Our soul sister, Chuch, hits us one mo' 'gain with another album review. This time she took a little time off from traveling the astral plane to meditate on one of the year's most anticipated Hip-Hop albums, Kendrick Lamar's: good kid, m.A.A.d city. Peep game...

This is the second time i write my thoughts about Kendrick Lamar's "good kid, m.A.A.d city" i deleted the first one because I realized i had reviewed this album with bias. i was pleasing the audience. You know, saying what i'm supposed to say about the praised kendrick lamar. but then i remembered what a legitimate review was; the humane thought of the individual, un-biased and un-bought, it's an honest appreciation for the art of the music, not necessarily any value in liking or disliking.  

When listening to "good kid, ma.a.d city", i understood the beautiful composition of the album, but that alone wasn't listening, that was just me using my sense of hearing. and then i realized that Kendrick Lamar wasn't even rapping, he was just talking with style. Poetry, you know?  Kendrick lamar spit his personal journal of thoughts. And with that it was obvious that he wasn't trying to satisfy a mainstream public, instead he made this music to his liking, with his message. and not by any generic or gimmicky "rap" standards either! he was a true music artist creating his art.  

i appreciate the monologue-like verses of "Back Seat Freestyle", the revealing unspoken words of "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe", the parallel flow relationship between words and sounds in "poetic justice", and then there's the conscious poetry on an obvious "trap beat" on the actual "good kid, maad city" title track. it was an awesome collage of songs, an ode to honesty, the album was an incredible story told in diverse methods of expression. Art!

It was nice to listen to his taste in music via the samples/beat selection. i respect the work, i respect the album. i was sonically satisfied. Maybe it doesn't fit my current musical phase, but it was indeed as good as most people proclaim it to be. 

Remember kids, never underestimate the power of honesty!

Stream Kendrick's freshman debut here.

And follow Chuch at @LoveChuch (trust us, she tweets in mixed caps too)

So our homie and resident hippie, Chuch, who just happens to spend her spare time travelling the states (what a flower child) has taken a break from smelling flowers and trying on gypsy rings in order to review Frank Ocean's freshman release: Channel Orange. Despite the recent controversy surrounding his coming out of the proverbial sexuality "closet" Chuch offers her innate, passionate thoughts on the album--what we love her best for!

i listened. i listened, -without analyzing- without any narcissistic thoughts interrupting the sense of listening. and it was difficult to do this, especially when you are listening to the now “gay-bisexual-whatever you wanna call it, Frank Ocean”. i have been a fan of the ocean ever since the humble days of his nostalgia, ultra debut, so i had to erase any expectations and anticipations to actually listen. and i realized, the reason why i liked frank ocean so much, was because i couldn’t necessarily relate to every song, because they were his songs, his stories, his inside jokes, his art.

which depicts what an artist should be, which then led me to think why are people glorifying frank ocean so much for coming out? i mean, i was too, and then i realized, he didnt “come out” for me, or for his fans, or for the gays, or for america, he was just being himself. which questions america’s credibility (like always), why is being yourself such a luxury? and why is he again, glorified about how such an “artist” he is? i mean he’s a music artist, isn’t that how all “artists” are supposed to be, isn’t art supposed to be a catharsis  expression of self? so why are so amazed by it? he composed, and wrote music to his taste, not for anyone, not for me, not for  you, and people can see that, we can always relate to the fundamental truth of honesty, and it unites us. 

frank ocean’s music is a beautiful collage of personal tales. it is this amazing eclectic scrapbook of scattered emotions, like the song “pyramids” is the complete opposite from “forrest gump”, and the  the freedom in the “child like” questioning in “bad religion”,  which details exactly what a human is: a host of different and extreme emotions. we all are. we are all emotional powerhouses, who are constantly battling our inner truths with the standards of reason, and thats what frankie has done in this album. from sounds to lyrics he expressed himself humanly, with flaws, questions, and “foolish ignorance”. which is why i love frank ocean. i mean he named his album “channel orange”, and as an art school baby, you see the great emotional representation of that, as colors are  the purest state of emotions, and what could be any more “pure” than channeling a color. 

 i really don’t have a specific point to this, they are just thoughts about this person, and his work. which is what makes the world go ‘round, ideas, if you have created something on this earth to cause the questioning of ideas, and have created, then you my friend have already lived, and served your purpose.  

and he’s gorgeous anyways. 

