The Daily Cal captures the soundtrack of Berkeley by asking students on Sproul to show us a song from their playlist.

Songs featured:
The Love Club – Lorde
Where The Story Ends – The Fray
Psycho Killer – Talking Heads
International (Skrillex Remix) – Chase & Status
Go Crazy – HBK Gang + Iamsu!
1812 Overture – Tchaikovsky
Clocks – Coldplay
Silhouettes – Avicii
Thinkin’ Bout You – Frank Ocean
ADHD – Kendrick Lamar
Torino – Mehr Ensemble
Eye Of The Tiger – Survivor
Baby – Justin Bieber
Blood On The Leaves – Kanye West
Greenback Boogie – Ima Robot
Money Trees – Kendrick Lamar
Don’t You Give Up On Me – Milo Greene
Gas Pedal – Iamsu! + Sage The Gemini

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On the other hand, we’re in an incredibly critical time in America… one in which “Breaking Bad” is coming to an end in less than a week.  For those of you who watch it or have been keeping up, I can only say one thing. WHAT THE HELL VINCE GILLIGAN.

One part of me wants to share some Korean-made music with you that’s not popular for having your mind barraged with horse-dancing and a man in a blue suit and sunglasses screaming at buttocks. Another wants to go with a Breaking Bad influenced playlist for you.  In the end, I’ve decided to meet half-way.  This is my Korean-Amethican playlist.

WALLA – Nature

Kicking this week off, I’m giving a shout out to a fellow Korean American from southern California.  The lead vocalist and guitarist for WALLA is Jonathan Hoonch Kim (if that’s really his last name, I’m kind of jealous), who briefly makes an appearance in the music video for this song as a bearded man going outside to get the newspaper.  One listen and you probably won’t be too startled that they come from Los Angeles because of its beach-bum-esque danceable sound.  According to them, they have been influenced from all kinds of genres such as “pop, funk, samba, rock, metal, folk, disco and psychodelia” which isn’t all that surprising considering their diverse backgrounds (Korean, Mexican / El Salvadorian, Italian, Brazilian, Indonesian).

Flex Cop – This is Not Meth

Flex Cop samples Walter White saying “This is not meth” before the song breaks into an upbeat remix of Darondo’s “Didn’t I Tell You” which was used on “Breaking Bad” in a memorable scene.  I’m on a strictly no-spoiler policy with this whole post, no worries.  Either way, I think he took a pretty depressing, soulful song and turned it something funky that you can dance to.

JUNIP – Line of Fire

If you were wondering what that beautiful song in the commercial for the “Breaking Bad” series finale trailer was, it was this particular song by JUNIP.  Jose Gonzalez’s non-solo project was one of the acts I mentioned in my first Tunesday ever.  I’m glad to see them getting the success they deserve.  Really, listen to the whole album.

High Highs – A Real Hero (Cover of College & Electric Youth)

The song from “Drive” is covered by High Highs.  It’s exemplary of the characters of Walter White and Jesse Pinkman.  Certainly they’re not real heroes by any means.  They’ve made mistakes.  They’ve done shit, seen shit.  Either way, we love them because they are as human as some of the best characters can get (i.e. Dexter, which just ended this past Sunday).  The chorus of the song, “A real human being and a real hero” seems to repeat a million times in both the original and the cover, but it never gets tiring.

Glen Check (글렌체크) – French Virgin Party

Chances are that if I never told you, your first guess would not be that this band comes straight from South Korea.  This song was a part of their debut album, Haute Couture, which won the award for best dance & electronic music album at the Korean Music Awards this year.  It has the feel of what that 80’s idea of 2013 might have been… maybe that statement will make a little more sense after listening.

Giraffage – Better Off Alone (Cover of Alex DeeJay)

Alice DeeJay’s song “Better Off Alone” was one of the most iconic songs of the 90’s for me.  It was one of the songs that started my relationship with EDM, along with Darude’s “Sandstorm” as much as I’m ashamed to admit that one.  Giraffage gives an interesting cover of it here and I’m still very serious about my no-spoiler policy, but I think it fits the situation that’s currently boiling on “Breaking Bad” for most characters.

