminisce about a favorite childhood movie. Monica Daniels is a freshman in psychology, and she said she enjoys keeping in touch with her inner child – which is why her five favorite movies are children’s movies. Daniels said all of these movies have taught her to be as nice as possible, because people never know what’s going to happen.

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Culture

Food column: Garbanzos made easy

Steve “Mo” Fye | February 25

When it was suggested I write a column on healthy food alternatives for hardworking students, I had one word: garbanzos. Actually, it is more than one word, since this legume is also known as ceci, cece, chickpea, chana, Egyptian pea, gram or Bengal gram.

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Culture

Startup weekend promote business for teens

Moriah Carty | February 24

Like-minded teen entrepreneurs set out this weekend to break into an economy that is dominated by adults at FatPipe ABQ. Teen Start-up Weekend is Albuquerque’s rendition of the adult-oriented Start-up Weekend, an event geared towards flushing out business plans and solving problemsIn that entrepreneurial spirit, a teen started the event.

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Culture

Sin Fronteras Film Festival spotlights Latin America

Mateo Rocha | February 24

Protests, artistic traditions and shrilling violence all exposed the diverse and profound social realities of Latin America in this year’s 2015 Sin Fronteras Film Festival. The Student Organization for Latin American Studies organized the free event, which included nine films that came from Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Brazil and California.

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Culture

U.K., America more similar than differences

February 24

While I tend to focus on the comical differences between the United States and the United Kingdom, there are also many interesting similarities. Most have considered the U.K. to be a significantly smaller version of the U.S. The U.S. and the U.K. share the same movies, music, TV shows, shops and above all else, language. Are we not simply two countries divided by an ocean?

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Culture

Five & Why: What Lobos love with Candice Smart.

Skylar Griego | February 19

These days it seems as if all we hear about are the awful things going on around us. For those who want to get away from all of it, fantasy books are a great escape. Candice Smart, freshman in the University College, said her favorite books are fictional tales, many of which have had a very real impact on her life.

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Culture

Review: Nic Cage makes another once-a-decade masterpiece

Graham Gentz | February 19

It’s a contentious stance, but I like Nic Cage. He’s an easy man to disregard. Sure, the bottom 85 percent of his filmography is earth-shatteringly bad. But every 10 years or so, he makes a really good movie. And if you blink, you’d miss films like “Adaptation,” “Raising Arizona,” “Matchstick Men,” “Bringing Out the Dead,” “Lord of War” or “The Weather Man.” Go watch them and see what I mean. You won’t be disappointed.

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Culture

UNM's sexual assault reporting pathways a confusing process

Lauren Marvin | February 19

Two weeks ago my editor sent me on a mission: Investigate how the sexual assault reporting system works at UNM. After interviews and constant follow-up phone calls, I can say for certain that the folks at Pilgrim and Associates Law Offices had it right when in their report they said UNM’s sexual assault reporting system was confusing. The scope, depth and possibilities when reporting a sexual assault are endless, so for the sake of this investigation, I focused only on sexual assault as a policy violation and stayed away from questions about criminal cases for now.

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Culture

Dance, music celebrated at UNM's holiday celebration

Moriah Carty | February 17

The Bangladeshi community celebrated a culturally defining holiday on Saturday with quite a bit of color this year. The Bangladeshi Student Association of UNM observed International Mother Language Day, but this time added dancing and fashion to better capture the essence of their culture. The holiday celebrates Bengali, Bangladesh’s official language, said Shaikh Ahmad, BSAUNM’s program director of publication.

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Culture

Put a little love in the world

Skylar Griego | February 12

This week, Kyle Stepp, a junior organizational communication major, delivered baskets filled with toys, gifts and arts and crafts to the UNM Children’s Hospital. Stepp said he was diagnosed with stage-four osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, in high school. He was given a 10 percent chance of living. In his three years receiving treatment from the UNM Children’s Hospital, he went through 98 chemotherapies and nine surgeries. “Sometimes we forget that right across the street there are 62,000 kids a year fighting for their lives. The least we can do is take the time to brighten up those kids’ days and show them Lobo love,” Stepp said. “A lot of these kids just want friends.”

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Culture

Poetry slams hit popular brewery

Moriah Carty | February 12

When ABQSlam poets perform, they do more than just speak; they pour their soul into a topic that is close to their heart. That’s what happened Tuesday night during Poetry and Beer at Tractor Brewing Wells Park. Damien Flores, slam master for ABQSlam, said Poetry and Beer night almost seems like a traveling act, having taken place at several different venues before closing down and moving to the next one. Most recently, the show moved from the now closed Blackbird Buvette to Tractor.

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Culture

Column: Nine things I don't understand about New Mexico

Sophie Earle | February 12

Having lived in California for four years, I thought I was prepared for life in New Mexico. I was ready for the huge portions of food and over-friendly staff. However, there are few things about New Mexico I wasn’t prepared for.

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Culture

Five & Why: What Lobos love with Lee Jordan

Skylar Griego | February 11

Love is in the air and in the spirit of the holiday, the Daily Lobo asked Lee Jordan, , a freshmen electrical engineering major, his five favorite character couples.

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Culture

Food column: Have Valentine's dinner at home

February 11

Valentine’s Day is among the busiest nights of the year in the restaurant business. Since it falls on a Saturday this year, the eateries are going to be packed. Avoid the crowds and cranky staff by creating an elegant meal for two. Go all-out with candles, tablecloth and the nicest table settings available. Try to make it special. Valentines will be suitably impressed by a salad with shrimp and homemade vinaigrette, followed by a version of Steak au Poivre (French peppered steak) and noodles. Another way to do it is to share the cooking duties. Bonding in the kitchen can strengthen a relationship.

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Culture

Instructor's company brings philosophy to the dance floor

Lauren Marvin | February 10

The fruits of Jacqueline Garcia’s life-long labor hit the stage publicly for the first this weekend. An adjunct professor of theater and dance at UNM, Garcia said she started the J.Garcia Dance Company in order to fulfill a goal she has had for many years and to offer professional work to local dancers.