Stream Channel Orange from Frank's Tumblr page here.

And follow Chuch via Twitter at @LoveChuch.

By Amanda Farda

Introducing Super Mario 3D Land, the latest Mario adventure that derives from the original Super Mario Land titles first introduced on the Nintendo Game Boy.

As per usual, the evil reptile, Bowser, has snatched up the ever so kidnap-able Princess Peach and it’s up to Mario, the savvy plumber, to rescue her from his castle. This mandates Mario to run, jump, and flutter through eighth different worlds all with various levels and item stages that'll surely keep you busy and entertained!

One thing you can’t have a Mario platformer without is power-ups, and one of the most beloved ones returns with this title: The Tanooki Suit from Super Mario Brothers 3. It turns Mario into a Tanooki allowing him to flutter after a jump and whip enemies with his tail. Other power-ups include the classic Fire Flower, which grants Mario the ability to throw fire balls, the Star that briefly makes Mario invincible, and introducing the Boomerang Flower which grants him the power to toss boomerangs. No offense, but I tend to stick the more traditional ones like the Tanooki Suit which I find to be more fun and useful.

Game controls are a dream and I’d expect nothing less from a Mario title. Mario’s got his usual mantra of moves that require precise controls to pull off and propel you forward. Timing that jump just right is crucial, especially when collecting the Star Coins scattered throughout the levels as they can be placed in unique areas off the beaten trail. There are three hidden in each level and collecting them is essential to progressing, as you'll need them to unlock new worlds.

Although initial levels may seem less challenging to seasoned players, don’t fret, because after you save Princess Peach another eight worlds await with new challenges, such as strict time limits and remixes of previous stages.

The levels are really well-produced! I guess we should note that there’s never been a 2D/3D Mario title like this. The 2D sets the path you'll need to go down, but the 3D actually allows you to further explore these paths. It also allows for different vantage points as there are parts you play top-down style, as opposed to left-right. The levels are timed like in traditional 2D Mario, so although you can explore, don’t wander for too long or you won't make it!

Truthfully, everyone's favorite plumber has never looked better on a handheld. The Mario "worlds" are as whimsical as ever and as unique as it gets. Super Mario 3D Land is quite possibly the best original 3DS title to date. Total must-buy!

For more info visit: http://supermario3dland.nintendo.com/

By Amanda Farda

Anyone feeling like video games have become an endless spiral of expectance might want to give Sifteo a try. Forget huge screens and hard-on-the-eyes 3D screens; the premise of Sifteo cubes is bringing gamers back to basics with an innovative twist. The tiny cubes (anywhere from two to six combined) have their own screens that interact with one another. Each is equipped with a 32-bit ARM microprocessor, a 3-axis accelerometer that determines positioning, 8MB Flash for quick launching, installing and uninstalling of games, a lithium-ion polymer rechargeable battery, and a full-color 128 pixel LCD touchscreen display.

A $149 starter kit gets you 3 Sifteo cubes, a charging station, the Siftlink USB wireless radio, Siftrunner software, 2 free games plus the Sifteo Creativity Kit and 500 points to use in the Sifteo Online Store. Any additional Sifteo cubes are $45 a pop, a bit pricey if you plan on making use of the 6-cube dynamic.

Another catch is that users will need a PC with Windows 7, XP, or Vista, or a Mac, running OS 10.5 or higher, to run the devices. You'll then need to actually download the SiftRunner software for your computer. Once installed, an account has to be opened along the way to launch it. Once that's done, you simply plug in the Siftlink USB wireless radio and click on the Sifteo cubes to begin operation. On screen instructions navigate you to add all available cubes and buy games from the online shop. Here's where the Sifteo magic lies. The games range from free to 300 points, to play. After they’re downloaded, you’ll find them in “my games”. Although there’s limited flash memory, there was enough for us to easily store eight games. Once acquired, all that's left to do is click "play" to launch any game; note that the sounds are actually generated from your computer’s speakers.