Planet of Sound – We Are Together

I’m ending this with Planet of Sound’s “We Are Together.”  This is one hell of a feel-good song and if I had to guess, it’s likely you’ll need something like this after Sunday night.  Who knows where “Breaking Bad” is going, but if Vince Gilligan is willing to do all of this before the first minute of the series finale, it’s likely he’ll be crushing us some more.  Godspeed, “Breaking Bad” fans.

As usual, please comment or e-mail me with suggestions or feedback. I’m always up to listen to what you have to offer, and every once in awhile your recommendations may make it here.

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RH Music/Courtesy

Those familiar with Restoration Hardware probably know it more for its furnishings and décor than anything else. But lately, the chain has been dabbling in the unlikely venture of music promotion. To accomplish this, they’ve opened a new branch called RH Music, dedicated to showcasing talented up-and-coming musical acts the world over. Check out their debut event A Night at the Greek this Friday at the Greek Theater, featuring Larkin Poe, The Brixtons, and Edei. Tickets and details are available at the RH Music site.

Larkin Poe

Centered on the sisters Lovell, this ensemble has quite the impressive résumé. Within the past several years, they’ve toured as the backing band for Elvis Costello, won Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion National Teen Talent Competition, and played at venues from the Bonnaroo Festival in Tennessee to the O2 Arena in London. Even their name is a reference to their distant dead relative, who just so happened to be the cousin of Edgar Allen Poe. Not a note of their experience is squandered, as the Lovells and their trusty band churn out hard-hitting, swampy folk.

The Brixtons

Donna Missal was essentially raised to be a heart-melting vocal belter, singing and acting at a performance high school until her graduation into the New Jersey music scene, and drawing audible inspiration along the way from classics like Etta James. Meanwhile, Ken DePoto grew up playing guitar to the songs of the rockabilly, blues, and punk greats of his youth and prior. Suffice it to say, their union in The Brixtons is basically a match made in old-school-vibe-ridden heaven.

Edei

Considering her success in the UK, it’s really only a matter of time before Edei’s name should start appearing in households on this side of the Atlantic too. Her vocal prowess is irrefutable and has been landing her gigs since she was ten years old, by which time she was already performing at the West End Theater and making television appearances with Jay-Z. However, unlike her contemporaries such as Girls Aloud, Edei rejected offers to team up with girl groups through talent agencies to pursue fame for its own sake. Instead, she opted to remain a solo artist and produce songs on her own terms. The result blends elements of soul and pop in a mixture both organic and alluring.

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Kelly Fang/Senior Staff

1. Oregon

On Saturday, Oregon threw for 471 yards and ran for another 216 yards — otherwise known as a typical day in Eugene. The Ducks ran wild and shellacked Tennessee 59-14. The No. 2 ranked Ducks will host Cal and its 122nd ranked defense to kick-off the Pac-12 season, so it’s safe to assume we’ll see much of the same.

2. UCLA

Brett Hundley continues to impress. After falling behind 21-3 in the second quarter to No. 18 Nebraska, the sophomore quarterback led the Bruins on a blinding tear to snag the lead from the Cornhuskers, scoring 35 unanswered points in a blazing 16 minutes. The Bruins take on New Mexico State at home next week before kicking off a grueling Pac-12 slate against Utah in Salt Lake City.

3. Stanford

The Cardinal are unbeaten after their first two games against San Jose State and Army. But after failing to put away Army on Saturday in a 34-20 win, it might be time to start wondering if Stanford is capable of repeating the success it had last season.

4. Washington

The Dawgs keep barking. Keith Price might be in range of sniffing the Heisman after a woof-tastic performance at Soldier Field against Illinois on Saturday, completing 80 percent of his passes and throwing for 342 yards. The defense did concede 24 points to a middling Illini squad — the unit may be the equivalent of the Huskies chasing their own tail.

5. Arizona State

A win is a win is a win. The Sun Devils just squeezed by No. 20 Wisconsin on Saturday night, with a little assistance from the referees. If you haven’t seen the video, check it out. Regardless, ASU is a talented football team, led by a monster on the defensive line in Will Sutton. Look for them to wreak havoc when their Pac-12 slate starts.

