Reverb

Shovels and Rope sold out the Grey Eagle in Asheville May 4....

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:36:56 -0400

Shovels and Rope sold out the Grey Eagle in Asheville May 4. Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst, both of whom call the South home, just released their debut album O’ Be Joyful last year but the duo has quickly gained popularity.

“Let Them Eat Cake!” - Take a look at this awesome...

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:33:45 -0400

“Let Them Eat Cake!” - Take a look at this awesome stop motion created by Lara Nguyen’s Watercolor Class. See if you can spot our editors, Grace Hatton, dolls.

No shoes, no shirt, and I still get service Dingo Martin Photo...

Tue, 07 May 2013 10:00:32 -0400

No shoes, no shirt, and I still get service

Dingo Martin

Photo by Jackson Burnell

There’s something about Mary Mary E Walton Photo by...

Sat, 04 May 2013 10:00:34 -0400

There’s something about Mary

Mary E Walton

Photo by Jackson Burnell

Hell Week

Thu, 02 May 2013 14:25:16 -0400

By Grace Hatton

Ahh, the circus. A Wilson spring tradition. Every year the event showcases all the weird and wonderful talent this school has to offer the community. Yet before students, staff and faculty can settle into Bryson to enjoy a delightful evening of steppers, aerialists, dancers, acrobats and more, the performers must endure something affectionately referred to as Hell Week.

The week of a circus, performers, like myself, gather in Bryson for three days, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, to complete rehearsals before coming back together again for the performances on Friday and Saturday night.

During hell week the performers come with our acts, costumes and piles of homework we hope to do in between rehearsing the show.

The band plays in the background and an old time cabaret vibe seems to fall over Bryson. Everyone looks on in anticipation as we discover each other’s acts for the first time. Laptops, notepads and textbooks litter the edges of Bryson as we all hope to finish some work in between performing and watching the other wondrous acts.

Yet very few of us will actually finish any work. The atmosphere is far too hectic, far too colorful and to be frank, too much of a circus.

We arrive at 7 p.m. and after hours of practice around midnight we are given the okay to say goodnight. We leave behind a pacing student activities crew who endure perhaps an even crueler hell week, as they work themselves to the bone but will receive no applause on opening night. As we leave Bryson near the midnight hour we all look a little like zombies with droopy eyes, arched backs and a thin layer of sweat clinging to our pores.

For myself after I leave rehearsals I stay up till 3 a.m. (I’m writing this at 2:49 a.m.) completing the homework that is due at 9 a.m. the next morning. For a week my life is consumed by circus.

I think about how I need to be at rehearsals, how I need to find more glitter for my costume, how I need to perfect that last step and how crazy the weekend is going to be. When my teachers tell me there is more work due this week I simply cringe. I won’t be getting any sleep.

Hell Week is a potent, all-consuming thing and by the end of Wednesday’s dress rehearsals we are all sick of the wooden interior of Bryson and the acts that seemed so wondrous on Monday now seem tired and stale (even though they are far from it). There is no escaping the depth of absolute fatigue that seeps into your bones during Hell Week. Imagine finals week but with more physical pain thanks to the repeated run through of your act.

Yet despite this horrid week we’re all still here, waiting for Friday. The truth is, yes Hell Week is a bitch, but we’re all eager to showcase our talent and represent our school the best we can.

Circus is a celebration of students’ ingenuity and imagination. It’s an ode to how odd (how many schools have a circus?) yet utterly amazing Wilson is. There’s nothing quite like being part of a circus show and on Friday and Saturday when we pour everything we have into a three or four minute performance you’ll notice.

You’ll see our passion and endurance shine through with every stomp, kick, joke and trick. And all we ask for in return is applause on show night and a little leniency on the run up. If someone you know is in circus, they’re going through Hell Week right now and may seem a little dull, a little unresponsive and a little tired, but you can make them feel so much better by respecting the grueling nature of Hell Week. There’s no complaining here. Just one girl’s expression of the agony of Hell Week, but hey that’s a choice we all made when we signed up for the wonder that is circus and have no fear come show time the performers and stage crew of circus will give you the best show of the year. So be prepared for nothing short of magic.

Steve Solnick sat down with Echo Editor Micah Wilkins Wednesday,...