Learning how to manipulate the cubes is intuitive and fun. On-screen instructions during actual gameplay also help guide the action, like when it needs to go to the next screen and you simply tip the cube toward the other cube to transfer it--useful with games like in “Gopher Run”. The cubes can be placed next to one another and they can also be stacked atop each other. Some games like the puzzler, “Chroma”, utilize the accelerometer and tipping the cubes to manipulate the contents on screen. “Do the Shift” was also rather entertaining as it requires you to use the cubes in a very action-oriented "Bop-It" style manner.

My only complaint with it all is that the games, no matter how cool they were to play, seemed geared mostly towards a younger audience. I was left longing for a more thought-provoking/intriguing game library, but I imagine that that'll come with time, after more developers actually dedicate their savvy to the system.

Overall, Sifteo is an interesting tech toy that might get most mileage out of a younger audience for now. And considering the price of the average handhelds available in the market, Sifteo is worth its weight in ingenuity and possibilities.

For more info visit: https://www.sifteo.com 

By Amanda Farda

When Ubisoft announced Rayman: Raving Rabbids for the Nintendo Wii five years ago, I assumed it was a strategic move to take advantage of the console’s unique controls and rapidly expanding audience. While the move was certainly family friendly, it left many original Rayman fans wanting more. The series had morphed into the first of two disappointing mini-game collections and the future of the franchise looked dull at best.

However, that outlook has changed now that Rayman has returned back to a platformer in the appropriately titled, Rayman: Origins. What’s more impressive is that Rayman: Origins transports you to a beautiful world of 2D animation. The game’s engine is designed specifically to scan in the artist's work and import it into the game. This whimsical style breathes new life into Rayman and his friends as they ban together to save the world.

Not only does the game look great, it controls well too! It actually reminds me of a little red plumber, especially with the addition of the "wall jump" and "ground pound" moves, but this isn’t a bad thing. Jumping, running and even flying around the fantastical world feels fluid and responsive.

Additionally, Rayman doesn’t have to go it alone, three friends can join seamlessly in local multiplayer mode by picking up a controller. They can play as Rayman’s faithful buddy, Globox, King of the Teensies or a Teensie. One cool mechanic of this multiplayer mode is “bubble death.” When someone dies, he/she becomes a bubble. The dead player can then control this bubble that can be “popped” back into life by an active player. But once every player is “bubbled,” the level restarts.

The Rayman: Origins demo that I played focused on one "element" per level. There was a level centered on wind mechanics and another focused entirely on ice. This made for some fast-paced gameplay with a wind tunnel sucking Rayman up and spitting him out across the screen during one part and a waterway sweeping him away during another. All of it kept me on my toes awaiting the next challenge!

With so many triple-A titles coming out this holiday season, Rayman: Origins may get lost in the clutter, but I encourage all of the true platform gamers out there to keep an eye out for this gem as it was released this month for Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Rayman: Origins truly returns the franchise back to its platforming roots and breathes some much-appreciated life back into the series.

For more info visit: http://raymanorigins.uk.ubi.com/

By Kimber Streams

So, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim releases tomorrow (11.11.11) and it's pretty much the only thing that matters. Here's why:

First, the game has an infinite number of adventures thanks to the Radiant Quest System, where different guilds and non-player characters provide randomly generated quests to kill bounties and gather resources. When added to the fact that there are an infinite number of dragons to slay, we're not sure you'll ever be putting this game down.

But developer, Bethesda, and director, Todd Howard, weren't just aiming for quantity with Skyrim, the game has also addresses pretty much every issue with its predecessor, Oblivion. The more obvious improvements include the voice acting (more varied) and a character creation system that actually produces figures that don't look like they've been mauled by a bear. The user interface is also much improved, with 3D item models and cleaner, more intuitive categorizations of items.

Skyrim's also got this brand-new Crafting System that allows players to create and enchant weapons and armor. Similar to the alchemy system in previous games, where you would combine various ingredients to make potions and poisons, you can now tan hides for leather accessories, or mine and smelt various metals for weaponry. Pretty cool, huh?