6. Arizona

Granted, the Wildcats have yet to face a quality competitor, but in their three games against Northern Arizona, UNLV and UTSA, the defense has looked much improved. Their current average number of points allowed per game of 8.7 ranks third in the country — a figure that would’ve seemed like a mirage under head coach Rich Rodriguez just a year ago.

7. USC

Amid the “Fire Kiffin” chants and the players-only meeting that may or may not have taken place, USC still managed to come away victorious against Boston College. Quarterback Cody Kessler tossed just as many touchdown passes as incompletions — two — and the Trojan run game accounted for 257 yards. Regardless of whom they were playing, the win marks an improvement for USC.

8. Oregon State

Sean Mannion’s five touchdown passes on Saturday were just enough for the Beavers to sneak by the Utes in overtime. For a team that was topped by Eastern Washington, beating a decent Utah squad on the road is a step in the right direction. But at the same time, Oregon State entered the season ranked in the top 25, and now it’s allowing 260 rushing yards to a decent football team.

9. Washington State

Have the Cougars … forgotten how to Coug? Washington State extended its winning streak to two weeks with a 48-10 blowout of Southern Utah in Pullman. Mike Leach’s Air Raid offenses are reaching extremes: So far, the Cougars have thrown almost twice as many times as they’ve run. Still, it’s working — for now.

10. Utah

The Utes held their own against Oregon State but ultimately fell short in overtime. Led by quarterback Travis Wilson, Utah displayed both a potent passing and rushing attack, racking up 539 total yards of offense. The main concern for Utah lies with its defense, which was dissected by Beavers quarterback Sean Mannion, who nearly eclipsed 450 passing yards.

11. Cal

The Bears did pretty much exactly what was expected of them against No. 4 Ohio State this weekend — put up a ton of yards and allow them at an even faster rate. Jared Goff still leads the nation in passing, impressive mostly because after throwing 160 times, his arm has yet to fall off.

12. Colorado

When it rains, it pours. The Buffs’ date with Fresno State was postponed due to flooding, leaving them stuck in last place in the Daily Cal’s power rankings. After winning just one game last season, Colorado has already doubled its win total. Whether or not Colorado can climb up the rankings remains to be seen, but the Buffs’ 27th-ranked total defense should come in handy.

Contact Daily Cal Sports at sports@dailycal.org.

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There’s a lovely word in the Yaghan language.  Maybe you know of it, maybe you don’t.  Mamihlapinatapai.  It means something along the lines of a look that is shared between two people that desire the same thing but neither is willing to make the first move.  This could be someone you’ve known for a while, or maybe that person you think you’re getting caught gawking at but maybe they were gawking first.  Go out and live and find out.

This one goes out to anyone who’s had their own what’s-their-name in their life.

Flume – Insane (ft. Moon Holiday)

Flume recently played at the Mezzanine in San Francisco and has been one of my favorite acts in electronica.  This particular song recently had an awesome music video released for it recently and it has the feel of something that’d be in the soundtrack for Drive.  The song starts off with the lyrics “You don’t have to be afraid / You don’t have to be brave / Living in a gilded cage” which anyone who’s been shy about approaching someone or admitting their feelings to someone might sympathize with.  People fear the unknown far more than the known and maybe that should be applied to your (potential) love life as well.

The Kite String Tangle – Given the Chance

The song is clearly less about someone who’s too scared to do something, but someone who has been rejected and hasn’t given up, but it applies to the situation. As they say, if you never ask, the answer is always no.  If someone is on your mind enough that “heart is all scars when [they’re] not around” then you should find out if you would be “Given the Chance” for the sake of your sanity.

The xx – Fiction

I normally try to avoid posting things by REALLY well-known artists unless they’re remixes or mash-ups, but I’m making an exception here. Anyone who knows me well (or even anyone who knows me barely at all) knows I’ve had a chronic obsession with this band for years.  As it so happens, today marks the one-year anniversary of their sophomore album and my favorite track from the album is this song.  This song fits in all kinds of situations of heartbreak, but I think certain lines exemplify the situation of not being able to make a move with lines such as “you’re more than I can believe would ever come my way” and “come real love, why do I refuse you? Cause if my fear’s right, I risk to lose you.”