Wed, 01 May 2013 20:16:34 -0400

Steve Solnick sat down with Echo Editor Micah Wilkins Wednesday, May 1 to talk about his first year as college president. Listen to what he had to say.

rewind-button-girl: Shatter the silence. Stop the violence....

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:13:40 -0400

rewind-button-girl:

Shatter the silence. Stop the violence.

Hey Warren Wilson students! Coming up next Tuesday, April 23rd is our campus’s annual Take Back the Night march and speak out. We’ll get started in the Ballfield Courtyard around 7:15 pm, so come on out and rally with us as we march around campus. The speak out is open to survivors and allies alike, so come along to show your support or share a message.

Also, be on the look out for information about other events leading up to that night, including a hike, a cake walk, t-shirt making, and so more! More information will be on the Inside Page and on posters around campus and in Glad.

Hope to see you there next Tuesday!

Come one, come all, and gaze upon the movie of the century! Meet...

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:50:19 -0400

Come one, come all, and gaze upon the movie of the century! Meet or remember WWC alumna and movie director Alanna Stewart! Feast your eyes and warm your soul upon the acting talents of WWC alumna Morgan Rose Stewart!

It’s in Jensen at 4pm on April 19th. There will be a Q+A. You will probably laugh.

ABOUT THE MOVIE: A homespun high school fairy tale screwball comedy six years in the making, WHAT I LOVE ABOUT CONCRETE follows Molly Whuppie on her quest to revive a magical dead swan, all the while navigating the absurdities of high school history projects and abstinence-only sex-education. Armed with only a shoestring budget, a grand vision, and an off-kilter sense of humor, Dohan and Stewart turned to homemade special effects, original music, puppetry, and an eclectic cast of community actors to realize their uncanny take on the classic heroine’s journey.

Zada Clarke. by Jackson Bicknell

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 15:51:00 -0400

Zada Clarke.

by Jackson Bicknell

Becca Droz has an extensive wardrobe of self-made tie dye...

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 15:39:00 -0400

Becca Droz has an extensive wardrobe of self-made tie dye clothes. Photo by Jackson Bicknell

Dog (accompanied by Finn Gallagher)Photo by Jackson Bicknell

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 19:23:33 -0400

Dog (accompanied by Finn Gallagher)
Photo by Jackson Bicknell

Dylan McCann — Mint Chocolate ChipPhoto by Jackson Bicknell

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 16:34:00 -0400

Dylan McCann — Mint Chocolate Chip
Photo by Jackson Bicknell

A windy, cold, snowy day here at WWC.

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 18:00:54 -0500

A windy, cold, snowy day here at WWC.

The Warren Wilson Step Team Performing at the UNCA Step...

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 21:00:54 -0500

The Warren Wilson Step Team Performing at the UNCA Step Tournament Last Weekend.

The Warren Wilson Echo was given several awards at this year’s...

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 13:42:24 -0500

The Warren Wilson Echo was given several awards at this year’s North Carolina Media Associations Conference, held Feb. 16 at North Carolina A&T State University. Among North Carolina schools with 6,000 or fewer students, The Echo was awarded third place for “Best of Show” for its newspaper overall, and fourth place for its website, among schools like University of North Carolina at Asheville and Wake Forest University. Echo Editor-in-Chief Micah Wilkins was also recognized with an honorable mention in News Writing for her article “EPA to Host Open Meeting,” and second place in Opinion Writing for “Joe Biden visits Asheville to Deliver Generic Speech.”

Big Gigantic at the Orange Peel By Claire Toal “The only...

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 17:22:45 -0500

Big Gigantic at the Orange Peel

By Claire Toal

“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to talk, mad to be saved, delirious of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue center light pop and everyone goes “Awww!” -Jack Kerouac

This past Saturday, 2/6, I abandoned any sense of unfamiliarity or naivety to the electronic drum and base music scene when I attended Big Gigantic at the Orange Peel. Big Gigantic is a vibrant, unique highly spirited duo composed of Dominic Lalli (saxophone and producer) Jeremy Salken (drums).

Big Gigantic is from Boulder, Colorado, which is often compared to Asheville, and characterized by instrumental live-tronica, hip-hop, and jazzy notes. Energized electronic beats, live saxophone and drums instrumentation form an intimate coalescence with intense light shows consisting of bright, rhythmic lights with visuals to create a submission to the euphoric atmosphere.