And now for my Playthrough (*WARNING* Spoiler alert):

I started my quest as a prisoner about to be executed for what I'm sure were ghastly and bloodcurdling crimes, when a dragon showed up, wrecked the town, and saved my Argonian hide. In the first five minutes of the game I was asked to make a choice between the Imperials and the rebels, but I honestly didn't even know I was making a choice at the time, I was running away from a huge dragon who wanted to kill me and everyone else in the town! So I haphazardly ran from the fire and destruction into the keep with a guy who was apparently an Imperial, and together we set about killing a bunch of rebels who wanted my blood in a sort of tutorial on the various aspects of combat and dungeon-crawling.

After we escaped the burning town, I was free to go and do whatever I could possibly want (although the Imperial I had befriended did suggest that I go talk to his Uncle in the nearby town of Riverwood). Instead, I found an abandoned mine, looted it, chased around butterflies, dragonflies, and picked some pretty flowers. Then, I noticed that the way to discover new alchemical properties of ingredients is to eat them! So I roamed the countryside some more, picking flowers, catching insects and shoving them all indiscriminately into my lizard-mouth. Eventually, I stumbled across a witch's house. She had a human heart on her counter, so naturally I stole it and ate it, in the name of science (awesome).

When I eventually decided to give the main plot a whirl, I went into a dungeon, retrieved a golden dragon-claw, and went to meet the lord of a nearby city. While talking to him, a dragon attacked, and thus I fought my first dragon of Skyrim and it was amazing. Skyrim succeeds in making every adventure, whether part of the “main plot” or not, feel like its own story, thus making every dragon kill feel like an epic accomplishment. I'm never putting this game down. Ever! You probably won't want to either.

For more info visit: http://www.elderscrolls.com/

By Kimber Streams

Customers wanting a little more life out of their GoPro camera, especially when that money shot you've been waiting for all day arrives at the point of low juice, can now breathe a little easier thanks to the GoPro Battery BacPac. 

The device attaches to the back of the GoPro, effectively doubling the recording time from 2.5 hours to about 5.  For $49.99, The addition also comes with a waterproof case and a non-waterproof skeleton case for the GoPro HERO.  

We weren’t quite as fond of the Battery BacPac as we were of the LCD BacPac from a few reviews back, for several reasons.  Mainly, that it’s pretty hefty. Even though it’s just a shade thicker than the LCD BacPac, the extended battery almost doubles the weight of the GoPro. There is a way around this BacPac’s bulk, however, if portability's the issue. Since most camera situations don’t call for 5 hours of straight shooting without a battery or SD card change, the BacPac can just serve as a standby. You know, as in an only-in-case-of-emergency backup. It charges via USB, and the BacPac’s battery is identical to the camera’s original power source, meaning you can just swap out the batteries and use the BacPac as a charging station.  It’s not ideal, but definitely still useful even if the extra weight is a concern. 

Like the LCD addition, the GoPro Battery BacPac does a wonderful job of rounding out one of the GoPro’s limitations - now all we need is a GoPro wireless addition for remote shooting! 

For more info visit: www.gopro.com

By Kimber Streams

The Razer Mamba (2012) is one sexy, sexy gaming mouse. Its sleek ergonomic design is perfect for any size right hand (sorry lefties) and its functional rubberized texture actually prevents the staining associated with too much "gamer hand." The scroll wheel and dock also have eye-popping, customizable colored LED lights. From the get, the Mamba looks and feels great, gaming with it was a treat!

The newest addition to Razer’s gaming peripherals arsenal is the 6400dpi 4G Dual Sensor System. The Mamba also has a second sensor that can tell what surface it’s on and how far away from that surface it is (which works particularly great for sniping). When we took the mouse off of the surface and set it back down, the cursor barely moved instead of the usual shooting off the screen that happens with normal mice. The Dual Sensor System can also be configured to work at any desired distance from the surface, adding a whole new layer of customizable gaming.  

One of our favorite features about the mouse is it’s wireless capability. There's virtually no lag between commands and their execution thanks to the its 1ms response time. We’ve read a few reports about stuttering cursors and poor performance, but in several hours of testing we didn’t encounter a single delay! It may have been an issue that was solved in the latest firmware update (which I downloaded before testing).   