Zeds Dead – Shut Up & Sing V2.0 v Greta Svabo Bech

Greta Svabo Bech has one of the most desirable voices in EDM having featured in such songs as Raise Your Weapon by Deadmau5 and a personal favorite of mine, Chronicles of a Fallen Love by The Bloody Beetroots.  She recently teamed up with Zeds Dead to make a 2nd version of her song Shut Up & Sing.  Zeds Dead has done some work in the past reinterpreting songs that I have been impressed with such as their remix of Lies by Marina and the Diamonds.  As she describes it, “Shut Up & Sing’ is about feeling trapped in a situation and finally working up the courage to do something about it, even if you don’t know what you’re gonna do.”  The hard hitting percussion is motivational on its own, but Greta Svabo Bech’s vocals are undoubtedly what make it hit home.

Kendrick Lamar x Clams Casino – Poetic Justice (Mash-up by Andrew Gentry)

In the original version of Poetic Justice, Kendrick Lamar teams up with Drake to rap about romantic problems (given the theme of this week’s list and the mention of Drake’s name, I don’t think you consider this much of a surprise at this point).  In this mash-up, Andrew Gentry extracts Kendrick Lamar’s lines and puts them against Clams Casino’s song I’m God and they make a perfect couple.  Funny how that works.  Sometimes you can’t see the possibility of two things being a perfect match, but you find out once you try.

Lolo – Weapon for Saturday

Let’s change it up a bit now.  Maybe you’re feeling a bit brave now and you think what’s-their-name can become something more.  Lolo’s not exactly the strongest vocalist, but she’s brimming with confidence.  Weapon for Saturday is one of those songs that I listen to and I suddenly feel awesome about myself.  It’s a song that makes you feel like you can conquer anything your heart desires.

Big Data – Dangerous

Big Data adds another song to get pumped up to with Dangerous.  It’s got a catchy bassline, the kind that makes you strutt while you listen to them on your headphones.  I feel like Tom in (500) Days of Summer after he leaves Summer’s place when I’m listening to this song.  There’s nothing quite like being surrounded by high fives from strangers and animated birds for 4 minutes and 40 seconds.

FMLYBND – Electricity

I’ll be ending things with a little love song.  Electricity by FMLYBND is bursting with synthy poppy happiness.  If I had to put my description of a first kiss in song form, it might sound something like this.  FMLYBND are incredibly close with each other.  They live together, cook together, get tattoos together, all that lovely stuff.  Hell, maybe down the line you could be in that kind of a relationship with the person who’s piqued your interest.

As usual, please comment or e-mail me with suggestions or feedback. I’m always up to listen to what you have to offer, and every once in awhile your recommendations may make it here.

The post Tunesday – Dedicated to What’s-Your-Name appeared first on The Daily Californian.

Derek Remsburg/Staff

Last season, the Cal men’s water polo team lost one of its major offensive contributors in senior attacker Marin Balarin.

After losing the star center who played at the two-meter mark, the squad needed to find a different alternative to be able to play to its strengths.

After a few weeks of preseason training, the Bears now know exactly how to do just that: focus on their defense and transition to the counterattack.

“That’s one of our biggest strengths as a group,” said senior team captain Collin Smith. “We’re a team based on our defense that leads into that counterattack — it’s something we’ve always known about ourselves.”

This weekend, Cal will have the perfect platform to test where they are as a group to jumpstart the squad’s 2013 season. At the Triton Invitational beginning this Saturday, the Bears will go head-to-head against Redlands at 12:30 p.m. and later host No. 11 UC San Diego at 4:30 p.m. at Triton Pool.

On Sunday morning, the team will take on No. 13 Loyola Marymount at 9:30 a.m., and later No. 17 UC Davis in the afternoon.

Despite facing three of the nation’s top-20 squads, the Bears — who are ranked fourth in both the CWPA and MPSF Preseason Polls — do not seem to be worried.

“I think they’re in a pretty good place,” said Cal coach Kirk Everist. “They’re going to be a little broken down and tired this weekend because of school starting, but we’re looking to go deep into the bench to make sure we’ll get a lot of looks from different players in a competitive environment that’s not us.”