The show was a mesmerizing experience. Through the myriads of shimmering costumes, along with disjointed dance moves, obvious hunger madness” pulsed through the eyes of the members in the crowd. Playful electronic beats, base drops, the synthesizers residual shock, and with neon penetrated eyelids the atmosphere of the venue. The perspiration perfumed dance floor boasted males and females alike—primarily bros desperate to display their own renditions of rhythms the beat had internally inspired. The crowd gazed greedily in every direction frantic to capture/comprehend the energy that was manifesting itself into its geometric, fluid, and physical expression.

Bright hues from the light show fused with electric saxophone beats transforming the audience into a surprise explosion of bliss.

Big Gigantic’s audible performance yielded complete adoration from its audience while everyone including my friends, and I basked in the kaleidoscopic audible sounds created by Big Gigantic.

Seeking Break Workers and People with Cool Tattoos for New...

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 23:14:00 -0500

Seeking Break Workers and People with Cool Tattoos for New Speech Patterns

It’s the beginning of a new semester here at Wilson and as always the Echo staff is on the look out for new stories. Reverb is joining in the fun by creating a new speech pattern series and reviving an old one. First of all we are looking for student break workers (whether they be summer, winter, spring or thanksgiving) with interesting stories about life on campus when you’re working vs living the triad.

So if you have a funny, interesting or just weird story you’d like to share about your experience as a break worker on campus please message us and we will get back to you asap about setting up a speech pattern interview.

The speech pattern series we are reviving is the Tattoo series. The tattoo series was started a year ago by our editor, Grace Hatton, who is fascinated by interesting looking tattoos but even more interested by the stories behind them. We post a photo of the tattoo along with a fun quick audio clip that describes the story behind the tattoo. If you have a kick ass tattoo that you love or hate that also happens to have an interesting story behind it, we’d love to talk about it with you. Again if you’re interested in doing a quick, less than ten minutes, speech pattern for Reverb just shoot us a quick message.

Thank you in advance for helping to make Reverb awesome by participating in a speech pattern series and in turn helping us to celebrate all the amazing individuals that call Warren Wilson home.

P.S - FYI being interviewed for a Reverb speech pattern makes you a feel at least a little famous so that’s something to look forward too.

P.P.S - Unfortunately the Echo office does not have a bedazzled microphone (like the one in the photo) to use for recording speech patterns, but it’d be pretty great if we did.

Marc Williams leads Wild Ferment-Nation Workshop By Jake...

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 16:47:25 -0500

Marc Williams leads Wild Ferment-Nation Workshop

By Jake Fraser

“Animals are something invented by plants to move seeds around.”-Terence Mckenna.

2007 Warren Wilson alumnus Marc Williams recently led a group of knowledge hungry students on a first-hand guided journey that involved five exciting hours of discovering the often overlooked edible weeds that blanket our campus, followed by a crash course on glorious fermented foods, and concluded with a variety of delicious, peculiar, and nutritious fermented eats and drinks.

This strangely hot day in December set a carefree summer-fun spooky global warming stinky person, kind of tone: right up Warren Wilson alley. We started the workshop with a stroll through campus identifying numerous edible plants along the way. From sassafras to creasy greens, our bio-diverse region houses a multitude of edible and medicinal plants. Our walk outlined some basic plant classification, field identification, culinary applications, and health benefits of plants we found along the way, some plants found include: Burdock, yellow dock, Ale hoof, sassafras, chickweed, nettles, wild onions, mint, wild carrots and their parsley-like greens, dandelion, fennel, yarrow, absinthe and mugwort.

After the information packed walk through campus, we gathered on the couches of lower fellowship, for an hour lecture on the products, history, and benefits of fermentation. All over the world, for thousands of years fermentation has been used to preserve foods like Sauerkraut, Kimchee, vinegar, yogurt, kefir, cheese, sourdough breads,pickles, soy sauce, coffee, tea, liquor, wine, mead,beer, and cider. These foods are rich in probiotics—which help improve digestion and general immune system warding off disease. Enzymes that breakdown complex proteins into simpler amino acids and B vitamins are also created through fermentation. Plus, the lactose in milk is converted to lactic acid. Besides the health benefits, fermented foods add variety in flavor and texture.

