Evan Paul ’18
Staff Writer

About three songs into Cage the Elephant’s newest release “Tell Me I’m Pretty,” I had to double check that I was playing the album on Spotify and not the artist’s radio station. That’s how closely lead singer Matthew Shultz’s drawl resembles Alex Turner’s (the lead singer of Arctic Monkeys) signature voice. I don’t like to call copycat (which has already been done by fans of The Black Keys), but the comparison between Shultz and Turner is uncanny.

“Star Wars” has returned. After years of waiting, one of the most highly awaited movies of all time has finally arrived and successfully manages to recapture the magic of George Lucas’ original trilogy. Under the direction of J.J. Abrams, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” beckons the world to return to a galaxy far, far, away….

Stuart McKenzie ’16 presented his music composition thesis, “The Making of a Hat,” last Saturday night in Buckley Recital Hall. The recital consisted of five different pieces, performed by singers and a string quartet. Watching McKenzie’s hard work come to life was a true joy, and it reminded me of the wide-ranging talents present on this campus. The arts and living team interviewed McKenzie to learn more about his experience of executing a music composition thesis.

Q: What was your inspiration behind “The Making of a Hat?”

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