For a rechargeable wireless mouse, the Mamba’s battery life is astounding. Fully charged, it's advertised to last for 16 hours of continuous heavy gaming.  We tested it for about five and was about a third of the way through the battery life. That's solid! The handy little LED lights on the front left of the mouse actually display how much battery life is remaining. And if the battery’s running low, plugging in via USB allows the Mamba to work while it’s charging. Razer advertises a seamless transition between wireless and wired modes, but I wasn't so sure. It took about a second or two for the computer to recognize the device, not much more.  

And if all these features weren’t enough, the Mamba comes equipped with a total of 7 programmable buttons, all of which are ergonomically designed and easy to reach. The two side buttons are perfect in proportion and the two buttons on the top left can actually scroll through 6 different sensitivity presets. We found this really useful for a bunch of gaming scenarios, and We didn’t encounter any lag while switching. Of course, if you don’t need to switch sensitivities on the fly these buttons can be programmed to anything at all.

The Mamba’s software is free to download from the Razer Support website, and is very user-friendly and easy to navigate. The software allows for up to 5 different profiles, saved directly to the mouse so that it will retain those settings on any computer. The only problem we encountered with the software was time, it takes forever to rewrite and save all of the profiles! Every time we wanted to change one setting, or customize the LEDs, we were forced to wait 3-5 minutes for the software to overwrite all of the data.  

Alas, I wrote a love letter to Razer’s Mamba, and even with the hefty $130 price tag, it’s  still a very sweet buy. At first, I couldn’t imagine ever needing to spend that much for a gaming mouse, especially when a $10 two-button wired mouse usually suffices. But actually trying out the Mamba changed everything! We wound up finding a lot to drool over.

For more info visit: www.razerzone.com

By Kimber Streams

The GoPro, a camera known for it’s small size and great HD footage has very few limitations.  But for those who want a little extra, GoPro has introduced an extension to the camera: the LCD BacPac, a monitor addition useful for lining up shots and reviewing footage.

Before you can use the BacPac, you have to update the GoPro’s firmware.The ritual involves standing naked in a field at the full moon, and calling to the GoPro gods while turning 3 times to the right and playing Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” on the tambourine. In all seriousness, updating the firmware was worse than pulling teeth, if you don’t believe us, watch the actual installation process here. We finally got it to work after about an hour and a half of trying, giving up, and looking around at tutorials and forums, only to find the advice: “Keep trying.”  It never worked exactly as demonstrated in that tutorial, but one way or another we got the BacPac up and running.

Frustrating firmware update aside, how well does the accessory work?

The LCD BacPac is great for framing up shots to really step up the quality of your footage, and it’s great for reviewing footage afterward. While it does add a little thickness to the back of the GoPro, it adds virtually no weight at all, and comes off in a split second if the situation calls for every ounce of portability. The quality on the screen isn’t grainy or fuzzy at all, and there’s no lag between the camera’s movement and the display, which can be a concern for an add-on component.  In addition, the screen displays battery life and menus, which makes the GoPro considerably more navigable.  The LCD BacPac also comes with a waterproof casing for both the GoPro HD HERO and the HD wrist, as well as a lighter, non-waterproof Skeleton casing for both devices.  The whole LCD BacPac package, cases and all, is $79.99 on the GoPro website.

However, the addition is not without its minor faults. The storage casings are only for the LCD BacPac when connected to the GoPro itself, and it doesn’t come with a case for just the BacPac, making transportation a little worrisome with such a small device with an open LCD screen on the back.  Also, the small speaker on its right side is unfortunately very, very quiet - we could only hear the audio as a faint rumble. It may have been better served by including a headphone jack for reviewing audio instead of such low-quality speakers.  And finally, it's a bit of a battery hog, eating up the 2.5 hour average battery life rather quickly! One way to handle this issue, however, is to turn off the screen after framing shots or reviewing footage, since the BacPac has a convenient power button that is entirely independent of the GoPro.

For more info visit: www.gopro.com