We ended the day learning how to make some fermented foods including Sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, hummus, dosas, and kombucha. After an informative hands-on cooking session we gathered around to try our dishes as well as the diverse selection of fermented products Williams brought to share. To name a few, we made an arugula and fennel yogurt dip, hummus, and dosas, using some of the wild plants we picked earlier, and tried almost ten different kombuchas, water and milk kefir, jun, beet kvass, yogurt, sauerkraut and ginger brew of William’s. The group left the five hour workshop smiling with stomachs full and eyebrows raised.

“If I can make it, why not?” said Marc Williams.

Marc Williams has studied plants intensively for food, medicine, and beauty. His training includes; a bachelor’s degree concentrating in Sustainable Agriculture from Warren Wilson College, over a decade working at a multitude of restaurants, various farms, and the pursuit of botanical exploration throughout North/Central America and Western Europe. He is currently studying to get a master’s degree concentrating in Sustainable Development from Appalachian State University. (botanyeverday.com)

“If you come to one of my workshops, you’re gonna learn something.” said Williams.

Some handy highlights from the work shop:

Fresh Mint Tea

Mint, the biggest spice family provides basil, thyme, oregano, Marjoram, and of course mints. Warren Wilson’s usual suspects: Spearmint, winter mint, mountain mint, bee balm, Heal all and lemon balm, all easily recognized by their square stems and symmetrically opposing leaves and can be mixed into water on the way to class to make a delicious bourgeois drink.

There are tons of wild green onions on campus, that can be safely identified by their distinct onion smell; Onions make a lot of food taste better.

Dorm-made Yogurt

Heat up a half a gallon milk to at least 115 degrees F, add two spoonfuls of store bought yogurt, and wrap it up in a sleeping bag or cuddle with it for eight hours and BAM. To make Greek yogurt: place any yogurt in a strainer or colander, atop of a bowl in the fridge, until enough liquid has drained and a desired consistency is reached.

Sauerkraut/ Kimchee: Just combine three tablespoons of salt with about five pounds of sliced vegetables, pressed tightly in a glass or ceramic container. Make sure water rises above the vegetables within a couple days, or add a cup of water and a tablespoon of salt. Let sit for 10 days.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show on November 17th! Did you go to...

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:46:38 -0500

The Rocky Horror Picture Show on November 17th! Did you go to the show? What did you think?

In honor of the upcoming Wilson showing of Rocky Horror Picture...

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 10:00:22 -0500

In honor of the upcoming Wilson showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show (Saturday, the 17th at 7pm in Bryson Gym) we are sharing some tips for all the ‘virgins’ planning on giving themselves over to absolute pleasure that evening.

Tips for Virgins!

Audience Participation is a part of the show and started back in the 1970’s in the USA and made it over to the UK a few years later. Fans have been dressing up, shouting back lines and singing along to the show and movie for thirty years now. The Wilson performing cast will act out the movie in front of the screen.

Audience Participation should always be complementary to the show, never just shouting out lines for the hell of it. The following two responses will get you started in the wonderful world of talk-back.

Brad is referred to as an ‘Asshole’, when his name is mentioned in the dialogue by the Narrator this is the correct response.
Janet on the other hand is referred to as a ‘Slut’.

The idea of Rocky Horror Participation is to have fun but be mindful of the cast and other audience members. Doing so will allow you to the show to the maximum pleasure level.

When it Comes to Props

The throwing of rice, water, etc. is meant to be fun and should not cause damage to the Bryson or other people’s costumes. Moderation can be a key element, a light shower rather than a monsoon!

The following items may be of use to you during the show.Please note that it is considered very bad etiquette to throw anything onto the stage, not to mention dangerous for the actors.

Rice, to be thrown during the wedding scene.

Toast, thrown during the dinner scene.

Rubber gloves,to be snapped in time with frank ‘n’ furter during the creation scene.

Flashlight, used during the song ‘there’s a light’.

Party Poppers etc, used during the Dinner/Happy Birthday scene in the play.

Newspaper, worn over the head during the rain scene.

Playing Cards, thrown during the line ‘cards for sorrow, cards for pain’.

Overall, please listen to the cast as far as seating in Bryson, dress up like its Halloween all over again, participate and if you’re a virgin (i.e someone who has never been to a Rocky Horror Show before) be prepared for lipstick on your face.

For more Rocky Horror virgin tips, just go ahead and google it. There are a million sites that will give you even more specific information. See you on Saturday!