With 17 Bears making the trip down to San Diego, Everist anticipates being able to frequently swap out players on the travel team to find the best seven-player rotations. Among those competing this weekend are senior attacker Smith, who led the Bears with 61 goals and 31 steals last season, and junior Aleksa Saponjic — a bronze medalist who played for the Serbian National Team in the 2012 London Olympics.

Cal’s top two scorers will be joined by senior utility Ayal Keren, as well as a pair of freshman recruits in Chandler Jarrels-Stickney and Thomas Carroll.

For the past week, the Bears have specifically focused on running defensive plays that follow six-on-six and five-on-six match situations. After incorporating several of the defenses they plan on running on game days, the squad practices scoring early in transition.

Heading into their first weekend matches, the Bears are not so much looking at their competition as they are focusing on building a strong defense in front of experienced returning goalies Michael Boggan and Jon Sibley. Once Cal can establish a formidable team defense to push the squad into the offensive counterattack, the Bears are confident that they will find consistent success throughout the season.

“We’re still looking for those two meter men — and they’ll be there, but definitely most of our goals are going to come off of our transition in the counterattack,” Smith said. “This weekend will be a good experience for the newcomers and for us as a whole — we’re looking to start ourselves out on a good note and prepare ourselves for the rest of the season.”

Janice Chua covers men’s tennis. Contact her at jchua@dailycal.org.

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In return, I gave her this face.

Here’s the deal: I wasn’t offended because I didn’t own a mirror; I was offended because BRF is actually becoming a “thing.” As soon as the fake public safety announcement video went viral, hungry journalists wasted no time. Articles like this, this and this immediately identified celebrities that suffer from BRF. Anna Paquin even confessed to Jimmy Kimmel that she suffers from “a severe case of BRF.” She added, “It makes you look really angry all the time, like you want to kill people or like you’re a giant bitch.” Personally, the BRF trend amazes me, considering how the term originated from a YouTube skit. Everybody knows this, yet we still treat it like an actual phenomenon — or worse, a disorder.

Yep, you read that right. BRF is now officially a biological disorder that can be cured using corrective plastic surgeries. Plastic surgeon Anthony Youn told The Today Show, “Basically, many of us have features that we inherit and/or develop with age that can make us look unpleasant, grumpy or, even, yes — bitchy.” He recommended procedures like “grin lift” and Botox injection to turn that frown upside down.

It looks like our generation has found the new “cellulite” myth! (In case you didn’t know, “cellulite” was coined to lure women into condemning skin dimpling, which is otherwise a perfectly natural condition, like aging. In return, the cosmetics industry and plastic surgeons profited hugely once “cellulite” became a thing that must be corrected.)

Another thing that pisses me off is the reeking smell of sexism in BRF. Even though the original video was mostly geared toward women, it also mentioned the male version of BRF — Resting Asshole Face, or RAF. Yet, as expected, it is not RAF that gains traction in media. (I don’t see any actor publicly apologizing for his unfriendly facial expression.)

Why?

Because we have this double standard that makes a man look dangerously sexy when he scowls and a woman unattractively fierce. This is why RAF is not a disorder. Rather, it’s seen as a feature that augments a man’s sex appeal. Meanwhile, women are either bugged by busybodies on the streets — “Smile, honey!” — or tagged as a cold person.

Ann-Marie Stillion, a communication strategist and artist from Seattle, describes what she has to do to “fix” her BRF: “I smile a lot now, not because I’m so happy but because I know it makes people more comfortable.”

This kind of attitude made me push Robin Thicke aside to write about BRF instead. I mean, unless you’re a walking billboard for Crest 3D Whitestrips, I don’t see why anybody has to walk around with a fake smile on his or her face to appease other people. So, can’t we just please get through a week without feeling like the media is a sexist on Viagra?!

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Cal’s Michael Kim fell just short of winning the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship on Saturday.

Kim went up against Jordan Niebrugge in the finals and immediately birdied the first hole to put himself in the lead. However, Niebrugge took the second hole, and the match was tied.

From then on, Kim fell behind. With 10 holes left, he was four holes back. It looked like a comeback would be impossible.

Then, the impossible began to happen.

The 36-hole match dragged on with Kim trailing. Niebrugge was playing nearly mistake-free; he didn’t hit a bogey in the first 30 holes. But on 13 — and the 31st hole of the match — he hit his first bogey. The race was on.

Kim started to slowly make up ground against Niebrugge, and the margin was soon at just one hole.

When the final hole came around, Kim was just one back. Tension hung in the air.

However, Kim’s fairway shot landed in the water hazard, and he had to take a penalty. Niebrugge, who was playing more conservatively, had no such problems. When he made par, the match was over, and Kim conceded defeat.

Kim was disappointed but not bitter.

“I just have to keep improving, and we’ll see what happens next year,” he said after the match.

Cal women’s basketball releases nonconference schedule

If there was any doubt about it before, let there be none now — the Cal women’s basketball team is an elite squad.

The team recently released its 2013-14 schedule, and the nonconference games are a doozy.

Cal plays both UConn and Duke, the two teams that are projected to start the year ranked at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. And the Huskies are the defending national champions. Other squads, like Georgetown, Pacific and Northwestern, will also not be easy matches.

The schedule reflects the changing identity that the Cal women’s basketball team has, as all the top teams want to play each other. It is now clear that Cal has earned that reputation among colleges across the country, no doubt due in large part to their Final Four appearance last season.

Though the schedule may be tough, it gives the Bears a chance to prove themselves as one of the top teams in the country. After all, if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best.

Muhammad wins Cal-Hi Athlete of the Year for second year in a row

Cal football recruit Khalfani Muhammad just completed a feat that has not been accomplished for 109 years.

Muhammad was named the Cal-Hi Athlete of the Year for the second year in a row, something not done since 1904.

He also was only the third sprinter in state history to win state championships in the 100- and 200-meter sprints for two years running, an achievement that no doubt contributed to the award.

Muhammad will play running back for the Bears in the fall as a freshman.

The post Sports in Brief — July 22, 2013 appeared first on The Daily Californian.

Summer readers, lifelong bookworms, nerds and closet nerds have another reason to be happy in Berkeley. According to Amazon, Berkeley is among the top 20 “most well-read” cities in the country. Though rankings are determined by sales alone, we can experience Berkeley’s bibliophilia just by walking around. Our campus offers many stylish libraries with cafes, gardens and smoking areas in tandem. Northside, Southside and Downtown Shattuck are home to bookstores like Moe’s Books, Bookish, University Press Bookstore, Revolutionary Books and Eastwind Books of Berkeley — where book lovers find fascination like thieves in a gem-studded grotto. At bars and pizza places, locals read. On the bus, BART or ellipticals at the RSF, students read. Even on the Fire Trails, hikers stop to take in the view and read.

Behind the scenes, too, Berkeley is where books are happening. Indie and conventional publishers and distributors are located here, along with luminary writers, poets and thinkers such as Robert Hass, Vikram Chandra, Michael Chabon, Lyn Hejinian, Maxine Hong Kingston, Mark Danner, Robert Reich and Isabel Allende. Berkeley itself has been the backdrop of novels such as “Dhrama Bums,” “The Crying of Lot 49″ and “Telegraph Avenue.” The iconic poem of the Beat generation, “Howl” by Allen Ginsburg, was composed in a guest house on Southside.

Besides school, food, commerce and creativity, what makes reading a Berkeley thing and not a San Francisco thing or even a (sssssss) Stanford thing? Is it because we toiling students want to discover deeper meaning by reading self-help books (for the sterotypical Haas student), Kurt Vonnegut (for the sterotypical hipster) or David Foster Wallace (for the stereotypical English major)? Could it be that we are always bombarded with countercultural, anti-establishment, granola-loving ideas that we are driven to seek out the truth for ourselves? Is it because we can’t wait to find out what happens in the newest episode of “Game of Thrones” or the latest spinoff of “Twilight?” Or is it that the fog, that white blanket of soaring water, that enchants us to snuggle up and play morning and evening with one of the mysteries of life?

Who really knows? Maybe we’ll find out in the next book we come across.

Image source: Sharada Prasad CS under Creative Commons

Contact Josh Escobar at jescobar@dailycal.org.

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